By Al Benninghoff – MYD President & NYC Volunteer Coordinator for Scott Murphy For Congress
You may have heard about the special election on March 31st to fill the congressional seat left vacant by the recent appointment of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. You may also know that we are supporters of the Democratic Candidate in that race, Scott Murphy. Unfortunately, too many people don’t realize that the race is less than 4 weeks away or think that this race is in the bag. It is not!
The Republican Nominee in this race is Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, the current Republican Leader of the NYS Assembly. His candidacy has brought on the full onslaught of the Republican Machine. They’re throwing every dollar and ounce of influence they have into this race because they want to make this race a referendum on President Obama’s economic policy. Think about the message it would send to the rest of the country if the Republicans squeeze out a victory in our backyard at a time when the media is looking for any event to gauge public reaction to the fiscal crisis. It could undermine everything we are trying to do in Washington. We need your help, and we need it now.
Here are five (5) things you can do:
1) PHONE BANK any day of the week. Weekdays from 6PM to 9PM and weekends from 12PM to 8PM at the NYS Democratic Party Headquarters (461 Park Avenue South @ 31st St., 10th Floor). Bring your friends. R.S.V.P. for any of the phone banks on our website at www.manhattanyoungdems.org/events/
2) JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP “NYC for Scott Murphy” and invite your friends to join:
www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=134393085132
3) LISTEN TO SCOTT IN PERSON on March 12th at Retreat Lounge (37 W 17th Street @ 5th Ave). This event will be hosted by DL21C, and they’re charging $7 for admission. R.S.V.P. here. (www.dl21c.org/rsvp.php?event_id=306)
4) CONTRIBUTE at www.scottmurphy09.com and learn about Scott.
5) FORWARD this message to all of your friends to get the word out about this campaign and Scott Murphy.
A little bit about Scott Murphy:
Saving and creating jobs, growing small businesses, and finding new ways to tackle old problems – these are the things Scott has done successfully for more than 15 years.
While professional politicians just talk about the need to create jobs, Scott has first-hand experience actually creating them. He’s built successful companies, helped create over 1,000 jobs, and worked to make small businesses the economic engines of their communities. Scott’s been blessed to live the American dream. After graduating from Harvard, Scott became a high-tech entrepreneur. He founded Small World Software, later sold to iXL. Scott has also worked as an aide to two Democratic Governors, Mel Carnahan and Roger Wilson, serving as the Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Roger Wilson of Missouri.
Get active, get involved, invite your friends, change the world!
Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis is all smiles at the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing earlier this month.
After weeks of stalling on the part of the Republicans, the full US Senate voted to confirm Hilda Solis as the Secretary of Labor. The 80-17 vote officially ends the eight years of a business oriented department and shifts the balance of power back to the working class and labor unions. Now, with Secretary Solis at the helm, we can feel more confident that the Department of Labor will protect and promote union interests and that the Labor Movement will remain strong, especially in this time of economic uncertainty. In fact, I am reminded of how much the election of a Democratic President and appointment of a strong, progressive woman as Secretary of Labor effected our country similarly during the height of the Great Depression.
In 1932, the country rallied behind a governor from New York who made a pledge: a New Deal for the American People. After taking office, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt acted swiftly on many fronts. This included what can arguably the most import Cabinet appointment in the history of the United States. President Roosevelt tapped his longtime friend Frances Perkins to become Secretary of Labor. Perkins’ name into the history books immediately as the first woman in the Cabinet, and thus the first to enter the Presidential Line of Succession. However, Frances Perkins mark on history did not end there. Over the course of the FDR Administration, it was Secretary Perkins who set the tone.
Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins guided the New Deal, whether it was advising FDR (left) or supporting Collective Bargaining rights of Pennsylvania Steelworkers (right, with hat on shaking hands)
It is she who convinced President Roosevelt not send federal troops to San Francisco to stop a Longshoremens’ strike. History now remembers this as the San Francisco General Strike of 1934, which led to the unionization of all the ports on the West Coast. Also in 1934, Secretary Perkins was touring steel mills in Pennsylvania when she asked the town of Homestead for meeting space. When the mayor refused to allow such a meeting on city property, Perkins found an alternative venue and held the meeting anyway, informing the workers of their Collective Bargaining rights.
Frances Perkins was also a force in the Capitol as well. In fact, you can link most of the main pieces of legislation that ended the Great Depression to the Secretary of Labor. From the Fair Labor Standards Act, which established minimum wage and overtime standards, to the revolutionary Social Security Act of 1935, just to name a few, the name Frances Perkins is written all over the New Deal. It is also a name which you see each time you enter the Department of Labor, which is housed in the Frances Perkins Building. Not to put all of this pressure on the incoming Secretary of Labor, but for the United States to climb out of the depths of this recession, Hilda Solis must become our Frances Perkins, the voice of the working class.
President-elect Barack Obama looks on as his nominee for Secretary of Labor, Representative Hilda Solis (D-CA), talks to the media.
