And The Winner Is... Jon Hoadley

 

This took me over 3 hours to do this morning

Our Blue America contest ended last night-- at midnight (PT). There were 426 individuals who took part. People are still contributing to the candidates on the page, although those contributions, while very welcome, don't count as "votes."

A little over $29,000 was raised. Each candidate, on average, got almost $1,700. That number could be skewered because some candidates got as much as $1,000 while other candidates got lots and lots of $1 donations.

The contest started as a way for the candidates to explain why last minute contributions are useful-- even crucial-- and what they plan to do with the money that comes in from the next 2 weeks.

The big winner was... everybody. Really. Most contributions were divided evenly between all the candidates. But the candidates who motivated their supporters with e-mails and social media activity won the most votes. Jon Hoadley did that the most effectively and wound up with the most votes-- 217-- and will get a $2,000 check from Blue America. The $1,500 check goes to Adam Christensen, who got 168 votes, edging out Nate McMurray's 164 votes, Mike Siegel's 150 and Beth Doglio's 141.

Since around $1,500 went to Blue America itself instead of to candidates, we decided to divide that money equally and send it to McMurray, Siegel and Doglio, especially because their efforts brought so many people to the contest... and because each is on the verge of winning and needs the money. In fact, all of these candidates can use a last minute boost and if you click on the Blue America 2020 congressional ActBlue thermometer on the right, you can contribute whatever you like to any of them, any combination of them or all of them. (Just hit the link on the right side of the page that says "customize amounts.) Meanwhile, congratulations to Jon Hoadley's and Adam Christensen's teams for motivating so many contributions for their candidates and congratulations to all the candidates who "played" the game. Now, let's get in there and kick some conservative ass for the next 2 weeks-- and beyond!

When I called Jon to congratulation him and ask where to send the check, he was very appreciative and added that he wanted to send "a huge thank you to everyone who chipped in a little or a lot. One of the reasons we don't need to take Corporate PAC money is because of our grassroots donor base. It takes a big team to win a Congressional race, and this grassroots energy is just another example of the big team we have working to win here in MI-06."

Green Day/Blue Texas-- Insomniac Platinum Award Plaque Contest For Mike Siegel

March 3 isn't just Super Tuesday for the presidential candidates, it is also the big day for many congressional candidates all over the country. One of the best candidates Blue America has endorsed, Mike Siegel-- who has the best chance to replace a toxic Trump enabler (Michael McCaul)-- needs some help with his field campaign. Blue America wants to help him raise some money for that and we're going to offer the double platinum Green Day Insomniac award you see pictured here. (Green Day released their 13th studio album, Father of All Motherfuckers, on Friday.)

This is an RIAA-certified award for 2 million albums sold and it was awarded to their label president Howie Klein, now the treasurer of the Blue America PAC. The simple version of the rules: donate any amount to Mike Siegel's campaign on this page between today and 9pm (PT) on Valentine's Day (February 14) or send a check, made out to Mike Siegel for Congress, to Blue America, P.O. Box 27201, Los Angeles, CA 90027. Any amount... what ever you want to contribute. We will randomly select one winner regardless of the amount of the contribution.

The much longer, FEC-demanded rules in legalese are here for any masochists.

Mike grew up in Oakland, California in the 1980s and 90s, and he told us that Green Day was part of the soundtrack for his crew in high school. "Their album art and videos," said Mike, "acknowledged life in the East Bay, from walking the streets of Berkeley to riding BART. And their energy gave expression to our rebellious spirit!" And now he's a Texas civil rights attorney and a married man with two children... and a great congressional candidate.

Mike told us he and his team "have built the coalition to carry us to victory, and now the last piece is the gather the resources we need to communicate with every voter between now and Election Day. This is a campaign that is running hard on labor issues and the Green New Deal, which has not only earned me the support of folks like the Sunrise Movement and 350 Action, but also the Texas AFL-CIO, even though many of the workers in the Texas 10th are a part of the fossil fuel industry. We are taking a strong stand on climate change and voting rights, on justice for Rodney Reed (a Texas death row prisoner who grew up in TX-10), on Medicare for All in a region with closing rural hospitals, on a living wage and a retirement with dignity."

Early voting in Texas starts on February 18, four days after the contest ends. The money we raise for him will help his campaign bring voters to the polls and help keep getting his message out to voters. Please consider kicking in by tapping on the Insomniac ActBlue thermometer on the right and help make sure TX-10 replaces a reactionary Republican with a progressive Democrat.

Want To Play An Impeachment Game-- And Win $2,800 For The Candidate Of Your Choice-- And An Autographed Nancy Ohanian Print For Yourself?

Whistleblower by Nancy Ohanian

There are only 8 Democrats left who haven't publicly expressed the need to open an impeachment inquiry, these 8:

• Anthony Brindisi (Blue Dog-NY)
• Joe Cunningham (Blue Dog-SC)
• Jared Golden (ME)
• Kendra Horn (Blue Dog-OK)
• Ron Kind (New Dem-WI)
• Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN)
• Xochitl Torres Small (Blue Dog-NM)
• Jeff Van Drew (Blue Dog-NJ)

The print up top, Whistleblower, is what the winner gets. The winner also gets to direct $2,800 to any candidate on this list. Why $2,800? That's a maximum congressional contribution from an individual this year. So here's how to win:

1- Guess which one-- or more than one-- of the clowns on the list of anti-impeachment conservatives above, votes against impeachment. You might say, "all" or "Collin Peterson" or "Collin Peterson and Jeff Van Drew" or you might say "they will all vote for impeachment." Answer any way you think will be the correct answer.

