BlueMTexpat
BlueMTexpat's JournalAmerican Democrats Abroad are
not letting the November 2016 debacle get us down.
Please see this Xpost in the General Discussion Forum: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10028866336
American Democrats Abroad are
more active than ever. Last Saturday (25 March), I attended the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of American Democrats Abroad - Swtizerland (ADACH) in Basel.
Here is a summary of the meeting which included elections for ADACH's Executive Committee.
This new leadership also brings enormous talent and energy to DA Switzerland at a time when it is most needed, to support political action by our members, and get out the vote for special elections this year and the Senate/House races in 2018.
Thank you to Maya Samara and Peter Butterfield on the nominations committee for all the hard work that went into making this meeting and election such a success. Thank you to the Basel team: Kelli Brouillet, Rosie Pontarelli, Mariah Silkey, Lyndsay Obbarius, Kristen Jafflin, Vivian Beetle, Sara Stewart, Liz Voss and Julie Charubusapayon for finding such wonderful venues for the lunch and meeting, and for the many kind hands that helped with the many thankless tasks that go into such an endeavor.
Thank you to the more than 60 members who took the time to attend (coming from Winterthur, Zurich, Zug, Lucerne, Bern, Lugano, Geneva, and points in between) and the 20 who voted by proxy. Most importantly, thank you to the sixteen candidates for their willingness to run for office.
I am also thrilled to announce the creation of two new chapters: Basel and Geneva. That makes a total of three chapters, along with Zurich (2009). This is wonderful news because while the new Executive Committee is getting cranked up, three additional committees will also soon be elected to join them (Look out for the call for candidates going out very soon!)
Member meetings around Switzerland have helped galvanize members into forming active groups elsewhere too! Thank you to Robin Bognuda and Meghan Jones for taking the lead in Ticino, Margo O'Brien and Pamela Penman in Zug, and Jack Pogany for hosting enthusiastic members in Lausanne. More will follow soon in other venues, so please let the ExCom know if you are interested in hosting or participating in a location near you.
It has been a privilege and an honor to Chair DACH for the last four years, together with such talented and dedicated ExCom team members. My heartfelt thanks go to them all. Special thanks are due to Maya Samara, former Chair, for her wisdom, insight and experience that she generously offered at every critical moment. I would like to express my sincere appreciation and deep gratitude to Peter Butterfield as Vice-Chair, for his steadfast, kind and reliable contributions. My heartfelt thanks and admiration also go to Terri OBrien and Eileen Weinberg for the many wonderful contributions they made, far beyond their mandates. Further to her role, Emily Benson singlehandedly ran the registration for the Election Night in Geneva, a superhuman task! Christian Jordan (Treasurer) encouraged and supported the team in any way he could. Thank you to Karen Monroe for filling a key role as legal Counsel. I am extremely grateful to Kate Edson for reactivating the Basel team which has become a formidable force under her leadership. Thank you Renee Rousseau for your personable and talented promotion of DACH as Zurich Chair. And not least of all, thank you to the many many volunteers who answered the call to help register voters at the primaries, and all year round countrywide last year.
...
We might have lost the Electoral College, but we won the popular vote. The movement that was started in November to counter the current government has already shown promising results and I am sure that with your active participation, here and at home, and with the leadership of this new Executive Committee, American voters in Switzerland will continue to build support and overcome the hurdles to form a Democratic Senate in 2018.
If you are a US expat, please check here to find out which DA Country organization you can join. http://www.democratsabroad.org/countries Even though we live abroad, we can also help to influence events at home to assist those of our fellow citizens who are suffering under the draconian antics of a madman and his all-too-willing GOPer toadies.
Please keep this Special Election information in mind.
Please also do everything you can to ensure that the Dem candidates win.
https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_Congress_elections,_2018
Xavier Becerra's seat (CA-34) is open because Governor Jerry Brown appointed him to be the CA AG. http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-gov-brown-taps-california-s-rep-1480609606-htmlstory.html
Every other seat is currently an R-held seat. With some hard work, dedication and $$$, Dems could conceivably win SIX seats (five in the House and one in the Senate), for a net gain of FIVE. What a message THAT would send ... and some GOPers might actually "get" it even though Trump NEVER will.
This is NOT the time for negative thinking. Now more than even is the time for action.
Sen. Booker headlines Montana Democrats' annual dinner
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/2017/03/18/sen-booker-headlines-montana-democrats-annual-dinner/99373022/I'm very glad to see that some national Dems are taking Montana's special election seriously. Thank you, Senator Booker!
He will have to prevail in the May 25 special election against Republican Greg Gianforte, a Bozeman entrepreneur and former gubernatorial candidate with deep pockets and a determination to win public office.
Quist has been traveling the state as he did while on tour with his musical group to win support from voters. He will also have to convince donors to invest in his campaign.
"This House seat should not be his consolation prize," Quist said of his Republican opponent, in a speech meant to energize the 1,200 Democrats from across the expansive state meeting for the Mansfield Metcalf Celebration at the Lewis and Clark County fairgrounds.
The GF Tribune used to be a decent paper, but has become much more conservative than it was in my youth.
Montana Democrats pick musician Rob Quist to run for U.S. House
http://billingsgazette.com/news/government-and-politics/mt-democrats-pick-musician-rob-quist-to-run-for-us/article_ae4853b1-3b4b-565c-8769-6ddea049a7b8.htmlRob Quist has been selected by MT Dems to run in the special election for the seat vacated by the resignation of Ryan Zinke - possibly the only silver lining to Zinke being named to 45's Cabinet.
Quist, who gained fame in the Mission Mountain Wood Band, hasnt ever held elected office. When announcing his campaign, Quist touted years of public service including serving for 11 years on the Montana Arts Council and as a state ambassador to Montanas sister state in Kumamoto, Japan. He advocated for the Montana Food Bank and received a grant from the Office of Public Instruction to create anti-bullying programs and art programs in public schools.
Quist said hes traveled the state and understands what kind of representation Montanans need. He grew up in Cut Bank and now lives in the Flathead Valley. The musician received an endorsement from former Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who called Quist a political outsider who will stand up for Montana.
While nominating Quist, Rosebud County Committee Vice Chair Jean Dahlman said he has a unique relationship with Montanans and will appeal to Independent and Republican voters.
I know Rob personally and really hope that he can win this election.
This was his campaign site before he received the official party nod, so it may be/have been updated since. Please be generous! I know that I will be. http://www.robquistformontana.com/
Montana Democrats pick musician Rob Quist to run for U.S. House
http://billingsgazette.com/news/government-and-politics/mt-democrats-pick-musician-rob-quist-to-run-for-us/article_ae4853b1-3b4b-565c-8769-6ddea049a7b8.htmlQuist said hes traveled the state and understands what kind of representation Montanans need. He grew up in Cut Bank and now lives in the Flathead Valley. The musician received an endorsement from former Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who called Quist a political outsider who will stand up for Montana.
I know Rob Quist personally. He is a good and decent person and would be an excellent Dem Representative in Congress. Go Rob!
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHome country: USA
Current location: Switzerland
Member since: Wed Oct 29, 2008, 04:01 PM
Number of posts: 15,369