Wisconsin Republican Women Praise Paul Ryan

When Mitt Romney announced Paul Ryan as his vice presidential running mate last weekend, many Americans were introduced to the seven-term congressman for the first time. But in Ryan's home state, the women of the Wisconsin Federation of Republican Women already know him well and have for years. We asked these women to tell us about Congressman Ryan and his relationship with the Federation and Republican women, what they think about his rise to instant fame as the Republican vice presidential candidate, and if they think Ryan will help put Wisconsin in the red column in November.

     A rally was held for Paul Ryan on August 12 that drew 13,000 citizens, just a day after Romney announced Ryan as his running mate. The crowd at the rally was populated by Republican women, including former Wisconsin Federation President Ginny Marschman, who said, "In all the years I've been going to events in Waukesha County -- which is the most conservative and populous county in Wisconsin -- I have never been to an event like this. It was one of the most wonderful experiences I've ever had."

     Here are some of the Wisconsin Republican women and what they are saying about Rep Paul Ryan:

     "Paul Ryan understands the value of the Federation, the value of what we bring to him as a representative. He's always been very appreciative of what we've done to help him get elected. He has very strong ties with the Federation and with the local clubs in his district, and a great relationship with the ladies there. Before Romney put Ryan on the ticket, Wisconsin was on the cusp, but I think this solidifies it."- Jackie Trudell, president of the Wisconsin Federation

     "Congressman Ryan is very supportive of the Republican women, very willing to listen to ideas, and very involved. He's such a warm, friendly, down-to-earth person … an average Wisconsinite with great values." -Karen Mueller, a leader of Waukesha County RW and an active Republican volunteer in her area.

     "I have known Paul for many years, and I am thrilled he has been selected by Governor Romney as part of the 2012 GOP ticket. Paul has been a longtime supporter of Republican women in Wisconsin and supported my efforts during the time I served as NFRW president. If elected, I am sure he will continue to listen to the women in our party." Sue Lynch, former president of the Wisconsin Federation and former president of the National Federation of Republican Women

     "I've been going to Paul Ryan's town hall meetings for years. You can't help but like him. He's not arrogant or egotistical. He's not a politician, spouting platitudes. He's just a real kind gentleman." -Luonne Dumak, a member of Waukesha County RW.

      Dumak says she shares a common interest with Ryan in the Ayn Rand novel, "Atlas Shrugged." "Years ago, we struck up a conversation about that book, and today, when I see him, he still asks me what books I've been reading."

     "I met Paul back when he was first running for Congress in 1998. He wanted to meet with me to explain why he was running. By the end of our conversation, I told him that he had my total support. He's always been very warm, very friendly, very supportive, and he has a great relationship with Republican women across the state. He is so knowledgeable, that nobody, including the president, can speak with him and be successful if they are trying to spin something, because he knows what he knows. And he comes back with what he knows in such a likeable way. He's very Reagan-like in the way he communicates. He's going to be a force to be reckoned with."- Ginny Marschman, former president of the Wisconsin Federation

  "Paul graciously served as our keynote speaker at the Wisconsin Federation's luncheon at the state party convention in 2011. He drew the largest crowd the Federation has ever had for that luncheon. For as many years as I've known him, he's had the reputation of being solid. People like to hear him speak because he has such a phenomenal understanding of the budget. I knew he was destined for higher things." -Charlotte Rasmussen, former president of the Wisconsin Federation

     If you know anything at all about the working of the Republican party, you are well-versed in the respect Republican women have earned over the years for the hard work and steadfast determination put forth by the members of federated clubs in all the states to help elect Republican candidates. These are the people who know Paul Ryan as a Republican legislator.   

Rubio Speaks to The Hispanic Voter Network in Houston

Associated Republicans of Texas and the Hispanic Voter Network hosted a Leadership Forum Wednesday morning at the Omni Houston Hotel in Houston. The keynote speaker was Senator Marco Rubio. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott preceded Senator Rubio in remarks. He spoke of his battles with the Obama administration and fighting the good fight to keep America more on the path to being like Texas instead of Texas going the way of the rest of the country.

  Here is a photo of Tx Rep Aaron Pena and General Abbott with me and my fellow bloggers:

    Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) was a well-received speaker, to understate the crowd's enthusiasm. Here is a quickly taken photo of Senator Rubio, myself and sister bloggers, Michelle Lancaster and Kathleen McKinley. He was hurriedly leaving this event to catch a plane to his next stop.

     Senator Rubio is achieving a dream he has held for a long time in a couple of weeks - he will introduce Gov Mitt Romney as the Republican candidate for president at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. He spoke about his life and his family's immigration story. He calls himself an American son because that is what his grandfather told him he was - truly an American son. He stressed that his story is not unique, that we are all children or grandchildren of immigrants, whether we are first generation or seventh generation in this country. He spoke of how backwards the Obama administration has brought our country to in spirit. He said that Barack Obama has no successful record to run on and will run a re-election campaign of personal destruction on Mitt Romney.

    Rubio stated that he looks forward to working with the recent winner of the Texas GOP primary race for the senate - Ted Cruz.

     Let me mention that Texas Rep Aaron Pena is a terrific guy and he was able to help me and my sister bloggers catch a photo on the run with Senator Rubio. We always enjoy the company of Rep Pena and wish him well as he ventures out of his service to Texas in Austin and pursues new goals when his current term is over.

     The event was quite successful. Folks from all walks of life were there and lots of people in leadership, both locally and statewide, were there to enjoy the event. Spanish media was there and the speech delivered by Senator Rubio will be broadcast on Univision. Senator Rubio addressed the Spanish speaking audience in Spanish briefly as he said if he didn't, then they would give their own interpretation of his words.

     I look forward to supporting The Hispanic Voter Network as they work to increase Latino membership in the Republican party. The group is off to a good start.

The Path To Prosperity - The Ryan Plan

Few have actually read what is referred to as "The Ryan Plan" - the economic plan put forward by now vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan. HERE is a link to the actual plan. It would be helpful to the accuracy of public debate if more folks bothered to sit down and quiet themselves for a few minutes and read the proposal. It isn't scary. It isn't set in stone. There is room for tweaking and Ryan has always maintained that it is a starting point, not the finished product.

  Here is the trailer to introduce the plan:

     Democrats are falling over themselves as the roll-out of Mitt Romney's choice of Rep Ryan as his vice presidential pick continues. The talking points that have been sent out from the White House are clear - the surrogates for Barack Obama are suppose to use words like "scary" and "extreme" and "right wing ideologue". Predictable, right? No plan for a solid balanced budget or entitlement reform has been brought forward by President Obama or Senate Democrats yet they are the first to squawk if Republicans show leadership and produce a starting point.

     Instead of producing real results to turn our struggling economy around when they controlled the House, the Senate, and the White House, Democrats instead concentrated on passing the largest new entitlement program ever in our history. They did in on a solely one party vote, too. It was to be a legacy for President Barack Obama. This is his sole achievement yet it is widely unpopular by a solid majority of Americans. There is nothing for him to run on for re-election so the only strategy left is to go all out for the politics of personal destruction.

     We deserve better.

Now Is the Time For Righteous Indignation, Gov Romney

Dear Gov Romney:

     Now is your time. With the lowest level attained yet in this political campaign season, with the hideous ad spotlighting a widower all but outright accusing you of murdering his cancer-stricken wife from Team Obama's SuperPAC, it is time to show your honest outrage in defense of yourself. I know, I know it is not your nature to go into dramatic mode but we are waiting for a flash of honest anger here, sir.

     Now is your time to seize this opportunity to bring some level of decency into national politics. It is an opportunity to say, no, the voters deserve adult behavior here and I'll not allow the continuation of this rolling around in the gutter in campaign videos.

     Now is your time to say we are better than this. You are better than this. You have an honest, practical narrative to offer voters and do not have to rely on a "kill Romney" strategy advanced in a 2011 memo among Team Obama to win this election. You are not a failed president with a failed record on your resume. You are a winner. In your career as a politician and as a businessman - particularly as a businessman - you have nothing but real success as your record.

     Now is your time. Please show your indignation to this video hate leveled at you. Please rise up and say it stops now. And then go on to concisely presenting an alternative to the doomed path our economy is speeding down. You can win with that simple strategy.

     Now is your time. As Peggy Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal,

Some of the unperturbed sunniness you see modern political figures attempting to enact may be traceable to Ronald Reagan, the happy warrior who set a template for how winners act. But the Reagan of the 1950s and 60s was often indignant, even angry. When he allowed himself to get mad, or knew he should be mad and so decided to feign anger, it was a sight to behold. "I'm paying for this microphone," he famously snapped to the moderator of the 1980 primary campaign debate in Nashua, N.H. He didn't win that crucial state by being sunny.

