Lincoln Davis and the Rule of Two’s

 

Is This What We Voted For?

Two days ago, Lincoln Davis voted NO on health care reform.  Two weeks ago, I received a mailer “from” him, bought and paid for by PHRMA, the pharmaceutical industry’s lobbying arm.

Two years ago, Davis raised twice as much campaign money from PACs as from citizens, and two of his biggest contributors were the healthcare industry and the financial services industry — the two biggest packs of scoundrels responsible for the misery being visited on you and me today.

How important is better healthcare to Tennessee?  Out of 50 states, we rank 44th in infant mortality, and 47th in mortality that could be treated by better healthcare.  We are dying over this issue.  And dying at a higher rate than any other states except such backward and poverty-stricken places as Mississippi and Louisiana.  And yet, when it came down to it, Lincoln Davis voted for his industry contributors, not with us, the people.

2010 is an important year for Tennessee Democrats.  Our state legislature will be redistricting based on the 2010 census, and if the GOP is in possession of the ball, we will be redistricted into oblivion.  In support of the goal of retaking the state house, most Democrats anticipated toeing the line, keeping discipline within the party, and supporting incumbent candidates, regardless of whatever disenchantment may exist.

I for one am about to break ranks on that.  Lincoln Davis has talked a good game on health care, but when the vote came down, he betrayed us.  Sure, the bill has some issues.  Sure, it didn’t go as far as many of us would have hoped.  But it is a step in the right direction.  It opened the door to continuous improvement.  ANY improvement in access is desperately needed.

Guess what?  Maintaining the statehouse does not give a pass to those headed to Washington.  I can bite my tongue at the state level, and still work my butt off for any actual Democrat who would step forward and run against Lincoln Davis.

 

 

 

 

Obama’s (Fatal?) Mistake

 

Paulson-Bernanke-Geithner

If Obama loses in 2012, it will be because a Republican like Romney comes forth with an economic plan that includes Main Street.

Democrats won by successfully positioning McCain as Bush’s 3rd Term.  But Obama’s economic team of Geithner, Summers, and Bernanke is the real continuation of Bush and Paulson.  Hundreds of billions of our dollars have been shoveled out to Wall Street, and what do we have to show for it?  The banks were not required to renegotiate mortgages and slow foreclosures.  They weren’t required to restart the credit engine.  They weren’t required to bolster their reserves appreciably.  They weren’t required to pump all those hundreds of billions back into the economy.  Instead, they continued to overpay their execs, buy back their stock, speculate by buying additional toxic assets, acquire other banks, and pour lobbyists into DC.

By contrast, Obama’s economic team is blind to Main Street.  They could save zombie Citicorp, but they could hardly lift a finger to save GM.  They could save AIG, but they can’t stop the spiral of job loss in Ohio, where Obama’s disapproval rating has now outpaced his approval rating.

At this point, the new administration has shot its ability to command new stimulus money to be directed to saving houses, jobs, and healthcare.  They squandered their chance by continuing to focus on Wall Street.  And it’s becoming all too apparent that Washington runs on campaign contributions and lobbying efforts from the financial and insurance industries, not from the concerns of voters.  That goes for many Democrats as well as Republicans.

Obama has a well-deserved reputation for considering a wide range of ideas, but his economic team is myopic and exclusionary, effectively cutting him off from ideas from economists who “get it.”  It’s about jobs, houses, and healthcare, not about stock markets.

If I imagine losing my income and my home, the scariest aspect of it would be that my expensive half-assed healthcare would also be gone, and at my age and with the few not-very-critical health issues I have, it would be unrecoverable at any price.  People are scared to death, and they don’t see Obama’s team working effectively to make things right.

What can we do?  Hammer on our Congressmen and Senators, and hammer on the White House to replace the economic team. We put them there … they owe us.

Dream County: Building Grassroots for 2010

I had a dream.  I’m going to tell you what it was, but first let me say why it is so important.  

2010 is a crucial election for Tennessee … the Legislature elected in 2010 will be responsible for the mandatory decennial realignment of election districts, for the US Congress as well as our State Representatives and Senators.  If the Republicans again carry the statehouse, they will carve up the state to maximize Republican representation and eliminate the districts of many strong Democrats such as Bart Gordon and Lincoln Davis.

The legislation they will pass will take us back to the stone age.  Sound economic development, green energy, bio-med research, and programs to lift all our citizens to a fair deal in healthcare and jobs, and competitiveness in world markets will all fall by the wayside.

With so much at stake, we cannot afford to sit on the sidelines until election day.  We need both our state and our county parties in the traces and pulling hard right now.  The TNDP is making major strides at making the party more effective and more focused.

