Progressive Democrat Issue 89: MIDWEST FOCUS: Iowa and Indiana

I am getting more readers in the Midwest, though not yet enough to match my NY, NJ and VA readership. Please try to spread the word about this newsletter to your friends to help me expand my Midwestern readership. For now my focus on the Midwest will be only occasional, but if readership increases, I will try to make it more regular.

IOWA: Iowa is where I have roots going back to my great-grandfather. It is where my father was born, though he died in Korea. For that reason I have long been interested in reaching out to progressives in Iowa. To that end, I have also contributed to the Iowa Democratic Party for a couple of years now. This action comes from their newsletetr:

Make Your Voice Heard: Become a Member of the Iowa Democratic Party Alert the Media Team!

Alert the Media!

The Iowa Democratic Party needs your help writing letters to the editor and calling into talk radio programs to spread the Democratic message and help ensure victory in 2006.

Being a member of the Alert the Media team is easy. You will receive email updates from the IDP on the hot topics of the day. The emails will include message notes and background information to help you write your letter to the editor and prepare your question for a radio program. All you have to do is Alert the Media! Finally, your printed letters and call-in questions will be featured below!

If you would like to join the IDP Alert the Media team, email Erin Seidler at eseidler@iowademocrats.org.

I think this is a brilliant idea and I wish more Democratic parties would do this. I strongly urge all Iowa readers to join up and to get progressive friends to join up.

I also want to call your attention to some Act Blue pages focusing on Iowa. My New York readers have donated almost $1000 to winning New York state races. My Virginia and New Jersey readers have donated far less to the efforts in their states. Maybe my Iowa readers can out do Virginia and New Jersey readers...or even beat NY readers!

First I want to mention my own Iowa Act Blue page. This was one of my first Act Blue pages for 2006 and already has $275 donated. In particular I want to call your attention to the IA-1 congressional race which is a dead heat and a possible pick up for Democrats. Also, Elesha Gayman is running for HD-84. She is endorsed by Democracy for America and is very deserving of support. She represents a new generation of progressive Democratic leaders. Finally, I draw particular attention to Mike Mauro's run for Secretary of State. This position is so critical for keeping our elections fair. All of my Iowa candidates are deserving of support, but those three are particularly worth it.

Other Act Blue pages I will mention include:

Heartland Iowa's Statewide race page which covers all the statewide Iowa races.

Heartland Iowa's State Senate Page aims to win big in Iowa's State Senate.

Finally, Heartland PAC's Iowa House Challenger's page focuses on the state house races where a Democrat is challenging a Republican, including Elesha Gayman's HD-84 challenge.

Please donate if you possibly can towards winning big in Iowa...and showing my readers in other states what Iowa is all about.


INDIANA: I want to focus on Indiana as well because even the Republicans are admitting that Democrats may pick up as many as three House seats in Indiana. Indiana may be for 2006 what Montana was in 2005: a state most people think of as red giving big gains to Democrats. If you want to help win Indiana House seats as well as the Sec of State position in Indiana, please donate through my Indiana Act Blue Page.

But winning just one year won't make a difference. The exciting thing about Montana is that Democrats seem to be following up with their 2005 win statewide with what looks to be a strong showing in this year's Senate race. Whatever happens in Indiana this year, our strength there in the future will depend on establishing a more progressive Democratic infrastructure. To this end I want to draw your attention to an organization called Indiana Progressives PAC. Indiana Progressives believe to win nationally we must first win locally. Their message is positive, practical and progressive! Please give them your support!