Jesse Gordon is having a fundraiser today. Jill Stein, a musician and a medical doctor, will be playing with her band today. Dr Stein, a prominent member of the Massachusetts Green-Rainbow Party, stood as the party’s candidate for governor in 2002.

The Green-Rainbow Party or its chapters may endorse a candidate of another political party when no Green-Rainbow is running for the same office. However, we would like to make it clear that neither the State party nor the local, Mystic River Green-Rainbow Action (MRGRA) endorses Jesse Gordon for city council. Jill Stein’s endorsement is a personal one.

Jesse Gordon is a Democrat. The Democratic Party is a war party. The current leadership of Democratic Party strongly supports the occupation of Iraq and Palestine.

John Kerry calls for an increase in the number of US troops in Iraq. He voted against the Kyoto Treaty in the Senate. He supports the PATRIOT Act.

Howard Dean ran as an anti-war Democrat in last year’s primaries. He now openly supports the war and occupation. Jesse Gordon is proud that he was a leading organizer for Howard Dean in the primaries.

Jesse Gordon is not just a person running for office as a Democrat. He is a founder of the “Progressive Democrats” here in Massachusetts. he works actively to persuade and recruit people to the Democratic Party. His political focus is trying to persuade Greens to move “back” to the Democrats. And “back” it would be!

In Cambridge, Green and Rainbow candidates have consistently supported rent control and an end to the undemocratic city manager form of government. Jesse Gordon, like most of the other candidates, talks about affordable housing without mentioning rent control. He talks about accountability in government without mentioning the city manager plan.

Gordon deserves credit for emphasizing the terrible impact of property tax increases on working people in Cambridge. But he does not offer sustainable solutions. In 2003 Aimee Smith’s Green-Rainbow campaign for city council called for replacing the property tax with a city income tax.

Here in Cambridge, every candidate runs at-large. This year all the incumbents are running for re-election. Voters must consider who is most likely to be displaced if Gordon’s campaign succeeds. In recent elections Denise Simmons received the lion’s share of the transfer votes when Green candidates were counted out. These votes put her over the top and secured he seat on the city council.

Denise Simmons was instrumental in organizing the community to demand a Police Review Board in Cambridge, a demand that was hard won, long before she ran for city council. Her political base is among low income people. She is the only councilor who supports rent control and does so openly. She is the only councilor who spoke out for the eight Homes Not Jails people arrested last year for political action in Lafayette Square.