Category: Uncategorized

Elections and the HEROES Act

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Last month, we watched as Wisconsin attempted to conduct its primaries as usual. The results were disastrous. The Wisconsin Department of Health traced 52 cases of COVID-19 back to in-person voting on April 7. Meanwhile, each state has approached its response to the coronavirus differently, its voting systems included. Enter Congress and the HEROES Act.… Read more

Our Protest Continues

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We’re living in a new world these days. We are staying home instead of going out when the weather gets warmer. When we do go outside, we are staying six feet apart or wearing masks. Our homes have become schools, offices, gyms, refuges. Frontline workers like doctors, nurses, first responders, grocery store clerks, mail carriers,… Read more

How COVID-19 is Changing American Democracy

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COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, has dominated the headlines for the past few weeks. People across the country are practicing social distancing as doctors, nurses, grocery store employees, and countless others have put themselves on the front lines to combat this novel pandemic. The way we practice democracy is also adjusting. Candidates for offices… Read more

The For The People Act: One Year in Purgatory

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This week marks one year since the House of Representatives passed H.R.1, the landmark For The People Act. What’s happened to the bill since? It’s sat in Mitch McConnell’s legislative purgatory in the Senate. The For The People Act sought to combat some of the greatest challenges facing our democracy. To name a few: It… Read more

Buying Candidates is a Symptom of Oligarchy

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It was a Freudian slip of epic proportions. Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, describing the House’s partisan flip in 2018, bragged that he “bought” the new Democratic majority for $100 million. He quickly corrected himself, but the damage was done. Bloomberg is one of two self-funding billionaires in the Democratic primary. After his… Read more

Public Campaign Financing in New York State: Explained

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Last month, New York became the second state to institute a system of public campaign financing. It follows an eight-month development process by an independent Public Campaign Finance Commission. While the new system might serve as a model for other states wishing to combat the role of big money in politics and amplify the voices… Read more

THE DEMOCRACY REBELLION: Coming to PBS in January

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Americans may be divided over impeachment and the next election but they are united on one thing – strong majorities of Democrats, Independents and Republicans want political reforms that will restore a government that works for average Americans and not wealthy special interests. Polls confirm that, but what many Americans don’t know is that citizen… Read more

Danny Goldberg Reps the Stampede!

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Legendary Stamper Danny Goldberg recently sent us this selfie with the Stamp Stampede sweatshirt! Goldberg, who serves on the boards of People Power Initiatives (the Stampede’s parent non-profit) and Public Citizen, is the former manager of the band Nirvana and the former president of Atlantic Records. His latest book, Serving The Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain, is available now wherever you… Read more

Berkeley’s Fair Elections Act is a Success!

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In 2016, Berkeley residents chose to establish a system of public campaign financing by passing the Fair Elections Act. The city’s 2018 elections served as the system’s first test, and it appears to have worked exceedingly well. Under the city’s new public financing system, candidates for city council and mayor who opt into the program… Read more