VoteforTOD*.org (The Other Dude)

Vote For TOD* (The Other Dude)

How Bad Is It?

Well, this sleeping giant, the American people, are now fully awake to the antics of this congress, and, boy are we pissed! We are also born with an inalienable right that is more powerful than any sword to do something about it. Yet it is something that the Congress of the United States would simply have us hand over to any foreign national that might wander across our border wrapped in his own flag and demanding we give him equal rights. Ensconced in this inalienable right is something that will be played out in every city, county and state in our nation during the next ten months. Uniquely wielded, it can be very powerful

It is the VOTE!

can understand all the complaining illegals. The following is a short refresher.

There are 435 congressional districts (CDs) in the United States. Each one is headed by an elected official, a United States Congressman, who is a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives. These individuals are elected, or in the case of our overly exclusive system, re-elected every two years. Many of them are opposed, but the list of contested races becomes fewer every year because it generally takes at least a million dollars to be competitive in a congressional race. The incumbent almost always has at least this much money in their campaign account because sitting congressmen spend far more time raising money than they do legislating. It is also far easier for a sitting congressman to raise money than it is for a challenger, even a well qualified aspirant. This is because people who contribute heavily to congressional campaigns, they are called ‘fat cats”, like to give their money to the candidate they think most likely to win. With a re-election rate in the congress of 93% or so, even including attrition such as dying in office, becoming senile and retiring, or worse, not retiring, or going to jail, it’s a pretty sure bet that the incumbent always wins because the playing field is far from level. On the other hand, a challenger to a seat must either fund his or her campaign themselves, of raise the money from family or friends, which is tough because their initial thought is that you have lost your mind, or solicit contributions from acquaintances or political junkies who pity you. Believe me, I have been there, done this. Oh, yes, this job that requires at least a million dollar buy-in pays about $170,000 a year, and requires a lot of overnight travel. Some hotly contested races such as an open seat between two well known candidates, as in war heroes, sports notables, celebrities, or porn stars easily go into the tens of millions of dollars, funded usually along party lines by party “fat cats” and Political Action Committees (PACs). Senate campaigns follow the same basic principles, but there are only two senators from each state and they are allowed to serve a term of six years instead of two. The challengers to senate races are usually better known and generally possess a strong political resume and they have usually been carefully recruited to run by the Republican or Democrat party. The reason the senate terms are three times as long is because they must raise at least ten times as much money to make a creditable bid. A senate campaign can cost $100 million[4] .

But…. What If?

What if your opponent had only an 11% approval rating?

Could this candidate win? America’s future might depend on it.

First, we must sell the idea that the ONLY way to bring about meaningful change in this country is to, ideally, elect an entirely new congress[5]. Secondly, we must rely totally on the internet to get this message out there and keep it out there. We must rely on the bloggers to insure that every voter in this country knows what is coming down and why this is necessary for the future of our country. Then we must get enough voters to buy into it to pull it off. The basic premise is very simple.

On November 4, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents must all agree to vote for only the candidate who is not the incumbent in all 435 House of Representative races and 33 Senate races throughout the entire country. This means that Republicans might be required to vote for Democrats, and Democrats might be required to vote for Republicans. This may be a little easier on Independents because they don’t necessarily have a political affiliation; however, the Independent vote is extremely critical to the success of this plan for that same reason. There will be a lot of hard-core party members who will not buy into this plan at all. There is a cadre of politically astute citizens in every county and congressional district in the country who work hard to support their respective party. Each party has a virtual army of like-minded partisan citizens who serve as precinct captains and who hold fundraisers, and who attend state presidential conventions and, if they are well enough connected politically,show up as delegates and alternate delegates to their respective party’s national convention every four years, all on their own nickel, I might add. I know about these tireless believers because I am one of these tireless believers. I have worked the precincts and the polls at election time, I have attended the state and national conventions, I have run for national office under my party’s banner, I have worked in the trenches during the infamous hanging chad hand count in Florida following the 2000 General Election, and I have never voted for a candidate from the opposition party in over fifty years. Nor will I cross the line on November 4^th in the presidential race. I will vote for my party’s nomination for president, and I will work on their behalf throughout the election cycle, just as I am working to support my choice in my state’s primary election, and who might not necessarily be my party’s nominee for the office of president.