In December, the president-elect nominated then-Representative Hilda Solis (D-CA) to join his Cabinet as Labor Secretary. That’s when the right wing circled the wagons, hoping to shoot down the chances of having Secretary of Labor that has long been a supporter of unions. After seeing Cabinet Member after Cabinet Member pass through confirmation, it finally came time for Secretary of Labor. The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) heard the testimony of Hilda Solis in early February. After numerous delays, the committee approved the nomination by voice vote and sent the confirmation to the Senate Floor. Members of both parties praised Solis. “Hilda Solis comes from a working family herself so she understands how the troubled economy is hurting average Americans. American workers deserve to have her voice and her leadership as their Secretary of Labor, and I’m pleased that our committee approved her,” said Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), Chairman of the HELP Committee. Ranking minority member Senator Michael Enzi (R-WY) added, “I look forward to working with her in her new Cabinet position as Secretary of Labor and her staff on the this and the many other labor and economic issues facing our country.”
The full Senate voted in favor to confirm on February 24, and the vote included a majority of the Republican caucus voting for the confirmation.
Now that we can officially say Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, the initiatives are simple…Employee Free Choice Act, revamping the National Labor Relations Board, increase the minimum wage. These are just some the issues that will come across Secretary Solis’ desk in the coming weeks and months. I am confident that under her leadership, this country will once again flourish as it has in the past- under the strength of the middle class and working families. I am proud to call Hilda Solis Secretary of Labor, and look froward to a brighter future for the Labor Movement. I have no doubt Hilda Solis will be today what Frances Perkins was to our grandparents- a Champion.
Yesterday, Kirsten Gillibrand was sworn in as the Junior United State Senator from New York. After a long wait to find out who would fill the vacancy left by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, we got an answer and, as we have done as a party over the last year, unite around the choice. However, many New York Democrats have refused to even give Senator Gillibrand a chance.
Governor David Paterson appointed then-Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand to the vacant US Senate seat shortly after Inauguration. There was an almost instantaneous reaction, but it was a surprise to me that the negative reaction came from many Empire State Democrats. Representative Carolyn McCarthy (D-Long Island) all but announced she will run in the Democratic primary election next year after appearing on cable news programs. The congresswoman, whose husband was killed and son injured by a gunman on the Long Island Railroad, based her decision on the National Rifle Association’s previous support of Senator Gillibrand. In addition, New York City Council Councilman Joel Rivera (D-Bronx) organized a protest on the steps of City Hall based on the senator’s immigration stance.
As we know, Kirsten Gillibrand comes from a highly conservative area of New York State, and her political views are representative of that of her district. This point only makes sense, considering my views represent a lifelong resident of Manhattan. The 20th district emcompasses parts of ten counties in an area that almost completely surrounds Albany. In running for Congress in 2006, Gillibrand was running against a strong incumbent in Representative John Sweeney. During the race, Gillibrand meshed her core Democratic values to those of her fellow residents of the 20th. Although a recording of a 911 call made by Sweeney’s wife claiming domestic abuse probably put her over the top, Gillibrand would not have been close had her viewpoints been as liberal as someone from New York City.
The logo of the Blue Dog Conservative Democrats
The Democratic Congressional candidates who were victorious in 2006 were mostly Conservative Democrats, known as “Blue Dog Democrats,” a coalition of moderate and conservative Democratic members of the House of Representatives. There are currently 47 members of the coalition, including Congressman Michael Arcuri (D-NY) and former Congresswoman Gillibrand. Without them, Republicans may have stayed in the majority in 2006, which may have led to a different result in the recent Presidential Election. As I mentioned, these are not your cookie-cutter Democrats, as they come from conservative areas of their respective states.
There is no precedent however to Blue Dog representatives becoming Senators; Kirsten Gillibrand will be the first. Now we come back to fellow Democrats objections to the appointment of Gillibrand to the United States Senate. I do agree that representing a conservative congressional district do not allow for one to be as liberal as the whole of New York State would prefer. However, in the past week, Senator Gillibrand has been more than receptive to speak with those who may be concerned with her viewpoints. I am optimistic that over the next few months, we will discover a more liberal Gillibrand than we have previously seen. This is why I wish my fellow New York Democrats would hold their criticism until Senator Gillibrand has a chance to get her feet wet in her new job. I also think it is wrong to judge someone on only one political viewpoint, such as gun control or immigration. The fact that the NRA has given Gillibrand a 100% rating on issues relating to gun owners has been mentioned at length. However, I have heard very little about the fact that Gillibrand also garners a 100% rating from the American Civil Liberties Union, and her views on a woman’s right to choose and laws protecting gay couples are consistent with the Democratic party platform.
Congresswoman Gillibrand campaigning for re-election last year with President Bill Clinton.
