This past weekend I traveled to Chicago for the national Yearly Kos convention, and I was really impressed by the amount of energy I saw in all the bloggers, activists, and candidates. I was glad to see folks from local New York blogs like The Albany Project, Rochester Turning, and WNYMedia. I also met with national bloggers from Firedoglake and MyDD as well as DailyKos founder Markos, and Simon Rosenberg from NDN who gave a great talk about the momentum building up towards a Democratic victory in 2008. It was nice to put some faces to names.
Yearly Kos really demonstrated the power of the netroots and the blogosphere to help spread the progressive message, and how important it is that progressives stay on top of what the right is saying about our issues and candidates. The Internet has allowed us to connect more directly with each other, and, in doing so, has brought politics back to the individual. That's why we've started our Online Rapid Response Team. The Online Rapid Response Team is the eyes and ears of our campaign online, and it's made up of individual supporters who help us spread our message of restoring leadership by example to District 26.
I spoke on three panels at Yearly Kos: one was a screening of The Prisoner, a new documentary by Michael Tucker, the director of Gunner Palace; one panel was about military families; and one about the military and progressives. At the film screening, I got the chance to talk with blogger and talk radio host Taylor Marsh, who gave us some great support on her blog and The Huffington Post.The discussion about the military and progressives was very important, I believe, because this election and veteran candidates like myself present a prime opportunity for Democrats to reclaim the issue of security.
I was particularly glad to get to talk with fellow veteran, Gen. Wes Clark. As someone who has dedicated his life to serving his country, Gen. Clark has spent a lifetime leading by example and is an inspiration to my campaign, as well as to countless other veterans who understand that service to one's country doesn't end with one's active military service. As veterans, Democrats like Gen. Clark, Jim Webb, Joe Sestak, and myself understand the military, and that's the first
I believe that we can take back the issue of security because I believe that progressive values are military values - values like integrity, cooperation, and sacrifice. And seeing the energy and excitement in all the bloggers, activists, and candidates that met in Chicago last weekend, I believe that in 2008 we can win a progressive majority in Washington, DC, including the White House.
Jon Powers for Congress