The International Longshore and Warehouse Union’s West Coast dock workers — including those at the ports of Oakland and San Francisco — have voted to stop work tomorrow, Thursday, May 1, to protest the U.S. war and occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Joined by other labor organizations and community groups, they’ll be rallying against the war and for workers’ and immigrants’ rights.

In Oakland, there’ll be a rally and cultural performances from 3 to 4 p.m. at the Fruitvale BART Plaza; a 4 to 6 p.m. march from there along International Boulevard to City Hall; and then another rally and set of performances at Frank Ogawa Plaza from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Among the confirmed speakers are Green Party presidential candidate and former Georgia Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney; ILWU Local 10 executive board member Clarence Thomas; Alameda County Central Labor Council Executive Secretary-Treasurer Sharon Cornu; Oakland Education Association President Betty Olson-Jones; Bay Area Immigrant Rights Coalition advocacy coordinator Evelyn Sanchez; and Mujeres Unidas y Activas program director Maria Jimenez.

There’ll be major happenings in San Francisco too, including a noontime rally at Justin Herman Plaza with McKinney, Cindy Sheehan, Alexander Cockburn, Danny Glover and other speakers.

Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma, and Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., today introduced a bill which would provide four consecutive years of funding to strengthen existing programs already underway to foster reconciliation among Iraq’s societal factions.

“So long as Iraq remains divided based along ethnic and sectarian lines the situation on the ground will remain chaotic and violent, giving Iraq little chance of rebuilding itself, or of delivering a better life for the Iraqi people,” Woolsey — a House Foreign Relations Committee member; Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chairwoman; and Out of Iraq Caucus co-founder — said in her news release.

“The Iraqi people know this to be true, so we must support their efforts if we are welcome. Reconciliation lies at the heart of this endeavor, and the United States Institute for Peace has a strong track record of effectively creating programs that bring neighbors and one-time adversaries together, with positive results.”

Shays said H.R. 5925, based on a recommendation of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, would allocate $20 million annually for four years to the USIP, which since 2004 has been working to prevent sectarian violence at the local level; develop leaders in schools, universities, government, and civil society; promote the rule of law; engage women in public life; and increase regional stability.

And — by various estimates of current spending levels — the entire annual cost of the effort would be equal to about two hours of combat operations in Iraq.

UPDATE @ 2:25 P.M. WEDNESDAY: It seems this post has become part of a debate on partisanship, bi-partisanship and post-partisanship over at Open Left. Is Woolsey wrong to co-sponsor a bill with a vulnerable Republican, even if the bill is something most Democrats can get behind? Personally, I’d say that if a bill is good policy and bi-partisan co-authorship gives it a better chance of passing, then go for the gusto. (And for all you watching for a bias, I’m not talking about this particular bill; I’m speaking generally, and I think this cuts both ways.)

Assemblyman Sandre Swanson, D-Oakland, will host a regional town hall on California’s budget crisis from 10 a.m. to noon this Saturday, May 3 at Alameda’s Encinal High School, 210 Central Ave.

Assembly Budget Committee Chairman John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, will make a presentation on the budget, while assemblywomen Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, and Mary Hayashi, D-Castro Valley, also will take part.

Swanson says there’s “an incredible outcry” against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan to cut all government services by 10 percent across the board, as this would cripple schools, social services and other vital public functions. “In these incredibly difficult budget times, and with so many vital services at stake, it is important that we have a conversation about what our priorities in this state really are. That discussion has to begin in our communities.”

So this Saturday’s meeting will include discussions of the education and health care budget-cut proposals, as well as other areas; Swanson said attendees — of which he expects hundreds — will direct the conversation in a question-and-answer session with elected officials present. He said he wants people to leave “informed and energized.”

“We will provide specific and effective ways for individuals to make their priorities heard in Sacramento,” he said. “At the end of the day, that is what is going to sway the conversation. It will take ordinary people standing up and telling their elected officials, including the Governor, that they will not accept a budget balanced on the backs of our children and our most vulnerable.”

Indeed, expect more and more meetings and events such as this as spring warms toward summer, as lawmakers have said all along that this year’s budget battle will be won or lost based on the public’s outcry.

In fact, elected officials are joining the Oakland school officials, teachers, students, parents, businesspeople and community leaders for a demonstration against education budget cuts at 4 p.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, April 30, in Oakland’s school administration building, 1025 Second Ave. They say they’ll offer “specific proposals for addressing California’s budget crisis without gutting the state’s education system and invite Maria Shriver, a longtime advocate of children’s rights and educational issues, to come to Oakland and discuss alternatives to cuts in school funding.” (Hmm, good luck with that one.)

