Not Just Indies, But Dems and Repubs Agree: electing a nonpartisan President is a good idea

OPEN PRIMARIES

• Independents Applaud California Supreme Court Decision on Proposition 14 (POSTED BY NANCY HANKS, The Moderate Voice) Statement by Jackie Salit and Harry Kresky, independentvoting.org
• California's Top Two Primary System Opens the Door to a Broader and Stronger Coalition for Political Reform (Harry Kresky, Huffington Post)
• Different types of primaries (LETTER Wyoming Tribune from Richard Winger) Top-two systems are not good for independent voters.
• Commentary: California gets ready to face changes (By Jim Boren, The Fresno Bee) But the momentum right now seems to be with the reformers, despite the best efforts of opponents to keep their cozy systems in place.

I&R

• FRESNO BEE: Initiative rules need an overhaul (This editorial is from the Fresno Bee - in Press and Democrat) The process is a safeguard against legislative inaction. Changes including the new open primary and creation of a citizens commission to draw legislative boundaries never would have come about without the initiative. But the initiative process is in need of repair…. Several attempts have been made over the years to overhaul the initiative process. The initiative industry is formidable and has blocked changes.

2012

• Clarus Poll: 2012 Presidential Race (PRESS RELEASE PR NewsWire) "You'd expect independent voters to want an independent President. But more than two out of every five Democrats and Republicans also say electing a nonpartisan President is a good idea," said Ron Faucheux, president of Clarus Research Group. "There is clearly potential for an independent candidate to do quite well in 2012."

EDUCATION REFORM

• A sobering look at Florida school reform (By Valerie Strauss, Washington Post/The Answer Sheet) There are also places where the achievement gap in Florida is as stubborn as it has been elsewhere in the country. In fourth grade math, achievement gaps measured on NAEP between 2003 and 2009 have been stable, and the white-black and lunch-program participation gaps in Florida are similar to those gaps for the country as a whole. In eighth-grade writing measured on NAEP between 1998 and 2007, you see the same stagnant pattern.
• Where the Achievement Gap is Born: A Letter to Cathie Black (Susan Ochshorn, Huffington Post) [proposes early childhood education] Too many of our country's youngest children, however, lack the optimal circumstances for growth and development. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, of the 25 million young children under the age of 6 in the United States, 46 percent live in low-income families and 24 percent are growing up in poverty. The high levels of family stress and trauma often associated with poverty may result in discontinuity in the quality of children's daily care and education, compromising children's readiness for school. NOTE:  Susan Ochshorn is the founder of ECE PolicyWorks, a consulting firm specializing in early care and education policy research, program development, and project management.
• Education chief nominee calls 2011 year of reform (BY JOHN REITMEYER, THE RECORD STATE HOUSE BUREAU - NorthJersey.com - Fox) Cerf, a Democrat, is a former teacher and law school graduate who worked in the White House counsel's office under President Bill Clinton and as a clerk for former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

LAST WORD

• Jesse Ventura says "all Minnesotans are liars" (By Hart Van Denburg, City Pages/The Blotter - Minneapolis) Ventura no longer supports third party movement, instead supports the abolishment of political parties… also upset with voters for not voting independent even though they claim to be independent...

To Debate or Not to Debate: That isn't the question!

The question is, how can regular voters get in there???

Here's a fun post on techPresident yesterday offering some "debate interventions" including a MySpace/CPD collaboration (hmmm.....); Rate the Debates put up by Free Press, a media democracy group; Change the Debate, a site that allows video commentary; an invitation to an "old-fashioned IRC chat...."; and Hack the Debates, a twitter-powered #current something or other..... We should add RockTheDebate.org, which Jesse Ventura talked about recently at the Rally for the Republic event. Rock The Debate is a grassroots independent organization working for inclusion of independent candidates in the debates. RockTheDebate's co-founder Bob Sullentrup recently delivered a letter to the Committee on Presidential Debates (a company owned jointly by the Democratic and Republican parties to control the presidential debates) detailing demands to change the criteria by which candidates are authorized to be included in a national debate.

Debate Prep: How to Join In the Fun By Micah L. Sifry, 09/25/2008: We're not sure if there's going to be a presidential debate tomorrow night or not, but either way it can't hurt to highlight some of the ways viewers can participate in advance or during the actual event...

Jesse Ventura Speech Rally for the Republic: Rock the Debates!!

