Apply for Training (OFA Colorado)
If you want to learn how to organize while helping make Health Insurance Reform a reality in 2009 then please apply for Community Organizer training with OFA Colorado by filling out this form. http://www.ofacolorado.com/apply-for-organizer-training
So when are we going to march inside Markey's office like the republicans did on the 29th?? I watched them just go in and start demanding answers and two staffers had to come down and listen to them.
They keep getting all of the attention and so now that Betsey Markey is back shouldn't we somehow let her know that we want healthcare reform? They keep doing their stupid tea parties and so I just think we should do something to.
Hopefully I have posted this right and I am new to these blogs!
There is a Health Care Kickoff meeting on the west side of town, at Larry and Cathy Watson's house (same time as the meeting at Linda Berger’s on east side of town). 9:00 to 11:00 AM on Saturday the 6th. Please attend one or the other, rsvp at my.barackobama.com.
We will be sharing stories.
Discussing Obama’s principles on reform.
Planning a day of service event.
Please join if you can.
Sat, June 6: ORGANIZING FOR AMERICA HEALTH CARE HOUSE PARTIESJoin friends and neighbors to kick off our community's push to reform health care by learning more about the President's three core principles, sharing personal stories, and planning a health care Day of Service activity for June 27th. We will also set up times to speak with our neighbors about health care reform, and make calls to ask others to get involved.All of this will be to get the public behind Obama and support his plan for Health Care Reform by the end of this year.There are multiple events in Larimer County!Date & Time: Saturday, June 6, 9:00 - 11:00 amLocation: Linda Berger's home, 6331 Falcon Ridge Court, Fort CollinsFor more info & to RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/healthcareorganizingkickoff/gpcszkDate & Time: Saturday, June 6, 10:00 am - 12:00 pmLocation: LCDP South Office, 507 ClevelandFor more info & to RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/healthcareorganizingkickoff/gpcbcfDate & Time: Saturday, June 6, 2:00 - 3:30 pmLocation: Mike & Holly's home, 2207 Kiowa Ct., Fort Collins (near Stover and Columbia)For more info & to RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/healthcareorganizingkickoff/gpcs9p
After years of partisan gridlock in Washington - and a very long presidential campaign, it is time for Democrats, Independents, and Republicans to unite in electing the next president.
Some may be surprised that I cast my vote this week (we vote early in Colorado) in agreement with the recommendation of so many thoughtful Republicans, folks like the former Republican governor of Minnesota, Arne Carlson – that great Gopher fan - and William Weld, the former governor of Massachusetts. As Weld put it in his endorsement, “Throughout this campaign I've watched his steady leadership through trying times and I'm confident he is the best candidate to move our country forward."
I recommend carefully considering the recommendations of conservative columnists Kathleen Parker, David Brooks, and Peggy Noonan (who wrote so many of Ronald Reagan’s great speeches). They have cited “judgment and temperament” as critical factors in framing their recommendations. Ken Adelman, Reagan’s Arms Control Chief, who – like McCain - predicted that Iraq would be a “cake walk”, cited the same issues in his endorsement.
Christopher Buckley, son of the late great William F. – the voice of the American conservative philosophy that propelled the campaigns of Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan, was strongly influenced by the fact that his preferred candidate has a "first-class temperament and a first-class intellect."
And Goldwater's granddaughter, CC Goldwater, in her endorsement, cited the fact that her grandfather "respected our civil liberties and passed on the message that we should conduct our lives standing up for the basic freedoms we hold so dear."
And, finally, the endorsement from the preeminent military strategist of the last quarter-century – former Secretary of State Colin Powell – made the case so clearly and strongly that Barack Obama will be a “transformational president.”
Some of these thoughtful Republicans were influenced by the strong belief that Sarah Palin, while likely to be a force in the GOP in 2012, is not at this time at all ready to be president. As the Anchorage Daily News said in its endorsement of the Obama/Biden ticket, “putting her one 72-year-old heartbeat from the leadership of the free world is just too risky at this time.” The endorsers saw this as a strong indication that John McCain’s judgment is flawed – and that he had not put “Country First” in his choice of a running mate. (Even Lawrence Eagleburger, one of the five former Secretaries of State McCain touts as endorsing him, said "of course not," when asked if Palin were qualified to take the reins. With time, he went on, she may be "adequate.")