     It is time for your righteous indignation to burst forth, Governor Romney. We have your back. We will stand and cheer. We will say, see, he gets it. This is a war we are waging against the other side and we are not going to stand down.

    Now is your time, sir. Move out of your comfort zone and allow some anger to emerge in your fight for America's future.

The Audacity of Lying

"The audacity of lying" is how pundit Charles Krauthammer described the bottom of the barrel video ad produced by a SuperPAC on behalf of President Obama's re-election effort. The RNC has a video ad out using an Obama campaign spokesperson's own words against her as she pushes the narrative that Team Obama had nothing to do with the despicable ad put out by the Obama SuperPAC run by former Obama administration aide, Bill Burton. The ad implies that Mitt Romney is responsible for a steel worker's wife's death due to a Bain takeover of the company. The problem is, the ad is all chock full of lies.




Even the liberal Obama supporting Washington Post wrote of the ad: "On just every level, this ad stretches the bounds of common sense and decency." The newspaper awarded the ad four "Pinnochios" for its untruths.

     Texans witnessed this very tactic during the recent GOP primary run-off race between Lt Gov Dewhurst and Ted Cruz for the U.S. senate seat. A video ad was run by supporters of Dewhurst using a grieving mother telling the story of her son's suicide and linking Ted Cruz to it. It was stomach-turning, to say the least, and Texas voters clearly were appalled. Not only is Dewhurst the sitting Lt Governor of our state but the ad was a new low in an already vicious campaign. Dewhurst lost to Cruz by thirteen points on election night. Ted Cruz will be the next senator from Texas to go to Washington, D.C.

     The White House and the SuperPAC responsible for the anti-Romney ad refuse to take responsibility for the ad. They have been caught time and time again in lies yet continue down that path. Obama is a failed president and they have no other strategy other than to "kill Romney" as a 2011 memo stated their campaign strategy would be. Interesting how obsessed they are with the "kill" theme, isn't it?

Obama Guts Welfare Reform

     In 1996, President Bill Clinton signed bipartisan legislation that reformed welfare. Democrats from Carl Levin to John Kerry, and even Joe Biden supported the bipartisan reforms. President Obama, on the other hand, has been a consistent opponent of the law and recently dismantled the historic bill. When it comes to welfare reform, President Obama is out of step with the country, his party, and even his own Vice President.

     The welfare reform package passed by a Republican led House - the days of Newt Gingrich's leadership - was perhaps the single signature legislation in Bill Clinton's presidency.  Republicans held his feet to the fire and after two attempts, both vetoed by Clinton, the legislation was finally signed.  Clinton would go on to take full credit, of course, once he realized it was indeed truly supported by a majority of Americans.

    It is not surprising that then Illinois state senator Barack Obama would oppose such reform. His history is that of a big government, cradle to grave entitlement mentality.  He took it upon himself in an election year when his re-election is in question to pander to those who might enjoy sitting out the work requirement of welfare assistance and with the stroke of his executive order pen re-wrote the legislation.

     That is how Barack Obama operates.  Unable to lead Congress, he governs by executive order and bypasses Congress at every opportunity.

     It is time for a change.  America deserves better.

It's Been Four Years

It's been four years. President Obama recently told an audience at his re-election campaign event that "We tried our plan, and it worked." Really? Has President Obama given up on leading the nation back? Here is a possible explanation:

“In a time of widespread economic hardship, the president’s schedule has not included a ‘Daily Economic Briefing’ since April of 2011. He has not convened his Jobs Council in over six months, yet he has found time for over 120 political fundraisers and 11 rounds of golf since their last meeting."

Do you think we should just keep doing the same? It is time for some real leadership by someone who knows about jobs creation and economics. It's time for a new president.

Recovery Numbers Add to National Uncertainty

In August, 2010, Secretary of Treasury Geithner was quoted in The New York Times as saying, "Welcome to the Recovery".

How's that Recovery working out for you?

Cruz Soundly Defeats Dewhurst For Texas Senate Seat

With 100% of the votes counted, Ted Cruz has handily defeated Lt Governor David Dewhurst for the Republican nomination in the Texas primary run-off for the U.S. Senate race. The final tally, according to the Texas Secretary of State is 56.80% to 43.19%. That is a solid 13 point victory.

