Tag: Bruce Lunsford

Kentucky is a state that could make a huge difference in our Congress this year. Despite the circus that has become the Presidential Primary, Democrats simply must remember that no matter who wins, a Progressive direction is highly unlikely without expanded Congressional majorities. That is why this long, grueling primary may prove to be a disaster for our country. Not only are the last two candidates standing and their supporters hurting each other, they are stealing valuable oxygen and funding from our candidates who can truly change this country from the ground up, our Congressional and Senate candidates.

One case in point is the Democratic race in Kentucky to find a candidate who will run to Ditch Mitch McConnell. We have already lost one fine candidate in this race, Andrew Horne because the netroots ignored him and didn’t give him the funding he needed. Now, Chuck Schumer and our party leadership have recruited a millionaire businessman, Bruce Lunsford to run so they don’t have to invest in Kentucky Democrats yet again.

Forget the fact that Lunsford has donated to many Republicans, including donating AGAINST John Yarmuth, our only pickup in 06. Add to that the fact that when he lost the Democratic Primary in 03 against Ben Chandler, he ENDORSED Ernie Fletcher, the corrupt Governor we just ousted, and actually managed his transition team.

Luckily, after the loss of Greg Stumbo and Andrew Horne to this race, we still have a good Progressive Democrat. His name is Greg Fischer and his campaign is gaining steam. Here is an email sent to me from his campaign today:

It is with great pride and gratitude that I announce today we have exceeded our first quarter fundraising goal and will report an impressive amount to the FEC next week.

Dollar by dollar, support is coming in from across the state. Our backing has been strong and encouraging. We’re confident that our campaign will have the resources necessary to defeat Bruce Lunsford on May 20 and we have set our sights on ditching Mitch in November.

Thirty percent of the contributions were received from folks like you who received an e-mail from a friend or the campaign and then went online to www.gregfischer.com to contribute. And, 44 percent of all contributions were for amounts of $200 or less. Every dollar counts.

Our support is multiplying each day. When people from Paducah to Covington learn about my candidacy, they realize I’m the contrast candidate with a clean record that has the best chance of defeating Mitch McConnell in the fall.

I am grateful for your encouragement and continued support.

Thank you,

Greg

If you don’t know Greg, here is some video of him:

Now, believe me, Bruce Lunsford in the Senate is not going to forward a Progressive agenda. With him replacing McConnell, we may have a Senator that votes with us half the time. Why should we settle for that? We need a Senator from Kentucky that will fight for our values, not back into them!!!

Please help the Greg Fischer campaign to defeat Lunsford and McConnell, two millionaires that will fight against us here:

http://actblue.com/entity/fund…

Now, on to the fight for my home. We have an awesome grassroots lady running here in Kentucky’s First Congressional District to unseat another millionaire and Mitch McConnell protege’ Ed Whitfield. We call Whitfield Exxon Eddie, because while Kentuckians and Americans are feeling much pain at the pump, Ed Whitfield is profiting handsomely with his Exxon and Chevron stock.

At Ryan for Kentucky, we believe we can do better. We believe we can find homegrown solutions for our dependence on foreign oil, and that we can have a Representative that votes for the betterment of our district, not the betterment of their own stock options.

Heather is a newcomer but is educated, passionate, and smart. We desperately need the resources to get our message out to the 63% of registered Democrats in this district who want to be invested in again. Many of them don’t know Heather, but look at the response she got recently when 3000+ of the people she is seeking to represent got their first look at her:

This was an event she was scheduled to speak at for a long time, and then Hillary decided to come too. From what I heard Heather and Hillary were the only two out of many that recieved standing ovations at this event.

Here her hear answering a Kossack about what it means to be a Democrat:

Yes, I know the feeling. George Bush makes me spit up too!!!

Now, we need your help in this race. Our district has long been ignored by the state and national party, despite being 63% registered Democrat. The Republicans have invested here, and all the Democrats here want is to be important to our party once more. If we get the resources we win, bottom line.

Please consider an investment in the expansion of our Congressional majorities here:

http://www.actblue.com/page/am…

With the help of grassroots Democrats, Kentucky can be what it always was for generations, BLUE!!!

Please consider helping out these two great Kentucky Democrats who want to make a difference for US in the next Congress. Our eventual nominee will thank you for it when they win the White House and have two awesome Democrats to work with!!

