Hillary Clinton Announces: “I’M Running for President!”

www.peoplesworld.org April 25, 2015

Hillary Clinton announces: “I’m running for president!”

By John Wojcik

illary Rodham Clinton announced mentioned include former Maryland governor, that she is running for president a Martin O’Malley and former U.S. Senator from second time, immediately position- Virginia, Jim Webb. Both are far behind Clinton ing herself as the front-runner for the in all of the polls that have been taken. HDemocratic Party’s 2016 nomination. Clinton hits the campaign trail with almost “Everyday Americans need a champion. And universal name recognition and a strong support I want to be that champion,” Mrs. Clinton said at base, especially among women. Millions across the close of a two-minute video announcement on the country are excited about the possibility of the Internet. “So I’m hitting the road to earn your what could be the historic election of the first vote - because it’s your time. And I hope you’ll join woman to the presidency. me on this journey.” The announcement began what could be an T H I S W E E K : uncontested race for the Democratic nomination, a stark contrast to the 2008 primaries, when • Hillary Clinton announces: “I’m running for president!” Clinton, the early front-runner, ended up losing • Amidst drought, grass is greener for LA’s rich to Barack Obama. It could also be the first time a • Workers unite in the fight for $15 woman captures a major party’s nomination. • Bachelet Promulga Acuerdo de Union Civil Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has support • MoveOn moves to halt GOP sabotage of Iran nuke from Democrats and others who consider Clinton either too moderate or too close to Wall Street, READ MORE NEWS AND OPINION DAILY AT WWW.PEOPLESWORLD.ORG has said he is considering a run for the presidency but that he will only do it if he can mount a seri- ous campaign aimed at winning. He is expected Initial reaction in the labor movement shows soon to make his decision. Sen. Elizabeth War- that much of the traditional Democratic Party ren (D-Mass.) who also is backed by many in the base of support is determined, however, to see is- Democratic Party’s progressive base has always sues it cares about come to the fore in the presi- maintained that she will not run. dential campaign. Other Democratic candidates that have been “Secretary Clinton has a long and distin-

Page 1 guished career in public service and has been that when President Obama took executive action an inspiration for millions of women in America last November in favor of immigrant rights Clin- and around the globe,” AFL-CIO President Rich- ton tweeted, “Thanks to POTUS for taking action ard Trumka said in a statement following the an- on immigration in face of inaction.” nouncement. “We hope her candidacy will con- The main issue, according to Cesar Vargas, tribute to the critical debate in our country on co director of the coalition, is “whether Secretary how to raise wages.” Clinton would take strong executive action to pre- Working people Trumka said he was pleased that Clinton vent deportations and the splitting up of families.” want to hear would begin her campaign with a “listening tour.” In Clinton’s video announcement she appears Secretary “We believe she and they (other presidential after images featuring personal stories of individ- candidates) will hear an urgent need to reject cor- uals, each describing how they are getting ready to Clinton’s ideas porate-driven agendas that produce everything begin a new phase in their lives. The video shows about how to from tax breaks for the wealthy to destructive a mother who says she is going back to work, a create a Raising trade agreements. Working people want to hear young Asian woman searching for work, two Lati- Wages America. Secretary Clinton’s ideas about how to create a no brothers starting their own business and a gay Raising Wages America.” couple planning to marry. Progressive organizations wasted no time Then Clinton gets on and says: “I’m getting yesterday getting on the Internet with their reac- ready to do something too. I’m running for presi- tions. Social Security Works, for example, urged dent.” everyone to get online and ask Clinton where she would stand on expanding Social Security and on the question of making it a central feature of her campaign. Leaders of the Dream Action Coalition noted John Wojcik is co-editor of Peoplesworld.org

Amidst drought, grass is greener for LA’s rich

By Blake Deppe

uring what is now California’s worst lutions are sometimes out of reach for the poor.” drought in at least 1,200 years, agen- According to the LA Times, Escondido resi- cies are ambivalent over how to con- dent Sean McDaniel, holding his two pet poodles vince Angelenos to cut water usage. and gesturing at his emerald lawn, said, “I painted DPotential options include everything from edu- the lawn two days ago.” One can buy a 32 oz. bot- cating residents to rationing, fines, and threats. tle of this lawn paint from LawnLift’s website for Part of the While a recent executive order was issued by the not-so-low price of $45.95. solution may Gov. Jerry Brown requiring a 25 percent cut in “It’s all well and good that the wealthy are be getting the water use from 2013 levels, communites are left having their lawns painted green,” Dorothy re- wealthy to to struggle with how exactly to achieve that goal. marked, “but that’s not a solution.” cooperate with Part of the solution may be getting the wealthy to Newsha Ajami, director of Urban Water cooperate with working class people. Policy at Stanford University’s Water in the West working class Retired resident Dorothy, 65, has lived in program, said communities need to employ a wide people. LA’s Palms neighborhood for 11 years. She told range of conservation measures, rather than just the People’s World, “For people who have a decent expecting residents to act on their own. She said salary, life is quite comfortable. But we do have a that levying fines for wasting water is likely a fast big problem with the water. Unless we cut con- way to change behavior. sumption by a quarter or even a third, we could This drought, Dorothy lamented, “is one ex- end up with a real disaster. And so far, many peo- ample of how we’re all going to suffer from cli- ple are not doing their part to save water, despite mate change.” what they say. They’re just going about business as usual. And bottled water and those types of so-

