Dear Supporters of Obama:
Before I tell you all about the amazing evening I had with Michelle Obama, I have to mention McSame's ridiculous new ad that links Obama to the high gas prices. I am still trying to figure out what he is talking about. The NY Times today in their evaluation of the ad says,"Aside from correctly stating current gasoline prices, "Pump(the ad)" is misleading on nearly every substantive point. Even though there is no truth to the ad, The Times says it could prove to be effective with undecided voters. So, it is up to us to remind people that Obama is not against all drilling for oil and gas, only offshore drilling ,a word rarely mentioned in this ad. Increased oil production is not the best road to take towards energy independence. Obama urges us to put our resources into developing and using alternative sources of energy such as solar and wind power and corn-based ethanol. He has proposed a 150 billion dollar decade-long government backed effort to help develop clean-energy sources, and opposes temporary tax rebates that McSame favors ,calling this an election year gimmick. This is a position that most economists and energy experts share with Obama. Oil prices have been rising for a decade as a result of many political and economic factors in places as far away as India and China, Venezuela and Nigeria. It is very hard to understand how McSame can blame Obama, a first term Senator for this rise in gas prices. It is a sham and we have to nip this attempt at distorting of the facts in the bud. This ad is from the same McSame who thinks that Iraq and Pakistan share a border(see the Youtube http://youtube.com/watch?v=NC0Y7zMcn_4). Watching McSame humiliate himself like this is just painful. For one thing, Iraq and Pakistan don’t share a border. They’re not even especially close — Iraq and Pakistan are separated by 1,500 miles and the country of Iran. How could he not realize those two countries are separated by 1000 miles of mountains and desert called Iran? This is the man who attacked Obama on his national security credentials. I refuse to call these gaffes because that assumes he knew better and just made a mistake. If you string these together with his past errors you realize McSame isn't just mistake prone, a man who might accidentally bomb Latvia because he mistook it for Libya, he is actually limited. In this interview he consistently answers questions about Afghanistan by referring to Iraq and the reverse. If that is not scary I don't know what is!
Now on to last night and seeing Michelle Obama. She is not only beautiful and gracious, but so warm and sincere that it is indeed heartwarming. She has the rare combination of a keen intellect and true ability to relate her love and respect for her husband as well as for her country. When she told us that Barack Obama is the same man today that he was when she met him , you can't help but feel the true authenticity of their loving partnership and respect for one another. She really shows you how his message is much the same today as when he was a community organizer on the in Chicago. She shared a story about when he took her to a church basement on the south side of Chicago on one of their first dates. She watched him as he talked to the group about the world as it is and how it should be and what we must do to bridge the gap. She listened to him talk about how we should be able to make a decent living if willing to work, should be able to go to the hospital if someone got sick, and should be able to count on an education for our children, as well as having decent clean energy for the world and our future. She smiled and said he really made an impression on her that night , as some in the audience( like Barack's roommates from Harvard and hers from Princeton) have heard before. He has never stopped amazing her in his dedication to humanity and his desire to make a difference in our world. All of these issues are still at the core of his message today but he can't do it alone. Just like when he was that community organizer he is asking for our help. He is reaching out to all of us block by block, person to person, community to community, state by state, phone call to phone call, e-mails and all the rest. It is a person to person campaign and 100% grassroots organization. He wants to help the country transform itself . She mentioned that they have seen through traveling all around this country, the desire for change that is so enormous. This is a bottom up process, like the work he has done his entire life to organize people, to be the change they would like to see in the world. "Barack is consistently trying to narrow that gap between the world as it is and the world as it should be", said his Michelle. Michelle Obama graciously stated that we their supporters can make the difference in electing Barack to bring hope back to the hopeless and our global reputation back to the country we love so dearly. They need us all and they so appreciate the efforts we are making on their part. She couldn't thank us enough for our hard work. When I had my picture taken with her before her talk, I tried to thank her for all she has done and all she has sacrificed throughout this lengthy campaign. No, she said to me after giving me a big hug and kiss,"I have to thank you because it is people like you that put us here and we will not let you down." I walked away from this beautiful and charming woman with so much hope for us all! What a special night and how lucky are we to have such an amazing family that must move into the White House in November and change the wrong(W stands for wrong) direction of the past eight years!
Love,Sunny
A Mama 4 Obama
From Christine in Mamaroneck:
What a treat it was to go to the event with you tonight!!! And thank for pushing me to meet Michelle... It was truly an inspiring moment, she is such a genuine character, her words were truly from the heart and one could feel it!.
Here are in a nutshell, the things I remembered:
- Barack is "consistent", he is the same as when he was a community orgnaizer, at ease with the world of business and those that are not so privileged, rolling up his sleeves to help
- his whole conceptual platform is bridging the gap between the "world as it is" and "the world it should be", why should our children not all receive an excellent education, why should neighborhoods that have been affected by economic crisis not be able to live a decent life?
- electing Barack Obama is taking care of the future of our world: better infrastructures, better education ...
- Barack Obama will not be able to do it alone, he needs the help of each one of us to achieve the "world as it should be"... it is not about him, but about how we change the world..
Hope it helps, see you soon, take good care of yourself and your loved ones....and I have much hope!!!
Here is an excellent website to track the election numbers:
The website is www.fivethirtyeight.com
From Judy A in Westchester, there last night in Armonk:
What a great night!!! Michelle is such a trouper. Her husband is in Iraq and Afghanistan and Jordan, etc., etc.. She's got to be worried sick about him - though I suppose she is getting used to it - and there she is wowing us all at a fund raiser. But, this is what it takes to be First Lady - and she will be that indeed!!! Best, Judy
From Rachel in NY:
Sunny, so glad you had an inspiring evening. I am very concerned for Obama. I do not think that most Americans today are getting the feeling you had through the media. You received this feeling through a small gathering. We need Obama to once again be shown with all of these diversive people and their support and excitement about Obama being our President. That is not happening now. It happened during the primary but it has been lost. We need to see the people who have lost their jobs and homes supporting, young and old, all nationalities. I understand his overseas trip but once he returns to America..we need to see him out there with our people from this country..People need to start speaking up for him in the media..otherwise the word of mouth is going to kill our chances and his.. The word of mouth right now is not good...a concerned Obama friend...The New Yorker piece has been deadly..and I live in NY..I am originally from the south..and most people I know there are voting for McSame..they all say Obama is too liberal in his voting, does not have enough experience and is a Muslim at heart..this is still getting to people and their thoughts are stuck there.. They are so conservative and asleep and brain washed by the media, and their cultural surroundings...someone in the Obama's campaign needs to figure out away to explosive all of the realities about McCain and it needs to happen ASAP..also the campaign has to do something creative that has never been done before to get Obama in front of all of these asleep voters..voting for McSame....please let me know your thoughts..thanks Rachel
From Elizabeth in Mamaroneck:
What Obama really said to the NAACP
Here's the headline on the AP story we ran today, about Barack Obama's fantastic speech to the NAACP: "Obama tells NAACP blacks must take responsibility."
Wow. Obama did say that, and he's said it before. But he gave a long, moving, smart speech that said many other things first, and I thought that was an odd and lazy headline for the story. We automated AP wires, by the way, so we could bring you the news faster, and that's the headline they gave us. But the AP wasn't alone: ABC News headlined its story "Obama to talk tough-love at NAACP, despite Jackson frustrations."
Obama's remarks about "black responsibility" came at the end of the speech. And sure, they were hard-hitting. But for most of his talk, he hit issues of economic and social justice much harder, and outlined the way American society has failed African-Americans.
"What Dr. King and Roy Wilkins understood is that it matters little if you have the right to sit at the front of the bus if you can't afford the bus fare; it matters little if you have the right to sit at the lunch counter if you can't afford the lunch. What they understood is that so long as Americans are denied the decent wages, and good benefits, and fair treatment they deserve, the dream for which so many gave so much will remain out of reach; that to live up to our founding promise of equality for all, we have to make sure that opportunity is open to all Americans.
"That is what I've been fighting to do throughout my over 20 years in public service. That's why I've fought in the Senate to end tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas and give those tax breaks to companies that create good jobs here in America. That's why I brought Democrats and Republicans together in Illinois to put $100 million in tax cuts into the pockets of hardworking families, to expand health care to 150,000 children and parents, and to end the outrage of black women making just 62 cents for every dollar that many of their male coworkers make….
"So I've been working my entire adult life to help build an America where social justice is being served and economic justice is being served; an America where we all have an equal chance to make it if we try. That's the America I believe in. That's the America you’ve been fighting for over the past 99 years. And that’s the America we have to keep marching towards today."
Then Obama moved onto a list of responsibilities "corporate America has" and that "Washington has" -- again, around economic justice, a fair tax code, housing, healthcare, education reform, job training -- the full list of programs liberals and civil rights advocates have always fought for.
Only in the last quarter of the speech did he spend a few paragraphs talking about the responsibilities of individuals and families to improve conditions for African-Americans and for all low-income Americans. And I heard him talking to all of us, not just black people:
"Thurgood Marshall did not argue Brown versus Board of Education so that some of us could stop doing our jobs as parents. And I know that nine little children did not walk through a schoolhouse door in Little Rock so that we could stand by and let our children drop out of school and turn to gangs for the support they are not getting elsewhere. That’s not the freedom they fought so hard to achieve. That's not the America they gave so much to build. That’s not the dream they had for our children.
"That’s why if we’re serious about reclaiming that dream, we have to do more in our own lives, our own families, and our own communities. That starts with providing the guidance our children need, turning off the TV, and putting away the video games; attending those parent-teacher conferences, helping our children with their homework, and setting a good example. It starts with teaching our daughters to never allow images on television to tell them what they are worth; and teaching our sons to treat women with respect, and to realize that responsibility does not end at conception; that what makes them men is not the ability to have a child but the courage to raise one. It starts by being good neighbors and good citizens who are willing to volunteer in our communities -- and to help our synagogues and churches and community centers feed the hungry and care for the elderly. We all have to do our part to lift up this country.
"That's where change begins. And that, after all, is the true genius of America -- not that America is, but that America will be; not that we are perfect, but that we can make ourselves more perfect; that brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand, people who love this country can change it. And that's our most enduring responsibility -- the responsibility to future generations. We have to change this country for them. We have to leave them a planet that's cleaner, a nation that's safer, and a world that's more equal and more just."
So many in the media seem invested in perpetuating the story of tension between Obama and Jesse Jackson and other older black leaders, which is much more fun to write about than what to do about urban education. (In fairness to reporters, it may be that's the angle some Obama folks are peddling on the speech.) But I think such coverage distorts a brave and moving address, and Obama and the nation deserve better.
From Dani in Brooklyn:
Dear Sunny,
So glad you and my mother had an empowering and enjoyable time!
Regarding Hadassah's endorsement: Four generations of Hadassah women in my family, including a former national president, should be kvelling right now!
Love Dani
Regarding this address of July 14, 2008
Rep. Wasserman Schultz Addresses Hadassah National Convention on Behalf of Obama
TAMPA – U.S. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz today addressed the 94th National Convention of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, in Los Angeles, on behalf of Senator Obama's campaign for president. Below are excerpts from her remarks as prepared for delivery:
"For 94 years, Hadassah has remained unwavering in its devotion to Judaism, Zionism, and American ideals. Your passion to move this country in a new direction inspires, motivates and strengthens me every day to fight for what's right for America. It is this type of passion that has also created a new movement for Change in America – change that embodies our heritage and hope as a nation!"
"Although he was unable to be here, Senator Obama wants to make sure that we all know that he shares our passion and dedication to the issues we hold so dear and that he looks forward to meeting with you."
"As some of you may recall, three years ago, as a newly elected member of Congress, I was invited to speak at our national convention. It was a defining moment for me on so many levels. As a daughter of Hadassah, and a proud, card-carrying lifetime member, I considered it a great privilege to address you. But, let me tell you, I was incredibly honored when our next President, Senator Barack Obama, asked me to speak on his behalf at our 94th National Convention!
"As an American Jew who represents a largely Jewish constituency, I work with my Jewish colleagues in the House and Senate each and every day. And I have seen Barack Obama's leadership in the Senate and I would not be here today if I had any doubt about his commitment to a pro-Israel agenda."
