May 17, 2012

Update from the campaign (10/3)

From the campaign trail this week …

Canvassing:

Over the last few days, we’ve spent time canvassing around the Wheaton, Elk Grove Village, Glen Ellyn, and Lombard neighborhoods. We’ve handed out flyers, lawn signs, talked to folks, and it’s been real encouraging. We’ve gotten a great reception from people–Republicans, Democrats, independents–especially when we mention that Ben (1) isn’t taking money from PACs or special interests; and (2) is a newcomer to politics. People are looking for fresh insights, and for someone that challenges the status quo where money dictates politics rather than politicians being responsive to the people who elected them.

One afternoon, when I was canvassing with Ben, we spotted a lawn sign that was already up, and decided to pay a surprise visit. The couple, who’d moved out to Elk Grove Village from Chicago, were delighted to meet Ben, and reiterated their gratitude that he was running.

Events

Yesterday afternoon, we had a “Meet the Candidate” session at Elk Grove Village Public Library. It was a smaller crowd, but what was very encouraging was the articulation of support for Ben. “It’s good to have someone who represents your views, who stands for what you stand for,” said one lady.

People talked about their concerns: poverty, often overlooked in the suburbs of the 6th; immigration reform, including young immigrants brought to the country as children and the approximately 12 million undocumented people living in the shadows; and an energy policy that continues to devastate our environment. Here too, people were excited to have a candidate who refused to be bought by big corporations, and stood up for the people of the district.

Later in the afternoon, we headed over to a fall fair at a church in the area, browsed the stalls, chatted to vendors, ate some hot dogs, and bought a campaign pumpkin to support the Navajo Indians. Once we get it carved, we’ll get a picture up!


For more info, visit Lowe for Congress.

First time on the campaign trail!

Yesterday was my first full day in Wheaton, Illinois. I’m here volunteering for my friend Ben Lowe (above), who’s running for the congressional seat in the 6th District against the incumbent, Republican Peter Roskam. While I was involved informally in the Obama 08 campaign–blogging, holding events in my tiny studio apartment, giving away bumper stickers–this is the first time I’ll be out in the field, so I’m pretty excited about that!

Having spent the last year working in faith and politics, I’ve been tasked with doing faith outreach, connecting with church and other faith leaders in the area, and making them aware of who Ben is and what he stands for. One of the unique aspects of Ben’s candidacy is that, unlike Roskam, he isn’t taking any money from special interests or PACs, nor even from the local branch of the Democratic Party. While this places the campaign at a financial disadvantage, it does mean that if Ben does get elected, he’ll be accountable solely to the people who have voted him into office.

Lowe for Congress HQ

Targetting the IL06

Canvassing the neighborhood with flyers

Find out more at Lowe for Congress; spread the word; and check back for regular updates on my campaign experience!

Join Sen. Webb & Mark Keam

Dear Keam for Delegate Supporter,

After launching this campaign eight months ago, we are now just four weeks away from victory on November 3.

As we head into the final stretch, I’m excited that our senior Senator, Jim Webb, will be hosting a barbeque to help our campaign at the home of Mary Ann and Bob Hovis in Oakton.

Please join Senator Webb and me on Sunday, October 18, at this afternoon event.

I look forward to seeing you there!

***

Please Join Senator Jim Webb
For an Afternoon Barbeque Supporting
Mark Keam, Candidate for the Virginia House of Delegates, 35th District

Sunday, October 18, 2009
4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

At the Home of Mary Ann & Bob Hovis
2700 Green Holly Springs Court
Oakton, VA 22124

Requested Contribution Levels:
$50 Individual Ticket * $250 Friend * $500 Sponsor * $1,000 Host

To RSVP, please contact Karli Penders at (703) 350-5248 or

by October 17

or Register Online: www.markkeam.com/October18

BECAUSE OF THE INVOLVEMENT OF A FEDERAL CANDIDATE OR OFFICEHOLDER IN THIS EVENT, WE ARE ASKING FOR DONATIONS OF UP TO $2,400 PER ELECTION, FROM ANY INDIVIDUAL AND DONATIONS OF UP TO $5,000 PER ELECTION FROM FEDERAL MULTI-CANDIDATE COMMITTEES. WE ARE NOT ASKING FOR FUNDS FROM CORPORATIONS OR OTHER FEDERALLY PROHIBITED SOURCES.

Invitation to Judy Chu's "HOME STRETCH" Fundraising Banquet

Dr. Judy Chu is the Chair of the California State Board of Equalization, an Honorary Board member of the Asian American Action Fund, and endsorsed by the Asian American Action Fund in her election in California’s 32nd Congressional District.