2- Pick one candidate (from this list only) to get the $2,800. It will come from Blue America and we'll let the candidate know that you picked them to get the contribution.

3- Send an e-mail to downwithtyranny@gmail.com that includes:

a- your answer about the impeachment
b- your choice of candidates
c- your address to send the print

Easy, right? Nothing else is required. If more than one person gets the answer correct, we'll randomly chose one winner. Please, just keep this as only one entry per person. The contest ends at 9 PM (your time zone) tomorrow-- Monday, October 7, 2019. If you have any questions, e-mail me at downwithtyranny@gmail.com/

Fight Back Against Cheri Bustos-- And Win Some Art For Your Trouble

If you read DWT with any regularity-- or just wander over from time to time to look at the pictures-- you probably know the work of artist, cartoonist and charicaturist Nancy Ohanian, who does many of the illustrations. Nancy had long careers at the New York Times and the L.A. Times and in the academic world and just recently won this year's National Press Foundation’s Clifford K. and James T. Berryman Award for Editorial Cartooning. She also just put together her third deck on gorgeous, collectible playing cards, each card decorated with a different one of her creations. Lots of Trump poses, of course, but plenty of other 2018-19 political characters we'll never forget, whether we want to or not. Nancy gave Blue America 5 decks to give away this week to lovers of political art.

This is how we're going to do it. We want to raise money to combat the DCCC's anti-democracy Cheri Bustos Rule against primaries so we're asking you to go to our ActBlue congressional primary page. Donate any amount to any candidate-- or any combination of candidates-- and you'll have a shot at the random drawing for one of the decks.

The old establishment diktat about the only to win "Republican seats" is by running a Republican-lite campaign has been proven false over and over and over. Last week the Virginia Democratic establishment got slapped down again when they ran a corrupt conservative "ex"-Republican legislator against incumbent Democrat Lee Carter because they think Carter is too far to the left. In 2017, the voters of Manassas turned out in their highest numbers ever to replace the "untouchable" Republican House Majority Whip and replace him with democratic socialist Lee Carter. Last week the Democratic establishment's shill candidate lost his primary bid against Carter. But the Democratic establishment never learns.

As you probably know, Cheri Bustos has blacklisted firms that work with progressive candidates running against Blue Dogs. And Pelosi has given her the OK. So far we have four candidates we're trying to help overcome the DCCC roadblocks. There will be more soon; we're still vetting candidates to be as sure as we can be that when they get to Congress they won't disappoint. (Just like the cards won't disappoint you.)

Jennifer Burton, a Democratic media consultant, owns a company called SWAY. She explained for Politico readers this past week, how Bustos and Pelosi are damaging the Democratic Party. While Pelosi and other Democratic leaders pat themselves on the back for an increasingly diversity caucus, she wrote, "they are cutting off opportunities for female and minority political consultants-- often leaving key decisions about messaging and voter outreach in the hands of white men" by enforcing Bustos' idiotic, wrong-headed policy, part of an agenda to bolster progressives and target progressives. (Bustos herself is a rapid Blue Dog and New Dem with ambitions to run for Speaker.) The policy is clear: "Any consultants who work against Democratic incumbents will be barred from working with the DCCC and will not be recommended to its preferred candidates in 2020 and future election cycles."

The DCCC’s purpose is to protect Democratic incumbents and, in turn, the House’s Democratic majority. But, in practice, this policy protects the old boy’s network that dominates the culture of the DCCC and the outside firms it pushes Democratic candidates to hire for polling, direct mail, television ad-making and mor

In short, the committee is blacklisting people like me.

I have worked in Democratic politics for the past 30 years-- for former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt, for the DCCC and for various political media firms, including the one I started six years ago. In this time, I have seen many Democratic challengers beat incumbent Democrats in primary fights—Sheila Jackson Lee, Hilda Solis, Seth Moulton, Ro Khanna, Donna Edwards, Denise Majette, and, of course, two of the party’s newest superstars, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley. (It’s worth noting that all of these cases involved safe Democratic seats that had no chance of going Republican because of primary challenges.)

Not surprisingly, many candidates who challenge congressional incumbents are women and people of color; it’s often hard for them to make the leap into politics, and sometimes their only option is to run against the system. The DCCC’s rule will clearly hurt these kinds of candidates. But what people outside the Beltway might not realize is that many times these primary races are also the only opportunities afforded to female consultants and consultants of color.

Last cycle, I worked for Marie Newman, who took on Dan Lipinski, a Democratic congressman from Illinois who is anti-abortion and who fought for many years against marriage equality. Marie got within 2 points of knocking off Lipinski and now is running again. I’m signed up to work for her because I share her progressive values. Several weeks ago, two other consultants on Marie’s team decided to quit her race because of the DCCC blacklist policy. But I’m standing my ground, even though it means I will be exiled by the DCCC.

The political consultant world resembles Hollywood, where the top jobs-- director, cinematographer, writer-- go to white men. In our ranks, the top job on a campaign (and the most lucrative job) is usually the media consultant, the person who is responsible for the messaging and ad-making on a campaign. And the person in that job is usually a man. In 2018, according to information I received, the DCCC hired eight media firms to handle independent-expenditure campaigns-- that is, efforts to spend money on advertising to help Democratic challengers, independent of the campaigns themselves. (I confirmed on OpenSecrets that these eight firms were listed as vendors of the DCCC.) Of the almost 20 principals from these eight firms, only three were women and only one was a person of color.

