The meeting of the California Democratic Party in Anaheim this weekend was historic. Now, the conversation continues at CourageCampaign.org/Conversation

Here's the latest update on how we're moving forward after the incredible groundswell of activism changed the conversation in the CDP.

You changed the conversation. Now it's time to change the Democratic Party.

Two weeks ago, we asked you what to do about Senator Dianne Feinstein's troubling pattern of failing us on civil liberties and civil rights. You told us to support grassroots action within the party process. And that's exactly what we did, starting last Tuesday. 

Five days of non-stop online and offline activism. 34,466 people signing on and spreading the word. 40 Democratic Clubs and progressive organizations organizing virtually overnight to try to pass the resolution to censure the Senator.

Your actions helped the Courage Campaign, MoveOn, and Progressive Democrats of America begin the process of holding Sen. Feinstein accountable for her pivotal Judiciary Committee votes to confirm Judges Michael Mukasey and Leslie Southwick -- and her potential future vote to give immunity to telecom companies for warrantless wiretapping.

From beginning to end, your movement to censure the Senator was the talk of the California Democratic Party Executive Board meeting, despite contradictory actions by its leaders. From the Party Chair spending most of his well-received keynote speech skillfully defending the Senator to his top advisor clumsily trying to stifle your voice (see the YouTube below), the conversation about censure permeated the meeting.

We were in Anaheim. And now we're back. We just spent the last 24 hours putting together a YouTube video of what happened. Click here to watch it, react, and continue the conversation. Your words will be sent to Senator Dianne Feinstein and CDP Chair Art Torres as the foundation of a request to open a new dialogue with Democrats and progressives:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/conversation

Did the censure resolution pass? No. It wasn't even debated. At least officially.

Unofficially? The debate dominated the event, symbolized by the Chair's passionate speech, in which he told us that he communicated your concerns to the Senator. Everywhere we went, the discussion of Senator Feinstein's votes confirming Bush administration nominees -- who condone torture, racism, and homophobia -- catalyzed conversations around fundamental questions like the following:

What does it mean to be a Democrat? What are our core values as progressives? How do we hold our elected officials accountable for compromising those values?

It's a discussion that scares some people inside the party. While Art Torres welcomed the dialogue created by your dissent, Bob Mulholland -- the Chair's top aide -- tried to crush it. Party leaders were caught in the middle, feeling conflicted by the perceived need to close ranks behind the Senator, if not its most senior strategist.

Because of you, the conversation is changing. With Thanksgiving just hours away, it's time to continue this conversation with your friends, family and neighbors -- a dialogue designed to constructively engage Senator Dianne Feinstein and Party Chair Art Torres:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/conversation

As Art Torres was graciously acknowledging your voice, long-time CDP spokesman Bob Mulholland desperately attempted to silence it. On the eve of the meeting, Mulholland insulted netroots bloggers as "fringe" and grassroots activists as "pre-nursing home" in an interview with the Guardian UK.

It gets worse. Frustrated with an effort by Executive Board members to formally debate the censure during the general session, Mulholland then blocked one of the Courage Campaign cameras filming the meeting (click here to watch this surprising turn of events on the YouTube video we just posted).

Finally, commenting on the censure movement yesterday, Mulholland told the Los Angeles Daily News that "Dianne Feinstein has been the Democratic Party for years."

Wow. And here we thought the Democratic Party was supposed to be the party of the people, not just its most powerful politician. It does prompt an interesting question, however: What does the Democratic Party stand for -- and why aren't leaders like Senator Feinstein standing up for it?

http://www.couragecampaign.org/conversation

Tell us what you think. And please forward this email to your family, friends and neighbors before Thanksgiving. After the holiday weekend, we'll take your ideas, categorize them, share them and pass on the best ones to Senator Feinstein and Chairman Torres, who says he talks regularly to the Senator. If Senator Feinstein won't respond, then we expect that Chairman Torres will, given his commitment to building a dialogue with Democrats.

With the Senator still hedging on granting telecom companies immunity for warrantless wiretapping, it's time to talk about what it means to be a Democrat, especially with Democratic Party voter registration in California declining. As long as Democrats like Sen. Feinstein continue to compromise our most basic American values and enable President Bush to undermine our constitution, this conversation will inevitably continue.

Together, 34,446 of us are helping Senator Feinstein and politicians like her realize that this people-powered progressive movement to change politics is not going away.

We've only just begun.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Eden, Rick and Julia
Courage Campaign

P.S. The Courage Campaign does more than just hold our elected representatives accountable. From working to block Blackwater's plans to build a mercenary base on the California border to our "NoDirtyTricks.com" campaign to stop the Republicans from stealing the White House, we are fighting for you on multiple fronts.

To win, however, we need to build progressive infrastructure to build a progressive California. Please join with us in common cause by making a contribution, in whatever amount you can afford:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/contribute

Thank you.