Big insurance companies are swamping Colorado airwaves with dishonest propaganda. We need you to donate your time, your money, or both right now. If we can show strong support for single payer in Colorado, we can bring the struggle to other states. Can we count on you to help advance our Healthcare For All efforts?

• Please contribute generously to support PDA's efforts on behalf of ColoradoCare. We gratefully welcome any donation.
• Money tight? Then please contact me, Donna Smith, if you can join us in Colorado working for ColoradoCare.
• Can't make it to Colorado? Then sign up to volunteer with Mike "Phone Guy" Fox to make easy but important calls.

The federal government is less than a week away from shutting down for lack of funding. The budget Continuing Resolution has funding for Zika and Louisiana flooding but nothing for Flint! That's why Progressive Democrats of America, in solidarity with our sister organization People Demanding Action, is asking for your urgent action. The Senate is scheduled to vote Tuesday, September 27 at 2:15 p.m. on a temporary spending bill to keep funds flowing through December 9.

The legislation has $1.1 billion for Zika services and $500 million for Louisiana flood victims. But it has nothing for the people of Flint, Michigan. They have just been told they will have to continue to filter their water or use bottled water for months longer–maybe as much as a year. Federal funds are needed to replace corroded lead pipes. At least 9,000 children of Flint have had lead exposure that places their health at risk. People's homes have lost value, so even if they would want to, many cannot move away from this ongoing disaster.

Tomorrow, we'll tell you how to help make progress for healthcare for all. Our topic today is peace, the other half of our Healthcare Not Warfare Campaign. We need you to call your Representative right now and urge him or her to cosponsor and vote for PDA-endorsed Rep. Ted Lieu's House Joint Resolution now! Call via the Capitol Switchboard: (202)-224-3121. Use the automated system to connect with your Representative's office. During office hours, ask to speak with the staffer who works on foreign relations issues and urge your Representative to cosponsor Rep. Ted Lieu's House Joint Resolution to halt the Saudi arms deal. Rep. Lieu explained why this is necessary:

"I have tried numerous times to work with the Administration to stop the United States from assisting Saudi Arabia in their indiscriminate killing of civilians in Yemen. But when Saudi Arabia continues to kill civilians, and in this case children, enough is enough. Having served on active duty, one of my responsibilities was to teach the Law of War. I am also a graduate of Air War College. The indiscriminate civilian killings by Saudi Arabia look like war crimes to me. In this case, children as young as 8 were killed by Saudi Arabian air strikes. By assisting Saudi Arabia, the United States is aiding and abetting what appears to be war crimes in Yemen. The Administration must stop enabling this madness now."

We need Nanette Barragán in Congress. With your help, she will fight for working people as. U.S. Representative. She's committed to protecting American jobs, and bringing more good-paying jobs with benefits to her community, as well as raising the minimum wage, and guaranteeing equal pay for equal work. To win this campaign, she will need all our help!

Please contribute generously right now to support Nanette Barragán! Money tight? Then volunteer to help Nanette win. You can also sign up to make Get Out the Vote (GOTV) calls with Mike "Phone Guy" Fox, and contact PDA Field Director Judy Hess to help build chapters in your state or locality.

I'm so honored that PDA asked me to co-chair the Healthcare Not Warfare (HNW) Campaign alongside Congressman John Conyers and Norman Solomon. Together, we pushed the Democratic Party to endorse guaranteed healthcare, as opposed to "coverage" in its 2008 National Party Platform. We still have far to go until every American has guaranteed access to high quality healthcare. Still, for me, this confirms the value of working inside the party whenever progress is possible.

Peace, the equally urgent half of our HNW Campaign, is our topic today. War is an atrocity. The cost of weapons and warfare makes investments in human needs impossible. We reject these backwards priorities, and demand peace for its own sake. PDA has been waging peace since our founding. Help Us Promote Peace and Human Rights By Supporting Media Benjamin's Book Tour. Money tight? Then volunteer to help host Medea at an event near you, (no promises, but we'll do our best.) You can also sign up to volunteer with Mike "Phone Guy" Fox to make easy but important calls from your own home, and contact PDA Field Director Judy Hess to help build chapters in your state or locality.

