Rhode Islanders For Obama

Remebering Sen. Ted Kennedy

Jesse — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 11:39:41 EST

Okay real quickly,I need to get out a few thoughts and ideas regarding Ted Kennedy. First off, he was a great senator who was a champion for civil rights and a crusader for health care reform. People in general me being one included took for granted how crucial it was to have someone like Ted Kennedy in the senate,co writing bills a man who had the sick and impoverished people in mind. I have found it is a tough sell convincing people that are otherwise healthy (presently) that the health care system is broken and needs an overhaul. People that are not chronicly ill,can afford %20 of their doctor bill plus the copay and not be hurt financially. Those people really dont care because they are not yet having to fight with insurance companies who in reality have only there profits in mind. They dont need the incredibly costly perscriptions and 2 procedures a year in which only one is paid for per year.

Lastly I have one issue with Mr. Kennedys brain cancer diagnosis. Basicly it just happened so fas

t from diagnosis to death. I think that it could have been prevented if there was some type of screening for it or a test. YES THERE MUST BE A TEST TO DETECT THIS PROBLEM!. hE MUST HAVE HEAD ACHES OR SOMETHING that could have shown a doctor there was something wrong.

Now although he was a great man,he should have been locked up for a long time after leaving a poor woman to die in that car under water that night in HYANNIS MASS.

I am a victim of a reckless car wreck and I have no tolerance for people who run away from problems. THERE IS ACTUALLY A GOOD CHANCE THE WOMAN WOULD HAVE SURVIVED because of the frigid waters. Perhaps this motivated Ted Kennedy to make things right by crusading health care.

Jesse

HPP CALLED FOR THE ANNULMENT OF THE ELECTIONS.

Jacob Fran�ois — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:15:29 EDT

A PARTICIPATION RATE LOWER THAN THE 5% FORECASTED BY HAITIAN PRIORITIES PROJECT

(HPP). HPP CALLED FOR THE ANNULMENT OF THE ELECTIONS.

http://www.hpp4haiti.com/english_annulment.htm

HAITIAN PRIORITIES PROJECT (HPP) takes this opportunity to thank all of its partners and contributors who helped achieved a careful and precise pre-election poll conducted in record time. Success was achieved despite the difficulties encountered in Haiti to produce reports in a time-sensitive manner. With the information provided to us by the people and our workers, and their respect for democratic principles in relaying and analyzing the facts as the people reported, our survey is by far the closest to the reality of the so-called elections on 19 April 2009.

To our beloved people, we send our applause and eternal gratitude for having once again demonstrated peace, serenity and political savyness. Your show of ingenuity and resilience against this undemocratic election gave a lesson of democracy to the CEP, the government of Haiti, and the international community. This past week has been a testament to the true will and might of the people. HAITIAN PRIORITIES PROJECT simultaneously deplores the attacks of 19 April 2009 against election workers, politicians and the general public. We condemn acts of violence by militants and soldiers, against the people, trying to force them to vote in elections without complying with democratic norms. We say "shame" to those who have tried by flawed polls to influence the election results on behalf of wealthy patrons who completely ignore the welfare of our nation. Shame also to the security forces national and international operating in the country. These individuals who are supposed to be concerned with the safety of the people of Haiti, and the security of its streets proved unable to, despite the few participants in the streets, in order to protect the population against the violence of the enemies of democracy.
Key points
HPP has completed its analysis of the electoral procedures enacted by the senate on behalf of the Electoral College, and the application of the rules in the partial elections of 19 April 2009. It is necessary to report clear and serious cases of violation against articles 97, 121,125, 166 and 203. Detailed data on these issues were presented to the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) prior to the elections. We have verified these violations as being true and the behavior of CEP regarding these concerns was illegal and unreliable based on the aforementioned articles.

HPP has found evidence of abuse by the electoral commission in favor of LESPWA candidates. Corpuscles belonging to the President of the Republic’s inner circle receivedexcessive and inappropriate support through the use of funds made available
and access to materials belonging to the state. They have exerted violence against elected officials and the public. These abuses have been demonstrated by the Senator of FUSION in the Central Plateau, Ms. Edmonde Bauzile Supplice, who claimed to be the subject of death threats. Heavily armed individuals have closed many polling stations.
Candidates for the Senate in the South East, Yves Dérisier (Fusion of Haitian Social Democrats) and Jean Pierre Joseph (Rassemblement National Progressive Democrats) have been officially withdrawn their candidacy from the race on Saturday 18 April 2009. Their withdrawals have been in protest to the decisions of the Conseil Electoral Provisoire (CEP) that they consider illegal.
The independent candidate Ronald St. Jean announced Thursday his withdrawal from the race because of many loopholes and violations by the establishment and the Electoral College machinery. He denounced the lack of a set of tools which should be the matrix of any serious election such as:

The participation rates are abnormally low across different constituencies eligible
The electoral register should have been available six months before the election, but still is not
The general electoral roll and electoral partial list should be ready for 60 days and 30 days respectively before the election.

These abuses occurred in several regions of the country. Although important in terms of elections and democratic principles, the aggregate number of violations from these irregularities is decisive to the slimmest extent.

Serious irregularities have occurred, and attempts to manipulate voting results are evident. There are major procedural violations. A number of election workers have been involved willingly or forced into acts of fraud. These irregularities also reflect a lack of control over the production of official documents including the accreditation of observers and the documents relating to official travel, which have been used to fraudulently claim the right to vote.

PPH does not in any way prejudge the prerogative given to CEP in making their own decisions, however, the facts at issue, are to submit its analysis in order to inform the public and to provide candidates and political parties an independent and objective   evaluation of the process.

HPP requests that all concerned remain calm and ensure that their apprehension of the elections is based solely on a neutral and rigorous analysis of electoral facts. With a rate of less than 5% of qualified individuals who took part in these elections, the CEP, thePresident and the international community can in no way validate these elections.

Participation rate
Official figures should show a national participation rate of less than 5%, or about 25% to 46% less than the turnout in the elections of 25 June 1995 Page 4. http://www.gao.gov/archive/1996/ns96147.pdf In 2006, the participation rate was 30%, based on statements made by David Wimhurst Spokesperson for the UN mission in Haiti. (see haitiprogres) www.haitiprogres.com/2006/sm060426/eng04-26.html
A participation rate this low simply reflects the wish of the people to stop the government of Préval/Pierre-Louis and the international community from reinstituting exclusion in Haiti. It was a strong and vigorous message and mobilization by the Lavalas Party: "PÒT FEMEN, LARI BLANCH. However, offices or polling centers that display higher participation rates than others in their areas deserve further attention. Moreover, if the results of these offices heavily favor one candidate, this could indicate an attempt to manipulate the result of the elections through ballot stuffing or fraudulent votes made in the absence of witnesses or observers.

HPP lead its election observation in accordance with the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and Code of Conduct adopted by the United Nations in 2005. These principles should have been utilized uniformly to abate and nullify this farce election.

KIDS INAUGURAL CONCERT

WEBMASTER — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:17:58 EST

Talent Lineup for Neighborhood Inaugural Ball and Kids' Inaugural Concert

Tuesday January 20
Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Faith Hill, JAY-Z, Alicia Keys, Shakira and Stevie Wonder to perform, Nick Cannon to DJ at Neighborhood Inaugural Ball Airing Exclusively on ABC

Monday, January 19
Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato and Bow Wow to perform with Billy Ray Cyrus, Keke Palmer, Usher and Shaquille O'Neal scheduled to appear during Kids' Inaugural Concert Airing Exclusively on Disney Channe

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) announced today the producers and initial talent lineup for "The Neighborhood Ball: An Inauguration Celebration," which will air live on ABC (8:00 - 10:00 p.m. ET/PT, Tuesday, January 20), and the "Kids' Inaugural: We Are The Future," a concert honoring military families airing on Disney Channel (8:00 - 9:30 p.m. ET/PT, Monday, January 19).

Musical performers scheduled for the Neighborhood Inaugural Ball include Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Faith Hill, JAY-Z, Alicia Keys, Shakira and Stevie Wonder. Nick Cannon will DJ the event. Additional performers will be announced as they are confirmed.

Musical performances for the Kids' Inaugural event include the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato and Bow Wow. Billy Ray Cyrus, Keke Palmer, and Usher Raymond IV are also scheduled to appear. 13-year-old Perry Rubin, daughter of entertainment reporter Sam Rubin, will be the special backstage correspondent. Additional performers and guests will be announced as they are confirmed.

Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss/White Cherry Entertainment are Executive Producers of the Neighborhood Inaugural ball, with Glenn Weiss directing. White Cherry Entertainment is also executive producing the 2009 Super Bowl Halftime Show and the 2009 Tony Awards, with Weiss also serving as Director.

The Kids' Inaugural concert special is executive produced by Greg Sills. Sills previously produced The Concert for New York (post-9/11), the Kids Choice Awards, and the VH1 Rock Honors. Louis J. Horvitz is the director.

"We are honored and excited to have such top level talent performing and producing these events," said Emmett S. Beliveau, Executive Director of the PIC. "Working with ABC and Disney, we are bringing these exciting performances into the homes of millions of Americans to make this the most open and accessible inauguration celebration ever."

The PIC today also announced Ricky Kirshner is the Executive Producer for all PIC TV events and Lisa Geers is the Excecutive in charge of production for all PIC TV events.

In an effort to make this inaugural celebration open and accessible to all Americans, President-elect Barack Obama will host the first-ever "Neighborhood Inaugural Ball," the premier event of inauguration evening, on January 20th. To help bring this unique event to neighborhoods across the nation, ABC will broadcast "The Neighborhood Ball: An Inauguration Celebration." The event will air live from the Washington Convention Center in Washington D.C.,TUESDAY, JANUARY 20 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET).

On MONDAY, JANUARY 19 (8:00 - 9:30 p.m. ET) Disney Channel will present "Kids' Inaugural: We Are The Future," a concert celebration from the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. honoring military families. This inaugural concert celebration will be hosted by Mrs. Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden and their families. The event will be simulcast on Radio Disney, and will be streamed on Disney.com immediately following the culmination of the telecast on Disney Channel.

Beginning January 16, Disney.com guests are invited to join the celebration on the Kids Inaugural pagewww.Disney.com/USA which will feature polls, games and videos on the concert performers and a component which allows guests to chat with friends and send "shout outs" by texting USA, their first name and message to DISNEY (347639). Standard carrier fees apply and a parent's permission is required if users are under age 18.

source: http://kids.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxFXf

PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURAL HOODIE

WEBMASTER — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 22:46:30 EST

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Barack Obama Steps Up For Georgia and Jim Martin

Shawn O'Donnell — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 18:17:50 EST

Barack Obama Steps Up For Georgia and Jim Martin

I never thought I'd live to see this miracle!

Lifelong Liberal & Journalist — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:53:06 EST

Dear President-Elect Obama:

First, let me convey my joy at your amazing victory last night. I was one of the students involved in the Civil Rights movement in the early 60's. I could never understand bigotry -- to me it semed to be the ultimate sign of ignorance.

But now, you've done the impossible, creating a coalition of hope and peace, bringing generations together from young, enthusiastic first-time voters to elderly people who have lived a lifetime hoping against hope that this kind of victory would happen one day. I am blessed to have survived through several cancer battles -- I believe I was spared to see this day.

I am truly sorry that your grandmother did not live to see your incredible victory, but I believe she is watching your family's (and the nation's) joy from heaven.

May God keep you and your beautiful family safe and sound and far from harm's way. You are the hope of America's and the world's future.

Obama Victory Speech - Nov. 4th, 2008

PGaudreau — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 12:33:23 EST

PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA: If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.Its the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.Its the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.Its the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.Its been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and hes fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nations promise in the months ahead.I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nations next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy thats coming with us to the White House. And while shes no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what youve sacrificed to get it done.But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didnt start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generations apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.I know you didnt do this just to win an election and I know you didnt do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how theyll make the mortgage, or pay their doctors bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who wont agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government cant solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way its been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, its that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if Americas beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one thats on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. Shes a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldnt vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.And tonight, I think about all that shes seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we cant, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.At a time when womens voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that We Shall Overcome. Yes we can.A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we cant, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

Yes We Can!

Hussein The Hope Monger — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 09:42:36 EST

Fired UP?

You betcha!!

McCain VS Obama

La Susa — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 16:20:15 EST

Im not in favor of McCain because he wants to cheat workers, and give more money to the extreamly rich that make 250,000.00 or more! Yo no estoy en favor al McCain por que el quire enganiar a los trabajadores y dar mas dinero a los ricototes, la cual que hacen 250,000.00 y mas!

Im not in favor of McCain because he is too old, 72 years old, and placed Palin as VP. Poor Palin dosn't know much about the world, much less about how to run Our Nation. Yo no estoy en favor al McCain por que ya esta muy viejo, 72 anos, y puso a la Palin de VP. La pobre Palin no sabe mucho del mundo, menos como correr nuestro Nacion!

Im not in favor of McCain because he says he knows how to do everything, but really what has he done in, practicly nothing in 20 years. Yo no estoy en favor al McCain por que el dice que el sabe como hacer de todo, pero a la deveras no ha hecho casi nada en 20 anos.

Im not in favor of McCain because he lies too much! There are so many lies I cannot place them all here, it is an embarrasment! Yo no estoy en favor al McCain por que miente demaciado! Hay tantas mentiras que no los puedo ponerlos todos aqui, es una veruenza!

I voted for Senator Obama because he wants to help those workers who pay way too much in taxes. He wants the rich that make 250,000.00 or more to pay taxes as it was during the years of President Clinton. Yo Vote por Senador Obama por que el qiere ayudar a aquellos que trabajan y pagan demacido taxes. El quiere que los ricos que hacen 250,000.00 y mas que ellos pagan taxes como era en los anos del Presidente Clinton.

I voted for Senator Obama because he realized when his mom was ill that the insurance companies didn't want to pay the bills because her illness before she died being cancer was considered 'pre-existing'. And she sadly died with the worries of the bills. Yo Vote por Senador Obama por que el se dio cuenta que cuando su mama estaba enferma las companias de seguranza no querian pagar los cuentos por que querian decir la cual que la enfermedad que cancer que tenia su mama antes de murir que era 'pre-existing'. Y la pobre murio con penas de los cuentos!

I voted for Senator Obama because he knows what it is like to live in poverty, for when he was a child he and his mom were on foodstamps. And his manerism is one of humility. Yo Vote por Senador Obama por que el sabe como es vivir pobre, cuando el era nino, su mama y el estaban es las estampas. Y tiene un modo de ser que es humide.

I voted for Senator Obama because he knows what it is like to live without a dad. His dad left when he was only two years old. And he knows that there are many mothers with children who are alone and suffering with mounting bills. Yo Vote al Senador Obama por que el sabe como es vivir sin un papa. El papa de el se fue, cuando el no mas tenia dos anos de edad. Y sabe que hay muchas madres con ninos que estan solas y sufiendo con biles demasiados.

I voted for Senator Obama because he wants to give many jobs to the people! Yo Vote al Senador Obama por que el quiere a dar muchos trabajos a la gente!

I voted for Senator Obama because he wants all students to have the opportunities to go to collage, not just the rich! Yo Vote al Senador Obama por que el quiere que todos estudiantes tengan la oportunidad a ir al colejio, no, no mas los ricos!

I voted for Obama because he knows we have to stop the war in Iraq, and look for that man Bin Ladden who killed nearly 4 thousand people here in the United States on September 11, 2001. Yo Vote al Obama por que el sabe que tenemos que parrar la guierra en Iraq y buscar al hombre ese Bin Ladden; que mato ha casi 4 mil personas aqui en Los Estados Unidos en Septiembre 11 del 2001.

I voted for Senator Obama because he dose not want American companies to leave to China, and he wants them to stay here in the Untited States. Yo Vote por el Senador Obama por que el no quiere que las companias Americanas se van para China, el quiere que se esten aqui en Los Estados Unidos.

I voted for Senator Obama because he wants to help companies make new inventions, so that we will not be dependant on other nations for oil. Yo Vote al Senador Obama por que el quiere ayudar a las companias hacer invenciones nuevas, para no estemos dependidas en otros Naciones para el aceite.

The tax calculator: El calculador de taxes:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGgFgH

Acuerdencen! Remember!

La Susa — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 14:14:08 EST

Acuerdencen al los ancianos y gente debiles a llevar sillas para que se descansan cuando voten en el dia 4 de Noviembre, por que se me hace que va a ver mucha gente!

Remember to remind the elderly and weak to bring chairs so that they can rest, when they go vote on November 4, because I belive that there will be a lot of people!

Fight the McCain Economics LIES!!!!!!

La Susa — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 16:40:48 EDT

EconomyObama's Stance on the Economy Barack Obama's Tax Savings Calculator:http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGgFgH

Barack Obama has offered a detailed plan to get America’s economy back on track, by creating new jobs and easing the burden on hardworking Americans by offering middle-class tax cuts three times the size of McCain’s.

Plan to Strengthen the EconomyThe Problem

Wages are Stagnant as Prices Rise: While wages remain flat, the costs of basic necessities are increasing. The cost of in-state college tuition has grown 35 percent over the past five years. Health care costs have risen four times faster than wages over the past six years. And the personal savings rate is now the lowest it's been since the Great Depression.

Tax Cuts for Wealthy Instead of Middle Class: The Bush tax cuts give those who earn over $1 million dollars a tax cut nearly 160 times greater than that received by middle-income Americans. At the same time, this administration has refused to tackle health care, education and housing in a manner that benefits the middle class.

Learn More

McCain's Stance on the Economy

John McCain’s economic policy is the same as George Bush’s. It ignores middle class Americans, giving $200 billion in tax cuts to corporations, including $4 billion in tax breaks to Big Oil, while leaving over 100 million middle-class Americans with no relief. Economists say McCain’s plan will add $3.4 trillion to the national debt.

McCain Lieing Again!!!!!!

La Susa — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 13:29:48 EDT

McCain says Obama wants to re-distribute the wealth!

Who has been burdened by taxes the last 8 years? The Middle Class, because the million and billionaires have enjoyed a tax break, that McCain wants to make permanent!!!!!!!

Obama wants to tax the million and billionaires, and belive me, those folks are not small businesses!!!!!!!!

McCain is using fearmongering to sway votes in his favor!

Who was with Bush on the 'Privatizing of Social Security'? McCain?

When Sen McCain claims to have been tested to be United States President; in 1962 when he sat in a plane cockpit, during the Cuban missle Crisis, why didn't McCain run for USA President way back then? It's only been 46 years ago.

McCain says he knows how to win wars, what wars has he won?

McCain says he knows how to fix corruption, what corruption has he fixed?

McCain says he knows how to fix Wallstreet, when has McCain ever fixed Wallstreet?

Yo, Arnold R-Gov of Calif.

La Susa — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 11:59:40 EDT

We can take your 'skinny legs' insults, but we cannot take four more years of McCin-Bush economics!!!!!! Was it not you Arnold R-Gov of Calif. that asked for a bail out for the State of Calif. a few days after the AIG bail out? So you want the hard working middle class to bail out Calif., because you don't know how to balance a budget? And allow the billion and millionaires to get richer and richer?

Do the math!!!!!! See Barack's Tax Calculator!

http://www.my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGgFgH

Get Educated! Use the Brain Muscle! Look it up in the dictionary!!!!!!!

The insults and fear mongering has gotten way out of hand! Just because Sen Barack Obama wants to make healthcare affordable for everyone, dose not mean a socialistic government! Way too many of our working families are going bankrupt because of the sky rocketing costs of healthcare! And those who don't have healthcare, are often treated when it is too late, driving up the costs of healthcare for all of us!!!!!!! Of all develped countries in the world, the USA is lagging far behind, with high infant mortality rates etc. etc.! The past 8 years the middle class has payed above and beyond their fare share, while the rich get richer! Now the middle class are loosing jobs left and right, they need a break! And I don't think it's too much to ask the million and billionaires to pitch in their fare share! Our economy depends on the middle class! they are the buying power of America! Small buisnesses fall under the catagory of middle class people because they earn far less than 250,000.00 dollars a year!!!!!!!!

Socialism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the means of ...
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism

Democracy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system. It is derived from the Greek ...
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Capitalism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Capitalism is the economic system in which the means of production are distributed to openly competing profit-seeking [1] private persons and where ...
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Exxon Record Profits!

La Susa — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:13:15 EDT

Exxon Oct. 30, 08 third quarter record profits 14.8 billion! Bush-McCain economics!

Every Vote Counts!

La Susa — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:48:24 EDT

Vote Early, take friends and relatives with you!

Before and on Nov. 4, if one can help to bring people to the polls! If one has folding chairs, mark with your name and phone number and offer to help our seniors, and those with disbilities sit down while waiting in expected long lines!

Remind folks to sign their names on paper ballots!

In some areas one cannot wear political T-Shirts or pins!

If one has no car, is disabled and cannot be out and about, still vote early, call all of your friends and relatives and encourage them to vote!

We cannot afford to believe the polls! Every Vote Counts!!!!!!

My Letter to Senator Obama

PGaudreau — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:37:25 EDT

Dear Senator Obama,During the past eight years I have been ashamed with the actions of my country and I even lost my trust in our politicians. I almost started to believe our country would never come out of this embarrassment. Until you came along and started talking about hope, responsibility, and service. Things I have never heard before from a politician. I was inspired by your words and I saw that our country would come out of this cloud, we will see the sun again, and for the first time in eight years I had hope. The reckless policies of the past eight years were never so clear to me until you brought them out in to the open. I began to research historical data and I saw so clearly the failures of the last administration. I took what I learned and I showed others what fiscal responsibility really is and why it is so important. I have always heard people and politicians talk about serving their country and by this they meant serving in the military. Well I love my country but was not able to serve in the military, so I thought I could never serve my country. You have educated me and shown me that to serve my country does not have to include military service. I know now that I can serve my country by serving its people as you have done.Senator Obama you have inspired greatness in me and you have given me a strong desire to serve my country, a sense of understanding and responsibility, and hope that we will be great again. In return I have spent every night after work and all of my weekends working for you and fighting for your place in the Whitehouse. I have spent hours making calls and canvassing door to door. I have also written many letters to the editor, hosted parties in your name, sent many inspirational emails, and even formed a group of volunteers. I feel like I cannot do enough. In return for the inspiration you have given me I have inspired others. I may never be able to thank you enough for what you have done for me, but I will spend the rest of my days serving the American people in hopes that someday I will have the same impact on someone as you have had on me.Thank you forever,Paul Gaudreau

McCain selling his house!

Arthur R Chapman — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:28:16 EDT

12,000,000 9 br 8 ba 14,000 sqft Single-Family Home

From: www.sothebysrealty.com

Listing Type: Resale

Status: For Sale What's this?

