Not since the days of beloved Rep. Dennis Moore has the Kansas Congressional Third felt so much hope and excitement. On Tuesday in the Kansas Democratic primary, my candidate, Sharice Davids, won in a field of six great candidates. For progressives Sharice checks a lot of boxes. She is a Native American, the daughter of a single mom (who herself is an army vet). She identifies as LGBTQ, and is the product of public schools. After high school she attended the local community college and from there went on to Cornell Law School. After Law School Sharice was selected to be a White House Fellow in the Obama administration, where she worked in the Transportation department. This is the American success story we are all taught to believe in.
At this point you might assume that Sharice would have gone on to Wall Street career, but after working at a prestigious local law firm in the Kansas City area, she turned her back on the corporate world to instead work on the Pine Ridge reservation. There she was able to see the frequent disconnects that occur between policy crafted in D.C. and its implementation at the local level. This gave her a great insight on how the two could be reconciled for the benefit of folks on the ground.
This alone is a mighty big checkbox, but for me the biggest checkbox on my list is that Sharice listens. Everyone who meets Sharice comments on this fact. Unlike a lot of politicians (some of whom we dearly love) Sharice actually waits to hear what you have to say. And she was able to use this ability when she worked at the reservation.
Many in the progressive community were rooting for Brent Welder. And although I supported and campaigned for Sharice, I think Brent ran a great campaign. I support his positions on the issues. I think he conducted himself with integrity throughout, and if he had been chosen by the voters I would have wholeheartedly campaigned for him. I get that his supporters are disappointed, but I am happy to say that Brent himself has shown true character by immediately supporting Sharice and pledging to work hard for her election:
Brent Welder @BrentWelder
It is so important that we defeat right-wing Rep. Yoder and stop Trump. Yesterday after the results were posted I called my friend @ShariceDavidsto congratulate her and say I’m dedicated to helping her every way I can. Also I stumped for her at the unity rally. Let’s do this!
12:16 PM - Aug 9, 2018
This is class. It is also a supremely important message. The reactionary Republican machine has already lurched out of its hiding place and is predictably attacking Sharice for not being like ‘us.’ For not being from ‘here’. For not having our ‘values.’ A Pelosi clone, and on and on…. Yoder and the Republicans will sound every dog whistle to attack Sharice. All of them lies. (And you know they just filled in the brackets on their template of hate with Sharice’s name after her win-it could have been any Democrat.) Chris Reeves has summed these falsehoods up masterfully www.dailykos.com/...
We here in the KS-3rd have been fighting Kevin Yoder's hateful policies since he was elected eight years ago. We have experienced the man lying to our faces. We have marched and protested outside his office, we have listened to his staff declare that they have no idea what his positions are, we have vainly waited for him to hold a real town hall. He is the real clone, a clone of the Koch brothers, the NRA, the payday loan industry, the anti-immigrant brigade and more. He is not like us; he does not share our values.
I started this diary by mentioning Dennis Moore. It is amazing to look back and see that although he was considered a moderate ten years ago (a description belied by his many progressive stances), his positions today seem outright radical for Trump nation. We need Sharice and others to carry on his legacy. The Kansas 3rd has unexpected potential. We need to do this. As Brent Welder said,
It is so important that we defeat right-wing Rep. Yoder and stop Trump.
I couldn’t agree more.
www.shariceforcongress.com/...