I want to make crystal clear that taxpayers should be paid back every penny of TARP losses.  The statute that created TARP said that the President is supposed to propose a plan in 2013 to repay taxpayers for any losses from TARP.  However, earlier this year, three years before he was supposed to under the statute, the President proposed what he called a Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee.

Obviously, in 2013 we will have a much better estimate of projected TARP losses than we have now in 2010.  The President said that one of the purposes of the TARP tax is to repay taxpayers for any losses from TARP.  I want to make sure this actually happens, and that it's not just empty rhetoric.  Any losses that result from TARP will increase the deficit, which has ballooned under President Obama.  Therefore, to pay back taxpayers for any TARP losses, any money raised from the TARP tax would have to be used to pay down the deficit.  If a TARP tax is imposed and the money is simply spent, that doesn't repay taxpayers one cent for any TARP losses.  It's like getting a raise and saying you're going to pay down your credit card with the extra money, but then choosing to spend the money instead of paying down the credit card.

It shouldn't be any surprise to learn that your credit card balance didn't go down.  Saying you're going to pay down your credit card -- in this case, the deficit -- doesn't do any good.  You have to actually do it.  I've heard that some of my friends on the other side of the aisle are already looking to use the money raised from a TARP tax to spend it under their arbitrary pay-go rules.

When I tried to get a commitment from Secretary Geithner on this point, he wouldn't give me one.  That's disappointing.  However, I was encouraged that it sounds like the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and I see the TARP tax the same way.  Martin Vaughan wrote a May 5 Dow Jones Newswires column titled, "House Panel Chairman: Bank Tax Plan Not Ready For Prime Time."  The column states, "Levin signaled he doesn't favor pairing the bank tax with legislation already pending in Congress, such as the financial overhaul bill or a separate bill to extend expired tax breaks.  First, he said, the tax should be used for deficit reduction and not to pay for new spending.  'At this point, I don't think the bank tax is ready to be a pay-for,' Levin said."

In looking at the President's TARP tax proposal, which I understand the President has already felt the need to change, it's interesting that GM and Chrysler, which are responsible for about 30 billion of projected losses in TARP, are not subject to the President's proposed tax.  Secretary Geithner said that GM and Chrysler were simply victims of the financial crisis, and therefore shouldn't be subject to the President's tax.  However, Ford didn't take any TARP money and survived just fine.  In addition, with GM and Chrysler responsible for such large amounts of TARP losses, it seems only fair that they should be subject to the TARP tax to pay back some of those losses.  GM and Chrysler were both invited by Chairman Baucus and me to testify at this hearing and make their case regarding why they shouldn't be subject to the tax, and both declined.  Their silence is deafening.

Also, Fannie and Freddie are not subject to the tax.  We'll explore whether that makes sense at today's hearing.  And hedge funds are not subject to the President's proposed tax. Meanwhile, companies that did not take any TARP money are subject to the proposed tax.

The President's proposed tax is so lacking in details that members of Congress that are being asked to support it are having a very difficult time figuring out how it would apply and who is subject to the tax.   When I asked CBO to tell me who would bear the burden of the TARP tax, they said that one of the groups that would bear the burden of the tax would be consumers.  CBO stated in their letter to me that the President's tax will reduce small business lending.  Under the new version of the tax proposed by the President, small business loans would be considered the riskiest assets held by the banks, and therefore subject to the highest taxes.  Considering the 9.9 percent unemployment rate, the trouble small businesses are having getting credit, and the proposed tax hikes on small business, I am very concerned with that aspect of the proposal.

One of the purposes for the tax stated by the President is to reduce risky behavior by financial institutions.  However, CBO stated in their letter to me that the TARP tax, quote, "would not have a significant impact on the stability of financial institutions or significantly alter the risk that government outlays will be needed to cover future losses."  That's not just me saying it, that's the nonpartisan CBO saying it. If the United States imposes a TARP tax and other countries don't, it will make our financial institutions less competitive than their foreign competitors.  Of the G-20 countries, Australia, Canada, Japan, Russia, and Brazil are opposed to a bank tax, and South Africa doesn't want its banks taxed.  I look forward to hearing the testimony from the witnesses today.

