REPUBLICANS FIDDLE WHILE ECONOMY BURNS

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SUPER-PARTISAN "CONSERVATIVES" OBSTRUCT RECOVERY

RIGHT-WING "POLITICS AS USUAL" & RAW IDEOLOGY MEANS MORE THAN AMERICAN LIVES

Corporate Media Plays Along With The Right's Deliberate Sabotage

Jobs are going, going, gone. Businesses are dying. Do the Republicans care? HELL NO! Mortgage foreclosures are at their highest levels since the Great Republican Depression of 1929. Old people are being frozen to death in bitter winter cold by greedy corporate utility companies. Do the Republicans care? HELL NO! Families are so stressed out by all this that fathers are murdering their own wives and children. Army troops with no future are committing suicide at the highest levels ever recorded. Do the Republicans care? HELL NO!!!

If it wasn't obvious to everyone before, it certainly is now: Republicans are traitors. Conservatives hate America, the real America, not the one in their weird fantasies and distorted memories. Right-wing nuts despise the average American, and love to see us suffer. Corporate puppets in government and the media spew lies all day long while scheming to rip us off, because they think we are fools. They don't care about our families, our children, our communities. They need to leave our country, and never come back. Get off your ass and fight this. Now.

Tell the White House, Congress and the Media to get with the program: The American people need help, and the conservatives don't care. That's why we voted overwhelmingly for progressives nation-wide. Stop dithering and temporizing, vacillating and obstructing, or there will be a LOT more change in 2010: All Republicans, Blue Dogs (Democrats In Name Only) and "bi-partisan compromisers" OUT!!! There is only one agenda now: Fix forty years of Republican and Republican Lite mistakes and attacks on working Americans. Lead in that direction, follow, or get the Hell out of the way!

The hard facts the Republicans don't care about (below).

But here's something YOU can do right now. Vox populi vox dei, bubbie:

QUICKLY & EASILY FIND OUT WHO YOUR SENATE & HOUSE REPRESENTATIVES ARE & AUTOMATICALLY EMAIL THEM:

SENATE.GOV: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"Senators of the 111th Congress"
U.S. Senators in alphabetical order, by State. Chief Senate Obstructor Mitch McConnell is from Kentucky.

' Contacting Senators: By E-mail: All questions and comments regarding public policy issues, legislation, or requests for personal assistance should be directed to the Senators from your State. Some Senators have e-mail addresses while others post comment forms on their web sites. When sending e-mail to your Senator, please include your return postal mailing address. Please be aware that as a matter of professional courtesy, many Senators will acknowledge, but not respond to, a message from another Senator's constituent. By Postal Mail: You can direct postal correspondence to your Senator or to other U.S.Senate offices at the following address:
For correspondence to U.S. Senators:
Office of Senator (Name)
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
For correspondence to Senate Committees:
(Name of Committee)
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
By Telephone: Alternatively, you may phone the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. A switchboard operator will connect you directly with the Senate office you request. '

HOUSE.GOV: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"U.S. House Of Representatives"
Organized by ZIP+Four, if you know yours. (Look on all your bills.) Chief House Obstructionist: House Minority Leader John Boehner. Pronounced "boner."

' Find Your Representative By Your Zip Code. Write Your Represntative. Representatives By Name. Representatives By State. Leadership. Committees. '

EMAIL THE TWO MAJOR PARTIES IN GOVERNMENT:

THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CONTACT US"
You voted for them. Now tell them what to do. Be nice, now!

' To send us your comments by email, please click on a general category below. While we do read your comments, the high volume of correspondence we receive prevents us from responding to each email. If you have a DNC request that requires an immediate response, please use the DNC's mailing address or phone number listed below to contact us. Please note that it is very important that you use the proper form for your request or comment. We want to be helpful, but comments entered though the wrong form will not be seen by someone who can reply. ISSUES: All political and public policy-related questions and comments surrounding specific issues or topics may be submitted in this category. COMMUNITIES: Questions and/or comments related to specific communities within the Democratic Party may be left in this area.
Mailing Address:
Democratic National Committee
430 S. Capitol St. SE
Washington, DC 20003
Main Phone Number:
202-863-8000
(For questions about contributions, please call 877-336-7200) '

THE REPUBLICAN PARTY: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"GOP.com Contact Us"
You didn't vote for them. Tell them why. No need to be nice. Tell them to get the Hell out of the way, or go extinct.

