President Elect Barack Obama's Empowerment Pages

Dear Friend,

Thank you for contacting President-elect Barack Obama and Obama for America. Barack greatly appreciates the outpouring of messages he is receiving from across the country and from Americans around the world. He is deeply honored by the confidence the American people have placed in him and in Vice President-elect Biden. Please click here to see President-elect Obama’s speech on Election Night:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGx3Kc

Barack Obama and Joe Biden are hopeful about the opportunities and clear-eyed about the challenges our nation faces. They look forward to working with all Americans, regardless of who they voted for, in the great project of American renewal. Enlisting the energy and ingenuity of the American people is the only way we will create the changes that so many people want to see, so we hope you’ll be involved.You have just contacted Obama for America, the Obama/Biden campaign organization.

A new organization is being formed to facilitate communication with the Obama/Biden Administration that will take office on January 20, 2009. If you have questions, suggestions, or comments about the federal government, policy, or the coming Obama/Biden Administration, please visit the online Office of the President-elect for more information and to get involved:

www.change.gov

If you’re contacting us because you’ve been energized by your participation in our grassroots movement, we hope you will remain active in your community and involved in national policy debates.

Please continue to visit www.BarackObama.com regularly. We’ve built one of the most comprehensive nationwide organizing networks in history, and our victory on November 4th is only the beginning of the work we will do together.The 56th Presidential Inauguration will take place on January 20th, 2009, and will be run by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.

We encourage you to check their website for more details: http://inaugural.senate.gov/

If you have other thoughts or business with the campaign, you can continue to reach us toll free at 866-675-2008. Due to the extremely high number of messages we are currently receiving, we may be unable to respond to your message individually, but we do appreciate hearing from you and hope you’ll work with us as we build America’s future together.Thank you again for contacting us.

Sincerely,Obama for America

Paid for by Obama for America

Sen. Barbara Boxer - Why She Voted No On Iraq Funding

Funding the war is supporting the war. Thank you all in congress who voted against giving the Bush Administration a blank check for this lied our way into war.

Please support the elected and appointed officials who are demanding the end of war in Iraq and other places.

From Senator Barbara Boxer:

"Yesterday, I voted "No" on the Iraq war funding bill. I want to share with you the remarks I made on the Senate floor.

Senator Boxer's Floor SpeechMay 24, 2007

In March and in April I voted for emergency spending legislation that would have fully funded our troops in Iraq, but also changed their mission to a sound one. That mission would have taken our troops out of the middle of a civil war, and put them into a support role, training Iraqi soldiers and police, fighting al Qaeda, and protecting our troops.

The President will not agree to that.

As a matter of fact, the President won't agree to any change in strategy in Iraq, and that is more than a shame for the American people; it is a tragedy.

It doesn't seem to matter how many Americans die in Iraq, how many funerals we have here at home, or what the American people think. The President won't budge.

This new bill on Iraq keeps the status quo. With a few frills around the outside, a few reports, a few words about benchmarks. While our troops die.

I understand why this particular legislation is before us today. It's because this President wants to continue his one man show in Iraq. The President doesn't respect this Congress or the American people when it comes to Iraq. He wants to brush us all off like some annoying spot on his jacket.

We have lost 3,427 American soldiers in Iraq. Of those, 731 (21%) have been from California or based in California. There are 25,549 American soldiers wounded.

And today, after several days of worrying and praying, we received the tragic news of the death of Private Joseph J. Anzack JR., 20 years old, of Torrance, California, who was abducted during a deadly ambush south of Baghdad almost two weeks ago.

One member of his platoon, Spc. Daniel Seitz, summed it up this way to the Associated Press: "It just angers me that it's just another friend I've got to lose and deal with, because I've already lost 13 friends since I've been here, and I don't know if I can take any more of this."

And he shouldn't have to. But with this bill, he will.

The first half of this year has already been deadlier than any six-month period since the war began more than four years ago.

In this month alone, 83 U.S. Service members have already been killed in Iraq.

Let me be clear, there are many things in this bill that I strongly support--many provisions that I actually fought for, for our troops, for our veterans, for our farmers, and for the victims of Hurricane Katrina--but I must take a stand against this Iraq war, and therefore I will vote no on this emergency spending bill.

Together, we will end this war. We may not have won yesterday's vote, and I'm very disappointed that we didn't, but with your help, that day is coming soon.

In Friendship,

Barbara BoxerU.S. Senator

Visit BarbaraBoxer.com "

'War is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate."