Stop Arnold Weblog

Nurses Say Vote No in November RN RV Tour-Salinas

Never Miss a Moment
November 3
Starbucks,Salinas, Ca

Diane Foxen RN, San Jose

The last three weeks I've been trying to not miss a moment to tell someone about stopping Arnold.  Here we were the morning of Nov 3rd, our last RN RV hospital visit. Chris and Trish head to Winchells for donuts and Helen, Michelle, and I headed to Starbucks. At 8:30 am the Salinas Starbucks is crowded with around 20 people. Four of them happen to be cops. Two of which are motorcycle cops. As we exit Helen knowing my ex-military background said, "Diane I can't believe you missed your moment to tell the cops to vote no."

I did an about face, after all I've got my scrubs on. I opened the door and politely announced: "Support a nurse and her patients, vote NO on the 8th." As I started to walk away a lady came out and said, "Good Job in there. I'm a nurse at Salinas Memorial and we are all voting NO." We talked briefly then headed to Salinas Memorial. It's a big world but somehow we are all connected. If you feel strong about something share it with others. You will be surprised how many people feel the same way as you do.
 

Nurses say “Vote No” in November RN RV Tour:

Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-San Luis Obispo

Trish Gonzalez, RN, Oakland

UC Santa Barbara Student Health Center
Tuesday November 1, 2005

Young students on their way to and from class. We get lots of honks and waves from the maintenance workers passing by in their UCSB trucks. Very tanned bunch all with a cell phone or I-pod in their ear.  They asked great questions!  The future is certainly safe…  The local press asked great questions and we, the nurses, looked them in the eye and spoke of our commitment to the citizens of California and the need for the strong political voice of the working people of this state to continue to be heard! 

Off to Santa Maria

As day becomes dusk we arrive at the California Teachers Association office in Santa Maria to assist in their phone bank. All the calls were confirmation that the working people of this state will turn out and vote NO on all Arnold’s propositions! The press shoots some film and interviews our San Jose nurse Diane.  Arrival at our hotel finds us in the lobby with no other than Al Franken in town to do his show from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.(SLO)

Early morning Wednesday- Sierra Vista Hospital SLO

Greeting nurses finishing their nightshift is a tough gig. Standing at the parking lot exit handing out information a nurse tells me that she recognizes me from the night news she saw before starting her shift!  She says she is a new graduate and gushes about how proud she is to be a part of CNA …..she goes on and on about how excited she is that we’re out shaking things up  She takes lawn signs, bumper stickers and informational Get-out-the vote cards to distribute to her friends and family.

11:00 am-French Hospital, SLO
We are being chase down by a handsome middle-aged man in a Beemer, he seems too know of our rock-star status!!  He beats on our windows until we grant him a private audience.  He explains that he is a retired nurse and has been following us for miles in hope of  souvenir signs to post in his yard.  His neighbors will now know he’s a nurse groupie and as well as a  retiree! On to Templeton -NURSES ROCK!!!!!
 

Nurses Say "Vote No" in November Road Tour

Welcome to Hollywood and Happy Halloween

On Halloween day CNA nurses handed out 5,000 masks of Arnold Schwarzenegger to locals in need of a last-minute costume in San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno, and  of course on his star of fame in Hollywood. The masks are stamped with a bar-code and marked “Property of” one of the major corporate donors—such as ChevronTexaco, FOX News, or Ameriquest—that are funding Schwarzenegger’s special election this November 8th.  The masks are part of a broad-based campaign by the nurses to let the public know just how scary Schwarzenegger’s initiatives really are and to encourage all voters to vote NO this November 8.

The following entry is from an RN who took part in the Hollywood give-away.

Diane Foxen,RN,San Jose 10/31/05

The perfect place for Arnold's star, in front of the wax museum. Fake is the idea here. Unbelievable were the three Arnold warriors there to protect Arnolds star from us scary nurses. Honey we heal and advocate not desecrate. They even accused me of not being a nurse. Well I just got off a three night stretch of 12 hours shifts at Good Samaritan, San Jose neonatal intensive care unit and flew out as soon as I got off work. My time card can vouch for me. When was the last time one of them took someone's pulse?

