Green Party Watch

The following commentary on Pennsylvania’s ballot access regime was posted on Firedoglake by Ed Bortz, Green Party candidate for Congress, 14th District Pennsylvania:

The system used to challenge ballot access petitions for candidates in Pennsylvania is fundamentally arbitrary and unfair. The process does not err on the side of registered voters who wish to support a candidate’s right to be on the ballot, but rather, it favors the challenger of the candidate’s petitions via an elaborate maze of “invalidating” criteria.(1) read more »

A recent poll from Suffolk University shows Massachusetts Green-Rainbow party candidate Jill Stein at 8% in the race for MA governor against 3 better-known and better-funded opponents:

In the poll of registered voters, 42 percent say they would vote for [incumbent governor Deval] Patrick, compared to 29 percent for Baker and 14 percent for independent Tim Cahill. Green Party candidate Jill Stein gets 8 percent, while 7 percent were undecided.  Of the three candidates whose numbers improved since a February 2010 Suffolk University/7News poll, Patrick’s increase of 9 points was higher than Baker’s (+4) and Stein’s (+5).

Peace movement site After Downing Street, newly christened War Is A Crime, has put out a transpartisan call to stop funding war and occupation. So far, 14 Green candidates for Congress have signed on. Send this petition to your Green candidates for Congress to show the peace movement that the Green Party is America’s peace party. From War Is A Crime:

Forty-six congressional candidates and 17 activist organizations released a statement on Monday opposing any more funding for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and inviting more candidates, incumbents, and organizations to sign on.  The 46 candidates include 16 Libertarians, 15 Democrats, 14 Greens, and 1 Independent.  They do not all agree with each other on many topics, including their reasons for opposing war spending.  But they all back this short statement:

“The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost Americans over $1 trillion in direct costs, and over $3 trillion altogether.  At a time when our national debt exceeds $13 trillion, we can no longer afford these wars.  It’s time for Congress to reject any funding except to bring all our troops safely home.”

This announcement comes just as Congress is set to vote on whether to spend another $33.5 billion in an off-the-books “emergency” supplemental spending bill to escalate a war in Afghanistan that polls show a majority of Americans opposes.

Ask congress members, candidates, and organizations to sign onto the Coalition Against War Spending at
http://warisacrime.org/caws

Illinois Green Party candidate for governor Rich Whitney is in the midst of a 9-day “Sustainable Transportation Tour” of Illinois. Whitney is traveling his state by bike and train, meeting with supporters, journalists, and other Green candidates. Whitney recently announced a plan to unveil a “Green Capital Bill” during the tour. Details from his website:

Mr. Whitney’s Green Capital Bill is a “Marshall Plan” scale program to modernize and foster growth for Illinois in a way that is both sustainable and economical. It will focus on alternative energy supplies such as wind and solar, emphasize efficient energy options, and building a Green economy that will foster job creation.

More recent news coverage of the tour:

Joliet Herald-News: Green candidate practices what he preaches

Bloomington Pantagraph: Green candidate wants Illinois to move away from automobile use

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Whitney promotes ‘green’ capital plan in run for Illinois governor

Ben Philpott reports at KERA in Dallas:

Texas is considered one of the hardest states in the country for a third-party or independent candidate to get onto the ballot. The stringent ballot access laws have been one reason why the Texas Green Party hasn’t been on the ballot since 2002. But as KUT’s Ben Philpott reports – party activists hope that dry spell ends in 2010.

There were no TV cameras Monday in front of the Texas Secretary of State’s office building south of the Capitol. No crowd of cheering supporters. But statewide coordinator Kat Swift with the Green Party of Texas says the dozen or so boxes filled with signed petitions spoke louder than a roaring crowd.

Swift: “And we have with us – 93-thousand petitions roughly of Texas voters who did not vote in the primary – who want to see the Green Party on the ballot.”

Read the full story at KERA Dallas.

Reddit.com is a website where users can submit articles for other users to vote up or down. The more people vote for an article, the more people see it. Currently, a story on the New York Green Party’s 2010 candidates is doing well on reddit and sparking an interesting discussion – check it out and weigh in.

Channel 34 in Binghamton has a detailed profile of candidates nominated for statewide office at the New York Green Party’s convention, including Colia Clark and Cecile Lawrence for US Senate, Gloria Mattera for Lt. Governor as Howie Hawkins‘ running mate, and Julia Willebrand for Comptroller:

The Green Party state convention in Albany last weekend nominated a full slate of candidates for statewide office in New York this November.

Gloria Mattera, a long time peace activist from Brooklyn was nominated to run for Lt. Governor on a ticket with Syracuse labor activist Howie Hawkins (www.howiehawkins.org). Colia Clark was nominated to run for the US Senate seat presently held by Chuck Schumer, while Cecile Lawrence was picked to fill out the Senate seat previously held by Hillary Clinton. Julia Willebrand, a long time environmental activist from Manhattan who received more than 117,000 votes for Comptroller four years ago, was chosen to run for that seat again.

Video of the nominating speeches of the candidates are at www.gpnys.org.

At the national level, the Green Party has opposed from the start the US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and supports the immediate withdrawal of American troops. It advocates for a massive cut in the military budget to free up funds to help local and state governments resolve their budget crisis and to invest in domestic programs such as child nutrition, renewable energy, education, affordable housing and job creation. The Greens opposed the recent Democratic health insurance mandate bill as a huge public subsidy for private health insurance companies and continue to call to make health care a right through a single payer expanded and improved Medicare for All type program. The Greens have long called for an end to the war on drugs and to curtail the prison industrial complex that now imprisons more than 2 million Americas, overwhelmingly low-income individuals and people of color.

Colia Clark is a veteran of the civil rights movement. Her work has included activism in the fields of women’s rights and workers’ rights, as well as activism and advocacy for homeless people and youth. Most recently, she has worked with the Cynthia McKinney for President campaign with “Power to the People”. Clark is a chair of Grandmothers for the Release of Mumia Abu Jamal. read more »

The Boston Globe has an article entitled “The Battle for State Auditor” profiling this year’s candidates for Massachusetts State Auditor, including Nat Fortune of the Massachusetts Green-Rainbow Party:

From Ross Levin at Independent Political Report:

Ted Glick, noted climate change activist and chair of the Essex County Green Party in New Jersey, is facing possible prison time for unfurling banners calling for green jobs on Capitol Hill. Story from the Chesapeake Climate Action Network:

Despite the Gulf disaster, no one from BP has been arrested and sent to jail. Despite safety violations at coal mines, no one from Massey Energy has been handcuffed. But today I write to inform you that one of America’s best global warming activists is probably facing several months of jail. He’s been convicted by a D.C. jury, and now he awaits sentencing on July 6th. Why? Because he peacefully dropped two banners on Capitol Hill that said: “GREEN JOBS NOW” and “GET TO WORK.”

I’m not joking. Ted Glick of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network was convicted by a jury May 13th of peacefully dropping the banners inside the U.S. Senate Hart Office Building last September. The D.C. U.S. Attorney’s office clearly has decided to make an “example” of Ted because of his previous two — count ‘em, two — convictions related to peaceful acts of climate civil disobedience. Can you believe it? You can see a three-minute video of Ted’s September “crime” below. He’s the guy towards the end simply lowering the banners.

Now Ted is facing up to three years in jail. Based on the judge’s comments last week, it really does appear that he will be incarcerated for at least a month or two.

What can you do? Help spread the word about this fight to keep a morally innocent staff member out of jail during this time of great global crisis.

Rev. Elston McCowan, a prominent Green Party member in St. Louis, is facing trial in the aftermath of an altercation that occurred outside a St. Louis town hall meeting in 2009. As Green Party Watch previously reported,

Elston McCowan, a Baptist minister and SEIU union official who ran for mayor of St. Louis in 2009 on the Green Party line, was attacked at an 8/6 town hall forum on healthcare reform outside St. Louis in Mehlville, MO. As reported by Patrick M. O’Connell of the St. Louis Dispatch, both tea party protesters and SEIU counter-protesters blame each other for instigating the violence. (full article on Green Party Watch)

McCowan’s supporters have started a facebook group called “Justice for Rev. Elston McCowan”, which gives the following information:

On Aug 6 of 2009 Rev. Elston McCowan was arrested after an altercation that occured outside a townhall meeting in St. Louis County. The video evidence suggests that Rev. McCowan was a victim. He suffered serious injuries as a result of the event. He is pending trial in St. Louis County.

Other African-American community leaders active in the Green Party who have recently been targeted by the justice system on dubious grounds include Chuck Turner and Rev. Edward Pinkney.

The Independent UK has an interview with Caroline Lucas, the UK Green Party’s first member of parliament:

As far as landmark moments in the green movement go, last Thursday was a pretty big one. The environment featured in the news as usual – there was a report saying the UK could power itself six times over with offshore renewable energy, and activists scaled London’s BP building in protest at the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Both issues are pertinent to the greater cause, but the real sign of progress took place at the Houses of Parliament, where Caroline Lucas, the leader of the Green Party, was sworn in as Britain’s first Green Member of Parliament. read more »

From the Green Party of Texas:

MEDIA ADVISORY
Green Party of Texas to Hold Press Conference

Turning in of Over 90,000 Petition Signatures
to Secretary of State on Monday

WHEN
Monday, May 24, 2:00 p.m.
Signatures will be turned in immediately after the press conference.

WHERE
Outside the Secretary of State’s office, Rusk Building
208 East 10th Street, 3rd Floor, Austin

WHAT
The Green Party of Texas will turn in over 90,000 signatures on Monday, in an effort to get the Party on the General Election ballot this November. If accepted, this will be the first time the Green Party has had ballot access since 2002. read more »

The New York Daily News Daily Politics blog reports on a statement made by Howie Hawkins, the New York Green Party candidate for governor, about Democratic candidate Andrew Cuomo:

“While Mr. Cuomo starts his announcement by attacking bankers and Wall Street for our state’s problems, he fails to join me in supporting the call to tax Wall Street to bail out New York,. He says he wants campaign finance and ethics reform. We all know that he will raise more money than the other Gubernatorial candidates. Why not pledge not to take any campaign contributions from Wall Street, bankers or any interest that does business with the state?” asked Hawkins.

Read the full article at the New York Daily News.

Also, check out the new Howie Hawkins for NY Governor facebook page.

Rich Whitney, Illinois Green Party candidate for governor, is traveling Illinois by bike and rail and holding joint events with local Green candidates from 20 May through 28 May on his “Sustainable Transportation Tour”. Some recent coverage of the tour:

WTVO Rockford: Governor candidate taking unusual method to tour Illinois

Northwest Herald: Green candidate for governor visits Woodstock

WIFR: Rich Whitney makes stop at Stockholm Inn