Midwest Regional College Republicans

A Politically Correct Christmas...

2011-12-25T23:03:00.000-06:00

For Our Liberal Friends: Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to observe religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the generally accepted calendar year 2012, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures.

For Our Republican Friends: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and may God bless you and yours in 2012.

This time of the year is about change; it's about the future. We look at the New Years celebration as a change of the year and look forward to all of the exciting things to come that year. But Christmas is also about a change - it's about a change in the World for the rest of the future, not just a year. When Jesus Christ was born in a manger, it signified a change; it was the start of a beautiful future full of possibilities that last much longer than a year, but an eternity.

So, this holiday season, don't just look to 2012, but look to the rest of the future. And the future is bright. In this Christmas and Holiday Season, let's work to change the future and change the World. And we as Republicans, can do just that if we stay focused, stay energized, stay loyal, and remain the best party on Campus. Look to the future, my friends. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

(Jeffrey Isbell, a pentecostal minister and, is a former UIS College Republican and field representative for the College Republican National Committee. He is also a candidate for County Commissioner in his home county in Southern Illinois. His website can be visited at www.jeffreyisbell.com)

Former CRNC Field Rep Announces Campaign

2011-11-25T12:49:00.000-06:00

Herrin, Illinois - Former College Republican National Committee Field Representative Jeffrey Isbell, of Herrin Illinois has announced his run for Williamson County Commissioner. Jeffrey is an alumnus of the University of Illinois at Springfield College Republicans and served as a Field Representative for the CRNC during the 2006 midterm elections.

"I've lived in Southern Illinois my entire life and am proud to call this my home, however, my home could use a little work. We need more transparency and accountability in our government; we must create a business friendly environment to lure large companies to our county; and we have to keep our spending in check and look at ways to reduce the tax burden on our residents," said Jeffrey Isbell.

Jeffrey was raised in Southern Illinois his entire life and graduated from Herrin High School in 2005. He then attended the University of Illinois at Springfield. He has worked several statewide, congressional, and most recently, a presidential campaign. In addition, he has worked for Students for Life of America, Parents for Choice in Education, and the Leadership Institute.

"For as long as I can remember, I've committed myself to helping other people. My grandfather lived a life of sacrifice, like most in his generation. He served his country ably in the Army during the Korean War, he was a retired civil service employee from the city of Herrin, was a fighter until the day he died, and most importantly was a Christian. He taught me about sacrifice and standing for what is right."

As a Williamson County Commissioner, Jeffrey will represent 65,000+ people and serve as one of three County Commissioners. To make a political contribution to Jeffrey Isbell's campaign, visit his website at www.jeffreyisbell.com or mail checks to 13735 Allen Road in Carterville, Illinois 62918.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T22:00:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving, all!!

My Thanksgiving post here, from last year.
[Especially see the 'message' part, at the bottom.]

Best wishes to you and yours, for a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!!

CRNC Biennial Convention 2011 (The Midwest is the best!)

2011-07-29T17:25:00.003-05:00

#CRNCDC

Things have been moving quite fast here, so (like for prior events), I'm setting up a Twitter-feed. This one has some of our Midwest Caucus CRs, who are live-Tweeting. The entry below is the general Tweet stream, for this 2011 Biennial Convention.

The Midwest is the best!!

.

CRNC Biennial Convention 2011

2011-07-29T17:03:00.001-05:00

#CRNCDC

See entry above... That one has the explanation, & live-coverage, from our CRNC Midwest Caucus!

This however, is the general Twitter stream, for live coverage of the 2011 Biennial Convention of the College Republican National Committee (CRNC).

A sustainable economic plan

2011-07-19T17:50:00.005-05:00

While driving home from Washington D.C. yesterday, I had the opportunity to listen to lots of talk radio and got some wonderful ideas for some blog posts. I'll share more about my trip at another time, but one thing I find it important to write about is the looming default of American credit and talks to corral our spending.

Mark Levin outlined, on my drive home, an important message to Republicans in the deal-making process. While Republicans are attempting to make strides to ensure a brighter American future in negotiations with the President, Levin offers this:

"We all know where the country is headed, we all know what the problem is.  We all know that the Tea Party movement is not only right, but it's the only thing saving this nation.  So the paradox is, that it's treated as some small, insignificant force, when in fact they are urging the only way out.  Another paradox; in order to change Washington, George [Will], you gotta change Washington.  Right?  And so what the Tea Party movement is trying to do, what the Reagan Revolution is trying to do and what the conservatives in the conservative movement have been hoping and trying to do is to reverse course. You can't reverse course without reversing course.  You can't slash spending without slashing spending.  In other words, talk is cheap and now it's time to act."

The American people should not be satisfied with a clandestine deal involving a minimal reduction in spending in exchange for an expansion in our already-crippling debt. We need a balanced budget, lower taxes, and a stable economy. We the people are engaged with the political process and will not settle for the selling of our future and a mortgage of our children's future. We want the Republican party to be the people's advocate in Washington, D.C., and we sent that message loud and clear in November of 2010 and we will do so again in November of 2012. But if those for fiscal responsibility haven't found an advocate in D.C. by this upcoming election cycle, we'll send in a new round of even-more-conservative men and women to Capitol Hill.

Obama, who was a Constitutional Law professor at the University of Chicago, has said he will veto the Tea Party-backed plan and balanced budget amendment. For those that aren't familiar with the process, a Constitutional amendment must pass both the House and the Senate by a 2/3 majority and would then need to be ratified by 3/4 of the states. Missing from this process, as a Constitutional Law professor should probably be able to see, is the Office of the President. Even more embarrassing is the fact that there is even a Con Law case that re-states the President's absence from the process, Hollingsworth v. Virginia.

A balanced budget amendment is not out of reach. 49 states, Vermont being the lone hold-out, have a balanced budget policy, and as recently as March of 1995, an amendment to balance the budget passed the House and was just one vote short of passing the Senate. Now is the time for the citizens that believe in saving the economy to contact Congress and urge them to save America's future with this sustainable economic plan.

RightOnline 2011: A Kansas Perspective (#RO11, #TheUndefeated)

2011-06-21T00:42:00.005-05:00

I was fortunate enough to be among the almost two thousand attendees at this year's RightOnline Conference in Minneapolis, MN. It was a very productive weekend, filled with networking and putting faces with Twitter handles. I came away with a greater appreciation of our power as bloggers and social media users and am excited to continue our fight for conservative values.

Below, I've excerpted a few RightOnline 2011 posts, all of which originally appeared on my blog at http://calebhays.com.

"RightOnline is a conference dedicated to teaching conservative activists on how to use online technologies and how to purpose them to help move America forward. Of course, for people like me, Melissa Ward, Jayvie Canomo, Tabitha Hale, and Teresa Oelke, it’s a great place to meet the people with work with everyday on Twitter and other online avenues.

"In fact, I met Nansen Malin, a true #tcot Twitter superstar, in her Twitter breakout session. I kind of… hijacked the session, too. Oops… This tweet sent Nansen an @ reply and displayed on the giant screen in the front of the same room this happened in… The crowd started chuckling, and then I had to ‘fess up!"
-from RightOnline 2011 Opening Breakout Sessions (#RO11)

"Members of the NetRoots Nation Conference tried to crash RightOnline 2011. Hotel and AFP security had to push them back." [photos]
-from RightOnline 2011: NetRoots Comes to Visit (#RO11)

"Friday night at AFP Foundation’s RightOnline Conference, we were fortunate enough to be some of the first in the nation to screen the almost final version of 'The Undefeated: The Sarah Palin Documentary.'

"Over the next two hours and fifteen minutes or so, the six hundred or so in the room at RightOnline got a glimpse into Palin’s life through the eyes of some of her most trusted advisors. It wasn’t a film that maliciously dug into her life; it just showed us the world from the point of view of those who knew her before she was thrust onto the national stage, and this perspective really helped explain her recent actions. Moreover, it reintroduced the room of conservative activists to the Palin we once knew and strongly admired and showed us once again why we felt she was a true leader."

-from RightOnline 2011: Screening “The Undefeated” (#RO11 #TheUndefeated)

"Our favorite liberal online rag Huffington Post decided to carry one of my tweets (and one of fellow Kansan Beka Romm’s, too) as part of the back story for one of the weekend articles covering U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)."
-from RightOnline 2011: My Cameo in “Huffington Post” (#RO11)

For my RightOnline 2011 Wrap-up post, which includes photo highlights of the conference, please visit this link.

Click here to view all of my coverage of RightOnline 2011.

Right Online 2011

2011-06-18T13:41:00.004-05:00

[Note: I don't know if the Widget isn't loading, or if it's just slow, on my end. In case it isn't, just follow the link:
http://twitter.com/AakashRaut/lists/midwest-crnc-rightonline Thanks!]

I've had quite the experience (!!) at RightOnline - or more-specifically, on my way to it, etc...

I'm trying to rush off right now, to one of the breakout-sessions, but didn't want any more time to pass, before loading one of those [quickly-put-together] Twitter-stream, of our CRNC-Midwest Caucus members, who are here!

[There's unfortunately no time to post actual blog entries right now, while partaking in all the other good stuff!]

And, I apologize for those here, who I've left out. I'm behind today (as well as yesterday!!), not to mention, severely under-caffeinated.

Minnesota College Republicans on Governor Mark Dayton (D-MN) & the Budget Bill

2011-05-27T22:12:00.001-05:00

The Minnesota College Republican Federation (MNCR) recently unveiled a new website... During this past week's [HIGHLY-contentious!] Minnesota legislative session, the MNCRs posted a good analysis, at their blog.

From May 23, 2011, @MNCRs blog...

Minnesota Budget Bill:
Dayton Should Learn from Pawlenty’s Policies
The budget battle continues in St. Paul as the deadline approaches. As our Republican representatives stand strong against job killing taxes, the Democrats persist that taxes are the only way to balance the budget.

This battle seems fairly familiar. Last year, the Democrats in the Minnesota Legislature insisted on hurting businesses across Minnesota with costly tax increases while Governor Tim Pawlenty said no. Governor Dayton would do well to take a page from Pawlenty’s economic playbook...

====> Check it out, at the MNCR blog...

OP-ED: Debt Isn't Compassionate

2011-05-24T18:05:00.000-05:00

From the Co-Chairman of the Ohio College Republican Federation (OCRF), Sam Bain - an OP-ED published @ FOX Nation!

Debt Isn't Compassionate
A few weeks ago the College Republican National Committee released a television ad in Iowa titled "What's Your Plan?" detailing the staggering national debt and prompting candidates to tell us their plan to balance the budget. Though, the line which stood out most during the ad was the phase, "Debt Isn't Compassionate."

When I heard this I was (sarcastically) at war with myself. The Democratic Party has been in power and has spent more than all previous administrations combined. Yet at the same time, this is the party that claims to stick up for the little guy, promote the middle class and defend any other category one could call a victim. They have used the public education system and strong armed the media into having Americans believe that they are entitled to everything under the sun. You can't even touch Medicare and Social Security without Democratic telling grandmas the GOP will push them off a cliff.

You can't cut Planned Parenthood without being a misogynist who loathes women and if you cut National Public Radio, you, of course, hate free speech. And if you even think about balancing a state budget by paying public workers more responsibly, be careful as you will be deemed an anti-cop, anti-teacher lunatic who wants to destroy the middle class.

The Democratic Party exerts all these claims in the name of compassion for the American people, but can they hold truth to these? Do parents rack up thousands of dollars in credit card debt to buy their children everything, only to sacrifice the security of their future prosperity? The answer is no because that's bad parenting and for the government to do the same is simply bad government.

You would think that reaching the debt ceiling would cause some to wake up...

===> Read the rest: http://nation.foxnews.com/campus/2011/05/23/op-ed-debt-isnt-compassionate#ixzz1NJTbu1EA

Martin Castro: Obama appointee injects traditional Commencement ceremony with national politics

2011-05-15T20:18:00.002-05:00

Around this time of the year, we often see reports, from universities throughout the country, about Graduation ceremonies dominated with liberal (& in some cases, ULTRA-liberal) Commencement speakers.

Fortunately, the capital-city university in our state (UIS) has been able to avoid overly-politicized (re: current affairs) Commencement speeches. Last year's UIS Commencement speaker is a former Republican elected official, but she avoided promoting her personal viewpoints, regarding the contemporary controversial national topics.

The Hon. Karen Hasara is now a member of the statewide University of Illinois Board of Trustees (BOT), and an alumna of our university (the University of IL at Springfield) was on stage again, this year, but the Commencement speaker was Martin Castro, a member of the Obama Administration, serving as Chairman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, and a Chicago Democrat.

Still, I was expecting a motivational talk at yesterday's Commencement ceremony, reflecting on his life & career experience, and dealing with certain topics, but not pushing his personal opinions, regarding current, national-level hot-button issues. (The latter type of speech is common at other university Commencements, but not for the University of Illinois at Springfield [UIS].)

I was surprised therefore, at the topics Martin Castro chose to inject, within his speech. He praised the "Illinois Dream Act" - and said that Interim UIS Chancellor Harry Berman supports this measure, to help "undocumented immigrant students" (who may include some of those, "here" in the audience!). I was surprised to hear that the UIS administration was supporting the "IL Dream Act"... Was this decided upon, at a "Campus Senate" meeting (of which most UIS students are unaware)? I see that the UIS Student Government Association (SGA) did vote to approve this. However: Other than a representative of a student group, supporting that proposal (& the reporter the UIS Journal sends), I doubt anyone else was at the meeting! I'm almost-sure the SGA members heard no differing viewpoints, and were most-likely unaware that this bill would, in fact, require taxpayer-funding of new services, for illegal aliens. [The podcast of the meeting might make interesting - or uninteresting, that is! - listening.] Despite these circumstances, the supporters of this state legislation can (supposedly) now claim that "the University supports" the Illinois Dream Act.
Update: Upon watching the video of this SGA meeting, I see that the members were relying on 3rd-hand information about the Illinois legislation, which was partly-inaccurate. Almost no one was in the audience, & no one presented the opposing view. Despite these circumstances, the SGA passed the "Resolution" by just a one-vote majority (6 out of 11).

(Apparently, some members of the Illinois Senate may also be unaware of what specifically this piece of legislation does!)

[I will be doing a separate post, about the aforementioned issue.]

...Castro blasted efforts to "change the 14th Amendment"; How many of those here, he said, would be so-dramatically hurt, by that?

He praised affirmative action, and discussed how the Commission successfully helped stop the University of Michigan lawsuit that sought to end those programs, in collegiate admissions.

He heaped praise on the President, and repeated several other hot-button issue talking points.

I wonder if this was the most politicized Commencement Address that the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) has ever had.

Maybe that's just the "Chicago way"?! ;-)

Best of luck!!

2011-05-13T20:18:00.000-05:00

Best of luck, to all students, on [remaining!] finals, papers, projects, etc.!!

And also: CONGRATULATIONS, to all who are graduating!!

Thank you for your involvement, in the College Republicans ("the best party on campus!" :-). Please keep in contact with us, and best of luck, on your current and future endeavors!

Live-Tweeting the first GOP President Debate

2011-05-05T19:44:00.000-05:00

Like we set up, for a past Primary Election night, I've put together a quick Twitter-List, to so we can stream the live coverage & commentary, from tonight's Presidential Debate.

Let me know, if you would like to be added to this. Thanks!

The Release of Bin Laden Photos would Jeopardize American Lives

2011-05-04T00:11:00.002-05:00

As the whole world now knows, the mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist’s attacks, Osama Bin Laden was killed by U.S. Military operatives at his home in Pakistan. Ten years later and after thousands more American lives were sacrificed, justice has finally been served on behalf of the victims of 9/11 and Americans can sleep a little more peacefully in their beds at night. Credit should be given to our Armed Forces and both President Bush and Obama for demonstrating the leadership and resolve to bring justice to this terrorist ten years later.

However, in light of this monumental American victory, I am taken aback by all the uproar to release pictures of Osama's corpse. While it is understandable that the victims’ families would want closure of his death, what kind of uncivilized country do we live in to revel in such satisfaction at the expense of uniting those of Muslim faith against the Western world and putting American lives at an even greater risk?

While the killing of Bin Laden no doubt brought justice to almost 3000 victims killed in the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the ten years of military operations in the Middle East, the lives of thousands of American soldiers, and trillions of taxpayer dollars were expended to keep the American people safe in the future, not necessarily bring justice to one man.

To release photos under the pretense of bringing closure to the American people that justice has been served, would compromise the most important reason why began such a costly endeavor; our national security. No, the terrorist movement will not drop their weapons and surrender because their worshipped leader was killed by the U.S. We can expect another such figure to fill Osama’s void in the near future. Releasing photos of Bin Laden’s mutilated corpse will not prove to our enemies anything. Will that deter them from attacking again? Of course it won’t. These terrorists will commit suicide by blowing up their own bodies to kill at least one “infidel”. The pundits that claim these photos will hamper the terrorist’s efforts and resolve are kidding the American people. The contrary would be the case. If history is a teacher, the uprising in Iraq after the execution of Saddam Hussein is sufficient proof. Did terrorists falter or lose faith in their cause? No, attacks on U.S. forces in areas of Iraq increased by 300% within days Saddam’s death.

Imagine the scenario inside a terrorist training facility. Young boys are taken from their peaceful Muslim families and forced to join the ranks of the Taliban and Al Qaeda. At this age, the boys’ minds are moldable and can be easily influenced. The terrorist leaders use propaganda to incite hate into the hearts of these young men. These are the same boys that strap on suicide vest and commit egregious acts of terror at the expense of their own lives. The pictures of Osama’s slain body are unclassified and released to the Arab world; being used to show these young recruits and galvanizing their hatred against the Western world. There cannot be a more effective instrument used to rally resolve and anger in the hearts and mind of the terrorists and terrorists-in- training than their worshipped leader, Osama Bin Laden.

Thousands of American lives have already been sacrificed in this war. Hundreds of thousands more hang in the balance in the combat zones of Iraq and Afghanistan. There are sleeper cells currently living within our own borders. Regardless of the reason why you think the photos should be released in the light if this information and past history, is it really worth the cost of more lives? At a time when the terrorist threat level in the U.S. is the highest it has been in years, would it really be the responsible thing to do to anger the Muslim world by parading and trumpeting their prophet’s death? Not only are such actions short-sighted, but this would hamper the United States efforts to win the hearts and minds of the next generation of Arabs in these war torn countries. Not all of these people can be responsible for the actions of 18 hijackers. The release of these photos would ruin years of progress in these countries in addition to turning this war into a war of revenge instead of conquest. The last thing the fanatic terrorists need is a martyr. We should not advertise the fact that we have given them one because of our craving to satisfy our yearning for justice. Trust should be place in our Commander in Chief and our Armed Forces that they are handling this delicate situation correctly. They understand the intricacies of this situation and the dynamics of its consequences far better than those of us who aren’t involved in foreign policy and national defense.

Thousands of American lives were sacrificed to bring this man to justice on May1st. Let us be content with this sacrifice and not endanger more lives by perpetuating support for the un-classification of graphical evidence.

Brandon West
Vice-Chair Kansas Federation of College Republicans
Veteran Operation Iraqi Freedom V-VII
1st Army Division Soldier of the Year 2008

Congress doesn't need to raise debt ceiling.

2011-04-28T11:53:00.001-05:00

There is no doubt that America is amid a great financial crisis, but while those of us in the real world are tightening our belts to adapt to the current economic environment, Democrats in Washington want permission to spend even more and add to our crippling national debt.

The conversation in Washington D.C. for weeks had centered, for the most part, on how much our leaders are willing to listen to the American people and head down the path to financial responsibility by taking steps to curtail the burden on our sons and daughters. The budget produced by the House of Representatives that passed Friday was more of a flinch than a step in the right direction. The final amount cut from spending, according to the Congressional Budget Office, was a less-than-whopping $352 million. This rate is much lower than the $38 billion advertised and the $100 billion promised earlier, to be exact the actual cuts made are just under one percent of the promise and they are just minutia compared to the $3.8 trillion national budget. To put this in comparison, the average income in Southwest Missouri is about $33,000, so the cut that Congress man is equivalent to you cutting your annual budget by about $3.05.

Now with these modest budget cuts, that were nearly to blame for shutting down the government, behind us, the discussion will soon turn to raising the debt ceiling. In February of last year, the debt ceiling was raised to $14.294 TRILLION with an unprecedented increase of $1.9 trillion dollars (over double what it had been raised before.) Currently, our national debt is approaching 96% of our Gross Domestic Product, around a 35% increase of what it was only four years ago.

Increasing the debt ceiling has been characterized by those on the left as necessary, Obama has claimed that defaulting on the debt could "plunge the world economy back into a recession" and Treasury Secretary Geithner claimed that the discussion regarding NOT raising the debt ceiling could be "catastrophic." Geithner told news sources this weekend that "Congress will raise the debt ceiling" and seemed unperturbed by anything to contrary. Now, it seems that Republican leadership may continue to pander to the left instead of fixing government spending. But what would be the implications if they refused?

Some experts suggest that the danger implied by the left is overstated and that a failure to raise the debt ceiling would simply require the federal government to use its revenue to pay the interest in lieu of contributing to our bloated budget. Options are not limited to blindly raising the ceiling, and must include either putting a hold on the ceiling or pairing the raise with large, meaningful cuts. No family could be sustained by increasing their credit limit amidst encumbering debt, especially without making a serious budget overhaul to ensure that debt is corralled. The government shouldn't be afforded the option, either.

If Republicans are serious about restoring fiscal sanity, they need to say no to increasing the United States' already-maxed-out credit. Conservatives in Washington must show leadership on this issue to regain the people's confidence that was lost in them after failing to make legitimate budget cuts.

Happy Easter!! (and, a thought from President Ronald Reagan)

2011-04-25T00:27:00.045-05:00

[Note: I'm a little late, getting this posted... But it contains wisdom that's pertinent, at ANY time! :-]

...J. Brandon West, who is one of our bloggers, was going to do an Easter-themed post here; This morning however, there was a tragic situation. Please keep him and his family in your prayers.]

A thought for this occasion, from President Ronald Reagan (1911-2004):

"Meaning no disrespect to the religious convictions of others, I still can't help wondering how we can explain away what to me is the greatest miracle of all and which is recorded in history.

No one denies there was such a man, that he lived and that he was put to death by crucifixion. Where...is the miracle I spoke of? Well consider this and let your imagination translate the story into our own time—possibly to your own home town:

A young man whose father is a carpenter grows up working in his father's shop. One day he puts down his tools and walks out of his father's shop. He starts preaching on street corners and in the nearby countryside, walking from place to place, preaching all the while, even though he is not an ordained minister. He never gets farther than an area perhaps 100 miles wide at the most.

He does this for three years. Then he is arrested, tried and convicted. There is no court of appeal, so he is executed at age 33 along with two common thieves. Those in charge of his execution roll dice to see who gets his clothing—the only possessions he has. His family cannot afford a burial place for him so he is interred in a borrowed tomb.

End of story? No, this uneducated, property-less young man who...left no written word has, for 2,000 years, had a greater effect on the world than all the rulers, kings, emperors; all the conquerors, generals and admirals, all the scholars, scientists and philosophers who have ever lived—all of them put together.

How do we explain that? ...unless he really was who he said he was."

- President Ronald Wilson Reagan

Announcing the 2011 Annual Kansas Federation Convention

2011-04-24T21:12:00.007-05:00

It's that time of year, again! Announcing the 2011 Annual Kansas Federation of College Republicans Convention in Topeka, KS on April 30th at 8:00, hosted by the Kansas Republican Party.

Invited Guests include:

Kansas State Executive Officials
Governor Sam Brownback
Lt. Governor Jeff Colyer
Attorney General Derek Schmidt
Treasurer Ron Estes
Secretary of State Kris Kobach
Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger

Kansas Federal Officials
U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS)
U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS)
Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins (R-KS02)
Congressman Tim Huelskamp (R-KS01)
Congressman Mike Pompeo (R-KS04)
Congressman Kevin Yoder (R-KS03)

Kansas State Legislative Leaders

Speaker Mike O’Neal
Majority Leader Arlen Siegfried

RNC Officials

National Committeeman and former Congressman Todd Tiahrt (R-KS04)
National Committeewoman Helen Vanetten

Republican Activists

Virginia Crossland-Macha

Melissa Ward

Registration is required for this free event and can be completed by visiting http://KansasCR.com/register.

For more information, please contact

Paje Routhier, Chair

Kansas Federation of College Republicans

785.783.4735

info@KansasCR.com - http://Facebook.com/KansasCR - http://Twitter.com/KansasCR

Federal Delegation Should Butt-Out of Missouri Redistricting

2011-04-24T18:08:00.003-05:00

For quite some time now, Missouri's state legislature has been working on the new Congressional maps based on the 2010 census data. The redistricting has not been without struggle as leadership in both the House and Senate have been bogged down trying to appease members of their own chambers and the egos attempting to pull the strings from Washington D.C.

As the AP reported last week, U.S. House members met with top ranking GOP members of the Missouri legislature. The purpose for all of this is to influence the legislators in getting the new Congressional maps drawn in a way that would optimize their chances at re-election. Aside from being an affront to standards of personal decency and ethics, the meddling of our Congressional delegation also flies in the face of Missouri's Constitution, which clearly states that "the general assembly shall by law divide the state into districts corresponding with the number of representatives to which is it entitled." Our federal delegation should have no further say in the proceedings than any other citizen of the state, and limiting their entanglement may be good for the state as a whole.

Congressmen having to maintain positive professional relationships with legislators from their district could have a positive impact on the entire political dialogue and clean up ugly election rhetoric. With Congressmen at the mercy of their state senators and representatives, we would be less likely to see personal attacks and outright lies during election season as potential candidates may actually have face consequences for what they say. Besides with the economy in the tank and three military conflicts, don't Congressman have better things to than worry about being re-elected?

Read more by William Lynch at his blog: Life as a Law Student.

A Taxing Reminder

2011-04-18T23:54:00.044-05:00

As the deadline, for filing your taxes, is now imminent (& will have passed, by the time this is published), here are some selections, pertinent for this time of the year (aside from Easter - and Earth Week).

TAX DAY 2011

From WorldNetDaily:

- Economic Sense Left D.C. a long time ago, Herman Cain

===> Note: The Purdue College Republicans are hosting a big event, featuring "the Herminator," this Wednesday night!! (It's FREE and OPEN to the public!!)

From TownHall:

- Obama's Tax Hypocrisy, Lurita Doan
- There's No Fairness in Taxing E-Sales, Jeff Jacoby
- Tax Congress!, John Ransom
- Obama Invents a New Word: Tax Expenditures, Floyd Brown
- Tax & Debt Bomb, Larry Kudlow
- Fertilizing Farms with Tax Dollars, Stephen Chapman
- Taxes and Politics, Thomas Sowell
- Eat the Rich, Walter Williams

From National Review:

- ‘Fairness’ on Tax Day (Most Americans get their government for free.) - Douglas Holtz-Eakin
- 'Regulation Day'? (Regulations cost us nearly as much as taxes do.), Iain Murray
(...and Roger Clegg replies)

And, from the paleo side:

- Become a Multi-Millionaire… as a Tax Snitch, Simon Black
- Eat the Private Rich?, Walter Williams
- Eat the Government Rich?, Thomas Sowell
- Eat the Savers?, Doug French
- Loopholes are Freedom, Thomas DiLorenzo

- No Taxation, Art Carden
- CNBC Says: Pay Your Fair Share

Via RushLimbaugh:

- Tax Day: Half of US Pays Nothing
- Wall Street Journal - Where the Money Is: Obama Taxes Middle Class While Pretending to Tax only the Rich
- AP: Nearly half of US households escape federal income tax
- AP Spin: Super Rich See Federal Taxes Drop

And check out:

TAX FOUNDATION www.TaxFoundation.org
[New Online Tool: Marginal Tax Rates Calculator]

AMERICANS for PROSPERITY: TAXES!

