- Council Asks that Libraries Remain Open
- Good news! City Council stands up to the mayor, says "the public have questions!"
- Be There For Health Care Today at City Hall at noon
- City Paper on the effects of the YPP poll and other online organizing on budget cuts
- Another local library group organizes
- Kids organizing in Mantua to keep their library to open
- Talk solutions with Maria Quinones-Sanchez @ PFC Meetup tonight
- Talking Out of Both Sides on Libraries
- Vince Fumo, the Charmer
- SCI Camp Hill Update—Call for Action, Increased Monitoring, Constant Vigilance
Derek Green for City Council At-Large
Submitted by Dan U-A on Fri, 05/11/2007 - 10:27am.
In the race for Council At-Large, there are many, many good choices. That includes some incumbents- Jim Kenney, and Wilson Goode come to mind as being proactive, smart politicians who should be on Council for another four years. Heck, cases can be made for Greenlee, Reynolds-Brown and Ramos, as well.
And, the field of challengers is full of people who would become wonderful Councilpeople. We all know the names, right? Marc Stier, Matt Ruben, Andy Toy, and others.
What do you do in a situation like that, when there are so many good people? Frankly, it is pretty tough. So, understanding that and trying to respect the number of good candidates there are, we have decided to endorse just one, because there are going to be some very real, very hard choices out there. (I know I am probably using all five of my votes.)
And so, as the title of the post notes, we choose to do just one. That one, is Derek Green.
Why Derek?
First off, in talking with anyone who has dealt with City Council and their staff members, when Derek’s name comes up, there is virtual unanimity that he was a pleasure to come into contact with.
Second, if there is a ‘political family’ that does not get enough credit from Progressives, it is the Dwight Evans to Marian Tasco to Cherelle Parker and Leanna Washington group that, while not perfect, generally stands for something I think we all value: progressive, and… proactive leadership. That is the school that Derek has attended for the past few years, and it is worth a degree in of itself. (And yeah, Truthtold, he has a JD.) I like outsider type candidates, and, of course, am the child of one of them. But, having seen inside the system is not so bad, either.
Third, Derek gets the need for a comprehensive approach to dealing with crime, that focuses on violence and its connection to poverty, jobs and education. He wants to focus on not just the PPD and the DA, but provide resources to community violence programs that work (like Don’t Fall Down in the Hood).
Fourth, when I read Derek’s questionnaires, I see a lot of answers that set off alarm bells that this is a guy who, to me, just “gets it,” on about every issue. Just one quick example: In terms of where we focus our energy in job creation: A few years ago, John Street provided millions of dollars to a subprime lender, ABFS, to move their offices into Philadelphia. That was dumb on a lot of levels, and I remember when it happened (along with glowing newspaper stories about it), wondering what the hell was wrong with Philadelphia. As Derek says kindly about that fiasco, it “was not a sound investment.” At the same time, as a small business owner, he has already been forced to jump through endless loops with the City, and knows that for small businesses, the City needs to figure out how to be helpful; not harmful. He has been there, and he has done it.
And fifth, not that this particularly matters, but… getting a young guy like Derek into office only continues to build a progressive team in Philadelphia that can both do great work here, and if need be, step into other offices if the opportunity arises.
There are a lot of great candidates out there, and Derek will not be the only one getting my vote. But, he is the only at-large candidate who gets our endorsement.
On Tuesday, for City Council At-Large, YPP endorses Derek Green.
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Derek
Great endorsement. Derek is a great pick for Council-at-Large.
as Whitney says, "the children are our future."
Especially as we look at City Council where the current youngest member (excluding the soon to be forgotten Dan Savage) is Wilson Goode (I am probably one of Goode's biggest fan as he has been pushing a progressive agenda on Council long before "progressive" and "reformer" became in-terms), it's clear that Council needs some fresh faces.
We need YOUNG people (under 40) on Council.
People under 40, for whom this site was created (generally), have a different set of issues and concerns than older folks. I don't say that to drive a wedge, but for those of us who don't own homes yet, or kids, or even if we do, are in the beginnings of those life phases, we just have a slightly different need from government.
I know that's far from a comprehensive description of why young people need to elect young people, but it's all I got today.
The other person who comes to mind when talking about good, young progressive candidates is of course Matt Ruben, but Matt has gotten a lot more attention in this race than Derek, and while I will be voting for him, I am proud that (for whatever it's worth) we can give Derek a little bit more time in the sun.
