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A tough decision: Barack v.s. Hillary
Linked to groups: Democracy for Washington
Many of you face a critical decision in the upcoming state-wide democratic primaries. Our country is at a critical juncture. With Barack Obama a rare confluence, one which I believe parallels great leaders, of experience, judgment, compassion, and insight has compelled me to be a first-time advocate and share my journey through a difficult choice.
Growing up, my family’s participation in the democratic process consisted of voting at the national and state elections. Now for the first time in her 34 years in this country, my Indian-American mother will make calls for one of the candidates. If you would have told me in early February that I would actively campaigning for one of the presidential candidates and become a delegate, I couldn’t fathom it. As a first generation Indian-American woman I voted for Bush in 2000, despite disagreeing with many of his positions. Profoundly disappointed in the current state of my country, I have searched for a candidate with effective skills to be commander-in-chief, respect the position of President, an understanding the everyday struggles of people, and genuine desire to make improvements. I have found that candidate within Senator Barack Obama.
What kind of magic does Sen. Obama have? He doesn’t talk about any policy specifics and all he seems to do is fill up stadiums with fanatical people. Is this guy for real? If you look at his actions, the short answer is yes.
Since I lived in New York and Illinois when both candidates launch their respective first U.S Senate bid, I had the unique opportunity to critically evaluate and vote for both nominees. And I have continued to follow both candidates in their current presidential bid. I have no doubt that both are passionate about bettering this country. I have struggled with, “How will each candidate bring about this change? Who will be the most effective?”
Effectiveness includes experience. Obama has been criticized for not having enough. Preeta Bansal special counsel in the Clinton White House and Justice Department, in her endorsement of Obama, highlights that his experience mirrors that of another Illinois leader, Abraham Lincoln. Bill Clinton’s 1992 response to questions of his own perceived inexperience was, "The same old experience is irrelevant….mine is rooted in the real lives of real people…..it will bring real results if we have the courage to change.” I find Obama’s experience rooted in the right kind of experience. His desire to help and enlighten people is authentic. Obama has been consistently involved with his community and has encouraged people to be change agents. After studying International Relations, he spent years as a community organizer, a difficult job in one of the most economically depressed areas of Illinois, and as a civil rights lawyer. Simultaneously he was an active member in the Illinois state legislature and taught constitutional law for 11 years at one of most world renowned law schools in the country. As an alumna of the University of Chicago I know of the critical independent judgment the school emphasizes. He has demonstrated his critical independent judgment most notably with stance against the war in Iraq. In contrast, Sen. Clinton’s experience in public office began by bidding for a Senate seat that was vacated by a retiring Sen. Patrick Monyihan. Re-locating to the state only a few months before announcing her candidacy, she was not involved in state activities prior to her announcement.Effectiveness is also about how you get results. Obama has earned a reputation of being a unifier. A necessary prerequisite to bridge gaps across diverse groups, including evangelicals, independents, and conservatives. Clinton’s campaign is executed with a disappointingly win-at-all-cost approach with no regard of the long-term impact. Clinton supporters, such as Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, continue to make racial remarks without condemnation from Clinton's campaign and she's in charge. Recall, Clinton’s swift rebuke of MSNBC for a statement regarding her daughter that people under-40 would not find offensive. So I am left to wonder.
The recent events also bring up a question of judgment and confidence for me. Doesn’t Sen. Clinton believe that she can be president? Why is she resorting to the tactics of a bad comedienne who believes that the only way she can get a response from an audience is to appeal to the lowest common denominator and bring up race or sex. It’s particularly disappointing because Sen. Clinton is qualified so that she doesn’t need to resort to such devices.
Lastly it is about who can motivate this country and impact change. Reflecting upon the primary race, Sen. Obama has energized and motivated people to get involved with the democratic process and has stopped the consistent wave of apathy that has blanketed the country. I’ve met throngs of people who represent the world in ethnicity, age, and religion that are moved to participate for the first time in this process because they had found a candidate who understood them. My friends from both parties have thanked me for motivating them to participate in their parties’ elective process. I can’t recall the last time someone has been able to bring such divergent groups of people together. This is an important earmark and one that underscores his desire to empower people to become the change they want to see.
Swatee Surve
41st Legislative District Delegate, Washington State
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19370.htm
What do you all think and know about this BO plan with the NIRB?
THEY CAN'T PULL IT OFF WITHOUT COWARDLY DEMS
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts02202008.html
President George W. Bush and his director of National Intelligence, Mike McConnell, are telling the American people that an unaccountable executive branch is necessary for their protection. Without the Protect America Act, Bush and McConnell claim, the executive branch will not be able to spy on terrorists, and we will all be blown up. Terrorists can only be stopped, Bush says, if Bush has the right to spy on everyone without any oversight by courts.
