Starting tonight at 9 PM (ET)-- so 6 PM on the West Coast-- Marianne Williamson will be hosting a week-long summit for progressive Congressional candidates on her Facebook page-- one candidate each night. Her first guest, someone she has already shared a stage with in Iowa, is J.D. Scholten, the progressive Democrat who nearly beat neo-fascist and racist Iowa Republican Steve King, in 2018. That was a race sabotaged by the DCCC but so much momentum was built up by Scholten's grassroots campaign that this year not even progressive-hating DCCC chair Cheri Bustos will be able to stop J.D. Monroe County, NY progressive Robin Wilt will be on with Marianne on Saturday. Today she told me that "At the heart of Marianne Williamson’s run for the Presidency was a commitment to humanitarianism that was lacking from many of the corporate, establishment-based candidates in the race. I am proud to be among the down-ballot candidates that Marianne Williamson has endorsed, because we share the fundamental belief that we can only make progress if we center the needs of those most directly impacted by the deleterious policies that have created the inequities that we witness. As Marianne will be the first to tell you, the ideas at the center of her platform are not novel. They are supported by a majority of everyday Americans who recognize that the vast wealth and income inequality that plagues our nation is not sustainable, and that we need representatives at all level of government who are willing to prioritize the needs of the people over those of corporate elites that have been disproportionately and unfairly benefiting from government largesse at our expense."
We need expanded and improved Medicare for All, not only because it is inhumane for 45,000 Americans to die each year from a lack of access to health care, but also because our for-profit, atomized health care landscape fails to address the many social determinants of health that are the root causes of preventable diseases.We need a Green New Deal, not only because it is inhumane for communities like Flint, MI and Newark, NJ to have poisoned air and water, but also because we need a solution to the current crisis that recognizes the scale of the threat to civilization and transitions to a green economy that ensures that those communities that have been disproportionately impacted by polluters receive the support they need to equitably share in the economic opportunities of a green economy.We need publicly-funded, freely available pre-K through 16 education because it is inhumane for one’s educational opportunity to be determined by one’s zip code.Most importantly, we need bold, new representatives in Congress that will unabashedly support these policy positions on behalf of the people that they represent, because our current leadership has not been up to the task.
"Slavery is a crime against humanity," said Shan Chowdhury, who is running for a seat in Queens held by corrupt New Dem Greg Meeks and Marianne's Sunday guest. "The path to restorative justice begins with the United States acknowledging our past crimes against Americans of African descent, whose ancestors were transported here against their will and enslaved. Meaningful and transformative reparations begins with implementing a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). I believe prioritizing access for African Americans to services, fully-funding Black institutions such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Community Banks, and Black Owned Businesses, central to racial, social, and economic justice."Shahid Buttar, the attorney and community organizer who is taking on Nancy Pelosi, will be joining Marianne on Friday. This morning he told me that "One of the overarching themes that unite our campaigns is our shared recognition of social justice as an extension of mutual concern and compassion. That, in turn, drives our shared commitment to universal healthcare, as well as ending police violence and ensuring that black lives matter-- not just to We to the People, but also the government that answers to us. We’re excited to get into the issues and explore why change is so desperately needed!"This is the whole schedule-- at least for week 1:
• J.D. Scholten- Tuesday, June 2• Andrew Romanoff- Wednesday, June 3• Hector Oseguera- Thursday, June 4• Shahid Buttar- Friday, June 5• Robin Wilt- Saturday, June 6• Shan Chowdhury- Sunday, June 7• Jen Perelman- Monday, June 8
You can contribute to any of the Marianne-endorsed candidates by clicking on the ActBlue thermometer. Whether Trump is re-elected (or gets away with stealing the election) or Biden is elected, one thing we are going to need in Congress is more progressives to work with the handful of members-- like AOC (D-NY), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Andy Levin (D-MI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)...-- trying to move a progressive agenda forward and trying to move the Democratic Party in a progressive agenda and away from corporatism, careerism and corruption.