Hello San Juan County Democrats,

Get ready for 2020, which is clearly going to be one of the most important political years in our lives and in the history of this country.  Nothing less than our democratic system of government is at stake, as the current White House occupant is looking to become a dictator.  Here in San Juan County we will hold our first meeting of the year on Saturday, January 11, from 11:45 until 2:30 in the upstairs community meeting room at Skagit Valley College in Friday Harbor.

At this meeting we will be planning our actions for this important political year.  In addition, we will have a visit from a progressive challenger to Congressman Rick Larsen.  And one of our legal experts will be discussing the possible court challenges to the recently passed horrendous initiative I-976.

If you cannot attend in person but would like to attend virtually, the link to join our meeting on Zoom is https://zoom.us/j/386062877.  If you are traveling from another island, we will have drivers to give us rides to and from the meeting.

I hope to see you at this and/or other meetings this year, and please be ready for calls to action.

Hello San Juan County Democrats,

One of the political reforms that would really help our political system is ranked choice voting. Please read the following from Liz Smith of Fair Vote Washington, who will be presenting on our three major islands:

“Our non-partisan non-profit FairVote Washington is working to bring Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV) to Washington state. RCV is a simple, non-partisan way to help put power back into the voters’ hands, increase civility in politics, and improve our democracy. It’s also an effective way to lower primary and run-off elections costs. And we’d like to show you how it works!

RCV is also sometimes called Instant Runoff Voting, which says a lot about how it works. On a ranked-choice ballot, instead of voting for one candidate, you would get to rank the candidates in your order of preference: 1, 2, 3, and so on. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the first place votes, the last place candidate is eliminated. If that was your candidate, your vote is transferred to your second choice. That process of elimination continues until one candidate has a majority and is declared the winner. (A candidate can still win on the first round with an outright majority, and voters can still vote for one candidate, if they prefer.)

The WA Local Options Bill (HB1722 and SB5708) would allow localities to try Ranked-Choice Voting. We’ll tell you all about that and our other efforts at three upcoming presentations on Orcas, Lopez, and San Juan Islands. All are welcome, regardless of party or political views. Local FairVote Washington lead Liz Smith of Friday Harbor and FairVote Washington Chair Lisa Ayrault will be there. Let us answer your questions about this simple, non-partisan voting reform!

Sunday, January 12 from 2pm-3pm at the Orcas Island Odd Fellows Hall
Our event page: https://secure.everyaction.com/aian00iQIUK9xnJbU6oT9Q2
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/795106250953763

Sunday, January 12 from 7pm-8pm at the San Juan Island Grange Hall #966
Our event page: https://secure.everyaction.com/-zL2kUDHDk-BNRkiGVwrtg2
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/883249492077298

Monday, January 13 from 7pm-8pm at the Huddle Lopez mtg at the Lopez Island Golf Club
Our event page: https://secure.everyaction.com/4c2IyXOM2EGHVDkUVBt7GA2
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/514079569190134

For more info or questions, you can contact Liz Smith at liz.smith@fairvotewa.org, (360) 610-7136

There will be impeachment rallies in Friday Harbor at the Courthouse and in Eastsound at the Village Green on Tuesday, December 17 at 5:30pm. The president used military aid to pressure a foreign government to interfere in our elections, then he tried to cover it up. He should be impeached and removed from office because no one is above the law.

Please dress warmly and bring some kind of light, as it will be dark. You can even download a candle app for your phone. Our main goal is to contribute to the buzz going on across the nation; there will be more than 500 such events nationwide at the same time. We have confidence that the House will vote for impeachment, and our efforts on Tuesday will go toward convincing the Senate that they need to vote to convict. So bring your cameras and phones, and if you think your sign will be visible, bring it too.
You can register for the event by going to www.impeach.org, then type in your zip code, or you can go to:
Friday Harbor Event: http://act.moveon.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/126555/
Eastsound Event: https://act.moveon.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/126535/

Please notify and bring friends and family.

I have a lot to report from our meeting this past Saturday, including some important information as we organize for the very crucial 2020 elections. I hope you will read this to the end, as you might find a place where you will fit in to help us in what may be the most critical election of our lives.

