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Thursday, November 25
Iowa Gubernatorial Race, 2006: Progressive Ed Fallon Throws Hat into Ring as Sally Pederson Bows Out
by
Linda Thieman
on Thu 25 Nov 2004 02:30 PM CST
 Iowa Gubernatorial Race, 2006: Progressive Ed Fallon Throws Hat into Ring as Sally Pederson Bows Out
by Linda Thieman
Progressive State Representative Ed Fallon
(D-Des Moines) announced Wednesday that after a lengthy exploratory
campaign, he has made his decision and will formally announce in
January that he plans to seek the office of Governor of Iowa.
In the
initial two-year exploratory phase of the campaign, Fallon was able to
bring in close to $100,000 and create a grassroots organization of some
500 volunteers from around Iowa. Fallon has toured the state
extensively and believes that “my message resonates with Iowans across
the political and geographic spectrum.”
Fallon
will leave his job as Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Iowa at the
end of the year. He has been with the organization for five years.
In other Iowa news, Democratic Lt. Gov. Sally Pederson, long considered the presumptive front runner in the 2006 Iowa gubernatorial race, announced Tuesday that she will not seek the office of Governor.
Saturday, November 13
A Message from John Drury
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 13 Nov 2004 03:59 PM CST
A Message from John Drury
By now you know
we lost our bid for the Iowa Senate. We ran an incredible race but it
is very difficult to go against an incumbent and ultimately, the voters
decided to re-elect Senator Gaskill.
When I
announced my candidacy for the Iowa Senate back in March of this year,
I really didn't know what to expect for support from my party. As it
turned out, I received no monetary help from the Iowa Democratic Party,
so the help from DFA and DFIA was more than greatly appreciated. I want
to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Democracy for America as
well as Democracy for Iowa for the support along the way. I also want
to thank the people across the country who supported my campaign. When
I would talk to other local candidates struggling to raise enough money
to get their messages out, I would mention the support my campaign was
getting from this incredible organization and individuals
nationwide. Needless to say, they were impressed and amazed.
Iowa First Lady Christie Vilsack and John Drury,
on the campaign trail
I
also want to take this opportunity to thank the people of Senate
District 6 for welcoming me into their communities, on their doorsteps,
and at their kitchen tables as we discussed their concerns over the
past 7 months. I met many wonderful people and I wouldn't trade the
experience for anything. I walked through over 20 parades, I went
through one pair of shoes, I put over 20,000 miles on my pickup, and I
never said no to an opportunity to listen to the people of the district.
A
special thanks goes to Darrell Lewis; when we held one of the first
Drury for Iowa Senate campaign meetings, Darrell quickly spoke up and
volunteered to be treasurer. Little did he know that down the line, he
would also assume the role of webmaster and campaign manager. Darrell
poured his heart and soul into this campaign and I will be forever in
debt to him. He is a wonderful person and is genuinely concerned about
the future of Iowa. Thank you for your incredible work in this
campaign, Darrell.
I'd also
like to thank Sybil Soukup who did a magnificent job launching this
campaign. She got us up and running and provided support and advice
throughout the campaign. I thank her for her work as well.
A thank
you also goes to Linda Thieman at DFIA; she was always there for us,
whether it was technical advice on our web site, or just something
posted when Darrell was out of town. Thank you, Linda, for your
dedication and hard work.
I also
want to thank all of the volunteers on this campaign for a better Iowa.
From county chairs to committee members, I can't possibly put into
words how wonderful it feels right now to know all of you. Whether it
was money or time or both that you gave, I thank each and every one of
you from the bottom of my heart. We will have to do it again sometime.
