SO MUCH FOR MEASURING THE SUCCESS OF OUR COUNTRY BY HOW WE TREAT THE LEAST AMONGST US...THE LEAST AMONGST US, JUST LOST THE "AMERICAN DREAM"...OUR HOMES!
WHERE WERE YOU MR. PRESIDENT? WHERE WAS THE CALL TO ARMS? THE PETITIONS? WHERE WAS THE TRANSPARENCY? THIS WAS OUR "MAINSTREET BAILOUT"...BANK LOBBYIST WON OUT...
AND THE LEAST AMONGST US... ARE STILL THE LEAST AMONG US.
as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate
Barack Obama has offered a detailed plan to get America’s economy back on track, by creating new jobs and easing the burden on hardworking Americans by offering middle-class tax cuts three times the size of McCain’s.
Wages are Stagnant as Prices Rise: While wages remain flat, the costs of basic necessities are increasing. The cost of in-state college tuition has grown 35 percent over the past five years. Health care costs have risen four times faster than wages over the past six years. And the personal savings rate is now the lowest it's been since the Great Depression.
Tax Cuts for Wealthy Instead of Middle Class: The Bush tax cuts give those who earn over $1 million dollars a tax cut nearly 160 times greater than that received by middle-income Americans. At the same time, this administration has refused to tackle health care, education and housing in a manner that benefits the middle class.
Learn More
John McCain’s economic policy is the same as George Bush’s. It ignores middle class Americans, giving $200 billion in tax cuts to corporations, including $4 billion in tax breaks to Big Oil, while leaving over 100 million middle-class Americans with no relief. Economists say McCain’s plan will add $3.4 trillion to the national debt.
We don't make decisions out of fear!...Therefore, it takes a courageous person to embrace change!...All of us, collectively, have chosen a new path..an intensive overhaul to ensure the "American Dream" is within the people's grasp. We will be starting at the fundamentals. Firstly, we will need a new form of commerce...A noble innovative way of re-building our Country. A new focus!...for all us breathe in the fumes of our collective pollution...for our old way of doing things, has put us in this place.
Every year we ship 700 Billion dollars to foreign countries for oil. 700 billion dollars that we need desperately here in the USA. In order to regain our standing in the world, we must invest in the infrastructure of the energy grid...the links that will connect our country from "Sea to Shining Sea!" Like the first railroad that stretched accross America connecting the East to the West. We will no longer continue to support the "Horse and Buggy" when we have a far more innovative way of doing business. TECHNOLOGY THAT WILL CLEAN OUR PLANET...CREATE MILLIONS OF WELL-PAYING AMERICAN JOBS...AND END OUR NEED TO PAY OTHERS FOR SOMETHING WE CAN PRODUCE HERE.
400 MILLION POUNDS OF POLLUTION ESCAPES INTO THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE PER DAY...THIS IS A WAR WE ALL SHOULD STRIVE TO FIGHT! THAT IS WHY I'M HERE...I EMBRACE CHANGE! I HUNGER FOR IT! WE ARE SOOO MUCH BETTER THAN WHERE WE SIT TODAY...IN A FEW DAYS WE WILL HAVE OUR CHANCE TO SHOW IT! AND IN POST HASTE...WITH OUR COLLECTIVE ENERGY... WE SHALL SURELY FIX IT!
Three more days. This weekend through election day we're making a huge effort to persuade the last undecided voters and Get Out the Vote for Barack. To be successful, we'll need your help. Yesterday volunteers around Las Vegas were busy making final preparations for weekend canvassers.
So many people have put their heart and soul into getting Barack Obama elected. Will you join us in making history on November 4th? Sign up today to Get Out the Vote for Barack.
We can take your 'skinny legs' insults, but we cannot take four more years of McCin-Bush economics!!!!!! Was it not you Arnold R-Gov of Calif. that asked for a bail out for the State of Calif. a few days after the AIG bail out? So you want the hard working middle class to bail out Calif., because you don't know how to balance a budget? And allow the billion and millionaires to get richer and richer?
