Tag: caucuses

2016 Primaries: It’s Almost Over

Except for the District of Columbia caucus on June 14, voters in the last five states went to the polls this morning. It’s been over for the Republicans for awhile. It was essentially was over yesterday for the Democrats when Hillary Clinton, after winning 36 delegates in the Puerto Rico primary, gained enough elected and …

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U.S. Primaries And Caucuses Are ‘An Erratic Clusterf**k Every 4 Years’

I’ve been saying this for years and I’m not alone, our system for selecting the person who will head the most powerful country in the world is in need of a major overhaul. I’m not saying this because my candidate is losing, I have no candidate in this race, except that the prospects of a …

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2016 Primaries and Caucuses: Go West – March 22

Three western states are holding their primaries or caucuses today,two Republican and three Democratic. In Arizona: Primaries: Republican and Democratic presidential primaries Delegates: 58 Republican delegates, 85 Democratic delegates According to available polling at Real Clear Poltics, Hilary Clinton has a sizable lead over Bernie Sanders. The polling for Republicans show Donald “Drumpf” Trump with …

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2016 Primaries and One Caucus: March 15 – Another “Super” Tuesday

“A soothsayer bids you beware the ides of March.” Brutus to Caesar, Julius Caesar Act 1, scene 2, 15–19   The super of the “Super Tuesday”s is here with hundreds of delegates for Democrats and Republicans up for grabs in five states. There is one caucus for the GOP in The Northern Mariana Islands that …

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2016 Primaries and Caucuses: March 12

Today the Republicans are holding caucuses in Wyoming and the District of Columbia plus the US island territory, Guam is holding a convention to select delegates. For the Democrats there is a caucus in the Northern Marianna Islands. Wyoming Republicans vote for national delegates, not a presidential preference. 12 delegates will be selected today. Another …

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2016 Elections & Primaries: March 8

Voters go the polls in four states today. Democrats and Republicans will vie for delegates in Michigan and Mississippi while just Republicans are holding caucuses in Hawaii and Idaho. Up for grabs for the Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are 166 delegates and 150 for the remaining four Republicans. Republican Donald Trump and …

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It’s Also the Congress, Stupid

David Sirota has a very interesting article in the February edition of In These Times. It is also available for viewing online.

While I don’t agree with everything he says in it I think it is a good point to bring up and a fascinating article. In it he talks about why “Empowering Capitol Hill progressives is just as important as presidental campaign platforms.”

It is a good start to the broader discussion of what the end results of each canidate would be. A discussion that should not only include congress and platforms but also electoral coattails and working style among other things. But those will have to later. In this essay I will just be focusing on the arguments Sirota makes.  

Let’s March 4th Together for Obama

Over three weeks ago in a posting on DailyKos and other political blogs I launched the Obamathon. A drive to help Barack Obama win on February 5th. Twenty-two states voted that day so it is hard to firmly say who won and who lost but when this campaign started over a year ago I never would have dreamed that we would do so well. Since then eight states have voted and every single one has handed Obama a victory. Now we are hearing that Obama will win Wisconsin, we will see how that plays out. Later tonight the polls will close in Hawai’i and we will see how Obama does there.

But no matter what the final results of those states are one thing is clear. We must March 4th Together for Barack Obama. What does this mean? It means on March 4th four states will vote. Rhode Island, Vermont, Ohio and Texas. It means whatever happens tonight and until then we must keep it going, we must March 4th. And we must do it together. That’s why I’m relaunching the Obamathon as the March 4th Together for Obama fundraising drive.

“the fierce urgency of now”

Barack Obama quotes Dr. Martin Luther King Jr a lot on the campaign trail. Particularly he says a lot about how he is running because of what Dr. King called the “the fierce urgency of now.”

We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at flood-it ebbs. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, “Too late.” There is an invisible book of life that faithfully records our vigilance or our neglect. Omar Khayyam is right: “The moving finger writes, and having writ moves on.”

Those were the words that Dr. King spoke in his address delivered at Riverside Church in NYC on the 4th of April, 1967. The speech was entitled  “Beyond Vietnam.

Donna Edwards, Obama and Transformation

This is a potential wave of change that can sweep the nation, and it would not be possible on this scale without the two movements scratching each other’s backs. However, because both movements are roaring, we stand at the brink of a transformational moment in American politics. -Chris Bowers

Today at OpenLeft Chris Bowers has a very good post. It’s about what happened yesterday and what it could mean for the progressive movement and America. Yesterday progressive champion Donna Edwards defeated corrupt incumbent Al Wynn in the Democratic primary for Maryland’s fourth congressional district and Barack Obama rode a wave of new voters to overwhelming victories in Maryland, Virgina and DC.

Still ‘Undecided’, Obama vs Clinton

Still not decided on who you might cast your ballot, or whatever, for?

Well The Real News have a few interviews with Jonathan Schell on his take on the candidates and their possible Foreign Policy Directions.

Who is Jonathan Schell, if you didn’t already know:

Based in New York City, USA, Jonathan Schell is a renowned anti-nuclear activist, prolific journalist, lecturer and best-selling author. He is a frequent contributor to The Nation, The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine and Atlantic Monthly. He is also the author of The Fate of the Earth, nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Schell is a board member of IWT – The Real News.

How can we demand courage from our leaders when we have so little?

Cross posted at KOS

How can we demand courage from our leader when we have so little?

How can we continue to support candidates who do not support us NOW?

How can we uphold the Constitution when we allow others to abrogate our most important responsibility, our vote?

How can we beg for change when we cannot face change?

How can we save the planet when we cannot save ourselves?

Follow me below the fold and I will give you my take on why who and what we are can be another recipe for a continuing disaster.