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Current Odyssey Project student Faleshuh Walker created this piece, earning second place for artwork in this years Why Vote? contest.

For Hedi Rudd, the decision to vote is both personal and powerful. In her award-winning essay for the 2020 Why Vote? project contest, she writes of the significance of her vote:

My vote will tell my children and grandchildren that I stood against corruption and racism and that I dont ignore the past but learn from it. My vote will tell my friends that I care about their access to healthcare and immigration reform. It will tell my neighbors that I believe in their right to protest, their right to housing and their right to hold leaders accountable. It will tell the world that humanity and our planet are sacred.

For more than a decade, the Why Vote? contest has asked current and former students of the University of WisconsinMadison Odyssey Project to create an original work that convinces people to get out the vote.

The contest is a prelude to the nonpartisan event, A Celebration of Voting, which this year takes place online, Saturday, October 3, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. The celebration is designed to share voting information with attendees; representatives from The League of Women Voters will be on hand to answer voting questions.

A robust, inspiring program will feature Rudd and other Odyssey Project students and alumni, who will share their award-winning essays, poems and artwork, as well as short presentations on voting by prominent local leaders and actors, including:

The event is free and open to the public. Those interested in attending should complete the online registration form for access to the Zoom link.

A Celebration of Voting is presented biennially by the UW Odyssey Project, a program that empowers adults to overcome adversity and achieve dreams through higher education. Each year, the Odyssey Project offers a free two-semester humanities class for 30 adults, providing textbooks, childcare and a weekly dinner. They earn six credits in English from UWMadison, as well as gain critical thinking skills and a sense of empowerment. Many go on to complete a college degree and find meaningful work in the community.

The Odyssey class emphasizes civic engagement, with readings from Socrates, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Martin Luther King, Jr. Students make connections between historic civil rights struggles and their own lives.

Odyssey Project Director Emily Auerbach says that the A Celebration of Voting event is a natural complement to the program, which strives to help students develop and use their voices.

Civic engagement has been one of Odysseys goals since its beginning in 2003, Auerbach says. We want to encourage our students, their families and the broader community to become excited about voting, get practical information about how to vote and use the power of their own voices to convince others to vote.

Stanley Sallay, Odyssey 07, used the power of the pencil to create his award-winning illustration for this years Why Vote? contest. Replete with symbolism and detail, his drawing is largely a study of those who neglected to vote. The central figure, Sallay writes, is a man running as if hes in a rush. I dont have time to figure out whos running and vote. The road that hes running on is broken and leads to nowhere. The pair of dice near his feet is showing how hes choosing to leave his future to chance.

Sallay says the illustration was inspired by the idea of votes lost to those who are unwilling or unable to vote or who dont believe its important.

I didnt vote four years ago because I thought there was no way Trump would win, he says. Since then, Ive wondered how many votes didnt happen because of people who thought the same.

For more information on the Odyssey Project, see theprogram websiteor contact director Emily Auerbach at emily.auerbach@wisc.edu. To donate to the program or become a volunteer, visit theSupport Odyssey webpage.

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Odyssey Project students and local leaders to celebrate voting at online event - University of Wisconsin-Madison

As the US Presidential election nears, the top concern for small businesses is the economy.

A new poll by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and MetLife reveals over half (57%) of small business owners rank the economy as the first or second most important issue influencing who they will cast their votes for.

Besides the economy other issues that keep businesses up at night include:

In terms of demographics, women small business owners rate race issues next to the economy that will determine which way they vote. Female small business owners are twice (16%) as likely to consider racial inequality comparedto their male counterparts (8%). Veteran owned businesses for their part view education (25%) and immigration reform (19%) as important next to the state of the economy.

2020 has also seen more engagement among small businesses in terms of elections compared to 2016. Some 62% of small business ownersare more interestedinthe 2020election compared to 2016.Small businesses in the Midwest are more likely to show interest (71%) when compared to in the South (63%), in the Northeast (58%), and in the West (57%).

According to the Small Business Index, businesses are still trying to recover from the effects of COVID-19. So much so, 74% of them are concerned about the impact of COVID-19.

