Pelosi Coming to Irvine Next Week

Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi will be in Irvine for a luncheon next week at the Caspian Resaturant in Irvine, off Culver Drive.  The luncheon benefits the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The lunch is scheduled for Friday, June 27 at 12:30 PM.  It’s a little pricey with $5,000 for guests and $10,000 for VIPs and the luncheon help elect Democrats office.

To RSVP, contact Mike Bonafede at 310/966-6020 or send email to mbonafede131@gmail.com.

35 Comments

  1. After reading her comments in support of the FISA “compromise” today, I can’t imagine why anyone claiming to be a Democrat would want to support this very weak, ineffective leader.

  2. Throw out the baby with the bathwater? Pelosi, by and large, has done a great job passing legislation only to be thwarted by Republicans in the Senate or the veto pen of the president. I’m not going to fault her for one bad decision.

  3. Dan,

    It isn’t Republicans that are making Pelosi an inneffective leader by their votes. One would expect them to vote with the President. It’s people like Pelosi, Hoyer, etc. who can’t keep their caucus together to oppose capitulations like FISA. The Republicans and the veto pen of the President have nothing to do with that.

    And it isn’t just this bill.

    Until these Dems grow a pair and stop fearing that they’ll appear weak on national security, we’ll continue to get capitulations like this.

  4. Impeachment off the table.
    Immunity for telcom spying now approved.
    At best half-hearted efforts to end the war.

    I’m seeing some kind of protest presence there Friday, to greet this very disappointing leader (the way she is regularly greeted in her hometown of SF)

    See ya there!

  5. The Dems did not want Hillary, so they put their faith in Barry. Shame.

    Now Barry reversed his pledge to accept public financing. Shame.

    So as to not be called a racist, I will not call him a reneger.

    NO BS NO BO

  6. Vern–Given the wide idelogical range of Democrats that Pelosi has in her caucus she’s done a good job as Speaker. The DCCC has won all 3 special elections in Red Districts this year. She’s on a roll–the Dems are on a roll–Obama is on a roll—–and you want to lift your leg on her? Most of the caucus wants impeachment OFF the table. The efforts to end the war have been difficult because of the wide split in the caucus about strategy. No one could have moved them any differently.

    This is reminiscent of the Code Pinko crowd that sat in Loretta’s office instead of doing the hard electoral work of knocking off Dana, or even the easy work of sitting in Dana’s office. At least you do your electoral work but c’mon!

    Why don’t you take Debbie Cook with you, see how that will help things out. Do you think it will help Debbie’s chances to have people so identified with her race like you show up and picket Pelosi? Are you holding Cook to the same litmus tests as pelosi?

    More importantly, why bring this up now? it’s like someone picketing an Obama appearance because he went back on his agreement to use public financing and is opting out of the deal? Or picketing him because he does not support marriage equality, only civil unions.
    Time to look forward, not backwards. Time to shrug about what might have been and keep focused on what can be. I thought unity was the big Obama theme, or does that only apply to the presidential race?

    Or is this just a ploy to have the Democratic Caucus select Dennis Kucinich as the next Speaker? He’ll be ok with your litmus test issues.

  7. NCS, the notion that ALL Dems should simply look forward and forget the past simply ignores the glaring fact that Pelosi’s inability to lead a unified caucus is a PATTERN…a pattern that keeps repeating. Democrats are certainly justified in reevaluating their support for her, Hoyer, and the “blue dogs” in Congress.

    If the caucus is widely split on strategy, it simply means we need a stronger leader to unify it.

  8. http://johnseilerblogs.com/ said it best-

    Remember how Democrats were elected 2 years ago with a mandate to end the Iraq War and bring the troops home?

    It was just another big lie. Democrats have done nothing to end the war, save our troops’ lives, and stop the slaughter of innocent Iraqis. Instead, they have kept funding Bush’s unconstitutional and unjust war.

    Nancy Pelosi, the House Speaker, also has done nothing to stop Bush’s highly likely bombing of Iran. Such an attack also would be unjust and unconstitutional.

    But who cares about the Constitution anymore except Ron Paul?

    Meanwhile, the immense expense of the Iraq War, and the Afghan War, have tipped the American economy into a depression. It’s only going to get worse, folks. Make a mistake this big and your country turns into guacamole.

  9. Vern-

    I’ll see if I can do it. Otherwise, I think a good thing for us to do is to take whatever money we were planning to give Pelosi & the DCCC, and give it here instead…

    https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/fisa?refcode=therometer

    Let’s directly support Democrats who support the Constitution and our 4th Amendment rights.

    And btw, I hear Debbie Cook supports our Constitution. Instead of giving to the DCCC, we can also give to her…

    http://debbiecookforcongress.com/index.php/blue/contribute

    While it’s super important for us to elect more Democrats to Congress this year, we should also make sure more of these Democrats will hold true to the values we care about.

  10. wow, feelin closer to Thomas today than to NCS! (who said some things I’m gonna have to respond to later today when I have time!)

    wanna join us, Thomas?

  11. Vern-

    I know! Strange world, isn’t it? I usually err on the side of caution with NCS, but I’m really mad as hell now and I can’t take it any more.

    There are just some things that we shouldn’t compromise on. The Constitution is one of them. If we don’t have our Constitutional rights, then what do we have to protect? What’s the purpose of America if we’re not the land of the free?

  12. Okay I’ll try this one more time. I thought liberals believed in free speech.

    This fundraiser is a great idea! Let’s send all our money to Washington so they can decide how to spend it. DEMOCRATS to Ed Chau, Bill Hedrick, Steve Young & Debbie Cook: drop dead!

    All politics is local unless you’re a Democrat in Orange County.

  13. Vern —
    admirable goals.

    Impeachment off the table. — Even if they impeached him, they’d never get the required majority in the Senate to remove him. And you’d have to impeach Cheney too to get a President Pelosi. This isn’t realistic even though Bush and Cheney celary deserve impeachment.

    Immunity for telcom spying now approved. Terible decision. No question. I agree with you completely.

    At best half-hearted efforts to end the war. Not true. How many spending bills passed with house with timetables for withdrawl attached? Lots. We can’t get them through the senate or the veto stamp. Wait until after November when the majorities in both houes are bluer and we have a president who will help and not hinder.

    But I do agree with NCS; a Protest against Peloski hurts Democrats here in OC and will hurt Debbie Cook the most. If you want to do anything, go to Irvine and promote Debbie’s candidacy before the Speaker.

  14. Of course this is Vern, but I need my Tsunami superpowers to push back against the tidal wave of ordure washed my way by a certain sclerotic DLC concern troll from parts north. (Our temporary alliance keeping the Obamaphiles and Hillbots from ripping each other’s eyes out being no longer necessary.)

    NCS, remember how your father would turn around and yell, “Don’t make me come back there!” Well, you’ve been your father for a long time now, and this is not your father’s Democratic Party. If we needed to be told to keep in line and not rock the boat, we’d be Republicans.

    “Why don’t you take Debbie Cook with you, see how that will help things out. Do you think it will help Debbie’s chances to have people so identified with her race like you show up and picket Pelosi? Are you holding Cook to the same litmus tests as Pelosi?”

    Wow, the old “I have your child” ploy. I guess now that I’m so identified with Debbie (in maybe a hundred minds) I’d better really keep my head down and never speak up for what’s right. Who knows? Nancy could look out from the fundraiser, see the famous Vern, and spit, “That’s it! No more Debbie Cook support from me, I’m through with her!” NOT. And I don’t have to hold Debbie to any “litmus tests,” I already know she supports the Constitution, has a “Responsible Plan to End the War” which goes beyond anything Pelosi and Hoyer have tried, and would NEVER support amnesty for the telecoms’ illegal eavesdropping.

    “This is reminiscent of the Code Pinko crowd that sat in Loretta’s office instead of doing the hard electoral work of knocking off Dana, or even the easy work of sitting in Dana’s office. At least you do your electoral work but c’mon!”

    “Code Pinko.” How do you manage to be both hectoring Dad and so embarrassingly juvenile? I’m glad you brought up that Loretta incident anyway, because you’re probably the last person left who doesn’t know what happened there. Members of IVAW (Iraq Veterans Against the War), MFSO (Military Families Speak Out), and yes, Code Pink, had several meetings with Loretta last year to convince her to stop funding the war, and held a couple of protests inside and outside her office. She drove by at one of these protests, honked, waved, and thanked us (yes, us—I was there a couple times.)

