Green Party Watch

The Steering Committee of the Green Party (US) consists of 7 “co-chairs”, plus a Treasurer and a Secretary. Four of the seven co-chair positions are up for election with 10 days left in the discussion period before a seven day voting period begins.

The debate among the National Committee, which elects the Steering Committee, has been intensifying over the last five days, however the debate has not been about the future direction of the party, but over challenges to two of the nominees qualifications. Steering Committee co-chairs have to be Delegates to the National Committee, but what isn’t clear is whether they have to be Delegates at the time they are nominated, or at the time they are elected.

The intense debate (hundreds of emails) has led to one of the challenged nominees, former presidential candidate kat swift of Texas, to withdraw her name from consideration. kat swift is currently an Alternate Delegate representing the National Women’s Caucus. kat swift ran for the Green Party’s presidential nomination in 2008 and in 2004, was a Green Party candidate for San Antonio City Council in 2007, and was co-chair of the Texas Green Party.

The other nomination being challenged is Nick Mellis, State Chair of the Green Party of New Jersey who is currently an Alternate Delegate representing New Jersey. Nick Mellis was a co-founder of the Green Party of New Jersey in 1995, helped organize the national Campus Greens in 2000, and was a candidate for New Jersey State Assembly in 2007. The Green Party of New Jersey State Council is currently debating a proposal to allow Mellis to switch places with one of their current delegates, however even this attempt is being challenged based on various bylaws and rules for GPUS and the GPNJ.

Also being elected at the same time is the Secretary position. Current Secretary, Holly Hart (IA) is seeking re-election. The other candidate is Audrey Clement (VA), who has been a Green Party member since 2005, a Delegate to the National Committee, and co-chair of the Bylaws, Rules, Policies & Procedures (BRPP) Committee. She was instrumental in securing ballot access in Virginia for Cynthia McKinney in 2008. Although debate on issues has been stifled due to the debate on candidate eligibilities, current Secretary Hart has been taking a lot of heat from the some of the Delegates/Alternates that have been most vocal in challenging the eligibility of Mellis and Swift, claiming that she should not have permitted them to be nominated.

The other six candidates for co-chairs of the GPUS Steering Committee to fill four seats are:
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n the U.S., 22,000 people die every year due to lack of health care. Congressman Dennis Kucinich supports HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Bill because it will control costs, create jobs and boost the economy, and provide more choice for every American. Joining Kucinich will be several health care experts and advocates. Recently added to the lineup are two Green Party candidates outspoken on the health care issue: candidate for governor Rich Whitney (www.whitneyforgov.org) and 5th congressional district candidate Matt Reichel (www.mattreichel.us). The DuPage County Green Party is one of the co-sponsors of the event.
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Utility PACs Generous to Key Lawmakers in Climate Debate

By ANNE C. MULKERN of Greenwire

Published: July 27, 2009

Large electric utilities that rely heavily on coal poured money into re-election campaigns as the House shaped and passed landmark climate legislation, a bill that helps those businesses partly sidestep its toughest provisions.

Employee-run committees for American Electric Power Co. Inc., Duke Energy Corp. and Southern Co. gave $165,000 to 70 House members in April, May and June. They sprinkled money among senators, too, contributing $46,500 to 18 Senate re-election campaigns.

The money went heavily to members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee that amended and voted on the bill before the final floor vote. Contributions also went to lawmakers from states where the utilities have plants.
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Why is Charlie Wilson Against the Energy Bill? Ask His Donors?

Why would Congressman Charlie Wilson (Ohio-6), a member of the House Science Committee, vote against the Energy Bill for alternative renewable energies? The answer is, ask his top donors for 2009:

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This is troubling news….

Unknown assailants have attacked an activist of Kyrgyzstan’s opposition Green Party and demanded that she withdraw documents she filed with the Central Election Commission, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reports.

Gulmira Asylbekova was beaten during the attack, and has filed an official complaint to the local police urging them to investigate the assault.

A week earlier, Asylbekova had monitored the country’s presidential election on July 23 and urged the Central Election Commission to note a number of violations she reported during the vote.

The leader of Kyrgyzstan’s Green Party, Erkin Bulekbayev, has been imprisoned for insulting President Kurmanbek Bakiev in April.

Source: Radio Free Europe

Also….news on the Azerbaijani Green Party….

Green demand constitutional changes for struggle against pollution of Baku

Azerbaijan Green Party is for peace talks with Armenia

BP Azerbaijan and Statoil accused of Caspian Sea pollution

I’m not sure if the Kyrgyzstan Green Party or the Azerbaijani Green Party are recognized by the Global Greens. All the news stories (in English at least) I found on the Azerbaijani Greens came from one source: The Azerbaijan Business Center.

This is interesting….

PORTLAND — The Maine Green Independent Party announced Tuesday that it would support Republican efforts on a people’s veto of a tax package passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. John Baldacci in June.

Green leaders said they are against the tax restructuring because they believe it hurts lower-income Mainers and makes the state’s system less progressive.

In particular, Greens pointed to the elimination of state income tax brackets and the application of sales tax on services such as car repairs.

“The new flat tax, in association with new taxes on services such as auto repair, represents a regressive tax system that favors the wealthiest few to the disadvantage of low- and middle-income Mainers,” Anna Trevorrow, Green Party chairwoman, said in a statement.

Source: Kennebec Journal

I would read the whole article to get the Democrats’ point of view.

I found this great op-ed piece by former VP Green candidate Pat LaMarche where she urges people to vote Green because of the Democrats’ repeated broken promises in spite of controlling both houses of Congress and the Presidency.

Here’s a snippet:

During the 2008 election cycle, the Democrats told us that we didn’t get health care reform because the Republicans were in power. OK, the reason now that we don’t have health care reform now must be because the Democrats are in power. We all know that if they had the will, with substantial majorities in both houses and a president of the same party, they could pass anything they wanted.

So it looks like the majority of the people and the majority of their doctors are going to be failed by their representatives.

Help me out here: Why do people vote for Democrats? And an even bigger question: Why do people who vote for the ideals espoused by the Democrats vote for them a second time after they’ve proved unwilling to deliver on those ideals?

You and I have heard the answer to that question a million times. Progressives vote for the Democrats because they are the “lesser of two evils.” Which brings me to another question I’d like answered: How come in the largest and supposedly greatest democracy on Earth we have only two choices and they are both worthless? Heck, in Iraq if your candidate gets 1/276th of the popular vote, your party gets a seat in the parliament. And in case you haven’t noticed, when we self-righteously changed their regime, this is the government we and the coalition gave them.

[...]

Whether it’s fiscal responsibility or the safe return of our soldiers, so much of what the Green Party stands for was promised in the last election, by both parties. Call your elected representative today — including President Obama — and tell them to use their power to represent you; or next time you’re voting Green.

Source: Bangor Daily News

I am reminded of a quote by Albert Einstein, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

It doesn’t take an Einstein to figure out that the two corrupt corporate parties are part of the problem.

And WE are part of the solution.

Okay. Pretend you come across some Green Party literature one afternoon and you are excited about their policies such as their support for single payer health care and equal marriage to name a few. You want to get involved with your local Green Party but to your dismay you discover there isn’t one in your area. This is probably a situation that many Greens around the country find themselves in. What is a Green to do?

Answer. Start up a local GP chapter yourself!

This post is meant to be more of an open discussion on local organizing rather than a “how to guide” to forming a new local Green Party chapter. I am bringing this up because I am thinking of starting a local chapter in my area and I’m mulling over some of the details. Here are just a few things to keep in mind if you want to form a local GP chapter in your area.

• Is there a state Green Party where you live? There may be a few self-identified Greens in your local community you may not know about. Contact your state Green Party and tell them you want to form your own local and they may provide some logistical support and have a list of members in your area. But don’t expect too much help. It’s better to anticipate no help from a state party and take the initiative to organize a local rather than wait for help that may not come.
• Advertise your first meeting by contacting sympathetic friends and activists personally, posting a notice on public TV and public places, writing a letter to the editor to your local newspaper, using social media such as facebook, twitter, and myspace, etc. There are tons of ways to advertise that first meeting.
• From your first meeting, you should decide on what the group wants to do. How do go about running candidates? Is there a current local issue that is “hot” in the community? How can we get more people to join the party locally and get involved? The number of things that the local group can do is endless!
• Be mindful that as important meetings are, they can be a turn off for some people especially if they are too business orientated. That is not to say that they aren’t needed, they surely are. Remember, the REAL organizing and work happens outside the meetings. I learned that from a fellow Green.
• Does the group want to affiliate with the state Green Party? If that is the case, then it would be advisable for the group to produce a set of bylaws. In any case, it would probably be a good to produce a set of bylaws anyway to cover the legal stuff. You never know.
• Will you collect money? You may want to get a bank account for the local party after filing as a political committee with the appropriate government body. Some local GP groups don’t bother, but I find that if the local chapter gets big enough or becomes very active in elections then you are gonna need a checking account and form a political committee to cover your collective assess just in case. Refer to your local elections official (usually it’s a city or county clerk) for information.

Be advised that what I presented is just a fraction of things that you may have to think about before organizing a local. What are some other things to be mindful of when starting up your own local GP chapter? Got any tips that you found useful or successful? Please share your experiences in the comments section below so that we can all learn!

Posted on Green Party candidate for IL governor, Rich Whitney’s facebook

Dear Fellow Illinoisans,

Thanks to the utterly irresponsible budgetary decisions of the Democrats and Republicans in State government, our public sector workers – social service workers, transportation workers, correctional workers, child and family service workers, educators, park service workers and many more – are now facing the devastating consequences of severe cuts to the state budget. Job cuts, cuts in income, mandatory furloughs, heavier caseloads, more stressful working conditions, etc., will be imposed on thousands of these hard-working employees, many of whom have already endured the impact of terrible cuts in recent years.

On top of that, our so-called representatives in Springfield once again chose to engage in the very practice that got us into this mess in the first place: Ignore the need for new revenue and tax reform, ignore the structural deficit, and try to patch up the holes in the sinking ship by borrowing still more money ($3.4 billion) and delaying paying the State’s bills ($3.2 billion), imposing even more hardship. Once again, they have chosen to impose an even greater impact on future taxpayers – our children, in other words – instead of facing up to their responsibility to deal with the problem.

Where do I stand on the budget issue? To answer this question I would like to share my response to an e-mail sent to me by a concerned public sector worker named Amy.

(Walter: see Rich’s reply after the jump)

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Matt Reichel, who ran on the Green Party line in the Special Election to fill Rahm’s seat in Congress earlier this Spring, is one of the first declared Green Party candidates for US House in 2010 and has hit the ground running.

As reported here two weeks ago, Matt Reichel declared his intention to run for the Chicago area 5th Congressional District seat just before the Illinois Green Party State meeting.

“We were promised change we could believe in, and instead have gotten short changed. All the hope in the world isn’t going to bring Americans the peace and justice they so deserve and have so stridently demanded, not while we are stuck with the same two parties of Empire and Wall Street.”

On Sunday August 2, Matt Reichel and Green Party Gubernatorial Candidate Rich Whitney will share the stage with US Congressman Dennis Kucinich at a Single Payer Health Care Speak-out in Aurora, Illinois:

Green Gubernatorial Candidate Rich Whitney and I will warm up the stage for one of the few principled advocates for single-payer health care in the United States Congress. This will be an excellent opportunity to gain exposure and build momentum for Green candidates across the state. If the majority of Democrats are going to insist on leaving single-payer “off the table,” then the Greens will gladly take the votes of the strong majority of Americans who favor a public health care system.

The following Monday August 3 will be the first meeting of the Reichel for Congress Campaign Committee:

Primary orders of business will be organizing the petition drive and raising money.

Speaking of which, I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the campaign thus far. We are off to a running start, though we need to keep this momentum going.

