Thank God for Caucuses!

[txaslftist]

I previously posted a thread detailing my experience as a precinct chair in Lubbock, Texas, on the night of the Texas caucus. In that post I didn't say what the results of our caucus were, Hillary won 5 delegates and Obama 3. This slightly overstated Hillary's position among the voters in our precinct, but as an Obama supporter, I didn't mind much.

Here's why: On the night of the caucus the place was packed. 50 people showed up to participate in the Democratic Party caucus, while about 4 showed up for the GOP caucus. This is in a precinct that's been GOP dominated for decades, in a part of the state that's been dominated by the GOP for decades. When I got there I was handed a packet, and in that packet were the materials for everyone to sign in, with email, address, phone number and candidate. Now, no matter who wins the nomination process, I have a working list of who to ask for donations, where to put yard signs, who to canvass on election day.

Not only that, but I got a list of EVERY PERSON WHO VOTED IN THE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY in my precinct. Not just the caucusers, but every DEM voter! It was a much larger list than I expected. Everyone on that list will be getting a letter from me.

Still, knowing who was willing to show up on a Tuesday night at 7:15 pm tells me who I can count on to go the extra mile in a campaign, who I can count on to talk to a neighbor, who I can for sure put a sign in the yard... This is how a party that's been on the ropes for decades rebuilds. I never would have met these folks any other way.

Not only that, but it was EXCITING! We waited with bated breath for the results. We talked politics! Maybe in your neck of the woods it's different, but most places I go, nobody wants to talk politics. It's all sports, sports, weather and sports, and to hell with you if you're a Packer fan in West Texas!

So I say, thank God for Caucuses! We need to have more of them.

[Captain Hilts]

1. It's an insane process. Not at all like voting. It's not "baited" breath. nt

[txaslftist]

4. Thanks. I edited that. Who knew?

Anyway, sure, it's not like voting. It's like meeting your neighbors with whom you share political identity. There's more to politics than voting, believe it or not.

And I can tell you, out of the 50 folks who showed up to caucus, there wasn't a single one who wouldn't vote for Obama or wouldn't vote for Hillary if that's the nominee. These folks were ready to elect a Democrat for a change, and ready to get to work.

[antigop]

8. no, I don't think it's like meeting your neighbors. I didn't know anyone there.

And I'm very suspicious of some of the people who were voted as delegates. I'm not even sure they were really Democrats based on comments that were made.

[txaslftist]

23. Well, did you shake any hands and introduce yourself?

You gotta make an effort to make friends.

[antigop]

25. oh, brother. Nice try. Like shaking hands is going to tell me who they really are. n/t

[Barack_America]

66. No. It's usually the conversation that follows...

That tells you who they are. :crazy:

Lol. You really DON'T get out much, do you?

[antigop]

68. Um. no. I have a sick family member. But thanks for caring. n/t

[Barack_America]

69. I'm sorry for that, but that's why you can't shake hands and talk to someone?

I don't get it.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

85. Actually, it is "bated". The OP was right

Q] From Steve Gearhart: “Where does the term baited breath come from, as in: ‘I am waiting with baited breath for your answer’?”

The correct spelling is actually bated breath but it’s so common these days to see it written as baited breath that there’s every chance that it will soon become the usual form, to the disgust of conservative speakers and the confusion of dictionary writers. Examples in newspapers and magazines are legion; this one appeared in the Daily Mirror on 12 April 2003: “She hasn’t responded yet but Michael is waiting with baited breath”.

It’s easy to mock, but there’s a real problem here. Bated and baited sound the same and we no longer use bated (let alone the verb to bate), outside this one set phrase, which has become an idiom. Confusion is almost inevitable. Bated here is a contraction of abated through loss of the unstressed first vowel (a process called aphesis); it means “reduced, lessened, lowered in force”. So bated breath refers to a state in which you almost stop breathing as a result of some strong emotion, such as terror or awe.

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-bai1.htm

[antigop]

2. I disagree entirely. I did not find it exciting. I think the whole process was ridiculous.

AND I AM NOT AN HRC SUPPORTER.

[txaslftist]

6. Maybe you caucused in a place where Dems are already dominant

I didn't. I caucused in the reddest heart of a red state, and it was exciting to see the level of energy generated by BOTH Dem candidates. I can use the caucus information to help rebuild the Dem party in Lubbock, an effort that is desperately needed here.

Your mileage may vary.

[antigop]

10. Nope. Red. Extremely red. The Dems are NOT dominant here. n/t

[antigop]

3. in fact, I was really afraid a riot would break out -- tensions were high. n/t

[txaslftist]

13. Well, at least you had enough new Democrats come out to start a riot.

We probably couldn't even get a good tavern brawl going here.

[antigop]

16. You are missing the point. Who wants to attend something where tensions are high? n/t

[txaslftist]

21. What is worth attending where tensions aren't high?

They're high at a football game, they're high at an election, they're high in the movie theater (unless you've already seen the picture).

Did actual violence break out? No, right?

I didn't hear of a single incident of violence at a Texas caucus (I haven't paid much attention to other states, frankly). Of course people are PASSIONATE. That's to be hoped for. Passionate people will do the work of getting out the vote in November.

[antigop]

24. Sweetheart, when you don't feel safe--it's not worth attending. n/t

[txaslftist]

28. If you didn't feel safe, your caucus wasn't run worth damn.

If you were the precinct chair, you could probably make it run much smoother and more respectfully.

For example, to make sure our caucus didn't take on a sense of unfairness, I (an Obama supporter), as the chair, nominated a HRC supporter to be the secretary. I have a little bit of experience in public speaking, so I was able to keep things moving smoothly and keep tensions from rising to the level of fighting or arguing. We all worked together to get everything done that had to be done, and I sent a letter to everyone who participated thanking them for coming, informing them of other party functions and events, and asking them (shamelessly) for a donation to the County Party HQ.

I wouldn't have met them otherwise. You should consider contacting your county party chair and asking to run for precinct chair.

[antigop]

No, I am not complaining about the precinct chair. She seemed to be doing her best.,

It was the people from the OTHER PRECINCTS that were throwing comments at one another.

[txaslftist]

35. You had more than one precinct at your polling location?

Ech. Talk about a recipe for disaster.

It probably helped that our polling place was a church. People tend to tone things down a bit in such places.

[antigop]

38. Yep. n/t

[txaslftist]

29. If you didn't feel safe, your caucus wasn't run worth damn.

If you were the precinct chair, you could probably make it run much smoother and more respectfully.

For example, to make sure our caucus didn't take on a sense of unfairness, I (an Obama supporter), as the chair, nominated a HRC supporter to be the secretary. I have a little bit of experience in public speaking, so I was able to keep things moving smoothly and keep tensions from rising to the level of fighting or arguing. We all worked together to get everything done that had to be done, and I sent a letter to everyone who participated thanking them for coming, informing them of other party functions and events, and asking them (shamelessly) for a donation to the County Party HQ.

I wouldn't have met them otherwise. You should consider contacting your county party chair and asking to run for precinct chair.

[Benhurst]

5. I no longer have dog in this fight; but I have participated in caucuses.

They are very undemocratic and it's a disgrace the Democratic party still uses them.

As for open primaries, it is insane for a political party to open its nomination process to the public at large. It doesn't expand the base of the party, it just makes it vulnerable to manipulation by the opposition.

[txaslftist]

9. How do you account for independents who want to join the Democrats?

Maybe where you are the democratic party isn't in need of growth or rebuilding. In that case, I envy you. Where I am, we are desperately in need of new blood and new energy. I don't know of any way to get those folks interested or even to find out who they are without the caucus. Maybe a mailed survey (who ever returns those?).

[Benhurst]

30. If Independents want to join the Democratic party, they are more than

welcome to register as Democrats.

In most states one can change up to a week to several weeks before an election.

I have lived in several very red states where open primaries have allowed the Republicans to manipulate our choices -- and I must admit we Democrats have at times done the same.

I have never seen anything to show a sudden jump in party registration following a primary election where Independents were allowed to participate, so I would assume they aren't a very good tool for increasing party membership. If you have any proof to the contrary, I would appreciate a link.

[txaslftist]

32. I don't have any proof right now.

Ask me in six months.

[Benhurst]

37. Why six months?

If your theory is correct, Independents should be changing their registrations by the tens of thousands in order to vote as new converts in the upcoming election.

