Joe Baca was one of the worst members of Congress when he was in Congress-- a corrupt, conservative Blue Dog and NRA shill. Although he voted with the Republicans against core progressive values and principles virtually all the time, there is such an utter lack of party discipline that he was able to cross the aisle with complete impunity.
This election cycle should serve as a case study in how not to run the DCCC. We've been referring to it as The Steve Israel Effect but, even if Israel is the worst practitioner ever, the DCCC's inability to do its job predated Israel for as long as anyone alive can remember.
In the final week of the midterm election cycle, House Republicans are on the offensive and an abysmally-led DCCC is retreating almost everywhere.
Steve Israel picks candidates who disagree with these wild ideas-- and they loseBack in May, the DCCC announced they had reserved $43.5 million in TV time for endangered incumbents like Blue Dogs John Barrow, Nick Rahall and Collin Peterson and for Steve Israel's mostly wretched, conservative, doomed recruits.
Substance abuser and New Dem Petey-Pie lets his hair downI don't think even someone as astoundingly incompetent as Steve Israel could lose CA-31-- the Inland Empire congressional district-- for the Democrats again this year, despite having maneuvered to get an ethics-free, corrupt ex-lobbyist, Pete Aguilar, the nomination.
There were a lot of Democrats who won tough primaries last Tuesday, but there was only one that caused an orgy of twitter ecstasy from the DCCC: Petey Pie, Steve Israel's flawed New Dem who would like to get into Congress so he can help the Republicans cut Social Security benefits for retirees while increasing his perceived value as a lobbyist, when he goes back to his original profession.
L.A.'s dirtiest politician, Wendy Greuel, learned her political skills while she was still openly admitting she was a Republican. Vicious, negative campaigning is all she's ever knownA week from today there are important primaries in Iowa-- where progressive champion Pat Murphy is leading comfortably in his crowded House race-- in New Jersey and in California (as well as in some other states without significant Democratic contests).
No one's even asking Jean Merl to explain this drunken, coked up messJean Merl is the big kahuna among L.A. political journalists. She works at the L.A. Times and her articles are widely considered the most-read political stories in southern California, even though they generally lack context, insight and substance and are suspiciously similar to campaign talking points.
The Republican wing of the Democratic Party, the New Dems, has endorsed their perfect little corporate stooge-- empty suit and Chamber of Commerce front man Pete Aguilar. Aguilar ran all over the California state Democratic Party convention with shameless corporate whores Gavin Newsom and Eric Bauman assuring all the delegates he's a progressive.