John Drury
Friday, November 5
A Ray of Good News by Molly Regan
by
Linda Thieman
on Fri 05 Nov 2004 10:52 AM CST
A Ray of Good News
by Molly Regan, DFIA Environmentalist
A ray of
good news. We were successful in Scott County for a Soil &
Water Conservation District Commission seat! A huge IOWA
“Thank You” to those on the steering committee: Alta, Chuck
(treasurer), Cliff, Monica, Joe, Lou, Betty, Cal, Caroline, Terry, Paul
and all who helped. There was a lot of work in putting out yard
signs and in letting your relatives, friends & neighbors know to
turn the ballot over to find the non-partisan section for Soil &
Water.
Molly Regan speaks at the Sierra Club/Eagle View
Chapter at the Bettendorf library.
There is
one important item I want to address during my 4 year tenure, and that
is to have MERCURY tested for on the waterways in Scott County.
Testing is done twice a year on the streams in our county, but MERCURY
is not on the list of things to be checked. Hopefully, that can be
addressed. Thanks again to all who helped and to those who
voted for me. A special thank you to Linda Thieman who placed a section on the blog
for information about my campaign, and to DFA for their support.
The teamwork in this organization is inspirational…..DEAN ON!…..NOW
MORE THAN EVER!
Molly Regan
 Congratulations,
Molly! Can't think of anyone more perfectly suited to the
position since you live and breathe environmental protection. A
job well done! We are very proud of you!
Thursday, November 4
"I Promise You" - A Message from Andrew Smith
by
Linda Thieman
on Thu 04 Nov 2004 05:32 PM CST
 "I Promise You" - A Message from Andrew Smith
A Candidate Inspired by Howard Dean Does Us All Proud
My
campaign has come to an end, and unfortunately I lost to Rep. Lance
Horbach by a healthy margin at the polls. His incumbent advantage is
unreal, and on Election Day, there were twice as many registered
Republicans in District 40 than registered Democrats, a margin that was
just impossible to overcome.
My
opponent also raised money during the course of the campaign, from
Special Interests tied to casino, insurance, and utility companies,
nearly six times the amount I managed to raise. Despite the overwelming
odds, I got into this race with courage, and I ran my campaign with
courage. I knocked on thousands of doors and placed nearly a thousand
yard signs in Tama County alone, and blanketed the District with
flyers, mailings, and plywood signs. I may not have won the war at the
polls, but I won the war on the ground. I also simultaneously worked
for the Kerry and Boswell campaigns, and proudly placed their signs
next to mine.
In areas
of the state where "Democrat" is considered a swear word, I stood up
and proudly proclaimed that I was a Democrat. I never yielded, never
compromised my positions and fought to the end. I ran a clean campaign,
and had available over the internet and in my flyers specific and
detailed plans to improve the state of Iowa.
Before I
started this race, I was not a State Representative. After this race, I
still am not a State Representative. I had nothing to lose by running
this race, and I have lost nothing in the end but a little time and a
little money. But what I have gained cannot be quantified by numbers. I
gained countless friendships, and gave hope to thousands of people in
Tama and Grundy Counties. In 2002 there was no Democrat on the ballot
against Horbach. In 2004, there was a strong voice of opposition, and
an alternative to his policies.
During
this fall, I have missed too many of my law school classes and missed
too many hours of work. But I did it, because I believed in my heart,
that this was one of the greatest elections in our nation's history,
and I wanted to be a part of it, and help make a difference. I'm very
worried about the direction of our nation, and I'm concerned that the
Democratic Party has lost its focus. I believe that this is going to be
a difficult period for the Democratic Party as a whole, but regardless,
I want you to know that I will never give up, and I will never put
profits over people, and I will always fight for you. This election
didn't go our way. But there will be other fights and battles to wage,
and I will be there fighting them.
Finally,
I want to thank all those who donated to my campaign, and who believed
in me. I also want to thank all those who helped place yard signs, and
those who showed up at my events, and who helped me in the parades.
Your help and belief in a better Iowa was inspirational.
Chances
are that I will not be running for office again in the foreseeable
future. But I promise you, that I'll be behind the scenes helping other
candidates who share my vision and hope for a better Iowa. I also
promise you that someday when the time is right, I'll be on the ballot
again as a strong voice for the people.
