independentsforkerry.org

FRISCO — Saying the economy is intrinsically intertwined with the environment, U.S. Sen. Mark Udall rolled out a proposal Sunday to designate 236,000 acres of new wilderness in central Colorado and establish a 20,000-acre national monument along the Browns Canyon stretch of the Arkansas River.

He called on the public to help him craft a pair of public-lands bills.

In the first — the Central Mountains Outdoor Heritage Act — the Democratic senator wants to consider 32 pockets in Eagle, Pitkin and Summit counties for wilderness protection, many of them additions to Holy Cross, Eagles Nest and Maroon Bells-Snowmass areas. Udall said he envisions a bill that would foster “a world-class destination for outdoor recreation while protecting pre-existing uses,” such as the Colorado National Guard’s high-altitude helicopter training area.

Draft maps for the proposal are largely based off of Eagle and Summit County wilderness plans that U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colorado, submitted to the House two years ago, along with input regarding Pitkin County from Carbondale-based Wilderness Workshop. The three counties comprise a veritable paradise for skiers, hikers, cyclists, mountain bikers, snowmobilers, hunters and fishermen.

“Many of these areas have been exhaustively vetted and debated,” Udall said.

Sen. Mark Udall in Frisco on Sunday. (Photo by Troy Hooper)

The second bill — the Arkansas River Canyon National Monument and Browns Canyon Wilderness – borrows from former U.S. Rep. Joel Hefley, R-Colorado, in identifying wilderness on both sides of the iconic river between Salida and Buena Vista in south-central Colorado. Hefley introduced a similar bill in 2006 but the legislation didn’t get very far. Hefley’s successor, Rep. Doug Lamborn, abandoned the plan.

“A national monument designation would put a star on the map, drawing more visitors to the area’s world-class river rafting and outdoor recreating activities and support our local tourism economy,” Udall said against a backdrop of blue skies and snow-covered mountains.

As he spoke, cross-country skiers snaked around a meadow in the distance. Giggling children raced inner tubes down a nearby hill. And snowboarders in SUVs passed by on their way to Breckenridge.

“The outdoors is an important part of our quality of life here in Colorado,” Udall continued. “For many outfitters and small business owners the preservation of our state’s majestic mountains and valleys is vital for their livelihoods.” He called for “a collaborative community driven process.”

Eagle County Commissioner Jon Stavney, Summit County Commissioner Dan Gibbs and Breckenridge Mayor Dr. John Warner also spoke in favor of protecting more of Colorado’s rugged landscape, and they emphasized how it serves as the backbone of their economies.

“Future generations will … judge our wisdom by the places we protect,” Stavney said.

As a member of the Senate’s Subcommittee on National Parks and co-chairman of the Outdoor Recreation Caucus, Udall plans to leverage his leadership “to take this [proposal] to the next level.”

Browns Canyon (Image: Friends of Browns Canyon)

Getting Colorado’s conservative congressmen on board could prove difficult. Not only did Lamborn fail to see Hefley’s vision through, he and U.S. Reps. Scott Tipton, Cory Gardner and Mike Coffman have a history of voting against public land protections and for allowing GOP-friendly industrialists to mine minerals and harvest forests.

Udall does have the assistance of Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, who revived a plan to better protect public land in the San Juan Mountains with Udall in September. That bill, which would declare roughly 61,000 acres of southwestern Colorado as federal wilderness or special management areas, had died in the 111th Congress.

Whether the 112th Congress is any better for wilderness remains to be seen.

Another ally for Udall is Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colorado.

“Coloradans want to preserve their quality of life and their opportunities,” said DeGette, who has spearheaded similar measures. “With efforts in the U.S. House and now the U.S. Senate, our state’s precious lands are that much closer to being protected. I look forward to working with Senator Udall to set forth a balanced approach to protecting some of the last remaining wild places in Colorado.”

The Department of Interior also supports several aspects of Udall’s plan.

Udall said it could take several months, or longer, before legislation is introduced in the Senate.

“I don’t have a deadline. Of course if we’re standing here 10 years from now, we’ve fallen short.”

