Game Day

It's finally here, today is they day you vote for Tony and Emily, your Best Choice for SA President and EVP. We are so excited because we know that once people read our blog, watch our videos, and talk to us, everyone will know we have the experience to lead, a solid vision on where to take the SA and the strong character necessary to stand up for all students. Please tell all of your friends to vote for us, and if you or anyone you know has questions, please feel free to contact us at jam325@cornell.edu or egc43@cornell.edu.

THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR SUPPORT!

VOTE TONY AND EMILY!

Who has the Experience?

It's time to get down to business. The SA Elections are upon us, and the number one question you should be asking of your Presidential and EVP candidates, is, do you have the experience to lead?

Since all things are relative I think we should look at each slate and evaluate their relevant experience. As far back as I can tell, the SA President has always served on the Executive Board as a voting member before ascending to the Presidency. So with that in mind let's look at the Presidential Candidates and evaluate them.

Has he served as a voting Executive Board Member?
Andrew Brokman- NO!
Scott Purdy- NO!
Rammy Salem- NO!
Fire Manzur- NO!
Tony Miller- Yes, as Vice President for Internal Operations
Chris Basil- Yes, as EVP
Jeff Rehberger- NO!

As you can see, only Basil and I have served on the Executive Board, but as many of you know, I have continued to work harder and procure tangible results than Basil as an outspoken champion of reform and service to the undergraduates. This alone should tell you that Emily and I are your best choices, but let's continue.

In order to fix a system many claim is broken, you probably ought to know about the SA itself, a good President and EVP should have served on the SA as voting members at some point before they try to lead it, so let's look at each slate and count the number of voting SA members on the slate.

How Many Voting SA Members are on the Slate?
Miller/Cusick - 2
Purdy/Diakow- 1
Brokman/Gindy - 1
Manzur/Dobrin- 0
Rehberger/Gudnyy - 0
Basil/Junewicz - 2
Salem/Williams - 1

Hmm, once again, it boils down to Miller and Basil.

So let's talk about what makes us different. The fact is that Emily and I have sponsored more important resolutions, and have brought more positive reform and change to the SA than Basil or Junewicz. Emily and I both sit on the RSO Auditing Task Force, a group that has changed the way groups can get space and money for the better. We've worked together to fix the SAFC so that students can get the money they deserve. Chris and Nikki have not been an active part of these efforts, that's just a fact. When Slope Day was in trouble, Greg Mezey, Ryan Lavin, and I got together with leaders from the Slope Day Programming Board and SAFC to find a solution to the budget cuts, Chris and Nikki were not a part of many of these imperative talks.

These are the facts, and they are quite important. The fact is that Emily and I are the most qualified candidates to lead the SA for the next year. Tomorrow morning, when you wake up, please remember to vote Tony Miller and Emily Cusick for SA President and EVP, the Best Choice.

Post Debate

Thanks to everyone who listened in last night during our debate on WVBR!

It was a complete success. Once again, Emily and I showed up the competition with our simple and clear answers. We proved once again that we have the best experience and that we are definitely the best choice for SA President and EVP.

When asked about the Student Activity Fee, we were the only slate who has actually worked with student groups to cut extraneous spending while keeping up the quality of programming. Of all the candidates running, we are the only ones who SAVED SLOPE DAY! We fought the administration when the budget was cut, and we worked creatively to find ways to cut wasteful spending without compromising the safety or integrity of Slope Day.

When we were questioned about what we have actually done, we were one of the few slates who have actually accomplished anything. Emily and I have reformed the SAFC, reworked the Registered Student Organizations process to make sure space is allocated fairly and we've developed a tiered system to allow groups to receive better and fairer funding.

After last night, it became pretty clear that we are the only slate who has made real progress within the SA and that we are the slate with the best plan for the future. Hopefully WVBR can get us some clips to post up here soon.

Thanks again for all the support, and remember to VOTE TONY AND EMILY tomorrow morning!

Zimride (Carpool application on Facebook)

Over the last year, I spearheaded an effort to keep Zimride at Cornell.

