Dear Congressman Paul,

You have fought an amazing battle for what you believe in.  Because of your passionate, deeply-held views, you have devoted yourself to inspiring millions of people who have looked to you for your tenacious, honest approach to governance.

Although you and I disagree on a number of matters, we agree wholeheartedly on certain fundamentals, concerning which we need to keep up our fight: 

• That our nation has no business building an empire, with disastrous effects to our own nation and to others. 
• That government becomes a major threat to individual rights and liberties when it engages in outrages such as indefinite detention and the assassination of U.S. citizens without due process.
• That private banks can not be allowed any longer to control U.S. monetary policy through the Federal Reserve.

Please continue speaking out on these issues and keep in mind that millions of people around the country – even those who disagree with you on certain issues – view you as a man of tremendous conviction and integrity.

Thank you for the sacrifices you have made – and for the example you have set for those who have been looking for real leadership and authenticity in our nation’s elected officials.

I wish you the very best and hope we can work together to bring about a healthier, safer, more peaceful world.

With gratitude,

Rocky Anderson

The evisceration of labor protections has been one of the key factors underlying the drastic shift in power and wealth from the majority to the minority over the past 40 years. Unionization allows workers – i.e. the majority of Americans – to band together to ensure fair treatment from their employers. They can bargain collectively to ensure –among other things – fair wages, decent working conditions, and social and environmental protections. Given this, strong unionization rates in the 1950s and 60s played an important role in the improvement of living standards throughout America, the rise in median wages, and rapid economic growth that was fairly evenly distributed. This helped create what is now known as the “Golden Age of Capitalism” with the maintenance of a thriving middle class.

Since the early 70s however, with the collapse of the Bretton Woods Agreement and the subsequent Reaganite assault on working Americans, there has been a major shift of power from workers to management, with total union membership rates dropping from around 25% to 12%, with nearly all that decline coming in the private sector, where the union membership rate of 7% is the lowest since the Depression. The US – where following World War II, one in three non-farm workers were union members -  now has the lowest unionization rate of any developed economy except France. Just as high unionization levels contributed to rising living standards for almost everyone, the fall in unionization rates has led to a reduction in living standards for all but the super rich, with real median wages stagnant or declining, and CEO to worker pay ratio skyrocketed from around 30:1 to around 200:1.

Rocky Anderson’s Approach Toward Solutions

An Anderson Administration would recognize the fundamental importance of a strong and vibrant labor movement as being one of the key building blocks upon which a strong and vibrant working and middle class is based, as it was in the 1950s and 60s. As Mayor of Salt Lake City, he dealt constructively with three public sector unions.  Salt Lake City was the only city in Utah that engaged in collective bargaining, which Anderson has always supported.

Rocky would work towards enacting policies that will enhance union protection, and reverse the catastrophic decline in union participation rates, including the following:

1.     More union participation in government. The practice for decades by Republican and Democratic administrations has been to staff key administration positions with ex-CEOs of major corporations, or people with strong links to such companies. This reflects a balance of power tilted toward the managerial class, rather than the majority of Americans – the “99%”. There is no justification for this.  In order to assure a truly representative government, Anderson would staff a significant share of economic positions with union and labor leaders, people who represent the majority of working Americans. This would represent a drastic reversal from the current Wall Street alumni system that President Obama favors.  The beneficiaries of government policy would also change accordingly.

 2.     Repeal Taft-Hartley. Anderson would work to build a Congressional consensus to repeal what President Truman called the “slave-labor bill” passed in the 1940s, the effects of which are still felt by working men and women and their families.

 3.     Support the Employee Free Choice Act. As a corollary to repealing Taft-Hartley, Anderson would support the Employee Free Choice Act, in particular the provisions which facilitate collective bargaining, make it easier to join unions, and prevent firms from engaging in unfair labor practices. The Employee Free Choice Act is the most important current legislative proposal for labor rights.  Support of that Act must be a key aspect of any labor agenda.

 4.     WPA-type Initiatives.  The Works Progress Administration was an enormous success and we are still benefiting from the contributions of the WPA to the repair and building of much of our nation’s infrastructure.  (My high school, ranked one of the three most beautiful in the U.S., was a WPA project and is still serving my boyhood community well.)  With such a program, we could put millions of people to work and contribute significantly to building up our infrastructure – including roads, bridges, buildings, and, with additional components to the initiative, our arts and cultural infrastructure.

