IL-14: Laesch Press Conference

As many of you may know, John Laesch held a press conference this morning to discuss the unresolved election in IL-14.  At this point Laesch still trails his primary opponent by 355 votes in the general primary, although all the absentee ballots are not counted (in fact, County Clerks must wait until February 19th for their return) and there is still an outstanding question as to whether all the provisional ballots have been counted in all nine counties.

John Laesch has conceded the special primary to his opponent, who will run against Republican nominee Jim Oberweis on March 8 to decide who will fill the remaining ten months of Hastert’s term, but he has not conceded the general primary, which is still undecided until all votes are counted.  This morning Laesch held a press conference to answer the many questions the campaign has been bombarded with regarding his intentions.  I attended it.  And since the campaign has made it clear they will make no further statements, I will share my observations and the text of his remarks below.

First I’ll say that I spent election night in the Laesch for Congress office.  That was Tuesday.  John spoke to his supporters that night and, in response to a question from a reporter as to whether he would concede the special primary said that he would.  I recall that no one, not the AP, not the Trib, not a single Chicago TV station, was willing to call the regular primary that night – nor have they yet that I can discover – with so close a margin and no idea what military, absentee, and provisional ballots might be outstanding.  John certainly did not concede that race, and spoke about the need to look at those details the next day.  

My interpretation of this was that Laesch was conceding the special primary and not conceding the general primary – an interpretation that the media present then seems to share.  But I discovered the next day that, in an experience uncommon for me, as I have worked for the campaign in the past and have personal friends on staff – and in fact count John and Jen as personal friends by this point – that the lid, as they say, was on.  I couldn’t get another word out of anyone.  They maintained with me that there simply wasn’t anything going on beyond counting every vote, and until that was done, no decisions could be made.  I also needed to look no further than out my window to realize that several of the county clerk’s offices were closed, because of the rampaging blizzard going on, so there was no way anything like a normal canvass could proceed.

Heh.  So I went to the press conference.  

Al Nowakowski, a member of the campaign’s communications team, took the mike first and surprised at least me by introducing of all people Ben Mullenbach.  While some of you would readily recognize his DKos uid if I threw it out, I won’t.  Suffice it to say Ben spoke so eloquently and movingly of the simple fact that he was John Laesch’s very first volunteer, going up to him and pledging him his help after the very first political speech John ever made, and while Ben was still a sophomore in high school that I was amazed and suspect more Kossacks than I would be hoping Ben runs for office one day if they had heard it.  

I know Ben from way back in the ’06 campaign, and while I always knew he was always there doing a myriad of tasks, I was amazed because he goes diligently and rather seriously about whatever work is underway and this is a side of him that was new to me.  He spoke, without reference to notes or prepared text that I could see, about why John had so moved him to volunteer and it was so apparent he spoke for many of us, and moved all of us, who had, at various points in the last cycle or this, followed him in dedicating our support to John.  The campaign has not posted the audio of Ben, as I am writing this, but I feel they should.  I hope they do.  At the end of Ben’s remarks he introduced State Senator Mike Noland.

Senator Noland’s first remark was to ask how he could possibly follow that!  Senator Noland, himself pretty widely known throughout our area as a true grassroots candidate, compared John to, as he termed it, another Illinois politician, Obama, in that they have an uncommon ability to connect with the voters, which pretty much sent the crowd into a really wild round of applause.  Noland said something to the effect that one of the things he admired about John was that he was a fighter and would not give up easily.  I wish they had posted this on the campaign’s website as well, because I am struggling to recall all of Noland’s inspiring remarks, but suffice it to say that I approached him after the event to tell him I do not live in his district, but envy those who do.  Let’s just hope a video goes up on YouTube soon – there were a lot of cameras in the room.  In the meantime, I’ll just add that Noland introduced John, and offer the full text of John’s remarks below, and a link to the audio on the campaign website.

