The Soccer Mom Vote

Undecided

The primary elections today, in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., have taken on more importance than expected early in the presidential campaign. Up for grabs? According to NPR, 168 delegates, with most of the attention focused on Virginia ["Virginia will offer the greatest number (83), followed by Maryland (70) and Washington, D.C. (15)"]. Right now, Obama has 943 pledged delegates to Clinton's 895, according to a count by MSNBC -- well short of the 2,025 needed to clinch the Democratic nomination. So it's anyone's ball game.

The same NPR article said this: "Virginia hasn't been for a Democratic presidential candidate since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. In recent years, however, Virginia has elected back-to-back Democrats for governor and unseated a Republican senator, and it is favored to win another Senate seat this year. Now, Democrats hope to carry the state in November for their presidential candidate. But first they will have to decide which Democrat has the best chance." And that pretty much summed up my dilemma this morning. Who has the best chance of defeating the Republicans (specifically John McCain since he appears to have all but wrapped up the Republican nomination). As one voter put it: “Who can win? Who can bring in more votes? Who is less divisive? I think Clinton is too divisive. It comes down to: who can bring the party together and bring in independents?”

Is Barack the answer?

Or Hillary?

As I did my research, both candidates appear to be on the same page with regards to the biggest issues. From Health Care to Energy, Education, and the Economy, their plans are similar (though I did find it easier to determine Barack's stand on the issues with his very handy down-loadable file "The Blueprint for Change" available on his website; it took a little more work to find Hillary's actual concrete plans for change). The main difference I could find was their stance on Iraq (my local paper said Hillary's withdrawal plans won't be completed until 2013). Also, I really liked what Barack had to say about Ethics in Washington ("I am in this race to tell the corporate lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over. They have not funded my campaign, they will not get a job in my White House, and they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I am president."). After 8 years of Dick Cheney and Bush cronyism, this is quite a breath of fresh air. Imagine, actual qualified people in important jobs like the head of FEMA.

So what to do? MSNBC said, "the biggest difference between the two “appears to be judgment versus experience: Sen. Obama's media blitz portrays him as the candidate for change — youthful and charismatic — he even took a page from the Clinton handbook using ‘Hope’ in his book title. Sen. Clinton is an accomplished senator, master political tactician and invaluable asset to the party.”

I felt like a teenager cramming for a test as I pored over documents I had downloaded from their sites last night. I continued to read as I waited in line to vote this morning, truly undecided until I put in my voting card. But in the end, I went with my gut, and voted for Obama. I'm sorry Hillary, deeply sorry. As much as I want to see a woman in the White House, I don't think you are the one who will get there, at least not this time. As much as I'd like to see another Clinton leading our country, I don't think you are going to be able to pull this one off. I think Obama is our best hope for both defeating McCain and for giving us real change in the White House. 

AMT - Caught in the middle

AMT, or Alternative Minimum Tax, was set to snag 23.4 million Americans in 2007, except for a last minute bill that passed Congress just last week.  And now, because of Congress's "eleventh-hour" vote for this one year freeze, at least 13.3 million refunds worth about $39 billion dollars will be delayed as the IRS scrambles to fix its forms, delaying the mid-January normal start of tax season to an estimated February 4 date instead (source).

Whoa! Back up there.  What is this AMT anyway and how does it affect me?  The AMT was introduced into law by the Tax Reform Act of 1969 and became effective in 1970 (source).   It's intent was to prevent the rich from using special tax benefits to pay little or no tax by putting into place what is effectively a separate tax system.  In theory these rules determine minimum amount of tax that you should be required to pay. If you're already paying at least that much because of the "regular" income tax, you don't have to pay AMT. But if your regular tax falls below this minimum, you have to make up the difference by paying alternative minimum tax (source). 

So what went wrong?  In a word, inflation.  The "regular" tax brackets, exemptions, and standard deductions are indexed each year for inflation.  The AMT brackets and exemptions are not.  So if you have income over $75,000 and have several children, interest deductions from second mortgages, capital gains, high state and local taxes and/or incentive stock options, you could be caught in the AMT web (view the Top Ten Things that Cause AMT Liability).