www.peoplesworld.org Page 2 Workers unite in fight for $15

By Riley Winters

ary Kay Henry, president of the Ser- vice Employees International Union, spoke to a hundred low-wage work- welfare. In high school I worked at McDonald’s so I ers, adjunct faculty, students, and could pay for college. In order to support myself in Munion members gathered on Washington Universi- college I worked as a janitor. When I was a gradu- ty’s campus, the planned date for the nation’s larg- ate student at Washington University I worked for a est-ever one-day strike by low wage workers. professor and helped take care of his sick mother as She said that as the Fight for 15 continues to grow a home health care provider. So what it took to get it becomes clear that working people face similar is- my PhD are the people sitting next to me. And now sues, “whether they have a PhD or GED.” that I got my PhD I was able to make enough money College students, who have recently joined Fight to once again qualify for welfare.” As the Fight for for 15, are engaged, they say: because they see the These stories were the highlight of the evening $15 continues to types of low-wage jobs available and that their only and looking around the room one could see the con- option is to organize and create good union jobs and nections being made among people in the audience - grow it becomes an economy that promotes a high quality of life. “We many of them facing similar situations in their own clear that working have seen our professors organize and have heard lives. people face from our friends who are still looking for some kind “I want to teach my son that hard work is good similar issues. of job,” said Stephanie, a Washington University se- and that hard work pays off. But, I don’t want him nior who has applied for 49 jobs - hoping to get just to work hard and only earn pennies!” LaShunda one of them after graduation. Moore, a home health care worker and former fast “Often you get a PhD and people ask you: what food worker made it clear that her stake in this fight did it take for you to do that? The short answer is was for her son. I should be able to work just one always that I had to read a lot of books. But if you job, get a decent wage, and let my son focus on being don’t mind I’d rather give you the long answer,” a high schooler. said Dustin Ivers, adjunct professor and new union “This is a big deal,” remarked Henry as she spoke member. to students and workers after the panel. “They have “I was taught to read by an early childcare worker. shown that these are real workers, not paid protes- Due to an unfortunate event my family ended up on tors like Fox would like people to believe.”

www.peoplesworld.org Page 3 LOCAL NEWS Bachelet Promulga Acuerdo de Union Civil LOCAL CONTACT Rosario Alvarez [email protected] a Presidenta Michelle Bach- “Qué les estamos diciendo a esas elet promulgó esta mañana familias, a esas parejas, sean del sexo la ley de Acuerdo de Unión que sean: les decimos que el Estado Civil. La norma legal, que las reconoce como los que son, pare- MoveOn moves to Lentrará en vigencia en seis meses, jas y familias. crea el estado de conviviente civil tan- Que este es un avance concreto en halt GOP sabotage to para parejas homosexuales como el camino de terminar con la dife- heterosexuales. Asimismo, regula los rencia entre parejas homosexuales y of Iran nuke bienes de los convivientes y considera heterosexuales; que aquellos que no relación de parentesco entre ellos y cristalizan su unión a través del ma- Special to Peoplesworld.org con sus familiares. trimonio, que no queremos que esto La Mandataria señaló que todas las vaya en desmedro de su bienestar, de he political action director of the instituciones, públicas y privadas, su pareja o de sus hijos. eight-million member Internet ac- deberán adaptar su funcionamiento Que no queremos espacio para la tion organization, MoveOn.org, is “desde el formulario hasta el trato y el desprotección, y saldamos una deuda warning that the Republican-led reconocimiento social”. con aquellos que por no querer o no TSenate could be starting down the path to a “Hoy es un día en que avanzamos poder casarse, han estado privados new war in the Mideast and that a handful of como sociedad (...) estamos dando de prestaciones básicas”, aseveró la Democrats could join the GOP in tipping the un paso fundamental en este camino Mandataria. nation over the edge. de derechos, de justicia, y de respeto Tras la promulgación, el vocero de The warning, in a statement issued late a la libertad individual. Hoy estamos Gobierno Álvaro Elizalde, expresó Friday, came after some media reports that promulgando una ley que reconoce y que “esto es un hito, porque se aplica the U.S. Senate is now just one vote away fortalece el vínculo de la conviviencia, para todos por igual, sin discriminar, from a veto-proof majority on a Republican tanto entre parejas del mismo sexo este es un paso importante que nos bill that could put the United States on a como entre un hombre y una mujer. tiene que hacer sentir orgullosos”. path to war and that it will be up to a hand- Se estima que en Chile más de dos “Hoy estamos reconociendo que ex- ful of Democrats to prevent this from hap- millones de personas se encuentran isten familias diversas y esperamos pening. conviviendo”, señaló Bachelet. que cuando en seis meses más entre Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer-a En esta línea, apuntó que “hoy en- en vigencia la ley sean muchos los front-runner to replace Sen.Harry Reid as tregamos la opción de que se reconoz- chilenos también los extranjeros que the Senate Democratic leader-is support- ca legalmente esta unión, y con ello viven en Chile que puedan acogerse ing a Republican bill “that could very well avanzamos en dignidad, en bienestar a este nuevo estatuto jurídico para undermine President Obama’s negotiations y en protección de todas nuestras fa- tener un marco de protección a sus with Iran. And a small group of Democrats milias”. relaciones de pareja. Hoy es un día are joining him,” Ilya Sherman, MoveOn’s Bachelet remarcó que “lo que hac- histórico y este es un triunfo de ellos”, political action director, said in a statement emos es abrir los brazos de todas remarcó. he sent out over the Internet Friday and Sat- nuestras instituciones que en algún urday. momento se mostraron distantes, “Now, it’s possible that if even one more para acoger y proteger a aquellos y Democrat joins with Republicans and over- aquellas que hemos dejado de lado. rides the president, we could be on a path to Porque las instituciones de la socie- war,” he said. dad deben estar al servicio de las real- To stop this march to war in its tracks, idades de las personas, y no al revés”. MoveOn has set an ambitious goal to get the organization’s members to withhold at least $1 million in donations from Democrats if they undermine President Obama on Iran. NATIONAL CONTACT

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