Diversity in the consultant ranks is not a trivial matter. When the backbone of the Democratic Party is women and nonwhite voters, it’s clear that having more women and people of color in consulting roles would enhance political messaging to our most loyal constituencies. From my own experience, I’ve seen how much it matters to women candidates and candidates of color to have consultants that look like them on their teams, and how our work is better because we’re more aware of sensitivities, tone, and even how best to film and light these candidates.

My own firm prides itself on its diversity, both in our own ranks and among the clients we work for. Last cycle, six of the eight people at our firm were African Americans, including two of our principals and all of our editors and directors of photography, and we worked for more than 20 candidates of color.

When the DCCC hires consultant firms, it always asks about diversity within the staff and leadership, but the firms have yet to be held accountable. Drop in on any campaign conference call (we have a lot of them), and you’ll hear a lot of mansplaining, often of tone-deaf strategies about how best to reach women and minorities. Or talk to any female consultant, and you’ll hear countless stories about unfair treatment from these Democratic committees.

At a time when the Democratic presidential field includes four women in the top tier and several candidates of color, it’s hard to believe the Democratic Party still has so few women and people of color in leadership positions at its own consulting firms. The new DCCC chief, Illinois. Congresswoman Cheri Bustos, is perpetuating this problem with the committee’s new policy. A better approach would be to stop punishing consultants who work for candidates they believe in and start hiring more firms that actually look like the people that make up the Democratic Party.

"Until that happens," Burton concludes, she "won’t be bowing to the DCCC’s new demands." And it won't happen-- certainly not whole Pelosi, Hoyer, Bustos and other fossils run the House Democratic Party. The thermometer on the right will give you an opportunity to contribute to any or all of the outstanding progressive candidates primarying reactionary incumbents. And don't forget, 5 random donors will find a deck of Nancy Ohanian cards in their mailboxes. Did I mention that the decks are autographed? (Contest ends Wednesday morning at noon, EST.) UPDATE: Bustos is an honorary co-chair of the despicable Third Way.

The Joe Biden Contest

House of Cards by Nancy Ohanian

When I worked at Warner Bros, we would spend immense energy on rolling out new releases, especially for superstar artists like Madonna, Prince, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac, Depeche Mode, Green Day... Every department in the company would pull together to create an atmosphere that would drive radio airtime, TV appearances, advance music sales, advance ticket sales, press, word of mouth, etc. Sometimes we would plan half a year in advance to lock up scarce opportunities everyone else was competing for.

Even if you were rolling your eyes about the exploratory committee silliness followed by the "big announcements" that some of the campaigns engaged in, set-up can make a huge difference of how a candidate is perceived by the public. Howard Schultz's rollout was so lame that he managed to spend massive amounts of money to turn the public completely against him. Gillibrand didn't do that much better and is going in for a do-over. Beto had a mixed response-- confusion on the one hand, gigantic first-day "sales" and lots and lots of press for someone who isn't very well-known outside of Texas. Next up: Biden.

CNN reported over the weekend that his team is readying major endorsements and a message of strength ahead of his imminent announcement. He stumbled in a pre-announcement in Delaware last week, barking "It can't go on like this, folks. I know I get criticized and told I get criticized by the new left. I have the most progressive record of anybody running for the United States-- anybody who would run!" 3 problems:

• he let the cat out of the bag by lumping himself in with everyone running.
• did no one in his campaign know that there hasn't been a "new left" since the '70s?
• progressive record? not even close.

Since Biden has no real reason to be running other than careerism and ego, CNN reports that Biden is hoping to seize command of the highly-fluid contest through major endorsements and by pounding away that the most important thing for Democrats is to defeat Trump-- rather than to defeat Trump and replace him with a transformative agenda. It was Biden-like politicians for decades that tilled the soil for Wall Street and the plutocracy, making a Trump even possible. Elect Biden and create the environment for another Trump or... worse.

As he prepares for a possible run, Biden has hunkered down for strategy sessions with a tight knit group of advisers and held meetings with top Democrats and elected officials. One subject of discussion has been the early selection of a running mate, which one aide said would help keep the focus of the primary fight on the ultimate goal of unseating Trump.

Last week, Biden stirred speculation as he met privately with Stacey Abrams, a Democratic rising star who ran for governor in Georgia last fall and is weighing another run for office-- potentially even the presidency. Biden requested the meeting, according to a person familiar with the sit-down, which comes as the two mull their own respective political futures. Abrams also huddled with a half-dozen other Democratic presidential hopefuls, but her meeting with Biden takes on added weight because of his attempts to shore up support among black leaders amid lingering questions about his treatment of Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings and his support for a sweeping crime bill two decades ago.

Biden's team has started gaming out scenarios for what a campaign launch could look like with Wilmington, Delaware, and Scranton, Pennsylvania, where Biden was born, among several potential locations floated for an announcement rally, a source with knowledge of the discussions said. While the rest of the Democratic field settles into place, Biden's allies say the former vice president is keenly aware of the attention any announcement will draw.

"His launch will be watched by many, many eyeballs to see how he pulls it off, how much he raises," one Democratic donor in touch with Biden and his advisers said. "That's always been the question mark with him-- his discipline and his capability to execute a campaign."

