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MattSh

(3,714 posts)
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 05:08 AM Oct 2015

I’m Trying to Run for President, but the Democrats Won’t Let Me — Lawrence Lessig

Bio Below:

I’m running for President. Or trying. After raising $1 million in less than 30 days, I entered the primary on September 9 as the Democrat’s only non-politician. My platform is simple: end the corrupting influence of money in Washington, so we might finally have, as Buddy Roemer would put it, a Congress free to lead.

But that message is being stifled with the tacit approval of the Democratic Party leadership, who are deploying the oldest method available for marginalizing campaigns they don’t like: keeping me out of the Democratic presidential debates.

Here’s how you make the debates: After one declares, a candidate is formally welcomed into the race by the Democratic National Committee. Polling firms, taking a cue from the DNC, include that candidate on their questionnaires. Candidates that poll at 1 percent nationally in at least three separate polls earn an invitation. Simple enough.

That’s how the process typically works for other candidacies — but not for mine. The DNC still has not formally welcomed me into the race — despite my raising money at a faster pace than more than half the pack, and being in the race nearly a full month. Polls, in turn, have taken the hint, only including me sporadically on questionnaires: of the last 10 major polls, only three mentioned my candidacy. One poll recently put me at 1 percent (for comparison, candidates O’Malley, Webb and Chafee, who will each get a podium at the debates, are all currently polling at 0.7 percent or less, according to Real Clear Politcs). Were I actually included on every poll, I would easily make the debates.

The Democratic Party could fix this by welcoming me into the race. Yet when I tried to talk about this with the chair of the Democratic Party, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, she scheduled a call, but then cancelled it. So far she hasn’t had the time to schedule another. I’ve had similar experiences at the state level, where the same game is played: The chair of the New Hampshire Democrats invited me to speak at their convention. I was given 5 minutes. Hillary Clinton took an hour.

Have to use a URL shortener because DU does not post links from Medium.com correctly --> https://goo.gl/PqfbVW

original link: https://medium.com/@lessig/i-m-trying-to-run-for-president-but-the-democrats-won-t-let-me-7860eac918f8

Lawrence Lessig - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lester Lawrence "Larry" Lessig, III (born June 3, 1961) is an American academic, attorney, and political activist who is a candidate for the Democratic Party's nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. He is the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and the director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University.[1] He is a member of the Illinois Bar.

In August 2015, Lessig announced that he was exploring a possible candidacy for President of the United States, promising to run if his exploratory committee raised $1 million by Labor Day.[2][3] After accomplishing this, on September 6, 2015, Lessig announced that he was entering the race to become a candidate for the 2016 Democratic Party's presidential nomination.[4] Lessig has described his candidacy as a referendum on campaign finance reform and electoral reform legislation. He has stated that, if elected, he would use that mandate to pass his proposed reforms, and then he would immediately resign the office and transfer power to his vice president.

Lessig has called for state-based activism to promote substantive reform of government with a Second Constitutional Convention.[5] In May 2014, he launched a crowd-funded political action committee which he termed Mayday PAC with the purpose of electing candidates to Congress who would pass campaign finance reform.[6]

As well as political reform, Lessig is a proponent of reduced legal restrictions on copyright, trademark, and radio frequency spectrum, particularly in technology applications. Prior to his appointment at Harvard, he was a professor of law at Stanford Law School, where he founded the Center for Internet and Society, and at the University of Chicago. Lessig is a founding board member of Creative Commons and the founder of Rootstrikers, and is on the board of MapLight.[7] He is on the advisory boards of the Democracy Café,[8] Sunlight Foundation[9] and Americans Elect.[10] He is a former board member of the Free Software Foundation; Software Freedom Law Center; the Washington, D.C. lobbying groups Public Knowledge and Free Press; and the Electronic Frontier Foundation.[11]

Complete story at - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Lessig
20 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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I’m Trying to Run for President, but the Democrats Won’t Let Me — Lawrence Lessig (Original Post) MattSh Oct 2015 OP
Oh Lawrence Recursion Oct 2015 #1
He's running on a pledge to fix the problem that is the mother of all political problems freedom fighter jh Oct 2015 #11
Yes that is completely ridiculous. He should not have done that. stevenleser Oct 2015 #19
This man has the charisma of a footstool. He is a single-issue candidate, essentially. MADem Oct 2015 #2
If 1% were the entry fee, so to speak, could have 100 candidates at debate! Demeter Oct 2015 #3
Yes, if every one of 100 candidates got the same support as all the others freedom fighter jh Oct 2015 #10
Dear Lawrence, magical thyme Oct 2015 #4
Lessig aside... OilemFirchen Oct 2015 #9
I didn't see him in listed in any of the national polls, although admittedly magical thyme Oct 2015 #14
Sure! OilemFirchen Oct 2015 #15
well I sit corrected! magical thyme Oct 2015 #16
Go away-- you have absolutely no chance of winning Fast Walker 52 Oct 2015 #5
Running for President jehop61 Oct 2015 #6
Dr. Lessig has been fighting money in politics very seriously for a long time. Hortensis Oct 2015 #12
No thanks, I think the Democratic have too many libertarians already. Todays_Illusion Oct 2015 #7
Lessig is a vanity candidate, who despite being correct on a narrow band of issues is no more FSogol Oct 2015 #8
No to vanity candidate. He's running on a single issue that many of us feel is Hortensis Oct 2015 #13
I find it offensive for him to so much as suggest that he would ask for my vote while Bluenorthwest Oct 2015 #18
Blue, I think he just wanted to get into the debates, to move this issue onto Hortensis Oct 2015 #20
We all want want Lawrence Lessig wants, Cenk Uygar had his WolfPac for the very same mother earth Oct 2015 #17

freedom fighter jh

(1,782 posts)
11. He's running on a pledge to fix the problem that is the mother of all political problems
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 11:36 AM
Oct 2015

and then resign.

