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LOUISVILLE /JEFFERSON COUNTY

DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEWSLETTER

Week of May 25, 2008

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CLICK HERE FOR CURRENT LIST OF EVENTS

Updated on a regular basis

Bulletin Board:

The Louisville/Jefferson County Democratic Executive Committee meets the 4th Wednesday of every month at 5:00 pm at Democratic Headquarters,
640 Barret Avenue .

Take It—The 2008 Ask a Working Woman Survey by Tula Connell

A woman who spends years in medical school emerges to take her place alongside a panoply of male physicians—who, on average, make 38 percent more than she does. Female attorneys fare better—they make 30 percent less than their male counterparts. But it’s not just a matter of higher pay for men in traditionally male occupations: Male registered nurses are paid 10 percent more than women—even though 90 percent of RNs are women.

This data, from a report by the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees, touches on just one of the many “challenges,” to utilize a euphemism, U.S. working women face today.

Working women have lots of concerns. Equal pay. Balancing work and family. Job security. Health care coverage. Paid maternity leave.

The AFL-CIO and our community affiliate, Working America, are providing a chance to share those concerns through our just-launched online 2008 Ask a Working Woman survey. The bi-annual survey enables working women to share workplace concerns about such issues as equal pay and stronger family and medical leave laws. (Click here to take the survey and here to share it with other working women.) The Ask a Working Woman survey runs through June 20.

We’ll compile the survey results and give them to candidates running at all levels of public office to help shape the policy agendas of incoming lawmakers.

More than 22,000 women took part in the 2006 Ask a Working Woman survey—with the majority saying they were worried about such fundamental economic issues as paying for health care, not having retirement security and pay not keeping up with the cost of living.

And that was when the economy wasn’t in the sewer. Today, 87 percent of Americans say the economy is getting worse, matching the year’s high. But women are at greater economic risk today than in past recessions, according to a new study. In the past year, women’s real wages fell by 3 percent, compared with half a percentage point for men’s wages.

Other findings include:

Women also are disproportionately at risk in the current foreclosure crisis, since women are 32 percent more likely than men to have subprime mortgages.

Women have significantly fewer savings to fall back on in a time of economic hardship. Non-married women have a net worth that’s 48 percent lower than non-married men, and women are less likely than men to participate in employer-sponsored retirement savings programs.

And as working moms know all too well, the United States doesn’t make it easy for mothers to raise children. In a selection of 19 countries with comparable per capita income, the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) found the United States provides the fewest maternity leave benefits in both length of leave and paid time off. That doesn’t include any disability insurance for which mom may qualify.

The U.S. federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which has been the law for 15 years, gives eligible parents 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a new child. Aside from being unpaid, the leave is limited to workplaces of more than 50 employees, which excludes about 48 million workers. About two-thirds of the women who responded to the 2006 AFL-CIO Ask a Working Woman survey said they don’t have paid family leave benefits.

Debra Ness, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families, told a congressional committee last month there are millions of workers eligible to use FMLA but don’t because they can’t afford to take unpaid time off, especially low-wage workers. Said Ness:

Without some form of wage replacement, the FMLA’s promise of job-protected leave is a chimera for too many women and men. In fact, 78 percent of employees who qualified for FMLA leave and needed to take the leave did not because they could not afford to go without a paycheck.

McCain: Out of Touch on Trade by Seth Michaels

At a speech in Florida yesterday, Sen. John McCain made a baffling pronouncement: The rising discontent in our country is not due to job losses, home foreclosures or the health care crisis, but rather the fact that we aren’t passing a bad trade deal with Colombia.

Here’s what McCain had to say at yesterday’s event:

We have made progress toward this vision by expanding the benefits of free commerce, through [the North American Free Trade Agreement], the Central American Free Trade Agreement, and our free trade agreements with Peru and Chile. But the progress has stalled; our longstanding bipartisan commitment to hemispheric prosperity is crumbling. We see this most vividly in Barack Obama’s and Hillary Clinton’s opposition to the free trade agreement with Colombia. The failure of Congress to take up and approve this agreement is a reminder why 80 percent of Americans think we are on the wrong track.

What country is he living in?

Maybe McCain is spending too much time listening to the lobbyists who run and fund his campaign—one top backer actually lobbies for Colombia’s government. Clearly, he’s not listening to the millions of working families who are unhappy about lost jobs, shuttered factories, foreclosures and rising costs.