But each of the Republicans also stated positive reasons for supporting Obama. While our focus today is on a very shaky economy, Powell said a major part of his decision to turn his back on his own party was his conclusion that Obama was the better option to repair frayed U.S. relations with allies overseas.
“This is the time for outreach,” Powell said, saying the next president would have to “reach out and show the world there is a new administration that is willing to reach out.” In particular, he said, he welcomed Obama’s proposal to “talk to people we haven’t talked to,” a reference to Obama’s controversial statement that he would be open to direct diplomacy with Iranian leaders.
“I think that [Obama] has a definite way of doing business that will serve us well,” Powell said.
Obama still needs one more vital endorsement – that of the voters of the country. I hope each of you will add your voice – and their vote - to those of these thoughtful Republicans by helping to elect Barack Obama. Encourage your friends and neighbors to heed the call and elect a truly great leader.
I never thought I’d say this about the John McCain of days gone by, but the current John McCain is lying. While others may call his campaign ads “deceitful,” “untruths,” or “fudging,” his statements about Obama’s tax plans are just plain lies. McCain is using the same Karl Rove fear tactics that worked for Bush in two elections.
While McCain’s ads claim that Obama would make “painful tax increases on working families,” the truth is that Obama’s tax plan would produce a tax cut for 81.3 percent of all households, and a cut for 95.5 percent of all households with children. (http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/a_new_stitch_in_a_bad_pattern.html).
The only families that would pay more under Obama’s plan are the top 1% of earners – by canceling the huge tax cuts that top earners gained under the Bush/McCain policies. These high rollers are evidently the “working families” that John McCain wants to help.
Taxes, of course, are not the sole economic issue in this election. In looking at our family’s retirement account and the current value of our home, I recognize that the kind of deregulation favored by McCain has cost us – and millions of other families – dearly.
Where is the ‘straight talking” John McCain?
(This comment from my spouse, Susan)
Okay your head is swirling from two opposite images, feelings and experiences. On one hand the Democratic National Convention was an uplifting even transforming experience culminating where an astounding 84,000 people congregated at Denver’s Mile High stadium to cry for peaceful and rational change. On the other hand you now watching the Republican National Convention where speaker after personality get up and mock, ridicule, insult and otherwise extol every divisive partisan epitaph as if you are again part of some never-ending dysfunctional family event.
What have you just witnessed and why do you feel so dirty, so disgusted and disenfranchised? You are supposed to feel that way. Cognitive Science will tell you that you just walked into the world of colliding worldview, basic perceptions and personalities as how different people see the same world through different realities. But in reality it is a big so what.
Now that the general election campaign is underway, many have asked me why I support Barack Obama. This past week, we heard what many people – on both sides of the political aisle - have said was one of the great political speeches of the era – Obama’s acceptance speech at Mile High Stadium. It prompts me to provide the questioners with another of his speeches as one aspect of that answer - not asking that they trust my judgment, but to provide a hint of what I look for in a leader.
One very important reason for my support is that Obama has shown an uncanny ability to understand the facts, separate the propaganda from the reality, and clearly outline the choices we face. He demonstrates a much broader understanding of the world than what the disciples of Karl Rove would lead us to believe. I don't know what he reads, who he consults, or how he acquires the data on which to make his judgments, but he has shown himself to be so far above the field - as reflected in this earlier Obama speech.
I’m not sure how many people have actually read or heard this earlier and oft-referenced "speech against the war," but its content is so prescient in anticipating the results of the invasion - and the many costs to our nation - that it is well worth the brief read. Recall that it was given at a time that those favoring the invasion said it would be over quickly, that it would cost us very little in blood or treasure, (indeed, you may recall that Bush fired Larry Lindsey because he dared state publicly that the cost of the war might approach $200 billion), and that - in John McCain's words - while moving on to Iraq, we could "muddle through" in Afghanistan.
