Now is not the time for Senate Democrats to play business-as-usual, especially with Trump's most dangerous Cabinet nominees, including Rex "ExxonMobil" Tillerson, moving to a Senate floor vote soon. Many Democrats allowed Tillerson and Jeff Sessions to cruise through the first step of the Senate confirmation process. Now, as we move into the next phase of confirmations for some of Trump's Cabinet of corporate cronies and bigots, we must demand more leadership from our elected leaders and demand they use every Senate tool at their disposal to delay them all. Senate Democrats can absolutely delay many of Trump's Cabinet picks by simply using the tools already available to them. Examples include: • Invoking cloture, a process by which they may limit consideration of a pending matter to 30 additional hours of debate; • And forcing a roll call on all nominations, which delays the time it takes to confirm each nomination. Now is the moment for leadership and Senate Democrats must rise up to the occasion. If they stand up for us, we will stand with them.

If passed by the Senate and signed by the new President, these acts would result in wholesale destruction of rules protecting the environment, worker health and safety, consumer rights, and the well-being of families and communities. These rules translate laws passed by Congress into actual practice, after extensive study by the relevant federal agencies and ample opportunity for public comment. The new House acts also would cripple all future rule-making. For more information see https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/opinion/the-assault-on-health-and-safety-begins.html The Senate must reject this radical restriction of the federal government’s power to protect Americans.

Pajama Day is a tradition that has been in HSS for as long as we can remember! You can not just take it away!

As a commissioner, Tommy Hunter represents all of Gwinnett County not just his constituents in District 3. His divisive comments are currently circulating in national news which can negatively impact our community’s reputation and ultimately, our county’s economic growth and sustainability.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, call on Senator Bernie Sanders to form a third political party in the United States of America. The Democrat and Republican party leadership have proven, each in their own ways that they are more interested in retaining power and prosperity for their respective parties than they are interested in prosperity for their constituents or the nation as a whole. The 2016 election has proven beyond any reasonable doubt that our nation is now ready to gather behind a new leader and work toward a common cause of returning our nation to rule By The People and not by the oligarchy. We need a party and a leader that speaks for all of us. We need a party and a leader that energizes the people and has the knowledge and experience to lead us down the right path to achieve our goals. That leader is YOU Mr. Sanders and the party is whatever you choose to name it. By forming a new party now we CAN have more registered voters under the leadership of Bernie Sanders by the 2018 election than either the Republican or Democrat parties have. We CAN make substantial gains in the local, state and federal elections of 2018 and by 2020 we CAN have our party represented in the White House. Please Senator Sanders, agree to lead the moderate, reasonable majority of voters that desperately seek to organize behind a movement that can make a difference. We implore you to form a party that we can all believe in as much as we believed in your presidential campaign.

Until Mr. Trump's ties to Vladimir Putin can be clarified and any security concerns completely dismissed, he is not fit for the office of President of the United States.

It’s time for a revolution in the food system—young and new farmers need support to nourish future generations. Farmers, businesses, policymakers, and educators need to promote agriculture as an intellectually stimulating and economically sustainable career, and to and make jobs in agriculture and the food system “cool” for young people all over the world. With a rapidly aging population of farmers, it’s time to attract more young people to agriculture. This is a global challenge; half the farmers in the United States are 55 years or older while in South Africa, the average age of farmers is around 62 years old. “Agriculture has an image problem,” according to the organization Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD). Yet, according to the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), 2.5 billion people depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, and according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 27 percent of the world’s population is under 10 years old while only eight percent is over 65 years old. “For decades, poor farmers were seen as a problem to be solved. But where and when people and governments have been able to give them the support they need and have understood that family farmers are, in fact, part of the solution, we have seen promising results,” said FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva. It’s time to cultivate the next generation of food system leaders—young farmers, agricultural entrepreneurs, agronomists, extension agents, educators, researchers, scientists, and policymakers who can create a more sustainable food system. “Increased access to education means that young people can be a force for innovation on family farms, increasing incomes and well-being for not only farmers but also for local communities. Young people can develop the agricultural sector by applying new technologies to current work methods,” says Mark Holderness, Executive Secretary of GFAR. Agriculture means more than subsistence farming. Today, young people can explore career options in permaculture design, biodynamic farming, communication technologies, forecasting, marketing, logistics, quality assurance, urban agriculture projects, food preparation, environmental sciences, advanced technologies, and more.

