Interesting Links on McCain's ties to dictators

1. "A Lobbying Firm and Its McCain Ties," MSNBC, May 12, 2008
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=3654&id=12653-8602644-lP0hYq&t=5

2. "John McCain's Lobbyist Connections," Public Campaign Action Fund
http://www.firethelobbyists.com/facts.html

3. "McCain's Lobbyists in Trouble for Foreign Lobbying," Progressive Media USA, May 11, 2008
http://www.mccainsource.com/mccain_fact_check?id=0007

4. "McCain Aides Are Tied," New York Sun, May 12, 2008
http://www2.nysun.com/national/mccain-aides-are-tied/

"Obama Calls on Rice to Address Human Rights Violations in Saudi Arabia," November 19, 2007
http://obama.senate.gov/press/071119-obama_calls_on_21/

"Saudi Arabia," Human Rights Watch World Report, 2007
http://hrw.org/englishwr2k7/docs/2007/01/11/saudia14717.htm

Mandate for change

I was there at PDA's founding in Roxbury, Massachusetts, almost four years ago.

I stood with PDA in Ohio after the 2004 elections, as we challenged the unfair vote count there.

I worked with PDA to bring the Downing Street Memo to light in 2005, to expose the lies that led us to war.

In March, I spoke at a PDA event with Jim Hightower, Donna Edwards, and Norman Solomon in Washington, D.C.

I've worked with Tim Carpenter and Diane Shamis and many other PDAers every day gathering support for my single-payer national health care bill, HR 676, to bring health care to every American.

I recently contributed $2,000 to support PDA. I hope you will join me as a "Change makes Change" partner. Pitch in whatever you can afford.

I fully support PDA's "Health Care NOT Warfare" campaign

Help PDA lead the grassroots effort to secure a mandate for change when Congress reconvenes in January—for single-payer health care for every American and to end the war quickly—a mandate to spend our resources to benefit working Americans rather than waste resources on the unwinnable Iraq War and Occupation in Iraq. A mandate for "Health care NOT Warfare."

We may never have a better chance to change the direction of this nation than now.

I know that whatever you can afford to give to "Change makes Change" will be well spent. Join me in supporting PDA. Together, we can end the war and bring health care to America.

Become a "Change makes Change" partner today.

Your friend,

John Conyers, Jr.

MegaVote - 5/12/08

In this MegaVote for South Carolina's 1st Congressional District:

Recent Congressional Votes -
Senate: Cloture Motion: FAA Reauthorization Act of 2007
House: Neighborhood Stabilization Act of 2008
House: Amendment to American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act

Upcoming Congressional Bills -
Senate: Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act of 2007
House: Iraq/Afghanistan Supplemental Appropriations
House: Food and Energy Security Act of 2007

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Recent Senate Votes

Cloture Motion: FAA Reauthorization Act of 2007 - Vote Rejected (49-42, 9 Not Voting) The Senate fell short of the sixty votes needed to end debate on this bill to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system. Sen. Lindsey Graham voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Jim DeMint voted NO......send e-mail or see bio

Recent House Votes

Neighborhood Stabilization Act of 2008 - Vote Passed (239-188, 6 Not Voting) The House voted to provide $15 billion to states and municipalities for the purchase and rehabilitation of foreclosed homes. Rep. Henry Brown Jr. voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Amendment to American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act - Vote Passed (266-154, 13 Not Voting) The House passed a comprehensive housing-stimulus bill through three separate votes, including this measure authorizing the Federal Housing Administration to help refinance as much as $300 billion of subprime loans. Rep. Henry Brown Jr. voted NO......send e-mail or see bio

Upcoming Votes

Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act of 2007 - S.2284 The Senate is expected to vote on this bill that would improve the national flood insurance program. Iraq/Afghanistan Supplemental Appropriations - H.R.__ The House is scheduled to vote on this bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Food and Energy Security Act of 2007 - H.R.2419 The House may also vote on the farm bill conference report.

An attack machine

I'm Phil Murphy, Finance Chair of the DNC. I'm responsible for making sure our Party has the funds it needs to stay competitive.


I wanted you to see these two clips that were posted on Politico.com this week...

John McCain will raise over $7 million tonight at a high-dollar New York fundraiser, his largest one-event haul yet during the campaign, according to sources familiar with the expected haul.

McCain raises over $2 mil in Michigan ... So said John Rakolta -- a former national finance chair and ubiquitous presence around Mitt Romney during the primary -- last night at the suburban Detroit funder for the GOP nominee.

In the past 48 hours, John McCain raised over $9 million for his campaign and the Republican National Committee. While we're choosing our nominee, the Republican machine is working their way across the country, raising money and expanding their bank accounts.

What are they going to do with that money? Attack. As soon as we have our nominee, they'll unleash a flood of expensive negative attacks to try to define our candidate.

That's why we have to be ready for anything -- we can't let them Swift Boat us right out of the gate.

Can you make a contribution to offset the $9 million John McCain has raised the last 48 hours? We need to be able to defend our candidate from the Republican machine as soon as it kicks into gear:

http://www.democrats.org/NoSwiftBoat

Everywhere John McCain goes his handlers are organizing fundraising receptions, catering to special interests and lobbyists. It's straight out of the George Bush and Karl Rove playbook.

While our primary continues, we can't afford to let John McCain and the Republican machine get a financial advantage. Help us and our nominee stay competitive.

Thanks for your support.

Phil Murphy

Losing their homes

Millions of Americans are losing their homes in the worst foreclosure crisis I can remember, and the Bush Republicans in Washington are content to sit on their hands. As they do nothing, tumbling housing prices push our fragile economy closer and closer to the brink of recession.



