So, time to re-cap and take an analysis of messages that could improve this narrative:

This is about freedom of religion – indeed.  It is about freedom of religion for all of the thousands of employees at Catholic universities, hospitals, health care centers, etc., who are not Catholic – and even for the majority of Catholic workers at said employers who might still *gasp* choose to use birth control.  As I get counts on the number of workers at these employers in some Congressional districts, it becomes very evident that in many regions, if you want to work in your profession, working at a Catholic hospital may well be your only option.  Should that mean that your insurance benefits are proscribed by the religious beliefs of your employer?  Seems to me the Founders intended for individuals (human beings, not corporations, or quasi-religious institutions) to have freedom of and freedom from religious expression.  Bishops may dictate the faith to the flock, but they don’t speak for them to the government – polling figures this week, in fact, showed that most American Catholics disagreed with the Church position on this.

There are precious few institutions covered by these rules that do not benefit greatly from federal, state, and local funding from taxpayer dollars.  They should have a reasonable expectation that they will be required to abide by government standards as they do on workhours, OSHA standards, and, in fact, many state requirements that say that health insurance plans in their state have to cover contraceptives.  In fact, in states that have these requirements (and a Republican governor, that’s convenient!), we should ask whether the Republican leaders believe that the state of [let’s say, Wisconsin] has declared war on the Catholic church.

I really don’t see how paying for insurance coverage equates to violating the Church’s moral beliefs – and by the way, the Church is an organization, not an individual.  Is it possible for a hospital board to commit a sin?  Twelve years of parochial education certainly suggested to me that I was responsible for my own sinning.  These organizations happily pay for Viagra prescriptions to be filled.  If their employees then use their Viagra to go out and commit adultery, does that mean the hospital has sinned?  Or the dude with the Viagra?  Providing a prescription benefit is not the same thing as swallowing a pill with the intent to prevent a pregnancy – only an individual can do that.  Being given an occasion of sin, as I was exhaustively told, is your moment to shine!  It’s called free will.

Most Americans, including American Catholics, do not see contraceptives as a luxury, or an elective health care expenditure.  It’s part of everyday life.  Any individual has the absolute option not to use such methods, but let’s not allow that right to overshadow the Right’s constant, unrelenting willingness to make the issue about themselves rather than about denying women access to basic healthcare coverage that prevents unwanted pregnancy.

The Daily Kos/Markos tweeted today a hysterical point:  “Now that the GOP is an adjunct arm of the Catholic bishops, can’t wait for their support of DREAM Act and UI extension!”

The Catholic High School that I graduated from (Mascot: The Crusaders!  Get them infidels!) is celebrating its 50^th anniversary.  Predictably, they are desperately fundraising from alums for the occasion.  What a shame that as a registered Democrat, I’m not really allowed to be a Catholic anymore (okay, so I quit years ago, when at 11 I realized that if my best friend was destined for hell because she was Jewish, yet a much better person, than I, then this catechism was crap).  My 75 year old parents, lifetime Catholics and Democrats, are increasingly tired of being told that their political views are not Catholic.  Donate to the Crusader Fund?  You must be joking.

DC loves its summer dramas, but after all this hot air, if they can pass a debt ceiling anything by Tuesday, the greatest tragedy will be that I have hardly heard the word JOBS at all out of a politician’s mouth in weeks.  How this whole foofarawl (new word!) does anything but hurt the economy or the job market is beyond me.

I’ve spent the summer trying to purchase a second business; the phone bank that has done most of my calling for polls for the last 22 years.  And reluctantly, it dawns on me that I’m one of those saintly “job creators” the Republicans keep yammering about, so I may as well blog my experience as such:

