NM-01: More Muddled Monahan Mush

For someone who prides himself on being politically savvy, Monahan doesn't seem to have any idea who supports Martin Heinrich for Congress in NM-01. In his latest silly knock on Heinrich (and Obama) supporters, he gurgles forth the usual canned, cliched mush that often emanates from those who haven't dirtied their fingernails in decades and don't hang out with anyone who does:

ABQ Dem congressional candidate Martin Heinrich, already the love-child of the Chardonnay sippers and the left wing of his party, made a swerve to where the election will be decided when he interviewed for the Sunday Journal's candidate profiles. Said the former city councilor of his Missouri parents:

"(They're) middle class, blue collar. They were the people who took a shower when they came home from work at night, not before they went to work."

Heinrich can capture his party's nomination by consolidating the Obama liberals, but it is working class (read Reagan) Democrats who have kept the GOP in control of the ABQ seat for 40 years.

Come Out Into the Light
Hey Joe, you really ought to venture beyond the haunts of monied lobbyists and leaking lounge lizards to mingle with the people who are supporting Heinrich and other common sense, reform-minded Democratic candidates.

Hint, hint: it's people who work hard for a living, it's people who don't have lavish expense accounts, it's people who don't have health insurance, it's people who are nearing retirement without hundreds of thousands of dollars in 401Ks, it's people trying to save money from their stagnant paychecks for their children's education. I'm one of these people and I'm among these people most of the time. I don't see much Chardonnay sipping, but I do see a lot of fretful and worried faces because ordinary folks know they've been getting the shaft from Republicans, and Democrats who vote like Republicans, for a long, long time now. And unless we work to elect candidates who know what it's like to be at the mercy of the fat cats, nothing will change.

Martin Heinrich and the Chardonnay sippers?

Who's Really Supporting Heinrich & Other Dems?
In Democratic grassroots political circles, I see people struggling and juggling to make ends meet. I see people who still make a decent living, but who are bothered in their souls because so many no longer can. I see people who care about the community, the common good, the future of the American middle class and the planet itself. When the price of groceries rise and their paychecks don't, they suffer, immediately and personally. They're not out gossiping at expensive watering holes with those who've been profiting from the misery of others; they're walking door to door to try and bring economic fairness and opportunity for all back to the halls of Congress and our Legislature.

Mr. Monahan, I suggest you venture out into the real world and see for yourself. Visit Heinrich's campaign office and see who's volunteering. Visit a local Dem Party meeting and see who's attending. Stop in at a grassroots political Meetup or candidate forum and see who's devoting time out of their busy, work-filled lives to help rebuild a level playing field for ordinary Americans. Check out who's registering voters and making small donations and licking envelopes. You'll see lots of people who teach our kids, deliver our mail, answer the phones, pound the nails and visit our senior centers. Who you won't see much of are the wealthiest bank presidents, CEOs, real estate speculators and VP-types -- who sip the expensive stuff -- because they're backing the GOP candidates and the GOP cause. Everyone knows that. They like things just the way they are.

Working Class LABOR
You say that Repubs have retained control of CD1 because of support from the working class. You know that's not true. For instance, has Heather Wilson EVER had the support of the unions that represent working class people? Heinrich does. Here's a list of unions that are supporting his campaign so far:

• American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
• Albuquerque Federation of Teachers Local 1420
• Carpenters Local 1319
• Communications Workers of America (CWA)
• International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF)
• International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 823
• Iron Workers Local 495
• Office & Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 251
• Sheet Metal Workers Local 49
• United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1564
• United Transportation Union (UTU)

Are you saying that painters, carpenters, janitors, grocery store workers, iron workers, fire fighters, teachers and the other hard-working members of these unions are elitist "Chardonnay sippers" without a care in the world? I guess they all drive Volvos and down lattes too (not that there's anything wrong with that). Come on down to any grassroots Dem political gathering and check out the cars in the parking lot, Joe. They'll look a lot more beat up than the ones you're used to seeing at your Alligator-GOP-filled soirées where all the liberal bashing goes on. And you'll see a lot more bikes. And people who take the bus. I guarantee it.

Who's Really Working for Workers?
Real working people know that Heinrich and other Dems are working on their behalf because they've witnessed it in the real world. It wasn't Heather Wilson or the lobbying class or the monied GOP investor class or the Darren Whites of New Mexico who've been struggling against those who have the most to get the have-nots a raise in the minimum wage. It's been Democrats like Martin Heinrich and Eric Griego and Jerry Ortiz y Pino and Tom Udall and Dede Feldman and Mimi Stewart and Debbie O'Malley and Rey Garduno and many others who've been fighting the good fights for better wages, health care for all, improving education and creating blue and green collar jobs for the future. In case you haven't noticed.

Cut the Mush
So before you write another shallow analysis of who's backing whom, remember that the key positions of genuine Dems and our candidates are those of mainstream Americans, as shown in poll after poll after poll about values. It's your pals who lean in the hallways of the Roundhouse and hang out with you in the dark corners of expensive bistros who are the real elitists. Clearly, their mockery and yours is meant to keep the working and middle classes right where they are -- under the thumb of America's most selfish elements. Cut the mush.

And check out the facts about how working people have fared of late. You'll see who's really been sipping the expensive Chardonnay thanks to the Bush agenda -- a set of regressive and greed-based policies that have been backed enthusiastically by Heather Wilson, Steve Pearce, Darren White and just about every other candidate running on the right side of the aisle. Not us.

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