Trinity Regional Health System's Board of Directors has announced the appointment of Richard (Rick) A. Seidler as Trinity's new President and Chief Executive Officer, effective June 1.  Seidler will replace interim President and CEO Tom Tibbitts who will remain as a Trinity system development consultant through the end of the year.

Seidler has been President and CEO of Allen Memorial Hospital in Waterloo, Iowa, for the past 12 years. Prior to joining Allen in 1998, Seidler served as CEO of Davenport Medical Center, a 150-bed hospital which was later acquired and relocated by Trinity Regional Health System, and is now known as Trinity Bettendorf.  He was a resident of the Quad-Cities for five years during that leadership tenure.

Both Allen and Trinity are senior affiliate hospitals of Iowa Health System, based in Des Moines.

With more than 30 years of executive health-care experience, Seidler has held senior leadership positions in both nonprofit and investor-owned health care organizations in California and Iowa.

"Rick's experience and credentials make him an outstanding choice for Trinity," Trinity's Chairman of the Board Linda Newborn said.  "We welcome Rick back to the region where his experiences at Allen and Iowa Health System have prepared him well to lead Trinity into the future."

Trinity's former President and CEO and currently the President and CEO of Iowa Health System, Bill Leaver said of Seidler:  "Rick has been a dedicated and talented leader at Allen for 12 years. Rick's leadership skills and commitment are evident to all who meet him."

During Seidler's tenure, Allen established itself as the health care leader in heart, vascular and emergency care for the Cedar Valley region.  Seidler oversaw a $47 million expansion project for a new emergency department, heart and vascular center in 2009, a new birthing center in 2004 and a 135,000-square-foot ambulatory medical-service mall in 2000, which recently completed a $10 million expansion.

"I am very enthusiastic about this opportunity to lead Trinity," Seidler said. "I am encouraged by what is happening in the community. I'm also excited by what I know is happening at Trinity, with its outstanding patient outcomes. Trinity has a culture of committed employees, outstanding physicians and high-quality care."

Rick also has served in several senior executive positions, including Summit Medical Center in Oakland, Calif., and St. Joseph's Medical Center in Stockton, Calif. He earned his Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Business Administration degrees with a concentration in health care administration from the University of Miami in Florida.

A member of many civic and professional associations, Seidler is past chair of the Waterloo Chamber of Commerce and helped create the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance. Seidler is a Fellow and Regent of the American College of Healthcare Executives and is a board member and past chair of the Iowa Hospital Association, representing all 117 hospitals across Iowa.

Seidler and his wife, Nancy, have two grown children. They will relocate to the Quad-Cities this summer.

About Trinity Regional Health System

Trinity operates four full-service hospitals in Rock Island and Moline, Illinois, and Bettendorf and Muscatine, Iowa, with a total of 595 licensed inpatient beds and 11 hospice beds, as well as 27 primary care and specialty clinics with 70 employed physicians.  Trinity also operates Trinity Visiting Nurse and Homecare Association, Trinity Home Care Products, the Robert Young Center for Community Mental Health, Trinity College of Nursing and Health Sciences and Trinity Osteopathic Family Practice Medical Residency Program. Trinity is a senior affiliate of Iowa Health System, the state's first and largest integrated health system that serves the health-care needs of one in three Iowans. 

Trinity's leadership in quality and service excellence has helped earn Trinity top industry awards for patient safety, excellent outcomes and cost control. Trinity's Five-Star-rated heart program is ranked in the top ten percent of heart programs in the United States. Trinity also recently became the first bi-state hospital to earn MagnetTM status from the American Nursing Credentialing Center, placing Trinity in the top five percent of all U.S. hospitals as a center for nursing excellence. 

