Since our loss in 2004, many white liberals have tried to whitewash how badly Kerry did among people of color, particularly Latinos. They'll try to say that the MSM lied about the data, that Bush didn't really break 40% or some other crap that just makes it harder for us minority activists to get heard. the fact is, the Democratic Party and the Kerry campaign have long been screwing up their outreach to people of color, taken us for granted, while the GOP has been making aggressive, and effective stances. Don't believe my word? check out this no-holds barred critique of the Kerry camp's Latino outreach from a bunch of Dem latino insiders who were disgusted enough to make this public.

http://www.coronadoproject.com/index.cgi?rm=show&p=memo

Have any of the liberal bloggers picked up on this memo? I have not seen it mentioned anywhere, save for a mention in Newsweek (which also said Kerry invited the Latinos to his house to say sorry...thanks but no thanks for that).

i am heartbroken. Even though i still admire and love Jimmy Carter, and appreciate his calls to close down GITMO, i am deeply saddened that today, he chose to endorse CAFTA, an as anti-human rights, anti-democratic, anti-poor agreement as you can get.

http://futures.fxstreet.com/Futures/news/afx/singleNew.asp?menu=latestnews&pv_noticia=1118350762 -e04f0f08-46915

SO far, only three Dems have come out officially for the Central American Free Trade Agreement--Jim Moran, Jefferson (LA) and Cuellar (TX). Jim Moran is attempting to get others on board. If you are one of his constituents, please feel free to raise hell about it with him. I plan on donating to his primary opponent in the next election.

Today's Hill article mentions the other Dems on the hot seat to join Bush in passing CAFTA:

http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/051905/cafta.html

Most Dems, including even Ellen Taucher and the New Dems, have come out opposing CAFTA and its horrendous provisions on labor, the environment, investment chapter, intellectual property that threatens public health. The New Dems are paying the price from the lobbyists.

Please make your voice heard and contact these folks on the bubble to convince them not to go against Dem values by supporting CAFTA:

Reps. Solomon Ortiz (D-Texas)
Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas)
Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.),
Mike Thompson (D-Calif.)
Vic Snyder (D-Ark.)
John Tanner (D-Tenn.)

I don't know why this major story has not been mentioned, but on this May Day, 4 unions are threatening to defect from the AFL-CIO to try and upend Sweeney's leadership.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/04/30/AR2005043000853.html

This is a story critical to the future of the Democratic party, not to say the middle class as well of our country. I don't know what the best answers are, but certainly US labor has to change, and it would be nice to see the liberal blogosphere pay attention to this story.  

www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/04/14/prescription.bill

Cheers to Carolyn Maloney in the House and Lautenberg in the Senate for introducing a bill to help women access contraception.  

Very interesting report put out by Pew on the Deaniacs.

http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=240

Basically confirmed that Deaniacs (like this blog) were whiter, richer, more educated, more secular, more dovish, than not even your typical Democrat, but even your Democratic convention delegates. only 1 black person was interviewed as part of the data. rather sad.

Music to my ears:

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/107/13.0.html

Concede no voter. if Democrats do NOT somehow cut into the GOP's lead among [white] people who attend church regularly, we are doomed.

However, while Dean says during his campaign he was interested in religious outreach, his religious outreach advisor in a public editorial in Sojourners magazine disclosed how difficult it was for senior staff to commit resources and understand the religious communities. Many were downright hostile.

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&mode=printer_friendly&issue=soj0405&am p;article=040541b

Working in Democratic politics, it is apparent to me how few evangelicals there are. Christianity Today talked about how Jim Wallis gave advice to Dem press secretaries on how to frame things to evangelicals. it made me wince in a way. i know the GOP sure doesn't need such advice. So i welcome Dean's efforts and hope others do too.

Thanks for DavidNYC's two posts on the Class Action bill and the upcoming Bankruptcy Reform bill, but i think progressives are not truly aware how cunning the GOP (and Rove) are about why they are pushing these issues now--it's not about the merits. it's about cutting off the money supply of one of the Democrats' few sources (outside of Hollywood): trial lawyers.

