Roemer: Mr. Gingrich, you're no Lincoln or Douglas

The Super-Lobbyist

vs.

The Anti-Lobbyist

 

 

Manchester, NH – Governor Buddy Roemer issued the following statement challenging Newt Gingrich to a one-on-one debate in New Hampshire.
 
"Over the last several weeks Newt Gingrich has challenged anyone and everyone (almost) in the Presidential field to a series of Lincoln-Douglas style debates. Well Mr. Gingrich, you are no Lincoln. And for that matter, you’re no Douglas.
 
"The concept of a Lincoln-Douglas debate goes back to 1858 when Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas debated one of the most important issues of their time, the issue of slavery. What weighty issues are addressed in these debates? They’re a circus.
 
"I challenge Speaker Gingrich to a one-on-one debate to address the issue – the only one not being discussed – money in politics. Let’s hold it here in New Hampshire, where the First in the Nation primary has been overshadowed by pandering to national media outlets, where retail politics has been disregarded for carefully staged book tours.
 
"If Gingrich won’t debate me, I won’t be sad. There are obviously topics he prefers to discuss, candidates he prefers to debate, and those he wishes to avoid. I won’t suggest he’s picking contests he knows he can win because he’s afraid of losing. But if he won’t explain to the American people where he gets his money and what favors he owes to special interests, then he certainly isn’t qualified to be President. A president should be free to lead."
   

 
Governor Buddy Roemer is a four-term Congressman and former Governor of Louisiana. He is known for refusing PAC and special interest money, implementing campaign finance reform, turning around Louisiana’s failing economy and cutting the state’s unemployment rate in half in just four years. Roemer is a candidate for President of the United States. His website is www.BuddyRoemer.com.

Internet Innovation Alliance Co-Chair Says "Broadband Ties Rural Localities to Economic Mainstream.”

FORMER CONGRESSMAN RICK BOUCHER UNDERSCORES IMPORTANCE OF BROADBAND FOR RURAL COMMUNITIES

Internet Innovation Alliance Co-Chair Says Broadband “Ties Rural Localities to Economic Mainstream,” Conveys Critical Benefits Including Expanded Access to Healthcare, Education, Information

 WASHINGTON, D.C. – July 19, 2011 – Rural communities significantly benefit from expanded access to broadband, according to former Congressman Rick Boucher, Honorary Chairman of the Internet Innovation Alliance (IIA), a broad-based coalition supporting broadband access and adoption for all Americans. “Broadband is the bridge that ties rural localities to the economic mainstream,” said Boucher, who chaired the Subcommittee on Communications and the Internet and cofounded the Congressional Internet Caucus. 

Boucher continued, “The Internet is transformative for rural economies, enabling virtually any business to be conducted from any location.  With broadband, no longer is it necessary for a business to have physical urban proximity to its customers and suppliers.  The virtual proximity of high-speed connectivity meets the same communications need, enabling businesses to take advantage of the lower costs and excellent quality of life rural communities offer.  They can conduct their operations just as efficiently from remote regions as they can in or near cities.”

 Having observed first-hand the improved level of medical care, educational access and economic opportunity that broadband confers on rural areas, Boucher joined the IIA to spread awareness about the transformative nature of high-speed Internet access – particularly for unserved and underserved communities across the U.S.   Boucher added, “I have a rural perspective.  I devoted most of my congressional career to the pursuit of rural opportunity through the use of the latest information technologies in remote regions.

Today, we are poised to take the next transformative step: bringing broadband to the hardest-to-serve communities, enabling them at last to achieve their long-held quality of life goals and bettering the entire nation, which will benefit through truly national connectivity.” One of the critical steps forward in expanding access to next generation mobile technology, according to Boucher and the IIA, is approval of the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile. “President Obama has set a national goal of reaching 98 percent of Americans with broadband Internet access within five years. The combination of AT&T and T-Mobile alone will bring next generation mobile broadband access to more than 97 percent of our population with private – not taxpayer – dollars. This will significantly reduce the number of broadband have-nots, and ensure that rural communities and rural residents across the U.S. can experience the positive benefits broadband access provides, including improved access to education, economic opportunity and healthcare. Expanded emergency access to 911 that high-speed mobile broadband would enable, for example, is critical for Rural America.” 

Additionally, Boucher pointed out that, following the merger, “The numbers of rural homes lacking broadband access will be dramatically reduced, leaving a far smaller gap to be filled with universal service funds, Rural Utilities Service grants and loans and private investment.” 

