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Segami
Segami's Journal
Segami's Journal
October 30, 2015
Television News Network LOBBYISTS Are Fundraising for Hillary Clinton
Over the last two presidential debates, both Democratic and Republican candidates have asserted that the television news media is biased and has done a poor job informing voters of the most pressing issues in the election. And while their focus is on things like the type of questions asked by debate moderators, they are overlooking much clearer signs of potential conflicts of interest. Fundraising disclosures released this month and in July reveal that lobbyists for media companies are raising big money for establishment presidential candidates, particularly Hillary Clinton. The giant media companies that shape much of the coverage of the presidential campaign have a vested stake in the outcome. From campaign finance laws that govern how money is spent on advertising to the regulators who oversee consolidation rules, the media industry has a distinct policy agenda, and with it, a political team to influence the result.
The top fundraisers for Clinton include lobbyists who serve the parent companies of CNN and MSNBC. The National Association of Broadcasters, a trade group that represents the television station industry, has lobbyists who are fundraising for both Clinton and Republican candidate Marco Rubio. Presidential campaigns are obligated by law to send the Federal Election Commission a list of lobbyists who serve as “bundlers,” collecting hundreds of individual checks on behalf of a candidate’s campaign. CNN’s parent company, Time Warner, is represented on Capitol Hill by Steve Elmendorf, an adviser to Clinton during her 2008 campaign, who is also known as “one of Washington’s top lobbyists.” He’s lobbied on a number of issues important for media companies like CNN, including direct-to-consumer advertising policy.
Elmendorf, according to disclosures, has raised at least $141,815 for Clinton’s 2016 bid for the presidency. Comcast, the parent company of NBC Universal, which includes cable networks NBC, CNBC, and MSNBC, has a number of lobbyists on retainer who are working to raise cash for the Clinton campaign, including Justin Gray, Alfred Mottur, Ingrid Duran and Catherine Pino. Much of the $5 billion expected to be spent over the course of the 2016 presidential election cycle will be on cable and network news advertisements. The election-related spending bonanza is singularly boosting the profit margins of many media companies, as we’ve reported. “Super PACs may be bad for America, but they’re very good for CBS,” Les Moonves, president and chief executive of CBS, memorably said. If there’s spillover between the corporate media political agenda and what you see on TV, the most likely place for it is in the lack of reporting on campaign finance reform. Though networks have focused great attention on the amount of money raised by the candidates, there is very little discussion of how to reduce the influence of money in politics.
cont'
https://theintercept.com/2015/10/29/media-fundraisers-presidential/
The top fundraisers for Clinton include lobbyists who serve the parent companies of CNN and MSNBC. The National Association of Broadcasters, a trade group that represents the television station industry, has lobbyists who are fundraising for both Clinton and Republican candidate Marco Rubio. Presidential campaigns are obligated by law to send the Federal Election Commission a list of lobbyists who serve as “bundlers,” collecting hundreds of individual checks on behalf of a candidate’s campaign. CNN’s parent company, Time Warner, is represented on Capitol Hill by Steve Elmendorf, an adviser to Clinton during her 2008 campaign, who is also known as “one of Washington’s top lobbyists.” He’s lobbied on a number of issues important for media companies like CNN, including direct-to-consumer advertising policy.
Elmendorf, according to disclosures, has raised at least $141,815 for Clinton’s 2016 bid for the presidency. Comcast, the parent company of NBC Universal, which includes cable networks NBC, CNBC, and MSNBC, has a number of lobbyists on retainer who are working to raise cash for the Clinton campaign, including Justin Gray, Alfred Mottur, Ingrid Duran and Catherine Pino. Much of the $5 billion expected to be spent over the course of the 2016 presidential election cycle will be on cable and network news advertisements. The election-related spending bonanza is singularly boosting the profit margins of many media companies, as we’ve reported. “Super PACs may be bad for America, but they’re very good for CBS,” Les Moonves, president and chief executive of CBS, memorably said. If there’s spillover between the corporate media political agenda and what you see on TV, the most likely place for it is in the lack of reporting on campaign finance reform. Though networks have focused great attention on the amount of money raised by the candidates, there is very little discussion of how to reduce the influence of money in politics.
cont'
https://theintercept.com/2015/10/29/media-fundraisers-presidential/
October 29, 2015
WASHINGTON -- When former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) withdrew his plan to give driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants in 2007, it was partially at the urging of then- (and current) presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, the former governor said in an podcast interview posted Thursday. While Clinton now supports driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants, she flailed on the issue during her 2008 presidential bid. Eventually, the Democrat came down against Spitzer's proposed measure to provide licenses to the undocumented. But Clinton went further than opposing the plan, Spitzer revealed on "The Axe Files," a podcast hosted by David Axelrod, a former adviser to President Barack Obama (who went on to defeat Clinton in 2008). In fact, the campaign asked Spitzer to drop the proposal altogether. Spitzer told Axelrod he yielded to that request, although heavy opposition from elsewhere also played a role.
