Kingston says today he's "vehemently" opposed to "The plan offered by Speaker Pelosi", yet he'd like Congress to buy him a C-37 so he can jet around GA-01 in style.
Details here:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/11/7/15219/4797
This happened at Jack Kingston's Health Care Town Hall, Valdosta, GA, 28 Sep 2009: a veteran was booed for saying respect the president. To Kingston's credit, he shushed the crowd.The speaker was George Rhynes, who is one of the organizers of a rally tomorrow, Saturday 17 October 2009, on the Lowndes County courthouse steps, Valdosta, Georgia. Invitations on
On this Labor Day morning I sent this feedback through whitehouse.gov:
I campaigned for you, like many others. We elected you and majorities of Democrats bigger than Newt Gingrich ever saw to get the job done: end the war, close gitmo, end warrantless wiretapping, implement universal health care, and the other things you said you would do.I'm sure it's hard once you get there, but gitmo is still open and there's a lot of talk that you're thinking of abandoning the public option on health care. A public option is already a compromise. The real solution, as you yourself once said, is single-payer. Medicare for everyone!You can't please everyone. You really can't please Republicans in Congress, because they're not bargaining in good faith: their only goal is to defeat you by defeating health care and anything else you propose. Trying to do it in a bipartisan way was laudable. It didn't work. You held out your hand and they bit it. Time to get the job done.FDR didn't pass the New Deal by asking Republicans to approve every detail. He accepted opposition and actively campaigned to defeat it and to defeat those Congress members in the next election. His biographer Jean Edward Smith said recently:“This fixation on securing bipartisan support for healthcare reform suggests that the Democratic Party has forgotten how to govern and the White House has forgotten how to lead.”LBJ didn't pass Medicare by giving away the store to the Republicans. He said what he wanted and he twisted arms until he got it. If your Blue Dogs are standing in your way tell them to get in line if they want your support for their next bill or at the next election.You're losing us, your progressive base. We are the great majority of people in this country who want real health care reform, not some compromise with the profit-gouging insurers. Nobody else should have to die so a CEO can get a bonus.It's time to lead, Mr. President. It's time for you and the Democrats in Congress to do the job you said you would do; the job we elected you to do.
GOP Theme Team Chair Jack Kingston, G-01, held a health care town hall in Valdosta, Georgia, and Democrats came. We were only a small minority of the hundreds present, but we spoke up and got heard in the room and in the local media.
Volunteers at the Blue House, 102 E. Adair St., Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, give thanks for everyone who helped. That was yesterday. Today they're getting out the vote, and you can help GOTV! Lots more thanks in the flickr set.
And don't forget Jack Kingston is in a precarious position; help Bill Gillespie oust Jack and become our Representative from Georgia's First District!
How? Come on down to the Blue House and call, canvass, or give rides to the polls. If you're not near Valdosta, go to your local Obama office, or your local Democratic Party headquarters, or Bill Gillespie's office on Tybee Island, or get a calling list from mybarackobama or moveon.
More phonebanking in the back room, and don't forget Bill Gillespie, GA-01, running against Jack "flag pin" Kingston:
I got a great letter from Barack Obama's campaign that said:
There's a candidate in Georgia who's working to bring the change this country needs, and that candidate is Jim Martin.
But where's our local candidate for change in the House, Bill Gillespie? Bill has stood for Barack since the beginning; he was the keynote speaker a the opening of the Valdosta Campaign for Change office. Listen to Bill speak at the candidates' forum in Valdosta.
Would you rather have Jack "flag pin" Kingston opposing Obama in the House? Or Bill "renewable energy" Gillespie helping? How different are they? Watch Bill and Jack debate in Brunswick.
A tiny amount of money by presidential campaign standards could blanket the airwaves in GA-01, one of the cheapest cable TV markets in the nation. Bill already has his TV ad ready. People are already sick of a 16-year incumbent who's promoted the wrong war while the price of gas has gone up and everybody's retirement funds have gone down. They're ready for a change. When we tell them about Bill, they want to vote for him. Barack could tell a lot of people about Bill. Just sending one of those letters would help a lot.
I just posted a long thing on dailykos about voter registrations are way up all over Georgia, and that not only makes it possible for Obama to win Georgia; it's going to affect downticket races, such as helping elect Bill Gillespie in GA-01. ABC News says McCain will win in Georgia and nobody expects otherwise. I say yes we can win Georgia!
Rather than repeat the whole thing here; instead, I'lll just quote one of the comments:
"You know, with all the stories that are coming out of Georgia, something amazing may just be afoot. I'm still not 100% sure Obama has a chance here, but the downticket races... well, I'm not going to jinx it. "I'm up in DeKalb, so we're blue as can be, but I'll be sending some money to Bill."
