PRESS RELEASE
EIR News Service

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Democratic Elected Officials Say:
Put LaRouche in ABC-TV Debate

April 29, 2003 (EIRNS)—South Carolina media reported today that the state's Democratic Party chairman had received a letter from nearly 40 current and former Democratic elected officials asking that Presidential pre-candidate Lyndon LaRouche be invited to the May 3 Presidential debate to be broadcast nationally by ABC-TV. At a press conference held by the representatives on April 28, Florence, S.C. City Councilman Edward Robinson released the letter, which had been sent to state chairman Richard Harpootlian on April 12. In it, the Democratic leaders—roughly half from South Carolina and the other half from other states, joined by former Surgeon-General Joycelyn Elders—pointed out that LaRouche now has more contributors to his Presidential campaign than any of the nine Democratic candidates invited to the debate, from which the Party is seeking to exclude him.

"It's outrageous. It's stupid" that LaRouche has not been invited, campaign spokesman Dr. Debra Freeman was quoted in a statewide AP wire. "The Democratic Party in the State of South Carolina has long been under the influence of Don Fowler," she said, adding the campaign did not plan legal action. "We will continue doing what we have been doing, and take the campaign directly to the people."

April 28, 2003—The following letter was released today at a press conference held in Florence, S.C. by Florence City Councilman Edward Robinson.

April 12, 2003

Chairman Richard Harpootlian
South Carolina Democratic Party
1517 Blanding St.
Columbia, South Carolina 29201

Dear Sirs:

It has been brought to our attention that on May 1-3, you are hosting the annual Democratic Party State Convention and Jefferson-Jackson Day events. As part of that weekend, you are also sponsoring a forum for candidates seeking the Democratic Party nomination for President.

We call upon you to extend an invitation to Mr. Lyndon LaRouche to participate in the upcoming candidates' forum. Mr. LaRouche is a registered Democratic Party candidate, filed with the Federal Election Commission, has raised well over $3 million for the upcoming primaries, and qualified for Federal Matching Funds in the last several election campaigns on the Democratic side. According to the FEC, he now ranks fourth in total contributions raised and first in total contributors, among all major Democratic candidates.

Mr. LaRouche is an outspoken opponent of the policies of Donald Rumsfeld and Vice-President Cheney, and a proponent of policies like those of former President Franklin Roosevelt. Like FDR, Mr. LaRouche proposes to rebuild our nation's deteriorating economy. He has been spending significant sums of money on a radio campaign in Washington, D.C., and has been delivering speeches throughout the nation.

The attempt to limit the nominating process to an agreed-upon number of candidates, as designated by the news media and a handful of people in the national party, is discriminatory. Now is the time for fair and open debate on the critical issues facing our nation and our party. We urge you to extend an invitation to Mr. LaRouche to participate in the upcoming party weekend and candidate debate.

You can contact Mr. LaRouche's representatives in the Washington, D.C. area by calling Stuart Rosenblatt at 1-800-929-7566.

Sincerely,

SOUTH CAROLINA SIGNERS:

• Sen. Theo W. Mitchell, 1990 Democratic Party nominee for Governor, Greenville SC
• Sen. Maggie Wallace Glover, Florence SC
• Sen. Robert Ford, Charleston, SC
• Rep. Leon Howard, Columbia SC
• Rep. Walter Lloyd, Walterboro, SC
• Rep. Robert Brown, Hollywood, SC
• Rep. Seth Whipper, Charleston, SC
• Rep. Brenda Lee, Spartanburg, SC
• Rep. Joseph Neal, Columbia, SC
• Edward Robinson, Florence City Council, Florence, SC
• James Frazier, Horry Co. Commissioner, Conway, SC
• James Lewis, Charleston City Council, Charleston, SC
• Robert Mitchell, former City Councilman, Charleston, SC
• William Nimmons, SC Democratic Party Executive Committee, Olar SC
• Mrs. Willie Nimmons, Pres. Democratic Womens's Council, Olar SC
• Marvin Stevenson, SC Democratic Party Executive Committee, Marion SC
• Buquilla Ervin, Democratic Party activist, Florence, SC
• Leon Harden, SC Democratic Executive Committee, Allendale, SC
• Donna Lackey, SC Democratic Executive Committee, and President McCormick Co. Chamber of Commerce, Modoc, SC
• Michael Johnson, Business Mgr, Intl Brotherhood of Boilermakers Loc 687, Charleston, SC

NATIONAL SIGNERS:

• Hon. Joycelyn Elders, Former United States Surgeon General, Little Rock, Ar
• Sen. Joe Neal, Democratic Nominee for Governor of Nevada in 2002, Las Vegas, NV
• Sen. Carlos Cisneros, Questo, New Mexico
• Rep. Jan Judy, Fayetteville, Ar
• Rep. Edward Dugay, Cherryfield, Me.
• Rep. Albion Goodwin, Pembroke, Me.
• Rep. Barbara Boyd, Anniston, Al.
• Rep. Michael Obuchowski, Bellows Falls, Vt.
• Rep. David Gibbs, West Point, Ms.
• Rep. Benjamin Swan, Springfield, Ma.
• Rep. Esther Haywood, St. Louis, Mo.
• Rep. Harold James, Philadelphia, Pa.
• Rep. Christine Sinicki, Milwaukee, Wi.
• Rep. Barbara Richardson, Richmond, NH
• Sue Daniel, Delegate to the Democratic Convention 2000, Frankston, Tx.
• Barbara Lett Simmons, Democratic National Committeewoman, Washington, DC
• Stuart Rosenblatt, LaRouche in 2004