Berkshire Brigades cordially invites you to a: BIG Unity Rally, BBQ & Dem State Committee Meeting
| Dear Democrat: Berkshire Brigades cordially invites you to a: |
| BIG |
| Unity Rally, BBQ & Dem State Committee Meeting! |
| When: Saturday, Sept. 25 Rally/BBQ from 11:00 – 1:00; DSC Mtg @ 1:00 p.m. |
| Where: The GEAA, 303 Crane Ave., Pittsfield |
| Invitees Include: Gov. Deval Patrick, Rep. John Olver State Sen. Ben Downing, State Reps. Chris Speranzo & Smitty Pignatelli; Mayors Ruberto & Alcombright, plus all Statewide and local Democratic candidates |
| “We worked hard four years ago to change the guard. Now it’s up to all of us to guard the change.” |
| Bring your spouse, your kids, your grandkids. Play golf beforehand (special rates for Dems). Rally and BBQ begin at 11:00 a.m. to be followed by an official meeting of the Democratic State Committee at 1:00 p.m. |
| # |
| q Yes, I/We will attend the Great BIG Unity Rally/BBQ/DSC Meeting. I’m enclosing a personal check for $ ________ for _____ tickets at $25.00/tkt. (Pick up tkts at event.) |
| q I also want to make a donation of $ ________ to support Berkshire Brigades. |
| q Sorry, I can’t make it, but I’ve enclosed a donation of $_________ to support Berkshire Brigades’ important work. |
| (Please make out checks to “Berkshire Brigades PAC” and use the reply envelope or mail to: Berkshire Brigades, 69 E. Housatonic St., Pittsfield, MA 01201) |
| Name: _________________________________________________________ Phone: Street: _________________________________________City/Town: __________________Zip: ___________ Occupation: __________________Email ________________________________________________________ |
| Sponsors: Mass. Democratic Party; Sen. John Kerry; Rep. John Olver; State Sen. Ben Downing; State Rep. Chris Speranzo; Williamstown Democratic Town Committee |
1. Managing the Recession. Governor Patrick and Lt. Governor Murray have demonstrated real leadership, making the tough choices that have set Massachusetts on track to come out of the recession faster and stronger than the rest of the country.
2. Jobs. Passed $1 billion life science bill, comprising a mix of federal and private funds that has made Massachusetts the international leader in the life sciences, and has brought thousands of new jobs to the state, with more anticipated. He has fast-tracked federal and state economic stimulus dollars, putting them towards our roads and bridges, schools, and creating and saving thousands of jobs to date.
3. Education Reform. Passed comprehensive education reform legislation that tackles the achievement gap, empowers us to turn around underperforming schools, promotes innovation in education, and increases access to high-performing charter schools in the lowest performing districts.
4. Green Jobs. National leader in clean energy policy, enabling Massachusetts to promote the expansion of clean energy, cut greenhouse gases, and capture the green jobs of the 21st century. Ramped-up energy efficiency programs will invest $2 billion over three years and provide $6.5 billion in savings for consumers.
5. Government Reform. Passed powerful ethics, lobbying, pension and transportation reform bills that will keep special interests out of political decision-making and stop wasteful spending.
6. Budget Management. Amid the worst global economic crisis in decades, Governor Patrick submitted three on-time, responsible, and balanced budgets, making the tough decisions necessary to protect key investments in education and local aid for our communities. Massachusetts has had its AA bond rating affirmed by Wall Street’s authoritative rating agencies, each of which cited sound financial management—an achievement few states can claim in this economy.
7. Implemented Health Insurance Reform. Massachusetts has become the model for the nation, with coverage for 97.5% of Bay State residents, compared to a national rate of 85%. Over 400,000 residents are now covered who were not before reform was implemented.
8. Curbing skyrocketing health care costs. Proposed legislation that would limit the cost of health care premiums to small businesses and working families.
9. Corporate Tax Fairness. Governor Patrick closed corporate tax loopholes, leveling the playing field for smaller businesses, and bringing in nearly a half-billion dollars in additional tax revenue, while also reducing the overall corporate tax rate for 35,000 businesses.
10. Civilian Flaggers. Governor Patrick pushed for Massachusetts to join 49 other states in allowing civilian flaggers at state construction sites, saving state taxpayers millions of dollars annually. Something previous governors only talked about.
11. Auto Insurance Rates. Passed auto insurance reforms that reduced insurance premiums by up to 10% for Bay State consumers.
12. Marriage Equality. Governor Patrick led the fight to keep discrimination out of the Massachusetts constitution, and preserved the right adults to marry whoever they love.
