Isn't he great

One more reason to vote for Senator Obama.

A picture is worth a 1,000 words.

Young Democrats at the DNCC

The Young Democrats were out in full force in Denver. It looked good. It was awesome experience. The blog has been a little slow, trying to recruit people to get back to writing on the blog.

Alan Brock Endorsed by the Tallahassee Builders Association

We wanted to offer late congratulations to Alan Brock. At the start of July, Alan Brock, candidate for the Wakulla County Commission, was endorsed by the Tallahassee Home Builders Association.

If you haven't yet check out Alan's website www.voteforalan.com . We are excited for our former leader, and wish him the best. He is a much needed change for Wakulla.

Meeting Tuesday

The Leon YDs will be having a meeting Tuesday, July 15 at 7 p.m. It will be held in the Leon DEC office beneath the Florida Democratic Party Headquarters 214 South Bronough Street.

We'll be holding elections for new officers, so if you are interested, let me know and we'll see what we can do that is within the by-laws.

New Florida Young Democrats Website

www.flyoungdems.org

New FYD Website, I don't know if you have checked it out yet (you probably haven't, since it is just premiering) now is the time!

It looks great. The old website should be redirected there soon too... but we are make small steps forward. Check it out.

ex-Felons don't know thier rights have been restored

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/state/article664657.ece
This article in the st. Pete times shows the problems that we are facing trying to notify ex-felons that they have their civil rights restored.

Governor Crist restoring these rights did a good thing, ending a history of injustice.

National Broadband Service?

Published on Wednesday, June 4, 2008 by The Huffington Post
The Cure for America’s Internet
by Timothy Karr

You can see them parked outside of libraries and coffee shops in towns scattered across the hills of Western Massachusetts. They’re identified by the blue glow emitting from inside their cars.

Across the state, 95 towns have limited or no access to high-speed Internet. People in Massachusetts’ more rural western half have had to resort to a game of Internet hide and seek — searching out wireless hotspots, with laptops plugged into car lighters and nestled in their laps.

Maureen Mullaney of Ashfield, Massachusetts, lives in one of these under-served towns. She seeks out these roadside hotspots so her children can do research for school projects. “How silly is it that in this day and age you have to get in your car, drive to the general store so your daughter can researchers the rivers and traditional clothing of Chile?” she asks.

“Even if every person in my town is screaming out loud for high-speed Internet that would still just be 1,800 people.”

But Maureen and her neighbors are not alone. While a generation of Americans can barely remember life without a Google search at our fingertips, millions of households still can’t send an e-mail, let alone pay bills online, check the weather or conduct research for school.

A Broadband Backwater

The shortcomings of the U.S. broadband market are tremendous - more than 10 million U.S. households remain un-served, while nearly 50 million homes are priced out of subscribing to broadband services - and the social and economic consequences are dire.

Late last month, yet another global survey confirmed this, showing the U.S. to be more of an Internet backwater than a world leader. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Internet access and services in America have slid to 15th place among 30 developed nations, a drop from our 12th place ranking in 2006, and from fourth in 2001 when the OECD began its international survey.

In real terms this means Internet users in Japan pay little more than half the price (65 cents to the dollar) for an Internet connection that’s 20 times faster than what’s commonly available to people in the United States.

Yet people in the U.S. are still stuck off the grid, or with unreliable and slow dial-up, with little relief in sight.

A Man, No Plan, The Internet

The reasons for America’s digital decline are many. But first is this: Other developed countries have enacted comprehensive national plans to connect more of their citizens to a fast, affordable and open Internet. The U.S. stands alone among OECD countries without a national broadband program.

We do have national broadband rhetoric, though — and an army of well-heeled apologists to trumpet “successes” and gloss over problems. And the damage is now beginning to show.

In 2004, President Bush pledged “to have a universal, affordable access for broadband technology by the year 2007.”

As if on cue, last year, Mr. Bush’s chief Internet officer John Kneuer declared “Mission Accomplished” — that all the international surveys were misleading and that the “free market” had ensured that Americans across the country enjoy real choice in high-speed internet access.

The Hand of the Duopoly

Kneuer’s Pontius Pilate approach is now familiar to the Bush administration — America’s problems will disappear with a wave of the magical hand of the free market.

What he and his White House compatriots refuse to acknowledge, though, is that a free market approach for Internet services in the U.S. is a chimera. The only hand in play here belongs to the phone and cable duopoly, which controls broadband access for more than 98 percent of homes.

The net effect of this duopoly is a dearth or real choices; allowing providers like AT&T and Comcast to exact high prices from Internet users, while delivering connections that are too slow — and, often in the case of cable, too congested - to meet growing demand.

The market imbalance is beginning to take its toll. A Brookings Institution study counts 300,000 new American jobs each year for every 1 percent increase in broadband adoption.

Larry Page, Google’s co-founder and president, put it a different way. “We’re pretty far behind and for us it’s a big problem because we have our main headquarters in the U.S. and our employees have only a one megabit service,” he told me during his recent visit to Washington.

“If we’re thinking about building the next generation of Internet services they’re not going to be on one megabit services, they’re going to be 100 megabit services and we’re not going to end up developing those… In terms of the U.S. being competitive, it’s very important for us to be leading that rather than following. And we show no signs of being able to do that.”

Free Market Mumbo Jumbo

Our inability to truly wire the nation is itself the result of poor policy decisions. For decades, U.S. communications legislation has been held captive by lobbyists working for–you guessed it– the phone and cable companies.

These Internet service providers are among the most prolific spenders in Washington. They spend hundreds of millions of dollars on lobbyists, campaign contributions, P.R. firms and paid junkets to help ensure that special rules are written in their favor.

For all their talk about the free market, the cable and telephone giants work aggressively to force through regulations that protect their market duopoly, close the door to new market entrants and competitive technologies, and increase their control over the content that travels across the Web

Japan Pries Open Its Market

In 2000, Japan faced a similar dilemma — an Internet industry stifled by the heavy hand of a few network gatekeepers. But the government responded by pulling together the nation’s leaders from the pubic and private sector to launch an “e-Japan strategy” aimed at connecting 40 million of Japan’s 46 million households within five years.

The Japanese government quickly moved to create a highly competitive private sector by compelling regional telephone companies to open their residential lines to wholesale access by other competitors. They also adopted policies to prevent the type of online discrimination that has reared its head recently in the U.S.

In 2001, Japan counted only 2.2 broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants. By mid-2004, ultra-high-speed broadband connections were available to more than 80 percent of Japan’s citizens. By 2006, Japan declared that it had surpassed the broadband goals of e-Japan and was ready to launch its next national strategy, called “u-Japan“. The “u” takes the nation’s broadband beyond “ubiquitous,” to become “universal,” “user-oriented,” and “unique.”

Getting Behind a Big American Idea

Free Press’ own research found that most of the countries with similar universal and open access policies had nearly twice the level of broadband penetration as those that did not.

The OECD seems to agree. “Governments providing money to fund broadband rollouts should avoid creating new monopolies,” according to its report summary. They recommended that any public broadband infrastructure “should be open access, meaning that access to that network is provided on non-discriminatory terms to other market participants.”

Public policy should be designed to make it profitable for corporations to behave in ways that better serve both the free market and the public interest. And we’re seeing more and more from international examples that that requires a shared vision with a light but clear legislative touch. (This issue will be widely discussed this coming weekend as Internet activists, visionaries and innovators come together in Minneapolis at the National Conference for Media Reform).

When President Eisenhower set Americans to work building the nations’ Interstate Highway System he mobilized members of Congress from both sides of the aisle to appropriate federal funds and create corporate incentives for the construction of 41,000 miles of new roads. It was the largest infrastructure project in American history to that point, but the $25 billion in federal money set aside to build the nations main arteries yielded an almost immediate return to our nation’s economy.

The construction of a universally accessible Internet superhighway ranks as important today, and it can be accomplished with even stronger collaboration between the public and private sector.

