At 12:00 p.m., Eastern Time (ET), September 8, 2009, President Barack Obama will deliver a national address to the students of America. (Please note that this is a change from the originally scheduled time.) During this special address, the president will speak directly to the nation’s children and youth about persisting and succeeding in school. The president will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning.
The U.S. Department of Education invites students of all ages, teachers, and administrators to participate in this historic moment by watching the president deliver the address, which will be broadcast live on the White House Web site (http://www.whitehouse.gov/live/) and on C-SPAN at 12:00 p.m., ET. We also encourage educators to use this moment to help students get focused and inspired to begin the new academic year. The Department of Education offers educators a menu of classroom activities—created by its teachers-in-residence, the Teaching Ambassador Fellows—to help engage students in the address and stimulate classroom discussions about the importance of education.
Voter Suppression - Rumor Control
Dear Democrat,
As we approach the final month of this exciting campaign, we need to check the facts and know the truth about what we hear and read. The volume of misinformation - from simple error to calculated attempts to suppress democratic voter participation - will no doubt be very high.
FOR EXAMPLE: Wearing Campaign T-shirts or Buttons When Voting
An e-mail circulating among Maryland voters is attempting to spread the rumor that voters will be prohibited from voting if they appear at the polling site with any visible candidate paraphernalia.
That simply is not true!
From the Maryland State Board of Elections RUMOR CONTROL:
Fact: A voter may wear campaign paraphernalia (buttons, t-shirts, or stickers) into the polling place while he or she is there to vote (the voter may not linger in the polling place after voting). However, an election judge, challenger and watcher, or other person stationed inside the polling place or within 100 feet of the polling place may not wear or display campaign materials.
FOR EXAMPLE: Home Foreclosures
There is also concern by some that voters might be turned away because their home may be subject to a foreclosure proceeding. This stems from reports that Republicans in other states are reportedly compiling lists of home foreclosures in Democratic neighborhoods in hopes of challenging voter eligibility at the polls.
This cannot happen in Maryland!
Fact: Maryland's Constitution (Art. I, § 1) guarantees each citizen who is 18 years old and a resident of the State the right to vote. The fact that your home is in foreclosure has no bearing on your right to vote. It may, however, effect where you vote. If you have left your home and taken up a new residence, you will need to update your voter registration (by October 14, 2008) and vote in the election district and precinct for your new residence.
Please forward this e-mail to your friends, neighbors and lists. Help us spread the word that Maryland does not tolerate voter suppression in any form.
Go Obama/Biden!
Sincerely,
Michael CryorChairMaryland Democratic Party
Paid for by the Maryland Democratic Party and not authorized by any federal candidate or candidate's committee. By authority of Ken Banks, Treasurer.
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Maryland Democratic Party, 188 Main Street Suite 1, Annapolis, MD 21401, 410-269-8818,www.mddems.org
Barackstars,
I know I've said this before but you guys have really done a fantastic job and I appreciate all of the hard work and effort. I would also like to give a special shout out to the College Democrats here because they've taken on a lot of the Hopkins for Obama (JHSFBO) responsibilities in a really great way.
With that said, we've really got our work cut out for us. Since this campaign has started Bear Stearns, Meryl Lynch, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Farmer Mac, IndyMac, Washington Mutual, AIG, Lehman Brothers, and others have all succumb to bankruptcy, government bailouts, company buyouts, or are nearing one of these fates every day. The market crashed more than 700 points before rebounding this week in what will likely be an ephemeral bounce back up. Needless to say, the economy isn't doing well.
This is exactly why we need to work EVEN HARDER because this race is tied in most of the battleground states of PA, WI, NM, NV, OH, VA, NH, CO, and others. Unlike the McCain/Palin campaign, we have manpower as a great resource but we must use it if we're going to win. I understand that we're all busy but I cannot stress enough how important it is to take at least 1 night a week to phone bank or canvass in Pennsylvania.
Here is a list of upcoming events...