The fight over the Protect America Act has everything to do with our safety, only not in the way that Bush and McConnell assert.
Bush says the Democrats have put "our country more in danger of an attack" by letting the Protect America Act lapse. This claim is nonsense. The 30 year old Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act gives the executive branch all the power it needs to spy on terrorists.
The choice between FISA and the Protect America Act has nothing whatsoever to do with terrorism, at least not from foreign terrorists. Bush and his brownshirts object to FISA, because the law requires Bush to obtain warrants from a FISA court. Warrants mean that Bush is accountable. Bush and his brownshirts argue that accountability is an infringement on the power of the president.
Perhaps the Democrats have finally caught on that they cannot function as a political party as long as they continue to permit Bush to spy on them. For one reason or another, they have let the Orwellian-named Protect America Act expire.
Pray that the Democrats have caught on that they cannot give the executive branch unaccountable powers to spy and still have grounds on which to refuse the executive branch unaccountable powers elsewhere.
To prevent the presidency from becoming a dictatorial office, it is crucial that Congress cease acquiescing in Bush's grab for powers. As the Founding Fathers warned us, the terrorists we have to fear are the ones in power in Washington.
The al Qaeda terrorists, with whom Bush has been frightening us, have no power to destroy our liberties. Compared to the loss of liberty, a terrorist attack is nothing.
Meanwhile, Bush, the beneficiary of two stolen elections, has urged Zimbabwe to hold a fair election. America gets away with its hypocrisy because no one in our government has enough shame to blush.
6:15 PM
This is the best part of a thread to post--before the nitwits at HQ start to scramble posts.
from the above link: Will the economists here please translate this? :-)
Barak Obama Fronts Wall Street's Infrastructure
Swindle - What Change Really Means
By Bruce Marshall
17/02/08 "ICH" -- -- Do not be fooled! Barak Obama's call for National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank (NIRB) does not signal the return of the Democratic Party to the values of FDR and a revival of the Constitutional prerogative to 'promote the general welfare', but would rather provide more welfare for Wall Street and worse. Obama's plan is nothing more than the direct means of instituting the Rohatyn-Rudman National Investment Corporation (NIC) plan called for in 2005, which in essence is a revival of Mussolini's methods of corporatist control of the state in a politically correct post modern fashion..
When Senator Obama states that his National Investment Reinvestment Bank will magically turn $60 billion into trillions of dollars as he did in his Feb 13th Jamesville, WI speech, one can easily realize that the only way that this can happen is through the perverse magic of Wall Street. What would happen is that bonds floated by the NIRB will be bought on the open market, to then be speculated upon, securitized as derivatives, traded and ultimately used as collateral on the newly built infrastructure. What we will see is the emergence of an infrastructure bubble to replace the mortgage bubble, propped up by initial government expenditures towards infrastructure. This is just the start as Obama will fund the feel good 'carbon credit' swap to be the next blast of hot air to make Wall Street giddy. This is a key insight to a true understanding of what is going on. Bailout the financial powers with a clever plan that will raise money to then buy up hard assets, in other words the remaining wealth of our nation, as the meltdown crisis of over a quadrillion in derivatives losses grows and grows..
Besides artificially propping up the markets, Obama's NIRB, as an initiation of the Rohatyn/Rudman infrastructure investment model, opens the door to the privatization of public assets. International predators and asset-strippers want to buy up public highways and impose cutthroat tolls, as they are already doing in many states. Then they run the turnpikes into the ground as cash cows while they mercilessly bilk the users. Privatization is a key goal of the Anglo-American financiers behind this scheme. Both the NIC and NIRB rely on the new darling of the markets, PPPs, known as public private partnerships. PPPs are the means by which market forces will dictate, and that is the word, the implementation of these projects. The argument is that the PPP will keep costs down, but in reality only because the private corporations, now controlling the public sector, will own the assets of what is being constructed. The PPP model is none other than the model implemented by Mussolini in his fascist corporate state. The creation of NIRB funds hark back to Hjalmar Schact's 'MEFO' bills that created the speculative bubble of money so that the National Socialists could rearm Germany and fight World War II..
Since 9/11 America has certainly turned into a top-down police state, but true post-modern fascism requires a popular movement to usher it into power. Bush has created a dictatorship out of the Presidency, now the next step towards fascism is being marketed to exploit the desire for change.