==> AMERICANS for TAX REFORM: www.atr.org
==> Center for Fiscal Accountability: www.fiscalaccountability.org
==> Alliance for Worker Freedom: www.workerfreedom.org

NATIONAL TAXPAYERS UNION www.ntu.org

FairTax: www.FairTax.org

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Show Me!! Missouri College Republicans - Convention recap

2011-04-18T04:22:00.023-05:00

[The entry below links to a recap, of the Minnesota State College Republicans Convention, last (April 16th) weekend. And another recent one recaps the Wisconsin College Republicans Statewide Convention.]

...And now, the Show-Me State! Missouri was the other CRNC Midwest Caucus state to have held their statewide CR Federation Convention, the weekend of April 16th.

I was glad to have been at last year's MOCR Convention; I've participated in prior Missouri GOP campaigns, and have thoroughly enjoyed me experiences, doing politics in the Show-Me State (very-different, from across the river, here in Illinois ;-)...

Here is a Convention recap, along with some recent news, from the Missouri Federation of College Republicans!!

I regret I was not in attendance. CONGRATULATIONS to new Missouri Chairwoman BRENNA MEDLIN, and the newly-elected Executive Board!!

Chair: Brenna Medlin, Saint Louis University
Vice-Chair: Matt Baker, Missouri State University
Treasurer: Andrew Schwartz, Truman State University
Secretary: Michelle Wertz, University of Central Missouri

Keep up the great work, in the GREAT state of Missouri!!

Minnesota College Republicans - Convention Recap

2011-04-17T01:16:00.055-05:00

...And also last weekend was the annual statewide Convention of the Minnesota College Republicans. (For a recap of the Wisconsin Convention last weekend, see Scottsblog's always-excellent entry, below.)

Thanks to Nick Amell and others, for the live-Tweeting! Many of us, who weren't able to be in the Twin Cities last weekend, greatly appreciated that, especially while trying to follow along, with what was happening! :-)

Bess Folsom has also provided a GREAT recap, of the MNCR 2011 Convention, at her weblog!
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Sunday, April 10, 2011

Minnesota College Republicans Display Passion and Compromise

The University of St. Thomas was overwhelmed on Saturday by College Republicans from around the state. The Minnesota College Republicans arrived at 10 am for their annual convention, during which the next year's board of directors is elected.

It was clear to guest speakers Tom and Jacquie Emmer and Tony Sutton that the day was going to be long and tedious when the convention convened late due to delegate qualification problems. It took until lunch to approve the rules for the convention and still not everyone was happy.

The lunch hour consisted of trips to Chipotle, Tea Garden, and Davanni's to refuel and lots of tweeting and gossiping with CRs across the state. By the time the convention re-convened at 12:45 it was clear that the group was divided and rumors of not even being able to elect a new chairman started circulating.

While delegates continued to argue over delegate qualifications and even impeachment, current chairman Tyler Verry and candidate Bobby Benson had a surprise up their sleeves. Rumors started flying so much that the room of delegates was literally buzzing....

========> Curious about what happened at the #mncr11 convention? Check out Bess' recap, at "The Girl's Right" blog!

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Thanks to the MNCR leadership, for your service, and for coordinating a great Convention! And congratulations to incoming Minnesota College Republicans State Chairman RYAN LYK!!

A Happy CR Birthday

2011-04-14T23:08:00.036-05:00

Congratulations, on two fronts ;-) to Caleb Hays, an officer of the Kansas Federation of College Republicans, a registered blogger at this site, who also has his own (well-designed!) weblog.

Caleb was elected, this evening, as the new Chairman of the Pitt State University College Republicans.

And also, this happens to be Caleb's 21st birthday! (Guess this was a good birthday present! :-)

Draft saved at:
4/14/11 @ 11:08 PM (CST)

Wisconsin College Republicans elect new leadership at annual convention

2011-04-10T21:40:00.012-05:00

The UW-Eau Claire Chapter of the Wisconsin College Republicans gathered with Representative Warren Petryk (front-center) to host the 2011 Wisconsin College Republicans State Convention

Over 60 Wisconsin College Republicans gathered in Eau Claire this past Friday and Saturday for the 2011 College Republican State Convention, electing new leadership and amending a slew of constitutional articles. The proceedings began at 4 PM Friday afternoon with a social gala and check-in at the Holiday Inn at Craig Road in Eau Claire, followed by a reception at 7 PM that included 5 legislative speakers, mostly from districts around Eau Claire. Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder of Abottsford opened the festivities with an inspiring ten minute speech, telling the youth in the room to not let anybody stop them from "achieving anything they've set out to do". Suder's speech, which set the tone for the convention, was followed by an Asian-themed banquet dinner complete with chicken-fried rice and egg rolls and while the contingent of student relaxed after the meal, the main speakers stepped up to the mike with Warren Petryk, 93rd Assembly representative, headlining first.

Petryk gave his speech about service, tying in his calling to public office and sacrifice as a duty he didn't take lightly.

"Someone asked me what it was like to run for office and many of you with campaigns know how crazy it is and some of the description lack of sleep, etc, are there," he said. "And many of you have worked or will work on campaigns and I read a quote one time that pretty much sums it up. . . 'He who mounts the wild elephant goes where the wild elephant goes.' and that's pretty profound because it takes you on journey. . . I've been told oftentimes we define our dreams and sometimes they define us and that's what happened in the process as I humbly accepted the call and I am so happy to be here. In spite all of the challenges, it is incredible to spend time with these gentlemen and these ladies and to turn this state around."

Tom Larson, 68th District Representative from Dunn County, told the students a little bit about his experience struggles with representing his constituents in the way he believed most accurately reflected the silent majority view on the Budget Repair Bill. Kathy Bernier, 67th Assembly Representative from Chippewa Falls then got up and told the group a little bit about the trying times and the emotional challenges of dealing with the protestors, upset constituents, and the support of her male colleagues during the recent budget repair battle.

"Some of us had people out our doors and down the halls and we were determined to stay in our offices and meet those folks who were angry and upset and speak with them and I had law enforcement in my office from time-to-time, I had other legislators, my male neighbor legislators in my hallway would come and rescue me and they would take me out for a little break and they were wonderful. . .As you know my district is pretty much 50/50 and when the media called and told me that the City of Eau Claire passed a resolution telling me to vote no, I asked them how did Howard Ludwigson (a conservative on the city council) vote and he voted no. On election night when it came to the City of Eau Claire, I had a 1000 vote lead from the surrounding townships and I only won by 93 votes and so my thought was that the City of Eau Claire was not going to tell me how to vote because that is not indicative of what my district really looks like and who got me elected."

Senator Terry Moulton of the 23rd Senate District talked about how his business (Mouldy's Tackle) in Eau Claire gained a boost in revenues from the attention given to it by a union protest at the end of February as people who were on the conservative side flocked to it from surrounding areas during that time to show their support. Lori Forcier, 3rd Vice Chair of the Wisconsin GOP talked about her passion and support for the College Republican groups around the state and how she would throw her weight behind them as "Chair of the 72 County Chairs" of Wisconsin. Forcier was Eau Claire County GOP Chair for several years and was a strong mentor for the College Republicans at UW Eau Claire.

The keynote speaker was Senator Glen Grothman from West Bend, whose speech highlighted the budget hearings being conducted in Superior and Steven's Point over the last few days concerning Scott Walker's 2011 to 2013 budget and how many of the people who show up for the meetings are not representative of all of the people in the state.

"And they're all asking for more money," said Grothman. "Unless you're a grounded person, people get confused and begin to think that people want more money spent because that's what you usually hear as a legislator, that's what you usually hear as a county board member, that's what you usually hear as a city council member. There must have been over 500 people testifying and I'd be surprised if 10 of those were supportive of Scott Walker's budget and the reason is because the average guy is too busy working. If you're somebody who works at the University, K-12 education, at the county board, or what-have-you, your paycheck does not depend on making the public happy, it depends on getting the politicians to get you more money, which is why we had the problem we had yesterday and today."

The convention kicked off at 9 o'clock Saturday morning with 48 amendments to the College Republican State Constitution, several of them major. The changes were made within the first 2 hours. Awards were handed out with Eau Claire winning Chapter of the Year for the second straight year. UW-Milwaukee’s Kate Edwards won individual activist of the year. The last item on the agenda was to nominate new leadership for the coming 2011 year. Charlotte Evans, the UW River Falls student who was elected chair in 2010 is stepping down due to time constraints due from her other commitments. Evans is credited with rebuilding both the image and the operation of the Wisconsin College Republicans after the organization fell into complete turmoil when former chair Lora Rae Anderson completely changed parties the day after the 2010 convention concluded. The shakeup made national headlines and destroyed the credibility of the Wisconsin CRs in the eyes of the State and National GOP, as well as created a PR battle between the Democratic Party and the Democrat College Republicans and the Wisconsin CRs. Evans and the executive board that she appointed fought back and neutralized both the fallout and the war of words against the GOP borne from Anderson's action. Evans, a member of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, divided time between her Guard duties, her University physics studies, and restoring trust and connections between the Wisconsin CR organization, other state organizations, as well as the individual chapters in the state. Her executive board worked hard to refurbish the reputation of the College Republicans by making them a big part of the State GOP Convention in Milwaukee last May and by sponsoring numerous campaign weekends and Get-Out-the-Vote efforts for GOP candidates all over the State during the 2010 election cycle.

During the convention on Saturday, Matt Rossetto was elected new chair for the 2011 Wisconsin College Republicans. Johanna Conrad was elected Vice Chair, Neil Isono treasurer, and Peter O'Reilly secretary. Conrad took over as chair of the UW Eau Claire College Republicans a year ago when former chair Bobby Hamill graduated. She was instrumental in keeping the CRs operating at a high level in Eau Claire and was responsible for guiding the club to it's second "Chapter of the Year" award. New chair Matt Rossetto will now appoint a new executive committee.

Is the Political Landscape in Washington a New and Better Place or Business as Usual?

2011-04-06T00:54:00.003-05:00

The political divisiveness in Washington DC has been an ever present topic in our newspapers and news channels since the election of President Obama in 2008. With Democrats in control of both the Legislative and Executive branches, there was little the Republican Party could do to advance its agenda, but to voice opposition to any Democrat legislation and hit the campaign trails. Democrats got their way for two years, pushing through bailouts, the health care bill, and refusing to work with House and Senate Republicans on the 2010 budget. Then the elections of 2010 came around and Republicans recaptured control of the U.S. House with the largest majority that they had seen since the 1940’s. President Obama and new House Majority Leader Boehner exhibited a glorious show of pomp and ceremony over their willingness to “work together for the American people”. Many Americans held a semblance of hope that, for once, Congress and the President would forsake the political wrangling and come to a consensus on what was best for the nation instead of their respective political parties. The show of civility was short-lived and by the time President Obama gave his State of the Union Address, politicians from both parties had taken to the trenches once again.

At the forefront of the epic legislation battles, is the present debt crisis and how much to cut the federal budget. The Democrats want to keep all the entitlement programs that keep the base of their electorate happy, while the most outspoken Republicans want cuts across the board on all programs. Meanwhile, President Obama has decided to send American military forces into Libya to aid NATO nations that are attempting to deescalate the oppression of civilians by Col. Muammar Gaddafi. In the midst of all this chaos, the possible Republican presidential contenders are launching their campaigns for 2012, and just this week, President Obama announced his re-election campaign. Suddenly the emphasis has been shifted from righting the nation’s wrongs, to vilifying the opposing party. Many Republicans are not conservative in their withering criticism of President Obama’s military interventionism in Libya. If a correlation can be made between Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Odyssey Dawn, it seems like the Democrat and Republican parties have traded foreign policy doctrines. This hypocrisy can be the most glaring give-away that politics in Washington DC is indeed, back to business as usual. Similarly, the budget cutters are all for abolishing those programs that do not benefit their districts. Senator Coburn (R-OK) wants Defense cuts while Senators Boxer (D-CA) and DeMint (R-SC) want to cut Ethanol subsidies. Any form of federal spending will “bankrupt the country” unless it pays out to that particular Senator’s state or Congressman/woman’s district. Once again, politicians have not failed to show the American people that their legislative priorites will be based on how such decisions influence their re-election chances.

The majority of Americans are Americans first, and party affiliated second. Instead of focusing on the “big picture” politicians are again entrapped with yielding to the special interests that shout the loudest and line the most pockets. The most vocal voices on both the left and right sides of the political spectrum are clamoring for the advancements of their own particular vendetta and forsaking what might be in the best interests of the nation. The politician that can sift through such naïve approaches to policy making is a rare one indeed. These politicians are presently in the minority in Washington DC or are drowned out by those who toe the party line. When times are tough, tough men and women take action. We can only hope that those men and women will wake up one day and re-establish this country’s faith in its elected leaders.

Brandon West
Vice-Chairman Kansas Federation of College Republicans

JB Van Hollen Insists Act 10 is in effect

2011-03-30T18:35:00.002-05:00

Wisconsin Attorney General JB Van Hollen says the recently passed Budget Repair Bill, now referred to as Act 10 by State officials, is in full effect after publication Friday on the Legislative Fiscal Bureau's Web site. The publication of the new law via the LFB was deemed permissable by the Department of Justice because the Legislative Fiscal Bureau was not named in the suit that was filed in Dane County Circuit Court by District Attorney Ismael Ozanne last week. The DOJ believes that the LRB has full power to implement the collective bargaining restrictions in the new law due to State Statute35.095(3(a) that says the Legislative Fiscal Bureau has a ministerial duty to publish laws signed by the Governor within 10 days of passage. As a result, the Department of Justice, and particularly Van Hollen, has issued an appeal with the District 4 Appellate Court in Madison to vacate the temporary injunction issued by Judge Mary Sumi last week that kept the Secretary of State from putting the Act into law.

"These motions argue that the requested relief is appropriate because Act 10 is now in force due to its publication by the Legislative Reference Bureau on March 25, 2011. The Legislative Reference Bureau was not named as a party in the Ozanne case and was not bound by any order issued by the Dane County Circuit Court. Because the law is in force, the appeal, which was based on the harm caused by enjoining the legislative process, is moot. The briefs explain that the Secretary of State made a good faith attempt to comply with the temporary restraining order and did not cause the publication of Act 10," said Bill Cosh in a press release from the Department of Justice.

The appeal was issued yesterday and was not directed to the State Supreme Court as the Supreme Court has not officially accepted the case involving the original injunction and therefore has not yet become a conduit for settling the conflict. The DOJ's insistence on the LRB measure adds even more intrigue to a debate that runs on both sides of the aisle, with the Democrats, including LaFollette himself maintaining that the Secretary of State's Office has the sole authority to publish the law and Republicans maintaining that the Department of Justice is correct in its assessment of Statute 35.095. Legal scholars are divided in their opinions as well.

“It’s now my legal responsibility to begin enactment of the law," said Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch during a Monday afternoon conference call. “It’s clear that for as many attorneys as you wish to ask you are going to get an opinion on this particular law and the status of it,” “We have looked at the statutes and are defining them as clearly as we can as it states in the statute as to the requirements that must be met.”

Meanwhile, Madison Judge Mary Sumi has convened the first hearing this morning on the injunction and has gone ahead with testimony regarding the lawsuit. Ozanne filed papers yesterday to motion Sumi to declare the LRB publication of Act 10 as not being an act of public law and include LRB in the injunction.

Legislative Reference Bureau Chief Stephen Miller today said he believes his agency has a distinct duty to publish new laws within 10 working days of their signature by the governor. But he also does not believe that LRB action alone implements the law.

"I did not think that this act of the LRB made the law effective," Miller said today during testimony in the injunction case.

The Department of Justice argued against Sumi proceeding with the injunction hearing. Assistant Attorney General Maria Lazar argued the court may not assert itself in the legislative process and that since Republican lawmakers in the suit have not been served and are not in the courtroom, their due process rights are being violated.

Huebsch says that all of the changes made the State Payroll program to implement the 5.8% contribution to pensions and 12.6% contribution toward health care insurance premiums and that the first set of checks to be printed with the changes will be on April 21st. However, if a State Court orders otherwise, the changes can be quickly undone.

Budget Repair Battle shifts to the State Supreme Court

2011-03-26T20:38:00.001-05:00

As was expected by many, the ruling over the constitutional legality of the CBA restrictions in Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill has been sent on to the State Supreme Court. A panel of appellate justices made the ruling yesterday, stating prior cases have both ruled equally in favor of the Dane County District Attorney's case against it and the State of Wisconsin Department of Justice's position favoring it. At issue is the complaint filed by Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne that the Special Conference Committee called to convene to pass the bill on the evening of March 9 violated the State's Open Meetings Law by now allowing sufficient public notice and by restricting public's access to the Capitol to attend the meeting. Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi issued an injunction on March 18, barring the Budget Repair Bill that had been signed by the Governor on March 11, from being allowed to take effect, citing that Ozanne's complaint had merit and the law needed to be reviewed before being put in place. Wisconsin Attorney General, J.B. Van Hollen, had filed the appeal with the 4th District Appellate court in Madison on Monday to lift injunction saying that Judge Sumi had ruled on the conduct of a separate branch of government.

The appeal was conducted before the judges Paul Lundsten, Paul Higginbothum, and Brian Blanchard. In the ruling, the 3-judge panel cited four cases, two that ruled in favor of the judicial branch voiding or interfering with an application of the legislature's violation of it's own procedures and two that ruled that the legislature was not subject to oversight or rulings by the judicial branch. Because the Appellate Justices didn't lift the injunction, it is in effect until it is lifted by another court and, therefore; Secretary of State Doug LaFollette did not publish it today, when it had been originally scheduled to be put into effect. At the heart of the matter is essentially State Constitution Article IV, Section 10 that makes up the backbone of the legislature's Open Meetings Law:

The doors of each house shall remain open, except when the public welfare requires secrecy, it is declared to be the intent of the legislature to comply to the fullest extent with [the open meetings provisions set forth in] this subchapter.

The four cases revolve around the premise as to whether or not certain operations of the Legislature, including procedural rules like the State Open Meetings Law, are subject to the constitutional provision before legislation is published into law. They are:

Goodland v. Zimmerman (1943), Lynch v. Conta (1976); State ex rel. La Follette v. Stitt (1983) and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel v. Wisconsin Dept. of Admin., 2009.

In summation the appellate panel said, "Goodland and Stitt appear to favor the Secretary of State’s (La Follette's1983) position that courts lack authority to invalidate legislation enacted in violation of the Open Meetings Law or, at the least, to do so before publication. In contrast, Lynch and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel support the District Attorney’s (Ozanne in 2011) view."

"It is appropriate to certify to the Supreme Court appeals raising issues which that court might otherwise ultimately consider on a petition for review, in order to reduce the burden and expense of the appellate process on both the parties and the judicial system," said the panel in final summation."

Judge Sumi has scheduled hearings on the injunction on Tuesday March 29 and Friday April 1 but until any ruling is made to the contrary of the original injunction, the Budget Repair Law is on hold and as of this time it is not very clear when the Supreme Court will take up the case.

"I don't know how the court's going to react to that" case, Justice David Prosser told Journal Sentinel editors and writers Thursday. Prosser, for his part, has to weigh the consequences of involving himself in a fight that may make him look to some on both sides as if he has a conflict of interest.

"I know it would not be proper for me to react to that," he said. "To delay the case (past the election) because it might be embarrassing to me politically."

He could also be criticized for taking the case and looking like a Walker backer but he isn't backing down.

"This is my business," he told the Sentinel. "I'm a judge. I hear cases."

Janine Geske, a Marquette law professor and former state Supreme Court justice, told the Sentinel that the high court may not want to address the case at this stage because it is ongoing and another legal challenge to the collective bargaining law has been filed.

"The likelihood that anything is going to be decided before the election is not very great," she said.

Wisconsin after the Union Takeover

2011-03-21T12:10:00.002-05:00

"Are you wearing a bulletproof vest?"

Click. Michael Hintze's phone line went dead -- the caller never identified himself. A prominent Wisconsin Tea Party leader, Hintze is the latest recipient of anonymous death threats.

Maybe you thought it was finally over in Wisconsin. Walker overcame the liberal blitzkrieg, elected Republicans decided that there's no moderate stance between bankruptcy and prosperity, the bill was passed and signed, and the fourteen Democrats gave up their life on the run.

But there's more. Though chapter one undeniably ended with a resounding victory for Walker, the next part may easily become a forgotten chapter among thousands in the left's annals of Alinsky-style combat.

Wisconsin has become the latest setting for organized liberal activism. Pro-union forces are setting out to execute the power-plays of leftism: divide, intimidate, and conquer. Community organizers are working tirelessly to increase the opposition through lies and distortion in the hope of building cold-blooded hatred for Walker and his allies.

Traditional Wisconsin symbols have been co-opted to foment anti-Walker sentiment. UW Madison mascot Bucky Badger is portrayed as a victim of Walker's budget cuts, cheese is promoted as union-friendly, and some even claim that Walker has cut state funding for the Green Bay Packers.

Shockingly, the absurdity doesn't end there. The Wisconsin Dog Rescue is joining others in vilifying Walker as a dog-hater, and liberal blogs steadfastly avow that "Governor Scott Walker wants to kill puppies."

Common citizens and private businesses are the next objects of union wrath. Director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association Jim Palmer signed a letter giving businesses who donated to Gov. Walker's campaign one week to publicly denounce Walker or face a union-organized boycott.

Sendik's Food Market has refused to capitulate. Consequently, their doors were super-glued shut at one of their Milwaukee locations.

In Merrill, a group trying to recall Democrat Sen. Jim Holperin set up a table outside the Lincoln County Courthouse. Soon union protestors arrived and surrounded the group's table, waving signs and screaming through megaphones. In a press release, the group reported that even as the pro-union crowd chanted "this is what Democracy looks like," one of the protesters, "pretending to be interested in signing the petition, wrote profanity across a partially collected petition form, then began ripping up the completed petitions that were in close proximity."

Pro-union forces remained around the table and prevented people from reaching the petitions. According to the group, police officers stood by and did nothing.

In another incident, during school hours, a supposed teacher posted this on the Madison Craigslist:

So you Tea Bags want to take away my hard earned blue ribbon bennies. Well guess what you scum sucking Tea Bags, I got your kids all day long in my classroom and with just a few slick questions I know who the little tea bags are! And you think you'll have the last laugh HA-Ha-ha

I, too, a twenty-year-old college student, have been subject to this union onslaught. Nearly two weeks ago, I captured incriminating video of doctors handing out sick passes on the streets of Madison. The video went viral, and I consequently appeared on Fox News and several radio shows to discuss the fraud. The left has yet to forgive me.

I've been stalked, chased, and verbally assaulted by several individuals. One woman drew a crowd around me and proceeded to rattle off my full name, my age, my hometown, and the exact size of my family. She noted that I am the second-oldest of thirteen children. She also recited the very dates I had been on Fox News and the time period of my visit to New York.

Creepy though it was, this woman's knowledge of my personal life was impressive. She knew information that many of my friends were not aware of.

This is the new norm in Wisconsin: an unrivaled, systematic assault is leveled against anyone who refuses to carry the union's water. It's a war zone where the left seems driven by Saul Alinsky's motto: "The end justifies almost any means."

Democrats and their union allies are making their agenda clear: retain power at all costs. If they can raise enough money, silence enough foes, recall enough senators, intimidate the opposition, and strong-arm enough businesses, they believe that they will ultimately win.

If they lose the fight to preserve collective demanding, Democrats fear that Republicans will review every other liberal policy failure. Entitlement reform could be the next target -- or worse yet, America's growing economic quagmire, also known as the national debt.

Gov. Walker is a new kind of Republican -- a leader whose steadfast convictions break from the indecisive muddling that has forever defined the right.

Such fortitude is a dramatic shift from past eras, where Democrats routinely bullied Republican leaders onto their list of tribute-paying victims. Walker's victory changes all that. It sends a simple but clear message to the overpowering bully: "Take my name off your list."

That is something the left can't afford to tolerate.

Originally posted on the American Thinker

Tension Explode Between Wisconsin Governor and Democrats

2011-03-08T20:52:00.001-06:00

The impasse in the Wisconsin State Senate led to a firestorm of words Monday between Governor Scott Walker, Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, and Senate Minority leader Mark Miller. The reaction resulted from a letter Miller sent to Governor Walker suggesting they meet to find a compromise solution to the problem. Citing instances of mismanagement on Miller's part, the Governor would have none of it.

“For the last several weeks both Sen. Fitzgerald and my administration have been reaching out to reasonable senators, many of whom are very interested and willing to come back to the state of Wisconsin, and time and time again the person standing in the way of making that possible is Sen. Mark Miller,” Walker shot him down during a press conference on Monday.

The letter, sent by Miller on Monday morning, plainly asks for the two legislative leaders to meet together to end the stalemate created by the disappearance of the 14 Senate Democrats who fled the State on February 17.

"Over the past several weeks we have witnessed an unprecedented public debate in Wisconsin over the value of

Public workers and the importance of collective bargaining rights," the letter begins. "I write today to offer to meet, in-person,

as soon as possible to resume discussions on how we reach a bipartisan solution to our differences on the January

2011 Special Session Senate and Assembly Bill 11."

"It really leads to a question of who's in charge," Walker further said of the Senate Dems in the press conference where he was accompanied by Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald.

Fitzgerald fired off his own response to Miller in which he also excoriated the absent Senate Minority Leader.

"Thank you for your hand-delivered letter with an offer to meet, in Illinois, about the business and future direction of Wisconsin. Let’s set aside how bizarre that is for a moment," Fitzgerald's letter began. "As you know, this legislation is designed to finally balance the state budget, prevent layoffs and create jobs in the real world. There are hundreds of thousands of unemployed or underemployed Wisconsinites, and at least 1,500 more whose jobs are in the balance because of your media stunt. We all deserve better than this.

In the meantime, members of your caucus have been meeting with the governor’s staff, talking to the media, trying to find a way back to Madison, and contradicting your message in public. In case you don’t remember, you were present yourself at one of those meetings with the governor’s staff. Your grasp of reality, and control of your caucus as minority leader, continues to amaze me. "

Two other Senators involved in recently disclosed negotiations with Senate Republicans, Tim Cullens and Robert Jauch, then took the opportunity to defend their minority leader and express how offended they were by the Republican statements.

"I was furious when he suggested that Tim and I were willing to cut a deal to find a way to go back," Jauch said told theMilwaukee Journal Sentinel. ". . . There was no agreement. We were just trying to build that staircase"

"Never, never has there been a suggestion that Tim Cullen and I would somehow abandon the other 12 for the sake of cutting a deal," Jauch said. "That's just an outrageous lie."