RN RV Road Tour Schedule

Tuesday November 1st

Santa Barbara, Santa Maria

Santa Barbara:
What: RN RV and mobile billboard- local RNs available for interviews
Place: University California Santa Barbara Student Health Center
El Colegio and Ocean (across from the Thunder Dome)
Time: Noon-1:00 pm

Marian
What: Nurses and Teachers Get Out the Vote Phone Bank
Place: Ca. Teachers Assoc. Office
2325 Skyway Drive, Suite A, Santa Maria, CA 93455
Time: 5:00 pm-8:00 pm

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Wednesday November 2nd

San Luis Obispo area Hospitals

What: RN RV and mobile billboard- local RNs available for interviews

Place: Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center (by Emergency Room entrance)
1010 Murray Street, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93405
Time 7:00 am-8:00 am

Place: French Hospital Medical Center
1911 Johnson Street, San Luis Obispo CA 93401
Time: 10:00 am-11:00 am

Place: Twin Cities Community Hospital
1100 Las Tablas Road, Templeton, CA 93465
Time: Noon-1:00 pm

“Nurses Say Vote No in November” Tour Against Governor’s Special Election

Media Advisory - Photo Opportunity
October 24, 2005

32 Cities 29 Days- Hundreds of Nurses
Standing up to Arnold Schwarzenegger

The California Nurses Association’s (CNA) statewide “Nurses Say Vote No in November” tour arrives in Lancaster and San Bernardino today part of a campaign to visit 32 cities in 29 days to rally support against Arnold Schwarzenegger’s special election this November.

The “RN RV” brings nurses across the state to meet with other nurses, talk to the public, and participate in rallies and phone banks to convey the nurses’ concern about the election. The RN RV is accompanied by a mobile billboard carrying the “Nurses Say Vote NO in November” message.  Similar billboards are up in dozens of locations around the state.

CNA is urging voters to reject all measures on the ballot to send a clear signal to Governor Schwarzenegger and his corporate donors. “The special election is illegitimate, 60 per cent of Californians opposed having an election, and a colossal waste, at least $45 million in public funds and hundreds of millions more in advertising are being wasted,” said CNA President Deborah Burger, RN.

Special emphasis is being placed on opposing Prop.75, which would stifle the voice of nurses in healthcare policy and political debates and Prop.78, which undercuts efforts to expand patient access to expensive prescription drugs.

“Proposition 75 is a tremendous threat to patients in California.  If nurses cannot engage in the political process, drug companies, HMOs, hospital chains, and nursing home corporations will have a green light to roll back vital patient protections,” said CNA President Deborah Burger, RN.  “Schwarzenegger doesn’t want to hear from nurses, teachers, firefighters, and cops and he doesn’t want the rest of California to hear from us either.  We urge Californians to vote NO in November.”

Redding to Chico

Wednesday, Oct. 12

Beginning at 6 am, the RV rolled up in front of Mercy Medical Center in Redding. We had coffee waiting while a nurse showed up with his son and a teacher who wanted to check out the rolling billboard.  The sun was not up but we were already getting business from RNs making their way down the hill to receive information and a cup of java.  The best part of the day was our location.  Members of the community stopped by throughout the day like we were some sort of a drive up political stop.  Most comments were “we hate that guy even though we voted for him at the time; give me a big sign to put in out in our yard” Lara Foltz from Enloe drove from Chico to join the tour for the day.  She was so much fun.  Lara grabbed donuts and election materials and went floor by floor with local Mercy Redding nurses Barb Cannon and John Snyder. We finished the day with a press conference in front of Redding’s City Hall.  Teachers, Fire Fighters and school employees joined us in support. 

By 5:30, it was time to head to Enloe Medical Center in Chico.  A little after 7:00 pm we pulled up in front of the hospital.  Situated on a narrow street in a residential area, we had been warned that a prime location would require some effort.  Good planning by nurses took care of that.  Kitty Courcier Paula Helmick had parked 2 vehicles on the street earlier in the day-reserved parking!  She also advised us that if we returned later that evening, we could reposition the billboard and RV for maximum exposure, in preparation for the next day.  At 11:00 that evening, to the delight of the night shift nurse we had a prime spot.

