Over the past couple of days I learned about two rally/protest/press events related to the debt ceiling / austerity cuts. For weeks now, I have been determined to get out on the streets and have been waiting for events to be organized.
Last night we decided we were going to DC to two events, the MoveOn/Rebuild the Dream event at the Capitol and the press event at 14th & Constitution. So with little planning, we got in the car and drove the ~130 miles to Washington. We usually take the train but it's very expensive, it was an impromptu trip, and J. has a hybrid vehicle, so don't get on my case about carbon footprints :). We parked at 14 & Constitution and took a cab to the Capitol for the first event which was really well attended even though it was as hot as heck, 96 degrees according to the car thermometer. Then we left that event just before it ended and went back to 14th & Constitution. That was about as much as I could handle from a health standpoint, but it all worked out very well and we were really glad that we went, and we'll do it again in the next week or so if the opportunity presents itself.
Below I've posted videos from the Rebuild the Dream site and from Huffington Post, some pictures from MoveOn and my own pictures from the first event. Hope you enjoy them and that it makes you want to take it to the streets too, in whatever way is possible for you.
It's time.
Video of the MoveOn/Rebuild the Dream Event
Video from the Rebuild the Dream site, parts 1, 2 and 3.
Emergency Default Crisis Capitol Rally
Our emergency default crisis rally at the US Capitol will be broadcast live here at 12 noon ET. Stand by for Van Jones, Congressional Progressive Caucus Co-Chairs Raul Grijalva and Keith Ellison, unemployed Army reservist Tiffany Mellers, and furloughed FAA worker Ralph Randall, among others.
On Capitol Hill, hundreds push back against cruel cuts
On the United States Capitol steps today, with a looming federal government default and several proposals on the table to balance the budget by gutting vital programs, an estimated crowd of 450-500 assembled to show their support for preserving Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in any budget negotiations, now or in the future. They also demanded that if we’re looking for funds to balance the budget, the best place to look is in the bank accounts of Wall Street banks who are making record profits after benefiting from massive bailouts, and from the wallets of hedge fund managers who pay a lower effective tax rate than their secretaries.
MoveOn.org, Rebuild the Dream, AFSCME, AFGE, and Jobs with Justice, among many other organizations came together to organize the rally today. Among the speakers were Van Jones, co-founder and president of Rebuild the Dream; Co-Chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN); Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX) and Donna Edwards (D-MD); unemployed Army reservist Tiffany Mellers; furloughed FAA worker Ralph Randall, Jobs with Justice president Sarita Gupta, and national president of AFGE John Gage.
Van Jones was both a featured speaker and the rally’s emcee. He started off the rally by pointing out that the mainstream position in America is that rather than looking first to raid programs like Medicaid, we should consider wealthy people part of this country and look to them to help shoulder the burden.
My Pictures from the MoveOn/Rebuild the Dream Event
Pictures from the MoveOn/Rebuild the Dream Event (Slideshow via MoveOn)
On Capitol Hill, hundreds push back against cruel cuts
Video from 14th Amendment Event
Democrats Pressure Obama To Use 14th Amendment To Raise Debt Ceiling (VIDEO)
WASHINGTON -- With time running out and still no bipartisan debt deal in sight, a growing number of House Democrats are pressuring President Barack Obama to use a constitutional option they say would allow him to raise the debt ceiling himself.
Taking it to the Streets