A Week of Turmoil

This week has seen continued gun violence across this country. In a year that has already tallied over 600 incidents with multiple (over 4 deaths) firearm deaths, this week tallied several more.

In Colorado Springs, Colorado, a shooter armed with an AR-15, carrying a handgun and wearing full body armor, entered a gay nightclub and started firing. After patrons subdued him, five people were dead and over twenty others were injured. There had been no warnings about an attack. The club held drag shows that were enjoyed by many in the community, gay or not. Many survivors called the club their safe space. The shooter had been in a hostage/bomb threat type incident months earlier, but law enforcement in that area chose to not enforce the Red Flag law that could have removed firearms from his home. He is now jailed and charged with five homicides plus hate crimes, among other charges.

The city of Boulder, not far away, endured a mass shooting at a grocery store earlier this year. Again, the shooter was a young man, considered a loner by many.

At the University of Virginia, a disgruntled student killed three members of the football team and wounded two others; he and the others were all on a bus and returning from a school-sponsored field trip. Earlier warnings that the killer possessed a gun were not addressed as an urgent issue by the crisis team at the university. His family said he felt he was being bullied by some at the university. This would not even qualify as a mass shooting-too few were killed!

Nearby, in Chesapeake, Virginia, a Walmart employee bought a gun before he came to work; subsequently, he killed five employees and then himself. If he had had a mandated five-day waiting period, maybe those co-workers would still be alive. Although several employees had problems with his management style, no one believed he gave any prior warning signs of these actions. Even as this was happening, elsewhere in Virginia, in a domestic dispute, a mother and her three children were gunned down. Previously, the mother, who had been in a relationship with her killer that grew violent, secured protective orders against her killer. If a law was in place that prohibited domestic abusers from legal gun purchases, perhaps these people would still be alive.

Children in Uvalde, Texas, returned to school in September, just months after 21 of their friends and teachers had been gunned down in their classrooms by a young man who once attended their elementary school. Many survivors are still traumatized and undergoing therapy for their experiences. Texas allowed weapons purchase, even military-style weapons, as soon as someone turned 18, with no background checks, although a handgun purchase required one to be 21. The shooter planned his attacks for soon after his 18^th birthday, and gun purchases. (I think that the law has now been changed to require an age of 21 for both.)

In 2019, a recently resigned city employee in Virginia Beach, VA, came to the Municipal Building and killed twelve workers there, and wounded others.

Few in this area can forget the horrific shootings at Virginia Tech in 2007. In that incident, a student stalked those in classrooms on the campus, killing 32 and then himself. He also injured 17 others. He, too, was being treated by student health, but not considered an urgent threat. The state settled several claims by families regarding this incident.

According to research by Every town for Gun Safety, 16% of mass shootings involved an assault weapon, and over half of those used high-capacity magazines, meaning the shooter could fire many shots without reloading.

World Population Review stated these are the top ten states for mass killings, using the definition given above, for 2022. So far, 2022 is close to recording the second-highest annual totals ever in the US.

1. California - 257
2. Illinois - 209
3. Florida - 147
4. Texas - 129
5. New York - 96
6. Pennsylvania - 92
7. Georgia - 89
8. Louisiana - 87
9. Tennessee - 84
10. Ohio – 80

 

This violence has to stop. Only if each of us speaks out against gun violence will politicians have the political will to reject the arguments of the NRA and ban assault-style weapons.

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To segue, Republicans are flexing their political muscles now that they have gained the legislative majority in the House by a two-vote margin as I write. Rep. Comer has promised some 30 investigations of the Biden administration and his family members.

I wonder if these folks plan to pass any legislation or investigate the cryptocurrency crash, or look at Elon Musk and his Twitter dealings?

Current Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is telling everyone yes to their committee requests and promising to throw Democrats such as Congressmen Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell off the Intelligence committees. Jim Jordan is already flexing his shirtsleeves with anticipation of becoming the head of the Judiciary Committee. I fear very much that the next two years will showcase the worst of American governance or lack of it.

McCarthy did not win a majority of the votes in his caucus when they took a straw vote, as over 30 members voted no. If he cannot get his far-right members to agree on his leadership, then he would need Democrat support to win the Majority position. Kicking Democrats off Committees is not the way to go, Kevin! Who has the support were a compromise to be offered, I do not know. McCarthy has wanted this position for so long but has not developed a way to control his members and instead, seems at their mercy. He has no platform, no legislation, just a plan to undo most of what this current Congress has passed. Of course, with the Senate under Democrat control, that is not likely.

