Demos in; Rumsfeld out!

ODDS AND ENDS FROM THE (PROGRESSIVE) CAMPAIGN TRAIL

What a night! Democrats rocked the House and maybe have even taken the Senate. We are keeping our fingers crossed over Virginia. Yes, some of these Dems are from the Republican wing of the Party, but at least there's a shift.

And what better way to acknowledge it than to dump Rumsfeld? George had to admit he took a thumpin' from the Dems. But watch out. He and Cheney are not gone yet. And if the Senate splits, then Cheney gets to cast all those deciding votes. The Dark Side is plotting, you can be sure.

On the local front, one of the best progressives we have in Marin, Frank Egger, lost his bid for a seat on the MMWD to a newcomer, a "water manager" for San Francisco. Could there be a conflict brewing?

We shall see as the saga unfolds. The voters seem to have a thing for so called "experts" when they vote for boards that cover specialty areas, such as Health Care District (progressives lost here, too, as the voters put two more doctors on the board, and one of those had been recalled from the very same board years ago!) and water board.

Two years ago Richard Rubin, another well qualified, well known contender was trounced by a nobody with "water engineer" after his name.

Go figure. At least Jennifer Rienks was elected as the third Health Care District board member, probably because she had "health policy analyst" after her name, not because she's a progressive community activist.

The Progressive Caucus of our own California Democratic Party is hoping to make some gains in Party leadership this year. Watch this space for news of of our Progressive Plan, the progressive 58 County Program for California.