Andrew Smith
Thank
you so much for all your hard work, Andrew. As the youngest
Democrat running for office in Iowa, you have done us all proud.
This, THIS, is exactly what Howard Dean was talking about when he said
we need to run progressive candidates in overwhelmingly Republican
districts. We need to get the message out. We needed to
start with this election, and then keep at it. Good luck with law
school. You have already made a huge difference and been such an
inspiration, and we all know that you have a bright future ahead of you.
Wednesday, November 3
A Thank You To Our Candidates
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 03 Nov 2004 02:10 PM CST
 A Thank You To Our Candidates
Blog for Iowa and Democracy for Iowa
would like to issue a heartfelt thank you to all of our
candidates. We thank you for putting yourselves out there in
spite of the fact that you knew it meant you'd get slimed by the Rove
machine. We thank you for giving the progressive movement a face and a
voice. And we thank you for all your countless hours of hard work.
We'd
also like to thank all of the staff members, the activists, and the
volunteers who worked so hard to try to rescue this state and this
country from the clutches of the destructive GOP.
This is only the beginning.
I've
placed a new link on the top right sidebar of Blog for Iowa. This
page will show you the results of the elections for the candidates that
DFIA endorsed. Or, you can click here to view the results.
We would like to congratulate Ms. Molly Regan, Mr. Jeff Danielson, Mr. Frank Wood, Rep. Ed Fallon, and Rep. Cindy Winckler.
"We are the ones we have been waiting for."
--Hopi elders
DFIA Endorsed Candidates Election Results 2004
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 03 Nov 2004 09:11 AM CST
 DFIA Endorsed Candidates Election Results 2004
Click here to see the election results for the candidates DFIA endorsed.
Click here to see the results for all Iowa federal and legislative races.
Tuesday, November 2
Art Small Sells His Campaign on eBay
by
Linda Thieman
on Tue 02 Nov 2004 10:46 AM CST
 Art Small Sells His Campaign on eBay
View auction here.
Some politicians sell their votes.
Some sell their souls.
Art Small is selling...
Everything you need to run a grassroots campaign for U.S. Senate!
See: http://www.artsmallforsenate.com/
Art's
opponent, Republican incumbent Charles Grassley, has been backed by
many business-based PACs. He's received over $6,000,000 - almost
two-thirds of this from out-of-state. (See: http://www.opensecrets.org) Grassley's been in political office continually for 46 years.
Everybody said:
Art's a good guy! He's decent. He's honest. He's thoughtful. He's
articulate. He's experienced (sixteen years in the Iowa House and Iowa
Senate). He would make an excellent Senator. But, no one's given him
$6,000,000 in big money donations. Can we really take Art Small
seriously?
Art's betting that issues and regular people can do it.
He's put
together a lean and mean campaign - and now he's offering it to you!
Art has committed that he will serve at most one term. He will not run
again for U.S. Senate - but you can buy his campaign and be ready to
run your own!
Buy this item and you will be ready to run for the U.S. Senate! Includes everything you need!
Campaign RV:
Art Small bought this RV on eBay in August, for $9,000. Volunteers
equipped it as a mobile office and decked it out as the THINK BIG -
VOTE SMALL Van. Art drove all over Iowa in it. He visited every corner
of the Hawkeye State. He rolled through the prairie chatting with
visitors and advisors like the Nobel Prize-winning economist George
Akerlof. Art Slept Here. The THINK BIG - VOTE SMALL van is an authentic
piece of American Political Memorabilia.
Issues:
Position papers ready to go for a hard-hitting, issues-based campaign.
Thoughtful statements on Jobs, the Economy, Education, Iraq,
Healthcare, and more! [Fluffy vague bromides not included; check with
Grassley for Senate campaign.]
Equipment: Your campaign headquarters will be ready to unpack and get perking!
Click here for the rest of the details.
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