Category Archives: Democrats

9/12 …And Then There Are Ten: DNC 2019 Debate #3 Live Blog

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Tonight is the 3rd DNC sanctioned debate. Some basics (courtesy of NPR and NYT):

  • When & Where? 7-10 p.m. ET, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX

    The debate will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. Central) and last until 11 p.m. Eastern, so the debate will be three hours long. It’s worth noting that the debate this month is estimated to last 30 minutes to an hour longer than the July debates.

  • What channel is it on? ABC and Univision (with Spanish translation); also via websites for Good Morning America and Five Thirty-eight.com, Hulu Live, Apple TV, Apple News, Amazon FireTV, The Roku Channel, YT, and Twitter. (Note: it’s all ABC sites, except for Univision).
  • Debate format? The debate format will be one minute and 15 seconds for direct responses to questions and 45 seconds for responses and rebuttals. Candidates will have the opportunity to deliver opening statements, but there will be no closing statements.
  • Who are the moderators? ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, David Muir, Linsey Davis and Univision’s Jorge Ramos
  • Who’s on the stage? Fmr VP Joe Biden, Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kamala Harris of California, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, as well as South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Obama Housing Secretary Julián Castro, former Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas and tech investor Andrew Yang.

(photo: NYT)

The media’s eyes are on Biden and Warren, who will share the center space. However, Andrew Yang promises something different:

Meantime, the horse race state polls continue, this one out of NH:

Any predictions about the other candidates and how they will get noticed? Will Bernie be ignored?

Please join us in the comments.

8/1 Evening OT: Lunch is Over

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

We’ve had two debate rounds with 20 candidates. Like having extra long lunches with the candidates, at a lengthy table with a microphone. They’re tested by the media with questions about past comments, op-eds, and whether or not it’s better to be a centrist or a progressive. Fare is broiled chicken and salads (vegan for Booker)Light conversation but at a West Wing pace. Sometimes there is strong coffee served to keep the energy going.

August is the month whereby the candidates who are currently serving in Congress don’t have to worry about committee votes, hearings, or votes on the floor. They have a month to go to county fairs in Iowa & NH, and other events in SC, NV, and CA to court potential voters. Some candidates may be spending time on Martha’s Vineyard, NAPA, Santa Barbara, or the Hamptons to meet with the wine & cheese crowds in hopes that some cash is coming their way to get ready for the dinners coming this fall.

On Real Time, Bill Maher culled all of the candidates pictures and decided which ones should be eliminated. Take a look:

On all of them, I would agree. They aren’t gaining much traction from the debates. Eric Swalwell did drop out, but I think Bullock, Steyer, and Sestek should rethink why they are in this race. Inslee doesn’t inspire people for his GND because already it has a spokesperson: AOC. Amy Klobuchar is invisible with Biden and Harris in the top tier. Seems to me Bullock would be better off running for Senate, as well as Hickenlooper, and Beto. I would also argue anyone who is polling below 5% consistently should know that the lunch dates are over.

Despite continued teeth gnashing by WaPo’s Jen Rubin, WaPo finally gave Sanders (and Warren) some sherry in their press coverage of the debates. MSNBC, which is notorious for its bias against Sanders, invited him on Morning Joe this morning, and asked him some more centrist questions. But their tone was slighty different: they were polite and more patient.

Good press pays off.

It’s interesting though that stockholder-driven media for the most part didn’t pick up on the nuances in the second debate. How Harris and Castro struck back by telling CNN their framing of the questions was from GOP talking points. Biden was indirectly laced with the GOP label, which he resented. But Joe Scarborough finally acknowledged that Sanders’ ideas have more than just spilled over into 2020 cycle: they are driving the debate. And Steve Rattner was scared s**tless.

I hope the dinners are more sober and not about the best quip. Yes, the candidates should fight for their ideas. Biden and Harris: you are on notice that the progressive wing has lots of little birdies to carry their candidates with the seeds given to them by those who want a more just government. And independent media is finally getting its due by appearing as guest contributors on cable networks and on the Hill’s Rising.

