November 2020 Culver City Democratic Club Activewww.CulverCityDemocraticClub.com Democat Email: [email protected] • Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/culvercitydems General Meeting on Zoom — 7p.m. Wednesday, November 11, 2020 ___________________________________________ Planning in the event of attempt to steal Presidential election President’s Message by Pete Rockwel I have no idea what will happen WHAT’S In addition to the general meeting at 7pm on November 11, the Culver City Democratic Club will meet on November 3 (election night) at 8:30 p.m. Both meetings will be on Zoom. INSIDE Page 2 — Di’s Corner by Diane Rosenberg Page 3 — Huge voter turnout by Jef Schwartz Page 4 — ACLU Protesters’ Rights Page 5 — Misleading Mailers and Club Calendar Page 6 — 2021 and Club Endorsements Here is the Zoom link for 8:30 p.m. November 3, Election Night: Page 7 — As Of This Writing https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81377763661?pwd=L0NIZXJxRVdNazYxcE5nOGF5MTQzZz09 by Cynthia Hart More links for November 3 at 8:30 p.m: Page 10 —The Pledge Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/323470744346731/posts/4120488747978226/ Youtube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpetSldoMmo Here’s what I hope will happen Club Offcers It’s late October as I write this, and nobody knows how the Presidential election President: will turn out. My hope is that Joe Biden will beat Donald Trump by a landslide. Pete Rockwell Anything short of a lopsided victory by the Democrats could put us into uncharted First Vice President: territory. Trump has made it clear that he will try anything to stay in ofce, and he Jeff SchwaRtz will have a majority on the Supreme Court. Second Vice President: But let’s assume for now that we manage to get Trump out of the White House and Jeanna haRRiS put Biden into it. Let’s also assume the Democrats win a Senate majority and keep Corresponding Secretary: control of the House. What are the priorities? cynthia haRt Healthcare Recording Secretary: The pandemic has clearly demonstrated that the Afordable Care Act (ACA) needs Shannon theuS to be expanded to cover everybody. Biden has said that he will propose that a “pub- Treasurer: lic option” be added to the choice of plans insurance companies ofer now. eRic fine As I understand it, this would be a healthcare plan, ofered by the government, that Membership Secretary: people could buy for less than what the insurance companies are selling. How much Diane RoSenbeRg (See President’s Message on page 2) Culver City Democratic Club — Active Democrat August 2020 — Page 2 (from President’s Message on page 1) less? For this plan to work, the public option will have to cost a lot less. And the benefts of the plan will have to be as good or beter than the private insur- ance choices. The idea is to compete against private insurance with the goal of geting everybody covered. Right now, most of the employers that don’t provide their workers with health- care are also the ones that pay starvation wages. The most successful element of Shannon Theus, Sydney Kamlager and Diane Rosenberg the ACA is the expansion of Medicaid, but because of an adverse Supreme Court decision, some states didn’t Among us was Australian singer Hel- Di’s Corner: expand Medicaid. This is a problem that en Reddy. We were going to be sworn would need to be solved for the ACA by Diane Rosenberg in as new citizens. Before going inside to become what it was intended to be: Update on Club member Charlote we all had to turn in passports from the healthcare for everybody. Gunter: We speak on the phone ev- countries we came from. The person ery two days. She is still healing, even who was swearing us in was California Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico though it is slow going. She is in good Secretary of State March Fong Eu. This In 1959 Alaska and Hawaii became the spirits and she has a positive atitude. was the frst time I had seen her. Once I 49th and 50th states. In order to make received my citizen papers, Herb got his that happen the House of Represen- On October 14, 1975, my late husband secret clearance. tatives and the Senate had to pass two Herb, our boys Mark (may he now rest Several years later the law was changed laws (one for each new state) and the in peace), Andy, and I moved into this so that when one became a U.S. citizen President had to sign them. A constitu- house in Culver City which Andy and they could still keep their old passport tional amendment is NOT required. and have dual citizenship. I still live in. Mark was seven years old There is no guarantee that doing this and Andy was