He won't be forgotten
Councilman Savage is an "extremely" bright individual and yes - he is 36. The Councilman has worked hard since day one in office. The people in his district have noticed and that's why he has many voters supporting him. (in all areas of his district) Dan works hard because he wants change and will continue to do so when elected come Tuesday. By the way - 40 isn’t old.
SO Not Helpful
Derek Green's a great candidate, and has a great slate of endorsements to prove it. My ability right now to choose from Stier/Ruben/Toy/Goode/Blondell/Ramos/Greenlee/Kenney is basically nil, since I have generally good feelings about all of these folks. Not the worst problem to have, but just slightly agonizing.
Any further help from ANYONE would be greatly appreciated.
***
Volunteering for Michael Nutter
a penny for the pond
Stier impresses the heck out of me -- not only good values, but smarts and commitment that could make lots of good things happen. My top pick (surprising few). I like Ruben a lot, find him very sympatico when he speaks, feel like he's a natural choice, but don't know what to make of his throwing in his lot with Knox -- does that make him a Blackwell vote? eek. Toy I know less about in terms of issues (i.e., his progressive cred doesn't shout itself to me like it does with Stier or Ruben), but he's clearly a thoughtful and dedicated guy, and I'm impressed by the breadth of support he elicits from both mainstream and progressive camps -- promising.
For the incumbents, I've come around to thinking Kenney deserves another term -- not only for being on the right side of many issues past, but also for his honesty in talking about being on the wrong side of the campaign finance thing. ("That may have been the wrong solution, but we need some answer.") He seems smart and effective. (Also, obviously, a Brady guy.) Goode sort of has a niche of issues that he's been really good on through the years, but I don't have a sense that he's a coalition builder on a lot of other progressive fronts. Feel a bit neutral on him. Blondell has also done some good work on limited issues, but has embraced a quite strange slice of things more recently, like the whole calorie-content-on-menus bill and the licensing of tourguides. Are these the city's most pressing issues? Greenlee seems like his heart is in the right place, but I don't see him as a leader on City Council, at least not in the near future, and one of the challengers might get more done. Ramos seems to have little to recommend him (banning transfats is his main accomplishment).
The above analysis is a little cold, and obviously subjective, but there you are. More grist for the mill, anyway.
cheers,
acm
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
— Margaret Mead
Matt didn't make any deal to
Matt didn't make any deal to be on the Knox ballot.
Commit
Then ask him if he will vote for Verna or Blackwell. I cannot believe he got the Knox endorsement for nothing.
You are a real card, Lou. I
You are a real card, Lou.
I am sure Matt is out campaigning. You are, again, trying to make a nonstory, a story.
Personally, I think Lou's a
joker.
Hey Lou
I know that I'm generally not worthy of your response because I don't post under my real name - but maybe you'll overlook your high standards just this once to answer a question.
What's up with the whole Brady/ward leaders indicating that they "could live with Nutter," and then later demanding party allegance?
Given that Brady et. al. have made it clear that Knox would be the ruin of the City, will you, Jim Kenney, and Bob Brady be able to sleep at night if Brady pulls in some 10% of the vote and Knox wins by single-digit percentages over Fattah and/or Nutter?
Certainly, if beating Knox could justify overturning newly passed campaign finanance laws, it should also justify allowing Party loyalists to follow their conscience and vote strategically to defeat the embodiment of evil - shouldn't it?
Is this Post from Today Lou?
Matt's been endorsed by Michael Nutter; are you still asking about the other guy?
Wait -- Matt McClure in the
Wait -- Matt McClure in the 4th has been endorsed by Nutter. I think we're talking about Matt Ruben, running for Council-at-large (based out of Northern Liberties).
Supporting Michael Nutter for Mayor.
Also, Lou
As chairman of Carol Campbell's campaign, do you have any thoughts for us about her settlement with the ethics board?
I hope you're right
he made himself one of the only visible Council candidates at the Knox-Blackwell love-fest -- not everybody who's "out campaigning" would call that positive publicity. but, as I say, it was the first time I had any reason to question him, as otherwise he seems a motivated liberal fellow-traveler...
acm
For Blondell Reynolds Brown and Caryn Hunt
I feel compelled to point out that there are only two women running for at-large spots this year, in a field of 19. (There are other women on Council, and in fact, it's not a bad balance. But I think we all would agree that some are seriously lacking in progressive credentials.) The at-large candidates are incumbent Blondell Reynolds Brown and Caryn Hunt.
Caryn is impressive, and in fact, I have already voted for her on my absentee ballot. She got the NOW endorsement, despite our reservations about the viability of her campaign, because we too want to promote young, progressive women candidates. No offense, guys, but women do bring a different perspective to elected office and we need more feminist voices at every level of government.
