I'm a Mother, a provider, survivor, protector, caretaker, educator, that needs hope in a matter very crucial to her family.

Since the disastrous Citizens United ruling, billionaires and other special interests are funneling record amounts of money through secretive non-profits, trying to buy our elections. Federal prosecutors even say that a foreign tycoon exploited loopholes to try to rig the outcome. This kind of dangerous secrecy must stop. Assemblymember Maienshein didn't vote Yes on S.B. 27 -- the bill that will make sure billionaires, foreign tycoons, and other special interests can't hide behind dark money non-profits – even though polls show 84% of Californians want more disclosure. He didn't vote No, but abstaining counts the same as voting No in deciding whether a bill passes. Fortunately, S.B. 27 passed the Assembly anyway, and is now in the Senate. But we have to make sure legislators know their constituents are watching. So, sign our petition asking Assemblymember Maienshein why he didn't vote for S.B. 27, and demanding that he vote Yes on two other crucial disclosure bills: the Sunshine in Campaigns Act and California DISCLOSE Act.

The Central Valley has been hit incredibly hard by the great recession and many are finding it impossible to make ends meet. We need a representative that will help our community, not hurt us further. Rep. Jeff Denham needs to represent the needs of the people in our district by supporting the extension of long-term unemployment benefits and by supporting an increase of the minimum wage. Recent votes or current positions of Rep. Jeff Denham that hurt our community: * voted to shut down the government which cost our country millions of dollars * voted to let the U.S. default on its bills (even after more sensible, reasonable member of the Republican party eventually made the right decision to prevent it from happening) * Currently opposes extending long-term unemployment benefits even with the Central Valley's current 14.5% unemployment * Currently opposes raising the minimum wage which would help raise working poor families in the Central Valley out of poverty

It is entirely lawful, defensible and a matter of commonsense for states to take action to control the use of deadly weapons to ensure the safety and the well-being of their constituents. To withdraw the right of the people to debate and decide these issues amongst themselves is a violation of democracy and quite possibly a threat to the continued safety of our schools and neighborhoods. Stand-your-ground laws increase the incentive for aggressive and sometimes racist vigilantes to unnecessarily provoke violent incidents that lead to gun deaths, trusting that they can avoid accountability for their actions by pleading self-defense.

In New Jersey, the minimum wage is $7.25. This amount is insufficient for any quality of life. Raising it to $10.10 per hour is a step in the right direction.

After dining at my local Target, I realized the amount of unnecessary waste not being recycled. I saw that every bit of trash I had in front of me was recyclable—paper cups, napkins, cardboard boxes, and utensils. The introduction of recycling bins to this area would be a simple, low-cost, high-impact step towards making a major national retailer one of the greenest in the world.

In a USA Today poll in January, 2014 close to three-quarters of Americans said that they would support an increase in the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. But even though a majority of Americans at least want this issue decided by Congress, House Speaker John Boehner will not allow it; precisely because the vote wouldn’t go his way. More than 4.4 million Americans currently earn federal minimum wage or less; more than half are adults and 284,000 of them are college graduates. Two-thirds are women, and almost 60 percent of minimum-wage women over 25 are the sole bread winner in their household. Two-thirds work for businesses that have at least 100 employees; so much for the argument that raising the minimum wage would devastate small businesses. Congress voted to bail out financial institutions; it is time to improve the lives of mainstream Americans. 71% of Americans support raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to at least $10.10 an hour, according to an January 2014 poll. However Representative Renacci has chosen to listen to special interest groups. After nearly half a century of neglect, today the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour is decades out of date. In terms of purchasing power, its value is 30 percent lower today than it was in 1968. On the other hand, many corporations are posting record-breaking profits. The Wall Street Journal reported. Join us by signing this petition and hold Congress responsible for helping the middle class. Representative Renacci; it’s time to raise the Minimum Wage.

I've worked at many minimum wage jobs and they're all hard work little pay no benefits and thankless jobs-people deserve to earn a fair wage-Rep Kinzinger may want to switch jobs with one of the poor souls and see-hit the gas pump too and see how that goes as part of the budget-this is some of my thoughts on minimum wage work

SSA has never paid for the month a loved one passes away regardless of the date of the passing. If the person passes on the 2nd of the month then SSA should pay benefits through the 1st of the month. If the person passes on the 31st , then they should pay through the 30th. (etc.). My mother passed away on the 31st of the month this last Aug. and the funeral home director told my Sister that SSA 's check would be good as my Mom lived over 2/3'rds of the month. SSA sent the check through and then took the check back!! This check was to help settle my Mom's bills and other medical expenses. Not only did my sister have to pay all that but then she had to pay back SSA. This is wrong! I tried to contact 3 offices about starting a petition and the Government just gave me the run around. Please help me start this petition so that our old folks and their families are treated correctly!

Stand your ground gives any psycho with a gun to shoot for any reason that would make him feel threatened.

This is a discriminatory law that will not stand in appeals. Many similar laws have already fallen in appeals. The U.S. attorney general has encouraged states not to defend these laws. The governor is wasting taxpayer funds for the purpose of political grandstanding.

I want to encourage a more positive view about the importance of paying taxes. The current narrative seems to be that candidates for public office should always promise to lower taxes or prevent any new taxes. But if people are employed and make money, that's a good thing. Paying taxes is a sign of financial well-being. Let's make the day that taxes are due a day to celebrate the many ways we contribute to one another and keep growing as a nation.