The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee just called me.

[ingac70]

Asking for $$$$.

I told them to call me back when health care reform WITH A PUBLIC OPTION has passed.
Then the guy starts rambling about the current bills, and I said "Listen to me, if the Baucus bill passes don't call me. If a bill with a public option passes call me back and I'll be in a giving mood."

I suggest everyone give these bastards the same attitude.

[Vincardog]

1. Bingo got it on one

[Turbineguy]

2. That's my strategy from now on.

I'm tired of the "gimme your money and trust us" ploy.

[bigwillq]

3. I don't donate money

to politicians or any kind of political organization. They get enough of my money! :)

[saracat]

7. I'm done. I gave lots of money. After all I have seen locally and nationally, no more.

I might give to certain candidates but never to the party anymore. Done. But as I no longer have any money its a moot point.

[bigwillq]

10. I donated to Dean in 2004

but that was it. Quite frankly, I can't afford to give to candidates. They raise enough money without my help. The last cycle, it was ridiculous on much money was raised. I will let those who can afford it donate.

[Thickasabrick]

4. If I have money to give - it's to Act Blue. At least I have a good

chance of helping people who have progressive views and not beholden to Big Bad Business.

[saracat]

6. "cough". That isn't necessarily true. take a hard look at some they supported.

I guess if you just support certain candidates through Act Blue its okay.

[Thickasabrick]

8. True - I always have specific people in mind. Thank you for bringing

that up though. I need to do more research in the future as I have been very disappointed by some I did support. Kay Hagan comes to mind.

[struggle4progress]

5. You understand, of course, it's illegal to offer money based on a particular legislative outcome,

and similarly illegal to accept money based on a particular legislative outcome

So give or don't, according to your own lights, but don't waste everybody's time with this bullshit

[saracat]

9. Oh please. It isn't as though its a lobbyists bribe. There is no reason to give money to

people who don't represent you. We don't contribute to Republicans either. And they knnow they don't get money or why.They know they don't represent us.Thee same goes for Democrats.

[struggle4progress]

16. Think this through with me, saracat. Is the poor schmuck, who is calling, going to keep a list

of who's willing to contribute under what circumstances? No, the poor caller is not keeping such a list. The caller will simply put a checkmark in the column "Rude Asshole" and moving on to the next phone call

Don't want to give money to these guys? Fine. Don't give money. But I hope you invest some money in moving issues forward, either by supporting particular candidates or by funding nonprofits or in some other way

Don't want these guys to call? Fine. tell them to take you off their list

Want to send a message to Congress. Call your rep or senators directly

But lecturing at the fundraising phone-callers doesn't accomplish squat

[ingac70]

19. If the telemarketers are all getting the same message....

it does get passed on.

[Dr Fate]

24. If the phone banker is doing the job correctly, it does get passed on. n/t

n/t

[struggle4progress]

28. It's a pernicious waste of energy that convinces you you've done something when you haven't

[Angry Dragon]

38. You have to start somewhere n/t

[struggle4progress]

41. But you might as well start somewhere sensible: this "strategy" is nonsense

[Dr Fate]

45. Refusing to give money is a waste of energy? LOL!

Wrong-giving money when politicians are ignoring your voice is a waste of energy.

[Dr Fate]

23. Did not work that way when I phone banked for GA DEMS or did fundraising for the DNC.

In fact, any fundraiser knows that you dont refer to your potential donors as "rude assholes" just b/c they are concerned about one issue or another, or holding their gift at the moment.

If we are talking about known past supporters, it's unheard of in non-profit charity fundraising as well.

I sure hope that's not what you do when you do DEM volunteer work, etc.

[saracat]

34. You tell them to take them off your list and WHY. It does get passed down.

The DNC KNOWS about these calls.Sometimes they even monitor them. This isn't about a candidate .It is about a party and its message. however I really enjoys taking a postpaid envelope and filling with the heaviest possible stuff and writing my message of love on the outside. That sends a concrete message. I do support individual candidates that I hope will really represent Democratic values. but it is a moot point at the moment as I don't have the money to give. But I want them to know that if I did have it I wouldn't give it to them and why I wouldn't.

[Dr Fate]

11. LOL! And exactly which law did the OP & I break?

I've been telling them the same thing- so I'd love to know which law I'm violating. LOL!

[struggle4progress]

18. Think this through with me, dr fate. The people who call you have scripts and procedures

that a thousand lawyers eagle-eye. Every damn one of them is going to be touchy about federal bribery laws. Are they going to write down "dr fate won't give money unless such-and-such a law passes" or "dr fate's money must go only to candidates who will vote such-and-such a way"? Hell, no. They're just gonna put a checkmark in the "rude asshole" column of their call list and move on

If you want to send a message to Congress, call your Rep or Senators directly. Shouting about policy issues to the schmuck making the fundraising phone-calls may make you feel big, but it actually accomplishing zip cipher zilch nada

[Dr Fate]

21. I've phone banked many times. You are way off the mark.

If enough people refuse to give, what they are going to tell their supervisors is: "Lots of donors are really pissed that DEMS are not serious about the public option."

I never once categorized any known DEMS on my lists as "rude assholes." I noted the issues they were either happy or concerned about.

If this is really how DEMS are treating donors, then we really are in trouble..

I agree that you should not be rude or shout- the OP never suggested that.

So which law are we breaking again? I'd like to look it up.

[struggle4progress]

27. I've phone banked for decades. Never once did I record that "so-and-so won't give money

except in the case that such-and-such legislation passes" -- and none of the people I phone-banked for would ever have been happy if I'd started recording such stuff: they would have said something like "We don't need that much detail" but they would have meant "Please don't tell us about that because we can't notice it officially." Anything like that is going to get filtered out long before it reaches the top

[Dr Fate]

43. Sounds like you all did a shit-bird job then.

We certainly did note when a sizeable amount of people were either pleased or displeased over one issue or the other.

ESPECIALLY if it was a reason why many people were witholding money or support (or vice versa). How can you not?

Any higher-ups who would not find such info useful must be pretty shitty at their jobs too.

I raised about $40,000.00 or so as DNC fundraiser a few years back- I was never once warned that I could not note why people gave and why people did not give-but the opposite. Our supervisors always wanted such info too, and we certainly passed it on.

A fundraising operation that IGNORES the reason why former donors are no longer giving? I've never heard of anything like that in my life.

[ingac70]

14. Can you point me to this law? n/t

[struggle4progress]

22. Sure. Look at 18 USC 201, ingac70. And now, think this through with me: the

House and Senate folk will not be interested in money associated with a paper record that suggests the money was given in consideration of votes for particular legislation; in particular, if you tell a fundraising caller that you won't give until such-and-such legislation passes, the caller is not going to write down "ingac70's going to contribute after such-and-such legislation passes," but will instead simply put a check beside your name in the "Rude Asshole" column of the call-list and will move on

If you want to push Congress on legislation, call the Hill directly: don't do it through their fundraisers

[Dr Fate]

25. LOL! No one violates a law by noting why a donor refuses to give.

This is a real stretch.

[struggle4progress]

29. But for legal reasons it will all be filtered out long before it gets to the candidates

So it's a delusional waste of energy

Look! I did something! Um ... no, you didn't really ...

[saracat]

35. Actually, the ones who record it are the state and local parties.

and the message of response does get to the candidates. Because it is the Party's butt on theline.

[struggle4progress]

39. If you want to influence a Senator, saracat, call the Senator's office & speak directly with an aide

The notion that somehow any definite and specific legislative pressure will be exerted by complaining during a fundraising phone call is nonsense. The DSCC will enforce, on lawyers' advice, the firewall that's supposed to exist between fundraising and legislative activities, and your supposed mechanism for sending messages (DSCC phone caller somehow gets message to local parties who somehow get message to Congress person) is a Rube Goldberg fantasy. If you want to use state and local parties to send a message to Senators and Congressman, work a resolution from the precinct level up to your state convention

[saracat]

42. One can and should do both. if you think the DNC doesn't pay attention to cuttting off the money

you are delusional.Why do you think the PO is even being debatetd? Bececause many folks voted with their pocketbooks and said why. Absolutely NOTHING is more worthless than State resolutions.They are a joke. The DNC pays attention to money and only money. That is why returning mailers is important.Cutting off their funding is the only way to effect any change.Speaking with an aide is next to worthless accept they usually will log it, but unless money is involved it is fairly meaningless.Now, if that aide's job is a political appointment, and is threatened by lack of party funds , it might matter to them, if not, they don't care what you think.

[Tesha]

15. I'm always fascinated by folks here who think we progressives should just roll over and be screwed.

Are you that sort of person?

If you're turning people in to the authorities, turn me in too;
I've been telling the DSCC and DCCC for quite a few years
now that until they start supporting the things I believe in,
they can find their money elsewhere because all my donations
go to people who ACTUALLY SUPPORT the causes I believe in.

Tesha

[struggle4progress]

26. I never told anybody to roll over and be screwed, but you know that. And it's entirely

dishonest of you to suggest I'm threatening to "turn people in to the authorities" when I'm simply telling them that pissing on the workers isn't an effective way to send a message to the boss

[Tesha]

30. If enough of us tell the workers, the message *WILL* get through to the politicians. (NT)

[nadinbrzezinski]

32. +1 aand they are hearing about it, so

they are staring to even admit to it for a while.

[Jim Sagle]

36. Stick this DLC hogwash back up Al From's ass where it came from.

[struggle4progress]

37. Really? The DLC is urging activists to pressure Congress directly? Gotta link?

[Dr Fate]

44. Fundraisers ignore the reasons why donors stop giving? Gotta link?

???

[AndyA]

12. +1. I've been telling them the same thing.

I told them NO MORE MONEY as long as the DINOs keep calling the shots.

I said the Baucus bill was one of the most anti-American bills EVER, and the Democrats should be ashamed of it.

I advised I would send money only to progressive candidates who didn't promote Republican policies while pretending to be Democrats. And I said that left out a LOT of Democrats in the Senate.

[FormerDittoHead]

13. +1 - Telling them ALL the same thing... IT'S NOT AN AUCTION.

They (and about 5-6 others) have gotten my money, they know what I want.

LOOK WASHINGTON - IT'S NOT A FUCKING AUCTION. If the results go to "the highest bidder" then there's something VERY FUCKING WRONG WITH THE SYSTEM.

They know what America wants.

They knows what's best for America.

They know that we will vote for it, and we will donate political money for it.

If they can't come through NOW, then THE SYSTEM IS BROKEN AND I GIVE UP TRYING USING 'CONVENTIONAL' MEANS to get it to work...

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. I have given them the same answer

enough times that I wish they'd just remove me from the rolls.

[Arugula Latte]

20. I hope they call me. I will tell them I won't make a donation to support DINOs like Nelson, Baucus,

Landrieu, Bayh, et al. I'm sick of those assholes stabbing us in the back. I'll support individual candidates who ACT and VOTE like Democrats. :grr:

[Stinky The Clown]

31. We get a lot of similar calls cuz we usta be a soft touch

The calls have been increasingly infrequent as we have increasingly told them to get something done that we can support or applaud.

[Arkana]

33. I got a call from OFA a few weeks ago.

The kid on the other end wanted me to go to a health care rally in Boston...unfortunately, a job interview the same day precluded that.

Then he started in on John Kerry--remember the story the HuffPo pimped for weeks even after it was debunked? Apparently the little pissknob I was talking to didn't get the message and started telling me how we needed to "send Senator Kerry a message".

Oh, I lost it. I told him that if he was going to keep working for OFA he'd better get his facts straight and stop hounding the guys who are ACTUALLY FUCKING WORKING HARD TO HELP US.

I give to politicians I like--but screw party organizations. They're idiots, regardless of affiliation.

[Cleobulus]

40. +1