 5.     Fair Trade.  NAFTA and CAFTA were betrayals to working people and their families and should be repealed or, at the least, re-negotiated so that employers of U.S. workers are placed on a more equal footing with employers of people in other nations.  We should do what we can to return to the United States jobs lost to other countries as a result of the globalization of capital and the free trade agreements that benefited primarily the multi-national corporations that have moved many, if not all, of their operations outside of the U.S.

Read Rocky's Solution For Labor & Union Protection In Its Entirety Here.

Please join others now in calling upon President Obama to live up to his campaign promise from four years ago and end his betrayal on medical marijuana.

Ask your friends and family members to add their voices too.  It’s all about networking and organizing enough people to get Obama’s attention. 

Let’s keep up the pressure.  It worked in bringing about President Obama’s recent change of position on marriage equality, after many years of his opposition to it.  Let’s push for promised “change” now on medical marijuana.  

“Back when he was running for president in 2008, Barack Obama insisted that medical marijuana was an issue best left to state and local governments.  ‘I’m not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue,’ he vowed, promising an end to the Bush administration’s high-profile raids on providers of medical pot, which is legal in 16 states and the District of Columbia.”

But he renominated Michele Leonhart to stay on as head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, where she had served in the Bush administration.  Then he allowed her to bust growers and distributors of medical marijuana, even where state law allows it.  

As in so many other cases, Obama has done a complete about-face . . .

• threatening to prosecute regulators enforcing state laws that permit medical marijuana;
• interfering with the physician-patient relationship when doctors seek to reduce suffering by prescribing marijuana;
• targeting growers and distributors complying with state law; and
• demonstrating a lack of compassion toward patients who obtain significant relief from nausea and pain by using marijuana.

Next week, we will to deliver a letter, which we hope you and your friends will sign, to President Obama demanding that, wherever state law allows medical marijuana, federal harassment, arrests, and prosecutions for medical marijuana cease immediately.   

Click here to add your name to the letter, calling for an end to the federal war on medical marijuana.

Last week, Rocky gave a speech at a women's rights rally publicly decrying regressive anti-women policy-making. When anyone's rights are under attack, we all must come together.

"Our nation is being transformed," Rocky began, "Our Republic is being undermined – and we are all at risk.  We must stand together and take sustained action to make it clear that we the people will not stand for it any more."

Rocky confronted both dominant parties, continuing, "Our nation is facing a dangerous onslaught of bigoted, authoritarian policies and practices pushed not only by an extremist right-wing group of fanatics but by people thought by most to be more mainstream, including Republicans and Democrats alike."

Closing poignantly, Rocky concluded, "Equality and justice are not just catch phrases.  Equality and justice must continue to define what our nation stands for and what we, the American people, will continue to fight for.  It is up to each and all of us, standing and fighting tenaciously, together.  Let us stand tall and stand proud – and fight for the rights and liberties of all, united in our purpose."

Please read and share his speech in its entirety here.

More than ever we are in need of contributors to step forward and join our movement for a future that works for everyone. Please donate here.

Otherwise -- particularly if you've already donated, and are wondering how best you can help the campaign -- we need your time and effort to continue gaining momentum. Please use this link to contact major media outlets, and demand coverage of Rocky's campaign.

Also, our new campaign brochure is ready for dissemination. Be sure to check it out here. Please send it around to friends, family, and associates as a PDF, or print it out for distribution.

We'd just like to share a few recent photos as well as give a brief summary of some of the exciting events Rocky's been involved with in the last couple of weeks. Remember to stay updated with upcoming events here on our 'Events' page -- don't miss out on meeting Rocky out on the campaign trail!

April 19, 2012

Shortly after Rocky's arrival in Los Angeles he had a one-hour interview on the Go Harrison Show.  In California it was heard on Radio Pacifica from San Diego to Santa Barbara. It was also broadcast nationally and internationally on the Progressive Radio Network.

   

April 20, 2012

Rocky had breakfast with supporters at the Unurban Cafe in Santa Monica. Wonderful conversation with lots of questions and answers from the participants.

Rocky later attended a Book Signing for Anti War Heroes Blase Bonpane and S. Brian Willson. The event was hosted by Frank Dorrel (publisher of Addicted to War).

April 21, 2012

Breakfast at the Rose Cafe in Venice, California full of great conversation and discussion with supporters.

