Barbara Boxer's answer to the Cemex Situation, A Must Read . . .

FROM: KHTS News Broadcast:

Group Gathers Signatures to Block Cemex Mine


Wednesday, 04 April 2012 12:00





by Tim Whyte, SCVNews.com



The nonprofit Safe Action for the Environment Inc. has launched an online petition and letter-writing drive seeking support for Senate Bill S. 759, authored by Sen. Barbara Boxer to stop the development of a massive sand and gravel mine in Soledad Canyon.



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Boxer, D-Calif., has introduced the legislation to resolve a 12-year dispute over the proposed 56-million-ton CEMEX mine just outside the City of Santa Clarita.







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“We’re so grateful to Sen. Boxer for carrying this legislation to help protect the communities that would be adversely impacted by this mine,” said SAFE President Andrew Fried. “This proposed mine would cause unacceptable impacts to the environment, would worsen local air quality, and would severely diminish the quality of life for everyone who lives in the region.”



CEMEX and the City of Santa Clarita reached a truce in their dispute in 2007, agreeing to seek a mutually agreeable resolution. Boxer’s S. 759 would provide just such a resolution, by canceling the CEMEX mining contracts for the Soledad Canyon site and compensating CEMEX through the sale of federal lands near Victorville — properties that are currently on the Bureau of Land Management’s “Disposal List.”



“Sen. Boxer’s bill accomplishes the goal of that truce, and time is of the essence — we need to urge its passage,” Fried said. “It’s a win-win-win for CEMEX, the City of Santa Clarita, the residents who live near the mine and everyone who travels through the area who will no longer face the threat of 1,164 new gravel truck trips every day.”



To sign the petition or write a letter of support, residents can visit www.safe4environment.org and click on the “Sign Our Petition” and “Write to Support S. 759” buttons.



You can also sign the petition by going directly to the Care2 petition site, www.care2.com, and type “S759” in the search window.



Upon completion, SAFE’s petition will be shared with Boxer, Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, and the members of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.



“Our goal is 5,000 signatures, and we’re over halfway there,” Fried said. “Many local residents have signed the petition, and we sincerely appreciate their support for this important legislation. We’re asking everyone in northern Los Angeles County to express their support, too, and help show Congress how vital S. 759 is to our region.”



Additional information about SAFE and its support of S. 759 is available at www.safe4environment.org.



Follow this URL for the SAFE petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/537/274/769/save-soledad-canyon-stop-the-cemex-gravel-mine

"How do I get in contact with the State Party?"

STATE CHAIRPERSONS OF QUALIFIED POLITICAL PARTIES


DEMOCRATIC PARTY
John Burton, Chairperson
THE CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY
1401 21st Street, Suite 200Sacramento, CA 95811-5221
Phone: (916) 442-5707; Fax: (916) 442-5715
Email: info@cadem.org; Website: http://www.cadem.org/

Political County Central Commitee Headquarters

COUNTY CENTRAL COMMITTEE


DEMOCRATIC HEADQUARTERS

Eric Bauman, Chairperson

3550 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1203

Los Angeles, CA 90010

Phone: (213) 382-0063

Fax: (213) 382-1278

Email: info@lacdp.org

Website: www.lacdp.org REPUBLICAN HEADQUARTERS



1903 W. Magnolia Blvd.

Burbank, CA 91506

Phone: (818) 558-7600

Website: http://www.lagop.org



OR



13659 Victory Blvd. #594

Van Nuys, CA 91401

Phone: (818) 332-3731

Website: http://www.lagop.us



AMERICAN INDEP. HEADQUARTERS

Shawn Hoffman, Chairperson

P.O. Box 69301

West Hollywood, CA 90069

Email: hoffman2010boe@gmail.com LIBERTARIAN HEADQUARTERS

Bruce Dovner, Chairperson

P.O. Box 66808

Los Angeles, CA 90066-66808

Phone: (887)884-1776

Website: http://www.lplac.org

GREEN PARTY

Lisa Green, Co-Coordinator

EB Gendel, Co-Coordinator

P.O. Box 8222

Los Angeles, CA 90082

Phone: (310) 619-7714

E-mail: gplac-info@cagreens.org

Website: cagreens.org/lacounty/

PEACE AND FREEDOM PARTY

Re-qualified in 2003.

