NewsNewsRedistricting AmericaRepublicans are Campaigning to take more seats in Congress by unfair redistricting. Over the last 30 years Republicans have worked hard to cram as many progressive democrats in to as few districts as possible. Republican actions affirm that there will be fewer progressives represented in Congress and makes it easier for Republicans to take control with their own agenda. There are many Democratic districts with over 75% progressive votes in the country and almost no republican districts exists with over 60% Republican votes. This un-equal districting ensures it so African-Americans, Latinos, women, gays, and the middle class are under represented. We have started a nation wide campaign to get more progressive seats and to have a more progressive redistricting for congress. Republicans have shown that they do not care about fairness and that they are only out for power and control. We need to fight against this so that we can be properly represented. Our campaign to redistrict follows. Please help us fight back! Join us, organize ,donate, and get the massage out. We can meet with any group so that we can organize and work together. Please call or e-mail and we can arrange to have someone meet with your group. Why We Need A Progressive Map Democratic states like need Democratic congressional district maps, because they are competing for influence in Congress with other states that have Republican district maps. If a Democratic state adopts a "bipartisan" congressional district map, it amounts to unilateral disarmament against Republican states like Texas that have no misgivings about electing as many Republicans to Congress as possible. In order to meet this challenge and keep our members of Congress out of the minority, we must elect as many Democrats as we can. Why We Need More Primary Challenges The primary challenge is one of the basic tactics that progressives have failed to take advantage of in recent years. While attempts at open seats are common, attempts at seats held by conservative Democratic incumbents are virtually unheard of. If you compare to the Republican side, where conservative primary challenges are frequent by comparison, it is not hard to see why Republicans have had more discipline and are making debate and policy more conservative. Obviously, we put a cap on the number of progressive legislators if we continue to write off seats held by conservative Democrats. But even if we challenge a conservative and lose, we still gain something. A Democratic legislator with no fear of a primary challenge will have little to lose by ignoring progressive voters, and instead will spend their efforts attracting more conservative voters. A Democratic legislator with a potential primary challenge will have not have the option of ignoring progressive voters. Progressive versus Democratic districts In the 2009-2010 congressional term, the Democratic party had the largest majority either party has had in decades. However, this translated into little in the way of actual policy accomplishments. One major reason is that the balance of power may not have been held by Republicans anymore, but it was still held by conservatives. The party affiliation was Democratic, which determined the leadership positions (Speaker of the House, Majority Leader of the Senate, committee chairmen) and therefore helps determine the agenda. But without a progressive majority, progressive bills cannot pass. The Republicans' War on Women's Right to ChooseRepublicans continually intrude into the most personal decisions women make regarding their health, lives and families. The Republicans won on their budget rider to restrict Washington, DC's ability to spend their own tax money on poor women's abortion assistance. This is how extreme their efforts are on the focus against women's rights: even restricting local governments' ability to spend their own tax dollars for women's legal rights. At the national level, they tried to eliminate the ability of women to buy health insurance that contained abortion coverage. They tried to eliminate insurance companies from providing abortion coverage, even if extra fees for this coverage came from the individual buying the insurance. Republican's are winning in individual state's efforts by passing laws to restrict women's rights to abortion by limiting the time available to obtain abortions, requiring women to have waiting times after requesting services, placing certain “counseling” or education services that require ultrasound or biased “education” services. Abortion activists are afraid to fight these laws with lawsuits of their own because they want to avoid a resulting fight at the Supreme Court that might ultimately end in a repeal of Roe v. Wade. It is not just the Republicans who are the problem. Democrats are afraid to stand up. DAPAC has seen pro-choice House candidates who have been refused Democratic Party endorsement at the national and state levels while an anti-choice candidate or incumbent was given Party endorsement. Also, the final insult, a candidate was refused a choice organization's endorsement because they feared their donors, who supported the non-choice candidate, would stop their donations to the choice organization. Surprised? No, look at the history of choice supporters' votes. Choice supporters don't always support choice candidates; they are not single issue voters as the radical right is. “Pro-lifers” will vote for a candidate on this issue only. Women who want the right to choose are continually “thrown under the bus” in favor of other issues by voters, candidates and the Democratic Party. That's right, even some Democrats, incumbents and candidates, will fail to act for us. After all, where will we go with our votes? Here's my answer: Women's right to choose is our right to safeguard our lives and health. Pregnancy can present health and life risks for women, pregnancy prevention does fail, and women do not always have the power to refuse to have sex. The right to choose should have been my mother's right, it was my right, it should be my daughter's right, my neices' right and my grandaughters' right. . . all women of childbearing age should have the right to have power and control over their own bodies. We must have the right to obtain abortions in legal and safe conditions. We WILL NOT return to the back-alleys of of the past. Let's support the candidates and organizations who will fight for our rights with our work, our money and our votes. Subcategories |