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Earlier today, we ended our Barenaked Ladies guitar giveaway. In the end, 403 donors gave $13,790, most of it to progressive activists and congressional candidates Norman Solomon (CA-2) and David Gill (IL-13). The average contribution was $34.20 and the winner was Christopher Bugbee who gave a recurring contribution to Norman and David of $25.00. He’s the proud owner of a Fender Strat signed by all the members of the Barenaked Ladies— including ex-lead singer Steven Page. And now we’re on to another guitar and another campaign! This time a sleek black Squier Telecaster signed by all the members of Filter. 

The idea is that we’re going to send the guitar as a thank you to one random supporter of Ken Aden’s Run 2 End Hunger II here. It was signed— back in 2002— by all the members of Filter, riding high on their smash hit, “Hey Man, Nice Shot.” Before becoming a candidate for Congress, Ken, an Iraq and Afghanistan War vet was immersed in running a non-profit community-based self-help group in Arkansas, Residents 4 Arkansas, Inc. Last month he was honored by the White House for his community service and met with President Obama and members of his cabinet to talk about the role of volunteerism in America. Ken has been awarded the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Achievement Medal, the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the Multinational Force and Observers Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge, and the Parachutist Badge. Right now he’s in the middle of a 253 mile, 7 day run across his district (ending May 5) to raise awareness and to raise cans of food for families who are hungry in Arkansas. When he ends his run, Blue America will thank one of the supporters of Ken’s candidacy with the Filter guitar. Supporters can contribute here or send a check— or even just a note— to PO Box 27201, Los Angeles, CA 90027. Everyone will have an equal chance to “win” the guitar, regardless of how much you contribute— or even if you just let us know you’re praying for Ken or rooting for him.

Some may see Ken as a “do-gooder” but he’s a tough as nails progressive running in the reddest district in Arkansas. Rather than shrink away from a fight as others in his state have done, this Army Combat Veteran is taking it to the streets and standing up for equal rights for all. As you’ve probably guessed by now, the main part of his campaign focus is on community service work— as well as renewable energy technology, veterans rights, and the protection of Social Security and Medicare. In a recent quote he said that “if you even think of cutting Medicare and Social Security you ARE a criminal! The time for corporate prostitution has come to an end!”

As we mentioned on the Act Blue page, we were chatting with Ken last week and he told us about a woman he met while out campaigning the weekend before. She considered herself an independent, and was a supporter of Ken’s very right-wing opponent— Wal-Mart’s personal Congressman, Steve Womack— back in 2010.

“I wish I would have met you back then, because I never would have voted for him,” is just what she told Ken on Saturday.

We liked that, because it is the opening lyric of Filter’s “Hey Man, Nice Shot,” we figured that would be the perfect guitar for Ken’s campaign. (Not to mention that Ken is a huge fan of Filter’s music himself.) What Ken’s doing is so important that we wanted to encourage all of our friends to help. But, since we know we can’t ask you to send canned food through the mail even though we are 100 percent in support of our brothers and sisters at the APWU, we thought we’d ask you to pledge to donate $25.30 to Ken’s race— that’s one dime for every mile that he’ll be running across the district. Of course if you can’t donate that amount any help would be greatly appreciated. And if you want to contribute more… please don’t hesitate.

And, for every person who makes a contribution through this page for Ken’s campaign, you will be entered in a random drawing to win a guitar signed by every member of Filter as a “thank you” from Blue America. Everyone has the same shot, whether you contribute one dollar or 1,000 dollars— or even if you just send us a note to the PO Box.

So don’t delay— please make your contribution to Ken’s campaign today, and by doing so, you’ll have a direct hand in ending the plight of impoverished families today. GO KEN GO!!

Blue Dogs are often most reviled for crossing the aisle and voting with Republicans on key issues like healthcare reform and financial reform. Last November, when 39 Democrats voted against healthcare reform, for example, 25 were Blue Dogs. And when the reconciliation changes came to the House March 25, and 32 Democrats voted with the GOP, 25 were Blue Dogs.

Next week it will be one year since the House passed a hate crimes prevention bill that included the LGBT community. Seventeen Democrats crossed the aisle of bigotry and voted with the Republicans. All but one of them were Blue Dogs: Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK), Bobby Bright (Blue Dog-AL), Chris Carney (Blue Dog-PA), Travis Childers (Blue Dog-MS), Lincoln Davis (Blue Dog-TN), Joe Donnelly (Blue Dog-IN), Brad Ellsworth (Blue Dog-IN), Bart Gordon (Blue Dog-TN), Parker Griffith (then a Blue Dog/now a Republican-AL), Mike McIntyre (Blue Dog-NC), Charlie Melancon (Blue Dog-LA), Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN), Mike Ross (Blue Dog-AR), Heath Shuler (Blue Dog-NC), John Tanner (Blue Dog-TN), and Gene Taylor (Blue Dog-MS.

But Blue Dogs do even more damage than just by voting with the Republicans against working families and against equality and liberty. The worst damage they do is within the Democratic caucus, where they constantly work to pull caucus positions ever rightward, farther and farther away from the Democratic base. In committees you constantly have corporate shills— which, in the end, is what all Blue Dogs are— undercutting all attempts to work on behalf of regular American families.

I spoke to two DCCC-endorsed candidates yesterday who told me that when they got to Washington for briefings they were forced to listen to warmongering Blue Dog Jane Harman— perhaps best known for her quote, “I am proud to be introduced as the best Republican in the Democratic Party,” a distinction she shares with Joe Lieberman— on, what else, foreign policy. One candidate told me that he was sickened to hear her reciting talking points he’s heard over and over again repeated on Fox News. She and Lieberman were on the radio this week telling an NPR audience that what the U.S. ought to do is expand military operations into Yemen.

An arm of Blue America, Bad Dogs, is dedicated to working toward replacing Blue Dogs like Jane Harman and John Barrow with progressives like Marcy Winograd and Regina Thomas, and toward defeating Blue Dog incumbents like Florida reactionary Lori Edwards.

Ever since Rahm Emanuel’s chairmanship, the DCCC has practically been an arm of the Blue Dog caucus, and institutional support within the Democratic Party, particularly from Steny Hoyer, is gigantic. The DCCC always indoctrinates its candidates with Blue Dog messaging and framing courtesy of Third Way, a very reactionary Blue Dog-oriented policy shop— with leaders like Jane Harman, Blanche Lincoln, Evan Bayh, Tom Carper, Melissa Bean and Mark Pryor, all as firmly under the aegis of corporate overlords as any Republican. On top of that, yesterday six of the most notoriously corrupt K Street lobbyists, including conservative ex-congressmen Bud Cramer (AL) and Charlie Stenholm (TX), formed a new corporately oriented anti-family organization called the Blue Dog Research Forum. Their goal will be to continue pressuring the Democratic caucus to move farther and farther right and to give up on ordinary working families and accept GOP and Big Business guidelines when formulating legislation.

In a letter to Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.), who co-chairs the Blue Dog Coalition, Cramer and Stenholm wrote that they were establishing the organization to “ensure there will always be a forum in Washington to mark that middle ground when it comes to issues affecting the country’s fiscal health.”

The group’s goal is to be an incubator for policy ideas affecting the economy, such as energy, health care, tax policy, national defense and entitlements.

The research forum takes its name from the 54 fiscally conservative Democratic Members who have emerged as a powerful voting bloc on major legislation, but no current lawmaker has been involved in setting it up, according to Cramer, an original Blue Dog and president of the new research forum.

“They actually legally cannot dictate control or dominate what happens here,” Cramer said. “We can involve them. We can involve any Member in the policy forums we will carry forward, and we hope to be able to do that.”

However, as the lobbyists quietly set up the organization over the past several months, they have kept Blue Dog leadership generally informed. And Cramer, who now lobbies at Wexler & Walker Public Policy Associates, said the Members have been supportive so far.

In addition to Stenholm— who works at Olsson, Frank & Weeda— and Cramer, the board of directors for the new venture includes Jeff Murray of the C2 Group, Vickie Walling of Prime Policy Group, Stacey Alexander of Elmendorf Strategies and Libby Greer of Cauthen, Forbes & Williams.