The 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts were actually designed to increase the amount of taxes paid through the AMT; the Tax Policy Center noted that Bush tax policy has "more than doubled the projected share of taxpayers who will face the AMT in 2010, from 16 percent to 33.6 percent" (source). Legislation to fix this nightmare was stalled over "partisan bickering over federal spending, President George W. Bush's tax cuts and the nation's $9 trillion debt" (source).  The main source of conflict was the Republicans arguing that there was no need to raise other taxes to make up for revenue losses from providing AMT relief.  This is directly against the Democrat's policy of "pay-as-you-go" which requires "that tax cuts and mandatory spending increases be covered by tax increases or spending cuts so as not to add to the deficit" - the Dems wanted the $50 billion* cost of this tax relief to be paid for by "closing a loophole on offshore tax havens" (source). Reluctantly, the Democratic majority, had to concede to the Republican form of the bill because of the certain White House veto of their version. 

The bill that passed imposes a temporary fix but doesn't pay for it.  And millions are going to be left waiting for their refunds.  Be sure to thank your Senator and Representative. 

*just for the one year AMT patch.  The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates the price for full repeal of the AMT to be $1.2 trillion through 2015 (source).

    

When Love Hurts

Amidst all the October Breast Cancer Awareness events last month, another "cause," if you will, got overlooked in the shuffle. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, October was also Domestic Violent Awareness Month.

What is Domestic Violence? "Sometimes referred to as domestic abuse...(it) occurs when a family member, partner or ex-partner attempts to physically or psychologically dominate another. Domestic violence occurs in all cultures; people of all races, ethnicities, religions, and classes can be perpetrators of domestic violence. Domestic violence is perpetrated by, and on, both men and women, and occurs in same-sex and opposite-sex relationships (wikipedia, emphasis added)."

In other words, this is abuse that could happen to any one of us.

Some frightening statistics (source - Virginians Against Domestic Violence):

5.3 million (Number of times American women are abused or stalked by an intimate parnter each year)

555 thousand (Number of serious injuries caused by domestic violence)

145 thousand (Number of women hosptalized for those injuries)

12 hundred (Number killed)

73 percent (Percentage of domestic vilence indicdents that go unreported)

8.8 million (Number of children who witness domestic violence each year)

30 percent (Percentage by which being abused as a child increases the chances of being arrested for vilent acts as an adult - and boys who witness domestic violence are twice as likely to abuse their own partners and children when they become adults)

4.1 billion (Dollars spent yearly on medical and mental health care as a direct result of domestic violence)

What can we do to help? TAKE ACTION NOW. Go to the NCADV website, and see what can be done (see the "take action" section near the bottom for all kinds of ideas).

The next victim could be your mother, your sister, your best friend, your daughter...or you.

And if you are being abused, important numbers to remember as you get out and get help:

The National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE

The National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-HOPE

Private School Vouchers

My son started Pre-K at a private Catholic school last month. My husband and I made the decision early on that our children would be attending private school rather than public due to many factors, not the least of which is the poor quality of the public schools that we are zoned for. There were a myriad of other personal reasons as well. We made this decision knowing that for the next 14 years (Pre-K, K, 1-12), we will be shelling out a substantial amount of money for our child's education (15 years if you count his sister who starts Pre-K next year) - and tuition expenses are compounded by the uniform cost. We are lucky that we have this option - that we have the funds to send our children to the best school available to them - even though it's going to "hurt" financially, we can still dig deep, and do it. However, each time that tuition bill is drafted from our bank account, I start thinking (dreaming?) of school vouchers. Certainly, vouchers would help out our budget tremendously. But is it the right thing for our society to have them available? Let's examine what vouchers are, and some of their pros and cons.

"The debate, at its core, is about the extent to which knowledge or access to knowledge is privileged...Who in a democracy has the right to know what?"

What are school vouchers?

