CLARK Comes Out Ahead at the L.A. County Young Dems Endorsements!

The Los Angeles County Young Democrats held their endorsement meeting tonight. Howard Dean had previously been the favorite to win, even as short as a month ago.

We mobilized dozens of young Clark supporters, however, and we had the largest presence at the meeting. Dean's supporters were clearly taken aback, and there were lots of mutterings like, "Where did all these CLARK people come from?" One Dean supporter even complained to one of the more prominent LACYD members (who happens to support Clark), "I see you brought the Clark Mafia with you." Hee hee! I actually took that as a high compliment. :-)

Wes Clark Jr. was our speaker, and he rocked the house. He spoke so eloquently about how his father would be able to bring everyone together, how his message is positive and inspirational, and how he more than any other candidate would be able to beat George W. Bush hands-down. Just like his father, Wes Jr. kept it positive, and the applause was heartfelt from all of the attendees.

In the end, General Clark won a plurality of the votes, although because no one met the difficult 2/3's threshold, there will be no formal endorsement.

Still, we won the plurality, which I understand will be reported shortly, and we also stopped what had previously been a strong likelihood of a formal endorsement for Dean.

This is the third grassroots event in a row where Clark supporters outdid Dean supporters, the first two being the Rose Bowl (where Clark had dozens of supporters covering every gate, and no other campaign was present) and the Democratic Parties of the San Fernando Valley Presidential Shoppers' Forum (where Clark supporters outnumbered Dean supporters, to the surprise of all).

General Clark has a very strong, very organized volunteer presence in Southern California, in my opinion it's the strongest presence of any Democratic candidate...and he hasn't even opened a formal campaign office out here yet! That's a LOT of money saved, and I have no doubt that he will be able to do very well here.

Go General Clark!

DTH

You've been working really hard on this for a long time it seems to me. Raised a bunch of money a while back, didn't you? I bet you deserve a ton of the credit. It's really awesome to see it all work out, isn't it!?!

We weren't sure what to expect, we just mobilized as many as we could, and things turned out great. :-) And we raised a TON of money tonight in the form of new membership dues for the LACYD!

And that was indeed my fundraiser a while back, thank you so much for remembering. Clark is my second full-time job, that's for sure!

DTH

Thank you for your wonderful, well-written reports, and for all your hard work.

When is the California primary? Is there any chance that it could be one of the deciding states for the nomination?

Should I go see him?

I highly recommend it! I bet you'll get a different -- but interesting and positive -- perspective on the General!

DTH

Details here:

http://www.wa4clark.com/wes_jr.htm

But, it's not very detailed.
Ack.

Don't suppose you know DTH?

But just to make sure, maybe join the C Company mailing list and let them know! I am actually involved with C Company in Los Angeles, so I can poke around for a contact, if you want. But it might be faster for you just to join their list.

Hope that helps!

DTH

Looks like I'll be donating to the Wes Train twice in one week.
:)

I didn't realize that.

And with a new baby. That can't be easy.

She completely loves and has so much respect for her father-in-law. When she spoke about him at the big L.A. rally right after the General announced, she was moved to tears when she talked about what a great and kind man he was.

That fact, especially when coupled with knowing the type of loving couple that Wes Jr. and Astrid are, makes it crystal clear to me that she is 100% supportive of Wes Jr.'s efforts on behalf of his father. I'm sure it's a sacrifice for both: I doubt Wes Jr. wants to be away from his newborn and his wife any more than Astrid wants him to be away, or take care of Wes III all alone, which is to say not at all on all counts.

I think they both realize how important it is for the General to be the leader of this country, however, and like many of us are willing to make those sacrifices (albeit much bigger ones on their part) to see it happen.

DTH

I read about his appearance at Hunter College on DU, asked my boss, and took off work in the middle of the day. He's a charismatic guy and it feels so good to be in an enthusiastic crowd of fellow Clark supporters.

Enjoy yourself.

In Southern california! Woooohoooo!!!

Thanks, DTH. This is great! :toast:

:yourock:

What an excellent show - major pat on the back!

I love the tremendously dedicated, organized, yet grass-roots inspired bunch we are.

This Pasadenan is not happy.

LOL! Funny. They're scared now! They haven't had any competition for a year and they just aren't use to it, are they? This is excellent news! Go, Southern California! DTH, :yourock:

At the meeting, there was a lot of excitement from Clark supporters, a lot of respect from EDWARDS supporters (they were the only other group to field a sizable presence), and a lot of bitterness from Dean supporters. This is not a generalization about all Dean supporters, of course, just about half to two-thirds of those whose demeanor I happened to see at the one regional event last night.

I can understand it; I would probably be frustrated and upset, too, if I thought my guy had had it in the bag, only to see someone else come in at the last minute and take it.

DTH

Right? :7 I am sure it went down just as you reported. I don't doubt for a minute that we are seen as a major threat which would cause some bitterness from SOME Dean supporters. ;)

A :toast: and a :kick:

I always pictured you as 50+. Nice work.

Thank you for your hard work. It's quite exciting when you get such a payback, isn't it?

Bravo!

:yourock: