East Bay Kerry

Ohio Phone-banking: Weekend Update

This past Saturday, on a warm, sunny afternoon – when most East Bayers were probably out hiking, shopping, or watching a ballgame – over 40 eager volunteers chose to spend a few hours of their weekend calling and writing to complete strangers on the other side of the country.

In one of our most prolific phone-banking efforts of the campaign, we placed over 1500 phone calls to unsuspecting Cincinnatians on Saturday, delivering our brief survey to over 250 people. Out of that group – and in right-leaning Cincinnati, mind you – we found over 140 people who were decidedly pro-Kerry or leaning towards Kerry, about 30 undecideds, and only about 50 who were in Bush’s corner. That’s 140-some potential new Kerry volunteers in Ohio! (In fact, 11 of the people we spoke to indicated that they wanted to volunteer right on the spot!)

So many people showed up to this phone-bank in Berkeley that we were spilling out onto the sidewalks in front of the house and there weren’t enough phone lists to go around. (Those without phone lists hand-wrote dozens of letters to unsuspecting Cleveland-area seniors concerning the Kerry-Edwards health care plan instead.)

Our friends over on the Peninsula weren’t about to let us get all the glory, so about 20 of them got together in Palo Alto to do some phone-banking of their own. Giving it all they had, this hearty group of speed-dialers came up slightly shy of the East Bay’s prodigious call figures, placing just over 1300 phone calls and reaching about 240 people with their survey questions.

All told, it was a terrific weekend for the Kerry-Edwards campaign both in California and in Ohio. Those who turned out this weekend were really energized by the experience and are looking forward to the next phone-bank opportunity, which happens to be tomorrow night –

When: Wednesday, August 11th from 4-6pm

Where: Belle’s house (75 El Camino Real, Berkeley)

RSVP: by email to bellehuang@sbcglobal.net or on the JohnKerry.com site.

Keep up the good work, everyone!

Go Kerry-Edwards!!

Report from the Kerryvan to Reno - 7/31

58 volunteers, from Santa Cruz to San Jose to San Francisco to Sacramento, crossed the mountains to join the Nevada Democratic Party's efforts to deliver Nevada for Kerry-Edwards and to re-elect Sen. Harry Reid. Our results were nothing short of amazing.

On Saturday, we knocked on over 2300 doors and surveyed over 350 people. Despite temperatures reaching the 90s, some of our volunteers were unsatisfied with only a half day in the field. They returned to the office at 2, grabbed something to eat, and went back out, determined to finish their entire precincts. One devoted pair of volunteers worked all the way until 7 pm to finally meet us at the social event in Reno, campaign materials still in hand. I don't have numbers back from Carson City yet, but anecdotally I know that we found quite a few people who wanted to register, who perhaps never would have if we hadn't been there.

Just a sampling of the stories our volunteers had to share:

"My best experience was meeting a 40-ish woman who asked us inside because she was too ill to come to the door. She was being denied the medical care she needed. She was registered but undecided. We listened to her story and told her about Kerry's commitment to healthcare for all while her teenage daughter listened on. They were clearly moved ... and perhaps hopeful for the future. I think she made up her mind to vote for Kerry during our visit, and I believe her life will be changed for the better when President Kerry takes office."

"We went to the door of a man . . . with a severe eye problem, when we began asking about voting he started jumping up and down in support of Kerry; All of a sudden this sick and down person became alive and excited! He then brought us in to meet his finacee (who was on our list) she was equally thrilled to meet us. .... Great experience. Everyone in our country should do it once!!!"

"Young lady in Carson City who got so excited that we had come to offer registration that she advised the caller on her cell phone that she would have to call him/her back as she has more important things to deal with"

"One of the first houses I called on, the woman asked if she could canvass with me."

"the soon-to-be 18 yr old blond curly headed young woman who, when she came to the door of her trailer and spotted my Kerry button said "yes, I want to vote for him" "Mama come here - you'll vote too". Mama says "I never voted before" "That's ok, can I have a brochure?""

"The WW2 vet who told me 'you just can't imagine how I feel right now, what Bush is doing in Iraq. I'm definitely voting for Kerry, thank you for doing this."

"The many people who were super gung-ho on Kerry and so happy to tell you about it! Also, just meeting the other volunteers- really fun."

