Poll numbers up for Barack Obama

The latest national polling numbers reported on Daily Kos show Sen. Barack Obama with an increasing lead over scare-monger Sen. John McCain. Go here for details: http://www.dailykos.com/trendlines

Hatching rescue plans for Florida's elderly voters

Chris and I left Florida 30 years ago for the Rocky Mountains. During those three decades, the changes in our old home state have been enormous. I'm not going to look up the statistics because it's Sunday morning and I still haven't had enough coffee. But it's no secret that millions of people have moved to Florida looking for warm weather, pristine beaches, verdant open spaces, and peace and quiet. By moving there in droves, they've destroyed all but the first one. That's the way it goes. We've had similar problems in the West's beautiful places. We're short on beaches, but we boast mountains that will knock your socks off. People buy property to be near those mountains. Others follow and pretty soon you can't see the mountains for the mansions and woodsmoke, and open spaces are pushed further back into the wilderness until the Bush Administration gets its hands on the place for oil and gas drilling.

I digress. Chris and I attended high school and college in Florida, met and decided to go West. We get back to Florida as often as possible to see family and friends. My eight brothers and sisters live in Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach, Orlando, Palm Bay and Tallahassee. Chris's lone sister and her husband live in Green Cove Springs near the St. John's River. Our parents have passed on, but we still have aunts and uncles and cousins scattered around the state. Chris's relatives from New Jersey and New York all migrated south in retirement, and now all of her cousins live on the Florida West Coast.

The state's big enough to accommodate all of our relatives and millions of others. Sort of. Retirees used to flock to the state and settle among their own kind. Rust Belt retirees (back when there were jobs) settled in St. Pete and environs on the West Coast, Southerners tended to land in the Panhandle along the Redneck Riviera, and New Yorkers, especially those of the Jewish persuasion, flocked to Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and other towns and cities of Dade and Broward counties. In the 2000 election, we saw some of these former New Yorkers trying to make sense of the hanging chads. They looked really old and confused. Some say they cost us the election and gave the world Dubya. We all know it's more complicated than that.

Sarah Silverman of TV fame has decided to help these voters in the next election. Not with the hanging chads -- those don't exist anymore (at least I don't think they do). Silverman is urging those in her Jewish age cohort to travel to Florida before the election and help convince their parents and grandparents to vote for Barack Obama. She and others involved in "The Great Schlep" feel that misinformation has confused their family members and they might end up voting for McCain instead (or by accident). The McCain camp, of course, has been encouraging these misconceptions by his own misleading ads. So Silverman & Company came up with this plan, which I think is brilliant. I am wondering, though, how hard-headed New Yorkers, no matter their age, will response to youngsters flying into Miami to tell them what to do. But it's worth a shot. Just a few votes may affect the entire election.

I'm wondering how our elderly relatives would respond to a similar plan. There's a major problem right off the bat. While Jewish retirees from New York almost always vote Democratic, that's not the case for Catholics from New Jersey. Most of our family members are diehard Republicans. Abortion is the main issue, of course. Birth control, too, as well as the Catholic Church's insistence on centralized authority. That issue rubs most believers in democracy the wrong way. You'd think that "States' Rights Republicans" would bridle at being told what to do by an oligarch in Rome who wears white robes and designer red shoes. Rome's in Europe, that dreadful place. And you can be pro-life when it comes to fetuses but support a foreign policy that vaporizes entire Iraqi families with not-so-smart bombs. But I guess it's O.K. to be a "Cafeteria Catholic" if you're a Republican.

So, "The Great Schlep" won't work for our oldsters, even if it had a different name, such as "Bringing Democracy to Old Benighted Republicans." Perhaps, as nest eggs continue to dwindle in tough economic times, we could frame it as some sort of Bush rescue plan. "We're from the Bush Administration and we're here to help." Considering the past eight years, that could cause a panic, even among Florida Republicans.

Community organizers of a theatrical type

Chris and I are community theatre organizers. It's not quite as impressive as being community organizers. Those people are doing God's work as they assist the homeless, feed the hungry and enfranchise disenfranchised voters. Community theatre organizers may never feel the sting of a Sarah Palin putdown (even though she is quite theatrical). Community organizers. Harumph. Harumph.

But those folks at the soup kitchen and us have one thing in common -- we volunteer our time and talent to a good cause. It's possible that Palin does the same thing in Alaska. Does anyone know? It would be ironic if Palin had been a community organizer of a conservative sort and was making fun of them at the same time.

