A Twitter friend of mine alerted me to the report that follows my remarks. You probably missed this information, like I did, for a number of reasons. The number one reason was no one paying close attention to battle going on in GOP presidential primary. If I mention death squads you may have a vague recollection of the assassination of El Salvador’s Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero in 1980. I also remember the rape and slaughter of a Catholic Nun by right wing extremist backed by our government.

I was hosting a daily talk show during this awful time of backing right wing terrorist, drug money for guns and other illegal activities which could have led to the impeachment of Ronald Reagan. President Reagan admitted as much to his close advisers and after he was no longer president. Naturally, I was very familiar with what was going on with the Contras(Reagan called them “freedom fighters”)and the money, the drugs, the corruption and things I no longer recall. When I saw this article I knew I should share it with you! You can make up your own mind or better yet, do more research on subject.

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy AKA Senator Fleck posted 7-24-2012

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate

The roots of Bain Capital in El Salvador’s civil war

Romney tapped El Salvador’s wealthy families, including one linked to right-wing death squads

I’m a night owl. I stay up until 2 or 3 in the AM. I’m on Twitter reading breaking news from all over the world, checking the Asian stock market or reading the latest campaign 2012 dispatches. Everyone on Twitter was all a twitter early this morning over the leaked file by someone who had access to them from John McCain’s campaign of 2008. Now, I know a little about the political mind and how it operates. Classic thought procedure, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend”, followed by revenge and other ulterior motives that would make a person look good or in this case BAD!  Could even be a GOP stalwart who wants to see President Obama re-elected like I do. Last night I speculated this leak and the person who did it might have done a great service to America by shedding light on secrets Romney wants to hide. Nothing ever stays a secret in Washington, DC(with the exception of Deep Throat from Watergate fame)and we will eventually find out who did it. For your political enjoyment here is the link that will give you an insider’s seat as to why Senator John McCain bypassed Romney and picked the former quitting governor from Alaska as the GOP nominee for Vice President in 2008!

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate  7-16-2012

http://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/the-book-on-mitt-romney-here-is-john-mccains-ent

Here is what my US Senator, Sheldon Whitehouse, is trying to accomplish today on the Senate floor. Chance of passage is grim do to fact GOP members will not support any measure that will impede the follow of millions of dollars in campaign contributions from unknown sources! What is very troubling to me is money could be coming from other countries which is a clear violation of election law. We have no way of knowing.

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate  7-16-2012

   A conservative organization backed by Karl Rove, American Crossroads, is planning to spend over $300 million in this year’s elections — and he’s not planning on telling anyone where most of that money is coming from.    In fact, there will be over a billion dollars spent this year by Super PACs (political action committees) and other groups — and much of it is shrouded in secrecy.    It’s a direct threat to our democracy — and it’s a direct threat to the interests of ordinary, hardworking Americans. Because I can assure you, not one of these groups is spending this money to help America’s middle-class get back on its feet and back on the way to real opportunity. Education, clean energy, Medicare, Social Security — they are all being put at risk by the motives behind this huge infusion of secret cash into our elections.    The Supreme Court’s disastrous Citizens United decision opened the door for special interests and billionaires to spend unlimited amounts of money on advertising and other speech during elections, with many of these groups not required to disclose where their contributions come from. In the 2010 election cycle, outside organizations spent more than $135 million in secret contributions. According to a study in April, 90 percent of the outside money spent on the 2012 presidential election has been from secret sources, putting our elections and our democracy at risk of being dominated by a few secret and wealthy donors.    Why the secrecy? What are they hiding?    The special influence these secretive special interests will obtain will put in jeopardy the policies that have supported a strong middle class and paved the way for generations to achieve the American dream.    It will be harder to protect Medicare and Social Security when a few billionaires put their secret money behind a Super PAC that claims to be for “American Prosperity” but is funding candidates who want to slash these programs.    It will be harder to keep our air and water clean, when giant corporations can secretly put their money behind a Super PAC working to gut environmental regulations.    It will be harder to hold Wall Street accountable for financial fraud, when big banks want to protect their risky dealings behind a Super PAC whose goal is to undo Wall Street reform.    Countless Rhode Islanders have told me we need to take back control of our elections from the secretive special interests. Unfortunately, because of the Citizens United decision, Congress cannot set limits on the corporate spending. But at least we should shine a light so the public can see what special interests are behind these political activities.    Today, the Senate will consider the DISCLOSE Act of 2012, a bill I introduced that would require organizations that conduct political activity to disclose — in real time — all election expenditures and donations of more than $10,000. The bill applies across the board, to corporations, unions, billionaires — anyone engaged in political spending.    Disclosure is the only way voters can get the truth about who is trying to influence our elections. It’s the only way we can find out if there are bargains between certain candidates and donors. It’s the only way we can know which special interests are trying to buy their way into sweetheart deals and unfair tax loopholes.    The DISCLOSE Act is indisputably consistent with the Constitution. As the Supreme Court majority recently explained: “disclosure permits citizens and shareholders to react to the speech of corporate entities in the proper way. This transparency enables the electorate to make informed decisions and give proper weight to different speakers and messages.” As Trevor Potter, the former chairman of the Federal Elections Commission, said, the DISCLOSE Act of 2012 is “appropriately targeted, narrowly tailored, clearly constitutional and desperately needed.”    This week, I’ll be fighting on the Senate floor to lift the dark cloud of secret money shadowing our elections. Through the DISCLOSE Act, we can renew our commitment to fairness and equality in our democracy, and can renew our commitment to the fundamental principle of a government that works for all Americans.    Sheldon Whitehouse is a Democratic U.S. senator from Rhode Island.

