Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama will appear together today, in Unity, New Hampshire (population, 1,700), in an effort to promote party unity (PUMA Protest details). Meanwhile, the Democratic Party shows signs of being deeply divided as word of the diverse Just Say No Deal coalition continues to spread.
Kevin Merida at the Washington Post:
Diane Mantouvalos (see photo) is an anger-shaker. The night before Clinton announced the suspension of her campaign, Mantouvalos was at home in Miami checking posts on her blog and sensing a mood that went beyond disillusionment, beyond sadness, beyond "I'm upset and bummed out." As co-creator of Hireheels.com, which describes itself as "a forum of power chics for Hillary," Mantouvalos hangs out on the sassy edge of the blogosphere. Feeling more empowered than embittered, the public relations consultant wondered: "Wouldn't it be great if we could thread all of these disparate factions and form one coalition?" A brassy coalition of rebels.
On June 8, the evening after Clinton conceded the Democratic presidential contest to Barack Obama, Mantouvalos organized a conference call with some 40 bloggers, political activists and other hardened loyalists of the New York senator's, in what became "a jam session of very intense opinion" -- about the party, its leadership, its presumptive nominee, the media. Five hours later, Mantouvalos, age "north of 35," had built a new Web site, JustSayNoDeal.com, which has become a clearinghouse for the renegade forces that are now confounding Democratic Party officials and Obama campaign operatives. . .
Several groups are planning marches in Denver, the site of this summer's Democratic National Convention. Others are organizing a Clinton write-in campaign or have switched to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), creating sites to promote his candidacy. Some have more targeted interests, such as establishing an ongoing critique of misogyny in the media, pressing for changes in Democratic National Committee rules on delegate selection, even the ouster of national party chairman Howard Dean. "Howard Dean is running this party like it is a Soviet-style dictatorship," fumed Faith Chatham, a Clinton delegate to the Texas Democratic convention.
. . Using various metrics -- e-mails to JustSayNoDeal.com (125,000), databases of organizations involved with the effort, registrants to and hits on selected protest Web sites -- Mantouvalos estimates the coalition of more than 100 groups represents at least 10 percent of the 18 million voters who backed Hillary Clinton during the primary battle. . . Defining the Just Say No Deal coalition is not simple. The clearest and strongest sentiments seem to be that party leaders tried to force Clinton out of the race prematurely, allowed sexism and misogyny to go unchecked in the media, and made decisions about the Florida and Michigan contests that were designed to favor Obama.
"Their goal was to stop Hillary Clinton by any means necessary," said Robin Murray, an Indianapolis therapist and social worker whose nine-minute YouTube video, " Mad as Hell/Bitch," detailed examples of sexism in the campaign and became a visual anthem for many feminists.
Given that she is a supporter of abortion rights and holds other beliefs that are at odds with McCain's, Murray was asked why she would consider voting against her own interests. "Whether it's appropriate or whether it will work doesn't matter at this time," she said. "The vote is a protest vote -- be it if I vote for McCain, if I don't show up, or if I write in Hillary's name." Added Murray: "I view it in a holistic way. It says, we will not be controlled and manipulated by these singular issues in order to cast a vote that we feel is deceitful, negative, there is just no pretty way to say it -- they cheated."
DNC Unity New Hampshire Feminist Backlash Misogyny Male Dominated Politics Feminist News Gender Hillary Clinton Barack Obama Sexism Democratic Party Denver
