April 22, 2008 - 11:40am
Sierra Club picks Lautenberg
By Max PizarroThe Sierra Club today backed Sen. Frank Lautenberg in his reelection bid for the U.S. Senate in both the Democratic primary and the general election.
"It is entirely fitting that today on Earth Day the Sierra Club is endorsing Sen. Lautenberg," Jeff Tittel, director of the Sierra Club New Jersey Chapter, said in a statement, "because there is no stronger advocate for the environment in the United States Senate than Frank Lautenberg."
Lautenberg said he was honored to receive the group's endorsement.
"New Jerseyans know I'm standing strong for them -- fighting to prevent Big Oil from drilling off our shores, keep our water clean and tackle global warming," Lautenberg said.
"They know I'm leading the fight to end the Bush-Cheney assault on New Jersey and our environment," the senator added. "I look forward to continuing to make progress on challenges like cleaning up toxic waste sites, preserving our parks and refuges, advancing renewable energy and protecting our nation's waterways and wilderness."
Lautenberg is in a primary fight with U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1). Republicans Joseph Pennacchio, Dick Zimmer and Murray Sabrin are fighting in the GOP primary.
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May 16, 2008
"The saying about Dominicans is that we have two things in our blood — baseball and politics. We are passionate about politics, and just about getting involved."
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Better check with your organization again, Jeff.
According to green@work magazine:
"Convening an environmental conference in Washington, DC, dictated the presence of a nationally recognized eco-activist. Senator John Kerry (D-MA), identified by the Sierra Club as the Senate’s strongest environmental advocate, was an obvious choice. He has consistently recognized that a healthy environment is fundamental to our nation’s quality of life and economic security. While applauding the visionary pioneers in the audience, he labeled the current U.S. Senate as “nearly dysfunctional” for its inability to move the nation forward in solving our environmental problems such as oil dependence, down-stream pollution, air quality, waste and global warming. Politics, he said, should be the “art of the possible,” rather than constantly trying to fix the things we’ve done wrong in the past."
This is a yawn endorsement
especially when GAS is 3 and half bucks. I really want to care about the environment but what the hell is going on with the economy! have either lautenberg or andrews been to a grocery store lately? Orange Juice might as well be diamonds! What are Lautenberg and Andrews saying about that?
Isn't that the "Scarlet Letter?"
"A Nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one. Alexander Hamilton
odd endorsement
The Sierra Club should have stayed neutral in this contest, but either Andrews or Lautenberg are incredibly strong when it comes to the environment. That said, I consider this endorsement rather odd, since Andrews received a 100% rating from The Sierra Club in 2003, while Lautenberg received a 90% rating the same year; in 2007, the League of Conservation Voters, another important environmental group, also gave Andrews a perfect rating, while Lautenberg received a 93% (source: Project Vote Smart). Hence, it is rather strange that The Sierra Club would give the endorsement to someone who they rated below another candidate.
I can't think of better champion for the environment than Andrews, from his work keeping a deadly nerve agent out of the Delaware River to his fight to stop the dredging of that river.
Enough is enough!
"I look forward to continuing to make progress on challenges like cleaning up toxic waste sites, preserving our parks and refuges, advancing renewable energy and protecting our nation's waterways and wilderness." I thought Frank has been looking at it for over twenty years. Enough is enough. We need some action not endorsements. Roll up your sleeves Frank and get to cleaning up the polluted sites. Do you need an uniform? Ask the Sierra Club to supply one in case you cannot afford one.
the devil you know
A senior (term, not age) senator with a 90% rating beats a green (term, not position) senator with a 100%.
Its the economy stupid!
Unless someone can tie the environment to the economy I don't care who the Sierra Club endorses!
It is the economy stupid and finances, stupid.
I agree with Mom in Law. Go Murray, go Murray!
Fertilizer
Sierra Club knows that Frank will soon make nice fertilizer for the earth, thus the endorsement.
MartinOne and his selection of information
while you didnt say anything inaccurate you picked certain statistics that make Andrews look stronger on environmental issues (based on ratings by environmental groups) than Lautenberg. But if you go through all the groups ratings, although comparable, FL has more of a consistent rating with all the groups. I used the same information you did, i just looked at it without trying to prove any point. i think one of the worst things a person can do on a site like this is twist and bend the facts to fit the view you have. then again i guess that's the whole point of posting anonymously and on some political hack site.
Dang
I was just about to write the same thing as you! Great comment on what an old man will do in the senate for us!
"The only man who never makes a mistake is the man who never does anything."
--Theodore Roosevelt--
Dear "Mom in Law"
The "environment" is not an abstraction.
Without an environment that can sustain human life there is no "economy"! No one is rich or powerful enough to escape this planet and set up shop somewhere else.
We are, literally, all in the same (life) boat!!!
Sure, for most of us death will come long before the current trends become irreversible and our global civilization and maybe our whole species collapses.....but, we DO have an obligation to our children and their children and their children's children to clean up the mess that we, and prior generations have created in our mad stupid ignorant greedy rush to "progress" with no consideration of the future consequence.
In a sane world, the environment would be the number ONE issue on everyone's mind.
The extent to which that is not the case is a direct measure of our local/regional/national/global insanity.
Insanity and survival are mutually incompatible.
Having said all that, we're not really going to resolve this mess if our only motivations come from fear of the consequences of failing to act; we also must bring a love of humanity to bear here...and that transcends all petty politics and/or partisanship....or at least it should.
Think.
From Frederick Douglass