Do the math!!!!!! See Barack's Tax Calculator!
http://www.my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGgFgH
Get Educated! Use the Brain Muscle! Look it up in the dictionary!!!!!!!
The insults and fear mongering has gotten way out of hand! Just because Sen Barack Obama wants to make healthcare affordable for everyone, dose not mean a socialistic government! Way too many of our working families are going bankrupt because of the sky rocketing costs of healthcare! And those who don't have healthcare, are often treated when it is too late, driving up the costs of healthcare for all of us!!!!!!! Of all develped countries in the world, the USA is lagging far behind, with high infant mortality rates etc. etc.! The past 8 years the middle class has payed above and beyond their fare share, while the rich get richer! Now the middle class are loosing jobs left and right, they need a break! And I don't think it's too much to ask the million and billionaires to pitch in their fare share! Our economy depends on the middle class! they are the buying power of America! Small buisnesses fall under the catagory of middle class people because they earn far less than 250,000.00 dollars a year!!!!!!!!
Socialism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the means of ...www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism
Democracy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system. It is derived from the Greek ...www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy
Capitalism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Capitalism is the economic system in which the means of production are distributed to openly competing profit-seeking [1] private persons and where ...www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism
Marxism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Any political practice or theory that is based on ...www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxist
I've heard a lot of talk lately about socialism. Ignore, if you will, the ridiculousness of a campaign in which everyone in the VP's state receives a cut of oil revenues. A windfall oil tax that is good enough for hockey moms but not good enough for soccer moms. Next ignore the fact that when he ran in 2000 the presidential candidate said that once people reached a certain level they should pay a little more. For a moment lets just talk about how John McCain's economic policies will lead us straight to socialism.
It, and by it I mean the US, began like this. . .
"So far as we have already formed engagements let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop."
This was the beginning. This was George Washington speaking of operating in good faith with other nations. Many have looked to Washington's farewell address to the nation as an endorsement of isolationism but to me the focus is on the statement "with perfect good faith."
This emphasis on "good faith" was the practicality of Washington. This was not a warning to never involve ourselves in the affairs of other nations, rather it was an emphasis on the necessity of being honest with ourselves, and our nation as to what were the true intentions of all parties involved. This practicality, now more than ever in our nation's history, needs to be applied not just our concerns but to the concerns of all nations. This warning needs to be heeded in all matters, military and economic.
Socialism has traditionally taken root in nations that have a rigid separation between the ruling and the ruled coupled with a high concentration of wealth in the upper classes. The risk of socialist control also goes that much higher in nations with no respect for property rights. Oh I hear what people tell me, look at the wild successes that we have in this country, anyone can make it. To a degree that is true, but not everyone can make it and therein lies the tear in the illusion that blinds so many. A child born into poverty in the US has little to no chance of getting out of the lower classes. This wasn't always the case, indeed it is the result of something that was hinted at by President Eisenhower, but more on that in a little bit.
I hear John McCain saying that the people that Obama wants to give a tax cut to those who don't pay any taxes. Alright John I'll give you that but how the heck did we get here? Many of those people work. Why aren't they making enough that they have to pay for roads? Why aren't they making enough that they have to pay for schools? How did we get to the point that all the money is so concentrated into the hands of so few that they now have to pay most of the taxes because they have most of the money? When did we become old Europe with all the gold in the hands of the lords and the people working the fields and weaving the clothes have nothing where the lords can use their wealth to buy favor with the king and his court?
So you are in a country where much of the wealth is concentrated at the top. The schools are falling down. You are recovering from a war that devastated your nation, bleeding the coffers dry. You look around at people who have no healthcare. People are getting sick and dying with little to no care. You are faced with a new and radical threat from the east. Fanatics are intent on crushing the great democracies and replacing them. This was Europe at the end of WWII and it is us now, the question is how will we proceed?
