Monthly Archives: June 2011

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Did you hear what Santorum told me? Judd Legum


On Tuesday, we set a goal to raise $20,000 in one week to support ThinkProgress’ on-the-ground, hard-hitting reporting across the country. The response has been overwhelming. In just two days, hundreds of you have contributed, and we are more than halfway to our goal. But we need you to get us over the finish line:

Please click this link and pitch in $5 right now.

 www.thinkprogress.org

In the 48 hours since I wrote to you last, we’ve been following the Tea Party Bus Tour all around the state of Iowa. On Tuesday, we captured Rick Santorum blaming poor history scores on a left-wing plot to keep students uninformed. (Our story was picked up by MSNBC, The Huffington Post, Keith Olbermann, and other major news outlets.) Yesterday, we exposed Tea Party darling Herman Cain‘s plan to put the oil and coal company CEOs in charge of regulations at the EPA.

We believe that the best antidote to the right wing is to ask tough questions, pull back the curtain, and report the facts. With your help, we’ll continue to bring you important stories you can’t find anywhere else.

Sincerely,
Judd Legum
Founder, ThinkProgress.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On Tue, Jun 21, 2011 at 10:25 AM, Judd Legum wrote:
As you may know, ThinkProgress has been hitting the road to ask tough questions and bring you the unvarnished truth from around the country.
For example, when Paul Ryan was booed by his constituents in Milton, Wisconsin, for defending his plan to privatize Medicare, the traditional media was nowhere to be found. But ThinkProgress was there to capture it all on tape. The clip was played dozens of times on national TV, and hundreds of thousands of people watched the video online.
Overall, our reporters have traveled to 20 states, interviewing nine presidential candidates and 56 members of Congress. We are making an impact and shaping the debate.
But this kind of on-the-ground reporting isn’t cheap. We need to raise $20,000 in the next week to keep our efforts going strong.
Can you pitch in $4 right now?

   www.thinkprogress.org
This week, I’m in Iowa to cover the Tea Party Bus Tour — organized by a radical group advocating a return to the gold standard. Several GOP presidential candidates are scheduled to participate.
We’ll be visiting Ames, Iowa Falls, Webster City, Oskaloosa, Creston, and Council Bluffs. With your support, we’ll be able to keep this show on the road and keep holding the right wing accountable.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any comments or questions.

Best,
Judd Legum
Founder, ThinkProgress.org

Black History

what is Congress doing for or against Americans today –


CURRENT HOUSE FLOOR PROCEEDINGS
LEGISLATIVE DAY OF JUNE 23, 2011
112TH CONGRESS – FIRST SESSION

6:49 P.M. – SPECIAL ORDER SPEECHES – The House has concluded all anticipated legislative business and has proceeded to Special Order speeches.

6:43 P.M. – ONE MINUTE SPEECHES – The House proceeded with further one minute speeches.

H.R. 2219:
making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012, and for other purposes 

6:41 P.M. – Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union rises leaving H.R. 2219as unfinished business.On motion to rise Agreed to by voice vote.

Mr. Young (FL) moved to rise.

5:52 P.M. – GENERAL DEBATE – The Committee of the Whole proceeded with one hour of general debate on H.R. 2219.

5:51 P.M. – The Speaker designated the Honorable Lynn A. Westmoreland to act as Chairman of the Committee.House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union pursuant to H. Res. 320and Rule XVIII.

Rule provides for consideration of H.R. 2219with 1 hour of general debate. Previous question shall be considered as ordered without intervening motions except motion to recommit with or without instructions. Measure will be read by paragraph. Bill is open to amendments. Points of order against provisions in the bill for failure to comply with clause 2 of rule XXI are waived.

Considered under the provisions of rule H. Res. 320.

5:50 P.M. – Mr. Woodall filed a report from the Committee on Rules on H. Res. 328.

5:49 P.M. – The Speaker announced approval of the Journal. Pursuant to clause 1, rule I, the Journal stands approved.UNFINISHED BUSINESS – The Chair announced that the unfinished business was on the question of the Speaker’s approval of the Journal.

H.R. 1249:
to amend title 35, United States Code, to provide for patent reform 

The Clerk was authorized to correct section numbers, punctuation, and cross references, and to make other necessary technical and conforming corrections in the engrossment of H.R. 1249.