That's not good enough for the American people, so Democrats are doing everything we can to rush federal assistance to people devastated by the mortgage crisis. But again this week George Bush threatened to veto House legislation to provide immediate assistance to those in need. It's just the latest example of our opponents' stubborn obstructionism on this critical issue.

You can help us change their minds and pass comprehensive foreclosure relief. We have to show our opponents that the American people are serious about solving these problems. The best way for you to help is to join our efforts today.

Click here to tell Senate Republicans to stop obstructing our efforts to prevent foreclosures. Americans are losing their homes and they need our help.

Remember, it was Republican economic failures that caused this crisis in the first place. They did away with government oversight and removed any accountability from the private sector, and then they acted surprised when Countrywide became this year's Enron.

Now our economy is on the very brink of recession and foreclosure rates have nearly doubled in the last year. Over 2 million Americans are at risk of losing their homes and losing their grip on the American Dream. We can't afford to sit around and wait for these issues to sort themselves out.

Democrats have united around a few core principles that should be a part of any plan to address this critical issue.

• We would rush emergency federal foreclosure prevention resources to nonprofit housing groups that are on the frontlines, fighting to keep families in their homes.

• Our plan would provide even more funding to city and state agencies working to help borrowers save their houses.

• Senate Democrats would enact tough new government oversight to end predatory lending.

• Finally, our plan would provide new assistance to creditworthy homeowners who need help refinancing now, before they get caught in the mortgage crunch.

These common sense solutions aren't radical, they're just what's necessary. This kind of thing has always been what the Democratic Party stands for. When people are struggling, helping them out is just the right thing to do.

Beyond that, the mortgage crisis affects nearly every aspect of an already sluggish economy. Consumer spending is down and credit is drying up that would support new businesses, student loans, and pretty much anything else that could jumpstart the economy.

Amazingly, Republicans in Congress don't share our sense of urgency. How else do you explain their stubborn refusal to help us pass reform?

Let's show them that the American people won't accept any more obstructionism.

Click here to tell Senate Republicans to stop obstructing our efforts to prevent foreclosures. Americans are losing their homes and they need our help.

These foreclosures hurt us all. They damage an already teetering economy in a downward spiral of falling home values and decreased tax bases.

Worse, they put our friends and neighbors out of their homes. It's not right, so Senate Democrats are standing up against it. Republicans are standing in our way.

Please take action today.

Sincerely,

Chuck Schumer

The War on Greed

How is it possible for us to be entering a recession while buyout billionaires like Henry Kravis saved $96 million through tax loopholes in 2006 alone? That's just one buyout billionaire, in one year, making use of one loophole! Just think how much these private equity crooks are costing taxpayers who are already battling financial hardships and home foreclosures.

Sign the petition

Our earlier War on Greed films garnered over 350,000 views and a lot of attention from The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The New York Post, not to mention the Private Equity Council. Such wonderful feedback made us realize that now is a crucial time to connect the dots between buyout billionaires and everyday Americans suffering through this recession. And in talking with many of you, we thought a short, animated video could be a great means of conveying the gross misconduct of Henry Kravis, KKR, and the policies of buyout exploiters. So Paris, Lee Stranahan, and the team went to work to bring you our first animated video.

Watch the video: http://bravenewfilms.org/watch/27334645/37890?utm_source=rgemail

Now for the serious part. Join over 18,000 people who have already signed our petition demanding our presidential candidates close the Henry Kravis tax loophole. Then, please send this film along to ten people. Make sure Larry the Loophole is seen by friends, relatives, and schoolmates through Digg, Facebook, MySpace-the works! We already started spreading our message yesterday outside the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York, when we joined the SEIU to present Kravis with the "Loophole of the Year" Award.

Last week, journalist David Sirota wrote, "As the facts trickle out about the private equity scam, you can bet public pressure for change is going to start building." Yes, we've presented the facts here with animated satire and humor, but our hope is that this will allow us to reach tens of thousands of people together.

Yours,
Robert Greenwald, Paris Marron
and the Brave New Team

P.S. Our Condi Must GO video was a smashing success. Not only was it the #1 Video on YouTube News and Politics, but we received over 70,000 signatures for our petition. However, we still need more to reach our goal. Help us send Condi packing by sending Condi Must GO to all of your friends to sign.

MegaVote - 5/5/08

In this MegaVote for South Carolina's 1st Congressional District:

Recent Congressional Votes -
House: Combustible Dust Explosion and Fire Prevention Act
House: Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008
House: Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act

Upcoming Congressional Bills -
Senate: FAA Reauthorization Act
House: Neighborhood Stabilization Act of 2008
House: American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008

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Recent House Votes

Combustible Dust Explosion and Fire Prevention Act - Vote Passed (247-165, 19 Not Voting) The House voted to require the Department of Labor to issue interim and final occupational safety and health standards regarding worker exposure to combustible dust. Rep. Henry Brown Jr. voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 - Vote Passed (414-1, 16 Not Voting) The House agreed to this measure that would prohibit employers and health insurance issuers from discriminating against individuals on the basis of their genetic information. Rep. Henry Brown Jr. voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act - Vote Passed (388-21, 22 Not Voting) The House agreed with the Senate’s amendments to this bill intended to ensure the availability of low interest student loans. Rep. Henry Brown Jr. voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Upcoming Votes

FAA Reauthorization Act - H.R.2881 The Senate is expected to vote on this bill to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system. Neighborhood Stabilization Act of 2008 - H.R.5818 The House is scheduled to vote on this bill that would require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide grants and loans for housing stimulus activities. American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008 - H.R.___ The House is also likely to work on this bill that aims to reduce foreclosures.