Canvass trips to the Northeast Philadelphia Area:Saturday, September 27 9AM-TBDSaturday, October 4 9AM-TBDSaturday, October 11 9AM-TBDSaturday, October 18 9AM-TBD
If you can canvass, please contact Claire Cravero (ccraver1@jhu.edu) or Lakshmi Muthu (lmuthu1@gmail.com) to RSVP
Phone bank sessions in Krieger 302:Wednesday, September 24 from 7-9PM; Deputy State Director Jason Waskey will be joining us!Thursday, September 25 from 6-9PMMonday, September 29 from 6-9PMWednesday, October 1 from 6-9PMFriday, October 3 from 6-9PMMonday, October 6 from 6-9PMWednesday, October 8 from 6-9PMIf you can phone bank, please sign-up on our Facebook group or our group at http://my.barackobama.comI cannot stress enough how important it is for all of us to make time at least once a week for phone banking. This race could not be any closer and it will be volunteer efforts like these that make the difference. Best,Brendan Ullman
ObamaTaxCut.com is a site I made today that takes data from the Tax Policy Center to figure out how you'll probably wind up economically (as far as taxes go!) under an Obama or McCain administration. See if Obama cuts your taxes, and see if he cuts them more than John McCain.
A poll today showed that 53% of Americans think Obama will raise their taxes even though he'll actually cut taxes for 95% of Americans (and only raise taxes for the top 1%). Pass this on to your friends and family if they have the same misconception, and please digg this link if you like it.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04252008/watch.html
Bill Moyers interviews the Reverend Jeremiah Wright in his first broadcast interview with a journalist since he became embroiled in a controversy for his remarks and his relationship with Barack Obama. Wright, who retired in early 2008 as pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, where Senator Obama is a member, has been at the center of controversy for comments he made during sermons, which surfaced in the press in March. >More about Rev. Jeremiah Wright
We Will We Will Ba-Rock You Ba-Rock YouColor's on your face no disgraceBeating Clinton and Mcain all over the placeSinging We Will We Will Ba-Rock You Ba-Rock You!Song by Oliver Sampson AKA ~Dog Lover "Hussein" John Paul Larkin Rules!
Yes We Can!
If you like this donate: http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/DogLovermoney
For more songs give me the lyrics and I will turn them into Obama songs!!
ILWU Backs Obama for President
by Seth Michaels, Mar 3, 2008
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) has endorsed Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) in the presidential race.The 60,000-member union is the fifth one afilliated with the AFL-CIO to back Obama.
ILWU President Bob McEllrath says Obama would be the best candidate on key issues like trade, health care and workers’ freedom to form unions:
America’s working families are ready for a candidate with a fresh approach who will put people first and hold corporations more accountable. Obama met with us, listened to our concerns, and we think he’ll do the best job on the issues that matter most to working families.
Among AFL-CIO afilliates, Obama also has been endorsed by the Boilermakers (IBB), the Plumbers and Pipe Fitters (UA), the Utility Workers (UWUA) and the Transport Workers (TWU), which initially gave an endorsement to former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.).
By JESSE J. HOLLAND – 1 hour ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Barack Obama won an endorsement from the powerful Teamsters union on Wednesday, critical labor support for the Democratic front-runner with upcoming contests in Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania.
"There was very, very strong support for him" among the union's members, James P. Hoffa, president of the 1.4-million member union, said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Hoffa met with Obama on Wednesday in Texas, site of the next Democratic primary against Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. The Teamsters endorsement is expected to help Obama there and in Ohio on March 4, as well as in Pennsylvania on April 22.
The Teamsters have 80,000 members in Pennsylvania, 60,000 in Ohio and 17,000 in Texas, Hoffa said. Besides those members on the ground, the Teamsters plan to have their members and their families from around the country work for Obama, Hoffa said.
"We're going to say, 'Yes, yes, we can elect Barack Obama,'" Hoffa said. " ... He's got the best chance to win in the November elections."
Obama's wins Tuesday in Wisconsin and Hawaii helped seal the endorsement, Hoffa said. Clinton has now lost 10 contests in a row to Obama.
