Displaying 0 To 0 Of 0 Comments Kes, thanks! That’s great news! I’m all about this! Let me know if I can help out! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 1:09 pm Hey Sue! I have heard about Paul Weyrich before but didn’t know many details. Thanks for the heads up! I really would like to see some investigation into ALEC’s involvement in the voter suppression efforts. I heard a talking head a couple of weeks ago mention that taking only 1 or 2% of voters from swing states can make the difference in the election. That’s way too close for comfort, especially in states like Florida where ALL the votes may not be counted…remember 2000 and the recount that got stopped? And 2004 where the Village Idiot won by only a few thousand votes in Ohio? A good voter suppression law to prevent Dems from voting could definitely swing the election. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 1:07 pm The White House has a new feature on the website, starting your own petition. Kes mentioned that it might be a good idea to start one based on the issue of voter suppression. So far, there have been voter ID laws pushed through in 38 states…all thanks to ALEC, no doubt. (see my post below) I would like feedback from all you wonderful Planeteers…what do you think? Do you all think it would get some traction? Thanks! đ » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 12:44 pm bito, I know what you mean! The only thing that has kept it from being “NON-STOP” today has been the rethug debate! But I think I’ll give it a watch…I want to see who can disrespect the President the most! Joe Walsh says he won’t be there, also Jim DeMint, but there are plenty of others to scream out or otherwise show their asses! As far as I know, Joe Wilson will be there and he’s the biggest ass of them all! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 12:39 pm Sue, late comment, but you just reminded me. Someone was able to get an audio recording from a Koch brothers sponsored retreat where all the repub movers and shakers attended. It’s been on TV in the past two days. Not only were the repub Congressmen there, but Rick Perry was also in attendance! The Koch brothers are not the most popular folks in the US right now. Tying Perry to them is a good thing! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 12:32 pm Adlib, I read the first article too. I was so disgusted by the comments there. It’s hard to believe how damned dumb and racist people are…but it’s Texas! What else can we expect after ten years of Perry at the helm? (No offense to anyone here from Texas!) The AlJazeera reporter was brave to venture into that territory. He apparently wasn’t aware of just what kind of welcome he might get. We could have told him…sadly! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 9:58 am Sue, I’m right there with you! I have been a little discouraged lately with the President getting hammered from every quarter. It sometimes seems like WE at PPOV are his only advocates right now. If we can’t stop this voter suppression thing soon, I’m really afraid. There is already so much talk about how close the swing states are going to be, including my own. I don’t understand why the Justice Department is not looking into this pattern…38 states? That’s a lot! Maybe they are and we just don’t know about it. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 9:49 am Adlib, if the repubs are not careful, their approval numbers are going to drop into the single digits! Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of guys! (snark!) I would be willing to bet that Boehner and Cantor are hedging their bets. They know that the President is going to deliver a great speech tomorrow night and that they are going to be put in a bind. They know what the polls are saying right now and how the American people support the jobs proposals. They have to come out looking like they are willing to negotiate. I don’t buy it for a minute, and I’m glad that the White House did not agree to their request for a meeting! Leave them hanging out in the wind! It’s also comical that they are not planning a response to the speech. The American people will be a lot more interested in the opening night of the NFL instead of listening to their talking points. I can imagine the American people, en masse, changing channels just as soon as President Obama is finished! đ For a bunch of guys so adept at grabbing the microphone, this is funny! I never thought I would see them give up a chance to go “live” to spew their garbage! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 9:16 am It sometimes seems like there are so many issues that we need to face right now…almost overwhelming. But this one is probably one of the “root” problems that we need to stay on top of, and one that I believe the Justice Department needs to take action to stop. I received this email from the Democratic Governors’ Association this morning, taken from a “Rolling Stone” article: ================================ http://www.democraticgovernors.org/news/articles?id=0550 September 01, 2011 By Ari Berman As the nation gears up for the 2012 presidential election, Republican officials have launched an unprecedented, centrally coordinated campaign to suppress the elements of the Democratic vote that elected Barack Obama in 2008. Just as Dixiecrats once used poll taxes and literacy tests to bar black Southerners from voting, a new crop of GOP governors and state legislators has passed a series of seemingly disconnected measures that could prevent millions of students, minorities, immigrants, ex-convicts and the elderly from casting ballots. “What has happened this year is the most significant setback to voting rights in this country in a century,” says Judith Browne-Dianis, who monitors barriers to voting as co-director of the Advancement Project, a civil rights organization based in Washington, D.C. Republicans have long tried to drive Democratic voters away from the polls. “I don’t want everybody to vote,” the influential conservative activist Paul Weyrich told a gathering of evangelical leaders in 1980. “As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.” But since the 2010 election, thanks to a conservative advocacy group founded by Weyrich, the GOP’s effort to disrupt voting rights has been more widespread and effective than ever. In a systematic campaign orchestrated by the American Legislative Exchange Council – and funded in part by David and Charles Koch, the billionaire brothers who bankrolled the Tea Party – 38 states introduced legislation this year designed to impede voters at every step of the electoral process. Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-gop-war-on-voting-20110830 ================================= There is NOTHING more dangerous right now than the repubs’ attempts to suppress the vote. We all know what happens when the Democrats don’t show up at the polls. In this article, two of our most staunch adversaries again rear their ugly heads, the Koch brothers and ALEC! I don’t think this is the last time we will see them surface. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 9:05 am A bit of good news this morning… Boehner and Cantor have tried to arrange a meeting with the President before his jobs speech to discuss areas of compromise! But the White House has said that there will be no meeting. Also, they have decided NOT to do a rethug response to the President’s speech tomorrow night. I guess they figured that nobody would watch it anyway…are you ready for some football??? Now, that’s funny! Nancy Pelosi came out with a statement saying that their lack of a response to the President’s speech was “disrespectful”! Good for Nancy! Put them on the defensive! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 5:13 am Sue, according to the news this morning, Perry is not so concerned about the wildfires, but is going to attend the debate. I wasn’t going to watch (due to extreme nausea when all that rethug/TP crap is on the screen at one time) but I want to see what happens. My curiosity may top the nausea! đ » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 5:06 am Sue, this is a good read! This is a “keeper”! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 5:01 am bito, my comment somehow posted on TOP of this item…that keeps happening to me and I don’t know why! It’s not particularly important. I was just voicing my outrage! Thanks for posting this. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 5:00 am bito, thanks for the Twitter item! I read this last night and had a hard time sleeping! Rachel Maddow covered this story when it first happened, and I couldn’t sleep then either. This goes against everything we hold holy in this country! Where are the courts? Is there no one who will fight this battle for the people? Is the system so completely corrupt that it will allow the people no recourse? I cannot believe that the entire country is not up in arms over this story! You make a good point…when the bulldozers have done their work, it will be too late. Sometimes voting is NOT the answer! EDIT: This comment posted above the item where it was meant to be…sorry! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 7, 2011 @ 4:58 am bito, I’m just curious…would that be a regulation from the same agency, or could they just go over to the local neighborhood bank and eliminate a regulation over there that they didn’t like?? Perhaps a bank could go over to a manufacturer and eliminate a regulation regarding pollution! OH YES, I can really see this working out quite well! Agencies could get together and “fix” the regulations system to put into place those that they liked and eliminate those they didn’t to help each other out! They could actually develop a new kind of commodity trading for each other! I’ll wash your back if you wash mine!! As for Romney and his great 59 point plan, what a putz!! He may be the most electable candidate, but I really don’t think he has a clue! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 6, 2011 @ 2:03 pm Well, I think I just heard Mitt Romney say the dumbest damned thing I’ve ever heard from a politician’s mouth… “…if an agency (of the government) wants a new regulation enacted, then they have to remove another regulation of equal scale.” I can’t believe that he actually uttered these words! Of course, his faithful in the audience gave him a rousing response! What on earth is WRONG with these people??? BTW, he really should be using a teleprompter…he’s stumbling all over himself! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 6, 2011 @ 1:08 pm Just checked out “The Obama Blog”…and I had to bring back something to you all that I thought you might like! Short and sweet!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZIrgPKpKLc&feature=player_embedded That lady in the red pants is really gettin’ down! LMAO » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 6, 2011 @ 9:26 am Good morning, KT! I hope you’re not being a “cock-eyed optimist” either! I have to admit that even though I see the point in this post, I am having a really hard time keeping my chin up! I am really discouraged this morning. It seems like we here at PPOV are the ONLY ones supporting the President right now! He is getting trashed, bashed and otherwise discredited by EVERYONE! I disagree with his decision on the smog rules, but can understand that he might have an ulterior motive in getting cooperation from corporations on the jobs issue. I just wish we could be told if this is the case. Otherwise, we are left to wonder why he made this controversial decision. This also makes me wonder what he will decide on the Keystone XL pipeline later this year. I guess the article I posted is just “singing to the choir” as we all know the consequences of allowing the repubs to win the White House next time. But does anyone else in the country care? Does anyone give the President ANY credit at all for getting anything done to help the American people? 72% of Americans think the country is on the wrong track. The President has a 59% DISAPPROVAL rating. Perry is leading the repubs for the nomination…really bad news all around! (NBC/Wall Street Journal poll numbers) Somebody, please give me a pep talk! I really need one! đ » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 6, 2011 @ 4:24 am Javaz, that sounds like heaven…not your camping neighbors, but where you are right now! “Colorado Rocky Mountain High!” We’re going to have to do a music thread just for you! đ I would agree with Sue! It’s encouraging to know that they hate Rick Perry! Maybe there is hope for Texas after all! Have fun but watch out for the bears! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 5, 2011 @ 11:34 pm I could not let this article at TPM go without posting it for you all to read…absolutely stunning! Columnist: Registering Poor To Vote ‘Like Handing Out Burglary Tools To Criminals’ Updated: September 2, 2011, 5:05 PM Conservative columnist Matthew Vadum is just going to come right out and say it: registering the poor to vote is un-American and “like handing out burglary tools to criminals.” “It is profoundly antisocial and un-American to empower the nonproductive segments of the population to destroy the country — which is precisely why Barack Obama zealously supports registering welfare recipients to vote,” Vadum, the author of a book published by World Net Daily that attacks the now-defunct community organizing group ACORN, writes in a column for the American Thinker. “Encouraging those who burden society to participate in elections isn’t about helping the poor,” Vadum writes. “It’s about helping the poor to help themselves to others’ money. It’s about raw so-called social justice. It’s about moving America ever farther away from the small-government ideals of the Founding Fathers.” Most conservative criticism of voter registration drives aimed at poor and minority communities has been under the guise of worries about voter fraud. Vadum’s column is notable because he isn’t just pretending to be worried about the nearly non-existent threat of in-person voter fraud — he just doesn’t think poor people should be voting. Late Update: Responding to what he says are misrepresentations of his view, Vadum writes that of course he thinks poor people have the right to vote, he just doesn’t want anybody to help them since their votes “could lead to the destruction of the republic.” Vadum clarifies that it is “destructive to register welfare recipients to vote so that they can vote themselves more government benefits. It is even worse that our tax dollars are used to register welfare recipients at welfare offices. It is a policy that would cause the Founding Fathers to roll over in their graves.” But, he adds: “Of course those who are legally qualified to vote should be allowed to vote but our tax dollars shouldn’t be used to underwrite the destruction of the republic.” —————————————————- There is NO shame! This is even more egregious than plain old voter suppression. This attack from the RW is growing day by day! I’m sure that it won’t be long until we hear some version of this viewpoint from the rethugs! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 5, 2011 @ 3:14 pm Kudos to Bito again for the Twitter feed! Here’s another gem that’s worth reading and contains much information to combat the constant whining of the PL! From the site, “Democrats for Progress” ================================= We All Have a Choice in the 2012 Election YES, WE DO! My choice come November 6, 2012 will not be a surprise, as I will vote to re-elect the incumbent President, Barack Obama. The reasons why I will work hard to re-elect the President and try to give him an overwhelming congressional majority in both the House and the Senate are very clear to me, and self-serving as they are, I believe my actions will also benefit a majority of Americans; even those who donât quite know it yet. By reading the rest of my commentary, the reasons for my stubborn partisan stance will be made clear, and as the election cycle progresses, I shall often make myself clearer still. What Iâd like folks to envision in the meantime is what would happen if progressives woke up the morning of November 7th, and reality hit that the President-elect is not Barack Obama? Sure, some on the Left would feel vindicated to witness Barack Obama defeated, believing that they had won the battle of âprinciplesâ theyâd waged for four years to show President Obama their disappointment in him. They would inevitably blame him for their choice not to donate, not to work, and/or simply not to have voted. I believe, however, for those progressives willing to be intellectually honest, and who understand the concrete reality of political consequences (see Election 2010), we must also be willing to ask ourselves hard questions before the election, as opposed to after the fact. You see, these questions will be answered regardless, either now, or for four long years (or eight even longer years) following November 6th. Again, if the worse-case scenario were to occur and we end up with a President other than Barack Obama (which is not out of the realm of possibility, as there are powerful forces working hard on this as we speak), what will happen then? Some will say that my questions are nothing more than my cynical attempt to use fear, but I strongly disagree. I am only asking you to picture what could very well happen. If it is something to fear, you should duly note it. I respectfully suggest that some of the questions we should all ask ourselves, especially those who havenât already done so, are as follows: How will you feel when the new President nominates partisan cabinet members like Phil Gramm for Treasury, Jeb Bush for the Justice Department, John Kasich for the Office of Management and Budget, Scott Walker for Labor Secretary, Paul Ryan for Health and Human Services, Rudy Giuliani as Secretary of State, John McCain as Secretary of Defense, and Newt Gingrich as UN Ambassador? Sure, it may not be those particular ideologues in those exact positions; in fact, it could be worse still. Keep that in mind. How will you feel when the new President gets a chance to replace Justice Kennedy, or worse yet, Justices Breyer and Ginsberg? What about all of the other judicial nominees that the new President will get to choose? How will you feel when the new President gets to sign into law the privatization of Social Security? How will you feel when the new President gets to sign the the age increase for Medicare eligibility, and the cutting of benefits for seniors? How will you feel when the new President decides to nominate folks over at the FCC who would vote against Net Neutrality? How mad would you be if the Internet became less of a factor for free speech, and more of a factor for message manipulation and propaganda? How will you feel when the new President eliminates the mortgage modification partnership it has with banks, and you are back to being underwater, left to drown⌠on your own? How will you feel when the new President re-instates the reproductive gag order on Third-World countries? How will you feel when the new President dismantles the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau? How will you fee when the new President pushes to reverse the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act? How will you feel when the new President works to reverse Dodd-Frank? How will you feel when the new President rescinds benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees? How will you feel when the new President reduces or eliminates the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (aka Food Stamps)? How will you feel when the new President doesnât extend unemployment insurance for the unemployed, and wonât compromise on the issue whatsoever? How will you feel when the new President reverses policy advances made in our relations with Cuba? How will you feel when the new President signs the bill repealing the Affordable Care Act, and thereby nullifies the ability for patients who have pre-existing conditions to be covered by insurance companies? How will you feel when the new President re-establishes a middleman for student loans? How will you feel when the new President refuses to