Florida 2000 All Over Again?

Do you remember the Florida debacle in the 2000 presidential race? At the time, news focused on the recount and the spectacle of the infamous “hanging chad.” But when the dust settled, America learned that the real affront to democracy was the flawed purge of eligible voters from the voting rolls in advance of the election.

The state that ultimately decided the election for George W. Bush by a mere 537 votes, hired a firm to purge ex-felons -- who had lost their right to vote according to state law -- from the voter file. But the data match was so sloppy that countless eligiblevoters, mostly African American, were scrubbed from the file and turned away from the polls on Election Day.

Now, under Florida’s Tea Party governor, Rick Scott, it’s happening all over again!

Florida has begun a purge of “non-citizens” from the voting rolls and reports are saying that hundreds of eligible voters have already been struck from the rolls.

This week, other members of Congress from Florida joined Rep. Ted Deutch in calling on Gov. Scott to STOP THE PURGE. Please join the call!

Sign our petition right now to Gov. Rick Scott telling him to stop the purge and stop disenfranchising eligible voters.

Florida has already put out an initial list of more than 2,600 people identified as non-U.S. citizens and has indicated it could aim to purge up to 180,000 supposed non-citizens from the rolls ... but from all the inaccuracies we’ve seen so far, that could mean a staggering number of eligible voters being wrongfully purged and denied their right to vote.

This process is going forward with no oversight, and is all too reminiscent of the scrub orchestrated in 2000 by Secretary of State Katherine Harris under then-Gov. Jeb Bush. Under Gov. Scott, Florida has already erected barriers to voter registration that hurt minority and low-income voters... now, the state’s right-wing leaders seem to be dredging up ugly tactics from the past in what looks like naked, politically motivated voter suppression.

Please add your name to our petition now to stop the purge and call attention to the issue.

Hundreds of eligible voters have already been scrubbed from the rolls and many more have not replied to a letter that informs them they will lose their right to vote if they don’t reply with proof of citizenship. Despite the clear inaccuracy of the purge, the burden is on registered voters to prove that they are eligible, not on the state to prove that they are not.

This is wrong. You know it, I know it and if we can focus more attention on this disaster in the making, more Americans will know it. And we’ll be able to stop it.

Thank you for standing up for the right to vote and the American Way.

-- Ben Betz, Online Strategy Manager

Romney's Record as Governor

Mitt Romney talks a lot about his time as a corporate buyout specialist, but you know what we don't hear very much about?

His experience as governor of Massachusetts.

That may be because he made promises to the people of his state during his '02 campaign that sound an awful lot like the ones he's making to the country today -- and he failed to deliver on them.

Just like now, he claimed his success in the private sector meant he'd be able to create jobs, cut taxes, and bring down the debt. He did the opposite.

Today, we're asking you to help tell the truth about Romney Economics -- what it meant for the people of Massachusetts, and what it would mean for all Americans if he were elected president.

Check out our new video and consider joining the Truth Team -- a group of grassroots supporters that's helping spread the word about Romney's real record.

Even as the rest of the country was enjoying a brightening economy, during Romney's term Massachusetts plummeted to 47th out of 50 states in job creation; manufacturing jobs declined at twice the national average; and for the first time since 1995, its unemployment rate was above the national average.

Long-term debt ballooned by more than $2.6 billion -- leaving the people of Massachusetts with the highest per capita debt of any state in the nation. State spending increased every single year, and Romney raised taxes and fees by $750 million per year -- leading to a higher state and local tax burden of $1,200 for every Bay Stater. Over his term, fees at public colleges skyrocketed by 63 percent, and during his first year, K-12 schools saw the second-largest percentage cuts, per student, in the nation.

All that in just four years.

Mitt Romney promised more jobs, less debt, and smaller government for Massachusetts based solely on his experience as a corporate buyout specialist. Turns out that being good at maximizing profits for yourself and your investors, but leaving companies bankrupt and workers without jobs, doesn't exactly prepare you to lead a state -- or a country.

Yet Romney's out there making the same empty promises all over again. And we've got to make sure no one buys it this time.

The bottom line? Romney Economics didn't work for Massachusetts then, and it won't work for America now.

Watch our new video to get the facts, then pass it on to everyone you know:

http://my.barackobama.com/Romney-Economics-and-Massachusetts

We've got work to do -- let's go.

- Stephanie

Stephanie Cutter
Deputy Campaign Manager
Obama for America

Jail Wall Street Crooks

Just a few weeks ago, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said that crimes did not play a significant role in the financial collapse.¹ Secretary Geithner was never, ever an ally in the fight for Wall Street accountability, but similar sentiments have also been expressed by both Attorney General Eric Holder² and President Obama.³

And when Attorney General Holder recently listed his priorities for the end of the term, Wall Street accountability wasn't even on the list!⁴

If we want to see criminal Wall Street bankers behind bars, we must insist that President Obama make criminal prosecutions a priority.

Pick up the phone. Tell President Obama: Don't give a "get out of jail free" card to Wall Street crooks.

Click here for the numbers to call and a sample script.

If the financial crimes task force President Obama announced in his State of the Union speech doesn't hand down criminal indictments soon, we might never see Wall Street bankers held accountable for causing the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression.

But the task force is only staffed with a fraction of the investigators needed to do its job.⁵So even simply making criminal indictments a low priority would be tantamount to taking them off the table.

We need to speak out now to put this at the top of the agenda.

Call the White House and Obama for America's campaign headquarters. Tell President Obama: Don't give a "get out of jail free" card to Wall Street crooks.

Click the link below for the numbers to call and a sample script.

http://act.credoaction.com/r/?r=6887522&id=41080-2593817-cVRp_bx&t=10

Thank you for speaking out.

Matt Lockshin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets

1. "Grumbling Grows on Left Over Slow-Going in Wall Street Crisis Investigations," The Hill, 04-27-12.
2. "Holder Defends Efforts to Fight Financial Fraud," The New York Times, 02-23-12.
3. "Obama's Take on Wall Street Prosecutions," The New York Times, 12-12-11.
4. "Assessing Schneiderman's Task Force Gamble," FDL News, 04-27-12.
5.Ibid.

Pentagon Propaganda

Did you think it could get any worse? Now they want to legalize the use of propaganda on American citizens -- and the vote could happen NEXT WEEK.

An amendment legalizing the use of mass propaganda campaigns on American audiences has been inserted into the latest defense authorization bill — and that bill just passed the House.

Please click here to demand that the Senate oppose ending the propaganda ban -- it'll be up for a vote as soon as next week.

The NDAA amendment lifts bans on propaganda that have been around since the 1940s, neutralizing laws put in place to protect the American people from its government’s own “misinformation” campaigns.

“It removes the protection for Americans,” a Pentagon official told Buzzfeed, who broke the story. "There are no checks and balances. No one knows if the information is accurate, partially accurate, or entirely false.”

The amendment would remove all distinction between a hostile foreign audience and American one, turning the massive information operation apparatus within the federal government against its own people.

This amendment cannot become law. Will you join us in demanding that the Senate oppose this amendment to the NDAA? Just click here.

Thanks.

-- Demand Progress

PS: This vote could happen next week.  Please use these links or forward this email to your friends to get them involved in the fight.

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