But what can be done at the county level?  Well …. I had a dream.  I dreamed that every rural county had a permanent Democratic Party storefront on the courthouse square, next to the Saturday morning farmer’s market.  I dreamed that it had a big screen TV, a GOOD coffee pot, a sofa, and some chairs.  

I dreamed that every Saturday morning when people were at the farmer’s market, they could stop in, have a sit and a cup of coffee, and relax.  (We could call it the GrassRoots Cafe.)

I dreamed that every Saturday morning we had party representatives there to work as community ombudsmen (ombudspeople?) to help people out with issues they might have.  I dreamed that we had voter registration available every Saturday morning.  I dreamed that we figured out how to implement the upcoming voter ID, so that Democrats are not disenfranchised, come election time.

I dreamed that we had short evening events on a regular basis:  a panel discussion on an issue of importance and interest to the community, or a candidate’s forum where candidates could present themselves and their programs, or a youth seminar on issues as they see them, that they could organize and run.  It could be just a simple covered dish social. 

I dreamed that every time someone walked in the door, we got their email address, some information about them, and signed them up to help out on some activity, and that we actually put that information in a database and used it.

I dreamed that we had a well-written regular e-newsletter going out to our ever-growing list, with items of interest and information, and with links back to our website for contributions and volunteerism.

I dreamed that we ran some community volunteer programs, maybe with the nursing homes, or helping people in need, or community beautification, or school tutoring, or whatever.  And that we were really smart about “branding” our service as part of the County Democratic Party, and that we were really diligent about publicizing it, so that we become more integrated into the community, and so that we multiply our opportunity to reach out and connect with people on a daily basis, and not just around election time.

In short, I dreamed that we built our presence so that come election day, we were embedded deep into our communities, and not just a biennial oddity.

It wouldn’t cost a lot.  For a small town like ours, we might be able to rent that storefront for, say, at most maybe $750/mo.  For another $200 we could pay our utilities and buy a lot of coffee and early morning donuts.  So call it a budget of $1000/mo.  I’m pretty sure people would donate the furniture we would need … they did during the last election.  We’d get donations from the coffee and donuts, or just for the heck of it.  We could run some fundraisers, we could sell some Democratic Party stuff.  We could maybe get some monetary support from organizations sympathetic to our cause.  But whatever we do, the price is small compared to the value in building a truly connected grassroots party in and of the community, and for the future.  I had a dream ….

TNDP — It’s A Brand New Day

The “old” TNDP under Gray Sasser’s leadership was just that … old and tired and whatever the opposite of innovative is.  It was hard to get either policy content or political content from the website, and the party did not reach out to people or make it easy for them to engage with it.  Early in this young blog’s history, I expressed that frustration, and laid out a wish-list for the newly elected Chairman, Chip Forrester.  

It’s not often that you get your wish list fulfilled, but this may be one of those rare times.  Here are innovations that are coming down the pike:

1. Blogger Outreach!  Chip has begun holding a bi-monthly conference call with Democratic bloggers, so that we can get updates on his initiatives, ask questions, and discuss important topics.  This is astonishing.  Bloggers are free spirits who are as likely to criticize and crumb about the party as as about the opposition.  Based on the past, I would have expected Party leadership to view bloggers as uncontrollable annoyances, but Chip is reaching out.  I confess co-optation!  It certainly puts me in a more work-with frame of mind. 
2. Website as Tool, Not Outdated Brochure-ware.  If you have been to the website lately www.tndp.org, you have seen huge improvements.  But wait, there’s more!  In a short time, the TNDP will be unveiling a totally new website which will essentially be a portal to the Party, provide useful tools and social networking, and eventually provide an umbrella for the counties as well.
3. Focus on 2010.  2010 is a more important election than 2008, at the state level.  We lost seats and control of the state house in 2008, but we have to take it back in 2010.  If not, the Republicans will control redistricting, and will do their dead level best to draw a majority of permanent safe republican seats at both the state and congressional levels. They will isolate and segregate minorities, carve up Democratic districts, and consolidate their own districts.    They have done it in many states such as Texas, and you can bet they are ready to do it here.   The TNDP is working hand-in-hand with the Caucus leaders now to identify vulnerable Democrats and help them out, to identify vulnerable republicans and start grooming qualified candidates to oppose them.  (Fact:  40 Republicans now in the legislature ran unopposed!)  We need to do our part in providing funding and putting our enthusiastic Obama volunteers into the game.
4. Summit.  A great innovative concept, the TNDP is holding a 2-day Summit (May 2-3) in Monteagle, to engage all committed Democrats with party direction.  Details on the TNDP Website.
5. Old Media.  Especially out here in the counties, the TNDP needs to think of ways to reach out to the public on state-level policy issues.  How does the public hear about policy issues now?  The only unified voice is right-wing talk radio.  The blogosphere is somewhat of a counter, but we are small compared to mega-watt mouthpieces.  The TNDP is well-aware that it needs to communicate to the public better, perhaps through local newspapers, and is going to explore the options there.

