I’ve agreed to take an active volunteer role in Sherrod Brown’s re-election campaign, so I’ll be writing about that here. It was an exhaustive and merit-based selection process: my friend Ann asked me to do it. Ann was the local contact in 2005-6 for Sherrod Brown’s first Senate race, and she was at my house all the time during that period. That means she knows where I live, which may have been the determining factor.
Before I begin what will be a series of increasingly obsessive posts I should back up, give you some context and make it clear what I actually do in these things. I got some emails after the Issue Two campaign that make me think I maybe wasn’t clear enough on my extremely limited, local role.
There are 88 counties in Ohio. I live, work and volunteer in one rural, conservative county. I’m not David Brooks, Chris Matthews or any of the cast/book merchants on Morning Joe so I’m not an expert on, respectively, the heartland, lunch bucket voters, or tough choices/sacrifice/centrism.
I choose what I do, and I don’t do anything I don‘t want to do. What I’ll do for Brown in 2012 is this: I’ll hold an event or some events, either at my house or at a rented public space. At those events I’ll develop a list. The list will consist of the local regulars and any new people who are interested in re-electing Sherrod Brown. I won’t do any of this until well after January. I may start a little earlier than I ordinarily would, because we have our Issue Two list, and I’m curious if some of the Issue Two-exclusive activists are one and done or are going to stick with it. Brown is a good candidate for them because he’s a liberal populist. I won’t use that label here because I don’t think anyone will care where I slot him in, Big Picture.
I’ll keep in touch with that list until the campaign organizer arrives in this county, and then I’ll turn it over to her or him. When I turn it over I usually meet with the organizer at the law office and tell her or him about the people on the list and the county. We know the county better than the new organizer, who is, after all, maybe 22 years old, so the organizer will be very interested in this information. After that, I’ll act as a contact point for the organizer, and I also sometimes relay information between locals and the organizer. “Information” means “complaints” about the organizer or the campaign. If we’re losing I’ll get a lot of complaints and if we’re winning I’ll get no complaints. We also have infighting, so in that scenario, perhaps, someone would be complaining to the organizer about me. I wouldn’t find that out until, say, hypothetically, I received an email that was supposed to go to someone else while I was on vacation. Not that that’s ever happened.
There are two parts to a Senate race, the candidate’s campaign and the Party role. On the campaign side, I have already had contact from Brown’s campaign, which I wrote about here. I’ll have more of that as it goes on.
There are three levels to the Democratic Party role in Ohio; local Party, state Party and national Party. I will have lots and lots of contact with the county people (because I am one of them), a lot of contact with the state level, because Ohio has a strong state Party, and lots of contact with our OFA organizer, who is representative of the national Party for my purposes, anyway. We have an OFA organizer here already, because OFA was central to the (so far successful) effort to keep Ohio’s latest voter suppression law from implementation, and, also, she lives here. That’s the context, that’s the (limited) role, so keep that in mind if you happen to read my posts on the race.
Baud
You’re an inspiration, Kay. Go get ’em.
ChrisNYC
“We also have infighting” written as though it were “We also have a spring fundraiser.” Very funny.
Southern Beale
After Ron Paul babbled incoherently on Face The Nation this morning about how we need to abolish the Dept. of Education because kids are graduating from college with no job prospects and huge college loan debt (huh? How does one have anything to do with the other..?) some idiot Glibertarian asked on Twitter: “what has the Dept. of Education ever done for anyone?”
I mean, where do you start with these people?
Brian R.
Love your posts, Kay. Keep up the good work.
And yeah, if anyone else is looking for a way to make a difference in 2012, follow her lead. Bitching about things on the blogs doesn’t help.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
Thanks as always, Kay. Your “limited” role is far more than most will ever do. I’ll put in some hours as time allows, in a low key way, since I work in Warren County (which is redder than fresh blood for non-Ohioans) in a semi-prominent public position.
MTiffany
Link for campaign donations for those of us (me) too lazy to Google “Sherrod Brown”? Particular Act Blue page or sumthin?
Jim in Chicago
Not to get ahead of ourselves, but I just wrote in the Elizabeth Warren thread that Sherrod would make a great Presidential candidate in 2016…. Got to win this race first, of course. Thanks for all you’re doing. As you surely know, Wall St. will be putting plenty of resources behind Brown’s opponent.
sistermoon
Thanks for your hard work, Kay. I’m a New Yorker, but I love me some Sherrod Brown. The Senate needs more like him.
Skipjack
I’ll echo that, thanks for your hard work Kay. Every bit matters.
geg6
You inspire me, kay. Will be contacting the local Dems again just because of you. I’ve been very disheartened lately, about many things, but you are always upbeat and fighting the good fight. I need to do that, too. Many thanks and goooooo Sherrrod Brown!
SiubhanDuinne
Great news, Kay! You truly are inspiring.
I’ve been a fan of Sherrod Brown for several years — admittedly at a distance (TV and just reading about him). And I’d also like to give a shout-out to his wife, Connie Schultz. For those who may not know her, she’s a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and as far as I know both she and her employer have handled all her potential conflict of interest situations in a sensitive and professional way. Her book about campaigning and being a political spouse is both funny and rapier-sharp.
debbie
You’ve got your work cut out for you. There’s been a frightening number of ads from Rove and his buddies, all targeting Sherrod. Ads against tax increases, oil subsidy cuts, financial regulation: Brown’s made out to be the heavy in every single one.
As genius as Sherrod is and as weak as his opponent will be, all that money that’s being poured into his race are bound to buy many weak Ohio minds.
PhoenixRising
“We know the county better than the new organizer, who is, after all, maybe 22 years old, so the organizer will be very interested in this information. ”
I guess I knew the smart organizers had to exist, and be assigned someplace, but how do we Nuevo Messikins put in for the kind that understands the value of the locals’ knowledge? Is there an application process under which we request “22 year old who is aware s/he doesn’t know who, and that knowing who matters more than knowing how”?
Sherrod used to was my congress critter, and he’s a good guy. Thanks for spelling out what it takes to keep him in there swinging for us.
marybdvm
Hello Kay.
I’m in Warren County, OH. We have a very active Democratic HQ here. We of course, will be doing everything we can for Sherrod Brown and Pres. Obama. Of course we can always use more help (and money). Keep us in mind as activities ramp up.
c u n d gulag
Kay,
Thanks for what you’ll be doing.
I’m from NY, and loves me some Sherrod Brown.
We could use more like him in the Senate.
We could use one like him in the Oval Office.
Hey – why NOT him?
I’ll be helping the Democrats here in Dutchess County, NY. The county where Hyde Park is – where FDR lived. And he never carried this damned county!
I’ll be helping out whoever the Democratic opponent will be to Nan Hayworth(less) – our Teabagging POS Congresswoman.
gbear
Who supplies the drugs?
DougJ
Good for you!
Warning — last time I did this, I helped elect Eric Massa.
Chuck Butcher
Kay,
The local touch is invaluable, you’re a gem.
Most people have no idea how much work it is and somebody else generally gets the kudos… that’s not why you’re in, but pats on the back are nice.
kay
Dougj, I feel as if I would have known about Massa :)
But, hindsight and all that.
We almost didn’t get Sherrod, remember?
The cool guy that year was Hackett,because he’s a veteran.