Speaking of Senate Democrats-the runoff election in Georgia is in about ten days and early voting has started, thanks to a court ruling allowing voting on Saturday. Georgia Republicans shortened the run-off preparation times and decreased early voting days and registration options, all to depress voter turnout. Some Georgia Republicans are trying to keep DJT out of the state, so he does not keep Republicans home as he did in 2021.

Meanwhile, Democrats are trying to beat the bushes and get every voter to the poll for Senator Warnock. Stacey Abrams conceded the Governor's race to Brian Kemp, who decidedly beat her this time; although the 2018 race was close. Her GOTV troops are still in place, so maybe they can get voters out again. Voting results showed that there was a fall-off of voters between those who voted for Kemp and did not choose Walker. Current polls still show the race close, but favoring Warnock. If he wins, then the Democrats would not have to share power in the Senate as is done when the Senate is 50-50. This so-called gentlemen's agreement can only work if both sides are gentlemen, however. (This refers to you, Mitch McConnell.)

And finally, what does one do when the announcement of a presidential run brings a big Ho-Hum from most voters? Well, one has lunch with Ye, (the former entertainer and erstwhile presidential candidate, once known as Kanye) also known for his anti-Semitic views, and his pal Rick Fuentes, a white supremacist, anti-Semite, and pal for Margery Taylor Greene. Fuentes was a marcher in Charlottesville and appeared at the Capitol during the insurrection. Of course, Greene, who spoke at Fuentes’ conference, denied knowing him after she was criticized for her presence.

Hey, I am not making this stuff up!

DJT lost in court twice this week as the Supreme Court denied his claim to withhold his tax returns from Congress and the Circuit Court said that a Special Master should never have been appointed in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case. Despite his protestations, The Special Prosecutor has already started work on the referral from DOJ.

And, finally, after ten days of counting, local elections have been called in Frederick County. Democrat, Jessica Fitzwater, won the position of County Executive by just over 900 votes. Democrats won five seats on the County Council and the teacher-endorsed candidates won 3 of the 4 seats on the School Board. Whew!

https://youtu.be/ZrFm-Vxrj3o Time to check out the pandas!

“Til next week-Peace!

Thank You, Nancy!

Have you ever heard the phrase:

“the hand that rocks the cradle?”

In case you are unfamiliar with the words, they come from a poem by William Ross Wallace:

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
Is the Hand That Rules the World

Blessings on the hand of women!
Angels guard its strength and grace,
In the palace, cottage, hovel,
Oh, no matter where the place;
Would that never storms assailed it,
Rainbows ever gently curled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world. -first verse only

When House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived at the podium on the House floor, the other day, she made a speech where she recalled her first visit to that remarkable building. This took place when she was six years old as she watched her father, Thomas D’Alesandro Jr., sworn in as a Congressman from Baltimore, MD. She described her journey to that building. First, she raised five children. Then she got into politics and, as she described it, she went from housewife to House Speaker. (Very much the hand that rocked the cradle.) She mentioned the fact that there were six women house members when she came to town as a congresswoman; now there are 90 and counting!

First chosen for Congress to fill a vacancy, she took office as a representative from San Francisco, California, in 1987 and has served her constituents ever since. This week, she notified her members that she would step down from a leadership position, but remain in Congress. Pelosi indicated she would mentor those younger House members who would become leaders. In doing so, she also took her deputies Steny Hoyer of MD and Jim Clyburn of SC with her out of the leadership roles they had also served in for several years. All were over 80 years of age.

What a remarkable journey it has been; what an outstanding speaker she became! She was the first female speaker when she took the gavel in 2007. Just think of it-she was the first woman in that office and followed 52 men over more than 200 years who had served there. His peers elected the first speaker, Frederick A. C. Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania, in April 1789 as the First Federal Congress began. Of course, there were no women in Congress then, nor would there be for well over a century as women could not even vote, so how could they get elected?

After serving as the Democratic whip, Pelosi moved into the position of Democratic Minority Leader before becoming the Majority Leader. She is the first person to serve in that position in two separate terms and has been the Democratic caucus leader for 19 years. Historian Michael Beschloss described her as one of the top three speakers since our Republic began. President Obama credited her as being the most significant person in the ultimate passage of the Affordable Care Act and President Biden has her to thank because Congress passed much of his agenda in his first two years. She famously does not bring a bill to the House floor until she is sure she has the votes to pass it; sometimes she even gets republican votes if she needs them. But as the members retreated into warring camps, this became more difficult.

