Barbara Lee to announce bid for Democratic Caucus chair
Source: Politico
OAKLAND — Rep. Barbara Lee of Oakland, one of the party’s most outspoken progressive voices, will formally launch her campaign Monday to chair the House Democratic Caucus — a post that would make her the first African-American woman to hold a leadership spot in either major political party.
“When you look at the history of the Democratic Party and the Democratic leadership, African-American women...we’ve been the backbone of the Democratic Party — we should be in the face of leadership also,’’ Lee told POLITICO in an interview Sunday. Whether it comes to grassroots issues, or voter mobilization and political activism, she said, black women have long proven they can “lead not only our communities, but lead our country, on the very tough issues facing us.”
Lee, first elected to Congress in 1998 in one of the nation’s most liberal bastions, argues she has a long record as a coalition-builder who has dedicated her career to issues of concern to both poor urban and rural voters. As the party prepares for the 2020 election cycle, the California congresswoman said, “these are issues that we can all unify around, like jobs and economic growth,’’ poverty, education and health care.
...snip...
The announcement by Lee, who represents Oakland and the East Bay’s 13th Congressional District, sets up a battle with another Californian, Rep. Linda Sanchez. Sanchez last week announced her intention to seek the post now up for grabs with the defeat of Rep. Joe Crowley of New York, who was defeated in a June primary upset by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Read more: https://www.politico.com/story/2018/07/23/barbara-lee-house-democrats-735616
= new reply since forum marked as read
