It's crunch time. One month until the election and your help is still appreciated for voter outreach in Pennsylvania. From a fellow Independent Neighborhood Democrats member:

Please join me Saturday, October 4th for a day of canvassing Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley. It is here that the battle for Pennsylvania will be decided, where it is literally being fought house by house, door by door.

In this Thursday night's Vice Presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin, we will hear A LOT from Sarah Palin. It is up to us, through our hard work, to see that after November 4th we will see THE LAST of Sarah Palin. I never thought we'd have a Republican Vice Presidential nominee who scared me more than Dick Cheney, or embarrassed me more than Dan Quayle. But the world recently is full of surprises. From the stunning collapse of our global economic system to the high-jacking of the Justice Department by neoconservatives and religious zealots, the time for enjoying the comforts of home and hearth must wait. We have work to do in Pennsylvania, and October 4th is time again to "Get on the Bus."

I want to give both my endorsements for Tuesday's primary as well as the endorsements from some of the organizations I respect. First my endorsements:

Brooklyn's 1st Civil Court Seat: Devin Cohen

Devin is the clear choice in this case, and not just because he is a friend of mine. Devin Cohen has extensive civil court experience while his opponent has mainly criminal and appellate law experience. Devin is widely known for his fairness and honesty as well as his commitment to the community as a volunteer EMT. My wife has known Devin since high school. And I once called him, long before he was running for judge, the most honest person I know in Brooklyn politics. His opponent is best known politically for his donations to and legal help for both Brooklyn party boss Clarence Norman (currently serving a prison sentence for corruption) and for the Conservative Party. Devin is politically best known for his work on Community Board 6, his dedication to reform politics in Brooklyn, and as former president of the Independent Neighborhood Democrats. Roger Adler has also run an exclusively negative campaign, trying to smear Devin Cohen as if Adler has nothing positive to offer himself. Adler has claimed to be the outsider, an despite having donated to Clarence Norman AND done Norman's legal work despite the fact that the county party bound his petitions. Devin is known to have been a voice for judicial reform so Adler basically lied about their relative political connections. Adler also admitted, in my presence and before an entire room full of people, that he in essence tried to get a judgeship through political donations and political favors. This is what he said publicly, I checked with others who heard him and they agreed. He also expressed admiration for the judicial philosophies of Supreme Court justices Scalia and Thomas, who are about as conservative as you can get.

Many think it's kind of a shame that we elect our judges in a way that means they have to raise money and campaign like every other office, but that's the system we have, so, as with every other office, it is up to us to help out the good candidates. (Adapted from a snail mail invitation):

A coalition of three local, community-oriented Democratic clubs, Lambda Independent Democrats (LID), Independent Neighborhood Democrats (IND, where I'm on the board), and Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats (CBID, where my wife is an officer), join together to invite you to a summer garden party fundraiser of Devin Cohen, our endorsed candidate for Civil Court, 1st district:

Wed. July 9, 2008
6:30-8:30 PM
at the home of Harley Diamond and Jonathan Lovett
363 Washington Ave., Clinton Hill, Brooiklyn

Compare and contrast the two candidates:

DEVIN COHEN:
*Strong supporter and friend of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and equality
*Lifelong reform Democrat who has only supported and worked for Democratic candidates and causes
*Appeared before and endorsed by Lambda Independent Democrats

Last night was the monthly meeting of the Independent Neighborhood Democrats and was the evening when my wife and I got in all the petitions we were working on. Of course we could do more petitioning, but I think we will be taking a break from that to catch up on our regular lives. But something has struck me as I have petitioned in three separate Election Districts and talked to people petitioning in a good half dozen other districts. One candidate who I have been watching out for because he is running against a friend of mine seems missing.

Tonight was the endorsement meeting of the Independent Neighborhood Democrats for this year's judicial races.

Okay, let's cut to the chase: IND endorsed the exact same slate of candidates as CBID.

Diana Johnson for Surrogate Court

Kathy Levine for 6th District (see below)

and for the four countywide seats:
Debra Silver
Carolyn Wade
Robin Sheares
Fred Arriaga

Now for the jucier stuff that I am learning everyone likes to read.

The big event tonight turned out not to be the endorsements, but a withdrawal. Devin Cohen, who I have plugged publicly and who was backed by Jo Anne Simon, Alan Fleishman, Eric Adams, and Joan Millman, chose tonight at the club he used to serve as president to withdraw from the 6th Civil Court race.

I heard Devin speak at CBID last week (missed part of his speech, but caught part) and he did very well. He is a great speaker as well as being one of the few completely trustworthy people in Brooklyn politics. Devin seemed ready to hit a groove of campaiging as he spoke to CBID, and if he didn't get their endorsement it was no surprise since Kathy Levine was a past President of CBID.

UPDATE AT BOTTOM

Thursday May 31st is the endorsement meeting for this year's Judicial elections at the Independent Neighborhood Democrats (IND). Last week was the endorsement meeting of Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats (CBID) and in preparation for it I discussed my own feelings on the various races and afterwards I discussed what happened at the meeting.

This week, in preparation for the IND meeting, I want to mention a few endorsements, including presenting a letter my wife helped write, but signed by several people, endorsing Devin Cohen for Civil Court Judge, 6th Judicial District. I will start with my wife's letter, quoted in full:

As you know, CBID will be voting tonight to endorse a candidate in the election for Civil Court Judge, 6th Judicial District. We would like to ask you to support Devin Cohen for that position.