"We see the trends and we're impressed by the momentum of the Barack Obama campaign," said Hoffa, who noted that the union's executive board voted unanimously to endorse Obama. Internal polling of the union's members also showed they preferred Obama and that they thought he would do better against presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain, Hoffa said.
Hoffa said he planned to call Clinton and her husband, former President Clinton, to tell them why the union made its decision. "I owe it to them," said Hoffa, who said he had been lobbied by the former president to endorse his wife.
The Democratic presidential contenders have lobbied hard for the Teamster endorsement because of the power the union wields through its fundraising for Democratic candidates and get-out-the-vote programs. The Teamsters gave more than $2.2 million to Democrats in federal races in 2004. They have given more than $24 million to Democratic election causes since 1989, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Ohio and Pennsylvania have some of the largest number of union workers, with more than 15 percent of the work force unionized in Pennsylvania and more than 14 percent in Ohio.
The endorsement from the Teamsters is Obama's fourth from organized labor in a week. The 65,000-member International Brotherhood of Boilermakers endorsed Obama on Wednesday, the 1.9-million member Service Employees International Union backed the Illinois senator last Friday, and the smaller United Food and Commercial Workers endorsed him last Thursday.
Clinton has a larger number of unions in her corner with 12 endorsements from unions affiliated with the AFL-CIO — the nation's largest labor federation — and the United Farm Workers from the rival Change To Win labor federation.
But Obama also has two AFL-CIO unions in his corner — the Transport Workers Union and the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters. He also has the backing of the independent National Weather Service Employees Organization. And with the Teamsters endorsement, he will have four Change To Win unions in his corner: the Teamsters, SEIU, the United Food and Commercial Workers and UNITE HERE, which gave Obama his first major union endorsement.
Four of the seven Change to Win unions must endorse a candidate for the federation to consider its own endorsement. The federation's leaders planned to discuss a possible endorsement Thursday morning, officials said.
Thanks,
In one of the most important presidential elections workers have ever faced, members of the Service Employees International Union today endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for president, calling him the candidate with the best vision, best plan and best strategy to achieve economic justice, quality, affordable healthcare for every American, the freedom for workers to unite in unions, and an end to the Iraq war. With a majority of Americans now worried that their children will be worse off than they are, nurses, childcare workers, janitors and other service workers pledged to support Obama with an aggressive political effort in every critical state. SEIU member and home health care worker Pauline Beck said, "Barack is the right candidate for workers." As part of SEIU’s Walk a Day in My Shoes program, Senator Obama spent a day with Beck last August, helping her care for an elderly patient and spending time with her family. More »
For several hours back in August, I got to show Senator Barack Obama what everyday life is like for me. As part of SEIU's "Walk A Day in My Shoes" program, he came to my home in Oakland, California for an early morning breakfast and then came with me to my workplace—the home of 86-year-old John Thornton who I care for as a county homecare worker. I got to show Senator Obama how rewarding, but physically demanding, my work is and he got to experience it firsthand by spending time with me and Mr. John and doing a lot of the chores himself. I also got to tell the Senator how difficult it is to make ends meet and what it takes to raise a family as a single mom. Read more about what made that a very memorable day on WalkADayInMyShoes2008.com. — Pauline BeckSEIU MemberCalifornia Homecare Worker
Pass along to anyone in the teaching/education profession ...