"Our understanding in our discussions was always that they had to take where the discussions were at back to the governor, the (Senate) majority leader and the (Assembly) speaker and we had to take the discussions back to our caucus," Cullen said.

Both Senators reiterated their viewpoint that the Democratic Senators weren't thinking of holding out forever and would eventually have to return to the State to take up business in their districts; however, it was up to Scott Walker to compromise on the Budget Repair Bill and both said they were involved in talks with Walker’s Chief of Staff Keith Gilkes and Deputy Chief of Staff Eric Schutt as recently as Sunday morning to talk out details about how they could come to an agreement. Walker, himself also said that he has been meeting with the wayward Dems in negotiations. Jauch and Cullen actually met with Fitzgerald last week in Kenosha and Walker said at the press conference that his staff had met with Miller last Wednesday at a McDonald's in Kenosha and also had met with other Democratic Senators in South Beloit on Sunday.

A spate of recent polls, including a Rasmussen report from over the weekend continue to show that a strong majority of Wisconsinites favor the Governor reach a compromise with Democrats over the collective bargaining provisions of the bill. Walker seems to be showing a posture toward compromise but it is hard to tell if he actually means it. Throughout the course of the debate, the Governor has held firm on his stand that the collective bargaining restrictions will remain in place. The Democrats want them stripped out. Walker and Fitzgerald have both signaled that the restrictions are not up for compromise.

Fitzgerald said today that despite calls for compromise from the other side of the aisle, Republicans are "rock-solid" behind Governor Walker's proposal. Jauch, meanwhile, stated this afternoon that he has been in constant talks with various GOP lawmakers behind the scenes and that "6 or 7" of them have reservations about the CBA restrictions and have felt pressured by Governor Walker to support it. He also says that he has talked with a number of Assembly Republicans who supported the bill but would like to see a compromise measure come out of the Senate.

“My view is it’s time to get back,” Cullen told Wispolitics. “Others just as honorably and just as sincerely believe there’s more to be accomplished by staying here. That’s the different views that human beings have about things.”

Senators Order Missing Dems Arrested; Judge opens Capitol to Normal Business

2011-03-06T18:18:00.001-06:00

The Republicans in the Wisconsin State Senate acted Thursday to hold the 14 missing Democrats in contempt after having been AWOL from the Chamber for two weeks in their standoff with the GOP and Governor Scott Walker over his proposed Budget Repair Bill. All 19 Republicans passed the resolution soon after calling the Senate to order yesterday morning. The measure called for all of the missing Democrats to return to the Senate body no sooner than 4 PM in the afternoon on March 3 and if they failed to show up, each member would be declared guilty of contempt and disorderly behavior and the Senate Sargent At Arms would be given the legal authority to use any lawful means or measure necessary to bring them back to the Senate Chamber. The Democrats, not having appeared by that 4 PM deadline, may now be subject to the actions of that resolution. The passage came on the advice of Jim Troupis, attorney for Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald. Troupis, a Madison attorney, was involved in a related lawsuit Wednesday when an Oconto County Judge ruled that missing Wisconsin Senator James Holperin could not be compelled by the State to return to the Capitol. Troupis, however, advised Fitzgerald that such a measure could be passed by the Wisconsin Senate to order the missing Dems back to Madison.

"It's the same as an arrest. It is an arrest," Fitzgerald said about the Senate resolution. "They have pushed us to the edge of a constitutional crisis."

Though the Dem Senators are camped out in Illinois and the Senate ruling does not cross State lines, Fitzgerald has said that he is confident that all of the Senators have been moving back and forth between their homes and Illinois and that anybody who witnesses any of them in the State can report to law enforcement and have them apprehended. The order will be in effect 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until the Senators can be compelled to appear in the Capitol Chamber.

"It's a sad day in the Wisconsin state Senate," he elaborated at a press conference after approval. "This wasn't about the bill. This wasn't about politics. This is about protecting the institution."

It remains unclear as to whether there is a true constitutionality to the order. The Wisconsin State Constitution does mandate The Senate and Assembly "to compel the attendance of absent members in such manner and under such penalties as each house may provide."

However, the same Constitution also explicitly states that legislators can only be arrested for crimes of "treason, felony, or breach of the peace" and it may be impossible to reasonably state what crimes the Senators committed.

The order is not truly an arrest because the Senators are not suspected of committing any crimes, Troupis explained to theWisconsin State Journal. Instead, the resolution seeks to enforce a legislative process.

"The Legislature has its own powers - that's the principle here," Troupis said. "The constitution is quite explicit in providing our Legislature with independent authority."

Democrats believe the Republicans are overreaching.

"The Republicans have gone around the bend," said Sen. Chris Larson, D-Milwaukee. "They've just increased their bullying tactics and are producing an even greater divide in our state."

Meanwhile, A Madison Judge on Thursday ruled that there would be no more overnight stays for protestors in the Capitol; however, the Capitol would be reopened to the public for any and all business during normal hours. Department of Administration Executive Mike Huebsh originally began restricting access to the Capitol early in the week and union protestors responded by filing the suit. Judge John Albert ruled on Thursday afternoon that the Capitol would be immediately cleared at the close of business day at 6 PM and Huebsh would have until 8 AM Tuesday morning to comply with the order.

Former Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager represented the union in the lawsuit and said that the result of the ruling indicates that the protestors won the battle.

Huebsh revised the rules for Capitol access this morning. The new rules as they currently stand are:

- Visitors to the Capitol must enter and exit at the North and South Hamilton doors. Employees who display their ID's may enter at the MLK entrance

- Members of the public can enter the Capitol for meetings, committee hearings, tours or other purposes.

- Members of the public participating in a rally or protest must remain in the ground floor rotunda area.

- Carry-ins including sleeping bags, mattresses, musical instruments or noisemakers, cooking appliances and other items prohibited by the administrative code will not be allowed in the building.

- Visitors are prohibited from affixing or removing signs taped inside the Capitol. Retrieval of signs and other materials left behind can be made next week after the building is professionally cleaned.

Budget Repair Bill passes Assembly 51-17; Dems furious about procedures

2011-02-25T21:30:00.000-06:00

After 60 hours of nearly constant debate and 86 amendments, State Assembly Republicans passed Scott Walker's Budget Repair bill at approximately 1 AM this morning on a swift voice vote that happened so quickly nearly 1/3 of the body failed to record a vote. The 2 1/2 day legislative marathon, considered by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau as perhaps the longest in Wisconsin legislative history, began Tuesday morning when the measure, known as AB11, was brought to the floor for debate and minority Democrats were allowed to begin offering a proposed list 200 amendments. In the end, with 2 minutes to bring each amendment to the floor and 10 minutes to debate each one, a series of Democratic stall tactics, caucuses, short recesses, and vociferous procedural arguments, not quite 100 were offered on the floor, all of them defeated. Republicans, fed up with the Democrat's attempts to stretch the debate out incessantly, tabled the remaining amendments at about 7 PM last evening and moved to vote for finalization of bill for passage, rejecting immediate Democrat requests to expunge the engrossment, and Minority Leader Peter Barca's request for a recess in the session until 10 AM. They then allowed floor speeches until nearly 1 AM when a motion was seconded to end debate and prepare for the final passage. The voice vote, which passed at about 1:05 AM, happened so quickly that nearly 1/3 of the members of the standing body weren't able to record their votes, leading to a 51 to 17 result in passage, with 68 of 99 members having voted. Democrats, already infuriated by what they've considered illegal procedures by the Republican leadership since Friday, felt violated and threatened the possibility of legal action. Said Barca on the Wispolitics Budget Blog:

"Clearly there was improper actions taken and we will explore how far that went and whether it does rise to the nature of actually being illegal," Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca said after the Dems met in caucus.

Barca, D-Kenosha, said the Dems will be reviewing video of the vote on WisconsinEye.

Like Barca, Dem leaders were cautious in talking in caucus about how they would pursue a remedy to the vote that saw only 68 of the 99 members register their votes. But immediately after the vote, some Dems hinted that legal action may be coming.

The fact that many of his caucus members were not even able to push their buttons in time to register their votes "speaks volumes," Barca said.

"That shows how sloppily that was handled," Barca said. "We think that the votes were not even properly put before us in terms of a series of motions that are required to take the action that they took."

The Senate took up a Call of the House again this morning in another attempt to bring wayward Democratic Senators back to the chamber. It began it's business at the scheduled 11 AM time this morning when a Special Session was once again called to order, and bill was taken off of the Senate Org Calendar and offered up on the floor. The recently passed Assembly bill (AB 11) was given a 3rd reading by voice vote and then the Special Session suspended until further action. The Regular Session was subsequently taken up and there was no further word on what actions would be taken with the Budget Repair Bill.

Meanwhile, Scott Walker held a press conference on Thursday evening where he offered further reasoning for his repeal of the CBA agreements in the Bill.

"I'm not normally a cynic, but I gotta tell you, if you take a look at what has happened at the local level over the past 2 weeks since we've introduced this measure, it tells you exactly what's going to happen," Walker explained. "Now if we were somehow to say, 'Well, we'll just take the 5 and the 12' (percent for health and pensions), actions speak louder than words. Over the past few weeks, we've seen in school districts, we've seen in cities, we've seen in technical schools, we've seen in counties, a rush to ram through employee contracts that have not a 5 and a 12% contribution. In fact, in the contracts I've seen, they've had no additional contribution when it comes to health care or retirement costs for government employees. In fact, in some cases they are actually ramming through contracts that have an increase in the salary."

In an opinion piece published on Wispolitics, Walker continued to chastise Senate Democrats for leaving the State and not participating in the process of passing the Bill.

The reason Senate Democrats claimed they left the state was because citizens needed more time to debate the issue. This is ironic because 12 of the 14 missing Senate Democrats passed Governor Doyle’s budget repair bill, which raised taxes by a billion dollars, within 24 hours of introduction and without a public hearing in February 2009. Senate Republicans vehemently disagreed with the bill and the process Democrats used to ram it through; however they stayed in Wisconsin, debated the legislation and made the choice to participate in democracy by casting their vote in opposition.

He also reiterated the dire numbers behind the budget shortfall and how important it was action to be taken resolving it.

We have a deficit for the remainder of this fiscal year and a $3.6 billion deficit for the next budget that starts on July 1. Our budget repair bill allows us to save $300 million from state government workers and gives local units of government the tools to save $1.44 billion in the next state budget. In addition, it gives local governments the tools to save even more in order to protect jobs and vital services. To achieve these savings, we need to pass our repair bill. That’s why the Senate Democrats need to come home.

Scott Walker's "Fireside Chat" from Tuesday February 22, 2011

2011-02-23T12:15:00.001-06:00

Governor Scott Walker addressed the State of Wisconsin this evening about his positions on the Budget Repair battle with a series of remarks he dubbed a "fireside chat", likening his comments to those of the late Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who spent evenings holding conversations with Americans over his administration's policies on the radio. In his address, Walker continued to press Democrats to return to Madison to finish taking up the currently suspended Budget Repair Bill and warned that if it would not be passed soon, that layoffs would likely commence. He also outlined his reasons for weakening the collective bargaining agreements between State governments and public sector unions. Here are his prepared remarks:

Good evening.

Wisconsin is showing the rest of the country how to have a passionate, yet civil debate about our finances. That's a very Midwestern trait and something we should be proud of. I pray, however, that this civility will continue as people pour into our state from all across America. First, let me be clear: I have great respect for those who have chosen a career in government. I really do.

In 1985, when I was a high school junior in the small town of Delavan, I was inspired to pursue public service after I attended the American Legion's Badger Boys State program. The military veterans and educators who put on that week-long event showed the honor in serving others. Tonight, I thank the 300,000-plus state and local government employees who showed up for work today and did their jobs well. We appreciate it. If you take only one message away tonight, it's that we all respect the work that you do. I also understand how concerned many government workers are about their futures. I've listened to their comments and read their emails. I listened to the educator from Milwaukee who wrote to me about her concerns about the legislation and what it might mean for her classroom.

That's why last week we agreed to make changes to the bill to address many of those issues. And I listened to others like the correctional officer in Chippewa Falls who emailed me arguing that bargaining rights for public employee unions are the only way to ensure that workers get a fair say in their working conditions. I understand and respect those concerns. It's important to remember that many of the rights we're talking about don't come from collective bargaining. They come from the civil service system in Wisconsin. That law was passed in 1905 (long before collective bargaining) and it will continue long after our plan is approved.

You see, despite a lot of the rhetoric we've heard over the past 11 days the bill I put forward isn't aimed at state workers, and it certainly isn't a battle with unions. If it was, we would have eliminated collective bargaining entirely or we would have gone after the private-sector unions. But, we did not because they are our partners in economic development. We need them to help us put 250,000 people to work in the private sector over the next four years. The legislation I've put forward is about one thing. It's about balancing our budget now -- and in the future. Wisconsin faces a 137 million dollar deficit for the remainder of this fiscal year and a 3.6 billion dollar deficit for the upcoming budget. Our bill is about protecting the hardworking taxpayer. It's about Wisconsin families trying to make ends meet and help their children. People like the woman from Wausau who wrote me saying "I'm a single parent of two children, one of whom is autistic. I have been intimately involved in my school district, but I can no longer afford the taxes I pay. I am in favor of everyone paying for benefits, as I have to."

It's also about the small business owner who told me about the challenges he faces just making payroll each week. His employees pay much larger premiums than we are asking because that's how they keep the company going and that's how they protect their jobs. Or the substitute teacher here in Madison, who wrote to me last week about having to sit at home unable to work because her union had closed the school down to protest.

She sent me an email that went on to say, "I was given no choice in joining the union and I am forced to pay dues... I am missing out on pay today... I feel like I have no voice."

I assure you that she does have a voice.

And so does the factory worker in Janesville who was laid off nearly two years ago. He's a union guy in a union town who asks simply why everyone else has to sacrifice except those in government.

Last week, I traveled the state visiting manufacturing plants and talking to workers - just like the guy from Janesville. Many of them are paying twenty-five to fifty percent of their health care premiums. Most, had 401k plans with limited or no match from the company.

My brother's in the same situation. He works as a banquet manager and occasional bartender at a hotel and my sister-in-law works for a department store. They have two beautiful kids.

In every way, they are a typical middle-class family here in Wisconsin. David mentioned to me that he pays nearly $800 a month for his health insurance and the little he can set aside for his 401k. He - like so many other workers across Wisconsin - would love a deal like the benefits we are pushing in this budget repair bill. That's because what we are asking for is modest - at least to those outside of government. Our measure asks for a 5.8% contribution to the pension and a 12.6% contribution for the health insurance premium. Both are well below the national average. And this is just one part of our comprehensive plan to balance the state's 3.6 billion dollar budget deficit.

Now, some have questioned why we have to reform collective bargaining to balance the budget. The answer is simple the system is broken: it costs taxpayers serious money - particularly at the local level. As a former county official, I know that first hand.

For years, I tried to use modest changes in pension and health insurance contributions as a means of balancing our budget without massive layoffs or furloughs. On nearly every occasion, the local unions (empowered by collective bargaining agreements) told me to go ahead and layoff workers. That's not acceptable to me. Here's another example: in Wisconsin, many local school districts are required to buy their health insurance through the WEA Trust (which is the state teachers union's company). When our bill passes, these school districts can opt to switch into the state plan and save $68 million per year. Those savings could be used to pay for more teachers and put more money into the classroom to help our kids. Some have also suggested that Wisconsin raise taxes on corporations and people with high-incomes. Well -- Governor Doyle and the Legislature did that: two years ago. In fact they passed a budget-repair bill (in just one day, mind you) that included a billion-dollar tax increase. Instead of raising taxes, we need to control government spending to balance our budget. Two years ago, many of the same Senate Democrats who are hiding out in another state approved a biennial budget that not only included higher taxes - it included more than two billion dollars in one-time federal stimulus aid.

That money was supposed to be for one-time costs for things like roads and bridges. Instead, they used it as a short-term fix to balance the last state budget. Not surprisingly, the state now faces a deficit for the remainder of this fiscal year and a 3.6 billion dollar hole for the budget starting July 1st. What we need now more than ever, is a commitment to the future. As more and more protesters come in from Nevada, Chicago and elsewhere, I am not going to allow their voices to overwhelm the voices of the millions of taxpayers from across the state who think we're doing the right thing. This is a decision that Wisconsin will make. Fundamentally, that's what we were elected to do. Make tough decisions. Whether we like the outcome or not, our democratic institutions call for us to participate. That is why I am asking the missing Senators to come back to work.

Do the job you were elected to do. You don't have to like the outcome, or even vote yes, but as part of the world's greatest democracy, you should be here, in Madison, at the Capitol. The missing Senate Democrats must know that their failure to come to work will lead to dire consequences very soon. Failure to act on this budget repair bill means (at least) 15 hundred state employees will be laid off before the end of June. If there is no agreement by July 1st, another 5-6 thousand state workers -- as well as 5-6 thousand local government employees would be also laid off. But, there is a way to avoid these layoffs and other cuts. The 14 State Senators who are staying outside of Wisconsin as we speak can come home and do their job. We are broke because time and time again politicians of both parties ran from the tough decisions and punted them down the road for another day. We can no longer do that, because, you see, what we're really talking about today is our future. The future of my children, of your children, of the children of the single mother from Wausau that I mentioned earlier. Like you, I want my two sons to grow up in a state at least as great as the Wisconsin I grew up in. More than 162 years ago, our ancestors approved Wisconsin's constitution. They believed in the power of hard work and determination and they envisioned a new state with limitless potential.

Our founders were pretty smart. They understood that it is through frugality and moderation in government that we will see freedom and prosperity for our people. Now is our time to once again seize that potential. We will do so at this turning point in our state's history by restoring fiscal responsibility that fosters prosperity for today - and for future generations.

Thank you for joining me tonight. May God richly bless you and your family and may God continue to bless the great State of Wisconsin.

Thanks to Wispolitics for providing the prepared remarks for this speech.

Wisconsin Legislature mulls options; Walker States his case

2011-02-21T22:01:00.003-06:00

As protestors continued to flood the State Capitol and Democratic Senators held out for a 5th straight day, Senate Republicans mulled over legislative options as both Chambers were expected to get back into session on Tuesday. Senate majority leader Scott Fitzgerald told Wispolitics today that he would not attach the collective bargaining portion of the State budget repair bill onto a separate piece of legislation and pass it without the presence of his Democratic counterparts. Originally it was considered a possible legislative option for Senate Republicans, who number 19, and are 1 vote short for a full quorum, that according to Senate rules and would need a total of 20 Senators present for a call to business. A provision in the State Constitution; however, allows for 3/5ths of the Senate to be present in order to pass legislation that is not fiscally-related. So, in essence, the Republicans could use the option of detaching the proposal related to collective bargaining and then attach it to a non-related piece of legislation, leaving the fiscal portions of Walkers bill that are now favored by the Democrats to be taken up whenever the opposition Senators returned. With Fitzgerald now ruling out that measure for Tuesday, the Senate will be conducting business as usual by considering other legislation. On the docket for tomorrow: The appointment of Eloise Anderson as head of Department of Children and Families, a dairy and livestock farm investment credit bill will be considered, and a bipartisan resolution commending the Green Bay Packers on their Super Bowl win. However, as the Democratic holdout continues into the week, the Republicans may have to consider using whatever measures are at their disposal as one looming deadline approaches in the ongoing budget battle. According to Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch, $165 million dollars of debt service payments are at stake if the Budget Repair Bill is not passed by Friday. The bill restructures general obligation bonds used to pay down debt but in order for the payment structure to take effect, the bill must be passed into law by February 25th to allow for enough time to sell the refinanced bonds before the required debt service date of March 15. If the bond restructuring is not successful, other deeper cuts may have to be made to the state budget in order for the State to keep up with it's obligations. One possible way that Fitzgerald and other Republicans may try to bring the Democrats back to the chamber this week is to dangle a carrot in front of them in the form of passing other legislation the Democrats are opposed to, such as the Voter ID Act that has been sitting in limbo since the start of the budget impasse.

Meanwhile, Governor Scott Walker made the Sunday morning news shows rounds and held a press conference at 5 PM today reiterating his stance on the Budget Repair Bill. Walker told Good Morning America on Monday that his stance on the budget impasse is nonnegotiable and why he believed that there was more at stake in the budget debate than a simple compromise on health and pension costs, and why collective bargaining was an even bigger cost issue.

"But the difference is that there is a cost to collective bargaining. I mean, I'll give you an example, just with our school districts. If instead of being forced to buy from the WEA trust, which is the Teacher's Union Health Insurance Company, school districts could buy off of the State Health Insurance plan and they could save $68 million dollars. I know it well. I used to be a county official for 8 1/2 years, every time I tried to do something sensible to balance our budget without laying people off, the union said, "No, we don't want to make any changes. Go ahead and lay 400 to 500 people off. That's wrong and it unacceptable. What we're asking for is, realistically, something that just about every other person in this state and every other person in this country is paying a whole lot more for when it comes to retirement and health care. . ."

He called the unions proposal to compromise on health care and pension pay-ins as a "red herring".

"But you can say anything in the midst of the debate. In December, after I was elected but before I was sworn in, they tried to ram through a bill to push for and to lock in State employee health care and contracts. The bottom line is they can say these things but there are 424 school districts, there are 72 counties, and their are 1000-pluse municipalities in the State. . . all of those can't guarantee the kind of savings that a handful of union leaders are talking about. We can't pass a budget that is going to have over a billion dollar's worth of cuts without giving them the tools to balance those budgets so there aren't layoffs, otherwise we'll end up in a situation like New York or California or other states who are ending up cutting billions of dollars from their schools and local governments without giving them the tools to handle it."

In the interview he also explained how his policy of enacting civil service organizations in every municipality, in addition to those that already existed, would handle the employee grievances that would guarantee worker's rights secured by labor laws in the State.

Walker also held a statewide press conference at 5 PM today, recapping developments in the debate over the weekend and also reinforcing the reasonings behind his stance.

"The 30 million dollars that is included in this Budget Repair Bill is just one piece of the much larger puzzle of balancing this budget and the 300 million dollars in the next biennium in terms of savings for State Government employees is just another piece of it as well. But that 30 million, if we don't get it by starting our health care and pension contributions by April 1st, translates in this budget, which ends on June 30, to the tune of 1500 government workers being laid off. Now that said, I don't want to lay anybody off. The equivalent at the State level for the budget will be 5-to-6000 government employees being laid off and 5-to-6000 local government employees; that's teachers and city workers and county workers and others out there. In this economy, even though our unemployment rate is better than the national average, it's still 7.5% and that's still unacceptable to me. I was elected to get more people working and that's what I've been doing in this first month-and-a-half in office, so I don't want to see anybody laid off. But if the Senate Democrats don't come back, and at least allow us to debate this bill, to consider this bill, to pass this bill, the alternative is just for that 30 million dollars alone we have the equivalent of 1,500 lay-offs."

Analyzing Scott Walker's State of the State speech

2011-02-03T11:06:00.002-06:00

Scott Walker laid out his case to the State of Wisconsin at the Capitol in Madison on Tuesday night, in spite of an impending snowstorm. After congratulating the Packers for their superbowl berth, Walker described the challenges that lay ahead, his strategy to reform State government, and his agenda to continue to foster a job-climate in Wisconsin. In the 30-minute State of the State speech, Walker touted the legislative promises he has delivered upon in his first month in office, while describing to a general degree the tactics he will likely use to help fix the Wisconsin budget woes. Wisconsin Democrats have complained that it was lacking detail but a simple look at the big picture shows that the Governor has begun the process of changing the State business climate while setting up the atmosphere to accelerate the creation of private sector jobs before starting the next task-at-hand: reforming the Budget process to extinguish the deficit. The Governor alluded to that at the beginning of the speech:

In less than 30 days, I have already signed four pieces of legislation into law that will help the private sector create jobs.

And on my desk is another bill giving tax relief to small businesses that I intend to sign on Friday.

The first act I signed as governor eliminated the taxes on health savings accounts, making health care more affordable for small business owners, blue-collar workers and family farmers. I want to thank Representatives Kaufert, Ziegelbauer and Stone and Senators Darling, Olsen and Vukmir for their leadership on HSAs. This change was a long time coming for Wisconsin and brings us into line with the rest of the nation.

Our second act reduced frivolous lawsuits in Wisconsin. The litigation environment in a state is one of the key drivers for business and unfortunately we were once known as "Alabama North" because of our poor lawsuit climate.

Now, we've turned the page on lawsuit reform and offer one more sign that Wisconsin is open for business.

Thanks to Senator Zipperer and Representative Jim Ott for their leadership on this important issue.

Yesterday, I signed an expansion of our relocation and economic development tax credits. These measures will help our state attract and retain businesses and jobs.

By eliminating the taxes on HSAs, the Governor and the legislature have immediately decreased the cost of health care insurance coverage offered by businesses and flexibility for workers of those businesses to afford it and use it. The Democrats always complain about the increasing cost of health care and yet while in charge of the legislature, they continued to allow this tax to be levied. The governor, in the stroke of a pen, has remedied this continued and unnecessary problem. Tort reform was a long-held promise of the Governor as a candidate and the elimination of frivolous lawsuits and the amounts associated with them have been debated for many years. Something has been done about it now and this will decrease costs and the fears of costs that businesses have to face in their day-to-day operations. This can only help the bottom-line and alleviate economic concerns, helping businesses of all kinds to grow. The next bill signed by the Governor was a bill that wiped out the first two years of income and franchise tax credits for businesses that relocate to Wisconsin. This certainly sweetens the pot for job-creating businesses from other states, such as Illinois who recently increased their tax rates by a staggering amount, as well others around the nation to come to Wisconsin and establish themselves with minimal expense and red tape. The fourth bill the Governor signed into law was the bill that threw another $25 million in tax incentives into the Wisconsin Economic Development program. Complaints from Democrats about this centered around the fact that it was a waste of tax dollars and ran up the deficit more because there was already 75 million in tax credits of the same type sitting around from the Doyle administration. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that if Scott Walker pursues the recruitment of business development and relocation with an ounce more of effort than Jim Doyle (and he already has as far as I'm concerned), that this money will be put to good use quickly.

Regarding all of these bills and the other four that have been offered in this first month of the declared Legislative Economic Special Session, the Democrats have constantly whined that "none of these bills will do anything to produce jobs immediately" and "promote special interests over the concerns of working families" and then additionally some have railed (no pun intended) about Walker's axing of the precious high-speed rail Federal tax dollar-financed project killing immediate jobs. Well here's the deal Democrats: Walker promised the creation of 250,000 jobs in his four years in office. He's not going to create 250,000 jobs in 1 month. I wouldn't have expected Obama to help institute the creation of jobs in his first month of office but what I would expect is for the Governor to pass legislation that sets up or reforms the economic environment that will lead to the accelerated creation of jobs and the reversal in a trend of job losses and slow job creation precipitated by the housing crisis and Doyle's lack of attention to the private sector. The Governor has done exactly that by passing these bills and rebuilding the private sector engine that creates those jobs. The idea is the private sector and private sector jobs that will be sustained, not short-term, limited, costly public sector jobs built on taxpayer funded deficit spending. That's the idea behind the Governor's philosophy. Democrats don't get that. You want jobs now? Well. . .how about we set up job creation that leads to meaningful, long-term private sector growth that has staying power and not 5,500 jobs financed by nearly a trillion in taxpayer funds that will barely benefit any other sector of the State economy except for those places where the rail is built. And then regarding working families, well, the Governor is about ready to sign on his desk the next bill, bill #5, that will deliver meaningful tax income tax breaks and franchise tax breaks to Wisconsin small businesses. If there's anything Democrats should like, it would be this.