"we were looking for a woman in a large house subdivided into apartments. Her landlady . . . told us the woman had moved out some time ago. Then, as we were leaving, she saw our shirts and buttons and asked us if we were from the Kerry campaign. She said she really wanted to get rid of Bush but didn't know
much about Kerry, and invited us in. After a few minutes of talking, she gave us her card and said if the local Democrats gave her some lawn signs, she would put them up on her properties, of which there were at least 10 in the area. Then her daughter, who was also in the apartment, said she also wanted to get
rid of Bush but was not registered to vote, so we gave her a form and she registered as a Democrat. (She wasn't sure what party to register for, but her mother said, "Bush is a Republican, dear" and she said, "then I'm a Democrat!")"

Want to go now? Join the Nevada Outreach team's mailing list to learn more.

Report from Boston - 7/29

Is this it? Really? Kerry accepts the nomination tonight, and here's Heather's latest (and last?) post from Boston?

Hi all:

This may be our final blog, but after tonight, hat more is there to say really?

Emily are so tired from lack of sleep and celebrity overload, we can't say for sure - but we THINK yesterday was the least energizing day in the hall. Al SHarpton was fantasitc and really got the crowd fired up. The Edwardses were way cute, but at our delegate breakfast this AM, Willie Brown said he felt that Edwards wasn't really his fiery self last night, and that the Dems need to let the candidates (and their wives!) be themselves. Da Mayor commended the sincerity of Teresa's speech, which really made us Teresa-lovers feel good.

Josh Richman, our Oakland Trib reporter, had a chance to talk to Gray Davis last night, and asked him what was the high point of the DNC for him. It wasn't Clinton or the fabulous parties. Davis said that he was most struck by Ilana, that he was so PROUD that she was a Californian. Way cool. In fact, Miss W had a little article in the New York Times today - check it out. She's speaking at a rally in half an hour. THen hopefully she gets to go home to prepare for 7th grade!

In the crowd last night: HBO's Cynthia Nixon and Larry David, Harry Shearer and ROb REiner. Also seen about (but not by me): John Cusack, Alec Baldwin, Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker.

After party at the Science Museum last night. Steve Wesley - little guy, big dancer.

WE have been instructed to go to the hall by 5 today. Seats are becoming more and more difficult to find and keep. If you leave, you're taking a risk. The noise/drone is deafeneing, even during big name speeches.

We are so excited that our guy - the guy they all said was dead - is accepting the nomination tonight and we are with you all in spirit. Wish you were here (for real). Have an awesome time tonight and see you back in Oakland!

H & E

Report from Boston - 7/28

And still more from our intrepid blogger at the Convention, Heather Pegas:

Hi Again:

I'm beginning to see how blogging turns into an obsessive habit! Right now, the CA and FL delegations are off seeing the Lion King (on stage here in Boston). After subsisting on about 4 hours of sleep per night, I decided to take the day off from the speeches, sturm and drang to nap and work out instead. Per Emily, this lifestyle is "not sustainable." Ah well, hakuna matata. (Nobody seems to find this funny but me!)

Also, I realized I forgot to share some CA news from yesterday's delegate breakfast. State Treasurer Phil Angelides (an early Kerry endorser) gave a substantive and passionate speech attacking the Govenator's various policies. In fact, he all but walked up to Arnold and punched him in the nose! So, we get the sense he'll be declaring his intention to run for governor soon....

I'm sure you all saw Ilana last night. She essentially slayed. What a darling child! The whole Fleet errupted at at least 3 points during her speech. I heard that she was interviewed by Biff Henderson (free-roaming stage hand) for Late Night with David Letterman, but I'm not clear whether that ran last night or will run tonight. She was interviewed on FNC's Fox and Friends this AM. Apprently, they treated her well. For this, at least, I give them credit.

The other big star of the evening was Barack Obama. It's easy to see why they can't find anyone to run against him. I've hear the latest potential candidate being floated is.... Ted Nugent? Not joking. Michael Lysobey turned to me during his speech and started counting on his fingers ... Then he said, "So what you want to bet in 20 years this is our first African American President?" I'd been thinking the very same thing.

Letter that evening Ki Ebersol from SF somehow scored tix to the Obama after party, so several of us attended that. It actually sounds more gratifying than it was. Loud, crowded... but with that unmistakable aura of victory.

Teresa's speech was also incredibly well-received. I thought she was just beautiful and teared up at several points during it. Unfortunately, the media persists in its pursuit of shallowness. Some nit reporter from ET stood in front of the CA section during the speech. His opening line? "John Kerrry supports his wife's use of the term 'shove it.' " David Bliss, Emily and I considered what we could throw at him. A comfortable walking shoe? A decorative CA paperweight? We restrained ourselves in the end. Dulcy's husband Tom called later to say that CNN had compared Teresa's speaking style unfavorably to Laura Bush's. WHich seems much like comparing apples to baclava. But that's our liberal media.

