Regarding the Jealous, Destructive, Ignorance of Cornel West, Tavis Smiley and Others

By Greg Jones

National Director

Blacks4Barack Org.

Our biggest foe moving ahead is not the right-wing nor the Tea Baggers. Our biggest battle will be from the folks supposedly on our side who love to preface their statements with " I supported Obama....BUT...." This includes the pro-lefties....the whacky so-called Progressives (many of whom generate donations through being anti-Obama)...then there's the 'super Blacks' like Cornel West, Tavis Smiley and others...all of whom feel a need to 'teach Obama a lesson' through their whining and de-energizing of support. In the November midterms we should have learned the power of de-energizing, as we experienced the biggest beat-down in modern day political history....NOT because the Right ran such competent campaigns....but simply because Dems DID NOT show up to vote. As some justify the ignorance and self-destructiveness of these types....while labeling others as uninformed...please be aware that in 2012 there are a number of Senate seats up for grabs. With the already announced retirements of a number of Dem Senators, combined with the possible Dem de-energizing from the self-destructives like West, whacky Progressives and the like...the FACT is....we could definitely lose the Senate in 2012 (just as we lost the House and multiple states in the midterms). And I must also remind all that the loss of many states like Ohio and others will make winning the Presidential re-election a major uphill battle regardless who or how incompetent the republican candidate is...due to the electoral map (votes)....therefore ALL self-destructive, de-energizing, ignorant rhetoric needs to be addressed, labeled as such and SHUT DOWN.....or we could all wake up....in shock...the day after the next election saying in unison.....How'd THAT happen ? The Time is NOW....to WAKE UP !

Also....if all of these 'super Blacks' were actually sincere about seeing the needs of Black America being addressed (which there are many)...they would be (and would have ALWAYS been) focusing their attention/efforts to the Congressional Black Caucus, which is the group of Black politicians in D.C. created over 40 years ago under the auspices that THEY would create legislation needed to address Black needs. But what exactly have THEY done ? Absolutely NOTHING ! Since we did not elect a dictator, it is important to remember that true change comes through the legislative process, meaning Congresspeople and Senators drafting and passing bills that address our needs and concerns. The President DOES NOT write legislation....he simply passes or vetoes bills already passed by the Congress. So MOST times when we hear the whiny phrase...." Obama should...."....the FACT is....9 times out of 10....OBAMA CAN'T ! That's NOT how the process works (civics 101). So for those who ARE sincere and DO want to see TRUE changes implemented for a Better Tomorrow for ALL...time to place your focus on the correct target....which is the legislators....the Senators/Congresspeople....the CBC (for Black issues). In other words....West, Smiley, Pro-lefties, whacky 're'-gressives and company should ALL place the blame where the blame is truly due...because when they don't....they simply expose themselves as ignorant to the process (of which we'll gladly help to educate them) or just another Obama-hater...of which they WILL be exposed.

The Way to Combat Ignorance

is Through UNITY !

B4B Home Page

Black Vote Will Be The Key Tuesday

If You Think It's Bad Now-
Just Let The GOP Win.


By Greg Jones

Blacks4Barack
National Director

With less than 48 hours until the most important midterm election in modern day history, the 'expert' pundits continue the rants that the GOP/Tea Party is certain to take over the House and possibly the Senate as well. During the past two weeks President Obama has traveled the country holding Moving America Forward rallies which have generated upwards of 30,000 attendees, all Fired Up and Ready To Win, proving false the media claims that Dems are not energized.

Early voting across the country has witnessed long lines of eager voters with reports that the vast majority are, in fact, Dem voters, another sign of the Fired Up spirit of Dems. Also, during the past couple weeks, Rev. Al Sharpton has traveled the country with a GOTV campaign designed to emphasize the importance of voting in this midterm to Black voters. On his daily nationally syndicated radio show, Black callers regularly voice their views regarding the upcoming election. Most are Fired Up...Ready to Win. Then there's the group which starts their calls with the same statement..." Obama hasn't done anything for Black folks...so why should I vote ?"

