Cynthia McKinney T-Shirt

Cynthia McKinney T-Shirts are now available at www.GP.org/shop, Show your support for Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party's 2008 Presidential Candidate. This union-made, sweatshop-free shirt features a graphic representation of McKinney and the slogan, "Real."

One extra cool feature is the artwork was done by me!

The Green Party of New York State is Seeking Paid Petitioners

Subject:
Greens and Green Supporters:

Help get Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente on the ballot in New York State as a paid petitioner! There are just a few weeks collect 30,000 signatures for the Green Party's dynamic presidential/ vice presidential candidates.

The Green Party of New York State has a limited number of slots for paid petitioners at 15.00 per hour. If you can devote a minimum of 10 hours per week from now until Aug 14, please consider working for this important ballot access initiative.

Call Michael O'Neill at 917 825-3562 or e-mail at petition@gpny.org

Greens warn that antiwar Americans will waste their votes if they vote for Obama, citing his positions on Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Middle East

Greens warn that antiwar Americans will waste their votes if they vote for Obama, citing his positions on Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Middle EastGREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES

http://www.gp.org

For Immediate Release:
Monday, July 28, 2008

Contacts:
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, cell 202-904-7614, mclarty@greens.org
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene@gp.org


Votes for Green nominees McKinney and Clemente will build a permanent alternative to the bipartisan war agenda, say Green Party leaders


WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders said today that antiwar voters will not get an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan by voting for presumed Democratic nominee Barack Obama on Election Day.

Green leaders urged Americans who oppose the wars started by the Bush Administration with bipartisan support in Congress to vote instead for Green nominee Cynthia McKinney, running mate Rosa Clemente, and Green congressional candidates.

"Millions of voters plan to vote for Barack Obama in the hope that he'll bring peace to Iraq and other nations in the region," said Omar N. Lopez, Green candidate for the US House in Illinois (4th District) (http://www.omarlopez2008.org). "But his positions are really 'McCain-Lite' -- he'll continue many of the same belligerent foreign policies as the Bush-Cheney Administration that John McCain would. Mr. Obama supports a larger military in terms of both spending and personnel. We want to stop the US from being the world's bully, and instead fund a peace dividend to deal with the economic, energy, and global warming crises."

"We appeal to voters to take a look at the Green Party's 'Peace Slate' of candidates, with Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente on the Green presidential ticket. A vote for a candidate who doesn't represent your own ideals is a vote wasted," said Mr. Lopez.

Green Party leaders compared the Green antiwar agenda to Barack Obama's positions:

IRAQ

Despite the popular impression that Sen. Obama intends to end the Iraq War, he plans only to reduce troops over a 16-month period. He would maintain an 'under the radar' occupation to protect US interests, which is code for the US and British corporate demand for control over Iraqi oil. (No-bid contracts have already been anounced for ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, and Total.) Sen. Obama promises to shift troops around the region, placing US forces in countries surrounding Iraq.

The Green Party and Green candidates support an immediate and full withdrawal of US troops and military contractors from Iraq, and control over Iraqi oil resources returned to the Iraqi people.
http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=37
http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=18

AFGHANISTAN

Sen. Obama intends to expand the disastrous US war on Afghanistan, which has already left the country in ruins and continues to destabilize the region.

Greens support full US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, and an internationally cooperative investigation and prosecution of those behind the 9/11 attacks.
http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=37
http://gp.org/press/pr_2006_09_11.shtml

ISRAEL-PALESTINE

Sen. Obama has repeatedly promised unqualified and uncritical support for Israel, despite the Israeli government's illegal occupation of Palestinian lands and massive abuses of human rights, including Israel's recent violation of a pledge to the US not to construct new homes in a West Bank settlement (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jul/24/israelandthepalestinians.middleeast).

Greens have called for the withholding of all US assistance, especially billions of dollars in military aid, until Israel reverses its current policies and adheres to international law, human rights protections, and UN directives, including withdrawal from occupied lands and recognition of the Palestinian right of return.
http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=61

IRAN

Despite promises of diplomacy, Sen. Obama has signed on to the Bush Administration's threat of a US or US-backed Israeli assault on Iran, even though intelligence confirms that the Iranian government is not using its nuclear power to build weapons.

Greens have warned that an attack on Iran would bring untold consequences, including a greater regional or global conflict, and that the threat itself is an incentive for Iran and other nations to seek a nuclear arsenal. Greens call for an end to such threats, for diplomacy and friendship with Iran, and for an aggressive effort towards regional and global nuclear disarmament, noting the menace posed by Israel's and Pakistan's possession of nuclear weapons.
http://www.gp.org/press/pr-national.php?ID=67
http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2007_10_08.shtml

The Green Party has also urged impeachment and criminal investigation of the Bush-Cheney Administration's numerous abuses of power in launching the Iraq invasion as well as other actions. Barack Obama and the Democratic leadership have rejected all attempts to hold the latter accountable for its crimes.

As US Representative from Georgia in 2006, Cynthia McKinney was the first member of Congress to introduce motions for impeachment.

"Many Obama supporters don't realize that the differences between Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain on foreign policy are actually quite narrow and based on the same assumptions. Both believe that the US has a right to occupy other countries, place political demands on their leaders, and take control of their resources. But other voices are getting frozen out of the debate, including the Green nominees for the White House and Congress, whose campaigns are building America's permanent peace party alternative," said Carol Brouillet, Green candidate for Congress in California's District 14 and founder of the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance (http://www.communitycurrency.org).


MORE INFORMATION

Green Party of the United States http://www.gp.org
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193

Green candidate database for 2008 and other campaign information: http://www.gp.org/elections.shtml

Green Party News Center http://www.gp.org/newscenter.shtml

Green Party Speakers Bureau http://www.gp.org/speakers

Green Party ballot access page http://www.gp.org/2008-elections

Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente 'Power to the People' Campaign for the White House http://www.runcynthiarun.org

2008 Green National Convention, July 10-13 in Chicago, Illinois http://www.greenparty2008.org

How I Won the Mayor’s Office

By David Doonan, Mayor of the Village of Greenwich, New York
Green Pages
July, 2008

Being a public elected official was never a recurring dream that haunted my sleep. While interested in politics and current affairs, in recent years the interest was more an intellectual exercise than an active pursuit. That began to change after listening to a talk in Glens Falls, New York by Ralph Nader in May 2007.

David Doonan with Ralph Nader

I sat in the audience as. Nader spoke at length about the need for citizen involvement at the local level. He talked about the example his parents set and told us to attend local government meetings to ensure our elected officials were acting responsibly. But when he said, “I’m going to tell you a Chinese proverb that you’ll never forget,” I rolled my eyes and silently said, “yeah, right.” Instead that proverb: “Those who know, and don’t do, don’t know,” struck home and continued to haunt me for weeks, until I finally decided to accept the challenge and run for office.

The Village of Greenwich in Washington County is where I’ve lived for the past 17 years. Located about 50 miles north of the state capital Albany, it has a population of 1,900 and is located within the boundaries of two different towns; the more developed portion lies within the Town of Greenwich (population 5,000) and the less developed lies within the Town of Easton (population 2260) on the other side of the Battenkill River. Washington County has no four-lane roads, no enclosed shopping malls, no big box stores, no movie theatres and no television or radio stations, or even a daily newspaper. It wasn’t until the 1980 census that the human population surpassed the bovine population. In other words, the Village of Green wich, NY has nothing in common with Greenwich Village in New York City.

There were four positions I could have run for, Town Supervisor, Town Coun cilor, Village Mayor or Village Trustee. Ultimately my decision was made for me when the Village Mayor was quoted as saying that decisions are easier to make when the public isn’t present.

Village elections in Greenwich have been officially non-partisan for the past 20 years. But in New York State Village elections, non-partisan can be a misleading term. In essence, it means that one has the choice of running for office under the party to which you’re registered or one can run under the name of a non-existing party, pretending that the actual state recognized party system doesn’t exist. For instance, in the nearby town of White Creek, a local Democrat has been twice elected to office on the Woodpecker Party. When choosing a non-partisan party name, candidates must be careful that they don’t pick the same name as their opponents. That happened in this election when three candidates choose to run on the Greenwich Party; the public saw them as a slate, which they weren’t. Finally, to make matters even more confusing, if a candidate chooses to run non-partisan but does not write a party name on the petitions, then by State law, the village clerk has to assign a party name.

