Check out the website: https://lenspoliticalnotes.com  Look at the recent Political Notes and Len’s Letters on the website.  Political Note #355 Angie Craig MN 02, Political Note #356 Susie Lee NV 03, Political Note #357 Haley Stevens MI 11, Political Note #362 Vicente Gonazalez, Political Note #363 Tom Malinowski NJ 07, Political Note #375 Steven Horsford NV 04, Political Note #376 Lauren Underwood IL 14, Political Note #377 Lizzie Fletcher TX 07, Political Note #364 Jana Lynne Sanchez TX 06 Special Election, Multi-party Primary on May 1, 2021. 

Political Note #378    Elissa Slotkin MI 08

2022                              General Election

What’s a nice Jewish girl doing in a place like this? On a farm.

Elissa Slotkin https://elissaforcongress.com is the nice Jewish girl. She has explained that kibbutzniks in Israel are not the only Jewish farmers. She is neither a kibbutznik nor a conventional farm girl.  Elissa Slotkin’s great grandfather founded Hygrade Food Products in 1914.  Before Hygrade there must have been a New York City butcher.

Hugo Slotkin joined his father’s business early.  In 1949, Hugo moved the business to Detroit.  In 1959, he won the contract to supply what he called Ball Park Franks to Tiger Stadium.  In 1969 he sold the business which is now owned by Tyson foods.  Ball Park Farms are America’s largest selling hot dog.  Elissa Slotkin was born in 1976 in New York City, but was raised on the family farm that replaced Hygrade as the center of Slotkin family life.

What’s a nice Jewish girl doing in a place like this? In the CIA.

Elissa Slotkin was ambivalent about returning to the family farm or to related work in agriculture.  After attending a prep school in Michigan, she went to Cornell, graduating in 1998.  She was enrolled in Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and majored in rural sociology.  She resolved her direction in favor of practical sociology. On September 9, 2001, she began her studies at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.  Her third day at school, the World Trade Center in New York City was attacked.  The United States of America was attacked.

Elaine Slotkin got her degree from Columbia in 2003, but she got her direction from September 11, 2001.  She would do national service.  When the CIA came recruiting, she responded.  She was productive preparing for the work, becoming fluent in foreign languages – Swahili, Arabic.  She worked in the CIA and more.  Here’s a list.  She worked:

  • For the CIA as a political analyst from 2003-204
  • For the CIA as an intelligence briefer from 2004—2005
  • For the Director of National Intelligence as a senior assistant from 2005-2006
  • For the CIA as a leader of an assessment team in Iraq from 2006-2007
  • For the National Security Council as Staff Director for Iraq Policy from 2007-2009
  • For the US State Department as a senior advisor on Iraq Policy from 2009-2011
  • For the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy as an advisor on Middle East Policy in 2011
  • For the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy initially as the Chief of Staff in 2012
  • As the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy later in 2012
  • As the Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense in 2013
  • As the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Securities Affairs in 2014
  • As the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs from 2015 – 2017
  • In 2017, she returned to Holly, Michigan

What’s a nice Jewish girl doing in a place like this? In Congress.

Congress isn’t really hostile territory for a nice Jewish girl.  Back on the family farm, Elissa Slotkin and her husband, Dave Moore, who she had met in Iraq were planning their next steps.  He was a retired Colonel and former Apache helicopter pilot in Iraq.  In 2016, Donald Trump inspired Elissa Slotkin’s decision in favor of politics.  Back in Holly, she decided to run for Congress.

The 117th Congress, the version of Congress which began in January, 2021, has 28 Jewish members of the House of Representatives.  Of those, 26 are Democrats.  Neither of the Republicans are women.  Ten of the 26 Democrats are women.  Those ten include three lawyers, one doctor, two philanthropists, two public advocates/politicians, one retired military, and Elissa Slotkin, retired from the CIA.

What’s a nice Jewish girl doing in a place like this?  Confronting the Speaker of he House.

Elissa Slotkin stood out in 2018 as one of the newly elected Democrats who had promised, during the campaign,  not to vote for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker.  In part, this was a political promise made to a Republican district.  It was also a vision of a Democratic Party with new leadership from a younger generation.

Elissa Slotkin is where she should be in committees.  She’s Vice Chair of the Subcommittee on Readiness on the House Armed Services Committee as well as a member of the Subcommittee on Intelligence.  She is chair of the subcommittee on intelligence and counterterrorism of the Homeland Security Committee as well as a member of the subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation.

