Since day one, we have, for the most part; all assumed that it was the Vice Presidents office that leaked the information about Valarie Plame, violating the federal law that bars the "outing" of intelligence operatives.

Vice President Dick Cheney wrote a memo that effectively confirms his intimate involvement in strategizing about how to counter the inquiry into the Bush administration's politically motivated outing of CIA operative Valarie Plame. This was revealed in the former vice presidential chief of staff "Scooter" Libby's trial on charges of obstructing a federal investigation.

This blatant conspiracy to punish a critic of the Bush administration is just like one of the articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon in the seventies, who by the way was Dick Cheney’s boss at the time. One could say he learned at the knee of the master.

Cheney is the architect of the arguments for going to war. He is the one who used the media to defend his choices, even when there was evidence that he was wrong. Plame's husband, former Ambassador Joe Wilson, who had become a critic of the White House and its pre-war claims that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction in a New York Times opinion piece that appeared in the summer of 2003, had ticked Cheney and crew off, and they like children in their spitefulness decided to get even, thus the leak to the press about Plame.

In all fairness, while Bush in his 2003 State of the Union address only fuzzed up the works with his remarks, it was Cheney who made the pre-war declaration that, "We know Saddam Hussein's been absolutely devoted to trying to acquire nuclear weapons, and we believe he has, in fact, reconstituted nuclear weapons." It was the vice president who continued to claim, long after Bush had dropped the line, that Saddam Hussein was a nuclear threat.

It was Cheney who had a little war going on with the CIA, because he felt they weren’t coming up with more evidence of Iraqi WMDs and al-Qaeda connections. It was he who badgered CIA briefer to get him the evidence, and when they didn’t provide what he wanted demanded that someone else brief him until he found someone who would say what he wanted to hear. Even the Republican lead House Intelligence Committee complained in a letter of reprimand, "These visits are unprecedented. Normally, vice presidents, including yourself, receive regular briefings from (the) CIA in your office and have a CIA officer on permanent detail. There is no reason to make personal visits to the CIA."

There is no one in Washington more vicious and vindictive than Dick Cheney. Along with his henchmen, former Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, former Sec. Of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, White House political czar Karl Rove and, more importantly, his (Cheney’s) Chief of Staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby they are the core of a so called Conservative Advocacy for American World Leadership (read domination). They are worst in my opinion than the so-called Mafia.

Cheney, former Nixon yes man, former congressman, former Sec of Defense, has since he became Vice President burning bridges to our NATO allies, he has taken every opportunity to thumb his nose at old Europe and our allies there. How the rest of the world views the U.S., has taken a pounding since Bush took office in world opinion, and Bush, Cheney and the rest of the neocon gang are doing nothing to change that view.

Cheney set out to increase defense spending significantly so he could carry out his global ambitions, under the guise of modernizing our armed forces for the future, to challenge regimes hostile to his interests and values (read pocketbook), to advance his vision of America's unique role in preserving and extending an international order friendly to security, prosperity, and his personal principles. That his greedy agenda, had destroyed world opinion of America was just too bad. That his ill-conceived agenda was adding one-half Trillion (not millions, not billions, but trillions) to the National Debt annually was just too bad. That Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution places the power and the duty to raise and support the military forces of the United States in the hands of the Congress, instead of leaving it up to the whims of the Corporate Elite was just too damn bad.

Dick Cheney is a "radical conservative, one who believes that any American who opposes his views is an enemy of America (his America) and should be locked up in detention camps (read concentration camps).

One wonders when not if special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald (who heads the investigation into the Valarie Plame Affair) will get fired. His investigation is turning up more and more evidence that Cheney has lead the campaign of lies and deceit that has come to dominate the Bush Administration.

Today I call for George W. Bush to stand up for once in his life, to put a stop to the obvious campaign to prove Vice President Dick Cheney “not guilty.” To salvage some respect if not for you for America. To immediately demand the resignation of Vice President Cheney.

I realize that you all adhere to the words of Ben Franklin, “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” But if you insist on maintaining this façade then you will understand other words by that same famous statesman, “"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." We The People will not give up our essential liberty, we will fight to make things right at home and in the world, and we are done preaching we will be impeaching.

Ron McBride
Founder & Chairman
WeDemocrats.org

Ron McBride is founder, chairman and regular contributor of, by and for www.wedemocrats.org. He is the author of numerous articles on Democracy. His writings can be found at www.WeDemocrats.org, at mytown.ca/mcbride plus blogs such as www.dailykos.com, at OpEdNews and www.mydd.com

Reverse The Course

Well the big protest is over, estimates vary around the country, AP said tens of thousands, march organizers claim 400,000 in Washington alone. More conservative pundits say about 100,000 antiwar protesters from around the country converged Saturday on the National Mall, galvanized by opposition to President Bush's plan to increase the number of troops in Iraq. What ever the total was at least people from various organizations stood together against the Bush Machine and his private war, it is unusual to see many of the organizations represented here working towards anything but their own personal agendas.

Why did I say a private war?

When PRESIDENT BUSH took the podium to deliver his State of the Union address last week, there were five American families receiving news that have become all too common: Their loved ones had been killed in Iraq. But in this case, the slain were neither "civilians," as the news reports proclaimed, nor were they U.S. soldiers. They were highly trained mercenaries deployed to Iraq by a secretive private military company based in North Carolina — Blackwater USA.

President George W. Bush in his recent State of the Union address, slipped in a call for a Civilian Reserve Corps, that would act like our military reserves, what it amounts to is the creation of a private army, or should I say an expansion of the existing one; Bush and his political allies are using taxpayer dollars to run this private army, behind the backs of the American people and with little congressional input, known as Blackwater.

Blackwater, the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army is the brain storm of Erik Prince, the secretive, mega-millionaire, conservative owner of Blackwater USA and a man who for years has served as the Pied Piper of a campaign to repackage mercenaries as legitimate forces. Blackwater began in 1996 with a private military training camp "to fulfill the anticipated demand for government outsourcing." Today, its contacts run from deep inside the military and intelligence agencies to the upper echelons of the White House. It has secured a status as the elite Praetorian Guard for the global war on terror, with the largest private military base in the world, a fleet of 20 aircraft and 20,000 soldiers at the ready.

One of the company's helicopters (a small surveillance helicopter, believed to be a version of the Hughes Defender) was brought down in one of Baghdad's most violent areas. The men who were killed were providing diplomatic security under Blackwater's $300-million State Department contract, which dates to 2003 and the company's initial no-bid contract to guard administrator L. Paul Bremer III in Iraq.

Already, private contractors constitute the second-largest "force" in Iraq. At last count, there were about 100,000 contractors in Iraq, of which 48,000 work as private soldiers, according to a Government Accountability Office report. These soldiers have operated with almost no oversight or effective legal constraints and are an undeclared expansion of the scope of the occupation. Many of these contractors make up to $1,000 a day, far more than active-duty soldiers. What's more, these forces are politically expedient, as contractor deaths go uncounted in the official toll. A total that is approaching 800 as you read this.

With these 800 plus the nearly 3,100 American Soldiers who have died, not to mention the almost 250 journalists, media support workers, and aid workers, and the total is approaching 4,200! And American wounded in Iraq is closer to 28,000, far more than the Bush regimes reported 22,000.

It is of vital importance that we Reverse The Course, to secure the homeland, and save lives of Americans, quit creating anti-American sentiment leading to terrorism, and to war. Stay the Course is a tried and true failure. The ends do not justify the means.

It makes me proud, that our writers and editors work as volunteers, without pay. I hope it encourages other writers to keep on writing, that it encourages more of our readers to take a stab at writing, and that it inspires you to make a donation supporting WeDemocrats.org and WE! The People the online magazine. We're working hard to make a difference. You can help. Can't afford to make a contribution-- let other people know about us, or better yet, volunteer as a Precinct Organizer, a County or State Coordinator.

Thank you for all you are doing,

Ron McBride
WeDemocrats.org
Founder & Chairman
Publisher of WE! The People online magazine
ron@wedemocrats.org

I believe that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people, of course I still believe that a man’s word is his bond, and a handshake is as good as a written contract.

Naïve, yea guess so to a degree. But aren’t we all?

I have some big ideas for growing the progressive movement and in turn changing the way America is governed, and while we all wish that everyone was on the same wave link, we see small men like this President who has small ideas that don't a make a whit of difference in the lives of working Americans.

Just take for instance the speech by this same President, GW Bush last night. He managed to shovel it out once again, and we heard mainstream media jump on the band wagon, sugar coating their commentary and evading the truth.

Do you trust President Bush? 72% of Americans do not.

Last night as the President cited 'progress' in Afghanistan and Iraq, I thought of all the young men and women who have sacrificed their lives for this so called progress. Did I believe his idea of progress was the truth? NO!

Even though he is going to now be considered a lame duck, he is still the President of the United States, still the Commander-in-Chief; and he is still sending brave American men and women to their deaths in Iraq's civil war.