Greetings all! So much going on in the our world today especially in politics. President Obama is in Ohio speaking at a town hall, GOP governors and other elected officials are urging Romney to release all of his tax returns, the Bain Boondoggle is not going away as more questions than answers emerge and my US Senator, Sheldon Whitehouse, tries to get GOP Senate members to back his legislation supporting disclosure on campaign contributions over $10,000! Phew! That’s a lot to take in. I’m going to post the report from my local paper, The Providence Journal, by John E. Mulligan, Journal Washington Bureau Chief.

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate 7-16-2012

   WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats have scheduled a test vote Monday on mandatory disclosure of campaign contributions of $10,000 and above, legislation offered by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse that appears certain to fail for lack of Republican support.    The Rhode Island Democrat told reporters Thursday that his measure “will shine its light on the sources of the secret money polluting elections.” Whitehouse’s bill is a response to the Supreme Court’s 2009 Citizens United ruling, which erased many limits on campaign contributions and made it easier to give anonymously.    The early evening vote will be the latest in a series of partisan actions staged on emotional issues this election year, more for their symbolic value than for their potential to change existing law. Last week, for example, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted to repeal President Obama’s 2010 overhaul of the nation’s medical system. But that measure is doomed because the Democratic-controlled Senate will not consider repeal of the health-care law.    Similarly, Senate Democrats failed last spring to force a vote on Mr. Obama’s proposal to impose a federal tax hike on the wealthiest earners. Whitehouse also played a prominent role in that debate on the “Buffett rule,” named for liberal billionaire Warren Buffett’s argument that executives shouldn’t pay lower rates than their secretaries.    Among its other provisions, the campaign-finance disclosure bill to be debated Monday would require certain organizations to report within 24 hours the names of individuals who give $10,000 or more.    Whitehouse has released a video in which he said, “The story of our American democracy has been the fight to make sure that every citizen’s voice is heard — that each of us can claim equal ownership of the government.” Because of the high court’s decision, he said, “secretive special interests” now have “an unfair advantage over the average voter.”    A number of wealthy individuals and right-leaning organizations — such as American Crossroads, associated with former President George W. Bush’s longtime political advisor, Karl Rove — mobilized to exploit the Citizens United ruling during the 2010 congressional-election campaigns.    This year, Democrats are trying to catch up. Mr. Obama’s supporters are soliciting the big donations permitted under the new rules and Democrats have organized special political action committees — “super PACs” — such as the Majority PAC for Democratic Senate candidates.    Earlier this year, White-house talked up his efforts to recruit Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the Senate Republican most active in seeking to limit campaign spending, as a co-sponsor of his disclosure bill.    But so far, not a single Republican has signed on in support of the Democratic bill to force disclosure of contributions. Therefore, the measure is unlikely to win the 60 votes necessary to shut off a GOP filibuster and force a vote on the actual legislation.    Republicans assert that the Whitehouse bill deliberately exempts a reliable source of Democratic contributions — members of labor unions, whose gifts tend to come in denominations lower than the $10,000 trigger. Whitehouse has dismissed the suggestion.    “Billed as ‘reform,’ the measure is an attempt to identify and punish political enemies, or at the very least, intimidate others from participating in the process — an effort that’s already under way,” Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Senate Republican leader, said in an opinion essay in USA Today.    Asserting his longtime support for disclosure of “contributions to candidates and parties,” McConnell said the Democratic bill is something different and “dangerous” because it forces the disclosure of donations “to all grassroots groups.”    That was a reference to the rising tide of independent spending on election campaigns through private nonprofit groups organized under the federal tax code to advance particular causes. Opponents of this trend depict it as a misuse of the nonprofit system.    Supporters of the disclosure bill assert that it is not intended to exempt labor unions or any other groups. Paul Ryan, a lawyer at the Campaign Legal Center, told reporters the Whitehouse bill’s dollar limit on which donations must be made public would apply to any organization.    Meredith McGehee, policy director at the center, said there is scant evidence that publicity about campaign donations has resulted in the intimidation of donors. She cited more than three decades of extensive public disclosure of campaign contributions since the modern system of campaign regulation was created in the wake of the Watergate scandals.    Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland has proposed a more stringent campaign-finance disclosure bill, supported by fellow Democratic Reps. James R. Langevin and David Cicilline of Rhode Island. The measure appears unlikely to be debated in the Republican-controlled    House. jmulliga@providencejournal.com      (202) 661-8423 