To the best of my recollection, John meticulously followed the text of these remarks.  I noted it strongly at the time, because as his media coordinator in ’06, I am well aware of the possibility probability inevitability that John will set aside his remarks and begin to speak extemporaneously.  Thankfully, he does that remarkably well, so I soon got over the near heart-attack it caused me the first few times he did so, but I could not fail to note that he was being uncharacteristically careful to stick to his prepared text.

“Let me begin by congratulating Bill Foster in his special election win.

We will be cheering him on in the special election.

This is what we know with respect to the regular primary election that was held on February 5th.

Currently, we know that there is a difference of 355 votes out of 75,000 votes cast in a historic Democratic turnout for this district. This is less than 1 vote per precinct.

Yesterday, February 7th was the first day when election officials could begin to count provisional ballots. As of today, there are a significant number of provisional and absentee ballots that remain uncounted.

We have been in close contact with officials in the 9 jurisdictions throughout the 14th Congressional District. And I would like to express my appreciation to all of the election judges who had to deal with the challenges that came with three elections in a very short period of time. It has been challenging for many of them and we are grateful for their continued effort to help us resolve some of the unknowns as we await the process.

By Illinois Statute, provisional and absentee ballots must be counted by February 19th. The regular primary must be certified by March 7th.

While we are awaiting the official election results, we remain committed to the Democratic process.

The next question I would like to answer is what is next for John Laesch?

I became involved in electoral politics because I disagreed with 2003 pre-emptive war policy and invasion of Iraq. I chose to run for United States Congress in 2005 after my brother received his orders to go to Baghdad. I have stated consistently that I will remain involved in electoral politics until every single U.S. soldier is safely home from Iraq.

My younger brother, Sgt. Pete Laesch voted with an absentee ballot on February 5th.

As of today, my brother’s vote has not been counted.

We have no choice but to await the final results of the February 5th Primary Election.”

I saw Dem County Chairs and PCPs there, and I saw volunteers I recognized and supporters I did not.  There were residents as from as far away as the farthest western edge of IL-14, almost at the Iowa Border, there were labor leaders, and Latino leaders, and Dem movers and shakers of virtually every category you could imagine.  They were obviously and sincerely enthusiastic in their support for this speech.  At one point, the crowd of supporters even broke out in a chant of “every vote counts.”

John’s answers in the Q&A also struck me as very concise and controlled for John – there was not a quip to be heard and there was no back and forth chit-chat involved.

The inevitable question came up as to whether John would ask his supporters to work for his recent opponent in the special election.  Laesch answered that every Democrat should support the Democrat on the ballot, then added: “I am a Democrat” which drew another round of applause.

After the speech, people just didn’t want to seem to leave.  I stepped out front onto the sidewalk of busy Downer Street in Aurora with a friend, so we could try to hear each other talk.  As we were talking a pickup stopped in the street, stalling traffic, and the driver leaned out the window and shouted “What did he decide?  What did he decide?” and I said “To wait for the votes to be counted.”

“Good,” he shouted, and looking over his shoulder at the backed-up traffic yelled “I gotta go” and drove on.  

cross-posted to Fireside14, PrairieStateBlue, OpenLeft, MyDD and DailyKos

Help Obama or Clinton by Expanding Our Congressional Majority

A lot of the oxygen in the room is being sucked up by the Presidential campaign right now. I know there has been a lot of passion for that race, and understandably so. However, there are many more elections this year that Democrats need to be focused on. In both chambers of Congress, we have threadbare majorities. Even if we win the White House in the Fall, we still face gridlock without an expansion of our Congressional Majorities in the Congress.

Just imagine too, as depressing as it is that John McCain lucks up and wins in the fall. We will need a Congress that can hold him, and the irresponsible Republican Congressional delegation in check. Either way you look at it, no matter who wins the White House, we simply MUST expand our majorities in the Congress.

What good will it do Obama or Clinton if they are elected and we still have spineless Democrats in the House and Senate who won’t fight for us or them, and team up with the Repugs to defeat Progressive change? What happens if the Republicans are allowed the numbers to mount a filibuster in the Senate against our new agenda? In two words, NOTHING GOOD!!