5:48 P.M. – On passage Passed by recorded vote: 304 – 117 (Roll no. 491).Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

5:42 P.M. – On motion to recommit with instructions Failed by recorded vote: 172 – 251 (Roll no. 490).

5:24 P.M. – The previous question on the motion to recommit with instructions was ordered without objection.

5:19 P.M. – DEBATE – The House proceeded with ten minutes of debate on the motion to recommit with instructions. The instructions contained in the motion seek to report the same to the House with an amendment to require the U.S. Patent Office to prioritize patent applications filed by entities that pledge to develop or manufacture their products, processes, and technologies in the U.S., including, specifically, those filed by small businesses and individuals.

5:17 P.M. – Mr. Miller (NC) moved to recommit with instructions to Judiciary.

Mr. Miller (NC) moved to recommit the bill H.R. 1249 to the Committee on the Judiciary with instructions to report the same back to the House forthwith with the following amendment: � Add at the end of the bill the following (and conform the table of contents accordingly): � SEC. 34. PRIORITY IN PROCESSING PATENT APPLICATIONS. ***

5:16 P.M. – The House adopted the amendment in the nature of a substitute as agreed to by the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union.

5:15 P.M. – The previous question was ordered pursuant to the rule.

5:14 P.M. – The House rose from the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union to report H.R. 1249.On agreeing to the Schock amendment Failed by recorded vote: 158 – 262, 1 Present (Roll no. 489).

5:11 P.M. – On agreeing to the Rohrabacher amendment Failed by recorded vote: 81 – 342 (Roll no. 488).

5:07 P.M. – On agreeing to the Manzullo amendment Failed by recorded vote: 92 – 329 (Roll no. 487).

5:02 P.M. – On agreeing to the Sensenbrenner amendment Failed by recorded vote: 129 – 295 (Roll no. 486).

4:58 P.M. – On agreeing to the Conyers amendment Agreed to by recorded vote: 223 – 198 (Roll no. 485).

4:55 P.M. – Amendment offered by Mr. Conyers.

An amendment numbered 9 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to restore language for calculation of 60-day period for application of patent term extension that the managers amendment strikes.

4:54 P.M. – PROCEEDINGS VACATED – By unanimous consent, the disposition proceedings for the Conyers amendment No. 9 were vacated and the Committee of the Whole proceeded to re-vote the Conyers amendment.

4:47 P.M. – On agreeing to the Baldwin amendment Failed by recorded vote: 81 – 342 (Roll no. 483).

4:40 P.M. – On agreeing to the Conyers amendment Failed by recorded vote: 105 – 316 (Roll no. 482).

4:14 P.M. – UNFINISHED BUSINESS – The Chair announced that the unfinished business was on the adoption of amendments which had been debated earlier and on which further proceedings were postponed.

4:13 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Schock amendment, the Chair put t he question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the ayes had prevailed. Mr. Smith (TX) demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

3:59 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Schock amendment no. 15.Amendment offered by Mr. Schock.

An amendment numbered 15 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to strike section 18 of H.R. 1249, the Transitional program for covered business method patents.

3:58 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Rohrabacher amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Mr. Rohrabacher demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

3:48 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Rohrabacher amendment no. 14.Amendment offered by Mr. Rohrabacher.

An amendment numbered 12 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to eliminate the burden of post-grant reviews and reexaminations on individual inventors and small businesses with 100 or fewer employees.

3:47 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Manzullo amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Mr. Manzullo demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

3:38 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Manzullo amendment no. 13.Amendment offered by Mr. Manzullo.

An amendment numbered 13 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to eliminate the ability of the Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to set fees, retaining that authority for Congress.

3:37 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Sensenbrenner amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Mr. Sensenbrenner demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

3:26 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Sensenbrenner amendment no. 12.Amendment offered by Mr. Sensenbrenner.

An amendment numbered 12 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to strike Section 3 of the legislation, which would convert the U.S. patent system from `first-to-invent’ to `first-to-file.’

3:25 P.M. – By unanimous consent, the Watt amendment was withdrawn.

3:24 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Watt amendment no. 11.

3:23 P.M. – Amendment offered by Mr. Watt.

An amendment numbered 11 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to add a severability clause protecting the remainder of the bill if the Supreme Court determines that certain sections or provisions are unconstitutional.

