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PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PASS THIS AROUND TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! HELP SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THE TRUTH.
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Kick ass and take names

Nice to have a big gun on your side...

Conyers Questions ACORN Leak

(Washington, D.C.) — Today, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) released the attached letter  
questioning today's leaked report of a nationwide investigation into activities of the ACORN organization.  The full text of the letter is  
below.

October 16, 2008

The Honorable Michael B. Mukasey                            
TheHonorable Robert M. Mueller
Attorney General of the United States
Federal Bureau of Investigation
U.S. Department of Justice                                            
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW                          
935 Pennsylvania  
Avenue NW
Washington, DC  20530                                                
Washington, DC  20535

Dear Mr. Attorney General and Director Mueller:

             It is with shock and disappointment that I read today's  
Associated Press report that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has  
opened and leaked an investigation into whether ACORN, a longstanding  
and well regarded organization that fights for the poor and working  
class, is involved in nationwide voter fraud.

             As an initial matter, it is simply unacceptable that  
such information would be leaked during the very peak of the election  
season.  Such leaks of information about ongoing criminal  
investigation matters are always inappropriate, and likely violate  
the provisions of the U.S. Attorney manual governing release of  
information about ongoing investigations (and which, in any event,  
would require approval from the responsible U.S. Attorney or  
Department division before release1).  More significant in this case,  
however, they also run afoul of valuable  Department traditions  
regarding the need for cautious and sensitive handling of election-
related matters during the run up to voting (or, as here, while early  
voting is underway).  Indeed, I note with dismay that this sort of  
release likely would have violated the traditional principles stated  
in the Department's Election Crimes Manual, such as the requirement  
that prosecutors "must refrain from any conduct which has the  
possibility of affecting the election itself," and that "most, if  
not all, investigation of an alleged election crime must await the  
end of the election to which the allegation relates," but those  
provisions were removed by the Department in May 2007 as the U.S.  
Attorney controversy was unfolding and it was learned that former  
U.S. Attorney Brad Schlozman had apparently improperly brought  
enforcement action against ACORN volunteers during the run up to the  
2006 national elections.

             Moreover, this news is all the more troubling in light  
of the proven wrongdoing at the Justice Department in the United  
States Attorneys scandal.  As you are aware, there is extensive  
evidence that political operatives improperly pressured United States  
Attorneys to investigate and prosecute spurious claims of vote fraud  
in close proximity to an election.  When some did not, they were  
terminated.  Thus, one must view the timing of this extraordinary  
leak with added suspicion, given that it comes less than 24 hours  
after the Republican Presidential candidate raised these allegations  
in a nationally televised debate.

              I know that it has become a right-wing cottage industry  
to cry wolf over alleged "voter fraud" during an election season  
(only to have such claims evaporate after the election has  
concluded).  Indeed, using superlatives that would make P.T. Barnum  
blush, Senator John McCain, the Republican Presidential candidate,  
said in the debate last night, that ACORN "is now on the verge of  
maybe perpetuating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in  
this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy."  One would  
hope the Justice Department and FBI would more skeptically examine  
such sensational accusations than some cable news outlets.  And this  
is particularly true where the allegations, even given their fullest  
reading, simply do not support such alarmist and unreasonable claims.

             The facts as I understand them are these.  A  
longstanding and well regarded organization that fights for the poor  
and working class has come under partisan fire for its voter  
registration acitvities.  This organization has registered more than  
one million voters.  There are allegations that some paid workers  
essentially cheated ACORN by filling out registration forms with  
bogus names and incorrect information.  This of course would have  
harmed ACORN since ACORN pays to register potential voters, not  
phantoms, but – critically – does not deprive any person of their  
own right to vote or result in any unauthorized or fraudulent votes  
being cast.  As one expert in this field has explained, "Mickey  
Mouse may show up on a registration list, but he's not likely to  
vote."