Whitehouse

This weekend I had the opportunity to spend time with some very dear friends. Some of my friends I haven’t seen in years, some of them moved away from RI (can’t figure out why they’d leave?)and some I see on a regular basis. A couple of my friends I have known from the first grade and feel so blessed to be mates so many years later. We were together to celebrate our high school class reunion.

I must tell you how proud I am of my classmates because most of them believe in the ideals of the 60’s. Many are very successful financially but their hearts are full of love and compassion for those with little to no resources. Like me, they believe that a community is there to offer assistance for people not as fortunate. My friends believe in sharing, most are liberal and proud supporters of President Obama.

I know you’re not supposed to discuss politics, religion etc. but what fun would that be avoiding controversial issues? So I did. I had some awesome political discussions over the weekend and conversed respectfully until HE showed up!

I’ve already forgotten his name but I’ll never forget his contempt for President Barack Obama. He was not a member of my class, in fact, he went to a private school and was attending as someone’s date. I found out the gentlemen in question was very wealthy due to the lucky sperm club. You know, family money, hit a single thinks it’s a triple, that type. My blood was pumping when we started to get into our difference of political philosophy.

Right off the bat he told me he’d vote for Romney a hundred times over Obama(always notice people who don’t like our president never use his title which I find disrespectful)because “Obama is a socialist”. Since he was an,”English teacher” many years ago he assured me he knew what a socialist was. I countered, “Oh socialism I know how that works, that’s like when President Bush bailed out Wall Street and bankers with tax payers money so they wouldn’t go bust”. It was then I told him I know a little about how government works since I once held elected office. He was surprised by my announcement and decided to change the subject.

“Well, says he, I think it’s unconscionable that unions have direct control and influence that goes straight to the White House”. Gosh I love it when the set me up so perfectly for a 90 mile an hour serve I’ll smash right back. “Hmm, you’ve heard of Citizens United where corporations are people my friend and can donate as much money as they want without accountability? Do you think it’s right that campaign contributions are pouring in from other countries? Plus if corporations are people, I’ve asked G.E. to marry me and yet still no response”. He didn’t care for my sense of humor.

Next round the War on Women! I started it and said, “If we elect a GOP House, Senate and President all women will lose birth control and our reproductive freedom. Now he starts to shout at me and told me it was “absolutely ridiculous” that the GOP wants to end birth control, “we just don’t want to pay for it”.  “Well, I don’t want to pay for your Viagra”! I guess he hasn’t heard how the GOP around the country have passed laws to insert a vaginal probe before a female procedure. He was beet red by now.

I saved my best shot for last. I asked this man if he were a Christian and he answered, “Yes”.  I told him how I loved the teaching and preaching of Jesus Christ and my favorite quote of his is, “What ever you do unto the least of my brethren, you do unto me”.  The guy surrendered and ran away from me! For the rest of the evening every time I saw him I would smile and say, “Hi handsome”. I win.

