Our Revolution is Neither

Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign resonated with Democratic voters in a rare way. While he did not achieve the success of Barack Obama’s electrifying 2008 election, his campaign helped create a spontaneous movement of support. Certainly, I saw it among my students who overwhelmingly favored Sanders and felt about him much like I had about Obama.

But spontaneous happenings only achieve long-term success if they institutionalize themselves and evolve into something more than what was once known as a happening in the 1960s. The Sanders movement has done that as the Sanders’ call for “a revolution” has evolved into the decidedly non-revolutionary organization called Our Revolution.

Our Revolution Maryland’s (ORM) approach in this election is emblematic of this new highly institutionalized, even establishment, approach. The campaign by Ben Jealous, a co-chair of Sanders’ 2016 bid, has all the spontaneity of your average Brezhnev-era central committee meeting. The contrast with the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign could hardly be greater.

While Sanders supporters bitterly objected to what they viewed as the Democratic National Committee’s tilt in favor of Hillary Clinton, that has nothing on ORM’s “process” for endorsing a gubernatorial nominee. Before the official process even began, Jealous told other candidates in no uncertain terms that ORM and Sanders’ organization would back him.

Prior to the launch of ORM’s kabuki endorsement process, ORM’s Director appeared right behind Jealous at the announcement of his gubernatorial campaign. Unsurprisingly, no other gubernatorial candidate agreed to participate in ORM’s endorsement charade because they didn’t want to validate a pre-determined outcome.

The Jealous campaign has been no less establishment. Its pollster, for example, is Fred Yang. He’s a deservedly well-respected Washington Democratic pollster. Yang has also worked on campaigns for numerous other mainstream Democratic candidates and issues, such as the Maryland marriage equality referendum in 2012.

Jealous’ running mate, Susie Turnbull, has held no elective office but she practically defines the term “insider” as a wealthy and connected former Maryland Democratic Party Chair – and not a renegade choice for that position. Turnbull has also long been very active in national DNC politics. Hardly the choice of a self-proclaimed revolutionary running to take down the Democratic establishment.

ORM has also made the highly strategic choice to avoid endorsing in the U.S. Senate campaign in order to support Jealous. Most mainstream Democrats regard U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin as a great guy but the more overtly hardline progressives are not happy, especially about Cardin’s unflinching support for Israel. ORM didn’t endorse either of Cardin’s more left-wing primary challengers as part of an effort to keep the influential Cardin out of the gubernatorial race.

As it turns out, the vaunted vanguard of the progressive revolution is not so different from the mainstream Democratic Party. Jealous hires the same political people, has an establishment running mate and received the pre-determined support of a political organization that, in turn, has tactically decided not to endorse other progressive candidates to help out Jealous.

It’s not surprising that Jealous would take this route. The NAACP remains the grand old dame and most established of African-American organizations. Moreover, the reason smart candidates don’t expect their campaign to be spontaneous electrifying happenings is that approach generally doesn’t work.

Just don’t expect much revolutionary out of Our Revolution or its candidate. Jealous decries half-measures and enjoys citing his grandmother’s wisdom that if you only fix half of a problem, you still have a problem. But, if elected, you should still expect lots of compromises, a hallmark of the American political system, or not much to happen at all. The revolutionary rhetoric cannot really mask a non-revolutionary approach.

That’s all to the good, as revolution is vastly overrated and most don’t turn out nearly as well as the American version.

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Aruna Miller Endorsed by Three Democratic Minority Clubs

Del. Aruna Miller, candidate for the Democratic nomination in the Sixth Congressional District, has been endorsed by three local Democratic clubs: the Coalition of Asian Pacific American Democrats (CAPAD), Association of Black Democrats, and the Latino Democratic Club of Montgomery County.

You can see their full list of joint endorsements here:

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MoCo Mailboxes: “God Help Us”

By Adam Pagnucco.