Year Built:

Price/sqft: $857

Lot Size:

Days on Market: More than 30 days

Neighborhood: Central Phoenix

Former home of Sen John & Cindy McCain.Situated on over 2 acres. Remodeled SW style home complete w/7 bedrooms in main house & 2 bedrooms in guest house. Hardwood floors throughout. Master suite has huge walk-in & a Mexican-tiled private patio w/spa & B/I fireplace. Gourmet kitchen has slate floors,...

OBAMA ~ Leadership for the 21st Century Now Available as a Free Download

Victoria DePaul, Author — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:18:35 EDT

Obama ~ Leadership for the 21st Century, written by best-selling author Victoria C. DePaul, is now available for a limited time as an Ebook download at no charge. This book will be available as a pdf download or readers can view it online via Scribd. The book is available at www.ebookobama.com .

This book details how Barack Obama has succeeded in establishing a culture of ingenuity, enthusiasm, passion and collaboration– unlocking new levels of personal power and control. Leaders such as Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King know the secret to unleashing the human potential. His unique leadership style has been the catalyst of one of the greatest grassroots movements in history– and it is the spirit, the fuel, on which we will ride into the third millennium.

www.ebookobama.com

Joe the Plumber.....

La Susa — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:51:52 EDT

Joe the plumber said yesturday "I will vote for McCain the real American." 'The real American', wonder what he means by that? Or what is he implying by that statement? Unless one has Native American ancestry as dose Sen Barack Obama, I cannot see the connection to 'real American'. I personally find the comment offensive... Should Sen McCain win this election, what cabnet position will Joe the Plunger have, or did I hear wrong?

Poor Joe the Plumber, if he had studied small business (or at least googled it) he would know that overhead, payroll, utilities and a host of other expenses are deducted before talling up the total profit from business income on Schedule C of the Federal Tax Forms... It's sad to see gulable American people lied to, in such a decptive fashion! I wonder if Joe the Plumber is jumping for joy because EXON-MOBIL again anounce hudge profits! Will Joe the Plumber get any cash from EXON-MOBIL as McCain has implied that the rich will somehow benifit the poor and middles class?

McCain-Palin Small Business LIES, BUSH-ECONOMICS, DECEPTIONS!!!!

La Susa — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:36:51 EDT

McCain's Small-Business BunkJuly 14, 2008He claims 23 million small-business owners would pay higher tax rates under Obama. He's wrong. The vast majority would see no change, and many would get a cut.SummaryMcCain has repeatedly claimed that Obama would raise tax rates for 23 million small-business owners. It's a false and preposterously inflated figure.

We find that the overwhelming majority of those small-business owners would see no increase, because they earn too little to be affected. Obama's tax proposal would raise rates only on couples making more than $250,000 or singles earning more than $200,000.

McCain argues that Obama's proposed increase is a job-killer. He has a point. It's true that increasing taxes on those at the top would leave them less money for other purposes, including investment and hiring in the case of business owners. But the number of business owners who would see their rates go up would be only a small fraction of what McCain says. Many would see their taxes go down.
AnalysisSen. John McCain has been making this false claim over and over, starting with a July 7 speech announcing his "jobs for America" plan:

McCain, July 7: Senator Obama's tax increases will hurt the economy even more, and destroy jobs across this country. If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners in America who files as an individual rate payer, Senator Obama is going to raise your tax rates.

He repeated it in an address to the League of United Latin American Citizens the next day:

McCain, July 8: Keeping individual rates low isn't intended as a favor to wealthy Americans. 23 million small-business owners pay those rates, and taking more money from them deprives them of the capital they need to invest and grow and hire.

He said it again at a campaign event July 9:

McCain, July 9: If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners in America who files as an individual rate payer, Senator Obama is willing to raise your tax rates.

And he repeated it in the first of a planned series of radio addresses July 12:

McCain, July 12: If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners who files as an individual rate payer, watch out – because as your business grows, my opponent proposes to raise your taxes.

But repeating a falsehood doesn't make it true. McCain's 23 million claim is a bogus figure.

Outdated, Inflated, Inapplicable

To justify the 23 million figure, McCain spokesman Brian Rogers referred us to a press release by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which refers to "23 million small business owners" without citing a source. That is actually an outdated count of all the businesses in the United States, produced by the U.S. Census for 2002, when the Economic Census counted a total of 23,343,821 business firms of all sizes. Of those, 16,845 firms employed 500 persons or more, which still leaves just over 23.3 million classified as "small" by the widely accepted definition that we will use here.

That figure is six years out of date. The U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy estimates the total number of "small" firms with fewer than 500 workers reached 26.8 million in 2006. That's the most recent estimate. But it is also inflated. Since the total U.S. population was just under 300 million in 2006, it would mean that one in every 11 Americans – men, women and children – is a "small-business owner."

It turns out, SBA's estimate includes more than 20 million "nonemployer" firms, an unknown number of them sideline or hobby businesses run by persons who actually make their living some other way. Census and SBA count as a "small business" anyone who reported as little as $1,000 of business receipts. By that very broad definition, John McCain himself is a "small-business owner," because his tax return shows Schedule C income from book royalties. For that matter, Barack Obama would also be a small-business owner, by virtue of his book income. As would President Bush and Vice President Cheney, as we pointed out in 2004. Of the 26.8 million that SBA counts as "small businesses," fewer than 6 million are actually "employer firms" with any payroll.

From this, we must conclude that to arrive at his 23 million figure, McCain is counting mostly "business owners" with no workers, including those who simply report small amounts of income from sideline or freelance work. McCain is arguing that Obama's tax increase would "destroy jobs," but he's counting mostly firms that don't produce any.

That in itself is seriously misleading. If McCain wants to focus on the effects of Obama's plan on employment, he would do better to confine his count to employers – the just under 6 million firms that actually have workers. And even that figure wouldn't be applicable because Obama's tax increase wouldn't fall on all employers, only on those in the top two income tax brackets.

McCain Campaign's Statement

1. These small businesses are subject to Sen. Obama's pay or play health care plan: The tax will either be in the form of health insurance to
workers or cash to the government.

2. Further, even giving Obama the benefit of the doubt, if they make
over $250,000 and file as individuals or have capital gain or dividends, their taxes go up, as Obama has promised.

Note US Chamber cites 23 million figure: "The U.S. Chamber is proud to pay special tribute to some of its most valued constituents: America's
23 million small business owners"McCain's Non-explanation

McCain cannot justify his 23 million claim. We asked McCain spokesman Brian Rogers for substantiation and received the statement that we reprint here. We find it simply won't do.

Rogers starts by saying that Obama's health care proposal to provide coverage for uninsured workers would amount to a "tax," either in the form of higher costs for covering employees or "cash to the government." But McCain was talking about income tax rates, not higher business costs. That's not justifying McCain's claim; that's trying to change the subject.

Furthermore – as we've just seen – the vast majority of those that McCain is counting as small-business owners have no employees and wouldn't encounter any added costs for covering workers. Obama's plan wouldn't apply to every small employer, either. It says: "Small employers that meet certain revenue thresholds will be exempt." Also, after Rogers sent his message, Obama announced July 13 that he is proposing to grant $6 billion per year in tax credits for small businesses that provide health insurance plans, covering up to half the cost of premiums paid to cover employees.

As for actual income tax rates, which is what McCain keeps talking about, Rogers says "if they make over $250,000 and file as individuals ... their taxes go up." But this leaves out all but a very small fraction of those McCain counts as small-business owners. Rogers also says taxes will go up if small-business owners "have capital gains or dividends," but Obama's proposal would not increase rates on capital gains or dividends for couples making under $250,000, or singles making under about $200,000, regardless of whether they are classified as small-business owners or not.

How Many Would Actually Pay More?

McCain is right about one thing. Many small-business owners would indeed see their taxes go up if Obama is elected and raises the top income-tax rates. According to a survey from the National Federation of Independent Businesses, about eight out of 10 small-business owners responding to the poll report that they are organized legally in a way that would require them to pay taxes on their business income as individuals, rather than as a corporation. But since Obama's plan wouldn't affect those making less than $250,000 for couples, or about $200,000 for singles, we need to estimate how many would fall into those high-income categories.

Obama's plan, according to his economic policy director Jason Furman, would return the top two federal income-tax rates to what they were before Bush lowered them. In addition, Obama would adjust the income-tax brackets to ensure that no married couple making under $250,000 or single filer making under $200,000 would pay the top rates.

The actual number of business owners who would be affected turns out to be well under a million, and the number of employers would be even less. Based on the number of taxpayers who now report any sort of business income on their returns, the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center projects that 663,608 taxpayers with business income, or business losses, will fall into the top two tax brackets in 2009, when any Obama tax changes would first take effect. Not all of those can properly be called "small-business owners," however. Some are farmers. Many are lawyers, accountants or other professionals who get some of their income in the form of partnership distributions. Others may be passive investors in real-estate partnerships or similar investment arrangements and not really persons who own and manage a business.

It is also not clear how many who report business income actually employ any workers. In 2004, the Tax Policy Center found that hundreds of thousands of individual taxpayers who had business income from partnerships or subchapter-S corporations (whose owners pay taxes as individuals) did not claim any tax deductions for employee expenses. For all these reasons we judge that the actual number of small-business employers who would face higher tax rates under Obama is probably far below 663,608, and certainly a far cry from McCain's ridiculously inflated 23 million figure.

Lower Taxes for Many

While Obama's plan would raise rates at the top, it also would grant what he calls a “Making Work Pay” tax credit of up to $500 per person, or $1,000 per working family. Since this credit would not begin to phase down for couples making less than $150,000, we judge it likely that many, if not most of the 23 million that McCain counts as "small-business owners" would likely get tax reductions.

An Echo of Bush

McCain's claim struck us as wildly improbable the first time we heard it because we debunked a much less expansive claim that President Bush made about John Kerry in 2004. Bush ran a TV ad saying that Kerry's proposal to raise taxes on persons making more than $200,000 a year would affect 900,000 small-business owners. We found Bush's number to be far too high. We noted that Bush was counting as a "small-business owner" anyone who reported even $1 of business or partnership income, regardless of how the taxpayer made their living. At that time, the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center estimated that a total of 471,000 small-business employers could be affected.

– by Brooks Jacksonhttp://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/mccains_small-business_bunk.html

More McCain-Palin "Unethical" LIES, MISLEADING, FALSE!

La Susa — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 11:16:39 EDT

'Unethical?'

October 27, 2008

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/unethical.html

A McCain-Palin/RNC ad claims Obama 'rewards his friends with your tax dollars.' It's off the mark.SummaryAn ad released jointly by the McCain-Palin campaign and the RNC claims Obama "rewards his friends with your tax dollars" and calls his actions "unethical." Some of what the ad says is false or misleading. Here are the facts:

The ad claims that Obama supporter and Chicago real estate developer Allison Davis received $20 million in taxpayer money. That's false. Davis didn't get this money. Instead, the federal grant went to the Chicago Housing Authority, replacing money it had already put forward for a mixed-income housing project on which Davis was a developer. The grant didn't go to Davis, nor did it help him pocket any additional funds.

The ad says Obama gave Tony Rezko $14 million of taxpayer money. That's misleading. It's true the housing project Rezko was working on cost $14 million in taxpayer cash. Rezko and his partner netted $855,000 in fees.
Obama worked to get Kenny Smith a $100,000 grant to build a park, which Smith later failed to complete. Smith has since caught the attention of the state attorney general. But, according to reports, Obama isn't under investigation for helping Smith get the grant.

The RNC and McCain may consider Obama's actions to be "unethical"; that's a matter of opinion. But the fact is, as far as these three incidents are concerned, Obama has not been officially accused of any wrongdoing, and there's been no report that his actions are the subject of any official investigation.
AnalysisThe joint ad from the McCain-Palin campaign and the Republican National Committee accuses Sen. Barack Obama of being "unethical," citing instances in which individuals connected to Obama received federal or state funds. Sen. John McCain's campaign and the RNC have spent $5.9 million so far airing the ad in 17 states, including Pennsylvania, where $1.2 million has been spent on the ad, and North Carolina, where it has aired a total of 1,629 times, according to the Campaign Media Analysis Group of TNS Media Intelligence. The ad started airing on Oct. 14.

RNC/McCain-Palin Ad:
"Unethical"

Announcer: Obama rewards his friends with your tax dollars. Tony Rezko, fourteen million. Allison Davis, twenty million. Kenny Smith, one hundred thousand. That's unethical. Congressional liberals promise to raise your taxes to reward their friends with wasteful pork. Taxes for you. Pork for them. Who's gonna' stop 'em? Congressional liberals? Or him.

McCain: I'm John McCain and I approve this message. $20 Million? Try Zero

The ad claims that real estate developer Allison Davis received $20 million of taxpayer money thanks to Obama. But that's false. Davis didn't get any of this money. The ad cites a story from The Washington Times, but the article says that "city housing authorities confirmed" that the "grant money won't go to Mr. Davis or his company."

According to documentation provided by the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), a letter was ghostwritten for Obama, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and others by the CHA in support of a project called Stateway Gardens – an urban revitalization effort to transition crime-ridden high-rises into mixed-income housing. The letter was sent to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in an effort to acquire a fiscal year 2008 grant of $20 million to support the project, of which Davis, a supporter of Obama, was one of the developers.

We spoke with Housing and Urban Development (HUD) spokeswoman Donna White, who told us that the money was not awarded to Davis, but to the Chicago Housing Authority:

Donna White, spokeswoman for HUD: The Chicago Housing Authority competed for [the Hope VI] grant. The housing authority applies for the funding, they select a developer. ... It's common for congressional members to submit letters of support when they know that a housing authority in their jurisdiction is competing for a grant.

We also spoke with William Little, executive vice president of development for CHA, who reiterated that the HUD grant was not awarded to Davis, but to the CHA, and that the grant allowed the CHA to reallocate funds it had already directed to the Stateway project. Davis did not see a profit as a result of the HUD grant, according to Little, nor did the budget for the Stateway project increase. When we asked Little about the charge in the ad that Obama "reward[ed]" Davis with $20 million, he told us:

William Little, CHA: That's totally false. HUD awarded CHA $20 million in a Hope VI grant, which allows CHA to reallocate funds it had previously earmarked for that particular project to other projects. The overall budget for the project did not increase. Allison Davis gets none of it.

A portion of the Stateway development is devoted to market-priced housing, and Davis stood to profit from the sales of those homes. But he did not pocket any of the HUD grant, which went to construction of low-income units.

Tony Rezko (Again)

The ad also claims that Tony Rezko got "fourteen million," because of Obama. But he didn't.

A 2007 report from The Chicago Sun-Times is the source, but the article goes over territory we've addressed before: that Obama wrote letters to state officials supporting a low-income senior housing complex Rezko was trying to have built. Both men say Rezko did not solicit the letters. The Sun-Times quoted Obama spokesman Bill Burton as saying Obama didn't write the letters as a favor but "in the interests of the people in the community who have benefited from the project."

Regardless, the ad is wrong to imply Rezko pocketed millions. The project cost $14 million of taxpayer money. But, as we've reported, Rezko and his partner, who was Allison Davis, received $855,000 in fees. It's not peanuts, but it's not $14 million either.

Kenny Smith's $100,000 Garden

The ad then claims Kenny Smith received $100,000 in taxpayer money as a "reward" from Obama. This claim holds more water than the rest, but it's still a leaky vessel.

The ad cites a New York Post report that details how Obama, then a state senator in the midst of a race for a congressional seat, worked on Smith's behalf in 2000 in an effort to raise $1.1 million in state funding for the "Englewood Botanic Garden Project." Smith, head of the nonprofit Chicago Better Housing Association and a volunteer for Obama's congressional campaign, planned to rehabilitate a plot of land in a Chicago neighborhood. He was awarded a $100,000 state grant to do so, a far cry from the $1.1 million he had hoped to receive.

But Smith never built the park. And, according to a report from The Chicago Sun-Times, state Attorney General Lisa Madigan, a Democrat who backs Obama, has started to look into whether or not taxpayer money was mishandled. While questions have been raised about how Smith spent the money, according to the Sun-Times, the paper notes that "neither Smith nor his wife are accused of any wrongdoing." The Post report cited by the ad said that "officials in Madigan's office said Obama's actions in giving out the member item aren't under investigation."

Democrats "Promise to Raise Your Taxes"

The ad swings away from the taxpayer hand-outs and claims: "Democrats promise to raise your taxes to reward their friends with wasteful pork." That linkage doesn't sound like a promise any sane politician would make.

The ad cites a Nov. 2007 article from The Washington Times, which chronicles a bill introduced by Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.). The bill would have amended the tax code to repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax and limit deductions that could be claimed by taxpayers making more than $250,000 a year, among other measures. But Rangel's bill, introduced a year ago, never cleared the Ways and Means Committee.

As for the "wasteful pork" claim, the fact is that securing earmarks is a popular practice among both Democrats and Republicans. Two oft-cited earmark recipients are longtime Sens. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.) and Ted Stevens (R-Alaska). Both were listed in Porkbusters.org's "Hall of Shame" in 2006 and have been singled out as "Porker of The Month" more than once over the last eight years by the organization Citizens Against Government Waste – proof that, promise or not, Democrats and Republicans send money home for projects whether taxes go up or down.

– by Emi Kolawole

from www.factcheck.org a non-partisan watch dog group!!!!!!!!

"A License to Kill" Email and TV Adds LIES, FALSE!!!!!!!

La Susa — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 10:14:57 EDT

A License to Kill

October 28, 2008

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/a_license_to_kill.html

A new anti-Obama group runs a bunk-filled ad implying he'd give a driver's license to Mohammed Atta. SummaryAn upstart group calling itself the "National Republican Trust PAC" mixes a pile of false claims and the image of 9/11 mastermind Mohammed Atta to create one of the sleaziest false TV ads of the campaign.

The spot falsely claims Obama has a "plan" to issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. In fact, Obama has said quite specifically, "I am not proposing that that's what we do."
The ad implies such licenses would enable terrorist attacks. In fact, Atta wouldn't have needed one to carry out his attacks.

It claims that Obama's health care plan will apply to illegal immigrants. But Obama has stated quite clearly that his plan "does not" cover illegal immigrants.

The ad falsely claims that Obama's plan "gives illegals Social Security benefits," which is also flatly untrue.

AnalysisDespite its name, the National Republican Trust has no formal connection to the Republican Party. It is an independent group with ties to the conservative Web site Newsmax. It sprang into being barely a month ago and has reported spending more than $900,000 to attack Obama through e-mail messages and, now, TV ads.

Its TV spot first showed up on the air in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 26, and it has also received considerable circulation on the Web. It attempts to link Sen. Barack Obama to the 9/11 hijackers. The link? A spurious claim that Obama plans to give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. NRT PAC, which is headed by a former writer for the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Insight magazine, says it plans to air the ad in other swing states.

Update, Oct. 29: Newsmax distributed a new NRT PAC fundraising e-mail today in which NRT boasts of having now raised "over $3 million." A postscript states that the group's ads are now running "in 5 battleground states."

National Republican Trust PAC Ad: "Social Security for Illegals"

Announcer: Millions of illegal aliens in the U.S. Barack Obama’s plan gives a driver’s license to any illegal who wants one.

But that’s not all.

Obama’s plan gives illegals Social Security benefits and raises taxes for his health care plan to cover them. Who pays? You do.

Driver’s licenses and government benefits for illegals. Higher taxes for us. That’s Obama’s plan. Obama. Too radical. Too risky.

The National Republican Trust PAC is responsible for the content of this advertisement. Drive Like a Maniac

The ad begins with the ominous warning that "Barack Obama's plan gives a driver's license to any illegal who wants one." More alarmingly, the ad flashes a picture of a Florida driver's license featuring 9/11 mastermind Mohammed Atta. The ad then goes on to claim that Obama's "plan" provides illegal immigrants with Social Security and health care benefits and would raise taxes to pay for it.

Hardly a word in the ad is true.

Let's start with the incendiary implication that Obama's "plan" would somehow enable terrorists like Atta. That's ridiculous. It's true that Atta did use a Florida driver's license to board the plane he hijacked. It's also irrelevant. Atta entered the U.S. legally, using a tourist visa, so laws about licenses for illegal immigrants wouldn't have affected him anyway. What's more, Atta could just as easily have boarded the plane with his Egyptian passport. The Transportation Security Administration lists foreign government-issued passports as acceptable identification for boarding a U.S. flight. For that matter, The Cato Institute's Jim Harper, who advises the Department of Homeland Security on data privacy, describes NRT PAC's claim as "despicable" and says that it is "terror-pandering of the highest order."

Plan? What Plan?

Furthermore, NRT PAC's claim that Obama has a "plan" to give driver's licenses to "any illegal [immigrant] who wants one" is just false. Obama has no such plan. "Plan" implies a worked out, formal policy. But NRT rests its claim entirely on comments Obama made during two Democratic primary debates. All candidates were asked whether they supported then-New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's plan to issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Obama hedged, but when pressed, admitted that he agreed with states granting licenses, and requiring insurance. Here's part of the exchange:

CNN's Wolf Blitzer (Nov. 15, 2007): Barring, avoiding, assuming there isn't going to be comprehensive immigration reform, do you support or oppose driver's licenses for illegal immigrants?
Obama: I am not proposing that that's what we do. ... I have already said I support the notion that we have to deal with public safety and that driver's licenses at the state level can make that happen. But what I also know, Wolf, is that if we keep on getting distracted by this problem, then we are not solving it.

We take no position on the wisdom of Spitzer's proposal. But it's false to puff up Obama's comments into a "plan" when he quite specifically said, "I am not proposing that that's what we do." That sounds to us to be the opposite of a plan. The group would have been correct had it said Obama supported Spitzer's plan, but only in the absence of a federal effort to fix the immigration mess.

Health Care and Taxes. Again.

It is simply untrue that Obama plans to provide health care for illegal immigrants. To the contrary, in an exchange with CNN's Joe Johns during a January debate in South Carolina, Obama explicitly ruled out coverage for illegal immigrants:

Johns (Jan. 21, 2008): Senator Obama, we all know what universal health care is, as Senator Clinton just said, sort of the idea that everybody deserves health care. And I have not been able to sort of zero in on your position on this one question: Does your plan cover the estimated 12 million or so illegal immigrants in the country?
Obama: It does not.
Johns: Why not?
Obama: Well, because I think we've got limited resources. And it is important for us that, when we've got millions of U.S. citizens that aren't yet covered, it's important for us to make sure that they are provided coverage.

That sounds pretty clear to us. Furthermore, as we've said more times than we care to count now, Obama's plan raises taxes only on people making more than $200,000 ($250,000 for a couple). That's true for income taxes, capital gains taxes and payroll taxes.

