Well... Denver May Just Prove To Be Interesting In More Ways Than We Think !!!

[WillyT]

Sticking A Wrench In The Gearbox
Thomas B. Edsall
The Huffington Post

<snip>

Maybe, just maybe, a bunch of delegates to the Democratic Convention in Denver will change their minds at the last minute. Maybe there is an outside chance that between now and the last week of August a critical mass will decide that Barack Obama is not their guy -- that, to the surprise of one and all, Hillary Rodham Clinton is to be the 2008 nominee after all.

That is the thinking behind a small but determined band of Hillary backers, some of whom have formed a 527 fundraising committee that has already run one $9,700 ad in the Chicago Tribune, and plans more in the weeks to come.

The Denver Group: Keeping the Democratic Party democratic, created by Georgetown Law professor Heidi Li Feldman and freelance advertising man Marc Rubin, ran an ad in Friday's Chicago Tribune declaring:

"Senator Clinton's name must be put in nomination. Her supporters must be allowed to make speeches on her behalf of her candidacy. There must be an honest roll call vote, not a symbolic one, so superdelegates can cast their votes honestly, for either candidate, as their judgment, conscience and democratic principles dictate."

Feldman told the Huffington Post that the goal of the Denver Group "is to insure substantive and legitimate selection of the nominee." DNC chairman and other party leaders "should be taking responsibility for making sure it's a legitimate procedure. They cannot demand that people simply unify around either one of them."

Feldman argued that it is entirely conceivable that an open vote could produce a Clinton victory. "Then, the decision comes down to the superdelegates. I have no Idea what they are going to do six weeks from now."

Feldman declined to say how much the group has raised, or who the donors are - "We can't disclose that information" - although he acknowledged that the 527 organization will soon have to report that data to the IRS. She said the largest donation so far is $5,000.

The Denver Group is not committed to any candidate, Feldman said, although the organization's web site, and the links provided at the site, suggest a decisive tilt toward Clinton and, in some cases, intense animosity to Obama.

Rubin, for example, writes not only on the Denver Group site, but also on Tom In Paine. There, the lead piece by Rubin is titled "The New Obama, The New Nixon and The Same Old New York Times." Rubin writes, "The analogy of Obama to Nixon is valid from many different points of view since a case can be made that Obama is the most underhanded and dishonest politician since Nixon."

Spokesfolk for the Obama campaign declined to comment on the Denver Group. It should not be confused with "Unconventional Denver," a separate anarchist organization pledged to disrupt activities at the Democratic convention. "We don't want history to remember the Democratic National Convention in Denver as something that went smoothly," Tim Simons of Unconventional Denver told the Denver Post, "We want people to know there was dissent and people spoke up."

The ad in the Chicago Tribune:



:banghead:

[slinkerwink]

that group is myopically stupid.

[babylonsister]

1. Some Dems. With friends like these...nt

[WillyT]

8. Hey Sis... Check These Out !!!

I put Heidi Li Feldman's name, along with DLC, into my Google Box (to see where this woman is coming from) and landed here:

Link: http://hillbuzz.blogspot.com/2008/07/filed-under-this-strategy-makes-no-damn.html

Which claims that real Democrats are centrists, and that the DLC is the bee's knees.

Searched for Heidi's name there, and got:

Link: http://hillbuzz.blogspot.com/2008/07/nobody-does-it-better-heidi-li-feldman.html

Which is just a video of Carly Simon, but had a link to Feldman's Blog:

Link: http://heidilipotpourri.blogspot.com/2008/07/took-business-trip-to-boston-and-ended.html#links

Where it states that she's a progressive, but wants to support John Kerry's primary challenger!

:wtf:

:banghead:

:crazy:

Sis... what does it all mean???

:shrug:

[babylonsister]

19. I think it proves they're not real Dems, and are very inspired to

try and divide the party using Clinton to do so.

I'm not impressed and bet Sen. Clinton isn't either.

[newmajority]

34. Rubin's ties are even more suspicious.

He's a whore for the pharmaceutical industry.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2007_Sept_26/ai_n27387334

Now I know some PUMAbot will question whether this is the same Marc Rubin, and that's a fair question. But considering that so many of these PUMA sites keep getting traced back to the pharmaceutical lobby, I'm betting it's the same asshole.

[WillyT]

35. Or Maybe THIS Guy ???

This guy has been in advertising (as the original article states) and has been written about in the Chicago Tribune.

Link: http://www.whitecubegallery.org/index.php?exhibition=michaelangelo_montague

:shrug:

[sufrommich]

2. I don't for a minute believe that Hillary would allow that to

happen.It's pretty obvious she's backing the nominee. So who cares?

[Faygo Kid]

4. She can start by disavowing this crap, and similar movements. Any minute now.

Right now, today, would be just fine.

I'm waiting.

[MonkeyFunk]

7. Primarys are over

stop demanding crap.

[nc4bo]

10. not gonna lie and say I know everyone here........

there's way too many people to know everyone or where they stand or what their intentions are...

Mine are 100% pure, i'm an Obama-mama all day, every day.

But I think he has a small point.

