EENR 4 Progress: Let’s Elect Burner & Fallon!

Hey all, welcome to another edition of EENR for Progress. Tonight the bloggers of EENR are endorsing two fightin’ progressives from Iowa and Washington state; Ed Fallon and Darcy Burner! Follow me below the fold to learn more about why we have to help elect these two candidates to Congress in 2008….

Let’s Help Elect Fightin’ Progressive Ed Fallon!

There has been a ton of talk about electing more and better Democrats to Congress. We’ve been continually disappointed in the absence of a backbone when it comes to moderate Democrats. Many of them have failed us when it comes to protecting our civil liberties or cutting funding for the war in Iraq. The Democrats caved to Bush’s horrid economic stimulus plan which is yet another waste of billions of dollars. Isn’t it about time we replaced some of these Democrats? We helped unseat Wynn with fightin’ progressive Donna Edwards, now it’s time to replace moderate Democrat Leonard Boswell with fightin’ progressive Ed Fallon! Ed Fallon is a community activist and has been an Iowa state representative in Iowa for the last 14 years. He ran an impressive run for Governor in 2006 and now has his sights set on the seat occupied by moderate Democrat Leonard Boswell. Fellow Kossack Des Moines Dem has written extensively about the race here, here and here if you’d like a local perspective. Here’s a statement from Ed Fallon about why he’s running for Congress:

Our country needs and wants change.  I’m ready to take on the corporate interests who have corrupted our federal government.  I’m ready to give working families and the poor a voice in national politics.  I’m ready to do what I can to see that environmental issues are taken seriously inside the beltway.  I’m ready to apply what I’ve learned during 23 years of public service in Iowa and be a part of the solution in Washington.

Where Fallon Stands on the Issues

Fallon On Iraq

Ed Fallon was opposed to the war from the start. Fallon supports timetable for withdrawal and is in favor of immediately cutting funding for the continuation of the war. Fallon believes that we should allocate funds for a withdrawal and address our soldiers physical, mental and employment needs. Here’s a snippet from Fallon on his website:

It is now clear to nearly everyone that President Bush lied to Congress and to the American people when he spoke of weapons of mass destruction as the premise to go to war in Iraq.  I was among the tens of millions of Americans who opposed the war from the start, and who did not believe the President’s justification for invasion.

Fallon on Health Care and how his family was personally affected by the crisis

It’s rare to see a politician these days share the same health care struggles that millions of Americans face. Ed shares a story on his website about how his family couldn’t afford health insurance and the troubles they faced when dealing with a family injury:

One day my daughter Fionna, then age two, broke her leg sledding and we rushed her to Broadlawns  Medical Center. Though we had always received quality care at Broadlawns, there was no doctor on duty that day who could fix a broken leg. We lived only four blocks from Mercy Hospital but because we lacked insurance, mom and daughter were shipped by ambulance 110 miles to University Hospitals in Iowa City. This resulted in additional costs and loss of work for both parents.  

The care we received at University Hospitals was excellent, but the tab for Fionna’s leg came to over $5,000. Our family’s income was under $15,000 that year, so we approached the local human services office, only to be informed that we weren’t poor enough to quality for Title XIX! Two years and countless phone calls later, a payment plan was worked out and we received some assistance with the bill.

It’s nice to see a politician understand the reality that many of us are facing. It’s not surprising that Fallon supports UHC, and has vowed to fight hard for it when he is elected to Congress. Fallon supports a Medi-Care option which will focus on preventative care, mental, dental and vision care, hospice and longterm care and even alternative medicinal approaches. I like that Fallon doesn’t rule out alternative care. I was in a bad wreck and the only treatment that relieved my pain was acupuncture.

Fallon on Campaign Finance Reform

This may be the biggest issue of our time. I know what you’re thinking, campaign finance reform bigger than UHC? Yep. If we don’t get the lobbyist influence out of our government we won’t ever pass UHC! Fallon is already taking a stand I wish more of our Democratic legislators would. Here’s what he had to say about PAC/lobbyist money:

As a strong advocate for getting big money out of politics, I have never taken money from lobbyists or PACs, and I won’t accept it in this Congressional campaign either.

Fallon is a strong advocate for publicly financed campaigns. Fallon currently supports the Fair Elections Act in the Senate and has vowed to introduce or co-sponsor public financing legislation. His opponent otoh, Leonard Boswell takes bundles of PAC/lobbyist money. Between the months of Feb-Sept of 2007, 73% of Boswell’s money came from PACs. Ouch. Speaking of Fallon’s opponent….

Who Fallon is Up Against

Leonard Boswell is one of those Democrats that we’ve all been disappointed in. Boswell voted for the IWR, voted to declare the Iraq War as part of the war on terror and voted against a withdrawal back in 2007. While Boswell has a passable record on labor issues, his record on civil liberties is not acceptable considering he’s a Democrat. He voted to allow electronic surveillance without warrants back in 2006 and voted to allow overseas wiretapping without a FISA warrant just last year. Boswell also voted to make the Patriot Act permanent back in 2005 and voted to ban flag desecration. Want more? Boswell voted for the Bankruptcy bill in 2005 and for the repeal of the estate tax. Boswell has continued to support the Bush/Cheney energy policies and even voted against raising CAFE standards back in 2001. Boswell also supports building a fence along the Mexico border.

