As posted to http://opinion.cwr65.com
Vote in New Jersey, why? Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 08:20 - PoliticsPolitics in New Jersey. Who's?My response to the message below was a sarcastic inward smile. I voted for Mr. Obama, (First vote in 65 years) I DO NOT Vote in local elections. So far they haven't put Micky Mouse or Gooofy up for election. But then that's what we get anyway.Mr. Obama has never lived in New Jersey or he would run for the nearest exit when it comes to supporting any party Candidate for office in this state. The highest taxes in the US, High unemployment, every township and county able to worm their way into the state coughers and make any decision they like. New Jersey politics is a real role model for the rest of the US. How NOT to run a state, look at NJ.My 1 cent, the state takes the other penny.Joe RobinsonDeptford NJ.The Original Message from the campain."Joe --This is it -- it's Election Day, and President Obama is counting on you to give him a strong partner in Trenton. Don't forget to go vote!If Governor Corzine wins today, he will fight alongside the President for the next four years. If Chris Christie wins, he'll spend the next four years fighting against the President and taking New Jersey back to Bush-era policies.This election will be decided by just a few votes -- so before you go to the polls, call five fellow Corzine supporters right near you and let them know when and where to vote. It will make a big difference, and they'll appreciate the reminder.Look up your polling location and share it with five voters in your precinct.Thanks for all your work,
Hi FriendThere is a new group that just started on Facebook that I thought Organizing for America members may be interested in joining. Please see United Against Racism -
http://apps.facebook.com/causes/354956/80588439?m=9dc74a6eUnited Against Racism
posted by David Apperson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ui8PkQR9os
Click on that and learn about the Next Generation of Leaders Barack Obama talked about.
Omar Dyer was recently on a radio station promoting a job fair for NP and SBA in New Jersey.
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1357295
Omar Dyer is the onlu candidate that has a real chance for an independant to win. The media is not talking about him and will not give this young kid a chance to change politics for the better.
Weaving together the state’s policies on energy, the environment, land use, and the economy, especially in the context of the state’s ongoing budget problems, is no easy task.
Over the past several weeks I have attended a half-dozen conferences on these topics, including sessions on the Energy Master Plan, the New Jersey Utilities Association Conference (where I moderated a panel), and PlanSmart NJ’s spring conference, as well as hosting my own event at Fairleigh Dickinson University on “growing the next generation of green ventures.” I’m left with the sense that we need a new dialogue, that connects the dots and provides an effective pathway to sustainability.
It’s my view that we need to get the big picture right, before we get to the details. But we must also then get to the details, because the policies can be good ones but they will mean nothing if they’re not implemented successfully.
Right now New Jersey is in trouble. We are not alone in this; but the impact of climate change, of rising food and energy prices, of economic turmoil - of job losses and foreclosures and Wall Street meltdowns - are increasingly felt right here at home. And at a time when we need to be investing much more heavily in cleaning up the past and building a more sustainable future, the state government is essentially under water, under a sea of debt. There’s $32 billion that the state has borrowed over the last two decades to fund operating costs; there’s $15 billion in health benefit liabilities, and $38 billion in retirement benefit liabilities to state employees - in short, close to $100 billion in “unfunded liabilities,” and this is essentially three times the size of the state’s annual budget.
This is what conservatives like Grover Norquist have always dreamed of - starving the government so much that it drowns in its own bathwater, to mix their favorite metaphors - though I don’t think they imagined it this way. But it was Christie Whitman who massively increased the state’s operating deficit and cut the state’s income taxes by 30%; and the McGreevy administration was too weak and too distracted to do anything to rectify it.
If you take that $100 billion and divide it amongst the roughly 8 million of us, that’s $12,500 per man, woman, and child - which is another way of saying that we’re that far behind the 8-ball before we can think about spending new money.
But if we’re going to get out of this hole, we’re going to have to invest in new technology, energy production, workforce education, and new initiatives to combat poverty and regional disparities.
The reality is that our present condition in New Jersey is simply not sustainable. We must cut our carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, and to do this we must convert most of our transportation (including cars, trucks, and buses) to run on green, renewable electricity. And we must set an example for the rest of the world to do the same. And since we’re already on this runaway train called global warming, we’re going to need to adjust to the realities of sea level rise, species migration, and a significantly higher cost of living.
The only way out of this is to grow an entirely new kind of economy, a green and sustainable economy. This means changing the way we do just about everything, from manufacturing, to shipping, to how we move ourselves from place to place, and to the kinds of homes, towns, and cities we live in.
But why do we also need to fix regional income disparities, concentrated poverty and persistent blight in cities like Camden and Trenton, and environmental and economic injustice? The answer is that we ought to fix it because it’s immoral and unworthy of American society to tolerate such inequities and waste of human potential; and we must fix it because it is a serious drag on our economy and is just as ultimately unsustainable as $6 a gallon gasoline (which is bound to happen anyway; what’s really unsustainable is maintaining $2 a gallon attitudes and thinking it’s really going to come back down again), four-foot sea level rise, and rising asthma and autism rates. If we need “all hands on deck” this means the poor, the rich, and the middle class - and a significant amount of immigration to support our aging population, which demographers are now calling “a silver tsunami.”
Consider just the matter of housing. Not only is our housing poorly designed from an energy and carbon footprint viewpoint, but we also have too much of the wrong kinds of housing, located in the wrong places, and costing more than we can afford to maintain. We need to put people to work to fix all this - to make our homes, our communities, and our businesses all truly sustainable, that is, putting as much energy back into the grid as we’re taking out of it (each home must indeed aim do this), becoming carbon neutral, and supporting us as much as we’re supporting them.
There’s every indication that all this can be done, but there’s not much evidence that we have the will, or the wits, to do it. Consider, for example, that we need to change our entire building code, zoning laws, energy production and distribution system, the buildings we live and work in, the cars we drive, the food we eat and where we get it from.
Some people believe the problem is our 566 municipalities, our mostly powerless 21 county governments, and our almost entirely dysfunctional state government that are to blame. But the reality is both simpler and more complicated than how our decision-making is structured. The fact is, we can make this system work; we’re just not doing so. Reorganizing it - unless we change some other things - just isn’t going to make enough of a difference. We’re not going to find $100 billion by consolidating a few municipalities or fire departments.
In the next section, I suggest some things that can be done. II
Like the rest of the world, New Jersey faces a bleak future if we don’t address multiple challenges – climate change, rising costs for food and energy, a slowdown in new job creation and wealth generation, ever-widening economic disparities, and concentrated poverty. What can we do about this converging set of crises?
The real problem is that we don’t have the right incentives, the incentives we need for people to do the right things. On the contrary, we mostly have incentives for them to do the wrong things. We have incentives for people to send jobs overseas; buy cheap energy from coal-fired plants in Pennsylvania and Ohio, while producing and selling our power to New York State (where they’re paying even more for it than we are); drive to Wal-Mart to get stuff so cheap that it makes up for the cost of getting there; and pay to have people pour chemical fertilizers and pesticides on our lawns and then drive around in lawn tractors that emit as much carbon dioxide as an SUV.
As long as it’s cheaper or more profitable to do that than it is to build energy-efficient homes, put in sustainable landscaping, buy clean energy, get our fruits and vegetables from local farmers’ markets, and so on, guess what? Most of us are going to keep doing it, and chilling out in front of our big-screen TVs or videogame consoles. As long as it’s easier for public officials to say no to new ideas and proposals than to live up to their ideals of public service, or more accepted for workers to do what they’re told rather than what they know is better for the company and for the customer, or cheaper to buy goods from China rather than from around the corner, or more convenient to throw stuff out than to reuse or recycle it - we’ll keep doing it. The problem is certainly a scarcity of vision, creativity, and courage; but it’s compounded by the fact that in most of our institutions these are not qualities that are always rewarded.
At the same time, things are changing, and in some cases changing a lot more rapidly than most of us realize. Given that $4 a gallon gasoline is not going away any time soon, people are buying a lot fewer SUVs these days. A recent survey of 20 dealers revealed that they were all sitting on inventory that simply wasn’t moving. Virtually every town is now considering or holding a green fair, promoting those squiggly light-bulbs, and buying hybrids, ATVs, or even bicycles for their local police.