First, we will not be meeting in December, but there will be a holiday party hosted by the 40th Legislative District, of which we are a part. It will be held in Alger, ten miles north of Burlington, the same place the 40th’s endorsement meeting was held last June. It will be on Sunday, Dec. 8 from noon until 3:00. My wife and I will be attending, and we would be happy to drive anyone else that would like to come from Orcas. I am hoping there will also be contingents from San Juan and Lopez Islands. If you would like to come, please let me know so I can send you more information, as this event is very well organized. For all who would like to plan for the dates of the general meetings of the 40th for this coming year, the dates are March 1, June 7 (endorsements), Oct. 4 (in Friday Harbor), and Dec. 6.

Jeff Hanks was confirmed as our newest PCO (precinct committee officer), filling the position for south Lopez Island. Jeff looks to be an excellent addition to our group.

In our ongoing discussions about a more equitable tax system, Stephen Shubert talked about adding a capital gains tax here in Washington state. Our constitution currently does not allow an income tax, but a capital gains tax can be treated as an excise tax, and this could potentially bring in a lot of revenue for the state, which may be critical should I-976 be allowed to stand. Retired attorney Bill Appel said that a taxpayer could take the I-976 matter to court, and a court may very well rule that I-976 cannot be allowed to stand.

In other sad election news, it looks like I-1000/R-88 has been defeated. This is the measure that would have ratified the legislature’s decision to allow affirmative action on a case-by-case basis. The final margin of defeat was 0.7%, a tiny margin. The one bright spot: Senator Liz Lovelett was overwhelmingly elected over perennial candidate Daniel Miller.

You may be aware that this past Tuesday, the county council turned down the request made by a citizen committee asking for a moratorium on vacation rentals while the issue is studied. Forty citizens, mostly from Orcas, made the trip to the hearing to testify. The county council seems to feel they have already dealt with this issue with their recent housing needs assessment and hiring a code enforcement officer. The committee will be looking at its next steps.

Mike Hansen reported on his efforts to find out if the state attorney general’s office is dealing with the threat of private militias. He didn’t get much of a response from that office. Do we know that order will be maintained by our law enforcement officers should there be some kind of

“civil war” or other fracas initiated by a private militia group? Mike will be preparing a one-page historical, logical straightforward narrative with bullet points on this matter.

Dave Zeretzke presented an excellent tutorial on the redistricting process. In early 2021, all states will go through redistricting, where they look at population changes and make boundary adjustments based on this. Most states have made this a political process, which results in gerrymandering. Washington is one of the few states that has a commission do this job. The minority and majority caucuses of both the House and Senate appoint a person to the commission, resulting in two Democrats and two Republicans, plus there is a nonvoting fifth member who acts as the chair. The chair makes sure that redistricting is done as fairly as possible, and the plan is accepted only if the voting members vote either 3-1 or 4-0 for the plan. Since this was implemented in the 1980s, redistricting here in Washington has not suffered as badly as in states where it is a totally political process controlled by the majority party.

Former chair and current treasurer David Dehlendorf has composed a plan for an election committee for next year. It has many components to it, which I shall now present. I am hoping that as you read through this, you will find a task that appeals to you and for which you would be willing to volunteer. Here we go:

1. Develop and continuously update a list of candidates and measures that will be on the ballot for the elections in 2020 at the local, state, and national level.
2. Coordinate the activities of the SJC Democrats with other Democratic organizations and campaigns.
3. Register new voters, including 17 and 18-year-olds.
4. Recruit candidates.
5. Provide information about the presidential primary process, and help the chair in implementing this.
6. Help the PCOs work together to form ways to inform their voters about issues and candidates.
7. Help promote our party and candidates, including the following:

a. The 4th of July Parade in Friday Harbor (maybe on Orcas and Lopez also)
b. Helping at the County Fair booth
c. Helping at the storefront we open between July and October in central Friday Harbor. By the way, if you know of an available space, please let me know.

8. Develop an action plan for volunteers to help in our county as well as other regions.
9. Manage our candidate and ballot measure endorsement process in accord with our rules.
10. Publicize our endorsements.
11. Coordinate and implement a phone-banking program.

As you can see, this is a substantial list. We will need many hands onboard. If you are interested in one of these tasks, please contact me.

That’s about it for now. As always, there is much going on, and we all need to remain as informed as possible.

Thanks for reading,

David Turnoy
Chair, San Juan County Democrats
360-376-4165
davidgeri@centurylink.net

Hello San Juan County Democrats,

Saturday, Oct. 12, will be the next meeting of the San Juan County Democrats from 11:30 until 2:00 at the community college in Friday Harbor.  We still have the issue of endorsements to discuss, we will be voting to approve Bill Appel as a new PCO, and we will hear highlights of the meetings of the state party and the 40th.