Judy Chu for Congress
Cordially invites you to the
“HOME STRETCH” Fundraising Banquet!

Dear Supporter,

We did it! I am now the Democratic nominee for the 32nd Congressional District. With the primary election behind us, I am now focused on winning the General Election on July 14th, 2009.

To that end, I am hosting a “Home Stretch” fundraiser!

While my 23 years representing the people of this district give me a strong advantage to win, I am facing an extremely low-voter turnout (less than 10% of registered voters are projected to turnout), as well as an opponent who shares my last name. Turning out my voters and educating them to vote for the right “Chu” is costly and critical to our victory on July 14th.

I hope I can count on your support for my general election campaign!

With deepest gratitude,
Judy Chu signature

Event Information
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
6 p.m. Social Hour
7 p.m. Dinner

Ocean Star Restaurant
145 N. Atlantic Blvd., 2nd Floor
Monterey Park, CA 91754-1581 (Google Maps directions)
(626) 308-2128

Sponsorship Levels
Platinum Sponsor: $5,000
Diamond Sponsor: $3,500
Silver Sponsor: $2,400
Bronze Sponsor: $1,500
Individual Sponsor: $150

*The July 14th General Election represents a new election cycle for contributions to “Judy Chu for Congress.” Prior contributions to the primary election do not apply to the general election limit of $2400 per individual donor.

Please RSVP by Friday, July 3rd at 310-477-8081 or rsvpforjudychu@gmail.com. Make checks payable to “Judy Chu for Congress.”

Link to Invitation & RSVP Form:
http://www.judychu.net/PDF/finalstretch.pdf
http://www.judychu.net/PDF/finalstretchrsvp.pdf

Contributions to Judy Chu for Congress are not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Judy Chu for Congress may receive contributions of up to $2,400 per election from any individual and $5,000 from any Multi Candidate Committee. Judy Chu for Congress may not accept contributions from corporations, labor unions, federal government contractors or foreign nationals. FEC ID # C00458125, Barbara Chavira, Treasurer,777 S. Figueroa Street, Suite 4050, Los Angeles, CA 90017.

Paid for by
Judy Chu for Congress
c/o AMB
1531 Purdue Ave.
Los Angeles
CA 90025

For more information, please visit my website:
www.judychu.net

Invitation To Honor Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono

Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) is a US Congresswoman and an Honorary Board member of the Asian American Action Fund.

You are cordially invited to a Breakfast Reception honoring Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono
representing
Hawaii’s 2nd District
Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure
Committee on Education & Labor

Tuesday, July 28, 2009 10:00 a.m.
Johnny’s Half Shell
400 N. Capitol Street, NW (Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps)

Requested Contribution
PACs: $5000 Host | $2500 Sponsor | $1000 Ticket
Individuals: $2400 Host | $1000 Sponsor | $500 Ticket

Contributions should be made payable:
Friends of Mazie Hirono
625 3rd St. NE Suite #2
Washington, DC 20002

RSVP to Madalene at (202) 547-6656 or madalene@arumgroup.com

Friends of Mazie Hirono PO Box 677 Honolulu, HI 96809

Contributions to Friends of Mazie Hirono are not tax deductible. Individual contributions are limited to $2,400 per person, per election. Contributions from the general treasury funds of corporations, labor unions and national banks; federal government contractors and foreign nationals are prohibited. Federal law requires us to use our best efforts to collect and report the full name, mailing address, occupation and employer of any individual whose contributions exceed $200 in an election cycle.

Paid for and authorized by Friends of Mazie Hirono.

Invitation: Dr. Long Nguyen Honoring Terry McAuliffe

Ed. Note: Our friend Francey Lim Youngberg passes along this invitation in support of Virginia Gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe.  While AAA-Fund will not make an endorsement in this race, we encourage everyone to learn about the candidates and vote on June 9.

Dear friends: I am helping Long and Kimmy Nguyen to invite people to meet with Virginia Gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe. He leads the Democratic primary race against Brian Moran and R. Creigh Deeds. Dr. Nguyen has been a great supporter of Sen. Jim Webb, Gov. Mark Warner and Gov. Tim Kaine, he has picked the winners each time!

Some of you may have gotten to know Terry during the Clinton Administration and his tenure at the DNC as Chair. He has robust plans for the continued economic vitality of Virginia and he will follow the two great Democratic governors, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine. He has also been a longtime friend of the Asian Pacific American community so I encourage all of you to support him if you have not done so already.