19%
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_david_sw_080220_19_percent_approve_o.htm
George W. Bush has set a record for unpopularity that may stand for all time: He now has a 19 percent approval rating. And, remember that Cheney has always polled LOWER than Bush. Imagine if the Democrats were to do something we care about (preserving the Constitution) by doing something they care about (winning elections) by forcing John McCain to choose between supporting impeachment and supporting these characters who may soon be less popular than the flu.
Unfortunately, not likely to happen with Pelosi and reid still p-ing their pants, and neither Clinton nor Obama with enough guts to lead on the issue.
"Bush has created a dictatorship out of the Presidency, now the next step towards fascism is being marketed to exploit the desire for CHANGE"
Can someone fool most of the people most of the time?
Happy Birthday, Susan! I'm approaching 52 from the other side. LOL
"we can invest in our infrastructure and people; in ways that we bwgin to modernize and rebuild the social contract that FDR first stitched together in the middle of the last century.
Lets start with those investments that can make America more competitive in the global economy:investments in education ,science and technology, and energy independence."
The Audacity of Hope p. 159
"A strategy of doing nothing and letting globalization run its course won't result in the imminent collapse of the American economy. .... But over the long term doing nothing probably means an America very different from the one most of us grew up in. It will mean a nation more stratified economically and socially ...It will mean an America in which we continue to mortgage our assets to foreign leaders .... an America in which we underinvest in basic scientific research ... and America that's more politically polarized ... Worst of all it will mean fewer opportunities for younger Americans, a decline in the upward mobility that's been at the heart of this country's promise since it's founding.ibid p148,149
Mortals bask in the glow of the power of Obama, as described by Lisa Lerer at Politico:
"Thousands of screaming, cheering, and sometimes even crying supporters regularly come out to hear him talk.
"His most fervent backers fall in love with his idealistic message of change — irrelevant of the dry details — his youth, and his powerful presence on the stump. For some, the affair can border on obsession.
" . . . .
"Ross Avila, a senior at The University of Pennsylvania, drove more than 2,200 miles to volunteer in Iowa, New Jersey and South Carolina for the campaign.
" . . . .
"'I can't imagine doing such grueling work for someone that I didn't believe in so much. I think he's very unique that way.'
" . . . .
"Earlier this month, the campaign raised over $7.5 million in less than 48 hours, all through online contributions.
"In January, Obama raised roughly $32 million to Clinton's $13.5 million.
"Last week, Obama attracted a crowd of 19,000 to the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.
"Four days earlier, more than 18,000 voters filled Seattle's Key Arena to see him.
"The 3,000 that didn't get in waited in the cold for over an hour to hear a roughly two-minute version of his stump speech.
"When Obama finally took the stage, the crowd roared so loudly that a local reporter in the press section covered her ears.
"At an Omaha, Neb., rally the day before, supporters leaned perilously over railings, screaming and crying, trying to touch Obama as he passed.
" . . . .
"The campaign works hard to cultivate the rock star image. After he's introduced, Obama routinely waits about 30 seconds to enter the arena.
"The excitement grows, until his entrance is perfectly timed with the soaring chords of U2's 'City of Blinding Lights.'
"'I can't really verbalize exactly what it is about him,' says Avila. 'Part of it is just beyond explanation.'"
There you have it. It does remind me of Dean's campaign, but obnoxious? No, I would never see it that way, but I can't really verbalize exactly what it is.
People were weeping quietly. Some were openly sobbing. Others were screaming. Standing on their chairs and stamping their feet.
Outside in the corridors, people were spontaneously writing checks and throwing them at my staff. They lined up, they mobbed us as we tried to make our way throught the lobby. Some came away crying again, my aides later told me, because they'd been able to touch my suit.
Howard Dean, You Have the Power, pp. 1-2.
who is the progressive? Barack or Hil? I thought we supported Obama and Edwards.
So why the panting over Barack.
He will be prez of all the people.
and he wants to stop the tax cuts for the rich.
In case you haven't read on previous thread:
Barack Obama won the blessing today of the 1.4-million-member Teamsters union, who could prove valuable allies in upcoming showdowns with Hillary Clinton.
The endorsement immediately activates the union's political activities, including its thousands of members in Ohio, Texas, and Pennsylvania -- states that Clinton badly needs to win.
Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa met with Obama today in Texas. "Senator Obama understands the challenges working people face every day," Hoffa said afterwards in a statement issued by the Obama campaign. "He is the candidate in the best position to lead our movement to restore the American dream for working people in this country."
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2008/02/teamsters_back.html
You have the power!
Remember you are powerful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHV9Ac8t9...
I find it interesting that the CM is now claiming that BO has to start talking specifics. Isn't it a bit late for that?
I don't understand the trashing of Hillary, as she's losing ground. That's like kicking s/o when they're down and hurt and some people are still trashing JE.
BTW, Edwards is still on the OR ballot. :-)
I'm thinking today that HC has a better chance of beating McC than BO and that a HC/BO ticket would unite the dems and beat McC.
It'd be nice if they both would announce their choices for VP, since then I would vote for the VP in the primary. They both would be wise to give the many JE supporters all over the country s/o we like, admire, trust and respect.
seashell is in a state that has yet to vote and is raising legitmate concerns that deserve answers so she can make up her mind, linda b
you and I both understand Obama is more progressive than Clinton, but neither as progressive as others
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
bonding is how big capital projects are financed all the time, seashell
Is anyone even reading about BO and the NIRB?
Why would Al Franken today say on AAR that BO wants to make the tax cuts permanent? I've never heard that.
OK, Phil, so this NIRB thing is OK? We don't need another bubble and I don't trust the corps nor BO's ability to even slow them down. One man against multi-nationals who'll stop at nothing...and I do mean nothing.
Some website or other was saying that HC is slightly more progressive than BO.
Quick hello,
Happy Birthday Susan Rowe. You are appreciated. Hope your day has been good.
Just a thought: in Obama's speech last night he talked about hope and how people have questioned that as being just a slogan, a kind of cliche. (These are my words.) Then he went on to say, he was born to a single mother, a teenager, his father left when he was two yars old, he was raised by his grandparents in Hawaii. He lived for five years in Indonesia in the inner city. He didn't say this, but a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, president of the Law Review, something only the most brilliant achieve, a mixed race young man now running a campaign wherein he's likely to win the Presidency. Talk about the American Dream.
Just 40 years ago, racism was legal in our own version of apartheid with separate bathrooms, seating in theatres and buses, and people of color couldn't order lunch at the counters in Dimes Stores. Now someone who is 47 years old is running for president. He also happens to be brilliant, to have a temperament that is calm, cool, and reflective, has the skills of an orator, and the charisma that draws people to him, much like Howard Dean had and Robert Kennedy as well.
He's thoughtful, can see more than one side to an issue, has contacts throughout the country from universities to foundations to diplomats and political representatives who he was wise enough not to alienate with extreme positions and vitreol.
Yes, we are in terrible straits, may not make it as the problems are complex and we have a polarized country. But, I think the American Dream is alive. Now, how do we good citizens come together?
See http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=300022 Clinton is a radical Democrat according to GovTrack's own analysis of bill sponsorship.
Obama is a regular rank-and-file Democrat according to GovTrack's own analysis of bill sponsorship.
SOURCE: http://www.govtrack.us/congress /
Quick comment: Hillary's voting for the bankruptcy bill that made it harder for people to declare bankruptcy and most bankruptcies are caused by out of control health costs? The flag burning amendment? The Kyl/Liberman amendment? More liberal, radical than Obama? Sigh!
Off now.
Happy b-day Susan Rowe
____________________
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters did what ?
wOOT! That is sweet. Too proud (well, that's a bit of hype).
-----------------------------------
The right wing-nut machine is doing what uninspiring 'Cain can not do: influence the electorate as to the failings of Barack Obama.
Here are two quotes from the road:
"he doesn't say the pledge of allegence, or wear a flag lapel-pin. That bothers me."
or
"that wife of his doesn't think much of America."
I would like to have a calm friendly debate about who is best suited to beat McC and why.
We have to beat the repugs and put our emotions and preferences aside long enuf to engage in a debate about this. It's the bottom line.
no offense paine but the Teamsters have a record of going for the winner after it is clear who that will be
wOOt!
they are editing Michelle's words to change the meaning just like they did to Howard with the scream and directional mike
that ought to be grounds for libel
Seashell wants to debate which of the two remaining Dems will be the best opponent for Sen 'Cain.
Oye yoy yoy! Sounds like 2004 and ABB.
Let's not, sea, and say we did, please.
I can't believe that you seem so far from deciding, still.
Don't you hate the former president's wife - the current Senator from New York? Have I missed something?
WE are going to win.
IMO, they are both moderate repugs....don't kill the messenger, please.
It would be nice to respect points of view here that are different.
The mania over BO is reaching epic proportions. I met Howard briefly during his stay in PDX - I worked at one of his rallies. No one wanted to touch the hem of his pants, no one seemed to be swooning. I myself shook his hand and felt kindness and admiration towards him. That is all.
This BO thing is different and it feels unhealthy to me. He's raising expectations to unnatural highs and people don't like it when their expectations aren't fulfilled. Pelosi raised expectations and look what happened. The first Woman Oh my, how wonderful. A woman Speaker....Yeah, right.