This is a long-winded post, but please, please visit the new TNDP website, and get engaged with the TNDP.  It’s a whole new day!

Will We Get The New Electricity?

In the 1930’s, 90% of city folk had electricity, but only 10% of country people did.  Without electricity, rural people were unable to be economically competitive, or to improve their standard of living.

Today, affordable and reliable broadband internet is just as important to rural areas.  Broadband is critical four key areas:  healthcare, education, agriculture, and jobs.  But for many in our District, broadband is not available, or is not affordable, or is not reliable, or all three.  Without this modern-day tool, our citizens will fall further and further behind more urbanized areas.

Right now, there is one piece of legislation pending at the state level that speaks to the issue, by authorizing electric companies to provide certain services within 10 miles of their service areas, as long as the cost is passed on to the consumers. The cable companies are fighting this tooth and nail.  There is a hearing on this bill on the 24th.  When I get more info on this, I will tweet it, so be sure to sign up for my twitter at http://twitter.com/TN4th.

The stimulus package includes $7.2 billion for expansion of broadband access to rural and underserved areas.  However, it is unclear whether and how Tennessee is on board to bring this key tool to our citizens.  The very concept of utilizing these stimulus funds as intended is under fire from some.  Former FCC economist Michael Katz actually called rural areas “environmentall hostile, energy inefficient, and weak in innovation” and said that the government should not be helping rural people “avoid the costs they impose on society”!  With thinking like this, of course, we would still be living in the dark as we were before Rural Electrification.

Here is the overview of what broadband access could do for Tennessee.  Expanding the availability and adoption of broadband would create 49,000 jobs, generate more than $1.6 billion in direct income growth, shave roughly $13 million from Tennesseans’ health-care costs and save state residents more than $130 million in gasoline by enabling more of them to work remotely, shop online and engage in other activities on the Internet. The environment would also benefit. With Tennesseans driving less, average annual carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by more than 66 million pounds, the study says.

Taking this down to a personal level, right now, my husband and I spend hundreds of dollars for unsatisfactory satellite service.  It is costly.   It doesn’t work in thunderstorms or when it is snowing.  It doesn’t deliver the speed promised, and because of certain idiosyncrasies, it doesn’t allow us to host a website that we are working on.  Internet-based businesses are the ultimate in green economic development opportunity for rural areas, but we can’t do them because of access and cost limitations.

Rural broadband was a key plank of Obama’s platform, and it looks like he is delivering.  Let’s make sure our Tennessee officials deliver too!  Get on board with talking to our legislators and our governor.  We can’t make economic or educational progress while we live in the 21st century dark!

An Orgy of Sex Bills in Legislature

 

Forward, Not Backward

Regardless of your personal feelings about the intensely personal decisions about reproduction, I urge you to pay attention to the bills currently before the Tennessee legislature.  The legislature is faced with a veritable orgy of bills related to sex and reproduction. What’s up with that? Why so many all at once? Is someone, or a group of someones, in a big hurry to push an overstuffed agenda through before anyone knew what was happening?

 

Today at 3:00 in Legislative Plaza Room 16 there is an open hearing on these bills, some 13 of them. Taken together, they set the state up to withdraw from providing essential healthcare services, raise costs on all new parents, intrude into a family’s most private decisions, and place roadblocks in the way of healthcare providers.  There are many unanswered questions about the far-reaching ramifications of this flurry of bills, and the public needs a chance to consider them and voice its opinions.

One thing is for sure.  While the bills may have some slight dampening effect on the number of abortions in TN, they are by no means the most efficient and effective way to drastically reduce abortions. They are mainly punitive towards all families involved in reproductive decisions.

Among other things, these bills:
> lay the groundwork for making all abortions illegal, including those which will save the life of the mother, or in cases of rape and incest (HJR 0066);

> lay the groundwork to make it constitutional to take away the right of a married man to have a vasectomy (HJR 0132);

> raise the costs of healthcare and interfere with private family decisions regarding who the father is, by allowing disestablishment of paternity, including at public expense if the family cannot pay (HB0025), and requiring physician offices providing abortions to be classified as ambulatory surgery centers, a highly costly and unnecessary process (HB 0436);

> define conception as the point of the inception of human life (HB 0862) which could lead to outlawing day-after contraception, stem cell research, and disposal of embryos at fertility clinics (essentially putting them out of business); and allowing lawsuits against parents on behalf of the fetus for anything from alcohol or tobacco consumption to poor diet;

> require death certificates for abortions (HB 0819) and some stillborns and miscarriages (HB 0807) to be entered into vital records, possibly making your personal life part of a public record.

