Skagit County Democratic Party

Welcome to the Skagit County Democratic Party News page!

EVENTS

 

Dear Skagit Democrats,

If you would like to submit resolutions for possible inclusion in the local and state party platforms, they must be submitted via email or snail mail to party headquarters by Friday, March 5, 2010. The submitted resolutions will be discussed at the Skagit County Democratic Party Convention on April 10, 2010.

Skagit County Delegates to the Washington State Democratic Convention in June will be elected at the 10th, 39th, and 40th Legislative District ( LD) Caucuses on Sunday, March 14, 2010. Skagit Democrats registered to vote in their respective LD’s will be eligible to vote at the LD caucuses and run to be a delegate to the state convention. Candidates to be delegates to the state convention must submit their willingness to serve and be known as Democrats in a letter to the chair of their LD at or prior to the LD caucus.

Please call party headquarters, 336-1555, if you have questions.

Gail Nicolls, Editor of Online Announcements
Skagit County Democratic Party

Below are a list of upcoming events and an interesting variety of announcements including a message from Congressman Rick Larsen.

EVENTS

1. New - Annual Democratic Gala and Auction Tickets Go on Sale, Monday, March 1, 1:00 p.m., Party Headquarters, Mount Vernon
This year’s Gala is scheduled for Saturday, May 1, at the Cotton Tree Convention Center. Plan to enjoy a big, delicious buffet dinner, with fellow Democrats while you meet our great Democratic candidates and discover treasures at our silent and live auctions.

2. Dollar Movie, Friday, March 5, 7 p.m., Party Headquarters, Mount Vernon
“The People Speak” focuses on the concept of democracy based on the lives and experiences of ordinary Americans who, through their words and actions, changed the course of history. These historical moments remind us that democracy is not a spectator sport. This DVD is a journey from the founding of this country to the civil rights movement and beyond.
Remember a can of food for the food bank. Light refreshments, fellowship to follow. $1 admission charge. More info 360 336 1555

3. Skagit Dem Executive Board Meeting, Saturday, March 6, 9:30 a.m., Party Headquarters, Mount Vernon
All interested Democrats are welcome to attend. Please remember to bring a donation for the food bank.

4. Legislative District Caucuses, Sunday, March 14, 10th and 39th LD’s at 10 a.m., 40th LD at 1 p.m. Details Below.

New - 10th LD
Skagit PUD Building, 1405 Freeway Drive, Sunday, Mar. 14, 10 a.m., Mount Vernon

To vote at the 10th LD caucus an individual must be a resident, registered voter
in the 10th LD and sign a registration sheet stating that he/she is a Democrat, and agrees
to public display of her/his attendance at the meeting.
(Donation or membership to the 10th LD is voluntary and not required to participate)

10th Legislative District Democrats are invited to attend to elect delegates to
represent our 10th LD at:
~Skagit County Convention (April 10th @10 AM)
~WSD: Washington State Democratic Convention (June 26th@ 9 AM in Vancouver, WA)

NOMINATATION of Elective Office(s) by 10th LD PCO's:
10th LD Democrat PCO's will be voting to nominate Democrat candidate(s)
for 10th LD Washington State Legistlative District Representative(s)

For further information contact:
Marj McNae, 10th LD Democrat Chair:
marjmcnae@comcast.net
360.675-5289

New - 39th LD

The 39th LD Caucus and Nominating Convention will both be held on March 14th from 1-5 pm at the Marysville Library. The LD Caucus and Nominating Convention will be held in the same meeting.

To vote at the 39th LD caucus an individual must be a resident, registered voter
in the 39th LD and sign a registration sheet stating that he/she is a Democrat, and agrees to public display of her/his attendance at the meeting.
(Donation or membership to the 10th LD is voluntary and not required to participate).

Chair Gary Sell
<democrat@risingnova.com>

40th LD

The 40th LD Caucus will be held at 1 p.m., at the Croatian Cultural Center, 801 5th Street, Anacortes.

To vote at the 40th LD caucus an individual must be a resident, registered voter
in the 40th LD and sign a registration sheet stating that he/she is a Democrat, and agrees to public display of her/his attendance at the meeting.
(Donation or membership to the 10th LD is voluntary and not required to participate).

Chair Erna Berghuys
erna@berghuys.com

5. Month of March - Human Rights Festival Schedule
Mark your calendar for the Skagit Human Rights Festival coming on Fridays in March at the Phillip Tarro Theater at 7 pm and the first two Sundays at 3 PM at the Lincoln Theatre. More info at www.ppplanet.org; for the immigration film, go to www.skagitIRC.org. All programs Free. Donations appreciated. For the third year in a row, the Skagit County Democrats are proud co-sponsors of the festival.