Social Security Bunk That Won't Die

Just for good measure, the ad recycles some two-year-old bunk, too. The claim that Obama "plans" to grant Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants is nowhere to be found on his Web site. NRT PAC bases this claim on Obama's vote on an amendment to a 2006 immigration bill. But that amendment would not have granted Social Security benefits to any illegal immigrants, not unless they became U.S. citizens or legal immigrants first. We debunked this attack back in 2006 when it was a Republican favorite. The passing years haven't made it any truer.

Under current law, an illegal immigrant who later gets legal status can claim credit for any Social Security taxes he or she paid while still illegal. The 2006 amendment would have ended that practice. The bill failed 50 - 49, with Obama joining the majority to vote against it. Many illegal immigrants pay Social Security taxes even while working illegally. In 2006, for example, the Social Security Administration collected about $7 billion in taxes that couldn't be credited to specific workers.

Again, we take no position on the merits of the amendment. But it's a serious distortion to say that it would have granted Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants.

End-Game Sleaze

The National Republican Trust PAC came into being Sept. 26, when it first registered with the Federal Election Commission. By Oct. 15 it had reported raising $463,000 for its anti-Obama campaign. (Update: In an e-mail to supporters on Oct. 29, the group said it had raised more than $3 million.) It has reported spending a total of $902,604 to attack Obama, according to the most recent report filed Oct. 26. It has reported spending substantial sums to the conservative Web site Newsmax and to other vendors for "email communication" opposing Obama's election, and to a Virginia company called Integram for "direct mail." It has also listed expenditures for "media production" and a "media buy."

Its Web site lists its executive director as Scott Wheeler, who also writes articles for Newsmax, which the NRT PAC pays to distribute anti-Obama e-mail messages, many of which are little more than fundraising pleas.

It's not uncommon for the final weeks of the presidential campaign to bring out some of the most deceptive ads of the cycle. We thought it would be tough to top the whoppers we've seen already, but it looks as if some of the third-party ads are out to prove us wrong. If this gem from the National Republican Trust PAC is any indication, we'd best brace for a blizzard of balderdash.

– by Joe Miller

from www.factcheck.org

A non partisan watch group!!!!!!!!!!

Marxism, Socialism and Spreading the Wealth?

La Susa — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:46:57 EDT

McCain and Palin can't seem to even understand "Marxism," " Socialism," nor the concept of "spreading the wealth!" Do they not understand that the Federal Income Tax payers of America have been the Middle Class for the last 8 years! And I guess somehow shifting the tax burden from the middle class to the wealthiest is what? Marxism? Socialism? Spreading the wealth? Oh yea I forgott, McCain and Palin want to make permanent Tax breaks for the most wealthy, what's that called?????

McCain and Palin are misleading the American public about small business income, implying that businesses that earn 250,000.00 will be liable to pay federal income taxes, not understanding that businesses have to subtract all of their expenses; payroll, insurance, cars, rents, etc. etc. before they can conclude their total earnings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See Link below and compare one's income tax savings it's amazing!!!!!!!http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGgFgH

Making Calls

Jim Hazelwood — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:08:44 EDT

I've never volunteered for a campaign, but am this time. I've just made my first set of 25 calls to voters in Penn. I was nervous at first, but after the first one - no problem.

Nearing the Finish Line

Lifelong Liberal & Journalist — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 10:43:47 EDT

I'm aghast at the methods that the McCain/Palin campaign has been using, but I'm also surprised that Senator Biden made one of his famous gaffes about Obama being tested within six months after he is voted into office.True, it's similar to what turncoat Joe Lieberman uttered at a Republican fundraiser, but there was no reason to put words in John McCain's mouth. Please, Senator Biden, think first, speak second! It's taken me a long time to follow that advice, but I've found it to be quite expedient.

Let's hope that the intelligence, calm demeanor and logic of Obama is seen by all voters. I'm giving a prayer for both Obama and his beloved grandmother to get through this current health crisis, all the way to Election day, when she will be able to see the results of her love and guidance.

Why I Voted For Sen Barack Obama

La Susa — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:56:49 EDT

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because I feel that I was misled about Weapons of Mass Destruction and our reason for going war in Iraq. And by going to war with Iraq, Bin Ladden was given a free pass to do as he pleases after killing nearly 4,000 civilians.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has an eye on the future of our Nation, and knows that unless our children excell in Math and Science we as a Nation will fall. For we have to be the inventors of the future, we have to have the opportunities to go to collage!

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he knows we have to independant of fossil fuels that are contaminating our entire planet! And he will promote Solar and Wind power that we so desparately need! We cannot be held hostage in the oil markets anymore!

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he knows what it is like to pay off a student loan, and knows first hand how difficult it is for the middle class to struggle with paying bills. And as a child he saw his mom struggle and survive on foodstamps, he knows what it is like to go without.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he stands in opposition to giving permanent tax breaks to oil comanies i.e. the 5 per-cent of the wealthiest Americans, and instead would give a tax break for working Americans, who can bearly make it, as it is. And he will extend the unemployeement benifits knowing that our nation is currently in a financial crisis.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has good ideas on how to create new jobs for Americans by giving tax incentives to those companies who stay in America, and also tax incentives to companies who take the time to invent new alternatives to fosil fuel!

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he recognises how important and influencial the United States is globally, and that we need to preserve and improve our image abroad.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because I know he knows where me and my family come from, and will be able to voice our concerns in US Government.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has character, and dose not make rash decisions based on poll numbers. He thinks before making important decisions, and is able to maintain cool while being lied about and defend his position firmly.

I voted for Sen Barack Obama even though I don't agree with him on every issue, but I do know that he has the substance and moral character to make the nessasary changes we need in government like 'transperancy'. Furthermore as a former civil rights attorney he is well informed about my civil rights as an American citizen, and I know he will uphold The American Constitution!

McCain Lies About Obama and ACORN

La Susa — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:04:03 EDT

ACORN AccusationsOctober 18, 2008McCain makes exaggerated claims of "voter fraud." Obama soft-pedals his connections.SummaryThe McCain-Palin campaign accuses ACORN, a community activist group that operates nationwide, of perpetrating "massive voter fraud." It says Obama has “long and deep” ties to the group. We find both claims to be exaggerated. But we also find Obama has understated the extent of his work with the group.

Neither ACORN nor its employees have been found guilty of, or even charged with, casting fraudulent votes. What a McCain-Palin Web ad calls "voter fraud" is actually voter registration fraud. Several ACORN canvassers have been found guilty of faking registration forms and others are being investigated. But the evidence that has surfaced so far shows they faked forms to get paid for work they didn’t do, not to stuff ballot boxes.
Obama’s path has intersected with ACORN on several occasions – more often than he allowed in the final debate.

AnalysisWe've received scores of e-mails asking us about Obama's connection to the community activist group Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now, or ACORN. A McCain-Palin ad released on the Web accuses Obama of having ties to the organization, which it says engages in "intimidation tactics," "massive voter fraud" and "pressuring banks to issue risky loans."

Destroying Democracy?

The McCain ad accuses ACORN of "massive voter fraud." In the final presidential debate, John McCain added that ACORN "is now on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy." Sounds scary, but is it true?

McCain-Palin Web Ad: "ACORN"

McCain: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.

Announcer: Who is Barack Obama? A man with "a political baptism performed at warp speed." Vast ambition. After college, he moved to Chicago. Became a community organizer. There, Obama met Madeleine Talbot, part of the Chicago branch of ACORN. He was so impressive that he was asked to train the ACORN staff.

What did ACORN in Chicago engage in? Bullying banks. Intimidation tactics. Disruption of business. ACORN forced banks to issue risky home loans. The same types of loans that caused the financial crisis we're in today.

No wonder Obama's campaign is trying to distance him from the group, saying, "Barack Obama Never Organized with ACORN." But Obama's ties to ACORN run long and deep. He taught classes for ACORN. They even endorsed him for President.

But now ACORN is in trouble.

Reporter: There are at least 11 investigations across the country involving thousands of potentially fraudulent ACORN forms.

Announcer: Massive voter fraud. And the Obama campaign paid more than $800,000 to an ACORN front for get out the vote efforts.

Pressuring banks to issue risky loans. Nationwide voter fraud. Barack Obama. Bad judgment. Blind ambition. Too risky for America. There's no evidence of any such democracy-destroying fraud. Here's what is true: In recent years, ACORN employees have been investigated multiple times for voter registration fraud. ACORN workers have been convicted of submitting false voter registration forms in Colorado Springs in 2005, Kansas City, Mo., in 2006 and King County, Wash., in 2007. ACORN's Las Vegas office was raided by a state criminal investigator on Oct. 7, 2008. ACORN workers are also the subjects of ongoing investigations in Wisconsin, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana. The Indiana investigation started in early October and may involve thousands of fraudulent registration forms.

On Oct. 16 The Associated Press quoted two "senior law enforcement" officials as saying that the FBI is investigating ACORN seeking "any evidence of a coordinated national scam." The following day the Obama campaign's lawyer, Robert Bauer, sent a seven-page letter to the attorney general claiming that federal law enforcement officials were being improperly used to help McCain by suppressing the vote through "unsupported, spurious allegations of vote fraud." He asked that the investigation be transferred to the special prosecutor investigating the U.S. attorney firing scandal. The McCain campaign issued a statement in which spokesman Ben Porritt called Bauer's letter "outrageous" and "absurd" and a "heavy handed tactic of attempting to criminalize political discourse."

But so far ACORN itself has not been officially charged with any fraud. Aside from the heated charges and counter-charges, no evidence has yet surfaced to show that the ACORN employees who submitted fraudulent registration forms intended to pave the way for illegal voting. Rather, they were trying to get paid by ACORN for doing no work. Dan Satterberg, the Republican prosecuting attorney in King County, Wash., where the largest ACORN case to date was prosecuted, said that the indicted ACORN employees were shirking responsibility, not plotting election fraud.

Satterberg: [A] joint federal and state investigation has determined that this
scheme was not intended to permit illegal voting.

Instead, the defendants cheated their employer, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (or ACORN), to get paid for work they did not actually perform. ACORN's lax oversight of their own voter registration drive permitted this to happen. ... It was hardly a sophisticated plan: The defendants simply realized that making up names was easier than actually canvassing the streets looking for unregistered voters. ...

[It] appears that the employees of ACORN were not performing the work that they were being paid for, and to some extent, ACORN is a victim of employee theft.

The $8-an-hour employees were charged with providing false information on voter registration forms, and in one case with making a false statement to a public official. Five of the seven who were charged pleaded guilty. ACORN was fined for exercising insufficient oversight, but it was not charged with masterminding any kind of deliberate fraud.

ACORN pays canvassers by the hour, not by the form, but it does ask them to meet certain registration goals. In ACORN's Las Vegas office, one employee who admitted to submitting fraudulent registrations said that she did so because she found ACORN's requirement of 20 registrations per day to be too steep to meet, according to an affidavit by a Nevada state criminal investigator. Local news reports at the time also said that some of the ACORN offices under investigation paid bonuses for each registration, or a higher hourly rate to those who brought in more applications. ACORN's deputy political director, Kevin Whelan, denies that this is ACORN policy.

What ACORN Says

In its defense, ACORN says that only a few of its 13,000 paid canvassers turned in any faked forms. "[T]here are always some people who want to get paid without really doing the job, or who aim to defraud their employer," the group said in an Oct. 10 statement on its Web site. "Any large department store will have some workers who shoplift."

ACORN also says it cannot simply discard suspicious forms on its own, but is required by law in most states to submit to local election officials all the forms its canvassers bring in. ACORN's Whelan told us that its own legal counsel strongly advises that the group do the same in states that don't explicitly require it, because "only election officials are legally able to determine the validity of a voter registration application." But ACORN says that it first flags all suspicious registrations. Staffers call the phone numbers written on completed registration forms to make sure they're valid and also take note of incomplete or duplicate forms. The group says that it alerts election officials to forms that look fishy when it sends them in.

However, it's not clear whether or not those procedures were followed in Nevada prior to a highly publicized raid by state officials on Oct. 7. According to an affidavit by Colin Hayes, a criminal investigator for the secretary of state's office, a probe began July 2 after the county registrar reported receiving a number of suspicious registration forms from ACORN. Hayes did not state whether or not those suspicious forms had been flagged by ACORN before being turned in. Later, during a July 18 meeting, ACORN's lawyer told local and state officials that the group had identified a number of suspicious registrations and "would be willing to provide such information" for further investigation. On Aug. 7, at the request of the county registrar, ACORN supplied copies of documents related to 33 ACORN workers who had been fired for "suspicious" voter registration activities.

Investigator Hayes followed up, confirmed that many registrations were faked, and found a former ACORN worker who confessed to faking most of her forms. After obtaining a warrant based on the affidavit, state officials seized records and computers. Secretary of State Ross Miller was quoted as saying the faked forms included names from the starting lineup of the Dallas Cowboys.

While ACORN says that such raids are part of "a systematic partisan agenda of voter suppression," it is worth noting that in this case, Secretary of State Miller is a Democrat.

Whelan told us that ACORN's national management staff trains local directors and travels extensively to supervise offices, but the 2007 Washington state prosecution makes it clear that quality control is lacking in at least some outposts. Prosecutor Satterberg wrote: "We believe that ACORN’s internal quality control procedures were not just deficient but entirely non-existent when it came to the latter stages of their operation in Tacoma." He fined the group $25,000 for failing to exercise sufficient oversight.

How Common Is Fraud?

Election fraud does exist, but hasn't been shown to be widespread. The New York Times reported in 2007 that a five-year crackdown on such fraud by the Bush administration's Justice Department had produced 70 convictions at the federal level, including 40 campaign workers or government workers convicted of vote-buying, intimidation or ballot forgery, and 23 cases of multiple voting or voting by ineligible voters. But the Times described these as unconnected incidents and said the Justice Department had turned up no evidence of "any organized effort to skew federal elections."

Bush administration officials have pushed hard to find such evidence, too hard in one case, according to an investigation by the Department of Justice's internal watchdogs, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). Their report into the firing of nine United States attorneys concluded that the "real reason" for the firing of New Mexico's U.S. Attorney David Iglesias was "complaints about Iglesias’s handling of voter fraud and public corruption matters." The complaints included gripes by state Republican Party officials who believed that widespread fraud by Democrats had prevented George Bush from winning the state in the 2000 presidential election. Iglesias launched a task force that worked with the FBI but found that "there was insufficient evidence in any of the cases the Task Force reviewed to support criminal prosecution by the [U.S. Attorney's Office] or state authorities," according to the report of the OIG and OPR. These included cases involving ACORN workers. Republicans charged that Iglesias was showing insufficient rigor in prosecuting the cases.

ACORN and the Housing Crisis

The McCain ad says that ACORN in Chicago engaged in "bullying banks. Intimidation tactics. Disruption of business" and "forced banks to issue risky home loans." In support of these statements, the McCain campaign cites conservative opinion pieces, including a column by Mona Charen posted by the National Review Online, titled "Guilty Party: ACORN, Obama and the Mortgage Mess."

It is true that ACORN has led demonstrations on a number of issues nationwide – predatory lending, immigration reform, neighborhood violence, utilities shut-offs, minimum wage increases. Sometimes the group's tactics are confrontational, veering into civil disobedience. For instance, in the late 1980s, ACORN activists in a number of cities, including Chicago, seized abandoned houses and encouraged "squatting" by homeless people, in an attempt to force local governments to salvage abandoned properties and convert them into low-income housing. The targets of ACORN's protests sometimes describe the activists as intractable or even aggressive. Other ACORN protests are less confrontational; Sen. McCain himself spoke at an ACORN rally on illegal immigration in 2006.

It stretches the facts, however, to say that ACORN "forced" banks to make risky loans, though it has certainly applied pressure on banks to make loans to minority and low-income borrowers. ACORN also has worked directly with banks in a joint effort to increase such lending. In Chicago these efforts date back at least to 1992, after a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston showed that minorities in that city were two to three times as likely to be denied mortgage loans as white applicants, and that high-income minorities were more likely to be turned down than low-income whites. Chicago ACORN then started a mortgage assistance program, in cooperation with five local banks, to help minority and low-income borrowers get mortgage loans.

The mortgages that ACORN worked out with the banks did have lower underwriting standards than were customary. They allowed a higher percentage of a family's income to go to debt repayment, and counted rent and utility payments, not just credit card payments, as evidence of ability to pay back a loan. The loans were also more forgiving of past credit problems, as long as the recipient was making a proven effort to address them. But ACORN provided loan deals only to people who went through counseling on budget and credit issues. In 1992, First Nationwide Bank Vice President Neal Halleran told the Chicago Tribune: "Transaction by transaction, [loans from the ACORN program] would appear to be performing no worse than our portfolio overall." According to the Tribune, First Nationwide had contacted ACORN to initiate the lending program.

Obama: Burying ACORNs

The ad says that "Obama's ties to ACORN run long and deep" – that he "taught classes" for the group, paid a "front" $800,000 for get-out-the-vote efforts, and was endorsed by ACORN for president. That last one's true – ACORN's political action committee did offer an Obama endorsement. It's also true that Obama has worked with the group in the past. In 1995, Obama helped represent ACORN in a successful lawsuit to require the state of Illinois to offer "motor voter" registration at DMV offices. Obama has said that this is his only association with ACORN, but that's not the case – he has had other, though less direct, interactions with the organization.

When Obama was on the board of directors of the Woods Fund, the foundation gave grants of $75,000 in 2001 and $70,000 in 2002 to ACORN's Chicago office. The McCain campaign and the Republican National Committee cite an additional grant of $45,000 in 2000. The Woods Fund has not responded to our calls about their 2000 grants.

The Obama campaign also paid Citizens Services Inc., a group affiliated with ACORN, more than $800,000 for get-out-the-vote (not voter registration) efforts during the primary election. The nature of CSI's services was initially misrepresented on the Obama campaign's disclosures to the Federal Election Commission, which the campaign describes as an oversight. The Obama campaign says it has not been involved with ACORN during the general election.

In addition, after law school, Obama may have had contact with ACORN when he directed a Chicago registration drive for Project Vote in 1992. According to Sanford Newman, who was the program’s national director at the time, ACORN may have been one of dozens of organizations that participated in registration drives that year with Project Vote personnel like Obama. But Project Vote didn’t begin contracting exclusively with ACORN until after Obama worked for the group in 1992. “Working for Project Vote at the time was by no means working for ACORN," Newman told us. ACORN had no influence on Project Vote policy and no representation on its board.

As for "teaching classes" for the group, the McCain campaign cites a March 2008 Newsday article, which says that ACORN organizer Madeleine Talbot "initially considered Obama a competitor" when both were working to get asbestos insulation removed from a Chicago housing project, but that "she became so impressed with his work that she invited him to help train her staff." Newsday does not say whether Obama accepted the invitation. An article by Chicago alderman Toni Foulkes says that "we [ACORN] have invited Obama to our leadership training sessions to run the session on power every year" between 1992 and 2004, when the article was written. The Obama campaign says that Obama participated in two, one-hour trainings in a volunteer capacity. Foulkes could not be reached for comment.

Neither ACORN's Chicago office nor CSI has been accused of voter registration irregularities.

–by Jess Henig, with Ronald Lampard

Update, Oct. 21: We originally said that Project Vote works closely with ACORN, implying that Obama would have had contact with the group when he directed a voter registration drive for Project Vote in 1992. We have since learned that Project Vote and ACORN may or may not have worked together in Chicago that year. The group didn’t contract with ACORN exclusively back then. We have corrected the story to reflect this.http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/acorn_accusations.html

NRA TV Add -FALSE- from FactCheck.org

La Susa — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:56:55 EDT

The Rifle Association's 'True Story'October 23, 2008A misleading NRA ad claims Obama voted "to deny citizens the right of self-protection." SummaryThe National Rifle Association's misleading attacks on Obama continue. A new ad shows a terrified woman grabbing a gun after an intruder smashes his way into her home. It accuses Obama of voting repeatedly for a measure that would "make you the criminal" in such cases, and voting to "deny citizens the right of self-protection."

The NRA says the incident depicted is "a true story." Not quite.

The actual 2003 burglary didn't involve a woman, and it didn't become violent until the male homeowner went downstairs and started firing before calling police.
The ad fails to mention that the issue was a local handgun ban that made the homeowner's gun illegal to keep in the house.
What Obama voted for was not any general repeal of the right of self-defense, but to uphold enforcement of the local gun ban, a "petty offense" that carried a maximum penalty of a $750 fine

Im so Tired of McCain-Palin Lies!!!!!!

La Susa — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:03:49 EDT

From FactCheck.org

McCain calls Obama's refundable tax credits "welfare," but calls his own "reform."

SummaryThe McCain campaign has taken to denigrating some of Obama's tax proposals as "welfare" rather than tax cuts. And it continues to mislead about who would see a tax increase.

A new McCain-Palin Web ad characterizes Obama's proposed refundable tax credits as "welfare." But McCain himself proposes refundable tax credits, too, as part of his health care plan, and calls them "reform."
The ad also says "hard-working families" and "seniors" would pay higher taxes. But – need we say this again? – that would be true only for the affluent few, not for the many.

AnalysisThe "welfare" argument appears, among other places, in the McCain-Palin campaign Web ad released Oct. 16.

McCain-Palin 2008 Web Ad: "Joe the Plumber"

McCain: I'm John McCain and I approved this message.

Announcer: Americans are catching on ...

Joe Wurzelbacher: Your new tax plan is going to tax me more.

Obama: It's not that I want to punish your success. ... I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody.

Announcer: Everybody? Leading papers call Obama's taxes "welfare" ... "government handouts." Obama raises taxes on seniors, hard-working families to give "welfare" to those who pay none. Just as you suspected, Obama's not truthful on taxes. "Not Truthful?"

The ad says, "Leading papers call Obama's taxes 'welfare' ... 'government handouts'." It says he would "raise taxes on seniors" and "hard-working families" and "give 'welfare' to those who pay none." It concludes, "Obama's not truthful on taxes."

This ad, however, is short of truthful itself.

As we've said any number of times, what Obama proposes would not raise taxes on any "hard-working families" unless they make more than $250,000 a year, a very small fraction of families. Independent analysis has shown than 95 percent of families with children would see federal income taxes go down.

As for "seniors," most of them would not see any increase in their federal income taxes either. In fact, Obama proposes to reduce federal income taxes to zero for persons 65 and over who make less than $50,000 a year. No other seniors would see an increase in what they pay to the IRS unless their income is $250,000 for a couple, or $200,000 for a single filer. It's true, as the McCain campaign likes to point out, that seniors who make less would be adversely affected by Obama's proposal to close down billions of dollars in tax preferences for corporations, which independent analysts calculate would flow through to owners of stocks and bonds in the form of lower dividend payments and reduced profits from capital gains. But while experts at the Congressional Budget Office and the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center tally this reduced income as "tax increases" for purposes of analyzing how proposed tax policies would affect different groups, it would not show up as an increased tax bill for any individual taxpayer, whatever their age."Welfare" or "Reform"?