From Wikipedia: "A school voucher, also called an education voucher, is a certificate by which parents are given the ability to pay for the education of their children at a school of their choice, rather than the public school to which they were assigned."

From School Choices: "School vouchers, also known as scholarships, redirect the flow of education funding, channeling it directly to individual families rather than to school districts. This allows families to select the public or private schools of their choice and have all or part of the tuition paid. Scholarships are advocated on the grounds that parental choice and competition between public and private schools will improve education for all children. Vouchers can be funded and administered by the government, by private organizations, or by some combination of both."

A History of Vouchers (from the National School Boards Association which opposes vouchers):

Cleveland, OH – enacted in 1995; about 6,300 students enrolled; approximately $19 million annual cost Milwaukee, WI – enacted in 1990, about 17,410 students enrolled; estimated 2006-07 cost of $110 million Washington, D.C. – enacted in 2004; about 1,800 students enrolled, $14 million annual cost for federally funded program Arizona – 2 small programs enacted in 2006, each with a cap of $2.5 million annually Florida – McKay voucher program for children with disabilities enacted in 1999; about 17,300 students enrolled; $107 million spent in 2005-06 Georgia - special education voucher program patterned after Florida's McKay program; narrowly enacted in 2007 Ohio – statewide program enacted in 2005; about 2,200 students enrolled Utah – small program for children with disabilities enacted in 2004; universal voucher program enacted in 2007; challenged by voters and will be put to public referendum in November 2007

PRO School Vouchers:

In the 1950s, economist Milton Friedman voiced his opinion that school vouchers would promote competition and improve schools. Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani supports taxpayer-funded vouchers for private elementary and secondary schools: "People come from all over the world to attend college in the United States," Giuliani said. "How is it that we have the best higher education in the world and a weaker K-through-12 system?" Giuliani said. "What's the difference? Why does one operate so well and the other not nearly as well? American higher education is based on a quintessential American principle -- choice. I'd give parents control over their children's education. We've got to have competition operating. If we don't do that, our education system is going to deteriorate." (source)

Another view is that vouchers help deliver equal education for all children. Presidential candidate John McCain said "School choice stimulates improvement and creates expanded opportunities for our children to get a quality education." The Honorable Kurt L. Schmoke (mayor of Baltimore) had this to say, "My support of school choice is founded in the common sense premise that no parent should be forced to send a child to a poorly performing school...We need to give poor children the same right that children from more affluent households have long enjoyed. The right to an education that will prepare them to make a meaningful contribution to society." Per School Choices: "At present, educational choice is concentrated among wealthier families, who can opt for private schooling, and who can more easily relocate to areas with better quality schools. Poor inner city children, by contrast, are frequently stuck in dilapidated government school buildings and offered an abysmally poor education compared with their suburban counterparts.

" Double taxation" It has also been said that the current system is unfair as parents who choose private school as they are paying twice for education - once for tuition at their private school of choice and once again when they pay taxes for the public schools ("Why Conservatives and Libertarians Should Support School Vouchers").

The same article brought up Religious Liberty: "Nearly nine out of ten parents who choose private schools do so out of religious conviction. They oppose the secular humanism taught in government schools and want their children to learn their own values and beliefs. It is a well-established legal principle that no one should be required to pay a tax penalty to exercise a constitutionally guaranteed right."

CON School Vouchers:

Vouchers drain money from public schools and they are "tantamount to providing taxpayer-subsidized 'white flight' from urban public schools (source). The Americans United for Separation of Church and State put it this way "Public schools will improve only if our government officials and the public decide to make a serious commitment to educational quality. Diverting money from public schools to private will not achieve this goal, but will hurt the nation's public education system."

Additionally, The voucher system is a violation of the United States Constitution ("Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion") because it provides government funding for church-run schools (interestingly enough, I found an argument against this that compares school vouchers to the GI Bill: "A properly structured voucher system is no more a violation of the principle of the separation of church and state than is the GI Bill. This program allows military veterans to use government dollars to attend any university of their choice, public or private, religious or secular.")

