East Bay Kerry

Bush doesn't want to hear from the American People

From today's MediaCorps alert:

Earlier today we asked you to call in your questions to George Bush tonight during an exclusive interview with Larry King at 9:00 p.m. EST.

We just found out that George Bush will NOT be taking any questions from viewers. In fact, Bush's appearance on Larry King LIVE is taped.

Should we have expected anything different?

At campaign stops across the country, the Bush-Cheney campaign has routinely barred individuals who disagree with the president from attending public events with Bush, and the Republican National Committee has required event-attendees to sign endorsement forms that pledge their support for the re-election of Bush.

If we can't get into Bush's events and we can't ask him any questions during a rare, exclusive hour-long interview, WHEN will we ever get the chance to ask him the important questions? When are we going to get the chance to ask him what he plans to do about the 1.9 million Americans have lost their jobs under his watch? Or that 44 million Americans still don't have access to health insurance? That our children and young people will shoulder a deficit that is already out of control? That higher education is completely out of reach for most Americans?

Think it's already bad enough? Check out newspaper clips of some of the latest Bush campaign stories --

Bush Spokesman Says Woman Should "Come To Her Senses" and Support Bush If She Wants To See Him. [Arizona Republic, 8/12/04] Sue Walitsky, communications director for the Kerry-Edwards campaign in Arizona, had a valid ticket to see Bush speak at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Pheonix, AZ, but the Bush-Cheney campaign refused her admittance with no explanation. Walitsky said that she wore no Kerry button and did not bring any Kerry campaign chum that would have upset Bush supporters. Danny Diaz, a spokesman for the Bush campaign said, "If she's willing to come to her senses and support him, we'll be happy to welcome her in." Walitsky said that the Kerry campaign allows everyone with valid tickets, regardless of political affiliation, to attend Kerry campaign events.

Campaign Staff Rips Up The Tickets Of Three Teenagers. [Reno Gazette-Journal, 6/19/04]] In Reno, Nevada, Bush's campaign workers stalked the line of attendees to a Bush rally to ensure that only his supporters were allowed inside. "Three Reno teenagers had tickets pulled out of their hands and ripped to pieces by a campaign staff member after someone in line pointed out an anti-Bush sticker on one of the teens' shirts." 17-year old Jonathan Daniel tried to assure staff that he wouldn't make trouble and only wanted to hear the president on the issues. The campaign would not be swayed. Daniel protested, "I believe it's my right as an American to hear where he is leading our country."

Family of Three Was Kicked Out Of Bush Event For Bringing A Pro-Choice T-Shirt. [Saginaw News, 8/6/04] The Millers, a family of three - husband, wife and daughter - were removed from a Bush-Cheney campaign event because the wife, Barbara Miller, brought a pro-choice t-shirt with her. A campaign worker confiscated the t-shirt informing the family that "We don't accept any pro-choice, non-Republican paraphernalia." The campaign worker returned an hour later with another worker and a security guard and accused the Millers of "smuggling t-shirts." Barbara Miller, who brought the t-shirt because she was cold and had not considered the implications of its pro-choice logo, reports that a guard grabbed their three tickets from her hand and ripped them up "violently and told her, 'They're no good anymore.'" A Bush campaign spokeswoman, Jennifer Millerwise, defended the right of the campaign to ask individuals who intend to "disrupt campaign events" to leave. "These events are put on ... for people of an open mind who are interested in hearing [Bush's] positive message and his vision for a future," she said. Theresa Miller, the daughter, said that was what she was there to do. "I'm not an American? I can't see my president?" she asked.

Here's what you can do to make a difference:

Write to all the major news networks with your questions for George Bush. Ask the major news networks to focus on the number of Americans who want George Bush to answer the real questions. Ask your friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers to join you in this effort.

To email CNN, click here.
To email MSNBC, click here.
To email ABC, click here.
To email FOX, click here.
To email CBS, click here.
To email NBC, click here.

Don't let this happen to you. If we can't get our questions directly to our president, let's take them right to the American people.

Latest CA Poll

Latest from The Field Poll:

President
Kerry -- 51%
Bush -- 40%
Nader -- 2%
Undecided -- 7%

Favorable/Unfavorable
Kerry -- 58/35
Bush -- 42/53

Who Better as VP
Edwards -- 53%
Cheney -- 38%

Still more work to do.

Three more months! Three more months!

One more reason I love Teresa!

Tuesday, August 3, 2004; 2:02 PM

MILWAUKEE, Aug. 2 -- A week ago she told a writer from a Pittsburgh newspaper to "shove it," and on Monday night the never-bashful Teresa Heinz Kerry offered up another attention-getting line, saying four more years of the Bush presidency would be "hell" for the country.

