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Monday, March 9, 2020

Next Steps To Save America


Current Situation

So, Warren is out. Moderates and the majority of the the Black vote have clearly coalesced around Biden. Based on a January Emerson College poll, up to 47% of Sanders' base said they would not #VoteBlueNoMatterWho in the General Election. It may be a lower percentage now that his base has grown, but we are in deep trouple if we lose even 20%. Plus, if Biden does win, his current platform doesn't address the serious need in America. I have some ideas to hedge our bets.

The Danger of a Contested Convention

I'm a Progressive, but my fervent hope is that we do not have a Contested Convention. I want no excuse by the radical faction of the Progressive Movement to create a rift. The radical faction of the progressive base wants a political civil war among the Democratic Party. They will use a Contested Convention to create this rift. 

Even if the DNC follows the rules, this faction will use any excuse to create a rift in the party. They have already claimed the rules are undemocratic and are threatening a political civil war. 

I agree. The rules are undemocratic. But they are the rules agreed upon by all Candidates. The DNC can't change them in the middle of the contest. And the DNC did change the rules on super-delegates last time, based on public pressure. They have proved malleable to the voice of The People. We can continue to pressure them to improve over time.

Please know that not all who want a Contested Convention are part of the radical faction. Some may simply see it as their last hope to get the help America needs.

The Risk of Losing in the General Election

Getting rid of Trump must be our top priority. Our very democracy, imperfect as it is, is at stake. If the radical faction succeeds in fomenting resentment about the Contested Convention, then we bleed voters and go weak into the General Election. We may even lose to Trump as we did last time. 

This set up is almost the same as 2016. Group Leaders are reporting Russian Trolls are trying to infiltrate groups already. They will foment discontent and bitterness. We must act more wisely, this time, my fellow Americans.

I'm not here to tell you how to vote. I'm saying this is where we are. The Moderate and Black vote has solidified around Biden. Sanders is underperforming 2016. Right now it looks like Biden will win. There is a small possibility that could change, but this is where we are and this is what we must do:

Stay United Against Trump

Prepare to stay united against Trump regardless of the outcome of the election. If there is a Contested Convention, and a rift is created, please stick with us to get rid of Trump. Think of ways to punish the DNC that do not result in a Trump win,  but instead result in positive  change. Be skeptical of those calling to vote third party in retaliation. 

Hedge Your Bets to Fight For Americans In Need

We also have to think of the Americans who need help and who won't get it under Biden's current platform. Biden is most vulnerable to public pressure now as he tries to coalesce the base. Even if you will vote for Sanders, you can still pressure Biden into implementing Warren's version of your most important Progressive Plans. This is hedging your bets.

If you agree with Warren being VP if Biden wins, also ask for that. This would help unite the country. She may not want the job, but it would at least give her negotiating power to get some of her plans implemented. Here are a few key plans:

Warren's Medicare-For-All Plan

If we have Sanders M4A plan on his side and Warren's M4A plan on Biden's side, we are covered either way! Her plan covers children and those at 200% of poverty level immediately, almost entirely through Executive Order. So it covers the greatest need quickly. The rest is phased in over time.

Warren's Green New Deal

Biden's Climate Change plan sucks. Warren's has been reviewed by independent organizations as the best. Inslee gave her permission to use his Green Energy Plan, which was touted as the best plan, and she added 1 trillion to it. We need her plan.

Warren's Anti-Corruption Plan

We know Biden takes Big Money. But if we can push him to take on at least parts of Warren's anti-corruption plan, we can at least weaken the corruption in Washington to make it easier to fight next time.

Pressure Biden While He's Vulnerable to Public Pressure

There are those of you who are skeptical Biden will do anything to help the people. I think he is a good guy who just doesn't get it. It can't hurt to demand it and it is a small thing to do to help The People. When he needs votes is the best time to pressure him on policy. It will be far more effective than after the election. The time to strike is now. Make sure he knows that you will be watching to see if he will take on Warren's plans. Remember, you can still vote for Sanders and fight for Sanders, even if you write Biden.

Summary of Next Steps To Save America

  1. Stick together. Hope there is no Contested Convention.
  2. Expect radical factions to try to split us. Plan ways to punish the DNC for undemocratic rules without giving us 4 more years of Trump.
  3. Hedge your bets by writing Biden's campaign and insisting Biden take on some of  Warren's plans. (Climate Change, M4A, Anti-Corruption, etc.) If you are a Progressive, tell him! If you haven't voted yet, tell him! All the better.
  4. Consider recommending Warren as a unifying VP. She may not want the job, but it will at least give her negotiating power with Biden, and she is a formidable negotiator. 
  5. Write Biden using his contact form. Click here.
  6. Share these steps.

Thank you,

Lisanne Lombardo
Advocate for Democracy and Self-Determination

Friday, March 6, 2020

My Rage Statement: About the Treatment of Elizabeth Warren


To the Progressive Left,
To America,

If you can't handle a rage statement, please move on. I'm deeply enraged and will continue to be for a good long while.

Someone told me again that Elizabeth Warren lied and is a snake. They were speaking about Sanders telling her that a woman couldn't win. She didn't lie, and this is how I know.

I heard hundreds of men and women say a woman couldn't win.

Further, I saw the Progressive Left and America look down at the most qualified candidate America ever had, period, and they selected two old white men instead.

I saw them scorn a candidate with the most robust progressive policies ever designed.

I saw them ignore the most intersectional set of policies we've ever seen, created by the most diverse staff of any candidate, ever.

She has chewed up and spit out CEOs, who abused Americans, for lunch.

During the Big Bank bailout, when everyone else was busy propping up the banks who screwed us, and while Sanders was doing nothing but yelling about the bailout, she was busy protecting The People. She dreamed up, fought for, and stood up the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau to protect the average American from predatory banks. With it, she returned 12 billion dollars to 29 million people, mostly low income and minority families, who were scam victims. 

In Congress, she tore apart the Wells Fargo CEO, for the fraudulent scam of creating multiple unauthorized accounts for Americans, to drive up share prices. She publicly excoriated him for blaming and firing a swath of $12 an hour employees, while collecting hundreds of millions on the scam for himself. She paved the path to fine Wells Fargo 3 billion dollars for the scam and still calls for the executives to go to jail to this day.

She ended the sexist, racist Bloomberg candidacy by herself, in less than 5 minutes flat.

The Progressive Left has been loud and clear. They paid back her efforts by called her a corporatist shill.

They called her a fake, a fraud, and a snake.

They believe Sanders over Warren when no one was in the room.

And men and women everywhere said she couldn't win because her voice was "too shrill."

And men said, "I hope for her sake America doesn't see her like I do."

And they called her a "plain looking school marm."

And they said that "an angry Warren was unattractive."

And they said no one would elect an "English grade-school teacher" because they didn't even bother to look up her resume.

How did they rewarded this awesome, intelligent, empathetic, courageous, gladiator of a woman, who stood in 4-hour selfie lines and pinky promised little girls they could be President? They rewarded her with snake emojis.

I got the message loud and clear. I didn't have to be in that room.

Sanders said it. He said it because it is true.

America is sexist. A woman can't win.

A woman can't win because we believe a woman can't win.

Also, the Progressive Left isn't Progressive at all. I'm Progressive. What they did to Warren isn't Progressive. It's destructive. It's regressive.

My memory is long. I haven't entered a Chick-fil-A since 2012.

My rage is deep. I will not ever support the Progressive Movement until they actually are Progressive, which I expect will take a good long time, if ever.

And after Trump is out, I will not vote for a male Presidential Candidate again, until we have first had several female Presidents, if ever.

Are we clear?

I will do this because there are men and women who will never vote for a woman. And there are even more people who fear others won't vote for a woman, making the problem even worse. So, they will now need to reckon with me, a woman who won't vote for a man.

When the fear of the those who won't vote for men finally equals the fear of those who won't vote for women, the sexist slant of power will be equalized.

Every time I hear my fellow Americans, be they family, friends, or strangers, adding to the societal chant that "a woman can't win" I will do everything in my power to shut them down.

Getting Trump out in 2020 is essential for the survival of our democracy. This must happen first.

But, starting in 2024, I encourage both men and women to stand with me in boycotting men from the Presidency until the power is balanced.

We should still vote because we need to win the down-ballot races and protect Congress. However, if there is no woman on the Presidential ballot, we will simply write "A Woman" in the write-in space. We must ensure our party knows why they are failing to garner our vote for the highest office. Women make up 65% of the Democratic electorate. We must break this final glass ceiling!

240 years of male Presidents . . . I've had enough.

This is my pledge:

My vote is my power.
I will wield that power to equalize power imbalance.
#LastMaleVote2020

A woman can win.
A woman will win and we will demand it.

Pass it on!


Lisanne Lombardo
Citizen of the United States
Advocate for Self-determination

#LastMaleVote2020
#RageStatement

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

We Will Have Justice Served


Dear Senators Thom Tillis and Richard Burr,

I am your constituent and I noticed that both of you voted against witnesses and evidence in Trump's Impeachment Trial. This concerns me.

Now we hear that Ambassador John Bolton, a long-respected member of the Republican Party, has relevant testimony to share on the Ukraine scandal. Leaks from his manuscript suggest Trump may have traded personal favors with the heads of states of other countries, including Turkey and China.

Trump's defense attorneys keep saying there are no first-hand witnesses. Bolton is a first-hand witness and is willing to testify. Further, former White House Chief of Staff, General John Kelly, who is another long-respected Republican, has publicly stated that Bolton's testimony should be trusted.

I expect each of you to take your oath seriously and act as impartial jurors. Please request witnesses and evidence to get to the bottom of this matter. America deserves to know if Trump traded our tax dollars and our Nation's interest for his personal benefit.

If Trump abused his power, he must be held to account by the Senate Impeachment Trial just like any other American would be held to account in a criminal trial. If the Senate exonerates Trump without a real trial, it will not be a real exoneration. If either of you support a trial designed to cover-up corruption, North Carolina will hold you to account with our votes. Future generations will hold you to account in our history books.

In the United States of America no one is above the law and we will have justice served.

Lisanne Lombardo
Voting Citizen of the United States of America
Candler, North Carolina