One lingering question for Biden is his ability to fundraise, particularly on the small dollar, grassroots level. Other Democratic contenders like former Rep. Beto O'Rourke and Sen. Bernie Sanders have relied on massive online fundraising lists to churn out impressive fundraising figures of about $6 million.

"I think he in certain ways has been wise to string this out because the shorter the race, the better for him. He doesn't have the same demands that others have except for one that's going to be a challenge perhaps for him and that's raising money," said David Axelrod, former senior adviser to President Obama and a senior CNN political commentator. "Joe Biden's not by generation and nature a social media candidate. So he can't delay this much longer. He has to get around to the business of raising the resources that he needs."

Biden has already said he won't rely on a super PAC and as he teased a possible presidential run last week. "Our elections are drowning in money, and every dark dollar chips away at our faith in the system. You're going to hear a lot about this before it's all over, I'm not in a position to tell you now," he said.

...For as long as he can, Biden hopes to focus on the imperative to defeat Trump, aides said, rather than dwelling on what distinguishes him from his Democratic rivals.

Biden, who has been carefully watching the field of Democratic hopefuls grow, will try to quickly seize command of the race. Democrats familiar with his plans say he intends to unveil a roster of prominent supporters, including black leaders whose endorsements are seen as critical to his candidacy, as the race moves beyond Iowa and New Hampshire.

One of my favorite card images

And that brings us to our contest. Who is this "roster of prominent supporters" his campaign is boasting about? Can you guess? Wait, before you guess, let me tell you who he's not getting. The most obvious is another version of himself, Ed Rendell, an old style, middle-of-the-road corporate Dem from Pennsylvania. But he's already given his heart to another centrist, Amy Klobuchar. Same problem with another Biden-type establishment Dem, Ohio's Ted Strickland, who's riding with Jay Inslee.

And scratch virtually anyone from New Jersey; Cory Booker wrapped up the whole political class, from the right (Josh Gottheimer, Jeff Van Drew and Mikie Sherrill) all the way to the mushy middle (Senator Menendez, Governor Phil Murphy) and even a couple on the left, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Was Baraka. And-- in New Jersey-- even more important: the machine bosses (Joe DiVincenzo, Donald Norcross, Stephen Sweeney, Nicholas Scutari. LeRoy Jones...).

Beto has already started picking up the kinds of politicians from the Republican wing of the party who Biden might have been counting on: head Blue Dog Stephanie Murphy, New York New Dems Sean Patrick Maloney and Kathleen Rice. Beto also nabbed Martin O'Malley. Colorado and Hawaii are wide open since the local politicians there are not thrilled about favorite son John Hickenlooper or favorite daughter Tulsi Gabbard (although her right-wing father did endorse her). And Elizabeth Warren already wrapped up Joe Kennedy III.

So... who's the big roster of prominent supporters? I don't know. But if you're good at guessing games, you can win two different gorgeous collectible decks of cards by award-winning artist Nancy Ohanian. Each card has a drawing of a different political figure's caricature, although many of them are unflattering drawings of Trump and the cast of characters he's brought onto the national stage from Putin and Flynn to Jared, Ivanka and Pence. There are also pictures of some of your favorite anti-Trump leaders, like Mueller, Bernie, Elizabeth Warren, John McCain, Hillary, to name a few. The shell of each deck was autographed by Nancy.

So here are the rules: name the Biden endorsers he'll roll out on the first day (or two days, if he waits a day to announce them). You get a point for every name you get right and lose a point for every name you get wrong. The person with the highest "score" wins the two decks of cards. Easy-- and you don't have to contribute anything-- although you can if you want to (here). Just e-mail your list to downwithtyranny@gmail.com/ Since it's a big mystery when the "big day" is, all lists have to be received by noon (PT) on April 2 or before Biden announces if he announces before April 2. If two people get the same number of points, the list that was sent first wins the prize.

Contest-- Want Something Nice To Hang On Your Wall?

We're very proud that one of our artists-- and a dear friend-- Nancy Ohanian, was just honored by the National Press Foundation with their 2019 Berryman Award for Editorial Cartoons. The same day, Ted Lieu also presented her with a Congressional Certificate of Recognition. There is a video of Nancy accepting her award here. You might remember that I wrote about this last week, here. Today we want to give away 4 prints (the ones above)-- each autographed by the artist-- from her heroes of the revolution series:

• Ted Lieu (California)
• Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (New York)
• Rashida Tlaib (Michigan)
• Randy Bryce (Wisconsin)

We'll randomly select 4 donors and give each donor one print-- the one you want. How will we know which drawing you want? Well, imagine you decide to donate $20. Add one cent for Randy Bryce, two cents for Rashida Tlaib, three cents for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or four cents for Ted Lieu. So if you want the Randy Bryce image, you'd give $20.01. Or say you want to contribute $5 and have a chance to win the Rashida print, You contribute $5.02. Easy enough, right?

And the money you give goes where? Our independent expenditure committee spends money supporting the progressive congressional candidates we endorse. You can see the list here: our 2020 House candidates so far.

But this is where you contribute if you want to win one of the prints. Or you can just tap on the ActBlue contest thermometer on the right. (If you don't want the print but still feel like giving, donate to one of the candidates-- or all of them-- at the link right above.) AND... I just thought of this... if you're feeling' flush... we're going to send one person a package of 10 of Nancy's prints. Which person? The one who contributes the most in this little contest-- which ends next Saturday night at 9pm (PT).

This is what Congressman Ted Lieu said about her: "Nancy Ohanian is a national treasure. Her art is powerful, moving and informative. Satire and humor can reveal truth in a way that other forms of communication cannot. And Nancy is one of the masters at it."

