3/21/26: Establishment Democratic Clubs and Endless Endorsements

Hello, fans and stalkers! For now, we are going AUDIO ONLY! When I conduct interviews, I'll go back to video but this way, I will record more frequently. That is the plan, anyway!

In this episode, I share my experience today at the Democratic Party of Sacramento County's retreat sharing what it was like as a candidate facing a negative reaction to challenging an entrenched Democrat who happens to be part of a political dynasty, and why I essentially tell other candidates to avoid most of these clubs altogether.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Hello, fans of stalkers. This is Erica Lee, host of Disruptor Politics, and I'm coming to you from Sacramento. And I am a former congressional candidate. And I have just made the decision that I'm going to just do an audio version of this podcast for now because I have found that doing the video one just takes more time. And then I have to get ready for it, you know, because I'm going to be on camera. So I've had some audio only podcasts before, and they are much easy, much easier to edit and upload and get into the ether. So for now, I'm going to do that because I think that there have been some missed opportunities for me to comment on current events just because I didn't want to, you know, get up and start recording something on video. So I do intend to have guests in the future still. I know I've said that I'm going to have guests and I have guests lined up, and I do have people who will who will come onto the show. But you know, scheduling is hard to do sometimes. And, you know, sometimes I'm not good at following up anymore either because I'm tired. I'm doing this all by myself, as well as helping campaigns, volunteering, and doing a lot of other things that are unrelated to any of this, right? So, and I'm working. I'm working a bit here and there. So, but I'm going to now introduce you to the first audio-only episode of Disruptor Politics. So, one thing I wanted to talk about tonight, um, here on my couch with the cat in my lap, is um the all the Democratic clubs in the Sacramento area. I don't think people who aren't involved in politics or campaigns or just the state or county party even know that this is a thing. And the reason I feel compelled to talk about this tonight is because I did attend today half of a retreat for the Democratic Party of Sacramento County with the full intent of sharing what my experience was like running as a candidate. Because I feel like I can do that since I'm no longer a candidate. Current candidates may not feel as able to share their experiences, their negative experiences, because it could taint them. And I think that's smart. And what I want to talk about is what happened today, but also share um bits and pieces of a conversation I had with a fellow candidate who had no idea about these clubs until they ran for office and how overwhelming and really ridiculous it can feel. So, for those who don't know, there is the California Democratic Party, and then there's the Democratic Party of Sacramento County. And I am a dues-paying member of the Democratic Party of Sacramento County. And then there are a ton of local chartered clubs through the Sacramento County Democratic Party. There are so many. And they're supposed to be kind of most of them are regional. So there's like the Folsom area Democrats, there's the Three Rivers Democrats, there's the American River Democrats, there's the JFK Democrats, there is the Town and Country Democrats. And a lot of them, like I said, they're regional. Their names may not reflect that the fact that they are like, you know, the Folsom area Democrats is obviously in Folsom. But, you know, Three Rivers Democrats is more uh Rancho and unincorporated areas. America Never Democrats is like Fair Oaks, Orangevale, parts of Carmichael and Sacramento. Um, but then there's also the Wellsome Progressives, which is just the progressive club right now in the entire Sacramento area. It's also Fem Dems. There's a Sacramento or the Young Democrats of Sacramento County, or Sacramento County Young Democrats, I mean, um, there's Latino Dems, Latin X Dems, environmental Dems. There are so many clubs, and there's so many more that I'm listing. There are so many more that I'm listing here just now. And as a candidate, you know, it's a pretty much a good idea to go visit all these clubs at least once. And you can find their times and dates on the SACDEMs.org calendar. And these clubs try not to overlap with each other. But for instance, the American Democrats is the third Wednesday of the month, doors open at 6:30, meeting starts at 7 p.m. A lot of these clubs also hold just Zoom meetings for right now. Um, you can find that information pretty easily on the website for the Sacramento County Dems. So, but again, like I was saying, as a candidate, it's good to go to these clubs and introduce yourself. But then there's this whole implied endorsement process that you should try and seek our endorsement. I want to say most of the clubs don't have a questionnaire, they just kind of ask you questions