###


National menu labeling effort will also take effect soon


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today issued the following statement after President Obama signed into law The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Senate-passed comprehensive health reform measure approved by the House earlier this week.  Harkin, as Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, was on hand at the White House to witness the bill signing.

"It's been a long debate and a hard-fought battle, but today, the hundred year struggle to provide affordable, quality health care coverage is over.  In signing this bill into law, President Obama today rewrote history, and in doing so, made access to health care available to millions of Americans. I've been on hand for a number of White House bill signings, but witnessing this particular event has been one of the most poignant of my career," said Harkin.

"I am most encouraged that with this reform, we will begin to recreate America as a genuine wellness society - a society focused on healthful lifestyles and preventing the chronic diseases that take such a toll on our bodies and our budgets.  And make no mistake, this bill doesn't just tinker around the edges; it changes the paradigm."

The Prevention and Public Health title of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act creates incentives to prevent chronic disease and rein in costs across the full health care spectrum.  At the federal level, creating a new inter-agency council to develop a national health strategy, creating a dedicated funding stream to support these efforts; at the clinical level with doctor training and coverage of preventive services and the elimination of co-pays and deductibles for these services; and at the grassroots level with grants for community initiatives that will support more walkable communities, healthier schools and increased access to nutritious foods in safe environments.

The legislation also includes a bipartisan compromise brokered by Harkin and others to provide mandatory disclosure of calories on menus and menu boards to help reduce rising obesity rates by enabling Americans to make healthier food choices.  The compromise combines key elements of the Menu Education and Labeling (MEAL) Act, sponsored by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and the Labeling Education and Nutrition (LEAN) Act, sponsored by Senators Tom Carper (D-DE) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). 

"A critical component of the just passed federal menu labeling is that the nutrition information is right on the menu or menu board next to the name of the menu item, rather than in a pamphlet or in tiny print on a poster, so that consumers can see it when they are making ordering decisions," concluded Harkin.  "It's a common-sense approach that's also a step toward good public health."

Prevention and wellness provisions of the The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will:

  • Provide $15 billion in mandatory spending to support prevention and wellness activities.
  • Eliminate cost sharing on recommended preventive services delivered by Medicare and all insurance plans available in the Health Insurance Exchange.
  • Support two independent, advisory task forces ? the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) and the Task Force on Community Preventive Services (TFCPS) ? to strengthen and coordinate these bodies' efforts to conduct rigorous, systematic reviews of existing science and recommend the adoption of proven and effective services.
  • Support investments in the science of prevention to further expand the base of information available for evaluation by the task forces.
  • Provide coverage under Medicare, with no co-payment or deductible, for an annual wellness visit that includes a comprehensive health risk assessment and a 5-10 year personalized prevention plan.
  • Deliver clinical preventive services by  covering 100% of the cost of USPSTF-recommended preventive services for Medicare beneficiaries, providing enhanced federal Medicaid matching funds to states who offer USPSTF-recommended services, requiring coverage of tobacco cessation services for pregnant women in Medicaid and by making clinical preventive services a required benefit of insurance available in the Health Insurance Exchange.
  • Deliver community preventive services by investing in state, territorial and local public health infrastructure and by providing grants to implement recommended services.
  • Require chain restaurants to put calorie counts directly on their menus and to make other nutritional information available so that consumers can make informed choices about what they eat.
WASHINGTON - Monday, March 22, 2010 - Senator Chuck Grassley today said he will offer an amendment during Senate debate on the health care reconciliation bill this week to apply the reform legislation to the President, Vice President, cabinet members and top White House staff.

"It's pretty unbelieveable that the President and his closest advisors remain untouched by the reforms they pushed for the rest of the country.  In other words, President Obama's health care reform won't apply to President Obama," Grassley said.  "Last December, the effort to apply any new law to administration political leaders was rejected by the Senate Majority Leader.  But there's no justification for the double standard, and I'll continue to work to establish fairness."

