Letter from the Chair


  • In November 2008, Voters approved Proposition 11, which authorized the creation of the Citizens Redistricting Commission, which has the responsibilty to redraw state Senate, Assembly, and Board of Equalization districts based on 2010 census numbers.  The deadline for applying for the Commission is February 12th.   The Commissioners will be 14 citizens (five Republicans, five Democrats, and four of neither party), who (loosely defined) have not actively participated in partisan politics, been on a commission, or donated more than $2000 to campaigns/candidates in any given year.

    For more information, a complete list of qualifications, and the application visit We Draw the Lines. The discussion speaks of selecting the "most qualified" individuals. This is a process in which everyone — at every level of government — should be engaged.

    At the January meeting the TBRC Council began assessing (based on district) where our support will be most needed in the 2010. We have focused on the constellation of races overlapping Congressional Districts 3 (CD3) and 19 (CD19) (egad! Pombo again!).  We do not support candidates in primaries (in order to keep from supporting one Democrat over another), but after primary elections in June we will support Democrats in Congressional, State Senate, Assembly, and local races where there is no Democratic opposition.  We must, both, elect more Democrats to the State Legislature in districts currently represented by Republicans, and hold the seats we acquired in the 2008 election. This is crucial to ripping the teeth out of the 2/3's super-majority requirement for budget and revenue. TBRC volunteers will be focused on this effort in 2010.  Until we are successful, California will continue to be governed by a minority.

    There is a second way to address California's on-going budget disaster — which results in large part from the 1978 passage of Proposition 13. (The requirement that the Legislature have a  2/3's majority in order to raise money as part of the budget.) We are now regularly faced with the minority holding the Legislature hostage to demands unrelated to the budget itself, and limiting any budget plan to “cut-only” options. . Over a million signatures are necessary in order to get a ballot measure on the November ballot, abolishing this Legislature’s 2/3 requirement. Please consider becoming involved in Californians for Democracy (headed by Prof. George Lakoff) .  The proposed November 2010 ballot measure reads:  "All legislative actions on revenue and budget must be determined by a majority vote." Visit Californians for Demcracy, and join the campaign.  The updates from George Lakoff are heartening.

    We are all disgusted by Republican obstructionism as political philosophy — such as balancing the budget by cutting vital services to the most needy, among us, cutting civic and cultural services for all of us, and cutting education thus assuring the decline of human resources for public and private enterprise alike.  The G.I. Bill and Gov. Pat Brown's Master Plan for Education were massively important in making California a powerhouse of innovation from the 1950's to the Reagan roll-backs.

    Voter registration is crucial to winning elections.  In December TBRC joined several other organizations, including the Young Democrats, the Sacramento Central Committee and the State Party, to register voters in Citrus Heights (which includes CD3/AD5). On January 16 several TBRC Council members drove to Fresno to join in a voter registration drive, helping to finally push that county to a Democratic majority. We’d love you to come join these efforts as well and we will be posting regular updates on our new website. Its a lot of fun and it makes a difference.

    Finally, in 2010 TBRC will commit more resources to Democratic candidates running for local offices in June and November.  We will work with County Democratic Central Committees. We need your help to learn about candidates running for non-partisan offices in your county.  Send email to Mayme Hubert Chair TBRC.

    John Trinkl has become the new TBRC Environmental Issues Committee Chair.  With John's help, and with reference to the Sierra Nevada Alliance, we are working to increase our awareness and understanding of environmental matters, as we support rural-region Democratic candidates.These issues affect everyone — especially those of us living in cities that rely on clean water, strong fishing industries, healthy food, timber, and spots to go enjoy some rejuvinating “out of the city” time. Decisions made by local government in rural counties affect the quality and abundance of all of these resources. The responsibility to ensure a healthy legacy for our children falls to all of us, no matter where we reside.

    We are currently examining the ways that the recent Supreme Court’s decision to allow unlimited corporate funding into elections may affect races in our regions. We’ll have more about this later.

    And lastly... Stay tuned for details about the upcoming Red to Blue Grassroots Dinner, scheduled for the Saturday of the April 2010 Convention. We are very excited, and expect the dinner this year will be as spectacular as last year. Reserve through ActBlue.

    Thank you for your continued support for TBRC.

    Mayme Hubert, Chair

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