There is so much misinformation, confusion and out right lies being generated by the GOP and Willard Mitchell Romney. I am totally consumed with this election and politics on a daily basis. It is my raison d’etre. Until I draw my last breath I will be consumed fighting for equality for all, justice and fairness. I’m so angry that Democracy has turned into Dollarocracy and this must end. But I can’t wait for the next class reunion!

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate     7-16-2012

I mentioned earlier today that I would be adding many reports from yesterday’s fund raising efforts on behalf of Romney. Well I believe this subject is not going away until Willard releases 10 years worth of tax records. I have many questions, like, how come you transferred ownership just one day before you became Massachusetts Governor to your wife Ann. How come it’s missing from any financial reports? How come you need a couple of off shore accounts for your undeclared income? Is your money tired and it needs a vacation in the Caribbean or maybe your money has gone skiing in Switzerland? These are just a few questions a candidate for president should answer. Don’t you believe in transparency? Or don’t you believe in Truth, Justice and the American way? Another issue that will haunt you is your 401K that has more money in it than allowed by law. We’ll get to that later with trusted economic adviser, Paul Krugman of the New York Times.

The reporting that follows is by a personal fav of mine, Associated Press correspondent, Steven Peoples. It’s been quite a busy 24 hours and I haven’t even had time to mention President Barack Obama’s pledge to give every American who makes less than $250,000 an extended tax break. Whew! So read my friends and decide for yourself if this is kosher.

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck  7-9-12

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus, Rhode Island Senate

Potential GOP VP candidate, Sen. Rob Portman, R OHIO with presumed GOP presidential candidate Willard Mitchell Romny

   SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Mitt Romney privately raised millions of dollars from New York’s elite on Sun-day, as Democrats launched coordinated attacks against the presumptive Republican presidential contender, intensifying calls for him to explain offshore bank accounts and release several years of tax returns.   The line of attack, dismissed by the Romney campaign as an “unfounded character assault,” follows new reports that raise questions about Romney’s personal wealth, which could exceed $250 million. President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign is expected to push the strategy throughout the coming week, underscoring its intentions to portray Romney as disconnected from the middle-class voters he needs to win the presidency.    “He’s the first and only candidate for the president of the United States with a Swiss bank account, with tax shelters, with tax-avoidance schemes that involve so many foreign countries,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” He’s one of several high-profile Democrats who spoke out on the Sunday morning news shows.    Romney may have unintentionally helped the Obama campaign.    Republican donors driving Mercedes, Bentleys — and in one case a candy red 2013 Ferrari Spider — crowded into a series of closed-door Romney fund-raisers in the Hamptons, New York’s exclusive string of waterfront communities on Long Island’s South Shore. Romney’s Hamptons swing follows a weeklong vacation at his lakeside summer home in New Hampshire.    Voters are split as to whether they trust Romney or Obama more to run the nation’s economy, but a majority says that Obama better understands their concerns. The Hamptons crowd, however, saw things differently.    “I think he’s a plain-talking guy,” Peter Cohen, the former Shearson Leh-man Brothers chief who now heads his own investment banking firm, said as he chewed a cigar in his black Range Rover outside a Romney fund-raiser expected to generate $3 million.    Romney’s day concluded at the Southampton estate of billionaire industrialist David Koch, where donors were asked to give $50,000 per person or $75,000 per couple. The event attracted protesters like Robert Shainwald, a 65-year-old retired teacher.    “Romney has no idea what the working person’s daily concerns are. How could he?” Shainwald said as he waved a sign offering free vegetables to anyone who wasn’t a billionaire.    Romney would be among the nation’s richest presidents if elected. He made his fortune at Bain Capital, a Bos-ton-based private equity firm that has become a key argument for his White House bid. He hasn’t drawn a regular paycheck in more than a decade, however, and instead has lived off a series of investments.    But Romney has refused to release more than two years of tax returns that would outline those investments, breaking from a precedent set by his father, former Michigan Gov. George Romney, who released 12 years of his tax returns when he sought the presidency a generation ago. And an Associated Press report recently raised questions about a previously undisclosed Bermuda-based company included in Romney’s portfolio until the day before he became Massachusetts governor.    Obama adviser Robert Gibbs said Romney easily could clear up questions about his personal finances if he simply released “a series of years” of returns.    “Mitt Romney’s father was the pioneer for releasing a series of tax returns,” Gibbs said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “The best way to figure out if Mitt Romney is complying with American tax law is to have him release more of his tax returns.”    Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, considered to be in Romney’s “veep-stakes,” struggled to defend the offshore financial activity on ABC’s “This Week,” dismissing the criticism as “a distraction from the Obama campaign.” And a Romney aide suggested the new attack was inappropriate.    “The Obama campaign’s latest unfounded character assault on Mitt Romney is unseemly and disgusting,” spokeswoman Andrea Saul said. “Mitt Romney had a successful career in the private sector, pays every dime of taxes he owes, has given generously to charitable organizations and served numerous causes greater than himself.”

