Peter Roskam’s Corporate Agenda

Peter Roskam Votes to Continue Big Oil Bailouts, Increase Deficit

On August 8, 2010, in Deficit, Economy, Energy, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, Regulatory Reform, by RSR
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On July 30th, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3534 , the CLEAR Act, in response to the Gulf oil spill. Among other important provisions, the CLEAR Act removes the ridiculously low $75 million cap on liability of big oil companies for economic damages caused by their spills, taking taxpayers off the hook for the costs of clean-up. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the bill will save taxpayers more than $5 billion over the next 5 years. The Government Accountability Office estimates savings at up to $50 billion over 25 years.

One would think that Peter Roskam and his party, preoccupied with government spending and the deficit as they are, would support such a bill. They did not. Peter Roskam voted against the deficit-reducing CLEAR ACT. Only 2 of his Republican colleagues joined Democrats in voting for its passage. Roskam and the GOP (Gas & Oil Party) think that when big oil companies screw up, taxpayers should pay clean up their messes.

Beyond the issue of the liability cap, the bill helps protect taxpayers by ensuring that the government receives royalty payments from oil companies drilling on public leases and reforming the Minerals Management Service, the regulatory agency responsible for oversight, that had become corrupted during the oil-friendly Bush-Cheney administration.

The bill also establishes new oil drilling and spill cleanup safety standards and establishes a Gulf of Mexico Restoration Program to coordinate the efforts to return the Gulf to health following the oil rig explosion. A more detailed summary of the bill’s provisions is available on Speaker Pelosi’s blog.

The Senate version of the bill will have to be taken up after the August recess and Republicans there are sure to fight it.

While Peter Roskam is home in the district this month, voters should take the opportunity to ask him why taxpayers should be forced to clean up after Big Oil. He can be reached at his office in Bloomingdale at (630) 893-9670.

 

America is Speaking Out but Peter Roskam & GOP Turning a Deaf Ear

On August 2, 2010, in America Speaking Out, Congressional Elections, Energy, Financial Sector, Global Warming, Healthcare, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, Regulatory Reform, Republican Party, Unemployment, by RSR
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It’s hard to be a Republican like Peter Roskam. The dilemma is always how to sell a package of pro-corporate policies to working people whose votes you need, when those very policies make the lives of those voters more difficult. In the past, the Republican party has turned to wedge issues like abortion and homosexuality, and to scaring the living daylights out of people  by making them believe there’s a terrorist lurking around every corner. Those gimmick are losing some of their effectiveness. America is much more comfortable and accepting of gay people than it used to be and the public feels rightly burned by the experience of the George W Bush Presidency and its lawless “War on Terror”.

This year the Republicans in Congress have a new gimmick. It is called America Speaking Out. It is an interactive website that allows users to submit and vote on ideas in a variety of categories such as “National Security” & “Fiscal Accountability”. The site is being heavily promoted by Peter Roskam and other Republican members of Congress through their Twitter accounts and in their Town Hall meetings with constituents. The Republicans say they want to use the site to solicit input to help them formulate their policy agenda:

This is an open forum, however, where all Americans are welcome to respectfully offer their opinions, regardless of party affiliation and whether we endorse them or not. It is our hope the active engagement of the American people will produce a robust debate that will aid in the construction of a new American agenda.

There’s a catch or two though. Early on, many of the submissions were down right silly, as reported by the Washington Post’s Dana Milbank:

“End Child Labor Laws,” suggests one helpful participant. “We coddle children too much. They need to spend their youth in the factories.”

“How about if Congress actually do their job and VET or Usurper in Chief, Obama is NOT a Natural Born Citizen in any way,” recommends another. “That fake so called birth certificate is useless.”

“A ‘teacher’ told my child in class that dolphins were mammals and not fish!” a third complains. “And the same thing about whales! We need TRADITIONAL VALUES in all areas of education. If it swims in the water, it is a FISH. Period! End of Story.”

