This is long, but interesting to read something of the man who was an inspiration to a young seeker of municipal office. Stephen, who as a teen was the first person to get a Blue Jersey account after founder Juan Melli, is a candidate for municipal office in Berkeley Heights. - Rosi
After I published my last article here (thank you to everyone who commented on it), I received an e-mail from a New Jersey friend of mine, and a sometime-Democratic activist. My friend wrote, in part:
"What the **** gives you the right to call out Sweeney? He was a labor leader when you were in diapers."
No, I'm not in a union. I don't believe graduate students have a union to join, although I could be wrong. And no, I don't have the "credentials" of Senator Sweeney when it comes to a labor background.
But I can tell you this - the movement for workers to gain their freedom is in my blood. Were it not for organizers like my Grandpa Harry, a Gloucester County ironworker could never have become the leader of the New Jersey State Senate.
Today, we kick off a 10-day Countdown to March 24th, the day we join progressives in New Jersey and across the nation to raise money for Jeff Gardner's campaign for the New Jersey Senate. March 24th is Money Bomb Day.
We've heard from all corners of NJ that Jeff's campaign is a statewide progressive priority. Here at Blue Jersey, we're proud Jeff's one of our own. Everyone here knows about Jeff Gardner. Rock solid progressive. A fighter. A leader.
Campaigns cost money. If Jeff's going to unseat a 30-year incumbent, he'll need our support. March 24th Money Bomb.
So - What's a Money Bomb?: A grassroots fundraising effort concentrated in a short time period. We're going to use it to support Jeff by dramatically ramping up, concentrating & publicizing his fundraising.
What you can do right now: Click "I'm Attending" on Jeff's Money Bomb page. Then come back March 24th and donate!
Every contribution counts - $5, $10, or $25 donations add up. If the progressive community shows our real strength - by making Jeff the next Senator from the 35th District - maybe Democrats in Trenton will think twice before they betray fundamental policies the Democratic Party stands for.
On Twitter: Tweet your support for Jeff! Use hash tag #GardnerMoneyBomb.
Until we step up and start electing better Democrats, we'll never get the representation we've been longing for. We'll never get the type of leadership a blue state like NJ deserves. We are going all-in for Jeff's campaign. And we need you. Money Bomb March 24th!
Hi,
As discussed on the my.barackobama.com listserve, I have created this diary for people from the "Central NJ for Obama" listserv to chat with each other about gossip and editorial comments. Have fun!!
Last week Congressman Mike Ferguson, the Rep. from NJ7 who loved Tom DeLay and worshiped embryos, announced that at age 38 he was retiring from Congress after four terms. His stated reason was to spend more time with his family, but suspicions have been raised that it was either an emerging sex scandal or the upcoming brutal campaign against Linda Stender that pushed him out.
Others suggested that a blog I mostly wrote, called Dump Mike, was a primary reason. Matt Stoller over at Open Left wrote:
The first candidate-centric blog I ever saw was DumpMike.com, targeting Ferguson (congrats, you did it). There were many times when Ferguson was embarrassed by the site, but my favorite post was when DumpMike caught Ferguson with a whites-only website.
(We can't forget about this just because the election is over. - promoted by Xpatriated Texan)
If you want to know what someone truly values, look at their checkbook. It's simple, really. Our money is limited and there is a bright line between things that interest us - things that don't get our money - and things we consider vital - things that do get our money.
In the last year, Blue Jersey has taken the lead on everything from turning back the false Republican charges against Senator Bob Menendez to pushing our allies in the state legislature for full marriage equality to identifying and publicizing state-level races that might have otherwise not been considered viable. And throughout all of that, very few people have received any payment for their actions (make that "two people" - as in our Statehouse correspondent and our intern doing the news updates). So when we say that we are the grassroots, it's because we are sweating and swearing and pushing and pulling all levels of government to be more responsive to the people of New Jersey every single day.
We know all too well what we are doing. Activists and politicians alike come here to help get their message into the hearts and minds of progressive New Jerseyans. We never ask an entrance fee - we only ask that our community is treated with the respect it deserves. We are more than happy to allow campaigns and public interest groups to reach beyond us to the members of our community and ask them for volunteer hours and cash and support of all kinds.
And we are glad to do it.
Take a look at the ads in the far right sidebar. Those are the folks who have determined that they want to do more than just use Blue Jersey as a magnifier for their own message. They understand that Blue Jersey works best when it has a broad base of support and is allowed to function in the manner that made it what it is - a strong independent voice for progressive politics.