I’ve not been bashful in letting others know my position on the Iraq War and my thoughts on John McCain's errors in judgment associated in his early cheerleading prior to and during the early days of that war. While I saw the war as a mistaken distraction from day one, my opposition to it in no way diminishes my respect for those who have served in Iraq. They served their country well - as Obama put it "not in service to a red America or a blue America, but the United States of America." However, I regret that those efforts were not put to the unfinished Afghan campaign...a campaign that we now see drifting away from us and needing more attention than what Bush – and McCain – have given it.
Obama's speech is, as expected, well written. The man - elected president of The Harvard Law Review, as we know - is bright and articulate. The speech itself does tell us something about the wisdom and judgment of the man, the courage of the man in speaking out at a time when the invasion was so popular, and the ability of the man to so effectively frame the issues that should have been addressed by an administration that also was in control of Congress...issues that we now clearly see in need of solution. So it isn't the "speech-craft" that impresses me, but the fact that he seemed to have a crystal ball, predicting so accurately the fallout from the Iraq invasion. And that he was willing to stand up when so many others chose to remain silent.
(The bold print is mine - for emphasis to points I found of interest.)
Remarks of Illinois State Sen. Barack Obama Against Going to War with Iraq
| October 02, 2002
Good afternoon. Let me begin by saying that although this has been billed as an anti-war rally, I stand before you as someone who is not opposed to war in all circumstances. The Civil War was one of the bloodiest in history, and yet it was only through the crucible of the sword, the sacrifice of multitudes, that we could begin to perfect this union, and drive the scourge of slavery from our soil. I don't oppose all wars.
My grandfather signed up for a war the day after Pearl Harbor was bombed, fought in Patton's army. He saw the dead and dying across the fields of Europe; he heard the stories of fellow troops who first entered Auschwitz and Treblinka. He fought in the name of a larger freedom, part of that arsenal of democracy that triumphed over evil, and he did not fight in vain. I don't oppose all wars.
After September 11th, after witnessing the carnage and destruction, the dust and the tears, I supported this administration's pledge to hunt down and root out those who would slaughter innocents in the name of intolerance, and I would willingly take up arms myself to prevent such tragedy from happening again. I don't oppose all wars. And I know that in this crowd today, there is no shortage of patriots, or of patriotism.
What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war. What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz and other armchair, weekend warriors in this administration to shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.
What I am opposed to is the attempt by political hacks like Karl Rove to distract us from a rise in the uninsured, a rise in the poverty rate, a drop in the median income - to distract us from corporate scandals and a stock market that has just gone through the worst month since the Great Depression. That's what I'm opposed to. A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle but on politics. Now let me be clear - I suffer no illusions about Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal man. A ruthless man. A man who butchers his own people to secure his own power. He has repeatedly defied UN resolutions, thwarted UN inspection teams, developed chemical and biological weapons, and coveted nuclear capacity. He's a bad guy. The world, and the Iraqi people, would be better off without him.
But I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history. I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of Al Qaeda. I am not opposed to all wars. I'm opposed to dumb wars.
So for those of us who seek a more just and secure world for our children, let us send a clear message to the President today. You want a fight, President Bush? Let's finish the fight with Bin Laden and Al Qaeda, through effective, coordinated intelligence, and a shutting down of the financial networks that support terrorism, and a homeland security program that involves more than color-coded warnings. You want a fight, President Bush?
Let's fight to make sure that the UN inspectors can do their work, and that we vigorously enforce a non-proliferation treaty, and that former enemies and current allies like Russia safeguard and ultimately eliminate their stores of nuclear material, and that nations like Pakistan and India never use the terrible weapons already in their possession, and that the arms merchants in our own country stop feeding the countless wars that rage across the globe. You want a fight, President Bush?