I could have run as a Green. But instead I decided to run a non-partisan campaign. Most residents were upset at how the local government has been run and I knew they were looking for someone who would provide answers and a direction. For most voters, partisan politics was purely a secondary concern at best. My original intention was to run on a slate with one Demo crat and one Republican, but I ended up with two Democrats. Why did I choose to run on a slate? Quite simply, I was hoping to influence who would end up serving on the board with me.

chose the name “Open Government” for our slate. However I did not hide my affiliation with the Green Party. At the initial volunteers meeting I made it very clear how committed to the Green Party I was (and still am). Every time I went door-to-door, my Green Party button was worn prominently and the local press repeatedly mentioned my membership in both the Green Party and the Industrial Work ers of the World. Many lifelong Re publicans who had probably never voted for a Democrat, told me that they were not only going to be voting for me, but that their entire families would be as well.

This was a very winnable race—one neighbor described the general attitude as “throw the bums out.” However, I decided not to run against the then current administration, but to put forward a positive message and attempt to provide realistic solutions for improving the community.

Real estate was among the issues facing the community. Six years ago the Village Board secretly voted to purchase the largest piece of commercial property in the Village, the site of a former IGA food store. Today it still sits empty. Also our Village Hall is on the National Register of His toric Places by the United States Department of the Interior, but has been allowed to deteriorate since its purchase 40 years ago. The building lacks handicapped access and bricks are literally falling out of the buildings exterior walls. The Fire Depart ment is housed in the Village Hall, and is only allowed to operate because of very sympathetic inspectors.

James “Kim” Gannon, who wrote the words to the 1943 American classic “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” left a bequest together with his wife of $750,000 to be used for the youth of the Village. A commission of community members spent countless hours conducting surveys and interviews to determine the best way to go forward. A report was submitted to the Village Board, which said ‘thank you’ and promptly put it in a drawer. It was only during this past March 2008 that the community finally saw something tangible happen, half a decade since the Village received the bequest.

The costs for a new firehouse, rehabilitating Village Hall, and repairing or replacing the Village Water Tower, are expensive propositions, which is why none of the previous administrations dealt with them. Before beginning to actively campaign, I met with a local administrator of the Rural Communities Program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to get a handle on what types of grants and low interest loans might be available. I also attended a monthly meeting of the fire department, not just to put myself forward, but also to listen to them.

In the 17 years we’ve lived in Greenwich, there have only been two contested elections for Trustee positions; the Mayor was never challenged. This year there were two of us running for Mayor and six candidates running for two open Trustee positions.

While two weeklies and a bi-weekly serve our community, the daily papers in nearby Saratoga Springs and Glens Falls ignored the election. Because of the lack of daily coverage and the absence of a League of Women Voters willing to organize a de bate, I decided to get the ball rolling on a candidate’s forum. I proposed a format to the high school principal and the rest of the candidates, which they all agreed to.

In essence, meeting with the USDA, an aide to our local congresswoman, the fire department and organizing a candidate’s forum, I was acting as if I were already in office.

For my campaign I held an open house to kick off the ballot petitioning and three supporters hosted “meet the candidate’ events. Greenwich requires 50 signatures to be listed on the ballot for village elections. The final weekend was spent going door-to-door. Money was donated by the state and national Green Party, as well as by the Greenwich Democrat Committee (my wife is vice president of the committee) and used to purchase advertisements in the local weeklies, lawn signs and palm & post cards. I also created a campaign web site from which I linked videos of the campaign forum.

Throughout the course of the month-long campaign, I tried to focus on three main issues: 1) Resolving the IGA property, determining the site of a new Fire House and repair of the Village Hall. 2) Seeking additional revenue streams to finance the above without burdening the taxpayers. 3) Opening up the government, allowing citizens a voice in shaping our community’s future.

On Election Day, March 18th, it was pretty strange walking into the voting booth and seeing my name on the ballot. When the votes were counted, our slate swept the results, with myself receiving 74 percent of the votes for Mayor.

To their credit, the outgoing administration received offers from two real estate brokers in January interested in purchasing the former IGA property, but decided to put off the matter until after the election. Unlike the secret decision to purchase the property six years ago, at the first Board Meeting I presided over, both brokers made presentations in public session. Rather than acting upon either offer, the Board decided to seek an independent appraisal of the property at my urging before proceeding.

David Doonan holding office as Greenwich Mayor

Three other items of note also happened at our first meeting. The meeting was videotaped for the first time, as will be all future board meetings, in anticipation of being uploaded to a future Village web site. Second, I submitted a written Mayor’s report of my activities. The Mayor is a public servant. Since the heads of the police, fire and public works departments are required to issue written reports, then so should the Mayor. It was a simple and effective way of demonstrating my desire to be held accountable for my actions. Thirdly, when the Trustees were given their committee assignments, I assigned them a list of tasks to accomplish. I wanted it clear to everyone that the new administration was not going to be a one-person show; that everyone had a voice.

Since the election, the number of people who have stepped forward to volunteer their time or offer constructive suggestions has been remarkable. While I have ultimate responsibility for the Village, I see my primary role as being that of a facilitator, finding a way to harness the energy of our citizens to improve the community.

What I am attempting to do in this little corner of the world is to build an environment in which grassroots democracy can take root and flourish.

An interview with friction.tv can be found at: www.daviddoonan.com

Greens urge quick action on Ohio, Pennsylvania election crimes, seek assurance of 2008 ballot access fairness and election integrity

Greens urge quick action on Ohio, Pennsylvania election crimes, seek assurance of 2008 ballot access fairness and election integrity

GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
http://www.gp.org

For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Contacts:
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, cell 202-904-7614, mclarty@greens.org
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene@gp.org

Pennsylvania: 12 indicted after Statehouse Democrats staffers were given taxpayer-funded bonuses to keep 2004 presidential candidate Ralph Nader (Ind.) and 2006 US Senate candidate Carl Romanelli (Green) off the state ballot

Ohio: Evidence of massive fraud by GOP operatives in the 2004 election, with possible Karl Rove involvement; Greens were the first to probe the 2004 vote theft


WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders urged swift and aggressive court action to ensure fair elections and enforcement of legal campaign practices in the wake of election scandals in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The Green Party, which nominated Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente for President and Vice President during the 2008 Green National Convention in Chicago on July 12, has a special interest in the integrity of the US election system. Greens are currently working to get the nominees on as many state ballots as possible, an effort rendered difficult by grossly biased and unfair ballot access rules designed by Democrats and Republicans to hinder other parties' candidates and independents in many states.

In the Pennsylvania scandal, twelve Democratic officials have been indicted for paying staffers big taxpayer-funded bonuses for their efforts to keep 2004 independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader and 2006 Green candidate Carl Romanelli, who ran for the US Senate, off the Pennsylvania ballot. The twelve charged with misusing $4 million for partisan campaign work include current and former staff and one member of the Pennsylvania House.

Mr. Romanelli's lawyers are asking for a new hearing regarding the appeal of the $80,000 in legal costs that were assessed against him after Democratic Party lawyers succeeded in persuading a court to remove him from the 2006 ballot. Democrats have claimed that the Nader and Romanelli campaigns falsified signatures on their ballot petitions.

Mr. Romanelli was blocked from defending the validity of the signatures in 2006. Nader attorney Oliver Hall noted that "only a tiny number of signatures on the Nader petitions -- 687 or 1.3 percent of the total -- were counted as 'forgeries' by their signers, and in the words of Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Thomas Saylor, there is 'no evidence' to support Democrats' claims that the Nader campaign was even aware of such signatures. Furthermore, no allegation of fraud was ever raised against Romanelli's petitions. There is, however, evidence that the Nader petitions were the target of widespread and deliberate sabotage: specifically, petition circulators discovered and removed about 7,000 obviously fake signatures prior to submitting the petitions." (Philadelphia Inquirer, July 17, http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20080717_Letters__One_Reader_s_View.html)

"We support Carl Romanelli's request for the court to drop the $80,000 legal fee costs that were imposed on him. The assessment of these costs is unprecedented and meant to intimidate non-Democrat and non-Republican candidates from running for office," said Holly Hart, secretary of the Green Party of the United States. "The leveling of punitive and exorbitant costs for disqualified signatures is as outrageous as Pennsylvania's ballot access rule that requires 2,000 valid signatures from Democratic or Republican candidates for President and other top offices, while requiring as many as 67,000 signatures for candidates from other parties or independents to get on the ballot."

The Ohio case involves the possible theft of the 2004 presidential election. Widespread evidence first collected by Greens showed that thousands of Ohio voters, especially African Americans and students, were either blocked from voting or their votes were uncounted or miscounted.

David Cobb, the Green Party's 2004 presidential nominee, joined with Libertarian nominee Michael Badnarik to investigate the complaints and demand a recount, after John Kerry quickly conceded the race to George W. Bush and his fellow Democrats took no action on the emerging scandal. Greens raised most of the money for legal and other fees for the Ohio recount. A commission called by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) later collected and published evidence of massive irregularities in the Ohio election and attempts to thwart the recount, much of it based on evidence collected by Mr. Cobb and Mr. Badnarik. In January, 2007, two Cuyahoga County election officials were convicted of manipulating the recount.

Green Party leaders called for an expanded investigation of the 2004 Ohio election fraud, expressing support for attorneys in the King Lincoln Bronzeville v. Blackwell case who have filed a motion to "lift the stay in the case [and] proceed with targeted discovery in order to help protect the integrity of the 2008 election."

Greens said that the investigation should especially target evidence that GOP operatives tampered with computer voting machines and the roles of White House advisor Karl Rove and former Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell in the alleged vote theft.

The Green Party endorses voter-verified paper ballots to provide an auditable record of votes cast on computer voting machines, as well as voting machine source codes that are designed to allow public inspection.

"Voters deserve to see the candidates they support on the ballot, and deserve to know that the votes they cast will be counted. Unless the full weight of the law comes down on those who try to manipulate elections, and until we repeal ballot access rules designed to rig the vote in favor or one or two political parties, we're in danger of seeing more damaged and stolen elections," said David Cobb, the Green Party's 2004 candidate for President of the United States.

PLEASE NOTE: The above release corrects some details of the earlier version. A current member of the Pennsylvania House and a former House Democratic whip were charged, but not the current House whip. A former chief of staff of a House member was charged, not a current chief of staff. Also, Pennsylvania state law does not always require minor-party and independent candidates to collect more than 67,000 signatures. The requirement changes from year to year on a largely arbitrary basis


MORE INFORMATION

Green Party of the United States http://www.gp.org
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193

Green candidate database for 2008 and other campaign information: http://www.gp.org/elections.shtml

Green Party News Center http://www.gp.org/newscenter.shtml

Green Party Speakers Bureau http://www.gp.org/speakers

Green Party ballot access page http://www.gp.org/2008-elections

Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente 'Power to the People' Campaign for the White House http://www.runcynthiarun.org

2008 Green National Convention, July 10-13 in Chicago, Illinois http://www.greenparty2008.org

"Ohio Attorney Files to Lift Stay on '04 Election Case, Cites Allegations, Evidence of Massive Fraud by a Number of GOP Operatives"
Brad Blog, July 17, 2008
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6189#more-618

~ END ~

search: lwcj, spol

Cynthia McKinney at Green Party 2008 Natl Conv. Candidate Forum

Cynthia McKinney, six-term Congresswoman from Georgia, makes her bid for the nomination as the Green Party Presidential Candidate at the 2008 National Convention Presidential Candidate Forum.

The next day, McKinney captured the nomination.

Shot by Polidoc Productions.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eA8ovWPzlg

Malik Rahim - Green Party Congressional Candidate Louisiana Talks About his Reason or Running for Office.

Malik Rahim - Green Party congressional candidate Louisiana talks about his reason for running for office.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6406354776635518373
Link

Video shot by MoonSun Production at Green Party National Convention on July 12, 2008 in Chicago, Illinois.

Malik Rahim - Green Party congressional candidate Louisiana. Former Black Panther talks about why he's running for Congress as a Green. Malik Rahim is a New Orleans native and former Black Panther. He remained in New Orleans through Hurricane Katrina and wrote an article about conditions in the city. A tireless advocate for the underprivileged and overlooked, he co-founded the Common Ground Collective, which supports community rebuilding efforts. Rahim travels the country speaking about his observations and encouraging volunteers to come to New Orleans to work on the group's behalf.

Who is Malik Rahim
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malik_Rahim

Petitioning - We Need Your Help!

The heat is on as we stay hydrated and stay on the streets to get the signatures needed to put our candidates on the ballot. Make sure your Local or County organization keeps in touch by sending report backs of signature progress and experiences from the field to petition@gpny.org!

People of all kinds are responding to Green Party values and the historic McKinney/Clemente ticket. New York voters want a choice this November, so let's make sure they get one!

We need ALL Greens to go out this week and collect as many signatures as possible! This is the only way to gt Cynthia McKinney ad Rosa Clemente on the ballot in November!

When you organize a Petition team-up event in your area email petition@gpny.org and let me know how you did.

Download Petitions
Download Literature
Download Petition Instructions
View a video on petitioning
View a special message from Cynthia McKinney on Petitioning

Thanks and stay cool out there,
Michael O'Neil
GPNYS Petition Coordinator
917-825-3562 | petition@gpny.org

Democracy Now! interviews Cynthia McKinney & Rosa Clemente

First All-Women-of-Color Presidential Ticket in US History: Green Party Nominee Cynthia McKinney and Running Mate Rosa Clemente on War, Democracy and Hip Hop

Democracy Now!, July 21, 2008
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/7/21/first_all_women_of_color_presidential


The Green Party made history last week when it nominated the first all-women-of-color presidential ticket in US history. Former Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who was the first African American woman elected to Congress in Georgia, won the Green Party’s nomination last Monday. She named longtime community organizer, journalist and former director of the Hip Hop Caucus, Rosa Clemente, as her running mate earlier this month. They both join us for a wide-ranging discussion on the 2008 race, the media, the impact of the hip hop generation and more. [includes rush transcript]

Guests:

Cynthia McKinney, Green Party presidential nominee. Former Democratic Congresswoman from Georgia.

Rosa Clemente, Green Party vice-presidential nominee. Former director of Hip Hop Caucus and longtime activist and journalist.


CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Because the corporate lobbyists can come and go at will, our values get overridden and our representatives give us something else. That’s how we end up with everyone saying they’re against the war and occupation, but war and occupation still gets funding. That’s how we end up with everyone saying they’re against illegal spying on innocent people, yet end up with a telecom immunity bill being signed into law.

AMY GOODMAN: The Green Party made history last week when it nominated the first all-women-of-color presidential ticket in US history. Former Democratic Congress member Cynthia McKinney, the first African American woman elected to Congress in Georgia, won the Green Party’s nomination last Monday. She named longtime community organizer, journalist and former director of the Hip Hop Caucus, Rosa Clemente, as her running mate.

McKinney is among the most outspoken critics of the Bush administration, and one of her last measures as a Democratic Congress member was to introduce a bill calling for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney. But McKinney left the Democratic Party late last year, after serving six terms in Congress under both the Clinton and present Bush administrations. She said the Democrats had become “no different than their Republican counterparts.” She announced her bid for the presidency as a Green candidate earlier this year.

We’re joined now by Green Party presidential and vice-presidential candidates. Cynthia McKinney joins us from Washington, D.C. Rosa Clemente joins us from Charlotte, North Carolina. We welcome you both to Democracy Now!

Cynthia McKinney, let’s begin with you in Washington, D.C. If you were elected president, what would be your first act?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Of course, the first act would be to assemble a team in the Pentagon that believed in peace and the efficacy of diplomacy. And therefore, we would make sure that we put together an orderly withdrawal, but immediate withdrawal, of all of our young men and women, not just from Iraq and Afghanistan, but from the more than 100 countries around the world in which our soldiers are stationed.

