Progressive Democrat Issue 227

On September last there was a special election in Iowa that I highlighted in my lst newsletter. I am happy to say that Democrat Curt Hanson won that election. The Republicans tried to make the election about marriage equality to try and get out their base. In the end, though, the Democratic candidate was more appealing to the voters.

September 15th is a big primary election in NYC which many of you know I am very involved with. In many of the races I have been covering, there are many candidates who roughly break down into three categories: 1. corrupt machine candidates (whether linked to corrupt Democratic Party machines or the currently scandal-ridden Working Families Party), 2. social conservatives running as Democrats, and 3. genuine progressive reform-minded candidates. Needless to say, I pretty much am pushing the third category. But, as always, progressive reformers have the toughest time winning because they don't have big money backing them. So every vote counts in these races and anything my NYC readers can do to elect genuinely good candiates like Josh Skaller, Jo Anne Simon and Norman Siegel the better. I will be highlighting some of the candidates I know personally in this issue and the next issue. This issue I highlight Norman Siegel, Letitia James and Rock Hackshaw. I also cover a very odd dynamic I am noticing this year where the machine candidates and the conservative candidates are competing over Hasidic voters. One particularly bizarre version of this dynamic has emerged in the fight between WFP machine candidate Brad Lander and social conservative John Heyer in the 39th City Council district that has led to some pretty awful, homophobic articles being written in a Yiddish newspaper on behalf of each candidate. An open question remains whether either campaign knew of the anti-gay rhetoric being used in the two articles. I suspect neither candidate approved such rhetoric, but it is a natural result of their attempts to woo voters who consider homophobia a virtue. Happily, my endorsed candidate in that race, Josh Skaller, has no interest in wooing homophobic voters.

With all this NYC focus I am afraid I may be giving less attention to the rest of the nation for the next couple of weeks. But bear with me!

Of course, the battle for healthcare reform nationally continues. And the fight against Glenn Beck's racism and hate-mongering continues successfully.

Here is this week's newsletter:

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Reminder: My Message to the Democratic Party: Get off your Asses on Healthcare Reform

Reminder: Your Water Footprint

Reminder: Saving the Earth's Fisheries

NYC Public Advocate Race: One Clear Choice

Brooklyn, NY Focus: Conservatives vs. Machines in Central Brooklyn

Brooklyn Focus: NYC 35th City Council Race: Re-electing one of the few honest councilmembers

Brooklyn Focus: NYC 40th City Council Race: Trust in the Rock


Brooklyn, NY Focus

Queens, NY Focus

Bronx, NY Focus

Rochester, NY Focus

NEW YORK STATE FOCUS

Silicon Valley Area, CA Focus

Orange County, CA Focus

San Diego, CA Focus

CALIFORNIA FOCUS

Dallas County, TX Focus

Austin/Travis County, TX Focus

Houston/Harris County, TX Focus

TEXAS FOCUS

Georgia Action for Health Care

Coweta County, GA Focus

GEORGIA FOCUS

Sussex County, NJ Focus

Warren County, NJ Focus

Passaic County, NJ Focus

NEW JERSEY FOCUS

VIRGINIA FOCUS

WASHINGTON FOCUS

ARIZONA FOCUS

Colorado Senator Bennet On Healthcare Reform

COLORADO FOCUS

Wisconsin Focus: Get the Facts on Health Care Reform

WISCONSIN FOCUS

Florida Focus: Columbian Drug Cartel for Charlie Crist?

FLORIDA FOCUS

PENNSYLVANIA FOCUS

MICHIGAN FOCUS

Illinois Focus: Melissa Bean and Bill Foster, Give Us Our Healthcare

ILLINOIS FOCUS

North Carolina Justice Center: Myths About Health Reform

NORTH CAROLINA FOCUS

IOWA FOCUS

NEVADA FOCUS

MINNESOTA FOCUS

NYC Public Advocate Race: One Clear Choice

In looking over what I have written about the Public Advocate's race, it strikes me that what I originally wrote about Public Advocate candidate Norman Siegel back in 2005 still applies now and is worth reviewing why I think there is only one candidate in the race worth considering. I should also add that fellow blogger Rock Hackshaw saw this one as a given and endorsed Norman Siegel early on. I have had the pleasure of Rock and Norm interacting at a BBQ at Wellington Sharpe's place and have reported on the mutual respect Rock and Norm have for eachother even if they don't agree on all issues.