The Gubernatorial Races In 9 Charts-- And The Last Blue America Contest Of 2018 Ends Today At Noon (PT)

First the contest. Blue America is giving away...

• $5,000 to each of 3 progressive candidates for their GOTV efforts
• $1,000 to one candidate
• 5 beautiful, signed prints by Nancy Ohanian from her Heroes of The Revolution series: Randy Bryce, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ted Lieu, Alan Grayson.

Remember, this contest ends at noon today Pacific Time. All the rules are here, but it's pretty easy. Click on the thermometer. All of the candidates on the list won their primaries and were then either told to go pound sand by the elitist dogs at the DCCC or were just ignored by the DCCC entirely. But don't get me started... Heard that a member of Congress read by post where I referred to the DCCCers as "scumbags" the other day and then called the executive director up and called him a "scumbag" and he blew up and blamed me. Pick any 3 candidates from the list and contribute at least $1.18 to each of them. You can donate any amount-- as long as it isn't over the $2,700 limit-- but make sure you add $0.18 so we know you want it counted as a "vote." The 3 candidates with the most "votes," each gets a $5,000 check. And the candidate with the most money gets a $1,000 contribution. We will randomly pick 5 contributors by tomorrow and each one will get to pick any of the 4 signed prints as a thanks for participating gift from Blue America. Got it? Ready, set, go! Here are the 4 prints. First Ted Lieu and Randy Bryce. And after that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Alan Grayson:

OK, as promised, here are the 9 gubernatorial contests-- all of which were considered toss-ups at the beginning of the cycle. Look at them now, at least according to FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver:

A one in twenty chance to win! I bet Schuette wishes he hadn't helped try to cover up the Flint water scandal. His career is so cooked! I bet he thought he could win because Trump "somehow" managed to take the Michigan electoral votes. Maybe some other time, Bill. Though... hopefully not.

Ron DeSantis was also counting on Trump-- and that was enough to get him the Republican nomination. But that's where that ended. He's spent the entire campaign hiding from the voters and hiding from the media and every time he's been forced to pop his head out of his whole, his favorabilities have gone down and his chances to win have followed. He still appears to have a 20.5% chance though. Let's see if a rally or two in Florida with Trump can drive his chances down further. What do you think?

This is a race worth investing in if you still have any money left. Scott Walker is the ultimate Koch puppet and everyone in Wisconsin will be able to breath the air of freedom if his ugly career is short-circuited. I see a much bigger anti-red wave in Wisconsin than most people do-- and Walker has a lot to do with it, almost as much as Trump. Let's keep our fingers crossed that Wisconsin comes through for Tony Evers, Tammy Baldwin, Randy Bryce and that the state Senate flips as well.

What's wrong with someone like Greg Orman-- with less than a 1 in a 100 chance to win-- to not drop out and endorse, and vigorously campaign for, Laura Kelly? After all, at this point he is throwing the race to Kris Kobach, one of the arch-villains of American politics. Is that how Orman wants to go down in Kansas history? What an asshole!

Here's where we-- Georgia, the nation, the world-- see if grotesque and completely blatant cheating pays off. Brian Kemp should be headed towards a prison cell, not to the governor's mansion.

Help Blue America Give Away $15,000 To 3 Candidates

We planned to spend this $15,000 on an independent project to help one of the Blue America candidates. But then we thought that the candidates could probably spend it more effectively than we could at this point in the game. They all need the money for their Get-Out-The-Vote field operations. So we're going to give $5,000 each to 3 candidates. Which 3? That's up to you. Just vote for the 3 you think will spend the money best or need it most or deserve it most or... whatever criterion you want to use.

How to vote-- easy. Click the thermometer-- this is the page for progressives who won their primary and were then abandoned by the DCCC-- and put in any amount you want for three candidates, but end your vote with 18 cents so we know it counts as a vote. In other words, if you want to vote for Mike Siegel, Dayna Steele and Kara Eastman but just want to make a contribution to Ammar, you can give $1.18 cents or $100.18 to Mike, Dayna and Kara and just $1.00 or $100.00 to Ammar. Easy, right? Only the "votes" with the 18 cents count towards the $15,000 give away. The 3 candidates who get the most "votes," get the $5,000. Oh-- and one more thing-- whichever candidate gets the most money from these contributions wins $1,000. So maybe one of the candidates will win $6,000 or maybe there'll be 3 candidates who get $5,000 each and one who gets a grand. We'll see on Friday.

And, to make this even more interesting for you... We're going to give 5 randomly selected contributors a choice of beautiful autographed prints by the artist Nancy Ohanian. You can chose between a picture of Ted Lieu (the one up top), Randy Bryce, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or Alan Grayson. We'll e-mail the 5 contest winners and ask which print each one wants. And we'll pick the 5 winners on Friday at noon (PT)-- and announce which 3 candidates win the $5,000 and overnight the checks to the campaigns immediately. You game?

I asked some of the campaigns how they plan to spend the money so close to election day. I got Randy Bryce's campaign manager, David Keith, on the phone as he was setting up for the big Bernie Sanders rally in Kenosha on Monday afternoon. He told me that "Unlike so many 'professional' Democratic campaigns, we don’t believe in relying solely on TV ads and pointless mail pieces. We believe you win by doing one simple thing: getting more votes than the other side. That’s why our investments in the next few weeks are all going into the field and voter protection. We are making sure that our 16 months of voter contact isn’t blocked by the GOP’s last minute tricks. We are making sure that absentee votes are counted, in full. We are making sure that every voter who requests a ride, gets a ride. Elections are about votes and that is our singular focus." This guy means business.