On the schedule this year:
• Fri, March 5 - Housing as a Human Right, the film First Earth with a Natural Building Workshop follow up
• Lincoln Film, Sunday, March 7: Hannah Free Tickets $10 - Presented by Skagit PFLAG, the Lincoln, and SHRF
• Fri., March 12 - Genocide in Our Time; Why Darfur Matters - a presentation by James Waller PhD.
- Made possible by an Inquiring Minds grant from Humanities WA
• Lincoln Film, Sun., March 14 - The Other Side of Immigration Tickets $10 - Presented by the Skagit Immigrant Rights Council
• Fri., March 19 - War & Peace, the films  Rethink Afghanistan and Building a Nonviolent Peace Force, with discussion
• Fri., March 26 - Health as a Societal Right: Is Capitalism Killing Us? - a presentation by Stephen Bezruchka, MD.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. A Message from Congressman Rick Larsen
Dear Neighbor,

One year ago, our economy was on the brink of collapse. Congress took immediate action to save us from economic catastrophe by passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to jumpstart the economy and spur job growth.

It is clear that our economy has turned a corner and that the Recovery Act is working and will continue to work. Locally, we have seen Recovery Act dollars create jobs, fix crumbling infrastructure and provide tax cuts for hard-working families. But far too many Washingtonians remain out of work and our nation is faced with an unsustainably high deficit.

I would like to use this email to update you on what I am doing to restore fiscal responsibility so we can rein in spending and reduce the mountain of debt our nation is buried under. Both Republicans and Democrats got us into this fiscal mess and now both parties must work together to clean it up. We need to create an economic environment that will support good jobs and build a foundation for long-term economic growth.

Reining in Spending and Reducing the Deficit

• I voted to pass statutory “pay as you go” legislation. This measure will hold Congress accountable by requiring all spending increases to be offset with savings elsewhere in the budget. PAYGO led our nation from deficits to record surpluses in the late 1990s and will be a critical tool as we work to control spending and bring down the deficit. In 2007, we made PAYGO part of House Rules, this vote will send it to the President’s desk to give it the force of law. If families in Washington can balance their checkbooks and live on a budget, Congress certainly can too.
• I am a cosponsor of the SAFE Commission Act. This legislation is designed to address the unsustainable imbalance between long-term federal spending commitments and projected revenue shortfalls with an emphasis on increasing our net national savings to provide for domestic investment and economic growth.
• I am committed to controlling federal spending and bring down the deficit. This week, Congress received the President’s budget outline for the next fiscal year. I applaud the President for his commitment to go line-by-line through the budget to identify areas of wasteful spending and opportunities for cost-savings. His proposal to implement a three year freeze on discretionary spending demonstrates his drive to tackle this deficit and rebuild our economy.
• I approve of the President’s plan to establish a bipartisan fiscal commission that will examine every piece of our budget and consider ways to overhaul our approach to spending and the long-term deficit.
• None of these measures are a cure-all for our fiscal crisis. Moving forward, we must remain laser-focused on restoring fiscal responsibility, and building a long-term, sustainable budget for our future.

Building a Long-Term, Sustainable Budget

The President’s budget is focused on our nation’s two greatest needs: creating jobs now and driving down the deficit in the future. As a member of the House Budget Committee, I look forward to working with the President to finalize a long-term, sustainable budget that will create jobs, help Washington state families and get our economy moving again. By making key investments in small businesses, clean energy and infrastructure, we can grow good jobs in our community and build a foundation for economic growth.

I hope this information has been helpful. Please visit www.house.gov/larsen to share your thoughts. I appreciate hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Rick Larsen
United States Representative
Washington State, 2nd Congressional District

2. A Message from the DNC on the Health Care Summit Via DNC Member Lona Wilbur
DNC CHAIRMAN TIM KAINE APPLAUDS PRESIDENT, MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ON TODAY’S BIPARTISAN SUMMIT

Washington, D.C. – Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine released the following statement tonight on the President’s bipartisan health reform summit:
“Today’s summit on the future of health care in this country, while far from resolving all of the differences between Republicans and Democrats on reforming our broken health insurance system, was a huge win for the American people.

“For over seven hours today, the President led a vigorous, respectful and historic discussion with representatives from both parties and houses in Congress about how best to reform this country’s broken health insurance system. At every opportunity, the President displayed genuine devotion to delving into the specifics of the proposals and sought, wherever possible, to resolve key differences and find common ground.

“During today’s meeting, the President continued to seek bipartisan agreement on issues of importance to the American people. Of course, differences do remain. Democrats made the case for their comprehensive approach that lowers costs, increases coverage and curbs unfair and discriminatory insurance industry practices. The Republicans have not offered comprehensive counter-proposals that achieve these goals and continue to favor a piecemeal approach that has empowered insurance companies to increase the numbers of uninsured, provide less security for those who are insured and increase health care costs for all Americans.

