Choices of Democracy: Iraq launched today with the following premise:

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VFW VA 2006 Election
Audio Forums
Select Question to hear Response


1. What is your position on establishing a budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs as a separate and independent budget from all other government budgets?

2. How would you ensure that the Department of Veterans Affairs receives sufficient funding to consistently provide for the Health Care and Benefits of our nations military and retirees?

3. Women are an important part of our military. What do you think should be the role of women serving in combat?

4. How would you ensure that Congress authorizes and fully funds legislation that allows all disabled military retirees (regardless of percentage of disability) to receive their full military retirement  pay and disability compensation without offset?

5. Our Active Duty, Reserves and National Guard are assigned to duties throughout the world.  Many units have been required to do multiple assignments in hazardous areas. What would you do to ease the current burdens on our troops?

6. Veteran's service organizations provide veterans, their dependents and survivors aid in the preparation and prosecution of claims for benefits free of charge. Few, if any, require the assistance of a lawyer. What is your position on permitting private for profit attorneys to practice at the initial claim level in the VA regional offices and be paid from the earned benefits of the men and women who served our country?

 

The veterans organizations of the  North Carolina Veterans' Council comprised of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States (VFW), the American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), AMVETS, the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the Vietnam Veterans of America, the Marine Corps League, the NC Department of American Ex-POWs, and the Fleet Reserve Association. and their collective 140,000 members are extending this open invitation to the NC State Senate and NC State House Candidates to participate in the

2006 NC Veterans Council
State Senate & State House
Audio Forums

These neutral, non-partisan, not-for-profit forums are part of  an ongoing effort to engage our membership, our deployed military community and our state's voters in the democratic process .

The Veterans Council will be asking questions of the Candidates on behalf of our membership over the course of the 2006 Elections.
 
Candidates are asked to take the oppurtunity to personally reply via phone to the following questions.

1. How do you stand on providing totally disabled veterans with property tax relief? 

2. Are you a veteran or have you had any other military experience?  If so, do you belong to any veterans' organization? 

3. Do you support extending the NC state income tax exemption of military and federal retirement benefits for those that entered military service after August 1985? 

4. How do you stand on creating a state cabinet Department of Military Veterans Affairs to replace the current state Division of Veterans Affairs under the Department of Administration?

5. Do you favor providing exemption from tuition at North Carolina public universities and colleges for North Carolina resident veterans, who have been recently separated from active military service? 

6. Will you support efforts to establish two additional State Veterans' Nursing Homes similar to the ones in Fayetteville and Salisbury?

• Candidates need never be in the same place at the same time to participate.
• Candidates will be provided with a phone number and personal access code.
• Candidates can record their responses from anywhere home, office, car, the campaign trail.
• Candidates will be provided 90 seconds for their responses.
• Candidates will have an oppurtunity to review and record their responses as many times as they wish.
• Candidates responses will be posted in the order they are received with no editing.
• Candidates content will be donated to the public domain through the Internet Archive after the Election.

The Veterans' Council has pointed out that 770,000 veterans now live in North Carolina, and total 2005 Veterans Administration expenditures in the state added $2.25 billion to the North Carolina's economy. In addition, veterans and their families represent 2 million votes.

For more information please e-mail choicesofdemocracy(at)gmail.com or call 336-273-4371.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your participation.
 

After recieving input from candidates seeking election to the US House in North Carolina and in order to recieve the greatest participation for the benefit of our membership and the voters of our state the VFW NC and Choices of Democracy has made the determination to establish a new deadline for candidates to submit their answers to the first round of questions of June 13, 2006.

Several candidates expressed concerns about the amount of time allowed for participation and it was discovered the David Price's campaign telephone number was incorrect on the State Board of Election website allowing him virtually no time to participate.

Shirley Davis and Brad Miller, whose answers were recorded by the May 30 deadline, have agreed to the extension and may re-record their answers if they wish.

We will post the Forums as they are completed and any un-answered responses we have recieved on June 14 with the next round of questions.

The questions and format can be found here.

An example of a completed Forum can be found here.

For questions or assistance in participating please call 336-358-0465.

