Why We Should Get Behind Debbie Boothe-Schmidt In Oregon-- A Guest Post By Mark Gamba

 

Most of the West Coast is still suffering one of the worst, if not THE worst fire season in recorded history. Contrary to the lies coming from the White House, the reason they are so bad is that humans have altered the climate, so things are hotter and drier than they have been for millennia. Add to that tinder box, unusually strong winds (also caused by climate change) and you have the perfect recipe for catastrophic fires. Portland Oregon, generally known as having pretty good air for a large city, had the worst air quality in the world, several days running. The Air Quality Index was off the charts. We were in unknown territory for the health effects on humans and every other breathing creature we share this region with.

If this were the first year with bad fires due to climate change, maybe you could forgive the Republican state legislators for their obstinance when it comes to passing some kind of climate bill. But it isn’t, and I don’t expect any change in that attitude in the foreseeable future. This matters, because even though the Democrats had super majorities in both houses and an exceedingly “fair minded” and thoughtful cap trade bill that looks to help the rural areas more (per capita) than it did the urban areas, the Republican members of both houses ran away from their jobs to deny a vote on the floor due to a lack of quorum.

So, if Oregon is going to pass any kind of worthwhile climate bill, let alone universal health care or any other truly progressive changes we will need a majority so big that the Democrats alone form a quorum. It just so happens that one of the seats that got us that supermajority is up for grabs because the Representative, Tiffiny Mitchell has decided to move out of the state.

Into this fray steps Debbie Boothe-Schmidt, a strong candidate who has deep roots in district 32. She raised her two girls as a single mom working two jobs to make ends meet. As former president of her union she has advocated for our working Oregonians and she also served as board chair on her local transportation board to improve public transportation in her district. She is now a small business owner and is running for state Representative to expand affordable housing and healthcare, funding for our schools and, of course, to fight against climate change.

This seat is one of the most competitive in the state with Debbie’s opponent being bankrolled by Timber Unity, Koch Industries, Chevron, Shell and many other large corporations. In the last two years, Timber Unity (responsible for the walkout against cap and trade) has become very strong on the North Coast. They staged a recall against Rep. Tiffiny Mitchell because of her vote for Cap and Trade and have also pledged to put $1 million behind Debbie’s opponent.

  If we want to pass any type of climate legislation in the state legislature, we are going to need to hold onto this seat to keep the house majority as well as hopefully flip a few more seats to expand the majority. This is a critical race.

The clock is ticking, we have 9 years to dramatically shift the way we function on this planet or we will doom our kids to a hellscape beyond the imaginings of worst post-apocalyptic movies.

Every city, every state and every nation should be addressing this issue like our lives were on the line. We can’t afford to let critical races like this be bought by the fossil fuel industry and their friends in the wall street timber companies.

If The Democrats Win State Legislatures, Will They Gerrymander States The Way Republicans Do? Or Will They End Gerrymandering?

And it all depends on...

Sure, the GOP stole the racism issue from Democrats long ago and there is no longer any doubt which is the party of bigotry and hatred. But no one supposed to talk about it outlaid the way Trump does. And he's making other Republicans nervous-- not that minorities aren't going to vote for them-- they're not-- but that educated white people who don't like overt racism won't. Yesterday a team of NBC News reporters, Geoff Bennett, Peter Alexander and Carol E. Lee, looked into how this racism and divisiveness are playing itself out now.

They wrote that "Trump allies are telling him that he has a better argument to make and to focus on his accomplishments in office and offer sharp criticism of his opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden. But Trump is 'going with his gut' and 'relying on instinct.' "Instead of touting wins, Trump has opted to zero in on the national debate about race and side with supporters who view themselves as victims unfairly cast as racists in the renewed national discussion about discrimination targeting minorities."

Trump has heard from some political allies encouraging him to embrace a divisive tone likely to further inflame civic unrest seen across the country over the past month and deliver political wins by rallying his supporters.

But other aides have pushed him to temper his rhetoric.

A second White House official said Trump is making a mistake by stoking racial divisions and continuing to revive the kind of grievances he also aired in 2016, when he stoked racial animosity targeting immigrants. This official says the president’s attack lines no longer have the same resonance as they did four years ago.

...[Trump] believes divisive rhetoric helped him win the White House, and could do so again. And two officials said he is largely eschewing the political advice to shift his message because he blames the coronavirus pandemic and his campaign's strategy-- and not his own approach-- for his polling plunge.

As a result, he’s tapping more deeply into the perceived anger and resentment of his white supporters.

The president, for instance, has gone from obliquely describing an effort to take down Confederate statues as an assault on “our heritage” during his campaign rally in Oklahoma last month to defending the Confederate flag and attacking NASCAR’s only Black full-time driver Monday on Twitter.

Some of the president’s allies worry he is out of step with public sentiment during this moment of national reckoning over racial justice, even if they agree he has a case to make that demonizing historical figures like George Washington goes too far.

The president “senses victimization that a lot of Americans feel” in scenarios where they’re deemed racist if they don’t denounce the Confederate flag, one of the officials said.

Yeah... like nearly the whole Mississippi state legislature and Republican governor, who just finally shit-canned the Confederate battle flag from their own state flag. The Democrats aren't going to win Mississippi-- or Wyoming for that matter. But other than that... the sky's the limit.

And the DLCC-- a less toxic version of the DCCC and DSCC but for state legislatures-- is aiming high and allowing themselves to dream about keeping the GOP from gerrymandering key swing states in 2021. And they thank Trump for what is looking more and more like an anti-red tsunami. Natasha Korecki and Christopher Cadelago reported that "they’re imagining a rout that extends all the way down the ballot... From Pennsylvania to Texas to Minnesota, cash-flush Democrats are working to win back legislative chambers needed to take control of drawing congressional maps-- or at least guarantee a seat at the table. If they succeed, it would correct an Obama-era down-ballot shellacking that handed Republicans House control and resulted in the loss of more than 900 Democratic legislative seats. The devastating results for Democrats in 2010-- part of a multi-million dollar effort by Republicans and Karl Rove to zero in on winning governor’s offices and battleground statehouses-- gave the GOP total control in 19 states and allowed them to draw 213 congressional districts." The 2020 Blue America state legislative thermometer above, is for carefully vetted progressives running for legislative seats. The thermometer below is for just the state of Florida and-- again-- just progressives, not run of the mill Democrats or crooked careerists.

The new maps were a disaster for Democrats and spawned a bevy of groups and fundraising efforts intent on preventing a repeat in 2020. Most notably, Obama and former Attorney General Eric Holder created the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, a centralized redistricting hub on the Democratic side “to make sure that what the Republicans did last time was not possible again,” said John Bisognano, the NDRC’s executive director. “We weren’t going to get caught off guard again.”

But the opportunity in November is even more profound, Democrats say. It represents not only a once-every-20-years occurrence when reapportionment falls in a presidential year, but perhaps a once in a lifetime opportunity when an incumbent president appears so weak.

