full disclosure - I work for SEIU as a regional new media specialist
One day before we celebrate the birth of our nation, Nebraskans gathered at a scheduled healthcare roundtable to call on Senator Johanns to support an American solution to our healthcare crisis.
Instead of greeting the teachers from NSEA, veterans, and SEIU workers Senator Johanns' staff called the police, ordering the Nebraskans to leave the Medical Center grounds.
That question is something that has been rattling around my skull for the last few days. As we get closer and closer to the March showdown in Ohio and Texas, that's a question that's worth asking.
By any consideration--except the current one--Sen. Clinton has run a phenomenal campaign. She's raised an extraordinary amount of money, has answered many of the questions raised by others about her chops as a candidate, and has brought large numbers of new voters to the campaign.
Matt Stoller's already commented on a possible Bob Kerrey return to the U.S. Senate, and why he wasn't enamored of the idea; others have dismissed those concerns by essentially saying that we don't know enough about local politics in Nebraska to comment one way or the other.
That may well be the case, but let's be blunt--the following reporting by Bob Novak doesn't do anything to allay my concerns.
On Monday, the New York Times ran an ad, paid by MoveOn, in which they took the commander of Multinational Force-Iraq, GEN David Petraeus. The ad essentially accused the General of betraying his duty by supporting the escalation of troops in Iraq, and it was meant to blunt any force his testimony might have had.
I didn't serve with the General. I'm given to understand that he's a very intelligent and forceful man, though that's frankly the par with most men and women who rise to general officer rank in the Army; I'm really neutral about the man, though.
I think the agitation over the ad is frankly ridiculous. Over 3700 women and men have died in the course of service; over 27,000 others, including myself, bear the scars resulting from the whips and fardels of war.
Today, people all around the country will come together to demand an end to the Iraq War. It's not the first time, nor will it be the last. People demanded an end to the madness before the war even began, in February of 2003, and the demands have only grown since then.
In the crowd, you may run into a veteran or two. You'll thank them for what they've done, and then you'll both be in your way. That's all to the good; we willingly undertook what was, at best, a difficult task, and pledged to see it through, no matter the cost.
"To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan." Those are the words that are inscribed upon the gates of the Department of Veterans' Affairs in Washington, DC. Indeed, those words make up the entirety of the Department's mission. Those words are what we, as veterans, expect from our nation upon our return. It's what we expect from our elected leaders, the same leaders that make the fateful decision to commit us to war.
It's one thing for an ordinary American to thank me for my service; I appreciate the wishes. It's another thing entirely for the people I helped elect to office to offer those words, and simply leave it at that.
Too many times, that's all we've gotten: "so long, and thanks for all the service!" We can do better--we must do better. We're not asking for much; we're asking that, having laid down our weapons, we receive the care we've so dearly earned.
That care isn't limited to medical care, whether physical or mental; it extends to housing care, so that veterans my age (I'm 30) aren't living on the streets; it extends to financial care, so that veterans aren't faced with a choice between sacrificing their service or their families; it extends to educational care, so that veterans have a chance at earning an education worthy of their service.
In short, I'm asking the people that I'm helping elect to build a nation worthy of our service and our sacrifice.
I've been writing online since 2001; this has been one of the most difficult essays I've written yet. It's not in my nature to ask or plead, either on my behalf or others. The depth of frustration that I feel, however, is immense. I'm simply tired of seeing one elected official after another, on both sides of the partisan divide, congratulate me and thank me for my service, and then fail to do anything past that.
Please, stop thanking me for my service; and start letting my service spur you to build a nation worthy of it.
Yesterday, I wrote a post both here and on Open Left, in which, during the process of announcing the campaign's logo contest, I sharply, in an unflattering manner, and unnecessarily criticized Will Shafroth, Joan Fitz-Gerald, and both of the Salazar Brothers.
I want it to be absolutely clear that I wrote what I wrote under my own volition. The sentiments expressed in those posts are my own, and no one else's. They absolutely and certainly don't reflect the sentiments or attitudes of the campaign. They are not reflective, at all, of how Jared feels.
As a result, I have submitted my resignation from the campaign, effective immediately. I feel that my continued presence would distract immensely from the hard work of the campaign. I feel that my error of judgment should not reflect on Jared, but rather on myself, and I will now take time to reflect on how I can best repair the breach.
The decisions leading up to this are mine and mine alone. I continue to believe that Jared will be the best representative from the 2nd Congressional District of Colorado
As some of you might know, one of my clients is Jared Polis, who is running to replace Mark Udall in Colorado's 2nd Congressional District (Mark is running for the Senate). Many of you had a chance to meet him this past week at YearlyKos, and, speaking for him, he had a blast meeting !
He's very, very much in favor of net neutrality, whole-heartedly opposes the Iraq War, and if elected, he'd be both the youngest member of the Congressional delegation at 32, and the first openly-gay Congressman ever from Colorado. Jared has been involved with technology (particularly the Internet) and its applications from a very young age-his first company was an ISP in Chicago that he founded at the age of 13, he made his first million selling scrap metal in the former Soviet Union over the 'net while in college, and made even more money with companies such as Blue Mountain Arts (e-greeting cards) and Proflowers.com (flower delivery). In addition, Jared's been highly involved with educational issues-he served six years on the state board of education, and established several public charter schools which serve the Latino community and underserved communities.
Udall's district is very Democratic, so this is one of those cases where the primary will decide who represents the district in Washington. He has two opponents: Will Shafroth, who comes from the Colorado equivalent of a Philly Main Line family or something equally preppy, and the current State Senate President, Joan Fitz-Gerald.