He called for affordable healthcare and job training for all Americans, but was he sincere, I don’t believe so. I felt it was merely a ploy to help raise his approval ratings which by the way are the lowest of any President in History with the exception of Richard Nixon the last week before he resigned in disgrace. I repeat, George Bush's popularity matches the Republican who became so deeply and universally disliked that he resigned from office. Americans have had it with this president.

He failed to mention jobs and job security for Americans.
--Median household income in 2000: $47,599
--Median household income in 2005: $46,326
(US Census Bureau, Table H-8. Median Household Income by State)

He said, “First, we must balance the federal budget.” Well lets look at the federal budget record:
--US Budget Deficit in FY 2000: $230 billion surplus
--US Budget Deficit in FY 2006: $423 billion deficit
(White House Office of Management and Budget. Budget of the United States Government, Historical Tables, Fiscal Year 2007; White House Office of Management and Budget. Table S-1. 2006 budget totals)
Going from a surplus when he took office, to nearly a half a trillion dollar deficit, isn’t something he should be proud of, and given his track record, few believe he is serious about balancing the budget.
--US National Debt in FY 2000: $5.7 trillion
--US National Debt in FY 2006: $8.5 trillion
(Bureau of the Public Debt, Jan. 16, 2007)

He said, “Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid are commitments of conscience - and so it is our duty to keep them permanently sound.” I would applaud this move if I felt he really meant it. But again lets look at the record:
--Workers without retirement plans at work in the private sector 2006: 80 percent
--Baby boom Americans approaching retirement: 76 million
(Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2006; The Seattle Times. Jan. 22, 2005)
--Americans without health insurance, 2000: 38.2 million
--Americans without health insurance, 2005: 46.6 million
(US Census Bureau, Sept. 2001; US Census Bureau, Aug. 2006)

These are just a few of the issues vital to each of us, and that progressives will fight to promote. We can talk about the great things we can do for our nation and world, but unless we back those ideas with concrete plans all is for nothing.

It is time for each of us to take a personal stake in ensuring our nation's greatness.

356 Days till the Iowa Caucus 1/24/2007

Here is where you come in. Don’t fumble the ball. Step up and volunteer now, don’t wait until a few months before an election, don’t say I will contribute later. Do it now TODAY!

If you believe as 28% of Americans do, that George W. Bush can achieve the vague promises he made last night, then do nothing, if you are like me and the other 72% of Americans that he is full of hot air, then its time to make a difference, its time to take back this country.

Ron McBride
WeDemocrats.org
Founder & Chairman
Publisher of WE! The People online magazine
ron@wedemocrats.org

Hi gang,

Below is a note from Richard Burk and the Issues Committee, we ask each of you whether member or not, to contact the committee either through Richard or myself
richard.burk@gmail.com or ron@wedemocrats.org

Hello. Your issues committee co-chair, Richard Burk, would like to invite you, the membership of WeDemocrats to send us (your issues committee) your list of issues that are important to you. Please indicate if the issue is local, state, or national. If the issue is
local please include your state and locality to where it applies. If the issue is state please indicate which state to where it applies.

Please indicate what the priority of each issue relative to local, state, or national. Examples appear at the end. Please also indicate those issues that you are passionate about and additionally indicate which issues you would be interested in working on defining.

The goal is gather up all of the issues from every member and determine what all of the issues are, and to then farm them out for further defining. Once we have defined each issue (principled support/oppose and practical support/oppose) then we will put out each
issue to the membership to vote on whether or not the issue is an issue that WeDemocrats should put our organization behind.

This is just the first step to organizing the issues that are important to us. Once we know what issues are important to us, then we can define those issues from all sides. The ranking and motivation each of us for a particular issue will assist us in finding those
people that are really interested in each issue so that we can get multiple people to work on each issue.

As each issue comes reaches a level of maturity of definition from their respective working groups as determined by the issues committee, then it will be presented to the membership for a vote. The vote will be a vote to put our organization's resources (meaning membership/money/etc) behind that issue as a group. Keep in mind that a given issue may be a local issue to a specific town or state. It will be the membership of that town or state that would be eligible to vote on it. If the issue is a national issue, then it would be open to the entire membership.

