The JRE SC Victory thread-- let's get it done, Edwards people!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

All fellow Edwards supporters, do not lose heart. There are 47 states to go, and South Carolina is natural territory to spark a grass-roots revival for the Edwards campaign, not just the home-state connections but the way the state can naturally play to Edwards' strengths. Throughout American history, many candidates down in the early states have sparked major comebacks in other states when the race goes national.

I've opened this thread to solicit practical solutions and ideas to sparking the revival of the Edwards campaign going into Super Tuesday!

My own suggestions for how to go forward, based on Edwards' strengths from the data thus far:

(1) Social security and senior citizens issues. Especially in this age of economic uncertainty and difficulty, the solvency of social security, Medicare and protection of the well-being of our senior citizens are key issues, and Edwards has done relatively well with this cohort in the previous primaries. Combined with his home-state advantage, he could hit pay dirt by fine-tuning his message and really focusing in on the senior citizen community in South Carolina, who are a large voting demographic and could provide him with a powerful boost. In fact IMHO, really pitching in and focusing on seniors issues and addressing this group, can yield massive dividends in the primary.

(2) Working-class issues and especially in this state-- much of Columbia in particular, not to mention the medium-sized towns in SC, have been hit hard in this recent economic downturn. Poor and working-class voters represent another of JRE's natural constituencies, and really going to the work sites that have been hit so hard by layoffs and economic reversals, especially in his home state, can also have a massive payoff.

(3) Also on edit (per Saracat's excellent comment): Elizabeth Edwards can do wonders in helping to attract the vote of women on the trail. This is crucial to helping JRE win a broad cross-section of voters in the state!

(4) Latinos-- it wasn't reported much, but JRE has been showing surprising inroads in some Latino communities. The Latino community in South Carolina has posted some of the fastest growth seen in any state, and this is another working-class demographic where Edwards can enjoy some success, not just with Spanish-language ads in local Latino media, but also on-the-ground canvassing with the Latino community in the state.

(5) Finally also as saracat mentioned, we have to continue donating! JRE has been courageous enough to stand up to the corporatocracy and therefore, it's up to us to donate and provide his campaign with the necessary funds!

As always, JRE should emphasize his bona fides on health care, his defense of a woman's right to choose and on the environment.

Also folks-- if you live in South Carolina, please call your local election offices and go to the statehouse if necessary, to demand hand-counted paper ballots in the state! SC currently has mostly those touch-screen voting machines which can be very easily hacked to support a corporate-bought-and-sold candidate (we all know who that is), and we must demand paper ballots instead of or alongside the touch-screen machines, with hand counts by officials as well as by members from the campaigns!

Remember, a lot of this is playing the expectations challenge right-- we don't need to go in expecting to win, just make a strong showing or even make second, and this would be enough for the news media to finally wake up and see that JRE is for real! Let's go and make it happen in the great state of South Carolina!

[sunonmars]

1. All i can say is Good luck

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

31. Thanks

All such sentiments are much-appreciated!

[cali]

2. good luck to Edwards in SC

I hope he can break 15% and pick up delegates.

[saracat]

3. We need to keep sending in money.He MUST get on the air and get his message out!

And we must send volunteers from door to door with the message.He has got to be seen as a "son of the south" and he has got to achieve favorite son status.Hillary and Barack must be seen as interlopers. Elizabeth has got to round up the women's vote.John is doing better with the white vote then Hillary but he is going to have to fight Barack and Hillary for the Black vote.This is going to be a tough race and John is going to have to stress that he and he alone represents ALL the people of SC and only he will stand and fight for their interests.

[cali]

4. Just because you believe it and repeat it , doesn't make it so

JE is not going to get the African American vote in SC. Only Obama has actually worked on the ground for poor and working class African Americans. What has JE ever actually done for that segment of the population??