Perhaps most importantly, attendees at tomorrow’s event will visit “action stations” to contact residents of Republican-held legislative districts, asking those voters to pressure their lawmakers to oppose school funding cuts and find alternative revenue to help close the budget deficit. So this won’t just be a rally for the cameras; they’ll be taking the battle right to the ballot boxes, turning up the heat on GOP lawmakers to back off their adamant “no tax hikes” pledge.

Those expected to attend include Swanson; Hancock; Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums; Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland; state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland; Alameda County Office of Education Superitendent Sheila Jordan; and representatives from the Oakland Board of Education; the Oakland Education Association; the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; United Administrators of Oakland Schools; Oakland Community Organizations (OCO); Oakland Parents Together and other community organizations.

It seems the Rev. Jeremiah Wright — Barack Obama’s longtime family pastor — went too far in his interview with Bill Moyers that aired on PBS on Friday night and his comments Monday at the National Press Club in Washington. This clip is from a few hours ago in North Carolina:

I don’t usually use comments on past posts as the seeds of new ones, but this one’s bugging me. This comment from “Jh” came in on the post I did yesterday listing Nancy Pelosi’s and others’ comments on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding Indiana’s voter identification law:

“The right to vote is a foundation of our democracy. American citizens who wish to vote must be able to do so.”…Nancy…tell that to the people in the states where YOUR party decided not to count their votes in YOUR primary

No. No, no, no. This meme of “Oh, how awful — look at the nasty Democrats disenfranchising their own voters!” is just too superficial, and can’t be allowed to pass without some dissection.

If Michigan and Florida Democrats want to blame someone for their delegates not being seated at the Democratic National Convention in Denver this summer, they need look no further than their own state capitols. National Democratic Party leaders warned both states repeatedly, for years, that bucking the party’s rules and setting primaries in January before some of the states the party chosen as bellwethers — first Iowa and New Hampshire, and now Nevada and South Carolina — meant their delegates would not be seated.

They were told plain and simple: If you break the rules, you will suffer the consequences. And they did it anyway.

In Florida, the Legislature passed a bill setting the early primary date with wide, bi-partisan margins; the same thing happened with Michigan’s bill in that state’s House, although the state Senate vote was split along party lines with the Republican majority prevailing.

And guess what? The Democratic National Committee did exactly what it warned it would do, refusing to seat the delegates.

If Michigan and Florida wanted to foment a national discussion on how the nation’s presidential primaries are run, they probably shouldn’t have mounted a kamikaze attack in an election year. A party sets rules for its own convention; you break ‘em, you lose. And if a party would buckle and not deliver the consequences it promised for a violation of the rules, every other state in the nation would look to move its own primary earlier and earlier to reap the economic benefit, political sway and media spotlight that comes with being among the earliest. It would be a free-for-all.

In fact, y’know who threatened U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich. — a driving force behind Michigan’s move to an early primary — against doing exactly this in 2004? Why, it was then-DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe, who detailed the heated encounter in his 2007 memoir. (There’s a slightly longer exerpt here.) Now McAuliffe is Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman — and wants Michigan’s and Florida’s delegates seated despite their transgression of the same party rules for which he fought so heatedly a few years ago.

So — without opining on the motivations behind and effects of Indiana’s voter-identification law, and the Supreme Court ruling that has affirmed it — I don’t see how that situation is akin to this. Florida and Michigan lawmakers of both parties played chicken with the DNC and lost, at their own voters’ expense. The blame lies with them, and with them alone.

This week, it’s Arnold Schwarzenegger circa 1990 introducing the updated version of “Free to Choose,” economist Milton Friedman’s ten-part television series advocating free-market policy.

And, just for fun, three sites — on health care, immigration and global warming — where right-wing critics call Schwarzenegger a socialist. Judging from the video, that’s probably the nastiest insult he could hear…

Previous SVOTWs: April 22, April 15, April 8, April 1, March 25, March 18, March 11, March 4, February 26, February 19, February 12, February 5, January 29, January 22, January 15, January 8, January 1, December 25, December 18, December 11, December 4, November 27, November 20, November 13, November 6, October 30, October 23, October 16, October 9, October 2, September 25, September 18, September 11, September 4, August 28, August 21, August 7, July 31, July 24, July 17, July 10, July 3, June 26, June 19, June 12, June 5, May 29, May 22, May 15, May 8, May 1, April 24, April 17, April 10, April 3, March 27, March 20, March 13, March 6, February 27, February 20, February 13, February 6, January 30.

The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld Indiana’s voter identification law, finding states can require photo identification without violating voters’ rights, thus validating Republican-inspired voter ID laws. Per the Washington Post, critics say the 6-3 ruling disenfranchises those least likely to have driver’s licenses or passports: the poor, elderly, disabled and city dwellers.