Example: Below is an actual of issues important to somebody. 'p' means that the person is passionate about the issue. So likely they consider it to be very important or are motivated to work on it. 'h' means that the person wants to work on defining the issue. It would be great to be able to define all sides of the issue in an objective manner. The ranking indicates the relative importance of each issue relative to the other issues within the local/state/national designation.

p=passion, h=help define by joining a working group for the given issue
1=more important, >1 less important
local: Bangor, Maine
1 ph city taxes
3 h fishing licenses
2 p dog licenses
state: Maine
3 h state taxes
2 h single payer health care
1 p universal health care
national:
6 p war in iraq
2 ph national deficit
1 restoration of civil rights
3 ph privacy rights
4 ph miranda rights
5 ph habeus corpus
7 federal taxes
8 social security
9 medicare

If you are not now a member then by all means join us and help construct the issues that reflect your views. You can't vote in the polls unless you are signed in.
Just go to: www.WeDemocrats.org and click on JOIN. Thanks

Ron McBride
WeDemocrats.org
Founder & Chairman
Publisher of WE! The People online magazine
ron@wedemocrats.org

Political Activist, is defined as:
Activism, in a general sense, can be described as intentional action to bring about social or political change. This action is in support of, or opposition to, one side of a controversial argument.

WeDems Political Activist

The Coordinator has the responsibility to make the members aware of political affairs that effect their livelihood and social well being, including keeping them informed as to legislation that affects them locally. The Coordinator should also become involved in politics by helping on campaigns of progressive candidates. Listed below are the things the Coordinator should do and know to fulfill the role of political activist and suggestions as to how to do them:


The Coordinator as a Political Activist

What you do:
Keep members informed about political events
What you need to know:
Pending legislation that affects your members

What you do:
Register and vote in all elections
What you need to know:
Our nation cannot remain democratic without the participation of the people

What you do:
Encourage every member, family member and neighbor to vote
What you need to know:
Who is not registered, and who needs prodding to exercise their right to vote

What you do:
Write letters to your representatives, and encourage others to do the same
What you need to know:
Who representatives are and what are current issues

What you do:
Work on campaigns of endorsed progressive candidates
What you need to know:
Who has been endorsed and why

What you do:
Promote the political action program of your organization
What you need to know:
The political positions the organization has taken

How you go about it

1. Read newspapers and progressive literature, such as the DailyKos and WE! The People, The Campaign and other Action Alerts, and your daily newspaper, so that you understand the issues from a progressive perspective.
2. Attend education programs that address the issues.
3. Volunteer to work on a phone bank, knock on doors, stuff envelopes or pass out fliers for a progressive endorsed candidate.
4. Organize letter-writing campaigns to your representatives on important issues.
5. Participate in "actions" organized by your group, such as rallies and marches.
6. Distribute organization literature to all members.
Okay, now you know what a Political Activist does and how they do it. But I try to avoid the term, preferring Patriot Activist instead, much of what has been successful about GOP
campaigns has been their usage of words to position an issue. No reason for
us not to use the same tactic. And for SURE they are not the only patriots.

The Republicans like to use the “L” word as if it was something dirty, and many Democrats have shied away from being identified as Liberals.

“…..if by a liberal they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone
who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the
welfare of the people- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs,
their civil rights, their civil liberties.. if that is what they mean by a
“liberal” then I am proud to be a liberal. “: John F. Kennedy

Many claim to be political activists, but few claim to be Patriot Activists, Clement Biddle was one who was proud of that designation.
CLEMENT BIDDLE (1740-1814).
Patriot activist, Quaker, warm personal friend of George Washington. As an officer in the Continental Army, he served at the battles of Trenton, Princeton, Germantown, Brandywine, and Monmouth. Later appointed US Marshal of Pennsylvania by Washington. Signed many documents "Clement Biddle," in his capacity as a notary public, and set them with a beautiful impression of his wax and paper notary public seal.
Biddle was the first Identified as a Patriot activist.

I am a Patriot Activist, not because my father, two brothers 5 uncles and two sons served in the military, not because in the little one room school in Hell’s Neck where I grew up we recited the pledge of allegiance every morning, not because I fly the American Flag every day. But because as a citizen of the United States of America, I am proud of what the country has achieved on a world stage, even in view of idiots like GW, I am still proud of this nation, and will defend anyway I can.

Our revolution has spurred revolution around the world, our nation defeated the Spanish and allowed Cuba to become free (they were on the right track until you know who came to power), our nation sent in over 600,000 troops to Europe in WW1 to aid our allies in defeating the Germans for the first time, without our country there wouldn’t be very many inventions that are widely used today, our country defeated German Nazism, Japanese imperialism, and Fascist Italy simultaneously to make the world a better, more free and just place to live, while also putting an end to the bloodiest conflict in history.

Now I ask you are you just a political activist which can be found throughout the world or are you an American Patriot Activist?