On the anniversary of Martin Luther King's death, I attended and was moved by an interfaith media briefing in Chicago hosted by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The panel addressed the horrific chemical attack in the city of Khan Sheikhoun where hundreds were killed or injured, including children. There are severe medical needs as reported by SAMS rescue group. Since moral leadership is lacking at the political level, we the people must condemn this holocaust and STAND UP. Let's honor the spirit of Martin Luther King.

U.S. support for Saudi Arabia's war and blockade in Yemen has brought Yemen to the brink of famine, with hundreds of thousands of Yemeni children facing starvation. [1] Instead of ending the carnage, some in the Trump Administration want to get the U.S. directly involved in Saudi Arabia's war. [2] But this war has never been authorized by Congress. The Houthi Shia targets of the Saudi war aren't "associated forces" of Al Qaeda. On the contrary: Al Qaeda has fought alongside Saudi Arabia against the Houthis, and Saudi Arabia's war against the Houthis has strengthened Al Qaeda. [3] Since Congress has never authorized this war, direct U.S. participation would violate the Constitution and the War Powers Resolution. Now Reps. Mark Pocan [D-WI], Justin Amash [R-MI], Ted Lieu [D-CA], and Walter Jones [R-NC] are leading a bipartisan letter challenging the Administration to show its legal justification for direct participation in the Saudi war against the Houthis without Congressional authorization. Building support for this letter is a step towards invoking the War Powers Resolution to compel the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the conflict. Urge your Representative to sign the Pocan-Amash-Lieu-Jones letter by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/hundreds-of-thousands-of-yemeni-children-are-nearing-starvation/2017/02/23/f01ead8a-f850-11e6-aa1e-5f735ee31334_story.html 2. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-administration-weighs-deeper-involvement-in-yemen-war/2017/03/26/b81eecd8-0e49-11e7-9d5a-a83e627dc120_story.html 3. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/08/25/the-u-s-backed-war-in-yemen-is-strengthening-al-qaeda.html

This petition is about unnecessary killing of civilians in air strikes. I am not currently affected by this atrocity, but I will be if one of these countries does another 911 on us.

Omar Barghouti is to receive the Gandhi Peace Award (presented by Promoting Enduring Peace) on April 23, 2017, in New Haven, CT along with legendary safety activist and Pentagon critic Ralph Nader. Barghouti is being honored for leading the BDS movement. BDS stands for boycotts, divestment and sanctions, peaceful ways to pressure Israel into honoring Palestinian rights. However, the Israeli government wants BDS crushed along with any other form of resistance to Israeli dictates. Israeli President Revlin has called BDS a “strategic threat” implying it’s a grave physical threat to Israelis. Omar Barghouti was arrested on March 19 by Israeli authorities and interrogated for days. Barghouti has been married to an Israeli citizen for decades, but he only has the status of “permanent resident”. Last year his permit to travel was revoked by the Israeli government. That same year the Israeli interior minister threatened to revoke his permission to reside in Israel. Another minister called for the “civil targeted assassination” of BDS leaders. The Israeli government also set up something it called a “Tarnishing Unit” whose purpose was “dirty tricks” against supporters of BDS, In an attempt to attend the Gandhi Peace Award honoring him, Barghouti's attorney went to the Interior Ministry and received a document on March 16 that entitled him to two months of travel. It was seized when he was arrested. That is the background to his arrest for “tax evasion”. We do not know Barghouti’s side of the story about the tax charges because the case is under a “gag order” and he cannot speak about the case. Given the history of threats against BDS and Omar Barghouti personally, the assumption should be that the Israeli government is making good on its threat to eliminate Palestinian BDS activists, starting with Omar Barghouti. This appears to be political persecution.

On Wednesday, March 22, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding a hearing on "The State of Global Humanitarian Affairs." Gregory Gottlieb of USAID will testify, as will Yves Daccord, Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross. [1] This is a key opportunity for Senators to press the Administration on what it will do to help avert famine in Yemen - and to press the Administration on why, by giving a green light to the Saudis to blockade and attack the crucial Yemeni port of Hodeida, the Administration is currently helping to cause famine in Yemen. [2] It's also a key opportunity for Senators to help highlight the advocacy of the Red Cross, which has called for access to Hodeida for aid organizations to bring in food and medicine to northern Yemen. [3] 53 Members of the House have called on the State Department to press to open Hodeida to food imports. [4] Senators should take this opportunity to echo this call. Urge SFRC Senators to use the hearing to press for opening Hodeida to avert famine by signing our petition. References: 1. "Flashing Red: The State of Global Humanitarian Affairs," https://www.foreign.senate.gov/hearings/flashing-red-the-state-of-global-humanitarian-affairs-032217 2. "Donald Trump’s Shift On Yemen Risks Plunging The Country Into Famine," http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-hodeidah-yemen-famine_us_58a88970e4b037d17d28610b 3. "Yemen conflict: Red Cross appeals for access to key port," http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-39114349 4. https://lieu.house.gov/sites/lieu.house.gov/files/Letter%20to%20Tillerson%20from%20MoCs%20re%20Yemen%20Crisis%20030917.pdf

We wish to apologize for the rude, nasty treatment that Chancellor Merkel suffered at the hands of the present occupier of our White House during her visit last week

Personal embarrassment and shame over Donald Trump's treatment of Chancellor Merkel and other world leaders while visiting our country.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recently seemed to suggest that a pre-emptive U.S. bombing of North Korea was an option "on the table." [1] As the Los Angeles Times editorial board stated, such dangerous saber-rattling isn't the answer to our problems with North Korea. Yet while claiming that "all options are on the table," Tillerson seemed to be ruling out the only realistic option: negotiations. [2] As the Christian Science Monitor noted, China has made a plausible proposal to re-start negotiations: North Korea would suspend its nuclear and missile tests in return for the U.S. and South Korea halting their annual joint military exercises. Unfortunately, Washington dismissed the Chinese proposal out of hand. [3] Urge your representatives in Congress to speak up for realistic diplomacy with China and North Korea to de-escalate tensions in Korea by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-fg-tillerson-asia-20170317-story.html 2. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-tillerson-korea-20170317-story.html 3. http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2017/0320/North-Korea-s-nuclear-threat-Where-do-the-US-and-China-go-from-here

This petition serves as an apology to Dr. Merkel on behalf of the signatories- the many Americans who were embarassed by Trump's lack of respect when he deliberately refused to shake her hand on camera during her visit. His lack of respect does not represent us. Bitte akzeptieren Sie unsere aufrichtige Entshuldigung... (please accept our sincere apology)

Donald Trump requested $54 billion in additional funds for things like war jets, air craft carriers, and nuclear weapons--even as his budget cut deeply into the U.S. State Department's diplomatic efforts. A day later, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that "all options were on the table" with regard to addressing increased tensions with North Korea--including, as Tillerson noted, a pre-emptive military strike on North Korea. And, to make matters worse, Trump has taken to Twitter, seemingly seeking to goad or shame China, which is a long-time ally of North Korea. Trump's reckless Pentagon spending, coupled with Tillerson's bellicose rhetoric, should prompt all congressional lawmakers to state right now that they will not support a Trump administration's war of choice. MoveOn members championed strategic and lasting diplomacy with Iran and were the backbone of the resistance to the Iraq war. Let's make it clear to Members of Congress that we're prepared to once again flood the streets in cities and towns across the country to stop Trump’s war making.

The United Nations has warned that Yemen is on the brink of famine. The primary cause of the impending famine is Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen. This war is supported by the United States - not only with U.S. weapons but with direct U.S. military participation, including refueling of Saudi warplanes that are bombing Yemen. In particular, the U.S. is perceived to support the Saudi blockade of the Yemeni port of Hodeida, which has been the primary entry point for food, medicine, and humanitarian aid to northern Yemen. [1] Stephen O'Brien, the UN's humanitarian aid coordinator [2] and 53 Members of the House of Representatives [3] have called for the port of Hodeida to be re-opened to humanitarian aid. But major U.S. media are for the most part not reporting on the UN's famine warning for Yemen, and when they do report it, they are not reporting on the U.S. role in the war that is bringing about the famine. [4] On March 15, Democracy Now reported, "Aid Worker Decries U.S.-Backed "Relentless War" in Yemen Causing Widespread Threat of Starvation." [5] On March 16, the Guardian reported, "Yemen at 'point of no return' as conflict leaves almost 7 million close to famine." [6] But a search of NPR's website finds nothing remotely similar to the Democracy Now report nor the Guardian report in the last three months, nothing giving the perspective of aid groups on the famine warning for Yemen, nothing that talks about the U.S. military role in pushing Yemen to the brink of famine. [7] Urge NPR Ombudsman Elizabeth Jensen to press NPR to fully report on the UN's famine warning for Yemen, including the U.S. military role, by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-hodeidah-yemen-famine_us_58a88970e4b037d17d28610b 2. http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/usgerc-stephen-o-brien-statement-security-council-missions-yemen-south-sudan-somalia 3. https://lieu.house.gov/sites/lieu.house.gov/files/Letter%20to%20Tillerson%20from%20MoCs%20re%20Yemen%20Crisis%20030917.pdf 4. http://fair.org/home/downplaying-us-contribution-to-potential-yemen-famine/ 5. https://www.democracynow.org/2017/3/15/aid_worker_decries_us_backed_relentless 6. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/mar/16/yemen-conflict-7-million-close-to-famine 7. http://www.npr.org/search/index.php?searchinput=yemen+famine&dateId=0&programId=0

Severe funding cuts would deeply hinder responses to major humanitarian crises, of political, economic, environmental, or societal nature, and terrorist attacks. To cut funding so dramatically during a period of "unprecedented global hunger" is callous and disgraceful. We cannot allow these proposed budget cuts to materialize.