"Barack Obama shares the core values to which we as sisters of Hadassah are committed. Senator Obama is committed to the health and education of women, children and families, he is committed to the protection of our rights and our liberties as Americans and he is committed to the safety and security of Israel. It is these shared core values that drive me to take every opportunity to campaign on his behalf and that places me here before you this morning.".. (See entire talk last blog or send to me for whole speech)
From Dana in PA:
Waiting to watch the press conference with Barack! Loving his trip to the Middle East! Hope things go as well in Europe. Fingers crossed! Thanks,
From Jeremy in NYC :
Hi all:
So I wanted to let you know about a very cool, and very different Obama
event THIS Wednesday. I'm not emailing everyone I know, but I thought to
include you for one of the following reasons:
A) You like supporting Obama
B) You like Art
C) You like pretending you like art, and impressing your friends
D) You are looking for a "scene," and this will be quite one on Wednesday
nite
E) You love getting emails from me asking for money
So I hope you'll consider coming on Wednesday night. It's an Art Crawl, and
should be a great time. Details and RSVP info are below...i'll be coming
back from a trip to Texas in time to join you...
And in any event, please consider spreading the word, so your friends in any
the above categories won't miss out either...
Join Generation Obama and the DNC Trailblazers for
The Art Crawl
Wednesday, July 23 6:00-9:00PM
You may have heard of a pub crawl, but an art crawl? That's right, this is
your chance to see great art at top Chelsea galleries, learn about art from
leading experts, enjoy wine and refreshments along the way, and meet some of
NYC's finest who all joining forces to elect Barack Obama as the next
President of the United States.
Tickets are $50, with VIP tickets at $100.
RSVP at
https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/ArtCrawl?custom1=Jeremy%20Gol
dberg.
Registering and paying ahead of time will allow you to arrive and check-in
at any gallery on the tour. Wine and refreshments will be served along the
way. Art experts will be offering insights and talks throughout the
evening.
Participating Galleries include:
Galerie Lelong
Matthew Marks
Pace Prints
Max Protetch
Charles Cowles
Mary Ryan
Art experts offering remarks: (maps with schedule will be available at each
gallery)
Stuart Krimko, Director of Exhibitions, Max Protetch Gallery
Jacob Miller, Director, Pace Prints Gallery
Veronica Roberts, Department of Painting and Sculpture, Museum of
Modern Art
Scott Rothkopf, Senior Editor, Artforum
From Hank in NYC:
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2008 8:59 AM
To: 'letters@nytimes.com'
Subject: To The Editor
“Madness and Shame” – Op/Ed – July 22, 2008
David Addington may have been the “lead architect” in what has become the most shameful and disgraceful period in American juris prudence, but George W. Bush and Dick Cheney are guilty of breaking the law, breaking their sacred oath to uphold and defend the Constitution, and betraying the public trust..
What is even more important to consider in this election year is that Senator John McCain, who previously was against torture and rendition, and now supports these horrific, states publicly that he will appoint Justices to the Supreme Court in the mold of Thomas, Alito and Roberts, all of whom support more power for the executive branch of government.
This administration has used fear and lies to usurp unprecedented power and it has cost America dearly in terms of our bravest young men and women, our national treasure and our reputation around the world. This American will vote for change in November, for the restoration of our great country to the high moral ground from which we can once again lead the world, and for a return to the rule of law and the ideals of our Constitution.
From Elizabeth in Mamaroneck:
From: mark@samefacts.com
Sent: 7/21/2008 11:19:43 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: The RBC Update: Note to John McCain
(((((((((((((((((( The RBC Update: Note to John McCain ))))))))))))))))))
2008.07.21 20:19:25
When you talked about the border between Iraq and Afghanistan,
that was a mistake.
When you talked about Barack Obama's announcement that he would
attack Pakistan, that was a lie.
http://WWW.samefacts.com/archives/campaign_2008_/2008/07/note_to_john_mccain.php
From Susan from Rye:
Hi Sunny,
When you read this, you'll be back from the evening with Michelle. I can't wait to read your description of the event!
I'm happy that your dog is recovering so successfully. We all really love our pets!
The link to Frank Rich's article was excellent and I also enjoyed reading Gail Collins' funny editorial in Saturday's Times with its parody of Bush-ese" language. Judy's post about the movie about Alice Paul "Iron Jawed Maidens" is really important. I watched the movie a with my 14 yr. old daughter last year and it should be required for all high school kids who are learning American History, not to mention adult women. I'm so glad she mentioned it as a reminder that every woman MUST vote this year!!!! Last night at dinner my 22 yr. old daughter was explaining to her 20 yr. old brother and 50 yr. old father how important the pro-choice issue is for women and I think she really made them understand how all of us women feel about the fact that we were deprived of choices for a long time in our history and it is absolutely sacred to us know to have the ability to choose, particularly regarding our bodies. I really think her point hit home with the men in our family. They're both registered Republicans and we are working so hard to convince them to vote for Barack. How can they not see that it is the only choice?
Take care and thanks again for all the great posting and information on your blog.
From Judy in Mamaroneck:
You now have TWO choices for president:
The first one has one of the longest lines of political experience in
history. He is exceedingly popular in congress. He was a soldier who
volunteered to defend the United States in the Navy.
The second one has no real
political experience outside of Illinois. He
is tall and lanky with big ears. He even lost a few of his first
attempts at gaining political office. He is an excellent speechwriter
and orator. He is a good attorney and has a successful law practice.
So which one would you choose?
This is a trick question because both were already Presidents of the
United States. The first one is the 15th President of the United
States, James Buchanan. He is the President who mired us in the Civil
War by declaring the action illegal but doing nothing when the south
decided to secede from the Union. He is largely considered by
historians as being the worst President in American history.
He was followed by the other man who became the 16th President of the
United States: Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln is credited with the
end of slavery, the end of the Civil War, and unification of the
nation. He became president at a dark time when our country was deeply
divided over very polarizing issues. He had no experience in Washington
prior to his Presidency. He is widely considered by historians as one
of the best Presidents in American History.
From Susan in Rye:
I hope you have a sensational time with Michelle tonight!! I enjoyed hearing her on the conference call for Women for Obama and the DNC Women's Leadership Council the other afternoon. I was inspired by Randy from Berkeley who will give up a meal a month and contribute the $ to Obama. I am going to suggest to my friends and daughter who frequent the "expensive" coffee stores to give up one cup of "expensive" coffee for a day each week and donate that to Obama - it would add up to about $20/month! I will also refrain from wasting $ on bottled water since they're wasteful and bad for the environment. I'm going to remember to use my Obama water bottle instead!
Thanks for your advice about the sign. I ordered some signs from the website and we also have an order on the way with bumper stickers and buttons that Ashley ordered. Our plan is to have a table at the Sidewalk Sale in Rye this Sat. from 11-1
From Randy in Berkeley in response to Susan:
That is just great that Susan is doing this. maybe we could send out an email to all our friends to consider it. I do know that some people will just not contribute to a
campaign even though they support the candidate.
From Fran in Larchmont:
It was wonderful that you came to Bonnie's party on Sunday with THREE
generations of your family! What fun!
I really appreciated your input into the general exchange of views about our
next President (please! Please!). You may want to weigh in on your views on
his FISA vote as suggested below.
Are any of the people you are contacting in the More Friends for Obama
initiative asking for bumper stickers? Buttons? Elizabeth Saenger is
currently the keeper of the goodies -- SaengerEB@aol.com
Thanks so much for your hard work for Obama, for our nation!
Subject: A response to your message to Obama for America
We've built a set of easy-to-use web tools,
http://my.barackobama.com/acmybarackobama, that empower you. At our
website, you can:
- build your own profile and connect with supporters near you
- find or create your own local or national group
- create your own personal fundraising page and track your progress
- find events near you or plan your own
- chronicle your campaign experience on your own blog
- submit policy ideas and video in the "My Policy" section
From Kylie in Australia:
Hi Sunny and all the family!
We hope this finds you well and having a lovely summer.
No doubt you are swinging into high gear for the November Election.
Are you traveling at all during summer, or staying home and working for the campaign?
Our winter is a little on the mild side, but still enough snow to have a giggle.
Maisie has gone back to school this morning after 2 weeks of winter holidays.
We managed to get a fair bit of skiing in and Maisie is quite the demon on the boards this year. Incredible confidence and agility on her skis. Looks like she was born on them!
Must dash as I have to get to the college to sort out the start of the new term. (My aged care course)
It's a 45 minute drive into Cooma, so I had better get moving!
Just wanted to drop a line and keep in touch. We think of you always and your fight for Obama to be President of the USA!
From Sara and Linda in Ohio:
Maybe while he is at it he can check out Wikepedia and figure out that Czechoslovakia no longer exists and that Afghanistan and Pakistan share a damn border....are you smarter than a fifth grader????????
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Winner Of The First-Ever National Press Club Award For Humor. July 21, 2008
Breaking News
McCain Makes Historic First Visit to Internet
Will Spend Five Days at Key Sites
In a daring bid to wrench attention from his Democratic rival in the 2008 presidential race, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) today embarked on an historic first-ever visit to the Internet.
Given that the Arizona Republican had never logged onto the Internet before, advisors acknowledged that his first visit to the World Wide Web was fraught with risk.
But with his Democratic rival Barack Obama making headlines with his tour of the Middle East and Europe, the McCain campaign felt that they needed to "come up with something equally bold for John to do," according to one advisor.
McCain aides said that the senator's journey to the Internet will span five days and will take him to such far-flung sites as Amazon.com, eBay and Facebook.
With a press retinue watching, Sen. McCain logged onto the Internet at 9:00 AM Sunday, paying his first-ever visit ever to Mapquest.com.
"I can't get this [expletive] thing to work," Sen. McCain said as he struggled with his computer's mouse, causing his wife Cindy to prompt him to add that he was "just kidding."
Having pronounced his visit to Mapquest a success, Sen. McCain continued his tour by visiting Weather.com and Yahoo! Answers, where he inquired as to the difference between Sunnis and Shiites.
Sen. McCain said that he had embarked on his visit to the Internet to allay any fears that he is too out-of-touch to be president, adding that he plans to take additional steps to demonstrate that he is comfortable with today's technology: "In the days and weeks ahead, you will be seeing me rock out with my new Walkman."
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
From Sunny Women for Obama:
Dear Obama Supporters:
In the NY Times book review section on Sunday there was a quote from Walter Isaacson, the author of a biography of Kissenger and the president of the Aspen Institute that caught my eye. He said, "the George W Bush team took office trying to create complete control of the message as opposed to serving the truth". Now, everyone is expressing their desire to go off message and W is having a fit. Scott McClellan and his book is a wonderful example of this sounding off syndrome. McClellan it seems wasn't supposed to function as a press secretary at all, but to impersonate one. He gained the spotlight for several weeks going on TV and talking about his book, "What Happened". This is the latest product of what Isaacson calls the"it wasn't my fault industry". Does this seem somewhat immature to you to lie in order to ingratiate yourself with the man/woman who is most popular? As my friend Judy just pointed out ,Karl Rove has a teen mentality and wants to take his best shot at everybody who disagrees with him. ****Maureen Dowd quotes Rove as saying,"“Even if you never met him, you know this Obama guy. He’s the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and makes snide comments about everyone who passes by.” Really, I'd like to know what country club Obama would have gotten into some fifteen years ago and still today? Rove never grew up and does a lot of damage by name calling and trying to tarnish a person's reputation. His adolescent behavior ,name calling, starting rumors, and pitting one group against another is just not going to work against Obama. Who is going to believe that this Obama who grew up with a single mother and just paid off his college loans was sitting around at country clubs? In fact this sounds very much like young W who was often drunk or stoned most of the time and indeed was a member of many such clubs. This need for Rove to lie, keep on message no matter what, sounds like a desperate teenager covering his behind. Unlike W says Dowd,"Obama doesn't have a chip on his shoulder and he doesn't make snarky remarks. He tries to stay on a positive keel and see things from the other person's perspective". How refreshing is that , for a young man who the GOP says has not gained enough experience to be so wise. I'd say he has it all over those old farts, nostalgic for high school pranks. Here's to Obama, the good guy reaching out his hand to negotiate problems vs old Rove, W, and McSame acting like spoiled angry children who didn't get their way.
Love,Sunny
A Mama 4 Obama
****From Judy:
More Phony Myths
By MAUREEN DOWD
WASHINGTON
Karl Rove was impressed with Barack Obama when he first met him. But now he sees him as a “coolly arrogant” elitist.
This was Rove’s take on Obama to Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club Monday, according to Christianne Klein of ABC News:
“Even if you never met him, you know this guy. He’s the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and makes snide comments about everyone who passes by.”
Actually, that sounds more like W.
The cheap populism is really rich coming from Karl Rove. When was the last time he kicked back with a corncob pipe to watch professional wrestling?
Rove is trying to spin his myths, as he used to do with such devastating effect, but it won’t work this time. The absurd spectacle of rich white conservatives trying to paint Obama as a watercress sandwich with the crust cut off seems ugly and fake.
