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Emerge VA Interviews 10:30 am

Delegate Sullivan Fundraiser 6:30 pm

C3 Committee Meeting 7:30 pm

LeeDems November/December meeting 7:30 pm

FCDC HQ Office Clean-Up, Spruce-Up 9:00 am

Join LG Northam in McLean on Dec. 3rd! 1:00 pm

Providence Democrats Volunteer Appreciation Party 2:00 pm

Voter Reg & Educ Committee monthly meeting 7:30 pm

Labor Committee monthly meeting 7:00 pm

Sully District Democratic Committee Meeting 7:30 pm

Pearl Harbor Day, 1941

Springfield District Democratic Committee (SDDC) Monthly Meeting 6:55 pm

State & Local Affairs Committee 7:00 pm

Dranesville Democrats December Meeting 7:30 pm

Central Committee Q4 Meeting 10:00 am

Delegate Mark Levines Monthly Meetup 12:30 pm

Volunteer Thank You Party 4:00 pm

FCDC Annual Holiday Party 3:00 pm

Mark Sickles and Paul Krizeks Annual Holiday Cookie Party and Toy Drive 3:30 pm

Technology Committee Meeting 7:30 pm

FCDC Steering Committee Meeting 7:30 pm

Fairfax County Environmental Quality Advisory Council Meeting 7:15 pm

CANCELLED-Mason District Democratic Committee meeting 7:30 pm

Hunter Mill District Democratic Committee 7:30 pm

The #TurnOut March on Washington 10:00 am

Holiday Brunch with Ralph Northam 11:00 am

Wreaths Across America Herndon 12:00 pm

Marcus Simons Annual Latkepalooza 4:00 pm

11th CD Committee Meeting 8:00 pm

8th CD Monthly Meeting 8:00 pm

CANCELED: Mt. Vernon Democratic Committee Monthly Meeting 7:00 pm

Conference Room reserved 7:00 pm

Sully District Organizing Meeting 7:30 pm

Braddock Dems Meeting CANCELLED 7:30 pm

Education Committee 7:30 pm

Christmas (Observed)

Kwanzaa

[CANCELLED] Precinct Ops Committee 7:30 pm

Education Committee 7:30 pm

Continued here:
Calendar | Fairfax Democrats

Support Democratic candidates in Special Elections in Virginia being held on January 10, 2017 December 15th, 2016

Support Democratic candidates in Special Elections in Virginia being held on January 10, 2017

Phone banking to voters planned from Arlington Democratic HQ, on Dec. 13 and 20 and Jan. 3, 5 and 9

On Wednesday December 7th, Arlington Democrats approved the Rules for the 2017 School Board Endorsement for one candidate for Arlington County School Board in the November 7, 2017 election. An unassembled caucus will be held on Thursday, May 11 (7 p.m. to 9 p.m.) at Drew Model School and Saturday, May 13 (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.) at Washington-Lee High School. In order to be eligible for endorsement by the participants in the unassembled Caucus, candidates for Arlington County School Board must file a letter of intent to seek the Democratic endorsement with the Chair of the Arlington County Democratic Committee, or his/her designated representative, after January 1, 2017, and before 7:30 p.m. on Monday, February 27, 2017.

Click here to read the Rules for the 2017 School Board Endorsement.

The Arlington County Democratic Committee unanimously pass a resolution on December 7, 2016 that stated:

Click here to read the full resolution.

Thank you for pouring your heart into the 2016 campaign. Because of you, we turned Virginia blue for the third Presidential election in a row. The work youve done will help us continue the fight to elect Democrats who share our values. Our successes this year include contributing toward:

Its been a rough election for all of us, but in recent days the Arlington County Democratic Committee has received an influx of people asking what they can do to help and get involved. Thats a good thing because we need you now more than ever.

The Arlington County Democratic Committee is here all year long, and we continue to organize, advocate and grow. Visit ourContact Us pageto get in touch with us and to volunteer.Visit our Calendarregularly to find Democratic and progressive events or to add your own event. You are welcome to join us at our Holiday PartyGeneral MeetingonWednesday, December 7 at the Walter Reed Community Center (2909 16th St S. Arlington, VA 22204).