AMY GOODMAN: And what do you make of Senator Obama’s trip right now to Iraq and to Afghanistan, where he said the real war on terror was diverted?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: I think it’s important that any presidential candidate have the opportunity to do these kinds of fact-finding missions. But, of course, one’s lifelong activities ought to be preparation for running the most powerful country on the planet.

I would just like to say something about your headlines, your opening headlines. Amy, I came into this room this morning full of hope and enthusiasm for the fact that the Green Party have provided an opportunity for Rosa and me to kickstart the kind of movement that this country needs. And yet, these headlines from this morning—torture, war, violence, murder, hate crimes—I think it’s clear that not only does our country need a new set of values at the helm, our country needs an opposition party like the Green Party, that has the values of the Green Party, so that we can finally see the values that I believe are the majority values of the American people implemented in our public policy.

AMY GOODMAN: Cynthia McKinney, right now there’s a lot of talk about who the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates will choose as their vice-presidential candidates. Can you talk about your criteria on why you chose Rosa Clemente?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: I’ve known Rosa for a very long time. Rosa has participated in many of the congressional briefings and brain trusts that we held with respect to the counterintelligence program COINTELPRO. And the impact of the kind of disclosures that we saw from the ACLU with respect to Maryland’s surveillance of people who dared to dissent, she has done that really as a lifelong activist with the hip hop generation and understands the potentialities associated with being active and dissenting from the status quo powers and the policies of them.

Rosa represents everything that is good and right about young people in this country. I’m reminded of the fact that it was high school students, university students, that changed my life in the civil rights movement. They were unafraid to challenge the status quo. Rosa comes from that very same kind of commitment and tradition.

AMY GOODMAN: Rosa Clemente, it’s great to have you with us. Can you talk about what it means to be the Green Party’s vice-presidential candidate, to be a vice-presidential candidate here in the United States?

ROSA CLEMENTE: I mean, thank you for having me, Amy. It’s a humbling experience, first and foremost. But, I mean, I’m a South Bronx Puerto Rican-born girl, 1972. I was in the South Bronx when hip hop, which is still now the voice of multi-racial young people all over the world, began. So I’m humbled, but I’m ready for the work. I’ve been in a great tradition of student activists coming from the State University of New York at Albany in the early ’90s to getting my Master’s at Cornell University under the mentorship of Dr. James Turner and being a community organizer with the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, but again under mentorship of the great late Richie Perez.

So I’m humbled, but I’m also excited, because I feel that many African American, indigenous, Asian, Latino youth in this country, mostly working class, are completely disenfranchised and marginalized from a two-party system. There’s over 40 percent of young people that still have not registered to vote, which shows their dissatisfaction with both the Republicans and Democrats. And I really want to bring the face of what hip hop has always been for me, a voice of the voiceless, the mic that speaks truth to power but also uses these elements to act against the status quo or the powers that be.

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Amy, the situation—

AMY GOODMAN: And what do you think, Rosa Clemente, are the most important issues right now? What are you going to be campaigning on around the country?

ROSA CLEMENTE: For young people right now, the most important issues is a dismantling of the prison-industrial complex; a livable wage; dealing with the AIDS pandemic that is affecting disproportionately African American and Latina young women; a real gender equity movement; a real movement where women, particularly women of color, are not marginalized in the media or at work; and really dealing with no healthcare and a lack of good public education, but also a lack of now higher education. No young person in America who can go to college should be in $100,000 debt. We are supposed to be competing with the best of the best, and we have over a 60 percent, in some cities, dropout rate of African American and Latina/Latino youth. So those are, I think, the most important pressing issues. And, of course, an immediate withdrawal from Iran. And we must not be duped that a troop withdrawal in Iran could also mean a troop transfer in Afghanistan and more young
people, particularly white working-class youth, being used as cannon fodder.

AMY GOODMAN: Cynthia McKinney, the other issues that you feel are critical right now, that you’re campaigning on? And what is your plan in these next few months leading up to November? How are you campaigning? I know you were here in New York this weekend. Now you’re in Washington. And Rosa Clemente is in Charlotte, North Carolina.

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: I’ll be back in New York on September 11th with the wonderful organization wearechange.org, who are planning a candlelight vigil for—at Ground Zero on September 11th, and after that, a benefit—a series of benefits, actually, for the first responders, who of course have been neglected and who have health effects now stemming from their activities in recovery and cleanup of the site.

Now, I think it’s important for us to note that our national leaders have decided that it’s OK to spend $720 million every day for war and occupation. That number is according to the American Friends Service Committee. $720 million a day at the expense of a single-payer healthcare system in this country, like, for example, Medicare for all; like, for example, subsidizing education so that, as Rosa said, no university student graduates $100,000 in debt, as is the case with my cousin. We need to make sure that our young people are actually graduating from high school. We need to make sure that we are investing in our infrastructure and greening our economy, making sure that we are providing jobs and that there’s job training and that those jobs are at a livable wage.

These are not the things that the Democratic majority in Congress has ensured for all of us in public policy. Yet they have continued to vote to fund war and occupation. And so, on my birthday, in front of the Pentagon March 17 of last year, I declared my independence. And I would just like to say that it’s interesting that I declared my independence from the national leadership that gave us these kinds of policies and a failure to roll back the PATRIOT Acts, the Secret Evidence Act, the Military Commissions Act, a failure even to provide election integrity for us in face of the fact that we understand that we’ve got voter caging that’s going on literally right now that would deny people the opportunity to cast a vote.

We still have the electronic voting machine problem. We also have the voter ID situation, with laws being passed in various states around the country, making it a requirement that people provide a certain type of identification, but only if they show up on Election Day to vote, not if they mail in their ballot. So we’re establishing a two-tiered voting system by law in this country. At one point, that was thought to be illegal, and now it has become the practice. Who is going to be there on the day after election to make sure that we have ensured election integrity? As it was in 2004, it was the Green Party that put feet on the ground in Ohio, and that’s how we know what happened in Ohio. John Kerry made a commitment that one million black people would not go to the polls in 2004, as was the case in 2000, and not have their votes counted.

AMY GOODMAN: Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente, we have to go to break. We’re going to come back to this discussion. Cynthia McKinney, Green Party presidential candidate, Rosa Clemente, the Green Party vice-presidential candidate, the first all-women-of-color presidential ticket in history. This is Democracy Now! We’ll be back with them in a minute.

[break]

AMY GOODMAN: We’re talking to the Green Party presidential and vice-presidential candidates, Cynthia McKinney, joining us from Washington, D.C., Rosa Clemente, from Charlotte, North Carolina. Rosa Clemente, Wyclef Jean, Kanye West, they’re going to be performing at the Democratic Convention. Your response?

ROSA CLEMENTE: They’re on the wrong side. You know, I respect many other rappers in the hip hop community, but hip hop is bigger than rappers. It’s bigger than recorded artists who perform and make millions of dollars. I understand the historical nature of a Barack Obama, but I also understand the historical nature of a Cynthia McKinney or Rosa Clemente, especially being Puerto Rican and understanding the colonial relationship that my island and my people have with this country and remembering being at Vieques on May 1, 2005, when we kicked the US Navy out.

If Barack Obama is not going to talk about the issues that are affecting the people that look like him, if he’s not going to talk about the freedom of political prisoners in this country, and if he’s not going to acknowledge the hip hop generation, which he really hasn’t, then we as a generation must be very clear. Are we picking someone based on emotion or what symbolism looks like, or are we picking the Green Party? You know, and I encourage everyone to pick up the platform. This platform includes social justice, an end to police brutality, and the list goes on and on.

So I’m encouraged by a lot of young people who have not registered to vote who have been emailing me, over 4,000 hits on my website in less than a week, saying that they’re going to join the Green Party. So that’s my response. We’ll be at the DNC; we just won’t be inside. We’ll be recruiting those people that are still disaffected. And we’ll be at the RNC also. So look out for us.

AMY GOODMAN: Cynthia McKinney, I wanted to ask you about that New Yorker magazine cover, the one that showed Barack Obama in Muslim garb and that showed his wife, Michelle Obama, carrying a machine gun, with a flag burning in the fireplace. Your thoughts?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Well, I’m not surprised at anything that we see. I understand that perhaps the article might have been satire. I haven’t read the article. I’ve seen a lot of political commentary about the cover. But, you know, if you look at the depiction of black women in the history of this country, I’m not surprised at all at what they or any journalist might portray for black women. And then, if we look at the targeted group that is—that consists of Muslims in this country, I’m not surprised, basically, at any depiction that someone could dream up and think up.

