J.J. Dinner
Some of you may recall that Mr. Fluck Mill and I have a furry, feline companion named “J.J.”
He’s named so because he appeared at our door just in time for the annual Monroe County Democratic Party’s annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner one year…while he bears no likeness in character to our esteemed former Presidents, he is tenacious…
What’s the “J.J. Dinner?”
“The annual fundraising dinner tradition is said to ‘commemorate the happy compatibility of theory and practice’ in the historical development of the Democratic Party: ‘Jefferson gave the Democratic Party its being. Jackson gave it its full meaning.’” (from an invitation to the Democratic community of Santa Barbara’s own such festivity—they’re held all across the nation by local Democratic parties.)
You can read the full text of former President Harry S. Truman’s Address at a J.J. Dinner in 1948 online at The American Presidency Project.
This coming Sunday, Monroe County Democratic Party members can hear featured speaker Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz at the annual J.J. Dinner.
Previous local J.J. Dinner speakers have included Congressman Lee Hamilton, Senator Max Clelland, Congressman Artur Davis, Congressman Barney Frank, and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi…
Here is some of the text (thanks to City Clerk Regina Moore & City Councilwoman Susan Sandberg who, together, compiled Pelosi’s documented speech for the script of a performance of a Democratic Women’s Caucus “WomenSpeak” theater piece in 2005) to Nancy Pelosi’s speech to Monroe County Democrats in 2001:
“In October of 2001, I became the first woman elected to the top leadership of either house of Congress. I’d been involved in politics my entire life and in Congress, at that point, for 14 years. I ran for Democratic whip, the second-highest-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives (now I’m the Democratic leader). When I won, I was flooded with congratulations from all over the country, many of them from women who were excited that we’d broken through this marble ceiling into the highest reaches of government. I was honored.
Shortly after my election, the top congressional leaders were invited to the White House for a meeting with the president to talk about the agenda for the next session of Congress. I’d been there on many occasions, so I wasn’t particularly apprehensive. But when the door closed behind us, I saw that there were very few other people at the table with the president, and of course they were all men. It occurred to me that this was unlike any meeting that I’d ever attended at the White House. In fact, because a woman was there as a top elected leader and not as staff, it was unlike any meeting ever held at the White House.
It was really quite profound. I realized the opportunity that I had, and it was poignant because it made me think, Why did it take this long? It sounds strange, but as I sat down, I felt that I was not alone. For an instant, I felt as though Susan B. Anthony, Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton – everyone who’d fought for women’s right to vote and for the empowerment of women in politics, in their professions, and in their lives – were there with me in the room. Those women were the ones who had done the heavy lifting, and it was as if they were saying, At last we have a seat at the table.
The president welcomed me and congratulated me on my election, but no one at the meeting said anything about the historical significance of the occasion. And I didn’t make the point because I thought it would be appropriate for everything to be as normal as possible. But my thought was, We want more. I felt uplifted, as if I were seeing over the top of a mountain. And to tell you the truth, we can handle it. Women can breathe the air at these altitudes, we can do the job that needs to be done, and the day will come when we’ll have a woman president of the United States. I’m sure it will happen soon.” ~Nancy Pelosi
On January 4, 2007, Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. She is the first woman to be House Speaker.
July 6th, 2007 at 2:17 am
I think it is wonderful that Ms. Pelosi is the first woman Speaker of the House. My question is what has he done since being there. She hasn’t cleaned up the house (example Jefferson). What ever happened to working 5 days a week? She can be proud she got the USAF to provide her a large jet. Now iy is assured she can fly her family back and forth to the left coast. Rick Martinez Richmond, Va.
July 6th, 2007 at 5:27 am
Pelosi speaks intelligently on a multitude of issues: The Gavel
Here’s Pelosi’s blog entry of yesterday–interestingly, Indiana Senator Lugar is mentioned—hopefully his support can be counted upon…
Will Senator Domenici and Other Republicans Vote for Change of Course in Iraq?
July 5th, 2007 by Speaker Pelosi
Another senior Republican senator has broken with the failed Iraq policy of President Bush. Senator Domenici’s March 2008 timetable is consistent with the legislation Democrats have proposed as recently as June 29 to redeploy our troops and reflects the recommendations of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group. Yet President Bush and most of his party in the House and Senate remain firmly committed to a policy that has failed and a war without end.
Senator Warner’s benchmarks, Senator Lugar’s declaration, and the realization by Senators Domenici and Voinovich that a change is needed in Iraq demonstrate bipartisan support for an end to the war. Now the question is whether they will join in a bipartisan way in voting to change course in Iraq and to bring our troops home? For those in Congress who have yet to speak out, the question is: how long until you respect the wishes of the American people to end this war?
September 1st, 2009 at 2:13 am
[…] 2007 I blogged about JJ Dinners and if you visit that entry you can find links and text to historic addresses delivered by politicians at past JJ […]
December 7th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
I am more interested to your feline companion named “J.J”. Lol. Seriously, thanks for the information. I’m glad I found the site informative.