September 2008 Newsletter

Page 1

Volume 9 Issue 9 September 2008

News ‘n’ Views Of, By and For Members of the Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club

HHHDC September 2008 Meeting

Monday, September 15 , 2008

Coco’s Restaurant

11510 South Street, Cerritos, CA (¼ mile east of the 605 freeway)

Dinner (optional) at 6:00 p.m. - Meeting begins at 7:00 pm

Program: Representatives from the Obama for America Campaign

Subject: 2008 Presidential Election & DNC Update

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Announcements .......................Page 1

Member Corner …….…….…………Page 2

Musings from Denver ….…………Page 2

Cartoons ……………..…….…..….……Page 3

Time for Change ………………….…Page 4

Noushkam Announcements.…..Page 5

McCain’s Convenient Untruth ..Page 5

Internet Pipeline ………………….…Page 6

Notes from Joe’s Desk …………...Page 7

CARA Corner …………….…………….Page 8

George Medina column………....Page 9

Member Spotlight………….……..Page 10

DNC Photos …………………………..Page 11

Advertisements …………………….Page 12

Membership Form……….………..Page 14

Announcements

The Long Beach Democratic Club is sponsoring the 2008 Southern

California Democrats BBQ Event. It will be held September 13 at

11:00 a.m. at 4900 7th Street in Long Beach. Volunteers are still

needed. If you are interested in volunteering then please contact Nikki

Noushkam (HHHDC President) for additional information.

Guidelines for Meetings:

1. Turn your cell phone off or place it on “vibrate”.

2. During meeting please do not engage in side conversations.

3. If ordering food, please do so before start of meeting.

4. If you wish to speak, please raise your hand in order to be

recognized by the chair. Do not interrupt speakers.

5. Please keep your remarks short and concise.

6. Photographs should be taken only without interrupting the

meeting.

Newsletter submissions are due 10 days before the next scheduled club

meeting. You may email them to [email protected].

Musings from Denver By Marisela Cervantes

This year’s Democratic National Convention was historic for many reasons! Our Democratic bench of

candidates included the first Woman and African American contenders for the presidency of the United

States. For the first time in DNC history, 51% of the Delegates were women. The California delegation was

the largest and most diverse in the country, and with help of PG&E met the DNCC’s green challenge by

purchasing 100% of the carbon offsets for the delegate’s travels to Denver.

It was indeed a remarkable meeting of Democrats from throughout the country, who shared in their values

and a deep concern for the nation’s future. Senator Clinton gave an eloquent speech to the DNCC on Tuesday

night calling for unity. She was followed on Wednesday with speeches from Senator Biden and her husband,

former President Bill Clinton. Thursday’s main event was Senator Obama’s acceptance speech at Invesco

Field.

I don’t think that the television could have done justice to the excitement and emotion at the Convention.

Democrats are united and on the correct side of the issues, positioned to take back the White House in

November. As activists we must not be complacent! In the Southwest we have our work cut out for us,

especially with McCain coming from Arizona. We have to secure our Democratic margin in California to

ensure comfortable victories in down ticket races and help turn BLUE our neighboring states of Nevada, New

Mexico and Colorado.

As the granddaughter of a Mexican Bracero, whose parents came to this country under different and

extraordinary circumstances, with a dream and only the clothes on their backs, I was appreciative to be one of

the 4,000 Americans that on August 27th voted by acclimation to nominate Barack Obama for Presidency of

the United States. In one generation, this acceptance and integration can only happen in America.

For pictures and videos from the convention visit: http://www.demconvention.com/.

September 2008 News ‘n’ Views Page 2

Member Corner Text and photos by Marisela Cervantes

In December, lifetime HHHDC member and Assembly Member of the 56th District, Tony Mendoza will be

named Chairman Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development by the Assembly Speaker

Karen Bass. Our heartfelt congratulations go out to Assembly Member Mendoza!

The activism of HHHDC is alive and well this historic election year. Four HHHDC members attended the DNC

in Denver as Delegates and Alternates. Representing the 39th Congressional District were Nikki Noushkam

and new club member Tony Monroy. Representing the 38th Congressional District was Marisela Cervantes,

and as Alternate at large, our very own Assemblymember Tony Mendoza.