After describing his philosophy and legislative accomplishments, the Governor turned his attention to the challenging fiscal mess the State has been in for several years now:

Two weeks ago, the Assembly Speaker and Senate Majority Leader joined me in writing a column for the Chicago Tribune. We made the case that employers in Illinois should escape to Wisconsin, not only because of Illinois' massive tax hike, but because of the two opposite directions our states are heading.

You see, businesses make decisions based on trends. Before locating a facility or adding jobs somewhere, they look to see what the future there looks like.

That's why the budget and budget repair bills we will introduce in the coming weeks will be even more important than our Special Session legislation.

It is in those budgets where rhetoric meets reality, where we will show that we will make the tough decisions now to lay the foundation for future economic growth.

During the present downturn, Wisconsin's proud tradition of responsible budgeting gave way to repeated raids on segregated funds, excessive borrowing for operations and an addiction to one-time federal dollars. These are no longer options, and their use has only delayed and worsened the difficult decisions we must now make.

These factors, along with the decline in the global economy that started several years ago, have combined to create a 3 billion dollar deficit for the state budget that starts on July 1. And they are contributing factors to why the state government faces more than a 200 million dollar shortfall for the rest of this fiscal year.

Like Wisconsin, states across the nation are facing major fiscal challenges. States face immediate budget shortfalls totaling 26 billion dollars this fiscal year, with an even larger shortfall over 120 billion looming next year.

Nationwide, states face an over trillion dollar funding shortfall in public-sector retirement benefits. 814 billion dollars of one-time federal stimulus funding is going away. States face a total mandated growth in Medicaid of 51 billion dollars. And state and local governments have a collective 2.4 trillion dollars in debts.

Now we have to face the challenges of the State budget shortfall and instead of padding it with Federal stimulus money, we're going to need to use the power of economic reform along with the tightening of the spending belt to reign in the budget deficit and stop spending more than we are taking in. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau and the Democrats are complaining that all of bills that the Governor has been signing up to this point simply add to the deficit and worsen the budget shortfall without creating any meaningful new jobs and State unions and Government workers are scared to death that it will all mean drastic cutting of every program. The Governor is talking about reforming and repairing problems with the State's obligations to Medicare. That will have to be addressed like it or not. What the Democrats do not seem understand and the LBF is not taking into account is that the bills Walker is passing today will set the stage for the revival of State revenues coming into the Department of Treasury coffers by the expansion of the tax base due to the stimulation of business growth. That in itself will raise the amount of money that will flow into availability for the State budget and add to budget reduction before the end of the year. The deficit will be partially reduced this way and be partially reduced by reductions in the growth of spending, working with true figures, and not plugging holes with stimulus money and raiding some funds to pay for others. Medicare reform will add the final piece to that reduction, along with State workers and others having to rework the way they pay into their benefits.

With the framework the Governor laid out last night and given the time frame to implement it, it is quite obvious that Scott Walker has a plan and last night he told Wisconsin how he will execute that plan. The details will come in the budget later this month. The principles have been laid out and the how those principles will be executed. If understood and looked at in the proper perspective, one can be confident that this plan for bringing back Wisconsin jobs and reforming the way Wisconsin government works will yield long-term great dividends despite some knee-jerk protests to the contrary.

Full text of Scott's speech here:

http://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-la-crosse/scott-walker-state-of-the-state-address-full-text

Ryan vs Bachmann? You make the call.

2011-01-31T20:51:00.001-06:00

Some of the media-driven bruhaha that has dropped straight down out of the punditsphere involves the unusual joint Republican rebuttal of President Obama's SOTUS last Tuesday evening. In pretty much back-to-back fashion, Representative Paul Ryan, up and coming GOP young gun from Wisconsin; and Representative Michelle Bachmann from Minnesota, influential member of the TEA Party Express, and leader of the TEA Party Caucus gave opposition responses to President Obama's State of the Union Address. Very rarely have members of a party distinctly given two rebuttals to one State of the Union Address, especially in a situation where the second rebuttal was not officially sanctioned by the Party Brass. So the

Ryan delivered an inspiring, Reaganesque, 10 minute speech that emphasized the free enterprise and limited government principles that have made America great and have been and should continue to be the solutions to the problems our Nation currently faces. Bachmann said nothing to counteract anything that Ryan said and in fact complemented it by offering solid numbers and policy suggestions that the President should definitely undertake to exercise real solutions to these problems.

"These budget debates are not just about the programs of government; they’re also about the purpose of government.

So I’d like to share with you the principles that guide us. They are anchored in the wisdom of the founders; in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence; and in the words of the American Constitution.

They have to do with the importance of limited government; and with the blessing of self-government.

We believe government’s role is both vital and limited – to defend the nation from attack and provide for the common defense … to secure our borders… to protect innocent life… to uphold our laws and Constitutional rights … to ensure domestic tranquility and equal opportunity … and to help provide a safety net for those who cannot provide for themselves.

We believe that the government has an important role to create the conditions that promote entrepreneurship, upward mobility, and individual responsibility.

We believe, as our founders did, that “the pursuit of happiness” depends upon individual liberty; and individual liberty requires limited government."

He then wrapped up his speech describing how the growth of Government and the deficit due to the actions of previous Congress and administrations has failed millions of people and how these principles of free-enterprise system and limited Government, as well as other conservative values, will be the principles that will solve the problems facing our Nation both in the present down the road:

"We believe a renewed commitment to limited government will unshackle our economy and create millions of new jobs and opportunities for all people, of every background, to succeed and prosper. Under this approach, the spirit of initiative – not political clout – determines who succeeds.

Millions of families have fallen on hard times not because of our ideals of free enterprise – but because our leaders failed to live up to those ideals; because of poor decisions made in Washington and Wall Street that caused a financial crisis, squandered our savings, broke our trust, and crippled our economy.

Today, a similar kind of irresponsibility threatens not only our livelihoods but our way of life.

We need to reclaim our American system of limited government, low taxes, reasonable regulations, and sound money, which has blessed us with unprecedented prosperity. And it has done more to help the poor than any other economic system ever designed. That’s the real secret to job creation – not borrowing and spending more money in Washington.

Limited government and free enterprise have helped make America the greatest nation on earth."

Bachmann began her speech almost immediately with a presentation of numbers and how the unemployment and big Government growth that had initiated during the Bush administration, completely exploded from the beginning of the Obama's stay at the Whitehouse and has continued. She used a chart that marked the unemployment rate from in 2001 through 2011 and used it to make a correlation and then offered solutions the President could undertake that would add some credibility to the statements he made during the SOTUS.

"Obamacare mandates and penalties may even force many job creators to just stop offering health insurance altogether, unless of course yours is one of the more-than-222 privileged companies or unions that has already received a government waiver under Obamacare. In the end, unless we fully repeal Obamacare, a nation that currently enjoys the world's finest health care might be forced to rely on government-run coverage. That could have a devastating impact on our national debt for even generations to come.

For two years, President Obama made promises just like the ones we heard him make tonight. Yet still, we have high unemployment, devalued housing prices and the cost of gasoline is skyrocketing. Well here are a few suggestions for fixing our economy:

The president could stop the EPA from imposing a job-destroying cap-and-trade system.
The president could support a Balanced Budget Amendment.
The president could agree to an energy policy that increases American energy production and reduces our dependence on foreign oil.
The president could also turn back some of the 132 regulations put in place in the last two years, many of which will cost our economy $100 million or more.
And the president should repeal Obamacare and support free-market solutions, like medical malpractice reform and allowing all Americans to buy any healthcare policy they like anywhere in the United States. We need to start making things again in this country, and we can do that by reducing the tax and regulatory burdens on job creators. America will have the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Think about that. Look no further to see why jobs are moving overseas.

We need to start making things again in this country, and we can do that by reducing the tax and regulatory burdens on job creators. America will have the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Think about that. Look no further to see why jobs are moving overseas."

Bachmann, then ended her speech with a Reaganesque inspiration of her own, pledging a renewed Republic has just begun.

"I believe that we are in the early days of a history-making turn in America. Please know how important your calls, visits, and letters are to the maintenance of our liberties. Because of you, Congress is responding and we are just starting to undo the damage that's been done the last few years. Because we believe in lower taxes. We believe in a limited view of government, and exceptionalism in America. And I believe that America is the indispensable nation of the world. Just the creation of this nation itself was a miracle. Who's to say that we can't see a miracle again?

Ryan, who is Chairman of the House Budget Committee, is a rising GOP star whose work on the budget and his commitment to conservative values and principles has some urging a bid for the Presidency in 2012. He is a huge part of the Republican conservative operation and clearly is embraced as part of the Establishment. His Road Map for America, which outlines many conservative budget principles and contained some ideas about privatizing Social Security, that wasn't entirely embraced in all forms by the GOP leadership in the last election. But make no mistake that he is a heavy hitter in the New Congress, especially with the crop of TEA-party inspired candidates who pledge to stick to their guns.

Bachmann is one of the leaders of the 40-member TEA party caucus in the House of Representatives and a member of the TEA Party Express. It was Amy Krener, one of the leaders of the TEA Party Express who connected with Congresswoman Bachmann on first broadcasting the Internet rebuttal on the TEA Party Express Website. The TEA Party Express has never promoted positions outside of the Republican Party platform and aside from putting their weight behind a few candidates in Senate races that didn't quite have all of the credentials to pull out national victories, they're largely responsible for a great number of House gains for the GOP last fall. Their presence as a national outfit working in concert with the Republican grassroots has been nothing but positive for the Party. Their mission is solid. Some of the House Leadership have been quoted as saying that her dual rebuttal the other night was "unusual" or "out of the ordinary" and that's what some of the national media has glommed on to in claiming that her supplement to Ryan's message was upsetting and annoying to the GOP. But if anyone were to take a listen to both presentations, they complement one another and not contradict and they certainly don't make conservatives or the TEA Party look bad at all. If anybody in the GOP is truly upset about this development and wish to make this general non-crisis a into a continuing non-story, then they weren't conservative to begin with.

A great thanks to Chip Hanlon's Red County Blog http://www.redcounty.com/content/text-paul-ryans-gop-rebuttal and to NPR http://www.npr.org/2011/01/26/133230238/transcript-tea-party-response-from-rep-bachmann for the text from the various speeches.

The SOTUS: President Obama, will you keep your promises?

2011-01-27T10:19:00.003-06:00

As a candidate for President of the United States in 2007 and 2008, Barack Obama made a slew of campaign promises to both liberals and conservatives in various settings that didn't survive the swear-in ceremony on the west side of the Capitol building. Chief among them being:

Going through the federal budget line-by-line and eliminating programs that don't and making sure that those that do work better and cheaper.

Reforming the use of large numbers earmarks in federal spending bills.

Eliminating capital gains taxes for small businesses.

Televised congressional negotiations on the Health Care Bill on C-SPAN.

Spending cuts.

Calling out and publicizing misspent government money.

Not hiring lobbyists as administration staff.

Open transparency including listing of tax breaks and earmarks in spending bills online and a 5-day Internet public comment after passage non-emergency bills before being signed into law.

Into this cauldron, enters the President's third State of the Union speech and the speech, while taken on its face, was one of his more inspiring and clearly more centrist speeches, a little delve into the fine details reveals a very common thread to some of the very same campaign promises pre-POTUS Obama made to the Nation, that when donning the POTUS cap, clearly entered into some state of post-candidate amnesia:

But now that the worst of the recession is over, we have to confront the fact that our government spends more than it takes in. That is not sustainable. Every day, families sacrifice to live within their means. They deserve a government that does the same.

So tonight, I am proposing that starting this year, we freeze annual domestic spending for the next five years. Now, this would reduce the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade, and will bring discretionary spending to the lowest share of our economy since Dwight Eisenhower was President.

Now, most of the cuts and savings I’ve proposed only address annual domestic spending, which represents a little more than 12 percent of our budget. To make further progress, we have to stop pretending that cutting this kind of spending alone will be enough. It won’t.

The bipartisan fiscal commission I created last year made this crystal clear. I don’t agree with all their proposals, but they made important progress. And their conclusion is that the only way to tackle our deficit is to cut excessive spending wherever we find it –- in domestic spending, defense spending, health care spending, and spending through tax breaks and loopholes.

This is the same talk again that you used during the campaign. You practically sold independents on the concept that he would be a fiscal conservative who wouldn't play second fiddle to John McCain and then when you arrived in office the first major legislative accomplishment was to sail through the $787 stimulus plan loaded with earmarks and pet projects and ballooned the deficit. You make overtures that you need to make deeper cuts and to give more consideration to non-discretionary spending. It's hard to tell if this is just nothing more than rhetorical bluster of the same kind you offered about fiscal responsibility during his candidacy.

But to help our companies compete, we also have to knock down barriers that stand in the way of their success.

For example, over the years, a parade of lobbyists has rigged the tax code to benefit particular companies and industries. Those with accountants or lawyers to work the system can end up paying no taxes at all. But all the rest are hit with one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world. It makes no sense, and it has to change.

So tonight, I’m asking Democrats and Republicans to simplify the system. Get rid of the loopholes. Level the playing field. And use the savings to lower the corporate tax rate for the first time in 25 years –- without adding to our deficit. It can be done.

This sounds familiar along the lines of your proposal to eliminate the capital gains taxes for small businesses. It hasn't been done. The idea is a great overture if carried out. Simplifying the tax code would be a huge favor all businesses and corporations. Conservatives have been calling for both ideas to be implemented for years. What's interesting to me is that liberals seem to focus on is that biggest problem coming from the tax code seems to be from loopholes and that any reduction in tax rates leads to an increase in the deficit. The biggest problem with the tax code, Mr President, is that it is too complicated and punitive. And while reducing taxes technically leads to an increase in the deficit short-term, it really doesn't in the big picture because it leads to more revenue coming into the government. The real issue that drives up the deficit is unchecked spending. Obviously, if the government spends more than it takes it, and then borrows to make up the difference then the deficit will increase. But if the government cuts taxes, how can that truly drive up the deficit? One can't spend what one doesn't have.

In the coming year, we’ll also work to rebuild people’s faith in the institution of government. Because you deserve to know exactly how and where your tax dollars are being spent, you’ll be able to go to a web site and get that information for the very first time in history. Because you deserve to know when your elected officials are meeting with lobbyists, I ask Congress to do what the White House has already done -- put that information online. And because the American people deserve to know that special interests aren’t larding up legislation with pet projects, both parties in Congress should know this: If a bill comes to my desk with earmarks inside, I will veto it. I will veto it.

To reduce barriers to growth and investment, I’ve ordered a review of government regulations. When we find rules that put an unnecessary burden on businesses, we will fix them. But I will not hesitate to create or enforce common-sense safeguards to protect the American people. That’s what we’ve done in this country for more than a century. It’s why our food is safe to eat, our water is safe to drink, and our air is safe to breathe. It’s why we have speed limits and child labor laws. It’s why last year, we put in place consumer protections against hidden fees and penalties by credit card companies and new rules to prevent another financial crisis. And it’s why we passed reform that finally prevents the health insurance industry from exploiting patients.

Here's the transparency angle again and vetoing earmarks. It was great the first time, though I didn't believe it. The second time, I'm definitely not I'm buying it either. You'll definitely have to prove it to me on this one, Mr President. You can put Web sites up like recovery.gov all over the place and play with numbers; claim transparency, claim you'll notify us about legislation that contains pork and earmarks that you said you wouldn't sponsor but did over and over again, tell us you'll fix burdensome regulation that you've proffered up since the first days you were in congress and then tell us you'll fix it. And in the end words mean things, particularly if they're meaningless from the outset, and especially when they're unfulfilled.

Now, I strongly believe that we should take on, once and for all, the issue of illegal immigration. And I am prepared to work with Republicans and Democrats to protect our borders, enforce our laws and address the millions of undocumented workers who are now living in the shadows. I know that debate will be difficult. I know it will take time. But tonight, let’s agree to make that effort. And let’s stop expelling talented, responsible young people who could be staffing our research labs or starting a new business, who could be further enriching this nation.

While I agree with you, Mr President, on giving foreign workers or students who don't overstay their visas a fair chance to stay in the US and find a job, I do not agree that children of undocumented workers should necessarily have the same benefit on taxpayer dollars. Your statement about addressing the millions of undocumented workers living in the shadows reeks of mass amnesty for illegals and that, Mr President, has been a plank in your party's platform for quite a while, and like the last attempt you made to force amnesty upon us in 2007, you can be sure this would be a difficult debate for you in 2011 too.

The third step in winning the future is rebuilding America. To attract new businesses to our shores, we need the fastest, most reliable ways to move people, goods, and information -- from high-speed rail to high-speed Internet.

Our infrastructure used to be the best, but our lead has slipped. South Korean homes now have greater Internet access than we do. Countries in Europe and Russia invest more in their roads and railways than we do. China is building faster trains and newer airports. Meanwhile, when our own engineers graded our nation’s infrastructure, they gave us a “D.”

We have to do better. America is the nation that built the transcontinental railroad, brought electricity to rural communities, constructed the Interstate Highway System. The jobs created by these projects didn’t just come from laying down track or pavement. They came from businesses that opened near a town’s new train station or the new off-ramp.

So over the last two years, we’ve begun rebuilding for the 21st century, a project that has meant thousands of good jobs for the hard-hit construction industry. And tonight, I’m proposing that we redouble those efforts.

We’ll put more Americans to work repairing crumbling roads and bridges. We’ll make sure this is fully paid for, attract private investment, and pick projects based [on] what’s best for the economy, not politicians.

Within 25 years, our goal is to give 80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail. This could allow you to go places in half the time it takes to travel by car. For some trips, it will be faster than flying –- without the pat-down. As we speak, routes in California and the Midwest are already underway.

Within the next five years, we’ll make it possible for businesses to deploy the next generation of high-speed wireless coverage to 98 percent of all Americans. This isn’t just about -- this isn’t about faster Internet or fewer dropped calls. It’s about connecting every part of America to the digital age. It’s about a rural community in Iowa or Alabama where farmers and small business owners will be able to sell their products all over the world. It’s about a firefighter who can download the design of a burning building onto a handheld device; a student who can take classes with a digital textbook; or a patient who can have face-to-face video chats with her doctor.

At the California Institute of Technology, they’re developing a way to turn sunlight and water into fuel for our cars. At Oak Ridge National Laboratory, they’re using supercomputers to get a lot more power out of our nuclear facilities. With more research and incentives, we can break our dependence on oil with biofuels, and become the first country to have a million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.

We need to get behind this innovation. And to help pay for it, I’m asking Congress to eliminate the billions in taxpayer dollars we currently give to oil companies. (Applause.) I don’t know if -- I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but they’re doing just fine on their own. So instead of subsidizing yesterday’s energy, let’s invest in tomorrow’s.

Now, clean energy breakthroughs will only translate into clean energy jobs if businesses know there will be a market for what they’re selling. So tonight, I challenge you to join me in setting a new goal: By 2035, 80 percent of America’s electricity will come from clean energy sources.

Some folks want wind and solar. Others want nuclear, clean coal and natural gas. To meet this goal, we will need them all -- and I urge Democrats and Republicans to work together to make it happen.

So the answer to all of our pressing infrastructure needs is high-speed rail and high-speed Internet. And who is going to pay for that? And we've already tried the whole infrastructure angle with the 2009 Economic Recovery and Investment Act, not even half of which has been implemented and with nearly a trillion dollars having been spent. Where are all of the infrastructure jobs? I don't see the shovel-ready construction crews tackling the crumbling roads and bridges across America in mass numbers. They don't exist. Thousands of construction jobs? That's all we could muster from a trillion dollars? And now you're going to propose that we rebuild more infrastructure and this time it's high-speed rail and high-speed Internet? President Obama, you just proposed that we make cuts in spending and curb the national debt and you'll have to make sacrifices in the Federal budget like all Americans have to make sacrifices in their budgets. How am I supposed to believe you if you're going to propose another government-led spending boondoggle like the federal stimulus bill? High-speed rail is a localized means of travel that will cost a lot of money to build and maintain and large numbers of people will not be using it on a regular basis. We prefer our cars. Why not use the power of the free-enterprise system and then unleash incentives for businesses to develop their high-speed Internet networks and let it transpire on its own. It'll save a lot of money. And Mr President I do agree with what you say about an "all in one" energy policy but you've already made promises about nuclear energy and clean coal technology before, including in your SOTUS address last year, so should I believe you this time too? And then you want to punish the oil companies, the only current purveyors of relatively cheap energy, by taking away their tax incentives. They already pay massive taxes and it's extremely expensive to drill for oil as it is so they're not raking in the dough like you seem to think. It's one thing to make profits by raw numbers but it's another thing to look at where those profits go. If a business doesn't reinvest its profits, it will die. Where is the proposal that we drill on more domestic land where it is less risky and less expensive so that we can achieve greater energy independence right now and alleviate rising fuel costs so that we can achieve an even quicker recovery of the economy? You call it yesterday's energy. Well, it seems to be rather relevant today. And 1 million electric cars by 2015? Are you going to upgrade the electrical grid infrastructure that has been allowed to age and languish due to the efforts of environmental radicals so that said electrical grid can support said electrical cars? Sounds like a fantasy world with a fantasy ending.

A lot of your speech, Mr President, was loaded with great applause lines and inspiring conjecture and if you had made good on all or most of your previous promises, I would be quite willing to take you at your word and be proportionately inspired. But something about your past rhetoric and corresponding behavior makes me completely doubt a lot of what you said and your actions will have to prove to me beyond a doubt that you are willing to make good on your promises in 2011.

It's Official: Reince Priebus, new RNC Chairman

2011-01-16T16:05:00.004-06:00

The Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman who helped oversee the groundbreaking elections of Sean Duffy and Ron Johnson is taking his skills to the national stage. Wisconsin's own Reince Priebus officially beat out six other candidates to become Republican National Committee Chairman on Friday afternoon. Priebus, who has been Republican Party of Wisconsin Chair for nearly 4 years, now replaces the embattled Michael Steele who withdrew in round 4 of the ballot process after not being able to gain enough votes to win re-election. The 168-person Republican National Committee conducts its balloting in a round-by-round format with each prospective candidate able to remain in the running from the start of the vote until they no longer are able to draw enough votes to mathematically attain a majority win. Once ousted, each candidate then is able to focus on throwing their support behind one of the remaining options. Priebus secured his victory with 97 votes in the 7th round, long after Steele had been retired and had thrown his own weight behind RNC official Maria Cino. The win was the end game in a complicated series of closed door maneuvering that defines the RNC chairmanship election. Reince never trailed in votes throughout the day and had entered round one of balloting with a total of 44 official commitments. Over the next 6 rounds, the series of contenders fell by the wayside, with ever-shifting enclaves and behind-the-scenes deal-making swelling his vote total into the 7th round where he was finally able to break the barrier, leaving his closest competitor, Michigan's Saul Anuzis, with 43 and Cino with 28.

Priebus threw his hat in the ring on December 6 of 2010. Being from Wisconsin and up against several long-entrenched members of the RNC, his victory seemed like a long shot, but his personal skills and organizational prowess including his experience in running Michael Steele's 2009 campaign to become Chairman helped solidify inner connections and though he didn't have a great showing in the debate round of the proceedings on January 3, he was able to secure the commitments to help him win on Friday.

"Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus will make an outstanding chairman for our national party," Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker said in a press release when Priebus announced.

"Our success in Wisconsin this year is due in large part to Reince's leadership in joining with the grass-roots movement that swept Wisconsin and our nation, bringing major Republican gains on November 2nd. Reince made our state party all-inclusive, and led the charge to successfully take back the governor's office, a U.S. Senate seat, two U.S. House seats and both chambers of the statehouse.

Reince embraces conservative principles and has an established track record of outstanding communications, fund-raising and grass roots organization. He is exactly what the national GOP needs: a skilled and proven leader who never forgot the roots of the party."

Priebus' leadership style would be a great departure from the former Chairman Steele's, which is exactly what many in the Party have been clamoring for. Steele's out-in-public facade may have been a distraction from the meaningful, in-the-trenches organizational functions that are looked at as being the most vital to the RNC chairmanship. In Wisconsin, Priebus organized a massive grassroots phone and door-to-door ground campaign that led to the State being one of the top get-out-the-vote networks in the country. Aside from helping to result in the elections of the aforementioned Duffy, Johnson, and Reid Ribble for national offices, it also resulted in a complete flip in the Governorship and the State Houses from Democratic majorities to steep Republican. His roll-up-your-sleeves philosophy may be just what the Party needs going forward as the RNC faces daunting challenges with the 2012 Presidential elections looming, the Establishment and Tea Party wings having to Unite behind a common candidate, and the Committee being 20 million in the hole after the 2010 election cycle in combination Steele's fundraising gaffes and fiscal mismanagement. Priebus' first tasks will be to rebuild relationships and coffers.

“Now is the time for the committee to unite,” he said in his victory speech according to the The Daily Caller. “We must come together for the common interest.”

“With that in mind,” he continued, “I want you to know, that I am here to earn the trust and support for each and every one of you.” He added, “And I’m going to start working right now as your chairman.”

“We all recognize that there’s a steep hill here ahead of us. The only way we’ll be able to move forward is if we’re all together.”

"As Reagan said, our nation is that shining city upon a hill and we must work to keep it that way,” Priebus continued, saying that he would do everything possible, with the help of the committee “to be sure that our Republican presidential nominee has the organization in place to beat Barack Obama."

Priebus, a Wisconsin native, was born in Kenosha and received a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science and English from the UW Whitewater, served as a staffer in the Wisconsin legislature for a year, and then attended the University of Miami where he obtained a law degree in 1998. He interned for the NAACP in Los Angeles and went to work at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP in Milwaukee once out of law school. He ran for State Senate in 2004 where he unsuccessfully challenged Democrat Robert Wirch and then ran for Wisconsin Republican Party chair in 2007 and won as the youngest person ever elected. He additionally became general counsel for the RNC in 2009.

RNC Elections 2011

2011-01-14T17:58:00.018-06:00

I'm glad that (despite getting a late start today) I started following [and live-Tweeting] the #RNCChair race, while all the candidates were still in; Thanks to Colin Hoffman (of the Missouri CRs), for the quick heads-up.

A hearty congratulations to REINCE PRIEBUS, on winning Chairman of the Republican National Committee!!

Thanks so much, also, to Chairman Michael Steele, for his service, to our party, and our conservative GOP causes.

There are other #RNC11 races still taking place, however. Congratulations to Sharon Day, for being elected National Co-Chair!!

Right now, incumbent RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen (of Arizona) is seeking re-election, against challenges from Ron Nehring (CA) and Tony Parker (DC).

Many of us in the Midwest are closely watching the RNC National Secretary election, in which Demetra Demonte (IL), is running, against Dee Dee Benkie (IN).

I assume that that election will be up, next.

