Wednesday, August 6, 2008
McCain Chooses Big Oil Over American Families For Gas Price Relief
Republican incumbent for the U.S. 3rd Texas Congressional District, Sam Johnson, age 78, Republican incumbent for the U.S. 4th Texas Congressional District, Ralph Hall, age 85, and Republican incumbent Senator John Cornyn all stand with Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain, age 72, on the issue of continuing big federal tax breaks (gifts) to big oil even as big oil rakes in new record highs in corporate profits quarter after quarter from struggling American families! (See- Big Oil's biggest quarter ever: $51.5B in all)
In addition to calling for a excess profits tax on big oil companies, Barack Obama proposed Monday that President Bush, if he is truly interested in immediate gas price relief, immediately sign an executive order to sell 70 million barrels of oil from the government operated strategic petroleum stockpile. This immediate supply of crude oil into the oil markets could serve to break the back of speculative commodity traders who many believe are responsible for as much as 50% of the price increase to $4 per gallon of gasoline Americans are paying to big oil companies.
The so-called "Enron Loophole" was created and attached to U.S. Senate legislation in December 2000 by McCain's former campaign co-chair Senator Phil Gramm at the behest of Enron executives. It was this "loop hole legislation" that Enron exploited to speculatively manipulate electricity commodity trading in California energy markets in the summer of 2001, spawning artificial electricity shortages, steep climbs in electricity prices and rolling brownouts across California. It is this legislation that continues to allow unbridled and unregulated oil and gas commodity trading that has propelled gasoline price increases by as much as an additional 50 percent since mid-2007. Republicans in the Senate recently blocked legislation offered by Senate Democrats that would have closed the so-called "Enron Loophole."
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
NYTimes: GOP Drops While Dem Voter Rolls Grow Across U.S.
Voting experts say the registration numbers may signal the beginning of a move away from Republicans that could affect local, state and national politics over several election cycles. In several states Democrats have surprised their own party officials with significant gains in registration." Read the Full Story
This is a trend that has also been observed in traditionally Republican Collin County. During the 2008 Democratic Primary more people voted on the Democratic Primary Ballot than voted for John Kerry (68,935 votes for Kerry) in the 2004 Presidential general election. More than 20,000 people attended the Democratic Party's 2008 Precinct Conventions on March 4th all across Collin County and approximately 4,000 people attended the Democratic Party's 2008 County Convention in Collin County.
There are likely several factors that explain this progressive shift in Collin County. Part of the shift may be explained by Republicans loosing faith in their party leaders. More than half of Republican voters now believe that their Republican leaders, who have controlled America's direction for more than eight years, have taken the country down the wrong track (55%), up from 51% in June, according to a July 2008 Reuters/Zogby national poll of likely voters.
Another part of the shift may be explained by the dramatic population growth across Collin County and the voter demographic shift such growth engenders.
Collin County Historical Populations | ||
Census | Pop. | %± |
---|---|---|
2008~ | 758,500 | +8.5% |
2006* | 698,851 | +11% |
2004* | 625,000 | +27% |
2000 | 491,675 | +86.2% |
1990 | 264,036 | +82.6% |
* - Estimated |
- 28.70% under the age of 18,
- 7.40% from 18 to 24,
- 37.90% from 25 to 44,
- 20.70% from 45 to 64, and
- 5.30% who were 65 years of age or older.
From now and until election day all the Democratic Groups around Collin County will be busy registering new voters and campaigning for the party's local and national candidates. Then, starting on the first day of early voting on October 20th and continuing all the way through to the closing minutes of voting on Election Day November 4th all the Democratic Groups will be busy getting people out to vote.
The Democratic Candidates who will appear on Collin County ballots this fall need your help -- They MUST have your help to win here in traditionally Republican Red Collin County!!
PLEASE contact you neighborhood Obama campaign organizer, the Democratic Party of Collin County, the Texas Democratic Women of Collin County, any of the local Democratic candidates' campaign organizations or any of the other Democratic groups active here in Collin County. Look in the left-hand sidebar of this blog page to find all of the Democratic candidates (see - Democratic Candidates '08) running for office in Collin County that need your help.
PLEASE VOLUNTEER to help Get Out The Vote (GOTV) in this "Change'08" election year!!
Possible that Obama Leads By 100+ Electoral Votes
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Read the full Huffington Post Posting
WaPo Blog: Swift Boat Veterans Take Aim At Obama
The opening assault came over the weekend in the form of a mass email to would-be sympathizers. "As liberal as Kerry was, America faces an even more liberal threat today: Barack Obama," wrote John O'Neill, a founder of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth who co-authored the book "Unfit for Command," the attack (or smear) on Kerry's Vietnam War record."
Read the rest of the story
Monday, August 4, 2008
West Texas Wind Turbines
Listen to this Marketplace Radio Report:
Tom Daley, Democratic candidate for the U.S. 3rd Texas Congressional District, age 44, and Glenn Melançon Democratic candidate for the U.S. 4th Texas Congressional District, age 42, do understand the dramatic revolution to American industry, white and blue collar job availability and personal life style that 21st century clean alternative energy technologies can bring to a 21st century America and Texas. Both Democratic congressional candidates, whose districts meet down the middle of Collin County, stand with U.S. Senate Democratic Candidate for Texas, Rick Noriega, and the Democratic Presidential candidate, Barack Obama, for the deployment of clean alternative energy technologies for a better America and a better Texas.
American Tax Payers Paying the Price for Republican's Zeal to Deregulate
The U.S. Federal Reserve and FDIC were forced into such a Federal bailouts of Bear Stearns in March 2008 and IndyMac Bank in California in July 2008 over these risky sub-prime mortgage loan trading practices. The depth of sub-prime mortgage loan risks to the U.S. economy are yet unfolding with thousands more American homeowners losing their homes every month through foreclosure.
Republicans would rather allow banks and brokers to take unmitigated and unregulated risks, to profit the few, and then socialize the bailout cost of those "too big to fail" by adding the rotten fruits of their bad decisions onto the public debt.
The United States is in the second inning of a recession that will last for at least 18 months and help kill off hundreds of banks, influential economist and New York University Professor Nouriel Roubini recently told Barron's in an interview.
Taxpayers will pay a big price for helping bail out the rest of the financial services industry as well, Roubini said; likely in excess of $1 trillion and possibly closer to $2 trillion. The banks will become insolvent because of mounting losses as a result of the housing bust and because they have only written down their sub-prime loans so far, he said. Still in front of them are their consumer-credit losses, for which they lack the reserves, Barron's reported. He also said there are hundreds of millions of dollars outstanding in home-equity loans that could be worth zero, too.
Democrats favor legislation that will restore the federal banking regulatory authority that the Republicans discarded in their zeal to eliminate any and all protective government oversight in every quarter of American financing and commerce.
Read RawStory's article, "Expert on bailouts: Bank regulators should investigate themselves" for additional background.
WaPo: GOP Tries To Scare New Voters Away From the Polls
House Republicans On Floor Of Empty Chamber in Drill More Holes Push
Excerpts from RawStory:
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It will take more than ten years for drilling new oil wells in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and in off shore locations to drop prices by perhaps as much as a few cents per gal.
On the other hand, while Republicans pontificated in an empty House chamber to gin up an election year political diversion, Barack Obama proposed Monday that the government sell 70 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum stockpile. This immediate supply of crude oil into the oil markets could serve to break the back of speculative commodity traders who many believe are responsible for as much as 50% of the price increase to $4 per gallon of gasoline Americans are paying to big oil companies. (Big Oil's biggest quarter ever: $51.5B in all)
The so-called "Enron Loophole" was created and attached to U.S. Senate legislation in December 2000 by McCain's former campaign co-chair Senator Phil Gramm at the behest of Enron executives. It was this "loop hole legislation" that Enron exploited to speculatively manipulate electricity commodity trading in California energy markets in the summer of 2001, spawning artificial electricity shortages, steep climbs in electricity prices and rolling brownouts across California. It is this legislation that continues to allow unbridled and unregulated oil and gas commodity trading that has propelled gasoline price increases by as much as an additional 50 percent since mid-2007. Republicans in the Senate recently blocked legislation offered by Senate Democrats that would have closed the so-called "Enron Loophole."
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Should Voters Consider the Technology Awareness of 21st Century Candidates?
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There is, perhaps, more to this story than just using and understanding personal computers and Internet technology in the 21st century. Incumbents that have not kept up with the times likely do not understand other 21st century technologies that have the potential to benefit Americans and the American economy.
Case in point is the myriad of 21st century alternative energy technologies that stand poised to revolutionize how Americans, and the rest of the world, generate and use energy.
Republican incumbent for the U.S. 3rd Texas Congressional District, Sam Johnson, age 78, Republican incumbent for the U.S. 4th Texas Congressional District, Ralph Hall, age 85, Republican incumbent Senator John Cornyn and Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain, age 72, all advocate drilling more oil well holes in the ground and coastal areas as America’s primary energy strategy.
All these Republican incumbents also downplay the impact that alternative energy technologies can bring to American and Texas. Do the Republicans advocate drilling more oil well holes because drilling holes in the ground is the most advanced technology they understand? Or, is it something else? Multiple oil company executives did give huge contributions to Senator McCain's campaign just days after his offshore drilling change of heart. (Until very recently Senator McCain was against offshore drilling.)
T. Boone Pickens may be an old Republican, he is sounding awfully like a younger generation Democrat these days. Watch his T. Boone's TV ad:
Younger candidates such as Tom Daley, Democratic candidate for the U.S. 3rd Texas Congressional District, age 44, and Glenn Melançon Democratic candidate for the U.S. 4th Texas Congressional District, age 42, do understand and do use personal computers and the Internet in the course of their daily lives and to support their respective congressional campaigns.
Both Democratic congressional candidates do understand the dramatic revolution to American industry, white and blue collar job availability and personal life style that 21st century clean alternative energy technologies can bring to a 21st century America. Both Democratic congressional candidates, whose districts meet down the middle of Collin County, stand with U.S. Senate Democratic Candidate for Texas, Rick Noriega, and the Democratic Presidential candidate, Barack Obama, for the deployment of clean alternative energy technologies for a better America and a better Texas.
Scientists Mimic Plants' Photosynthesis Energy Production & Storage System
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When electricity — whether generated from a photovoltaic cell, thin-film photovoltaic plastic sheets, a wind turbine or any other source — runs through the catalyst treated electrodes, water is very efficiently split into oxygen and hydrogen gases. It is the hydrogen gas created in this process that can be stored for use in future home energy systems or the hydrogen can be fed into hydrogen powered cars already in production today. That could mean no more $4++ per gallon gas fill ups at the local Exxon Station - rather you could fill up your hydrogen powered car for free with the sun, rather than Exxon, as your energy provider.
Read the full ScienceDaily article here
U.S. Senate Candidate for Texas Rick Noriega supports the development of alternative energy sources such as this. Noriega's opponent, Texas' incumbent Senator John Cornyn, dismisses such alternative energy research and development as "unrealistic" and "against mainstream solutions" such as drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and off shore drilling -- both advocated by Senator Cornyn as priorities over alternative energy development.
It must also be noted that, like Rick Noriega, Collin County U.S. Congressional Democratic candidates Tom Daley, Candidate for the U.S. 3rd Texas Congressional District against Republican incumbent Sam Johnson and Glenn Melançon - Candidate for the U.S. 4th Texas Congressional District against Republican incumbent Ralph Hall also support alternative energy technology development. Both Sam Johnson and Ralph Hall favor the energy positions held by incumbent Senator John Cornyn -- drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and off shore drilling for carbon fossil crude oil as priorities over alternative energy development.
Experts agree that arctic and off-shore drilling would not add significantly oil flow to refineries and it would not cool gas prices at the pump. In 10 years time arctic drilling might drop crude oil prices as much as $0.75 per barrel of crude oil.
That's not to say that continued careful drilling using modern drilling technologies is necessarily a bad idea. Millions of acres of oil and gas leases in the lower 48 states sit undrilled and untapped.
Why are John McCain and other Republicans so urgently trying force the issue of arctic and off-shore drilling when so many acres of oil and gas leases sit untapped in the lower 48 states. Could it be diversionary election year politics? Or, is it something else? Multiple oil company executives did give huge contributions to Senator McCain's campaign just days after his offshore drilling change of heart. (Until very recently Senator McCain was against offshore drilling.)
Even if all the oil wells possible were being drilled today, no one should get the idea that would reduce America's dependence on foreign oil imports or reduce the price we all pay at the pump for a gallon of gasoline. Only significant investments in the development of domestically produced alternative energy technologies will significantly reduce America's dependence on foreign oil imports, improve America's national security and reduce the price we all pay for every form of energy.
All of the Republican candidates, that will appear on the Collin County Voters' ballot this fall, support continuing tax breaks to big Oil and Coal companies for projects such as Arctic and Off-Shore drilling. (read Big Oil's biggest quarter ever: $51.5B in all) These tax subsidies bleed money away from American tax payers and the Texas economy and simple add to big oil profits.
Alternative energy development, particularly like west Texas wind power generation, is already pulling much needed jobs and money back into the Texas economy. Technologies such as developed by MIT can rapidly accelerate solar and wind power investment and development in Texas. After all, anyone who has lived in Texas for very long knows well that the most abundant resources to be found in Texas are wind and sun!!!
Why aren't the Republican candidates John McCain, John Cornyn, Sam Johnson and Ralph Hall supporting alternative energy development when it can be so good for the Texas economy?
U.S. Senate Candidate Rick Noriega Calls for Alternative Energy Strategy
The Dallas Morning News article includes in its news observation, "Mr. Noriega does not, however, support drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, which is believed to contain significant oil deposits." --A position supported by Noriega's opponent, Senator John Cornyn-- The article goes on to report that Mr. Cornyn's campaign dismissed Mr. Noriega's energy plan [for national renewable energy resources strategy] as unrealistic. Senator Cornyn's campaign manager Rob Jesmer wrote in a statement, "The sad truth is Rick Noriega is against many mainstream solutions [solutions such as drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and off shore drilling as advocated by Senator Cornyn] that will put America on the path to a comprehensive energy plan."
Rick Noriega's alternative energy plan can be found - here.
Texas Democratic Senate candidate Rick Noriega has served in the Texas House of Representatives and is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Texas Army National Guard. Noriega was deployed to Afghanistan for one year and served as deputy garrison commander of the KMTC training facility in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Watch Noriega's YouTube videos displayed in the right sidebar of this blog page!!
Obama Wants Full Voting Rights for Florida and Michigan Delegates
Precinct 4 Commissioner Race Added To Collin Co. Fall Ballot
The July 2008 death of long time Precinct 4 Commissioner Jack Hatchell opened up a vacancy for the remaining 2 years of his commissioner's term. The Precinct 4 Commissioner's office position will be added to the appropriate "ballot styles" by the Collin County Elections Office for the 2008 General Election. The Precinct 4 Commissioner's District falls generally in the south western portion of Collin County. People who live in that district will see that race as one of their ballot position choices for the General Election this fall. (See Precinct 4 Commissioner's District Map PDF.)
In the interim, former GOP county chair Kathy Ward was last month appointed to fill the Precinct 4 Commissioner's office until the November election. Ms. Ward has also been named by the Republican Party of Collin County to stand for election to that office in the General Election to fill the remaining 2 years Hatchell's term.
It was announced at the July 26th monthly "4th Saturday" meeting of the Democratic Party of Collin County (DPCC) that long time Plano Attorney Jean Power was filling with the County Elections Department to form a campaign committee to run as the Democratic candidate for the Precinct 4 Commissioner's District. Ms. Power made a few brief remarks at the DPCC "4th Saturday" meeting expressing her strong desire to serve her community as the Precinct 4 Commissioner.
Ms. Power also gave DPCC members attending the DPCC 4th Saturday meeting a brief summary of her professional background and community service. Ms. Power is the Managing Partner of Power Family Law and has practiced family law in Plano for 18 years. She is a former president of the Plano Bar Association and has served on the Board of Directors of the Rape Crises Center of Collin County and the All Saints Catholic School Advisory Committee. She is also a former president of the Collin County Social Services Association. Ms. Power received her law degree from Texas Tech in 1989.
Visit Jean Power's Collin County Precinct 4 Commissioner's Court website for more information.
Related link:Collin County Commissioners Court Democratic Candidates
Largest Asian-American PAC Endorses Obama
GOP Senior Senator Ted Stevens Indicted On 7 Criminal Counts!
The first sitting U.S. senator to face federal indictment since 1993, Stevens has been dogged by an investigation into his home renovation project in Alaska and his dealings with wealthy oil contractors.
TPM Election Central is reporting that Liddy Dole is dumping $10,000 in donations from indicted Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens leadership PAC. Burnt Orange Report is reporting that John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison also accepted donations from indicted Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens leadership PAC.
How Senator Ted Stevens' Alaska house re-do became a federal indictment against Senator Stevens - Reported in the McClatchy Newspaper on Saturday, August 2, 2008
Obama Taps Rep. Emanuel for Debate Negotiations
McCain The Low-Road Warrior
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Is the low road working for McCain? According to recent Quinnipiac polls taken in swing-states since McCain shifted to a harshly negative low-road posture, he has gained ground on Obama in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
By the end of last week Obama had started to toughen his rhetoric too, and so had his campaign. But now it's time for Obama go on the hard offense, to batter McCain for his gaffes and incoherence, hammer him for his flip-flops, highlight how his maverick status is a thing of fiction, and turn him into a combination of Bush and Grandpa Simpson.
There is also an interesting article in the Chicago Tribune. In this Tribune article Ed Rollins, a longtime Republican strategist, said McCain sometimes appears frustrated and angry when he talks about Obama, especially when complaining that the press does not treat him fairly. "John needs to be the deliberate, experienced veteran and not the grumpy old man," Rollins said. "If he's the grumpy old man, angry that the media is not in love with him anymore because they're in love with Barack Obama, that's not going to play well with the public." Go to the Chicago Tribune article here:
On ABC's Sunday "This Week" program, longtime Washington hand David Gergen took umbrage with John McCain's recent attack ads, charging that the Senator was using coded messaging to paint Barack Obama as "outside the mainstream" and "uppity." - Read more at Huffington Post
Then there are a couple of postings from AmericaBlog that points out why the Swift Boat type attack may not work in this election year. Go to the AmericaBlog positings here and here.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
U.S. Senate Candidate Rick Noriega Latest Polling Info
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Noriega's struggle, as it has been throughout his campaign for the Texas U.S. Senate seat, is to raise enough money to buy radio and TV spots to make himself more widely known to voters across Texas, which, as we know, is a very big state.
Cornyn's campaign is flush with money. Among his contributors, according to the Burnt Orange Report, John Cornyn has accepted donations from indicted Alaskan Senator Ted Steven's leadership PAC.
For two months running Cornyn has polled below 50% while more than half of Republican voters now believe that their Republican leaders, who have controlled America's direction for eight years, have taken the country down the wrong track (55%), up from 51% in June, according to a July 2008 Reuters/Zogby national poll of likely voters. On top of those facts, add that Senator Obama's presidential polling numbers are also within competitive striking distance in Texas and there's clearly an opening for Noreiga, if he can pull together the campaign contributions to stay competitive.
On the topic of campaign contributions -- The Texas Democratic Women of Collin County (TDWCC) recently endorsed Texas State Legislator Rick Noriega for the office of U.S. Senate. TDWCC membership voted to make a $1000 contribution to Noriega's campaign coffers on July 23, 2008. The picture at left shows Stephen Sargent accepting the $1000 contribution from Barb Walters, TDWCC President, on behalf of Rick Noriega's campaign on July 28 at the organization's monthly membership meeting.
Rick Noriega will speak at the Democatic Party of Collin County's Ann Richard's Dinner and fundraiser at the Heritage Ranch Country Club in McKinney, TX on August 16, 2008.
Texas Democratic Senate candidate Rick Noriega has served in the Texas House of Representatives and is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Texas Army National Guard. Noriega was deployed to Afghanistan for one year and served as deputy garrison commander of the KMTC training facility in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Watch Noriega's YouTube videos displayed in the right sidebar of this blog page and watch the video below to get to know him a little!!
Texas State Representative,
Military Veteran of War, and
Lieutenant Colonel - Texas Army National Guard
Friday, August 1, 2008
Judge Jim Jordan for Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court
It is important to study all the candidates and make an informed decision from your Presidential Candidate choice all the way down to whichever candidate is named last on the ballot.
Casting your vote to elect Judge Jim Jordan as Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court is an example of how to bring about change in Texas.
Judge Jordan believes, “A judge wears a black robe -- not a red or blue robe.”
Here are three things Judge Jordan wants to address:
1. Fix the current, growing, backlog in the Texas courts
2. Stop the bias in favor of insurance and corporate parties.We need to demand that the court release statistics on backlogged cases by judge. In 2000 there were 102 cases pending; in 2007, there were 177!
Although each justice is obligated do his or her own part to work to reduce the backlog and to timely work on the matters assigned to them, the Chief Justice is uniquely positioned, as the leader of the court, to use peer pressure and bring appropriate and effective procedures to bear on the backlog problem. The fact that the public awareness of the backlog has spurred recent activity by the court demonstrates that transparency and pressure can have a beneficial effect.
3. Remove the selection of judges from partisan politicsJudge Jordan states that “decisions should be based upon the law and the constitution, not upon the justices’ political views or to advance a personal agenda.”
The legal community has noticed this trend, and recent studies have confirmed it. Professor David Anderson of the University of Texas School of Law wrote an article last year (“Judicial Tort Reform in Texas”) where he concluded based upon empirical data gathered for the years 2005 and 2006 and upon an analysis of the court’s opinions during this time that the court was serving a political ideology. His study found that the Supreme Court has been in favor of business and insurance defendants more that 85% of the time and that jury verdicts overturned by the court had all been in favor of the plaintiffs. While I believe it is dangerous to determine the quality of a justice by keeping a keep score card of who wins and who looses, these numbers are overwhelming.
Visit Judge Jordan's website for more information, including his answers to a Dallas Morning News questionnaire.The influence of politics and money in the selection and retention of judges is harmful to a fair judicial system. Partisan political elections on a November ballot where judicial candidates raise money almost exclusively from attorneys and parties who appear in their court erode trust in our judicial system. However, we can start making a difference now by making sure that when the Governor appoints a judge to complete the term of a resigning judge, the nominee goes through a rigorous public examination to ensure we select judges with the proper qualifications, experience and judicial temperament, rather than for their ability to help the party in power.
The Texas Democratic Women of Collin County (TDWCC) recently endorsed Judge Jim Jordan for the office of Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court. TDWCC membership voted to make a $1000 contribution to Jordan's campaign coffers on July 23, 2008. The picture at left shows Judge Jim Jordan with Barb Walters, TDWCC President, on July 28 at the organization's monthly membership meeting where he received the TDWCC's $1000 contribution.
You can review Judge Jordan’s responses to the position questionnaire submitted to him by the Texas Democratic Women of Collin County (TDWCC) and discover why the TDWCC endorses him for the office of Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court.
Judge Jordan’s qualifications and experience are above reproach:
Judicial Experience:
- Judge 160th District Court; former judge 44th District Court.
- Elected by 39 fellow District Court Judges as the Local Administrative District Judge of Dallas County, Texas; Former President, Garland Bar Association.