Here is the link to the Richmond Daily Dispatch recent poll which shows him 10 points ahead of the other 2 contenders. His website is http://www.terrymcauliffe.com/ . His bio and investor report are also attached.

Where: Tower Club, 8000 Towers Crescent Drive, 17th floor, Vienna, VA (directions from Google Maps or the Tower Club)

When: June 2, 2009, Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.

RSVP to me and eric.dillon@terrymcauliffe.com. See attached invitation. Please give as generously as you can because he deserves our support. Especially for those of you who recently fought with me to keep the Mayor’s Office of Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs office open in DC, you know what it means for our community to have representation. AND WE SHOWED THAT WE COULD WIN THE OFFICE BACK AND GET EVEN MORE FUNDING. Did you know that in the Greater Washington area, VA is the only one without a state constituent office for Asian Pacific Americans? Maryland and DC both have one. Isn’t it time to ask Terry to have such an office?

Hope some of you can come in as sponsors or co-hosts of this event. Let me know ASAP so we can revise the flyer.

For those of you who can contribute LESS than the minimum on the flyer, let me know too since Dr. Nguyen has made an exception so we can have more people have a chance to meet with Terry.

Many thanks, Francey

PS DON’T FORGET TO VOTE IN THE JUNE 9 VIRGINIA PRIMARY!

Volunteer for Mark Keam (VA-35)

The AAA-Fund endorsed Mark Keam as candidate for the Virginia Delegate in District 35 (Fairfax). The below is from his campaign.

In less than 20 days, voters will go to the polls to elect Mark Keam as our next Delegate. We need your help to ensure that we contact as many voters between now and June 9. What can you do to help Mark?

PHONE BANKS AND CANVASSING

Talking to voters in the 35th district is the best thing you can do to help Mark win. From now until the election, we will be calling and canvassing every day:

Canvassing: Weekdays 5pm-8pm, Sat 10am & 3pm, Sun 12pm & 3pm

Phone Banking: Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 12pm-8pm

All canvassing will be run out of our office in Vienna (407 Church St, Unit J, corner of Beulah Rd). If you do not have a car, please let us know. We would be happy to pick you up at the Vienna or Dunn Loring Metro stations. Phone banking may be done in our office or online with training. Reply to this email to let us know when you can help out. And don’t forget to bring your friends!

YARD SIGNS

The Keam for Delegate yard signs are here! If you live in the district, please come by and pick one up for your yard today! Additionally, we need help putting up signs around the district. If you have time, let us know and we’ll send you out with yard signs to certain parts of the district.

ELECTION DAY

Finally, we need lots of volunteers on Election Day (June 9) to make sure that voters know to vote for Mark as they enter the polls. We’ll need people at each of the 18 precincts from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., as well as volunteers to make calls and knock on doors to make sure that every single possible vote is cast for Mark that day. Please respond to this email to let us when you are able to help us on June 9!

As always, thank you so much for your support. With your help, we can ensure that Mark Keam wins the Democratic Nomination on Tuesday, June 9.

Bridgit Donnelly, Field Director

703-350-7377

P.S. If you can, please make a donation to help us with the final Get Out The Vote push. Go to our website to make your contribution today!

Paid for by Keam for Delegate
P.O. Box 1134
Vienna, VA 22183

GOTV for Judy Chu

AAA-Fund Honorary Board member Judy Chu is running for Congress in CA-32.

GOTV for Judy Chu

Come walk precincts and phone bank

OPEN CLOSE
SATURDAY, May 16 9:00 AM 6:00 PM
SUNDAY, May 17 12 NOON 8:00 PM
MONDAY, May 18 10:00 AM 8:00 PM
TUESDAY, May 19 6:00 AM POLLS CLOSE

Office Location:
4153 Maine Avenue
Baldwin Park, CA 91706

(Parking behind dental building, on corner of Palm Avenue next to Firestone Tires)
www.judychu.net
(626) 430-3601 Office, chuforcongress@gmail.com

Paid for by Judy Chu for Congress, Printed In House

Hate Hate

If you thought this post is about the culture war, you’re close. It’s actually about something a bit larger: the GOP hatefest. The examples are too offensive and lengthy to replicate here, but you can read a list or this select list.

I noted earlier that the GOP has little to no room for moderates or those using reason. Its ideology is necessarily merciness and judgemental to enforce a purer blend so their quality of anger comepensate for shrinking quantity. They’ll personalize then offend to overheat and polarize the vote. They’ll defame and outrage against then bring down any system, especially governmental ones, which stand in their quest for ideological rule. Commentators posing a B-list reporters actively seed hate to harden the field for the 2010 and 2012 elections.