Obama can be aloof and dismissive at times, and he’s certainly self-regarding, carrying the aura of the Ivy faculty club. But isn’t that better than the aura of the country clubs that tried to keep out blacks? It’s ironic, and maybe inevitable, that the first African-American nominee comes across as a prince of privilege. He is, as Leon Wieseltier of The New Republic wrote, not the seed but the flower of the civil rights movement.
Unlike W., Obama doesn’t have a chip on his shoulder and he doesn’t make a lot of snarky remarks. He tries to stay on a positive keel and see things from the other person’s point of view...(Read the rest on line Click here: Op-Ed Columnist - More Phony Myths - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com )
From Barbara in KS:
Thought you would like to read this. Patti and I went to college together and Don is her brother.
Subj: Political Treachery in the Name of Israel
This week's Chicago Daily Observer column. Should be circulated widely, especially to Jewish voters who may have received some of the propaganda described herein.
--don
Political Treachery in the Name of Israel and Judaism
By Don Rose
As an American Jew I find that the most deceitful, depraved and disgusting subcampaign of the presidential season is the viral e-mail and blogging attack on Barack Obama that characterizes him as an enemy of Israel if not Judaism itself.
This campaign goes far beyond the false but persistent rumor that he is a Muslim--as if that in itself were a criminal position--but tries to put him in the political bed of every enemy of Israel and America of the past half century.
Some of the slime that enters my inbox makes Joseph McCarthy look like the chairman of the ACLU.
The most recent, well-circulated missive comes from one Leon A. Weinstein of California who offers as his bona fides the claim that he is a Russian immigrant who first lived in Israel before coming to the States, and elsewhere describes himself as a marketing expert who has pledged to do all in his power to stop Obama.
OK--that's his right. He is apparently a conservative Republican with lots of legitimate disagreements with the essentially liberal Democratic candidate.
But look at some of Weinstein's--and others--arguments: Obama, he says, is endorsed by "a scaring host of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli people and organizations" including: "Hamas Terrorist Organization," "Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades," "Socialist Party USA (Marxist Political Party)" "Raul Castro (Hard-line Communist Leader, Cuba)" and "Daniel Ortega (Marxist Sandinista Leader, Nicaragua)" to say nothing of Louis Farrakhan, whom Obama has rejected, renounced and denounced. (All the parenthetical descriptions above are Weinstein's.)
Where did Weinstein get such information?
On the Internet, he acknowledges.
But this tissue of guilt by associations, apparently, is not sufficiently "scaring." Weinstein goes on to identify a host of actual Obama supporters who have varying positions on the Middle East and misrepresents both their ties to the candidate, as well as their positions.
Weinstein charges that Obama asked Zbigniew Brzezinski to be his "chief political advisor"--a lie. The former National Security Advisor is simply one of many secondary and tertiary foreign policy advisors.
Brzezinski's sin? He advocated talks with Hamas--talks such as Israel has been undergoing for several months now!
In a major howler, Weinstein tries to make the arch cold-warrior Brzezinski into a Communist sympathizer by taking some odd quote out of context.
And so it goes with half a dozen other figures Weinstein cites.
The goal of these long-winded, demonstrably dishonest rants obviously is to discredit Obama as anti-Israel and his Jewish supporters as self-haters--the ultimate smear of any Jew who does not toe a 250 percent hard line in support of Israel with no sympathy for any Arabs or Palestinians.
It is religion used as a weapon in a way that would make Jerry Falwell envious.
The fact is, Obama already toes a pretty hard line in Israel's favor. One arbiter of such is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the powerful Jewish lobby, which accords Obama a 100 percent pro-Israel rating.
More fact: many progressive Jewish organizations, which do not share AIPAC's hard-line thinking, have criticized Obama for going overboard in AIPAC's direction, as in his calling for an undivided Jerusalem as capital of Israel.
Obama has plenty of Jewish support. In the primaries he won about 43 percent of the Jewish vote against Clinton and others who have spent decades courting the tiny but potent Jewish base. Compare that to 39 percent of the rest of the white vote.
Even Sen. Joe Lieberman's stepson Ethan Tucker--a rabbi--is an Obama endorser.
Conservative Republicans have long tried to use Israel as a wedge issue to peel Jewish voters away from their solid Democratic roots.
With something less than 3 percent of the population, Jews cast nearly twice that number of votes and are a major political funding source.
Want to talk political power? With that small percentage of the population, Jews constitute 13 percent of the U.S. Senate, comprising 9 Democrats, 2 Independents who caucus with the Democrats and 2 Republicans.
Little wonder the Republicans want to break up this powerful voting bloc.
Ever since Franklin Roosevelt got 90 percent of the Jewish vote, only one Republican ever got 40 percent--Dwight Eisenhower. Ronald Reagan came close with 36 percent.
Bill Clinton got the vote back to 80 percent; Al Gore got 79 percent and John Kerry 76 percent.
With Obama's unusual background, odd name and the backdrop of race, GOP strategists see a potential of eating further into the constituency. Guys like Leon A. Weinstein among others don't seem to care how they accomplish the goal.
The whispering campaign about Obama being a secret Muslim was denounced by Jewish leaders of all stripes--most recently by Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York.
Earlier in the year a letter signed by groups ranging from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Congress, American Jewish Committee and National Council of Jewish Women said:
"…many in our community have received hateful e-mails that use falsehood and innuendo to mischaracterize Senator Obama's religious beliefs and who he is….
"These tactics attempt to drive a wedge between our community and a presidential candidate based on false attacks and innuendo based on religion….
"Attempts of this sort to mislead and inflame voters should not be part of our political discourse and should be rebuffed by all who believe in our democracy."
Now it's time for Bloomberg and the rest of Jewish leadership to stand up again and denounce the political treachery of the Weinsteins and those who falsely use the issue of religion and the Jewish homeland to accomplish their political ends.
From Andy Tobias NYC:
Eisenhowers for Obama
Published on June 25, 2008
Julie Nixon Eisenhower – who backed Bush in 2004 – is for Obama.
· Read the story here.
And Susan Eisenhower – Ike’s granddaughter and lifelong Republican – is for Obama.
I met her last week in Jacksonville at an Obama fundraiser organized in large part by a seriously wealthy Republican businessman who voted for Bush . . . twice . . . but is now persuading his Republican friends to support Obama.
· As Ms. Eisenhower wrote in the Washington Post this past winter:
I am convinced that Barack Obama is the one presidential candidate today who can encourage ordinary Americans to stand straight again; he is a man who can salve our national wounds and both inspire and pursue genuine bipartisan cooperation. Just as important, Obama can assure the world and Americans that this great nation's impulses are still free, open, fair and broad-minded. . . .
. . . If the Democratic Party chooses Obama as its candidate, this lifelong Republican will work to get him elected and encourage him to seek strategic solutions to meet America's greatest challenges. To be successful, our president will need bipartisan help.
Given Obama's support among young people, I believe that he will be most invested in defending the interests of these rising generations and, therefore, the long-term interests of this nation as a whole. Without his leadership, our children and grandchildren are at risk of growing older in a marginalized country that is left to its anger and divisions. Such an outcome would be an unacceptable legacy for any great nation.
Susan Eisenhower, a business consultant, is the author of four books, most recently "Partners in Space: US-Russian Cooperation After the Cold War."
F I’ve been making the case that your Republican friends only think they’re Republican.
The whole political landscape, I argue, has shifted so far right that they are now moderate Democrats. The Harvard Business School Alumni Bulletin allowed me to make that case here.
Yes, the hard right – the Karl Roves and the James Dobsons and the Rush Limbaughs – will do their best to destroy Obama and make him out to be something he’s not. But if the liberals and the moderates and the Eisenhower Republicans – and even some 2004 Bush Republicans like the ones I met in Jacksonville – come out and vote November 4, the country could be reborn.
From Grandma Cathy NYC, a member of Women for Obama:
Sarah Heller Shapiro was born yesterday at a healthy 8 lbs 4 oz., 21 1/2 in long. Mother and baby are fine. **Note from Sunny: We now have three generations of Women for Obama, since Amy is in our blog as well as Sarah's Dad Ethan! Congratulations to the whole family including Grandpa Lloyd!
From Sue in the Hamptons:
Hi—
Just a quick reminder of a few upcoming events this week. Join us and support the Obama campaign!
1) UNITE FOR CHANGE BBQ ON SATURDAY, JUNE 28
Alex Merchant invites everyone from the East End who wants to see Obama win in November to join the fun.
Saturday June 28 at 5:30
The Merchants
50 Old Town Rd.
Southampton, NY 11968
RSVP at this link:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4ldl
or email alex at adm2143@columbia.edu
2) UNITE FOR CHANGE—‘FUN’-RAISER AT WANTAGH PARK
Obama for America volunteers in CD3, in conjunction with the Bellmore-Merrick Democratic Club, invite all Long Islanders to a Unite for Change picnic:
“Bring kids, family, neighbors, colleagues and friends. No speeches, just chat. Join Obama supporters and their families at Wantagh Park (South Picnic Areas #1 and #3). A ‘BARACK versus MICHELLE’ a softball game will be organized (both teams will be co-ed). Bring a glove and have fun. Voter Registration table. Volunteer sign-up table. Bring a blanket, sunscreen, lawn chairs, picnic basket, open canopy (max 10' x 10'). No pets. No liquor permit. A few bbq grills and several tables with benches are available. Picnic areas 1 and 3 are located at the end of the park drive near the bay and across from the boat basin (1 mile from park entrance).”
Saturday, June 28, from noon to 4 PM
Wantaugh Park, South Picnic Areas #! And #3
For more information or to sign up, here’s the link on the website:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/uniteforchange/4gpwc
3) UNITE FOR CHANGE—WALK ACROSS THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE
Join other Obama supporters and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge starting on the Brooklyn side at 9 AM and followed by a gathering in City Hall park.
Saturday, June 28. Contact Shannon Anderson (sanderson@newyorkobama.com) for details.
4) HOST YOUR OWN UNITY EVENT
Invite friends who supported Hillary and Barack for a coffee or BBQ to discuss what we all need to do to defeat McCain and the Republicans in the Fall.
Thanks for your help and support.
Obama for America
631-294-9324
From Nancy:
When I saw this, I thought of you since you were among the first people to share the great Obama image (in a similar hopeful style) with me…I hope you are well! I’ve been thoroughly enjoying your e-mails throughout the campaign. All the best,
From Brave New Films:
Joe Lieberman is a war hawk, plain and simple. He staunchly supports George Bush's War in Iraq and John McCain's plan to stay in Iraq for 100 years. But Lieberman's new alliance with the Republican Party runs even deeper. He has endorsed and stumped for McCain, wants to be the star of the Republican National Convention, and has even served on a 527 group that smeared Barack Obama with a nasty attack ad.
And yet Lieberman still holds a top rank within the Senate Democratic Caucus as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Senate Democratic Steering Committee needs to know just how much of a conflict of interest this is. That's why we created Lieberman Must Go.
Watch the video: http://bravenewfilms.org/watch/25427481/43061?utm_source=rgemail
Here's what you can do: Sign our petition today and tell the Senate Democratic Steering Committee to strip Lieberman of his leadership role in Congress. Then, e-mail this video to everyone you know and spread it on sites like Digg and elsewhere.
Recently in Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall suggested that the best way to limit Lieberman is by encouraging the Steering Committee to render him powerless in 2009. Lieberman must go, and you can make that happen by donating to Brave New Films today.
Yours,
Robert Greenwald
and the Brave New Team
From Ashley:
During the next week, more than 1,000 Obama supporters across the Country will be hosting Unite for Change parties. The goal of Unite for Change is to bring together people who supported all of the Democratic candidates, as well as Independents and even some Republicans. We want to reach out to anyone who is tired of the politics of the past and looking for new solutions to the challenges we're facing. We'll talk about the common values we share and our strategy for bringing more people into the political process than ever before. All are welcome! Please spread the word.
We hope you’ll join us on Monday, June 30, from 6 to 8 pm. Our home is at 10 Johnson Place, Rye, NY 10580. Please email ashleycraig@verizon.net to let us know if you are coming. Our number is (914) 381-4214.
Rob and Ashley Craig
From Elizabeth:
Dear friends,
...in case you didn't know about this effort.
Elizabeth
Subj: Signers Update: 5 Days Left on Declaration Signature Ad in NYTimes
Dear Elizabeth,
Thank you for signing your name to A Declaration for Our Times, which the Bill of Rights Defense Committee is publishing as a display ad in The New York Times on or near Independence Day (July 4, 2008) to stir nationwide debate and civic action toward restoring constitutional liberties and human rights for all U.S. residents.