"Cream skimming" - Private schools are already selective on whom they choose to admit. With school vouchers, the pool of applicants would be larger, allowing them even greater selectivity. They may choose to exclude more students with disabilities, autism, and discipline problems - students public school are required by law to admit. This one concerns me personally quite a bit as my own son has learning delays and allergies - and it was touch and go there for a while as to if the private school of our choice was even going to accept him.

So what do you think? Are vouchers a good idea or not? Why or why not?

Emily's List

While at BlogHer 2007, I attended a session entitled "Earn Our Votes: What Questions Do Women Bloggers Want Candidates to Answer in Election 2008?" When the floor was open to comments, a representative from Emily's List rose to speak. I had never heard of Emily's List and I was struck by what she had to say. So I looked up her site and found a group of women, working on a grass-roots level, to get things done. Their ideology (pro-choice, Democrat) was the same as mine. So today, as I recuperate at home from surgery, I thought I'd tell you a little more about Emily's List and the power of Women Voters because I believe, that regardless of if you are a Democrat, Republication, Independent or Libertarian, in the end, we are all women voters, with common issues and values.

Who is Emily? From their site: "Who is EMILY? EMILY is an acronym for “Early Money Is Like Yeast” (it helps the dough rise). When EMILY’s List was founded, we knew that early money made women credible candidates and gave them the best shot at winning. That is still our organization’s goal: to help elect pro-choice Democratic women. EMILY's List, the nation's largest grassroots political network, is dedicated to building a progressive America by electing pro-choice Democratic women to federal, state, and local office.

We are a network of more than 100,000 Americans -- from all across the country -- committed to recruiting and funding viable women candidates; helping them build and run effective campaign organizations; training the next generation of activists; and mobilizing women voters to help elect progressive candidates across the nation."

Back in 1992, Jennifer Granholm, who is now the governor of the state of Michigan, put it this way:

“EMILY is every woman who has ever sat at a business meeting while someone else took credit for her good work.

EMILY is every young professional who’s been told to wait her turn and every seasoned one who’s been told she still has to pay her dues.

EMILY is every working mom who’s managed to balance a checkbook, who’s managed a clean house, a corporate budget and a 12-year-old’s basketball tournament in one day.

EMILY is every stay-at-home mom who has ever been asked, “No, I mean, what do you do? What do you really do?”

She is every woman who’s ever had to defend her right to be pro-choice. She’s every woman who’s ever had to explain her choice not to have a child. She’s every woman who has ever demanded a raise because she’s been doing the same work as the man in the next cubicle for the same number of years, and she’s still not getting the same pay. She’s every woman who has ever wondered why the company won’t cover her contraceptives, but will cover that same guy’s Viagra.

EMILY is every working mom who has ever fought for quality day care or family leave time. She is every woman who has given up a single day of vacation to care for a sick child or a sick parent.

EMILY is every girl in every classroom whose hand was still in the air after the boys got their questions answered. She’s every athlete who’s ever been told, “She throws like a girl.” She’s every candidate who’s ever been asked how she can run for office and have a family at the same time.

She is every African-American woman who has had to work three times as hard to be considered as good as her white male colleague. She is every Jewish woman who has ever been called a princess. She is every Hispanic woman who has been asked how long her family has been in this country. She is every woman who has been called too soft or too strong or too aggressive or too nice or too ambitious to get the job done. She is every woman who has ever been measured against a glossy picture in a magazine.

EMILY is the seamstress who has sewn the graduation gowns for years but has never worn one. EMILY is every woman who helped set up this room today and who will clean up after we leave … and that same woman who only wants her daughters to dream big dreams, because EMILY knows that young girls cannot be what they cannot see. She is you. She may be your next governor … she may be your next vice-president … she may be your next president. And EMILY doesn’t get mad — she gets elected!”

