My personal mandate to the new Congress
I just completed my "Citizen Mandate" for the newly elected Congress -- -- putting the new Congress on notice that I am serious about making sure these members of Congress do the right thing.
See the results of my Mandate below and go here to send your own Citizen Mandate to members of the New Congress right now:
http://www.grassfire.com/140/survey.asp?PID=26960961&NID=1
Fred Witzell's Citizen Mandate To the 112th Congress (my answers in bold)
Does the new Republican leadership in Congress have a mandate to change Washington, D.C.?
Yes, but only if citizens continue to hold all elected officials accountable
The issues I believe are important for the new Congress to address:
Limiting the size and scope of government
My CITIZEN MANDATE on government-run healthcare:
I am calling for ObamaCare to be REPEALED immediately
My CITIZEN MANDATE on illegal immigration:
Border security must be increased and those in our country illegally should be punished to the full extent of the law and deported
My CITIZEN MANDATE on the federal debt:
The federal debt is a serious problem but the answer is not higher taxes. Instead, we must cap spending and grow the economy
My CITIZEN MANDATE on government spending:
Government spending is our of control and the federal government should be required to reduce its annual budget every year until the budget is balanced
My CITIZEN MANDATE on TARP and other government bailouts:
Federal bailouts of the private sector such as the TARP program must be stopped immediately and any unspent funds returned to the taxpayers.
NAACP seemingly abandons Tea Party tracking website The NAACP hasn’t updated its teapartytracker.org website since October 20, and hasn’t tweeted from its special TeaPartyTracker handle since August 30.
This might mean the NAACP has decided the Tea Party movement isn’t racist after all. When the NAACP launched the website, which was meant to monitor “racism and other forms of extremism within the Tea Party movement,” it said, “our hope is that this site remains empty—that the Tea Party’s initial steps toward monitoring extremism within their ranks bear fruit. But if not, the NAACP will be there, as we have for more than one hundred years, to expose racism where it exists, in whatever form it takes.”
Well, there haven’t been any updates to the site since mid-October, and the website’s main video, one from the misleading “journalistic” duo of New Left Media, has held its place at the top of the site since late August.
Since the NAACP said it will be there to “expose racism where it exists, in whatever form it takes,” when the organization is not producing that content, does that mean the NAACP is admitting there is no racism to be exposed, in any form, in the Tea Party?
The NAACP failed to respond to The Daily Caller’s request for comment or clarification.
Full Story Here:
NAACP seemingly abandons Tea Party tracking website
I want to congratulate each and every member of the TEA Party, not just here in Rowlett, but all across this great nation. We didn't take the bait, we proved the NAACP wrong. We exposed those that were fake TEA Party members and were only in attendance to cause hate, and to spread that hate and disruption.
We are making a difference, but we're not finished. There is much work to be done, the biggest job we face now is that of keeping the TEA Party a non-partisan organization and not allowing it to be co-opted by ANY party.
Let's keep up the fight America. Together we are STRONG!
Folks, we need your ideas and suggestions!
If we want the Rowlett TEA Party to grow, we have to work together and we all need to do everything we know to do and everything we can think of to make it happen.
We're hoping you'll all have some contribution, something we can do as a group to keep things going!
Obama calls for 2-year freeze on federal pay WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama on Monday proposed a two-year freeze of the salaries of some 2 million federal workers, trying to seize the deficit-cutting initiative from Republicans with a sudden, dramatic stroke. Though signaling White House concern over record deficits, the freeze would make only a tiny dent in annual deficits or the nation's $14 trillion debt.
"Small businesses and families are tightening their belts," Obama said in brief remarks at the White House. "The government should, too." The administration said the plan was designed to save more than $5 billion over the first two years.
The proposal, which must be approved by Congress, would not apply to the military, but it would affect all others on the Executive Branch payroll. It would not affect members of Congress or their staffs, defense contractors, postal workers or federal court judges and workers.
Obama's move was an attempt to get in front of Republican plans to slash federal pay and the workforce next year, when they will flex more legislative muscle than now. It came a day ahead of Obama's meeting at the White House with both Republicans and Democratic leaders - his first with Republicans since the midterm elections - and two days before the deadline for recommendations by his deficit-reduction commission.
Full Story Here:
Obama calls for 2-year freeze on federal pay
Freeze federal pay? Here's my message to the federal government and ALL federal employees, suck it up and stop griping.
Pretend you're a Senior Citizen or a disabled American trying to scrape by on Social Security. We have been frozen for 2010 and 2011 already. No cost of living allowance.