Does Boswell sound like a Democrat that represents your values? If we progressives have learned anything in the past few years, it’s that we can’t just be happy with a candidate because they have a D next to their name. Boswell does not represent the blue district of Des Moines Iowa. It’s time to help unseat Boswell with a fightin’ progressive! Please get involved in this race, Fallon needs our support!

Here’s How YOU can Help Elect Fallon

Fallon is running against a well financed machine that is propped up by PAC’s and lobbyists. Fallon has the right message, we just need to help give him the resources he needs to spread his message all across the 3rd district. We bloggers of EENR have set up an Act Blue page for Fallon, be generous and give what you can to Fallon! If you live in Iowa and want to help out the Fallon Campaign, there are numerous things you can do. You can make phone calls, canvass, help with events and even just show your support by sticking a yard sign in your front yard. Go here to learn about ways you can help the campaign. If you’d like to learn more about Fallon and where he stands on the issues you can visit his website here

Next up, EENR Endorses Darcy Burner!!!

In 2006, political newcomer Darcy Burner challenged Republican incumbent Dave Reichert. Burner lost by over 7,000 votes with one quarter of a million votes cast. This time, we need to help ensure a victory for progressives everywhere! Here’s a snippet from her website about what she’ll do for America in Congress:

She will work to put the country back on the right track by fighting to end the misguided war in Iraq; by fighting to restore responsibility and accountability to government; and by fighting to improve the lives of middle class families squeezed by the unfair policies of the Bush administration.

Where Darcy Stands on the Issues

On the Environment and Energy

Burner has promised to aggressively fight climate change. She also wants to invest in new energy efficiency programs and clean energy technologies as a way to create jobs and combat global warming.  Burner is also well aware of the problem regarding our water shortages, here’s what she had to say on the issue from an interview with Pacific Views:

Let’s come up with better technologies for water purification, let’s come up with better ways to conserve water, let’s come up with better technologies for water desalinization. Let’s come up with better ways of transporting water, more efficiently and more effectively. If we did that and we made some infrastructure investments, and we address the problem of climate change, we could head off, or cope with, many of the problems we’re talking about. But it’s a big thing, not a little thing

On the War in Iraq

Darcy Burner has been opposed to the war from the beginning. Burner supports a withdrawal from Iraq, and supports imposing benchmarks for the Iraqi government to gain control over their country. Burner has also blasted the wasteful spending in Iraq and slammed Halliburton for the loss of billions in taxpayer dollars. Here’s a little snippet from Burner:

“The war is busting our budget, breaking our military, and burning our bridges around the world,”?Burner says. “It is time to end it.”

On American Workers and Jobs

Darcy is a strong advocate for raising the minimum wage and strengthening the labor movement. Darcy believes in investing in job training, education and new industries that will help Americans affected by harmful trade deals. She is an advocate for fair trade where we enforce labor/environmental regulations as well as protect intellectual property standards abroad. Here’s a statement by Darcy from the Seattle Times about how she would fight for American jobs:

I would work to make sure your tax dollars don’t go toward subsidizing sending jobs overseas, to fight trade agreements that don’t provide a level playing field for American businesses and workers, and to build the next generation industries which will create good jobs right here at home.

Who Darcy is Up Against

Dave Reichert is a two term Republican Congressman who does not represent the constituents of the suburbs of Seattle. He is a Bush/Cheney loyalist and has voted with the Republican party line on the major issues facing this country. Reichert voted against a timetable for withdrawal in Iraq in 2005 and in 2007. Reichert is no friend to fiscal responsibility. He supports the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy and voted against AMT (alternative minimum tax) relief funded by closing the offshore tax loophole for big corp. Reichert, like Boswell, also voted to approve overseas wiretapping without a FISA warrant and voted to allow electronic surveillance with a warrant. Reichert is also a proponent of building a fence along the Mexico border and supported a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. Reichert supported CAFTA and the recent NAFTA expansion into Peru, and voted against the Employee Free Choice Act. Reichert also opposed negotiating lower prescription drug prices through Medicare part D, and he voted for Pence’s horrid amendment that targeted funding for family services by Planned Parenthood for women living in poverty. If that wasn’t bad enough, he voted to allow nuclear waste to be stored at Hanford. I’m sure Washingtonians and Oregonians love that! Don’t you think the Seattle suburbanites deserve better that Reichert? I sure do!

Reichert is BFF with Bush

Bush has come out to WA repeatedly to hold fundraisers for Dave Reichert. Here’s what Bush had to say about Reichert just last year at a fundraiser held in Bellevue WA:

The most important priority of government — it’s one of the reasons I’m such a strong believer in Dave — is to protect the homeland. That’s our most important job. (Applause.) And Dave Reichert understands that. He understands that it’s possible for government to balance the need to understand the enemy and civil liberties. And we’re doing just that. He knows what I know, that we’ve got to use all assets of our power to protect you.

Are you scared yet? Are you ready to fight for Darcy Burner to unseat Bush’s buddy Reichert? I hope so! The bloggers of EENR have set up a fundraising page for fightin’ progressive Darcy Burner. Go here to donate to the campaign and help her beat Reichert. If you live in the Seattle area and want to help out with the campaign go here. If you’d like to learn more about Darcy Burner check out her website.

Thank you all for coming by! Let’s get to work for Darcy Burner and Ed Fallon and help elect more and better Democrats.