The Colorado Independent

NASHVILLE — More than 3,200 Tennesseans have signed the petition opposing Governor Bill Haslam’s proposal to increase class sizes at public schools, the Tennessee Democratic Party announced Wednesday.

“Some proposals aren’t even worth the paper they’re printed on, and Governor Bill Haslam’s plan to increase class sizes is one of them,” said Chip Forrester, Chairman [...]
TNDP News

On February 6th, in the afternoon, “Green Party” is trending on Yahoo.

Also, a New Jersey media outlet is reporting that in the poll of TMZ (a celebrity gossip website), Roseanne Barr for President is trailing Obama by only 3%. And, the news story also lists by name Green Party Watch, and the other nominees for Green Party President 2012 (Jill Stein, Kent Mesplay and Harley Mikkelson).

(excerpt from) newjerseynewsroom.com
Comedian Roseanne Barr seeking Green Party presidential nomination
Monday, 06 February 2012 07:16

An informal TMZ opinion poll has Roseanne trailing President Barack Obama by only three percent, 39 percent to 36 percent, with Mitt Romney coming in at 25 percent…*

*Note: Some sites are reporting the poll as Barack Obama 38% to Roseanne Barr 35%.

Independent Political Report

Since nixon’s evaporation of the gold standard, the US currency has been backed by little more than confidence. Confidence in the people’s lack of understanding of the monetary system that is. The federal reserve is not federal, it is privately owned.

They can lend multiples of what exists in reserves, under fractional reserve banking. They control the amount of money in circulation, which comes in to existence through loans made to banks and governments. Since the money comes into existence through debt it has to be repaid, but with interest. Therefore the debt is larger than the money supply and inflation, along with defaults and bankruptcy, become permanent problems

The Democratic Republican

In many respects, the demographic profile of Democrats nationwide is similar to what it was in 2008, according to a new Gallup poll, although Democrats have become somewhat less white and more liberal than the party that nominated Barack Obama as its presidential candidate that year.

As a group, Democrats are more likely than average to be women, less likely to be religious or married, much less likely to be conservative, and much more likely to be liberal than the U.S. population as a whole. Democrats remain decidedly more female on average than the national population, with little significant change in this pattern over the last three years. This contrasts with the male skew in the Republican Party rank-and-file.

Perhaps the most significant change in the composition of Democrats between 2008 and today is the two-point increase, from 35% to 37%, in the percentage describing their political views as “liberal.”

Gallup: These results are based on a special Gallup analysis of the demographic and ideological composition of the U.S. population today (based on Gallup Daily tracking from June-August 2011) versus the start of 2008 presidential election campaign (from January-March). This is a follow-up to Gallup’s earlier piece on the composition of the Republican rank-and-file.

For this analysis, the Democratic population is defined as those who either identify as Democrats or who identify as independents but say they lean toward the Democratic Party. Between the start of 2008 and today, the percentage of Americans identifying as Democrats or leaning Democratic has fallen from 50% to 43%. The percentage identifying as Republicans has risen from 37% to 40%, while the percentage of “pure” independents who do not lean toward either party has gone from 12% to 15%. The years 2006-2009 were recent high points in net Democratic affiliation, whereas the current figures showing a close split between Democrats (43%) and Republicans (40%) are more in line with the pattern that was in place between 2001 and 2004.

Key differences between Democrats and U.S. adults nationally, and changes since 2008, include:

1. Perhaps the most significant change in the composition of Democrats between 2008 and today is the two-point increase, from 35% to 37%, in the percentage describing their political views as “liberal.” This occurred at a time when the country as a whole became slightly more conservative, thus expanding the political gap between Democrats and the rest of the U.S.

The change coincides with the decline in Democratic affiliation in recent years, and it may be that moderate or conservative Americans were less well-attached to the Democratic Party and were the first to shift their allegiance — thus leaving a higher concentration of political liberals among those who continue to align with the party.

2. The racial and ethnic composition of the Democratic Party has also changed slightly. The proportion of Democrats who identify their race as black grew by three percentage points, from 16% to 19%, over the last three years, while the proportion that is white (non-Hispanic) fell by three points, from 66% to 63%. This contrasts with a smaller one-point increase in blacks and two-point decrease in whites nationally.