' Office of the Chairman
Mike Duncan, RNC Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8700
Fax: 202-863-8820
Email: Chairman@gop.com
Office of the Co-Chairman
Jo Ann Davidson, Co-Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8545
Fax: 202-863-8631
Email: Info@gop.com
Republican National Committee | 310 First Street | Washington, D. C. 20003
p/202.863.8500 | f/202.863.8820 | e/info@gop.com | '

EMAIL THE WHITE HOUSE:

WHITE HOUSE.GOV: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CONTACT US"
Let's see if they mean this:

' President Obama is committed to creating the most open and accessible administration in American history. To send questions, comments, concerns, or well-wishes to the President or his staff, please use the form below: '

WHITE HOUSE.GOV: THE ADMINISTRATION: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CONTACT THE CABINET"
Got a particular beef with a Federal agency?

' The tradition of the Cabinet dates back to the beginnings of the Presidency itself. Established in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, the Cabinet's role is to advise the President on any subject he may require relating to the duties of each member's respective office. The Cabinet includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 executive departments — the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General. '

WHITE HOUSE.GOV: OFFICE OF PUBLIC LIAISON: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"INTRODUCTION"
Your tax dollars at work? Let's see!

' The Office of Public Liaison & Intergovernmental Affairs (OPL-IGA) is the front door to the White House through which everyone can participate and inform the work of the President. OPL-IGA takes the Administration out of Washington and into communities across America, stimulating honest dialogue and ensuring that America's citizens and their elected officials have a government that works effectively for them and with them. OPL-IGA will bring new voices to the table, build relationships with constituents and seeks to embody the essence of the President's movement for change through the meaningful engagement of citizens and their elected officials by the federal government. We'll be adding many more ways for you to interact with OPA-IGA at this page in the weeks and months ahead. In the meantime, please take a moment to share your thoughts using the form below. CONTACT US: '

EMAIL THE CORPORATE MEDIA:

PREMIER RADIO NETWORK (RUSH LIMBAUGH): EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CONTACT: CORPORATE"
"CONTACT: ADVERTISING"
Rush, Hannity, Dr. Laura, Fox Radio, blast 'em all! Call their bosses!

CLEAR CHANNEL RADIO: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL (Rush Limbaugh's Carrier)
"CONTACT US"
"EXECUTIVES"
Clear Channel owns Premier, which owns Limbaugh. Give 'em Hell!

FOX NEWS: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"On-Air & Online Comments & Fox Advertising"
"NewsCorp Executive Contacts"
Let them know you're not watching, and why.

CNN: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CNN Advertising"
"Contact us: CNN.com | Live Video | CNN TV | HLN | CNN International | News Tips | Other Networks"
Tell them to replace their conservatives with progressives if they want your eyeballs.

NBC NEWS & MSNBC: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"Contact Shows & Anchors"
"Contact Sales"
Support Rachel & Keith, get rid of Tweety & Joe the Schmoe. Give Rachel "Meet The Press."

CBS NEWS: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"CBS Advertising"
"CBS Feedback Form"
Hey, what happened to that guy Dan? He was weird! Thank Katie for grilling Sarah Palin! Give her "Face The Nation"

ABC NEWS: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"ABC/ Disney Advertising"
"Comments and Suggestions"
Suggestion One: Sh*itcan Stephanopoulos, this morning!

AP: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"Contact the Associated Press"
"AP Board of Directors"
Tell them to write the news, not their views.

BLOOMBERG NEWS SERVICE: EMAIL, PHONE & SNAIL-MAIL
"Contact Bloomberg Sales"
"Bloomberg Feedback"
Drop the corporatista slant.

HORRIBLE NEWS CONSERVATIVES DON'T CARE ABOUT!

LEADER TELEGRAM: EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN
"GOP fears recovery "
Enemies of the people, LLC.

' Watch for the Republicans to do everything possible to scuttle President Obama's economic recovery programs - not because they fear Obama's proposals won't work or won't help the average American, but because they know they will. As Ken Blackwell, a candidate for chairman of the Republican National Committee, put it a recently when speaking of Obama's job-creation plan, "One overlooked issue is that it could create a major electoral advantage for Democrats at taxpayer expense. That would be unacceptable for what is being touted as a nonpartisan measure and gives Republicans yet another reason to oppose it." In other words, the Republicans not only realize that Obama's economic plans will work but fear that the collective Republican political goose is cooked if he can implement those plans. As usual, we can count on the Republicans to put the interests of their party and of their rich friends above those of the country by obstructing and filibustering every progressive piece of legislation to come before them. '

REUTERS
"U.S. business group opposes "Buy American" plan"
Just remove the "U.S." from your name, guys. Problem solved!

' A top U.S. business group stepped up efforts on Friday to kill a "Buy American" provision that has angered U.S. trading partners, and the White House said it was reviewing its position on the measure. "Some have slammed the U.S. Chamber for opposing 'Buy American' provisions, calling our position 'economic treason,'" Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said in a statement. "Try 'economic patriotism'," he said. '

YAHOO NEWS
"Economy's new plunge is worst in quarter-century"
Chamber of Commerce says we shouldn't do anything to protect our jobs & businesses. Whattya think, Jo & Josie Sixpack?

' Spending by businesses on equipment and software dropped at a whopping 27.8 percent pace in the fourth quarter, the most since early 1958. Meanwhile, U.S. exports, whose growth earlier last year helped to keep the economy afloat, turned negative. Exports plunged at a rate of 19.7 percent in the fourth quarter, the most since 1974. Economic slowdowns in other countries have bitten into demand for U.S goods and services. For the economy as a whole, the 3.8 percent annualized drop was weakest quarterly showing since a 6.4 percent plunge in the first quarter of 1982, when the country was suffering through a severe recession. Last year, the economy grew just 1.3 percent. That was down from a 2 percent gain in 2007 and marked the slowest growth since the last recession in 2001. This year, analysts predict the economy will shrink anywhere from 2 to 2.5 percent, the worst performance since 1946. To stop the free-fall, Obama and Congress are racing to enact a recovery package of increased government spending that includes big public works projects and tax cuts. The House passed a $819 billion package on Wednesday, and the bill is working its way through the Senate. '

REUTERS
"GDP sees biggest drop in 27 years"
Look for Big Business to turn this recession into a full-blown Republican Depression.

' INVENTORIES CUSHION DECLINE Analysts had expected the economy to shrink at a 5.4 percent annual pace in the fourth quarter. The shift in inventories added 1.3 percentage points to the change in GDP, meaning the economy would otherwise have contracted by at least 5 percent. "However, with manufacturers slashing production, look for a sizable hit to GDP in coming quarters. It now looks like first-quarter GDP will contract more than 5 percent," said Sal Guatieri, an economist at BMO Capital Markets in Toronto. '

YAHOO NEWS
"Exxon Mobil sets record with $45.2 billion profit"
It's good to be teh Bid Awl, too, good buddy!

' Exxon Mobil Corp. on Friday reported a profit of $45.2 billion for 2008, breaking its own record for a U.S. company, even as its fourth-quarter earnings fell 33 percent from a year ago. The previous record for annual profit was $40.6 billion, which the world's largest publicly traded oil company set in 2007. The extraordinary full-year profit wasn't a surprise given crude's triple-digit price for much of 2008, peaking near an unheard of $150 a barrel in July. Since then, however, prices have fallen roughly 70 percent amid a deepening global economic crisis. In the fourth quarter alone crude tumbled 60 percent, prompting spending and job cuts in an industry that was reporting robust, often record, profits as recently as last summer. With piles of cash and diversified operations, the majors like Exxon Mobil have fared better than many smaller oil and gas companies, but Friday's results show no one is completely insulated from the ongoing malaise. Shares rose $1.52, or 2 percent, to $78.52 in early trading. The nation's second largest oil company, Chevron Corp., reported profits of $4.9 billion for the fourth quarter, though revenues slid 26 percent with oil prices in sharp decline. It earned $2.44 per share in the three months ended Dec. 31. Like Exxon, Chevron easily beat expectations of analysts, who were looking for profits of $1.81 per share. The industry went into retrenchment toward the end of the year with demand falling. '

REUTERS
"GM loses global sales crown after 77 years"
What's good for General Motors is good for the USA. What's bad for GM is not so good. Think gas prices and credit crunches had anything to do with it?

' General Motors Corp reported an 11 percent drop in global sales in 2008, allowing rival Toyota Motor Corp to surpass it as the world's largest automaker for the first time. GM, now struggling to restructure under a $13.4 billion U.S. government bailout, had held the title as the global auto industry leader for 77 years and used the line in marketing. But for 2008, Detroit-based GM said sales tumbled to 8.35 million vehicles, pressured by tightening credit and a slowdown that began in the United States and spread to emerging markets where GM has been stronger. Earlier this week, Toyota said its global sales for 2008 had slipped 4 percent to 8.97 million vehicles as it also battled a costly slowdown in key markets. Toyota has a market value of about $117 billion. Like GM, it has had to cut North American production and delay new investment. The Japanese automaker has warned that it will post its first-ever operating loss this fiscal year. '

REUTERS
"Jobless claims jump to record, durable orders slide"
And the Republicans don't care.

' The number of Americans claiming jobless benefits hit a record high in mid-January, while orders for long-lasting factory goods fell for a fifth month in December, according to data on Thursday that showed the economy in steep decline. Piling on the gloom for an economy mired in recession for more than a year, sales of newly built single-family homes slumped to their lowest levels since records started in 1963. The batch of bleak data cast doubt on whether the economy would begin to recover in the second half of the year, since stability in the housing market, the root of the worst financial crisis in more than 70 years, may be a prerequisite. It also underlined the urgency of efforts by the Obama administration to rush a stimulus plan totaling $825 billion or more through Congress. The number of people staying on state jobless benefits rolls after drawing an initial week of aid jumped 159,000 to a higher-than-forecast 4.78 million in the week ended January 17, the most recent week for which data is available. It was the highest reading on records dating to 1967. "Never before have we seen so many people rely on their unemployment checks to help them pay for food and shelter. The message here is clear: Businesses are now in survival mode," said Bernard Baumohl, chief global economist at The Economic Outlook Group in Princeton, New Jersey. '

ABC NEWS: KRDO13 COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
"Unemployment Has Some Turning To Military For Work"
It's not just a job. It's a life-changing mistake.

' The nation's high unemployment rate has many people turning to an unlikely source for a job. Recruitment for the military across the board is on the rise and in some cases various sections are breaking recruitment records. "I really couldn't picture myself doing anything like joining the army," newly enlisted Lena Ramsay says. Ramsay recently sold her downtown Pueblo antique shop for a chance to serve. Many people find the military is one of only a few stable industries that offers perks and more importantly, a paycheck. "The economy being bad, the antique store wasn't doing as well as it had in the past years." '

MILITARY.COM
"GI Suicides in 2008 Highest on Record"
Who cares? No, really, who cares about these economic victims.

' Suicides among U.S. soldiers rose last year to the highest level in decades, the Army announced Thursday. At least 128 soldiers killed themselves in 2008. But the final count is likely to be considerably higher because 15 more suspicious deaths are still being investigated and could also turn out to be self-inflicted, the Army said. The new suicide figure compares with 115 in 2007 and 102 in 2006 and is the highest since record keeping began in 1980. Officials calculate the deaths at a rate of roughly 20.2 per 100,000 soldiers - which is higher than the adjusted civilian rate for the first time since the Vietnam War, officials told a Pentagon news conference. When studying individual cases, officials said they found that the most common factors for suicides were soldiers suffering problems with their personal relationships, legal or financial issues and problems on the job. The numbers kept by the service branches don't show the whole picture of war-related suicides because they don't include deaths after people have left the military. The Department of Veterans Affairs tracks those numbers and says there were 144 suicides among the nearly 500,000 service members who left the military from 2002-2005 after fighting in at least one of the two ongoing wars. The true incidence of suicide among military veterans is not known, according to a report last year by the Congressional Research Service. Based on numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the VA estimates that 18 veterans a day - or 6,500 a year - take their lives, but that number includes vets from all previous wars. '

TRI-STATE HOMEPAGE.COM
"Elderly Man Freezes To Death After Power Cut"
Support the troops. Until they get old. Then, faggeddaboutem.

' A Michigan man froze to death this week in his own home. Ninety-two-year-old Marvin Schur, a veteran of World War Two was found by neighbors this week, dead on a bedroom floor wearing four layers of winter clothing, a heavy jacket on top of him. The death came just days after the local utility installed a power-limiting device on his home. Schur had neglected to pay his power bill. Adding to the sadness, the payment was there, inside the home. A neighbor who'd entered the home to check on Mr. Schur said there was cash clipped to a pile of unpaid bills on the kitchen table. The utility, Bay City Electric Light & Power had never spoken with Schur to explain how the power limiter worked, a note was simply left on the front door, a door neighbors say the man rarely used. '

FOX NEWS
"California Dad in Family Killings Left Suicide Note Citing Loss of His, Wife's Jobs"
It's bad to be the techno-serf.

' A medical technician executed his wife, five young children and himself Tuesday after claiming in a note to a TV station that he and his wife both had just been fired. The shocking killings underscored the psychological toll that the down economy may be taking on some unemployed workers, as police urged those facing tough times to seek help rather than resort to violence. Police said they were alerted by KABC-TV that they had received a faxed letter from Lupoe indicating that he and his wife had been fired from their jobs at Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Medical Center and intended to kill themselves and their children. KABC reported that the man claimed in the fax that a medical center administrator rebuffed them when they showed up to work, told them to file a union grievance and said, "You should have blown your brains out." The man wrote that they filed a grievance but nothing was done and two days later they were fired, KABC said. '

THE KAISER PAPERS
"Kaiser Permanente CEO George C. Halvorson Culture of Luxury"
It's good to be the King. Really, really, really good!

' HEALTHPARTNERS COMPLIANCE REVIEW EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION VOL I & II - Exhibit 14 - Corporate Receipts for Massage Therapist Services during Board Meetings. CONCLUSION TO VOL I REPORT - TRAVEL AND ENTERTAINMENT - "He states that he was immediately confronted with resistance, with complaints ranging from "this is in lieu of higher compensation" to "everybody is doing it." He noted that health care executives will be pressured to please peers and subordinates who are accustomed to a culture of luxury. '

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