We shall see.
"A strategy of doing nothing and letting globalization run its course won't result in the imminent collapse of the American economy. ....
And McCain said he didn't know economics.
Let's all sell ourselves restaurant meals and insurance.
But, how we gonna pay?
Well maybe we could join the Armed Forces, get into the
National Guard or Reserves.
What's that? China and The House of Saud aren't chipping in anymore?
Maybe we could contract out the Pentagon.
Oh yeah, that was privatized out to Halliburton.
Any gold left at Fort Knox?
It's actually the Stephens Group and their associates that are trying to persuade states and other "local" governments to bundle their bonds and borrow against their capital assets for the simple reason that government debts have always been "guaranteed" by the power to tax. The financial vultures are always looking for new low-risk sources of money to lend out at a higher rate. Government owned utilities have long been persuaded to make their "profits"--money that's mandated to be set aside for capital improvements--available to investors who promise to split the premium with them. Given that they've managed to totally mess up the home mortgage situation (which traditionally had the lowest default rate of any loans), I wouldn't trust them as far as I can throw them.
The interest in transfering public assets into private wealth continues. Since there are few natural resources to dole out, they're targeting the built environment--roads, bridges, etc. The fact is that multiplying transactions is profitable for the financial vultures because each transaction represents an opportunity to collect a 'cut.' Again, the only real advantage to private ownership is that it appears on the books as economic growth. There''s absolutely no guarantee that the people are better off. Ask yourself if people are better off now that public swimming pools have been closed and lots of houses have their own that are hardly ever used? No question that pool builders and the makers of chemicals and filters are doing well. Anybody else?
By ELIZABETH GREEN
Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 15, 2008 updated 2/16/08 10:21 am EST
A D V E R T I S E M E N T <A href="http://oasis.nysun.com/oasis/oasisc.php?s=6&w=300&h=250&t=_blank" TARGET=_blank><IMG src="http://oasis.nysun.com/oasis/oasisi.php?s=6&w=300&h=250&t=_blank" WIDTH=300 HEIGHT=250 BORDER=0></A> Senator Obama said this week that he is open to supporting private school vouchers if research shows they work.
"I will not allow my predispositions to stand in the way of making sure that our kids can learn," Mr. Obama, who has previously said he opposes vouchers, said in a meeting with the editorial board of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "We're losing several generations of kids, and something has to be done."
Education analysts said Mr. Obama's statement is the closest they have ever seen a Democratic presidential candidate come to embracing the idea of vouchers. Vouchers are taxpayer-funded scholarships that allow families to opt out of public school and use their government-allotted education dollars to attend a private school instead. They are despised by teachers unions, powerful players in Democratic politics.
When Mr. Obama filled out questionnaires for both national teachers unions last year, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association, he told the unions that he did not support vouchers. But on Wednesday Mr. Obama opened his remarks to the Journal-Sentinel's question on vouchers by saying he had to admit that he has been a "skeptic" of vouchers.
He said he was astonished to learn that a voucher program in Milwaukee had never been tested in a longitudinal study to find out whether it had helped children or not. "If there was any argument for vouchers it was, all right, let's see if this experiment works, and then if it does, whatever my preconceptions, my attitude is you do what works for the kids," Mr. Obama said.
Told a current longitudinal study is ongoing, Mr. Obama said he would respond to its findings with an open mind.
more
On "grounds for libel"
The networks which employ the *bad actors* repeating repugdickin talking points
might ...a, taste the fate of David Shuster. An indeffinite suspension - for surely these characterizations possess a heavier wieght. ?
when the Teamsters come on board it is a done deal, paine, because they don't like to lose
that is why I made the observation that Florida and Michigan may well be seated, because they won't matter
it wasn't just that Obama won Wisconsin it was the thumping he gave her, that has pretty much sealed it
I don't think it is that they (the IBT) don't like to lose, as much as it is that the people at the International do not want to piss-off a politician who may help the cause of working men and women by endorsing the other gal/guy prematurely.
And they do not want to direct my $$, and the $$$ of my good sisters and brothers,. in any losing venture.
I think
but, my lunch here at mcD is about over.
TTFN
Senator Boxer on FISA...
I recently spoke out on the floor of the Senate regarding the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
I am happy to provide you with a transcript of my speech, which you can access by clicking here. http://boxer.senate.gov/news/outreach/20...
You can also access a video of my speech by clicking here. http://boxer.senate.gov/flvplayer/021220...
Sincerely,
Barbara Boxer
United States Senator
Shame on MSNBC reporting that McC and some woman had a romantic relationship. What's the point? Is this designed to boost Huckabee?
