Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Deep Cover at Organizing for America

Democrats are already gearing up. They can’t wait for the November elections to arrive.

One of the Chicago blogs I check into, Marathon Pundit, ran an interesting post this weekend. I don’t want to mention the writer’s name and risk blowing his cover, but due to a DNC computer glitch he received an invitation to attend an Organizing for America “training session” in Evanston, Illinois. Well, what have we here?

After checking the box marked Yes! You can count on me! said Blogger returned his RSVP. Then, wearing what he described as a “subtle disguise”, he arrived at the session, signed the guest list and positioned himself in the audience to take copious notes.

The Covert Blogger is to be commended. He got in and got out undetected, and filed an informative and enjoyable report. You can read it here: Marathon Pundit.


In the report are some interesting details and quotes, a few of which may benefit from a little further analysis.

For instance, briefly describing the political landscape in Evanston, we are told that in the 2008 election Evanston – which is home to North Western University – voted 87% for Obama-Biden.

That is an astounding percentage of voters even for an affluent liberal college town. But, it is even more astounding when we turn that number around and consider the fact this left only 13% to vote for the Green Party, Communist Party, or the Socialist Worker’s Party.

According to the report, one of the hosts of the training session was the secretary of the Democratic Party of Evanston, Brian Miller. Miller told attendees that the DP of E has “a history of exporting our influence.” This was the purpose of the meeting. Under the name “Organizing for America”, it is their stated objective to further export Democratic influence. Miller went on to describe the hundreds of Obama volunteers the group sent into Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa; busloads of them. Evanston, the Blogger shows, is a major distribution hub of Leftist politics. Reading this part of the report I recalled the scene where the Doctor looks out his window on the town square in the b&w version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers and witnesses his fellow citizens loading pods onto trucks and into the trunks of their cars.

“We got it locked down” in Evanston, Miller told attendees.

Then, Organizing for America regional field director, Brian Gorman asked attendees to consider the question, “How can I use the tools to take ownership of the community?”

One such “tool’, apparently, will be the continued use of the sexual slur “Tea Bagger”. Democrats seem to take a giggly delight in saying it. It’s like a dirty word in the mouth of a child. President Obama has been quoted using it. I still don’t know exactly what it means, but get the idea that unless you’re into whips and chains it isn’t good.

To drill attendees in proper usage, they used the term to refer to Republican Illinois Gubernatorial Candidate, Bill Brady, never mentioning him by name. He was just the “The Republican ’Tea Bagger’ running for Governor”.

Concerning the Left’s dismissal of Bill Brady, so far the main thing the public knows about him is that he is asking where our tax money has been going for all these years. He’s calling for an independent audit of the State of Illinois’ financial books. Given the $12-17 Billion dollar hole in the State’s annual budget and the estimated $77.8 Billion in unfunded state worker pensions this seems reasonable.

Yet, the only thing Organizing for America had to say about Bill Brady is that he’s a “Tea Bagger” and “a really bad guy.” There was nothing in the report that indicated concerns over the current Illinois Governor, Pat Quinn, a Democrat, who was Rod “Blago” Blagojevich’s running mate just four years ago, back when Blago was cutting deals and shaking down charity hospitals. No worries there.

Notice, too, the use of the phrase, “take ownership of the community.”

Evanston borders Chicago on the north and they speak the same political language. In Democrat-ese “owning the community” means if you got a problem with trash pick up, talk to the Democratic precinct captain. If you have a kid who needs a job, talk to the Democratic precinct captain. If you have trouble with delivery trucks getting ticketed for double-parking in front of your shop, talk to the Democratic precinct captain. If you need a block party permit, a one-day liquor license, or building code violation overlooked, talk to the Democratic precinct captain. Democrats own the community. They don’t own the potholes or the crumbling infrastructure or the failing schools, or the crime in the streets – that part of the community taxpayers own. Democrats just own the parts with the “juice”. Additionally, in Evanston they own the part that gets to decide how everyone else has to live and how much VAT tax they’ll have to pay and whether mass illegal immigration is a good thing or a bad thing. They own the policy part.