That doesn’t matter. We are demanding change. All of the presidential candidates have promised to give us change. I haven’t heard one voice from our congress promising that they will give us the change we demand, and frankly should I hear such a voice I would not believe it, such is their dismal 11% record for even attempting to change the direction in which our country is heading. That is what this movement is all about. If only 25% of the party members from each party agree to cross party lines for the good of the country in the congressional races only, those votes and the votes of the independent voters will in all likelihood be sufficient to get the job done.

Third Party voters, such as the Reform Party also have a special role in this plan, perhaps even the most difficult role. It will be very tempting for the third parties to run their own candidates in some of the races. Injecting a third candidate would give an incumbent a better chance of retaining that seat, and it would lessen the chance of making the kind of meaningful impact on the entire effort. Most readers should agree that if the best that a two-party system can produce is a congress with an 11% approval rating, then the time might be about right to seriously entertain a third party in our political process. If there is indeed a “pony in there somewhere” it might have a third party’s name on it. Just so that the “pony” does not turn out to be of the "one trick” variety, it is appropriate to touch on a few other nuances of this potential movement.

It is suggested that if this plan is even mildly successful it will be repeated in subsequent election cycles until there is sufficient purging of the long-standing congressional membership that a third party would be more viable, or even welcomed. It is also a distinct possibility that some of the newest members, especially of the House, might be inclined to change their party affiliation to the newly established Third Party, even sooner rather than later. This possibility would be greatly enhanced with a Third Party looked upon as a coalition builder, rather that as a “spoiler”, as has often been the case under the current status quo.

Finally, it is speculated that, other than the sitting Members of Congress, the other biggest opponents of this plan would be the two primary parties themselves. These entities, or more likely the county executive committees who oversee all 435 congressional districts, might be reluctant to recruit, or sponsor new candidates in an attempt to limit non-incumbent candidates. That would seem very shortsighted, but strange things happen in politics. It is rather speculated that if this movement gains traction throughout the country, these executive committees will strive even harder to field a challenger for every single race just to stay even. This movement might just turn out to be the best game in town.

Time will tell. This document will enter the cyber-world, and time is very compressed in this new world, perhaps as much as word of mouth to the tenth power. I predicted in a book I wrote ten years ago[6] that the internet would make it possible to run a political campaign from the comfort of ones own home without ever even getting dressed except to attend a candidate forum every now and then. Little did I know.

Is it possible that bloggers, given as simple, or as complex a concept as “change” can compete quite effectively with the power of the national media for the attention of Americans thirsty for the elusive product know as “truth”. My contribution has been to merely recognize that change is at hand, identify the obstacle that must be overcome to grasp it, and define the mechanics of pulling it off. It comes down to “how bad do you want it”?

Jim Jacobs

South Florida

[1] The ex-TV anchor in the 1976 movie Network, played by Peter Finch

[2] In reality, once the illegals get the right to vote, they will vote other new citizens like themselves into office with the very real possibility of taking over this country without ever firing a shot.

[3] The congresswoman in my district only got $19.6 million of the total, or about two-thirds of her “share”. But, not to worry; she spent another $200,000 on a newsletter mail-out to her constituents boasting of this bit of statesmanship.

[4] The presidential candidates spent a total of $50 million in the Iowa Caucus, a small state with only 7 electoral votes. This madness is another reason for campaign finance reform.

[5] Actually, this can’t quite be accomplished this year because two-thirds of the senate, or about 65 senators are not even up for re-election . The entire House of Representatives is up for re=election every two years.

[6] The Golden Goose Ate All The Grassroots, available at Amazon.com and all leading booksellers.