Earlier in 2007, Clinton, then a senator from New York, said that Spitzer's plan made "a lot of sense." During a Democratic primary debate in October of that year, though, she walked the statement back, saying "I did not say that it should be done, but I certainly recognize why Gov. Spitzer is trying to do it." Her debate opponents hammered her for hedging, and Obama said unequivocally that he supported driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants. Spitzer said he was "pacing around the living room" watching that debate and that Clinton "waffled and waffled and waffled.”
cont'
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/eliot-spitzer-hillary-clinton-drivers-licenses-undocumented_56325e1be4b00aa54a4d3864
Eliot Spitzer:Clinton's 2008 Camp URGED HIM Not To Give Driver's Licenses To Undocumented Immigrants
"...As president, I will not support driver's licenses for undocumented people and will press for comprehensive immigration reform that deals with all of the issues around illegal immigration including border security and fixing our broken system," she said in a statement in November 2007.
Clinton came around earlier this year. In April, a spokesperson for her campaign told The Huffington Post that the candidate "supports state policies to provide driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants...."
Clinton came around earlier this year. In April, a spokesperson for her campaign told The Huffington Post that the candidate "supports state policies to provide driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants...."
WASHINGTON -- When former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) withdrew his plan to give driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants in 2007, it was partially at the urging of then- (and current) presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, the former governor said in an podcast interview posted Thursday. While Clinton now supports driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants, she flailed on the issue during her 2008 presidential bid. Eventually, the Democrat came down against Spitzer's proposed measure to provide licenses to the undocumented. But Clinton went further than opposing the plan, Spitzer revealed on "The Axe Files," a podcast hosted by David Axelrod, a former adviser to President Barack Obama (who went on to defeat Clinton in 2008). In fact, the campaign asked Spitzer to drop the proposal altogether. Spitzer told Axelrod he yielded to that request, although heavy opposition from elsewhere also played a role.
"We heard from folks [on Clinton's campaign] who said they want this issue gone," Spitzer said. "I thought the issue was a metaphor for her vacillation."
Earlier in 2007, Clinton, then a senator from New York, said that Spitzer's plan made "a lot of sense." During a Democratic primary debate in October of that year, though, she walked the statement back, saying "I did not say that it should be done, but I certainly recognize why Gov. Spitzer is trying to do it." Her debate opponents hammered her for hedging, and Obama said unequivocally that he supported driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants. Spitzer said he was "pacing around the living room" watching that debate and that Clinton "waffled and waffled and waffled.”
"Because it was controversial, she hemmed and she hawed," he said on the podcast. "And again, this goes to the core of, where are you on immigrants' rights?"
cont'
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/eliot-spitzer-hillary-clinton-drivers-licenses-undocumented_56325e1be4b00aa54a4d3864
October 29, 2015
The Third Way Instructing Democrats........
On Wednesday morning, the think tank Third Way held a briefing in which it warned candidates that they risked personal and broadly shared electoral harm if they echoed Sanders' populist message.
The rise of Sanders, though unanticipated, has exposed familiar ideological fissures within the Democratic Party. Virtually every modern presidential election has pitted an insurgent candidate with populist appeal against a more centrist-minded or establishment alternative. Bill Clinton's win in 1992 ushered in a generation of modern, more moderate New Democrats. And when Clinton left office, several of his former staffers started up Third Way to discourage the party from reverting to its leftward ways. During the Obama era, the group issued similar warnings about the rise of Democratic populism and played consequential policy roles -- most memorably encouraging lawmakers to abandon the pursuit of a public option during the crafting of health care reform in 2010. On the eve of a post-Obama America, Third Way's role appears more defensive or, at least, complicated by the few candidates running for the White House. Far from cheerleading Hillary Clinton's presidential candidacy, it warned her not to mimic her nearest competitor.
~snip~
Though officials at Third Way warned about potential missteps Democrats might make at the presidential level, much of the hour-long briefing on Wednesday was spent arguing that the party's success in such elections has masked fundamental problems elsewhere. And on a purely numerical level, the math is indisputable. As Jonathan Cowan, Third Way's president, noted, Democrats hold the fewest offices in Congress, statehouses and governors' mansions since 1928. The factors behind this, however, are deeply disputed. In its presentation, Third Way argued that a focus on issues like a $15 minimum wage, expanding Social Security benefits and advocating for single-payer health care all create the political dynamics that make Democrats electorally vulnerable. But few Democrats have run on this platform in past races. During the disastrous 2014 midterm elections, a number of senators called for expanding Social Security benefits. But talk of single-payer health care was nonexistent outside highly progressive (and largely dismissed) quarters. And the debate at the time was about raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, not $15. Third Way itself calls for a wage floor of $10-$12, based on average hourly wages and regional cost variations.
Third Way's platform calls for passage of free trade deals like the Trans Pacific Partnership, making the research and development tax credit permanent and revenue-neutral corporate tax reform. The group advocates for raising tax rates on capital gains from 20 to 25 percent and for limiting deductions for high wage earners. But on the whole, it is the more corporate-minded plank of the Democratic platform, much to the distaste of its critics.
