The New Larouchies

For those of us who attend Democratic Party events, the routine is well-established.  For some odd reason, followers of Lyndon LaRouche have been plaguing low- and mid-level party functions for quite some time.  They do things like attending off-year, run-of-the-mill State Party Conventions and set up tables depicting Obama with a Hitler mustache.  They run candidates for the Democratic County Central Committee, a relatively low-level, grass-roots Party function, and occasionally disrupt meetings with bizarro rhetoric at odds with Democratic principles. 

For almost all Democrats, our feelings range from rage to amused bewilderment that they would expend such energy.  After all, they are not Democrats, really.  Their ideas and ideals are far away from the Democratic Party, and yet they expend so much effort for rather small positions.  Rage occasionally manifests when they bring their unique aggression and oddball beliefs and practices to what are normally routine, reasonably orderly, kumbaya Party functions. Party Chairman Eric Bauman, to his credit, has not hesitated to express our rage toward these Larouchies.

The dominant feeling about Larouchies is that they are not so much seeking these positions to participate in Democratic Party politics and to further Democratic ideals, but rather, that they wish to infiltrate.  They want to exercise whatever control they can, in an organization that they don't really believe in, nor share values with.

This past weekend the Democratic Party held its ADEM votes.  These are get togethers in each Assembly district, where individuals run to become state-level party delegates for 2013.  Not exactly picking between Biden and Hillary here.  My good friend [wo]manned the tables, and I attended to vote.

And it was there that we all encountered the new Larouchies.

The Armenian National Committee of America, Western Region, shares much in common with the Larouchies and little in common with Democrats.  Its members don't really believe in Democratic values.  A - They are anti-gay-marriage, and their leaders have said so repeatedly on television.  B - Their tactics are consistently racialist, combative, and unbecoming of small-d democratic principles.  C - Further, I am not the only one who has overheard anti-Semitic comments or heard of ANC members spouting anti-Semitic rhetoric. 

(It is worth noting that ANC members are VERY different from your average Armenian-American Democrat, who like any other California Democrat, generally share Democratic Party values.)

The ANC's tactics Saturday (all to fill relatively minor party seats) left everyone disgusted.  And the phrase in everyone's mouths was: "here are the new Larouchies." 

To give you some flavor:  One guy brought 10-15 people and tried to get them to vote.  It was apparent they were very old and very disoriented, and the rumor was this guy owns an old-folks home or something.  Turns out the 10-15 people were REGISTERED REPUBLICANS.  Turning out to vote at a Democratic caucus!  Thankfully, they were stopped at the door.

You couple an absence of Democratic Party values plus an absence of respect for the Democratic Party process (and indeed, our prerogative to determine our Party platform without Republicans voting, for God's sake) and you have a new virus trying to infiltrate the Party. 

Thankfully, their tactics didn't amount to much, and the attempt at infiltration was rebuffed.  A slate endorsed by local Assemblyman Mike Gatto won all 12 of the 12 open slots.  And the new Larouchies, the ANC-ees as we've started to call them, provided entertainment in a very sad, "why do they bother?" way.