Nancy is known to leaders across the world. She met in Kyiv with the Ukrainian President, Vodolymyr Zelensky, earlier this year even as rockets were flying. Chinese President Xi, loudly objected to her going to Taiwan. If she were insignificant, he would not have cared. She met with the Pope. This is a powerful woman. Not only is she second in line to the Presidency after the Vice President, but world leaders want to hear from her.

In her farewell speech, she mentioned working well with three presidents. She avoided mentioning the most recent one. He must have listened to too many RNC television ads that used her as a foil for everything they felt was wrong with the opposition party, for he never gave her the respect due to her or her office. She returned the favor, once famously, in a White House meeting, standing up and pointing her finger at the president, over something he said. After he neglected to shake her hand as he came to the House floor for the State of the Union address, she tore up his speech as he finished. She was great at using symbolism. On the 100^th year anniversary of women’s suffrage, she asked the women in Congress to wear white when the president spoke, as it is the symbol of that movement. Women now have power, she seemed to say as he gazed out at a sea of white-clad representatives.

She selected the Congressional leaders and personnel who successfully presided over two impeachments. Pelosi resisted efforts by Minority Leader McCarthy to sabotage her January 6^th Committee as he tried to appoint known disrupters. Instead, she added two quite effective Republicans to the Committee and refused his choices.

Film taken during the Insurrection showed her angry, but unrattled, calling officials, trying to determine how soon the House could get back in session and do its duty by certifying the last election. As she said, she wanted the poo-poo cleaned up before they returned. I think Nancy has dealt with a lot of such stuff over the years, figuratively and literally; this was just another obstacle to overcome. And, of course, she did do just that.

I can only conclude – Bravo!

What Red Wave?

Last week I asked which road voters would take, the one toward fear and autocracy or the one toward hope and saving our democracy. It seems, tonight, that the latter choice, the one for hope and democracy, was chosen. That certainly makes me hopeful for the future of our nation. Many of the “stop the steal,” election deniers lost their bid for office. One of the loudest, Kari Lake, in Arizona, seems to be close to defeat tonight as Katie Hobbs has opened up a narrow, but not unsurmountable, lead, with thousands of votes still outstanding in that state governor's race. I think it would be quite nice if she lost, but according to the Washington Post, it is still too early to call this one.

In Ohio, JD Vance, the vacillating MAGA-endorsed candidate, won over Tim Ryan. I think if the Democrats had put more resources in Ohio, Ryan might have won. He ran a good campaign.

In Pennsylvania, the MAGA candidates all went down to defeat! John Fetterman won the Senate seat over Dr. Oz from New Jersey. The Democratic candidate for Governor, Josh Shapiro, beat the racist, right-wing Christian nationalist, and anti-Semitic candidate, Mastriano. (Where do they find these guys?)

In Maryland, the entire Republican state-wide ticket-with autocrats, election deniers, Qanon supporters, and white Christian nationalists-went down to defeat as Maryland elected the most diverse state-wide ticket ever. Democrat Wes Moore is only the third African American elected to a governorship in the nation. His Lt. Governor is the first female South Asian ever elected to a statewide office, his AG is also African American and the Comptroller’s office will see its’ first female office holder. Way to go, Free-staters!

Massachusetts elected its first female governor, openly gay former AG, Maura Healey.

Unfortunately, insurrection-denier, Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, beat Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, who, in my opinion, was the better candidate.

However, in Michigan, Governor Gretchen Whitmer won reelection and flipped both chambers of the legislature from Republican-dominated to Democratic control. That was quite a feat.

Sadly, in Texas, Beto O’Rourke lost to Governor Abbott in the campaign for the governor’s seat. Sad, because Beto might somehow have gotten some gun legislation passed in this gun-toting state. Sad, also because Texas voters supported the governor who signed the abortion ban that drove women to other states to find necessary services.

I won’t try to mention all the wins and losses here, but thought these few were significant.