Mailboxes across MoCo are reeling from fatigue as they are crushed daily by tidal waves of political mail.  On Friday, your author received mailers from Action Committee for Transit, the sitting judges, Council At-Large candidate Will Jawando, District 18 Senate candidate Dana Beyer and District 18 House candidate Emily Shetty.  The next day your author received mailers from County Executive candidates David Blair and Roger Berliner, Council At-Large candidates Bill Conway and Evan Glass, District 18 House candidates Leslie Milano, Joel Rubin and Jared Solomon and the Maryland Realtors on behalf of District 18 Senate candidate Jeff Waldstreicher.  That’s thirteen political mailers in two days.

District 18 is an unusually busy place.  It has at least six General Assembly candidates with six-figure campaign budgets, or close to it.  But lots of places around MoCo have serious competition, including Congress District 6, Council Districts 1 and 3 and all the state legislative districts except 14.  In addition, there are strongly contested races for Governor, County Executive and Council At-Large.

Candidates line up to door knock at a Super Democrat’s house.

In the old days, the rule of thumb was that early mail was a waste of money.  Now we wonder about that.  There was a time not so long ago when Congress District 6 candidate David Trone, County Executive candidate David Blair and District 18 Senate candidate Dana Beyer – all self-funders – had the mailboxes largely to themselves.  Now the mailboxes may not be big enough to hold each day’s batch.  Everyone’s mail is getting lost in the shuffle.  And when so much of it looks the same – almost everyone is a “progressive leader” who promises to fund schools, fix congestion and resist Trump – it’s unclear that anyone can win through mail.  It’s going to take something else to get across the line.

The best of the mailers: District 18 House candidate Emily Shetty and her adorable son.

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Lately, your author has been performing a cruel experiment.  Our son just turned nine.  He much prefers Star Wars, nerf guns and video games to politics, but he understands that he has an eccentric Dada whose strange wishes must be occasionally tolerated.  So when the new batches of mail come, your author gives them to him and asks which ones are his favorites.  At first, the oppressed son dutifully complied and gave curt opinions.  (He likes Will Jawando because he met him and David Blair because he owns Badlands Playspace.)  But now, the requests for review are met with eye rolls and crankiness.  “Do I really have to look at this stuff?” he groans.

We suspect more than a few MoCo voters might agree!

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Nancy Floreen’s Recommendations for the June Primary

By Council Member Nancy Floreen.

As someone in the unique position of watching the campaign season after 15 and a half years of being on the inside, I have pretty strong feelings about who are the right folks for electoral office.

My criteria:

Is that candidate well informed about the office he or she seeks?

Is that person an honest broker – ie – with the experience and grounding in reality that leads to genuine capacity for problem solving?

Is that person candid, or does that person have a different story for every audience?

Is that person humble or does that person take credit for shared initiatives or make promises that cannot be kept?

Does that person have the demonstrated temperament to treat people he or she disagrees with respectfully?

Is that person an independent thinker, or likely to be more influenced by endorsers?

Does that person have a track record of credible community engagement ?

Does that person have the backbone to stand up to political pressure?

Does that person have a genuine passion for the office, or is it just another job?

Does that person stand a chance in the General Election?

There are a lot of candidates out there, but not that many who satisfy my standards..

Here’s who I believe warrants your vote.

Noteworthy are my current council colleagues running for re- election – Hans Riemer, Craig Rice, Sid Katz, Nancy Navarro and Tom Hucker. We don’t all agree on everything all of the time, but they are hard working, committed and all have long histories of community engagement.

As for the open seats – these are my picks :

Governor – Rushern Baker. You try wrestling with an entrenched school system and come out alive! Tough, rational and caring.

County Executive – Rose Krasnow – an experienced, yet independent voice. The former Mayor of Rockville, she has wide ranging financial, government and nonprofit management expertise, and is deeply grounded in the county and community issues.

County Council At Large –

Gabe Albornoz – long experience with the reality of our community and the ways of government through the Recreation Department

Marilyn Balcombe – a long term fighter for the largely ignored upcounty

Evan Glass – a staunch community organizer, known for his work with the Gandhi Brigade

Council District 1 – Reggie Oldak – the only candidate who actually knows the county and how the Council works (as a former staff member) and a long time community advocate.

This is a very important election for our collective futures! Be thoughtful in your choices!

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Franchot Endorses Blair

By Adam Pagnucco.