But my best piece on him was back in 2005 and best expresses why I still think he is the ideal Public Advocate for NYC. So I want to return to 2005 and my son's first campaigning:



Public Advocate: this office is, as far as I am aware, unique to NYC. In a city where the mayor has so much (almost dictatorial) power, the Public Advocate is the counterbalance to the mayor--the person who stands up to the mayor on behalf of the people. At least that is the ideal. Our current PA is Betsy Gautbaum. I voted for her when she first ran. For the life of me I have no idea what she has done for the past 4 years. When Bloomberg refused to give people permits to protest the invasion of Iraq, Betsy wasn't there for us. When Bloomberg arrested and illegally held hundreds of protestors during the Republican Convention, Betsy wasn't there. When Bloomberg wanted to use eminent domain to take private property to give it to developers, Betsy wasn't there. When Bloomberg started routinely arresting the Critical Mass bicyclists, Betsy wasn't there. Many New Yorkers have felt helpless as financial scandals eat away at our pension funds, slush fund scandals run rampant, the school admissions process becomes increasingly insane and divorced from the actual needs of children (as opposed to the needs of companies Bloomberg outsources the process to), ground zero remains an empty hole in the ground, the subway system gets cut back more and more while fees climb...all under the watchful eyes of Michael Bloomberg, Betsy Gotbaum and Christine Quinn.

You know who WAS there at each of those violations of civil rights that Bloomberg was responsible for? Norm Siegel. He was out there defending protestors when Betsy was nowhere to be seen. Norm Siegel has helped communities fight to keep firehouses open from Williamsburg to Staten Island. Norm Siegel has helped communities from Prospect Heights to Harlem try to stop the government from using eminent domain to take their homes for the enrichment of private developers. Norm Siegel ans helped firefighters and non-profits seeking the implementation of a skyscraper safety program and provisions for our firefighters to guarantee they have proper working communication equipment. Norm Siegel has helped families who lost a loved one on September 11th, 2001, as they seek the public release of materials from that day, including 911 emergency tapes and transcripts. And, here in 2009, Norm Siegel stood up against Michael Bloomberg's putch to arbitrarily extend term-limits against the explicit vote of the people. All of these issues have pitted Norm Siegel defending communities against Michael Bloomberg and Christine Quinn fighting against communities.

Norm Siegel has ALREADY BEEN the public advocate for New Yorkers even though he hasn't yet held that office. He was Executive Director of the NYCLU from 1985-2000 and even afterwards has been standing up for the civil rights of New Yorkers to this day (including winning a case for bloggers getting their rights when it comes to press credentials). Siegel has actually been working with the ACLU and Southern Justice and Voter Law Project since 1968, so his civil rights credentials go all the way back. He spearheaded the New York campaigns for the impeachment of Nixon. I cannot think of a better advocate for the people of NYC.

Norman Siegel has also been endorsed by the Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats, Democracy for NYC, Park River Independent Democrats (Upper West Side), the Village Reform Democratic Club, the Grand Council of Guardians (an organization of African-American law enforcement officials), Room 8 blogger and Brooklyn City Council candidate Rock Hackshaw, the New York Metro Area Postal Union (APWU, AFL-CIO), Audubon Reform Democratic Club (Hamilton Heights and Washington Heights), and Brooklyn Democrats for Change (Bay Ridge, Bensonhurst, Dyker Heights, Fort Hamilton, Bath Beach and Gravesend).