Murray, who serves as the forum’s treasurer, said he expects to send out solicitations in the near future asking potential corporate, union and other donors for pledges worth about $10,000 each to participate… “A lot of ideas don’t get to see the light of day,” said Greer, former chief of staff to Blue Dog Rep. Allen Boyd (Fla.). “We want to give them a place to breathe.”

Greer and Boyd worked closely with George W. Bush to destroy Social Security, for example, an idea that was embraced by Wall Street, of course, but rejected by most of Congress and most of the public.

Help fight the Blue Dogs today and get an opportunity to win an RIAA double platinum record award for the Baha Men’s smash hit “Who Let the Dogs Out.” It isn’t something you can buy in a store, but any donation today on the Bad Dogs page will enter you in a drawing to win the unique framed plaque.

Win the award

You’re probably not aware that Democratic members of Congress have to pay “dues” to the DCCC. Blue Dogs notoriously earmark their contributions to other Blue Dogs or for reactionary Democrats within the caucus or running for Congress. This year they’re all getting behind right-wing shill Lori Edwards in Florida, for example. Are members of the much bigger Congressional Progressive Caucus earmarking their money for progressives? Of course not. With leaders like Lynn Woolsey running around campaigning for Blue Dogs against progressives, the CPC is a joke.

In the last few weeks, I’ve been talking with some of the smarter CPC members about helping fellow progressives and I’ve been impressed with the receptivity I’m finding. Blue America will be announcing some exciting online events with some of these members soon. Meanwhile, I decided to look through some of the leadership PACs of members of Congress to see who they’ve been donating to so far. What a disappointment right from the start! I checked CPC member Neil Abercrombie’s Aloha PAC and of the $28,500 he’s handed out so far, $9,500 has gone to Blue Dogs, $8,000 has gone to non-Blue Dog conservatives who generally vote with the Blue Dogs, $4,000 has gone to moderates. The only progressives getting anything were Mike Capuano (MA), Mary Jo Kilroy (OH), Steve Kagen (WI), Eric Massa (NY) and Carol Shea-Porter (NH). No challengers got anything.

Another legendary progressive, Earl Blumenauer of Portland, has a very active PAC, the LivPAC. The list of endorsees practically starts out as a who’s who among Democrats who are least likely to vote for the issues most important to Blumenauer! Among the batch (all incumbents) are reactionary Blue Dogs Jason Atmire, John Barrow, Chris Carney, Kathy Dahlkemper, Joe Donnelly, Brad Ellsworth, Baron Hill, Frank Kratovil, Walt Minnick, Harry Mitchell, Scott Murphy, Glenn Nye, Kurt Schrader, Heath Shuler and Zack Space, although other— somewhat less toxic Blue Dogs were also thrown bones, like Leonard Boswell, Betsy Markey, and Mike Arcuri. Other conservative getting dough from Blumenauer’s PAC include Wall Street shills Melissa Bean, John Adler, Suzanne Kosmas, Bill Foster and Ann Kirkpatrick. What a huge disappointment!

Contrast that to Allen Boyd’s Harvest PAC and keep in mind that Boyd was the Democrat Bush dug up to co-sponsor his bill to kill Social Security. So far Boyd has handed out $22,000 this year— all of it to Blue Dogs. The biggest contribution was to his female mirror image, Lori Edwards ($5,000) and one donation is counted by Open Secrets as a $1,000 contribution to a Republican because it went to former Blue Dog Parker Griffith of Alabama, presumably before he officially became a Republican. Or look at corrupt Blue Dog Mike Ross of Arkansas. The $60,000 his Our Congress PAC has gone exclusively to conservatives, almost all of them Blue Dogs, including $5,000 for Lori Edwards. Similarly David Scott’s BRAVE PAC has made 5 contributions so far, each one to an extremely reactionary Blue Dog. I might point out here that when I complained to the DCCC that they were breaking their vow not to interfere in contested primaries for open seats by endorsing Edwards, they first pointed out to me that she was raising so much money and that Tudor wasn’t. She actually hasn’t raised very much money and except for a few dollars that Boyd and Debbie Wasserman Schultz squeezed out of some of the sleaziest lobbyists in Washington, virtually all her money has come from Blue Dog incumbents. Not one fucking progressive incumbent has given one cent to Doug Tudor. And then they cry that there are too many Blue Dogs in the caucus to get anything done!