Comptroller Peter Franchot has endorsed County Executive candidate David Blair.  Franchot is popular with moderate, anti-establishment and pro-business Democrats and this could help Blair consolidate those groups.  We reprint Franchot’s blast email below.

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Dear:

As a proud Montgomery Countian who has lived in Takoma Park for nearly 40 years, I’m proud of the caliber of the candidates who are running to succeed my friend, the great Ike Leggett, as our County Executive. When we head to the polls on June 26, or during the early voting period, we will have the privilege of choosing one of several talented public servants with records of true accomplishment in both local and state government.

As your Comptroller and Maryland’s Chief Fiscal Officer, I believe we must elect the candidate with the right blend of values, experience and vision to ensure our County’s long-term competitiveness and economic prosperity. For me, that candidate is David Blair.

David is a lifelong Montgomery Countian who built one of America’s most successful health care companies right here in the county – one that began in a single room and went on to sustain thousands of family-supporting jobs. There is nobody who has a clearer understanding than David of the pressures facing Montgomery County’s working, middle-class families – far too many of whom have seen the size of their paychecks stagnate while the costs of living continue to rise.

There is also nobody who knows better than David that Montgomery County simply cannot sustain necessary investments in exceptional public schools, gridlock relief, safer communities and community reinvestment if we do not act immediately to create a stronger and more competitive business climate. The priorities that we all share are essential, but none of them are free.

That is why it is so essential that we create an environment where the government is more responsive to the entrepreneurs and small business owners who are the backbone of our economy. That’s why it’s so vital to send the message that in Montgomery County, economic development and social justice are complementary values, and that one cannot occur in the absence of the other. And it’s why we must embrace policies that allow the innovation of the free market to thrive – beginning with an end to the government liquor monopoly that has done such a profound disservice to our consumers, small business owners and the Montgomery County economy. This is the change that David Blair will bring to Montgomery County.

David has the vision and the experience of a leader. As someone who has given so much back to our community through his work to end homelessness and poverty, create better early childhood learning opportunities and improve the lives of people with disabilities, he also has the values of a true public servant.  David Blair is my choice for Montgomery County Executive, and I respectfully ask that you consider his candidacy.

To learn more about David and his campaign, please visit www.blairformontgomery.com.

Thank you, as always, for your continued friendship and support.

Peter

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Why Progressives Need Economic Growth

By Adam Pagnucco.

For progressives, few issues should be more important than the need for economic growth.  Why do we say that?  First, let’s see what happens when there is no growth.

We have previously written about what happened to the county budget during the Great Recession but we may not have done it justice.  During that time, the evaporation of revenue required the county to implement a series of huge cuts.  Consider what happened to this sample of programs during the recession’s three worst budget years.

These programs are the very essence of the best of progressivism: protecting people from discrimination, funding arts and humanities, paying for community grants to non-profits, helping those with special needs and creating affordable housing.  All were gutted during the recession.

Believe it or not, the above understates the impact of revenue absence.  Consider county employees.  Their collective bargaining agreements were broken and they went without raises for three straight years.  In FY11, they were furloughed.  In FY12, their benefits were cut.  MCPS employees were not immune as the county cut its local contribution per pupil for three straight years.

Perhaps cruelest of all was the county’s cut in its local earned income tax credit (EITC).  MoCo is one of the few counties in the U.S. that has its own EITC and it was once set to match the state’s credit under county law.  During the recession, the county changed its law to allow its EITC to vary and it was cut by almost a third.  How bad is it to cut a tax credit for the working poor during a recession?  Your author’s former employer, Council Member Hans Riemer, later introduced a bill to restore the EITC to its full amount.  After a tremendous fight, he passed it.

We don’t intend to criticize the County Executive or the County Council for making these cuts.  The economy went south and they didn’t have any money.  That’s the whole point here: without economic growth there is no money.

We are no longer in a recession but revenue growth is not as strong as it once was.  Consider the history of county revenue growth, excluding intergovernmental aid, since FY98.  Red bars in the chart below refer to years in which tax increases were levied.

