Rocky Anderson's Independent Political Vision, The Young Turks Interview

Michael Shure of The Young Turks interviews third party candidate for President, and former mayor of Salt Lake City, Rocky Anderson. In the background a small number of protesters are swamped by a huge police presence.

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Ballot Access News for Anderson Rodriguez 2012

On the ballot:

Colorado (Justice Party), Connecticut (Independent Party of Connecticut), Florida (Justice Party), Idaho (IND Independent Candidacy), Louisiana (Justice Party), Michigan (Natural Law Party), Minnesota (Justice Party), New Jersey (Justice Party), New Mexico (Independent Party), Oregon (Oregon Progressive Party), Rhode Island (Justice Party), Tennessee (Independent), Utah (Justice Party), Vermont (Justice Party), Washington (Justice Party).

Qualified to be a write-in candidate:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington D.C, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming

Have filed, but either waiting confirmation or disputed:

Missouri, North Dakota

Could not or did not qualify for write-in status:

Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Indiana, Oklahoma, Ohio, Mississippi, Massachusetts, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nevada, South Carolina, South Dakota

 

Win? No way! Former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson efforts getting party on ballots

Read at deseretnews.com

By Lee Benson, Deseret News

Published: Saturday, Aug. 25 2012 11:16 p.m. MDT

SALT LAKE CITY —

 

Directions to the Rocky For President campaign headquarters:

First, find an otherwise unmarked door with the number "314" written on it just below Carlucci's Bakery across from Pioneer Park on Salt Lake City's west side. Enter and go up a flight of stairs to the second floor, make your way through another door and continue along awinding corridor, and then, when you miss the small hand-lettered "Rocky" sign on the wall that points to another nondescript door, ask somebody.

And if you think that's difficult, when you finally find his office, ask Rocky about getting on the ballot for 2012.

"I had no idea how absolutely undemocratic this country is when it comes to forming political parties," says Rocky, sitting behind a desk next to a window that looks down onto an alley. "The ballot access is absurd."

Welcome to the third-party world, where former Salt Lake City Mayor Ross Carl "Rocky" Anderson, the human lightning rod, is running for president on the Justice Party ticket.

That's president — as in president of the United States.

Odds are, he won't win, although there is an outside chance he could finish third and wind up with the bronze.

Not that Rocky expects victory. "Not a prayer," is how he assesses his chances. But as always, there's method to his perceived madness. The reason he shut down his High Road for Human Rights foundation to run for an office he can't possibly obtain is because of the greater impact a third party can have, especially in an election year.

"A political party makes more sense," he says. "It's the same message (as High Road), and this way we're reaching tens of thousands of people each week."

No one could say he's doing it for the frills. Inside headquarters, the office staff is as spare as the furnishings. There's a total of five people, and that's counting Rocky.

There's Sally Soriano, the campaign coordinator. A former schoolteacher from Seattle, she heard Rocky give a speech in Portland after he announced his candidacy in January and was in her Kia Rio the next week, driving unannounced to Salt Lake City.

There's Nancy Karter, the office manager. An out-of-work accountant from Indiana, she was doing political research on the Internet back home when she came across Rocky's views and beelined it to Utah to volunteer.

There's Walter Mason, the ballot-access coordinator from Salt Lake City. He phoned up Rocky and asked specifically to be the point man in getting the Justice Party on the ballot in as many states as possible. So far they've made it through the red tape in nine states, including Utah. They're hoping for as many as 20, with write-in capability in all but five.

And there's Devan Bailey, the campaign designer from Centerville. Devan, 22, isone semester from graduating from Weber State. An admirer of Rocky going back to his antiwar demonstrations when he was mayor, Devan and a friend stopped by Rocky's house in Salt Lake City one night for a political conversation and the next thing Devan knew he was setting up Rocky's website,www.voterocky.org.

Nine months ago, Rocky Anderson knew none of these people.