That evening Rocky attended a Third Party Debate sponsored by the Maggie Phair Institute. It was a great event full of diverse opinions and open-minded discourse concerning the most pressing issues facing America in 2012. Click here to watch a video of the whole debate.

Rocky did a fantastic job and was interviewed after by Michael Shure of The Young Turks. Click here to watch Rocky's appearance on The Young Turks back in December. 

Be sure to keep up with the campaign by signing up here, and contributing here. Remember, a candidate who stands for the public depends on the public, and a candidate who refuses to restrict rhetoric to mainstream talking points depends on you to get the word out to the world. Together we can raise awareness and unite the nation for an America that works for everyone.

Donate today.

Help us get to $25,000 today. Track our progress here.
Support a true middle class advocate this May Day: DONATE NOW

Do you know the history of May Day? On May 1, 1886, laborers came together to make Chicago the heart of the eight-hour work day movement. In a series of at least 19 marches beginning on April 25, laborers organized together and paraded down Chicago streets, which culminated in 35,000 skilled and unskilled workers walking off their jobs on the first of May. Inspired by those events, unionists and other workers around the world celebrated May Day as an international workers' holiday. 

In recent years the strong tradition of American labor has become all but forgotten. With the once thriving American union membership fading, the American middle class is realizing a dismal correlation between decreased union membership and diminishing income.

So what's the way forward?

As president, Rocky Anderson will enhance union protection and reverse the catastrophic decline in union participation rates. His plan includes the following:

1.     More union participation in government, rather than surrounding himself with Wall Street lackeys. 
2.     Repeal Taft-Hartley. 
3.     Support the Employee Free Choice Act. 
4.     WPA-type Initiatives.
5.     Fair Trade. 

An Anderson Administration would recognize the fundamental importance of a strong and vibrant labor movement as being one of the key building blocks upon which a strong and vibrant working and middle class is based, as it was in the 1950s and 60s. As Mayor of Salt Lake City, he dealt constructively with three public sector unions.  Salt Lake City was the only city in Utah that engaged in collective bargaining, which Anderson has always supported. 

Contribute to a real labor advocate today, May Day.

To defeat the corrupting influence of money, Rocky is accepting only up to $100 per person.
No special interest money. No exceptions.

Please send this message to 5 fellow supporters of working men and women. Let's raise enough money for Rocky to spread our message across the country about defending the middle class.

Show your support for the middle class:

DONATE NOW

Read Rocky's policy paper regarding Labor and Union Protection here.

Read Rocky's policy paper regarding Wealth and Income Disparity here.
 

by Steven Holmes (from Yahoo! Voices)

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney filmed a television advertisement endorsing the only mayor of a major U.S. city to publicly call for the impeachment of former President George W. Bush. The advertisement was filmed while Romney was in office as the governor of Massachusetts for former Mayor Rocky Anderson, who was running for re-election in Salt Lake City during 2003. Anderson was a vocal opponent of former President Bush's policies, particularly the involvement of U.S. forces in the war in Iraq, which was beginning at the time of Romney's endorsement of Anderson in the 2003 election.

In the advertisement, Romney's face is filmed looking straight into the camera and speaking in a personal and passionate tone about Anderson's leadership, intelligence, and work ethic. Romney speaks in glowing terms about how much he enjoyed working with Anderson, and how Salt Lake City is a "better place" because of his leadership.

Anderson, who was re-elected as mayor in 2003, formally called for the impeachment of then President George W. Bush on CNN in March 2007. He subsequently repeated the impeachment call on numerous television programs and as a speaker at anti-war rallies, urging the U.S. House of Representatives to begin the process of charging President Bush for "high crimes and misdemeanors" for his role in the Iraq War and implementation of anti-terrorism policies.

In a 90-minute telephone interview, which was transcribed and verified through email, Anderson confirmed that he was a consistent and frequent critic of former President Bush by saying, "During the Bush Administration and as mayor I was speaking out constantly about the war and about the lies of the Administration."

When asked about Romney, whom the former mayor also endorsed for Massachusetts governor in 2002, Anderson noted a distinct change in his political rhetoric and questioned Romney's devotion to his current policies by saying, "The Mitt Romney I knew and worked so closely with was a very different Romney than is now running for President. The Mitt Romney I knew was very reasonable and moderate. He wouldn't have won in Massachusetts race for governor if he weren't," then continued, "I spoke with him personally, in-depth, about his positions on issues, and he was solid about the key issue of choice and gay/lesbian rights, yet he changed 180 degrees the day he decided to run for President. The things I hear him say now -- I don't even recognize the Mitt Romney I knew."