when you pop by and then ask for an endorsement later with a just a simple vote. Um, but what I a lot of people don't know about these clubs is that it's literally like eight people who show up, and it's the same eight or so people who show up at other clubs as well. So if you're looking at a candidate's website or their social media and you see they were they were endorsed by the JFK Democrats, you know what? That was like eight people um voting. And to get that endorsement, uh they just ask you a few questions in person, and then they I feel like they just endorse based on vibes, they don't really care so much about platform, is what I've learned because these some of these clubs have been endorsing some terrible moderates, and uh and then they might give a couple hundred dollars, but then that's it. I think you know some people will want to go maybe sign up to go knock doors for them, but the clubs in large don't organize in a grand way. The American Democrats do, they they definitely do, they have they're very organized. They meet at the Fair Oaks Library uh every third Wednesday of the month, doors open at 6 30, and the meetings start at 7. They're one of the most organized clubs, but anyway, I am digressing. So candidates will come to these clubs. Sometimes they can get themselves onto the agenda and make a speech, or they can be added to the agenda and just you know pop by local candidates, house candidates, they all they all stop by. And there is like a bit of a pressure to get these endorsements, and a lot of the club, the sometimes the clubs, the club meetings do overlap, or they're having a special event, or they're having an endorsement meeting, or some of these bigger clubs have you know a political act or a political committee or an electoral committee, or you have to pop by there first, and they just a handful of people from this club will interview you, and then they recommend you for endorsement to the larger club. It's it's mind-numbing. It is mind-numbing, and it is it can be stressful and overwhelming when all you really want to do is just talk to voters, right? And learning that these club members tend to all be in the same clubs. So I actually made a comment about that today at this retreat for the Democratic Party of Sacramento County, is I said, you know, you we have all these chartered clubs in the area, and it's the same people at the same meetings. I mean, there was one guy I met uh when I first started to run, his name is Rick Barreto, and he said, I'm in like 11 clubs, so you're really gonna have to get to know me because what that means is, you know, he's gonna vote for or against you for an endorsement regarding an endorsement in all these clubs he's a part of. And it seems pretty disingenuous to be a member of all of these different clubs because a lot of them are regional, right? Like there's one that's in the rancho area, there's one in the Fair Oaks area and more. But some of these club members are all in the same clubs with each other over and over again because they have some kind of personal vendetta against certain candidates they want to be able to vote against. That's what I've learned lately. It's very fixed, it's very partisan, it's very why bother? But one thing I shared today at this retreat in the morning is I said, you know, there were probably about 20 to 30 people there on a Saturday morning. And it the it came up for it, there came a time for people to share uh their thoughts on how to move the party forward or what can the party um what can the Sacramento County Democratic Party do better. So I was waiting for this moment, and so I raised my hand and I started to talk about what it was like as a candidate. So I'm not I'm a former House candidate in Congressional District 7. I was challenging 81-year-old Doris Matsui, who's been there for 20 years. She replaced her first husband in Congress when he retired. Or why sorry, no, he retired. Well, he passed away while in office after 26 years. He'd been in office since 1979. So for almost 50 years, we've had a Matsui in office. And Doris Matsui, the easiest way to describe her, and this was not even my original take on her, but I think it's pretty accurate, is that she still basically acts like the spouse of a congressperson. So she shows up for groundbreakings with a shovel and a hard hat. She writes, she reads prepared speeches, she doesn't meet with constituents, she doesn't debate, she doesn't have to really hold campaign events or anything because she is so entrenched and she she hasn't refused a corporate dollar ever for her campaign. So she hasn't had a formidable challenger in years. And I was really frustrated that nobody was running against her because I was asking. And I have a lot of experience behind the scenes as a campaign operative. And I've also worked on and off the hill in healthcare policy. And when I learned no one else was like no one was challenging her, um, it was suggested that I run. And to quote a friend who knows a lot of the people who are waiting or too scared to rock the boat to challenge Doris Matsui, is that those on the bench are