Let’s hope we’re better people than haters and can call it out.

Conservatism is similar to religion: both are easily and often used as an excuse to make hate speech and spread hate. Why are ideologies so prone to hatred? Their intolerance of dissent is itself an offensive, personal slap at all those unlike the ideologist. Ideologues/ideologists handily prefer only those like them. Ideologies are more judgemental over time as they gain systems, procedures, and followers which increase the ideology’s firmness.

Reason and thought have brought humanity far along in history thusfar. Let’s not let those principles fall to allow cheap, hateful ideologies to divide and conquer. We cannot have tests of loyalty (as Palin still does in her hinterland, not having learned her lesson last year). Politics of hate should see no victory as this nation is too good for such cheap, debased ideologues. Logic and reason should be sufficient to win any battle without resorting to personal sledgehammering.

The idea that the GOP might reverse its hateful trend is amusing and quaint. Some think it’s just a part of their search for identity. We, however, have seen their unchanging face in the last 9 years, or even their last 30 years since Nixon’s politics of hate. Some think it’s just a few crooked leaders, but I wouldn’t say it’s just a few. Some say it’s politics as usual. Wrong again.

If you’re in DC this Wednesday evening, don’t forget to attend AAA-Fund’s Annual Celebration Dinner.

- Richard Chen

John Chiang Re-Election Announcement Reception

John Chiang is an Honorary Board Member of the Asian American Action Fund.

You are Cordially Invited

John Chiang

California State Controller
Re-Election Announcement Reception

Saturday, May 23, 2009
4:30 – 6:30 PM

Kinaga/Wong Residence (address provided upon rsvp)
Pasadena, CA 91103

Caterer: Japon Bistro

Event Chair (list in formation)
Wes Tanaka • Patty Kinaga

Co-chairs (list in formation)
Linda Sun • Rose Tsai • Tim & Joanne Wendler

Co-hosts (list in formation)
Ricky Choi • Mike Enomoto • Dan & Jeri Floyd • Mike Fong • Lillian Kawasaki • Chris Kim • Paul Lin • Judy Lam • Sam Luk • Alison Matsumoto • Diana Nishiura • James Okazaki & Linda Wah • Ann I. Park • Catherine Park • Martie Quan • Jimmy Tokeshi & Sally Kim • Gavin Wasserman • Steve Yoda • Adeline Yoong & Joe Ahn • Gautam Dutta

Individual Tickets $125

To RSVP or for information about how to become a co-host, please contact Patricia Kinaga at (213) 623-8588, pkinaga@kinagaporcaro.com.

Please make checks payable to:
John Chiang for Controller 2010, ID# 1293148
1005-12th Street, Suite H, Sacramento, CA 95814

Use the registration form‘s RSVP format:

John Chiang for Controller 2010
Re-Election Announcement Reception
May 23, 2009 * 4:30-6:30 p.m.

____ Yes, please list me at the following
     sponsor level:
    ____ Event Chair ($3,000 and above)
    ____ Co-chair ($1,251 to $2,999)
    ____ Co-host ($1,250)
    ____ Individual tickets ($125)
    ____ I cannot attend but enclosed is
         my check in the amount of _______

Please make checks payable to:
John Chiang for Controller 2010, ID# 1293148
1005-12th Street, Suite H, Sacramento, CA 95814

To comply with federal and state laws, we must
use our best efforts to obtain and report the
name, mailing address, occupation and employer
of all individuals who contribute $100 or more.

Name __________________________________________
Occupation_____________________________________
Company________________________________________
Address________________________________________
Phone(W)_________________________
     (H)_________________________
     Fax_________________________

Pay By Credit Card:
___Charge my contribution to my credit card for
   the amount of $______________
___Visa ___Amex ___MasterCard
Name on Card: _________________________________
Credit Card #__________________________________
Exp.: _________________
Signature: ____________________________________
Contributions to these committees are not
deductible for federal income tax purposes. The
California Political Reform Act (Prop. 34)
places limits on contributions (including loans)
to candidates for state office, and imposes
certain prohibitions. This request does not seek
a contribution in excess of applicable limits or
from prohibited sources. An individual, union,
political action committee, association,
committee, partnership, business or corporation
may contribute a maximum of $6,500 to the
committee per election. A registered Small
Contributor Committee may contribute a maximum
of $12,900 to the committee per election.