             Furthermore, despite a long  partisan campaign to stir  
up fears regarding so-called "voter fraud,"  they have been unable  
to produce any credible examples of meaningful fraudulent voting that  
could have a tangible impact on any election.  Just this week, in  
fact, the Republican Governor of Florida, Charlie Crist, said - with  
respect to his state - that such allegations are "less than is being  
discussed" and ascribed these types of allegations to "some who  
enjoy chaos."  Similarly, the Republican Secretary of State has  
indicated that he does not believe that ACORN is engaged in  
systematic voting fraud.  Indeed, such allegations repeatedly  
dissolve under fair scrutiny.2

             At the same time, numerous allegations have emerged that  
political operatives are engaged in supression of eligible voters and  
this activity has apparently failed to receive the intense attention  
that the federal government is now reportedly devoting to ACORN.  For  
example, there are reports that the chairman of the Republican Party  
in Macomb County, Michigan, a key swing county in a key swing state,  
has planned to use a list of foreclosed homes to block people from  
voting in the upcoming election as part of the state GOP's effort to  
challenge some voters on Election Day.  Additionally, the Columbus  
Dispatch reports that the Ohio GOP in Franklin County,  "has not  
ruled out challenging voters before the election due to foreclosure-
related address issues."3

             Accordingly, I condemn the leak of this sensitive  
information and remind you both of your and your agencies'  
obligations to handle election-related matters in an appropriate and  
non-political matter as the election season proceeds.  In addition,  
please let me know no later than Thursday, October 23, 2008, if the  
release of information and all other actions taken regarding this  
investigation are consistent with the US Attorneys Manual and the  
Election Crimes Manual and, if not, what action has been taken in  
response.  Please direct your response to the Judiciary Committee  
Office at 2138 Rayburn House Office Building (tel: 202-225-3951, fax:  
202-225-7680).

Sincerely,

____________________________
John Conyers, Jr.
Chairman

I didn't know that getting poor people to vote was a Federal case, but apparently I live in something called the 21st century and the Bush Justice Department lives in the 1880's...

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/V/VOTER_FRAUD_FBI?SITE=ORROS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


Officials: FBI investigates ACORN for voter fraud

By LARA JAKES JORDAN




WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI is investigating whether the community
activist group ACORN helped foster voter registration fraud around the
nation before the presidential election.

A senior law enforcement official confirmed the investigation to The
Associated Press on Thursday. A second senior law enforcement official
says the FBI was looking at results of recent raids on ACORN offices
in several states for any evidence of a coordinated national scam.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Justice
Department regulations forbid discussing ongoing investigations
particularly so close to an election.

ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, says
it has registered 1.3 million young people, minorities and poor and
working-class voters - most of whom tend to be Democrats.

Republican accusations about the group were raised during Wednesday's
presidential debate between Democrat Barack Obama and GOP candidate
John McCain.

Some ACORN employees have been accused of submitting false voter
registration forms - including some signed `Mickey Mouse' or other
fictitious characters.

Those voter registration cards have become the focus of fraud
investigations in Nevada, Connecticut, Missouri and at least five
other states. Election officials in Ohio and North Carolina also
recently questioned the group's voter forms.

ACORN has said the "vast majority" of its workers are conscientious,
but some might have turned in duplicate applications or provided fake
information to pad their pay. Workers caught submitting false
information have been fired, ACORN officials say.

ACORN says laws in a number of states require it to submit all
registration cards it collects even dubious ones, so its workers
segregate applications with missing, suspicious or false information
and flag them so state election officials can quickly check them
further.

Sarah Palin is by far the hottest Vice-Presidential pick in U.S. history, unless you really dig powdered wigs and knee-breeches. (And if you do, well more power to you. Try finding that at the Power Exchange.) All you haters who slag off beauty contests as nothing but a celebration of male beauty standards and some patriarchy-defined notion of "femininity" are looking pretty silly now, huh? From second runner-up to VP candidate. I was the captain of my Quiz Bowl team in high school and look where I am now. And for sure I have never shot, skinned, and eaten a caribou. It's like Xena Warrior Princess is running on the GOP ticket.

So my WTF? moment isn't really about her.

It's about John McCain.

It should come as no surprise to readers of this journal (though it would surprise the author to know he had readers) that I probably wouldn't have supported John McCain if he was running against Lyndon LaRouche. So taking the opportunity to criticize him is par for the course. But I think there's a good chance that this pick lost him the race.

