DCDL

the blog of DC Drinking Liberally

May 30, 2007

Progressive Political Conferences

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If you’re looking to spend a few days networking with liberal activists, hearing speakers, and attending workshops, there are at least three progressive political conferences this summer:

May 23, 2007

DC Voting Rights Bill Update

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Demand the VoteThe DC House Voting Rights Bill, S. 1257, gets a little further today as the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing, “Ending Taxation without Representation: The Constitutionality of S. 1257″. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) will preside. The hearing will be webcast from the committee’s site live at 1:30pm.

The witness list includes elected officials from DC and Utah, and a panel of constitutional scholars to educate the committee members about how the bill fits into the provisions of the Constitution (or fails to do so). Let’s hope they’re able to convince some Republican senators who aren’t from Utah.

Since my last update, four more senators have signed on as cosponsors:

That brings the total to 13, not counting Joe Lieberman (I-CT), the main sponsor. It’s good to see support from Democrats from across the ideological spectrum. Now if we can just get enough Republicans to avoid a filibuster. According to local commentator and voting rights advocate Mark Plotkin, former Maryland lieutenant governor Michael Steele is lobbying Republican senators along with Jack Kemp.

May 16, 2007

Picnic Saturday With DC for Democracy

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DC for Democracy is having a picnic Saturday, May 19, in Rock Creek Park to raise funds to support their efforts, including presidential primary activities, voting rights, and community projects. Special guests include Jim Dean, chair of Democracy for America (and Howard Dean’s brother); Judy Feder, 2006 House candidate in Virginia’s 10th District; and members of the DC council. Suggested donation is $35 for an individual, $50 for a family.

If you’re looking for a local grassroots group focusing on progressive politics, DC for Democracy is the organization for you — and much of the leadership is made up of DCDL regulars (I’m the IT chair), so you should feel at home.

For more information, see the RSVP page (and if you can’t make it but feel moved to donate anyway, you can do it through ActBlue).

Fundraiser with Barack Obama, May 23

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As Tom Goldstein mentioned at last week’s DCDL gathering, Barack Obama will be at H2O Restaurant & Lounge, 800 Water Street SW, on Wednesday, May 23, for a fundraiser that verges on affordability for ordinary people ($100, $50 for students). Tickets are going fast, so if you’re interested sign up today.

May 14, 2007

DC Voting Rights Bill Hearing Tuesday

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The next stage in the DC House Voting Rights Act’s passage through the Congress is a hearing Tuesday. If you’re able to come to the Hill that morning, please do, so we can have a crowd to demonstrate that DC residents care about the issue. Here’s the latest message from DC for Democracy:

As our patron Senator on DC Voting Rights and Chair of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs, Sen. Joe Lieberman has just announced the schedule and witness panels for an important hearing on S. 1257, the DC House Voting Rights Act of 2007, on Tuesday, May 15 at 10:00 AM. All details about the hearing, including the witness list, can be found at http://www.dcvote.org/events/event.cfm?eventID=330.

To demonstrate our overwhelming support for the Senate’s quick response to our demand for full House voting rights, we are calling on all DC For Democracy members who are able to attend the 10:00am hearing, to please do so. We need to make our presence known and pack the room on Tuesday. Please attend the hearing if you are able — and show up early to get a seat! If you cannot make it in person, the hearing will be Web cast live from the Committee’s Web site at http://www.senate.gov/~govt-aff/.

Please RSVP to votingrights{at}dcfordemocracy.org.

Hope to see you all on Tuesday!

Karen Rose
Chair, Voting Rights & Democracy Committee
DC for Democracy

Since my previous post on the subject, two more senators have signed on as cosponsors: Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and John Kerry (D-MA).

If you’re a Virginia resident, please contact Sen. John Warner, who’s a possibly persuadable Republican member of the relevant committee, and ask him to support the bill, S. 1257. For that matter, wherever you are, if you have senators, ask them for their support. One way to send a message is to use the Free and Equal DC site.

May 10, 2007

Random Observations on Today’s Gonzales Hearing

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I’ve been halfway following online the House Judiciary Committee’s questioning of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Here are a few disorganized thoughts:

May 4, 2007

Dan Froomkin at Drinking Liberally

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On Thursday, May 10 the DC chapter of Drinking Liberally is proud to host washingtonpost.com columnist Dan Froomkin at Timberlake’s, Dupont Circle. Dan is best known for his White House Watch column, a weekday roundup of all the latest on the White House. His column is a critical favorite in the political blogosphere.

The evening starts with a happy hour 6:30-7:30, followed by Dan’s talk and Q&A. Per tradition on our speaker nights, free appetizers, and drink discounts last until 9:00.
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Sens. Obama and Clinton Support DC Voting Rights

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This week Joe Lieberman introduced S. 1257, the Senate version of the DC voting rights bill (the House version, H.R. 1905, passed last month). So far he’s got seven cosponsors, and it’s good to see that they include two of the Democratic presidential candidates, along with other Democrats from across the political spectrum, and the two senators from Utah (both Republican):

I’m hoping that Lieberman will be able to reach out to more Republicans to increase support and avoid a filibuster. Of course even if the bill passes the Senate it may still be vetoed by the president, but I’m hoping that if enough Republicans go along Bush won’t feel obliged to use one of his rare vetoes to stand in the way of bringing partial democracy to the residents of the nation’s capital.

If you’re one of those Americans who’s fortunate enough to have senators, please contact them and ask them to support S. 1257. You can use Mike Panetta’s Free and Equal DC site to send a message (and DC residents can use it to send messages to their state-dwelling friends).

May 2, 2007

DC for Democracy Gearing Up for Presidential Primary

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The local grassroots group DC for Democracy has its monthly meeting tonight. They’re getting ready to kick off their presidential primary efforts, so they’re seeking input. If you’re looking to get involved in a group, this would be a great time to check out DC4D.

There will also be an update on the status of DC voting rights and some information about the upcoming Picnic in the Park fundraiser (mark your calendar for May 19).

Wednesday, May 2, 7pm
Ben’s Chili Bowl, 1213 U St NW (back room)
(across the street from U Street Metro, Green/Yellow Line)
RSVP

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DCDL is a blog by Washington, DC-area members of Drinking Liberally. Opinions expressed are the writers’, not those of Drinking Liberally, which provides no funding or other support for this blog.

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