The Louisville, Kentucky, Jefferson County Democratic Party

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

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@louisvilledem.com

Voter Registration Information

Just a reminder that October 8th is the voter registration cutoff in Kentucky in order to vote in the November 6th election -- either for brand new voters or if you simply need to re-register after a move.

Obviously, it's crucial that each of you are registered and cast a vote for change in Frankfort on Tuesday, November 6th. So let me help. READ MORE CLICK HERE FOR VOTER REGISTRATION CARD.

ABSENTEE VOTING FOR VOTERS WHO WILL BE ABSENT FROM THE COUNTY

Enter your residential (not business) address and find your precinct, polling location and your elected representatives. View Sample Ballots preceding elections. CLICK HERE

Bernard Pollack, AFL-CIO field coordinator, sends us this report on the campaign to elect a working family-friendly governor in Kentucky.

The excitement across the Kentucky labor movement is palpable. Unions in the Louisville area are gearing up for Saturday when several hundred volunteers are expected to walk door to door talking with union members and their families.

Gubernatorial candidate Steve Beshear and AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka will join with volunteers, along with UAW Vice President Terry Thurman, UAW Region 3 Director Maurice “Mo” Davison, UAW Local 862 President Rocky Comito, Kentucky State Building and Construction Trades Executive Director Larry Roberts and many more leaders across the state.

Rallying around the theme, “Kentucky Labor 2007: It’s Our Time,” workers will kick off a walk program in support of Beshear that will continue weekdays and weekends through Election Day. The goal: talk with more than 300,000 union members, householders, retirees and Working America members so that on Election Day, one in four of all votes cast will be from a union household.

Key to the Kentucky State AFL-CIO’s unprecedented 2007 campaign are union members, who will discuss the issues important to working families—health care, good jobs, education and a secure retirement. Working families deserve better than what they’ve been put through by current Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who repealed collective bargaining for state workers, tried to roll back prevailing wage laws and privatized the state Medicaid operation. Fletcher has been a top spokesman for so-called “right to work” for less legislation, pushing for anti-union, anti-worker bills in Kentucky and nationwide.

Bolstering the largest walk program ever mounted by the Kentucky union movement is a massive communication outreach effort. Union members already have distributed 180,000 worksite leaflets to members across the state, and local unions have sent scores of letters to tens of thousands of members. Statewide phone banks will start Oct. 3.

In 2007, AFL-CIO Kentucky union members and working families will turn out the vote and walk this weekend to reject Gov. Fletcher’s anti-working families agenda. His corporate crony agenda has been built on the backs of working Kentuckians, and this November, working families will make their voices heard, rejecting Gov. Fletcher’s so-called leadership once and for all.

Union members will speak with colleagues, families, neighbors and other Kentuckians, making sure every working family in the state knows what’s at stake in this election.

The Kentucky labor movement has expanded greatly in recent months through outreach by the AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America. Working America is an organization for people who don’t have a union at their workplace but have the same concerns about the economy as union members. Some 40,000 Kentuckians are members of Working America, part of 1.6 million members nationwide.

Take a minute to watch this video in which Rep. John Yarmuth, Beshear and six labor leaders from Kentucky talk about their commitment to the labor political program.

As the House and Senate debate whether to end large taxpayer subsidies to private insurance companies who run Medicare Advantage plans, a recent article in the Washington Post underscores the tremendous power of the health insurance lobby on Capitol Hill.

On August 1, the House voted to strip $50 billion over five years out of Medicare Advantage, a program in which every person in traditional Medicare pays an additional $2 more per month in premiums to subsidize overpayment to health insurance companies.

However, after intense lobbying from the health insurance industry, the House might soon bow to the Senate and spare the program from any cuts.

Click here to visit the Alliance for Retired Americans and send a message to Congress telling them to stand up to the health insurance lobby and stop Medicare Advantage overpayments.

