Watch Obama's Address Tonight 9/9

Tonight, September 9, Obama is addressing Congress and discussing health care reform. Presidential Health Care Watch Parties are being organized to watch the speech.

On Wednesday night, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, President Obama is delivering a major address on health insurance reform to a special joint session of Congress. It'll be a historic event -- and a turning point in our push for real reform.

We'll gather together to hear directly from the President. And after the speech, everyone at these parties will be able to take part in an important conference call with former Obama for America campaign manager David Plouffe about the work we'll still need to do to help pass real reform this year.

This is a great opportunity to interact with other supporters who share your passion for reform at this critical moment. And it's an even better time to bring along that friend or co-worker who has had questions about reform or has heard a lot of the misinformation -- on Wednesday night, they'll be able to hear the facts straight from the President.

Check out BarackObama.com to find events in your neighborhood. Or host your own Presidential Health Care Address Watch Party.

"Senate Has Changed in Kennedy’s Time"

An excerpt from a great article in the NY Times, "Senate Has Changed in Kennedy’s Time":

To Mr. Caro, Mr. Kennedy’s own knowledge of Senate history and reverence for its ideals were yet another reminder of why [Kennedy] deserved a place in the pantheon of Senate greats, alongside men like Webster and Calhoun and Clay. But it was also a reminder of how much the Senate had changed during Mr. Kennedy’s 46 years there.

“Ted Kennedy was a senator out of another, very different, Senate era: an era in which senators who believed in great causes stood at their desks, year after year and decade after decade, fighting for those causes, and educating the country about them,” Mr. Caro said.

To read the entire article, check out the Times.

Senator Kennedy

Senator Ted Kennedy has passed away.

Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, a son of one of the most storied families in American politics, a man who knew acclaim and tragedy in near-equal measure and who will be remembered as one of the most effective lawmakers in the history of the Senate, died late Tuesday night. He was 77.

To read the full obit, check out the NY Times.

A Video Biography: Sonia Sotomayor

Check out a video biography of newly-appointed Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor

About the Video:

"Judge Sonia Sotomayor describes her long journey from a housing project in an urban Puerto Rican neighborhood to the memorable day she was given a private tour of the White House, when she was a newly appointed federal judge. A video from the Law School Admission Council in 2004."

Sotomayor Confirmed by Senate

Sotomayor Confirmed by Senate, vote is 68-31

Voting largely along party lines, the Senate on Thursday confirmed Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the 111th justice of the Supreme Court. She will be the first Hispanic and the third woman to serve on the court.

From the New York Times website. Check it out to read more.

Congressman Towns votes against new funding for the Iraq and Afghan wars

From Ed from Fort Greene Peace:

Congressman Towns just voted against new funding for the Iraq & Afghan wars. Can you send an email to him, thanking him and encouraging him to continue in his vain?

Call his Brooklyn office: (718) 855-8018
Email him

This past Friday, just prior to the recess, the House voted for a new "defense" authorization. This Defense bill included approximately $130 billion in the new war funding through October 2010.

The House vote was approx 400 yes--to 30. The 30 no votes were generally from progressives. With the exception of Ed Towns (a "no'") all of the Brooklyn Congressional reps voted in favor of the Defense bill - which included the new war funding--essentially funding the wars through October 2010. It is fair to say that Towns' vote is, at least in part, the result of our relentless work. We have collected and sent hundreds of postcards on top of the thousands of petition signatures, urging him to vote against just such funding.

When the House reconvenes in September, there will have to be at least one more vote on this budget---after the bill is reconciled with Senate. (So far the only Senator to oppose this war spending is Russ Feingold).

Click here for the link for Friday's roll-call so you can see how votes were distributed.

Organizing for Health Care

Health care reform is a major issue in the U.S. right now.

President Obama has announced three bedrock requirements for real health care reform:

* Reduce Costs — Rising health care costs are crushing the budgets of governments, businesses, individuals and families and they must be brought under control
* Guarantee Choice — Every American must have the freedom to choose their plan and doctor – including the choice of a public insurance option
* Ensure Quality Care for All — All Americans must have quality and affordable health care

Visit BarackObama to find out more and to show your support.

Show Support for Judge Sandra Sotomayor

Show your support for Judge Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination.

Your signature and comments will be part of a public display of support for this historic nomination. Judge Sotomayor's unique qualifications include:

Experience: She would start with more federal judicial experience than any new Justice in a century.

Brilliance: She’s studied and taught at America’s top universities, and is widely regarded as one of our nation’s finest legal minds.

Perseverance: Born and raised in a South Bronx public housing project, Judge Sotomayor has broken barriers all her life, honing a common-sense understanding of how the law affects our daily lives.

Please add your name today to show you stand with Judge Sonia Sotomayor.

Visit BarackObama.com to show your support and find out more about Judge Sotomayor.

Judge Sotomayor's Opening Statement

To check out Judge Sotomayor's statement in its entirety, check out the White House blog.

"Iran: Release All Those Detained for Peacefully Opposing the Election Results"

Sign a letter to Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, Head of the Judiciary, Iran, and Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei. Supreme Leader, Iran supporting the release of the election protesters.

Since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner in the June 12 elections in Iran, there have been widespread protests against the contested election results. The Iranian authorities have responded with violence and repression, killing at least 17 people and arresting hundreds of journalists, students, opposition politicians and human rights activists.

Among those arrested is prominent human rights lawyer Abdolfattah Soltani, a member of the Center for Defense of Human Rights and a close associate of Iranian Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi. He was arrested on June 16 and has been held in incommunicado detention at an unknown location since then.

To find out more, visit Change.org.