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2013 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships preparations underway

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 18:14:51 GMT

Wikinews Sports

Sources[edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

"U.S. Paralympics selects team for IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships" — US Paralympics, February 8, 2013

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Voters in Maine and Maryland vote for marriage equality

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 10:22:16 GMT

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Gay rights supporters in Minnesota earlier in the year protesting against the vote by the Minnesota House to put marriage to the popular vote.
Image: Fibonacci Blue.

LGBT

Sources[edit]

Erik Eckholm. "In Maine, a Historic Victory at the Ballot Box for Same-Sex Marriage" — New York Times, November 7, 2012
Alana Semuels. "Voters OK gay marriage in Maine, Maryland" — Los Angeles Times, November 7, 2012
Alana Semuels. "Same-sex marriage measures passing in Maryland and Maine" — Los Angeles Times, November 6, 2012

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United States re-elects Barack Obama

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 06:14:51 GMT

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Obama speaking to troops at Bagram Airfield in May.
Image: Bill Gowdy, US Navy.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Incumbent U.S. President Barack Obama has been projected enough electoral votes to win re-election, defeating Republican challenger Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election. Many of the major media outlets have called the election for Obama.

Obama's campaign succeeded in gaining the vote in the battleground states of Ohio, Iowa, Colorado, and New Hampshire. Romney won in Indiana and North Carolina, two states Obama won in 2008.

Obama thanked voters via Twitter, posting: "This happened because of you. Thank you."

In the race for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren, who helped set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, defeated incumbent Republican Scott Brown. In Wisconsin, Democrat Tammy Baldwin defeated Tommy Thompson for U.S. Senate and will be the first openly gay member of the Senate. In Missouri, Senator Claire McCaskill defeated her Republican challenger Todd Akin. In August, Akin suggested that women who are victims of "legitimate" rape are unable to get pregnant.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

"President Barack Obama wins re-election" — BBC News, November 7, 2012
"Barack Obama Re-Elected As US President" — Sky News, November 7, 2012
"Obama wins 2nd term as president" — CBC, November 6, 2012
Jeff Zeleny and Jim Rutenberg. "Obama Wins New Term as Electoral Advantage Holds" — New York Times, November 6, 2012
"Tammy Baldwin wins in Wisconsin, becomes first openly gay U.S. Senator" — Vancouver Sun, November 6, 2012
Katharine Q. Seelye. "Warren Ousts Brown for Massachusetts Senate Seat" — New York Times, November 6, 2012
Lucy Madison. "McCaskill to win Missouri Senate, CBS News projects" — CBS News, November 6, 2012

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Failure for New Hampshire gay marriage repeal effort

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 16:17:29 GMT

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Related news

New Hampshire on Wikinews

Location of New Hampshire

To write, edit, start or view other articles on New Hampshire, see the New Hampshire Portal

The State Capitol building in Concord, New Hampshire.
Image: Deutsch Fetisch.

Legislators in the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted down a proposal to repeal same-sex marriage rights in the state on Wednesday. The repeal measure garnered 116 votes, but this was outweighed by 211 votes to continue allowing same-sex couples to marry. Civil unions were introduced in New Hampshire in 2007, followed by same-sex marriage in 2009.

	They blew it. This was supposed to be the most favorable legislative climate for repeal and they couldn't even get a majority.
—Craig Stowell

If the repeal bill had passed, it would have rolled back the state's law in to allow civil unions but not same-sex marriage. Governor John Lynch has stated that he would veto any repeal bill the legislature passed. Both New Hampshire's House and Senate are controlled by Republicans.

Craig Stowell, co-chairman of Standing Up for New Hampshire Families, which support same-sex marriage rights, said that those trying to repeal the law "blew it": "This was supposed to be the most favorable legislative climate for repeal and they couldn't even get a majority."

The anti-gay marriage group, the National Organization for Marriage, has stated that they will spend $250,000 to support the reelection campaigns of the lawmakers who voted for the repeal bill, while the New Hampshire Republicans of Freedom and Equality PAC has stated they will be raising money to support Republican candidates who voted against the repeal measure.

In the United States, same-sex marriage is now legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

Norma Love. "Gay marriage advocates declare victory in NH" — Yahoo! News, March 22, 2012
Ros Kransy. "Move to end New Hampshire gay marriage law fails" — Chicago Tribune, March 21, 2012

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Sandra Fluke insists she will not be silenced

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 18:25:56 GMT

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Health

Sister links[edit]

Author:Sandra Kay Fluke

Sandra Fluke

Sandra Fluke

Sources[edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

This article is a featured article. It is considered one of the best works of the Wikinews community. See Wikinews:Featured articles for more information.

Nina Mandell. "Sandra Fluke says she won't be silenced by 'slut' attacks‎" — New York Daily News, March 13, 2012
Sara Dover. "Sandra Fluke CNN Essay: Limbaugh, Others 'Cannot Silence Us'‎" — International Business Times, March 13, 2012
Lara Seligman. "Sandra Fluke: I Won't Be Silenced‎" — National Journal, March 13, 2012
Sanda Fluke. "Sandra Fluke: Slurs won’t silence women" — CNN, March 13, 2012
U.S. President Barack Obama. "President Obama discusses his phone call to Sandra Fluke" — The White House, March 6, 2012
U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen. "Women’s Health Care" — Congressional Record, February 17, 2012

External links[edit]

Democrats Hold Hearing on Contraceptives & Women’s Health, House Democratic Steering & Policy Committee, Hearing on Women’s Health & Contraception, C-SPAN.
Sandra Fluke Finally Testifies Before Congress, official website, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Democratic ranking member, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings.
Pelosi Remarks at House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee Hearing on Women’s Health, official website, Minority leader of the United States House of Representatives, Representative Nancy Pelosi.
Sandra Fluke testimony entered in Congressional Record by Senator Barbara Boxer, Congressional Record, 2012, Vol. 158, Pg. S1135.

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On the campaign trail, January 2012

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:06:00 GMT

Friday, February 3, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

The following is the third in a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail, the challengers to President Barack Obama react to the results of the New Hampshire Democratic Party primary, two new political parties choose their first presidential nominees, and an economist who announced his intentions to seek the nomination of Americans Elect answers a few questions for Wikinews.

1 Summary
2 New Hampshire Democratic Party primary results
3 New parties select presidential nominees
4 Economist running for president
5 Related articles
6 Sources

Summary[edit]

Mitt Romney on the eve of the Iowa Caucus.
Image: Iowa Politics.

Initially, it was reported that former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney won the Iowa Caucus by eight votes over former Senator Rick Santorum, who surged in the polls just days ahead of it. Several weeks later it was revealed that Santorum actually won. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann dropped out of the race as the result of her sixth place finish. Romney went on to win the New Hampshire Primary the next week, with Ron Paul placing second. Jon Huntsman, Jr., who finished third, dropped out and endorsed Romney.

Ahead of the South Carolina primary, Texas governor Rick Perry ended his run and endorsed Gingrich. Gingrich received praise for his debate performances in South Carolina, and won the primary by a large margin over Romney despite a highly publicized interview with his ex-wife just before. By this point, the campaign had turned negative with Gingrich attacking Romney for his business past, and with Romney referring to Gingrich as a "failed leader".

President Barack Obama delivered the State of the Union address on January 24. It was widely viewed as his "campaign kickoff" for re-election, and included a populist message that labeled the nation's tax code as "rigged for the super wealthy". Following the address, Obama traveled to five campaign battleground states.

Just ahead of the Florida primary, Gingrich won the endorsement of former candidate Herman Cain. Nevertheless, Romney held a five-to-one spending advantage and was able to win the state and all fifty of its delegates. He solidified his position as frontrunner for the Republican nomination.

New Hampshire Democratic Party primary results[edit]

Though the Republican Party's first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary received the bulk of media attention earlier in January, the Democratic Party held a primary in the state as well.

Second place finishers by town.
Cowan (blue), Supreme (red), Terry (yellow), Haywood (purple), Freis (yellow orange), Ely (brown), O'Connor (light grey), Richardson (pink), Wolfe (grey), O'Donnell (orange), Greene (green), Jordan (red violet), Tyler (peach), none (white), greater than two (black).

President Barack Obama was challenged by thirteen Democratic Party presidential candidates including performance artist Vermin Supreme, anti-abortion activist Randall Terry, and historian Darcy Richardson. In the end, Obama easily won the primary with 81 percent, which amounted to 49,080 votes. Though the percentage was in the range won by incumbent presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush during their respective parties' primaries in 1996 and 2004, the vote total was about 5,000 less than Bush received in 2004, and almost 30,000 fewer than Clinton in 1996.