IRAQ -- RIGHT WING CONTINUES TO OBSESS OVER MOVEON AD, OBSTRUCTS EFFORTS TO END WAR: While U.S. troop deaths in Iraq creep toward 4,000, conservatives are using MoveOn's recent Gen. David Petraeus ad to obstruct progress in ending the war. Last week, the Senate voted to approve Sen. John Cornyn's (R-TX) bill criticizing the MoveOn.org ad. The "sense of the Senate" resolution "strongly" condemned the "personal attacks on the honor and integrity of General Petraeus." But the senators who supported Cornyn's bill have previously chastised the Senate for engaging in "empty" and "meaningless resolutions." "We have just seen a procedure in the last 24 hours that was a colossal waste of time," said Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) in July. Last week, President Bush used the opportunity to attack Democrats, stating, "Most Democrats are afraid of irritating a left-wing group like Moveon.org, or more afraid of irritating them than they are of irritating the United States military. That was a sorry deal." On CNN's Late Edition yesterday, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) responded, "Well, I thought it was pretty sorry when his campaign attacked Senator Kerry's record of service, and I thought it was pretty sorry when the Republicans attacked Senator Cleland. I don't condone attacks by anyone on the patriotism and service of our military." In the meantime, conservatives helped block the Levin-Reed amendment that would call for a withdrawal from Iraq. A recent CBS poll found that after Petraeus's testimony, the percentage of Americans who believe escalation is working fell from 35 to 31. An overwhelming majority of Americans favor a withdrawal from Iraq.

JUSTICE -- U.S. ATTORNEY UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR ABUSE, RETALIATION: Rachel Paulose, the U.S. Attorney in Minnesota, is the subject of an investigation by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel into allegations that she used racist epithets against an employee, mishandled classified information, and retaliated against staffers. Yesterday, the Washington Post reported that "an internal Justice Department audit completed last month said her employees gave her very low marks. ... Her performance review was so poor that Kenneth E. Melson, head of the departmentâ??s Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, took the unusual step of meeting with her in Minnesota several weeks ago." Paulose's tenure, less than a year old, has been rocky from the start. In April, one of her assistant U.S. attorneys "and two other senior attorneys resigned their management positions, saying they did not want to work for her," complaining about her "highly dictatorial style" of management. On Friday, Reps. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and John Conyers (D-MI) sent a letter to the Department of Justice requesting documents relating to her hiring. The representatives asked whether Paulose's predecessor was forced out or resigned voluntarily and whether Paulose's appointment was "based on 'political loyalty' and part of a broader strategy to suppress voter turnout."

IRAN -- PODHORETZ GRANTED SECRET ACCESS TO LOBBY BUSH ON 'THE CASE FOR BOMBING IRAN': The Politico reported yesterday that President Bush has been "diligently" listening to the agenda of Norman Podhoretz -- the "patriarch of neoconservatism" who has repeatedly called for war against Iran -- and recently enlisted Podhoretz to discuss his views on Iran. In a meeting that "was not on the president's public schedule," Bush and Karl Rove "sat listening to Norman Podhoretz for roughly 45 minutes at the White House." Bush has loyally supported Podhoretz's agenda in the past. In 2004, he bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Podhoretz, calling him a "fierce intellectual man" with "fine writing" and a "great love for our country." Today, Podhoretz's calls for bombing Iran are being echoed in the administration. Vice President Cheney reportedly considered a plan to allow Israel to conduct missile strikes against Iran "in an effort to draw a military response from Iran, which could in turn spark a U.S. offensive against targets in the Islamic Republic." Podhoretz has argued that "if we were to bomb the Iranians as I hope and pray we will, we'll unleash a wave of anti-Americanism all over the world that will make the anti-Americanism we've experienced so far look like a lovefest." By enlisting Podhoretz's advice, Bush is demonstrating that there isn't any idea too radical for him to consider.