I think that the best course for McCain, in a year with a GOP brand that is stinking worse than a Long Beach refinery, is basically to make the voters so uneasy about Obama that he is the natural, safe default vote. In other words this election has to be about Obama, not about McCain. However, while the thing that makes McCain the one Republican who could plausibly pull this off in 2008, his perception of independence and his "maverick" credentials, is also the thing that makes him uninspiring to the GOP base. While he needs swing voters to break his way as the safe candidate, if he can't get his base excited, then the breaking swingers (why does that sounds like some kind of hip-hop free-love mashup?) may not make up ground for a margin of victory. Not in an enthusiastic year for the Democrats.

Sarah Palin sure fires up the base, no question. Even with the whole "my daughter is pregnant at 17 even though I taught abstinance-only sex ed to her" is working in her favor as the kid has decided to enter into a wholesome, loving shotgun wedding with the father. Family values in action! Taking responsiblity for one's actions! Defending marriage as the refuge of teenagers making bad decisions!

But.

But, umm, a Washington Post reporter, quoted on Talking Points Memo yesterday, recounted an interaction with the Wasilla City Clerk in which the reporter was asking to see a bunch of city records from Palin's days as city councilor and mayor. Turns out that reporter was the first person to ask for those records. Ever.

Now I don't pretend to know what "vetting" really means. I've never been vetted (I'm sure my supervisor continues to wonder how I got this job) and the most vetting I've done for soneone else is calling their references on a job application. But if I were in charge, I'm pretty sure I would have done a pretty thorough review of at least the candidates public service record.

And, in reality, it's not even getting into the nitty-gritty of past votes that seems to have provided the most interesting tidbit so far. Much more interesting is her past membership in the Alaskan Independence Party. The AIP, a fun bunch of nutjobs who would be right at home with the American Independent Party and their far-right version of friendly fascism, believes that the whole statehood thing was rigged from the beginning and that Alaska entered the union illegally. They'd like to secede and do their own thing. And Sarah Palin was a member. Now she's the VP candidate for the GOP.

Awesome. In 148 short years, the GOP has gone from a party fighting secession to one with secession advocates at the top of the ticket! Oh the ironicalness.

But I digress.

My point here is that no one was looking at what Sarah Palin has been up to in her past lives. Which seems to me to be a fairly big knock on the whole "John McCain is the one you can trust" narrative. You know, McCain, ready to be commander-in-chief! This kind of decision is not reassuring. I'm less excited about having McCain's finger on the nuclear trigger.

Which kinda blows McCain's strategy of laying low and creating uncertainty about Obama out of the water. Because now the race is a lot more about McCain and his decision-making and his temperment and his judgement than it is about Obama and Obama's (scary! uncertain! risky!) vsion of the future. And I don't think that's good at all for McCain.

And I'm pretty happy about that.

Kick ass and take names

Blow GW

NC and Indiana Predictions. Just Because.

Posted on 2008.05.06 at 09:17
I am currently:: predictive
Tags: , ,
Lots of people make predictions about the outcomes of primaries, some of whom have actually done things like poll prospective voters, others who have crunched demographics, and still others who have crunched lots of polling data.

And then there's me. Going on nothing but gut instinct and cursory blog-entry-reading.

So I'm breaking my weeks-long silence to regale ya'll with my primary predictions:

NC: Obama by 8-10 points, say 54 or 55 to Clinton's 46 or 45.
IN: Clinton by 5 points, say 52.5 to Obama's 47.5.

Until the Rev. Wright decided to do his Buffoonery 2008 Tour I thought maybe Indiana could break for Obama, but not now. And in all fairness to Rev. Wright, if Obama had used the opportunity of his "bitter" comment to actually hammer home a populist economic theme that spoke directly to working class anxiety over the economy and the future, it wouldn't have mattered what the good Reverend was on about.

But that is the pitfall of leaving your economic messaging to University of Chicago economists.

Kick ass and get out the vote.

Blow GW

Elections. And then more elections.

Posted on 2008.03.05 at 08:41
I am currently:: frustrated
Tags: , , , ,
Okay, first off, I'd be happy if the Dems picked either of the two people currently kicking the shit out of each other. I'd prefer Obama, not necessarily from a policy perspective, since his articulated policies are clearly the less progressive, but because of the way he's running for President. He's investing huge amounts of money and effort in training his staff and volunteers in the basics of organizing and he's running his campaign as if it were a giant community organizing effort. This will have ramifications for the next generation of progressive work and substantially builds progressive infrastructure, which can then be used to kick a little right-wing ass.

