Rep. Dennis Kucinich Takes on Democratic Leaders with Insistence on Public Option, Call for Afghan WithdrawalDemocracy Now - 11 Mar 2010Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich joins us to discuss two House debates in which he’s played a central role this week. The Ohio Democrat is threatening to vote against his party’s healthcare reform package because it does not contain a robust public option. Meanwhile, Kucinich’s bill to force the withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan was taken up on Wednesday. After a rare three-and-a-half-hour debate on the war, the majority of House Democrats joined with Republicans to defeat the measure. [includes rush transcript]
Doris “Granny D” Haddock (1910-2010): Remembering Legendary Campaign Finance Reform ActivistDemocracy Now - 11 Mar 2010Doris “Granny D” Haddock, one of the leading fighters for campaign finance reform in the United States, died on Tuesday at the age of 100. In 1999, just shy of her ninetieth birthday, Granny D walked 3,200 miles across the country to promote campaign finance reform. She is widely credited for galvanizing the public support that helped pass the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act in 2002. We replay an excerpt of a 2004 interview with Granny D in the midst of her campaign for the US Senate against New Hampshire incumbent Judd Gregg. [includes rush transcript]
Headlines for March 11, 2010Democracy Now - 11 Mar 2010PA Rejects Talks with Israel in Settlement Row, Report: Israel Plans 50,000 New Units in West Bank, Civil Trial Begins over Israeli Army Killing of Rachel Corrie, Gates Pledges Weapons Aid to Saudi Arabia, Prval: US Lawmakers Rejecting Direct Aid to Haitian Gov’t, Burma Bars Political Opponents from Elections, Labor Dept: Unemployment Increases in 30 States, Senate OKs $138B Jobs Measure, Proposed Consumer Agency Won’t Regulate Major Lenders, White House Faces Opposition to Overhauling Student Loans, Dems to Bar Federal Earmarks for Corporations, Judge Instructs Fed Agencies to Resume ACORN Funding, Kansas City Announces Major School Closures, Layoffs, UN Rapporteur: Obama Admin Should Probe Torture, State Dept. Awards 10 with International Women of Courage Award
PLO paper reveals leadership bereft of strategy, legitimacyElectronic Intifada - 11 Mar 2010rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rAs US-brokered “indirect” peace talks are set to resume, a paper authored by PLO chief negotiator Saeb Erekat reveals a Palestinian leadership ready to re-enter negotiations with Israel having already conceded fundamental Palestinian rights and demands. EI’s Ali Abunimah analyzes a document he says provides insight into the thought processes of a leadership bereft of strategy and legitimacy.
Homes and livelihoods gone in an instantElectronic Intifada - 11 Mar 2010rr r r rr r rr r rr r rr r rr rrr rRadia Abu Sbaih, 47, lives with her sister and one niece on family land roughly 700 meters from the “green line” boundary between Israel and Gaza. Until 18 February 2010, they had nearly 600 olive, fruit, date and nut trees, an agricultural cistern, a water well, various vegetables and a house. Theirs was one of three homes demolished by Israeli military bulldozers that day in al-Mossadar, eastern Gaza. Eva Bartlett reports for The Electronic Intifada.