"You know, with all the stories that are coming out of Georgia, something amazing may just be afoot. I'm still not 100% sure Obama has a chance here, but the downticket races... well, I'm not going to jinx it.
"I'm up in DeKalb, so we're blue as can be, but I'll be sending some money to Bill."
PS: There's a plug for rednecks4obama in there, too.
That's a lot:
Lowndes County Board of Elections Supervisor Deb Cox said the total number of registered voters in the county has increased from approximately 52,000 to more than 57,000 in the past month, and some late voter registrations have still not been entered.Voter registration ends Monday. “We have about three to four feet of registration forms, and we are entering them as fast as we can,” Cox said.—First two weeks of early voting are complete, Nearly 4,000 people have cast ballots in Lowndes County, by Malynda Fulton, Valdosta Daily Times, Published October 04, 2008 10:27 pm
Lowndes County Board of Elections Supervisor Deb Cox said the total number of registered voters in the county has increased from approximately 52,000 to more than 57,000 in the past month, and some late voter registrations have still not been entered.
Voter registration ends Monday.
“We have about three to four feet of registration forms, and we are entering them as fast as we can,” Cox said.
—First two weeks of early voting are complete, Nearly 4,000 people have cast ballots in Lowndes County, by Malynda Fulton, Valdosta Daily Times, Published October 04, 2008 10:27 pm
That's more than 9% new registered voters.
It seems likely the Valdosta, Lowndes County, Campaign for Change office had something to do with that, what with its registrations at Valdosta State University, Lowndes High School, Valdosta High School, Hahira Honeybee Festival, etc.
And 4,000 early voters is more than 7% of the electorate.
This is all in a county with about 100,000 people total.
For comparison, Obama volunteers in Travis County, Texas (home of Austin, the state capital) are thrilled to have gotten 12,814 registrations in a county of almost a million population , or less than 1% increase in registered voters.
Lowndes County's 9% increase sounds pretty good!
One local remarked that it would be good to have an office. A man on the floor raised his hand and donated an office. A woman offered a second location for additional Obama events.
This was all volunteers, from Lowndes and Brooks Counties. Their only request of the campaign was "can we have some free yard signs".
People were so excited they could hardly wait to get out and hand out registration forms.
"It was honestly thrilling, that these people, on only a few days notice, showed up, and asked what to do," said Gretchen Quarterman, from Lowndes.
She added, "Not that you had to tell them much. They figured out what precints they were in, and how to approach each precint.
Want to help? Contact Carrol Lewis 229-242-7341.
We are Barack, and so can you!
A volunteer drove three hours from Valdosta to Tallahassee to get that cardboard cutout, now stationed in Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia. Both paid staff were reassigned to another state, but this office is even busier now, with voter registration, calls to undecideds, organizing meetings, literature distribution, helping neighboring counties, etc.
Obama has 30 paid staff and 35 offices in Georgia, not just in Atlanta; also in Tifton, Albany, Thomasville, and Valdosta, among others. No presidential campaign has ever had so many here; not even Jimmy Carter, who was born here. McCain has zero, zip, nada offices in Georgia.
You may be surprised when you find out how many voters are being registered, too.
So don't count Georgia out. And with 15 electoral votes, as many as North Carolina or New Jersey, and more than Virginia or Massachusetts, a win in Georgia could decide the election.
Want to help? Donate to Obama; send us yard signs, buttons, and bumper stickers. If you're local, best of all, come down and volunteer (102 E Adair St.).
Don't forget to help other Democratic candidates, such as Bill Gillespie, GA-01: Obama needs a good House to get us out of Iraq, make health care affordable, and deploy renewable energy.
Gist: Democrats caved on FISA when they didn't have to; real Democrats win in the reddest districts by standing up for the Constitution. So let's elect better Democrats and let's impeach the perpetrators of warrantless wiretapping and of the hoax War on Terror.> On Jul 12, 2008, at 7:05 AM, Bruce Steinberg wrote:> the discourse needs to change to a focus NOT on how > Obama failed or talk of Hillary or bashing anyone.Agreed. But:> The plain and honest TRUTH of this matter is that> the Democrats were forced to support this bill out of FEAR> for their political lives, not to protect US.> That I think we can all agree.Not agreed. Bill Foster won in Dennis Hastert's old seat byopposing the Iraq war and telecom immunity and being forhealth care and a sane energy policy. That's the seatof the former Republican Speaker of the House!Donna Edwards won by similar positions.Travis Childers won in Mississippi.Don Cazayoux won in Louisiana. "The Baton Rouge-area districthadn't sent a Democrat to Washington since the 1970s." http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/05/13/miss.election/Real Democrats win elections in the reddest districts in thereddest states by standing up for the things the American peopleactually care about: economy, a sane energy policy, getting out of Iraq,health care, and education. Terrorism comes in at best fourth in anyrecent polls: http://www.pollingreport.com/prioriti.htmAs for warrantless wiretapping, 3/4 of people in the U.S. oppose it: http://www.democrats.com/wiretap-poll-1A majority even of *Republicans* oppose it, as well as 87% of Democratsand 80% of Independents.A majority of the American people think Bush should be impeached for it: http://www.democrats.com/bush-impeachment-poll-2> This was a band aid to protect their money base> and gain cover on the terrorism issue.Then they were wrong, and we need to run real Democrats against them,assuming their craven capitulation on FISA doesn't lose it for thembefore then.
