*For a little context, this was originally posted at FLAPolitics, where I will begin discussing soon, how my father, the new chair of the Marion DEC is attempting to change the party there.

"I think we can end the divisions within the United States. What I think is quite clear is that we can work together in the last analysis. And that what has been going on within the United States...-the divisions, whether it's between blacks and whites, between the poor and the more affluent, or between age groups, or over the war in Vietnam - that we can start to work together again. We are a great country, an unselfish country, and a compassionate country."

-Robert Kennedy (some of his final words before being gunned down minutes later)

Matt just wrote an awesome diary about the true power of Unions in America: building community. I'm going to expand on what I believe is the most important concept for us in the progressive movement: community.

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Today, Matt wrote a list of eight rules for building a progressive America.  One of them concerns putting progressives in charge of the Democratic Party at all levels.

In one month, the California Democratic Party is holding elections for the DSCC (Democratic State Central Committee).  There will be 80 separate caucuses, one for each assembly district, on the weekend of January 13-14.  The 6 men and 6 women who win these elections will become 1/3 of the delegates to the CDP, and will as part of their duties become delegates to the state convention in April, where they can vote on the party platform, party operation and machinery, and specific candidate endorsements.  This is a real opportunity to get progressives and reformers into the state party to attempt to steer it in a direction that is more responsive to the grassroots, more engaged with the electorate, and generally more functional and successful.

I'm going to be running in the 41st Assembly District, and everyone in California who wants to help take back the party should do so as well.  On the flip, I'll tell you about some of the structures that are already in place to help get progressives elected.

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Does anyone have any suggestions for some good political books? I know we had been doing a book club on MYDD before so I was looking for a suggested list. I enjoyed "Crashing the Gate" of course..

TPK

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I'm an avid reader who finally got around to checking out Jerome Armstrong and Markos Moulitsas Zuniga's book Crashing the Gate. I foolishly put off reading this book when it first came out because I thought it was just going to be all about the "netroots" and blogging. I had already read David Kline's book Blog! and so I thought that this book could wait. Let me tell you how wrong I was.

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I'd like to tell you about my friend, Rick Ford. He's an attorney from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida and a longtime progressive Democrat. He's running for the Florida State House in District 83. District 83 is a very split district. George W. Bush and Al Gore tied at 49% in 2000 and the district has been trending Democrat through the years. It encompasses Jupiter Farms, Jupiter Island, Palm Beach Gardens, Juno Beach, Loxahatchee, and Palm Beach.

Rick reminds me a lot of Jon Tester. He's a Progressive Democrat and proud of it. He served as a co-director in Parma, Ohio for George McGovern's campaign in 1972. He's served as an officer on our local Democratic Executive Committee. He was Palm Beach County Volunteer Director for John Kerry in 2004.

He was an Air Force Captain in the Vietnam Era. He graduated from Howard University in 1976 (cum laude) and is now a solo practitioner and works mostly on public employee rights and workplace discrimination cases. This has won him wide support from labor unions. Now let's look at his opponent...

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