Since the Trump Administration took office, press briefings have not been the same. Reporter's questions are often unheard, or are barely audible, leaving us to speculate as to what the POTUS and his staff are responding to. The decision NOT to broadcast the questions delivered by our press (or to use "lazy" sound reinforcement techniques) at these briefings is a detriment to democracy, as an uninformed electorate cannot vote responsibly, or form accurate opinions about the administration's policies, behaviors, and its relationship with the press. As an audio engineer, the author of this petition recognizes that there are many well-known techniques that can be used to broadcast the questions posed by the press at these events at a minimal cost to the taxpayer. Additionally, new acoustic management systems are currently available that make direct miking unnecessary. If restaurants, college classrooms, and corporate businesses have such systems at their disposal, anything short of using the best kind of audio technology would speak poorly of our nation's highest office. In short, let's have great sound coming out of the White House, regardless of who's voice we are listening too!

On Thursday, February 16, 2017, Senator Heitkamp announced her support of pro-fracking Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency. As a Democrat, Senator Heitkamp's shameful support of Pruitt goes against the overwhelming opinion of her fellow Senate colleagues, and it also runs opposite the opinion of the national Democratic Party as a whole.

The county has a responsibility towards the inhabitants of the riverbed that is not being fulfilled. Like other Orange County residents, they are entitled to shelter, waste disposal, and sanitation services. The county’s refusal to provide these services worsens the quality of life for both the Skid River encampment and neighboring residents. The county is wasting money enforcing camping ordinances. Criminalizing homelessness diverts funding that could be better spent on housing. Furthermore, there are only 1500 shelter beds in the county for 4500 homeless individuals. The courtyard in Santa Ana has no room for the number of people living on the riverbed. The reality is that breaking up the encampments when there is no viable living alternative will only relocate homeless individuals to more visible and populated areas. Therefore we demand the county to allow the residents of the riverbed to remain in place and provide them with waste disposal and sanitation services until there is a feasible alternative.

In the past year, we’ve seen the fight against pipelines and for clean water gain momentum across the country, from Standing Rock to Sabal Trail. Now the pipeline fight has come to St. Louis, and we are ready to join the resistance. We demand that the Spire STL Pipeline project be dismissed immediately. The proposed Spire STL Pipeline would be a 66-mile, 24-inch diameter pipeline carrying natural gas. It would connect to the existing Rockies Express Pipeline in Scott County, Illinois, travel through Greene and Jersey Counties, and then pass under the Missouri River (pictured above) and through St. Charles and St. Louis Counties in Missouri before connecting with existing Laclede Gas facilities. We want Spire to know that natural gas is not clean energy, and that we will stand in solidarity with frontline communities in the northeast impacted by the destructive process of fracking for this dirty fuel. We do not support fossil fuel infrastructure, and will not stand for a pipeline that contributes to climate change and threatens people, wildlife, and water. Please sign this petition to President and CEO of Spire Suzanne Sitherwood to demand this project be stopped. Natural gas is dirty energy that we will not support.

There’s still too many unanswered questions about Donald Trump’s campaign and administration’s ties to Russia -- especially given National Security Advisor Michael Flynn’s resignation after lying about secret communications with the Russian ambassador about lifting sanctions. The public deserves an investigation we can trust -- which is why Attorney General Jeff Sessions must step aside from leading the investigation. The Department of Justice forbids prosecutors from participating in cases where they have “a personal or political relationship” with those involved. Jeff Sessions and Donald Trump have a particularly close relationship -- Sessions was the first Senator to endorse Trump, served as a senior advisor to his campaign, and even worked with General Flynn on national security issues during the presidential transition Given that relationship, we can’t expect Sessions to conduct a fair investigation into the Trump campaign that he himself was a key part of. His close relationships with the with the President and his aides raise too many conflicts for the public to trust the outcome of any investigation he’s involved in. During his confirmation, Sessions agreed to recuse himself from any investigations into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server because of his campaign activities. But somehow, that principle doesn’t apply when it comes to Donald Trump’s ties to Russia -- Sessions claimed he was “not aware of a basis to recuse myself.” We simply can’t trust Jeff Sessions to hold Donald Trump accountable -- so We The People must hold Jeff Sessions accountable. Add your name today to demand that Sessions recuse himself from any investigations into Donald Trump’s Russian connections.

I am a constituent of Rep. Grothman and am concerned about his reluctuance to speak publicly with residents of Wisconsin's 6th District. His colleague, Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis. 5th) has hosted a long list of town hall meetings, and has an equally long list of upcoming events.

The Junipero Serra image is equivalent to what an image of Adolf Hitler would be for Jewish people. When they dehumanize us as a people and create the false narrative of inferiority they can continue to wage war on our people and disregard our rights because they've painted this picture of us being subhuman, literally.

CNN has reported that the Defense Department "might propose that the US send conventional ground combat forces into northern Syria for the first time," and that the move would "significantly alter US military operations in Syria if approved and could put troops on the ground within weeks." CNN says "one goal of their presence would be to help reassure Turkey that Kurdish forces are not posing a threat to Ankara's interests." [1] "Reassuring Turkey" a terrible reason to deploy U.S. troops to danger in Syria. Kentucky Senator Rand Paul says, "It would be a really rotten, no good, bad idea to have ground troops in Syria." [2] Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy says, "Sending combat troops into Syria would make the unforced errors of the first four weeks look like child's play." California Representative Ted Lieu says, "As Member of House Foreign Affairs Committee, I want to say that sending ground troops to Syria is a VERY BAD IDEA." [3] Urge your Senators and Representative to join Chris Murphy, Rand Paul, and Ted Lieu in denouncing the idea of sending U.S. ground troops to Syria by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/15/politics/pentagon-considering-recommending-combat-troops-in-syria/index.html 2. http://rare.us/rare-politics/issues/foreign-policy/rand-paul-it-would-be-a-really-rotten-no-good-bad-idea-to-have-ground-troops-in-syria/ 3. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/the-conversation/sd-troops-to-syria-20170215-htmlstory.html

This isn’t normal -- less than a month into his administration, Trump’s National Security Advisor has been forced to resign, after it was revealed that he had five phone calls with the Russian ambassador post-election to discuss the possible lifting of sanctions, then misled the media, the public, the Vice President, and perhaps others about his conversation. More than ever, we need a complete accounting of how the Russian government sought to influence the 2016 elections. This unprecedented incursion into U.S. elections by a foreign power can’t be ignored -- and we deserve full, comprehensive answers about this assault on the integrity of our elections. This must not be a partisan issue -- Democrats, Republicans, and Independents all care about keeping our elections safe from foreign influence. That’s why Congress must convene a bipartisan committee that solely focuses on a comprehensive investigation of Russia’s involvement in the 2016 elections and publicly report their findings to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Here’s what we know for sure -- according to a declassified report reflecting the consensus of the intelligence community, “Russian intelligence accessed elements of multiple state or local electoral boards. Since early 2014, Russian intelligence has researched US electoral processes and related technology and equipment.”‘ Any private citizen who attempted this would be investigated by the FBI, charged with a felony and sent to jail with a felony conviction. Another country hacking into our election system should be held to the same standard -- yet we are turning a blind eye to these criminal acts. General Flynn’s resignation could just be the beginning -- and the public deserves answers. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have already stood up on principle for an investigation -- from John McCain to Chuck Schumer. Let’s support their efforts. Add your name today and tell Congress to convene a select, bipartisan committee to fully investigate Russia’s influence in the election and its possible coordination between the Trump campaign.

$1.4 billion is necessary for NYS school districts just to open the doors next year, yet the Executive Budget provides just $378 million for this purpose. This would underfund even a “roll-over” budget. Further concern arises from the Governor’s proposals to: - Repeal the Foundation Aid formula, thus erasing any history of the funding that has been lost by school districts, and - Freeze Foundation Aid at 2017-18 levels, even though costs continue to rise This means that school districts would have no new funding coming in, and would not have the ability to get it in future years, even as costs and expectations escalate.

Funding for PUBLIC education, the protection of our drinking water and air, healthcare opportunities for all, immigration policy, economic oversight, freedom of the press, just to name a few areas, are all being threatened under the new administration. It is important that we have an opportunity to speak to our representatives before it is too late.

Did Mike Flynn break the law when he talked to the Russian Ambassador? Did the Trump campaign contact Russian intelligence services? What is the relationship between Trump's team and the Russian government? What did Stephen Bannon and Donald Trump know, and when did they know it? The American people deserve answers.