When wealth becomes heavily stratified at the top of a civilization at the expense of vast swaths of underutilized and undervalued people, particularly in democratic societies, methods have traditionally been taken to prevent democratic principles from being over run by self interested exploitation seeking to transform itself into aristocracies. The entanglement of our society within its current scenario will determine the severity of the response. John McCain's policies will follow principles that have long concentrated wealth in the hands of the few. This will lead to a further endangerment of our way of life. How will this happen? How will John McCain take more money from Americans so that the only option left for our people will be to vote for socialistic reforms or face a future as slaves?
John McCain wants to cut taxes on the wealthiest citizens in America. This will pull money from schools, from medicare, from social security and social services just when Americans are hurting most. John McCain plans to cut pentagon spending to pay for his tax cuts without a plan for ending any wars. John McCain has said that he will not renegotiate trade agreements because it would upset other nations and he called acting on actionable, clear intelligence to capture Osama Bin Laden "reckless." This is where the issue of, "perfect good faith" comes into play.
John McCain appears to be under certain illusions. Let us first look at the matter of Osama Bin Laden. It is perfectly legal to go after Osama Bin Laden if one has actionable intelligence, even in foreign nations. It is a principle called hot pursuit. Hot pursuit allows nations to cross the borders of other nations to capture and detain imminent threats if the nations in which that threat exists are unwilling or unable to act. Make no mistake if Pakistan were to refuse to act on such intelligence it would be because it was in their best interest. If we were to have such information it would be in our best interest to go in and take out Osama Bin Laden. All efforts should be made to secure good faith relations but it is deceptive and immoral, not only to our troops, our nation, but also to other nations to not acknowledge when those points diverge. Had such clear and honest assessment of our national interest been observed we would not have made many of the same choices over the last eight years for we would have viewed clearly the illusions of the past and the challenges of the future.
The next area in which John McCain has illusions is in dealing with the economy. Our nations, and I do mean nations because this is not strictly an American problem, face another imminent threat as a result of the nearly thirty years of deregulation that has been championed by John McCain. This deregulation has marched hand in hand with socialism, not the socialism of Europe but the socialism produced by the deregulated market that funneled tax payer money into the hands of the wealthy, while making it more and more difficult for the entrepreneur to compete and while do nothing to help the poor people who actually helped build these now corporate titans. As in the case of Eisenhower's warning against the military industrial complex, we are compelled to be a guarded and enlightened society, to protect against the encroachment upon our freedoms and our democracy so that freedom and security can coexist. This flies in the face of the decimation of our civil liberties by the current president and the man who has voted with him 90% of the time. It flies in the face of our values to protect the property and profits of the wealthy while allowing them to exploit our citizens, and the citizens of other nations for what is wealth for the few if it comes at the expense of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for the many? I am an old-fashioned, pig-headed, ass when it comes to property rights and I believe that the most important property that we have is our lives and our freedom to determine a better future for our children.
It is at this point in our nation that we must exercise "perfect good faith" to recognize the conflict of members of our own society who are not in fact operating in our nation's best interest. We must do this and not just to protect against a stratification of wealth that will lead to socialism. We must also exercise logical and concerted restraint, with other free and just nations, against those forces within and without that would seek to abandon our people and the people of other free nations. We must guard our liberty and our nation against all threats and for that we need someone who will not walk into the oval office with closed eyes. We need someone who will not be either blissfully unaware or willfully dismissive of the interests of our great nation and the interests of a free and better world for the generations to come. We cannot afford another four years of blindness. We need Barack Obama for the security and liberty of the entirety of the American people and the integrity of the great nation of America.
Indiana and Iowa today. NV,Colorado and Missouri tomorrow. A Midwest and Western swing. Iowa and Colorado have always been must wins for Obama. Looks like NM is safely in his column. He and McCain were both in Albequerqe last weekend. There were about 1500 at McCain's rally and 30-something thousand at Obama's. A Nevada win also for Obama will make it real tough for McCain to get to 270.
Sunday Obama has 3 rallies in Ohio.
Monday,Obama has rallies in FLA.NC and VA.
If he nails down IA,CO,NV and NM all he has to do is win one state among PA,OH,VA,NC,and FLA. Obama could win MO and IN and get to 270 without winning PA,OH,VA,NC or FLA. That scenario is doubtful but it's an illustration of how many ways Obama can get to 270.
