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Chapter 8 The Citizen Movement Expands

January 1, 2004
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How many more people are becoming active citizens?

Ralph Nader and 14 Civic Groups Call on Congressional Leadership to Make Voting Records Available to Public Via Internet

December 30, 2003
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Congressional Voting Record Project (CVRP) Outlines How Congress Could Efficiently Provide Voting Records to PublicContact: Ralph Nader, (202) 387-8034 Washington, DC, December 30, 2003Today, Ralph Nader and the Congressional Voting Record Project (CVRP) sent letters to the Senate and House Majority and Minority Leaders and to Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert calling on them…

“War is a Racket”

December 27, 2003
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Perusing through a history book as a college student, I came across a jolting declaration in a footnote by one of the most highly decorated soldier of the twentieth century. He said: “I spent 33 years in the Marines, most of my time being a high-class muscle man for big business, for Wall Street and…

USDA vs John Munsell

December 19, 2003
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Imagine a businessman, consumer advocate and whistleblower all in one person. He is John Munsell, owner of the family business Montana Quality Foods, Inc. Mr. Munsell charged that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) tried to drive him out of business because he exposed the department’s failure to act on evidence that the giant ConAgra…

Shelving the GSE Reform Bills

December 12, 2003
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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-the giant government sponsored housing finance corporations-apparently haven’t lost any of their political clout despite the front page stories about their accounting scandals and mismanagement. Members of Congress issued a blizzard of press releases of the standard “shock and dismay” variety last June when Freddie Mac’s top executives were forced to…

Binding Arbitration Agreements

December 5, 2003
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“Americans are in love with their cars” is a badly overworked phrase, but it is a cliche that rings the cash registers at car dealers to the tune of $650 billion dollars of new car sales annually. That’s why many consumers are so vulnerable when they roam the car lots. Suddenly, they just have to…

Pharmaceutical Prices

November 28, 2003
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If Sam’s Club can negotiate for lower pharmaceutical prices, why can’t Uncle Sam? Because the approval by the Congress of a new pharmaceutical benefit for Medicare was saddled with a legal provision that prohibits the U.S. government from using its considerable consumer market power to negotiate for lower prices on medicines. Our country already is…

More on the Energy Disaster

November 23, 2003
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The only remarkable thing about the 2003 energy policy bill greasing its way through Congress has been the energy of the avaricious lobbyists for the oil, gas, coal and nuclear corporations. But then there were tens of billions of dollars in it for them in tax escapes, loan guarantees, and outright subsidies along with weaker…

More on The Energy Disaster

November 22, 2003
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The only remarkable thing about the 2003 energy policy bill greasing its way through Congress has been the energy of the avaricious lobbyists for the oil, gas, coal and nuclear corporations. But then there were tens of billions of dollars in it for them in tax escapes, loan guarantees, and outright subsidies along with weaker…

The Energy Disaster

November 14, 2003
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The word “chaos” cannot do justice to the omnibus energy legislation properly mired in something called the House- Senate conference. Inside tyranny by the Republicans and the outside full nelson grip on Congress by the oil, gas and coal corporations are driving the Democrats to think about Filibuster. And deservedly, the bill merits defeat. In…