The Senate legislation passed last night by the House of Representatives includes an amendment Grassley sponsored and got adopted by the Finance Committee last fall to have members of Congress and their staffs get their health insurance through the same health insurance exchanges where health plans for the general public would be available.  During the closed-door negotiations on the bill late last year, the Senate Majority Leader carved out Senate committee and leadership staff from this requirement.

Subsequently, Grassley and Senator Tom Coburn attempted to offer another amendment to restore the requirement during Senate debate on the health care bill, but the Senate Majority Leader would not let their amendment to fix this loophole even come up for a vote.  In addition to Senate committee and leadership staff, the amendment Grassley and Coburn filed during the Senate debate would have made the President, the Vice President, top White House staff and cabinet members all get their health insurance through the newly created exchanges.  It would not have applied to federal employees in the civil service.

Grassley said, "It's only fair and logical that top administration officials, who fought so hard for passage of this overhaul of America's health care system, experience it themselves.  If it's as good as promised, they'll know it first-hand.  If there are problems, they'll be able to really understand them, as they should."

Grassley said the motivation for his amendments is simple:  public officials who make the laws or lead efforts to have laws changed should live under those laws.

"This is the same principle that motivated me to pursue legislation over 20 years ago to apply civil rights, labor and employment laws to Congress," Grassley said.  Before President Clinton signed into law Grassley's long-sought Congressional Accountability Act of 1995, Congress had routinely exempted itself.

The Congressional Accountability Act made Congress subject to 12 laws, including the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Veteran's Employment and Reemployment Rights at Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the U.S. Code, and the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1989.

Today, Grassley is working to make sure Congress lives up to the same standards it imposes on others with legislation such as his Congressional Whistleblower Protection Act.

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Ron Paul addresses 12,000 supporters at the Restore the Republic Rally in Minneapolis, MN September 2008.

Since my 2008 campaign for the presidency I have often been asked, "How would a constitutionalist president go about dismantling the welfare-warfare state and restoring a constitutional republic?" This is a very important question, because without a clear road map and set of priorities, such a president runs the risk of having his pro-freedom agenda stymied by the various vested interests that benefit from big government.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, ranking member of the Committee on Finance, today made the following comment on a letter from President Obama to congressional leaders on health insurance reform legislation. The President cited Grassley's concern about Medicaid access.  Grassley attended the President's health care summit last week.

"The flawed Medicaid policy in the Senate bill is a disgrace for everyone who needs access to health care because it gives 15 million people a false promise by putting them in Medicaid where they'll face challenges finding providers who will see them.  There's no question Medicaid won't be able to provide adequate access.  It's good if the White House has figured that out.  The question becomes whether the President is willing to cut spending in the bill to guarantee the poorest people adequate access to care."

Rock Island, Ill. -Dr. Jeff Abernathy, vice president of academic affairs and dean of Augustana College, has accepted a new position as President of Alma College in Alma, Michigan. His appointment will begin Ju1y 1, 2010.

"I am enthusiastic about the opportunity to lead Alma at this remarkable moment for higher education," said Abernathy. "The Alma vision for liberal education has engaged students from across the country since the nineteenth century, and it is a great honor to be called to their presidency."

Abernathy has served as vice president and professor in the English department at Augustana since 2004. He led the development of a new consortium of colleges, the Midwest Alliance for Learning in the Liberal Arts, which includes Alma, Augustana and five other Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts colleges across the Midwest. Abernathy's work on the academic component of the college's strategic plan, Authentically Augustana: A Plan for a Premier Liberal Arts College, led to accomplishments including:

· hiring five dozen new faculty as the size of the full-time faculty grew by 26 percent;

· implementing Senior Inquiry, a capstone project which students in nearly all majors create and complete in partnership with a faculty mentor;

· partnering with colleagues to develop Augie Choice, an innovative new program supporting experiential learning opportunities?such as international study, collaborative research and internships?for all students.

