A letter from Senator Reid

[buddysmellgood]

Re: Thank you


Dear Friend,

I wanted to send an email to say thank you for the kind and powerful words you wrote me last week.

History has shown us that the right to vote has always demanded vigilance, responsibility and hard work from citizens and legislators alike. And the sad fact is disenfranchisement continues even today.

Thanks to your support, Senator Boxer and I we were able to use these facts to force the senate into a public debate on voting rights. But that was only the beginning. Now the Senate must act to correct the errors and injustice
of the voting system still visible in the 2004 election. It is a fight that I promise you I will champion as Democratic leader.

Although I was able to help enact landmark reforms in ballot box protection for my home state of Nevada this year, suppression efforts were still made. Calls, which we were unable to trace, told voters that Election Day was
November 3rd, not November 2nd. And our registration process was also tainted by the proven destruction of Democratic voter registration forms.

We know that in Ohio and across the country, precincts with large minority populations had disproportionately long lines because there weren't enough voting machines in those precincts. And blanket challenges to Ohio voters
were merely a thinly veiled effort to suppress the vote.

During the next session of Congress we face many other tough battles including the fight to save Social Security from the Republican plan to phase it out in favor of benefit cuts and private accounts. Social Security
is America's promise of retirement security, but through news reports and White House leaks, we know the President intends to break this promise in order to reward Wall Street with windfalls.

We're up against some very powerful opponents, and to win this fight you and I will need to work side by side, from battles on the Senate floor to debates in cities and towns around this nation. Together we can make sure
the values of fairness, security and opportunity survive the Republican onslaught and remain a part of the American experience.

To help our work together, in the next few weeks I plan on launching Democrats.gov, which will introduce new methods of citizen participation in Government. I will be in touch with you during this time to let you know how
you can get involved and strengthen your voice in government.

Once again thank you for your letters and kind words. They meant more to me than you could ever know.

Sincerely,

Harry Reid

[liberal N proud]

1. He talks the talk, but will he walk the walk?

Will he truly fight the fight to save Social Security, to change the election system in the future.
I hope this letter is an indicator that he will.
My gut fear right now is there are no Democrats in the Congress that are going to fight for US. That is U.S. us.

[TwentyFive]

2. Shortage of Diebold voting machines in minority voting precencts?

So if you lived in a minority district, you had to wait hours to vote on the Diebold machine.

Election fraud is bad enough. The media ignoring it is totally evil. Damn them!

[wtbymark]

3. your original post must have been a doozie

i can't wait for the site to be launched, hopefully it's more of a tool and not just forum.

[dandrhesse]

4. sorry if already stated but was this letter to you or the DU?

[buddysmellgood]

5. This letter came to my email. The address is [e-mail]

I must have been place on the list after calling and emailing regarding the Jan. 6 vote.

[Rhiannon12866]

6. I received this, as well, and thought of posting it

I just thought it was a wonderful letter and it gave me some hope. And I know that my fellow DUers were not exactly overwhelmingly enthusiastic in their support of Reid as leader. Yes, time will tell to see if he follows through on this, but this letter really warmed me and I'm certainly willing to give him every chance and my support. Our guys are at a real disadvantage now, and they need to know that we're still behind them. I take this as a good sign and what Barbara Boxer said, today, at the Rice hearings, places her in my Hall of Fame, forever.
:yourock: