Democracy for New Mexico

Kerry Rally at Phil Chacon Park Today

Kerry is back in Albuquerque today for a rally at Phil Chacon Park at Kathryn just east of Lousiana. As many as 15,000 people are expected to attend. Governor Bill Richardson and Senator Jeff Bingaman will also speak to the crowd. With the presidential race reving up to warp speed, this should be an event to remember.

Click here to print your ticket. When you return, stop in here to share your thoughts and feelings about the event. (Photo Credit: Kerry-Edwards 2004, Inc. from Sharon Farmer)

Today's Albuquerque Journal reports that Kerry will be staying overnight in Albuquerque and will hold a town hall meeting focusing on national security on Friday morning at 9:00 AM at Manzano Mesa Multi-Generational Center in the SE Heights. Attendance at this event will be by invitation only.

TV and Reality: No Correlation

Andrea Sterling, a frequent volunteer for the cause, agreed to allow me to share her illuminating description of what's on voter's minds in the real world versus what the media and even the campaigns are emphasizing. I think it speaks volumes about the disconnect between TV spin and the problems ordinary Americans are facing:

Dear Friends,

We have volunteered at the DPNM booth at the state fair four times now in the afternoon and it's really bizarre to come home afterwards and watch the news at night. The hot issue on TV is Bush's military service. Kitty Kelly is being interviewed by everyone and the spicy tidbit is the fact that Bush "disappeared" from April - October -- perhaps because he was using drugs and didn't want to take his physical? (enquiring minds want to know...)

The thing that's so strange is that no one that has stopped by the booth has talked about any of this (except maybe an offhand remark about "that draft dodger"). It's not important to them. They have been talking about the economy being bad, no jobs, sky rocketing health insurance premiums, prescription drugs, the deficit, the financial burden their kids are going to have to shoulder, 1,000 soldiers being killed in Iraq and all the other woes that we've become so familiar with in this election.

There is a couple that have a table across from the booth. They sell costume jewelry and hats. I bought a bracelet from them the first day of the fair and chat with them for a few minutes every time I'm at the DPNM booth. They told me that they are not doing well at the fair. People don't have any disposable income and aren't buying anything. The people that pass by the booth are only wearing or carrying the shiny necklaces and stuffies they win on the midway (Although today, David saw two people carrying mops that they got at one of the booths in the Lujan building.)

David stands in front of the booth and holds a sign for people to read as they are passing by. It reads "$200 Billion for Iraq, Nothing for the USA, What's Wrong with this Picture?" It gets a lot of attention -- people nodding as they go by or stopping to talk about it.

Bush's military record is a media driven event. It's of no consequence to the people we've been meeting at the fair. And so much campaign advertising time and money is being wasted on this issue that people really don't care about.

Andrea

Edwards Visits Santa Fe - Kerry on the Way

The Santa Fe New Mexican has a good about John Edwards' "town hall" appearance on Museum Hill yesterday. And there's a funny sidebar describing how the campaign's advance people covered up the statue of the Apache mountain spirit dancer because they thought it was "warlike." To read this one you have to click on the newspaper cover on the left and see the articles as they appeared in the newspaper.

Kerry will be holding a rally in Albuquerque on Thursday, September 16 at 6:30 PM at Chacon Park at Louisiana and Kathryn. To get tickets, go here or visit the campaign office. Gates open at 4:00 PM.

You can help make signs at Kerry HQ starting today or volunteer for other tasks related to Kerry's visit by calling 256-2570. For those volunteering for duty at the rally, there will be a training session at Kerry HQ at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, September 15, and you'll have to be available on Thursday starting at 2:30 PM at Kerry HQ, which is located at 3301 Central NE. You must call 256-2570 to be registered as a volunteer for this event.

Tracy Chapman to Benefit "Driving Votes" in NM

On September 24th, Tracy Chapman will embark on a 5-city swing state concert tour to benefit Driving Votes. Western Swing: An Evening with Tracy Chapman will feature Tracy and her band in a very intimate setting. Tracy will ask her fans to help impact the 2004 election by spending their weekend with Driving Votes working to register voters, get out the vote and change the direction of our democracy. She'll make two appearances in New Mexico:

Santa Fe, NM - September 28
Paramount - 331 Sandoval St
Tickets: Lensic Box Office, 988-1234

Albuquerque, NM - September 29
KiMo - 423 Central Ave. NW
Tickets: Kimo Box office, 505-768-3544
Or at

"The upcoming presidential election is one of the most critical in our nation’s history. More than ever, every single vote counts, and I want to do whatever I can to urge every American to make their voice heard,” stated Tracy Chapman. “I am supporting Driving Votes because they are doing an incredible job, reaching people on the grassroots, personal level to make registration easy. They are empowering new voters, those that previously felt disenfranchised or unable to effect change. By doing these small shows in these swing states, I hope to remind each individual in those rooms, that they can take action and make a real difference."

You can find out more about Driving Votes here.

Pedal to the Metal Time

Tick tock. There are only 49 days until the November 2nd election, 22 days left to register to vote and 22 days until the October 5th start date for absentee voting by mail and at county clerks' offices. Now is the time to devote as many hours as we can to volunteering for some organization, any organization, that is dedicated to making Bush a one-term president and gaining Democratic seats in the House and Senate.