hold any discussion with labor, or to have anything to do with them? How will you feel when the new President ignores the United Nations, and becomes their nemesis? How will you feel when the new President decides that the Afghanistan timetable for bringing our troops home shouldnât be followed? How will you feel when the new President reverses the ban on torture? How will you feel when the new President resumes the Star Wars program? How will you feel when the new President cuts federal education spending, and pushes vouchers? How will you feel when the new President declines to identify who comes to the White House? How will you feel when the new President pushes to reverse the FDA tobacco disclosure rules? How will you feel when the new President advocates to deny national funding to NPR and Planned Parenthood, and the National Endowment for the Arts? How will you feel when the new President increases taxes on the working poor, and decreases taxes on corporations, capital gains and the estate tax? How will you feel when the new President pushes to abolish the EPA, the Deptartment of Education, and the FAA? How will you feel when the new President denies climate change? How will you feel when the new President sells federal lands to pay down the deficit? How will you feel when the new President advocates for corporationsâ right to accelerate mountain-top removal, and assures oil companies that they have nothing to fear in reference to their subsidies? How will you feel when the new President decides to push for a DOMA-style Constitutional amendment? How will you feel when you have to look at this new President on the television. a President who talks in bumper sticker slogans, while being divisive. ideologically driven, and grossly arrogant, and who governs with with regard to his own base and not all Americans? As importantly, how will you feel that you didnât do everything possible to assist in the 2012 re-election campaign because you rationalized that there was nothing good you could say about President Barack Obama, or you conveniently convinced yourself that someone else would handle your share (or so you assumed)? How will you justify protest then, or even be angry knowing that you always had a choice and yet you chose to do less than you could do? Will you be glad you stuck to your principles, or appalled at the avalanche of radical changes proposed by the new administration? And what will you do about it at that time, that couldnât have been done before? Yes, there is a very clear choice, even if you really would rather not think about it right at the moment. I, on the other hand, have been thinking about it all along, and Iâm sure there are even worse things that would come down the pike, unimaginable to me at this time. But you know what? Perhaps this is the kind of reality-based exercise that we really need, especially those who claim to care about our future. Perhaps now is the time to start getting FIRED UP AND READY TO GO, because waiting until we are in an unthinkable position will be, for sure, way too late. ================================= » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 5, 2011 @ 5:15 am CL, yes…you are correct. Had I more time when I wrote this, I would have said something similar to your comment. There are people who, thankfully, are speaking out against the fundamentalists, and I am glad to see it. But I am afraid that you are right about the Dems…none of them seem to have the backbone to speak out. Sometimes it is good to be intolerant when it is something that is so damaging to our country and our form of government. Thanks for saying what I didn’t! đ And PLEASE be careful! Keep an eye out! I’m on a tight schedule today and will get back to discuss this with you later! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 1, 2011 @ 9:59 am Thsnks KQ! To me, this just puts it into a nutshell, albeit a little lengthy nutshell. There have been a few people who have called out this RW fundamentalist religious movement as the most dangerous element in our country. And it would seem that some people are so afraid of this deity that they raise no objections. How sad that in this day and age, people run scared from myths and fairy tales…just sayin’. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 1, 2011 @ 6:40 am Address by the President to a Joint Session of Congress– September 08, 2011 Javaz, I would have to agree with you about the state of our media these days. These guys are just as big a bunch of clowns as the repub candidates on the stage. Granted that some questions do not rise to the gravity of a presidential candidates’ debate, I am glad they were asked. The answers to the questions about science and evolution showed the candidates to be superstitious fools that they are, and not qualified to be President of the United States. We do have a big problem with the MSM in this country, and at the moment, I don’t see much light at the end of the tunnel. There is little we can do about Fox news or Rush Limbaugh except to continue to call them out on