The "welfare" claim rests on the argument, made in an Oct. 13 editorial in the Wall Street Journal, about refundable tax credits. Obama proposes to grant a number of refundable tax credits to low- and middle-income workers. For example, he would give a $500 tax credit ($1,000 for a couple) for workers, which would phase out for single workers making $75,000 or for couples making $150,000 per year. As the Journal editorial says: "You can receive these checks even if you have no income-tax liability." That's true enough. Whether or not that makes them "welfare" is a matter of interpretation, however. As the Journal editorial also says in its headline, "It depends on what the meaning of 'tax cut' is."

Fair enough. But McCain himself is proposing refundable tax credits of up to $2,500 a year for individuals, or $5,000 for families, as part of his health care plan. McCain doesn't call his credits a "tax cut" but he doesn't call them "welfare" either. He does call it tax "reform," right there on his own Web site:

McCain Web site: John McCain Will Reform The Tax Code . . . [E]very family will receive a direct refundable tax credit - effectively cash - of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families to offset the cost of insurance.

McCain makes his tax credit refundable to make it worth just as much to low-income workers as to high-income workers. If it were not refundable, it would be worth $0 to anyone who makes too little to pay any federal income taxes. A non-refundable credit would be worth the full amount only to individuals who owe at least $2,500 in federal income taxes, or couples who owe at least $5,000. Obama makes his tax credits refundable for the same reason – so they will benefit workers who earn too little to pay federal income tax.

Who's a "Taxpayer"?

Furthermore, the Journal's editorial misstated a key fact in its "welfare" argument. It said that anyone who doesn't pay federal income taxes is not a "taxpayer," which is simply incorrect. Here's what the editorial said:

Wall Street Journal editorial, Oct. 13: [Refundable credits] are an income transfer – a federal check – from taxpayers to nontaxpayers. Once upon a time we called this "welfare." ... Mr. Obama's genius is to call it a tax cut.

The fact is, a worker can be a "taxpayer" whether or not they owe any income tax. Just about every worker is subject to federal Social Security and Medicare taxes totaling 7.65 percent on every dollar of earnings, up to $102,000 per year. (For earnings over $102,000, only the 1.45 percent Medicare tax applies.) Low-income workers, and retired and jobless persons as well, also pay federal excise taxes whenever they buy gasoline or pay a telephone bill, for example. Obama and other Democrats argue that for low-income workers, refundable tax credits are not “welfare” but, in effect, a reduction in their overall federal tax burden, counting payroll taxes.

Congressional Budget Office figures show that even those in the lowest-earning fifth of households pay an effective federal tax rate, on average, of 4.3 percent of their income, despite benefiting from existing federal refundable tax credits to a major degree. This group had average income of $15,900 in 2005, the most recent year for which CBO has done the calculations. But despite receiving "a federal check" through the income tax system that boosted income by an average of 6.5 percent (this shows up as a negative tax rate in the CBO tables), they still paid an average of $600 in federal taxes. That's true even after subtracting the effects of refundable tax credit "welfare."

"Leading Newspapers"

Finally, the McCain ad's reference to "leading newspapers" is worth examining. All three are known for their conservative editorial opinions, and two are under the same ownership. The ad cites two others besides the Wall Street Journal. One is an editorial in the New York Post, which does not make the "welfare" argument directly but refers briefly to the Journal editorial of the previous day. The other is the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, which made similar arguments and used similar figures in an editorial that appeared the day after the Journal's ran.

The Journal and the Post both are owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., which last year purchased Dow Jones & Co., publisher of the Journal. And the Tribune-Review is owned by Richard Mellon Scaife, who has funded many conservative crusades over the years.

As for the star of this ad, Joe Wurzelbacher (a.k.a. Joe the Plumber): He told ABC News, among other news organizations, that he makes much less than $250,000, in which case he'd get a tax cut under Obama's plan. But, he said, he hopes to make that kind of money one day.

For now, Joe would certainly qualify for a tax cut under Obama's plan. According to his hometown newspaper, the Toledo Blade, publicly available divorce court proceedings show that he made $40,000 in 2006. And according to the Tax Policy Center's analysis, 93.5 percent of those making between $40,000 and $50,000 a year would see a tax cut under Obama's plan, averaging $1,124 for the year in 2012.

Correction, Oct. 20: As originally posted, we said that Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes totaling 7.65 percent are paid on earnings up to $102,000 a year. That's true of the 6.2 percent Social Security tax, but the 1.45 percent Medicare tax also is paid on earnings over that amount. We have added a line noting that.

—by Brooks Jackson
http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/obamas_welfare.html

OBAMA ~ Leadership for the 21st Century Now Available as a Free Download

Victoria DePaul, Author — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 09:24:31 EDT

Greetings:

Obama ~ Leadership for the 21st Century, is now available as an Ebook Download. This book will be available as a pdf download or readers can view it online via Scribd. You can find it at www.ebookobama.com This ebook is available at no charge until November 5th as it is critical that as many people receive this information as possible, particularly those undecided voters.

Please, please, please- pass this information to your distribution lists and ask everyone you know to do the same. If you have a website, please post the link and ask others to do the same. Visit Scribd and view the book there. The more people that view it, the higher the internet ranking for this book. Post the site and this information on blogs and contact your local newspapers - whatever you can do. If you have any other ideas on how to get this out let me know so I can share with everyone. Also, I am looking for testimonials to add to the site so encourage others to submit their reviews of the book. Following is a sample letter that you can edit as appropriate to send to your lists. Thanks for your assistance and energy to this project, now let's get this done. On to the White House.

Sample:

So just how did Barack Obama, a junior senator, become the nominee of the Democratic Party? How has Barack Obama amassed two million financial donors, raising over 400 million dollars? What is it that Barack Obama knows, that the Republicans have yet to discover? What is it that will make Barack Obama one of the greatest leaders in history?

Barack Obama understands that while the negativity of smear and fear has its initial impact, what really moves most of us is a desire to feel good about and to be in control of our circumstances, our futures, our communities, and most importantly, ourselves. He understands the difference between inspiration and motivation. Understanding this difference is what moves ordinary people from complacency to positive action.. Positive action, originating in positive energy is what yields positive results.

In the future, Obama will be studied as one of the greatest leaders of modern times. Obama doesn't call forth volunteers– he calls forth the leader that resides in all of us. He demands personal accountability—and gets it. He has created an army of grassroots volunteers that is not only contributing financial resources but hours of service in any number of tasks. He has tapped into the spirit of first-time voters and re-kindled the spirits of baby boomers, long searching for a return of the days of JFK, MLK and Bobby.

There are still so many undecided voters out there, weighing both sides as they determine which candidate will best serve the presidency as we move further into the 21st century. Until November 5th, "Obama ~ Leadership for the 21st Century" will be available for free to assist voters in making their decision. This book details how Barack Obama has succeeded in establishing a culture of ingenuity, enthusiasm, passion and collaboration– unlocking new levels of personal power and control. Leaders such as Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King know the secret to unleashing the human potential. These leaders understand that the power of the human spirit is the fuel on which we will ride into the third millennium.

This book is more than a book on human energy leadership principles, however. It is a compilation of the voices of America with contributions by leadership experts, authors and citizens from all corners of the globe. Please take some time to read this book and especially take the time to pass this on to everyone you know. Please post on your blogs, send to your distribution lists and include the website in your email signature until election day. Our future and the future of the generations that will follow depend on it.

Website to access this book: www.ebookobama.com

The book is available for pdf download or you can read it online at Scribd. Links are provided at the website.

NOTE: If you feel that this book has been of value to you please consider a payment of your choice. The authors are working to provide an expanded, hard cover version of this book for an early 2009 release.

We are moving onward to a new era in our history.

Thank you!

Colin Powell endorsed Obama/Biden!!

James — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 09:22:48 EDT

Another Obamican!!

Yes We Can!!!!

Former Mayor Sarah Palin's Pro-Guns in; Schools, Bars, Hospitals Etc.

La Susa — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 18:02:53 EDT

Mayor Sarah Palin and Chryson Pro-Guns Everywhere!

Meet Sarah Palin's radical right-wing pals

The following year, when Carney proposed a local gun-control measure, Palin organized with Chryson to smother the nascent plan in its cradle. Carney's proposed ordinance would have prohibited residents from carrying guns into schools, bars, hospitals, government offices and playgrounds. Infuriated by the proposal that Carney viewed as a common-sense public-safety measure, Chryson and seven allies stormed a July 1997 council meeting.

With the bill still in its formative stages, Carney was not even ready to present it to the council, let alone conduct public hearings on it. He and other council members objected to the ad-hoc hearing as "a waste of time." But Palin -- in plain violation of council rules and norms -- insisted that Chryson testify, stating, according to the minutes, that "she invites the public to speak on any issue at any time."

When Carney tried later in the meeting to have the ordinance discussed officially at the following regular council meeting, he couldn't even get a second. His proposal died that night, thanks to Palin and her extremist allies.

"A lot of it was the ultra-conservative far right that is against everything in government, including taxes," recalled Carney. "A lot of it was a personal attack on me as being anti-gun, and a personal attack on anybody who deigned to threaten their authority to carry a loaded firearm wherever they pleased. That was the tenor of it. And it was being choreographed by Steve Stoll and the mayor."

Asked if he thought it was Palin who had instigated the turnout, he replied: "I know it was."

Source:

By David Neiwert

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/10/palin_chryson/index2.html

Todd Palin's Ties With Iran????

La Susa — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 15:03:26 EDT

Source:

The Huffington Post

Oct. 15, 2008

Todd Palin's Past Political Associations A Likely Security Clearance Disqualifier

By Frank Naif

Above all, honesty is the rule for anyone filling out an SF 86 -- do you think CIA or DoD will want to hire or retain someone who lied on a security form?

Which gets us back to Todd Palin. From the security officer's perspective, Todd Palin the hypothetical applicant should be truthful and disclose his former association with AIP on the SF 86 in Section 29, Association Record. And because AIP has been associated with the Revolutionary Government of Iran, he probably should also disclose his AIP membership on Section 20, Foreign Activities.

How would government security officials who administer the security clearance process view the facts of Todd Palin's association with AIP? The answer is not clear cut, but his involvement in a secessionist party with foreign and violent connections would inject serious doubts about his security suitability. At best, the AIP association would raise questions that might be resolved favorably with further investigative work. However, many security officials would likely view the AIP association negatively -- especially the Iranian connection -- and deny Todd Palin a clearance.

Source:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-naif/todd-palins-alaska-indepe_b_134793.html

Meet Sarah Palin's Radical Right-Wing Pals!

La Susa — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:03:58 EDT

Meet Sarah Palin's radical right-wing pals

Extremists Mark Chryson and Steve Stoll helped launch Palin's political career in Alaska, and in return had influence over policy. "Her door was open," says Chryson -- and still is.

Editor's note: Research support provided by the Nation Institute Investigative Fund. For Salon's complete coverage of Sarah Palin, click here.

By Max Blumenthal and David Neiwert

Pages 1 2 3

Video: Interview with former Alaskan Independence Party chairman Mark Chryson

Oct. 10, 2008 | PALMER, Alaska -- On the afternoon of Sept. 24 in downtown Palmer, Alaska, as the sun began to sink behind the snowcapped mountains that flank the picturesque Mat-Su Valley, 51-year-old Mark Chryson sat for an hour on a park bench, reveling in tales of his days as chairman of the Alaska Independence Party. The stocky, gray-haired computer technician waxed nostalgic about quixotic battles to eliminate taxes, support the "traditional family" and secede from the United States.

So long as Alaska remained under the boot of the federal government, said Chryson, the AIP had to stand on guard to stymie a New World Order. He invited a Salon reporter to see a few items inside his pickup truck that were intended for his personal protection. "This here is my attack dog," he said with a chuckle, handing the reporter an exuberant 8-pound papillon from his passenger seat. "Her name is Suzy." Then he pulled a 9-millimeter Makarov PM pistol -- once the standard-issue sidearm for Soviet cops -- out of his glove compartment. "I've got enough weaponry to raise a small army in my basement," he said, clutching the gun in his palm. "Then again, so do most Alaskans." But Chryson added a message of reassurance to residents of that faraway place some Alaskans call "the 48." "We want to go our separate ways," he said, "but we are not going to kill you."

Though Chryson belongs to a fringe political party, one that advocates the secession of Alaska from the Union, and that organizes with other like-minded secessionist movements from Canada to the Deep South, he is not without peculiar influence in state politics, especially the rise of Sarah Palin. An obscure figure outside of Alaska, Chryson has been a political fixture in the hometown of the Republican vice-presidential nominee for over a decade. During the 1990s, when Chryson directed the AIP, he and another radical right-winger, Steve Stoll, played a quiet but pivotal role in electing Palin as mayor of Wasilla and shaping her political agenda afterward. Both Stoll and Chryson not only contributed to Palin's campaign financially, they played major behind-the-scenes roles in the Palin camp before, during and after her victory.

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Palin backed Chryson as he successfully advanced a host of anti-tax, pro-gun initiatives, including one that altered the state Constitution's language to better facilitate the formation of anti-government militias. She joined in their vendetta against several local officials they disliked, and listened to their advice about hiring. She attempted to name Stoll, a John Birch Society activist known in the Mat-Su Valley as "Black Helicopter Steve," to an empty Wasilla City Council seat. "Every time I showed up her door was open," said Chryson. "And that policy continued when she became governor."

When Chryson first met Sarah Palin, however, he didn't really trust her politically. It was the early 1990s, when he was a member of a local libertarian pressure group called SAGE, or Standing Against Government Excess. (SAGE's founder, Tammy McGraw, was Palin's birth coach.) Palin was a leader in a pro-sales-tax citizens group called WOW, or Watch Over Wasilla, earning a political credential before her 1992 campaign for City Council. Though he was impressed by her interpersonal skills, Chryson greeted Palin's election warily, thinking she was too close to the Democrats on the council and too pro-tax.

But soon, Palin and Chryson discovered they could be useful to each other. Palin would be running for mayor, while Chryson was about to take over the chairmanship of the Alaska Independence Party, which at its peak in 1990 had managed to elect a governor.

The AIP was born of the vision of "Old Joe" Vogler, a hard-bitten former gold miner who hated the government of the United States almost as much as he hated wolves and environmentalists. His resentment peaked during the early 1970s when the federal government began installing Alaska's oil and gas pipeline. Fueled by raw rage -- "The United States has made a colony of Alaska," he told author John McPhee in 1977 -- Vogler declared a maverick candidacy for the governorship in 1982. Though he lost, Old Joe became a force to be reckoned with, as well as a constant source of amusement for Alaska's political class. During a gubernatorial debate in 1982, Vogler proposed using nuclear weapons to obliterate the glaciers blocking roadways to Juneau. "There's gold under there!" he exclaimed.

Vogler made another failed run for the governor's mansion in 1986. But the AIP's fortunes shifted suddenly four years later when Vogler convinced Richard Nixon's former interior secretary, Wally Hickel, to run for governor under his party's banner. Hickel coasted to victory, outflanking a moderate Republican and a centrist Democrat. An archconservative Republican running under the AIP candidate, Jack Coghill, was elected lieutenant governor.

Hickel's subsequent failure as governor to press for a vote on Alaskan independence rankled Old Joe. With sponsorship from the Islamic Republic of Iran, Vogler was scheduled to present his case for Alaskan secession before the United Nations General Assembly in the late spring of 1993. But before he could, Old Joe's long, strange political career ended tragically that May when he was murdered by a fellow secessionist.

Hickel rejoined the Republican Party the year after Vogler's death and didn't run for reelection. Lt. Gov. Coghill's campaign to succeed him as the AIP candidate for governor ended in disaster; he peeled away just enough votes from the Republican, Jim Campbell, to throw the gubernatorial election to Democrat Tony Knowles.

Despite the disaster, Coghill hung on as AIP chairman for three more years. When he was asked to resign in 1997, Mark Chryson replaced him. Chryson pursued a dual policy of cozying up to secessionist and right-wing groups in Alaska and elsewhere while also attempting to replicate the AIP's success with Hickel in infiltrating the mainstream.

Unlike some radical right-wingers, Chryson doesn't put forward his ideas freighted with anger or paranoia. And in a state where defense of gun and property rights often takes on a real religious fervor, Chryson was able to present himself as a typical Alaskan.

He rose through party ranks by reducing the AIP's platform to a single page that "90 percent of Alaskans could agree with." This meant scrubbing the old platform of what Chryson called "racist language" while accommodating the state's growing Christian right movement by emphasizing the AIP's commitment to the "traditional family."

"The AIP is very family-oriented," Chryson explained. "We're for the traditional family -- daddy, mommy, kids -- because we all know that it was Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. And we don't care if Heather has two mommies. That's not a traditional family."

Chryson further streamlined the AIP's platform by softening its secessionist language. Instead of calling for immediate separation from the United States, the platform now demands a vote on independence.

Yet Chryson maintains that his party remains committed to full independence. "The Alaskan Independence Party has got links to almost every independence-minded movement in the world," Chryson exclaimed. "And Alaska is not the only place that's about separation. There's at least 30 different states that are talking about some type of separation from the United States."

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/10/palin_chryson/index.html

McCain Threatens Legal Action for CNN Repot by Rick Sanchez Oct. 14, 08

La Susa — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 11:55:11 EDT

Oct. 14, 2008 Rick Sanchez reported on the Palin and AIP anti-American radical group connection. McCain threatens Legal Action!

A Must See Video You-Tube Rick Sanchez CNN Report

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/14/151519/61/145/630389

Palin's husband Todd remained an AIP party member from 1995 to 2002. Sarah can be described in McCarthy-era palaver as a "fellow traveler." While retaining her Republican registration, she attended the AIP's 1994 convention where the party called for a draft constitution to secede from the United States and create an independent nation of Alaska. The McCain Campaign has reluctantly acknowledged that she also attended AIP's 2000 Convention. She apparently found the experience so inspiring that she agreed to give a keynote address at the AIP's 2006 convention and she recorded a video greeting for this year's 2008 convention. In other words, this is not something that happened when she was eight!

Unite Us Posters completed and shipping

Nicholas Rock — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:10:48 EDT

We finished printing the Unite Us poster. If you would like to purchase one and support more of this kind of grass roots graphic design for Obama you can do so here:http://myprez.us/?page_id=151

The Unite Us poster was one of the 5 winners in the Manifest Hope competition and was displayed in Denver during the DNC. It has now been produced in a limited 50 print edition.

A Must See-Rick Sanchez on CNN Tonight-Who is Todd Palin and the AIP?

La Susa — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 18:44:48 EDT

I could not belive what I was hearing when this aired! This Alaka Independent Party AIP is similar to other malitia's, except the founder has "hatred for the American government" to the point of taking up arms and attacking Our Untited States Government!

No wonder Sarah Palin lowered poroperty tax while mayor, and increaced sales tax, no wonder she is so pro gun... People may say what is the relavance? I say some Christian women do exactly what their husband tell them to do, because it is written in the Holy Bible "wives be submissive to your husbands", this is why I feel it is so important to know who Todd Palin is.

Sorry folks I can't find the transcript link, but hope it will be up soon!

ACORN Voter Fraud and County Clerks?

La Susa — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 18:20:57 EDT

Arn't County Clerks able to check for duplicate SS#'s voter registrations through their computer systems? As I doubt very much that ACORN is the only group out there involved in voter fraud! What's the scoop?

My email to the station manager of WCMH TV, Columbus

Patrick Frank — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 23:09:07 EDT

Some of the statements made by McCain-Palin camp have been extremely inflammatory. Palin, especially, has ginned up hatred and racist sentiment; threatening statements have been shouted out..."Kill him," Off with his head." Fortunately, in the past few days, McCain has made statements defending Obama, to the effect that Obama is a decent man, and folks need not be afraid of him.

Some of the McCain-Palin ads have been extremely inflammatory as well.

I am reminded of Liz Trotta's statement during the primary, to the effect that she wishes that Obama could be "bumped off." I was so disturbed by her statement (which I heard with my own ears) that I filed a complaint with the FCC..."Not in the public interest..."

The media needs to take seriously the possibility that when right-wing extremists are pandered to, the threat level for Obama is increased.

Do you want harm to Obama to be on your conscience?

Thanks for listening.

Patrick Frank
Grassroots Obama volunteer
Box 1283
Kingstree, SC 29556
(843) 372-8851
patrickgfrank@yahoo.com

McCain's Current Negative TV Ad's Lie About Bill Ayers

La Susa — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 13:37:19 EDT

From Factcheck.org "He Lied" About Bill Ayers?October 10, 2008McCain cranks out some false and misleading attacks on Obama's connection to a 1960s radical.AnalysisSen. John McCain has dialed up his attacks on Sen. Barack Obama's past association with former Weather Underground activist Bill Ayers. He released a 30-second TV spot Oct. 10 claiming Obama "lied" about Ayers. A day earlier he announced a 90-second Internet ad claiming that Obama and Ayers "ran a radical education foundation together" and suggesting Obama was being untruthful.

McCain-Palin Ad
"Ambition"

Announcer: Obama's blind ambition. When convenient, he worked with terrorist Bill Ayers. When discovered, he lied.

Obama. Blind ambition. Bad judgment.Congressional liberals fought for risky sub-prime loans.

Congressional liberals fought against more regulation. Then, the housing market collapsed costing you billions.

In crisis, we need leadership, not bad judgment.

McCain: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.
Groundless, False, Dubious

We find McCain's accusation that Obama "lied" to be groundless. It is true that recently released records show half a dozen or so more meetings between the two men than were previously known, but Obama never denied working with Ayers.

Other claims are seriously misleading. The education project described in the Web ad, far from being "radical," had the support of the Republican governor and was run by a board that included prominent local leaders, including one Republican who has donated $1,500 to McCain's campaign this year. The project is described by Education Week as reflecting "mainstream thinking" about school reform.

Despite the newly released records, there's still no evidence of a deep or strong "friendship" with Ayers, a former radical anti-war protester whose actions in the 1960s and '70s Obama has called "detestable" and "despicable."

Even the description of Ayers as a "terrorist" is a matter of interpretation. Setting off bombs can fairly be described as terrorism even when they are intended to cause only property damage, which is what Ayers has admitted doing in his youth. But for nearly three decades since, Ayers has lived the relatively quiet life of an educator. It would be correct to call him a "former terrorist," and an "unapologetic" one at that. But if McCain means the word "terrorist" to invoke images of 9/11, he's being misleading; Ayers is no Osama bin Laden now, and never was.

McCain-Palin Web Ad
"Ayers"

Announcer: Barack Obama and domestic terrorist Bill Ayers. Friends. They've worked together for years.