-- Michigan Attorney General Jennifer Granholm, EMILY's List Majority Council Conference, June 2002

******

How many of you can relate to what Jennifer had to say? How many of you see yourself in her statements? At BlogHer, Emily's List passed out a fact sheet about what everyone should know about WOMEN VOTERS:

Women Voters Will Be the Key to Success in 2008 - Women will have an incredible impact on the results of the Presidential Election in 2008. Nationally, there are 9 million more registered voters than male voters.

More Women Vote Than Men - Women comprise a disproportionate share of both Democratic primary and general election voters. Women turn out at a higher rate than men do in general elections, comprising 54% of the electorate in 2004.

Women Voters are Critical in the Primary - In the primary, women are likely to make up nearly 60% of the vote.

Women Supporting Women - Women candidates fare better on the issues with female swing voters, who in 2004, made up 32% of all women voters and 17% of the electorate. Female swing voters expect that a female candidate will better handle family values, education and health care than a male candidate.

"EMILY's List does more than just recruit and fund pro-choice Democratic women candidates. They also help them build and run effective campaigns and mobilize women voters to help elect progressive candidates across the nation." Go here to find out specific details on their programs and how you can get involved.

BlogHer 2007: What Questions do Women Bloggers Want Candidates to Answer in Election 2008?

**UPDATE**:  Congratulations to the random drawing winner of the book  I was a Really Good Mom, Before I Had Kids (courtesy of sk*rt):  Lisse of At Home In the World.  Thanks to everyone for your comments. 

I'm back from BlogHer 2007 and one of the best breakout sessions I attended was this one.  The session was led by conservative and progressive pollsters who presented some recent voter data and then we split into four groups to discuss what top three questions from each topic (Health Care, Environment, Iraq and Foreign Affairs, and Economic Future) we want to see answered by the candidates for president.  All of the current candidates were contacted for this session and interestingly enough, only two from either side of the isle sent representatives:  Hilary Clinton and John Edwards. 

So I thought I'd present some of our sample questions from my breakout group (Health Care) to you and ask you, "which are the most important to you, and why?" or do you have other questions of your own on this topic?  From all the commenter's who answer this question ON TOPIC, I'll draw one randomly and give them one of the books I got at BlogHer from Sk*rt, entitled, I was a Really Good Mom, Before I Had Kids (description of the book here). 

Health Care

How will your health care plan address the needs of the aging population, specifically those with Alzheimer's, heart disease and diabetes? How will you ration out our limited resources?

What will your health care plan do to address the need for affordable preventable medical services?

Does your health care plan cover undocumented workers?

How do you intend to make sure that all Americans have some form of health insurance?

How can we pay for health care in the US sustainably?

How can we make sure that anyone in the US not only has access to health care but can afford it?

How can we make health care a right, not a privilege for every citizen?

How can we mandate that all children in the US are insured?

How can we protect families from insurance companies who deny claims in the face of a health crisis?

How can we ensure increased access to family planning?

How can we make women's and children's health issues a priority?

How can we make childbirth and maternity leave less of a burden for working mothers?

Can a woman's reproductive rights be protected in US health care?

How can we protect research, such as stem cell research, that has the possibility to wipe out diseases?

How can we get mental health issues to be covered by insurance with the same parity as physical health issues?

How can we get politics OUT of the health care issues that need to be solved?

Cantwell-Larsen Montgomery GI Bill for Life Act of 2007

I grew up a child of an officer in the Navy. I'm now married to a man who served 8 years in the Navy enlisted ranks. My grandfather served in the Army during WWII. My uncles served during Vietnam. I am proud of my family's service to our country. It is because of men and women like them, that we, and many others across the globe, enjoy our freedoms. I may not agree with the current "war," but I support wholeheartedly our troops, both active duty, and retired, and those who served and were discharged (honorably). I will defend their rights with my last breath because without them, I wouldn't have any rights at all.