Kristin called to say that PBS was stuck on Emily and I during this speech, and that I needed to smile more! I do remember one point when this camera man seemed fixated on us. I think it was during a serious moment, and I also was not happy that he was there. A high school friend called to say that she had seen me lciking my teeth with my tongue. That's fantastic.

Also funny, Chris, a freind of Ben and Jess's, was volunteering outside the Fleet driving guests in a golf cart. He apparently drove Eunice Kennedy and we asked him what he said to her: "Quite some family you've got there."

And of course, the big news from our delegation was the engagement of Jess to Ben, covered by at least 4 papers and ABC radio. Half the CA delegation errupted in appause afterwards. Ben and Jess are REALLY happy, but when CNN called for an interview this AM, Jess said that it was a private moment and enough was enough. Very grounded girl.

OK, so on to tonight - The Edwardses. It seems like every night of the convention keeps surpassing the previous - incredible - so we just can't wait. DiFi gives the nominating speech at 5:45 EST.

More tomorrow everyone. Thanks so much for all your e-mail. This convention is a kick, but it's really special to be able to share my perspective on it with you!

Heather

Report from Boston - 7/27

Heather keeps us informed of all the secrets and inner-working of the Convention:

Hi again:

Found another OC delegate with a computer right down the hall! People are so lovely here.

OK, so you all saw Bill and Hill last night. What can I add to THAT? I guess i CAN say that the feeling in the hall after that was that this election is in the bag, there was that much enthusiasm and, well glee, really. But we do NOT want to get cocky.

The convention floor is a wacky place. You can sit in front of the CNN booth and pretend you are being interviewed by wolf Blitzer - cuz he's right there in front of you! Jim Lehrer was sighted, and Ilana was astounded when she saw Michael Moore (I missed him!).

OK, the girl is being interviewed every which way you turn. Emily was her handler yesterday. and it was a real kick watching the response she gets.

Emily, Toni West and Mark Nash were CA delegation "whips" which involved clearing space for VIPs, distributing signs, encouraging delegates to stand for CA speakers, etc. And also standing on your feet for 6 hours.

On the negative side, getting out of the Fleet is difficult in the extreme. The venue is small and it takes 15-20 minutes as the crowd slowly drifts outside. Then you have to get in an hour long bus line back to your hotel. If you look up, you'll see the snipers on the surrounding rooftops. Security is tight, but reasonable, both at the Fleet and at the hotel. But most of the workers have a sense of humor about it. Yesterday, I made the mistake of bringing the teeming microcosm that is my purse to the Fleet and the gal checking through it (it took 5 minutes or so) was incredibly lovely and said it wasn't event the worst she's seen!

We've learned that tonight we need to take the T instead because otherwise, you miss the best food at the after parties!

Today was the day of the women's caucus. Emily, Robin Torrelo and I got to see both Madeleine Allbright and a surprise speech from Hillary. It is impossible to underestimate the adoration she inspires. At the Emily's List luncheon, speakers included:

Barbara Milkowski from MD, Nancy Pelosi (who is being touted as the potential first female speaker of the house) - she was good, but couldn't compare to Gov. Ann Richards, who brought the house down with the following: "This president wants silence, abstinence and obedience, and we're not going to have it!" Teka's favorite, Jennifer Granholm, is not a generic political personality. You get a true sense of the sensitive and empathic person (Emily says maternal) that she is. Unfortunately, she has a bad habit of quoting Bette Midler songs (wind beneath my wings, lalalala...)

Again, the importance of grassroots organizing was a central theme, y'all!

Tonight's line up includes Ron Reagan Jr. (!), Ted Kennedy, Teresa, and of course the fabulous Ilana. RUMOR has it that she may even do the Letterman show on Wednesday - set VCRs in case.

OK, we must now prepare to hit the buses for the Fleet. We'll talk to you again tomorrow. We really wish you all could be here to share this experience - you all deserve it as much as we do. So we'll keep on representing and conveying.

Heather and Emily

Report from Boston - 7/26

Heather Pegas keeps us abreast of what's going on during her 2nd day in Boston:

Hello again:

Well the bad news is that our friend Michelle with the laptop has left Boston. The good news is that she left becuz she's been offered a job with the campaign and is headed to PA to do advance team work. She hopes to get on Elizabeth Edwards' team. So, now I'm writing from the copy place across from the Westin Copley!

The convention is crazy exciting and it hasn't even started yet. Last night, we attended the CA delegation party at the Boson Zoo. Emily, Karen Park (from SF) and I decided to dress up. We really stood out against the casual Californians in their crazy hats and capri pants. So much so that the fashion photographer from the Boston Globe took Karen's picture, and she is captured - in all her leggy glory - in today's fashion page!

