2008 Presidential Campaign Blog

MSP 2008 Host Committee Launches Recycling Program For 2008 Republican National Convention

HOST COMMITTEE LAUNCHES RECYCLING PROGRAM WITH WASTE MANAGEMENT AND COCA-COLA FOR 2008 REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION

MINNEAPOLIS SAINT PAUL, MINN. (August 6, 2008) - Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee officials joined representatives from Waste Management, Inc. and Coca-Cola Recycling LLC at the Xcel Energy Center today to announce a first-of-its-kind recycling program that will take place during the 2008 Republican National Convention, to be held Sept. 1-4. In addition, the Committee will officially name Waste Management and Coca-Cola Recycling as the Official Recycling Providers of the 2008 Republican National Convention.

The “closed-loop” recycling program will utilize a system where all of the recyclable material recovered at the Xcel Energy Center and St. Paul RiverCentre during the convention will be recycled in the Minneapolis Saint Paul Area. Recycling bins and signage will be located throughout the convention. Waste Management will collect all waste and recyclable material during the convention and take it to its facility in Minneapolis where all of the recyclable material will be sorted and baled. The polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles and aluminum cans will then be shipped back to the Coca-Cola bottling plant in Eagan, Minn., and ultimately processed by Coca-Cola into new bottles and cans. Both convention facilities sell the majority of beverages in plastic bottles. Waste Management will also be recycling all of the paper and cardboard recovered at the event.

“We are thrilled that this convention has prompted new and innovative programs among our Official Recycling Providers, Waste Management and Coca-Cola,” said Cynthia Lesher, president for the Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee. “As part of our efforts to make this convention as eco-friendly as possible, we are working with them to keep a large portion of the recycled material right here in the state.”

“The 2008 Republican National Convention has made it a priority to implement numerous conscientious environmentally friendly initiatives,” said 2008 Republican National Convention President and CEO Maria Cino.  “We are pleased that Coca-Cola and Waste Management have joined our efforts to be as environmentally friendly a convention as possible.”

There will be nearly 300 stations with co-branded event recycling bins and waste containers throughout the Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre for convention attendees to dispose of their waste and recyclables. All recycling containers will be “single stream,” meaning any recyclable material – aluminum, paper, plastic, or glass – can be deposited in the container.

“Waste Management wanted to make it as easy as possible for people to recycle properly while attending the convention,” said Julie Ketchum, government affairs director for Waste Management, Inc. “By using co-branded containers Waste Management and Coca-Cola have made it simple for convention attendees to do their part for the environment.”

“By creating opportunities to easily recycle, Coca-Cola Recycling can help to ensure that we capture the packaging for all of the beverages consumed at the 2008 Republican National Convention,” said John Burgess, president and chief executive officer, Coca-Cola Recycling.  “Our expertise will not only allow us to provide the infrastructure to divert most of the materials collected at the Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre from local landfills, but the recycling bins, energy-efficient coolers and hybrid electric trucks that CCE will use throughout the venues will stay in Minnesota, providing a sustainable and long-term solution to help keep Minneapolis Saint Paul green long after the Convention is finished.”

Waste Management is the largest recycler in Minnesota, recycling nearly 250,000 tons of material at its Minneapolis facility, and is also the largest recycler in the nation, recycling nearly 8 million tons of recyclable commodities a year. By 2020, the company hopes to triple the amount of recyclable material it processes in a given year.

In addition to the recycling program with Waste Management and Coca-Cola, the Host Committee and the Committee on Arrangements have made great efforts to be eco-conscious in the planning and execution of the convention. Efforts include utilizing hybrid vehicles; providing information and applications online versus in print for volunteers, delegates and media; printing materials on recycled paper or other alternative types of material including producing the 45,000 GOParty Cards for delegates and media on a bio-plastic material derived entirely from plants; conducting volunteer training virtually; and creating an office environment for convention planners that is equipped with recycled furniture, carpet and office supplies. In addition, 80 percent of employees live within walking distance to the offices.