Lame ducks: Working past midnight (to finish screwing our state)

2011-01-12T00:38:00.022-06:00

Amidst the blizzard (which started yesterday, as unfortunate-Governor Pat Quinn's Inaugural Ball was wrapping up!), and has continued, through now...
...the Illinois General Assembly is still in session.

Today (well, now yesterday!) is the last day of the lame-duck session.

While we failed (which I'm reminded of, about every day!) to win the Office of Governor, and also failed to win enough seats, to take control of the State Senate, nor the State House, we did make significant gains, in both of those Chambers.

During the fall veto session, the IL Dems passed some horrid legislation. They've had another lame-duck session, this week and last, in which they helped screw our state some more (like with that "Amazon.com tax" - for which they had some GOP assistance)... and are now staying up late, to push through the crown jewel of their wreckage - a massive INCOME TAX HIKE!

They are trying to get this rammed through, before the new Republicans are sworn in tomorrow (which would now be today!) at noon, on our capital-city (UIS) campus.

Earlier this evening, the tax-hike plan passed the Illinois House, by a vote of 60 to 57.

The debate, in the State Senate, is still underway.

Follow it (audio or video) live:
www.ilga.gov/senate/audvid.asp

And follow:
http://twitter.com/ILSenateGOP
http://twitter.com/SJRthedome

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T21:00:00.003-06:00

For Our Republican Friends: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and may God bless you and yours in 2011.

This time of the year is about change; it's about the future. We look at the New Years celebration as a change of the year and look forward to all of the exciting things to come that year. But Christmas is also about a change - it's about a change in the World for the rest of the future, not just a year. When Jesus Christ was born in a manger, it signified a change; it was the start of a beautiful future full of possibilities that last much longer than a year, but an eternity. So, this holiday season, don't just look to 2011, but look to the future. And the future is bright. In this Christmas and Holiday Season, let's work to change the future and change the World. And we as Republicans, can do just that if we stay focused, stay energized, stay loyal, and remain the best party on Campus. Look to the future, my friends. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

(Jeffrey Isbell, a pentecostal minister, is a former UIS College Republican and field representative for the College Republican National Committee.)

Mayor Tim Davlin

2010-12-14T23:45:00.014-06:00

Mayor Tim Davlin

Though I missed a friend's call this morning (which I'm assuming was regarding this same news), I woke up today (after sleeping in too late, once again!), as a couple of service workers were at home, one of whom asked the other if he'd heard the news today, regarding Mayor Tim Davlin; he said he'd been getting messages about that, all day. "That's crazy," they remarked.

I thought that the news may be regarding some policy or personal-based development (several such items had recently been in the news). When doing a web search on my Blackberry however, I was shocked at what it actually was.

Our Mayor, here in the (Illinois) capital city, was found dead today, of an apparent suicide (though the cause of death is uncertain, at this point). The Illinois State Police, from what I've read/heard, called a press conference, but didn't reveal any information.

I have been a critic of the Mayor (and our successful (College Republicans!!) actions in the last Municipal elections probably didn't make him too happy!), but he was a decent guy, who had tough decisions to make, and faced a lot of heat, from his fellow Democrats, in addition to Republicans. The Mayor was also respected by people, across the board.

====> Mayor Davlin's activities were being nationally-watched, on two major occasions during the 2007-2008 election season; Both Barack Obama's presidential announcement, and his VP (Biden) announcement, were done from the Old State Capitol. (I don't think the Obama campaign ever fully reimbursed our City, for this; That bill is probably still due... Which seems to be a prominent type of problem, for this administration!)

I will post more on this, as the situation develops...

For now, please keep the Davlin family in your prayers.

Thanksgiving Day 2010

2010-11-25T17:56:00.221-06:00

It's been awhile since I've done a Thanksgiving blog entry. In my prior posts, I'd featured a moving prayer, from the great(!) columnist Michelle Malkin:

Thanksgiving Prayer 2002 (Link annotations were added by me; Here's another version)

Michelle often writes poignant pieces; Here are her columns, for this occasion, from 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 (great advice; Was thinking of this, this morning!), 2008, last year... and this time: "Giving thanks for American ingenuity"

from Thanksgiving 2010...

Giving Thanks for Liberty and Freedom, U.S. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Private Property and the First Thanksgiving, The Show-Me Daily

Video: A Thanksgiving Tribute to Property Rights, Reason TV

From our old friend Dan Flynn: Socialism Didn't Work at Plymouth Plantation, Either

And Rush Limbaugh's classic commentary

NRO Symposium: Giving Thanks

‘Where Do We Get
These People?’, Rich Lowry
The First Thanksgiving, Frank Miniter
Thanksgiving for the Bill of Rights, John Hayward
A Grateful Nation, Newt & Callista Gingrich
A Tale of Two Colonies, Gary Galles, Ludvig von Mises Institute

- For which we give thanks
- God returns to Obama's Thanksgiving proclamation

A Thanksgiving Sacrifice
While we celebrate our national holiday in the warmth and comfort of homes, the men and women of our armed forces serve at grave peril in faraway places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

The History of Thanksgiving
TH Radio: Thanksgiving is the least corrupted of the major holidays. It seems to have retained its essential spirit untainted, or at least not completely distorted by the forces of commercialization and secularization.

This Thanksgiving, Serve Gratitude, Rebecca Hagelin
Pro Patria: America, 'Tis of Thee We Sing, Ross Mackenzie
Still Thankful, Cal Thomas
Thanksgiving for Leaders, Jackie Gingrich Cushman
Thankful for a Bygone Era & New Dawn, Armstrong Williams

Remember Whom to thank, Joe Farah
Thanksgiving: The Inoculation Against Fear and Worry, Jane Chastain
Be thankful for technological bounty, Phil Elmore
Thanksgiving wishes from Avenal State Prison, Jack Cashill
Happy "Starvation Day" (A lost Thanksgiving lesson), John Stossel (H/T: Bill Hobbs, Phil Kerpen)

Vote for the Turkey, Skyla Freeman
Happy Thanksgiving, Erick Erickson, Red State

Giving thanks to Whom thanks is due, Illinois Family Institute
A Special Thanksgiving Message, Traditional Values Coalition
Lame Ducks Talk Turkey, Family Research Council

(Note: The above 3 pieces were included, in defiance of the liberal, money-grubbing Southern "Poverty" Law Center.)

a few selections, from Thanksgivings past:
Don't wait to be thankful, Cassandra Walker
In Defense of Traditional Thanksgiving History, Josh Claybourn
America Rocks! The Greatest Country the world has ever known, Ted Nugent
See Ted Nugent's piece, for this year!
The Truth about Thanksgiving and Free Markets, Richard J. Maybury
The Real Meaning of Thanksgiving, Joseph Farah

What Thanksgiving Means to America, from the late Rev. Jerry Falwell

Immigrant Religious Extremist Group Signs Manifesto (1620)

And last (for Thanksgiving 2010), but not least:
A Thanksgiving Message to all 57 States, Sarah Palin (H/T: Jimmie, via Dean in Waukesha)

Obama: Let's have a bipartisan Thanksgiving

Top 10 reasons for conservatives to be thankful, Kenneth Hanner

Both parties have reason to give thanks, Politico (H/T: Saul Anuzis)

One year ago, we were involved in the major GOP wins in Virgnia and New Jersey, which were viewed as key, towards this year's bellwether elections. This month's elections were similarly-thrilling to those across the country - though for those conservatives in my state, it was a mixed bag.

But nonetheless...
Whether for 2010, 2009, 2008/2006, or any other year - The message remains the same:

No matter what happens, with these types of issues and events, it cannot be denied that we all have a GREAT DEAL to be thankful for!

During recent months, and in prior years--within our local, national, and international politics, within our "Web2.0" networks, and within the public arena--there has been a great deal of arguing, attacking, flaming, antagonism, and ill will that has been expressed by many individuals and groups. We have also celebrated many major election victories, even while facing policy-related setbacks, and destructive policies, at the national (and statewide) levels... not to mention the current socio-economic times. [And for those who are students, there are of course the usual (upcoming) concerns, but also, things we need to be doing, over "Fall Break."]

But now is not the time for angst, or for worry, or overwhelming frustration with others, or with the contemporary issues facing our country, our community, or our lives. Nor is it even the time for fiercly-positive dialectics, regarding these issues (or other matters, that may cause disputes, like when at today's family gatherings :-).

Now is the time to give thanks - To give thanks that we live in a society in which we can have these debates and discussions legally and freely, and in which we can praise or protest the policies and policy-makers that affect our society and our lives today. And it is a time to give thanks to our brave current and former soldiers - those who sacrifice their time, services, livelihoods, and sometimes, a great deal more - to defend our country and our citizenry. And above all, it is time to give thanks to our Lord and Creator - for all that he has done - for us, for our nation, and for the world in which we live.

Have a great Thanksgiving - and may your holiday be cheerful and pleasant. Best wishes to you and yours for an enjoyable and safe holiday weekend as well.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

(And don't eat too much turkey... ;-)

The Most Ridiculous Attack Yet

2010-11-24T20:00:00.060-06:00

In politics, seeing unfair & unfounded attacks against elected officials & candidates is all-to-common, and (despite myths to the contrary) has been so, since our nation began.

One paradigm shift that has definitely taken place, of late however, is the hostility towards religion - especially Christianity - in the public arena.

Still, I have been extremely-surprised, seeing the nature of the attacks, against U.S. Congressman John Shimkus (R-IL).

The Congressman has been one of the [increasing!!] number of GOP elected officials who use Twitter, and the related "Web2.0" networking services. On his Twitter page, you will frequently see Bible verses.

So far, nothing unusual, right?

Note: I know Congressman Shimkus, and I also know longtime reporter for the State Journal-Register, Bernie Schoenburg. And I have been fans of both. I was quite disappointed therefore, to find, in Mr. Schoenburg's column from a few months ago, that he was criticizing the Congressman, for Tweeting Bible verses.

The Post-Election [intra-party] elections
This seemingly-noncontroversial matter has arisen again this month, because the Congressman is notably seeking the Chairmanship of the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee.

Check out this "news" article, from the prominent national Hill newspaper.
(Fortunately, the comments section there appears unanimously on the side of common sense!)

I was alarmed, after doing a quick web search the other night, and seeing that this silliness seemed to have spread, throughout the web. In looking back, I saw that a lot of the criticism is regarding Congressman Shimkus' opposition to the global warming alarmism. That attack is also wrong, though not as absurd as the aforementioned one!

**Best of luck to U.S. Congressman John Shimkus, in his bid to become Chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Commerce and Energy!!

Note: As said in the sidebar here, all blog entries reflect only the views of their author.

Giving Thanks

2010-11-24T19:57:00.002-06:00

I am so very thankful for our great United States Military. Without which, we would never be able to enjoy the freedoms we have today. Because of the United States Military, I can, if I so desire, go at 4:17 in the morning to a 7-11 and get a Slurpee. No other country in the world can say they have those freedoms and liberties. I know it doesn't seem like much, but when you really look at it, it is a lot.

Mike Pence for 2012?

2010-11-03T21:38:00.006-05:00

In 2006 after the Republicans lost the House of Representatives in a blood bath of an election, Mike Pence was sounding the rally call, putting front and center what the Republicans had done wrong.

"Our opponents will say that the American people rejected our Republican vision," he remarked during his run for the House Minority Leadership position. "I say the American people didn't quit on the Contract with America, we did. And in so doing, we severed the bonds of trust between our party and millions of our most ardent supporters."

On November 17 of that year, John Boehner won the election by a sweeping margin and has been House Minority Leader ever since. Between Boehner, Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan, and Pence, the House Republicans have a rising new crop of leadership ready to take the reins in the event that control is handed back to the Party. Pence himself has an election on his hands for 2010, a serial de-ja-vu type of affair against a familiar opponent in Barry Welsh, who also ran against Mike in 2008 and 2006 and lost both times. According to Welsh, 3 times is a charm but it appears that in this year of political conservative ascendancy, Pence's seat has been proclaimed totally safe for another go-round (D.C's Political Report).

This term in Pence's District should be his 6th, but it nearly was a Senate battle that Mike was involved in. Earlier this year, Pence was running against Democrat freshman incumbent Evan Bayh for the Senate seat that he captured in 2004. A Rasmussen telephone poll
on January 25th showed him leading Bayh by 3 points but Mike declined soon afterward, deciding to pursue instead the grand probability that the House would regain Republican majority and he'd have a new go at leadership possibilities.

Born in Columbus, Indiana, (WIKIPEDIA) Mike is one of six children, attending Columbus North High School, graduating from Hanover College with a Bachelor of Arts and the Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis with a Juris Doctorate. He was an attorney and became a radio host of The Mike Pence Show based out of WRCR-FM in Rushville, Indiana. He actually made his first attempts to run for congress in 1988 and 1990, against Phil Sharp and lost both, even with the blessing of Ronald Reagan. It was a decade before he ran again, this time in 2000, when Republican David McIntosh vacated the 6th congressional seat and ran for governor. The decade has gone to Pence ever since. He formerly was leader of the Republican Study Committee and now chairs the House Republican Conference, which officially is the 3rd highest leadership ranking in the House. A winner of numerous conservative awards and honors, Pence has brought his conservative ideals to the forefront of a new generation of Republican leadership.

Mike and his wife Karen have three children, Michael, Charlotte, and Audrey. They live in Columbus, Indiana.

I interviewed Mike at a recent fundraiser for Wisconsin candidate Dan Kapanke, who ran against Ron Kind in the 3rd District. At the time, Pence was crisscrossing the country, lending his hand to every possible race, both big and small, to help turn tide in the November 2 election.

1. YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF AS A CHRISTIAN FIRST, A CONSERVATIVE SECOND, AND A REPUBLICAN THIRD. HOW DOES THIS PHILOSOPHY GUIDE YOUR BELIEF AS A REPRESENTATIVE FROM INDIANA?

Well, back when I was talk radio show host in the 1990s, people used to call my show and say, "I've been listening to you for a while, are you a conservative, a libertarian, or are you a neoconservative?" And I would say "I'm a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican in that order" and the way I tried to build a career over the past 10 years is on the basis of that foundation, where my faith instructs me in the conduct of my office, my family, or in policies effecting our values, that's what leads. But I'm a deeply committed conservative and that comes before party affiliation and at times I've had to do battle with leaders of my own party or a President of my own party on spending issues where I thought Republicans were walking away from the principles of limited Government. But beyond my core values and ideals, I'm proud to be a Republican, particularly these days when I see the Republican Party coming back to the principles that minted our national Governing majority and I think that's why the American People are giving us a second look.

No matter where Mike leads, it's a win for the Republican Party!

2. HAS IT BEEN INTIMIDATING FOR YOU BATTLE AGAINST THE LEADERSHIP OF YOUR OWN PARTY?

Well, I will say that when I arrived in Washington in 2001, Scott, I never imagined that my toughest battles would be against members of my own party but, you know, when the Bush Administration came to power and their first priority was a massive expansion of the Federal Government, the Department of Education with No Child Left Behind and then there was a massive expansion of entitlements with the Medicare prescription drug bill, we saw a doubling of the national debt, an earmarking culture, and the Wall Street bailout. I just knew, my first obligation was to stand on the conservative principles that I'd run on, to stand on the conservative principles that I'd run on, the conservative principles that I'd been advancing for so long in my life. So in one sense it was easy, because it was just about letting my "yes" be yes and my "no" be no. In another sense it was at times difficult because it's hard to look your friends in the eye and it's hard to look a President you admire in the eye and say, "I can't go with ya."

3. YOUR'S, PAUL RYAN'S, AND JOHN BOENHER'S NAMES HAVE COME UP REPEATEDLY AS CANDIDATES TO BECOME POTENTIAL SPEAKERS OF THE HOUSE IN JANUARY. CAN YOU TELL ME WHO YOU BELIEVE IS THE MOST QUALIFIED AND WHY?

I think John Boehner will be one of the most conservative and most effective speakers in modern Congressional history and I strongly support John as speaker. Let me say as I stand here in Wisconsin that we have no brighter light in Congress than Paul Ryan. He's been a visionary on budget issues and I consider him a cherished friend.

Mike with Dan Kapanke(WI 3rd District Congressional Candidate, left) and guest

4. AS CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE REPUBLICAN CONFERENCE WHAT GOALS WOULD YOU HAVE IN IN MIND TO PROMOTE CONSERVATIVE IDEALS IN THE EVENT THAT REPUBLICANS REGAIN THE MAJORITY?

If Republicans are given a second chance to lead the Congress, jobs have to be job one. We have to take immediate and decisive action to make sure that no American sees a tax increase in January of next year. Immediately after that we have to take strong steps to put our fiscal house in order. We have to confront this era of deficits, debt, and bailouts and end it once and for all and then at the end of the day we have to do those things that Congress is charged to do. We have to stand with our troops, we have to defend our values in the way that we that we appropriate the People's money. But jobs clearly, and spending are, clearly, are the most urgent issues facing America today and that is where Congress, under a Republican leadership, will focus if we're given the opportunity to lead.

5. TO HAVE BEEN IN CONGRESS FOR 10 YEARS AND TO HAVE WON MANY AWARDS, HOW HONORED ARE YOU TO HAVE SERVED IN THIS CAPACITY FOR SO LONG?

Well, it's been the greatest privilege in my life to represent my hometown in Washington DC. I had the dream of becoming a congressman when I was a little boy growing up on 31st street with a cornfield in my back yard. It's really, not too much time goes by that I find myself walking up the steps of those Capitals and find myself glancing at the dome and I just thank God that my family and I have had the privilege to serve in such a time as this and to be able to be here in Wisconsin standing with people of character like Dan Kapanke and to be on the cusp of what could be a great victory for conservative values is not only a great privilege, but a great joy.

----------
Update: It has been reported from news outlets on November 3 that Mike has resigned his post as chairman of the House Republican Conference, possibly to give himself more time to prepare for presidential run in 2012.

MONEYBOMB: Bill Brady 4 Governor (Let's win back Blago's seat!)

2010-10-26T05:56:00.006-05:00

Send a message to Barack Obama (and the party of Rod Blagojevich + the "Chicago Way")!!

Give anything you can, to help us across the finish line, to VICTORY!!

It's now only ONE WEEK till the big day!

Of all the State Governors in the country, none has been more infamous, within the past couple years, as the now-impeached (and indicted!) Governor of Illinois. The "Chicago Way" has clearly crippled our state, through the years - and is doing the same, at the national level, as well!

Now, we have a rare - and perhaps unprecedented - opportunity to throw out the bums who caused this mess, and replace them all with an outside-the-Establishment, CONSERVATIVE Republican alternative!

This chance may NEVER come again.

*** Both BILL BRADY and JASON PLUMMER are conservative GOP leaders hailing from the heartlands of central Illinois (the same area that actually sparked the conservative revolution led by Ronald Reagan)!

So: Whereever you may be... This race is being WIDELY-WATCHED, with serious consequences, nationwide.

Help us show that traditional Republican values (and "tea party" values) are a pathway to success, and victory...

HELP US TAKE BACK this state (which produced Chicago politicians like Rod Blagojevich, Jesse Jackson, Jr., Dan Rostenkowski, Barack Obama, and a long line of others).

JUST as this movement helped spark the Reagan Revolution, the results of this race, seven days from today, could have great implications, nationwide!!

PLEASE GIVE ANYTHING YOU CAN, to help us WIN - one week from today!!

- Bill Brady's new direction
- Newspapers from every corner of Illinois endorse Bill!‏
- Brady rips Quinn over Morton College [kickback] check
- Desperation Sets In: Democrat Claims Republican Gov Candidate Wants to Shoot Gays; End Women’s Suffrage: Things are...
- 'Twas the week before E-Day, and all through the state...
- Quinn's ad misleads; 9 more convicted murderers released this month
- Illinois Dems force Pat Quinn to abandon tike hike plan
- GOP Lt. Gov. nominee Plummer visits for Homecoming

MONEYBOMB: Rev. Isaac Hayes for Congress!! - As done before, we CAN pick up this Dem seat!

2010-10-13T01:54:00.006-05:00

Like the "Massachusetts Miracle" earlier this year... We have a RARE opportunity to pick up Democrat seat!!

10/13 "Moneybomb" for Rev. Isaac Hayes

This is the year for GOP pick-ups in [what were once] "safe" Democrat seats! In the last comparable year (1994), Chicago powerhouse Dan Rostenkowski was [shockingly!!] defeated for re-election, by his Republican opponent. [LA Times: GOP 'David' knocks off 'Goliath']

We now have another situation, in which a scandal-plagued Democrat Congressman can be ousted.

Jesse Jackson, Jr. has a 72% UNFAVORABLE rating!

Leading pollster & analyst Dick Morris said that IL's 2nd Congressional district is now in play due to the amazing effort of GOP nominee Rev. Isaac C. Hayes, and the sex and dirty money scandals of incumbent Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.

Rev. Hayes needs your help to defeat this dirty pol -- go to www.isaac4honesty.com to make a donation or volunteer now!!

Listen in the video above to this wonderful riff by Hayes at the Cook County GOP Convention:

"President Ronald Reagan once said, 'there is sin and evil in the world, and we are enjoined by Scripture to fight it.' Reagan was talking about the Soviet Union. But he may has well been speaking about the South Side of Chicago."

And

"Senate Candidate #5 has the wrong idea of what it means to be a Congressman. He should go back to his cronies in Chicago and tell them Chicago's sons and daughters are his no more -- they are free. We must fight for every neighborhood, every precinct and every block in this district and we will win."

Hayes is a modern-day Braveheart -- slaying the dirty, sexy, money grubber Jackson. He's the long sought conservative solution to the corruption of Junior Jackson and the Chicago Democrats, and is endorsed by the American Conservative Union (ACU), the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC), and the National Federation of Republican Assemblies (NFRA). Volunteer or DONATE NOW online!!

Let's throw everything we have @ Junior Jackson NOW -- www.isaac4honesty.com

Related news:

NBC Chicago: Overnight change: Isaac Hayes' phone now ringing!
NewsMax: "Hayes could be poised to score a major upset."
Black Voice News: Will the Real Congressman Jackson Stand Up?
Hill News: Race of the Day: IL-02
Medill Reports: IL-02 race now on GOP radar
Windy Citizen: Challengers: Jackson's More Vulnerable After New Allegations
Chicago Now: Hayes offers Jackson free lessons in Hindi language
RedState.com: "When you're given a free shot, you should take it."

Washington Post: GOP gains traction in Jesse Jackson Jr.'s district

Chicago Tribune: Somebody brought it on
("He has a safe seat. You would think." ;-)

MARY FALLIN - LADY OF FIRSTS FOR OKLAHOMA

2010-10-10T19:52:00.001-05:00

Mary Fallin's next success could be the election victory this fall that would make her the State of Oklahoma's first female governor but as a public servant, she has already accomplished a series of "firsts" in her own right.

She was the first woman Lieutenant Governor for the State of Oklahoma, initially elected in 1995 and serving until January 4, 2007 when she was officially sworn in as the first woman from Oklahoma to serve in the US Congress since Alice Mary Robertson broke the gender barrier in 1921. But if victory in her campaign is just about a series of "firsts" it is lost on Mary.

"I am thrilled to be back in Oklahoma," she was quoted as saying at a civic luncheon in the February 17, 2010 edition of the Urban Tulsa Weekly. "I had to go back to Washington, D.C. to vote very quickly this week but any time I can hurry right back to Oklahoma it's a good day. Our people here in Oklahoma are a little bit different than those folks up in D.C. . ."

"The American people are mad. They're very concerned. They don't like deficit spending. They don't want more taxes. They need a job. They want to make their own decisions about health care. They don't want some federal bureaucrat in D.C. making that decision. They're fighting mad."

Since winning her June 18 primary in Oklahoma, ousting her strongest primary challenger in State Senator Randy Brogdon, and capturing the prized endorsement of Sarah Palin, Mary's campaign has been rolling on into the late summer, focusing it's efforts squarely on her Democratic challenger, Jari Askins; another woman who, ironically, serves almost as Mary's alter-ego, having been appointed to take her place as Lt Governor in 2007 by current Democratic Governor Brad Henry.

Born in Tecumseh, Oklahoma on December 9, 1954, (WIKIPEDIA), Mary's political rearing started early in her life as both her mother and father served terms as mayor of Tecumseh as conservative Democrats. Mary was first registered as Democrat, but transitioned to the Republican Party while she was a student at Oklahoma State University. After starting her life out working as a state employee for the Oklahoma Department of Securities and in hotel management in Oklahoma City, Mary was alarmed by the Democratic-dominated Legislature's anti-business climate. She first hit the political scene when she was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives in 1990. She served 2 terms from 1990 to 1994 where she was recognized by the American Legislative Exchange Council as Legislator of the Year and named Guardian of Small Business by the National Federation of Independent Business. She ran for Lieutenant Governor in 1994 and rode into office along with Frank Keating's Republican Administration in 1995.

In her 12 years as Lieutenant Governor, Mary served as president of the Senate and on 10 boards and commissions. As a small business advocate in the Keating cabinet she was also instrumental in initiating several economic development events including the first-ever Oklahoma Aerospace Summit and Expo; and Small Business Day and Telecommunications Day at the Capitol. She also hosted the Lieutenant Governor’s Invitational Turkey Hunt. After the Oklahoma City bombing, she formed a task force to rebuild the childcare center lost in the destruction. Additionally, she also initiated Project Homesafe, a gun safety program that has distributed more than 80,000 free cable gun locks to Oklahomans. She then ascended to the aforementioned position of congresswoman when elected in 2006, campaigning for Ernest Istook's 5th District seat after Istook embarked on his ill-fated run for governor against Brad Henry. For her work on behalf of the people of Oklahoma and her conservative values, Mary has been named a “Hero of the Taxpayer,” a “Friend of the Wildcatter” and been recognized by Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council with the “True Blue” award. She has a lifelong score of 96 from the American Conservative Union, the highest of any Congressman in the Oklahoma delegation.

Mary joined me this week to answer my questions about her accomplishment, her campaign, and the issues facing Oklahoma in this historic election cycle.

1. WHAT ARE THE ISSUES SPECIFICALLY FACING THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA TODAY AND WHAT ARE THE CORE VALUES OF YOUR CAMPAIGN?

I’m going to have two issues that I will treat as priorities on Day One of my administration. The first is jobs. We need more and better jobs in this state if we are going to move forward, generate tax revenue for essential services, and increase the quality of life for our citizens. There are a lot of things we can do to get there. One is to create a governor’s task force to look into Oklahoma’s tax code, our rules, our regulations and our government bureaucracy, to find out how we can be friendlier to small business growth and development. We can’t expect the businesses here to thrive or to attract new ones when we are tripping them up with unnecessary regulations, government red tape and punitive taxes. We’ll also need to look at the rising cost of worker’s compensation costs and revisit lawsuit reform. Finally, we’ll need to continue to improve our education system, so that we can produce the kind of highly skilled, educated workforce that attracts good jobs.

Secondly, we’ll need to balance the budget, and we’ll need to do it without raising taxes (which would drive jobs and investments out of Oklahoma).To do that, we need to be committed to fiscal restraint. We’ll need to make tough choices. And equally important, we’ll need a modern, efficient and effective state government. Our state agencies operate like 8-track players in an iPod age. They are out of date and inefficient. When I’m governor, we will immediately move to modernize our agencies, consolidate resources where we can, and trim our operating costs.

