Live at the DNC - I survived a PUMA
August 26, 2008
I’m finally at a place where I can write a full on post about what I’ve seen thus far at the Convention. It’s been interesting. In order to stay up to the minute on what I’m seeing, follow The SuperSpade on Twitter at http://twitter.com/superspade, where I’ll be sending updates from my phone on various events.
The PUMAs are coming
My shuttle ride in from the airport was 2.5 hours long. I shared that shuttle with an Obama volunteer, 2 Hillary Clinton delegates from Virginia, and a woman from Real Democrats in DC. What I found in them all were women that were ostensibly passionate about democratic and the Democratic Party, but who underneath were actually angry and disappointed in their party’s treatment of Hillary Clinton and how the party selects its nominee.
Some of the arguments made sense, but others had a strange hint of ‘my discrimination is better than yours’, even if it wasn’t intentional. For example, the Hillary folks never liked the caucus process, and I never really understood why. Now I do. They felt like caucuses gave some voters the chance to intimidate other voters in certain districts. Ladies and gentlemen, don’t be confused: that is code for Black voters scared away white voters in Black districts. It’s just like calling Barack Obama arrogant: the “pc” way of saying that he is out of place.
They did have a different take on why her time as First Lady should count as experience: the analogy was a family-owned business. In many cases, the husband’s name is on everything (loans, bills, etc.) and the wife may not even be on the official payroll. Nevertheless, she contributes to the business operations (management of paperwork, employees, travel planning, etc.) and also is effectively a consultant on business strategy and decisions (e.g. Should we open another store across town? Should I hire an intern? etc.). This I think has merit, since I KNOW that I consult significant other when making business decisions. The nuance of this though was probably lost in the election mayhem.
Another thing they said was that a lot of older women in the Northeast were withholding their money from the DNC, which is dangerous considering the amount of money that the Republican Party has been raising ($75 million compared to the Democrats’ $28 million).
What do they want?
Something has to be done to bring these women to the table. When I asked the woman from Real Democrats who she wanted held accountable, her answers were:
- The Democratic National Committee for ignoring their complaints on caucus practices
- The Obama Campaign for doing that and taking these upset voters for granted
The really scary part: Hillary doesn’t control them
The press and the Obama campaign keeps saying that Hillary Clinton needs to “get her supporters in line.” These women were very clear when they said to me that there was nothing that Hillary Clinton could do or say to change their position. Nothing. What that means is that this thing has legs all its own, and their going to keep kicking and screaming.
Hopefully though, it’ll somehow die this week.
One Love. One II.
UPDATED: The SuperSpade on NPR’s ‘Day to Day’ Thursday
June 25, 2008
Last week I recorded an interview for the Day to Day show on NPR. I was asked a series of questions relating Barack & Michelle Obama’s “terrorist fist bump,” as well as the election as a whole and whether or not there was an understanding of the Black experience in white America.
That interview is set to air on Thursday, 25 June 2008. Check your local listings to find out when it’s on in your area so you can hear it live. For those that can’t here it or those who are in places where there’s no NPR, I’ll put a link on this site as soon as I have one.
UPDATE: I’ll be on the What’s the new what? segment of Day to Day. The audio and my comments will be available on NPR’s site.
One Love. One II.
American Idol shows why we need an Electoral College
April 24, 2008
I don’t usually write on stuff like this, but I was struck last night and got to thinking about whether talent is enough, or whether the right person always wins. And in the event that the wrong person is winning, is there a way to correct that?
I saw two of the most talented individuals participating in the vanguard of American cultural expression that is American Idol get sent to the elimination round yesterday, with one of them having to be sent home. If that show had an electoral college (the judges?), that probably would not have happened.
In today’s political season, we may see something similar play out. Read more
Michigan to do primary…again
March 15, 2008
It appears that Michigan is prepared to do another Michigan primary set for June 3rd, pending approval by the Michigan State Legislature and the Obama campaign. This is great news for me because I am planning the Michigan Policy Summit on May 10th and if this contest is not settled by then, this Summit could end up playing a critical role in determining the Democratic nominee.
I suppose the conventional wisdom is that Obama is poised to snag the nomination but like most things in life; I will believe it when I see it in writing. Having said that, I will be writing about the Michigan Policy Summit much more frequently but the potential of being in a position of nominee-maker is very exciting and daunting.
This confirms my belief that the most potent power in America’s republic is local power. Early on, I flirted with the idea of working for the Obama campaign full time. At the time, I would have had to work in a different state.