Joe Biden has long said he thinks it’s part of the job as the presumptive nominee to bolster down-ballot races. His campaign is coordinating with local campaigns in battleground states, where building out infrastructure and organization can help drive Democratic control at lower levels of government.

If Trump’s dismal polling extends into the fall, Democrats say it's even more likely Biden’s campaign will contest territory once unfriendly to the party.

“We are a campaign aggressively looking to expand the map as we move forward,” said senior adviser Anita Dunn. Naming Texas and Georgia as “expansion targets,” she added, “Right now, we’re not ruling anything out.”

Simon Rosenberg, who worked as a senior consultant for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2018, when the party swamped Republicans en route to the House majority, said the environment is just as ripe this year.

“The rationale for going big is clear: it can help flip the Senate, create a more powerful mandate for governing, and lock in wins for the coming reapportionment,” he said. “From a governing and party perspective, there will be a powerful case for going big, and trying to get to 400-plus Electoral College votes.”

Republicans say Democrats should curb their enthusiasm. The GOP is pursuing its own state legislative fundraising efforts to stave off Democrats. In Texas, Rove has returned to serve as treasurer of Leading Texas Forward PAC, aimed at maintaining a Republican state House. They also paint Democrats as hypocritical, saying the party complained about gerrymandering by Republicans only to take part in it themselves in blue states, like Illinois.

Former Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker, the financial chair of the National Republican Redistricting Trust, dismissed talk of a Democratic rout.

"They were making similar predictions in 2016 while Hillary Clinton ignored Wisconsin after our primary and tried to run up the score in other states," he said.

Adam Kincaid, the group's executive director and a veteran of the GOP's 2010 redistricting efforts, said it won’t be easy for Democrats to flip legislative chambers in states where they came up short four years ago. “If the Biden campaign is talking about winning in Texas and Arizona and Georgia," he said, "they need to go back and read the clips from four years ago."

Some Republicans, however, acknowledge the party faces a genuine threat in longtime conservative bastions like Texas.

“The switch was flipped on in the November 2018 midterm elections. It was, 'Oh boy, this is real, we better get our act together,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a Republican strategist in Texas. “But I’m also not sure the party has figured it out.”

...National groups are eyeing Texas not only because Biden is polling close to Trump, but because Democrats need to gain control of at least one chamber of the state legislature to have a say in the state’s congressional map.

Texas stands to gain a handful of new congressional seats after the Census. In 2018, Democrats flipped two state Senate seats and 12 in the state House. The nine state House seats Democrats are eyeing to flip the chamber were all carried by former Rep. Beto O’Rourke when he ran for Senate two years ago.

In an interview, O’Rourke said years of litigation over the state’s maps-- and claims those maps have diluted the power of voters of color-- are motivating Democratic voters.

“Folks are talking about this and they get that if we have a Democratic majority, not only can we help decide what those new congressional districts look like, we can help to redraw existing state House, state Senate, U.S. Congress districts to include instead of exclude Black and brown voters in this state,” O’Rourke said.

O’Rourke is among the higher-profile Democrats working to direct resources and attention to obscure statehouse races in states like Texas and North Carolina.

So, too, is Virginia State Delegate Danica Roem, who in 2017 was the first openly transgender person to be elected to a U.S. statehouse. Roem said she’s held Zoom calls to help raise money for candidates or state parties in places like North Carolina and Texas.

In some areas, Democrats don’t need to win outright to advance their cause. In Kansas, they’re aiming to break the GOP’s statehouse supermajority so Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly can wield her veto power over congressional maps. To do that, they need to flip one seat in the state House and two in the state Senate.

Democrats are zeroing in on races in states with independent redistricting commissions that have come under fire from Republicans. They include Michigan, where Republican lawmakers have tried to take control of funding for the redistricting commission, and Arizona, where legislators have tried to split a legislative district that is the only majority Native American one in the state.

North Carolina is important for another reason. Despite having a Democratic governor, state rules prevent him from vetoing maps crafted by the majority GOP legislature.

Several factors make Democrats believe this time will be different. They’ve already made important strides to thwart Republican map-making in 2021, including winning the governorships in Wisconsin and Michigan and reelecting Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. They also forced the redrawing of some old maps that put them in better position in places like North Carolina, and are encouraged by recent turnout in primaries in Wisconsin and Georgia during the coronavirus pandemic.

At the same time, with so much attention focused on the presidential election and control of the Senate, many Democrats still worry that down-ballot races will get short shrift.

“The question is... given the extraordinary and appropriate emphasis on the presidential race and the extraordinary emphasis on winning back the Senate, are we going to miss the third leg of this stool, which is losing control of the states and having this extreme congressional and legislative gerrymandering for another decade,” asked Tom Steyer, the billionaire climate activist who ran for president and has spent hundreds of millions to elect Democrats.

Steyer said he’s encouraged by the grass-roots activity on the ground. Yet taken together, he’s still concerned about the broader “Republican playbook”-- which he said includes redistricting, voter suppression and preventing vote-by mail expansion-- if Democrats don’t remain vigilant.

Dave Abrams, deputy executive director of the Republican State Leadership Committee, predicted that Democrats are “going to fail again" at the state level despite their renewed efforts. He said voters would "definitively reject the liberals’ new radical agenda that dismantles our nation and replaces it with a lawless society.”

But Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Chris Turner, who lost his state seat to remapping in 2010 and was later reelected, said that recent polls showing Trump and Biden virtually tied in Texas suggests the president is slipping in the suburbs. That alone, he said, is plenty of incentive for national Democrats to play in the Lone Star state.

“We’re very bullish about 2020,” he said, pointing to the party's gains in Texas in the 2018 midterms. “It’s a complete train wreck of an environment for the Republican Party right now.”

My guess that the Democrats 7 most realistic shots at flipping chambers are the Minnesota state Senate, the Pennsylvania House, the Iowa House, the Michigan House, both the North Carolina chambers, the Arizona House and, if things really rock for the Democrats, the West Virginia, Texas and Kentucky Houses.

If My Friend Bob Can Run For Office... So Can YOU!

My friends don't usually run for office. I become friends with some when they are already running; it's a side-effect of my new profession. But this is different. Bob's an old friend. And he's running for the Florida state legislature in a south Florida swing district that the Democratic Party had decided to ignore and just hand to the GOP... again. That's something the Florida Democratic Party is really, really expert in-- one of their very special talents. In fact, the state House district Bob is running in-- HD-116-- overlaps, in part, with Mario Díaz-Balart's adopted congressional district, another one where the Florida Democratic Party (and the DCCC) have refused to run a candidate, even though Trump only won it in 2016 with 49.7% of the vote. Sounds like a swing district to me. You? How do you leave a swing district on the table... in a presidential year and in the swingiest of swing states?