Cindy Henderson, Chairperson

6199 Canterbury Dr.

Culver City, CA 90230

Unlisted Number

Email: coz42001@hotmail.com

Natural Law is no longer a qualified party





STATE CHAIRPERSONS OF QUALIFIED POLITICAL PARTIES

DEMOCRATIC PARTY



John Burton, Chairperson



THE CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY

1401 21st Street, Suite 200

Sacramento, CA 95811-5221

Phone: (916) 442-5707

Fax: (916) 442-5715

Email: info@cadem.org

Website: http://www.cadem.org/

REPUBLICAN PARTY



Ron Nehring, Chairperson



CALIFORNIA REPUBLICAN PARTY

1903 West Magnolia BL.

Burbank, CA 91506

Phone: (818) 841-5210

Fax: (818) 841-6668

Email: chairman@cagop.org

Website: http://www.cagop.org



AMERICAN INDEPENDENT PARTY



Nathan Sorenson, State Chairman



AMERICAN INDEPENDENT PARTY

4836 Fleming Way

Olivehurst, CA 95961

Tel: (530) 329-8345

Tel: (707) 359-4884

Website: http://www.aipca.org

GREEN PARTY



Jane Rands, Liaison



GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA

716 W. Wilshire Avenue

Fullerton, CA 92832

Phone: (714) 325-5223

Email: jrands_liaison@earthlink.net

Website: http://www.cagreens.org



LIBERTARIAN PARTY



Kevin Takenaga , State Chairperson



LIBERTARIAN PARTY

P.O. Box 66808

Los Angeles, CA 90066-0808

Phone: (818) 782-8400

Toll Free: (877) 884-1776

Email: office@ca.lp.org

Website: http://www.ca.lp.org

PEACE AND FREEDOM PARTY



C.T. Weber, , State Chairperson



PEACE AND FREEDOM PARTY

1403 Los Padres Way

Sacramento, CA 95831

Phone: (951) 422-5395

Email: ctwebervoters@att.net

Website: http://www.peaceandfreedom.org



Natural Law is no longer a qualified party

POLL: Women Voters Abandon GOP In Key Battleground States

A word from Pemy Levy at TMP . . . POLL: Women Voters Abandon GOP In Key Battleground States


Pema Levy  April 1, 2012, 5:55 PM 29927

President Obama has emerged with an impressive lead in swing states around the country — thanks to women voters abandoning the GOP in droves, according to a new USA Today/Gallup poll showing President Obama leading among women voters in the top dozen battleground states by a whopping 18 points — greater than the 12-point gender gap he won with in 2008.

One month ago, the same poll showed Mitt Romney leading the president by 2 percentage points; but Sunday, the newest poll gave Obama a 9-point lead, 51 percent to 42 percent. The change, the poll indicates, comes from women:

“The biggest change came among women under 50. In mid-February, just under half of those voters supported Obama. Now more than six in 10 do while Romney’s support among them has dropped by 14 points, to 30%. The president leads him 2-1 in this group.”

Both Democrats and Republicans point to the battles over contraception coverage as a reason for the shift. Republican strategist Sara Taylor Fagen, a former political adviser to President George W. Bush, told USA Today that “The focus on contraception has not been a good one for us … and Republicans have unfairly taken on water on this issue.”

Obama campaign manager Jim Messina likewise pointed to the GOP’s hang-up on social issues. Most notably, Romney endorsed the Blunt Amendment, which would have allowed employers to deny coverage of contraception, among other services, on moral or religious grounds. A poll commissioned earlier this month by EMILY’s List, the PAC dedicated to electing pro-choice, Democratic women, foundthat 48 percent of voters — including 53 percent among Independents and 40 percent among Republicans — would be less likely to vote for a candidate who supported the amendment.

Romney pollster Neil Newhouse told USA Today that the numbers would narrow and that the drop was not Romney’s fault. He chalked the difference up to a partisan gender gap. That’s historically true — but not at the levels found in the poll. It showed: By 41 percent to 24 percent, women call themselves Democrats; men by 27 percent to 25 percent say they’re Republicans.

It may be a party-wide problem, but if the poll is any indication, Romney’s comments about getting rid of Planned Parenthood and have not done him any favors with women voters, either.

2012, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Women Voters

Pema Levy

Pema Levy is a News Writer at TPM covering the 2012 election. Before coming to TPM, Pema was an assistant editor at The American Prospect where she wrote about politics and the economy.