Community theatre organizers are also volunteers. We donate our time as ushers, waitrons, ticket takers, board members, fund-raisers, tech staff and even actors for the Cheyenne Little Theatre Players. Last night, Chris and I were ushers for "Oliver!" It was a sold-out house, and we were pretty busy for an hour or so. The play seemingly has a cast of thousands, mainly the kids who play the characters in the workhouse ("Food! Glorious Food!") and on the street. When you have kids in the cast, you get an audience of parents and grandparents and siblings and aunts and uncles and friends. You get volunteers, too. Our two kids have been involved in CLTP productions. One of our fellow ushers has a daughter in the play. Two of the other volunteers are local community college students who've been in scores of CLTP productions, including the very entertaining Cheyenne Old-Fashioned Summer Melodrama, where I volunteer as an emcee and Chris as a waitron. Almost all of us summer people are volunteers, which enables the CLTP to use the melodrama as its largest annual fund-raiser.

What do we get out of it? A grand old feeling that we're supporting one of the oldest community theatre groups (79th season) west of the Mississippi. It's fun, too. We get to see old pals and make new ones. Baby Boomers rapidly approaching geezerhood get to work with young people, who are surprisingly tolerant of our doddering ways. We don't tell them this (maybe we should), but they teach us more than we teach them.

So, don't let Sarah Palin get your goat. Go out and volunteer in your community today. Remember that community is made up of all kinds of people. Last night, as I was handing our programs to hundreds of Laramie County citizens, I wondered how many were voting for McCain-Palin. How many will I see today as I'm handing out fliers for the Democratic Party's U.S. Senate candidates? Will they be as affable today to this community political organizer as they were last night to this community theatre organizer?

Lies, and the lying liars who utter them

Calling all stalwart Democrats

Dear All:

Feel like trudging through the snow this weekend for Wyoming Democratic U.S. Senate candidates Nick Carter and Chris Rothfuss? C'mon, it won't be that bad. Come down to Dem HQ in downtown Cheyenne on Saturday morning between 10 and noon and pick up a packet of Carfuss/Rothter material (we might even though in a few Gary Trauner flyers). We're going to cover Cheyenne like a blanket, a nice warm blanket that you can get into when you get home. And don't forget the hot chocolate.

If you don't feel like walking neighborhoods on University of Wyoming's Homecoming (Pokes 49, Utes 0!), pick up your flyers tomorrow at the Laramie County Democrats office on 17th Street between Capitol and Central in Cheyenne, and go out on Sunday, even Monday, Columbus Day. The goal is to get material to every household in Cheyenne and Burns and Pine Bluffs. They deserve to know that there are Democrats out there who want to change the status quo in Wyoming and the nation.

See you this weekend.

Mike

UPDATE: The actual score of the game Saturday was Utah 40, Wyoming 7. See, you neighborhood walkers didn't miss anything.

Idea: Let's ask the Iraqis for a loan

I know where we can get the money for the Wall Street bailout. China's tapped out and even the Saudis are losing their shirts in the international markets. Most of our money's actually already been spent on the Iraq War, but if we stop now, and then plead with the Iraqis to reimburse us for our expenses thus far (they have plenty of dough saved up), we can just about cover the $700 billion, give or take.

Click here to learn more

Dem TV ad: "The Real John McCain"

Now go to the web site of your favorite Democratic Party candidate for president, U.S. Senate, U.S. House, your state's legislature or secretary of state (the person who oversees elections), and any other election category you can think of and donate some money for more ads. When Obama is president, he needs all the allies he can get to make change a reality. You can also donate to your favorite progressive candidate at ActBlue.

McCain stokes hatred and ignorance in the American Heartland

McCain supporters hateful and spiteful and mean-spirited? How could that be? Go to this YouTube video ("The Sidewalk to Nowhere") for the wit & wisdom of McCainiacs waiting in line for a rally in Bethlehem, Penn.: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itEucdhf4Us

UPDATE LATER THE SAME DAY: Here's how Sen. Barack Obama responded to the hateful spewing by McCain and his minions:

"They can run misleading ads, they can pursue the politics of anything goes. It will not work. Not this time. I think that folks are looking for something different this time. It's easy to rile up a crowd, nothing's easier than riling up a crowd by stoking anger and division. But that's not what we need right now in the United States. The times are too serious," Obama said at a rally in Chillicothe, Ohio.

What hath Republican economics wrought?

Pres. George W. Bush is going on TV this morning to calm out fears about the economy. I stopped listening to W a long time ago, but others still think that the man will offer up some real policies instead of platitudes. Face it -- Bush, Cheney and the rest of their gang got us into this mess with their deregulation schemes. Some Democrats, damn their hides, went along for the ride. But not all of them.

With this election, we have a chance to elect a different philosophy. It's especially important now that all of us have at least some of our retirement money in the stock market, mainly through 401(K)s. If you tell people to put their money into financial instruments that depend on the vagaries of the market and then take away all the rules that govern bad behavior in that market, you're asking for trouble.

Still, our money managers advised us to stay with it. If you're young, it's O.K. to be a little risky because you can make big gains and also recoup any loses over the course of your long and prosperous life (just hope your job doesn't go overseas like the rest of them). Middle-aged people were told to be a bit more cautious. Those in our fifties and sixties, Baby Boomers, were told to play it safe. But all of us got the same message: the stock market goes up and down but it will always be safe. Your money will be safe. You will have a nice nest egg for those golden years in Sun City.