This also serves as an open thread. What’s on your mind?

Warren’s adorable dog & Sunday 5/19 Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Good Morning All!

Just thought I’d get a fresh thread going and that maybe it wouldn’t hurt your eyes to see this tweet from Elizabeth Warren’s Twitter account.

Please share anything down below!

I hope you all have a fine and happy Sunday!!

The time for playing games on Medicare For All is over

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Abdul El-Sayed said something yesterday that brings into focus the essential dysfunction which is the US health-care system: Cost of a SINGLE vial of insulin: Canada: $32United States: $300 That's TEN TIMES more for the same exact drug. Our healthcare system is broken — and it's putting lives at risk. We're long overdue for #MedicareForAll— Abdul El-Sayed (@AbdulElSayed) April 2, 2019 Millions of Americans need insulin to survive. The researchers (Frederick Banting, Charles Best and James Collip) who developed insulin in the 1920s knew this and wanted to ensure the medication would remain affordable and safe. They assigned the patent to the … Continue reading →

Elizabeth Warren visits Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, highlights poverty, housing, small farms

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

One of the positive aspects of a competitive primary is seeing candidates campaign in a lot of states, not just the traditional “battle-grounds”. Candidates for president don’t always go to MS, TN, or AL because they aren’t battleground states. But I’m running to be president of the entire United States. I’m planning to travel to every corner of this country—and I’ve got the best staff who will make it happen! pic.twitter.com/8J1finLQZO — Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) March 28, 2019 It is significant that Senator Warren conducted a three-state tour visiting Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. It is rare for Democratic primary candidates to … Continue reading →

Andrew Gillum plans massive voter registration effort as FL Republicans try to undo Amendment 4

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Gillum is going to use his organization to help turn Florida blue in 2020. The new organization is called: Bring It Home Florida. After losing his bid for Florida’s governorship by less than one half of a percentage point, Mr. Gillum, the former Tallahassee mayor, is now carefully planning his next steps amid speculation that he would run for president. On Wednesday, he announced he will not join the Democratic field seeking to oppose President Trump, but instead return to political organizing. He said he aims to build a voter mobilization network in Florida that will help whoever becomes the Democratic … Continue reading →

If this were really about anti-semitism…

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

If it were really about anti-semitism, the House would be censuring Rep. Jim Jordan for this blatant smear: C’mon @RepJerryNadler—at least pretend to be serious about fact finding. Nadler feeling the heat big time. Jumps to Tom $teyer’s conclusion—impeaching our President—before first document request. What a Kangaroo court. https://t.co/BpNIzdON1e — Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) March 3, 2019 Rep. Nadler is Jewish, and so is Tom Steyer. Notice the $? If it was about anti-semitism, the House would have censured Dan Quayle, who had a fondness for the 80s equivalent of “globalist”. Vice-President Dan Quayle made his contribution with his now-infamous frontal … Continue reading →

Castro, Harris, Warren declare support for reparations. What does that mean in policy terms?

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Here’s America’s first black president talking about reparations for slavery and systematic discrimination. Obama: Theoretically, you can make, obviously, a powerful argument that centuries of slavery, Jim Crow, discrimination are the primary cause for all those gaps. That those were wrongs done to the black community as a whole, and black families specifically, and that in order to close that gap, a society has a moral obligation to make a large, aggressive investment, even if it’s not in the form of individual reparations checks, but in the form of a Marshall Plan, in order to close those gaps. It is … Continue reading →

11/6 Midterm Election Night & Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Birdies–

Tonight we find out how much of a check the American people want to have on our Executive Branch. Or put it another way, how many of the 1000 legislative seats will the Dems gain from the last 10 years of losses? Will voters feel comfortable with the economy and overlook Trump? Will Trump’s divisiveness prevail and turn out his base?

Will we see our first women Native American Congressional Reps? First AA governor of FL and first female gov of GA? How well will the OR candidates perform in this cycle?

Of course, we hope there are no machine irregularities, but it’s anticipated that some will occur. And election lawyers will be on hand just in case.