More than 20 states have some form of voter ID law, but Indiana’s is the strictest. This case’s record contained no evidence that the type of polling-place impersonation fraud this law was meant to pre-empt has ever occurred in Indiana, but those who wanted the law stricken had trouble identifying specific voters whose ballots were not counted because of it.

Here’s what Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, has to say about it:

“Today’s Supreme Court decision reminds us that the struggle for civil rights continues and the right to vote is still under threat.

“This decision is a big blow to all Americans -especially the poor, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities who will face tremendous obstacles in exercising the fundamental right to vote.

“Frankly, the continued push for these photo-identification laws is not at all about the integrity of the electoral process – but rather part of a tradition of voter suppression that must end.

“I am committed to defending the right to vote for every American and I will work with my colleagues to strengthen and preserve our electoral process.”

Comments from Pelosi, Feinstein et al, after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is headed to Israel this week as part of the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation’s business delegation, looking to drum up ties in high-tech, biotech and green technology.

Newsom is scheduled to take part in a full-day clean-tech showcase on Israel’s industrial approach to alternative energy and bio-fuels. He’ll be the first San Francisco Mayor to visit San Francisco’s city’s sister city, Haifa, and he’ll meet with Haifa Mayor Yonah Yahav as well as Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai. He also expects to pay his respects at the Holocaust Memorial Museum, Yad Vashem, and at a memorial marking the site of Yitzhak Rabin’s assassination in Tel Aviv. And he’ll visit Umm el-Fahm, an Arab-Israeli town that is one of the sites for Echad – a Jewish Community Federation-funded program focused on early childhood education in the Arab-Israeli community.

And will this trip generate controversy? Hey, what do you think?

Barbara Lubin, head of the Berkeley-based Middle East Children’s Alliance, told KCBS radio it’s a cop-out for Newsom to go to Israel and not address its policies. ”People really don’t want to get into the real issues of Israel, because of course people don’t want to be called anti-Semitic. But it is really no more anti-Semitic to criticize the actions of Israel, than it is anti-American to criticize the actions of our government,” she said.

The planning committee which set up this trip is co-chaired by Cytokinetics Inc. President and CEO Robert Blum and Traiana Inc. Chairman Bobby Lent; joining them will almost 100 more senior-level executives and local Jewish philanthropists including Yitz Applbaum, economic advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the founder and general partner of Opus Capital. Also on the trip: Hillsborough City Councilman and JCF Vice President Thomas Kasten; Geolo Capital founder and JCF president John Pritzker; and Daniel Sokatch, the JCF’s incoming CEO and former executive director of the Progressive Jewish Alliance.

New to my inbox, an “official statement” e-mailed on behalf of the Rev. John Hagee, an evangelical pastor from whom Republican presumptive presidential nominee John McCain said he’s proud to have an endorsement.

“As a believing Christian, I see the hand of God in everything that happens here on earth, both the blessings and the curses. But ultimately neither I nor any other person can know the mind of God concerning Hurricane Katrina. I should not have suggested otherwise. No matter what the cause of the storm, my heart goes out to all who suffered in this terrible tragedy. There but for the grace of God go any one of us.”

This, of course, refers to Hagee’s contention that God punished New Orleans with the hurricane’s devestation, a claim I think he first made to National Public Radio’s Terry Gross back in September 2006. “Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans,” he said. “New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God,” because “there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came.”

It’s a claim he repeated again this week. “What happened in New Orleans looked like the curse of God… In time, if New Orleans recovers and becomes the pristine city it can become, it may in time be called a blessing. But at this time it’s called a curse… It was a city that was planning a sinful conduct.”

MoveOn organized a protest of McCain’s appearance in New Orleans yesterday, and today Hagee offers this statement.

And what, exactly, does this mean? “Well, I don’t actually know what God was thinking, but I believe He believes being gay warrants divine retribution that ravages an entire region, kills more than 1,800 people, leaves thousands homeless, causes about $86 billion in damages… But hey, I feel for ya.”

Seriously? Is McCain OK with this? (Yes, that would be the same McCain who yesterday blasted the Bush Administration’s “terrible and disgraceful” response to Katrina, yet won’t give a straight answer on why he voted against emergency funding for the region as well as against giving victims access to Medicaid and unemployment benefits.)

Where’s the “straight talk?”

The Republican National Committee’s Victory 2008 campaign rolled out its list of finance chairs who’ll lead the effort to raise money to put John McCain in the White House and down-ticket GOP candidates into office across the nation.

“I look forward to working with each of the 2008 Victory Finance Chairs and communicating Senator McCain’s vision for the country,” Victory 2008 chairwoman Carly Fiorina said in the news release. “McCain has demonstrated to all of us that he has the judgment, character, and integrity to lead our nation and each of these state chairs will help echo that message.”

Here’s California’s contingent: