Subject: Success! How you've protected the courts--and what's next

From: "Ben Brandzel, MoveOn PAC" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 2005 13:16:13 -0700

Dear MoveOn member,

Yesterday was an incredible day. Over 15,000 MoveOn members came together
and spoke out at 192 "Rallies to Stop the Judicial Takeover" -- all
organized in less than a week by other MoveOn members in all 50 states.
The Washington, D.C. event featured a stirring address by former Vice
President Al Gore.

It was the culmination of 10 days of intense action to save our courts --
and it was a huge success. Two weeks ago, it seemed virtually certain that
we would wake up today to find Bill Frist and the radical Republicans
pulling the trigger on their "nuclear" scheme to stack the courts.
Instead, today Frist is scrambling for more time and grasping for more
votes, while national polls show two thirds of the country solidly against
him [1].

While we celebrate our progress, we must remember the fight is far from
over. The key to victory is to keep our momentum going and our visibility
high -- we've got to keep them on the run. Today you can take the easy
step of printing and displaying a window sign, showing your commitment to
protecting the courts. Please put one in your window today:

http://cdn.moveonpac.org/content/pdfs/handsoff.pdf

The Rallies to Stop the Judicial Takeover made waves from Tucson, Arizona
to Portland, Maine. Hundreds of news reports are now pouring in from local
television stations, radio stations, and newspapers all across the
country. You have brought your message home to tens of millions of
Americans who now see how strongly their friends and neighbors feel about
protecting the integrity of our courts. And you've applied the most
effective kind of pressure there is on our representatives in Washington.

What were the events like yesterday?

"It was great to see so many people coming together. Many people, myself
included, said that this was the first time that we have ever
demonstrated. That's a major accomplishment and shows to what extent
people are moved to try to stop the erosion of our democracy."--Pat,
Hartford, Connecticut

"The whole thing was awesome. When I finally left at 6:20, there were
still at least 25 people standing on the sidewalk along the street holding
their signs and chanting! Many people told me they had never been to
anything like this before, and they would definitely do it again."--Susan,
Decatur, Georgia

"As we left, shortly after 6:00 pm, the police officer assigned to our
rally said, 'Y'all made sense and you were so nice, I may have to become a
Democrat.'"--Sharon, Austin, Texas

"I was the lone Republican in the crowd. I was selected as speaker for my
group, mainly because I wanted all to know that this is NOT a Democrat or
Republican issue. This is a Constitutional Crisis that affects us ALL. I
was both humbled and proud to be selected to explain the difference
between a Constitutional Conservative and these NeoConservatives driving
our government's agenda."--Earl, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Crowds braved intense rain in Portland, heat in Houston, and hail in
Minneapolis. From large gatherings with major speakers to small groups of
neighbors holding signs and discussing the issues, our voices were heard
-- and 94% percent of those who came said they would do it again.

To see an early report with more pictures and quotes from members, click
here:

http://www.moveonpac.org/rallyhelp/results.html?id=5486-86329-j6XU14y1db74yJxh_qxmhA&t=7

At the same time Al Gore delivered an inspiring, high-energy address to a
full house of MoveOn members and the national press. He talked about what
is really at stake in this fight -- 200 years of checks and balances and
respect for the rule of law itself. He summed up this crisis in plain,
powerful terms "The proposal from the Senate majority leader to abolish
the right of unlimited debate is a poison pill for our democracy...the
survival of freedom depends on the rule of law."

You can watch the whole event and read his speech here:

http://www.moveonpac.org/algore/rally.html?id=5486-86329-j6XU14y1db74yJxh_qxmhA&t=8

Their change in plans is a hard fought victory over a Republican
establishment that is not used to backing down. It's absolutely incredible
how much we've accomplished together in the last few weeks:

  * You've sent 44246 personal letters to the editors of 3082 papers
    opposing the "nuclear option" -- reaching nearly every sizable
    newspaper in the country. Thousands of your letters were published,
    and after receiving your letters over 400 editorials have now been
    written by the newspapers themselves opposing the "nuclear option" --
    including a powerful piece published yesterday in the country's
    largest paper, USA Today. [2]
  * You've made 104,000 calls (that we know of!) to your senators,
    demanding that they protect the courts.
  * You've raised $833,518 (with an average contribution of $43 dollars)
    -- enough to put hard hitting television and radio ads on the air
    nationwide and in the home states of target senators.
  * You've held 1,500 house meetings, and went out in 800 teams going
    door-to-door, talking to neighbors and delivering signs.
  * And yesterday you organized 192 major simultaneous rallies in all 50
    states (a first for MoveOn!) blanketing the nation with local and
    national news reports and eliminating any doubt that the American
    people are ready to stand up and fight for our democracy.

Next week, Congress goes into recess, and the Republican leadership will
be using this break to twist arms to regain the upper hand. Bill Frist has
already declared he won't accept any compromises, and the White House
dispatched Karl Rove to promise there would be no retreat [3].

To help keep our momentum up, please print and place a window sign today.

http://cdn.moveonpac.org/content/pdfs/handsoff.pdf?id=5486-86329-j6XU14y1db74yJxh_qxmhA&t=9

Next week, we'll continue to match them every step of the way -- and this
fight will likely escalate again as soon as they return to Washington. But
with the energy, commitment and innovation that we've seen in the last 10
days, today's victory will only be the first of many.

Thanks for all that you do,

--Ben, Marika, Micayla, James and the MoveOn PAC Team
  April 28, 2005

P.S. Congratulations to the dozens of other groups that have led in this
fight--especially our friends at People for the American Way, Alliance for
Justice, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, Earthjustice, and the countless other national and local members of the Coalition for a Fair and Independent Judciairy who have contributed to making this campaign a success.

Our special thanks to Vice President Gore who adjusted his busy schedule
so he could deliver an amazing keynote address. You can read the first
section below, or see a video and read the speech in its entirety here:

http://www.moveonpac.org/algore/rally.html?id=5486-86329-j6XU14y1db74yJxh_qxmhA&t=10

Four years and four months ago, the Supreme Court of the United States, in
a bitterly divided five to four decision, issued an unsigned opinion that
the majority caution should never be used as a precedent for any
subsequent case anywhere in the federal court system.

Their ruling conferred the presidency on a candidate who had lost the
popular vote and it inflamed partisan passions that had already been
aroused by the long and hard fought election campaign.

I could not have possibly disagreed more strongly with the opinion that I
read shortly before midnight that evening, December 12, 2000. But I knew
what course of action best served our Republic.

And even though many of my supporters said they were unwilling to accept a
ruling which they suspected was brazenly partisan in its motivation and
simply not entitled to their respect.

Nevertheless, less than 24 hours later, I went before the American people
to reaffirm the bedrock principle that we are a nation of laws not men.
There is a higher duty than the one we owe to a political party, I said on
that occasion, "This is America and we put country before party."

The demonstrators and counter-demonstrators left the streets and the
nation moved on as it should have to accept the inauguration of George W.
Bush as our 43rd president.

Having gone through that experience, I can tell you, without any doubt
whatsoever, that if the justices who forms the majority in Bush versus
Gore had not only all been nominated to the court by a Republican
President but had also been all confirmed by only Republican Senators and
party line votes, America would not have accepted that court decision.

Moreover, if the confirmation of those justices in the majority had been
forced through by running a rough shot over 200 years of Senate Presidents
and have been engineered by craft partisans' decisions on narrow party
line votes to break the Senate's rule to procedure, then no feat
imaginable could have calmed the passion arousing our country.

As Aristotle once said of virtue, respect for the rule of law is one
thing, it is indivisible. And so long as it remains indivisible, so will
our country. But if either major political party is ever so beguiled by a
lust for power, then it abandons this unifying principle, then the fabric
of our democracy will be torn.

To read the rest or see the video go to:

http://www.moveonpac.org/algore/rally.html?id=5486-86329-j6XU14y1db74yJxh_qxmhA&t=11

Sources:

1. "Filibuster Rule Change Opposed," Washington Post, Tuesday, April 26,
2005; 1
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=702

2. "Founders' intentions may be casualty in fight over judges," USA Today,
April 26, 2005
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=709

3. "Rove: Bolton will be confirmed; judges deserve vote," USA Today, April
28, 2005
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=710

PAID FOR BY MOVEON PAC
Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

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