A big shout to my buddy Truth Dog for keeping me in the loop!

GK

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/us/politics/romney-mines-the-hamptons-for-campaign-cash.html

A gift from heaven. Yesterday was a beautiful hot but dry day on the East Coast. A perfect day to spend time in the Hampton’s with your favorite candidate for president at a cost of a mere $75, 000 per couple. Let’s fire up the Range Rover and support Willard! This little soiree was held at the home of multi-billionaire David Koch. Yes that David Koch who along with his brother Charles, has committed over $400 million dollars to the GOP to defeat President Barack Obama. For the record, I have been to expensive fund raisers ($1000) for President Obama where I was so fortunate to spend time and engage in two conversations with our beautiful First lady, Michelle Obama. Funny thing, people attending Romney’s fund raising event yesterday would not identify themselves. That’s a major difference between the Obama 2012 campaign and Romney 2012, they hide, they lie we are transparent in our loyalty and support! We are proud of our candidate!

Here’s my favorite part of the reporting that I read last night on line and why ordinary Americans cringe at this statement. A woman in a Range Rover with East Hampton beach permits complained to the Los Angeles Times:

I don’t think the common person is getting it. Nobody understands why Obama is hurting them. My college kid, the baby sitters, the nails ladies — everybody who’s got the right to vote — they don’t understand what’s going on. I just think if you’re lower income — one, you’re not as educated; two, they don’t understand how it works, they don’t understand how the systems work, they don’t understand the impact.

I am proud to stand with “The Nail Ladies” and know first hand about stinging comments from people who think they are better than you and me and look down their noses at many ethnic groups! My experience with a snob remains clear in my mind like it happened last week. It happened a few years back in Washington, DC at The National Press Club.

Many of you know that I was privileged to serve the citizens of Warwick District 15 (no longer exists hmm wonder why but that’s another story)in the Rhode Island State Senate. I experienced life changing adventures due to my political office like my first plane ride and attending President Jimmy Carter’s inauguration. I was invited to attend conferences where people I admired spoke and I had the opportunity to interact with them. I met some amazing people like Congresswomen Geraldine Ferraro, Shirley Chisholm, Barbara Jordan, Lindy Boggs, Barbara Milkuski,who was a Baltimore City Council member and Democratic activist Ann Lewis, sister of the much admired Congressman Barney Frank. Then there were the other kind who were not nice, racist, misogynistic and wanted their country back!

I was in Washington, DC to attend an “eyes only” 3 day event at Foggy Bottom. If you don’t know what this is, look it up. Just imagine my excitement when I was singled out from all the members of the Rhode Island General Assembly to participate in this event. Wow! Eyes only! This naive one felt very special. I cannot tell you what the conference was all about because it was classified but it was fascinating! I loved attending these events and never missed a meeting. Plenty of other lawmakers would  go out and play with lobbyist who would wine and dine them and take them to all the DC hot spots. Guess you could call me a policy wonk!

After the conference was over, a Congressman I knew asked me if I had plans. “Yes, I’m scheduled to leave DC at 6:30 pm to fly back home”. Well said he, “Come with me to the National Press Club where we can have a cocktail and it’s a nicer place to wait for your flight instead of National”.  Now my mind was flashing pictures of that club that I had often seen on television where esteemed scribes gather for important issues. Naturally I said yes. We had a cocktail and talked about politics back home, the latest political gossip, how I liked DC, the usual stuff. He looked at his watch and told me he had to go but I could stay at the club and the doorman would hail a taxi for me and bring me to National. I thanked my friend and he was on his way.