That's probably what our president will say this morning. All is well. Stay the course. Me and my pals did not lead you into a financial quagmire in the same way we lead the nation into the quagmire of Iraq.

Also remember that our U.S. Senators, Mike Enzi and John Barrasso, believe strongly in Bushonomics and its predecessor, Reaganomics. They believe in deregulation. They will continue on the same disastrous course. U.S. House candidate Cynthia Lummis is also in that camp. To reelect or elect them will be a disaster for Wyomingites and for the country.

Garrison Keillor summed it up nicely in a column that appeared in the Oct. 8 Chicago Tribune at http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-oped1008keilloroct08,0,4545327.column:

Your broker kept saying, "Stay with the portfolio, don't jump ship," and you felt a strong urge to dump the stocks and get into the money market where at least you're not going to lose your shirt, but you didn't do it and didn't do it, and now you're holding a big bag of brown bananas. Me, too. But at least I know enough not to believe desperate people who are talking trash. Anybody who got whacked and still thinks McCain-Palin is going to lead us out of the swamp and not into a war with Iran is beyond persuasion in the English language. They'll need to lose their homes and be out on the street in a cold hard rain before they connect the dots.

Trauner blasts Lummis on Social Security

Gary Trauner, Wyoming's candidate for the U.S. House, will hold a press conference on Friday, October 10, in the State Capitol rotunda in downtown Cheyenne at 9 a.m. After his speech, Trauner will stay around for questions. So come on out and hear Gary speak about some of the ways he can be a Congressional rep who actually does something for the people of Wyoming. You also can call into the press conference by dialing 712-451-6100 and using the pass code 721718#. The last time I put this call-in number on the blog, Cynthia Lummis's press secretary called in, pretending to be a "supporter" and asking Gary a loaded yet dumb question.

Speaking of dumb, Cynthia Lummis wants to privatize social security, throwing us all to the Wall Street wolves. Anyone notice how many points the Dow dropped today? The stock market has lost something like 17 percent of its value this week. How much did your 401(K) lose this week?

Here's statement on social security from the Trauner campaign:

Gary Trauner, candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, believes that social security is a vital safety net for Wyomingites. If elected, unlike his opponent Cynthia Lummis, he will not advocate to privatize social security. She advocates for investing this critical safety net in the stock market, a particularly dangerous proposition given the current state of the American economy. The stock market has lost 33 percent of its value this year alone.

"It is critically important that social security always be an available safety net to Wyomingites when they retire. It became even more clear this week as the Dow plummeted, that privatizing social security would be extremely dangerous," Trauner said. "It amazes me that my opponent, Cynthia Lummis, would advocate to invest our tax money in risky stocks, we could do that ourselves. That money should instead be there for the people that have spent their entire life paying into social security."

Wyoming's District 8: Land of the well-educated & politically active citizenry -- well-defended, too

Nifty profile of Lori Millin, our state rep from District 8, in the 10/6 wyofile. Cheyenne's Marguerite Herman wrote the story.

I live in District 8. Here's what Marguerite had to say about us:

District 8 is a compact, middle- and upper-middle-class area here in the Wyoming capital. Residents tend to be well educated and politically active. The district includes many state employees and professionals, with a voter turnout of 90 percent. Republicans hold a substantial numbers advantage -- 2,511 registered Republicans compared to 1,563 Democrats, 505 unaffiliated and 10 Libertarians.

Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal carried the district in 2006, the same year that Millin beat Republican physician Larry Meuli by nine votes. Meuli won a three-way primary battle in 2004 by 31 votes. Elections in this district are close.

Chris and I make up .13 percent of the district's registered Democrats. Dr. Meuli came by the house in 2004 and we had a nice chat. He was opposed by Dem Joe Barrett in that general election, and won by 94 votes, a veritable landslide in our district.

But, I have no qualms in casting votes for Repubs in local elections. I'm also thinking of voting for the Republican, Rick Kaysen, in our non-partisan mayoral election. Democrat Jayne Mockler is running against him. I like them both, but Kaysen seems to have the edge on experience as the former head of Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power. One of my neighbors, Joe Dougherty, didn't make the cut in the mayoral primary. We have political candidates coming out of our ears around here.

Lori Millin worked extremely hard in 2006 to win her seat. She's working equally hard this time to beat the Repub candidate, attorney Bob Nicholas. He's been in politics more than 20 years and comes from a prominent Repub family -- his uncle Phil is the Republican chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. Yet, Nicholas is advertising himself as the underdog. He said this in the wyofile story: "I'm sure Lori is outspending me 10-to-1." Sounds a little odd to hear a Wyoming Republican plead poverty. It's possible that District 8 voters will go ga-ga for this poor underdog lawyer. Not that Lori is without means and connections. She's married to John Millin, the Cheyenne opthomologist who's also the head of the Wyoming Democratic Party. As Marguerite writes: "This year, the District 8 race could be seen as a political party showdown."