[txaslftist]

42. Make it about eight months.

After November we'll have a huge let down in party participation in events. That's to be expected, of course. The question is, will our meetings be better attended, will we see more donations, will we see real growth AFTER the election from what it was, say, five months ago (before anyone dreamed that Texas would matter to the Dems). It's the people who show up and write checks during the times between elections by which you measure growth of the party. If I were to take the figures of new Democratic voters from the primary or even from November as a measure of growth, I'd have to say we've increased the size of the party here twofold at the least, but it would hardly be a valid measurement.

[Benhurst]

58. I hope you're right, but I doubt it.

We'll see.

[txaslftist]

59. Having "hope" in Lubbock is a pretty big change by itself.

[VolcanoJen]

94. Lubbock Or Leave It!

One of my favorite Dixie Chicks songs. :-)

[txaslftist]

112. Me, too. LOL.

I love the Chix.

[ooga booga]

113. You should come on out to Lubbock sometime.

If you're from Ohio, Lubbock might seem like Mars or near the end of the earth. The people are conservative but also friendly. The sky will seem impossibly large and wide....as long as they're not having a sandstorm that day (not all that often, but right now is prime time for airborne dirt).

You could circle the city on Loop 289 and visit the Buddy Holly statue. Both mentioned in the song.

A couple of hours drive from Lubbock you can check out Roswell, New Mexico, and take in the UFO/alien mania out there.

If you do all that, I guarantee that you'll have some interesting stories for your friends in Ohio.

[WolverineDG]

7. It is very empowering to see that you are not alone

especially in a GOP-stronghold like Lubbock! :)

Ignore the nay-sayers. No one was crabbing about caucuses in December.

dg

[txaslftist]

11. Well, I did notice that the crabbing seems to have a partisan tone...

[antigop]

15. People who support BOTH candidates have expressed concerns. n/t

[WolverineDG]

17. yeah, I've noticed that too nt

[antigop]

19. You can check all of my posts on DU -- never been supporter of HRC. n/t

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

12. Funny. This Whole Time I Thought We Were Supposed To Be Choosing A Nominee, Not Getting Hot Leads.

How silly of me to have thought the nomination process revolved around finding out who the democratic voters wanted to be their next presidential nominee. Could I have been any more silly? Gosh OMC, how did you not see through that ruse? It's so obvious that the nomination process is all about reducing the number of cold calls that activists have to make. I mean, DUH! How didn't I see that?

[txaslftist]

18. Sure, if all you want is a nominee...

...and you don't mind getting your ass kicked every November by the Republicans because they're organized and funded and you're not.

I mean, if you want to sacrifice party building and Democratic community on the altar of democratic purity, I guess the caucuses don't work for ya. Of course, not having a viable Democratic Party means continuing to live under Repubican governance...

[John Q. Citizen]

14. New England town hall meetings are like caucuses. It great to see your neighbors involved.

[txaslftist]

20. It was great even learning I had Dem neighbors.

I can't tell you how many times I've walked my dog at night thinking, "... if only I lived near some Democrats..."

[antigop]

22. As I stated upthread, I'm not even sure the people attending were Democrats. I was very suspicious

And they managed to become delegates.

[tpsbmam]

26. You make good points about the caucus system.....

but I also think that there's an argument to be made that they disenfranchise too many people who can't participate due to time constraints, work conflicts, health issues, etc etc. I look at people like my neighbors, a young couple with 2 young children. They weren't even registered to vote before I met them -- believe me, they are now -- got them to register as Democrats! And they pay more attention to what's going on and vote in both primaries and general elections (they've missed one or 2 local votes).

Like so many Americans now, they're working long hours just to keep their heads above water. They both work 2 jobs, meaning that both sometimes work 16+ hour days. They didn't intend for this to happen -- the plan was for her to stay home with the kids -- reality intervened and they couldn't sustain that. They can't afford to have one of them, much less both, miss hours of work to go caucus. They're a good example of people who will take the time to run into our local library to vote but simply couldn't participate in a caucus.

When this election is all said and done, I hope people keep up their interest in the subject and either work toward switching to all primaries or find some kind of compromise.

[txaslftist]

31. Well, I think of it as rewarding people who give extra time and effort,

rather than disenfranchising people. We are desperate for the extra effort here. The budget for the Lubbock County Democrats for the entire year is under 50k. That's what the Pukes pay for one g.d. dinner.