FROM THE AFL-CIO on Obama's Accomplishments.. .

http://www.aflcio.org/Legislation-and-Politics/Political-Action/President-Obama-s-Accomplishments

President Obama's Accomplishments

Overview
As President Obama’s first term nears its end, it is time to take stock of his accomplishments, as well as to assess progress toward the goals not yet achieved since his historic election. During his first two years in office, the president made substantial progress in dismantling the dangerous legacy left by President George W. Bush and took many steps to put in place a truly progressive, pro-worker agenda.
When the Tea Party took over Congress in 2010, advancing a progressive agenda became almost impossible. But the president has regained his footing, speaking forcefully of the need to restore economic power to the 99%, and using his executive authority to get around Republican obstructionism.
Taking office during the worst economic downturn in a generation, Barack Obama took America from the brink of a second Great Depression by pressing Congress to pass the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which saved or created 3.6 million jobs—and he could have done more if not for resistance from Republicans in Congress. Comprehensive health insurance reform, while far from perfect, gave the promise of health security to millions of our fellow citizens, a goal that had eluded Democratic presidents for nearly 100 years. And Wall Street reform, passed over the objection of almost every single Republican, is beginning to reverse decades of financial deregulation that put our entire economy at risk.
Recognizing that the ARRA had halted the collapse of our economy but had not been large enough to end the jobs crisis, in September 2011 President Obama proposed the American Jobs Act (AJA), which was designed to put hundreds of thousands of Americans back to work repairing our nation’s infrastructure, and provide a new round of state and local aid to help keep teachers, firefighters and other public workers on the job.
Though most of the AJA fell victim to Republican filibusters (only the unemployment insurance and payroll tax holiday extensions were signed into law), the president has not given up: He intends to fight for the most important elements of the AJA during the remainder of his first term. The president also has proposed several major initiatives to revitalize domestic manufacturing, including tax proposals to reduce the incentives to offshore millions of good jobs to low-tax, low-wage countries.
More recently, spurred on by the Occupy Wall Street movement, and in a widely praised speech in Osawatomie, Kansas, the president shined a spotlight on the widening income gap and directly confronted the powerful and the privileged. President Obama called on the rich to pay their fair share in taxes, reaffirming his commitment to let the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy expire and proposing the so-called Buffett Rule to make sure millionaires never pay a lower effective tax rate than the people who work for them. He also has called on Congress to close the so-called carried interest loophole that taxes the incomes of private equity and hedge fund managers at a lower rate than ordinary workers.
Of course, working people have experienced some frustration, too. We were disappointed that action on the Employee Free Choice Act was delayed, and then sidelined, after Sen. Ted Kennedy’s tragic death cost the Democrats their filibuster-proof majority—and opportunities to advance labor law reform through other vehicles went nowhere. The Affordable Care Act is a critical first step toward quality health care for all Americans, but it remains a work in progress without the public option or Medicare for All. In addition, critical issues affecting workers’ ability to bargain healthcare benefits remain unresolved in the implementation of the act. Similarly, we were disheartened when President Obama got distracted by a fruitless debate over the budget deficit, spending the first eight months of 2011 in unproductive deficit talks with Republicans, even though their real mission was to make Obama a one-term president and to undermine Social Security and Medicare. And we opposed the president when he pressed ahead with the South Korea, Colombia and Panama trade pacts—despite the continuing murder of trade unionists in Colombia and the flawed Bush-era terms of those agreements. Finally, we remain concerned that too many important Obama administration initiatives to protect workers and the public—ranging from health and safety protections to rules implementing financial reform—have been stalled or weakened under pressure from business interests.
Three and a half years into President Obama’s first term, America is beginning to dig out of the 11 million jobs hole dug by George Bush and his pro-corporate, right-wing economic agenda. Nearly 3.8 million jobs have been created in the past 23 months and manufacturers have added 334,000 jobs. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) finally is taking steps to level the playing field for workers who want to organize, and agencies that are charged with protecting the lives and livelihoods of workers, from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, now are led by competent individuals who are aggressively enforcing the law.
The labor movement, which played such a big part in President Obama’s 2008 victory as well as helping him pass key elements of his legislative agenda, has plenty to be proud of in the president’s first term in office. But there is much left to be done. This section includes highlights of the administration’s accomplishments for working families to date.
Download President Obama's accomplishments.

A Word from Dr. Gene Dorio

Sometimes physicians take a break from their technical journals and find some scary stuff related to their own profession. The link below is from Consumer Reports concerning common medical devices (some implanted into patients) that have never undergone safety testing in humans!

I am very surprised doctors would allow their patients to be guinea pigs for these products, and I do believe false assurances have been given through the menagerie of government regulation and law. As well I'm doubly concerned since physicians always worry about verifying efficacy and side effects of new drugs, surgical procedures, instruments, electronics, etc. yet seemingly there is little oversight of some new technology.

Please read this and pass it on to friends, as we need increased awareness when scrutiny has been misplaced.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/consumer-reports-magazine/May-2012/medical-devices.html

Gene

President Obama weighs in on Trayvon Martin

We will hopefully exam the law and the details of the case. And hopefully all Americans will take the situation seriously and seeks answers. See for yourself. . .

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/03/23/450701/obama-trayvon-martin/