3:22 P.M. – On agreeing to the Speier amendment Agreed to by voice vote.

3:17 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Speier amendment no. 10.Amendment offered by Ms. Speier.

An amendment numbered 10 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to direct the PTO to prescribe a requirement that parties provide sufficient evidence to prove and rebut a claim of derivation.

3:16 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Conyers amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Mr. Conyers demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

3:07 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Conyers amendment no. 9.Amendment offered by Mr. Conyers.

An amendment numbered 9 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to restore language for calculation of 60-day period for application of patent term extension that the managers amendment strikes.

On agreeing to the Polis amendment Failed by voice vote.

2:58 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Polis (CO) amendment no. 8.Amendment offered by Mr. Polis.

An amendment numbered 8 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to clarify that the new legislation would apply only to new tax planning patents, not already filed patents which would disclose patent information leaving the applicants vulnerable.

2:57 P.M. – On agreeing to the Peters amendment Agreed to by voice vote.

2:49 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Peters amendment no. 7.Amendment offered by Mr. Peters.

An amendment numbered 7 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to mandate a USPTO-led study on what USPTO, SBA, and other agencies can do to help small businesses obtain, maintain, and enforce foreign patents. This study is to be conducted using existing resources.

2:48 P.M. – On agreeing to the Lujan amendment Agreed to by voice vote.

2:45 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Lujan amendment no. 6.Amendment offered by Mr. Lujan.

An amendment numbered 6 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to add requirements to the satellite office location selection process to ensure that (1) the purposes, as described in the bill, of establishing satellite offices are achieved, (2) recruitment costs are minimized by considering the availability of knowledgeable personnel in the region, and (3) the economic impact to the region is considered. It would also require that the Director in the required report to Congress on the rationale in selecting the location of any satellite office include an explanation of how the selected location will achieve the purposes of satellite offices and how the required considerations were met.

On agreeing to the Jackson Lee (TX) amendment Agreed to by voice vote.

2:39 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Jackson Lee (TX) amendment no. 5.Amendment offered by Ms. Jackson Lee (TX).

An amendment numbered 5 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to add a sense of Congress that it is important to protect the rights of small businesses and inventors from predatory behavior that could result in cutting off innovation and may provide an undue advantage to large financial institutions and high-tech firms.

2:38 P.M. – On agreeing to the Moore amendment Agreed to by voice vote.

2:34 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Moore amendment no. 4.Amendment offered by Ms. Moore.

An amendment numbered 4 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to direct the USPTO to develop methods for studying the diversity of patent applicants, including those applicants who are minorities, women, or veterans. Any results of the study shall not be used for preferential treatment in the patent process.

2:33 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Baldwin amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Ms. Baldwin demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

2:23 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Baldwin amendment no. 3.Amendment offered by Ms. Baldwin.

An amendment numbered 3 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to strike Section 5, the `prior user rights’ language, and conform H.R. 1249 to H.R. 1908, as passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on September 7, 2007, and S. 23, as passed by the U.S. Senate on March 8, 2011.

2:22 P.M. – POSTPONED PROCEEDINGS – At the conclusion of debate on the Conyers amendment, the Chair put the question on adoption of the amendment and by voice vote, announced the noes had prevailed. Mr. Conyers demanded a recorded vote and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of adoption of the amendment until a time to be announced.

2:11 P.M. – DEBATE – Pursuant to the provsions of H. Res. 316, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Conyers amendment no. 2.Amendment offered by Mr. Conyers.

An amendment numbered 2 printed in Part B of House Report 112-111 to insert language to move the United States to a first to file system only upon a Presidential finding that other major patent authorities have adopted a similar one-year grace period.

2:09 P.M. – On agreeing to the Smith (TX) amendment Agreed to by recorded vote: 283 – 140 (Roll no. 481).

1:51 P.M. – UNFINISHED BUSINESS – The Chair announced the unfinished business was on the question of adoption of an amendment which had been debated earlier and on which further proceedings were postponed.The House resolved into Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for further consideration.

Considered as unfinished business.

H. Res. 320:
providing for consideration of the bill ( H.R. 2219) making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012, and for other purposes 

1:50 P.M. – On agreeing to the resolution Agreed to by recorded vote: 251 – 173 (Roll no. 480).Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

1:33 P.M. – On ordering the previous question Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: 247 – 168 (Roll no. 479).

12:31 P.M. – DEBATE – The House proceeded with one hour of debate on H. Res. 320.

12:30 P.M. – Considered as privileged matter.

12:28 P.M. – ONE MINUTE SPEECHES – The House resumed one minute speeches.

12:26 P.M. – The Speaker laid before the House a message from the President transmitting a notification of the continuance of the national emergency with respect to the Western Balkans -referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and ordered to be printed (H. Doc. 112-41).

12:24 P.M. – The Speaker laid before the House a message from the President transmitting a notification of the continuance of the national emergency with respect to the proliferation of weapons-usable fissile material on the Korean Peninsula and the actions and policies of the Government of North Korea that destabilize the Korean Peninsula – referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and ordered to be printed (H. Doc. 112-40).

12:04 P.M. – ONE MINUTE SPEECHES – The House proceeded with one minute speeches which by direction of the Chair, would be limited to 15 per side of the aisle.

12:03 P.M. – ADJUSTMENT OF WHOLE NUMBER OF HOUSE – Under clause 5(d) of Rule XX, the Chair announced to the House that, in light of the resignation of the Gentleman from New York, the whole number of the House is 432.

12:02 P.M. – The House received a communication from Cesar A. Perales, Secretary of State, State of New York. Mr. Perales informed the House he had received the resignation of Anthony D. Weiner as New York’s 9th Congressional District Representative in the United States House of Representatives. The New York State Department of State filed the letter on June 20, 2011. A copy of Mr. Weiner’s letter of resignation was attached.PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – The Chair designated Mr. Altmire to lead the Members in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

12:01 P.M. – SPEAKERS APPROVAL OF THE JOURNAL – The Chair announced that he had examined the Journal of the last day’s proceedings and had approved it. Mr. Hultgren demanded that the question be put on agreeing to the Speaker’s approval of the Journal and by voice vote, the Chair announced that the ayes had prevailed. Mr. Hultgren objected to the voice vote based upon the absence of a quorum and the Chair postponed further proceedings on the question of agreeing to the Speaker’s approval of the Journal until later in the legislative day.Today’s prayer was offered by the House Chaplain, Rev. Patrick J. Conroy.

12:00 P.M. – The House convened, returning from a recess continuing the legislative day of June 23.

11:12 A.M. – The Speaker announced that the House do now recess. The next meeting is scheduled for 12:00 P.M. today.

10:01 A.M. – MORNING-HOUR DEBATES – The House proceeded with Morning Hour Debates. At the conclusion of Morning Hour, the House will recess until 12:00 p.m. for the start of legislative business.

10:00 A.M. – The Speaker designated the Honorable Michael G. Fitzpatrick to act as Speaker pro tempore for today.The House convened, starting a new legislative day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  • The Senate Convenes: 10am June 23, 2011
    • Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in morning business until 11:30am with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each, with the time equally divided and controlled between the two Leaders or their designees, with the Majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half.
    • Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S.679, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act with the Vitter amendment #499 regarding czars and the DeMint amendment #510 regarding Bureau of Justice Statistics debated concurrently with up to 30 minutes of debate, with Senators Vitter, DeMint, Reid, and McConnell, or their designees, each controlling 7 ½ minutes.
    • Upon the use or yielding back of time (at approximately 12pm), the Senate will conduct 2 roll call votes in relation to the following:
      • Vitter amendment #499 regarding czars (60-vote threshold)
      • DeMint amendment #510 regarding Bureau of Justice Statistics (majority-vote threshold)
    • The following amendments are pending to S.679, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act:
      • DeMint amendment #501 (IMF bailouts)
      • DeMint amendment #511 (legislative & public affairs)
      • Portman amendment #509 (Comptrollers of Navy, Army, Air Force; Controller of OMB and department CFOs)
      • Cornyn amendment #504 (strike provisions re: Comptroller of the Army, Navy and Air Force)
      • Toomey amendment #514 (strikes the provision relating to the Governors and alternate governors of the IMF and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development)
      • Carper amendment #517 (GAO report)
      • McCain amendment #493 (Navajo and Hopi Relocation Office)
      • Akaka amendment #512 (Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans)
      • Paul amendment #502 (Treasurer of the United States)
      • Paul amendment #503 (Director of the Mint)
      • VOTES
    • The Senate began a roll call vote on the Vitter amendment #499 (czars) to S.679, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act (60-vote threshold); Not agreed to: 47-51.
    • The Senate began a roll call vote on the DeMint amendment #510 (Bureau of Justice Statistics) to S.679, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act; Not Agreed to: 41-57

Adopted S.Res.215, designating the month of June 2011 as “National Cytomegalovirus Awareness Month.”

