Since my wife and kids are out of town this week I thought it would be an excellent time to catch up on my blogging. This is cross-posted at the Mid-Michigan Democracy for America blog, www.mmdfa.blogspot.com .
MMDFA had a big meeting this month. In addition to our regular members, we had some guests: Meridian Charter Township Trustee John Veenstra, Lansing City Council member (and 3rd Ward candidate) William Matt, Lansing City Council candidates Jonathan Solis (at-Large) and Drew Vinson (1st Ward), and Jake Coffey from Americans Against Escalation in Iraq (AAEI). We also had two special items on the agenda in addition to our usual business: Endorsements for the Lansing City Council primary on August 7th and a presentation by AAEI.
In regards to the Lansing City Council, the group spent several minutes questioning the candidates about their qualifications and their positions on various issues. Mr. Veenstra in particular wanted to know where the candidates stood on regional issues, such as the portion of Meridian Ctwp. annexed by Lansing ("College Heights"). All of the candidates gave good responses to our questions and demonstrated to our satisfaction that they were both fiscally responsible and socially progressive, so they all received our endorsement. I was especially impressed by Mr. Solis' line: "I don't want to bring jobs to Lansing; I want to create jobs in Lansing."
Moving on, we also viewed a presentation by AAEI. Their national website is www.noiraqescalation.org . In the Mid-Michigan area, they are particularly involved in putting the pressure on our U.S. RubberStamp Representative Mike Rogers (R-Brownnose). Since they are targetting five of our Michigan rubberstamps (Rogers in the 8th, Fred Upton in the 6th, Joe Knollenberg in the 9th, Thad McCotter in the 11th, and Vern Ehlers in the 3rd) there is plenty of opportunity for everyone in the progressive community throughout the mitten to get involved.
Our next meeting is Wednesday August 1st. If you're a Lansing area progressive, we'd love to have you stop by!
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