Our Veterans Need Support - IAVA

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the nation's first and largest nonpartisan organization for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, has urged President-elect Barack Obama to move boldly to make veterans issues a top priority.

"President-elect Obama has a historic opportunity to lead America in supporting Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. He has the power to finally turn the page on the way America treated veterans after Vietnam. In doing so, his first step must be to quickly convene a Presidential Summit of Veteran Leaders to solicit input from the real experts: veterans," said Paul Rieckhoff, Executive Director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). "IAVA is hopeful that the President-elect will make veterans issues a top priority and reach out to legislators on both sides of the aisle to quickly implement our legislative priorities. IAVA looks forward to working closely with the Obama Administration and the 1111th Congress to improve the lives of our newest generation of heroes and their families."

As the new President considers cabinet appointments, including the VA Secretary, he must bring together leading veterans' organizations, and specifically veterans of the current wars, to make sure he's getting the "ground truth". Candidates for appointed positions within the VA should have a proven track record of innovation and reform, and should be ready to address the urgent needs of new veterans. By having veterans involved in the decision-making process, we can ensure that potential contenders fulfill these qualifications and are best to lead this country forward.

In the coming months, the President-elect has the unique opportunity to make a series of critical decisions impacting Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Here are the 3 critical policies veterans need to see from the new Administration in the first 100 days:

Advance-fund VA Healthcare
Year after year, the VA budget is passed late, forcing hundreds of veterans' hospitals and clinics to ration care. IAVA believes that veterans' health care should be funded one year in advance and we ask that the President present to Congress an advance-funded VA budget that continues to match the Independent Budget recommendations made by leading Veterans Service Organizations.

Implement GI Bill Transferability

While the new GI Bill was passed several months ago, the Department of Defense has yet to release guidelines for the transferability of GI Bill benefits from service members to their spouses or children. The President must take action and direct the Secretary of Defense to issue the appropriate guidelines, so that GI Bill transferability can be implemented by August 2009.

Aggressively address the lack of access to Mental Health Professionals
The military and the VA need innovative strategies to recruit and retain more mental health professionals to combat the high rates of PTSD and major depression among returning troops. The President should issue a national call, urging mental health professionals nationwide to make their services more available to military members and their families. Those who answer the call should receive incentives and benefits for donating time to this valuable cause.

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (www.IAVA.org) is the country's first and largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and has more than 125,000 veteran members and civilian supporters nationwide. Its mission is to improve the lives of this country's newest generation of veterans and their families.

Voters embrace economic change, support traditional values

Tuesday's election returns send a clear message from the American people to the political parties and also to the single issue pressure groups. The voters want economic change but sent a mixed message on the divisive social issues. Most Americans have rejected "trickle down economics" and are very concerned about their jobs, health care and the housing market.

For the first time since 1976, a Democratic nominee for President has captured a majority of the popular vote. The question is can President-elect Obama and the Democratic Congress deliver for our nation's working families ? Will we have a newer New Deal that realigns American politics or just a re-hash of the Clinton era ?

The voters embraced a message of economic change - not an agenda of political correctness. In critical swing states, the electorate voted overwhelmingly on the basis of pocketbook issues like jobs and health care.

Voters in states like California and Florida favored Obama but also supported traditional family values by passing initiatives to ban same sex marriage. Two critical groups within the Democratic Coalition - African Americans and Hispanics soundly rejected legalization of same sex marriage at the polls. This sends a clear a message to President-elect Obama and the Democratic Congress. Leave the Defense of Marriage of Act alone and think twice about changes in the present "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" military policy.

Colorado voters chose Obama but also enacted a law ending racial and gender preferences in education, employment and public contracting. The repeal of affirmative action in Colorado provides the perfect opportunity for an Obama Administration to save preferences for the truly deserving. Obama should advocate mending instead of ending affirmative action by shifting the focus from race and gender to class. http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2008/05/12/kahlenberg

As voters rejected some portions to the liberal social agenda, lessons were also taught to the right. Voters clearly repudiated the economic policies of the past 27 years and want a more activist role by government. The era of "small government" is over and Republicans will have to accept this reality if they wish to remain a viable party. Republicans lost ground even among social conservatives. In key states, church-going Catholic voters favored Obama (along with a substantial number of evangelical Protestants) on the basis of pocketbook issues despite differences over the issue of abortion.

The election also provided a reality check to the pro-life movement which has been long focused on a reversal of the Roe vs. Wade decision. Voters in the socially traditionalist state of South Dakota (favoring the McCain-Palin ticket by 8 percentage points) rejected a ban on abortion which contained exceptions for saving the life of the mother, rape and incest by a 55 to 45 margin. Pro-life activists had hoped that the proposed South Dakota law might serve as a test case to challenge Roe vs. Wade. Instead, the rejection of an abortion ban by the voters in a conservative rural state like South Dakota suggests that few states are likely to pass substantial restrictions on the procedure even if Roe v. Wade is overturned. Pro-lifers are going to need a new stategy focused on changing hearts more than laws and advocating social and economic supports to reduce the number of abortions.
http://www.catholicsinalliance.org/files/CACG_Final.pdf

At the same time, President-elect Obama and the Democratic Congress must recognize that the pro-choice movement hard-liners do not speak for most Americans either. Polls have shown strong public support for prohibiting late term or partial birth abortion. A CNN/Public Opinion Research poll last year found that 66 to 28 percent of the public supported banning late term abortion. Any attempt to repeal the Hyde Amendment(passed by a Democratic Congress and signed into law by President Carter in 1977) and provide public funding for abortion would prove to be not only politically unpopular but also an outrage to the conscience of tens of millions of Americans. Congress needs to approve the Pregnant Women Support Act sponsored by Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania which deserves the support of the pro-life and pro-choice citizens.

For too long, our political process has been paralyzed by a culture war. We need to move beyond the culture war. I am not saying that the social issues are not important or suggesting that everyone must agree on divisive cultural matters like abortion, gun control or gay marriage. We will continue to disagree on some issues but it is also critical that Americans have the ability to unite and deal with the urgent economic problems that our nation faces today.

NOTE: Since writing this post, a reader has called an error to my attention. The final count in Colorado showed a narrow defeat for the measure repealing affirmative action in that state. The closeness of the vote in Colorado and the passage of similar measures in other states suggests that affirmative action policies are still politically vulnerable. Revising such programs to address socio-economic status rather than race and gender seems like the fair thing to do as well.

Jim Martin for U.S. Senate - First TV Ad of Runoff Election

ATLANTA – Jim Martin released a new ad today, kicking off the start of the Georgia runoff election. The Martin ad emphasizes the candidate's service to his country in Vietnam and his ability to work with President-elect Barack Obama in fighting for the middle class and getting America back on track.

"Hardworking middle class Georgians need a leader who will stand up for them in the Senate, instead of the special interests Saxby's been serving," Martin spokesperson Kate Hansen said. "The choice in this runoff is clear: Jim Martin will work with Barack Obama to deliver for Georgia families, and Saxby Chambliss will obstruct change and continue his record of fighting for the special interests bankrolling his campaign."

A veteran and church elder, Martin served with distinction for nearly two decades in the Georgia House of Representatives. Martin later led the Department of Human Resources under Gov. Roy Barnes and Gov. Sonny Perdue. He and Joan, his wife of 38 years, have four children and three grandchildren. He is running for Senate to continue his long record of standing up for Georgia families, and to fight for change in Washington.

Dustin Ensinger: What an Obama Presidency Could Look Like

From Economy in Crisis:

What an Obama Presidency Could Look Like
Published 11/05/08 Dustin Ensinger
E-mail - editor@economyincisis.org

The arduous campaigning is over. Now comes President-elect Barack Obama’s real work: fixing an economy not beset by such turmoil since the Great Depression, handling two wars and the ever-present threat of terrorism, ending the nation’s addiction to oil, providing health care to the uninsured and restoring America’s reputation around the world, just to name a few.

If it was an Everest-like ascension for Sen. Obama to defeat Sen. John McCain to become the nation’s first African American president, governing will be much the same. Except now the Senator is trying to reach the summit with two broken legs and a 200 pound backpack on.