Eureka to Redding via Route 299

Tuesday, Oct.11

Its first trial, at 6am in dark and foggy Eureka outside St. Josephs proved a success.  A momentary glitch with the generator aside, in no time the RV was a well lit, warm beacon for nurses, who stopped in for hot coffee, donuts, and a chance to talk about the upcoming election, as well as their own contract negotiations.  Five hours flew by quickly, and it was time to head east, towards Redding.

People in Eureka talk of a sense of isolation from the rest of the state.  The isolation is real, given the few ways in and out of the area.  While the trip to Redding on Rt. 299 seemed from the map a short distance, everyone assured us that driving an RV as well as a mobile billboard would take at least 4 hours, even though we would be traveling a mere 130 miles.  Of course, the locals knew best.  While the drive over the mountains of the Trinity National Forest and along the Trinity River is indeed beautiful, one has little time to appreciate it as they negotiate the hairpins and switchbacks on the narrow road. We arrived at the Alliance for a Better California Coalition  (ABC) headquarters in Redding, where a number of phone banking teachers came out to greet us, and we discussed plans for our next day joint press conference in front of city hall.

First stop—Eureka !

Eureka, Monday, October 10

The RN RV is not your standard RV.  Outside, it is plastered with signs and banners, which cause motorists up and down the freeway to honk, and give thumbs up as they pass.  Inside, it is a mobile political machine, stocked with posters, lawn signs, flyers, picket signs, bumper stickers, banners, applications for absentee ballots and of course coffee and snacks.

Our arrival at 6 pm was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd, which related a successful press conference featuring our very own Katherine Donahue, newly elected CNA Board of Director member and St. Joseph nurse.   A California Teachers Association member out for the election campaign, was a gracious host. We then did a quick tour of St Josephs’ the CNA represented facility in town with Katherine, in preparation for a mourning visit with the nurses.

"Nurses Say NO in November" RN-RV Road Tour Dates

Please join Nurses in saying "NO to the special election" on November 8th and by standing with them in solidarity at one of the following locations.

Monday, October 24
Bakersfield
Place: Memorial Hospital
420 34th St
Bakersfield, California, 93301
Time: 1:00 PM

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Previous Stops

Wednesday October 19
Woodland
What:   RN RV and mobile billboard-local RNs available for interviews
Where: Woodland Memorial Hospital (in front of hospital)
1325 Cottonwood St, Woodland, CA 95695
Time  Noon

Thursday October 20
Manteca
What: RN RV and mobile billboard-local RNs available for interviews
Place: St. Dominic’s Hospital
1777 West Yosemite, Manteca, 95337
Time:  1:30-2:00 p.m.

Thursday October 20
Fresno
What: RN RV and mobile billboard- local RNs available for interviews
Place: Kaiser Fresno Medical Center
7300 North Fresno St. Fresno, CA 93720
Time: 4:00 p.m.

Thursday October 20
Fresno
What: Nurses, Teachers, Firefighters Protest Arnold Fundraiser
Place:  Home of Bob Smittcamp
2227 Bullard Ave. West, Fresno 93711
Time: 6:00 p.m.

RN RV Front and Center at Chico Hospital

"No in November" RN-RV Road Tour Update

Paula Helmich, RN Enloe Hospital, Chico
October 13, 2005

It was so exciting driving up to the hospital Thursday morning and seeing the RN RV parked right in front of the hospital, blocking the view of the VP of nursing, knowing that all day they where going to have to see the CNA trailer with Arnies picture outside their windows.  When I went to the local football game that afternoon, I got comments from my family and friends about the trailer in front of the hospital. 

All of my family is anti- Arnold. I come from a family of four sisters, all born and raised in California.  I’m a nurse, my one sister is a teacher, and another is an architect for the state.  Our family has been triple hit by Arnold.

My parents even have the CNA poster taped to their front window in Pleasant Hill.

