Tag: politics

SOLON, Iowa — A group of local, Democratic activists met with former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro on Jan. 7 at the Solon Community Center.

Castro was staffed by long-time political operative and former Iowa Democratic Party chair Derek Eadon on a brief tour of Iowa with stops in Cedar Rapids, Solon and North Liberty. Castro said he plans to announce his intentions regarding running for president in San Antonio, Texas on Saturday. It was clear the announcement will be he’s running.

The chairs of the Cedar and Johnson County Democratic Parties attended, as well as three current and former Solon City Council members. The gathering was intended to be intimate. We each had our turn asking questions and commenting on the prospects of a Democrat winning in rural Iowa.

Electricity service went out shortly after we’d gathered around some tables that had been pushed together. The outage extended throughout the city and included rural areas. We continued to talk in a room only partly illuminated by candle and mobile device light.

Castro doesn’t plan to accept political action committee funds in his campaign. Is he bringing a knife to a gun fight? He said he’s not and that sufficient funds could be raised from small-sized donations from individuals. Mayor of Swisher and Johnson County Democratic Party Chair Chris Taylor confirmed that eschewing PAC money included taking none from labor unions. In addition to campaign finance, Castro’s priorities include affordable housing, healthcare and infrastructure — core Democratic values.

While attendees were curious about Castro he repeatedly turned the tables on us, asking what our friends and neighbors were thinking and saying about policy. He was there more to listen than to be interrogated about his potential candidacy.

When my turn came to talk about policy, I said policy is less important to a presidential candidate as long it reflects core Democratic values. I suggested he could follow the lead of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi regarding policy. Castro, who was sitting next to me, seemed somewhat taken aback by the comment as Pelosi has been a lightening rod of criticism of Democrats. It was hard to gauge the reaction of others in the darkened room.

What about rural voters? Media, including major Iowa news organizations, have cast a rural versus urban divide among voters. The flight of Iowa young people to our biggest cities and out of state is no secret. At the same time there are rural Democrats who regularly show up at the polls. Castro acknowledged the need for outreach to every voter.

Julián Castro seemed genuine, honest and engaged. Those are qualities we need in a president. I appreciate the unique, Iowa opportunity to sit down with him and discuss issues of the day. At 13 months until the first in the nation Iowa caucuses the county party is already lining up meeting rooms. While it is not yet time for them there is light on the distant horizon. We hope it is the light of change.

I didn’t vote in the 1976 general election where the choice for president was between incumbent Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter of Georgia.

1976 was the first election in which new Democratic National Committee rules were in effect to change the presidential nominating process. Iowa went first, Carter realized it, and he showed up with an aid at the Iowa State Fair that August to campaign.

I was in military training and couldn’t figure out where I’d be on election day. I was unfamiliar with how service members voted and there was no mention of voting as I trained to became a military officer at Fort Benning, Georgia.

In 1976 voting didn’t matter to me. I was doing my part to serve our country, and the national nightmare that was the Richard Nixon administration had ended. I felt comfortable with the electorate deciding between Ford and Carter without me.

Even with its problems, the nominating process that now begins in Iowa is more open than it was when Hubert Humphrey was picked as the 1968 Democratic candidate for president in a Chicago hotel room by a small group of cigar-smoking men.

In 2016 complaints about “establishment Democrats” tilting the caucuses toward Hillary Clinton were frequent. George McGovern and other architects of the current nominating process did reasonable work and shouldn’t be blamed for the rise of internet chat rooms, social media, and reporters that look for stories with an easy hook to garner clicks on the web. The rise of the internet had an impact on the Iowa caucuses by facilitating easy communication about almost any topic and promoting the rise of conspiracy theories like the one that something called “establishment Democrats” exists and is a force for no good.

It looks like the Iowa Caucuses will go first again in 2020, although that’s not guaranteed. It also looks like the field of Democratic candidates will be large, maybe as many as 20 men and women when we get into the thick of it. For Iowa Democrats, who wins the horse race here is insignificant compared to the need for party building.

Under Troy Price’s leadership, the Iowa Democratic Party made progress rebuilding its brand during the 2018 midterm elections. That work should continue. More than anything, the Iowa Democratic Party should encourage participation by all in the presidential preference part of an open caucus process. IDP should not forget their main role is to build the party, something sorely needed if one looks at Fred Hubbell’s 2018 election map.

With limited time and resources, a focus on party building instead of selecting and supporting our favorite pick for president is the harder choice. What I sense already is many active Democrats will start to hunker down behind their fave presidential candidates and leave party building to others. That is a recipe for failure. It doesn’t have to be that way.

I’m no longer a fan of having a presidential preference pick as part of the Iowa caucuses, mostly because it doesn’t accomplish what is needed most — building our party into a winning team. I know the consequences of giving up “first in the nation,” and am ready to let go. However, that’s not the process we have so I’m stuck dealing with reality. Dealing with reality is a narrative I can back.

I do plan to vote in 2020.

It’s as if everything in the national and state government is approaching a breaking point. What might be broken? Any remaining faith we have that the United States is different from other nations in a positive way.

