Democracy for New Mexico

NM DNC Members Who Will Vote for Chair

If you'd like to write a letter of support for Howard Dean as DNC Chair here's the contact information you'll need. The DNC Southern Regional Caucus is meeting this weekend in Atlanta, and all the candidates for DNC Chair, official or not, will be making presentations. Dean is expected to make an announcement next week about whether he will officially pursue the job.

From John McAndrews:
Here are the names and addresses  of the voting members of the DNC who live in New Mexico.  Now is the time to make known your choice for DNC Chair.

Please be courteous  when addressing these folks. It would not be appropriate to take out on them any anger or frustrations  you may have with the party. We want to encourage, not alienate, them.

Mary Gail Gwaltney
1910 W. Alameda
Las Cruces, NM 88005

Gloria Nieto
1451 Santa Cruz
Santa Fe, NM 87505

John Wertheim
c/o Democratic Headquarters
1301 San Pedro NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110

Raymond Sanchez
PO Box 1966
Albuquerque, NM 87103

Annadelle Sanchez
920 Denton Street
Espanola, NM 87532
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Here are some recent stories about the race for the DNC. MyDD has been doing an excellent job of reporting on this.

DNC Chatter: Jerome Armstrong, MyDD

Tim Roemer, Republican Noise Machine Lackey: Chris Bowers, MyDD

Bad Idea Jeans (McAuliffe): Chris Bowers, MyDD

DNC Chair CattleCall: New Year Edition: Jerome Armstrong, MyDD

Thank Dems Who Voted to Contest Ohio's Electoral Votes

If you'd like to thank the 31 Democrats in the House and the ONE Democratic Senator who voted to contest Ohio's electoral votes, here's an easy way to do it. Links to their websites are listed below, on the continuation page of this post.

Here are links to the statement against certification by and a post by on his vote from the DFA Blog for America.

Is it just me or was it completely frustrating to have so many Democrats in the Senate give speeches in support of the Ohio challenge and then turn around and vote to accept the electoral college votes? Are Democrats really that afraid of "offending" Bush? Given their behavior yesterday, what else can we think?

Link to Senator Barbara Boxer's website, the lone Senator who voted to contest Ohio's electoral votes:

Barbara Boxer CA

Senate Roll Call

Links to websites of the 31 Members of the House of Representatives who voted to contest Ohio's electoral votes:

House Roll Call

Corinne Brown, FL
Julia Carson, IN
William "Lacy" Clay, Jr., MO
James E. Clyburn, SC
John Conyers, Jr., MI
Danny K. Davis, IL
Lane Evans, IL
Sam Farr, CA
Bob Filner, CA
Raul Grijalva, AZ
Alcee Hastings, FL
Maurice Hinchey, NY
Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., IL
Sheila Jackson Lee, TX
Eddie Bernice Johnson, TX
Stephanie Tubbs Jones, OH
Carolyn Kilpatrick, MI
Dennis Kucinich, OH
Barbara Lee, CA
John Lewis, GA
Edward Markey, MA
Cynthia McKinney, GA
John Olver, MA
Major Owens, NY
Frank Pallone, Jr., NJ
Donald Payne, NJ
Jan Schakowsky, IL
Bennie Thompson, MS
Maxine Waters, CA
Diane Watson, CA
Lynn Woolsey, CA

Sign the Petition to Urge Dems to Elect a Reform DNC Chair

From the 21st Century Democrats:
In February, the 447 members of the Democratic National Committee will elect a new Chair. In ordinary times, only Beltway insiders concern themselves with such matters.

But these are not ordinary times. Click here to sign our petition to demand a DNC Chair who will reform the infrastructure of our party.

The grassroots of our party has never been stronger, but the infrastructure has never been more in need of reform. Here’s what we need.

A Commitment to Principle. To win, Democrats need to speak up for our values, not compromise them. We need a DNC Chair who will use this national platform to help coordinate a strong Democratic message based on progressive values.

A Fifty State Strategy. Democrats simply do not compete in many regions of this country. Even in places where the short-term odds of victory are slim, we need to field strong Democrats up and down the ballot to contest the Republican message machine and build a farm team of progressive leaders.