About The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee
The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee is a non-partisan, 501c3 nonprofit charged with promoting the commerce, image and prestige of Minneapolis, Saint Paul and the entire region in preparation for the 2008 Republican National Convention. The Host Committee is made up of community leaders who are committed to educating people and businesses to come to Minnesota to work, live, play, visit and invest. For more information, visit www.msp2008.com.

About Waste Management, Inc.

Waste Management is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management and environmental services in North America.  Waste Management’s more than 50,000 employees company-wide serve 21 million municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers through a network of 413 collection operations, 370 transfer stations, 283 active landfill disposal sites, 17 waste-to-energy plants, 131 recycling plants and 100 beneficial-use landfill gas projects.

Combined with its wholly owned subsidiary WM Recycle America (WMRA), Waste Management is North America’s largest recycler handling nearly 8 million tons of commodities each year, saving more than 41 million trees and enough energy to power 1.6 million households.

About Coca-Cola Recycling LLC

Based in Atlanta, Coca-Cola Recycling is dedicated to recovering and recycling packaging materials used in North America – including polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, aluminum, cardboard and plastic film.  Coca-Cola Recycling is working to recover and recycle the equivalent of 100 percent of the packaging produced by the Coca-Cola system in the United States.  Founded in 2007, Coca-Cola Recycling is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CCE, the world's largest marketer, distributor, and producer of bottle and can liquid nonalcoholic refreshment.  CCE sells approximately 80 percent of The Coca-Cola Company's bottle and can volume in North America and is the sole licensed bottler for products of The Coca-Cola Company in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, and the Netherlands

Commission On Presidential Debates (CPD) Announces 2008 Debate Moderators

COMMISSION ON PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES ANNOUNCES MODERATORS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Paul G. Kirk, Jr. and Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr., co-chairmen of the non-partisan Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), today announced the moderators for the 2008 general election presidential and vice presidential debates. The moderators, and the schedule and locations for the debates (as announced on November 21, 2007), are as follows:

First presidential debate
Friday, September 26
The University of Mississippi, Oxford, Miss.
Jim Lehrer
Executive Editor and Anchor, The NewsHour, PBS

Vice presidential debate
Thursday, October 2
Washington University in St. Louis, Mo.
Gwen Ifill
Senior Correspondent, The NewsHour, and Moderator and Managing Editor, Washington Week, PBS

Second presidential debate (town meeting)
Tuesday, October 7
Belmont University, Nashville, Tenn.
Tom Brokaw
Special Correspondent, NBC News

Third presidential debate
Wednesday, October 15
Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y.
Bob Schieffer
CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent, and Host, Face the Nation

Each debate will begin at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Format

The format for the debates, announced on November 21, 2007, will be:

Each debate will have a single moderator and last for 90 minutes.

In the first and third presidential debates and the vice presidential debate, the candidates will be seated with the moderator at a table.

One presidential debate will focus primarily on domestic policy and one presidential debate will focus primarily on foreign policy. The second presidential debate will be held as a town meeting in which citizens will pose questions to the candidates. The vice presidential debate will cover both foreign and domestic topics.

During the first and third presidential debates, and the vice presidential debate, the time will be divided into eight, ten-minute segments. The moderator will introduce each segment with an issue on which each candidate will comment, after which the moderator will facilitate further discussion of the issue, including direct exchange between the candidates for the balance of that segment.

The participants in the town meeting will pose their questions to the candidates after reviewing their questions with the moderator for the sole purpose of avoiding duplication. The participants will be chosen by the Gallup Organization and will be undecided voters from the Nashville, Tenn. standard metropolitan statistical area. During the town meeting, the moderator has discretion to use questions submitted by Internet.

Time at the end of the final presidential debate will be reserved for closing statements.

Participants

The CPD 2008 Candidate Selection Criteria, announced on November 21, 2007, will be the exclusive means of determining the candidates to be invited to participate in the debates.

John McCain 2008 Launches New TV Ad: "Broken"

JOHN MCCAIN 2008 LAUNCHES NEW TV AD: "BROKEN"

ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential campaign today released its latest television ad, entitled "Broken." The ad highlights John McCain's record of taking on the special interests in Washington. The ad will air in key states.

