First day in the field

I'm writing this from an Internet Café next to the MGM Grand. We just had dinner after a long day in the field. But let me start from the beginning.

We met a small group of Planned Parenthood Advocate volunteers in the lobby of the Tropicana at 7:30 a.m. and headed to the staging area. After a few missed turns, we arrived at the Von's parking lot to see a fleet of minivans ready to transport volunteers around the city. On our way there, we were told that we'd all be drivers today. We soon learned that we couldn't drive because they have to do a DMV check on all drivers first. We may be drivers tomorrow which would give our feet a break.

As we entered a huge tent, we're told to stash all our Kerry pins and stickers. The organizing group, America Coming Together, is a 527, so we can't advocate for any particular candidate. It sounded stifling at first, but as the day wore on, it didn't get in the way of our work to motivate people who are known Kerry-supporters to get to the polls.

We had a quick breakfast of bagels and coffee and headed outside to the vans to get trained. We were each given a folder with maps, scripts and our voter lists. All six of us that had met at the Tropicana were assigned to the same van.

We headed out to our precinct and quickly found out that the concept of sticking in pairs just wasn't going to work. Robert went one way and I went the other, and we hardly saw each other until lunch. My list was made up mostly of large apartment complexes. Robert's list called for him to walk a whole lot to visit a few homes. But I went up a lot of staircases, so it's unclear who got the better workout. I think Robert feels he got plenty of exercise, judging from the way he scarfed down our Japanese Benihana-style dinner and the ice cream he just ate right in front of me.

All of the people on the lists were those who have already been identified as Kerry supporters, so I didn't run in to any undecideds of Bush supporters. Others did talk to some Bush supporters.

Over the next three days, each of these homes will be visited as many as four times. We're asking folks if they know where their polling place is (some don't), reminding them that election day is Tuesday (some don't know), and that the polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. We're also asking if they want a ride and if they know what time of day they plan to vote.

All in all, about 90% of the doors we knocked on were never opened -- code NH, not home. I ended up knocking on more than 120 doors. Robert visited 60 homes. I spoke to a young woman who just registered. She didn't know where to go. Her mother had already voted (Early voting ended yesterday), and I told her to make sure her daughter gets to the polls.

In the field, we saw a group of three Bush supporters canvassing. They told someone in our group that they were staying at the Venetian and they have 4000 volunteers. I don't know how many volunteers we have. I think we have more. Also, I saw a bunch of door hangers from MoveOn.org volunteers.

Our group of six came from Mountain View, Los Angeles, Los Altos, Chicago and Fresno. One of them is a Republican financial planner who is strongly pro-choice and equally anti-Bush.

Out in a neighborhood, even though we're part of a huge effort, it feels pretty quiet and isolated. I was expecting to see a lot more election materials and volunteers out and about. Along the strip, there's really no sign of election fever.

Clinton was here yesterday and today. Two of our six got to shake his hand yesterday. And Darth Cheney will be here once more before the election too. So, clearly, we are in the right place at the right time.

I realized that the eight hours we were out in the field was a long time to be disconnected from the rest of the world. We weren't aware of any of the news of the day. When we got back to the hotel, we learned that the polls haven't moved much, eight Marines were killed today and UCLA skunked Stanford.

So, if any big news happens, please e-mail me at mgrimes@valleywater.org. I've got my Blackberry.

Until tomorrow,

Marty

Waiting for all the facts

Paul Bremer was just on the Today show spouting off the same arguments Bush and company made before the video showing explosives was released, as if the video didn't exist. His assigned talking point is "Kerry is irresponsible for jumping to conclusions. We should wait until all the facts are known." Let's wait until, say, next Wednesday.

We're off!

Tomorrow we take off for Vegas. The odds-makers give Kerry the edge at 11 to 10. Actually, it looks like you can’t bet on the election in Vegas. You have to go to the UK. Party poopers.

