Just back from the LA County Fair

[Gelliebeans]

and....their was only one Democratic Party booth, they were registering voters but no signs and only a small amount of buttons. I looked for 5 hours and I didn't see a Kerry booth at all
This is the largest fair in the western United States.
But there was 2 Bush booths registering voters (and giving out signs)also Defense of Marriage Booth (I cussed the bitch out) needless to say she won't come near me with that clipboard anymore. lol I sent this info to Kerry/Edwards.com hopefully they will get someone on it right away. I would do it myself but I live 2 hours away.

[still_one]

1. I think the problem is they are taking California for granted

That is a mistake

I live in northern California, and initially people did not think the recall of the Govenor would happen

[JI7]

4. because of a county fair?

they have internal polls and public ones also which show kerry with a comfortable lead. they should not waste time in a place they will easily win. of course you can go out and campaign on your own if you want. just as i can as i live in california also.

[Gelliebeans]

5. exactly still_one

never underestimate them (repukes)
when you get lazy the shit hits the fan and we have the fukn terminator in sacramento

[Sugarbleus]

6. I think you're right. I've said that in DU before. Calif is only

a "Barely" for Kerry state according to the campaign map. I meet more conservatives around here than I can ever remember in past years.

There are pockets of liberals and the state gov. has a majority but the population is "shifting" to the right and has been for a few years now.

The conservatives have been trying to get this state for more than a decade; they have used business, churches, politics, and other efforts to force their agenda into our affairs. I see it everywhere and it bothers me greatly.

I live just south of San Fran with family all over the state but from what I'm seeing, I think it is a mistake to take this state for granted, just like you do.

[fujiyama]

8. California

is not "barely Kerry" in anyone's map. Just because electoral-vote.com has one flawed poll doesn't make this state a swing state by any means. He's still polling about ten points above Bush. He will not lose the state.

That said, it's foolish for the campaign not to reach out to voters in ALL states, including states where he's almost definetely going to win and not going to win. As you said, it's good not to take any state for granted.

[Sugarbleus]

15. I was using the map here on DU.......... n/t

[DemMother]

11. It was only "barely Kerry" with that weird Survey USA poll

It hasn't been barely Kerry since late August and that poll was an anomaly--as you can see if you look at electoral-vote.com.
CA is strong Kerry. Double click the state and you'll see the trend lines.

My experience is completely different. I live in S. Calif. in a more conservative district. There are Kerry signs everywhere, as well as a lot of Kerry bumper stickers. My town is probably a little more liberal than the rest of the district--about 50/50. I've only spotted three Bush signs--and two of them were in the same yard. I remember four years ago there weren't many Gore signs up.

You've got to check that electoral-vote.com site just about every day if you want to keep up. He's all over the map.

[Sugarbleus]

16. I live in a Liberal area...I see a ton of Kerry signs all of a sudden

BUT....like I said, there are "pockets"/communities in Calif. that have gone conservative and it shocks me.

Heck, the twenty-something group I grew up with (60's gang) has person's who have gone off the map republican!! Listening to OXYRUSH like it was the voice of God!

Maybe we are talking about an age gap here. I'm over 50. The people I "hang" with are close to retirement age; many have worked all their life. The people I do business with in daily life are older and strong conservatives............many many more in number than in years gone by. Sometimes the conservatives "hide". The LOOK like they might be liberals but they aren't. Look at Monterey/Carmel for example.
Sacto is conservative by and large. The Whole San Juaquin Valley is conservative by and large...lots of churches and "good 'ole boys".

So. Calif I'm not so familiar with...except with Orange County/Aneheim.
No. Cal has more liberals but "conservative democrats" live there too, as I found out...blows my mind. Red Bluff is conservative, Chico is a mix. Coastal areas are a mix.
In my area--a coastal area--the conservatives hide. They don't display bush/cheney signs all that much but they are here. They serve on school boards, city councils, run businesses, and own the media. Sometimes you can pick them out by various means. One thing I notice is the uptick in FISH decals on vehicles. We used to have nothing but Grateful dead bumper stickers. THEY ARE HERE.

The conservatives WANT california! They usually have the money. They want to drill for oil and all that kind of crap. They want our electorate. Beware, we can't assume we'll stay blue forever. Geez, who would have thought Arnold girlie man could have been voted in, or that someone as sociopathic as Bush could have been selected.. so strange things can happen when we aren't paying attention.
That is all. :D

[JI7]

2. why send it to K/E, the people who do it are mostly volunteers on their

own. they don't get permission from the party or official campaign many times.

i live in la, which is already mostly democratic. why waste time asking the official campaign about doing something in an area that is already democratic and something that you can do on your own ?