No president in modern history has entered the White House with such a raft of problems to contend with, perhaps with the exception of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 when he inherited the Great Depression from Herbert Hoover. But, come Jan. 20, 2009 that is precisely what Sen. Obama must do. And, as the exit polling showed, the top concern for most Americans is fixing the ailing economy.

To do that Obama has said that he will focus on reviving the middle-class by allowing the Bush administration’s tax cuts to expire. Currently, the tax code puts the majority of the burden on middle-income earners and rewards the wealthy. Under Sen. Obama’s proposed plan 95 percent of Americans would receive a tax break. Only the top two percent of earners, those making over $250,000, will see their taxes increase. In addition, Sen. Obama has vowed to end tax loopholes for companies that outsource jobs overseas and will instead provide a tax credit to those companies that hire American workers. Capital gains taxes will also be returned to pre-Bush levels.

Another key portion of Obama’s plan to strengthen the middle-class is to make a serious investment in alternative energy. Obama’s plan includes enacting a windfall-profits tax on energy companies that would finance tax breaks to American families. Obama has also claimed that he will invest $150 billion over the next 10 years in alternative energies. The plan will create five million new “green jobs” according to his Web site. To pay for part of his plan he will impose a cap-and-trade emission tax that will essentially put the right to pollute up for auction to the highest bidders.

Exploding costs of health care are also causing a serious strain on American families and the economy. Currently, 47 million Americans have no health insurance. Obama’s plan will address the uninsured and the exploding costs. He has said that he will maintain the employer-based system and even expand it by providing tax incentives to businesses that provide health care to their employees. To combat the number of uninsured Americans, Obama will provide a tax credit to those individuals seeking insurance to help them cope with the costs. In addition, he would mandate coverage for all children, but has not said what the penalty would be if your children were left uninsured. He has also said that by expanding the number of people with health care it would make it easier to negotiate with insurance companies for lower premiums.

Perhaps the most important issue of the day, the economic crisis, is the area where Sen. Obama was able to draw a clear distinction between himself and his opponent. During and immediately after the crisis Obama opened up a lead in the polls that he never relinquished. Many pundits have attributed his handling of the crisis as the turning point of the election. While Sen. McCain appeared erratic and uncertain - suspending his campaign, threatening not to debate, injecting himself into the debate over the bailout package - Sen. Obama appeared calmed, posed and pragmatic. However, appearing to be able to handle a crisis and actually handling one are two different things.

Sen. Obama has acknowledged that the financial meltdown is the most pressing issue facing the nation and could alter his plans in other key areas. To help Americans that are currently hurting, he has proposed exempting taxes on unemployment benefits along with extending them. He would also advocate imposing a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures and has said he would allow bankruptcy judges to renegotiate the terms of mortgages. Many advocates have praised this plan saying it will force banks to renegotiate on their own for fear of a judge determining the payments they receive.

Finally, Sen. Obama has vowed to take a more thoughtful approach to globalization. Instead of “free-trade” he is advocating a “fair-trade” policy that includes protections for worker and environmental rights. He has said that the American people would be more than happy to pay a little more for American-made products if it also meant good American jobs.

Will Sen. Obama be able to climb that mountaintop twice and restore America to its rightful place in the world? Only time will tell.

http://www.economyincrisis.org/articles/show/2031

Mark Warner says nuclear power can help solve energy and environmental crisis

A growing number of Democratic candidates and elected officials are in favor of building more nuclear power plants to reduce carbon emissions and help meet our nation's energy needs. Democratic U.S. Senate nominee and former Virginia Governor Mark Warner is a proponent of atomic energy.

"Nuclear power should be expanded and should play a role in addressing our energy and environmental needs. Nuclear power generates one-fifth of America's electricity. It holds the potential to provide clean, relatively inexpensive power and lessen our dependence on fossil fuels at a time when prices are rising."

"France gets 80% of its electricity from nuclear power and Japan is aggressively building new reactors. If they can do it, so can we. While safety around using nuclear power has improved greatly, we need to invest in research to find a long term solution to storing nuclear waste. And as we look to increase our nuclear energy, nuclear plant security also must be a top priority."