In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis, who won 4 years ago by a tiny margin, romped to victory this time with a 20-point lead over former governor Charlie Crist. Of course, everyone is now saying Florida has turned from purple to red. Just shows you what partisan redistricting, voter intimidation and felon disenfranchisement can do for a guy! His claim to fame includes bashing trans kids, silencing teachers, promoting a Christian state, banning books, and having the highest percentage of COVID deaths for any state. What a gov he might be! Perceived as his potential rival in 2024, DJT has nicknamed him Ron Desanctimonious.

Since many of his candidates went down to defeat, his right-wing buddies and other Republicans have distanced themselves from the former president. Will that dash his plans about announcing his 2024 candidacy this week? Well, he has never been well-based in reality, so I expect he will soldier on regardless of the facts. He has some idea that this will protect him from prosecution, but only official candidates might get a pass, and that is not guaranteed.

The GOP is in turmoil since their red wave has been, at best, a slightly pinkish beach foam. House and Senate members on the Republican side are calling for both Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy to step aside and let new ideas and different people come in to lead the party. Who knows where this will lead?

Young people showed up in fairly strong numbers and may have made a difference in several races. Abortion, climate change, and gun control were the issues most important to young voters. Women voters also mentioned the abortion issue as important. A few states had abortion measures on the ballot; in each case, the voters made or kept these options available.

As I write this on Sunday evening, final election returns are still trickling in across the country.

We know a few things:

The Democrats will control the Senate with 50 senators and do not need to wait until the Georgia election run-off on December 6^th to see if they are in control. However, if Warnock wins and the Democrats have 51 votes in the Senate, there will be no power-sharing as there was with a 50-50 Senate, so committees will not have to have equal numbers of Democrats and Republicans, for example. Majority Leader Schumer would have the same powers that Senator McConnell exhibited in the past.

The Democrats can continue to appoint judges and, if they give a majority of the spots to their members on the Judiciary Committee, they can report out President Bidens’ selections for judges for floor votes.

We can consider the same results for cabinet members or other nominees requiring Senate confirmation, as only a simple majority is required.

The Democrats get to fully set the agenda.

They still cannot unilaterally do away with the filibuster.

They will still need to rein in the two Senators who caused disruptions last year and would not allow the voting rights bill and other important measures to pass-Senators Sinema and Manchin.

Alaskan Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski, who sometimes favored Democrats’ initiatives and voted for impeachment, has a MAGA-endorsed opponent and is in a close race with the winner not yet determined. She will face a ranked choice run-off in a few weeks.

In a speech acknowledging the Democratic control of the Senate, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer noted the Democrats had outstanding candidates and a good agenda. He remarked that the American people rejected the divisive anti-democratic MAGA agenda of the other party.

Republican Senators Cruz and Paul will have to put aside their plans to exact revenge on Democrats who investigated their criminally inclined president; if they had listened to the evidence with an open mind, they would have also convicted him.

The House of Representatives remains in play. Several races, especially in California, are yet to be decided. Gun-toting Congresswoman Bobert from Colorado is in an unexpectedly tight race with a Democratic opponent. I would not mind it a bit if she lost!

They redistricted Katie Porter from California into a more conservative district, so she is now in a very close and undecided contest with her Republican opponent. Certainly, I would hate to see a woman with such a clear perspective on financial matters lose her seat in Congress. She could really put corporate obfuscators in the hot seat.

New York state had a close race for Governor after the Republican candidate had one supporter pour over $9 million into his race and a PAC associated with another millionaire dump hundreds of thousands of dollars into ads and other support at the last minute. Interim Governor Kathy Hochul, in the end, prevailed with 52.7 percent of the vote. Her opponent pushed the crime message, which succeeded with some voters.

Congressman Shawn Patrick Mahoney, an eight-term member and the leader of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, lost his election bid by over 3,700 votes. He lost his original district from redistricting and moved into a district with a lot of law enforcement officers. Even though he supported the police and they returned the favor in previous years, this time his opponent won the law enforcement nod and pushed the Democrats “defund the police campaign” even though it was not one of Mahoney’s issues.

Although the “defund the police” issue was not widespread, it has had legs, especially as it was publicized by media on the right long after the death of George Floyd. That incident precipitated the calls for defunding when so many were horrified by the cold-blooded murder. Conservatives have linked this cry with increasing claims of crime in the streets, making all unsafe; a claim that has been proven to be false. They continue to beat this drum, even as Democrats have proven that they believe the opposite by continually funding law enforcement.