But what we really have to remain focused on is the fact that this country is in dire need of an opposition party. People who have values of economic opportunity, social justice, ecological wisdom need to have—and peace, of course, need to have a place to rest their vote in so that their vote reflects their values. Right now, that is the Green Party. The Green Party is the opposition party. With over 200 elected officials, we know that the Green Party can only grow, particularly in this environment where we see positions change from issue to issue, from month to month, from week to week. We understand that there is very little that is consistent and static with the corporate parties. However, with the Green Party, the Green Party is grounded in its values.

Now, why is it that we participate in the political process, to start with? It’s not about a horse race. It’s not about a fashion show. It’s not about a beauty contest. It’s not about popularity. It’s about making sure that our values are reflected in public policy. And that’s why I’ve decided that it is now time—past time, it was—past time for me not only to declare my independence, as the women who were the suffragists declared their independence from the current political order in order to create something new, it was time for me to leave the Democratic Party, which no longer reflected my values. And I think that the contradictions between what the Democratic Party says and what it does are very clear now before the American people.

AMY GOODMAN: Let me ask you about a quote of Amiri Baraka, who was very critical of your run. He said the people who are supporting McKinney must know that this is an empty gesture, but too often such people are so pocked with self-congratulatory idealism that they care little or understand little about politics, i.e. the gaining momentum and use of power, but want only to pronounce to themselves mostly how progressive or radical or even revolutionary they are. Your response, Cynthia McKinney?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Well, of course, I know Amiri Baraka well, have been to New Jersey to campaign for his son, campaign with him. And so, you know, of course, he is entitled to his opinion, and I respect him greatly. However, I do differ.

As I just discussed, the definition of politics is the authoritative allocation of values in a society. And if a political party no longer or fails to represent my values, then what am I supposed to do? The people of Venezuela voted their values, and they got real substantive exchange. They got their values being implemented in public policy. People in Chile and Argentina, people in Ecuador and Bolivia, people in Haiti, people in Cote d’Ivoire vote their values. People in Mexico voted their values. They had an election that was stolen, but then they shut down Mexico City for five months.

Now, what are we supposed to do? Give up on our values? No. We press our values in the political system through the process that is made available to us. The Green Party has made it possible for us to press our values. In very much the same way that the Democratic presumptive nominee went before the Cuban American National Foundation and enunciated a certain set of values, in very much the same way that the Democratic presumptive nominee went before AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and enunciated certain values that will be reflected in public policy, it is incumbent upon those of us who share these values, rooted in the founding principles of the Green Party, to press our values in the political system. And that’s what we’re doing.

AMY GOODMAN: What do you make of Senator Obama’s trip to Iraq and Afghanistan to talking about a timetable for pullout, Nouri al-Maliki saying he shares his view, though he was castigated, it looks like, by the President, and Senator McCain saying Barack Obama has the most extreme record in the Senate, suggesting perhaps he’s a socialist?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: Well, of course, we understand bombast. And that’s what we’re going to be subjected with throughout the remaining period of this election, is a lot of bombast. At the end of the day, though, I think that what Maliki was saying is that nobody wants to see their country occupied. And so, the withdrawal as quickly as possible from Iraq, also withdrawal from Afghanistan—as Rosa has pointed out, this withdrawal is not really a withdrawal, it’s just a shift over to Afghanistan.

Let us remember what the late foreign minister of the UK reminded us all of about al-Qaeda. He reminded us that al-Qaeda was the CIA’s rolodex. So, let’s understand exactly what we are dealing with. We need a different foreign policy. We need a foreign policy that is grounded in the respect for human rights, that respects self-determination, that respects democracy and the will of the people. That is the foundation for a peaceful, forward deployment of US assets and resources around the world in such a way that we are actually helping people, lifting people up. We do not have to deliver bombs and missiles and military technology and nuclear technology to countries in order to submit—make them submit to US will in fear. We can make friends with peace.

AMY GOODMAN: Will you be campaigning in swing states like Ohio and in Florida that could perhaps have a one or two percentage point difference between the candidates?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: As I mentioned earlier, we are in a situation where people can go to the polls today and their votes not be counted. We do not have the assurance of election integrity. In a situation where we do not have election integrity, I don’t think it’s possible for anybody to talk about a one or two percentage point difference, when we’ve got the electronic voting machines, we’ve got central tabulation manipulation, we’ve got problems with people even being able to cast their vote. I will go wherever—

AMY GOODMAN: Are you concerned about—

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: I will go wherever there are marginalized, alienated and disenfranchised people who need the voice and the message of the Green Party.

AMY GOODMAN: Are you concerned about helping McCain beat Obama?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: The Republicans have done a pretty fine job of stealing two presidential elections, and I would look—cast my eyes at them and the voter ID laws and the voter caging and the electronic voting machines and the administration of elections, where people can actually get inside the voting booth, cast one million votes, and their votes not be counted. That’s were I would be looking. Don’t look at the Green Party and suspect that the Green Party is doing anything other than exercising its obligation to provide voters choice.

AMY GOODMAN: And the difference between your campaign, your Green Party presidential bid, and Ralph Nader’s Independent presidential bid?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: I think it’s clear that when you have a political party, we have over 200 elected officials. Of course, I think it’s also important for people to understand that the Green Party is an international entity. The former Nobel Peace Prize winner from Kenya was a member of the Kenyan parliament; Wangari Maathai was a member of the Kenyan parliament, a Green Party member. Ingrid Betancourt, who was recently released in Colombia, ran for president as a member of the Green Party. So the Green Party is making public policy in other parts of the world. The Green Party needs to have the opportunity to make public policy here in this country.

AMY GOODMAN: How many states are you on the ballot, Congress member McKinney, Cynthia McKinney?

CYNTHIA McKINNEY: We hope to be on the ballot in at least forty states around the country. Of course, you know that ballot access laws are very difficult, and therefore, it at this point remains unseen as to whether we will get more than forty or fewer than forty. It won’t be very much fewer than forty. But we would hope to be on as many ballots as possible. For example, in the state of Georgia, we haven’t had the opportunity to vote for a Green Party member, period, because the Green Party has not been on the ballot because the laws are so difficult. However, in California, there are so many political parties, voters have choice.

AMY GOODMAN: Rosa Clemente—

ROSA CLEMENTE: May I just say something?

AMY GOODMAN: —you wanted to weigh in here. Yes.

ROSA CLEMENTE: Just very quick. Well, one thing about Ralph Nader and Matt Gonzalez is, Ralph Nader sent out his congratulations to me and Cynthia last week and made it very clear that we are not competing for votes. We have to end the two-party system.

In 2003, I, along with thirteen other people, helped create the National Hip Hop Political Convention. In 2004, Ana Nogueira, one of your producers, interviewed me, and I remember saying to her, if we, as a hip hop generation don’t make some real power moves by 2008, we’re going to be in a very desperate situation for the next thirty years. I see me being nominated as a power move, not just for me, not for Cynthia, not even just the Green Party, but for an entire people who see the Green Party no longer as the alternative, but the imperative, for us to live a social, justice, freedom, democracy type of life. And that’s what particularly young people are looking for.

AMY GOODMAN: And what kind of response have you gotten, Rosa Clemente, from the hip hop community, now that you’re nominated as a vice-presidential candidate?

ROSA CLEMENTE: I mean, it’s been varied. I mean, from people who are activists and progressives in that movement, the response has been phenomenal. We have people all over every state ready to do some work. And in fact, on July 31st to August 3rd, we will be an Las Vegas, Nevada with the National Hip Hop Political Convention.

There have been some people caught up in Obama-mania, as I call it and other people, that are upset, but they don’t understand, I think, right now the situation that we’re in. They don’t understand that the Democrats and Republicans joined forces to keep the Green Party off the ballot. They don’t understand that we are being whited out of every mainstream and even some progressive media.

And my question to them is always, or my response: if we are not telling the truth, if we are not about empowering the majority of the American people, why are forces that are worth $200 million, $300 million not only keeping us off the ballots, but not even talking about us. And again, in the progressive press, we’ve been whited out, whether it’s the Huffington Post or Air America. It’s only been Pacifica and Democracy Now! and a couple other—I don’t even call you “alternative” anymore. I think we are the mainstream. But why are we not being allowed to even voice our opinions? So it’s been a wonderful response, I think, in general for the hip hop generation right now.

AMY GOODMAN: We’re going to leave it there. I want to thank you both very much for joining us, Rosa Clemente, Green Party vice-presidential nominee, speaking to us from Charlotte, North Carolina, and Cynthia McKinney, former Congress member from Georgia. She is the Green Party presidential nominee, speaking to us from the nation’s capital, from Washington, D.C.

Cynthia McKinney, Rosa Clemente Press Conference

Cynthia McKinney, Rosa Clemente Press Conference shortly after their nomination as Green Party President and Vice President candidates.

Most questions removed for brevity and audio quality. Running time about 15 minutes

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Ralph Nader Issues Statement on Cynthia McKinney's Nomination

RALPH NADER ISSUES STATEMENT ON CYNTHIA MCKINNEY'S NOMINATION

Washington, DC: Independent Presidential candidate Ralph Nader issued the below statement today on the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States, Cynthia McKinney.

"I want to congratulate Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente on winning the Green Party nomination for the Presidency of the United States. I wish them well and hope they go into all 50 states and spread the message of the Green Agenda. The country needs a diversity of voices that are unrelentingly progressive, forthright, candid, and documented in good sound civic values and the wellbeing of all the people.

"Third party candidates usually are more forthright and they highlight social justice issues that are regularly ignored or contravened by the two major parties. As history shows from the anti-slavery Liberty Party of the 1840's to the women's suffrage and farmer and labor parties up to the early 20th century, eventually the big ideas of these little parties break through.

"Although the Nader/Gonzalez and Green Party platforms have many similarities, we are not competing for votes, but instead we are allies joined in a common struggle to tap the huge and growing numbers of millions of unsatisfied voters who want to vote for something better than the lesser of two-evils. The more progressive voices and choices, the more widespread will be the definition of freedom as participation in power.

"In Cynthia McKinney, the Greens have an energetic and courageous candidate unafraid to challenge America to be better for the millions who are marginalized, overcharged, underpaid and ignored by the two-party duopoly. Her vim and vigor offers the Green Party an excellent chance to break through in 2008 and provides voters one more viable alternative to the DemReps. I wish her and Ms. Clemente good luck."

Rosa Clemente interviewed on KPKF's Uprising

Green Party VP nominee Rosa Clemente interviewed on KPKF's Uprising
Conversation with GP Veep, Rosa Clemente
http://uprisingradio.org/home/?p=2901

and from July 14:
Greens Pick McKinney for President
GUEST: Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator of the Green Party
http://uprisingradio.org/home/?p=2886

Hip Hop activist and independent journalist Rosa Clemente recently accepted Green Party Presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney’s invitation to be her running mate. A 36 year old South Bronx native of Puerto Rican decent, Clemente delivered her acceptance speech last Saturday at the Green Party National Convention in Chicago. Citing everyone from hip hop group Dead Prez to Puerto Rican Independence fighter Pedro Albizu Campos, she underlined the politics of her ticket’s presidential campaign. Before this stint for public office, Rosa Clemente was a student at the University of Albany and earned her Master’s Degree at Cornell. While at Cornell, Clemente started La Voz Boriken, an organization that supported Puerto Rican political prisoners and the independence cause. She became involved in alternative media at our sister station, WBAI Pacifica Radio in New York and has published numerous articles for print in magazines such as Clamor and The Ave. In 2003, Clemente was central to organizing the first ever National Hip Hop Political Convention that created a political agenda for the Hip Hop generation.

GUEST: Rosa Clemente, Vice Presidential Candidate of the Green Party, community organizer, independent journalist and Hip-Hop activist. For more information, visit www.rosaclemente.com.

National Media Coverage of the Green Party Convention

ABC
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/07/green-party-tap.html
Green Party Taps McKinney

Atlanta-Journal Constitution
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/07/12/mckinney_green_nomination.html
McKinney wins Green Party nomination
http://www.ajc.com/pbccentral/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2008/07/09/mckinney_green_party.html
McKinney expected to get Green Party nomination this week

CBS
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2008/07/14/politics/horserace/entry4261275.shtml
McKinney Joins The (Third) Party As Barr, Nader Fight On

Chicago Public Radio (has a nice picture)
http://www.wbez.org/Content.aspx?audioID=26531
McKinney Chosen To Lead Greens
(for complete Chicago Public Radio Coverage go to http://www.chicagopublicradio.org/ and type "Green Party" in the search area for a series of articles)

The Chicago Sun-Times
http://www.suntimes.com/news/elections/1048670,CST-NWS-green10web.article
Green Party to hold convention, nominate presidential candidate

Chicago tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-green-party-chicagojul13,0,869646.story
McKinney to represent Greens on ballot

CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/12/mckinney.green.party/?iref=mpstoryview
McKinney running for president as Green candidate

Democracy Now
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/7/14/headlines
Green Party Nominates Cynthia McKinney to be President

Fox
http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/07/12/mckinney-wins-green-party-nomination/
McKinney Wins Green Party Nomination

The Herald News
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/heraldnews/news/1050706,4_1_JO11_GREEN_S1.article
Two local candidates going Green (Party)

Indypendent
http://www.indypendent.org/2008/07/10/2004-indy-interview-w-rosa-clemente-likely-green-party-vice-presidential-nominee/
2004 Indy Interview w/ Rosa Clemente, Likely Green Party Vice-Presidential Nominee

The LA Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-greenparty11-2008jul11,0,1807623.story
Cynthia McKinney outlines Green Party goals

Michigan Daily (University of Michigan)
http://www.michigandaily.com/home/index.cfm?event=displayArticle&ustory_id=72360e73-7dac-499e-b5ea-61dafc202e06
The third chair
(see also accompanying blog http://apps.michigandaily.com/blogs/thepodium/)

Ms. Magazine (Feminist Wire News Briefs)
http://www.msmagazine.com/news/uswirestory.asp?ID=11140
Cynthia McKinney will be Green Party Presidential Candidate

NBC
http://www.nbc5.com/news/16848228/detail.html
Green Party Holds Convention In Chicago; Party Expected To Nominate Presidential Candidate

Newsweek
http://www.newsweek.com/id/146263
McKinney Goes Green; Will a third-party candidate be a 'spoiler'?

NPR (story starts halfway through)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92499294
Former Rep. McKinney Heads Green Party Ticket

Pacifica (3-hour broadcast)
http://www.audioport.org/audioport_files/nathan@pacifica.org/7621-20080713-GreenConvention_PacificaSpecial_July13_Hour1.mp3
http://www.audioport.org/audioport_files/nathan@pacifica.org/7621-20080713-GreenConvention_PacificaSpecial_July13_Hour2.mp3
http://www.audioport.org/audioport_files/nathan@pacifica.org/7621-20080713-GreenConvention_PacificaSpecial_July13_Hour3.mp3

The Southern
http://www.thesouthern.com/articles/2008/07/11/breaking_news/doc4877d8ff45448999054888.txt
Don't blame me, I voted Whitney," bumper sticker proclaims

UPI
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/07/12/McKinney_named_Green_Party_candidate/UPI-91001215909285/
McKinney named Green Party candidate

USA Today (headlines)
http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/07/looking-ahead-6.html
The U.S. Green Party continues its presidential nominating convention in Chicago

Building a Movement for REAL Change

Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente:
Building a Movement for REAL Change

By LARRY PINKNEY
Editorial Board Member
Black Commentator, July 17, 2008, Issue 286
http://www.blackcommentator.com/286/286_kir_mckinney_clemente_movement_change.html


Something magnificent and truly extraordinary happened at the 2008, Green Party Presidential Convention a few days ago in Chicago, Illinois. Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente; two dynamic, highly intelligent, experienced, and politically committed women of color were chosen by the Green Party of this nation to be its nominees for President and Vice President respectively, of the United States of America. Former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney who demonstrated the guts and integrity to leave the politically opportunist and bankrupt Democratic Party has, for quite some time now been yet again demonstrating her guts and integrity by crisscrossing this nation and informing people in every nook and cranny about the ?Power To The People? Campaign. Now Sister McKinney has been joined by Puerto Rican people?s grass root activist / journalist / and intellectual hip hop artist Sister Rosa Clemente in this ever growing campaign and people?s movement and struggle. Indeed, something extraordinary has happened and there is yet more to come.