Bob's a hard-working, goal-oriented guy who sets out to win, not to make a point. The Florida Republican Party isn't going to know what hit them. And, for that matter, neither is the Florida Democratic Party. Please read his guest post below. And if you like what you read... well, either run for office yourself, back one of your other friends who's running or... see that thermometer below? That's the 2020 Blue America State Legislative Thermeometer-- and if you click on it, you can contribute to Bob's campaign and to the campaigns of other brave citizens who are running for state legislatures around America. Don't be shy. As Bob says, ¡Ya Basta!


When the Going Gets Weird, the Weird Turn Pro...
by Bob Lynch
Florida House candidate

Never in my life did I ever think that I would one day find myself running for local office, but after three years living in a city, county, state, and country under the toxic mix of incompetent and hopelessly corrupt GOP rule, well, here we are…

As a political candidate, I am often asked why I decided to run for office; all candidates are. Usually, this turns into some long-winded and unnecessarily complicated stump speech filled with talking points and policy proposals. I’ve been struggling with this question and it has led to my procrastination on finishing this post introducing myself to those of you who may not know me. I made the executive decision today to delete the entire thing and start from scratch.

The reason I am running for Florida House District 116 is because our city, county, state, and ultimately our entire nation are facing an unprecedented existential crisis. As someone with a heavily dog-eared and highlighted copy of Sartre’s Being and Nothingness on my bookshelf, I do not use that term lightly.

You hear a lot these days about how our country, as we know it, cannot survive another four years of Donald Trump. This is true, of course, but it is one of the biggest understatements of our lifetime. People that we know and love are already dying because of the Trump and DeSantis administrations. Four more years will be catastrophic.

Each one of us needs to decide how we can best use our own talents to make sure that this does not happen. It would be easy to say that this is the final battle, but that is not true. If we win this one, there will no doubt be many more. But if we lose, there won’t be.

Like many of you, I have spent the past four years going in and out of profound sadness, anger, disillusionment, hopelessness, embarrassment, fear, and loathing. I dabbled in political strategy. I became just another angry voice on twitter complaining about anyone and everything. It didn’t get me anywhere except for becoming more angry and frustrated. It definitely didn’t move the needle in terms of saving our country.

That is until my dear friend and Chief Advisor, Doctor Ferguson Reid Jr. introduced me to Dr. Janelle Christensen, President of the Florida Democratic Environmental Caucus. As usual, I was working behind the scenes with Fergie and Janelle to make sure that we could get a candidate to run in every single state House and Senate race in Florida but also to pay their $1,800 qualifying fee. The Democratic Party, nationally and statewide has long ceded major swaths of the state to the Republican Party by not even bothering to campaign at the top of the ticket or field local candidates in many areas that didn’t have an attractive Cook PVI rating.

As I began calling my network of strategists and donors, I realized the strategic importance of this effort was going ignored. In trying to understand the logistics of running, so that I could pass it along to potential candidates, finally Janelle asked me “Why, are you thinking of running? We could use someone good in HD 116.”

Suddenly, everything became clear. I could finally find a way to channel all of my rage, frustration, and strategy by throwing my own hat into the ring. If I was a candidate, at least I knew there was one candidate who couldn’t ignore my advice. It is one thing to tell other people what to do with their time and money. Everyone has an opinion on how best to spend other people’s money but I would never ask someone to do something that I wasn’t willing to do myself.

Florida House District 116 happens to be a district of major strategic importance. The current incumbent is a guy who describes himself as “the Spanish Brad Pitt.” I had never even heard of him after three years in Miami, until I decided to take his job. He is supposedly a lock for Speaker in 2024, which tells you all you need to know about the backroom dealings and smug attitude of the Florida GOP.

The easiest and most cost-effective way to defeat Donald Trump is to win Florida. The easiest way to win Florida is to increase turnout amongst younger voters in the Hispanic Community, of which my district is over 90%. I’m 38 years old and have spent the better part of the last ten years of my life traveling and living all over the Spanish speaking world. Including right here in Miami, the capital of Latin America. Oh, and I speak Spanish. Not Beto O’Rourke or Mayor Pete Spanish. Ya lo se donde esta la biblioteca…. Sin Babel o Rosetta Stone.

District 116 is at the epicenter of every major political battle involving South Florida this year. The district is part of three different Congressional districts. FL-25, FL-26, and FL-27. For reasons that have never been properly explained to me, the Democratic Party decided to let career GOP hack, Mario Díaz-Balart, get re-elected completely unopposed. There are parts of my district where I will be the second Democrat on the ballot after Joe Biden. This should never ever happen. Every resident of Florida should have the opportunity to choose which party they would like to represent them at every level.

During the 2018 Blue Wave, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (FL-26) and Donna Shalala (FL-27) flipped two districts crucial to the Right Wing Cuban Republican power structure that we are in the process of dismantling. Winning these seats was an incredible accomplishment but now we need to hold them for us to maintain our congressional majority. To do this, we need to focus on the needs of the Hispanic Community, something that my campaign will be doing, on the ground, in Spanish.

Another part of my district is in Florida Senate District 39, which is currently held by a Republican who is getting termed out so the seat is up for grabs. Oh yeah, and we also have a mayoral race in Miami-Dade County, which is the 7th largest county in the entire country by population. Our current mayor, the shamelessly corrupt Carlos A. Giménez, has his sights set on Debbie Mucarsel-Powell’s seat and his absolutely disastrous response to Covid-19 reflects the thought process of a guy who is more worried about his next job instead of doing his current one.

Couple that with the 2020 Census, that Republicans are trying everything they can to scare Latinos into not completing, so yeah, there is a lot going on in HD 116. We have the opportunity to block the GOP’s gerrymandering efforts and reshape Florida for at least the next decade.

Too often politicians try to complicate things with overwhelming details and nuance. My platform is very simple, but I am happy to provide as much detail to the level of geekiest of policy wonks want (because I happen to be one of them), but that is not what gets people to the polls. Of course, I want to go to Tallahassee and force our criminally negligent, and Trump sycophant, Governor Ron DeSantis to take the Medicaid Expansion so over 750k Floridians get access to healthcare in the middle of a pandemic. I want to work towards Medicare For All, however I can on the state level.

The All-Time leading record holder in national Medicare Fraud, current Junior Senator and former Governor, “Red Tide” Rick Scott, purposely designed our state’s unemployment system to fail. This has left millions of Floridians without the benefits of a system that THEY PAID INTO at the State and Federal Level. Something about Rick Scott and fraud and theft in health care just seems to go together like arroz con pollo.

The criminally botched Covid-19 response by future Fox News Contributor, Ron DeSantis, has been the alarming preview of what will happen to our economy if we leave climate change unaddressed and do not do something to reverse the pollution that is killing our beaches. Covid-19 destroyed the Miami tourism industry and left thousands under or completely unemployed. Imagine what happens when our city gets flooded by sea level rising or human sewage continues to wash up on our beaches? Don’t even get me started on these guys and their plan to bring offshore drilling to Florida immediately after the election.

