RESULTS OF OUR YARD SALE

We are proud to announce that the Alfalfa County Democratic Party raised $243.25 from our yard sale. The money will be sent to the Armor 4 Troops Foundation to help buy body armor for the soldiers over seas. No matter how you feel about the war that our nation is involved in it is important to protect our troops. If you would like to help with this cause you can visit the Armor 4 troops Foundation at www.armor4troops.org

FEDERATION OF DEMOCRATIC WOMEN

The Alfalfa County Democratic Women are taking a break for the summer, they hope you can join them at their meeting in September.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT McCAIN

10 things you should know about John McCain (but probably don't):

1. John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws.

2. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."

3. His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.

4. McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."

5. The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.

6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.

7. Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."

8. McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.

9. McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain sought the political support of right-wing preacher John Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church "the Antichrist" and a "false cult."

10. He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year.

STATE REPUBLICANS AND THEIR ETHICS

The Chair of the Oklahoma Democratic Party released a statement recently regarding Oklahoma House Republicans continuing ethics troubles.
"It seems that the corrupt policies that have plagued Washington D.C. Republicans are continuing to haunt Oklahoma," said Ivan Holmes, Chair of the Oklahoma Democratic Party.
Last week news reports revealed that Oklahoma Speaker of the House Lance Cargill, R- Harrah, and several other Republican House Members attended a fundraiser at the home of Gene Phillips, the businessman who is linked to the scandal led to the impeachment of former Insurance Commissioner Carrol Fisher. Fisher is accused of accepting over $25,000 in bribes from Phillips and his family in exchange for favorable treatment of his insurance companies.
"According to reports from the Tulsa World, Phillip's son attempted to change a law that would have favored his insurance company. The amendment was carried by Republican Majority Floor Leader Greg Piatt, R- Ardmore. Piatt received a $5,000 contribution from Phillip's son in exchange for him carrying the bill," Homes said.
"Three Republican lawmakers have confirmed that they will be returning contributions from Phillips. The three Republicans are members of a House Committee that approved legislation favorable to the Phillips family last spring. Why haven't all Republican House members returned contributions they received from Phillips," Holmes asked?
Republican representatives who attended the Dallas fundraiser besides Speaker Cargill were Rep. Ron Peterson, R-Tulsa; Gus Blackwell, R-Goodwell; Mike Jackson, R-Enid; Rob Johnson, R-Kingfisher; Colby Schwartz, R-Yukon; and T.W. Shannon, R-Lawton.
"Not only did these Republicans attend a fundraiser at the home of a person who is in the business of bribing elected officials but they carried his dirty water in the Legislature," said Holmes.
The Ethics Commission is continuing to investigate House Republicans for checks that were illegally deposited and funneled during the 2004 and 2006 election season.
Republicans are interested in one thing, filling their own coffers with money. An investigation into these activities needs to be conducted immediately. I fear that the same people that bribed the convicted former Insurance Commissioner are now contributing to House Republicans."
"Republicans in the House of Representatives need to clean up their own House" said Holmes. "Since Republicans have gained Republican control, they have managed to come under investigation by the Ethics Commission and take numerous contributions from businessmen and lobbyists. This pay for play attitude needs to stop. Oklahomans will see through their unethical behavior and tactics and elect a Democratic Majority in 2008 that truly cares about the needs of working Oklahomans," Holmes said.

A LETTER FROM HOWARD DEAN

Here we go again.
For the past few months, the Bush Administration exploited the fears of Americans to make their case against Iran. Just a few weeks ago, the President said "I believe they want to have the capacity, the knowledge, in order to make a nuclear weapon."
This week, 16 U.S. intelligence agencies published a report that "in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program." Turns out the White House was aware of this shocking assessment for a few months, but reportedly worked to delay its public release.
Distortions and manipulation to promote a narrow ideological agenda is nothing new to the Bush Administration -- it's how they misled us into Iraq. This is the worst kind of leadership: a dishonest appeal our base emotions.
Iran may pose a threat, but misleading the American people is not the way to deal with it. All of the Democratic candidates have said that we need to have all options on the table when dealing with Iran -- Republicans seem to only consider war.
After we elect a Democratic president in 2008, the American people will once again have a leader who will be open and honest with them. But until then, it's important that every Republican presidential candidate avoids the fear-mongering that George Bush has used to so profoundly divide this country.
Back when I ran for President, I couldn't walk ten feet without seeing a "Hope not Fear" slogan on a t-shirt or a sign. And now, four years later, it's never meant more to me. Join me and remind every Republican presidential candidate that all Americans want to be inspired by hope, not governed by fear. Tell them to listen to the intelligence community:
http://www.democrats.org/HopeNotFear
If these quotes are any indication, the Republican frontrunners haven't gotten the message:
Rudy Giuliani: "Iran is nuclear threat, not just because they can deliver a nuclear warhead with missiles; they're a nuclear threat because they are the biggest state sponsor of terrorism and they can hand nuclear materials to terrorists."
Mitt Romney: "If for some reasons they continue down their course of folly toward nuclear ambition, then I would take military action if that's available to us."
Mike Huckabee: "A President has to do whatever is necessary to protect the American people. If we think Iran is building nuclear capacity that could be used against us in any way, including selling some of the nuclear capacity to some other terrorist group, then yes we have a right [to attack]. I would do it in a heartbeat.
" We don't need four more years of Bush-Cheney foreign policy in the White House. No matter your party, it's time to stop scaring Americans with doomsday scenarios -- and start talking about the positive steps our country can take to ensure a peaceful world community. Stand up for policy based on facts, not hysteria fueled by fear.
President Bush used faulty intelligence and fear-mongering to enter Iraq. Now he's been caught using faulty intelligence and fear-mongering to engage Iran. He's not going to get away with it. Don't let any one of our nation's presidential candidates get away with it either.

Sincerely, Howard Dean

DEFINITION OF LIBERAL

"if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."

John F. Kennedy
Sept. 14, 1960

TO BE A REPUBLICAN YOU NEED TO BELIEVE:

1. Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton
2. Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's Daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him, and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.
3. Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is Communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.
4. The United States should get out of the United Nations, and our highest national priority is enforcing U.N. resolutions against Iraq .
5. A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multinational drug corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.
6. The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches, while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.
7. If condoms are kept out of schools, adolescents won't have sex.
8. A good way to fight terrorism is to belittle our longtime allies, then demand their cooperation and money.
9. Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound
policy, but providing health care to all Americans is socialism. HMO's and insurance companies have the best interests of the public at heart.
10. Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.
11. A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense, but a president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.
12. Government should limit itself to the powers named in the Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.
13. The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's driving record is none of our business.
14. Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness and you need our prayers for your recovery.
15. Supporting "Executive Privilege" for every Republican ever born, who will be born or who might be born (in perpetuity.)
16. What Bill Clinton did in the 1960's is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '80's is irrelevant.
17. Support for hunters who shoot their friends and blame them for wearing orange vests similar to those worn by the quail.