Be sure to click on the video at the top of The Hankster and listen to former Minnesota Gov Jesse Ventura speaking on September 2, 2008 about the need for independent voices in the presidential campaign. The two parties are destroying our country, says Jesse. He talks about RockTheDebate.org, a grassroots independent organization working for inclusion of independent candidates in the debates. RockTheDebate's co-founder Bob Sullentrup recently delivered a letter to the Committee on Presidential Debates (a company owned jointly by the Democratic and Republican parties to control the presidential debates) detailing demands to change the criteria by which candidates are authorized to be included in a national debate (I'll try to get a copy of this for you).

Read more here on Sound Politics, and here in the Hawaii Reporter from August 25, which says: The poll released by Zogby showed that 55 percent of likely voters want Bob Barr included in the debates. Of the respondents, 69 percent of independents felt that Bob Barr deserves a place in the debate, while 52 percent of Democrats and even 50 percent of Republicans agreed.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

REFORM
GOP won't aid Baird opponent (The Olympian) Delavar said the snub had more to do with the party's dissatisfaction with the new top-two primary system. It allows the top two vote getters to move on to the November election, regardless of what party they say they prefer.

CAMPAIGN

• A Night All About McCain, At Last (National Review) Diageo/Hotline poll found a sharp decline in the share of independent voters who said that McCain is in touch with the problems of average Americans.
• Ron Paul draws 12,000 at Target Center, picks up Ventura endorsement (Pioneer Press)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• CO: Counties swinging votes (The Denver Post) Forty-two percent of Garfield County voters are unaffiliated, and that category has been steadily growing.
• CO: Five counties key to nine electoral votes-With Colorado in play come Nov. 4, independent-minded communities are likely to "swing" the state. (Denver Post)
• CT: A welcome jump in voter interest (Stamford Advocate) Overall, unaffiliated voters remain the largest percentage of the state's 1.92-million-member electorate, with 801,002.

REFORM

• Why does Michigan choose candidates for county and township offices through party primaries? (Holland Sentinel) Party affiliation has almost nothing to do with local government, so why do we have a system that makes non-Republicans who want to engage in community service sit on the sidelines or masquerade as members of the GOP?
• Nothing to fear but democracy itself (San Francisco Chronicle) History also has shown that minorities gain when redistricting is taken out of the hands of the Legislature
• Anti-Prop. 11 forces make note of wealthy donors to pro-11 side (Politicker CA) among the top contributors to the measure are New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso and oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens.
• New group formed -- Americans for Redistricting Reform (Votelaw.com)

LOCAL INDEPENDENT NEWS
Minneapolis / Ventura to speak at rally for Republican Ron Paul (Pioneer Press)

MEDIA* Newspaper Ad Revenue Down 7.9% (NY Times from March 31, 2008)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

REFORM

• Idaho Repub chief Norm Semanko interview with comments on open/closed primaries (BOISE WEEKLY)
• If Idaho is a bellwether, Democrats are looking good (Idaho Mountain Express) Key fight within Repub Party over open primaries, inclusion of independents

CAMPAIGN

• Provincial Progressives: The New Yorker Magazine and Why Obama May Lose (Huffington Post) Progressives, Democrats and all those independent voters like me who long to turn the page on the Bush catastrophe -- get a grip!
• Obama on a pedestal could be worse than an absurd caricature (Politics In Color) I'm not satisfied with the complaints that the New Yorker gave comfort to right-wing nuts. It may be better to see this over-the-top image now as independent voters assess the Democratic U.S. Senator from Illinois rather than October when the undecided are about to make up their minds on which candidate they will chose at the polls.
• Obama holds 9-point lead over McCain, poll shows (by Staten Island Advance)
• Women, Blacks Give Obama 9 - Point Lead Over McCain (Quinnipiac University)
• Obama Moves Right? Pundits Cheer (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) Analysis of media coverage

THIRD PARTY NEWS

• Barkley joins Senate race-WIth Jesse Ventura announcing that he wouldn't run, Barkley, a longtime adviser to the former governor, put his hat in the ring. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• Barkley enters U.S. Senate race (Pioneer Press)
• Editorial: Barkley: IP gets a serious candidate (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• Jesse the Diva gives way to bravado-lite Barkley (Minneapolis Post)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Big Primaries, Big Changes: Iowa, New Hampshire And Voter Registration (CBS News/Horserace) Unlike in Iowa, most New Hampshire independents who chose one of the parties in the primary (roughly 138,000 of the 196,000) left it just as quickly as they joined, re-registering themselves as independents again on the way out of the polling place!
• Young voters find their voices this election (Greensboro NC News Record) n North Carolina, at least 110,000 new voters registered before the May primary, with a sharp rise among unaffiliated voters, Democrats and African Americans, according to the state Board of Elections.