Nor is he thinking about the exploited Colombian workers who face intimidation, threats and even murder if they try to secure their rights at work. Last year, 39 trade unionists were killed in anti-union violence in Colombia, and 24 have been killed already this year—more than one a week.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney says McCain’s comments on Colombia show he just doesn’t get it.

John McCain glossed over horrific human rights abuses and the deaths of hundreds of Colombian union activists today when he urged Congress to pass the Bush administration’s ill-conceived Colombian trade pact. Workers in Colombia are targeted for violence and blocked from joining unions to lift their lives and prevent exploitation, making fair trade impossible. In fact, Colombia remains the most dangerous country in the world to be a union member. The fact that McCain believes not passing Bush’s bad trade deal with Colombia is the reason Americans think we’re on the wrong track is a measure of how out of touch he’s become with working people’s concerns.

If McCain wants to be taken seriously by working families, he needs to listen to their concerns. They want an economy that works for everyone, not lockstep support of bad trade deals. Workers here and around the world deserve a fair trade policy that protects jobs and the freedom to form unions.

Comments:

Meeting Reminder -- Officer Elections Thursday, May 22

Dear Young Democrat,

Many of you came out on Tuesday to show the nation Kentucky truly is a Democratic state. The Louisville Young Democrats thank you for your commitment to our party and our cause, and we ask you to join us at 7p.m. this Thursday at Louisville Democratic Headquarters, 640 Barret Ave., to help us choose who will lead our organization for the next year.

While the general election is more than five months away, we still have a lot of work ahead of us. We need to work to make history in the Presidential election. We need to work to ensure Rep. Yarmuth fends off Anne Northup. We need to Ditch Mitch and elect Bruce Lunsford to the U.S. Senate.

The Louisville Young Democrats play a vital role in helping to promote and elect Democratic candidates. Our officers are leaders within the party, working with the candidates and the causes we all hold dear.

Newly Elected Officers

Jessica Kessinger is President

Jessica Brown is President-Elect

Lauren Ingram is Secretary
Nicole Candler is Treasurer
Steve Bittenbender is Communications Director
Kenya McGruder is Social Director

Please send your questions or RSVPs to lydinfo@gmail.com.

Seventy-two members of the United States Senate voted in a bi-partisan fashion today to support our nation's veterans by providing those who serve with the opportunity to attend college.

Both Senator Obama and Senator Clinton cast their votes in favor of this measure to provide for those willing to sacrifice in Iraq with the same benefits our country provided for the brave men and women who served our country in WWII.

Senator McCain, who is on record opposing this measure, was absent. Kentucky's Mitch McConnell and Jim Bunning, both cheerleaders for the failed Bush policy in Iraq, chose to turn their backs on veterans and voted no.

It's time to send a message to McCain, McConnell and Bunning. Time and again they've supported the reckless policy in Iraq, and time and again they've failed the troops they helped put there.

We can do something about McCain and McConnell this November. Please tell your friends, family and neighbors to join us to help elect Democrats this November.

Sincerely,

Jennifer A. Moore
Chair, Kentucky Democratic Party

P.S. Help support the long campaign ahead. You can make a one-time contribution or join our new PLEDGE TO WIN program, where you can make an automatic monthly contribution using your credit or debit card.

Paid for and authorized by the Kentucky Democratic Party
PO Box 694, Frankfort KY 40602 • (502) 695-4828 • www.kydemocrat.com

Contributions or gifts to the Kentucky Democratic Party are not tax deductible.

DAILY GRILL

"[T]he most important job of the federal government is to support the troops." -- President Bush, 10/26/06

VERSUS

"No president in history has vetoed a benefits bill for those who served." -- Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), 5/18/08, on Bush's threatened veto of the 21st Century GI Bill

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"When you hear the name VFW [Veterans of Foreign Wars], you know a certain type of work is being done -- honorable, decent, and faithful to the nation's highest ideals." -- President Bush, 8/22/05

VERSUS

"On Wednesday, Mr. Bush even found himself in opposition to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, a group that has generally supported him. The group's national commander, George Lisicki, emerged from a meeting with the president expressing strong support for the [21st Century GI Bill]." -- New York Times, 5/22/08

Quotes of the Day

Senior Israeli official: ‘Bush intends to attack Iran before the end of his term.’