The G.I. Bill was first created in 1944 to provide for higher education benefits, one year of unemployment compensation (the "52-20" clause) and low interest, zero down home loans for WW II veterans. The official name of the bill was The Servicemen's Readjustment Act. The bill was updated as time went on. The Veterans' Adjustment Act of 1952 (for Korean Conflict veterans) still provided for education (now paying the veterans instead of the colleges directly) but no longer offering the unemployment compensation. In 1966, The Veteran Readjustment Benefits Act extended the G.I. benefits to all veterans, of war and of peace. The Veterans Educational Assistance Program was instituted for the period December 1976 through 1987 and was replaced by the Montgomery G.I. Bill (MGIB) for service members who served after July 1, 1985.

Both of the latter two programs required the service member to make monetary contributions in order to benefit from the bill after they leave the service. Specifically, under the MGIB, currently in place for our service members today, active duty members contribute $100/month for 12 months to receive up to $1,075/month for 36 months of education benefits after they leave active duty. The MGIB limits the service members to using the GI bill for up to 10 years from the date of last discharge (with some exceptions for extensions). This caveat is one of those "use it or lose it" aspects that makes our veterans feel cheated.

It has been reported by the Department of Veteran Affairs that about "30% of eligible veterans are unable to use any of their education benefits and most eligible veterans are only able to access a portion of their GI Bill before the 10-year limit is reached."

Why are they unable to use those benefits in such a "lengthly" time period? Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) was quoted as saying, "When our service members leave the military, family obligations, work commitments and economic difficulties often get in the way." Think about veterans that you know. Think of them dealing with disabilities and illness (physical and mental) from their service. Think of them trying to re-adjust to civilian life after living for a year or more in a war zone. Think of them trying to "be normal" again, find a job, become part of their families again. Sometimes, 10 years really may not be enough. Also? Removing the time limit would enable veterans to "keep up with changes due to technology over the course of their lifetime, thus keeping them more employable (veteran and former Washington VFW commander Frosty Hulsey)."

Senator Cantwell has introduced S.1261 GI Bill for Life Act of 2007 that would eliminate this 10 year time limit on GI Benefits. Her co-sponsors are Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tom Harkin (D-IA), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Patty Murray (D-WA). As of 5/1/07, the bill remains in the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Over in the House, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, Representative Rick Larsen (D-WA ) introduced mirror legislation under H.R. 2247. His co-sponsors are Jo Ann Davis (VA), Bart Gordon (TN), Bart Stupak (MI), Peter DeFazio (OR) and Ed Pastor (AZ). This bill was referred to the House subcommittee on Military Personnel on 6/28/07.

So what do you think? Is 10 years enough? Or should these bills be passed into law? Give me your opinion.

Balancing Act

Ironically, today, on the day of my post about the balancing act that moms face every single day, I am at home with a sick child. On a day I really needed to be at work. However, I am lucky enough not to be "One Sick Child Away From Being Fired," even though I know many women are not so lucky.

And since I am at home and need to take care of my son, I'm going to have to present this topic by directing you to some of the research I did rather than writing up a detailed post as planned. Quotes and sources are provided. This topic is too important to pass by.

from the National Organization of Women: "The Balancing Act Bill (# H.R.2392), which was originally introduced in 2005, provides assistance for working families through increasing the number of workers eligible family and medical care leave; expands child care for young children and incentives for child care providers; preschool, in-school, and after school nutrition and education programs; requires parity for temporary and part-time workers in job benefits, including pension and health care plan coverage; and encourages business to permit employee telecommuting.

In a nutshell, the Balancing Act would:

1. help states provide paid leave for those caring for young children and elderly relatives. Also, it extends current unpaid Family and Medical Leave Act protections to employers with 15 or more employees, for additional family responsibilities, and is pro-rated for part time employees;
2. increase child care options for working families;
3. provide funding for after school programs and universal pre-kindergarten;
4. improve nutrition with reduced or free meals at school; and
5. encourage more friendly and flexible workplaces, including equitable treatment and benefits for part-time and temporary workers.

The Balancing Act is an important companion to other work/family policy initiatives, including The Healthy Families Act (S.910/H.R. 1542), which would provide for paid sick leave for more workers, and a soon-to-be introduced bill to provide for paid family leave."

from the website of the original sponsor, Lynn Woolsey (D-CA): "Washington, DC - A staunch advocate for children and families, Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) today introduced The Balancing Act, a comprehensive a package of legislative efforts designed to improve the lives of working families by making it easier for parents to balance their work and family responsibilities.