So far 350 individuals and organizations have signed on and contributed about $14,000 of the $30,000 we need to pay for the ad. We hope to double the number of signers by our deadline of Sunday, June 29, 2008, at midnight Eastern Daylight Time.
If you have already asked your friends and family to join you in signing on, thank you! If you have not already done so, we ask you to encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to sign on to the ad as well. Here is a letter you can send to those you know about this exciting project:
Thank you for all you do.
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee
8 Bridge Street, Suite A
Northampton, MA 01060
www.bordc.org
LAST CHANCE! Join Me in Signing a New Declaration in The New York Times!
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee (BORDC) is running A Declaration for Our Times (text below) as a display ad in The New York Times on or near Independence Day (July 4, 2008) to stir nationwide debate and civic action toward restoring constitutional liberties and human rights for all U.S. residents. (See the text below.)
I have already added my name to the declaration. So far 350 individuals and organizations have signed on and contributed about $14,000 of the $30,000 we need to pay for the ad. BORDC hopes to double the number of signers by our deadline of Sunday, June 29, 2008, at midnight Eastern Daylight Time.
I know that you, too, support the fundamental liberties and human rights guaranteed in our Constitution. Please join me in signing on to this ad to send a message to the government and the public. To sign on, go to http://www.constitutioncampaign.org/ad/. BORDC asks individual signers to donate $25 or more, and organizations to donate $50-$500 to help cover the $30,000 cost for the half-page ad. You may contribute online or by mailing a check. If you like the declaration but don't want your name to appear, you can still support this initiative. Go to the same page and check I would like to contribute without having my name printed in the Independence Day ad.
If there ever was a time for Americans to echo the spirit of July 4, 1776, it is now. Your name and mine among hundreds of others from across the country will show America the breadth of support for demanding that our representatives uphold their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution.
To see the ad as it will appear in the Times, go to http://constitutioncampaign.org/ad/ad.pdf.
All donors will receive a complimentary copy of the ad!
Sincerely,
[Your name]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When in the course of human events the government becomes destructive of the ends for which it was established, it is the Right of the People to alter it and demand restoration of those Constitutional Principles that have so long assured their Liberty, Safety, and Happiness.
Therefore, on the anniversary of our Independence, we offer this new declaration for our times.
The history of this president is one of arbitrary usurpations of power, the effect of which is to establish tyranny through false promises of greater security.
He has created a multitude of new programs and sent swarms of petty officers to spy on Americans in a misguided effort to combat foreign terrorism. He has invested these agents with sweeping new powers to monitor our conversations and ransack our personal papers and effects without judicial supervision or any reason to believe - as the Constitution requires - that a crime has been committed.
He has further claimed the power to disregard legislation that Congress has passed.
He has suspended the laws and treaties against torture, authorized the kidnapping of mere suspects, and transported hundreds of prisoners beyond seas so that no independent judiciary could question the legality of their mistreatment.
He and his supporters in Congress have granted amnesty to the officials who unleashed torture and humiliation upon helpless prisoners, to the disgrace of our nation.
He has denied these prisoners access to attorneys, family, and friends, and has claimed the right to try them before military tribunals specifically designed to disregard the most basic principles of law.
He has imprisoned thousands of lawful immigrants for months without charges, under brutal conditions, until his agents, rather than independent courts, decided that they posed no threat.
He has wrapped his usurpations of power and his deprivations of liberty in thick cloaks of secrecy, thereby showing contempt for the rule of law and the proper functions of Congress, the courts, and the press.
At every stage of these oppressions we have sought redress, but our petitions have been answered only by repeated injury.
We, therefore, resolve to resist these usurpations by all lawful means at our disposal. To this end, we insist that the powers of our national government be shared by all branches of government and not concentrated in one alone. And we call upon Congress, the courts, and the press to reassert their constitutional functions vigorously and restore the promise that is America.
To these ends, we mutually pledge our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.
By Christopher Pyle, with apologies to Thomas Jefferson
From Anne in Chicago:
Do you get this?
Begin forwarded message:
From: Doni Remba
Date: June 26, 2008 7:05:17 AM CDT
To: a.wedner@comcast.net
Subject: Fight the Obama Smears! Special Issue
Reply-To: dremba@comcast.net
Fight the Obama Smears!
Jews for Obama Newsletter - Issue #4 June 26, 2008
Greetings!
The smears against Senator Obama continue unabated. The New York Times has just reported on a new rumor campaign questioning Obama's religious background launched by Floyd Brown. He's the man responsible for the Willie Horton TV ad that helped torpedo Michael S. Dukakis's candidacy in 1988, a man who views the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," which slandered Senator John Kerry in 2004, as a paragon of virtue.
Every day at Jews for Obama we receive new attacks on Senator Obama intended to frighten Jews with distortions and innuendo.
There are many ways we can join together to fight back. We've assembled a "Rapid Response Team" which researches every major viral hate email sent our way and posts the facts on a section of our website called React! With just one click, you can forward any of our rebuttals to those who have sent you a "Schvitz Boat" chain mail about Obama.
The Obama campaign has rolled out its own Fight the Smears website, providing facts to combat a few of the biggest lies. Jews for Obama's React! page is the central online clearinghouse for the American Jewish community for combatting the many falsehoods circulating about Obama which are of special concern to American Jews (and not addressed by the Obama campaign anti-smear site).
If you receive anti-Obama scare-mail from someone, don't sweat it! Forward it to us at chief-editor@jews4barack.com and if it merits a reply, we'll assign our SWAT (Special Writing Action Tactics) team to provide a rapid yet well-researched response.
In this issue of the Jews for Obama newsletter, we bring you our knock-down replies to several of the top Schvitz-Boat hate-mails which have been circulating of late in the American Jewish community. That's playing defense. But we can also play offense.
Join the nearly 800 American Jews who have already signed our statement "We are Jewish. We Stand with Barack Obama."
Send this message to the entire American Jewish community, and help get the word out - to Florida, Pennsylvania, and every state in the union:
As American Jews, we declare our support for Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate for President of the United States. We stand with Senator Obama because of his lifelong commitment to values we as Jews hold dear, our tradition of tikkun olam - the Jewish mandate to "repair the world." We support Senator Obama as a leader who has demonstrated long-standing and unwavering support for Israel.
Senator Obama has earned our respect and gratitude for his statements of moral outrage at the use of murder and terror by groups like Hamas, and for his far-sighted rejection of an Iraq war that has destabilized the Middle East and strengthened Iran.
From the earliest days of this campaign, we have watched as unsubstantiated and vicious rumors have spread through our community. Not one of the rumors has proven true. We ask those who continue to stir up baseless fears of harm to Israel to cease at once. Each of us must choose to support a candidate based on his record and plans for the future, not malicious innuendo.
Click here to read and sign the full statement and to help us distribute this and other messages throughout the American Jewish community.
Forward this newsletter to at least 5 friends and family members and invite them to subscribe. Use the forward link above to insure that they receive the issue intact; the strict privacy of their email addresses is assured.
Top 5 Jewish-Themed Smears of Obama with Responses
The React! section of the Jews for Obama website provides extensive and frequently updated one-click email replies to the "Schvitz Boat" smears which continue to circulate through our community. Smear-mongers hope that a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. Here are five of the top recent smears of Jewish concern to which we've provided fleet-footed responses:
A. NY Mayor Bloomberg Blasts Rumor About Obama: Watch the web clip and read the article
B. Obama Not Linked to the PLO through Rashid Khalidi (J40 Exclusive)
C. Ted Belman and the anti-Obama Smear Machine, Jonathan Kamens (J40 Original)
D. Obama is NOT "the Hamas Candidate" (J40 Exclusive)
E. Myth: Obama Opposes Declaring Iranian Republican Guard a Terrorist Organization (J40 Exclusive)
Top 5 Recent Rabbinic Statements of Support for Obama
A. Rabbi Yosef Blau, Director of Religious Guidance at Yeshiva University and President of the Religious Zionists of America:
Obama's "record on issues of Jewish interest has been excellent." His "record is totally supportive of Jewish concerns." "Barack Obama's personality, record and policy proposals reflect a candidate with whom the Jewish community should be comfortable." Read Rabbi Blau's op-ed from the Jewish Week.
B. Rabbi Henry Jay Karp, Temple Emanuel, Davenport Iowa
Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to you because I am increasingly disturbed by what appears to be a concerted campaign to discredit Barack Obama within the American Jewish community. Whether or not you choose to support Obama's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, as rabbinic colleagues I feel a need to share with you what I have learned about the man - and it is quite different from the rumors that refuse to die in our Jewish community. Read Rabbi Karp's letter.
C. Mr. Obama Goes to Shul, Rabbi Kurt Stone, Boca Raton, Florida
Senator Barack Obama came to Temple B'nai Torah this afternoon [to speak to an audience of 750 mostly-Jewish men, women and teens.] The Senator won over the vast majority of the assembled minyan. During the more than two hours he spent speaking and dialoguing, Senator Obama made it abundantly clear that he was, is, and always shall be, a staunch defender of the Jewish State.
One should know a fact: After going over the voting records of both Senator Clinton and Obama vis-a-vis issues pertaining to Israel, AIPAC -- the main Israel support lobby in the U.S. gave both a 100% rating. That's 100% of the time that both senators voted in a manner that was favorable to the Jewish State. Read Rabbi Karp's testimonial on Obama's appearance at B'nai Torah in Boca
Watch Senator Obama speak at B'nai Torah in Boca Raton or read his speech
D. Rabbi Ethan Tucker (Senator Joe Lieberman's son)
E. Rabbi Gary Gerson, Oak Park Temple, Oak Park, Illinois
Barack Obama, A True Friend of Israel, Gidon D. Remba, The Jerusalem Report
Only two governments on earth are in shock over the newly revealed Israeli-Syrian dialogue: the Iranian regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and the Bush administration, which reportedly called Israel's overture towards Syria "a slap in the face." Such language is not unlike that doubtlessly heard in government halls in Tehran and Hezbollah's Beirut these days about their Syrian ally.
Barack Obama and John McCain bring to this pregnant Mideast moment two sharply divergent conceptions of America's place in the world. Read more
Will the Real Tax-and-Spender Please Fess Up?
Economists across the political spectrum question McCain's portrayal of Obama:
"The important thing is to look at overall impact on people" and on this score, "the vast majority of the population, almost the entirety of the middle class, would see more from Obama than McCain." -- John Irons of the Economic Policy Institute
To read more on why economists cast doubt on McCain's claims about Obama's economic policy click here.
Click here or on the image above to watch a brief interview with Obama on his approach to our economy.
What Obama Really Said About an "Undivided" Jerusalem
After delivering an historic speech to AIPAC testifying to his unshakeable commitment to Israel's security, did Senator Obama backtrack on his promise to support Jerusalem as the "undivided" capital of Israel?
Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla., an Orthodox Jew, a strong supporter of Israel told ABC News, "that is not backtracking." Senator Obama's "position has been the same for the past 16 months," Wexler said.
"He believes Jerusalem should be an undivided city and must be the capital of a Jewish state of Israel. He has also said - and it's the same position as President Bush, former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert - that Jerusalem is of course a 'final status' issue," meaning it would be one of the key and final points of negotiation for a Palestinian state. "And Sen. Obama as president would not dictate final status issues. He will permit the Palestinians and Israel to negotiate, and he would respect any conclusion they reach."
Learn more about the Jerusalem controversy.
New York City Jews for Obama Organizing Party: Saturday, June 28, 8:00 P.M.
240 West 98th Street #7E (New York, NY)
House party for Jewish Obama supporters who want to work in the Jewish community to support Obama. Let's get to know each other and talk about how we can build Jewish support for Obama with Get Out the Vote activities in Pennsylvania, Florida and closer to home.
Guest speaker: Gidon D. Remba, President, Kahal America & Editor, Jews for Obama e-Newsletter
To RSVP please send email to chief-editor@jews4barack.com
Jews for Obama is a project of Kahal America, an independent issues advocacy 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, and not affiliated with the Obama Campaign.
In This Special Issue
1. Top 5 Jewish-Themed Recent Smears of Obama with Responses
2. Top 5 Recent Rabbinic Statements of Support for Obama
3. Barack Obama, A True Friend of Israel
4. Will the Real Tax-and-Spender Please Fess Up?
5. What Obama Really Said About an "Undivided" Jerusalem
6. New York City Jews for Obama Organizing Party: Saturday, June 28, 8:00 P.M
Watch or read Sen. Obama's historic AIPAC speech on Israel
Click on the image
"A government that truly represents these Americans - that truly serves these Americans - will require a different kind of politics. We will need to understand just how we got to this place, this land of warring factions and tribal hatreds. And we'll need to remind ourselves, despite all our differences, just how much we share: common hopes, common dreams, a bond that will not break."