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. The Kerry campaign is homegrown in California

No campaign money is being spent here. All stickers, buttons, etc are ordered at people's expense and then sold or given away.

[DemMother]

7. I tried for two weeks to get bumper stickers and buttons

from my local headquarters, gave up and ordered them from the Kerry website (when I went to a recent meeting with the local dems, most of the cars in the lot had Kucinich stickers. Very strange--not that there's anything wrong with Kucinich).

I'm going to try to sign up for one of the swing state operations next week--I'm just not sure which one would work best for me. I'm leaning toward MoveOn--it sounds like you can work from your own computer and phone. The Travelers sounds interesting too--just not sure what weekends I can get away from my work and family.

I should probably post this somewhere else to get information, but if anyone who reads this has personal experience with swing state operations, let me know.

Thanks.

[grasswire]

9. I saw something similar at the Oregon State Fair

The Republican booth was surrounded by a dozen people clamoring for signs and yukking it up. The Dem booth was fairly quiet. The Pubs are giving away the signs and the Dems are charging $5 for yard signs.

I did twice yammer at the Pubs. First time I went past, they offered me a sticker. I said "Not in a MILLION YEARS! And I'm holding my tongue!" With a scathing look. The volunteer looked seriously shocked.

Then later in the day my pre-teen nephew decided that he wanted to ask them a question. When he walked up to do so, some big-hair woman slapped a great big Bush sticker on his back. Boy, did I let them have it. It was pretty fun to scold a dozen Pugs.

[Hekate]

10. Damn. We have people out all the time in Santa Barbara

Getting the word out, registering voters. And truly, we've all been volunteering since the Dean campaign. Local L.A. volunteers might have just been stretched too thin, or the people running the show might have overlooked the Fair -- Good for you for at least trying to get the word to the Kerry campaign.

California should NOT be taken for granted. Who does the DNC think gave the nation Nixon and Reagan? (and in some fantasies of the future, the Gropenator) There's a rightward shift here: it's normal that the further inland you go, the more conservative the politics get, but we feel it on the Central Coast too. Bush and Cheney have done a lot of schmoozing and fundraising in California over the past 4 years.

Dems and progressives here could sure use a boost in the form of a few visits from Kerry and Edwards before the election.

Hekate

[GRLMGC]

12. Question

I'm gonna go back to SB and I wanna do some volunteer work. Where are Democratic headquarters?

[Hekate]

19. 1341 State Street, SB

I think the kickoff is Sunday morning 10:30 am to noon. Congresswoman Lois Capps will be there.

I don't do mornings, so I probably will *not* be there! But in the afternoon I'll be doing voter reg way out in Goleta.

Welcome aboard! :-)

Hekate

[newyawker99]

20. Hi GRLMGC!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[PurityOfEssence]

13. Reality Check, folks: this is in POMONA

L.A. County is huge, and this is in the Inland Empire.

Here in Silverlake (an unofficial district of L.A., just East of another unofficial district named Hollywood) there was a Bush booth at a street fair (I'll credit them with some bravery for that) two weeks ago, and it was the most shunned place in a very lively throng.

Much as I fear tampering with the Constitution, and much as I've abided the atavistic oddity of the Electoral College, I'm beginning to think that it's time to rid ourselves of this silliness. We have no national vote here. I type this knowing that within 50 miles of where I sit, somewhere around 18 million people (roughly the population of Australia) and I have virtually no say-so in who holds the reins of the executive. Feh.

Ah, well.

Just wanted to point this out so the thread doesn't contribute yet more to the misguided defeatism that flourishes here of late.

Dammit.

[GRLMGC]

14. 909, baby

It's basically San Bernardino County anyway.

[Piperay]

17. I was in Westchester today

and was pleased to see that the Democrats had set up a Kerry booth outside of Trader Joe's and were registering people and seem to be doing pretty good.

(Westchester is not to far form LAX Airport)

I live in a very CONsevative area of Los Angeles Co. but I saw more Kerry bumperstickers today than I have ever seen here before.

[Julien Sorel]

18. It's not just about the K-E campaign,

but all the other elections as well. The more Dems, the better. It would be nice if whatever star power Kerry and/or Edwards have is put to use to attract new blood.