He is making budget cuts to programs I care about… • As a result of the global recession, difficult budget cuts are necessary. The question is whether we have a Governor making those decisions who understands the human consequences of those decisions and tries to minimize their impact. Governor Patrick does not view the budget as a math problem, but as a means of helping people.
I’m concerned about education reform… • Massachusetts can be proud of the public education it offers to most of its families. For the last three years, Massachusetts students placed near the top of national and international rankings. Great teachers have been a major part of this story. • The Governor’s education reform bill targets the achievement gap. Caught in this gap are poor children, those with special needs, and children who speak English as a second language – oftentimes children of color. This is not only an economic problem, but a moral problem too. • For Massachusetts to tackle underperforming schools and school districts, it needed to introduce greater flexibility to re-structure and experiment with new approaches. • As a result of this reform, Massachusetts is a finalist for $250 Million dollars of federal “Race to the Top” funding.
What has he done for labor? • Massachusetts is the only state in U.S. that has increased union membership over the last two years. • Invested over $56 million in worker training. • Established task force on the underground economy to counter attempts to bypass workforce rules, recovering nearly $3 million in unpaid assessments and restitution to workers unfairly denied compensation. • Supported and signed the Commonwealth’s Employee Free Choice Act.
How do bond ratings help with jobs? Why should I care? • The high bond ratings allow the state to fund major transportation and higher education projects that put people to work, and improve the infrastructure of our state. Our rating has been reaffirmed by all three major rating agencies.
Okay, he’s trying to improve the economy, but is it working? • The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show Massachusetts ahead of most of the country in key indicators. • For the first time in 20 years, Massachusetts has increased population, as we have become a hub for life science and high-tech jobs. • Companies have moved thousands of jobs to Massachusetts, including one of the nation’s largest pharmaceutical corporations. • Philadelphia Federal Reserve said that the Massachusetts economy is faring better than 48 other states. • CNBC ranked Massachusetts the 8th best state in which to do business.
Is it true that the government payroll is growing? • The size of the state payroll is smaller today than when the Governor took office • The administration has eliminated 2,000 state jobs, and has also imposed furloughs for most state workers. • The Governor has also consolidated numerous state agencies, eliminating inefficiencies and reduced waste.
He wants to increase our taxes… • While the previous Republican administration implemented nearly a billion dollars a year in fee and tax increases and proposed hundreds of millions more, Governor Patrick dealt with a $9 billion deficit by making difficult decisions that will make Massachusetts stronger in the long run. • Though the Governor proposed a different approach to closing last year’s budget deficit, he only supported the sales tax increase in return for approval of major pension reform, ethics reform, and transportation reform legislation, saving the state billions in the long run.
He hasn’t decreased my property taxes… • The Governor’s first major legislative proposal was the Municipal Partnership Act, providing ways for cities to raise revenue and cut costs, and thus stabilizing property taxes. Most of these proposals were passed, and are part of the Governor’s long-term solution to high property taxes. • While the Governor and legislature have worked hard to keep municipal aid intact in the face of the global economic recession, they have found it impossible to fund the kind of increase to aid to cities and towns that would significantly lower property taxes. The Governor is still committed to fighting for lower property taxes.
I’m concerned about gambling proposals… • Governor Patrick supported creating up to three resort casinos in order to create jobs. $1.4 billion of Massachusetts taxpayer money is spent at casinos in Connecticut and Rhode Island – dollars and jobs better spent in our state. • Resort casinos would bring in dining, lodging, and entertainment dollars as well as jobs. • The Governor understands that there is a human cost as well, and is not in favor of slots at racetracks, which make gambling overly convenient yet do not produce the jobs and tourism benefits that resorts do.
He hasn’t done enough to reform state government… • In just three years, he has implemented landmark pension reform, transportation reform, and ethics reform. • The Governor eliminated the Turnpike Authority, reorganized the executive branch, cut the timeline to approve transportation projects from six months to 90 days, and streamlined business permits. • The Governor recognizes that the work is not done – tackling entrenched interests is hard, and is ongoing.
Where has he been? • The Governor and Lt. Governor Murray have been out listening to and meeting with the public. The two, as well as key cabinet secretaries, have regularly hosted town halls and budget forums around the state. • Governor Patrick is truly Governor of the whole Commonwealth. As the Boston Globe noted in an August 2009 article, “Patrick, who vowed to be the governor of the whole state, spends a large amount of time outside of Boston, particularly in Western Massachusetts.”
So why don’t people know all this? • This is why we need our field organization to be strong. As people get their information from an increasing diversity of sources, we need your help in getting word to your networks, and encouraging them to do the same.