MEDIA -- O'REILLY SURPRISED RESTAURANT WAS NICE, 'EVEN THOUGH IT'S RUN BY BLACKS': Fox News' Bill O'Reilly recently dined with the Rev. Al Sharpton at Sylvia's, a famous African-American-owned restaurant in Harlem. Afterwards, on his radio show, O'Reilly reported that he "had a great time, and all the people up there are tremendously respectful," adding, "I couldn't get over the fact that there was no difference between Sylvia's restaurant and any other restaurant in New York City. I mean, it was exactly the same, even though it's run by blacks, primarily black patronship." O'Reilly added, "there wasn't any kind of craziness at all," and noted that "there wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, 'M-Fer, I want more iced tea!'" The remarks have stirred controversy, with some television anchors leaping to defend O'Reilly's comments. CNN anchor Rick Sanchez downplayed the severity of O'Reilly’s remarks: "But just how big a deal is this? … What's wrong with a white guy making social commentary about other people's race, which is what he seems to be doing here?" Station WABC interviewed Sylvia's patrons about O'Reilly’s remarks. Said one customer: "I'm concerned that people are still in that type of mindset." Last night, O'Reilly attacked CNN for even discussing his remarks.

CONGRESS -- WAXMAN URGES STATE DEPT. TO COOPERATE WITH INVESTIGATION INTO CORRUPTION IN IRAQ: Yesterday, the House Oversight Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-CA) accused Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice of "interfering" with the committee's investigation into corruption in Iraq. State Department officials refused to allow any potentially negative comments about the Maliki government in Iraq to be made public. "The scope of the prohibition is breathtaking," Waxman wrote, alleging that State seems to view criticism of the government as "a national security secret." "[I]t means that unless the Committee agrees to keep the information secret from the public, the Committee cannot obtain information from officials...about whether there is corruption within the Iraqi ministries." Waxman also pressed Rice about his committee's investigation into Blackwater USA, a private security firm that was allegedly involved in a shooting incident that left 11 Iraqis dead. The State Department has instructed Blackwater not to provide the Committee with necessary information, and Rice has refused to testify about the incident. Congress has a "constitutional prerogative" to look into the issues, Waxman wrote, and Rice is "wrong to interfere with the Committee's inquiry."

Condoleezza Rice: "The Most Powerful Person in Washington." -- GQ, 9/07

VERSUS

"[T]wo programs took the unusual step of turning her down. Executives at CBS and NBC say Rice no longer seems to be a key player on the war." --Washington Post's Howard Kurtz, 9/24/07

"Columbia and Lee Bollinger are hypocritical beyond belief." Inviting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was "revolting." -- Fox News pundit Bill O'Reilly, 9/24/07

VERSUS

"We actually did invite him" to appear on The Factor. -- O'Reilly, 9/24/07

U.S. military officials are pressing the State Department to "assert more control over" Blackwater USA, "which operates under the department's authority." "This is a nightmare," said a senior military official of the recent incident involving Blackwater. "This is going to hurt us badly. It may be worse than Abu Ghraib."

While expressing his support for international human rights yesterday at the U.N., "Bush didn't mention the U.S. prisons in Afghanistan or at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. practice of holding detainees for years without legal charges or access to lawyers, or the CIA's 'rendition' kidnappings of suspects abroad, all issues of concern to human rights activists around the world."

Negotiators from the United Auto Workers union and General Motors reached a tentative agreement on a groundbreaking deal early Wednesday to end a two-day old strike by 73,000 workers. The agreement "includes a historic restructuring of GM's obligations for UAW retiree health care."

"Sunni Arab extremists have begun a systematic campaign to assassinate police chiefs, police officers, other Interior Ministry officials and tribal leaders throughout Iraq, staging at least 10 attacks in 48 hours." Iraqi officials said that the attacks might well have been intended to blunt the administration's message that "surge" has succeeded in establishing security.

More than 2,000 people in Iraq are suffering from cholera, which is spreading across the country, the World Health Organization said. The spread of the disease has been accelerated by chlorine restrictions imposed on Iraq due to security concerns.

"Senate Democrats moved Tuesday to add an expanded hate-crimes ban to the defense authorization, giving them more time to court GOP votes for a new Iraq withdrawal plan but dimming the must-pass bill's chances for passage this week."

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) said he will "press the government for the release of a black teenager held in the 'Jena 6' case that spurred one of the biggest civil-rights demonstrations in years." "Our first responsibility is to get young Mychal Bell out of prison," he said.