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Women’s Rights:the Right’s Wars On Women ~~ #Midterm2014Matters

1 Comment

~~ This is a repost from 2/2011 ~~

Yesterday on the House floor, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) blasted the Republican “anti-woman, anti-child agenda.” Noting that Republicans have yet to bring up any legislation aimed at tackling the jobs crisis, she added, “[Republicans] have had time to bring forward an extreme anti-woman agenda.” This assault has been aided and abetted in recent weeks by anti-choicers at the state level as well, and by slick public relations campaigns aimed to convince Americans of the evils of abortion providers. The right is not only targeting abortion services, but also other essential services that provide contraception and other family planning services and programs that provide food and nutrition for many women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. If opponents of choice get their way, it will leave women nowhere to turn — nowhere to get essential family planning services, nowhere to get an abortion, and nowhere to get support once they are pregnant.

A SWIFT ATTACK: Republicans took 18 statehouses in the midterm elections, and strengthened their hold in many others. Fifteen states now have completely anti-abortion governments, which is five more than existed last year. In just the past few weeks, the assault on women’s rights has been swift and stunning. GOP state lawmakers in Arizona and Ohio unveiled so-called “Heartbeat Bills” to “prohibit women from ending pregnancies at the first detectable fetal heartbeat.” The heartbeat can be heard “within 18 to 24 days of conception” and “in almost all cases by six weeks” — a period in which “many women don’t even know they’re pregnant.” By dubbing it an “emergency item,” Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) “fast-tracked” a bill mandating that “pregnant women be shown an ultrasound of the fetus at least two hours before an abortion.” In Kentucky, the state senate also passed a law requiring doctors to show women an ultrasound before an abortion — and if she chooses to avert her eyes, the doctor must describe the image to her. Doctors face a $250,000 fine if they fail to do so, and in Montana, a Republican legislator introduced a bill that would have doctors arrested if they don’t show women an ultrasound. These ultrasound laws rarely result in women changing their mind, but rather “add to the pain of an already difficult decision.” Most shockingly, as Mother Jones reported yesterday, a South Dakota statehouse committee passed a bill that would change the state’s justifiable homicide laws to allow murder in defense of an unborn child’s life — “an invitation to murder abortion providers,” says Vicki Saporta of the National Abortion Federation. This is shocking, especially in light of the long history of violence against abortion providers. Most recently, George Tiller, an abortion provider and frequent target of anti-abortion activists, was shot dead in his church in May 2009 by a man with ties to the state’s anti-abortion movement.

STATE RESTRICTIONS: Reproductive rights have long been under assault at the state level. Numerous restrictions on abortion already exist. For example, more than half of the states (32) prohibit state funding for abortions, except for in cases of rape or incest, or when the woman’s life is in danger. Four states actually prohibit private insurance from covering abortions except when the woman’s life is threatened and that number may soon increase. Twenty-four states require a waiting period for women before an abortion, usually 24 hours, meaning they must make two trips to the abortion clinic. This is a significant barrier for women seeking abortions in states like South Dakota, which has only one abortion clinic. Eighteen states require biased “counseling” for women seeking an abortion, and providers are often forced to tell women about a purported (and completely false) link between breast cancer and abortion (6 states), or about the supposed ability of a fetus to feel pain (10 states), or about alleged “long-term mental health consequences for the woman” (7 states). In this context, recent legislative assaults that further target abortion access are all the more reprehensible.