Personally, I would like to focus on the positive reasons behind the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand. The first that sticks out is that at 42 years old, Gillibrand is now the youngest member of the United States Senate. Considering the average age of Senators is 62, I am encouraged that somone from my own state is now, for all intents and purposes, the Young Democrat in the Senate. In addition, there are still 17 women remaining in the Senate chamber. Considering the previous holder of this seat just made 16 million cracks in the glass ceiling and, more importantly, the subsequent damage done by the unfortunate vice presidential campaign by Governor Sarah Palin (R-AK), I feel it was important to appoint another strong woman to this office. I can think of few who fit that description as well as Kirsten Gillibrand. Finally, I feel strongly that this seat will safely remain in Democratic hands for years to come. Not only does Gillibrand give an upstate-downstate balance to New York’s two US Senate seats, but her approval rating among New York Republicans is even higher than that of Democrats throughout the state. Combine this with the fact that Gillibrand raised in excess of $4.6 million for her reelection bid this past year, outraising her opponent and former Republican State Chair Sandy Treadwell 4-to-1 in the most expensive Congressional race in 2008 (Note: Though Treadwell had over $7 million in his campaign account, he only “raised” $1.1 million, while self-financing the campaign to the tune of $5.9 million; he still lost). Put simply, Kirsten Gillibrand is what can only be called a political powerhouse for the Democratic party, and will be for years to come.
In short, I want to express my great pleasure in the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand as the Junior United State Senator from New York. Together with Senior Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), we have two people in Washington, DC that will continue to bring resources, prowess, and pride back home to us here in the Empire State. Things continue to look bright here in New York…or should I say, bright blue!
Congress Member Anthony Weiner campaigning for Mayor in LIC Queens back in 2005
Watch out Mayor Bloomberg, Congress Member Anthony Weiner is catching up to you in the race for New York City Mayor in 2009. A new poll was released yesterday by New York 1. The New York 1 poll has Mayor Michael Bloomberg leading U.S. Congress Member Anthony Weiner 43%-36% with 17% still undecided. The poll also had Mayor Bloomberg with a 64% approval rating. The New York 1 poll has Mayor Bloomberg leading NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson 45%-32% with 19% still undecided. These numbers are sure to send shockwaves through New York City political circles. Look for the 2009 Mayoral election to heat up real soon.
If the 2010 race for New York Governor were held today, the race would be pretty tight. According to the Siena College survey, Governor David Paterson leads NYS Attorney General Andrew Cuomo 35%-32%. The Siena College Survey also has Governor David Paterson leading Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani 44%-42%. The poll also showed that if Attorney General Andrew Cuomo were to face Mayor Giuliani he would defeat him 48%-39%. This poll is sure to shake things up in Albany, and the next few months should be a very interesting time in New York State politics. We will bring you more information as soon as we receive it.
The New York State Young Democrats would like to congratulate State Senator Malcolm Smith on being elected as the majority leader of the New York State Senate. We are so proud that after many years of hard work the Democratic Party has retaken the majoirty in the New York State Senate. We look foward to our continued work with Majority Leader Smith and the rest of the new Democratic majority in Albany to increase our new majority.
Former United States Senator Claiborne Pell died yesterday at age 90. Senator Pell died after a very long battle with Parkinson’s disease. Senator Claiborne Pell (D-Rhode Island) served six terms as Senator from 1961 to 1997.
Senator Claiborne Pell was best known as the sponsor of the “Basic Educational Opportunity Grants Program’ which was passed in 1972. This program later became known as the Pell Grant in 1980. Pell Grants provideds billions of dollars to young people looking to attend college.
The New York State Young Democrats mourn the passing of Senator Pell and on behalf of all the young people who have benefited from Pell Grants we would like to say thank you to Senator Pell. You will certaintly be missed.
Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA) addresses the Democratic National Convention in August. President-elect Barack Obama has nominated Solis to become Secretary of Labor.Rep. Hilda Solis joins fellow Congress Members Rosa DeLauro, Jan Schakowski and George Miller along with Former Miss America Carolyn Sapp and AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Linda Chavez-Thompson in 2005. This was a campaign called “Love Mom, Not Wal-Mart” protesting against gender discrimination within the conglomerate. Behind them is a giant Mother’s Day card which all signed.
Throughout her years in Congress, Hilda Solis has been one of the most ardent supporters of the middle class around the country. Rep. Solis has a near perfect voting record when it comes to the interests of working families, according to themiddleclass.org. In fact, when it comes to the most important issue to unions today, the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), Rep. Solis signed on as a co-sponsor to the bill introduced by fellow California Congressman, Rep. George Miller (D-CA). When the debate on EFCA hit the House floor, Hilda Solis made no bones about her strong support for the passage of the bill.
As a third generation member of a union, and a second generation union officer, I will be proud to have Hilda Solis heading the Department of Labor.
On Thursday October 2, 2008 New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he was interested in seeking a third term as Mayor of New York City. The biggest question lately is what party would Mayor Bloomberg run as? Would he seek another term as a Republican, would he run as an Independent, would he create a new party, would he run as a Democrat or would he run on all lines.
It has been reported that at a press conference at City Hall today a reporter asked the Mayor about the trend that he has been trying to associate himself lately with important leaders in the Democratic Party. The reporter noted that the Mayor was set to appear on New Year’s Eve with President Clinton and Senator Clinton. Bloomberg said “I don’t know that my links to the Democrats are growing any more than my links to Republicans, who are not growing, depending on who you ask.”
We would like to hear what you think about Mayor Bloombergs re-election bid and what party you think he should as. Maybe Mayor Bloomberg should not run at all. That would certainly solve all of our problems.
