Green Party Watch

Cynthia McKinney, who earlier put out a ten point plan to address the financial crisis, has now expanded on that to add four more actions, including nationalizing the Federal Reserve, auditing firms, prosecuting any criminal activity and eliminating derivatives trading.

Cynthia McKinney
A Gift for a Generation: A U.S. Financial System of Our Own
September 25, 2008

Last week, I posted ten points (that were by no means exhaustive) for Congressional action immediately in the wake of the financial crisis now gripping our country. At that time, the Democratic leadership of Congress was prepared to adjourn the current legislative Session to campaign, without taking any action at all to put policies in place that protect U.S. taxpayers and the global community that has accepted U.S. financial leadership. Those ten points, to be taken in conjunction with the Power to the People Committee’s platform available on the campaign website at (http://votetruth08.com/index.php/resources/campaignplatform), are as follows:
read more »

Part 1 in a 2 part series from an interview with Cynthia McKinney in Madison, WI on October 6, from the Capital City Hues:

Green Party Candidate Cynthia McKinney
The Other Black Candidate
by Jonathan Gramling, Capital City Hues

Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party candidate for President, grew up in the Jim Crow South that was Georgia in the 1950s and 1960s. Her father was a Republican because of the “All-White” primaries that effectively kept African Americans from participating in the Democratic Party — the party that ruled the South until the election of Richard Nixon as President in 1968. With the end of the “All-White” primaries in the 1960s, McKinney’s father was elected to the Georgia legislature
McKinney followed in her father’s footsteps and was elected to Congress in 1992. Her father had told her that she would always be an outsider and although she was embraced when she first arrived in Washington, it eventually changed because of McKinney’s uncompromising nature and tendency to speak exactly what was on her mind. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, McKinney perennially voted ‘No’ for the Pentagon budget. And in the wake of 9/11, McKinney was a lone voice in expressing her opinion that the Bush Administration was responsible for the events of 9/11.
read more »

In a release today Cynthia McKinney has offered to step in and debate Barack Obama in Mississippi this Friday if John McCain won’t do it.

WASHINGTON, DC — Green Party presidential nominee Cynthia McKinney has offered to debate Barack Obama if John McCain’s opts out at this Friday’s presidential debate in Oxford, Mississippi, following the Republican nominee’s announcement that he is seeking a delay of the event.

“If John McCain wants to bow out, I’m willing to step in and take his podium on Friday,” said Cynthia McKinney.

“The financial meltdown won’t come any closer to a resolution because a presidential debate is postponed. Now is the best time for Americans to see how prepared their leaders are to handle emergencies, how they introduce fresh ideas and solutions for national problems, and whether they’re willing to stand up for the American people instead of Wall Street moguls and corporate interests,” Ms. McKinney added.
read more »

The League of Women Voters (LWV), historical champions of democracy and debate inclusiveness, has decided to exclude third party candidates in LWV sponsored debates across Connecticut.

From NorwalkPlus.com:

In a letter sent to several aspiring candidates on Monday, League Vice President Pat Donovan wrote: “Using criteria reaffirmed by the League of Women Voters in April of 2007, and re-affirmed in April 2008, the committee made a determination that your candidacy does not meet all of our criteria. Therefore, unfortunately, we must deny your eligibility to participate in League-sponsored debates during the 2008 election season.”

The letter went on to enumerate the criteria, including level of campaign funds, documentation of positions, and voter outreach, which the League judged the candidates had failed to meet.

Candidates responded with surprise and outrage at what they saw as the lack of democratic spirit and transparency in the League’s decision.
read more »

Clyde Shabazz is the Michigan Green candidate for US House CD 14.

http://www.voteshabazz08.org

Thanks again to the Detroit Greens!

Jesse Johnson, who ran for the Green Party presidential nomination this year, is running for Governor of West Virginia in November. Johnson was endorsed in his presidential run by former Alaska Senator Mike Gravel. The Mountain Party affiliated with the national Green Party earlier this year.

Johnson will be the guest on Green Party Watch Radio this Sunday at 3 PM East Coast time. To participate in the show call (646) 478-3778.