One other thing about the district. We're well-defended. The district includes the Wyoming Army Guard HQ, surrounds the Wyoming Air Guard Base, and butts up against Warren A.F.B., home of many pointy-headed nuclear (pronounced new-klee-ur) missiles. If provoked, we could bring to bear a lot of firepower. I'm just saying...

For a nice color map of the city's House and Senate districts, go to www.laramiecountyclerk.com/_pdfs/CityPrecinctDistrict08.pdf.

Don't try to go to Google earth and get any close-ups of the district. All you will get are shots that are at least three years old. Google Earth satellite close-ups reveal a dark blue 1968 VW bug parked in back of my house. That belonged to the house's previous owner. We moved here on New year's Eve of 2005. Do the math. As I said, we are strategically important here in the land of the well-educated and politically active.

There are whoppers, and then there are McCain-style whoppers

Just as we always said: Wyoming's bar graphs are bigger than Colorado's

Coloradopols blog had a little fun with a press release from Headwaters Economics:

At a press conference Wednesday, Headwaters Economics will release a report detailing how Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming choose to tax oil, natural gas, and coal extraction -- and how the revenue is spent.

The report shows Colorado has the lowest effective tax rate in the Intermountain West. It also demonstrates that states can increase their effective tax rates with little risk of affecting the local energy economy.

A giant bar graph, perhaps the largest bar graph ever in Colorado will dramatically illustrate the differences between the 5 states studied in the report.

You'll be able to sit down atop Colorado's three-foot bar on the graph, while Wyoming's bar will loom over you head at about 8 feet tall. That's because the effective oil and gas tax in Wyoming is over twice Colorado's (6.2% for Colorado and 15.9% for Wyoming).

When: Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 10:30 a.m.

Where: Civic Center Park (East side of the park, directly across from the State Capitol)

Dubya gets snowmobile, wreaks havoc

"A Snowmobile for George" is a new election-year documentary. Here's a description from the film's web site:

When President Bush reversed regulations that would have banned the two-stroke snowmobile, filmmaker Todd Darling asked the question: why would he bring back a machine that pollutes dozens of times more than any automobile? Baffled by this regulatory change, he straps his own family’s sled onto a trailer, and drives across America looking for the answer to just why exactly did President Bush change that rule?

Along the way he digs into "de-regulation" and looks at how environmental rule changes have affected a wide range of Americans.

Yurok fishermen on the Klamath River along the Oregon/California border, suffer calamitous losses to their fishery when Karl Rove helps re-write the rules about how much water a fish needs.

Cowboys in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming are now locked in a range war with oil companies because political appointees to the Interior Department stopped the enforcement of clean water rules.

Firemen and paramedics in New York City suffer serious health problems because the White House suppressed key environmental rules during the 9/11 clean-up.

And, in Washington DC the filmmaker meets some lobbyists, and discovers a pattern to this de-regulation that amazingly enough hinges on the Bush Administration's view of the snowmobile.

Thanks to the meltdown on Wall Street, the phrase "de-regulation" has re-entered the popular imagination. Now find out what happens when de-regulation lands right on your doorstep.

You can see the film in the WY/CO/MT region during the next two weeks. here's the schedule:

Oct. 8, Denver, CO, Starz Entertainment Center, "The Election Year Series," presented by The Denver Film Society, 7 p.m.
Oct. 9, Laramie, WY, film and discussion with filmmaker, 7 p.m., Rm. 129, Classroom Bldg., UW

Oct. 10, Sheridan, WY, WYO Theater, 42 N. Main, presented by Powder River Basin Resource Council, 7 p.m., http://www.wyotheater.com/

Oct. 16, Fort Collins, CO, Lyric Theater, http://www.lyriccinemacafe.com/

Oct. 17, Billings, MT, Billings at MSU, time and venue TBD, presented by Northern Plains Resource Council, http://www.northernplains.org/

Feb. 13-22, 2009, Big Sky Fill Festival, Missoula MT, Roxy Theatre

Voter suppression tales in MT, IN, etc.

The usually very alert jhwygirl in Missoula emerged from her cold medicine haze to notice that she's on the list of 6,000 voters being challenged by the Repubs in Montana. All she had to do was dash over to this site: http://www.montanavotersuppression.org/home2

She also noted this:

Lt. Governor John Bohlinger wrote an op-ed for the Montana Standard this past Sunday, listing a few of the disgraceful challenges the Montana Republican Party put forth for this upcoming election: Kevin Furey, former legislator who left the legislature to serve in Iraq; Cindie Kalan-Green, serving in Iraq; Mathew Robison, deployed to Fort Drum; Chelsi Moy, the Missoulian journalist who broke the story; Babe Aspholm, an elderly man from Anaconda who merely moved across town to live in a senior living center; Tom Detonacour, a Deer Lodge County policeman; Frank St. Pierre, 86, Medal of Honor recipient for his service in WWII; Mrs. St. Pierre

And the list goes on and on.

