Progress Now Action

UPDATE - Monday, 11 August 2008 

Thanks to JJ for pointing out a new report on the mis-administration's latest action victimizing and disenfranchizing veterans from their Constitutional right to vote.  Now we have to account and protesting language of the Connecticut Secretary of State (see the extended text).

This is a true case of "support the troops" and how the Bushies don't!  It is past time to tell the Congressional incumbents (especially the Senators) and the Democratic challengers in the race to the replace terrible trio (Musgrave, Lamborn and Tancredo - all of his potential successors are same, same anyway) that this cannot stand.  There is enough time to repair the damage, but only if VA Secretary Peake is immediately forced to revoke his rule.

Original Post: 

Well, here we go again...time for another Secretary of Veterans Affairs to resign. This time we find that another arm of the George Bush mis-administration has made a dubious legal interpretation, trampled on the rights and benefits of veterans and is denying any wrong-doing.

You have to read the entire New York Times story to believe the depths of this tragic scenario.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/washington/13vote.html?_r=1&th=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&emc=th&adxnnlx=1213380801-cdMfMk8+agmsFLoE3VAdHw

This is a bizarre and deplorable action on the part of the mis-administration of the current occupant of the White House.  Refusing to facilitate voter registriation is definately not prohibited by the Hatch Act.  It's really disappointing that former Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) remains silent on this controversy.

Heads-up Colorado Springs and Northern Colorado. Beyond the fact that I've been working pretty hard for months to get this off the ground, it's just gonna be great!  This issue has been ignored (or at least danced around the edges) for too long.

 A Conversation with Rand Beers Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

Keeping Our Promises: Veterans, Soldiers and their Families 

Rand Beers, President and Founder of the National Security Network, former senior White House national security staffer and Vietnam-era Marine, will be the featured speaker at two town hall forums on issues facing the military community:  repeat deployments for members of the active-duty Armed Forces, Guard and Reserves, the needs of a growing new population of disabled veterans, and the burdens on military families.  Beers combines front-line experience (Rifle Company Commander in Vietnam and 10 years in the White House) with years of briefing our nation’s political leaders and, with the National Security Network, trains and advises candidates and advocates on how to address these issues in today’s political environment. A question and answer session will follow.

1:00 – 3:00pm

UCCS: The Upper Lodge

1420 Austin Bluffs Parkway

Colorado Springs, Colorado 80918 

6:30 – 8:30pm

Bill Reed Middle School

370 West 4th Street

Loveland, Colorado 80537 

RSVP: rkeenan@nsnetwork.org

One of the more gut-wrenching depravations of the Republican Legislature and Republican Governor of 2003 was the agreement to raid the Colorado Veterans Trust Fund to the tune of $2.3 Million. With the benefit of reports from several sources I've pieced together an "oh really?" tale of the day this fund was restored, with interest. This boosted the Trust Fund by a total of $2.9 Million.

The Grand Junction Sentinel provided the best coverage of last Friday's bill signing.  With the benefit of January to May hindsight any meddling or opposition to this legislation is questionable.

http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/05/16/051708_3a_Vets_bill_signed.html

At the center of the drama are GOP representatives Douglas Bruce and Kevin Lundberg. Back on January 14, 2008 Douglas Bruce became an even greater historical curiosity during morning prayers. Two days later, January 16, it was Bruce who weighed-in as a benefactor of the Veterans Trust Fund cause in the House Finance Committee.  it was through Bruce's amendment that approximately $600,000 in interest was added.  And, Lundberg who failed with an amendment to paint the pay-back as a new general fund appropriation.

In an additional context of Douglas Bruce and John Kefalas acting in agreement on a bill the Fort Collins, Colorado Rocky Mountian Chronicle originally covered the event.

http://www.rmchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1872

By the end of the committee hearing Rep. Lundberg has flipped back to the supporter and cast a rare vote with the majority to pass the bill.  While Bruce and Kefalas were consistent supporters of the bill, Lundberg's move for fiscal re-packaging is yet another dubious entry in his spotty record.

OK, so this is a copy-cat of a great idea that kicked-off in Aurora. The Colorado Confidential story http://www.coloradoconfidential.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=3472 enticed me that this is a "too good to be true" idea that I don't want to see fade off as a one-time shot (pun intended).

Considering the current season, I am familiar with a phenomenal indoor shooting range in Loveland.  With sufficient interest I am ready to organize and evening or Saturday Shooting Liberally event in Northern Colorado.

All that I need is just a handful of ProgressNow responses.  Then, I'll kick this off and be ready to place announcements in the Loveland newspaper to generate more interest.

Like the original organizers in Aurora I am encouraged that this is a program to demonstrate that Liberals and Progressives do support the Second Amendment to the US Constitution; without bowing to radical NRA proliferation of cheap handguns and automatic weapons.  I've got some ideas to roll into the agenda on environmental protection, water quality, safety and private property rights/respect.

This is also a rare opportunity for "Sportsmen for Progress" to have a get-together.  An opportunity to whittle-away at the GOP's perceived exclusivity on gun rights is very valuable.  I'll even consider inviting Northern Colorado Democratic political candidates to participate.

Once again the international press provides the stories that the American corporate media ignores. From Friday's Financial Times, US congress hears war costs could hit $2,400bn over the next decade.

The US House (committee not identified) got this report from Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Peter Orszag.  This horrendous number was based on leading comments by the generals in Iraq that troops on the ground will reduce to 75,000 by 2013, and STAY the same for the following four years.

Two key points are that this is being financed by deficit spending, and he had to project the costs of US troops staying in Iraq through 2017.  Maybe that's not as permanent as Mount Rushmore, but it's too much of an occupation for me to accept.

The signs are all there folks...this is turning into a long-term, on-the-ground presence in Iraq that will rival South Korea and Cold-War Europe.  The Congressional Democrats must use these new spending figures to bring this diabolical occupation plan to halt.  There can be no more detrimental US policy than to force our troops to endure the hate and mis-trust any additional day than absolutely necessary on Iraqi soil.

The National Debt Interest on the Iraq/Afghanistan Supplementals ALONE will reach $700 Billion by 2017 (this looks like he was doing a standard 10-year forecast report).  So the Children's and Grandchildren's tax continues to grow.  While the robber-baron sponsors of the current occupant of the White House are getting rich, our heirs are facing the burdens of growing debt.