It appears that many of these bills are intrusive into personal and private family matters, costly to implement, and can lead to perverse unintended consequences. They harm Tennessee and Tennessee citizens as they pursue their strangely punitive goals.

If the sponsors of these bills REALLY cared about the preservation of human life, and making sure that every child is wanted, they would sponsor better reproductive education and better access to contraception.

These measures have special impact on TNs 4th district.  We have one of the highest rates of out-of-wedlock and teen pregnancies.  The fallout of this on children and on our economy is vast.  The mothers and their children are more likely to be impoverished.  The children are less likely to finish even high school, and are more likely to commit crimes.  They pass their circumscribed past on to yet the next generation.  If we want our 4th District citizens to have stable lives and hopeful futures, we must focus on measures which will actually reduce the number of unintended and unwanted pregnancies, not punish those who find themselves in these difficult circumstances.

Here are the members of the House Health and Human Resources Committee.  Please tell them what you think!

Chair and Vice Chair of the House Health and Human Resources Committee:

Rep. Joe Armstrong rep.joe.armstrong@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Joey Hensley rep.joey.hensley@capitol.tn.gov

Members of the House Health and Human Resources Committee:
Rep. Curt Cobb, Rep.Curt.Cobb@capitol.tn.gov Rep.Curt.Cobb@capitol.tn.gov

Rep. Jim Cobb, Rep.Jim.Cobb@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Charles Curtiss, Rep.Charles.Curtiss@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Vince Dean, Rep.Vince.Dean@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. John DeBerry, Rep.John.DeBerry@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Lois DeBerry, Rep.Lois.DeBerry@capitol.tn.gov

Rep. Vance Dennis, Rep.Vance.Dennis@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Joshua Evans, Rep.Joshua.Evans@capitol.tn.gov
Rep.Dennis Ferguson, Rep.Dennis.Ferguson@capitol.tn.gov

Rep. Dale Ford, Rep.Dale.Ford@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Curtis.Halford, Rep.Curtis.Halford@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Sherry.Jones, Rep.Sherry.Jones@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Debra.Maggart, Rep.Debra.Maggart@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Jason.Mumpower, Rep.Jason.Mumpower@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Gary Odom, Rep.Gary.Odom@capitol.tn.gov

Rep. Mary Pruitt, Rep.Mary.Pruitt@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Bob Ramsey, Rep.Bob.Ramsey@capitol.tn.gov
Rep.Barrett Rich, Rep.Barrett.Rich@capitol.tn.gov

Rep. Jeanne Richardson, Rep.Jeanne.Richardson@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. David Shepard, Rep.David.Shepard@capitol.tn.gov

What the TNDP Leadership Should Focus On

Every Democrat I know is either disappointed or outright disgusted with the past TNDP leadership. We sincerely hope that Chip Forrester will bring energy, vision, and improved process to the TNDP.

The excitement and support for Obama was huge in lil’ old Giles County. People flocked to our headquarters, helping out, buying Obama merchandise, and getting yard signs and bumper stickers.

But the Party didn’t show up to the party! Bredesen’s silence during this election cycle was palpable. Sasser, ditto. The TNDP provided no support that I could see to help us carry out our mission.

We did get responsiveness from the Obama campaign, including technology such as websites and blogs.

How is it that a “from scratch” organization like Obama’s could outshine a permanent organization like the TNDP? It’s a disgrace, and it needs to be different starting now.

We have a lot of momentum to build on, and we need to use it.

The 2010 elections are going to be perhaps even more important than the ‘08 elections, from a state perspective. Among many other issues will be redistricting, based on the 2010 Census. If we want to see a permanent republican throathold on Tennessee, let the Greedy Old Plutocrats manage the process.

If we want to win the statehouse back in 2010, we have to start NOW and we have to learn from the Obama example and bring our organization into the 21st century.

Here is what I think we need (in addition to leaders who are willing to admit that they are Democrats):

1. A TNDP developed and hosted web-based technology that integrates the state and the counties.  It is unrealistic to expect each county to develop its own website with any measure of competence.  Besides, if there is one integrated design, it should enable people to sign up at one location, and have the proper information sharing between state, counties, state legislative districts, and Congressional districts.