My goal is to have $10,000 in the bank by New Years’ Day. In order to accomplish this, we are going to have to raise a little from everybody.

Please help us keep the heat on Quigley and the Democrats by visiting www.mattreichel.us and clicking “Donate,” or by sending a check to:

Elect Matt Reichel to Congress
1726 W. Carmen
Chicago, IL 60640

This race has a lot of potential. This is a progressive district controlled by Democrats with virtually no Republican organization at all. The Democrat, Quigley, is not standing up to support the values of the voters: Single payer health care, ending the war, and re-investing in our neighborhoods and communities. Reichel is fresh from campaigning for this seat on short notice with little campaign support this last spring, and with a full 15 months he could have a much bigger impact. If you are in the Chicago area please consider volunteering with the Reichel for Congress campaign. If you are anywhere else, please consider contributing $10, $20, $50 or more to the campaign. This will certainly be one of the key races to watch in 2010.

Thank you to Kimberly Wilder for forwarding these write ups on the Rev. Billy Talen / Joan Baez event and other online coverage this week:

A Night With Reverend Billy (NY Press)

With his high pompadour and guerilla theatre tactics, it’s tempting to dismiss Reverend Billy as an entertainer with a few good points, but the Green Party’s widespread support suggests there might be something more to his foray into politics. Earlier, he spoke about his “500 Neighborhoods” initiative to revitalize New York’s communities against the threat of gentrification and “that demon monoculture.” When he said that “the neighborhoods doing the best have the least amount of gentrification,” he may be onto something. The “Saints” listed on his home page are community organizers, preservationists, writers and artists.

Live photos and show recap: Joan Baez backs Rev. Billy’s bid for mayor! (Time Out New York)

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Why Is Charlie Wilson against Health Reform? Check his donors…..

Why is Charlie Wilson (OH-6) dragging his feet on health care reform?

Could it be Charlie is influenced by his donors list this year?

Charlie Wilson……His vote can be bought…..

Dennis Spisak

Mahoning Valley Green Party

Ohio Green Party

WWW.ohiogreens.org

www.votespisak.org/thinkgreen/

Release from the Green Party (US):

Green Party wraps up its 2009 Annual National Meeting in Durham, NC; video clips of meeting highlights posted online

• Among the videos: a forum on health care reform, an address by Cynthia McKinney, and West Virginia’s Jesse Johnson speaking on mountaintop removal for coal

WASHINGTON, DC — The Green Party of the United States concluded its 2009 Annual National Meeting in Durham, North Carolina, on Sunday. The meeting was attended by at least 95 delegates from at least 33 state Green Parties and caucuses, as well as many party leaders, candidates, officeholders, and observers.

Video highlights of the meeting have been posted at the Green Party’s web site and at LiveStream.com and include:
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The Green Party of Allegheny County in Pennsylvania has announced that it is working with other progressive organizations to organize a demonstration and other activities in response to a meeting of the G-20 that will take place in Pittsburgh on September 24th and 25th this year. The Allegheny Greens write,

“The Group of Twenty (G-20) Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors represents the world’s economic leaders, intimately connected to the most powerful multi-national corporations that dominate the global economy. Their neo-liberal policies have squandered billions on war, plunged economies into deep recessions, worsened social, economic and political inequality, and polluted the earth. We believe a better world is possible.”

The Allegheny Greens will take part in a People’s Summit being planned for September 19th, 20th and 21st. On September 25th, the Greens will join others in a march of protest against the activities of the G-20.

Updated information on the activist events can be found at the Thomas Merton Center.

In the German city of Stuttgart, the Greens recently won the largest vote total. In a city with more than 500,000 people, that’s a considerable feat for The Greens. Another interesting thing about this is that the electorate in Stuttgart skews conservative and middle class. As the following report will show, many citizens of Stuttgart are socially liberal and and like the Greens for their forward thinking on issues like the environment, health, and people are saying that their fiscal policies make common sense.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-L0IcAoqMY

Thanks to Tim T. for the tip.