John Edwards' Next Act

I lifted this wholesale from Todd Beeton at MyDD

Post-campaign, John Edwards is concerning himself with an issue larger than a potential endorsement of one of his former rivals.

From The Politico:

John Edwards--former North Carolina senator, two-time presidential candidate and darling of the left--started a new chapter of his political narrative today.

He and his wife Elizabeth Edwards are joining an multi-million dollar anti-Iraq war campaign dubbed "Iraq/Recession." The couple will join a coalition that includes MoveOn.org, the Service Employees International Union and the Center for American Progress.

The Nation expands on the project's mission:

The multi-million-dollar Iraq/Recession Campaign, which launches Monday, seeks to remind voters, in the words of organizers, that, "As economic concerns weigh heavily on the minds of Americans, opposition to President Bush's reckless war in Iraq continues to grow. The massive cost of the war in Iraq - hurtling toward one trillion dollars - has increased demand for a strategy to bring U.S. troops home. The Iraq/Recession Campaign will highlight the majority of Americans who want to see leadership on investing in critical priorities at home and establishing real security throughout the world."

... The Nation's take on how Edwards is casting his post-primary, pre-general election role:

He has, however, begun to identify the role he may play in a fall Democratic campaign - not as a vice presidential running mate, which seems extremely unlikely, but as an outspoken advocate for a party platform and ticket that recognizes how an unnecessary war has diverted resources and energy away from the real work of building a functional and just domestic economy. Even if he has yet to pick a candidate, John Edwards has "endorsed" an approach to the 2008 race. And it's the right one, especially in a contest with John "100 Years of War" McCain.

http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/2/25/135735/000

Join the MDP and Vote at the March Conventions

I wrote this for a West Michigan audience, but it fits for anyone in Michigan (I've tried to modify it, but I don't have a lot of time). I believe Edwards folks are organizing in Macomb and Oakland (the 12th and 9th Districts). Anyone who wants to lead up a team and/or be a delegate in their District should email me at MichiganForEdwards AT gmail DOT come.

I’ve been wanting to thank y’all for your hard work during the 13 months of the campaign. But, I’ve waited since I’ve also wanted to make an announcement:

1. The Congressional District Convention

For us pro-Edwards Michiganders the campaign actually continues.

On Saturday, 29 March at 10:00 am, across Michigan, Democrats will meet in Congressional District Conventions to actually pick the people who will be Michigan’s delegates to the National Democratic Convention in Denver in August to nominate the next President.

In order to take part in this “second primary,” you have to be a member of the Michigan Democratic Party by Thursday, 28 February at 5:00 pm!

You can join the Michigan Democratic Party online with a credit card right now at http://www.michigandems.com//join.html or call (517) 371-5410.

You’ve got just about 30 hours from the writing of this email to join the MDP and thus be eligible to vote in the District Conventions. A basic membership is just $20 (students and retirees are just $10, in fact, actually, it’s possible to join without a financial requirement). I know many of us are upset about how the MDP leadership’s handling of the primary, but the way to reform the Party is from the inside and to make change, you’ve got to be a member. So, I urge you to join so you can vote in the March Conventions and change our party for the better.

The Second, Third and Sixth Congressional Districts (the West Michigan districts) each will elect 5 delegates to the National Convention, 3 each for Hillary Clinton and 2 each as Uncommitted. When MDP members show up at their District Convention they will be asked at registration to express a presidential preference. Current and former Edwards supporters should state that they “support Uncommitted.” You will then be placed with the Uncommitted Caucus (separate from those members who will preference Senator Clinton who will elect their own 3 delegates). The Uncommitted Caucus will likely be made up of Obama supporters, Edwards supporters and all those who remain undecided.

Once you enter the Convention room, look for some “John Edwards for President” signs and folks with stickers and buttons. We’ll hold a quick caucus of our own at about 9:30 am, select a slate of delegates (one or two) and then officially endorse that slate or slates of candidates. Then we’ll go into the Uncommitted caucus and vote with the other Uncommitted MDP members for the two delegates to Denver. There will probably also be a slate of Uncommitted-Obama delegate candidates and some joint deal may be reached with the Obama camp to run a united Obama-Edwards delegate slate, but that’ll be decided later or even at the conventions (that’s the outcome I’d like to see). Regardless of what you’ve decided after John’s exit from the race on 30 January – to remain pro-Edwards, to stay undecided, or to go over to Obama or Clinton – I hope that if you were for Edwards on 15 January, that you’ll caucus with Edwards supporters and vote for the candidates that we decide to back.