Mary has the perfect combination of executive and life experience for the governorship!

2. YOU ARE RUNNING AGAINST CURRENT LT GOVERNOR JARI ASKINS. CONTRAST YOURSELF WITH JARI AND TELL ME WHAT IT IS THAT SHE HAS DONE ALONG WITH GOVERNOR BRAD HENRY THAT HAS BEEN BAD FOR THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA?

I plan on running a positive campaign focused on my vision for the state and my plan to move Oklahoma forward and help our families and our small businesses. That means creating jobs, balancing our budget and, lastly, standing up to Washington’s painfully misguided agenda.

I think on that last point, the lack of leadership in this state has been particularly troubling. When President Obama was passing an unconstitutional, job-killing health care bill, I was the only candidate in this race standing up to the president and his agenda. When the president was trying to tax and spend his way to prosperity and economic recovery, I was the only candidate in this race saying “that won’t work.” I think the choice in this election is pretty clear: if you don’t like Washington’s ‘tax and spend,’ liberal agenda and want a leader who is going to stand up to it, I’m your gal.

3. REGARDING QUESTION 1, BRAD HENRY HAS PROVEN TO BE A POPULAR GOVERNOR FOR OKLAHOMA. HAS THIS PRESENTED EXTRA CHALLENGES FOR YOU IN THE RACE AGAINST JARI ASKINS?

No. This race is going to be about who the voters think will create jobs and restore fiscal discipline to the capitol, and it’s going to be about who can offer something different from what President Obama and Washington have been pushing on us. I have the experience to run this state, the vision to make a more prosperous Oklahoma and I am the only candidate who can credibly say they offer something different than the failed policies being pursued by the national Democratic Party. As lieutenant governor, I served under Brad Henry and I have a great deal of respect for him. But voters are looking for something different in 2010, and I am offering them a chance to change course and to get this state back on track.

Mary is the next leader of Rebublican for a new generation.

4. YOU HAVE SERVED AS A CONGRESSWOMAN FOR OKLAHOMA DISTRICT 5 FOR THE PAST 4 YEARS AND BEFORE THAT LT GOVERNOR OF OKLAHOMA FOR 12 YEARS. WHAT HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED IN YOUR TENURE IN THE CONGRESS THAT HAS HELPED PREPARE YOU FOR YOUR RUN FOR GOVERNOR?

Unfortunately, what I experienced in Washington was the sense that our nation’s capitol has become too partisan, too overrun with special interests and too willing to waste taxpayer dollars to help people in Oklahoma.

That’s why I’m coming home. Washington is not going to solve our problems; we are going to have to do it ourselves on the state level. I’m ready to lead Oklahoma forward and, when Washington pushes Oklahoma in the wrong direction or tramples our rights, to very forcefully say “no.”

5. YOU WERE RAISED IN TECUMSEH, HAVE BEEN REGIONAL MANAGER OF A HOTEL CHAIN, AND HAVE SEVERAL CHILDREN. WHAT KIND OF VALUES HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO TAKE INTO EACH OF THESE SITUATIONS AND HOW WILL THEY SERVE YOU WELL AS GOVERNOR OF OKLAHOMA?

I think the values my mother instilled in me – hard work, self reliance, civic duty and my faith in God have always guided me as a public servant. Those are the values I have tried to pass onto my children.

As far as my life experiences, I think I’ll be able to represent the people of Oklahoma well because I’m one of them. I grew up in a small town and I loved it. I went to school here. I worked in the private sector and I understand how things like rising health care costs can crush a small business. I’m a mother, and I know what it takes to raise a family – the hard work, the sacrifice and the joy that comes with helping your children grow up and become adults.

I’ve had the honor of serving the people of Oklahoma as their lieutenant governor and as a United States Congresswoman, and I’ve worked every day to earn their trust and to give back to this state. I can guarantee the people of Oklahoma that, if I have the great privilege of serving as governor, no one will work harder for them or care more about this state than I will.

JB VAN HOLLEN CHIEF LAW ENFORCER FOR WISCONSIN

2010-09-26T10:39:00.001-05:00

Since 2006, Attorney General JB Van Hollen has been a one-man crime-fighting force in the State of Wisconsin and after 2010, he's hoping he will no longer have to fight alone. The long time District and US Attorney is not only running for reelection himself but is also looking forward to the distinct possibility of having a Republican Governor, a Republican Legislature, and a Republican Senate. After all, after having to fight the Doyle administration and the Wisconsin legislature for 4 years, the job can only get easier.

Born John Byron Van Hollen on February 19, 1966 (WIKIPEDIA) in the town of Chetek John C and Rosella Van Hollen. John C., a realtor and Korean War Veteran, also served in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1966 to 1970. J.B. grew up in Chetek and later in the Town of Delta in Bayfield County. A graduate of St Olaf's University (Northfield, Minnesota) in 1988 with an undergraduate degree in political science, he went on to obtain his law degree at the University of Wisconsin Law School 2 years later. According to his Website (biography) although he was courted by several law firms, J.B. actually began his career as an Assistant State Public Defender in Spooner, Wisconsin. In 1991 Van Hollen became a federal prosecutor as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin. In 1993 Governor Tommy Thompson appointed Van Hollen to the position of District Attorney in Ashland County. He stepped down 6 years later to pursue other life interests, but a short time later Governor Thompson appointed him to serve as Bayfield County District Attorney. He was reelected with bipartisan support. He became well-known when President George W Bush appointed him US Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin in 2002 and his reputation as a star law enforcement official climbed to new heights. As the US Attorney for 44 counties in Wisconsin, JB coordinated a massive sting operation in Hayward, using 100 members of law enforcement to crack down on gangs, drugs, and guns. Through multiple levels of agencies, dozens of search warrants were executed simultaneously and dozens were arrested with the average federal prosecution resulting in a several-year federal prison sentence. In turn, the evidence collected helped to solve a homicide case. He under-spent his budget during all three of his years as U.S. Attorney. The number of criminal cases filed by his office increased by 15% in 2002, 7% in 2003, and 23% in 2004 totaling a 53% increase during his tenure. He initiated Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal effort to reduce violent gun crime by enforcing the numerous laws already on the books. In its first year, Van Hollen worked in Rock County to prosecute individuals for gun crimes ranging from being a felon in possession of firearms or ammo to use of firearms during violent felonies, resulting in an average prison sentence of more than five years. Van Hollen later expanded the effort to Dane County and several multi-jurisdictional drug enforcement groups in rural Wisconsin. Firearms prosecutions nearly tripled during his tenure.

In 2006, he decided to run for State Attorney General. He overtook Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher and won the nomination. In the worst of circumstances for Republicans, he won the Attorney General election by beating Democrat Kathleen Falk was the only Republican in the nation that year to win a statewide seat held by a Democrat.

When not involved with the rigors of running the Attorney General's office, JB enjoys running, biking, hunting swimming, skiing, basketball and golf. He has run two marathons and completed the 2003 Ironman Wisconsin Triathlon. He is a member of Ducks Unlimited, Grouse Unlimited, National Rifle Association, Wisconsin Sporting Heritage, Inc., and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. He also has been involved with the Freemasons for a large part of his life, becoming Master Mason in 1985 and Grand Master of Masons in 2007, serving in this capacity into 2008. JB and his wife, Lynn, live in Waunakee and have two children, Byron and Madelyn.

JB has been campaigning hard around Wisconsin. His Democratic challenger, Democrat Scott Hassett, has yet to be heard from. Determined to be a vital cog in the resurgence of conservative governing in 2011, JB talked to me about his campaign, the state of ObamaCare, and his experiences as Wisconsin Attorney General over the past 4 years.

1. YOU HAVE SERVED AS ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR THE STATE OF WISCONSIN UNDER DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP FOR 4 YEARS. CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT HAS FRUSTRATED YOU THE MOST OVER THOSE 4 YEARS?

I think basically 2 things: It is very frustrating to me when a liberal Governor like the one we have doesn't prioritize something as fundamental as public safety. Protecting our freedoms and liberties in this country is the most important thing that our government can do and yet overall spending during tough times went up and yet overall spending for public safety, law enforcement, and my Department of Justice budget went down and when we're trying to do so much good to help protect our citizens, having our spending priorities being so off-kilter is frustrating. And the other thing is the lack of respect for the Rule of Law. Politics, has, unfortunately played a role in our ability to do the best we could for the State of Wisconsin, whether it be our ability to join with Arizona to defend against the Federal Government in a lawsuit or to file briefs on the 2nd Amendment with the Supreme Court or a lawsuit on ObamaCare, the reality is that the Governor has let politics stand in the way of our doing our job to defend the state. Those two things are very frustrating.

JB is the chief law enforcement officer for the State of Wisconsin!

2. THERE IS ANTICIPATION FOR WISCONSIN TO HAVE THE FIRST REPUBLICAN-LED GOVERNMENT IN MANY YEARS. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU CAN ACCOMPLISH IN THAT SITUATION?

I'm hoping that we can accomplish what Republicans as a whole set out to do and that is to limit the size of Government but when we do limit the size of government, we have to make sure that we maintain our priorities as well. I have a great concern that Republicans may think that reducing the size of government may mean we make across-the-board cuts and reduce the size of every aspect of government. Well, that's not what we as conservatives, believe. We believe that we need to cut spending completely in some areas, considerably in other areas, and sometimes even increase spending in priority areas; areas where the government does need to be involved in our lives and I am hoping that when we get Republican control of the Governor's office, over the legislature, that we are going to be able to focus on government as a whole and make wholesale changes versus across-the-board cuts.

3. IN YOUR TIME AS STATE AG, WHAT IS THE MOST REWARDING THING YOU'VE EXPERIENCED?

You know, there have been so many things that have been incredibly rewarding but I think that the most satisfying has been getting rid of the backlog of DNA evidence in our crime labs. Not only had every Attorney General candidate for decades run on the promise of getting rid of the backlog, every Attorney General had promised to get rid of the backlog and when I had inherited it, it was escalating horribly out of control and we needed to address it and we needed to address it promptly. We not only got rid of the backlog of DNA in the crime labs but we did it only partially by putting resources after the problem. A big part of what we did was by putting more efficiencies and technologies in the way we did business in the Department of Justice so that we got more bang for the taxpayer buck and so in the in process of helping law enforcement with perhaps the most significant law enforcement tool that has come along in our lifetimes, we were able to do it very efficiently economically, as well, and it is hard to not consider that to be the greatest success.

JB is out campaigning hard for this fall\'s election turnaround!

4. CAN YOU GIVE US AN UPDATE ON THE STATE OF YOUR LEGAL CHALLENGE TO OBAMACARE? WHAT ELSE IS BEING DONE AROUND THE COUNTRY RIGHT NOW TO COMBAT THIS LEGISLATION?

Well, we're in a holding pattern in Wisconsin right now, as most people I think, are now aware. As Attorney General of the State of Wisconsin, I have considerable power and authority but it is still limited. And as a conservative, I hold myself to those limits and I don't believe that government should grow beyond what the law entitles us to do. And, suing over ObamaCare is simply something that I have limits placed on me to do and it was necessary for me to get approval from either the governor or one of the bodies of the legislature to bring this lawsuit. We submitted an 8-page detailed memorandum of law indicating why we should bring this suit to all three of them. All three of them declined it and so now, as along as the Legislature and the Governor's office is controlled by their current leadership, we are out of luck when it comes to Wisconsin joining a lawsuit or initiating a lawsuit over the Federal Health Care law. However, when we get a new governor and at a time when we are going to have a new make-up in the Senate and a new make-up in the Assembly we are going to renew our requests, as long as I am Attorney General, and I would suspect that we would be able to get that request granted, in which we will be able to join an ongoing lawsuit or file a lawsuit ourselves. Otherwise there is a consortium of states whose Attorney's General have gotten together and brought a single lawsuit on the behalf of a multitude of states in the State of Florida and we actually could actually join that as well. Thus far, neither of these suits have progressed very far and there is certainly more than enough time to get involved.

5. YOU ARE A HUGE 2ND AMENDMENT PROPONENT. CAN YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN THE CONCEPT OF CONCEALED CARRY AND CLEAR UP ANY MISCONCEPTIONS PEOPLE MAY HAVE ABOUT IT?

First with regard to the 2nd Amendment, I'm a huge proponent of it for a number of reasons. First of all I believe in the Rule of Law and it's a significant part of our Constitution. Second of all, of course, when people lose the ability to defend themselves, we become subject to the whims of others who want to violate our freedoms and liberties and we become subject to the whims of government if they are going to abuse their power and authority and so the 2nd Amendment is vitally important to me and we've done a lot in my Administration to advance the cause of gun rights and 2nd Amendment rights in Wisconsin. And I am for concealed carry as well. And I think there's a bit of mis-perception out there that people are in greater danger but in the 48 States that permit law-abiding citizens to carry concealed weapons, there is absolutely no anecdotal evidence to suggest whatsoever that, that is the case. The opponents of concealed carry will be the first one's to tout examples of problems if there were any. The reality is that Government's role is to protect its citizens and if we have a law in the State of Wisconsin prohibiting law-abiding citizens from carrying concealed weapons, if that is not doing anything to protect citizens, if it's not necessary to protect citizens, then by all means Government should get out of our lives. So I'm a big fan of the 2nd Amendment but I'm also a big fan of making sure the Government doesn't interfere in our lives when they can find or show no legitimate reason to do so. With regards to the Concealed Carry law in Wisconsin right now, there is no justification for it existing.

Right Nation 2010

2010-09-18T20:25:00.001-05:00

I was hoping that, at this Midwest-themed major event, I would be able to live-blog (I'm on Bloggers Row!) at this, plus two other weblogs.

The last time I was on a "Bloggers Row" - at the 2008 "Defending the American Dream" Summit - I was able to do so, at two blogs (my personal one, and at the UIS College Republicans one), with somewhat success... So I thought maybe, I could do this.

Who was I kidding? Not only did I get here late, and flustered, but just getting, on the Sears Centre wi-fi system was a chore.

I will post more here, but likely in the form of "recaps"... For live-blogging, I'll have to continue, at my personal blog (and on Twitter most likely, from the "interview room").

My U.S. Congressman, AARON SCHOCK (who's also just 1 month older than I), is speaking right now; They told us he will "be in the interview room 1 minute after" he finishes speaking; I hope to be in the front row! [Was in the back, when Andrew Breitbart was there, and I totally missed Herman Cain.]

Please follow updates, from the floor of the Convention, at my main blog [sorry in advance, if they seem garbled, unprofessional, and too stream-of-consciousness-like... I'm undercaffeinated, and mad at myself, for the aforementioned reasons, as well!], and perhaps some updates here, as well.

I will link to the posts of the others, who are here on Bloggers Row... I've noticed Bill Barr, right in front; recognized Emily Zanotti, when I first arrived.

From the interview room, it'll be live-Tweets! You can follow my stream (though for some reason, it's been VERY slow, with the mobile network); the hashtag for this event is #RN2010.

BTW: Four of the State Republican Parties, in our CRNC Midwest Caucus, are sponsors of Right Nation 2010: Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, and Illinois.

Stay tuned, for more updates!

(I'd link to a live-stream, which I presume exists, but I'm going to get ready, to run to the interview room!)

SEAN DUFFY BUILT FOR THE RUGGED 7TH DISTRICT

2010-09-12T20:50:00.000-05:00

Wisconsin 7th Congressional District Candidate Sean Duffy has a Christmastime YouTube video that he put on his campaign site in 2009 where he and his family are hunting for the perfect Christmas tree and the chainsaw ran out of gas. Sean broke the tree down with his bare hands, an act of bravado that isn't an anomaly for a family lineage extending back to four generations of pioneers and lumberjacks. He may be running for Congress and for the right to walk the polished, pristine halls of Capitol Hill but his roots have been cemented squarely in rural Wisconsin for longer than he's been alive.

Sean's great-grandfather, Hugh, moved to Hayward in 1883 and was a founding settler of the community as well as a lumberjack. His grandfather, Walter Duffy, was Register of Deeds and county judge for Sawyer County, Wisconsin. His father, Tom Sr, is a lawyer in Hayward and his brother, Tom Jr, also opened his own law practice in Hayward and ran for Sawyer County judge last year. And then there's the logrolling angle: While Sean holds 2 speed-climbing titles, his brother Brian holds 5 logrolling titles, and an even younger Duffy niece Taylor is a multi-logboom running champion who won her first championship at the age of 15.

Born on October 3, 1971, to Thomas and Carol Duffy, (WIKIPEDIA) Sean is one of 11 children born and raised in Hayward. He began log rolling at age 5 and speed climbing (which involves sprinting up 60 and 90 foot poles) at age 13. As a teen, he competed in the National Lumberjack Championships and is a three-time world champion in the 90-foot speed climb. He has a marketing degree from St. Mary's University, and a law degree from William Mitchell College of Law. In 1997 during his first year at law school, he was cast for and starred in MTV's Real World Boston. He played a Republican on the show. In 1998, the alumni from previous Real World shows, were cast together in Road Rules: All Stars. On the set, he met his future wife, Rachel, (RACHEL CAMPOS-DUFFY: MOTHER, STAY AT HOME ADVOCATE). They married on April 4, 1999 and the couple now has six kids Evita Pilar, Xavier Jack, Lucia-Belen, John-Paul, Paloma Pilar and MariaVictoria Margarita.

"My kids logroll in the summer," he told the MCLATCHY-TRIBUNE news agency in May of this year. "This is part of my family's tradition. I've traveled all over the country tree climbing and logrolling. You don't get more Wisconsin than me."

Hayward boasts one of the best logrolling training schools in the country and soon as his kids learn to walk, Sean takes them to logrolling school in the summer. They compete in the Youth division of the Lumberjack World Championships each summer. Evita has already placed 3rd in recent competition.

Here's my interview with Sean recently where he told me about his campaign approach and what he planned to do if he were fortunate enough to win the 7th District race and end up in Washington DC.

1. DAVID OBEY GAVE UP HIS BID FOR RE-ELECTION IN APRIL. HOW MUCH OF THIS DO YOU ATTRIBUTE TO PRESSURE FROM YOUR CAMPAIGN?

You know some people have speculated that I had quite a bit to do with Dave leaving. They've said that he would have stayed there but for the fact that he had a serious challenge this year. I don't know what's in Dave's heart, I don't know what the reason is that Dave got out, only he and his family know that so it's pretty tough for me to speculate. I'll leave that to the bloggers and pundits like yourself!

2. HAVING RECENTLY STEPPED DOWN AS ASHLAND DA, CAN YOU TELL ME HOW TOUGH THIS DECISION WAS AND HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO FOCUS MORE ON THE TASK AT HAND?

I loved my job as Ashland DA. I loved to work representing the citizens of Ashland County. I love putting guys behind bars, the best job I've ever had, but I also think it's important that if you are going to take a step like this and run for Congress you have to be able to look at your life and acknowledge what you can and can't do. I was being a full time father, a full time husband, a full time District Attorney, and a full time candidate and I struggled to do everything well so I decided to give that job up and run full time here and I think it's important that with the problems we face in the country, it's imperative that we have a new direction and this seat is part of this new direction and I wanted to make sure I was giving it my all. So I pondered it for a long time and Rachel and I came to the conclusion that, that was probably the best move. I think to leave the citizens of Ashland County with a District Attorney who is fully engaged, especially as I look at how much it is going to take to win this campaign, is the right way to go, and to recognize that on my part I think is important and that's what it's all about. I'm less concerned about my old job and I am more concerned about the hard-working families here in Wisconsin in the 7th Congressional District and that is why I resigned as the Ashland County DA.

Sean campaigning at the Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin Cranberry festival

3. IN THE EVENT THAT YOU ARE ELECTED TO CONGRESS, WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU'D LIKE TO ACCOMPLISH AS A REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE STATE OF WISCONSIN?

The first thing: Any unspent TARP money and unspent stimulus money should be sent back to pay down the deficit. I think this will send a resounding message to Americans and the rest of the World that the days of American bailouts and stimulus are over.

4. WHAT ISSUES ARE MOST IMPORTANT TO YOU AS A CANDIDATE FOR THE 7TH DISTRICT AND HOW DO YOU PLAN TO TACKLE THOSE ISSUES ONCE YOU ARE ELECTED

The economy and jobs, I think, are the most important. I feel that we have seen government try to borrow and spend our way to prosperity and sustainable job growth and the bottom line is that, that doesn't work and it's never worked. I think that economic growth and sustainable job growth comes from the private sector; people who invest in their vision and it is those folks who create jobs and create wealth, I mean the Bill Gates of the world are the ones who create prosperity and growth and not government spending and I think we need to put a focus back on the true job creators in the private sector, not government. Number 2, we have to start to reduce our debt and balance our budget. We have a 13.3 trillion dollar debt. That breaks down to more than $43,000 dollars for every man, woman, and child in this country and when my little Maria Victoria was born about 5 months ago, she came into the world owing about $43,000 in national debt. This is unacceptable. We are mortgaging our children's future and that is just unacceptable.

Sean hopes to be all smiles on November 3rd!

5. YOU'VE BEEN MARRIED TO RACHEL FOR 11 YEARS NOW. CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THE ROLE THAT FAITH PLAYS IN YOUR MARRIAGE AND WHAT IT MEANS TO BOTH OF YOU IN YOUR ROLE AS PARENTS?

Rachel and I are both Catholics and it isn't just a commitment between the 2 of us, it is a commitment between us and God and that is, I think, a pretty powerful statement that you make with someone once you include Him in your vows and I think it's important that we raise our children within a sound Faith and that's what we've done in our home. Our kids go to Church every Sunday and they are very well educated in their Faith and I think that plays a huge part of our life and our parenting and I think that plays a huge part in our relationship.

6. RECENTLY RACHEL GAVE BIRTH TO YOUR SIXTH CHILD, MARIA VICTORIA, A PREGNANCY THAT WAS CONSIDERED "HIGH RISK". WHAT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT YOUR'S AND RACHEL'S RESOLVE TO SEE THIS PREGNANCY THROUGH AND YOUR REASONS BEHIND IT?

Those I like to keep personal. We have had 2 of those pregnancies that were considered high risk and we chose life, you know, regardless of what hand we are dealt or our kids are dealt and so that's our belief and so the belief just isn't in words, the belief is in practice.

CHRISTINE O'DONNELL: THE CONSERVATIVES FIRST HOPE

2010-09-03T12:40:00.001-05:00

BY SCOTT SCHNEIDER
Like any other conservative running in 2010, Christine O'Donnell hopes that a November 2 victory signals the end of a damaging era in American Politics. For Christine; however, there is an added weight to the occasion. . .she would be the winner of an open race that could throw the Democrat's plans for a lame-duck counteroffensive into a tailspin.

Christine is running for Vice President Joe Biden's open Senate seat in Delaware. Because Biden has vacated his term, her reign as Republican Senator would begin immediately on November 3 and the Senate make-up now at 59 Democrats, generally filibuster proof, would be reduced to 58, or only marginally filibuster-proof and the Democrat's plans for a late-session Cap-and-Trade, Card-Check, tax-hiking bonanza would be in shambles.

Contrasting that with Christine's Republican opponent, a RINO in Mike Castle, a career congressman who has generally voted with Democrats on just about every single major spending issue including being one of the infamous 8 who voted for the Waxman-Markey Cap-And-Trade bill, the ability for Christine to win the Sept 14, 2010 primary election makes her race particularly vital to the conservative cause this fall.

According to WIKIPEDIA and her Website CHRISTINE O'DONNELL Christine was born and raised in New Jersey to a mother of Italian-American descent and a father of Irish-American descent and was one of six children. She says she remembers sharing a bedroom with four sisters and her father worked three jobs to take care of the family.

She studied English and Communications at Fairleigh Dickinson University, but did not receive a degree. Afterward she began working for the Republican National Committee for several years in Washington where she began to hone her political arguments and understanding and is credited with helping to develop the marketing strategy that played a key role in the historic ’94 Republican Congressional sweep. She was awarded a 2002 Abraham Lincoln Graduate Fellowship in Constitutional Government from the Claremont Institute in Claremont, CA.

In 2003, Christine moved to Delaware to work for the conservative publisher Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) in Hockessin and also branched out into work as a marketing consultant for The Passion of the Christ and Natalia Tsarkova, the Vatican's first female portrait painter. In addition, she has put her political skills to work providing commentary on TV ratings bonanzas like "The O’Reilly Factor,” “Hannity & Colmes,” “The Glenn Beck Show,” and “Entertainment Tonight.” And is also a frequent radio talk show guest-host on WGMD in Rehoboth Beach and WDEL in Wilmington, DE.

She has recently been endorsed by Redstate's Erick Erickson REDSTATE, the TEA PARTY EXPRESS, GUN OWNERS OF AMERICA, THE FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL, and ONE NATION PAC.

Christine talked with me this week about her campaign and why she is perhaps the most vital component in the race to take back the House and Senate and stop the Obama/Reid/Pelosi train-wreck in 2010.

1. PEOPLE OUT OF DELAWARE MIGHT NOT KNOW WHY YOUR ELECTION IS SO SIGNIFICANT; CAN YOU EXPLAIN IN YOUR OWN WORDS WHY THE RESULTS ON NOVEMBER 2 WILL AFFECT THE NATION?

It’s critical that Delaware elect a true Constitutionalist on Nov 2 for two reasons. First, this is a special election for the US Senate seat vacated by VP Biden, which means that the winner will be seated *immediately* after election day, rather than waiting until the start of the new Congress in January. That means that if elected, I could be one of the critical votes to help stop an outrageous Democrat Lame Duck bonanza, as Democrats voted out of office by the American people seek to have their final revenge. The second reason it’s critical to elect a conservative is that whether or not Republicans take back the Senate, the margin there will be very slim in either direction. This means that liberal Republicans who tend to vote with Harry Reid will have an incredible power to either thwart a Republican majority or side with a Democrat majority. In the past, liberal Republicans have seriously undermined the conservative agenda, including forcing the Bush tax cuts to be substantially less than they otherwise would have been. My primary opponent is the most liberal Republican serving in the House. As a Congressman, he has voted with Nancy Pelosi an astounding majority of his votes, including for the job-killing national energy tax known as “Cap and Trade.” He also was the Republican lead sponsor on the embryonic stem cell research bill and the first amendment-shredding DISCLOSE Act. Americans from every state, not just Delaware, should be very concerned about a liberal Republican being elected to this seat.

2. YOU COME FROM A LARGE FAMILY; CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE ROLE FAMILY HAS PLAYED IN YOUR CORE VALUES?

I'm one of six children whose parents taught us that while life can be hard, hard work makes life better. My father worked three jobs in order to put food on the table and clothes on our back. My mom's ability to make ends meet on such a tight budget taught me how to stretch a dollar. As adults, my siblings and I all hold different political beliefs, yet regardless, we support each other unconditionally. That dynamic around my mom's Sunday dinner table certainly has prepared me to hold my own in the political arena.

On a serious note, my family was always a rock and a refuge for me and fewer and fewer American children are growing up with that kind of support and unconditional love from a loving, two-parent family. I will fight hard for those values to be preserved in the U.S. Senate.

Christine with her suit jacket on and ready to go!