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

5. Please, no Edwards-Obama tiffs here-- they are allies at heart and

we should be as well. An Edwards-Obama ticket in 2008 would be just about unbeatable. I am supporting Edwards because he is the "total package" of progressive stands and electability, but I have a lot of respect for Obama and the Obama supporters as well.

Both are much more progressive than Hillary, who has been all but bought and sold by the DLC and the corporatocracy. I'm trying to make this thread as positive as possible and, Obama supporters, you can feel assured that if Obama is nominated, I and other JRE supporters will flock with vigor to your candidate. This thread is for JRE in his home state, so I'll shout it out again-- let's get busy people, it's our turn to make history here!

[cali]

6. I hope Edwards does well and wish him the best of luck in SC

but the endless stream of posts from some Edwards supporters about how he's the ONLY real dem, is a tad irritating to supporters of other candidates. The subtext of that is clear: Anyone who doesn't support him is not a real dem. I'd never, ever make that kind of claim.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

8. Same to you as well, cali

Your team and our team stand together.

[blue neen]

11. Edwards spent considerable time rebuilding homes in New Orleans.

He took college students there to work during their spring break.

IMHO, that's putting your money where your mouth is.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

13. Yes, this needs to be emphasized in the campaign

that JRE as you say, puts his money where his mouth is!

[melody]

7. Excellent post -- don't let the naysayers get you down n/t

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

27. No chance of that, after all, no better time to rally the troops

and gather morale. Onward we go!

[dmosh42]

9. Support getting HR1322 passed to protect benefits promised...

I sent his staff a recommendation that this bill is sitting in the House since March, and needs to get a vote on the floor. But, because the corporations oppose it, the Dem leadership is letting it sit in committee. But this is a bill that would get response from the seniors on pension and healthcare provided through the cos where they retired from.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

29. Great post-- a moral duty and politically smart!

A great way to help our constituencies and draw attention to the issues that JRE emphasizes.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

41. Any news on the progress of this bill? Good part of economic stimulus package

AFAIK Congress is trying to push several points of business alongside the main economic stimulus package bill, and HR1322 would IMHO be one of the best stimuli we could come up with. People are currently so worried about ridiculous health insurance costs and other expenses, that this reduces consumer spending. Protecting benefits would be quite helpful for this!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

43. Some info on HR1322

http://tinyurl.com/yqgcsx

Desperately needed and a valuable campaign topic to boot.

[mirrera]

10. Parallel elections using paper!

I am very worried about the DRE machines. Look what happened in FLA with Christine Jennings in the 13th district. 18,000 people supposedly went to the polls and voted in every race except hers and a Republican won by 369 votes. No one has really done anything of value since the Republican is still there.

A few years ago people ran parallel elections. They just had a table outside with paper and pen and asked people going in if they would like to record their votes on paper so that afterwords the percentages could give them and idea of the accuracy of the machines.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

12. Excellent point, JRE supporters and South Carolinians in paper need to push hard

to reform the ballot system in South Carolina and go to entirely paper ballots.

This isn't merely a matter of this election-- we are becoming the laughingstock of the world in the USA, since we cannot run our own elections right and have results that are not only overturned by exit polls (the gold standard in nations across the world for doing this), but cannot be trusted by anyone on the ground. Practically every other democracy uses hand-counted paper ballots!

Again, South Carolinians-- go to your election commissions and statehouses and demand paper ballots, multiply hand-counted! This is an important issue.

[liberalla]

25. I love that term --- 'parallel'

Thank you! I swear I had this idea in the weeks after the 2004 election. I tried to describe it, but the term 'parallel' conveys the concept perfectly! I'll volunteer for that!

One more thing regarding voting, and of a preventative nature, that can be done in advance of election day. With all the voter disenfranchisement going on, and vote challenging planned, I think a massive national campaign for voter verification and registration is required for EVERYONE. Even those who are already registered. Everyone needs to verify that the information (mailing address, etc.) is ACCURATE on their registration. Anything not accurate is grounds for a challenge (I think that's right). It would be great if there was a database that people could access and review their voter registration (would need to be secure, of course).