• I don’t have a private jet or an oil company, so I fail to see how cutting those business tax loopholes matters to most small entrepreneurs like myself.
• I need a loan for the purchase amount, was turned down by the 1st megabank because I don’t have enough equity in my home according to their now too-depressed and austere evaluations — but hey, I can prove them wrong by selling my house, except I don’t want to do that…
• Got a bank loan from 2nd megabank because I got an SBA guarantee backing the loan — meaning that the full faith and credit of the United States (soon to be seen only in history books) pledges to make good on my loan — thank god for big gov’t programs like the Small Business Administration, because banks still ain’t lending money, unless you already have a lot.
• I am buying this business because they are simply the best vendor I’ve ever worked with, and with the owner retiring, I’d rather take the big leap and buy the means of production for my research rather than risk the sub-standard quality product I get elsewhere — but for 17 people, it means they won’t lose their jobs in a depressed economy.
• I have gotten tremendous amounts of help in this venture from the state’s SBDC (small business development center), a conglomeration of state, local, and federal government resources that helps people go from a business plan to ya know, being a job creator and success so I can complain about how high my taxes are.
• I am racing to close the loan before interest rates go up.  I’m assessing how many employees I need, both for the phone bank and for Victoria Research.  Like many job creators, I am hedging my bets, trying not to pay idle employees until I see work coming in, but wanting to get people in for training and stability, and maybe even make enough money to pay better benefits.  But I’m clutching money to my chest because I fear default and the economy getting worse, and when it looks like your government leaders need a preschool style timeout, confidence is not high.  This is the primary problem for job creators — the worry that I’ll have to pay the true cost of owning my own corporate jet someday if Democrats “win?”  Nope, not worried about that so much.

There are too many republicans who have sworn they will not vote for a debt ceiling hike under any circumstances. Can’t think of any House Democrats who are going to jump at the chance to relive this argument again in January, and take as a reward severe cuts to Medicare and Social Security, that have never been debated, and whatever other random red meat they throw into this hasty bill. I’m wagering that they’ve screwed up the rhetoric so high on the right, there is no GOP majority in the House for anything that avoids a default. They’ll be left saying they’ll allow the White House to raise the debt limit by itself – that’s a real profile in courage moment.

Take a Vote, Boehner. I Dare Ya.

workstation

There are days when it does not suck to be a keep-it-small, work at home sometimes, consultant.  Today is the day.  The Ridgeback is pouncing at a blue jay, the mosquitoes have not found me somehow, and the Drive-By-Truckers (http://drivebytruckers.com/) are playing at a pleasantly loud volume.  Finishing some client reports that are not even too late, yet, before heading to the beach.  Trying to stay focused on the righteous path (http://drivebytruckers.com/records.html).  They play July 23rd at the 9:30 club, it should be stinkin’ hot by then.

got a brand new car, it drinks a bunch of gas
got a house in a neighborhood that’s fading fast,
got a dog and a cat that don’t fight too much,
got a few hundred channels, to keep me in touch
got a beautiful wife, and 3 tow-headed kids
a couple of big secrets I’d kill to keep hid
I don’t know God, but I fear his wrath,
trying to stay focused on the righteous path.  (by Patterson Hood http://www.pattersonhood.com/)

All is not lost folks.  Voters are asking for even more change than they were promised.  We are in grief about the Gulf, and our powerlessness.  But we need to listen to the people first.  The art of conversation has been lost.

Grinding gears and getting up to full speed.  Time to get in shape.  6 weeks since ACL surgery; time to get tuned up.

Husband waiting with leftover grilled lamb and big glass of burgundy. and a red velvet cupcake from cakelove. man, that’s good husband. good to be home.

To the conservative priests and ministers in Queens who rallied behind a violent domestic abuser and supported him from their pulpits saying voters faced a “tough decision” — Um, not really.

Peralta — son of working class immigrants who defends tenants and fights for health care in his working class neighborhood and yes, happened to vote 3 times for marriage equality, Versus:

Montserrate — stole a quarter of a million dollars in taxpayer funds through a sham charity he set up, cut his girlfriend’s face “accidentally” with a broken glass, dragged her bleeding profusely through his building lobby where he was caught on tape (oops), then drove her 14 miles past 8 other hospitals to take her out of the city to Long Island for emergency care, then was convicted of crimes in said incident and expelled from the State Senate by his peers…

Tough decision?  Voters did not think so.

LGBT New Yorkers Defeat Monserrate, Elect Peralta

In what should become a model for how LGBT activists deal with elected officials who vote against equal rights, Fight Back New York’s campaign to defeat former State Senator Hiram Monserrate paid off big. Monserrate was defeated easily by Jose Peralta by a 3 –1 margin. Perralta is a member of the State Assembly who voted for marriage for same-sex couples three times.

Monserrate, who was convicted of a misdemeanor for an assault in which his girlfriend’s face was slashed with a broken bottle, was one of 38 state senators who voted against the New York marriage bill last year. Monserrate’s defeat is a clear message to politicians: vote against LGBT equality and use our families as political footballs and we will take you out.

From The New York Times:

Mr. Peralta, meanwhile, had a virtual army of outside supporters at his disposal, including union members, women’s rights groups and gay activists, among them members of Fight Back New York, a well-financed political action committee that works to oust state senators who oppose same-sex marriage and put Mr. Monserrate first on its list.