This is one of the prints by Nancy Ohanian you can win

Kara Eastman is in a neck-and-neck race with an unapologetic Trump enabler in Omaha. She can use a financial boost, especially after the DCCC decided not to respond to the million dollars in negative smears Paul Ryan's SuperPAC has been running against her. "In the last two weeks of this election," she told us, "every cent matters. We have to reach voters and remind them of just how important this election is. Democracy is at stake here. We've been spending every last minute knocking on doors and making calls to get as many voters to the polls as we can on election day, and need resources to keep up our get out the vote effort."

Mike Siegel, fresh off two Rachel Maddow appearances, told me that his campaign commissioned a closing ad to highlight his service as a public school teacher. With an additional $5,000, he will send the ad to tens of thousands of teachers, retired teachers, and other persuadable voters. This isn't like wasting money on broadcast TV; this is targeted advertising to exactly the audience he needs to hit. Mike is running in a district that went for Trump over Clinton by just nine points, and is eminently winnable this cycle. He told me this boost will make a big difference in his outreach.

Our newest endorsee, Audrey Denney, has a structural problem-- a gigantic district, covering all or part of 11 counties in the northeast corner of the state. She told me that this $5,000 and the contributions that come in as part of the contest "will help fund our 5 campaign offices around the massive district and staff them with 5 full time field organizers. Our field organizers are mobilizing our more than 4,000 volunteers to knock doors and make phone calls to get the vote out!" She's smart enough to know this race is going to be all about turnout and that's what her campaign is laser-focused on right now.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez by Nancy Ohanian

Green Day Fan? Want To See Congress Flip Blue? Meet Kara Eastman

Lately the Republican Party has been slamming Democratic candidates for having been in bands in high school and college. Let's face it, the arts have never been a conservative thing. True, none of them attacked Sonny Bono for having been in Sonny and Cher before he became the congressman from Palm Springs but when it comes to Beto O'Rourke in Texas and Kara Eastman in Nebraska, you'd think they both had joined a terrorist group. Conservatives fear change and their fear young people.

Kara's communications director told me that Paul Ryan's SuperPAC has been spending loads of corporate money in her Omaha district trying to villainize her for her college performance band, Pieces of Fuck, although they somehow never seem to mention her other singing group, the All Americans. "We find it ironic that the opposition would want to attack Kara, and Beto, for doing something many American teens do-- join a band, sing songs about issues that matter to them, and express themselves through music. Congress would be a better place with more musicians, and while we were joking about a College Band Congressional Caucus, Kara is looking forward to working with politicians like Beto who lead with heart-- and music."

When Kara and I first met, Green Day came up. I had been the president of their record label and she was a fan and friend. Her husband's band, Horace Pinker, opened shows on a Green Day tour and Green Day stayed at their house after the first concert. "For me, Green Day will always be the band we watched play in small clubs all over the world," Kara told me. "How many people can say Tré Cool serenaded them in their apartment? Well, maybe a lot. The last time I saw them live, I paid $5 to get in. After that concert, I brought Billie Joe back to my friends' house and to this day they still can’t believe they met the lead singer of Green Day. We’ve all come a long way from those days. Now, they are busy playing sold-out arenas with their political anthems, and I am running for Congress."

"One thing," she continued, "we still have in common though: Green Day and I are not fans of the Trump administration. A verse from one of Green Day’s newest songs, "Troubled Times," says this:

What part of history we learned
When it's repeated
Some things will never overcome
If we don't seek it
The world stops turning
Paradise burning
So don't think twice
We live in troubled times

"And we do indeed, live in troubled times. We cannot continue passing environmental issues off to our children to deal with later. The time to deal with climate change is now. Working families need to be paid a living wage, so they no longer have to work two or three jobs to make ends meet. They should be able to take sick leave when needed and have the time they need to bond with their babies after childbirth. Parents should not weigh the costs before seeking emergency care for their children, or skip preventative care because they can’t afford it. Prescription medications must be affordable. I’m not going to stop until I get into Congress and can work to ensure that we come out standing tall after these troubled times. There is so much work that needs to be done and you can help me accomplish these goals."

And... Blue America wants to help her get into Congress and help her accomplish these goals. We're hoping to raise some contributions for her campaign by giving away a super rare RIAA-cerified double platinum award plaque for the 1994 Green Day hit album Insomniac. Just contribute-- any amount-- to Kara's campaign on this page, or by tapping the thermometer on the right, and you'll be eligible for the random drawing. We'll pick one person at random. If you give $2,000 you get a chance to get the platinum award. If you give $27 or $10 you get the same chance to get the award. (Yes, we're Democrats, not Republicans; that's how we roll. In fact, if you don't have the cash to give and you want the plaque, just send a note to us at Blue America, P.O. Box 27201. Los Angeles, CA 90027 and you'll have the same chance as everyone else.) Many contributors want to know if their donation will help. There are no guarantees of course, but polling shows that the residents of NE-02, in Omaha and its suburbs, want a new congressmember representing them. The most recent forecast shows a very tight toss up with Kara slightly ahead of Trump rubber-stamp Don Bacon-- 50.7% to 49.3%. If Kara can continue to get her message out, she will win this one. We need your help-- whether you're a Green Day fan or not-- although, I should mention that Christmas is coming up and what a great present that plaque would make!

