Russ Feingold should run for the US Senate in Wisconsin in 2012. We need his strong, principled progressive voice back in Washington, fighting for working Americans and holding big corporations accountable.

Increasing the usage of electric cars as a replacement to gasoline driven vehicles..

Governor LePage wants to cut all state support for MPBN - 20% of their overall budget. This relatively small amount of money enables Mainers in the farthest reaches of the state to get their news and entertainment through radio and TV. More info here: http://www.mpbn.net/Home/DefendandSupportMPBN.aspx#bottom

The Michigan House Republicans recently approved an amendment to the House bill on education funding written by Rep. David Agema. The amendment proposes that the state subtract 5% from the state funding of any university that offers health insurance coverage for employees who live with another adult outside of marriage.  During a time where public education operates under increasingly difficult financial constraints, ideologically driven legislations have even less of a place in educational policy than ever. The amendment violates the autonomy of public universities and is thus a direct attack on academic freedom.  Moreover, the amendment’s clear intent to divide the academic community is deeply immoral. Targeting unmarried couples, and by intent particularly gay and lesbian families, at a time where every public poll shows significant majority support for civil unions flies in the face of the country’s commitment to equality. Americans, as a rule, do not want the government to tell them how to conduct their private lives.  Middle class families already suffer from the rising cost of college tuition. If the amendment passes, the loss of funds may well contribute to an even steeper rise, thus penalizing all Michigan families in the interest of an obsolete sexual morality Americans have rejected resoundingly.  The bill still needs to be reconciled with the Senate version. Please petition the Michigan Senators, both Republicans and Democrats, to oppose this nasty piece of legislation.

The Center for American Progress reported recently about the US Department of the Interior’s plan to lease public lands in the state of Wyoming that would provide big coal companies with 758 million tons of coal. Interior will also decide this year about leasing public lands that would provide coal companies with an additional 1.6 billion tons of coal to burn and pollute our atmosphere. In light of the urgent plea by the world’s best climate scientists to rapidly phase out coal, we are calling on President Obama and Secretary of the Interior Salazar to halt the leasing of any new public lands to coal companies.

To effect the changes needed to reclaim our democracy we need to defeat Corporate America’s attack on our freedoms, and the best place to start is by making sure corporations, or any other organizations, do not enjoy the rights of "natural people"; it is the key to all of the others. This is not a Conservative, Liberal, Libertarian, or Independent question; it is about preserving the America our forefathers fought so hard to create, and the legacy we have been entrusted to pass on to our kids. Put simply, if a few corporate power brokers own our politicians, and anonymous dollars are more powerful than votes, the great masses of Americans, including you and I, lose their right to “Government by and for the People”. To effect change, we all have to focus on this core issue. The unbelievable power and influence of big banks and other large corporations, their ownership of the majority of our news outlets, and the massive abuses some engage in, is that core. Together, we can counteract this financial power base with the power of our voices, and return control of our government to “real people”. Rather than continuing to allow both isles of Congress and the Supreme Court to legitimize the “power of the dollar”, together we can force them to re-focus on our rights as “natural people”. With this single step, everything else we need in order to regain the American dream becomes possible, and it all begins by passing a Constitutional Amendment that simply says "Corporations are not People". So I created a petition to our House of Representatives & Senate, as well as President Obama, which says: "It is my belief that Corporations are not People, and that a Constitutional Amendment making that simple statement should be enacted." Please step up and help protect our freedoms by signing the petition, and forwarding it to as many of your friends as you can. With your help we can all win!

Tar sands oil is the dirtiest fuel in the world, and its corrosive nature makes pipeline ruptures more likely. But Canadian oil company TransCanada is asking the State Department for a permit to pump it through our backyards. Here in Montana, we are already seeing impacts due to proposed road expansions to make way for trucks carrying “mega-loads” through wild, scenic and recreation river corridors and wild places -- roads that also disrupt daily life in nearby communities. Tell Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to reject the permit for Keystone XL.

We need to put pressure on the President, and congress, to lift the Embargo on Cuba, and begin to treat Cuba as a normal nation-state. The 'Cold War' is over, there is no threat to the United States from Cuba, nor are they a part of any anti-american movement. Yet, we continue to force their citizens to live in abject poverty, without any mandate from the United Nations, or any other international force, giving us the authority to do so. I have learned much about the Cuban society, through friends who have traveled there, and they have made many valueable contributions to art, music and literature, not to mention american professional athletics, despite the horrible state of affairs there, for which our embargo is chiefly to blame. The embargo expires in September of this year. We must act NOW, to ensure that the President hears our voice on this matter at the right time!

The Michigan House Republicans recently approved an amendment to the House bill on education funding written by Rep. David Agema: the amendment proposes that the state subtract 5% from the state funding of any university that offers health insurance coverage for employees who live with another adult outside of marriage. At a time where the state allocation is already set to be cut by a fifth or more, the amendment violates the universities' budgetary autonomy, interferes with their academic freedom, and penalizes all unmarried couples, particularly those who are not allowed to marry in the first place. The bill still needs to be reconciled with the Senate version. Please petition the Michigan Senators, both Republicans and Democrats, to oppose this nasty piece of legislation.

Tar sands oil isn’t like regular crude oil, and its corrosive nature makes pipeline ruptures more likely. But Canadian oil company TransCanada is asking the State Department for a permit to pump it through our backyards, and menacing landowners who get in their way. The proposed Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline cuts a Texas aquifer that supplies water to 60 counties. Yet TransCanada has brushed aside concerns from local residents worried about their water, and threatened landowners that don’t want the pipeline crossing their land with eminent domain. Tell Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that we will not allow a foreign oil company to dictate what we do with our land.

Tar sands oil is the dirtiest fuel in the world, and its corrosive nature makes pipeline ruptures and other problems more likely. But Canadian oil pipeline company TransCanada is asking the US State Department for a permit to pump millions of gallons of this oil each day through South Dakota farms, ranches, grasslands and groundwater, and across rivers and streams. The proposed Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline cuts through the Ogallala Aquifer, putting 80% of the region’s drinking water at risk of contamination. Moreover, TransCanada has gained a reputation for bullying landowners and understating risks. Tell Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to reject the permit for Keystone XL.

Each year, an estimated 24,000 undocumented students graduate from high school in California. Many of these students, defying the odds that predicted their failure, achieved academic excellence and gained admission to the best public universities and colleges of our nation. However, their ineligibility for financial aid and inability to seek employment precludes them from affording the one opportunity to earn a college degree and fulfill a dream. Most of these students were brought to this country at a very young age by their parents and have been raised in the United States just as their U.S. citizen classmates. The CA Dream Act would reduce the financial burden that “AB 540” students face by allowing them the ability to apply and receive financial aid in California. These are the state’s most vulnerable students who have worked hard to exceed expectations, achieve higher than average grade point averages, and overcome many obstacles. These students are valedictorians, class presidents, and star athletes. Through their hard work and perseverance, these students have earned the opportunity to attend an institution of higher education, and their accomplishments should not be disregarded or their futures jeopardized because of their legal status. The legislature and governor should pass and sign the California Dream Act (AB 130 and AB 131).