Monday, July 31, 2017

Petition to Senator Schumer and the DNC: Respect Hillary's Legacy!

There was some discussion over the weekend regarding remarks Chuck Schumer made last week. One reason I did not bring that up was that last we were also in the middle of a battle royal to preserve the ACA, and Senator Schumer was central to the effort to shepherd every Democratic vote - which he successfully did. In that context, I made a judgment call and decided not to distract from the important votes taking place in the Senate. Some readers disagreed with me, but from my point of view, an angry rant from me probably would not have accomplished anything positive and could have distracted from the important work in the Senate last week.

Sometimes hesitation reaps rewards. Skilled teachers and actors know the value of a well-placed pause. While those are planned, this one turned out to be serendipitous. Also over the weekend, a petition popped up on Hillary Clinton Express that can accomplish far more than a rant from me. D Michael Sawyer posted this.
Hillary friends!
I'm asking for your support for this petition. It was developed by a friend who lead the effort in Knoxville. I helped draft some of the language here, particularly focusing on future candidates and 2018. It addresses schumer's comments concerning hillary spoken last weekend. My friend who wrote this was a strong supporter for hillary in 08 and worked hard for her in 16, and we are all concerned what this attack on her will mean for both our democracy because we are signaling to to Republicans we will tolerate more investigations into her and to democratic women we are leaving a legacy of sexism. Please join us.
I think you will all agree that this petition is much more productive than any sputtering rant I might have posted, and the targets are Senator Schumer and the DNC.  They are looking for 500 signatures. Perhaps we can help them get even more!
Petitioning Senator Charles Schumer and 1 other

Tell Democratic Party leaders they must respect Hillary's legacy!

In a recent interview with the Washington Post, Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer chided Hillary Clinton for the loss to Trump in last year’s presidential election: “When you lose to somebody who has 40 percent popularity, you don’t blame other things – Comey, Russia – you blame yourself”. Sen. Schumer’s comments are coded sexism at its worst, part of a disturbing trend of disrespect toward Hillary taking hold in the Democratic Party leadership. Hillary’s campaign inspired millions of women to stand up, take power, and believe in their own potential. Most of the Democratic rank-and-file still support her. Hillary's loss to someone as offensive as Trump proved that sexism is still alive and kicking. Instead of denouncing this injustice, Schumer wants Hillary to shut up, get lost, and blame herself for the discrimination and election interference that undermined her. As the highest-ranking leader of the Democratic Party in government, Sen. Schumer owes Hillary and the party more respect! Tearing down Hillary Clinton as a foundation for Democrats’ 2018 message supports and perpetuates sexism in the party and the nation and potentially undermines future campaigns of Democratic women. It offends the majority of Democrats who are still with her. Hillary did have an affirmative message, despite Schumer’s claims to the contrary. Most Democrats, women and men, still believe that we are “Stronger Together”. Schumer must reaffirm this message of unity by reversing his position on the reason for the Democrat’s loss. Sign this petition demanding that Schumer publicly acknowledge the historic importance of Hillary’s campaign and admit that un-examined sexism robbed her of victory.
This petition will be delivered to:

Sign the petition here >>>>

Thanks to Sarah Young for starting this petition and to D Michael Sawyer for posting it!