OK, so why vote for an Edwards supporter to be an Uncommitted Delegate to Denver even though John has dropped out?

Well, had Edwards been on the ballot – as he was in Florida – I think it’s fairly obvious that -- after the second place in Iowa, with a strong local campaign I would have run, and before the disappointments of Nevada and SC – he would have easily reached the 15% vote minimum to earn a delegates in most Michigan Congressional Districts (at least those outside the city of Detroit). So, one of those two Uncommitted delegates in the three West Michigan districts is really an “Edwards delegate” given even the minimal pro-Uncommitted campaign Edwards people ran. Even after John pulled out, the delegates he won in Iowa, NH and SC are still delegates committed to him and pledged to vote for him on the first ballot in Denver. So, even with John out, had his name been on the ballot, we would be meeting as a separate caucus to elect one delegate to Denver, rather than meeting jointly with other Uncommitteds. So, we current and former Edwards supporters should try to get a former or current Edwards supporter to be one of the delegates selected on 29 March at the District Conventions in West Michigan (the Second, Third and Sixth Districts). We should do this because it really is essentially our delegate and because those who worked hard for Senator Edwards deserve to be considered as delegates. So, there seem to be two theories on what an Edwards delegate would do in Denver (if he or she is actually seated):

* Theory/Platform 1: The one of two Uncommitted delegates in the Districts that is an Edwards delegate would vote for Edwards on the first ballot, but would promise to then vote for Obama on subsequent ballots since we can be sure that the Uncommitted votes in Michigan were not for Clinton since she was on the ballot. In that sense, we’d be electing a “Edwards then Obama Uncommitted delegate.”
* Theory/Platform 2: The one of two Uncommitted delegates in the Districts that is an Edwards delegate would vote for Edwards and then take the advice of John Edwards on what to do next so as to further the power of Senator Edwards at the Convention, so that he can influence the Party Platform and the nominee’s agenda in a progressive-populist and pro-union direction and, yes, so that JRE would be promised a role in a future Democratic Administration. This would be an “Edwards Uncommitted delegate.”

I continue to be in contact with the folks who organized Edwards people in Michigan for Edwards – led by Ed Bruley, the former chief of staff for David Bonior. We’ll be listening hard to their advice and so our thoughts may change – but that doesn’t matter for today, what we ask you to do today is join the MDP so you can vote at your 29 March convention.

The Third Congressional District Convention
Saturday, March 29
Registration Begins at 9:00 am (you should be registered by 9:30 am)
Convention Begins at 10:00 am

Creston High School
1720 Plainfield Ave. NE, Grand Rapids

5 Delegates: 3 Clinton, 2 Uncommitted (and 1 Alternate).
Primary Results:
Clinton: 52% (14,957 votes)
Uncommitted: 44% (12,732 votes)

We know of at least two Edwards supporters running for National Convention Delegates.
* Joe Marckini: Joe is running as an Edwards supporter who will vote for Edwards on the first ballot and then follow John’s lead on any subsequent votes – an “Edwards Uncommitted delegate.” Joe really wants to be a delegate, and I’m more than happy to make him our #1 prime candidate. Joe is a member of the Kent County DP Exec Committee, a School Board member in Cedar Springs, and was a candidate for State Representative (District 73) in 2006.
* Myself (Phil Skaggs): Well, I only just started getting involved in local campaigns and the Kent County Party, but played, I think I can say, the leading role in the Edwards campaign in West Michigan. We were the most active campaign in the area and I think with all humility I could make an argument that I deserve to go. I’m from East Grand Rapids. I’d be running as an “Edwards then Obama Uncommitted delegate.” I am willing to go to Denver, but would be willing to step aside for someone who does want to go as some kind of Edwards delegate, has a longer history of local involvement and meets some of the affirmative action characteristics.

Does anyone else wish to also run for a National Delegate spot in the Third District? The deadline for filling out the form to be a candidate is tomorrow, so you’d need to fill out the short form and mail it overnight to the MDP in Lansing. The form and information are here: http://files.9thdistrictdems.org/2008DeclarationOfCandidacyForDelegate.pdf
Please, let me know if you file to run as a candidate and we can coordinate. We are more likely to be successful if we’re organized.

Joe and I are both non-minority, male candidates from Kent County. It would be nice to have the possibility of running a delegate candidate who is female, minority, disabled, gay, or from Ionia or Barry county (there is affirmative action to make the Michigan delegation look like the population of Michigan).

