Senator Scott Brown is furious. Who would have the gall to question his logic for voting against clean air regulations which have saved countless lives and have wide support? In an all out effort to obfuscate from the horrible politics of voting against clean air, Senator Brown is trying everything to divert attention away from his vote, and has been attacking the League of Women Voters for running an ad stating the facts: his vote hurts MA children. Senator, explaining your vote to the residents of our great commonwealth isn’t negative politics, it’s fact.
Senator Brown used to be a pro environmental Senator, in our 2008 State Legislature Scorecard, he received an 82%. He was supportive of the Global Warming Solutions act, Massachusetts’ successful program to reduce regional carbon emmissions. But since being elected to the US Senate, Senator Brown has abandoned his once reasoned positions, he received a 0 on the League of Conservation Voter’s scorecard. This is unacceptable in a state where the majority of constituents believe that we must do more to protect our children’s air, water and future.
In an effort to refocus all of the media hoopla on the issue, the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters and Environment Massachusetts have have started a substantial radio ad buy to hold the Senator accountable.
LISTEN TO THE AD “Truth”
Support for taking action against carbon pollution is popular in Massachusetts and nationwide. An April 14 survey of Massachusetts residents released by MassINC and The MassINC Polling Group found that “more than three-quarters (76 percent) of residents between ages 18 and 29 think global warming is real and at least partially the result of human activity” and that “56 percent of residents said the federal government should do a lot more in this area, and 47 percent believe state government should do a lot more.” Americans overwhelmingly support taking action on curbing carbon pollution. A bipartisan poll released by the American Lung Association found that “sixty-eight percent of voters oppose Congressional action that impedes the EPA from updating clean air standards generally and 64 percent oppose Congressional efforts to stop the EPA from updating standards on carbon dioxide.
Ben Wright, the fantastic advocate from Environment Massachusetts, had a great quote: “Scott Brown says he holds the ‘people’s seat’ but his vote indicates he’s turned it into the ‘polluter’s seat.’ For 130,000 Massachusetts kids with asthma, that’s a vote that’s hard to accept. The next time he’s got a chance, those kids need Senator Brown voting to protect them, not polluters.”
This is not a partisan issue. Our children’s health, clean air and water, and future of our planet goes beyond left and right.
Please call Senator Brown’s office at (617) 565-3170, and let his staff know what you think about his votes.
If you like what we are doing, please “Like” us on facebook. MLEV, Environment MA
Glad I’m fantastic! For any folks out there who get a robo call tonight, Environment Massachusetts is hosting a clean air act “teletown hall” that you should join. If you don’t get a call, I’ll post the call-in information here in a bit so you can jump on.
Sorry EnviroMA, I was trying to figure out who could possible down rate an announcement of a tele townhall, when I accidentally downrated your comment. Unfortunately, I can’t figure out how to undownrate my comment! Sorry.
at 7:10pm tonight,
call 877.229.8493
and use this access code: 18010
Be good to have some folks from BMG on to hear more about the importance of the clean air act.
Ben
but here is a link to our press release with a link to a letter to Scott Brown from 31 state and national environmental, public health and Latino organizations. We need to get the senator talking about the issue, and this ad is part of our strategy to do it.
A great LWV in Marblehead is not in agreement with the classless nature of these ads.
Hard to find reason to disagree with Ms. Pressman.
“At this point, we are disassociating ourselves from the action national took,” said local LWV Steering Committee Chairperson Shari Pressman. “This is the first time I remember, and I’ve been in the league for close to 30 years, being blindsided by national. We knew nothing about this. We weren’t informed ahead of time. We saw the ads when everyone else did.”
Read more: League of Women Voters’ anti-Brown ad under scrutiny – Marblehead, MA – Marblehead Reporter http://www.wickedlocal.com/marblehead/features/x1058159496/League-of-Women-Voters-anti-Brown-ad-under-scrutiny#ixzz1MHWRzEVN
The LWV woman is upset, from the quote you have used in your post, because they weren’t informed ahead of time. That seems like it is more an issue with how the national LWV communicates with it’s state and local chapters.