Anderson responded to a follow-up question about whether Romney's 180-degree change, to the point where he "no longer recognized" the man he knew, was simply a tactic to attract conservative votes for the Republican presidential nomination by saying, "I think it's obvious he's doing this to attract right-wingers."

Romney aide Eric Ferhnstrom caused a political firestorm on March 21 when asked how the campaign would attract independent voters in the general election after campaigning as a conservative throughout the primaries. Fehrnstrom used the metaphor of an Etch A Sketch, a children's toy that erases drawings by simply shaking it, to illustrate how Romney can pivot to challenge President Obama with centrist independent voters.

Throughout both the 2008 and 2012 Republican presidential races, Romney was sharply criticized for he and his SuperPAC spending $35 million, according to Bloomberg, running mostly negative advertising campaigns questioning his Republican opponents' bona-fides as "conservatives."

Romney attacked former House Speaker Newt Gingrich for filming an ad with former Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Within several days of ascending to her position in November 2006, former House Speaker Pelosi dismissed any possibility of impeaching then President Bush by declaring the possibility "off the table."

Pelosi overcame a primary challenge from Code Pink anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan in 2008, who mounted the attempt as punishment for Pelosi refusing to support a Bush impeachment. Former Mayor Anderson is a recipient of the Pink Star honor from the activist anti-war group Code Pink, according to his profile. on the Americans Elect website.

The 2012 Presidential field is dismal for those supportive of rational, compassiate foreign policy. Between isolationist Ron Paul (opposing all international treaties and organizations), the continuation of disastrous Bush-era policies Obama has perpetuated, and Romney's promise to reverse Obama's "massive defense cuts" (massive spending cuts that don't exist, that is), Rocky stands as a lone voice of reason concerning foreign policy.

Just this week Mitt Romney said of Russia, "in terms of a geopolitical foe, a nation that’s on the Security Council, that has the heft of the Security Council, and is of course a massive security power — Russia is the geopolitical foe.”

Attorney General Eric Holder explained in a speech earlier this month, "'Due process' and 'judicial process' are not one and the same, particularly when it comes to national security." 

So how does Rocky Anderson describe his foreign policy?

"I would entirely end United States empire-building. I would bring American servicemen and women back to this country unless there is a compelling national security need. That would mean disbanding almost all of our overseas military bases. I would dramatically reduce the U.S. military budget and would take an approach exactly the opposite of the Obama Administration and the neo-conservatives who are so intent in asserting U.S. dominance militarily and economically over the rest of the world, because in the long run, that will spell the downfall of this country and it’s also absolutely immoral as to people in other parts of the world. This Holy War against the Muslim world has been not only shameful, but also absolutely detrimental to our nation’s and future generations’ security interests." 

Read Rocky's solution piece on foreign policy here.

Sign Rocky's "No War On Iran" petition here.

During an interview with Steve Horn, Rocky boldy stated the following concerning our current healthcare debate:

Although the Obama plan addresses some of the very serious problems, all in all, it perpetuates the injustice and incredible expense and inefficiency of a health care system that will continue to fail many millions of people in this country.

I would like to see this nation start over by addressing what’s truly in the public interest, taking the best elements of other systems that are working well for people throughout the industrialized world and not allowing the corrupting influence of money from the insurance and pharmaceutical industries control the result. Most of us in this country know that the reason why we have such an obscene, unjust, expensive health care system: all you have to do is follow the money. The public’s interests have been shafted while the insurance companies end up in an even better situation than they were before, with a mandate that everybody in this country buy their perverse products.

The Obama plan even allows up to 20% of what they call “administrative costs,” which is not only the paper work and paying for people whose job it is to figure out ways to deny people coverage, but also shareholder returns on investments and enormous salaries and bonuses to not only the executives, but also the people who sell these products. The Obama plan sets aside up to 20% for that, when the administrative costs in many industrialized nations are in the 2-5% range. So, the Obama plan guarantees still millions of people without any coverage, all on the basis of whether people can afford it or not, and also allows for this enormous waste in our system that’s not experienced in other countries.

Read Rocky's Healthcare solution here.

Read entire interview with Steve Horn at Nation of Change here.