New Hampshire primary runner-up Ed Cowan.
Image: Marc Nozell.

Out of the candidates on the ballot, Ed Cowan of Vermont finished second behind Obama with 975 votes or 1.56 percent. Cowan's percentage was greater than that achieved by the Republican Party's 2004 New Hampshire primary runner-up Richard Bosa who finished with 1.2 percent, and greater even than comedian Pat Paulsen's 1.1 percent second place finish in 1996.

The result surprised even Cowan, who said "More people voted for me than I actually met... I passed out about 500 copies of my stump speech, 550 at the most. Officially (based on my receipts) I spent $580, but it might have been as much as $650 tops. That resulted in 1.5 votes per dollar spent". Cowan hopes to enter additional primaries, and hints that he may be thinking about an independent run; "The only vote that matters in the long run is the one on 11/7/12 [U.S. Election Day], and I hope to be on most if not all ballots."

Vermin Supreme of Massachusetts came in third with 833 votes or 1.37 percent. In response to the results, Supreme exclaimed, "I WON !!!!!" In fact, Supreme has received notice: a recent Gregory Brothers video for the popular YouTube show "Songify the News" included a clip of his glitter bomb of fellow candidate Randall Terry. It has received over one million views.

Terry finished fourth with 442 votes. He told Wikinews, "we did what we set out to do: we injected the plight of unborn babies into this primary; hundreds of thousands of people in New Hampshire, Maine, and Boston saw the victims of Obama's policies: dead babies."

John Haywood was close behind with 423 votes. When asked for his reaction to the results, he stated: "when you're beaten by a ratio of 115 to 1, you don't exactly go whoopee, do you? I am, nevertheless, tremendously proud of my platform at haywoodforpresident.com."

Darcy Richardson, who was interviewed by Wikinews last November, finished with 264 votes. He hypothesized that his ballot position and the fact that he did not travel to New Hampshire contributed to the low vote total. He remarked:

Normally I would feel rather despondent about the results, but then I'm reminded that Eugene McCarthy garnered only 211 votes in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary when he revisited the state in 1992, and State Sen. Stewart Greenleaf of Pennsylvania, who has more experience in elected office than anybody running in either party and who personally spent several days campaigning in the state late last week, polled only 24 votes in yesterday's Republican primary. Despite our non-presence, we actually made a comparable showing to that of Louisiana's Buddy Roemer and received a higher percentage of the vote than gay activist Fred Karger, both of whom virtually lived in the state for the past four or five months.

We'll do much better in future primaries, beginning with Missouri on February 7th.

Of the other candidates, Aldous Tyler received 106 votes, John Wolfe, Jr. received 245, Bob Ely received 287, Craig Freis received 400, Bob Greene 213, Robert Jordan 155, Cornelius O'Connor 266, and Ed O'Donnell 222. There were several thousand write-in votes including 2,289 or 3.77 percent of the total for Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul. Republican candidates Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman, Jr. each also received over one thousand write-in votes.

New parties select presidential nominees[edit]

Anderson greets supporters.
Image: Jeremiah Roth.

Both the Justice Party and the American Third Position Party (A3P) selected their first presidential nominees in January.

On January 12, the A3P nominated Independent filmmaker Merlin Miller for president and selected retired professor Virginia Abernethy as his running mate. The party was founded in 2010, and promotes third position politics and white nationalism. According to Miller's campaign manager Alex Carmichael, it is currently petitioning to appear on the Ohio ballot, and plans to do so in a dozen other states.

The next day, the Justice Party nominated former Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson, who had formed the party a few months before. It supports accountability through the removal of corporate money in politics, and is currently on the ballot in several states.

The party did not reach the deadline to file in California, and Anderson decided on January 9 that he would seek the nomination of the socialist Peace and Freedom Party, which has attained ballot access in the state. Others competing for the party's nomination include Socialist Party USA nominee Stewart Alexander, Party for Socialism and Liberation nominee Peta Lindsay, and Stephen Durham of the Freedom Socialist Party.

Economist running for president[edit]

Boston University economics professor Laurence Kotlikoff announced in early January that he intends to seek the presidential nomination of Americans Elect, an independent organization hoping to nominate a bipartisan ticket for the 2012 presidential election. The group says it has already achieved ballot access in fifteen states, and hopes to appear on all the rest. Former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer has also expressed his interest in the nomination.

Kotlikoff, who filed with the FEC on January 12, has authored fifteen books and is a regular contributor at Bloomberg.com. As an economist, he has consulted for large corporations, central banks, national governments, and international bodies such as the International Monetary Fund. The policy basis of his run is the "Purple plan", a tax proposal that he believes both Democrats and Republicans can support.

Kotlikoff took some time to discuss his campaign with Wikinews.

Laurence Kotlikoff in November 2011.
Image: Hung-Ho Vergil Yu.

WSSIf elected president, what specific policies would you promote, and how would you work with a likely Republican congress to implement them?

Kotlikoff: Many of my specific policies are posted at www.thepurpleplans.org. Others are laid out under Issues at www.kotlikoff2012.org.

I can talk to both sides of the isles. I have friends on both sides and can intermediate very well between the two parties. The two sides are often recommending much the same thing, but with different words. I can translate. If you read my Bloomberg columns about health care reform and tax reform, you'll see this ability to connect the dots for both sides. Plus, if I were elected, it would be on the basis of my proposed policies, not my great looks or personality. The politicians would be on clear notice with respect to what policies the public wants implemented. If they didn't implement them, they'd have me campaigning against them, regardless of which party they were in.

WSSWhat are your views on the Stop Online Piracy Act? How would you address the issue of online piracy as president?

Kotlikoff: On SOPA, I'm concerned with its potential chilling effect of freedom of speech on the Internet. I'm also deeply concerned about online piracy. But we need to be careful not to do more harm with respect to our 1st Amendment rights than good in defending intellectual property rights. As President, I'd bring together the proponents and opponents of SOPA and ask them to listen to each other and respond to the other side's concerns. If I became persuaded that we could better combat online piracy via new legislation as opposed to enforcing existing legislation, I would ask the two sides to put forward a jointly authored bill.

WSSWhat are your thoughts on fellow AE presidential candidate and former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer? If he wins the AE nomination, would you consider running as an Independent?

Kotlikoff: On Governor Roemer, I agree with some statements on his website and differ with others. I believe we agree on much more than we disagree. What I don't see is much depth or detail to what he proposes. It's not enough to write a few sentences here and there about our problems. What we need is someone who really knows how to fix them in the simplest, cost-effective manner. The Purple Plans illustrate my ability to formulate real solutions to our pressing problems. The only plan that I saw of the Governor's (in my admittedly quick look at his site) is his tax plan. I believe it would be less efficient, less conducive to growth, and far less progressive than www.thepurpletaxplan.org. His reference to sales taxes indicate a lack of knowledge on his part or that of his economic advisors of how consumption taxation works and what it really taxes.

I'm an independent now in terms of my political affiliation. If you are asking whether I would run as a write-in candidate for President, the answer is no. I expect to win the AE nomination. I looked a bit more at Governor Roemer's site. One of the problems we face in the policy formation arena is getting close, but no cigar. The Governor has some good instincts in some areas, some bad ones in other areas, and no real specifics beyond the tax plan, which has, I believe, some very major flaws. In the end, he's a politician and a banker, not an economist and I really think we need an economist at this point to get to the cigar when it comes to the very many severe economic problems we face. I'll let you judge for yourself by comparing what's on my website with his as well as those of other AE candidates who emerge. Knowing we have problems, knowing they aren't being fixed, and knowing that the two parties are making the problems worse is all fine and good, but knowing precisely how to fix the problems is a different kettle of fish. I don't suggest that designing economic policy is as tough as brain surgery, but spending decades studying economics makes a difference.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

Patrick O'Connor and Neil King, Jr.. "Romney Wins Big in Florida" — The Wall Street Journal, February 1, 2012
"Press Release: AE Begins Signature Drive to Gain Ballot Access in Wisconsin in 2012" — Americans Elect, January 26, 2012
Celeste Katz. "Obama's State Of The Union: A Campaign Kickoff?" — Daily News (New York), January 24, 2012
schmoyoho. "GET MONEY, TURN GAY - Songify the News" — YouTube, January 23, 2012
Reid J. Epstein. "Mitt Romney: Newt Gingrich is a ‘failed leader,’ ‘disgrace’" — Politico, January 22, 2012
"American Third Position Party nominates presidential ticket" — Independent Political Report, January 17, 2012
Hunter Schwarz. "Rocky Anderson accepts his newly-formed party's presidential nomination" — Deseret News, January 13, 2012
"Candidates named for the Peace and Freedom Party Presidential Primary" — Independent Political Report, January 11, 2012
J.V.B.. "Cavuto, Hoft Think Obama’s "About Normal" NH Primary Results Spell Trouble" — KTNF, January 11, 2012
Annalyn Censky. "Econ professor to run for president" — CNN, January 5, 2012
"New Hampshire Democratic Party primary results" — New Hampshire Department of State, January 2012
"2012 Presidential Form 2 Filers" — U.S. Federal Election Commission, February 2, 2012 (date of access)
"New Hampshire Response (Press Release)" — Ed Cowan 2012, February 2, 2012 (date of access)

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Jon Huntsman ends U.S. presidential campaign, endorses Mitt Romney

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 00:15:14 GMT

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. ended his Republican Party presidential campaign Monday, and announced his support for former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. Huntsman cited Romney as the best candidate to defeat President Barack Obama in the general election, and noted that the primary has become too negative.