But Obama tries to hide it. Why?
Obama launched his political career in Ayers' living room. Ayers and Obama ran a radical "education" foundation, together.

They wrote the foundation's by-laws, together. Obama was the foundation's first chairman. Reports say they "distributed more than $100 million to ideological allies with no discernible improvement in education."

When their relationship became an issue, Obama just responded, "This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood."

That's it?

We know Bill Ayers ran the "violent left wing activist group" called Weather Underground. We know Ayers' wife was on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list. We know they bombed the Capitol. The Pentagon. A judge's home.

We know Ayers said, "I don't regret setting bombs. .... I feel we didn't do enough." But Obama's friendship with terrorist Ayers isn't the issue.

The issue is Barack Obama's judgment and candor. When Obama just says, "This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood." Americans say, "Where's the truth, Barack?"

Barack Obama. Too risky for America.

McCain: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.
Who's Misleading?

McCain is not accurate when he says – as he does in the Web ad – "When their relationship became an issue, Obama just responded, 'This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood.' " McCain is using the same line in personal appearances, too. He said on Oct. 9 at a campaign rally in Waukesha, Wis.:

McCain: Look, we don't care about an old washed-up terrorist and his wife, who still, at least on Sept. 11, 2001, said he still wanted to bomb more. ... The point is, Senator Obama said he was just a guy in the neighborhood. We need to know that's not true.

Obama never said Ayers was "just" a guy in the neighborhood. The quote is from a Democratic primary debate on April 16 in Philadelphia, and Obama actually was more forthcoming than McCain lets on. Obama specifically acknowledged working together with Ayers on a charitable board, and didn't deny getting some early political support from him. Here's the exchange:

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos, April 16: An early organizing meeting for your state senate campaign was held at his house, and your campaign has said you are friendly. Can you explain that relationship for the voters, and explain to Democrats why it won't be a problem?

Obama: George, but this is an example of what I'm talking about.

This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood, who's a professor of English in Chicago, who I know and who I have not received some official endorsement from. He's not somebody who I exchange ideas from on a regular basis.

And the notion that somehow as a consequence of me knowing somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago when I was 8 years old, somehow reflects on me and my values, doesn't make much sense, George.

Sen. Hillary Clinton then said, "I also believe that Senator Obama served on a board with Mr. Ayers for a period of time, the Woods Foundation," and predicted that "this is an issue that certainly Republicans will be raising."

Obama responded, "President Clinton pardoned or commuted the sentences of two members of the Weather Underground, which I think is a slightly more significant act than me ... serving on a board with somebody for actions that he did 40 years ago."

We wrote back then that Clinton had gone too far by suggesting that "people died" as a result of Ayers' actions. And nothing Obama said then has since been shown to be false. It is true that he did not bring up his work with Ayers on a second project, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, where Obama was board chairman and Ayers was an early organizer, and where the two were together for half a dozen or so meetings. But neither Clinton nor Stephanopoulos asked him about that project. McCain could fairly accuse Obama of not volunteering the information, but it is false to claim he "lied."

"Pal Around"

The first to begin using the new line of attack against Obama was McCain's running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, after a lengthy article appeared Oct. 3 in the New York Times about Obama and Ayers:

Palin, Oct. 5: Our opponents see America as imperfect enough to pal around with terrorists who would bomb their own country.

She's repeated the charge again and again at different campaign stops since then, citing the Times. What the Times article actually says, however, is this: "[T]he two men do not appear to have been close. Nor has Mr. Obama ever expressed sympathy for the radical views and actions of Mr. Ayers." The Times says its review of documents and interviews with key players "suggest" that Obama "has played down his contacts with Ayers," but describes their paths as having crossed "sporadically" since their first meeting in 1995.

And far from palling around with Ayers, the two haven't spoken by phone or exchanged e-mail messages since Obama came to the Senate in January 2005, according to an Obama spokesman. He said the two last saw each other more than a year ago, when they accidentally met on the street in their Hyde Park neighborhood.

Obama addressed Palin's claim on Oct. 8, when questioned by ABC News' Charlie Gibson:

Obama, Oct. 8: This is a guy who engaged in some despicable acts 40 years ago when I was eight years old. By the time I met him, 10 or 15 years ago, he was a college professor of education at the University of Illinois. ... And the notion that somehow he has been involved in my campaign, that he is an adviser of mine, that ... I've 'palled around with a terrorist', all these statements are made simply to try to score cheap political points.

Stormy Weather, UndergroundBill Ayers' notoriety dates from the radical, anti-Vietnam War group he helped to start in 1969, splintering off from the activist Students for a Democratic Society. The members of the new group, the Weather Underground, favored shows of violence to further their cause. On March 6, 1970, though, three of them blew themselves up in a Greenwich Village townhouse during a bomb-making session gone badly awry. Ayers and his fellow Weathermen, as they were called, soon dropped out of sight.
Barack Obama, who was born Aug. 4, 1961, was 8 years old at the time.The Weather Underground continued setting off bombs, including one in a men's lavatory in the Capitol building in 1971 and another in a women's restroom in the Pentagon in 1972. Nobody was killed, due to evacuation warnings the Weathermen sent out in advance.

After the Vietnam War ended, the group's activities petered out. In 1980 Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, another member, surfaced and turned themselves in to police. Because of illegal federal wiretaps, pending charges against Ayers for allegedly inciting a riot and conspiring to bomb government sites had been dropped. Dohrn pleaded guilty to separate charges of aggravated battery and jumping bail; she was fined $1,500 and given three years' probation. Ayers and Dohrn, who had had two children together while in hiding, married in 1982.

Several other Weather Underground alums, including Kathy Boudin, along with some members of a group calling itself the Black Liberation Army, were involved in a bungled 1981 robbery of a Brinks truck in Nanuet, N.Y., in which a security guard and two policemen were killed. Ayers and Dohrn have never been publicly tied to the incident, which took place after they had turned themselves in. Dohrn was jailed for seven months for refusing to provide a handwriting sample to the grand jury investigating it.

Dohrn is now a clinical associate professor of law at Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago. Ayers is a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Locally, Ayers' radical past hasn't been much of an issue. Chicago Sun-Times columnist Lynn Sweet wrote last spring that it "was no big deal, or any deal, to any local political reporters or to the editorial boards of the Sun-Times or [Chicago] Tribune." Ayers was named a Chicago citizen of the year in 1997 for his efforts in the field of education.

In Chicago, Ayers is seen less as a "terrorist" and more as a prodigal son of the local establishment. His father was a prominent corporate executive and civic leader. Thomas G. Ayers was president and chief executive of Commonwealth Edison, the electric utility that lights Chicago and northern Illinois. There is a residence hall named for him at Northwestern University, where he was a trustee for 30 years. Bill's brother John Ayers, according to Education Week, headed a school-reform group called the Leadership for Quality Education, which represented business leaders’ interest in schools. John is now a senior associate of the Chicago-based National Association of Charter School Authorizers.

Despite the fairly mainstream life he lives now, though, Bill Ayers' image took a hit with an article that appeared in the New York Times on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. Ayers was quoted in the lead paragraph as saying, ''I don't regret setting bombs'' and "I feel we didn't do enough." The interview had been conducted earlier, in connection with the publication of Ayers' memoir of his years as a fugitive. But when the quotes appeared on the same day thousands died at the World Trade Center and elsewhere, they enraged his critics.

Ayers called the story a deliberate distortion of his views. In a response on his blog, Ayers wrote:

Ayers: My memoir is from start to finish a condemnation of terrorism, of the indiscriminate murder of human beings, whether driven by fanaticism or official policy. ...
I said I had a thousand regrets, but no regrets for opposing the war with every ounce of my strength.

That's hardly an apology, referring as it does to the U.S. role in the Vietnam War as "terrorism." Ayers has maintained a public silence since then, refusing all requests for interviews.

Even so, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley had kind words for him recently:

Daley (New York Times, Oct. 3, 2008): He’s done a lot of good in this city and nationally. ... This is 2008. People make mistakes. You judge a person by his whole life.

FactCheck.org and the “Annenberg Challenge”

Contrary to suggestions we've seen in some conservative blogs, there is no connection between the Chicago Annenberg Challenge and FactCheck.org, save for the fact that both received funding from the Annenberg Foundation. The foundation supports a wide variety of charitable causes – a total of 5,200 grants during its first 15 years of operation. It was founded in 1989 by Walter H. Annenberg, a newspaper and magazine publisher who died in 2002.

FactCheck.org is funded by, and is a project of, the Annenberg Public Policy Center, which was established by the Annenberg Foundation with a $20 million endowment in 1993. The Annenberg Foundation also made additional grants to support our work. We also receive funding from the Flora Family Foundation to help support our educational offshoot, FactCheckED.org. We receive no other outside funding.

FactCheck.org came into being in late 2003. Director Brooks Jackson states: "Our mission is to be as neutral and nonpartisan as humanly possible. Annenberg supports that, and nobody at the Annenberg Foundation has ever tried to influence anything we've written."

For the record, the Annenberg Foundation's president and chairman is Leonore Annenberg, the founder's widow. Public records show she's given $2,300 to the McCain campaign, which announced on Oct. 8, that she has endorsed him for president.
We Have Contact!

According to an Obama spokesman, the two men first met in 1995, when Obama was tapped to chair the board of the newly formed Chicago Annenberg Challenge. Ayers had been instrumental in creating the organization, which was to dispense grants for projects that would improve Chicago's schools.
The Challenge was one of 18 projects supported by a $500 million grant announced at a White House ceremony Dec. 18, 1993, by the Annenberg Foundation, founded four years earlier by Philadelphia publisher Walter Annenberg. It was the largest single gift ever made to public education in America. The Chicago project received a $49.2 million grant in 1995, and officials administering the grant funds at Brown University announced at the time that the Chicago proposal was developed through discussions among “a broad-based coalition of local school council members, teachers, principals, school reform groups, union representatives and central office staff” convened by three educators – one of whom was Ayers. Mayor Richard M. Daley, a Democrat, and Gov. Jim Edgar, a Republican, took part in a ceremony announcing the grant.

There are other connections between Obama and Ayers: The same year the two men met through the Annenberg Challenge, Ayers hosted a meet-and-greet coffee for Obama, who was running for state Senate and who lived three blocks away from him. Obama and Ayers also were on the board of an antipoverty charity, the Woods Fund of Chicago, where their service overlapped from 2000 to 2002. And Ayers contributed $200 to Obama's campaign for the Illinois state Senate on March 2, 2001.

In addition, Obama told the Chicago Tribune in 1997 that a book Ayers wrote about the juvenile court system was "a searing and timely account." This is sometimes billed by Obama's critics as a "book review." Actually, a reporter simply asked three Chicagoans for a sentence about whatever they were reading at the time.

The Annenberg Challenge connection has drawn the most attention recently, though, mainly because of articles written by Stanley Kurtz, a conservative contributor to the National Review, the publication founded by the late William F. Buckley. Kurtz first suggested on Aug. 18 that there was a "cover-up in the making" when he was unable to gain access to 132 boxes of project records housed at the University of Illinois. Records were released nine days later, along with all records held by the Annenberg Foundation itself.

The Chicago Tribune, after examining the records, said they showed Ayers and Obama "attended board meetings, retreats and at least one news conference together as the education program got under way." It also said Obama and Ayers "continued to attend meetings together during the 1995-2001 operation of the program." The story played on page 2. According to the New York Times, the documents show the two attended just six board meetings together, Obama as chairman and Ayers to inform the board on grantees and other issues. (In a press release, the McCain campaign puts the number of meetings at seven, five of them in 1995, one in 1996 and one in 1997.) Ayers was an "ex officio" member of the board for the first year of the project.

United Press International summed up the reaction to the contents of the group's archives with a story headlined "No 'smoking gun' in Obama relationship":

UPI, Aug. 27: Reporters reviewing records in Chicago have so far found nothing startling in documents linking Sen. Barack Obama to 1960s radical William Ayers.

Where news reporters found little of note, though, Kurtz – the conservative writer who initially suggested a "cover-up" – cast it differently. After combing through the Annenberg records, he published an article in the opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal saying he found that Obama and Ayers acted as "partners" and together "poured more than $100 million into the hands of community organizers and radical education activists." He said money went to groups that "focused more on political consciousness, Afrocentricity and bilingualism than traditional education." A "Radical" Foundation? Hardly.

What Kurtz – and McCain in his Web ad – considers "radical," other observers see differently, however. Veteran education reporter Dakarai I. Aarons, writing in Education Week, says the Chicago Annenberg Challenge actually "reflected mainstream thinking among education reformers" and had bipartisan support:

Education Week (Oct. 8): The context for the Chicago proposal to the Annenberg Foundation was the 1988 decentralization of the city’s public schools by the Republican-controlled Illinois legislature, a response to frustration over years of teachers’ strikes, low achievement, and bureaucratic failure. ... The proposal was backed by letters of support to the Annenberg Foundation from Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar, a Republican, local education school deans, the superintendent of the Chicago public schools, and the heads of local foundations.

Among the mainstream Chicago luminaries on Obama's board was Arnold R. Weber, a former president of Northwestern University, who in 1971 was appointed by Republican President Richard Nixon as executive director of the Cost of Living Council and who later was tapped by Republican President Ronald Reagan to serve on an emergency labor board. More recently, Weber has given $1,500 to John McCain's presidential campaign this year.

Others on Obama's supposedly "radical" board included Stanley Ikenberry, a former president of the University of Illinois system; Ray Romero, a vice president of Ameritech; Susan Crown, a philanthropist; Handy Lindsey, the president of the Field Foundation of Illinois; and Wanda White, the executive director of the Community Workshop for Economic Development.

Kurtz originally claimed that Ayers somehow was responsible for installing Obama as head of the board, speculating in his "cover-up" article that Obama "almost certainly received the job at the behest of Bill Ayers." But after days of poring over the records, he failed to produce any evidence of that in his Wall Street Journal article. To the contrary, Ayers was not involved in the choice, according to Deborah Leff, then president of the Joyce Foundation. She told the Times, and confirmed to FactCheck.org, that she recommended Obama for the position to Patricia Graham of the Spencer Foundation. Graham told us that she asked Obama if he'd become chairman; he accepted, provided Graham would be vice-chair. The bipartisan board of directors, which did not include Ayers, elected Obama chairman, and he served in that capacity from 1995 to 1999, awarding grants for projects and raising matching funds. Ayers headed up a separate arm of the group, working with grant recipients. According to another board member, Ayers "was not significantly involved with the challenge after Obama was appointed." One possible reason had little to do with Obama himself, but instead was related to cautions about conflicts of interest; the group was funding some of Ayers' own alternative school projects.

In any case, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge failed to bring about improvement in students' test scores, classroom behavior or social competence. An independent consortium of educators concluded in 2003 that “Annenberg schools did not achieve an overall effect on student outcomes” compared with schools that received no support from the project. Education Week quoted some project supporters as saying it succeeded in raising interest in helping failing schools.

Conclusion

Voters may differ in how they see Ayers, or how they see Obama’s interactions with him. We’re making no judgment calls on those matters. What we object to are the McCain-Palin campaign’s attempts to sway voters – in ads and on the stump – with false and misleading statements about the relationship, which was never very close. Obama never “lied” about this, just as he never bragged about it. The foundation they both worked with was hardly “radical.” And Ayers is more than a former "terrorist," he’s also a well-known figure in the field of education.

– by Viveca Novak and Brooks Jackson

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/he_lied_about_bill_ayers.html

www.factcheck.org

My email to USA Today

Patrick Frank — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 09:35:05 EDT

I am so relieved that John McCain has moved away from the campaign of character assassination that has been promulgated by Sarah Palin and other extreme right-wingers in this country. Conservatism is fine. Racist attacks, thinly veiled, and guilt by association are not.

Barack Obama is a good man, more liberal than some would like, but he is no terrorist; He loves America, has strong family values, and displays intelligence and wisdom.

I salute John McCain for acknowledging that Obama is a man worthy of respect. I hope that he keeps it up. My own respect for McCain is being restored. I will vote for Obama, and look forward to Ovama, the president, negotiating with McCain, the senator--to fashion bipartisan legislation.

Patrick Frank
Box 1283
Kingstree, SC 29556
(843) 372-8851
patrickgfrank@yahoo.com

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Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Issue Congressional Report Card

LadyLunaSea — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 07:41:30 EDT

VETERANS GROUP HONORS OBAMA AND BIDEN FOR THEIR SUPPORT
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Issue Congressional Report Card – Obama/Biden Score ‘B’s - Senator McCain Scores a ‘D’

CHICAGO, IL - Today, the non-partisan Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) issued their 2008 Congressional report card, grading both Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden a B. (http://www.veteranreportcard.org/) The same report card gave Senator John McCain a D, making him one of only four Senators to receive a D or below. The scorecard was based on key votes affecting Iraq and Afghanistan veterans – the GI Bill, VA benefits and mental health care – while also highlighting who failed to make veterans a priority.

“Senator Obama and Senator Biden have a long record of supporting our veterans and honoring that sacred trust with our veterans and military families. The fact that IAVA has recognized their unending support is a great tribute. Time and again we have seen veterans across the country support the Obama-Biden ticket because of their strong record of standing up for wounded warriors and veterans,” said Wendy Morigi, national security spokesperson for the campaign. “If Senators Obama and Biden are fortunate enough to be elected in November, veterans can rest assured knowing that they will spend every day in the White House fighting to honor their service and sacrifice.”

Senator Barack Obama and Senator Joe Biden have worked hard in the Senate on behalf of America’s veterans. They were both cosponsors of the new GI Bill that helps veterans and their families achieve their dreams of a college education. As a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, Obama has worked tirelessly, passing legislation to combat homelessness among veterans, increasing funding for veterans care and improving treatment of our nations’ wounded heroes at places like Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

“IAVA has just confirmed what many of us combat veterans have known for a while: that Senator Barack Obama will stand and deliver for those of us in uniform not only when we are overseas fighting, but also when we come back home. As someone who has spent part of my life in Afghanistan serving a combat tour of duty, and as one who still serves our nation as a reservist, Senator Obama has on numerous occasions demonstrated to both me and my soldiers that he has the judgment and courage to fight for not what is popular, but for what is right. In times of true peril, when the stakes on who serves as the next commander-in-chief could not be higher, I am happy to unconditionally stand behind Senator Obama because he has proven he will unconditionally stand behind us,” said Wesley Moore, who served as an Army captain and paratrooper in Afghanistan, where he earned the Bronze Star Medal.

Senators Obama and Biden would have likely received higher scores from the IAVA report card, but for the fact they were absent for several of the votes during their campaign. They both supported efforts to expand veterans’ health care and benefits and opposed a less generous GI Bill. Additionally, an item from the IAVA’s report card for House members, the Homes for Heroes Act, was sponsored by Obama in the Senate.

An Obama-Biden administration will keep America’s sacred trust with our veterans. They will strengthen the VA, improve health care and benefits, and streamline the process confronting returning service members by hiring additional claim workers and improving training and accountability. And, they will combat homelessness among Veterans by establishing a national ‘zero tolerance’ policy that will expand proven programs and launch new initiatives to prevent veterans from falling into homelessness.

In another example of Obama and Biden receiving higher ratings than McCain, Senator Obama in 2006 earned an 80% rating and Senator Biden received a 75% rating from Disabled American Veterans, while Senator McCain earned a 20% rating from the country’s largest and oldest group dedicated to veterans’ disability and healthcare issues.
You can view the full IAVA report at http://www.veteranreportcard.org/index.html. IAVA has about 105,000 members.

Editorial Response

PGaudreau — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 08:27:36 EDT

In my local paper someone sent in an editorial condeming a negative cartoon about Palin in the editorial section and called the newspaper unfairly biased to Obama. They also praised McCain for his military service and denounced Obama for his lack of military service. Here is my editorial response:

To the Editor:

I response to Hawksley of Foxboro's editorial on Oct. 9th.

First let me say in defense of The Sun Chronicle, who may or may not be in the Obama camp. The job of a newspaper is to report the news as it comes, and to let the local people express their views. I believe the cartoon your speaking of was in the editorial section which directly represents the opinions of the people. They did publish you letter. Keeping that in mind you would have to agree that the lack of pro-McCain ramblings in the Sun Chronicle would be due to the peoples lack of support for the Republican Ticket.

Secondly as far as the attacks against Palin, which are pale in comparison to the fraudulent attacks on Obama. Her speeches lack substance and resemble pep rallies not presidential addresses, and that is causing the attacks. Yes she has been a good Governor of Alaska, but she has not been extraordinary. Not to discredit Palin's experience but Alaska has about the same population as the City of Boston. Would you be just as supportive for Mayor Menino as VP?

Now I do respect McCain for his honorable service to our country, but it is not an entitlement to the presidency. My disgust lies with the lack of respect for Obama's humble beginnings, and the view of him as an elitist. He was son to a poor single mother on food stamps, and somehow graduated from Harvard. Instead of choosing a high paying job on Wall Street he choose to serve his community. You said Obama has not fought for his country, I disagree. He has most certainly fought for his country by fighting for its people and their livelihood. America would be nothing without its work force. Who do you think supports the troops overseas? Is this not honorable? Obama's personal story is proof that the American Dream is still alive and it displays the possibilities available to all American citizens.

You are right Palin does deserve respect and so does Obama. A man who rose from nothing and is spending his life giving back.

Paul Gaudreau
Seekonk, MA

Palin Abuses Her Power in Firing

Barack Daily Buzz - Victory2008.net — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:21:52 EDT

Palin Abuses Her Power in Firing
On to an Obama Victory in November

(1) Alaska Panel Finds Palin Abused Power in Firing
Matt Apuzzo-Associated Press
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jOTk11gvqDAgD0cY3i4WjI_2YOxwD93O09M00

(2) "Troopergate" Probe Finds Palin Violated Ethics Act
Tony Hopfinger-Bloomberg
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=awseYZEQaikU&refer=home

(3) Legislative Inquiry Finds Palin Abused Her Power
Charles Piller and Kim Murphy-Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-trooper11-2008oct11,0,2355932.story

(4) Alaska Ethics Probe Finds Palin Abused Her Power
Yereth Rosen-Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed2/idUSN1041450720081011

(5) Palin Abused Her Power as Alaska Governor
BBC News
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Troopergate-Sarah-Palin-Abused-Her-Power-As-Alaska-Governor/Article/200810215118225?lpos=World_News_News_Your_Way_Region_9&lid=NewsYourWay_ARTICLE_15118225_Troopergate%3A_Sarah_Palin_Abused_Her_Power_As_Alaska_Governor

(6) Probe Accuses Palin of Abuse of Power
Agence France Presse
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jxHUZ-vz0qO7-XDTuwaMb3l6Pi5Q

(7) Palin Violated Ethics Law in Trooper Case
Jim Carlton-Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122364495587222887.html

(8) Troopergate Report-Palin "Abused Power"
Editor & Publisher
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003873266

(9) Abuse of Power
Andrew Sullivan-The Atlantic
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/abuse-of-power.html

(10) Palin Says She Acted "Within Proper and Lawful Authority"
Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN1041639920081011

Next debate strategy advice (optional)

NawlinsKid — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 04:04:56 EDT

Well, I see while I’ve been attending to some personal matters the market has tanked and so has the McCain campaign. I would like to offer President Obama a strategic advantage at the next debate. Have Mr. Ayers attend the debate. Have Mr. Ayers discuss the efforts and objectives of the board you both shared. Have a prominent Republican do likewise. Do this prior to the debate. Sen. McCain will be out maneuvered and utterly dismissed when he attempts to debate the issue. This should be done just prior to the debate.