Blondell has now been dissed by the Inquirer and the post above also sounds a bit dismissive. Blondell works quietly and methodically and has racked up quite an impressive list of accomplishments in the areas that she has campaigned on since her first (unsuccessful) run for council - women, children, the arts and small business development. These are issue areas that cut across the whole city, which is entirely appropriate for an at-large councilperson, and which get little to no attention from other councilpeople. She has a competent, hard-working, courteous staff, she involves herself in many civic, feminist and arts organizations, and she never says no to any request for help. She is without a doubt the most gracious person in City Hall and we definitely could use more folks there who set an example of civility.
The calories on menus and tour guide pieces may not be the most pressing issues of the day, but they are not inconsequential. The menu business is an issue area that is being pushed nationwide by responsible public health groups as more and more people eat out and have no idea what they are actually consuming, and as our kids start struggling with obesity and it's damaging health effects at earlier and earlier ages.
Tourism is an absolutely critical industry in this City, and we cannot afford to have a bunch of yahoos going around telling tall tales for shock effect, and damaging what is essentially a natural resource for us, given our place in American history. Training for tour guides is yet another one of those good practices implemented elsewhere we would do well to copy.
Here's something else she's done you probably don't know about. She got a new committee established late last year to address issues of Gender Equity. I can't overstate how happy this makes me. Despite the advances women have made in many areas of society, the disparities remain glaring. They are most evident still in pay, pensions, poverty levels, and government (especially in our pitiful Commonwealth). She and her staff intend to spend time this summer brainstorming how best to use this committee beginning in the Fall. I am proud to say Blondell has already asked me to be part of it. Pay equity will definitely be addressed, and she and Marian Tasco recently passed a strongly worded resolution on the topic to commemorate Equal Pay Day - April 24th -the day in the year women's pay catches up to what men earned in the previous calendar year. We had a fabulous event at the City Council meeting, and the equal pay issue actually got some press coverage this year.
I've been working on City Council races for 17 years, and I can't remember any year when there were so many good candidates to pick from. I usually bullet vote for no more than 2 or 3 at large, but this year I voted for 5. I've already made it clear I voted for the two women - you'll have to guess at the others. It was a very tough choice.
You all face that same tough choice. I hope you will keep in mind that women are more reluctant to run, they have trouble raising as much money, they still have more competing claims on their time and attention. And their voices and perspective are needed now as much as ever at every level of government.
Kathy Black
********************
Already voted for Chaka Fattah, Blondell Reynolds Brown, Caryn Hunt and other progressive feminists
Here's how NN picked its candidates
It's good that we're beginning to focus more on the Council races. Whoever becomes Mayor, we'd better have a strong, honest, and thoughtful City Council to help enact the next Mayor's good ideas, block the bad ones, and initiate some good ones of their own. And we're blessed in this election, as many have noted, with an excess of good candidates. I agree that it won't be easy to choose from among them. Being a leader of Neighborhood Networks, I'm necessarily biased in favor of our picks. But I'd recommend them not only for who they are, but based on the process we went through to decide who they should be.
Neighborhood Networks worked for months to come up with our slate in a process that was inclusive, thoroughgoing and issue-based. First, we put together a comprehensive questionnaire on issues of importance in governing the City. Thoughtful answers were submitted by a large majority of the candidates. These were all posted on our website, (and can still be found there at http://www.phillynn.org/ElectionCommittee.) We supplemented the written answers by holding two forums for at-large Council candidates, one in Center City and one in the Northeast. We followed with a members only review in which members from all over the City gathered to discuss their impressions from the record, while also sharing whatever personal impressions they had from their own history of interactions with the candidates. Then each of our nine area/ward groups met to discuss all of this. Recommendations were made and sent to NN's Steering Committee. If a majority of the groups recommended an At-Large candidate, the Steering Committee put that candidate to a vote. Those qualifying candidates receiving a vote of 2/3 of the Steering Committee were endorsed. This is who they were: Marc Stier, Andy Toy, Matt Ruben, Bill Greenlee and Blondell Reynolds Brown.
A similar process was followed with District Council candidates. Our picks are the following: Damon Roberts in the Second, Haile Johnston in the Fifth, Maria Quinones Sanchez in the Seventh and Irv Ackelsberg in the Eighth.
