22. June 2023 · Comments Off on Bob Ferguson Exploratory Dinner · Categories: Announcements, Elections, Recent Events

I’m excited to announce a new event — our first Tri-Cities Dinner to support my Exploratory Campaign for Governor! 

Mark your calendar for Thursday, June 22nd for dinner at Three Rivers Convention Center — CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT TODAY.

As Attorney General, I look for opportunities to make the biggest impact for Washingtonians – and the results aren’t too bad! Here are just a few highlights: 

  • Secured over $1.1 billion from our lawsuits against large corporations that illegally fueled the opioid epidemic in pursuit of profits. 
  • Banned the sale of assault weapons. I proposed this legislation seven years in a row until it passed. This is a life saving policy that makes our communities safer. 
  • Led a national coalition to successfully defend reproductive rights and access to mifepristone, the safe abortion pill. 
  • Defeated Donald Trump in court over 50 times. 

I am exploring running for Governor because I want to build on these successes on behalf of the people of Washington state. 

Bob Ferguson for Governor Exploratory Campaign
Tri-Cities Fundraising Dinner
Thursday, June 22nd 
Doors Open: 5:00pm
Dinner: 6:00pm
Three Rivers Convention Center
7016 W Grandridge Blvd, Kennewick 

Confirm your attendance with a donation ONLINE HERE. Questions about the event? Contact bridget@bobferguson.com.

Unlike most politicians, I refuse contributions from large corporations. Consequently, I depend on the financial support of individuals like you. We have an ambitious goal for the Exploratory Campaign of 5,000 Washington donors and financial support from all 39 counties.

This will be a fun evening with some interesting speakers! I hope you can join us. 

Bob

16. June 2023 · Comments Off on National Democratic Training – June 16, 2023 · Categories: Announcements, Recent Events

Pride Month Partner Spotlight: Emerge

All month long we’re spotlighting Democratic partners who elevate LGBTQIA+ voices. Emerge works to elect women to office, particularly women who are a part of marginalized communities such as BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ women. Their signature training program provides in-person monthly insights to potential candidates for office.

Learn more about Emerge and their exciting programming using the button below:

[Special Partner Event] Build with ActBlue: What You Need to Know to Fundraise Online
Thursday, June 22 at 12:30pm ET

Digital fundraising is the most cutting-edge way to fundraise for your campaign, local party, or organization. ActBlue, the preeminent fundraising platform in Democratic Politics, is hosting multiple summer refreshers that will help you perfect your ask, build your list, and harness the power of small dollar donors.

Building Your Fundraising List will be offered next Thursday. Don’t miss out on learning from the experts themselves!

So You Want to Run for Office
Thursday, June 22 at 1pm ET

You bring your own life experiences and familiarity with your community. Let us equip you with the tools to get started in your run for office.

You might be thinking…I can’t be a Senator! Well you don’t have to be. There are so many essential elected roles in every single community across America that affect the way taxes are allocated, schools are managed, and parks are built. Even if you’re just interested in learning more, join this training to learn about the first realistic steps you can take.

At NDTC, we love our summers too! This will be our final training until July 10, so if you aren’t quite sure what you want to do, go ahead and use the button to register before you spend some time in the sun!

We talk about our upcoming live trainings a lot here… but did you know we have an on-demand Online Academy where you can access hundreds of free courses and resources for free?

All month long we’ve discussed ways to develop a field plan (and using data to support it). Whether you attended some live trainings on this topic or not, our amazing Curriculum team at NDTC developed coursework to supplement your learning.

First, take a look at Intro to Field to review the best practices in organizing, canvassing, and field strategy.

Then, VoteBuilder 101 will walk you through the industry’s best platform for voter contact efforts.

Finally, Targeting Voters takes a more strategic approach in evaluating methods for reaching voters who will turn out for you and your campaign. Build supporters by using key data.

And it doesn’t stop there! You can always visit the Online Academy, set up a free account, and keep track of your progress while taking advantage of our extensive course catalog.

15. June 2023 · Comments Off on National Democratic Training – June 15, 2023 · Categories: Announcements, Recent Events

This Pride, it’s more important than ever to hear first-hand from LGBTQIA+ voices about their political experiences.

So in partnership with our friends at the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, we’re hosting a special Pride in Focus NDTC Expert Q&A discussing trans and nonbinary lived experiences.

Join a panel of trans and nonbinary folks and allies as they share lessons learned and discuss the outlook of trans and nonbinary inclusion in Democratic spaces moving forward. We invite anyone of all gender identities to join this important conversation.

Fighting for visibility for folks at the margins must be a focus of our work if we ever want to build a truly inclusive bench of elected officials.

That’s why we invited our panelists to share their own experiences, learn from one another, and even take some of your questions on action steps to center and defend LGBTQIA+ communities.

This conversation is an essential one. Join us on Thursday, June 15 at 1pm ET as our panelists dig into politics, the trans and nonbinary experience, and more.

