DISABLED TO THE RESCUE!  PHONE BANK NUMBER: 314-423-1493
A personal message from Don C. Reed in support of Claire McCaskill, Missouri's
champion for the disability community.
If you are disabled, or if someone in your family has a disability, Missouri
needs your help:
As you know, Claire McCaskill is our champion. (For her positions on
disability issues, see the bottom of the page.)
This matters to me, because my son is paralyzed.
Roman Reed broke his neck in a football accident. He is a quadriplegic. He
can't close his fingers, and his legs don't work.
But he will vote tomorrow.
And if he lived in Missouri, he would offer a lift to the polls to every
wheelchair-driving friend who could fit into his adapted van.
I propose that today, Monday, November 6, be called "MISSOURI MONDAY,"
dedicated to citizens with disabilities all across America, but especially
in the "Show Me" state of Missouri, where disability advocate Claire
McCaskill is fighting the most uphill battle in America.
Against her is a campaign with a mountain of money to spend, a budget
described as "limitless", someone who is flooding the state's airwaves with
expensive cunning ads.
President Bush wants to defeat Claire McCaskill so badly he has come himself
to Missouri five times in the campaign-he did not have time to visit much
before then, but during election season he comes so often he seems to
considering a change in address!
The last I heard, Talent's campaign had $4,200,000-4.2 million cash on hand-
more than thirty times what McCaskill's campaign has- she only has about
$225,000!  The Republicans could afford to send limousines to pick up voters
and transport them to the polls.
But Claire McCaskill is fighting on, and her election matters, to Missouri,
and America.
That's why people are on the phone bank lines, calling folks all across the
state, urging them to come to the polls tomorrow-some of those phonebankers
are citizens with a disability, fighting for Claire just as she will fight
for us.
Claire McCaskill is strong on health care, and on issues of poverty,
unemployment, insurance, and wheelchair access. She knows that many
Missourians with disabilities require better care right now-and definitely
not the massive cuts in Medicare that the Bush Administration is planning
for after the elections..
Claire McCaskill has 900,000 friends whom money cannot buy: Missouri
citizens with disabilities. If they and their families make it to the polls,
a huge upset is in the making.
Claire McCaskill supports the legitimate concerns of the disabled community.
As the father of a paralyzed son, I urge every Missourian with a disability
to regard the voting booths as your personal source of political power.
My son Roman drives a wheelchair. He cannot close his fingers, or move his
legs.
But he will vote tomorrow.
And so, I hope, will every one of Missouri's 900,000 voters with a
disability.
I suggest we give America an early Christmas present, and elect a Senator
from the great state of Missouri, who is not afraid to take a stand.
As Roman puts it, "take a stand with us-take a stand-so one day, everybody
can."
Can you spare an hour to help make phone calls? You can work from your home,
if you like, and it would be a huge help.
PHONE BANK NUMBER: 314-423-1493
Want to give a couple bucks? Donate at www.claireonline.com
And as literature's most famous citizen with a disability, Tiny Tim in
Dickens' Christmas Carol, once observed:  "God bless us, every one!"
P.S.- If you want to know where Claire McCaskill stands on disability
issues, here she is -
http://www.claireonline.com/dia/organizations/CMC/content.jsp?content_KEY=1422
Claire McCaskill:
A Champion for the Disabled Community
Throughout the campaign I've stressed the importance of access to health
care, education and well-paying jobs in order to increase the quality of
life for all Missourians. I would like to address those issues as they
particularly apply to my friends in the disability community. I have a
record of supporting disability rights. As a State Representative in the mid
1980's, I supported the creation and funding of consumer-directed personal
assistance services and Centers for Independent Living. Both of these of
these programs keep people with disabilities out of institutions so they
live independently and productively in their communities.
Health Care: I support the Medicaid Community Attendant Services and
Supports Act (MiCASSA). I believe that the MiCASSA program offers a
flexible, beneficial and fair choice to individuals with disabilities.
Flexibility is extremely important, and a rigid system will create
inequalities and injustices. For that reason, I support empowering people to
make decisions that are best for them and their individual needs.
The Bush Administration's "block grant" proposal to cap federal Medicaid
spending is yet another sad example of this administration's aggressive
campaign to weaken the Medicaid program. I am strongly opposed to cutting
Medicaid. The Republican healthcare plan can be summed up in two words: cut
Medicaid. Their plan has failed. America is approaching a healthcare crisis,
and my opponent supports punitive cuts that have kicked nearly 90,000
Missourians off of Medicaid. In truth, there are many ways to make sure that
Medicaid remains solvent and is allowed to do the greatest good for the
largest number of people. I oppose the Medicaid block grants because they
will not improve the quality of healthcare in America.
Education: The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) one-size-fits-all laws are
damaging our schools, and hurting our Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA) students. Since the time of its implementation, the
core principles that led to the IDEA legislation have been whittled away.
Now, there is little doubt that students with disabilities are not receiving
the support they deserve from our public schools. I do not think that a
voucher program will provide long-term improvement, but I believe that the
U.S. needs to rethink its education policies. Our current one-size-fits-all
framework is unacceptable, and students across the country, with and without
disabilities, are not receiving the quality education they deserve.
I support full implementation of the federal government's promise to pay 40%
of the funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. As an
auditor and a former prosecutor, I believe in holding government accountable
to the people and believe that by doing so, we can preserve the important
bond of trust between citizens and government. I do not believe the
government should burden state governments with unfunded mandates. Sadly, we
have not held the federal government accountable for its failure to fund the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Access to Jobs: I will support legislation that restores civil rights
protections for disabled individuals. The Americans with Disabilities Act
ushered in a new age of equality for disabled individuals. However,
irresponsible legislation and unwatchful custodians of our rights in
Washington have and will erode the ground we have already covered. I will
strongly support legislation to restore lost rights, and I will vehemently
oppose any weakening in civil rights or liberties. I will be a champion of
the Americans with Disabilities Act in Washington.
I also support the Ticket to Work provisions, such as the Medicaid buy-in
for workers with disabilities, that remove disincentives to work. The loss
of health care is a barrier to work. People with disabilities should be able
to return to work and keep the health care and personal attendant services
they need to go to work. The recent elimination of the buy-in program in
Missouri was morally wrong. As a U.S. Senator, I will vote to fund public
health care programs that support independence and will not support
legislation that cuts people off of the health care and equipment they need.
Housing: I will oppose turning Section 8 vouchers into block grants, and I
will support increased funding for HUD. I believe that flexibility and
choice are crucial elements to housing for individuals with disabilities. I
will defend the HUD voucher programs to make sure that our disabled folks
get the housing they need. I believe that housing vouchers are moderately
successful, but I am more interested in a long-term solution to the shortage
of available housing for disabled people. We need to do something about
affordable housing before it gets to the point that a person has to wait in
a long line while living on the streets. To start, we need more permanent
affordable housing so that a greater number of people can afford to stay off
the streets.
Transportation: Accessible, affordable public transportation is important
for everybody. Both economically and environmentally, I believe that a good
public transportation system offers many benefits to Missouri's communities.
Rural areas have a lack of public transit, and I don't think that's going to
change unless people in Washington who really understand the problem begin
to do something about it.
I know that there are other issues that impact the lives of people with
disabilities. I look forward to working with you to fight for legislation
that integrates people with disabilities into the social and economic
mainstream of our country.

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