We need supporters to contact the City Council including City Councilman Brian E. Lewis and Jim Hosfelt on the committee. They are listening right now carefully. They are terrific but the committee needs to hear what the public wants. You can message them your support or leave a message for all of Council at 736-7006. Say you support the Youth New Year's plan in the Dover Post. The time has come for us to reunite as a community. This is one strategy put forth by the Youth Advisory Council. It is not just a big party, but a way of engaging people with positive local groups that will expose people to drug and alcohol free activities all year long. We need to change the paradigm of young people and show them that family friendly events beat loser events which risk one getting into trouble. By relying on local people and activities, we not only keep costs low but provide a positive peer network that will engage people all year long. What a way to start the year, families being together, friends together in a positive way that will bring business downtown. We cannot rebuild our sense of community by accident. It takes a comprehensive strategy. The youth are an important part of it.

Democratic Presidential Candidate Lawrence Lessig recently announced that he will serve a full term in office, making sure that fundamental reform is implemented. Let's show him our support and appreciation.

Mary Jo White, the famously soft-on-Wall-Street chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, just got exposed in a massive conflict of interest. She was just revealed trying to use her power as SEC Chair to push out the tough leader of the country’s accounting watchdog board – and replace him with someone who will take it easy on the Wall Street firms her husband’s law firm represents. Mary Jo White’s husband is on the advisory group of that same accounting watchdog board – a fact his law firm has brazenly marketed to gain Wall Street clients looking for easy treatment. When reporters exposed their conflict of interest, her husband's law firm tried to quickly scrub its website of evidence it marketed his involvement at the accounting watchdog board – but it got caught red handed. Sign the petition to tell Mary Jo White to recuse herself immediately from the selection of the next accounting watchdog, because of her unacceptable conflict of interest.

Remember Antonio Weiss? He’s the notorious Wall Street banker whose appointment to the Treasury Department got blocked by Elizabeth Warren and grassroots groups like Rootstrikers because of his outrageous history of helping corporations use ‘inversions’ to avoid U.S. taxes. Now he’s back at it again. He managed to sneak into an unconfirmed position at the Treasury Department and he is currently leading the response to Puerto Rico’s debt crisis. Weiss’s old investment bank, Lazard, has too much to gain from the outcome of the debt crisis in Puerto Rico – and he is way too closely tied to Lazard, having just receiving a $21 million golden parachute from them when he joined the government. Sign the petition to tell Treasury Secretary Jack Lew: Remove Antonio Weiss from the response to Puerto Rico’s debt crisis. Rootstrikers and our allies at Hedge Clippers released a report that makes it clear it’s unacceptable for Weiss to make these decisions: “The Antonio Weiss Files: Vultures, Bribes & Conflicts of Interest in Puerto Rico.”[1] Predatory lending by Weiss’s bank, Lazard, and hedge funds are a big part of what drove Puerto Rico to take on an unsustainable level of debt. Top Lazard bankers were even accused of bribing Puerto Rico’s governor to get better roles in debt deals! Hedge funds have swooped in to buy as much distressed Puerto Rico debt as they can – and made it clear they will use every option available to make sure the pain of resolving the debt crisis falls on Puerto Ricans, through drastic austerity measures. We need a response to this debt crisis that’s fair and equitable for the people of Puerto Rico, not based on what’s most profitable for Lazard and its hedge fund friends. Sign the petition: Tell Treasury Secretary Jack Lew to pull Antonio Weiss off the Treasury’s response to the debt crisis in Puerto Rico and let someone without his conflict of interest lead the effort.

I am starting this petition because Big Money has stolen our government. Big Money controls the political agenda infused with propaganda as legitimate dialog while disregarding the priorities of a nation desperately in need of honest debate and solutions to its many problems.

House bill that passed in 2014 was jammed into the budget bill, stealing pension of the central states employees.

40-50 members of the Freedom Caucus are threatening to Shut Down the government if their legislative agenda is not enacted by the new Speaker of the House and the US Government. Basic Democracy is being threatened and held hostage. It's time to show the Tea Party how democracy works. "Free the House from the Freedom Caucus" today. Have MoveOn.org begin running ads in every Tea Party district announcing a national campaign to RECALL every Freedom Caucus GOP member.

My family's personal information has been stolen in more than one breach. How about yours? When there is a data breach, companies offer 1 year of identity theft protection. But, our social security numbers can be used years or decades from now. We need a system that replaces social security numbers for people whose have been stolen.

UPDATE 3/14/16: The Florida legislature adjourned last week WITHOUT taking action on an independent redistricting commission. They have failed the people of Florida yet again. - Over 11 million of our taxpayer dollars (and counting!) spent on the Florida redistricting disaster. The Supreme Court found the GOP-led legislature designed the Congressional districts illegally. Then the legislature held a special session, wasted EVEN MORE money and time, and failed AGAIN to do their jobs and come up with a solution. Now the courts have to take over. Update 11-5-15: The legislature failed (AGAIN), and redrawing the Senate districts will be up to the courts. Just like the Congressional districts. We need a better way. As Sen. Clemens put it, "The Legislature is incapable of drawing its own maps that don’t have political intent". Call for an independent commission to draw fair districts now. Update 10-26-15: The Senate is digging in, and in the process of approving maps that the courts will have to throw out AGAIN. Please contact your legislators now and tell them to stop wasting time and our money, and draw fair maps. Update 10-23-15: The Florida legislature has been back in action this week (on the Senate districts this time). Instead of doing their jobs, they're working on protecting their jobs. Senator Bill Galvano, in charge of redistricting said, "the members who have been elected... have a right to those seats". Don't those seats belong to the people of Florida? Reference: http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/stateroundup/florida-lawmakers-try-again-to-redraw-state-senate-map/2249998 http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2015/10/05/florida-judge-to-unveil-redistricting-map/ http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-memo-to-florida-senators-you-dont-own-those-seats/2250517 http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/senate-redistricting-map-gets-4-3-approval-but-its-fate-remains-murky/2251003 http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article43276335.html

Broken campaign promises

Eliminating the pension for elected officials may encourage shorter terms in office. This would allow for more dynamic and innovative service to the people of Pennsylvania and a great savings of funds which could help educate our citizens.

Holding a full and open set of debates could not be more important. Our state and our country is in crisis, the top 1% keeps gaining more and more power -- and along with it influence over the levels of government, media, and industry -- while real families are struggling just trying to get by. If we allow those with money, those with power, to set the parameters of this debate, we know they will bend them towards the establishment. This is a time for us to stand up and make sure everyday Marylanders get the full debate they deserve, not the one the establishment chooses for them. Senator Barbara Mikulski is retiring. We owe it to her legacy to pursue a level of spirited discourse that raises expectations, and challenges each of us to stand before the voters and discuss our ideas. To read the letter in full outlining the debate challenge, click here: https://donnaedwardsforsenate.com/edwards-issues-debate-challenge/