I believe we need good, effective policing by well-trained officers. We also need accountability and for departments to make certain that the officers follow established protocols. I support the use of body cameras and know that they can protect officers from untrue accusations. However, there are still incidents when rogue officers behave badly and turn off their cameras. There are still too many mentally ill people being shot when what they need is medical care. So, while I agree we need adequate numbers of excellent officers to maintain law and order, I also believe the departments must also weed out those who are extremists and might be members of white supremacist groups or militias such as those law enforcement members who took part in the January 6^th insurrection.

There are projections by MSNBC that the Republicans will win 219 seats in the House, and for Democrats 216, with a margin of error of +/- 4 seats. 538 is projecting 221 seats for the Republicans. The Associated Press has so far called 203 seats for the Democrats and 212 for the Republicans. Americans do not wish for Republicans to conduct scorched earth investigations, but expect them to be leaders and legislators. Will they take this high road if they win? Currently, the Democrats hold 222 seats in Congress. 218 is the magic number for control of the 435-member body.

As an optimist, I am happy that democracy prevailed, and we kept the crazies at bay for a while. I still hope the Democrats might win the House. Ahh, wishes keep things alive; where is that Magic Dragon?

Anyway, ‘til next week-peace!

Will Voters Select Hope or Fear?

An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me.” He said to the boy.

“It is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. One is evil – he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.” He continued, “The other is good – he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.” (From a post by Kathleen Allen.)

 

That is what I am thinking about today. Which wolf will win? Will the American voters be swayed by the drumbeats of crime and fear being repeated nightly by the Republicans or will Americans hear the president’s message that the right is attempting to undermine our democracy and convince voters that fewer liberties but less crime are the way to go? The right is trying to convince voters we should challenge elections if the minority does not win, that lies are all right, and that cheating is permitted if the goal is to win at all costs. For the record–it isn’t!

 

The noises are so loud on the right that the voices of decent people, quiet, thoughtful people who care about the right for personal choices in selecting books or movies, in a mate to marry or with bodily autonomy, such as President Biden, VP Harris, and former President Obama are difficult to hear over the din and shouting. To them, democracy also means the right to vote without restraint, (well, it seems, not so in Republican-controlled states such as Florida, Texas, or Georgia) to speak freely and peaceably assemble, and to enjoy a free and unintimidated press. Democracy also is supposed to promote justice for all regardless of status in life, race, religion, or creed. (I know we are still working on that one!)

 

The leaders on the right seem to not understand that the states with the fewest controls on guns have more gun crimes. Democracy should not favor corporations over the rights of ordinary citizens. Money is not speech; money is power and billions and billions are being spent by interest groups to distort the truth and make Americans afraid of each other. Voters are told to fear the Congresswoman who supports her party’s leader, “liberal” Nancy Pelosi from San Francisco! They attack her because she has been an effective leader; she stood up to DJT when he promised one thing and did another. She got the Affordable Care Act through the House, she supported the Infrastructure Bil that is helping so many communities. They are trying to tell Americans that they should fear an 80-year-old petite woman. Preposterous! They should admire her for her tenacity and political skills. But, no, they have tried to demonize her for years, even going so far in one year to slow down the tape to make it appear as if she were speaking while drunk. (Perhaps they forgot she does not drink!) But no matter, the opposition had a field day when her 82-year-old husband, Paul, had an accident and was charged with DUI recently.

 

But most distressing is the torrent of lies and made-up stories that appeared and were shared by everyone from the MAGA crowd to Elon Musk and the bot farms after an attacker invaded Paul Pelosi’s home and viciously attacked him until the arriving police stopped the attack. Some television personalities even seemed joyful that Nancy had this turmoil to deal with. The man had a fractured skull and needed surgery! The attacker planned to hold her husband until she came home and he could attack her. He echoed the haunting “where’s Nancy” that the insurrectionists shouted after they invaded the halls of Congress, the Senate Chamber, and her office.

 

So which wolf is being fed here? Most certainly, it is not the one that supports decency and civility, respect and concern for your fellow humans. I am afraid that this coarsening of society’s mores and common courtesies, if not corrected by universal disdain, will become the new norm. If so, we will all be the poorer for it. So how do we change the narrative that tries to scare seniors into believing they will be victims of crime from the criminals in their midst? How do we change the claims that Democrats are soft on crime as they try to make our criminal justice system fairer?

 

Why are Democrats letting Republicans take credit for popular legislation they refused to vote for such as infrastructure improvements? Why aren’t they publicizing the Republican intentions to attack Medicare and Social Security and repeal the reduction in prescription drug prices under Part D? Telling the truth is feeding the good wolf!