This has prompted many to have predominantly negative feelings towards the current state of the economy. This is with 78% of small businesses describing the economy as average, somewhat poor, or very poor in August. The dissatisfaction in August shows an increase of 8 points from Julys poll.

A further 81% of small businessessay that the impact of a candidates policies on their business will determine how they vote. However, 68% of small business owners agree that it is more important for political leaders to compromise than stick to their beliefs in order to get things done. Overwhelmingly (82%) of small business owners believe partisan gridlock in the federal government is a serious problem.

Image: Depositphotos.com

Originally posted here:
Economy Most Important Issue for Small Business Owners Ahead of Election - Small Business Trends

Photo Credit/ Pixabay and Flickr, Edited by Natalie Irula

Natalie Irula

Editor-in-Chief

At a month and a half away, the Presidential Election has boiled down to Republican nominee President Donald Trump versus Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Trumps re-election campaign focuses on American first, as he told Time in an interview, while stressing the accomplishments of his current term.

Bidens campaign is very much a response to Trumps, focusing on the changes he will make as well as the policies he plans to implement.

At his second convention acceptance speech, Trump can be quoted stating, Our opponents believe that America is a depraved nation. We want our sons and daughters to know the truth: America is the greatest and most exceptional nation in the history of the world. Our country wasnt built by cancel culture, speech codes and soul-crushing conformity. We are not a nation of timid spirits. We are a nation of fierce, proud and independent American Patriots, according to the New York Times.

His hot topics include the economy, jobs, immigration and foreign policy. As we near the end of the campaigning season, we see other relevant topics coming up such as environmental issues, education, criminal justice, gun regulation and health care, on which both nominees differ greatly.

Biden can be quoted in his convention acceptance speech as stating, If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst. I will be an ally of the light, not the darkness. Its time for us, for we, the people, to come together. And make no mistake, united we can and will overcome this season of darkness in America. Well choose hope over fear. Facts over fiction. Fairness over privilege. Im a proud Democrat. And Ill be proud to carry the banner of our party into the general election, according to NPR.

The former US Senator and Vice President represents himself as progressive, as he campaigns to build back better, an initiative to build America not with what has worked in the past, but with the future in mind.

Acknowledging Trumps current term, citizens have more of a holistic view of what presidency under him will look like. This can be either a drawback or a benefit, since citizens are able to look back on his term and pull concrete evidence.

The following information can be found on both candidates respective campaign websites.

On the economy, Trump boasts economic growth and jobs, citing 6 million new jobs, a record-breakingly low unemployment rate, a wage growth of 3% for 10 months in a row, the passing of The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. and U.S. Gross Domestic Product growth.

Bidens position focuses on reform. He identifies four pillars that stress mobilizing manufacturing and innovation, ingenuity in modern infrastructure and clean energy, talent within education and parenting and racial equity. He also makes a point to raise the minimum wage, benefits and pay for healthcare workers.

Regarding immigration, the former Vice President intends to reverse policies that Trump has put in place during his term. These policies, which, according to the Trump Administration, serve to protect American citizens communities and jobs by further securing the south border, scaling down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, implementing the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement Office and proposing immigration reform based on merit.

On the other hand, Trump intends to strengthen said policies, while keeping his foreign policy very open. During his term, he has travelled the world, working to restore Americas prominence in global diplomacy. He has held negotiations and made deals with countries such as South Korean, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Israel.

Similarly, Biden has pledged to strengthen the USs role in foreign policy, while also re-establishing a commitment to arms control and addressing the Climate Crisis by rejoining the Paris Climate Accord.

His campaign emphasizes climate control and environmental issues. Bidens aggressive approach calls for technological innovation, a clean energy initiative and focus on agricultural preservation.

Trump has an entirely different stance, based on affordability and expanding the job market. He has implemented the Affordable Clean Energy Rule by reversing President Barack Obamas Clean Power Plan and approving the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines.

Regarding education, the Trump Administration has created the Every Student Succeeds Act as well as modified the distribution of Pell grants to benefit students year-round, instead of only during the fall and spring semesters.

Alternatively, Bidens plans are more financially-driven, focused on raising wages and investing in education across America.

In this time of political unrest, many citizens are paying closer attention to criminal justice reform and gun control.