I watched and read Edwards' recent speech in New Hampshire. It's still a killer speech, esp. the part refuting Bush's "ownership society":

George Bush likes to talk about an "Ownership Society." We already have one: Power companies that get their way even if the health of children and pregnant women suffer. Oil companies who write our energy policy. George Bush's so-called "Ownership Society" is a secret society that rewards the wealthiest and shuts out those who work hard every day.

Campolo ministered Clinton while in office. These two interviews explore his trenchant criticisms of the [white] evangelical culture.

http://www.theotherjournal.net/article.php?id=20

i am in absolute agreement that the government needs to get out of the marriage business altogether and leave it to the churches.

i also think his approach to the FMA debate is the right one: to call out heterosexuals for their utter hypocrisy, to take the stick out of our own eyes before casting judgment on others. gay folks aren't the ones responsible for our high divorce rates.

While everyone can debate torture here, another major bill that the Chamber of Commerce and every business group has been salivating to pass for years just made it out of the Senate Judiciary, 13-5.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/04/politics/04torts.html

you probably saw the commercials for this during the SOTU.

Matt Bai does a bang up job profiling the fascinating Andy Stern.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/30/magazine/30STERN.html?pagewanted=1&oref=login

those of us with a bias towards globalization/labor issues are outgunned by the interest in Spongebob and abortion, which is too bad, as noted by Manfrommiddletown:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/1/26/101824/871

Chris Bower's Solidarity diary touched on something very important, that there hasn't been nearly the attention placed on labor issues and poltics, which are far more relevant to the lives of ordinary working people than the fights on abortion or gay marriage.  

Neither gay marriage nor abortion will feed your children or put clothes on their back, a living wage brought by labor activism will.  It's very selfish, very republican to push an agenda of wishes of the few above the needs of the many.  It's this disconnect that has seperated the democratic party from the working class pushing bourgieous concerns over those of working people.  

I did not see this posted in the diaries yet, but I think this Nation article paying tribute to Henry Waxman is fine work, showing how much our democracy owes him and his never-ending quest to serve the public interest. I only wish he could replace Dianne Feinstein as my Senator but the article says he's only interested in staying where he is!!!

http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20050214&c=1&s=corn

hey, whatever happened to that tsunami that happened? like the one that was one of the most worst natural disasters in history? seems like everyone both in the mainstream media and blogs has all but forgotten again.

anyways, i wanted to highlight that even as we resist here at home against the neocons and corporate pigs, abroad, they are resisting twice as hard and they are winning. i have been following the revolution in Bolivia for sometime, as i care more about issues of trade and globalization than i do about what ever culture war issue pampered white liberals want to bitch about (flag burning, abortion, gay rights). There is no more critical issue to the 21st century than the coming battles over water, and the privatizers that have raised rates on the poor in places like South Africa and Bolivia have been operating in the US as well. New Orleans, LA just a few years ago rejected an attempt by a French conglomerate to takeover their water systems.

i didn't realize how dire the situation was in Missouri and that you poor guys are living under unified GOP control for the first time in 82 years!!

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/050116missouri.shtml

I don't live in MD anymore, but it's still deeply disappointing to see a state with a 70% Dem legislature not override stupid Ehrlich's veto of the living wage bill and the other one capping public tuition at Universities. As i have said, i don't vote on social issues. i vote on fundamental economic justice and the MD Dems just laid down on these two key cornerstones of what defines our party from the GOP. The medical malpractice reform override did pass.

Sometimes the partisan knee-jerk liberal ideology only hurts your cause than helps it. Speaking as an evangelical, who knows you have to use two different types of language when you are talking to either seculars or believers, and as someone supportive of gay rights (or at least more supportive than your average minority/evangelical), let me offer some advice if you guys hope to win your battles.

Lupin posted a diary earlier on this LA Times story on how some black pastors voted for Bush.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/1/18/163119/684