 

The Department North Carolina: Veterans of Foreign Wars and Choices of Democracy are extending this open invitation to Sheriff Candidates in the Guilford County Primary Run-Off  to participate in the

2006 VFW NC
Guilford County Sheriff Run-Off
Audio Forum

These neutral, non-partisan, not-for-profit forums are part of  an ongoing effort to engage our membership, our deployed military community and our state's voters in the democratic process .

The VFW NC will be asking questions of the Candidates on behalf of our membership over the course of the 2006 Elections.
 
Candidates are asked to take the oppurtunity to personally reply via phone to the following questions.

1.  Why does Guilford County need a new Sheriff?

2.  What would be your first action upon becoming Sheriff?

3.  What distiguishes you from your opponent?

4.  What are your suggestions to better manage our jail and its growing inmate population?

• Candidates need never be in the same place at the same time to participate.
• Candidates will be provided with a phone number and personal access code.
• Candidates can record their responses from anywhere home, office, car, the campaign trail.
• Candidates will be provided 90 seconds for their responses.
• Candidates will have an oppurtunity to review and record their responses as many times as they wish.
• Candidates responses will be posted in the order they are received with no editing.
• Candidates content will be donated to the public domain through the Internet Archive after the Election.

For more information please e-mail choicesofdemocracy(at)gmail.com or call 336.358.0465.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your participation.
 

 

The Department North Carolina: Veterans of Foreign Wars and Choices of Democracy are extending this open invitation to Congressional Candidates to participate in the

2006 VFW NC
US House Audio Forums
These neutral, non-partisan, not-for-profit forums are part of  an ongoing effort to engage our membership, our deployed military community and our state's voters in the democratic process .

The VFW NC will be asking questions of the Candidates on behalf of our membership over the course of the 2006 Elections.
 
Candidates are asked to take the oppurtunity to personally reply via phone to the following questions.

1.  Do you favor or not favor full and mandatory funding of the VA Health Care System?

2.  What is your position on a new GI Bill for the 21st Century that covers the full costs of tuition, fees, and living for veterans?

3.  What is your position on raising fees for veteran users of the VA Health Care System, and for rasing fees and dedutable amounts in the Tricare system for military retirees?

4.  Do you favor or not favor ensuring that VA's disability compensation program is preserved in its present form to protect the needs of current and future veterans?

5. Do you favor or not favor ensuring the Congress enacts legislation that authorizes and full funds legislation allowing all disabled military retirees to receive their full military retirement pay and full disability compensation without offset?

• Candidates need never be in the same place at the same time to participate.
• Candidates will be provided with a phone number and personal access code.
• Candidates can record their responses from anywhere home, office, car, the campaign trail.
• Candidates will be provided 90 seconds for their responses.
• Candidates will have an oppurtunity to review and record their responses as many times as they wish.
• Candidates responses will be posted in the order they are received with no editing.
• Candidates content will be donated to the public domain through the Internet Archive after the Election.

Deadline for content submission is May 30, 2006 12 midnight.

For more information please e-mail choicesofdemocracy(at)gmail.com or call 336.358.0465.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your participation.
 

The Department North Carolina: Veterans of Foreign Wars and Choices of Democracy are extending this open invitation to US House Candidates to participate in the

2006 VFW NC Audio Forums
These neutral, non-partisan, not-for-profit forums are part of  an ongoing effort to engage our membership, our deployed military community and our state's voters in the democratic process.
Candidates are asked to take the opportunity to personally reply via phone to the following questions:

1. What would be your first action upon assuming office?
2. What differentiates you from your opponent?
3. If elected, what will you do for the veterans of our State and nation?

Candidates need never be in the same place at the same time to participate.
Candidates can record their responses from anywhere: home, office, car, or the campaign trail.
Candidates will be provided with a phone number and access code.
Candidates will be provided 90 seconds for their responses.
Candidates will have an opportunity to review and record their responses as many times as they wish.
Candidate responses will be posted in the order they are received with no editing.

Deadline for content submission is Saturday April 29, 2006 at 12 midnight.

For more information please e-mail choicesofdemocracy@gmail.com

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your participation.