Energized State and Local Committees. For a generation, the DNC has focused almost exclusively on raising large contributions to support our presidential candidates. Meanwhile, our local infrastructure has withered. State and local committees need help setting goals, recruiting candidates, training activists and organizers, coordinating message, and raising funds.

A Culture of Accountability. The DNC must professionalize its operations and hold its staff and consultants accountable. The new DNC Chair must develop a strategic plan with clear goals and benchmarks.

Respect for Grassroots Activism. The new DNC Chair must embrace the internet as a tool to cultivate grassroots political action , not just political fundraising.

Click here to send a petition to the DNC members in support of this reform agenda.

Several of the candidates running for DNC Chair understand the need for reform and will lead our party in the right direction. But others will continiue with the status quo that, in the last 25 years, has seen the Democrats lose 77 seats in the House, 14 seats in the Senate, and five of seven presidential elections.

Please help us send a strong message to the members of the DNC. Click here to sign.
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Note: 21st Century Democrats is supported by Democracy for America and provides training and and on-the-ground support for progressive activists and candidates around the country. Be sure to check out their website if you sign the petition.

Boxer's Statement in Electoral Vote Debate

Click for the transcript of Sen. Barbara Boxer's objection to the certification of the electoral votes.

Also here's the voting roll call for the House vote on the objection to election certification. It lists the 31 Democrats who voted to object. In the Senate, only Barbara Boxer voted to object. Many members in both the House and the Senate did not vote on this matter.

Senators Clinton, Obama and Dodd to Stand with Boxer?

In the clearing stands a Boxer and a fighter . . . (apologies to Simon and Garfunkel).

Will Pitt's FYI at Truthout has this to say:

Right now, several other Senators are preparing statements of Support for the Boxer/Tubbs-Jones challenge, and a number of House members will also rise in support. There is every expectation that Senators Clinton, Obama and Dodd will be among those offering statements of support.

Reps. Waters, Conyers and Kucinich will be among the House members who stand. Though Rep. Conyers was the main impetus behind this process, it was decided that Rep. Tubbs-Jones should be the one to make the official challenge, as she is a representative from Ohio, where the dispute is centered.

There is a rumor floating around that one of the Senators to rise in support will be a Republican. That is not in any way confirmed.

The process will begin to unfold at 1:00 PM EST (11 AM Mountain). Cheney, in his role as President of the Senate, will rise and ask if there are any objections. Tubbs-Jones will then announce her objection, and state that a Senator has signed her objection. The joint session will then adjourn, and there will be two hours (perhaps less) of debate on the issue. At the conclusion a straight up-and-down vote will take place on whether or not to support the objection. Almost certainly, the objections will be defeated along party lines.

Boxer Comes Through

House Democrats to challenge Ohio electoral votes
California's Boxer to join in objection in Senate; Kerry won't

Thursday, January 6, 2005 Posted: 10:15 AM EST (1515 GMT) WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Citing massive irregularities on Election Day, a handful of House Democrats and one senator plan to attempt to block Ohio's 20 electoral votes from being counted when a joint session of Congress convenes Thursday to tally results from the 2004 presidential election.
[. . .]
House Democrats involved in this year's protest worked for weeks to enlist the support of a senator, and U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, agreed in a letter Wednesday to join the effort. "I have concluded that objecting to the electoral votes from Ohio is the only immediate way to bring these issues to light by allowing you to have a two-hour debate to let the American people know the facts surrounding Ohio's election," Boxer wrote to U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio.

"I will therefore join you in your objection to the certification of Ohio's electoral votes."

Click to read more of this CNN story. Note that the joint session of Congress meeting to certify the election will be televised on CSPAN today at 11:00 AM MST.

From NOW:

Please send the attached letter to your senators to urge them to join Sen. Boxer - and yes, even if you think they won't do it, send the message anyway. They need to know that their constituents noticed that they did not stand up for the democratic process.