My bias is front and center in this. So take that into consideration when I say that I'm fairly disappointed with Clinton's campaign right now. Choosing to go with the red phone ad, which plays into people's fears and insecurities, in effect scaring them into voting for her, is, to my mind, unethical in this particular primary race. It's not dirty, it's not harsh, but it is unethical.

Why? Because it accepts the GOP frame on this election: that is is the 3rd security election (2002, 2004, 2008 - 2006 was clearly about the direction of the country and the meltdown of the Republicans) and the decision should be made on who the next Commander In Chief should be.

Well, first of all, thanks for appealing to the most primitive and base part of a person's emotional make-up as you try to make your case. Second, do you seriously think that the Dems can compete on CIC issues running against a former GOP prisoner of war who was tortured? Third, there is a golden opportunity to make this election about economic issues, effectively reframing "security" to include economic security. Do that and you win. Do this red phone business and you lose.

The winning contrast for the Democrats in November will not be between relative competancies in dealing with military threats, it will be between those who speak for people who are hurting and for people who are energized by the idea of a new direction for the country and those who want a 3rd Bush Presidency run by a guy who went to high school with Methusalah. 

That's why I'm disappointed in Clinton right now and find myself actually dreading a drawn-out primary contest. It only gets bloodier from here and, not to only blame Clinton in all this, Obama needs to add some economic populism to his message of hope and post-partisanship (and he can start that by giving the heave-ho to all those U of Chicago economic advisors) because he's not going to win as a Democrat appleaing only to the well-educated, the young, and the economically well off. (See also, Latino Vote, Winning the.) Seriously, dude, use that soaring rhetoric to channel your inner Paul Wellstone.

That's all.

Kick ass and watch the primary season of a thouand cuts grind on.

ABQ Min Wage Bumber Sticker

Endorsement Update

Posted on 2008.02.21 at 15:45
I am currently:: endoresy
Tags: , , ,
I mentioned the other day that the ACORN PAC might be making an endorsement this week. Well, they did.

On Wednesday night, ACORN Votes, the ACORN PAC, endorsed Barack Obama for President.

ACORN President Maude Hurd had this to say,

“Last night, Sen. Obama received more than the two-thirds majority needed from our elected national leadership to secure the endorsement. Over the past months, we have worked with all leading candidates. ACORN’s members have deep appreciation and respect for Senators Clinton and Edwards and their work on behalf of our communities. What it came down to was that Senator Obama is the candidate who best understands and can effect change on the issues ACORN cares about like stopping foreclosures, enacting fair and comprehensive immigration reform, and building stronger and safer communities across America.”

ACORN's membership is probably about 35% Latino and 65% African-American. I don't think this will have much effect in Texas, since Texas ACORN's presence is concentrated in a few areas. But this could have a major impact on African-American turnout in Ohio, where ACORN has a major presence and a demonstrated track record in moving state-wide issues and conducting statewide voter contact programs. ACORN ran the field for the 2006 Ohio Minimum Wage ballot measure and reached between 250K and 350K largely African-American voters.

I would expect that this means that ACORN members will hit the streets for Obama immediately in Ohio (and Texas, but more in Ohio). Down the line this could mean more boots on the ground in places like Pennsylvania as well.

Interesting.

Kick ass and take names.

ABQ Min Wage Bumber Sticker

More Endorsment Chatter

Posted on 2008.02.18 at 12:26
I am currently:: pundalicious
Tags: , , ,
Word on the street is that ACORN, which has massive field capacity amongst low and moderate income voters and communities of color in Ohio and Pennsylvania, might be making a Presidential endorsement this week, Wednesday at the earliest. 

The organization's membership has been divided amongst the Big Three on the Democratic side, reflecting how voters voting in Democratic primaries have broken down nationally. But with Edwards out and the fight down to two, with only a few big states remaining, it looks like there is mounting support to pick a candidate. The winning candidate needs two-thirds support of the voting membership and no one's willing to go on record as to who the membership is supporting.

