This meeting has been postponed as the EineWeltHaus will be closed on Wednesday!
More details to follow in the Newsletter on where and when.
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Democrats Abroad Munich - U.S. politics
Discussion archive
This meeting has been postponed as the EineWeltHaus will be closed on Wednesday!
More details to follow in the Newsletter on where and when.
Next meeting is the 12th of September and we will discuss the upcoming Global Primary and the candidates.
I will post here the latest info released by the various campaigns.
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery:
"To Build One America, End the Game"
John Edwards
Hannover, New Hampshire
August 23, 2007
This election is unlike any we have faced before. The stakes are higher. And the challenges we face as a nation are greater than at any time in memory.
We as a nation must choose whether to do what America has always done in times like these -- change direction and move boldly into the future for the sake of our children, if not for ourselves, or wander in the same stale direction we have traveled in our recent past.
The choice we must make is as important as it is clear.
It is a choice between looking back and looking forward.
A choice between the way we've always done it and the way we could do it if we dared.
A choice between corporate power and the power of democracy.
Between a corrupt and corroded system and a government that works for us again.
It is caution versus courage. Old versus new. Calculation versus principle.
It is the establishment elites versus the American people.
It is a choice between the failed compromises of the past and the bright possibilities of our future. Between resigning ourselves to Two Americas or fighting for the One America we all believe in.
As always, at these moments, the choice we make is not for us, but for our children and our great country. And this time, like no other time, the consequences for our children are truly profound.
Will we halt global warming, protect our environment and humanity from the cataclysmic consequences of inaction and leave our children a livable world rich in the resources that were left to us?
Will we prevail against terrorism by stopping those who would harm us and winning over the minds of those who have yet to take sides so that instead of an ever more dangerous and war-torn world, our children live in a nation that is safe, strong and once again viewed throughout the world as a truly moral leader?
Will corporate greed be all we value as we move further into the global economy, or will we put workers and families first, so that all jobs pay fair wages, every American has health care and corporate profits work for democracy and not the other way around?
Will we face our future as individuals, each of us asking, "What's in it for me?" Or will we return to the central value that makes our nation great? That we are all in this together and each of has a responsibility to the common good.
The choices we make will determine not just the quality of life our children will inherit, but the fate of the world we leave behind.
To succeed for our children where we have too often failed for ourselves, we must choose a new course. Those wedded to the policies of the 70s, 80s, or 90s are wedded to the past -- ideas and policies that are tired, shop worn and obsolete. We will find no answers there.
But small thinking and outdated answers aren't the only problems with a vision for the future that is rooted in nostalgia. The trouble with nostalgia is that you tend to remember what you liked and forget what you didn't. It's not just that the answers of the past aren't up to the job today, it's that the system that produced them was corrupt -- and still is. It's controlled by big corporations, the lobbyists they hire to protect their bottom line and the politicians who curry their favor and carry their water. And it's perpetuated by a media that too often fawns over the establishment, but fails to seriously cover the challenges we face or the solutions being proposed. This is the game of American politics and in this game, the interests of regular Americans don't stand a chance.
Real change starts with being honest -- the system in Washington is rigged and our government is broken. It's rigged by greedy corporate powers to protect corporate profits. It's rigged by the very wealthy to ensure they become even wealthier. At the end of the day, it's rigged by all those who benefit from the established order of things. For them, more of the same means more money and more power. They'll do anything they can to keep things just the way they are -- not for the country, but for themselves.
Politicians who care more about their careers than their constituents go along to get elected. They make easy promises to voters instead of challenging them to take responsibility for our country. And then they compromise even those promises to keep the lobbyists happy and the contributions coming.
Instead of serving the people and the nation, too many play the parlor game of Washington -- trading favors and campaign money, influencing votes and compromising legislation. It's a game that never ends, but every American knows -- it's time to end the game.
And it's time for the Democratic Party -- the party of the people -- to end it.
The choice for our party could not be more clear. We cannot replace a group of corporate Republicans with a group of corporate Democrats, just swapping the Washington insiders of one party for the Washington insiders of the other.
The American people deserve to know that their presidency is not for sale, the Lincoln Bedroom is not for rent, and lobbyist money can no longer influence policy in the House or the Senate.
It's time to end the game. It's time to tell the big corporations and the lobbyists who have been running things for too long that their time is over. It's time to challenge politicians to put the American people's interests ahead of their own calculated political interests, to look the lobbyists in the eye and just say no.
And it's time for the American people to take responsibility for our government -- for in our democracy it is truly ours. If we have come to mistrust and question it, it is because we were not vigilant against the forces that have taken it from us. That their game has played on for so long is the fault of each of us -- ending the game and returning government of the people to the people is the responsibility of all of us.
But cleaning up Washington isn't enough. If we are going to meet the challenges we face and prevail over them, two principles must guide us -- yes, we must end the Washington game, but we must also think as big as the challenges we face. Our ideas must be bold enough to succeed and our government must be free to enact them without compromising principle or sacrificing results.
One without the other isn't good enough. All the big ideas in the world won't make a difference if they have to go through this broken system that remains controlled by big business and their lobbyists. And if we fix the system, but aren't honest with the American people about the scope of our challenges and what's required of each of us to meet them, then we'll be left with the baby steps and incremental measures that are Washington's poor excuse for progress.
As Bobby Kennedy said, "If we fail to dare, if we do not try, the next generation will harvest the fruit of our indifference; a world we did not want, a world we did not choose, but a world we could have made better by caring more for the results of our labors."
But if we do both -- if we have the courage to offer real change and the determination to change Washington -- then we will be build the One America we dream of, where every man, woman and child is blessed with the same, great opportunity and held to the same, just rules.
For more than 20 years, Democrats have talked about universal health care. And for more than 20 years, we've gotten nowhere, because lobbyists for the big insurance companies, drug companies and HMOs spent millions to block real reform. Instead, they've grudgingly allowed incremental measures that do nothing but tinker around the edges -- or worse, they've hijacked reform to improve their own bottom line. So today, more Americans go without health care than ever before. Instead of prescription drug reform that brought down the cost of drugs, the lobbyists for the big drug companies got us a prescription drug bill that boosts drug company profits but doesn't cut patient costs.
I have a bold plan to finally guarantee true universal health care for every single American and cut health care costs for everyone. My plan will require everyone -- business, government and individuals -- to contribute something to reach universal coverage. And I am honest about the cost: $90 to $120 billion a year, and I'll pay for it by repealing the Bush tax cuts for families above $200,000. If we end the game in Washington, we can finally have a health care system that treats the health of all our people with equal worth.
Dependence on foreign oil is smothering our economy and choking our environment. Everybody knows it -- politicians from both parties have been calling for energy independence for 30 years. So what did the oilmen in the White House do? They handed the keys to the corridors of government over to the lobbyists for the big oil companies and let them literally write the energy bill. Now, gas prices are through the roof, carbon emissions are unchecked, and global warming is likely getting worse.
When I am president, we will cap greenhouse gas pollution and ratchet it down every year. We will avoid mistakes like nuclear power and liquid coal. We will invest in clean renewable energies generated in America and create a new era in efficient cars, made by union members here at home.
And look at our economic policies -- from top to bottom, they're a twisted reflection of American values. Instead of expanding opportunity for all and preventing special privileges for any, they hoard opportunity and protect special privileges for the very few at the very top.
Trade policy is all about corporate profits for big multinationals and not at all about lifting workers' wages or creating American jobs. The tax code provides breaks for hedge fund managers -- amazingly, even Democrats backed down from asking them to pay their fair share when Wall Street lobbyists put the pressure on. By the time a decade of corporate opposition to a minimal increase in the minimum wage is overcome, even its own supporters admit that the increase isn't enough -- so another decade of corporate opposition begins anew, and workers lose again.
It's time we put our economy back in line with our values. Let's restore fairness to our tax code by insisting on a simple principle -- nobody in the middle class should pay higher taxes on the money they make from hard work than the wealthiest pay on the money they make from their investments. Let's restore opportunity and responsibility to our trade policy by requiring that every new trade deal puts workers and wages first. Let's reward work by strengthening unions, raising the minimum wage, cutting taxes on working families and with a national commitment to end poverty within a generation.
And let's support our troops and end this war in Iraq. We should immediately withdraw 40-50,000 combat troops immediately and have the rest out in about a year. And when President Bush refuses to act, Congress should use its funding power to force him to act.
None of this will be easy, but all of it is possible.
I know. I've been doing it my entire life.
I am the son of Wallace and Bobbie Edwards. My father had to borrow $50 to bring me and my mother home from the hospital. I am here today because, like all the people my father worked with in the mill, my parents got up every day believing in the promise of America, and they worked hard -- no matter what obstacles were thrown against them -- to give me the chance for a better life.
That's the promise at the heart of the American Dream. What matters to our generation is of little consequence -- in America what has always mattered most is the consequences for our children and their children after them. And no amount of power or money gives anyone the right to break that promise with our future.
I have stood with ordinary Americans at the most difficult times in their lives, when all the power of corporate America was arrayed against them. I have walked into courtrooms alone to face an army of corporate lawyers with all the money in the world. I have walked off the Senate elevator and been besieged by an army of corporate lobbyists. And I have beaten them over and over again.
But let me tell you one thing I have learned from my experience -- you cannot deal with them on their terms. You cannot play by their rules, sit at their table, or give them a seat at yours. They will not give up their power -- you have to take it from them.
We cannot triangulate our way to real change. We cannot compromise our way to real change. But we can lead to real change. And we can start today.
Nearly ten years ago, I made the decision that I would never take a dime from a Washington lobbyist -- I wasn't going to work for them, and I didn't want their money.
Because in the courtroom, when you present your case to the jury, you can offer facts and evidence, you can argue your heart out -- and I have -- but the one thing you can't do, is pay the jury. We call that a bribe. But in Washington when an oil lobbyist gives money to office holders to influence our energy policy, they call it politics. That's exactly what's wrong with this system.
Money flies like lightning between corporations, lobbyists, and politicians. We need full public financing to reform the system once and for all. But we don't need to wait to reform our party. Two weeks ago, I called on all Democrats to reject contributions from federal lobbyists. To tell them -- we know that you give money to influence politicians on behalf of your corporate clients. Well, we're not going to take it anymore. Your money's no good here.
I repeat that challenge today. Let's show America exactly whose side we're on. We can reform our party and truly be the party of the people. And we can expose for all time who the Republicans in Washington are really working for.
There are 60 lobbyists in Washington for every member of Congress. The big corporations don't need another president that looks out for them -- they've got all the power they need. I want to be the people's president.
A few weeks, ago I met a man named James Lowe in Wise, Virginia. James spent the first fifty years of his life without a voice -- literally without a voice -- because he didn't have health care. All he needed was a simple operation to fix a cleft palate. That a man in the richest country in the world could go unable to speak for 50 years because he couldn't pay for a $3,000 operation is something that should outrage every American. We are better than that. America is better that that.
It's a stark reminder of our broken political system that leaves millions of Americans without a voice in their government -- a government that is supposed to work for them.
But it doesn't have to be that way. And we can change it together.
We must think big and end the game.
It's not about being ready to grab the reigns of establishment Washington and stand on the side of corporate elites. If it is, there are plenty who will do a better job than me at protecting the status quo, and preserving the policies and politics of the past.
It's about being ready to lift our country up, reform our party, and remake our government in line with the values of our people. It's about real change and a new vision that meets the challenges of the future and inspires the American people to work together for the common good.
We're all angry at what George Bush has done to our country. But with courage and conviction, with an unblinking eye on the future we believe in and an unbending knee on the road to get there, not only can we undo the damage, we can transform the world. No matter what life has thrown at us, Elizabeth and I have always chosen to be optimistic about the future -- and determined to make a difference as we strive toward it everyday.
I carry the promise of America in my heart, where my parents placed it. Because of them, I believe in people, hard work and the American Dream. I believe the future belongs to us if we only dare to seize it. And I believe to seize it, we must blaze a new path, firmly grounded in the values that first made America great. We must cast aside the established ways of Washington and replace them with the timeless values of the American people. We must end the game controlled by a privileged few and restore the promise that America owes to us all.
On that new path lies One America, where possibility is unbound and opportunity is the birthright of every American. Where the voices of the people are heard again in the halls of government, and government heeds their call. One America, where every individual takes responsibility for our common good, and the chance to reach one's God-given potential is every individual's common right.
I am the son of Wallace and Bobbie Edwards.
And I believe in the promise of America.
I will post here the latest info released by the various campaigns.
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery:
"To Build One America, End the Game"
John Edwards
Hannover, New Hampshire
August 23, 2007
This election is unlike any we have faced before. The stakes are higher. And the challenges we face as a nation are greater than at any time in memory.
We as a nation must choose whether to do what America has always done in times like these -- change direction and move boldly into the future for the sake of our children, if not for ourselves, or wander in the same stale direction we have traveled in our recent past.