We don't have time to send email. Call your Member of Congress now via the Capitol Switchboard: (202)-224-3121. Use their automated system to be connected with your Representative's office. Ask to speak with the staffer who works on foreign relations issues and urge your Representative to cosponsor Rep. Ted Lieu's House Joint Resolution to halt the Saudi arms deal because of:

• Ongoing atrocities including attacks on civilians in Yemen as documented by neutral human rights advocates
• The likelihood of the continuing violence causing regional instability and empowering ISIS and Al Queda

Leave a voicemail if that staffer isn't available. If you don't know who your representative is, don't worry. When you dial in, the robovoice walks you through punching in your ZIP code to reach your congressperson. Otherwise you can use this link and enter your zip code in the upper right corner. (Thank you to Joanne Gruber for this update). 

Help Us Promote Peace and Human Rights By Supporting Media Benjamin's Book Tour. Money tight? sign up to volunteer with Mike "Phone Guy" Fox to make easy but important calls from your own home, or contact PDA Field Director Judy Hess to help build chapters in your state or locality.

We need public financing of campaigns so that elected officials are accountable to voters, not Big Money donors. Unfortunately, in California public financing of campaigns is banned due to Proposition 73, a bad initiative that was enacted in 1988. Now, California has the opportunity to lead the way in public financing of elections.

The DISCLOSE Act SB 1107, currently sitting on Governor Brown's desk, would lift the ban and allow public financing of campaigns. Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) is supporting our sister organization People Demanding Action in the effort to push Governor Brown to sign SB 1107 into law. If you live in California, Click here now to call Governor Brown and tell him to sign SB 1107. If you live elsewhere, click here to support the effort on social media and with a donation.

See PDA Advisory Board Chair Mimi Kennedy and PDA Executive Director Donna Smith on Thom Hartmann's TV Show tomorrow, Tuesday, September 20th. The show runs from 7 to 8pm ET, 4 to 5pm PT. Click here to find out where to watch, check your local listings for RT, or watch on demand on Free Speech TV. Listen to Mimi on Thom's radio show live Thursday, September 22nd Noon to 3pm ET, 9am to Noon PT, or in the archives.

Don't miss People Demanding Action's Progressive Round Table featuring Congress member Hank Johnson, People Demanding Action Executive Director Andrea Miller, Mimi Kennedy, Donna Smith, and other great presenters. Click here to watch live Wednesday, September 21st, 1pm ET, 10am PT, or on demand.

If Colorado can pass healthcare for all at the ballot box this November 8, we can build momentum toward a national Medicare for All health plan. With your help, we can make it happen! As a Coloradan who's endured horrific experiences trying to deal with our broken healthcare system, the ColoradoCare campaign is very personal to me. That's why I'm so honored that Lyn Gullette, a leader with the Campaign Team for ColoradoCare.org says:

PDA and Donna Smith, both nationally and at the state level, have been strong supporters of Colorado's efforts to pass Amendment 69 and secure universal health care. PDA walks the progressive walk and we've watched them skillfully, tenaciously, and powerfully fight against the multi-national corporate profiteers and advocate for the people and for the basic human right to have health care. Colorado is grateful for PDA.

Since our founding in 2004, Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) has been dedicated to stopping global warming and protecting our environment. While we've seen some successes, the overall trajectory of US policy remains on a collision course with extinction. Scientists warn that our species is facing an unprecedented climate emergency.

This is a fundamental struggle facing humanity today. None of us can afford to sit it out. We must act decisively now, before the trends become irreversible. Please support our efforts with a generous donation now. Money short? Then contact Mike "Phone Guy" Fox to sign up to make important movement mobilizing phone calls or contact PDA Field Coordinator Judy Hess to get help organizing in your area. Also, get involved with an important tour that our allies will launch today. Get more info. at their Facebook page—if you can't make it to an event, help spread the news.