3. BP's OIL SPILL IN THE GULF HAS LED THE PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD TO DISCUSS AMERICA'S ENERGY POLICIES AND QUEST FOR INDEPENDENCE. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT OBAMA'S DRILLING MORATORIUM AND THE FUTURE OF OFF-SHORE DRILLING IN AMERICA?

Domestic oil and gas exploration is critical not only to our energy independence, but also our national security and our economic recovery. No one is disputing whether new appropriate safety regulations should be considered in order to prevent this disaster from occurring again. Yet, the Obama job-killing, judiciary-defying moratorium is a catastrophe for our ability to achieve all three of the above goals, especially for the already down-and-out working families of our hard-hit Gulf region. Either Barack Obama is too ignorant to understand the devastating effect of this outrageous policy, or he doesn’t care. My primary opponent is no friend to America’s energy workers either, since he voted for the cap-and-trade bill which would kill jobs and raise energy prices on every family.

4. WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER "RESPONSIBLE SPENDING" AND WHAT DO YOU THINK IT WILL TAKE FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO SPEND RESPONSIBLY?

Responsible spending is spending which puts the next generation ahead of the next election. Responsible spending means that taxpayer money is treated as a precious trust and should be spent by politicians as if it were their own. It means we do not demand that Americans yet unborn pay for the government programs we want for ourselves. It means we don’t spend more than we have.

The way to achieve this is to replace career politicians with citizen politicians. When the job becomes more important than the people, career politicians betray their oath and spend for political expediency instead of out of good stewardship. Second, we need to elect fiscal conservatives to every branch of government. Mere party affiliation simply will not do, as we have seen from many past Congresses. I wouldn’t oppose forcing Members of Congress to take Econ 101 once or twice, either!

Christine announcing her candidacy in this photo by stevemaloneygop.blogspot.com

5. WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION, YOU ADVOCATE FOR PARENTS TO HAVE A MAXIMUM NUMBER OF CHOICES TO INCLUDE PUBLIC, PRIVATE, PAROCHIAL, AND CHARTER SCHOOLS AS WELL AS HOMESCHOOLING. WHAT IS YOUR PLAN TO GIVE THESE CHOICES TO PARENTS AND HOW WILL YOU OVERCOME OPPOSITION WITHIN THE BELTWAY?

We can only oppose opposition within the Beltway by massive support outside the Beltway. That means that Americans elect conservatives who are running on a platform that includes educational choice. It’s always difficult to change the Washington establishment, but let’s not forget that the Federal takeover of local education is a new development, not long-standing policy, and can and must be pushed back through big and small legislative measures.

6. WHAT ARE YOUR FEELINGS TOWARD THE CONSTITUTION?

You know, unlike so many other nations throughout the world and throughout history, America was not founded along tribal, ethnic or religious lines. It was not an accident of geography or post-war map-making. America was born of ideas. Those ideas are enshrined in our Founding documents, most pre-eminently the Constitution, and the more we stray from the limits prescribed in that document, the less we remain America. I love America and I will fight tooth and nail to prevent that from happening in every branch of government.

7. DESCRIBE HOW GRASSROOTS NETWORKS SUCH AS SMARTGIRL POLITICS HAVE AFFECTED YOUR CAMPAIGN?

There would be no O’Donnell for US Senate campaign without the grassroots! We have run a bottom-up campaign from the beginning, unlike my primary opponent, who has relied on top-down party king-making out of Washington. If not for the bloggers, the web sites, the homeschoolers, the Tea Party, and the other grassroots communities outside of the Washington cocktail club, I would never have made it this far. So I am grateful, and in awe of the incredible technological changes over the past few years which have so empowered everyday Americans to be able to make such a difference.

The Lords of the Backroom have anointed my primary opponent as the next US Senator from Delaware. He has been the most liberal Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, almost always voting with Nancy Pelosi and the Democrat caucus over his 18 years in office. He has been on a government payroll longer than I’ve been alive. He’s been part of the Washington elite who have brought our economy, our national security, and our fiscal solvency to the absolute brink. Only a wave of common sense conservatives storming Capitol Hill will stand any chance of reversing the damage and restoring American greatness. This race is one that conservatives can win, and so I encourage all freedom-loving Americans to support us with prayer, volunteer hours, and financial giving at Christine2010.com. We can’t do it without you. But together, we can take back our country!

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See more of Scott's interviews at CONSERVATIVEFEATURES.COM

PAUL RYAN, TAXPAYER'S HERO

2010-08-29T20:19:00.001-05:00

You don't have to be a conservative from Wisconsin to appreciate Congressman Paul Ryan. From his well-articulated opposition to the President's Government-run health care plan to his bold statements against both the TARP bailout and debt-inflating American Economic Recovery Act of 2009, Paul has positioned himself as a star-in-the-making in the Republican Party. Now a sixth-term congressman from the Wisconsin 1st District who is up for reelection in 2010, Paul has cemented his position in congress as a passionate advocate for fiscal responsibility. Already a ranking member of the Committee on The Budget, he is also a member the far-reaching House Ways and Means Committee, and belongs to the Subcomittees on Oversight and Health. Born on January 29, 1970. He was raised in Janesville, Wisconsin and graduated from Joseph A Craig high school. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Miami, Ohio in 1992 and was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. It was after this that Paul began to hone his political skills, first working as an aide to Senator Bob Kasten in 1992, then as a legislative director for Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas from 1995 to 1997. In between he also contributed as a speechwriter for the late Jack Kemp's vice presidency run in 1996, while writing additional speeches for former drug czar William Bennett. He finally staked his claim in the 1st congressional district in 1998 when he ran for the seat vacated by Republican conservative (now gubernatorial candidate) Mark Neumann when Neumann retired to run for a second time against Russ Feingold in the Wisconsin Senate race. Paul beat out Democrat challenger Lydia Spottswood that year for the congressional district seat and the rest has been history. He has beaten challenger Jeffery Thomas in the 4 terms since, Marge Krupp in the 2008 election; and the rest, as they say, is history! Paul currently lives with his wife, Janna, and their 3 children; Liza, Charlie, and Sam, at their residence in Janesville only a few blocks from the neighborhood where he grew up. This week, Paul was willing to give me some time out from his hectic schedule to give me a bit of an insider's perspective on the issues facing him in the House of Representatives through the 2010 election.

1. IF YOU WERE CHARGE OF AUTHORING THE FEDERAL BUDGET FOR THE COMING YEAR, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS YOU WOULD DO TO REDUCE THE SIZE OF GOVERNMENT AND BEGIN THE PROCESS TOWARD REDUCING AND ELIMINATING OUR NATIONAL DEBT?

Well, I’m currently the Ranking Member of the Budget Committee and one of the responsibilities I have is to offer an alternative budget to that proposed by the President. If the American people have their say, hopefully I will be authoring the federal budget in the next fiscal year as Chairman of the House Budget Committee. As I’ve done in the past, I would put forward a budget that reins in spending, gets our debt and deficits under control, and promotes policies which get companies hiring and the economy growing.

The budget for the federal government, just like for businesses and families, sets priorities and forces difficult – but critical – decisions. This year, for the first time in modern history, the Majority will fail to even propose a budget, which is a total abdication of responsibility and especially troubling given the enormity of our fiscal challenges.

Congress has failed to address the urgent need to control Federal spending, reform our entitlement programs, and spur job creation and economic growth. I’ve put forward a comprehensive reform plan – ROAD MAP FOR AMERICA – focused on tackling our generation’s greatest challenges: fulfill the mission of health and retirement security, lift our crushing burden of debt, and restart the American engine of growth and prosperity.

2. NOW THAT GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTH CARE REFORM HAS BEEN PASSED, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THE REPUBLICANS DID A SATISFACTORY JOB OF STATING FREE MARKET ALTERNATIVES TO THE PLAN? COULD CERTAIN CONCEPTS HAVE BEEN STATED DIFFERENTLY?

I introduced one of the first comprehensive health care reform proposals this session called the Patients’ Choice Act, a free-market alternative to fix what’s truly broken in health care. The Patients’ Choice Act secures universal access to affordable health coverage, not by expanding government, but by reinforcing the role of consumers – patients – in a truly competitive marketplace.

Democrats control the White House and Congress – and decided early on to shut Republican and the American people out of the legislative process. The entire health care debacle was a missed opportunity for true patient-centered reforms that attacked the root-drivers of health inflation. Alternative reforms were rejected, the government-run overhaul was jammed into law, and the American people are already feeling the costly consequences of this deeply flawed law.

Republicans must not tire in their effort to repeal this costly misstep and advance true reform.

Paul Ryan, "The taxpayer's hero"

3. THE SENATE MAY BE WORKING ON A PLAN TO PASS LEGISLATION THAT WILL ALLOW THE EPA TO IMPOSE CAP-AND-TRADE-STYLE ENERGY TAXES. IF SUCH LEGISLATION IS PROPOSED AND DEBATED IN THE HOUSE, WHAT KIND OF A PLAN DO YOU AND OTHER REPUBLICANS HAVE TO DEFEAT IT?

The cap and trade bill passed the House last year by a seven vote margin after the Speaker successfully twisted the arms of her fellow Democrats to support it. Since then, this national energy tax has stalled in the Senate.

The goal of cap and trade is to lower global temperatures by a fraction of a degree over the course of the century. The bill would kill manufacturing jobs here at home, while our competitors have made clear that they have no intention to unilaterally impose similar harm to their economies. Studies have shown that for every one ton of carbon we reduce in our economy, countries like China and India would increase theirs by about three tons. Economically and scientifically, the cost benefit analysis of cap and trade doesn’t add up. It will put the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage and as a result, we will see higher taxes and energy costs, more manufacturing jobs heading overseas, and more emissions in the atmosphere.

The American people have clearly rejected this misguided proposal, and it has thankfully stalled in the Senate. Yet there have been troubling reports that the President may have the Environmental Protection Agency proceed with capping emissions without any Congressional consent. Earlier this month, the Senate voted down a resolution of disapproval from Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska to stop the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases without Congress passing legislation by a vote of 47-53. Looking at how the Majority has rammed through the health care overhaul and legislation on financial services, it’s not out of the question.

4. ELENA KAGAN HAS BEEN NOMINATED BY PRESIDENT OBAMA TO TAKE JOHN PAUL STEVENS' SEAT ON THE SUPREME COURT. WHAT IS YOUR OPINION OF ELENA KAGAN AND IF THE HOUSE COULD HOLD CONFIRMATION HEARINGS, WHAT KINDS OF QUESTIONS WOULD YOU LIKE TO ASK HER?

As a member of the House, I won’t be taking part in the confirmation hearings of Elena Kagan so I don’t want to speculate too much. I am sure that my colleagues in the Senate will ask many of the questions I would. With any Supreme Court Justice, Senators should look at a nominee’s experience, knowledge, and body of work and I am sure that we’ll hear these questions asked in the weeks ahead.

.

Paul's wife Janna and their 3 kids

5. FROM WHAT YOU SEE EVERY DAY, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THE MAJORITY OF YOUR REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES ARE UNITED IN THEIR EFFORTS AND COMPREHEND THE HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY THEY MAY HAVE TO TURN THIS CONGRESS AROUND IN THE FALL?

Absolutely, I see the next few elections as realignment elections, where we have a clear choice of two futures. We can either choose to reclaim the American idea and restore the founding principles that made our nation the envy of the world, or we can continue down the path of a European style, cradle-to-grave social welfare state – where higher levels of government spending and debt leave future generations an inferior standard of living.

More and more of our leaders are recognizing the critical importance of the next few elections. In the House, you see the ascension of a younger class of reformers in the Republican Party. Individuals like Eric Cantor, Jeb Hensarling, Mike Pence – people who were back-benchers during President Bush’s Administration, who fought the decisions that were being made, but who have now ascended into positions of leadership, and they are going to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes if the American people entrust us with the Majority this fall.

It’s critical that we show people how we will be different from the current leaders in Washington, and that’s why we have to run on specific ideas. My experience with the Roadmap for America’s Future has taught me that the American people are ahead of the political class in Washington. They are ready to be talked to like adults. I feel that Republicans are returning to their core principles of limited government, individual freedom, free enterprise and if we present these ideas to the American people, I believe we can start restoring the American “idea” and get our country on the path to prosperity.

6. GIVEN THE POLITICAL CLIMATE THIS YEAR, WHAT OTHER KINDS OF BOLD ACTION WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE TAKEN IN CONGRESS IF THE REPUBLICANS WIN HANDILY IN NOVEMBER?

There is still a long way to go between now and November, but the first thing we have to do is get a grip on our nation’s debt and deficits, which have been primarily driven by government spending. In this session of Congress, the Majority has approved $1.8 trillion in spending increases and $670 billion in new taxes. They are doing this at exactly the same time we are running record deficits and we are seeing European countries, which followed a similar borrow-and-spend approach, coming undone.

I will continue to advance bold proposals that actually cut government spending, reform our entitlement programs, and modernize our tax code. These three things would go a long way to show the American people, the world and the markets that we are not accelerating our lurch towards a European-style social welfare state.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) Delivers Weekly Republican Address June 2010

Rep. Ryan: “Talk about a recipe for disaster: Democrats are offering no budget, no priorities, and no restraints – yet all their taxing, borrowing, and spending continues unchecked.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In the Weekly Republican Address, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) says Washington Democrats’ unprecedented decision to cancel this year’s budget will wreak havoc on our economy and make it even harder to put people back to work. The House Budget Committee’s top Republican, Ryan says Democrats’ plan to continue their out-of-control ‘stimulus’ spending spree and raise taxes on middle-class families is a “recipe for disaster.” He also challenges President Obama and Washington Democrats to stop running out the clock and “make the tough choices they promised they would, put moral obligation before political expedience, and focus on what’s in the best interests of the next generation, not the next election.” With economists saying immediate fiscal discipline is needed to create jobs, Ryan notes that Republicans have already identified $1.3 trillion in specific spending cuts that could be implemented right now. Rep. Ryan is in his sixth term representing the people of Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District. President Obama will visit Southeast Wisconsin next week to discuss the economy. Text of the address follows; audio of the address is available here [mp3] and video of the address will be available here once the embargo is lifted. You can download the Weekly Republican Address here.

“Hello – I’m Paul Ryan – I work for the people of Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District and I serve as the top Republican on the House Budget Committee. Yes, Congress does have a budget committee, but I’m afraid it hasn’t been very busy this year.

“In fact, this week the House Majority Leader announced that Democrats are canceling this year’s budget. Instead of reining in out-of-control spending that has pushed our national debt past $13 trillion, Democrats have made clear their intention to raise taxes on middle-class families to fuel their continued spending spree.

“Talk about a recipe for disaster: Democrats are offering no budget, no priorities, and no restraints – yet all their taxing, borrowing, and spending continues unchecked.

“With this budget failure – a first in the modern era – Democrats are missing a critical opportunity to provide the fiscal discipline economists say is needed to create private-sector jobs and boost our economy. This unprecedented budget collapse also sends a clear signal to American families struggling to meet their own budgets that Washington still doesn’t recognize the severity of its spending problem.

“Democrats say their decision is about what’s best for the future of our country. It’s not. With the political season upon us, Democratic leaders believe it’s better to take a pass than to pass a budget. While Americans ask ‘where are the jobs?,’ Democrats seem content to simply run out the clock and let their borrowing binge continue to drain resources from our economy.

“The debt is on track to exceed the size of our entire economy in the next 18 months. We have run out of road to kick the can down. If this is really about the future of our country, then leaders should make the tough choices they promised they would, put moral obligation before political expedience, and focus on what’s in the best interests of the next generation, not the next election.

“This is a time to make tough choices, not run from them. To that end, Republicans on the Budget Committee have already identified $1.3 trillion in specific spending cuts we would implement right now to make Washington do more with less and help small businesses put people back to work. These are specific, common-sense ideas, such as canceling unspent TARP bailout funds and ‘stimulus’ money, that would help us focus on creating more jobs, not more debt. We also propose reducing federal employment and freezing government pay. Instead of growing government, we need to restart the engine of economic growth.

“Of course, this is just a starting point. Much more needs to be done to set our nation on a sustainable economic course. We need to start reining in unnecessary spending now so that we can boost the economy and work together to address our nation’s long term fiscal challenges.

“It is our shared responsibility to take on the challenges before us to make sure that our kids and our grandkids have a better life. Let’s begin this important work today. Let’s make certain we do not simply retreat to the same failed policies. Let’s make the tough, forward-looking choices that will restore the promise and prosperity of this exceptional nation - and let’s do it together.

“Thanks for listening.”

More on Paul's campaign:

RYAN FOR CONGRESS

Scott Walker for Governor of Wisconsin

2010-08-16T19:43:00.001-05:00

Scott brings his brown bag lunch to the office every day and rolls up his sleeves, except the office is much bigger now and the stakes even higher. The leading Republican Gubernatorial candidate for the State of Wisconsin, he drives his 1998 Saturn from event to event, touting his proven record of fiscal conservatism through 8 years as the Executive of Milwaukee County, one of the bluest and most liberal Democratic strongholds in the State. Starting out in the State legislature as a representative for the 14th Assembly District (Waukesha), the seat currently held by recently featured conservative Leah Vukmir Leah Vukmir, Scott took a message of government reform and reduction to the County of Milwaukee when he ran for executive in 2002 and won. The rest was history:

•Reduced the county workforce by more than 20%
•Lowered the county debt by 10%
•Introduced 8 consecutive budgets without an increase to the property tax levy from the previous year.
•Improved the county's bond rating
•Milwaukee County Parks won the prestigious 2009 National Gold Medal for Excellence in the Park and Recreation Management Program
•Eliminated the waiting list for long-term care for older adults through the Family Care program.
•Milwaukee County's Mitchell International Airport received the Transportation Safety Administration's Partnership Award.
•Invested over $199 million dollars in renovations and improvements to General Mitchell International Airport without increasing the property tax levy
•Airport improvements helped attract nearly 1,000 jobs from Southwest, Air Tran and Republic airlines.
•Implemented a pension obligation plan to save Milwaukee County taxpayers $ 237 million.

Scott Walker grew up in the town of Delavan, Wisconsin just north of the Wisconsin border outside of Milwaukee. He comes from a financially modest background. His father is a retired preacher. As he makes his way around the State of Wisconsin, Scott brings a powerful campaign built largely on the social networking and grassroots efforts. He has an amazing Internet presence and uses the power of Facebook, Twitter, and bloggers to spread his message.

According to his campaign site:
Scott Walker

Scott's Brown Bag Guide to Government applies the same kind of small town values and common sense ideas he follows in his personal life:

1. Don't spend more than you have.
2. Smaller government is better government.
3. People create jobs, not government.

When it comes to serving the public, Scott Walker puts his money where his mouth is there too. From 2002 through 2010, Scott and Tonette Walker have given back over $370,000 of his salary to the county.

Scott Walker's government reform campaign helped sweep him into the Milwaukee County executive's office in 2002, after serving nearly nine years in the Wisconsin State Legislature. At the time, Milwaukee County was on the precipice of an organizational and financial meltdown; rocked by greedy politicians who had voted to allow themselves and hundreds of career bureaucrats to retire as millionaires at the taxpayers' expense

.

Sound familiar?

Here is my interview with Scott as he explains his philosophies and the direction of his campaign fresh off of his endorsement for Governor by the Republican Party of the State of Wisconsin:

1. NOW THAT YOU HAVE BEEN ENDORSED BY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY OF WISCONSIN, WHAT IS THE NEW FOCUS AND DIRECTION OF YOUR CAMPAIGN?

Well, its really about taking that support from literally thousands of conservative activists and applying it to getting our message out for the fall elections and our focus is really on 2 parts:

1) Being in the position to take that government back and put it in hands of the people.

2) In doing so enacting strategies to get government out of the way so that the people of this State can create more jobs.

2. WHAT ASPECTS OF YOUR CAMPAIGN FOR GOVERNOR DIFFER, IF ANY, FROM YOUR CAMPAIGNS FOR COUNTY EXECUTIVE:

In this case we have a larger audience and so from that standpoint, there is a lot more travel and I’ve been doing it for some time but I believe that’s important because I believe that people in one part of the state are not the same as others. There certainly are common themes, common values, common concerns of the economy but the Chippewa Valley is different than the Fox Valley and the Fox Valley is different from Delavan, down in Walworth County where I grew up, a town of 8,000; The Coulee Region down by La Crosse and you go down the line. Different parts of the State have very different issues and as the candidate for Governor, and ultimately as the Governor, I’ve tried to symbolize through my actions, not just my words, that I understand those differences and I am going to be here to work with people once I’m the governor.

THE WALKER FAMILY

3. THE OBAMA/DOYLE/BARRETT MACHINE IS ALREADY CRANKING UP ITS ASSAULT AGAINST YOU. WHAT KINDS OF STRATEGIES WILL YOU DEPLOY AGAINST THEIR WELL-FUNDED RHETORIC?

We are going to 1) And I being elected in Milwaukee County, which is, you’re right under the gun all of the time; I like to say that used to coming to work with body armor on and a 2x4, so we’re used to being under attack and we don’t let anything sit long. We come out and we whack at it, we pile on it, and we beat back any mistruths, and so with a TV ad or a press release or anything else like that we’re going to come out and set the record straight immediately and we’ve done that already in a couple of episodes and we are going to be continuing to do that. 2) The other key thing is that we are going to, in the end, not let the Democrats to get us off of our message, which is the other 2 things I’ve previously mentioned:

Making it clear that we have a track record and we’ve got a strategy to take the government back and put it back on the side of the people again, combined with the fact that our strategy in getting government out of the way is ultimately what we need to get this State’s economy back going again. They are going to try to take us off message, they are going to try bring up other issues, but we’re going to answer them, bring up to the media and the public the errors of their attacks, and get to work on our election strategy which is really about making the State work again.

4. WHAT VITAL COMPONENTS OF YOUR UPBRINGING DO YOU BELIEVE HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO YOUR LIFE AND VALUES AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, YOUR LEADERSHIP?

Certainly, it starts with my faith and my family and I think my faith in Christ certainly has had a tremendous impact on where I am not just personally but professionally as well; how I treat people and how I like to be treated all comes out of that. Certainly a good chunk of what brought me into my faith are my parents. My dad is a now a long-since-retired minister and my mother, worked part-time, and she had a tremendous impact on who I am, a great role model. Along the way I was involved with a lot of things from school and sports and Scouts. I also am an Eagle Scout. Twenty-five years ago, in 1985 I went to the American Legion, Badger Boy’s State, and the Boy’s Nation programs and that had a great influence, not just from learning about government politics but ultimately learning from those veterans who put on a program called, “The Power of Public Service” and I found that be very impactful. And I think the good people I’ve worked with along the way and the constituents I’ve had in the Assembly, now as County Executive, and the people I’ve met around the State all have had a powerful influence on who I am and the ideas I have and how I choose to govern.

5. YOUR REPUBLICAN OPPONENT MARK NEUMANN HAS MADE REPEATED E-MAIL ATTACKS AGAINST YOUR CAMPAIGN. NOW THAT YOU ARE ENDORSED, DO YOU FEEL, IT AT ALL NECESSARY TO RESPOND TO THOSE ACCUSATIONS?

In the end these are the same distortions that the State Democrats are putting out, which is kind of unusual to have a Republican doing that and saying that, but the reality is if you look at the issues out there, there is just no basis to them. You look at the Harley rides (motorcycle rides around the region) and the fact that we’ve done 7 consecutive years of doing this and that everybody down the line has acknowledged that in each of these years the intent was to get out and promote tourism, not to do anything else out there, the fact that we go to 5 states and not just Wisconsin, we think everybody can see through that and it’s bad enough that the Democrats distort the facts on that and they are proven wrong every time but it is an unusual to have a Republican putting out those sorts of mistruths. It’s just unfortunate that they’ve decided to go to the State Democrats Web sites and the pick up the same false attacks but like I said, in the end we are going to keep on track, we are going to point out the errors in any attacks on us, and we are going to get back on a positive message to get the State working again.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 30, 2010
Contact: Jill Bader (414) 453-2010
Email: Jillb@scottwalker.org
Twitter: @JillBader

ICYMI: Rasmussen Poll Shows Walker 50%, Barrett 43%
Walker over 50% for first time, still the only candidate who can beat Tom Barrett in November

Wauwatosa – Keith Gilkes, campaign manager for Scott Walker, released the following statement on polling showing Scott Walker over 50% gaining ground on Tom Barrett.

“Wisconsin voters continue to move away from the Tom Barrett-Jim Doyle agenda of big taxes and big spending and towards Scott Walker and his plan to create 250,000 jobs in his first term.”

Included in today’s poll:

• “Walker has consistently proven to be the slightly stronger GOP candidate against Barrett.”

• Among independents Walker leads Barrett 50% to 34%; does 5 points better than Neumann with this group.

• Walker has, by far, the highest favorable ratings and lowest unfavorable ratings of any candidate. His favorable ratings are 55 favorable to 36% unfavorable (32% very favorable) to Barrett’s 50-43% (23% very favorable). Meanwhile, Neumann is viewed favorably by 47% to 42% unfavorable (13% very favorable).

• Walker has the highest favorable ratings of any candidate with his own party. Walker is viewed favorably by 90% of GOP voters (65% very favorably), Neumann is viewed favorably by 73% of GOP voters (26% very favorably) and Barrett is viewed favorably by 84% of Democrat voters (41% very favorably).

Election 2010: Wisconsin Governor
Wisconsin Governor: Walker (R) 50%, Barrett (D) 43%

Republican Scott Walker for the first time earns 50% of the vote in the race to be the next governor of Wisconsin. It's his best showing to date.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in the state finds that Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, the likely Democratic gubernatorial contender, gets 43% support against Walker, the country executive of Milwaukee County. Two percent (2%) prefer some other candidate, while five percent (5%) are undecided.

Two weeks ago, Walker led Barrett 48% to 44%.

Barrett is now in a virtual tie - 45% to 44% - with the other top GOP hopeful, former Congressman Mark Neumann. Five percent (5%) favor another candidate, and six percent (6%) are undecided.

The Democrat posted a narrow 45% to 43% lead over Neumann in the previous survey.

Walker has consistently proven to be the slightly stronger GOP candidate against Barrett, with support back to early February in the narrow range of 46% to 49%. In those same surveys, support for Barrett has ranged from 40% to 44%.

Neumann has picked up 43% to 47% of the vote against Barrett, who has earned 39% to 46% in those matchups.

Barrett has no strong opposition for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. Voters in both parties will pick their nominees in September 14 primaries.

The survey of 750 Likely Voters in Wisconsin was conducted on July 27, 2010 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

The Wisconsin Senate race is still a toss-up, with Republican Ron Johnson and incumbent Democrat Russ Feingold in a near tie.

Male voters in the state favor the Republican candidate in both gubernatorial match-ups. Women favor Barrett if Neumann is the Republican in the race but break even in a contest between Barrett and Walker. Among voters not affiliated with either political party, both GOP candidates hold double-digit leads over the Democrat.

Neumann is viewed Very Favorably by 13% of all Wisconsin voters and Very Unfavorably by 20%.

Thirty-two percent (32%) of voters in the state share a Very Favorable opinion of Walker, while 23% view him Very Unfavorably. For Barrett, Very Favorables total 23% and Very Unfavorables 27%.