The choice we must make is as important as it is clear.
It is a choice between looking back and looking forward.
A choice between the way we've always done it and the way we could do it if we dared.
A choice between corporate power and the power of democracy.
Between a corrupt and corroded system and a government that works for us again.
It is caution versus courage. Old versus new. Calculation versus principle.
It is the establishment elites versus the American people.
It is a choice between the failed compromises of the past and the bright possibilities of our future. Between resigning ourselves to Two Americas or fighting for the One America we all believe in.
As always, at these moments, the choice we make is not for us, but for our children and our great country. And this time, like no other time, the consequences for our children are truly profound.
Will we halt global warming, protect our environment and humanity from the cataclysmic consequences of inaction and leave our children a livable world rich in the resources that were left to us?
Will we prevail against terrorism by stopping those who would harm us and winning over the minds of those who have yet to take sides so that instead of an ever more dangerous and war-torn world, our children live in a nation that is safe, strong and once again viewed throughout the world as a truly moral leader?
Will corporate greed be all we value as we move further into the global economy, or will we put workers and families first, so that all jobs pay fair wages, every American has health care and corporate profits work for democracy and not the other way around?
Will we face our future as individuals, each of us asking, "What's in it for me?" Or will we return to the central value that makes our nation great? That we are all in this together and each of has a responsibility to the common good.
The choices we make will determine not just the quality of life our children will inherit, but the fate of the world we leave behind.
To succeed for our children where we have too often failed for ourselves, we must choose a new course. Those wedded to the policies of the 70s, 80s, or 90s are wedded to the past -- ideas and policies that are tired, shop worn and obsolete. We will find no answers there.
But small thinking and outdated answers aren't the only problems with a vision for the future that is rooted in nostalgia. The trouble with nostalgia is that you tend to remember what you liked and forget what you didn't. It's not just that the answers of the past aren't up to the job today, it's that the system that produced them was corrupt -- and still is. It's controlled by big corporations, the lobbyists they hire to protect their bottom line and the politicians who curry their favor and carry their water. And it's perpetuated by a media that too often fawns over the establishment, but fails to seriously cover the challenges we face or the solutions being proposed. This is the game of American politics and in this game, the interests of regular Americans don't stand a chance.
Real change starts with being honest -- the system in Washington is rigged and our government is broken. It's rigged by greedy corporate powers to protect corporate profits. It's rigged by the very wealthy to ensure they become even wealthier. At the end of the day, it's rigged by all those who benefit from the established order of things. For them, more of the same means more money and more power. They'll do anything they can to keep things just the way they are -- not for the country, but for themselves.
Politicians who care more about their careers than their constituents go along to get elected. They make easy promises to voters instead of challenging them to take responsibility for our country. And then they compromise even those promises to keep the lobbyists happy and the contributions coming.
Instead of serving the people and the nation, too many play the parlor game of Washington -- trading favors and campaign money, influencing votes and compromising legislation. It's a game that never ends, but every American knows -- it's time to end the game.
And it's time for the Democratic Party -- the party of the people -- to end it.
The choice for our party could not be more clear. We cannot replace a group of corporate Republicans with a group of corporate Democrats, just swapping the Washington insiders of one party for the Washington insiders of the other.
The American people deserve to know that their presidency is not for sale, the Lincoln Bedroom is not for rent, and lobbyist money can no longer influence policy in the House or the Senate.
It's time to end the game. It's time to tell the big corporations and the lobbyists who have been running things for too long that their time is over. It's time to challenge politicians to put the American people's interests ahead of their own calculated political interests, to look the lobbyists in the eye and just say no.
And it's time for the American people to take responsibility for our government -- for in our democracy it is truly ours. If we have come to mistrust and question it, it is because we were not vigilant against the forces that have taken it from us. That their game has played on for so long is the fault of each of us -- ending the game and returning government of the people to the people is the responsibility of all of us.
But cleaning up Washington isn't enough. If we are going to meet the challenges we face and prevail over them, two principles must guide us -- yes, we must end the Washington game, but we must also think as big as the challenges we face. Our ideas must be bold enough to succeed and our government must be free to enact them without compromising principle or sacrificing results.
One without the other isn't good enough. All the big ideas in the world won't make a difference if they have to go through this broken system that remains controlled by big business and their lobbyists. And if we fix the system, but aren't honest with the American people about the scope of our challenges and what's required of each of us to meet them, then we'll be left with the baby steps and incremental measures that are Washington's poor excuse for progress.
As Bobby Kennedy said, "If we fail to dare, if we do not try, the next generation will harvest the fruit of our indifference; a world we did not want, a world we did not choose, but a world we could have made better by caring more for the results of our labors."
But if we do both -- if we have the courage to offer real change and the determination to change Washington -- then we will be build the One America we dream of, where every man, woman and child is blessed with the same, great opportunity and held to the same, just rules.
For more than 20 years, Democrats have talked about universal health care. And for more than 20 years, we've gotten nowhere, because lobbyists for the big insurance companies, drug companies and HMOs spent millions to block real reform. Instead, they've grudgingly allowed incremental measures that do nothing but tinker around the edges -- or worse, they've hijacked reform to improve their own bottom line. So today, more Americans go without health care than ever before. Instead of prescription drug reform that brought down the cost of drugs, the lobbyists for the big drug companies got us a prescription drug bill that boosts drug company profits but doesn't cut patient costs.
I have a bold plan to finally guarantee true universal health care for every single American and cut health care costs for everyone. My plan will require everyone -- business, government and individuals -- to contribute something to reach universal coverage. And I am honest about the cost: $90 to $120 billion a year, and I'll pay for it by repealing the Bush tax cuts for families above $200,000. If we end the game in Washington, we can finally have a health care system that treats the health of all our people with equal worth.
Dependence on foreign oil is smothering our economy and choking our environment. Everybody knows it -- politicians from both parties have been calling for energy independence for 30 years. So what did the oilmen in the White House do? They handed the keys to the corridors of government over to the lobbyists for the big oil companies and let them literally write the energy bill. Now, gas prices are through the roof, carbon emissions are unchecked, and global warming is likely getting worse.
When I am president, we will cap greenhouse gas pollution and ratchet it down every year. We will avoid mistakes like nuclear power and liquid coal. We will invest in clean renewable energies generated in America and create a new era in efficient cars, made by union members here at home.
And look at our economic policies -- from top to bottom, they're a twisted reflection of American values. Instead of expanding opportunity for all and preventing special privileges for any, they hoard opportunity and protect special privileges for the very few at the very top.
Trade policy is all about corporate profits for big multinationals and not at all about lifting workers' wages or creating American jobs. The tax code provides breaks for hedge fund managers -- amazingly, even Democrats backed down from asking them to pay their fair share when Wall Street lobbyists put the pressure on. By the time a decade of corporate opposition to a minimal increase in the minimum wage is overcome, even its own supporters admit that the increase isn't enough -- so another decade of corporate opposition begins anew, and workers lose again.
It's time we put our economy back in line with our values. Let's restore fairness to our tax code by insisting on a simple principle -- nobody in the middle class should pay higher taxes on the money they make from hard work than the wealthiest pay on the money they make from their investments. Let's restore opportunity and responsibility to our trade policy by requiring that every new trade deal puts workers and wages first. Let's reward work by strengthening unions, raising the minimum wage, cutting taxes on working families and with a national commitment to end poverty within a generation.
And let's support our troops and end this war in Iraq. We should immediately withdraw 40-50,000 combat troops immediately and have the rest out in about a year. And when President Bush refuses to act, Congress should use its funding power to force him to act.
None of this will be easy, but all of it is possible.
I know. I've been doing it my entire life.
I am the son of Wallace and Bobbie Edwards. My father had to borrow $50 to bring me and my mother home from the hospital. I am here today because, like all the people my father worked with in the mill, my parents got up every day believing in the promise of America, and they worked hard -- no matter what obstacles were thrown against them -- to give me the chance for a better life.
That's the promise at the heart of the American Dream. What matters to our generation is of little consequence -- in America what has always mattered most is the consequences for our children and their children after them. And no amount of power or money gives anyone the right to break that promise with our future.
I have stood with ordinary Americans at the most difficult times in their lives, when all the power of corporate America was arrayed against them. I have walked into courtrooms alone to face an army of corporate lawyers with all the money in the world. I have walked off the Senate elevator and been besieged by an army of corporate lobbyists. And I have beaten them over and over again.
But let me tell you one thing I have learned from my experience -- you cannot deal with them on their terms. You cannot play by their rules, sit at their table, or give them a seat at yours. They will not give up their power -- you have to take it from them.
We cannot triangulate our way to real change. We cannot compromise our way to real change. But we can lead to real change. And we can start today.
Nearly ten years ago, I made the decision that I would never take a dime from a Washington lobbyist -- I wasn't going to work for them, and I didn't want their money.
Because in the courtroom, when you present your case to the jury, you can offer facts and evidence, you can argue your heart out -- and I have -- but the one thing you can't do, is pay the jury. We call that a bribe. But in Washington when an oil lobbyist gives money to office holders to influence our energy policy, they call it politics. That's exactly what's wrong with this system.
Money flies like lightning between corporations, lobbyists, and politicians. We need full public financing to reform the system once and for all. But we don't need to wait to reform our party. Two weeks ago, I called on all Democrats to reject contributions from federal lobbyists. To tell them -- we know that you give money to influence politicians on behalf of your corporate clients. Well, we're not going to take it anymore. Your money's no good here.
I repeat that challenge today. Let's show America exactly whose side we're on. We can reform our party and truly be the party of the people. And we can expose for all time who the Republicans in Washington are really working for.
There are 60 lobbyists in Washington for every member of Congress. The big corporations don't need another president that looks out for them -- they've got all the power they need. I want to be the people's president.
A few weeks, ago I met a man named James Lowe in Wise, Virginia. James spent the first fifty years of his life without a voice -- literally without a voice -- because he didn't have health care. All he needed was a simple operation to fix a cleft palate. That a man in the richest country in the world could go unable to speak for 50 years because he couldn't pay for a $3,000 operation is something that should outrage every American. We are better than that. America is better that that.
It's a stark reminder of our broken political system that leaves millions of Americans without a voice in their government -- a government that is supposed to work for them.
But it doesn't have to be that way. And we can change it together.
We must think big and end the game.
It's not about being ready to grab the reigns of establishment Washington and stand on the side of corporate elites. If it is, there are plenty who will do a better job than me at protecting the status quo, and preserving the policies and politics of the past.
It's about being ready to lift our country up, reform our party, and remake our government in line with the values of our people. It's about real change and a new vision that meets the challenges of the future and inspires the American people to work together for the common good.
We're all angry at what George Bush has done to our country. But with courage and conviction, with an unblinking eye on the future we believe in and an unbending knee on the road to get there, not only can we undo the damage, we can transform the world. No matter what life has thrown at us, Elizabeth and I have always chosen to be optimistic about the future -- and determined to make a difference as we strive toward it everyday.
I carry the promise of America in my heart, where my parents placed it. Because of them, I believe in people, hard work and the American Dream. I believe the future belongs to us if we only dare to seize it. And I believe to seize it, we must blaze a new path, firmly grounded in the values that first made America great. We must cast aside the established ways of Washington and replace them with the timeless values of the American people. We must end the game controlled by a privileged few and restore the promise that America owes to us all.
On that new path lies One America, where possibility is unbound and opportunity is the birthright of every American. Where the voices of the people are heard again in the halls of government, and government heeds their call. One America, where every individual takes responsibility for our common good, and the chance to reach one's God-given potential is every individual's common right.
I am the son of Wallace and Bobbie Edwards.
And I believe in the promise of America.
Obama '08 Issues
Hillary for President Issues
Richardson for President Issues
Dennis 4 President Issues
Upcoming scheduled debates:
• September 26, 2007: NBC News/MSNBC in Hannover, NH
• October 30, 2007: NBC News/MSNBC in Philadelphia, PA
• November 15, 2007: CNN in Las Vegas, NV
• December 10, 2007: CBS in Los Angeles, CA
Hillary for President Issues
Richardson for President Issues
Dennis 4 President Issues
Upcoming scheduled debates:
• September 26, 2007: NBC News/MSNBC in Hannover, NH
• October 30, 2007: NBC News/MSNBC in Philadelphia, PA
• November 15, 2007: CNN in Las Vegas, NV
• December 10, 2007: CBS in Los Angeles, CA
October Meeting
Wednesday, 10OCT07, at 7pm at EineWeltHaus
Guest Speaker: Bernard Weiner
For our October 10th meeting, Bernard Weiner of The Crisis Papers will be our Guest Speaker with the topic: "Are the Democrats Going to Commit Political Suicide in 2008?" plus open discussion. For more info on Bernie: http://www.crisispapers.org/
We look forward to seeing you there!
