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Monday, 08 March 2010 04:52 |
Mark Steyn exposes the Health Care bill as the Marxist Trojan horse the Democrats are betting they can ride to perpetual majorities. It has nothing to do with health care access or cost and everything to do with creating a gargantuan bureaucracy that will smother freedom.
They hope to win the trifecta by gaining control of one-sixth of our economy, growing a hopelessly dependent middle class in constant fear of losing federal benefits - and guaranteeing an enslaved electorate with no choice but to return their Marxist masters to power every election.
Wake up, America! Is this about America, the free - or not?
Click here for this MUST-READ article!
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Thursday, 04 March 2010 06:36 |
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They were against “reconciliation” - before they were for it. Please watch & listen to Congressional leaders, including Obama, Clinton & Schumer explain how using “reconciliation” for non-budgetary legislation is a grave threat to the checks and balances in our government.
What changed their minds?
See & Hear Them For Yourself!
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Thursday, 04 March 2010 06:32 |
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Praise for the Tea Parties!
Jay Ambrose highlights the substantive issues embraced by common Americans and how they are actually backed by many respected experts. He also exposes the simplistic sophomoric attacks on plain old Tea Party folks.
We are having an impact – keep pressing ahead!
Read The Article from RealClearPolitics.com
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Wednesday, 03 March 2010 05:04 |
Constitutional Conservatism: A Statement for the 21st Century
We recommit ourselves to the ideas of the American Founding.Through the Constitution, the Founders created an enduring framework of limited government based on the rule of law. They sought to secure national independence, provide for economic opportunity, establish true religious liberty and maintain a flourishing society of republican self-government.
These principles define us as a country and inspire us as a people. They are responsible for a prosperous, just nation unlike any other in the world. They are our highest achievements, serving not only as powerful beacons to all who strive for freedom and seek self-government, but as warnings to tyrants and despots everywhere.
Each one of these founding ideas is presently under sustained attack. In recent decades, America’s principles have been undermined and redefined in our culture, our universities and our politics. The selfevident truths of 1776 have been supplanted by the notion that no such truths exist. The federal government today ignores the limits of the Constitution, which is increasingly dismissed as obsolete and irrelevant.
Some insist that America must change, cast off the old and put on the new. But where would this lead — forward or backward, up or down? Isn’t this idea of change an empty promise or even a dangerous deception?
The change we urgently need, a change consistent with the American ideal, is not movement away from but toward our founding principles. At this important time, we need a restatement of Constitutional conservatism grounded in the priceless principle of ordered liberty articulated in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
The conservatism of the Declaration asserts self-evident truths based on the laws of nature and nature’s God. It defends life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It traces authority to the consent of the governed. It recognizes man’s self-interest but also his capacity for virtue.
The conservatism of the Constitution limits government’s powers but ensures that government performs its proper job effectively. It refines popular will through the filter of representation. It provides checks and balances through the several branches of government and a federal republic.
A Constitutional conservatism unites all conservatives through the natural fusion provided by American principles. It reminds economic conservatives that morality is essential to limited government, social conservatives that unlimited government is a threat to moral self-government, and national security conservatives that energetic but responsible government is the key to America’s safety and leadership role in the world.
A Constitutional conservatism based on first principles provides the framework for a consistent and meaningful policy agenda.
- It applies the principle of limited government based on the rule of law to every proposal.
- It honors the central place of individual liberty in American politics and life.
- It encourages free enterprise, the individual entrepreneur, and economic reforms grounded in market solutions.
- It supports America’s national interest in advancing freedom and opposing tyranny in the world and prudently considers what we can and should do to that end.
- It informs conservatism’s firm defense of family, neighborhood, community, and faith.
If we are to succeed in the critical political and policy battles ahead, we must be certain of our purpose.
We must begin by retaking and resolutely defending the high ground of America’s founding principles.
February 17, 2010
**CLICK HERE TO SIGN
THE MOUNT VERNON STATEMENT**
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Tuesday, 02 March 2010 06:30 |
FACT-CHECK: ARTICLE TITLES AND ENDORSEMENTS CAN BE DECEIVING!
In the Mobile Press Register "Political Skinny" column of March 1, 2010, there was an item titled "Gounares backed by Tea Party" – this item was misleading at best. The Mobile Press Register published these "Tea Party endorsements" while failing to do any fact checking and with absolutely no context whatsoever.