“It continues to be clear, and today both parties agreed, that we can no longer defer action on addressing this country’s broken health insurance system. This country cannot continue to wait for comprehensive action on health insurance reform and incremental steps will not achieve the type of meaningful reform American families and businesses so desperately need. Accordingly, I echo the President’s call today for Republicans to dig deep and identify areas where agreements can be forged on issues like expanding insurance coverage for the millions who lack it and guaranteeing that all consumers have access to care.”

3. A Message from the DNC’s Women’s Caucus Via DNC Member Lona Wilbur

Dear Democratic Women,

I am thrilled to share with you Poised to Run, the most comprehensive study ever conducted on state legislators' routes to office. The Barbara Lee Family Foundation is proud to have made a leadership grant to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers (CAWP) to help make this research possible.

The report offers a fresh look at how women reach the legislatures and how their pathways to public office have changed over time. Findings from a nationwide survey compare women and men, examining their decisions to seek office, previous political experiences, and personal backgrounds.

Among the findings of the study is that women need to be recruited! Women are more likely than men to run for office because they were recruited rather than deciding to run on their own.

Please share this report to someone you think would make a great candidate – and ask her to run for office.

Additional report highlights include:

Political Parties Matter

It is critical that women candidates attract party support. Women who reach the legislature usually do so with the support of their parties.

Organizations Help Women Run

Organizations are encouraging women to run for office, but they could be more active in candidate recruitment.

More Women Can Run

The pool of women candidates is larger than is commonly believed.

Resources are Important

More funding and training can help women win.

Read the full report: http://www.cawp.rutgers.edu/research/reports/PoisedtoRun.pdf
For more information about the progressive initiatives supported by the Barbara Lee Family Foundation, please visit our website: http://www.barbaraleefoundation.org

Warm Regards,
Barbara Lee
Lee Family Office
131 Mt. Auburn Street, Suite 2
Cambridge, MA 02138
v) 617-234-0351
f) 617-234-0359

4. A Message from Skagit County’s Young Democrats
Dear Ally,

In the past year, the Young Democrats of Skagit County (YDSC) has been an active political voice in our local political scene. The YDSC has interviewed and endorsed several local candidates, worked on the campaigns of Democrats, volunteered at the Democratic Gala, stood up to right-wing ideologues, raised awareness of issues both local and national, and fostered community amongst the youth of Skagit County through our Open-Mic series.

In March, the YDSC will be attending the Young Democrats of Washington (YDWA) Convention in Seattle. This opportunity brings Young Democrats from across the state together to discuss important issues in caucuses, attend workshops on how to participate in the Democratic Party, elect our YDWA Leadership for 2010, provide networking opportunities, and also features a key-note speech by newly elected Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn! This event is especially crucial in educating the Young Democrats of Skagit County about the basic mechanisms through which the Democratic Party operates. With our work in building the base and future of our party, we have the largest delegation to the convention outside of King County!

The Young Democrats of Skagit County are in the process of fundraising to offset the cost of attendance. Our biggest expenses are our hotel and registration fees which cost $1000 due to our delegation’s size. We are respectfully soliciting funds from our Democratic Allies to help us with this important investment in the future of the Democratic Party. Just $40 will help pay for the registration of one Young Democrat from Skagit County. That’s one more young person who will be better trained to make the right decision at the ballot box; one more young person to run for public office and fight for REAL healthcare reform; one more young person to organize their community to stand up and demand social and economic justice; it’s one more young person who can help train more young people about the importance of civic participation.

To donate, please follow our link to Paypal where you can donate any amount to the YDSC. If you would like to donate with cash or a check please drop off donations at the Democratic Headquarters in downtown Mount Vernon with your name, address and phone number. The Headquarters are open Monday, Thursday, Friday from 1pm-5pm and Saturday from 11am-3pm.

Thank you for your time, and we look forward to working with you to continue the Democratic tradition!

Sincerely,

Marc Oommen
President
Young Democrats of Skagit County

5. Cleaning Service for Women Undergoing Chemo Treatments
If you know any woman currently undergoing Chemo, please pass the word to her that there is a cleaning service that provides FREE housecleaning - 1 time per month for 4 months while she is in treatment.

All she has to do is sign up and have her doctor fax a note confirming the treatment. Cleaning for a Reason will have a participating maid service in her zip code area arrange for the service.

http://www.cleaningforareason.org/

Please pass this information on to bless a woman going through Any Cancer treatment. This organization serves the entire USA and currently has 547 partners to help these women. It's our job to pass the word and let them know that there are people out there that care. Be a blessing to someone and pass this information along.

God grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one I can, & the wisdom to know it's me...author unknown

Warm regards to all,

Gail Nicolls, Editor of Online Announcements
Skagit County Democratic Party
300A South 1st Street, Mount Vernon
360-336-1555
www.skagitdemocrats.org
guemesgail@cablerocket.com

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