[tpsbmam]

43. Maybe if people think out of the box....

there might be a way of doing both. No, NOT doing a primary and a caucus in every state but giving people an option -- vote in a primary OR go to a caucus. Probably not realistic and way too expensive and unwieldy, but maybe there is a compromise somewhere. I'm retired now (though if the economy keeps going south I may need to find some work....if there's work to be had!) and I'd frankly love to go to a caucus, but I also don't want to see people who might otherwise have their voices heard be shut out of the process.

[txaslftist]

49. I think if there isn't an extra reward for caucus participation,

for most folks inclined to vote at all in a primary, pushing buttons at a polling place is all they'll do, thinking, "well, I've done my part..."

The caucuses give the really invested politically an extra voice. I don't have a problem with that. I don't think they disenfranchise folks. I think they reward extra effort and party building exercises.

[onehandle]

27. Nope. One person, one vote. Closed primaries and a secret ballot. nt

[antigop]

52. Definitely "secret ballot". n/t

[txaslftist]

56. A benefit to the "open ballot" system of the caucus...

A GOP hack may be able to vote in the Dem caucus, but he'll pretty much spoil his chances to run as a GOP candidate ever again. "Say, you claim to be a Republican, but you voted for Barack Obama in 2008 in the caucus, didn't you?"

It takes some commitment to over-ride that.

[antigop]

60. Whom I support should be no one else's business. n/t

[txaslftist]

61. So you could go to a GOP caucus and vote for Huckabee?

And then keep it a secret?

Do you see the problem, there?

[antigop]

65. This was discussed upthread. Look I gotta go. I've got work to do. I'm not paid to post on DU all

day.

NET: I do not support the caucus process. Many of the people I have spoken to don't like it either.

I would also add that: Do you realize by signing your name to that piece of paper you could be putting your job at risk--especially if you work for a REPUG corporation (that would be most of them except for COSTCO and maybe a handful of others)?


Well, I know that and don't like it at all.

<edit> sorry, I don't like putting my family's livelihood at risk, especially given the Bush economy right now.

[txaslftist]

62. doop

[Benhurst]

64. Most of us of either party never run for public office. A hack who

is already a public official or even a party functionary is hardly likely to vote in the other party's caucus, whether Democratic or Republican.

If this is our defense against our choice being manipulated in an open caucus or primary, we've lost.

[txaslftist]

80. How is the choice manipulated in an open caucus?

When you go in there you sign a form stating who you are caucusing for before you do anything else. Unless you are so pliable that the general hubbub in the room is going to influence your choice, in which case you probably shouldn't even be voting, where's the manipulation?

[Benhurst]

82. It allows people to participate who have absolutely no intention

of voting for our party's nominee to have a voice in determining who the nominee is.

In open primaries and elections, it has been a long-standing practice for members of both parties -- especially if satisfied with their own nominee or their nominee has already won-- to crossover with the sole intent of voting for the candidate that think will be easiest to beat in the general election.

[VolcanoJen]

96. Not to mention....

... we're far less likely to get a "Limbaugh Effect" in the caucus system. I think this helps account for how Obama lost the TX and OH primaries, but won the TX caucuses.

[cosmik debris]

33. You meet the nicest people at Democratic caucuses n/t

[txaslftist]

34. I most certainly did.

[cosmik debris]

45. I lived in Lubbock for six years

I thought I was the only Democrat in town.

[txaslftist]

47. Me too! LOL!

You can come back! Turns out there are LOTS of us!

[snappyturtle]

110. Me too. n/t

[Milo_Bloom]

36. I wish CA had caucuses instead of primaries.

I like the caucus system much better for the primaries.

The nominee should be chosen by those dedicated enough to show up and caucus, not by "will of the masses".

[txaslftist]

39. I'm pretty happy with Texas' split system.

The majority of the delegates are chosen by the "will of the masses" while those willing to give extra effort get rewarded for their time and energy, too.

[Bread and Circus]

40. On the west coast people talk about food instead of sports...here in the

Midwest, we talk about what church you go to and what soccer team your kid is signed up for in the spring... I'm being a little sarcastic :)

[txaslftist]

44. You're not fooling me.

I've lived in the Midwest (lower Wisconsin). It was "Packers, Bears, Badgers, Bulls, Brewers, Bucks...." on and on and on...

