What did the Supreme Court just do to our democracy?
"American citizens have repeatedly amended the Constitution to defend democracy when the Supreme Court acts in collusion with democracy's enemies, whether they are slavemasters, states imposing poll taxes on voters, or the opponents of woman suffrage. Today, the Court has enthroned corporations, permitting them not only all kinds of special economic rights but now, amazingly, moving to grant them the same political rights as the people. This is a moment of high danger for democracy so we must act quickly to spell out in the Constitution what the people have always understood: that corporations do not enjoy the political and free speech rights that belong to the people of the United States."
- Professor Jamin Raskin, constitutional law expert at American University's Washington College of Law and Maryland state senator
Go to Freespeechforpeople.org to see what we can do.
SAVE IDAHO PUBLIC TELEVISION
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter has proposed a four-year phase out of state support for Idaho Public Television. Such a move, if endorsed by the Idaho Legislature, will mean the end of a true, statewide public television service in Idaho. Public television viewers in rural areas of Idaho are most in danger of losing service.
Idaho Public Television, more than 40 years old, is in grave danger of losing its statewide reach unless legislators can be convinced to reject the governor’s budget recommendations.
Be a part of this critical statewide effort to convince the Legislature, and particularly the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee (JFAC) that writes the state budget, to reject the governor’s recommendation and continue support of Idaho Public Television. [How you can help]
Recreating History
By THOM GEORGE
Special to The Press
In response to the My Turn column of Jan. 16 by Ruthie Johnson ("Don't let Democrats recreate history"), I would like to clarify some of the historical distortions created by Ms. Johnson's reprinting of largely discredited material that has been circulating on the Internet since 2006, material that she attributes to Frances Rice, leader of the National Black Republican Association.
Ms. Rice goes back in history citing examples of the racist past of Democrats without ever putting these examples into historical context. She paints the image of the Democratic Party as a monolithic and static organization the same today as it was 155 years ago, failing to acknowledge the reality that political parties are in fact made up of various and diverse factions that are dynamic and ever changing. Lincoln, the Republican, may have ended slavery, but it is the modern Democratic Party of the last 62 years that has led the fight for civil rights.
Beginning with Democrat FDR's New Deal policies, the Democratic Party began to shift toward economic intervention and support for civil rights and liberties.
Democratic President Truman's 1948 Executive Order 9981 desegregated the United States military.
The 1964 Civil Rights Act was introduced by Democratic President John F. Kennedy in a speech on June 11, 1963. After President Kennedy's assassination, Democratic President Johnson, in his first address to Congress, told the legislators, "No memorial oration or eulogy could more eloquently honor President Kennedy's memory than the earliest possible passage of the civil rights bill for which he fought so long." [READ MORE]
Meet Keith
Keith Allred was raised in Twin Falls, Idaho. A fifth-generation Idahoan, he grew up fishing on Silver Creek and hunting in the mountains near the family homestead his great-great-grandfather Allred grubbed out of sage brush over a century ago.
Project Homeless Connect -
Helping Our Homeless Neighbors
The recession has increased the number of homeless people in the Coeur d’Alene area considerably.
On January 28th, Region 1 Coalition for the Homeless is organizing Project Homeless Connect which will provide free on-site services and referrals and distribute needed warm clothing, personal items, blankets etc. to homeless people who include veterans, children and even pets.
Please help by bringing items from the list below to the Democratic Headquarters between business hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. through January 22, 2010. If you would prefer to give money, checks can be made out to: North Idaho Veteran's Stand Down.
• Winter clothing-hats, gloves, scarves, coats, long underwear (don’t forget kids’ clothing)
• Personal & feminine hygiene items
• Diapers and baby food
• Canned goods
• Pet food
• Spaghetti lunch supplies
See additional details on our events page.
For more information contact Amy at 661-8734
Communication Changes Coming for 2010
The Kootenai County Democrats are continuing to improve the way we communicate. This will be critically important in Election Year 2010. A first step was implementing a weekly e-blast, I.E. "News and Views", to keep you apprised of current events and critical updates. In addition, we are making the following changes in the way we do things.
First, "The People's Voice", which has been published off-site for the past few years (thanks to Fred Glienna), will be produced in house and limited to four pages.
In addition, we will align it to reflect the vision of the local, state, and national party including articles on relevant issues and targeted opinion pieces.
Due to its restricted length, we will use only one local opinion piece, chosen from those submitted, in each issue. However, we will post suitable opinion pieces, not selected for the newsletter, on our website. [Click here] to submit an opinion for the winter newsletter. The DEADLINE is January 8.
We will continue to distribute the newsletter electronically. However, for an annual subscription of $5.00, we will mail them to you. [Click here] to request a subscription.
