Campaign

As the eyes of the political world turn to Charlotte this week for the Democratic National convention, speculation about the fate of North Carolina’s 15 electoral votes on Nov. 6 continues. Depending on who you ask or which electoral map you’re consulting, the Tar Heel State is a safe bet for Mitt Romney one day and a toss-up the next; one week it’s the moderate “New South” and the next it’s leaning back toward its Deep South neighbors. In 21 of the 22 polls conducted by Public Policy Polling since the 2010 election, President Obama and Romney have been within 3 points of each other, and several other recent polls show a statistical dead heat. One certainty remains: North Carolina’s status as THE battleground state to watch is here to stay.

My grandfather used to say, “Don’t tell me your priorities. Show me your budget, and I’ll tell you your priorities.” So, let’s compare the Obama-Biden record in three critical areas — Medicare, taxes and veterans — with what is in the Romney-Ryan budget.

First Medicare, where there is perhaps no better contrast and choice facing Americans.

President Obama and Vice President Biden want to ensure Medicare is solvent for generations to come.

Last week, The Republican Party declared it wanted to deny millions of families the opportunity to achieve the American dream – including my own.
 
There are 1 million parents who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) raising 2 million children in the United States. We are part of the diverse fabric of our nation which increasingly includes blended and multi-generational families, adoptive and foster families, families headed by single parents, divorced parents and unmarried couples, and our families shouldn't be cheated out of  access to opportunities simply based on who they are.

Late last year, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney proclaimed, “I favor gay rights.” Apparently Gov. Romney thinks he can simultaneously say he favors gay rights while also opposing any form of relationship recognition for same-sex couples and supporting an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that bans marriage equality. He also opposes a federal law that would finally make it illegal in all 50 states to discriminate against gay and transgender workers.
 
With respect to marriage equality, civil unions, and workplace fairness, it is safe to say that Mitt Romney does not actually “favor gay rights.”

A few weeks ago, former New York Mayor Ed Koch told me that he had been so mad at President Obama earlier this year over his stance on Israel that he engineered the loss of Anthony Weiner's Democratic congressional seat to a Republican. "I had a falling out with President Obama when he announced that Israel has to go back to the ‘67 lines when it starts its negotiations with Palestinians," he said. "I decided that Obama was taking the Jews for granted, as far as their vote...they gave 78 percent of their entire vote and I wanted to send a message."

Artur Davis
C/O Republican National Convention
401 Channelside Drive
Tampa, FL 33602

Dear Artur,

We are writing to express our disdain over several recent comments you have made about the important issues facing voters in November, your total distortion of President Barack Obama’s record, and your complete flip-flop on certain core principles you once held dear. Given the magnitude of your recent transformation, we can only conclude that, rather than a true conversion, your actions are the result of a nakedly personal and political calculation or simmering anguish after failing to secure the Democratic nomination for governor of the State of Alabama in 2010.

Despite recent news reports that you sought advice from a Virginia political consultant about running for office as a Democrat, you currently proclaim to have switched to the Republican Party. However, in 2009 you repeatedly criticized former Representative Parker Griffith for the same act, saying, “his decision repudiates the hard work of many Democrats who sustained him during his election to two high offices.” You continued, “He leaves a party where differences of opinion are tolerated and respected to join a party that in Washington, marches in lockstep, demands the most rigid unity, and articulates no governing philosophy beyond the forceful use of the word, ‘no.’”

It’s unconscionable that you now claim Voter ID laws do not violate civil rights or suppress minority voter turnout. Yet in 2007 while still representing Alabama’s 7th congressional district, you joined then-Senator Obama in calling for the resignation of the Justice Department’s Voting Rights chief after he claimed that Voter ID laws did not hurt minorities, saying, “you can't argue that voter ID laws don't disfranchise African- Americans.”

You also may recall that less than two years ago, you routinely touted your progressive record as a member of the House of Representatives. You supported the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Wall Street reform bill, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and ending tax subsidies for oil companies. Despite voting against the final bill, you even supported major pillars of the Affordable Care Act like banning discrimination against pre-existing conditions, expanding Medicaid, and providing tax breaks to small businesses that provide health care, to name a few.

Contrary to your recent declarations, you hailed President Barack Obama as a “beacon of leadership,” touted President Obama as your “model,” and widely described the President as a friend. As a member of the House of Representatives, you supported President Obama’s agenda 95% of the time, were quoted saying “I agree with him on everything,” and repeatedly invoked President Obama in your failed gubernatorial campaign.

It is important that the American people have these important facts and draw their own conclusions about your true motivations for speaking at the Republican National Convention.

We have come to the disturbing conclusion that your recent public statements have no basis in real policy or political disagreements, but rather they stem from transparent opportunism and a personal determination to overcome failing to win the Alabama Democratic primary for Governor in 2010. We regret that you have chosen this course, but are confident that the American people see your pronouncements for what they are and come to the same disappointing conclusion of your former colleagues.

Sincerely,

Chairman Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-Mo.)
Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.)
Rep. G. K. Butterfield (D-N.C.)
Rep Donna Christensen (D-VI-AL)
Rep. James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.)
Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.)
Rep. Donna F. Edwards (D-Md.)
Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio)
Rep. Barbara J. Lee (D-Calif.)
Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.)
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.)
Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.)
Rep. Terri A. Sewell (D-Ala.)
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.)

The rest of the country followed Delaware’s lead in ratifying the Constitution. Congress, too, should take its cue from Delaware for its leadership in passing legislation addressing anonymous spending in elections.

What will the campaign for control of both houses of Congress look like as we move down the home stretch?  Two factors in particular are worth examining: Will there be coattails and will common sense on resource allocation lead both parties to maximize their chances in congressional races?

Conservative activists in California are promoting a deceptive ballot proposition that would increase the ability of business groups and billionaires to dominate state elections. The measure, Proposition 32, claims to be an even-handed effort at campaign finance reform – but nothing could be further from the truth. Prop. 32 (or “Stop Special Interest Money Now,” as its big money supporters prefer to call it) would cripple the ability of unions to participate in politics, but have little or no impact on unlimited spending by corporate executives and other wealthy individuals.

“Just because a couple people on the Supreme Court declare something to be constitutional does not make it so. The whole thing remains unconstitutional.” 
—Tea Party favorite Rand Paul on the Supreme Court decision on the healthcare case 6/28/12

Translated: La Constitution, c’est moi. Call it the Tea Party credo, otherwise reflected by Texas GOP primary winner Ted Cruz’s notion that the only way to get things done in Washington — or in his words, “Take our country back” — is for everyone to adopt his point of view.