CAMPAIGN

• Voter registration report shows Arizona may be 'going blue' (ASU Web Devil) Rise in unaffilitated voter registration
• Minnesota Polls: Obama Leads McCain by 18 Percent (MyFox Twin Cities) Decline among indies for both candidates--25% now undecided

LOCAL INDEPENDENT NEWS
Pa. editorials have sharp words for bonus scandal (York Daily Record)

THIRD PARTY NEWS

• Ventura Won’t Seek Minnesota Senate Seat, Unless ‘God Speaks To Me’ (CQ Politics)
• Green Party Taps McKinney for President (Chicagoist)
• Ohio Libertarian Party Federal Court Hearing (Ballot Access News)
• Green Party Hopes to Expand Ballot Access by Pairing States that are On with States that are Petitioning (Ballot Access News)
• Nader collecting signatures to gain ballot access (Politicker.com)
• Nader has enough signatures to qualify in R.I. (Providence Journal)

NEW YORK POLITICS/INDEPENDENCE PARTY
The Hankster has not given much attention to the New York State Independence Party until now. However, there are some interesting dynamics because of the national political scene and the rise of independents throughout the country that warrent bringing this story in. Here are some of the local reports:

• Bloomberg'$ Indy History (NY Daily News/Daily Politics) Omissions from yesterday's "report"....
• Mayor Bloomberg Gives $150,000 to N.Y. Independence Party (Ballot Access News) [NOTE: That's the anti-democratic State Committee faction of the NY IP, as controlled by the State Chairdictator --NH]
• Nassau Independence Party to back GOP's Donno (Newsday) [IP State Committee plays party politics]

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

REFORM

• Obama's Liberal Shock Troops (Wall Street Journal) A redistricting commission would be set up to reshape political boundaries, but state courts would be barred from reviewing any plans it draws up. (Only federal courts could review the boundaries.) Voters would also be barred from rejecting or amending the commission's work by initiative.
• Confusion hides in constitutional amendment's fine print-Voters should beware; proposal has way too much 'other stuff' (Detroit Free Press)
• Wall Street Journal Op-Ed Attacks National Popular Vote Plan (Ballot Access News)
• Don't Mess With the Electoral College (Wall Street Journal)
• The push for a popular vote (Boston Globe)
• Current system needs an update (LETTER to Boston Globe)
• Same-day voter registration pushed-Revised bill backed by Augustus gets Galvin’s nod (Worcester Telegram & Gazette News)
• Naming rights (Boston Globe) Same Day Voter Registration - long-running battle between Asian activists and the state's top voting official on how to conduct an election.

CAMPAIGN

• The NEWSWEEK Poll: Is the Glow Fading? (Newsweek/Stumper blog) Is Barack Obama losing independents' support???
• North Dakota Poll Released by Rasmussen Reports: Barack Obama 43%, John McCain 43% (TransworldNews.com) McCain earns the vote from 87% of Republicans while Obama attracts 79% of Democrats and holds an eighteen point lead among unaffiliated voters.
• Wisconsin Poll Released by Rasmussen Reports: Barack Obama 50%, John McCain 39% (TransworldNews.com) In Wisconsin, Obama attracts support from 86% of Democrats and has a twelve point advantage among unaffiliated voters.

LOCAL INDEPENDENT NEWS

• OK: Slim pickings affect interest in primary election (The Journal Record) Another reason for fewer votes in primary elections is the increase in the number of registered independent voters. There are more than 200,000 of them who are not eligible to vote in primaries. Some states allow it as well as cross-party voting in primaries. Oklahoma does not.
• OR: Ben Westlund bucks “career politician” label (Politicker-OR)
• MN: Ventura is saving any news for TV (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• MD: Md. city with edgy racial past elects black mayor (AP-Google) Newcomer ousts incumbent in nonpartisan race, Decades after the demise of segregation, this sleepy city on Maryland's Eastern Shore has elected not only its first black mayor but also its first woman to the post.
• MD: Cambridge makes history-Racial strife in the past, city picks first African-American mayor (Baltimore Sun)

THIRD PARTY NEWS

• Nader setting up write-in campaign in North Carolina (News Observer) Ballot access very difficult
• Green Party: Red ink in Chicago bash-Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.) is leading contender for W.H. nomination (Baltimore Sun/The Swamp)
• RALPH NADER FILES AS CANDIDATE IN WASHINGTON (Seattle dbusinessnews.com)