Future policymakers who are serious about America’s well-being should learn from our failings and from success in other countries so we can deliver the vast benefits of an open connection to every American. It’s time we started construction.

As the Campaign Director for Free Press and SavetheInternet.com, Karr oversees campaigns on public broadcasting and noncommercial media, fake news and propaganda, journalism in crisis, and the future of the Internet.

Copyright © 2008 HuffingtonPost.com, Inc.
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Sound Familiar?

http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentary/19369934.html?page=2&c=y

"Korematsu's challenge to his incarceration fell on deaf ears. The Supreme Court, in a 1944 decision written by Justice Hugo Black, invoked national security to absolve the Roosevelt administration of an unconscionable violation of civil liberties. Dissenting Justice Robert H. Jackson cautioned that "guilt is personal and not inheritable." By condoning Korematsu's mistreatment, he wrote, "the court for all time has validated the principle of racial discrimination. ... The principle then lies about like a loaded weapon ready for the hand of any authority that can bring forward a plausible claim of an urgent need.""

You Might Be a Progressive If …

Published on Friday, May 30, 2008 by CommonDreams.org
You Might Be a Progressive If …
by Michael Schwalbe

In the propaganda wars that surround elections, political labels often become detached from reality. The leading contender for the Democratic presidential nomination, Barack Obama, has been called a “leftist” by Republican flacks and a “progressive” by some of his supporters. Others see Obama as a moderate Democrat only slightly less friendly to corporate capital and to the military-industrial complex than the Republican John McCain. It would be no surprise, then, if many people were wondering, Just who is a progressive?

No one, of course, has the authority to decide who is a progressive and who isn’t. Yet if the label “progressive” has meaning at all, it is only because of some shared criteria we have in mind when we use it. So it might be worthwhile to put these criteria on the table, not to draw boundaries and hand out membership badges, but to spark a conversation about the common ground of ideas and values on which progressives stand, and to underscore the point that the center is not the left.

So who is a progressive? You might be one if …

• You think health care is a basic human right, and that single-payer national health insurance is a worthwhile reform on our way toward creating a non-profit national health care service.

• You think that human rights ought always to trump property rights.

• You think U.S. military spending is an obscene waste of resources, and that the only freedom this spending protects is the freedom of economic elites to exploit working people all around the planet.

• You think U.S. troops should be brought home not only from Afghanistan and Iraq, but from all 130 countries in which the U.S. has military bases.

• You think political leaders who engage in “preemptive war” and invasions should be brought to trial for crimes against humanity and judged against the standards of international law established at Nuremberg after World War Two.

• You think public education should be free, not just from kindergarten through high school, but as far as a person is willing and able to go.

• You think that electoral reform should include instant run-off voting, publicly-financed elections, easy ballot access for all parties, and proportional representation.

• You think that electoral democracy is not enough, and that democracy must also be participatory and extend to workplaces.

• You think that strengthening the rights of all workers to unionize and bargain collectively is a useful step toward full economic democracy.

• You think that as a society we have a collective obligation to provide everyone who is willing and able to work with a job that pays a living wage and offers dignity.

• You think that a class system which forces some people to do dirty, dangerous, boring work all the time, while others get to do clean, safe, interesting work all the time, can never deliver social justice.

• You think that regulating big corporations isn’t enough, and that such corporations, if they are allowed to exist at all, must either serve the common good or be put into public receivership.

• You think that the legal doctrine granting corporations the same constitutional rights as natural persons is absurd and must be overturned.

• You think it’s wrong to allow individuals to accumulate wealth without limits, and that the highest incomes should be capped well before they begin to threaten community and democracy.

• You think that wealth, not just income, should be taxed.

• You think it’s crazy to use the Old Testament as a policy guide for the 21st century.

• You believe in celebrating diversity, while also recognizing that having women and people of color proportionately represented among the class of oppressors is not the goal we should be aiming for.

• You think that the state has no right to kill, and that putting people to death to show that killing is wrong will always be a self-defeating policy.

• You think that anyone who desires the reins of power that come with high political office should, by reason of that desire, be seen as unfit for the job.

• You think that instead of more leaders, we need fewer followers.

• You think that national borders, while sometimes establishing territories of safety, more often establish territories of exploitation, much like gang turf.

• You are open to considering how the privileges you enjoy because of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and/or physical ability might come at the expense of others.

• You believe that voting every few years is a weak form of political participation, and that achieving social justice requires concerted effort before, during, and after elections.

• You think that, ideally, no one would have more wealth more than they need until everyone has at least as much as they need to live a safe, happy, decent life.

• You recognize that an economic system which requires continuous expansion, destroys the environment, relies on rapidly-depleting fossil fuels, exacerbates inequality, and leads to war after war is unsustainable and must be replaced. Score a bonus point if you understand that sticking to the existing system is what’s unrealistic.

No doubt some readers will say this list is incomplete. It is. Many policy issues of importance to progressives go unmentioned. Others might say that the list leans too far to the left, or not far enough. It could also be said that some items are vague (what does it mean to say that human rights ought always to trump property rights?). These are all useful responses. If we hope to work together to transform the social world, we need to know what we agree on, what we don’t agree on, and what needs further hashing-out.

In the end, however, it’s not labels and identities and criteria for bestowing them that really matter. Political terms have consequences, but only because of how we use them. Which suggests another item for the list. You might be a progressive if you think that it’s important to take seriously the meaning of political identities, but that what really matters is living out those identities in ways that help to create more peace, justice, and equality.

Michael Schwalbe is a professor of sociology at North Carolina State University. His most recent book is Rigging the Game: How Inequality Is Reproduced in Everyday Life (Oxford, 2008).

FLORIDA YOUNG DEMOCRATS ANNOUNCES NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Florida Young Democrats (FYD), an organization committed to building, fostering and turning out Florida Democrats under 40, is proud to announce the appointment of Lori Poole as its new Executive Director. As Executive Director, Ms. Poole will handle the day-to-day functioning of FYD, as well as helping to create new local chapters and building stronger ties between Young Democrats across Florida.

Ms. Poole, who was appointed following a nationwide search, has the credentials and the skills needed to take FYD to the next level in Florida. A graduate of Florida State University, Ms. Poole joins us from the Florida Justice Association where she was responsible for message development and public relations and was active in the association's legislative and political programs. She also oversaw the development and coordination of the FJA Young Lawyers Section and its activities. Ms. Poole is also an active member and elected officer of the Leon County Democratic Executive Committee.

“Young voters aren’t simply the future of the Democratic Party – they provide the strength and the energy that make it a force for change today,” said Ms Poole. “I’m incredibly honored to be a part of helping to build the Young Democrat groundswell that will carry Florida and national Democrats to victory, not just in November, but for years to come.

Bringing on a full time FYD staff person has been a long-term goal that was made possible through FYD donors and a matching partnership with Young Democrats of America (YDA). YDA, the nation’s largest youth-led, partisan political organization, has been working to build long-term national and state infrastructure for the youth movement through their State Partnership Program. Ms. Poole’s hire brings the number of state executive directors to seven, with an eighth due to come on board in Ohio by June.

“The Florida Young Democrats are very excited about our new Executive Director as this opens the door for a much more active and integrated youth movement in Florida,” said Alan Brock, FYD President. “Her presence will help to coordinate the efforts of Young Democrats across the state, while providing professional quality organizational support to local YD chapters. This is a great day for Florida Democrats of all ages.”

This is a great step forward for Florida Democrats of all ages, and we need your help to keep our momentum going! It takes money to keep a growing organization on the right track. Help ensure that FYD has the resources we need to be a force for change by signing up now to make a monthly contribution of $10, $25, $50, $100 or more. Your continuing contribution will allow us plan for the future and make sure the voices of young voters are heard loud and clear.


http://www.floridayd.com/donate

A letter from Joe Andrew, a superdelelgate

May 1, 2008

Dear Friends:

I have been inspired.