We attended an ABQ Kerry campaign training session yesterday which laid out the strategy for the 7 weeks or so left until the election. They will be holding daily phonebanking and canvassing efforts and encouraging people to get together with friends, neighbors and coworkers to communicate talking points and underline how important this election is if we want to preserve our democracy.

We signed up for the canvassing team and will be out several times a week to knock on doors. We did some of this last Thursday and found it to be very satisfying. It's so important to get requests for absentee ballots to folks this month, so we can beat the Republicans at their own game.

ACT NM in Albuquerque is holding a Volunteer Appreciation Day next Saturday at 11AM, with a free BBQ followed by phonebanking, canvassing and letter writing. And the League of Conservation Voters is doing the same with an environmental issues twist. Meanwhile the Democratic Party is continuing with voter registration, MoveOn is organizing precinct workers and the Romero and other local campaigns need help. NM PACE is heading voter registration drives in many parts of the state. All of these are great opportunities for effective volunteering.

We all know how busy we all are with daily life and work. But as the days tick down to November 2nd, it's imperative that everyone contribute at least an hour or two a week toward getting rid of this horrible, extremist regime. Republicans are out in force in every precinct in the state. Can we do less?

Click to the continuation page for contact information for volunteers.

Kerry/Edwards State HQ: 256-2570, 3301 Central NE, ABQ

Kerry/Edwards Santa Fe: 982-5727, Solano Center, 947 W. Alameda, SF

NM Democratic Party: 830-3650, https://nmdemocrats.org/

Bernalillo County Democratic Party: 256-1855, 130 Alvarado NE, ABQ

ACT NM: 872-9466, 5600 Menaul Blvd. NE, ABQ, https://newmexico.actforvictory.org/

Richard Romero Campaign: 244-0827, 407 Rio Grande Blvd., NW, Suite 8, ABQ, https://www.richardromeroforcongress.com/

League of Conservation Voters Environmental Victory Program: 244-1077, 400 Gold St. SW, Suite 980, ABQ, https://www.envirovictory.org/?id=8

MoveOn: https://www.moveonpac.org/lnvb/

NM PACE: In Albuquerque call 505-255-4266, in Santa Fe call 505-923-3812. For Roswell, Artesia, Carlsbad call 505-627-8988. For Las Cruces(Southwest NM) call 505-496-8295.

A summary of events to be held on America Votes' Election Action Day on September 18th:

https://acthere.com/eventSearch.php?distance=300&zipCode=87112

Note: To find contacts for communities around the state, you can submit a question to the Albuquerque offices of these organizations and they'll be glad to inform you of activities in your area or give you a phone number.

9-11 Must Reads

I've mentioned before the high quality of of Juan Cole's analysis on his website, "Informed Comment: Thoughts on the Middle East, History, and Religion." He's a professor of history at the University of Michigan and one of the most popular and respected commentators on the web.

Today, in honor of the third anniversay of 9-11, Cole provides a detailed and sharp analysis of what's really going on in the so-called "war on terror," a summary of the historical events that brought us to this point, and an evaluation of where things stand now for both the U.S. and al Qaeda. I think reading this piece is a fitting activity when pondering this anniversay of tragedy: September 11 and Its Aftermath

And then there's the moving statement released by the 9-11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, which begins:

Nearly three years ago, September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows was born out of a shared belief that America’s military response to the 9/11 attacks which took our loved ones’ lives would result in the deaths of countless innocent civilians and increase recruitment for terrorist causes, making the United States, and the world, less safe and less free for generations to come. Today, as we commemorate September 11, 2004, we find that our worst fears have been realized. The terrorism of September 11th has been neither neutralized, nor ended, by the terrorism of war.

You can also visit their Peaceful Tomorrows Website with alot of excellent information and actions you can take to help bring a more reasoned approach to the problems we face in the 21st century.

Poll Snapshot

The lastest polling shows that the race is still close and that Bush's convention bounce is smaller than first reported in some early polls that many statistical experts have said had methodology problems.

Still, we have our work cut out for us. What are you doing this weekend to help the cause?

There's a training session with special guest at the Kerry HQ in Albuquerque this Sunday, from Noon to 4PM, as we move into the next phase of the effort. Come on down!

You Decide

Jimi Kerry lives! See it now!

Politicizing Terror

Click to read this online article in The Nation.

We're off to canvass for Kerry tonight. Hope each of you is doing what you can. If this article doesn't motivate people, what will? Are you Eager to Vote yet? Will you help us on October 5th? Read all about this DFNM event here. If you're interested in participating, email me and I'll point you to a group that John McAndrew formed to organize and publicize this day's events all over the state.

Request to ID All First-Time Voters Denied

According to today's Albuquerque Journal:

A state district judge denied a bid Tuesday to require tens of thousands of first-time voters in New Mexico to show identification before casting ballots this fall. In rejecting the request for a preliminary injunction— brought as part of a lawsuit filed last month— state District Judge Robert L. Thompson suggested his decision was based partly on the amount of time before the Nov. 2 election. He referred to the request for IDs as an "11th-hour lawsuit." . . . The ruling means that, for now, only first-time voters who registered by mail must show identification before casting their ballots

You can find more information on this case in yesterday's Albuquerque Tribune article and in our earlier story.