With this in mind, both candidates have put forth the directions they intend to take in the 2020-24 presidential term.

Trump draws our attention to the $98 million in grant funding he has allocated to the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, allowing for 802 additional full-time law enforcement officers, and the expansion of Project Safe Neighborhoods. He praises the U.S. Justice Department for their work and continued efforts on this afront.

On gun-control, he turns to the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms, and believes the Conceal and Carry Permit should be available country-wide.

Biden, however, proposes a $20 million grant that would incentivise state-level policing to shift from incarceration to prevention. He also plans to invest in education, expand funding for mental health and substance abuse research and treatment and to use the power of the U.S. Justice Department to address systemic misconduct in police departments and prosecutors offices.

Additionally, he has identified his plan to start the Task Force on Prosecutorial Discretion. He is much more strict regarding gun control and intends on tightening the reins by establishing the Task Force on Online Harassment and Abuse to focus on the connection between mass shootings, online harassment, extremism, and violence against women.

Concerning healthcare, the Trump Administration has repealed the individual mandate from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and approved a six-year extension of the Childrens Health Insurance Program, as well as declared the opioid crisis a nationwide public health emergency.

Biden emphasizes his intention to continue to develop and protect the Affordable Care Act from those who would see it gone and reinstate some Obama Care mandates that have been reversed.

Regarding the race, these two candidates could not be more different and America is torn. Poll-data is not necessarily reliable and it is difficult to predict the outcome of this election, as it was in the 2016 Presidential Election.

As young voters and students, be sure to gather information on each candidates Vice President picks. Trump has decided to continue with the current Vice President, Mike Pence, and Biden has chosen Kamala Harris as his running mate.

Regardless of your political stance, there are many points to consider as the election draws near. Do your research, head to the polls with confidence solidified through education and bring your friends with you.

Natalie Irula

nirula@live.esu.edu

The rest is here:
Six weeks out: How the 2020 Presidential Election is Shaping Up - The Stroud Courier

The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board recently emailed a series of questions to Rep. Scott Peters, D-San Diego, who is running for Californias 52nd Congressional District against Jim DeBello, R-San Diego. Here are the questions and his responses.

What will be your top domestic and international priority in Congress?

Internationally, San Diegans view the Mexican border as an opportunity, not a threat. I championed the effort to bring $500 million in federal investment to fully fund upgrades to the San Ysidro border crossing, the busiest land port in the world, dramatically reducing border waits, spurring tremendous economic activity and job creation. I oppose a wasteful $30 billion wall, as well as the presidents insults against Mexico. Our relationships are critical to solving common problems like pollution in the Tijuana River Valley. I helped secure $300 million as part of the USMCA which I supported, plus $50 million more through annual appropriations, to fix the decades-old problem of cross-border pollution.

Domestically, my top priority in Congress is helping the nation recover from COVID-19. The national economy is in a medically induced coma, which could have been curtailed had the Trump Administration had a quicker, more science-based response. Ive worked to increase investment in scientific research, support trade pacts that protect intellectual property and patent rights of inventors and improve access to higher education by reducing the burden of student debt. Ive championed billions of dollars in military investments here: a new training campus for Navy Seals, new infrastructure at MCAS Miramar and support for 25 new home-ported Navy ships. On the Veterans Affairs Committee, I fought to ensure that our veterans have jobs, health care and support to reduce veteran homelessness and suicide. And, this year, we must seize the moment and tackle and correct the systemic racism that has plagued our nations history.

Read our Q&A with the other candidate in this race below:

Has the pandemic changed your approach to health care? If so, how?

The pandemic has increased the urgency of improving health care. I have always fought to ensure health care is affordable, accessible, innovative, steered by science and data, and driven by wellness instead of treatment. This approach can improve quality of life, save lives, and reduce costs in the long term. Never before has this been as clear as it has been during this pandemic. Those without access to care, who are more likely to have pre-existing conditions, are hit hardest by the virus and more likely to fall victim to its worst affects which are more deadly and more expensive to treat. I have been an outspoken champion both for protecting the Affordable Care Act and also for fixing the parts that need to be fixed, such as keeping insurance premiums lower and more stable. The United States has yet to standardize national, state, county or city-level public reporting on COVID-19, providing experts only a fraction of the data we need to fight the pandemic. Last month, I introduced the Health Statistics Act that will fix detrimental inconsistencies in data collection and reporting, which is essential to effectively combat the coronavirus pandemic.