“Build a castle-style wall along the border, there is plenty of stone laying around about there.” That was in the “national security” section of the new site.

“Legalize Marijuana, cause, like, alcohol is legal. Man. Also.” That was in the “traditional values” section.

“I say, repeal all the amendments to the Constitution.” (“American prosperity” section.)

“Don’t let the illegals run out of Arizona and hide. . . . I think that we should do something to identify them in case they try to come back over. Like maybe tattoo a big scarlet ‘I’ on their chests — for ‘illegal’!!!” (Filed under “job creation.”)

Since then, the webmasters have been removing stuff like this, but they have, to their credit, not been removing popular ideas simply because they are contrary to GOP policy. For example, decriminalization of Marijuana is polling well:

The site doesn’t always function too well. We have been able to successfully submit ideas and they have been retained on the site. But when we try and cast votes, 9 times out of 10 the site “clocks” and we give up. We don’t know whether or not that malfunction is related to what we vote for. We haven’t wanted to lend any support to GOP platform planks in order to test it.

The problem with all this is that voluntary polls have no statistical meaning. The results on the site can’t be used to draw ANY statistically valid conclusions about the desires and opinions of the American public. And yet Roskam and the GOP say they want to use this information to determine what America wants. The submissions are heavily skewed toward the Conservative because the site has been promoted exclusively by Republicans. And the GOP has reserved the right to promote the ideas it chooses regardless of what America has to say on the site, according to reporting in the Washington Post:

“This isn’t ‘American Idol,’ ” said [Rep Kevin] McCarthy, adding that the top vote-getting idea on the site might not be adopted by the GOP. Referring to the party’s broader platform, he said, “we are in the process of creating ours, so it’s based upon our principles.”

So what America Speaking Out amounts to is a campaign gimmick. It creates noise in support of the GOP platform that allows the party to ignore statistically valid measures of public opinion while marketing their ideas to their base. And, ironically given their ant-spending rhetoric, this is all being done on the taxpayer’s dime. The money comes out of the Minority Leader’s budget and the GOP isn’t talking about how much this all cost us, despite all their protestations about transparency. So the taxpayers help fund the GOP campaign now so there’s more money left to spend on smear adds in October. Pretty clever in an evil sort of way. We think the site should be re-branded as “Republicans Speaking Out” to provide for truth in advertising.

Meanwhile the news from legitimate polls doesn’t indicate strong support for GOP plans:

  • On  the Bush tax cuts: The National Journal’s Congressional Connection poll of 7/22 found that only 30% of Americans believe that all of the Bush tax cuts should be extended. 58% believe that either all of the cuts, or those on the wealthy alone should be repealed.
  • On health care reform: The Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that 50% of Americans have a positive of the new health care law. Independent voters polled at 48% positive. Only 35% of Americans hold a negative view of the measure.
  • On stimulus spending for job creation:  According to a Gallup poll from June, a clear majority of Americans favor additional government spending aimed at creating jobs
  • On financial regulation: A Washington Post / ABC News poll in April found that Sixty-five percent of Americans backed proposals to rein in banks and the financial industry.
  • On offshore drilling: In a Pew Research Center poll in June, 52% of Americans indicated opposition to more offshore drilling
  • On global warming: A WSJ / NBC news poll taken in June found that Americans favored comprehensive energy and carbon pollution reduction legislation by 63 percent to 31 percent – a two to one margin – even if it meant an increase in the cost of energy.

So yes, America IS speaking out. But it appears that the GOP and Peter Roskam have gone deaf.


 

Ben Lowe Challenge to Peter Roskam Called One of Top 50 to Watch by CNN

On August 2, 2010, in Campaign Finance, Congressional Elections, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, by RSR
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We were pleased to find this in our in box this past Friday:

For Immediate Release:

CNN Announces 6th District on the Top 50 House Races to Watch

Lombard, IL – July 30, 2010 – CNN has announced the house race for the 6th Congressional District of Illinois as one of the top 50 races to watch. Candidate Ben Lowe (D) agrees that this race is a one which people need to keep their eye on this year.