Script For "Broken" (TV :60)

ANNCR: Washington's broken. John McCain knows it. We're worse off than we were four years ago.

Only McCain has taken on big tobacco, drug companies, fought corruption in both parties. He'll reform Wall Street, battle Big Oil, make America prosper again.

He's the original maverick.

One is ready to lead -- McCain.

JOHN MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approved this message.

MSP 2008 Host Committee And City Officials Host Free Taxi Wash

HOST COMMITTEE AND CITY OFFICIALS HOST FREE TAXI WASH
Spruce up for RNC Cities Offer Reciprocity, Inspections and Free Training Sessions for Drivers

Minneapolis Saint Paul, Minn. (August 5, 2008) - Minneapolis Saint Paul Host Committee leaders joined local mayors and area Convention and  Visitors Bureau (CVB) directors today to wash cabs while helping to promote the taxi reciprocity program and free training sessions each city will hold in mid August.

From August 24 to September 7, cities will offer reciprocity to all cab drivers, enabling them to pick up and drop off fares anywhere in the cities of Saint Paul, Minneapolis and Bloomington, as well as the Minneapolis Saint Paul Airport, during the convention. Currently taxi drivers are only allowed to pick up fares in their designated cities. 

“The residents of the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area have been great partners in our efforts to host a successful convention,” said Maria Cino, CEO and President for the 2008 Republican National Convention.  “Because of efforts like this one, we’re confident a warm welcome will be extended to the 45,000 attendees who will be arriving in just a few weeks.”

Cab drivers must register for reciprocity in advance by submitting to an official cab inspection, paying a $35 administrative fee and completing a free training session. Qualifying cabs will then receive a decal certifying that they have completed the steps and are eligible for reciprocity.

“Our local taxi cab drivers will be among the first to welcome the 45,000 visitors coming to town for the convention,” said Jeff Larson, CEO of the MSP 2008 Host Committee. “We want our guests to have a great first impression of Minneapolis Saint Paul and the surrounding area and experience a clean and friendly community.”

Reciprocity will expedite the service throughout the Minneapolis Saint Paul metro area during the convention, as cabs can pick up fares in the same city where they’re dropping off passengers, allowing for speedier, more efficient service and reducing wait time for customers.

“We need to make it as easy as possible for our guests to hail a cab and reach their destination safely and in a friendly, timely manner,” said Saint Paul Mayor Chris Coleman. “These new programs will allow cab drivers throughout the metro to work together to help us greet our guests for the convention in a courteous, professional way.”

The training sessions, to be held in each city the week of August 11, will offer helpful customer service advice, encouraging drivers to be ambassadors for the area. Attendees will also receive packets detailing key convention venues, restaurants and attractions as well as information on travel route tips, road closures and traffic updates during the convention. Cab drivers who attend the training sessions will also receive special T-shirts and welcome buttons courtesy of the Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee to wear during the convention to provide a consistent, welcoming image.

“It’s up to everyone in our communities to do their part to make a lasting impression on our guests,” said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak. “In many cases a taxi driver is one of the first points of contact for a visitor. I’m confident our metro drivers are going to help us make the cities shine.”

The taxi wash is the first in a series of Host Committee and city-sponsored events designed to encourage residents and businesses to help spruce up Minneapolis Saint Paul prior to the convention. Additional spruce up events include:

• Airport clean up and signage campaign
• Spruce Up MSP volunteer clean-up day, August 16, 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• Metrodome parking lot (5th St. and 11th Ave.)
• Saint Paul Conseco Upper Lot (Broadway Street and Kellogg Blvd.)
• Mall of America is planting flowers, landscaping, and repainting.

Obama Campaign Releases TV Ad On Obama’s New Energy For America Plan

Obama Campaign Releases TV Ad on Obama’s New Energy for America Plan

30-Second Spot Highlights Senator Obama’s Plan to Offset the Costs of Rising Energy and Addresses Oil Industry Contributions to John McCain’s Campaign. 