I'm glad Obama won; but I'm worried about his willingness to discard principles in pursuit of a false unity. The most troubling example of that is his plan to actually expand faith-based initiatives. Of course, he adds that organizations won't be allowed to discriminate. But anyone who's reported on faith-based initiatives firsthand will tell you that such regulations are impossible to enforce. Some Obama supporters say he's just doing what he has to do to win. That's exactly the way elite fundamentalists want it - to "win," you have to play by their rules. I don't think that's true. I'm hoping that ultimately, Obama doesn't, either. ... Let's tell Obama that we respect his desire to include people of faith - all faiths and no faith - in the public square, but we want him to recognize that not everybody is operating in good faith. http://www.wildhunt.org/2008/07/interview-with-jeff-sharlet.html
http://www.wildhunt.org/2008/07/interview-with-jeff-sharlet.html
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." —U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 1
—U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 1
-jsq
To quote Patrick Henry, from a speech which is one of the reasons we have a Fourth Amendment:
"A bill of rights may be summed up in a few words. What do they tell us? " That our rights are reserved. Why not say so? Is it because it will consume too much paper? Gentlemen's reasoning against a bill of rights does not satisfy me. Without saying which has the right side, it remains doubtful. A bill of rights is a favorite thing with the Virginians and the people of the other states likewise. It may be their prejudice, hut the government ought to suit their geniuses; otherwise, its operation will be unhappy. A bill of rights, even if its necessity be doubtful, will exclude the possibility of dispute; and, with great submission, I think the best way is to have no dispute. In the present Constitution, they are restrained from issuing general warrants to search suspected places, or seize persons not named, without evidence of the commission of a fact, &c. There was certainly some celestial influence governing those who deliberated on that Constitution; for they have, with the most cautious and enlightened circumspection, guarded those indefeasible rights which ought ever to be held sacred! The officers of Congress may come upon you now, fortified with all the terrors of paramount federal authority. Excisemen may come in multitudes; for the limitation of their numbers no man knows. They may, unless the general government be restrained by a bill of rights, or some similar restriction, go into your cellars and rooms, and search, ransack, and measure, every thing you eat, drink, and wear. They ought to be restrained Within proper bounds." —Patrick Henry, MONDAY, June 16, 1788. http://www.constitution.org/rc/rat_va_13.htm
—Patrick Henry, MONDAY, June 16, 1788. http://www.constitution.org/rc/rat_va_13.htm
220 years later, I still don't think we should depend on some potential future president's good intentions to stop the government from searching the cellars of our telephones and Internet. The present FISA bill lets the government get away with general searches without evidence of a commission of a fact, because it does nothing to stop the abuses that have already occurred; it lets the president say it's OK whenever he feels like it; and it immunizes the companies that already abetted. This is a bad bill. It should never be law. Barack Obama should stand up and say:
"More than 18,000 of my supporters have asked me to think again about the FISA bill. I have listened to their heart-felt pleas and admonitions, and I have looked at the analyses they have sent me. "They are right and I was wrong. This is a bad bill, which would legalize blanket spying on American citizens. It adds nothing to the existing FISA court, which has existed for 30 years and does not expire. As the Supreme Court has just noted, the FISA court can already approve warrants for communications passing through the U.S. We already have the tools we need to intercept the communications of terrorists. We do not need to legitimize blanket spying on our own citizens. "I oppose this bill in its entirety. I will support filibusters against it, and I will vote against it. On the occasion of this Fourth of July weekend, I call on all Senators and House members to do the same. Together we can support the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits searches without warrants. We have that Amendment partly because two hundred and twenty years ago Patrick Henry spoke up, just like my 18,000 supporters, and requested a Bill of Rights to 'set down those great rights which ought, in all countries, to be held inviolable and sacred.' "The press says I am tacking towards the center. By opposing this bill I am indeed tacking towards the center of the principles on which this Republic was founded. I hope soon to take an oath as your president to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. I see no reason to wait until January to do those things. I tack to that center right now, and I invite all of you to do the same. "Other candidates may listen to lobbyists of big corporations. My supporters are individuals, and the processes I have put in place to hear them are working. Like Patrick Henry, they talk to me, and I listen. I will put similar processes in place when I am elected so that your president can hear from you, the people. "Happy Fourth of July."