Starting the petition so that if Trump wants to run for re-election and be on the ballot in Pennsylvania, he will have to release his tax returns and all future presidential candidates will have to release their tax returns as well. We do not need the US Congress to pass a law like this. If a handful of swing states which Republican and Democratic candidates need to win require tax returns to be on the ballot, every future candidate will do it.

Dog hunting in South Carolina has become an outrageous abuse of the rights of landowners who live in rural areas. Not only can they not walk their land freely without dogs and men following close behind with loaded weapons, their livestock is killed. For women and people of color, it is especially abusive since some of these hunters use their power and connections with lawmakers to continue their abusive behavior. Still hunters have also complained about dog hunters yet law enforcement in rural areas are often friends with these dog hunters and will do nothing to stop them. Help us live in peace. Help us survive without getting murdered by an errant bullet. Most of the dog hunters destroy signs and intimidate for shooting at residents, particularly women. Help us stop this atrocious sport that even still hunters despise. Help us live in peace. Please sign the petition.

The Russian influence and their candidate.

An unprecedented urgent situation requires unprecedented urgent measures. Call on the US Supreme Court/Attorney General to suspend the Jan. 20th Inauguration in order to allow appropriate time to fully review and consider:   1) Official warnings that a Trump presidency represents a top national and global security threat, as issued by top military, security, legal, political and scientific experts (including by Republicans, the standing president, high-level officials, world leaders and top university professors) throughout 2016 to date;  2) The results of full medical & neuropsychiatric exams on Donald Trump prior to transmitting the power of office and the nuclear codes, as formally urged by top Harvard professors of psychiatry and APA member professionals throughout 2016 to date;  3) The results of recent official conclusions on election interference and compromise by Russia, emitted by US Intelligence Agencies, as well as all related pending investigations;  4) Full resolution of conflicts of interest and foreign financial ties according to the Constitutional Emoluments Clause prior to taking office. Basic principles: an election without election integrity is not an election.  We, the people, should not be forced to accept dubious election results, that threaten our national and global security. Whether it is to follow "tradition" or "smooth transition of power" - none of these values will endure if we face a nuclear incident that can occur at any time once Trump is given the nuclear codes, or any number of dangers still pending the serious, thorough consideration required.  According to the results of the above items, SCOTUS options may include, as necessary, election rectification (honoring the popular vote) or reconvening elections (if possible, with UN/OAS election observers to monitor election integrity). _______ This is a national and global security issue affecting us all. This is not a partisan issue, nor even exclusively a national issue. The USA and all the world's nations stand to be fatally affected by how unequivocally we recognize and step up to rectify a compromised election result.  This is a petition for our highest justice authorities to  heed dozens of the world's highest authorities consistently issuing formal urgent warnings about the multiple dangers of a potential Trump presidency.  Ensuring our national and planetary safety, the integrity of our democratic election institutions and of the presidential public mandate, and respect for our national sovereignty must come before all other considerations. Selected Background Information: 1) Well over 200 top experts and authorities have issued formal warnings and concerns on major security issues arising from Trump's incompetence and instability. Here is just one joint letter of many: 50 GOP Officials Warn Donald Trump Would Put Nation’s Security ‘at Risk’ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/us/politics/national-security-gop-donald-trump.html?_r=0 2) Formal communications from numerous highly esteemed Harvard psychiatry professors / APA member professionals, alarmed by Donald Trump's mental instability, symptoms and dubious fitness for office, urging President Obama to command full medical and neuropsychiatric exams of Donald Trump prior to transmitting power and the nuclear codes. One article of many: Is Donald Trump Mentally Ill? 3 ProfessorsoOf Psychiatry Ask President Obama to Conduct ‘A Full Medical and Neuropsychiatric Evaluation’ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-greene/is-donald-trump-mentally_b_13693174.html 3) Recent official conclusive evidence of election interference issued by at least four US Intelligence Agencies, the conclusion of other related pending investigations, and a full recount and audit of the election pending from the official preliminary recount that took place in Nov/Dec 2016 (Jill2016.com/Recount)

There is much concern that fake news is effecting election campaigns of all parties. I want our elected officials, both state and federal to make an effort to find a legislative solution that provides an incentive to not publish fake news while at the same time not infringing on the first amendment guarantee of a free press.