Attend via web: https://zoom.us/j/640781911

The San Juan County Democrats met today in Friday Harbor. Our virtual connection was mediocre today, so if you tuned in but weren’t able to be successful, I apologize. We should have a microphone and camera next time that will improve the experience.

We have been discussing a wealth and income tax resolution since January, and today we finally passed it. Here is the language: WHEREAS the connection between rising wealth and income inequality is now proven to negatively impact democracy by world famous economists like Thomas Piketty and Robert Reich, and WHEREAS the role of government is to do the most good for the most people and the environment, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the San Juan County Democratic Party send a message to the members of the Washington State Legislature and the Federal Congressional delegation as well as the platform committees at the state and federal levels urging them to support bringing democracy back by instituting wealth and income taxes on the wealthiest people as detailed by Thomas Piketty, who recommends a tax of 73% annually for income over $1,000,000.00 and 0.7% of wealth annually for wealth over $10,000,000.00. The language of resolutions is meant to be aspirational, meaning that you propose what you would really like to see in the best-case scenario but are then willing to negotiate a compromise. This resolution is meant to start a conversation on serious tax reform and to bring into the mainstream the idea of taxing accumulated wealth, not just income. Thanks to Ken Crawbuck for all his work on this.

Ken Crawbuck and Stephen Shubert produce the Islanders Voice blog, a weekly publication of important articles that progressives should be aware of. Some articles are reprinted from other media, but many of them are original. Ken and Stephen told us that readership has greatly increased, as there is a presence through Facebook, a website, and email. They are looking to possibly expand circulation further into more of the 40th LD. If you aren’t already getting these weekly articles, you can subscribe at https://us11.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=b407d3905613b3f54531cb729&id=cfbb00db80 .

Ryan Palmeteer has become our new secretary. You may know Ryan from his role in thelocal conservation district or as the head of the local electric vehicle club. He is involved in numerous other capacities as well, yet he has generously volunteered to serve as our secretary. Thank you, and welcome, Ryan.

Bill Appel is a longtime local attorney and civic participant. He just moved to Friday Harbor after 40 years on Waldron, and he happens to reside in the Friday Harbor North precinct, where we recently had a vacancy. He has graciously agreed to serve as the PCO for that precinct, and we will take a formal vote to confirm him next meeting. Bill has a tremendous store of knowledge that we will gratefully be able to access.

Geri reported that the 40th LD (legislative district), of which we are a part, has elected a new chair. Trevor Smith, a longtime refinery worker and union official, put himself forward for this position, and we are glad to have him. It will be good to have the voice of someone directly involved in labor. Todd Lagestee, former secretary of the 40th, was elected to be the new Whatcom County vice chair for the 40th. While the meetings of the 40th generally take place on the mainland, once a year their meeting is here in the islands. This year we will have the meeting of the 40th on Sunday, Oct. 6, from 11:30 until 1:30 at the Grange in Friday Harbor (thanks to Bill Severson for donating the use of the Grange). We hope that many of you will attend the meeting, as it is an opportunity to connect better with the people who will be running the LD presidential caucus next spring. Remember, there will be no more island precinct caucuses; after the primary in March, the next step to becoming a delegate is running for this position at the LD caucus. Finally, the 40th LD will be re-writing their bylaws, and Bob O’Connell volunteered to help with this.

Mike and Jan Hansen joined us for the first time today, and Mike spoke to an issue about which we should all be concerned. With the current heyday for right-wing white supremacist groups under Trump, there is a concern about these groups acting as private, armed militias. What if an armed, private group showed up at a disaster site to provide security for emergency services providers? Such groups have patrolled US borders, bearing arms and detaining people. Mike asks if there has been sufficient response by public authorities to take preventive action by declaring private militia organizations and their actions contrary to public policy, illegal, and dangerous to public safety and order. If not, he suggests that the state legislature should step in. Mike is willing to start writing a resolution on this topic, and it was suggested that a committee of a few more people might be formed to help him. Ryan expressed an interest. If you are interested in working on this, please let me know. Also, we can contact our legislators, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and our Attorney General Bob Ferguson.

