Former U.S. Presidential candidate speaks from jail…

Former U.S. Presidential candidate speaks from jail… an Israeli jail.

In a news release from the National Green Party former U.S. Representative and 2008 Green presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney talked about her jailing in Israeli.

Cynthia McKinney delivered the following statement by phone: "We were in international waters on a boat delivering humanitarian aid to people in Gaza when the Israeli Navy ships surrounded us and illegally threatened us… Immigration officials in Israel said they did not want to keep us, but we remain imprisoned.”

The news release says McKinney and other people jailed have refused to sign: “a self-incriminating 'deportation form' stating that the Spirit of Humanity was violating the Israeli blockade and trespassing Israeli territorial waters by attempting to deliver supplies to Gaza.”

The boat McKinney was on was delivering medical supplies, cement, and children's toys to Pro- Palestinian groups in Gaza.

SOURCE:

http://gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=232

http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=228

http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/2009/07/excongresswoman-remains-held-in-israel.html

Let the 2010 campaign begin on…

Let the 2010 campaign begin on… July 23rd, 2009.

The Green Party Annual National Meeting is the last week of June, and in an e-mail the Green Party says, “2010 campaigns will kick off (at the convention).”

The Greens e-mail encourages any Green Party member that wants to run for, “county, state, or federal office in 2010” to attend the event. The party is holding workshops on how to get media attention, promoting candidates on the Internet, best practices on door-to-door canvassing and how Green Party candidates can work together.

The Green Party meeting will be in Durham, North Carolina from July 23rd-26th.

SOURCE:

Green Party e-mail

http://gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=222

Go Green for office...

Go Green for office... the call is out in Illinois for people to run for office in 2010. The Illinois Greens want to double their number of candidates from 2008. The Greens had 56 candidates in Illinois for the 2008 election.

The Illinois Green Party is asking for people around the state to consider a run for office in 2010.

A posting on their website says they want to find candidates for, "every partisan race in the state, including U.S. Senator, Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, and State Comptroller; all 19 U.S. House seats; 20 Illinois Senate seats; all 118 Illinois House seats; and hundreds of county-level office, including County Clerk, County Treasurer, and County Sheriff in most counties, and about half of all County Board seats across the state."

The Party's goal is to have a candidate in every statewide race, nearly every congressional race plus, "at least 20% of all state legislative races, and dozens of candidates for county office."

SOURCE:

http://ilgp.org/2010-call-for-candidates

Green Party, Libertarians, and Constitution Party team-up...

Green Party, Libertarians, and Constitution Party team-up... The Green Party sent out a news release saying the three major third parties are teaming-up to file a federal lawsuit to challenge discriminatory provisions and enforcement of ballot access laws.

The news release says, "The Green Party of Pennsylvania is party to a lawsuit that was filed recently by the Center for Competitive Democracy."

The lawsuit challenges rules that force candidates to pay litigation costs and fees to private parties who challenge their nomination petitions. The release says, "these fees have amounted to more $80,000 for the crime of doing no more than trying to run for public office."

The news release pointed to 2006 Green Party Senatorial candidate Carl Romanelli. The release says Romanelli submitted more than 100,000 signatures to get on the ballot, “The Democratic Party challenged the signatures, and after a 7-week battle, chipped away at the Green Party signatures with technicality after technicality.” Romanelli was off the ballot and fined $80,000 in court costs. "You shouldn't have to risk house and home to run for office in Pennsylvania," said Hillary Kane, Chair of the Green Party of Pennsylvania. The release continued, “similar scenario left Independent candidate Ralph Nader… with more than $80,000 in fees from their 2004 Presidential run.”

SOURCE:

http://www.gp.org/press/pr-state.php?ID=220

http://www.gpofpa.org

http://www.gp.cofm

Republicans and Democrats are to blame...

Republicans and Democrats are to blame... for ban on Gay Marriage in California according to the California Green Party. In a news release the California Green Party called it a "sad day (when) a state moves backward instead of forward towards justice and equality.”

That was the reaction after Proposition Eight in California was upheld. The Green Party, which has supported same-sex marriages since its inception.

The news release quoted Green Party member Alex Walker saying Republicans got the measure on the ballot but, “Democrats let Prop. 8 win because, as is often the case, they lacked the guts to fight for unpopular minorities."

Starlene Rankin, the Lavender Green Caucus co-chair said, "The decision goes against our country's core values of liberty and justice and it will be overturned.” Rankin said Greens are planning for a new vote on the gay marriage issue.

SOURCE:

http://gp.org/press/pr-state.php?ID=217

It’s only us...

It’s only us... asking for nationalized health care says The Green Party. The Green Party is taking a stand as being “the only political party” to support single-payer (nationalized) health care.

In an e-mail to members the Greens say, “A Single-Payer system would eliminate the for-profit insurance companies, lower the cost of health care in the United States by as much as one third, and would remove the financial burden on businesses suffering from the recent economic meltdown - replacing employee-based health care benefits.”

The Greens say nationalized health care has been barred from the public debate because of, “the influence of insurance, HMO's, and pharmaceutical lobbies through campaign contributions, 'astroturf' (false grassroots) operations, and dishonest advertising.”

The Green Party say they are only voice that can bring nationalized health care to the political table.

That’s nice Mister President, but...

That’s nice Mister President, but... not enough. The Green Party is responding to President Obama’s new emission rules by saying there are still many environmental challenges, including car emissions.

The Greens say in a news release, “The President's plan.. is a step in the right direction, but falls short.” Greens say the new rules will have minimal effect. Wes Rolley the Green Party EcoAction Committee co-chair says the was are to, “reduce car traffic, such as regionally sensitive carbon taxes, congestion taxes, a halt in new highway construction, and -- most urgently for working Americans -- a massive public transportation project to replace the reliance on cars."

The Greens also say clean coal is a public relations fabrication. Greens also say "Nuclear power is dirty and dangerous.” That’s the word from Green Party co-chair Jill Bussiere. Bussiere points to security problems and the amount of fuel needed to supply power plants.

Cap and Trade is also criticized. They call it a concession to polluting industries. "President Obama must launch a project to stem global warming that's comparable to the concerted and internationally cooperative effort to defeat the Axis powers during World War II. The lives of future generations in America and throughout the world are vastly more important than the current demands of energy industries," said Budd Dickinson, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States and a retired energy engineer.

SOURCE:
http://gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=214

More Green....

More Green... on your ballots in 2009.  

The May 2009 Green Party newsletter says Greens have filed to run for 119 offices.  The letters says this compares with,  "In 2005, 69 candidates had declared their run by the middle of May.  In 2007, that number was 74."  The newsletter says 119 candidates is a record for the Greens.

The newsletter continues to ask people to declair their candidacy for a local offices in 2009 and maybe start planning for 2010 races.

SOURCE:

http://www.gp.org/elections/candidates/index.php