Maybe a sentence or two that these folks don't speak for me, for the record. It'd do a lot to sooth frazzled nerves especially since we all know how the MSM is gonna run with this.

[Faygo Kid]

11. This article says otherwise.

If these continue to show up everywhere, and new movements like this are being created, I think this is an appropriate forum to comment upon them.

We have a nominee. But I will continue to wait, and hope for the best. Until then, silence is not an option.

[madura]

13. seems like some think they are not yet over

or did you read the OP?

ye,s Hillary should come right out and reject and denoucne and whatever else she has demanded of others, this group of troublemakers.

oh, and where's bill?

o yes, THAT'S too divisive to ask. i forgot.

[sufrommich]

15. Hillary Clinton is making a positive contribution to

the Obama campaign, she just spoke to thousands of teachers at the NEA conference and the fact that she's not shouting down a relatively obscure fringe group has you concerned? Obama's campaign people know what to ask of Hillary in order for her to be as of much use as possible,I have no doubt that they would rather she not give those people any unwarranted publicity.

[butterfly77]

32. She won't do that because..

her people are behind the scenes and on any scene spreading her agenda..

[CakeGrrl]

23. You mean like those veiled threats that Obama *needs* to put Hillary on the ticket

...or else he makes a big mistake "ignoring" 18 million voters (who if you fill in the blanks presumably would NOT vote for him unless that happened)?

I've seen that..."request"...made almost every time a VP thread goes up.

:eyes:

[butterfly77]

46. Are you talking about the 18 million voters...

who had buyers remorse or the ones who finally decided to really listen to what Obama was really saying...or the 18 million voters who are now saying YES WE CAN!

Oh!you mean the voters who somehow think that Hillary is entitled and are now intending on disrupting the convention..

[Zhade]

49. What those fools fail to account for is the Tuzla video and her endorsing mcLame over Obama...

...the former of which easily proves clinton a liar - the latter (already being used in mcLame campaign ads) would undercut the ticket.

[Blarch]

38. Not really.

She still owes a ton of money ...and seems to be pushing Obama into helping her raise money.

[CreekDog]

48. they don't seem to be over for everyone

just saying.

[sufrommich]

9. Perhaps she's not interested in giving the kook minority

any reason to think they're a legitimate threat to our candidate. Perhaps Obama is not either. Gosh, who would have imagined this innocent thread would devolve into another chance to bash Hillary? :eyes:

[nc4bo]

12. wow, i don't see it exactly as Hillary bashing.....

but we all know that the media is gonna be all over this and make it into a Hillary-bash :S

divide and conquer is the way to go but I really think something can be done to nip this in the bud before it gets the chance to bloom.

alas, I believe I thinketh to mucheth ;)

[Faygo Kid]

18. "Innocent thread?"

. . . Rubin writes, "The analogy of Obama to Nixon is valid from many different points of view since a case can be made that Obama is the most underhanded and dishonest politician since Nixon.". . .

Oh yeah, that's innocent, alright.

This isn't a "bash," it's a legit observation: This kind of thing is proliferating, and she could certainly disavow it if she cared to.

If she doesn't, don't expect there not to be comment on DU. That's not "bashing." We have an election to win, and silence is not an option.

[sufrommich]

20. And I've given a legitimate response to why I think she

doesn't respond to them in this thread. Do you honestly believe Hillary Clinton would refuse to call these nuts out if Obama asked her to? There is no reason to believe that the Obama campaign is NOT INTERESTED in giving there people any legitimacy whatsoever.I'm confident there is no evil intention on Hillary's part,she's out there campaigning for Obama.

[Egnever]

33. Obama shouldnt have to ask

[WillyT]

22. And I'm Not Trying To Bash Hillary...

But having watched the 1968 Democratic Convention on live television, I can tell you that the activities inside and outside of that convention guaranteed a Nixon victory in November of '68.

Just sayin...

:shrug:

[sufrommich]

24. And I have no doubt that if it gets to the point

(which it won't) of thousands of so - called angry Hillary supporters descending on the convention that Hillary will do the right thing and call them out.But it's not thousands of angry supporters,it's a few loud mouthed republicans pretending they're democrats and other fringe type people on the internets.Again,I have faith that the Obama campaign is utilizing Hillary in the most advantageous and effective way she can be,have a little faith that they know what they're doing.

[WillyT]

27. I Too Doubt That We Will See A 1968 Redux, And...

I doubt that any contingent of die-hard Hillary or Nobody advocates are gonna be large enough to do damage to the convention and the party. But...

There are a WHOLE LOT of pissed off people around the country right now, with years of pent up frustration. You get the right combination of anarchists, right-wing plants, and the modern day COINTELPRO together, and you may just have a riot on your hands.

And at this point, the only chance the Republicans and the powers-that-be have of holding on to the White House, is a major riot in Denver.

:shrug:

[blondeatlast]

21. Gotta agree. She must realize as the rest of us do that these aren't the Democratic base.

SHE can pull the wind from their sails and if she's in it to win it for the Dems, she should. NOW.

[Phx_Dem]

41. So am I

[Faygo Kid]

44. Thanks. This is no "rare phenomenon." It's a legit issue for discussion here at DU.

I have no desire to "bash" Bill or Hillary Clinton. I worked for Bill in two elections.