Neighborhood Networks was formed, in large part, to enhance genuinely democratic decision making in the public realm. And it strives for the same transparency and participatory decision-making for itself. It's right to do so, and we also believe it results in better decision-making. And the outstanding group of candidates we've endorsed in this election, we think, vindicates that view. Of course, in a great field like the one we have, we necessarily left off one or two candidates who might have well been on the ticket in a lesser field. But the numbers are what they are, and we could only pick five at-large candidates. We did it with as much member participation and buy-in as possible.
So, I hope you support our candidates or most of them. And, if you think this is how candidates for office should be vetted and endorsed by popular organizations, or if you'd like to have a voice in further improving the process, I urge you to join NN. It's not just my organization, it belongs to everyone who wants a progressive future for themselves and their kids, and a government that lives up to our ideals at every level, city, state and federal. You can join by going here: http://www.phillynn.org/NN/default.php?a=person Hope to see you soon as we begin thinking about who we want to live in that little old house on the Potomac in January '09.
That is an outstanding group
That is an outstanding group of candidates, not to mention a load of freakin' hard work. Well done.
I'm looking forward to voting for Damon - tailing off of another recent discussion, I think Damon's impressive academic pedigree is more than trumped by his deft touch in the community. There's been some criticism of his lack of background as a Philadelphia resident - but I think his skills as a communicator and listener are really impressive, and he's done a lot of making up for lost time in this campaign.
***
Volunteering for Michael Nutter
I've been wondering what to
I've been wondering what to do with my votes beyond Stier, Toy & Ruben. Over on PhillyBlog today, I suggested that it was between voting for Derek Green with some hope that he'd get elected, or throwing some votes to Harry Massele and Caryn Hunt (I'm a Green Party activist at heart; this business of working on campaigns that might actually win is a little disorienting).
The fact that I have enormous respect for Ray and Dan's work here, along with the fact that I just found out that Derek's and my kids go to the same day care (which happens to be a worker-owned coop), has me leaning more solidly his way.
What Day Care?
What Day Care do your kids go to?
How many worker owned
How many worker owned daycare coop's do you know in the NW?
Derek made my list too...
In what I think is the only downloadable "sample ballot" for this Primary race: http://ballotforchange.blogspot.com:
Caryn Hunt #76
Marc Stier #81
Matt Ruben #82
Andy Toy #84
Derek Green #86
I know Derek perhaps the least well of these 5 candidates, but when I learned that Derek was the main author of the anti-pay day lending legislation that has been picked up by cities nationwide, I added him to the list. Derek also was endorsed by Philly for Change and Democracy for America. I've heard him speak at many forums, he is anti-casino and thoroughly progressive.
* Disclaimer: I support and volunteer for Caryn Hunt - who is "smart, intense, and intensely anti-casino" according to the Inky Editorial Board ;-)
Another downloadable "sample ballot"
Anne, you must have missed the last meeting, but Philly for Change also has a downloadable ballot. It's here: http://www.phillyforchange.com/phillyforchange/docs/pfc_sample_ballot_bi...
ok, that is a long URL. You can also go to our website www.phillyforchange.com and click on the ballot that appears on the front page. Print, take with you, and forward to all of your friends!
NN has 4 tailored ballots
organized by District. We endorsed in 4 Council District races, and also have a ballot without a District candidate for the rest of the City. You can download all of them here, either in flyer or palm card form:http://www.phillynn.org/Materials. The flyer is really splendid, you should check it out.
Sweet - I only saw the paper ones.
The PFC ballot looks sharp.
Derek's a good guy. He was
Derek's a good guy. He was well respected in the law department -- rising to deputy City Solicitor fairly quickly if I recall. Smart guy, and young, and getting young people elected is far more difficult that you may expect, b/c the party is anti-young candidates. (Ask, Tony Payton, Judge Lori Dumas, Andrew Hohns, etc.)
But, not taking anything away from Derek, I would have also expected an endorsement of Toy, b/c the reasons that you would support Derek -- aside from his having a J.D. ;=) -- apply in my mind to Toy.
__________________________________________________________________________
I do not work for/support any candidate for any office in Philadelphia.
Green, Toy and McClure for Reform
I'm a big fan of Derek's as well. Glad to see he's getting the nod from YPP. I think Green, Toy and McClure are a nice trifeca of reform candidates who bring a great deal of both government and non-government experience to the table. I'm volunteering for one of them, but will be voting for all three. I'd like to see each of them get on council and team up with solid incumbents like Kenney and Tasco and kick some tail.
--
Disclosure: I volunteer for McClure for Council and support Nutter for Mayor, Kenney, Green and Toy for Council at large, and the Ivy Ridge Panthers to win it all this year.