Congressman Rahm Emanuel Endorses Senator Obama
Congressman Emanuel and his wife Amy are active members of a modern Orthodox congregation, Anshe Sholom, in Chicago. Amy is heavily involved with the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, where Emanuel was educated. His father was born in Jerusalem, and he volunteered on an IDF base during the 1991 Persian Gulf War before serving as a senior advisor to President Clinton at the White House from 1993 - 1998.
Emanuel was chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the 2006 elections. After the Democratic Party regained control of the House, he was elected as the next chairman of the Democratic Caucus. He is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House.
Previous Editions
If you missed previous issues of the Jews for Obama e-Newsletter, you can now view them on the web
How the Bush-McCain Surge Harms Israel
Sign the Open Letter to Sen. McCain: It's Time for Straight Talk on Jewish Issues
The Real McCain: Why Conservatives Don't Trust Him and Why Independents Shouldn't, by Cliff Schecter
Thinking about voting for McCain? Read this book. Cliff Schecter's hard-hitting profile explores the gap between the public record of Senator John McCain and his media image. Drawing on a range of sources and adding his unique perspective and humor, Schecter guides the reader through McCain's long history of expedient flip-flops--especially on his signature issues of national security and campaign finance reform.
Paul Hackett, Major, USMCR: Cliff Schecter provides us with some real "straight talk" about John McCain. Everyone who wants to know why John McCain won't give us healthcare but will keep us fighting endless wars and sell our personal freedoms to far-right theocrats should read this book.
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In the NY Times book review section on Sunday there was a quote from Walter Isaacson, the author of a biography of Kissenger and the president of the Aspen Institute that caught my eye. He said, "the George W Bush team took office trying to create complete control of the message as opposed to serving the truth". Now, everyone is expressing their desire to go off message and W is having a fit. Scott McClellan and his book is a wonderful example of this sounding off syndrome. McClellan it seems wasn't supposed to function as a press secretary at all, but to impersonate one. He gained the spotlight for several weeks going on TV and talking about his book, "What Happened". This is the latest product of what Isaacson calls the"it wasn't my fault industry". Does this seem somewhat immature to you to lie in order to ingratiate yourself with the man/woman who is most popular? As my friend Judy just pointed out ,Karl Rove has a teen mentality and wants to take his best shot at everybody who disagrees with him. ****Maureen Dowd quotes Rove as saying,"“Even if you never met him, you know this Obama guy. He’s the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and makes snide comments about everyone who passes by.” Really, I'd like to know what country club Obama would have gotten into some fifteen years ago and still today? Rove never grew up and does a lot of damage by name calling and trying to tarnish a person's reputation. His adolescent behavior ,name calling, starting rumors, and pitting one group against another is just not going to work against Obama. Who is going to believe that this Obama who grew up with a single mother and just paid off his college loans was sitting around at country clubs? In fact this sounds very much like young W who was often drunk or stoned most of the time and indeed was a member of many such clubs. This need for Rove to lie, keep on message no matter what, sounds like a desperate teenager covering his behind. Unlike W says Dowd,"Obama doesn't have a chip on his shoulder and he doesn't make snarky remarks. He tries to stay on a positive keel and see things from the other person's perspective". How refreshing is that , for a young man who the GOP says has not gained enough experience to be so wise. I'd say he has it all over those old farts, nostalgic for high school pranks. Here's to Obama, the good guy reaching out his hand to negotiate problems vs old Rove, W, and McSame acting like spoiled angry children who didn't get their way.
Love,Sunny
A Mama 4 Obama
****From Judy:
More Phony Myths
By MAUREEN DOWD
WASHINGTON
Karl Rove was impressed with Barack Obama when he first met him. But now he sees him as a “coolly arrogant” elitist.
This was Rove’s take on Obama to Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club Monday, according to Christianne Klein of ABC News:
“Even if you never met him, you know this guy. He’s the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and makes snide comments about everyone who passes by.”
Actually, that sounds more like W.
The cheap populism is really rich coming from Karl Rove. When was the last time he kicked back with a corncob pipe to watch professional wrestling?
Rove is trying to spin his myths, as he used to do with such devastating effect, but it won’t work this time. The absurd spectacle of rich white conservatives trying to paint Obama as a watercress sandwich with the crust cut off seems ugly and fake.
Obama can be aloof and dismissive at times, and he’s certainly self-regarding, carrying the aura of the Ivy faculty club. But isn’t that better than the aura of the country clubs that tried to keep out blacks? It’s ironic, and maybe inevitable, that the first African-American nominee comes across as a prince of privilege. He is, as Leon Wieseltier of The New Republic wrote, not the seed but the flower of the civil rights movement.
Unlike W., Obama doesn’t have a chip on his shoulder and he doesn’t make a lot of snarky remarks. He tries to stay on a positive keel and see things from the other person’s point of view...(Read the rest on line Click here: Op-Ed Columnist - More Phony Myths - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com )
From Barbara in KS:
Thought you would like to read this. Patti and I went to college together and Don is her brother.
Subj: Political Treachery in the Name of Israel
This week's Chicago Daily Observer column. Should be circulated widely, especially to Jewish voters who may have received some of the propaganda described herein.
--don
Political Treachery in the Name of Israel and Judaism
By Don Rose
As an American Jew I find that the most deceitful, depraved and disgusting subcampaign of the presidential season is the viral e-mail and blogging attack on Barack Obama that characterizes him as an enemy of Israel if not Judaism itself.
This campaign goes far beyond the false but persistent rumor that he is a Muslim--as if that in itself were a criminal position--but tries to put him in the political bed of every enemy of Israel and America of the past half century.
Some of the slime that enters my inbox makes Joseph McCarthy look like the chairman of the ACLU.
The most recent, well-circulated missive comes from one Leon A. Weinstein of California who offers as his bona fides the claim that he is a Russian immigrant who first lived in Israel before coming to the States, and elsewhere describes himself as a marketing expert who has pledged to do all in his power to stop Obama.
OK--that's his right. He is apparently a conservative Republican with lots of legitimate disagreements with the essentially liberal Democratic candidate.
But look at some of Weinstein's--and others--arguments: Obama, he says, is endorsed by "a scaring host of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli people and organizations" including: "Hamas Terrorist Organization," "Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades," "Socialist Party USA (Marxist Political Party)" "Raul Castro (Hard-line Communist Leader, Cuba)" and "Daniel Ortega (Marxist Sandinista Leader, Nicaragua)" to say nothing of Louis Farrakhan, whom Obama has rejected, renounced and denounced. (All the parenthetical descriptions above are Weinstein's.)
Where did Weinstein get such information?
On the Internet, he acknowledges.
But this tissue of guilt by associations, apparently, is not sufficiently "scaring." Weinstein goes on to identify a host of actual Obama supporters who have varying positions on the Middle East and misrepresents both their ties to the candidate, as well as their positions.
Weinstein charges that Obama asked Zbigniew Brzezinski to be his "chief political advisor"--a lie. The former National Security Advisor is simply one of many secondary and tertiary foreign policy advisors.
Brzezinski's sin? He advocated talks with Hamas--talks such as Israel has been undergoing for several months now!
In a major howler, Weinstein tries to make the arch cold-warrior Brzezinski into a Communist sympathizer by taking some odd quote out of context.
And so it goes with half a dozen other figures Weinstein cites.
The goal of these long-winded, demonstrably dishonest rants obviously is to discredit Obama as anti-Israel and his Jewish supporters as self-haters--the ultimate smear of any Jew who does not toe a 250 percent hard line in support of Israel with no sympathy for any Arabs or Palestinians.
It is religion used as a weapon in a way that would make Jerry Falwell envious.
The fact is, Obama already toes a pretty hard line in Israel's favor. One arbiter of such is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the powerful Jewish lobby, which accords Obama a 100 percent pro-Israel rating.
More fact: many progressive Jewish organizations, which do not share AIPAC's hard-line thinking, have criticized Obama for going overboard in AIPAC's direction, as in his calling for an undivided Jerusalem as capital of Israel.
Obama has plenty of Jewish support. In the primaries he won about 43 percent of the Jewish vote against Clinton and others who have spent decades courting the tiny but potent Jewish base. Compare that to 39 percent of the rest of the white vote.
Even Sen. Joe Lieberman's stepson Ethan Tucker--a rabbi--is an Obama endorser.
Conservative Republicans have long tried to use Israel as a wedge issue to peel Jewish voters away from their solid Democratic roots.
With something less than 3 percent of the population, Jews cast nearly twice that number of votes and are a major political funding source.
Want to talk political power? With that small percentage of the population, Jews constitute 13 percent of the U.S. Senate, comprising 9 Democrats, 2 Independents who caucus with the Democrats and 2 Republicans.
Little wonder the Republicans want to break up this powerful voting bloc.
Ever since Franklin Roosevelt got 90 percent of the Jewish vote, only one Republican ever got 40 percent--Dwight Eisenhower. Ronald Reagan came close with 36 percent.
Bill Clinton got the vote back to 80 percent; Al Gore got 79 percent and John Kerry 76 percent.
With Obama's unusual background, odd name and the backdrop of race, GOP strategists see a potential of eating further into the constituency. Guys like Leon A. Weinstein among others don't seem to care how they accomplish the goal.
The whispering campaign about Obama being a secret Muslim was denounced by Jewish leaders of all stripes--most recently by Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York.
Earlier in the year a letter signed by groups ranging from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Congress, American Jewish Committee and National Council of Jewish Women said:
"…many in our community have received hateful e-mails that use falsehood and innuendo to mischaracterize Senator Obama's religious beliefs and who he is….
"These tactics attempt to drive a wedge between our community and a presidential candidate based on false attacks and innuendo based on religion….
"Attempts of this sort to mislead and inflame voters should not be part of our political discourse and should be rebuffed by all who believe in our democracy."
Now it's time for Bloomberg and the rest of Jewish leadership to stand up again and denounce the political treachery of the Weinsteins and those who falsely use the issue of religion and the Jewish homeland to accomplish their political ends.
From Andy Tobias NYC:
Eisenhowers for Obama
Published on June 25, 2008
Julie Nixon Eisenhower – who backed Bush in 2004 – is for Obama.
· Read the story here.
And Susan Eisenhower – Ike’s granddaughter and lifelong Republican – is for Obama.
I met her last week in Jacksonville at an Obama fundraiser organized in large part by a seriously wealthy Republican businessman who voted for Bush . . . twice . . . but is now persuading his Republican friends to support Obama.
· As Ms. Eisenhower wrote in the Washington Post this past winter:
I am convinced that Barack Obama is the one presidential candidate today who can encourage ordinary Americans to stand straight again; he is a man who can salve our national wounds and both inspire and pursue genuine bipartisan cooperation. Just as important, Obama can assure the world and Americans that this great nation's impulses are still free, open, fair and broad-minded. . . .
. . . If the Democratic Party chooses Obama as its candidate, this lifelong Republican will work to get him elected and encourage him to seek strategic solutions to meet America's greatest challenges. To be successful, our president will need bipartisan help.
Given Obama's support among young people, I believe that he will be most invested in defending the interests of these rising generations and, therefore, the long-term interests of this nation as a whole. Without his leadership, our children and grandchildren are at risk of growing older in a marginalized country that is left to its anger and divisions. Such an outcome would be an unacceptable legacy for any great nation.
Susan Eisenhower, a business consultant, is the author of four books, most recently "Partners in Space: US-Russian Cooperation After the Cold War."
F I’ve been making the case that your Republican friends only think they’re Republican.
The whole political landscape, I argue, has shifted so far right that they are now moderate Democrats. The Harvard Business School Alumni Bulletin allowed me to make that case here.
Yes, the hard right – the Karl Roves and the James Dobsons and the Rush Limbaughs – will do their best to destroy Obama and make him out to be something he’s not. But if the liberals and the moderates and the Eisenhower Republicans – and even some 2004 Bush Republicans like the ones I met in Jacksonville – come out and vote November 4, the country could be reborn.
From Grandma Cathy NYC, a member of Women for Obama:
Sarah Heller Shapiro was born yesterday at a healthy 8 lbs 4 oz., 21 1/2 in long. Mother and baby are fine. **Note from Sunny: We now have three generations of Women for Obama, since Amy is in our blog as well as Sarah's Dad Ethan! Congratulations to the whole family including Grandpa Lloyd!
