Important update from Little Rock

Hi—

Late last night, I wrote you from Bill Halter's victory celebration in Arkansas, after his amazing finish in the Democratic primary. He held Senator Blanche Lincoln, one of the worst corporate Democrats in Congress, under 45% among Democratic voters, and forced a runoff election in three weeks.

Halter's campaign team has gathered in Little Rock today to decide on their plan for the runoff. After being outspent more than two-to-one by Sen. Lincoln, their funds are nearly exhausted. They're trying to figure out what they can afford and whether the MoveOn members who helped him do so well last night will come through again.

His campaign urgently needs more support. We are aiming for 3 donations from Inwood to reach our goal of $200,000 in emergency funds today—can you chip in $5?

https://pol.moveon.org/give/halter_runoff.html?id=20538-10220574-H4cOGbx&t=1

For more, see my email from last night below.

–Michael and the rest of the team

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Hi—

I'm in Little Rock at Bill Halter's election-night celebration, and the energy here is truly incredible. Bill just told the crowd: "Today we put the special interests and political insiders on the ropes, and in three weeks we're going to knock them out."

Halter's supporters are ecstatic because he just handed a huge defeat to Arkansas Senator Blanche Lincoln. Despite being outspent by more than two-to-one, Halter kept Lincoln below 45% of the vote—and now both candidates are headed into a runoff election.

Make no mistake, this is big news. For the first time, voters have shown that Democrats who side with corporate interests to block President Obama's agenda will suffer for it at the ballot box.

But even as we're celebrating, it's time to double down. Because Sen. Lincoln is a favorite of big corporations, she still has millions in the bank—and she'll spend all of it smearing Bill Halter.

The runoff is in just three weeks, and Halter's staff just told me that they urgently need more funds to continue the campaign.

Can you help us raise $200,000 in emergency funds for Bill Halter? That'll take 3 donations from Inwood. Chip in $5 here:

https://pol.moveon.org/give/halter_runoff.html?id=20538-10220574-H4cOGbx&t=2

And on behalf of everyone here in Arkansas, thanks for all you do.

–Michael and the rest of the team

Want to support our work? We're entirely funded by our 5 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on May 19, 2010. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

Huge defeat for Blanche Lincoln

Hi—

I'm in Little Rock at Bill Halter's election-night celebration, and the energy here is truly incredible. Bill just told the crowd: "Today we put the special interests and political insiders on the ropes, and in three weeks we're going to knock them out."

Halter's supporters are ecstatic because he just handed a huge defeat to Arkansas Senator Blanche Lincoln. Despite being outspent by more than two-to-one, Halter is running slightly ahead as I send this—and now both candidates are headed into a runoff election.

Make no mistake, this is big news. For the first time, voters have shown that Democrats who side with corporate interests to block President Obama's agenda will suffer for it at the ballot box.

But even as we're celebrating, it's time to double down. Because Sen. Lincoln is a favorite of big corporations, she still has millions in the bank—and she'll spend all of it smearing Bill Halter.

The runoff is in just three weeks, and Halter's staff just told me that they urgently need more funds to continue the campaign.

Can you help us raise $200,000 in emergency funds for Bill Halter? That'll take 3 donations from Inwood. Chip in $5 here:

https://pol.moveon.org/give/halter_runoff.html?id=20519-10220574-1.3RQ4x&t=1

And on behalf of everyone here in Arkansas, thanks for all you do.

–Michael and the rest of the team

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on May 18, 2010. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

Act today to protect your privacy online

Dear MoveOn member,

Every day, we entrust more and more of our private information to websites and online social networks like Facebook. So I take Internet privacy very seriously.

That's why I'm so concerned with the changes Facebook recently made to its privacy policy and use of personal data on third party websites. These changes take away important control that users had over who has access to their information.^1,2

I and others have expressed our concern about these changes and Facebook is starting to feel the pressure. Now, as Facebook considers how to respond to the outcry from its customers,³ we all need to keep up the pressure.

That's why I'm asking you to join me in urging Facebook to stop sharing your information without your permission, by setting your status today to read:

"Facebook should stop sharing my personal info with outside companies without my permission. If you agree, set this as your status today and join this group: http://bit.ly/d1ZB6h"

Facebook provides a valuable service, but online social networks need to allow users to retain control over their own personal information.

