Archive for July, 2010

CNN’s Don Lemon recently visited Memphis to shoot a story about Tennessee’s 9th District Congressional Primary that aired on the July 29th episode of “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer”.

Click here to view the story on the CNN website.

Congressman Steve Cohen’s Securing the Protection of our Enduring and Established Constitutional Heritage (SPEECH) Act has passed the House of Representatives for the second time. The United States Senate amended and passed the bill unanimously last week, requiring a second vote in the House of Representatives to approve the changes before President Obama signs it into law.

The SPEECH Act puts an end to “libel tourism”, the practice of exploiting plaintiff-friendly defamation laws in foreign countries in an attempt to silence or intimidate American journalists, authors and publishers.

“Libel tourism threatens to undermine free speech in the U.S. because, with the rise of the internet and foreign courts’ liberal exercise of personal jurisdiction over Americans, foreign defamation law that lacks the constitutionally mandated speech-protective measures of U.S. law can be applied to publications that are substantially or entirely distributed in the U.S.,” said Congressman Cohen during his floor speech.

Supporters of the SPEECH Act include the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the Vermont Library Association, the American Library Association, the Association of American Publishers, the American Civil Liberties Union, First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, and former CIA Director James Woolsey.

The Congressional Black Caucus has contributed to Congressman Steve Cohen’s Re-Election Campaign Fund.

The Commercial Appeal:

Incumbent 9th District Congressman Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., received a $5,000 contribution today from the Congressional Black Caucus political action committee.

“You have been selected to receive this contribution because of your commitment to the CBC PAC’s goals,” Meeks wrote.

With almost $1 million in his campaign account, the amount is immaterial, but its symbolic value is significant because it indicates strong support for him among black colleagues in Congress. His opponent, Willie Herenton, has argued that the district should elect the former Memphis mayor so that one of the 11-member Tennessee Congressional delegation is an African-American.

“The CBC PAC’s mission is to increase the number of African-Americans in the U.S. Congress (and) to support non-black candidates who champion CBC interests,” said the letter from PAC Chairman Gregory W. Meeks, D-N.Y.

Click here to read the rest.

Congressman Steve Cohen sat down at Huey’s in Midtown with CNN’s Don Lemon for an interview that will air on  the Wednesday, July 28th edition of “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer”.

Congressman Steve Cohen spoke to his supporters inside his 1460 Union Avenue Headquarters to organize a mass canvass going into the final push before the August 5th Democratic Primary.

CNN’s Rick Sanchez has named Congressman Steve Cohen Most Intriguing Person for July 21.

Excerpt:

Because a former Agriculture Department official lost her job over wrongly-reported racial bias by some media, race relations in America are again thrust onto the front pages and into “breaking news.”

Our Most Intriguing Person today is calling attention to his racial difference in the political arena.

A Tennessee Democrat, Rep. Steve Cohen went to Washington three years ago ready to join the Congressional Black Caucus. (60 percent of his constituents are African-American).  But there’s a problem: CBC members must be black. Steve Cohen is not.

Read the rest at the CNN website.

The League of Conservation Voters has endorsed Congressman Steve Cohen in Tennessee’s 9th District Congressional Democratic Primary.

“Steve Cohen has been an invaluable leader in championing clean energy jobs and protecting our natural treasures,” said LCV President Gene Karpinski. “We are proud to endorse Congressman Cohen for re-election because his record proves he knows that the policies needed to grow Tennessee’s economy and keep America’s competitive edge are the same policies that will reduce our dependence on foreign oil and curb harmful carbon pollution.”

“I am honored to receive the endorsement from the League of Conservation Voters Action Fund,” said Congressman Steve Cohen.  Throughout my career in public service, I have been a strong proponent of efforts to lower energy costs, invest in renewable energy resources, promote energy independence and create a stronger more secure economy. And I will continue to be an advocate for clean energy and our environment when I return for the 112th session of the United States Congress.”

The League of Conservation Voters was founded in 1969 to advocate for sound environmental policies and to elect pro-environmental candidates who will adopt and implement such policies.

Rep. Cohen received a perfect 100% score on LCV’s 2009 National Environmental Scorecard and has a lifetime LCV score of 98%.

Enjoy the “Buttons” internet ad created by Pete Ceren.

Forward this to your friends!

The Washington Post has published an article about Congressman Steve Cohen and Tennessee’s 9th District Congressional Primary.

Excerpt:

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) arrived on Capitol Hill three years ago ready to join the Congressional Black Caucus. His logic was simple: More than 60 percent of the people in his Memphis-based congressional district are black.

So was the caucus’s logic in its reply: The organization is reserved for black members of Congress, and Cohen is white.

The caucus still has not opened its weekly meetings to Cohen, but he has found a different kind of welcome from the group: their endorsements.

Read the rest at The Washington Post’s website.