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Come watch the debate with us at Fairfax Coffee House in Berkeley Springs! Chuck will offer beverages and we'll bring snacks. This debate is on domestic policy. Cheers and jeers are in store.
Where: Fairfax Coffee House
23 Fairfax Street Berkeley Springs, WV 25411
(304) 258-8019
When: October 3, 8:00-10:30 (?)
Bring: Obama merch to share. We have some buttons and bumper stickers. Maybe we can have an Obama swap meet?!
RSVP: wvbibi@earthlink.net (we should let Chuck know how many to expect, so please let me know if you're coming).
West Virginia Democrats backing the re-election of President Barack Obama opened their statewide PAC headquarters in Charleston, West Virginia earlier this month. The brand new political action committee, WV Forward, was created, in part, as a fresh effort to register voters and get out the vote. "But more than that, WV Forward is opening up to give voice to the growing number of Democrats in the state working quietly for the Obama/Biden ticket," said Elena Bailey, member of the PAC’s steering committee. "Until now, the perception among many voters held that all Democrats in West Virginia had soured on President Obama," she said. "Nothing could be farther from the truth," according to Bailey. The PAC is targeting thousands of West Virginia Democrats believed to be poised silently to vote for the President. WV Forward hopes to enlist those Democrats as volunteers and cheerleaders in the election campaign. "We have identified the party members, both men and women, we think will likely cast their ballots for the President," Bailey said. "Our PAC will try to excite them and give them a focus for their energy," she said.
Another spokesperson for the PAC, Ed Rabel, the Emmy Award-winning journalist, laid out some of the issues at stake in the campaign. "West Virginians need to protect their Social Security, their Medicare and the free preventive screening provided under Mr. Obama's health care plan," Rabel said. "Those hard-earned benefits may be in jeopardy if the Republicans prevail," he said.
The new office for the grassroots PAC is located at 615 Lee Street in downtown Charleston. It will be staffed by volunteers who will personally welcome voters and take phone calls from anyone interested in learning more about the PAC's activities to promote a high turnout among Democrats in the November election.
WV Forward can be contacted at wvforward@gmail.com or by phone at 304-400-8667 during business hours. A 24-hour contact number: 304-941-9806.
For the past few months, Mountaineers for a National Health Plan have been holding discussions on Single-Payer (Medicare for All) Health Care at the Kanawha County Public Library’s Main Branch in Charleston. The organization doesn't believe a market-driven approach like the one the Affordable Care Act promotes offers a long term solution to fixing our country's health care needs.
Dr. James Binder, MD, Co-Chair of Mountaineers for a National Health Plan discusses the organizations goals, what single-payer is, the pitfalls of Medicaid, which gets expanded under the Affordable Care Act that will be brought up to Medicare payment levels for two years, and the economics of a single-payer health care system interwoven with September’s gathering in this video.
The next Single-Payer Discussion will be on Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. at the Kanawha County Public Library’s Main Branch in Charleston. The discussion will run for one hour in the John V. Ray Room. This non-partisan, all-inclusive event is open to the public. Please RSVP on Facebook, the room has a 60 person capacity.
Mountaineers for a National Health Plan started in 2007. A few years ago the organization consisted solely of medical professionals, but has since branched out to include the general public in an attempt to bring more attention to its single-payer cause. MNHP is the state affiliate of Physicians for a National Health Program.
A Kentucky Republican running for Congress is taking heat for a misleading campaign ad featuring a coal executive.
Heath Lovell appears in the ad for GOP candidate Andy Barr -- who is running agains Democratic Rep. Ben Chandler -- dressed not in a suit, but wearing a mining helmet and standing on railroad tracks.
"Obama, Ben Chandler, and the EPA are destroying us. They're putting the coal industry out of business, and it's just devastating," Lovell says in the ad. "This is our way of life. It means jobs for people around here, good-paying jobs."
The political ad has one saving grace: It displays Lovell's real name at the beginning, but without any other identifying information. Lovell actually is vice president of River View Coal, not a miner. He has donated $24,650 to political campaigns over the past two years, almost entirely to Republicans, according to the Courier-Journal.
Arguably the finest person to ever represent the people of West Virginia through public service, the legendary former Congressman and W.Va. Secretary of State kicks off his 99th year today.
The Charleston Daily Mail recently hosted both candidates for W.Va. attorney general, and the difference in their ideas for the office couldn't have been more clear:
Incumbent Democrat Attorney General Darrell McGraw wants to continue his pursuit of "evildoers" and "rascals" who violate state laws and hurt consumers.
McGraw said his office has collected more than $2 billion from consumer protection lawsuits since he took office after the 1992 election.
While Republican (and New Jersey import) Patrick Morrisey wants to use the office to sue the federal government, attack President Obama and serve the coal owners:
In particular, Morrisey said McGraw hasn't done enough to challenge President Barack Obama and federal laws and regulations, like environmental regulations aimed at the coal industry.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Friends and family of Larry Gibson, the "Keeper of the Mountains," will celebrate his life and legacy on Sunday, October 14 from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Charleston Municipal Auditorium, located on the corner of Virginia and Truslow Streets, across from the Charleston Town Center Mall.
Larry died of a heart attack on Sunday, September 9, while working on his family's land on Kayford Mountain, which he spent the last decades of his life protecting from mountaintop removal. Larry successfully protected fifty acres of his homeplace on Kayford Mountain and he inspired people nationwide to take action to stop mountaintop removal coal mining.
The program for "Celebrating Larry Gibson: The Life and Legacy of the Keeper of the Mountains" will feature family, friends, prominent activists, West Virginia residents, musicians and preachers. This event will be preceded by the annual Changing of the Leaves Music Festival that starts at 1:00 PM on Saturday, October 13th on Kayford Mountain.