Emily also got a blurb/delegate profile in today's Boston Herald (which I think is owned by Fox News?). Anyway. lots of dignitaries at the party last night - Gray and Sharon Davis, Art Torres, Cruz Bustamonte, and big crowd favorite, Michael Dukakis. I pled the Greek card to get a photo with him and he asked where my people were from. Nice guy. Short.

EB4K also has its own dignitary in the making. Ilana Wexler, 12, of Kids for Kerry is addressing the convention during prime time tomorrow at 10:15 PM. Her poise staggers me - I've got 25 years on her and I CAN speak in public, but C'MON! THe whole nation! She must have been interviewed half a dozen times already, and Emily took her to the Fleet Center today to practice her speech. I also grilled her on her outfit, which she thinks will be a lavendar twinset with khaki slacks - apparently, she has been instructed not to wear black, red, or white on camera. She is gonna be amazing. She IS amazing.

Dulcy Anderson of the SF office is also in town coordianting travel for the campaign finance team.

Just got back from the Disney luncheon honoring Sen. Feinstein - she's going to be giving the nominating speech Thursday! She stressed the need to carry the state for Kerry, given the likely lack of campaign presence here. So we just keep doing what we've been doing! There has also been a lot of public encouragement of swing state work, but of course, we're miles ahead of the curve on that thanks to Tina, Matt and Sandy.

Also in attendance at the luncheon: Jane Harmon, Gavin Newsom, VP Mondale, Joe Lieberman, Bill Lockyer (who we had an elevator ride with yesterday), and our own Mayor JB! I met him for like the 4th time, but he doesn't remember me. I must be doing something most seriously wrong!

Let's see, what else? Mark and Nancy from Sacramento are going to bowl with Ben Affleck tomorrow night, I believe it is. Karen got into the Jesse Jackson/Bill Cosby/Gladys Knight party last night, and we found out the delegate Tony West is Kamala Harris's brother in law. Got a glimpse of Ron Reagan Jr being interviewed
by Chris Matthews in front of Faneuil (SP?) hall during dinner last night.

The most common question you'll hear around town is "Can you take a picture with me?" And the convention hasn't even officially started yet!

Our great Oakland Trib reporters are here and have taken some cool photos. I just wish I could find somewhere to download my software and photos! I'll keep working on that.

I hope all is well in EB and hope to write more tomorrow after Day 1. Take care, everyone!

Heather

Report from Boston - 7/25

And speaking of which, Heather Pegas and Emily Weinstein send us this report from Boston:

Hello all:

Emily and Heather here in our hotel rool at the Westin Coppley Place. Our lovely roomie, Michelle Haggerty from Orange County has a lap top, so hopefully we can write often!

Emily is making us watch the Ashlee Simpson show. Sorry Emily. Make that CNN.

Speaking of which, the first celeb sightings of the day were Anderson Cooper (shorter & skinnier inn person) and Donna Brazile. Just quick glimpses - no interaction.

Emily got into the media party last night & saw Jesse Jackson and a performance by Little Richard. and she says one of the high points was the indoor ferrris wheel from which vantage point she screamed "Kerry 04!'

The press is all over the place. Yesterday while I was taking a nap in the hotel room and Emily brought the Chron photographers in for a photo shoot. I will be the lump in the bed in the background of that defining photo!

The good news of the day is that the firefighters union and the mayor have settled their contract dispute and will not be picketing at the convention welcome parties tonight. Yay! Settlement is good cuz there aren't going to be anywhere near enough parties.

We have already seen Ilana Wexler of east bay's Kids for Kerry on the local news. She'll be speaking on Tuesday night - just 12 years old. I think we'll all be campaigning for her one day!

Ben, Jess and I met up with several other delegates last night and hung out in a bar across from Fenway Park during the big Yankees/Red Sox game and witnessed the unbridled glee when the RS won. People are very serious about this around here.

Over & out. until our next blog, kerry on!

Heather and Emily

Swing State Planning Meeting Summary - May 19th

Carol Butler writes the Swing State Initiative's minutes from Wednesday. Including reports from state captains, coming events, and gaps in our team's coverage. Conversation about how to coordinate efforts with other swing state groups in California. Projects discussed: volunteer database, twice-monthly swing state days, letter writing parties, welcoming teams, and connections with the national campaign.

We had a highly productive swing state planning meeting on Wednesday evening.

State Team Update. State Captains reported on their progress to date. They've made contacts with state and county democratic organizations, Kerry volunteer coordinators in the swing states, student groups, state volunteer groups, Yahoo groups, candidates and campaigns. Some state groups volunteers have started to monitor swing state newspapers and other media outlets, and plan to work with the Writers Bureau to respond as appropriate.