Huntsman campaigns in September 2011.
Image: Gage Skidmore.

This comes a week after Huntsman's third place finish in the New Hampshire primary, after which he announced he had a "ticket to ride" to South Carolina for that state's January 21 primary. Huntsman has remained low in recent South Carolina polls; however, Sunday he won the endorsement of South Carolina's largest newspaper, The State.

Reportedly, Huntsman's withdrawal was the result of a decreasing supply of campaign funds, spent largely in New Hampshire. Insiders say Huntsman believed his candidacy was drawing votes away from Romney.

In his address, Huntsman argued, "As candidates for our party's nomination, our common goal is to restore bold and principled leadership to the White House...Yet rather than seeking to advance that common goal by speaking directly to voters about our ideas...this race has degenerated into an onslaught of negative and personal attacks not worthy of the American people." He called for the Republican candidates "to cease attacking each other and instead talk directly to the American people."

Huntsman was viewed as the moderate in the race, owing in part to his service in the Obama administration as the U.S. Ambassador to China. During his campaign, he used the slogan "Country First" and advocated unity, tax reform, and the removal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan.

The withdrawal reduces the candidate field to five in South Carolina, with Romney, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Congressman Ron Paul, Texas governor Rick Perry, and former Senator Rick Santorum still in the race. Romney is considered the frontrunner after victories in the Iowa Caucus and New Hampshire primary.

There is speculation that Huntsman will run for president again in 2016, if Obama is re-elected.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

Tracy Jan. "Jon Huntsman ends campaign, endorses Mitt Romney" — The Boston Globe, January 16, 2012
Sam Youngman. "Huntsman ends campaign, endorses Romney" — Reuters, January 16, 2012
Michael O'Brien. "Huntsman ends campaign, decrying 'toxic' politics" — msnbc.com, January 16, 2012
Jim Rutenberg and Jeff Zeleny. "Huntsman Says He’s Quitting G.O.P. Race" — The New York Times, January 15, 2012
"Huntsman could bring us back together" — The State (newspaper), January 15, 2012
Lisa Riley Roche. "Huntsman to drop out of presidential race, endorse Romney" — KSL Broadcasting Salt Lake City UT, January 15, 2012

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Mitt Romney wins the 2012 New Hampshire Republican primary

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 06:02:14 GMT

Thursday, January 12, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney won the first-in-the-US New Hampshire Republican primary on Tuesday with 97,600 votes (39.3%). This follows his narrow victory in the Iowa Caucus last week. Congressman Ron Paul, who finished third in the Iowa Caucus, came in second with 56,872 votes (22.9%). Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, Jr., who spent a great amount of resources on the primary, came in third place with 41,783 votes (16.8%).

Romney in December 2011.
Image: Gage Skidmore..

The New Hampshire primary, the first primary of the election, is the second in a series of state elections that help to assign delegates to candidates to determine the presidential nominee of the Republican Party. Delegates can also be assigned from members of the Republican National Committee, though these are unpledged and subject to change. To win the nomination, a candidate must accumulate 1,144 delegates.

With his victory, Romney claimed seven delegates to increase his total to 25 with unpledged delegates included. Paul won three delegates for his finish to total ten delegates, placing him second overall to Romney. Despite his third place finish, Huntsman is currently sixth overall in delegates with only the two he won in New Hampshire. He currently trails former Senator Rick Santorum who has compiled eight delegates overall, followed by Texas governor Rick Perry with four, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with three.

In his victory speech, Romney criticized President Barack Obama, saying he "wants to turn America into a European-style entitlement society," countering that he himself wants "to ensure that we remain a free and prosperous land of opportunity." Romney received a call following the results from Paul, who offered his congratulations. Paul mentioned afterwards that "He certainly had a clear-cut victory. But we’re nibbling at his heels." Paul, a libertarian, added, "I have to chuckle when they describe us as being dangerous. That’s one thing they are telling the truth [about]. Because we are dangerous to the status quo in this country!"

Though some Huntsman supporters were disappointed with their candidate's third place finish, Huntsman stated his "confidence in the system is reborn because of the people of New Hampshire". He announced he would remain in the race and head to South Carolina for that state's primary on January 21.

Gingrich finished in fifth place with 23,291 votes (9.4%) slightly behind Santorum who won 23,408 votes (9.4%) despite the surge from his strong showing in the Iowa Caucus. Perry, who did not focus on New Hampshire after the Iowa Caucus, finished with 1,764 votes (0.7%).

The campaigns now head to South Carolina, where all six major candidates still in the race will compete. The latest We Ask America poll from South Carolina shows Romney with 26 percent, ahead of Gingrich with 21 percent and Santorum with 13 percent.

New Hampshire Republican primary complete results[edit]

Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Delegates	Results by County
Mitt Romney	97,600	39.3%	7	██ Mitt Romney ██ Ron Paul
Ron Paul	56,872	22.9%	3
Jon Huntsman, Jr.	41,783	16.9%	2
Rick Santorum	23,408	9.4%	-
Newt Gingrich	23,291	9.4%	-
Rick Perry	1,764	0.7%	-
Buddy Roemer	950	0.4%	-
Write-ins	540	0.2%	-
Fred Karger	485	0.2%	-
Michele Bachmann^[1]	350	0.1%	-
Kevin Rubash	249	0.1%	-
Gary Johnson^[2]	181	0.1%	-
Herman Cain^[3]	161	0.1%	-
Jeff Lawman	119	0.0%	-
Christopher Hill	108	0.0%	-
Benjamin Linn	83	0.0%	-
Michael Meehan	54	0.0%	-
Keith Drummond	42	0.0%	-
Joe Story	42	0.0%	-
Bear Betzler	29	0.0%	-
Joe Robinson	25	0.0%	-
Stewart Greenleaf	24	0.0%	-
Mark Callahan	20	0.0%	-
Andy Martin	19	0.0%	-
Linden Swift	18	0.0%	-
Timothy Brewer	15	0.0%	-
Vern Wuensche	15	0.0%	-
John Davis	14	0.0%	-
Randy Crow	12	0.0%	-
Hugh Cort	3	0.0%	-
James Vestermark	3	0.0%	-

↑ Bachmann dropped out following the Iowa Caucus
↑ Johnson dropped out in December to seek the Libertarian Party presidential nomination
↑ Cain dropped out in December

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

"New Hampshire Republican Primary Results" — New Hampshire Secretary of State,
"New Hampshire Republican Primary Results" — The New York Times, January 11, 2012
"Primaries - Scorecard" — CNN, January 11, 2012
Associated Press. "Mitt Romney says Obama too cozy with Europe and its welfare states in NH victory speech" — The Washington Post, January 11, 2012
Shira Schoenberg. "In third place, Huntsman declares he’s headed for S.C." — The Boston Globe, January 11, 2011
Maureen MacKey. "Ron Paul in N.H.: I’m ‘Dangerous to Status Quo’" — The Fiscal Times, January 10, 2011
"Mitt-Out A Doubt?" — We Ask America, January 10, 2011

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On the campaign trail, December 2011

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 09:01:32 GMT

Sunday, January 1, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

The following is the second in a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail: the campaign manager for a candidate already seeking two presidential nominations discusses the likelihood his candidate will run for the Reform Party's nomination; a lesser known candidates forum reveals an alternative fuel possibility and concludes in a dramatic fashion; and the newly nominated candidate for the Boston Tea Party talks with Wikinews.