"I am very grateful to Jeff for his leadership at Augustana College, especially demonstrated by working with faculty to improve the learning experiences of our students," said Augustana College President Steve Bahls. "This has served to advance Augustana's standing as a national liberal arts college, and Jeff's selection as president of a selective college like Alma is a gratifying sign that colleges around the country are recognizing Augustana's strengths."

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Abernathy graduated from Longwood College in 1985. He earned the Ph.D. in American literature from the University of Florida. Before coming to Augustana, he served as vice president of academic affairs and dean of West Virginia Wesleyan College, and as a faculty member in English and associate dean at Illinois College. He also serves as a higher education expert through local and national media, including writing a column on academic issues for The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Abernathy is married to Rebecca Wee, a poet and associate professor of English at Augustana. They are the parents of a six-year-old son, Rohan, and 18-month-old daughter, Maren.

For additional information or questions, contact Kamy Beattie, director of public relations at kamybeattie@augustana.edu or (309) 794-7721.

About Augustana: Founded in 1860 and situated on a 115-acre campus near the Mississippi River, Augustana College is a private, liberal arts institution affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The college enrolls nearly 2,500 students from diverse geographic, social, ethnic and religious backgrounds and offers more than 60 majors and areas of study. Augustana employs 226 faculty and has a student-faculty ratio of 11:1. Augustana continues to do what it has always done: challenge and prepare students for lives of leadership and service in our complex, ever-changing world.

            • -end-

The following local students have been named to the President's List at Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa. This academic honor is achieved by earning a straight-A grade point average of 4.0 during the Fall 2009 semester at Drake.

Kelsey Berneking of Bettendorf, IA

Lauren Brandt of Bettendorf, IA

Stephanie Gibb-Clark of Moline, IL

Drew Luder of Moline, IL

Steven Merrick of Eldridge, IA

Erika Milas of Bettendorf, IA

Taylor Odegard of Le Claire, IA

Marshall Phares of Princeton, IA

Caitlin Pryor of Bettendorf, IA

 

Abby Sheehan of Bettendorf, IA

Rachel Vogel of Moline, IL

Kelsey Wells of Bettendorf, IA

The following local students have been named to the Dean's List at Drake University. This academic honor is achieved by earning a grade point average of 3.5 or higher during the Fall 2009 semester at Drake.

Jonathon Allred of Davenport, IA

Christopher Beck of Bettendorf, IA

Kristin Blough of Davenport, IA

Leah Christensen of Bettendorf, IA

Emily Cleek of Moline, IL

Scott Copeland of Davenport, IA

Ryan Curtis of Donahue, IA

Aaron Dammann of Bettendorf, IA

Jared Dammann of Bettendorf, IA

Alise Farrell of Davenport, IA

Katherine Foley of Davenport, IA

Eder Fonseca of Moline, IL

Andrea Glasgow of Walcott, IA

Kathryn Hamilton of Blue Grass, IA

Ryan Hendricks of Rock Island, IL

Evan Lawrence of Moline, IL

Jami McCubbin of Long Grove, IA

Stephanie Merrick of Eldridge, IA

Anthony Milas of Bettendorf, IA

Mary Miller of Milan, IL

Jordan Porter of Eldridge, IA

Chelsea Rink of Davenport, IA

Charles Schwartz of Bettendorf, IA

Erika Sevigny of Davenport, IA

Elizabeth Thoms of Rock Island, IL

James VanEchaute of Moline, IL

Phillip VerBeke of Port Byron, IL

Leah Wrath of Moline, IL

Drake is a private, independent university in Des Moines, Iowa, with an enrollment of approximately 3,200 full-time undergraduate students from 45 states and 62 countries. Drake University's mission is to provide an exceptional learning environment that prepares students for meaningful personal lives, professional accomplishments and responsible global citizenship. The Drake experience is distinguished by collaborative learning among students, faculty and staff and by the integration of the liberal arts and sciences with professional preparation.