Today I am announcing my support for Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States of America. I am changing my support from Senator Clinton to Senator Obama, and calling for my fellow Democrats across my home State of Indiana, and my fellow super delegates across the nation, to heal the rift in our Party and unite behind Barack Obama.

The hardest decisions in life are not between good and bad or right and wrong, but between two goods or two rights. That is the decision Democrats face today. We have an embarrassment of riches, but as much as we may love our candidates and revel in the political process that has brought Presidential politics to places that have not seen it in a generation, we cannot let our family affair hurt America by helping John McCain.

Here is my message, explained in this lengthy letter that I hope is perceived as a thoughtful analysis of how to save America from four more years of the misguided polices of the past: you can be for someone without being against someone else. You can unite behind a candidate and a vision for America without rejecting another candidate and their vision, because in real life, opposed to party politics, we Democrats are on the same side. The battle should not be amongst ourselves. Rather, we should focus our efforts on those who are truly on the opposite side: those who want to continue the failed policies of the last eight years, rather than bring real change to Washington. Let us come together right now behind an inspiring leader who not only has the audacity to challenge the old divisive politics, but the audacity to make us all hope for a better America.

Unite the Party Now

I believe that Bill Clinton will be remembered as one of our nation's great Presidents, and Senator Clinton as one of our nation's great public servants. But as much as I respect and admire them both, it is clear that a vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote to continue this process, and a vote to continue this process is a vote that assists John McCain.

I ask Hoosiers to come together and vote for Barack Obama to be our next President. In an accident of timing, Indiana has been given the opportunity to truly make a difference. Hoosiers should grab that power and do what in their heart they know is right. They should reject the old negative politics and vote for true change. Don't settle for the tried and true and the simplistic slogans, but listen to your heart and dare to be inspired. Only a cynic would be critical of Barack Obama inspiring millions. Only the uninformed could forget that the candidate that wins in November is always the candidate that inspires millions.

I ask the leaders of our Party to come together after this Tuesday's primary to heal wounds and unite us around a single nominee. While I was hopeful that a long, contested primary season would invigorate our Party, the polls show that the tone and temperature of the race is now hurting us. John McCain, without doing much of anything, is now competitive against both of our remaining candidates. We are doing his work for him and distracting Americans from the issues that really affect all of our lives.

We need to be talking about fixing the economy, not whose acquaintances once said what to whom. We need to be talking about stopping the attacks in Iraq, not stopping the attacks in Indiana. We need to be talking about policy, not politics.

Barack Obama is the Right Candidate for Right Now

While I am a longtime critic of our Party's rules that created so-called super delegates, we have the rules we have and we must live with them. I am humbled and honored to be a super delegate, and I understand the seriousness of the duty it entails. I recognize that this is a difficult decision for super delegates like me, who owe so much to President Bill Clinton. It is right to be loyal, to be grateful and to be consistent. But it is also right to acknowledge the inevitability of change, right to dare to dream for a better world, and right to know what in your heart is the right thing for the future even if your friends and family disagree. Good things, just like good people, can disagree. But as Democrats, we must disagree with dignity, debate with admiration of each other, and in the end, go forward with mutual respect.

President Clinton and Vice President Gore gave me the opportunity to serve as the Chair of the Democratic Party. I pledged my loyalty to them, and I will never forget Al Gore putting ego aside, gently demurring, and simply asking me to put our country ahead of politics. It is a lesson I will remember forever, and it is what guides me now in this decision. What is best for our Party and our country is not blind loyalty, but passionate support for the candidate who can best correct the misguided policies of the last eight years.

We need a candidate who will re-invigorate the economy and keep good jobs here in America. We need a candidate who will end the war in Iraq. We need a candidate who will provide health coverage for our 45 million uninsured neighbors. We need a candidate who will end our addiction to high-priced foreign oil by investing in renewable energy here at home.

That candidate is Barack Obama.

What was best for America sixteen years ago was electing Bill Clinton. What would have been best for America eight years ago was not only electing Al Gore, which we did, but allowing him to serve as President of the United States. Imagine how the world would be different if Al Gore and not George Bush, would have been President of the United States. Let's seize the opportunity and vote for someone who like Al Gore, was against the war from the beginning, and who brings a new energy, a new excitement, and a new politics to our country.

Let’s put things right.

Time to Act

Many will ask, why now? Why, with several primaries still remaining, with Senator Clinton just winning Pennsylvania, with my friend Evan Bayh working hard to make sure Senator Clinton wins Indiana, why switch now? Why call for super delegates to come together now to constructively pick a president?

The simple answer is that while the timing is hard for me personally, it is best for America. We simply cannot wait any longer, nor can we let this race fall any lower and still hope to win in November. June or July may be too late. The time to act is now.

I write this letter from my mom's dining room table in Indianapolis, Indiana. Four generations of my family have argued and laughed around this table. But what I humbly believe today is that we, as Democrats and as Americans, face what Dr. King characterized and what Senator Obama reminds us is the fierce urgency of now. As a nation, we are at a critical moment and we need leaders with the character and vision to see us through the challenges at hand and those to come. I can't guess what will happen tomorrow, so I can't tell you what kind of experience our next President will need to have to deal with those challenges. But I can tell you what kind of character and vision they will need to have -- and that is what inspires me about Barack Obama.

As Democrats, however, we risk letting this moment slip through our fingers. We risk ceding the field to the Republicans and allowing the morally bankrupt Bush Agenda to continue unabated if we do not unite behind a single candidate. Should this race continue after Indiana and North Carolina, it will inevitably become more negative. The polls already show the supporters for both candidates becoming more strident in their positions and more locked into their support. Continuing on this path would be a catastrophe, as we would inadvertently end up doing Republicans work for them. Already, instead of the audacity of hope, we suffer the audacity of one Democrat comparing John McCain favorably to another Democrat. When that happens, you know it is time for all of us to stop, take a deep breath and unite to change America.

We must act and we must act now.

The Problems of the Process: 2000 and 2008

When Al Gore got a half million more votes than George Bush in 2000, yet the Electoral College elected George Bush President, we saw the absurdity of any system that does not elect the person who gets the most votes. That is why the Democratic Party's nomination process is flawed. I will continue to fight for a 2012 process where there are only primaries, and which ever Democrat gets the most votes becomes our nominee. Delegates should decide the party platform -- voters should decide who our nominee is.

But we are struck with this absurd system for 2008, and, flawed though it may be, we must work within it without betraying the voice of the people. No amount of spin or sleight of hand can deny the fact that where there has been competition, Senator Obama has won more votes, more States and more delegates than any other candidate. Only the super delegates can award the nomination to Senator Clinton, but to do so risks doing to our Party in 2008 what Republicans did to our country in 2000. Let us be intellectually consistent and unite behind Barack Obama.

A New Era of Politics

My endorsement of Senator Obama will not be welcome news to my friends and family at the Clinton campaign. If the campaign's surrogates called Governor Bill Richardson, a respected former member of President Clinton's cabinet, a "Judas" for endorsing Senator Obama, we can all imagine how they will treat somebody like me. They are the best practitioners of the old politics, so they will no doubt call me a traitor, an opportunist and a hypocrite. I will be branded as disloyal, power-hungry, but most importantly, they will use the exact words that Republicans used to attack me when I was defending President Clinton.

When they use the same attacks made on me when I was defending them, they prove the callow hypocrisy of the old politics first perfected by Republicans. I am an expert on this because these were the exact tools that I mastered as a campaign volunteer, a campaign manager, a State Party Chair and the National Chair of our Party. I learned the lessons of the tough, right-wing Republicans all too well. I can speak with authority on how to spar with everyone from Lee Atwater to Karl Rove. I understand that, while wrong and pernicious, shallow victory can be achieved through division by semantics and obfuscation. Like many, I succumbed to the addiction of old politics because they are so easy.

Innuendo is easy. The truth is hard.

Sound bites are easy. Solutions are hard.

Spin is simple and easy. Struggling with facts is complicated and hard.

I have learned the hard way that you can love the candidate and hate the campaign. My stomach churns when I think how my old friends in the Clinton campaign will just pick up the old silly Republican play book and call in the same old artificial attacks and bombardments we have all heard before.

Yet, despite the simple and overwhelming pressure to do anything and everything to win, Barack Obama has risen above it all and demanded a new brand of politics. People flock to Senator Obama because they are rejecting the hyperbole of the old politics. The past eight years of George Bush have witnessed a retreat from substance, science, and reason in favor spin, cronyism and ideology. Barack Obama has dared not only to criticize it, as all Democrats do, but to actually reject playing the same old game. And in doing so, he has shown us a new path to victory.

Uniting for Victory

The simple fact is that Democrats need to be united in November to win, and Clinton supporters, in particular, will be vital to victory. We will not convince Clinton supporters to join the Obama campaign, however, by personally criticizing them. We must welcome everyone and avoid doing Republican work for them. It is therefore incumbent on all of us who once supported Senator Clinton to welcome the thousands who should now switch their support to Senator Obama. Similarly, a necessary part of the healing process for our Party is for those who supported Senator Obama early to have the grace and good sense to broaden the tent and welcome newcomers into the fold.

The old players of the old political game will claim that I am betraying my old friend Senator Evan Bayh by switching my support to Senator Obama. I believe that Evan Bayh would be a great President, and therefore a great Vice President. I will continue to argue that he would be a great choice to be on the ticket with Barack Obama. Evan Bayh is uniquely positioned as a successful governor with executive experience who is now a U.S. Senator with foreign policy experience and who is young enough to not undercut the message of vitality and hard work that Barack Obama represents. Part of healing the Party may be to have a Clinton supporter on the ticket, let alone someone who would help with Indiana, Ohio and the moderate Midwest in the general election.

Being for Evan Bayh, however, does not mean that you have to be for Hillary Clinton. The important message to Hoosiers, and to super delegates, is that being for someone does not mean that you agree 100 percent of the time. Regardless of whether Evan Bayh and I support different candidates, I will support Evan Bayh.

We must reject the notion that we have to beat the Republicans at their own game -- or even that the game has to be played at all. It is so easy for all of us involved -- candidates, campaigns and the media -- to focus on the process and the horse race that we forget why we got into it in the first place. Barack Obama has had the courage to talk about real issues, real problems and real people. Let's pause for a second in the midst of the cacophony of the campaign circus and listen.

In 1992, I was inspired by Bill Clinton because he promised, and delivered, a framework for addressing America's problems. President Clinton ended a long-running left-right debate in our Party, and inspired millions. He drew giant crowds and spoke passionately for a generation of Americans who often disenfranchised and rarely participated in governing. Today, Barack Obama does the same thing. Winners redefine the game. Winners connect with the American people and not only feel their pain, but inspire them to take action to heal the underlying cause. Barack Obama is that kind of candidate and that kind of leader, which is why he will win in November.

Welcoming Everyone into the Party

We face significant challenges as a nation and as a Party, but time and again, Americans have shown the resilience and determination necessary to overcome even the highest obstacle. We have a difficult road ahead, but I have complete confidence that Barack Obama is the candidate who can lead our Party to victory and the President who can guide us to even greater heights.

Many Democrats know me for one short speech I gave over and over again in the 2000 Presidential campaign. That speech was about welcoming people into our Party and welcoming undecided voters to our campaign to elect Al Gore. Today, we need to welcome Clinton supporters, undecided voters, and all Americans to join Barack Obama's cause to fight for a better America. My speech ended with these words, which are even more relevant today:

The difference between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party is that you are always welcome in the Democratic Party.

Because Democrats don’t care if you are black or white or brown or a nice shade of green, you are welcome in the Democratic Party.

We don’t care if you pray in a church or a synagogue or a temple or a mosque, or just before math tests, you are welcome in the Democratic Party.

We don’t care if you are young or old, or just don’t want to tell your age, you are welcome in the Democratic Party.

We don’t care what gender you are, or what gender you want to hold hands with; as long as you want to hold hands, you are welcome in the Democratic Party.

We don’t care about the size of your bank account, just the size of your heart; and we don’t care where you are today, just where you dream you want to be tomorrow.

That is your Democratic Party.

That is Barack Obama's Democratic Party.

That is the Party that will win in November.

Sincerely,


Joe Andrew

Happy May Day

From Wikipedia:

May Day occurs on May 1 and refers to any of several public holidays.[1] In many countries, May Day is synonymous with International Workers' Day, or Labour Day, which celebrates the social and economic achievements of the labor movement. As a day of celebration, however, the holiday has ancient origins and can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times. Many of these customs are due to May Day being a cross-quarter day, meaning that it falls approximately halfway between an equinox and a solstice.

May Day can refer to various labour celebrations conducted on May 1 that commemorate the fight for the eight hour day. May Day in this regard is called International Workers' Day, or Labour Day. The choice of May 1st was a commemoration by the Second International for the people involved in the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago, Illinois. As the culmination of three days of labor unrest in the United States, the Haymarket incident was a source of outrage and admiration from people around the globe. In countries other than the United States and Canada, residents sought to make May Day an official holiday and their efforts largely succeeded. For this reason, in most of the world today, May Day has become an international celebration of the social and economic achievements of the labour movement. Although May Day received its inspiration from the United States, the U.S. Congress designated May 1 as Loyalty Day in 1958 due to the day's appropriation by the Soviet Union. Alternatively, Labor Day traditionally occurs sometime in September in the United States. Some view this as an effort to isolate American workers from the worldwide community. Although certain countries do not celebrate May Day, people from around the globe continue to use May Day parades as an opportunity to show disapproval with the government or to protest cuts in social programs.

Be loyal today, celebrate workers rights!

Julie Nixon Eisenhower endorsed Obama

Watching Michael Moore on Larry King tonight and he made a good point I hadn't heard... Julie Nixon Eisenhower, daughter of President Nixon and daughter in-law to President Eisenhower, has endorsed Senator Obama for President, as has her sister in law. JNE also maxed out her donation to his campaign.

You can read about it here

And as Michael Moore said, Obama is the future of our country because he unites people like Michael Moore & the Daughter of Richard Nixon.

This blog doesn't endorse one candidate over another in the Democratic Primary... but that is good logic...

Local Candidate Forum

On Monday night the local Democratic Executive Committee hosted a candidates forum. There is a write up in the Tallahassee Democrat.

Quoted from article:

The event first began during the 2006 elections and about 100 people showed up then.

"It was such a big success, that we decided we wanted to do it again," said Rick Minor, chairman of the Leon County Democratic Executive Committee. "This is our opportunity for the Democratic Party to introduce our candidates to residents

Congrats on a night well done!

KidCare Action Needed Now

Call NOW to make sure kids get and keep their health coverage!

What to Say:
Urge them to change the rules of the KidCare program to ensure that children transition smoothly between different KidCare components. Tell them that there is still time for them to add language to the budget to prevent kids from unnecessarily falling through the cracks and losing their health coverage.
An estimated 17,000 children lose their Medicaid eligibility each month when they become too old to qualify or when their family's income increases. However, the majority remain eligible for another component of KidCare (i.e., Medikids or Healthy Kids), because their family's income remains below 200% of the federal poverty level.

Advocates had hoped that these important and long-sought improvements to KidCare would be addressed in the earlier budget negotiation process, but they weren't. Nevertheless, $13.4 million in State funds are included in the budget to provide 38,000 additional KidCare slots. Children transitioning from Medicaid would access these slots.

Note: You may get questions about whether this KidCare funding should be shifted to instead expand coverage to assess and treat children with autism. It is NOT an either/or decision. These issues are separate, and they are both much-needed. Florida can afford to do both.

PLEASE CALL:

Senate President Ken Pruitt: 850-487-5229
House Speaker Marco Rubio : 850-488-1450
Governor Charlie Crist: 850-488-4441 (ask for healthcare staff)

There are only a few days left in the legislative session. Please call now!

Thanks to the Florida Child Health Care Coalition for providing the basis for this alert.

Congratulations to Mr. & Mrs. Christopher Petley (and Mrs. & Mr. Raquel Simon-Petley)

Leon County Young Democrat (sponsors of this blog) President Chris Petley and People for the American Way staffer Raquel Simon are officially married! Congratulations go out to the happy couple, a match made in progressive heaven. We are all hoping that their marriage is long lasting, fruitful, successful, happy and fun! We could not be happier then we are for this couple.

Congratulations to you both, and we look forward to seeing you when you return from the Honeymoon!

Good News, at last!

The NCEC, or the The National Committee for an Efficactive Congress, (Which is something you should have heard of before, but if you haven't check it out here) Has said that Democrats should pick up 6 seats this fall!

It is a long article, but worth reading, check out the links, and become a better person.

A Constitutional Conundrum

from Mother Jones:
"The Judiciary Committee is seeking a fairly narrow ruling from Judge Bates—one that would compel Miers to attend hearings before the committee, and order both Miers and Bolten to divulge the nature (though perhaps not the contents) of a bundle of undisclosed documents over which the White House is claiming executive privilege. But the civil filing is a legal maneuver without precedent, and therein lies the possibility that the White House could prevail despite what experts view as a weak legal standing."

Anything to bring the executive branch back into line has my support. The full article is definitely worth reading.

It is a sad day when you have to sue the president to get him to obey the law.

Check out this post on Aikane Leo's blog

Aikane Leo's blog has a great post on the CSX fiasco. Under the title: "Another sorry week in CSX-land" he covers the press coverage of the over $600 million our state is giving CSX. The state is also taking full liability if the trains crash, at least for a little while, then it falls on the local community, so CSX has no real obligation to maintain the trains.

I fully support mass transit, and I think Florida needs mass transit. Trains could revolutionize our state, and our tourism. But, in the middle of a budget crisis, where every dollar counts, we can't be funding pork, or special interest pet projects.

Good post Jim.

Miami Democrats to School John McCain On The Economy

WHAT: Press Conference with South Florida Democrats. Educators, Democratic Party leaders and activists will join to school John McCain on the economy during his visit to Coral Gables, Florida.

WHO: South Florida Teachers


Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chairman Bret Berlin

Miami-Dade Young Democrats President Florence Moss

Democratic Activists

WHEN: TOMORROW SUNDAY, April 27, 2008 at 3:00 PM EST

WHERE: Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables - (Intersection of Columbus Blvd and Anastasia Avenue)

**IMPORTANT BACKGROUND**: As gas and food prices skyrocket, the Republican Recession fostered by eight years of Bush mismanagement is taking a severe toll. South Florida is groundzero for the subprime mortgage meltdown. But Republican presidential candidate John McCain admits he offers little in the way of direction for America's economy.

"I'm going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues. I still need to be educated." John McCain quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Nov. 26, 2005

"The issue of economics is something that I've really never understood as well as I should. I understand the basics, the fundamentals, the vision, all that kind of stuff." John McCain quoted in the Chicago Tribune, Dec. 18, 2007

DETAILS: English and Spanish spokespersons will be available.

###

WES MCCARVILLE ENTERS RACE FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 29

Wes McCarville, former President of the Brevard County Young Democrats, who, under his leadership, were very successful in electing Rep. Sasso this past spring, announced on April 2, 2008 that he will run for the Florida House of Representatives, District 29. Here is the text of his announcement:

"After much thought and consideration, I am pleased to announce that I am entering the race as the Democratic candidate for the Florida House of Representatives, District 29. I believe the voters of the 29th District are ready for a leader who can represent their real interests. I will promote a vision of the future that will return economic prosperity to our region that includes public input, accountability and provides economic growth that is sustainable to meet the needs of our citizens. The present legislature in Tallahassee has not effectively dealt with the economic downturn that has affected all of our citizens. I will work to break through this status quo to bring about real change.

I propose an open government, accountable and responsible to the people,that actively promotes our strengths. We all know that our District has much potential for economic opportunity as evidenced by the growth we have experienced in the past. I will pursue policies that encourage economic growth by embracing our unique resources such as a well-educated workforce and newly developed business and retail complexes.

As your representative, I will aggressively promote America's space program and maintain its reputation for innovation and excellence. I will work to attract additional private space ventures to the space coast. I will support policy to protect our region's delicate ecosystem which is so important to our residents and serves to bolster our region's thriving tourism industry.

Now more than ever, due to reduced revenues, we need an efficient, effective government that stretches every tax dollar to benefit our citizens. I will work to cut the fat from the budget while maintaining the services of importance to all Floridians. I am not beholden to special interests groups that have influenced some of our politicians to act in ways not responsive to our citizens. I have entered this race to bring a voice back to the people of our District.

Our citizens have long been ready for change, but they have not been provided with a real choice. I now offer voters that real choice."

The Wes McCarville Campaign has a website for more information or to make a contribution. The campaign website is www.investinwes.com.

Short Term Fixes aren't what is needed for Florida

State Legislature balance budget by using non-reoccurring dollars. This does not bode well four our state budget.

Tobacco fund used for health programs

TALLAHASSEE — The House and Senate leadership on Wednesday rescued two health programs from the budget ax by tapping into Florida's landmark cash settlement with tobacco companies.

The $300 million infusion from the Lawton Chiles Endowment Fund breathes life into the Medically Needy and Medicaid's Aged and Disabled programs
Both were slated to be killed as part of nearly $1 billion in planned cuts to health and human services.

Only about 40,000 Floridians are served by the health care programs, but they are among the neediest: those in need of organ transplants, for instance, who cannot get insurance, but make too much to qualify for Medicaid, and adults over 65 who are permanently disabled.

"I'm overcome with emotion right now," said a teary-eyed Mary Ellen Ross, 55, a Delray Beach bone marrow transplant recipient who has been enrolled in the Medically Needy program since 1999. "I'm one of those 40,000 people. Without this program ... we would have nowhere else to go."

The deal was announced following a morning of negotiations between House and Senate lawmakers. Hospital officials who had been preparing to criticize the legislature at a midday press conference for cutting the programs instead spent the time praising them.

"Our leaders have heard us," said Wayne NeSmith, president of the Florida Hospital Association.

House leaders initially resisted Gov. Charlie Crist's idea to tap the $2.2 billion Chiles Endowment Fund, the proceeds of Florida's successful lawsuit against tobacco companies.

Although interest from the fund is used to pay for health care and children's programs, this marks the first time the state has dipped into the fund's principal - a sign of the difficulty lawmakers are having balancing the budget.

"It's been a rough year," said Sen. Lisa Carlton, R-Osprey, the Senate's top budget negotiator.

At least we can laugh at ourselves...

http://view.break.com/491919 - Watch more free videos

A political Satire regarding Earth Day. Warning there is strong language

This goes out to Sarah Smith from Marianna.

Career Opportunities with Grassroots Campaigns

Grassroots Campaigns is launching the largest national field campaigns in 2008 to put a Democrat in the White House. After 8 years of George Bush attacking out civil liberties and the environment we can't afford to let John McCain continue this administrations legacy. We need a president who's willing to take us in a new direction on issues like the War in Iraq, poverty, health care, the environment, and education. We need to make history this year and to do that we'll be in 50 cities around the country this summer running field campaigns for the Democratic National Committee and MoveOn.org.

Interested in applying, contact:

David Abercrombie
dabercrombie@grassrootscampaigns.com
617-432-0407
WEBSITE: http://www.grassrootscampaigns.com

Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. (GCI), a national firm specializing in building grassroots support for progressive causes, political candidates, public interest campaigns, and non-profit fundraising operations, is interviewing potential staff for their campaigns to Take Back the White House. Grassroots Campaigns’ current and past clients include MoveOn.org, the Democratic National Committee, the ACLU, and the League of Conservation Voters. We are hiring for the following position:

2008 Election Field Staff

This is a two part position. Initially, Election Field Staff will work as directors in our fundraising campaign offices to build financial and volunteer support for the Democratic Party’s organizing efforts. As the election nears, staff will work with MoveOn.org’s innovative voter identification and get out the vote campaign in all the swing states as well as the progressive blue state cities to get all voters out to the polls.
Phase 1:
Directors will run our door-to-door fundraising campaigns to build the base of support progressives need to win. By talking with one person at a time about the Democratic Party we will increase the small donor base, engage people in the elections and raise money for the Democratic Party to elect a Democratic President in ’08. Director’s responsibilities include:
- Recruitment: Build a team of 10-60 canvassers by recruiting from within the local community. Interview prospective staff and make hiring decisions.
- Staff Management: Teach canvassing/fundraising skills. Work with your staff in individual and group settings, with a particular eye towards developing leaders. Cultivate a welcoming and motivating atmosphere.
- Canvassing: Canvass door-to-door at least 3-4 days per week, to work with staff in the field and meet personal fundraising requirements.
Phase 2:
Field Organizers will work in key congressional districts to recruit, train and manage networks of volunteers. Specifically, field organizers will:
- Recruit volunteers through phone calls, emails, individual interactions and community events.
- Train volunteers in effective get-out-the-vote skills, including door-to-door voter persuasion and mobilization.
- Manage and mobilize volunteers by meeting weekly with lead volunteers to plan upcoming get-out-the-vote canvass and phone banks, and provide ongoing volunteer recruitment and training.

Qualifications:
Sound communication and motivational skills, strong desire for political change, and work ethic are essential. We are looking for people who have a strong leadership background, and who are ready to take on a lot of responsibility. Previous field organizing or canvass experience is a plus, but not a pre-requisite.

Salary/Benefits:
Annual salary begins at $24,000, and increases commensurate with experience. Staff may opt into our health care plan. Student loan assistance repayment program offered.

Locations:
Nationwide, ask recruiter for more details.

One Trick Pony

www.joegarcia08.com

So when will this end?

That is all there is to say about PA's Primary.

A. J. Smith Withdraws from District 10 House Race

Wakulla.com is reporting that A. J. Smith has withdrawn from the District 10 House Race. This is the seat that Rep. Will Kendrick currently Representatives. Rep. Kendrick is a good man, and has been elected as a Democrat to the State House 4 times. Unfortunately, Rep. Kendrick switched parties and became a Republican after the election in 2006, when he ran unopposed for his race, this will be a stain on his character and reputation for a long time to come. We understand that people change parties, but if a person is elected to represent people as on political party, they shouldn't switch parties. Rep. Kendrick is popular and good, he probably would have been re-elected as a Republican, but now many people are disappointed and have lost their trust in him.

We must work hard to elect whichever Democrat wins the primary this August. We must send a message to the Republican Party and Tallahassee... When you are elected you represent the people and the party that elected you.

Rules for joining a Florida Democratic Executive Committee

Interested in having a vote in who runs your local Democratic or Republican Executive Committee? Here is a little bit of the laws that help make that happen. The party is set up to protect the party insider, so the forms to run for precinct committee person are, of course, due in June, and new people, of course, get interested in party politics around August... so the insider gets to hold their position of authority for another 4 years.

Stand up, run for precinct committee person. Help lead your party forward.


Florida Statue- 103.91 Political Parties-Section (4)

Any political party other than a minor political party may by rule provide for the membership of its state or county executive committee to be elected for 4-year terms at the primary electuion in each year a presidential election in held. The terms shall commence on the first day of the month following each presidential general elections; but the names of candidates for political party offices shall not be placed on ballot at any other election.

Note: The 2008 Primary is set for August 26, 2008. You can not be running as a Precinct Committee person and any other office. The commence of office of newly elected committee members begins on December 1, 2008.

The results of such election shall be determined by a plurality of the votes cast. In such event, electors seeking to qualify such office shall do so with the Department of State or Supervisor of Elections not later than noon of the 67th day, preceding the primary election. The outgoing chair of each county executive committee shall, within 30 days after the committee members take office, hold an organizational meeting of all newly elected members for the purpose of electing officers. The chair of each state executive committee shall, within 60 days after the committee members take office, hold an organizational meeting of all newly elected members for the purpose of electing officers.



Note: All applications are due by 12 NOON on June 20th, no exceptions.

Sing a Song

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155201977/bctid1515879706

Jame's Kotecki insight into PA Primary.

April 22nd, 2008 is Pay Equity Day

Atima Omara-Alwala, the National Chair of the Young Democrats of America Women's Caucaus, has asked that we share this information with you today.

Currently, women earn 77 cents to the dollar, over a working lifetime, this wage disparity costs the average American woman and her family an estimated $700,000 to $2 million, impacting Social Security benefits and pensions.

In 1996, Equal Pay Day was created by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) as a way to raise awareness about the gap between men's and women's wages. The day, observed on a Tuesday in April, symbolizes how far into the year a woman must work, on average, to earn as much as a man earned the previous year. (Tuesday is the day on which women's wages catch up to men's wages from the previous week.) Because women earn less, on average, than men, they must work longer for the same amount of pay. The wage gap is even greater for most women of color.

As Young Democrats we are well positioned to make a difference in our communities. Visit www.yda.org/payequity2008 to learn what you can do in your Young Democrat local chapters and/or your local Women's Caucuses, to raise awareness and take action around an issue important to us all.

Take Action for Pay Equity Today!
www.yda.org/payequity2008

10 things you should know about McCain, but don't

10 things you should know about John McCain
(but probably don't):

1. John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday
in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his
position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key
civil rights laws.

2. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish
than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist
Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like
Gandhi."

3. His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but
McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then
applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.

4. McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do
not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."

5. The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst
senator in Congress for children. He voted against the
children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's
veto of the bill.

6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with
millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife
own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to
the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a
"second job" and skip their vacations.

7. Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too
reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator
said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill
down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his
temper and he worries me."

8. McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but
his campaign manager and top advisers are actually
lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen
says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his
campaign, more than any of the other presidential
candidates.


9. McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious
right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual
guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is
to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain
sought the political support of right-wing preacher John
Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's
punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church
"the Antichrist" and a "false cult."

10. He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored
a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last
year.

*******************************************

1. "The Complicated History of John McCain and MLK Day,"
ABC News, April 3, 2008
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/04/the-complicated.html

"McCain Facts," ColorOfChange.org, April 4, 2008
http://colorofchange.org/mccain_facts/

2. "McCain More Hawkish Than Bush on Russia, China, Iraq,"
Bloomberg News, March 12, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aF28rSCtk0ZM&refer=us

"Buchanan: John McCain 'Will Make Cheney Look Like
Gandhi,'" ThinkProgress, February 6, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/06/buchanan-gandhi-mccain/
3. "McCain Sides With Bush On Torture Again, Supports Veto
Of Anti-Waterboarding Bill," ThinkProgress,
February 20, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/20/mccain-torture-veto/

4. "McCain says Roe v. Wade should be overturned,"
MSNBC, February 18, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17222147/

5. "2007 Children's Defense Fund Action Council®
Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard," February 2008
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=act_learn_scorecard2007
"McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance
expansion," CNN, October 3, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/03/mccain.interview/

6. "Beer Executive Could Be Next First Lady," Associated
Press, April 3, 2008
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h-S1sWHm0tchtdMP5LcLywg5ZtMgD8VQ86M80

"McCain Says Bank Bailout Should End `Systemic Risk,'"
Bloomberg News, March 25, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHMiDVYaXZFM&refer=home

7. "Will McCain's Temper Be a Liability?," Associated Press,
February 16, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=4301022

"Famed McCain temper is tamed," Boston Globe,
January 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/01/27/famed_mccain_temper_is_tamed/

8. "Black Claims McCain's Campaign Is Above Lobbyist
Influence: 'I Don't Know What The Criticism Is,'"
ThinkProgress, April 2, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-black-lobbyist/

"McCain's Lobbyist Friends Rally 'Round Their Man,"
ABC News, January 29, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4210251

9. "McCain's Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam,"
Mother Jones Magazine, March 12, 2008
http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/03/john-mccain-rod-parsley-spiritual-guide.html

"Will McCain Specifically 'Repudiate' Hagee's Anti-Gay
Comments?," ThinkProgress, March 12, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/12/mccain-hagee-anti-gay/

"McCain 'Very Honored' By Support Of Pastor Preaching
'End-Time Confrontation With Iran,'" ThinkProgress,
February 28, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/28/hagee-mccain-endorsement/

10. "John McCain Gets a Zero Rating for His Environmental
Record," Sierra Club, February 28, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/environment/77913/

Florida Rally in Washington DC on April 30th, 2008

The cost is FREE, and it includes transportation, meals and lodging in DC, but you must reserve your seat TODAY.

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the Democratic Hispanic Caucus of Florida, the Florida Voter League, the Southern Leadership Coalition and other Democrat and civil rights organizations statewide have joined in coalition to rally in Washington DC on April 30th, 2008, in front of the DNC and ask them to Count Our Votes-Cuenten Nuestros Votos.

LULAC has obtained funding to pay for our transportation, meals and lodging in DC, and all we need is YOU, the citizen, the activist, who is tired of hearing "Florida's votes don't count"! I personally don't care if the Florida Legislature changed the primary date with or without the Democrat legislators' votes, I don't even care that political parties have the right to set their own primary rules. All I care about is that everyone's rights end where mine begin and I have not, nor will I ever give up the right to have my vote counted! As Dr. Eugene Poole, president of the Florida Voter League stated, this is a violation of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and we need to stand up and demand that our civil rights be respected. And especially so as Democrats. How can we demand that our votes be counted from the Republicans (remember 2000?!!) if the DNC won't even honor our primary votes?!!!

South Florida has been allocated 4 buses for the Rally with up to 55 seats on each bus - that's 220 of us. The buses will be filled on a first come, first served basis. The buses will leave early morning (between 6 am and 7 am) on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008, from central locations in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, arriving in Washington DC that evening. The Count Our Votes-Cuenten Nuestros Votos Rally will begin at 10 am on Wednesday, April 30th, 2008, until 2 pm. And the buses will leave Washington DC to return to Florida at 8 am, Thursday, April 30th, 2008.

The cost is FREE, and it includes transportation, meals and lodging in DC, but you must reserve your seat TODAY.

If intrested, please contact, Millie Herrera, President, Democratic Hispanic Caucus of Florida, email: millie(at)flahispanicdems.org

Why You Should Get Involved in Your Local and State Parties

This Blog post is written by Kevin Bondelli, Southwest Region Director for the Young Democrats of America. He is the SW counter part to the Florida Young Democrats President Alan Brock, who is the Southeast Regional Director for YDA. (Join the facebook group)

It is amazing how closely Kevin's argument for joining the party out in Arizona rings true here in Florida. You have until June to file to be a Precinct Committee Person, and in most places in Florida (at least around our area of the state)you will win unopposed.

And now for insight from Kevin:

We all know the stereotype of the composition of local and state Democratic Parties: a plethora of old activists that consider anyone under 50 a young Democrat. While this keeps many younger voters from becoming involved in those entities, it would be to your advantage to bite the bullet and take the plunge.

“But Kevin, there is nobody at these meetings that is even close to my age and I would rather just be involved with Young Democrats instead!”

I know that’s what your thinking, and trust me, as a former state party employee I feel you, but the rewards of involvement will vastly outweigh the costs if you and your organization commit. Here is why:

The local and state parties determine the allocation of a lot of resources, and if nobody is there to advocate for youth programs, they are going to be overlooked.

Elected Precinct Committee persons and state committee members (at least in Arizona) vote on who becomes delegates to Democratic National Conventions, so while advocating for youth representation goals in delegate selection plans is important, having a number of young democrats involved will make the biggest difference.

Some of those older activists are actually quite interesting, and talking to them and learning from their experiences can be an invaluable education for you and your members.

Fundraising lead generation. The members of your state and local parties are the high-efficacy donors, even if they are small-contribution donors, and knowing them personally will give you a much better opportunity of raising money.

You can sell your organization and young voters in general to party regulars, and getting your message out to them will increase your legitimacy and exposure.

You are officially changing your role from “future of the party” to the “present of the party.” As long as young democrats are absent from the regular party apparatus it will appear that Young Democrats is AAA and the local/state party is the major leagues, and when you get older you graduate and get called up.

The more your state party knows you the more you will be able to partner up with their big events. In Arizona the state party works with YDAZ to have after-party fundraisers following their big dinners.

Common apprehensions of Young Democrats about getting involved:

The older activists don’t want us there. This, actually, is far from the truth. During my time at the Arizona Democratic Party I can’t count all of the activists that openly expressed their wishes that more young people were involved. While there will always be a few that look at younger Democrats condescendingly, they tend to be the minority. They won’t bite, I swear (a lot of them don’t even have real teeth).

But there won’t be any people close to my age there. Not yet. That is why you have to bring them. The Arizona State University Young Democrats have done a great job of this in the state legislative district that encompasses Tempe, and with that involvement there are now two state representatives from that district under the age of 30. How cool is it when their are people representing you at your state capitol that are your age? The answer is: very cool.

It isn’t worth my time. Seriously, did you just forget to read the entire first part of this post? Yes, it is worth your time.

Alright Kevin, you’ve convinced me. Now how do I get involved?

Become a precinct committeperson. Get appointed now and when elections roll around become an elected PC. Your local/state party can help you with the process.

Start attending your local meetings. Find out when and where they meet, bring some friends, and talk to the people there. Let them know that you want to get more involved. Once you’ve been to a couple meetings tell other friends that they should come too. Once there are more young people attending, more young people will attend. If you build it, they will come.

Go to state committee meetings. The people here are the top Democratic activists in your state. See if a representative from your state chapter can give a report at these meetings.

Have you been successful in getting involved with your local and state parties? Is there something I missed? Leave a comment and share your stories and ideas.

5 days left to apply to be a Delegate to the DNCC

APPLY NOW

On May 17, 2008 the last 40 delegates from Florida to the Democratic National Convention in Denver will be elected, and 6 alternate Delegates. This delegate election is also where the Florida Democratic Party will try to meet its diversity goals developed by itself and the DNC.

Each State develops its own Diversity Goals, and Florida has set its up in such a way to help its delegation reflect its voter registration. The easiest math for this is that the party allows that 10% of democrats self identify as LGBT so 10% of our delegation will be LGBT. Also, our delegation has to be gendered balanced, 50/50 male and female. Because our super delegates have more men then women mixed in, we will be electing more women then men at this last round.

Here is a break down to take into consideration of the remaining diversity goals:

9 Hispanic delegates
1 Hispanic alternate
14 GLBT delegates
10 youth delegates
2 youth alternates
13 African Americans delegates
4 disabled delegates

We have met our goals on veterans, and these delegates can be elected pledged to Clinton or Obama, and one of the alternates elected to Edwards.

