Can I hang out here a little today? [View All]

I was in the JRE Forum, and I saw so much anger about JRE's endorsement. I tried my best to prepare them last week with this message:

But what I do suggest is rethinking: do we want another 4 years of McSame or McBush? I think we should try to pull ourselves together as much as possible, as John will continue to ask us to do. We don't have to endorse anyone. But we have to fight these goons as much as possible via downtickets as well as the WH nominee, if for any reason, the SCOTUS, in which I think the Dem nominee will appoint someone at worst a "moderate" and at best, a true champion of our personal, commercial, and civil rights.

Thus, here's what I think we can do:

.....

3) Quit our bitching about Obama here. He's likely to be the nominee unless Clinton can pull a rabbit out of her hat, and if she can, we can support her too, but work on a strategy to bring the camps together. Obama is not my candidate, but we have to push him too, is the way I look at it. We may or may not be successful, but our votes matter and he does have to earn them. It's OK to make him work for all of us, but do it constructively.

4) Support downticket progressives with volunteer time and/or change (most of us don't but we try where we can help): this could be our One Corps initiative this year. Rocky has been working hard for Charlie Brown, and I like Ed Fallon a lot. I'm about to support Kevin Miskell in Ia-04 since he is a JRE Democrat (my IL district has no JRE Dems but a handful). Your states probably have some JRE Dems who are worthy of your attention and time.

5) My comment at the Daily Kos on a related subject, which I hope ties my message together:
(http://www.dailykos.com/comments/2008/5/12/62317/8323/1...)

There are many Edwards supporters who have been disenfranchised in the process too. Just yesterday, someone posted a diary about Edwards saying we needed unity in the party, and quite a few Obama supporters continued to trash Edwards for not endorsing anyone.

This election is about our issues, not about the candidates themselves. We need progress to begin ASAP.

I like this diary in general because I agree that we need to come together but also feel good about what Democratic candidates accomplished: we helped our candidates outraise the GOP, got more voters to the polls, and we did it with passion.

And I understand how Obama supporters are angry with Clinton, but if the issue is about hope and change, then get with the program, and quit the insults to the rest of us. Let's get it on to the WH and help downticket candidates so that we will move our country with a mountain of strength. God knows after Shrub and an abysmal Congress, we are all needed to make it happen. Our country is in shambles, but generally, we can be optimistic, and we can fix it.

I do think Hillary should go the distance for now, but I think it will be difficult for her to win. And perhaps the rude, ugly comments we have seen from Obama supporters will lessen.

This group means a lot to me, even though I don't get over here enough since I am one of the bloggers at EENR and my own blog, Benny's World, but I think we, hand in hand with JRE and EE, can start the healing process. I have faith we can do it, and I also believe that JRE will do as Al Gore has done for Global Warming: do to alleviate poverty as much as possible. But we need to elect the most progressive candidates to make it happen.

So, I'm good with unity. I knew it was coming; it's a relief to me.

And John and John can work together if they wish to help elect a Dem to the WH.