The New Mexico team is planning a Fourth of July trip to the state to participate with the New Mexico Democratic Party in a voter registration effort. The Wisconsin and Oregon teams are planning a house party for June. The Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire teams are just getting off the ground. All of the state teams (except perhaps Ohio and Florida) could use more volunteers.

The following swing states don't have any dedicated volunteers yet: Arkansas (6 electoral votes), Iowa (7 electoral votes), Maine (4 electoral votes), Minnesota (10 electoral votes), Missouri (11 electoral votes), West Virginia (5 electoral votes). We’ve also heard that Colorado and Louisiana have been added to the swing states the Kerry campaign thinks they could win. So we’re looking for team captains for any of those states.

Bay Area Wide Organization. There were representatives at our meeting this month from Napa to San Jose. There was some discussion about how we were going to organize all of our efforts. The solution that made the most sense was to use locally based groups to organize local events and establish lines of communication with the volunteers in their area. Our state based groups, though, will cross all of these organizations. In other words, we did not feel it was necessary to have a Florida team in every part of the Bay Area.

And when a trip is planned to any swing state, one person from any part of the Bay Area can serve as coordinator for all of us.

At this point these groups are participating: East Bay, San Francisco, Santa Clara County, Marin, Sonoma, Santa Rosa, Napa. We will almost certainly need to break the East Bay up into two groups (East and West of the hills).

There was some discussion about maintaining a centralized database, but no decisions were made. That's partly because there is no centralized database now that would meet our needs (this is NOT an insurmountable difficulty). But it is also because representatives from the regional groups reported concern from people about being inundated with e-mail, questions of privacy and whether or not we've given people enough notice to do that with the information they've provided. I'm sure there will be more discussion about this.

Monthly Swing State Events. We've decided that the fourth Saturday in June, and the second and fourth Saturday of the next four months will be local swing state event days. Each local chapter will plan at least 1 local swing state event for June 26th. July through October each captain will plan something for at least one of the swing state event days (the 2nd or 4th Saturday of the month). The Kerry meetups are on the fourth Thursday of every month, and we will advertise the swing state events at the meetups. This will be a great resource for recruiting additional volunteers.

Letter Writing Party. In June some of us will coordinate with the Writers Bureau for letter writing parties. The fundamental question was raised at our meeting, "Who are we going to be writing letters to?" There are several ways that question can be answered. Here are some of the ideas that were proposed Wednesday night: write to local newspapers, contact local Democratic clubs for lists of undecided voters, signup with classmates.com and look for people you went to school with that are now living in the swing states.

Welcoming Team. Most of the people that contact us with an interest in volunteering would really appreciate an opportunity to talk to a real-live person about what we’re trying to do. In order to do that successfully, we need to create a welcoming team for each Bay Area regional group. Welcoming team members will receive information about three to seven new volunteers a week, and will be asked to call or e-mail that person directly to answer any of your questions and help them understand the different ways they can
participate in our swing state effort. This will be one of the functions of the regional groups. If you are interested in serving on the welcoming team please let Carol Butler know.

National Kerry Campaign. The good people at KerryNorCal have communicated with the national Kerry campaign headquarters about our efforts and introduced Carol Butler to their volunteer coordinator. They will be in regular contact, and when the campaign is ready we will begin working with them on specific projects.

The energy involved with this growing swing state effort is amazing. Lots of people are coming together to make this happen. We're working hard to put all you volunteers to work helping John Kerry become our next president. Whether you can give a few hours a week from now until the campaign, a few weekends in the fall, a week at the end of October, or anything in between, we need your help. Special thanks to the amazing group of captains. Without them this would never be happening.

Kipp Berdiansky, Sandy Buffett, Dahlia Chazan, Kim Clement, Seth Feinberg, Alex Foreman, Matt Gabriele, Doug Gibson, Subu Govindaswamy, Jeff Hoffman, Sarah Karlinsky, Jonathan Klein, Edi Lopez, Vince Marletta, Dave Massen, Mark McKenna, Joanne McKray, Joey Moyzis, Eli Novin, Pat Schwinn, Peter Siegal, Shelli Strand, Nancy Strohl, Mark Tornheim.

And thanks to my new co-chairs: Kara Abelson and Tina Valkanoff.

Carol Butler
510.237.8947
Swing State Support Committee, chair
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eb4kerry-swing/
East Bay 4 Kerry < www.eastbaykerry.com >
KerryNorCal < www.kerrynorcal.com >