The American Clean Energy Security Act

The House of Representatives just passed the American Clean Energy Security Act --
a victory for our planet and a cause for celebration among all who care for it!

Posted by the Care2 Campaign at www.care2.com

Thousands of letters were sent to Congress, urging them to enact the strong protections against climate change contained within the Waxman-Markey climate bill. Today's victory marks a critical first step in reducing global warming pollution, investing in clean energy technology, reducing our dependence on foreign oil and creating green jobs.

The vote for the American Clean Energy Security Act on the House floor came to an ultimate margin of a mere seven votes, 219-212. Let's pause for a moment to celebrate our success -- and then gear up for what is sure to be a similarly tight vote in the Senate.

Read more about today's victory, and leave a comment with your reactions to this sweeping climate bill. Thank you for all you do for our planet and its inhabitants!

Support Real Health Care Reform with a Public Option
Stand with Dr Howard Dean at www.StandwithDrDean.com/LastChance

Even while Republicans fight tooth and nail against allowing Americans the choice of a universally available public healthcare option; the American people continue to show overwhelming support -- 8 out of 10 Americans in the latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll.

But for-profit insurance companies and HMO's are working hard to strip it from any upcoming healthcare bill. They don't want Americans to have a choice because they know they'll have to lower costs and provide better care. They will stop at nothing to kill real reform and there are a lot of Senators in Congress looking for ways to help them.

Republicans have insurance companies on their side. We have the American people on ours. Now that we have the momentum for real reform, we need to make it clear we won't accept anything less than a strong public option.

We're at 350,000 signatures as of this morning. How many more can we get before I present the signatures this Thursday in Washington D.C.? Please add your name right now or -- if you have already signed -- forward this message to a friend, family member or likeminded co-worker and ask them to join you.

ADD YOUR NAME NOW THEN PASS IT ON

Should EPA Continue Dumping Mining Waste in Kootenai County?

Despite the fact that a review by the Environmental Protection Agency’s own Office Of Inspector General,  "found that the geochemical aspects and potential for releasing dissolved contaminants had yet to be investigated", EPA Region Ten is still planning to resume use of the East Mission Flats Repository to store more than 600,000 cubic yards of toxic mine waste beginning in July. For those of you who may not know where this site is located, it borders a wetland marsh that serves as a floodplain for the Coeur d’Alene River which of course, drains into our beloved Coeur d’Alene Lake. If that isn’t enough to get your attention, consider the fact that this site, located west of Cataldo, is across Interstate 90 from Old Mission State Park, the home of the Mission of the Sacred Heart. This landmark, which resides in Kootenai County, is the oldest building in Idaho and a national historic treasure.

But there's still time to prevent this from happening.

Please email Lisa Jackson at Jackson.Lisa@epamail.epa.gov, or phone her at 202-564-4700, or write a letter to:
Lisa Jackson, EPA Administrator, Washington, DC 20460.

You can also contact Congressman Walt Minnick’s environmental staff person at Devin.Nagy@mail.house.gov or
by phoning him at 202-225-6611. To mail a letter, send it to 1517 Longworth Bldg., Washington, DC 20515.

NOTE: Be sure to put Bunker Hill Superfund site in subject line of your correspondence.

Send the message that the people of the Silver Valley and Kootenai County want Lisa Jackson and Congressman Minnick to get EPA to declare a moratorium on the Mission Repository.

For further details check out the SVCRC website: silvervalleyaction.com

Read the EPA East Mission Flats Progress Report starting on page 4 of the EPA BASIN BULLETIN, Issue No. 22, April 2009.

Read more about EPA Region 10 and the East Mission Flats Repository

Join the conversation at DowntoEarthNW.com\Silver Valley Quagmire.

People are outraged that Senate Democrats are lining up against a public health insurance option supported by 76% of Americans -- all while taking $80 million of health and insurance industry money.

So we decided to do something about it. We made a TV ad calling them out. And now we're inviting you (and your friends) to put your name in the ad before we air it in Washington DC. 

This ad will air on CNN, MSNBC, The Daily Show, and other places that these senators and their staffers will be sure to notice. We'll continually rotate new names in. Please help this idea grow by passing this email on to anyone you think would like to add their name.

Together, we'll make the Senate listen to the vast majority of Americans who say: "We want the public option!" Thanks for being a bold progressive.

                  Click Here to Learn More

Protect Voter Rights - Ask Walt Minnick to Co-Sponsor HR 1719
The Voter Registration Modernization Act of 2009

An important piece of legislation, H.R. 1719, has the potential to change the way we conduct voter registration in this country. Authored by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) this bill needs co-sponsors in order to move forward in an incredibly busy legislative session.

Therefore, please contact Walt Minnick and ask him to co-sponsor this bill. Your support for this vital legislation can make the difference regarding whether this bill get’s attention and moves forward. Passing this bill would help prevent voters from being disenfranchised. That is why we need you to act quickly. See details below.

• Introduced by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, Chair of the Subcommittee on Elections in the U.S. House.

• The Bill would allow citizens to register to vote over the Internet , thus reducing the need for costly registration drives

• The Bill would allow citizens to update their registrations over the Internet through Election Day

• The Bill would require voters to receive updated information via the internet regarding polling locations, times and dates

• The Bill prevents voters from being removed from the rolls for not voting

Presidential Call to Action

Kootenai County Democrats--

The chance to finally reform our nation's health care system is here. While Congress moves rapidly to produce a detailed plan, I have made it clear that real reform must uphold three core principles -- it must reduce costs, guarantee choice, and ensure quality care for every American.

As we know, challenging the status quo will not be easy. Its defenders will claim our goals are too big, that we should once again settle for half measures and empty talk. Left unanswered, these voices of doubt might yet again derail the comprehensive reform we so badly need. That's where you come in....(read more)

Read Local HealthCare Stories or write one of your own.

“With 2009 upon us we must now begin the planning for the election cycle in 2010; there are candidates to recruit, forums to sponsor and voters to identify. Once again we need your help. I humbly ask you to invest in our mutual effort to build a larger, improved and more robust Democratic Party here in Kootenai County.”

Thom George – Chair, Kootenai County Democratic Central Committee

 

By pooling the resources of committed Kootenai County Democrats,
we can acheive our goal.

To all those who have pledged already, THANK YOU.

Will you make a pledge?