From Sue in the Hamptons:
Hi—
Just a quick reminder of a few upcoming events this week. Join us and support the Obama campaign!
1) UNITE FOR CHANGE BBQ ON SATURDAY, JUNE 28
Alex Merchant invites everyone from the East End who wants to see Obama win in November to join the fun.
Saturday June 28 at 5:30
The Merchants
50 Old Town Rd.
Southampton, NY 11968
RSVP at this link:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4ldl
or email alex at adm2143@columbia.edu
2) UNITE FOR CHANGE—‘FUN’-RAISER AT WANTAGH PARK
Obama for America volunteers in CD3, in conjunction with the Bellmore-Merrick Democratic Club, invite all Long Islanders to a Unite for Change picnic:
“Bring kids, family, neighbors, colleagues and friends. No speeches, just chat. Join Obama supporters and their families at Wantagh Park (South Picnic Areas #1 and #3). A ‘BARACK versus MICHELLE’ a softball game will be organized (both teams will be co-ed). Bring a glove and have fun. Voter Registration table. Volunteer sign-up table. Bring a blanket, sunscreen, lawn chairs, picnic basket, open canopy (max 10' x 10'). No pets. No liquor permit. A few bbq grills and several tables with benches are available. Picnic areas 1 and 3 are located at the end of the park drive near the bay and across from the boat basin (1 mile from park entrance).”
Saturday, June 28, from noon to 4 PM
Wantaugh Park, South Picnic Areas #! And #3
For more information or to sign up, here’s the link on the website:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/uniteforchange/4gpwc
3) UNITE FOR CHANGE—WALK ACROSS THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE
Join other Obama supporters and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge starting on the Brooklyn side at 9 AM and followed by a gathering in City Hall park.
Saturday, June 28. Contact Shannon Anderson (sanderson@newyorkobama.com) for details.
4) HOST YOUR OWN UNITY EVENT
Invite friends who supported Hillary and Barack for a coffee or BBQ to discuss what we all need to do to defeat McCain and the Republicans in the Fall.
Thanks for your help and support.
Obama for America
631-294-9324
From Nancy:
When I saw this, I thought of you since you were among the first people to share the great Obama image (in a similar hopeful style) with me…I hope you are well! I’ve been thoroughly enjoying your e-mails throughout the campaign. All the best,
From Brave New Films:
Joe Lieberman is a war hawk, plain and simple. He staunchly supports George Bush's War in Iraq and John McCain's plan to stay in Iraq for 100 years. But Lieberman's new alliance with the Republican Party runs even deeper. He has endorsed and stumped for McCain, wants to be the star of the Republican National Convention, and has even served on a 527 group that smeared Barack Obama with a nasty attack ad.
And yet Lieberman still holds a top rank within the Senate Democratic Caucus as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Senate Democratic Steering Committee needs to know just how much of a conflict of interest this is. That's why we created Lieberman Must Go.
Watch the video: http://bravenewfilms.org/watch/25427481/43061?utm_source=rgemail
Here's what you can do: Sign our petition today and tell the Senate Democratic Steering Committee to strip Lieberman of his leadership role in Congress. Then, e-mail this video to everyone you know and spread it on sites like Digg and elsewhere.
Recently in Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall suggested that the best way to limit Lieberman is by encouraging the Steering Committee to render him powerless in 2009. Lieberman must go, and you can make that happen by donating to Brave New Films today.
Yours,
Robert Greenwald
and the Brave New Team
From Ashley:
During the next week, more than 1,000 Obama supporters across the Country will be hosting Unite for Change parties. The goal of Unite for Change is to bring together people who supported all of the Democratic candidates, as well as Independents and even some Republicans. We want to reach out to anyone who is tired of the politics of the past and looking for new solutions to the challenges we're facing. We'll talk about the common values we share and our strategy for bringing more people into the political process than ever before. All are welcome! Please spread the word.
We hope you’ll join us on Monday, June 30, from 6 to 8 pm. Our home is at 10 Johnson Place, Rye, NY 10580. Please email ashleycraig@verizon.net to let us know if you are coming. Our number is (914) 381-4214.
Rob and Ashley Craig
From Elizabeth:
Dear friends,
...in case you didn't know about this effort.
Elizabeth
Subj: Signers Update: 5 Days Left on Declaration Signature Ad in NYTimes
Dear Elizabeth,
Thank you for signing your name to A Declaration for Our Times, which the Bill of Rights Defense Committee is publishing as a display ad in The New York Times on or near Independence Day (July 4, 2008) to stir nationwide debate and civic action toward restoring constitutional liberties and human rights for all U.S. residents.
So far 350 individuals and organizations have signed on and contributed about $14,000 of the $30,000 we need to pay for the ad. We hope to double the number of signers by our deadline of Sunday, June 29, 2008, at midnight Eastern Daylight Time.
If you have already asked your friends and family to join you in signing on, thank you! If you have not already done so, we ask you to encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to sign on to the ad as well. Here is a letter you can send to those you know about this exciting project:
Thank you for all you do.
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee
8 Bridge Street, Suite A
Northampton, MA 01060
www.bordc.org
LAST CHANCE! Join Me in Signing a New Declaration in The New York Times!
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee (BORDC) is running A Declaration for Our Times (text below) as a display ad in The New York Times on or near Independence Day (July 4, 2008) to stir nationwide debate and civic action toward restoring constitutional liberties and human rights for all U.S. residents. (See the text below.)
I have already added my name to the declaration. So far 350 individuals and organizations have signed on and contributed about $14,000 of the $30,000 we need to pay for the ad. BORDC hopes to double the number of signers by our deadline of Sunday, June 29, 2008, at midnight Eastern Daylight Time.
I know that you, too, support the fundamental liberties and human rights guaranteed in our Constitution. Please join me in signing on to this ad to send a message to the government and the public. To sign on, go to http://www.constitutioncampaign.org/ad/. BORDC asks individual signers to donate $25 or more, and organizations to donate $50-$500 to help cover the $30,000 cost for the half-page ad. You may contribute online or by mailing a check. If you like the declaration but don't want your name to appear, you can still support this initiative. Go to the same page and check I would like to contribute without having my name printed in the Independence Day ad.
If there ever was a time for Americans to echo the spirit of July 4, 1776, it is now. Your name and mine among hundreds of others from across the country will show America the breadth of support for demanding that our representatives uphold their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution.
To see the ad as it will appear in the Times, go to http://constitutioncampaign.org/ad/ad.pdf.
All donors will receive a complimentary copy of the ad!
Sincerely,
[Your name]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When in the course of human events the government becomes destructive of the ends for which it was established, it is the Right of the People to alter it and demand restoration of those Constitutional Principles that have so long assured their Liberty, Safety, and Happiness.
Therefore, on the anniversary of our Independence, we offer this new declaration for our times.
The history of this president is one of arbitrary usurpations of power, the effect of which is to establish tyranny through false promises of greater security.
He has created a multitude of new programs and sent swarms of petty officers to spy on Americans in a misguided effort to combat foreign terrorism. He has invested these agents with sweeping new powers to monitor our conversations and ransack our personal papers and effects without judicial supervision or any reason to believe - as the Constitution requires - that a crime has been committed.
He has further claimed the power to disregard legislation that Congress has passed.
He has suspended the laws and treaties against torture, authorized the kidnapping of mere suspects, and transported hundreds of prisoners beyond seas so that no independent judiciary could question the legality of their mistreatment.
He and his supporters in Congress have granted amnesty to the officials who unleashed torture and humiliation upon helpless prisoners, to the disgrace of our nation.
He has denied these prisoners access to attorneys, family, and friends, and has claimed the right to try them before military tribunals specifically designed to disregard the most basic principles of law.
He has imprisoned thousands of lawful immigrants for months without charges, under brutal conditions, until his agents, rather than independent courts, decided that they posed no threat.
He has wrapped his usurpations of power and his deprivations of liberty in thick cloaks of secrecy, thereby showing contempt for the rule of law and the proper functions of Congress, the courts, and the press.
At every stage of these oppressions we have sought redress, but our petitions have been answered only by repeated injury.
We, therefore, resolve to resist these usurpations by all lawful means at our disposal. To this end, we insist that the powers of our national government be shared by all branches of government and not concentrated in one alone. And we call upon Congress, the courts, and the press to reassert their constitutional functions vigorously and restore the promise that is America.
To these ends, we mutually pledge our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.
By Christopher Pyle, with apologies to Thomas Jefferson
From Anne in Chicago:
Do you get this?
Begin forwarded message:
From: Doni Remba
Date: June 26, 2008 7:05:17 AM CDT
To: a.wedner@comcast.net
Subject: Fight the Obama Smears! Special Issue
Reply-To: dremba@comcast.net
Fight the Obama Smears!
Jews for Obama Newsletter - Issue #4 June 26, 2008
Greetings!
The smears against Senator Obama continue unabated. The New York Times has just reported on a new rumor campaign questioning Obama's religious background launched by Floyd Brown. He's the man responsible for the Willie Horton TV ad that helped torpedo Michael S. Dukakis's candidacy in 1988, a man who views the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," which slandered Senator John Kerry in 2004, as a paragon of virtue.
Every day at Jews for Obama we receive new attacks on Senator Obama intended to frighten Jews with distortions and innuendo.
There are many ways we can join together to fight back. We've assembled a "Rapid Response Team" which researches every major viral hate email sent our way and posts the facts on a section of our website called React! With just one click, you can forward any of our rebuttals to those who have sent you a "Schvitz Boat" chain mail about Obama.
The Obama campaign has rolled out its own Fight the Smears website, providing facts to combat a few of the biggest lies. Jews for Obama's React! page is the central online clearinghouse for the American Jewish community for combatting the many falsehoods circulating about Obama which are of special concern to American Jews (and not addressed by the Obama campaign anti-smear site).
If you receive anti-Obama scare-mail from someone, don't sweat it! Forward it to us at chief-editor@jews4barack.com and if it merits a reply, we'll assign our SWAT (Special Writing Action Tactics) team to provide a rapid yet well-researched response.
In this issue of the Jews for Obama newsletter, we bring you our knock-down replies to several of the top Schvitz-Boat hate-mails which have been circulating of late in the American Jewish community. That's playing defense. But we can also play offense.
Join the nearly 800 American Jews who have already signed our statement "We are Jewish. We Stand with Barack Obama."
Send this message to the entire American Jewish community, and help get the word out - to Florida, Pennsylvania, and every state in the union:
As American Jews, we declare our support for Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate for President of the United States. We stand with Senator Obama because of his lifelong commitment to values we as Jews hold dear, our tradition of tikkun olam - the Jewish mandate to "repair the world." We support Senator Obama as a leader who has demonstrated long-standing and unwavering support for Israel.
Senator Obama has earned our respect and gratitude for his statements of moral outrage at the use of murder and terror by groups like Hamas, and for his far-sighted rejection of an Iraq war that has destabilized the Middle East and strengthened Iran.
From the earliest days of this campaign, we have watched as unsubstantiated and vicious rumors have spread through our community. Not one of the rumors has proven true. We ask those who continue to stir up baseless fears of harm to Israel to cease at once. Each of us must choose to support a candidate based on his record and plans for the future, not malicious innuendo.
Click here to read and sign the full statement and to help us distribute this and other messages throughout the American Jewish community.
Forward this newsletter to at least 5 friends and family members and invite them to subscribe. Use the forward link above to insure that they receive the issue intact; the strict privacy of their email addresses is assured.
Top 5 Jewish-Themed Smears of Obama with Responses
The React! section of the Jews for Obama website provides extensive and frequently updated one-click email replies to the "Schvitz Boat" smears which continue to circulate through our community. Smear-mongers hope that a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. Here are five of the top recent smears of Jewish concern to which we've provided fleet-footed responses:
A. NY Mayor Bloomberg Blasts Rumor About Obama: Watch the web clip and read the article
B. Obama Not Linked to the PLO through Rashid Khalidi (J40 Exclusive)
C. Ted Belman and the anti-Obama Smear Machine, Jonathan Kamens (J40 Original)
D. Obama is NOT "the Hamas Candidate" (J40 Exclusive)
E. Myth: Obama Opposes Declaring Iranian Republican Guard a Terrorist Organization (J40 Exclusive)
Top 5 Recent Rabbinic Statements of Support for Obama
A. Rabbi Yosef Blau, Director of Religious Guidance at Yeshiva University and President of the Religious Zionists of America:
Obama's "record on issues of Jewish interest has been excellent." His "record is totally supportive of Jewish concerns." "Barack Obama's personality, record and policy proposals reflect a candidate with whom the Jewish community should be comfortable." Read Rabbi Blau's op-ed from the Jewish Week.