That makes his choice of VP super important. It could work if the DNC gave him a chance.

 

stevenleser

(32,886 posts)
19. Yes that is completely ridiculous. He should not have done that.
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 10:53 PM
Oct 2015

No one will take him seriously as a candidate now.

The DNC does not have time to waste on silliness like that. I agree with DWS.

MADem

(135,425 posts)
2. This man has the charisma of a footstool. He is a single-issue candidate, essentially.
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 05:20 AM
Oct 2015

His manner of speaking is off-putting. I don't think he has the warmth or communication skills to relate effectively to the voting public. He makes some entirely valid points, but the challenge to get the message OUT is where he'll run into trouble.

Maybe he's an acquired taste--but he doesn't have a lot of time. That's probably his biggest difficulty. The fact that he's really not running to win is also a distraction from the points he's trying to make.


 

Demeter

(85,373 posts)
3. If 1% were the entry fee, so to speak, could have 100 candidates at debate!
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 06:22 AM
Oct 2015

That's an unworkable arrangement, on its face.

freedom fighter jh

(1,782 posts)
10. Yes, if every one of 100 candidates got the same support as all the others
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 11:32 AM
Oct 2015

and no one else got any support, then each of 100 candidates could get 1%.

There is no danger that that will happen.

 

magical thyme

(14,881 posts)
4. Dear Lawrence,
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 06:50 AM
Oct 2015

Last edited Tue Oct 6, 2015, 12:50 PM - Edit history (1)

How you earn an invitation to the debates: "Candidates that poll at 1 percent nationally in at least three separate polls earn an invitation."

Not how you earn an invitation to the debates:

"raising money at a faster pace than more than half the pack" ("the pack" being more than 100 declared candidates.)

"being in the race nearly a full month" (the rest of "the pack" of more than 100 have been "in the race" longer than you. You're the last to join; not the first.)

"Polls, in turn, have taken the hint, only including me sporadically on questionnaires: of the last 10 major polls, only three mentioned my candidacy." (Did you assume the national polls were all primed, just waiting for you to announce?)

Running on a platform "to pass his proposed reforms, and then he would immediately resign." (Didn't your mommy ever teach you that "winners never quit and quitters never win?&quot

Whining about not being allowed into debates when you failed to meet the sole invitation requirement.



OilemFirchen

(7,143 posts)
9. Lessig aside...
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 09:26 AM
Oct 2015

this is hilarious:

Bernie didn't get included in any national polls until at least a month after he declared, and then only in a few sporadic polls. It was 3+ months before he was included regularly.

He's been included in every national poll since November of 2014.
 

magical thyme

(14,881 posts)
14. I didn't see him in listed in any of the national polls, although admittedly
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 12:17 PM
Oct 2015

I relied mainly on huffpost. could you provide a link to all those national polls he was included in?

jehop61

(1,735 posts)
6. Running for President
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 08:02 AM
Oct 2015

shouldn't be your own personal ego trip. It's serious business and the fate of the world is way to.important. Please go away and take your annoying pop up ads with you

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
12. Dr. Lessig has been fighting money in politics very seriously for a long time.
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 11:46 AM
Oct 2015

This isn't an ego trip, Jehop -- he's trying to move the issue to the national front burner. I'm one of his donors, BTW. Although I'm not second-guessing the DNC's decision, I wish he were going to be at the debate.

FSogol

(45,357 posts)
8. Lessig is a vanity candidate, who despite being correct on a narrow band of issues is no more
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 08:58 AM
Oct 2015

qualified than Carson, Fiorina, or Trumpy and should not be taken seriously.

Bashing the Democratic Party over Lessig is nothing more than an attempt to bash the Democratic Party.

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
13. No to vanity candidate. He's running on a single issue that many of us feel is
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 11:47 AM
Oct 2015

destroying our democracy in an attempt to make the nation realize WE CAN FIX THIS.

 

Bluenorthwest

(45,319 posts)
18. I find it offensive for him to so much as suggest that he would ask for my vote while
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 10:43 PM
Oct 2015

telling me he intended to do only one thing and then resign for a VP yet to be named. If that's his plan he needed to step up with that VP on day one. It is offensive of him to ask to be taken seriously as a temp stand in for a some mouse in his pocket. It has the look of the bait and switch and that's not harmonic with a transparency and honesty theme.

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
20. Blue, I think he just wanted to get into the debates, to move this issue onto
Wed Oct 7, 2015, 07:04 AM
Oct 2015

the national stage. It's all about media coverage now, after all, and nightly network news at that as most people do not watch cable news. No coverage, no progress.

BTW, the standard MSM line is that comprehensive election and campaign finance overhaul are impossible, to the point that they're not even worth discussing. But, be offended at this scoundrel and his nefarious plotting if you want.

mother earth

(6,002 posts)
17. We all want want Lawrence Lessig wants, Cenk Uygar had his WolfPac for the very same
Tue Oct 6, 2015, 03:55 PM
Oct 2015

reason. While I understand why he's not being allowed at the debates, it's sad that he isn't, we need this man's voice. This issue is absolutely on everyone's mind, Lessig is truly the man that wanted to sway political debate in this election to the reason that matters most. I absolutely hate when someone like Lessig is marginalized, and judging by comments here, it happens amongst those who consider themselves activists.

Lessig is a good man who should be acknowledged as such, at the very least, esp. in a forum such as this.

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