Recently, I posted The 244 Accomplishments of President Barack Obama (click link to read) which has received a decent amount of exposure thanks to the power of social media, although his accomplishments are rarely discussed in our 'great' media. Just one quick glance at the list proves that The President has done more in the last 20 months than most presidents have in 2 full terms. And the interesting thing about the list is that none of the accomplishments listed say 'for non-Blacks only'.

My point is, every one of the accomplishments that have been achieved have been for all Americans, which certainly includes all of my Black bothers and sisters. Looking at the list from a Black perspective helps one realize just how ignorant the 'he hasn't done anything for us' statement actually is. And although all of this has been accomplished in just 20 months, The President regularly states that there's still much work ahead.

Despite the inclusion of increased funding to HBCU's which is obviously for Blacks, some will still claim "yea, but that list isn't specifically for us Black folks !" To those well caring brothers and sisters I must remind of the fact that, despite his pigmentation, he is The President of ALL Americans...NOT just Black America. Also, it would be political suicide for America's 1st Black President to get behind the podium and rant...." OK...now that I'm The Man...here's a list of what I'm going to do JUST for Blacks." Can you imagine ? Better yet, imagine if Dubya had gotten behind the podium and said " OK...here's a list of everything I want to do JUST for White folks !" There would be rioting in the streets....and justifiably so.

So The President has to do all he can in an all-inclusive manner, just as he has been doing....and don't forget, he's really just getting started. On the other hand, we have the G-No-P/Tea Party bunch, of whom every word that comes out of their mouths speaks against the needs of We The People...particularly We The BLACK (minority) People. I also recently compiled a list of what the GOP will do (click link) if they regain ultimate power and just one glance proves that they are one, very scary bunch, destined to literally ruining the Future of America....starting with all minorities.

They'll block all funding needed to avoid additional massive state layoffs of teachers, police, fire, etc.. They'll dedicate themselves to repealing health care reform, cut funds for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and public education. You can kiss the funding to HBCU's goodbye and food stamps, unemployment checks, Section 8, aid for the homeless, all the social programs to help folks...what they ignorantly call 'entitlement programs' will be slashed drastically, while they fight for tax cuts for their rich cronies. They'll push for more state's rights, which is actually their way of saying " going back to the good ol' days (of supremacy) ", while simultaneously working to abolish the 14th Amendment. Let's not forget that they want to abolish the minimum wage, reverse financial reform so people, including Blacks, can get legally ripped off by the banksters. And don't forget their desire to increase the privatization of the prison system, which means the more folks put in jail, the more money their other cronies make. And what color do you think those prisoners will be ?

It's time to wake up. Sure, there's a lot of work ahead. But if Black folks don't turn out in mass numbers this coming Tuesday to literally block what I call the evil plot of the GOP...then if you think it's bad now (while you're whining all the time about The President)....you haven't seen ANYTHING yet. Lastly, despite the fake polls pre-claiming GOP victory, most races across the country are actually VERY close. The one group that they are hoping or counting on to not show up at the ballot box Tuesday is the Black voters. Why ? Because they know, the Black Vote WILL Make The Difference ! Prove them wrong. It's time to vote as if your life depends on it....because It Does !

Spread The Word

Let's Get Busy !
B4B Home Page

President and 1st Lady Rally in Ohio

Huge Crowd of 35,000 Prove Democrats Extremely Energized !

By Greg Jones
Blacks4Barack
National Director

In what turned out to be the largest political event of the season thus far, President Obama along with our 1st Lady Michelle Obama, excited close to 35,000 energized voters at the Moving America Forward rally held Sunday in Columbus, Ohio. As some pundits have been stating (or hoping) that Dems are not energized about the upcoming midterm elections November 2nd, just one look at the huge crowd proved otherwise. With excitement in the air, the crowd of thousands shouted chants of Fired Up along with the locations famous OH...IO ! The event was held at The Ohio State University featuring speakers including retired Ohio U.S. Senator and famous astronaut John Glenn among others.

The President and 1st Lady informed the crowd of the vital importance of voting in the upcoming midterm election and explained the dire results should the GOP obtain success as The President stated " if they win this election, the chair of a Republican campaign committee has promised that they will pursue the exact same agenda as they did before they took office."

Here's an excerpt: THE PRESIDENT: I mean, it’s not like we didn’t try what they’re peddling. We tried it for eight years. It didn’t work. And if they take over Congress, the other side has already promised to roll back health reform so that insurance companies can go back to denying you coverage when you get sick.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: They want to roll back Wall Street reform so that taxpayers can be on the hook for the next bailout.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: They want to let credit card companies hit you with hidden fees or penalties.

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: They want to cut education by 20 percent to help pay for a $700 billion tax break for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans, folks who don’t need it and won’t even --

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: Look, this is the same theory they have been peddling for years. And, Ohio, it is up to you to tell them we do not want what they are selling. We’ve been there before and we are not going back. (Applause.)

1st Lady Michelle Obama spoke of the importance this election has on the future. " I am like every parent that I know. My children are the center of my world. (Applause.) And my hopes for their future are at the heart of every single thing that I do. And when I think about the issues facing our nation right now, I think about what that means for our girls. And I think about what that means for the world that we’re leaving for them and, quite frankly, for all of our children. I think about whether or not we’re leaving the next generation -- and that would be many of your generation, your generation, folks -- whether we’re leaving something better. And that’s really how I look at things. "

The Ohio rally, which teamed The President and 1st Lady together for the first time on the campaign trail, was in support of Democrats Governor Ted Strickland, who is running against Republican Fox News anchor John Kasich, as well as for Lee Fisher who is running for U.S. Senate seat against Rob Portman, formerly a key player in the Bush administration.

With a live musical performance by John Legend, The President's closing remarks sounded the trumpet to the thousands with a call to action. " And if you will recapture that spirit, if you are out there knocking on doors and making phone calls, talking to your friends and neighbors, if you do not give up hope, then I guarantee you that not only are we going to win this election -- because this was never just about putting a President in the White House, it was about building a movement for change that lasted for a long time -- we will build a movement for change that will last 10 years from now and 20 years from now, and we will grow this economy and restore the middle class to its rightful place. And once again, the American Dream will be alive and well. "

As the crowd cheered in unison, one thing stood out most. Despite reports to the contrary, the Democrats are definitely energized. And at the event's close, one couldn't help but to feel; Ohio is... Fired Up !

Fired Up !

Yes We WILL !

B4B Home Page

My Health Care Reform FLIP-FLOP
" I FEEL GOOD !"

Greg Jones
Blacks4Barack
National Director

I, as many of you, have worked for months toward health care reform and lately some have been surprised by my lack of automatic enthusiasm of the bill as being proposed by the Senate. I have had a number of concerns since my primary objective has always been to see that the needs of the 47 million hard-working Americans who are struggling through life without the basic right to access quality health care are met. I have been very vocal about the vital urgency of affordability and how, without it there should be no mandate. I have voiced my disappointment of the secrecy of the Senate's process as well as the reports stating that the bill may not go into a full conference for amendments or changes to be made to the Senate's version, resulting in the bill being signed off basically as-is by Speaker Nancy Pelosi , then sent directly to The President for final signing.

But call it an EPIPHANY. Call it a flip-flop. Call it what you want but the more I see about what this health care reform bill will do for those in need, the more I LOVE IT ! Now don't get me wrong, there are a number of components of the bill that will need to be worked on or improved in the future, but I now truly feel that this is in fact an incredibly historic bill that will save the lives of many. One thing that prompted my transformation and makes me feel very good about the bill is certain things that I heard during last nights debate before the 1AM cloture vote. When I wrote my original draft of this piece I spelled it all out, word for word. Then, after listening to some right-wing radio today, and their declaration to ratchet up any and all obstruction they can muster to block the bill's passing, I deleted my 'breakdown' of what I feel is ahead to make certain of not supplying their much needed ammunition. And forgive my evasiveness but let's just say that I now have a clearer understanding of what Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Ia) meant when he said that the passing of the bill is "like buying the starter home; we're not done". In fact, he is now openly saying " we're going to revisit the public option...next year we can revisit it. There are other ways to get it ". (hope he's not being TOO open)