Lots of Obama surrogates will be in PA in the next 4 days,plus Sen, Obama has Gov. Rendell,Sen. Webb and Sen. Bob Casey campaigning for him in PA. I think Obama is gonna get a coattail effect from Mark Warner in his Senate race in VA. He's way ahead of his GOP opponent. One last touchdown by Sen. Obama in PA would be nice but the calendaris short.
Joe the plumber said yesturday "I will vote for McCain the real American." 'The real American', wonder what he means by that? Or what is he implying by that statement? Unless one has Native American ancestry as dose Sen Barack Obama, I cannot see the connection to 'real American'. I personally find the comment offensive... Should Sen McCain win this election, what cabnet position will Joe the Plunger have, or did I hear wrong?
Poor Joe the Plumber, if he had studied small business (or at least googled it) he would know that overhead, payroll, utilities and a host of other expenses are deducted before talling up the total profit from business income on Schedule C of the Federal Tax Forms... It's sad to see gulable American people lied to, in such a decptive fashion! I wonder if Joe the Plumber is jumping for joy because EXON-MOBIL again anounce hudge profits! Will Joe the Plumber get any cash from EXON-MOBIL as McCain has implied that the rich will somehow benifit the poor and middles class?
McCain, July 7: Senator Obama's tax increases will hurt the economy even more, and destroy jobs across this country. If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners in America who files as an individual rate payer, Senator Obama is going to raise your tax rates.
McCain, July 8: Keeping individual rates low isn't intended as a favor to wealthy Americans. 23 million small-business owners pay those rates, and taking more money from them deprives them of the capital they need to invest and grow and hire.
McCain, July 9: If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners in America who files as an individual rate payer, Senator Obama is willing to raise your tax rates.
McCain, July 12: If you are one of the 23 million small-business owners who files as an individual rate payer, watch out – because as your business grows, my opponent proposes to raise your taxes.
This man voted for the first time in his life at the age of 61. He came out on the first day of early voting in Nevada to cast his vote for Barack Obama at the Pearson Community Center in Las Vegas.
Barack Obama's historic campaign has already renewed hope for many Americans. But our shared goals have not yet been reached. The last day of early vote is TOMORROW--Friday, October 31. It's not enough to vote early. Please contact three friends and ask them if they've voted early. If they haven't, help them find their early voting location and do everything you can to help them vote before the polls close. Click here for information on the early vote locations in your area.
Time is running out to participate in this extraordinary election. Become a foot soldier for the Obama campaign. Help us get out the vote in the last days of the campaign.
Share your stories and pictures with us and we'll try to publish as many as we can on our blog before election day.
Tomorrow is the LAST DAY of early vote in Nevada. Please help our campaign by voting early, and avoid the lines on election day. Click here to find the early voting location nearest you.
