Foreign Policy & Trade

Props to President Obama, his Administration, the Senate, the House and our Government Agencies for the manner in which they have all come together, mobilized and responded to assist with the relief effort for the people of Haiti that have been devastated by the earthquake.

In fact, props to the governments of other countries who have also responded. There is hope that we can all coexist in this world with a concern for humanity - the people. Too bad it takes such a catastrophic event to bring us all together.

Is it out of the realm of possibility to expect the folks in Washington to work together in dealing with all of our domestic issues in the same effective manner? Let’s be proactive Congress. Let’s not wait for an event to happen before you come together to do the right thing as you have done in response to the Haitian tragedy. Just maybe our unified response to the Haitian Earthquake was because it did not require a lobbyists’ influence to take action.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont made a statement on our role in the Afghan struggle. Below is the release from Senator Sanders press department. Each time we receive a release (on all issues) from Senator Sanders, he seems to be aligned with what We The People want from our Washington Representation. Where is everyone else in Congress? Thanks again Senator Sanders!

JP in Florida forwarded an e-mail regarding the purchase by us Americans of products that are provided by China.

As you may know we have a huge trade imbalance with China that continues to mount our trade deficit. China also owns a large stake of the United States debt.

There is a civic engagement action being circulated that beginning June 4, 2009 through July 4, 2009 We The People simply look at the label of every product we purchase during that time frame. We determine if the product was produced in China or PRC (People’s Republic of China that now includes Hong Kong). We select a comparable product that is provided for us from the United States. If no product is available, choose not to purchase it.

If 200 million of us do this over the next month at $20 per person, we will reduce our purchases from China by $4 Billion. This represent 8% of China’s exports to America. This action will translate directly to the amount of goods that need to be produced here in America which secures or creates new jobs.

Now this can have an immediate impact on our economy!

We all need to let our Representation know that we are doing this - and just maybe they will see We want them to be as engaged as We are.

What do you all think about what is happening this week in Washington?

We are about to become a 70% owner of General Motors. Do We want to be owners of an automobile manufacturer? If so, how should We go about managing this business? We need to let our Representatives know what we think before all the pieces are put in place and can only watch it unfold.

North Korea seems to be intent on testing our new Administration. How do we want our Representation to handle this one? Do we summon our allies and orchestrate a global diplomatic action? Do we start getting our military prepared? Can we afford another military action with everything else we are currently undertaking?

President Obama has nominated Sonia Sotomayor as the next Supreme Court Justice. This is a lifetime appointment or for as long as the nominee wants it. How do you think Congress should address this nomination? The highest court of the nation needs to have the most qualified, fair minded people protecting our constitutional rights.

If you have not done so, please start contacting your Representation in Washington on these issues. Join us in letting them know what We The People think and how We would like to have things handled. Otherwise, we can only sit back and complain to each other about the way things are going .