This newsletter is available in the news section of the website, where you'll also find a PDF format you may download and print - click here. As always, we encourage our members to send us content. Please email: editor-fr@democratsabroad.org. This same address is used for the Facebook page so if you have events, photos or more that you'd like to post, please send us an email.

 

This month we will continue to focus on the 2010 elections and what Democrats Abroad France is working on. The general election has never been closer so please make sure your registration is up-to-date. We have started hosting many voter registration events and will continue to do so over the coming weeks. The Voting Action Center on the website has detailed information and you will find all registration events in the listings to the right.

 

Thank you and bonne lecture!

Letter from Chair

Dear Members

 

Democrats Abroad International is launching a global GOTV effort on the weekend of September 24th and 25th.  We will have the pleasure of welcoming Clyde Williams, Political Director of the Democratic National Committee to Paris. http://www.whorunsgov.com/Prof....  We will also have with us in Paris our International Chair Christine Marques from Geneva, as well as our Executive Director Lindsey Reynolds from Washington DC.

 

We will have events throughout the weekend beginning with a cocktail at Lois Grjebine, former Democratic National Committeewoman.  On Saturday we will have phone banking and voter registration activities plus a call from Representative Chris Van Hollen (MD) Chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee

http://www.dccc.org/pages/leadership.

 

We all know how critical these elections are so we hope that all of you will join us in this local and global effort to get Americans registered to vote for the up coming midterm elections and get out our vote.  If you are interested in participating in these events please contact me at chair-fr@democratsabroad.org.

 

Democrats Abroad had the pleasure of welcoming Governor Tim Kaine, Democratic National Chairman, to Paris on Thursday June 3rd.  Governor Kaine met with members of Democrats Abroad at the home of Lois Grjebine, former Democratic National Committeewoman.  We had members from all over France present, as well as Democrats Abroad leaders from Italy, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and England.   Governor Kaine was introduced by sitting Democratic National Committeeman, Joe Smallhoover.

 

Gov. Kaine fired up the audience with the message that the Democratic Party is pulling out all stops to win the mid-term elections and keep a majority in both the  House and Senate.  He reminded the over 80 invitees present of how much the Democratic Party has achieved and that if there were a mantel upon which we could put our achievements it would be quite impressive with Health Care Reform being our most recent gain for the American people.  (word seems to finally be getting out see http://my.barackobama.com/MaddowClip)

 

The audience had an opportunity to ask questions, many of which were on foreign policy issues, but  two stand out; one by John Morris on the importance of these mid-terms particularly hit a cord.  As we know John has been telling us that he thinks these mid-terms are the most important since 1918 when President Wilson lost majorities in the House and Senate, the latter leading to the failure of the United States to join the League of Nations. The second was by a member of DAF who asked why the party was not going after the opposition more. The Governor said that it was something that they have also looked at and plan a campaign to do just that.  Governor Kaine agreed that our winning these mid-term elections is critical to the future course of our nation and encouraged us to do all we can to get out the vote abroad and at home. 

 

Governor Kaine served as the 70th Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia.  He was tapped by President Obama to be Chairman of the Democratic National Committee.  As a political leader, Governor Kaine helped Virginia Democrats regain two U.S. Senate seats, a majority of Virginia's Congressional delegation and control of the state Senate.  In addition, as the national co-chair of Obama for American, he campaigned in 15 states for the President and helped Virginia deliver its 13 electoral votes to a Democratic presidential candidate for the first time since 1964.

 

Governor Kaine was joined in Paris by his wife Anne Holton, a foster care reform advocate who worked previously as a legal aid lawyer and juvenile court judge.  Anne is also a graduate of Harvard Law School where she met Tim Kaine in a study group.  Anne heads a nonprofit, For Keeps, that promotes helping older foster children obtain and maintain placements.  Tim and Anne have three children, Nat, Woody and Annella.

 

We were also joined by our Executive Director of Democrats Abroad, Lindsey Reynolds.  Lindsey works in DC at the offices of the Democratic National Committee.  In addition to her daily duties for Democrats Abroad, Lindsey now travels with the Governor on his trips outside of the United States to meet with Democrats Abroad members.  So a very big thanks to Lindsey for her work on our behalf and helping us have an opportunity to meet with our Democratic leaders.  Lindsey also cut her political teeth in Virginia as the Executive Director of the Virginia Democratic Party under then Governor Mark Warner and became the youngest executive director in the US at the tender age of 25.  She is presently Vice-Chair of the national Executive Director's Association.

 

Thanks to all of you who could come and join Governor Kaine at our meet and great for taking the time and making this such a success.  Also a special thanks to the volunteers who worked tirelessly to pull together this opportunity for us to visit with our Chairman, in particular Paulette Johnson, Mary Ann Rivet and Tamara Prevost.  No thanks would be complete without saying thanks to Lois for opening up her home once again.

 

All present really appreciated Governor Kaine's rallying cry to win these mid-terms and his taking so much time to not only answer our questions but to stay afterwards speaking with members individually.  We presented Governor Kaine with a book entitled "Your Opinion Matters" where guests had a chance to put their thoughts and questions for the Chairman in writing.

 

I look forward to working with each of you to bring about a big win for Democrats in November 2010!  We hope to see all of you on the weekend of September 24 and 25 to help push locally our global effort to get out the vote!  Clyde's call for action should be as exciting as Gov. Kaine's.  We will be able to hear first hand what is happing on the ground in the United States with these midterm elections.

 

Thank you for your support of Democrats Abroad.  Our voters can make a difference in the mid-term elections.  Please reach out to all your American friends, their children and make sure they are registered to vote and voting.  

 

VoteFromAbroad.org is available 24/7 for ballot request.  Voter information is available in the Voter Alert Center on our site DemocratsAbroad.org http://www.democratsabroad.org/vote.

Please check our calendar for voter registration events in your area.

Please help us win on November 2nd - every vote counts!

 

Meredith Gowan Le Goff

Chair Democrats Abroad France

 

 

 

Keeping the Congress this November

By Seamus O'Toole

"Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien."

-Voltaire

 

The Democrats Abroad recently hosted several members of congress on the first in a series of calls to raise support for the upcoming midterm elections.  Most notable about the call was the rising level of disappointment amongst our most active members.  

 

We are facing an election of supreme importance this November, as John Morris has already pointed out in this space, and yet we seem to be preoccupied with what could have been in this 111th Congress.  Following the election of President Barack Obama, expectations had reached such a fever pitch that almost everyone in the broad coalition that elected him has become inevitably disappointed.

 

Republicans taking back control of the House is becoming a very real possibility.  Rather than discussing the accomplishments of this Congress, of which we are all well aware, it is worth looking back at what a Republican-controlled House looks like to understand what a Speaker Boehner entails for America.  The Religious Right will be back in the driver’s seat as in 2004 when they continued their campaign of eating away at the edges of Roe v. Wade with Laci and Connor’s Law, a callous exploitation of the murder of Laci Peterson then dominating the tabloids.  The Republican-controlled house also began the national effort to enshrine their opposition to Gay Marriage in our Constitution in 2006.  On the economic front, Republican Congresses of the Bush era put in place the “Ownership Society” policies which overheated the mortgage financing market and flooded it with fraudulent claims, resulting in a wave of foreclosures that surpassed the population adjusted total for 1929-1932.  In an apparent attempt to re-establish an aristocracy the estate tax was phased out while tax rates on middle class workers’ incomes surpassed the rates paid by Hedge Fund and Private Equity Directors.  Finally, all of us US Citizens abroad should remember that our calls home are no longer private thanks to the USA PATRIOT Act.  

 

This is the alternative to victory. 

 

If the Republicans control the Congress we can expect more of the same demagoguery on social issues and more class warfare, Grover Norquist-style, on economic issues.  

 

November is not a time for progressives to send a message to the President or for anyone to appraise the prioritizing of healthcare reform over other proposed bills.  November will determine who will hold the purse strings of the state and whether the obstruction of the Obama Administration will be merely rhetorical and procedural or whether it will transition into another Gingrich-style government shutdown.  The choice is very clear and there is a gaping divide between the world view of the Democratic Party and those poised to take control.  They are drooling at the opportunity to play chicken with President Obama; let’s make sure they don’t have that opportunity. 

 

Join us in supporting our Democratic Representatives during our Keep The Congress Calls this September and October.  Please watch for updates and alerts sent by the Democrats Abroad France.  

 

Phone Banking

Democrats Abroad France will have phone banking to make sure we are all registered and to get out the vote. The next phone banking session is on September 15.  Come join us with your cell phone and help us get out the vote.  If you are interested contact Meredith Gowan Le Goff at chair-fr@democratsabroad.org.

 

 

Political Visionary Steven Hill to Visit France

 

By Meredith Wheeler

 

We want to thank Meredith Wheeler, former Chapter Chair Toulouse and coordinator of Steven Hill's visit to Europe for contributing this article for our newsletter and sharing her knowledge of Steven Hill's work.

The American political visionary and author, Steven Hill, will address Democrats Abroad members in France at events in Paris, Nice, Marseilles/Aix, Toulouse and Strasbourg this September, as part of an 11-nation European tour. (for dates and times, see events section). 

 

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear one of the most original political thinkers of our time.  (You may have read his recent opinion piece in the International Herald Tribune.) He will also be speaking about the upcoming mid-term elections.

 

According to Steven Hill, the cutting-edge solutions for the 21st century are arising in Europe, not the United States,though many stateside Americans still harbor outmoded ideas  about ‘old Europe’. His most recent book (his fourth) is based in part on his previous European tours organized by DA. It’s titled Europe's Promise: Why the European Way Is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age.

 

He often stayed in the homes of DA members where he got a first hand look at the practicalities of European life.  I was surprised to see an incident that occurred once when Steven stayed with me retold in his book. A French hornet (obviously a Republican!) stung me badly on the hand and our French doctor came straight to our home to treat me.  A housecall! That tiny episode is cited when he discusses the superior health care found in France (which WHO rates as number one in the world, and the U.S. 37th!).

 "For this tour, I am pleased to return and report back what I learned from many of you. My great thanks to Democrats Abroad,” Steven says.

Based on this new book, the wonderful New Yorker writer, Hendrik Hertzberg, describes Steven as a “reverse Alexis de Tocqueville”.

His European tour also includes Luxembourg, Belgium, Holland, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Austria, Italy, Greece and Turkey. Please check our website www.democratsabroad.org for these events, dates and place.

 

 

 

 

Campaign Diary

By Theda Braddock

 

In the last newsletter I introduced you to a local campaign that is creating waves in Maryland. While this may seem of little importance to Democrats living abroad I want to emphasize how much local officials, especially in Maryland, contribute to the national scene and, as I mentioned last time, how much this particular race is emblematic off the country-wide sentiment regarding this year's mid-term elections.

As the campaign season heats up (Maryland primaries are in September), so does our campaign. July was stifling in this state but Judd Legum, candidate for state delegate, continues to knock on doors every afternoon and every weekend, and is slowly and surely being joined by a group of strong supporters. July 4th was, as in any campaign, marked by parades. Three to be exact, all of them packed with elected officials, candidates and their supporters. In our last parade, in Annapolis, we drew the largest crowd of volunteers by far, with a group of nearly 30 Judd Legum fans. And our local Congressman, Representative John Sarbanes, son of legendry Senator Paul Sarbanes, strategically stuck himself in amongst our group, so a wonderful, if not accidental, semi-endorsement. Speaking of endorsements, following several interviews with associations, Judd has garnered the support of several big name groups such as the League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club, NARAL, the AFL-CIO, and gay rights groups, a key boost to any campaign. And of course, house parties abound, giving Judd the opportunity to meet tête-à-tête with voters.

And the word on the street continues to be that voters in this heavily Democratic district are disappointed with Democratic incumbents. So, it's a fine line between supporting the party and making sure Judd creates a name for himself. Local Republicans are united and it's important that we do the same. But while our fundraising efforts have paid off, these candidates are able to self-finance in a huge way. One incumbent is a local jeweler and gave himself a large contribution from his own coffers in the last election.  Despite this effort, he only earned 53 votes over his closest rival (reminder: this district elects the top 3 general  election vote-getters as its Delegates). So, while money doesn't buy votes, it does buy access to the public and opportunities to explain one's policies and aspirations. Judd has a strong platform and is already working hard to make significant strides in environmental preservation, particularly in protecting the Chesapeake Bay watershed which spans several states and supports the local economy.

We had a major boost with a recent op-ed that appeared in the local newspaper, The Capital, that touted 5 key strategies for reforming the beleaguered state budget. Just so happened that a local Republican published an op-ed, just above ours, carrying on the tradition of the 'party of no' by slamming Democrats. Attack, followed by solutions-we couldn't have hoped for a better outcome. Despite that, however, Judd was attacked several days later for 'stealing' Republican ideas as well as for his progressive accomplishments, working for the Center for American Progress and for Hillary Clinton's campaign. This is a nation-wide trend. As I'm sure you've read, Republicans everywhere are twisting truths and turning logical and/or innovative Democratic ideas around. Democrats need your help-through financing to get the message out and, above all else, votes. So do what you can to Keep the Congress. 

