WOW...what a night! The networks called it for President-Elect Obama about 15 minutes ago. There are so many emotions running through my mind. The first is WHEW...we made it. Then I thought, "my family and friends are probably so happy that this is over because they won't be getting another e-mail from that Obama crazed Mimi!" But, the main thought is that this is just the FIRST step. We as a nation have A LOT to do to get our country back on track. I am not as expressive as Bob Herbert, the eloquent New York Time columnist, so I invite you to read his column, Beyond Election Day, linked below. He says it all. After you finish reading, please think about what YOU can do to not only make Barack's presidency a success, but also think about what you can do to help your fellow man to get our country back to its state of greatness.
Hello all you O-Train Riders, I am forwarding this message so that you can become aware of a threat to the Obama campaign. Below is an e-mail from Jon Ausman. He is one of the people who spoke out on behalf of the State of Florida during the Democratic Party's Rules & Bylaws Committee meeting this past May when the Democratic leadership decided what to do about seating the Michigan and Florida delegates. Well, it looks like another crisis is brewing. It appears as if the Florida Democratic Party - State Executive Committee met last Saturday (August 9), but there was no quorum at that meeting and as a result 27 recommendations for presidential electors could not be adopted. If this is not adopted before Sept. 1, then EVEN IF FLORIDA GOES DEMOCRATIC, THEN SENATOR OBAMA WILL GET NO FLORIDA ELECTORAL VOTES. Please take the time to read the lengthy e-mail from Jon Ausman below. We need to do all we can proactively to prevent the Florida Democratic Party from doing something else foolish to stand in the way of Sen. Obama's success. As you all know from previous elections, Florida plays a PIVOTAL role in deciding the presidency and we can't sit idly by. I know a lot of us have volunteered countless hours doing voter registration, phone banking, canvassing and a lot more. I would hate to see all of our hard work be for naught if Florida electors are not properly seated. What can you do? 1. E-mail Jon Ausman and demand to know when the SEC Committee meeting is rescheduled for. It is also important to find out who the SEC members are and why they failed to attend such a crucial meeting. 2. Call Congresswoman Karen Thurman, Chair of the Florida Democratic Party at 850.222.3411. This is the main number for the Florida Democratic Party, but I can't find any other contact information for her. 3. Please forward this e-mail as you see fit to others in power who can assist us in making sure this does not happen. If you have any connections to the Obama campaign, please share this information with your colleagues. And to help you put this in perspective, both Jon Ausman and Karen Thurman were staunch Hillary supporters. We need to speak up now and make sure that this does not happen! We cannot afford to be disenfranchised AGAIN! YES WE CAN! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Jon and Donna Ausman [mailto:ausman@embarqmail.com] Sent: Saturday, August 09, 2008 5:46 PMTo: ausman@embarqmail.com Subject: Deadline for Selecting Democratic Electors for Florida 9 August 2008 Greetings: Today the Florida Democratic Party (FDP) State Executive Committee (SEC) met in Tampa, Florida, with the main purpose of recommending candidates for presidential electors. Chapter 103.021, Florida Statutes, specifically states that the "state executive committee" shall make these recommendations before 1 September 2008. A copy of the statutory language is provided at the end of this email. The FDP SEC did not have a quorum at its FDP SEC and consequently the twenty-seven (27) recommendations for presidential electors could not be adopted. If it is not adopted before 1 September 2008 then even if Florida goes Democratic then Senator Barack Obama will get no Florida electoral votes. There has to be another meeting of the FDP SEC. While the Charter and Bylaws provides for a phone or mail ballot for the FDP Central Committee (see Bylaws Article III, entitled "Central Committee", Section 3.3) there is NO provision for a phone or mail ballot for the State Executive Committee. Our Bylaws (Article II, Section 3.1) require when a meeting is called of the State Executive Committee "written notice of no less than ten (10) days" be given. An Adobe (.pdf) copy of the Charter and Bylaws is available upon request. The FDP State Chair needs to call a meeting of the FDP SEC for Sunday, 31 August 2008, in Orlando, Florida, provided the Governor's Office will accept a certified copy of such on that same date. Otherwise this meeting will have to be held before the Democratic National Convention on Saturday, 23 August 2008. This meeting will have to be in person. At today's FDP SEC it was proposed a vote by mail or phone be held. Such a vote by the State Executive Committee is NOT AUTHORIZED by the Charter and Bylaws and therefore would be illegal. This would result in no Democratic electors. We cannot risk such a possibility. Since Florida gets one electoral vote for each Congressional District (25) and one for each US Senator (2) for a total of twenty-seven (27) I propose they be selected in the following manner. 