Heinz Kerry was introducing her husband, John F. Kerry, at a huge outdoor rally here when a group of Bush supporters, armed with a megaphone, started chanting from a distance, "Four more years! Four more years!"

Without hesitating, Heinz Kerry responded, "They want four more years of hell."

The candidate threw back his head with a laugh, and the partisan, pro-Kerry crowd roared its approval, chanting, "Three more months, three more months," with Heinz Kerry joining in. When it was his turn to speak, Kerry called the Bush chanting supporters "goons" and said of his wife, "She speaks her mind, and she speaks the truth -- and she's pretty quick on her feet, too."

-- Dan Balz

MediaCorps Assignment: The Bush Results on Jobs: Jobs Lost, Lower Pay

Message of the week from the Kerry-Edwards Volunteer Media Corps.

The current Republican strategy is to mislead the American public by distorting John Kerry's record and accomplishments for political gain.

No matter what the Bush-Cheney campaign does, it cannot speak to the American public like you can. Your letters, your calls, and your commitment to the Kerry-Edwards ticket are the most convincing evidence to your friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers that America can and will do better with John Kerry and John Edwards.

This is why, now more than ever, it is important that you continue to speak out. If you have a moment to spare, write an extra letter to the editor (or two!) between now and November 2, write and show your support for the Kerry-Edwards ticket.

For those of you who are rapid-response buffs, you are going to love your next assignment. Let's move this one out as fast as possible -- if you attended a convention party and met some enthusiastic supporters, or had a chance to meet up with other Kerry-Edwards supporters this past week, please contact them and ask them to participate by writing letters as well. Each day this week I will provide you with more writing points and statistics to use in your letters. If you have friends who are more concerned with one issue over another, send them what you think will be most convincing to them.

Your next assignment:

Bush's new campaign slogan is "results matter." We agree -- results DO matter -- that is exactly why we think America needs Kerry-Edwards. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper and explain why George Bush's poor performance on jobs means that your community should vote for Kerry-Edwards.

• Statistics on the Bush economy and the jobs that have been lost are at the end of this email. Use them as proof of Bush's poor performance.
• Click here for a side-by-side comparison between Kerry-Edwards and Bush-Cheney.
• Click here to send your letter to your local newspaper. If you have the time, please consider hand writing your letter.
• Click here to share your letter with other Media Corps members.

You're the best!

Amanda Michel Internet Team

P.S. Alexa and I have been so overwhelmed with your emails and letters over the last few weeks that it has been difficult to report back to you on everything. Now that we have a database up and running that easily displays all your letters and where you sent them, we'll be in a much better position to respond to you.

The Bush Results on Jobs: Jobs Lost, Lower Pay

• 1.8 Million Lost Jobs. Since George Bush took office, the economy has lost 1.8 million private sector jobs. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
• 7 Million Jobs Short of George Bush's Prediction. After 9/11, the tech bubble, and the recession, the Bush administration predicted nearly 6 million new jobs would be created between January 2001 and May 2004. Instead, we lost more than 1 million new jobs -- 7 million jobs short. [Bureau of Labor Statistics; Economic Report of the President, 2002]
• Jobs Are Shifting to Lower-Paying Industries, Paying $9,160 Less. On average, jobs in growing industries pay $9,160 less -- or 21 percent less -- than jobs in contracting industries. [Economic Policy Institute, "Jobs Shift From Higher Paying to Lower Paying Industries," January 21, 2004]

Grateful Dead: Don't Vote for Nader

From the NY Daily News gossip column via Talk Left:

The Grateful Dead's Bob Weir is pleading with Deadheads everywhere not to vote for Ralph Nader. Performing on Saturday in Boston, Weir told the band's followers to be sure to vote, but then exorted, "Don't vote for Nader. I know him. He's an a--hole," our spies tell us. The band then broke into "Johnny B. Goode," a theme song of the Kerry-Edwards campaign ...

How do we go after Deadhead vote?

08/04 - East Bay Kerry Jobs

We have several vacancies. Can you help? Can you refer someone?

Writers Bureau.

• "Reporters" to write about EBK.
• PR liaison with the EBK PR committee.

Contact: Suzanne Samuel (suzanne4kerry@earthlink.net)

Tech

• Project managers.

Contact: Phil Wolff (pwolff@dijest.com)

Report from the Kerryvan to Reno - 7/31

58 volunteers, from Santa Cruz to San Jose to San Francisco to Sacramento, crossed the mountains to join the Nevada Democratic Party's efforts to deliver Nevada for Kerry-Edwards and to re-elect Sen. Harry Reid. Our results were nothing short of amazing.

