WASHINGTON, DC -- The Green Party of the United States thanked Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente, Green candidates for President and Vice President, for their strong national campaign in the 2008 election.

The party also congratulated Barack Obama on his election to the White House today, and celebrated the election of America's first African American President.

"Even though we competed with Sen. Obama for votes in the presidential race, we're thrilled that voters have elected an African American President, something unimaginable a generation ago. We're just as thrilled that our own presidential ticket -- Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente are two women of African descent, and Ms. Clemente is Black Puerto Rican -- represented the voices of so many Americans who've been shut out of the system," said Clyde Shabazz, Green candidate for Congress in Michigan's 14th District.

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"Voters who were motivated by Barack Obama's message of change will now have to fight if they really want change to take place during the next four years," said Jill Bussiere, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States. "Rosa Clemente, our candidate for Vice President, talked about the Green Party's 'imperative' throughout the campaign. The Green Imperative will move forward during the Obama Administration, as people demand that change be more than a campaign slogan."

"While the election calendar leaves little room at this time of year for public figures to have a private life," said the Cynthia McKinney, Green Party Presidential candidate. "I hope that Senator Obama will have time to be with his loved ones at this tragic time for his family. I treasure my private family relationships as the basis which has made my own public contributions possible. I wish to extend my condolences to your entire family for the recent loss of your grandmother."

At the precise moment when we couldn't imagine it getting worse, it does. After all, the Democrats, since they acquired majority status in the Congress, delivered funding for George Bush's wars several times. They authorized retroactive immunity for telecoms that helped Bush's Administration illegally spy on us. And they never really considered any alternatives to the basic bailout wish list given to them by Bush and his Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson.

Sadly, I must say that this failure on the part of the Democratic leadership is by far the greatest perfidy of the Democrats yet. I shudder to think what betrayal of the Constitution and the people of this country yet awaits us. I am forced to ask, "What do they stand for?"

I think they have shown us time and time again what they stand for, what their values are, and that they are willing to leave the people behind in their quest to acquiesce to what Bush's base asks for. And remember, Bush told us that his base were the haves and the have mores! So, if the Democratic leadership is more loyal to them than they are to the working people in this country, then a new political alignment of historical proportions is taking effect that the working people of this country must recognize. By their policy choices, it should now be clear that the Democratic leadership in Congress must be removed and a political party that reflects the people's values must be built. Not only do the people need a party of their own, it should now be clear to a vast number of people that the people in this country need a movement that places our values on the political agenda. This was what I said in my remarks accepting the Green Party'snomination as their candidate for President of the United States.

In 2000, when there was clear evidence that the election had been tampered with, and that particularly, black voters had been disfranchised, the Democratic leadership did nothing to recognize and correct this fact. Criminal behavior was met with de facto acceptance, a failure to investigate, and ultimate acquiescence by the Democratic leadership.

While Congress has made clear its priorities with the $800 billion bailout of Wall Street Bankers, Cynthia continues to work for our priorities of peace, health care, justice, democracy and dignity, both here and abroad.

Please follow the Read_More link to read the rest of her article, including Cynthia's 14 point plan for addressing the economic crisis.

"With respect to impeachment, how can Nancy Pelosi take impeachment off the table. But even more than that, I know John Conyers. I know John Conyers is a strong, proud, diginified man. How can he bend over completely and answer to Nancy Pelosi on . . . (her sentence was drowned out by applause).

"Millions of people in this ocuntry and people around the world watched as the Republican Party established a new standard for impeachment. All you got to do is have a little affair on your wife, lie about it, maybe under oath lie about it, lie about it to the people. And what happens? $40 million gets spent investigating your lie to your wife and to all of us.

"That is the standard that has been set for impeachment.

"But lying to the American people? That's all right, according to the Democrat's values. Spying on inncoent American people. That's all right, according to the Democratic values. Starting a war and killing innocent people? That's all right, according to the Democrat leaders values.

"And so instead of us getting accountable government, and instead of us even having an opposition party that acts like an opposition party, we've got complicity.