What more could Congress do to combat climate change?

Scientists have warned that the world must achieve net-zero carbon emissions by midcentury; achieving that milestone is my priority on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. There is no magic bullet. We must 1) decarbonize our economic sectors: electricity, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, buildings and aviation; 2) regulate damaging short-lived climate pollutants, especially methane; 3) impose a price on carbon; 4) invest in technological innovation for new fuels and energy storage; and 5) develop carbon capture technologies. Ive proposed my own bills and assembled a Climate Playbook of legislation authored in previous years, much of it bipartisan and already on the way to passage. The U.S. must also engage and lead internationally. In 2017, I addressed the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in Vatican City on U.S. climate policy. In 2019, I was honored to help represent our country at the United Nations COP25 climate conference in Madrid.

What changes would you make to U.S. immigration policy?

The Trump Administrations disgraceful hatred and bigotry have plunged our nations immigration system into chaos and continues to hurt Dreamers, their families and our countrys standing in the world.

I support an immigration policy that protects DREAMers and provides them a path to citizenship that allows them to stay in the only country they know. I would create a path to earned citizenship for the 11 million immigrants who have been here for decades and have become part of our essential workforce so they can come out of the shadows, pay into the social safety net and contribute even more to the national economy. And I would reform our immigration system to attract science and technology talent and bolster our workforce throughout the economy, that includes uniting families and keeping families together. I vehemently oppose an immigration policy that separates children from their parents, and one that shuts the door on immigrants from certain countries based on their religion as the Trump Administration has done. I support common-sense immigration reform, like the U.S.A. Act, which would modernize our border security to protect us from those who want to smuggle guns, drugs and people across, as well as fixes several of the problems with the Trump Administrations policies that I described above.

How would you address the massive national debt hanging over Americas future?

According to most economists, the U.S. needs to borrow more money in the near term to address the economic effects of the pandemic, to support businesses, workers and families. However, our national debt is at its highest level since WWII and growing faster than the economy. Every year, interest payments consume a larger and larger portion of taxpayer revenues. That is not sustainable.

Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) and I are working with the Committee on a Responsible Federal Budget and leading a bipartisan group of 30 Democrats and 30 Republicans to call on House and Senate leadership to commit to three policies as part of any future stimulus. First, we must be transparent with Congress and the public on the extent of our deficits and debt through an impartial and professional annual Fiscal State of the Nation report. Second, we would create a bipartisan panel to recommend policies that would avoid the impending insolvency of many of our trust funds, including highways and social security. And third, we would change the current debt ceiling limitation from a political cudgel to a legitimate policy tool to ensure that over time our debt grows more slowly than our economy. These same ideas have been adopted as part of the budget principles of my 50-member, bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus. I have been named a Fiscal Hero by the non-partisan Committee to Fix the Debt three times for my commitment.

Why should voters choose you over your opponent in this election?

I am a member of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee which has broad jurisdiction over San Diegos economic sectors. I have a record of working with everyone, Republicans and Democrats, to get things done. Ive dedicated my career to serving San Diego as an environmental attorney, community volunteer, City Council member and president, port commissioner and chairman, Coastal Commission member and United States congressman. I have authored several bills that have been passed into law to help purple heart veterans get their full education benefits, to help relieve the burden of college debt for working families, to provide better mental health services, and to cut red tape to speed the development of renewable energy sources. Ive been an effective advocate for the region and have brought more than a billion dollars in federal investment back to San Diego, for the military, our border crossing and public transportation. Ive stood up for DREAMers, successfully fought Donald Trumps attempts to defund services for homeless veterans and I played a critical role in defeating attempts by the Trump administration to take health care away from millions of Americans. Ive worked with President Trump when its been good for San Diego, as when we were allocated $300 million to deal with cross border sewage as part of approval of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. But Ive stood up to President Trump when he assaults our interests and values, as he has with immigration and the border. My opponent, on the other hand, made a maximum contribution to Donald Trumps Presidential campaign and continues to support him.

