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Russ Feingold
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Russ Feingold is our best defense against Joe Lieberman and first amendment opponents in the Senate.
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All too often, those who proclaim to have strong principles regarding free speech or domestic spying or torture when “the other guy” is in power abandon those concerns when it’s their own party’s turn at the helm.
Not Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold. He’s the rare person of conviction who stood alone and heroically voted against the Patriot Act when every other member of the Senate voted “aye.” And his principles don’t change just because there’s a new resident at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
But Russ is in a tough battle. He’s trailing his well-funded opponent by a wide margin. If Russ loses, while party bosses on both sides of the aisle can conspire to keep Joe Lieberman in the Senate, it sends a message to every member of Congress that there is no popular support for those who put themselves on the line in defense of our first amendment rights.
Our country can’t afford for Russ Feingold to lose this election.
http://action.firedoglake.com/feingold
Feingold voted against TARP under Bush, and he voted against it again under Obama. He can’t call on the fat cat bankers to fund his race like so many others can.
There’s only one yardstick, and Russ applies it to everyone.
Feingold’s opponent, Ron Johnson, has more “flexible” principles. He’s a millionaire installed by the party chieftans over the objections of local activists. When Wisconsin activists asked Johnson whether he supported the Patriot Act, he said “I wasn’t overly concerned with George Bush in power. I’m a little more concerned about the Patriot Act when you have Barack Obama.”
Johnson, like Joe Lieberman, is no fan of free speech either. Lieberman famously said that “in matters of war, we undermine presidential credibility at our nation’s peril.” Likewise, Johnson said that Feingold was “undermining our troops” by speaking out against the war in Afghanistan, and that it was “extremely harmful to our nation.”
http://action.firedoglake.com/feingold
Russ Feingold is the best defense of civil liberties in the Senate. His defeat would be an enormous blow to the tenuous wall holding back things like biometric ID programs that Joe Lieberman’s Department of Homeland Security is simply salivating over.
The time is coming when Americans will have to decide: do we stand and fight for our right to privacy and individual freedom, or do we capitulate to the continued erosion of our civil liberties?
http://action.firedoglake.com/feingold
Thank you for standing up for our civil liberties, and for all you do.
Best,
Jane Hamsher
FDL Action PAC
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A message from Sen.Al Franken
| Sen. Al Franken recorded a video for you.
Sen. Al Franken recorded a video thanking you for your hard work standing up for Elizabeth Warren, who will now oversee the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In her new role, Professor Warren pledges to be a fierce advocate for consumers and rein in the reckless behavior of Wall Street bankers. Without support from you and other progressive activists, she would have never been appointed. And she needs our continued pressure to hold the White House, the Treasury Department and Wall Street accountable to consumers. This is big, and you helped make it happen. Check out Sen. Franken’s video by clicking here. In the video, Sen. Franken invites you to share your priorities on what the new bureau should work on first. We are working with our friends at the Progress Change Campaign Committee to make sure Professor Warren gets your thoughts. You can watch the video and share your thoughts by clicking here. Thanks for helping protect consumers. Adam Quinn, Campaign Manager |
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Jon – Red Carpet for Bill O
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The Patriot and the Pinhead
As a reward for generously hosting him on the Factor, Jon gave Bill O’Reilly an introduction truly befitting a man of his grace and stature on last night’s Daily Show.
Get the latest news from @TheDailyShow on Twitter. |
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We must act fast!
On September 20, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Water for the World Act, which would enable the United States, to help provide 100 million people around the world access to sustainable – and lifesaving – water and sanitation services.
Now, this landmark bill is in the House of Representatives, but time is running out to pass it. Right now, the House is rushing to complete their work before recessing in October.
Simply put: your help is needed to bring the bill to a vote.
Access to safe water and sanitation lies at the root of achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. If we do not achieve the goal of halving the number of people living without access to safe water and sanitation, we will not achieve many of the other targets, such as establishing universal primary education, eradicating hunger or reducing child mortality.
For women and girls in less developed countries, water and sanitation are critical issues. All across the world, women and girls walk miles carrying back-breaking loads of water for their families. School girls are often doubly-affected. They miss school in order to gather water. And girls are less likely to attend school when the school is lacking clean water and proper sanitation and hygiene facilities. But it doesn’t have to be this way. A study carried out by CARE and Emory University in western Kenya found that access to these vital resources reduced school absenteeism in girls by 37 percent.
For new mothers, access to safe water is critical as well. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, diarrheal disease caused by lack of access to safe water and proper sanitation is the leading killer of children under 5 years old. But we know when women can access safe water and sanitation facilities, they have healthier families and more time to devote to education and business endeavors. In essence, women become more productive members of society, helping lift themselves, their families and their communities out of poverty for good.
The time for the United States to make real progress on this critical health issue is now! Please let your representatives hear that you expect them to take action to save the lives – and protect the dignity – of millions of the world’s poorest people.
Thank you!
Be a Seed for Change 
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