We need voter EDUCATION / VERIFICATION / and REGISTRATION.

1. Educate voters as to their rights and what their options are if they encounter a problem.
2. Verify registration accuracy (& make corrections) for voters already registered.
3. Register all qualified, eligible people to vote, if they so desire.

p.s. yes, the Christine Jennings result/situation is a reminder of how badly things can go wrong. She's running again - I hope she is elected this time!
http://www.christinejenningsforcongress.com

[Kucinich4America]

14. K&R from this Kucinich supporter

Best of luck to Edwards in SC. The restoration of American democracy DEMANDS an end to this Bush/Clinton bullshit.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

30. Thanks!

Same to you and your candidate-- Kucinich has been one of the most forthright, valuable voices in this entire debate, and I hope that he continues to speak with such a strong voice!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

42. And FWIW, if JRE does get the nod and win,

DK would be the ultimate Secretary of State! Who better to help repair the USA's tattered reputation abroad?

[smokey nj]

15. Kick!!

[Monty__]

16. My Republican family

in SC...well former Repub, now Democrat, are support JE. They get it, I wish more Dems did.

[smokey nj]

17. I think he could manage to sway a couple of my RW kool-aid deluded relatives as well.

Edited to add: Welcome to DU!!

[Monty__]

18. thanks...

I've actually been here for 2 years but my account was messed up when I got a new computer.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

22. Yes, JRE does have this effect on many people!

I guess after drinking down so many years of the RW Kool-Aid, they realize it's much better to toast the country with a unifier and real leader like John Edwards. Rather than Kool-Aid, much better to enjoy a toast over real leadership! :toast:

[redqueen]

19. I'm talking him up to anyone and everyone who'll listen.

Thanks for the inspiration... it's been a depressing couple of days.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

20. Awesome, keep up the good work and for anyone in South Carolina

let's implement these strategies on the ground! Let's get fired up and then turn that fire to productive efforts!

[More Than A Feeling]

21. Play up Edwards as the best opponent for McCain OR Romney!

Since he's been making the electability argument, the increasing certainty of the opponent on the GOP side naturally increases the power of this argument.

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

28. Good point there

JRE probably has the best favorables/unfavorables numbers of any of the candidates.

[stravu9]

23. Thank YOu!

I'm on it!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

24. Awesome

Hope to hear those 3 words from plenty more in the JRE camp over the coming days!

[liberalla]

26. Great post! Thank you!

Onwards, Upwards, Edwards. 2008

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

36. Excelsior!

Outstanding sig BTW, words and pictures both!

[stravu9]

32. play it fella'

!

[stravu9]

33. Edwards Supporters!!!

don't deign to answer all the attack posts .
it just perpetuates them .
do like John , keep positive and on point.
they want nastiness, don't drink the kool aid!
let them wallow in their own filth!
they seem to enjoy it!


be better than the rest, GO JOHN!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

34. Yes, agree, absolutely

Positive and on point is what actually resonates with voters. It's a reason that JRE's campaign really is catching fire in the Palmetto State!

[lisainmilo]

35. Nice post!

K&R
We support you all the way!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

37. Thx so much

and to you the same in spades!

[lame54]

38. Hey MWG you need to ad this to your JRE victory thread...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=vZxOYF9ZAe0

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

39. Fantastic lame54, thanks for this link!

We need more inspiring campaign videos like this!

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

40. Winning over backers

Hey folks, Edwards people on the ground in SC say that the Edwards campaign is rapidly attracting supporters among the rank and file. Anyone in SC, or anyone nearby who can go there, we're building up strength! Cheers and thanks to anyone who joins the effort.

[andyrowe]

44. Good Luck from the Obama camp!

Go Johnny Go Go!

bwa dna daw dunda!! (guitar noises)