All three candidates are well-known in the state. At this point in a campaign, Rasmussen Reports considers the number of people with strong opinions more significant than the total favorable/unfavorable numbers.

Forty-six percent (46%) of Wisconsin voters rate their personal finances as good or excellent, well above the national average. Just 15% give their finances a poor grade. Yet only 16% say their personal finances are getting better these days, while 51% feel they are getting worse.

Democratic Governor Jim Doyle is not standing for reelection. Thirty-eight percent (38%) of Wisconsin voters now approve of the job he is doing as governor. Sixty percent (60%) disapprove.

Read more conservative profiles at conservativefeatures.com

Live-Tweeting Primary Election Night 2010

2010-08-03T21:04:00.001-05:00

Live-Blogging (or Tweeting! :-) Primary Election Night

2010-08-03T21:04:00.000-05:00

Since many CRs are directly involved in the important GOP primaries today, it may be hard to "live-blog" thoughts, analysis, and coverage (as has been done before), since everyone is at the "Victory Parties"!! However, live-Tweeting (which wasn't an option, in many elections past) is now the trend :-) ... and it appears to be what many will be doing tonight!

I think the best #techgop move would be to use Twitter's improved embed ("Badge") service, in re: the key Midwest primaries today!

Update: I found an easier way to do it, with a Twitter-provided Widget.

RACHEL CAMPOS-DUFFY

2010-08-01T14:45:00.001-05:00

Rachel Campos-Duffy discovered the precious meaning of being involved in the home life of her children rather gradually at first.

"I was a finalist for co-host of ABC’s The View twice," Rachel explained in a May 7, 2010 interview for the NATIONAL REVIEW ONLINE http://article.nationalreview.com/433755/a-real-housewife-of-wisconsin/kathryn-jean-lopez?page=1.The second time I narrowly lost out in the competition, it occurred to me that I was already doing what God was calling me to do — being home, taking care of my kids. Before that, I sort of thought I was “between gigs,” waiting for my next big break. My oldest was five at that time, and I was starting to see the fruits of my time at home with them — their manners and sense of compassion, the things that happen when you parent well. As I began to appreciate what I was doing as a mom, I simultaneously became aware of how little the culture values it."

But since she has found her true calling, she has embraced it with a fervor that only a dedicated stay-at-home mom would proudly advocate - so much so that she wrote about it:
Stay Home, Stay Happy - 10 Secrets to Loving At-Home Motherhood http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780451228079,00.html# was released in 2009. The celebrity mom and wife of 7th congressional candidate

She also is active in her own local politics. She is currently the Communications Director for the Wisconsin Federation of Republican Women http://www.wifrw.org/ohana/website/index.cfm?p=95575656375.

According to IMDB http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0133309/bio, Rachel, grew up in a military family with her father, Miguel, being a CM Sgt in the Air Force. Her mother Pili is from Spain. Born on October 22, 1971, she has 3 siblings; brothers, Joe and Patrick, and sister, Leah. She graduated from Desert High School at Edwards AFB, CA in 1989. Wikipedia states she graduated from Arizona State University in December 1993 with a degree in Economics. She tried out for and then was cast for the MTV Reality Show: Real World San Francisco in 1994 as a conservative. After her role in the series was over, she also appeared in Road Rules: All Stars in 1998, a reality show featuring alumni from all of the past Real World shows.

It is a well-known fact that Rachel met husband Sean Duffy on the Road Rules: All Stars set in 1998, but it is not as well known that union wouldn't have happened if during the filming of the 5th season of the Real World; 1997, Rachel's life took another, fateful turn. She was involved in a major car accident traveling at the time with her fiance, who was a producer for the Real World. Says Rachel in her PARENTDISH blog on September 9, 2009:

"Thirteen years ago, I survived a head-on collision after the driver of an oncoming vehicle fell asleep at the wheel. The accident was gruesome. My boyfriend and his friend, the driver of our rental car, died in the accident. I was ejected out of the passenger-side window and sustained very serious injuries to my right leg that still affect me today (I have arthritis, a limp and difficulty running)."

Afterward she got together with Sean and they were married on April 4, 1999. In the National Review Online article, Rachel recalls:

"We fell in love and married while I was auditioning for The View. The deal we made was if I got the job, we’d move to New York City. If I didn’t, I would move to Hayward, Wisconsin, his hometown. I didn’t get the job, and I moved from Beverly Hills to rural Wisconsin. I have fallen in love with the people of Wisconsin for the same reasons I fell in love with Sean. They are kind, unassuming, good-natured, and honest."

Rachel and Sean now have 6 children together: Evita Pilar, Xavier Jack, Lucia-Belen, John-Paul, Paloma Pilar and MariaVictoria Margarita. Her most recent, MariaVictoria was regarded as a high-risk pregnancy but the Duffy's didn't consider any other option but bringing the baby to full term.

Rachel was able to give me some of her thoughts about the decision to write her book, her activities, and her life as a dedicated stay-at-home mother and wife of a candidate in a major congressional race.

Read the rest at: http://conservativefeatures.com/?p=1868

INTRODUCING: RON JOHNSON

2010-07-14T19:11:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, May 22, 2010, a bombshell was dropped on the Wisconsin State Republican Convention in Milwaukee, and the explosion came from Ron Johnson, the conservative who'd thrown his hat into the ring just 5 days before. The Oshkosh businessman won the endorsement of the Party after 64% of the delegates had been wowed by the whirlwind courting affair with him in the days prior, all but ensuring the nation that he would be the candidate who could unseat Russ Feingold on November 3, 2010.

Dick Leinenkugel, the big name Wisconsin beer magnate who had been in the race for nearly 6 weeks, promptly dropped out prior to the vote and gave his support to Johnson. David Westlake still hung on; and Terrance Wall, the other Republican challenger, stepped aside a few days after the convention closed. So who is Ron Johnson?

Ron was born in Mankato, Minnesota on April 8, 1955. He moved to Minneapolis when he was 10-years-old and at an early age he started mowing lawns and shoveling driveways to earn money. He delivered papers, caddied at the local golf courses, and at one time even helped bale hay on his uncle’s dairy farm. He took his first official job the age of 15, as a dishwasher at a Walgreen’s Grill. He paid his own taxes and became the night manager before he was 16.

He met his wife, Jane, during his senior year of high school and attended college at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, living at home and paying his way the old-fashioned way, working full-time in order to pay for all of his college expenses. When he graduated in June 1977 with a BSB in accounting, he had $7,000 in the bank, and he married Jane on August 20th of that year. He took a job out-of-school as an accountant at a company called Josten’s a Manufacturer of school products: class rings, diplomas, Announcements, caps & gowns, all the while attending night school to earn his MBA. By 1979 he had completed all of the course work for his MBA except for his final thesis when another opportunity called. His brother-in-law, Pat, who had started a pallet manufacturing business in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and had the bold notion to convert the complex into a plastic sheet extrusion company. He invited Ron to help start the transition with him.

So in 1979, Ron and Jane moved to Oshkosh where Ron helped his brother-in-law start the business they called PACUR. Ron was the lone accountant and co-machine operator, trading 12 hour shifts with Pat during first year with the company until they could train other operators. Over 31 years, PACUR has grown from supplying a single customer of specialty plastic to the largest producer in the world. The majority of their plastics are used in medical device packaging and high tech printing applications. An American company in the proudest tradition, PACUR still likes to say: “We don’t export jobs, we export plastic.”

Ron and Jane’s first daughter, Carey, was born with transposition of the Great arteries. Ron then learned first-hand the great innovation and miracle technology available in the greatest health care system in the world. In having overcome her initial challenges and become a successful young woman, Carey, also has been witness to the birth of her siblings Jenna and Ben. As Ron and Jane’s raised their family, Ron took over sole-proprietorship of PACUR in 1997 and its growth continued to skyrocket.

Having the capital to help in sustaining a community, tax records recently released by Johnson campaign show that Ron and Jane have donated $2,195,495 to charity since 2005. RON JOHNSON

I interviewed Ron just recently at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair in Chippewa Falls and he was able to outline for me his campaign vision and the issues that were important to him in his fight to oust Russ Feingold.

1. YOU DECLARED YOUR CANDIDACY FOR THE US SENATE ON MAY 17 OF THIS YEAR. WHAT FACTORED INTO YOUR DECISION TO RUN AGAINST RUSS FEINGOLD?

What I always say is the final straw for me is when they passed the health care bill because I do view that as the greatest single assault on our freedom in my lifetime. I think that is true. I think it will lead to rationed care. I think it will dramatically to lower quality of care and we are not going to have the types of choices we have in terms of getting healthy care. I realize that our health care system isn't perfect but it is the finest health care system in the world. There is a reason that the Premiere from Newfoundland came down to America to receive his heart surgery. There are all kinds of news reports about people with brain tumors, who can't get MRIs in Canada, and they come to America. We are going to lose that. I supply into the medical industry. I know that America is the engine for medical innovation. This is where the advancements in medicine largely occur. This is where treatments are advanced, this is where medical devices are invented, this is pharmaceutical life-saving drugs are invented and when we harm that system, when we destroy that system, medical innovation is going to come to; maybe not a grinding halt, but it is not going to advance as we have grown accustomed too and the way that Americans want it.

2. YOU HAVE RUN YOUR OWN BUSINESS FOR 31 YEARS AND MADE IT EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL. WHAT KINDS OF PERSPECTIVES AND QUALIFICATIONS DO YOU BELIEVE THIS WILL HELP BRING TO THE US SENATE?

Well when you do run your own business for 31 years, certainly what I've gotten out of it was an appreciation for the power and the wonder of the free market system. If are going to have a healthy economy, if we're going to continue be the society that has 5% of the world's population and 25% of the world's goods, that’s because of freedom and the free market system. You need to have an appreciation of that. You need the perspective of somebody who understands that is what made America great.

Ron and Scott Walker, Republican Gubernatorial Candidate

3. WHAT WOULD YOU DESCRIBE AS RON JOHNSON'S CORE PRINCIPLES?

The other aspect of the health care bill is that it will add to the deficit, I mean it will not add dimes, it will add trillions. The example I always use is, you know, when they first passed Medicare. They estimated out 25 years in 1990 and said it was going to cost 12 million dollars, it cost 111 million dollars or almost 10 times the original number. So I think this health care bill will blow up an already broken budget. As conservatives, we didn't like seeing 2-, 3-, or 4-hundred billion dollar a year deficits. Now we're talking 1.5 trillion and we're talking a national debt of 13 trillion dollars, it is simply unsustainable and the career politicians like Russ Feingold have known this. They have known for decades and they have done nothing to solve other than to spend more money and to incur more debt, which is going to make it more difficult for us ever to solve these problems. The long and short of it, is the health care bill, in terms of assault on our freedom as well as what represents as far as worsening our already broken budget and at some point in time, people like me, people in the private sector have to take our perspective to Washington and actually take with them the desire to actually fix these problems. On the Military, people who serve in our Military over the generations, they are our finest and they deserve our support in long-term. The number 1 priorty of governments, the number 1 reason governments are formed; and you can go back to the caveman days, they got together to protect the clan, it was for protection and so the number 1 goal, the number 1 responsibility of our government is the defense of our nation, protect the people, securing our borders so that's where I stand in terms of the Military. It's one of the few things that government does well, because it has to, because it is our number 1 priority. In terms of social issues, I was just endorsed by the Wisconsin Right-to-Life. I do believe in the culture of life, I just do; Russ Feingold, unbelievable that a guy would vote for partial-birth abortions, that I find a particular barbarity. Certainly we need to do away with that as a really good, solid first step. I'm a very traditional human being and believe that a marriage is between a man and a woman - period.

4. SOME GRASSROOTS CONSERVATIVES ARE SUSPICIOUS ABOUT YOUR LATE ENTRANCE INTO THE RACE. CAN YOU DESCRIBE TO ME THE KIND OF CONSIDERATIONS YOU WENT THROUGH BEFORE DECIDING TO FULLY COMMIT TO THIS SENATE RUN?

Let me give you the quick history. I never even seriously thought about his. When I gave my TEA Party Speech in October, it wasn't because I was thinking about entering politics; after that speech, people were coming up to me and saying, "Hey, that's a really good speech, someone like you oughta consider running." I didn't even think about it really, until they passed the health care bill, and then all of the sudden those little comments made me think, "Well maybe someone like me should, because at some point in time someone like me has to get off of the sidelines in order to address these problems." I didn't even mention this to anybody until January 22nd during a chamber meeting and then it takes a couple of months to kind of start talking to people and set up meetings. What got me an endorsement, there is no conspiracy, what got me an endorsement I believe is before I decided to run I went and talked to talk radio hosts. I heard the way they weren't treating the current crop of Republican contenders very kindly and so I wanted to see what their reaction to me would be to me. I did meet with Charlie Sikes and before I went there I took copies of speeches I had given, the TEA party, and a Lincoln Day Dinner keynote address. Charlie, apparently, we got along pretty well, and then he liked those speeches to the point to where we read them on air for 16 minutes and we had that podcast and so we used that podcast before the conventions. We sent it out to the county chairs, we got it in the hands of delegates, and then for 2 days at the convention; I didn't set the rules I mean the vote was already scheduled for Sunday so we had Friday and Saturday for me to meet with delegates and I talked until I was hoarse, from 1:30 in the morning Friday and 1:30 in the morning on Saturday and I talked to a lot of people who had already heard the message, who had already heard my speeches read. Not only did we send out podcasts of those speeches but we sent out copies of those speeches, you know links, because we can use the Internet these days and so when we won that convention, people knew my message and I viewed that endorsement far more as an endorsement of my message than of me. Because, hey, I know I'm pretty new on the scene. The delegates there, a lot of them did meet me and I always ask people as I am on the campaign trail now, "I can't talk to everybody. If I've conveyed my character to you, if you're convinced, and you believe that I am sincere about wanting to fix these problems, sincere in my ideas and beliefs in those speeches I actually wrote, then spread the word," and I think those delegates in that convention did a good job of spreading the word.

Ron, his wife and daughters (left), with former Wisconsin Lt Governor Margaret Farrow and son Ben (right) at the State Convention

And that's what I'm relying on here in the State of Wisconsin during this campaign. I'm meeting up, I'm traveling all over, I am working hard. I am talking to as many people as possible. If somebody comes up to me now, they're seeing my TV ads, and before I get up to them they're saying, "Hey Ron Johnson, you've got my vote!" , the first thing I say is I thank them sincerely for that support and I say, "Help me get a hundred more." Because that's what's going to be required. We need the level of involvement, and commitment, and grassroots support and ground game unlike conservatives have ever done, because it's that important and I think people realize that. And the encouraging thing as I have gone about the state is that I don't if you're a Democrat, independent, a TEA party guy, or Republican people are just as concerned about the direction of this country than I am. They realize that there is something different going on here. This is whole magnitude of spending and debt unlike we've ever seen before and it is simply not sustainable so I've got a great deal of hope that something pretty good is going to happen this next election.

5. SUCCESS IN THIS RACE DEPENDS LARGELY ON TAKING THE MASK OFF OF RUSS FEINGOLD. WHAT ARE YOU AND YOUR CAMPAIGN DOING AND GOING TO DO TO EXPOSE WHO HE IS AS A LEFTIST AND SOCIALIST?

First of all, let me say, I agree that Russ Feingold is a very politically left person; he is as liberal as they come and he has an 18-year record now and people do know; it's not just you and me, that realize that when he has bucked his party is when it doesn't count. You know he'll buck his party on this finance reg. bill because he knows he is in deep trouble and he has an election ahead but when his party has needed him, and from my standpoint, yeah I'm running, but as an American citizen all I need to know about Russ Feingold is he voted for the health care bill, he was the 60th vote on that, and he voted for the stimulus, he was the 60th vote on that. That's all I need to know; that right there is damage enough, I don't need to know any more about the guy, I don't need to know what he prior to that. He voted the 862 billion dollar stimulus bill that already costs about 1 trillion with interest, that has done nothing, and 3 days before he voted on it he issues a press release saying that it would create 2.5 million jobs in its first year, 9 million jobs after 3, and that should show the people in Wisconsin this guy doesn't have a clue about what it really takes to create jobs. It isn't government, it isn't government spending, it isn't sucking money out of the private sector and turning it over to the government. And you're basically propping up states other than Wisconsin. That's one thing Wisconsinites have to realize is that when they take this money, when our Federal tax dollars go to Washington, it goes to California, it goes other places; you know we only get 86 cents of the dollar back from the federal taxes we give out to all of these other local and State governments and they're blowing it. And again, those aren't creating long-term sustainable jobs that actually do provide tax revenue and actually do create wealth and success and drive an economy.

Independence Day 2010

2010-07-04T23:58:00.001-05:00

(As was done last year), we want to wish you and yours a Happy Independence Day!!

May God continue to bless our great nation!

"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." - Thomas Paine

"Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the Democrats believe every day is April 15th." - Ronald Wilson Reagan

Playing the race card

2010-06-26T20:32:00.002-05:00

BY RACHAEL HERNDON

This past week, UMKC (University of Missouri - Kansas City) sent out a cry of help to student organizations to set up a booth at a teen summit for a minority group. CR bit, but after realizing no one was there and that there wasn't a table for us, we left.

However, the preparation for this summit was incredibly stressful. The College REPUBLICANS should NEVER have to stress about a event for racial minorities! Republicans are responsible for Emancipation, women's suffrage, and the Civil Rights Act, amongst other measures protecting and liberating minorities. To the core, it does not make sense for struggling minorities to be liberal.

Nonetheless, the fruits my my minority panic was sweet. Below, find our preparation to target and bring in more minorities to UMKC CR. Everyone should want to be a Republican, regardless of their race and related social pressures.

****

Want to be a leader in your community? Want to make a difference?
Politics is the way to go.
Do you know why politics are important? Sure, politics are a pain. But, politics decide how much funding your schools get, whether your street gets repaved, or how difficult it is to start your own business. Politics define your community, your city, and your country. Leaders take the reins and get things done. You want to be a leader. You want to be a Republican.
But, why Republican politics?
Republicans believe in you. The government should not have to hand anything to you and the government should not take more than it needs from you.
Republicans believe in the Constitution, which allocates rights to be split between levels of government to keep you free. The state government provides education. The federal government provides security.
Republicans believe you can spend your money better than the government and never forget how lukcy we are to live in this country. The United State is a unique and wonderful state that should not bow to the systems of other countries. God bless America.
***
“We will educate those that have been shackled by the chains of liberal/socialist ideology about its destructive nature and challenge them to reconsider their party affiliations that promote such political ideology.
-RagingElephants.org mission statement
What does it mean to be a Republican?
It means to be a responsible American.
The UMKC College Republicans supplies the surrounding community with events throughout the year. In February, Apostle Claver Kamau Imani, founder of RagingElephants.org and radio host, spoke. He says, ““The more money the government has…the less money you have. The more power government has…the less freedom you have. The government should have less money and less power… it makes it easier for all of us to prosper. Lawmakers, stop telling us what to do and start making laws telling government what it can’t do. You agree with me? Then you’re a conservative. Now vote that way!”
College Republicans across the county have emerged as the most diverse political organization. The Truman College Republicans chair, Vinciane Ngomsi, fights the social pressure and believes in conservative values. She said, “I am a Republican because I do not believe in the government gaining control of the public sector. The people have exercised their right to vote, and the elected officials should honor their concerns. I do not believe in spending incredible amounts of money that will eventually translate in debt.”
Famous black Republicans: Martin Luther King, Jr., Booker T. Washington, and Frederick Douglas!
You can get involved with UMKC College Republicans now. Join our mailing list by emailing umkccr@gmail.com and attend advertised events, take up opportunities, and support local Republican campaigns.
Please visit
nbra.org ragingelephants.org
studo.umkc.edu/umkccollegerepublicans
©UMKC College Republicans

BIDDING A TURNCOAT GOOD-BYE

2010-05-26T11:55:00.000-05:00

BY SCOTT SCHNEIDER

Recently, the Wisconsin Federation of College Republicans (WICR) found themselves stabbed in the back by one of their own, when outgoing chair Lora Rae Anderson slammed the Republican Party, claiming they were not inclusive enough of more liberal-minded young people, then promptly bolting for the Democratic Party only one month after she left her position as WICR leader. WICR political director Patrick Testin, as well as newly-elected WICR chair Charlotte Evans had a few words to say to Lora Rae and to all Republicans who may have found their faith in the College Republicans shattered due to Lora's actions. Here is Patrick's WICR official press release regarding the matter:

Wisconsin Federation of College Republicans: College Republicans bid Anderson farewell
5/26/2010

STEVENS POINT, WI: On Friday May 21st, former Wisconsin Federation of College Republicans Chairman Lora Rae Anderson left the Republican Party to join Mike Tate and his cohort of “liberal attack dogs” in the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Anderson recently landed a spot on MSNBC for a publicity stunt stating that she left the Republican Party because the party was ignoring the more “liberal-minded” young members.

While it is unfortunate that the former state chair Anderson has radically shifted her views, WICR is proud to stand for young conservatives. WICR chapters have seen their memberships increase. Over the past year, more and more people have rejected the liberal policies coming out of Madison and Washington D.C. and we expect to see more young people join WICR. Anderson herself stated in May 2009 as she addressed the Republican Party that “most College Republican chapters are bigger and more active than Democratic chapters . . . College Republicans are persistent, strong, committed, moral characters” and that “Republicans are some of the hardest workers I know, and Democrats are some of the most agitated people I know.”

Since that speech, however, she has slowly moved to the left and has embraced many liberal ideologies that have put her at odds with many in the party. Last week, Anderson issued a statement and had a press conference with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin where she declared, “The health care reform bill allows young adults like me to be carried on our parents health insurance until we’re 26…I’m not looking for a government handout. I just want to get my life started on the right foot.”

The majority of Americans, however, do not support the liberal health care mandate and are in line with Anderson’s statement on September 8, 2009 where she said, “thanks for not paying attention to those who don’t agree with you, Mr. President” when commenting on the fact that Republicans had real solutions to the healthcare crisis without getting Americans into a massive amount of debt. While the DPW and MSNBC have latched onto Anderson’s newly developed extreme views, the growing College Republican chapters do not want the government to leverage their futures and bury them under debt.

Much like Senator Specter, Anderson has shown she is far more concerned about her own self-interests and is willing to drastically change her principles for personal gain. We just hope that Anderson’s selfish media grab isn’t a condition for paid employment with Mike Tate and the DPW. Patrick Testin, political director of WICR, states that “we do find it interesting that in Mike Tate’s blitzkrieg to get Anderson in front of a camera, he and the rest of DPW have failed to do their homework on Anderson, who has a history of saying controversial things on social media sites.” On September 24, 2009, Lora Rae Anderson posted on Facebook that she “thinks: (3rd district Congressman) Ron Kind is a [censored].” On September 8, 2009 Anderson stated she believes Planned Parenthood are “disgusting racists”. Matt Rossetto, vice chair of WICR said, “Statements like these should suit Anderson well if she is to have a future in DPW under Mike Tate’s leadership, who has proven time and time again he is willing to use tasteless racial politics.”

WICR wishes Anderson the best of luck in her future. Meanwhile, WICR will continue to move forward in promoting conservative values and principles. Chairman Charlotte Evans stated, “While it is a pity that my predecessor left the party, it is evident that big government is not a solution to her problems. We are on the verge of a Republican revolution similar to 1994 that rejects the growth of the government and its out of control spending, which is why we are encouraging students to sign the national College Republican ‘Don’t Put It On Our Tab’ petition.” WICR will unite to recruit, train, mobilize, and engage college-aged students that support fiscal and individual responsibility to elect conservative Republicans in November when the great state of Wisconsin turns RED in 2010.

Contact: Patrick Testin
Email: wicrpolitico@gmail.com
Phone: 715-412-1922

HAWAII SPECIAL ELECTION SHOWS THE POWER OF REPUBLICAN WOMEN.

2010-05-24T21:25:00.000-05:00

BY SCOTT SCHNEIDER

The Republican Party may have narrowly missed the chance to send shock waves through the nation last week by not being able to take the Murtha open seat in the Pennsylvania race but they have renewed vigor after taking the open seat in the Hawaii on Saturday night and Republican women may have had a huge hand in it. Charles Djou took the formerly Democratic seat with 39.5% of the vote after Colleen Hanabusa and Ed Case split the opposition vote and failed to combine for 60%. The seat, which opened up after Rep. Neil Abercrombie's retirement from congress presented a huge opportunity for Republicans to score a victory in what has been one of the biggest Democratic strongholds in the nation, and squarely in the district where President Obama spent a part of his childhood. And what may have led them over the top didn't necessarily involve the traditional underpinnings of a GOP campaign. The Federation of Republican Women likely played a huge role in helping to put Djou over the top.

"Our women in the ground were very involved in the Djou campaign," National Federation of Republican Women president Sue Lynch told me at the Wisconsin Republican State Convention in Milwaukee on Sunday. "In fact, Mrs Djou (Stacey Kawasaki Djou)is a member of the Federation in Hawaii."

Late last week, Lynch put out a YouTube video calling women to action for both Tim Burns and Charles Djou campaigns.

"If you're willing to help us make calls, send a check, or even be deployed to Pennsylvania to help Tim, that would be great," Sue remarked. "We need to send a message to the Democrats of what's to come in November and with your help we can do that."

It's often said that behind every great man, there is an equally great woman and though the Burn's race in Pennsylvania fell short, the Djou race in Hawaii District 1is a shining example of how much Republican women, both young and old have begun to shape the face of modern-day elections in conservative America. Long gone are the days where man's better half in the GOP were simply relegated to backrooms where they stuffed envelopes, made phone calls, and arranged baked cookies on a silver platter. Today's Republican woman is out front and center, running campaigns, running for campaigns, and facilitating the outcomes of those campaigns. They bring vigor and organization, as well as a protective passion and zeal to their candidates that only comes from the maternal instinct for protection of children, God, and country that naturally runs so strongly in all of them. The results can be seen in the increasing numbers of women who are rising up through the ranks of grassroots leadership, campaign and organizational staffing, county and State committees, as well as those who are actually running for State and National office. As of this election cycle, 112 Republican women are running for congressional office according to the RNC and strong female candidates like Mary Fallin of Oklahoma and Carly Fiorina of California are joining the ranks of Michelle Bachman and Sarah Palin who have already made their mark along with several others as this new kind of strong, conservative feminist woman who working and toiling, taking on the slings and arrows of the pioneer to bring about a new guard outside of the good ol' boy's club.

Carly and Mary, the new faces of GOP women.

Such women, I believe, aren't at all in competition with or opposed to men's leadership roles in the Republican Party but rather compliment and enhance those roles and fortunately they've been able to shed the bonds of yesteryear because as far as I'm concerned they can only be assets to the Party.

"The good news is that we have a Republican woman candidate over there as well," Lynch also informed me. "Her name is Ramsey Wharton running for a congressional seat and so we are going to be watching that one real close and making things happen there as well."

Ramsay Wharton is a former news anchorwoman who is running for the 2nd District seat in Hawaii. Indeed, another strong woman candidate who seems to be heading up a growing list of strong women candidates in the 2010 election cycle on the GOP side. It's a foregone conclusion the NFRW and it's state chapter in Hawaii will be sending all of it's forces this summer and fall to help secure another victory in a deep blue state.