    And we changed her mind—she’s voted against funding ever since then! Thank you for reminding me of our great success. In fact it could be thought of as less a “protest” as “giving her cover” or “having her back” for doing the right thing. A Democrat as old as the hills such as yourself should remember the great FDR story where he told the delegation of New Deal intellectuals, “Those sound like great ideas, gentlemen; now get out there and force me to do it!”

    And oh yeah, most of those folks including me not only did a LOT more at Dana’s office than Loretta’s, but are now part of Debbie’s Army, doing everything campaign workers do. But then how would YOU know that, a mere armchair warrior from parts north?

    Finally, a lot of us out in the trenches are pretty irritated that the DPOC is having such a lavish fundraiser for celebrity politicians when our candidates HERE need the money. By all means, donate at the links provided above by Andrew and the delicately self-styled “wtf” and then come out Friday with signs: “We want impeachment back on the table,” “Troops home now,” or “Say no to telecom immunity!” Or whatever else you think of. This is the DEMOCRATIC Party after all.

  15. Vern—Is that the best you could do? I’ve been attacked before but never in such a juvenile, name calling way. You don’t deserve a response .Stick to music for your day job. The DLC comment though was funny. I’ve had little use for that group since they pushed NAFTA and pay about as much attention to their Beltway babble as I do to you.

    I’m sorry I even bothered to comunicate with you on this.

    Andrew: Were you going to first be picketing the Obama event in Los Angeles this coming week? After all, Obama said this about FISA today:

    “After months of negotiation, the House today passed a compromise that, while far from perfect, is a marked improvement over last year’s Protect America Act……It’s not all that I would want . But given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay. So I support the compromise….”

    I am glad Obama has committed to support stripping retroactive immunity from the bill and I hope, but am not optomistic, that Reid will be able to get it out and it won’t get reinserted in Conference. But at the end of the day, immunity or no Obama will support the bill.

  16. Vern,

    I understand you’re pissed. I am not happy either. However, parts of your West Coast Tsunami comment were a bit over the top.

    NCS, the Code Pinko line was a bit out there as well, and seems as though it may have helped push Vern to that brink.

    That said, a reminder to everyone:

    1) Be civil and constructive in your comments.

    2) Commenters may attack another poster’s or commenter’s words or ideas but not the person him/herself or his/her family members.

  17. Um, while protesting is certainly the right of the people, except in a city hosting the Republican National Convention in 2004, I really do not get the point of protesting an event to raise money to support Democrats running for Congress accomplishes your goals.

    If Debbie Cook, or any of the other Democrats challenging long-term incumbent Republicans are to have any chance in hell, she and they are going to need some of that DCCC money you want to protest the raising of.

    Get a grip. I know that as Democrats we have mastered the art of shooting ourselves in the foot, but do we have to keep teaching ourselves the same lesson over and over again?

    We can only change this crap by electing more Democrats to Congress. That is the purpose of the DCCC. Protesting Nancy Pelosi when she is raising money to support that effort is just effing stupid.

  18. Some of the comments here seem to indicate a tremendous naivete about how the DCCC dispenses money. It’s sort of like banks. They really only want to lend money to people who have money.

    It’s absolutely foolish for any Dem in Orange County to give money to the DCCC until they have maxed out on competitive local races because the money won’t come back if they aren’t givng locally.

    Without naming names, leaders of the party have not even honored their pledges to local candidates, but they can raise money for a big dollar dinner for Nancy Pelosi.

    As to picketing Nancy, the 4th Amendment is absolutely something that we should take to the streets to defend, and Nancy caved in when her party was in the majority.

  19. NCS-

    No, I won’t be picketing Obama’s LA event. HOWEVER, that first post-primary donation my family was planning to give Obama will likely be going elsewhere. While his capitulation on FISA won’t cause me to rescind my support for him, it has caused me to stop and think about which Democrats really deserve my money. With hard economic times and limited resources, I can only afford to give to Democrats who aren’t afraid to stand up for Democratic values. Let’s see if Obama can clean up his act and start earning my donations.

    wtf & “keep your money local”-

    Agreed! Why give our local money to the DCCC if they won’t be giving any of that money back to our local candidates? We should support our local candidates first, so that they meet the threshold of having enough $$$$ in the bank to earn DCCC $$$$. And so long as the DCCC only treats OC like a glorified ATM while they don’t even do their job and stick up for our Constitution in DC, I don’t see why we’re obligated to give to them.

    Spend the money on local Democrats instead!

