We are just $1,200 shy of reaching our $25,000 goal for Four Directions – Arizona!
WE DID IT!!!! $25,125
You guys rock! The thermometer was on $20,100 when I took it down just now, so that means we are at $25,100 – and likely a bit more because there can be a few-minute lag before they show.
The thermometer shows $18,800, but of course the $5,000 paper check from our Balloon Juice angel doesn’t show in the thermometer, but it definitely counts for the match – so we are really at $23,800!
Our $25,000 gets double-matched, so if we can make it this last mile, Four Directions will receive a total of $75,000! At least $50k will be used specifically in AZ, and the remaining $25k may be used in AZ, or it may be used in Georgia, Nevada, Wisconsin or Arizona.
Our funding is going to make a huge difference in AZ.
Mark Kelly is an excellent senator, there will be a close AZ governor’s race next November, and registering as many as possible of the 235,000 unregistered potential Native voters could be a game-changer for a big Democratic victory in AZ just one year from now.
You guys stepped up in a big way to get us to a good place for going ad-free, so we are aware that timing is not perfect, but we are still hoping we can make it over the top for AZ in the next day or two.
If you’ve already given what you comfortably can give, then please don’t even think for a minute about trying to do more for AZ.
But maybe there are still some folks who have been intending to contribute to Arizona? Can we do this?
FOUR DIRECTIONS – AZ
Double-Match Fundraising
Four Directions worked in AZ in 2018 and in 2020, and they are now ‘reanimating’ people who worked with Four Directions directly in the past. Voter registration gets started in January or February.
Because of our fundraising and the double-match, they are laying the groundwork right now and are starting to recruit and train people to be team leads in AZ, and the are developing the protocols that will be the foundation for the work in AZ in 2020.
Some of you may remember OJ from our Four Directions Q & A or the Four Directions Zoom? OJ is the Coalition Director of Large Tribes in Arizona, which includes the Navajo Nation. Four Directions connections in AZ are deep.
Almost Retired
OK, just added another $100.
phdesmond
i’m happy to chip in another bit to help us reach this goal.
but i have a longer-term question — i want to start making a small monthly contribution. which of the payment methods i’m familiar with, Patreon, Venmo, and Paypal, is the cheapest for JOHN COLE to use? i.e.,
forget pizzazz.
which one has
the lowest fee
for the payee?
WaterGirl
@phdesmond: Zelle is NO FEE on either end.
But.. it seems like you can’t do a recurring payment with Zelle, unless you have one of the banks that integrates with Zelle AND lets you do recurring.
PayPal is also free as long as you designate friend and not vendor, and you can do recurring.
WaterGirl
@Almost Retired: Thank you! (100 = $300)
rockstar
In for $25 – thanks for all you do…
WaterGirl
@rockstar: Thank you! (25 = $75)
ToesintheSand
Just donated $50 as a memorial to my late father in law who was always young at heart. Happy Birthday Bill
Steeplejack
Pitched in another $25.
glc
$40.
WaterGirl
@ToesintheSand: That made me tear up. He sounds like a great guy.
Your 50 = $150
WaterGirl
@glc: Thank you so much!
Your 40 = $120
VeniceRiley
Well done, everyone! Yay!!! WaterGirl, you amaze me.
Old School
Mission Accomplished! Here’s to happy results in future Arizona elections!
Jinchi
I confess to being ignorant of Arizona Democrats (other than the two Senators). What do locals think of the Democratic bench and who the Democratic nominee is likely to be?
H.E.Wolf
$25K in nine days! Yay Jackals. :)
MazeDancer
Wow!
Wow!
And just like that 4D has 75K. They can hire people with that. They must be thrilled.
Well done, WaterGirl and BJ Angel. Feel happy and proud,
piratedan
@Jinchi: the bench is not exceptionally deep but it’s also devoid of nutjobs….
there are a couple of congressman who may vie for the seat, Stanton (Greg) and Gallego (Ruben), both are solid choices, Stanton is more “mainstream” of the two…
dark horses would be either of the current mayors of the major metro areas of Phoenix (Gallego, Kate) or Tucson (Romero, Regina)….
unsure if someone else would step up, although there has been some idle speculation that Kelly’s twin brother could move to the state and run for office. I also have no idea that anyone at the state lege level has a big enough profile to take the leap but you never know.
Josie
Gallego has a book out today about his tour in Iraq. Sounds like it would be riveting. Interesting timing.
