Activism

Council delays vote on Iran resolution
By Rex W. Huppke | Chicago Tribune

The Chicago City Council, leaping broadly outside its normal purview, tried to stop the United States from invading Iraq 5 years ago. The nation's third-largest city aimed a strongly worded anti-war resolution right at President Bush, and yet he went ahead and toppled Saddam Hussein anyway.

Undeterred, local politicians have decided to take another shot at repressing international conflict: They're considering whether to oppose a U.S. invasion of Iran.

"We're just out there!" South Side Ald. Freddrenna Lyle (6th) exclaimed Tuesday in the City Council chambers, shortly after dubbing the current administration "war-mongering imperialists."

Info here.

On Tuesday, May 13th, from 8-9 p.m. ET, I'll have the pleasure of interviewing, with your help, the former Senator from Rhode Island. Go to: http://thepeoplespeakradio.net to learn more. Go to http://www.thepeoplespeakradio.net/listen-live to listen live. You'll find instructions there to enter a paltalk chat room where you can post questions, which I will ask. You can also phone in and ask Senator Chafee your questions on the air. Call in tollfree from anywhere in the United States or Canada at 888-228-4494 or anywhere else in the world at 877-489-6350. Following the show, the audio file will be posted at http://www.thepeoplespeakradio.net/audio/2008 and you can find there now the recordings of numerous shows with amazing guests. To support The People Speak Radio please donate at http://www.thepeoplespeakradio.net/donate

The Last Sane Republican
By David Swanson

The Republican Party as a national mainstream organization began with Abraham Lincoln and ended with Lincoln Chafee. Before and after those Lincolns, the party was not something that most Americans could relate to, was not something that many people could imagine offered any sort of benefit to all people as opposed to particular types of people.

By Mark Crispin Miller

Friends, tomorrow (Wednesday, 5/14), I will be testifying before two subcommittees of the House Judiciary Committee, which is looking into how the DoJ has dealt with vote suppression.

I'll be joined by Allen Raymond, the GOP operative who went to prison over his involvement in the party's phone-jamming scheme in New Hampshire's 2002 election (he was the fall guy), and Paul Twomey, the Democratic lawyer whose civil suit over the matter has apparently been thwarted by the DoJ. For my part, I'll be talking about the activities of Sproul & Associates, which ran stealth voter registration drives throughout the nation in the months before the 2004 election.

(The GOP was also supposed to have a witness there, but decided not to.)

The motto of the state of Maine is "I lead" or "I direct." Will Chicago's City Council follow the lead of Harpswell, Maine, in voting opposition to war with Iran?

This article below ran the same day as the town of Harpswell, Maine voted overwhelmingly "to call for peace with Iran by submittng a resolution to Maine Representatives in Congress to:

1. Prohibit the us of funds to cary out any military actions against Iran without explicit Congressional authorization.
2. Ensure US relations with Iran are consistent with international law.
3. Encourage talks without preconditions between the US and Iran n nuclear issues and the ending of violence in Iraq."

Hopefully Chicago and Harpswell will inspire people in other municipalities to push for similar expressions of opposition to the administration's drumbeat for a widened and vastly more disastrous war in the Middle East. When the people lead, the politicians will follow.

GOP 2008
All times in Eastern Standard Time, unless otherwise noted.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
NEBRASKA & WEST VIRGINIA PRIMARIES
MCCAIN
MCCAIN TRAVEL: At 12:30 PM McCain departs Portland, en route Seattle.
[Reuters Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/9/08]

MCCAIN TRAVEL: At 1:25 PM McCain arrives in Seattle, WA. [Reuters
Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/9/08]

UPDATED* MCCAIN in North Bend, WA: At 2:30 PM McCain holds an
environmental roundtable, Cedar River Watershed Education Center, 19901
Cedar Falls Rd SE, North Bend, WA. It is followed by a media
availability. [Reuters Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/13/08]

MCCAIN in Bellevue, WA: At 8 PM McCain attends a finance reception at
the Hyatt Regency Bellevue, 900 Bellevue Way Northeast, Bellevue, WA.
[johnmccain.com, 4/28/08]

MCCAIN TRAVEL: McCain overnights at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue in
Bellevue, WA. [Reuters Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/9/08]

Wednesday, May 14, 2008
MCCAIN

By Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.)

