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NTDO NEWS
November 11, 2009 |
On Monday night almost all of the Democratic and Republican candidates competing for their party's nomination for the 10th Congressional District seat appeared in one place to publicly, however briefly, present their positions on some of today's most pressing issues. The forum, described in a general way below, proved to be well worth attending. It was sponsored by Chicago Hadassah who deserve praise for pulling the smoothly run event together. Of course, with so many candidates and so little time, it was impossible to get in depth thoughts from any of them. However, there was time enough to get the sense that there is a real difference between the two political parties that were represented at the forum. The "I've got mine" values that seem to sum up most Republican policies crept into the language of even the most "moderate" of the Republican candidates.
There's no question that voters will have some difficult choices to make in February. But in the general election, for voters who believe we can move forward with thoughtful policies that will result in a better life for more Americans, the difference between candidates should become crystal clear.
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The Bi-party Forum at Am Shalom was a Smooth Success.
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Candidates attending were --
Democrats:
State Rep. Julie Hamos, Elliot Richardson, Dan Seals, Milton Sumption
Republicans:
State Rep. Beth Coulson, Bill Cadigan, Robert
Dold, Dick Green
Seeing a rare opportunity
to hear nearly all of the 10th Congressional District candidates, a crowd of several hundred people filled the seats at Am Shalom
and contributed questions that elicited a range of interesting
responses. Before questions from the audience were
read, each speaker had four minutes to introduce themselves and present
a general outline of their positions on the issues they felt were of
the highest priority. After their statements, the moderator read a series
of questions provided by audience members and each candidate was given a
few minutes for their answer.
Questions touched on
health care, Choice, U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, Campaign Finance
Reform and the security of Israel. Most of the candidate's answers had a moderate tone -- the "Kirk moderate" imagery will no doubt continue to be a Republican strategy. There was, however, room for unequivocal language when it came to support of Israel against aggressors such as Iran, although Republican candidate Green was the only candidate open to using "2000 nuclear weapons from our arsenal" on the Iranians.
On other issues such as health care, some of the Republican candidates used language that seemed to come directly from Republican strategists and party leaders opposed to the Obama Administration. Candidate Coulsen's response to handling health care access for undocumented immigrants was "we have emergency rooms." Whereas, candidate Richardson referred to the need for a codified pathway to citizenship as a way to get control of the problem.
With the exception of the clearly Libertarian Green who seemed to be against government involvement in nearly everything, the Republican and Democratic candidates delivered messages that might be expected in a moderate to liberal community and generally came across as smart and articulate. Incidentally, no Republicans mentioned Mark Kirk's name.
The February Primary Election will be an important one for our region. Monday night's forum was a valuable service to voters.
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Health Care Reform still isn't a reality so a rally can still make a difference.
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On Tuesday, November 17, starting at noon in Chicago, a major rally will be held in support of the health care reform now moving forward in Congress. Although progress has been made, reform is still far from a
reality. Every grassroots action tells Congress that the vast majority
of Americans expect them to make affordable, quality health care
available to every American.
Rally participants will be coming from many locations. Locally, buses will be leaving from Northbrook Court and then from Old Orchard.
For full details and to sign up, call Jessica at 312-427-2114, Ext. 206.
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Don't miss the 18th District Candidate debate -- Sunday November 22.
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The NTDO and DPOE are co-sponsoring a debate between all of the candidates running for State Representative in the 18th District.
Democrats Robyn Gabel, Patrick Keenan-Devlin, Eamon Kelly, Edmund Moran and Jeffrey Smith will all be there.
(No Republicans have filed to run in the February 2 primary.)
Sunday, November 22, 2009
1:00 p.m.
Kingsley School
2300 Green Bay Road
(at Green Bay and McCormick)
Evanston
Moderator: Bill Smith,
Editor of Evanston Now
Questions will be accepted in advance at the Evanston Now website: www.evanstonnow.com/dpoedebate |
Ongoing information on
Democratic Primary candidates:
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Two other Democratic Party candidates appeared at the candidate forum on Monday night: Elliot Richardson of Highland Park and Milton Sumption of Lake Bluff. Mr. Sumption does not yet have a website.
 Elliot Richardson (candidate for 10th Congressional District seat)
To learn more about Elliot Richardson's campaign go to: http://elliotrichardsonforcongress.com/
 Dan Seals (candidate for 10th Congressional District seat)
Canvassing for the Seals Campaign continues: Seals
campaign volunteers are canvassing throughout the district. If you
want to get involved in the Seals' canvass contact Erik at esmith@dansealsforcongress.com
The Dan Seals campaign headquarters are at:
405 Lake Cook Road, Suite 205A, Deerfield. 847-945-8900
 Julie Hamos (candidate for 10th Congressional District seat)
Canvassing for the Hamos Campaign continues: Julie
Hamos and her campaign volunteers are canvassing throughout the
district. If you want to join the Hamos team this weekend, contact Alex for Cook County or Ben for Lake County at campaign headquarters or call (847) 550-3777.
For complete information on all the events and volunteer opportunities coming up in Julie Hamos' Campaign, click here.
The Julie Hamos campaign headquarters are at:
3100 Dundee Road, Suite 109, Northbrook. 847-550-3777
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Make sure you're eligible to vote in the Dec. 6 Endorsement Meeting.
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The general membership meeting to endorse 2010 Democratic Primary candidates will be held on Sunday, Dec. 6 at 2pm. at the Winnetka Community House.
Only "members in good standing" will be eligible to vote.
To vote you must be:
- A registered voter in New Trier Township
In addition, as of Dec. 6, 2009, you must have done one of the following:
- Paid dues or paid to attend a NTDO fundraiser in the preceding 12 months. (If you dues aren't paid up, please do so by November 21, 15 days before the December 6 Endorsement Meeting.)
- Worked as an NTDO volunteer within the preceding 24 months.
- Worked as an election judge in New Trier Township within the preceding 24 months
NTDO members who have changed their voter registration address to outside New Trier Township may continue to be "members in good standing" if they continue to comply with criteria 1, 2 or 3 above.
Endorsement
requires a 60% vote of all NTDO members attending
the meeting. Candidates who are endorsed will receive the public
support of the NTDO including our grassroots efforts.
To renew your dues as a contributing member now, click here. |
The New Trier Democrats have a brand new website ntdo.org. Check it out.
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The New Trier Democratic Organization has a new website -- ntdo.org. The site's new design is aimed at making our Internet home more usable for site visitors
-- whether they are a politically active volunteers, someone interested in
a specific issue or simply a New Trier resident looking for voting
information. Because the underlying structure of the site allows editing of the website's content directly by NTDO volunteers, the goal will be to keep information fresh and involving with frequent updates, encouraging regular returns by site visitors.
"All politics is local" and the more grassroots involvement our
website inspires, the better the chances for electing progressive
candidates across our state and our nation.
You're invited to explore the site and think about ways we might make it an even more effective tool in our battle to strengthen progressive government. Send your suggestions here.
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About Us:
The New Trier Democratic Organization is made up of hundreds of grassroots volunteers dedicated to advancing progressive ideals through the political process. We welcome your participation.
Sincerely,
Bill Crowley, Committeeman New Trier Township
We are located at 800 Oak Street in Winnetka, IL. Ph: 847-446-8030
Office hours: Mon., Wed., Fri. -- 9am-Noon
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