We simply MUST expand our majorities in both houses of Congress. Not doing so spells a certain disaster for our party, and our President if we manage to elect a Democrat. We need Democrats all over this country elected who not only talk about change, but fight for it.

So what can we do? With hundreds of millions of dollars flying around the Presidential race, we simply must invest some of that money in our Congressional candidates around the country that seek to expand our majority. Furthermore, we need to invest in those candidates who believe in the ideals of our party and have the backbone to fight for them.

With that in mind, I would like to tell you about Heather Ryan, an awesome Democrat that is running in Kentucky’s First Congressional District to defeat one of the worst Congressman in the land, Exxon Ed Whitfield. Whitfield is a Mitch McConnell clone that doesn’t even own a house in our district. His basis for holding our Congressional seat is his parent’s house in Hopkinsville, and an empty lot in Madisonville. He is highly invested in oil stocks, and other big business stocks and votes in the interest of his bottom line, not the voters of Kentucky’s First District. Hence, we have nick-named him Exxon Eddie!!

This time around, we plan on sending Exxon Eddie back to Florida, or wherever it is that he really lives. We are determined to not only send him packing, but to elect a “Fighting Democrat” with a backbone who will stand for the voters of our district and for the principles our party was founded on.

Enter Heather Ryan. A mother, Navy veteran of the Gulf War, and proud Democrat. Here she is, in her own words telling why she is in this race:

I was propelled into this race when I became the victim of

a corrupt politician.  

It was after my experience that I realized that the Republican Representation Kentucky has in Washington, D.C. is part of the “Culture of Corruption” from which our communities are currently reeling.  

Ed Whitfield, KY-01’s current representative, is no exception.  He consistently votes for his own financial interests, has only introduced one piece of legislation in 13 years as Representative

(a ban on eating horse meat) and opposed SCHIP legislation which would have increased health care benefits for poor children!

I refuse to allow a powerful few to bully me and the First Congressional District.  We need someone who is not afraid to stand up for the rights of their constituents – not another puppet of the rich and power hungry.

I will be a TRUE Representative for the people of Kentucky’s First District!  Not a No-Show like “Exxon Eddie Whitfield”

As you can see, like many citizens of Western Kentucky, Mrs. Ryan is sick and fed up with the arrogance and elitism offered up by McConnell and Whitfield. She wants to fight against more than eating horse meat, (yuck), she wants to fight for Kentuckians. While I am sure that horses in Kentucky are breathing easier, the citizens aren’t.

Heather Ryan is determined to fight for our new President, and a Democratic agenda in the Congress. Lets look at a couple of her priorities on her website which is still under construction:

It is an absolute travesty that 50 million Americans struggle without health care in the wealthiest nation in the world.  What’s worse is when our representative votes against improvements in access to health services for children and the poor.  Unfortunately, these are

both realities that we’ve experienced under the current leadership.  I propose that health care for every American is more important than tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy.  

It is time we had a representative who thinks about more than just how much money he can make when he helps pass legislation that benefits drug and insurance companies.  As the leaders of the free world, it is an embarrassment that we are the only industrialized nation that does not offer health care for our citizens.

http://www.ryanforkentucky.com…

It sounds like Mrs. Ryan is right on par with what we need for our citizens to recieve healthcare. Former Edwards supporters, I think this shows that she supports the healthcare initiative that would help create One America. Won’t you help us in this venture?

Another telling statement can be found on Heather’s site that shows she will fight the Corporate control of our government also:

The Budget Reconciliation Bill, signed by President Bush and passed by Congress, cut future spending for Medicare, Medicaid, Student Loans and even free and reduced lunches for poor children; all while giving a $2.3 Billion tax break to Oil Companies and affording a $5.7 billion slush fund to Pharmaceutical Companies (both of which Representative Ed Whitfield has personal financial investments and large campaign contributions).  Corporate welfare for profitable companies who donate heavily to Congressmen is corrupt and scandalous.  I will

work diligently against the culture of corruption which permeates the political system.

http://www.ryanforkentucky.com…

Heather is dedicated to Government Reform which doesn’t allow Congressmen such as Exxon Eddie to rake in millions of dollars from special interests and then shamelessly vote for them over the interests of the citizens of the First District of Kentucky. She shares our outrage at a system that is tilted toward the rich and powerful and away from us.