Our education system is an embarrassment, the NRA has way too much control over our state, our budget is shot, and there is an insanely high level of blatant corruption at every level of state and local Florida politics to the point that we are now the envy of many third world Latin American countries, just for the sheer brashness of it all.

I could go on and on about specific policies that need to be changed but here is something that everyone in this country needs to understand right now:

NONE OF ANY OF THIS MATTERS IF TRUMP AND THE REPUBLICANS WIN ANOTHER FOUR YEARS

None. Trump and the GOP will sell our country off for scrap to the lowest bidder. That’s how incompetent they are even at corruption. These guys don’t even realize they’re getting underbid!

Russia already influenced the 2016 election. Trump has invited them to do it again along with the Chinese. Everyone knows we are for sale from the Russians to the Chinese to the Saudis, Israelis, Turks, and Emiratis. We even have high level Florida GOP operatives acting as the bag man for brutal Venezuelan Dictator, Nicolas Maduro. Something that current head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Little Marco Rubio would have cared about in his pre-Bible study past life.

Enough!

Let’s get the criminals and traitors out and then work together to chart the new path forward. This is impossible with the GOP in charge at any level of government. This iteration of the GOP needs to be completely destroyed. If they choose to rebuild, fine. But they cannot be allowed to continue to sell American interests out for their own personal business ones. The easiest way to ensure this happens is to support my campaign for House District 116 so I can help everyone else on the top of the ticket avoid the advice of the misguided consultants, strategists, and vendors who don’t have to live here if we lose. My entire campaign team is made up of local experts. Almost all of them are female Hispanic women. There is no other straight, white, “raised Christian” man in this campaign. I am listening to the people who have been silenced or ignored for far too long. Any bit of support you can give to my campaign means I can turn the megaphone for their voices up that much louder. I want to take the volume up to 11. The saddest part of it all is that I have to explain this in English to potential donors just so that we can actually go out and energize the voters, which will be done almost entirely in Spanish. That requires local, country specific, expertise. We have it. Our campaign will empower the people in Miami that have been marginalized or taken for granted, by both parties, for far too long. The amount of untapped energy within the female Hispanic community leaders, LGBTQ, and younger voters cannot be measured by any poll. Help me show them that they are no longer being ignored. There is no better investment you can make to defeat fascism and prevent our country from becoming another failed state.

My last name is awful, especially in this day in age. However, it is an Ellis Island bastardized version of a Gaelic name “Ó Loingsigh”, which means “Descendants of the Mariner.”

The first rule of the high seas is Women and Children First. When the shit gets real, All Hands on Deck. Time for everyone to get to their Muster Stations.

Endorsement Alert: New Hampshire's Democratic Bench

New Hampshire's state legislature in probably the most democratic in the country. In a state with 1,359,711 people, the state House has 400 members, each one representing about, on average, 3,300 residents. Right now there are 233 Democrats and 165 Republicans and 1 independent. The members serve for 2 years-- and they get $200 for their term.

The 25th district (Rockingham County) is in northern Portsmouth. In both 2016 and 2020 the district was Bernie country in the primary and then voted for Hillary in the general. It's half commercial and half residential, is a hub for regional tourism and is less than a mile from the border with Maine. Conservative Democrat Laura Pantelakos has been in office since 1978, and has, for example, consistently voted No on cannabis legalization bills, both in the House and as a member of the criminal justice committee, even though her constituents voted Yes. She has also missed key votes at the State House on issues such as prohibiting firearms on school property and the establishment of a student debt relief program for the state. That last point appears to be what drew her an opponent, Robin Vogt this cycle.

Vogt, a special ed teacher is a reformist and progressive. He is an outspoken supporter of Medicare For All, a Green New Deal to fight against climate change and create sustainable jobs, and to increase funding for New Hampshire's public education system. Blue America endorsed him today. "If we are to move the Granite State forward towards true progress," he told us in a written statement, "then it must start at the grassroots level. The people of my District and this county are looking for something that can give them hope, and a representative who is not afraid to sit at the kitchen table to develop real solutions for those who call Portsmouth home. This campaign is built on the foundation that there are diverse voices who have been trying to call out, but have been met quickly by the status-quo practices of the past that silence them. We cannot continue to fight for the things we need unless our local legislators begin to speak up for those who have gone silent, and wish to see progressive action at the state level. My dedication is to the people of my community, and this campaign is ready to march in the streets and bring this fight to the State House in Concord." Below is a guest post he wrote about one of the issues that motivates him most, public education. If you like what he has to say, please consider clicking on the Blue America state legislative thermometer above and contributing what you can.


Ready To Fight For Progressive Public Education
-by Robin Vogt

Every year, uncertainties about making a living wage or being able to afford health insurance become a reality for our families and educators. Every year, not knowing whether a backpack or basic school supplies can be bought for the first day of school. Education has always taken the backseat in New Hampshire when it comes to the development of our next generation. Outdated classrooms and a curriculum that fails to teach or show the realities of the world surrounds young minds of all abilities. Teachers who question the reliability of the education being provided one quarter, are shown the door the next because of the current system. Our educators and support staff work hard every single day for the simple cause of teaching our young learners. Low wages, those poor insurance options and vast uncertainties about their jobs future drives the public education system across this country, and here in New Hampshire, it is no different. Consistently put to the table on the State and local level; cuts to our special education departments and programs, while pushing investments into company-built curriculum that fail to hit the major life skills that learners need to be successful. These are the consistent decisions being made that are only setting our public education system back, not pushing it forward.

Our current education system creates stresses for educators and families across the state, and for many in the small port city that I call home. As a special education paraeducator for 10 years, I have worked 1:1 with students who require IEP and/or 504 accommodations. Students who are passionate about being at school, and working with their peers every single day. Even with that driving force inside our learners to work hard and be the best individual they can be, the public education system continues to be the face of continual cuts and lack of respect by our legislature. The students 100% sometimes only seem to account for 10% when it comes down to hitting standards, learning the life skills necessary to be independently successful, and accurately showcasing how amazing of human beings they truly are. As I sat in the classroom during my 4th year as a special education paraeducator, and I saw a student struggle to hit the standards being presented. I saw students who were independently making strides beyond their IEPs, but consistently falling short when it came to meeting the standards outlined by the State of New Hampshire. I was once that student too, trying to figure out why things were not adding up, and now today I realize why.