Among the other candidates I have nothing negative to say for Mark Green, who showed he was a capable Public Advocate before, or Eric Gioia, who I have personal reasons for not supporting but may well be a decent Public Advocate. Only Bill de Blasio seems unqualified for the position both because of the major scandals he has been involved in (slush fund scandals and the WFP violations of campaign finance laws) and because he is widely known as being the advocate only for developers, not the people. But of the four, Norm Siegel stands out as being the MOST qualified and the STRONGEST advocate for the people. If we can elect Norm Siegel as Public Advocate and get rid of Christine Quinn (Bloomberg's most avid enabler) by electing Yetta Kurland instead, we will go a long way to restoring some common sense and honesty to this city government even if Bloomberg manages to annoint himself to a third term.

Brooklyn, NY Focus: Conservatives vs. Machines in Central Brooklyn

Tucked in the middle of two predominantly liberal districts in Brooklyn (the 33rd and 39th City Council districts) there are pockets of conservativism. Mostly when people think of these districts they think of the battle between the reformers and the machine candidates. In the 33rd the frontrunners are reformer Jo Anne Simon vs. Vito Lopez machine hack Steve Levin. In the 39th the frontrunners are reformer Josh Skaller vs. Working Families Party machine hack (to the extent of being caught up in the big WFP scandal this year) Brad Lander. But in each of these districts the machine candidates are also locked in another struggle: the attempt to take conservative votes from the sole conservative candidate in the district.

In the 33rd district, Isaac Abraham is a Satmar Hasid who is running on a combined platform of opposition to Vito Lopez and what, for the district as a whole, would be extreme conservativism. Isaac Abraham has been a supporter of Connectitcut Senator Joe Lieberman, the former Vice Presidential candidate who became a McCain supporter in 2008. Abraham, who is running in the Democratic primary, has gone on record urging Jewish Democrats to re-register Republican. Abraham supports tax-payer funded school vouchers for private schools, a tradtionally Republican stand. Abraham is also opposed to gay rights and is anti-choice. These stands put him at odds with most of the voters in the district but is in sync with the orthodox Jewish and old-school Catholic neighborhoods. Competing with Abraham for these conservative votes is the machine candiadte Steve Levin whose boss, Vito Lopez, has connections in the conservative neighborhoods and is pulling strings to get the conservative vote for Levin over Abraham and is exploiting personality conflicts among the Hasids to siphon away votes from Abraham. So Hasids have the choice of voting their values (and so voting for Abraham) or voting according to political alliances and exchange of political favors (and so voting for the machine's Steve Levin). It should be noted that Levin's boss has had a history of supporting Republicans over Democrats before he became Party Boss, and even after that has had a history of actively discouraging challenges to Republicans in Brooklyn, so Vito Lopez certainly has his connections to conservatives.

In the 39th district the conservative candidate, John Heyer, isn't coming from the Hasidic community but from the old-school Italian Catholic community. He is also anti-choice and pro-school vouchers. His views on gay rights are more nuanced than those of Isaac Abraham, but still amount to opposition to gay marriage in the eyes of the LGBT community. Initially Heyer's sole source of support seemed to be the conservative end of the Catholic community and the candidate who was making the most inroads into the Hasidic community was Brad Lander whose connection to the scandal-ridden WFP machine, brought him an endorsement from ultra-conservative (politically), homophobic Jewish Assemblyman Dov Hikind. (I hear rumors that Brad Lander is receiving help from Vito Lopez's machine as well, but, as with rumors I heard last year about Lopez helping Roger Adler, do not seem well-founded or, at least, don't seem to represent any substantial help). This devil's bargain between Brad Lander (progressive and anti-Israel) with Dov Hikind (intolerant ultra-conservative pro-Israel Jew) does not sit well with either Hasids or progressives and seems to be backfiring. Brad has received criticism from the liberal majority in the district for eagerly seeking out Dov Hikind's endorsement, and Hikind is receiving considerable criticism in the Hasidic press for his support of a liberal, anti-Israel candidate. Both also receive criticism for making a deal that clearly is a purely political bargain that is the specialty of political machines and not in line with reform values that appeal to the majority of the district. This has been exploited by the genuine conservative in the district, John Heyer, who has recently made a blitz on the Hasidic community and been VERY well received as being FAR more in line with Hasidic values. Hasids traditionally prefer their candidates to be anti-choice, anti-gay rights and pro-school vouchers. AND pro-Israel. So Heyer now looks to be bringing together the coservative elements in the district while Lander's progressive credentials have taken a hit because of his ties to Dov Hikind.