unhinged or cowards. That's what I was told. So I thought about it, and you know, I just thought I'd never run for office. I don't like to be on camera. I don't even like pictures of myself. I don't like videos of myself. But I decided to ultimately run because I do know too much. I have a good background, even if people didn't know who I was just yet, but I do have a compelling background. I still maintain that I'm an excellent candidate in that regard. Um, but I did, I did finally decide to run. But I knew I had to start running early to reintroduce myself to the area because I had moved away for a few years to live in DC and elsewhere, and I came back after my father died. What ultimately ended up happening was the lone progressive on Sacramento City Council, my Vang, decided to run for Congress as well. She did not plan on running at the time that I filed. Um, but the decision was made that she was going to run. And so I suspended, and I was very grateful that she was going to take take over, you know, passing the torch to her because uh she has much more name recognition and is beloved in the community, and I was very happy to suspend and endorse her because the main goal is to get rid of Doris Matt Suey. So, what I shared in this club today, though, as I said, I want to share with you the unique perspective I have as a former candidate. And honestly, they're lucky, right? I don't have to do any of this, but they're lucky. And what's really interesting too is that several people in this meeting were people I had butt heads with on Facebook. Uh, lots of moderates who have called the progressive movement divisive and other progressive candidates and local races whom I like divisive. I know a lot about these people. You know what? Just a quick side note. People in the area involved in politics, they tell me things all the time about a lot of these people. I've become like the TMZ of Sacramento. I know so much about other people, but a lot of it I just can't verify myself or don't feel comfortable sharing. But I know a lot. And so I came, I came with feedback for this club today, armed, knowing more than most, and having experienced a lot of it firsthand. But what I wanted to share as a candidate, and what I shared today, is I said, you know, I ran for Congress because my congresswoman was ignoring me. She doesn't meet with constituents. She's one of the she's the only member of the house who doesn't have a scheduling function for constituents to request a meeting with her on her website. And I know this as someone who has scheduled over 15,000 congressional meetings for work over the last 10 years. So it's very niche information I have there, right? That I know that. She doesn't allow commenting on Instagram from constituents or anybody, which is not allowed. She's blocked me on social media. She has unblocked me now. But going back to what it was like to go to my first Democratic Party of Sacramento County meeting, I, you know, I was running in earnest. I showed up in earnest. I was excited. I was stressed out. Um, I was nervous. I didn't know what I was, I mean, I know what I was doing, but I also didn't know what I was doing, right? I've helped run campaigns for years. And, you know, like I said, I have experience on the hill. But I was, you know, this I knew this was gonna be a lot of work. But what I did not anticipate, even though I knew it would be difficult, was the completely negative reaction I had from so many people. I was asked, why would you challenge a Democrat? Republicans are the problem, right? But these Democrats keep losing to Trump. And then I was told repeatedly that you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, you're gonna lose, right? Repeatedly told I was going to lose. What else? I shared my experience in that room where we had monthly meetings for membership, where I had my campaign business cards and I would go up to introduce myself to people, say, hi, I'm Erica Lee, I'm running for Congress. And then the person I was talking to who was sitting down would hold up their hand as if to say, Oh no, thank you. Or they would say, No, thank you. I work for Stephanie Nguyen, who is an assembly member who is rumored to want to run for Congress eventually and get Doris Matt Suey's endorsement. I was treated that way as well. And then also, let me see. I had to think for a second. So another thing I shared today was when I went up to camp uh Sacramento County Supervisor Patrick Kennedy, who's been in office for many years. I went up to Meta Fourth of July parade and just to introduce myself and handed him a business card and said, you know, my name's Eric Lee. I'm running for Congress. I'm running against Doris Matt Suey. And as he's shaking my hand, he said, I'm not gonna endorse you. I said, Oh, okay, well, all right. I was really put off by that. And I said, Well, you know, I'm just feel like a majority of the Democrats in office helped create the conditions for Trump to win again. And he said, I'm not gonna disagree with you. And I said, Well, I'm I'm just really mad, basically. And he said, No, when I when I just when I first