As everyone has heard by now, former Republican powerhouse lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to criminal charges this week and agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors. As many as 20 indictments of elected officials and government staff are expected as prosecutors build their cases with the new evidence he is providing. The temperature is rising in Washington, DC, this week and many prominent Republicans are feeling the heat. Tom DeLay and his lawyers must be working overtime to keep up with all of the subpoenas.
My question is this - what is it going to take to get the Republicans to call for DeLay's resignation? The Washington insiders are once again protecting each other. He needs to go. His escalating legal troubles are more than a distraction - they are a stain on our Congress. Where is the House ethics oversight? I am still not hearing that the Ethics committee is fulfilling their responsibility to oversee, investigate and censure members who have committed `improprieties.'
What a week this has been! First of all, I need to welcome to the Democratic primary Major Ladda "Tammy" Duckworth, who is set to announce her candidacy for the 6th Congressional District of Illinois race this weekend. She joins Lindy Scott and me in the primary race for the open seat in IL-06.
Tammy Duckworth is an Iraq war veteran and my thanks and admiration go out to her for the great sacrifice she has made for our country. It is because of the service and sacrifice of the men and women serving in our armed forces that we all can live in a country with such a proud tradition of freedom and democracy.
As all eyes remain riveted on the mounting crises at the White House, today's news and talk has been dominated by the implications of the Libby indictment, a looming avian flu pandemic and the nomination of the far-right Judge Alito. Unfortunately, the list of scandals and missteps goes on and on. The House Budget Committee is counting on these issues to distract us from their consideration of a disastrous spending reconciliation bill that cuts key services for those who need it most -- including Medicaid, student loans, child support, and food stamps.
The American public needs to understand the damage these cuts would inflict on our economy and our country's most vulnerable. I encourage you to read the details and the full list of cuts by following this link.
<http://www.democraticleader.house.gov/pdf/RECONCILIATION.pdf>
I recently heard Senator Dick Durbin respond to a question all of us are asking. "What are the Democrats doing?" We hear a lot about what the Republicans are doing wrong but not about what the Democrats are trying to do to correct it.
Durbin's response gave me pause. He said there is ample legislation that is being proposed by the Democrats in Congress, but because they are the minority party, it rarely gets out of committee or receives press coverage.
Later in the same week, I was on a conference call with a congressman discussing what we can do to change the culture of corruption that is so prevalent in Washington. I was surprised to learn there are already two bills that have been proposed. And guess what? They are stuck in committee!
Thanks to you and those like you, I made the cut in the Democracy for America All-Star Grassroots competition.(http://tools.democracyforamerica.com/housevote/)
Now we're in the final round and I'm asking for your vote. All of the candidates in the final round will want your vote, so I'd like to take this opportunity to tell you about my own journey and my experience with the grassroots community.
When I first decided to run for Congress, I began by searching the Internet to find out what I needed to do to run. I learned about filings and petitions and election rules. But I didn't learn about the unwritten rules that say you should be connected or rich. I didn't learn that it helps to have "somebody" send you.
The time is now. Rep. Henry's Hyde's protégé has cleared the Republican primary field for 2006 and the Republican interests in Washington are willing to do whatever it takes to retain his seat. They've lined up Peter Roskam, a former Tom Delay staffer and Grover Norquist ally to fill Hyde's shoes. I'm Christine Cegelis and in 2004 I held Hyde to a career-low vote total. Now I'm challenging his protégé. I am asking you to stand beside me and join me in this fight. We can win this seat, we must win this seat, and we will!
I'm asking you to vote for me in Democracy for America's Take Back the House: Grassroots All-Star Competition. (http://tools.democracyforamerica.com/housevote/)I would not have received 44% of the vote against conservative icon Henry Hyde in 2004 without the grassroots support from members of Democracy for America, both locally and nationally. From walking precincts, stuffing envelopes, writing letters, hosting fundraisers, writing blog entries, and drafting position papers, the enthusiasm and hard work of local members continues to fuel my campaign.