Governor's outdoor reception proves chilly

Hundreds of boisterous protesters upset by Gov. Schwarzenegger's ballot initiatives targeting teachers' tenure, unions and school funding demonstrated outside the Mission Inn on Wednesday as the governor hobnobbed inside with donors who paid $2,500 or more to attend the private dinner.

A crowd of more than 400 teachers, firefighters, nurses, San Bernardino County sheriff's employees and other union workers swarmed Orange Street and Mission Inn Avenue, chanting "Recall Arnold" and "Shame on you" as donors arrived at the landmark hotel.

"This is a direct attack on public employees," said Craig Adams, a longtime teacher and president of the Alvord Educators Association. "It has nothing to do with reforming education or balancing the budget, although the governor would love to balance the budget on the backs of teachers and students."

Inside, Schwarzenegger met with donors for photos, cocktails and dinner during the fundraiser. Contributors paid as much as $25,000 for two tickets to the private reception and dinner at the head table, including a photo with the governor. A $5,000 contribution bought two tickets to the dinner. (read more)

Activists protest governor at Spanos’ fundraising dinner

"No in November" RN-RV Road Tour Update

STOCKTON--Government workers gathered at a billionaire’s home to protest an appearance by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his proposals for next month’s special election. Schwarzenegger is pushing several propositions that will go before voters Nov. 8, including provisions to make teachers work five years before earning tenure (Proposition 74), to require unions to get permission from members before using their dues for political purposes (Proposition 75), to set a state spending cap and give the governor more control over the budget (Proposition 76).

Deloris Foster was one of the hundreds of protesters outside the home of Alex Spanos, a real estate mogul who hosted a fundraiser for the governor Tuesday night. A teacher for 22 years at the Stockton Unified School District, Foster decried the measures Schwarzenegger supports. "This is totally unfair to us trying to make a living," she said.(read more)

Cold Reception -- 400 protesters greet governor at Stockton fund-raiser

"No in November" RN-RV Road Tour Update

STOCKTON -- Hundreds of protesters blew whistles, waved signs and chanted slogans declaring their opposition to ballot initiatives backed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was the guest of honor at a Stockton fund-raising dinner hosted by Alex Spanos.

Nurses, teachers and other public employees made up the bulk of the roughly 400 people who lined the sidewalk along the intersection of West Lincoln Road and Pershing Avenue. The protest was organized to coincide with a $10,000- to $25,000-a-plate dinner being held in the Lincoln Road home of Spanos, an influential local developer and owner of the San Diego Chargers.

"It's really obvious where Schwarzenegger is getting his money," said Gary Price, a fifth-grade teacher in the Lodi Unified School District. "Hello? ... He's going to his money base." Price noted the school where he teaches, Julia Morgan Elementary School, is on A.G. Spanos Boulevard, a street named after the event's host. (read more)

Unions at odds with Schwarzenegger - Nurses stage protests at area Sutter hospitals

"No in November" RN RV Road Tour Update

Sutter Roseville Hospital nurse Laurie Cord protests against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's ballot initiatives Tuesday at the governor's appearance in Roseville. Cord, on a tour of state hospitals with the California Nurses Association, said the proposition could hurt public employee unions, schools.

The California Nurses Association, a union representing 58,000 RNs in the state, made a stop at Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital Tuesday to inform nurses of measures they say will stifle workers' voices. "This hits everybody in California, every working person," said Laurie Cord, a Sutter Roseville Hospital bedside nurse and former Sutter Auburn nurse.

One of the ballot measures is Proposition 75, which would seek written consent from all public employee union members to give a portion of union dues to a political cause. Cynthia Oliveira, a surgical nurse at Sutter Auburn, collected "Stop Arnold" signs and literature Tuesday from the California Nurses Association's "RN RV," a recreational vehicle touring California hospitals. (read more)

How Does She Do It?

One of the interesting questions around this election--how can Maria Shriver watch the Democratic base be so directly attacked?