It was not until I left the public school system as a student that I began to see and understand what was truly happening behind the scenes. Curriculum standards that were driven by company-built programs, some who have never worked in the classroom before or understand how an educator teaches his or her students the skills necessary to graduate. The way school boards, local governments and our state legislature under-funded public education and our classrooms. For the last 4 years, I have been Co President of my schools union under the National Education Association - New Hampshire, and have fought for the very things that were consistently put on the chopping block. The funding to provide our educators and all students the quality of education that they deserve. That is the same fight that I am ready to bring for Rockingham District 25, Ward 1 to the State House in Concord. All the experiences working with families, educators and administrators to find the best pathway to a well-funded, high quality public education for all students in New Hampshire. I will work alongside our next Governor and state legislators to develop true education reform that properly funds our public schools not just in Portsmouth, but across the state. Continue to fight for our critical special education programs and advocate for a teacher-built curriculum that provides necessary federally protected services to our students who need it most, and ensures that the inclusive classroom moves forward with purpose and pride. Our diverse families who send their children to our schools to learn need to be heard, and the education system that will teach our students the life skills necessary to be successful must take priority in the halls of the New Hampshire State House.

It is the combined voices of my neighborhood, city and state that will continue to educate and create progress, not the select few and the status-quo practices of the past. It’s time that Portsmouth has a State Representative that will take on these challenges in public education that lie ahead, and fight for their solutions every single day.

I am ready to continue the fight for a progressive public education for all students. I am that candidate to help bring true change here in the Granite State.

Florida Is One Weird State... And Then There's The Politics

Fatally-flawed Florida Democratic Party boss Gary Farmer

Florida's 27th senatorial district-- most of Lee County and all of Fort Myers and Cape Coral-- is safely red. There are 197,866 registered Republicans, 128,204 registered Democrats and 139,293 others (mostly independents). In 2016 Lee County voters backed Trump over Hillary, 58.7% to 38.3%. The "blue wave" two years later didn't make it to southwest Florida and Lee County voters voted heavily for Rick Scott for Senate (60.3%) and Ron DeSantis for governor (60.1%).

Republican Lizbeth Benacquisto is a sleazy career politician who won the 27th senatorial district in the 2010 Republican wave election when the district went from Lee County clear across the state into the Gold Coast and the Sun Coast. She has been in the Senate ever since, served as Majority Leader from 2012-14 and is termed out of office this year. State Rep. Ray Rodrigues (also incredibly sleazy) was expected to ascend to the senate seat without opposition. And then last week, another Republican state Rep., Heather Fitzenhagen, termed out of the state House, and running for the area's open congressional seat, withdrew from the crowded congressional race and filed to run for the SD-27 seat.

On occassion, she has been cooperative with the Democratic minority, voting, for example, for the Parkland gun safety bill and against an extreme right anti-abortion provision and backing a Lee County COVID-19 lockdown. [Lee County, the 8th most populous county, reports the 6th most coronavirus cases in the state-- and 202 new cases on Sunday, the third most of any county in Florida. So far only Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach have had more COVID deaths than Lee.]

SD-27 candidate-- not Rodrigues and not Fitzenhagen

Rodrigues had expected a coronation and now he has a primary AND a Democratic opponent. Democrats don't normally bother to run there. The Florida Democratic Party is so moribund, useless and bankrupt that a decade of loser party bosses has come to believe not running candidates in dozens of state legislative districts is somehow a smart strategy-- as they've watched the party continue to shrink. Florida is a 50/50 purple state-- with a state House that has 73 Republicans and 46 Democrats. That summarizes the Florida Democratic Party's grand strategy. You'd almost think the GOP pays top party Democrats to keep it in place. If you want to contribute to Rachel's campaign, you can do it here.

I spoke with the courageous, Democratic candidate, Rachel Brown, who refused to be bullied, yesterday. She's amazing. "Yes," she told me, "a man told me he would fund millions to other candidates but not me because I 'can't win' and even tried to bargain with me, saying he would submit a Green New Deal bill in exchange for me not running so his career politician friend can have my votes. The reason I don't want to say his name is not because I care about his career. I don't care about anyone's career. I just don't want to give people one person to pin point for something that a network of people are doing. It's not just him. It's not that easy. I was recruited to run for office by the President of the Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida, Janelle Christensen. I am in cahoots with them and I am proud. AOC was recruited by the White Heads and she is proud. This man who called me two days before the filing deadline begging me not to run so that votes that will go to me could instead to go his fellow establishment politician who has not brought justice for the people, is in cahoots with someone. Who? He wouldn't tell me, and so I don't trust him and whoever is in his network. He also voted against a legislation that would allow people to get more affordable prescription drugs. I don't trust that."

She continued-- in her own words "Before he called me he even had his attorneys which he so graciously gave me free access to, attempt to sabotage my filing documents. If his goal was for this story to come out so republicans can see what a fantastic saboteur of democracy he can be and then receive funding from the "bottomless pit of money" he says they have... he's a genius. If he truly is just terrified of Ray Rodrigues winning... I understand. Ray Rodrigues will allow developers to destroy our beaches because they fund his campaign. He in fact was part of a preemptive legislation that prevents local governments from establishing a legal right to clean air and clean water for their citizens. That legislation, deceptively titled 'SB712 Cean Water Says Act,' is currently waiting to be signed by Governor DeSantis and if not vetoed within 15 days, will automatically become law. It's not fair. The people should have a legal right to clean air and clean water and they don't even know this is happening.

"I understand the fear of someone who signs legislation like these getting into power. My tactic however is not to bend over and allow an easier loss, not to be intimidated by the bottomless pit of money my opponents have, but to fight back. I believe there are enough genuine people who are tired of politics and want to vote in genuine people. I believe taxpayer money should go to taxpayers and not to corporate handouts. A true public servant finds their network in the public, not in whoever and whatever company can give them the largest donations. I am not intimidated that this man will not help me, the same way he did not help Cathy Lewis who got 46% of the vote and only spent 1/12 of what her opponent spent. No. We cannot allow ourselves to rely on the establishment, because they and their dishonesty are exactly what the new wave of Democrats, that I am apart of, are working to eradicate."

A grassroots movement to ensure Democrats fighting in every one of Florida's 120 state House and 40 state Senate districts has been successful-- much to the chagrin of the state party, which has fought the effort every step of the way. Progressive activist Rachel Brown filed to run for the Lee County Senate seat. The state Party didn't welcome her.

A longtime reliable source inside the office of a top Democratic elected official in Broward County told me that incoming Senate Minority Leader Gary Farmer personally called Brown-- more than once-- to dissuade her from running. The word "strong-armed" was used to describe Farmer's discussion. A married man (separated and notorious for his relationship with a Republican Tallahassee lobbyist, Andreina Figueroa) with two children, Farmer has a "close" relationship with Republican Fitzenhagen, who is known to be in "an open marriage," and is eager to see her beat Rodrigues. (Who knew being a member of the Florida legislature was more productive than being on Tinder?)

In any case, how does this make any sense, at least politically-speaking? Does he expect Democrats to vote in the GOP primary if there's no Democrat running and pick his girlfriend the less far right Republican? Or is Farmer just paying back the state Republican Party for not running anyone against him in 2018? Republicans failed to field a Democrat in 22 House districts and 2 Senate districts.