The Second Congressional District Convention
Saturday, March 29
Registration Begins at 9:00 am (you should be registered by 9:30 am)
Convention Begins at 10:00 am

West Shore Community College
3000 Stiles Rd., Scottville (near Luddington)

5 Delegates: 3 Clinton, 2 Uncommitted (and 1 Alternate).
Primary Results:
Clinton: 59% (16,427 votes)
Uncommitted: 37% (10,174 votes)

Does anyone wish to run for a National Delegate spot in the Second District? The deadline for filling out the form to be a candidate is tomorrow, so you’d need to fill out the short form and mail it overnight to the MDP in Lansing within the next few hours. The form and information are here: http://files.9thdistrictdems.org/2008DeclarationOfCandidacyForDelegate.pdf
Please, let me know if you file to run as a candidate and we can coordinate.

For more information, including information on the Sixth District Convention: http://www.westmichiganrising.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=14

FYI: Since Edwards suspended his campaign, I’ve remained neutral. I can see the pros and cons of Obama and Clinton and don’t see one as significantly better than the other.

Please pass this along to all Edwards supporters you know (unfortunately the campaign has shut down the OneCorps site, so I can’t send this to everyone).

Thanks again and I hope everyone participates in their Congressional District Conventions.

Remember: Join the MDP TODAY so you can Vote at District Conventions: http://www.michigandems.com//join.html

Edwards Meets with Obama in NC

From the AP story:

Obama spokesman Bill Burton:

"Senator Obama visited this morning with John and Elizabeth Edwards at their
home in Chapel Hill to discuss the state of the campaign and the pressing issues
facing American families."

Burton did not comment on the possibility of an endorsement.

In an interview Sunday night with WITI-TV in Milwaukee, Obama said,

"The meeting with John, we just wanted to talk about how we can move the party in a direction that focuses on middle-class issues — relieving poverty, reducing the influence of special interests in Washington."

People close to the Edwardses, speaking privately, say they have been torn about whom to support. The former North Carolina senator is concerned that Obama may not be ready for the presidency and that his health care plan is inferior. But Edwards was highly critical of Clinton — her policies, her ties to special interests and her character — during his campaign, making it more difficult to support her now. The couple has been impressed with Clinton, who has more effectively courted them since the 2004 vice presidential nominee dropped out, people who talk to the Edwardses say....

While Obama has made some silly and stupid remarks about Edwards since he left the race (see my previous post), Obama has begun to praise Edwards in public. This week he told Wisconsin voters that Edwards will "be a major voice in the Democratic party for years to come, and I want him involved and partnering with me in moving this country forward."

None of the other former Democratic presidential candidates — Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, Bill Richardson or Dennis Kucinich — have endorsed Obama or Clinton, reflecting the party's split over who would be the best president.

Edwards met with Hillary Clinton last week.

ABC has a really interesting piece on Edwards' thinking on an endorsement (absolutely worth reading).

Is Barack a jackass?

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0208/8321.html

Read about what Obama said, but forget the rest of the piece, it's just superficial bullshit from the media that helped sink Edwards.

I remain completely neutral about tonight FYI.

Obama: Weak on healthcare (not universal, no automatic enrollment, not enough subsidies, typical of cautious approach), pro-coal means he's not serious about global warming, nothing positive from him on trade (pro NAFTA expansion to Peru). The "cult" of Obama, frankly, freaks me out a little bit.

Hillary: Well on the issues, she's better than Obama, but she surrounds herself with some despicable people -- Mark Penn, Terry McAuliff, Al Fromm, Tony Cohelo, heck, Dick Morris in the past. No better than Obama on trade issues, maybe worse.

Who is the most electable in November now that we've failed the most electable candidate?
Tough to say.

Hillary: She's a fighter and understands the reality of DC. Will she pull in a ton of swing-voting women? But, she has very high negatives and will energize Republican activists and boost Republican/conservative turnout as anti-Hillary as much as pro-McCain. If the economy continues to go south, dreams of a magical restoration of the Clinton economy of the 1990s may push her over the top.

Obama: Brings in new youth voters and will get incredible turnout from African-Americans. But, I think he's a weak campaigner and matches up very poorly against John McCain (who actually has worked accross the aisle with the likes of Ted Kennedy, Russ Feingold and even John Edwards on important bills).

To me, you pick folks. I'll reluctantly and unenthusiastically support the winner of tonights final primary (sure someone may limp on as far as Wisconsin on the 19th, but there is no way in hell this primary season goes beyond February). Instead, I'll be working on the Brandon Dillon reelection campaign for Kent County Commissioner and maybe another campaign.

I'll be making a near final post in a few days.

In the meantime, I'm moving toward creating a West Michigan progressive blog (which is what else I'll be concentrating on instead of working my tail off for John Edwards).