 

If you want to find out more about Judd Legum, a small-town candidate with big ideas, please go here:

Judd Legum

 

 

DAF Facebook Fan Page

 

Facebook users - please be sure to sign up for the Democrats Abroad France Facebook Fan Page. All events are posted and we have regular updates regarding Democrats Abroad, the Democratic Party and electionsl. Regarding events-we encourage you to sign up for events on the fan page so you can see who is going. Please be aware - this doesn't substitute an RSVP to the event leader, but it will be a fun way for everyone to stay in touch and see what's going on. So go sign up here today!

 

Recent events

Annual Gay Pride ParadeBy Jane PollockDA France members—women and men and lesbians, gays, and straights—braved the stuffy Paris afternoon (86o F-30o C) to march in Paris’s Gay Pride March (Marche des fiertés) on June 26, 2010. Their footsteps and signs expressed Democratic commitment to:• Equality in the military• Recognition of same-sex relationships• Pursuit and punishment of hate crimes against members of the LGBT community• Adoption rights for same-sex couples and respect for LGBT parenting• An end to workplace discrimination against members of the LGBT communityCreated in 2003, the DAF Lesbian Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) caucus is a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered Democrats and their allies and friends who work within Democrats Abroad France, Democrats Abroad, and theDemocratic National Committee to further issues important to our constituency.Normandy: Visit to Areva La Hague Nuclear Waste Recycling Plant and Flamanville Construction SiteBy Nancy Raff

On June 11, 2010 a delegation of seventeen members of Democrats Abroad France visited the Areva La Hague Nuclear Waste Recycling Plant and the Flamanville 3 Construction Site.  The visit was organized by Democrats Abroad member, Marilyn Waite, who is employed as an Engineering Manager at the La Hague facility and we met other US citizens who work for AREVA, Doug Hoxworth, Project Manager, Daniel Harper Operations Support Supervisor, and Michael McMahon, Country Director for USA, Strategy & International Projects Division, Back-End Business Group.

Areva provided bus transport for our group to the La Hague Plant where we were welcomed by the La Hague recycling operations Deputy Director, Roland Jacquet, followed by presentations of the Plant activities. 

One recurrent theme of the presentations was operational safety of nuclear installations and three areas were elaborated:  1)  waste management  2)  clean-up and decommission of existing installations, and 3)  regulation and oversight.  In the waste management area, the technology used is recycling,  a procedure in which 20 to 30 percent of spent fuel is put back into the reactor and heavy waste is treated with a process called “vitrification”.  This process allows storage of radiating waste in solid form making it less volatile.  Another segment of the Areva business is in the cleanup and decommissioning of nuclear sites for other industrial purposes.  And lastly, there is regular sampling of the water and plant-life around the plant as regulation to minimize the impact of an installation of this type.

Following the presentations, the delegation changed into clothing worn by all people who intervene on the site, divided into two groups and visited the dry unloading facility, storage pool D of spent fuel, vitrification facility and the control room.   All individuals were checked for radioactive contamination upon leaving the controlled areas.

After lunch hosted by Areva, the delegation boarded the bus for Flamanville where we were welcomed by Vincent Bourgeois who presented the site giving an overview of the EDF’s new EPR reactor called Flamanville 3.  EDF’s strategy in building this new more powerful reactor is to replace smaller, aging facilities by 2020.   We were also given an overview the electricity production process.  In Flamanville, there are no large water cooling towers that have become the symbol of the nuclear plants.  The reason for this is that the water of the Channel is pumped in as cooling and released no more that the regulated 3 degrees in temperature.  Our group changed into protective clothing and visited the construction site.

 

 

This visit provided a privileged opportunity to examine nuclear technology and to meet two of the industry’s players.  During the visit, one young engineer told us that the generations who conceived of and built the nuclear industry in France are preparing to retire and the current challenge is to pass knowledge and insight on to the next generation of engineers who will inherit and develop the industry.  As we looked over the idyllic Normandy countryside, we thought about what an enormous challenge that was.

 

 

 

 

 

Photo of the DAF Visit to Flamenville 3 Construction site.

 

 

Website: a few helpful hints

• To make sure you receive all of the important information Democrats Abroad has for you, please go to your profile and click on “Always send email notifications” under the Organic Group Settings section
• If you would prefer select notifications, choose "Selectively send..." under Organic Group Settings and click on "My Subsription" for each group you would like to receive notifications from, then be sure to check "Enabled"
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• For RSS feeds, click on the "Receive Notifications..." link on the right site of the DAF website, then submit

The Email User Guide  is posted on the website and contains more specific information about each setting

 

The Democrats Abroad website is an invaluable tool and we are interested in your feedback. Please contact Deborah at deborah.rubenstein@orange.fr for any questions or comments.

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