The Pulse of Liberal Activism

My dearest Dems,

Welcome back to Election Watch 2010 with Matt and Bridgit! Today were a taking a look at the great state of California, Matt’s home state and one of the most liberal-leaning in the United States. Currently, California is home to two Democratic senators, the most liberal Republican governor in the nation, and Democratic majorities in both the State Assembly and State Senate. However, due to recent political feeling, Republicans and pollsters alike have claimed that this state could elect a GOP candidate to national office.

The Senate seat up for grabs here currently belongs to Barbara Boxer, a three-term incumbent who was the second female Jewish Senator ever elected. Boxer is originally from Brooklyn, and her first career was as a stockbroker. Boxer moved to California in the late 1960s, and first ran for political office in 1972, losing a close election for Marin County Supervisor. She won her first election in 1976 to that very position, and moved on to the House of Representatives in 1982, representing a Northern California district. Eventually, she ran for the Senate in 1992, filling an open seat vacated by Democrat Alan Cranston, winning by 5 points. Boxer was reelected in 1998 by 10 points, and in 2004 by 20. Unfortunately, her approval ratings have since fallen in the state, with a current Survey USA poll showing that 47% of Californians disapprove of her (compared to 41% approval).

The Democratic primary is not a serious one, as Boxer has the full support of both the state and national party. The Republican side, however, is hotly contested. Three candidates have basically split primary support, those being Tom Campbell, Carly Fiorina, and Chuck DeVore. Campbell is a former U.S. Representative from Northern California, and he has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. Campbell is liberal on social issues but is quite conservative when it comes to economic policy. He voted no on Proposition 8, and maintains a strong libertarian following. Fiorina is the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard and a former McCain 2008 economic strategist. She has never run for political office, and her first and only foray into the field was with the McCain campaign, which ungraciously dumped her after a few ill-advised comments. DeVore is a member of the California State Assembly representing Orange County. DeVore served in the Reagan administration in the Department of Defense, and has served in the National Guard since 1985.

Current polling has shown this race to be quite close. The Republican primary currently has Campbell with a slight lead, but he and Fiorina are within single percentage points of each other. DeVore has been running a distant third the entire time, whereas Campbell and Fiorina keep switching off in the top spot. When Boxer is placed against these candidates, the race becomes closer than one might expect. Against Campbell, the most recent polls have them in a statistical tie, with Boxer holding a 2 point advantage. Against Fiorina, Boxer is up by 4. Finally, against DeVore, Boxer is only up by 3. So no matter who takes the Republican primary, Boxer will be in for a tough fight.

Californians have been very reluctant to elect Republicans to national office in statewide elections, not having done it since 1988. However, this political climate has made it appear possible for a moderate Republican to take the seat. Nevertheless, with 10% still undecided, Democrats have reason to feel confident that this three-term incumbent will have a good chance to stay in the chamber.

Next Week: Our final post of the semester! We take a look at Indiana, where retiring Evan Bayh leaves a seat ripe for GOP picking… or is it?

I don’t always get political, but when I do, I prefer the Democrats. Stay liberal my friends.

The Women’s Caucus tabled at Take Back the Night’s sex-positive fair today. With shouts of “Sign a petition, get a sex cookie,” we got over 75 signatures for the petition on the Reproductive Health Act. And, we started to promote our event on Monday on Low Plaza.

Check out the pictures of Kaley and Allison Tabling and Marilyn and Sophia’s cookies!

Allison’s creativity knows no bounds.  (Well, there’s tequila: stay tuned for next week.)  She’s here tonight with the rest of Alma’s List painting giant signs in preparation for our activist event on Low Plaza, April 26.

The cause: New York’s Reproductive Health Act.

The issue:  This is a very technical statute, so it’s especially important to get the message across clearly.  And what does that take? CREATIVITY. Using bright colors and catchy (we hope!) slogans, we’re trying to convey to stressed out students that the RHA, though decidedly unsexy, is necessary.  RHA takes rights that are currently stated only negatively and states them positively.  In the current criminal code, abortion is codified only as an exception to homicide law. In other words, murder is illegal except in the case of a fetus.  This makes it difficult for potential abortion providers to determine whether or not an abortion is legal, even though Roe v. Wade protects the fundamental right to an abortion. The statute would reframe the protection of abortion into a positive guarantee of the right to an abortion.  It would do the same thing with a woman’s right to use or refuse birth control.

Nothing too radical, right?  But extremely important, for women, for health care providers, and, most importantly, for shifting the discourse on women’s reproductive health away from a discussion that stigmatizes a woman’s right to choose.  That’s a pretty big project for a bunch of kids sitting around in a dorm painting signs.  But, from our proclamation of CHOICE! CHOICE! CHOICE! to our commitment to “Cut through the Red Tape on a Woman’s Right to Choose,”  we’re taking it one step at a time.

Columbia Professor Dorian Warren talked to the Dems last night about labor-university relations. Check out the coverage here: http://www.columbiaspectator.com/2010/04/08/prof-explores-tense-relationship-university-unions

Greetings bread-starved Dems,

For those gentiles who did not understand that introductory remark, this past week was Passover, the holiday when Jews cannot eat any bread products, in remembrance of the exodus from Egypt. In honor of this holiday, your delightful board members, Bridgit and Matt, did not post on New Hampshire last week. But today is your lucky day, because here it is!

New Hampshire, once the bastion of New England conservatism, has been trending Democrat over the last couple elections, going for John Kerry in 2004 and Barack Obama in 2008. The seat up for grabs currently belongs to Judd Gregg, a retiring third-term incumbent. Gregg turned down a chance to be part of President Obama’s administration and now seems to be moving out of politics for good. Due to the recent nature of New Hampshire’s politics, it seems that this could be a possible pick-up for Democrats in 2010.

The Democratic primary, which occurs on September 14th, is not a very exciting race. Two candidates have declared, U.S. Representative Paul Hodes and Joseph Nadeau, a former state Supreme Court justice, but Hodes is the clear favorite to win the nomination. Hodes currently serves as the Representative from New Hampshire’s 2nd District. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1972 and Boston College Law School in 1978, after which he worked under then-New Hampshire Attorney General David Souter. Hodes first ran for political office in 2004, challenging incumbent Republican Charlie Bass in the 2nd District. He garnered only 38% of the vote, losing handily. However, he won the rematch in 2006, defeating Bass with 53% of the vote. Hodes has had some controversial moments in the House, most notably being the first to demand that Rep. Charlie Rangel surrender his gavel as Ways and Means Chairman. He did however, vote for the recent health-care bill.

The Republican field is quite crowded, as it seems to have been in every state we have covered thus far. However, Republicans seem to uniting behind former New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte. Ayotte is a Penn State graduate and a Villanova Law alum and is nationally known for her victory in Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood, where the Court said unanimously that a minor’s parents must be notified prior to an abortion taking place. Ayotte has had some big names appear at her fundraisers, most notably NRSC Chairman John Cornyn and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Ayotte is pro-life, against government bailouts, and is against the just-passed health-care bill.

Currently, according to the RealClearPolitics average, Hodes is down by about 8 points. Ayotte has led from the get-go, and recent political feeling has increased her support. However, Hodes is quite popular in his district, which makes up half of New Hampshire, and currently, he has a substantial lead over Ayotte in fund-raising numbers. In any case, this is going to be a difficult fight for Democrats, but is one which can be one if Hodes runs a well-thought-out race. Hopefully he can pull it off!

Next Week: California! (Matt’s home state and home of Barbara Boxer, a woman who could never lose… or could she?)

By the way, today’s post featured help from the wonderful Lead Activist Helen Kilian. If anyone else would like to aid Bridgit and Matt in writing these posts, come to the Diana Center on Thursdays at 1! We’d love to see you.

I don’t always get political, but when I do, I prefer the Democrats. Stay liberal my friends.