Now take a look at it again. Notice who isn't in that sidebar.
If you are a member of a progressive group that believes New Jersey needs Blue Jersey's strong voice of leadership, I urge you to discuss with them the possibility of running an ad. If you are a politician who is running for office and you want to show how strongly you believe in Blue Jersey's mission - the mission of democracy - then you should do more than just consider buying an ad. You should do it. Not just because it is part of a smart strategy of reaching out to progressive New Jerseyans, but because it is the right thing to do. It shows that you aren't just trying to use us and wring whatever free press you can from us. It shows you believe that power truly does belong in the hands of the people, and you aren't afraid of having your name and likeness associated with that belief.
Or, alternatively, just consider becoming a recurring patron of the site. For as little as $5 a month - a ridiculously low amount you could scrape up in change - you can help keep us going. Use our BlogPatron page and shout out in the comments to let us know what level of support you can share with us.
Update: I forgot to include a mail link for those who want to buy an ad. DOH!
510PM: I am at Gina Genovese's (http://www.ginagenov...) headquarters in Bekrley Heights, New Jersey (588 Springfield Avenue, for those not in the know), where the campaign team is about to formally open for business at 6PM. In reality, we have been open for several weeks now, in a comfy brick building along a busy intersection. From 11 in the morning 'till 8 at night, Gina's headquarters has been teeming with activity. And today we're inviting Democrats from all over the 21st Legislative District (and elsewhere) to see what we're up to.
We're going to take out Tom Kean, Jr. in November 2007. Today is the first day we show why.
Today is not the first time I will be voting (my fourth, actually), but it is the first time I have seen my name on an official ballot.
Today is not the first time I have run for an office (I was active in my high school political organization, JSA, and ran for Mayor of the group in 2005), but it is the first time I am running to serve with adults, not just people of my own age.
Today I am voting for myself for Union County (NJ) Democratic Committeeman. It is a strange feeling, to say the least.
From the very beginning of this fight we have all been driven by a simple, but compelling idea: that people, ideas and issues matter more than the old politics of pursuing power and influence as an end to itself.
That is why we won this battle. That is why this victory is so important. And we are not yet done.
This campaign saw the heart and soul of the Democratic Party and its allies stand together in an unyielding coalition of the inspired. From labor organizations representing thousands of hard working women and men to progressive groups representing environmentalists, civil rights advocates, consumers and other grass and net roots groups to local Democratic elected officials and volunteers, this fight brought together people all across this district, this county and this state.
Our strength was not in the contributions we could bundle nor in the contracts we controlled; our strength is in the people we can muster to talk to other voters, our strength is in the hard work we can pour into a campaign and our strength is that the candidates we supported had the respect of the voters they serve.
Loretta Weinberg, Gordon Johnson and Valerie Vainieri Huttle share our values. More than sharing those values, Loretta, Gordon and Valerie have put those values to work as our legislators.
This victory clearly demonstrates that business as usual in Bergen County Democratic insider politics must change. That it is time to open the back room door to let in some fresh air.
We welcome the leadership of the Bergen County Democratic Organization to recognize those lessons so that we can move forward to concentrate on the issues and causes that can change people's lives for the better.
Signed:
Charles Mattson, President, Bergen County Central Trades and Labor Council
Paul Eisenman, Bergen Grassroots
Juan Melli, Blue Jersey
Marcia Marley, Blue Wave NJ
Bob Master, Legislative Director, Communications Workers of America, District One
Steven Goldstein, Garden State Equality
Ann Twomey, President, Health Professionals and Allied Employees/AFT/AFL-CIO
Phyllis Salowe-Kaye, Exec. Director, New Jersey Citizen Action
Pedro Rivas, President, NJ ACORN
Amy Goldsmith, State Director, NJ Environmental Federation
Jeff Gardner and Rosi Efthim, NJ for Democracy
David McCann, Exec Director SEIU NJ State Council
Patricia Campos, Director UNITE HERE NJ State Council
Last month, I received an interesting message from a Bergen County official:
What a shame this organization [Bergen Grassroots] has come to this. Early on I thought it was a group that could make a difference and worked with them. Very childish. Not what Governor Dean had in mind I'm guessing.
The message was a response to an email sent by Paul Eisenman, Chairman of Bergen Grassroots, the local chapter of Democracy for America (DFA) which I co-founded. The purpose of Mr. Eisenman's email was to rally grassroots activists to protest BCDO Chairman Joe Ferriero's hastily called January 31st vote to alter the BCDO bylaws in a way that would have given him complete control over the party line. (Amazingly, the changes to the bylaws were defeated despite Mr. Ferriero's committee purges of 2006.)