Wednesday, 10OCT07, at 7pm at EineWeltHaus
Guest Speaker: Bernard Weiner
For our October 10th meeting, Bernard Weiner of The Crisis Papers will be our Guest Speaker with the topic: "Are the Democrats Going to Commit Political Suicide in 2008?" plus open discussion. For more info on Bernie: http://www.crisispapers.org/
We look forward to seeing you there!
Don't forget tonight's meeting. This will be a fun and informative one. Bernie always delivers.
Bernie did deliver and you can check out what he had to say here: www.crisispapers.org/essays7w/suicide.htm
Bernie tells it like it is and for that we love him dearly. If we had official honorary membership, Bernie would be first in line.
Keep up to date with "An Anthology of the Best Political Opinion and Commentary From the Progressive Internet" at The Crisis Papers. Not only is it informative, but it is insightful.
QUOTE
Author's Note: Approximately six million U.S. citizens live overseas, most of them eligible to vote back home. Democrats Abroad has so many active chapters all over the world that their ex-pat members have some leverage in shaping Dem policy and a number wind up as delegates to the National Convention. The largest German chapter is in Munich and they have been kind enough to invite me, as a progressive blogger/public speaker from the States, to meet with them during my occasional trips to Germany when visiting my wife's family.
In the two weeks prior to my most recent DA talk, I had the occasion to speak with numerous Germans and Austrians about their take on American foreign and domestic policy. As on previous visits to other countries in the past six years (Crete/Greece, Morocco, Italy, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos), the virtually unanimous reaction of the locals was to commiserate with me as an American with leaders as ignorant, reckless and incompetent as Cheney and Bush. This attitude, voiced by everyone I met on my recent trip to Europe -- from service providers to businessmen to college professors to current officers and former employees of multi-national corporations -- was expressed even before they learned my political persuasion. The roof message above, photographed in Vienna, seems to capture the general point of view.
As for my recent presentation to DA-Munich, the meeting room was packed with activist Dems living and working in and around Bavaria's largest city. These Democrats mirror the progressive, activist base back in the States: They are politically savvy and deeply perplexed by their party's timid leadership in Washington. Here are my brief opening remarks, with a few updates:
In the two weeks prior to my most recent DA talk, I had the occasion to speak with numerous Germans and Austrians about their take on American foreign and domestic policy. As on previous visits to other countries in the past six years (Crete/Greece, Morocco, Italy, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos), the virtually unanimous reaction of the locals was to commiserate with me as an American with leaders as ignorant, reckless and incompetent as Cheney and Bush. This attitude, voiced by everyone I met on my recent trip to Europe -- from service providers to businessmen to college professors to current officers and former employees of multi-national corporations -- was expressed even before they learned my political persuasion. The roof message above, photographed in Vienna, seems to capture the general point of view.
As for my recent presentation to DA-Munich, the meeting room was packed with activist Dems living and working in and around Bavaria's largest city. These Democrats mirror the progressive, activist base back in the States: They are politically savvy and deeply perplexed by their party's timid leadership in Washington. Here are my brief opening remarks, with a few updates:
Bernie tells it like it is and for that we love him dearly. If we had official honorary membership, Bernie would be first in line.
Keep up to date with "An Anthology of the Best Political Opinion and Commentary From the Progressive Internet" at The Crisis Papers. Not only is it informative, but it is insightful.
ANNUAL AMERICAN CITIZEN'S INFORMATION NIGHT
OCTOBER 29TH, 2007 1800-2000 HOURS
ALL AMERICANS ARE INVITED
(BRING PASSPORT FOR ADMITTANCE)
The American Consulate General invites all Americans to attend our upcoming Annual American Citizen's Information Night Open House to be held on October 29th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The Information Night will be held at the American Consulate General located at Koeniginstrasse 5, Munich, Germany.
This event is an annual event held by the American Consulate in Munich to provide information and answer questions on a variety of topics that are important to American Citizens. We have provided a partial list of invited presenters for this year below:
Democrats Abroad Munich (Munich)
Federal Voting Assistance Program (Washington)
Internal Revenue Service (Frankfurt)
Federal Benefits Unit (Frankfurt)
U S Citizenship and Immigration Service, Dept of Homeland Security (Frankfurt)
American Chamber of Commerce (Munich)
Association of American University and Professional Women (Munich)
California Association of Germany (Munich)
Association of the Friends of the Amerikahaus (Munich)
English-Speaking Prisoners' Support Group (Munich)
Republicans Abroad Germany (Munich)
Overseas Voting Foundation (Munich)
The presenters will have tables set up in the foyer of the consulate and American Citizens are more than welcome to obtain informational brochures and to ask questions of each of our presenters. Consul General Nelson will open the event and American-type snacks and drinks will be provided.
We look forward to seeing you there!
This is open to all citizens so spread the word!
OCTOBER 29TH, 2007 1800-2000 HOURS
ALL AMERICANS ARE INVITED
(BRING PASSPORT FOR ADMITTANCE)
The American Consulate General invites all Americans to attend our upcoming Annual American Citizen's Information Night Open House to be held on October 29th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The Information Night will be held at the American Consulate General located at Koeniginstrasse 5, Munich, Germany.
This event is an annual event held by the American Consulate in Munich to provide information and answer questions on a variety of topics that are important to American Citizens. We have provided a partial list of invited presenters for this year below:
Democrats Abroad Munich (Munich)
Federal Voting Assistance Program (Washington)
Internal Revenue Service (Frankfurt)
Federal Benefits Unit (Frankfurt)
U S Citizenship and Immigration Service, Dept of Homeland Security (Frankfurt)
American Chamber of Commerce (Munich)
Association of American University and Professional Women (Munich)
California Association of Germany (Munich)
Association of the Friends of the Amerikahaus (Munich)
English-Speaking Prisoners' Support Group (Munich)
Republicans Abroad Germany (Munich)
Overseas Voting Foundation (Munich)
The presenters will have tables set up in the foyer of the consulate and American Citizens are more than welcome to obtain informational brochures and to ask questions of each of our presenters. Consul General Nelson will open the event and American-type snacks and drinks will be provided.
We look forward to seeing you there!
This is open to all citizens so spread the word!
The next meeting is the 14th (next Wednesday) and will feature the Democratic Presidential candidate debate held at Drexel University. This is the one where the boys ganged up against the girl according to post press releases and certain spokesperson(s). Come and see for yourself if it was a "pile on" or a "pile up". One of these people will be the next US President. All are welcome to attend.
In February 2008, millions of U.S. citizens from Toronto to Timbuktu will have the chance to vote in the first-ever online global primary to choose the Democratic nominee for President.
Just as the primary season back home gets into full swing, Democrats living overseas will be choosing their candidate, too. The Democratic global primary allows for balloting by Internet, fax and post. Traditional drop-in Voting Centers will also be open in 34 countries around the globe.
“Overseas voting has skyrocketed in recent years,� says Democrats Abroad International Chair Christine Marques in Geneva. “With the Internet, we can reach voters at their convenience in every corner of the world, not just in the big cities.�
The worldwide election results will determine the allocation of Democrats Abroad’s 22 delegates to the Democratic National Convention. These delegates will be elected at a combination of local, regional and global caucuses held during early 2008. The caucuses also provide an opportunity for Americans abroad to shape the party’s election platform.
American citizens living overseas who want to vote in the Democratic global primary must either be members of Democrats Abroad or they may register and request a ballot from Democrats Abroad at VoteFromAbroad.org.
To vote in the U.S. Presidential Election in November, overseas voters must request a ballot from local voting authorities in the place where they last resided in the U.S., also possible at VoteFromAbroad.org.
The Democrats Abroad Global Primary will take place from February 5-12, 2008.
Democrats Abroad Regional Caucuses will take place in Brussels on March 15, 2008, for Europe-Middle East-Africa and in Vancouver on April 11, 2008, for the Americas and Asia-Pacific.
The Democrats Abroad Global Convention will take place in Vancouver, April 12-13, 2008.
The Democratic National Convention will take place in Denver, Colorado, August 25-28, 2008.
The U.S. Presidential Election will take place on November 4, 2008. Deadlines for requesting overseas absentee ballots vary per state.
Just as the primary season back home gets into full swing, Democrats living overseas will be choosing their candidate, too. The Democratic global primary allows for balloting by Internet, fax and post. Traditional drop-in Voting Centers will also be open in 34 countries around the globe.
“Overseas voting has skyrocketed in recent years,� says Democrats Abroad International Chair Christine Marques in Geneva. “With the Internet, we can reach voters at their convenience in every corner of the world, not just in the big cities.�
The worldwide election results will determine the allocation of Democrats Abroad’s 22 delegates to the Democratic National Convention. These delegates will be elected at a combination of local, regional and global caucuses held during early 2008. The caucuses also provide an opportunity for Americans abroad to shape the party’s election platform.
American citizens living overseas who want to vote in the Democratic global primary must either be members of Democrats Abroad or they may register and request a ballot from Democrats Abroad at VoteFromAbroad.org.
To vote in the U.S. Presidential Election in November, overseas voters must request a ballot from local voting authorities in the place where they last resided in the U.S., also possible at VoteFromAbroad.org.
The Democrats Abroad Global Primary will take place from February 5-12, 2008.
Democrats Abroad Regional Caucuses will take place in Brussels on March 15, 2008, for Europe-Middle East-Africa and in Vancouver on April 11, 2008, for the Americas and Asia-Pacific.
The Democrats Abroad Global Convention will take place in Vancouver, April 12-13, 2008.
The Democratic National Convention will take place in Denver, Colorado, August 25-28, 2008.
The U.S. Presidential Election will take place on November 4, 2008. Deadlines for requesting overseas absentee ballots vary per state.
QUOTE (John McQueen @ Heidelberg)
Dear Democrats Around the World,
This is Wednesday Wire No. 118, 21 November 2007
HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY TOMORROW TO ALL!!!
Topics This Week:
1. Political things to be thankful for
2. The Clinton-Obama-Edwards battle gets a little nasty
3. Did Mitt push poll against himself?
4. Do we finally have a cover-up of Watergate proportions?
5. The Republican race is getting murkier and murkier
6. State by State
8. Reading Recommendations
And finally…
1. Political things to be thankful for. The past seven years have been a cumulative political disaster for the United States including many mistakes and poor performances by some of our own. But there are a few (political) things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Day:
a. All of our presidential candidates can be supported as 1) qualified and capable of being a good president, 2) protecting the constitution 3) not prone to scandal, malfeasance or corruption. Not one of the Republican nominees can pass this very basic test. No need to mention policies in any area here.
b. Henry Waxman.
c. Howard Dean and the 50 State Strategy.
d. Media Matters. Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, Talkingpointsmemo, dailykos, Juan Cole, Paul Krugman, Sidney Hirsch, MyDD and many more for their relentless efforts to reveal the truth about what is happening.
e. It is tempting, but I can’t be thankful for the political errors of Bush&Co, even though they help us win elections, because their errors hurt the country (and the world at large) so much, but I can be thankful for…
f. The intelligence of the American voter. When she or he is not manipulated, driven by fear, attacked for standing up for their rights, denied the right to vote or simply lied to, he or she will make the right choice on election day and nearly every time, that choice is a Democrat.
g. Send me your item to be thankful for. WW will post the best of them next week.
2. The Clinton-Obama-Edwards battle gets a little nasty. Robert Novak decided to have a little fun and wrote that Clinton “agents� (how he loves that word!) were sitting on damning information about Obama, but wouldn’t use it. Obama attacked Novak’s tactics and Clinton, suggesting that Hillary should be the first candidate not to use ‘personal destruction’ methods and John Edwards got the quote of the week when he posted a definition of ‘mudslinging� and suggested that on mudslinging Clinton “talked one way and threw another.�
At the same time, Clinton attacked Obama’s lack of experience on foreign policy, stating that living overseas as a 10 year-old boy was the latest foreign policy experience he had. Obama’s reply referred to the experience that Rumsfeld and Cheney had, which Hillary supported with her votes for the war, her refusal to apologize and her vote for the Kyl-Lieberman amendment designating the Iranian Republican Guards a terrorist organization.
3. Did Mitt push poll against himself? The robocalls in New Hampshire and Iowa asking voters detailed questions about how they felt about Mitt Romney and his Mormon faith are being investigated by the New Hampshire attorney general, but there is growing evidence that the Utah firm conducting the calls is partially owned by Romney and that he was push polling against himself in order to make himself the victim of religious attacks (denied by the Romney campaign). If it turns out to be true, this could derail what up-to-now has been a well-run campaign in the early states.
A push poll is a political campaign trick that uses the format of a poll to send a political message (the push) to the voter and completely violates the ethics of fair and impartial polling. What is so suspicious about this case in the length (20 minutes per call) and the low number of voters contacted (push polls only work when large numbers of voters are targeted.). It is possible that Romney used the tactic to determine the best defense strategy against an expected onslaught of anti-Mormon attacks should he win the nomination. But making himself out to be the victim of an attack campaign makes the whole effort hypocritical. This one bears watching until the facts are fully known.