CHICAGO – As Barack Obama announces his New Energy for America Plan today,  the Obama campaign unveiled a new ad, one that illustrates the clear choice in this election between an approach that keeps us sending billions to oil companies and foreign governments and one that gives middle class families a $1,000 rebate funded by a windfall profits tax on the oil companies. Pocket highlights that for far too long, we’ve had an energy policy that has worked for the oil companies. Barack Obama believes it’s time we had an energy policy that works for the American people.

Today Senator Obama is outlining his New Energy for America plan in a speech in Lansing, Michigan. Obama's plan will provide an immediate energy rebate to Americans struggling with high gas prices, create five million new green jobs, and eliminate our need for Middle Eastern oil in 10 years.

Anncr VO:  Every time you fill your tank, the oil companies fill their pockets.  

Now Big Oil’s filling John McCain’s campaign with 2 million dollars in contributions.

Because instead of taxing their windfall profits to help drivers, McCain wants to give them another 4 billion in tax breaks.  

After one president in the pocket of big oil… We can’t afford another.

Barack Obama…  A windfall profits tax on big oil to give families a thousand dollar rebate.

A president who’ll stand up for you. 

Barack VO:  I’m Barack Obama and I approve this message.

George W. Bush 2000 Convention Speech Anniversary

Governor George W. Bush Acceptance Speech in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Thursday, August 3, 2000.

"Mr. Chairman, delegates, and my fellow citizens ... I accept your nomination. Thank you for this honor. Together, we will renew America's purpose.

Our founders first defined that purpose here in Philadelphia ... Ben Franklin was here. Thomas Jefferson. And, of course, George Washington -- or, as his friends called him, "George W."

I am proud to have Dick Cheney at my side. He is a man of integrity and sound judgment, who has proven that public service can be noble service. America will be proud to have a leader of such character to succeed Al Gore as Vice President of the United States.

I am grateful for John McCain and the other candidates who sought this nomination. Their convictions strengthen our party.

I am especially grateful tonight to my family.

No matter what else I do in life, asking Laura to marry me was the best decision I ever made.

To our daughters, Barbara and Jenna, we love you, we're proud of you, and as you head off to college this fall ... ... Don't stay out too late, and e-mail your old dad once in a while, will you?

And mother, everyone loves you and so do I.

Growing up, she gave me love and lots of advice. I gave her white hair. And I want to thank my father -- the most decent man I have ever known. All my life I have been amazed that a gentle soul could be so strong. And Dad, I want you to know how proud I am to be your son.

My father was the last president of a great generation. A generation of Americans who stormed beaches, liberated concentration camps and delivered us from evil.

Some never came home.

Those who did put their medals in drawers, went to work, and built on a heroic scale ... highways and universities, suburbs and factories, great cities and grand alliances -- the strong foundations of an American Century.

Now the question comes to the sons and daughters of this achievement...

What is asked of us?

This is a remarkable moment in the life of our nation. Never has the promise of prosperity been so vivid. But times of plenty, like times of crisis, are tests of American character.

Prosperity can be a tool in our hands -- used to build and better our country. Or it can be a drug in our system -- dulling our sense of urgency, of empathy, of duty.

Our opportunities are too great, our lives too short, to waste this moment.

So tonight we vow to our nation ...

We will seize this moment of American promise.

We will use these good times for great goals.

We will confront the hard issues -- threats to our national security, threats to our health and retirement security -- before the challenges of our time become crises for our children.

And we will extend the promise of prosperity to every forgotten corner of this country.

To every man and woman, a chance to succeed. To every child, a chance to learn. To every family, a chance to live with dignity and hope.

My fellow citizens, we can begin again. After all of the shouting, and all of the scandal. After all of the bitterness and broken faith. We can begin again.

The wait has been long, but it won't be long now.

A prosperous nation is ready to renew its purpose and unite behind great goals ... and it won't be long now.

Our nation must renew the hopes of that boy I talked with in jail, and so many like him... and it won't be long now.

Our country is ready for high standards and new leaders ... and it won't be long now.

An era of tarnished ideals is giving way to a responsibility era ... and it won't be long now.

