Battleground Bulletin - Indiana

FIGHTING FOR WHAT’S RIGHT -- INDIANA

Less than a week and counting! It’s time for another issue of Battleground Bulletin!   

As District 4 members made their final push on behalf of Labor-endorsed candidates, CWA wants to remind you that you will make the difference in the Battleground States of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. You can depend on each new Battleground Bulletin! to keep you up to date from now to Election Day.

AFL-CIO Executive Director Karen Ackerman put it best last week on ABC’s “Top Line” when she said Labor’s get-out-the vote operations will save the day for endangered Democrats and overcome the so-called “enthusiasm gap” that belongs to anti-worker Republican candidates.

“Many of these races are going to be very close,” Ackerman predicted. “The difference will be and can be the labor vote.”

We know that about half of the 75 House seats that are in play are in high union density districts. We also know that in many states, Democratic candidates are running well in early voting results.

District 4 members played a key role in the election of President Barack Obama and a worker-friendly Congress in 2008. It’s up to us again.

We can win. We will win.

WHERE THE ACTION IS

Union brothers and sisters turned out to the streets of Northwest Indiana in support of working family candidates like U.S. Senate candidate Brad Ellsworth.

Working families have been helping to bring name recognition to the former Sheriff of Vandenburgh County from southern Indiana. Brad is running against a Washington lobbyist who, when in Congress, carried a vote in support of NAFTA, draining thousands of jobs out of Indiana.

Meanwhile, nearly 40,000 Indiana voters have already cast their ballots for the upcoming general election.

The Indiana Secretary of State's Election Division says more than 38,700 people have cast absentee ballots by visiting their county clerk's office or satellite voting location. Any registered voter can cast early ballots until noon on November 1, a day before Election Day.

The Election Division also says that more than 76,000 Hoosiers have requested absentee ballots by mail. Those wanting to vote absentee by mail must meet one of several criteria, such as being out of the county on Election Day, being over 65 years old or having a disability.

That turnout is good news for two worker-friendly congressmen who are trying to keep their seats and a third candidate seeking Ellsworth’s seat.

In the 2nd Congressional District, incumbent Joe Donnelly has been a strong voice for Hoosier working families since coming to Congress. He supported the largest middle-class tax cut in history, voted for $30 billion in tax breaks for small businesses to get our economy back on track, and helped open VA clinics in Peru and Goshen and a multi-use VA facility in Logansport so veterans receive the health care they’ve earned.

In the 9th District, Hoosiers are responding to incumbent Baron Hill’s message of better jobs and fiscal responsibility. Hill’s quarterly report with the FEC on Friday evening, showed the Southern Indiana Congressman continued to enjoy a significant cash-on-hand advantage. The report showed that Hill raised $433,000 this quarter, showing wide support for Baron from all across Southern Indiana.

In the 8th District, Trent Van Haaften is ready to fill the seat now held by Ellsworth. Van Haaften recently led the "Born to be Hired" motorcycle ride from Mount Vernon to Terre Haute, with stops in Evansville and Vincennes. Van Haaften addressed what he calls a critical need for jobs in the Hoosier state. He’s now serving the Indiana House of Representatives.

Remember, District 4 members can make a difference in these races!

TOUGH TIMES FOR WORKING FAMILIES

As the result of the disastrous Bush-era economic policies, more than 1 in 8 Americans are now on food stamps.

Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows that 32 states have adopted rules making it easier to qualify for food stamps since 2007. In all, 38 states have loosened eligibility standards.

Eligibility for food stamps varies from state to state, with the 11 most generous states allowing families to apply if their gross income is less than double the federal poverty line of $22,050 for a family of four.

"We've seen a huge increase in participation due to the economic downturn," said Jean Daniel, a spokeswoman for the USDA. “That's the way this program was designed."

Incredibly, food stamps have been blasted by some Republicans in this midterm election season as just another federal entitlement program.

These guys never stop. Outsource our jobs, and then take away our safety net. No wonder American families are angry!

BIG MONEY GONE WILD

The New York Times reports that Prudential Financial sent in a $2 million donation last year as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce kicked off a national advertising campaign to weaken efforts to police Wall Street bandits.

Dow Chemical delivered $1.7 million to the chamber last year as the group took a leading role in aggressively fighting proposed rules that would impose tighter security requirements on chemical facilities.

Health insurance providers funneled at least $10 million to the chamber last year, all of it anonymously, to oppose President Obama’s health care legislation.

And Goldman Sachs, Chevron Texaco, and Aegon -- a multinational insurance company based in the Netherlands -- donated more than $8 million in recent years to a chamber foundation that has been critical of President Obama’s policies.

None of these large donations were publicly disclosed by the chamber, a pro-corporation tax-exempt group that keeps its donors secret. But they show how Big Money interests have become an influential player in this fall’s Congressional elections.

These deep-pocketed donors don’t care about working Americans. In fact, most of the policies they’re peddling work against our best interests.

Remember, voting is the great equalizer. With hard work, we can send a message to the moneyed interests that are trying to buy our government