Honorary Chairman Boucher arrived in Congress in 1983 when town meetings in many rural counties were dominated by talk about the inability of homes to receive television signals. In addition to video connectivity, he spent the next 25 years working to deliver the latest in communications capabilities and information technologies to hard-to-reach rural populations, helping to improve their lives. The communities Abingdon and Bristol in Virginia in the 1990s, for example, became among the first in the nation to deploy fiber optics to the premises of homes and businesses, delivering voice, video and Internet content at blazing speeds. 

While in Congress, Boucher championed economic development grants in deploying Internet backbones, pioneered the rural use of fiber optics-based telemedicine and distance learning, and even helped the small Southwest Virginia town of Claudeville become the first in the nation to use television white spaces for wireless broadband delivery. 

Boucher continues promoting expanded access to broadband for rural communities through his work with IIA. The IIA has released research further detailing the ways broadband can help rural America.

The Alliance’s Top Ten list is as follows: Ten Ways Broadband Helps Rural Communities

 1)      Links local businesses to global markets

2)      Allows consumers to tap into e-commerce savings

3)      Expands access to educational opportunities

4)      Increases local job growth

5)      Connects patients to world class healthcare and reduces healthcare costs

6)      Enhances economic options for younger generations

7)      Provides new tools to farmers and ranchers to grow their businesses

8)      Enables entrepreneurs to locate their businesses locally

9)      Attracts customers to local businesses

10)   Offers families low cost options to stay in touch using the latest technology

To view sourcing for the “Ten Ways Broadband Helps Rural Communities,” visit http://www.internetinnovation.org/rural-infographic. “

The new high-speed mobile broadband offering resulting from an approved AT&T and T-Mobile merger will represent another competitive option in many parts of rural America, and in other parts, will provide an initial bridge to modern communications,” Boucher concluded.

 # # # 

About The Internet Innovation AllianceThe Internet Innovation Alliance is a broad-based coalition supporting broadband availability and access for all Americans including underserved and rural communities.  It aims to ensure every American, regardless of race, income or geography, has access to this critical tool.  The IIA seeks to promote public policies that leverage the power of entrepreneurs and the market to achieve universal broadband availability and adoption. 

CEI Daily - Washing Machines, Liquor Wholesalers, and New Bailouts

Washing Machines

New models of top-loader washing machines don't work as well as old models----thanks to energy efficiency mandates.

General Counsel Sam Kazman explains the decline of the washing machine in today's Wall Street Journal.

"The federal government first issued energy standards for washers in the early 1990s. When the Department of Energy ratcheted them up a decade later, it was the beginning of the end for top-loaders. Their costlier and harder-to-use rivals—front-loading washing machines—were poised to dominate. Front-loaders meet federal standards more easily than top-loaders. Because they don't fully immerse their laundry loads, they use less hot water and therefore less energy. But, as Americans are increasingly learning, front-loaders are expensive, often have mold problems, and don't let you toss in a wayward sock after they've started. When the Department of Energy began raising the standard, it promised that 'consumers will have the same range of clothes washers as they have today,' and cleaning ability wouldn't be changed. That's not how it turned out."

 

 

Liquor Wholesalers Yesterday marked James Madison's birthday. Director of Risk and Environmental Policy Angela Logomasini talks about how current efforts by liquor wholesalers would offend James Madison. "Liquor wholesalers’ attempts to rationalize federal alcohol legislation would appall James Madison, the father of the Constitution. Wholesalers claim their legislation will protect “states’ rights.” But their proposal would only serve their narrow special interest at the expense of individual freedom and prosperity — exactly the opposite of what the framers of the Constitution intended."

New Bailouts

The Washington Post reports that bureaucrats at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau want to bailout underwater mortgage borrowers.

Senior Counsel Hans Bader explains what's wrong with their proposal.

"Their proposal would require banks to write off part of the mortgages of certain (but not all) mortgage borrowers who owe more on their mortgage than their house is worth. Worse, they would require mortgage servicers to write off loan principal on loans owned by other institutions, like pension funds, violating their property rights."



CORNERSTONE APPLAUDS NH HOUSE FOR PASSING PARENTAL NOTIFICATION

Concord, NH - Today, the NH House passed HB329 by a veto-proof margin, 256-102.  Commenting on the passage of this bill was Cornerstone's Executive Director, Kevin Smith:

"We applaud the majority of the House today for passing a common sense parental notification law by a veto-proof majority.  This issue is not about abortion as it is about a parent's right to know when their young daughter is seeking to undergo what is a major medical procedure.  We look forward to the Senate passing this bill as well and sending it to Governor Lynch's desk for signature." 

Cornerstone-Action is the legislative and issue advocacy arm of Cornerstone Policy Research.

Cornerstone Policy Research is a non-partisan, non-profit education and research organization dedicated to the preservation of strong families, limited government and free markets.