If you would like to be featured in the “Member Corner” please email [email protected].


Steve Greenberg, Ventura County Star

The Time for Change is NOW! By Nikki Noushkam, HHHDC President

I am back from the Denver and more inspired than ever. Now that all the hoopla, speeches, and the parties are over, it’s

more important than ever for all of us Democrats to unite and elected Senators Obama and Biden as our next President

and Vice President. Our time is now. The stakes for our country and its future could not have been any higher. We can’t

take a vote, not even a single vote for granted. That is why we are devoting our September monthly meeting to voter

outreach and GOTV efforts. Republicans might ridicule grassroots community organizing, but we know that it’s the work

of activists like us that can make the difference come November.

I learned early on in life that power is not something that is given to you on a silver platter. You have to fight for it.

Republicans are willing to hold on to power at any cost. After eight years of a disastrous presidency and almost a

decade in control of the U.S. Congress, the Republicans have now decided that it is time for “change” in Washington and

consider themselves the agents of that change! John McCain and Sarah Palin are now crisscrossing the county, calling

themselves the team of “Mavericks”. We can’t expect to elect Senator Obama as President or more Democrats to U.S.

Congress without rolling up our sleeves, volunteering and working for real change. So, talk to your friends, neighbors,

and family members. Here are my six reasons for why we need to elect a Democrat to the White House this November.

• Economy. We know that within the past eight years irresponsible tax cuts and deregulations have wrecked our

economy. Our economy is broken, we’re in a recession, and the conservatives in Washington don’t get it. We

need to make sure that our economy works for Main Street, not Wall Street. As Barney Smith, a fed-up

Republican and former factory worker from Indiana said at the recent Democratic Convention, “We need a

President that works for people like me, Barney Smith, and not Smith Barney”. We need to build a society

where hardworking Americans can earn a decent living, afford high-quality health care and access world-class

education for their children, and retire with security.

• Iraq War. Republicans love to flaunt their love of our country and accuse those who don’t agree with their

political ideology as unpatriotic. This election, they are running the same political script as 2004, taunting

themselves as those who put their “country first”. I was an eyewitness to their deception two weeks ago. I met

numerous American men and women, who have served this country honorably and sacrificed their lives and

limbs for our nation, who do not share the Republican ideology. A perfect example of such individuals was

Tammy Duckworth who lost both legs and an arm in the Iraq War and whose husband has also been deployed to

Iraq twice. We are currently spending 10 billion dollars a month in Iraq, borrowing from countries such as China,

Japan, and Saudi Arabia to finance this misguided war. It is time for us to end this war. We need a government

that can plan and redeploy our troops safely out of Iraq and can bring an honorable end to this hellish

nightmare.

• Energy. We need to end our nation’s dependence on oil and address the problem of global warming. Soaring

gas prices are hitting Americans hard, and we need immediate action. We need to invest in energy efficiency

and renewable energy - because we can’t drill our way to energy independence. We need an administration that

can stand up to big oil and crack down on oil company price gouging, put a stop to Wall Street oil speculation,

and pressure companies to start exploring for oil on the millions of acres of federal land they already lease.

• Heath Care. In a country as prosperous as ours, health care should be a human right, and it’s a national shame

that 47 million Americans are uninsured. Although over 90 percent of voters are insured, they are focused on

the reality that their own families’ health care has become too expensive and too insecure. We can lower the

costs of health care by guaranteeing that every American has access to quality, affordable health care. We need

a health care system that lets us keep our doctors and gives us the choice of private or public insurance

coverage.

• Infrastructure. Almost a year before the Republicans gathered in St. Paul Minnesota for their national

convention, the city was the site of a major bridge collapse. We know that the Bush administration and their

conservative allies have starved government, allowing our national infrastructure of roads, bridges, and schools


to deteriorate. Yet this administration has also run up large budget deficits and an even larger range of

investment deficits. We need an administration that can get our priorities straight and invest in areas that make

our nation stronger, like better roads, safer bridges, sturdier levees, and modernized schools. John McCain calls

such investments “pork barrel spending”. Yet another reason that he is wrong for America.