1. The FDP State Chair, Karen Thurman, would recommend two (2) persons to be electors for each of the US Senators; and, 2. The Congressional District Committees, consisting of the State Committeewomen and State Committeemen of that particular Congressional District, would meet during a recess of the FDP SEC to select one person from their Congressional District to be an elector. 3, These recommendations would be adopted by the FDP SEC and sent to the Governor. I further propose all recommendations, motions and reports regarding this matter be distributed in a hard copy format (or by email) to all members of the FDP SEC before the meeting. The time of keeping secret lists of recommendations and projecting names on a wall at the last minute needs to end. This secretive, exclusionary methodology is repugnant to democratic, inclusionary decision making. As you know I crafted a remedy unanimously adopted by the Democratic National Committee Rules and Bylaws Committee regarding the delegate selection challenges Florida faced. I am now proposing a simple way to resolve the elector issue which was created today. If you have any questions you can reach me at 850-321-7799 or write me an email. With respect, I am, Jon M. Ausman, MemberDemocratic National CommitteeFlorida P.S. I was not at today's FDP SEC meeting for two reasons: one, I attended the funeral of a friend today; and, two, my Mother, my pregnant Daughter and my grandson are all moving into the house in the next four weeks (and I only have one extra bedroom to house them). I am working on where to put everyone in the house. Writing the successful challenge to get 211 delegates, even though at half votes only, was easier than solving the anticipated arrival of four persons and only one spare bedroom. 103.021 Nomination for presidential electors.--Candidates for presidential electors shall be nominated in the following manner: (1) The Governor shall nominate the presidential electors of each political party. The state executive committee of each political party shall by resolution recommend candidates for presidential electors and deliver a certified copy thereof to the Governor before September 1 of each presidential election year. The Governor shall nominate only the electors recommended by the state executive committee of the respective political party. Each such elector shall be a qualified elector of the party he or she represents who has taken an oath that he or she will vote for the candidates of the party that he or she is nominated to represent. The Governor shall certify to the Department of State on or before September 1, in each presidential election year, the names of a number of electors for each political party equal to the number of senators and representatives which this state has in Congress.
I am forwarding this message so that you can become aware of a threat to the Obama campaign. Below is an e-mail from Jon Ausman. He is one of the people who spoke out on behalf of the State of Florida during the Democratic Party's Rules & Bylaws Committee meeting this past May when the Democratic leadership decided what to do about seating the Michigan and Florida delegates.
Well, it looks like another crisis is brewing. It appears as if the Florida Democratic Party - State Executive Committee met last Saturday (August 9), but there was no quorum at that meeting and as a result 27 recommendations for presidential electors could not be adopted. If this is not adopted before Sept. 1, then EVEN IF FLORIDA GOES DEMOCRATIC, THEN SENATOR OBAMA WILL GET NO FLORIDA ELECTORAL VOTES.
Please take the time to read the lengthy e-mail from Jon Ausman below. We need to do all we can proactively to prevent the Florida Democratic Party from doing something else foolish to stand in the way of Sen. Obama's success. As you all know from previous elections, Florida plays a PIVOTAL role in deciding the presidency and we can't sit idly by. I know a lot of us have volunteered countless hours doing voter registration, phone banking, canvassing and a lot more. I would hate to see all of our hard work be for naught if Florida electors are not properly seated.
What can you do?
1. E-mail Jon Ausman and demand to know when the SEC Committee meeting is rescheduled for. It is also important to find out who the SEC members are and why they failed to attend such a crucial meeting.
2. Call Congresswoman Karen Thurman, Chair of the Florida Democratic Party at 850.222.3411. This is the main number for the Florida Democratic Party, but I can't find any other contact information for her.
3. Please forward this e-mail as you see fit to others in power who can assist us in making sure this does not happen. If you have any connections to the Obama campaign, please share this information with your colleagues.
And to help you put this in perspective, both Jon Ausman and Karen Thurman were staunch Hillary supporters. We need to speak up now and make sure that this does not happen! We cannot afford to be disenfranchised AGAIN!
YES WE CAN!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Jon and Donna Ausman [mailto:ausman@embarqmail.com] Sent: Saturday, August 09, 2008 5:46 PMTo: ausman@embarqmail.com Subject: Deadline for Selecting Democratic Electors for Florida
9 August 2008
Greetings:
Today the Florida Democratic Party (FDP) State Executive Committee (SEC) met in Tampa, Florida, with the main purpose of recommending candidates for presidential electors. Chapter 103.021, Florida Statutes, specifically states that the "state executive committee" shall make these recommendations before 1 September 2008. A copy of the statutory language is provided at the end of this email.