“Having healthy and strong families is in everyone’s interest, and that’s why this legislation is so important” Woolsey said. “When parents have the confidence of knowing their family’s needs are being met, they are much more productive on the job, which in turn strengthens our economy.

“But this legislation is about more than just strengthening our economy, this is about doing what’s right. Parents should not be forced to choose between having a successful career and raising a family, and we must ensure that they have the support available at their disposal to do both.”

The legislation would improve the lives of tens of millions of Americans by providing paid family and medical leave assistance, expanded child care opportunities, in-school and after school options, family care assistance, universal (voluntary) pre-school, incentives for family friendly work places, benefits for part-time workers, and telecommuting incentives. Woolsey has introduced similar legislation in the previous Congress, and views it as one of her top domestic priorities.

“The recommendations in this bill are common sense,” Woolsey said. “As a nation we must value work, but we must also ensure that someone’s commitment to their career does not overshadow their ability to raise a family. This legislation is one of my top domestic priorities, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in Washington, and all interested parties to make these recommendations a reality.”

So what can you, the Soccer Mom Vote reader do? For one, contact your representative and ask them to co-sponsor the bill. Go to the N.O.W. website and implement their suggestions ("other ways to take action" at the bottom). Join MomsRising, a grassroots organization for women's issues and answer their calls to action (and see Soccer Mom Joanne there!) Together, we CAN make a difference.

(special thanks to Susan at Working Moms Against Guilt for her post on this issue).

Truly a Sanctuary?

In the interest of full disclosure, to say I'm not a fan of Bill O'Reilly would be to say that Rosie and Elisabeth had a small disagreement recently; I truly dislike the man.  He did not help his case with me when he brought the national spotlight on immigration to our fair city and did so in a series of personal attacks on our mayor and police chief.  Instead of starting a fair and balanced discussion, like the ones I like to think are our goal here at the SMV, he just wanted to start controversy and bring in viewers. 

The whole story begins with a tragedy.  A tragedy in which two young lives were lost.  Two high school girls, best friends, were sitting in their car at a stoplight, just a few miles from my house, incidentally.  They were wearing seat-belts, were sober and not driving erratically.  They were doing everything right.  Then one young man, named Alfredo Ramos, decided to take a drive while drunk.  Allegedly.  He was so drunk, allegedly, that he has no memory of the crash.  Now some people have asked, which is the bigger issue here? The fact that Ramos was driving drunk? Or the fact that he is in our country illegally to begin with and should have been deported long ago for other offenses?

You see, he came here about seven years ago from Mexico. He was working at a local Mexican restaurant.  And he had an arrest record.  He was convicted in a neighboring city of public drunkenness, a seat-belt violation, identity theft and DUI.  He had also been charged with driving without a license and having no insurance in that city.  Also? public drunkenness in our city.  And yet, somehow, no one knew until this tragedy that he was an illegal alien.  Why? No one asked. 

And it is only now that he faces deportation. Now that he has been charged with two counts of aggravated involuntary manslaughter. 

So the question comes - why didn't anyone ask Ramos his status?  O'Reilly called our town a "sanctuary city" for illegal immigrants, insulted our mayor personally and had his producers confront her at her home.  He called her "clueless," "deceitful," "limited in her intellectual capacity" and said she "should be baking pies, not running a major city." He called our police chief "an arrogant incompetent" for his longstanding policy of not allowing officers to question the immigration status of people they question for non-felony crimes (a policy that has since been changed, I might note). 

Here's where the blame game started.  Everyone from the major to the police chief to a spokesperson for the governor said that immigration procedures are handled at the federal level.  "That's Not My J-O-B" is what they all cried.  While that kind of talk always boils my blood, it IS important to note that several local police officers were in agreement that ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) was not proactive in helping to deal with all the illegal immigrants that were reported.  In most cases, ICE ignored the calls; now of course, ICE is taking all calls and taking action, now that they are in the spotlight. And our elected officials in Congress are now all of the sudden supporting bills and talking forcefully about what "needs to be done."

