Buckeye State Blog - Chandra Pleads Guilty - Comments

Well, I'm picking this one!

Lucie — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 17:36:59 -0700

This guy is worth it -- I'll do what I can, which includes pestering my friends and family and alerting my savvy children and their friends to get behind this. Once they know about Chandra, they'll love him -- this guy is the future -- or at least the future I hope we can have.

I think Strickland is going to win, and I really hope Brown will -- but I want Chandra too -- and what I don't have in money I'll try to make up for with mouth and pen.

I'm too old to worry about his being a rockstar, but I'm sold.

logical flaw here

Lucie — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 17:28:58 -0700

Even someone you don't like might be right about one thing or another -- insights come from lots of places -- but there are some grammatical errors in the piece.

Obviously

Ohio2nd — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 14:34:42 -0700

you speak from ignorance. I've talked to many people before and after they've listened to Subodh, including certain bloggers that shall remain nameless (unless they want to speak up).

You argue well for Marc Dann: Dann: the more white sounding candidate in print.

No one down there is going

Castro_Democrat — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 14:16:31 -0700

No one down there is going to listen to cat named Subodh with an open mind. They might accidentally vote for a guy named Marc Dann.

It aint just about money

staff — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 14:12:41 -0700

it's about message too and getting it out there. He is generating a decent amount of earned media and i would like to think that is in some way part of the blog support he has gotten up and down the state and the excitement has been picked up on - it has certainly been mentioned at county Dem clubs and helped influence endorsements.

Have you listened to him?

Ohio2nd — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:48:18 -0700

That's why I think he can.

if you think that sherrod

RMC2000 — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:28:59 -0700

is a long shot, then i don't think it's wise to give to his campaign. give that same money to candidates who can win. i don't agree that he is a long shot, but if that's what you think, then i think you would be right to give that money to someone who you think has a better chance of winning. you don't like brown, so that's an easy call for you. it's much harder when you have to make that call about a friend.

One more reason

AmberCat — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:21:41 -0700

to not give anything to Sherrod Brown. At this point, the race doesn't seem winnable. Do you think that's a viable tactic? I certainly won't be giving him anything, maybe not even my vote. But if he started to run a better campaign, I don't think it would be entirely unreasonable for people to donate to him, even though he'd stll be a longshot. Honestly, I think the state races need the focus and need to be focused on as a package: it's all about change and serving the citizens not the big-money donors.

And what makes you think

Alan Harvard — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:21:36 -0700

he can?

And what makes you think

modernesquire — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:19:10 -0700

that he can't get independant votes in Hamilton County better than Dann?

Popular among Democrats sure . . .

Alan Harvard — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:18:10 -0700

. . . but we need Republican and Inde votes too . . . especially in Hamilton County.

the only thing i'm saying

RMC2000 — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 13:16:54 -0700

is that it is not a bad idea to focus time and money on the fights that can be won. if chandra wins the primary and you think he can win the general, then great. but if you only have $500 to give, 9 out of 10 times its best to give it to the top of the ticket, who, 9 out of 10 times, can pull the whole party along with him. no one but the fanatics care about a.g. races. no one pays attention to their commercials or their statements or their polls. they pay attention to the top of the ticket, if they pay attention at all. come election time, you are all going to wish that you never heard from another candidate or campaign for as long as you live. there's just too much coming at you. most people only pay attention to the big dogs.

Yes

Ohio2nd — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:59:11 -0700

Every race for itself. That's exactly how Gingrich took over the House.

I'm not really sure what the point in all this is. What's your goal? Since Chandra is such a well qualified candidate we should ignore him since no one, not even superman, can win the race? That we should drone on endlessly about Ted Strickland, since he's the only Dem that has a realistic chance of winning? That us prols at the bottom need to trust our ODP masters since they've got the proven experience and track record to lead us to victory? What are you trying to say?

boy, this chundra guy

RMC2000 — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:52:25 -0700

sure gets everyone's gutchies in knots. here's my 2 cents (not that you care). unless you are a max-out donor, i think castro is making sense. sure you want to support every democrat, but support actually means money and time. i don't think anyone is saying, "don't vote for chundra or dann." castro's point is, i think, that it's best to focus money and time where it can do the most good. that is, unless you have maxed out in the senate and governor's race. then, you've done as much as you can so, if you want to keep on donating, focus on some of the longer shots. i know there are a lot of idealists on this site, and i commend you for it. idealism is at the heart of the democratic party. but when it comes down to it, politics is rough and tumble, where hard choices have to be made and deals broken. there simply is not enough time and money to fully support each and every democrat running for office. and while it is up to each person to decide where their time and money will be best spent, that should not equate to where it is most needed. sometimes, as castro said, you have to focus on the fights you can win, even if that means leaving a friend behind.

Wait, I thought Tom DeLay resigned yesterday.

Mr. Common Sense — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:37:59 -0700

I think he's definitely beatable. Definitely.

Chandra Pleads Guilty

Ohio2nd — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 05:24:02 -0700

I just received this email from Subodh Chandra:

Real change agents make some people angry, because real leadership often means doing ‘controversial’ things--when in reality they are the right things. Some people at the Cleveland Law Department called me arrogant when I made sweeping changes. I did these things on behalf of the people of the City of Cleveland. I knew that the department needed reform and did what needed to be done to restore this once-great department’s reputation.

(See related Cleveland Law Journal article at http://www.chandraforohio.com/html/articles.html)

One of my faults is that I am impatient for change. Very impatient. So I can come off as a bulldog--note subtle arrogant reference to Yale law school :-) Again, this impatience originates from my desire to make the system within which I am working a better, more productive place that benefits citizens, not bureaucrats, not the guy who has more money or knows somebody important. (One of my friends used to call me “Che Guevera” because he said I would go from law firm to law firm liberating all the associates.) I strive to treat everyone civilly, but have learned I can't please everyone. If pleasing everyone were my priority I would have pushed aside cases involving wrongfully convicted citizens like Michael Green. I knew the system had wronged an innocent man and I took steps to make right a horrific miscarriage of justice.

(See related Connie Schultz article at http://www.chandraforohio.com/html/cleveland_plain_dealer.HTM)

And of course if pleasing those who could butter my future bread were a priority I wouldn’t have angered powerful people in Cleveland’s legal community by slashing outside-counsel spending by 88%. It was the right on behalf of citizens.

(See Staying Home for Legal Opinions’ article at http://www.chandraforohio.com/html/articles.html)

Also, I must point out that I LEFT big law firms for public service and am now in solo practice. I grew up in a middle-class immigrant household. Hard work and discipline were the priority. Like many students, I financed my bachelor’s and law degrees through massive student loans. I endured working at large law firms to help pay them off and bolted as soon as I could afford to take a public-service opportunity. Using my law degree to work on behalf of people has been and will continue to be my professional priority.

My wife, a civil-rights lawyer who was once MY PERSONAL LAWYER, could kick my butt in court, and does kick my butt at home, is a proud graduate of the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. So was my top deputy at the Cleveland Law Department whom I hired and recommended for promotion to the directorship when I left.

I plead guilty to being impatient and wanting change NOW. Why? Because the people of Ohio have gotten a 100% royal screwing from their leadership for over a decade, most especially from their Attorneys’ General. Just as I’ve done throughout my career, I will right these wrongs and work on behalf of all Ohioans for the change that they deserve TODAY! Will I tick some people off in the process? Yes. Ohioans, however, deserve nothing less than a bulldog in their corner for once.