B. Rabbi Henry Jay Karp, Temple Emanuel, Davenport Iowa
Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to you because I am increasingly disturbed by what appears to be a concerted campaign to discredit Barack Obama within the American Jewish community. Whether or not you choose to support Obama's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, as rabbinic colleagues I feel a need to share with you what I have learned about the man - and it is quite different from the rumors that refuse to die in our Jewish community. Read Rabbi Karp's letter.
C. Mr. Obama Goes to Shul, Rabbi Kurt Stone, Boca Raton, Florida
Senator Barack Obama came to Temple B'nai Torah this afternoon [to speak to an audience of 750 mostly-Jewish men, women and teens.] The Senator won over the vast majority of the assembled minyan. During the more than two hours he spent speaking and dialoguing, Senator Obama made it abundantly clear that he was, is, and always shall be, a staunch defender of the Jewish State.
One should know a fact: After going over the voting records of both Senator Clinton and Obama vis-a-vis issues pertaining to Israel, AIPAC -- the main Israel support lobby in the U.S. gave both a 100% rating. That's 100% of the time that both senators voted in a manner that was favorable to the Jewish State. Read Rabbi Karp's testimonial on Obama's appearance at B'nai Torah in Boca
Watch Senator Obama speak at B'nai Torah in Boca Raton or read his speech
D. Rabbi Ethan Tucker (Senator Joe Lieberman's son)
E. Rabbi Gary Gerson, Oak Park Temple, Oak Park, Illinois
Barack Obama, A True Friend of Israel, Gidon D. Remba, The Jerusalem Report
Only two governments on earth are in shock over the newly revealed Israeli-Syrian dialogue: the Iranian regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and the Bush administration, which reportedly called Israel's overture towards Syria "a slap in the face." Such language is not unlike that doubtlessly heard in government halls in Tehran and Hezbollah's Beirut these days about their Syrian ally.
Barack Obama and John McCain bring to this pregnant Mideast moment two sharply divergent conceptions of America's place in the world. Read more
Will the Real Tax-and-Spender Please Fess Up?
Economists across the political spectrum question McCain's portrayal of Obama:
"The important thing is to look at overall impact on people" and on this score, "the vast majority of the population, almost the entirety of the middle class, would see more from Obama than McCain." -- John Irons of the Economic Policy Institute
To read more on why economists cast doubt on McCain's claims about Obama's economic policy click here.
Click here or on the image above to watch a brief interview with Obama on his approach to our economy.
What Obama Really Said About an "Undivided" Jerusalem
After delivering an historic speech to AIPAC testifying to his unshakeable commitment to Israel's security, did Senator Obama backtrack on his promise to support Jerusalem as the "undivided" capital of Israel?
Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla., an Orthodox Jew, a strong supporter of Israel told ABC News, "that is not backtracking." Senator Obama's "position has been the same for the past 16 months," Wexler said.
"He believes Jerusalem should be an undivided city and must be the capital of a Jewish state of Israel. He has also said - and it's the same position as President Bush, former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert - that Jerusalem is of course a 'final status' issue," meaning it would be one of the key and final points of negotiation for a Palestinian state. "And Sen. Obama as president would not dictate final status issues. He will permit the Palestinians and Israel to negotiate, and he would respect any conclusion they reach."
Learn more about the Jerusalem controversy.
New York City Jews for Obama Organizing Party: Saturday, June 28, 8:00 P.M.
240 West 98th Street #7E (New York, NY)
House party for Jewish Obama supporters who want to work in the Jewish community to support Obama. Let's get to know each other and talk about how we can build Jewish support for Obama with Get Out the Vote activities in Pennsylvania, Florida and closer to home.
Guest speaker: Gidon D. Remba, President, Kahal America & Editor, Jews for Obama e-Newsletter
To RSVP please send email to chief-editor@jews4barack.com
Jews for Obama is a project of Kahal America, an independent issues advocacy 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, and not affiliated with the Obama Campaign.
In This Special Issue
1. Top 5 Jewish-Themed Recent Smears of Obama with Responses
2. Top 5 Recent Rabbinic Statements of Support for Obama
3. Barack Obama, A True Friend of Israel
4. Will the Real Tax-and-Spender Please Fess Up?
5. What Obama Really Said About an "Undivided" Jerusalem
6. New York City Jews for Obama Organizing Party: Saturday, June 28, 8:00 P.M
Watch or read Sen. Obama's historic AIPAC speech on Israel
Click on the image
"A government that truly represents these Americans - that truly serves these Americans - will require a different kind of politics. We will need to understand just how we got to this place, this land of warring factions and tribal hatreds. And we'll need to remind ourselves, despite all our differences, just how much we share: common hopes, common dreams, a bond that will not break."
Congressman Rahm Emanuel Endorses Senator Obama
Congressman Emanuel and his wife Amy are active members of a modern Orthodox congregation, Anshe Sholom, in Chicago. Amy is heavily involved with the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, where Emanuel was educated. His father was born in Jerusalem, and he volunteered on an IDF base during the 1991 Persian Gulf War before serving as a senior advisor to President Clinton at the White House from 1993 - 1998.
Emanuel was chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the 2006 elections. After the Democratic Party regained control of the House, he was elected as the next chairman of the Democratic Caucus. He is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House.
Previous Editions
If you missed previous issues of the Jews for Obama e-Newsletter, you can now view them on the web
How the Bush-McCain Surge Harms Israel
Sign the Open Letter to Sen. McCain: It's Time for Straight Talk on Jewish Issues
The Real McCain: Why Conservatives Don't Trust Him and Why Independents Shouldn't, by Cliff Schecter
Thinking about voting for McCain? Read this book. Cliff Schecter's hard-hitting profile explores the gap between the public record of Senator John McCain and his media image. Drawing on a range of sources and adding his unique perspective and humor, Schecter guides the reader through McCain's long history of expedient flip-flops--especially on his signature issues of national security and campaign finance reform.
Paul Hackett, Major, USMCR: Cliff Schecter provides us with some real "straight talk" about John McCain. Everyone who wants to know why John McCain won't give us healthcare but will keep us fighting endless wars and sell our personal freedoms to far-right theocrats should read this book.
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Editor-in-Chief
Gidon D. Remba
chief-editor@jews4barack.com
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Yocheved Seidman
us-editor@jews4barack.com
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Jordan Pollack
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From Hank in NY:
Sent: Monday, June 30, 2008 8:04 AM
To: 'oped@washpost.com'
Subject: To The Editor
“RAGE” – (Race, Age, Gender, Ethnicity)
The 2008 primary campaigns proved without a doubt that America has miles to go before regaining the high moral ground and respect with which we once led the rest of the world. Endless polls declared that American voters were ready to elect a seventy-two year old white male, an African American or a white woman. What transpired were ugly race card, misogynistic and ageist campaigns with players like Bill Clinton, Jeremiah Wright and the candidates themselves becoming embroiled about what they said, what they meant and what they really wanted to say.
What scares me the most as a devout supporter of Barack Obama is the fact that most people who are polled and asked if they would vote for an African American respond with a resounding “yes!” because they don’t want anyone to think they are racist. When they get in the privacy of the voting booth however, it may become quite a different story. There is no telling how many people fall into this category, or how many would actually vote for a man John McCain’s age with a history of serious medical problems.
We will perhaps never know how many white men would have actually voted for Hillary Clinton, but it is safe to say that in a Clinton McCain race many of the men who supported Clinton in the primaries would back McCain in the general election. It is truly amazing that the three main candidates for President in 2008 brought to light the chasms still infecting American politics. The next President will have a major mess to clean up after the Bush years, but we can hope that either Senator McCain or Senator Obama will seek to unite our country and restore brotherhood, acceptance and compassion for all peoples of all races.
By:
Henry A. Lowenstein
To: 'oped@washpost.com'
Subject: To The Editor
“RAGE” – (Race, Age, Gender, Ethnicity)
The 2008 primary campaigns proved without a doubt that America has miles to go before regaining the high moral ground and respect with which we once led the rest of the world. Endless polls declared that American voters were ready to elect a seventy-two year old white male, an African American or a white woman. What transpired were ugly race card, misogynistic and ageist campaigns with players like Bill Clinton, Jeremiah Wright and the candidates themselves becoming embroiled about what they said, what they meant and what they really wanted to say.
What scares me the most as a devout supporter of Barack Obama is the fact that most people who are polled and asked if they would vote for an African American respond with a resounding “yes!” because they don’t want anyone to think they are racist. When they get in the privacy of the voting booth however, it may become quite a different story. There is no telling how many people fall into this category, or how many would actually vote for a man John McCain’s age with a history of serious medical problems.
We will perhaps never know how many white men would have actually voted for Hillary Clinton, but it is safe to say that in a Clinton McCain race many of the men who supported Clinton in the primaries would back McCain in the general election. It is truly amazing that the three main candidates for President in 2008 brought to light the chasms still infecting American politics. The next President will have a major mess to clean up after the Bush years, but we can hope that either Senator McCain or Senator Obama will seek to unite our country and restore brotherhood, acceptance and compassion for all peoples of all races.
By:
Henry A. Lowenstein
Thursday, June 19, 2008
From Hank in NYC:
Sent: Thursday, June 19, 2008 8:22 AM
To: 'letters@nytimes.com'
Subject: To The Editor
“The Big Pander to Big Oil” – Editorial – June 19, 2008
The Bush administration is bound and determined to protect their wealthiest friends and supporters right up to the day they leave office and beyond. By attempting to reverse a twenty-seven year ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, Bush and Cheney make no pretense about their distaste for protecting the planet and placing America in a leadership position with regard to conservation and environmental sustainability.
John McCain has begun to show that he is Bush III in waiting, and has come out for the offshore drilling issue even though he was recently against it. Does this remind anyone of John Kerry in 2004? The American people and the media must pressure the Congress to tell Bush that there is no way he will see offshore drilling while he is in office, and we need to send a clear message to our next President that the environment and development of alternative sources of sustainable and clean energy should be top priorities in his administration.
To: 'letters@nytimes.com'
Subject: To The Editor
“The Big Pander to Big Oil” – Editorial – June 19, 2008
The Bush administration is bound and determined to protect their wealthiest friends and supporters right up to the day they leave office and beyond. By attempting to reverse a twenty-seven year ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, Bush and Cheney make no pretense about their distaste for protecting the planet and placing America in a leadership position with regard to conservation and environmental sustainability.
John McCain has begun to show that he is Bush III in waiting, and has come out for the offshore drilling issue even though he was recently against it. Does this remind anyone of John Kerry in 2004? The American people and the media must pressure the Congress to tell Bush that there is no way he will see offshore drilling while he is in office, and we need to send a clear message to our next President that the environment and development of alternative sources of sustainable and clean energy should be top priorities in his administration.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
From Sunny Difference between Obama and McSame Women's Health
From Sunny for talking Points for Women for Obama: Five little words, Its The Supreme Court People!!!
Barack Obama vs. John McSame:
Records on Women’s Reproductive Rights/Health
Barack Obama:
Received a 100% pro-choice vote rating from Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America
Obama received a 100% rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council as a state senator for all years where ratings were available and was endorsed by the council in his 2002 race for U.S. Senate.
Obama was the only presidential candidate who rose in support of Illinois Planned Parenthood when their new Aurora clinic faced a threatened shut-down last year.
Obama was the ONLY U.S. Senator who helped raise funds in 2006 to successfully repeal a South Dakota law that banned abortions.
In 2005 Obama voted to repeal the Mexico Policy, which bars U.S. air to international family planning organizations that provide or promote abortion.
As an Illinois state senator, Obama supported a successful law to require insurance plans to cover FDA-approved contraceptives in Illinois.
Obama co-sponsored legislation with Sen. Claire McCaskill to make birth control affordable for low-income women and students after Federal changes to regulations caused birth control costs to skyrocket.
Obama voted against allowing anti-abortion activists to escape court-ordered fines or judgments by filing for bankruptcy protection.
Obama twice voted against making it a crime to take a minor across state lines for an abortion.
As an Illinois state Senator, Obama worked closely with the Illinois Pro-choice community - led by Planned Parenthood - to employ a "present vote" strategy to successfully defeat a series of anti-choice legislation proposed by republicans.
Obama sponsored a bill to provide information about emergency contraception to sexual assault victims.
Obama Passed the Prevention First Act. Obama co-sponsored the Prevention First Act which increases funding to family planning programs.
Obama has said that protecting and safeguarding Roe v. Wade will be a priority in his administration.
