Harrisburg TV Coverage of Eichelberger event

Take action at www.WeExist.us

Eichelberger takes our petitions, refuses to apologize. Again.

LGBT leaders and the allies wiated two hours for an apology from Senator Eichelberger. He gave us about one minute, took our petitons, refused to apologive, then turned his back and left.

The video below is unedited, bad sound and all, so that no one can say anything is "out of context."

Take action at http://www.WeExist.us

New Sotomayor poster

Presente and Keystone Progress are circulating our new "I stand with "Sotomayor" poster. Feel free to copy to use on your websites, Facebook profiles, etc.

Eichelberger still can't apologize. Still blaming us for his words.

More local coverage of Senator John Eichelberger on Altoona’s right-wing talk radio. He's still blaming Keystone Progress, instead of taking responsibility for his words.

WRTA-AM 1240. http://www.wrta.com/page.php?page_id=39385

See the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umB6hSVhSJs

And take action at http://www.WeExist.us

Eilchelberger makes statement, of a sort

Senator Eichelberger has finally made a statement about his outrageous comments concerning LGBT people. Did he apologize for calling lesbians and gays “dysfunctional?” No.

Did he admit that he was wrong for saying of same-sex couples that “we are allowing them to exist?” No.

Instead, he blamed us for pointing out the truth. Here’s his statement to WJAC-TV: "This group [Keystone Progress] is a politically active group that goes around the country targeting people that are involved in this issue. If this is an example of how they conduct themselves then it's difficult to continue dialogue and discussion, if people intentionally misportray the truth."

http://www.wjactv.com/news/19849426/detail.html

Had enough of Eichelberger? Take action at: www.WeExist.us

Sen. Eichelberg on Same-sex couples: "We're allowing them to exist"

Check out our new video of Sen. Eichelberg making his bigoted comments:

You can take action at: www.WeExist.us

You can hear the entire debate at: http://www.whyy.org/91FM/radiotimes.html

Join HCAN in DC on June 25 for Healthcare Reform

Join us in Washington for a Healthcare Reform Rally- June 25

Healthcare for all rally in Harrisburg, June 11

Healthcare for All PA, and a coalition of like-minded organizations that includes the Pa. AFL-CIO; Pa. Council of Churches; Pa. Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals (PASNAP); The American Medical Student Association (AMSA); Pa. League of Women Voters, and others invites you to join us in Harrisburg on Thursday, June 11 from 11AM to 12:30 PM for a RALLY FOR SINGLE-PAYER HEALTHCARE FOR ALL on the Capitol Steps. Entertainment kicks off at 11 AM followed by speakers you won’t want to miss beginning at 11:30 AM. Speakers will include Donna Smith (star of Michael Moore’s “SiCKO”); Bill George (President of the Pa. AFL-CIO); Walter Tsou (nationally recognized expert and consultant on public healthcare reform and former Philadelphia Health Commissioner); Chuck Pennacchio (Executive Director of HealthCare For ALLPA and 2006 Primary candidate for the Pa. Democratic Senate race) and several more including some to be announced.

Help us spread the word far and wide. Let’s fill those Capitol steps and send a real message to the Legislature and the media that we are a mass movement that wants real healthcare for all NOW!! EVERYBODY IN. NOBODY OUT!

Click here for rally flyer, click here for Harrisburg driving and parking directions, and click here for bus and rail service. 

Email action@healthcareforallpa.org with questions, need a ride, or have room for passengers.

Taking on the Big Boys, Taking Back Our Health Care System
The savings the taxpayers in each county of Pennsylvania will see under the passage of the Family and Business Health Security Act are listed here.

Healthcare for All Pennsylvania is proud to announce the launching of our 'Print-and-Post' flier campaign to spread the good word about the only proven answer to our healthcare crisis: the Single Payer Solution. SO GO WILD! Print-and-then-Post wherever you work, play, and socialize. Click here for your copy of our flier.

Specter Scorecard Created to montior his voting record

 

 

Arlen Specter has switched teams in mid-season.  He says he's ready to play the game as a true progressive, but after years of being the guy that George W. Bush called his "firm ally when it mattered most," a lot of us are waiting to see if he's ready to knock it out of the park on progressive issues or whether he'll  strikeout when his vote really matters for the progressive team.