What is Zimride? Well, many people know it as the Carpool application on Facebook. Over the last year, over 3000 students and staff have used this program to find a way home, save gas money, and cut pollution. This awesome project will continue on for the next year, and when I am President, we will work to encourage more students to use Zimride.

Over the last year, Zimride cut gasoline use by about 25,000 gallons, helped students travel over 625,000 miles, cut CO2 pollution by over 450,000 lbs, all for an estimated savings of about $400,000 in gas and car expenses. I am very proud to have taken the lead on this great initiative, and when I am President, I will continue to bring great projects like this one to all students.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions at jam325@cornell.edu and remember to VOTE ON MARCH 3rd through 5th for TONY MILLER AND EMILY CUSICK, THE BEST CHOICE FOR SA PRESIDENT AND EVP!

Emily's Thoughts

Hi everyone!

The candidates’ forum yesterday was really crazy, but incredibly exciting. I thought running against 21 other candidates last fall was insane… but running against these 20 qualified, articulate, and original candidates is bringing Cornell student government to a whole new level!

Let me just reiterate how excited Tony and I are to be running in Cornell’s first ever direct election of SA President and Executive VP. We are both experienced representatives who have spent our last year on the SA actively working to change the partisan politics that plagued our student government and diminished the SA’s reputation. Tony has done so much this year as the Vice President of Internal Operations on the SA, but most of his work is done behind the scenes. His accomplishments aren’t always flashy or written about in the Daily Sun, but he has organized and staffed every SA committee, reworked many elements of the SA charter, and worked out a way to maintain Slope Day funding. He is really an awesome reformer and a great leader. I’m really honored to be running with him this year.

As for me, my main focus this year has been on outreach and communication between the SA and the undergraduates. Through my Freshman Coffee Hours (look for another one in the upcoming month, Class of 2012!), I’ve been focused on opening up the SA as a real agent of change for Cornell, a place where every student could come to address their personal problems with the Cornell undergraduate experience. I’ve worked on obtaining bus passes for Cornell undergrads through the Committee on Community and Residential Life (this initiative was put on hold because of the university’s huge cuts in funding, sorry guys), 24-hour library hours my position as the Undergraduate Representative on the University Library Board (also limited because of huge cuts to the library system’s budget), and a fair funding process for clubs and organizations on the Appropriations Committee.

Finally, I want to thank all of our supporters for their passion and positive attitudes throughout this whole process. You guys are awesome!

Make sure to catch Tony and I in our Presidential and EVP debate on Sunday from 6-8 PM on WVBR, or show up to Willard Straight at 5:45 to support us in person!

And remember, VOTING starts in 6 days! March 3 at 8 AM to March 5 at 10 AM!

PLEASE remind all your friends to join our Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=logo#/group.php?gid=51159839081

Thanks,

Emily

A Campus Pub

Our blog, an alternative to Facebook

For the next week, if you get bored and have the urge to start facebooking, STOP!

Instead, why don't you read our blog and discover why we are the best candidates for SA President and EVP.

For starters, we have the best experience. Of the seven candidates for President, only 2 are elected Executive Board Members. My tenure as Vice President for Internal Operations has thoroughly prepared me to become President. I actually know how the process works. I have actually developed working relationships with student leaders and administrators so that the minute I assume office, I can get working for you.

No other candidate played as large of a role as I have played in reforming the SA this year. You will hear candidates who have never served on the SA talk about horrible we are and how broken the system is, but you should know that in the last year, Emily and I have actually worked to make it better. It's one thing to complain and complain, but we brought real and effective change to the system.

Before we served on the SA, meetings were filled with mindless tedium and an unhealthy obsession with parliamentary procedure. From the minute I assumed the position of Vice President for Internal Operations, I made it clear that our internal policies needed to be more relaxed and conducive to productive dialogue and effective changes. I have worked dilligently to make sure that each Assembly representative feels comfortable discussing issues that are important to him or her, and that each representative knows that they could come to the Executive Board with any new or innovative ideas.

This spirit of cooperation has been just one important way Emily and I have changed the SA for the better. Keep reading and watching our videos to learn more about how Emily and I are truly the BEST Choice for President and Executive Vice President!