Let's fight to make sure our so-called allies in the Middle East, the Saudis and the Egyptians, stop oppressing their own people, and suppressing dissent, and tolerating corruption and inequality, and mismanaging their economies so that their youth grow up without education, without prospects, without hope, the ready recruits of terrorist cells. You want a fight, President Bush? Let's fight to wean ourselves off Middle East oil, through an energy policy that doesn't simply serve the interests of Exxon and Mobil. Those are the battles that we need to fight. Those are the battles that we willingly join. The battles against ignorance and intolerance. Corruption and greed. Poverty and despair.
The consequences of war are dire, the sacrifices immeasurable. We may have occasion in our lifetime to once again rise up in defense of our freedom, and pay the wages of war. But we ought not -- we will not -- travel down that hellish path blindly. Nor should we allow those who would march off and pay the ultimate sacrifice, who would prove the full measure of devotion with their blood, to make such an awful sacrifice in vain.
So that's, as the envious would say with disdain, “one more speech” - unfortunately as fresh and relevant today as it was six years ago when different choices by our leaders could have given us a much better today.
Obama is a very capable individual, one who will indeed think before acting...who will surround himself with the best and brightest, listen to many views, then make sound decisions - and keep this country safe. While he is renowned as a speaker, he has the judgment to avoid the rash or idle threats we hear from others. He is not going to take us into "dumb" wars as this administration has...and as a continuation of this administration may well do again.
His first major decision - selecting Joe Biden as his Vice Presidential running mate - reflects his determination to seek the best people...to protect America with a "second-in-command who is truly "ready on Day One."
An Obama/Biden administration will earn the respect of the world through wise application of the full complement of American strengths. These are the qualities that distinguish this pair from others in this race. When these qualities are matched with sound policy positions (http://origin.barackobama.com/issues/), I see the choice of Obama as one that starts us on the road to recovery from this Great American Tragedy of the past eight years.
I became eligible to vote in the election of 1960 - and have voted in each of the twelve presidential elections since – sometimes for the Democrat, sometimes for the Republican. Each time I have entered the voting booth, I believe I have put my "country first," (to steal a slogan from the current GOP candidate). While there seems to be a tendency among some folks recently to prefer someone with whom they would be comfortable having a beer, I am enough an idealist to really embrace the possibilities of an intelligent, thoughtful, and inspiring president...one of the many standards on which I base my support for Obama.
(And, since his middle-class background isn't all that different from mine, I think he'd also be a great guy to invite for a beer.)
From DNC
Building on its commitment to make service and active participation in the community a hallmark of the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the DNCC is coordinating a Delegate Service Day in conjunction with Democrats Work, Metro Volunteers and Volunteers of America on Wednesday, August 27th from 10:00 am until 12:00 pm. Michelle Obama and Colorado First Lady Jeannie Ritter will co-chair this effort, which aims to inspire hundreds of thousands of Americans in a renewed commitment to service.
Projects will range from canned food sorting, painting at local schools, serving meals at shelters, reading to children, removing graffiti, landscaping at local schools, tree planting and park maintenance. These projects will allow delegates to both contribute to and celebrate the people and organizations making positive change and strengthening communities in the city hosting the Democratic National Convention.
Delegates will have the opportunity to lend a hand at project sites throughout the Denver area – many downtown for minimal walking. We have also indentified service sites near the Denver Tech Center and Stapleton delegate hotel “clusters” to ensure we are giving back to those neighborhoods and minimizing transportation of participants from their delegation hotel and back. The DNCC will provide bus transportation to select sites.
We hope delegates from across the country will elect to join us in this effort – and ideally, get involved or recommit to service upon returning home to their communities, helping to inspire millions more Americans to lives of service. Sign up below, and we will be in touch with you during the coming weeks to follow up with more information.
PLEASE NOTE that we have a limited number of volunteer slots available for Delegate Service Day activities and will be filling those positions with visiting delegates, Party officials and their families before we open our registration process to other interested individuals. Accordingly, the registration link below requires a user name and password. Delegates should contact their state Party chairs to obtain this information.
