As a troglodyte, I am asking for help. I'll get to that in a moment.
Much of the hand-wringing about the possible loss of the senate begins with two assumptions: that we will lose seats in Nebraska and North Dakota. From what I've read and seen, the Nebraska assumption may hold water. But there is no justification for the assumption that North Dakota is lost.
Kent Conrad (D-ND) is retiring. Prior to 2010, North Dakota's congressional delegation was 100% Democratic. That year Sen. Byron Dorgan retired and was replaced by a Republican, former governor John Hoeven, while long-time Representative Earl Pomeroy was defeated by Republican Rick Berg.
With Conrad retiring, Rick Berg has announced that two years is enough in the house, and he is running for the senate. Many Washington pundits look at the Republican tilt of the North Dakota electorate and assume he will win, throwing the entire North Dakota delegation to the Republicans for the first time since the 1950s or '60s.
But conventional wisdom out of Washington is often wrong, and it appears to be the case here. Former state attorney general Heidi Heitkamp announced that she is running for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate, and a funny thing happened: poll results immediately showed her LEADING Berg in the race.
Heitkamp is a popular figure in North Dakota politics. She had to withdraw from a gubernatorial campaign against Hoeven about a decade ago when she developed breast cancer, and has not run for office since. As the poll results show, she is nonetheless still well-known and popular. She is the only Democrat who can beat Berg in November, and North Dakotans and Democrats across the country are fortunate that she has stepped up.
We all know how tough it will be for the Democrats to retain control of the senate. This could be the premier match in the nation, and the fate of the senate could hinge on it. We need to make this race a national priority, and we need to do it soon.
Heidi is as progressive as one can be and still win state-wide office in North Dakota. If she's elected, I cannot promise that she will not disappoint us occasionally, but we need the Jon Testers of the world more than we need any one Republican. I realize that I cannot come on here and say that she will be a Bernie Sanders, but I can guarantee that she will not be a Joe Manchin, either. I can state with certainty that I believe she will be a strong supporter of women's rights and minority rights. Probably the most important asset she would bring is the most obvious -- she would vote for a Democrat for majority leader to control the senate's schedule.
So here is where I need help. I have seen (and participated in) these cash bombs occasionally held here. I would like to help raise money for the Heitkamp campaign. How does an old troglodyte do this? Do I set up an ActBlue page, or does the campaign? How do these things get started?
For those who can contribute now to this most criticial senate campaign, she has a website just up (with little on it other than a "volunteer" feature and a "donate" feature). I'm sure it will be fleshed out soon. However, I encourage everyone to use the donate feature, even if it's only for $5. You can find it at HeidiForNorthDakota.com.
I'm assuming the patient, knowledgeable, helpful Kossacks will be able to teach this old dog a new trick, and I will try to organize a money bomb later, but please do not wait. Go to HeidiForNorthDakota.com.
and donate today. I really do not think it's hyperbolic to say that it could be the difference between a Democratic or Republican senate majority in 2013.
Mark Wallace in the comments inadvertently pointed out just what a neophyte I am. There already is an ActBlue page.
Please use it and donate today. North Dakota is the kind of small state where a little money covers a lot of media buy. Your $5 or $20 goes a lot farther in North Dakota than it will in Massachussetts (although that is my second highest priority, and second only because others have it covered for attention and somebody needs to make Heidi their top priority).