My own guess is Obama, but Clinton has always played well with ACORN's membership and NY ACORN members are especially fierce in their support. They could move the rest of the voting leadership or gather enough votes to block any endorsement at all.

This is particularly important for the endorsee in Ohio because of ACORN's demostrated ability to reach voters in majority minority districts, last seen in 2006's election when they ran the field for the minimum wage ballot initiative and reached well over 250,000 voters with multiple contacts over a 6 week period.

We'll see what happens...

Kick ass and take names.

ABQ Min Wage Bumber Sticker

More With The Politics

Posted on 2008.02.18 at 12:17
I am currently:: avuncular
Tags: ,

See how I title these posts so the uninterested can keep on truckin'?

See how that leaves me with the same two loyal readers? (Thanks, ya'll.)

Quick questions:

Does John Edwards endorse? If he does endorse, does he do it before March 4? If he endorses before the delegate count for either candidate is insurmountable, who does he endorse?


My take:

Unless someone either makes the pitch of the century or makes the gaffe of the century, I think there is not a compelling enough reason to endorse before March 4. Endorsing Obama could be seen as a bandwagon move and endorsing Clinton could be seen as both toeing the party line and saying Obama has fatal weaknesses.

The whole reason to get an Edwards endorsement at this point would be to win Ohio and possibly Pennsylvania. So if the endorsement were to mean anything outside of the Convention, then it would have to come in the next 10-12 days.

I'm not sure that, on the whole, Edwards is served by making an endorsement here. If the thing is still as close as it is now after North Carolina in May, the last decent sized state to vote, then he's better off leveraging his power in Denver. He won't implicitly criticize either candidate and he won't have to deal with the backlash from the other person's supporters. He'll have enough pledged delegates to be a prize in Denver and he can play up his role as the conscience of the process by calling repeatedly for economic populism to be a centerpiece of both candidates' campaigns.

But that's just me.

What do ya'll think?

Kick ass and think endorsements.


ABQ Min Wage Bumber Sticker

Make Me An Offer

Posted on 2008.01.30 at 12:41
I am currently:: flirty
Tags: , , ,
Okay Hillary and Barack.

Make me want you.


Kick ass and take names.

Roses in my Backyard

New Years' Brain Drippings

Posted on 2008.01.07 at 21:50
I am currently:: contemplative
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Been gone for a while. This is going to be very stream of consciousness.

*Los Angeles smells GREAT after it rains. Seriously. But, we're in a drought, so this is something I've experienced, like, twice.

*We did the Bay Area for part of the Holidays. I love the Bay and I totally appreciate getting to jog in the redwoods. Totally did not appreciate the 5-day sore throat this gave me. Also, if you get a chance to go to a party in the Berkeley hills at a house with a panoramic view from Mt. Tam to the San Mateo Bridge during a winter sunset then you should go, even if it is just for the sunset. If the party is full of family members, good wine, and great food, then so much the better.

*Tyche and her family are good together for about 2.5 days, after that I suggest shin guards and one of those weird looking soft helmet things that soccer players use to prevent concussions. On a related note, there are few things as surpsingly disappointing as a banal "Jesus Loves You" Christmas Day homily. And I say that as an a person with no particular religious affiliation.

*New Orleans continues to be a mix of devestation and slow return. Comparing this time last year to this year, the amount of rebuilding and population growth is palpable. There are still massive problems - infrastructure, political, justice system, health care system, housing - but the change is hopeful. The culture that makes New Orleans New Orleans still shines through, though it will take awhile before it becomes as robust as it was.

*Case in point: New Year's at Tipitina's, a NOLA institution. Featuring Galactic, a NOLA funk band that is one of the few contemporary bands that can kick ass the way The Meters and JB and Parliament/Funkadelic did. Which is where Tyche and I along with my brother and his fiance ended up. Got there at about 9:45 and stayed until about 3AM. Galactic was even better live than on their CD's. But it was the entire scene, an alchemical mixture of drunken frat boys/sorority sisters in town for the various bowl games, recent "brain gain" young people there to rebuild, old school NOLA burnouts, southern fried hippies (think Asheville and Athens), and the usual number of funk-stoners that made it an utterly NOLA gathering. Well, that and the music. New Or-Lee-Annes knows how to party. Seriously.

