Below is the flier that I handed out today at the convention today. Please read Part 2 for the full back story.
Yes We Can! – Include all of our candidates
The leadership in each county has an “approved slate of candidates” and are strongly suggesting that we vote for them, and only them. I ask you to ignore these “approved” slates and instead consider all candidates equally.
- It is wrong that a campaign based on “Yes We Can” is telling delegates “No You Can’t.” The Obama campaign is about inclusion and empowerment and as such should be welcoming everyone who wants to be a national delegate.
- This will discourage people from attending the convention. It is demotivating to tell someone they should withdraw their candidacy and some of those people will figure “why bother” and will not go to the convention. In short, this action may cost Obama a delegate.
- We want to encourage all of these new voters to become politically active. To continue not just into the general election, but after that. A message like this tells people that their rewards are limited. We will lose some people that otherwise would become active party members.
We have this quote from the Boulder Grassroots for Obama:
Collectively we made every effort to ensure that the Boulder County process for selecting final candidates we could all support was 100% based on the Obama campaign principles of: Respect, Include and Empower.
This exclusion of people from even being considered dis-respects, excludes, and disenfranchises all of those candidates. To claim otherwise is Orwellian double-speak.
I have asked multiple party activists why it was so important to have delegates from their County. Not a single one could tell me any advantage that accrued. None. All of this damage is being done just for bragging rights.
As one blogger so eloquently said:
You need to look at the "big picture," not the immediate election at hand. Anything that might discourage newbies from participating in future caucuses and party activities should be avoided at all costs.
Both parties have an extraordinary opportunity at hand now. Caucuses saw more turnout than activists can ever recall. How the respective parties cultivate these newcomers is crucial.
Please, Support Barack Obama, the Democratic Party, and Democracy at the grassroots level. Talk to the various candidates and make your own decision. And I ask every candidate here today, please do not withdraw your name. Campaign strongly and eloquently for votes as you are every bit as worthy as any other candidate.
