Coming to The Dixie Dems podcast in September

by Bob Gatty

Two gutsy women – one a retired Air Force veteran, the other a 13-year-old who intends to run for President someday – are making Republicans head spin in their home state of South Carolina.

Carole Bellacera, activist, author and AF veteran, and young Maliegh Marie Leday, will be guests on special episodes of The Dixie Dems, a special monthly feature of The Lean to the Left podcast, with their episodes Streaming Sept. 4 and Sept. 18 respectively.

Carole Bellacera has been all over the local news recently after being ejected from a  “town hall” by staff of U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (MAGA-SC), one of several Republican candidates for their party’s nomination to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Henry McMaster.

Maliegh Leday, at age 13, will graduate from high school in February with a 3.6 GPA, and is already politically active as a volunteer for Democratic Senate candidate Dr. Annie Andrews. She’s planning a special event in her home state to generate opposition to Mace.

“We can’t let Nancy Mace win,” Maliegh says. “So many people in South Carolina are uneducated about the governor’s race.”

A member of the South Carolina American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Maliegh has created a petition to overturn the state’s six-week abortion ban and a second petition calling for the shutdown of Alligator Alcatraz in Florida.

Not waiting to be old enough to run for U.S. Senate, Maliegh already is developing legislation aimed at lowering costs and making essential items more affordable, plus two additional bills, the Trans Sports Inclusion and Fairness Act and the Youth Healthcare Access and Affordability Act. Ultimately, she intends to run for U.S. Senate and then for President of the United States.

Maliegh says she is using social media and activism “to ensure younger generations are heard and represented.”

Carole Bellacera has been a resident of Myrtle Beach for 13 years, having moved there from Northern Virginia. She is the author of nine books of fiction and a singer in a local band called Generations.

She served in the Air Force from 1971-19785  as a medic, attending to wounded troops returning from Vietnam. Ironically, she was kicked out of Mace’s “town hall”, held at a Veterans Café in Myrtle Beach after acknowledging that she is a Democrat.

Carole says she’s been a devoted activist and resister since Trump came down his golden escalator. She attended the Women’s March in DC in January 2017, and says “It was one of the greatest days of my life.”

The Dixie Dems, the boldest progressive podcast rising out of the South, is hosted by Lean to the Left’s Bob Gatty, from South Carolina, Arthur Hill from North Carolina, and Robert Thompson from Georgia. We dig into the real political battle across the red states — and shine a spotlight on the Southern resistance – of which Carole Bellacera and Maliegh Leday are an important part.

Please mark your calendars for these episodes. Carole’s interview will stream Sept. 4, while Maliegh’s will be available on Sept. 18. Just check https://podcast.leantotheleft or visit the Lean to the Left channel on YouTube and all major audio podcast channels.

Bob Gatty Author, Podcaster, Blogger

For many years, Bob Gatty worked as a writer, editor, and communications consultant, based on the Washington, DC area with a focus on government and politics. He began at The Pittsburgh Courier, an African American weekly, covering crime and the courts. His salary was $55 per week before moving on to two local Pennsylvania dailies. At age 24, he began reporting for United Press International covering state politics in Pennsylvania and then New Jersey, where he was UPI’s state capitol bureau in Trenton.

Tempted by the allure of Washington, DC and big-time politics, at age 29 Bob became press secretary and chief of staff for two Congressmen – first Republican Edwin B. Forsythe, and then Democrat James J. Florio, who later became governor of New Jersey and until his recent death was a frequent podcast guest and co-host of Bob’s NFN Radio News podcast (now called Lean to the Left).

After seven years on Capitol Hill, Bob opened a communications business in Washington, first providing political media consulting to candidates and then freelance Washington coverage for business and trade magazines, plus creative communications services for trade and professional associations, including social media. This work involved articles and analyses of key governmental developments affecting businesses, such as the food and Health industries, retailing, and the environment.

His work as a communications consultant to trade and professional associations included launching and editing association publications, providing website content and social media assistance, and covering conferences and conventions.

Bob retired from G-Net Strategic Communications in 2016 and moved to Myrtle Beach, SC, where he launched his blog site, first called Not Fake News, now known as Lean to the Left.

Hijacked Nation
In August, 2020, Bob and co-author Chris Waldron, one of Lean to the Left's most loyal and prolific contributor, published "Hijacked Nation-Donald Trump's Attack on America's Greatness," a two-volume compilation of blogs regarding Trump's presidency and the consequences for our nation. A followup volume was published by Luna Global Media in September 2024. It is available at https://amzn.to/4ePrTF7 .

In all three volumes, blogs from Not Fake News and Lean to the Left create a virtual play-by-play of key actions of the Trump administration and Congress. For more information, please visit https://leantotheleft.net/books/, and visit Bob's Author's Page on Amazon, https://www.amazon.com/stores/Bob-Gatty/author/B08C7HWXZ5?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true&ccs_id=4e603563-7251-4074-b54d-40800c4ce40a.

The Lean to the Left Podcast
The Lean to the Left podcast provides commentary and interviews with newsmakers and others with interesting stories to tell. Video and audio podcasts stream twice weekly on major channels. More info at https://podcast.leantotheleft.net.

The Lean to the Left YouTube Channel
You'll find all of the audio tracks for the Lean to the Left Podcast here plus original videos, including complete video versions of each podcast.
https://www.youtube.com/@LeantotheLeft.