Further, when Sen. McCain attempts to bypass Ayers to move to Rev. Wright I recommend the following. Forcefully affirm (in reference to Rev Wright) - “Sen. McCain you may not love this country enough to respect her citizens, but I do. I will not waste their time discussing a closed issue when the current issue is the economy – as in the word of Mr. Carvel ‘It’s the economy, stupid’. And, you will determine if ‘stupid’ applies to the quote or your actions or words. Enough!” Of course, the exact verbiage is up to you, but I’m partial to these words!

Finally, remember President Obama you are the President and this is your senator. Make it clear whose holds which position. There is no need for tic-for-tac.

Patriotism?

PGaudreau — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 11:59:59 EDT

What is Patriotism? What does it mean to be Patriotic? I love this country and I would like to consider myself a Patriot, but I have one problem, I'm a Democrat. I am very confused by this notion that only Republicans can be Patriots. Is it true that Republicans are the only ones to put "Country First". If so what are Democrats putting first?

Maybe Democrats are putting "Economy First" by sponsoring government regulation on big corporations to keep them from taking advantage of Americans. Deregulation has lead to the biggest housing crises our country has seen since the great depression.

Actually Democrats are probably putting "Security First" because they disagreed with the Iraq War and wanted to spend all of our efforts going after Al-Qaida and Osama Bin Laden. Spending everything in Iraq, and neglecting the War in Afghanistan, allowed Al-Qaida to grow in strength.

No I know what it is, Democrats are putting "People First" by sponsoring government aid to actual struggling Americans rather than big corporations. Democrats will raise taxes on those who can afford it and lower taxes on those who need it. if you make $40,000 a year could you use an extra $1000? An if you make $3,000,000 a year could you afford to pay $700,000 in taxes to help your fellow Americans?

Greek philosopher Socrates said "patriotism does not require one to agree with everything that his country does and would actually promote analytical questioning in a quest to make the country the best it possibly can be."

Patriotism is supporting your fellow Americans who are having trouble. Patriotism is defending your fellow Americans from invading enemies. Patriotism is protecting your fellow Americans from greedy corporations. I believe Patriotism is a love for your country and a passion for it to be the best it can be.

On November 4th, 2008 I am going to prove my Patriotism and I will be putting my "Country First" by voting for a Democrat named Barack Obama.

Paul Gaudreau

Seekonk, MA

AIGs Board of Directors - McCain Wants To Give Them A Tax Break?

Hussein The Hope Monger — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 10:33:08 EDT

Stephen F. Bollenbach
Former Co-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Hilton Hotels Corporation

Martin S. Feldstein
Professor of Economics
Harvard University

President Emeritus
National Bureau of Economic Research

Fred H. Langhammer
Chairman, Global Affairs
Former Chief Executive Officer
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.

Edward M. Liddy
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
American International Group, Inc.
George L. Miles, Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
WQED Multimedia

Suzanne Nora Johnson
Senior Director
Former Vice Chairman
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.

Morris W. Offit
Chairman
Offit Capital Advisors LLC

Founder and Former
Chief Executive Officer OFFITBANK

James F. Orr III
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
The Rockefeller Foundation

Virginia M. Rometty
Senior Vice President
Global Business Services
IBM Corporation
Michael H. Sutton
Consultant

Former Chief Accountant of the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission

Edmund S. W. Tse
Senior Vice Chairman, Life Insurance
American International Group, Inc.

Fired UP!!

McCain Lies "More Health Care Misleads"

La Susa — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 14:09:17 EDT

More Health Care Misleads

McCain misstated his own health care plan and Obama’s in one sentence:

McCain: I am in favor of . . . giving every American a $5,000 refundable tax credit and go out and get the health insurance you want rather than mandates and fines for small businesses, as Sen. Obama's plan calls for.

McCain's plan does not call for giving a $5,000 tax credit for "every American." It calls for a tax credit of $2,500. The $5,000 figure would apply to couples or families. And Obama’s plan requires large businesses to provide coverage for their employees or pay into a national plan, not "small businesses," as McCain said. Obama's health care proposal, posted on his Web site, says: “Small businesses will be exempt from this requirement.” McCain previously used this charge in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, and he repeated the claim in the debate, saying, "If you're a small business person and you don't insure your employees, Sen. Obama will fine you. Will fine you." As we said, that's false. Obama countered that he had proposed a refundable tax credit for small businesses of up to 50 percent of the cost of premiums, which is indeed part of his plan. We've noted before that neither man defines what he means by "small business."

–by Brooks Jackson, Viveca Novak, Lori Robertson, Joe Miller, Jessica Henig and Justin Bank

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/factchecking_debate_no_2.html

www.factcheck.org

What Debate?????

La Susa — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 11:35:16 EDT

The definition of "DEBATE" IS to discuss opposing reasons; argue; to take part in a formal discussion ... To consider something; deliberate. To engage in argument by discussing opposing points.

Each candidate was allowed 2 minets to answer complex questions; with NO EXTENSIVE REBUTTALS! "REBUTTAL" definition "An attempt to contradict or disprove an argument by offering a counter argument or ...

Perhaps the American lauguage has changed, where "DEBATE" now means "TWO MINET SOUND-BITES"! Im disgusted to say the least, this is the most important Election we have had in years, and yet it seems the media wants to treat it as though it were a circus, piling on as many as questions as possible, while McCain throws in his lieing out of context attacks on Obama! And Obama is cornered with no choice but to try to answer the questions and defend himself against McCain ALL IN 2 MINETS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Biden needs to push back

Patrick Frank — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 18:59:36 EDT

I think that Joe Biden needs to push back at Palen--not in a bullying way, but strongly, to denounce her vicious attacks, and defend Barack. He is her counterpart, after all, the VP candidate...

Patrick

(843) 372-8851

patrickgfrank@yahoo.com

Obama vs McCain

La Susa — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 16:18:05 EDT

McCain says he wants to give tax cuts to everyone rich and poor, of course permanent for the wealthiest Americans. So if there is no tax dollars coming in, where dose that leave the US government, aw, more broke and even more debt? And yet he wants to spend about 3 to 4 times more in his budget than Obama. He claims earmarks are the solution to fixing the government, but fails to aknowlage that earmarks only account for a tinny percentage in the US budget. On judgement Senator McCain says he can fix the war because he knows how, on wallstreet he says he can fix it because he knows how. He boasts that he gone against his own party; and yet all I see him doing is creating a deep divide among Democrates and Republicans alike. After 20 plus years in the Senate what really has he done 'solo handedly' without the co-operation of others? How is Sentator McCain handling his campane? Using fear and multiple lies to win his canadacy at all costs, how will this affect his future relations in congress? How dose he answer questions? With questions or off topic issues? Should he win, and die in office will Palin really be able to run the country the ways he would like? Considering he really dosen't know her at all, only met her once, before he chose her as his VP, tells me alot about his character and risk taking tendancies... Why is McCain sheltering Palin from the media? Considering if he is elected she may very well be the next president; what are they hiding?

Obama wants to only tax those making over 250,000 and give bigger tax breaks to the rest on American to stimulate the economy. And Obama's ideas about investing in education and alternative fuel is a ligitimate way for us to eventually get out of debt! Obama has never said that he is so great that he and he alone can fix it all. In fact he has said that he would want unique people in his cabnet that are capable of offering new ideas, and explaining their point of views on issues that will not all aways be in sink with his. He wants a transperant government and wants the American People to be inclusive! Although he has combated some negative adds with negativity, for the most part his focus is on the issues at hand. He answers all questions directly. His VP choice is someone who he knows and has worked with for years. He thinks before he speaks, and over all makes sound intelligent judgements.

My new email to the media re dirty politics

Patrick Frank — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:43:43 EDT

Sarah Palin, and now John McCain, have stepped up their vicious attacks on Obama, playing the guilt by association game. McCain, in his most nasty voice, snarls “Barack Obama is a mystery. Who is the real Barack Obama?” ….as if Obama hasn’t been speaking in his intelligent and calm way to the American people for fifteen months about the issues that matter most to the American people: lack of decent health care for millions of our citizens, the raping of our economy by unprincipled speculators on Wall Street and the predatory loan industry, a War in Iraq that should never have been fought but that now has cost more than four-thousand American lives, not to mentioned the uncounted Iraqi lives that have been lost in the course of this conflict…and, finally, the erosion of our civil liberties and sense of privacy. Obama has refused to engage in character assassination. A sheriff in Lee County, Florida, in introducing Sarah Palin, mouths the words “Barack HUSSEIN Obama” in a smirking, hateful manner…seeking, once again, to implant the notion that Barack Obama is, somehow, a radical Muslim. Well, he is neither a radical, nor a Muslim. Another despicable lie.

This campaign has evolved into a struggle for the soul of America . Will we elect self-serving and mean-spirited leaders, or public servants who are willing to sit down political opponents in a spirit of goodwill to fashion meaningful compromise—for the good of the country. John McCain used to be capable of reaching across the aisle, in a respectful manner; but he has sold his soul to the extreme right-wing. Now, his only concern is gaining the presidency. I pray that he and his current political cohorts will not succeed.

Keep up the good work...

Patrick Frank

Grassroots Obama volunteer

Box 1283

Kingstree, SC 29556

(843) 372-8851

patrickgfrank@yahoo.com

hasEML = false;

Hampton, NH Sunday, October 5th

Jon from Hope Street, Providence — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 13:26:01 EDT

My first weekend at a deputy field organizer in New Hampshire. I have been deployed to the Portsmouth campaign office, working for Field Organizer Steve Goepfert. I came up from Providence early yesterday to their Hampton staging office. There is a boarded up mortgage company across the street; a fitting sign of the times.

I went in and met Alexander Boutelle, campaign staffer for the New Hampshire Democratic party and Deb Howard, prize volunteer. Then Steve entered, carrying a box of fresh campaign lit. "We'll be combining our Obama canvass with supporting jeanne Shaheen and Carol Shea-Porter", Steve told me. Then the volunteers came in - by the dozen, from New Hampshire and Massachusetts; one guy drove all the way from Touro, in Cape Cod, over three hours away. "Anything to help out", he told me. Alexander briefed the canvassers about the issues and the campaigns of Jeanne and Carol. I talked to the canvassers about rap technique at the door. Then we all grabbed clip boards and campaign lit and hit the Hampton bricks.

My canvass partner was a young local named John, who has been volunteering for the Obama campaign for nearly a year. He definitely knew he way around town. We divided up the turf and canvassed for about three hours.

I helped tally up the results. I noticed a definite change from my canvassing in Nashua three weeks ago. Then I encountered about a third of the voters who were undecided. Now the undecideds seemed to have made up their minds in our favor. McCain/Palin supporters, while outnumbered, are very strong: we have noted very few in the "Lean McCain" category.

My experience is consistent with the recent Rassmussen poll of NH. It shows Obama/Biden with a healthy ten point lead, the respondents citing Barack's and Joe's performance in their debates, the financial meltdown, increased confidence in Barack's leadership, and - last but certainly not least - the voting public's growing dislike of Sarah Palin. John McCain's attempt to insert himself into the bailout legislation process seems to be another one of his gambles that is not panning out. No wonder his campaign is dregging up those old Chicago bombthrowers from way back when.

I went to the home of Jane & Peter, who are very graciously giving me a place to stay during my weekend duties. Jane is the sort of volunteer any organizer would give their eye teeth for: well informed, available, very competent and really committed. They have a lovely home nestled in the leafy hills of Hampton Falls. They put me up an apartment over their barn. The digs are beautiful, hard wood floods and a view to die for. Yes, this is turning out to be one good gig.

The Emperor's New Clothes - For the 2008 Presidential Election

Victoria DePaul, Author — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:33:58 EDT

The Emperor’s New Clothes – For the 2008 Presidential Election

Once upon a time there was a politician who wanted so much to be president that he hired staff members- other politicians and business people– to advise him on how to reach his goal. Fearful that they could all lose their jobs they set about to make him president. To keep him happy the staff told him all was well and soon he would be president. But as it turned it out, the task was more difficult than the staff first thought. And so as time went on, still fearful that they could lose their jobs, they continued to provide advice and tell him that all is well, he would soon be president.

One day, one of the advisors came up with a brilliant plan. It was decided that all that was needed was to get the support of the kingdom. Instead of creating an agenda of actions that would help the kingdom be more prosperous, the advisors decided there wasn’t time for that. So the plan was enacted– get the support of the kingdom for the would-be-president with a special running-mate, one who would have great appeal to the kingdom. The advisors decided that the only thing that was important was to get to the presidency. Although there were many qualified possibilities for the role, the president and his advisors quickly selected a beautiful princess to fill the role. With much pomp and circumstance the would-be-president introduced his choice to be vice-president.

Just as expected, the beautiful princess took the stage. It was amazing. The advisors were pleased; the would-be-president was filled with joy. The kingdom was enthralled and came out in droves to swoon the princess. Everybody was happy. The would-be-president was happy. The advisors were happy. The princess was happy. The kingdom was happy. The plan had worked. No one seemed to notice that the would-be-president had very little to offer. In all the excitement, no one seemed to notice that the princess had even less to offer. But then something happened. As the princess’ popularity grew, she took to the stage more and more. The crowds continued to come, but who were they coming to see? Was it the princess they clamored for or was it the would-be-president? “Don’t worry”, said the advisors to the would-be-president. “It doesn’t matter. This will make you president. Trust us. We know what’s best. Everyone will see how wise you are for making such a decision.”

And so the would-be-president was calmed and receded to the background as all attention was on the princess. As the princess grew in popularity, many began to notice that things weren’t quite as they seemed. Some in the kingdom began scratching their heads. Some in the kingdom began to ask questions. Some in the kingdom began to wonder if this was such a wise decision after all. Word of this got back to the would-be-president. In a huff, he and his advisors issued proclamations throughout the kingdom chastising anyone who would dare question the would-be-president’s honor and wisdom. All were put on notice and questions quickly ceased. In fear of recriminations from the would-be-president and others in the kingdom, no one dared question him or the advisors out loud.

Many in the kingdom felt that things just weren’t right, but as they looked around they saw that many other people seemed to be going along with it– so they went along with it as well. Besides, if the would-be-president is wise and experienced, would he put the kingdom at risk? The festivities and celebration continued, though the crowds were smaller and the rumblings within the kingdom continued. To turn things around the would-be-president and the princess decided that a parade would turn things around.

The procession was scheduled to be an all day event. The would-be-president would once again show the kingdom his prized running mate– the beautiful princess and all would be well. With the entire kingdom lining the streets, the procession moved on. The procession passed a little girl named Victoria. She had heard about the procession and had arrived early to get a front row seat. Victoria, known for her candor, waited in eagerness. As the procession approached, the awe in her face quickly faded. She had seen this face before. “Why this can’t be”, she thought. “I have seen her on TV.” As only a little girl can do, Victoria shouted out–

“But how can she be the would-be-president’s running mate? She has no foreign policy experience- regardless of what she believes, She knows very little about our national domestic policies, She has only governed a small town and a sparsely populated state for a short time, She can’t tell you what magazines she reads, She rarely answers a direct question, sometimes just refusing to do so, She talks in sentences that go no where, She knows nothing about the Supreme Court, She makes faces and winks a lot. IS THE PRINCESS REALLY QUALIFIED TO BE PRESIDENT, if needed to do so?

Well after the outburst, many in the crowd awoke from their stupor and realized that Victoria was telling the truth and they walked away. For whatever reason, there were those who continued to support the princess, the would-be-president and the advisors.

Even the would-be-president, with head still held high, continued to parade arm-in-arm with the princess.

And we all lived happily ever after??????????

One percent

Mike from Lansing, MI — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:27:49 EDT

1%, or 1 vote out of 100

There have been 12 Presidential elections that were decided by less than a 1% margin; meaning if less than 1% of the voters in certain states had changed their mind to the other candidate the outcome of the entire election would have been different. More than half were decided by less than a 2% margin.

In 2004,    57,787 votes would have given us President Kerry.
In 2000,    269 votes would have given us President Gore
In 1996,    575,515 votes would have given us President Dole.

From ABC News:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/scienceandsociety/2008/09/squeakers.html

==========
"Squeakers"
Ned Potter
ABC News
September 29, 2008

How close have Presidential elections been? Closer, perhaps, than we ever guessed. Mike Sheppard, a grad student in statistics at Michigan State, has done a mathematical exercise that shows it.

He ran a computer program to answer this question: "What is the smallest number of total votes that need to be switched from one candidate to another, and from which states, to affect the outcome of the election?"

The answer: in some years, very, very few. Take a look at his analysis HERE. It shows the powerful interaction between the popular vote and the electoral college.

[...]
==========

Full article here:
http://blogs.abcnews.com/scienceandsociety/2008/09/squeakers.html

Detailed analysis here, including colored maps:
https://www.msu.edu/~sheppa28/elections.html

-Mike Sheppard

A message to Barack Obama

Patrick Frank — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 17:59:13 EDT

9/27/08

A message to Barack Obama

By Patrick Frank

I watched the debate from The University of Mississippi. I want you to know that I was enormously proud of you—no matter what the pundits or spin doctors may say. I want to explain why I was proud…

*You refrained from any personal attacks.

*You acknowledged when Senator McCain was right.

*You clearly stated when he was wrong, and why he was wrong.

*You set forth your own views with clarity, also.

*But you refused to talk down to the American people.

Whatever happens on November 4, I will never regret have worked hard for you as a grassroots volunteer. You have always conducted yourself with the utmost dignity and grace. You have displayed integrity and authenticity. You have run a positive campaign. And I know you are committed to bringing the political parties together in DC, and people from all walks of life around the country.

If you win, you will help to transform this nation at home, and will restore our standing among nations. I say “help,” because you have always stressed that change comes from the bottom up, and that the campaign is not, ultimately, about you; rather, it is about the American people.

Contrary to the lie that has been promulgated, to the effect that you are “presumptuous,” I feel that you have your ego under control. You have always made clear that you are not a perfect person or candidate. I appreciate that enormously.

If you lose, I am convinced that you will continue to have an enormous impact not only within the United States, but abroad, as well. But I feel confident that you will win the presidency.

I have been happy to spend hundreds of hours as a grassroots volunteer. Through this effort, I have met many wonderful people of all races and from all walks of life. Participation in this campaign has re-energized me, personally. In fact, I am writing a book-length memoir, partly focusing on what it like to be a grassroots volunteer in this campaign.

I also have a great impression of your wife, Michelle, and your kids. What a remarkable family you have!

I know you will be okay, should you win or should you lose. So will I. One of the great things you have imparted to me is the desire to remain engaged in the effort to change this country for the better—for the rest of my life. What we see here is more than a campaign; it is a movement for fundamental change in the way we treat one another in this society, whether we act out of greed and malice or, alternatively, whether we demonstrate real concern for our fellow citizens, including the poor, the disabled, and the disempowered—and forcefully act on that concern.

I have seen many candidates come and go. You are the most impressive one since JFK, by far. I participated in the civil rights ,povement in the South during the 1960s. You have helped to make the spirit of that movement live again. I have worked with the poor and disabled for many years as a teacher, counselor, and advocate. You have helped to restore my sense of commitment to such work. Finally, your example of hard work, dedication to the task, and commitment to your role as father and husband has inspired me to persevere in my own attempt to manifest those character traits.

Thank you, Barack Obama, for the person you are. Your personal traits are as important as the contribution you make as a politician.

Patrick Frank

Grassroots volunteer

Box 1283

Kingstree, SC 29556

(843) 372-8851

patrickgfrank@yahoo.com

My email to the Chicago Sun-Times

Patrick Frank — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:37:43 EDT

I am a grassroots volunteer for Obama from South Carolina. I was a VISTA Volunteer in Chicago and trained for my assignment in Chicago.

I want to thank the people of Chicago and Illinois for electing Barack Obama to the Senate, because he is an exceptional man and politician who will do a great job as president. He impressed me with his intelligence, creativity, and wisdom. Also, his humanity and empathy skills. He spoke in my small town in South Carolina during the primary, and did a tremendous job connecting with folks. We live in the poorest region of the state but the people here are good people struggling to stay afloat in this devastated economy. If you could see our shuttered business and the plethora of pay-day loan outfits, you would be disgusted.

Obama set forth his program to reform education and the economy. He also spoke directly to African-American parents, urging them to do everything possible to encourage their kids to study hard and stay in school. His message, "Turn off the computer, turn off the video games, turn off the TV was well received.

Thank you, again, for giving us Barack Obama.

P.S. I read the Sun-Times every chance I could get when I was living in Chicago.

The Alternative to Paulson

NawlinsKid — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 21:47:43 EDT

With little editorial you decide....

So here is the Kuttner plan, as a wiser alternative to the Paulson plan:

Congress appoints a small bipartisan legislative committee, made up of the senior members of the House Financial Services Committee and Senate Banking Committee and a few other respected and expert legislators. The rest of Congress adjourns and goes home to campaign. The special committee interviews experts, holds hearings, and reports back with draft legislation on Tuesday, October 14, the day after Columbus Day. Congress comes back into emergency session and acts by the end of the week.

....

The first was that Congress had to act -- now! -- or the whole system would collapse. But the assertion that the entire financial system is "frozen" is a gross overstatement. The parts of the system that are clogged up with bad mortgage paper are indeed on life support. But the rest of the system is functioning. Businesses are getting loans. Citizens are cashing checks. Homebuyers are taking out mortgages. Investors are buying and selling stocks. If another big bank goes down in the next three weeks, Paulson and Bernanke will just do another ad hoc rescue, as they have done for a year. Better to do this general overhaul right than to do it in great haste.

Go Ahead and let yourselves Get All Fired Up!

Victoria DePaul, Author — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 13:22:06 EDT

Guaranteed to get you all fired up! Make sure your speakers are on. This is incredible.

http://www.stuartml.com/audio/YesWeCan.mp3

Question AIG?????