No one would dispute that NY Democrat Maurice Hinchey has a wonderfully progressive voting record. And he even named his PAC The Progressive Victory Fund. He only made one contribution in 2008. It was to John Boehner’s biggest ally in the Democratic caucus, arch-reactionary Blue Dog, Travis Childers, whose votes have canceled out Mr. Hinchey’s on nearly ever important matter that’s come before Congress. (He gave him four grand.) And arguably the most liberal member of Congress, heroic Oakland Congresswoman, Barbara Lee, has made just one donation so far this year— to moderate to conservative waste of a seat Kendrick Meek (FL), $5,000. I guess they’re friends or maybe it was a Congressional Black Caucus thing. And what about liberal icon Henry Waxman? Because of his reputation as a fighting progressive his L.A. PAC takes in a lot more money than most liberals’ leadership PAC. And he makes big donations. So far this year he’s given all of it to conservative Democrats, including $5,000 to warmonger and Military-Industrial Complex patsy Jane Harman, the richest Democrat in the House, who is fighting for her political survival against an L.A. community leader far more progressive than Waxman, Marcy Winograd.

So what’s the take-away? We’re doomed as progressives because progressives are self-loathing pinheads? Maybe. But on the other hand… we can reach out to people like Marcy Winograd and Doug Tudor ourselves and help them overcome the odds and win seats. It worked with Alan Grayson and Donna Edwards. The Establishment hated both of them. Now they’re each in Congress— and each toiling effectively for working families and not for the Establishment. Please consider a donation, even if only $5 or $10 to Marcy, Doug, and Regina.

Of course you do! Your ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War (on the anti-conservative side), right? And closer relatives fought in the Civil War (on the anti-conservative side), right? My family tree doesn’t have American roots that deep. My great grandfather fought against the czar in Russia and my grandfather fought against industrialists for the right of working people to form labor unions here in America. I never thought that gave me any special rights to bitch about anything though— just some inspiration to do something about social and political injustice.

We keep reading how the Democratic base is as let down as the GOP base is fired up. Democrats didn’t bother turning out to vote in Virginia, New Jersey or Massachusetts— 3 states Obama won last year— because they are pissed off that a Democratic president with gargantuan majorities in the Senate and House is either unwilling or unable accomplish what made them vote for him, volunteer for him, donate to his campaign. I lost count months ago of how many e-mails, Facebook messages and comments here at DWT I get from ex-Obama supporters.

Back in 2007 I let Jamil, a young friend— the son of old college buddies— talk me into taking a less anti-Obama line at DWT. At the time I warned him that if Obama were to win the Democratic nomination and then the presidency, his record clearly indicated that he would be a tremendous disappointment to anyone who was reading too much into that “Change and Hope” campaign slogan thing. Castigating Hillary Clinton for talking out of both sides of her mouth on environmental issues, I pointed out that Obama was every bit as bad. (Remember this is in 2007:)

A consistent and craven compromiser on almost every progressive value or principle he’s had to confront since being elected to the Senate (from Republican “tort reform” to legalizing credit card usury), Obama’s environmental record has clearly been “one of accommodation to big corporate interests” and “his ‘new kind of politics’” is nothing more than a charismatically delivered sham: “the old kind of influence peddling, caution, and smallness that most Democrats [at the grassroots level] reject.” His environmental record is nothing Bush Republicans need to fear.

