A progressive won, so Corporate Democrats look for revenge
St. Louis' 8th Ward at the Board of Aldermen is not exactly high-stakes politics, but how things have played out there in just the last 24 hours speaks volumes about the Democratic Party.
Immigration lawyer Annie Rice wanted the job, but Paul Fehler had the backing of the city's Democratic Central Committee. So Rice had to run as an independent.
Rice had defied the central committee, of which she herself is an elected member, to run as an independent after the group gave Fehler its endorsement. The committee's vote allowed Fehler to run as the official Democratic candidate, which historically has often been enough to claim an aldermanic seat.
But Rice won the passionate support of progressive voters in a ward that increasingly does not support the city's old-guard Democratic machine.
Last night, Rice took 1,279 votes to Fehler 853, a margin of nearly 60 percent.
Good guy/gal wins. So end of story, right?
Not this time. The Democratic establishment had been embarrassed by lowly progressive voters. This will not stand.
But later this month, the Democratic Central Committee will weigh a bylaw change directly aimed at punishing Rice's supporters. If members approve the proposed amendments, anyone who "supports or endorses" candidates like Rice "shall be subject to censure." Committee members who follow in Rice's footsteps and run for office without the party's blessing could face removal.The ugly situation says a lot about the mutinous mood — and old guard pushback — roiling the St. Louis Democratic Party these days. Progressives have taken aim at the Democratic establishment in recent years, winning some key victories (Bruce Franks Jr. for state rep) and coming tantalizingly close in others (Tishaura Jones for mayor). In St. Louis, it's no longer enough to ask whether someone is running as a Democrat; the real question is whether they're allied with the upstart progressive wing or the establishment one allied with the powers that be and the party's longstanding donors (developers, lawyers, lobbyists).
Well that certainly sounds "democratic".
If the proposals are approved, members who backed Rice would be forced to defend themselves at an "administrative hearing." If found in violation, they could lose the right to vote on the committee or even address it...
That committee members — who are, after all, voted in by the Democratic primary voters, not party bosses — must defend themselves against charges of impurity has drawn pushback. Marie Ceselski, the committeewoman for the 7th Ward and a Rice supporter, calls it the "great activist purge."
The Great Activist Purge happens 9 am Saturday @ STL Dems Meeting @ Crusoe’s, 3152 Osceola. Agenda: Proposed New By-Laws to punish @AnnieRiceStL for running as Independent and other Dems for supporting her. Open to the Public. NOT ♿. Public Transit: #73. pic.twitter.com/91IHRtrt2V
— 7th Ward Woman (@stl7thward) February 12, 2018
There you have it.
This is just the latest example of a corrupt "democratic" party that doesn't represent you.
You won't read about this on DKos, because they value partisan loyalty above values, morality, and most of all, the needs of the voters.
Fortunately, people are waking up to this everywhere.
You've probably noticed what happened in West Virginia the other day.
I love that woman.
Nevertheless, what isn't talked about is who she is fighting against.
The episode is all the more significant because Lissa Lucas is running for West Virginia House of Delegate’s in the state’s seventh district, which is currently held by Harshbarger, and lists property rights and getting money out of politics as two pillars of her campaign. While national pundits continuously play on the state’s historic shift from blue to red, the populist call of the Bernie Sanders’ movement – that concerned citizens can and should get more involved in politics – has struck a major nerve. The goal for many of West Virginia’s progressives is not even beating Republicans like Harshbarger; it is to reform a Democratic Party they see as corrupt and out-of-touch.
"I remember knowing for a long time that the underlying problem to everything is how money in politics is used to manipulate people," said Selena Vickers, a West Virginia educator and social worker who is running for the West Virginia House of Delegates in District 32. "Lissa is a friend of mine," she added. "We are both committed to fixing the [Democratic National Committee], which we know is broken."
I've heard people use the term "woke". This is what I think of as "woke".
Comments
Amazing the lengths people will go to
to hold on to just a smidgen of power and a small amount of lobbyist money.
"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott
And these guys and gals
come really rather cheap too. When Lissa listed the amounts of money it was almost more sickening to see just how cheap these bastards sell themselves for. I just might have to send Lissa some money just to make a point.
Only a fool lets someone else tell him who his enemy is. Assata Shakur
In late-stage capitalism
the 99% fight over scraps until they remember the concept of solidarity.
@lizzyh7 The numbers Lucas
The numbers Lucas listed were just the campaign contributions. Pretty sure those are just a drop in the bucket, and the real payoffs are elsewhere.
This is still going on
What part of 'The Porky Dems Can't Be Fixed'....
....do these people not get? You can't fix a hopelessly corrupt system by joining it.
Modern education is little more than toeing the line for the capitalist pigs.
Guerrilla Liberalism won't liberate the US or the world from the iron fist of capital.
Even if it can't be fixed
it's still worthwhile to keep trying.
Why?
Because it makes the Corrupt, Corporate Dems fight a two-front war - one against a left-wing 3rd party, and another within their own party.