[Alamom]

41. Yeah, we certainly don't won't everyone represented like in the GE.

:sarcasm:

[txaslftist]

46. If your only reason to hold caucuses is to pick a nominee,

you don't need them. If you want to have events where you build the party, you can hardly beat them.

As for the alleged fairness or unfairness of the caucus system toward one candidate or another, all candidates should be presumed to be prepared to campaign in caucus states. If you aren't prepared to campaign in caucuses, what kind of an office holder will you make?

They aren't THAT complicated.

[Benhurst]

71. The fairness issue pertains to the voters, not the candidates.

Caucuses exclude the old, the sick, the infirm, the disabled, the poor, those without cars, those who must work during the narrow time frame in which a caucus is held, those for whatever reason prefer to not make their choice public, and people serving in the armed services.

They also give unfair advantage to the most vocal and aggressive among us.

I'm very vocal and have no trouble standing my ground, so I enjoyed participating in caucuses when I lived in states which had them. But they are not fair and they are far from democratic.

We should eliminate caucuses and put the small "d" democratic back into the Democratic party.

If you need a reason to socialize, put on a summer social or voter registration drive. But dump the caucuses and give every Democrat a chance to participate on an equal footing.

[txaslftist]

78. I agree they give advantage to the "most vocal and aggressive"

Although I would rephrase that to "the most passionate and willing to participate". But the fact is, those are the folks who are going to make contributions of time and effort later on, too. As for the folks without cars or with jobs that conflict, most employers will give you a night off if you arrange it in advance, most folks without cars know someone who has one.

And if all you ever do in a political season is walk into a polling place or supermarket and push the button for one guy or another, how invested are you in the outcome anyway? I think giving folks an avenue through which they can feel empowered and like they are actually participating is much more important than the purity of "one man one vote" in the sense that that's all you get. "You're one person. You got your vote. Now sit down and shaddap..."

[Benhurst]

81. All those you so cavalierly dismiss comprise the vast majority of our party.

Take them away, and the Democratic Party wouldn't even be able to carry a crooked election in Cook County.

And many of us, though anti-war and opponents of the military/industrial complex, think those serving in the military ought to have a voice in the selection of our candidates, something caucuses don't allow.

Caucuses are by their very nature undemocratic and contrary to what this party should be standing for.

[countryjake]

102. Military members in WA state vote absentee in our caucus...

Which states' caucuses don't provide that option?

Are you sure you know how a caucus works? Have you ever participated in one?

[cosmik debris]

48. One of the best parts to the caucus system

The Ditto heads that voted in the Dem Primary were too embarrassed to show their faces at the caucus.

They were willing to cast a secret ballot but they would not publicly take a stand in the caucus.

That is one reason the caucus results differed from the ballot results--fewer republicans voting!

[txaslftist]

50. I don't think we had any ditto heads at our caucus.

I can't speak for other areas, but I met with everyone, and they all seemed very sincere in their desire to participate and change Washington. I think I made a lot of new friends.

[cosmik debris]

53. But I'll bet you did have some ditto heads vote in the primary

Rush was encouraging his listeners to cross over and vote for one of the candidates in the Dem Primary. But there is no way they would show up for a caucus and let their neighbors know that they were participating in a Democratic caucus!

Can you imagine a die-hard Lubbock Republican signing in at a Democratic caucus and writing down his presidential preference next to his own name? IN WRITING! For the world to see!

[txaslftist]

55. I imagine we did.

[Benhurst]

83. Yeah, like the whole world looks over those forms. Please, not even

the press bothers to do so.

[cosmik debris]

84. The precinct leaders do

And they are made available to canvassers for all candidates during that election cycle and the next election cycle. If a noted Republican crossed over in the caucus it would become the subject of gossip through out the Dem leadership, especially in his precinct.

The lists are used by the party for party purposes. Perhaps you are not aware of this because you don't participate in Texas Democratic Party Politics.

[Benhurst]

87. So the person becomes "the subject of gossip throughout the Dem leadership, especially in

his precinct." What are they going to do? Bar him at the door at the next convention? Go after his job? Write letters to the newspapers? Launch a rumor campaign? Run him out of the community?

I have lived in red states with caucuses, but never, I admit, in Texas. Gosh, I didn't realize it at the time, but by comparison they were paradises and close to the virtual embodiment of Truth, Justice and The American Way.

