May 20, 2003 - PoliticsNH.com: James Pindell writes about Kerry's policy on mandatory national public service

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Headlines: Peace Corps Headlines - 2003: May 2003 Peace Corps Headlines: May 20, 2003 - PoliticsNH.com: James Pindell writes about Kerry's policy on mandatory national public service

By Admin1 (admin) (pool-151-196-232-99.balt.east.verizon.net - 151.196.232.99) on Monday, December 29, 2003 - 1:36 pm: Edit Post

James Pindell writes about Kerry's policy on mandatory national public service





Read and comment on this op-ed from the PoliticsNH.com web site by James Pindell about Kerry's policy on mandatory national public service:

Quote:

...Republicans point out that President Bush has been committed to national service from the start whether it in the form of empowering up faith-based community groups before Sept. 11 or setting up the USA Freedom Corps after the attacks on the country.

"The Democrats continue to try and break away from the pack. If Senator Kerry would like some good ideas on inspiring volunteerism and community spirit I suggest he visit www.usafreedomcorps.gov. The bottom line is Senator Kerry's attack du jour is simply his latest effort to pull ahead of the undecideds currently beating him in the latest New Hampshire presidential primary polls," said state Republican communications director Julie Teer.

Kerry though didn’t talk about these programs. Instead he focused on programs formed by Democrats including the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, and VISTA. He said President Bush has nearly gutted these programs and he wants to improve them. For example, he wants to increase the number of those in the Peace Corps from 6,700 today to 25,000.


Read the oped at:

Kerry pushes mandatory national public service*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Kerry pushes mandatory national public service

By JAMES W. PINDELL
PoliticsNH.com

CONCORD, May 20 – Speaking to veterans and to students at his former high school, Sen. John Kerry proposed a $3.5 billion national effort to involve more Americans in public service building on the framework of other programs and mandating that all high schools incorporate service requirements for graduation.

Kerry spoke at an American Legion in Manchester before heading over to St. Paul’s School in Concord, where he graduated from in 1962 and where he claims to have given his first political speech.

He hopes his proposal will inspire more than a million Americans each year to be engaged in national service, half of which, would come from his "service to college" program that would provide free in-state public college tuition to anyone who completes two years of service. This portion would cost roughly $2.5 billion of the $3.5 billion of the entire proposal.

His initiative would also give extra funding to high schools in return that they add a service requirement for their students to graduate. Kerry claimed this wasn’t an unfunded mandate because if the federal government didn’t provide the funding, the school didn’t have to require service.

Kerry’s service plan is the second major proposal he is offered in a matter of a few days. In Iowa on Friday Kerry released an $80 billion health care plan aimed at reducing medical costs. In coming weeks Kerry’s staff said he would also release an energy plan in California and an early childhood plan somewhere yet determined.

Kerry is the first to offer a such a large service program and the only one of the nine Democratic presidential candidates to present one a major policy speech. Rep. Dick Gephardt has a similar program aimed at bringing more teachers in the classroom. Gephardt’s program would have the federal government pay off the college loans of those who are willing to teach five years in underprivileged places.

A year ago, Sen. John Edwards also proposed the idea of requiring high schools to have service graduation requirements in return of $65 million from the government. Last fall Edwards released a program that would pay for the first year of college for students who pass college-prep classes and are willing to work at least 10 hours per week in a part-time job or community service program.

Kerry kept the criticism not on his Democratic rivals, but squarely on the president, whom he accuses of squandering an opportunity to bring Americans into public service following the sentiment of Sept. 11.

"Whether it’s the economy or the environment, our schools or our servers, the story is the same," Kerry said. "President Bush speaks of compassion, but withholds commitment. It is time to demand more of our leadership and to answer the Americans who are asking to give more of themselves."

But Republicans point out that President Bush has been committed to national service from the start whether it in the form of empowering up faith-based community groups before Sept. 11 or setting up the USA Freedom Corps after the attacks on the country.

"The Democrats continue to try and break away from the pack. If Senator Kerry would like some good ideas on inspiring volunteerism and community spirit I suggest he visit www.usafreedomcorps.gov. The bottom line is Senator Kerry's attack du jour is simply his latest effort to pull ahead of the undecideds currently beating him in the latest New Hampshire presidential primary polls," said state Republican communications director Julie Teer.

Kerry though didn’t talk about these programs. Instead he focused on programs formed by Democrats including the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, and VISTA. He said President Bush has nearly gutted these programs and he wants to improve them. For example, he wants to increase the number of those in the Peace Corps from 6,700 today to 25,000.

To St. Paul’s senior Emily Baines, of Morristown, New Jersey, having Kerry speak at her school was inspiring.