So the LWV Marblehead woman is upset about the ads. MLEV and EMA are upset about Senator Brown’s response, which was not about the substance, so our ad is to try to bring the discussion back to the substance.
Do you defend the Senator on the substance of the issue? I’ve yet to hear a good defense for voting against public health and clean air.
But the LWVers should not be involved. I know the folks in Marblehead and they are upset. They run election debates in my district, debates that I helped manage last cycle, and today they are worried about the perceived loss of their neutrality. Perception is reality in some cases and they (Mhead LWV) have every right to be pissed.
As for Brown, I will vote for him next year with pride.
The LMV expects candidates to tell the truth and has the audacity to run a high-profile campaign when they do not.
In the era of right wing “post truth” politics, I have no doubt that you and some others will vote for Senator Brown with pride. I’m sure that some will also vote for Donald Trump.
My own hope is that candidates — of any political persuasion — who pander for votes by flagrantly ignoring facts, truth, and science will be soundly rejected by an electorate sick to death of lies about birth certificates, lies about health care, lies about terrorism, and lies about just about everything.
Tom:
Is that really a conversation you wish to have?
If you’re Senator Brown you can vote for pollution and still get outraged if anyone calls you on it.
This is the same Senator Brown whose staff cannot tell me whether he believes that global warming is taking place. My fourth grader has a better grasp of science, and yet we are told that criticism of the People’s Senator is not allowed,.
the LWV is political. They have been since day one. They’re non partisan in the same way that the Sierra Club or the NRA or the AAA or La Raza is non partisan. They care about issues, and will celebrate any politician who takes their stance and denounce any politician who opposes. The LWV did just that, by focusing on a singular important vote on a specific issue and educated the voters where those two politicians stood on it [one D, one R].
Now, if you want to argue that the LWV shouldn’t cherry pick issues and trumpet the votes on those issues, that’s fine. But you’re not arguing that they’re partisan, you’re arguing over what their mission is.
Personally, I think this issue is really important. I think the LWV should have placed 100 ads, to educate every voter in every state how each of their two senators voted.
Even Fact Check.org find the ads deceitful. The headline is Deceitful Attacks from the League of Women Voters.
This is an interesting quote
This was a big mistake for the LWV, the vote has already happened. and Brown’s side lost. This just looks like a “softening-up” of Brown before the 2012 senate election.
http://www.factcheck.org/2011/05/deceitful-attacks-from-the-league-of-women-voters/
Before the fact check article cited Dr. Bernstein from the University of Cincinnati, they cited, as proponents of the the claim both the American Medical Association and Dr. Paul Epstien from the Harvard Medical School’s Center for Health and the Global Environment.
So, the LWV article is clearly grounded in medical science, so I feel like the Fact check dispute is kind of dubious. I mean, I could still find experts that disagree with the science on a number of things to dispute positions. But the point is the LWV is covered because they had research from the AMA and the Harvard medical school. I know NRDC is working up a rebuttal to fact check, and I’ll post it here when it is out.
Either the Senator does not believe that global warming is taking place, or he denies the scientific consensus that global warming is caused by human activity, or he simply does not care. We don’t really know because he refuses to come clean on this and tell us.
That said he opposes any action to curb greenhouse gas emissions, and in this stance he is supporting global warming or climate change–you can use whichever term you want–so Brown supporters: do you similarly support global warming?
The Apollo moon landings were faked. The fossil record is an atheist conspiracy. Barack Obama is not a citizen. Global warming is a vast left-wing conspiracy. Our economy is collapsing because taxes are too high — especially taxes on the very wealthy. The mainstream media is liberal. Fox News is fair and balanced.
Only the GOP can save us. We need rocks of sanity to hold firm against the flood of leftist liberal science and left-wing liberal lies. That’s why Scott Brown needs to be re-elected.
Right?