Alan Boswell sent this update this afternoon:

Here’s a brief roundup of the various voting rights news of the past few days. Also note the legal mess in Indiana holding up early voting sites and the 6000 voters whose right to vote is being challenged in Montana.

Election Protection’s 866-OUR-VOTE hotline is THE place to report any foul play (and get basic answers to any question a voter may have). You can also follow more frequent voting rights and voter suppression updates at twitter.com/866OURVOTE.

FMI: Alan Boswell at 866ourvote.org

Wasn't it a Republican who said this: "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." Nope, that was Thomas Jefferson.

These guys made a billion dollars for running their companies into the ground

Here's a New York Times article that will make you sick. Go to http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/10/07/business/20080929-payout-graphic.html to read the stats on a group of a dozen Wall Street CEOs that raked in more than $1 billion in pay from their companies. One of the champs is Richard S. Fuld, Jr., of Lehman Brothers, who made a tidy $256,411,839 in take home pay from 2003-2007. Here's what the NYT said about Fuld:

As recently as June 2008, Richard S. Fuld Jr., the chairman and chief executive of Lehman Brothers, said he was confident that Lehman was sound even as the bank posted a second-quarter loss of $2.8 billion, caused by bad mortgage investments. But on Sept. 16, Lehman filed for bankruptcy and began sliding toward an eventual liquidation.

These greedheads should be locked up.

Fuld testified today before the House Oversight and Governmental Reform Committee. At one point in his life, Fuld was worth $1 billion and now has come on such hard times that he and his wife have had to sell some of their prized art collection, which includes three rare works by abtract-expressionist Willem de Kooning.

Again from the New York Times:

Henry A. Waxman, the California Democrat who heads the panel, began the hearing with an assault on Mr. Fuld’s pay, bringing out a chart showing that the Lehman chief executive received nearly $500 million in salary and bonus payments in the last eight years.

“That’s difficult to comprehend for a lot of people,” Mr. Waxman said. “I have a very basic question for you, is that fair?”

Join fellow progressives at Prez Debate Party on Tuesday night

On Tuesday, October 7, 7 p.m., join the Laramie County Democrats and other progressives at the "Debate Party" at Old Chicago on Dell Range Blvd. in Cheyenne. We had a great time at the first prez debate at the Capitol Grille in downtown Cheyenne. Nobody threw anything at the TV except for some choice folksy epithets, such as "Doggone your bald-faced lies you old coot!" And we weren't addressing Sen. Obama.

FMI: LarCoDems HQ at 307-634-9001.

Prog-blogging in Platte County

I'm a little slow finding out what's happening next door. Just discovered a great blog by Michael the Democrat (and not the only one) in Wheatland. Go to Platte County Democrats and get the lowdown about what's happening in the Big Rectangular County just to the north of Laramie County. And Cheyennites might want to drive the 7o-some miles to Wheatland on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2-4 p.m., for this "Meet the Candidates" event.

Great job, Michael. Great name, too.

McCain: Just ignore that rabid attack dog behind the curtain

More on mental health parity legislation

Forty-eight states offer their own mental health parity laws, although they vary widely in the type of coverage offered. I hate to say this, but only two states do not have any type of laws on mental health parity. One is Alaska. I would advise Sarah Palin to do something about that when she returns to her regular job as governor on Nov. 5. Gov. Palin has made a big deal during the presidential campaign about her passion for special needs children, such as those with Down Syndrome, autism and birth defects. Her youngest daughter was born earlier this year with Down Syndrome. Since she won't be able to carry through with this on the national level, perhaps she can propose legislation in Alaska that can address the demands of all families with special needs children. And perhaps that effort can be adopted in Wyoming, the only other state other than Alaska without its own mental health parity law.

Wyoming is a place with 500,000 residents spread out over 99,000 square miles. We don't have enough hospitals and clinics and health care professionals to take care of the mental health needs of our residents. While the U.S. suicide rate is 11 in 100,000 and the rate in Rocky Mountain states averages 17 per 100,000, Wyoming's rate (when last measured) is the worst in the nation at 22 per 100,000 people. We have a governor who cares enough about this issue to address the Governor's Round Table on Children's Mental Health Nov. 5-6 in Cheyenne. The first lady will also speak. So will Rodger McDaniel, head of the state's Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Division.