Both Abraham and Heyer are dedicated community activists and I have found myself respecting them for their dedication. However, they are both appealing to predominantly Republican social values and to voters who, outside of NYC, would probably be Republican voters. Both also find themselves locked in a battle with the candidates linked to scandal-ridden machines, Steve Levin and Brad Lander, and so can make claims to being reformers despite their anti-progressive stands. The machines use their web of political connections to call in favors among conservative leaders and thus siphon conservative votes from the real conservatives.

Meanwhile the true progressive reformers, like Jo Anne Simon and Ken Diamondstone in the 33rd or Josh Skaller and Bob Zuckerman in the 39th, compete over the majority of the district with eachother and with the machine candidates who try to downplay the scandals their respective machines are associated with. Can the conservatives win enough votes exclusively through the conservative pockets of the district as the other candidates split the majority vote? Can the web of political favors the machines draw on (and this year the Vito Lopez and WFP machines seem in league) be enough to combine enough conservative votes with votes from the majority of the district despite the fact that these two districts tend to prefer reform candidates? Or can one progressive reformer in each district draw enough of the majority vote despite machine money and connections to carry the day? Needless to say I prefer the last of these three options.

Brooklyn Focus: NYC 35th City Council Race: Re-electing one of the few honest councilmembers

For me the 35th City Council is one of the easiest. In this case there is an excellent incumbent running for re-election, and she is NOT one of the incumbents who voted themselves a third term despite the clear opposition of the voters. Councilwoman Letitia James is one of the very few Council members who actually has integrity and who actually cares about the community she represents.

For example, Tish James is one of the Council members who have been helping to get school supplies to children of homeless families through Project Back to School. A surprisingly few Council Members are helping with this effort, but Tish James is one of them.

Here are a handful of the things she has done (taken from Wikipedia):

[Tish James] established the Urban Network, a coalition of African-American professional organizations aimed at providing scholarships for young people.

In 1994, James championed the Primary Health Case Development Bill in the City Council, which expanded day care resources for working families across the city.

In 1996, James negotiated the Welfare Reform Act on behalf of the New York State Black & Puerto Rican Caucus. James also served on former New York Governor Mario Cuomo’s Task Force on Diversity in the Judiciary.

She is also one of the real champions of the fight against Bruce Ratner's taxpayer-funded over-development scheme for Atlantic Yards. Here is a video of Tish James speaking to this issue:



Tish James has also spoke out against AIG bailout money going to Barclay's to pay for the naming rights to the Ratner Arena, something I think taxpayers didn't bargain on when their money went to bailout the banks.

Out of this fight against Ratner's destruction of an entire community for his own profit comes one of the top reasons I like Tish James: she is basically a good person who can disarm even her most vocal opponents. This reminds me of an event I saw four years ago that really solidified my respect for Councilmember James. I was helping out the Ferrer campaign back in 2005 by the Atlantic Yards terminal, handing out fliers and urging people to meet Freddy Ferrer. Ferrer was shaking hands and talking to people, making the personal connection with voters that he can be so good at and which does not show up on television or when he makes a speech. A friend commented on how surprised he was at the warm reaction Ferrer was getting. I had seen that many times, though clearly it didn't help get him elected.

Alongside the Ferrer supporters were a handful of loud Ratner/Bloomberg supporters. I suspect some of them are hired to go around pretending to be community members supporting Ratner's mega-development projects, and some are probably genuine supporters who see Ratner's plan as a necessary evil. The Ratner/Bloomberg folks were playing an odd good cop/bad cop act where a couple of super loud, obnoxious idiots would chant and be confrontational while a few other people would come up and politely and reasonably engage people.

So the Ratner/Bloomberg folks were there playing good cop/bad cop. They were putting down both Ferrer and Letitia James, the Councilwoman who represents the area being destroyed by Ratner's Altlantic Yards plan. They were pretty mean in their comments about Letitia James and I wondered what would happen when Letitia showed up to support Freddy. I mean a tall, imposing, outspoken black woman who doesn't take BS is certainly not going to take crap from a bunch of Ratner bullies, was my thinking.