The percentage of Democrats who are Hispanic rose by two percentage points, from 12% to 14%, identical to the increase among all Americans.

3. Democrats remain less likely to attend church weekly and more likely to seldom or never attend church than the national average. The slight two-point decrease in Democrats who attend church weekly is similar to the one-point decrease in the national adult sample.

4. The proportion of Democrats who are Catholic or who identify with a non-Christian religion declined slightly between 2008 and 2011, while the percentage not identifying with any faith increased by four percentage points. The same trends are seen nationally, although they are less pronounced. In general, Democrats are slightly more likely than the national average to have no specific religious identity.

5. There has been little change in the composition of Democrats along age and gender lines. The percentage of the total national adult sample and the sample of Democrats in the 18 to 29 age group has increased slightly over the last three years. The percentage in the 30 to 49 age range has decreased in both groups. Young adults continue to make up a slightly greater proportion of the Democratic base than of the overall population.

Democrats remain decidedly more female on average than the national population, with little significant change in this pattern over the last three years. This contrasts with the male skew in the Republican Party rank-and-file.

6. Democrats are significantly less likely than the U.S. population as a whole to be married, as was true in 2008. The percentage of adults in the U.S. population who are married has dropped since 2008, as has the percentage of Democrats who are married — each by a similar amount.

7. Democrats are now slightly more likely than the national population to be college educated, although the differences are not large. The percentage of Democrats who are college educated has risen from 30% in 2008 to 32% today. The college-educated percentage in the national population rose by one point over the same period.

Bottom Line

Gallup finds relatively little change in the demographic composition of either major party’s supporters since 2008, even though the nation has become less Democratic, and more Republican and independent overall. All in all, Democrats remain decidedly less white, more female, more liberal, less religious, and less likely to be married than the general population.

Liberals and nonwhites have come to make up a slightly greater percentage of the Democratic base since 2008, perhaps indicating that the decline in Democratic affiliation since 2009 was proportionately greater among conservatives and whites.

The 2012 elections will thus likely show the same demographic voting patterns that prevailed in 2008, and that in many cases have been evident in presidential elections going back further in time.

Survey Methods

Results are based on telephone interviews conducted as part of Gallup Daily tracking Jan. 2-March 31, 2008, and June 1-Aug. 31, 2011, with random samples of more than 88,000 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Interviews are conducted with respondents on landline telephones and cellular phones, with interviews conducted in Spanish for respondents who are primarily Spanish-speaking. Each sample includes a minimum quota of 400 cell phone respondents and 600 landline respondents per 1,000 national adults.

Democratic Blog News

Here are some initial results from some of Tuesday’s elections involving Green Party candidates:
St. Paul, MN: Greens posted strong results in all 3 city council races they contested, in the city’s first election using instant runoff voting. In Ward 1, Johnny Howard came in 2nd with 26%. In Ward 2, in a race with 5 [...]
Green Party Watch

I never really thought much about this, but I found this video really interesting.  I didn’t think black people really went out to attack (rape, murder) white people but the figures they present in this video are pretty alarming.
Best News & Politics

We’re thrilled to announce the addition of former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland to next weekend’s Jackson Day Dinner.

Strickland is a lifelong advocate for working and middle class families. He has recently been at the forefront of the grassroots fight to defeat Ohio’s Senate Bill 5, a measure that — similar to the Republican attacks on Tennessee teachers — would severely limit the collective bargaining rights of schoolteachers, police officers and firefighters.

Governor Strickland’s remarks add to an already great program featuring a salute and celebration of our state’s 46th Governor entitled, “The People’s Governor: A Tribute to Ned McWherter.”

The tribute features an address from the legendary John Seigenthaler.

We’re just days away…If you haven’t already purchased tickets to the Party’s “who’s who” event of the year, now’s the time to do so!

The Jackson Day Dinner will be held Saturday, October 1 at the Bicentennial Mall in Nashville.  Doors open at 6 p.m. with the program starting at 7:30 p.m.

For more information or to RSVP, please contact the Tennessee Democratic Party at (615) 327-9779 or visit www.JacksonDay.org.