La Susa — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:50:40 EDT

Let me get this straight, because I am confused!!!! If we the tax payers give credit to AIG, so AIG can pay out insurnce claims etc. What do we the tax payers get in return?

Contact Congress About the Trillion Dollar Bailout - Stop the Panick

Marianne Bergenholtz Delegate — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 16:11:33 EDT

An Open Letter to Congress:

Why does anyone think that giving a failed industry a trillion dollars is a good idea? Where is the guarantee that things will be different?

If this makes sense to you, please forward to your Congressman and Senators, and submit to Senator Obama's office.

Let's try a trickle up theory for a change. Let consumers decide, with their own dollars - which companies should survive.

Consider what would happen to the economy if Congress

1) Immediately enacts usury laws that lowers the maximum on interest rates and prohibits fees on all credit cards and other loans.

2) Enacts an emergency one time re-establishment of credit to foreclosed homeowners who are otherwise creditworthy, to purchase fair-market-appraised homes again through a special fund during the next two years, eliminating speculators and investors.

3) Repeals the recent bankruptcy laws that favor corporate rights and re-establishes citizens' rights to plead cases individually.

These steps will free consumers from unfair consumer and predatory practices choking the economy, and control the bank and mortgage industries, allowing free market environment that is balanced and pro-goods (manufacturing) instead of (money) services, creating more jobs that boost the economy, creating the upward spiral needed.

Signs--Free Downloads!!

La Susa — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 12:45:38 EDT

I ran across some people who have had signs stolen or cannot get any through the online store.

If one's local Obama office dosn't have any signs, or one's sign was stolen, go to the "MEDIA" link above and click on "DOWNLOADS" there one will find free downloads!

To weatherproof slide image inside a plastic sheet protector and glue to cardboard or wood, and then one can use wire to secure to fence or staple to posts.

Ive placed some of my downloads inside my windows of car and home.

!!!!!!GOOD LUCK TO ALL!!!!!!!!

National Day of Service On September 27

Tom — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:41:25 EDT

We have just launched a new web site called Citizen Service for Obama at http://www.citizenserviceforobama.org. The site is designed to provide information on where and how to become involved in public service as a volunteer.

We hope to connect Obama supporters to more than 2500 community service events in all 50 states as part of a National Service Day of Action on September 27, 2008.

We feel that Obama supporters can show their enthusiasm for the campaign by participating in local community events. When a group of Obama supporters participates in local volunteer events, it shows that we are interested in doing more than just talking about service.

CitizenServiceForObama.org (http://www.citizenserviceforobama.org) provides event information where Obama supporters can give back to their communities, in the same spirit that Senator Obama passed up lucrative job offers on Wall Street after law school to serve struggling communities on Chicago’s South side. The National Service Day of Action on September 27 provides an opportunity for all Americans to be engaged and improve their communities.

We want to invite everyone to visit the site, check out the information, and use these community service events to promote the Obama campaign to continue in our efforts to elect Barack Obama the next President. You can also register on the site for future information on service events – including those after November 4.

Senator Obama has been a strong supporter of national service. In December 2007 he unveiled his plan to expand AmeriCorps slots and increase opportunities for all Americans to volunteer. On September 11, 2008, he participated in the ServiceNation Presidential Forum in New York City on national service where he said, "Part of what makes America work is the fact that we believe in individual responsibility and self-reliance, but we also believe in mutual responsibility, in neighborliness, in a sense that we are committed to something larger than ourselves."

The site is not associated with the official Obama campaign or web site. We have been inspired by Senator Obama’s message of service and we just want him to win.

Interests Rates, Morgages and Jobs

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:07:10 EDT

I remember when after 9-11 many Americans lost their jobs, airlines were in trouble too, because of the fear of flying, it affected turism etc. etc. Then several years later Bush says that our economy is in great shape, that there are now more American's who own their own homes, because of him, his policies? Okay so great Bush pats himself on the back for lowering the interest rates so people could go in debt easier. Yea now more people than ever own their own homes, we hear that on the news for a few years. However still the interest rate keep going down, meanwhile millions of jobs are lost in American and also due to our-sourcing to China. Is it any wonder that folks couldn't pay their morgages, being unemployed and all? Is it any wonder that the banks can't make loans, even though they own millions of prime real estate acres?

#1. America Needs Jobs! No Not minimume current wage jobs, but industrial, blue collar, new companies etc. etc. On the current minumu wage one couldn't afford to live in one's new car, much less pay the high rents!!!! It's sad, and as Obama has said it has been like that for years!!!!!!

#2. The American people should be protected from loan companies that exploit their consumers with eccessive interest rates, and via flexible interest rates. Why, because it is Robbery!!!!!!!!! Banks Loan companies need to be held accountable for ROBBERY!!!! The same way each and every one of us is held accountable for our acctions. I know a young man who stole a caddy bar, and did 6 months!!!!!!!!!!! Corporate America has gotten away with Highway Robbery for Way Too Long!!!!!!!!

Sen. Barack Obama For President!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

New Mexico Anti-Abortion Anti Obama Adds

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 20:32:14 EDT

We in New Mexico are being bombarded (like every hour on the hour) by a bunch of Anit-Abortion Anti-Obama Adds that I don't understand!!!!! And havn't seen any of the Obama adds in opposition to these yet. I don't know what they mean by Abortion and born alive?

All I do know is that when abortions were illegal women would either use coat hangers to try to abort it themselves, go to Mexico to have it done in an alley there, Clorox and a host of other very dangerous things, or bring the baby to term and throw the poor child away if they did not want anyone to even know about the pregnancy, or give their babies up for aboption.

Today having a baby at 15, 20, or 35 is an ordeal as we had not seen in the past. Now Fathers are required by law to pay child support, to the extent that if they don't their wages are garnished, Drivers Licences taken away, even incarceration. Many fathers cannot afford to legally work!!!!! When one cannot survive on minimume wage as it is, how can poor fathers be required to pay, when realistically they CAN'T!! As result this is forsing many to get into illegal buisness....... Then they get arrested, and we the tax payer pays for their incarceration time/couts/lawers etc. It's one way the rich keep poor folk down.......

Then there are the wacos male and female who instead of paying childsupport would rather murder the children!!!! Children are now but a comodity, not plain children any more. Tensions about Money and child support useto be unheard of, but whao now it's all parents can talk about. I feel children deserve better than that, for they are far more than money!

McCain-Nuclear Watse

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 17:55:07 EDT

McCain WANTS MORE NUCLEAR WASTE IN OUR COUNTRY!!!!!

McCain may not be concerned about our future, but Sen. Barack Obama is!

!!!!!!Barack Obama For Prseident!!!!!!!

'Truth Serum'

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 17:29:37 EDT

Since these last 7 and 1/2 years of Bush who has led us to war under false pretense of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq, and for some strange reason lacks military resorces in Afganistan. Went against the UN, went against the Geniva Convention, Now Allows Torture! I belive The House, Senate pre-elected officials including Presidencial and Vice Presidencial nominees should undergo intensive questions relating to National Security while under the influence of 'Truth Serum'!!!!!!!

Perhaps then the media frenzi won't be a ratings circus any more! And we the American People will be well informed about ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS!!!!!!

Our Nation is in jeopardy, and our National Security depends on the integraty and honesty of the next elected officals; be they Dems or Repb to tell the truth, OR we just might get owned by China!

Barack Obama For President!!!!!!!!

Interests Rates, Morgages, Jobs

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 16:41:11 EDT

Sen. Barack Obama For President!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Obama Live on cnn

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 15:50:02 EDT

Obama live on cnn

Ballot Bowel!

Lets hope they show his speach in it's entirety, and not just sound-bites!!!!

It might also appear at www.cnn.com/live

McCracken is Cracken!

La Susa — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 15:11:51 EDT

McCracken is really lieing Now!!!!!!!!!!!!

on CNN saying Obama used yestureday as an opportunity to make a stump speach, etc. etc.

When it was to the contrary Sen Obama said yesturday our Nation is in a crisis and that he and McCain should put their differances aside while this crisis on wall street is corrected.

Iraq Part II: Stricken by Fear

NawlinsKid — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 04:07:34 EDT

THE BIG IDEA – USA Today Money cover story: 'U.S. bends the rules of free markets: Nation isn't practicing what it preached to other countries' -- Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky.: 'The only difference between what the Fed did [in rescuing insurance giant AIG] and what Hugo Chávez is doing in Venezuela is Chávez doesn't put taxpayer dollars at risk when he takes over companies. He just takes them.'

I understand the securitization of subprime mortgages for the purpose of selling them as investments. I understand the financial devastation potential. I also understand that there are companies like Bank of America, JP Morgan, and CitiMortgage that can withstand this crisis. CitiMortgage did not lose a single mortgage why because it did not operate from a position of greed.

Reprint---Sometimes a Laugh is Needed!

La Susa — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 19:41:02 EDT

JOKES from Jay Leno, Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, and Jimmy KimmelBy Beverly from Harrison Township, MI - Sep 19th, 2008 at 6:28 pm EDT> > " John McCain's VP pick is the governor of Alaska, a completely
> > unknown hockey mom named Sarah Palin. The only other
> > job she had in politics was the mayor of a small town known as
> > Wasilla, Alaska, and now she has the opportunity to be on a ticket
> > opposite of Barack Obama, the first black man she's ever seen."
> > –Bill Maher

> > "This isn't a presidential ticket, this is a sitcom. The maverick
> > and the MILF." –Bill Maher

> > "Are you kidding me, the mayor of Wasilla,
> > Alaska? Yeah, that's who you want in the White House during a time of crisis.
> > The other times when she got a phone call at 3 in the morning, it was
> > because a moose had gotten in the garbage can." –Bill Maher

> > "McCain has been running this campaign based on
> > 'we're at war, it's a dangerous world out there. The Democrats don't
> > get that. I, John McCain, am the only one standing between the
> > blood-thirsty Al Qaedas and you. But if I die, this hot-looking young woman
> > will handle it.'" –Bill Maher

> > "When they were vetting her for this job, like three seconds ago,
> > > she said, quote, I'm not making this up, 'What is it exactly that
> > > the VP does every day?" Let me field that for you, Sarah. They start
> > > wars, they enrich their friends, they subvert the Constitution, and
> > > they shoot people in the face on hunting trips. That's what the vice
> > > president does." –Bill Maher
> > >
> > > "She's not bad looking. She looks like one of those women in the Van
> > > Halen videos wh o takes off her glasses, shakes out her hair, and
> > > then all of a sudden, she's in high heels and a bikini. All of a
> > > sudden, I am FOR drilling in Alaska." --Jimmy Kimmel

> > > "Not only is she young, they're saying she's the prettiest candidate
> > > for Vice President since John Edwards." --Jimmy Kimmel
> > >
> > > "There was some breaking news out of Dayton, Ohio today, where
> > > Republican presidential candidate John McCain introduced the world
> > > to his third wife." –Jon Stewart

> > > "Now obviously Sen. John McCain has made an enormous amount over
> > > Barack Obama's lack of experience, so it seems curious that the 72-
> > > year-old, four-to-five time face cancer guy would choose a running
> > > mate whose resume appears to be more suited for a Northern Exposure
> > > reunion show." –Jon Stewart

> > > "Alaska Gov. Sarah Pallin is John McCain's choice. Here's what we
> > > know about her: her name is Sarah Palin." --Jay Leno

> > > "Actually, it was kind of a smart choice. McCain went with a good
> > > looking woman because he didn't want to have to have to get CPR from
> > > Mitt Romney." –Jay Leno

> > > "Palin and McCain are a good pair. She's pro-life and he's clinging
> > > to life." –Jay Leno

> > > "Today President Bush called Gov. Palin and congratulated her. Bush
> > > told Palin the job of vice presiden t is very important because as
> > > vice president, you get to tell the president what to do." –Jay Leno

> > > "The McCain people believe that Americans will disregard her
> > > inexperience because they will fall in love with her story. She was
> > > a runner up in the 1984 Miss Alaska Pageant., which may sound trite,
> > > but you try walking in high-heeled snow shoes." –Bill Maher

> > > "Five kids? With her on the ticket and McCain's determination to
> > > stay the course in Iraq, it seems that no one in the Republican
> > > Party understands the concept of pulling out" –Bill Maher

McCain ever been on Foodstamps?

La Susa — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 19:28:30 EDT

Since they're calling Obama an "elitist" just curious has McCain ever been on foodstamps?

McCain's Absentee Vote Fraud

La Susa — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 16:45:25 EDT

This is from a post to the DoctorsforObama group...

The story is all over Progressive Talk Radio today about the McCain campaign sending absentee ballot applications to registered democrats or people that have donated to Obama's campaign. These ballots are deliberately misleading and have postage paid return addresses that are for an election clerk that is outside of your city or town. What this will end up doing is either having your vote not counted, or if you return one of these, they will cite you for election fraud, saying that you already voted absentee. These ballots are only being sent out in 'purple states' and this is a big deal.. This is called voter caging, and is a huge problem. The McCain campaign is stealing this election as we speak. Please get this information out to as many people as you can ,and tell anyone you know who has received one of these ballots that they need to contact their city election clerk or the supervisor of elections immediately. Also call the local media and let them know what is going on. The main stre am media is never going to cover this so we have to depend on our ground campaign to get the word out to our voters.

Great rally in Kingstree, SC yesterday

Patrick Frank — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 10:56:04 EDT

I was happy with the rally and my performance of a song for the campaign yesterday. The only glitch, for me, was a train passed by—when I was starting my song! What’s with these trains in Kingstree. Seems like they pass through every few hours. We’re on the main route to somewhere, or nowhere!

The rally was great, maybe 50-60 people, a political ally of Barack’s, Inez, She ran for U.S. senate a while back.

Little Kingstree felt like the political nexus again, just like during the primary, when Barack came to speak in the high school gym. Even a couple of reporters were there. The atmosphere was energized. 90% of the crowd was black, but at least I wasn’t the only white person—for a change. I was joined by about 4-5 other whites. There were, of course, chants of “Yes, we can” and ‘fired up…” and a few speeches.

I spoke for a couple of minutes after my song—explained why I plan to vote for Barack.

It was great to see the smiles on everyone's faces!

(Part of) Sen. Barack Obama's 2007 Speach- Economy

La Susa — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 18:34:41 EDT

"First, we need more disclosure and accountability in the housing market. To ensure that potential homeowners aren't tricked into purchasing loans they can't afford, I've proposed updating the current mortgage rules to establish a federal definition of mortgage fraud and enact tough penalties against lenders who knowingly act in bad faith. I've also proposed a Home Score system that would create a simplified, standardized metric for home mortgages, sort of like the APR. This would empower Americans to make smart decisions by allowing prospective buyers to easily compare various mortgage products so they can find out whether they can afford the payments. And I believe we should finally enact the meaningful mortgage disclosure laws that the mortgage industry has been lobbying against for far too long.

Second, I believe that if we hope to restore trust in the markets, we must be able to trust the judgment of our rating agencies. The failure of government to exercise adequate oversight over the rating agencies will cost investors and public pension funds billions of dollars - losses we have not yet fully recognized. We cannot let the public trust be lost by a conflict of interest between the rating agencies and the people they're rating. As Arthur Levitt recently reminded us, this happened when rating agencies continued to give a rosy outlook for Enron despite its impending bankruptcy. And of course we saw it this year when subprime mortgage loans continued to receive strong ratings despite repeated warnings of the instability of the mortgages and the impending slowdown of the housing market.

Here's the real danger - if the public comes to view this like the accounting analyses of Enron, the markets will be ravished by a crisis in confidence. We must take steps to avoid that at all costs, and that is why I believe there should be an immediate investigation of the relationship and business practices of rating agencies and their clients.

The third thing we need to do is look at other areas in the market where a lack of transparency could lead to similar problems. Many of the people who hold these subprime mortgages are now shifting their debt to credit cards, and if they do not understand the commitments they're taking on, or are subjected to predatory practices, this could fester into a second crisis down the road. That's why I'm proposing a five-star credit card rating system to inform consumers about the level of risk involved in every credit card they sign up for, including how easily the company can change the interest rate. If more Americans were armed with this kind of information before they purchased risky mortgage loans, the current crisis might not have happened. Now that so many are in debt, we shouldn't let the same lax standards create another.

Finally, while it's not my place to comment on the actions of the Fed, I have heard many of you say that you hope for a sizable rate cut tomorrow to soothe the market turmoil.

But I also know that there are nearly 2.5 million Americans who may lose their homes no matter what happens tomorrow. And so for those institutions that are holding these mortgages, I ask them to show some flexibility to folks trying to sell or refinance their houses. They are in the same liquidity pinch as companies are, but they don't have the same resources available to protect themselves.

Now, in addition to these immediate steps, I also believe there is a larger lesson to be learned from the subprime crisis.

In this modern, interconnected economy, there is no dividing line between Main Street and Wall Street. The decisions that are made in New York's high-rises and hedge funds matter and have consequences for millions of Americans across the country. And whether those Americans keep their homes or their jobs; whether they can spend with confidence and avoid falling into debt - that matters and has consequences for the entire market.

We all have a stake in each other's success. We all have a stake in ensuring that the market is efficient and transparent; that it inspires trust and confidence; that it rewards those who are truly successful instead of those who are just successful at gaming the system. Because if the last few months have taught us anything, it's that we can all suffer from the excesses of a few. Turning a blind eye to the cronyism in our midst can put us all in jeopardy. And we cannot accept that in the United States of America.

So I promise you this. I will be a President who believes in your success. I will value your contribution to this country and I will do what I can to encourage it, because I understand that how well you do is inextricably linked to how well America does. And I will always be a strong advocate for a market that is free and open.

But today I am asking you to join me in saying that in this country, we will not tolerate a market that is fixed. We will not tolerate a market that is rigged by lobbyists who don't represent the interests of real Americans or most businesses. And we will not tolerate "what's good for me is good enough" any longer - because the only thing that's good enough is what's best for America."

Sen. Barack Obama

http://www.barackobama.com/2007/09/17/remarks_of_senator_barack_obam_24.php

"Lie, Baby, Lie"

Hussein The Hope Monger — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 16:10:08 EDT

Fired UP!!

For obama, and a principled McCain

Patrick Frank — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 19:25:32 EDT

I am a grassroots volunteer in the Obama campaign, but the following letter represents my personal view.

Obama has slipped back ahead of McCain by two points in the Gallup poll. I think that he will regain momentum but can't be sure. It is necessary to keep up the fight...no matter the ultimate outcome. We have been moving toward a kind of neo-fascism in this country. All who perceive this trend have a responsibility to keep up the struggle.

This campaign is not about Obama...as he himself says, repeatedly.. At it s core, It is about freeing America from the grip of right-wing extremism...restoring some political balance. It is not liberalism I necessarily want to see. Rather, it is a dynamic interplay of principled liberalism and conservatism. I would like to see the regeneration of a dynamic form of moderate politics in Washington .

McCain could be an ally in this struggle, if he were not in the grip of a political party that has been co-opted by the extremists. They will seek to constrain him if he makes any move to the center, if he expresses any willingness to compromise with Democrats. And if he defies them, they will attempt to squash him like a bug.

I am tempted to say that McCain has sold his soul. Yet, I know that he has a conscience. And he has demonstrated great courage, which he revealed while imprisoned, and when he spoke out forcefully against the torture of detainees. But since launching this campaign, the voice of his conscience has been mostly stilled. I hear it again, from time to time...for example, when he defends Obama against vicious attacks, again emanating from the extreme right

I call on Democrats to support Obama, the candidate who has consistently stated that he wants to bring the political parties together, as well as people from all walks of life around the country. I call on principled Republicans and Independents to stand up for dialogue and reconciliation in D.C.. Consider voting for Obama; if not that, support any effort by McCain to move to the center of the political spectrum.

Let's all put a stop to the demonization of our opponents. Let us seek common ground. Let us remove from office those who are addicted to power and control and strive to manipulate the electorate.

It is time to take a stand--for reason and civility in politics.

The Presidencial Race is Not a Football Game!

La Susa — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 09:54:03 EDT

Beaware that there are McCain Posters here that use offensive language, because they without knowing it, do belive the lies that they have been told. I belive that it is our duty as Obama supporters not to engage in foul languare communications. We have to rise above the mud of slander!

This presidencial race is not a football game, though emotionally it can feel like it. The bottom line are the facts; Our Finnancial Future Depends on The Facts! Greenspan said McCains plan will pull us into more debt than Obama's. Obama's spending plan is to give the working families and students a leg up; to where we can get ahead of all of this debt in the long run; McCain's plan is win wars at our costs, our children's costs and their children. Big differances between the two!!!!!!

Furthermore the McCain's camp wants to mislead the American people into beliving that they are for government reform, which could not be more further from the truth. The truth is they could eliminate all earmarks; but not the lobbyiests, that with big money pay the house and senate members money to vote for they're advantage! That is why Obama is so against lobbyests controlling Washington!

Many Lobbyiests are hired by big buisness to promote our-soucing American jobs! They are interested in making money, when they can pay .50 cents an hour for work done overseas it is advantageous to them; plus they don't have to worry about paying unemployment; workmen's comp' or even observe EPA regulations in forgine countries. How else could we buy a blouse at Walmart for 7.00 Dollars? The more buisnesses that out-sourse jobs; the less jobs there will be for the American people, that's the bottom line......

Why have our boarders not been secured under the Bush Administration, very simple, big buisness profits from hiring illegals beacause here again they don't have to pay taxes, or even observe worker rights; I call it modern day slavery, dose anyone know the levels of poison the aveage immigrant worker is exposed to working in the fields? Dose the Avergae American know the levels of disease directly linked to the pestidices these poor workers are exposed too? It's not that poor Americans won't do the work, it's that a legal American would have the Right to Sue a company who deliberatly exposes them to Toxic Pesisices!!!!!

If McCain's Elected and Dies........

La Susa — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 12:03:13 EDT

If McCain's Elected he will do as he is told by the Lobbiests that funded his election; if he dies, Gov. of Alaska, who has NO INSIDE POWER IN WASHINGTON, in my opionion will do as she is told, by McCain's Lobbyiests, and will be fully capable of reading a teleprompter written by those Lobbiests......... Since when do they care about Women's rights???? To them a woman, is but a secretary, a prop, to win votes under false pretenses.

Funny how we hear McCain talk about "Earmarks, but not "Speacial Interested Lobbyiests"!!!!!

We Lobbyiests want to line our pockets with your tax dollars. We do not care about the enviroment, when it comes to making money, in fact while your sons and daughters shed blood and die in war, for the name of freedome we are turning profits in our buisness dealings, we want cheap labor that's why we will not secure the American boarders, we profit from illegal cheap labor in the USA, we also profit from sending American jobs overseas because then we don't have to pay taxes, hey in China the wage is .50 cents, thats a given, we don't care about national healthcare insurance because we make money on the current system, we want pharmasutical companies to turn profits for our wallets, we don't care if the Untited States economy crumbles our investments are overseas...............