2.  Tools and processes for the county parties to use to develop their contacts and to communicate with their constituencies.

3.  A full-court press on identifying vulnerable Democratic incumbents in the statehouse, and working hard to support them from now through the elections, by helping with constituent communications, press releases, and funding commitments.

4.  A full-court press on identifying vulnerable Republican incumbents in the statehouse, and identifying, grooming, and supporting qualified Democrats to oppose them.

5. Communication with all members on a regular basis on issues of substance. I have not had the party reach out to me on key topics. (It does manage to reach out on a regular basis for donations, though.)  Party members who want to get informed on issues are on their own to do their research and to find ways to communicate their views back to their elected representatives.  We need to provide party members with a convenient source of information on key issues, and with handy tools to communicate their views to their state or national elected officials.

6.  Putting our voice forward to the public — the TNDP needs to get engaged with the small-town media,via op eds, columns, and press releases, so that our perspectives and initiatives can be communicated. We are at a critical time when many people are ready to hear voices other than crazy-talk radio. But there is no voice. We need to step into that void.  Especially in the TN 4th and other rural areas, the Tennessean and other large-city papers are pretty much irrelevant. We read the Giles County papers. Get engaged, TNDP, where the people actually are!

Bredesen May Kick TN’s Unemployed to the Curb

Update:  On March 6, the Governor announced that he would accept the unemployment stimulus money, after ascertaining that the money could be used over the next 5-6 years.

Original Blog:  The Chattanooga Times in February reported that Bredesen may reject the stimulus money earmarked for unemployment benefits. His concern is that the program may require Tennessee to modernize its program, which may require additional revenues in the future.

Here’s the problem. Tennessee has one of the most miserly unemployment insurance programs in the country. We pay a maximum of just $275 per week to laid off workers. The only lower benefits are Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Mississippi, and Arizona. Great company, eh?

We tax employers only on the first $7000 of wages, far less than other states, and we tax at a lower rate. Even raising the ceiling to $9000 would plug a big hole in our program. But the Chamber of Commerce and other employer groups are fighting to keep Tennessee workers among the least protected in the country, and it looks like Bredesen is lining up with them instead of everyday people.

We like to make a big fuss over how much we value the workers in our society, but when they are really hurting, we don’t want to extend a hand, even enough to get us up out of the chintziest handful of states.

Please write or call Bredesen’s office and urge him to expand the program and take the money … our people need it and deserve it.

Here’s a link to the Governor’s contact page: http://www.tennesseeanytime.org/governor/Contact.do

And while you are at it, contact your state rep and state senator as well. You can find them at: http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/

4th District Basics: What Divides Us, What Unites Us

 The 4th District is the largest district (geographically speaking) east of the Mississippi.  It covers all or part of 24 counties, and is 550 miles from end to end.  

It is considered the 4th most rural district in the country!  Think about it … there is no single newspaper, TV station, or radio station that we all come into contact with.  In fact, we span numerous “media markets,” but we do not encompass any of them.  We are near the major cities of Nashville, Huntsville AL, Chattanooga, and Knoxville, but we are sufficiently rural that we don’t revolve around their urban and suburban issues.

No one county accounts for more than 11% of our electorate.  Our largest city is Columbia, in Maury County, population about 34,000 (about 5% of our electorate).  

The consequence of this enormous span of geography, low density of our population, and lack of shared media means that it is very difficult for us to come together on issues of importance to our district.  Our geography divides us!

Despite the difficulty of communicating among ourselves, we do share a large number of concerns.  From county to county, we are pretty similar.  All our counties are rural.  All our counties have median incomes and education levels well below the national average and below the Tennessee state average.  We depend upon manufacturing jobs and agriculture for our livelihoods.  Modern technologies such as broadband internet and cel phone coverage are essential to economic development, but they are not available to many of us.  For example, I only get cel phone coverage (sometimes) in my cow pasture, but not at the house.  These issues unite us!

It is my hope that this blog will become a place where all 4th District citizens can come together and have an influence on our Congressional Representative in Washington, as well as to have a dialog among ourselves.

Hello world!

This blog is dedicated to the people and issues of Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District.

In it, we’ll get a good understanding of who we, as a district, are, what issues we share, and what’s going on in Congress that affects us.

Think about it … of all the officials we elect, only one, our 4th District Congressman, is solely responsible for representing our interests and helping our causes. 

As this blog develops, I hope that you will share your own perspectives with me and with each other.

A little about me:  I live in Giles County, on a farm a few miles outside of Lynnville.  Never heard of Lynnville????  Population about 400, not counting the goats and cows, about halfway between Pulaski and Columbia.