15. June 2023 · Comments Off on Ag and Rural Caucus -Farm Bill – June 2023 · Categories: Committee News, Recent Events

ARC June Events

6:30 pm Thursday 15 June

Andy Juris
President, Washington Association of Wheat Growers

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83419676203?pwd=NUo0NVVYOHU4Ky91RTYxa1Q0cjdXQT09

Farming is a private business…why a Farm Bill?

What’s the public’s concern in farm policy? Why should we care about what happens in this corner of the market?

Food, not surprisingly, is a major part of the  “social” dimension of farming. Food sufficiency, food quality, food reliability – food on the table. This is why we all have an interest in farming.

Keeping people – farmers – on the farm is also part of our national interest. Farming is rural. The public at large has an interest is keeping people on the farm and in small communities. This is part nostalgia, part politics, and part population spreading. And a cynic might add that a nation of many small farmers pays off for a food industry concentrated in a few corporations buying their produce.

Farmers take pride in feeding people…justifiable pride. And we are happy enough to pose as rural, independent and self-reliant. Farmers are also business people. We are business people with an uncommon attachment to our land. It is our principal asset. Sure, we have combines, tractors and farm shops, but it is our land which provides the revenue stream that pays the bills. We have a vested interest in the productive quality of our land for ourselves and our future generations.

It is our vested interest in the quality of our soil and its productive capacity that makes farmers bristle when “outsiders” tell us how to farm our private ground. Their well-meaning message that agriculture has an out-sized ecological effect often comes with the accusation that farming is at the root of most of our ecological problems…fertilizer run-off polluting our streams, CO2 emissions from tillage and our diesel-burning tractors, aquifer depletion to irrigate crops, poisoning the soil with pesticides, killing off pollinators and wildlife, and so on.

The Farm Bill tries to bridge this cultural gap by using dollars. Title 2, Conservation, is a package of measures that rents ecological services from farmers. This is smart. The programs are voluntary, they compensate farmers for ground taken out of cultivation or to adopt practices that compromise short term production.

The Conservation Title is part of a broader movement to develop carbon markets to pay directly for agriculture’s carbon sequestration from practices that join society’s issues with changing climate and farmers re-investment in their soil. This carbon market is happening mostly outside the Farm Bill but it is there that it is rooted.

Join us Thursday to talk about what you think a farm bill should do.

Don
13 June 2023

Farm Bill Titles

“We call this thing the Farm Bill and, honestly, it’s so much more than what that might imply,” Stabenow added. (Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee.)

Andy Juris is going to talk to us about the Farm Bill and how it plays out for Washington wheat growers. Farmers do not talk about Farm Bill titles; we talk about programs. It can help, though, to lay out the Bill by title and baseline dollars.

TitleTitle HeadingExample programsBaseline Expenditure
Title 4NutritionSNAP: food stamps1,205.0
Title 11Crop InsuranceCrop Insurance Program97.0
Title ICommoditiescommodity support; disaster assistance57.0
Title 2Conservation CREP; PL 566 water projects57.0
Title 3TradeMarket Access Program4.8
Title 10Horticulturespecialty crops; organic2.1
Title 7ResearchARS; research and extension1.3
Title 12Misc 0.8
Title 9Energycommunity renewable energy0.5
Title 8ForestryUSDA Forest Service0.1
Title 5CreditCapital and Operating-0.1
Title 6Rural DevelopmentHousing, community facilties-0.1

Nutrition is clearly the largest title, making up 85% of the total. While it is probably capped by the recent debt ceiling bill, it has increased from 67% in 2008 to76% in 2018.

This is OK. This is what gets urban Democrats on board to vote for a farm bill. Progressive Democrats also get excited about the Conservation Title. This is also OK. These are the dollars that pay for on-farm conservation projects and, especially for central Washington, is making the Odessa Groundwater Replacement project possible.

The other two titles that are important locally are Trade – 85% of Washington wheat is exported – and Research. USDA-ARS is housed at WSU where, for wheat growers, there appears to be seamless coordination between the University and ARS.

Enough detail for today. As Senator Stabenow says, “it’s so much more…”

Don
12 June 2023

The Farm Bill: What is actually?

You have all heard about “The Farm Bill”.  Some of you know that it is hot right now. It is renewed every five years and this is the year.

You may also vaguely know that “The Farm Bill” is more about food stamps than crop insurance. For this you can thank Tom Foley, D-Wash CD5, and Bob Dole, R-Kansas, a generation ago. Foley and Dole lead the ag committees in the house and senate, and realized that farmers needed strong urban support for a farm bill to pass. They bought this support by rolling food stamps and food policy into the farm bill. You sometimes will hear farmers complaining that the farm bill seems to be more for the city folk than farmers and that we should have a clean farm bill. The linkage, though, of ag interests and urban food policy is what keeps farmers in business.