The official legalese FEC rules for the contest are here.

Neil Young-Alan Grayson Contest Ending-- "They Can't Kill Us All"

Our Alan Grayson-Neil Young contest ends this evening at 9 PM (PT), midnight on the East Coast. The randomly selected winner get a really beautiful double platinum RIAA-certified award plaque that was awarded for Neil Young's 1972 masterpiece, Harvest. It's very rare and would make an amazing Christmas present for the Neil Young fanatic in your life. (Yes, this triple digit weather will be ending in the not too distant future.) This page will explain how to win-- although it;'s easy: just qualify by contributing any amount to Grayson's campaign on that same page and then pray your name gets randomly selected.

Another way to access that contest page, is by clicking on the ActBlue HARVEST thermometer on the right. I've worked with both Neil Young-- when I ran Reprise Records, where he was one of our top artists-- and with Alan Grayson, here at DWT while he was the best member of Congress. A couple of years ago Grayson gave up his House seat to run for the U.S. Senate. He didn't win and now he's running for his old Orlando-area House seat. The current incumbent, Darren Soto, is a nightmare who voted against women's Choice and for the NRA over and over again. He doesn't stand for anything at all except his own career-- the polar opposite of the kind of leaders we need in Congress.

Alan and his wife Dena are committed Neil Young fans. "Neil Young and I," Alan wrote to his supporters on Friday, "were both deeply moved by the tragedy at Kent State, when the National Guard shot and killed four anti-war students.  And we both felt compelled to say something about it, each in our own way. In Neil’s case, he wrote 'Ohio,' one of the most famous political songs in American history":

Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.

Gotta get down to it.
Soldiers are cutting us down.
“Should have been done long ago.”
What if you knew her,
And found her dead on the ground?
How can you run, when you know?

Gotta get down to it.
Soldiers are cutting us down.
“Should have been done long ago.”
What if you knew her,
And found her dead on the ground?
How can you run, when you know?

Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.

"In my case, I gave the following speech. (A blogger who wrote about it said 'break out the tissues.')

Earlier today, we voted on memorializing the events-- the tragic events-- that took place 40 years and one day ago at Kent State University. Americans today, most Americans, are too young to remember what happened then, but I think that those of us who lived through that time and many others who thought about it, or saw afterward what happened, have this picture in their mind. This is Mary Ann Vecchio kneeling over the body of Jeffrey Miller at Kent State that terrible day, when four students were shot by American soldiers. I think we would honor them by remembering how and why they died, and that’s what I propose to do now.

In 1968, Richard Nixon ran for President. He said he had a secret plan to end the war.  That plan was so secret that apparently even Nixon himself didn’t know what it was; because when he was elected, he simply expanded the war.  In November of 1969, the My Lai massacre exposed to the whole world, not just to Americans but to the whole world, the sheer brutality of the war in Vietnam. The following month in December of 1969, the draft was instituted. American college students and others, everyone of a certain age, everyone knew that they would have to serve in Vietnam unless the war was ended.

And then on April 30th of 1970-- the first war ever announced on TV-- President Nixon announced the invasion of Cambodia by US forces. Almost immediately, there were protests at universities all around the country, including at Kent State.  And those protests grew and grew day-by-day. And the right wing immediately mobilized against these protests. In Ohio, the governor, Governor Rhodes, said quote, “They’re the worst type of people that we harbor in America.”-- these students protesting against the war-- ‘I think that we’re up against the strongest, well-trained militant revolutionary that’s ever been assembled in America,’ and President Nixon chimed in by saying that the anti-war protesters were ‘pawns of foreign communists’.

And so it was that four days after the announcement of the invasion of Cambodia, there was a protest that took place at Kent State University, Ohio.  20,000 students collected-- assembled peaceably-- to protest, and the National Guard was called in to drive them away. First, the National Guard attacked them with tear gas. The students took the tear gas canisters and threw them back at the National Guard. The National Guard drew its bayonets and charged the students, and forced them to a different location, but they still didn’t disperse, so at that point they shot them.  Four Americans died that day, including Jeffrey Miller.

The protests continued.

In fact, they grew.  Almost a thousand universities were shut down all across the country. For the only time in American history, we had a national student strike, everywhere in the country.  And at Jackson State ten days later, two more students were shot by the National Guard.  Shot dead.  And the thing that I remember most from that time is this sign written on a bed sheet and dropped from a dormitory window outside of New York University in New York, this noble sign: ‘They can’t kill us all.’

Let’s take a closer look: ‘They can’t kill us all.’

Now, then as now, together both times, there are people all around the world, and especially people in America, who want to live in peace-- who think that no war is better than two wars, who think that we voted to end war, not to continue it.  And after all, we know in our hearts, they can’t kill us all.

There are people who think that we should be concentrating on education and not war, and we know they can’t kill us all.  There are people who think that we should be concentrating on our health, our own bodies, improving our living standards, rebuilding America instead of war, and they can’t kill us all.  There are people who believe, not only in America but all over the world, that we should be striving every day toward peace…toward peace-- not toward war-- and they can’t kill us all.

"When I read this myself, I feel that Neil Young is my brother from another mother.  I want you to know what an honor it is, for me, to have this platinum award, this symbol of Neil Young’s greatness be part of our campaign. Please make a contribution and show your support for Neil, for me, and for PEACE."