As our clandestine Blogger reports, Democratic strategy for the 2010 mid-term elections boils down to this: they are going to quote-unquote “zero in” on those first-time voters who in 2008 went overwhelmingly for Obama. That’s their plan. That’s it. That, and the phrase “Tea Bagger”.

At this point, let me caution against over-confidence. The mid-term election is by no means a sure thing for Conservatives, Libertarians and right-thinking Republicans. We are all going to have to work with a will. But if this is the central strategy of the Democrat’s plan to hold on to power they are in deep water. Obama won in ’08 with 53% of the vote, which, outside of places like Evanston, does not give the Administration much room to play with.

What this tells us is that the official Leftist Democratic agenda has peaked. It has gone as far as it can go at the ballot box and is now contracting. The reality of economic and world events has made it difficult if not impossible for Democrats to expand their voter base. Now they are forced to put their efforts into holding on to their old voters, especially those who were “new” voters two years ago. Most of those new voters in 2008 were inexperienced. And, if they were young voters they were inexperienced, period

Having this knowledge of the Democrat’s strategy presents us an opportunity. When Conservatives, Libertarians and Republicans volunteer to campaign door to door we, too, will take the opportunity to “zero in” on those young voters. Many of them are not so inexperienced now. Many have awakened from the fog that was the Obama-Biden campaign of ’08. Many now realizes our nation and the world face problems that can’t be overcome with feel-good speeches of Hope and Change.

Take it as a guarantee. When you come to the door of those “new” voters of the ’08 campaign you will find many are now open to discussion.

Let us offer thanks to the Covert Blogger for this valuable reconnaissance.


This essay was originally published May 11, 2010 on
American Thinker.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Vote for the Crook -- It's Important

If anyone ever wonders why politics in the State of Illinois is such a bucket of worms they need look no further than the shot a CBS-Chicago bureau producer fired at Republican US Senate nominee, Mark Kirk the other day.

Said CBS producer, Ed Marshall in front of a live mike;

"Channel 2's made a decision. We're really not going to cover the Senate race if it consistently, only in your terms, is about Broadway Bank. The bank's been taken over by the government, Alexi's been pilloried. Tell me: what is your campaign going forward? What are the issues that you are going to tell the voters why they should vote for you?"

The Feds closed Broadway Bank on April 23rd, after it came up $395 million dollars short in the books. Now, two weeks later, CBS-Chicago is already tired of hearing about it. Producer Ed Marshall’s statement amounts to a CBS Policy Statement: CBS is not interested in digging into the story. Further, CBS considers the subject off-limits as a campaign issue. In other words they told Kirk to button his lip – or else.

Why is this significant? Because the “Alexi” in the above quote is the Democratic nominee for US Senate in Illinois, Alexi Giannoulias. He also happens to be the former VP and Chief Loan Officer of the Broadway Bank. Oops.

In an election year where the word “banker”, as Joe Biden would say, is a “four letter word”, CBS doesn’t want to rock any boats. Nor do they want Kirk to emphasize any clear distinctions between his record of service in Congress and the US Navy, and Giannoulias’ record of service making “juice loans” to Chicago mobsters.

Mark Kirk continually harping about Broadway Bank makes it tough for the media to run soft coverage of the Giannoulias campaign. Financial details get in the way of the warm and fuzzies about Alexi’s recent marriage or his love of Bulls basketball.

CBS would rather Illinois voters not ask themselves “Does a bank failure matter?” After all, in the grand scheme of things, what is another $400 million? Billions and Trillions are tossed around every day. At the federal level there are so many zeros on the end of budget deficits that the numbers runs off the edge of the page.

But, to answer the question – darn right it matters! Somebody has to pay it back. And we know that Democratic-connected insiders are not the ones who will be stuck with the bill.

Another thing the media would rather not concern voters with is the fact that a lot of the missing Broadway Bank money was lent to Chicago crime figures. Reportedly, Giannoulias lent some $20 Million to felons who were already convicted and were awaiting sentencing at the time the loans were made. This is the kind of banking we’d expect to see on The Sopranos. Yet, to CBS News Mob connections are not a disqualifier for public office. Today’s Democratic Party is a big tent.