To keep track of Senator Specter’s votes on key progressive issues, we’ve created a new website called Specter Scorecard (www.specterscorecard.org).

Specter Scorecard will do two things:

It will keep you informed about key upcoming votes where Sen. Specter's vote will be vital to the success of the progressive position.  We'll give you accurate information about the issue and we'll provide you with the opportunity to take action to help persuade Arlen to do the right thing.

We'll let you know how Sen. Specter has voted on important progressive issues since he made the switch.  We'll display his "progressive batting average" and keep it updated when he takes votes on those issues.

To view the site, click here (www.specterscorecard.org).

If you'd like us to send you updates about changes in the website, click here (http://www.keystoneprogress.org/page/s/specterscore).

Michael Morrill
Keystone Progress

Specter Scorecard is a project of Keystone Progress, PennAction, ProgressNow and True Majority.  
The information on Specter Scorecard is not intended to support or oppose the election of any candidate for public office. The sponsoring organizations encourage you to use this page to support or oppose the issues we have included on this site.

PA newspaper runs ad calling for Obama's assassination

The Warren Pennsylvania Times-Observer (www.timesobserver.com) published an ad today calling for the assassination of President Barack Obama.

The text of the small classified ad reads, “May Obama follow in the footsteps of Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley and Kennedy!”  There is no other text and it has no attribution.  The ad may be viewed here http://morrillmajority.org/warrenad.pdf.

Keystone Progress called the Times-Observer for comment and got a return call from John T. Elchert, the paper’s publisher.  Mr. Elchert was extremely apologetic and wanted to make it clear that the ad did not reflect the paper’s policy.

“It is unfortunate that it made it to press,” said Elchert.  “The person who took the ad didn’t recognize the significance of the names.  We cancelled the ad and turned the information over to the authorities.”

Mr . Elchert said that he contacted the local police who were forwarding the information to federal authorities.

“Unfortunately, the attitude of the person who placed the ad is too prevalent in Pennsylvania,” said Michael Morrill, the executive director of Keystone Progress.  “In the last few days we’ve gotten emails calling the president ‘chimp’ and the n-word after he nominated Judge Sotomayor.  It makes it very difficult to organize around issues when the opposition to the president’s policies is so racially charged. ”

Keystone Progress (www.keystoneprogress.org) is the organization that exposed the racism and hatred at McCain and Palin rallies in Pennsylvania (www.youtube.com/morrillmajority).   They are also helping to organize the campaign to get Governor Rendell to speak out against the beating death of Latino immigrant Luis Ramirez last year in Schuylkill County (http://presente.org/ref/ad/14/campaigns/ramirez/org/keystone).

This is what hate looks like in Pennsylvania

After they had beaten Luis Ramirez to death, the white teenagers who attacked him sent an ominous message to Luis' friends:

"Tell your f**king Mexican friends to get the f**k out of Shenandoah or you'll be f**king laying next to him."¹

Just over a week ago, two of Ramirez's killers were acquitted of all serious charges by an all white jury², with the jury foreman making it clear that justice for Ramirez had no chance in the small town of Shenandoah, PA:

"I believe strongly that some of the people on the jury were racist. I believe strongly that some of the people on the jury had their minds made up maybe before the first day of trial...And I believe the four boys that were involved the most are racist. I absolutely do..."³

The Department of Justice is now looking into Ramirez' death.⁴ But that's only part of what's needed. Where are the leaders in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania? Why has Governor Rendell had nothing to say? His silence is shameful.