"They are right and I was wrong. This is a bad bill, which would legalize blanket spying on American citizens. It adds nothing to the existing FISA court, which has existed for 30 years and does not expire. As the Supreme Court has just noted, the FISA court can already approve warrants for communications passing through the U.S. We already have the tools we need to intercept the communications of terrorists. We do not need to legitimize blanket spying on our own citizens.
"I oppose this bill in its entirety. I will support filibusters against it, and I will vote against it. On the occasion of this Fourth of July weekend, I call on all Senators and House members to do the same. Together we can support the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits searches without warrants. We have that Amendment partly because two hundred and twenty years ago Patrick Henry spoke up, just like my 18,000 supporters, and requested a Bill of Rights to 'set down those great rights which ought, in all countries, to be held inviolable and sacred.'
"The press says I am tacking towards the center. By opposing this bill I am indeed tacking towards the center of the principles on which this Republic was founded. I hope soon to take an oath as your president to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. I see no reason to wait until January to do those things. I tack to that center right now, and I invite all of you to do the same.
"Other candidates may listen to lobbyists of big corporations. My supporters are individuals, and the processes I have put in place to hear them are working. Like Patrick Henry, they talk to me, and I listen. I will put similar processes in place when I am elected so that your president can hear from you, the people.
"Happy Fourth of July."
I have no illusions that Obama will mistake me for one of his speechwriters. But I've often found suggesting draft wording helps get a point across.
Yes he can.
I am very disappointed in Obama's position on the House FISA "compromise". The U.S. government does not need to be able to look at every phone call, email, facebook page, video, etc. that everyone posts, not unless every last man, woman, and child in the U.S. is a terrorist. There was no need for it politically: Bill Foster won Hastert's old seat in Illinois while speaking out against the Iraq war and against retroactive immunity. There was no need for the House to do anything about FISA. There was no need for the House to do anything at all about FISA. This is unnecessary capitulation to the worst president in history.
This is not just a "however":
"It does, however, grant retroactive immunity, and I will work in the Senate to remove this provision so that we can seek full accountability for past offenses."
Without lawsuits against the telcos, we will never know that Bush's illegal warrantless wiretapping is over, because we won't know what he did! We won't even know what he or his appointees are still doing, even under an Obama administration.
Obama is the leader of the Democratic Party, the party that has a huge majority in the House. Why did he not speak out against this "compromise"? Why does he not speak out now?
My Representative is, unfortunately, Republican Bush-enabler Jack Kingston. I am actively supporting Democrat Bill Gillespie to replace him. He won't be elected in time to help stop this bad "compromise". The Senate needs to do it.
Senator Obama needs to do more than just "work in the Senate to remove" retroactive immunity for warrantless wiretapping. He needs to be the leader who stops it. Democratic nominee for president Obama needs to come right out and say his party opposes retroactive immunity and warrantless wiretapping, and he wants it stopped now. He needs to hold Bush accountable now, not in some vague indefinite future. This will not only help win him the election, it's the right thing to do.
I'm attending a United for Change meeting for Obama Saturday. I had planned to hand over another check. First I will be asking these questions. I would really like answers.
I gave money to Democrats in 2006 so they would get elected and end the war, stop retroactive immunity, and impeach Bush. They have done none of those things, even with a majority in the House larger than the Republicans had in Gingrich's heyday. All they had to do was just not pass the bill!
This last-minute capitulation to one of Bush's worst illegal offences is yet more spinelessness by Democrats. Spinelessness that will come back to haunt all of us in the future. Which of you will be the next Joe Nacchio, trumped up on charges because he wouldn't wiretap for Bush; charges that he can never refute if this immunity passes? Which of you will be the next Don Siegelman, former governor of Alabama, thrown in prison on trumped up charges because it looked like he was winning his election?
This is America, Obama, not the absolute monarchy of old France or George III's Britain! Or the America of Franklin and Jefferson was what I thought Barack Obama was going to restore.
"Qu'on me donne six lignes écrites de la main du plus honnête homme, j'y trouverai de quoi le faire pendre." "If one would give me six lines written by the hand of the most honest man, I would find something in them to have him hanged." --Cardinal Richelieu (1585-1642), via Bruce Schneier "Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." --Benjamin Franklin, An Historical Review of the Constitution and Government of Pennsylvania, 1759 http://riskman.typepad.com/perilocity/2006/08/what_can_we_do_.html