their lies and distortions. I do feel your frustration! But we do have a powerful tool, the written word! The written word remains when the silly sound bytes and talking points fade away. We know in our hearts that we are on the right side of the issues! We just need to keep WRITING our truth! Now, my friend…take a deep breath and think about that beautiful place you visited last week! Have a wonderful day! đ » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 10, 2011 @ 7:01 am CL, WOW! Three million is a LOT of jobs! That would be fantastic! I hope I am not being premature in my optimism! The President came out swinging today in his speech in Richmond, VA. It was great! But we still have to be realistic about how much cooperation he will actually get from these baggers. Cantor has been whining all day about how there are things they can agree on, but there are other things that are problems. When he starts backing down, it makes you think he has something to worry about! đ BTW, Chris Matthews is running a list of bridges that need repair in Cantor’s district, some 90 or more! He plans to do the same thing next Tuesday when the President visits Boehner’s territory in Ohio! ADDENDUM: I can’t wait to see the bump in the President’s poll numbers! đ Sorry, but I can always think of something else to say AFTER I have posted a comment! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 9, 2011 @ 4:18 pm I sincerely hope that there is enough actual spending to make this more effective than the stimulus bill was. IMO, there was too much emphasis on tax cuts although I can understand the reasoning. I guess a lot of this will depend on what the state and local governments use the money for…will they be allowed to balance budgets with it, or will they have to use it for actual jobs? Remember Perry’s use of the stimulus money to balance his little shortfall in Texas? I don’t think that should be allowed. The American taxpayers paid his bills while he gave lots of goodies, tax breaks and contracts, to his big donors! Thanks for posting this, KQ! Good stuff! đ » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 9, 2011 @ 4:06 pm JOIN THE LIVE BLOG TONIGHT: Pres. Obama’s Jobs Speech Bito, I get so frustrated with these talking heads who equate “adjustments” with “cuts”. The President has said a number of times that adjustments HAVE to be made, which can include things like payments to doctors and hospitals. He has not said anything about “cuts” to beneficiaries nor did he do so last night! But we all know how these guys work…they have to gin up some kind of fear or conflict to boost their ratings! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 9, 2011 @ 10:47 am I emailed my Congresswoman Foxx last night to encourage her to support the AJA, not that it will do much good! She is a good little foot-soldier who reads repub talking points so well. I also sent an email to the White House to congratulate the President on the speech. I felt like he deserved a pat on the back. I did put in a rather shameless plug for PPOV! Maybe he will visit us sometime! As far as the book titles are concerned, what else do the repugs have to go on but fear? I am praying that there is no attack this 9/11. If there is, the President will take one on the chin by the rethugs! It will, of course, be his fault, just like everything else! Grrrrr! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 9, 2011 @ 10:39 am Hi bito! I told you…that Twitter thingy is great! I find some of the neatest things on there! Is that 6 points or do I have to kick a field goal?? đ As far as Big Ed is concerned, he toned it down last night before he came on for his regular show. He was supportive of the President’s plan, and he was especially happy that the Prez stood up for collective bargaining. I saw some pretty nasty comments about Rachel last night. I still don’t know what she said that p*ssed everybody off so badly. Somebody mentioned that she called the President “Barry”…perhaps that was a take-off on the “Give ’em hell, Harry” speech by Truman. I’m just sayin’… One thing about last night though…at least, no one in the repub ranks shouted “Liar” at the President. There didn’t seem to be any blatant disrespect. It’s almost comical to see these guys backing down now. EDIT: Sorry I didn’t see your link before I posted. » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 9, 2011 @ 10:27 am Bito, I have to agree with you! Ed was still negative tonight, even tho’ most were fairly positive about the speech. I swear I don’t know what he wants already!! I just changed the channel…I was definitely READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL!! And what a game it was! Four TD’s in the 1st quarter! Final score 42-34 Green Bay! Two great quarterbacks! » Posted By Emerald1943 On September 8, 2011 @ 8:56 pmComments Posted By Emerald1943
The GOP War on Voting
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Ryan J. Reilly | September 2, 2011, 10:40AM
By Joan Ruaiz, on September 3rd, 2011
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