Join us this coming week for a free event with Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream and the StampStampede.org, Ben’s is on a national tour to overturn Citizens United and get big money out of politics. None of us can any longer afford to sit around and watch the top one percent take away all our rights, remove our Social Security, Medicare, pensions and other programs, contaminate our food, water, air, and products. The event is Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 2:00 p.m. (doors open at 1:30) at the Chicago Temple, 70 W. Washington, Chicago, across from the Daley Center. Ben is providing free ice cream The event is sponsored by the Coalition to Overturn Citizens United. rsvp sharsand@aol.com.
‘The Union List’
A Free Event with Ben Cohen of the StampStampede
by sharsand, posted on Sunday, November 10th, 2013 at 11:53 amQuinn Picks Republican Running Mate
by John Laesch, posted on Saturday, November 9th, 2013 at 5:40 pmWho will you vote for on Nov. 5, 2014 if you are given the choice between voting for a Republican (pick one) and a Republican (Paul Vallas)? Yep, Pat Quinn picked a Republican as his running mate, further alienating working people, minorities and women from the Democratic Party.
Four years ago, Vallas told host Jeff Berkowitz on the Public Affairs cable TV show that he’s now a Republican.
VALLAS: “I would take a Republican primary ballot.”
BERKOWITZ: “Do you think of yourself as a Republican?”
VALLAS: “I’m more of a Republican than a Democrat.”
BERKOWITZ: “If you run again for office you’d be running as a Republican?”
VALLAS: “I would, yes, yes.”
It gets better
Hultgren’s vote – for the record
by Downtowner, posted on Thursday, October 17th, 2013 at 10:30 amI don’t intend to engage in hyperbole, hysteria, or histrionics this morning – that’s apparently something that Randy Hultgren sees as his job – but I don’t want Hultgren’s vote last night to continue the government shutdown, and default on the nation’s debt, to pass unremarked.
Last night Randy Hultgren was the only member of the Illinois Congressional delegation to vote to continue the wildly expensive government shutdown.
That’s right, the only one, of either party.
When Right is Wrong
by Joni Lindgren, posted on Sunday, October 13th, 2013 at 7:45 pmWhat do all the following have in common?
Answer: They all were opposed by Republicans in Congress.
Your Rights Are About to be Taken Away Again!
by Joni Lindgren, posted on Sunday, October 13th, 2013 at 12:06 pmJust when I thought Illinois politics couldn’t get any worse than what it has been, it did. I am referring to an upcoming vote against Governor Quinn’s veto on HB 2454 which prevents citizens from petitioning voters to get advisory questions on a ballot in the future.
Last summer, there were 14 petitioners who spent 6 months collecting signatures from Kane County voters for an advisory question for the 2012 November ballot. That collection took place at the Gail Bordon and St. Charles Libraries, faires, festivals, Geneva’s French Market and the DMV in Elgin. The question asked if the voters thought the Constitution should be amended to limit all the money that is now part of our political process….thanks to the Supreme Court’s disastrous 2010 decision on Citizens United. Last November, it was ultimately passed by 74% of ALL Kane County voters who said they wanted to get rid of all this unlimited, secret and unregulated money that continues to pour into our elections and used to pay off politicians for their yes vote for favors. I believe this is still called bribery and it is the number one reason citizens have such low opinions of those we elect to speak on our behalf. The truth is, you just don’t have enough money to influence the legislators.
Hultgren Goes Off the Reservation With Government Shut Down
by Ellen McClennan, posted on Saturday, October 12th, 2013 at 6:25 pmBy now, it is quite clear Randy Hultgren has aligned himself with the far right wing Republican contingent responsible for shutting down our government and threatening the debt ceiling crisis. Conservative commentator Charles Krauthammer has actually termed Hultgren and his contingent of about 79 other representatives as the “suicide caucus.”
Hultgren and the rest of the Republican politicians known as the “suicide caucus” are called that because they signed Republican Mark Meadows’ letter, known as The Meadows Letter, which demands that House Speaker Boehner pass legislation to defund the Patient’s Rights and Affordability Care Act (ACA–Obamacare) and to commit to defund the ACA by using the continuing resolution to fund the government. In other words, shut down our government.
Hultgren and Roskam Too Expensive for Us
by Ellen McClennan, posted on Sunday, September 29th, 2013 at 9:00 amWe can’t afford to keep Randy Hultgren and Peter Roskam in office any longer. They continue to waste our taxpayer money in vain attempts, 42 at last count, to end the Affordable Care Act. Each Hultgren and Roskam attempt to defund the law, which was enacted by Congress and upheld by the Supreme Court, costs us taxpayers (according to research by CBS) approximately $1.45 million.
Hultgren and Roskam join with the rest of the House Republicans in collectively spending 15% of its activity since 2011 on repealing the ACA (Obamacare), or about $17 million in Congressional Republican salaries– according to a recent report published by the New York Times.
When considering all the facts, it becomes quite clear that the Republican temper-tantrum over the ACA is nothing more than them serving the financial services industry–their primary campaign donors–rather than any concern about American people.
Hultgren spending $58 million to protect CEO bonus checks
by Ellen McClennan, posted on Saturday, August 24th, 2013 at 11:57 amFor a politician claiming to value fiscal responsibility, 14th Congressional Representative Randy Hultgren certainly has wasted a lot of our money.
Hultgren has voted with the rest of his Tea Party coalition to repeal Obamacare 40 times. According to a recent CBS study, each Republican vote to repeal costs all of us American taxpayers $1.45 million—for a total of about $58 million.
Question: Why would Hultgren be so focused on wasting our money to repeal a law voted in by Congress and upheld by the Supreme Court?
Answer: Hultgren’s largest campaign donors come from the Securities and Investment (i.e. Insurance) industry. Check it out at OpenSecrets.org. Hultgren is protecting Insurance CEO’s paychecks at the same time he is attempting to take insurance coverage away from those who need it and billing American taxpayers millions for his efforts.
Question: So what’s so bad about Obamacare that the financial services industry wants to repeal it? After all, Obamacare just delivered millions more people into their coffers.
Answer: Obamacare restricts the profit insurance companies can make.
Dennis Anderson Announces (IL-14)
by jstupec, posted on Saturday, August 24th, 2013 at 7:41 amI attended the Anderson Announcement:
For the past two years we in the IL14 congressional district have had a do-nothing Republican Tea Partier as our representative in the US Congress. Due to gerrymandering, the district stretches from almost the Wisconsin border south to Yorkville, Il. On the east there’s the Fox River and the district bulges to the west occasionally but it’s a difficult district to campaign in because of the time consuming distances necessary to meet as many constituents as possible. In the 2012 election, Dennis Anderson came from out of nowhere to take 41% of the vote from a well-funded Republican (Randy Hultgren). Anyone who has been watching this useless House of Representatives knows exactly what his voting record is. This country must change the balance of power in the House and we have a truly superb candidate that will work hard for District 14 and, ultimately, all of the people of America.
I could try to paraphrase Dennis’ very impressive biography and where he stands on issues but that wouldn’t do him justice so I’m going to take the easy way out and let you read the good news. The speech was delivered on August 18th, 2013.
To donate, go to the Anderson Facebook page at www.facebook.com/dennisanderson.IL14 and click the ActBlue (AB) button or email the campaign at andersonforcongress14@gmail.com. You know the drill, volunteering and donations to help him fight for us. Dennis gives us the chance to change Congress.