Progressive Update--05/26/2006

Things in the US often look quite bleak. What can YOU do? There are a lot of important races this year, both in Delaware and nearby, that can use your help.

In Delaware, there is a State Primary Election for candidates from the Democratic and Republican Parties for offices in county and state government. Races I keep an eye on include state Attorney General (Beau Biden), state Treasurer (Jack Markell), and Auditor (will someone PLEASE run against Tom Wagner, the opportunist jerk who is part of the problem in Christina School District?). Also, I’d like to see the Democratic Party maintain its majority in the State Senate, and would like to see it grab a majority in the State House of Representatives. This latter achievement will require a LOT of work.

Each campaign needs time, talent, and treasure. I have listed several area campaigns with contact information. Please consider how you can help in the coming months.

John Kowalko is running to be the 25^th District state representative (in the House), by running against Stephanie Ullbrich. For more information, email him at kowalkoforthe25th@verizon.net.

Pat Morrison is running for the Senate seat in her Brandywine Hundred district, against Catherine Cloutier. For more information, write to Friends of Pat Morrison, PO Box 755, Claymont, DE 19703.

Terry Schooley is running for re-election to her (and my) 23^rd district in the House. For more information, contact her at TerrySchooley@state.de.us or go to www.terryschooley.com .

Beau Biden is running for state Attorney General. There are three kickoff events on Thursday June 1^st to celebrate his announcement, as described in the attached invitation. Please RSVP if you wish to attend the one nearest you. You can also go to www.bidenAG.com .

Jack Markell is running for re-election as our State Treasurer. You can find out more at www.markell.org.

Diane Clarke Streett is running for re-election as county Register of Wills. Diane has done a wonderful job of spreading the word of how this department can help out, and has some wonderful resources. Go to www.streett2006.com for more information.

Dennis Spivack is running against Mike Castle for Delaware’s lone US House seat. Clearly the House needs such a strong progressive as Dennis. While Castle has helped Delaware in many ways over the years, his record of support for many of the White House’s agenda means that he has to go, and Dennis needs our help to make this happen. For more information, go to www.spivackforcongress.org .

Across the border, Bob Casey is running for the US Senate seat currently held by, brace yourself, Rick Santorum. For more information, go to www.bobcasey.com. While we would love Bob to have a more progressive view on reproductive rights, he is centuries ahead of Santorum.

If you live in Delaware, you can contact Kristin Dwyer (kdwyer@deldems.org) at the state Democratic Party headquarters, and provide your address, and she can provide you with a ‘walk list’, a list of your neighbors who are registered Democrats, and the materials to bring with you when you go to their doors, spreading the plans of the Democratic National Committee—a wonderful plan that stands in sharp contrast to the ‘crony capitalism’ program of the Republicans. The major platform for Republicans at this time is to ‘keep the Democrats out of control so we don’t have to answer subpoenas and tell the truth of the corruption in the past 5 years—the last thing the country needs is to know the truth!’

For a kick, go to http://www.theadvocates.org/quiz.html and find out where you stand on the political spectrum. Guess what—I’m a Liberal!

Keep the faith, and we will be able to make some strong progress this fall.

Paul Baumbach