And I thought Sarah Palin set the bar pretty low. Mitt Romney has run for president for the past seven years. Just think how poor of a candidate he'd be without all that practice.
The West Virginia Democratic Party is pleased to announce former Congressman, and House Democratic Leader, Dick Gephardt (D-MO) as our keynote speaker for the annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner (JJ Dinner). This year's event will be on Saturday, October 27th, at the Charleston Civic Center.
The Jefferson-Jackson (JJ) Dinner is the WV Democratic Party's annual fundraiser, awards dinner, and premier political event in the state. Tickets will go on sale immediately for $75/person or $1,000 per table of 10. Call (304) 342-8121 to get yours. JFK Society members need to RSVP to receive their complimentary reception tickets too.
Vice President Biden is at his best speaking of his father and the value of work and how President Obama understands that it's more than about a paycheck and that's why he did the auto bailout. Obama cared about American jobs because he cares about the people. Mitt Romney didn't care about jobs when he ran Bain, he cared about profit. Their actions tell you what they value more than their words.
"I'm no longer just a candidate. I'm the President."
- President Barack Obama
President Barack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination for President tonight in a powerful speech to conclude the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. His speech emphasized the choice facing our country in November as we choose the direction of our nation for the next 4 years. President Obama emphasized the importance of working together to ensure that everyone has equal opportunity for success.
But we also believe in something called citizenship - a word at the very heart of our founding, at the very essence of our democracy; the idea that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another, and to future generations.
He also used humor to challenge the Republicans' standard answer to cut taxes in response to every problem.
Now, our friends at the Republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with America, but they didn't have much to say about how they'd make it right. They want your vote, but they don't want you to know their plan. And that's because all they have to offer is the same prescription they've had for the last thirty years:
"Have a surplus? Try a tax cut."
"Deficit too high? Try another."
"Feel a cold coming on? Take two tax cuts, roll back some regulations, and call us in the morning!"
The President also emphasized his foreign policy credentials and the choice compared to "his opponent."
So now we face a choice. My opponent and his running mate are new to foreign policy, but from all that we've seen and heard, they want to take us back to an era of blustering and blundering that cost America so dearly.
After all, you don't call Russia our number one enemy - and not al Qaeda - unless you're still stuck in a Cold War time warp. You might not be ready for diplomacy with Beijing if you can't visit the Olympics without insulting our closest ally.
My opponent said it was "tragic" to end the war in Iraq, and he won't tell us how he'll end the war in Afghanistan.
I have, and I will.
I thought it was a very strong speech and the Convention as a whole seemed to be very well handled (aside from yesterday's "Jerusalem" snafu platform snafu). It certainly showed stronger enthusiasm for the nominee than last week's RNC Convention did for their nominee.
Governor Romney didn't receive any discernible "convention bounce" in the polls, but I think President Obama will get a bounce after the powerful speech by President Clinton Wednesday night, Michelle Obama's speech on Tuesday night, and tonight's speech by President Obama. It was a very well aligned Convention with each night building on the previous one.
There are 60 days until the election. Are you "fired up and ready to go?"
Update: One other thing that I failed to mention. During the DNC produced video introducing President Obama, WV State Senator Erik Wells (husband of WV Secretary of State, Natalie Tennant), is featured getting a huge hug from their daughter Delaney upon his return from deployment in Afghanistan less than a year ago. They appear near the conclusion of the video as the narrator says "with every new beginning, every homecoming, every step forward we remember who we are..." No matter how many times I see that footage, I am touched by Delaney's reaction as she is so thrilled and relieved to be reunited with her Daddy. We thank Sen. Wells for his service to our nation and share Delaney's happiness that he is back by her side.
An article appeared in today's Bluefield Daily Telegraph written by Mannix Porterfield concerning Dr. Coy Flowers of Lewisburg, WV who is attending the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. It is a fair and unbiased article that does a a good job in portraying Dr Flowers and his views. The complete article can be read by clicking here.
A gay activist in West Virginia, attending the National Democratic Convention in Charlotte, paints Mitt Romney as a divisive, flip-flopping candidate with recycled and dramatically new views that are unfair to women and the homosexual community. That conclusion can be drawn from both the presidential nominee’s acceptance speech last week in Tampa and the GOP platform supporting pro-life policies and the traditional marriage of a man and a woman, Dr. Coy Flowers said Monday.
I met Dr Flowers at the WV Democratic Convention where he was selected as a delegate. He did a great job running for the position, and will do a great job representing WV at the DNC.I am a bit surprised to see an article like this in the Daily Telegraph as they are typically very conservative and rarely portray progressive candidates as fairly as this article does.
There are many great songs about the struggle of working folks to form unions. On this Labor Day that follows 2 years of Republican Governors and Republican Legislatures doing everything they can to eliminate public unions or unions in general it is most important that all of us realize how important it is to get out and vote this November. The right to organize is a fundamental part of our nation's heritage. Not voting and not supporting pro-union Democrats will insure that Labor Day will be remembered no more.
Do you have a favorite song about Unions and the struggle of working folks to organize?
If you give the most important speech of your life, one you've been preparing for more than seven years, and you're upstaged by a rambling old man speaking to himself (and an empty chair), you're doing it wrong.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Two State Police troopers had handcuffed an Oak Hill man and were putting him in their police cruiser when the man pulled a gun out and shot both troopers in the head on Tuesday evening, State Police officials said Wednesday.
Cpl. Marshall Lee Bailey and Trooper Eric Michael Workman, both assigned to the Clay County detachment, were shot by Luke Silas Baber, 22, of Oak Hill, near the Wallback exit of Interstate 79 in Roane County and near the Clay County line.
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