The gender break down is:

Senator Hillary Clinton
24 At-Large – 14F / 10M
3 At-Large Alternates – 1F / 2M

Senator John Edwards
1 At-Large Alternate – 1F

Senator Barack Obama
16 At-Large – 10F / 6M
2 At-Large Alternates – 1F / 1M

Read this over, and think of the people who you think should apply. The delegates are elected with a weighted vote, discussed earlier in this blog. Good luck, I hope you try, and I hope you get it... It is going to be a great convention!

www.demconvention.com
www.denverdnc2008.com
www.denverconvention2008.com (unofficial)

Super Delegates Vs. Pledged Delegates

Today I was researching the rules for Pledged delegates switching during the floor fight. It is my understanding that a pledged delegate has to vote for the person that she or he is pledged for during the initial vote, but in a floor fight, as the rounds of voting move forward, delegates can switch to help secure a nominee.

The argument here is that delegates are elected for their commitment to a candidate and would never switch.

But apparently it is just a pledge, not even an oath, and nothing is sacred. Doing a Yahoo search earlier today it appears that this time last month Senator Clinton's campaign basically announced that depending how things go during Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary, they plan to try to pull people off of Obama's pledged delegates, even before the first round of voting. Obama's campaign has denied a similar plan, but many people expect that Clinton campaign attacks, the Obama campaign may retaliate.

This would make regular delegates all equal to super delegates, who vote their conscience. There are some interesting articles out there, one, from what appears to be a conservative magazine, Investors Business Daily. The article by Roger Simon Even Delegates Now 'Pledged' Are Fair Game. The author has a good insight to what I think could happen. I am not sure what it will mean for the party, party loyalty, the 08 election, and for our country.

I understand that Florida Young Democrats President, Alan Brock, who was elected as a Congressional District Delegate for John Edwards. He has been contacted by the Clinton Campaign in an effort to start persuading him on where his next vote should go.

Voto Latino Fundraiser & Parody PSA

Check out this new album on Itunes:


Voto Latino is produced by Nacional Records and iTunes, and they are both donating their proceeds from the benefit album. All proceeds will benefit Voto Latino’s voter registration, education and empowerment initiatives. Check it out now 15 songs for $3.99, a great deal, and a great cause.

Voto Latino on Larry King

The Voto Latino telenovela.

Make sure you are registered to vote. Music is the soundtrack to my life. The Voto Latino compilation is the soundtrack of a movement,” says Voto Latino co-founder Rosario Dawson, who recently starred in a widely circulated telenovela parody PSA with Wilmer Valderrama. “It encapsulates everything about the Latino drive to the polls so blast it on your way to change.”

Adds Valderrama: “Music has proven to be an influential platform for our generation. This is the time to use it.”

YDA's Spring National Conference

Are you totally geared up to put a Democrat back the White House this November? Ready to boot Republicans out of office up and down the ballot? Tired of watching campaigns from the sidelines? Had enough of the media telling you what voters are saying?

Join us as we kickoff the Young Voter Revolution - YDA's first-ever truly National Youth Coordinated Campaign to turnout young voters, take back the White House, and swing elections up and down the ballot.

Working together in Nashville we will develop our campaign plans, set goals for the number of young Democrats our efforts will turnout to vote, and brainstorm creative and cutting edge ways to make this all happen. Learn how you, as a YDA member, can get involved in this historic effort, how your local chapter, caucus, or state organization can work toward our collective goals, and what resources YDA National can provide you to help with those efforts. All in all, this meeting is where we officially kick off our efforts to make sure we not only win in November, but ensure that 2008 continues to be the "Year of the Young Voter."

Plus, we like to have a good time at YDA. After all, this conference is taking place in the heart of Music City, USA. Once all that hard work planning and preparing is done, reward yourself with some good ol' fashioned fun in Nashville's world famous bar and club district, Music Row, with enough live music to suit all your tastes!


Link

Training Opportunity

The Florida Young Democrats are committed to the defeat of the so called “Marriage Amendment”. Please attend these trainings if you can. The trainings come from the Camp Wellstone model and can help with all aspects of activism.

Sign up here

Campaign Training Program
At the two-and-a-half day training, you’ll have the opportunity to choose one of two tracks:

Advanced Track: Working on a Campaign: This track is designed for you if you are one of our more experienced campaign volunteers. This track teaches participants the modern mechanics of organizing for political campaigns. During your sessions you will learn advanced techniques of targeting, organizing, media relations, volunteer coordination, Get Out the Vote, and the latest campaign technology.

Fundamentals Track: Working on a Campaign: This track is designed for you if you want to learn the step by step fundamentals necessary to be successful at the grassroots level. Topics will include: planning, volunteer recruitment, field, planning events, canvassing, earned media, and even writing a blog. You will learn the basic skills that are essential to putting your local issue or political campaign in the best position to win.

The Florida Young Democrats are co-sponsors of this training.

Great PSA on why Florida should raise our Tobacco tax

A dollar can go a long way:



Share this information with your friends. We need this tax.

Bill Clinton thinks young people aren't savvy

Bill Clinton, who heavily targeted young voters almost 20 years ago when he was first elected, how now said that they aren't savvy enough to figure out who they should vote for.

Older voters gravitate to Hillary Clinton because they're too wise to be fooled by Barack Obama's rhetoric, former president Bill Clinton told Pennsylvania voters today.

Clinton's comments, to a packed high school gym about an hour north of Philadelphia, were one part presidential politics and one part legacy protection. His beef was with Obama's contention that many of the problems facing the country today were simmering long before President Bush took office seven-plus years ago.

I don't think he meant it the way that he said it, but he did say it. That isn't going to win his wife any more votes.

Read the full post by clicking here.

Floor Fight Script

Lawrence O'Donnell Jr., former West Wing writer-producer, wrote a possible script for what might go down at the DNCC in Denver this summer. I know most people wrote about this last week when the Huffington Post first posted it from the New York Magazine, but many of my friends hadn't seen it yet. Leon County DEC Vice Chair Monica O'Neal asked that I share this information with the local populace, so I am posting it here on the Tallahassee Leaders Forum.

We know that our blog is checked regularly, this will surely make the story increase in popularity. It is a little long, but well worth the read, and it has, what many of us would consider a happy ending!

No on 2 Internet Action Day

The people pushing Amendment 2 have a ‘big’ announcement tomorrow. According to a press report, Florida4Marriage will host a series of news conferences, “to launch its campaign and name local leaders.”

Let’s be ready for them.

Let’s show them that we’re ready for their campaign of misinformation by making today our Biggest Internet Day!

Here are three things you can do right now in front of your computer that will help our campaign to defeat Amendment 2.

1) Sign the SayNo2 pledge on the campaign website!

2) Help us win $1,000 by going to eQualityGiving and voting for Florida Red and Blue in the box to the right!

3) Make a contribution yourself. Any amount you give – especially if you’ve given before – will make a great statement if you do it today. Giving $50, $30 or even $10 will be a great help!

These things we can all do to help keep this bad law out of our state constitution! I hope all of you at least take the time to go to eQualityGiving and click the poll. It doesn't require any registration or much time, just a click of the mouse.

Sheriff: There is slavery in Florida tomato fields

In March, the Florida Legislature apologized for the state's support of slavery-in the past. It was long overdue, to say the least. But, as they are attempting to make amends for past transgression, Florida is still a state in which slavery is still practiced.

"The seven cases of modern slavery that have been uncovered in the fields of Florida are just the tip of the iceberg," Benitez said, referring federal cases in the past decade. (You can view the case here.)

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee heard testimony about the conditions in Florida and have vowed to monitor the situation.

Sign the petition from Fair Food Nation and CIW demanding that restaurants like Burger King support worker rights.

John Bowe's book, "Nobodies" was released last year that discusses the issue of slave labor in the U.S..

Recent Stories:
Did Burger King Target and Spy on Tomato Pickers Rights Groups?
Congress back call to raise tomato pickers wages
Slavery in the land of the free
Sixth Suspect Arrested in Slave Case

Past News Stories:
December 2007: Fruit-pickers escape
2005: Modern-Day 'Slave Farms' in FL (NPR)