Dear Colleagues:
Tomorrow, I will be holding a press conference to announce that I am entering the Democratic primary for the Senate seat from New York. I'm honored that Cindy Sheehan, a courageous leader in the movement to end the war in Iraq, will be supporting my message calling for an immediate end to the war, as will many more leaders and activists around the state and nation, including Tim Carpenter, national director of Progressive Democrats of America and best-selling author Barbara Ehrenreich.
The central reason behind my decision to enter the race is Hillary Clinton's vote for the war in Iraq and her refusal to join the growing call for an immediate withdrawal from Iraq. But, while the Iraq war is the central issue, it is also clear that the incumbent Senator is out of step with New York voters on a wide variety of issues.
If you believe as I do that we need a Senator who represents the values of the majority of New Yorkers, please consider helping our campaign by <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAImbqyTM9c/>making a donation at our website.
I am getting into the race to offer a clear choice for New Yorkers between two very different sets of values and visions for America. The incumbent is pro-war, whose position is not much different from the Administration's (find a "winning" strategy and, then, withdraw the troops according to some vague, uncertain timetable). The incumbent believes NAFTA was a good thing, supports trade deals that cost American jobs, opposes a real universal health care plan and gets a torrent of campaign cash from corporate donors, including Wal-Mart.
On the other hand, I've laid out a set of positions on my campaign website which offer a more hopeful future for Americans: a candidate who opposes the war, believes real homeland security means bringing the troops home immediately, opposes anti-worker trade deals that send jobs abroad, believes our economic future should not be determined by an authoritarian regime in China, and supports Medicare For All. Unlike the incumbent, I will draw my support from many thousands of people who will volunteer their energy and contribute small amounts.
Whether you live in New York or not, if you believe we need a campaign that advocates the positions and values I am fighting for, please consider <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAImbqyTM9c/>making a donation at our website.
We will campaign under a simple slogan: Vote For What You Believe In! It was the campaign slogan of Paul Wellstone. Wellstone used to say that he represented the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party. I believe my vision and positions represent the Wellstone wing of the Democratic Party.
You can find out more about my positions and our campaign at <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAInbqyTM9c/>www.tasinifornewyork.org. (Don't forget to take our poll!)
Did I mention that you could also <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAImbqyTM9c/>make a donation to support the campaign? We won't compete with the large corporate donations of my opponent. But, we can run a dynamic statewide campaign if we have the financial support of thousands of people who oppose the war.
And you can also help spread the word today by forwarding this message to your e-mail list.
Tomorrow, you will find the full text of my press announcement on the campaign's website. And in the coming days, weeks and months, I will be traveling the state, talking about an optimistic vision of America, as we say loudly and clearly: stop the war abroad now and begin a new campaign to change America.
Jonathan Tasini
P.S. You can see my posts about the campaign today at <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAIobqyTM9c/>The Huffington Post and <http://tasini.c.topica.com/maaehedabmAIpbqyTM9c/>Alternet
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