John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's campaign chair, says Clinton "opposes TPP BEFORE and AFTER the election. Period. Full stop." [1] But Obama is still pushing for a vote on the corporate power grabbing Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement in a "lame duck" session of Congress after the election. If Obama gets his way, the TPP would be passed before Hillary Clinton could take office. As Michigan Rep. John Conyers recently wrote in The Hill, "even those lawmakers and officials who support the deal should recognize that lame duck consideration of such a highly controversial deal would create a crisis of legitimacy in American politics." [2] Urge Senate Democrats to press Hillary Clinton to advocate against a lame duck vote on the TPP by signing our petition. References: 1. http://thehill.com/policy/finance/289369-podesta-says-mcauliffe-wrong-about-clinton-and-tpp 2. http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/economy-budget/290791-lame-duck-tpp-vote-could-be-disastrous-for-dems-and

I am concerned that Hillary Clinton will be assassinated by someone inspired by Donald Trump's call to use violence against her. The threat should be taken seriously not simply "investigated" and dismissed by the Secret Service. Donald Trump should not be allowed to incite violence.

We the undersigned petition to the US Secret Service to arrest and incarcerate Donald J. Trump for advocating assassination of his Democratic opponent. His language, though veiled, is clear enough to rational Americans that he is advocating that someone commit assassination. Signed, John L. Casey, Whitehouse Station, NJ

I have a relative who is an ex-felon living in a southern state. The reinstatement of voting rights for ex-felons, and preservation of voting rights for non-felons!, is a personal issue for me as well as something I think every citizen of the US should be concerned with. Wholesale rescinding of voters' rights, and the placing of obstacles in the way of justice, fly in the face of American values.

The Zika Virus is a major health crisis. Women and families who want to start families deserve and have a right to demand that government act to minimize and ultimately eliminate the pain and tragedies the Zika Virus will bring to many families.

Donald Trump is attacking immigrants with hateful racist rhetoric, and his campaign of fear and anger has inspired some his supporters to harass and attack people of color here in Colorado and across the country. But rather than standing up to Donald Trump defending his constituents against Donald Trump racist rhetoric, Colorado Republican, Mike Coffman, is twisting himself into contortions to gain the support of immigrant voters in his district while pandering to Trump supporters motivated by fear and anger. Recently, in the course of a day, Coffman’s campaign ran ads distancing himself from Trump, while simultaneously refusing to rule out an eventual Trump endorsement. Mike Coffman is trying to play both sides, but we’re not buying it. Incidents of violence toward communities of color by Donald Trump supporters are on the rise, and it’s time for Mike Coffman to pick a side. History is watching.

We get it: Hillary might not be your first choice this election. But many of us know that Trump, a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and someone who regularly incites violence and political discord, is NOT an alternative that we can live with. If elected President, he will destroy our values and our country. The options might not be satisfactory, but we MUST stop Trump. If each one of us succeeds in changing the mind of just ONE Trump voter, he will lose.

This is outrageous: officials in a Georgia county have sent police officers to citizens' homes, not because they committed any crimes, but to challenge their right to vote! According to the New York Times, last year Hancock County, Georgia, officials required more than 180 Black voters in the town of Sparta to appear in court and prove their residence —or lose their right to vote, as many already have. By all outside appearances, such tactics were designed to keep Black voters from electing the candidate of their choice. The terrifying precedent this sets is bigger than one election. Imagine a police officer showing up at your door to deny your right to vote. Worse, they're putting the burden of proof on YOU, forcing you to show up at a court hearing to get your rights back. It’s easy to see how this kind of intimidation could cause voters to stay home in November. And since these anti-voter tactics often target communities of color, they distort and weaken our democracy. If we still had the Voting Rights Act, Hancock County officials would have had to get approval from the Department of Justice before they moved forward with their scheme. But in 2013, the Supreme Court said the VRA's protections weren't needed anymore. Now, racist attacks on the right to vote across our nation are proving the highest Court in the land is wrong. It's clear we need to reinstate the Voting Rights Act's protections against this kind of egregious voter suppression. Call on Congress to pass the Voting Rights Advancement Act today and restore these critical protections that ensure every American has a voice at the polls.

Joseph E. Stiglitz (2001 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences and Chief Economist of the Roosevelt Institute) has recently published a book entitled "Rewriting the Rules of the American Economy" which proposes to fight inequality by changing the fundamental structure of the American economy to offer freedom from exploitation instead of freedom from regulation. This book grew out of a collaborative report (Rewriting the Rules: An Agenda for Growth and Shared Prosperity) from the Roosevelt Institute in consultation with labor officials, academics, congressional staff members, advocates from Color of Change, Naral and the Black Civic Engagement Fund. The report and book propose 37 policy recommendations including rewriting laws of lending practices, postal bank, a public option for mortgages, taxing corporations on global income, enacting financial-transaction taxes, strengthening the right of collective bargaining, higher living wages, gender and racial pay equality, affordable child care, public spending for public goods via break-even enterprises (schools, housing, roads, broadband, high-speed rail, smart grid, green buildings), Medicare open to all, expansion of Social Security via voluntary public investment accounts, etc (ref 1). J. E. Stitglitz has also published a six-piece analysis of the TPP entitled "Tricks of the Trade Deal: Six Big Problems with the Trans-Pacific Partnership" (ref 2). (1) http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/24/magazine/could-hillary-clinton-become-the-champion-of-the-99-percent.html?_r=0 (2) http://rooseveltinstitute.org/tricks-trade-deal-six-big-problems-trans-pacific-partnership/

I, Ed Modica, wrote the Madison Holleran Suicide Prevention Act in honor of Madison Holleran, a former student of mine who died by suicide on January 17, 2014. Madison was a Freshman at UPenn and a track runner for the university. The Act was signed into law in New Jersey by Governor Christie on August 1, 2016. Pam Philipp and I are attempting to spread this vital legislation nationwide.

American voters deserve the truth. But too often, politicians get away with bending said truth, or even worse, completely disregarding or distorting facts to fit their desired message. And many times, these untruths go unchallenged. In a live, nationally-televised debate, it's crucial that these statements be clarified, during the broadcast, while voters are still processing their opinions. We demand that the Commission verify the candidates' answers and statements, identify any factual inconsistencies, and allow the moderator to challenge the candidates at pre-arranged intervals.

We should not be limited to choosing the least worse candidate.