I was sitting by myself when a small southern gentlemen entered the club. He sat for a while but every time I looked up he was staring at me. Guess I was very self conscience and wondered if something was wrong with the suit I was wearing. Truth be told, I felt very out of place and thought I was had the word RUBE stamped on my forehead.  He said, “Who are you”? I told him my name and where I was from. He kept on checking me out from head to toe and said, “Hmm Rhode Island, don’t they have a bunch of I TAL LI ANS(how he pronounce it and dragged it out real long in his southern drawl)there? Why would anyone want to live with I TAL LI ANS”? Oh boy, he had no idea what was coming next. I stood up as straight as an arrow and said, “Yes, we do have Italians in Rhode Island living very productive, successful lives. In fact, I’m Italian and I’m not only proud to be Italian and from Rhode Island, but I’m also a State Senator who passes laws to make ugly discrimination illegal”! His jaw dropped and with that I walked out of the club, waited for my taxi and made my way to the airport.

Silly me, I had no idea people still had such hate and vile in their hearts. He thought he was better than me and all my I TAL LI AN family and friends. Looks are deceiving and he probably spoke freely because(again stereotypes)my people are from Northern Italy and my uncles, aunt and my Mother were blondes with blue eyes and lighter skin. This little episode pales in comparison to discrimination endured by Blacks, Latinos and Latinas, Asians, LBGT’s and every other group who is different. My heart breaks when I here my President Obama not addressed by his title by a callous and racist press. That lady in her black Range Rover who thinks she’s better than us, beware, for Jesus said, “Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you do unto me”.  This is why I have dedicated my life to fight for social justice. We are all equal under the law and the eyes of God.

Please enjoy this article because many more on this subject will be posted. 

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus, Rhode Island Senate

http://www.salon.com/2012/07/09/madam_range_rover_and_the_nails_ladies/

Hello all! Happy weekend and hope you enjoyed your 4th like I did. Hanging out with the youngest Kennedy, Oneppo, Fleck, Toher, Cash and(I hope I didn’t miss any family members)sharing the excitement of the 4th while throwing in a few history lessons. They are so wide eyed and innocent and their perspective of life so endearing. They have a big world and future in front of them.

I think about how so many on the Right are saying, “no more college because we can’t afford it”! Which means my kids can go to college because I have money but not yours! My last article focused on PELL GRANTS and how they have been slashed by the “Green Meanies” in the GOP controlled Congress. Well if wealthy Americans would only pay their fair share everyone could get a shot at the American Dream! Everyone! Period! Which brings me to today’s informative reading, Romney: his tax dodge havens, his disregard for paying his fair share and his hypocrisy all rolled into the following article by Agence France Press.

Respectfully submitted by Gloria Kennedy 7-7-2012 for my Pepper Rose Kennedy RIP

aka Senator Fleck, Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus, Rhode Island Senate

The GOP controlled House of Representatives,under the leadership of John Boehner and more specifically the Koch brothers puppet, Paul Ryan, has planned to eliminate a considerable amount of money from PELL GRANTS! This is one of the worst ideas I have heard of in recent memory! I object very strongly to this irrational view and I hope you will too. PELL GRANTS are celebrating their 40^th year of helping middle and lower income students attend college. I should know because I’m one of those lucky students!

Back in the day of female subjugation and discrimination, many people did not believe a “girl” should be educated because she would only end up with a MRS. As much as I love my parents, my father held that prevailing view. In fact, he went to our local high school to inquire if his sons, my brothers, were college material. The answer was no! Even though I followed the per-determined path of marriage I still longed for a college education.

All this happened during the Viet Nam Era and I was very concerned my spouse would end up in Southeast Asia. He didn’t and when Uncle Sam no longer needed his services he was blessed to have the GI Bill and PELL GRANTS. I pushed him hard to attend college so he could better himself and made all the necessary arrangements for him to attend college. When it came time for him to meet with his financial adviser, I tagged along. At that time all the necessary arrangements and documents were explained then signed. He was now an official student at Rhode Island College. Never one to keep a thought to myself, I piped up, “I wish I could go to college too”! Then I heard three words that would dramatically change my life. The financial adviser, Mr. Eusetes said,”Come with me”!

There was a brand new program available at Rhode Island College called non-matriculating. I could take six courses to prove my worthiness as a prospective college student and if I maintained a certain grade point average, I would become a full time student and eligible for a PELL GRANT! The first course I took was American Politics and I got an A. The rest as they say is history.

If you ask anyone who has known me for a long time will tell you I was a confident woman and never suffered from low self esteem. My secret is I did feel insecure back then. I knew I could never accomplish my goals if I didn’t have a college degree. I thought people would think I was not good enough or qualified for my passion: advocating for women and then holding elective office. I needed that degree to give me credibility. I’m betting there are many young people today who yearn for a college education and to become the first member in their family to go to college like I did.