BOOK REVIEW

Body Politic, Rest & Motion (Texas Observer) Review of The Big Sort: Why the Clustering of Like-Minded America Is Tearing Us Apart [The Hankster's 2 cents: it's not clustering that's tearing us apart, it's the two-party partisan system that's got us divided]

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Congressional scandal-Nation nearly unanimous in loathing the legislative branch (Augusta Chronicle) The most startling and telling breakout fact from the Rasmussen poll is that among independent voters, only 3 percent think this Congress is doing a good job.... This is the most serious indictment of Congress in memory. Making it an even more spectacular insult is the fact that no discernible scandal was necessary to bring on this sweeping censure.
• Congressional Approval Falls to 9% (Donklephant) Independent voters lead the pack

REFORM:

Washington "Top Two" open primary;

California redistricting with nonpartisan commission

• WA: Parties should accept primary system that voters clearly prefer (The Daily News)
• CA: Experts Expound (Capitol Weekly Readers) It's back: A ballot initiative to take redistricting away from the Legislature and turn it over to an independent commission.
• WA: Restoring Primary Power to the People (Kitsap Sun Editorial) That's the bottom line in Washington state's historic "top two" primary election, to be held Aug. 19.

CAMPAIGN

• Dems follow Obama down centrist path (The Hill) Democrats have decided to focus on economic and security issues designed to appeal to a wide range of voters, especially independents who are concerned about soaring gas prices and the slumping stock and housing markets.
• What to do about Iraq? Obama's getting a lot of advice (Minneapolis Post)
• The Stand That Obama Can't Fudge (By E. J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post)
• The Three Party System - The New Political Party is Conservative Democrats (American Chronicle)

LOCAL INDEPENDENT POLITICS
KY: Laurel resident running for Congress (Times-Tribune) Independent candidate Jim Holbert files for Congressional run saying, "We've got to stop 'politics as usual' and start bringing common sense to our regional and national problems.

THIRD PARTY POLITICS

• Characters provides 3rd option (The Hill) Dr. Death, Jesse the Body and the Peace Mom. Oh, my.
• Minnesota's Ventura May Bid to Pin Down Senate Seat (CQ Politics)
• Cynthia McKinney Names V-P Running Mate (Ballot Access News) Zentronix blog [SEE BELOW] says that the McKinney-Clemente ticket would be the first in U.S. history of two women of color. However, in 1992, the New Alliance Party ticket was Lenora Fulani and Maria Elizabeth Munoz.
• Green Party Taps Hip-Hop Activist Rosa Clemente For VP (Zentronix) This is an interesting read on current Green Party politics viz Ralph Nader

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN
New G.O.P. Ad for McCain on Energy (NY Times/The Caucus) McCain the Maverick

REFORM

• Legitimate basis exists for open primary voting (Delaware online/The News Journal)
• Editorial: A lot of money is needed to fight redistricting lies (Mercury News Editorial)
• Run-off voting system would be beneficial (LETTER Kennebec Journal)

MINNESOTA INDEPENDENCE PARTY
Ventura watch: Does Bloomberg visit suggest a Senate run? (Minnesota Independent)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Author: Independents will pick next president (CNN) Interview with John Avlon
• The Body Is Back (RealClearPolitics) Barkley says Jesse Ventura will runa and win
• Redistricting can have bad impact on blacks (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Redistricting in California: Control or Democracy? (California Progress Report)
• Make it easier for third parties to get ballot access (Fort Wayne News Sentinel)
• Popular vote should decide who's president (Post-Tribune)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CONROY V. STATE COMMITTEE of the INDEPENDENCE PARTY OF NEW YORK

• Indy Party Control Lawsuit Decided (Elizabeth Benjamin, Daily News/Daily Politics)
• Top NY court says state party committees have authority (AP/CBS 6 Albany)
• Highest State Court in New York Rules in Favor of State Political Parties and Against Their Local Organizations (Ballot Access News)
• New York City Independence Party: Voters, not courts, will decide future of the party (The Hankster) Statement by county chairs of NYC Independence Party

OREGON
John Frohnmayer quits the race for U.S. Senate, cites lack of support (The Oregonian)

MINNESOTA Independence Party
Fore! Could a Ventura Senate candidacy hang on Wednesday's golf game? (Minnesota Post)

CAMPAIGN
Independent voters seen as crucial for victory (San Diego Union-Tribune)

OTHER REFORM

• UTAH: Referendum limits law sent to Utah high court (The Salt Lake Tribune)
• PENNSYLVANIA: Bogus reasons block redistricting reform (Allentown Morning Call)

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Have you noticed Jesse Ventura on the talk shows lately posing as the "independent"? He's got a book out.... And then there's Dean Barkley who's being backed by a major party consultant... Meanwhile a little-known upstate New York pol (the one trying to dictate to NYC independents) posing as the "leader" of a national network of independents, meets with McCain and waits for Mayor Bloomberg to weigh in on who he should endorse..... Hmmm... And lest we forget, there's still Joe Lieberman.... --NH

Live-blogging Larry King with Jesse Ventura, Charlie Rangel, and Robert Wexler: And the fight is on!