While CNN, ABC, C-SPAN, etc. did give some limited coverage of and to this incredibly momentous event; none of the pundits of these so-called ?main stream news? media outlets dared elucidate to the ?American? people the enormous present-day and historical significance and opportunities of what just happened in Chicago. None of these pundits dared explain and emphasize the revolutionary aspect of what had just happened in Chicago: That the Green Party and the Reconstruction Movement this past weekend, in selecting Cynthia McKinney as their primary standard bearer, is a stinging rejection and rebuke of the Democratic and Republican Parties [i.e. the Republicrats] with their putrid, hypocritical, corporate / military apparatus-fueled politics of dishonesty, subterfuge, smoke & mirrors, and unending wars abroad and increasing economic disparity and social misery at home. The sleeping dragon, consisting of the rank and file, everyday woman, man, and child in this nation, has finally begun to awaken once again.

The Empire, including its Democratic and Republican Party surrogates, has been put on notice by politically conscious Black, Brown, Red, Yellow, and White peoples of this nation of who are sick and tired of being hoodwinked, manipulated, and politically blood sucked. What happened this past week end in Chicago is a wake up call to all persons of good will: Black, White, Brown, Red, and Yellow!

By supporting the candidacies of Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente we are supporting a people?s movement ? our movement for real, fundamental, ?systemic? change, not mealy-mouth meaningless / feel good rhetoric. We are self-actualizing our hopes and dreams, not allowing others to pimp and manipulate us by playing on those hopes and dreams. We are supporting the very best in ourselves. We are laying the foundation in 21st Century ?America? for a genuine and ongoing people?s movement that says NO to the corporate / military / prison apparatus of the U.S. Empire at home and abroad. We are supporting so much more than only candidates for political office - we are supporting our commitment to the building of an uncompromising, unswerving, people?s movement that is unhindered by this system?s Democratic and Republican [i.e. Republicratic] Party election time lines and political machine. We are refusing to collaborate with this Empire?s system of oppression. Rather, we are working
to dismantle it and build a fundamentally and systemically different system that addresses human needs, not human greed. We are emphatically stating that we will not sit back and allow principled, intelligent, revolutionary / politically progressive, honest, and for-real women to be by-passed and ignored any longer by this system in ?America.? By supporting the Cynthia McKinney / Rosa Clemente ?Power To The People? Campaign we are making it crystal clear that we will intensify the struggle the dignity and human rights of all people: women, men, and children - Black, Brown, Red, White, and Yellow - all peoples.

To be sure, the U.S. Empire?s corrupt and biased news media disinformation machine can be expected to go into high gear in an effort to discredit and neutralize the McKinney / Clemente ticket and the ?Power To The People? Campaign. Indeed, these slimy tactics have already begun. However, such tactics merely confirm the absolute importance of what we are committed to and what this movement is all about.

For those who may not have seen and heard Cynthia McKinney?s acceptance speech on C-SPAN at the Green Party Convention this past July 13, 2008; it is urged that you turn on your computer?s speakers, view her presentation, and hear her remarks and those of Rosa Clemente on the internet at C-SPAN.org under the heading Green Party Presidential Convention (July 13, 2008) (http://cspan.org/search.aspx?For=Green%20Party%20Presidential%20Convent).

The "Power To The People" Campaign is the only one to boldly and seriously address not only the issues of militarism, economic disparity, social and environmental inequities, single payer health care, government malfeasance and neglect, corporate greed, equal opportunity and education, racism, reparations, gender parity, and homelessness, etc; but just as importantly, this campaign is about building an ongoing movement to fundamentally address the root causes of these pressing concerns. The twin demons of the Empire, i.e. the Democratic and Republican Parties [increasingly known as the Republicrats] and their accomplices, are in opposition to any real systemic change. Thus, every conceivable means will be utilized to deter this campaign, its ultimate movement, and objectives.

We must get out into our towns, cities, and municipalities of all kinds with one fundamental objective: Getting and putting the ?Power To The People? Cynthia McKinney / Rosa Clemente Green Party ticket on the ballot in high numbers in every viable state of this nation, while simultaneously building and nurturing this people?s movement. Let us start voting right now by organizing to support Cynthia and Rosa in the streets, the back woods, the schools, on the reservations, in the barrios, ghettos, and every possible nook and cranny and community of this nation. WE ARE NOT COLLABORATORS AND WE WILL NOT COLLABORATE WITH THE EMPIRE IN OUR OWN OPPRESSION OR THAT OF OTHERS. Organize, organize, and organize some more!

We are the people and it is WE ourselves who are the essence of, and motivation for, real change. Let us call out to our sisters and brothers in Haiti, in Venezuela, in Bolivia, in Cuba, in Palestine, in Myanmar, in the Congo and throughout the entire world. Let us send them a message of comradely greetings and let them know that we are reawakening from slumber here in the belly of the Empire. We have seen their examples and are emulating them for the mutual betterment of all our peoples.

We must build coalitions that serve the interests of the people. We must pry open the systemic, strangling, amoral death grip that the Democrats and Republican Parties [i.e. the Republicrats] have around our proverbial necks and minds. We must work together with the Reconstruction Movement which began around the despicable U.S. Government criminality of both the Republicans and Democratic Parties re hurricane Katrina (and subsequently hurricane Rita). Being Green is just the beginning. We must keep in mind that there are also other progressive peoples out there in parties such as the Peace & Freedom Party, and we must work together with them to the mutual advantage of the people?s movement. We must remember that ?no one of us is as smart or as strong as all of us.? We must remember our sister and brother political prisoners, liberation fighters, and exiles such as Leonard Peltier, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Reverend Edward Pinkney [no relation], the San Francisco 8, Assata Shakur and s
o very, very many more. We must remember why we are waging this struggle. This is about more than votes. This is about our very survival and that of Mother Earth - this planet.

This is about saying NO to the Empire and its collaborators, and YES to a NEW DAY a NEW SOCIETY, a NEW WORLD. This is about struggling to be that NEW PERSON who self-actualizes and addresses human needs, not human greed, lies, and hypocrisy.

Viva Cynthia McKinney! Viva Rosa Clememte! Long live ?The Power To The People? Campaign! Let?s get busy brothers and sisters. ?Each one reach one?. There is much work to be done!

Onward then?


BlackCommentator.com Editorial Board Member, Larry Pinkney, is a veteran of the Black Panther Party, the former Minister of Interior of the Republic of New Africa, a former political prisoner and the only American to have successfully self-authored his civil/political rights case to the United Nations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In connection with his political organizing activities in opposition to voter suppression, etc., Pinkney was interviewed in 1988 on the nationally televised PBS NewsHour, formerly known as The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. For more about Larry Pinkney see the book, Saying No to Power: Autobiography of a 20th Century Activist and Thinker, by William Mandel [Introduction by Howard Zinn].

Professor Griff (of Public Enemy) endorses Cynthia McKinney and questions Obama

Professor Griff of the group Public Enemy endorses Cynthia McKinney in a recent interview.

Here's the link to Part I:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=XnCOdbVxVKk

And here is the link to Part II:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=XFobU__tGuw

This is a great interview that covers a lot of national political issues, as well as commentary on the general state of American society.

McKinney Introduces the Virtual Phone Bank - Volunteer Today!!!

Join Our Phone Bank Team

Seeking enthusiastic supporters with good verbal communication skills and telephone presence to help staff our growing Virtual Phone Bank operation now being launched by the campaign. No cold take-out pizza or loud boiler rooms involved. You can pick your hours, work at home and are asked to provide your own unlimited long distance calling plan and internet connection. We provide a web application to access our database of voters and in which you can directly record your notes while you are on the call. We also provide call scripts, training and support and the number to our campaign offices where you can direct questions you are not prepared to handle yourself. Phone bank jobs will vary from cold calling voter lists to conduct voterID work, to reconnecting with known supporters to mobilze volunteers and raise contributions, to conducting GOTV calls in the final days of this campaign.