But don't stop there - for many weeks to come, Senator Boxer will be excoriated in Letters to the Editor and on Talk Radio (yes, Rush Limbaugh has already started in on her) and WE MUST RESPOND. Take a minute to write a single paragraph to your local newspaper's editor, or call a radio talk show to praise Sen. Boxer and all of the House members, Democrat and Independent, who took a stand for democracy.
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One way to reward the courage of Sen. Boxer would be to contribute a few bucks to her PAC.

Report Claims Sen. Boxer Will Contest Election Results

From The Nashua Advocate via Democratic Underground:

Boston's "Rally for the Republic" Draws Hundreds; Keynote Speaker David Lytel Asserts Sen. Boxer Will Contest Election

At a Monday-night rally in Boston's Fanueil Hall which drew hundreds of highly-energized progressive protestors, one of the evening's keynote speakers, RedefeatBush.com's David Lytel, asserted that Senator Barbara Boxer of California will in fact contest the results of the presidential election in Ohio along with, at a minimum, U.S. House Representative Stephanie Tubbs-Jones (D-OH).

Click for more.

IMMEDIATE ACTION ALERT: Call Barbara Boxer Before Thursday Morning About Contesting Ohio

From Lydia Flores, an activist in Central Valley, CA:
"Just came from a group which gathered at Senator Barbara Boxer's Office here in Fresno. There were about 20 of us representing Fresno, Visalia, Porterville and Springville. It was awesome since they had to come to Fresno through the rain.  We were told that Senator Boxer was willing to be the Senator who will ask for the re-election in Ohio provided she sees numbers [of supporters]. One of the activists suggested that we spread the news to call Senator Boxer before Thursday when this concern comes up for a vote."

Okay, let her hear from us!  Please call or fax Senator Boxer at one of the offices listed below and ask her to join Congressman John Conyers and other members of the House of Representatives in opposing certification of the electoral votes from Ohio.  Then send this message out far and wide to your lists. We CAN bring about a fair tally of this election.
Thanks again, Cindy and Jim, CWare@aol.com

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How to contact Senator Barbara Boxer--If the message box for one number is full, try another or send a fax:

in Washington:
112 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Tel. (202) 224-3553

in Sacramento:
501  I Street, Suite 7-600
Sacramento, CA 95814
Tel. (916) 448-2787
Fax (916) 448-2563

in San Francisco:
1700 Montgomery Street, Suite 240
San Francisco, CA 94111
Tel. (415) 403-0100
Fax (415) 956-6701

in Los Angeles:
312 N. Spring Street, Suite 1748
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tel. (213) 894-5000
Fax (213) 894-5042

in Fresno:
1130 O Street, Suite 2450
Fresno, CA 93721
Tel. (559) 497-5109
Fax (559) 497-5111 fax

in San Diego:
600 B Street, Suite 2240
San Diego, CA 92101
Tel. (619) 239-3884
Fax (619) 239-5719

in San Bernadino:
201 North E Street, Suite 210
San Bernardino, CA 92401
Tel. (909) 888-8525
Fax (909) 888-8613

Comic Strip Takes on NM Recount

Darrin Bell's Candorville, a comic strip that appears in the Albuquerque Tribune and other newspapers, hit the nail on the head concerning Gov. Richardson's refusal to allow a presidential vote recount without the prepayment of $1.4 million. Click here for the January 4th strip. We understand the inspiration for this cartoon was provided by our own Andrea Sterling. Job well done Darrin and Andrea!

Join Progressive Women for Health Legislation Discussion

Please join the Progressive Women - Issues Matter for a discussion of health issues legislation 2005. The public is invited - women and men - no charge.

FORUM GUESTS:
Lieutenant Governor Diane D. Denish
Senator Dede Feldman
Representative Danice Picraux
Michelle Lujan Grisham, Secretary, NM Department of Health

MODERATOR:
Kate Nelson, Managing Editor, Albuquerque Tribune

UNM LAW SCHOOL - ROOM 2401
SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 2005 - 2:00 PM

For information call:
Zora Hesse, 265-3031
Ida Humphrey, 294-4015
Imogene Lindsay, 299-7454
Frances Ray, 873-0615

The 2005 Legislative Session will be from January 18 to March 17. The last day for the Governor to pocket veto legislation is April 8.