In the 1800s immigrants from Germany and other mid-European countries flocked to cities like Cincinnatti, Detroit, Milwaukee and St. Louis.  They built many things including built great breweries, like Blatz, Miller, Schlitz, Pabst, Falstaff and a thousand lesser ones.  The greatest brewery of them all was Anheuser-Busch in St. Louis.  I went to high school just 10 blocks from the 100 square block Busch brewery complex in St. Louis.  If the breeze was just right, the smell of hops would blow in and engulf our classroom.  It was a reassuring smell.  It meant union jobs at solid middle class wages with great benefits that had been won thanks to strong unions and a paternalistic management.  Anheuser-Busch, then & now, was the cornerstone of St. Louis.  

Hamilton Jordan died today.

Washington DC "Shadow Senators", Sen. Paul Strauss & Sen. Michael Brown, have endorsed Barack Obama.  The endorsement was noted on page 9 of the print version of today's Washington Post, District local news section (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con tent/article/2008/02/27/AR2008022701430_ 2.html).  The endorsement is noted at the very end of the story.  The shadow Senators are unpaid & elected by Washington "Taxation Without Representation" DC voters to lobby for voting rights & DC statehood.  "Shadow Senators" can't vote in the US Senate nor are they recognized by that body.  

Virginia doesn't really, really count because:

1. Too many black people -- they even once elected a African-American Governor.

2. Too many educated people.

3 living members of The Grateful Dead, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir & Mickey Hart will play at a "Deadheads for Obama" concert Monday at the Warfield in San Francisco.

John Edwards probably won't ever be President.  A lot of people who should be won't ever be President.  He will, however, be a key part of the politics of the future.  Barack Obama is going to need John Edwards to accomplish progressive change.  Imagine John Edwards as Attorney General stumping for the Coivil Liberties Resporation Act.  Imagine him and Vice President selling the country on National Health Insurance.

Today, January 19, Washington DC Democrats had delegate selection caucuses.  These votes were for delegate candidates only, to rank various individuals running for Delegate.  Clinton supporters voted in two caucuses (divided by Wards) to elect Clinton delegates.  Obama supporters voted in two caucuses to elect Obama delegates, etc.  Basically, the vote was about which individuals will be part of the DC delegation to the Denver Convention.  The vote had no effect on the final delegate allocation but it did measure who was willing to come out to one location for the entire city on a winter day.

The results were, in terms of the number of caucus participants:

PLEASE FORWARD

1. Stein Club Endorsement Meeting, Jan. 14