Postcards from the Great Divide

[] In Nebraska, if you are a Democrat, you are in the minority, right?

That is a pure number reality.

We've been kind of like in this mode of whispering to each other that we're Democrats, like it's something bad or we're going to lose a job promotion, if somebody knows that we're a Democrat.

But I hope that as Chair, that I'm gonna make that easier for folks.

[] I love driving.

I do not mind in least bit, that I have to drive you know, from Hastings where we live, to Lincoln, to Omaha.

Excited, everyone is excited.

I do that probably once or twice a week at a minimum.

[] Hey!

How are you?

[] It takes a little bit of power away from Big Oil every time you put ethanol in your car.

So, a lot of windshield time.

It gives me time to think.

I come up with some of my best ideas for creative actions when I am driving.

[Scott] The head of the Nebraska Democratic party, Jane Kleeb, joins us here on news radio 1110 KFAB.

We have now, one minute left.

My emails, everything from, I have no idea how you sit and talk calmly to that woman.

That's from Jeff.

Scott says he turning you off.

Jeff says he done for the morning.

Thanks for ruining my morning and having to listen to her.

Thank you Jane.

I appreciate you coming in here and spending an hour.

She has major problems because she has no problem speaking what's on her mind from a progressive stand point and that's gonna rub some of the conservatives around here, the wrong way.

They want somebody more centerist than Jane, but we've never had anyone like her in Democrat politics.

People always have been too afraid to tick off the republicans around here.

Jane doesn't care.

That's why I like her.

Can I put you on the spot?

Yes.

Would you introduce Larry?

Yes.

Of course.

In about fifteen minutes?

Normally State party Chairs wear suits and they talk in sound bites and they don't go off the script.

And I have one question.

I believe if we're actually going to change the party in Nebraska, that we're going to have to keep one foot in grass root activism and one foot in party politics.

Welcome everyone!

You know, the Chair's role is pretty simple.

Larry is the guy we need in the State Senate.

It's to raise money, to elect Democrats, and for me , it is to also reform the brand of what it means to be a Democrat in a red state.

Ok, sit down.

Now, you actually have to stay this time.

You sit down.

You stay there.

There has been one way that we've done politics in Nebraska and that's to whisper to our neighbor that we're Democrats and to run moderate Democrats and that is losing elections for us.

It is not a winning combination.

The problem that Democrats have in Nebraska is that they don't bother to come to small rural towns and so we've missed out on people actually being excited about being a Democrat.

Fred Brown.

Hey Fred.

Good to see you.

I don't care if it's 12 Democrats or 200 Democrats.

I'll go wherever I'm invited.

Those people who want to come out of the closet as Democrats, getting 20 percent makes it tough for anybody to feel proud about being a Democrat.

Yeah.

So maybe you should be running for state senate.

I think one of the interesting things is that I can go talk to a group of African-Americans in Omaha.

She is always here.

She tries hard, she works hard for the party.

And then that same day be up talking to a table of farmers and ranchers about wind development and transmission lines.

Hey!

How are you?

Good, how are you?

We call them community conversations, but it's really just so we can eat steak and drink whiskey.

There is a clear roadmap.

The kind of general theme that kneads it all together is that we can change the way that we do politics.

It is good to be here today with all of our fellow Democrats and I will say that, you know, the party will be leading our state in a very different way.

We both have a long history of activism.

And that's deeply rooted in our Democratic party and we will be standing on the shoulders of Democrats who have led on issues, that have made our country stronger.

[Scott] I tend to be on the other side of things, politically, but I do feel that I helped create the monster that is Jane Kleeb because just a little quick back story on how this woman ascended to be the ruthless leader of the Nebraska Democratic Party.

She was just a lone voice about this Keystone XL pipelines several years ago.

And I had her on the radio.

I said, let's give this woman a few minutes of time and see just how nutty she is!

It might be kind of entertaining.

And I had admitted after that conversation, you know, Jane's asking a lot of the right questions.

They are good jobs for two years and then we assume the risk for the rest of our lives and that is not okay.

I mean, I proved my credibility with especially rural folks in Nebraska when we fought and won the Keystone XL pipeline.

So it was the work that we did with farmers, ranchers, and tribal nations that really proved myself to people in Nebraska that I can lead on issues and win, which is the most important thing, right?

We stopped Keystone XL.

Nobody thought we could do that.

Yeah, it'll come.

That pipeline fight was hard.

It was hard...

It was hard.

[participant] On your family, too.

It was hard on our family.

It really was.

And she went up to a land meeting, some landowner up there who hadn't met her on Keystone said, "Hell, you don't even have a horse.

I expected you to have a horse."

It will be the first event that I organize.

I'll need your help.

Scott: I know you-- It's a god damn good thing you married me... You are crazy.

Interviewer: Do you guys talk about politics all the time?

-Yes!

-Damn near.

Well, we damn near talk about politics all the time.

It was actually neither of our idea for Jane to run for Chair.

Jane said, what do you think of this idea and I said, I love it.

I think it is fabulous.

That's not what happened?

A year ago I said I want to run for Chair and you were like, that is an awful idea.

I am not from Nebraska.

I grew up in Florida.

I grew up in a little town outside of Ft. Lauderdale called Plantation.

What you guys do while I was gone?

And then decided to go to grad school in DC and that's when I became the head of the Young Democrats of America where I met my husband, who was running as a Young Democrat.

It's the Nebraska way.

Each generation shows the next one the ropes.

[Jane] I mean if it wasn't for the Young Democrats of America we would have never met and that probably would have made the republicans in our state very, very happy!!

The rural caucus wanted Scott to speak at a YDA event and I had never heard of him.

I essentially said, "No" until they sent me his bio and his picture.

He was like, in the sand hills with his hands on his hip and his cowboy boots and Wranglers.

And I was like yes.

Yes please come.

But you know, the first time I met Scott, I literally couldn't talk to him because I was like so choked up.

The last time she has been choked up, too.

We're not going to be a strong Democratic party for the short or long term if we only focus on the east and west coast of America.

Just because there's not a Democratic majority in Nebraska, it doesn't mean that there's not Democrats that can and should be elected.

Because essentially, by the end of the month, I have to appoint all these different committee heads.

You know mostly it's always Lincoln and Omaha folks, so I'd like to walk in with all of our committee chairs, with having somebody that actually doesn't look awkward in a cowboy hat.

And that's you.

All right man.

I'll email you.

Part of my role, especially in our small rural towns is to one, show them respect that they matter, but two, is to bring this sense of hope that we can do this.

I was late.

I had to find a babysitter.

I think that's the opportunity that we have in these small states where, let's be honest, nobody expects very much of Democrats.

I am Scott Kleeb.

I ran on the third most republican district in America.

We lost the race.

It was a great race, an inspiring race.

You know I had to go to O'Neil.

I remember the very first time I drove with my dad to O'Neil.

We called the local Democrat and she had like seven friends who she thought would come and it was just her.

And we said, "Don't worry about it."

We're going to have the event anyway and we did.

And I said, I'm going to be back in a month, bring a friend.

And she did.

She brought two and then four and then six and then finally we would go up to O'Neil and we would have an event and there would be 100 people there.

[] Why can't we run a state party like we do community organizations?

Why can't we do that?

Why can't we have more street parties?

Why can't we be registering young people at bars and where they hang out?

Why not?

[] The question on everybody's minds, the activists who support me and the kind of party establishment is, will I be able to balance both?

I am serious about getting a cowboy hat on the executive committee.

I think that I can do it.

I am excited to do it.

I love proving people wrong, but time will tell.

Right?

It is an ongoing question.

It is an ongoing question.

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