RFK Monthly Meeting - February 8, 2010

This Month at the RFK ...

ED ASNER AS FDR - March 20th, 2009

Mark your calendar and RESERVE YOUR TICKETS NOW. 

The RFK Democratic Club has reserved a block of tickets to see this award winning actor as he portrays one of America’s greatest presidents.  Tickets are $50 and reservations are a must.  Call 562-943-8527 NOW to reserve your place for this La Mirada Theater performance as soon as you can.  When the tickets are gone, they’re gone! 

Ed Asner, recipient of seven Emmy Awards ("Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Lou Grant") and 16 nominations, five Golden Globe Awards, member of the TV Academy Hall of Fame, and the voice of Carl Fredricksen in Pixar's newest film, Up, will star in the solo performance drama, FDR based upon Dore Schary's Broadway hit Sunrise at Campobello, which ran 70 weeks on Broadway.

FDR explores the life of one of America's best-loved presidents and the events and decisions that shaped a nation. This powerful play follows the iconic president as he reflects on his years in office, from inauguration to the trials of World War II.



HEY, EVERYBODY!!!
Let’s all play “CURRENT EVENTS” – that great game Ripped from today’s headlines. All of the stories below are true, EXCEPT FOR ONE. One story has been changed to make it false. Can you find the false story?

1.  11-28-09 - Michael Bloomberg was reelected as Mayor of New York city for a third term.  He got an unexpectedly strong challenge from William Thompson Jr. and won the election by only five percentage points.  Bloomberg spent an incredible $102 million of his own money on the election. LA Times

2.  11/28/09 - A 16 year old girl in Sudan received 5 lashes in an Islamic courtroom for wearing an indecent skirt at a shopping market. The skirt violated Islamic Law. The girl said she no longer knows what to wear, because she is forbidden to wear pants and the skirt in question was below the knee. Also, the girl is not Islamic. She is Christian. LA Times

3.  12-9-09 - More than 100 icebergs have been spotted drifting away from Antarctica and heading for the islands of New Zealand.  There could be hundreds more as global warming continues to cause the breakup of the massive ice shelf down south. TIME

4.  1-7-10 - Instead of donating unsold clothing items to people in need, Wal-Mart has been throwing them out in giant trash bags. But before the clothes go in the trash, they are being slashed, sleeves are cut off of coats, and shoes are sliced so they are unwearable. NY Times

5  1-19-10 - During his successful campaign for the Massachusetts senate seat which became vacant with the death of Ted Kennedy, Scott Brown never used or said the word Republican in any of his speeches or campaign ads. MSNBC

6.  1-21-10 - Chinese manufacturers have pirated music CDs and movie DVDs. They’ve sold toxic baby formula, toxic dog food and toys with high levels of lead paint. Now, they’re making - (drumroll) - fake condoms. Counterfeit brands have been sold in Asia, Europe, and some US states. The fakes cannot prevent conception or the spread of disease. LA Times

7.  1-30-10 - Pres. Obama and VP Biden went to see the Duke v Georgetown basketball game near the White House. During the second half, the President was seated at the CBS microphone with announcers Verne Lundquist and Clark Kellogg, and then he actually called about seven minutes of the game on the national TV broadcast. No teleprompters were used. LA Times

8.  1-31-10 - On January 19, Republican Scott Brown won the Massachusetts senate seat that was held for 47 years by Ted Kennedy. Now it seems that Brown has a special connection to the President of the United States. Brown and Pres. Obama are both direct descendants of Richard Singletary of Massachusetts, who died in 1687. That makes them 10th cousins. LA Times

9.  1-31-10 - The Public Policy Institute conducted a survey of Californians. It discovered that most citizens want to be in charge of the state budget instead of the governor. It also found out that those citizens have absolutely no idea where the state gets it’s revenue, or how that money is spent. LA Times

From Angel Stadium to San Bernardino
John Smith, Region 16 Director,
California Democratic Party

ASSEMBLY DISTRICTS 60, 61, 62, 63, 72

Hi Democrats,

President Obama and the Democratic Congress face a new reality with the swearing in of Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown.  They’ve lost the 60th vote in the US Senate which was needed to cut off Republican filibusters.  But I wonder if this is truly a loss for the Democrats.

During the healthcare negotiations last year, Democrats were forced to stretch to find 60 votes in the US Senate.  This meant scrapping the Public Option, begging Olympia Snowe, bribing Ben Nelson and Mary Landrieu, and keeping a serious face while listening to the whining of Joe Lieberman.  It made the party look weak and made it appear that Republicans were in control.

But now, that elusive 60th vote is definitely out of reach, and the Dems can get down to some serious governing. In 2008, voters gave the Democrats the power to change things from the Bush years. 

 Being able to ignore the 60th vote, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid can concentrate on the methods to pass solid legislation rather than watered down versions. And in the process, they can show voters that Democrats really do know how to govern.

Blood-Sport Politics

by Paton Marshall

Out here in northern Virginia surrounded by Civil War battlefields, you tend to think of mortal combat as something historical and a little quaint, not withstanding that we have about half a million men and women engaged in deadly conflict on the other side of the world. But reading the Washington Post this morning gave me a reality jolt. If hearing the letter T makes you think of the Taliban, focus instead on our domestic Tea Party. Politics this year is going to be a battleground, take-no-prisoners game, hotter than any video-combat entertainment.

Perry Bacon Jr.’s column in the paper this morning concludes with a preview of what to expect as some Senatorial and Congressional races get under way. The Tea Party-Freedom Works alliance will be branding such candidates as Harry Reid of Nevada and Alan Grayson of Florida as “Enemies of Liberty!” And Bacon reports that candidates in Florida, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky whom Freedom Works will back - GOP hopefuls, of course - will be called “Champions of Freedom.”

That sort of stakes out the field, doesn’t it. Now take a look at California. Our prime and paramount candidate, Senator Barbara Boxer, has been attacked before, but these rabid renegades will surely mount a fierce and nasty assault against her as they flaunt their Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts victories. Our call to rally ‘round her reelection and support our other Democratic candidates has been sounded.

Not to forget, the treacherous Supreme Court decision to let all the Corporate dogs loose in this year’s races will help to focus our attention. There will be all the usual jobs for us to do: phone calling, canvassing, lawn signing, and contributing, and talking about the issues with our friends and neighbors. But we’d also better be watchful for other strategies the opponents will try. Their propaganda efforts will be unbounded; they mean to win, no matter what.

It might also be good to prod a candidate who’s not trying hard enough - no more Bay State defaults. Help everyone of our candidates to be “Captain America!”

CURRENT EVENTS ANSWER...

Question number 2 needs a slight bit of correcting. The young lady was indeed lashed in the Sudan courtroom, but it wasn’t a paltry 5 lashes. The court gave the girl 50 lashes for violating Islamic law. And the girl isn’t even Islamic - she’s Christian.