One of the bedrock principles of Rocky's campaign is that money has corrupted politics, but it hasn't corrupted anything here. Nobody's getting rich. Bailey makes a small salary that he supplements by doing a landscaping job twice a week. Mason gets $200 a month, the amount he asked for so he could buy gas and an occasional lunch. Karter gets $500 a month, barely enough for the apartment she's renting downtown, and so far Soriano has received absolutely nothing, although Rocky is letting her stay at his house rent-free.

As for Rocky, "It's devastating financially," he shrugs, estimating he'll eat through $35,000 of his savings this year. It helps that he still drives his 1999 Honda that runs on clean natural gas, his mortgage is paid off, andthese days he wears iron-free shirts.

"I always took my shirts to the dry cleaner," he says of those halcyon days when he ran things from a much bigger office in City Hall. "Now I've learned how to launder them myself."

But there is no whine in Rocky's voice. His disdain is reserved for America's "march toward totalitarianism."

"There are so many people in this country who feel completely disenfranchised," he says. "People who feel they were duped by all the hope and change promised four years ago. I represent the issues that are important to people more than Obama or Romney. I really am mainstream."

The fact that he's saying all this in an office that would give GPS a run for its money is as lost on him as it is beside the point.

For Rocky, now as always, it's the message, not where it's coming from.

Email: benson@desnews.com

Copyright 2012, Deseret News Publishing Company

  

 

Rocky's Interview at Occupy D.C.

References and Links

Please visit the following links for more information.

1. Sasha Abramsky, “The Other Rocky,” The Nation December 15, 2006

2. “Americans Renew Call for Third Party,” September 17, 2010.
(http://www.gallup.com/poll/143051/Americans-Renew-Call-Third-Party.aspx)

3. Caddell and Schoen, “Expect a Third-Party Candidate in 2012,” The Wall Street Journal, August 25, 2011. (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903461304576524313844439194.html#printMode)

4. “Support for Third U.S. Party Dips, But Is Still Majority View,” May 9, 2011
(http://www.gallup.com/poll/147461/support-third-party-dips-majority-view-aspx?version=print)

5. http://www.gallup.com/poll/1669/General-Mood-Country.aspx

6. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/congress-approval-rating-porn-polygamy_n_1098497.html)

7. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/congressional_job_approval-903.html

8. “Voters leaving Republican, Democratic parties in droves,” USA Today, December 22, 2011 (http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2011-12-22/voters-political-parties/52171688/1)

9. “Independents Take Center Stage in the Obama Era,” Pew Research Center Publications, May 21, 2009 (http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1229/political-values-core-attitudes-trends-2009)

10. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036789/ns/msnbc_tv-morning_joe/#46495796 (February 23, 2012).

11. Matt Miller, “Why We Need a Third Party,” The Washington Post, September 25, 2011

12. Friedman and Mandelbaum, That Used To Be Us (Farrar, Straus and Giroux: New York 2011) pp. 331, 334.

13. Lawrence Davidson, “The Voting Dilemma,” InformationClearningHouse.info/article31792.htm, July 8, 2012.

14. http://www.youtube.com/watchv=f226xrqpYuc&feature=player_embedded#!

15. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71D7vkCE4SA&feature=player_embedded

16. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8q2lFSvhPI&feature=player_embedded

17. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMl5H7VBjdE&feature=player_embedded

18. http://www.voterocky.org/rocky_visits_the_alyona_show

19. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYbo-IsWfg8&feature=player_embedded

20. http://www.voterocky.org/rocky_anderson_joins_thom_hartmann

21. http://www.voterocky.org/rocky_anderson_on_the_rachel_maddow_show

22. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYbo-IsWfg8&feature=player_embedded

23. http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/voterocky/pages/32/attachments/original/12_12_2011_-_the_guardian_- Rocky_Anderson_s_radical_third_way___Gary_Younge___World_news___guardian.co.pdf?1327804778

24. http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/voterocky/pages/32/attachments/original/12-31- 2012_Rocky_s_road__One_of_the_country_s_greenest_mayors_guns_for_the_White_House___Grist.pdf?1329777581

25. http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/06/a-dose-of-socialism-could-save-our-states-state-sponsored- single-payer-healthcare-would-bring-in-business-jobs/

26. http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/poll-finds-americans-respect-immigrants-want-non-partisan-solution/ (June 26, 2012).

27. James Pethokoukis, “Why Isn’t Romney for breaking up the big banks?” March 5, 2012 http://www.aei- ideas.org/2012/03/why-isnt-romney-for-breaking-up-the-big-banks/

28. Frank Newport, “Half of Americans Support Legal Gay Marriage,” Gallup Politics, May 8, 2012 (http://www.gallup.com/poll/154529/Half-Americans-Support-Legal-Gay-Marriage.aspx

29. “Impressions of The Citizens United Decision and A Proposed Constitutional Amendment To Overturn It,” Hart Research Associates, January 2011 (http://freespeechforpeople.org/sites/default/files/me10129b_public.pdf)

30. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/135639-poll-tax-hikes-for-rich-should-be-first-step-toward- balancing-budget?sms_ss=reddit&at_xt=4d21df753c0dde70%2C0 (January 3, 2011)

31. Tim Dickenson, “Obama’s War on Pot,” Rolling Stone, February 16, 2012 (http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/obamas-war-on-pot-20120216)

32. Mike Riggs, “Poll: Only 10 Percent of Americans Think the Drug War Is a Success, 66 Percent Think It’s a Failure,” Reason, June 6, 2012 (http://reason.com/blog/2012/06/06/poll-only-10-percent-of-americans-think)

33. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-05-10-Afghanistan-mission-bin-Laden-troops- poll_n.htm?sms_ss=email&at_xt=4dca06401c014a79,0

34. John Zogby, “New Poll by John Zogby Finds 70% of Likely Voters Would Support Legislation to Raise the Minimum Wage,” June 21, 2012 (http://www.jzanalytics.com/) 

Rocky on Online Donations: What your money means in a corrupt system

When you donate to our grassroots campaign, you are contributing to the advancing of a voice for the people -- rather than a tool of the corrupt, corporate special interests that have taken over both the Democratic and Republican parties. Rocky is running because of his unrelenting belief in the people of our country, and the change we can bring about if only we will come together. Will you support a candidate who stands with you, or a candidate who is owned by private interests? 

Click here to donate today.

This is from Rocky's appearance with Chris Vanocur on "On the Record" which originally aired 8/5/2012. Watch the whole interview here:

 

On the Record with Chris Vanocur

Rocky Anderson's interview with Chris Vanocur (Aired August 5, 2012). voterocky.org

Por qué Rocky Anderson ayudo a formar el Partido de la Justicia y corrió como candidato a la presidencia cuando casi no tiene oportunidad de ganar?

Rocky está haciendo esto:

•     Por la misma razón que dedicó  21 años de su práctica en ley para facilitar el acceso del sistema judicial, aquellos que de otro modo no pudieran obtenerlo.

•     Por la misma razón que él trabajó durante muchos años para reivindicar con éxito los derechos de las personas que fueron perjudicadas por los abusos de poder por parte de agentes gubernamentales y corporativos.  

Demostrado su compromiso con las reglas de la ley y el principio de justicia para todos.

Rocky está haciendo esto:

•     Por la misma razón que él se mantuvo firme para la igualdad en el matrimonio y, como Alcalde de Salt Lake City, proporciono protección contra la discriminación por razones de orientación sexual y la igualdad de beneficios para todos los empleados de la ciudad y sus parejas. 

•     Por la misma razón que desafió con éxito la ley del estado  Solo-Inglés, amplio la contratación, la retención y la promoción de las minorías étnicas, y luchó contra la aplicación discriminatoria de las leyes de inmigración. 

Demostrado su compromiso con la igualdad ante la ley - y dignidad para todos en nuestras comunidades.

Rocky está haciendo esto: 

•     Por la misma razón que él fue el único alcalde de una ciudad-grande que pidió juicio político del presidente Bush por su engaño en el período previo a la guerra de agresión contra Irak y los abusos relacionados con los derechos humanos. 

•     Por la misma razón que él luchó con éxito, a veces de forma gratuita, para la protección de los derechos civiles, y después de dejar la Alcaldía, fundo High Road for Human Rights. 