ran for office, I ran because I was really mad too. And it was a really negative interaction, and I was kind of stunned by it. And the next day he emailed me to say that he worked for Bob Matsui and blah, blah, blah, and how we just, you know, can't rock the boat, basically. And the one thing I forgot to say today, too, was my very negative reaction to the mayor, Kevin McCarty, when I met him. He was so rude to me. He didn't say hi or anything. He just basically told me I wasn't able to run against Doris Matsui uh because of where I lived, which does actually, as a congressional candidate, you just have to live in the state. But he thought I wouldn't, I'd be drawn out of the district after the passage of Prop 50, even though this was pre-passage of Prop 50. But he was wrong. Where I lived uh before the passage of Prop 50 and after the passage of Prop 50, I'm still in the 7th Congressional District. But it was just very negative. I can't believe I forgot to tell them that today. Although that wouldn't be surprising because he's known for being very rude. But one thing I did notice as I was telling the story in my experience as a candidate was that a few people, women, reacted very compassionately. You know, I could hear the oh, you know, when I especially when I was, I said I was trying to introduce myself to people in that room during the monthly meetings, and I was rejected. Um that that was a bit like, okay, they're getting it a little bit. I also said I was made to feel kind of like a stepchild that nobody wanted around, like a, you know, I was unwanted because I was challenging a fellow Democrat. The meetings were all about electing Democrats, electing more Democrats. But I sat there with other candidates, and I'm speaking for myself, but I definitely sat there with other primary challengers, thinking, wow, we're we're barely acknowledged here, because we're trying to, we're trying to point out that the Democrats we have in office are not good anymore, right? The majority of them are not. And especially in Sacramento, where we have Doris Matsui and Amibera, who are very entrenched and accept corporate money, accept APAC money, and more. And neither of them support a single-player healthcare system. Um, they're they keep voting to send bombs to Israel to commit genocide and ecoside. And like I said earlier, Doris Matsui doesn't even meet with constituents. Nor does she even rarely come back to Sacramento where she isn't even from. She's newly married to a DC billionaire who's 94 years old. When I say newly, it just seems like it's newly, but they got married in 2020 during COVID. But, you know, we just don't have a congresswoman who really represents our interests. She doesn't even really come back here. I did make a point to say as well that at some point that maybe you can see why I've been so frustrated because I have talked about a lot of these people on my podcast and on social media, and I've challenged them, but it's because I've been mistreated, and I did make sure to tell them that by the time I suspended to endorse my Vang, I was very bitter. I was very bitter. And, you know, that was the one of the really unfun parts about running for office. I love talking to voters. What I don't love is having to get on the phone and call people and ask for money, and then dealing with the Democratic Party of Sacramento County and all the chartered clubs. There was one club I really did enjoy, though. They had some of the they had the most people by far when I attended, and they're very organized and they were very welcoming, and that was the American Never Democrats. So if you're looking for a good club to join, there's the American Neighbor Democrats. I mean it's the third Wednesday of the month, doors open at 6:30, the meeting starts at 7 at Fair Oaks Library. And really quick, I have major criticisms of the progressives in the Sacramento area too. And I just want to, you know, I'm an equal opportunity um feedback person. Um but I have critiqued the Wellstone Progressives, and I've actually asked for my money back, my dues back, because I do not like who they endorsed in one race um for Congress. But, you know, the issue with Wellstone Progressives is that they don't have a lot of members, it seems like most of the meetings are on Zoom, and I don't really see them organizing as well. But I do not like how they condone candidates tearing into each other during endorsement interviews. And that definitely happened. Um, a guy who hopped into a race after the passage of Prop 50 went after an incumbent, locally elected incumbent. Um, and I did not like how this person, this this young man was tearing into the woman, and that it was condoned, basically. And I just felt like um you can't take this club seriously, especially when they decided to endorse this person who is doing the attacking and who has no shot of winning. So it makes them look bad too, because right now they've endorsed a vote splitter. So that's there's you know, we can talk about vote splitting on another episode as well. But there is definitely some vote splitting going on in the third congressional