The head of PSE&G, Ralph Izzo, said recently that our starting point for addressing global warming has to be the complete electrification of our transportation system. Fairleigh Dickinson University is working on a plan to convert many of its existing vehicles to plug-in hybrids, a step towards full electrification; and we should seriously consider giving people incentives to do this.
But this is only going to increase the demand for electricity, so we really need to find ways to cut waste and increase output from clean, renewable sources. Much to the dismay of the suddenly hopeful nuclear industry, this probably does not include nuclear - because we can’t build it fast enough, cheaply enough, or safely enough to allay everyone’s concerns. Building offshore windmills may still be environmentally controversial, but at least no one’s worried about fallout. Besides, uranium is not a renewable resource, and some studies suggest it may be running out sooner rather than later. There’s no silver bullet, and no free lunch. We have to invest in the right technologies, the ones that are going to see us into the next century.
Right now there’s a lot of discussion around NJ’s draft Energy Master Plan. It’s good as far as it goes, but in the end it’s still both insufficiently bold and insufficiently realistic. The challenges are greater, and the steps that need to be taken are more far-reaching. And the design of the programs that are supposed to get us there has not yet shown itself to be successful.
Let’s take one example. New Jersey has adopted a Renewable Portfolio Standard that requires 22.5% by 2020, with at least 2.12% of that from solar. Sounds aggressive, right? But that translates into only about 3600 MW of renewable capacity by 2020, generating 16,000 GWh of electricity - out of an estimated 80,000 GWh needed even if we can cut consumption by 20%. (Just to be clear about the renewable energy and energy efficiency goals: in the first draft of the new Energy Master Plan the NJ Board of Public Utilities used 2 different bases for their calculations. Our renewable energy production is 20% of the total projected production; it’s this production which is supposed to be 20% below what it otherwise would have been.) Meanwhile, Maine set an RPS of 30% by 2000, and has increased that to 40% by 2017. Texas is aiming for 5000 MW of wind alone by 2015. And using the system of issuing Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) that can be traded on an artificial market is also leading to some anomalies. When it was recently determined that there was more than 2200 MW of unused, environmentally benign small hydro capacity in the Northeast, which could generate nearly 20,000 GWh (the equivalent of three or four new nuclear reactors, and a whole lot cheaper), there was a concern that this would “swamp” the market for RECs for wind and solar. But the answer is not to hold back the development of small hydro, it’s to increase the RPS to 44% by 2020.
In fact, it’s really not a stretch to think about moving a majority of our businesses, our homes, and our communities over to renewable energy over a ten-year period. If you think about it, you can probably imagine your household doing this (after all, wouldn’t everyone prefer to get their electricity from solar, hydro, or wind than from coal, oil, or nuclear?); and if you can do it, so can everyone else.
And this is just one of a number of examples. What’s needed is a system that responds quickly to the opportunities - for New Jersey’s economy, its energy needs, its transportation, and its persistent inequities. Instead, we have BPU Commissioners acknowledging that “we’ve lost two years in the solar industry market transition,” and the DEP acknowledging that the RGGI auction (originally scheduled to raise $70 M this fall for renewables and conservation) has now been pushed off to the first quarter of 2008.
Of course, this requires boldness - not just bold talk but bold action. The Corzine administration seems to know what it needs to do; the challenge is implementing it. If New Jersey had its act together, its citizens would be communicating about this on an entirely different level. Instead, judging by the results, we have a well-meaning but ultimately timid administration in Trenton; a relatively weak legislature; a divided industry and business community, that is beginning to wake up to the need for true sustainability, but is not yet willing to devote adequate resources to it; and a largely uninformed electorate that - though perhaps for the wrong reasons - does not trust any of them. (Most of our environmental groups are also struggling to catch up to the new threats and new challenges, while municipalities, and other major institutions such as hospitals and universities, are just starting to look at appropriate actions.) Somehow we need to move - partly back and partly forward - onto the track of sustainable economic development. We must face reality squarely: we must increase our energy production from clean and renewable resources, we must put our population back to work in the right sorts of “green collar” jobs, and we must restore a sense of purpose to the affairs of our state. And unless we rethink our relationship with nature and with each other, we’re not likely to come up with the right answer.
At a couple of these conferences I listened to the Governor, and I wondered how he felt about his campaign promises to root out corruption, stimulate the economy, and deal with NJ’s structural issues. My guess is that Corzine would be the first to admit he’s not made much headway. At the PlanSmart NJ conference, the Reverend Buster Soaries, once Christie Whitman’s Secretary of State (and like Whitman one of the casualties of the Bush Administration), said that NJ’s problems could only be solved if we had either a charismatic leader or a devastating natural disaster. I don’t think we can afford to wait for either.
I think what we need is a new conversation; a conversation built around the idea of a truly sustainable state - one that leads the way toward a more just and prosperous economy, and a healthier ecosystem for ourselves and for the rest of the planet.
— Jonathan Cloud (Director, Community Green)
Jonathan Cloud is Entrepreneur in Residence at the Institute for Sustainable Enterprise at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and responsible for the Sustainable Business Incubator. Recipient of a UN Environment Award in 1985 for his work in renewable energy, conservation, and appropriate technologies, he has been an entrepreneur, community organizer, and research manager in both the U.S. and Canada. He currently lives in Basking Ridge, NJ with his wife and daughter.
Originally posted at Communitygreen.org/GreenNJ, August 13, 2008.
This election is coming down to the wire and we need to make sure everyone is doing all they can to elect Barack Obama as our next President.
Please help us call voters. You can phonebank from home and help get out the vote in key states.
To join Mobile Obama, text NJ to 62262 (OBAMA) on your mobile phone to receive important updates and opportunities.
Throughout the Garden State, the movement of change has inspired millions. This is a defining moment in our history. We have a chance to bring the country together in a new majority — to finally tackle problems that Washington has ignored for too long. And that is why New Jerseyans are answering the call of the Obama campaign to become involved and volunteer during the final days of the campaign.
This weekend, volunteers contacted nearly half a million voters in New Jersey and battleground states across the country to personally deliver Obama’s message of Hope and Change. With over 2,000 volunteers signed up, New Jerseyans heard and answered the call to travel to Pennsylvania, a key battleground state in this election.
Volunteers have shown dedication, crowding NJ Campaign for Change offices sharing stories of why they believe in Barack Obama and the historic importance of this election. They also talked about how this campaign is bringing people together.
Arthur Thomas from Princeton explained, “I was calling a woman named Stephanie Watkins in North Carolina and a man answered. I identified myself as Arthur Thomas a volunteer for the Obama campaign and the response I received was completely unexpected: ‘Uncle Arthur is that you? This is your nephew Derek. Stephanie Watkins is my wife.’ I had called my nephew who I hadn’t seen in twelve years due to distance. We had a conversation about the election and the need for Obama to be our next president. I told him to pass the word on to his friends and coworkers. If they needed anymore information about Obama then he should feel free to give them my home phone number and I will talk to them personally.”
Volunteering with Arthur was his wife Linda. She shared her thoughts about the election: “As a baby boomer I think about the progress in our lifetime and what an honor it is to work on this campaign. This is the culmination of things we’ve worked for since our college days of demonstrating and fighting for civil rights."
“This is the first time that the world gets a chance to see America actualize its ability to be nonbiased by electing Obama to the presidency of the United States.”
Linda and Arthur Thomas urge you to make history and vote.With one day left before the election, there’s still time for you to become a member of the team and be part of history. Volunteer today by visiting your local NJ Campaign for Change Office or signing up here. If you aren’t able to go in person, set up your own phonebank and make calls from home or with a group of your friends.
On a beautiful fall day in Union County College, President Bill Clinton headlined a rally for change with Assemblywoman Linda Stender, and other members of the Democratic team. The long lines began to form at 10 a.m. and by the time the event started at 1p.m. nearly 2,000 Democratic supporters were fired up and ready to go. “Presidential elections I can tell you having been there, should be decided by philosophy, positions on the issues, the decision making capacity of the candidates, and what we feel about their ability to turn a decision into real change in our lives,” said President Clinton. “Barack Obama clearly has the right philosophy. The economy grows from the ground up not from the top down. Senator Obama’s positions on the economy, on energy independence, with a clean efficient energy future, the key to creating more jobs and higher incomes.”