Another leading Democrat - Senator Thomas Carper of Delaware has stated: "I am a strong supporter of safe and secure nuclear power and believe it must be a prominent part of any global warming solution. The resurgence of nuclear power in the United States gives us a unique opportunity to rebuild a carbon-free energy industry, and creating tens of thousands of highly-skilled jobs."

Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana says that it is "very important for our country to move forward in a very deliberative direction" toward building more nuclear power plants.

According to NEI Nuclear Notes, the following Democratic Senate contenders support expansion of nuclear power:
Nick Carter of Wyoming, Bob Conley of South Carolina, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Scott Kleeb of Nebraska, Larry LaRocco of Idaho, Jim Slattery of Kansas and Mark Udall of Colorado.

David Boswell: A Fighter for Kentucky

(Owensboro – KY) In a continuing sign of the success of David Boswell's mainstream Democratic campaign for U.S. House, two recently released analyses of Congressional races moved KY-02 into the "Toss-Up" category.

Yesterday, the Cook Political Report moved the race from "Lean Republican" to a "Toss-Up," and this morning the Rothenberg Report moved the race from "Toss-Up/Tilt Republican" to "Pure Toss-Up." In just one month, Rothenberg has moved KY-02 from "Lean Republican" to where the race stands now.

"The national political analysts are just catching up with the voters of the Second District," said Mark Riddle, Boswell's senior strategist and media advisor. "It's no wonder that the excitement continues to build on our side – while our opponent supports trade deals that send our jobs overseas, David Boswell will fight to make government work for middle class families here in Kentucky. Across the district, voters are responding to that message."

David Boswell on the Issues:

Jobs and the Economy

I have no greater priority than bringing good paying jobs to the men and women of Kentucky’s 2nd district. I strongly oppose any effort like NAFTA that sends work to Mexico and China instead of keeping it right here in Kentucky. I believe that we should investigate the deregulation that led to our current fiscal crisis so we can avoid these serious lapses of judgment in the future. Any economic recovery plan needs to be just as focused on home owners as it is on corporate bankers. In these turbulent times, we must focus on the needs of Main Street instead of the needs of Wall Street.

Health Care

I believe that the number of Americans without health insurance represents a very serious problem in this country. We need to create a private/public partnership that will help the 46 million Americans without health care to find coverage, with special attention given to insuring our children. This nation needs a smart health care policy that looks out for the health of citizens as well as the finances of the country, and I plan on working hard to achieve that.

Iraq

I believe that we have accomplished all that we reasonably can be asked to do in Iraq, and it is time to withdraw American forces. The war has proven unacceptably costly in both military casualties and economic expenditures. All domestic federal spending, be it law enforcement, infrastructure, education, health care or border security, will suffer so long as this war continues. I believe we need to rely on diplomacy to make a safe and swift withdrawal, and that we should refocus on the heart of the war on terror – Afghanistan.

Veterans

The brave men and women of our armed forces are true heroes, and it is high time that they be treated as such. We need to do more to support them both in the field and when they return home to their families. I am committed to improving veterans’ health care, education, and other services, and I hope to represent the needs of our armed forces as a member of the Veterans Affairs Committee.

Energy Policy

America's energy production cannot continue to be based almost exclusively on petroleum, nor remain vested solely in the hands of multinational corporations and hostile nations. While I believe in a limited expansion of drilling here at home and in the exploration of our oil shale fields, we are a resourceful, creative nation and should think more broadly. I support a comprehensive bio-fuels program which, in tandem with offshore drilling, renewable sources, clean coal technologies, and an exploration of safe, clean nuclear power, will help alleviate the nation's energy crisis and also make Kentucky a player in the field of energy production.

Agriculture

Small farms form the backbone of Kentucky’s economy, and as a Member of Congress I will always support initiatives to help them prosper. As Commissioner of Agriculture, I promoted many programs to help small farms, including agriculture diversification and investments in the infrastructure that small farms need to succeed, and I plan on pursuing family farm friendly policies in Washington.

Second Amendment Rights

I am an avid sportsman, and have a lifetime “A” rating from the National Rifle Association based on my legislative history. I am also a member of the Wild Turkey Federation and Ducks Unlimited. I believe firmly in our right to bear arms and will always vote accordingly.

Right to Life

Protecting life from conception until death is one of the most important roles of our government. I am opposed to abortion in all cases except when it is necessary to save the life of the mother.

Draw the Line: Vote yes on Florida's Amendment 2

Florida Red & Blue continues to distort the facts in their campaign against the Marriage Protection Amendment 2. The latest TV commercial from the group falsely claims that unmarried couples will be denied hospital visitation rights if Amendment 2 is approved.

First of all, Amendment 2 will not impact local domestic partnership laws. All state constitutional amendments are carefully reviewed by the Florida Supreme Court before being placed on the ballot to assure that the proposal addresses a single subject. Amendment 2 deals solely with the definition of marriage as one man and one woman. Secondly, most Floridians do not live a city or county where domestic partner registration is available but there is a state law which allows anyone to designate a health care surrogate. Take a look at Florida Statutes 765.202 and it will be clear that the heart-wrenching stories told to us by Florida Red & Blue are pure fiction.

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=Ch0765/SEC202.HTM&Title=-%3e2007-%3eCh0765-%3eSection%20202#0765.202

Saint Leo University's student newspaper The Lion's Pride makes a strong case for Amendment 2.

Vote "yes" on Amendment 2

October 24, 2008

BY JOSHUA M. SMITH

Lions’ Pride Online Editor

Marriage is the union of one man and one woman. That is what the word “marriage” means. It’s a shame, but, due to the Gay Rights lobby, Floridians now find it necessary to write that definition into law.

Amendment 2, which will appear on the November 4 ballots in Florida, states, “In as much as a marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized.”

This amendment is not anti-gay. It does not make gays second-class citizens. It merely upholds Florida’s right to define marriage for itself.

Without Amendment 2, Florida finds itself in a position to have to arbitrarily decide whether gay marriage agreements from other states such as Massachusetts and California should be honored by Florida gays who travel to those states and get married under those states’ laws.

Whether one feels that gays should be allowed to marry or not, this issue should not be decided for Florida by the legislature or courts of another state. State sovereignty must be upheld, because allowing one state to set policy and law for another state sets a dangerous precedent for the entire nation.

That is why all Floridians—gay or straight—should vote “yes” on Amendment 2.

A vote of “no” does nothing to advance the cause of gay rights and gay marriage. Under current law, gays are allowed to enter into any legal agreement they wish. Gay couples live together, raise children together, visit each other in the hospital, and receive domestic partner health benefits already without being “married.”

If gay couples already enjoy the same perceived benefits as married couples, what then is the point of working to allow gays to be married?

After following the issue for several years, I have found no satisfactory and reasonable answer to that question. Gays’ desire for the right to marry is often nothing more than a coercive attempt to force society to accept their behavior.

If gays want to live the way they live, why must a heterosexual agree with that lifestyle? Why must a heterosexual society condone and endorse that lifestyle through its laws?

The answer too often is “so gays can feel better about themselves,” which is unfortunate, since gays ought to be deciding the value of their lifestyle on their own terms rather than looking to society to justify it for them.

If gays want to be gay, fine. But, gays shouldn’t expect others to agree with their lifestyle. I like owning a gun, but I do not feel the need to require other people to like the idea of me owning a gun. So long as no one tries to pass a law telling me I do not have the right to own a gun, I am satisfied.

Likewise, gays ought to find satisfaction in the equality they enjoy in America. Gays can do everything heterosexuals can in terms of what really matters: partnership, parenthood, and equal treatment under the law. Anything they choose to agitate for beyond that equality equates to special treatment, which actuality works against their interests by setting them further apart from others.

Florida’s Amendment 2 is a defense of state sovereignty. It is not an attempt to curtail anyone’s rights. As such, every Floridian has a duty to vote “yes” on Amendment 2 in order to stop other states from being able to tell Florida what to do.

If California is allowed to tell Florida what to do on the gay marriage issue, just imagine what other states such as Texas might then be able to tell Florida what to do on issues such as oil drilling. We as Floridians must act now to stop such intrusion into our laws by other states. A vote of “yes” on Amendment 2 is an important first step to that end.

http://pride-online.net/wp/2008/10/24/vote-%E2%80%9Cyes%E2%80%9D-on-amendment-2-pic-more/