Demostrado su compromiso con la paz, la protección de los derechos civiles y humanos, y poner fin a la construcción del imperio a través de guerras de agresión. 

Rocky está haciendo esto: 

•     Por la misma razón que él fue uno de los principales activistas contra el cambio climático en el mundo, la reducción de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero en un 31% en las operaciones de la ciudad y co-organizó tres reuniones principales de decenas de alcaldes municipales para promover iniciativas de protección del clima.

•     Por la misma razón que implemento tal vez  los programas de justicia restaurativa más amplios de la nación y luchó para poner fin a la desastrosa "guerra contra las drogas".

Demostrado su compromiso con la justicia económica, social y ambiental.

Y por qué AYUDARLE en su campaña?

•     Si le preocupa la paz y el fin de la construcción del imperio en un momento en el que ambos candidatos de los partidos principales son traficantes de guerra que, por su obsecuencia al lobby (la presión de) AIPAC y otros grandes proveedores de fondos, indignante mente exponen un caso de guerra contra Irán. 

•     Si usted cree en un enfoque basado en principios de derechos humanos y la aplicación igualitaria de la regla de la ley en un momento en que los dos candidatos de partidos principales  apoyan la detención indefinida sin el debido proceso y la focalización de los ciudadanos de Estados Unidos por el asesinato - además que están a favor de dos niveles del sistema de justicia, donde los ricos y poderosos no son enjuiciados o responsables por violaciones graves de las leyes de nuestra nación, incluyendo el fraude financiero masivo en Wall Street, los crímenes de guerra, y la vigilancia ilegal de las comunicaciones de los ciudadanos estadounidenses.

•     Si usted entiende el poder y la necesidad de la disidencia en la eliminación de la plutocracia, donde el dinero, en lugar de una preocupación por el interés público, controla la Casa Blanca y el Congreso. 

•     Si usted entiende lo importante que es el liderazgo de EE.UU. (U.S) en la lucha contra el caos climático mundial ..

•     Si usted entiende lo peligroso que sería no tener una voz alternativa e importante hablando en oposición a los desmanes de los partidos Demócrata y Republicano y sus candidatos.

•     Debido a que este es un momento ideal para la construcción de una base amplia, y el movimiento popular a largo plazo por la paz, la justicia económica y la protección del medio ambiente.

Rocky, y su compañero, Luis Rodríguez, y la gente de todo el país que esta ofreciendo su tiempo y energía a la campaña, están trabajando duro todos los días por pasión a hacer una, nación más justa, y saludable.

Corriendo la voz de maneras extraordinarias

 

Imagínense lo que pueden hacer con su ayuda!

Su contribución es esencial para aprovechar esta campaña integra que forme parte de un movimiento a largo plazo, con éxito de un gobierno que sirve al pueblo, y no sólo a las fuentes corruptas donde se mantiene la concentración de la riqueza que actualmente tienen un dominio absoluto sobre nuestros funcionarios electos y los Partidos Demócrata y Republicano.

Si usted cree en este movimiento, si usted cree en la necesidad de restablecer el imperio de la ley y nuestros valores constitucionales más fundamentales, por favor, sean generosos en su apoyo a la campaña Anderson / Rodríguez - en el comienzo de un movimiento a largo plazo para un mundo mas pacífico, sostenible y una nación mundo mas seguro. 

DONAR

Why would Rocky Anderson help form the Justice Party and run for President when he has almost no chance of winning?

Ver en Espanol

Rocky is doing this:

• For the same reason he dedicated so much of his law practice for 21 years to provide access to the judicial system for those who couldn’t otherwise afford it.

• For the same reason he worked for many years to successfully vindicate the rights of people who were harmed by abuses of power by governmental and corporate agents.

A proven commitment to the rule of law and the principle of justice for all

 

Rocky is doing this: 

• For the same reason he stood firmly for marriage equality and, as Mayor of Salt Lake City, provided protection from discrimination on account of sexual orientation and equal benefits for all city employees and their partners.

• For the same reason he successfully challenged a state English-only law, vastly expanded hiring, retention, and promotion of people from the ethnic minority community, and fought against discriminatory enforcement of immigration laws.