McDaniel sees his role as a champion for those families who've been faced with drug abuse and mental health issues. He's an old school social justice activist, a lawyer and ordained minister who practices what he preaches. He and his family left Cheyenne in the 1990s to build houses in Central America for Habitat for Humanity. When you call his office you get a real person on the phone who can answer your questions or get you right to someone who can. This is just a wild guess, but I would say that most people calling his office are desperate for answers, deep in the throes of a family crisis. I was, when I called about our daughter earlier this year. Where do you go to get the help you need? How do you pay for it when your insurance runs out? If you don't have insurance, how can you cover costs at a drug treatment facility or mental health center that can cost hundreds of dollars a day?

I know at least one family in Cheyenne who had their teenager at a residential treatment center in the state for seven weeks until insurance coverage ran out. Even though their teen still needed help, they withdrew her because they didn't know what else to do. Isn't that a crock?

There are organizations in Wyoming that address these issues. I'm a board member of one -- UPLIFT of Wyoming. You can always talk to someone at UPLIFT. Go to http://www.upliftwy.org/.

Do you have any tales (uplifting or horrifying) about efforts to get mental health care in Wyoming -- or any other rural Western state?

VOTE EARLY VOTE EARLY VOTE EARLY

C'mon, people, you know who you're going to vote for. I know some people say they're undecided and are still mulling the various pros and cons of candidates for president and Wyoming's U.S. House and U.S. Senate seats. I've met some as I've gone door to door. "I vote for the person not the party." Great -- so vote already. How much more information do you need? This presidential campaign has been going on for decades, it seems.

Laramie County residents can follow the instructions on the county clerk's web site and go downtown and vote any week day from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. You can also request an absentee be mailed to your home address.

Here are all the details from Laramie County Clerk Debbye Lathrop's web site:

For the convenience of Laramie County voters, the Clerk's Office has an absentee polling place located in the Atrium of the Laramie County Governmental Complex, 309 W. 20th Street. This polling place is open from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday for the 40-day period prior to the election (that began Sept. 25).

Voters wishing to cast an absentee ballot may visit this polling site or:

• Call 307-633-4242 to request a ballot which will be mailed to the address provided
• Write to P.O. Box 608, Cheyenne, WY 82003 to request a ballot
• Bring a written request to the Elections Office at 309 W. 20th Street and pick up a ballot
  

All absentee ballots must be received in the Clerk's Office by 7 p.m. on the day of the election to be counted.

At last Tuesday's meeting of the Laramie County Democrats, Chair Mike Bell asked how many of us had already voted. He said he voted last week and a half-dozen others raised their hands. LarCoDems' stalwart Tom Lee keeps urging us all to get down to the polls "tomorrow!"

So that's what I'll do.

Mental health parity part of bailout bill

Lost among all the angst and hoopla over the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (a.k.a. Wall Street Bailout Bill, Economic Rescue Plan, Paulson's Folly, etc.) was news about an equally important aspect of the legislation considering health insurance. This is especially true if you and/or a loved one have struggled with mental illness. If statistics are accurate, that includes most of you out there. It includes me, my daughter, my father, and assorted siblings, nieces and nephews. If you choose to see the larger bill as a bailout, that's fine, but it also throws a lifeline to millions of Main Street families.

This news comes from the National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health through a Mental Health Liaison Group "Action Alert" this afternoon:

The long campaign to pass parity legislation is over, with a stunning win in Congress.

The U.S. House of Representatives has just voted to pass the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 that includes the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act. The vote total on H.R. 1424 was 263-171. The roll call will be posted at http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll681.xml

This action clears the legislation for presentation to the President, who will sign it very quickly.

Thank you to all organizations that have worked with us since 2001! Thank you to the sponsors of the legislation: Senators Domenici, Kennedy and Enzi, and Representatives Kennedy and Ramstad. Their leadership on this vital issue has been stellar. We could not have had more energetic champions for our cause.

Text of the Parity Legislation is on pages 310 to 344. H.R. 1424 Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 or at Section-by-Section of Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.

Resources: Fact sheets, analyses of the parity legislation and past letters to Congress are posted at www.mhlg.org/page18.html

A big cheer to Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming for being one of the original sponsors of the legislation. A chorus of boos for voting against the Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 on Wednesday in the Senate. We expect Sen. & Dr. John Barrasso to vote against health care bills. After all, he hates Medicare and SCHP. When will you two get a clue? We already know that Rep. Barbara Cubin is a lost cause. But what do we have here? Cubin voting for the rescue plan? She voted for the original one on Monday. You never can tell...

P.S.: My original post said something nice about Enzi -- until I went to his web site and saw his vote.

Veep candidate's take on Veep Cheney

A few words from Joe Biden last night about part-time Jackson resident and full-time (for now) vice-president Dick Cheney:

Vice President Cheney has been the most dangerous vice president we’ve had probably in American history. The idea he doesn’t realize that Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that’s the Executive Branch. He works in the Executive Branch. He should understand that. Everyone should understand that. [..] The idea he’s part of the Legislative Branch is a bizarre notion invented by Cheney to aggrandize the power of a unitary executive and look where it has gotten us. It has been very dangerous.