1 Summary
2 Possible Reform Party candidate?
3 Lesser-known candidates forum
4 Boston Tea Party presidential nomination
5 Related articles
6 Sources

Summary[edit]

Ron Paul speaks at an Iowa campaign event, December 28.
Image: Gage Skidmore.

In December 2011, businessman Herman Cain ended his campaign for the Republican Party's presidential nomination amid allegations of sexual harassment and an extramarital affair. Hoping to appeal to social conservatives, Texas governor Rick Perry released a commercial in Iowa entitled "Strong", in which he states, "there's something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can't openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school." While the video received 24,407 likes by the end of the month, it received 725,698 dislikes.

Frontrunner Newt Gingrich had trouble of his own after he suggested during an interview with The Jewish Channel that Palestinians were an "invented people". He refused to retract the comments at the final GOP debate before the January 3 Iowa Caucus. Gingrich's lead in the polls disappeared as Mitt Romney won big endorsements from South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, former Senator Bob Dole, and former president George H.W. Bush.

Meanwhile, Congressman Ron Paul rose in the polls as well, trailing Romney by two points in the final NBC/Marist poll of the year with Rick Santorum surging and Rick Perry close behind. However, Paul encountered his own troubles as the media reported on articles published in his newsletters from the 1980s and 1990s that included incendiary comments about blacks, gays, and Israel. Paul says he did not write the articles and has publicly disavowed them in the past. Additionally, Paul won the backing of Iowa State Senator Kent Sorenson, who previously served as the state chairman for Michele Bachmann, who continued to sag in the polls since winning the Ames Straw Poll in August.

Former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, another candidate who had been low in the Republican polls, announced a switch to the Libertarian Party to run for that party's presidential nomination. Analysts have suggested that if Johnson wins the Libertarian nomination, he could possibly take votes away from the Republican nominee and help President Barack Obama win re-election.

Possible Reform Party candidate?[edit]

Roemer speaks to the Reform Party of New Jersey on December 10.
Image: Greenguy89.

Presidential candidate Buddy Roemer addressed members of the Reform Party of New Jersey on December 10 at a joint Reform Party-Tea Party event. The meeting raised speculation that Roemer, who is currently running for the presidential nominations of both the Republican Party and Americans Elect, would also seek the nomination of the Reform Party of the United States of America.

Dennis Mikolay, a member of the New Jersey party's leadership, wrote on his blog that "there are efforts within the Reform Party to draft him [Roemer] as their candidate". However, Roemer, who served as Governor of Louisiana as a Republican, does not seem interested in the nomination. According to campaign manager Carlos Sierra, the Reform Party has "reached out to us...but the Governor does not intend to seek their nomination. He is focused primarily on the GOP nomination. We think once his message gets a stage and an audience, that it will resonate with the Republican Party and Independents. The problem is he keeps getting shut out of the debates."

Industrialist Ross Perot founded the Reform Party in 1995. He won the party's presidential nomination the next year and received over eight percent of the popular vote, the highest percentage for a third party candidate since. After this, the party was plagued by infighting, and decreased in prominence. In 2008, Ted Weill was nominated for president, but appeared only on the ballot in Mississippi and received 481 votes.

For 2012, three candidates have announced their intentions to seek the party's nomination: former college football coach Robby Wells, Earth Intelligence Network CEO Robert David Steele, and small business owner Andre Barnett.

Lesser-known candidates forum[edit]

On December 19, the New Hampshire Institute of Politics hosted a forum at St. Anselm College to present lesser-known candidates for the Republican and Democratic Party presidential nominations. Wikinews covered the Democratic Party forum that showcased candidates challenging President Barack Obama for that party's presidential nomination, including anti-abortion activist Randall Terry and performance artist Vermin Supreme.

Vermin Supreme glitter bombs Randall Terry during the Democratic Party presidential candidates forum as John Wolfe looks on.
Image: Marc Nozell.

A high point of the forum occurred after Vermin Supreme delivered his final statement. He exclaimed, "Jesus told me to make Randall Terry gay" and proceeded to glitter bomb Terry while shouting, "he's turning gay." Terry had earlier affirmed his opposition to same-sex marriage, comparing it to slavery and abortion. Supreme later told Wikinews that Terry "took his glittering like a man, a gay man. I don't know if the fairy dust turned him gay right away, but he took his medicine, and he seemed to enjoy it on some level." Though Terry could not be reached for comment, he wrote on his blog that the glitter bombing "appeared to have no impact on me becoming homosexual." Supreme claims he was threatened by a Terry supporter after the forum and is now "seeking Secret Service protection." He has no plans to glitter bomb anyone else.

Supreme says that he had previously met Terry at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, and "was given the distinct impression that he (Terry) wanted to perform fellatio on me." He says that prior to the forum, he offered "to have 'homosexual gay sex' in the lavatory stall", but Terry declined. During the forum, Supreme said that he planned to write-in Terry, but said afterwards that his support "depends how gay he [Terry] gets."

Dr. Bob Greene, a physicist who also participated in the forum, commented that the glitter bombing "was inappropriate for the circumstances." During the forum, Greene differentiated himself from his opponents by discussing the use of thorium as an alternative fuel, saying "we have enough thorium for all of our energy needs for well over a thousand years." He elaborated further after the forum, explaining that thorium could be used by bombarding it with neutrons, after which it fissions. "The fuel", he explained, "is a molten salt, really Thorium Fluoride with a couple of stable-izers." Greene says that it is safer and produces less waste than conventional methods, but "the military favored the uranium cycle because you could get lots of plutonium out of it, which they wanted for bombs. Thorium - not so."

Others that participated in the Democratic forum include writer Ed Cowan, lawyer John Haywood, activist Edward O'Donnell Jr., and lawyer John Wolfe.

Dr. Bob Greene
Image: Marc Nozell.
Ed Cowan
Image: Marc Nozell.
John D. Haywood
Image: Marc Nozell.
Edward O'Donnell Jr.
Image: Marc Nozell.

Boston Tea Party presidential nomination[edit]

On December 23, the Boston Tea Party (BTP) nominated Howard Community College trustee Tiffany Briscoe of Maryland as its second presidential nominee. The BTP was formed in 2006 and "supports reducing the size, scope and power of government at all levels and on all issues, and opposes increasing the size, scope and power of government at any level, for any purpose." In 2008, the party nominated boxing manager Charles Jay, who appeared on three state ballots and won a total of 2,422 votes.

Briscoe's platform calls for the legalization of drugs, a repeal of the USA PATRIOT Act, and an end to subsidies and foreign aid. Former radio host Kimberly Johnson was selected as her running mate.

Briscoe took some time to speak with Wikinews about her campaign and the BTP.

WSSHow do you plan to gain ballot access for the BTP?

Briscoe: The BTP is a fairly new political party. Yet, it has great potential. Its message of individual freedom and free markets resonates with a great majority of the American people that do not seem to be content with the current Establishment. We need to campaign massively, which we are already doing, to collect enough petition signatures and get on as many ballots as possible. I will myself contribute financially to help get the party on the ballot in such states as Colorado and Louisiana. At the end of the day, we will probably be able to appear on 14 to 15 states throughout the country, and stay as a write-in candidate in virtually all the others.

WSSIdeologically, how are you different from Ron Paul or Gary Johnson?

Briscoe: Ron Paul and Gary Johnson are two great men that have helped the cause of liberty by working from the inside of the government. But they do not reflect the true nature of libertarianism. Paul has become a typical politician, taking pork barrel to his district to get reelected, wants to restrict immigration, and wants to plague the economy with an entire new series of tax credits and corporate loopholes for energy and health care reform. Gary Johnson, while he did veto more laws than any other governor in the 1990s, also encounters the same problem: he wants to keep Guantanamo Bay open with the so-called "enemy combatant" inside, he opposes the end of the Federal Reserve that is creating so much troubles with our economy, and even wants to establish a FairTax that would increase consumer prices in a way that will slow economic development. So while I do consider myself as an ideological ally of these two men, I don't believe they're doing the best they can when it comes to promoting the philosophy of freedom.

WSSWhat do you hope to accomplish with this campaign, and what would constitute a success?

