WagooMusic

• By Jessica Brady
• Roll Call Staff
• Dec. 3, 2011, 4:36 p.m.

Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo Rep. Keith Ellison, co-chairman of the Progressive Caucus, has spoken with Occupy protesters in D.C., new York and Minnesota and said Democrats need to build up their outreach. Related from CQ Today

Congressional Democrats still haven’t quite figured out how to harness the energy behind the Occupy Wall Street movement for political gain, but they nevertheless are incorporating the group into their messaging as a way to maintain ties with the leftist protesters.

The efforts have yielded mixed results, and took a step back Thursday night when a handful of OWS supporters protested a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fundraiser in downtown Washington, D.C. With the 2012 elections drawing near, Members acknowledge they have some work to do.

“You can always have a better message, there’s no question,” DCCC Chairman Steve Israel acknowledged. “And the message that counts is the values that we have, many of which we share with the protesters, versus the misguided priorities the Republicans have.”

Republicans seized on the OWS protest of the Democratic fundraiser. National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Paul Lindsay called it “a stunning rejection of [House Minority Leader] Nancy Pelosi’s aggressive courting of the movement” and suggested Democratic incumbents could face primary challenges as a result.

“What I love about America is we have the right to disagree even when we agree,” the new York Democrat said. “And we agree with their call for more jobs. We’ve tried to do it, Republicans have said no. We agree with their call for more college affordability. We’ve tried to do it, Republicans said no.”

Democrats are trying to highlight those similarities with OWS themes threaded throughout party messaging this week. Pelosi even incorporated the group’s “we are the 99 percent” slogan into her remarks.

The California Democrat also talked up a pet issue of OWS — corporate money in campaigns — and blasted last year’s Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision that allows corporations and unions to spend unrestricted money on campaigns.

“Many in the 1 percent have used that secret, unlimited, undisclosed money to affect an election, to affect public policy that again is counter to reigniting the American dream,” she said. “We must give that 99 percent a stronger voice.”

Just as Republicans built a strategic relationship with the conservative Tea Party movement, which ultimately helped the GOP recapture the House majority in 2010, Democrats are trying to do the same with OWS.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus hosted three D.C. protesters at an October meeting. Liberal lawmakers also quickly responded after riot police in Oakland, Calif., fired tear gas on a crowd in front of city hall in October, critically injuring one protester in the process. After the incident Rep. Barbara Lee (D), who represents much of Oakland, declared “I support the occupiers. A nonviolent protest is the way we petition our government for a redress of grievances.”

Still, as Rep. Dennis Kucinich pointed out, “What I have seen is Occupy Wall Street has essentially stayed away from politicians.”

The Ohio Democrat, a rock star in liberal circles, said he has visited OWS sites in Washington and Cleveland. Rep. Keith Ellison said he has been to sites in Washington, new York and his state of Minnesota to speak to protestors. Ellison, who is a co-chairman of the Progressive Caucus, said Democrats need to kick up their outreach.

“Will they be a voting force? Don’t know. I think what they would say is if you give us something to vote for, we’ll vote,” Ellison said. “So we’ve got to be fighting for the issues that we all know we need to fight for.”

The 77-member Congressional Progressive Caucus is set to unveil a broad economic plan next week that aides say will address some of the OWS concerns, including the rising number of foreclosures and unemployment among younger workers.

Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larson said he plans to launch a group in the coming weeks that will touch on the issue of corporate influence in the political process.

“Yes, there clearly are threads that connect,” the Connecticut Democrat said. “The thing about the occupy group is it shows a frustration in a lack of jobs and a frustration in a lack of fairness.”

Earlier today, progressive rock band Coheed and Cambria announced in an official statement that the band’s original drummer Josh Eppard will be rejoining the group to work on Coheed’s sixth studio album release. Said the statement, “As the songs for the new record began twisting into shape, it slowly became apparent that these songs were very dynamic, and could flourish with the groove-oriented approach that Josh naturally brings to the table.” Eppard parted ways with the band in 2006 due to his issues with chemical dependency. However, after two years of sobriety, Coheed has decided to take a leap of faith on their former bandmate and welcome him back with open arms. “We understand there are risks involved bringing Josh back into the fray,” the statement continues. “But at the end of the day, we have all grown up, and we have all been through so much, that playing with Josh again is sort of like coming home. It’s comfortable, it’s familiar, it just feels right… it’s hand in glove.” the band also noted that their next album is already underway. According to the band’s official website, they are three tracks into the project.

Iranian electronic rock band The Casualty Process, whose members are political refugees now based in new York City, will perform at a free concert in the Hub at 8 p.m.

The band’s members, Cis Nadjafi, Natch Nadjafi and Shayan Amini, were forced to leave Iran due to governmental constraints on political and artistic expression and hope to provoke discussion about the region’s social issues through their music. The concert — hosted by the Persian Student Group, associated Students Human Rights Board, KCSB and a.S. Program Board — will follow a Q&a session with the band in the MultiCultural Center from 3 to 5 p.m.

Local band Givers & Takers will open the show for The Casualty Process, formerly known as The Plastic Wave, who cites influences such as Justice, Björk and nine Inch Nails.

PSG Co-President Armand Amin, a third-year global studies and economics double major, said tonight’s program will give students a more comprehensive perspective on Iran’s political situation and unique culture.

“When people think of Iranian music, they think of sitars and classical [styles]; they don’t think of modern music,” Amin said. “This music is a voice for the youth. News programs only focus on protests. The real revolution comes from small acts of rebellion and from freedom of expression.”

Amini, the band’s guitarist, bassist and vocalist, said the group has a long history of using music to underscore political struggles in Iran and surrounding areas, and has often paid a price for its expression.

“After [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad became president, he closed the [concert] venues,” Amini said. “We couldn’t do shows in public, so we decided to do an underground show.”

According to Amini, the band participated in a massive underground rock concert in 2007 in Tehran, Iran, during which more than 200 attendees were arrested in a police raid.

“The policed arrived and we were arrested and jailed for 15 days and fined 50,000 U.S. dollars,” Amini said. “We tried leaving Iran in 2008 but we were rejected in Dubai by the American Embassy.”

As The Plastic Wave they were booked for the 2009 South By Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, but they were denied visas and were unable to perform in person. However, a representative from the organization Impossible Music Sessions contacted the musicians and coordinated a performance of The Plastic Wave’s songs by the U.S. based group Cruel Black Dove.

Though The Plastic Wave’s former female lead singer Maral Afsharian remains in Iran, Nadjafi and Amini have carried the group’s legacy to the U.S. through The Casualty Process.

The band’s appearance on campus provides students a unique opportunity to connect with progressive humanitarian and social efforts through the international language of music, Amin said.

“I thought it was fucking cool to have them share their message and their music with us,” Amin said. “There is no distinction between music and humanity. It’s universal.”