The following student was named to the Dean's List at Grand View University, Des Moines:

  • Brittany Marie Erps of Davenport

The following students were named to the President's List at Grand View University, Des Moines:

  • Deanna Keira Carr of Davenport and Katelyn Christine Carlson of Rock Island.

The following students were named to the Dean's List for the fall 2009 semester at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis:

  • Anna Aquino, Biomedical Sciences, and Mikhaila Norton, Accounting, both of Bettendorf; Kevan Kadavy, Biomedical Sciences, of Davenport and Tara Vandygriff, Public Relations, of Rock Island.

The following students are among the 1650 Winter graduates at Iowa State University, Ames:

  • Lucas Edward Andrusyk, BS, Forestry; Thomas W. Davis, BA, Journalism and Mass Communication; Mark A. Kline,  Marketing; Kathryn Margaret McClain, BA, Political Science; Luke Allen Peterson, BS, Construction Engineering; Nichoel Michelle Said, BS, Environmental Science (LAS); Terry Thomas Tipp, BS, Construction Engineering all of Bettendorf;
  • Rebecca Christine Braet, BS, Family and Consumer Science Education and Studies of Calamus;
  • Steven Walton Beckert, BS, Electrical Engineering; Lee Brian Brandt, BS, Industrial Technology; Paul A. Byrd, MA, History; Steven Michael Campbell, MS, Electrical and Computer Engineering; April Shentel Davis, BA, Spanish; Jeffrey Alan Harris, BA, Communication Studies; Daniel Raymond Levetzow, BS, Electrical Engineering; Jared Christopher Levings, MS, Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering; Ryan Thomas Merritt, BS, Kinesiology and Health; Elizabeth Marie Ohnemus, BS, Dietetics (H SCI); Blake Richard Stalder, BS, Chemical Engineering; Josh Corey Warner, BS, Mechanical Engineering and John Andrew Wethington, BS, Civil Engineering all of Davenport
  • Eric James Murphy, BS, Mechanical Engineering of Eldridge
  • Chris Arku, BS, Industrial Engineering of Moline
  • Natalie Elizabeth McIlwain, BA, English and French of Pleasant Valley.
  • Shana Donna Kane, BS, Civil Engineering; Ryan Daniel Lepp, BA, Interdisciplinary Studies;  and Zachary Andrew Piasecki, BS, Mechanical Engineering all of Rock Island

The following students were named to the Dean's List at Gustavus Adolphus College, a private liberal arts college in St. Peter, Minn:

  • Kelsey Francis of Bettendorf and Samantha Good of Rock Island.

The following students were named to the President's List at Truman State University, located in Kirksville, Missouri's designated public liberal arts and sciences university:

  • Julie Marie Hasken, Health Sciences, Bettendorf and Aubrey Ann Crowley, Health Sciences, Davenport.

The following students were named to the Fall 2009 Provost and Vice President's List at Truman State University, located in Kirksville, Missouri's designated public liberal arts and sciences university:

  • Nicholas Stephen Ehrecke, Exercise Sciences, Andrew Keith Piotter, Exercise Sciences and Andy Wang Yang, Psychology, all of Bettendorf and Brendan Patrick O'Brien, Psychology of Davenport.

Sarah J Weber, Elementary Education, was named with High Honors to the fall 2009 dean's list at Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minn.

Davenport Event is Part of Nationwide Week of Action to Call for Fair, Ambitious and Binding International Deal

Davenport, IA - Local activists representing 1Sky Iowa today gathered outside the office of Senator Grassley to urge him to support clean energy legislation and to ask President Obama to fight for a fair, ambitious, and binding international treaty on climate change when he attends the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark on Dec. 9.

"President Obama can use his international prestige to be the driving force behind true progress on climate change," said Matt Denner, of 1Sky Iowa. "The rest of the world will follow if America leads and President Obama campaigned - and won - on a platform of domestic and international leadership to fight climate change. It is vital that Senator Grassley join him in these efforts."