Pope Benedict will use his first address to the United Nations to "deliver a powerful warning over climate change in a move to adopt protection of the environment as a 'moral' cause for the Catholic Church and its billion-strong following."

A classified Pentagon program has attempted to "bait" Iraqi insurgents by planting items such as detonation cords, plastic explosives and ammunition, and then killing Iraqis who pick them up. Experts worry that such a baiting program "raises troubling possibilities, such as what happens when civilians pick up the items."

The closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility looks "increasingly unlikely." President Bush, "who last year told German television that he 'would like to end Guantanamo,' is now threatening to veto any move to 'micromanage the detention of enemy combatants.'"

In the days after 9/11, Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey dismissed concerns by a 21-year old Jordanian immigrant that he had been beaten while in U.S. custody, leaving bruises that were hidden beneath his orange prison jumpsuit. "As far as the claim that he was beaten, I will tell you that he looks fine to me," said Judge Mukasey.

"In the corruption trial of former [Alaska] House Speaker Pete Kott, a former Veco executive testified that the oil field services company routinely paid for all or parts of political polls -- usually at the request of candidates. The FBI is currently investigating Sen. Ted Stevens's (R-AK) ties to former Veco chairman Bill Allen.

"A coalition of prominent civil rights groups is making a last-ditch push to derail controversial Federal Election Commission nominee Hans von Spakovsky less than a week before he faces a crucial test in the Senate."

CBS reporter Mike Flannery was pushed by an aide to Rep. Jerry Weller (R-IL) when trying to ask the congressman questions about his "controversial Latin American land deals." "There's a large man, who begins shoving reporters around, including yours truly. ... There's an opening in the doorway, and I begin moving through that doorway, and he shoves me down the stairs," Flannery said. He later called the staffer a "goon." Watch a video HERE.

Following large protests last week supporting six African-American teenagers in Jena, LA, white supremacists have begun calling for retaliatory violence. The threats include the posting on a neo-Nazi website of the names, addresses and phone numbers of some of the six teenagers and their families. In an interview, the Mayor of Jena, Murphy McMillin, "praised efforts by pro-white groups to organize counter-demonstrations."

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said of the autoworkers strike: "Job security is one of our primary concerns. ... We're talking about investment and we're talking about job creation" and preserving benefits, he said. Negotiators were to return Tuesday morning for their 22nd straight day of bargaining.

"The world's top leaders should meet every three months, starting next year, until a plan is drawn up to reduce emissions blamed for global warming, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore said on Monday."

A suicide bomber in Iraq blew himself up on Monday "at a banquet intended to be a reconciliation feast between provincial officials and former Sunni insurgents in Diyala Province, killing 16 people and wounding at least 28."

Fly Swatter-in-Chief. Former Press Secretary Tony Snow reports that President Bush chases "flies around the Oval Office. It drives him crazy when flies get in." Bush is so well known as a fly hunter among his White House staff, says Snow, that somebody "made him White House fly swatters."

"If you had walked even a day in our shoes over the last 15 years, I'm sure you'd understand." -- Sen. Hillary Clinton, on Fox News Sunday, when asked why she and her husband are "hyper-partisan."

Although several polls show Beshear with a significant lead over Fletcher, Cave said the dark days are over. Cave blamed the adversity the governor has faced on political enemies who are opposed to change and fomented "political shenanigans."

"We feel the excitement building," Cave said. "We need to finish what we started and change the state for the better for the foreseeable future."

“It’s obvious he’s not ahead at this point,” McConnell said. “I think the governor can still win this race. He’s done an excellent job.”

Mitch McConnell on SCHIP

Your contributions of news, comments and/or events are invited. Please e-mail such items to

Ray Crider at rcrider@louisvilledem.com . If you know someone who would like to be on the newsletter e-mail list, please have him or her supply the following information to the same

e-mail address: Name, address, phone numbers ( home , work, fax, cell), and e-mail address.

TOP

Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

Contributions or gifts to the Louisville/Jefferson County Democratic Party

LOUISVILLE /JEFFERSON COUNTY

DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEWSLETTER

Week of September 30, 2007

Voter Registration Information

Mitch McConnell on SCHIP

TOP