• Immigration. The conservatives have managed to label immigration reform as amnesty. But the reality of the

matter is that it’s impossible to arrest and deport some 12 million immigrants who are in the United States

illegally. Illegal immigration is a genuine problem and we deserve a government capable of providing our fellow

citizens a solution. We need change. We need a government that will invest in protecting our borders, crack

down on corporations that hire illegal workers for cheap labor, and require immigrants who are here to register

and meet a series of strict requirements to earn citizenship.

I hope this inspires you to create your own list (or use mine if you’d like). Get involved. The time for change is NOW!

Announcements by President Noushkam 1. Local Obama Campaign Office: Starting September 16th to election day (November 4), the South County

Democrats United office will be opened up for phone banking for the Obama campaign. The SCDU office is

located at 4647 Long Beach Boulevard (Suite B3). There are plenty of computers and phones in this office for us

to use.

2. The Obama for America campaign office in Los Angeles: 3619 Motor Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, CA.

McCain's Convenient Untruth

By Sebastian Mallaby, Washington Post

Monday, September 8, 2008; page A17

When it comes to fighting wars, John McCain stands up and calls for sacrifice. "We never hide from history; we make

history," he declared in his convention speech. But when it comes to taxes, McCain is unwilling to demand even a teensy

bit of sacrifice. In a McCain administration, Americans would not have to surrender a dime more of their money to a

cause larger than themselves.

Why this bipolar attitude toward sacrifice? Start with the answer that McCain himself provides. "My tax cuts will create

jobs. His tax increases will eliminate them," he said at the convention, offering one of the speech's few policy contrasts

between Obama's platform and his own. In other words, McCain is not calling for tax sacrifice because he believes it

would be counterproductive. On taxes, he is saying, you can selfishly avoid sacrifice -- and serve the public good.

This, unfortunately, is a convenient untruth. Tax hikes taken to an extreme can indeed backfire, harming growth and job

creation. But it's a stretch to assert that Barack Obama's tax plan would do that. And it's downright scandalous to

pretend that the economy can be strengthened in anything other than the short run by unaffordable tax cuts.

Obama is not proposing to raise taxes for most Americans. To the contrary, he would triple the earned-income tax credit

for low-wage earners, increasing work incentives at the bottom. He would cut taxes on people in the middle -- indeed,

he would do so more aggressively than McCain would. It is only the wealthiest Americans who would face higher tax bills

under Obama. According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, Obama's plan would require the richest 1 percent of

Americans to sacrifice a modest 1.5 percent of their after-tax income in 2012. By contrast, no-sacrifice McCain would

award America's elite a 9.5 percent increase.

[cont.]


[cont.] How might this impact jobs and the economy? Under Obama's plan, top earners would pay a marginal federal

tax rate of maybe 46.5 percent (that includes the Medicare tax and Obama's proposed hike in Social Security taxes),

considerably more than the 37.9 percent they would pay under McCain. There's no doubt that Obama's higher tax rates

would mean weaker incentives to work, take risks and innovate; and stronger incentives to waste time and effort on

avoiding the tax man.

But those bad effects must be weighed against a good one: Higher tax rates mean a lower budget deficit. According to

the Tax Policy Center, over the course of a decade Obama's plan would result in a national debt $1.2 trillion smaller than

you would get under McCain's plan. Less government borrowing ultimately means lower interest rates and more private

investment. This positive effect may well outweigh the blow to growth and jobs from weaker work incentives.

Tax hikes, in other words, are not automatic job destroyers. Joel Slemrod of the University of Michigan, a top expert on

this subject, says bluntly, "There is no compelling evidence that a low-tax strategy is better for the economy over the

medium or long run." Just look at the Clinton era. In 1993, the top marginal rate (income tax plus Medicare) was raised

to 42.5 percent -- the same rate that Obama proposes but minus the candidate's proposed increase in the payroll tax.

During the rest of the Clinton period, the economy generated millions of new jobs, and careful academic postmortems

find that the 1993 tax hike caused little to no damage to the incentives of top earners.