The fact is, Illinois politics are conducted inside a house of mirrors, and everywhere the media looks they see a crook.

Standing in one spot inside that house of mirrors we see this: Alexi Giannoulias is the Democratic Party nominee for Barack Obama’s old US Senate seat, the same seat that former Illinois Governor Rod “Blago” Blagojevich attempted to sell for $5 Million dollars just a year and a half ago. The “Blago” trial is set to start in June. A key witness is expected to be money-man Anton “Tony” Rezko, who also helped fix things so Barack and Michelle Obama could buy their Hyde Park house at below market price. See how it works? One crooked politician reflects another. And we haven’t even mentioned three recent suspicious suicides (one just yesterday) or Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and the gaggle of Alderman and City officials under investigation.

This is the kind of delicate glassware that the Mainstream Media in Illinois has to tip-toe around every day. There are crooks everywhere and they need to be ignored. And, all the mouthing-off that Mark Kirk is doing is just making CBS’s job of keeping this Senate seat in Democratic control tougher.

To further move the narrative along, in 2006 Giannoulias got himself elected State Treasurer of Illinois. Don’t bother to ask “how’d that happen?” It’s just the way things seem to work in Illinois. On the good side, at age 30, he was the youngest treasurer elected in state history. On the bad side, his record in Springfield is similar to his record at the Broadway Bank. Illinois finances are a mess; per capita taxpayer debt is second only to California. Here’s an example; recently “Illinois Bright Start”, a State program that allowed parents to send money to Springfield to pre-pay for their kid’s college tuition, was found to have lost $85 Million dollars. That’s $85 Million in tuition fees up in smoke.

While we have to admire Giannoulias, he dogged; failing at one thing – at the bank or at the Treasurer’s job – he dusts himself off and attacks his next goal.

But, what about CBS? What makes them think they can tell a candidate which public issues he should ignore? In an era of economic turbulence aren’t a candidate’s financial blunders worthy of public examination, even if that candidate happens to be a Democrat? Has the mainstream media become that useless? Worse than useless?

I never thought I would think of Mark Kirk for more than two seconds. I didn't vote for him in the primary. He's a "moderate" Republican. One thing’s for sure, though; he hasn’t cost taxpayers a dime. But, between Kirk and Giannoulias how tough a choice can it be?

Illinois is one of the battlegrounds in the 2010 elections. But, there are hundreds of other battleground races, on every level, all over the country. Each one is important to the future of America. No matter where you live in the country there are good, clear-thinking candidates that need your help. Go ahead. Make the commitment to work the election this fall. You’ll get lots of exercise, you’ll meet great people, you’ll help the country, and you’ll drive the media nuts.

Here in Chicago CBS news is already working for their guy. For them, the old Democratic Party slogan seems to be the order of the day:

“Vote for the Crook. It’s Important.”


A version of this essay was published May 8, 2010 on
The American Thinker

Sunday, May 2, 2010

California Considers a Boycott of Arizona

Dude, what’s with California?

Leftists in Los Angeles and San Francisco are so hopping mad at Arizona that they are working themselves up into a boycott of that whole State. Democratic officials in California are seeking a way to cancel public contracts with companies based in Arizona. This is in retaliation for that state’s new law calling for the enforcement of federal immigration laws. These threats are concrete evidence that The Left has reached a condition of self-parody. There ought to be somebody in a position of authority who will think this through first.

The City of Los Angeles is on the verge of bankruptcy. They are not just broke; they’re in hock up to their chins. LA faces a nearly One Billion Dollar budget short fall. Scores of businesses have left the city due to high taxes and regulation. A significant part of the workforce has drifted into the “gray economy”, untaxed and working off the books. San Francisco’s condition is only marginally better. The City by the Bay is just Half a Billion Dollars in the red. It is hard to believe that taxpayers in municipalities in this kind of deep water would permit elected officials to waste time figuring how they can cancel contracts with Arizona businesses.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is why I believe the days of the Left are numbered. The Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God will not allow a belief system this dangerously silly to survive.