The Green Party's GLBTIQ Platform

Same-sex/Same-gender Marriages & Freedom of Kinship
THE GREEN PARTY supports equal access to civil marriage rights to all couples whether comprised of individuals of the same, similar, or different sex or gender. Greens demand freedom of kinship-the right of Americans to live and love as they see fit.

Medical Marijuana & Needle Exchange
THE GREEN PARTY says yes to federal funding for needle exchange. Greens oppose the exaggerated and racially biased 'war on drugs’ and support access to medical marijuana.

Low-Cost AIDS Drugs/International AIDS Issues
THE GREEN PARTY has protested threats from the Clinton & Bush Administrations against South Africa and other African, Asian, and Latin American nations for offering low-cost AIDS drugs. We oppose U.S. policy which ties abstinence only policies to receipt of U.S. aid. We support changing U.S. policy to support distribution of condoms, dental dams, clean needles, and funding of programs aimed at high risk populations including sex workers where needed.

Equal Rights
THE GREEN PARTY supports the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer people to equal access to affordable housing, living wage jobs, civil marriage and benefits, medical benefits, child custody, immigration rights, education, and in all areas, the right to equality of life with all other people. The Lavender Greens Caucus is a member of the United ENDA coalition with the support of the Green Party national platform and organization.

Anti-gay/bi bias in the Military
THE GREEN PARTY demands an end to all anti-gay/bi discrimination in the military.

Reproductive rights
THE GREEN PARTY supports access to birth control and abortion as essential to one’s right to control one’s own body and reproductive choices. Health care treatments related to fertility when made available must be provided without discrimination in regards to sexual orientation or gender identity. Women’s right to control their own bodies is non-negotiable. Both women and men have a right and a responsibility to make informed choices about their bodies and reproduction. Feminism is a basic principle of the Green Party.

Self Determination of Gender Identity and Sex
THE GREEN PARTY supports the rights of all people to self determination in regards to gender identity and sex. Greens oppose intersex genital mutilation. Greens support the right of intersex and transgender individuals to freedom from coercion and involuntary assignment of gender or sex. Greens support access to medical and surgical treatment for assignment or reassignment of gender or sex, based on informed consent.


Civil Liberties
THE GREEN PARTY upholds and exercises the right of dissent. Greens oppose the corporate domination of our media and schools. Greens oppose any restriction of human rights, citizenship, or privacy because of HIV status or sexuality. Anti-racism is a basic principle of the Green Party.

Rights of Indigenous Peoples
THE GREEN PARTY recognizes both the sovereignty of tribal governments and the federal government’s trust obligations to Native American people including, but not limited to, the obligation of the federal government to honor treaty rights. Greens demand justice for the kanaka maoli. Individuals who identify as two-spirit, mahu, or other traditional identities must be afforded the right to freely express their identity and honor their traditions without fear of discrimination in the workplace, public accommodations, civil marriage, child custody or other areas of life.

Universal Health Care
THE GREEN PARTY supports universal health care coverage under a single-payer system-quality universal coverage of every U.S. resident regardless of income, age, or prior medical condition. The Green Party and its candidates accept no contributions from HMO, insurance, pharmaceutical or other corporations PACS or health care industry lobbies.

Democracy
THE GREEN PARTY supports proportional representation, instant run-off voting, public campaign financing, same day voter registration, and other reforms that increase the democratic access to power of all parties and groups-including gay, lesbian, bisexual, intersex, transgender and queer Americans. Greens demand inclusion of third parties and independents in political debates and other public forums, and an end to laws-designed by Democrats and Republicans in collusion-that hinder third party and independent candidates from running for public office.

International Human Rights
THE GREEN PARTY believes the U.S. should support international human rights law and support access to rights under international law by individuals both at home and in all countries around the world. Greens support adoption of U.S. foreign and domestic policy which supports and encourages the adoption of the Yogyakarta Principles concerning the application of international human rights law in regards to issues of sexual orientation and gender identity in countries around the globe. http://www.yogyakartaprinciples.org/

Peace
The Green Party is the Peace Party! -- Democrats put the vote over the top to surrender Congress's constitutional power to declare war over to President Bush. Greens have vigorously criticized the Bush Administration's unconstitutional invasion of Iraq, and its use of threats against national security as an excuse to attack basic constitutional rights and protections here at home, and the timidity of Democrats response. It took both Democratic & Republican votes to pass the USA PATRIOT Act.


IF YOU BELIEVE in full human rights and equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer people and the need for a political party that demands social and economic justice, nonviolence, a healthy environment, and expansion of our freedoms and human rights in a democracy....

'REGISTER Green! VOTE Green! JOIN the Lavender Greens!'
The Lavender Greens are an officially accredited caucus of the Green Party of the U.S. www.gp.org. The caucus is represented by a seat on the National Committee of the Green Party of the United States. There are state and local chapters within many state Green Parties. To join the Lavender Green Caucus, please visit our website: http://www.lavendergreens.us

LAVENDER GREEN CAUCUS
Green Party of the United States

The National Lavender Green Caucus (NLGC) is the Green Party's advocacy group on gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer (GLBTIQ) issues. The NLGC is committed to working for the elimination of heterosexism and all its manifestations in our culture such as homophobia, hetero-supremacy, violence, prejudice, and injustice against GLBTIQ communities. NLGC also works for the elimination of racism and sexism and all their manifestations in GLBTIQ communities and in society as a whole. Our work is centered in the ten key values and four pillars of the Green Party of the United States. The caucus recognizes that freedom and social justice for GLBTIQ individuals will only come with the liberation of all people, and we actively view ourselves as a part of a broader movement for social justice. www.lavendergreens.us & www.gp.org

Check out National Lavender Greens Caucus:
http://lavendergreens.ning.com/?xgi=1IJuD7u

Cynthia McKinney Press Conference Videos, July 18, 2008

Cynthia McKinney Press Conference on why she's running as Green for President in New York, this is an excellent overview of her motivation to run as Green for President."As I see the dissolution of the character and soul of our country, it is clear we the people have the power to take our country back."

"The values of people in this country should be reflected in our public policy . . . that emanating from Washington DC are something alien to the values of the U.S. people."

Press Conference HD version with medium and low quality options
http://exposureroom.com/members/cseeman.aspx/assets/d8cd294b120042d1bba6ea3f6b1e8e3d/
Link

YouTube version for viral distribution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFk6nIL-SrA
Link
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Cynthia McKinney, Green Party candidate for President, talks about Health Economics Enironment and how they're related.

YouTube for viral distribution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y42GC1qUHuM
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Cynthia McKinney Green Party Presidential candidate - African Americans and the Democratic Party

An engaging story on how lack of sleep and a song inspired her thoughts about the relationships of the African American community and the Democratic Party.

July 18 during her press conference in NYC.

Hi Def, Medium, Low resolution options. Also option to download original
http://exposureroom.com/members/cseeman.aspx/assets/b56baf5961484987b49bd199a6e4141e/
Link

YouTube low resolution for viral distribution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN3mn4x4ymY
Link
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Cynthia McKinney talks about her plains for Dept. of Peace if she were to be elected President of the United States. She is the Green Party candidate for President.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nCJ7Adp0Lo
Link
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Cynthia McKinney, Green Party Presidential candidate talks briefly about some Economic Planks including the Federal Reserve, the Pentagon's lost money, our values should be reflected in the budget.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPngqDZpVcw
Link
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Cynthia McKinney Ballot Access message to New York petitioners. Green Party candidate for President needs 30,000 signatures to get on the ballot and survive petition challenges in New York. Standing next to her is Green Party 5th District Congressional candidate Evergreen Chou Queens/Nassau.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqa1bHkQRQg
Link

Karen Young explains the importance of petitioning to New York. She had previously worked on Rich Whitney's Gubernatorial campaign in Illinois (over 10%) and is now a New York resident.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cacrl9-dzc
Link