If you want to take action against President-Elect Trumps ideas for a Muslim registry you can read a statement from the DNC here, his threats to action on climate change from Congressman Beyer here, and a letter signed by 169 House Democrats against White Nationalist Steve Bannons appointment here. Then you can write a letter or call the district offices of our US Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.

One of the next big things coming up in January is the Virginia legislative session in Richmond. Already, state Senators and Delegates are filing legislation. You can visitthis siteto read the bills and see which ones you might want to support or oppose.

2017 is critical. We will have elections next November for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General and all 100 members of the House of Delegates. But first, well be nominating our candidates by primary, caucus or convention. When information becomes available about supporting or becoming a candidate, well post it on our website. A number of candidates have already declared. While we dont endorse candidates in primaries, we do like to make information available and provide equal assistance to any Democrat who is running for office. Candidates/Offices for 2017 (not all have announced):

Thanks and feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions.

Its time! Time to get to the polls and cast your vote for the Democratic ticket!

Do you have a plan to vote on Tuesday? If not, were here to help.

Step 1: Find your polling location. Click here to look it up.

Step 2: Read about our Democratic candidates and then download the Arlington Dems Sample Ballot (print it out and take it with you!).

Step 3: Make sure you have a photo ID. Need more info on what constitutes a valid ID? Check out VA Dems guidelines here.

Step 4: Go Vote!

Need a ride to the polls on Tuesday? Weve got you covered. Give us a call at 703-528-8588.

And its never too late to volunteer to get out the vote! Check here for volunteer shifts and locations, or send us an email at volunteer@arlingtondemocrats.org.

Canvassing (Nov 5, 6, and 7) shifts at 9am, noon, 3pm, & 6pm. Please RSVP to an organizer. November 8: 8am, 11am, 2pm and 5pm.

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Canvassing Days of Action (10-22, 10-23; Nov 5, 6, 7, & 8) shifts at 9am, noon, 3pm, and 6pm Please RSVP to the organizer nearest you.

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We are thrilled to announce that our special guest speaker for the 2016 Golden Gala will be Amanda Renteria, National Political Director of the Hillary for America campaign!

The first Latina chief of staff for a U.S. senator, Ms. Renteria is now working to ensure another first: the election of our first woman President, Hillary Clinton! She will share insights from the campaign trail and the strategy for ensuring success in these last few weeks before Election Day. The Golden Gala also will feature live music, tantalizing hors doeuvres, and a generous bar. This is an evening definitely not to be missed! Continue reading

Arlington Democrats are happy to offer Clinton-Kaine-Beyer yard signs for a suggested donation of $5-$10 af the following farmers markets:

Join ACDC this Monday for our 29th annual Chili Cook-Off!

Mike Murtha wins Samuel Gompers award at the 2015 Chili Cook-Off

Mike Murtha, 76, walking up to accept his chili award, the Samuel Gompers Award, on September 7, 2015. Murtha has been making chili for the Arlington County Democratic Committee for 28 years.

Arlington Democrats gather for food and speeches every Labor Day to officially kick off the Fall campaign. The chili cook-off was introduced in 1987.

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Arlington Democrats - The Arlington County Democratic ...

Each nomination presents Democrats an opportunity to litigate arguments that have been at a boiling point throughout the election on a public stage, their first chance to stand up to a President that outgoing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid called "a sexual predator who lost the popular vote and fueled his campaign with bigotry and hate" in a statement after his election.

Even if Trump won, Democrats can argue, his agenda is out of touch.

Anti-big bank Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday called Trump's Treasury secretary nominee, fundraiser and former Goldman Sachs partner Steven Mnuchin, the "Forrest Gump of the financial crisis."

Incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the nomination of Georgia Rep. Tom Price for Health and Human Services signaled a "war on seniors" and pledged to "fight tooth and nail" for Medicare.

The eight Democrats on the Judiciary Committee sent a strong letter saying they want several days of hearings on attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, including testimony on issues such as violence against women, LGBT protections, civil rights and hate crimes.

Fighting Trump's agenda is pretty much the Democrats' only option when it comes to Cabinet picks.

