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 [ VOICES ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/voices)

#  Let’s Make This A Summer of Love

July 10 2023

Written by Abe Gurko.

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ABE WON’T BE SILENT - As you know, I love trashing all the GOP crooks with an extra dash of condemnation of the Christian nationalists. What I can’t and won’t ever get over is their holier-than-thou act judging us Democrats when, in fact, they are the ones that have been damned to their current hell on earth. Did you see them lined up in the rain trying to get a glimpse of the Gross Baboon, Trump? I rest my case. Convinced that they have a direct line to Jesus, meanwhile, they spew hateful rhetoric, which is antithetical to everything he believed and what Jesus stood for. So, all I can do is pity these fools while quoting Jesus, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

In this moment of heightened angst and threats of Civil War, I’ve decided to launch a campaign where we Democrats take a beat and share our favorite candidates running in the upcoming political races from the top to the bottom of the ticket from now through November 5, 2024.

Introducing the Summer of Love, where I ask you to send me a candidate you are supporting, and each week, I will circulate the growing list in a Summer of Love Newsletter featuring the candidates. It’s a community-building team effort to do our best to keep the Senate, take back the House of Representatives, and naturally keep President Joe Biden right where he is.

Respond to this Substack with one or two candidates you love and support with their website addresses. Feel free to include a sentence or two about them.

Here are my two choices. Women rule!

1. two choices. Women rule!

    1. Sepi Shyne is running for Congress in the 30th District of California to replace Adam Schiff. Sepi is an Iranian-born American attorney, civil rights advocate, and West Hollywood City Council member who has been serving as West Hollywood's mayor. Shyne is the first LGBTQ+ Iranian-American elected to office and the first woman of color on the West Hollywood City Council.

    <https://www.sepishyne.com/>

    2. Congresswoman Barbara Lee is running for Senate in Califoria. Barbara has represented California’s 12th District (formerly 13th) since 1998. She is the highest-ranking African American woman appointed to Democratic Leadership, serving as Co-Chair of the Policy and Steering Committee. She also serves on the Budget Committee and the powerful Appropriations Committee, which oversees all federal government spending. I know there are many great choices in this Senate race, but I had a great moment meeting her, so Ms. Lee has my support.

    <https://barbaraleeforca.com/>

*(ABE GURKO is the executive producer of a documentary “Won’t Be Silent,” about the extraordinary Women of Protest Music. He's an Opinionator who hosts a podcast, "Conversations From the Edge of Democracy," that discusses the current state of our fragile political landscape. Abe is a contributor to* [*CityWatchLA.com*](https://citywatchla.com/)*.* [*abegurko@gmail.com*](mailto:abegurko@gmail.com)*. Abe’s opinions are his own and not necessarily those of CityWatchLA.com)*

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