Good grief. Wait till it's HC or BO's turn.
Actually I think Huckabee would get more repug votes than McC.
The point of MSNBC covering McCain's *relationship* is well, um, she's a lobbyist.
Interesting story with lots of implications regarding McCain and lobbyist favors/and an affair on NYT web site.
Maybe Huckabee knows what he is doing by staying in the race.
Paine, don't be silly. I'm neither an ABB or ABH person. The reason I haven't made a decision is becuz I don't think either one should be prez. I wanted a true progressive. It's bad enuf to vote for someone I don't want in the gen'l...,no reason to do it in the primary.
I will prolly write in JE since with the endorsement today, it looks as if BO has it. So be it. My vote will not count, no matter who I vote for.
Ås I recall, you were a HC supporter way back when. What happened? That bandwagon roll over you? :-)
Meanwhile, the truck has just rolled over McC.
Phil.....
Is it grounds for libel in the case of the scream tape?
The separation of church and state.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...
What 1797 treaty declared the USA to be no more a Christian nation than a Jewish or Muslim one?
On p.49 of his book, The Assault on Reason, Al Gore mentions a 1797 treaty ratified unanimously by the Senate and signed by the President that explicitly declared that the United States of America was not a Christian nation, any more than it was a Jewish or Muslim one. What treaty was it?
---
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/diplom...
From the Treaty of Tripoli (with Tripoli) the US Senate in 1797. It shows what our founders would have thought of today’s right-wing religious fundamentalists propaganda.
Article. 11. As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.
seashell "I met Howard briefly during his stay in PDX - I worked at one of his rallies. No one wanted to touch the hem of his pants, . . ."
His pants? No, don't be so odd. It was his suit. (p. 2)
So which candidate benefits the most from this weak and I think, silly story about McCain? He already has the nomination...
Brokered convention? Can that still happen? Or does BO or HC benefit from this silliness, which seems to be deeper than suggested?
What's the point? Åre we following the money or are we following campaign corruption on one or the other's sides?
Who benefits? BO or HC? Huck? Romney, who has merely suspended his campaign? Oh Lordy, Romney could get back in.
Well at least this does add to BO's big tent credentials. Ted Kennedy and Hoffa holding hands on the Convention Podium - who would have thunk it?
This Treaty of Peace and Friendship was written in Arabic.
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/diplom...
Treaty of Peace and Friendship, signed at Tripoli November 4, 1796 (3 Ramada I, A. H. 1211), and at Algiers January 3, 1797 (4 Rajab, A. H. 1211). Original in Arabic. Submitted to the Senate May 29, 1797. (Message of May 26, 1797.) Resolution of advice and consent June 7, 1797. Ratified by the United States June 10, 1797.
Seashell at 2 & 4, I left a post and several links on the previous thread about Obama's proposal for an infrastructure reinvestment program. It sounded very similar to a program proposed I believe this past summer by Chris Dodd. The idea is to take money from the ended war and ended rich people tax cuts to begin funding for a program to restore America's infrastructure. In addition, bonds would be sold to investors -- investors could mean you and me - just as bonds are sold to finance wars, Treasury bills and the like. It would create jobs for Americans to restore the infrastructure. As I said on the previous thread, the program sounds more FDR than Mussolini from what I've read -- if you want you can go to the previous thread and read my links or you can google Obama reinvestment infrastructure - that's what I did.
In cases you don't know there is a new thread from Danny who signs that he is the DFA communications director.
Here is Obama's Suggested Health Care Plan:
Barack Obama's Plan Quality, Affordable and Portable Coverage for All
- Obama's Plan to Cover Uninsured Americans: Obama will make available a new national health plan to all Americans, including the self-employed and small businesses, to buy affordable health coverage that is similar to the plan available to members of Congress. The Obama plan will have the following features:
- Guaranteed eligibility. No American will be turned away from any insurance plan because of illness or pre-existing conditions.
- Comprehensive benefits. The benefit package will be similar to that offered through Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), the plan members of Congress have. The plan will cover all essential medical services, including preventive, maternity and mental health care.
- Affordable premiums, co-pays and deductibles.
- Subsidies. Individuals and families who do not qualify for Medicaid or SCHIP but still need financial assistance will receive an income-related federal subsidy to buy into the new public plan or purchase a private health care plan.
- Simplified paperwork and reined in health costs.
- Easy enrollment. The new public plan will be simple to enroll in and provide ready access to coverage.
- Portability and choice. Participants in the new public plan and the National Health Insurance Exchange (see below) will be able to move from job to job without changing or jeopardizing their health care coverage.
