Last night my husband and I attended a meeting of a local board of directors of democrats. We are both on the board. This is a group of dedicated democrats from all walks of life, who work very hard “on the ground” to try to elect democratic candidates to office in this very conservative area of our state. Members include farmers, a director of a chemical dependency clinic, union laborers, special education teacher, retirees, the physically disabled, political activist, lawyer.
Think Man of LaMancha, with lots and lots of windmills.
The meeting served several purposes. We vented about the election. We tried to figure it out. The state party had polls just a few days before the election which showed our incumbent candidates leading by healthy margins. We had been getting very positive feedback about our legislators from the contacts made in the district. Both legislators worked very hard to be out in the hinterlands, meeting constituents, listening to concerns, and generally doing the grassroots work that is part of a successful campaign.
And they got slaughtered at the polls.
The meeting of about a dozen die hards was to decide what to do from here. Do we take a break? The two-year gap between elections is a tempting time to just sit back and watch the world for a while. See what happens now. Get on with our lives. Get a life. No futile monthly meetings.
But that is not what was decided.
This is a group of people who truly believe that they can change things in this area. The land of Michele Bachmann is not lost to all hope.
We have decided to keep going. We have hope. We have a plan. We are forging ahead.
I am very proud to be a part of this group.
Look for more tilted windmills around here.
December 6, 2010:
1. Great meeting.
2. Had a hearing today that kept a client safe.
3. Found my scarf and gloves for the extremely cold weather.
Just My Life 
You get extra harem brownie points today Chlostie! That is great that you have a dedicated group eager to push forward. I am one of a tiny handful of Dems in a VERY red area of the state. Our windmills are unbeatable. I wish you and your friends all the best of luck. Keep up the good work on the positives! Doing great! You can always use Michelle Bachmann to your benefit on even your worst days. You could write “Michelle Bachmann did not come into my office today….” and that would always be a positive…right? 🙂
By: TheIdiotSpeaketh on December 7, 2010
at 12:19 pm
I will take any points I can get! Our area and yours are probably very similar. We didn’t think we’d ever win, but won the two seats last round. My hope for the next round is that Ms. B runs for Senate against our very popular Senator Klobuchar, and loses. Then she will be out of Congress, too. One can dream……
By: chlost on December 7, 2010
at 4:25 pm
Did you all ever work out what exactly had happened to explain the differential between the polls and the actual vote?
By: sweffling on December 7, 2010
at 2:26 pm
No one seems to have a clue. but it does appear that a lot fewer people actually came out to vote. Apparently, they were all those who claimed to support our candidates.
By: chlost on December 7, 2010
at 4:20 pm
We need more like them across the country — especially after being sold down the river today!!!
By: Kay Dennison on December 7, 2010
at 10:02 pm
My buddy was on the board of the local Democratic party – after three years he left in disgust. They took too radical a stance – immediate withdrawal from the middle east, impeach Bush, force gay marriage. He tried to tell them that radical positions drive voters the other way, better to attract more people through a moderate stance THEN move your agenda forward AFTER winning the election.
They would have none of it. You have to govern from the middle or you will not be given the opportunity to govern at all. Sad.
By: Robert the Skeptic on December 8, 2010
at 2:29 pm