In case you might have missed it, here is Heather’s announcement to run for the Congressional seat in Kentucky’s First District:

So, how can you help? Well, first you can go to our site and check out Heather Ryan and her stances. The site is still under construction, but Heather wanted to get her views on some important issues up as soon as possible. Second, got to her site and scroll to the bottom and sign up to recieve updates on our campaign here:

http://www.ryanforkentucky.com…

Finally, unfortunately money is the one thing that no campaign can get started or survive without. Kentucky is one of the poorest states in the union, and the First is one of the poorest Congressional Districts. Unfortunately, the people who really need Heather Ryan and support her have very little money to give. They are scratching and clawing in the second America John Edwards talked so eloquently about in this election. We need the help of national Democrats!!

Now keep in mind that Heather is the only Democrat to file by the deadline for this race, and will not face a primary. By supporting her you are not only helping fellow grassroots Democrats in Kentucky’s First, but you are supporting a “Fighting Democrat” with a backbone that WILL BE running to unseat a sitting Republican in the fall. You are not only supporting Heather, you are supporting the expansion of our Democratic majorities for whatever President takes over next year!! Please go here and make an investment in our party, and our Congress here:

http://actblue.com/page/ryanfo…

No amount is too small, and anything you send will be put to work immediately towards the expansion of our Congressional Majority. I know it is easy to get caught up in the Presidential, many of you remember me as an ardent Edwards supporter and blogger, but we can’t afford to ignore our great Congressional and Senate candidates who are seeking to infuse this party with something it desperately needs, A BACKBONE!!! Heather Ryan is such a Democrat and we desperately need your help!!! Please show us some love!!!  

AL-02: Bobby Bright To Run As A Democrat?

My first diary here at Swing State Project.  I hadn’t seen this mentioned, but Doc’s Political Parlor (which covers Alabama politics) is reporting that Montgomery, AL, Mayor Bobby Bright has apparently decided to run as a Democrat for the open seat in Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District (currently held by Terry Everett).

http://www.politicalparlor.net…

Apparently he was going back and forth over whether to run as a Democrat or Republican, the thinking being he’d have an easier time in the general election as a Republican, but an easier time in a primary as a Democrat.  The speculation seems that he’s the Democrat’s best hope for winning the seat, and actually has a decent shot at winning.  It may come down to the region of the district that the GOP nominee comes from (ie. a Montgomery Republican could fare worse against Bright).

Can anyone better-versed in Alabama politics give more insight?

4’9″ Senate Candidate With Steel Hook Launches TV Ads

Steve Novick released a new campaign ad today. While the campaign was filming its ad, it was able to make another at the same time entitled "Beer with Steve,". The spot offers a humorous take on Steve's 'unusualities' and his determination to find a way to make things work. So take a moment, watch the video, and pass it on to friends, neighbors and colleagues to help get the word out about Steve.

 

MO-Gov: Blunt Gets Sued – What is he trying to hide?

Missouri’s most endangered Republican, Governor Matt Blunt just got served!

A lawsuit that is, by Scott Eckersley, his former deputy legal counsel, who is suing Blunt and four current and former aides.

From the Kansas CIty Star:

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. | Gov. Matt Blunt ducked questions Thursday about a lawsuit alleging his office intentionally deleted e-mails in violation of open-records laws but defended the firing of the former staff attorney who sued him. A whistleblower and defamation lawsuit filed Wednesday by former Blunt attorney Scott Eckersley claims that top Blunt aides directed staff in his office and other agencies to destroy e-mails to avoid providing information sought under public records requests.

The real question is, “What are they trying to hide?” Looks like the deletions are just the tip of the iceberg!