Last night, I heard stories from some of the people who went to Reno to walk precincts last weekend. One pair started talking politics at a casino buffet and found they were sitting next to two Bush supporters, one with two sons who are Navy SEALs in the Persian Gulf. By the time they’d finished their generous helpings of snow crab legs and tapioca pudding, they’d convinced both women to vote for Kerry.

I wish I knew what their talking points were. Can you help? Give us your best talking points we can use with our Nevada neighbors.

Here, we’ll get you started:

1. Bush wants to ship nukyooler waste through Vegas to dump it forever at Yucca Mountain.
2. Justice John Paul Stevens is not immortal.
3. Tax cuts for the rich.
4. In record time, Bush blew our budget surplus and replaced it with record deficits.
5. Abstinence-only sex education doesn't work.
6. John Ashcroft
7. Abu Ghraib
8. Always split aces (Oh, that’s for later.)
9. Call it a global test, call it diplomacy, the U.S. must be able to justify its actions around the world.
10. Bush is hell-bent on a constitutional amendment to prevent loving same-sex couples from enjoying the more than 1000 federal rights and responsibilities provided to married couples.

Still can't remember any mistakes, GW?

After ignoring the issue for two days, Bush finally spoke up only to claim that Kerry was recklessly jumping to conclusions about the 380 tons of missing explosives in Iraq. Bush speculated that the explosives may have been moved before the U.S. arrived at the site. He went on to say that Kerry was “denigrating the actions of our troops and commanders in the field without knowing the facts." Surprise, President Bush. October surprise, that is. An ABC station released a video from April 18, 2003, nine days after the fall of Baghdad, confirming that the explosives went missing after troops took control of the site.

Kerry’s criticism isn’t aimed at the troops. The blame falls squarely on President Bush who decided to ignore the assessment of Army chief of staff, General Shinseki, invading Iraq with too few troops on the ground to secure the country.

Let’s take a look at some of the things Bush’s chief warmonger said in the days before the invasion (excerpts from New York Times, Feb. 28, 2003):

“Mr. Wolfowitz, the deputy defense secretary, opened a two-front war of words on Capitol Hill, calling the recent estimate by Gen. Eric K. Shinseki of the Army that several hundred thousand troops would be needed in postwar Iraq, ‘wildly off the mark.’” (We now know whose estimates were really wildly off the mark.)

“Mr. Wolfowitz then dismissed articles in several newspapers this week asserting that Pentagon budget specialists put the cost of war and reconstruction at $60 billion to $95 billion in this fiscal year.” (Alas, $200 billion has been committed so far).

Wolfowitz said Iraqi civilians would welcome an American-led liberation force that "stayed as long as necessary but left as soon as possible.” (We‘re still waiting for the welcome wagon.)

Wolfowitz: “I would expect that even countries like France will have a strong interest in assisting Iraq in reconstruction.” (Au contraire, mon frair.)

Wolfowiz said the upper range of $95 billion was too high, and that the estimates were almost meaningless because of the variables. Moreover, he said such estimates, and speculation that postwar reconstruction costs could climb even higher, ignored the fact that Iraq is a wealthy country, with annual oil exports worth $15 billion to $20 billion. "To assume we're going to pay for it all is just wrong," he said.

Yet Bush can’t remember making any mistakes.

Bush says that Kerry will say anything to get elected. Actually, I think he's shown great restraint. Here are some things he hasn’t said:

• “My opponent is under the dangerous delusion that God is on his side.”
• “If the world is a safer place with Saddam Hussein behind bars, why are more than 1000 soldiers and 10,000 Iraqi civilians dead and week after week, hostages are losing their heads? Their blood, Mr. President, is on your hands.”
• “Bush illogically believes that a microscopic glob of cells destined to be washed down the sink is more important than the lives of Michael J. Fox, Christopher Reeve and everyone else with Alzheimers, ALS, Parkinsons and spinal cord injuries.”
• “Bush is a liar.”
• “It’s ‘noo-clee-ur,‘ dumb-ass.”