First, the Tea Party PAC that endorsed Peter Gounares and donated $35 is run by Ms. Kim Curtis of Durham, NC out of her home. Her organization has about 115 online members with only 4 in Alabama! Her "democratic process" consists of a candidate finding her site, completing her application for endorsement, and then her online community votes on the endorsement. What do these 100 anonymous folks from around the country have to do with south Alabama politics? Second, two "individual" endorsements were cited; these were not group endorsements.
Yes, both have been Tea Party organizers in the past. Ms Carey-Nicholson has publicly confirmed that her endorsement was as an individual endorsement and to date we are not aware of any other organized Tea Party groups in Baldwin County. However, the Mobile Press Register published this information as de-facto local "Tea Party" endorsements. The Common Sense Campaign does not profess to be the exclusive voice of the "Tea Party" movement in south Alabama. The Tea Parties are an independent and somewhat convoluted grassroots movement. It is very difficult for any organization to proclaim itself the voice of the Tea Parties.
However, we expect honest journalists to put information in to proper context so the people can accurately assess and decide. This issue causes consternation, because the over 800 dues-paying members of The Common Sense Campaign - and thousands of supporters that have attended a couple dozen "Tea Party" events in eight counties are committed to a rational, accurate and transparent vetting and interview process to find and choose the best Congressional candidates. We are diligently working through that process, and we assure our members that The Common Sense Campaign has not made any endorsements yet!
We regret the gross misperception to all inside and outside of the "Tea Parties". Have the people, once again, been circumvented by slick politics? We can only surmise the intent of the individual endorsements, but we fully expect our local media to research and report the facts in context.
Here is a link to the article referenced above, from the Press Register (last article on the page): http://blog.al.com/live/2010/03/political_skinny_boeing_suppor.html
Thank you for your continued support,
-Common Sense Campaign
www.CommonSenseCampaign.org
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Monday, 22 February 2010 23:19 |
It is imperative the people learn their rights per the Constitution, but it is also very important that we recognize the raw politics at work to preserve and expand power in Washington. Thomas Sowell presents a good overview of how politicians distract us to usurp more power by growing government dependency. Pay attention America! Our government has and is incrementally eroding our freedom. We only noticed because the Obama administration accelerated our decline enough that we finally realized we were skidding over a cliff. - -Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
Click here to read the article...
(Thomas Sowell)
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Monday, 22 February 2010 23:17 |
Outstanding column on what the Tea Parties are not! Finally, a main stream newspaper publishes an accurate portrayal of our grassroots movement. While most in academia, media, and politics still paint us with a lunatic brush, some are starting to realize the American people take their liberty seriously. We the people will not allow a pack of cowards, frauds, and charlatans to bury our freedom under a government glacier of out of control taxes and spending. The party is over in Washington. This November, we, the people, will reclaim self-government and restore the Constitution!-
- -Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
Click here to read the story!
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Monday, 22 February 2010 23:07 |
This is must read! John Stossel precisely captures why BIG government is a mortal threat to American Freedom. You will also be shocked how far our nation is down the road to serfdom. We have let the self-serving politicians destroy our country. We must throw them out and reassert self- government before life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness slip into the Marxist night. Please join the fight today. - -Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
From Real Clear Politics:
"Increasing Government Power Threatens Freedom
Government is taking us a long way down the Road to Serfdom. That doesn't just mean that more of us must work for the government. It means that we are changing from independent, self-responsible people into a submissive flock. The welfare state kills the creative spirit.
F.A. Hayek, an Austrian economist living in Britain, wrote "The Road to Serfdom" in 1944 as a warning that central economic planning would extinguish freedom. The book was a hit. Reader's Digest produced a condensed version that sold 5 million copies.
Hayek meant that governments can't plan economies without planning people's lives. After all, an economy is just individuals engaging in exchanges. The scientific-sounding language of President Obama's economic planning hides the fact that people must shelve their own plans in favor of government's single plan.
At the beginning of "The Road to Serfdom," Hayek acknowledges that mere material wealth is not all that's at stake when the government controls our lives: "The most important change ... is a psychological change, an alteration in the character of the people."
This shouldn't be controversial. If government relieves us of the responsibility of living by bailing us out, character will atrophy..."
Click here to read the rest of the story...