Michael Briggs, Sanders' top spokesman, was a touch more sardonic. "Did Mr. Daley have anything to say about all of the American factories that closed or the millions of American jobs that were lost because he pushed NAFTA through Congress?" he asked.
cont'
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/third-way-presidential-campaign_563237f2e4b0c66bae5b4066
The Rise Of Bernie Sanders And The PANIC Of The Third Way Democratic Centrists
The Third Way Instructing Democrats........
On Wednesday morning, the think tank Third Way held a briefing in which it warned candidates that they risked personal and broadly shared electoral harm if they echoed Sanders' populist message.
"You would be back to 1972 [if Bernie were nominated]," warned Bill Daley, President Barack Obama's former chief of staff and a Third Way board member, referencing the blowout Richard Nixon win that year. "It was not a happy time for Democrats. The guy has been a socialist his whole life and now decides he is a Democrat and therefore the Democratic Party has got to move to that extreme? I think it is a recipe for disaster."
The rise of Sanders, though unanticipated, has exposed familiar ideological fissures within the Democratic Party. Virtually every modern presidential election has pitted an insurgent candidate with populist appeal against a more centrist-minded or establishment alternative. Bill Clinton's win in 1992 ushered in a generation of modern, more moderate New Democrats. And when Clinton left office, several of his former staffers started up Third Way to discourage the party from reverting to its leftward ways. During the Obama era, the group issued similar warnings about the rise of Democratic populism and played consequential policy roles -- most memorably encouraging lawmakers to abandon the pursuit of a public option during the crafting of health care reform in 2010. On the eve of a post-Obama America, Third Way's role appears more defensive or, at least, complicated by the few candidates running for the White House. Far from cheerleading Hillary Clinton's presidential candidacy, it warned her not to mimic her nearest competitor.
~snip~
Though officials at Third Way warned about potential missteps Democrats might make at the presidential level, much of the hour-long briefing on Wednesday was spent arguing that the party's success in such elections has masked fundamental problems elsewhere. And on a purely numerical level, the math is indisputable. As Jonathan Cowan, Third Way's president, noted, Democrats hold the fewest offices in Congress, statehouses and governors' mansions since 1928. The factors behind this, however, are deeply disputed. In its presentation, Third Way argued that a focus on issues like a $15 minimum wage, expanding Social Security benefits and advocating for single-payer health care all create the political dynamics that make Democrats electorally vulnerable. But few Democrats have run on this platform in past races. During the disastrous 2014 midterm elections, a number of senators called for expanding Social Security benefits. But talk of single-payer health care was nonexistent outside highly progressive (and largely dismissed) quarters. And the debate at the time was about raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, not $15. Third Way itself calls for a wage floor of $10-$12, based on average hourly wages and regional cost variations.
Third Way's platform calls for passage of free trade deals like the Trans Pacific Partnership, making the research and development tax credit permanent and revenue-neutral corporate tax reform. The group advocates for raising tax rates on capital gains from 20 to 25 percent and for limiting deductions for high wage earners. But on the whole, it is the more corporate-minded plank of the Democratic platform, much to the distaste of its critics.
"They do nothing to challenge corporate power in the workplace, other than a higher minimum wage," said Larry Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute, a Third Way adversary. "If they don’t get behind policies that will really help generate middle class wage and compensation growth then they’re missing an essential piece of what’s needed, economically and politically."
Michael Briggs, Sanders' top spokesman, was a touch more sardonic. "Did Mr. Daley have anything to say about all of the American factories that closed or the millions of American jobs that were lost because he pushed NAFTA through Congress?" he asked.
cont'
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/third-way-presidential-campaign_563237f2e4b0c66bae5b4066
October 29, 2015
Bernie Sanders held a national student town hall in Fairfax last night, and addressed one student's question about anti-Muslim sentiment:
Bernie Sanders At George Mason U.: I Will LEAD EFFORT To Fight Racism
Bernie Sanders held a national student town hall in Fairfax last night, and addressed one student's question about anti-Muslim sentiment:
FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA — Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) town hall, held at George Mason University at the same time as the third GOP debate on Wednesday, mainly focused on the presidential candidate’s favorite topics: income inequality, universal health care, campaign finance reform, and climate change.
But in one of the most emotional moments of the night, George Mason University senior Remaz Abdelgader stood up and demanded to know how Sanders would address the rising tide of Islamophobia in the U.S. Her voice breaking, she spoke of how hurt she feels when she hears anti-Muslim rhetoric from other candidates for president — including GOP frontrunners Ben Carson, who has said he doesn’t want a Muslim as president of the U.S.
“Being an American is such a strong part of my identity, but I want to create a change in this society,” she said. “I’m so tired of listening to this rhetoric saying I can’t be president one day, that I should not be in office. It makes me so angry and upset. This is my country.”
Sanders insisted she join him on stage and gave her a hug as the crowd of a couple hundred stood and cheered.
Then, in response to her question, Sanders does something he rarely does: he spoke personally about his Jewish faith and family history, which includes losing relatives in the Holocaust, and said Americans need to learn from that past. “If we stand for anything we have to stand together and end all forms of racism in this country,” he said. “I will lead that effort as president.”
Sanders also talked about the ways people in power have used racism and prejudice throughout U.S. history to keep working class people from uniting.
