Stopping Buck McKeon-- It Takes A Village

Blue America has teamed up with Santa Clarita progressives at The Buck Stops Now to create a TV and radio campaign to highlight the dangers to nearly a third of the people in McKeon's congressional district posed by his stubborn and arrogant inaction on he Cemex mine. Up top is the web ad-- please send it around to your friends-- and we're working on cutting that down to both a radio spot and a TV spot. And down at the bottom is a TV spot that will be on the air any moment. If you've been around Blue America for long you probably recall when Rickie Lee Jones and the guys from the Squirrel Nut Zippers recorded that for us. We've never had it on TV before. Should be fun for the folks up in Santa Clarita, Simi Valley and the Antelope Valley.

The Cemex mind is no joking matter which is why we decided to use both TV and radio and get as many spots up in Santa Clarita as we can. Lately McKeon has gone whining to the local radio station owner and to The Signal that he's unhappy with all the coverage they've been giving his scandals, Lee Rogers' campaign and, especially, his failure to protect his own constituents from the looming Cemex catastrophe. Expect coverage to drop off precipitously. Clear Channel has already rejected our billboards and told us that they're not running anything negative against McKeon or positive in favor of Rogers. (Next week, we'll show you how we responded and thwarted them.)

Meanwhile, no one living in Santa Clarita wants their families coming down with emphysema (McKeon lives in Alexandria, Virginia and, since losing the Assembly race his wife has been living in Utah.) And no one wants the traffic that the mine is going to bring to the area. Barbara Boxer has been trying to fix the problem but McKeon has arrogantly refused to help. Everyone, regardless of party, is fed up with him. He could wind up losing his reelection bid on an issue no one in Washington has even a notion about. Rogers has been beating the hell out of him on it and the local media has embraced his arguments. In fact, McKeon is so scared that he's desperately trying to figure out a way to get out from under this without acknowledging Rogers' number one campaign issue. Last month The Signal ran a devastating OpEd by Rogers about the CEMEX mining disaster. Now it's going to be up to Blue America to make sure we keep the mine in the minds of the voters right up through November 6. If you want to help Blue America do this, here's the place.

Although Rogers, like most of the residents of the area, are most concerned about the impact on health of the mining operation, he pointed out another facet that will have a long term inpact on the quality of life for the whole Santa Clarita Valley.

The Environmental Impact Report estimates 1,200 rock trucks per day would enter and leave the mine. This added traffic along a congested Hwy 14 adds to the commuter problems of the Santa Clarita Valley and the Antelope Valley, which already has the longest average commute time of any similar sized community in the US.

These factors cannot be mitigated. The only way to prevent the impact is to stop the mine.

Nearly 120 local organizations oppose the mine and the City of Santa Clarita’s recent poll indicates a majority of citizens disapprove of it. But how do we stop it? The City and interested parties have exhausted legal options. It requires a legislative solution in Congress to cancel the mining contract. Senator Barbara Boxer has introduced S.759, which would stop the mine and all parties have agreed to it, including Cemex.

The problem is that a companion bill is needed in the House of Representatives and our Congressman, Buck McKeon, has refused to introduce the legislation. I’ve called on him numerous times to put aside politics and take care of our community. The Santa Clarita City Council sent him a clear message with a 5-0 vote asking that he work with Senator Boxer to help stop the mine. McKeon has stated he will not act during this session of Congress.

I have vowed to make this my top priority if elected to Congress. There are few things that your US Congressman can do to directly impact your life, but this is one and for our community’s sake, it must be done.

We also have an Oust Buck competition starting today. If you want to see him retire so he can sit and gamble away his days at the Venetian and stop wrecking America, you can help by creating a poster or short video, explaining your reasons for wanting to defeat him on November 6. Posters should be submitted in .jpg or .pdf format and be no larger than 5mb. Videos should not exceed two minutes in length. All submissions will be displayed at TheBuckStopsNow and the creator of the wining poster or video-- as determined by Blue America and The Buck Stops Now-- will receive $100.00 so you can buy ice cream for all your friends. Submit your artwork or the link to your video to contest@thebuckstopsnow.org. Want to hear Ricky Lee Jones and the Squirrel Nut Zippers all over the radio up in Santa Clarita, Simi Valley and the Antelope Valley? Chip in here.