Cindy Sheehan, a peace activist and candidate for Congress in California’s 8th District, will speak at the Omni Charlottesville Hotel on May 22.

The event will last from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Preston Room. Tickets will be available at the door and cost $10 for students; $20 for general admission; $50 for admission and a photo with Sheehan; and $100 for admission, a photo with Sheehan and priority seating. Free parking will be available at the Omni for people attending the event.

Sheehan is running as an independent in an attempt to unseat House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who represents California’s 8th District.

Sheehan, who lost her son in the Iraq War, rose to national prominence in 2005 when she set up an anti-war encampment outside of President Bush’s ranch in Crawford, Texas.

Sheehan has visited Charlottesville twice in the past three years, most recently in July as part of her “Journey for Humanity” tour.

Please call your Congress Member at 202-224-3121 and Email them and ask them to co-sign a letter to President Bush from House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers threatening impeachment if Bush attacks Iran. Below is a note from Conyers asking his colleagues to co-sign. Below that is the letter to Bush.

By Leslie Cagan, National Coordinator, UFPJ

Since last fall, on the third Friday of every month, people in cities and towns around the country have organized protest activities and other events as part of the nationally coordinated Iraq Moratorium. This coming Friday, May 16th, is Iraq Moratorium #9.

First, we want to congratulate the local organizers who keep pulling together these activities. And we also want to congratulate the national organizers who have maintained and expanded this effort, including the Iraq Moratorium website at: http://IraqMoratorium.org

Second, we want to encourage more local groups to get involved. There is still time to organize something in your community, at your school or workplace, or anywhere you might be able to reach people.

All times in Eastern Standard Time, unless otherwise noted.
Monday, May 12, 2008- Tuesday, May 13, 2008
MCCAIN
MCCAIN in Seattle, WA and Portland, OR: McCain will attend events in
Portland and Seattle to promote his longstanding efforts to combat
global warming. [Inside the EPA, 4/23/08]

Monday, May 12, 2008
MCCAIN
MCCAIN TRAVEL: At 11:45 AM McCain departs Phoenix en route to Portland,
OR. [Reuters Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/8/08]

MCCAIN TRAVEL: At 3:05 PM McCain arrives in Portland, OR. [Reuters
Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/8/08]

MCCAIN in Portland, OR: At 3:30 PM McCain tours Vestas Facility and
delivers speech at Vestas Wind Energy Training Facility, Portland, OR.
[Reuters Daybook Campaign Diary, 5/8/08]

MCCAIN in Portland, OR: At 8:15 PM McCain attends a finance reception
and victory dinner at the Sheraton Hotel in Portland, OR.
[johnmccain.com, 4/28/08]

MCCAIN TRAVEL: McCain overnights at the Sheraton Hotel at the Portland

On April 14, 2008 Veterans For Peace, Delwin Anderson Memorial chapter
of Washington D.C. was officially accepted to join the National
Memorial Day parade on May 26, 2008.
http://www.nationalmemorialdayparade.com/ On April 28 Veterans For
Peace received notice that the organization did not meet the criteria
to participate. This notice was sent by the American Veterans Center
which is the organizer for the parade.
http://www.americanveteranscenter.org

The parade director's revocation of Veterans For Peace participation
stated "Unfortunately, we cannot have elements in the parade that have
any type of political message or wish to promote a viewpoint."
Veterans For Peace responded with a request for reconsideration
because there was no agenda for presenting any type of political
message or viewpoint. Veterans For Peace has not received any further
communication from the parade director or the American Veterans
Center.

A panel discussion at the Harvard Law School to examine how to restore America after the Bush presidency will be held this Friday, May 16, 2008, from 1-5 PM in the Ames Courtroom at Austin Hall, Harvard Law School, 1563 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge MA 02138. Map.