Thanks to a rule changed pushed by Democrats during the Obama administration, all nominees except Supreme Court picks are only subject to a simple majority vote -- and Republicans have the majority. In addition, lawmakers have often given deference to a new president, saying he has the right to choose his Cabinet and advisers -- to a point.

Democrats will be under competing pressures once the new Congress begins in early January and hearings for the top-tier Cabinet posts begin.

On the one hand, the progressive base will be eagerly watching to see how aggressive Democratic senators are in going after Trump's emissaries. But Democrats will have to work in Trump's Washington moving forward -- including with the various Cabinet members they interview. And some moderate senators, like West Virginia's Joe Manchin, are also up for re-election in two years in states that Trump won.

Progressives will be watching how Democratic members handle the spotlight, said Symone Sanders, an activist and former press secretary for Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign.

"The confirmation hearings are the first battle, the first test if you will, of Democrats in the Trump era," Sanders said. "And they have the potential to come out with flying colors."

"They have to demonstrate a show of force during these hearings and making sure they don't let the conversation get away from them," she added. "Because if it looks like Democrats are rolling over for Donald Trump and Republicans, it's not going to bode well for midterms."

Price has been one of the chief critics of Obamacare in Congress and a proponent of overhauling Medicare, both of great concern for Democrats. His hearing will give Democrats their first opportunity to fight to save as much as they can of President Barack Obama's signature health care law and entitlement programs.

Trump's pick for the CIA, Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo, is sure to face questions from Intelligence Committee Democrats about his past statements in favor of expanding US surveillance and of Trump's own praise of torture techniques like waterboarding, especially with fierce surveillance opponent Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden on the panel.

Mnuchin represents big banking to progressive Democrats like Warren and independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders who have built a massive grassroots following for their anti-Wall Street message. His involvement with troubled mortgage lender IndyMac will raise the specter of the housing crash.

And Commerce pick Wilbur Ross is a billionaire nicknamed the "king of bankruptcy" for buying up distressed companies for turn-arounds.

Each nominee goes before different committees with jurisdiction, spreading opportunities for Democrats to grill Trump's Cabinet.

All of them will likely get heavy scrutiny of their financial disclosure forms, says Stephanie Martz, a lobbyist with Monument Policy Group who spent years in the Senate with Schumer and worked for the Obama administration. That is especially true if Trump's own conflict of interest questions are not resolved cleanly enough for Democrats by that point.

She expects Democrats to take their opportunities to be tough.

"Everyone is going to take the opportunity to get real answers from nominees who have said or done things in the past that may raise questions, but also lay down markers about what they're going to be watching, because besides cloture, is very hard to block these nominees," Martz said.

But Martz also cautioned that nominees will help set the tone of hearings, and if they don't misstep, the tenor could remain calmer.

"Senators can be pretty vicious if they want to be," she said. "But I think it's harder than it might seem when there's a nominee sitting there facing you and their whole family and friends are arrayed behind them, it's hard to get truly personal and nasty with that person. Obviously, it can happen, especially if the nominee is not particularly friendly and is kind of combative in the way he or she answers questions, it can kind of go downhill."

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Democrats can't stop Trump nominees, but they can make ...

Democrats are in danger of moving from complacency to panic. Neither is particularly helpful.

The complacency part is obvious: Until about 9 p.m. Eastern time on Nov.8, supporters of Hillary Clinton (myself included) were certain that Donald Trumps weaknesses among women, nonwhite voters and younger Americans would prevent him from becoming president.

This analysis was half-right: Trump lost the popular vote by more than 2million. But things went just wrong enough for Clinton in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania to give Trump his electoral-college victory. His combined margin in the three states stands at about 100,000. Roughly 134 million votes have been counted nationwide.

[Stick a sterling silver fork in Trumps populism]

Is pointing to the limits of Trumps victory simply a way of evading the depth of the Democrats plight? After all, they also failed to take over the U.S. Senate in a year many Republican incumbents looked vulnerable. They picked up a paltry six seats in the House. Add to this the large-scale losses of governorships and state legislatures since the Democrats recent high point in 2008 and you have the makings of a party-wide nervous breakdown.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Nov. 30 was reelected as House minority leader, winning 134 votes against 63 votes for her challenger, Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio). (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)

Note, however, that the party in the White House often fares badly in midterm elections, Democrats especially so because they lean on votes from the young, who are less inclined to go to the polls in off-years.