Reader feedback on Nevada's early voting process has been overwhelmingly favorable. Here are some of the responses we've gotten:
Voting early is awesome. Great voting machines in NV! Paper trail, printed receipt, the works.--Jeremy G., Las Vegas
Voting early was a good experience, avoided the large crowds and helped Barack's local campaign staff by voting early, so that they can concentrate on assisting special needs voters and others on election day. --Thomas M., Pahrump
It was very satisfying to vote for Barack in Nevada. The parking lot was full of Obama-Biden bumper stickers, and most of the people coming out of City Hall were smiling ear-to-ear. I got the feeling it was a very pro-Obama group.--Zasmine D., Fernley
The poll workers were very friendly and helpful. The vibe was very positive and I saw several people lingering outside the polling place talking excitedly about casting their vote for Barack. It was the proudest vote I have ever cast. --Jon C., Las Vegas
My husband went to the "Obama Store" on Tuesday and got a huge yard sign and put it on one of our fences. We are on a busy street and very near our precinct's polling place. We couldn't donate money, but we can donate excellent ad space.--Michelle R., Reno
I was impressed by how smooth and professional the process was. There were at least 20 voting booths, and all were packed. I didn't have to show any ID (I had one ready in case), and once I got to my booth, it was only about 5 minutes or so to work through the ballot. I'm so excited to have voted for Obama! Also, during the 10-15 minutes I waited in line, there were two first-time voters. Everyone erupted in applause when they were announced. Fired up! Ready to go! --John H., North Las Vegas
There was a long line at the Galleria Mall and I thought at first I would be there for at least an hour or more. But, the line circulated very quickly and the volunteers were very organized. I was surprised and pleased to say I was out of there in 30 minutes. Voting early is my new thing!--Janine R., Henderson
Line was long but moved very quickly. Got there around 10 a.m. but only gave myself about 45 minutes because Barack was giving a speech here in Vegas and I didn't want to miss it. I was in and out in about 30 minutes. Made it to Barack's rally with plenty of time to spare. Barack was awesome and it was cool to know that I voted and saw Barack live on the same day!--Jeff C., Las Vegas
Just want you to know, I am a registered Republican -- VOTED OBAMA! --Jacqueline M., Las Vegas
Some early voting locations will stay open later than others. Make sure you arrive in time at your location to vote. Click here to for polling locations and hours.
My cousin Shelley is always sending me great stuff. Today was no exception. This is absolutely outstanding. Click on the link and be entertained. There is one thing that is a sure bet...the funniest things are also the things that are true.
Thank you, Shelley. And thank you, John McCain, for constantly reminding us that you and Sarah Palin are not the better choice for our next four years in this country.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03fcGelz8Hw
It turns out there are still a lot of people in Washington and our state capitals who are working to discourage Americans from voting.
One of our most important groups working to register and protect voters -- Project Vote -- recently released a study which documented in great detail years of voter suppression all over the country. The result is that hundreds and thousands of minority voters, many of them 'single mothers,' were purged from the rolls and deprived of their right to vote in 2004 and 2006. That is outrageous!
And if it sounds sickeningly familiar, you are right. These are the same anti-American tactics that kept people from voting in the South during the Civil Rights movement. And it has to stop.
Please join is in this monumental battle for our democracy. Step up and say there is nothing more important than the ability to vote in America. Will you fight with us to ensure that every single eligible voter can go to the polls?
We have had a mixed blessing here in the Obama office in San Carlos (Bay Area) California. Enthusiastic phone bankers are bringing their children. These kids are fired up and ready to go, but some of them --although they’d really love to -- are just a little too young to hit the phones.
Today we came up with a wonderful idea that I’d love to share with Obama offices and volunteers all over this great land. This is both a terrific way to get kids involved and a way to get them to be productive and doing something for the man they’re there for, Barack Obama.
With Barack in Hawaii visiting his ailing grandmother, whom he acknowledges poured everything she had into him, we thought that a wonderful way for children to demonstrate their involvement in the campaign and admiration for Barack is to accompany their parents to their local Obama office and create a get well card or a picture for Barack’s loving and supportive grandmother, Toot. Her name is Madelyn Dunham.
Let’s present our children with the most poignant example of volunteerism by coming down to your local Obama office to find out how you can put Obama over the top and allowing your kids to show their support. Let’s make it a family activity and create the path for future involvement and empowerment.
To find your local Obama office, log on to http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/statepages.
All get well cards, pictures and any other creations can be sent to Obama for America, Attn: Get Well Grandma (Toot), 233 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60601. Please limit the size of the envelope that you send because the HQ office is unable to accept large packages or oversized envelopes.
Our kids are fired up. Let’s give them an outlet and something constructive to do for Barack and his grandma.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because I feel that I was misled about Weapons of Mass Destruction and our reason for going war in Iraq. And by going to war with Iraq, Bin Ladden was given a free pass to do as he pleases after killing nearly 4,000 civilians.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has an eye on the future of our Nation, and knows that unless our children excell in Math and Science we as a Nation will fall. For we have to be the inventors of the future, we have to have the opportunities to go to collage!