Voter suppression tactics being used by Montana Republicans

Fellow blogger jhwygirl at 4&20 blackbirds in Montana brings us some disturbing news. Republican political apparatchiks are getting on the voter suppression bandwagon by challenging new registrants in heavily Democratic Counties, such as Missoula, Butte-Silverbow, and Glacier. These counties include a lot of college students and Native Americans. You can get more details by going to http://4and20blackbirds.wordpress.com/2008/10/02/.

Montana is recognized as one of the election's Rocky Mountain swing states, along with Colorado and New Mexico. So it's no coincidence that Republicans want to suppress voter turnout, especially among new registrants, which have been heavily Democratic throughout the region.

Wyoming has also registered a lot of new Democratic voters, yet we're not considered a swing state (not by a long shot). But keep your eyes and ears open for similar dirty tricks in some of the larger counties, such as Laramie, Natrona, Fremont and Albany. Report any Republican election shenanigans to the Wyoming Democrats at 1-800-729-3367 or info@wyomingdemocrats.com.

UPDATE 10/3: Voters confronting efforts that interfere with your right to vote should report those experiences to Election Protection at http://www.nationalcampaignforfairelections.org/page/s/sharestory

Collected Poems of Sarah Palin, Vol. 1

Thanks to Hart Seely at Slate for bringing to our attention the poetry of Sarah Palin, assembled from her own utterances. Here's a sample:

"On the Bailout"

Ultimately,
What the bailout does
Is help those who are concerned
About the health care reform
That is needed
To help shore up our economy,
Helping the—
It's got to be all about job creation, too.

Shoring up our economy
And putting it back on the right track.
So health care reform
And reducing taxes
And reining in spending
Has got to accompany tax reductions
And tax relief for Americans.
And trade.

We've got to see trade
As opportunity
Not as ! a competitive, scary thing.
But one in five jobs
Being created in the trade sector today,
We've got to look at that
As more opportunity.
All those things.
(To K. Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008)

Trauner calls for "new ethical standards for members of Congress"

Wyoming's Democratic candidate for U.S. House Gary Trauner held a press conference in Cheyenne this morning. Haven't heard yet if any Republican moles tried to burrow into this one. Speaking of underhanded tactics, today's press conference was all about ethical standards. The press release is included here:

Democratic Congressional Candidate Gary Trauner today called for a new ethical standard for members of Congress, and pledged to lead by example. Trauner said he has called for the resignations of Democratic and Republican members of Congress who violated ethics rules, and says he will continue to do so, regardless of party.

"Last election, I was perhaps the first national federal candidate who called for William Jefferson, a Democrat, to resign after $90,000 in cash was found in his freezer," Trauner said. He is calling for Charles Rangel, the Democratic Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, to step down from his leadership post because of questions raised about tax payments on property owned by Rangel. "People are not perfect, but the head of the tax committee can't get away with not paying his own taxes! And don't tell me he didn't know any better. No excuses,"
Trauner added.

However, Trauner says he is very disappointed that Cynthia Lummis, and Barbara Cubin before her, don't take the same road. "Neither my opponent at the time nor my opponent now uttered one word when a member of their own party, Tom Delay, was under investigation, and subsequently indicted, for money laundering and corrupting the system. In fact, Barbara Cubin never gave back the thousands in tainted money she received from Delay and his cronies."

Trauner said that Cubin and Lummis are content with politics as usual, and that's not good enough for the people of Wyoming. "No wonder people seem to have lost faith in the system and don't want to trust any politician," he said. He called on Cubin and Lummis to take the same ethical high road with people in their own party. "We should be outraged with the behavior of people like Senator Ted Stevens in Alaska, Senator David Vitter in Louisiana and the behavior of many members of this Administration such as former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez – regardless of legal outcomes," Trauner said.

Cubin and Lummis have so far been silent on ethical issues. Trauner said that's not the kind of leadership people in Wyoming want. "True leadership means taking a stand on issues, standing up for your core values and beliefs," he said. "People in Wyoming believe in honesty, obeying the law, and playing by the rules. Our representatives in Washington should do the same," he concluded.

Who's popular now, Governor Palin?

Back on Aug. 29, I crowed about the fact that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin wasn't the only Western governor with high approval ratings. I scoffed at the fact that she had an 82 percent rating, which wasn't all that great for a somewhat competent Republican governor in a red state. Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal had equally impressive numbers as a Democrat in a Really Red State. Here were the stats from an 8/24 article in the Denver Post:

The six-state Mason-Dixon poll also asked voters to judge their governors' performance. Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter received excellent or good ratings from 60 percent of those polled. That put Ritter on the lower half of the scale, compared with 81 percent approval for Dave Freudenthal in Wyoming, 82 percent for Jon Huntsman Jr. in Utah and 66 percent for Janet Napolitano in Arizona.