Senator Pell was a mentor, a colleague, a friend and a man who personifies public service. I have always respected and admired him and I always will. So far my earth journey has been amazing and I’ve done and seen things and met famous and no so famous characters that as a child I could only dream of. I was a kid from a middle class background, “a girl” who wasn’t expected to do anything out of the ordinary, a girl from Oakland Beach who loved government, played baseball with dirt in her fingernails and had a big dream in her heart. Thank you once again my dear sweet friend, Senator Claiborne Pell, for giving me a chance to change a little bit of my world and giving me the opportunity to prove I could!

This timely discussion of PELL GRANTS is once again making headlines. I want to share a column that appeared in my local paper, The Providence Journal. It’s written by Clay Pell, U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant and grandson of the late Senator Claiborne Pell. Clay is following his grandfather’s footsteps by serving in the U.S. Coast Guard.

Respectfully submitted by Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate

   WASHINGTON    When I was a boy, my grandfather would take me on runs. “Shuffles,” he called them —1.1miles from the house and back. People would often stop us to thank him for helping them go to college.    By the time that I headed to college, Parkinson’s disease had long since slowed Grandpa’s gait. But he lovingly invested in my education — both financially and emotionally — every step of the way.    My grandfather was Sen. Claiborne Pell, who 40 years ago overcame opposition in Congress to establish a grant enabling every American “with the moxie and the drive” to get access to a college education. Since 1972, Pell Grants have let 60 million students pursue higher education, including much of America’s current college-educated workforce and 9.8 million current students.    All my life, people have approached me to say how much their Pell Grants meant to them. It’s not just that the money made their educations possible, they say, but that they feel proud of, and grateful to, a country that invested in them.    When the U.S. Coast Guard assigned me to Washington in 2009, I was naturally drawn to the debate over the Pell Grants. While here, it’s been interesting — and somewhat sad — to hear people say that we can no longer afford this program. Some think that higher education does not need to be accessible to all. Others suggest that the Pell Grants should be less ambitious, focusing not on those with the greatest need but rather those who fit a preconceived view of “the best investment.”    When I hear those arguments, I remember the people who have shared their stories with me. Single mothers who went back to school and eventually earned Ph.D.s. Fellow officers in the U.S. Coast Guard who came out of poverty to attend college and now serve in the finest military in the world.    Collectively, these students are our future, and they represent our changing face as a nation. More than 50 percent of African-American and 40 percent of Latino college students count on Pell Grants. For African-Americans, a bachelor’s degree erases any difference in economic mobility compared with their white peers. For the average American, a bachelor’s degree will add about $1 million to her or his lifetime earnings.    Now is not the time to reduce their access to that opportunity.    Even as more Americans go to college than ever before, the U.S. has slipped to 14th in the world in the proportion of young adults with a post-secondary credential.    I am grateful that President Obama has called for full funding of the Pell Grants this and next year. I am grateful that Pell Grants has remained true to Grandpa’s original vision — grants, not debt — and awarded to students — not institutions — so that they can study wherever their drive leads them.    But we have more to do.    We must guarantee access to higher education, both as the primary means of upward social mobility for individuals and for our collective competitiveness around the globe. We must combat rising tuitions and student debt, continue to invest in higher education at the federal, state and local levels, and ensure that institutions themselves focus their own aid on the students with the greatest need.    And we must demand that institutions provide the instruction and the support that students need for success.    As we reached the midpoint on our shuffles, both of us probably ready to take a breather, Grandpa would remind me to keep up the pace, that we were not yet there. As we celebrate 40 years of the Pell Grants, Grandpa might remind us that we as a country are not yet there. We hold the responsibility for protecting Pell Grants and extending the dream of college to the next generation. Let’s keep the trust and make sure our generation keeps up the pace.   

Clay Pell is a U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant now serving as a White House Fellow and director for strategic planning on the National Security Staff. The views here are his own.

MOODY’S: Obama Is Still Likely To Beat Mitt Romney In November
Brett LoGiurato

   
Moody’s Analytics is out with its June electoral forecast, and the sister company to the credit-rating agency still thinks President Barack Obama is a good bet to beat Republican nominee Mitt Romney in November’s election.