Fight Back New York is a smart and aggressive new PAC focused on one thing: defeating anti-equality New York state senators. In a matter of weeks, Fight Back New York built a political machine that sent out nearly 100,000 pieces of hard-hitting direct mail to educate voters, made 10,000 targeted phone calls to prime voters, launched an aggressive online information campaign, and produced a powerful video message from Cynthia Nixon.

As Nixon says in the video, “We’ve tried the carrot. Now its time for the stick.”

Fight Back New York’s work doesn’t end with the defeat of Hiram Monserrate. Its really the beginning.

From a recent Fight Back New York email:

In the next several weeks, we will together build a stronger, more robust campaign that will set its sights on where we can have the most impact for additional victories in the September primary elections and the November general elections. Each and every one of the remaining 37 New York State Senators who voted “no” to marriage equality-Democrats and Republicans-will be fair game.

Join with Fight Back New York to build a pro-equality state senate.

So now, I can blog and watch the olympics, and that is about it.  I had a pretty darn nice encounter with the American health care system today; since my spouse works for a local government, we have excellent coverage.  Yet were I single, as a small business owner with few employees, if I were providing insurance coverage for my family, we would pay a lot more for a lot less.  So…in getting around to politics, what happens after the Blair House summit?  For starters, I think moderate Dems, liberal Dems, and Dems in-between need to realize that their fortunes rise and fall with the President this year; helping him to succeed and salvaging our electoral prospects are one and the same.  Voters are frustrated that they voted for change yet see the same wrangling and inaction on Capitol Hill; while the GOP has been very successful in framing the debate for their own advantage, the elements of reform are still wanted and needed.  The White House has really failed in making the argument that health care reform is part of finding an economic recovery; this is not obvious to the majority of Americans who think the President can do either one or the other.  As Dems, we are also very reliant on the President to help us build a message for the Fall.  Currently, we’ve got bubkus.

But I also think it is quite extraordinary to see a President with such large congressional majorities get so little backing from his party — maybe Carter was the last time a Congressional majority seemed so, er un-united behind their President.  Certainly, the Reagan, Bush 41, and Bush 43 years were not like this — GOP legislators (majority or not) understood that when you have the Presidency, he’s kinda the leader of your party.  God knows they hung with George W. until the bitter end.

It’s time to buck up and show a united front, and get ready for the fight.  The Republican strategy of not doing anything in the Congress and obstructing everything is not a recipe for sailing to victory 7 months from now.  Their rapid abandonment of former darling Scott Brown because he supported a jobs bill is pretty damn telling — what are millions of out of work Americans when compared to making hay politically?

I bought a portrait of Barack Obama and it showed up a few days ago; as I hung it above our fireplace it made me think of all those African American living rooms that used to have a portrait of the trinity of JFK, RFK, and MLK, or even earlier families hanging a picture of FDR in their homes.  It made me almost emotional (I know, completely out of character) at the very act of hanging a picture of our first presidential person of color, our first funny-exotic name, our first President who is truly different from the 43 white men preceding him — or not so different, as a flawed and imperfect politician.  But I know that I’m not ready to give up on hope and change, and I know that every wo/man for himself in the Democratic Party is a plan that could drown us all in November.  So as soon as this bulky brace comes off my leg, I’m toning up at PT and I’ll resume kicking ass.

Barack Obama, by funky fabric artist Chris Roberts-Antieau

To Read the full Report, Click Here:        MessagingToAfricanAmericanCommunities_FNL

• majority of African-Americans do not see LGBT equality as a logical extension of the civil rights movement.  This is not because they are more or less anti-gay than other Americans; rather, they ascribe a very unique and personal description to the words “civil rights,” whereas other Americans tend to use “civil, equal, and human” rights inter-changeably.

• When asked to define civil rights, many African Americans go directly to examples of issues that were problems during the civil rights era of the 1950s-1970s, or even the specific wrongs remedied by the Civil Rights Act.  Thus, when asked whether or not the phrase applies to the struggles of gays and lesbians, often respondents go to unfavorable comparisons between the two groups, e.g. “the last time I checked, they (gays and lesbians) could eat in a restaurant,” or “they have the right to vote.”
• In contrast, using the terms “equal rights” or “human rights” to describe LGBT equality causes positive associations and respondents typically said “we are all human,” or “we are all created equal.”
• Discrimination is the great equalizer (unfortunately), in that African-Americans overwhelmingly recognize that gays and lesbians also face discrimination and feel that the problems of African Americans and LGBT Americans in this area are far worse than those faced by other groups.  Haye crimes, bullying, job and housing discrimination, and benefits for unmarried partners are all seen as problems for both groups.  Marriage is not considered as a discrimination issue.