But unless Trumps first two years are wildly successful, 2018 offers Democrats opportunities to rebuild hollowed-out local parties. This is especially true in statehouses, as The Posts Greg Sargent pointed out. Ten states with Republican governors could plausibly turn blue (as could New Jersey in 2017).

Clintons popular-vote advantage speaks to other opportunities. It reflected a shift toward the Democrats in Sun Belt states with large minority populations that is likely to continue. In Texas, Clinton got some 560,000more votes than President Obama did in 2012, while Trump ran 4.6 percentage points behind Mitt Romneys showing. Trump also fell short of Romneys percentages in California, Arizona and Georgia.

[Bernie Sanders: Carrier just showed corporations how to beat Donald Trump]

The Democrats big Sun Belt problem on election night was Florida. Both major-party candidates received more votes there than the 2012 nominees, but Trumps gains were significantly larger. If Democrats are looking for a state to fret about in their postmortems, Florida should be at the top of the list.

Trumps narrow wins in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania (unless theyre miraculously overturned in recounts), plus his larger victories in Ohio and Iowa, have the Democrats focused on the white working class and on whether its time for the end of identity liberalism, the headline of a recent New York Times opinion piece by Mark Lilla, a Columbia University political philosopher.

Lillas New York Times essay provoked a polemical tempest. Many advocates for African Americans, gay men and lesbians, immigrants and women fear Lillas suggestion would lead liberals to abandon beleaguered constituencies at the very moment when they most need defending.

In fact, Lilla is right that liberalism needs to root its devotion to inclusion in larger principles and should not allow itself to be cast (or parodied) as simply about the summing up of group claims. He is also dead on when he writes: If you are going to mention groups in America, you had better mention all of them. If you dont, those left out will notice and feel excluded. Democrats, who gave us the New Deal and empowered the labor movement, should be alarmed by the flight of the white working class.

[Mitt Romney is a sellout. So what?]

But Lillas critics are right about something, too: An effort to reach out to the white working class cannot be seen as a strategy for abandoning people of color, Muslims or immigrants, or for stepping back from commitments to gender equality, or for withdrawing support for long-excluded groups. Liberalisms very inclusiveness offers Democrats long-term advantages both in the Sun Belt and among younger voters who will own the future.

A panicky abandonment of their core commitments is the last thing Democrats need. Far better advice comes from Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who urges the party to re-engage with rural and small-town voters. Also promising: the formation of a Blue Collar Caucus in the House announced this week by Reps. Brendan Boyle, an Irish Catholic from Philadelphia, and Marc Veasey, an African American from Fort Worth.

I mention the backgrounds of this pair of Democrats because their cross-racial partnership sends exactly the right message. Progressivisms embrace of social and economic justice is about lifting up the left-out across all of our dividing lines. Remembering this is the first step toward political recovery.

Read more from E.J. Dionnes archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.

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Democrats, skip the civil war - The Washington Post

Democrats are channeling their post-election disappointment and pouring buckets of donor cash into a long-shot bid for the Louisiana Senate seat.

The odds are not good for Louisiana Democrat Foster Campbell, who is facing off against GOP state Treasurer John Kennedy in the runoff on Dec. 10. President-elect Donald Trump just carried the state by 20 percentage points in November, and Kennedy led Campbell 52 percent to 38 percent in a poll this week. And Trump's running mate, Vice President-elect Mike Pence, was scheduled to give Kennedy's base an energy boost by appearing at a rally with Kennedy in New Orleans on Saturday.

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But Campbell, a state public service commissioner, has raised $2.5 million over the past month, much of it in small-dollar donations from Democrats around the country looking for some way to strike back against Trump. Kennedy raised $1.6 million over the same time frame. Each man had about $1.4 million left in his campaign account.