“They told white workers who were earning pennies an hour, ‘Hey, you think you’re in trouble, but you’re better off than the blacks,'” he said. “And they told straight people, ‘You’re better off than those gay people.’ And they pitted men against women. It’s always playing one group against another. That’s how the rich got richer while everybody else was fighting each other. Our job is to build a nation in which we all stand together.”
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
But in one of the most emotional moments of the night, George Mason University senior Remaz Abdelgader stood up and demanded to know how Sanders would address the rising tide of Islamophobia in the U.S. Her voice breaking, she spoke of how hurt she feels when she hears anti-Muslim rhetoric from other candidates for president — including GOP frontrunners Ben Carson, who has said he doesn’t want a Muslim as president of the U.S.
“Being an American is such a strong part of my identity, but I want to create a change in this society,” she said. “I’m so tired of listening to this rhetoric saying I can’t be president one day, that I should not be in office. It makes me so angry and upset. This is my country.”
Sanders insisted she join him on stage and gave her a hug as the crowd of a couple hundred stood and cheered.
Then, in response to her question, Sanders does something he rarely does: he spoke personally about his Jewish faith and family history, which includes losing relatives in the Holocaust, and said Americans need to learn from that past. “If we stand for anything we have to stand together and end all forms of racism in this country,” he said. “I will lead that effort as president.”
Sanders also talked about the ways people in power have used racism and prejudice throughout U.S. history to keep working class people from uniting.
“They told white workers who were earning pennies an hour, ‘Hey, you think you’re in trouble, but you’re better off than the blacks,'” he said. “And they told straight people, ‘You’re better off than those gay people.’ And they pitted men against women. It’s always playing one group against another. That’s how the rich got richer while everybody else was fighting each other. Our job is to build a nation in which we all stand together.”
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
October 29, 2015
~snip~
The clearest and most recent example of Clinton moving leftward has been her position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. She previously characterized the trade deal as the “gold standard” in free, transparent, and fair trade before she ultimately came out against it. “Nobody ever lost an election because they’ve gone against trade,” said William Daley, former Commerce secretary under Bill Clinton and Barack Obama’s former chief of staff, at the event. He noted that Third Way supports the TPP. But Cowan pointed out that while he and the organization backed the TPP, Clinton’s newfound opposition to the 12-nation agreement was not crossing a line. He said that in 2008, both Obama and Clinton opposed trade agreements. “If she called for a $15 trillion single-payer system, if she called for a $15 minimum wage, those are the kinds of things where you would be crossing the line,” Cowan said.
Daley said Clinton would govern as a moderate. “If she wants to pass anything, yeah, definitely, because, I think she is a doer,” Daley told National Journal. “You can’t govern as president just by ‘Eat it.’” Elaine Kamarck, one of the cofounders of the New Democrats and a senior fellow of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, said she thinks Clinton is very much a Third-Way-type politician. “She’s very cognizant of not letting your politics cut off what’s going to be a governing agenda,” Kamarck said. “And so that’s what she’s about, and she’s very concerned about government.” Cowan said that in recent election cycles, Democrats have tried running on populist themes, arguing that the deck is stacked against the middle class and the political system is “rigged”—a theme repeated by progressive favorite Elizabeth Warren, who many on the Left wanted to run for president.
In late 2013, Third Way clashed with Warren and other populist progressives, writing an op-ed calling plans to expand Social Security “exhibit A of populist political and economic fantasy.” While Clinton is the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, it’s not clear how she would campaign as the nominee or how she would govern as president. Third Way Democrats hope she puts the populist rhetoric she has adopted of late to the side and governs, if elected, from the middle. Progressives want the opposite—to see her populist positions manifest themselves in a governing agenda.
cont'
http://www.nationaljournal.com/s/91612/moderate-democrats-confident-clinton-would-govern-from-middle
Brookings Institute Elaine Kamarck Thinks Clinton Is Very Much A THIRD-WAY Type Politician.
"...Leaders of centrist think tank THIRD WAY say they hope she won’t make the same mistake Mitt Romney did..."
~snip~
The clearest and most recent example of Clinton moving leftward has been her position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. She previously characterized the trade deal as the “gold standard” in free, transparent, and fair trade before she ultimately came out against it. “Nobody ever lost an election because they’ve gone against trade,” said William Daley, former Commerce secretary under Bill Clinton and Barack Obama’s former chief of staff, at the event. He noted that Third Way supports the TPP. But Cowan pointed out that while he and the organization backed the TPP, Clinton’s newfound opposition to the 12-nation agreement was not crossing a line. He said that in 2008, both Obama and Clinton opposed trade agreements. “If she called for a $15 trillion single-payer system, if she called for a $15 minimum wage, those are the kinds of things where you would be crossing the line,” Cowan said.
Daley said Clinton would govern as a moderate. “If she wants to pass anything, yeah, definitely, because, I think she is a doer,” Daley told National Journal. “You can’t govern as president just by ‘Eat it.’” Elaine Kamarck, one of the cofounders of the New Democrats and a senior fellow of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, said she thinks Clinton is very much a Third-Way-type politician. “She’s very cognizant of not letting your politics cut off what’s going to be a governing agenda,” Kamarck said. “And so that’s what she’s about, and she’s very concerned about government.” Cowan said that in recent election cycles, Democrats have tried running on populist themes, arguing that the deck is stacked against the middle class and the political system is “rigged”—a theme repeated by progressive favorite Elizabeth Warren, who many on the Left wanted to run for president.
In late 2013, Third Way clashed with Warren and other populist progressives, writing an op-ed calling plans to expand Social Security “exhibit A of populist political and economic fantasy.” While Clinton is the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, it’s not clear how she would campaign as the nominee or how she would govern as president. Third Way Democrats hope she puts the populist rhetoric she has adopted of late to the side and governs, if elected, from the middle. Progressives want the opposite—to see her populist positions manifest themselves in a governing agenda.
cont'
http://www.nationaljournal.com/s/91612/moderate-democrats-confident-clinton-would-govern-from-middle
October 29, 2015
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) invited a Muslim college student onstage with him during his speech in Fairfax, Virginia on Wednesday after she alluded to Islamophobic political rhetoric, Think Progress reported.
As Abdelgader spoke, Sanders invited her toward the stage and hugged her. As she finished her question, the senator led her to his podium by the hand before delivering his answer.
The Democratic presidential candidate also said Abdelgader was “absolutely correct” in mentioning the anger being generated toward not only Muslims, but immigrants.
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
Here is the rest of Bernie's great speech:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Bernie Sanders Shows Compassion For MUSLIM Student Seeking To Build A Better World
"....Minutes after the town hall and rally ended, Abdelgader told ThinkProgress that she was thrilled at Sanders’ answer, saying she was almost moved to tears but didn’t want to ruin up her makeup.
“If there’s anyone that should be elected to the White House, it’s him. He stands for everybody, whether you’re gay or Muslim or black or Christian or Latino. He is for equality. That’s why I identify with the next president of the United States: Bernie Sanders....”
“If there’s anyone that should be elected to the White House, it’s him. He stands for everybody, whether you’re gay or Muslim or black or Christian or Latino. He is for equality. That’s why I identify with the next president of the United States: Bernie Sanders....”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) invited a Muslim college student onstage with him during his speech in Fairfax, Virginia on Wednesday after she alluded to Islamophobic political rhetoric, Think Progress reported.
“As an American Muslim student who aspires to change the world currently majoring in International Conflict Analysis and Resolution — and I hope to be a human rights attorney — hearing the rhetoric that’s going on in the media makes me sick,” George Mason University senior Remaz Abdelgader told Sanders, adding. “As an individual, I’m constantly trying to raise awareness and make sure that everyone is treated equally in this country. As the next president of the United States, what do you think about that?”
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
As Abdelgader spoke, Sanders invited her toward the stage and hugged her. As she finished her question, the senator led her to his podium by the hand before delivering his answer.
“For many years in this country, you have had politicians — I’m old enough to know this — who have played black off against white. They told white workers who were earning pennies an hour, ‘Hey, you think you’re in trouble, but you’re better off than the blacks,'” he said. “And they told straight people, ‘You’re better off than those gay people.’ And they pitted men against women. We play one group off against another. The rich got richer [while] everybody else was fighting each other. Our job is to build a nation in which we all stand together as one people.”
The Democratic presidential candidate also said Abdelgader was “absolutely correct” in mentioning the anger being generated toward not only Muslims, but immigrants.
“If we stand for anything, we have got to stand together and end all forms of racism, and I will lead that effort as president of the United States,” he said.
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2015/10/28/3717184/bernie-islamophobia-students/
Here is the rest of Bernie's great speech:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
October 28, 2015
OAKLAND, Calif., Oct. 28, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- We have close to 25,000 RSVPs on Facebook and our fundraising for the event is also gaining momentum. With the support of members of Veterans for Bernie Sanders, we aim to host a family friendly politically charged event that draws grassroots groups from all over California converging on the SF Bay Area. The Enough is Enough West Coast Rally will likely turn out to be the largest grassroots organized event thus far in this election cycle. Enough is Enough has sprung up from a growing grassroots revolution, inspired and invoked by Bernie Sanders and aimed at realising a government of and for ordinary Americans, not just billionaires. This rally aims to take one step on the path to that realization. We will bring together leading voices on issues such as climate change, social and economic justice, public policy and foreign affairs.
At noon we will have dozens of grassroots organizers, campaigns and activists manning tables, informing on issues they are passionately fighting for. Speeches will run from 1pm to 4pm. As a free speech event, music will have to wait for another venue, same for selling of goods. A variety of food trucks will be present. Water will be provided. There'll be a family area for children and a changing tent. Limited seating for physically handicapped and senior citizen parking will be available at civic center plaza. We request it be reserved for seniors and those with accessibility needs. We advise taking BART to Civic Center Station. These are the reasons why we need YOU to help reclaim OUR country. When we stand together there is Nothing, Nothing, NOTHING we cannot accomplish!
cont'
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/enough-is-enough-west-coast-rally-committee-calls-americans-to-join-the-political-grassroots-revolution-300168040.html
"ENOUGH is ENOUGH! - We the people are taking back our democracy!”