Here in Rowlett we have a lot of TEA Party members that are seriously qualified as Seniors. I'm certain that we have some, at least a few, that are retired on disability. I would be interested in hearing how this federal wage freeze and the no COLA for Social Security recipients is going to affect our members, their friends and/or family.
The president said the economy and federal spending were at the top of the agenda for Tuesday's meeting, one he said he hoped "will mark a first step towards a new and productive working relationship" between the two parties. Because of GOP midterm gains, "we now have a shared responsibility to deliver for the American people on the issues that define not only these times but our future," Obama said.
House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio, on track to become House speaker in January, said he was pleased with the president's announcement.
I am agreed with Boehner, this is a good move. It won't solve ALL of the issues, but it's a start.
But with no COLA for 2 years, with wages frozen for federal employees, what about inflation? What do we do when OUR money doesn't go up at all but the cost of our goods does?
Do you remember the stories about the elderly eating CAT FOOD?
Tea party seeks Capitol clout after election gains WASHINGTON (AP) - Tea party activists and other conservatives, eager to transform electoral gains into clout on Capitol Hill, are pressuring Republican leaders to take a hardline approach in the next Congress, shunning compromise for confrontation with Democrats.
The strategy is likely to bring gridlock on major issues - particularly tax cuts and spending - and make it more difficult for President Barack Obama and Congress to find common ground on virtually any measure. It's also leaving key Republicans, in charge of the House and with larger numbers in the Senate, less room to maneuver as they seek to show they can make the big changes they've promised.
GOP leaders have bowed to the pressure already this week.
Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, said he'd go along with a ban on the practice of earmarking - in which lawmakers steer federal spending to pet projects in their states and districts. The decision narrowly averted an internal party fight over earmarks, and gave the tea party a high-profile victory reflecting its growing influence.
Full Story Here:
Tea party seeks Capitol clout after election gains
We have established a *toe hold*, nothing more.
Some are already looking at the GOP gains in the recent election and are saying *Mission Accomplished*. The couldn't be further from the truth. The work has barely begun for Conservatives and TEA Party members. Conservative leader Richard Viguerie said: "Today begins the process of repairing the Republican brand."
I sincerely hope that *brand* can be repaired, it would likely be a more acceptable endeavor to most Conservatives than the effort required to for a viable 3rd party.
If the GOP is to be repaired, let it begin with the routing of ALL RINOs.
FreedomWorks retreat seeks to refocus Republican lawmakers on tea party goals FreedomWorks, the conservative political organization that spent millions of dollars helping to elect tea party-backed candidates across the country, is hosting a retreat in Baltimore on Thursday and Friday to encourage congressional Republicans to stay true to the small-government principles they espoused during the campaign.
FreedomWorks' chairman, former House majority leader Richard K. Armey, and its president, Matt Kibbe, will talk to incoming and returning Republicans about not setting aside their advocacy for lower taxes and spending in the interest of finding favor with Republican leaders or scoring valuable committee assignments.
"We have to move from the election cycle and a year in which Americans across the country have been expressing concern and talking about what they don't want from their government to where we start to move toward with what we do want," said Republican Sen.-elect Mike Lee of Utah in a telephone interview from the Hyatt Regency on Baltimore's Inner Harbor. "We will be talking about ideas on how to move forward."
The retreat highlights the potential for conflict between Republican leaders and new members who campaigned forcefully on a message to change the culture of Washington - and who, in some cases, took aim as much at Republicans as Democrats for their role in allowing spending, earmarks, taxes and the national debt to spiral upward.
Full Story Here:
FreedomWorks retreat seeks to refocus Republican lawmakers on tea party goals
That's a great start, keep it in their heads, 'YOU work for US and WE can, and WILL fire you if you make a move to The Dark Side'.Earlier today, I posted this on my personal blog: Earmark dispute splits GOP senators.
It can't be stressed too often, we must be ever vigilant. Our nation faces great peril from ALL fronts, one of the greatest perils we face is the GOP (RINOs) and Democrats that spend OUR money like there is no tomorrow.
At the rate these guys have been going, there may well BE no tomorrow if we're not careful and keep a constant eye on what goes on in American politics.And so it begins…
The RINOs love pork just as much as the Dems. I told my readers before the election, ‘as soon as the elections are over, we’ll see a resurgence in the RINO herd’, and we are. NOW is the time to put a lid on it too. STOP these out of control RINOs from spending money this nation doesn’t have. NOW is the time for the entire GOP and ALL Conservatives to stand and tell a few Senators NO! A word that HATE to hear.