The contest for the platinum record award ends in a few hours. Meanwhile... WARNING: wonderful in its own way but absolutely not Neil Young music, not even close:

I've Been A Miner For A Heart Of Gold-- Contest

The Blue America contest for Alan Grayson is still going strong. It ends Saturday. We're giving away a very rare gorgeous RIAA-ceritfied double platinum award for Neil Young's HARVEST, his 4th studio album (1972). Just contribute any amount to Alan Grayson's congressional campaign on this ActBlue page. That makes you eligible to win, regardless of how much you give. All the arcane FEC rules are here, if you have the mind of a lawyer. There were very few of these plaques ever made-- just to band members, people who work for Neil a few people at Reprise Records who helped promote Neil's music. You can be as rich as Trump and not be able to buy it. It's not commercially available. But you can win one. Someone will.

Alan is a big Neil Young fan but Alan's wife, Dena, is the real Neil aficionado, even singing his songs to Alan. She's the one who can tell you anything you want to know about every song on HARVEST. Alan's the one who can't stop talking about "Let's Impeach The President" from Neil's Living With War album. This is what he told his own supporters a few days ago:

At a slightly earlier moment in the space-time continuum, Neil Young wrote a song that seems very apt at this moment. The song is called "Let’s Impeach the President." He wrote it regarding an earlier awful President, not the current awful President. But most people whom I know think that this one is more awful than that one-- by a wide margin. Read the lyrics, listen to the case that Neil Young made for impeachment, and ask yourself: Doesn’t Donald Trump deserve it even more?



Let's impeach the President for lying
And misleading our country into war
Abusing all the power that we gave him
And shipping all our money out the door

Who's the man who hired all the criminals
The White House shadows who hide behind closed doors
They bend the facts to fit with their new stories
Of why we have to send our men to war

Let's impeach the President for spying
On citizens inside their own homes
Breaking every law in the country
By tapping our computers and telephones

What if Al Qaeda blew up the levees
Would New Orleans have been safer that way
Sheltered by our government's protection
Or was someone just not home that day?

Flip - Flop
Flip - Flop
Flip - Flop
Flip - Flop

Let's impeach the president for hijacking
Our religion and using it to get elected
Dividing our country into colors
And still leaving black people neglected

Yes, let’s impeach the President. Please contribute to our Dump Trump campaign fund, and earn a chance to win a platinum record award from Neil Young, the singer who said it first

This one's from HARVEST:



The contest ends Saturday. And, like Neil, Alan is a real superstar, not a reality show superstar. And... contest or no contest, we need this guy (Alan Grayson, not Neil) back in Congress. While other candidates-- lots and lots of them, and not just Republicans-- hide under their beds when someone asks them if they'll back impeaching Trump, Grayson makes it clear to voters in the Orlando area that he'll not just back it, he'll lead that movement. His district is covered with these billboards:

One more thing, if you've become used to click on a fundraising thermometer to make your contributions, we have a Blue America Harvest thermometer for you too. Please think for a second about how this isn't just about a contest... it's also electing someone to Congress who's shown us what he can do. Remember Alan in the well of the House, Republicans going absolutely nuts on the floor: "The Republican healthcare plan: Don't Get Sick... If You Get Sick... Die Quickly!" They yelled and screamed he should retract that and apologize. There were even establishment Democrats who asked him to do what the Republicans asked for. You know, he never did, right? That's not Alan Grayson. He'll apologize when he makes a mistake; that was no mistake! It wasn't then... and it isn't now.

CONTEST! Neil Young, Alan Grayson, Harvest!

Florida has a late primary, August 28-- a couple weeks before this year's harvest moon (September 14). If you win this contest you'll have your own harvest moon in time to celebrate. Blue America is doing a contest/give-away to benefit Alan Grayson' campaign for Congress in Orlando. The winner gets a very rare and very beautiful RIAA-certified double platinum award for Neil Young's release of Harvest. You can't buy one of these in a story, no matter how rich you are. A limited number were produced for Neil and his band, his staff and a few help who helped promote the album. If you're a Neil fan-- or if you know a Neil fan... this is completely primo. And for Grayson, Neil's music is very personal. Alan: "Every once in a while, Neil Young makes a special appearance in my bedroom. Not personally; just his music. My wife is a huge Neil Young fan, she has a spectacular voice, and every once in a while, she treats me to a Neil Young lullaby. "The Needle and the Damage Done," "Ohio," "Down by the River," "Rockin’ in the Free World"... whatever it is, she makes it sound magical. Thank you, Neil Young, for inspiring her to inspire me."



Meanwhile, helping Grayson-- a lifelong fan of Neil's music, by the way-- get back into the House is something that will be good for our country and for working families everywhere. I can't think of anyone-- and I mean anyone-- who will be a more effective bulwark against Trump and Trumpsim than Grayson. 

So this is how it works: This is the page. And like we wrote there, there is no minimum to be eligible to be entered into the random drawing to win the plaque. A $20.18 contribution has just as much chance to be selected as a $1,000 contribution. The contest ends at 9 in the evening (PT) on Saturday, July 21. if you don't have the cash to give and you want the award, you can enter too-- just send a note to us at Blue America, P.O. Box 27201. Los Angeles, CA 90027 and you'll have the same chance as everyone else. There's an excruciating FEC rules diatribe here which I doubt anyone has ever read besides a couple of lawyers. Easiest way of all to get to the page: the Act Blue Neil/Alan thermometer on the right. This is a win-win for everybody-- except Trump and except Putin.