Undecided Democrats? Puh-leeze!

We walked our precinct today before it started raining. A couple of Democrats we met told us they were still undecided. Undecided? Are you kidding me? I asked them if there were any issues they had questions about, but they didn’t. I think they must be among the type who will base their decision on something like the candidates’ astrological sign or which guy has the best campaign theme song.

For the record, Bush’s theme song is Brooks & Dunn’s “Only in America.” Who the heck are Brooks & Dunn anyway? Sounds like a lawn mower brand.

Kerry’s got Bruce Springsteen’s “No Surrender” so he’s got that going for him, which is nice.

I have to admit Clinton’s Fleetwood Mac campaign soundtrack was rather energizing.

As for Clinton, he’s been e-mailing me asking for more money for Kerry. I’m glad Kerry has realized Clinton is an asset. Bad timing on the whole heart bypass thing though, Bill.

Dick Cheney’s four heart attacks are not slowing him down. The man who had spent most of the last four years in an “undisclosed location” devising the next strategy to ruin the world, has come out of his spider hole and is campaigning with the energy of a circuit party boy while Clinton has been in a hostpital bed sending e-mails. Where’s the justice?

It’s a little clearer today what divides the country. It’s not church-goers versus non-church-goers. It’s not rich versus poor. It’s not homophobes versus gay rights supporters. It’s the ignorant versus the people who are paying attention.

A poll taken last week (www.pipa.org) shows that Bush supporters just don’t know the facts and don’t know what their own guy supports.

A majority of Bush supporters thinks Bush backs the Kyoto global-warming treaty and the treaty banning land mines. He doesn’t.

Most of these same supporters do support these treaties, so they’re supporting the guy who doesn’t share their values.

Worse yet, three quarters still believe that Saddam Hussein provided substantial support to al-Qaeda or was involved in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. More than half think the Sept. 11 commission found such ties.

Only three of ten Bush supporters believe that the majority of the world opposes the U.S. invasion of Iraq. No word on how many give a damn.

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, most Bush supporters still cling to the belief that Saddam had WMD or a major WMD program just before the war. They need to hold onto this because they also believe that invading Iraq would not be justified if it did not have WMD and did not support al-Qaeda.

Of course, Bush is doing nothing to educate his flock on the facts. Their ignorance is his key to victory.

Madeleine Albright on the United Nations

I got a chuckle from this quote from a Madeleine Albright speech that aired on KQED last night:

"There are a lot of people in the United States that will never like the UN. They are afraid that it has black helicopters that swoop down and steal our lawn furniture, and then there actually are people that will never like it because it's full of foreigners, which, frankly, can't be helped."

It was a profound, thoughtful speech, but delivered in early 2004. Now she is on the campaign trail, and like all the candidates and surrogates, in the hope of getting five seconds of airtime on the 6 o'clock news, has resorted to pithy soundbites like, "Some people ask me what I'm doing, and I say flat out that I'm trying to overthrow the government," and "George Bush said it's hard work? Well let's give him a break."

Speaking of soundbites, I'm going to puke the next time I hear Bush squeal "He can run, but he can't hide."

These made-for-TV soundbites remind me of every Schwarzenegger movie with five or six built in catch phrases which are less for the movie than for the clips about the movie. Terminator 3's desperate attempts never quite caught on. Remember "I'm back!" and "Speak to the hand"? Me neither.

A hunting we will go

I just read on the news crawl that Kerry is going hunting in Ohio today to show that he's just a "guy." Well, at least he's learned that going windsurfing wasn't winning him any votes in Iowa. But, come on. Is our country so pathetic that he'll really get more support by shooting things than actually talking to people? 12 days before the election? Going on a little hunting trip in Ohio 12 days before the election sounds about as plausible as Scott Peterson going fishing in the Bay on Christmas Eve with a pregnant wife at home.