The information that Facebook is now sharing with third-parties and with the public is very different from the spirit of the site's previous terms of service.⁴ Certain parts of your profile, including your hometown, interests and activities, and your profile picture, must be made public or deleted—even if you restricted whom they were shared with before. Certain third-party partners now have access to all of this information, including your list of friends and their information, as soon as you visit their websites—without asking your permission.

These changes undermine the protection of your personal information on the web.

Recently, I sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission asking them to examine the use and distribution of personal information by social networking sites like Facebook.⁵ Three other senators and I also sent a letter directly to Facebook, urging them to provide an opt-in mechanism that would seek your permission before sharing your information.⁶

Facebook can take immediate action to remedy this situation—but before they will they need to hear from enough users who care.

Can you join me in advocating for privacy on the web?

If you're on Facebook set your status to read:

"Facebook should stop sharing my personal info with outside companies without my permission. If you agree, set this as your status today and join this group: http://bit.ly/d1ZB6h"

Thank you for joining me in advocating for a safer, better Internet.

Sincerely,

Senator Charles Schumer

Sources:

1. "Facebook privacy changes would share user data with other sites," The Washington Post, March 29, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=88264&id=20502-10220574-aj.oL7x&t=1

2. "The Evolution of Privacy on Facebook," mattmckeon.com, May 11, 2010
http://mattmckeon.com/facebook-privacy/

3. "Facebook Calls All Hands Meeting on Privacy," allfacebook.com, May 12, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=88265&id=20502-10220574-aj.oL7x&t=2

4. "New Facebook Privacy Complaint Filed with Trade Commission," Electronic Privacy Information Center, May 5, 2010
http://epic.org/2010/05/new-facebook-privacy-complaint.html

5. Press Release, Office of Senator Charles E. Schumer, April 26, 2010,
http://schumer.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=324175

6. Press Release, Office of Senator Charles E. Schumer, April 27, 2010,
http://schumer.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=324221

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RIGHT NOW: Showdown on K Street

Dear MoveOn member,

Thanks for signing up to join the virtual "march" on K Street today. As I'm sending you this email, it's already an incredible scene. A huge crowd of progressives is gathering just steps from the White House ready to demand our democracy back from corporate lobbyists and their friends in Congress. The event is starting RIGHT NOW—so click the link below to join us online:

http://www.moveon.org/kstshowdown/?id=20471-10220574-PcexzTx&t=1

In a few minutes, progressive leaders from National People's Action, SEIU, AFL-CIO, and Jobs with Justice, will give speeches to rev up the crowd (which isn't really necessary!). Then we'll march to Congress to tell our elected officials that we're holding them accountable—they need to stand up to corporate interests and rewrite the rules in Washington so government works for ordinary Americans.

Through our cool virtual "march" web page, you can:

• Check out live video and a live blog from the march site.
• Make sure the march's message reaches Washington by letting your senators know we need to end the domination of corporations in Washington, DC.
• Talk to other virtual marchers and share a photo of yourself with your own rally sign.

Check out the scene in DC and add your voice here:

http://www.moveon.org/kstshowdown/?id=20471-10220574-PcexzTx&t=2

Thanks again for all you do!

–Ilyse, Amy, Tim, Milan, and the rest of the team

Want to support our work? We're entirely funded by our 5 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on May 17, 2010. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

Tomorrow: Big rally on K Street

Dear MoveOn member,

From Wall Street to the Gulf of Mexico, the news lately has been full of disasters caused by big corporations. They're out of control. Unaccountable. And they're getting away with it because they've bought so much influence in Washington.

It's time to take on the corporate lobbyists who have a stranglehold on our democracy. So on Monday at noon, thousands of progressives from MoveOn, AFL-CIO, SEIU, Jobs for Justice and National People's Action are going straight to K Street in Washington, DC to let the corporate lobbyists and their friends in Congress know we've had enough.

Since you don't live in the DC area, you probably think you can't be there. But we've rigged up an awesome virtual "march" web page that will allow you to still make your voice heard—right from your desk. You can join the event live from your computer anytime between 11:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. Click here to RSVP:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84876&id=20457-10220574-zzjATzx&t=1

At the virtual march, you can:

• Check out live video and a live blog from the march site.
• Make sure the march's message reaches Washington by letting your senators know we need to end the domination of corporations in Washington, DC.
• Talk to other virtual marchers and share a photo of yourself with your own rally sign.

RSVP to join the march online and add your voice here:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84876&id=20457-10220574-zzjATzx&t=2

Hope to see you there, and thanks for all you do.