AUL - Texas and Nebraska Go Big for Life

PRO-LIFE LEGISLATORS IN TEXAS & NEBRASKA ADVANCE AUL MODEL LEGISLATION

AUL's Daniel McConchie  with former Nebraska Gov. Kay Orr

AUL and AULA’s leadership in defending life in law was highlighted last week as pro-life bills in Texas and Nebraska advanced. AULA applauded the efforts of Texas Representative Jodie Laubenberg and State Senator Dan Patrick as they introduced a bill that would ensure that abortion providers are not dispensing already-dangerous, abortion-inducing drugs in an unapproved and medically-inappropriate manner.
 
The bill requires that abortion providers dispense abortion-inducing drugs only in the way tested and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and outlined in the drug’s label. These requirements will prevent the dangerous “off-label” use of abortion-inducing drugs that has killed at least seven women in the United States alone—an “off-label” use that Planned Parenthood readily admits to, on its website and in court documents. To read more on this, click here.
 
And in Nebraska, Americans United for Life Action Vice President of Government Affairs Daniel McConchie called on Nebraska’s legislators to vote in favor of LB690, which would strengthen Nebraska parents’ ability to help their minor children. The bill, based on AUL’s model legislation, would mandate that parents give consent before a minor may obtain an abortion.
 
McConchie testified before the Judiciary Committee of the Nebraska Legislature on the bill sponsored by state Sen. Lydia Brasch. Before the committee, he noted that even the U.S. Supreme Court acknowledges that “immature minors often lack the ability to make fully informed choices that take into account both immediate and long-range consequences.” 
 
“We know that parental consent laws save lives,” said McConchie. “A 2008 study showed that parental consent laws reduce the minor abortion rate by 18.7 percent, while parental notification laws only reduce the abortion rate by about 5 percent.”
 
To track the progress of all pro-life legislation at the state level (not just legislation that AUL has worked on), click here.

On The Docket

HOT OFF THE PRESSES:
AUL'S PREMIER RESOURCE DEFENDING LIFE NOW AVAILABLE

The most up-to-date version of AUL’s premiere legal tool for pro-life legislators and activists around the world has just been released. Defending Life 2011 provides the necessary building blocks for a culture that respects and protects life and for laws that reflect this desired cultural imperative.  This latest edition of AUL’s signature publication emphasizes the importance of life-affirming legislation and seeks to educate legislators, the media, and the American public on the full spectrum of life issues and the many opportunities and challenges we face.
 
The information, analysis, and recommendations in Defending Life 2011 are meant to encourage everyone to stay active and informed not just at the federal level, but also at the state and local levels.  This one-of-a-kind legal guide shows the states where we are making significant progress—state by state, law by law, and person by person – to protect women and the unborn from the threats of abortion, to curb and eliminate unethical and life-debasing uses of technology, to combat efforts to encourage and legalize euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, and to protect the freedom of conscience of our health care providers.
 
To learn more about the status of life in all 50 states, to review model legislation, and to download a copy, click here.

STRONG AUL ARGUMENTS IN ILLINOIS PARENTAL NOTICE CASE DRAW REACTION FROM APA

In the March 4 edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) Psychiatric News, the APA announced that it had joined an amicus curiae brief filed in an Illinois state court, opposing the state’s parental notification law and attempting to directly counter an earlier brief filed by AUL.
 
It seems that AUL’s brief hit a nerve with the APA, drawing the pro-abortion organization to not only join an opposing brief, but to also publicly acknowledge that it is specifically responding to AUL’s brief. That brief, based on extensive evidence and filed last fall on behalf of a number of Illinois legislators, argued that parental involvement laws (requiring either parental consent or parental notification) decrease both abortion and birth rates of minors.  AUL also argued that parental involvement laws protect minors from the physical and psychological harms inherent in abortion, as well as from the harms of sexual exploitation.

The APA did not hide its abortion bias when filing its opposing brief. In the Psychiatric News, the APA acknowledged that it was “continuing APA’s tradition of support for women’s reproductive rights.”

AUL staff attorney Mailee Smith analyzed the APA response. To read her critique, click here. To view AUL’s brief in the case, Hope Clinic for Women v. Adams, click here.

IN THE NEWS

The American Medical Association News line took note of AUL's objections to the loss of freedom of conscience for health care workers when the Obama Administration rescinded conscience regulations (which would have provided effective enforcement mechanisms for current federal laws that allow pro-life medical personnel to follow their conscience when refusing to participate in abortions.) To read more, click here.
 
Citizen Link Magazine takes a look at pro-life initiatives around the country. Click here to read more.