three. From there Herb and I went to San- would help either the Democrats or Herb was still working at Hughes Air- ta Monica and outside the mall were the Republicans. Wikipedia claims that craf in El Segundo. His bosses were people registering voters. Herb told in 1959 people assumed Hawaii would talking to Herb about giving him a se- me that he had to re-register. I looked mostly vote Republican and Alaska cret clearance, but because I wasn’t a at him and said, “Are you not already would mostly vote Democratic. Today, citizen they couldn’t give him one. So I registered to vote?” He said, “Yes, but the opposite is true. I’m old enough to called Immigration and had them mail every time you move you have to re-reg- remember when California was dom- me the paperwork. I fnally received the ister. As I am doing this you are going to inated by the Republican Party. Now paperwork, flled it all out, and mailed register to vote.” And so I did. Democrats control the state. it back to Immigration. The following year, 1976, was a Presi- But the people who live in Washington, In November of 1975 I received notice dential year. And in June was the Pres- D.C. and Puerto Rico are United States from Immigration to come down. I had idential primary. I was extremely proud citizens. They deserve the same repre- to bring two people who had known me that I was going to vote for the very frst sentation as other citizens. for fve years or more. I called and asked time. And I have been voting ever since. if I could have my husband, as he was If anyone has become a citizen since I Supreme Court born in the United States. I was told became one back in December of 1975, In January of 2016, Senate Majority yes. Before that I had to go to the Sher- can they tell me if Immigration has Leader Mitch McConnell refused to if’s Department and get fngerprinted, changed since then? Or if they have a hold a Senate confrmation vote on which at that time cost two dollars. So story to tell about it? I will edit it into Barack Obama’s choice for the Supreme with Herb and a friend we went down next month’s Di’s Corner. Court, Merrick Garland. He even to Immigration on the day I was told to Sunday morning, October 18, Assem- refused to let the Judiciary Commitee come. blymember Sydney Kamlager had a interview Garland. He said at the time I was interviewed. I was asked two photo shoot in Kenneth Hahn Park by that he did this because 2016 was a Pres- questions to do with American history. the Martin Luther King Monument. idential election year. One of the questions was “Who was Her ofce asked several Democratic Now that the Supreme Court has a the sixteenth President.” I answered the clubs if they could send members to be vacancy ... What? questions. in the photos. In December of 1975 I had to be at the From our Club Shannon Theus, who It’s not vacant anymore?... I’ll See you Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in down- is our Recording Secretary, and myself on Zoom. town Los Angeles with 899 others. were there representing our Club. —Pete Rockwel Culver City Democratic Club — Active Democrat August 2020 — Page 3 A huge turnout is expected for Culver City’s first consolidated election in November Fellow Democrats, this year than ever before, targeting ev- ist Papers (or the play Hamilton) that Al- ery Culver City household which is not exander Hamilton and James Madison As you know, Culver City is coming up entirely Republican, and got them out opposed political parties but became the on its frst consolidated election, with weeks earlier than usual, so they’d arrive leaders of the nation’s frst two. We have school board, city council and local prop- just before the ballots. seen the nine city council candidates in ositions on the same ballot as county, particular get sorted into two prominent state, and federal races. In the Novem- When the city council was discussing groups of three, with one batch endorsed ber 2016 national election, 82 percent consolidating elections, a number of lo- by this Club and progressive elected of- (22,060) of registered Culver City voters cal conservatives spoke in opposition. fcials from Karen Bass on down, and cast ballots. In the last municipal elec- This was purely symbolic, since consoli- another backed by police, landlords, etc. tion, in April of 2018, 7,473 people vot- dation was mandated due to chronic low ed. This represented a mere 28 percent turnout in our municipal elections, but it Our Club played a central role in this of the City’s 26,686 registered voters, suggested that, as in national elections, sorting, through our early and decisive and that was considered a good turnout.