Briscoe: Of course, I am not running just to get my name or the party's name out there, even though the latter is also a goal. I am running to show that there are actually some people outside of Washington that still care about the future of our country, to show that all these independent-minded folks are not alone in their daily fight against the federal government. But with 60% of the people wishing to see a third party play a more important role and with an even greater portion saying they would consider voting for a third party in 2012, we might have more chances to reach success than we may think. Of course, the ultimate success would be paving the way to the White House but at this point, I believe only taking away votes from the true "spoilers" that the Establishment represents in a way that would change the ultimate course of the election would already make us proud.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Lisa Lerer. "Gingrich Tamps Down Expectations to Win Iowa as Polls Show Slump" — Bloomberg Businessweek, December 30, 2011
Kim Geiger. "Iowa poll: Santorum surges as Gingrich fades, Romney leads" — The Los Angeles Times, December 30, 2011
"Top Bachmann aide out after flap over campaign switch" — CNN, December 29, 2011
Dennis Mikolay. "January 2012 Survey!" — www.mikolay.org, December 28, 2011
"Boston Tea Party Announces 2012 Presidential Ticket" — Independent Political Report, December 24, 2011
Michael Calderone. "Why Ron Paul's Controversial Newsletters Are Back In The News" — The Huffington Post, December 23, 2011
AAI Channels. "Part 3 Lesser-Known Candidates Form 12-19-11 - 28 Mins. VTS 01 3" — YouTube, December 22, 2011
AAI Channels. "Part 4 Lesser-Known Candidates Form 12-19-11 - 27 Mins. VTS_01_4.VOB" — YouTube, December 22, 2011
Simón Ríos. "Lesser-known candidates bring colorful campaigns to St. Anselm" — New Hampshire Union Leader, December 20, 2011
Press release. "Louisiana Governor Running for President" — Atlantic Highlands Herald, December 10, 2011
RPerry2012. "Strong" — YouTube, December 6, 2011
Susan Saulny. "A Defiant Herman Cain Suspends His Bid for Presidency" — The New York Times, December 3, 2011
Randall Terry. "I was "anointed" last night at the Presidential debate...But it didn't work..." — Randall Terry for President, 2011
Tiffany Briscoe. "Briscoe/Johnson 2012" — Weebly, 2011
"2012 Reform Party presidential candidates" — Reform Party (US), 2011
"2008 Official Presidential General Election Results" — Federal Election Commission, January 22, 2009
Larry Sabato, Howard R. Erns. "Encyclopedia of American political parties and elections" — Facts On File, 2007

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'America’s Toughest Sheriff' to endorse Rick Perry for U.S. President

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:22:32 GMT

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Sheriff Joe Arpaio in February 2011.
Image: Gage Skidmore.

Governor Rick Perry in October 2011.
Image: Gage Skidmore.

Joe Arpaio, the Sheriff for Maricopa County, Arizona, is expected to endorse Republican Party presidential candidate Governor Rick Perry of Texas this week at a New Hampshire campaign event, according to sources. Arpaio is expected to appear with Perry in Hudson, New Hampshire today, and will remain in the state for three days.

Arpaio, who refers to himself as "America’s Toughest Sheriff", is known for his tough stance on illegal immigration. As Sheriff, he has led raids to gather and arrest illegal immigrants and publicly supported Arizona's stringent 2010 immigration law. GOP presidential candidates Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, and Mitt Romney have all sought his endorsement. He endorsed Romney in 2008.

The endorsement could help Perry with conservative voters who have had problems with his record on illegal immigration. Perry was attacked for signing a bill that granted in-state tuition benefits to college-age illegal immigrants. He defended the bill during a September presidential debate, saying those criticizing him for it, "don’t have a heart". He later backed down from the statement.

As Governor of Texas for eleven years, Perry has overseen the state that has the longest border with Mexico. He vetoed a bill that would have allowed illegal immigrants to receive driver's licenses and signed another that requires identification to vote.

During his presidential campaign, Perry has opposed the proposed full-length border fence, calling it impractical. Instead, he favors targeted fencing combined with mobilization of enforcement personnel.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

Dean Shalhoup. "Perry, Arizona sheriff coming to Hudson Tuesday" — Nashua Telegraph, November 28, 2011
Arlette Saenz. "Sheriff Joe Arpaio to Endorse Rick Perry Next Week" — ABC News, November 26, 2011
Doug Mataconis. "Rick Perry's Immigration Problem" — Outside the Beltway, September 24, 2011

External links[edit]

Rick Perry's views on security

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Wikinews interviews Darcy Richardson, Democratic Party presidential challenger to Barack Obama

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 18:55:34 GMT

Friday, November 25, 2011

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Democratic Party presidential candidate Darcy Richardson.
Image: Darcy Richardson.

U.S. Democratic Party presidential candidate Darcy Richardson of Florida took some time to answer a few questions from Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn.

Richardson, 55, is a political activist that helped form the New Democrats in 1989 and founded the progressive Battleground Blog earlier this year. He is also a political historian, and has authored six books covering third parties and presidential elections, including A Nation Divided: The 1968 Presidential Campaign (2002). His current work, The Spirit of ’76: Eugene McCarthy’s Struggle for Open Politics, chronicles the late Democratic Senator Eugene McCarthy's 1976 presidential campaign for which he volunteered. Richardson admires McCarthy, and served as manager for his 1988 presidential run. Recently, Richardson advised Brian Moore's Socialist Party USA presidential campaign in 2008.

In addition, Richardson himself has sought political office, albeit unsuccessfully. In 1980, he ran for Pennsylvania Auditor General, and in 1988, vied for one of Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate seats as a member of the Consumer Party. Last year, he ran for Lieutenant Governor of Florida as the running mate of gubernatorial candidate Farid Khavari.

Richardson has criticized President Barack Obama's policies for being too similar to those of former President George W. Bush. He hoped to convince several prominent progressives to challenge Obama in the Democratic primaries, but none were available to do so. Last month, Richardson decided to begin a campaign himself and announced through his Battleground Blog that he would challenge Obama in the Democratic Party primaries as a progressive candidate. So far, he has qualified for the New Hampshire primary in January and the Missouri primary in February. In an interview with the Independent Political Report, Richardson proclaimed his campaign slogan as "no fourth term for George W. Bush."

1 Background
2 Policy
3 Campaign
4 Related news
5 Sources
6 External links

Background[edit]

William S. SaturnWhen did you first meet Senator Eugene McCarthy, and what attracted you to his campaign?

Senator Eugene McCarthy.
Image: United States Federal Government.

Darcy Richardson: I first met Senator McCarthy during his independent campaign for the presidency in 1976 when I was about 19 or 20 years old. I had been an admirer of the former Minnesota lawmaker dating back to his 1968 campaign when he courageously challenged LBJ for the Democratic presidential nomination, essentially risking his political career to end the unjust war in Vietnam. It was a candidacy of conscience. Similarly, I was strongly attracted to Gene's 1976 effort, believing that he was far better qualified than either Jimmy Carter or Gerald Ford. McCarthy's campaign that year — striking down burdensome and discriminatory ballot access laws in no fewer than twenty-four states — was an heroic effort to further the cause of open politics in this country. McCarthy's legal team, headed by young lawyers John C. Armor and Philip L. Marcus, described it as "The Bloodless Revolution of 1976." McCarthy's candidacy that year had a lasting effect on my own politics. I knew Gene fairly well and visited him several times in later years in his book-filled home near the Blue Ridge Mountains, a rustic and comfortable dwelling lined with pictures of Yeats and Joyce. Gene was an original voice in American politics. He was also a pretty decent poet.

WSSIn 1980, to the surprise of many, Senator McCarthy endorsed Republican Ronald Reagan for president. Did you agree with this decision?

Richardson: No, I didn't agree with that endorsement. In fact, I had campaigned for Ted Kennedy in the New Hampshire and Pennsylvania primaries earlier that spring and later ran for statewide office in Pennsylvania on a ticket headed by environmentalist Barry Commoner, the Citizens Party nominee for president. Some Democrats never forgave Gene for endorsing Reagan. I wasn't one of them.

WSSYou are (or were at one time) a member of the Boston Tea Party, a minor third party whose platform supports "reducing the size, scope and power of government at all levels and on all issues, and opposes increasing the size, scope and power of government at any level, for any purpose." Do you agree with this platform?

Richardson: My involvement with the Boston Tea Party — a freedom-oriented, limited government entity — was relatively short-lived. I assisted them a bit here in Florida because of Tom Knapp's personal involvement. Tom, a self-styled anarchist and original thinker, had founded the party shortly after the Libertarian Party's mid-term convention in 2006. An edgy and contemplative guy, Tom is a libertarian writer and activist for whom I have tremendous respect. He's one of the smartest people I know and is also probably one of the most talented writers that I've ever encountered.

WSSWhich presidential candidates have you supported over the past twenty years?

Richardson: There are probably too many to mention here, but Eugene McCarthy, who sought the Democratic presidential nomination again in 1992, and U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio would be the two that I've been most enthusiastic about during the past twenty years. We need more Democrats like them.

WSSHow have your political views changed in the past twenty years?