IN WASHINGTON: Federal funding for abortion is prohibited under the Hyde Amendment, which denies insurance coverage for abortion to women enrolled in government programs . The amendment is unfair to women’s health needs, and in particular, the needs of poor women and minorities, since they are most likely to be enrolled in Medicaid or other government programs for health insurance. As Jessica Arons, Director of the Women’s Health and Rights program at the Center for American Progress, wrote recently: “The Hyde Amendment is a policy that not only violates reproductive rights and principles of gender equity but one that undermines racial and economic justice as well.” Unfortunately, President Obama signed an executive order that applies the Hyde Amendment to the recent health care reforms, including the private plans purchased on health insurance exchanges. But that wasn’t enough for Republicans in Congress, who have devoted far more time to further restricting abortion access than on legislation to address the unemployment crisis. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced H.R. 3 early in the 112th Congress, which would not only make the Hyde Amendment permanent, but expand many of the restrictions on federal funding and coverage for abortions. This is the bill that now infamously tried to redefine rape so that only “forcible rape” victims could be exempt from Hyde Amendment provisions. H.R. 358, introduced by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA), would make it almost impossible for women to get private insurance coverage of abortions through the health care exchanges created by the recent health care reforms, but would also let public hospitals refuse to provide emergency abortion care even when necessary to save a woman’s life. Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) this week introduced an amendment to the continuing resolution, which funds the government, that would prohibit any federal money from going to Planned Parenthood of America for women’s health services, gynecological exams, access to birth control, HIV testing, private care, or infertility counseling. The continuing resolution proposed by Republicans also slashes or eliminates funding for many programs crucial to women’s health: it would completely eliminate the Title X domestic family planning programs, and would also dramatically cut, by $758 million, the Women Infant Children (WIC) program, which provides food for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women. The Republican CR proposal also includes a $210 million cut in Maternal and Child Health block grants.

THE PUBLIC FRONT: This brutal assault on women’s rights is being carried out with the help of a slick — but deceptive — public relations effort by many leading right-wing news outlets. Last month, members of the group Live Action dressed as a pimp and prostitute, and surreptitiously recorded several visits to Planned Parenthood clinics across the country as they asked for help with health exams and abortions for supposedly underage prostitutes. Planned Parenthood alerted federal authorities to a possible child prostitution ring, and there’s no evidence in the tapes that Planned Parenthood planned to enable the fake pimp’s plot. The tapes are also heavily edited, which is not surprising given the group is closely tied to the disgraced Andrew Breitbart, who published their findings on his site. Nevertheless, Fox News has breathlessly taken up the allegations. Pence quickly used the videos to justify his attempt to eliminate all federal funding for Planned Parenthood, saying, “Every American should be shocked that an employee of the largest recipient of federal funds under Title X has been recorded aiding and abetting underage sex trafficking.” A story last month about a Philadelphia abortion clinic that was performing illegal late-term abortions — the doctor was charged with murder and infanticide of viable fetuses — was quickly used by the right-wing to justify its anti-abortion hysteria. Popular blogger Michelle Malkin breathlessly told readers of the “mass murder” done by the “serial baby killer” and his “abortion clinic death squad.” As it turns out, however, the clinic was purposely de-regulated by a Republican Pennsylvania governor years earlier and was operating as a quasi-underground operation. Far from proving that providing abortions is dangerous, the Philadelphia case illustrates what happens when women are driven to desperate measures due to policies like the Hyde Amendment, and would happen more broadly if the anti-choice agenda were successful: abortions will only be available at underground, unregulated, and dangerous clinics.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Huge Wins on Bahrain F1, War on Drugs, and more!!


Just days ago, two things were different – questioning the global “war on drugs” was a huge taboo in government circles, and Formula 1 was set to hold their Grand Prix in Bahrain despite a brutal government crackdown on peaceful democracy protesters.

 
Then our community got involved. 

Within 72 hours, more than 1 million of us joined these two campaigns, and we won! Formula 1 has, under intense pressure, reversed its decision to race in Bahrain and the UN Secretary-General has agreed to establish a new task force on drugs, with world leaders beginning an historic new debate on regulation and decrimalisation.

People power works, and we are seeing it more and more all over the world. Here are two stories of how …

Victory in Brutal Bahrain!

 
Bahrain’s brutal regime uses shotguns on peaceful protesters, and locks up the nurses and doctors that treat them, but wants the world to believe all is normal. They worked hard to get the prestigious Formula 1 Grand Prix to return to the country. Then, with 48 hours until the Formula 1 decision, Bahrain reached out to the U.S. for help and Avaaz kicked into gear!

    In two days, nearly 500,000 Avaaz members joined the campaign and, together, we left over 20,000 messages on the Facebook and Twitter pages of the F1 teams. The Avaaz team spoke to legendary driver Damon Hill, who added his voice to the effort. And media attention mounted.

       But the F1 bigwigs decided to go ahead with the race. The Avaaz campaign was cited in thousands of articles worldwide (NYT, AFP, Reuters, ESPN) and our spokespeople were interviewed on CNN (pictured at right), BBC and many major networks.

Then, Avaaz obtained a leaked internal F1 report which shockingly concludes that Bahrain has “no human rights violations” — turns out F1 only spoke to the government and visited a supermarket! We released our reaction, igniting a media firestorm, and finally … the F1 teams unanimously objected to the race date in Bahrain, forcing F1 to cancel the Bahrain race for 2011!         
Click to watch Avaaz’s Ricken Patel interviewed on CNN

Victory Against the War on Drugs!

The war on drugs has cost billions in tax money, funneled trillions of dollars into organized crime, cost countless lives, and achieved zero results.

 
Yet, for decades, any debate around ending the war on drugs has been quashed. In official circles, it’s “taboo” to talk the about regulation or decriminalisation — some even lose their jobs for doing so.

     Then a group of former presidents formed The Global Commission on Drugs to boldly speak out for reform. They faced one problem — politicians claimed they couldn’t act because there was no public support  for change!  So Avaaz joined the fight.

We launched the campaign, and in one week, our community proved the politicians wrong, with over 600,000 Avaazers calling for an end to the war  on drugs. The ex-presidents and billionaire Richard Branson called a press conference, presented their expert report proposing reform, received the Avaaz petition —  and the response was incredible! Over 2000 media articles were written (AP, IPS, The Guardian), virtually all of them positive!! The taboo was broken…

 
In a strategy meeting that afternoon, the ex-presidents repeatedly looked to our community to help  take the campaign forward, stressing that only grass roots pressure can create the political will for action.

   The next day, the Global Commission and Avaaz met with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.  In 30 minutes of discussion, the Avaaz petition was presented and repeatedly cited as evidence of public demand for an end to the war. Ban took an important step and decided to create a task force to look at new solutions to the problem of drugs! A real and desperately needed debate has finally begun …

A Huge Thanks to Everyone

 
These two stories happened at the same time, and are just two among many, many more. See the Avaaz April reportback here. And in the same two week period that these campaigns took place, Avaaz also played a crucial role in breaking the blackout on international coverage of Syrian repression. Our network of brave citizen journalists in Syria, funded by Avaaz donations, is one of the only sources of information for the world’s media on the nightmare unfolding there.

All of this is only possible because so many of us join Avaaz campaigns with such hope, energy, and vision – signing, telling friends, donating, making phone calls or posting messages. An enormous thank you and congratulations to everyone who’s pitched in!!

When Avaaz started out, we were thousands, and we won sometimes. Now we’re almost 10 million, and we’re winning much of the time! If we keep believing in each other and in change, it feels like anything is possible…

With enormous gratitude for this wonderful community,

 Ricken, Alice, Maria Paz, Emma, Saloni, Brianna and the whole Avaaz team
Support the Avaaz community! We’re entirely funded by donations and receive no money from governments or corporations. Our dedicated team ensures even the smallest contributions go a long way — donate here.

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Breaking News: Dead Heat


News just broke of the Republicans’ huge fundraising haul for May.

 But the truth is Democrats are still in a virtual dead heat for the year-to-date fundraising totals. That makes the next 10 days before the mid-year Federal Election Commission (FEC) reporting deadline absolutely critical. On June 30th, Republicans and Democrats will have to lay it all on the table and report how much money they have in the bank.

 We’re over halfway to our $1 Million grassroots goal — we can’t fall short now.

Help us show how committed grassroots Democrats are to winning back the House for President Obama in 2012. Contribute $3 or more today and House Democrats will match your gift dollar-for-dollar, doubling your impact.

 Media, pundits and our opponents will use these totals as a measure of our chances for success in 2012. We can’t let Tea Party Republicans and their special interest backers like the Koch Brothers gain the upper hand.

 Especially after the Republicans’ fundraising haul, we need every committed grassroots Democrat to get involved.

Contribute today   >>>   http://www.dccc.org/page/m/1d63ca31/1b9dd8ab/492adf3f/4e0cee0c/3558409144/VEsE/

 Robby Mook
 DCCC Executive Director