Let’s refer to our studies from City Contracts 101.

Customarily, when a governmental body seeks bids for a public contract, assuming officials are doing their jobs and bribery or insider connections are not a factor, it awards the contract to the lowest bidder. Assuming this is the case – and if it is not the case California taxpayers have more problems than they realize – it therefore follows that the cancelled contracts will have to be re-issued to higher bidders…at additional cost to taxpayers. Take that, Arizona!

This is what passes for thinking among California’s elected leaders. They are going to take economic revenge on Arizona and citizens of the Golden State will tally as collateral damage.

Officials haven’t been clear about exactly what Arizona goods they will be boycotting, hopefully incidentals of little importance. But you never know. I seem to recall reading that due to California’s environmental laws the state purchases much of its electricity from Arizona, from facilities like the Palo Verde Nuke plant near Phoenix.

Is California’s anger with Arizona so great that they are prepared to boycott Arizona electricity? Are increased brown-outs and more frequent rolling black-outs, euphemistically referred to by the state as “load shedding”, a worthy price to pay in order to keep the flow of illegals coming? (And the flow of illegal voters) How much inconvenience will Californians tolerate in support of this crusade? It’s nice to have lights at night. Those giant screen TVs drink up a lot of juice. And, summer is right around the corner and not everyone has airy beachfront property. It gets pretty hot in most of California. Will residents be willing to give up their air conditioners? And, what about Silicon Valley? What kind of impact will power shortages have on tech industries? Before biting the hand that feeds shouldn’t someone think about that?

And, then there is California’s perpetual water problem. With miles of Pacific coastline, California has a lot of salt water – remember the movie Chinatown? “Bad for glass...” – but it has very little fresh water. The state’s major source of water is the Colorado River – which flows through, wouldn’t you know it, Arizona. No matter how outraged California officials are, there is only so much bottled water that can be trucked in. While bottled water has become recognized as ecologically taboo, still, in the interest of punishing Arizona, will Californians be willing to fill their swimming pools with Perrier? That still leaves the problem of how to water their lawns and wash their cars. Again, did anyone consider this? There are no easy answers.

Here is what’s going on: Many Leftists had a great time in college. An all-warts picture of the United States was drilled into their heads. After graduation many of them moved directly into government jobs. Added to their disdain for America, many have little or no experience running things more complicated than ad-hoc student committees. Although some find their way into the Sunlight of Conservative-Libertarian-Capitalist Enlightenment, many are doomed to an existence trapped inside the box of political-activist thinking. Mentally they remain thoughtless teenagers, arguing with their parents one minute and asking for the keys to the car the next. A handy example is Oakland Mayor, the former Governor Moonbeam himself, Jerry Brown. He’s seriously considering getting aboard the boycott bandwagon -- and he wants to run for California governor again. In thirty years he’s learned nothing.

Once upon a time, these people could march on an Administration Building, block the doors in protest and shut an entire campus down. Now they are peppered throughout various levels of government.

California officials need to accept the fact that they have a duty to their citizens. They need to put childish things aside. Leave the protesting to the college kids.

But, if they simply can’t help themselves, here’s an idea: Any California official who wants to protest Arizona in a nice, harmless way that will leave taxpayers unmolested might consider making a guest appearance at a campus demonstration somewhere. There’s sure to be lots of cameras and, unlike the Tea Parties, the news coverage is guaranteed to be glowingly positive.

Out there in the land of “less is more”, my suggestion would be to give a speech denouncing Arizona -- and America, too, just for good measure. More talk is always a good thing. At the conclusion rip down the American flag, take out a pair of scissors and remove the 48th star. Then spray it with lighter fluid and burn it. Unless you accidentally set something else on fire, the flame will be small, so it will not add the air pollution. The message will be “it is better to light one candle than to enforce the law”. Touching, huh?

Guaranteed, you’ll make the news and you can feel good about yourself in the bargain.


This essay was originally published on May 1, 2010 on
The American Thinker.com