No matter where one might stand on the political spectrum--Democrat, Republican or Independent--I believe most would agree with me that fundamentally our government has a responsibility to protect its citizens. What we witnessed with hurricane Katrina has been a colossal disaster on the part of those in charge.
We need to start thinking about turning in a new direction. And begin to believe that such a change in course is possible. We need a new direction, new leadership and a new, bold vision for our country. All of it is possible.
As a democracy we need to assert ourselves so that we live up to our vision of ourselves as a country. That has never been clearer than it is now, in the aftermath of Katrina. We need to help the citizens of the south reclaim their dreams. It starts with the basics - food, water, shelter, schools, and jobs. And it grows from there. That's the first step but there's so much more that needs to be done.
Progressives across the country have watched the special election in Ohio's second district with hope, excitement, and pride. Paul Hackett deserves our thanks and our admiration for a job well done. In the final days of the campaign, he received a groundswell of support from the netroots and from the Democratic party. He got that support because he campaigned honestly and tirelessly. He talked to the people in his district and they responded
As I've gained experience as a candidate, I've come to understand very well that the political establishment judges candidates solely on their ability to raise funds. I understand the importance of funding (I really do). It's what every candidate needs to reach out to voters, to get their message out.
But the number that really counts isn't the number of dollars raised, it's the number of donors, voters really, who support you. While the establishment judges our campaign on dollars, I'll judge it on donors. And we're strong.
Thank you for all of your support over the past several weeks and extending back into my 2004 campaign.
Because most of the communication I've had with blog readers is online only, I thought many of you might actually like to hear me speak. I will be on Air America today between 2:00 and 4:00 pm CDT. The radio show is celebrating Howard Dean's first one hundred days as chairman of the DNC, and as one of the 2004 Dean Dozen I'm pleased to take a part in that celebration.
What we had long expected since we pushed Henry Hyde to the limit in 2004 became a reality today. With an announcement on his U.S. House website, Congressman Hyde made it clear that he would not seek re-election in Illinois 6th Congressional District in 2006.
We are officially running for an open-seat.
You may have read one of my earlier Kos diaries, "You have to run twice." Today's announcement is another example of why it is so important to make the difficult decision of running the first time, even in the districts many consider "un-winnable" because of a popular incumbent.
Prior to my first run for U.S. Congress in 2004, I worked as an account manager for a data integration firm and had many large multi-nationals as clients. I felt I had a pretty good understanding of what was happening in my field as far as growth and outsourcing.
What was keeping me up at night, and helped inspire my run, was the question: where are the jobs that pay a living wage going to be for the next generation? As a mother of two college students, that is the generation of my own sons and their peers.
As a candidate I started to look into my district for the potential areas of economic opportunity and possibilities for future job growth. What I have learned over the course of the last year and half steeled my resolve to make a second run at the seat currently held by Henry Hyde (IL-6).
As a daily visitor to the DailyKos, every time I visit here I come away inspired by the passion you have for returning the Democratic Party to the grassroots, and restoring the principles of democracy to our Federal Government. Your dedication and commitment is truly amazing. In no small way, it reminds me of the very reasons I decided to run for the House of Representatives in 2004.
A lot has gone on the in the past few days, and we continue to prepare for the race as if it will be a special election. We must prepare that way, because the Chicago media and Republican Party are preparing as well.
In September of 2003 I made a decision that would forever change my life. I had spent some time soul searching about the direction of the country and how it would affect the lives of my children and others in their generation. It seemed critical to me that we needed a better Congress. We needed a Congress that was willing to protect the environment, invest in our future through education, new technologies, and economic development. My current Congressman, Henry Hyde, did not seem willing to vote for any legislation that furthered these goals.
So I decide to run for that seat (IL-06). I received two pieces of advice: don't run if don't have $500,000 of your own money to put into the race, and don't run if you don't plan to run twice. I didn't have the money but I did make the commitment to run twice.