Times change and agriculture is again in the cross-hairs of conflicting interests. A question for us is whether the farm bill can be a useful instrument for financial security for farmers and also deal with a changing climate and suspicion of farm practices on the ground. Do we still have family farms? Are our soils being depleted by commercial ag practices? Can farmers save the world? Are farmers CO2 and CH4 villains? Or do we enjoy a residual of nostalgia and good will?

We will take up some of these issues with Andy. Andy helped us on our Solar Siting in Klickitat County session two years ago and has agreed to help us understand what is at stake with the Farm Bill.

Don
29 May 2023


Our Better Practices roundtable is on the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 pm.. Use the link above for 2023.

Our Policy Series is on the third Thursday of each month at 6:30 pm. Use the link above for 2023. 


Copyright © 2022 Ag and Rural Caucus, All rights reserved.
Ag and Rural Caucus of State Democratic Central Committee
Our mailing address is:
Ag and Rural Caucus
2921 Mud Creek Rd
Waitsburg, WA 99361
15. June 2023 · Comments Off on National Democratic Training – LGBTQ Panel – June 15, 2023 · Categories: Recent Events

Just touching base — Our panel event with LGBTQ+ Victory Fund is this Thursday, and we’re bringing together a stellar panel of folks to discuss trans and nonbinary issues in Democratic politics.

We truly encourage every Democrat to register for this event. An NDTC Expert Q&A is more than just a training. It’s a chance to engage in conversation with a community of fellow progressives and hear from experts in the field. Will you sign up to join us?

Now let’s meet our amazing panelists!

Rep. Brianna Titone of the Colorado State Legislature made waves as the state’s first transgender lawmaker. A geologist by trade, Brianna focuses on environmental, agricultural, and LGBTQIA+ issues in her work.

Alia Kapasi serves as the the campaign manager for Virginia State Delegate Danica Roem, the first openly transgender woman to both be elected and serve in any U.S. state legislature. Alia’s work as a field organizer exemplifies her commitment to the communities she serves.

And our very own Justice Marks, full stack developer at NDTC, will lead as moderator!

We’ll kick things off on Thursday at 1pm ET via Zoom.

We sincerely hope you’ll be a part of this discussion.

— The NDTC Team

12. June 2023 · Comments Off on National Democratic Training – June 12, 2023 · Categories: Recent Events

Pride Month Partner Spotlight: LGBTQ+ Victory Fund

All month long we’re spotlighting Democratic partners who elevate LGBTQIA+ voices. LGBTQ+ Victory Fund is the premier hub for candidates who identify as LGBTQIA+ running for office. Through fundraising, endorsements, and networking opportunities, the organization works to put LGBTQIA+ representation at the forefront of Democratic politics.

Learn more about LGBTQ+ Victory Fund and their exciting programming using the button below:

NDTC Expert Q&A: NDTC Expert Q&A: Pride in Focus (Transgender & Nonbinary Campaign Experiences)
Thursday, June 15 at 1pm ET

Alongside our partners at LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, NDTC invites you to a panel discussion on the unique challenges and considerations of transgender and nonbinary Democratic candidates.

We’re thrilled to have Colorado State Rep. Brianna Titone, the state’s first openly trangender woman in office, as one of our panelists. She and fellow panelists will share their own experiences, tips they’ve learned along the way, and more. Don’t forget to bring your questions, as you’ll have the opportunity to ask your own.

Maximizing Your Field Strategy Through Precinct Prioritization
Monday, June 12 at 1pm ET

The best field strategy isn’t about reaching every single person in your district.

In fact, this can waste a lot of your time and resources!

Learn more about prioritizing certain precincts and groups of voters in Monday’s training. These efforts optimize your ability to reach the voters most likely to earn your support.

Data Management for Your Field Program
Tuesday, June 13 at 1pm ET

At its core, field programs are about data. And you need to learn how to manage your data in order to figure out the best way to use it in your field and GOTV strategies.

Tuesday’s training will cover collecting, tracking, and utilizing various data pieces in a field plan. Additionally, get the best insight on tools you can use on your own campaigns to manage it all.

09. June 2023 · Comments Off on Tri-City Democrats June 9, 2023 · Categories: Recent Events
Tri-City Democrats logo

Summer Picnic I

June 9, 2023

Tri-city Democrats potluck picnic.  6pm Friday, June 9, at 4501 W Lattin Ct West Richland. 

Bring a dish to share. We’ll provide serving and eating utensils and a limited variety of beverages. We’ll have a firepit and patio heaters in case it gets cool and misters and a fan if it’s hot.

06. June 2023 · Comments Off on NGPVAN Webinar · Categories: Announcements, Committee News, Recent Events

In our upcoming webinar, we’ll be showing you how to find and mobilize your support base with Mobilize, the industry’s #1 volunteer recruitment and event management application used by thousands of campaigns and causes.

Mobilize allows you to tap into a network of 5+ million volunteers, create and promote events quickly, and so much more. Join us for this live event to learn how to get started on accomplishing your organizational goals.

We hope to see you there!

Date & Time

Tuesday, June 6th

12:00 PM ET | 9:00 AM PT