On Saturday, we knocked on over 2300 doors and surveyed over 350 people. Despite temperatures reaching the 90s, some of our volunteers were unsatisfied with only a half day in the field. They returned to the office at 2, grabbed something to eat, and went back out, determined to finish their entire precincts. One devoted pair of volunteers worked all the way until 7 pm to finally meet us at the social event in Reno, campaign materials still in hand. I don't have numbers back from Carson City yet, but anecdotally I know that we found quite a few people who wanted to register, who perhaps never would have if we hadn't been there.

Just a sampling of the stories our volunteers had to share:

"My best experience was meeting a 40-ish woman who asked us inside because she was too ill to come to the door. She was being denied the medical care she needed. She was registered but undecided. We listened to her story and told her about Kerry's commitment to healthcare for all while her teenage daughter listened on. They were clearly moved ... and perhaps hopeful for the future. I think she made up her mind to vote for Kerry during our visit, and I believe her life will be changed for the better when President Kerry takes office."

"We went to the door of a man . . . with a severe eye problem, when we began asking about voting he started jumping up and down in support of Kerry; All of a sudden this sick and down person became alive and excited! He then brought us in to meet his finacee (who was on our list) she was equally thrilled to meet us. .... Great experience. Everyone in our country should do it once!!!"

"Young lady in Carson City who got so excited that we had come to offer registration that she advised the caller on her cell phone that she would have to call him/her back as she has more important things to deal with"

"One of the first houses I called on, the woman asked if she could canvass with me."

"the soon-to-be 18 yr old blond curly headed young woman who, when she came to the door of her trailer and spotted my Kerry button said "yes, I want to vote for him" "Mama come here - you'll vote too". Mama says "I never voted before" "That's ok, can I have a brochure?""

"The WW2 vet who told me 'you just can't imagine how I feel right now, what Bush is doing in Iraq. I'm definitely voting for Kerry, thank you for doing this."

"The many people who were super gung-ho on Kerry and so happy to tell you about it! Also, just meeting the other volunteers- really fun."

"we were looking for a woman in a large house subdivided into apartments. Her landlady . . . told us the woman had moved out some time ago. Then, as we were leaving, she saw our shirts and buttons and asked us if we were from the Kerry campaign. She said she really wanted to get rid of Bush but didn't know
much about Kerry, and invited us in. After a few minutes of talking, she gave us her card and said if the local Democrats gave her some lawn signs, she would put them up on her properties, of which there were at least 10 in the area. Then her daughter, who was also in the apartment, said she also wanted to get
rid of Bush but was not registered to vote, so we gave her a form and she registered as a Democrat. (She wasn't sure what party to register for, but her mother said, "Bush is a Republican, dear" and she said, "then I'm a Democrat!")"

Want to go now? Join the Nevada Outreach team's mailing list to learn more.

Our Plan For America : The Book

You wanted talking points? You got it! "Our Plan for America: Stronger at Home, Respected in the World" is a 252 page book. It has Kerry's and Edward's goals, and their action plan to get us there.

Download "Our Plan for America" (1.53 MB)

Two parts.

The first has the plan in three sections: Security, Opportunity, Family. The second is a collection of 13 policy speeches the two gave since October 2002, including Edwards' Two Americas and Kerry's talks on foreign policy. In between: 16 pages of color photos from their campaign.

Three ways to use it:

1. Debate prep. If you're with the East Bay Kerry Speakers Bureau, it has specific bullets on many issues.
2. Letters. If you're writing letters to the editor, handy quotes from the candidates to make your point.
3. Outreach. If you're tabling, registering voters or doing other face-to-face field work, you want to be able to answer questions. Here are the specifics. Read a few pages every day and you'll be an expert before you know it.

Free to download, I'm sure it will be in print soon.

Overview (from the JK.com web site)...

Restore America's Respect in the World and Make us Independent of Mideast Oil

Today, we face four great challenges above all others - First, to win the global war against terror; Second, to stop the spread of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons; Third, to promote democracy, freedom, and opportunity around the world, starting by winning the peace in Iraq; Fourth, end our dependence on Mideast oil. To meet these challenges, Kerry and Edwards will:

Launch and Lead A New Era Of Alliances.

The threat of terrorism demands alliances on a global scale - to utilize every available resource to get the terrorists before they can strike us. Kerry-Edwards will lead a coalition of the able - because no force on earth is more able than the United States and its Allies.

Modernize The World's Most Powerful Military To Meet New Threats.

Kerry-Edwards will ensure that our forces are fully prepared for the dangerous and vital missions they may face, and that America's military always remains second to none. We must extend our capabilities to better face new threats of terrorism, failed states and homeland defense.

Deploy All That Is In America's Arsenal.