RE-FORMING A MORE PERFECT UNION - PART II™

Part I Introduced the potential electorate to a treatise on The Justification For, and a Plan To Replace the

United States Congress in the 2008

Election Cycle

By: Jim Jacobs
(Written March 2008)

There has indeed been sufficient positive response to the subject submittal to warrant a follow-up on our original notion that the biggest “change” needed in this election cycle is to change out the entire United States Congress. The only exposure this idea has had that we know of has been that generated by Bill Bason’s growing blog of several hundred friends, ex-shipmates and referrals who all share a common trait; we all love this country and most of us are angry and growing more so day by day. This is understandable because not a day goes by that congress doesn’t re-validate their sub-critical 11% approval rating with hourly regularity. Things like holding lengthy photo op-rich hearings on steroid use by MLB players when the president is begging for the renewal of the expanded surveillance powers bill, the centerpiece of the Protect America Act which expired the day after congress began their extended recess. However, this dead horse has been sufficiently beaten and the feedback we are getting on our proposal to conduct a thorough housecleaning on the Hill is that it’s a dandy idea, but where do we go from here. The purpose of Part II is to lay out a cogent plan of execution.

At first blush, the thought of firing the 535 Members of Congress would seem to be a daunting task, to say the least. It really isn’t. We have two things going for us that have never been brought to bear in the history of this country. We have the internet and we are madder than we have ever been at our leadership since the signing of the Declaration of Independence precipitated the Revolutionary War. The not so subtle difference is that as a result of the Revolutionary War we now have a Constitution that has bestowed upon us, among other things the inalienable right of the VOTE. We no longer need to rise up and overthrow our oppressor; we band together and VOTE to change it. The right of the vote is the authority that we need; the internet is the means that we have to execute the plan.

PuttingThe Plan Into Perspective

The first thing we need to do is give ourselves a name, or at least an identifier. It needs to be something that will transcend borders, be recognizable throughout the entire country, be relevant to every congressional race, while at the same time, be generic and simple. Voila!

Vote For TOD*

* The Other Dude

I wanted something simple and catchy and something that would fit on a bumper sticker or handouts. I will try to create a persona for ‘Tod”, and perhaps a caricature logo. With any luck at all, perhaps we can make Tod a buzzword or a folk hero. Who knows where this might lead. I DO know that the nation is ready for something like this. Let’s give it a whirl.

We have also opened a non-partisan new domain under which this movement will be conducted. That is domain is voteforTOD.org. A web site will follow under this domain and will be known as www.voteforTOD.org. My e-mail address is theconn@voteforTOD.org . Anyone who becomes a major contributor or a principal in the operation will be similarly listed and reachable. This will identify us and will give us some sort of “unit cohesion”.

He second thing we need to do is all take a deep breath……and divide by 50. OK, now from 535 we are down to ten or so. Every state is a separate opportunity and every state will have its own activist leaders. We haven’t worked out the relationship between TOD and the states or various candidates at this time, but if there is to be a connection the various campaigns domains will be required to maintain some reference to “TOD” as their identifier. Each state will have only two senate races every six years. This is very manageable. For the congressional races that will occur every other year, every state will have anywhere from one (1) in Delaware to fifty-three (53) in California. The state average is probably nine or so congressional races and no more that one senate race every two-year election cycle. This is far from overwhelming.

Candidates

The next question we have heard most often is, “Where do we get the candidates”? The answer is straightforward. We don’t. We are not recruiting candidates. First of all, there is no time. A few states have already closed their filing deadlines for ballot inclusion for the state primaries. We are simply selling a mindset and we hope to offer a movement of ever increasing angry supporters who are intent on sweeping out the old and ushering in the new. This is TOD’s contribution to “change”. I defy the presidential candidates to define what they mean by “change”. They all have a tiger by the tail and the whole country has bought into it, and they can’t even define it for us! Never mind. We know what change is. TOD is change!

Vote ForTOD is merely going to leverage the reach and the speed of the internet, the level of absolute disgust of the electorate as it pertains to the crippling effect of the partisan politics of the congress, the rank incompetence of a large majority of the Members that is causing this country to slip right down the tubes, and finally a resounding call for “change” from the masses, and let it all come together into the “perfect storm” to cleanse and replace the legislative branch of our government. If we miss this window, I’m not sure there will be another opportunity. As Washington Redskin coach George Allen liked to say, “The future is now”!

Having said all that, many states have later filing deadlines for congressional candidates, some as late as September. If TOD gains national traction, it is entirely possible that the existence of this movement may well entice candidates to join the fray.

Plan of Attack

We have a home, a domain, VoteforTOD.org. We are copyrighted and protected in our identity. We will get a site up and running. I will contact as many search engines as I can find and release Parts I and II of Re-Forming A More Perfect Union. That is merely our charter. We can refer people to it for our justification, which is “Eleven Percent Approval??? Who needs these guys? Vote for TOD” or words to that effect.

