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Monday, January 31
Dean Wins Backing of State Dem Chairs
by
Linda Thieman
on Mon 31 Jan 2005 04:14 PM CST
 Dean Wins Backing of State Dem Chairs
Detroit Free Press
Howard Dean won the backing of state Democratic Party leaders Monday, putting him in a strong position to win the chairmanship of the Democratic National Committee.
"If
all of our members vote for him, that will be half of what he needs to
win the chairman's job," said Mark Brewer, chairman of the Association
of State Democratic Chairs.
The
party's presidential front-runner in 2003 won 56 votes from the state
chairs and Democratic activist Donnie Fowler -- who led Sen. John
Kerry's successful Michigan caucus campaign -- won 21 during a national
conference call. The state chairs ignored a recommendation made Sunday
by the executive committee to back Fowler. Other candidates' support
Monday was in single digits.
"We're
asking all of our state chairs and vice chairs to follow our
endorsements," Brewer said, noting that would bring 112 votes. "And we
think they will."
...Dean
already had about 50 endorsements of DNC members, including five
chairs. He needs a majority of the 447 members to win the post. The
election is scheduled Feb. 12.
Some in
the party have worried aloud about Dean, saying he may be too outspoken
and too blunt on occasion to provide effective leadership. But as
Dean's campaign gained ground, Democratic resistance has seemed to
fade....
(Click here to read the complete article.)
And this is just in . . .
Webb Drops Out of Race for DNC Chairmanship
DenverPost.com
Former Denver Mayor Backs Dean
Wellington
Webb dropped out of the race to chair the Democratic National Committee
today and endorsed former Vermont governor Howard Dean for the job.
Webb, a
former three-term Denver mayor, pulled out of contention immediately
after an influential group of state Democratic Party chairpeople
overwhelming supported Dean, a 2004 presidential candidate who promises
to rally the "Democratic wing of the Democratic Party."
Also today, Colorado Democratic Chairman Chris Gates backed Dean after stumping for Webb for more than a month.
(Click here to read the complete article.)
Corporations Biggest Filers of Frivolous Suits
by
Trish Nelson
on Mon 31 Jan 2005 10:48 AM CST
 Corporations Biggest Filers of Frivolous Suits
MinutemanMedia.org
by Jim Hightower
Look for a big push by Bush this year to restrict your right to sue corporations that harm or cheat you.
George
claims that you unruly citizens are treating big corporations unfairly,
constantly filing "frivolous lawsuits" against them. So, to protect the
poor corporations, Bush says he must limit your access to America's
courts.
But
here's a dirty little secret that Bush doesn't mention: By far the
biggest filers of frivolous lawsuits are not We the People – but
corporations! The consumer group, Public Citizen, has done a survey of
cases in Arkansas, Mississippi, Chicago and Philadelphia – four places
alleged to be hotbeds of what Bush and his corporate backers like to
call "lawsuit abuse" by us little folks.
The
cases reveal that, contrary to the propaganda, American businesses file
about four times as many lawsuits as do individuals – even though there
are 40 times more individuals in America than businesses. Also, the
survey finds that corporations and their legal beagles file frivolous
lawsuits 69 percent more often than individuals do.
Big
companies keep a bevy of attorneys on staff or on retainer, and they
routinely unleash them on their customers, competitors, suppliers,
workers, and anyone else standing between them and another dollar bill.
Regular
folks, however, count on a system of trial lawyers to help us when
we've been wronged. These lawyers pay for all of the up front costs of
us going to trial, and they only get paid if we win. This democratic,
entrepreneurial system gives poor and middle-class families access to
the judicial system – not just the rich.
It's
this access that Bush & Company want to take away. Yet, the
corporations pushing Bush's hokey "reform" – the very corporations that
are so quick to run to the courthouse with frivolous suits – are
demanding that they be exempted from the law to shut off access to the
system.
To get Public Citizen's report [Frequent Filers:
Corporate Hypocrisy in Accessing the Courts] and fight for your rights, call 202-454-5104.
Jim
Hightower is the best-selling author of Thieves In High Places:
They've Stolen Our Country And It's Time To Take It Back, on sale now
from Viking Press. He can also be found at MinutemanMedia.org.
 Click here to sign up for action alerts
from RapidResponse - Iowa.
SUPPORT VIVA 2005: For Voter Verified Paper Ballots
by
Linda Thieman
on Mon 31 Jan 2005 05:46 AM CST
 SUPPORT VIVA 2005: For Voter Verified Paper Ballots
From: the National Ballot Integrity Project
Action Alert Day One
January 31, 2005
Voter Verified Paper Ballots
are the essential first step towards a trustworthy election. VIVA 2005
makes Voter Verified Paper Ballots mandatory for federal elections.
Senator Ensign (R-NV)
will introduce VIVA 2005 if other Republican Senators will cosponsor
this worthy bill. Joan Krawitz, Andy Stephensen, Warren Stewart, and
Cheryl Lilienstein, of the National Ballot Integrity Project, will be
in Washington DC urging Republican Senators to cosponsor VIVA 2005,
this Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Please help us by making the phones of Republican Senators ring. Urge them to cosponsor VIVA 2005.
You will be making history again.
Here’s our request:
If you
live in a state with a Republican Senator or two, just call them, and
ask them to cosponsor VIVA 2005. I would give you the toll free number
for the US Capitol Switchboard, but they just disconnected it...I guess
this means they got too many calls? So, use your cell phone.
US Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121. Monday-Friday 9 AM to 5 PM.
(Ask for Sen. Chuck Grassley)
For more information, legislation text, rationale, and a direct phone line, go here:
http://www.ballotintegrity.org/action.html
And please, forward this request to your lists: VIVA 2005 is the first step in election justice.
With gratitude,
Joan Krawitz
Co-founder, National Ballot Integrity Project
http://www.ballotintegrity.org
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