Update. The fellow who reported the push polling calls is a Romney paid staffer. Hmmmmmmmmmm.
4. Do we finally have a cover-up of Watergate proportions? Scott McClellan, whom we can thank for providing many amusing and amazing moments as Bush press secretary, is out with his memoirs. A press release by the publisher has the political establishment in an uproar, for Scott is telling the world that he unknowingly misled the nation on who leaked the name of Valerie Plame when he assured the press that Karl Rove and Scooter Libby had nothing to do with it. "I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."
The book is not yet out, so how much more there is, than the obvious effort to sell copies, is not known, but Joe Biden wants the Justice Department to investigate immediately and there are calls for Judiciary committees in both the House and the Senate to demand testimony from McClellan on the details of the lies that were spoken and who knew what when. That Federal conspiracy crimes may be involved is obvious and it should be remembered that Patrick Fitzgerald has not closed the books on his investigation in which he never got to a conspiracy charge against anyone because of Libby’s false testimony. According to John Dean, who appeared on Keith Olberman’s NBC ‘Countdown� show, Bush’s commutation of Libby’s sentence cannot be undone, but the president’s action now has a whole new meaning of whom he was protecting when he did it, i.e. himself.
For those of you who thought that the Libby/Plame case was over…think again.
5. The Republican race is getting murkier and murkier. Prior to the Romney push poll caper, he is up 8 points in New Hampshire since last week, still leading in most polls in Iowa, while Guiliani is losing support in New Hampshire and dropping to fourth in Iowa. Huckabee is doing very well in Iowa, even leading in one poll. John McCain stays steady with no money to spend anywhere (he’s No. 2 in New Hampshire all of a sudden). Freddie Thompson is now in sixth place in New Hampshire, behind even Ron Paul, while his supporters are talking about the newfound “fire in the belly’ they see in their guy…right. Rudy goes in front of the ultra-conservative lawyer’s association, the Federalist Society, and says he wants to appoint more judges like Scalia and Thomas. The rise of Huckabee to first tier contention is prompting the fiscally conservative Club for Growth and its media minions to attack him as a liberal government “tax and spender.� As WW suggested (tongue in cheek) last March in a “Live Wednesday Wire� in Heidelberg, the Republicans may have to cancel their convention when all the candidates drop out, no one is really leading the parade. But strategies are becoming clearer:
Giuliani is betting on Florida (29 January) and then the big states on 5 February to push him to the top. He can’t do too badly in Iowa and New Hampshire though, but he doesn’t have to win them.
Romney is putting his time and money on Iowa and New Hampshire, which, should he win, will give him South Carolina and pretty good head of steam going into Florida. If Romney doesn’t do well in either Iowa or New Hampshire, Rudy’s strategy pays off and Mitt could quickly fade to the bottom of the heap. If Mitt does really well, Rudy’s in trouble.
McCain is waiting for the others to fall off to be the candidate with huge name recognition and high ‘second choice’ potential. He led the pack in the spring (until the Baghdad ‘walkthrough�) and could again. He is starting to make more ‘maverick’ statements to get his old reputation back. He’s now against Bush’s signing statements.
Thompson will play the southern card as his best chance. Giuliani’s pandering on race, gender, judges, etc. is upsetting this plan at the moment.
Huckabee is banking on Iowa (a strong second will do) to open up his chances in New Hampshire and then the South. He becomes very formidable if he wins Iowa.
Paul’s numbers continue to improve, still a long shot, but at a brokered convention, he might have something to say as to who will be the nominee.
When it’s all over, will this nomination be worth having?
6. State by State.
MICHIGAN. Senator Levin and the state’s political establishment have been working hard to move Michigan’s primary to the front of the line to give the Wolverine State more say in the nomination process and to change the calendar in the future. A little noticed provision of the state law, which allowed political parties to know the names and addresses of who voted in which party primary, but no one else would be allowed to know, didn’t pass state constitutional muster, according to a county judge and a district panel. The issue is now before the State Supreme Court and could derail the early primary, leaving the Republicans to have a state convention in late January and the Democrats to have a primary on February 9th. The state legislature could step in and correct the law, but time is of the essence, as absentee ballots can’t be sent out until the date is set. Meanwhile, the Secretary of State of New Hampshire can’t set the date of the New Hampshire primary until he knows. Under NH law, the state primary must precede any other state primary by seven days. It is any wonder that our friends in the various countries we live in shake their heads when they try to figure how we elect our president and vice president?
MONTANA. Among the seats that our party is looking to pick up in the 2008 House election is the At Large seat of Denny Rehberg. Montana is already purple and turning blue and Denny is the prize next year. The state party thought they had found the right candidate in Bill Kennedy, a well-like and respected county supervisor. Bill announced this week that he would not run, after raising $150,000 plus for the race, because of unsaid health concerns. The party has six months to find a new candidate and the DCCC still thinks this is a very winnable race. Kennedy, I know this will shock you, is returning (on a pro-rated basis) all the contributions he received, after the campaign’s debts are paid off.
NEW JERSEY. The count of Republicans leaving their sinking House ship is now up to 17 (expect more) and the latest is 37-year-old Mike Ferguson in NJ – 07, who barely won last time against Linda Stender. Linda is running again and Mike has had enough. The district is evenly split among Republicans and Democrats so this is a big pickup opportunity for us. Already this week, three top prospects for the Republicans, including Tom Keane, Jr., who lost a highly publicized race to Robert Menendez for the US Senate seat last year, have said they want no part of Stender either. Go, Linda, go!!
7. Reading Recommendations. While chomping on your turkey (I hope you all get a chance to have a Thanksgiving dinner wherever you are), ponder these few articles:
a. “Foreclosures Hit a Snag for Lenders� by Gretchen Morgenson at
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/business...agewanted=print . There might be a little Schadenfreude here, but this subprime mortgage issue has tentacles going everywhere.
b. “The Immigration Con Artists� by David Sirota at
http://www.creators.com/opinion/david-siro...on-artists.html
When arguing with your Republican friends/relatives over the dinner table; use Sirota’s analysis.
c. “Cop union blasts Rudy: No ’08 endorsement from the Finest, boss says� by joshua rhett miller at
http://ny.metro.us/metro/local/article/Cop...Rudy/10718.html
Rudy is running solely on 9/11. It may not be his best point, even if it is his only point.
d. “Edwards Tops Iowa Independent Democratic Power Rankings�
by: Chase Martyn at
http://iowaindependent.com/showDiary.do;js...4F?diaryId=1472 . Did I say that the Republican race was murky? Iowa may be so for us. A good read.
e. “Republicans and Race� by Paul Krugman at
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/11/19/5316/ Krugman is absolutely right when it comes to the Republican stance on race. Next week, WW hopes to review Krugman’s new book: “The Conscience of a Liberal�
f. “Ron Paul isn't that scary: It's that over-do-gooder Mike Huckabee who should be making conservatives nervous.� by Jonah Goldberg at
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-...inion-rightrail . An example of what the money boys are going to do to Huckabee if he gets close to the nomination.
g. “Did GOP Gerrymander Itself Out of Power? by dreaminonempty at
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/11/19/152019/49 . Very interesting.
h. “Rep. Maloney Introduces Bill to Protect the Rights of Overseas Voters� by Rep. Carolyn Maloney at
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?opti...0&Itemid=26 . New York Rep. Maloney is one of the best friends overseas voters have ever had, if not the best. This is a bill DA and all organizations of American citizens outside the US should get behind.
i. “The Most Important Election Case Since Bush v. Gore?�
by Steven Rosenfeld, at
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?opti...7&Itemid=26 I recommended the study last week, this one is about the case going before the Supreme Court. Discriminatory Voter ID laws are getting approved by the courts, which means Republicans are suppressing Democratic votes legally. Indiana’s law is the worst; the horror stories are legion. We need a constitutional amendment protecting the right to vote.
And finally…
This week an avalanche of information regarding the Democrats Abroad presidential primary to be held between 5 and 12 February was released. Included are simplified instructions, advertising kits for country and chapter chairs around the world, the forms required to announce your candidacy for national delegate and the schedule of events between the primary and the national convention. If you are organizing a voting center, plan to be at a regional caucus, want to be a national convention delegate, then go the DA website, www.democratsabroad.org and check out what you need to know. Please be aware that the process is deadline driven, by the rules of the party there can be no exceptions.
And…just so you know…until further notice, Democrats Abroad is happy to take your donation to help us win in ’08!
Best regards,
John McQueen
Heidelberg, Germany
This is Wednesday Wire No. 118, 21 November 2007
HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY TOMORROW TO ALL!!!
Topics This Week:
1. Political things to be thankful for
2. The Clinton-Obama-Edwards battle gets a little nasty
3. Did Mitt push poll against himself?
4. Do we finally have a cover-up of Watergate proportions?
5. The Republican race is getting murkier and murkier
6. State by State
8. Reading Recommendations
And finally…
1. Political things to be thankful for. The past seven years have been a cumulative political disaster for the United States including many mistakes and poor performances by some of our own. But there are a few (political) things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Day:
a. All of our presidential candidates can be supported as 1) qualified and capable of being a good president, 2) protecting the constitution 3) not prone to scandal, malfeasance or corruption. Not one of the Republican nominees can pass this very basic test. No need to mention policies in any area here.
b. Henry Waxman.
c. Howard Dean and the 50 State Strategy.
d. Media Matters. Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, Talkingpointsmemo, dailykos, Juan Cole, Paul Krugman, Sidney Hirsch, MyDD and many more for their relentless efforts to reveal the truth about what is happening.
e. It is tempting, but I can’t be thankful for the political errors of Bush&Co, even though they help us win elections, because their errors hurt the country (and the world at large) so much, but I can be thankful for…
f. The intelligence of the American voter. When she or he is not manipulated, driven by fear, attacked for standing up for their rights, denied the right to vote or simply lied to, he or she will make the right choice on election day and nearly every time, that choice is a Democrat.
g. Send me your item to be thankful for. WW will post the best of them next week.
2. The Clinton-Obama-Edwards battle gets a little nasty. Robert Novak decided to have a little fun and wrote that Clinton “agents� (how he loves that word!) were sitting on damning information about Obama, but wouldn’t use it. Obama attacked Novak’s tactics and Clinton, suggesting that Hillary should be the first candidate not to use ‘personal destruction’ methods and John Edwards got the quote of the week when he posted a definition of ‘mudslinging� and suggested that on mudslinging Clinton “talked one way and threw another.�
At the same time, Clinton attacked Obama’s lack of experience on foreign policy, stating that living overseas as a 10 year-old boy was the latest foreign policy experience he had. Obama’s reply referred to the experience that Rumsfeld and Cheney had, which Hillary supported with her votes for the war, her refusal to apologize and her vote for the Kyl-Lieberman amendment designating the Iranian Republican Guards a terrorist organization.
3. Did Mitt push poll against himself? The robocalls in New Hampshire and Iowa asking voters detailed questions about how they felt about Mitt Romney and his Mormon faith are being investigated by the New Hampshire attorney general, but there is growing evidence that the Utah firm conducting the calls is partially owned by Romney and that he was push polling against himself in order to make himself the victim of religious attacks (denied by the Romney campaign). If it turns out to be true, this could derail what up-to-now has been a well-run campaign in the early states.
A push poll is a political campaign trick that uses the format of a poll to send a political message (the push) to the voter and completely violates the ethics of fair and impartial polling. What is so suspicious about this case in the length (20 minutes per call) and the low number of voters contacted (push polls only work when large numbers of voters are targeted.). It is possible that Romney used the tactic to determine the best defense strategy against an expected onslaught of anti-Mormon attacks should he win the nomination. But making himself out to be the victim of an attack campaign makes the whole effort hypocritical. This one bears watching until the facts are fully known.
Update. The fellow who reported the push polling calls is a Romney paid staffer. Hmmmmmmmmmm.
4. Do we finally have a cover-up of Watergate proportions? Scott McClellan, whom we can thank for providing many amusing and amazing moments as Bush press secretary, is out with his memoirs. A press release by the publisher has the political establishment in an uproar, for Scott is telling the world that he unknowingly misled the nation on who leaked the name of Valerie Plame when he assured the press that Karl Rove and Scooter Libby had nothing to do with it. "I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."
The book is not yet out, so how much more there is, than the obvious effort to sell copies, is not known, but Joe Biden wants the Justice Department to investigate immediately and there are calls for Judiciary committees in both the House and the Senate to demand testimony from McClellan on the details of the lies that were spoken and who knew what when. That Federal conspiracy crimes may be involved is obvious and it should be remembered that Patrick Fitzgerald has not closed the books on his investigation in which he never got to a conspiracy charge against anyone because of Libby’s false testimony. According to John Dean, who appeared on Keith Olberman’s NBC ‘Countdown� show, Bush’s commutation of Libby’s sentence cannot be undone, but the president’s action now has a whole new meaning of whom he was protecting when he did it, i.e. himself.