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TN Democratic Party News

A research study released this month by digital agency SocialVibe found that 94% of voting-age social media users are more likely to watch an entire political message viewed online, and then 39% will share it with an average of 130 friends.

According to the study social media users are more likely to share persuasive political information with friends and colleagues in a matter of seconds from their computer or mobile device as opposed to making phone calls or canvassing. For that reason, social media users are more likely to be influenced by Facebook “friends” than the evening news.

The study also found that an investment of ,000 in a campaign that engages social media users could spread the content online to people of voting age in all 50 states within 24 hours. That’s a lot of bang for the buck.

The SocialVibe study also indicated that political ad campaigns continue to shift more advertising budgets to online and mobile advertising. But it gets a little tricky because the campaigns have the challenge of presenting political messages in such a way that supporters want to share the information.

The key is to facilitate the users or political supporters to share messages or campaigns. Thus, the campaigners will need to become more creative in order to engage and develop loyalty to persuade others such as “friends” to be engaged as well.

The study indicates five key messages for the 2012 political season: Use Facebook and campaign Web sites to engage supporters, supporters carry social media message, go mobile, remember social email, and build loyalty through engaged advertising.

All in all, politicians will have a unique challenge of honestly connecting with people one on one as a personal experience. Approach them online in a conversation with a message that is convenient and beneficial for the social media user.

“Most people like to share personal views and beliefs. Allow people to engage with and personalize messages: This is what drives sharing,” concludes Jay Samit, CEO SocialVibe.

Democratic Blog of Collin County – News

In this video clip posted on the Netroots Nation YouTube channel, Netroots Nation 2011 keynote speaker Van Jones delivers the fiery last few minutes of his speech.

He humorously invokes “Popeye” cartoons, quoting, “I’ve had all I can stand! I can’t stands no more!” and encourages attendees to stand up to the smears and hate-mongering spewed daily by Fox News.

Jones, who joined the White House Staff in March 2009 as Pres. Obama’s environmental adviser on green jobs development, resigned in September 2009 after the rightwing media and blogosphere echo chamber ginned up calls for his ouster in over his past statements and activism.

Jones issued two public apologies in the days preceding his resignation, one for signing a petition in 2004 from the group 911Truth.org that questioned whether Bush administration officials “may indeed have deliberately allowed 9/11 to happen, perhaps as a pretext for war” and the other for using a crude term to describe Republicans in a speech he gave before joining the administration.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs on Sunday said of Jone’s resignation on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos,”Van Jones decided was that the agenda of this president was bigger than any one individual.” The president does not endorse Jones’s past statements and actions, “but he thanks him for his service,” Gibbs said.

The origin of Netroots Nation is traced to first years of the 21st century when a tremendous and growing number of citizens gathered every day in the virtual Internet forum to raise their collective voice and proactively influence their government. That group, broadly called the Netroots, has grown to include progressive organizations and politicians who use new media technologies to communicate with their constituents.

Netroots Nation formally formed in 2007 as progressive organizations and politicians gathered in the first annual Netroots Nation Convention. Netroots Nation amplifies progressive voices by providing an online and in-person campus for exchanging ideas and learning how to be more effective in using technology to influence the public debate. Through the annual convention, and a series of regional salons held throughout the year, Netroots Nation promotes programs that teach and empower the Netroots community of progressive activists and organizations to affect change in the public sphere.

Past Conventions have included a Presidential Leadership Forum that drew seven Democratic candidates, a surprise visit from Al Gore; an interactive Ask the Speaker session with Nancy Pelosi; and hundreds of panels, roundtables, training sessions, workshops and keynotes.

Netroots Nation Convention 2011 held at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, MN during the weekend of June 16th included panels led by

• national and international experts;
• identity, issue and regional caucuses;
• prominent political, issue and policy-oriented speakers;
• a progressive film screening series; and
• the most concentrated gathering of progressive bloggers to date.

Netroots Nation is a project of Bloggerpower.org, a 501(c)4 organization, with the generous support of the Netroots Arts and Education Initiative (NAEI).

Democratic Blog of Collin County – News