I'm watching Larry King and live-blogging the show.

The fight is on:

In this corner, Jesse Ventura, former independent governor of Minnesota elected on the strength of same day registration and the youth vote in a predominantly progressive liberal Dem state who really hasn't been doing much politics lately. Hey Jesse -- we hardly knew ye!

And in this corner, Charlie Rangel, senior New York City politician, a former black Dem insurgent who made it (and in all fairness, voters in his district like him...) and the foremost reason that Barack Obama DID NOT win the Harlem districts in the New York primary. Charlie, you had the white lady, but nothin sticks to teflon!

And in this other corner, Congressman Robert Wexler (FL Dem-- wikipedia says Wexler was born in Queens, NY, to Sonny and Sandra Wexler. He and his family moved to South Florida when he was ten.), the Dems need to be more active in ending the war in Iraq, which is why he's supporting Barack Obama. Wexler says Obama is a strong supporter of Israel, and is an advocate of impeachment (of Bush)....

9:37pm: Katrina Vanden Heuval, of the Nation magazine, and Defender of Obama's Bitterness, up now. Let's see how she goes after the independents: We need a new foreign policy. [And how...]

Jesse: Absolutely we should talk to Raul Castro, etc. I went to Cuba over the objections of my government under Ronald Reagan.

clip of Obama talking about our failed foreign policy...

Michael Reagan (the son of Ronald?) is speaking for the Repubs advocating for a conservative foreign policy... He's defending gas prices bec. they're making 8% profits..... [hmmm..... let's see, 8% of ........]

9:46pm: Jesse takes on Michael Reagan talking about the misleadership of the Repub party on war...

Katrina VH thinks it's offensive to hold up a doll of Jesse Ventura as a defense of the war policy...

Jesse objects to Reagan's chicken-hawk policy...

Katrina thanks Jesse....

They're all very passionate!


POSTSCRIPT:
Katrina Vanden Heuvel is now on Anderson Cooper saying that Democracy has been the winner so far in this primary season....

Hmmmm.... I know she's trying to make a connection between the increased participation of voters and the outcome of the primary now being in Barack Obama's favor. However, as a note of caution, independents are not allowed to vote in Dem primaries in 18 states.... To credit the Obama campaign with increased democracy misses the mark. We will find out if the Democratic Party is more concerned about Democracy or about the Party. Stay tuned! -- NH

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS:

• West Virginia Independent Voters Can Vote In Either Major Party Primary (Ballot Access News)
• Oregon: Clinton-Obama Race Spurs Party Switches (AP Google)

CAMPAIGN:

• Obama readies plan to reshape the electorate (Ben Smith, Politico) Independent voters key
• Clinton Rationale for Electability Doesn't Hold Water: History Proves the Ability to Win a State Primary Is Unrelated to General Election Success (Robert Creamer, Huffington Post)
• Ron Paul / Jesse Ventura Ticket? Don't Count This One Out (Gambling 911)

OPEN PRIMARIES:

• Special Election Offers Lessons For Future (The Tampa Tribune)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

Iowa voters say it loud: it's a shake-up! (The United States of America could actually produce a black president....)

• Obama Wins Iowa, Bolstering Bid for New Hampshire Independents-RECORD TURNOUT: The number of Democrats participating in the caucuses jumped to almost 240,000, close to double the 124,181 who voted in 2004. (Bloomberg.com)
• Analysis: Obama Ahead; GOP A Headache-Obama Attains Front-Runner Status; Huckabee Win Roils GOP Race (CBS News)
• Focus Turns to the Independent Voters In New Hampshire, Unaffiliated Are Key For McCain, Obama (By MARY JACOBY Wall Street Journal)
• A Whiff of Revolution From Iowa (By E. J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post)

And now on to New Hampshire....


And on a side note: CIA confirms Ventura meeting occurred--CIA was (is?) apparently monitoring the independent movement..... (by Tim Pugmire, Minnesota Public Radio)