It stretches their resources and makes them weaker.
Besides, don't put all your eggs in one basket.
I see your point.
Modern education is little more than toeing the line for the capitalist pigs.
Guerrilla Liberalism won't liberate the US or the world from the iron fist of capital.
Exactly.
And it's not one or the other. "We" can run a multi-prong approach to keep the other side - the Status Quo - off balance, chasing their tail until they implode.
After all, the point is to beat these elite asshats. Who cares how it gets done?
the little things you can do are more valuable than the giant things you can't! - @thanatokephaloides. On Twitter @wink1radio. (-2.1) All about building progressive media.
All these new candidates inspired by Bernie
might be the nucleus of a new, third party if they find they are continually being stymied by the Dem establishment. Also, those who do get in office might end up knowing where a lot of bodies are buried, as well as knowing and being able to tell us how govt. works.
Mary Bennett
the paradox
Yet, because the USA is still a Duopoly, you can't usually get political power unless you run with one of the two parties.
You can't, but you have to. The Amerikan Political Paradox. Just the way the 1% like it.
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
just watch.
I know many say there's no saving a dead party, but I heard el Rushbo whining and crying today that "Dems are still winning races they have no business winning." He said Dems have completely lost their 15 point lead in the 2018 "Generic Ballot" where Repubs, in fact, have taken the lead, 38-37. "How can Dems still be winning??"
It's not that Dems are winning. It's which Dems are winning. And the answer is progressives.
"Well, you can elect 100 progressives and it won't change a damn thing! The System is corrupt and there's no friggin' way adding more progressives is going to change anything... "
Well, maybe. That's what naysayers say. But I don't see how any alternative - a brand new third party - would be any different.
So, for my money I'm going with rebuilding the party by replacing the Status Quo with new and old progressives. And, the way it's looking that ain't gonna take long. People are damned near as pissed off as OPOL. "We" could flip the party in ten years. Maybe less.
the little things you can do are more valuable than the giant things you can't! - @thanatokephaloides. On Twitter @wink1radio. (-2.1) All about building progressive media.
First Kucinich, now Grayson - establishment Dems unhappy
Kucinich trivia
Grayson again
I love this Lisa Lucas!
https://lissalucas.com/category/issues/womens-issues/
Any candidate willing to wade into the mess that is family courts gets my full support. Wow! She has separate sections for "women's issues" and "men's issues", both of which link to the same articles about family courts and emotional abuse of children.
She is also running on "property rights" by which she means opposition to oil and gas companies exploitation of VW. Now, I think she could make a stronger case here, showing just how much money those companies are taking out of the state.
Mary Bennett
Running Against Stabenow.
Marcia Squire
Independent Candidate for US Senate in MI
I am running for US Senate in Michigan as an Independent because our government is overrun with corporatists that represent Big Money and their corporate donors. The people have little to no representation in our country, which is supposed to be Of, By, & For the People. I do not believe that corporations are people, and profit should not be the bottom line when it comes to government. The people and this planet should be placed above profit-driven corporations, and I want to help make that happen. Our current legislators are beholden to their sponsors, and therefore cannot represent their constituents. Evidence of this is clear when looking at several Acts of Congress, which I intend to take on if elected.
These Acts include the following: The Patriot Act, The NDAA, The Controlled Substances Act, The Help America Vote Act, The Telecommunications Act, The Federal Reserve Act, & The DARK Act. I want the People to have #HandCountedPaperBallots with #CitizenOversight, the right to Habeus Corpus, less spending on the executive branch (aka War & Prison), a publicly owned banking system, Independent Media instead of the current Media Monopoly we are suffering under, and clear, consise GMO labeling laws. I want to end the War on Drugs, and retroactively legalize cannabis and hemp at the Federal Level. I believe this will lower costs in many areas, including health care and infrastructure. I believe we should reallocate the Federal Budget away from the Military Industrial Complex and towards more worthwhile endeavors like health care and education. We The People deserve the right to clean air, soil, & water, education, health care, and true representation in government.
I pledge to keep fighting for the 99% through direct actions, like running for office. I have been in the private sector of the service industry and enjoy the diversity of all people. I am offering my services to the public sector by declaring my candidacy to become a civil servant for all Americans in Washington DC.
I refuse all corporate donations, as well as super PAC and ...more
"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon
gotta love her platform
Pretty steep uphill battle against all those capitalist acts. Fighters are what is needed now. Wishing her success!
dkmich: you going to volunteer to work on her
campaign? I'd vote for her in a nanosecond!
Rec'd!!
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Here's the area she's running in:
"Michigan's 14th Congressional District is located in the southeastern region of the lower peninsula of Michigan encompassing the northwest side of Detroit. It includes portions of Wayne and Oakland counties."
From: https://ballotpedia.org/Michigan%27s_14th_Congressional_District_electio... with stats on the 2016 primary.
At least it's out in the open
Been seeing that at TOP big time.