"It makes you think that you could be like him on the stage in a few years," Baines said.

If Baines were to do so it might count as service.

James W. Pindell can be reached at
pindell@politicsnh.com



May 19, 2003 - Senator Kerry calls for expanding Peace Corps to 25,000





Read and comment on this story from WBZ4 News on Senator Kerry and his call for a "new era of service,'' Sen. John Kerry proposed a $3.5 billion plan Monday to encourage Americans of all ages to make a difference in their communities. Speaking at an American Legion hall, Kerry described his military service in Vietnam as the defining moment in his life, and said he wants such service to define the nation. He said learned about duty and obligation from his parents and, with a wavering voice, read a letter his mother wrote to his father during World War II.

Kerry's plan also calls for expanding the Peace Corps from 6,700 members to 25,000. "If there was ever a time when everyday people in the most deprived countries, cities and villages of he world need to see the idealism of the United States of America, it is today in the aftermath of September 11th," he said.

President Bush in his February 2002 State of the Union address has already called for doubling the size of the Peace Corps to 15,000. Read the story at:


Kerry unveils community service plan*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Kerry unveils community service plan
Monday May 19, 2003

By HOLLY RAMER
Associated Press Writer

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) Calling for a "new era of service," Sen. John Kerry proposed a $3.5 billion plan Monday to encourage Americans of all ages to make a difference in their communities.

The Democratic presidential hopeful from Massachusetts said programs ranging from "summers of service" for teenagers to mentoring jobs for retirees would involve more than a million Americans each year.

"Nothing I hope to do as president will be more vital than reconnecting America's public life to the ideal of citizenship," he said.

Speaking at an American Legion hall, Kerry described his military service in Vietnam as the defining moment in his life, and said he wants such service to define the nation. He said learned about duty and obligation from his parents and, with a wavering voice, read a letter his mother wrote to his father during World War II.

"You have no idea of the ways in which one can be useful right now," she wrote. "There's something for everyone to do."

"We need a new era of service," Kerry said. "Not an effort for one time, one purpose or one group but a permanent and national endeavor."

The centerpiece of Kerry's plan is a "service-for-college" initiative, which would offer students the equivalent of their state's four-year public college tuition in exchange for two years of service. His goal is to enroll 500,000 young people a year in the plan within the next decade.

"This will simultaneously strengthen our society, enhance our economy and advance our values by opening the doors of higher education to those who respond to a higher sense of duty to make our country better," he said.

He said the AmeriCorps service program, a kind of a domestic Peace Corps created under the Clinton administration, was a good start, but that more needed to be done.

Aides said Kerry's college program alone accounts for about $2.5 billion of the package's annual cost, but could be paid for easily through closing loopholes in the federal budget.

"It's a total of $3 billion to $3.5 billion, which measured against everything else that we are doing today is easily affordable," Kerry said. "That's closing one loophole ... it's just not an expensive, complicated program."

The college program is similar to one proposed earlier this year by one of Kerry's rivals, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, who would provide one year of college tuition to students who work 10 hours a week at part-time jobs or on community service projects.

Both Edwards and Kerry also propose making community service a graduation requirement at all high schools. Under Kerry's plan, states would design such service programs, which would be paid for by the federal government. They would require 50 to 100 hours over four years of high school, Kerry said, and consist of such jobs as cleaning up neighborhoods, spending time with the elderly and tutoring younger children.

Kerry's plan also calls for expanding the Peace Corps from 6,700 members to 25,000.

"If there was ever a time when everyday people in the most deprived countries, cities and villages of he world need to see the idealism of the United States of America, it is today in the aftermath of September 11th," he said.

The terrorist attacks on that day highlight the Bush administration's indifference to community service, Kerry said, chiding the president for turning aside proposals to tap into the wave of volunteerism that emerged after Sept. 11.

"He said he would 'rally the armies of compassion,' but he left them high and dry without the resources to wage their battles and with a leader who is absent from the cause he claimed to profess," Kerry said.

After the attacks, the president created the USA Freedom Corps, an effort to coordinate federal office on volunteering. It set up a database to help people find local organizations that need volunteers.

"The Democrats continue to try and break away from the pack. If Senator Kerry would like some good ideas on inspiring volunteerism and community spirit I suggest he visit www.usafreedomcorps.gov," said Julie Teer, spokeswoman for the New Hampshire Republican Party.

"Senator Kerry's attack du jour is simply his latest effort to pull ahead of the undecideds currently beating him in the latest New Hampshire presidential primary polls," Teer said.

