JohnKerry.com


Dear

Happy holidays.

This has been an historic year.

On November 7, Americans made an important statement about change -- a decision to demand a new direction in Iraq, to force a political solution to Iraq's civil war and bring our heroes home, to confront big challenges on global climate change, and to make our economy and our health care system fair.

Now those of us in the majority in the Democratic Congress have a responsibility not just to hold office, but a mandate to make big changes. It couldn't have happened without your help and hard work these past two years. I can't thank you enough.

As this year comes to a close I want to take a moment to reflect on all you did as a member of the johnkerry.com community to make history.

* Keeping America's Promise was able to distribute the most money directly to Democratic candidates across America -- more than any other PAC in this country.
* Together, we provided an unprecedented $14 million to Democratic candidates and party committees, supporting close to 300 candidates in almost every state in the country.
* We helped secure victories for each of the eight new Democratic Senators and 22 of our new Democratic House members. I personally traveled to 35 states to rally support for candidates up and down the ticket.
* We raised over $1.5 million for 31 veteran candidates this cycle. From throwing our early support behind Vietnam veteran Jim Webb, helping him win his primary race and giving nearly $400K to his campaign, to donating to veteran candidates like Admiral Joe Sestak early so they could run strong, well-funded campaigns from day one, we stood by our veterans who will change the course of this country.
* And we harnessed the incredible power of our grassroots network to advance the causes we care the most about at the most critical moments. The johnkerry.com community rushed over 250,000 petitions to Congress within 48 hours when drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was on the line, generated more than 500,000 responses in support of our KidsFirst healthcare legislation, and built support for the Kerry/Feingold amendment to bring our combat troops out of the civil war in Iraq.

This year we took on some of the most important fights in the United States Senate and stood up to the Bush Administration and Republican Congress when the stakes were the highest. Together, we went to the mat on the issues that matter most -- from bringing a change of course in Iraq to keeping our promise to those who wore the uniform of this country to protecting our environment for generations to come.

I am proud that with your support I was able to:

* Offer an amendment with Senator Feingold to bring all of the United States combat troops serving in Iraq home within a year and make Iraqis stand up for Iraq.
* Pass a Military Family Bill of Rights that extended the time that surviving widows and children can reside in military housing, provided financial support to those who lost their loved ones serving in the military, and increased funding for veterans support centers.
* Introduce legislation with Senator Landrieu to help provide immediate assistance to our small businesses in the Gulf Coast and help to get them back on their feet after the devastation of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Next month, I will assume the chairmanship of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and promise to continue this important fight.
* With Senator Kennedy launch a filibuster against extreme Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito because civil rights were on the line.
* Join Senator Cantwell in fighting a craven Republican effort to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
* Pass Masha's Law, which keeps our children safe from internet predators by dramatically increasing penalties for anyone who downloads child pornography off the Internet.

Next month our new Democratic Congress will be inaugurated and as a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, I will continue to fight with our new majority for policies that make us stronger in the world and safer at home. Very recently, I traveled to Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Israel on a fact-finding mission about the war and the growing crisis in the Middle East. A few weeks ago we saw the bipartisan Iraq Study Group call for a serious change of course in Iraq. I will continue to make it my top priority to fight for a policy in Iraq that promotes real diplomacy, pressures Iraqis, and brings our heroes home.

I will be sure to keep you updated on what's in store in the months ahead and about upcoming events where we will have the chance to see each other. And as always, I am very interested in hearing what you are doing. Please take a minute and drop us a line at alumni@johnkerry.com. Also, if you have any updates, take a minute to update your alumni info form. Use your current email address as your user name and your birthday (in the format mmddyyyy) as your password. If you have any questions or problems logging in, please contact us at alumni@johnkerry.com.

I can never thank you enough for all that you've done in the past and all that you continue to do. The months ahead will be exciting and challenging times and we continue to have much work to do. But for now, I simply want to thank you. Your energy, dedication, and support mean a lot to me. Teresa and I hope to see you soon, and wish you and your family a very happy and healthy New Year.

With sincerest thanks,

John Kerry

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