Dear Gov Dean: ABOUT THE PRIMARIES - Democratic Underground

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Thu Feb-16-06 01:38 PM
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Dear Gov Dean: ABOUT THE PRIMARIES

Dear Gov Dean: About the Primaries

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect in the treatment of Paul Hackett was the decision by party leaders to eliminate the participation of Ohio Democratic voters in the primary to select who will represent them. I believe that every viable Democratic candidate should have the ability to present their case to the voters and the voters should be able to decide who they wish to represent them. Without the use of the primaries, our party comes close to the Republican Party in it’s use of top-down decisions. Here is what Gary Hart has written on the subject:

Gary Hart: Pressuring Paul Hackett To Abandon Campaign is Old Politics at its Worst

Gary Hart Tue Feb 14, 10:50 AM ET

Based on news reports alone and knowing nothing (thank goodness) about behind-the-scenes politics, the pressure brought on Paul Hackett, the bold Iraqi veteran, to abandon his campaign for the U.S. Senate from Ohio is deplorable.

This is simply old politics at its worst. There is a party which hand-picks its candidates, decides who can and cannot run, directs money to the favorite candidate, and dictate terms. Up till now, that party has been the Republican party.

Now, it seems, my Democratic party is once again imitating the Republican party in a desperate effort to regain power. With the McGovern democratic reforms in the early 1970s, political bosses were diminished and grassroots voters were elevated. The theme was, Let the people decide.

Telling Paul Hackett that he cannot run for the Senate, and purportedly calling contributers to dry up his funds, is the worse kind of old politics. It will drive voters away from the supposedly "open" party, the Democrats, and further add to public cynicism about how politics in America is played in the early 21st century.

Shame on us.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20060214/cm_huffpost/015637

For most Americans our vote is the only way we have to voice our opinions toward change. Very few citizens have the finances to exert power though private meeting and influence peddling. What we all should have, however, is the ability to use our constitutional right to vote to reflect our will. I am afraid that this early elimination will severely erode the public’s ability to have their voices heard.

Gov Dean, you inspired many activists to get involved in the political process. I worked for your campaign in the summer of 2003 and although disappointed with the shortened primary outcome, worked equally hard to promote the Democratic ticket through the ‘04 election. My family gave what we could, and what we lacked in large donor contributions we made up for in time and dedication to getting out the vote. You inspired a progressive movement that has grown to become a prominent force in politics.

As a progressive, I value honesty and integrity in promoting our values. I was proud of the Kerry campaign that I participated in, within Franklin County, Ohio-the epicenter of the ‘04 campaign. I can honestly say that the democratics did NOT use the un-American tactics of suppression, character smears, intimidation and misinformation that was used by the other party. I felt comfortable that the Democratic Party reflected my values. I was proud to canvass and spread the enthusiasm that many of us felt both in my own neighborhood and other neighborhoods. I promised voters in the low income African American neighborhoods on the east side of Columbus, that this time our party would make sure every vote would count.

Since November 3rd 2004, I have begun to feel alienated from my party. I witnessed the blatant suppression of many voters that I had encouraged to get out to vote. This was not the first time their voices had been suppressed, but it was the first time I had promised them, as our party leaders promised all of us, that they would make sure their votes would be counted. I felt responsible for seeing that this travesty ended. I now work full time (unpaid) on election reform, to work toward change in our corrupt election system. Yet Democratic party officials have dismissed us as conspiracy theorists despite the mountain of evidence which resulted in John Conyers and the House Judiciary Democratic Staff’s report to the contrary. Even the GAO Report on Electronic Voting Machines has been vitually ignored by the party despite it’s scathing commentary of the integrity of our voting system.

Now we have this treatment of Paul Hackett. The issue is NOT who is the better candidate, but that the voters of Ohio were not allowed to choose themselves. It was the Democratic Party hierarchy who felt it necessary to make the decision without the voters will through a primary. Are we becoming a reflection of the Republican decision makers,like Gary Hart suggests? I truly hope not, because it will cause defection from those of us who wish to participate.

Gov Dean, It has been the progressive movement that took over the role of the former watchdog press. Where the main stream media(MSM) has fallen negligent in asking the tough questions and investigating difficult issues, we progressives have filled in the gap. It was us who investigated the ‘04 election when the MSM refused to do so (I was the activist who gave your aide information on the Lucas County Election during a recent press release at the Ohio Statehouse). It was progressives who worked to get Downing Street Memos out to the public. We have made our voices heard not through big donations, but through campaigns of networking, organizing calls to elected officials, letter-to the editors, blogging and petition drives. I hope you will encourage party leaders not to stifle our voices through the elimination of our primaries. The primaries serve an important role in the discussion of party issues, and bring together the many factions of the Democratic Party in participating in the process.