So McCain's swipe at Obama's tax plan was something other than straight talk. As a share of the economy, Obama's plan

would create an overall tax burden similar to the one that existed in Ronald Reagan's time. It would not choke off job

creation; rather, it would slow the growth of the deficit and soften inequality. But the really depressing thing is that

McCain himself once knew that. He opposed the Bush tax cuts before he supported them, saying that they would

deepen inequality. But now he touts a tax reduction that is larger and more radical than even President Bush proposed,

and he slams his opponent for holding the view that he himself held until recently.

McCain used to be a real straight talker. On campaign finance, spending earmarks, Iraq and immigration, he has fought

bravely for his principles; and that record might have been a trump against an opponent who has taken almost no such

risks. But we are now witnessing what might be called McCain's Palinization. McCain once criticized Christian

conservatives as agents of intolerance, but he has caved in to their intolerance of a pro-choice running mate. McCain

claims to be devoted to his country, yet he would saddle it with a vice president who is unprepared to serve as

commander in chief. In the same sad way, McCain has caved in to his party's anti-tax fanatics. The man of principle has

become a panderer. The straight talker flip-flops.


Internet Pipeline

This month’s noteworthy internet site: http://www.calitics.com/. As the site owner states, this web site is

“Building a progressive online community that will:

A) provide individual Californians a place to discuss progressive issues.

B) enable local and statewide progressive candidates and elected officials a platform for discussing issues

and campaigning.

C) Be fun! I love politics, especially the crazy breed that is California politics.”

If you have any pertinent sites that you’d like to pass on to members, please email the information to the

Newsletter Editor at [email protected].


Notes from Joe’s Desk

Last week at the Republican National Convention, John McCain proved that he is the candidate of

change. He is the candidate who has changed his persona and positions to acquiesce the far right

of the Republican Party.

He has given in to the shameful Karl Rove tactics that derailed his candidacy in the 2000 presidential

primaries. He now supports making the Bush tax cuts that he opposed initially, and which tilt towards

the rich, permanent. Now he won't even support his own immigration reform legislation. He has

embraced those whom he called "agents of intolerance". So I guess it wouldn’t be a lie if McCain

said that he was about change.

Fellow Democrats, as this newsletter goes to print, the Republican National Convention has just

finished. First of all, the Republican National Committee and the McCain campaign ought to fire their

fact-checkers and background investigators. What we saw is a political party that is still committed to

fear mongering, scare tactics and the destruction of good people as a means to win an election,

instead of putting forth policies that will move our country forward.

That is why we as Democrats must unite to elect Senator Barack Obama as our next President,

increase our membership in the Senate and House, and defeat the measures here in California that

seek to regress our society. This election is important, not only because of its immediate effects on

improving our country, but because what it says about us as Americans. Are we a citizenry that uses

fear to enact our policies? Or are we a citizenry that realizes the importance of diplomacy?

Are we a people that favor tax cuts for Big Oil?

Or are we a people that want the American Dream to remain attainable for all Americans?

Fellow Democrats, we have the opportunity here locally to impact this election. As a Neighborhood

Leader for The California Democratic Party you will share your ideals and principles with 25 of your

friends, family and neighbors. Your voice will communicate the importance of electing Democrats.

The California Democratic Party will provide you will the tools to be a successful Neighborhood

Leader.

This will not be the only opportunity to take a leadership role in this important election. Louis Reyes

from Whittier is taking the lead in organizing local voter registration, local ground activities, virtual

phone banks to swing states and coordinating trips to Nevada. In addition, in the

next week I will be communicating with the local Regional Field Director staff for the California

Democratic Party to see how we can provide opportunities for involvement and support any activities

you are currently working on.

Very Respectfully,

Joseph Legaspi

California Democratic Party, Region 15 Director

[email protected]


Pics

From

DNC


HYBRID UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE A proposal by George F. Medina

Hybrid Universal Health Care is a concept, which merges Private Industry and the Federal Government in a

unique partnership that may be the answer to the current debate on “Universal Health Care”.

First, develop a “National Schedule of Benefits”. This would apply to everyone regardless of the State of

residency.

Second adopt a National Standard for “Prevention” based on nutrition and alternative sources of natural

products. Drugs should be the treatment of LAST RESORT.