But there's something happening here. What it is, ain't exactly clear.

But it's growing, it's festering, and it's time to lance the boil and work together.

I go on-line, I read the newspapers, I watch the news. And what I see is a hardening of "Nobama," and all those here who would rather not discuss the phenomenon are . . . well, they're not naive.

[jazzjunkysue]

45. Anything, yet?

Didn't think so.

[Dr.Phool]

3. This is what happens when you start drinking too early in the day.

[nc4bo]

5. well........

Couldn't she publicly admonish these groups? Shouldn't she?

If she doesn't then couldn't this be seen as an approval (even if she says otherwise)?

If Sen. Clinton is really in 100% support of Obama then seems to me, the right thing to do would be to speak out (via the MSM) and speak loudly against these groups by saying they are neither affiliated with her, do not speak for her and voice her *strong* disapproval of this activity.

Not trying to make stank, I'm just sayin' what I'm thinkin'.

[MonkeyFunk]

14. It's obvious to anyone

with half a brain that they don't represent her. She has endorsed Obama, and quite strongly. If anyone spent time "denouncing" any crap on the internet, they'd have time to do nothing else.

I could just as easily demand that Obama denounce his divisive supporters on DU - but it would be a silly demand.

[AtomicKitten]

6. Obama "must" do whatever the hell he chooses.

It's his party now and he calls the shots.

[NYC_SKP]

16. These are Republican Groups in Pantsuits.....Don't buy any of their shit.

For example, "hillbuzz" has ads like these:



No surprise, but also this:

http://bp1.blogger.com/_y7akKaUErMI/SFP5Ly31NbI/AAAAAAAAAqo/_RSZ14i3WQQ/S259/McCain+Citizens.jpg

And:



And:



And:



So I just don't know what demographic is going there, but that Denver Group is prominently featured on the site.


http://hillbuzz.blogspot.com/2008/07/filed-under-this-strategy-makes-no-damn.html

[nc4bo]

17. eek nt

[boomerbust]

28. Red Wisconsin?

Never happen.

[RoyGBiv]

25. All Hail the Galactically Stupid

So a guy walked into my place of employment once with duct tape wrapped around his head. When questioned he exclaimed he was trying to keep his face from falling off because the microwaves we emitted were melting his skin and facial muscles.

*That* guy had more of an argument than these people, but the only people who ever hear about him are people who hear the story from me or someone else present that day. Yet, these people get write-ups in the news and political blogs almost daily.

Someone want to explain to me again how that works?

Perhaps someone or some group with power, influence, and, ahem, money pushing this nonsense? Perhaps? Maybe?

Feh.

[madfloridian]

26. It all started with FL and MI....and so it continues.

And only one person can put a stop to it.

[butterfly77]

29. Now, I know anyone who posts here are not surprised at this...

I have been waiting and expecting it.I have even posted that I thought something was up. I guess a lot of people are forgetting who we are dealing with. Did you forget the primaries that quickly. I notice that Carville is not over it and others like Ferraro.

Have you been noticing who the so called talking heads for the Democrats are on Fox. There are a lot of former Hillary staffers. A lot of these people who are posting on Du are still angry about the primary and maybe from Hillary's staff,and we know there are plenty of RepubliCONS on board...

[PatGund]

43. As I said:

I get the feeling from some of the PUMA types that the only thing Sen. Obama could do to gain their support is call a press conference, appear wearing sackcloth and ashes, grovel in apology for having gotten more votes and delegates than Sen. Clinton, and announce he's immediately quitting the race and giving all his delegates to Sen. Clinton.

At which point he then commits ritual public suicide to atone for the sin of defeating the blessed Goddess of Peace (tm).

Then and only then will the PUMA types even come close to forgiving him. Though I doubt that would appease them any.

[Starry Messenger]

30. I think they are hilarious.

And there is a really bad typo in the first sentence of the third paragraph.

MPK

edit: in the handbill I mean, not the article.

MPK

[Egnever]

31. I am sure there are a few people on here you could ask about these plans directly.

More than a few in fact

[blondeatlast]

36. Two less than last night, thankfully. nt

[Egnever]

37. Two?

I saw goldy go who was the other?

[Name removed]

40. Deleted message

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

[Zhade]

50. HAHAHAHA! GoldieAZ?

YES!

[blondeatlast]

52. A real shocker...

not.

Oleladylib.

[newmajority]

39. Cowards, shilling for a Repuke candidate, claiming to "keep the Democratic party Democratic"

Sure, if they mean in the same sense as the "Democratic Republic of North Korea" or the "Deutschland Democratic Republic". Or the "Democratic Leadership Council", for that matter. Which are neither Democrats, nor leaders.

[mloutre]

42. Offical Denver Group mascots:

[Zhade]

47. clinton finally accepted her loss, why can't these idiots?

NT!

[Tutonic]

51. High rollers version of PUMA.

[TexasObserver]

53. the stroke these pissy former Democrats have in the Democratic party is already gone

These mouth breathers don't know it, but their stroke in the Democratic party is already gone. They're living on memories of past glory.