I know how serious the task is before me.

I know the presidency is an office that turns pride into prayer.

But I am eager to start on the work ahead.

And I believe America is ready for a new beginning.

My friend, the artist Tom Lea of El Paso, captured the way I feel about our great land.

He and his wife, he said, "live on the east side of the mountain ...

It is the sunrise side, not the sunset side.

It is the side to see the day that is coming ... not the side to see the day that is gone."

Americans live on the sunrise side of mountain.

The night is passing.

And we are ready for the day to come.

Thank you. And God bless you.

Full Speech Text

Bob Dole Web Site Redesign 10th Anniversary

August 2, 1996
DOLE CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES NEW WEB SITE

"There's no doubt we'll look back at Web sites today and basically say ... that they were quite primitive. They don't customize what they present to the viewers' interests. They don't remember: Have you been there before? What have you seen before? And that's got to change." -- Bill Gates, MSNBC, July 15, 1996

IT HAS . . .

DOLE CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF FIRST INDIVIDUALLY-CUSTOMIZED POLITICAL WEB SITE

The Dole for President campaign today launched its general election Web site -- the first political Web site to individually-customize itself for each user's interests, home state, and last visit.

When users first visit the site, they are given the option of setting up a custom Dole Web page. Each custom page contains a personal tool bar that welcomes the user by name, alerts them to an electronic "In Box" containing any new press releases or other campaign materials posted since their last visit, directs them to briefing papers on issues in which they expressed interest, and offers a home-state icon for local information about the Clinton record and the Dole agenda in that state.

The Dole Web site also customizes to take each users' technical capabilities into account by offering different variations with Shockwave applications and/or RealAudio. The user is even given a layout choice by selecting from a variety of animated and non-animated "footers" for the main page.

Unlike other political Web sites, the Dole campaign also offers users a mechanism to give feedback to the campaign on policy positions. Each briefing paper is an interactive document that lets users tell the campaign what priority they think a Dole administration should give the initiative.

The Interactive section of the site has also been redesigned and expanded. In addition to reviewing policy papers, speeches, backgrounders, and press releases, visitors to the Dole site can:

Create custom Dole campaign buttons.

Download official Dole for President computer "wallpaper."

Design and mail their own e-mail postcards to friends.

Make a personalized Dole for President campaign poster.

Test their knowledge with Dole trivia questions and crossword puzzles.

Review state issues and where Dole has visited through interactive maps.

Statement From Senator Barack Obama On One-Year Anniversary Of I-35W Mississippi River Bridge Collapse

Statement from Senator Barack Obama on One-Year Anniversary of I-35W Mississippi River Bridge Collapse

ST. PAUL – U.S. Senator Barack Obama today released the following statement on the one-year anniversary of the I-35W Mississippi River bridge collapse:

“Today, Michelle and I join the people of Minnesota, and all Americans, to remember those who lost their lives in the tragic collapse of the I-35W Mississippi River bridge. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families and loved ones.  As we remember and honor those we lost, we must also ensure that every possible step is taken to prevent future tragedies. That is why I will continue fighting to rebuild our crumbling roads and bridges, strengthen our national infrastructure, and make the safety of Americans a top priority.”

Veepstakes: Two Tim's From MN

The focus this week is on Tim Pawlenty and Tim Kaine as Vice Presidential candidates respectively for John McCain and Barack Obama. It is interesting to note that both men were born in Minnesota.

Tim Kaine's official biography notes that he was born in St. Paul on February 26, 1958. Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty's birthplace is nearby in South St. Paul.  His birthdate is November 27, 1960

John McCain To Attend The Iowa State Fair On August 8, 2008

Note: This event is no longer on the McCain website (7/31/08)

John McCain Attends the Iowa State Fair

What:     John McCain Attends the Iowa State Fair

When:     August 8, 2008 10:00 a.m.

Where:     Iowa State Fairgrounds

John McCain to stop by the Iowa State Fair!

Friday August 8, 2008
10:00 a.m.- 12:00 p.m.

John McCain plans on walking through the fairgrounds and visiting the Pig "Big Red."