The Democrats' project to extend Mr. Bush's fast-track authority on "free" trade pacts now lies in ruins -- at this moment Mr. Bush has no such authority. Go buy yourself some locally-produced food as a reward for your good efforts. And then, if you like, Citizen Action can teach you how to hound your Congressfolk about "free" trade pacts. Conveniently, your Congressfolk are in their districts this week, mercifully far from their power to cause harm, but close to you and I. And Tha Bush Mobb released the final legal details of NAFTA-expansion deals with Peru, Panama, Colombia and South Korea, which they could try to ram through Congress. Congress might even feel a little like they owe the guy, since they didn't extend his fast-track authority. They don't, and neither do we.
The quarterly fundraising reports for the 2008 Presidential candidates are out, but I don't link to that kind of stuff. Better we should work at changing the system so that we don't condition ourselves to look at this like it's a damn horse race. So, Common Cause sponsors a petition telling the Presidential candidates to support the Fair Elections Now Act. Messrs. Obama and McCain have pledged to stay within the current system if they're the nominees, and good for them, but America needs more. And no no no no it is not a violation of the First Amendment to pass campaign-financing legislation. The First Amendment guarantees all of its citizens the right to petition to redress grievances. But all of us can't petition to redress grievances if some of us can "petition" more easily than others. Oh, and also because money isn't speech.
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