Richardson: We all change, of course, but my political views have always remained consistently progressive.

Policy[edit]

William S. SaturnIf you had been elected president in 2008, what would you have done differently than Barack Obama?

Richardson.
Image: Darcy Richardson.

Darcy Richardson: The fact that President Obama initially appointed Larry Summers as chairman of his White House Economic Council shortly after taking office, should have given everybody pause. Summers is probably more responsible for the country’s current economic mess than any other individual.

As President Clinton's Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to January 2001, Summers shaped and pushed the financial deregulation that unleashed the near-collapse of Wall Street in the autumn of 2008, particularly when he pushed through the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 during the final years of the Clinton Administration — legislation, as you know, that had prohibited banks from doing both commercial and investment banking.

An architect-turned-enabler of this never-ending economic crisis, Summers later supported the Commodity Futures Modernization Act that, unbelievably as it might seem, mandated that financial derivatives — including the reckless credit default swaps at the heart of the financial crisis — could be traded between financial institutions without any government oversight whatsoever.

It’s little wonder that Rolling Stone writer William Greider, in a marvelously detailed article in late 2008, pointed out that Obama’s choice of Summers and other key economic advisers, including Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, seemed designed to sustain the failed economic policies of the Bush presidency — an administration that never saw the financial crisis coming in the first place.

The Summers appointment told me that the President had no earthly clue how this devastating financial crisis happened or how to reverse it.

Things only got worse after that. President Obama failed to resurrect the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. He failed to include a public option in health care. He failed to assert his constitutional responsibility during the recent debt limit crisis. Unbelievably, he's failed to protect Social Security and Medicare. He extended the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. He failed to push for cap-and-trade. And he failed to close Gitmo. I could go on, but I think you get the point. If anybody deserves a serious intraparty challenge, it's the current occupant of the White House.

In retrospect, it's really incredible that a Democrat of national stature and credibility hasn't entered this race — at least as of now.

WSSDo you believe Obama has done any good things as president?

Richardson: Nothing I could write a book about, unless it's a work of fiction. He's generally been disappointing, allowing the GOP to frame the debate on issue after issue. Who in their right mind wants the Republicans to dictate fiscal or economic policy in this country? The folks in the Occupy Wall Street movement have already figured that out. It's just a matter of the rest of the country coming to the same conclusion...

WSSWhat necessary freedoms are currently lacking in American society?

Richardson: Since the beginning of the Bush Administration, most of our personal freedoms have been under constant attack — including freedom of assembly, as many in the Occupy movement can sadly testify.

WSSDo you disagree with any parts of the current U.S. Constitution?

Richardson: Not really, but I'm not particularly crazy about the second amendment.

WSSWhat are some of your policy proposals, and if elected, how would you implement these?

Richardson: First and foremost, I'm advocating a capital levy on wealth, not unlike the proposal currently being debated in Germany and other European countries. Much of our current $15 trillion national debt should be recouped from the rich — the pampered and privileged class that hasn't paid its fair share in recent years.

Though I'm still developing my platform, I also support a second stimulus package — roughly five or six times the size of Obama's meager $447 billion "Son of Stimulus" — to jump-start the U.S. economy; a Medicare-for-All health care plan; and a moratorium on home foreclosures (for primary residences only), not unlike that initiated by Minnesota's radical Farmer-Labor Party during the Great Depression. I also want an immediate end to the war in Afghanistan and am strongly opposed to the Keystone XL pipeline.

The American people are hurting, and they're hurting badly.

Campaign[edit]

William S. SaturnYou wrote that you had wanted somebody like former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, economist Jeffrey Sachs, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), or former Representative Alan Grayson (D-FL) to challenge President Obama in the primaries. You mentioned that you had "encouraged several of them to run". Which of these individuals did you contact and what were their reasons for declining?

Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich.
Image: Robert Reich.

Darcy Richardson: My personal preference was former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, whom I had urged to run several months ago. I never received a response. In my opinion, Reich's talents are being virtually wasted in academia. He's a brilliant man and has probably forgotten more than Obama ever knew. The country desperately needs him. I also personally encouraged Kucinich to enter the fray, but he was clearly focusing his attention on being re-elected to the U.S. House, a re-election contest complicated by redistricting. I received a nice reply from Kucinich's congressional staff. I never got around to contacting Jeffrey Sachs, but the Columbia University professor, like Bob Reich, would have been an ideal candidate, too.

WSSOf the candidates currently running for the Republican Party nomination, which do you most admire?

Richardson: Well, I sort of miss Harold Stassen; he was a truly progressive Republican. But to answer your question it would probably be Buddy Roemer and gay activist Fred Karger. I also like former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson. Roemer, a former congressman and ex-governor, is probably the most principled candidate in the crowded Republican field, but the powers-that-be in both the GOP and the media have denied him a fair hearing. I wouldn't be surprised if he runs as an independent. I also admire Congressman Ron Paul's tenacity, but I find his politics a little too conservative for my blood. After all, government isn't the enemy.

I've never completely agreed with McCarthy's assessment that the Republican Party was like the lowest form of plant and animal life, but the rest of the GOP field — from Gingrich to Santorum and Cain — comes awfully darn close to matching that biting description.

WSSWhat campaign activities have you taken part in and where do you base the campaign?

Richardson: I've mostly just done newspaper and television interviews up to this point. I enjoy doing them, but television interviews are probably the toughest. Can you imagine what would have happened to civilization if Aristotle and Plato had to speak in sound bites?

In any case, I do plan to campaign actively in New Hampshire shortly after Christmas and plan to make a major effort in Pennsylvania — my old stomping ground — next spring as part of a major effort of sorts in the tri-state area. We hope to petition our way onto the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware primary ballots and to pay a filing fee in nearby West Virginia. I'm also willing to campaign in other primary and caucus states where we're organized.

Believe it or not, we actually have a functioning campaign headquarters on St. Johns Bluff Rd. in Jacksonville, about twenty-three miles from my home. We share the office with a couple of local businesses.

Our low-key campaign is progressing nicely. We recently named Frances "Dolly" Simplot — a Hillary Clinton supporter and longtime Democratic activist from Bellingham, Washington — as my honorary campaign chairperson. Dolly is in her mid-seventies, but has more energy than somebody half her age. She's amazing. Like millions of other lifelong Democrats, she's deeply disappointed in the Obama Presidency. Then again, she is a Democrat.

WSSHave you or do you plan to file with the FEC?

Richardson: We've already raised a few thousand dollars and plan to file with the FEC shortly.

WSSWould you consider running as a third party or Independent candidate?

Richardson: I have no plans to do so, but I've learned in life never to entirely rule out anything.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

This exclusive interview features first-hand journalism by a Wikinews reporter. See the collaboration page for more details.

"Darcy Richardson Qualifies for Missouri Democratic Primary" — Independent Political Report, November 24, 2011
Michael A. Memoli. "Even Democratic ballot will be crowded in New Hampshire primary" — Los Angeles Times, October 28, 2011
"Darcy Richardson challenges Obama in Democratic presidential primary" — Independent Political Report, October 27, 2011
Darcy G. Richardson. "Darcy Richardson: ‘Why I’m Running for President’" — Battleground Blog, October 26, 2011
Darcy G. Richardson. "About Battleground Blog" — Battleground Blog, 2011
"Richardson, Darcy G." — Our Campaigns, 2011
"Exclusive Interview with Darcy Richardson, Independent Candidate for Lt. Governor of Florida" — Third Party and Independent Daily, October 11, 2010
Barbara White Stack. "Small uprising developing among national Democrats" — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, December 13, 1989

External links[edit]

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State Senator Stewart Greenleaf enters New Hampshire primary

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:31:24 GMT

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

State Senator Stewart Greenleaf
Image: Pennsylvania Senate Republican Caucus.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

State Senator Stewart Greenleaf of Pennsylvania registered on Friday to appear on the ballot for the U.S. Republican Party's New Hampshire primary. He released a statement yesterday explaining that his goal was not to win the presidency, but "to enter ideas into the great debate that is the 2012 Presidential Election."

Greenleaf, 72, has represented the 12th district in the Pennsylvania Senate since 1979. His district includes parts of Bucks County and Montgomery County, populated with approximately 240,000 people. He serves as the chairman of the Judicial Committee and as Vice-chairman of the Intergovernmental Operations Committee. Two weeks ago, he helped pass legislation to reform state prisons.

Terry Madonna, director of the Franklin & Marshall College Poll remarked that "Stewart [Greenleaf] is a very smart guy...with a good reputation in Harrisburg." However, he added that Greenleaf is "certainly not even on the radar of anyone for the presidency and is clearly not going to be the nominee."

As a presidential candidate, Greenleaf lists two primary objectives for the nation: balance the federal budget by reducing debt; and improve competitiveness in the global economy through "tariff tweaking", protection of intellectual property, relaxation of regulation, and prevention of the employment of illegal immigrants.

Greenleaf is one of 44 candidates that will appear on the New Hampshire primary ballot. He filed in person on the deadline along with fellow candidates: former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson and Texas governor Rick Perry. The filing fee was $1,000.

Have an opinion on this story? Post it!

Sources[edit]

John L. Micek. "State Sen. Greenleaf Files For New Hampshire Ballot." — The Morning Call, October 31, 2011
Gary Weckselblatt. "Greenleaf on presidential ballot" — The Intelligencer, October 31, 2011
Alexander Burns. "The long, long New Hampshire ballot" — Politico, October 28, 2011

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Wikinews interviews Andy Martin, U.S. Republican Party presidential candidate

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 13:58:29 GMT

Monday, August 8, 2011

This article mentions the Wikimedia Foundation, one of its projects, or people related to it. Wikinews is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Andy Martin
Image: Andy Martin.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

U.S. Republican Party presidential candidate Andy Martin of Illinois took some time to answer a few questions from Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn.

Martin has questioned the validity of the birth certificate released by U.S. President Barack Obama, and is best known for his role in the spreading of rumors that Obama is a Muslim. According to CNN, Martin has retracted the Muslim claim and now believes that Obama was fathered by journalist and labor activist Frank Marshall Davis rather than Kenyan economist Barack Obama, Sr.. He also believes that the Obama presidency has been a failure and has asked for Obama to resign.

Martin has run for an assortment of public offices in the past and has previously mounted two presidential campaigns. During the 1988 election, he vied unsuccessfully for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, and in 2000, he again fell short of winning the nomination of the Republican Party.

In other areas, Martin has filed numerous lawsuits, some reportedly with anti-Jewish language. This has caused some commentators such as former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs to label Martin as an anti-Semite. Martin vehemently denies the charge. He has also taken legal action against Wikipedia, which he feels is a propaganda arm of the Obama administration.

While focusing his presidential campaign in the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire, Martin has largely emphasized local issues. On national issues, he has taken conservative stances, as documented on his campaign website and blog.

1 Barack Obama and the birther movement
2 Personal past
3 Presidential campaign
4 Political views
5 Sources
6 External links
7 Editor's notes

Barack Obama and the birther movement[edit]

According to The New York Times, Martin first spread the 'Obama is a Muslim' rumor via press release following then-Senate candidate Obama's 2004 keynote address to the Democratic National Convention. Amid the 2008 presidential election, Martin traveled to Hawaii to investigate Obama, who was at the time, the Democratic Party nominee for president. In October 2008, he filed a lawsuit against the state to release Obama's birth certificate, but it was dismissed by the courts. After returning from the trip, Martin announced that he believed Frank Marshall Davis was Obama's biological father.

Martin has been a fierce critic of the Obama administration and held a press conference on August 5 to call for the resignation of both Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. He proposed that a "caretaker administration" be put in place until the 2012 election, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid as president and a Republican as vice president.

William S. Saturn: You have been one of the leading proponents of the movement questioning the citizenship of Barack Obama. What are your views on the long-form document recently released by the White House?

Andy Martin: I did indeed found the “Birther” movement questioning Barack Obama’s origins in Hawai’i but because of the need to run a national campaign for president I have not been active in examining Obama’s latest birth certificate. I think it was/is enough that I started the movement that ultimately forced Obama to release a document. I know there has been controversy about the new document but I am not involved in that controversy. It is for others to study and comment on the latest certificate; I am a full-time presidential candidate for the foreseeable future.

WSS: You have stated that it is your personal opinion that Frank Marshall Davis is the father of Barack Obama. What specifically led to this opinion?

Martin: My personal opinion that Frank Marshall Davis is Barack Obama’s biological father is based on my extensive research in Hawai’i.

WSS: Where specifically did you obtain the material for your research and what did it entail?

Martin: Because my Obama research in Hawai’i is ongoing and will be continuing in a research trip later this year I do not discuss my sources or methods of investigation. My writing speaks for itself.

WSS: Since announcing he would not seek the Republican nomination, Donald Trump seems to have toned down his statements on the birth certificate issue. What are your current views on Donald Trump?

Martin: I did not pay a lot of attention to Donald Trump’s “campaign” for president because his behavior seemed to suggest it was a charade. Mr. Trump has destroyed his political viability by saying initially he would only run as a Republican and then repudiating himself and suggesting he might run as an independent. Public leadership is serious business; Mr. Trump has shown he is not serious.

WSSHow would [you] assess the Obama presidency?

Martin: The Obama presidency is an abject failure. I predicted Mr. Obama would fail in a Psychological Profile which was the first chapter of my book Obama: The Man Behind The Mask. Obama’s failure is no surprise to me.

WSSDo you believe Obama has done any good things as president?

Martin: I can’t think of any off the top

WSSYou ask Barack Obama to resign and want Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to take over. What legal precedent forms the basis of this? And assuming Vice President Biden resigns as well, why should Speaker John Boehner not take over as president?

Martin: The president of the Senate is third, not the speaker, so Reid is a practical choice.^{[Editor's note 1]} Boehner is fourth.^{[Editor's note 2]}

Personal past[edit]

Martin was asked several questions about his personal past, which he declined to answer. He refused to discuss his two previous presidential campaigns, his past affiliation with the Democratic Party and would not say which candidates he supported in previous elections. When pressed, Martin stated that the questions were irrelevant.

William S. Saturn: You ran for president in 1988 as a member of the Democratic Party. Why did you choose to become a member of that party, and what caused you to switch to the Republican Party?

Andy Martin: [The late] Congressman Jack Kemp and Rev. Pat Robertson invited me to join the Republican Party and I did.

WSS: Are you still in contact with Pat Robertson?

Martin: No.

WSS: What is your response to the claims from Robert Gibbs and others that you are Anti-Semitic due to the alleged anti-Jewish language used in some of your previous lawsuits?

Martin: Robert Gibbs engaged in a crude political smear based on lies, distortions and misrepresentations. For the past four or five years I have been the victim of a pro-Obama dirty tricks operation orchestrated out of Wikipedia.org and the Obama campaign apparatus. In one sense, Obama’s use of malicious smears against me shows how desperate he is to discredit my activity. In another sense, the fact that Obama goes to such lengths to attack me is a compliment to the seriousness with which he views both my research and my current presidential campaign. The national media may not yet take my presidential campaign seriously but Mr. Obama and his dirty tricksters very much do. What does Obama know that the media don’t?

Presidential campaign[edit]

Martin has centered his campaign in the state of New Hampshire and has discussed local issues. For environmental reasons, he opposes the Northern Pass transmission line, an energy project slated to connect New England to the hydroelectric resources of Hydro-Québec. When asked if the project was under the purview of the office of the presidency, he replied that it requires a presidential finding. On July 28, Martin released a press release that described a planned march against the Northern Pass as "what could be the largest campaign event generated by any presidential candidate in New Hampshire during the 2012 election cycle." When asked to go into detail about the event, Martin responded that it was "too time consuming" to provide "personalized analysis" but remarked that "I'd say we are surprising a lot of people and we have many more rabbits to pull out of the hat as the campaign progresses."

Martin has not been invited to any Republican primary presidential debates and has not been included in any presidential preference polls.

William S. Saturn: Why did you decide to run for president in 2012?

Andy Martin: I did not think and still do not believe that any of the “leading” Republican candidates are capable of waging an effective campaign against Barack Obama. I believe I could do a better job because of my extensive understanding and study of Obama’s character and personality. I predicted his ineffectiveness as a president in my Psychological Study which was published as a chapter in my bestselling book Obama: The Man Behind The Mask in 2008. I understood Obama before the American electorate did. They were not listening to me in 2008; maybe they will listen in 2012. To paraphrase former New York Mayor Ed Koch, the American people did not listen to me in 2008 and they are suffering for it. Now I’m running formally as a candidate to take my case against Obama to the American people.

WSS: Individually, what is your opinion of some of your fellow candidates for the Republican Party presidential nomination, notably Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul and Herman Cain? Why do you feel you would be a better nominee for the party than any of them?

Martin: I have occasionally written brief profiles and short commentaries on some of my opponents. Those columns are posted on my blogs. I refer you to those comments and any that appear in the future (as no doubt they will).

WSS: How often do you campaign, and how has the campaign been received by people you meet?

Martin: I campaign every day. I would say I have received an extraordinarily warm and positive response wherever I have campaigned. I place my campaign in the top 10, i.e. among the top 10 Republican presidential candidates nationally. While most of the media attention is focused on the top 5, some of the top 5 are tottering and will not survive.

WSS: Which other candidates would you also place in the top 10?

Martin: the usual ones, so long as they have actually announced. I don’t count unannounced ones.

WSS: Have you received any notable endorsements?

Martin: I receive the “endorsement” of ordinary Americans every day in my campaign. That is the only endorsement that counts.

WSS: Do you feel you can still win the nomination despite not receiving an invitation to any of the presidential debates?

Martin: I have a game plan and strategy to try to win, and we are executing that game plan well. I am very satisfied with the progress of the campaign. Actually, by excluding me from some of the debates to date, the media have been the losers. Some of the candidates they are showcasing are imploding, thereby brightening my prospects to move up on the presidential leader board.

WSS: In your estimation approximately how many supporters does your campaign have?

Martin: I can’t give an exact number, nor would I if we tallied supporters that way. But it clear my campaign is gaining altitude and other candidates are faltering. We are executing our game plan; others rather obviously are not.

WSS: If you do not win the Republican nomination, would you consider running for a third party's nomination?

Martin: No.

Political views[edit]

On his campaign website, Martin describes himself as a supporter of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution in opposition to stringent gun control. He opposes Cap and Trade legislation and mandated health care coverage. He identifies himself as a proponent of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and a "corruption fighter". He writes about his issue positions on his personal blog.

Martin was asked to elaborate his answers on some of the questions, but did not respond. He labeled certain questions as "bizarre".

William S. SaturnHow would you describe your political philosophy? Would you be best defined as a fiscal conservative, a national security conservative, a social conservative, a libertarian or something else?

Andy Martin: I am a “full spectrum” conservative with an emphasis on national security and economic issues. These are the areas in which I have the greatest expertise.

WSSWhich historical or contemporary figures serve as your political role models?

Martin: President Ronald Reagan, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, President Dwight Eisenhower

WSSWhat are your thoughts on the Paul Ryan medicare reform plan?

Martin: I have my own Medicare and Social Security plans.

WSSWould you support a Balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution?

Martin: Yes

WSSDo you oppose any parts of the current U.S. Constitution?

Martin: This is a strange question

WSSWhat necessary freedoms are currently lacking in America?

Martin: Good question

WSSShould the U.S. be involved in the Libyan conflict?

Martin: I have supported limited involvement in Libya, primarily limited to support and special operations; we should not have a ground presence.

WSSShould the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center remain open?

Martin: I have an open mind

WSSWhat would be your first actions as president?

Martin: Jump-start the economy by encouraging the private sector to revitalize manufacturing and create immediate jobs.

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Sources[edit]

This exclusive interview features first-hand journalism by a Wikinews reporter. See the collaboration page for more details.

Ken Kobayashi. "Appeals court turns away lawsuit seeking Obama birth certificate" — The Honolulu Star Advertiser, April 8, 2011
"A $1 Billion Investment in New Hampshire's Future" — The Northern Pass, 2011
Alex Koppelman. "October surprise: Who's Obama's real father?" — Salon, October 31, 2008
Jim Rutenberg. "The Man Behind the Whispers About Obama" — The New York Times, October 12, 2008
"Obama Campaign Defends William Ayers Relationship" — Fox News, October 8, 2008

External links[edit]

Editor's notes[edit]

↑ According to Article I, Section III of the United States Constitution, "The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate". Therefore, Vice President Joe Biden is President of the Senate, not Harry Reid. Reid serves as Senate Majority Leader, which is a strictly partisan position.
↑ According to the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, "if, by reason of death, resignation, removal from office, inability, or failure to qualify, there is neither a President nor Vice President to discharge the powers and duties of the office of President, then the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall, upon his resignation as Speaker and as Representative in Congress, act as President." Therefore, John Boehner, as the speaker of the House of Representatives, follows the vice president as second in the line of succession. In the event of Boehner's inability to assume the office, the act specifies that "the President pro tempore of the Senate shall, upon his resignation as President pro tempore and as Senator, act as President." Therefore, President pro tempore of the United States Senate Daniel Inouye follows the speaker as third in the line of succession.

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Former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer announces run for president

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 13:24:31 GMT

Friday, July 22, 2011

Former governor Buddy Roemer of Louisiana
Image: Gage Skidmore.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer announced Thursday at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire that he will officially run for the Republican Party's presidential nomination in 2012. Roemer, who had explored a bid for the past several months, wants to focus his campaign on the issues of campaign finance reform and fair trade.

Roemer, 67, served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1980s as a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected governor in 1987 and served once again as a Democratic Party member before switching to the Republican Party ahead of the 1991 gubernatorial election. He lost the party's primary to David Duke, who is also considering a 2012 presidential run.

Roemer, who has $19,000 left from his exploratory committee, only accepts contributions from individuals below $100. He argued during his announcement that "I have deliberately chosen a path requiring the help of many because that’s the way to win and, more importantly, that’s the way to get these mighty things done after the election." He says he is waging his campaign against "special interests".

Political adviser Mark McKinnon who worked on Roemer's first gubernatorial campaign, argues that he "has an important message about the corrupt influence of money in politics" but complains that the media has delegated him as an "improbable, long-shot, third-tier, comic book" candidate. Roemer has not been invited to any Republican primary debates and usually polls below one percent.

He has based his campaign in the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire, where he leases an apartment, and plans to utilize a one-on-one strategy to build grassroots support. He enters a growing field of candidates that includes fellow former governors Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, Jon Huntsman, Jr. of Utah and Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, as well as Representatives Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, Ron Paul of Texas and Thad McCotter of Michigan. Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and businessman Herman Cain are also running.

Roemer argues that "neither the president nor any of the other candidates for this office addresses or has solutions for the major problems facing America." But Roemer believes he does. He tells viewers to stay tuned to his campaign and that it will be something "you don’t wanna miss".

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Sources[edit]

Juana Summers. "Buddy Roemer officially kicks off W.H. campaign" — Politico, July 21, 2011
"Ex-La. governor Buddy Roemer launches presidential bid" — USA Today, July 21, 2011
"Former La. governor Buddy Roemer enters presidential race in his new home state, NH" — Washington Post, July 21, 2011
Jonathan Tilove. "Edwin Edwards, Buddy Roemer and David Duke are forever linked by history" — The Times-Picayune, July 17, 2011

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December blizzard slams Northeastern United States

Tue, 28 Dec 2010 00:59:51 GMT

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Disasters and accidents

More articles about disasters and accidents on Wikinews:

An infrared satellite image of the storm
Image: NOAA.

Snow covered Journal Square in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Image: Rajkumarth.

The United States' first major blizzard of the winter season has left much of the New England region covered in snow. Stretching from Virginia to Maine, the storm, packing winds of over 50 miles per hour (80.5 kilometres per hour), dropped more than two feet of snow in some areas.

Residents prepared for what would be one of the worst nor'easters in quite some time. The storm contained similar conditions to a category 2 hurricane. Wellfleet, Massachusetts saw an 80 miles per hour wind gust, the strongest recorded throughout the storm. Connecticut, New York and Maine all recorded wind gusts of over 60 miles per hour and gusts of over 70 miles per hour blasted Cape Cod.

A total of 32 inches (81.3 centimetres) fell in Rahway, part of the hardest-hit state in the storm's path. Most New Jersey cities received over a foot of snow, while Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, and Maryland all had snow totals topping out at around 1 foot (30.48 centimetres) with Massachusetts topping out at a foot and a half.

On Monday, travel proved difficult, with flights from Philadelphia, Newark, New York City, Hartford, Boston, Portland, and Washington, D.C. canceled. Drivers also ran into problems on major highways as accidents were unavoidable on the slick roads.

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Sources[edit]

Wikipedia has more about this subject:

December 2010 North American blizzard

Associated Press. "Along Coast, Storm's Stranded Tell Their Stories" — Weather.com, 27 December 2010
Andrew Freedman. "Blizzard blasts coastal cities from Va. to Mass." — Washington Post, 27 December 2010
"Storm Summary Message" — NOAA, 27 December 2010
"Passengers stranded at OIA as Northeast blizzard cripples air travel" — Orlando Sentinel, 27 December 2010

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	Attacking me and women who use contraception by calling us prostitutes and worse cannot silence us.
—Sandra Fluke

	Time and time again, women have been silenced in this discussion, a discussion about our own very personal health care decisions.
—U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen

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