Campbell brought in $43,000 from small donors from January to Oct. 20; since then, $1.7 million in small donations have poured in as Democrats like former Obama administration staffers Dan Pfeiffer and Jon Favreau, who recently had Campbell on their podcast hold up Campbells race as the final fight of the 2016 election and hope for an upset.

Based on demographics and whats going on in Louisiana, [Campbell] faces an uphill climb, said Trey Ourso, a Democratic consultant who ran a super PAC backing Gov. John Bel Edwards in his upset of Sen. David Vitter last year. But voters this year have shown they like to surprise us.

Campbells bid is, in many ways, a second go-round for the team that elected Edwards, who endorsed Campbell early. Mary-Patricia Wray, a top Edwards strategist, is playing the same role for Campbell. Edwards ad-maker, Jared Arsement, is making spots for Defend Louisiana, a pro-Campbell super PAC.

Recapturing that magic will be difficult. While Kennedy has his flaws the Campbell campaign and Republicans have regularly attacked him for flip-flopping hes not Vitter, who was dogged by a prostitution scandal. Campbell shares Edwards rural credentials and opposition to abortion rights, but he lacks the West Point background that helped the governor woo Louisiana conservatives in his stunning 2015 upset victory.

Kennedy, meanwhile, is tying himself closely to Trump. Ive been with our new president from day one, Kennedy says in a television ad. Because I believe we dont have time for political correctness anymore. And the swamp in Washington, D.C., has to be drained.

Still, Campbell has a history of winning over Republican-leaning voters, and his team insists the race is in the single digits. In 2014, he won 61 percent of the vote in his North Louisiana-based district even as former Sen. Mary Landrieu won just 41 percent of the vote in the same area. (Landrieu lost the statewide vote, 56 percent to 44 percent, to now-GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy.) And Campbell will need crossover votes, especially if the electorate skews away from his party, as it has in early voting so far. When Edwards pulled off his upset in 2015, defeating Vitter with 56 percent of the vote, 30 percent of early voters were black and 52 percent were Democratic. So far, the early runoff vote in 2016 has been just 21 percent black and 44 percent Democratic.

Campbell's allies have alighted on abortion in an attempt to deepen Campbell's conservative appeal. Defend Louisiana has started running an ad attacking Kennedy for supporting abortion rights when he was a Democrat. (2016 marks Kennedy's third bid for Senate; he ran as a Democrat in 2004 and as a Republican in 2008.)

Hes been a Democrat. Hes been a Republican. John Kennedys been everything but a Baptist preacher, Campbell said in a phone interview. John Kennedys been whats best for John Kennedy.

Kennedys team scoffs at such attacks, and notes that Pence will be campaigning with Kennedy to shore up the latters conservative credentials this weekend.

And a message blasting Kennedy for supporting abortion rights makes for an odd fit for Campbell, who has generated support from coastal liberals, attracted both to his populist and environmentalist standards and to their last chance in 2016 to get a win. White House economist Gene Sperling recently hosted a fundraiser for Campbell in Los Angeles, and other Democratic heavyweights like former White House communications director Pfeiffer have encouraged liberals to donate to his campaign. (Edwards, the governor, also hosted a Wednesday fundraiser for the Defend Louisiana PAC with Landrieu, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, and Rep. Cedric Richmond.)

West Coast liberals think they can buy this election for Foster Campbell, Kennedy spokesman Lionel Rainey said. John Kennedy has received the support of donors from across Louisiana who understand he is the only conservative in this race who supports our values. Foster Campbell represents the views of Democrats from California.

Even with Campbells strong fundraising Kennedy still hasnt released his own fundraising report Republicans are still outspending Democrats on television in the state. With Kennedy's own funds, the Ending Spending Action super PAC and a coordinated buy between Kennedy and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Republican groups spent about $524,000 on TV last week. Campbell and his allies have spent just $307,000.

And the NRSCs independent expenditure arm is spending about $10,000 on radio advertisements in the state starting on Monday, according to a media-buying source.

One thing that appears unlikely: any help from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which declined to comment for this story.

But Campbell thinks he can pull off a solo upset. Asked whether he needed the DSCCs help, Campbell had a simple response: Nope.

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Democrats channel disappointment into Louisiana Senate race