OAKLAND, Calif., Oct. 28, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- We have close to 25,000 RSVPs on Facebook and our fundraising for the event is also gaining momentum. With the support of members of Veterans for Bernie Sanders, we aim to host a family friendly politically charged event that draws grassroots groups from all over California converging on the SF Bay Area. The Enough is Enough West Coast Rally will likely turn out to be the largest grassroots organized event thus far in this election cycle. Enough is Enough has sprung up from a growing grassroots revolution, inspired and invoked by Bernie Sanders and aimed at realising a government of and for ordinary Americans, not just billionaires. This rally aims to take one step on the path to that realization. We will bring together leading voices on issues such as climate change, social and economic justice, public policy and foreign affairs.
At noon we will have dozens of grassroots organizers, campaigns and activists manning tables, informing on issues they are passionately fighting for. Speeches will run from 1pm to 4pm. As a free speech event, music will have to wait for another venue, same for selling of goods. A variety of food trucks will be present. Water will be provided. There'll be a family area for children and a changing tent. Limited seating for physically handicapped and senior citizen parking will be available at civic center plaza. We request it be reserved for seniors and those with accessibility needs. We advise taking BART to Civic Center Station. These are the reasons why we need YOU to help reclaim OUR country. When we stand together there is Nothing, Nothing, NOTHING we cannot accomplish!
cont'
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/enough-is-enough-west-coast-rally-committee-calls-americans-to-join-the-political-grassroots-revolution-300168040.html
On November 7th at noon, thousands of individuals from Northern California and beyond will converge on the San Francisco Civic Plaza to tell the billionaire class and massive corporations,
“ENOUGH is ENOUGH! We the people are taking back our democracy!”
Our grassroots volunteer effort, supported by members of Veterans for Bernie, Bay Area for Bernie and Democratic Socialists of AmericaEast Bay Chapter, will deliver a program of inspiring addresses by prominent public figures, activists, and extraordinary speeches from ordinary people. Their insight and inspiration will give voice to the grassroots political revolution spreading across our country.
We of the grassroots movement unite now for this rally, to speak on the following issues:
Single Payer Medicare For All
Free Public College Tuition
Path To U.S. Citizenship
$15 Federal Minimum Wage
Equal Pay For Equal Work
Clean Sustainable Energy
Fair Trade
Protect Unions and Right To Organize
End Voter Suppression
Restore Voting Rights Act
Make Election Day a National Holiday
Overturn Citizens United
Public Financing Of Elections
Corporations Pay Fair Share Of Taxes
The rally will also provide booth space and an opportunity to speak for numerous organizations, businesses, causes and campaigns which support our mission and strive to make the world a better place. This historic day will be just as much about mobilization as it is about inspiration. Join us November 7th at Civic Plaza in San Francisco for the Enough is Enough West Coast Rally.
http://enoughisenough.site/about-the-rally/
“ENOUGH is ENOUGH! We the people are taking back our democracy!”
Our grassroots volunteer effort, supported by members of Veterans for Bernie, Bay Area for Bernie and Democratic Socialists of AmericaEast Bay Chapter, will deliver a program of inspiring addresses by prominent public figures, activists, and extraordinary speeches from ordinary people. Their insight and inspiration will give voice to the grassroots political revolution spreading across our country.
We of the grassroots movement unite now for this rally, to speak on the following issues:
Single Payer Medicare For All
Free Public College Tuition
Path To U.S. Citizenship
$15 Federal Minimum Wage
Equal Pay For Equal Work
Clean Sustainable Energy
Fair Trade
Protect Unions and Right To Organize
End Voter Suppression
Restore Voting Rights Act
Make Election Day a National Holiday
Overturn Citizens United
Public Financing Of Elections
Corporations Pay Fair Share Of Taxes
The rally will also provide booth space and an opportunity to speak for numerous organizations, businesses, causes and campaigns which support our mission and strive to make the world a better place. This historic day will be just as much about mobilization as it is about inspiration. Join us November 7th at Civic Plaza in San Francisco for the Enough is Enough West Coast Rally.
http://enoughisenough.site/about-the-rally/
October 28, 2015
Sanders will call for marijuana to be removed from the Drug Enforcement Administration's schedule of controlled substances. Doing so would be a big deal for marijuana policy in this country. While it wouldn't legalize marijuana at the federal level per se, it would allow states to pursue their own marijuana policies free of most federal interference. The DEA classifies marijuana as a schedule 1 drug because it says that the drug has no medically accepted use and high a potential for abuse. It's regulated more tightly than other drugs that are far more deadly and less medically useful, like cocaine, opium and methamphetamines.
Here are seven things that would change if marijuana were removed from the DEA's schedule:
Why Bernie Sanders’ Marijuana Proposal Would Be A BIG DEAL
Sanders will call for marijuana to be removed from the Drug Enforcement Administration's schedule of controlled substances. Doing so would be a big deal for marijuana policy in this country. While it wouldn't legalize marijuana at the federal level per se, it would allow states to pursue their own marijuana policies free of most federal interference. The DEA classifies marijuana as a schedule 1 drug because it says that the drug has no medically accepted use and high a potential for abuse. It's regulated more tightly than other drugs that are far more deadly and less medically useful, like cocaine, opium and methamphetamines.
