Nancy Pelosi says to donate to the DCCC.

[Eric J in MN]

Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is the House Minority Leader. She is expected to be Speaker of the House if Democrats gain a majority in November.

She wrote an email which was sent today asking for donations to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

After years of unbridled corruption and deception, under the pressure of a relentless Democratic surge, the Republican Party is imploding with just over 30 days left before Election Day.

On issue after issue, they have shown they cannot be trusted. Whether it is corruption within their ranks, the truth about what is happening in Iraq and why we are there, or putting the struggles of working families above handouts for their special-interest friends. They have squandered the trust of our nation -- and they know it.

The Republicans are desperate. The only thing they have left to offer is fear. And the fear-mongering is turned up to full volume in congressional races all across the country. Their attacks will get dirtier. Their lies will get more outrageous.

The only question remaining for our Democratic campaigns is whether they will be out-gunned by their hard cash, the profits of a pay-for-play system that has left American families by the wayside.

I ask you to stand up against a Republican Party that has placed their own power above the good of working people, above their civic duty, above the very Constitution they swore to uphold. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) needs to raise $250,000 by October 11th. Stand up and help the DCCC do the work we need to win.

Make a secure contribution right now and your gift will help close the fundraising gap and win a Democratic majority. Give $100, $150 or more.

The only chance Republicans have left is to use their massive special interest-funded war chest on Karl Rove's proven "smear and fear" tactics. The Republican National Committee alone will be pouring $60 million into these elections in a last-ditch hope to hold on to their unchecked, one-party rule.

The only way our candidates can stay competitive is if the DCCC has the resources to close the financial gaps in our House campaigns. The DCCC's job is to level the financial playing field and invest money smarter and more effectively than our Republican opponents.

Make a secure contribution right now and your gift will help close the fundraising gap and win a Democratic majority. Give $100, $150 or more.

Just as the Republicans cannot be trusted with the future of our country, they cannot be trusted to run anything resembling a fair campaign in these last days. The DCCC will be fighting back blow-for-blow, but they need your help. We cannot let our candidates be overwhelmed by this tidal wave of negative advertising. I ask you to join the fight by contributing all you can.

The pivotal moment is here. In districts across the country, the DCCC is on the air with precision ads exposing every Republican betrayal of their voters. We have the strongest, most inspirational crop of challengers that I can remember, candidates who sincerely want to be public servants for their communities instead of for special-interest cronies.

I've seen firsthand the effects of the hard work of the DCCC. I've visited the districts, and let me tell you, the Republicans have never been up against a force like the DCCC is this year. We will not be out-maneuvered in the final stretch as long as we have the resources to stay competitive. Please join me in helping the DCCC raise $250,000 by October 11th.

Make a secure contribution right now and your gift will help close the fundraising gap and win a Democratic majority. Give $100, $150 or more.

Together, we can get this country headed in the right direction. We can strengthen the middle class, expand opportunity, and elect Democrats to provide the principled leadership this country is so desperately seeking.

Sincerely,


Nancy Pelosi
House Democratic Leader


P.S. -- We must win so we will no longer have to be outraged on the sidelines while our ideas, protests, and vision fall on the deaf ears of Republican Leadership. We will have our full say and bring a new agenda and a new direction to the country we love. Contribute now and help the DCCC meet their October 11th goal.

Make a secure contribution right now and your gift will help close the fundraising gap and win a Democratic majority. Give $100, $150 or more.

[AX10]

1. I am very optimistic about our chances of winning back the house.

I am also very optimistic that we can do good things with the house too. The Senate is a different story. With all of the conservative Dems, we would need 60+ seats in order to get anything done.

[Eric J in MN]

4. If we had the White House and 51 Senate seats...

...that would be enough to get things done.

But with Bush pushing awful bills, too many Democatic Senators (about 12) are willing to along, and probably would even if the Democrats got to 51 Senate seats this year.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

2. NIce letter, but she should be saying give $10 or $20 instead of $100 to

$150. Just my two cents worth. MKJ

[Eric J in MN]

7. The maximum donation to the DCCC is...

...$26,700.

At least she didn't ask everyone to send that much.

But you're right, she is excluding people.

[Blue_In_AK]

3. I'll donate to the DCCC

when they donate to Diane Benson for Congress, not a minute sooner.

[Eric J in MN]

5. They can't support everyone, so why should they support

...a Democratic challenger for an At Large seat in a state which gave its electoral votes to Bush?

[Blue_In_AK]

9. Because the only way we're ever going to get any Democrats

elected up here is if the national party helps support Democratic challengers. Don Young has millions of dollars in his war chest (over 80% from Outside corporate interests) while Diane Benson, a fantastic candidate with a lot of grassroots support, is having to rely on individual Alaskan donations. Talk about being thrown under the bus --

[Eric J in MN]

10. The DCCC took in $86 million this cycle.

There are about 200 Democratic challengers for the House.

Should they give $430,000 to each Democratic challenger?

[Blue_In_AK]

13. We would have been happy for $100,000

or even less, but so far we've gotten nothing. Our big issue here is getting out to the constituents. Alaska is 1/5 the size of the rest of the country. We have one representative. Getting out and making oneself known to the people is a huge task, given that the vast majority of the state is not connected to the highway system. It would have been nice for the DCCC to help just a little bit with the travel expenses. What I see happening is millions being spent on some races, and others being ignored. That's just not right. Whether you choose to believe it or not, Alaskans are past ready for a change. We have a fantastic candidate who is winning over even long-time Republican voters everywhere she goes. If she could get to more places, she could win more hearts ... particularly given the fact that she's an Alaska Native (Tlingit) and the people in the outlying areas are mostly Native. If she doesn't have the funds to introduce herself to these voters, how are they going to know to vote for her?

I hope that we surprise you skeptics down there. Alaska is more progressive than you think. I read somewhere today that Dennis Kucinich got more per capita votes here than anywhere else in the country. The majority of people here identify themselves as Independent -- not Republican or Democrat. These are the people we need to convince. Please don't sell us short.

[Eric J in MN]

15. Why did Tony Knowles lose the 2004 Senate race

...to Lisa Murkowski?

[Blue_In_AK]

16. So glad you asked...

See this article in this morning's Anchorage Daily News...

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Alaska Democratic Party officials say the 2004 election data they sued the state to get may have been changed this year, and they want to know why.

Party Chairman Jake Metcalfe says a review of the central tabulator file containing that year's raw election results by precinct showed activity on the database between July 12 and 13 of this year. In a letter to Alaska Division of Elections director Whitney Brewster, Metcalfe said he does not understand why the data would be changed after the party petitioned for its release.

"As a result of these modifications, data from the 2004 election appears to have been altered," Metcalfe wrote in his letter, dated Thursday.

In addition, the Democratic party's review showed 293 manual entries were made to the file in 2004 between Nov. 2 and Dec. 2. Manual entries are typically made when ballots are damaged and can't be scanned. By comparison, only 17 manual entries were made in that year's primary election, party spokeswoman Kay Brown said.

<snip>

"If the division cannot produce the correct copy that we thought we were getting, not modified after the fact, we could very well go back to court," Brown said.

Discrepancies in the 2004 election included a district-by-district count that added up 292,267 votes cast for George Bush in the presidential election, while the statewide summary showed 190,889 votes. District-by-district totals gave U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski 226,992 votes, while her official total was 149,446 votes.


I would like to link you to the rest of the article, but it's apparently off line now. It is far from clear that Tony actually DID lose the 2004 election here. All I know is that Tony was ahead going into the election. What happened after that is anybody's guess.


Check BradBlog archives to see the shenanigans that went on here in 2004. Alaska is not any more immune from election fraud than Ohio or Florida.


P.S. EricInMN, I'm curious, what is your beef with Alaska? You seem to have a bone to pick with us for some reason. I still don't think it's out of line for us to ask for help from the national party NOW, no matter what happened in 2004.

[Eric J in MN]

17. There was a recount in Alaska which I donated money for...

...and the recount found that the optical-scan ballots were consistent with the official totals.

John Kerry got about 36% in Alaska, and John Kerry got 45% in Minnesota's 3rd district, where I am.

I accept that the DCCC isn't donating to Minnesota's 3rd, because it can't give big amounts everywhere.

I'm pro-Alaska, which is why I donated to Tony Knowles in 2004 and asked other people to.

[Blue_In_AK]

19. Okay, I'll accept that.

I still think there's some funny business going on with the Division of Elections here, but I guess they'll have to sort it out in court. I wish I could be as magnanimous as you are about the DCCC's failure to help our candidate, but I'm having a hard time with it...still. Nobody said anything about "big amounts." $10,000 or even less for some flights out to the villages would have been fine.

Oh, well ... we're working hard up here, and maybe we can do it from the ground up. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

http://www.bensonforcongress.com/

[MrCoffee]

6. Hell no. I'll donate directly to the campaign, thank you.

[bigtree]

8. kick

:kick:

[Eric J in MN]

12. Thanks for the kick. NT

NT

[Robbien]

11. No thanks Nancy

Your DLC supported people are not the people I want my money sent to.

I make my own choices and the candidates I choose to support reflect my views. You and your supported candidates do not speak for me.

[Eric J in MN]

14. kick

kick

[never_get_over_it]

18. So sorry Nancy

I'll make my contributions to the candidates that I decide not the DCCC - I wrote both the DNC and the DCCC and asked them to please help John Laesch who is running against Dennis Hastert. I talked to the campaign yesterday and as of then nothing from the DCCC -

So I sent a $100 to John - and I'll bite my tongue and keep my nasty comments about the DCCC to myself except to say until I'm more comfortable with "the party" I will not send them a dime....