The Rowlett TEA Party Endorses Jerry Pittman for Dallas County Constable Pct. 2Jerry Pittman brings 37 years of law enforcement experience to the table. He was with the Garland Police department for 25 years and retired at the rank of Lieutenant.
During his career there, he was assigned to the Dallas Area Organized Crime Task Force and trained extensively in investigative work, surveillance, electronic counter measures and warrant preparation.
Jerry spent several years in the uniformed patrol division and worked closely with citizens of this community on a daily basis in all types of activities.
Jerry was assigned to the traffic division as a motorcycle officer and was trained at Texas A & M in advanced accident investigation and accident reconstruction.
Jerry was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and attended the University of Texas at Dallas, Police Supervision Training, and was assigned to Jail Supervisor where he closely supervised all arrests and reports.
Jerry has been with the Dallas County Constables Office for the past 12 years and has worked in the warrant division, civil division, and the traffic division where he is currently assigned. Jerry has extensive knowledge of the problems faced by the Constables office and is, in our opinion, the best man for the job and will straighten that office out, returning it to the level of respect and competency the citizens of Dallas County expect.
With his long and successful career in Law Enforcement, it is our pleasure to endorse Jerry Pittman for Dallas County Constable Pct. 2
The Rowlett TEA Party Candidates Forum
On Saturday, Sept. 25th, 2010, the Rowlett Texas TEA Party held the biggest, and most successful event in it's history.
The candidates forum was a tremendous success.
When you consider that we were up against the 1st weekend of the Texas State Fair, University of Texas football, the Grambling vs Prairie View game at the fair, and just being Saturday, we were very pleased to have had over 50 candidates and their support staff, Channel 5 News, Kenny Green of the Rowlett Lakeshore Times, most of the TEA Party board and several TEA Party members as well as over 200 citizens in attendance.
We had a number of unscheduled candidates show up and set out signs and literature even though they knew they weren't going to get on stage.
We were afraid that we had the schedule booked too tight, but as it turned out, all candidates spoke for their allotted time and took questions, and we were able to get ALL the judicial candidates on stage and they too had an opportunity to speak briefly as well.
I want to extend many thanks to ALL the candidates, The First United Methodist Church of Rowlett, the Cub Scouts that stood as *Color Guard* and presented the flags, Mayor Pro-Tem Todd Gottel and especially to the TEA Party members that came, helped, stayed all the way until the end and helped us with the hard work of setting up and tearing down.
I have to extend a very special THANK YOU to TEA Party member Mr. Frank McKimmims for his GREAT work in doing the video for this event. Frank, you were a God send!
I know I'm missing someone in this, that's always the case, and if I missed you, I DO apologize.
All I have to say now is this, lets get together and decide WHO it is we want in office, offer our endorsements and then work as hard to get the vote out as we did to make this forum the HUGE success it was!
Conservative Group Accused of Abusing Tax Status WASHINGTON — Democrats are charging that political commercials financed by an increasingly prominent conservative foundation with ties to the Tea Party violate the foundation’s tax-exempt status by crossing the line into political campaigning.
In a complaint filed this week with the Internal Revenue Service, lawyers for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee charged that the group, the Americans for Prosperity Foundation, has been running ads in Kansas, Missouri and Michigan that are inherently “political in nature,” contravening a ban under federal tax law. A copy of the complaint was provided to The New York Times.
The foundation, which has just begun a $1.4 million ad campaign criticizing the economic policies in Washington as “wasteful spending,” has become a vocal critic of Democratic policies and drew a rebuke this month from President Obama.
Non-profit groups like the foundation, which falls under section 501(c)3 of the tax code, are forbidden from participating in “any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to a candidate.” They may, however, seek to educate voters or conduct broader get-out-the-vote drives “if conducted in a non-partisan manner,” the I.R.S. says.
Their tax-exempt status is crucial to the income of such groups, because it allows donors to take an income-tax deduction for contributions. Americans for Prosperity, which called the complaint without merit, said it had raised money from 70,000 individual donors.
Full Story Here:
Conservative Group Accused of Abusing Tax Status
This story ties in closely with the last meeting of The Rowlett TEA Party and a discussion we had regarding incorporation and candidate endorsement.
Not that we are anywhere near the size of Americans for Prosperity, but as the article states, 'non-profit groups' and we are a non-profit group, at least for now, which falls under section 501(c)3 of the tax code, are forbidden from participating in “any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to a candidate.” To be tax-exempt as a social welfare organization described in Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 501(c)(4), an organization must not be organized for profit and must be operated exclusively to promote social welfare. SOURCE
I'm sure greater minds will hash this out, I hope it comes out well for AFP.