I am Convention Captain for Pueblo County and my community service day event will be Neighborhood Canvass for Community from 10a-12p, Wednesday, August 27th. I will be canvassing door to door in neighborhoods in Pueblo county and asking for canned goods which will be donated to the Pueblo soup kitchen. If anyone wants to join me contact me at PuebloforObama@aol.com or 718 406-6141.
Below from DNC are locations of other Convention Captians around the state of Colorado. Please join your captain in this historical event link below.
http://demconventiondev.com/convention-captains/
Tatsue Maekawa
Convention Captain for DNC Pueblo County
Admin. Pueblo for Obama
PuebloforObama@aol.com
719-406-6141
We in cattle country know the difference between a maverick and a bull in a china shop. So why doesn’t the mainstream media? John McCain has been living off the outdated “maverick” image, while the truth is he has the GOP brand firmly burned in his hide. After all, McCain preceded George W. in promoting the Iraq invasion, letting his well-known emotions get ahead of his intellect. On January 2, 2002, he told crew on the Theodore Roosevelt, “Next up, Baghdad!” Ignoring the concern over whether this invasion was in our national interest or had a clear exit strategy, McCain bulled ahead, leading the Bush administrations’ PR efforts on the war.
Nor does the media challenge McCain’s other assertions – such as his “solid endorsement from veteran’s groups.” McCain received a 20% positive record from the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), gets a D from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America (IAVA), and voted against the Vietnam Veterans of America on 17 of its last 26 issues. (Senator Obama, by contrast, scores 80% with the DAV, gets a B+ from IAVA, and voted with the Vietnam Vets on all but one issue.) And, like Bush, McCain opposed Senator Webb’s GI Bill, which passed the Senate by a vote of 75 – 22.
At the Saddleback Church, McCain said he’d pursue bin Laden “to the Gates of Hell,” but McCain’s Iraq intransigence has prevented us from winning the Afghan War. So where is the “leftwing” media in vetting this "maverick?"
Hello supporters,
Pueblo for Obama has a new phone number 719 406-6141. I am officially the Convention Captain for the DNC for Pueblo County. I am in charge of many pre, during and post events. Please take a moment to find these events on www.barackobama.com and get involved and help make this historic event resonate here in Pueblo County.
I will be needing many volunteers starting on August 22 through September 1st. Events include VRD, canvassing, parade involvement, community service, volunteering at the Denver Convention Center and even a Speech Acceptance Watch Party. Please help me make all events a success and show what Pueblo Democrats can do when they get together.
EVENTS
August 18th -GOTV meeting at noon at Dem HQ, 305 N Santa Fe. Updates from Forward CO and Obama campaign will be discussed.
August 22nd to September 1st - VRD at CO State Fair, shifts are 11a-3p, 3p-7p and 7p-11p. Contact Norma Oldham at 546-2745 for shift confirmation.
August 23rd - State Fair Parade Obama visual and VRD canvass. Will meet at 9:30a between 5th and 6th Main St. across the street from US Bank. We will be standing or sitting behind the Obama banner while others will canvass the street and register voters.
August 23rd and 25-28th - Registration volunteers needed at Denver Convention Center. Contact Julie Steeler at SteelerInternJ@demconvention.com for shift confirmation.
August 27th - Statewide Community Service spearheaded by Michelle Obama and Jeanne Ritter in Denver. Pueblo will do a Neighborhood Canvass for Community. Collecting canned goods and non perishable items which will be donated to the Pueblo Soup Kitchen. Drop off location for food items are the Dems HQ and Obama campaign offices. More info for times of drop off at link.
August 28th - Acceptance Speech Watch party at Democratic HQ, 305 N Santa Fe, from 4p-8p. Refreshments will be provided and potluck is encouraged.
August 30th - Kids Day Parade Obama Visual. We will meet at 9:30a and place TBA
August 30th -Fiesta Day parade float decorating. Time and place TBA.
August 31st- Fiesta Day Parade. We will be in the parade marching behind the Obama banner. Those who cannot walk can ride on the float. We will meet at 9a with place TBA.
August 30-31st- Post convention canvass with Obama campaign, 109 W B st. at 9:30a, 778-9976. Please contact the campaign for your Team Leader in your neighborhood for canvass info.
Thanks for all of your support! "Respect, Empower, Include" Obama 2008!!
719 406-6141
Governor highlights partnership between PGE, US Bank and the Oregon Department of Transportation
(Portland) – Governor Kulongoski today announced Oregon is installing the nation’s first solar demonstration project in a highway right of way, moving the state a step further in its role as a leader in renewable power development. The project is the result of collaboration with Portland General Electric (PGE), US Bank and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), and the materials and installation will be provided by Oregon companies.
“Before the year is over, this ground will hold the nation’s first Solar Highway project, and Oregon will make history using the power of the sun to light this interchange,” Governor Ted Kulongoski said.
“More importantly, this project will represent a new era for energy in Oregon. It will represent a step forward toward our vision of an energy independent Oregon – and it will represent the endless opportunities before us to chart this course of clean, reliable and renewable energy for our state.”
The Governor and ODOT, in partnership with PGE and US Bank, unveiled the project that will help light the way for drivers at the Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 interchange in Tualatin. Governor Kulongoski, PGE President and CEO Peggy Fowler, and Oregon Transportation Commission Chair Gail Achterman broke ground on the project, placing the first of 594 solar panels.
The solar highway demonstration project is an “all Oregon” effort — Oregon companies will supply materials, design and install this collaborative project. SolarWorld AG of Hillsboro will supply the solar panels, and PV Powered, Inc. of Bend will supply the inverter.
“PGE is committed to developing and promoting more solar power in Oregon,” said Peggy Fowler. “We appreciate the innovative approach the Governor and ODOT are taking to support our solar industry and make Oregon first in solar highways.”
The 104-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system — covering about 8,000 square feet and roughly the length of two football fields — will produce about 112,000 kilowatt hours a year, or 28 percent of the 400,000 kilowatt hours used to light the interchange. The $1.3 million project is expected to be completed and online in December 2008.
Electricity for the highway interchange is provided by PGE and the added solar power will be handled through a net metering arrangement.
The solar panels will produce electricity during the day, supplying power onto the PGE grid, and PGE will return an equivalent amount of power at night to light the interchange.
The project will be designed, constructed and installed by SolarWay, a “turn-key” solar energy engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) consortium consisting of four Oregon firms: Aadland Evans Constructors, Inc., of Portland as the general contractor; Moyano Leadership Group, Inc., of Salem as the project manager and design leader; Advanced Energy Systems of Eugene as the solar power specialty designer and installer, and Good Company of Eugene as the community and sustainability specialist.
To access more information about the project, go to: OregonSolarHighway dot com
From: GOVERNORS Press [mailto: Governors.Press@state.or.us]
Sent: Thursday, August 07, 2008 11:03 AM
Subject: NEWS RELEASE: Governor Unveils First in the Nation Solar Highway Installation
Theodore R. Kulongoski
Governor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEWS RELEASE
August 7, 2008
Contact: Anna Richter Taylor, 503-378-6169
Shelley Snow (ODOT), 503-986-3438
Elaina Medina (PGE), 503-464-8790
Fort Collins is featured in the Rocky Mountain News today. We all know Colorado is an important swing state. Fort Collins and Larimer County will be very important swinging Colorado in the correct direction.
Betting on the West: Colorado Standing on the sun-baked bluffs at Horsetooth Reservoir, the city of Fort Collins sprawls below. The Cache la Poudre River curves through it, a shimmering, tree-lined strand in the afternoon heat.
The view is panoramic and peaceful, belying the political battle that is beginning to come into focus in the valley below. Could the 2008 presidential race between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama be decided right here?
Fort Collins is a key swing area in a toss-up state, and both candidates intend to hotly contest Colorado's nine electoral votes.
Read more here: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/aug/06/betting-on-the-west-colorado/