The Jerusalem Post reports that a senior Israeli official said that President Bush and Vice President Cheney are of the belief that military action against Iran is necessary and that such an attack could be coming soon:

US President George W. Bush intends to attack Iran in the upcoming months, before the end of his term, Army Radio quoted a senior official in Jerusalem as saying Tuesday.

The official claimed that a senior member of the president’s entourage, which concluded a trip to Israel last week, said during a closed meeting that Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were of the opinion that military action was called for.

However, the official continued, “the hesitancy of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice” was preventing the administration from deciding to launch such an attack on the Islamic Republic, for the time being.

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Recent Senate Votes

Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act - Vote Passed (92-6, 2 Not Voting)

The Senate voted to reform and reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program, which maps America's floodplains and underwrites flood insurance for communities that adopt and enforce floodplain management regulations.

Sen. Mitch McConnell voted YES
Sen. Jim Bunning voted YES

Food and Energy Security Act - Vote Agreed to (81-15, 4 Not Voting)

The Senate gave final approval to a $289 billion measure that would set agriculture policy for the next five years.

Sen. Mitch McConnell voted YES......send e-mail or see bio
Sen. Jim Bunning voted YES

Recent House Votes

Strategic Petroleum Reserve Fill Suspension and Consumer Protection Act - Vote Passed (385-25, 23 Not Voting)

The House passed this bill that would suspend deposits into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as long as the price of crude oil remains above $75 per barrel.

Rep. Ron Lewis voted YES

Rep. John Yarmuth voted YES

Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act - Vote Passed (318-106, 10 Not Voting)

The House passed a $289 billion measure that would set agriculture policy for the next five years.

Rep. Ron Lewis voted Not Voting

Rep. John Yarmuth voted YES

Amendment to Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act - Vote Failed (141-149, 132 Present, 12 Not Voting)

The House rejected an amendment to the military construction bill that would fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through fiscal year 2008 and into fiscal year 2009.

Rep. Ron Lewis voted Not Voting

Rep. John Yarmuth voted NO

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HUMOR

"This week, Barack Obama, true story, campaigned on an Indian reservation and the tribal chief adopted him. Yeah, the Indians actually prefer Obama to John McCain, because they still remember when McCain took their land." –Conan O'Brien

"Barack Obama got a big endorsement this week. Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, who, believe it or not, is a former exulted cyclops of the KKK, no kidding around, said he will cast his superdelegate vote for Barack Obama. Not a great time for Hillary Clinton when even former Klan members are supporting Barack Obama." --Jimmy Kimmel

"An estimated 75,000 people attended a Barack Obama rally on the banks of the Willamette River. ... And if you believe the media, listen to this. After the rally, Barack Obama fed them all with just five loaves of bread and two fish. Amazing!" --Jay Leno

"While campaigning in Kentucky, Hillary Clinton stopped at a drugstore and bought a pair of reading glasses. It's true. Yeah, then she picked up a newspaper and said, 'Holy crap, I got to drop out of this race.'" --Conan O'Brien

"President Bush said in an interview that he gave up golf in 2003 in support of the troops, because he thought playing golf during a war just sends the wrong message. You know what else sends the wrong message? Literally sending the wrong message [on screen: photo of Bush standing in front of the 'Mission Accomplished' banner]" --Amy Poehler

"Barack Obama also going after John McCain. In a speech today, Barack Obama accused John McCain of trying to bankrupt social security. That's what he said, yeah. Yeah, not by voting against it, just by collecting it for 80 years." --Conan O'Brien

"But don't discount Hillary Clinton, because she's nothing if not shrewd. … Don't ever forget that. Hillary has a back-up plan. First, nothing but superdelegates. Remember when we heard all about the superdelegates? ... Well, now she has another back-up plan to get to the White House. She's going to marry John McCain." --David Letterman

"Barack Obama visited an Indian reservation. And I don't know if you heard about this, the chief adopted him and gave him the name 'Black Eagle.' That's true, yeah. The chief also gave Hillary Clinton the name 'Runs Even After Losing.' Good name." --Conan O'Brien

"Hillary Clinton still campaigning hard. In a speech this weekend that she just gave, Hillary Clinton said that John McCain 'couldn't be more out of touch.' Yeah, then Hillary said, 'Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm about to win the Democratic nomination.'" --Conan O'Brien