‘These committee assignments play perfectly to Elissa Slotkin’s expertise. Other assignments might have served her better politically.  Her mostly rural and nearly 85% white district includes most of Lansing.  Lansing’s major industry is state government. Lansing is the state capital the home of Michigan State University.

Along with Abigail Spanberger, another veteran of the CIA, and veteran Navy Helicopter pilot, Mikie Sherill, Elissa Slotkin sustained that 2018 commitment to not vote for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker into 2020.  Elissa Slotkin and the other two Congresswomen minimized the confrontation.  They voted present,allowing the Democrats to reduce the number of votes required for a majority.  Elissa Slotkin may be stubborn and principled, but she is not looking to create permanent hostility.

We need Elissa Slotkin’s leadership in Congress.  She is becoming a spokesperson for Democrats on intelligence issues.  She has established her integrity.  She has avoided quarrels with Democrats who are to her left.  She has the potential to be an important figure.  Help her stay in Congress.  Help Congress remain Democratic.  Help the Democrats keep their vulnerable Members so that when they flip seats in 2022, they will be expanding a slim majority.  Donate to Elissa Slotkin’s https://elissaforcongress.com campaign now.  Early donations help make a great start to a campaign.

 

Members of Congress who won with less than 51% of the vote

Iowa 03          Cynthia Axne  https://cindyaxneforcongress.com  Received 48.9% of the vote in 2020

Illinois 14      Lauren Underwood https://underwoodforcongress.com Received 50.67% of the vote in 2020

Michigan 08 Elissa Slotkin https://elissaforcongress.com Received 50.88% of the vote in 2020

Michigan 11 Haley Stevens https://haleystevensforcongress.com  Received 50.2% of the vote in 2020

Minnesota 02 Angie Craig https://angiecraig.com Received 48.21% of the vote in 2020

Nevada 03 Susie Lee https://www.susieleeforcongress.com Received 48.75% of the vote in 2020

Nevada 04 Steve Horsford https://www.stevenhorsford.com Received 50.67% of the vote in 2020

New Jersey 07 Tom Malinowski https://malinowskifornj.com Received 50.61% of the vote in 2020

Texas 07 Lizzie Fletcher https://www.lizziefletcher.com Received 50.79% of the vote in 2020

Texas 15 Vicente Gonzalez http://www.vicentegonzalez.com Received 50.5% of the vote in 2020

Organizations to support

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) https://dccc.org

The Democratic National Committee (DNC).   https://democrats.org  The official organization of the Democratic Party.

Fair Fight https://fairfight.com Promotes fair elections around the country

A Special Election Coming Up

The TX 06 multi-party primary is on May 1.  Jana Lynne Sanchez could use every bit of help you can provide.  Getting a Democrat into the run off creates the possibility of adding to the slim Democratic majority in the current Congress and creates momentum for retaining and even expanding a Democratic majority in the next Congress. Add to Jana Lynne Sanchez’ resources  https://www.janasanchez.com

A Special Interest of Mine

New York City has its own small-town politics.   Many of the readers of Lenspoliticalnotes are New Yorkers.  Some may live in or know people in Part A of Assembly District 76 (roughly east of 3rd Avenue and south of 79th Street to and including Roosevelt Island).

If you live in Part A of State Assembly District 76 in New York, please support and vote for Rebecca Weintraub in the June 22 Democratic Primary.   If you know people who live in Part A of Assembly District 76, please encourage them to vote for her.

Our club and the other Democratic Club in District 76 are supporting Rebecca Weintraub’s candidacy to be one of four District Leaders of the 76th Assembly District — the female leader of Part A of Assembly District 76.  District Leaders are a kind of liaison between political parties and the community.

You can learn more about Rebecca Weintraub at her Website www.VoteRebecca.nyc or at Twitter @RSWinNYC or at Instagram /RSW_in_NYC or at Facebook /VoteRebeccaWeintraub.  In her non-political life, she is Vice President of a public relations firm, mother of Benjamin, and wife of Evan.  In her political life, she has been an active member of our club, a leader in an innovative effort collecting video responses from NYC candidates for public office used to assess who to endorse and who to vote for.

A Victory to Celebrate

Jill Underly was elected on Tuesday, April 6 Wisconsin’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction.  You may recall Political Note #361 on February 26 supporting her candidacy.  In this non-partisan race, Jill Underly was supported by Democrats.  Her opponent, Education Consultant Deborah Kerr, was supported by Republicans.  Jill Underly’s victory was by a wide margin – 58-42.  Let’s hope that this is a predictor for Wisconsin’s US Senate race, Governor’s race, contests for  other constitutional offices, and for the state legislature.