We are offering two different designs on t-shirts, posters and mugs to help get the word out about John Kerry.

Dems dividing not uniting

Democrats are playing their cards so that they frighten Christian conservatives from participating in American politics. Their politics of division is aimed at making sure that conservative Christian leaders get the message that if you come out for President Bush you will have your non-profit tax status challenged.

Yesterday, the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argued in a letter to the I.R.S. that one of Mr. Falwell's religious organizations, Jerry Falwell Ministries, had disseminated the message in violation of tax rules, which restrict tax-exempt religious groups and charitable organizations from engaging in politics.

Lynn said the complaint was also a response to the Bush campaign's effort to enlist thousands of pastors and churchgoers to help get members of conservative congregations to the polls.

Falwell said that an affiliated tax-exempt lobbying organization -- not his religious organization, Jerry Falwell Ministries -- had paid for the e-mail message and the web site. Rev. Falwell also argued that his comments constituted only his personal view, and not an endorsement by his lobbying organization, Liberty Alliance.

"We report news, write editorials, etc., all of which is protected by the First Amendment," he said. Despite the urgency of his calls to "get serious about re-electing President Bush,'' Falwell said the lobbying organization "doesn't support candidates or endorse them.'' He said, "It speaks to moral and social issues and it does encourage contributions to organizations like Gary Bauer's." 

Hey, big spender

Sen. John Kerry promised the teachers union that they would receive piles and piles of more money. Kerry also accused President Bush of breaking a promise to fund education.

"No broken promises on funding, and no more empty rhetoric on reform," Kerry said in prepared remarks to the American Federation of Teachers. "As president, I will meet our responsibilities. We're going to get this done right because we know that empty rhetoric and empty promises lead to empty dreams, and we won't let that happen in our America."

Kerry would spend an extra $27 billion alone based on his estimate of the current shortfall.

President Bush pushed through legislation titled, No Child Left Behind, that teachers and Democrats have criticized for failing to be adequately funded. Teachers have also complained that it is impossible to meet the standards and assessments required to educate children to their grade level.

The legislation requires:

• Academic standards and assessments in reading/language arts and math for each of grades 3-8 and high school.

• Academic standards and assessments in science for elementary, middle, and high schools.

• Assessments of English language proficiency.

• Participation in NAEP assessments for reading and math.

For further information concerning the standards you can visit the U. S. Department of Education website.

Republicans have long argued that the teachers union, rather than being part of the solution, is part of the problem in education today. They argue that teachers are no longer interested in educating students but instead are focused on protecting their own seniority, benefits and pay.

The No Child Left Behind enables parents to choose a different school for their children if a school fails to meet the standards of excellence for three years.

“What voters care about is increasing parents' access to information, expanding choices for children and improving achievement, and Bush has done all that,” said Terry Holt, a Bush-Cheney campaign spokesman.

"John Kerry said he supported No Child Left Behind but has since walked away from that support," Holt said.

The Senator speaks

Sen. John Kerry’s campaign has caved in to the real power in the Democrat Party, Hillary Clinton, and offered a speaking slot to the other Senator.

Kerry asked Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday to address the Democratic National Convention on its opening night and introduce her husband, former President Clinton, ending an intense lobbying campaign by the New York senator's backers angered by her non-speaking role.

On Wednesday, the former chairwoman of the New York State Democratic Party had called the slight of Clinton a "total outrage" and "very stupid." Kerry's campaign responded to Judith Hope's criticism by saying it had no plans for giving the senator a speaking role, because she didn't request one.

Other speakers have reported that the way in which their speaking assignments were handled was poorly done.