Kerry's next move should be to sidle up to reporters and say, "Pull my finger." Then he should go to every World Series game wearing a beer helmet and get into a brawl with a 10-year-old over a foul ball.

And what's with Teresa? Ad hominem attacks on sweet, demure Laura Bush? Memo to Teresa: Stay on message or shut up.

Nevada is all over the place

The electoral-vote predictor website (http://www.electoral-vote.com/) is showing some momentum for Kerry in many of the swing states. New Mexico is now blue. So is Florida, but just barely. Nevada, however, is leaning toward the bad guys.

I wish we could have more debates. Every time Kerry stands next to Bush, more
Americans see the light. It'll be hard for Kerry to keep up any momentum just stumping on the campaign trail.

I keep hearing that it's really going to be all about turnout and how many of the newly registered voters will go for Kerry. Here in the Bay Area, reports are that there has been an unprecedented rush of new voter registrations, the vast majority of them Democratic.

On Sunday, I staffed a voter registration table before a Spanish-language production of "Real Women Have Curves" (www.teatrovision.org). A Spanish-speaking woman approached the table and her friend said (in Spanish), "Tell the güero (white guy) you want to register." I responded (in Spanish), "Yes, ask me." After they adjusted to the fact that I could understand them, the woman began filling out the form and got to the box for party affiliation. She asked her friend, "Which is our party? Which is the party of los pobres, the poor folks?" The Democratic Party, of course.

Robert and Marty 

We're going to Vegas!

In ten days, Robert and I are flying to Las Vegas to help get out the vote for Kerry/Edwards. We'll fly out on Friday, Oct. 29 and start work the next morning. Planned Parenthood Advocates is organizing our group. I don't know how many are in our group, but we have a block of rooms at the Tropicana.

I've heard of other groups that are going to Vegas too. I expect it will be an amazing experience to work side by side with hundreds of others dedicated to ending our collective Bush nightmare. Our Silicon Valley LGBT Democratic Club (www.lgbtdems.org) is sending a bus to Reno this weekend. I'd join that trip too, but I've got some work at home to do.

I've volunteered with the Santa Clara County Democratic Party to be the captain of the precinct where we live in Campbell. I've committed to walking the entire precinct and encouraging people to vote for Kerry and Boxer as well as for an openly gay city council candidate, Evan Low. I've got to finish this weekend. Since Kerry has California wrapped up and Boxer is safely ahead in her race, it's been hard to get motivated to walk my precinct. Evan, however, needs every vote.

The swing states are where all the action is. I just read on one of my favorite sites (http://www.electoral-vote.com/) that even though the race is really dead even, a count of all the state polls shows today that Kerry would get 284 electoral votes, 14 more than he needs to win. I tend to put more stock in these polls when they're going our way. So, today, this analysis is gospel.

Nevada has 2.2 million people and 1.6 million of them live in the Vegas area. Right now, the presidential race is a dead heat. Too close to call. Anyone's guess. So, there's a good chance that a state like Nevada, with its five electoral votes, could be more important than ever. What a disappointment it would be if we woke up on November 3 to find that Kerry lost by just a couple of electoral votes and Nevada goes to Bush with a razor-thin margin. After the 2000 election, we know it can happen.

We got the tentative agenda today. It looks like we'll be walking precincts for about seven hours each day, with lunch in the field. Then, we'll have the evenings to ourselves to enjoy Vegas. I'll try to take that time to update this blog. If my luck at the blackjack tables is bad, I'll probably spend more time blogging.

It looks like we're on our own Halloween night. So, I'm sure Vegas will be in major party mode.

We're scheduled to fly back to San Jose on election night at about 8:40. That means we may be in the air when the rest of the world is finding out who won. That could be an excruciating flight. But, if we're unfortunate enough to see some type of repeat of the 2000 debacle, we won't be sure about the results of the presidential race for days or weeks.

Marty