 

So this roundabout discussion finally brings me to the midterms. We are finally there; the voters who have not yet spoken out with early voting, mail-in, or drop-box votes will now have their day at the polls. According to CNN, over 34 million people have already cast ballots in 47 states. Over one million votes have been cast in the states of Arizona, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, and they have already registered over two million votes in Georgia. The Georgia tally reflects a quarter of the total electorate. Tough Senate races in each of those states may account for the heavy turnout. Democrats continue their preference for mail-in voting as seen in 2020 with the pandemic. Seniors continue to turn out in force. So far, 39% of Democrats have already voted. However, many states have numerous independents; often independents lean Republican, so that is not a reliable category for Democrats. Young people, still a small share of the electorate, are showing up, but account for only 3% of the electorate.

 

Also, according to CNN, “Except among White voters in Arizona, Democrats lead in early voting among all age and major race or ethnicity groups in all three states. However, a sizable number of pre-election voters in Arizona and Nevada are independents, which cuts into the Democratic share of the vote in those states. In Pennsylvania, more than 80% of non-White voters so far are Democrats. In Arizona and Nevada, however, roughly half of non-White voters are Democrats.”

 

Polling site 538 is still projecting that Republicans will win in the House but that Democrats will hold on in the Senate. The right is promising to impeach practically every Democratic cabinet officeholder and investigate Hunter Biden! Legislation – why bother when you can hold a three-ring circus with a bunch of right-wing nut jobs leading committees? There have been recent reports in the press that Republicans are trying to game the polls by having pro-republican pollsters get counted in the same skew as reputable non-partisan pollsters to make people think that Democrats have no chance. Again, remember that Gallup polls were way off in several recent elections; at one point, they were not calling cell phones. One cannot do that in this current atmosphere where many voters have given up their landlines.

 

The publication This Week noted some pollsters are questioning results from republican pollster The Trafalgar group which consistently shows Republicans leading on the generic ballots and their every two-week polls of key Senate races show wider margins for Republicans in races that others are calling as toss-ups or close races. In 2020, Trafalgar predicted a DJT win, even as few others were. They often featured their results in the Real Clear Politics summaries, a more respected poll. But, as the computer folks say: Garbage In, Garbage out, or GIGO. I mentioned last week that polls have become unpredictable, but as the media sources incessantly report this information like a horse race, “who is leading now, who is coming close,” then voters may get discouraged if their candidate is said to have no chance of victory and they may not vote.

 

Some say that major ethnic groups, long a Democratic block, are moving away from the Democrats as older Hispanic voters are increasingly favoring conservatives, while younger, more assimilated voters are staying with the Democrats. One pollster claims that 20% of Black voters are moving away from Democrats, while others question that conclusion. Asian voters are also being courted by Republicans who have nominated several Asian candidates in local races.

 

I am partisan and would love to see such awful candidates as JD Vance, and Dr. Oz defeated. I certainly hope that Rev. Warnock beats Herschel Walker fair and square with over 50% of the vote, so that no run-off is necessary. I wish that Ron Johnson in Wisconsin will be defeated by Mandela Barnes and that Catherine Cortez-Masto holds on in Nevada. Wouldn’t it be nice if Val Demings in Florida beats Senator Rubio? I so want a Senate with over 50 Democrats!

 

In local races-believe me, you cannot go wrong if you vote for the Democrats-every one of them! In Frederick County, please vote for Jessica Fitzwater for County Executive and support County Council Candidates Renee Knapp & Brad Young and if you live in District 4, Kavonte Duckett. Please vote for Karl Bickel for Sheriff; (We need a change there for sure!)

State Legislature: Karen Lewis-Young, Senate

Delegates- Choose Ken Kerr, Kris Fair, and Karen Simpson.

Board of Education: Ysela Bravo, Rae Gallagher, Dean Rose, and Karen Yoho.

Statewide- Wes Moore for Governor, Aruna Miller, Lt. Governor, Anthony Brown for Attorney General, and Brooke Lierman for State Comptroller.

Congress: David Trone for Representative and Chris Van Hollen for Senator!

 

And in Montgomery County, vote for all of those women running for County Council!

And support the County Executive, Marc Elrich, and the District 14 team.

 

But, please VOTE!

 

Fingers crossed-‘til next week-peace!