For those of you who thought that the Libby/Plame case was over…think again.
5. The Republican race is getting murkier and murkier. Prior to the Romney push poll caper, he is up 8 points in New Hampshire since last week, still leading in most polls in Iowa, while Guiliani is losing support in New Hampshire and dropping to fourth in Iowa. Huckabee is doing very well in Iowa, even leading in one poll. John McCain stays steady with no money to spend anywhere (he’s No. 2 in New Hampshire all of a sudden). Freddie Thompson is now in sixth place in New Hampshire, behind even Ron Paul, while his supporters are talking about the newfound “fire in the belly’ they see in their guy…right. Rudy goes in front of the ultra-conservative lawyer’s association, the Federalist Society, and says he wants to appoint more judges like Scalia and Thomas. The rise of Huckabee to first tier contention is prompting the fiscally conservative Club for Growth and its media minions to attack him as a liberal government “tax and spender.� As WW suggested (tongue in cheek) last March in a “Live Wednesday Wire� in Heidelberg, the Republicans may have to cancel their convention when all the candidates drop out, no one is really leading the parade. But strategies are becoming clearer:
Giuliani is betting on Florida (29 January) and then the big states on 5 February to push him to the top. He can’t do too badly in Iowa and New Hampshire though, but he doesn’t have to win them.
Romney is putting his time and money on Iowa and New Hampshire, which, should he win, will give him South Carolina and pretty good head of steam going into Florida. If Romney doesn’t do well in either Iowa or New Hampshire, Rudy’s strategy pays off and Mitt could quickly fade to the bottom of the heap. If Mitt does really well, Rudy’s in trouble.
McCain is waiting for the others to fall off to be the candidate with huge name recognition and high ‘second choice’ potential. He led the pack in the spring (until the Baghdad ‘walkthrough�) and could again. He is starting to make more ‘maverick’ statements to get his old reputation back. He’s now against Bush’s signing statements.
Thompson will play the southern card as his best chance. Giuliani’s pandering on race, gender, judges, etc. is upsetting this plan at the moment.
Huckabee is banking on Iowa (a strong second will do) to open up his chances in New Hampshire and then the South. He becomes very formidable if he wins Iowa.
Paul’s numbers continue to improve, still a long shot, but at a brokered convention, he might have something to say as to who will be the nominee.
When it’s all over, will this nomination be worth having?
6. State by State.
MICHIGAN. Senator Levin and the state’s political establishment have been working hard to move Michigan’s primary to the front of the line to give the Wolverine State more say in the nomination process and to change the calendar in the future. A little noticed provision of the state law, which allowed political parties to know the names and addresses of who voted in which party primary, but no one else would be allowed to know, didn’t pass state constitutional muster, according to a county judge and a district panel. The issue is now before the State Supreme Court and could derail the early primary, leaving the Republicans to have a state convention in late January and the Democrats to have a primary on February 9th. The state legislature could step in and correct the law, but time is of the essence, as absentee ballots can’t be sent out until the date is set. Meanwhile, the Secretary of State of New Hampshire can’t set the date of the New Hampshire primary until he knows. Under NH law, the state primary must precede any other state primary by seven days. It is any wonder that our friends in the various countries we live in shake their heads when they try to figure how we elect our president and vice president?
MONTANA. Among the seats that our party is looking to pick up in the 2008 House election is the At Large seat of Denny Rehberg. Montana is already purple and turning blue and Denny is the prize next year. The state party thought they had found the right candidate in Bill Kennedy, a well-like and respected county supervisor. Bill announced this week that he would not run, after raising $150,000 plus for the race, because of unsaid health concerns. The party has six months to find a new candidate and the DCCC still thinks this is a very winnable race. Kennedy, I know this will shock you, is returning (on a pro-rated basis) all the contributions he received, after the campaign’s debts are paid off.
NEW JERSEY. The count of Republicans leaving their sinking House ship is now up to 17 (expect more) and the latest is 37-year-old Mike Ferguson in NJ – 07, who barely won last time against Linda Stender. Linda is running again and Mike has had enough. The district is evenly split among Republicans and Democrats so this is a big pickup opportunity for us. Already this week, three top prospects for the Republicans, including Tom Keane, Jr., who lost a highly publicized race to Robert Menendez for the US Senate seat last year, have said they want no part of Stender either. Go, Linda, go!!
7. Reading Recommendations. While chomping on your turkey (I hope you all get a chance to have a Thanksgiving dinner wherever you are), ponder these few articles:
a. “Foreclosures Hit a Snag for Lenders� by Gretchen Morgenson at
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/business...agewanted=print . There might be a little Schadenfreude here, but this subprime mortgage issue has tentacles going everywhere.
b. “The Immigration Con Artists� by David Sirota at
http://www.creators.com/opinion/david-siro...on-artists.html
When arguing with your Republican friends/relatives over the dinner table; use Sirota’s analysis.
c. “Cop union blasts Rudy: No ’08 endorsement from the Finest, boss says� by joshua rhett miller at
http://ny.metro.us/metro/local/article/Cop...Rudy/10718.html
Rudy is running solely on 9/11. It may not be his best point, even if it is his only point.
d. “Edwards Tops Iowa Independent Democratic Power Rankings�
by: Chase Martyn at
http://iowaindependent.com/showDiary.do;js...4F?diaryId=1472 . Did I say that the Republican race was murky? Iowa may be so for us. A good read.
e. “Republicans and Race� by Paul Krugman at
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/11/19/5316/ Krugman is absolutely right when it comes to the Republican stance on race. Next week, WW hopes to review Krugman’s new book: “The Conscience of a Liberal�
f. “Ron Paul isn't that scary: It's that over-do-gooder Mike Huckabee who should be making conservatives nervous.� by Jonah Goldberg at
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-...inion-rightrail . An example of what the money boys are going to do to Huckabee if he gets close to the nomination.
g. “Did GOP Gerrymander Itself Out of Power? by dreaminonempty at
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/11/19/152019/49 . Very interesting.
h. “Rep. Maloney Introduces Bill to Protect the Rights of Overseas Voters� by Rep. Carolyn Maloney at
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?opti...0&Itemid=26 . New York Rep. Maloney is one of the best friends overseas voters have ever had, if not the best. This is a bill DA and all organizations of American citizens outside the US should get behind.
i. “The Most Important Election Case Since Bush v. Gore?�
by Steven Rosenfeld, at
http://www.votetrustusa.org/index.php?opti...7&Itemid=26 I recommended the study last week, this one is about the case going before the Supreme Court. Discriminatory Voter ID laws are getting approved by the courts, which means Republicans are suppressing Democratic votes legally. Indiana’s law is the worst; the horror stories are legion. We need a constitutional amendment protecting the right to vote.
And finally…
This week an avalanche of information regarding the Democrats Abroad presidential primary to be held between 5 and 12 February was released. Included are simplified instructions, advertising kits for country and chapter chairs around the world, the forms required to announce your candidacy for national delegate and the schedule of events between the primary and the national convention. If you are organizing a voting center, plan to be at a regional caucus, want to be a national convention delegate, then go the DA website, www.democratsabroad.org and check out what you need to know. Please be aware that the process is deadline driven, by the rules of the party there can be no exceptions.
And…just so you know…until further notice, Democrats Abroad is happy to take your donation to help us win in ’08!
Best regards,
John McQueen
Heidelberg, Germany
What comes after Bush?
American Foreign Policy: Confrontation or Diplomacy?
Stefan Kornelius of SZ will speak with:
Sidney Blumenthal, Advisor to Hillary Clinton
William M. Drozdiak, President of American Council on Germany
Edward S. McFadden, Speech writer for Fred Thompson
6 December 2007, 18:00
SV-Forum, Faerbergraben 14, Muenchen
Tickets 8.-/5.- € SZ-Tickets, Sendlingerstr. 8
American Foreign Policy: Confrontation or Diplomacy?
Stefan Kornelius of SZ will speak with:
Sidney Blumenthal, Advisor to Hillary Clinton
William M. Drozdiak, President of American Council on Germany
Edward S. McFadden, Speech writer for Fred Thompson
6 December 2007, 18:00
SV-Forum, Faerbergraben 14, Muenchen
Tickets 8.-/5.- € SZ-Tickets, Sendlingerstr. 8
Meeting tonight.
Bill Moyers talks with MSNBC host Keith Olbermann.
This is really worth watching. Both these guys are class acts!
This is really worth watching. Both these guys are class acts!
The next meeting is Wednesday the 9th at 7pm at EineWeltHaus.
We will be discussing the nomination process, the winners and losers and our own Super Fat Tuesday Voting Center and Party to be held on February 5th from 6-11pm at the EineWeltHaus.
For February 5th:
Even if you vote online, you can still join us for the Fat Tuesday Party. The primary purpose of the Voting Center is to allow those without internet access to vote and for those who decide at the last minute that they want to join and vote in the Global Primary. Help for all forms of voting will be available as well.
Global Presidential Primary
February 5-12, 2008
Information for voters & potential delegates
The Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary will take place from February 5-12, 2008 with voting by Internet, mail, fax, and in person at Voting Centers in more than 30 countries around the world.
This primary takes place alongside state primaries being held throughout the United States. As an American citizen living abroad you have the option of voting in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary or in a state presidential primary.
WHY NOT VOTE BACK HOME?
Overseas voters are encouraged to participate in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary because:
• Democrats Abroad have facilitated the process of overseas voting in the Global Presidential Primary by allowing voting by Internet and in person.
• Given this year’s early primary schedule, ballots requested may not arrive in time to complete and return.
• If your voting state votes by caucus, you would have to fly home to participate!
• Your vote will count alongside those of other members of Democrats Abroad towards the allocation of Democrats Abroad’s 22 delegates to the Democratic National Convention. As such, your individual vote carries significantly more weight than a vote in a state primary or caucus.
ELIGIBILITY
To vote in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary, a voter must:
• Be a member of Democrats Abroad, the official overseas arm of the Democratic Party of the United States
• Be age 18 or over on November 4, 2008
• Be temporarily or permanently resident outside the United States
• Not vote in any other state presidential primary or caucus
REGISTERING FOR THE DEMOCRATS ABROAD PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
To vote in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary you must be a registered member of Democrats Abroad. There are no membership fees. Simply complete the online membership form at www.DemocratsAbroad.org/join.
We will be discussing the nomination process, the winners and losers and our own Super Fat Tuesday Voting Center and Party to be held on February 5th from 6-11pm at the EineWeltHaus.
For February 5th:
Even if you vote online, you can still join us for the Fat Tuesday Party. The primary purpose of the Voting Center is to allow those without internet access to vote and for those who decide at the last minute that they want to join and vote in the Global Primary. Help for all forms of voting will be available as well.
Global Presidential Primary
February 5-12, 2008
Information for voters & potential delegates
The Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary will take place from February 5-12, 2008 with voting by Internet, mail, fax, and in person at Voting Centers in more than 30 countries around the world.
This primary takes place alongside state primaries being held throughout the United States. As an American citizen living abroad you have the option of voting in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary or in a state presidential primary.
WHY NOT VOTE BACK HOME?
Overseas voters are encouraged to participate in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary because:
• Democrats Abroad have facilitated the process of overseas voting in the Global Presidential Primary by allowing voting by Internet and in person.
• Given this year’s early primary schedule, ballots requested may not arrive in time to complete and return.
• If your voting state votes by caucus, you would have to fly home to participate!
• Your vote will count alongside those of other members of Democrats Abroad towards the allocation of Democrats Abroad’s 22 delegates to the Democratic National Convention. As such, your individual vote carries significantly more weight than a vote in a state primary or caucus.
ELIGIBILITY
To vote in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary, a voter must:
• Be a member of Democrats Abroad, the official overseas arm of the Democratic Party of the United States
• Be age 18 or over on November 4, 2008
• Be temporarily or permanently resident outside the United States
• Not vote in any other state presidential primary or caucus
REGISTERING FOR THE DEMOCRATS ABROAD PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
To vote in the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary you must be a registered member of Democrats Abroad. There are no membership fees. Simply complete the online membership form at www.DemocratsAbroad.org/join.
Americans Abroad Can Now Vote Online in the Democratic Primary Election
QUOTE
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- This year, for the first time, expatriate Democrats can cast their ballots on the Internet in a presidential primary for people living outside the United States.
Democrats Abroad, an official branch of the party representing overseas voters, will hold its first global presidential preference primary from Feb. 5 to 12, with ex-pats selecting the candidate of their choice by Internet as well as fax, mail and in-person at polling places in more than 100 countries.
Democrats Abroad is particularly proud of the online voting option - which provides a new alternative to the usual process of voting from overseas, a system made difficult by complicated voter registration paperwork, early deadlines and unreliable foreign mail service.
"The online system is incredibly secure: That was one of our biggest goals," said Lindsey Reynolds, executive director of Democrats Abroad. "And it does allow access to folks who ordinarily wouldn't get to participate."
U.S. citizens wanting to vote online must join Democrats Abroad before Feb. 1 and indicate their preference to vote by Internet instead of in the local primaries wherever they last lived in the United States. They must promise not to vote twice for president, but can still participate in non-presidential local elections.
Democrats Abroad, an official branch of the party representing overseas voters, will hold its first global presidential preference primary from Feb. 5 to 12, with ex-pats selecting the candidate of their choice by Internet as well as fax, mail and in-person at polling places in more than 100 countries.
Democrats Abroad is particularly proud of the online voting option - which provides a new alternative to the usual process of voting from overseas, a system made difficult by complicated voter registration paperwork, early deadlines and unreliable foreign mail service.
"The online system is incredibly secure: That was one of our biggest goals," said Lindsey Reynolds, executive director of Democrats Abroad. "And it does allow access to folks who ordinarily wouldn't get to participate."
U.S. citizens wanting to vote online must join Democrats Abroad before Feb. 1 and indicate their preference to vote by Internet instead of in the local primaries wherever they last lived in the United States. They must promise not to vote twice for president, but can still participate in non-presidential local elections.
Munich Chapter voting center results:
58% Obama
41% Clinton
1% Edwards
This is just of those that showed up to vote in person. Many more will vote online and by fax/post.
Thanks to the voters that came out and thanks to those that staffed the center and helped out with the party. You all did one hell of a job!
58% Obama
41% Clinton
1% Edwards
This is just of those that showed up to vote in person. Many more will vote online and by fax/post.
Thanks to the voters that came out and thanks to those that staffed the center and helped out with the party. You all did one hell of a job!
Germany's Annual General Meeting of Dems Abroad Germany will take place the 23-24th of February in Goettingen.
More information here.
If anyone wants to attend with the Munich Chapter, let me know ASAP. We are trying to schedule the train trip now to get an early booking group discount.
More information here.
If anyone wants to attend with the Munich Chapter, let me know ASAP. We are trying to schedule the train trip now to get an early booking group discount.
I would...sounds like good entertainment, however, I'll be drunk on the 24th.
Wednesday Mar 12 @ 7pm, EineWeltHaus!
We will discuss the Global Primary, the continuing nomination saga and our participation in the Newcomer's Festival on 27APR08 at Praterinsel.
We will discuss the Global Primary, the continuing nomination saga and our participation in the Newcomer's Festival on 27APR08 at Praterinsel.
Dear Munich Chapter Member,
1. April Meeting – Wednesday April 9 @ 7pm, EineWeltHaus.
2. Newcomers's Festival 27APR08 @ Praterinsel
3. Future Get Out the Vote (GOTV) events planning
4. Found at Voting Center: pair of gloves and a scarf
1. April Meeting
This meeting shall be devoted to planning for the Newcomer’s Festival. We will look at options of putting together a “Welcome Wagon� packet from the Munich Chapter of Democrats Abroad Germany. If you have something that you would like to contribute to this packet, please contact me and if your contribution is deemed appropriate you will need to furnish 100 copies at a minimum.
A special Newcomer’s Festival meeting of volunteers will be held at my house in the week prior to Sunday the 27th of April.
2. Newcomer's Festival 27APR08 @ Praterinsel 1-6pm
The YDA (Young Dems Abroad) Munich group will lead, but we need to pitch in with a couple of tables and chairs and what ever other support we can give them.
Donations: We could also use some financial support as the cost of the Newcomer’s Festival space is expensive.
VoteFromAbroad T-Shirts: As you know, we had these for sale for €10 at the Voting Center on February 5th but ran out of the smaller sizes. These are now available by pre-order for any size from Small to XXXL. Just contact me if you would like to purchase one (or ten even) and pick up can be made at an upcoming meeting or at the Festival at our stand.
All volunteers at the Newcomer’s Festival should be wearing a VFA T-shirt.
3. Future Get Out the Vote (GOTV) events planning
We will need to start organizing for other Get Out The Vote (GOTV) events as well. We have a lot of new members and we need to get people active in things they want to be a part of. I am hoping that at the next meeting we will be able to watch the film Uncounted (http://www.uncountedthemovie.com/).
4. Lost and Found
Did you lose a pair of gloves and a scarf at the Voting Center? Contact me if you did.
Sincerely, Randy
Randy Caldwell
Chair - Democrats Abroad Germany, Munich Chapter
DA-Munich@dems-abroad.com
1. April Meeting – Wednesday April 9 @ 7pm, EineWeltHaus.
2. Newcomers's Festival 27APR08 @ Praterinsel
3. Future Get Out the Vote (GOTV) events planning
4. Found at Voting Center: pair of gloves and a scarf
1. April Meeting
This meeting shall be devoted to planning for the Newcomer’s Festival. We will look at options of putting together a “Welcome Wagon� packet from the Munich Chapter of Democrats Abroad Germany. If you have something that you would like to contribute to this packet, please contact me and if your contribution is deemed appropriate you will need to furnish 100 copies at a minimum.
A special Newcomer’s Festival meeting of volunteers will be held at my house in the week prior to Sunday the 27th of April.
2. Newcomer's Festival 27APR08 @ Praterinsel 1-6pm
The YDA (Young Dems Abroad) Munich group will lead, but we need to pitch in with a couple of tables and chairs and what ever other support we can give them.
Donations: We could also use some financial support as the cost of the Newcomer’s Festival space is expensive.
VoteFromAbroad T-Shirts: As you know, we had these for sale for €10 at the Voting Center on February 5th but ran out of the smaller sizes. These are now available by pre-order for any size from Small to XXXL. Just contact me if you would like to purchase one (or ten even) and pick up can be made at an upcoming meeting or at the Festival at our stand.
All volunteers at the Newcomer’s Festival should be wearing a VFA T-shirt.
3. Future Get Out the Vote (GOTV) events planning
We will need to start organizing for other Get Out The Vote (GOTV) events as well. We have a lot of new members and we need to get people active in things they want to be a part of. I am hoping that at the next meeting we will be able to watch the film Uncounted (http://www.uncountedthemovie.com/).
4. Lost and Found
Did you lose a pair of gloves and a scarf at the Voting Center? Contact me if you did.
Sincerely, Randy
Randy Caldwell
Chair - Democrats Abroad Germany, Munich Chapter
DA-Munich@dems-abroad.com
dear democrats,
boy do I have one for you:
http://memelabs.com/about/apparently-kfc-i...ry-clinton.html
boy do I have one for you:
http://memelabs.com/about/apparently-kfc-i...ry-clinton.html
Next meeting is the 14th of May and I am working on getting the movie Uncounted for us to watch. All are welcome to attend.
Our booth at the Newcomer's Fest.
We will be showing the documentary Uncounted-The New Math of American Elections at our next meeting.
Thanks to all those that attended the showing of Uncounted. It really drove home the point of how much our votes do matter.
Other than the usual monthly meetings, we are planning a Walking Tour (City Walks) of Munich as part of our Get Out The Vote activities. This will occur in the coming weeks, but one day in particular and that is the 4th of July.
On this Walking Tour day, participants will be given Vote From Abroad (VFA) cards to hand out and at cost (or less) VFA T-shirts to wear. On the 4th, we will probably start just after noonish and then meet up in the evening at a local beirgarten to celebrate getting rid of King George!
Although we are primarily focused on Americans getting involved in the walks, interested parties are allowed to participate to a degree. Contact me for further information and details.
Other than the usual monthly meetings, we are planning a Walking Tour (City Walks) of Munich as part of our Get Out The Vote activities. This will occur in the coming weeks, but one day in particular and that is the 4th of July.
On this Walking Tour day, participants will be given Vote From Abroad (VFA) cards to hand out and at cost (or less) VFA T-shirts to wear. On the 4th, we will probably start just after noonish and then meet up in the evening at a local beirgarten to celebrate getting rid of King George!
Although we are primarily focused on Americans getting involved in the walks, interested parties are allowed to participate to a degree. Contact me for further information and details.
QUOTE (eurovol @ May 5 2008, 9:13 pm) 
We will be showing the documentary Uncounted-The New Math of American Elections at our next meeting.
The documentary Uncouth-The New Math of American Politics is a really good one to show too.
Mark your calendars for the 4th and the 6th of July.
City Walks on the 4th (tour the city and hand out VoteFromAbroad business cards). Start at 2pm and a meetup at a local beer garden to follow to celebrate the end of King George.
4th of July Party on the 6th at WaWi. No fireworks unfortunately, but there will be the right atmosphere; not to mention good food, good drink, music, entertainment, a kids play area and mini-golf! Starts at noon.
City Walks on the 4th (tour the city and hand out VoteFromAbroad business cards). Start at 2pm and a meetup at a local beer garden to follow to celebrate the end of King George.
4th of July Party on the 6th at WaWi. No fireworks unfortunately, but there will be the right atmosphere; not to mention good food, good drink, music, entertainment, a kids play area and mini-golf! Starts at noon.
4th of July: City Walk to promote voting from abroad. Gather at Marienplatz at 2pm with full VFA attire and signs. Groups will then head off in various directions searching for voters and garnering press. Afterwards, we will all meetup in a local beergarden TBD and celebrate the 4th.
6th of July: Party like it is the 4th on the 6th at WaWi. Start time is noon and tables have been reserved.
Just moved to Munchen from Dallas.
Do you have info on what I need to do to be able to vote in November!
Do you have info on what I need to do to be able to vote in November!
I was asked to pass this along:
QUOTE
You voted in the DA Global Primary in February - Congratulations!
But are you registered to vote in the Presidential election in November?
*Voting in the GP did not automatically register you as an absentee voter for November's election.* You must register in your home state in order to receive an absentee ballot. There is an easy way to do this -- go to VoteFromAbroad, fill out your form, print it, sign it and mail it pronto, to make sure that your vote will count!
But are you registered to vote in the Presidential election in November?
*Voting in the GP did not automatically register you as an absentee voter for November's election.* You must register in your home state in order to receive an absentee ballot. There is an easy way to do this -- go to VoteFromAbroad, fill out your form, print it, sign it and mail it pronto, to make sure that your vote will count!
On the 4th of July, a City Walk is planned to get out the vote and raise our profile. Walkers will meet-up at the Rathaus fountain at 2pm on the 4th of July. The wearing of VFA T-shirts is strongly encouraged (contact me if you need one) as well as comfortable shoes. Signs to carry and cards to hand out and other material will be supplied to the walkers at the meet-up point. Groups of people will then go off in various directions covering the city raising awareness, handing out information cards and generally having fun seeing the sights along the way. If there are any tour guides amongst us, you could really add to the overall experience of this project.
After the walk, we will meet at the Hirschau (Gyßlingstr. 15, Munich Schwabing) at 6-6:30pm for some extra-curricular activities. Non-walkers are welcome to attend.
Please RSVP if you would like to take part in this City Walk and/or meeting up at the biergarten afterwards.
After the walk, we will meet at the Hirschau (Gyßlingstr. 15, Munich Schwabing) at 6-6:30pm for some extra-curricular activities. Non-walkers are welcome to attend.
Please RSVP if you would like to take part in this City Walk and/or meeting up at the biergarten afterwards.
* 4th of July Celebration (on the 6th of July at WaWi):
Our official 4th of July celebration will be on the 6th of July (Sunday) at the Waldwirtschaft (Georg-Kalb-Strasse 3, Pullach. S-Bahn S7 to Großhesselohe, then a short walk) from 12:00 till 6pm. Website: www.waldwirtschaft.de. They have a children's play area and mini-golf for the bigger kids as well as great beer and food. We have tables reserved and there will be many other American centric groups there as well celebrating along side us.
Our official 4th of July celebration will be on the 6th of July (Sunday) at the Waldwirtschaft (Georg-Kalb-Strasse 3, Pullach. S-Bahn S7 to Großhesselohe, then a short walk) from 12:00 till 6pm. Website: www.waldwirtschaft.de. They have a children's play area and mini-golf for the bigger kids as well as great beer and food. We have tables reserved and there will be many other American centric groups there as well celebrating along side us.
For more 4th celebrating and beergardens, remember the WaWi today.
It is free to attend. No membership dues ever and all the volunteer work you want.
DA Munich members: If you would like to join the Obama Bus to Berlin (bus, train, whatever), send me a PM with your name and email address. Places are limited and the sooner you get on the list the more likely we will let you on the bus.
If Al Gore had truly won Florida in 2000 then wouldn't it stand to reason that Kerry would have carried the state in 2004? Isn't it funny that when Bush won Florida again in 2004 the conspiracy theorists switched the claims of voter fraud and "disenfranchisement" to Ohio?
Didn't the Democratic party win the 2006 mid term elections resulting in the control of both houses of congress based on promises to end the war in Iraq? When exactly did that happen? And isn't it interesting that since Obama has clinched the Democratic nomination his rhetoric regarding the war in Iraq has already started to change to a more "not so fast there" approach? When will any of you learn? You're all a bunch of fools being played like a grand piano
-Former 18 year registered Democrat, current Republican and soon to be Independent.
Didn't the Democratic party win the 2006 mid term elections resulting in the control of both houses of congress based on promises to end the war in Iraq? When exactly did that happen? And isn't it interesting that since Obama has clinched the Democratic nomination his rhetoric regarding the war in Iraq has already started to change to a more "not so fast there" approach? When will any of you learn? You're all a bunch of fools being played like a grand piano
-Former 18 year registered Democrat, current Republican and soon to be Independent.
The bus will leave on the 23rd of July. There are still a few places left to be filled. We will stay overnight in Berlin and then have a great day that will include being there for Obama's public address. Time permitting we will attend some early evening activities and then board the bus for home.
The total per person price will be very reasonable at around €120 for the bus and overnight accommodations. In fact, it could be a lot less!
PM me now with your reservations for the trip.
The total per person price will be very reasonable at around €120 for the bus and overnight accommodations. In fact, it could be a lot less!
PM me now with your reservations for the trip.
Bus Canceled!
Join MYBO here.
And then join Americans in Munich for Obama and Americans in Germany for Obama.
The first Get Out The Vote organizational meeting is tonight. DAG Munich will synergize with the AMO and AGO groups to register voters throughout Bavaria and Germany.
And then join Americans in Munich for Obama and Americans in Germany for Obama.
The first Get Out The Vote organizational meeting is tonight. DAG Munich will synergize with the AMO and AGO groups to register voters throughout Bavaria and Germany.
Please read this entire Newsletter. This is probably the most important one you will receive this year. We have a lot to do to reach the more than 5225 US Citizens living in Munich and nearly quarter of a million living in Germany and get as many of them registered to vote as we possibly can. We need your help! The election of Senator Obama as the next President of the United States depends on all of us doing our part! Big or small, we all have a part to play, so as the voting catchphrase says, “Be smart and do your part!�
* August Meeting – Americans in Munich for Obama voter registration drives
* Fundraising – We need money for IT and VoteFromAbroad promotion
* Getting out the vote worldwide - Where on Earth will YOU vote?
* Berlin Recap and Future Events
* Letter to Democrats Abroad from our friend Bernard Weiner
1. August Meeting – Wednesday August 13th @ 7pm, EineWeltHaus
The Munich Chapter and Americans in Munich for Obama will come together and get out the vote. We are less than 100 days away from the election. We need everyone to attend, including our Young Dems, and sign up to help register voters! Events are planned and more are to come, but we need you to donate your time (as little as an hour a week would help) in this concerted effort to reach the thousands of Americans living in Munich and Bavaria so that they can and will vote in November. We have events planned on “Campus�, at Cafes, the Cinema, The Munich Readery, The Rotary Club and The Southern State Fest and that is just in the next two weeks. Voter registration training will be provided to anyone that wants it.
Visit http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/Ameri...ernGermanyforOb or http://www.democratsabroad.org/group/dag-munich-volunteers to get involved and stay up to date on volunteer activities.
In Nuremberg, we have the weekly Tuesday meetup at Tucherhof. The leader of this effort is on vacation until the 26th, but those in that area should continue to still meet and brainstorm about places to find Americans to register to vote around Nuemburg.
In Augsburg, we simply need a place to start meet-ups. Are there any suggestions from the people living in the Augsburg area on a good location and time to hold meet-up events? I plan to come to Augsburg and deliver voter registration supplies within the next week and it would be great if we could combine the two.
Regardless of where you live, support will be given to anyone setting up a voter registration event anywhere in Bavaria and indeed Germany wide. Whether it be at meet-ups or companies or biergartens or even music festivals, you know best what is happening in your area and in your circle of activities where US Citizens can be found. A registration event may be nothing more than a table, registration material and a willing body or two with the desire to help bring about real change. Anyone can do this anywhere and at anytime and we will help you.
2. Fundraising – Give what you can and then give some more.
The majority of our fundraising needs focus on Getting Out The Vote (GOTV) on a much larger scale and enhancing our IT.
On the IT side, we have a great new website: http://www.democratsabroad.org/ and online voter registration tool http://www.votefromabroad.org, but these sites require upgrades and maintaining and that costs money! The Vote From Abroad site is probably the most important thing to donate too as that is what helps us to register Americans to vote. Right now, there is a need for us to expand capacity and server power due to our incredible growth and the need to handle all those voters our Munich and Germany wide volunteers are going to be registering.
On the advertising and promotion end, we are getting a lot of press. However, it is because we are doing things such as putting on the Global Primary and the release of this online ad just this week: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/04/g...f_n_116657.html. In the first day of its release, it had a combined 150,000 views! You can also read all about it everywhere as the following Google search shows: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=a...G=Google+Search! In the 24 hours after its release, Democrats Abroad registered voters in 87 different countries, voting in 45 different states. However, like everything else this endeavor cost money.
Locally, we are doing well and have been fortunate to have one particularly generous donor give €1,000 that paid for VFA logo balloons and our voter registration booth at the Newcomer’s Fest and the printing of promotional material and most recently another generous donor paid for the printing of 10,000 VFA promotional business cards. What we need now is to focus on the international efforts with our wallets. Democrats Abroad has one time and sustaining donor options (https://secure.democratsabroad.org/contribute/) that will allow small and large donors to collectively have a huge impact. Just think how much four more years with McSame will cost you. Other than an Executive Director, whose salary is paid for by the DNC, Democrats Abroad is an all volunteer group. Some volunteer time, some money and some both. Right now going into this very important election in November, we need more of both! Please donate what you can and do it today!
3. Getting out the vote worldwide (including back home)
Networking 101 – spreading the word.
Rule number 1: Be respectful.
Rule number 2: No one is too young or too old to help spread the word.
Where on Earth will YOU vote? Send this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amukRM9SSoo to everyone you know and everyone in your email list. Tell them to pass it along to the people they know and so on. Just get the word out there.
Join MYBO http://my.barackobama.com and connect with others. Import your email address contacts and invite all your friends to join. There you can also join groups such as Americans in Munich or Americans in Germany for Obama. Connect with people back home and join the group in your home state and/or city. Meet and network with friends in professional groups such as Engineers and Scientists for Obama.
Post the link http://www.votefromabroad.org everywhere on the net that you can. Put it on your XING, LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace or whatever site you are a regular member of. Post the Where on Earth will YOU vote? video along with it.
Do you have friends that might be interested in joining Democrats Abroad or simply the effort to register voters and elect Senator Obama President? Not just in Germany, but anywhere in the world. Pass along this Newsletter to them. Only US Citizens can be DA members or donate money to the cause(s), but anyone can help in the effort to get the word out and encourage Americans to register to vote. For example, perhaps you have a friend that works at or owns a business in a vacation resort area (even here in Germany and in Munich too) where Americans work, hang out and/or spend their vacation time. They could talk to Americans they encounter, put a sign in their store window, hang flyers at community information boards, whatever and point them all to VoteFromAbroad.org.
For fun, anyone can vote here: http://www.voteforpresident.org/
4. Berlin Recap and Future Events
Berlin was simply amazing. Many Munich Chapter Members and Young Dems went and volunteered to help the Obama Campaign on that Thursday. We registered hundreds of voters before the speech and then got to stand in a special area next to the stage to see Obama speak close up. A couple of the volunteers even got to fist bump or shake hands with our future President. Our very own Shari Temple, delegate to the Convention in Denver, was profiled during the whole of the trip to Berlin by the ZDF program Mona Lisa: Video Eine Stimme für Barack Obama aus Europa http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/content/547160?inPopup=true. Following the event, we all met at Max and Moritz and had the pleasure to see Roberta Kelly live singing her ballad of unity as featured on CNN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d3-3zV8gZ4 and written about http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/p...rtakelly/gGxsKS on her blog. Best of all, she is one of us and we are working on putting something special locally together. In fact, we have a lot of talented members and perhaps an evening of music with a side of politics is in order.
For many of you, the Southern State Fest might be of interest: http://www.walbrun-net.de/countryfreunde_waa/index.htm. We will have a registration table there for the American visitors and if you can donate an hour or two to help out here that would be great. It is cheap to attend and there is a free shuttle from the S8-bahnhof Halbergmoos.
We will be registering people right up till Election Day, but our focus will change to emergency ballots in mid-October. We want everyone to be able to vote and if your ballot looks like it isn’t going to show up in time (or not at all), then remember that we will have emergency ballots available. More on this as the time approaches, but I want you to know now that we are going to make sure you get to exercise your right to vote. Right now it is all about voter registration and absentee ballot requesting. The sooner people get registered, the less likely they will need an emergency ballot. If you have not registered and requested an absentee ballot yourself in the calendar year 2008 (voting in the Global Primary did not do this for you), then go to VoteFromAbroad and complete the process and do it today! If in doubt, register again. It is easy and you don’t want to have the nasty surprise come election time that you were purged from some voter roll or be told that you failed to request an absentee ballot specifically for this year’s election.
5. Letter to Democrats Abroad: The Weird Presidential Race at Midsummer
A special letter from our friend and oft times guest speaker Bernard Weiner:
Dear Kim and other Democrats Abroad friends:
Your email, Kim, about the presidential race as seen from Europe reminded me of our discussion last October when I spoke to DA-Munich. As you may remember, there were ten Democratic candidates at that time and it looked like an easy walk for Hillary Clinton. She was well-organized on the ground, had generated great momentum, and wasn't making any mistakes. It certainly seemed as if the nomination was hers to lose. And lose it she did. I too easily sized up the guy who defeated her this way:
To read the rest of the letter visit: http://www.crisispapers.org/essays8w/abroad.htm.
To sum things up: Register to vote and request an absentee ballot today, volunteer to help others to do so to, network and spread the word, donate money to the global effort and have fun knowing that you are helping to make history and ensure the next President of the United States is a Democrat!
* August Meeting – Americans in Munich for Obama voter registration drives
* Fundraising – We need money for IT and VoteFromAbroad promotion
* Getting out the vote worldwide - Where on Earth will YOU vote?
* Berlin Recap and Future Events
* Letter to Democrats Abroad from our friend Bernard Weiner
1. August Meeting – Wednesday August 13th @ 7pm, EineWeltHaus
The Munich Chapter and Americans in Munich for Obama will come together and get out the vote. We are less than 100 days away from the election. We need everyone to attend, including our Young Dems, and sign up to help register voters! Events are planned and more are to come, but we need you to donate your time (as little as an hour a week would help) in this concerted effort to reach the thousands of Americans living in Munich and Bavaria so that they can and will vote in November. We have events planned on “Campus�, at Cafes, the Cinema, The Munich Readery, The Rotary Club and The Southern State Fest and that is just in the next two weeks. Voter registration training will be provided to anyone that wants it.
Visit http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/Ameri...ernGermanyforOb or http://www.democratsabroad.org/group/dag-munich-volunteers to get involved and stay up to date on volunteer activities.
In Nuremberg, we have the weekly Tuesday meetup at Tucherhof. The leader of this effort is on vacation until the 26th, but those in that area should continue to still meet and brainstorm about places to find Americans to register to vote around Nuemburg.
In Augsburg, we simply need a place to start meet-ups. Are there any suggestions from the people living in the Augsburg area on a good location and time to hold meet-up events? I plan to come to Augsburg and deliver voter registration supplies within the next week and it would be great if we could combine the two.
Regardless of where you live, support will be given to anyone setting up a voter registration event anywhere in Bavaria and indeed Germany wide. Whether it be at meet-ups or companies or biergartens or even music festivals, you know best what is happening in your area and in your circle of activities where US Citizens can be found. A registration event may be nothing more than a table, registration material and a willing body or two with the desire to help bring about real change. Anyone can do this anywhere and at anytime and we will help you.
2. Fundraising – Give what you can and then give some more.
The majority of our fundraising needs focus on Getting Out The Vote (GOTV) on a much larger scale and enhancing our IT.
On the IT side, we have a great new website: http://www.democratsabroad.org/ and online voter registration tool http://www.votefromabroad.org, but these sites require upgrades and maintaining and that costs money! The Vote From Abroad site is probably the most important thing to donate too as that is what helps us to register Americans to vote. Right now, there is a need for us to expand capacity and server power due to our incredible growth and the need to handle all those voters our Munich and Germany wide volunteers are going to be registering.