“Bill Clinton is a phenomenal force. Ten words from Clinton are a thousand words for McCain. He knows how to electrify an audience. His job today is to electrify the crowd and get them ready to knock on doors, make phone calls and get out the vote for the NJ democratic ticket,” said Diane Edkins from Westfield.
When asked how she felt about the upcoming election, Diane Edkins from Westfiled responded, “I feel nervous. We have to keep the pressure on and the push going especially in battleground states. We need to remember Pennsylvania. It’s very important for people to travel to Pennsylvania and do whatever they can. I have many friends who are traveling to New Hope, Pa. and Ohio to volunteer their time and help the Obama campaign.”
“I’ll be canvassing in Summit this weekend,” Clemens Gunther from Mountainside added. “I was undecided until this week, but now I know. I will definitely be voting for Barack Obama. There’s too much at stake not to.” NJ elected officials joining President Clinton included Governor Jon Corzine, Congressman Rush Holt, Congressman Frank Pallone, Congressman Donald Payne, Congressman Steve Rothman, Democratic Party Chairman Joe Cryan, Senator Raymond Lesniak, Senator Teresa Ruiz, and Assembly Majority Leader Bonnie Watson Coleman. Please spend a few hours, a day, or even the next two days fighting for change in our neighbor state Pennsylvania. The people you talk to could be the ones that make the difference. Find a free ride to Pa. now at http://nj.barackobama.com/PArides.
Major NJ newspapers endorsed Barack Obama for president today, adding to the overwhelming consensus that Barack Obama is the best candidate to bring about real change in Washington.
Obama for presidentSunday, October 26, 2008 WHATEVER HISTORY makes of the Bush presidency, its immediate legacy is an administration that turned budget surpluses into deficits, launched a pre-emptive war in Iraq and left us divided by politics, ideology and economics.We cannot stay this course. We need a leader: Barack Obama.... The Record endorses Barack Obama. To read the full article, click here.
Barack Obama for presidentOctober 25, 2008 When voters went to the polls in 1932, Herbert Hoover's Republican Party had been in power for 14 years. The GOP's policies hadn't prevented the crash of 1929, and life for most Americans was still grim by the time the president sought reelection. Voters that year opted for change, trusting that a confident Franklin Delano Roosevelt would deliver on his promised New Deal. The parallels today are inescapable. Making the right choice for president is just as vital to the nation's future today as it was in the midst of the Great Depression. Barack Obama offers America an opportunity to get back on track. His uniquely American story can inspire people from all walks of life to once again believe in what their country can accomplish. John McCain came into the campaign with a well-deserved reputation for fighting for what he thought was best, even if it meant taking on his own party. Yes, he was a maverick. The tag has become a cliche, but at one time it was spot on. Now, however, he has reversed himself on many of the positions he fought for, jettisoning long-held principles, in a seemingly impulsive manner. Obama, on the other hand, has demonstrated an ability to stay cool and level-headed amid a grueling election campaign, a quality that should well serve his presidency. On each of the crises confronting the nation -- two wars, chaos in the financial and housing markets, the need to reform health care, energy consumption, an increasingly inadequate education system -- Obama has more to offer…. We believe Barack Obama offers the best hope for what he has called the promise of our ideals at a time when we most need to reaffirm what it means to be Americans. To read the full article, click here.
For the change we need, elect Obama The Democratic presidential nominee has the ideas, vision and temperament to get this nation back on track.In this presidential election, the important question each American voter needs to ask is this: Is she or he better off now than four years ago?Some Americans have been able to weather the financial storm better than others, but few have been untouched by the nation's roiling economy. If voters are dissatisfied with where they are now, with where the country stands today, this is an election in which they can do something about it. They can vote for change.We believe Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama is the candidate who can bring about the change that Americans want and need. We endorse his candidacy to be the next president of the United States.To read the full article, click here.
Obama can bring change America sorely needsOctober 26, 2008By now, American voters are probably tired of hearing candidates promise to change the federal government.But change in government is what the country needs — a change in the overall culture of special interests and irresponsible spending and a change from the specific public and foreign policies of the past eight years.Cultural change may be too much to hope for, but a change from the direction of the past eight years is within reach and can be grasped with the election of Barack Obama as president of the United States.Obama, the Democrat, would bring to the presidency an intellectual grounding, a thoughtfulness, a sense of balance that has been lacking for too long; he would not bring self-righteousness, bravado, disregard for human and civil rights, or a foreign policy based on saber rattling and name calling…. It's time for a change. It's time for Barack Obama. To read the full article, click here.