With the multitude of problems facing education in America today, it's oftentimes difficult to even consider that anything will ever be resolved. However, there is one thing afforded to U.S. citizens that can give educators hope: the ability to vote. With the presidential primaries in full swing, and the general election coming up in the fall, here's a quick rundown of where each major candidate stands:DemocratsHillary Clinton - http://hillaryclinton.com/issues/education/Clinton is being endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers. In the latest issue of American Teacher, there is a page that highlights her strong points, followed by an article about her campaign.Most of the bulleted items stress more funding for education, including the following:• Invest $10 billion for universal prekindergarten for all children• Increase funding for Head Start and Early Head Start• Expand the maximum Pell Grant to $11,500• Raise the HOPE education tax credit to $3,500At the top of the list, however, she addresses No Child Left Behind, essentially stating that it needs to be fixed or ditched. Clinton recommends that policies need to be changed so that teachers don't have to teach to the test; that faculty has the resources needed to give children the education they need; and that educators have the flexibility to determine the proper solutions within the classroom.Furthermore, Clinton stresses the importance of not utilizing voucher programs and reducing the number of outside contracts for public services. Lastly, she supports construction and renovation projects, including those that involve making existing schools more energy efficient and less hazardous to the students' health.She has experience working toward the betterment of schools. Her work for the Children's Defense Fund led to the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, "the first time children with special needs were guaranteed the right to a free, appropriate public education." While in Arkansas, teacher salaries rose, class size decreased and students had better access to high-level science and foreign-language courses. As First Lady, Clinton promoted the Prescription for Reading program, helped create Early Head Start and helped grow the after-school program from a pilot program of $1 million to $1 billion.It's undeniable that all of these items are great for educators. One issue, however, is that nearly all focus on pouring more money directly into various programs. First, where is the money going to come from? Second, will money automatically make these programs work better? Barack Obama - http://www.barackobama.com/issues/education/Although Clinton and Obama agree nearly across the board about the problems within the school system, Obama's approach is a bit more delineated in how he will tackle the issues.For early education, he proposes a "Zero to Five" plan that places emphasis at early care and education for infants. He will also create Early Learning Challenge Grants to promote efforts, along with Early Head Start, Head Start and high-quality child care bumps.Obama again agrees with Clinton on No Child Left Behind, but he also wants to make math and science education a national priority. He will recruit individuals with associated degrees to the teaching profession to help teachers learn from professionals in the field. He also plans to address the dropout crisis, expand high-qualty afterschool and summer learning opportunities and support college outreach and english language learner programs.Last but not least, Obama stresses the importance of recruiting, preparing, retaining and rewarding America's teachers. He plans to create new Teacher Service Scholarships to cover both undergrad and grad-level teaching education. He will also look for enhanced ways to keep educators by making sure they have the proper education and honoring the best ones with monetary rewards.In the Illinois State Senate, Obama helped create the state's Early Learning Council. In the U.S. Senate, he worked toward increasing the Pell Grant. He has also helped pass legislation to achieve improvements in the Higher Education Act, and he has introduced legislation to create Teacher Residency Programs and increase summer learning support.Just like Clinton, it's difficult to determine exactly where the money is going to come from for these programs, but they are at least spelled out in such a way that the responsibility lies not just on the American tax payer, and not just on the school, but on the individual teacher as well.RepublicansMike Huckabee - http://www.mikehuckabee.com/?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=7A unique aspect of Huckabee's platform comes from his "Weapons of Mass Instruction," which are classes in art and music. He feels that these areas are "secret, effective weapons that will help us to be competitive and creative." He briefly touches on No Child Left Behind, stating that individual states should be able to set their own benchmarks. He also mentions that test scores in Arkansas rose dramatically, and that we should judge progress by the results, not just how much money is spent on particular programs. He plans to support various modes of education, including public (he, his wife and three kids all went to public schools), charter and home-schooling. He expects that parental involvement will be crucial for education reform. To summarize, Huckabee's education agenda includes "working towards a clear distinction between the federal role in assisting and empowering states and in usurping the right of states to carry out the education programs for their students."As governor of Arkansas, Huckabee passed legislation to provide music and art instruction from certified teachers to grades 1-6, and he created a two-year initiatve called "The Arts - A lifetime of Learning" to promote art education across the country. He was also the Chairman of the Education Committee of the States from 2004-06, working with a host of