On the advertising and promotion end, we are getting a lot of press. However, it is because we are doing things such as putting on the Global Primary and the release of this online ad just this week: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/04/g...f_n_116657.html. In the first day of its release, it had a combined 150,000 views! You can also read all about it everywhere as the following Google search shows: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=a...G=Google+Search! In the 24 hours after its release, Democrats Abroad registered voters in 87 different countries, voting in 45 different states. However, like everything else this endeavor cost money.
Locally, we are doing well and have been fortunate to have one particularly generous donor give €1,000 that paid for VFA logo balloons and our voter registration booth at the Newcomer’s Fest and the printing of promotional material and most recently another generous donor paid for the printing of 10,000 VFA promotional business cards. What we need now is to focus on the international efforts with our wallets. Democrats Abroad has one time and sustaining donor options (https://secure.democratsabroad.org/contribute/) that will allow small and large donors to collectively have a huge impact. Just think how much four more years with McSame will cost you. Other than an Executive Director, whose salary is paid for by the DNC, Democrats Abroad is an all volunteer group. Some volunteer time, some money and some both. Right now going into this very important election in November, we need more of both! Please donate what you can and do it today!
3. Getting out the vote worldwide (including back home)
Networking 101 – spreading the word.
Rule number 1: Be respectful.
Rule number 2: No one is too young or too old to help spread the word.
Where on Earth will YOU vote? Send this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amukRM9SSoo to everyone you know and everyone in your email list. Tell them to pass it along to the people they know and so on. Just get the word out there.
Join MYBO http://my.barackobama.com and connect with others. Import your email address contacts and invite all your friends to join. There you can also join groups such as Americans in Munich or Americans in Germany for Obama. Connect with people back home and join the group in your home state and/or city. Meet and network with friends in professional groups such as Engineers and Scientists for Obama.
Post the link http://www.votefromabroad.org everywhere on the net that you can. Put it on your XING, LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace or whatever site you are a regular member of. Post the Where on Earth will YOU vote? video along with it.
Do you have friends that might be interested in joining Democrats Abroad or simply the effort to register voters and elect Senator Obama President? Not just in Germany, but anywhere in the world. Pass along this Newsletter to them. Only US Citizens can be DA members or donate money to the cause(s), but anyone can help in the effort to get the word out and encourage Americans to register to vote. For example, perhaps you have a friend that works at or owns a business in a vacation resort area (even here in Germany and in Munich too) where Americans work, hang out and/or spend their vacation time. They could talk to Americans they encounter, put a sign in their store window, hang flyers at community information boards, whatever and point them all to VoteFromAbroad.org.
For fun, anyone can vote here: http://www.voteforpresident.org/
4. Berlin Recap and Future Events
Berlin was simply amazing. Many Munich Chapter Members and Young Dems went and volunteered to help the Obama Campaign on that Thursday. We registered hundreds of voters before the speech and then got to stand in a special area next to the stage to see Obama speak close up. A couple of the volunteers even got to fist bump or shake hands with our future President. Our very own Shari Temple, delegate to the Convention in Denver, was profiled during the whole of the trip to Berlin by the ZDF program Mona Lisa: Video Eine Stimme für Barack Obama aus Europa http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/content/547160?inPopup=true. Following the event, we all met at Max and Moritz and had the pleasure to see Roberta Kelly live singing her ballad of unity as featured on CNN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d3-3zV8gZ4 and written about http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/p...rtakelly/gGxsKS on her blog. Best of all, she is one of us and we are working on putting something special locally together. In fact, we have a lot of talented members and perhaps an evening of music with a side of politics is in order.
For many of you, the Southern State Fest might be of interest: http://www.walbrun-net.de/countryfreunde_waa/index.htm. We will have a registration table there for the American visitors and if you can donate an hour or two to help out here that would be great. It is cheap to attend and there is a free shuttle from the S8-bahnhof Halbergmoos.
We will be registering people right up till Election Day, but our focus will change to emergency ballots in mid-October. We want everyone to be able to vote and if your ballot looks like it isn’t going to show up in time (or not at all), then remember that we will have emergency ballots available. More on this as the time approaches, but I want you to know now that we are going to make sure you get to exercise your right to vote. Right now it is all about voter registration and absentee ballot requesting. The sooner people get registered, the less likely they will need an emergency ballot. If you have not registered and requested an absentee ballot yourself in the calendar year 2008 (voting in the Global Primary did not do this for you), then go to VoteFromAbroad and complete the process and do it today! If in doubt, register again. It is easy and you don’t want to have the nasty surprise come election time that you were purged from some voter roll or be told that you failed to request an absentee ballot specifically for this year’s election.
5. Letter to Democrats Abroad: The Weird Presidential Race at Midsummer
A special letter from our friend and oft times guest speaker Bernard Weiner:
Dear Kim and other Democrats Abroad friends:
Your email, Kim, about the presidential race as seen from Europe reminded me of our discussion last October when I spoke to DA-Munich. As you may remember, there were ten Democratic candidates at that time and it looked like an easy walk for Hillary Clinton. She was well-organized on the ground, had generated great momentum, and wasn't making any mistakes. It certainly seemed as if the nomination was hers to lose. And lose it she did. I too easily sized up the guy who defeated her this way:
To read the rest of the letter visit: http://www.crisispapers.org/essays8w/abroad.htm.
To sum things up: Register to vote and request an absentee ballot today, volunteer to help others to do so to, network and spread the word, donate money to the global effort and have fun knowing that you are helping to make history and ensure the next President of the United States is a Democrat!
Tonight is the night. We will be all about Voter Registration tonight. We will also have a rep from the Obama Campaign visiting us.
All are welcome to attend. If you have any questions, just ask.
All are welcome to attend. If you have any questions, just ask.
Obama vs. McCain: The Race Heats Up!
AAUPW and Amerika Haus host a Debate between Democrats Abroad and Republicans Abroad in Munich
AAUPW and Amerika Haus host a Debate between Democrats Abroad and Republicans Abroad in Munich
The U.S. presidential election campaign is entering its final and most exciting phase. Both major political parties and their (presumptive) presidential candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, claim to be offering a marked change from the policies of the Bush administration. Be it the issue of the Iraq war, the energy crisis, health care, global warming, or the state of the economy, the outcome of this election will have a profound effect on U.S. policy both at home and around the world.
What kind of change can we expect? Where will America be headed under the leadership of each of these men?
In an effort to answer these questions, the Association of American University and Professional Women and the B.A.Z. Amerika Haus are hosting a political debate on Thursday, September 18, at 7 p.m. at Amerika Haus featuring John McQueen, of Democrats Abroad Germany and Michael Ricks, of Republicans Abroad Germany.
John McQueen is a retired U.S. Army civilian living in Heidelberg. He has been active in the overseas branch of the Democratic Party since 1994 and founded the Heidelberg chapter of Democrats Abroad Germany. Mr. McQueen has served as DA Germany Chair, International Secretary, and International Vice Chair for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He writes a popular weekly column Wednesday Wire on the U.S. political scene for Democrats around the world.
Michael Ricks is Co-Chairman of Republicans Abroad Germany and the City Chairman of RA Munich, where he has lived for fifteen years. Mr. Ricks’ commitment to the Republican party began in high school, and he has been active in campaigns at the city, county, state, and national levels and served as an advisor to elected officials ever since. In addition to serving Republicans Abroad, he is a partner in a global consulting organization.
The debate will be moderated by Dr. Britta Waldschmidt-Nelson, Associate Professor for American history and culture at the America Institute of the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich. The opening remarks will be made by Mr. Kit Traub, Political Officer of the Consulate General, Munich.
This will be the third time the AAUPW and Amerika Haus have sponsored such a presidential-election-year debate. Because this debate has proven in the past to be a very popular event, we encourage you to tell the members of your group about it and advise them to arrive early for a good seat.
The Amerika Haus is located at Karolieneplatz 3. Admission is free.
Look for something special to happen with the video and/or song soon.
Remember, voting in the Global Primary did not register you to vote in the General Election. To do that, go to Vote From Abroad and fill out your registration and absentee ballot request NOW!
Each state has different deadlines for registering, requesting your ballot, and submitting your ballot.
Alabama
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/24/2008
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before election day
**Postmarked by election day
Alaska
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/05/2008
Request ballot by: 10/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/19/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Arizona
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Arkansas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008
California
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Colorado
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Connecticut
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Delaware
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
District of Columbia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/6/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/27/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008**
*Postmark by registration dates above
**Postmark by election day
Florida
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008
Georgia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/07/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Hawaii
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Idaho
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/10/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked 25 days before the election
Illinois
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008
Request ballot by: 10/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/18/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Indiana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/27/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Iowa
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: No fixed deadline, submit early
Request ballot by: No fixed deadline, submit early
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Kansas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration is not required
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Kentucky
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/28/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked at least 29 days before the election
Louisiana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Maine
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Maryland
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/14/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008**
*Postmarked at least 21 days before the election
**Postmarked by election day
Massachusetts
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Michigan
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/01/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Minnesota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Mississippi
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/05/2008
Request ballot by: 10/05/2008
Return ballot by: 11/03/2008
Missouri
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Montana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Nebraska
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/17/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Nevada
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked or received these dates
New Hampshire
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New Jersey
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/31/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New Mexico
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New York
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/10/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/11/2008**
*Postmarked at least 25 days before the election
** Postmarked by the day before the election
North Carolina
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
North Dakota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 09/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/07/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Ohio
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/01/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Oklahoma
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Oregon
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/30/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked at least 21 days before the election
Pennsylvania
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/11/2008*
* Postmarked by the day before election day
Rhode Island
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/14/2008*
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*A voter may request a ballot to vote only for President and Vice-President by 10/28/2008
South Carolina
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
South Dakota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Tennessee
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Texas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008
Utah
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/15/2008
Request ballot by: 10/15/2008
Return ballot by: 11/18/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Vermont
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/29/2008*
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked by the second Monday before election day
Virginia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Washington
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/25/2008*
* Ballot return envelope must be dated no later than election day.
West Virginia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/14/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008
Wisconsin
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/15/2008
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Wyoming
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Each state has different deadlines for registering, requesting your ballot, and submitting your ballot.
Alabama
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/24/2008
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before election day
**Postmarked by election day
Alaska
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/05/2008
Request ballot by: 10/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/19/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Arizona
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Arkansas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008
California
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Colorado
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Connecticut
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Delaware
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
District of Columbia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/6/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/27/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008**
*Postmark by registration dates above
**Postmark by election day
Florida
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008
Georgia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/07/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Hawaii
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Idaho
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/10/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked 25 days before the election
Illinois
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008
Request ballot by: 10/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/18/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Indiana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/27/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Iowa
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: No fixed deadline, submit early
Request ballot by: No fixed deadline, submit early
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Kansas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration is not required
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Kentucky
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/28/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked at least 29 days before the election
Louisiana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Maine
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Maryland
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/14/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008**
*Postmarked at least 21 days before the election
**Postmarked by election day
Massachusetts
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Michigan
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/01/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Minnesota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Mississippi
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/05/2008
Request ballot by: 10/05/2008
Return ballot by: 11/03/2008
Missouri
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Montana
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Nebraska
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/17/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Nevada
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked or received these dates
New Hampshire
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New Jersey
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/31/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New Mexico
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
New York
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/10/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/11/2008**
*Postmarked at least 25 days before the election
** Postmarked by the day before the election
North Carolina
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/03/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
North Dakota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 09/25/2008
Return ballot by: 11/07/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Ohio
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/01/2008
Return ballot by: 11/14/2008*
*Postmarked by election day
Oklahoma
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Oregon
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/30/2008*
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked at least 21 days before the election
Pennsylvania
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/11/2008*
* Postmarked by the day before election day
Rhode Island
General Election: 11/04/2008
Registration not required
Request ballot by: 10/14/2008*
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*A voter may request a ballot to vote only for President and Vice-President by 10/28/2008
South Carolina
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/04/2008
Request ballot by: 10/31/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
South Dakota
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/20/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Tennessee
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Texas
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008
Utah
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/15/2008
Request ballot by: 10/15/2008
Return ballot by: 11/18/2008*
*Postmarked by the day before the election
Vermont
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/29/2008*
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
*Postmarked by the second Monday before election day
Virginia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 10/28/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Washington
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 11/04/2008
Request ballot by: 11/04/2008
Return ballot by: 11/25/2008*
* Ballot return envelope must be dated no later than election day.
West Virginia
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/14/2008
Request ballot by: 10/29/2008
Return ballot by: 11/10/2008
Wisconsin
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/15/2008
Request ballot by: 10/30/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Wyoming
General Election: 11/04/2008
Register by: 10/06/2008
Request ballot by: 11/03/2008
Return ballot by: 11/04/2008
Meeting tonight. DA will start at 7pm and the Obama group part will start at 7:45pm. Come one, come all.
Got some great surprises to share!
Got some great surprises to share!
The debate is tonight!
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