"McCain of course has the nomination sewed up. He's now auditioning candidates for vice president, and they're visiting at his home in Arizona. I believe it's called Casa Viagra. I believe it's called the Lazy Artery. I believe it's a ranch, I think it's the Double Hernia. No no, his home in Arizona -- the Rancho Prostato." --David Letterman

"The Supreme Court overturned the state's ban on gay marriage. Man, you thought it was bad for single women before. All the good ones are either gay or married. Now they're gay and married." --Jay Leno

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ETHICS -- HOUSE COMMITTEE REPORT FINDS DEFENSE CONTRACTORS GOUGING U.S. TAXPAYERS: A new report from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has found that a "Pentagon program for providing workers' compensation for civilian employees in Iraq and Afghanistan has allowed defense contractors and insurance companies to gouge American taxpayers." The report says that "[i]nsurance companies alone have collected nearly $600 million in excessive profits over the past five years" because defense contractors are allowed to negotiate their own insurance contracts. Iraq war profiteer KBR "paid the insurance giant AIG $284 million for medical and disability coverage," but "[b]ecause of the way KBR's contract is structured, this premium, along with an $8 million markup for KBR, gets billed to taxpayers." Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) said, "Out of this amount, just $73 million actually goes to injured contractors, and AIG and KBR pocket over $100 million as profit." Asked if taxpayers were getting the most for their money, John Needham of the Government Accountability Office said, "It's not apparent they are."

CHANGING THE GOVERNMENT: The very policies designed to prop up low-wage workers, unemployment insurance and tax credits, typically don't reach the poorest Americans who most need them. Restrictive rules often prevent part time and temporary employees -- the lowest paid and most poor worker s -- from receiving unemployment benefits. Half in Ten recognizes that unemployment reform would bring an additional 560,000 largely low-income people into the system, distributing $1.03 billion in benefits and job training. The Child Tax Credit (CTC) currently excludes many of the least affluent Americans. Restrictions on the CTC mean that claimants with low or no tax liability, who make the most meager wages, are unable to receive any assistance. The Urban Institute estimates that 2.1 million children and 1.1 million parents would break through the poverty line if the federal CTC were made fully refundable. Finally, Half in Ten will work to provide childcare assistance. The campaign will work to obtain a federal-state guarantee of child care assistance for all working families with incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty line and an expansion of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit. These expansions of childcare assistance would lift 2.7 million Americans out of poverty, reducing poverty by almost 8 percent, according to estimates by the Urban Institute. Half in Ten will continue to push the Senate, the House and the presidential candidates until they commit to these important federal changes

INEFFECTIVE 'JAWBONING': After Israel, President Bush traveled to Saudi Arabia, where he appealed to Saudi King Abdullah to increase oil production and help lower oil prices. Bush's appeal was rejected. "Supply and demand are in balance today...The fundamentals are sound," said Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi. During the 2000 presidential campaign, Bush had criticized the Clinton administration for high fuel prices, saying that a president must "'jawbone' oil producing nations" and persuade them to drop rates. Back then, Bush promised that he would bring down gas prices by creating "political good will with oil-producing nations" stating that he would "work with our friends in OPEC…and convince them to open up the spigot." At that time, oil was nearing $28 a barrel. Last week oil hit $127 a barrel, with many analysts "seeing a medium-term rise…to $200 a barrel as a genuine prospect." It's unlikely, however, that even increasing oil flows would reduce the price of crude. The oil market is "well supplied," according to Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani, who said that prices are being driven by "speculative flows," and not supply and demand

MILITARY -- WEBB SLAMS BUSH FOR THREATENING VETO OF GI BENEFITS: On NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) discussed his 21st Century GI Bill, which would dramatically expand educational benefits for returning veterans. President Bush, however, has vowed to veto the bill. Webb blasted Bush for this unprecedented action, saying that "no president in history has vetoed a benefits bill for those who served." "The president has a choice here to show how much he values military service," said Webb. The Pentagon has suggested that Webb's bill is too generous in conferring benefits to soldiers after "only" two years of service. However, as Webb pointed out, soldiers would still have to finish their enlistment term. As a recent CBO report showed, any loss in reenlistment rates would be entirely made up for by increased military recruits. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and other conservatives have introduced their own version of the bill, which would reserve the most generous benefits for those who have served at least 12 years in the military. Webb pointed out that the alternative bill would exclude the vast majority of service members because "70 to 75 percent of the ground troops in the Army and the Marine Corps have left the service by the end of their first enlistment."

