Nailed It

My candidate, Howard Shanker (http://www.howardshankerforcongress.com/) did the "chat" at Firedoglake and I think he nailed it. He didn't ask me beforehand what to expect about the FDL crowd, so I didn't get to tell him "These are astute people. They lead the way on the Libby/Plame/Wilson case, so expect tough questions". But part of why I like him is that he has already "got it" without me saying anything. Example:

Howard Shanker says:

October 20th, 2007 at 11:09 am

howieklein @ 4

Good morning Howard. Thanks for coming by. It looks like the DCCC and political insiders feel like they owe one of your primary opponents something. Do you think, realistically, you can overcome whatever benefits that will accrue to her by being identified as the insider candiidate? Are you prepared to run as an insurgent?

I think you’ve nailed one of the problems with the Democratic party on the head. I am getting a lot of support from progressives and others who are fed up with the Party selecting a candidate from the top down. In Arizona CD 1 this has actually happened on various occassions and each time a Republican got elected.
So far the obvious benefit my insider primary opponent has is with fundraising and access to regular donors. This is obviously important but in the end it is the person with the most votes not the most money that wins. I am out fundraising (because we do need money), but I am also out meeting people and shaking hands. I figure if I can talk to 20,000 people I can win this primary. That’s what grassroots campaigning is all about.

http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/10/20/blue-america-welcomes-howard-shanker-our-first-az-candidate/#more-12381

Added:We need to be rewarding conservation instead of penalizing it. The biggest issue on the Colorado River water is the competition between the states that rely on it as a source of water, increased population and use and a prolonged drought. Not a good mix.