Announcement from Tim Clark:
As ward 5 looks to elect new leadership, it’s important that voters have an opportunity to vet each candidate and make an informed decision at the polls. Unfortunately, the short window of time and the long list of potential candidates will make it difficult for residents to get out to meetings or chase down individuals to hear where they stand on important issues. To assist voters in this process, myself along with Lace developed “Straight Up Politics”.
Straight Up Politics is a series of candid candidate forums designed to provide residents with a relaxed atmosphere to ask tough and pointed questions that will hopefully make deciding who the new ward 5 Councilmember is a little easier. The forums will be focused on economic development, education and crime.
The events will take place on Tuesday’s and run until the special election. The first forum will be next Tuesday, January 24. The forum before the special election will be a straw poll. After the session on the 24th, candidates will be put in groups and invited back to separate forums that will focus on specific issues. Below is a schedule for the first forum.
1/24/12 Schedule
6:30pm-7:00pm-Candidate check in
7:00pm-Candidate Introductions
7:00pm-8:30pm-Individual Questioning
If you are interested in participating in these forums please RSVP by email before COB Thursday, January 19, 2012. Please, let me know if you have any questions.
Straight Up Politics, Lace Lounge, 2214 Rhode Island Ave NE
Tuesday, January 24 2012
6-9pm
rhodeislandavene.com 
We are living in the digital age. How can we access these forums online? I just don’t have time to physically come to all these meetings. I won’t even been able to make the Foria meeting on the 23rd!
Didn’t Lace help sponsor a fundraiser for Harry Thomas Jr. through the Gertrude Stein Foundation? I’d appreciate not having meetings at venues that have not had past affiliations with HTJ, especially where “money” was involved.
Oops! That should be “I’d appreciate not having meetings at venues that have had past affiliations with HTJ, especially where “money” was involved.”
Another possibility is to have Town Hall meetings like the Facebook Town Halls that Obama has conducted. These can be held at other locations while this meeting is going on and people in these remote locations can still interact. Let takes the politics out of retail establishments.
There is no email for the RSVP…
Just discovered your blog! I appreciate you organizing these candidate forums so that we can vet prospective candidates and elect a highly ethical, honorable and intelligent councilmember for our rapidly-changing ward. I’m disgusted and appalled at HJT’s actions; good riddance. Let’s hope his prison sentence is a long one.
Although my neighborhood, Michigan Park, is not anywhere near Rhode Island Avenue, its revitalization is clearly tied to the economic health of adjacent areas such as Woodridge, and nearby neighborhoods such as Michigan Park.
See you on the 24th!
Tom in Michigan Park