  20. Besides “keeping our money local” by giving directly to Orange County’s great progressive, pro-Constitution candidates Cook, Young and Hedrick, patriotic OC Dems who care about the 4th amendment should be donating to Greenwald/Firedoglake’s worthy campaign against illegal-eavesdropping-enablers Steny Hoyer, Chris Carney and John Barrow HERE: http://www.actblue.com/page/fisa

    Let’s make sure our party isn’t just an incumbent protection racket, but actually stands for something. Not just more Democrats, but better Democrats!

    (And yes it’s depressing that Obama’s not stepping up to the plate this time)

  21. Without naming names, leaders of the party have not even honored their pledges to local candidates, but they can raise money for a big dollar dinner for Nancy Pelosi.

    AMEN TO THAT! That’s outrageous. Whomever made the pledge should honor it.

  22. Andrew–By all means, focus your contributions locally. Since we’re discussing reality here, some people will give to the Speaker, or Dennis Kucinich, or Tom Udall, or Ted Kennedy, or countless other Democrats who come thru to various spots in California. Some give to their local candidates, some don’t. People of all ideological stripes and political parties come to states like California and New York because there is more money here than in South Dakota or West Virginia or other states.

    These aren’t mutually exclusive fundraising options. Everyone has their first amendment right to give or to withold their contributions because of a vote or a preference to keep their money local.

    Personally, the Pelosi event is out of my financial league but I hope it does well so that they can give to Democrats in tight races. I hope that Cook’s race becomes of those. I intend to give my contributions locally in the fall and will try to send something to the DNC, DCCC and DSC as well.

    Chris–My apologies. It won’t happen again.

  23. Andrew, Loretta’s been pretty great lately; at the Flag Day event she kept insisting to me that she’s still a “Blue Dog,” but that seems pretty pro forma to me. Still, I don’t think she needs the money like the other local Dems we mentioned.

    Call her at (714) 621-0102 and thank her for her vote defending the Constitution against our lawbreaking government and their corporate lackeys; then give your money to Cook, Young and Hedrick.

  24. Those rule Chris laid out apply to you too Vern.

    You are forgetting that Nancy Pelosi is the highest ranking elected Democrat in the Federal Government. Is she perfect. No one is. Not even Debbie Cook.

    But attention is being paid to Democrats in OC from those in our party who certainly influence the direction. I think objections by Democrats to Pelosi’s vist show a remarkable lack of vision for the big picture.

  25. We do need to support candidates across the country. However, I would much rather go to ActBlue and spend my $5000 donating to the candidates I choose. Then I won’t have to gag when the DCCC supports some crappy Bush-enabling incumbent.

    Let’s see Jerry McNerney, $500, Donna Edwards, $500, Debbie Cook $500, Steve Young $500, Charlie Brown $500, Darcy Burner $500, Eric Massa $500, Ciro Rodriguez $500, Russ Warner, $500, Joe Garcia, $500.

    Whoo, much more satisfying way to spend my $5000 nationally and locally than going to a lunch and getting 2 seconds to glimpse a big name.

    This old-school style of fundraising with big donor lunches and dinners is just so yesterday.

  26. Vern, I agree that the capitulation by Pelosi and so many of the house Democrats on the FISA issue–especially immunity–is despicable. I heard on Oldermann that for many Democrats, including Pelosi, it may be a matter of covering their own butts, since it is clear that many of them knew about the illegal program perhaps as early as the beginning. So would you please post details about Pelosi Protest here?

  27. I won’t be organizing anything, but I’d be surprised if someone else isn’t, and I’ll try to be there if I can. I’m sure you’ll hear about it if you hang with other progressive Dems – that is if you’re not secretly some Republican or Green troublemaker! 🙂

    Anyway this Pelosi event may not even happen, I don’t know where they’ll get all the money from… Again, let’s keep our money local.

  28. Who’s got pajaritos? Vern’s got pajaritos! The thing is off. *look of schadenfreude* Nobody wants to pay that much to see a lady who just sold us out to George Bush and AT&T.

    Give your money to our great OC progressive patriots, and KEEP HASSLING OBAMA to change his tune on this and not only oppose, but HELP FEINGOLD FILIBUSTER this faux-compromise FISA sellout to telcoms & the Republicans.

    Call Obama here 866-675-2008, and push either 4 or 6.

Comments are closed.