district in California. I just don't think that's politically savvy at all. And then let me just circle back to the JFK Democrats. So their president thinks that he's very politically savvy, and they actually do endorse two people per race because we are a top two state here in California, but they endorsed someone who accepts a ton of corporate PAC money, very moderate, endorsed Doris Matt Suey for re-election. And then they also endorsed a woman who doesn't accept corporate pac money nor APAC money, but who doesn't really have a social media presence and whom, you know, I'm not sure really has a handle on the issues. So I don't know why first they would endorse these two almost polar operate, polar opposites. But my having talked to all of these candidates in this particular race as well, I don't, I don't see it. Like I don't see it at all how they think either of these two people can go up against Kevin Kiley, who is the new lone independent in the House of Representatives. But circling back to what I said at the beginning is that I have a friend who's running for office as well. And he said, you know what, Erica, I get why you're fed up. I I get why you're fed up because it's all fixed. It's all fixed. You know, Sacramento is largely overrun with moderates and people who vote for moderates and like to vote for incumbents. Even in open races, people who have been running in other races or who have been in other elected positions, uh, they get the support of the people who are voting just for being friends with them and being around, even though they may not be the best candidate. And like I said, there is this one guy who is in 11 clubs and he likes to hop around to the different clubs and vote against the progressive in this race. Uh in a lot of these races, but particularly one in particular, and he likes to keep saying, Well, she was a Republican once 20 years ago. Well, she's addressed that. It was a mistake when you go to those tables and sign up to register. A long time ago, that was the deal. Like Republicans could hold voter registration tables, and Democrats could hold voter registration tables. And so she registered as a Republican by mistake, even though they're not supposed to fill in that bubble. But she fixed that. But then this guy also endorsed someone in a congressional race who was a Republican just 10 years ago. So there's all this type of pettiness and hypocrisy happening, and you know, it's just there's nothing really fair about how any of these clubs operate except for a c like a small handful, and one of those is American over Democrats. And just to wrap this up, because I rambled, at the end of the retreat today before I left, it was a four-hour retreat. I left after the free lunch. But after several people talked about the big tent or like the lack of big tent, because you know, the progressives and the moderates in in the Sacramento area butt heads a lot, a lot. This one older gentleman who I remember from sitting behind him at a at a con at a forum in January, where Doris Matsui spoke, and so did my Vang, and they were trying to get delegate votes. I had stood up and held up the letter that was a certified letter I'd sent to Doris Matsui's office to request that they unblock me on social media per the constitution. And the letter was refused, and I had it, and I stood up and I held it because Doris Matsui had been asked about complaints that her office doesn't respond to constituents, and she lied and said, Oh, we respond to everybody. Blah blah blah. Well, I stood up and held that letter because I haven't been able to talk to her ever, ever, even as a candidate. Her staff literally shielded her from me. This man in front of me, after I sat down, said, You're out of line. Well, he was sitting there in this meeting today. And so after everyone kind of talked about how um, you know, like progressives aren't really treated with respect, basically, and and uh we need to respect each other's views. And after I shared my experience as a candidate, he chimed in as a supporter of Doris Matsue and said, Look, the point of this club is to elect Democrats. It's just to elect Democrats, you know, all these other you know, issues, voters, and and more. He says, We are here to elect Democrats essentially. Not listening to a word really anyone said, but of course, he supports the entrenched and moderate. Anyhow, I really appreciate you listening to all this. But you know, it was me just sharing my thoughts today on this meeting that was it kind of went how I thought it went. I was glad I went and was able to share my experience as a candidate and how more welcoming they should be from now on. I also said that they need to support robust primaries because as we've learned, even though these people just love their, you know, their octogenarian billionaires in office, they really need to learn that we can't keep electing the same type of democrat because they're the ones that keep losing to Trump. And they haven't gotten there yet. But you know, a lot of us we are trying. Anyway, thanks for hanging in there with me, and I'll I'll get back with you soon.