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27 May - 03 Jun, 2007
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Next UPDATED: MAY 30, 2007 A REASONED PLAN FOR VICTORY Paul Donohue ran for Chairman of the 11th District Democratic Party. He was defeated. Screwy Hoolie's blog at NC Blue (a TPJ favorite) is reporting the story of Donohue’s defeat. Donohue ran on a “100 Day Plan” for the District which has much merit. These are the essential points: "In the first 100 days following my election, ten steps will immediately be undertaken to build the most efficient and effective congressional Distict in the State of North Carolina. We are already good, but we can be great. And with all of us working together, we will be great! 1. Provide public relations, fund-raising, and organizational services to the County Parties. 2. Involve District and County Party Officers in all major decisions. 3. Establish a District office and staff it with volunteers [sic]. 4. Establish a District newsletter. 5. Begin to raise funds to run an effective District Organization. 6. Initiate a District public relations campaign. 7. Establish a District website. 8. Establish a District voter registration program. 9. Establish a District get-out-the-vote program. 10. Establish District Hispanic, Native American, Young Dems, Teen Dems, Senior Dems, Women Dems, and Afro-American Organizations." Donohue’s plan sounds elementary; but at the heart of his plan lies selling the Democratic Party as a brand in a 21st century campaign environment. This is an important concept that is not infrequently ignored by local Party organizations. TPJ has featured a number of research articles highlighting the fact that despite a political environment in which Democrats should be thriving in voter registration, Democrats have largely continued to lag behind Republican and Unaffiliated registrations. During the first few months of this year, Democrats have gained a slight advantage over Unaffiliated and Republicans in voter registration. The failure of Democrats to develop the Party as a “brand” is also playing out nationally. While Congressional Democrats are making huge gains (emphasis added) in fundraising against their Republican counterparts, the National Democratic Party still lags behind the Republican National Committee. Consider the most recent statistics: For the first time since the passage of campaign finance reform in 2002, national Democrats have outpaced their Republican rivals in the race for campaign cash in the first three months of an election cycle. Democrats collected $47.7 million through the Democratic National Committee as well as their House and Senate campaign arms, while the Republicans' three committees brought in $47.4 million, figures provided yesterday by the organizations show. During a similar time frame in 2005, Republicans had raised $62 million through their national and congressional committees, and Democrats about $32 million. At the end of the first quarter of 2003, the GOP advantage was bigger: $54 million to the Democrats' $19 million. The Democrats' fundraising gains were most evident on the congressional level. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee raised $13.7 million to the National Republican Senatorial Committee's $7 million -- taking in more money in March than the NRSC did in three months. The DSCC also ended March with nearly triple the money in the bank -- $9.5 million to $3.45 million. . . . The House picture was not much better for Republicans. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee collected $19 million between Jan. 1 and March 30 and had $9.8 million in the bank. The National Republican Congressional Committee raised $15.8 million in the quarter and had $2.5 million to spend. Both committees carried debt from the last election cycle: $7.9 million for the NRCC and $4.9 million for the DCCC. The Republican National Committee was the lone saving grace for Republicans' financial hopes, raising $24.6 million in the period -- nearly $10 million more than the DNC. The RNC closed March with $12.8 million; the DNC had $6.9 million. What contributes to the Democratic advances in fundraising? The analysis below is compelling (emphasis added): There's a lot of blood to be let between now and the 2008 presidential conventions, but early fundraising tallies and President Bush's historically low approval ratings paint an optimistic picture for Democrats eager to re-take the White House, analysts say. Given Bush's poor ratings, Democrats' fundraising edge, and other factors, the stars appear to be aligned for a Democratic presidential victory in 2008, said Greg Valliere, chief political strategist at Stanford Group Company. Rhodes Cook, editor of the Rhodes Cook Letter, a nonpartisan political newsletter, said the Democratic fundraising figures were "another good sign" for Democrats, but cautioned against reading too much into the data so far ahead of Election Day. "Republicans have historically had an easier time raising money when they had to," Cook said. "So I'm not sure when push comes to shove and we get into the general election race whether it will mean that much ... because the Republicans would be better able to catch up than the Democrats would be able to catch up if the situation were reversed.". Yet, the factors that Valliere and Cook find propelling Congressional Democratic fundraising are not translating to success for the National Democratic Party. Why? At TPJ, we believe that it is the failure of the Democratic Party, including the North Carolina Democratic Party, to establish is brand successfully at the local level. Democrats are giving to candidates, not the Party. There is a distinct and potentially fatal difference between the two. In order for the Democratic Party to become a successful “brand,” capable of winning elections on a sustained basis, Democrats need not only message, but organization, particularly the capacity to attract new voters (voter registration) and to deliver those voters on Election Day (GOTV). The Party that will win elections is the Party that can perform these core objectives successfully over a sustained period. Donohue’s “100 Day Plan” speaks directly to that issue. While defeated for Chairman of the 11th Congressional District, Donohue’s ideas should be implemented in every county and Congressional District in North Carolina. _____________________________________________ UPDATED: MAY 27, 2007REP. MCHENRY Republican Congressman McHenry’s is becoming an embarrassment to Republicans in the 10th Congressional District. TPJ readers will recall that McHenry, who won the Republican primary vaulting him to Congress by some 86 votes, has had a chief campaign aide indicted for voter fraud. The indictment was filed by Gaston County District Attorney Locke Bell, a Republican himself, based upon an investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation. The allegation is that Rep. McHenry’s aide moved from Tennessee to live in McHenry’s home, with a number of other young men, and registered and voted in McHenry’s district. Rep. McHenry and his supporters countered that Bell was engaging in a political prosecution of McHenry. In fact, McHenry accused Bell of a three year smear campaign against him. As it turns out, Bell had co-hosted a political event for McHenry and contributed money to his campaign. Keith Olbermann of MSNBC picked up on the story. Olbermann names McHenry the winner of his infamous “Worst Person In The World” award. The video can be accessed here and you do not want to miss it: YOUTUBE - PATRICK MCHENRY - WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD The 10th Congressional District is tough for any Democrat to win. However, if Rep. McHenry continues to receive this type of publicity, Democrats may well have an opportunity to recapture this District.
Last Update: 06/03/2007 |