Elevator Pitch – “He’s There for Us” Deval Patrick is there for us. He’s led Massachusetts through the global economic crisis by protecting and creating jobs for today and investing in the jobs of tomorrow. He’s delivering on his promise to put a good school within reach of every child, and successfully implementing health care reform in Massachusetts to expand coverage and begin to drive down costs for working families and small businesses. He’s made Massachusetts a national leader on the environment and green jobs. Deval Patrick is there for us. He’s delivered three budgets that have been on time, balanced, and still preserve government’s ability to help people help themselves during these tough economic times. All three independent, national rating agencies have praised his strong, responsible management of the state budget. He’s also taken on the tough fights and won where others failed, reforming special perks like paid police details, abolishing the Turnpike Authority, ending egregious pension abuses, lowering auto insurance rates, passing tough new ethics and lobbying laws, and lifting the cap on charter schools. Deval Patrick is there for us. His hard work is already paying off. Consumer confidence is at its highest level since before the recession, the Federal Reserve reported that the Massachusetts economy outperformed 48 out of 50 states the last three months of 2009, and independent indicators suggest we are poised to come out of this crisis faster and stronger than the rest of the nation. For the first time in 20 years, more people are moving into Massachusetts than moving out. Patrick’s opponents want to move in a very different direction. They are on record promising to roll-back the gains we have made in health care, cut funding for local communities and schools, and threaten our progress on the environment. The choice in this election is clear – we can’t afford a return to the policies of the past, the policies that brought us the Big Dig and governors more interested in their own careers than the people of Massachusetts. Deval Patrick is, and always has been, there for us.
GOVERNOR PATRICK INVESTS IN WESTERN MASS.
TO BUILD A BETTER, STRONGER COMMONWEALTH
From day one, Governor Patrick has focused on strengthening communities by investing in people, providing the services that help them help themselves and creating the jobs that will help us all bridge to a better tomorrow. The Governor is committed to building a better, stronger Commonwealth brick-by-brick, neighborhood-by-neighborhood and is investing in the area and residents of Western Massachusetts in the following ways:
- Improving our Infrastructure. Through the Accelerated Bridge Program and with the help of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Governor Patrick is putting people to work fixing our broken roads and bridges, which have suffered from decades of neglect, and building the projects that promise to provide lasting economic benefits.
- The $24.3 million Hadley Overpass, Route 8 over the B&M Railroad and Hoosic River has completed one year of construction with completion scheduled for 2012. The project will rehabilitate the existing obsolete Hadley Overpass carrying Route 8 (State Street) over the Hoosic River in North Adams. The overpass supports the major southern entrance to North Adams and carries approximately 12,000 vehicles per day.
- The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $70 million for final design and construction of the “Knowledge Corridor” along the Connecticut River rail line in western Massachusetts. The project, with a total budget of $75.6 million, will rehabilitate the existing Connecticut River rail line which runs from Connecticut, through Massachusetts to Vermont. Once completed, Amtrak Vermonter service will be rerouted to the line providing a more direct route, faster service and restored access to the cities of Northampton, Holyoke and Greenfield.
- The $2.5 million Park Square Reconstruction project will provide numerous streetscape and paving improvements for Park Square at the intersection of South Street, North Street, Bank Row, and Park Place in Pittsfield. Construction includes new traffic control signals, paving, and streetscape and landscape improvements such as ornamental light fixtures, benches, trees and shrubs, and brick paver crosswalks.
- The $15.9 million project reconstructing 3.5 miles of State Street from I-91 to Berkshire Avenue in Springfield, including pavement, sidewalks and traffic signals. This major project supports revitalization along State Street, including the Federal Courthouse construction.
- Investing in People & the Future. In the midst of the worst economic downturn in 80 years, the Governor’s budget preserves services that make a difference in people’s lives and promise to make the Commonwealth stronger now and for the long term.
- Education: Maintains the Governor’s historic commitment to public schools in Western Massachusetts and across the Commonwealth; preserves level funding for state and community colleges; and increases support for early childhood education.
- i. MassCEC funded a program that established a regional training center for energy efficiency skills training at Berkshire Community College, one of seven community colleges throughout the state. This is part of MassGreen, the energy efficiency skills initiative funded with $1.875 million from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
- ii. MassCEC funded a program that established a regional training center for energy efficiency skills training at Springfield Technical and Greenfield Community College, two of seven community colleges throughout the state. This is part of MassGreen, the energy efficiency skills initiative funded with $1.875 million from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
- iii. MassCEC funded mock-up solar PV and Thermal roofs for energy efficiency training at Smith Vocational and Agricultural School in Northampton, and Franklin County Technical High School.
- iv. MassCEC provided funding grants to the Pathways Out of Poverty initiative, which focuses funds on skills development for low-income, under/unemployed residents of Gateway cities. One award was given to the Hampden Regional Employment Board graduated 24 students, with about 50 percent now employed in the weatherization field.