After the fact-- and after not lifting a finger to help anyone-- the corrupt state party claims to be happy to have so many candidates running for the legislature. (Only one district is uncontested.) Party executive director Juan Peñalosa said the effort shows "no seat is safe." No free rides for Republicans this time-- and down-ballot candidates turning out Democratic voters who can also be expected to vote for Democrats running for president and for congressional candidates. I asked millennial congressional candidate Adam Christesen how this strategy plays into his own race in north central Florida's 3rd congressional district race. He told me that "It’s a game changer. Not only will it help boost Democratic turnout in every district but it makes the Republican party have to contest and spend money, time and resources in places they don’t want to. It stops them from shifting resources to contested races and double or triple teaming Democratic candidates at the state and congressional level. To use a sports analogy, before this year the Democratic party has attempted to play a football game, using only 8 players while the other team has 11. Democrats in Florida may score an occasional touchdown but no matter how well they do or how good they are, they were outnumbered and at a severe disadvantage."

Dr. Janelle Christensen-- no relation to Adam, beyond both being progressive Democrats-- is, as Rachel mentioned, president of the Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida. She told me that "in April 2020 there were 33 seats that did not yet have a Democrat running. The Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida (DECF) recruited 27 candidates from our membership and the remaining candidates from our network (like College Democrats). I think Juan Peñalosa is correct: most in the party really are glad we have more candidates running in 2020. Democratic Executive Committees (DECs) who had trouble with recruitment were usually receptive to having more people stepping up. Until recently, FDP just didn't have the resources to back candidates in deep red areas, which meant we had to make a grassroots effort to find the funding for filing fees. But, there is a new initiative that we hope will provide resources (like access to data) to candidates (who otherwise had to pay for it). Hopefully that will empower candidates all over Florida." Such an optimist!

Good News And Less Good News From New Mexico Primaries Tuesday

Mostly better than Republicans: Pelosi, Schumer, Lujan

Three predictions: 1- Teresa Leger Fernandez, who just won the Democratic primary in New Mexico's 3rd district (the seat Ben Ray Luján is leaving for his Senate run, will be sworn into Congress next January, if we still have a functioning democracy. The PVI is D+8 and in 2016 Trump was crushed there (36.7% of the vote). 2- Leger Fernandez will have the comfy congressmember job for decades. 3- Leger Fernandez will never accomplish anything in Congress.

Last August, in looking at the NM-03 primary, I wrote that I had high hopes that Valerie Plame, who has certainly served the country well, might be the progressive I was looking for but... I still wasn't sure enough to recommend her endorsement by Blue America. She told me she backed the Green New Deal, banning the sale of assault weapons and Medicare-for-All, adding the caveat "for those who want it." I hoped all cycle she would see the light and that we could endorse her. Never happened. She lost to Leger Fernandez, despite outraising her significantly:

My friends in the state suggested Teresa Leger Fernandez was the progressive in the race but everything about her website screamed an identity politics, DCCC-EMILY's List nothing-candidate. There was no way to get in touch with her on the site-- usually a good indication a candidate is a corporate shill. There was no issues page, which is 100% pure DCCC-EMILY's List. And the website is just all about her, or her idea of how she wanted to present herself to voters. It was all "me! me! me!" and nothing about what she was supposedly offering the people in the district. Her intro video didn't say a damn thing about how she's likely to behave in Congress. Will she be like the 2 other New Mexico Reps, Deb Haaland, whose voting record is an "A" or like Xochitl Torres Small, whose voting record is an "F." I noted that "It makes a difference."

In their cheer-leadery election wrap-up on Wednesday, The Intercept found other results to cheer about in New Mexico.

In New Mexico, an all-women slate of progressives challenged five recalcitrant incumbents under the banner of a coalition dubbed “No Corporate Democrats.” Four of the five women ousted long-serving members of the state Senate who had stood in the way of the progressive agenda for years in this deep blue state. Another allied progressive, who wasn’t officially part of the coalition, unseated an anti-choice Democrat. The defeated incumbents include state Senate leadership figures.

Eric Griego, New Mexico state director for the Working Families Party, which had backed the progressives, said their victories are the “last gasp” of the moderate, corporate wing of the party on a state and local level. He noted that these victories build on the gains progressives made in the 2018 wave elections, when one of the longest-serving members of the state House of Representatives, conservative Democrat Debbie Rodella, was defeated by Susan Herrera.

“With them gone, we think this is going to open up a lot of really, really monumental legislation that the state has needed for generations,” Griego said. The progressives’ priorities include fully funding early childhood programs, releasing the state’s dependence on oil and gas, and repealing an arcane law that criminalizes abortion, he added. “The other really big one is potentially expanding the social safety net whether it’s healthcare or childhood education.”

An unprecedented number of absentee ballots has led to delays, so the votes are still being counted, but the Working Families Party declared victory in all five races Wednesday afternoon.

Siah Correa Hemphill, an educator and school psychologist, won overwhelmingly in District 28, unseating state Sen. Gabe Ramos. In District 38, Carrie Hamblen, a pioneer in New Mexico’s fight for LGBTQ rights and marriage equality, is locked in a tight race against Senate President Pro Tempore Mary Kay Papen. Ballots are still being counted in the extremely close race, with Hamblen leading by about 139 votes as of Wednesday afternoon.

In District 35, Neomi Martinez-Parra has a nearly 10 percentage point lead over state Sen. John Arthur Smith, who has been in office since 1989 and serves as the head of the Senate Finance Committee. Pam Cordova, a retired educator, also appears to be on track to victory, leading state Sen. Clemente Sanchez by over 1,000 votes, as of Wednesday morning. Cordova was backed by local labor groups and unions, EMILY’s List, and U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich.

Noreen Kelly, a Navajo elder and environmental activist who ran with No Corporate Democrats, is the only candidate on the slate who lost. She jumped in late in the race, formally launching in March, and struggled to get her campaign off the ground.

Leo Jaramillo, chair of the Rio Arriba County Commission, wasn’t officially on the No Corporate Democrat slate, but his victory is being celebrated by the Working Families Party and other allied progressive groups. Jaramillo defeated five-term incumbent state Sen. Richard Martinez, an anti-choice lawmaker who was also one of four Democrats to vote against New Mexico’s “red-flag” gun law, in District 5. The embattled state senator had faced calls to step down after being convicted and jailed for drunk driving last year. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham asked Martinez to resign from his seat, saying he was “obligated to reflect on his actions and how best to reconcile them with his position as a public servant in the state Legislature, in particular his status as chairman of an influential committee,” but no personal reckoning had taken place.

Oil and gas companies, which wield enormous influence over the state’s budget and politicians, pumped at least $1 million into New Mexico’s state Senate races, including Chevron Oil spending $700,000 in support of the incumbents. But some of the challengers, like Jaramillo and Correa Hemphill, had garnered broader coalitions of support across the progressive wing of the party and with top Democrats like Lujan Grisham and Heinrich. To help boost the candidates, the WFP joined other groups in making tens of thousands of calls, sending out mail, and investing in radio and texting.