More on the attacks in an article by Larry Gerston in the San Jose Mercury News.  He reports:

Across the nation, labor's enemies are in a state of near-euphoria, and for good reason. Pro-business/anti-tax interests view unions in California as the linchpin of organized labor everywhere. They have a point. In California, unions represent 18 percent of the workforce, compared with less than 13 percent nationally. So, the thinking goes, if the legs can be pulled out from organized labor in California, the table will be set for similar coups in other states with less successful union movements. Sensing victory, anti-union groups have funneled millions of dollars into the ``Yes on Proposition 75'' campaign.

In this context Maris is re-emerging to do appearances for her husband--just like she did to get him elected.  She will NOT be talking directly about the initiatives, but she will be out there winning pub for her family and husband.  Carla Marinucci in the SF Chronicle writes:

Her appearance today on Oprah Winfrey's show will be in dramatic contrast to an earlier pre-election visit to her friend's TV stage. In September 2003, Shriver sat on the "Oprah" couch alongside her husband to proudly tout his family values and virtues -- and hit the stump statewide to make the case to millions of California women voters why her candidate-spouse, then battered by allegations of groping as he campaigned in the recall election for governor, would be good for the state.

There's good news!  The Stockton Record and the Riverside Press-Enterprise both endorsed NO on Prop 75.  Keep 'em coming!

Firefighters Aren't Extras

George Bush did the same thing.  How dare they.

Schwarzenegger got his firefighter chief buddies to order firefighters to serve as props in his press conferences last week.

Repeat after: nurses, teachers, firefighters and cops are the solution not the problem.

Read the AP story here.  The important parts:

BURBANK, Calif. - Firefighters who battled a 24,000-acre blaze last week accused their supervisors Thursday of forcing them to participate in a news conference with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has been at political odds with unions representing firefighters and other public employees.

Schwarzenegger's appearance at a command center in Thousand Oaks came as he pushes ballot initiatives opposed by firefighter unions, including Proposition 75, which would require unions to get members' permission before dues could be used for political purposes.

At the event Sept. 30, the governor shook hands and posed for pictures with a crowd of firefighters and other emergency workers.

Firefighters were "ordered and forced" to participate, Los Angeles County firefighter Greg Alldredge said Thursday at a news conference. "We were very displeased with this - having to shake hands with somebody who really doesn't support us."

Ventura County Fire Capt. Jack Nosco said he was among the firefighters ordered to flank Schwarzenegger at the event, in which the Republican governor lavishly praised several departments that extinguished the blaze along the edge of Los Angeles.

"We declined to do it voluntarily," Nosco said.

Insert Delay Joke Here

Whoops.  Arnold's campaign people are having a little funny money problem.  As Christian Berthelsen in the San Francisco Chronicle chronicles they've had to return a lot of money.  Christian writes:

Sacramento -- A ballot measure committee supporting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's initiative to redraw California's political boundaries has returned $1.75 million in donations, after opponents accused the governor of violating the same election laws he charged them with breaking just a week earlier.

In addition, a lawyer for the Democratic Party is set to file a lawsuit today in the hopes of forcing the committee supporting Proposition 77 to disgorge an additional $1.1 million.

The setback for Prop. 77 advocates came as Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, said she would start raising money to defeat the measure. The House minority leader said she planned to ask all 33 Democratic members of California's delegation to pitch in and had the green light from federal elections regulators to raise unlimited funds.

You will recall that Prop. 76 was supported by some 19% of registered voters in a recent poll.  Ouch.

Of course it's all about turn-out; we have to remind Californians why they have to vote on this one.

Bob Salladay and Dan Morain in the LA Times note that we have entered a new stretch: traditional campaigning.  Schwarzenegger can now go out in public without the huge crowds following him.  Game on.  It's all about this election.  They write:

With less than five weeks left before the Nov. 8 special election, both sides set their sights on voters who plan to cast early ballots. Early voting begins in some cities in the next few weeks.

The Republican Party has a big absentee ballot campaign in the works. Strategists for the opposition to Schwarzenegger said they would focus on making sure that their own supporters who wanted absentee ballots got them, as well as on walking precincts and manning phone banks to encourage people to vote.

"We've always run a very aggressive volunteer campaign … and we'll continue that until election day," said Gale Kaufman, lead consultant for an umbrella group of public employee unions called the Alliance for a Better California.