Drama fills the airwaves. The tragic comedy comes to life, or is theatre of the absurd. The curtain rises. The cast murmurs. They say, it was first heard, or read in May 1897. At the time, Mark Twain and his demise were the topic. Today, The New York Times splashed the story on the front page of the paper. Bill Clinton Tried to Get Meek to Drop Out. The former President and friend of the Meek family, "last week tried to convince Kendrick Meek, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Florida, to drop out of the race."
Whispers whirled around the White House, on The Hill, within the Department of Justice, and finally filtered down to the streets. In truth, talk could be heard on the avenues, where average Americans roam, long before declarations came from above. Should BP CEO Tony Hayward Go to Prison? The public wonders. What would the Obama Administration do. Countless clamored; with full knowledge that President Bush's DOJ Killed a Criminal Probe Into BP. It was believed that the potential indictments threatened the most senior officials. More recently, words of warrants have become a distinct possibility. Criminal charges are being considered against BP in regards to the Gulf oil rig tragedy.
More than a month has passed, actually now it has been two. In the third week of June, I heard the song in my head for the first time. With each day that passes the volume increases. Friends, family, and familiars were privy to what has been a curiosity for me. Still haunted by what I know needs to be shared farther and wider, today I tell you my tale. The story begins with two Florida Democrats. Each aspires to fill the one open United States Senate seat. The date; June 22, 2010. I was amongst those invited to attend the initial Meek Greene debate.. The place? The Palm Beach Post headquarters. The time? Midday. The reality realized and the reason my mind marinated in the melody titled It's About Time. Today, Democrats, Progressives are not as they were.
Hey, this is Kenneth Quinnell, the New Media Director for the Kendrick Meek campaign. Wanted to make sure that everyone saw that we released our third TV ad, this one a positive ad introducing voters to Kendrick and his background. Give us feedback on this and let us know if we're going in the right direction.
If you haven't seen it yet, the campaign released a new web video this morning, asking the question, "How do you find the real Democrat in the Florida U.S. Senate race"? Take a look and tell me what you think. Video and transcript after the jump...
As you know, Floridians are disproportionately affected by the actions of British Pretoleum that led to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. I'm talking to Floridians every day who enraged at BP and want to make sure that BP pays the full price for it's actions. I'm listening.
I also want to listen to you. I'm going to be one of the leading voices in holding BP accountable. I want your feedback. Tell me actions you'd like to see taken to make sure that BP pays the price for this oil spill.
We are all on lots of organizational e-mail lists and sometimes it's difficult to have time to sort through them all. I unfortunately have to let a lot pile up in my inbox during busy days, and then try to take some time to clear them all out (if you want to know part of my secret, it's typing "in: inbox in: unread" in the Gmail search bar). I decided today was that day, and came across some actions I think are really worthwhile/creative, so I thought I would share them in a round-up post.
WeGiveADamn.org, whose model is to produce videos featuring both celebrities and non-celebrities talking about LGBT equality and why they "give a damn". It is especially targeted at straight allies, and a major aim is to share the content using social networking tools, as well as promote issue actions. Check it out and I'd be interested to hear what you think of the model. It's a project of Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Fund.
Color of Change has a petition (in a well-titled e-mail blast "What if AT&T blocked this e-mail?") to the FCC around the recent court decision on net neutrality. The FCC has the power to re-assert its authority in this space on broadband and institute consumer protections. Here's the petition. For more on the ruling and why this is a key way to move forward based on it, see Chris' post from the other day.
Kendrick Meek's campaign has a well-produced biographical film out today that's worth a look. Short version and long version.
One of Progressive Change Campaign Committee's reasons for founding is that sometimes the high-priced consultants don't bring as much value for their buck. At last year's America's Future Now conference, they even described some who mismanaged campaigns. So PCCC set up a talent pool page where they connect people with campaign skills with campaigns that need help at a better value. Everything from CSS to fundraising to speaking Spanish to if you are an artist or actor. You can fill it out here if you have something to contribute.
Speaking of PCCC, and because we have lots of our own worthwhile actions here, if you haven't signed up for them, you should. PCCC will donate $1 for each new name to OpenLeft, which helps keep our lights on. And speaking as someone who dislikes clogging inboxes including my own, they are one of the most worthwhile lists to be on. Sign up here.
CREDO's DeFox action "now with more Palin!" is frickin' awesome. Side effects of DeFoxing include "breakout of clarity, spreading of rationality, fits of rationalization, tolerance of others, lowered blood pressure, suppressed bloodlust, breakout of truth, analytical seepage, extra energy, faith in your fellow man, more enjoyment of things around you, reduced mockery, and/or loss of irritability."