Until our elected leaders speak up, we can expect more stories like Luis'--not just in Shenandoah, but across the country. Governor Rendell owes it to Pennsylvanians and Latinos everywhere to condemn and speak out on what's happened. Together we can demand that he does. Please click the link below to add your voice and ask your friends and family to do the same. It takes only a moment.

http://presente.org/ref/ad/14/campaigns/ramirez/org/keystone

If Luis Ramirez's death were an isolated event it would be outrageous enough. Sadly, it's part of a growing trend of racially motivated violence against Latinos, particularly in rural communities. According to the FBI, hate crimes against Latinos rose 35% between 2003 and 2006.⁵ And as author David Niewert writes, the target of hate crimes goes beyond their immediate victims: "The purpose is to terrorize the target community, to drive them out, eliminate them."⁶

That kind of intimidation only works only if the people who are targeted remain silent, and officials in positions of power remain unaccountable. That's why we need to speak out and let folks across the country know we won't tolerate hate and violence towards our communities. It starts with demanding that the Governor of Pennsylvania make clear that anti-immigrant hate has no place in Pennsylvania. It's time for him to show leadership now.

Join us in calling for him to speak out:

http://presente.org/ref/ad/14/campaigns/ramirez/org/keystone

Tell Senators Casey and Specter to support Judge Sotomayor.

Tell Senators Casey and Specter to support Judge Sotomayor. President Obama has said repeatedly that he would appoint the best and the brightest to the courts. He said that he would appoint people who not only had brilliant legal minds, but who also understand how the law impacts the everyday lives of working families. Today he has fulfilled that promise by appointing U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Judge Sotomayor's life story is a remarkable retelling of the American Dream. She grew up poor in housing projects in the Bronx. Sotomayor is a graduate of Yale Law and served as an editor of the Yale Law Review. She was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in 1992 by George H.W. Bush and to the appeals court by President Clinton. Sotomayor would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any justice confirmed in the past 70 years, according to President Obama. Tell Senators Casey and Specter to support Judge Sotomayor. Yet, despite her qualifications, the right-wing is already attacking her, using vile language denigrating her gender and ethnicity. The National Review has called her "dumb and obnoxious.' Fox News has been bashing her non-stop, featuring Karl Rove, and Republican Senators Kyl and Cornyn who have threatened to filibuster her nomination. We belie ve that Judge Sotomayor is one of the most qualified nominees in recent history. Join us in sending a message to our U.S. Senators that we want a quick confirmation after a thorough hearing. http://www.keystoneprogress.org/page/s/pasotomayor Michael Morrill Keystone Progress

Another politician campaigning against Employee Free Choice admits he didn't read bill

PA State Senator Mike Folmer (R-48) was featured at an anti- Free Choice rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on March 31, 2009. After the rally, Keystone Progress asked him what he knew about the bill. His answers clearly showed he didn't understand the bill or he was simply spouting the official talking points. He admitted that he hadn't read the bill.

Take action now to support the Employee Free Choice Act www.keystoneprogress.org

Fannie and Freddie Quietly Lift Foreclosure Moratorium

The Washington Independent just put this up. Please spread far and wide.
A ban on foreclosure sales and evictions from houses owned by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which began as a high-profile effort just before the holidays to keep people in their homes as the government tried to come up with homeowner rescue plans, is over.
Spokesmen for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac confirmed the ban ended March 31, in a response to an inquiry from TWI. The agencies made a major announcement in November to roll out the ban, garnering headlines and extensive news coverage. Freddie Mac CEO David Moffett issued a statement at the time, saying the ban “provides a new measure of certainty” to families facing foreclosures during the holidays.
But its expiration didn’t seem to merit the same level of fanfare, with some housing advocates caught by surprise, scrambling for information today and Wednesday on listservs and in phone calls.
Please read Mary Kane's full story here. http://washingtonindependent.com/37160/fannie-freddie-quietly-lift-moratorium-on-foreclosures

Joe the "Plumber" Shills Against the Employee Free Choice Act in PA

Joe the “Plumber” doesn’t know that card check is already the law.  Video of Joe in Harrisburg, PA today.  Prior to this video, off camera, he admits he hasn’t read the Employee Free Choice bill, yet he comes to Pennsylvania to fight against workers’ rights:

Specter took $235,350 from union busters in 2008

From Talking Union:  http://talkingunion.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/specter-took-250k-from-union-buster-in-2008-then-turned-back-on-workers

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) has spent a career crafting an image of independence and integrity. On March 24 he sacrificed both when he turned his back on the working people in his state. Specter announced that he would not vote to allow the Employee Free Choice Act to receive an up or down vote on the Senate floor; a move that some consider fatal to the legislation. In a statement on the Senate floor he waxed eloquent about his belief that a difficult economic climate is no time for workers to receive a living wage. 

