URGENT: Last Legislation: Your Calls are Needed--DADT, DREAM, START

Tell him to SUPPORT THE ZADROGA 9/11 HEALTH CARE BILL
This is the legislation (renewed once again--thanks to Sen. Harry Reid and SEn. Gillibrand) that would provide health care to the 9/11 rescue workers and first responders.  Scott Brown voted AGAINST it last week--many are very angry about this, including conservatives who support him. Please ask him to take care of these 9/11 heroes. Further info on this blog post.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTACT SENATOR SCOTT BROWN: 
Email him thru his homepage
Phones: Boston -- (617) 565-3170
Washington, DC -- (202) 224-4543 FAX: (202) 228-2646 (you can use services like FaxZero.com to send free faxes from the internet!)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Call for YES vote on START Treaty

Update Mon 12/20 8:30 PM: START appears to have enough Republican support to pass
Update Mon. 5:00PM: I'm hearing reports that Scott Brown is now a YES on START. Advocacy--calls and emails and spreading the word--works! 
 -- 
The obstructionist GOP has been dragging its feet on this.  All former Republican Secretaries of State support its passage.  Fmr. Pres. George H W Bush supports its passage. Reagan's baby has become the latest ploy in GOP obstructionism.  Overview of new START from WaPo. Condoleezza Rice and other GOP bigwigs support its ratification. On some of the latest back/forth from Republican Senators (Dec 18). MIT physicists call on Brown to pass START

• UPDATE: As of earlier today (Mon,  Dec 20, 2010)--Brown's Boston office confirming Brown is still "UNDECIDED" on START, citing "concerns" and wanting "amendments".  Does he know better than Kissinger, Condi Rice and Fmr. Pres. Bush? Call him and tell him to support passage of NEW START treaty.

(while you're at it--send an email to Senator John Kerry and thank him for his support of key legislation such as the above all along--not at the last minute)

 ***
UPDATE 12/18: Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell was repealed yesterday! Brown voted for its repeal, 2x, keeping his promise this time.  DREAM Act did not move forward: with 55 votes, they could not get past the filibuster. Brown voted AGAINST Dream Act moving forward. Be sure to thank Senator Kerry for voting for both DREAM and DADT repeal.  START treaty is still coming for vote next week... GOP leadership still making noises about not supporting it. ???!!! Call Scott Brown. It's unclear where he stands.
--
URGENT-- Call now: VOTES HAPPENING BEFORE NOON, SATURDAY 12/18 *TODAY*
please call Scott Brown re: 
- Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal
- DREAM Act

The Votes are TODAY , likely before Noon, (Saturday)--please urge him to vote yes on both.
His position on DADT seems relatively secure (but remember he pulled a fast one last week), but he has said he is opposed to DREAM Act.  Hearing from constituents is important to remind him if/when he takes votes out of step w/ his constituents.

Notes from a Lame Duck: Misinformation, Lie of the Year, 9/11 Responders, Child-Marriage, and Second Chances at DADT and DREAM

Some things you might have missed during the lame duck session:

*LIE* of the Year: "Government Takeover of Health Care"
The GOP has been beating this drum--that "Obamacare" is a "government takeover of health care".  Politifact examines the claim--widely, widely used by Republicans--and finds it worth to be the lie of the year. A lie we have heard a lot of from Scott Brown, on the campaign trail and after.

START Treaty: still up in the air
Reagan's baby has become the latest ploy in GOP obstructionism.  Overview of new START from WaPo. Condoleezza Rice and other GOP bigwigs support its ratification. On some of the latest back/forth from Republican Senators (Dec 18).

Zadroga / 9/11 First Responders' Health Bill (more at this entry)
Republican Senators--including Scott Brown--voted AGAINST providing medical care for 9/11 First Responders--many of whom are dying of cancers/diseases from breathing the toxic fumes from the World Trade Center rubble. Only Jon Stewart--the comedian with the fake news program--is sufficiently outraged about this. Watch:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
9/11 First Responders React to the Senate Filibuster
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog The Daily Show on Facebook

Child-marriage Act (S 987)
 A bill to work against child-marriage world wide was victim of the Culture Wars, when Republican congressmen succumbed to the (untrue) Rumor that the bill MIGHT "really" be about abortion.


Bernie Sanders and the Tax Bill
 What happens when a progressive champion actually argues--actually makes the case--for the little guy?  When you can, make sure you review highlights from Senator Bernie Sanders's (I-VT) "filibuster" against the Obama-GOP tax cut compromise.  It is inspiring!
(Links forthcoming)

Study Shows that TV News Viewers Misinformed--Fox Viewers Most Misinformed
Well, now it's quantifiable. Read the summary of the findings, and also look at the study itself. You can also download the Full Report and Survey Questions/Methodology (PDFs).  The section "A Note on the Question of What is “True”" is a very interesting read--page 3 of the Full Report.

Jon Stewart gets to some of this in his interview with Mike Huckabee, in which Stewart takes Fox to task for their silence on the Zadroga bill (from top of this blog post):

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Mike Huckabee
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog</a> The Daily Show on Facebook

 And just in case you need further reason to smack your head...Fox head instructed its reporters/anchors to discredit climate science.


In case you thought  misinformation didn't have real world impact...
The new Freshman Congress is going to spend its energy--un-greening the Capitol. Really. It's Reagan and the solar panels all over again.

the DREAM Act: Some quick info

Updates AFTER failed to pass 12/2010:

• "Obama to make grassroots push for DREAM in 2011" (HuffPost, 12/24/10)

----
Update 12/17: ANOTHER Senate vote on DREAM Act will be tomorrow. Please call BROWN. He has said he is a "NO" vote. He needs to hear from us.
--
DREAM act gives a very narrowly defined group of illegal immigrants ---people who were brought here (illegally) by their parents and have spent their whole lives here -- a path to citizenship, through education and military service. As it stands, there is no channel for these betwixt/between people to become citizens.

Information sheets about DREAM act (FAQ/common misconceptions) - CLICK HERE
Politifact fact-checks the attacks on DREAM. 
It is widely supported by American voters (66%)
BONUS: it cuts the deficit! (click here)
Even the conservative/libertarian Cato Institute sees benefits of DREAM Act! (I must add--against tide of Tea Party sentiment!)
Texas Clergy support DREAM Act. Texas!!

Scott Brown is on the fence about the DREAM Act (using language of support but setting himself up as being "dissatisfied" w/ the process or soemthing). [Update: Here's Brown saying it's Backdoor Amnesty, to Boston Globe]

CALLS ARE IMPORTANT--please ring him (and Rep. Stephen Lynch--who is also listed as UNDECIDED) TODAY.

SENATOR SCOTT BROWN: 

 Phones: Boston -- (617) 565-3170

Washington, DC -- (202) 224-4543

 FAX: (202) 228-2646 (you can use services like FaxZero.com to send free faxes from the internet!)

UPDATE:Rep. Lynch voted YES on Dream Act

CONGRESSMAN STEPHEN LYNCH 202-225-8273