The war on terror cannot be won by military might alone. Kerry - Edwards will deploy all the forces in America's arsenal - our diplomacy, our intelligence system, our economic power, and the appeal of our values and ideas - to make America more secure and prevent a new generation of terrorists from emerging.

Free America From Its Dangerous Dependence On Mideast Oil.

To secure our full independence and freedom, we must free America from its dangerous dependence on Mideast oil. By tapping American ingenuity, we can achieve that goal while growing our economy and protecting our environment. Kerry-Edwards will create a new energy and conservation trust fund to accelerate the development of innovative technologies, such as more efficient cars and trucks, the development of biofuels, and creating clean, secure, hydrogen-based energy. Kerry-Edwards will also expand the supply of natural gas, assure 20% of electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020, and make clean coal part of our energy solution.

Create New Jobs, Strengthen the Middle Class, and Ensure Educational Opportunity

Reward Companies that Create Jobs in America.

The Kerry-Edwards plan will end tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas and use the savings to reduce the corporate tax rate by 5 percent, cutting taxes for 99 percent of corporations. The Kerry-Edwards plan also includes a New Jobs Tax Credit for new hiring in manufacturing, other businesses affected by outsourcing, and small businesses.

Strengthen the Middle Class.

As incomes decline and costs rise, families are having a hard time paying their bills, let alone saving for tomorrow. Health care costs are up by nearly 50 percent, college tuition has increased by 35 percent, and gas prices have skyrocketed. A Kerry-Edwards administration will provide relief to middle class families by cutting taxes and investing in health care and education.

Invest in the Jobs of the Future.

To keep America competitive for the future, a Kerry-Edwards administration will invest in research and technology and provide tax credits to unleash innovation in broadband, energy and small business. They will also provide a tax credit on up to $4,000 for each of four years of college tuition. And they will work for responsible immigration laws that honor America's promise and strengthen America's economy and security.

Restore Fiscal Discipline to Washington.

Kerry and Edwards have a record of fiscal discipline that is absent in this administration, and they have promised to live within the budget principles that helped lead this nation to balance the budget. Their plan will cut the deficit in half in four years, increasing economic confidence and keep interest rates from rising.

Provide High-Quality Health Care, Improve Education, and Strengthen Families

Up to $1,000 of Health Care Premium Relief

The Kerry-Edwards plan will provide relief for employers who offer their employees quality health coverage by helping out with certain high cost health cases - saving families up to $1,000 per year.

A Health Plan for Every Child

The Kerry-Edwards plan will pick up the full cost of the more than 20 million children enrolled in Medicaid. In exchange, states will expand eligibility for children's health coverage and low-income adults and enroll every child automatically.

Manage Skyrocketing Health Care Costs

The Kerry-Edwards plan will improve health outcomes while reducing health care costs by cutting administrative costs, waste, fraud, and abuse; enhancing disease management efforts; and reforming malpractice insurance.

World Class Education

The Kerry-Edwards plan will support more resources and more reform in our schools. The plan will fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act so students have smaller classes and more textbooks. The plan will make reform work for our schools, supporting innovations in public schools like smaller schools, all-girls schools focused on math and science, and charter schools. And the plan will invest in afterschool programs so that 3.5 million children have a safe, quality place to go after school.

Every Classroom Has a Great Teacher

The Kerry-Edwards plan will raise teacher pay, especially in the schools and subjects where great teachers are in the shortest supply, and will improve teachers' professional development and training opportunities. At the same time, the plan will create rigorous new tests for new teachers; provide higher pay for teachers who have extra skills and excel in helping children learn; and ensure fast, fair procedures for improving or removing teachers who do not perform well on the job, while preserving protections from arbitrary dismissal.

Every Young Person Graduates

Today 3 in 10 young people do not finish high school, and half of Hispanics, African Americans, Native Americans don't graduate. Kerry-Edwards will keep better track of graduation rates to hold schools accountable for raising them; will offer more tutoring and mentoring to at-risk youth; will make big high schools smaller when they are not working for their students; and will strengthen the high school curriculum so all students can graduate with a meaningful diploma.

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08/14 - Jog Against Bush in Oakland ($)

When: Every Saturday - 8:00 AM

Where: Meet in front of the Rotary Nature Center at Lakeside Park.

What: We'll run around Lake Merritt (once around the lake is a distance of 3.4 miles).

RSVP: Email Susan at suchard2 AT earthlink.net with questions.

Sponsor: Run Against Bush, not sponsored by East Bay Kerry

Classic Kerry photo exhibition

Boston's Gallery Kayafas features photos of John Kerry taken by George Butler over the last 30 years. Kerry with family, testifying before congress, with John Lennon, on the campaign trail, sailing, reflecting in his office. For a limited time only.