Politicians Blogs

Politicians' Blogs

More and more politicians now realize that they need to keep a presence on the Web after witnessing how the Internet helped Howard Dean's campaign during the 2004 presidential election. Usually filled with measured, careful language and stale press releases, most politician blogs can be skipped. This section lists a very few that have some kick.

Pricey Harrison

http://www.priceyharrison.blogspot.com/

North Carolina Democratic state senator Pricey Harrison writes about his activities in the state legislature. Although entries seem to be largely by contributor Jay Ovittore, a musician and house-painter, they are clear and informative.

Ray Cox

http://www.raycox.net/

Republican House Representative Ray Cox from Minnesota keeps a regular blog on his political doings. Personable and candid, entries are as diverse as meeting agendas and family vignettes. Photos are candidnot professionally slickwhich is part of their charm. Researchers at Pew Internet & American Life Project say that Representative Cox was one of the first major politicians to blog.

Paul Van Dam

http://www.warrenkeuffel.com/vandam/

Utah Democratic Senator Paul Van Dam writes about personal issues in his red-white-and-blue blog. There are charming essays on being stuck in a Venezuelan airport and a clear list of the issues he supports. His entries are entertaining and clear.

Mark Steven Kirk

http://www.house.gov/kirk/blog/

Republican House Representative Mark Steven Kirk of Illinois keeps his public apprised of what's going on in the House. With occasional forays into promoting his Republican brethren, his short entries come straight to the point.

North Dakota Legislative Blog

http://www.ndlegislature.com/blogs/

A group of North Dakota senators keep a blog to inform state citizens about the legislative process in their state. The senatorsa mixture of Republicans and Democratsbegan blogging after The Bismark Tribune asked them to contribute. Some senators blog more frequently than others, and the post topics vary from the personalone senator likes to post his thoughts on religionto the very politicalsuch as a recount of the legislative report on the wheat commission.

DC Mayor Anthony Williams

http://www.blog.mayor.dc.gov/index.aspx

The mayor of Washington, DC started his blog to share a dialogue with voters. Some of his readers quibble that because the mayor's staffers have control over which comments get posted on the board, without giving clear guidelines about permissible comments, that the mayor's effort to use the true potential of blogs as a two-way communication device goes unrealized.

Eric Garcetti

http://www.ericgarcetti.org/blog/index.php

Los Angeles City Council member, Eric Garcetti, regularly posts on his site, even when he's half-way around the world visiting sister city Tbilsi, Georgia. Garcetti's style is chatty and personable. He is well-informed about what's going on in the city and county of Los Angeles, and regularly keeps in touch with the Los Angeles blogosphere by leaving comments on other sites.

Jerry Brown

http://www.jerrybrown.typepad.com/

Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, two-time California governor, three-time presidential candidate, and advocate of New Age ideas, has a personal blog where he shares his thoughts, memories, and experiences. How many politicians would dare publish anecdotes about shooting the breeze with Hunter S. Thompson and other counterculture heroes?