The latest CNN Poll, when it includes only Obama and McCain, shows Obama leading McCain 51% to 46%.

When the poll is expanded to include “third party candidates”, the results are: Obama 48%, McCain 45%, Nader 4%, McKinney 1%, Barr 1%.

Story here.

WASHINGTON, DC — Green Party leaders and candidates, including presidential nominee Cynthia McKinney, are calling for extensive measures and reforms to resolve the economic crisis caused by the collapse of mortgage providers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, investment banks Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns, American International Group (AIG), and other financial companies.

“The takeovers, $900 billion bailout, and other actions that President Bush are taking right now confirm what Greens have said all along. Deregulation and other ‘free-market’ solutions are a recipe for disaster,” said Abel Tomlinson, Arkansas Green Party candidate for Congress (3rd District) (http://www.abelforcongress.com).
read more »

GREEN PARTY CONDEMNS NATURAL GAS PROCEDURE
Says no to “fracking” and no drilling on public lands

This week, the Green Party of Pennsylvania issued a statement calling for the abolition of “fracking” in natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania, and a total ban on natural gas drilling on public land, due to the potential for environmental damage and poisoning of local water supplies. This is especially relevant given the large amount of natural gas under Pennsylvania, located in what is known as the “Marcellus Shale.”

Fracking is a procedure that involves pumping a mixture of sand, water, and chemical additives under high pressure into the underground rock to fracture so as to release a greater flow of natural gas. These chemical additives can be quite dangerous, even leaving small amounts of radioactivity in the resulting waste. Fracking even a single natural gas well consumes millions of gallons of water, which can be a significant burden on local water tables.

Interest in drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale formation has been one of the hottest energy developments in the U.S. in 2008. An initial wave of over 900 PA drilling permits were approved in June, and that number is likely to multiply several times over during the next year or so.

The Green Party of Pennsylvania, is an independent political party founded on the four pillars of grassroots democracy, social justice, ecological wisdom and nonviolence.

To read the full statement on natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania, visit: this page.

There is no question of Governor Palin’s familial ties and her personal lifestyle. An article in  INDIAN COUNTRY  TODAY addresses Governor Palin’s personal views as the wife of a man who is mixed blood Yup’ik. “Palin has talked positively of her husband and children’s heritage in the past. When running for governor in October 2006, she wrote a letter addressed to rural voters, saying she ‘’so very much appreciates Alaska’s First People, their proud heritage and diverse cultures so abundant in the communities throughout our state.” The article continues: ”I personally feel the language, stories, and traditions of Alaska Native cultures are a national treasure to be nourished and held close to our hearts,” Palin added. ”It is our rural lifestyle and diverse cultural heritage that distinguishes Alaska from the rest of the world and makes it our wonderful home.”

The article SARAH PALIN’S RECORD ON ALASKA NATIVE AND TRIBAL ISSUES inquires as to the propriety of Governor Palin appointing an outside counsel for “Once in office, Governor Palin decided to continue litigation that seeks to overturn every subsistence fishing determination the federal government has ever made in Alaska. (State of Alaska v. Norton, 3:05-cv-0158-HRH (D. Ak).) In pressing this case, Palin decided against using the Attorney General (which usually handles State litigation) and instead continued contracting with Senator Ted Stevens’ brother-in-law’s law firm (Birch, Horton, Bittner & Cherot).” read more »

Let The Bubble Pop

Let’s NOT bail them out. Let’s assert our political independence from those who wish to drag the American people down with them. It’s time to assume control, and not just throw money at the problem. Right?

The situation has NOT been resolved and the cure is worse than the disease for the American public. At issue is are we going to join the lemmings of Wall Street and run over the cliff or do we exercise our political rights to establish new rules for the conduct of those who have accumulated so much wealth and power?  WE THE PEOPLE….