- v. MassCEC provided funding to Western New England College to develop a green energy concentration in both the Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, with a particular focus on wind energy.
- vi. MassCEC provided funding to Nuestras Racies to develop a renewable energy technology certificate program and learning labs at Holyoke Community College, and training specifically in solar thermal at new lab space at the Roots Up Center for low-income youth.
- Local Aid: Protects critical state funding for Western Massachusetts and the Commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns to preserve essential public safety, education and public works services. Protecting local aid means there will be less pressure at the municipal level to raise property taxes and increase burdens on families and seniors.
- i. The Patrick-Murray Administration designated Pittsfield as a Growth District on May 8, 2008, and awarded the City $825,000 for the restoration of the Kinnell-Kresge building as a part of the development of its Urban Center Growth District.
- Education: Maintains the Governor’s historic commitment to public schools in Western Massachusetts and across the Commonwealth; preserves level funding for state and community colleges; and increases support for early childhood education.
OP-ED: GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT JOBS
Getting Serious about JobsBy Lee Harrison, Chairman, Berkshire Brigades, the County Democratic OrganizationTo begin with, Republicans aren’t really serious about solving America’sproblems. There is no doubt whatever about that. Whether we’re talkinglegislation to reform health care and banking or to renew the economy and createbadly needed jobs, the Know-Nothing Party has the same answer: “No, Nothing.”At a time in our history when we need serious people to engage in new, expansive,and visionary thinking to solve America’s many problems, the Republicanconservative minority in Congress offers nothing. Indeed, they have dedicatedthemselves solely to preventing President Obama and the Democratic majority inCongress from accomplishing anything in an attempt to enhance their own narrowpolitical and corporate interests, the public be damned. It’s power politics. Pure.Simple. And reprehensible.Remember the teabaggers and town hall crazies of last summer and fall? Theywere largely the creation of former conservative Republican congressman DickArmey and his FreedomWorks group. They weren’t able to kill the health reformbill outright in 2009 – or to persuade Americans that President Obama was Hitler –but with congressional elections looming, rest assured they will be back in 2010.This time they’ll be pulling out all the stops to block a desperately needed jobs bill,really Round Two of the much-maligned stimulus.The 2009 stimulus bill did in fact pump lots of money to the states, ours included,which kept lots of teachers, police, and firemen working throughout the year, but itwasn’t big enough to stop the hemorraging of private sector jobs, let alone to turnthe economy around – or even for most Americans to feel its positive impact.Berkshire Brigades was among those pushing for a larger stimulus, but the limitedsize of the final bill may have been due to the President’s realization that he had toplay “small ball” to get anything through our dysfunctional 18th Century-styleHouse of Lords, aka the U.S. Senate.So, forgetting for a moment Republican unwillingness to help improve oureconomy before next fall’s elections, what would it take to return the U.S. to precrisisunemployment levels in, say, two years? According to Nobel Laureate PaulKrugman, we’d have to add 580,000 jobs a month. “That’s not going to happen,”adds Krugman, who notes that even to return to more or less full employment infive years, we would need to add 300,000 jobs a month. No matter how you cut it,“we’re looking at a prolonged period of suffering – a huge cost from the GreatRecession,” he notes. “So [300,000 jobs a month is] kind of a minimal definitionof success. Anything less than that, and it’s bad news.”Clearly, achieving even “minimal” success, will be a tall order, given Republicanstonewalling. But a properly drafted 2010 jobs bill could do more than create jobs:It could prepare the United States to compete in the 21st Century. Further, it wouldpresent an opportunity to make up for the past, lost decade in which George W.Bush cut taxes for the rich while waging an unnecessary war, exploding thenational debt, and ignoring America’s infrastructure, which is now in criticalcondition. To succeed, however, we need to get serious and focus on all aspects ofour infrastructure – education and energy as well as transportation. Of course,Republican conservatives will fight this tooth and nail, and the peculiar rules of theU.S. Senate give them an institutional leg up. But this is nothing new. In the 1995movie, “The American President,” Democratic President Andrew Shepherd, playedby Michael Douglas, delivers a speech that President Obama could make today:“We have serious problems to solve, and we need serious men to solve them,” saysShepherd. “And whatever your particular problem is, friend, I promise you,[Republican Senator] Bob Rumson is not the least bit interested in solving it. He isinterested in two things and two things only: Making you afraid of it and tellingyou who’s to blame for it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you win elections.”Not if we can help it! Throughout 2010 Berkshire Brigades will be supportingprogressive candidates WHO SUPPORT A JOBS BILL, starting with the Jan. 19election of Martha Coakley for U.S. Senate. If you, too, are serious aboutAmerica’s future, please join us.###
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