The question raised time and again was, why wasn't Ramos asked of his status and deported when he had his first conviction?  Isn't there a law to protect us?  Yes, there is, but no, it is not always being enforced.  The Illegal Immigration and Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 and it's subsection 287(g) has been on the books for 11 years now.  Under this act ICE is supposed to provide state and local officials with training and authorization to "identify, process, and when appropriate, detain immigration offenders they encounter during their regular, daily, law-enforcement activity." Unfortunately, this act has not been implemented nation wide.

Another act, not yet passed into law, was introduced by Rep. Sue Myrick (R-N.C.), called The Scott Gardner Act (Scott Gardner was a teacher who was killed by a drunk driver who was an illegal alien with FIVE prior DWI convictions.  A quick Google search shows many, many more people killed by illegal aliens driving drunk).  This act would make the detention and deportation of illegal aliens convicted of DWI mandatory.  It would also require the sharing of information on illegal immigrants among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.   You can read more about the act here.  Rep. Myrick succinctly put her bill this way: "You're drunk, you're driving, you're illegal, you're deported, period."  This bill is supposed to be re-introduced as HR1355 and S. 850 (Sen. Richard Burr [R-NC]) in the 110th Congress.  Urge your representatives to support the bill.  Don't let all the brouhaha in Congress over Immigration Reform cause this important bill to go unnoticed.  Let there be some good from all this tragedy. 

May is Allergy & Asthma Awareness Month

As you know from my very first Soccer Mom post, one of my hot button issues is Food Allergy Awareness.  May is a big month for this topic as not only is the entire month of May designated as NATIONAL ASTHMA AWARENESS MONTH here in the U.S.A., but WORLD ASTHMA DAY was May 8 and May 13 - 19 is FOOD ALLERGY AWARENESS WEEK. 

What is Asthma?  According to the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), "Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in the world, affecting more than 300 million people worldwide (20 million Americans).  It is characterized by recurrent breathing problems and symptoms such as breathlessness, wheezing, chest tightness, and coughing.  Asthma symptoms vary over time, and also from individual to individual."  The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America breaks down asthma further, into two categories:  Allergic (extrinsic) and Non-Allergic (intrinsic).  Allergic asthma is the most common form and occurs when triggered by allergic reactions.  Symptoms (coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, rapid breathing and chest tightness) are the same in either case. 

What are Allergies?  "Diseases of the immune system that cause an overreaction to substances called 'allergens' and are categorized as indoor and outdoor allergies, food and drug allergies, latex allergies, insect allergies, skin allergies and eye allergies" (Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America).  With food allergies, the allergens are food that your body mistakenly believes is harmful, such as milk, egg, peanuts, tree nuts, seafood, shellfish, soy and wheat (the Big Eight that account for 90% of all U.S. food allergies).  Approximately 12 million Americans have food allergies (The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network).

What can I do? 

1)  You can find materials for World Asthma Day here.  Courtesy of GINA, these materials will help you get the word out. The Environmental Protection Agency also has a planning kit for Asthma Awareness Month.   

2)  Advocate, advocate, advocate.  If you are a mother of a child with Asthma, join the Allergy & Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics, visit their advocacy center often, read what you can do and do it!  Annually, they have an event in Washington D.C. to lobby Congress for action and make people aware of Asthma. 

3)  Spread the word about food allergies during the 10th annual Food Allergy Awareness Week (FAAW) May 13 - 19, 2007.  The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) has an entire week's worth of activities you can do to help spread the word (and more ideas, including a poster contest, here).   

4)  Again, ADVOCATE. Lobby your governor to recognize the week for your state (template letter here).  Pester your representatives in Congress to pass the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Act when it is reintroduced in Congress this year.  Join FAAN, keep abreast of their advocacy actions.   

Whatever you do, get involved, get aware.  You may be saving the life of someone you love.