Best wishes fellow Democrats!!

(Cross-posted from the AFL-CIO Now Blog.)

 

The fight for a pro-working family government doesn’t end with the race for the White House. Around the country, union members in key states are looking to elect new members of Congress who will help turn around America.

 

The Kentucky AFL-CIO has announced endorsements in key races for U.S. Congress and Kentucky AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan says these candidates, and the issues they’ll fight for, will help mobilize union members to win this fall.

[We] endorsed on the basis of their of support for the issues of critical importance to Kentucky’s hard working men and women: good jobs, the right to organize, health care for all, retirement security and education and training opportunities.

Topping the list of the Kentucky endorsees is Bruce Lunsford, who’s running for U.S. Senate against Mitch McConnell, the Republican minority leader who’s led the fight against working family-friendly policies like a real economic stimulus bill and children’s health insurance.

McConnell is behind the strategy of obstruction that has allowed a minority of senators to block important legislation like the Employee Free Choice Act. He consistently has voted for Bush nominees for key federal agencies, including the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MHSA) and the Department of Labor (headed by his wife, the worker-unfriendly Elaine Chao). In short, McConnell is the Senate’s key enabler of the anti-worker agenda. Lunsford has pledged to support the Employee Free Choice Act and to work with union members as they fight to ditch Mitch.

In addition to supporting Lunsford, Kentucky unions gave their strong endorsement to two incumbent House members and a challenger. Endorsements went to Democratic Reps. John Yarmuth of the 3^rd District and Ben Chandler of the 6^th District, as well as to Democratic state Sen. David Boswell, who’s running for the 2^nd District seat left open by retiring Republican Ron Lewis.

Union members were crucial to the stunning 18-point victory for Gov. Steve Beshear last November, and the Kentucky AFL-CIO is looking to build on its success with these endorsements for the U.S. House and Senate.

In addition to working to elect Lunsford and Boswell and re-elect Chandler and Yarmuth, Londrigan says the Kentucky AFL-CIO will focus on exposing the record of Sen. John McCain.

In Oklahoma, state Sen. Andrew Rice is running against Sen. Jim Inhofe, another Republican who regularly votes against working family-friendly policies on health care, wages and the freedom to form unions. Rice, who Oklahoma AFL-CIO President Jimmy Curry called “a good friend of working men and women,” won the endorsement of the Oklahoma AFL-CIO on Tuesday.

In Idaho, where Republican Sen. Larry Craig won’t be returning to the Senate, former Democratic Rep. Larry LaRocco has won the endorsement of the Idaho AFL-CIO. Idaho AFL-CIO President David Whaley says members of the Idaho AFL-CIO’s Executive Board were impressed by LaRocco’s commitment to working family issues and his visits to work sites around the state.

The working families of Idaho are struggling to raise families, pay their taxes, support education, care for their aging parents and cope with the continued increase in health care costs. Larry LaRocco has been working in jobs all across Idaho and has heard first-hand about the challenges they face in their lives. When he is elected he will continue to work alongside these same families and make sure their voices are heard through his expressed support of the Employee Free Choice Act. We are proud to endorse him for the U.S. Senate.

The effort to elect more working family-friendly members of the House and Senate is an essential part of this year’s unprecedented mobilization of millions of union members.

This puts a smile on my face.

In Kentucky’s Republican gubernatorial primary next week, “although the No. 3 candidate claims his internal polls show former Rep. Anne Northup (R-Ky.) pulling ahead, it appears more likely that she can, at best, force a runoff against troubled incumbent Gov. Ernie Fletcher (R),” according to the Evans-Novak Political Report. “Even that appears unlikely at this point. One poll shows Fletcher 10 points ahead and well above the 40 percent threshold at which he avoids a runoff.”

Meanwhile, “on the Democratic side, former Lt. Gov. Steve Beshear is clearly the man to beat at this point. The most likely outcome of next Tuesday’s primary is a runoff between him and Bruce Lunsford. Beshear has benefited from the departure of state Treasurer Jonathan Miller (D) from the race — Miller endorsed Beshear as he exited. In debates, Beshear was everyone’s target, a sign that all of the campaigns recognize his late frontrunner status. Leaning Beshear.”

It looks like that, in the Buegrass State, our best-case scenario is about to come true. Let’s hope so.