Barack Obama has ordered the creation of a non-partisan commission on voting rights in the US in an attempt to remove the hurdles to democratic participation that dogged the 2012 presidential election.
Updated at 4.08am GMT 4.02am GMT The Guardian's Ed Pilkington reports on the president's announcement of a voting rights commission to tackle a broken system: Barack Obama has ordered the creation of a non-partisan commission on voting rights in the US in an attempt to remove the hurdles to democratic participation that dogged the 2012 presidential election.
The point is purely to remove the hurdles so the unconnected can make an informed decision about going online and not under duress of the fear of the unknown.
And then it is our job to remove the hurdles that prevent them from being out on the street doing their job!
Within the progressive Jewish context, the Reform, Reconstructionist and Conservative movements are expending significant resources to reduce or remove the hurdles that women rabbis face as they enter the workplace.
At some schools, students are allowed to eat breakfast once class has started, which removes the hurdle of showing up early to get a free meal in the cafeteria.
That removes the hurdle of having to own a credit card.
More training for controlled substance prescribers, first responder access to the life-saving overdose anecdote naloxone, and removing the hurdles for treatment access should all be part of the national platform.
The announcement this month that the big Düsseldorf bank Westdeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale, or WestLB, would continue financing the project, despite an international campaign pressuring it to withdraw a $900 million loan, appeared to remove the last hurdle for the builders of the $1.3 billion pipeline.
The Czech government sought to remove the final hurdle to the Lisbon Treaty today, calling on European leaders to concede a form of words to placate their president and arch eurosceptic, Vaclav Klaus, in return for his quick signature on the reform treaty.