At the time, Palin had not been recruited for the Veep spot on the Republican ticket.

What are the latest approval ratings in Alaska for Palin? That would be 68 percent. Maybe it's because Alaskans haven't seen too much of her lately, or maybe because they've seen too much of her on TV interviews (quick, name your favorite newspaper -- or least favorite Supreme Court decision!). Or maybe it's because so many sordid details of her governance have been revealed by that nasty liberal press.

What if Dave Freudenthal had been tapped by Obama as his running mate? I know it's far-fetched, but just think about it. How many skeletons does the Gov have in his closet? In the 2006 race, desperate Wyoming Republicans dug deep for dirt. They discovered a non-scandal about alleged misuse of the state airplane. That went nowhere (the scandal, not the plane). Considering the resources at the disposal of Repubs in this state, with old pal Dick Cheney just a phone call away, you'd think they could come up with something solid -- or just make up something completely outrageous, which is their usual m.o. (Cheney's, especially).

They couldn't, and didn't. Our governor remains popular two years into his second term. Sure, Wyoming has a huge budget surplus, which makes things easier on the decision-maker. And we're a pretty easy-going bunch here in the least-populated state in the nation. We seem to like the fact that we have something Alaska doesn't -- a governor who reads, thinks and can speak in complete sentences.

Spreading the word about Wyo. Democrats

Chris Rothfuss, running for the U.S. Senate from Wyoming against Republican incumbent Mike Enzi, sent out an opinion piece yesterday about the current economic mess. I spent a god portion of my Saturday dropping off bundles of material on Rothfuss & Carter & Trauner to county voters who requested absentee ballots. The idea is to get the material into the hands of undecideds as they are filling out their ballots. Many hadn't yet received theirs, and some just weren't happy that I was ringing their doorbell. But I did get into some fine conversations with some, and had some surprises along the way.

I stopped in front of one house in my assigned territory in Cheyenne south of I-80. A strategically placed flagpole flew the Marine Corps and POW-MIA flags. In the driveway, a huge pickup sported stickers for the Marines, Army Airborne, and those ribbons that popped up during the Iraq invasion. It's easy to jump to conclusions, having seen all of those members of the military used as backdrops for Bush's LSOS speeches. True, many veterans I've talked to are Republicans -- but not all.

Mr. R came to the door with his buzzcut and tattoos. Vietnam, I thought. And then I went into my spiel, showing him my Dem candidate flyers. He stopped me. "Got any yard signs for Trauner?" I said I didn't but could get him one. "How about Mockler?" I didn't have any signs for our Democrat running for mayor. I told him I'd contact her campaign. "What about stickers -- I drive all over the state and I can drop them off." I said I would get him all the stickers he needed. He took my material, noting that he wanted to see some new blood in Congress and the mayor's office.

As I thanked him and walked off, I thought about how dangerous it is to compartmentalize people. I also decided to leave my assigned task and go get this guy a yard sign and some stickers. He seemed a bit surprised when I returned quickly with the goods. When I drove away, he was planting the Trauner sign among the green grass and flowers and trees of his front yard. Later, I got into a conversation with a couple I'd say were in their late thirties. The man was Independent, the woman Republican, and their three boys, well, who knows? The man said he was leaning Democratic this time, both for president and Congress. The woman then admitted that she was too, at least in the Congressional races. She works for the school district and her three boys all were in public schools. Education was big with her, and she was dissatisfied with the current state of affairs. Nothing like discontent to get people to vote for change. That's real change, the Obama kind, not the fake McCain variety.

I know that walking neighborhoods talking about politics isn't everyone's cup of tea. I would have rather been lounging in my backyard, reading my Roddy Doyle novel, or spending time with my family or doing a thousand-and-one other things. But times are tough and strange and I have to do something about it. In the next decade or so, as we dissect the damage that Republicans did to this country, I want to be able to say I took a few small steps to change that.

Back to Chris Rothfuss's opinion piece.... I'm going to include a few paragraphs below and let you go to the candidate's web site for the rest. Here it is:

This train did not wreck itself, but nobody is taking responsibility. Through action, inaction, and failed oversight, Congress (both parties) and the Bush administration have crafted this economy. Political action committees (PACs) representing the financial sector contribute heavily to campaigns and lobby strongly against regulation. Unfortunately, there is no comparable force lobbying on behalf of the people for transparency, fair lending, and responsible asset management. The members of the House that voted for the bailout on Monday received an average of 51% more campaign contributions from the finance, insurance and real estate sector than those that voted against it. That’s no coincidence.

My opponent, Senator Mike Enzi, has worked diligently to deregulate the financial sector over his 11+ years on the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. During this election alone he has received over $250,000 in contributions from finance, insurance and real estate PACs. That’s about $200,000 more than he’s received from the people of Wyoming. Senator Enzi has not been a casual bystander in our economic crisis - he has been instrumental in its creation.