If you have any good ones that have come across your inbox or whatnot, feel free to leave a comment. And if you like this feature, leave a comment and I'll try and do it more regularly.
In the Florida Senate race, "speculation" has increased that Republican Governor Charlie Crist will run as an Independent now that he unexpectedly vetoed an elections bill passed by the Republican-dominated Florida legislature. While it is difficult to justify increased "speculation" as worthy of a news story, it is worth noting that Crist would greatly improve his chances of winning the campaign by running as an Independent.
In March, there were three polls (Daily Kos, PPP and Rasmussen) that surveyed both the Republican Senate primary in Florida, and a hypothetical three-way general election matchup featuring Marco Rubio, Charlie Crist and presumptive Democratic nominee Kendrick Meek. While Crist trailed in both the Republican primary and a three-way campaign in all three polls, he was 17 points closer in a three-way general election than in a two-way Republican primary against Marco Rubio:
Crist deficit, Florida Senate campaign
Poll
Republican Primary
3-way General election
Average
27.3%
10.0%
Rasmussen
24%
20%
PPP
32%
7%
Daily Kos
28%
3%
While Crist is clearly pretty unpopular and would still face an uphill battle, he actually has a shot in a three-way general election campaign, versus no chance in a three-way Republican primary.
Democrat Kendrick Meek would actually not be helped by this scenario, however. These same three polls show Meek 6.7% behind Rubio in a two-way matchup, but 10.3% behind in a three-way matchup.
In all three scenarios, Rasmussen is the outlying poll. Rasmussen shows the Republican primary closer than the other two outfits, and shows Rubio much stronger in either a two-way or three-way general election than the other two pollsters. There is good reason to wonder about Rasmussen this cycle, given how frequently it is the outlying poll in averages, but I will continue to include it in averages unless some sort of methodological flaw is found.
As we await the historic vote on health care reform, it's important to remember that we're just ten days away from the end of the first fundraising quarter of 2010. The fundraising totals reported in this quarter will be pivotal to determining the tenor of many races for the rest of the year. If there is any time to contribute, now is the time!
Please head over to the Expand the Map! ActBlue page and contribute whatever you are able to these terrific Democratic candidates for Senate.
Democrat
Currently At
End-of-Quarter Goal
Distance to Goal
Kendrick Meek
$25
$300
$275
Bill Halter
$445
$750
$305
Joe Sestak
$1,320
$1,600
$280
Paul Hodes
$1,447
$1,700
$253
Robin Carnahan
$1,163
$1,400
$237
Remember, the contribution you can make isn't just a donation to a single candidate or political campaign. It's an investment against Republican obstruction (and conservaDem enabling) and an investment toward achieving that more perfect union.
Recent polling from Public Policy Polling and Research 2000 suggests that Democratic Congressman Kendrick Meek is in terrific position to win Florida's 2010 U.S. Senate race. With Republican Marco Rubio well ahead of primary challenger Charlie Crist in the polls, but far behind on fundraising, Rubio will likely emerge victorious from the primary, but out of campaign funds and politically badly bruised, as well as positioned to the extreme right ideologically. Congressman Meek, on the other hand, is steadily campaigning and fundraising and will be well-positioned for the general election.
As such, Senate Guru has added Congressman Meek's campaign to its Expand the Map! ActBlue fundraising page, which has raised tens of thousands of dollars for Democratic candidates for Senate in the 2008 and current 2010 cycles.
To kick off the addition of Congressman Meek, we're looking to start off with just $100 raised to get the ball rolling. Just five $20 contributions would be a great start! Can you chip in $20?
As a candidate running to represent Florida in the U.S. Senate and as a four-term member of Congress with a 15-year public service record, I have taken great pride in representing my constituents to the best of my ability. In recent years, there has been an explosion of new technologies that help elected officials stay more in touch with their constituents. Later this week, in Pittsburgh, the top people behind the creation of that technology and the best practitioners of this new media will be gathered at Netroots Nation. I'll be there with them learning from the best.
Netroots Nation is one of the most important annual events in the progressive movement and it is both a place where I can reach out to some of the key opinion leaders in the online world and, hopefully, a place where I can learn how to more effectively use new media tools. I tweet, and maintain a fan page and personal page on Facebook, but new media is not only about the latest social networking sites online or applications on my iPhone. It's about issues and public policy, and finding ways to help our economy move from recession to recovery and the men and women who attend Netroots Nation have critical ideas on how we move our country forward.
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