CIVIL RIGHTS -- KANSAS GOVERNOR SEBELIUS VETOES VOTER ID BILL: Yesterday, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) vetoed a bill that would require voters starting in 2010 to show identification at the polls. In her veto message, she said, "[N]o elected official should support enacting new laws discouraging or disenfranchising any American who has been legally voting for years." Sebelius added that the bill "seeks to solve a problem of voter fraud which does not exist in our state." Earlier this month, Missouri also rejected voter ID bill, ending its legislative session before passing a bill that would have required citizens to have both a photo ID and proof of citizenship to vote. While the measure passed the House, "amidst strongly voiced local and national opposition," it never reached a vote in the state Senate. Last month, the Supreme Court upheld Indiana's voter ID law, which requires a photo ID before voting. Currently, Arizona is the only state to require proof of citizenship, "a mandate that has led to the rejection of over 38,000 voter registration applications."

SURVEILLANCE -- GOVT. MAY HAVE MASSIVE SPY PROGRAM FOR 'NATIONAL EMERGENCY,' 8 MILLION 'POTENTIAL SUSPECTS: Last year, former deputy attorney general James Comey revealed that in 2004, he refused to "certify" the legality of certain aspects of the National Security Agency (NSA) spy program. The Center for American Progress's Peter Swire noted at the time that Comey's testimony implied that "other programs exist for domestic spying" outside of the NSA program. Radar's Christopher Ketcham suggests that another spy program does exist: "Main Core," which authorizes "computer searches through massive [unspecified] electronic databases" in order to discover "potential threats" in the event of a "national emergency." According to a senior government official, "The database can identify and locate perceived 'enemies of the state' almost instantaneously." One "knowledgeable source" claims that "8 million Americans are now listed in Main Core as potentially suspect." But the plans "are shrouded in extreme secrecy, effectively unregulated by Congress or the courts." Furthermore, the NSA domestic surveillance program reportedly "suppl[ies] data to Main Core." "[T]he program that caused the flap between Comey and the White House was related to a database of Americans who might be considered potential threats in the event of a national emergency," Radar notes. Former Reagan administration official Bruce Fein observed, "To a national emergency planner, everybody looks like a danger to stability."

ADMINISTRATION -- METHODIST MINISTERS LAUNCH PR CAMPAIGN TO STOP BUSH LIBRARY AT SMU: Earlier this month, at the United Methodist Church's (UMC) Quadrennial General Conference, the UMCs governing body voted overwhelmingly -- 844 to 20 -- to refer a petition to its South Central Jurisdiction urging it to reject President Bush's presidential library, which is housed at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. The library has received significant criticism because of an attached institute -- independent of the university) that will sponsor programs designed to "promote the vision of the president" and "celebrate" Bush's presidency. The South Central Jurisdiction, which owns the university property where the library will be built, is set to vote on the petition this July. But some Methodist ministers are launching a public relations campaign ahead of the vote with the goal of "informing people about the partisan think tank" and Bush administration polices, such as the Iraq war and torture of military prisoners, "that some Methodists feel conflict with church teachings." Rev. Andrew Weaver of Brooklyn "organized a petition drive that has garnered about 12,000 signatures from those opposing the library at SMU" but said, "This is really about the partisan institute, which will do the most damage over time."

Think Fast

This summer, the Bush administration plans to implement "new air quality rules that will make it easier to build power plants near national parks and wilderness areas, according to rank-and-file agency scientists and park managers who oppose the plan."

As of Wednesday, conservative activist Grover Norquist is one of the few people who have been on both "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report." Regarding his interview with Stephen Colbert, Norquist said it was "one of the most challenging interviews I've ever done because it's so unpredictable and he's so bright." "If any conservatives want to go on, I'd love to brief them," said Norquist. "It's less scary and more fun than you think it's going to be."

The on-air feud between MSNBC's Keith Olbermann and Fox News's Bill O'Reilly "has triggered back-channel discussions" involving Rupert Murdoch, Roger Ailes, NBC chief executive Jeff Zucker, and GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt. Ailes warned that if Olbermann didn't halt attacks against Fox, "he would unleash O'Reilly against NBC." The appeals failed, and O'Reilly has escalated his criticism of GE in recent weeks.