"The time is long overdue for us to take marijuana off the federal government’s list of outlawed drugs," he said in prepared remarks given to the Post by his campaign. "In my view, states should have the right to regulate marijuana the same way that state and local laws now govern sales of alcohol and tobacco."
Here are seven things that would change if marijuana were removed from the DEA's schedule:
1. The DEA would stop raiding marijuana businesses and customers.
Already, they're not supposed to be doing this when it comes to medical marijuana providers. Measures attached to last year's "cromnibus" spending bill were meant to prevent the Department of Justice from pursuing legal actions against medical marijuana businesses in compliance with applicable state laws. But the department has effectively ignored those guidelines this year, prompting a stern rebuke from a federal judge earlier this month.
cont'
2. Marijuana businesses could use the bank.
Since pot is illegal at the federal level, most banks -- even ones in states where marijuana is legal -- are wary about doing business with marijuana customers. Colorado set up a credit union for marijuana businesses last year in order to address this concern, but the Federal Reserve recently blocked the move by saying it wouldn't accept any money from marijuana businesses. This would prevent the credit union from accessing the electronic networks that would allow it to do commerce with other parts of the national banking system.
cont'
3. They could apply for tax breaks too.
An obscure provision in the federal tax code prevents businesses "trafficking" in controlled substances from taking advantage of tax breaks and exemptions available to other businesses. In legal marijuana states, it essentially puts the marijuana industry in a Catch-22: marijuana businesses have to file federal tax returns, but they can't deduct the types of expenses that businesses usually deduct.
cont'
4. Research into medical uses of marijuana could proceed unimpeded
Currently, marijuana researchers face a tangle of red tape when it comes to conducting studies on the medical uses of the plant. This has prompted everyone from the Brookings Institution to the American Medical Association to call on the government to make it easier to work with the drug. But the Drug Enforcement Administration has rejected numerous attempts to relax marijuana rules over the decades, sometimes overriding the recommendations of federal judges.
cont'
5. The DEA would end its "marijuana eradication program"
For decades, the Drug Enforcement Administration has been pursuing a marijuana eradication program "to halt the spread of cannabis cultivation in the United States." The program is costly -- it costs $60 to pull up a single pot plant in Oregon, where marijuana is legal -- and it's pulling up less weed as more growers shift to indoor grow methods.
cont'
6. Marijuana would regain the status it was always supposed to have
Marijuana was originally placed on Schedule 1 as a temporary measure in 1970 while a government-convened panel of experts figured out how to handle it from a legal standpoint. Two years later, the panel recommended complete decriminalization of small amounts of the drug: "the Commission recommends ... [that the] possession of marijuana for personal use no longer be an offense, [and that the] casual distribution of small amounts of marijuana for no remuneration, or insignificant remuneration, no longer be an offense."
cont'
7. Most voters -- who say states should chart their own course on weed -- would get what they want
Even Republican voters, who are generally more skeptical of marijuana legalization, say that states should be able to carry out their own marijuana laws without federal interference. The National Conference of State Legislatures has said the same thing. Removing marijuana from the schedule of controlled substances would simply add a federal imprimatur to a way of thinking held by a majority of Americans.
cont'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/10/28/why-bernie-sanders-marijuana-proposal-would-be-a-big-deal/
Already, they're not supposed to be doing this when it comes to medical marijuana providers. Measures attached to last year's "cromnibus" spending bill were meant to prevent the Department of Justice from pursuing legal actions against medical marijuana businesses in compliance with applicable state laws. But the department has effectively ignored those guidelines this year, prompting a stern rebuke from a federal judge earlier this month.
cont'
2. Marijuana businesses could use the bank.
Since pot is illegal at the federal level, most banks -- even ones in states where marijuana is legal -- are wary about doing business with marijuana customers. Colorado set up a credit union for marijuana businesses last year in order to address this concern, but the Federal Reserve recently blocked the move by saying it wouldn't accept any money from marijuana businesses. This would prevent the credit union from accessing the electronic networks that would allow it to do commerce with other parts of the national banking system.
cont'
3. They could apply for tax breaks too.
An obscure provision in the federal tax code prevents businesses "trafficking" in controlled substances from taking advantage of tax breaks and exemptions available to other businesses. In legal marijuana states, it essentially puts the marijuana industry in a Catch-22: marijuana businesses have to file federal tax returns, but they can't deduct the types of expenses that businesses usually deduct.
cont'
4. Research into medical uses of marijuana could proceed unimpeded
Currently, marijuana researchers face a tangle of red tape when it comes to conducting studies on the medical uses of the plant. This has prompted everyone from the Brookings Institution to the American Medical Association to call on the government to make it easier to work with the drug. But the Drug Enforcement Administration has rejected numerous attempts to relax marijuana rules over the decades, sometimes overriding the recommendations of federal judges.