Letitia James did show up. A cheer came from her supporters, which she met with her typical big smile. Then she saw the Ratner/Bloomberg folks who were just putting her down and who she has probably met dozens of times as they go around opposing all who oppose Ratner.

Here come the sparks, I thought.

But what Letitia did shows her character better than the sparks I was expecting. Her smile broadened when she saw her opponents and she went up and gave each of them a big hug. She went into the midst of her opponents, and showed that she didn't fear them and didn't hate them just because they opposed her. She showed the issues are issues, they don't have to be personal. I don't know what they were thinking, but those tough bullies sure seemed momentarily charmed by Letitia's grin and big hug. They looked just a little sheepish, in fact. The tension dissipated and we all went back to what we were doing.

THAT is why I love Letitia James. It was a moment that few politicians could have pulled off and she did it naturally and smoothly because that is who she is.

Letitia James has also been endorsed by Uniformed Firefighters Association- Local 94, Stonewall Democrats of NYC, 504 Democrats, NARAL Pro-Choice NYC PAC, the Freelancer's Union and the New York Community Council, among many others.

Letitia James' main rival in the primary, Hunley-Adossa, is basically a Ratner-funded candidate whose sole agenda is furthering Ratner's Atlantic Yards plan with no real concern for the community's needs.

Brooklyn Focus: NYC 40th City Council Race: Trust in the Rock

One of the best, if rather long-shot, candidates this year is a fellow blogger, Rock Hackshaw. I have followed Rock's blogging pretty much since I started paying attention to NYC politics and was always amazed by his intelligence and an encyclopedic knowledge of Brooklyn politics. I have also been amazed by his honesty and integrity, two features that are very rare in NYC politics and features that are central to the candidates I am most strongly supporting this year like Norman Siegel, Josh Skaller and Jo Anne Simon. Rock combines this honesty, integrity, intelligence and knowledge with a rock-solid (pun intended and quite apt) determination and stubborness when it comes to fighting the good fight.

I read Rock's excellent and detailed blogs long before I met him. But the first time I met him I was even more impressed. I first met Rock in person when Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes had a blogger event to showcase all his good works. Rock was there and, in typical Rock fashion, bluntly challenged the DA on political corruption in Brooklyn, refusing to let Hynes duck the question. Watching Rock and Hynes go at it was quite entertaining since both were formidable personalities. I have since seen Rock challenge other equally formidable personalities such as Andrew Weiner who came all the way from Washington, DC to speak to a CBID meeting to tell everyone he didn't have time in his busy Washington schedule to make a final decision about running for mayor. Rock raised his hand, said how much he wanted to see Weiner run, then bluntly called bullshit on Weiner's excuse by asking what he was doing at the CBID meeting if he was too busy in Washington to make a decision about running for mayor. Andrew, for once, seemed to realize he was caught. I noticed Weiner disappeared from the local political scene for awhile after that.

Rock is not afraid to call bullshit on anyone, and with the City Council so full of bullshit we desperately need someone with integrity and intelligence in there calling people out for their bullshit. Rock is the person to do that. By contrast, the incumbent, Mathieu Eugene is definitely part of the city council bullshit. Eugene routinely refers to himself as Dr. Eugene but refused to provide any proof whatsoever, or even a consistent story, showing he is really a doctor. The difference between Eugene and Hackshaw is night and day. Rock has even put together a comprehensive and detailed platform that he is running on. I do not agree with every detail of his platform, but I am amazed at the amount of thought and consideration that went into it and I think it shows how serious and dedicated Rock is to his community. He also offers a detailed biography and even resume for voters to consider. Rock is one of those people I feel comfortable disagreeing with because I know he will ALWAYS listen to the other side and consider it carefully. Rock is willing to change his mind if a reasonable arguement is presented to him. Of all the candidates running for City Council this year, I think he would represent the greatest challenge to the current corrupt status quo.