The Louisiana National Guard unit called home after Hurricane Katrina "was ordered yesterday to prepare to return to Iraq for its second tour." The unit is part of about 40,000 active-duty and National Guard soldiers who Pentagon officials notified yesterday that they will be "deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in the upcoming months and years."

Blackwater "has run into heavy local resistance to its efforts to set up military and law-enforcement training facilities near San Diego's major Navy bases." Mayor Jerry Sanders "is moving to stop the company over permit problems," stating it didn't get the "scrutiny appropriate for a facility for firearms training."

Mired in scandal, Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY) has announced that he will not be seeking re-election this fall. In his statement, he cited the "need to concentrate on healing the wounds that I have caused to my wife and family."

Yesterday, Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) suggested impeaching President Bush if he attacks Iran. "You've got the power of impeachment, now that is a very defined measure if you are willing to bring charges against the president at all," said Hagel. Attacking Iran without Congress's consent "would bring with it...outstanding political consequences." Hagel also raised impeachment in March 2007.

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INTERESTING

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne: ‘Unfortunately I Have To Follow The Law

Yesterday, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne was challenged by Glenn Beck on CNN about why he listed the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Kempthorne responded:

Well, I’ll tell ya, unfortunately I have to follow the law.

Kempthorne caught himself and added, “Or fortunately.” After highlighting his record trying to cripple the Endangered Species Act as a Republican senator from Idaho, Kempthorne said with a smirk, “I cannot ignore the law. I have a Constitutional requirement to, uh, uphold the law.” Watch it:

House Passes, Bush Wants to Veto, Unemployment Measure by Mike Hall

The House yesterday voted (256–166) a measure to help long-term jobless workers who face difficult times finding new work in the sputtering Bush economy with an extra 13 weeks to 26 weeks of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. The UI extension was added to a supplemental spending bill to fund the war in Iraq.

Some 200,000 jobless workers a month exhaust their UI benefits without finding a new job and about 3.5 million unemployed workers will lose jobless benefits this year. The legislation would provide an additional 13 weeks of UI benefits for jobless workers in every state and an additional 13 weeks to those in states with high unemployment rates (more than 6 percent).

But President Bush says he will veto the war spending bill if it includes the UI extension, along with several other domestic provisions, including improving veterans’ benefits, blocking Bush administration restrictions on Medicaid—including a $20 billion cut to states—and money to improve the levees around New Orleans.

Earlier this year, the AFL-CIO urged Congress to include a UI extension in an economic stimulus package, but it was dropped from the legislation after Bush said he would veto the bill if it included an extension.

In a report on the UI extension, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the added benefits would provide a quick stimulus to the flagging economy.

Not only will these workers and their families benefit from extended benefits, providing this financial assistance also can reduce the severity and duration of an economic downturn. Experts agree that extending unemployment benefits is one of the most cost-effective and fast-acting forms of economic stimulus because workers who have lost their paychecks have little choice but to spend these benefits quickly.

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved a similar UI extension yesterday and the full Senate is expected to take up the Iraq war spending bill, with the extended benefits, next week.

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Buy American Mention of the Week

None this week

GOOD NEWS

On May 15th, the House "approved an expansive new veterans education benefit that would be paid for by a tax on affluent Americans."

On Thursday, the House "extended a helping hand" to Americans struggling in today's economy "by passing an extension of unemployment benefits for those workers who have exhausted the 26 weeks of regular benefits and are still looking for work."

VIDEOS

Chris Matthews Stumps Right-Wing Radio Host: ‘Tell Me What Chamberlain Did?’ ‘I Don’t Know’

O'Reilly compared Moulitsas to white supremacist David Duke

McCain Revealed: The Briefing Book

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Notice to our Readers & 2008 General Election Candidates:

This newsletter will carry, in this space, any Democratic candidates' notice of events or communications (250 words or less) to our readers that the candidate provides to the editor at rcrider@insightbb.com

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LOUISVILLE /JEFFERSON COUNTY

DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEWSLETTER

Week of May 25, 2008

KDP Calls Northup Out for Big Oil Hypocrisy

Quotes of the Day

Senior Israeli official: ‘Bush intends to attack Iran before the end of his term.’

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne: ‘Unfortunately I Have To Follow The Law

How Fast Can You Surf?

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