John McSame:
McSame has received a 0% pro-choice rating from Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America
Since 1983, in votes in the House and the Senate (where he has served since 1987), McSame has cast 130 votes on abortion and other reproductive-rights issues. 125 of those votes were anti-choice.
McSame co-sponsored and voted for the Federal Abortion Ban.
He voted to uphold the Global Gag Rule. The Global and Gag Rule is a policy that bans aid to global and if they use their own funds to provide legal abortion services or even adopt a pro-choice position. He has also voted for a similar a ban on grants for domestic health centers that offer abortion or take a pro-choice position.
McSame has consistently voted against legislation requiring insurance companies to cover birth control.
He voted against legislation that established criminal and civil penalties for those who use threats and violence to keep women from gaining access to reproductive health clinics.
McSame voted to shut down the Title X family-planning program. This program provides millions of women with health care services ranging from birth control to cancer screenings.
McSame has consistently voted against expanding access to programs that reduce pregnancy and the need for abortion and in favor of abstinence-only programs.
Voted to impose a Federal Parental Consent Law on teens seeking birth control.
McSame has pledged to fill Supreme Court vacancies with justices who will overturn Roe. V. Wade. McSame voted for four anti-choice nominees for the Supreme Court including Roberts and Alito.
Voted against reauthorizing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program for five years. McSame voted against reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program for five years. His health care plan provdes $2 billion in tax cuts to health insurance
When Congress was considering the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1993, McCain voted to suspend it.
Barack on Women’s health care:
· Obama Passed Law Creating Special Task Force on Cervical Cancer Elimination. This required the task force to examine the prevalence and burden of cervical cancer, raise awareness concerning the causes and nature of cervical cancer, and identify prevention and control strategies and technologies.
Obama Passed Law to Cover Breast And Cervical Cancer Screenings. Obama sponsored a bill and voted to amend the Illinois Public Aid Code that expands eligibility and medical assistance for breast and cervical cancer screenings.
Obama Passed Law Creating The PREEMIE Act (Prematurity Research Expansion And Education For Mothers Who Deliver Infants Early Act). Obama co-sponsored this bill that amended and expanded the Public Health Service Act to address and examine the risk of death, birth defects, and developmental disorders in infants born prematurely.
Obama Passed The Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2005 or Johanna's Law. Obama co-sponsored a bill that would amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national campaign to increase the awareness and knowledge of health care providers and women with respect to gynecologic cancers.
Obama Passed A Law Promoting Inclusion Of Women and Minorities In Clinical Research.
Obama Passed Law Requiring Hearing Screening of All Newborn Infants.
Obama Passed Law to Allow the Department of Public Health to Provide Medicaid Reimbursement for Prenatal And Perinatal Health Care Facilities.
Obama Passed Law Guaranteeing Mother's Right to Breastfeed Her Baby in Any Location. Obama helped pass the Right to Breastfeed Act, which affirms a mother's right to breastfeed her baby in any location, public or private.
Obama Passed Law to Help Address Postpartum Depression. Obama was the chief sponsor and voted for bill requiring the State of Illinois Departments of Public Health and Professional Regulation to work with licensed health care facilities and licensed health care professionals to develop policies and procedures that address the issue of postpartum depression.
Barack Obama vs. John McSame:
Records on Women’s Reproductive Rights/Health
Barack Obama:
Received a 100% pro-choice vote rating from Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America
Obama received a 100% rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council as a state senator for all years where ratings were available and was endorsed by the council in his 2002 race for U.S. Senate.
Obama was the only presidential candidate who rose in support of Illinois Planned Parenthood when their new Aurora clinic faced a threatened shut-down last year.
Obama was the ONLY U.S. Senator who helped raise funds in 2006 to successfully repeal a South Dakota law that banned abortions.
In 2005 Obama voted to repeal the Mexico Policy, which bars U.S. air to international family planning organizations that provide or promote abortion.
As an Illinois state senator, Obama supported a successful law to require insurance plans to cover FDA-approved contraceptives in Illinois.
Obama co-sponsored legislation with Sen. Claire McCaskill to make birth control affordable for low-income women and students after Federal changes to regulations caused birth control costs to skyrocket.
Obama voted against allowing anti-abortion activists to escape court-ordered fines or judgments by filing for bankruptcy protection.
Obama twice voted against making it a crime to take a minor across state lines for an abortion.
As an Illinois state Senator, Obama worked closely with the Illinois Pro-choice community - led by Planned Parenthood - to employ a "present vote" strategy to successfully defeat a series of anti-choice legislation proposed by republicans.
Obama sponsored a bill to provide information about emergency contraception to sexual assault victims.
Obama Passed the Prevention First Act. Obama co-sponsored the Prevention First Act which increases funding to family planning programs.
Obama has said that protecting and safeguarding Roe v. Wade will be a priority in his administration.
John McSame:
McSame has received a 0% pro-choice rating from Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America
Since 1983, in votes in the House and the Senate (where he has served since 1987), McSame has cast 130 votes on abortion and other reproductive-rights issues. 125 of those votes were anti-choice.
McSame co-sponsored and voted for the Federal Abortion Ban.
He voted to uphold the Global Gag Rule. The Global and Gag Rule is a policy that bans aid to global and if they use their own funds to provide legal abortion services or even adopt a pro-choice position. He has also voted for a similar a ban on grants for domestic health centers that offer abortion or take a pro-choice position.
McSame has consistently voted against legislation requiring insurance companies to cover birth control.
He voted against legislation that established criminal and civil penalties for those who use threats and violence to keep women from gaining access to reproductive health clinics.
McSame voted to shut down the Title X family-planning program. This program provides millions of women with health care services ranging from birth control to cancer screenings.
McSame has consistently voted against expanding access to programs that reduce pregnancy and the need for abortion and in favor of abstinence-only programs.
Voted to impose a Federal Parental Consent Law on teens seeking birth control.
McSame has pledged to fill Supreme Court vacancies with justices who will overturn Roe. V. Wade. McSame voted for four anti-choice nominees for the Supreme Court including Roberts and Alito.
Voted against reauthorizing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program for five years. McSame voted against reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program for five years. His health care plan provdes $2 billion in tax cuts to health insurance
When Congress was considering the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1993, McCain voted to suspend it.
Barack on Women’s health care:
· Obama Passed Law Creating Special Task Force on Cervical Cancer Elimination. This required the task force to examine the prevalence and burden of cervical cancer, raise awareness concerning the causes and nature of cervical cancer, and identify prevention and control strategies and technologies.
Obama Passed Law to Cover Breast And Cervical Cancer Screenings. Obama sponsored a bill and voted to amend the Illinois Public Aid Code that expands eligibility and medical assistance for breast and cervical cancer screenings.
Obama Passed Law Creating The PREEMIE Act (Prematurity Research Expansion And Education For Mothers Who Deliver Infants Early Act). Obama co-sponsored this bill that amended and expanded the Public Health Service Act to address and examine the risk of death, birth defects, and developmental disorders in infants born prematurely.
Obama Passed The Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2005 or Johanna's Law. Obama co-sponsored a bill that would amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national campaign to increase the awareness and knowledge of health care providers and women with respect to gynecologic cancers.
Obama Passed A Law Promoting Inclusion Of Women and Minorities In Clinical Research.
Obama Passed Law Requiring Hearing Screening of All Newborn Infants.
Obama Passed Law to Allow the Department of Public Health to Provide Medicaid Reimbursement for Prenatal And Perinatal Health Care Facilities.
Obama Passed Law Guaranteeing Mother's Right to Breastfeed Her Baby in Any Location. Obama helped pass the Right to Breastfeed Act, which affirms a mother's right to breastfeed her baby in any location, public or private.
Obama Passed Law to Help Address Postpartum Depression. Obama was the chief sponsor and voted for bill requiring the State of Illinois Departments of Public Health and Professional Regulation to work with licensed health care facilities and licensed health care professionals to develop policies and procedures that address the issue of postpartum depression.
From kathy in MO:
I just ran across this comprehensive site that gives each state, when their voter registration ends, where their polling places are, what kinds of ID will be required, and how to verify that your name is truly on the voter rolls. I thought we might want to send it around especially with so many new registrations, people need to know what the rules are for their state and that they are really registered. http://www.votersunite.org/info/RegInfo.asp
With the new Voter ID rules in places like Indiana, progressives fear that some states that do not even have those rules will have poll workers asking for things like birth certificates any way. People really need to know what the rules are for their state so they cannot be misled on election day. Missouri voted down a law similar to the one upheld by the Supreme Court in Indiana that would require you to show your birth certificate when you vote. That doesn't mean that some MO precincts won't try to ask people to show it even though not legally required!
Kathy
-----
With the new Voter ID rules in places like Indiana, progressives fear that some states that do not even have those rules will have poll workers asking for things like birth certificates any way. People really need to know what the rules are for their state so they cannot be misled on election day. Missouri voted down a law similar to the one upheld by the Supreme Court in Indiana that would require you to show your birth certificate when you vote. That doesn't mean that some MO precincts won't try to ask people to show it even though not legally required!
Kathy
-----
From Helen from Older Women for Obama:
Dear OWOs and Sunny's network:
You've asked me to recap the web places you can go to get solid information to help keep Obama and Michelle from being Swift-boated.
The campaign has constructed two different places so we all can keep setting the record straight, and a critical third place for us to inform the campaign about new smears. The right wing has already begun its battle to vilify Obama and Michelle. They will keep it up all the way through Election Day. We can defeat them on this.
One site is built so you can respond substantively to charges that McCain makes about Obama's history or policy proposals. It's:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/fightthesmearshome/
The second site is built to respond substantively to lies, smears, and innuendoes on talk radio, on the internet, in the coffee shops, bars, and back yard barbeques. It's:
http://www.factcheck.barackobama.com
This site lists the old and new lies and provides the documentation to rebut them substantively. It's worth going onto each website and touring around, so you get a flavor of what those on the right are going to try to get away with and see how substantive the campaign's responses are.
The third tactic, perhaps most important is this. If you get a smear by email, hear one on the radio, or hear it from another person, email it to:
http://www.watchdog@barackobama.com.
Then the campaign can rebut the charge immediately. They will send you the rebuttal as soon as it's ready, and you can send it back to the person you got the original email from or heard from. If they sent it to others as well as to you, use Reply All.
This way, you will be part of Obama's early warning system. Our man knows that it is vital to deny our opponents the ability to define him, his wife, his policies, or any other aspect of reality. (Remember the Republican boast? "We make our own reality." We can deny them the chance.) The 24-hour cable news cycle is a brutal new fact of political life. We need to help our man's campaign forestall these lies getting out on the news programs. It's always harder to rebut after the fact.
We can stop the liars and the bullies in their tracks. This will not only help get Obama elected, it strengthens our precious democracy. Our Founders knew that politics was a bloodly business, but they believed, as I hope you do, that the truth will bring the right outcome.
Yours,
HU
OWO
You've asked me to recap the web places you can go to get solid information to help keep Obama and Michelle from being Swift-boated.
The campaign has constructed two different places so we all can keep setting the record straight, and a critical third place for us to inform the campaign about new smears. The right wing has already begun its battle to vilify Obama and Michelle. They will keep it up all the way through Election Day. We can defeat them on this.
One site is built so you can respond substantively to charges that McCain makes about Obama's history or policy proposals. It's:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/fightthesmearshome/
The second site is built to respond substantively to lies, smears, and innuendoes on talk radio, on the internet, in the coffee shops, bars, and back yard barbeques. It's:
http://www.factcheck.barackobama.com
This site lists the old and new lies and provides the documentation to rebut them substantively. It's worth going onto each website and touring around, so you get a flavor of what those on the right are going to try to get away with and see how substantive the campaign's responses are.
The third tactic, perhaps most important is this. If you get a smear by email, hear one on the radio, or hear it from another person, email it to:
http://www.watchdog@barackobama.com.
Then the campaign can rebut the charge immediately. They will send you the rebuttal as soon as it's ready, and you can send it back to the person you got the original email from or heard from. If they sent it to others as well as to you, use Reply All.
This way, you will be part of Obama's early warning system. Our man knows that it is vital to deny our opponents the ability to define him, his wife, his policies, or any other aspect of reality. (Remember the Republican boast? "We make our own reality." We can deny them the chance.) The 24-hour cable news cycle is a brutal new fact of political life. We need to help our man's campaign forestall these lies getting out on the news programs. It's always harder to rebut after the fact.
We can stop the liars and the bullies in their tracks. This will not only help get Obama elected, it strengthens our precious democracy. Our Founders knew that politics was a bloodly business, but they believed, as I hope you do, that the truth will bring the right outcome.
Yours,
HU
OWO
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