Specter received $235,350 in 2008 from Blank Rome LLP a self described “union avoidance” law firm.

Read the whole article here:  http://talkingunion.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/specter-took-250k-from-union-buster-in-2008-then-turned-back-on-workers

Tip of the hat to Alan Hart from UE News for pointing us to this article.- MM

N.H. House backs single-payer health plan

N.H. Business Review: http://nhbr.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090325/NEWS06/903259997 

N.H. House backs single-payer health plan

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

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The New Hampshire House went on record in favor of a single-payer national health-care system Tuesday, in a last minute, 192-150 roll call vote.

Rep. Jill Shaffer Hammond, D-Peterborough, spoke for the resolution, HCR2, which supports the federal National Health Insurance Act and calls for similar coverage offered in other industrialized nations. The federal act, currently languishing in Congress, goes far beyond what President Obama, and most Democratic candidates running to the left of him, proposed in the last campaign. The act would increase the Medicaid payroll tax to 4.5 percent from 1.2 percent, allowing the federal government to insure everyone not currently insured, said Shaffer Hammond – an amount, she contended, that is far lower than the amount most people currently pay for health insurance.

Already, she said, the government pays for veterans, elderly and the poor, and all high-risk groups with expensive coverage.

Add on government workers, and “we are more than 60 percent there already,” she said.

“No more would the small-business owner faced with a 23 percent increase in insurance premiums have to negotiate a 16 percent increase and then talk to their employees about doubling their deductible,” she said. “No more would a family have to face medical bankruptcy. Let’s liberate our small business to compete locally, nationally and globally.”

Tell Specter: Let the Senate Vote on Employee Free Choice

Tell Senator Specter:

Allow the Senate to vote on the Employee Free Choice Act

Last month we sent an email asking whether Senator Specter was on the side of Rush Limbaugh or on the side of working families. Yesterday he answered the question. Specter came down solidly on the side of Limbaugh and the CEOs of Citigroup, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs.

Specter said he will not allow a Senate vote on the Employee Free Choice Act. In a textbook example of irony, Specter said his reason was his belief in the sanctity of majority voting as a cornerstone of our democracy.

Specter said he will impose his will and refuse to allow the Senate to vote on the Employee Free Choice Act, despite the fact that it is favored by a majority of his fellow Senators, a majority in the House of Representatives, and most importantly, a majority of the American people. Specter said he will use an antiquated Senate rule that allows a minority to block votes to keep this popular bill from passing.

That's not the way the system is supposed to work. And it belies the hypocrisy of Specter's decision.

Click here to tell Senator Specter to let the Senate vote on Employee Free Choice. http://www.keystoneprogress.org/page/s/specterEFCA

If he opposes the bill, he can vote against it, but he should not singlehandedly impose his will on the Senate and working families across the nation.

In Solidarity,

Michael Morrill
Keystone Progress
www.keystoneprogress.org
Follow Keystone Progress on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/keystoneprogres

More on Employee Free Choice:
When workers are free to choose to join a union, our economy can work for everyone again. That's why we need the Employee Free Choice Act-a bill in Congress that would help to level the playing field and give workers the freedom to choose a union.

Employee Free Choice will allow workers to determine whether or not they want a union, without undue intimidation and interference from the employer. It will let workers decide whether they want to hold an election or simply have a majority sign a petition to determine whether or not they can have a union. Both options exist now, but instead of letting the workers decide, current law allows the employer to decide which method is used.

According to American Rights at Work, the Employee Free Choice Act would:

·         Help America's working families improve their standard of living. Workers in unions earn 30 percent higher wages and are 59 percent more likely to have employer-provided health insurance.

·         Fix a broken system that gives corporations far too much power. When workers try to organize unions, they are often harassed and intimidated; 25 percent of companies unlawfully fire pro-union workers.

·         Restore fairness and the promise of the American Dream, with a robust middle class, economic growth, and shared prosperity.