I can’t count how many significant news stories there were in the week leading up to this holiday weekend, at least a couple dozen. How to deal with them? Military training instructs us: bunker in and wait for the shells to fall before commencing an initiative.

I’m trying not to think about it going into end of year holidays. Yet, how could I not?

As I approach my 67th birthday, age may be a driver. I’m old enough to remember our country made contributions to peace and prosperity in the world. We did good things. I also see we are responsible for covert wars, military actions and civilian deaths in combat operations. We’ve not been a player only for good in a while.

During the run up to the 2016 election, anyone with knowledge of history, or even those just paying attention to the campaign, knew Donald Trump would be bad at the job of president. No one knew he would be this bad. What kind of man retreats from working on our many current issues to watch television and listen to the radio? That a president would do this, as media reports he is, is not good for our mutual, future prospects as a nation.

Groups formed to resist Republican governance after Trump’s victory. I’m skeptical of the efficacy of putting my elected officials on speed dial for daily or even weekly calls. Better than resisting, we should be voting them out, only we haven’t been able. Despite a “resistance,” Iowa Republicans maintained the trifecta control of the governorship, house and senate. We need to work smarter.

First we wait until the news avalanche finishes. Until we know the bottom — until the dust settles, giving us clear sight — it is difficult to make any meaningful effort. So for a few more weeks we hunker down and figure out where to go from here.

With all the news it has been difficult to know where “here” is. We will eventually recognize this place. Soon, I hope.

I hadn’t heard of Royceann Porter until she was considered to be the Democratic nominee to fill the seat on the Johnson County Board of supervisors left by the death of Kurt Friese.

Through hard work and effective organizing she won yesterday’s special election by an honest margin of 56 percent of 9,658 votes cast, beating another Iowa City resident, Phil Hemingway, decidedly.

In case you missed it, I included a photo. Royceann Porter is black, and a woman, the first black woman to be elected to the Johnson County board of supervisors.

During the campaign I found racism was still alive in the county. Those of us who talk to voters and have over the last couple of decades are well aware of Johnson County’s endemic racism. Porter herself has been working for racial justice in the county. Voters I meet don’t look at themselves as racist, although Royceann’s candidacy scratched it like a rash. It showed itself in characteristic fashion in unexpected, unwelcome places among people in my circle of acquaintances. The euphemisms were several: “Hemingway is better qualified.” “Did you see her at the forum?” “We need rural representation.” These were Democratic voters I spoke to and the attempts to distract from their racism wore thin and saddened me.

I contributed to Royceann Porter’s campaign. As a Democrat, what else was I going to do? With other area friends we organized a meet and greet in our nearby city and advertised it in the local newspaper. I contacted everyone I know and urged them to vote for Porter in the special election. I posted this photo on social media with an endorsement. I don’t know what impact these things had, but Johnson County Democrats may have learned the lesson of the 2013 special election when their chosen candidate, Terry Dahms, lost to Republican John Etheredge with 6,113 total votes cast in that election. Yesterday turnout across the county improved over 2013 by 58 percent.

Was this election about race? Only partly. With a focus on running a viable campaign in a short period of time, Porter overcame every obstacle she faced and won. Racism is still there in Johnson County, the same racism I recognized when our family moved to Big Grove in 1993.

This election and Royceann Porter’s win provides another opportunity to address problems in the county. Racism is only one of a long list of things the board of supervisors must tackle. There’s plenty to do and the board voters chose is reflective of who I am and the direction I’d like to see county government go. That’s what elections are supposed to be about, isn’t it?

Good luck to Royceann Porter on the board. She has the potential to accomplish a lot in 2019 and beyond. Many of us will be pulling for her.

Last night Johnson County Democrats nominated Iowa City resident Royceann Porter for the Dec. 18 special election for county supervisor. I support her candidacy for two reasons. She is a Democrat who won the nomination in an open process, and many people whose judgement I respect support her. Before last night, I wouldn’t have recognized her if I saw her walking on the street. I’m rapidly getting to like Porter and have already reached out to congratulate her and offer help in her campaign.

The other nominee, Pat Harney, had been elected county supervisor four times yet convention delegates rejected him by a vote of 109 to 42. In his three-minute speech Harney focused on the challenges of winning the special election, something of which delegates seemed cognizant. Unspoken at the convention was the challenge a black woman would face among quietly racist voters in the county who would prefer the white male Republicans are expected to nominate. Porter’s campaign is about moving the county forward and that’s another reason I support her.

“I have been a leader in this community for many years,” Porter wrote in a Nov. 19 campaign email. “I will use my commitment and experience to make sure that Johnson County works for all of us. And, I know I can win against the Republican nominee in the December 18 special election.”

In a county where 48,758 people voted for Democrat Fred Hubbell for governor Porter should easily win the election over any nominee Republicans put forward at their upcoming convention. It’s not a given as the 2013 special election that made Republican John Etheredge a supervisor reminds us. It’s up to delegates at last night’s convention to get the word out about Porter’s candidacy and make sure voter turnout is sufficient for her to win.

I plan to do my part to elect Royceann Porter county supervisor and look forward to the campaign.