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Monday, 22 February 2010 23:00 |
More press for the Tea Parties! This article still paints us as a bit crazy, but it does recognize the Tea Parties as a genuine grass roots movement with real issues. The writers warn politicians to respect our demands and strength. Folks, they are hearing us and they know we are coming. Press ahead and march to the polls – we will save America in November!
-Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
Click here to read the story!
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Monday, 22 February 2010 22:52 |
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Tea Parties get a positive review in the Wall Street Journal! The Alabama movement is mentioned for its support of Les Phillips in the Fifth Congressional District. Folks, we are gaining momentum and we are having a palpable affect. However, we must strategically analyze every congressional race and unify in a tactical campaign to win as many as possible. Washington will only change if at least 50% of the Congress is sent packing in November. We must be smart and make tough choices, but we can and we will win.
-Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
From The Wall Street Journal:
"There were promises of transparency and of a new kind of collaborative politics where establishment figures listened to ordinary Americans. We were going to see net spending cuts, tax cuts for nearly all Americans, an end to earmarks, legislation posted online for the public to review before it is signed into law, and a line-by-line review of the federal budget to remove wasteful programs.
These weren't the tea-party platforms I heard discussed in Nashville last weekend. They were the campaign promises of Barack Obama in 2008.
Mr. Obama made those promises because the ideas they represented were popular with average Americans. So popular, it turns out, that average Americans are organizing themselves in pursuit of the kind of good government Mr. Obama promised, but has not delivered. And that, in a nutshell, was the feel of the National Tea Party Convention. The political elites have failed, and citizens are stepping in to pick up the slack."
Click here to read the entire article...
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Thursday, 18 February 2010 05:40 |
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Here is a challenge to the Tea Party. Gene Healy of the Cato Institute rightly points out that the vast majority of our bloated federal budget is in Defense and Entitlement programs. He challenges the Tea Parties to “get serious” and demand massive cuts in these programs, but he asks if the Tea Parties are willing to make sacrifices that hurt even hurt the middle class. He is right about the potential pain. We have been duped by the government. Are we really ready to deal seriously with Medicare/Medicaid, Social Security (and SSI), and rethink our global role to cut the Armed Forces?
Sure there is waste everywhere, but we must address what roles are proper for the government according to the Constitution. That is the only way to get real cuts with any hope of regaining control of self-government. With a new Congress in November, we will have to push for hard drastic measures to right this ship. Are we ready? Perhaps it will be more weaning than cutting, but we must press ahead in restoring our Constitutional Republic.
- -Comments by Pete Riehm, Executive Director of Common Sense Campaign
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Tea Partiers should get serious
By: Gene Healy
February 16, 2010
Anyone who's been to a Tea Party rally knows this is no Astroturf movement. These are ordinary citizens, rightly furious that the federal government has sold the country a junk mortgage on its future, sticking America with an unsustainable debt.
Yet there are those who doubt the new activists' sincerity, asking, in effect, "Where were you when George W. Bush was spending faster than Lyndon Johnson?" It's a fair question.
The Tea Partiers insist they're nonpartisan, devoted only to staving off our looming fiscal apocalypse by any means necessary. If so, they can prove their authenticity by backing substantial cuts in entitlements and defense.
Tea Party pressure has already forced President Obama to call for a three-year freeze of nonsecurity spending. But that's just 16 percent of the federal budget. You could zero that out entirely next year and still end up hundreds of billions in the hole.
Rail against earmarks, foreign aid and "welfare queens" to your heart's content. But all that comes to a rounding error in a $3.7 trillion federal budget, over 75 percent of which consists of defense and entitlements.
To his credit, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., ranking member on the House Budget Committee, has proposed a "Roadmap for America's Future" that makes serious cuts: $650 billion over the next decade -- for starters. After raising the retirement age, voucherizing Medicare and reforming the tax system, Ryan's plan would eliminate the long-term deficit, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Former Reagan official Bruce Bartlett argues that endorsing Ryan's road map is the "minimum requirement" for anyone serious about cutting spending. But for the middle-class, middle-aged folks leading the Tea Party brigades, some of those cuts could bite pretty hard.
That's why Bartlett doubts many of them have the fortitude to embrace what's necessary to solve the budget crisis without raising taxes. Here's their chance to prove him wrong.
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Read more...
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