He is the Senate’s leading Democratic supporter of “coal to liquid,” a technology that can make gasoline out of coal. Only problem: it produces double the global warming pollution that regular old dirty oil does. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Obama actually voted for George Bush’s energy bill despite more than $27 billion in subsidies for the oil, nuclear and coal industries, its weakening of clean air and water laws, and the fact that it gave electric companies the power to charge consumers high rates while doing almost nothing to tackle global warming or increase consumer protections. Why is Obama so willing to “trim his sails” so often— despite the consequences to working and middle class Americans and the environment? It’s not just that he apparently believes accommodation— even of right-wing extremists— can be both right and politically useful. It’s something deeper. In his autobiography, The Audacity of Hope, Obama admits he has a hard time feeling a truly pressing sense of urgency about the great issues of the day.

He’s not the leader America so desperately needs to clean up after the worst presidential regime in history, no more than Hillary Clinton is. It’s not enough to drive Republicans out of government, even if that is a well-deserved and worthwhile first step. It’s just as important to find BETTER Democrats. Substituting horrible, compromised Republicans with horrible compromised Democrats, symbolized by Insider hacks like Rahm Emanuel and Steny Hoyer, who control the Democratic House caucus, will solve little if anything.

As you probably heard, after he won, Emanuel was Obama’s first high level pick for his fledgling Administration. It was hard not to despair on the spot. At least, I thought at the time, he’s off the fast track that would have led to the Speakership. He’s done more than enough damage, though, bolstering and amplifying all of Obama’s worst flaws.

Sure progressives are complaining! How could they not? Anyone who wanted unending war voted for McCain and the Republicans. People who wanted peace voted for Obama and the Democrats. There’s a disconnect there. So what’s the answer? It’s still the same— complain all you want; sign petitions, write letters to editors, curse, scream, bang your head against a wall. But unless you leave the plethora of bad Democrats to rot with the Republicans who make up the other half of the Establishment and actually do something real to help elect the kinds of BETTER DEMOCRATS who really believe in fighting for a better America and a better world, it won’t do you or anyone else a bit of good. You’ve had a chance to see what happens when we elect men and women like Alan Grayson, Donna Edwards, Jeff Merkley, and Jared Polis. They fight the Establishment and that includes not just taking the battle to the craven defenders of the status quo in the Republican Party and the Blue Dog caucus, but also standing up to Obama when he goes off track.

There’s a lot of frustration, hopelessness and anger in the country right now. It’s what helped elect Scott Brown in Massachusetts and it’s helping a snickering and manipulative Establishment to propel the right-wing, Know Nothing populist movement (i.e., Teabaggers). But it’s also an anger that can be turned against the Inside-the-Beltway Democratic Establishment that has saddled us with the Ben Nelsons, Joe Liebermen, Blanche Lincolns, Tom Carpers and Mary Landrieux in the Senate and Blue Dogs who have voted again and again with the GOP on important matters before the House, from newly minted anti-family spoilers like Travis Childers (Blue Dog-MS), Heath Shuler (Blue Dog-NC), Glenn Nye (Blue Dog-VA), Harry Mitchell (Blue Dog-AZ), Bobby Bright (Blue Dog-AL) and Frank Kratovil (Blue Dog-MD) to longtime, confirmed reactionaries like John Barrow (Blue Dog-GA), Jane Harman (Blue Dog-CA), Gene Taylor (Blue Dog-MS), Jim Marshall (Blue Dog-GA), Ed Case (sleazebag-HI), Tim Holden (Blue Dog-PA) and Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN). The anti-incumbent mood of the country is something that should help us defeat Blue Dogs like Harman, Barrow and Holden, each of whom has a progressive challenger and to defeat Blue Dog and DCCC-backed hacks like Lori Edwards in Florida. Blue America is helping to identify them and make sure they’re the real deal. Please take a look at the Send The Democrats A Message They Can Understand page and ask yourself if today might be a day to chip in as little as $5 or $10 to help give fighting progressives like Alan Grayson and Donna Edwards and Dennis Kucinich and Raul Grijalva some company and some back-up when they’re taking difficult stands against the Rahm Emanuel-Joe Lieberman-Harold Ford wing of the Democratic Party.

Yesterday we saw Ohio bloggers celebrate a huge victory, not just driving horribly reactionary and bigoted ConservaDem Jennifer Garrison out of the Secretary of State race, but out of politics entirely! We can do this; we must.