representatives from all 50 states to advance education policy and conduction effective teaching techniques.The information listed focuses a great deal on what he has done at the state level, but doesn't delve too deeply on what needs to be done on a national level. It seems reasonable that he would attempt many of his ideas on a broader scope, but there's not really a clear outline on how this would occur. John McCain - http://johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/19ce50b5-daa8-4795-b92d-92bd0d985bca.htmIt took a little digging to find McCain's views on education because if you visit his website, you'll notice that under the Issues navigation item, education is not listed. You actually have to visit the main issues page, and education is listed in 11th place.The only thing McCain seems to specifically address is allowing parents the ability to choose the proper public school for their children. It states that he believes "all federal financial support must be predicated on providing parents the ability to move their children, and the dollars associated with them, from failing schools." Of course, there's no word on what happens to the failing schools and the children left in them.While mentioning No Child Left Behind, McCain doesn't not address a way to fix it, instead stating that "we can no longer accept low standards for some students and high standards for others." The only thing I can gather by this message is that he expects all students to be on equal ground, like robots, and anyone in education can tell you for certain that this is not the case.Ron Paul - http://www.ronpaul2008.com/issues/education/Paul is another candidate that has somewhat downplayed the importance of education, but at the same time, he does address it more extensively than McCain. In Congress, he introduced the Family Education Freedom Act, which would allow parents a tax credit of up to $5,000 per student per year for attendance at an elementary and/or secondary school. He also sponsored a bill that allows full-time teachers a $3,000 yearly tax credit, "thus easing their financial burden and encouraging good teachers to stay in an underpaid profession."Paul wants to abolish the national Department of Education and return its functions to the states. He states that schools can be funded by local taxes, and that parents and teachers can determine how to allocate those resources.This approach seems rather unreasonable on two critical levels. First, if each state handles its education separately, how would this help accreditation programs that allow teachers the ability to educate in multiple states? Additionally, how would this help prepare students for colleges and universities that could be in a neighboring state? Without some accountability and standardization, we would be further polarizing the American educational system. Who's the best?From the education perspective, Huckabee could be a decent choice on the Republican side, but to me, it's pretty clear that the right choice should be a Democrat. While Clinton and Obama agree about the current state of American schools, I think Obama has the edge in working toward a solution. During his short tenure as a politician, he has already made an impact in both Illinois and the nation, at least to a small degree. It should be noted that in the same issue of American Teacher that promotes Clinton, there is a separate article titled "Generation Y teachers looking for change." In my opinion, Obama will deliver that change because that's what he pledges to do, and that's what he's always done, wherever he has been. I don't think Clinton would be a bad choice, but why settle when a better choice exists?
Former Sen. John Edwards is quitting the presidential race, CNN has learned.Looks like a one on one race now!
James 'Ward" Morrow
Two-three other friends and myself will be driving from Baltimore to join the door to door canvassing efforts in Iowa.1) In no more than 4 lines, what is the strongest message you want me to deliver to Iowans? Please consider this seriously and make it concise and believable, as if YOU were knocking on their doors.
For 8 days we'll be delivering your messages to Iowa. Lets bring about change. Meaningful change we can believe in.2) Could you please help me and find the titles of every Iowa newspaper and Iowa elected official who has endorsed Barack?
Of 4765 total votes in 8 different polls (all of likely voters, in Iowa since Nov 11th, Clinton has 1272 (26.7%) Edwards 1081 (22.7) and Obama 1319 (27.67%).
One needs to assume that if the same voters were called upon to vote more than once from the same pollster this was done similarly to every campaign.
Edwards's own internal poll has been excluded
And who best to blast this conservative idea:
"The individual mandates create some additional problems, at least as we analyze them. It makes it very difficult to determine and monitor who is in the system and who is out. It would require tracking individuals as they move in and out of jobs, as they move in and out of the insurance market. And it would mean, if you provided a subsidy scheme to support low-wage individuals, a determination as to when their income reached some arbitrary level as to what kind of subsidy they would still be entitled to. It would require, in our view, the IRS to engage in an enormous administrative oversight of our health care system." - HRC, 1993
However in 2007:
"In our interview, Clinton said the models for her current proposal were the 1993 Republican plan and the individual-mandate plan passed in Massachusetts by former Governor Mitt Romney."
This is what appeasers learn while they stay in Washington DC.
For more info http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/12/10/116/99540
You can email Krugman, the columnist of the NYTimes who started this debate here.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/opinion/editorialsandoped/oped/columnists/paulkrugman/index.html?8qa
Click write to Krugman