– a little more about myself and how I work/think than I can get across in a boring ol’ bio; and

–de-mystifying survey research and calling out bad/sloppy/poorly reported research.

Yet I would be very, very remiss if I did not point out that many items under the second topic are thoroughly covered by the brilliant site pollster.com

So if by some odd chance you’ve arrived at this blog without knowing about Pollster.com, let me link to all the things I won’t have to cover here, like:

• What is push polling?  Are you doing push polls?  Why, go here!  http://www.pollster.com/blogs/the_ny_times_and_push_polling.php
• What is the latest on reaching cell phone users in phone polls? Why, go here! http://www.pollster.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-search.fcgi?tag=Cell%20Phones&blog_id=2
• Are these automated polls as good as live interviewers?  Why, go here! http://www.pollster.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-search.fcgi?tag=Automated%20polls&IncludeBlogs=2
• I don’t really understand what they mean by “weighting,” but my pollster is such a bully I’m afraid to ask?  Why, go here! http://www.pollster.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-search.fcgi?tag=Weighting&IncludeBlogs=2

You should be getting the idea that they cover a lot of topics, including very thorough trend lines on most major statewide races around the country.  So, when folks wonder why I don’t blog at least once a day, it’s because I’m busy, because I really don’t envision this blog as a place to spout off on every ‘lil thing (my positions on issues tend to be pretty unimportant to my clients, they come with their own isues), and because there are sites whose job it is to blog everyday, and they do it better than I could.  Pollster.com.  Bookmark it!

Fun Fact:  Mark Blumenthal, one of the main brains behind Pollster.com and a former pollster himself, was one of my first job interviewers w-a-a-a-y back in 1989(?) when he was an analyst at Hickman Maslin.  I’m sure he doesn’t remember, but he painted a rosy picture of long hours, tedious repetitive work, demanding clients, no advancement for at least 3 years beyond “the coding room,” and low pay.  I wish he hadn’t sugar-coated things, I might have a chosen a different path!

Actually, I think Dems and progressives need to stop wringing their hands and moaning about public financing, and accept the Supreme Court’s Jan 21st ruling that corporations are entitled to spend unlimited funds in our elections for what it is: a great gift tossed right in our laps in our time of need, and a fabulous wedge issue for 2010, 2012, and possibly beyond.  I am not talking about the supposed bonanza this means for the political consulting industry, I’m not even really talking about campaign financing at all.  That is a piece of the pie, but we have got to think BIGGER.  The Court’s ruling has successfully flanked McCain-Feingold, and with this conservative majority it ain’t gettin’ better soon.  The big picture issue that is beautifully highlighted now is simply this: Corporations are Not People.  There is a very fast-moving effort afoot to amend the Constitution and specify that its rights and liberties do not automatically apply to corporations, i.e., abolishing the notion of corporate personhood.  Nope, not a crazy idea at all — there has been vigorous academic and legal debate about this created notion since the moment it was first handed down.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_personhood_debate

It is possible that Congresswoman Donna Edwards (MD-04) will be introducing an amendment as early as this week.  I really like this video that sums up the thinking: Free Speech for People — and Kudos for excellent use of a Mel Brooks clip!  Senator Jamie Raskin is my State Senator — he melts my hard little consultant’s heart!

Think about it:

1. Between the banks, Wall Street, and AIG our respect for corporate America has never been lower.  Very few voters disagree with the notion that corporations have undue influence in our political system.
2. Precedent for the notion of  “artificial persons” is traced to an 1886 Supreme Court Case,  Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, wherein the railroad barons managed to finagle an interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause to include corporations.  Ri-i-i-ght.  It wasn’t about slavery; it was about freeing the poor railroads…
3. Conservatives will gnash their teeth, and moan that we are trying to destroy the capitalist system, but this is not about harming corporations.  We, as People, can decide to give corporations all sorts of rights that make sense for smooth commerce.  But I don’t believe for a minute that their rights were guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights as “inalienable.”  And about 90% of Americans would agree.
4. Care to run against anyone who votes for the rights of corporations to spend unlimited amounts in campaigns?  How, exactly, does one explain in non-legalese that you think corporations = people?

And for the record, there are already some swell efforts under way to limit how corporations can participate in campaigns.