From FY98 through FY09, revenue growth excluding intergovernmental aid rose by an annual average of 6.1%.  In the years since, it has grown by just 2.7% a year – and that includes the year in which the county implemented a 9% property tax hike.  The County Executive’s recommended FY19 budget includes a scant 1.3% growth in revenue excluding intergovernmental aid.  How much more spending on progressive programs can be financed with that?

It’s not a coincidence that the slow years for revenue overlap with the years in which county employment has barely grown, higher-paying wage and salary jobs are being replaced by lower-paying self-employment, business formation has flat-lined and taxpayer income outmigration has hit record levels.  Stagnant revenues are a result of a stagnant economy.

This dynamic is playing out right now.  Some on the County Council would like to expand pre-k education, a huge progressive priority and a great idea.  The problem is that it would cost – at minimum – tens of millions of dollars to be meaningful.  And when the county is already relying on tens of millions of dollars in employee and retiree health insurance money just to fund its current budget, there is no way that’s going to happen.

Tax revenue is the fuel in the engine of progressivism.  That’s because nearly everything that progressives want to do costs money, like funding schools, colleges, youth programs, senior services, social workers, support for vulnerable people, affordable housing and the like.  Conservatives don’t have this problem.  They think government is incompetent at best or evil at worst, so in their view, money given to government is bound to be wasted.  Progressives actually need tax revenue from economic growth MORE than conservatives do because it is essential to the success of their policy agenda.

Here’s the bottom line: you can’t say you’re a progressive and then oppose the growth in tax base needed to pay for a progressive agenda.  Any candidate with that position will be unable to implement progressive priorities if elected.

Progressives need economic growth.  Because without it, they can’t be very progressive at all.

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Brandy Brooks Pushes Back on ACT Scorecard

By Adam Pagnucco.

Council At-Large candidate Brandy Brooks has issued a statement pushing back on Action Committee for Transit’s (ACT) scorecard.  Your author received this scorecard in the mail today.  The scorecard rates candidates with a plus, minus or no rating on five issues: the Purple Line, MARC trains, opposing M-83, streets safe for walking and housing near transit.  ACT gave Brooks no rating on the above issues except for housing near transit, on which they gave Brooks a minus.

Brooks is disputing how her positions were characterized.  We reprint her statement below.

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Michelle C. Whittaker

Brandy Brooks for County Council At-Large

michelle@brandy4moco.com

ACT Scorecard Falsely Represents Brandy Brooks’ Positions on Transit

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD (June 8, 2018) — Misinformation regarding Brandy Brooks’ publicly available positions on transit are being shared in the Action Committee for Transit (ACT) scorecard. Brooks is setting the record straight to make sure voters across the county have truthful and accurate information to make their decisions. Brandy Brooks is an at-large candidate for Montgomery County Council.

The ACT scorecard claims to be based on several criteria including public statements, answers to questionnaires, and the candidate’s website. However, the rating does not reflect publicly available information regarding Brandy Brooks’ views on transit and housing. The Brooks campaign has attempted to work with ACT representatives to clarify the misinformation.

“The Action Committee for Transit is a dedicated group of volunteers who have been doing tremendous work on Montgomery County transit issues for many years,” said Brandy Brooks. “We share a deep commitment to a transit vision for our county that adequately serves our communities and reduces our reliance on personal vehicle travel. So it’s frustrating to find my positions misrepresented by ACT when we should be working together to build the community power we need to ensure strong transit investments.”

Representatives from ACT informed the Brooks campaign that her negative score was based on tweets where she emphasized the need for more focus on affordable housing development. They claim that Brooks’ concern about “trickle-down affordability” — the County’s over-reliance on luxury housing developments with a small fraction of affordable units to meet its severe affordable housing deficit — means that she does not support housing development near transit. This is demonstrably false.

Ms. Brooks has repeatedly stated her commitment to preserving and developing affordable housing near transit nodes, such as the Takoma-Langley Transportation Center that will ultimately become a Purple Line station. Additionally, Brooks has expressed her strong commitment to creating transit solutions for areas of the county that have been overdeveloped without supporting transportation infrastructure, such as Clarksburg and Damascus.

The campaign launched the “Correct the Record: ACT Scorecard” information page to provide voters and the media with accurate details on Brandy Brooks’ positions.

The Democratic Primary is June 26.

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