The minute this site is on the Web, my next step will be to get it included on the top 25 search engines in the country.

Other than that, the only further suggestion I might make is to grab your hats; it might be one hell of a ride.

Jim Jacobs

theconn@voteforTod.org

[1]

Your Subtitle text

Purging The Congress Of The United States

Sadly, the events of the past fourteen months have not worked out as we hoped it would when we went to the polls last November. My team lost, but I still had hopes that the new president could pull off the things he said that he would, but that has not been the case. I won't dwell on it here. Even more disappointing has been the demeanor and the actions of our representatives in the Congress of the United States, who promised to go to Washington and represent our interests. Not only have they breached these promises, but they have shown their utter lack of regard for the folks back home who depend on them to cconform to the Constitution in protecting our freedoms under the laws of this great country. They have either forgotten, or never even recognized in the first place that they work for the people and not the other way around. Over the years these representatives have worked diligently to insulate themselves from recall by the people who sent them to do our bidding. In fact, they have managed to make it almost impossible tto remove them on any kind of mass firing BUT.....they left the back gate open. In this blog I will show my readers how easy it can be done and to you 535 whores all I can say to you is
....We're Coming For You
.... Listen Up, Obama
....Why This Action Must Be Taken and How It Can be Accomplished
..... We, The Jury...The Judge...and The Executioner

        BBackground Theme
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To
VOTE FOR TOD*
The Other Dude

Vote Congress OUT!
Change Congress
Throw the Bums Out
Change Change Change

CONTACT US @
theconn@voteforTOD.org
OR

We welcome your e-mails and inquiries and we will try to answer all e-mails. Remember, we are all in unchartered waters with the mission that we have undertaken together, to rid the Congress of the cause of most of othe serious problems threatening our country. With the rest of the country so divided down partisan lines, communication is our anchor to windward. WRITE US!

See our page devoted to reader's comments

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                                   WE'RE COMING FOR YOU
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                               LISTEN UP, OBAMA
                                            We The People

Why This Action Must Be Taken.....and How It Can be Accomplished

  This website is dedicated solely to replacing all sitting Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Members of the U.S. Senate standing for re-election in the 2010 General Election to be held in November 2010. This body, the United States Congress consists of a total of 535 of the most senior elected officials in our country. Their job is to conduct the business of the United States of America. At present the Congress of the United States maintains a dismal 11% approval rating as bestowed by a representative sampling of the citizens of this country. They are not, and have not been doing their jobs and, accordingly, they must be replaced.

Each citizen of this great nation is blessed with an unalienable right that is more powerful than any weapon yet devised. It is the power of the vote.

Within these pages you will find our Mission Statement, We, The Jury directly below. In the Section “Fire ‘Em All”, I have laid out a three-part series of articles on why it is so difficult to vote sitting members out of the Congress, why TOD is the only viable method that can be made to work, a numerical validation of an actual congressional contest that proves that TOD WILL work, and an Open Letter To Independents, who, I feel are essential to the success of our mission. Other sections will offer pertinent articles from other writers, bloggers, columnists, and anyone who wishes to be heard. There is a Video Section to add fuel to the fire and even, alas a bit of levity to help us along our way. The blog will be a work in progress. Check it every few days because the contributable content will be added daily, and we need THE HITS. Talk the site up to your friends and bring them on board.

Lastly, we are not depending on either the Republican or the Democratic Parties. We are inviting members of these parties who are “mad as hell and who are not going to take it anymore”, Independent voters, members of Tea Party groups from across the nation, Oathkeepers, and we especially invite those Kool-Ade drinkers who put this whack-job in the White House and who have seen the light to join us and help us clean up the mess you made. Ed.

WE, THE JURY…..And the Judge and the Executioner

This is our mission statement. It is quite long because it covers a lot of ground and so I have "minimized it. Just click on the title to pull iy up for reading. The journey upon which we are embarking is quite long and so I felt compelled to share with you some of the history of the past two years that have brought us to this point. If you are going to be a student of this site and a participant in our journey, I sincerely urge you to read it Ed.