Obama Robocalls telling WA voters wrong caucus date
February 8, 2008
According to The Stranger, as well as a caller into the Thom Hartmann radio program (great show), robocalls are going out to some in Washington telling them that the caucus in on Sunday, not Saturday (the actual date).
The calls apparently came from Meyer Associates Teleservices, a St. Cloud, MN-based direct marketing company. This company has done extensive work for the Obama campaign in Illinois, New Hampshire, and other states.
Robocalling is completely unacceptable. If this was done purposely, it’s inexcusable. If it was done accidentally there are no accidents in politics at this level. Democrats don’t like when Republicans do it to them. Democrats therefore should not do it to each other. Note also that this process is illegal in some states, and Obama’s calls [courtesy of Meyer] were found to violate New Hampshire law.
This is sad, and I really, really want this to be untrue, but the evidence is not looking that way at this point. I want honest, ethical politics, not this stuff.
One Love. One II.
Double Bubble Trouble in California Primaries
February 8, 2008
It appears that 94,000 votes that were cast in California by Decline-To-State voters in the Democratic primary are in danger of not being counted: not by any fault of the voters themselves, but due to unnecessarily confusing ballot design.
Why the hell do we make voting so difficult if it's something that we want everyone to do? I don't understand this. In this election season, where Democrats are seeing voters participate in caucuses and primaries in record numbers, I would expect they would want to do everything in ther power to have the newly-energized Democratic electorate not be disenfranchisd. Instead, this ballot, which undoubtedly was approved by somebody, has the strong stench of voter suppression lingering around it.
Do Something! Make sure every vote counts this February, this November, and beyond.
Distinctions without Differences & Protective Imitation
February 5, 2008
Cross-posted at the Brave New Films Blog.
Primaries are about differentiation. Differences in the candidates' records; differences in the candidates' policy positions; differences in the candidates' ideologies. Well, at least they should be. Sadly, the more and more (or less and less) I watch/listen to political dialogue and commentary about these Presidential primaries and this upcoming Presidential election, I'm hearing a vague message of "change" that is doing little to concretely differentiate the candidates or further this country's dilapidated political discourse.
Research. Think. Vote.
February 5, 2008
People, if you live in a state that has a caucus or a primary today, please do two things for me:
- Research.
- Think.
- Vote.
Research
Where do candidates stand in the issues? exclude their party, gender, or race from the equation. What issues are important to you? Research the issues themselves, determine your position on those issues, and then examine each candidate’s position. If they align with yours, you are one step closer to voting for them.
Think.
What will the people running for president do to improve your day-to-day life? What are their positions. Again, exclude their party, gender, or race from the equation and focus on your personal needs and issues that you and your family face today.
Vote
Participate by taking step one in the process of civic engagement. Beyond voting, stay involved and educated on issues and policies that effect you. If you’re a teacher, at least learn about education policy. If you’re in manufacturing, at least learn about labor issues. At least one issue applies to everyone.
Please get beyond voting republican because you don’t like gay marraige. Please get beyond voting for Obama because he’s young and Black. Please get beyond voting for Clinton because she’s a woman who happens to be Bills wife. The time for this immature, non-issue, non-policy, non-concrete approach to politics is over, and I would have killed it earlier if I could have. We need to really, really understand who we’re voting for, why we’re voting for them, and what they will do for us. Political discussions must drill down from the level of broad generalities about “change” coming from Republicans and Democrats into the not-so-sexy but oh-so-important details that will alter how you live, where you work, what you eat, and how healthy you will be.
Let’s grow up and get real
One Love. One II.
SuperSpade Election Guide
November 5, 2007
Today is Election Day, not for President, but an election day nonetheless where you will probably be voting for millages, school board, or some other offices you may not think really impacts your life, BUT IT DOES! Moreover, have you ever asked someone else who/what you should vote for? If so, then the person you asked probably has garnered the political trust of those in his/her sphere of influence. And if this power is used wisely, then perhaps we could get some better folks in office.
My friend suggested that we develop a trusted list of local endorsers to help people who, for whatever reason, don’t have the time to research voting records, speeches, campaign donations, etc. Do you think this would be helpful, why or why not?
Stay up fam,
Brandon Q.
BS is the #1 issue among voters
October 25, 2007
Cross-posted at the Brave New Films Blog.
I love The Onion because a lot of truth can be said in jest.
Don't vote for Clinton because she's a woman or Obama because he's Black; vote because you agree with them. Vote on things that should matter, not things that shouldn't.
One Love. One II.