cont'
5. The DEA would end its "marijuana eradication program"
For decades, the Drug Enforcement Administration has been pursuing a marijuana eradication program "to halt the spread of cannabis cultivation in the United States." The program is costly -- it costs $60 to pull up a single pot plant in Oregon, where marijuana is legal -- and it's pulling up less weed as more growers shift to indoor grow methods.
cont'
6. Marijuana would regain the status it was always supposed to have
Marijuana was originally placed on Schedule 1 as a temporary measure in 1970 while a government-convened panel of experts figured out how to handle it from a legal standpoint. Two years later, the panel recommended complete decriminalization of small amounts of the drug: "the Commission recommends ... [that the] possession of marijuana for personal use no longer be an offense, [and that the] casual distribution of small amounts of marijuana for no remuneration, or insignificant remuneration, no longer be an offense."
cont'
7. Most voters -- who say states should chart their own course on weed -- would get what they want
Even Republican voters, who are generally more skeptical of marijuana legalization, say that states should be able to carry out their own marijuana laws without federal interference. The National Conference of State Legislatures has said the same thing. Removing marijuana from the schedule of controlled substances would simply add a federal imprimatur to a way of thinking held by a majority of Americans.
cont'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/10/28/why-bernie-sanders-marijuana-proposal-would-be-a-big-deal/
October 28, 2015
The self-described democratic socialist senator from Vermont plans to share his proposal during a town hall meeting with college students that will be broadcast on the Internet across the country from George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.
No other presidential candidate has called for marijuana to be removed from the so-called Schedule 1 of controlled substances regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Longshot Democratic hopeful Martin O’Malley has said he’d put marijuana on Schedule 2, a less strict designation. The party’s frontrunner, Hillary Rodham Clinton, has repeatedly said she wants to see how legalization experiments in Colorado, Washington and other states play out before committing to any changes at the federal level
cont'
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/sanders-will-propose-nixing-marijuana-from-federal-list-of-dangerous-drugs/2015/10/28/be8c3adc-7da2-11e5-b575-d8dcfedb4ea1_story.html
Bernie Sanders Will Announce SUPPORT For REMOVING Marijuana from List of Most Dangerous Drugs
Presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders will announce his support Wednesday for removing marijuana from a list of the most dangerous drugs outlawed by the federal government — a move that would free states to legalize it without impediments from Washington.The self-described democratic socialist senator from Vermont plans to share his proposal during a town hall meeting with college students that will be broadcast on the Internet across the country from George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.
“Too many Americans have seen their lives destroyed because they have criminal records as a result of marijuana use,” Sanders says in prepared remarks for the event provided to The Washington Post. “That’s wrong. That has got to change.”
No other presidential candidate has called for marijuana to be removed from the so-called Schedule 1 of controlled substances regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Longshot Democratic hopeful Martin O’Malley has said he’d put marijuana on Schedule 2, a less strict designation. The party’s frontrunner, Hillary Rodham Clinton, has repeatedly said she wants to see how legalization experiments in Colorado, Washington and other states play out before committing to any changes at the federal level
cont'
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/sanders-will-propose-nixing-marijuana-from-federal-list-of-dangerous-drugs/2015/10/28/be8c3adc-7da2-11e5-b575-d8dcfedb4ea1_story.html
October 28, 2015
Clinton backs review, not abolishment, of death penalty
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Hillary Clinton does not favor abolishing the death penalty, she said on Wednesday morning, but she did back a review of the policy as it once again becomes a topic of national conversation.
“We have a lot of evidence now that the death penalty has been too frequently applied, and too often in a discriminatory way, so I think we have to take a hard look at it,” Clinton said in response to an audience question here at St. Anselm College, some of her most extensive comments on the topic in years.
“I do not favor abolishing it, however, because I do think there are certain egregious cases that still deserve the consideration of the death penalty, but I’d like to see those be very limited and rare, as opposed to what we’ve seen in most states,” she added.
Clinton has not weighed in expansively on the issue during the 2016 election cycle, though her main primary opponent, Bernie Sanders, has long stood against capital punishment. Clinton said while running for the Senate in 2000 that capital punishment policies had her “unenthusiastic support."
cont'
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/hillary-clinton-death-penalty-215254
Hillary Clinton BACKS Review, NOT ABOLISHMENT Of Death Penalty
Clinton backs review, not abolishment, of death penalty
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Hillary Clinton does not favor abolishing the death penalty, she said on Wednesday morning, but she did back a review of the policy as it once again becomes a topic of national conversation.
“We have a lot of evidence now that the death penalty has been too frequently applied, and too often in a discriminatory way, so I think we have to take a hard look at it,” Clinton said in response to an audience question here at St. Anselm College, some of her most extensive comments on the topic in years.
“I do not favor abolishing it, however, because I do think there are certain egregious cases that still deserve the consideration of the death penalty, but I’d like to see those be very limited and rare, as opposed to what we’ve seen in most states,” she added.
Clinton has not weighed in expansively on the issue during the 2016 election cycle, though her main primary opponent, Bernie Sanders, has long stood against capital punishment. Clinton said while running for the Senate in 2000 that capital punishment policies had her “unenthusiastic support."
cont'
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/hillary-clinton-death-penalty-215254
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