After a trial period, we will be soliciting sponsors for the quarterly newsletter and the weekly e-blast from our constituent business community. We hope to produce a new revenue stream for the local party and highlight businesses owned by fellow Democrats.
We welcome your feedback about these changes. [Click here] to offer feedback.
We have a new office sign
We hope to get it installed on the outside of the building in the near future. Look for it the next time you drive down East Sherman Avenue.
A Message from the Kootenai Democratic Club
My Dear Democratic friends,
On Monday, November 23, 2009, our Turkey Drive Chair-David Larsen, Larry Telles and myself delivered over $900 and 280 pounds of food to the Cda Food Bank. I want to thank all of you for your donations! The Director of the food bank was so grateful because as you may have guessed this has been a challenging year to keep the food bank shelves even slightly replenished.
Once again, I am proud of your community activism and grateful for your support.
Thank you!
Tamara Lee Poelstra
President, Kootenai Democratic Club
Mixing church and state in health care debate
- Post Register (op-ed)
By Debu Majumdar / Local columnist
A few decades back, major decisions in the U.S. were made on the basis of scientific logic and the greater good of the public, although nationalism, competition with the Soviets and the Cold War also played a part. Now, sadly, I am watching the degradation of the decision-making process. Emotions have become king, and more and more religion, which the Constitution forbids to be mixed with state affairs, is playing a role. The country does not appear to be of the people, by the people, for the people, but for the conservative, religion-driven few.
These small, vocal minorities want to dominate policies, and they are unwilling to admit the world has changed.
The case in point is the recent health care bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. I am all for health care reform to put the country on par with other industrialized nations, but the House Democrats were forced to accept an amendment sponsored by Stupak, a Democrat, and Pitt, a Republican, that will make women's choices for health care difficult. The representatives were forced to trade women's health for political power. A small item has decided the fate of the century's most important bill.
There is already a federal law on the books that forbids the use of federal money for abortion, but that was not enough for some. This is a subordination of women's health for religious reasons. Using religion-based weapons to kill otherwise good bills will lead to far-reaching restrictions at other times as well, cloaking a violation of the Constitution and foretelling disaster in the long run.
I like what Vice President Joe Biden said before the election: as a Catholic, he would not endorse abortion, but he would not reduce the freedom of a woman if she chooses abortion based on her moral principles.
What disturbs me is that one religion's morality has dictated the public health policy of women of all religions. Remember that different religions have different views on many subjects, as has become increasingly obvious when we encounter the different moral views of the Muslims. In some parts of the Muslim world, women must cover their heads or wear full-body coverings, and are forbidden to drive cars or choose their own husbands.
While conservatives here may look on these practices with derision, they seem to want to start down the same road -- restricting other peoples' choices because of their own religious beliefs. The Founding Fathers separated church and state for a very sound historical reason: They had seen governments dominated by religious beliefs bring untold strife and suffering to people.
America is a multireligious nation; one religion's morals should not trample other religions' views through opportunistic politics.
Majumdar is a physicist and writer who lives in Idaho Falls.
More arms to bear
Various causes cited for gun-sales surge
October 25, 2009 in Idaho Voices
Jacob Livingston
Thom George may have been a foreigner in North Idaho, but he wasted little time in adjusting to the area’s outdoor-oriented lifestyle.
After moving to a sprawling plot of countryside south of Coeur d’Alene roughly eight years ago, the Queens, N.Y., native immediately set out with an Idahoan-inspired shopping list to obtain a few necessities: his driver’s license, a pickup truck, one golden retriever and a 12-gauge shotgun.
“They told me that was as close to being an Idaho native as I’d ever get,” George said, recalling the friend’s advice. Having never owned a gun before, his wife questioned the spree, but George told her, “We live on 23 acres and our nearest neighbor is down the road, so I said we are 911 if something were to happen because it could take an officer a while to get to our place.”
While that attitude is widespread in traditionally red-state Idaho, where gun ownership is an ingrained part of the outdoor mindset and hunter’s education serves as almost a rite of passage, what is outside the majority is his political affiliation. “I’m a gun-toting Democrat,” offered George, who serves as chair of the Kootenai County Democratic Party and has a concealed-weapon permit, which allows him to carry the .357 Magnum he bought for personal protection when he sold real estate in rural areas.
Gun advocates and proponents regularly cross party lines in many states, particularly in the West and Midwest regions that boast strong traditions of hunting and shooting sports. However, one thing remains constant across the country: gun and ammunition sales surged in the last year. (Read More)
Kootenai County Democrats Headquarters
1124 Sherman Avenue,
Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814
Hours of Operation: Monday - Friday: 10am to 2pm
Dial 208-765-0965 or email us!