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he knows we have to independant of fossil fuels that are contaminating our entire planet! And he will promote Solar and Wind power that we so desparately need! We cannot be held hostage in the oil markets anymore!
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he knows what it is like to pay off a student loan, and knows first hand how difficult it is for the middle class to struggle with paying bills. And as a child he saw his mom struggle and survive on foodstamps, he knows what it is like to go without.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he stands in opposition to giving permanent tax breaks to oil comanies i.e. the 5 per-cent of the wealthiest Americans, and instead would give a tax break for working Americans, who can bearly make it, as it is. And he will extend the unemployeement benifits knowing that our nation is currently in a financial crisis.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has good ideas on how to create new jobs for Americans by giving tax incentives to those companies who stay in America, and also tax incentives to companies who take the time to invent new alternatives to fosil fuel!
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he recognises how important and influencial the United States is globally, and that we need to preserve and improve our image abroad.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because I know he knows where me and my family come from, and will be able to voice our concerns in US Government.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama because he has character, and dose not make rash decisions based on poll numbers. He thinks before making important decisions, and is able to maintain cool while being lied about and defend his position firmly.
I voted for Sen Barack Obama even though I don't agree with him on every issue, but I do know that he has the substance and moral character to make the nessasary changes we need in government like 'transperancy'. Furthermore as a former civil rights attorney he is well informed about my civil rights as an American citizen, and I know he will uphold The American Constitution!
Join Barack Obama and fellow supporters at Early Vote for Change Rallies in Las Vegas and Reno on Saturday, October 25.
Here are the details:
Las Vegas Bonanza High School Judy K. Cameron Stadium 6665 Del Rey Avenue Las Vegas, NV 89146 Gates Open: 12:00 p.m. Program Begins: 3:00 p.m.Click here to RSVP
Reno Peccole Stadium University of Nevada, Reno Reno, NV Doors Open: 7:30 AM Click here to RSVP
Early Voting has started in Nevada and many of you have sent us your experiences via our web site response form. We've posted some of them below. And, for the first time, we've posted a user-submitted picture in our slide show! (Click on the "info" button to find out which one it is.) Please keep your responses (and pictures and videos) coming!
"I was worried about whether my vote would count or get lost because it was early, so hopefully this whole process works. I checked four times to make sure I voted for Obama. I've had people come by my house and offer to drive me to vote, because I'm a stay-at-home mom without a car, and I can't even express how truly grateful I am for all of their assistance. For once I felt like I was a part of a community, and it was all because of the kindness of those going door to door, offering their help."--Valerie M., Fernley, 10/21/08
"I voted at the Scolari's grocery store near my house. I found myself quite tickled at the fact that I was voting in the produce section of a grocery store. My husband and our 19-year-old daughter voted at the same time (her first Presidential election). I'll remember it always for both its poignancy for our family and for the amusement I got out of the fact I was voting surrounded by oranges, grapes, and potatoes!"--Nancy G., Sparks, 10/19/08
"On a good note, I saw several Obama bumper stickers in the parking lot in this traditionally Republican area. The fellow behind me in line was also a registered Democrat and voting was brisk on the first hour of early voting. My instinct is that this heavier voting may speak well for Obama, especially in this area."--Mark S., Incline Village, 10/18/08
"My husband and I drove my mother-in-law to a Scolari's grocery store to vote with us. We were greeted warmly by the volunteers and were efficiently processed. Highlight moment: We observed an African-American lady who was ahead of us in line, approximately 45 years old, who smiled brightly as she announced, 'This is my first time voting. Would someone please take my picture?' She had brought her own camera, and the gentleman behind her obliged. I wanted to go and hug her!"--Cynthia M., Reno, 10/19/08
"I am a first time voter and finally said to myself that I can't complain about current issues if I don't vote. We as a nation are facing very hard decisions and I feel Mr. Obama is the best person for the job. This is the first time I actually have been excited about politics."--Michael B., Las Vegas, 10/20/08
There's no time to waste in bringing change to the country we love. Find out where you can vote early in Nevada. And then share your experiences with us.