Moody’s still projects virtually the same electoral map from last time — 303 electoral college votes for Obama, compared with 235 for Romney. Off the weak May jobs report, though, Obama lost some ground in some key swing states he’s carrying — Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico and Virginia. He actually picked up steam in Moody’s model in Ohio, however.

Romney, meanwhile, carries swing states Florida and North Carolina. Here’s a look at the Moody’s projection, state-by-state, of the popular vote:

Moody’s electoral map

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/moodys-obama-romney-electoral-map-college-2012-6#ixzz1yxCPgYbm

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/06/5-signs-of-a-radical-change-in-us-politics/258904/#.T-pgdqrJyyA.twitter

Hello and hope all is well in your universe today. Just a little reading material you might have missed while at the beach or at your cubicle. This article is by Ken Thomas, journalist for Associated Press, who is covering the OBAMA campaign. Mr. Thomas has been based in the AP’s Washington bureau since 2005. He has worked for The Associated Press since 1999, covering politics and the state legislature in Des Moines, Iowa, statewide politics in Florida and the auto industry. He got his start at the Charleston Daily Mail in Charleston, W.Va., where he covered local government and the county courthouse. Thomas is a graduate of Georgetown University and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. I follow him on Twitter.

I have a great deal of respect and admiration for the print media. When I first got involved in politics, most guys (yup all men) were afraid of the media. I couldn’t understand why? I was so naive in the beginning but learned at laser speed, if you were truthful to the press, they would be truthful in there reporting. My favorite reporter was Charles Baskt, Providence Journal’s extraordinaire political correspondent, because he covered the state house and everything political. It was a huge honor(unless you were in political trouble)to appear in Charlie’s Sunday column and the first time I did, I knew I was in politics for real!

I fear that newspapers are becoming a thing of the past with so many wonderful publications ceasing production. As much as I enjoy reading newspapers and other medium on the web, I hope newspapers live on and prosper. We need the Fourth Estate to keep our politicians, business people, Wall Street especially and every aspect of life in check.

Respectfully submitted, Gloria Kennedy aka Senator Fleck

Deputy Majority Leader Emeritus Rhode Island Senate

   BOSTON — President Obama, campaigning in Mitt Romney’s backyard, criticized his Republican rival anew Monday for what his reelection campaign says is a record of shipping American jobs overseas.    “Governor Romney’s commitment to outsourcing is not just part of his record; it’s part of his overall economic vision that he and Republicans in Congress want to implement if they win this election,” Mr. Obama said.    The Obama campaign has seized on reports that the private equity firm Romney once ran made investments in companies that were described as “pioneers” in outsourcing jobs to China and India. The Romney campaign says the reports do not differentiate between “domestic outsourcing” and “offshoring” and don’t take into ac count work done overseas to support U.S. exports.    During a campaign event in New Hampshire, Obama said that explanation would do little to satisfy workers who have had their jobs moved overseas.    “You don’t need someone trying to explain to you the difference between outsourcing and offshoring,” he said. “You need someone who’s going to wake up every single day and fight for American jobs and investments here in the United States.”    The president, with his suit coat off and his shirtsleeves rolled up, wiped sweat off his face during his 30-minute remarks to a 1,200-person crowd crammed into a hot Oyster River High School gymnasium in Durham, N.H.    Romney campaign spokesman Ryan Williams said Obama was resorting to “false and discredited attacks to divert attention from his abysmal economic record.”    Obama’s first stops on a two-day, four-state campaign trip were taking him into Romney’s backyard. The presumptive Republican nominee has a vacation home in New Hampshire and served as governor of neighboring Massachusetts, where Obama went for an evening of campaign fundraisers in Boston.    As Obama arrived at Boston’s Symphony Hall on Monday evening, a sizable crowd of onlookers gathered and a group of Romney supporters held a large blue Romney sign and chanted, “Mitt-Mitt-Mitt.” A group of Obama supporters chanted back, “OBama” and “Yes, We Can.”    Obama told voters in New Hampshire, expected to be a key battleground in the November election, they would have the “final say” over how Washington moves forward in solving the nation’s problems. And he warned them not to buy into millions of dollars in ads from Romney and his Republican allies that Obama said would shade the truth about his record.    “Doesn’t matter if it’s true, they’ll just keep repeating it,” he said.    In Boston, Obama attended three fundraisers expected to bring in at least $3.1 million for his campaign.