- Quality and efficiency. Participating insurance companies in the new public program will be required to report data to ensure that standards for quality, health information technology and administration are being met.
- National Health Insurance Exchange: The Obama plan will create a National Health Insurance Exchange to help individuals who wish to purchase a private insurance plan. The Exchange will act as a watchdog group and help reform the private insurance market by creating rules and standards for participating insurance plans to ensure fairness and to make individual coverage more affordable and accessible. Insurers would have to issue every applicant a policy, and charge fair and stable premiums that will not depend upon health status. The Exchange will require that all the plans offered are at least as generous as the new public plan and have the same standards for quality and efficiency. The Exchange would evaluate plans and make the differences among the plans, including cost of services, public.
- Employer Contribution: Employers that do not offer or make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees will be required to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of the national plan. Small employers that meet certain revenue thresholds will be exempt.
- Mandatory Coverage of Children: Obama will require that all children have health care coverage. Obama will expand the number of options for young adults to get coverage, including allowing young people up to age 25 to continue coverage through their parents' plans.
- Expansion Of Medicaid and SCHIP: Obama will expand eligibility for the Medicaid and SCHIP programs and ensure that these programs continue to serve their critical safety net function.
- Flexibility for State Plans: Due to federal inaction, some states have taken the lead in health care reform. The Obama plan builds on these efforts and does not replace what states are doing. States can continue to experiment, provided they meet the minimum standards of the national plan.
- Reducing Costs of Catastrophic Illnesses for Employers and Their Employees: Catastrophic health expenditures account for a high percentage of medical expenses for private insurers. The Obama plan would reimburse employer health plans for a portion of the catastrophic costs they incur above a threshold if they guarantee such savings are used to reduce the cost of workers' premiums.
- Helping Patients:
- Support disease management programs. Seventy five percent of total health care dollars are spent on patients with one or more chronic conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. Obama will require that providers that participate in the new public plan, Medicare or the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) utilize proven disease management programs. This will improve quality of care, give doctors better information and lower costs.
- Coordinate and integrate care. Over 133 million Americans have at least one chronic disease and these chronic conditions cost a staggering $1.7 trillion yearly. Obama will support implementation of programs and encourage team care that will improve coordination and integration of care of those with chronic conditions.
- Require full transparency about quality and costs. Obama will require hospitals and providers to collect and publicly report measures of health care costs and quality, including data on preventable medical errors, nurse staffing ratios, hospital-acquired infections, and disparities in care. Health plans will also be required to disclose the percentage of premiums that go to patient care as opposed to administrative costs.
- Ensuring Providers Deliver Quality Care:
- Promote patient safety. Obama will require providers to report preventable medical errors and support hospital and physician practice improvement to prevent future occurrences.
- Align incentives for excellence. Both public and private insurers tend to pay providers based on the volume of services provided, rather than the quality or effectiveness of care. Providers who see patients enrolled in the new public plan, the National Health Insurance Exchange, Medicare and FEHBP will be rewarded for achieving performance thresholds on outcome measures.
- Comparative effectiveness research. Obama will establish an independent institute to guide reviews and research on comparative effectiveness, so that Americans and their doctors will have the accurate and objective information they need to make the best decisions for their health and well-being.
- Tackle disparities in health care. Obama will tackle the root causes of health disparities by addressing differences in access to health coverage and promoting prevention and public health, both of which play a major role in addressing disparities. He will also challenge the medical system to eliminate inequities in health care through quality measurement and reporting, implementation of effective interventions such as patient navigation programs, and diversification of the health workforce.
- Insurance reform. Obama will strengthen antitrust laws to prevent insurers from overcharging physicians for their malpractice insurance and will promote new models for addressing errors that improve patient safety, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship and reduce the need for malpractice suits.
- Lowering Costs Through Investment in Electronic Health Information Technology Systems: Most medical records are still stored on paper, which makes it hard to coordinate care, measure quality or reduce medical errors and which costs twice as much as electronic claims. Obama will invest $10 billion a year over the next five years to move the U.S. health care system to broad adoption of standards-based electronic health information systems, including electronic health records, and will phase in requirements for full implementation of health IT. Obama will ensure that patients' privacy is protected.
- Lowering Costs by Increasing Competition in the Insurance and Drug Markets: The insurance business today is dominated by a small group of large companies that has been gobbling up their rivals. There have been over 400 health care mergers in the last 10 years, and just two companies dominate a full third of the national market. These changes were supposed to make the industry more efficient, but instead premiums have skyrocketed by over 87 percent.