–Ilyse, Amy, Tim, Milan, and the rest of the team

P.S. The virtual march will be posted at this link tomorrow, if you want to bookmark it now: http://www.moveon.org/kstshowdown/?id=20457-10220574-zzjATzx&t=3

Want to support our work? We're entirely funded by our 5 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on May 16, 2010. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

Have your friends seen this?

Dear MoveOn member,

You might think you know who has access to information you post on Facebook, but do you?

Facebook recently made a bunch of changes to their privacy policy that made users' information broadly available across the web.

A lot of people aren't aware of these changes yet—so we put together a chart that makes it clear. It's scary, and a wake-up call that we need to fight back to get Facebook to restore our privacy controls.

This isn't just about Facebook either. They're treading dangerous waters on how much of your personal information they can share. If we let them succeed, lots of other Internet companies are sure to follow.

So check out the chart and forward it to your friends, share it on Facebook, or post it on Twitter. Everybody needs to see this.

http://www.civic.moveon.org/facebook/chart/?id=20422-10220574-3e2Dk4x&t=4

Thanks for all you do.

Kat, Lenore, Joan, Carrie, and the rest of the team

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Corporate Power and Elena Kagan

We need to know where Elena Kagan stands on corporate power. Can you call Sens. Gillibrand and Schumer? Ask them to pose tough questions so we know whether Elena Kagan will be a champion for ordinary Americans against the corporate tilt of the Roberts court. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Phone: 202-224-4451 Senator Charles Schumer Phone: 202-224-6542 Report your call

 

Dear MoveOn member,

Yesterday, President Obama announced his newest Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan.

Republicans have already started to attack her, using the same old divisive wedge issues like gay rights and abortion.

Those critical issues will and should be examined during the Senate confirmation hearings. But unless we speak up, there's one important one that won't: In recent years the Roberts court has tilted heavily in favor of expanding the rights of giant corporations. And we need to know whether Elena Kagan is going to side with the big corporations or if she's going to stand up for everyday Americans.

If we can make this issue the center of the debate, not only can we make sure Kagan will be a champion for the rights of ordinary Americans over those of big corporations, but we can put the Justices on alert that Americans are upset about the direction of the court. 

Can you call Sens. Gillibrand and Schumer and ask them to ask tough questions on corporate power? Ask them to make sure that the court's corporate tilt is a major thrust of the hearings.

Here's where to call:

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Phone: 202-224-4451

Senator Charles Schumer
Phone: 202-224-6542

Then, please report your call by clicking here:

http://pol.moveon.org/call?tg=FSNY_2.FSNY_1&cp_id=1354&id=20348-10220574-B9EYRex&t=3

A poll released last week shows that the majority of Americans—both Democrats and Republicans—want a nominee who will fight corporate power.¹ But with radical rulings like Citizens United massively reshaping the way that corporations influence our democracy, it's crucial that that issue gets explored in Kagan's confirmation hearings.

President Obama says that's why he nominated Kagan, and it's true that she argued against Citizens United as the US Solicitor General. But there's at least some concern that she doesn't share the President's views on Citizens United.²

As the The New York Times wrote,

"President Obama may know that his new nominee to the Supreme Court, Elena Kagan, shares his thinking on the multitude of issues that face the court and the nation, but the public knows nothing of the kind."³

The truth is we just don't know, but with critical cases in the pipeline that will determine whether corporations continue to win out over everyday Americans, we need to hear her positions directly from her. And to send a message that Americans are sick of the direction of the current corporate court.

Can you please ask your senators to make sure we know where Elena Kagan stands, and to keep the focus on this critical issue as Kagan goes through the confirmation process?

Thanks for all you do.

–-Ilyse, Amy, Matt, Milan, and the rest of the team

1. Greenberg, Quinlan, Rosner Research poll memo, http://www.moveon.org/r?r=88214, May 7, 2010

2. "Citizens United: Does Elena Kagan Disagree With Barack Obama on Corporate Speech?"  The Huffington Post, May 9, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=88259&id=20348-10220574-B9EYRex&t=4

"Stints in Court May Yield Clues to a Style," The New York Times, April 14th 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/15/us/politics/15scotus.html

3. "Searching for Elena Kagan," The New York Times, May 10, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/11/opinion/11tue1.html

Want to support our work? We're entirely funded by our 5 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

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PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to eddie alfaro on May 11, 2010. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.