Last year we had established a library of books that Democrats might find of interest. Susan Grout has generously been lugging a heavy box to meetings, and we need to change this system. Therefore, I will list the books we have available, and if you would like to read one of them, you can contact Susan at grout@rockisland.com . Either you can come to our next meeting to pick it up, or we can work out another arrangement. Here are the books: The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama In Solitary Witness by Gordon Zahn American Tales by David Turnoy (yes, I wrote this, US history from Columbus through the Civil War & Reconstruction for young adults) The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson Our Revolution by Bernie Sanders Taliban by Ahmed Rashid Moyers on Democracy by Bill Moyers Dude, Where’s My Country? by Michael Moore Stupid White Men by Michael Moore The New, New Rules by Bill Maher Drift by Rachel Maddow In the Country We Love by Diane Guerrero What Happened to Bernie Sanders by Jared Beck The Longest War by Peter Bergen.

Related to books, local resident Dr. John Geyman has produced two new books on Medicare for All: Common Sense: The Case For and Against Medicare for All (this is a pamphlet-sized book) and Struggling and Dying Under Trumpcare: How We Can Fix This Fiasco. Both books are available at local bookstores.

Because we had such great discussions on the above topics, that was as far as we got. Westill have the issue of endorsements to discuss, and we will do that at our next meeting on Oct. 12. Don’t forget the meeting of the 40th on Oct. 6. Thanks for reading.

Hello San Juan County Democrats,

We will resume our meetings on Saturday, Sept. 14, at the community college in Friday Harbor.  The meeting will run from 11:30 until almost 2:00.  This year the downstairs room we normally use will be occupied by Headstart, so we will meet all year in the upstairs room.  To make sure we will have the availability of this room, I have signed up for every month between now and June except December.  If you would like to make a note of our meeting dates, here they are: Sept. 14, Oct. 12, Nov. 9, Jan. 11, Feb. 8, March 14, April 11, May 9, June 13.  You will note that these dates are always the second Saturday of the month in an effort to be consistent and make it easier for you to attend.  If you are not able to physically attend our meeting on Sept. 14, we will be broadcasting it on Zoom; simply go to  https://zoom.us/j/715415871 on your computer to virtually attend.  For those traveling from islands other than San Juan, you can walk on the ferry, and we will hope to have a number of our Friday Harbor Democrats pick us up at the ferry and return us there after the meeting.

In addition to these meetings, we are hosting the next quarterly meeting of the 40th Legislative District at the Grange on San Juan Island on Sunday, Oct. 6.  Bill Severson has generously donated his use of the building for that day, and the meeting will run from 11:30 until 1:30.  We hope many of you will join us for this meeting, where you will be able to meet the new chair of the 40th LD and learn more about how our county organization and the legislative district can work together to elect more Democrats and bring about more progressive change.

Our September meeting will feature a discussion of the endorsement process.  We have generally endorsed after the primary and before the general election.  Other county locals nearby, as well as the 40th LD, endorse before the primary.  We will discuss the pros and cons of each and try to come up with a good decision.  In addition, we will have a presentation by Stephen Shubert and Ken Crawbuck, the gentlemen who publish Islanders Voice, our local blog.  If you are not receiving the weekly posts, I encourage you to get on their email list.  In the past the blog has published a lot of articles that appeared in other venues, as well as some original content, but more recently Ken has been composing some amazing original articles that you really shouldn’t miss.  To sign up to receive these free articles, go to https://us11.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=b407d3905613b3f54531cb729&id=cfbb00db80

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.  We have had two folks express interest in the PCO positions that I mentioned recently, so we are hoping to bring them on board in the near future.
Thanks,

David Turnoy
Chair, SJC Democrats
360-376-4165
davidgeri@centurylink.net

Hello San Juan County Democrats,

The San Juan County Democrats invite you to a timely presentation entitled “A republic, if you can keep it”, (a quote by Benjamin Franklin), followed by Q&A, by Pulitzer Prize winning historian and Stanford professor David Kennedy, a resident of San Juan Island. On Thursday, August 8 from 5:30 to 7 pm at Grange Hall in Friday Harbor. In a wide-ranging discussion, Professor Kennedy will explore the complicated historical dynamics that have brought our republic to its present pass.

The event is also a fundraiser for the SJCDs. Suggested donation at door is $20 per person.

Thanks,

David Turnoy
Chair, SJC Democrats
360-376-4165
davidgeri@centurylink.net

David Turnoy
Chair, SJC Democrats
360-376-4165
davidgeri@centurylink.net