Tell Specter to let the Senate vote on Employee Free Choice:
http://www.keystoneprogress.org/page/s/specterEFCA

SEIU/ CNA Announce Comity Agreement- Huge Victory for Workers!

SEIU, CNA/NNOC Announce Major Accord

Expected to Spur Campaign for Employee Free Choice Act, Spark Major Drive for Healthcare Union Organizing, and Boost RN Standards and Power for Healthcare Workers

OAKLAND, Calif. and WASHINGTON, March 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a dramatic agreement likely to accelerate the drive to pass the Employee Free Choice Act and rapidly promote unionization in the healthcare sector, the Service Employees International Union and the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee today announced the signing of a transformative cooperation agreement.

Under the pact SEIU and CNA/NNOC, the largest unions in the nation representing healthcare workers and registered nurses, respectively, will work together to bring union representation to all non-union RNs and other healthcare employees and step up efforts to enact Employee Free Choice.

Increased union representation in healthcare, say the unions, would play a huge role in strengthening the ability of nurses and other employees to fight for improved patient care standards, promote economic recovery through improved economic standards and sharply assist efforts to enact genuine healthcare reform nationally and in state capitols.

Concurrently, SEIU and CNA/NNOC jointly endorsed measures to allow states to adopt single-payer, or an expanded and updated Medicare for all, as a comprehensive, cost-effective healthcare reform.

"This marks the beginning of a new future for nurses and other healthcare workers and their patients throughout this nation," said Andy Stern, president of SEIU, the nation's largest healthcare union. "We are lining up to make sweeping changes to this country's broken healthcare system, and as we wait for the starting gun it is imperative that we put the past behind us and move forward by putting all healthcare workers in the strongest possible position to define reform, move legislation and make the new healthcare system operational. Is this accord surprising? Perhaps, but those who recognize our shared value of making sure registered nurses and other healthcare workers have not only a say but a critical role in helping reshape a failed system into something that actually helps people know that this is the right step to help us meet the challenge and the call of this moment."

"This is an exciting new day for nurses and patients across the nation," said CNA/NNOC Executive Director Rose Ann DeMoro. "This agreement provides a huge spark for the emergence of a more powerful, unified national movement that is needed to more effectively challenge healthcare industry layoffs and attacks on RN economic and professional standards and patient care conditions. It will also strengthen the ability of all direct care RNs to fight for real healthcare reform and advocate for improved patient care conditions and stronger patient safety legislation from coast to coast."

Today's agreement comes just three weeks after the announcement that CNA/NNOC, with 85,000 current members, will be uniting with the United American Nurses and the Massachusetts Nurses Union to form the largest RN union ever in the U.S. with 150,000 members. Steps to complete that unification are continuing.

Now, augmented by the joint campaigns with SEIU and its 2 million members, the creation of a much larger, stronger, national nurses union and RN movement, with sweeping implications for improving RN standards and patient care protections, is greatly hastened, said CNA/NNOC and SEIU today.

Among key elements of the pact:
The two unions will work together to organize non-union hospital workers throughout the country, with CNA/NNOC as the leading voice for RNs, and SEIU as the leading voice for all other hospital workers.
The unions will launch an intensive national organizing campaign with an initial focus on the nation's largest hospital systems.
In addition to organizing, SEIU and CNA/NNOC will coordinate on a broad range of other issues from bargaining with common employers to the campaign to enact the Employee Free Choice Act.
SEIU and CNA/NNOC publicly endorse measures that allow states to adopt single-payer health care systems.
Both parties will refrain from "raiding," seeking to displace the existing members of the other's organization, or from interference in the other's internal affairs.
The two unions will create a new joint RN organization in Florida to represent current and future RNs of both unions. In all other states, SEIU will continue to represent their current RN members in collective bargaining.

With 2 million members, SEIU is the fastest-growing union in North America. Focused on uniting workers in three sectors to improve their lives and the services they provide, SEIU is the largest health care union, including hospitals, nursing homes, and home care; the largest property services union, including building cleaning and security; and the second largest public employee union.
CNA/NNOC is the nation's largest organization of direct care RNs with 85,000 members in all 50 states.