In the Senate, Democrats are defending 26 seats while Republicans are only defending nine.

(those are predictions if they are filled in with red or blue, gold signifies toss-up)

In the gubernatorial races, there are 33 races, in which Dems could possibly pick up 9 of them.



(those are predictions if they are filled in with red or blue, gold signifies toss-up)

First polls close at 6ET in Indiana, VT and KY. Most in the MSM are saying to watch the 6th district in KY, but the bellwethers will be in VA 4 GOP races and FL 4 GOP races when the polls close at 7 ET.

Larry Sabato of Crystal Ball expects Dem pick-ups in the gubernatorial races, including Kansas.

Big races:

TX Sen – Beto vs Cruz
NV Sen – Rosen vs Heller
FL Sen – Sick Rott vs Nelson
AZ Sen – McSally vs Sinema
CA Sen – DeLeon vs Feinstein
MO Sen – Hawley vs McCaskill
TN Sen – Breesan vs Blackburn
VT Sen – Sanders vs a pack of Indies (well, not a big race, but it is Bernie’s re-up)

FL Gov – DeSantis vs Gillum
GA Gov – Kemp vs Abrams
MD Gov – Jealous vs Hogan
WI Gov – Evers vs Walker
IL Gov – Pritzker vs Rauner
AZ Gov – Garcia vs Ducey
ID Gov – Jordan vs Little
MI Gov – Whitmer vs Schulette
IA Gov – Hubbell vs Reynolds

MN AG – Ellison vs Wardlow

Add the races you are keen about in the comments!

9/4 MA Primary Day and OT; Update: Justice Dem Ayanna Pressley Upsets Incumbent Mike Capuano in MA-07

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Today is the primary day in the Bay State. Here are the candidates for the House that we’ve been discussing over the past few months. I’m not listing the R’s even though it is primary day for them as well nor am I providing info on races with only one candidate. Polls close at 8pm ET/7pm CT/6pm MT/5pm PT. 1st District Democrats Rep. Richard Neal Town/City: Springfield Background: Elected to Congress in 1988, Neal serves as the ranking member of the Ways and Means committee. The former Springfield mayor has also served as a city councilor and a mayoral aide, … Continue reading →

Sanders, Cuomo, The People’s Party & 5/31 Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Hello friends!

I gather that JD & LD are still road-tripping and are now in Colorado! Nice.

Democrats gear up for 2020 — and Bernie Sanders still leads the pack

(Sanders) has managed to marshal a loyal army of progressive activists who stand for principles of social and economic justice that had seemingly been abandoned by the Democratic Party since the Bill Clinton years. Many of Sanders’ followers will support no one else — unless and until he tells them too. That alone will make Sanders a formidable opponent for any and all Democrats who are considering taking him on.

Strange to see such a glaring spelling error, but I’ll give the writer a break because I like the title of the piece. I hadn’t heard this next bit in the Salon article – had you?

Warren, a potential rival who could have split the progressive vote, has apparently taken herself out of consideration for 2020

As usual, Bernie’s age comes up, but not in an entirely bad way.

Suddenly, the joke’s on Cuomo

The governor spent 2017 poking fun at the mayor. Now he’s under fire

I’m pretty sure that Cuomo might as well just give up on any presidential plans:

According to a recent Marist poll, 70% of New York Democrats do not want Gov. Andrew Cuomo to run for president.

Denied the Working Families Party nomination, Cuomo should have petitioned his way into a September WFP primary, challenging designated nominee Cynthia Nixon. It would have signaled his commitment to liberal principles and been taken as a sign of respect to grassroots activists.

Instead, Cuomo snubbed the party and threw down a gauntlet to its financiers, saying, “You’re either with me or against me.” Most of them sided with the governor. Widely credited with killing New York’s Liberal Party in 2002 when he accepted its ballot line for governor and then dropped out of the race, Cuomo appears on track to do the same to the WFP.

Cheers and I hope that LD gets to rest his “driving foot”!

More below..