For president:Sunday, October 26, 2008 In the last few weeks, the economic foundation of the United States has been ebbing like sand sucked up by the sea. Despite the erosion of confidence and commerce, one man has stood firm among those shifting sands. Sen. Barack Obama's leadership and calm command have distinguished him, as they have time and time again throughout his campaign for the presidency. We're proud to lend our voice to the many others endorsing the Democratic candidate and his bid to be the 44th president of the United States…. Republican contender Sen. John McCain has served his country well and honorably for many years as a serviceman and a senator. Sen. McCain has been a good captain, but Sen. Obama is clearly the commander we need. To read the full article, click here.
Obama best-suited to lead AmericaOctober 19, 2008Our nation is facing its gravest economic crisis since the Depression. It is bogged down in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The standard of living for most Americans, which had been largely flat during the 1980s and 1990s, has fallen during the past decade despite an economic expansion.The meltdown on Wall Street has eroded the life savings of many Americans by a third. The fallout from the real estate bust could result in a loss of home equity of a third or more. We are far more dependent on foreign oil today than we were 35 years ago, when the oil embargo failed to awaken us from our slumber.And thanks to a Bush administration that arrogantly chose to go its own way in Iraq and employed bullying tactics rather than reason and diplomacy to achieve its ends, we have alienated many of our longstanding allies around the world.Change is needed — badly. Since World War II, there has never been a greater need for leadership, for a president who can pull a deeply divided nation together, someone who can help restore our self-esteem at home and help repair our tattered reputation abroad. Democratic Sen. Barack Obama is better equipped than Republican Sen. John McCain to meet that challenge…. Obama is keenly aware of how badly this nation needs to chart a new course — one that is respectful of other nations. He is committed to rebuilding the middle class, working to align America's policies with its long-cherished ideals and making the country the beacon for prosperity and justice once again.To read the full article, click here.
WHAT: Rally for Change hosted by Edison Mayor Jun Choie featuring Governor Jon S. Corzine, Congressman Frank Pallone and Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Linda StenderWHEN: Saturday, October 25 at 10 a.m. WHERE: 1907 Oak Tree Road, Edison, NJ 08820. Click here for directions. RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/edisonrally
Last night members of Moms for Obama, an online grassroots constituency group created through MyBO, gathered at the Obama Campaign New Jersey headquarters to make phone calls and speak with voters about Barack Obama and Joe Biden’s campaign for change. “The mothers in our organization are supporting Senator Obama because he has spoken to our concerns about the economy, healthcare and family leave,” said Michelle Schultz, a New Jersey member of Moms for Obama. “We are committed to doing everything we can over the next two weeks to elect Senator Obama, because he’s the only candidate committed to changing Washington in the ways that are important to us.”
Cara Laitusis and Dana Kooistre call voters for Obama. "In March 2002, I watched the U.S. march into a war in Iraq. My husband and I were astonished that we heard a call for war over and over again from President Bush without any sound explanation,” said Dana Kooistre, a mom from Lawrenceville. “I’m very excited to vote for Barack Obama who has the judgment and temperament to be able to know when to use military force. I have two sons. I don’t want a president who would commit American troops to war unless all other options were exercised.” Read Barack Obama’s plan to end the war in Iraq.
During the past 20 months millions have been inspired by Barack Obama’s message of change and have demonstrated their commitment to the campaign by volunteering. NJ Campaign for Change has been fortunate enough to have a number of extra special people who we call “Super Volunteers.” These individuals are powered by Barack Obama’s vision, probably lots of coffee, and desire to bring about real change in Washington. They are pushing themselves to do everything they can to help elect Obama as our next president.One of these Super Volunteers is Angie Stith from Willingboro. “Angie is the heart and soul of the office. Volunteers come for Obama and return repeatedly because Angie makes everyone feel valued and at home,” said Adam Goldfarb, regional field organizer for NJ Campaign for Change. “She always has a smile on her face and it’s contagious.”
Angie has volunteered everyday since February. She serves as the volunteer coordinator, and local grassroots captain, and has organized a number of successful campaign events. For Angie’s first Obama meetup event this summer, she drew over 80 people to her cookout in Mill Creek Park. She also helped to lead her team’s successful voter registration drives. Since July 4th, her team has registered thousands of new voters in Willingboro. When asked why she is so devoted to the campaign, Angie responds: “I have been waiting all my life to witness what is happening in this great country now. Obama represents what has been needed for so long. Obama is all-inclusive and he wants to bring everyone to the table. As a child, I was very much aware of the plight of poor people, especially people of color. Maybe now, for once and for all, we can live as one people coming together for a just and fair society. If there were eight days in a week, I probably would volunteer my time just as much. So, I pray my God continues to give me strength and guidance to push on until Obama becomes our next President of the United States.”Angie was first drawn to the political process earlier this year by Obama but since then has become completely immersed and will now be engaged in the long term. In June, Angie’s name was written in for the office of Democratic Committee Vice Chair, a non-paid elected position, and she won. “She’s the perfect mix of professionalism and enthusiasm,” explained Democratic Chairwoman Lavonne Bebler Johnson. “She’s a chairwoman’s dream.”
If you are interested in matching Angie’s enthusiasm to elect Obama, visit your local NJ Campaign for Change office and volunteer today.
Today, Joe Biden’s sister Valerie Biden Owens and her daughter Missy Owens hosted a rally for Change at Rider University to energize volunteers for the campaign’s final push. Valerie shared stories about how she, Joe and their three other siblings were raised in Scranton, Pennsylvanian in a middle-class, Irish Catholic family. Their mom Jean stayed at home to raise them while their dad Joseph Sr. worked at a car dealership. “Joe and I are people who know in our bones what the struggles of the middle-class feel like,” Valerie Biden Owens explained. “We define middle class as: If you miss more than two paychecks in a row, you’re in trouble. We’ve been there.” Valerie further explained how Joe understood the need for the government to support average American families in light of the rising costs of health care and education. Joe is a champion on the issue of making college more affordable by using the tax code to reduce costs.
“What Valerie Biden Owens said at today’s rally really resonated with me, especially when she talked about bolstering our education system. I’m a freshman at Rider University but after I graduate, I want to be a teacher,” said Pam Rotter from Newtown, Pennsylvania. “As a student and a future teacher, I know how a good education can shape a person’s life.” Joe has a proven record of bringing people together to get things done. From global warming to combating violence against women to confronting the challenges of the dangerous world in which we live, Joe Biden has fought every day over the course of his life in public service to improve the lives of middle class families. If you are a student and would like to help elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden, join Generation Obama. It's a locally-based but nationally coordinated grassroots movement led by young activists. As a member of your local Generation Obama chapter, you and other members can utilize the many talents of our country’s next great generation in support of the campaign in a variety of meaningful ways.
Day two of Countdown to Change started off with donuts and coffee and a lot of enthusiasm. The Carpenters Hall in Hackensack was filled with about 50 volunteers ready to walk the streets of Bergen County.
Volunteers line up to receive their walk packets.
“I volunteered today because of my sense of responsibility and obligation. I’ve never been moved enough to get involved in a presidential campaign other than vote. This election is different. Obama and what he stands for moves me,” said Phyllis Sneyers from Waldwick. “I owe it to my children and grandchildren to play a part in this election. The decision we make this November will directly impact their quality of life.”
Mother daughter team Phyllis Sneyers and Dana Lustig return to the Hackensack campaign office after their canvass and pose for a photo with their Obama sign. "I’ve never followed an election as mush as I do now. I believe in Obama’s potential and commitment and what he can do for us,” said Dana Lustig from Oakland. “I’m a six year breast cancer survivor. I have a lot at stake. I need a healthcare system that works for me and is secure. I reach out to women all the time who are diagnosed and they find out that they don’t have the right kind of coverage or coverage at all. I have faith in Obama’s plan to provide quality health care for Americans.” Read about Obama’s plan on how to make health insurance work for people and businesses – not just insurance and drug companies. Tomorrow marks the last day of Countdown to Change so you still have one more day to be featured on our NJ blog! Sign up now to participate in tomorrow’s activities.
This morning marked the start of Countdown to Change, a three-day statewide effort to help get out the vote for Barack in New Jersey and our sister state Pennsylvania, a crucial battleground state in this election. The operation unleashed two separate teams of New Jersey volunteers: Team Fired Up and Team Ready to Go. The "Fired Up" volunteers called and go door-to-door in New Jersey to reach voters while the "Ready to Go" volunteers drove to Pennsylvania to canvass. At a campaign office in Hamilton, volunteers arrived in the morning fired up to knock on doors and phone bank for Barack. “I really do believe in Obama and what he has to offer so I decided to volunteer to help elect him and other democratic candidates in New Jersey,” said Sonii Kollie of Hightstown. “When I speak to voters I see both sides of the spectrum. Some are very excited to talk to me about the campaign while others are more private and reserved. Despite the reaction, I feel that it’s my job to pull them in. I feel that voter contact is important because it’s a way for people to get to know the candidate on a personal level.”
Sonii Kollie phonebanks in Hamilton.
Further north in the state, eager volunteers filled the Jersey City campaign office. They came as a family or with friends and were greeted by Ward Leaders Jack Carly and Joe Conte.
The Bryant family spend Saturday afternoon together by canvassing for Barack.
Decked out in Obama buttons and Lautenberg T-shirts, volunteers hit the streets to make a difference, one neighborhood at a time.
Blog coverage of Countdown to Change will continue tomorrow and Monday. Sign up today to be part of this massive grassroots effort and you may find yourself featured on this blog.
In America, your right to vote makes you an American. In America, your right to vote makes you a tax-payer. In AMerica, your right to vote gets you one step closer at being a citizen. All around the country, voter registration drives, have re-boasted the vibe of voting. Organizations like A.C.O.R.N. which means: Association of Community Organization for Reform Now, have been working too hard in order to get people registered. Yet, the House Republican Base, who's seats are endangered see this organization or any organization like A.C.O.R.N. as a problem. This problem is the same problem that helps people get registered to vote: more like Rock the Vote. In fact both of these two organizations fuel off the same information and ideas set down by the federal government.
What I can't understand is why two programs that do idnentical things, in terms of functioning and voter's rights -- are at the opposite side of the House/ Republican's table: here's an idea! A.C.O.R.N. brings in 90% of their voter drives to the Democratic Party, While Rock the vote brings in 45% of their drives to the Democratic Party. Rock the Vote turns in 55% for the Republican Party, and A.C.O.R.N. turns in 10% to the Republican party -- so this means the Republicans can't inspire their base so they want to pick which program works and what doesn't to favor them. Fact are: 55% of newly registered voters are Democrat, with 25% are independent -- with 20% Republican. Now they want to take away your rights.
The Repubs base wants to say this: These people are criminals, these people are illegally here; these people are not competent enough to vote. Listen, they ARE WRONG: During the primaries, you voted on the voter act initiative; which protects your rights unless you are mentally challenged -- and even then you still have the right to vote with assistance. Here's you voting rights for 11/4/2008
1: To be registered by 10/4
2: U.S. Citizen that has a residence in the states county for more than 30 days on Election Day: Including a P.O. Box from the stats post office.
3: 18 years of age before Election Day.
4: If you are not in prison or on parole for a felony convicition on or two weeks before election day.
5: College students have a right to use the dormitory as a primary residence -- home or school: and they can oly vote ONCE.
6: Only a person with a misdemeanor conviction can still vote, and they have the right to vote from the jails: MISDEANORS ONLY.
7: A felony conviction can only register: after they have been cleared from: parole, probation, and their current charge.
8: A homeless person can vote if were they usually stay: they can use that place like: a park, a shelter, or a citizen sibling in good standing -- in which they reside in the county of the state they are registering in to vote.
These are the rights you have to vote and these are the rights that A.C.O.R.N. and Rock the Vote is using. One problem: Rock The Vote is an online company, and A.C.O.R.N. is a minority based community program: running under the cleanest rules in America, and just like Coaches! 101 they are under federal investiagtion. I get it when you are clean: you must be evil if you're not a Republican. When you are dirty, and create scandels -- like the financial crisis: you are good with the Republican base. Please be aware of your rights:
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/voting/intro/intro_b.htm
