MI-06

This week Blue America has been working with our friends at Climate Hawks Vote to win House seats for candidates committed to ameliorating climate change, primarily House seats that are in winnable districts that the DCCC is ignoring.

There is no better example in Congress of America's descent into plutocracy than southwest Michigan's 15-term Republican incumbent, Fred Upton. He was born into one of the state's wealthiest families and he has served the interests of his class-- and exclusively those interests-- since first getting into Congress in the 1980s. Blue America is supporting Paul Clements to replace Upton and his new TV ad (above) delineates the Upton policies to this day that have marked him as the servant of plutocracy.

When I was president of Reprise Records, Neil's wish was always my command. That's a long time ago and I haven't spoken to Neil in years but, in his awesome new song, "Indian Giver," he says he wishes somebody would share the news. So... here goes.

Congress is back in town and the first thing up is an intractable Republican-created controversy that, thankfully, doesn't involve-- at least not so far-- El Trumpanzee! Instead of rushing to fund the president's Zika proposals, like they should have a year ago, the GOP immediately started bickering about shutting down the government.

Fred Upton's Committee will never allow Medicare to negotiate fair prices with drug manufacturersJoe Manchin's daughter, the Mylan CEO with a pronounced and lifelong penchant for cheating in her personal and business life-- who caused a scandal by bribing a university official to lie and say she got a degree when she didn't-- gets all the blame for the E

This morning, I was speaking with one of the congressional candidates Blue America is most enthusiastic about this cycle, Paul Clements from southwest Michigan. He's running for the seat held by Energy Committee chairman Fred Upton (MI-06) and he told me that "the biggest holes in investment in America, if we were going to promote broad-based economic growth, are in infrastructure and education.

Still harping on the made-up "fact" that Obama founded ISIS-- which he supposedly walked back last week-- Trump was at an ill-conceived rally in Fairfield, Connecticut Saturday evening, warning voters he'd "never, ever forgive" them if he loses. "I will never, ever forgive the people of Connecticut. I will never forgive the people of Florida. Pennsylvania and Ohio..."When Trump loses in a jaw-dropping landslide in November-- virtually wiped out, outside the hatred-and-resentment-fueled Deep South-- it will be a very personal defeat.

Paul Ryan's political raison d'être has been clear since he was first elected to Congress-- slashing the New Deal and subsequent social insurance policies to ribbons. That's what he got from reading Ayn Rand's books when he was just a little right-wing nut in high school.

Barbara Lee says no wars without congressional approval; Fred Upton disagreesLast week the House passed the 2017 Defense Appropriations bill. As part of the debate, Barbara Lee (D-CA) offered an amendment that would prohibit the use of funds for the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force, a blanket excuse any president-- Clinton or Trump-- could use to attack anyone, anywhere without seeking constitutionally-mandated congressional approval.

When Earth Day rolls around and you're running against an incumbent who's been named "Earth's No. 1 enemy in Congressman," you remind your district's voters why.