Archive for June, 2007

“A Unifying Presence for the Country”

Friday, June 29th, 2007

Alyson, a special education teacher from Halethorpe, Maryland, supports Barack because she cares deeply about our broken healthcare system. She worries about the children she teaches who aren't covered by Medicaid and who don't have access to basic healthcare. Barack, she says, has made a firm commitment to fixing the health care system.

Alyson watched Barack live last night from Howard University gymnasium, and explained why she thinks the country needs the unifying power Barack can provide.

One child that I teach lives in a public housing community. There's violence and drug dealing – he's exposed to things that no five-year-old should be. He threatens people with knives; he got access to a BB gun. He's a sweet, sweet child and in the right environment would be. His mom is a recovering meth addict, but he has this wonderful grandmother who is fully capable of taking care of him. But if his grandmother takes him, he loses Medicaid so won't have medical coverage. So he lives in this unsafe environment or his grandma is stuck with taking on this child with all these issues, and paying for all his doctor's bills, which she can't afford.

I see what happens when the most vulnerable members of our community are denied health services. Barack's making a really firm commitment to fix the healthcare system by the end of his first term. Given all that he's accomplished in the little time he's been in government, I think he can make it happen.

Barack brings people together, and represents this country as a whole. He'll bring people together from a wide variety of communities, locally, nationally, and internationally. His unifying power really draws me to him.

He'll be a unifying presence for the country whether he's President or not, but the country really needs him. We need the kind of moral guidance he would provide.

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Dodd on Supreme Court & Guantanamo

Friday, June 29th, 2007

Earlier today Senator Dodd issued the following statement on the Supreme Court’s decision to hear Guantanamo Bay detainees:

“I am hopeful that the Court sees that several provisions of the Military Commissions Act cannot pass Constitutional muster. In its current form, the Military Commissions Act does not provide a credible process for bringing suspected terrorists to justice, stripping our nation of its moral authority and further imperiling our military personnel abroad.

“Indeed, the erosion of Constitutional rights does not achieve their intended goal of increasing our security. Instead, it has reduced our standing in the world, making us more isolated and ultimately more vulnerable and less secure.

“While the Supreme Court’s review is necessary, I hope that Congress will also do its part to immediately change this law by supporting the Restoring the Constitution Act which develops a tough but fair system of bringing terrorists to justice.”

Video: What Inspires Lloyd Porter

Friday, June 29th, 2007

Lloyd Porter owns a coffee shop in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. He was inspired to join the movement because Barack is reaching out to ordinary people like him.

"His view of what the small person can do, what the individual person can do, what the individual business owner can do," he says, "just with the power of one, it moved me."

As a small business owner, Lloyd says, "time is money." But he's given his money and time to the campaign, volunteering as an organizer with the grassroots group Brooklyn for Barack. 

What's inspiring you to sacrifice for this campaign? 

Campaign Schedule July 3-12

Friday, June 29th, 2007

From Richardson for President:

Tuesday, July 3rd — Eastern Time

When: 3:45 PM

What: NEA Candidates Forum

Where: Philadelphia, PA

When: 10:00 PM

What: Greenville Pots and Pans Parade

Where: Greenville, NH

Wednesday, July 4th — Eastern Time

When: 10:00 AM

What: Amherst Fourth of July Parade

Where: Amherst, NH

When: 1:00 PM

What: Merrimack Fourth of July Parade

Where: Merrimack Commons Parking Lot, 515 Merrimack Daniel Webster Highway, Merrimack, NH

When: 3:30 PM

What: Fourth of July House Party with Bow Democrats

Where: Bow, NH

When: 5:00 PM

What: Goffstown “Job Interview” Event

Where: Stonebridge Country Club, 161 Gorham Pond Road, Goffstown, NH

When: 7:00 PM

What: Fourth of July Fireworks

Where: Holman Stadium, Sargents Ave., Nashua, NH

Thursday, July 5th — Eastern Time

When: 7:45 AM

What: Meet with Teamsters

Where: UPS Warehouse, Nashua, NH

When: 4:00 PM

What: Marlow “Job Interview” Event

Where: Jones Hall — Marlow Historical Society, Church Street, Marlow, NH

When: 7:10 PM

What: Stoddard “Job Interview” Event

Where: Lakefalls Lodge, Aten Road, Stoddard, NH

Michelle Obama: We Can Change the Direction of this Country

Friday, June 29th, 2007

Here's a quick preview of our upcoming video of Michelle in Harlem. 

Michelle asks us all to get involved, no matter how small the contribution:

We've got less than two days to show what this grassroots movement is made of. Are you inspired to give today?