Email MSNBC and other media outlets

Patrick Frank — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 10:59:57 EDT

Please send an email to MSNBC regarding their misidentification of Sharpton as a community organizer. this is obvious propoganda, probably emenating from the McCain campaign--to link Obama to Sharpton. Flood MSNBC with email. Meredith on the Today show is so obviously biased toward McCain-Palin that it is disgusting. Chris Matthews is just a loose cannon. Sometimes he says things that are on target, sometimes he plays right into the hands of the extreme right. Go to the MSNBC website and find the correct links. Also, Tom Brokaw has been lazy in his research and has been tilting toward McCain...He keeps bringing up the Obama risky data without mentioning other data that is favorable to Obama; for example, the American people feel he is more tuned into to there problems.
Please fight back, don't just sit back and complain!!!Even if MSNBC is not listening, at least make the effort. Yes, Rachel and Keith are great, but other voices are right-wing or playing into the hands of the right wing.Note: Neoconservatives are neo-fascists in (poor) disguise.Patrick FrankGrassroots ObamaActive in NC and SCPhone banking to NH and NMv

McCain-Lobbiests-Who Do They Represent?

La Susa — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 10:57:59 EDT

Since the McCain camp is controlled by Lobbyiests who have the money to pay for their intesests above the intesests of the American people, these Lobbyiests firms or companies, that they work for should be exposed. Because in essance they are the one's who intend to run our country; McCain and Palin are just mear hired speaking puppets....

Follow the money!!!!!!!

P. S. I don't think the Averge American Knows The Levels Of The Power and Influence Lobbyiests In Washington have... I personally had never heard of an "earmark" before this election!!!!!!!

The McCain Change

La Susa — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 10:06:42 EDT

If McCain dose become our next president, No I don't think it will be the same;

more bank bail outs; more jobs out sourced; more national debts to "Win Wars"

on all fronts; the rich will get richer; the middle class will shrink even more into

poverty where there are no gender or racial divides.

If McCain dose win, will our economy even be recoverable in 4 more years of the

highest debt this nation has ever seen??????

What about International relations? Will he loose his temper with forigne presidents?

Will he call them liars? Will he accuse them of hanious lis as he has with Obama?

When we become so indebt to China; will China first take over our economy,

then our freedome, then our government?

Grand Theft 'Bridge to Nowhere'--223 Million Of Our Dollars

La Susa — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 11:55:51 EDT

Please explain to me ya all who are educated; Exactly how is it that a State Employee Governer can Legally Accept 223 Million Dollars for a 'Bridge to nowhere' then exclaim "Thanks, but, No Thanks" and then blantonly grab OUR 223 MILLION TAX DOLLARS! Where did it go?????? If we are not funding a bridge, what are we funding????? Hey, I watch 'Ice Truckers on Discovery' they do need bridges!!!!!!!

If my employer told gave me 100.00 to purchase a raidiator for a car and I returned with 17 boxes of Pitza, I don't think my employer would be happy, in fact I could be legally charged with theft!!!!!!! And more than likely my employer would call the cops, and they'd book me, and put me in jail for 'breaking the law'. So, State employee governers are exempt from the laws; we citizens must obey, is that it???????

We Have A Right To Know!!!!!!!!!

La Susa — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 09:36:39 EDT

The News media was booed recently by McCain supporters according to a report on Bill Moyers last night. I would presume that McCain supporters have been led to belive that the News Media is bias and lie. When all News Media want is to ask questions????? What we the American people don't have a right to know? Are we not responsible for the hiring of the highest position in our Nation? Unlike other presidencial nominee's McCain is very old; and REALISTICALLY could PASS ON BEFORE THE ELECTIONS; OR AFTER; AND WE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WOULD BE STUCK WITH PALIN POLICIES SHOULD THEY WIN THIS CONEST........

"Thanks, but no thanks!" The Money- Where Did it go??????

La Susa — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 09:06:13 EDT

"The bridge to no where"
"Thanks, but no thanks!"
Okay, where exactly did all of that money go?
Did it line the pockets of polititions?
What "Other" projects in Alaska did it fund?
Not sexist, but just a curious tax payer....

If McCain wasn't so old, I don't think the American public would care so much about the past actions of a VP, however the reality is that this VP really could be President if they are elected.

we need to act now

PGaudreau — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 12:53:36 EDT

Time is running out. There are only 54 days until the most important presidential election this country has ever seen. I know I don’t have to tell you that because you have already joined the Obama team. I just want everyone to know the urgency that is upon us. Yesterday I was chatting with a friend about politics. She had something very interesting and scary to say about Palin. I copied the transcript below and I changed her name so she won’t be identified. Check it out:

Jess: hey pal no offense but I’m probably voting for McCain

Me: ok cool I will stop emailing you

Jess: it’s no problem but I was just noticing all of the emails lol

Me: yeah I am going crazy with this election; I am pushing hard for Obama. I go to the campaign office every day after work

Jess: wow

Me: yeah I am a little serious about it. Also going to NH every weekend, but if you are definitely republican I won’t bother you with any of my ramblings. I just have been emailing everyone I possibly can

Jess: I was never into politics before this election, but I don’t want to complain about how things are if I didn’t do anything to prevent them

Me: exactly my thought

Jess: so I registered to vote before the primaries and voted for Ron Paul who I was hoping would get on the ballot for president. I don’t know everything about Obama but there are a few things I’m not a supporter of, and the same for McCain. But I am for his party due in large part because of his running mate Sarah Palin not because she's a female but to me she seems like a real American citizen

This is scary but true. There are many Americans that will cast their vote in November based on images and mudslinging rather than issues and facts. It is because of these Americans (the uninformed) that we have to work even harder to inform them about the real issues and the real things troubling this country. If everyone understood the necessity to change, we wouldn’t have to campaign. The truth is they are not like us, they don’t watch debates and speeches, or go online and research their political choice, or even read the newspaper. They make their choice based on the gossip they hear at work, the gym, or the bar. That is why it is so important for us to talk to everyone we can and to spread the message. The message of change. Inform them what the real issues are and how Obama will fix them and McCain will only prolong them. Point out the differences between Democrats and Republicans. Use verifiable facts and historical data, it is easy to find online.

I am begging each and every one of you to get out there and volunteer some time to this campaign. 1 to 3 times a week will help. Get to the phone banks and make some calls or go to NH and talk to some people. Do everything you can. If you need help figuring out how you can help please contact me, and I will point you in the right direction. The opportunities are endless, get out there and make a difference.

You can’t expect the country to change if you are not willing to change yourself.

Joe Biden

Jason — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 21:30:40 EDT

Where is Joe Biden? What is he doing right now? Why is Obama the one going on the offensive?

Wearing the Obama hat

WNYmathGuy — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:04:16 EDT

I was at a church function yesterday and I wore my Obama hat partly to hide my “helmet hair” from riding to and from work, but also partly because I thing the soft sell is a powerful thing. By soft sell I mean showing the team colors while being a good person in public; I put other peoples trash in the garbage cans at times, I smile at strangers, I try to make others lives go smoother, and I treat all people as my equal.

A fun side effect is that it draws fire from both people that disagree with you and people that like to “bust your onions.” The onion-busters are quick to move on when they see they can’t get you mad. They are a waste of time to argue with anyway because they are probably on your side but they like to start trouble. The other ones are worth your time. They will pull out every thing in their head trying to win an argument against you, and all you have to do is take your time and mindfully answer all their fears with facts.

Last night I had a doosey! Funny that he got put on me by an onion-buster. This fellow was a Conservative, pious Republican, who has qualms about Democrats voting the party line. His first statement to me was, “what is wrong with voting against a person because of his color? I wouldn’t do it, but I know a lot of people that would.” I smiled and looked at the ground for a second or two and said, “I don’t have anything against that, voting is a personal decision.” I paused momentarily as I watched some of the red leave his face then went on to say, “but I believe that bigotry is morally reprehensible, and it disgusts me personally.” Wow that felt good! Out of the corners of my eyes I could see stealthy eavesdroppers gathering around trying to get close enough to hear the debate but staying far enough away to not get involved. I thought I should speak louder for the rest of the conversation. I then went on to say that I had never paid attention to politics before this year, and that I literally went to Obama’s site to find reasons to make fun of him, but couldn’t and was so impressed by his policies that I joined his team.

He brought “Hussein” into a sentence and tried to make a Muslim connection and I headed back to it later. I said, “you know people named Jeff right?, but you don’t treat them any different because Jeffery Dahlmer was a mass murderer do you? So why do you want to bag on a guy with a funny name?” He thought for a moment then tried his Muslim connection argument. I said, “I’m a Catholic, but you wouldn’t try to connect me to the Ku Klux Klan would you? So why would you try to connect his fathers religion which was the normal religion of that area to him, and to terrorists?” I had him a bit speechless there and I could see his face wanting to change the argument to something he could win.

The next thing he went on to say was, “none of that matters to me anyway, I only vote on one issue, right to life.” Again I allowed him to speak his mind fully. Although it was dark outside I could see that his red face color was coming down to an ordinary complexion white skin. I don’t think he felt too comfortable after he aired his view because he took a new position near me where his back was now up against a giant hedge. He went on to call the appointing of specific Supreme Court Judges that enact his extreme views as the greatest accomplishment of the Republican Party. I told him that I don’t think it’s so easy to define laws because these issues about life are no simple standardizeable matter. Then he started to talk really crazy about nuclear bombs going off killing everybody in some specific city in our state. I said, “now how can you be pro life and talk like that?!” He became immediately embarrassed and began to swerve it back away from crazy passion to his crazy belief that the end times are near. (if I die and go to heaven, I’m going to kick the shit out of the guy that wrote Revelations) As a changeup I pulled one from the Bible; I don’t know the chapter and verse, but I know I read it in the Bible. I said to him, “scriptures have a story that says if you are lost and starving and you come upon a bird and her eggs, to take the eggs and leave the bird alone. I think the reason that is in the Bible is because God can work with a mother to make new eggs, but God can’t work with the eggs without the mother.” Then I went to women’s health issues and how my grandmother nearly died from giving birth to her last daughter that was an obvious health risk because of how the pregnancy developed low in the womb. If God is all powerful, then the soul of my Aunt would have been put in the next conception. I told him that I think both sides are wrong and it is never a simple matter and writing laws that force everybody to live under one groups opinion is not right or doable.

He talked about how Hitler could have possibly fooled all those people into following him, and I said I used to be a Republican and after meeting so many Democrats I believe these people are the least likely to have that happen, but Republicans grab slogans, don’t investigate and fall in line with their leaders. We left that topic quickly.

I began to steer the conversation to economics, and after things calmed down, he thanked me for taking the time to talk to him. I wouldn’t be so bold to think I have converted him to our side, but I may have at least put out the “angry mob torch” he was carrying. He may be more open minded. He may doubt some of the political things that he accepted as a matter of faith. All in all I believe it was time well spent.

Go and get one of these for yourself. I’ll be glad to read your post.

Jon Stewart's review of McCain's RNC speech

Matt — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 18:19:14 EDT

Jon Stewart's review of McCain's RNC speech,

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=184111&title=john-mccains-big-acceptance

It would be great if Barack made an ad comparing McCain's promises to George W's in 2000.

Donate Frequent Flyer Miles for Obama! TravelforChange.org

Alisa W — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 19:08:01 EDT

Rhode Islanders,

There are hundreds of volunteers who want to work for Barack Obama this fall in the swing states, but a lot of these volunteers, students and recent college graduates like myself (Stanford 2008), don't have the resources to get where they are needed.

If you have 25,000 miles on any airline, you likely have enough miles to sponsor a verified volunteer's trip to work in a swing state! Registering new voters and talking to undecided voters face to face is the best way to fight all the smear campaigns and attack ads we are facing.

In the primaries one woman with a phone line raised two million miles for Obama! For the general election we can raise even more!

To get involved as a sponsor or volunteer please email alisa@travelforchange.org or just visit TravelforChange.org and please pass this on!

I used to be a Republican

WNYmathGuy — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 16:37:49 EDT

I was born and raised as a Republican, though I was not registered to vote till after Reagan got in office, and after my contract in the Marines was completed. I listened to talk radio and Rush Limbaugh from about 1987 to about 1997. So what changed and made me a Democrat and nearly a Delegate at this year’s convention?

Towards the end of the 1980's my wife and I had a produce store, a hobby farm and 2 full time jobs. As an adult with so many responsibilities I was learning fast, and I was developing great reasoning skills. I started to find things wrong in what was being said on talk radio. I found that if you want to get on a talk radio show, you have to fit one of two requirements; agree with them with out seeming psychotic, or disagree with them in a lame way that makes their opposition look bad. They will not air a solid argument against themselves because truth has nothing to do with their message. I found that level of deceit deplorable, but never detected it before I grew an open mind and listened to both sides. I was capable of good thinking, but was never in a position to try it.

In the late 1990's I went back to school and studied many things but loaded heavily in Economics coursework. During the first campaign of Lil' Bush, I was phoned by a GOTV Republican party volunteer. I said I wasn't voting for them because it was too much Texas Oil power in one area and that if they won something would happen that would raise the prices of fuel such that Texan's would be able to profit again on their local oil production. I may be a little off, but it was kind of prophetic if not just openly cynical. That volunteer treated me so badly on the phone that I wondered what I was doing in the same party.

I felt like the Democrats had little to offer me at that time. This is because of the persistence of propaganda in the human mind. Old thoughts in the human mind that were learned well remain intact until overwhelming new evidence proves them wrong. Thus I had only heard all of what's wrong with Democrats. That is not an easy hurdle for an ordinary person to get over, and mental assaults don't work; if you meet a person like I was, try calm discussion with the proper rules of debate. If the discussion becomes heated, our brains get into defensive positions and loose the ability to think rationally.

I went to the Denver convention and found that everything I ever heard about Democrats was a lie. I watched the Republican convention and now I am embarrassed that I was ever associated with them; I know good Republicans, but those people are not in any position of power. I'd really like an opportunity to punch a lot of those jack-asses in the face that control the Republican Party.

As a mathematician of sorts, I advise you to whenever you get to discuss anything with potential opponents or undecided voters, get their definitions of what they say they are. As I said in the beginning, I was raised a Republican, but hearing Senator Wexler of Florida go on about fire breathing Liberals, I heard the definition of a Liberal for the first time and realized I have always thought like a Liberal, and I was only against them because I held a mistaken definition of Liberal in my head. Find out what the person you are talking to really wants to happen and you may find out they are on your side, but they don't know it yet.

Good luck to you all, and remember change a mind = change a vote, and that one changed vote = a gain of 2 votes at the booth. The worst you can hope for is an opponent looses their enthusiasm when you shed the light of truth and they stay home on voting day.

Please Read: The Nation on Sarah Palin

Lifelong Liberal & Journalist — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:49:58 EDT

Campaign 08
The Word From Wasilla
posted by John Nichols on 09/04/2008 @ 1:52pm

Everyone is trying to get the measure of Sarah Palin, the woman who was rocketed from small-state obscurity to the national stage when John McCain selected her as his running-mate on the 2008 Republican ticket.

Republican senators and governors are admitting interviews, as former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Mississippi, did with me a few minutes ago that: "Most of us don't really know her personally."

Well, Anne Kilkenny does know Sarah Palin.

Kilkenny's a good citizen of Wasilla, Alaska, the city where Palin got her political state as a city council member and then mayor. She's a self-described "housewife" who volunteers as a voter registrar, has been active in the PTA and regularly attends local government meetings.

She is, as well, someone who has clashed with Palin. More than a decade ago, when Palin was campaigning to ban books, Kilkenny says, "I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship."

What's Kilkenney's take?

Here's a letter she has circulated

I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992. Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more City Council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the residents of the city.

She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because she is a "babe".

It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents for seven months.

She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby. There is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby.

She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.

She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out there" and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or so in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their major source of income. Nor has her life-style ever been anything like that of native Alaskans.

Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.

She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000 (at the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about 670,000 residents.

During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been pushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had given rise to a recall campaign.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative." During her 6 years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece of property that the City didn't even have clear title to, that was still in litigation 7 yrs later -- to the delight of the lawyers involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects that could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.

While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated more than once.

These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys". Palin fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as Governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people, creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally grateful and fiercely loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the case of pressuring the State's top cop (see below).

As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated" her, she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that an important factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't fire her sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in help. The City Council person who personally escorted her around town introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She abruptly fired her loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness.

Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything publicly about her.

When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got the best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no background in oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great job which paid $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party) engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move which some undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit, exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to.

As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing projects, calling them pork. Public outcry and further legislative action restored most of these projects--which had been vetoed simply because she was not aware of their importance--but with the unobservant she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork".

She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a fiscal conservative.

Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah. They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her.

As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package of legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to march to the beat of her drum.

Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state initiaitive that would have either a) protected salmon streams from pollution from mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the State's lawsuit against the Dept. of the Interior's decision to list polar bears as threatened species.

McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a heartbeat away from being President.

There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more knowledgeable and experienced than she.

However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are regretting it.

Economic Plan

Arthur R Chapman — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:55:45 EDT

We all do better with the Democrats!

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/31/business/31view.html?em

Send this one to everyone in Ohio, Pennsylvania, etc.

Keep Hope Alive!

Petraeus Disagrees With McCain!!!!!

Jr Neville — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 03:49:44 EDT

Petraeus Disagrees With McCain, Says Success In Iraq Was Possible Without The Surge»

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/08/25/petraeus-mccain-victory/

You Can Make a Change, Even a Small One

Lifelong Liberal & Journalist — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:46:16 EDT

Although I live in a Northeastern "blue state," I'm also smack dab in the middle of an ultra-conservative, right-wing conservative faction. The usual efforts to reach a lot of these voters have barely worked so far, so I've come up with a new strategy.

The local supermarkets are carrying two of the "hate" books against Obama, including Corsi's pack of lies -- with nary an Obama book on the shelves. Whenever I make a trip to the supermarket I make it a point to meet with whichever manager is on duty and complain about the obvious preference for the anti-Obama books and complain about the lack of Obama's own books.

Although the smear books are still on the shelves, at least they've brought back the Obama books. I can't swear that these local conservatives will purchase them, but at least they are out there in plain sight. If you see this, take a few moments to make your feelings knwn.

Neo-conservative or neo-fascist?

Patrick Frank — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 14:12:35 EDT

I plan to write a new essay...The subject is the deceptive but very real danger that the extreme right wing presents in American today. This oped is inspired by a conversation i had with a gentleman while phone banking for Obaqma in South Carolina. he was imprisoned for three years by the nazis during World War 11--because he stood up against Hitler (not because he was Jewish). He made an interesting statement--to the effect that he regards the extreme right wing in America has MORE dangerous than the extreme right during the Hitler era, because in the American version (even within the so-called "neo-conservative" movement) there exists a strong element of fascism that is hidden from view--promulgated in a deceptive manner.

Patrick Frank

(843) 372-8851

Insist that the media play fair with the polls

Patrick Frank — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:23:03 EDT

Tom Brokaw and others in the media have stressed the "riskiness" and "commander-in-chief" polling data (which I believe will shift in Obama's direction), ignoring Obama's lead according to other parameters...empathy, concern for ordinary Americans, handling the economy, dealing with the energy crisis, etc.. I strongly suggest that you make sure that all of the relevant parameters are publicized.

In general polling should be reported comprehensively, and various poll results should be compared, rather than relying on just one poll.

Patrick Frank
Grassroots Obama volunteer
(843) 372-8851

Help Needed to Write a Book about Obama

Victoria DePaul, Author — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 23:12:16 EDT

Greetings Friends,

My name is Victoria DePaul. I am an author, business consultant and training facilitator, specializing in leadership, management and personal self-development. Some weeks ago I began a book that explores Barack Obama's success as a leader. Because of the negative attack strategy that the republicans have chosen I have accelerated the time line for bringing this book to the public. I believe that many of Obama's supporters are drawn to his message because he can inspire and motivate. At this time the book is tentatively titled: Obama: Leadership for the Third Millennium In the absence of a viable platform promoting effective change, the Republican Party has resorted to what appears the only strategy they know- diverting the voter from any discussion of substance while creating suspicion of the opponent. And why not? It worked for George Bush. In 2003 he had most of Americans believing that there was a terrorist lurking on every corner. To change leadership would ensure certain attack and so for the sake of homeland security, in fear, his re-election was secured. Instead of a campaign based on real solutions for real problems, we can count on the Republic campaign strategy of smear and fear. John Kerry's campaign was damaged when Unfit for Command, co-authored by Jerome Corsi, attacked Kerry's war record. Now Corsi has authored another book of the smear and fear genre, this time attacking Barack Obama. While McCain strongly spoke out against the attacks on Kerry, this time he has no comment. We knew it was coming.

The attack on Barack Obama has been on-going. As we move closer to November we can expect it will intensify. This is American politics. Or so it has been. The Republicans have yet to figure out that we are on to them. The game is up. You would think that by now they would have asked themselves, 'what is it about Barack Obama that has aroused the passions of millions of supporters, not only in the USA but worldwide as well?" The answer is obvious to any 10 year old. In fact, there are many 10 year olds who are as excited about Barack Obama as their parents. While Republican leaders are top experts in generating fear and suspicion, Obama has presented himself as a leader able to involve millions of people by generating the hope of a new kind of politics and a vision of positive change. I would like to include in this book quotes and stories from supporters on what makes Obama a superior leader. Ideally, I would like at least 2 quotes from each of the 50 states. If you are inspired, please visit this website, read more about the project and input your comment. Please forward this to anyone you know who wishes to participate in this project. All quotes must be received by August 31st. States I haven't heard from:

Alaska,AZ,AK,CT,DE,GA,HI,ID,MI,MS,MO,MT,NE,NH,NM,ND,OH,OK,RI,SC,SD,TN,UT,VT,WA,WV But, regardless of where you live in the world, let me hear from you so your quote can be included in the book!

For more info visit: is www.obamaworcester.com. Feel Free to contact me at victoria.depaul@ymail.com

My email to Tom Brokaw

Patrick Frank — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:28:45 EDT

Dear Tom Brokaw:

You continually cite the data showing that more Americans trust McCain as commander-in-chief than Obama and regard Obama as "riskier," yet it appears to me that you consistently fail to mention data from your own NBC poll showing that Americans trust Obama more than McCain--by a significant margin--to handle the following:

Health care
Environment
Jobs
Economy
Energy
Housing

Why do you, seemingly,focus on the negatives of Obama, while ignoring the positives?

Thank you,

Patrick Frank
Grassroots Obama volunteer
Kingstree, SC
(843) 372-8851
patrickgfrank@yahoo.com