*And as I stood there, about halfway back in the room, taking in the entire scene, the people, the music, the mixed scents of sweat, mixed drinks, spilled beer, tobacco, and marijuana all at New Year's on the cusp of 2008, I thought, "This is history in the making. People in this town are going to remember the years after the storm as something. It will be an era, a time spoken of as "a time when". And my brother is right in the middle of it and here I am right in the middle of this. This is going to be a thing."

*2008 is going to be a thing, too.

*The general election is going to be close, unless Bloomberg launches a 3rd party bid. Then it's the Democrats in a blow-out. Having said that, this year it is the Democrats' race to lose.

*About two years ago I wrote a few essays/longwinded blog comments about the coming crack-up of the GOP coalition between the Main Streeters and the Wall Streeters. Main Streeters were your Christianists and aspects of the small business community, Wall Streeters were your corporate owning class types. The latter use the former as foot soldiers to elect people like W who speak about values and proceed to rape the country and embark on pre-emptive wars. But this year, the Main Streeters finally have their own genuine candidate in Mike Huckabee. I think the crack-up is upon us. This is one of the reasons why I think this election is the Democrats to lose.

*Of course that means that who the Democratic nominee is becomes even more important than it was in 2004. There is an opportunity to get a functioning progressive into the White House and we need to take that opportunity. My choice is Edwards, clearly the most progressive and most populist of the Democratic contenders.

*Obama is good too, but it worries me that he chooses to make it difficult for citizen's organizations like ACORN and labor unions to get his campaign's attention and that he uses rhetoric and literature that calls groups like us "special interests" as if we played in the same sandbox with energy companies and Big Pharma. I wonder how open he would be to groups like us once he's in the White House. And believe me, we are going to be a big reason that core progressive voters show up at the polls this year.

That's all for now.

Kick ass and take names.

Roses in my Backyard

ACORN Presidential Forum - Behind the Scenes

Posted on 2007.07.02 at 10:53
I am currently:: journalistic
Tags: , , ,
From Wade Rathke's Chief Organizer blog giving the insider's perspective on how the questions for the event today were put together.

Here's an except:

 There will be 7 questions that run the gamut of ACORN’s interests in low- and moderate-income communities around the country.

1. Maximum Eligible Participation: getting all qualified and eligible citizens for any federal program to fully participate in the program.

2. Protecting Our Assets: stopping predatory lending and moving forward on better financial services.

3. Citizenship: helping immigrants become citizens.

4. Rebuilding American Cities: the call for a Marshall plan and a community impact assessment for all neighborhoods confronting developers with public support.

5. Improving Income, Wages, and Working Conditions: show us the money!

6. Katrina and Rebuilding New Orleans: this is more than a symbol to ACORN, it’s personal!

7. Protecting the Right to Vote: we have had enough of voter suppression and want a fully entitled citizenship.

Each member has a one-page scorecard and a small stub of a pencil prepared for them, so that they can rank each candidate and his or her response and keep a running straw poll of their thinking to input to fellow members not attending and the leadership across the country. The scoring is tough and runs from “excellent” to “failed.” We are tired and won’t take it no more!


Kick ass and make an informed choice.

Roses in my Backyard

ACORN Presidential Forum TODAY - Simulcast and Liveblogged

Posted on 2007.07.02 at 09:34
I am currently:: energetic
Tags: , , ,
ACORN Presidential Forum from Philadelphia will feature ACORN leaders asking Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Dennis Kucinich questions about the issues that affect low and moderate income Americans and about supportuing the work that ACORN members engage in every day.

The fun starts at 1PM EDT/10AM PDT and will be simulcast on the web as well as blogged by several national and Philadelphia-area blogs. There is also a blog anyone can join run by ACORN set up specifically for this event. You can also find short descriptions of the bloggers who will be in atttendance and who will be posting about the event here.

Candidates themselves will be the last up in the event, after introductions and explanations of the most important issues to ACORN members. Each candidate will go one-on-one with a group of ACORN leaders who will ask direct questions and expect direct answers. Each candidate will get a minimum of 35 minutes.

The whole thing starts in half an hour. See you there.

Kick ass and make an informed choice.