Third, adopt a simplified universal administrative process to expedite payment of claims by creating a single

claims form for all providers, private Industry and government. The current system is overwhelmed with

each Provider having their own forms as well as Medicare, Medical etc. The administrative costs, under our

present system may be over 20% of the claim expense. The system is broken.

Once Benefits and Prevention have been established, the Health Insurance Industry can become the Primary

Insurer and the Federal Health Insurance can become the Re-Insurer for catastrophic claims. Doing this the

coverage can be issued with NO DEDUCTIBLES and the Private Health Insurance Industry will be able to

REDUCE cost and INCREASE their profit.

Prevention aggressively regulated and managed by each State through their respective Insurance

Commissioners will yield a dramatic reduction in claims. The office of the Insurance Commissioner would be

responsible for promulgating the applicable rates based on actuarial data from claims history by type of

treatment or procedure.

Neither the Insurance Industry nor the Federal Government alone can provide and manage effectively a

National Universal Health Care Plan.

Together, they can.

Let’s elect a Congress and a President who believe that “Yes we can”!

Member Spotlight

DIANA NEEDHAM was recently appointed to the Planning Commission by Councilmember Carol Chen of the Cerritos City Council. She is a lifetime member of the Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club.

Diana Needham is a former 3-term Mayor of the City of Cerritos and a 12- year City Council Member from

1978 to 1990. She was the first woman Cerritos Mayor and City Council Member. She served on the

Cerritos Planning Commission from 2005 to 2007.

Diana has a B.S. Degree in Urban Planning from Cal Poly University, Pomona, 1979.

Diana is currently the Vice President of Su Casa-Ending Domestic Violence and is a Board Member of the

Cerritos Chamber of Commerce. She is past President of Soroptimist International of Artesia-Cerritos and is

a former Co-Chair of the Cerritos Junior Miss Program. She is a Member and former Board Member of the

Cerritos Optimist Club, a Life Member of the Friends of the Cerritos Library, and a Member of AAUW

(American Association of University Women).

Diana is a currently a Realtor with Prudential California Realtors, Cerritos and is President of Diana

Needham Planning Consultants.

Prior to her career as a Realtor, Diana was a Project Manager and Planning Director with large home building

and planning consulting firms, including: KB Home; Florian-Martinez, Landscape Architects and Planners;

and PRC Toups Engineers and Planners. Her specialty was the planning and processing of large master-

planned communities of 200 to 2000 acres.

She has completed planning projects in twenty-seven cities and five counties.

Diana has been married to Rick since 1967 and has two grown sons, John and James; and a grandson, Ethan,

age 11. Diana and Rick have resided in Cerritos since 1970.


More Pics from the DNC in Denver

– contributed by Marisela Cervantes


Joseph Cho, Ph.D.

Tel: (562) 547-4434

P.O. Box 4115

Cerritos, CA 90703

[email protected]

The Lucy and Joseph Cho Foundation


Our HHHDC Newsletter is available on your computer!

Please send your email address to: Mike Stabile at

[email protected]

We also are prepared to accept advertisements to

be published monthly according to the following rates:

Monthly Rate

1/8 page $20

1/4 page $35

1/2 page $65

full page $125

Six Month Rate Yearly Rate

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full page $525 $1,050

2008 HHHDC OFFICERS

AND COMMITTEE CHAIRS

2008 Executive Board

President Nikki Noushkam 562-712-4072

Vice-President Marisela Cervantes 213-445-1152

Treasurer Denise Stabile

Rec. Secretary Mike Stabile 562-505-5807

Committees

Legislative Anal. Maureen Allen 562-746-7569

Newsletter Editor Mike Stabile 562-505-5807

Membership Beverly Porter

Historian Charlie Ara 562-865-4075

Parliamentarian Marisela Cervantes 213-445-1152

Got an Ad?

We’ve got the space!

Check out details on Page 8

New advertisers are needed for the

newsletter. If you are interested, or know of

a person or business who would like to

advertise in our fine publication, please

contact the President, Nikki Noushkam, for

details and instructions. As a no-cost bonus,

all ads placed in the newsletter will also

appear on the club’s new website once it is

officially open for business later this year.

THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK (other than this comment about it being left blank)

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Documents

September 2008 Newsletter