Here’s Blunt’s approval numbers: 46% approve, 48% disapprove. The crosstabs show 36% of the sample were Democrats, 29% Republicans, and 28% Independents. If that’s how party affiliation is lining up in Missouri, we’re in very good shape.

Democratic AG Jay Nixon is running strong – last I heard he was up 51% to 42%. I’m betting we can paint this one as “Democrat Favored”.

PA-05: GOP Rep. John Peterson to Retire

(I’m not too embarrassed to admit that I’ve never heard of this GOP crumb-bum until today. – promoted by James L.)

Being in the minority sucks. GOP Rep. John Peterson of PA-05 is expected to announce his retirement today.

Two Republican officials with knowledge of the decision said Peterson was expected to announce his retirement. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they did not want to pre-empt the congressman’s announcement, which was anticipated later Thursday.

No indication yet why he’s leaving exactly, but he’ll turn 70 this year.

Peterson was re-elected in 2006 with 60% of the vote, underpolling Bush by less than 1%. This is rough, red country to be certain (R+10), but it does include State College.

2006 challenger Don Hilliard says in a comment on Race Tracker Wiki:

Please note my name is Don Hilliard. I ran against Congressman Peterson in 2006 and intend to do so again in 2008. Please add me to your site. Thank you.

UPDATE: Wikipedia on Peterson’s environmental record:

Peterson received the lowest possible environmental rating from the nonpartisan League of Conservation Voters in 2006, casting what the group qualified as anti-environment votes on twelve out of twelve critical issues ranging from oil drilling offshore and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, salvage logging and logging roads, and the Clean Water Act, to the Toxics Release Inventory program and low-income energy assistance. The conservative environmental group Republicans for Environmental Protection singled out Peterson as “Worst in the House in 2006” on environmental issues. In addition to assigning the representative a score of zero for his voting record, REP censured him individually for “efforts to remove the moratorium on Outer Continental Shelf gas drilling through the Interior appropriations process.” According to the League of Conservation Voters, “natural gas drilling can create massive amounts of water and air pollution and can leave open the possibility of oil spills, which would be toxic for a wide variety of marine and coastal life.”

Good riddance!

UPDATE #2: It’s official.

Peterson said in a statement released by his office that he desires to spend more time with his family in Pleasantville. He said his retirement is effective at the end of his current term.

Wow, it’s like Republicans all over congress are suddenly remembering how much they love their families! I guess being on the Appropriations committee isn’t as fun when you’re in the minority.

Your thoughts?

CT-04 Pub Quiz Part Deux



‘Tis the season to support Jim Himes, share a drink with you fellow Democrats, and show off your mad trivia skillz.

What: That’s right.  It’s time for another end of quarter blograiser.  You don’t have to be a trivia whiz – just have a good sense of humor, an interest in history, politics, or current events, and a strong desire to work for better leadership in Washington by electing Jim Himes to Congress.

Our September event was attended by over 60 people and raised over $4500 for the the Himes campaign.  Relive the magic at the official liveblog thread, including a play by play of the game and plenty of pictures.

When: Saturday December 15 from 7 to 10PM

Where:

Murphy’s Law

239 Fairfield Ave

Bridgeport, CT 06604

(203) 366-5297

Suggested Minimum Contribution $25

RSVP Here

Rock Star Democratic co-host:

State Rep. Gerry Fox

Democratic co-hosts:

Jim Himes

State Rep. Tom Drew

State Rep. Bruce Morris

State Rep. Chris Perone

State Rep. Jim Shapiro

State Rep. William Tong

Blogger co-hosts:

Gabe:: CT Local Politics & The Left Coaster

Jon Kantrowitz:: MyLeftNutmeg

Melissa Ryan:: CT Local Politics & MyDD

Spazeboy:: Spazeboy

Pub Quiz will begin promptly at 7:30 and will consist of four rounds of questions.

Can’t attend?  Be a virtual participant.  Follow the action via liveblog on MyLeftNutmeg.