ETA: https://www.amazon.com/They-Called-Us-Lucky-Afterlife/dp/0063045818/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UVL22B8UHE2G&keywords=ruben+gallego&qid=1636488955&qsid=145-8617040-2934648&sprefix=ruben+%2Caps%2C190&sr=8-1&sres=0063045818%2CB085878TDY%2CB09DTJHNL6%2CB09B8K13MW%2C015101227X%2CB00JEGFOES%2CB07VKZPQDF%2CB098BBJDST%2CB083JWZNW7%2C0870995545%2CB09B8FMWKP%2CB083GK6WXJ%2CB07Q2WLMJ2%2CB07GYTVQN5%2CB00K4M57PM%2CB085DK6YP6
CaseyL
YAYAYAYAYAY!! I am so happy, so pleased to be a small part of this!
raven
RIP Max Cleland. I went to a Veterans Day event in the Georgia State Capitol in the 80’s. He signed a copy of his book “Strong in the Broken Places” for everyone in the line and it took hours. He was a good guy and what the pukes did to him was a preview of these fucking scumbag republicans we have now.
Fair Economist
Bravo to everybody! Especially WaterGirl!
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Josie:
isn’t it, though…?
WaterGirl
@piratedan: What seat are we talking about?
edit: Duh. governor’s race in AZ.
lowtechcyclist
The people doing the double match gave us the whole month, right? And we did it by early afternoon of the ninth day!!
Did I say afternoon? It was still morning on the West Coast!
This place just rocks.
Suzanne
@Jinchi:
Katie Hobbs is likely to be the Dem nominee. She’s the current Secretary of State. Not very ideological. Solid pick. Probably the best chance for a Dem statewide since Janet.
Adrian Fontes is running for Secretary of State. He was Maricopa County Recorder for one term. I love him.
The bench is not deep.
raven
@WaterGirl: delete my comment if you like
Suzanne
@piratedan: Ruben Gallego is awesome. Kate Gallego leaves much to be desired, IMHO. She strikes me as Sinema-esque.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: Yes, they did. I had not known this, but November is the last key timeframe for early fundraising (it’s like yeast!) before the holidays.
November is great because it allows for the early planning that needs to happen before boots-on-the ground voter registration etc starts happening in Feb.
WaterGirl
@raven: why would I want to delete your comment?
raven
@WaterGirl: Because it has nothing to do with this important thread. I posted it in the last one too.
VeniceRiley
@raven: Co-signed. I’ll never forget and never forgive.
SiubhanDuinne
@raven:
I also have a signed copy of SATBP and a GA SoS lapel pin with his signature — both keepsakes handed directly to me by Max. He was a terrific guy. I notified a former Consul General — the one I was staffing when he made his first courtesy call on Cleland — and he was devastated to hear the news. While he was an active Canadian diplomat, of course, he couldn’t opine on partisan politics in the US — but when I told him this morning about Max’s death, he wrote back that he has never forgiven the Republicans for their horrible ad campaign in 2002.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@raven: Just posted this below, by Charlie Pierce
WaterGirl
@raven: Unless it’s a guest post or something where a particular person is being featured, pretty much all my posts are open threads.
Maybe it seemed like my “what race are we talking about” was a backdoor way of suggesting that something was off topic? It most definitely wasn’t. I am not feeling great today and I didn’t read carefully enough to see that it was clearly about the Gov race in AZ.
eclare
I was going to ask, WaterGirl, how are you feeling?
raven
@SiubhanDuinne: From the Pierce article “”The Cleland ad was powerful because it went to his strengths,” Wilson explains. “Everyone assumed Cleland was immune to critiques on national security issues … we found a lot of votes where he’d voted the wrong way … we tested those messages and discovered those messages were very effective against Cleland … they didn’t calculate that I have no moral center when it comes to political ads, and I will destroy the innocent and the guilty …”
raven
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I saw it, thanks.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@raven: that line jumped out at me, too
AnthroBabe
THANK YOU to all who contributed; as an Arizonan, I appreciate it.
Suzanne! PirateDan! Fellow Arizonan here up in the high mountain area. We are in a fight for our congressional seat (Tom O’Halleran) as he is up against THE OG “Q” Ron Watkins, who wants his seat. And we are represented by the dregs of humanity at the local AZ level (but Flagstaff itself is good) like Wendy Rogers (!!)
Ben Cisco
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Damn! Charlie didn’t hold anything back.
raven
@Ben Cisco: Saxby Chambliss is a total fucking scumbag, there was nothing to hold back.
eachother
Impressive fundraising accomplishments.
Count me proud to be a participant too.
sab
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: We need to remember this about the Lincoln Project. These guys were ptoud of having no moral center, before Trump.
Stu Stevens is now trying to rehabilitate the NRA : they were morally conflicted about the choices they made after Columbine. Give me a break. They had a completely united front that it was in no way their fault and that guns were not the problem.
frosty
Nine days to raise the funds anticipated in a whole month! That’s really impressive, and I’m proud to have been a part of it.
Way to go, WaterGirl for getting this underway!
mvr
Glad to have kicked in again this morning or perhaps it was yesterday – my memory sucks. But I didn’t realize we were that close because of the missing $5K. Thanks for all you do here WG!