independentsforkerry.org

Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette, head of the congressional pro-choice caucus, joined with Democrats around the country in criticizing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney for vowing to “get rid” of funding for Planned Parenthood if he were elected in November.

“Mitt Romney’s declaration that he would ‘get rid of’ Planned Parenthood is yet another dangerous and reckless attempt to score points with the far right at the expense of the health of millions of women,” DeGette said in a release.

“Planned Parenthood provides critical and necessary health services like annual exams, cancer screenings, and family planning for three million women across this country, and in some places their clinics provide the only care for hundreds of miles…. So today it’s clear once again that Mr. Romney’s ideas are too extreme for our nation and the women of America will not stand idly by while he threatens their health care.”

Democrats seized on remarks Romney made during an interview with St. Louis TV station KDSK, mostly reacting to the idea that Romney was seeking to eliminate Planned Parenthood altogether. Yet, it seems clear from context, the candidate was talking about “getting rid of” federal funding for the organization. His language is ambiguous, however, and KDSK teased the story with a suggestive headline: “Mitt Romney: Planned Parenthood, we’re going to get rid of that.”

Romney was answering a question about which programs he would cut to reduce government spending.

“Of course you get rid of Obamacare, that’s the easy one, but there are others. Planned Parenthood, we’re gonna get rid of that. The subsidy for Amtrak, I would eliminate that. The National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, both excellent programs, but we can’t afford to borrow money to pay for these things.”

In a call with Colorado reporters today, Obama for America Deputy Campaign Manager Stephanie Cutter made reference to Romney’s remarks, characterizing them as part of a pattern that exposes Romney as a pandering candidate who is driving moderate voters farther away each day the GOP primary continues.

“He is trailing Obama by 18 percent among women and today he says he wants to get rid of Planned Parenthood,” she said. “Women in Colorado don’t share Romney’s vision of America.”

Last month, Colorado affiliates of the national breast cancer group Komen for the Cure made news for successfully pushing back against efforts by anti-abortion members of the national management team to end Komen funding for Planned Parenthood clinics here.

DeGette lauded the Colorado Komen leaders at the time and referred to those events in her release today.

“In recent weeks women have come together to stand up for Planned Parenthood and the important role it plays in their health and their community,” she said.

[Image: Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette, C-Span screenshot ]

Got a tip? Story pitch? Send us an e-mail. Follow The Colorado Independent on Twitter.

The Colorado Independent

BURNET, Texas (Feb. 9) – Ken Schoolland, a long-term board member of the International Society for Individual Liberty and associate professor at Hawaii Pacific University, has endorsed Lee Wrights for President and joined the campaign as economic advisor.

In libertarian circles Schoolland is best known as the author of the animated video “The Philosophy of Liberty” popular on the Internet. He wrote the illustrated libertarian primer “The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible: A Free Market Odyssey,” which has been translated into more than 40 languages.

Schoolland, who was Hawaii LP chair for five years, is also the author of “Shogun’s Ghost,” an expose on education in Japan, where he taught before accepting his current position in Honolulu. He is a member of the Mont Pelerin Society, an international organization of economists, philosophers, historians, intellectuals, business leaders, and others who favor classical liberalism.

ISIL is a non-profit, non-partisan libertarian educational organization encouraging activism in libertarian and individual rights.

Schoolland issued this statement:

“I like Ron Paul. I like Gary Johnson. I’d probably like all the libertarian candidates running for President. But liking someone isn’t a reason to vote for them. When I became a member of the Libertarian Party back in 1976 I signed a non-aggression pledge. I take that pledge very seriously. That has been my guiding principle ever since.”

“I simply don’t vote for anyone who compromises on that principle, as the Libertarian Party has too often been willing to do in recent years to broaden candidate popularity. I applaud Ron Paul and Gary Johnson for promoting the libertarian program, but if people don’t grasp the underlying principle, then gains will turn to losses in an instant of mob passion. No compromise with principle.

“The libertarian message is rooted in an appreciation of individual rights … not state’s rights, not practical moderation. That is why I enthusiastically join the Lee Wrights campaign and endorse him for the 2012 Libertarian Party Presidential nomination. When I listen to Lee Wrights speak, as he did at the Libertarian Party of Hawaii convention last May – traveling on his own dime – I was reminded of that great, successful libertarian abolitionist, William Lloyd Garrison, who said:

I am aware, that many object to the severity of my language; but is there not cause for severity? I will be as harsh as truth, and as uncompromising as justice. On this subject, I do not wish to think, or speak, or write, with moderation. No! No! Tell a man whose house is on fire, to give a moderate alarm; tell him to moderately rescue his wife from the hand of the ravisher; tell the mother to gradually extricate her babe from the fire into which it has fallen; — but urge me not to use moderation in a cause like the present. I am in earnest — I will not equivocate — I will not excuse — I will not retreat a single inch — and I will be heard.”

R. Lee Wrights

R. Lee Wrights, 53, a libertarian writer and political activist, is seeking the presidential nomination because he believes the Libertarian message in 2012 must be a loud, clear and unequivocal call to stop all war. To that end he has pledged that 10 percent of all donations to his campaign will be spent for ballot access so that the stop all war message can be heard in all 50 states. Wrights is a lifetime member of the Libertarian Party and co-founder and editor of the free speech online magazine Liberty For All. Born in Winston-Salem, N.C., he now lives and works in Texas.

Lee Wrights for President
Contact: Brian Irving, press secretary
press@wrights2012.com
919.538.4548

Independent Political Report

In a press release sent to Green Party Watch, the Green Party of the United States endorsed plans to engage in a long term protest in Washington DC. Echoing the call from October2011.org, the press release quotes Sanda Everette of California.
“In making this endorsement, we’re challenging the dangerous political direction of the US. [...]
Green Party Watch

The American Independent News Network — The Colorado Independent’s parent organization — was accepted into the Association of Alternative Newsmedia as the group’s first web-only news outlet following a vote of approval during its annual membership meeting held in New Orleans last month.

“We are thrilled to welcome the American Independent News Network as our first online-only member,” Tiffany Shackelford, the executive director of AAN, said in a statement. “Its independent voice is an excellent example of the tireless and compelling journalism other online news organizations should aspire to replicate.”

Shackelford added: “We look forward to accepting more online-only news outlets.”

The American Independent, with its eight state and national affiliates, enters the AAN fold after it received the two-thirds votes necessary to gain admission into the alternative press trade group formerly known as the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. The organization approved the name change the same day it accepted The American Independent. Only 30 percent of news outlets that apply for membership with AAN are selected.

Comprising 130 publications that report in every major metropolitan area of the United States, AAN maintains a combined weekly circulation of over 6.5 million as well as an active readership of nearly 17 million in the U.S. and Canada.

Several members of The American Independent editorial team are alumnae of AAN publications, including its executive editor, Blake de Pastino, who reported for publications in the New Times network.

“I’m thrilled,” said Colorado Independent editor Scot Kersgaard. “I’ve been a big Westword fan since moving to Colorado and I wrote for The (Seattle) Weekly when I was in college, so this is like coming home in some ways. The alternative press has always been known for fearless reporting, often covering stories the more mainstream press stayed away from for some reason. The fact that the organization changed its name in order to welcome us into the fold is not only flattering but speaks volumes about how the media landscape in this country is changing.”