NE-Sen: Raimondo “Urged” To Run, By State, National Democrats

As the New Nebraska Network first reported last Monday, Republican Tony Raimondo is considering running for Senate as a Democrat. In today’s Lincoln Journal Star, he openly considered the possibility in an interview with Don Walton.


Columbus industrialist Tony Raimondo said Monday he’s considering entering the 2008 Senate race as a Democrat.

Raimondo, who stepped away from a possible Republican bid after Mike Johanns entered the contest, said he’s been urged by national and state Democratic officials to consider making the race within their party.

“Those discussions are continuing to move on,” Raimondo said.  “Obviously, there’s some interest on both sides.”

Raimondo, you may recall, was Bush’s pick back in 2004 for “manufacturing czar,” but his nomination was withdrawn after questions about his anti-labor practices as chairman of Behlen Manufacturing.

Straight from Raimondo, now, we have confirmation that the rumors we were hearing a week ago were true. Ben Nelson, the NDP, and the DSCC, are recruiting a Republican, who less than two months ago was running for Senate as a Republican, to run under the Democratic banner.

If we’re serious about competing everywhere – in all fifty states – we cannot allow this to stand. The Democratic Party in Nebraska will become worse than a joke. Let’s make sure we have a voice for Democrats in Nebraska. Let’s get Scott Kleeb in this race.

On the web: Draft Kleeb

NM-Sen, NM-03: Udall Senate Run Shakes Things Up

With Tom Udall entering the race for the open Senate seat of the retiring Pete Domenici, there is yet another open House seat in New Mexico.  And Santa Fe green developer Don Wiviott is going to switch his campaign over from the Senate race to the race for the now-open Third Congressional District seat.

Democracy for New Mexico first reported on the change, saying, “Don intends to seriously explore running for Congress in NM-03.”  Later yesterday, Heath Haussamen got a quote from Wiviott saying he would officially change over to the House race.

Read what he had to say under the fold.  Crossposted at New Mexico FBIHOP.

Wiviott said Udall is a friend, in addition to being his congressman. He will defer to him in the Senate race, but said he plans, in running for Udall’s House seat, to stay in the fight to end the Iraq war, protect the environment and improve the education system.

Wiviott loaned himself $400,000 and raised an additional $137,189, so he will enter the House race with a significant amount of campaign cash to play with.  It will be some time before we find out exactly who will oppose Wiviott.  We know, however, that state Rep. Peter Wirth will not seek the job.

As for the Democratic side of the Senate race, Jim Hannan said immediately following Domenici’s retirement a month ago he would drop out of the race if Udall stepped in.  But Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez and Mother Media editor Leland Lehrman both vowed to stay in the race for the US Senate seat.

Chavez’s campaign manager was confident in Chavez despite the Udall entry into the race.

Chavez’s campaign manager Mark Fleisher said today that the mayor believes he absolutely can beat Udall. Fleisher says the mayor is known around the state probably as well as Udall.

Udall and Chavez’ opponent Lehrman issued a press release explaining why he would not back off his run for Senate:

Although his votes on the environment and civil liberties make us all proud, his Washingtonian willingness to avoid tough issues means that he cannot be trusted with the leadership role a US Senator must take.

One example Lehrman gave was Udall’s vote to table a bill which would start impeachment hearings on Vice President Dick Cheney, a proposal set forth by Dennis Kucinich.

New Video: 365 Days

We are almost exactly one year away from Election Day 2008. One year from now, will Oregon voters choose a candidate who will stand for Oregon, or with President Bush?

Learn more about Smith’s record at http://www.stopgordo… and link to the video at http://www.stopgordo…

“A year from now, Oregonians will have the opportunity to choose change or more of the same,” DPO Chair Meredith Wood Smith said. “They can choose more of someone who has stood by President Bush’s conservative U.S. Supreme Court, his Iraq War and his Republican agenda. Or, they can choose someone who will stand up for Oregon. I hope everyone who views this video will sign up to help us defeat Gordon Smith and send a progressive U.S. Senator to Washington, DC.”

Watch the video and let others know how you will vote a year from now, and why.