A proven commitment to equality under the law – and dignity for all throughout our communities

 

Rocky is doing this:

• For the same reason he was the only major-city mayor to call for President Bush’s impeachment because of his deceit in the run-up to the war of aggression against Iraq and related human rights abuses.

• For the same reason he fought successfully, sometimes free of charge, for the protection of civil rights and, after he left the Mayor’s Office, founded High Road for Human Rights.

A proven commitment to peace, protection of civil and human rights, and an end to empire-building through wars of aggression

 

Rocky is doing this: 

• For the same reason he was one of the top climate change activists in the world, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 31% in city operations and co-hosted three major gatherings of dozens of mayors to promote municipal climate protection initiatives.
  
  
• For the same reason he implemented perhaps the most comprehensive restorative justice programs in the nation and fought to end the disastrous “war on drugs”. 

A proven commitment to economic, social, and environmental justice

 

And why would YOU help him in his campaign?

• If YOU care about peace and an end to empire-building at a time when both major-party candidates, because of their obsequiousness to the AIPAC lobby and other major funders, are outrageously calling for war against Iran.

• If YOU understand the power and necessity of dissent in eliminating the plutocracy, where money, rather than a concern for the public interest, controls the White House and Congress.

• If YOU understand how crucial U.S. leadership is in combating global climate chaos.

• If YOU believe in a principled approach to human rights and the equal application of the rule of law at a time when both major-party candidates support indefinite detention without due process and the targeting of U.S. citizens for assassination – and when they favor a two-tiered system of justice where the rich and powerful are not prosecuted or otherwise held accountable for egregious violations of our nation’s laws, including massive financial fraud on Wall St., war crimes, and illegal surveillance of U.S. citizens’ communications.

• If YOU understand how dangerous it would be not to have a major alternative voice speaking up in opposition to the outrages of the Republican and Democratic Parties and their candidates. 

• Because this is an ideal moment for the building of a broad-based, long-term people’s movement for peace, economic justice, and environmental protection.

Rocky, his running mate Luis Rodriguez, and people throughout the nation volunteering their time and energies to the campaign, are working hard every day out of passion for making a better, more just, healthier nation. 

They are getting the word out in remarkable ways:

"Rocky Anderson is rocking the vote"

"Rocky Anderson on the issues that matter most"

"Rocky Anderson vs. the establishment"

"Rocky Anderson: A man in his own words"

Just imagine what they can do with your help!

Your contribution is essential to leveraging this campaign into being an integral part of a long-term, successful movement for government that serves the people, not just the corrupting sources of concentrated wealth that currently have a stranglehold on our elected officials and the Democratic and Republican Parties.

If you believe in this movement, if you believe in the need to restore the rule of law and our most fundamental constitutional values, please be generous in your support of the Anderson/Rodriguez campaign – an essential component of a long-term movement for a more peaceful, sustainable, secure nation and world.

Poverty in American on Inside Story

There is more evidence of the growing wealth gap in the US: A new report says that the number of people living in poverty could be at its highest level in nearly half a century. So how can the US government help its least fortunate? In 2010, one in six Americans were considered poor. That is more than 47 million people living on less than $10,500 per year. The official government numbers on poverty in 2011 will be released just weeks ahead of the November presidential elections. But an associated press survey of economists and think tanks says that the number of poor Americans could reach 15.7 per cent, making it the highest level since the 1960's. The US already has more poor people than any other developed country. Analysts say it will be years before the US starts to see poverty drop below the rate it was before the so-called 2008 Great Recession. And on Friday, the US government announced that the economy grew at an annual rate of just 1.5 per cent in the second quarter of 2012. The economy is by far the most important issue for the November presidential elections. But do either President Barack Obama, or his presumptive opponent, Republican Mitt Romney, have any real plans to help America's least fortunate? How will the debate affect the US presidential election? And is there a political will to improve the lives of America's poor? To discuss this we are joined by Rocky Anderson, a US presidential candidate for the Justice Party; Barbara Ehrenreich, the author of the book Nickel and Dimed; and Stan Veuger, an economist and research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.