- Barack Obama will prevent companies from abusing their monopoly power through unjustified price increases. His plan will force insurers to pay out a reasonable share of their premiums for patient care instead of keeping exorbitant amounts for profits and administration. His new National Health Exchange will help increase competition by insurers.
- Lower prescription drug costs. The second-fastest growing type of health expenses is prescription drugs. Pharmaceutical companies are selling the exact same drugs in Europe and Canada but charging Americans more than double the price. Obama will allow Americans to buy their medicines from other developed countries if the drugs are safe and prices are lower outside the U.S. Obama will also repeal the ban that prevents the government from negotiating with drug companies, which could result in savings as high as $30 billion. Finally, Obama will work to increase the use of generic drugs in Medicare, Medicaid, and FEHBP and prohibit big name drug companies from keeping generics out of markets.
- Advance the Biomedical Research Field: As a result of biomedical research the prevention, early detection and treatment of diseases such as cancer and heart disease is better today than any other time in history. Barack Obama has consistently supported funding for the national institutes of health and the national science foundation. Obama strongly supports investments in biomedical research, as well as medical education and training in health-related fields, because it provides the foundation for new therapies and diagnostics. Obama has been a champion of research in cancer, mental health, health disparities, global health, women and children's health, and veterans' health. As president, Obama will strengthen funding for biomedical research, and better improve the efficiency of that research by improving coordination both within government and across government/private/non-profit partnerships. An Obama administration will ensure that we translate scientific progress into improved approaches to disease prevention, early detection and therapy that is available for all Americans.
- Fight AIDS Worldwide. There are 40 million people across the planet infected with HIV/AIDS. As president, Obama will continue to be a global leader in the fight against AIDS. Obama believes in working across party lines to combat this epidemic and recently joined Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) at a large California evangelical church to promote greater investment in the global AIDS battle.
- Support Americans with Disabilities: As a former civil rights lawyer, Barack Obama knows firsthand the importance of strong protections for minority communities in our society. Obama is committed to strengthening and better enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) so that future generations of Americans with disabilities have equal rights and opportunities. Obama believes we must restore the original legislative intent of the ADA in the wake of court decisions that have restricted the interpretation of this landmark legislation.
Barack Obama is also committed to ensuring that disabled Americans receive Medicaid and Medicare benefits in a low-cost, effective and timely manner. Recognizing that many individuals with disabilities rely on Medicare, Obama worked with Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO) to urge the department of health and human services to provide clear and reliable information on the Medicare prescription drug benefit and to ensure that the Medicare recipients were protected from fraudulent claims by marketers and drug plan agents. - Improve Mental Health Care. Mental illness affects approximately one in five American families. The National Alliance on Mental Illness estimates that untreated mental illnesses cost the U.S. more than $100 billion per year. As president, Obama will support mental health parity so that coverage for serious mental illnesses are provided on the same terms and conditions as other illnesses and diseases.
- Protect Our Children from Lead Poisoning. More than 430,000 American children have dangerously high levels of lead in their blood. Lead can cause irreversible brain damage, learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and, at very high levels, seizures, coma and death. As president, Obama will protect children from lead poisoning by requiring that child care facilities be lead-safe within five years.
- Reduce Risks of Mercury Pollution. More than five million women of childbearing age have high levels of toxic mercury in their blood, and approximately 630,000 newborns are born at risk every year. Barack Obama has a plan to significantly reduce the amount of mercury that is deposited in oceans, lakes, and rivers, which in turn would reduce the amount of mercury in fish.
- Support Americans with Autism. More than one million Americans have autism, a complex neurobiological condition that has a range of impacts on thinking, feeling, language, and the ability to relate to others. As diagnostic criteria broaden and awareness increases, more cases of autism have been recognized across the country. Barack Obama believes that we can do more to help autistic Americans and their families understand and live with autism. He has been a strong supporter of more than $1 billion in federal funding for autism research on the root causes and treatments, and he believes that we should increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to truly ensure that no child is left behind.
More than anything, autism remains a profound mystery with a broad spectrum of effects on autistic individuals, their families, loved ones, the community, and education and health care systems. Obama believes that the government and our communities should work together to provide a helping hand to autistic individuals and their families.
- Health Insurance: In 2003, Barack Obama sponsored and passed legislation that expanded health care coverage to 70,000 kids and 84,000 adults. In the U.S. Senate, Obama cosponsored the Healthy Kids Act of 2007 and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) Reauthorization Act of 2007 to ensure that more American children have affordable health care coverage.
- Women's Health: Obama worked to pass a number of laws in Illinois and Washington to improve the health of women. His accomplishments include creating a task force on cervical cancer, providing greater access to breast and cervical cancer screenings, and helping improve prenatal and premature birth services.
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