Should active duty soldiers serving abroad have to pay state income taxes? This bill would end taxation of GI's serving overseas. Also read this and decide for yourself!
More Oscar bits and pieces: Cherry Hill native wins big for producing An Inconvenient Truth. Or couse Vice President Gore was a big winner too. What do you think Barack and Hillary are thinking?
Just as the House and the Senate never could have come to the Democratic Party today without Howard Dean's 50-state strategy already in place, New Jersey will never grow a broader progressive presence unless we have a 21-county strategy in place, too.
Howard may not have foreseen Mark Foley and Duke Cunningham and every other political explosion between the two coasts, but he knew he needed to reseed his party on the ground in every state. If not for that, we would not have had candidates running viable campaigns in places where Republican corruption dealt the party a surprise soft hand.
I'm in NJ-12, in the Greater Princeton area. I'm a mom who works in a small business, so I do not have huge amounts of time & energy to give between now and the election, and I have even less money. What I do have is burning rage.
What are your thoughts on what's likely to be the best use of my efforts?
Today was the DFA training session that took place at Raritan Valley Community College and below are some photos from the event. I'd estimate about 100 people came out for the training, which continues tomorrow as well. Also, our very own Jay Lassiter had a chance to interview DFA president (and Howard Dean's brother) Jim Dean (not to be confused with the famous sausage entrepreneur). We'll have a podcast of the entire interview hopefully by Monday, but for now, here's a video clip of Jay asking Jim about the future of blogging.
Bergen County—Michele Reutty, the embattled Hasbrouck Heights library director, has gained the support of Bergen Grassroots, a public interest group headquartered in Teaneck. (Text of resolution)
In a separate resolution, Bergen Grassroots announced similar support for Lt. Ehren Watada, who has refused orders to go to Iraq and is now facing a court martial. (Text of resolution)
Yesterday's fundraiser for Congressional candidate Rich Sexton went really well. The weather was picture perfect, the food was fantastic and the company was pretty darn good too. Oh, and by the way, we also raised some cash for the campaign. At last count, we were just shy of $1,5oo.
This year in NJ-3, we're up against a well-financed incumbent who shamelessly accepts big-ticket donations from the likes of Tom Delay and Jack Abramoff. So the Sexton campaign relies on events like yesterday's BBQ as its life blood.
Yesterday had some real intangible effects, as well. By helping Dems stretch the field in districts with entrenched GOP incumbents, we're helping with DNC chairman Howard Dean's mission to take the fight to the GOP in every district of every state in the country.
(This is great. If you've got some spare change, you can help out with the effort by using the paypal link at BergenGrassroots.com. - promoted by jmelli)
Photo by Keith Krebs
Written by Paul Eisenman
Bergen Grassroots has posted what we believe is the first antiwar billboard sentiment in our home county, Bergen.
We have launched this advertising campaign to underscore our commitment to continuing to pressure the Bush administration, as well as our Congressional representatives in the 5th and 9th Districts, to bring the troops home from Iraq NOW.
With funds raised from Bergen Grassroots members, we have rented a total of four billboards over the next three months. We are profoundly grateful to all who made this first stage possible.
Last night I was elected president of the Princeton Community Democratic Organization. It was a contested election, with the other candidate being the "establishment" candidate. But we campaigned hard and won, 156 - 59, on a platform of activism, expansion, inclusiveness and openness. Juan Melli also got elected to the executive board.
Update - January 23, 2006 at 11:33:39 EST by jmelliWally Edge:
A new generation offers a leader
There was a changing of the guard among liberals in Princeton last night in a race for President of the Princeton Community Democratic Organization, a group of Democrats from Princeton Borough and Princeton Township. Jenny Crumiller, a fundraiser for Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign and a Democracy for America member, defeated Dick Bergman, who got his start in politics working for Eugene McCarthy and George McGovern, by 156-59 margin. Bergman, who worked as a budget analyst for the New Jersey Legislature and spent thre years working in the Carter White House, had been the handpicked candidate of Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand. With more than 350 members, the PCDO is the largest local Democratic club in Mercer County.
The Rapid Response Network has updated their functionality to include county groups. You can now specify your location by county, which will allow the Rapid Response Network to send out more targetted action response items relating specifically to your county. You'll be able to more effectively respond to biased, imbalanced or factually inaccurate media coverage where it's most effective: at the local level. Sign up now.