In a Franklin Pierce College poll released this month, Kerry was tied for first place with former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean. Each had 23 percent, with 31 percent undecided. ^ =

On the Net: http://www.johnkerry.com
Presidential hopeful John Kerry praises Peace Corps





Read and comment on this story from Reuters last January 25 on Democratic Presidential hopeful John Kerry who says America should reach out to the world through programs like the Peace Corps that "put American idealism to work in developing countries." Kerry, a decorated Vietnam War veteran has made foreign policy a key component of his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination for 2004. Read the story at:

Kerry Calls for New U.S. Approach to Middle East*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Kerry Calls for New U.S. Approach to Middle East

Thu January 23, 2003 12:39 PM ET

By John Whitesides

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry said on Thursday the United States will not be safe from terrorism until it works with other nations to modernize and build democracies across the Middle East.

Like many other Democrats, the Massachusetts senator also urged President Bush not to rush into war with Iraq.

Calling for a "bold, progressive internationalism" in U.S. foreign policy, Kerry said what he called Bush's "unilateralist" approach was dangerous and the United States should lead a drive to bring freedom to the Middle East.

"The Bush administration has a plan for winning the war (against terrorism) but no plan for winning the peace," said Kerry, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who has made foreign policy a key component of his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination for 2004.

"What America needs today is a smarter, more comprehensive and far-sighted strategy for modernizing the Middle East," he said in prepared remarks for a speech at Georgetown University.

"It should draw on all of our nation's strengths: military might, the world's largest economy, the immense moral prestige of freedom and democracy and our powerful alliances."

Kerry said a combination of political repression, economic stagnation, population growth and lack of education had created an explosive mix on the streets of the Middle East, creating a breeding ground for hostility to the West.

WAR ON TERRORISM

As a result, winning the war on terrorism required not only hunting down terrorists who plot against the United States but building a better future for all in the Middle East, he said.

He hearkened back to Cold War efforts to rebuild Europe and reach out to the world through programs like the Peace Corps that "put American idealism to work in developing countries."

"With creative leadership, the U.S. can enlist our allies in a sustained multilateral campaign to build bridges between the community of democracies and the greater Middle East," he said.

Kerry, one of six Democrats vying to be the party's presidential candidate at the end of next year, said the Bush administration's "blustering unilateralism" was wrong and dangerous.

"It has meant alienating our long-time friends and allies, alarming potential foes and spreading anti-Americanism around the world," he said.

Kerry, who voted in favor of a congressional resolution giving Bush the authority to wage war in Iraq, said disarming President Saddam Hussein was a key component of peace in the Middle East, but the administration should exhaust its diplomatic avenues before launching war.

"They must take the time to do the hard work of diplomacy," Kerry said. "They must do a better job of making their case to the American people."

"Mr. President, do not rush to war," he said.

He called for significant investments in education and infrastructure in developing countries in the Middle East and said the United States must launch a high-profile regional trade initiative to spark growth there.




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By bankass.com (0-1pool136-73.nas12.somerville1.ma.us.da.qwest.net - 63.159.136.73) on Monday, December 29, 2003 - 6:39 pm: Edit Post

Howard Dean is a medical Doctor, he has cared for people on an individual basis. When he becomes President Medical services will be reviewed carefully and the issues related will be evaluated correctly. The guy above separates himself from the public on tough issues in the Senate like medical services at Peace Corps,false separations with Safety implications and above all prevention.

He has been a Senator on the Foreign relations committee for years and has not done much for volunteers. He is against making Peace Corps safe and correcting the past. 31 Volunteers killed died and or missing and 2000 plus victims of violence. He doesn't care. He just wants the sound bite.

By the way his office was closed last night in New Hampshire. Dean's office had fifteen volunteers working on the grassroots efforts to get him elected.

Dean has raised money from regular people. The guy above is desparate and is now spending his own money. That means his message is not resonating. Alot, of People in New Hampshire know he is no Paul Tsongas. It was the small guy or gal Tsongas worked for and people know it. That is why Tsongas got the votes he did in New Hampshire. He did the work as a Senator. The guy above falls short of the stature of a Tsongas because of the type of people he surrounds himself with.

He has had his chance on Federal issues, especially Peace Corps and he has dropped the ball. My personal opinion is that he has not done anything for volunteers who have been victimized who have served from his state and his staff has been rude about it. Everything comes back around. Being a snob to Mass Voters and other democrats will hurt his candidacy like Eileen Mcnamara of the Boston Globe has recently written about.

Next time you hear him speak listen for the "I"'s in his speech. Its all about him and his resume and not "we" as in the people.

By daniel (0-1pool136-73.nas12.somerville1.ma.us.da.qwest.net - 63.159.136.73) on Monday, December 29, 2003 - 6:49 pm: Edit Post

Dean for America that is who I am with.

The guy above gives me alot of inspiration to work for Dean's candidacy. I thank him for that.


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