So I now see the strategy. An incredibly effective move on the part of the Democrats. They're going to push this bill through, possibly having Speaker Pelosi sign-off on the bill with minimal changes to get it to The President's desk as quickly and untouched as possible, and once signed into law, during the formulation period, they plan to slide in some of the changes reflective of what we all want. All hoopla free. Absolutely BRILLIANT.

So yes, I now see the true greatness of what is transpiring here. For the first time in seven Presidencies a health reform bill will be passed that no longer allows insurance companies to refuse coverage to someone because of having a pre-existing condition. For the first time millions of Americans will have access to truly affordable coverage erasing the embarrassing need for traveling, make-shift free clinics like a third-world country. Now, more people who fall in the lower economic bracket will be covered through Medicaid while seniors will have less burden with the so-called doughnut hole they have been forced to deal with. This bill will limit big-buck executive compensation and administrative costs of the insurance profiteers while creating an exchange that will give care seekers various options.

Through the passing of this bill , and thanks to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) there will be a $10 BILLION investment in community health centers. Sanders has stated that this investment will "help bring about a revolution in primary health care in America and create new or expanded health centers in an additional 10,000 communities. The provision would also work toward creating an additional 20,000 primary care doctors, dentists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and mental health professionals for expanded mental health counseling". It is also anticipated that the community centers will save Medicaid billions of dollars by providing primary care to those in need. Sanders is also giving a significant hint of future improvements to the bill by saying, "the day after this bill passes we can improve it'.

While those are but a few of the incredible benefits of this historic health care bill, there are still elements of concern. Although many of the pre-existing clauses kick-in immediately (which is great) the start date for the majority of the plan is 2014, longer than I would like to have seen. The Medicaid costs to states could pose a future problem as states struggle financially. Here in Ohio they have just decided to stop giving prisoners coffee as a way to save money. Due to the fact that the Senate bill allows the insurance companies to charge up to 3 times the normal rate for older aged people and those with pre-existings, there will be a need for stern monitoring of this aspect to assure affordability, something that I feel The President will stay on top of due to his mother's personal experience with this issue.

One of the other issues that has been of great concern of mine has been the mandate/law which requires all individuals to purchase coverage or be penalized. My concern had always been the thought of penalizing someone for being guilty of not earning enough money. But we are now getting reports, although unconfirmed, that there is what they're calling a 'hardship clause' in the bill which will make those who truly can not afford coverage exempt from the mandate, a component of the bill that I find to be absolutely great.

One thing for sure is the fact that our current health care system has been terrible. I live in Cleveland, Ohio, home of The Cleveland Clinic, one of the finest medical facilities in all the world. But up until now, due to the lack of health care coverage, a large majority of Clevelanders could only hope for the day that they may be able to access such a fine facility. This bill creates that opportunity and serves as evidence of the Democratic idea that, as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid stating during the cloture debate, "health care is a right" proven by the filibuster proof 60 votes last night which included every Democratic Senator, even those originally labeled as obstructionists like Senators Lieberman, Baucus, Lincoln, Landrieu and even the Blue Dogs, all under the powerful leadership of Senator Harry Reid; all of which-in my opinion-actually deserve a sincere hat-tip.

In my own defense, although I have been a strong supporter of President Obama since 2004, which lead me to create Blacks4Barack in February of 2007 to invigorate and stimulate support toward The Presidency, I will always study the issues to determine what is best for our country and the American people before automatically signing-on. That's just the way I am. And when it comes to this health care bill...I Feel Good !

Throughout the entire campaign and since day one in office, "Yes We Can" has been the driving motto promoted by President Barack Obama. In just 11 months in office he has achieved more than most Presidents have done in 8 years with much more yet ahead. The passing of this historic health care reform bill will not only illustrate the tenacity, vision and determination of a great Leader, but also displays 'The Power of WE'...those who have fought the good fight and will continue to do so, working together in Unity, for The Recovery of America. Very special thanks to all of The Warriors....and Thank You Mr. President. Now, it may not be perfect (yet) but let's get the bill passed !

Greg Jones

B4B

So they'll 'FIX IT'
in CONFERENCE HUH ?

NEWSFLASH: Reid PROMISES Nelson
'LIMITED CONFERENCE' !!!

Greg Jones
Blacks4Barack

As Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid gears up for the big spin, representing the Senate's supposed 'historic' health care reform bill as if it were great, giving affordable health care to 31 million, people nationwide can't help but be concerned about both the actual ineffectiveness of the bill combined with the new law/mandate that will force millions of struggling Americans to buy the already unaffordably high-priced coverage from the very insurance companies who created the need for health care reform. The massive disapproval of the inclusion of the mandate has triggered a drumbeat of protest calling for the removal of the mandate with chants such as "Just Say NO to Mandates"..."NO MANDATE or KILL THE BILL" and many others.

The problem is that since the bill does not include a method that would create truly affordable coverage like a Public Option or Medicare Buy-In, now that they have been stripped from the Senate version of the bill, most Americans are very concerned that the 47 million Americans struggling through life without health care will still be unable to afford coverage through this bill. But now, there is the mandate or law demanding that if you don't buy the insurance you will be PENALIZED, labeled as a lawbreaker and treated as such, all because of not earning enough money. That is the biggest flaw in this bill; the penalizing of those in need.

Many of the still hopeful are anticipating that once the bill passes in the Senate, positive changes/amendments will be made to the bill such as the insertion of a public option or the omission of the mandate when the bill goes into Conference; the process by which representatives from the Congress meet with Senate reps to fine tune, tweak and strengthen the bill. In fact, many Democratic politicians are stating that we need to get this bill passed in the Senate, as flawed as it is, and then it will be 'corrected' in the Conference process with almost a 'they would never pass THIS' spirit.

BUT, I have been trying to warn people for weeks now that they are NOT, I repeat NOT going to allow significant changes in Conference/Congress, stating that the bill is 'too fragile' and that they need to push it through for the sake of time.

DON'T BE HOODWINKED !!!

Here is a statement from the article we have attached below from Salon: " But Nelson also says he isn't necessarily on board for the long haul. "This cloture vote is based on a FULL UNDERSTANDING that there will be a LIMITED CONFERENCE between the Senate and House," he told reporters Saturday morning."

So as promised to Senator Nelson by Majority Leader Harry Reid, there will be a 'limited conference' which is the process known as Ping-Ponging. Through this process Speaker Nancy Pelosi will simply sign off on the Senate version of the bill as-is (maybe a weak change or two to make it look like they did something)...then the bill will go straight to the President for MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

It is of vital importance that all Americans be aware of exactly what is taking place. On Monday at 1:00AM (actually Tuesday early morning) the Senate will vote to close the debate (cloture) allowing the bill to go to the next phase toward their rushed, and frankly fake, Christmas eve deadline. So it is ACTION TIME ! This week we MUST contact our Senators/Congresspeople and The White House to demand that: 1) a full conference be allowed 2) That a truly affordable alternative to the high-priced insurance plans that currently exist such as a strong Public Option or Medicare Buy-In be implemented 3) If not, then they MUST remove the mandate or Kill The 'Unaffordable' Bill and start over creating a bill that does create true affordability.

The next few days are the key to the future of 47 million hard-working Americans, many of whom are forced to stand in long lines for as long as 8 hours while sick, at traveling, make-shift free clinics for the simple, basic right to be seen by a doctor, just like a third-world country. THEY are whom health care reform is SUPPOSED to be for...not the benefit of the insurance profiteers.

CLICK HERE TO READ SALON ARTICLE

The time is NOW to...

Call...Fight...DEMAND !!!

TRUTH NEEDS TO BE HEARD !!!!

B4B