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Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney won the Illinois primary race for the GOP Presidential nomination on Tuesday, giving him yet another edge over his closest rival, Rick Santorum. Winning a majority of that state’s 69 delegates, Romney is now closer to securing the GOP nomination even as he deflects the fallout from recent remarks made by his campaign manager on the extremist positions of his party. Eric Fehrnstrom, speaking on CNN, was asked if he was in danger of losing moderate voters. Fehrnstrom replied, “Well, I think you hit a reset button for the fall campaign. Everything changes. It’s almost like an Etch A Sketch. You can kind of shake it up and restart all of over again.”

Such comments reveal the cynical political game that relies on voters’ short term memory come election season. President Obama, having made a number of significant unfulfilled promises to his base while running for election four years ago, is likely to bank on the same sort of memory loss this time around.

Many Americans have found little political gratification in either of the two major political parties this election, and 30% of voters simply identify as independent. So-called “third parties” that are independent of the two major parties, struggle to capture enough attention, particularly from the media. Among them is the Green Party, whose Presidential candidates for the 2012 elections include Jill Stein, a trained physician, and Rosanne Barr, actor and political activist. Prominent local political figure and staunch progressive, Marcy Winograd, recently switched from the Democratic to the Green Party. Winograd ran multiple times for a Congressional Seat in California’s 36th district. Spurred by the President’s signing of the National Defense Authorization Act, Winograd explained, “if I could not ask someone to join the Democratic Party, I could not in good conscience stay in the party, even as an insurgent writing resolutions and platform planks to end our wars for oil.”

The Green Party takes strong positions on issues dear to progressives. Presidential candidate Stein has claimed her “Green Deal” jobs initiative “ends the unemployment problem. It ends the recession. It jump starts the secure green economy for the 21st century, and it substantially combats climate change.” Other Green Party positions include an end to war on drugs, the legalization of drugs and support of addiction treatment, as well as ending racial disparities on policing and sentencing, and eliminating the privatized prison system.

GUESTS: Mike Malinin, Green Party member and lifelong environmentalist who has worked for Greenpeace and volunteered for numerous other environmental causes, also happens to be the drummer for rock band The Goo Goo Dolls, Marcy Winograd, ran for Congress with the Democratic Party several times here in Southern California, formerly with Progressive Democrats of America, now a member of the Green Party and serves on the California Green Party’s media committee, she also an English teacher

Mike Malinin is hosting a Green Party Music Benefit on Thursday, March 22nd in Santa Monica from 7 to 10 pm to support the Green Party of California’s voter registration drive. The benefit takes place at the V Lounge, 2020 Wilshire Blvd, Santa Monica, CA, Tickets are $10 per person and can be purchased online at www.cagreens.org.

Performing musicians include:
Glen Phillips, Toad the Wet Sprocket singer, John Resnick, Lili Haydn, Christ vs Warhol, Nick Luca, Korel Tunador, and others.

The Green Party of Los Angeles County endorses the following Green candidates in the June 5th primary election:

State Assembly:
Jack Lindblad, 39th District

US House of Representatives:
Michael Powelson, District 30
David Steinman, District 33
Anthony Vieyra, District 35