Minutes of Meeting
June 16, 2010
Present: J. Bakey, D. Sirotkin Butler, S. Cleinman, A. Coolidge, M. Crewe, M. Cummings, R. Elwell, R. Feldman, K. Haase, G. Hooper, A. Kraus, P. Morrison, I. Rhodes, E. Schwartz, R. Smith, B. Brinkerhoff, K. Donnelly, M. Harrington, L. Bishop, H. Fowles, L. Pedulla, Will Brownsberger, Susan Stamps, Stephanie Noguera and another representative of the Suzanne Bump campaign. (25)
Each attendee introduced him- or herself to the group.
The minutes from the meeting of May 13 were unanimously accepted.
Ed Schwartz, Treasurer, reported that the current ADTC bank account balance is $11,669.01. $6,020 of that are funds already earmarked for the campaign office.
A motion to elect Susan Stamps as Associate Member was made and seconded. The vote will be taken at the next meeting she attends.
Nominations for the two full member positions left open by the resignations of Amy and Marc Rosenthal were made and seconded. The nominees are Ken Donnelly, Lisa Pedulla, Lynn Bishop, and Heather Fowles. The vote will be taken at the July 14 meeting.
Chair Aimee Coolidge noted that Tim and Cam Shannon, who are moving to Maine, have not yet resigned from the Committee but are expected to do so before the next meeting. If so, nominations will be taken for those two vacancies from among current Associate Members at the July 14 meeting, and the final vote at the next meeting after that.
Rep. Will Brownsberger reported that he has an opponent for the fall, Lalig Musserian, who is unenrolled but is conservative and is supported by Republicans. She has no political track record but reportedly wants to cut taxes while increasing local aid and to crack down on immigration; and opposes same-sex marriage. She is expected to be well funded, possibly by the same people who used stealth robocalls to defeat an override in Belmont by 400 votes this week.
Will spoke about his two terms in the State House. In his first term he helped pass probate reform, public health regionalization, and the Global Warming Solutions Act, as well as supporting education and preserving same-sex marriage. In his second term he has focused on budget issues, voting for the sales tax increase, and has supported greater openness in legislative procedures. He supports fiscal responsibility as well as responsibility to the environment and to children.
Sen. Donnelly spoke in strong support of Will, praising his hard work and his resistance to Tea-Party pressure. Will said that he plans to do both coffees and door-to-door canvassing and asked for volunteers to help with his campaign.
Aimee invited delegates to provide impressions of the June 5 Convention. Several had found it inspiring and energizing and had appreciated Gov. Patrick’s speech and the tribute to Sen. Kennedy. Some noted that the roll call and votes in the noisy hall were not very efficient. Deborah Sirotkin Butler noted that disability access was the best yet.
Dick Smith, the committee member present, reported that there had been no activity in recent months. Aimee noted that with Tim Shannon’s departure we would need a new Diversity Officer and that members should be made aware of this before the next meeting.
Aimee pointed out that September 25 will be our big outreach and recruiting opportunity for this election year. Town Day is after the primary, and the Democratic candidates are expected to be present. She encouraged members to think creatively about how to attract people to the booth.
Kim Haase reported that she and Paulette Schwartz had done a survey of available office space on and near Massachusetts Ave. but that she had not yet followed up with the other volunteers to call the realtors.
At Aimee’s request, a motion was made and approved unanimously to authorize the executive committee (the officers) to make the decision on office space during the summer.
Aimee reported on the Patrick/Murray voter ID campaign goals and process. The voter ID process allows volunteers to identify voters from anywhere in the state. Lynn Bishop noted that the software has been improved. Currently you must supply the voter’s email address to use the software; if the voter does not want to give it to the campaign, the ID cards must be sent or delivered to the campaign office. (Heather Fowles reported that she works in Charleston and can deliver them.) There will be a training session on using the software.
Aimee recommended that members put together their lists of people they will approach.
Aimee reported that Bob Sprague had invited her to respond to a YourArlington.com posting by the Republican Town Committee chair. Others reported that the same text had appeared as a letter to the editor in the Advocate. There was consensus among attendees that a response was needed. Aimee asked for email input from members on the content of the response. Lynn Bishop reported that she had already responded on the Advocate web site.
Stephanie Noguera, state field coordinator of the Suzanne Bump campaign for auditor, thanked the Bump supporters at the convention, and noted that supporters of other candidates have three months to reconsider. She said that the campaign will have a strong field organization and welcomed volunteers. She reported that Bump has been endorsed by Congressman Barney Frank, who will be hosting an event for her shortly.
Aimee recommended that people attend Rep. Jay Kaufman’s Open House on Thursday, June 17, on state revenue issues.
Aimee also noted that over the summer the Committee will need to consider action on various ballot questions. The State Convention voted to oppose the question that would repeal the 40B law. There are also questions that would repeal the alcohol tax and roll back the sales tax from 6.25% to 3%. These would have a catastrophic effect on state services.
Dick Smith asked for volunteers to collect signatures in support of single-payer health care in Rep. Garballey’s district.
The next regular meeting will be Wednesday, July 14, in the second-floor meeting room of the Community Safety Building, 112 Mystic St., at 7:30 p.m. The tentative date for the next summer meeting is Tuesday, August 17.
A motion to adjourn was made and approved unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Kim Haase
Secretary