The rally, which included the delivery of postcards to Senator Grassley from around the state, was one of over 30 1Sky events nationwide and one of four taking place across the state this week.  Many of the events highlighted art work made by activists in the 1Sky network who participated in over 200 "art gatherings" during November where participants created murals and other works of art that expressed the urgency of the climate crisis. The artwork was designed to push the Obama administration to take a strong stance in Copenhagen, where representatives of most world nations will gather starting on Dec. 7 to discuss an international treaty to stop the greenhouse gas pollution that causes global warming. A culminating event is scheduled to take place in front of the White House in Washington D.C. on Dec. 4 that will incorporate works of art from all over the country.

The Copenhagen conference is expected to run from December 7 to December 19. 1Sky and other groups dedicated to fighting climate change are calling for a fair, ambitious and binding treaty and warning that failure to generate an effective, working agreement soon could have disastrous consequences for the planet, which is already suffering from the effects of climate change.

Specifically 1Sky is calling on the Obama administration to:

- Push for stronger action on short term targets for greenhouse gas emission cuts than the 17 percent currently offered by the United States since 17 percent is simply not enough to stave off the worst effects of global warming

- Acknowledge a degree of U.S. responsibility for climate change by making financial investments in the transition

- Use the Copenhagen trip to pressure the U.S. Senate to build the political will to pass a strong bill in the Senate this spring.

"Unfortunately the planet cannot wait," said 1Sky Campaign Director Gillian Caldwell. "We need to see serious progress in Copenhagen and from the United States Senate over the next few months. The economic benefits to acting are very clear and the result of no action is also, unfortunately, very clear."

List of planned events in the Midwest:

Des Moines, Iowa; 12/1/2009 - Climate artwork will be on display at a climate rally in front of the Neal Smith Federal Building.

Ames, Iowa; 12/3/2009 - Climate artwork will be on display at a climate rally on the Iowa State University campus.

Indianapolis, Indiana; 12/2/2009 - Climate artwork will be on display at a climate rally stressing the importance of a strong international climate agreement.

Lansing, Michigan; 12/3/2009 - The event will draw upon Michigan State University students to pin messages to a climate banner being taken to Copenhagen the next day.

Minneapolis, Minnesota; 12/1/2009 - 1Sky and Sierra Club co-host a rally where passersby and attendees can sign a banner reading 'All Hands on Deck for Climate Action', which will be delivered to Senator Klobuchar before he goes to Copenhagen.

Kansas City, Missouri; 12/2/2009 - 1Sky and Green Drinks KC will co-host a climate rally and press conference including speakers from Eco-Talk Radio and the Kansas City Star.

St. Louis, Missouri; 12/4/2009 and 12/5/2009 - 1Sky and allies will host two climate art parties at local coffeehouses including action stations with phone calls and LTE-writing, speakers, and live music.

Fargo, North Dakota; 12/1/2009 - This event features an e-conference hosted by NDSU Department of Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering calling on the world's farmers to convert their agricultural residues to biochar.

Omaha, Nebraska; 12/2/2009 - 1Sky will host a press conference outside of Dale Clark Library to discuss the implications on a global climate treaty on Nebraska.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota; 12/2/2009 - Attendees will gather at a press conference featuring local leaders talking about the importance of a strong climate agreement in Copenhagen.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin; 12/2/2009, 12/6/2009, 12/12/2009 - 1Sky will host events including a pancake breakfast to talk about Copenhagen, a 'Bon Voyage' press conference, and a climate crisis rally.

1Sky is a collaborative national campaign for strong federal action to tackle global climate change and invest in building the clean energy economy of the future. As one of the largest national campaigns in the country, 1Sky combines the force of 500 allied organizations, 178,000 committed climate advocates, 2,700 volunteer Climate Precinct Captains covering more than 390 congressional districts in 50 states, and a team of 52 including 41 organizers in 30 states working to mobilize constituent support.

For more information on 1Sky contact Alex Posorske at (301) 270-4550 x 230 or Alex@1sky.org

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