The No Corporate Democrats coalition was modeled after New York’s No IDC coalition, which in 2018 unseated conservative Democrats who were allied with Republicans, known as the Independent Democratic Conference. Progressives in New Mexico were tasked with the challenge of branding incumbents that work with Republicans, Griego said. Despite pushing candidates in a few risky, tough races, the coalition, which included reproductive rights groups, environmental groups, and the nonprofit organization OLÉ, pulled it off.

Good! Meanwhile New Mexico will send a less progressive/more establishment delegation to DC next year--just one progressive (Haaland) out of the 5, which includes a very conservative Blue Dog and, mostly, careerist politicians who don't do much-- neither good nor bad-- for their communities. Replacing the most progressive member, Senator Tom Udall, will be a big zero-- Ben Ray, a complete waste of a Senate seat-- and exactly what Schumer demanded. I suppose that's the best most Americans can hope for from the elected leaders.

Endorsement Alert: Angie Nixon (Jacksonville)

Yesterday we talked briefly about Florida state Rep. Kimberly Daniels, one of the worst "Democrats" we've run across in many years. As I mentioned, Blue America has endorsed the progressive Democrat running for Daniels' seat this cycle, Angie Nixon. Another candidate for the state legislature, Robert Lynch, from the Miami area, told me that his chief advisor, Dr. Fergie Reid helped him "identify a number of races here in Florida of strategic importance. We can assure a win for Angie in a matter of weeks if we can raise enough money to show the Republicans that we mean business. We want to send them a message that we aren’t messing around and are coming for every seat they thought was safe." Lynch put his money where his mouth is and gave each candidate a substantial contribution from his persona funds. I invited Angie to introduce herself with a guest post here at DWT. If you like what she has to say, please consider contributing to her campaign by clicking on the 2020 Blue America state legislative thermometer way at the bottom of this post.

I know, I know. You read that headline about Daniels thanking God for slavery and thought, there’s just no way someone, especially an African American woman, could, let alone would, go on record stating that they’re happy slavery existed. Well, it’s true and if you think that’s the only zany thing she’s said or done, sadly you’re mistaking. There’s more. A whole lot more.

Meet Kimberly Daniels. Former Jacksonville City Councilmember and now current State Representative. Kim Daniels came onto the Jacksonville political scene touting herself as “Mike Mike’s Mama” Mike Mike, being Ex-NFL football player Michael Jennings who would later be arrested during a drug raid.

During her time on Council, Daniels spoke out against the Jacksonville Human Rights Ordinance which allowed protections for the LGBTQ community, and even went so far as trying to link the bill to bestiality. She was later unseated, but not before getting into verbal and alleged physical altercations with other city council candidates.

Daniels, a pastor, evangelist and self-professed “demon buster,” has been on a mission to bring uber conservative Christian values back into politics and into public schools. Unfortunately, she’s been successful, far too successful.

She’s doing it all while running in what’s considered a Black Democratic stronghold, by pushing a narrative full of wedge issues based on religion, homosexuality and abortion. This lawmaker has pushed anti-choice legislation that is jeopardizing the lives of young people, attempted to make it easier for pedophiles to receive civil citations as opposed to felony charges and totally disregarded the concept of the separation of church and state. She even admitted to filing false financial records.

Daniels has a history of being backed by GOP donors, including those running private prisons. She truly has an issue with ethics and accountability. Her district office isn’t even located in the district. It’s right next to the Republican mayor’s office in city hall and another state legislator that happens to be a Republican-- as well as conservative Congressman Al Lawson’s office. Daniels is currently being sued by her former district aide for wrongful termination and using taxpayer money via a state of Florida attorney to represent her. On top of all this, a pastor she’s reportedly been romantically linked to is being sued by the state of Florida related to a bill she championed. She continues to hustle and has used her church to assist with this.

-Howie



Why is a Black Florida Democratic state lawmaker being funded by Trump supporters? Probably because she has publicly stated she “Thanks God for Slavery” and has publicly lambasted the LGBTQ community
  -by Angie Nixon

Roughly 12 years ago, my favorite cousin, Breon, was killed. I was only a year out of college and I lost him to the school-to-prison pipeline. We were practically raised together. The only difference was the type of public school we attended. He attended all of his neighborhood schools and my mom bused me over an hour across town for elementary school to attend a magnet school. I never quite understood why she made the decisions she made regarding my education until I asked her if I could I attend the same high school that practically everyone on both sides of my family attended, even my older brother Tony. Her response makes me cringe, still to this day. My mom stated, "No you can't attend Raines High School. I don't want to make the same mistake I did with your brother." I was devastated, but I totally understood where she was coming from.

While attending a magnet school across town in elementary school and then academic magnets placed in low-income neighborhoods where many of the students from the neighborhood couldn't attend, I noticed some staunch differences. I often had different books and course offerings than the other kids in the neighborhood. The schools I attended were full of resources and updated technology, while my friends who lived on my block had no idea how to use certain programs we had, let alone qualified to attend the number one high school in the nation I graduated from.

Looking back on this... I get so pissed off every time I think about it. Especially because I know my cousin would still be alive if he would've followed my same path. He started getting into trouble in middle school, but some of the same things he was punished for and suspended for, students who attended my school often got slaps on the wrist for. I decided that after my cousin was killed by his "friend," I had to do more than get pissed off. I had to work to ensure that my daughter wouldn't lose her favorite cousin, Breon's son Cy'kai to the school to prison pipeline too.

This is why I became a community organizer. I wanted to ensure underserved and under-represented communities had the same access to resources and opportunities that the more wealthy sides of town had. It's been a struggle but one of the roles of an organizer is an agitator. We have to agitate folks to realize that they deserve equity and parity in terms of access to opportunities, quality education, living wage jobs, clean neighborhoods and affordable healthcare, just to name a few. For instance, my mom knew I deserved better but she knew that all all the other neighborhood kids did as well. This is why it's so important to highlight the disparities that exist in these communities, while working to diminish them. Again, I realized I couldn't just be mad, so I had to start doing something and leading by example.

Over the years, I turned my passion and love for the community into a 10 year career as a community organizer. I have created place-making events that provided access to healthy food options in food deserts, brought in educational opportunities and training opportunities for small business owners, and created family-friendly environments that focused on the overall health and well being of residents.

In 2013, I co-founded and operated Northside & LOVE (Lifting Our Various Enterprises) for a few years, which was a summer arts and vendors market that took place in the district at Lonnie Miller Park, sponsored by VyStar and Aetna. I also founded and organized Kidpreneur Fest, an annual event that showcases kid entrepreneurs and allows them to pitch their businesses for a chance to win funding for their business. I partnered with State Representative Tracie Davis and the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce on that event.

I am also the organizer and co-founder of The Melanin Market. The Melanin Market is in its fourth year of operation and serves the community by providing small business owners with resources to grow their businesses, providing healthy food options in a food desert and connecting residents to resources and services needed to enhance the community's quality of life.

In 2017, I raised over $10,000 for single moms affected by Hurricane Harvey and Irma. As a single mom, I understand the daily struggles even without severe weather shutting down our cities.

I currently serve as Director for the Florida Public Service Union’s Higher Education Campaign (SEIU-FPSU) and previously the State Field Director for the Service Employees International  Union of Florida (SEIU FL). I have also served as the North Florida Regional Organizer for New Florida Majority.

As the Higher Education Director, I am working with adjunct professors and getting them organized as we fight for access to quality education and work towards free college. Currently I am a member of a Higher Education Task Force where we are working to draft a plan for reopening our colleges and universities to present to the governor and his official task force. The disparities that exist between larger universities and smaller community and state colleges are comparable to those that I witnessed between magnet and neighborhood schools. This is one of the reasons I entered this race-- to fight to fully fund public education.

In addition to fighting to fully fund public education, my now 12 year old daughter and I travel the country hosting writing workshops in low income communities. This was a direct result of her having issues with reading and insecurities. We wrote a mini-comic book series called The Adventures of Moxie McGriff while she was 7 to increase her love for literacy and diversity in literature. We have now opened a sandwich and smoothie shop in a food desert to assist in lowering the rates of food insecurity. We plan on hiring teens to help them gain real world job experience.

As a former district aide to Florida State Representative Mia Jones, in House District 14, I remember what it was like to have a full time representative and someone who really worked for the community. It is my goal to once again bring a level of professionalism, ethics and accountability to the seat. It is my goal to win this election and take a more hands-on approach in the position.

Upon election, I will move my office back into the district. The current State Rep does not have her office in the district, but rather the mayor's office thereby making her virtually inaccessible to residents. I will also establish a District 14 advisory committee comprised of diverse residents, business owners, students, parents and community leaders to help me craft and drive policy that affects our community. I also plan to have monthly community conversations and town halls in different areas around the district, so that I can be fully accessible to residents.


I also plan to work to reform the cash bail system. Individuals charged with misdemeanor offenses should not sit in jail due to an inability to pay bail, but that is the case for too many of those living in poverty in this state. I recently served as the deputy director for the national Represent Justice campaign where we fought for comprehensive criminal justice reform.

Florida ranks near the bottom of all states where healthcare access and affordability are concerned, and more than 2 million Floridians are without any form of health insurance coverage. Last year I served on the leadership team for the Medicaid Expansion Campaign in the state of Florida. I plan on continuing that fight to ensure low income families have access to quality healthcare.

A Floridian making minimum wage would need to work 108 hours each week–the equivalent of 3 full-time jobs–to be able to afford the average 2 bedroom apartment in the Sunshine State. I will continue working with unions across the state advocating for an increase in the minimum wage to a living wage.

These are a few of the policies and projects that I have worked on and will continue working on. Being elected would only expand my ability to do more! I would appreciate your support in my efforts to flip this seat BLUE! Please visit my website at angienixon.com to learn more about me and vision for the community.

Worst "Democrat" In America... Think Florida, Of Course

Exorcist and state Rep Kim Daniels (D-FL)

You may not be a fan of Democrats like Joe Biden, Kyrsten Sinema, Debbie Wasserman Schultz or Joe Manchin, but it would be hard to find a worse example of a "Democrat" than the Bronx's Rubén Díaz, Sr., but we've come up with... well someone at least as bad: Jacksonville, Florida state Rep. Kim Daniels. Another anti-choice, Trump-loving, homophobic crook, Daniels is a "former" Republican, supported by Republicans in an all-blue district.

Where to start? How about the infamous, blacks were lucky to have been slaves remark? Snopes checked this one out and has all the proof crazy-lady said it. Did I mention that-- like Díaz, Sr.-- this delusion psychopath and fountain of hatred is a pastor? She "preached about demonic possession, claimed that Halloween candy was 'prayed over by witches,' and virulently opposed inclusiveness towards the LGBT community. In March 2018, the website Patheos drew attention to one explosive proclamation of Daniels’ in particular, reported in an article headlined “Black Florida Lawmaker Thanks God for Slavery”:

Florida State Rep. Kimberly Daniels thanks God for slavery, claiming “if it wasn’t for slavery, I might be somewhere in Africa worshiping a tree.”

State Rep Daniels-- like I said, a Republican through and through despite the "D" next to her name-- is no fan of Obama's. That slavery remark in context: "I would love to see a black president. I would love to see a black president, but not one that’s going to cost me my soul. And let me add this-- my babies, my boys, they don’t have to see a black man sitting in the president’s seat to know who they are. It’s in Him that I live and move and have my very own being, and if a black man [never becomes] president, Jesus is Lord and the Greater One is [inside] me. And what black people need to do is get back what the devil has stolen from them, and stop making it worse by working with unrighteousness… And let me say this to you-- I thank God for slavery. I thank God for the crack house. If it wasn’t for the crack house… God [would never have been able] to use me [as] he can use me now. And if it wasn’t for slavery, I might be somewhere in Africa, worshipping a tree."

Needless to say, someone with this kind of a diseased brain is also an anti-Semite. "And you can talk about the Holocaust, but the Jews own everything. We go through some things, but let me tell you something-- when you go through, you qualify to get paid back. You don’t need the government to give it back, God will give it back." And, apparently, no fan of reparations, Social Security or Medicare... let alone UBI.

Aside from Republican money, how does this crazy wing-nut remain in the state legislature representing a district whose electorate is made up almost entirely of Blacks (53.4%) and Hispanics (35.6%)? The Florida Democrats are apparently happy enough with her, having made her the ranking member of the Oversight, Transparency & Public Management Subcommittee. Last year Florida Times-Union columnist Nate Monroe-- in a piece titled Please, deliver us from Kimberly Daniels-- remarked on Daniels' staying power. "She rose to public office under the Jacksonville Democratic political machine run by ex-U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, who is now in federal prison. That machine made it a priority to elevate mediocrities like Daniels so Brown would never need to worry a competent rival might one day emerge. That strategy worked well for Brown for years, though it ultimately proved disastrous for the local party-- which now has a small bench of talented politicians and multiple former ones disgraced by high-profile scandal. And like Brown, Daniels pads her blighted political career with money from fixtures in Jacksonville’s Republican donor class, who are perfectly happy to look the other way for yet another stooge in Tallahassee who will support a pet cause or two."

Enough of this shit? Duval County Democratic Party vice-chair, Angie Nixon, a full-on progressive (a Bernie supporter) resigned from her party position to run for the seat Daniels is occupying. The primary is August 18. Blue America just endorsed Angie and we'll be offering you more information about her this week. But isn't this post enough to make you want to support her already?