• Andy Bacevich, Professor of History and International Relations, Boston University
• Louis Fisher, Specialist in constitutional law at the Law Library of the Library of Congress
• Charles Fried, Beneficial Professor of Law, Harvard Law School
• Norman Ornstein, Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute
• Fritz A. O. Schwarz, Jr., Senior Counsel,Brennan Center for Justice, New York University Law School
• Detlev F. Vagts, Bemis Professor of International Law, Emeritus, Harvard Law School
• Sheldon Whitehouse, US Senate, D-RI, Select Committee on Intelligence and Judiciary Committee

Quest 1 for conference

As a matter of conscience, because the world watches and waits for us
Thanks to Deb Gibbons for this submission.

Because we live free.

New Hampshire Democratic Party NHDP, only one year and 6 months ago took charge in the state. The election turned the State from a Republican 2/3 majority to a Democrat 2/3 majority. From Red to Blue. Blue Hampshire.

A miracle did just that. The color changed, but the leadership did not. The fear still exists, and the Democratic Party of New Hampshire, NHDP is still red. Dare I say yellow, afraid to represent the people who voted them into their House seats?

Democrat Party leaders continue to show they can be intimidated by the Republicans of this state and by some Democrats in Washington. Why has the war not stopped? Intimidation by false threats and a reelection bid are not reasons to continue an illegal occupation in Iraq.

Chicago City Council Considers Resolution Opposing War on Iran

Leading Experts to Testify Against Military Action as Tensions Rise

WHAT: Press Conference & Committee Hearings on Iran Resolution
WHEN: Tuesday May 13 — Press Conference 10:30 AM, Hearings 11:30 AM
WHERE: City Hall — Second Floor Council Lobby & Council Chambers
WHO: Scott Ritter, John Mearsheimer, Stephen Kinzer, Doug Cassel

With the prospect of a U.S. military strike on Iran looming, America's third largest city will decide next week whether to take a stand on this volatile international situation.

Veterans For Peace - Chapter 71, Sonoma County, California - Impeachment Resolution Passes

On December 4, our chapter's work with the Sonoma County Resolution to Impeach Coalition paid off when the Santa Rosa City Council passed our resolution petitioning Congress to begin impeachment proceedings against George W. Bush and Richard Cheney. The city joined ninety other cities and counties that have passed similar resolutions, including Sebastopol, in our county, Arcata, San Francisco, Berkeley, all in California, and others across the U.S.

When Russ Feingold was at his Sawyer County listening session in Hayward this last February, Peace North member Dan Krause (in front of one hundred people) informed him that Wisconsin is leading the nation, per capita, in Iraq Moratorium monthly events....READ MORE.

Congress has heard from politicians, pundits, and generals, but not, up to this point, from the average boots-on-the-ground soldier.

On May 15th, Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) and the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) begin the process of righting this imbalance with Winter Soldier on the Hill. Nine members of IVAW will testify under oath before the CPC about rules of engagement, the killing and abuse of civilians, the use of drop weapons, and the true consequences of the "surge."

Winter Soldier on the Hill will allow the US Congress to be more fully informed about the situation in Iraq through soldiers’ eyewitness accounts of the on-going military occupation, while they debate (more than likely for the last time during the Bush-Cheney administration) the funding for U.S. military operations in Iraq.

Who: Iraq Veterans Against the War & The Congressional Progressive Caucus
What: Winter Soldier on the Hill – An Open Forum
When: 15 May 2008 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Where: 2261 Rayburn House Office Building

LEARN MORE.

Goodbye Bush! We're glad to see you go!

CODEPINK Shows Pelosi in Bed with Bush to Fund War
Take "Bed" and Campout to her Georgetown Condo, SF Home and Capitol Hill

What: Nancy Pelosi and George Bush in Bed Together
When : Thursday, May 8, 2008
Times: 7am Washington Harbour Condominiums 3030 K St NW, Washington, DC
12noon Capitol Building sidewalk @ Independence and New Jersey
4pm Speaker Pelosi's office, Cannon 235 (possible arrests)

CODEPINK condemns Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for her backroom maneuvering, guaranteeing George Bush $162.6 billion more for war. Admitting abdication to the Executive Branch, the Speaker recently stated, ''We would rather just save time and get it over with right from the start.'' CODEPINK's response, "So where is the democratic leadership? In bed with George Bush!"