“This district is a lot more moderate than Peter Roskam’s voting record. Like many in our community, I am frustrated by the broken status quo of politics. I am stepping up as an Independent Democrat to set an example of a different kind of politics, one that we can be proud of,” says Lowe.

CNN has identified both the top 50 House races as ones worth watching and the top 50 vulnerable House seats. Each race will be profiled at random up until election day.

About Ben Lowe

Ben Lowe is the Democratic nominee running in IL-6 to hold Peter Roskam accountable. An author and community organizer, Lowe is highly regarded in circles of clean energy, faith outreach, and environmental conservation. Ben Lowe is running to restore our moral and offers a fresh and honest alternative to a Congress held hostage by special interests, partisan obstruction, and fear-mongering.

Defeating Peter Roskam this fall and winning a voice for working people in the 6th District is an uphill battle, to be sure. But take this as just one more small sign that Ben Lowe is starting to make inroads, despite Roskam’s campaign chest chock full of corporate cash & ready access to corporate media.

People all over the country are fed up with incumbents and it is no exception here in the 6th district. Our Representative, Peter Roskam, doesn’t listen to our concerns. Instead he “markets” the GOP’s pro-corporate platform back to us, ignoring the need for robust health reform, strong financial regulation, regulation of carbon emissions to stave off catastrophic climate change,  and government aid to help the jobless and promote job creation.

This year may be our very best opportunity to rid ourselves of Roskam. We can’t afford to let it pass us by. Please get to know Ben by visiting his website. Send him a few bucks if you can to help him keep getting the word out about his candidacy.

 

Peter Roskam Opponent Ben Lowe’s Announcement on Special Interest Money

On July 13, 2010, in Campaign Finance, Congressional Elections, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, by RSR
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Yesterday we wrote about Ben Lowe’s decision to refuse special interest money in his campain to unseat Republican Peter Roskam this fall. Today we received a formal announcement of his decision from the campaign and decided to share it with you in its entirety:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

BEN LOWE ANNOUNCES COMMITMENT TO REFUSE SPECIAL INTEREST MONEY

Lombard, Illinois – July 13, 2010 – Democratic nominee for congress Ben Lowe announced his commitment to refuse campaign donations from Political Action Committees and Corporations today during a standing-room only event at his campaign headquarters. Lowe has committed to paying for campaign expenses with contributions from individuals alone.

Lowe’s commitment to finance his campaign with donations from individuals comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on Citizen’s United vs. Federal Election Commission, which ruled that corporate funding of political broadcasts cannot be limited.

Lowe decided to make this commitment after meeting with community members in the 6th District as part of his Lowe-Down Listening Tour. He states: “We are tired of special interests buying out our elected leaders, and tired of our leaders lacking the moral courage to take a stand when it risks their campaign funding. I’m committed to serving the interests of the 6th District, even when it conflicts with the interests of lobbyists in Washington. I also believe that change starts with me, which is why I am refusing money from special interest groups, so there is no doubt that I serve on behalf of our community.”

Ben Lowe’s policy of refusing money from special interest groups contrasts to the policy of his competitor, Congressman Peter Roskam. As of June 13th in the 2010 election cycle Roskam had collected $614,803 in donations from PACs that represent special interest groups.

About Ben Lowe

Ben Lowe is the Democratic nominee running in IL-6 to hold Peter Roskam accountable. An author and community organizer, Lowe is highly regarded in circles of clean energy, faith outreach, and environmental conservation. Ben Lowe is running to restore our moral and offers a fresh and honest alternative to a Congress held hostage by special interests, partisan obstruction, and fear-mongering.