[cosmik debris]

88. You're certainly welcome

To live elsewhere. But you're not welcome to tell our Democratic Party how to run Our Democratic Party's business.

Thanks for playing.

[Benhurst]

89. Your right, outsiders shouldn't meddle or even comment upon Texas

affairs.

If those meddlesome Northern and New England Democrats hadn't pushed through the civil rights legislation, not only Texas, but the rest of Dixie, would be blue states today.

[cosmik debris]

90. How quickly you forget

JFK didn't sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964, LBJ did. And Boston had more race riots that Texas ever had. Learn your history before you write your sermons.

No need to thank us. We sent you LBJ for the good of the country.

You're Welcome.

[Benhurst]

92. I had certainly not forgotten LBJ signed the civil rights acts.

And just how did Texas reward him and the Democratic party in the years to follow?

To Johnson's credit, he knew the South would be lost as a result of his actions for years, if not generations. To Texas' shame -- not that of the individuals who supported his actions and stuck by the Democratic party in Texas and other Southern states -- The Lone Star State proved his fears were correct.

[cosmik debris]

95. You certainly seem to have a poor education in American History.

Good luck with that.

[Benhurst]

100. I'll put mine up against yours any day.

:rofl:

[cosmik debris]

101. You pretended that north-easterners were responsible

for civil rights legislation until I reminded you that they weren't.

Then you said "I knew that." (classic rebuttal)

If you have any education, you are hiding it well.

[Benhurst]

103. Johnson corageously went against the South (which was predominately

Democratic at the time) to do what he thought was right. But he feared he would be losing the South to the Republicans for years, if not generations.

He was right. Nixon's race-based Southern Strategy followed, which turned the old "Solid South" over to the Republicans.

And just how Democratic is Texas now?


Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison (R), John Cornyn (R)
Representative(s) Louie Gohmert (R), Ted Poe (R), Sam Johnson (R), Ralph Hall (R), Jeb Hensarling (R), Joe Barton (R), John Culberson (R), Kevin Brady (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), Mike Conaway (R), Kay Granger (R), Mac Thornberry (R), Ron Paul (R), Rubén Hinojosa (D), Silvestre Reyes (D), Chet Edwards (D), Sheila Jackson Lee (D), Randy Neugebauer (R), Charlie Gonzalez (D), Lamar S. Smith (R), Nick Lampson (D), Ciro Rodriguez (D), Kenny Marchant (R), Lloyd Doggett (D), Michael C. Burgess (R), Solomon P. Ortiz (D), Henry Cuellar (D), Gene Green (D), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D), John Carter (R), Pete Sessions (R)

And how many years has it been now?

To Johnson's credit he did the right thing. Sadly, he was right about the consequences doing so would have.

[Name removed]

105. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[WolverineDG]

104. You would not believe

the number of people going over those forms with a fine-toothed comb.

dg

[cosmik debris]

107. He doesn't want to believe

He is too absorbed in his conspiracy theory.

[VolcanoJen]

97. Bingo!

Same thing went on here in Ohio. My coworkers down here in Lower Wingnuttia are still bragging about crossing over and voting for Hillary. They keep referring to it as "The Plot." It's f'n creepy.

But, I couldn't imagine a single one of them showing up at a Democratic caucus to do the same thing.... what would the neighbors think? One of them was telling me yesterday that she looked all around her polling place to make sure nobody knew her before asking for the Democratic ballot.

"How proud you must be!" I told her. "How did you explain your vote to your kids?"

[d.amber]

57. Also the people who show tend to be very passionate

In our caucus, we had people who drove an hour and half to just get to the caucus location to vote!
And they live in GOP strongholds as well.

These are the people who will build the party and will be there when called on to do the leg work that means you can win in the general.

People do no understand a primary vote is for the party only to decide. In WA state there in a big fuss demanding for open primary voting and a two 2 choice no matter what the party. It is insane, and you bet that GOP would vote for who they think will lose to MCCain.

[cosmik debris]

70. Caucuses reward activists

And a lot of the complaints I've been hearing are from people who don't want to be active, but they do want the same benefits as those who put in a lot of work. They want to sit on their asses and not do anything but vote one day every two years, but still have the same influence on the party as those who actually make the party run every day.

And that's their idea of fairness.

[txaslftist]

73. Plus, the caucus does more than just pick a nominee.

We also determine what the party platform is going to be.

[redqueen]

51. Awwwww... I'm so sorry I had to miss mine!

Thanks for sharing... I so would have loved to see the difference in numbers. The last one I attended only three people showed up. I might call the party and find the new precinct chair for my old precinct, and find out how that went this time around.

I can't believe I missed it. *pout*



On edit: did you have any resolutions?

[txaslftist]

54. We passed 2 resolutions unanimously:

1. "Be it resolved that it should be an objective of the Texas Democratic Party to end the war in Iraq quickly."

2. "Be it resolved that it should be an objective of the Texas Democratic Party to balance the Federal Budget."

I don't know how the resolutions will fare at the County Convention or at the State Convention, but we all "ayed" them at the precinct level. It would be VERY cool if these planks made it on the state platform, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

[redqueen]

63. Well you never know... they may have been resolutions that

were also submitted in other precincts. If so that would surely help!

Are you a delegate? Argh I still can't believe I missed it!

[txaslftist]

72. No, I'm going to be in California on the beach with kids...

...on March 29th, so I couldn't be a delegate.

[redqueen]

74. Hah...

well the beach sounds much more fun. :hi:

[txaslftist]

76. no kidding. lol

[Avalux]

67. Thanks for posting this. I caucused in San Antonio. It was great.

At the onset the Hillary and Obama folks made a decision to keep the discourse civil and it went very well. :hi:

[txaslftist]

75. It really was great. I actually felt "involved" in the democratic process.

Like what I did really mattered.

[Avalux]

77. Exactly! I had caucused 4 years ago and there were 6 of us there.

This time, there were over 200. I loved the feeling of making a difference and everyone in the room felt the same way.

[txaslftist]

79. We went from 4 to 50.

And this time the GOPrs had 4!

LOL. How the worm has turned!

[oasis]

86. Too bad our service people overseas cannot participate. They certainly have concerns

about who will be their Commander in Chief. But hey, let's let everyone do the deciding.:eyes:

[countryjake]

98. What are you saying? Absentee caucus votes are available to the military...

at least in our state (wa) they are.

[TexasThoughtCriminal]

91. Activist TX DU'ers want to keep the caucus

Texans: Would you prefer a pure primary system in 2012,
...or to keep your mixed primary/caucus system?
www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=180x50204

What people in other states don't realize is that unless they vote in a Democratic primary, Democrats in Texas are invisible. There is no such thing as a "registered Democrat" or "registered Republican" in Texas. We do not register by party on our voter registrations. We cannot identify our loyal Democrats who dutifully vote in the general but not in the primary. So this huge primary turnout is a goldmine for future party building that will continue to bear fruit long after we've forgotten which candidate won or lost Texas's caucus. How can you run a 50-state strategy if you don't know your base?

Is it fair to those who cannot make it to the caucus? In a pure caucus state, that's a compelling argument. But in Texas the primary accounts for two-thirds of the delegates and the caucus only one-third. A nice compromise, I think.

Thank you, txaslftist, for saying what needed to be said.

[WolverineDG]

106. FYI for those who complain about having to work

the Texas Election Code specifically states that an employer has to let employees attend their caucus if that employee expresses a desire to attend. The only thing they can do is make the employee clock out or take annual/personal time for the time spent at the caucus.

So, before you crab, know your rights & exercise them.

dg

[antigop]

109. And you *think* a person working in corporate America is going to make that announcement?

GEEZ!

Get real.

When are you going to figure out that people working for repug corporations (that would be most of them) have to be VERY careful?

Texas has "employment at will". If you don't think corporations will take it out on people who are dems, then you don't understand how corporate America works.

That's one of the reasons I am ADAMANTLY against caucuses. I shouldn't have to put my families' livelihood at stake to show up at a Democratic caucus for a couple of hours (yes, that's how long ours took).

[antigop]

111. Oh, and I am NOT a HRC supporter, so don't try it. Check my posts. Never supported her. n/t

[antigop]

108. Well, duh! n/t

[VolcanoJen]

93. Excellent post, txaslftist

Someone yesterday wrote about the huge Boise, Idaho caucus on Super Tuesday... and said the best thing about it was, you got to meet your Democratic neighbors when you previously thought you didn't have any!!!!

:thumbsup:

[countryjake]

99. Agreed! K&R!

It's the "human" way to nominate...no machines required!