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2020 election: Q&A with Rep. Scott Peters, candidate in the 52nd Congressional District - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Students for Migrant Justice is a relatively new organization on campus that is fighting an old fight. Co-founders Luis Mata and Taylor Dempsey began the organization in early 2020 after recognizing the need for a bridge between the university and the migrant community in Knoxville.

Their mission to educate the UTK campus and Knoxville community on the immigration system, mobilize with partners on and off-campus and build strength amongst student immigrants on and off campus could not be more relevant in Knoxville today.

Since 2017, the Knox County Police Department has participated in agreement 287(g). This is an agreement with ICE that deputizes local law enforcement as immigration agents.

Knox is one of two Tennessee counties participating in 287(g), the other being Greene County. There are only 25 participating counties nationwide.

287(g) incentivizes racial discrimination, exacerbates fear between our migrant community and law enforcement, and separates families due to nonviolent offenses, Mata and Dempsey said.

On Aug. 19, Knox County Sheriff Tom Spangler issued a public statement in response to several anti-287(g) protests that have taken place at the Knox County Sheriffs Office, in addition to Spanglers home and place of worship.

After telling a brief story of a family that tragically lost their son at the hands of someone who had entered America undocumented, he made his decision on the agreement clear.

I have deliberated and decided that not only will I not rescind the current contract with 287(g), but I will sign the contract each time it comes up as long as I am sheriff of Knox County, in furtherance of my duly sworn responsibility to protect the citizens of Knox County, Spangler said in the statement.

Students for Migrant Justices response via an Instagram post on Aug. 27 took a strong stance against Spanglers statement, claiming he continued false narratives and inaccurate information in pursuit of fear and control. They went on to explain that over half of 287(g) detentions in Knox County are not related to violent crimes like those Spangler cites in his response, but rather traffic violations.

Once someone is convicted not charged on a local offense, they are taken without notice, ripped from their families, communities and homes and are put into the deportation pipeline, the SMJ statement said.

SMJ went on to acknowledge the relationship between 287(g) and police abolition, a political vision that is gaining steam in response to the most recent wave of the Black Lives Matter movement.

We will come together to reimagine a future where resources go directly to the people and to community centers, and not spent on police patrols and policies that ultimately harm Knoxville and Knox County, the statement said.

Additionally, Mata and Dempsey explained that detention beds are another local threat to migrant justice.

The deportation machine is alive and well here in the Knoxville community. Immigration enforcement policies are terrorizing our communities. Not only do we have the 287(g) program in Knox County, but we also have the detention bed Intergovernmental Service Agreement, or IGSA, as well, Mata and Dempsey said. The detention bed IGSA is a contract where ICE pays Knox County to hold ICE detainees in the jail, where they are usually transferred to Louisiana for deportation. This creates a monetary incentive for racial discrimination in our community.

In addition to the above mentioned policies, SMJ also works to inform students and the Knoxville community about Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

The Department of Homeland Security memorandum is a temporary relief from deportation for people who were brought to the United States as children without documentation. Despite the Trump administrations efforts to pause and rescind DACA, this June the Supreme Court decided to reinstate the policy back to its original 2012 form.

Ten days after the courts decision, the Department of Homeland Security issued a memorandum under the direction of Acting Secretary Chad Wolf that goes against the SCOTUS decision and places more restrictions on those who are receiving or may receive DACA.

Our organization decries and stands against Chad Wolf and the Trump administrations cruel memorandum, Mata and Dempsey said.

In response to how a student can help progress immigration reform, Mata and Dempsey say the best way a student can be an advocate for migrant justice is to support people of color and their voices.

Advocacy has many iterations, and there are plenty of avenues to do so here in the Knoxville community, and SMJ is here to help create that bridge, Mata and Dempsey.

Though this semester is looking very different than most, SMJ is still committed to pursuing its mission. Mata and Dempsey encourage all to follow SMJ on Instagram and Twitter, @UTK_SMJ.

More here:
Students for Migrant Justice advocates for immigration reform on and off campus - UT Daily Beacon