We have seen our atmosphere polluted and tied to Middle East oil by the refusal of politicians to heed the call of Jimmy Carter and break our dependence on oil. We have seen pension funds and investment portfolios wiped out in periodic crises from junk bonds to S&Ls to the dotcoms to derivatives. “Senator Phil Gramm, the second largest recipient of campaign contributions from Enron, succeeded in legislating California’s energy commodity trading deregulation. Despite warnings from prominent consumer groups which stated that this law would give energy traders too much influence over energy commodity prices, the legislation was passed in December 2000.”  We have seen deregulation dangle the sword of Damocles over commercial banking as “diversified” products put the FDIC guarantee (“the full faith and credit of the United States Government”) in question. read more »

This year there are two Greens running for Governor: Jesse Johnson is running for Governor of West Virginia, and Duff Badgley in Washington State. Because of Washington’s new “Top 2″ primary, in which all candidates regardless of party are listed on the same primary ballot with the top 2 advancing to the general election, Badgley has already lost his bid. He received 9,702 votes, or 0.67% of the vote, finishing 6th out of 10.

Jesse Johnson, following losing his bid to be the Presidential candidate for the Greens, announced he was returning to West Virginia to run for Governor. Johnson ran for Governor of West Virginia four years ago on the Mountain Party ticket and received 18,430 votes for 2.48%.

Governor’s elections in the United States are bunched in the two years before and after the Presidential elections, with some exceptions. How have Greens fared over the years in seeking the Governor’s race – what kind of results to Greens get, and what should we expect.

Two things really stood out when I looked at all the races over the last 18 years:

First, in 2006 across 18 gubernatorial campaigns there were 900,361 votes cast for Greens for Governor. This is just shy of 1 million Greens in America voting Green at the top of the ballot. This should be exalted. In 2002, 15 Gubernatorial campaigns netted 830,903 votes.

Second, when all results are combined from states where a Green was running for Governor, the nation wide percent for Greens at the top of the ballot was 2.21% in 2006. In the period from 2003-2005, which includes the California Special Election of 2003, the percent vote was 2.22%. In 2002, it was 2.18%. Combining all 54 races that I had data for from 1990-2006, the total percent vote was 1.98%. I think it is fair to say that a solid 2% of the US Voting Population identifies with the Green Party, whether they have an option to vote Green or not.

Lists below the fold: read more »

Bryan Smith, Green Party nominee for York County Council, District 1 in South Carolina, will be the guest on Green Party Watch Radio. Smith has run for Fort Mill Town Council, and was born in the district he hopes to represent. He faces both a Democratic and a Republican in November.

To participate in the show, dial (646) 478-3778 between 3 and 3:30 PM

September 19, 2008

We the people must now seize the time! We have always had the capability of determining our own destiny, but for various reasons, the people failed to elect the leaders who provided the correct political will. There was always some corporate or private special interest that stood in the way of the public good. And they always seemed to have the power of the purse to throw around and influence public opinion or our elected officials. The very foundation of the U.S. economy is crumbling underneath our feet. This represents a unique moment in U.S.history and we must now seize the time for self-determination–for health care, education, ecological wisdom, justice, and all the policies that will make a difference in the lives of the people including an end to all wars, including the drug war!

The crisis was staved off for a time for some of our major finance engines when they were able to obtain bridge funding from certain sovereign wealth funds. That option grows increasingly dim as The Federal Reserve is becoming the lender of last resort. This means that the people are becoming the owners of the primary instruments of U.S. capital and finance. This now means that the people have a say in how these instruments are to be used and what their priorities ought to be. The people should now have more say in how their tax dollars are spent and what the priorities of government and the public sector must be. We the people must now set our demands to ensure and promote the public good.

Now, as we ponder the importance of this moment to do good and serve the needs of the people, some politicians have already figured out their answer for us: win or steal the next election, prepare for more war, and leave it to others to try and figure out what to do next. While banks are failing all around us and the U.S. taxpayer is drenched with news of billion-dollar bailouts for *selected* companies, the Congress, which has utterly failed in its twin responsibilities of setting policy and Executive Branch oversight, plans to adjourn instead of setting new policies; lessening the impact of the economic freefall on innocent victims; or stopping war, expansion of war, new war, and occupation. read more »

The Illinois Green Party has elected new officers and changed its internal structure at their state membership meeting last weekend.

A five person Executive Committee will handle the day to day operations of the party, with all officers elected directly by the party membership rather than appointed by the party’s coordinating committee.

Full release below the fold:
read more »