In less than an hour, we will have an official announcement of a strong candidate who will take the fight to the single, statewide elected GOP office-holder here in the state of Oregon. Senator Gordon Smith. A candidate who has the intellect, the fire in the belly, and the proven resumé to stand up for the interests of ordinary citizens. To hold accountable the monied interests and the powerful, that they too must operate on a level playing field with you and I. Read more about this candidate below the fold.
Dear Friends:
I'm running for the United States Senate because Oregon's working families need someone to fight for them - and a fighter needs a hard left hook.
I'm running because while George Bush has been taking our country to hell, Senator Gordon Smith had his hand on the handbasket every step of the way.
I'm running because Gordon Smith represents government of the rich, by the powerful, and for the special interests, and I believe in government of the people, by the people and for the people
But mostly, I'm running because I don't want to wake up ten years from now and see that only half of Oregonians have health care, and that half don't.
I'm running because I don't want to wake up ten years from now and see that inequality, the gap between the rich and powerful and the rest of us, is even more outrageous than it is today. People are tired of hearing that the economy is good, and seeing that only the rich get richer.
I'm running because I don't want to wake up ten years from now and see that the national debt on the shoulders of our children has risen to a level that is crushing the economy and forcing savage cuts in Social Security, Medicare and other vital services.
And I'm running because I don't want to wake up twenty years from now and see that global warming is destroying our farms, our forests, and our coastal cities.
These are the great issues- the great challenges --of our time. And we can meet those challenges, if we elect political leaders willing to tell the truth and act boldly.
I am stepping forward to run for, and serve, in the US Senate for Oregon, by telling the truth and acting boldly.
We can ensure that every American has health insurance, and restrain the growth of health care costs; Senator Ron Wyden has introduced a plan to do just that. So has former Senator John Edwards. But even before we have a comprehensive plan, we can take some simple steps. For example, we shouldn't keep giving drug companies a tax break for advertising prescription drugs. Why should the taxpayers pay for drug companies to persuading them to buy the most expensive drugs?
We can avert global warming and build a new economy, creating high-paying jobs right here in the US of A, with a massive commitment to renewable energy - energy we can create right here at home - from wind and water to biofuels and wave energy, and through increased conservation. The business and job-creating opportunities are enormous. So much so that Governors of several western states are committed to making Oregon a leader in renewables. The Federal government can either help make that happen or ignore it.
We can prevent the Federal Government from going bankrupt with fair tax policies and sane spending policies. We need to stop allowing people who make their money buying and selling stock to pay a lower tax rate than people who actually work for a living.
Do you think huge corporations should have to pay their fair share of taxes for the services we all use, like the rest of us?? We can stop giving tax breaks to multinational corporations that stash their money overseas so that they don't have to declare their income and pay taxes .
We can prioritize the money we spend on defense, focusing on humans before hardware. We need better health care for veterans, and more people who can speak Arabic; we don't need expensive, exotic weapons systems originally designed to fight the Soviet Union. And we certainly don't need to allow the Halliburton Corporation to continue to get away with robbing the taxpayer just because they know the Vice President.
And we can help reduce inequality by passing the Employee Free Choice Act. Today. Right now, it is illegal for employers to fire, punish and threaten employees who try to form unions - but many employers ignore the law, because there is almost no penalty for breaking it. The Employee Free Choice Act would put teeth in the law, and remove other barriers to organizing. I know some people think unions are old-fashioned. But one of the reasons that CEOs made "only" 35 to 40 times what the average worker made in the 1950's, compared to 300 times the average worker's wage today, is that in the ‘50's, stronger unions were negotiating a fairer share of the pie for the average worker.
We face major challenges in the coming decade. How will we create enough living-wage jobs for workers who were downsized, for young people, and for middle-class families around this state and nation? How will we ensure , access to basic health care services for all Americans, and protect Social Security for our retirees? How can we avert global warming?
I believe we can meet these challenges. But we cannot meet them if people like Republican US Senator Gordon Smith remain as our decision-makers. Because on every one of these great issues, Gordon Smith has been on the wrong side -- or worse yet, has not even shown up.
Inequality? Gordon Smith has voted to reduce the wages of Oregon waiters and waitresses by allowing restaurants to pay less than minimum wage. Meanwhile, he sponsored a special tax break for multinational corporations that stash their money overseas - a tax break that gave one drug company, Pfizer, eleven billion dollars.
The national debt? Gordon Smith is as responsible as any member of Congress for adding $3 trillion to the national debt during the Bush years - a $10,000 charge to the credit card of every man, woman and child in America. Smith never criticizes any kind of spending; meanwhile, he supports every one of George Bush's tax cuts for the rich and powerful. He voted for, and for four years strongly supported, Bush's insanely expensive fiasco in Iraq. He opposed even allowing Medicare to negotiate reasonable prices with the drug companies. And he even opposed investigating Halliburton's contracts in Iraq to make sure taxpayers are getting their money's worth.
Global warming? Smith has said that scientists are "evenly divided" on whether burning fossil fuels is causing global warming. Come on. Ostriches are the species that put their heads in the sand, not US Senators.
Health care? Smith refuses to support any plan out there now to ensure that every American has health care. Again, he supported the Bush Administration's Medicare drug plan, a giveaway to the drug companies. And by helping to add $3 trillion to the national debt, he has created a climate in which - if China ever stops loaning us money - the Federal government will be cutting health care in order to pay its bills.
We can't afford six more years of Gordon Smith. As long as hands like his are on the handbasket, we'll stay on the highway to hell. I ask you to help me to replace his hand with mine - so that I can start pulling in the other direction.
There are many ways you can help. Host a house party. Send a letter to the editor. Write a blog entry. Send a check. Tell me that I can publicly list you as a supporter. Please hit the "volunteer" button, or the "contribute" button (or both!), and let me know what you would like to do.
Thank you so much for your support, your commitment, and your belief that together, we can make a difference.
— Steve Novick for United States Senate