Contact info: Dan Salcedo-Director of Communications. (773)-570-0096. info@loweforcongress.com

 

Ben Lowe Pledges to Refuse PAC Money While Peter Roskam Rakes in Corporate Cash

On July 12, 2010, in Ben Lowe, Campaign Finance, Coal Industry, Congressional Elections, Financial Sector, Lobbyists, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, Utilities Industry, by RSR
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We had the pleasure this past Saturday of attending the opening of Ben Lowe’s campaign headquarters in Lombard. Ben, of course, is the Democratic candidate challenging Peter Roskam in the Illinois 6th Congressional District this fall. We had a chance to meet briefly with Ben and his campaign staff, but only briefly as turnout was great and Ben and his team took time to meet everyone. As on our first visit, we were very impressed with Ben and amazed at what he has accomplished running a campaign on a shoestring.

Notably, as Ben spoke to the crowd, he announced a pledge to accept no corporate or PAC donations, but rather to run his campaign solely on donations from individual concerned citizens.  This is is a tough way to go, but we were pleased as we have plenty of experience of what it is like to have a Congressman beholden to big corporations and industry lobbies.

Peter Roskam, in contrast, has raised $1,343,340 in the current cycle (and still we got an email message pleading for “a generous contribution of $100, $250, $500 or more” at the end of the 2nd quarter). Over $600,000 of that is PAC money, with the largest chunk coming from the financial sector, followed by healthcare and energy industries.If you want to know how Roskam will vote, just follow the money. He has voted against increased regulation in the financial sector & against health reform legislation opposed by the healthcare industry. Roskam opposes legislation to combat the threat of catastrophic global climate change that is opposed by energy industries and has lobbied against increased regulation of hazerdous coal waste.

It is clear that if we are to resolve our nations most pressing problems, we must replace legislators like Peter Roskam, who obstruct progress in the interests of corporate sponsors, and replace them with people of integrity who are not bought and paid for by the multinational corporations.

Fortunately, we in the 6th District are blessed to have such a candidate in Ben Lowe. But Ben needs our help. He is entirely dependent on concerned citizens to help get his message out. We hope that you will consider making a contribution to Ben’s campaign and/or helping the campaign out as a volunteer or by hosting an open house to help Ben get to know your friends and neighbors, or by putting up a yard sign. You can make a donation online at Ben’s website.  You can contact Ben’s campaign by phone at (800) 630-0684.

We can make no progress in putting the unemployed back to work, in preventing catastrophic climate change, in ending our dependence on fossil fuels, or in reigning in Wall Street corruption unless we throw out legislators like Roskam who cater to corporate interests. Please help Ben win in November.

 

What’s Next for the House’s Biggest Twit, Peter Roskam… Farm Ville?

On May 2, 2010, in Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, by RSR
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6th District Representative Peter Roskam has been been demonstrating all the gravitas of a preteen girl of late in his contest with Rep. Darrell Issa and other Republicans to win the most Facebook friends and Twitter followers. While the nation faces numerous crises, we find Roskam Tweeting about episodes of Lost in an effort to become the House’s top Twit. We suspect that there might be better uses for his time and for our tax dollars.

More important though than Peter Roskam’s little popularity contest is the way Roskam is using both new social media and cooperative traditional media outlets to market lies about recent and pending legislative measures such as health reform and financial regulation. Roskam has turned the relationship between a Representative and his constituents upside down. Rather than listening to his constituents and bring their concerns back to Washington, Roskam is instead using media to market to his constituents a predetermined set of Republican objectives aimed at preserving the the GOP program of corporate deregulation that has been so disastrous to our country. And Peter Roskam has shown no reluctance to use lies and scare tactics – his endless repetitions of the lies about the fictional bailout provision in proposed financial reform bill is just one example.

It is time we had a serious leader and legislator as our Representative in Washington and not just a shill for big Wall Street banks and multi-national corporations. Someone willing to confront systematic economic injustice and the evolving global environmental catastrophe. We have such a person in candidate Ben Lowe from Wheaton. We encourage everyone to get to know Ben.

In the meantime, maybe we could make this GOP social media obsession work for constituents. How about every time Peter Roskam meets with a bank lobbyist or defense contractor he earns a Foursquare badge and we get a Twitter alert? Could revolutionize transparency in government.

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