The FDP SEC did not have a quorum at its FDP SEC and consequently the twenty-seven (27) recommendations for presidential electors could not be adopted. If it is not adopted before 1 September 2008 then even if Florida goes Democratic then Senator Barack Obama will get no Florida electoral votes.
There has to be another meeting of the FDP SEC. While the Charter and Bylaws provides for a phone or mail ballot for the FDP Central Committee (see Bylaws Article III, entitled "Central Committee", Section 3.3) there is NO provision for a phone or mail ballot for the State Executive Committee.
Our Bylaws (Article II, Section 3.1) require when a meeting is called of the State Executive Committee "written notice of no less than ten (10) days" be given. An Adobe (.pdf) copy of the Charter and Bylaws is available upon request.
The FDP State Chair needs to call a meeting of the FDP SEC for Sunday, 31 August 2008, in Orlando, Florida, provided the Governor's Office will accept a certified copy of such on that same date. Otherwise this meeting will have to be held before the Democratic National Convention on Saturday, 23 August 2008. This meeting will have to be in person.
At today's FDP SEC it was proposed a vote by mail or phone be held. Such a vote by the State Executive Committee is NOT AUTHORIZED by the Charter and Bylaws and therefore would be illegal. This would result in no Democratic electors. We cannot risk such a possibility.
Since Florida gets one electoral vote for each Congressional District (25) and one for each US Senator (2) for a total of twenty-seven (27) I propose they be selected in the following manner.
1. The FDP State Chair, Karen Thurman, would recommend two (2) persons to be electors for each of the US Senators; and,
2. The Congressional District Committees, consisting of the State Committeewomen and State Committeemen of that particular Congressional District, would meet during a recess of the FDP SEC to select one person from their Congressional District to be an elector.
3, These recommendations would be adopted by the FDP SEC and sent to the Governor.
I further propose all recommendations, motions and reports regarding this matter be distributed in a hard copy format (or by email) to all members of the FDP SEC before the meeting.
The time of keeping secret lists of recommendations and projecting names on a wall at the last minute needs to end. This secretive, exclusionary methodology is repugnant to democratic, inclusionary decision making.
As you know I crafted a remedy unanimously adopted by the Democratic National Committee Rules and Bylaws Committee regarding the delegate selection challenges Florida faced.
I am now proposing a simple way to resolve the elector issue which was created today.
If you have any questions you can reach me at 850-321-7799 or write me an email.
With respect, I am,
Jon M. Ausman, MemberDemocratic National CommitteeFlorida
P.S. I was not at today's FDP SEC meeting for two reasons: one, I attended the funeral of a friend today; and, two, my Mother, my pregnant Daughter and my grandson are all moving into the house in the next four weeks (and I only have one extra bedroom to house them). I am working on where to put everyone in the house. Writing the successful challenge to get 211 delegates, even though at half votes only, was easier than solving the anticipated arrival of four persons and only one spare bedroom.
103.021 Nomination for presidential electors.--Candidates for presidential electors shall be nominated in the following manner:
(1) The Governor shall nominate the presidential electors of each political party. The state executive committee of each political party shall by resolution recommend candidates for presidential electors and deliver a certified copy thereof to the Governor before September 1 of each presidential election year. The Governor shall nominate only the electors recommended by the state executive committee of the respective political party. Each such elector shall be a qualified elector of the party he or she represents who has taken an oath that he or she will vote for the candidates of the party that he or she is nominated to represent. The Governor shall certify to the Department of State on or before September 1, in each presidential election year, the names of a number of electors for each political party equal to the number of senators and representatives which this state has in Congress.
John Harwood of The New York Times and CNBC interviews Senator Barack Obama about gas prices, taxes, housing and other economic issues.
Click here.
Also, click here to see an exerpt from a June 2008 speech in NC where he discusses the ecomony and his plan to rebuild it.
I am so bummed that Dave Chappelle is not on top of his game during this political season. He is a funny dude and I would have loved to have seen his take on this long and drawn out primary season. But, alas, Dave is not out with new material, so we have to rely on his old stuff. Black Bush is his hilarious take on the run-up to the war in Iraq. Be warned, it is a profanity laced, irreverent skit, but funny as all get out.
Ladies and gentleman, I bring to you now, Black Bush.
The attached article in today's New York Times discusses Barack's success. The author asserts that this is because many view Barack as "postracial." What do you think? Do you think this discussion of whether Barack is Black enough, but not too Black is justified and worth discussing? Click the link below and come back and let me know your thoughts.
Color Test: Where Whites Draw the Line
Mimi :-)
Michelle Obama, wife of presidential candidate Barack Obama, will be chatting with the hosts and interviewing guests on "The View" for an upcoming episode of the talkfest to air on Wednesday, June 18.
Check out the video