  To state that this sends earthquake level ramifications within the state Republican party is accurate. This ends the next in line mindset so prevalent within the party structure. Many of the career politicians, the current leadership, the "establishment" members of the party threw in early support of Dewhurst in hopes of maintaining the status quo and their own career ambitions. The Senate members in Washington, D.C. will be all the better for this victory, if all indicators prove correct. Renewed enthusiasm from the grassroots of the party is crucial for future victories and many of us within the party are looking at the long term picture. The Republican brand has been updated after experiencing a slow decline in previous elections.

  This is how Politico's Mike Allen led off his daily "Playbook" column:

WHAT THE TEA PARTY WIN MEANS TO GOVERNING: The 13-point victory by Ted Cruz, the former Texas solicitor general, over the sitting lieutenant governor, David Dewhurst, is a dramatic manifestation of the repeated pattern in GOP primaries over the past three years: upset victories by more-conservative, non-establishment candidates. Don't underestimate the level of BUSH GUILT among activists over the spending of the past decade, and their determination to undo it. This means a growing swath of Capitol Hill Republicans have NO allegiance to leadership: The incentive, rather, is to REMAIN PURE. And these candidates have access to their own media and money - the traditional party levers for containing rebels.

SO EVEN IF ROMNEY WERE TO WIN - even if the GOP held the House and took the Senate -- there's no guarantee he'd be able to broker a deal with his own party, on deficits or anything else.

  From Politico's Dave Cantanses:

--"Move over, Marco: Cruz a GOP star-in-the-making," "He is the Canadian-born son of an American mother and Cuban father who fled to Texas at age 18 with $100 sewn in his underwear. [His parents worked] their way through college on his father's dishwashing job before starting a small business in seismic-data processing for oil companies. ... He was a founding editor of the Harvard Latino Law Review, the first Hispanic to clerk for Chief Justice of the United States, William Rehnquist."

In the afterglow of his win, though, the future looks bright. Like President Barack Obama, Cruz is a telegenic constitutional lawyer with a Harvard Law degree and parents of different backgrounds. Like Rubio, he has a rich family history that’s rooted in Cuba.

  Should President Obama win re-election, who better to advance Republican philosophy and policy from the U.S. Senate than the voice of Ted Cruz?

Crowd Tells Cruz "Yes, We Can!"

A brief video clip of U.S. Senate candidate Ted Cruz at the end of his remarks to the crowd at FreePac in Dallas Thursday night:


The crowd was 13,000 enthusiastic Americans joining together with like-minded conservative voters to hear from elected officials and nationally known public figures and activists.  Who wasn't there?  Lt. Governor David Dewhurst.

Not at all unusual for this race.

A Message from Heidi Cruz

This is a compelling message from Heidi Cruz, wife of U.S. Senate candidate Ted Cruz:

Down in the polls and grasping at straws, the Dewhurst Attack Machine is getting more and more vicious. The leading Dewhurst Super PAC—which is run by Dewhurst’s former chief of staff and campaign manager—just began airing a despicable, false ad about my husband Ted that one commentator called the nation’s “nastiest ad of the campaign cycle.”
Dewhurst is using the suffering of a grieving mother to try to blame Ted for the death of her son. But Ted had nothing—absolutely nothing—to do with the criminal proceedings surrounding that juvenile prison scandal, and Dewhurst knows it. The attack is a lie.
As a mother of two young girls, my heart weeps for this mother who lost her son. But I am repulsed by a desperate politician willing to exploit her grief to try to falsely claim, in the final days of the campaign, that Ted is responsible for killing children.
Texans are tired of Dewhurst’s desperate lies about Ted.
And Ted needs your help to fight back. Will you please consider an immediate donation to Ted’s campaign so he can defend himself against the Dewhurst attacks?

This has become a pattern. Texans are uniting behind Ted’s positive, optimistic message, and Dewhurst responds by spending over $10 million of his own money on relentless false attacks on Ted’s character, patriotism, and integrity. This is wrong.
I know Ted better than anyone else. I love Ted. He’s a loving husband and father, and he is running a principled, honorable campaign. I am asking you personally to please help Ted defend himself from these shameful attacks.
In this final week, we need to raise an additional $1 million to combat “the nastiest ad of the campaign cycle” on television.
Six days to go. We will win this – with your help and your incredible support.
Just this morning a Houston Chronicle column pointed out David Dewhurst’s “maddening tendency to deny inconvenient facts.” Please contribute what you can right away to help us fight back. Many thanks!

You may have noticed that Heidi Cruz is under attack from those who are desperately counting on a Dewhurst win. Her professional career - admirable and successful - seems to be fair game for the nasty attacks in this campaign. Imagine - Republicans who traditionally stand for hard work and leadership in the community now are so twisted up in blind ideology as to attack a candidate's wife's career.

Early voting continues through Friday at 7:00PM.  Election day is July 31. Please vote.

Village Republican Women Hosts Run-off Candidates Forum

I attended an evening with the Republican candidates in Harris County run-off races Tuesday night hosted by Village Republican Women PAC. The evening was a complete success, with a sold out venue - Lakeside Country Club - and access provided to all of the candidates in attendance.  The main draw was the forum extended to the two Republican U.S. Senate candidates - Ted Cruz and Lt. Gov David Dewhurst.

The other run-off candidates went first and were provided the opportunity to speak, presented in the order in which they will appear on the ballot. Cristi Craddick led, followed by Warren Chisum both running for Railroad Commissioner. Next up was Justice Supreme Court, Place 4 candidate John Devine. David Medina was not present so we moved on to District Judge 129th District Court. Michael Landrum first, then Chris Gillett. Greg Parker spoke as candidate for Railroad Commissioner (unexpired term) and then Paul Bettencourt took the stage to introduce and endorse Barry Smitherman in the race. That was a bit odd, as the other candidates didn't have that kind of intro, but, whatever. Then Smitherman spoke.

Next were the candidates for Harris County sheriff. First up was Harold Heuszel, speaking as a surrogate for Louis Guthrie. This was really bad form. If another candidate was not there, the program moved on. Heuszel was permitted to speak and didn't say why Guthrie didn't attend. That, besides the fact that Heuszel is not a good public speaker didn't exactly please the audience. He received polite applause. The audience also didn't respond to the bit of nastiness inserted into his talk - that of the personnel matter for Pittman - by beginning to mention it and then saying he'd be happy to answer questions on that later. It was the only ugliness of the evening so Louis Guthrie did himself no favors by pulling this stunt. Maybe no one is surprised any more about the Guthrie campaign's tactics. The disgust is apparent, though. Carl Pittman was up next and it was clearly his room. He is an engaging speaker and clearly enjoyed being there. The audience ate it up.

Last was Don Self and then Janet Townsley, candidates for District Judge 152nd District Court.

Ted Cruz went first in the Senate candidate forum part of the program. Moderated by Harris County Commissioner Jack Cagle, Ted Cruz was first. He approached the stage from the front row table he was sitting at with supporters.  Harris County Republican party activist Paul Simpson as also seated at that table. Cruz delivered opening remarks, standing before the audience, then retired to the seat on the stage across from Cagle.  Cagle asked questions that were to be asked of both candidates.  Then Cruz stood and delivered his closing remarks. He received a standing ovation from at least half of the audience when he finished.

David Dewhurst entered from the back of the room and it is unclear if he was late in arriving or if it was a security thing for his current position in office.  Same format for his time on stage. He, too, received a standing ovation by about the same amount of the audience that Cruz did at the conclusion of his closing statement.

The interesting question was the last asked of each Senate candidate. It had to do with the ugly ads being run by each campaign. The candidates were asked what was the worst of such attacks.  Both candidates began in the same way - it is hard to know where to begin. Cruz mentioned that his two young daughters - ages four and one year - were surprised to learn that they are Chinese. He spoke about the lies told in those constant ads shown on television.  Dewhurst spoke of having to spend so much time and money countering the negative ads.  I don't know that many in the audience were too sympathetic to a multi-millionaire spending $10 million or so of his own money. I imagine Ted Cruz would like to have the same financial resources available to him.  Cruz pointed out that his campaign's negative ads concentrated on Dewhurst's record while Dewhurst has gone personal in his attacks. Cruz again spoke of his respect for Dewhurst's service in the Air Force and CIA - resume items Dewhurst mentioned several times in his time on stage.

Clearly this format was a friendly one for Dewhurst.  Cruz shines in the debate format.  Both candidates did well and answered the questions with similar responses.  This race really does come down to if the voter wants to continue with our state's new junior senator being the guy next in line, having served the state since 1999 in office. That makes him the "career" politician, not Ted Cruz. Cruz is a fresh face and has not served in elected office. His service to Texas has been as Solicitor General during the early Rick Perry years.  He has served Texas well before the United States Supreme Court. He is an accomplished debater, which is exactly what the Senate requires as the deliberative body in Congress. He honorably stood with his pledge that he would not run against Tx Attorney General Abbott if Abbott decided to run for re-election instead of the U.S. Senate. 

On the way out of the room, Carl Pittman and his wife, Kristi, said good night to the attendees and shook hands will everyone as they passed by.  I didn't see Mr. Hueszel. 

My Recommendations in Primary Run-Off Races

From the looks of the voter tally coming from Harris County Clerk Stan Stanart's office after the first day of early voting, the turn-out will be quite low, just as predicted in this primary run-off election. What does this mean to you, the Harris County voter? It means you have a golden opportunity to make your voice truly heard. With such low numbers, each vote really does count.

I usually participate in early voting because it is more likely to be hassle free than actual election day voting. My polling place is an elementary school next to the entrance to our subdivision and it is hectic to get in and out of there, to say the least. Finding a parking spot alone is a challenge. Early voting allows me to go at my convenience and then I don't have to worry about making it there later.

So, now that I have encouraged you to go vote, here are some recommendations:

U.S. Senate: Ted Cruz
Railroad Commissioner:  Warren Chisum
Railroad Commissioner (unexpired term) : Barry Smitherman
Justice Supreme Court, Place 4:  David Medina
District Judge 129th District Court :  Michael Landrum
District Judge 152th District Court:  Janet Townsley
Harris County Sheriff:  Carl Pittman

I've written at length about the U.S. Senate race. I fully support Ted Cruz. I want fresh blood, clear debating skills, and a passionate voice representing me in Washington, D.C.  I'm looking long term for the Republican party and future viability.

I've seen Michael Landrum consistently on the campaign trail. He makes all the gatherings and he engages everyone in conversation with a warm smile and handshake. He is a good listener.  He has the experience necessary to do the job.  His disposition will be an asset on the bench.

I've written about the Harris County Sheriff's race, too.  I support Carl Pittman. It is perhaps the nastiest race I've seen, ever, in Harris County and that is saying something. The worst part is that it is Republican on Republican hate. I'm supporting the man who stayed as positive as humanly possible against the good old boys network that simply doesn't want to see the opponent in office. They want someone to be "our" sheriff, according to one blogger and that is a real racist dog whistle. Republicans have fought for too long in the arena of ideas to be dragged down by ugly racist campaigning. If Guthrie's supporters don't think his record of incompetence and poor judgement on the job - and his termination from working in Harris County - won't be the main issue in the November race against the sitting Democratic sheriff, they are delusional.

I encourage you to look at the candidates. Make your choices and go vote. It's important.

Contributions Come to Light in Harris Co Sheriff Campaign

Who exactly is the source of the big money in the Louis Guthrie for Harris County Sheriff campaign? This may come as a surprise to all those holier than thou supporters but it sure looks like a rather unwholesome entrepreneur is a very generous lender and contributor to Mr. Guthrie. As has been pointed out HERE it would appear that Mr. Guthrie is supported by the adult entertainment industry. That would make sense, given the open secret of personal lives on the campaign trail, wouldn't it?

For those so quick to judge the personal life of Carl Pittman, perhaps those same sanctimonious opiners should look a bit more closely into the private life of the candidate they support. It's right there in front of them, apparent at each and every campaign event, even. Don't know what I am talking about? Shame on you, if you are one of these supporters so blindly supporting one over the other on moral grounds.

Now, add to the reality on the ground that of the money trail of campaign contributions to the Guthrie campaign and it all adds up. The argument that Guthrie's bad marks are only professional - as though that is something to be proud of in a personnel file - and not of a personal nature isn't really the whole story. The difference is that the Pittman campaign has been focused on the issues and not on vicious personal attacks to win an election. Sometimes taking the honorable approach in politics isn't the winning strategy.

We all are worse off for that reality.

There has been some less than discreet racism in this primary and that should be honestly acknowledged, too. The good old boys don't like Mr. Pittman's rapport with audiences and his ability to listen to the people. There is a segment of the population that is desperately clinging to the notion that we just need to maintain the good old boys network and let the status quo be. 

That is why we are where we are, my fellow Harris County Republicans.

I have been discouraged, to say the least, at the conduct on display during this last GOP primary cycle. The campaigns have been ugly and street gutter level politics not seen locally in quite some time. What are we becoming?  Democrats? It is the Democratic party that is the master of the politics of personal destruction towards opponents. 

Whether it was the Harris County D.A. race, the U.S. senate race, or this Harris County sheriff race, the level of borderline libel is despicable. Make no mistake - repercussions will be felt for some time down the road. To allow this behavior to continue will only weaken the party.

Some of us have fought for too many years for this to happen.

We know that the pay for play game has completely corrupted the primary voting cycle. We know that some candidates claim that they do not participate in that system yet they certainly do. If a candidate is allowing a political consultant to make the contribution on behalf of the campaign, it is still participating in the system. Saying otherwise to appear pure to a voter is simply deceitful.

I'm supporting Carl Pittman in this race. I take Mr. Pittman's experience into account and his personal performance in service to the community. I do not have to worry that he has so little common sense as to shut down a small business over an alleged theft of $17 by anyone, even his own wife, and then that accusation is found to be false. Maybe that is why the professional infractions of Mr. Guthrie are so heavy on the mind of some voters.  He was fired by the Harris County department and now works in Liberty County. The division he claimed to work for in Liberty County is in dispute as to whether it even really exists. Why would a candidate who feels qualified for the office embellish a professional record?

Yes, personal lives point to the character of an individual. The ugly claims against Mr. Pittman have been explained, disputed and spoken to by his ex-wife and his present wife. His ex-wife has contributed generously to his current campaign. I take them at their word, as I do any two people in a relationship. To proclaim the moral superiority of a candidate usually leads to disappointment. No one is perfect. Is a candidate who cheats on his wife ok? Or is that contempt only reserved if a report is filed - motives be damned?

I look at how a candidate is living today. Is that candidate living an honorable life?  Do I have the impression that the candidate truly wants to serve his/her community?  Do I think the candidate is capable of being a humble servant?

To whom is that candidate beholden? Think about that question as you cast your vote.

Mitt Romney Finds His Voice

"This is an election about the soul of America", Mr. Romney said at a town hall meeting in Bowling Green, Ohio Wednesday. "Demonizing success is so foreign to us as Americans."

Mitt Romney has found his voice on the campaign trail. He has found his message to the voter. While President Obama is busy proclaiming that he didn't really say what he very clearly said last week, Mitt Romney has seized the opportunity and in doing so, has found his mojo.

If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business -- you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

The problem for Barack Obama is that Mitt Romney is a successful business man from the private sector. Unlike President Obama, Romney didn't make his millions from government service.  Even the New York Times points to the most recent polls which show that Americans are most concerned with our economic recovery and clearly do not have confidence that President Obama can do the job.

A particularly poor showing for the president surfaced in Wednesday's CBS poll which even had Mitt Romney over Barack Obama on the economy. 

Mr. Obama's overall approval rating stands at 44 percent, with 46 percent disapproving. His approval rating on the economy is just 39 percent - 55 percent disapprove - and his approval rating on foreign policy is 41 percent. His approval rating on the economy has dropped five points since April.

To counter Romney's rise in the polls, Team Obama continues to produce negative campaign ads. Team Obama again went on the attack using Ann Romney's horse in the latest attack. In order to continue with the message that Mitt Romney is a rich guy out of touch with regular Americans, the smart folks in the Obama campaign thought it was clever to use footage of Ann Romney's horse in the background. Mrs. Romney uses the horse for therapy to deal with her MS, but never mind. She has a horse so she must be too rich to know the problems of Americans, too. As the previous attack on her from Team Obama stated, "she's never worked a day in her life". Remember that?

As predicted, the DNC had to apologize to Mrs. Romney late Wednesday as Americans expressed disgust for attacking the candidate's wife in their desperation to attack the candidate.


At issue is a DNC video featuring footage of Ann Romney’s dancing show horse. The DNC used the horse in mocking way to attack Mitt Romney for not releasing his tax returns (and dancing around the issue).
The DNC introduced the video as the first in a series of videos featuring Mrs. Romney’s horse.
Ann Romney, who trains with the horse as part of her therapy for multiple sclerosis, took offense in an interview with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America, and now the DNC is pulling the video, expressing regret for offending Mrs. Romney.
“Our use of the Romneys’ dressage horse was not meant to offend Mrs. Romney in any way, and we regret it if it did,” DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse tells ABC News. “We were simply making a point about Governor Romney’s failure to give straight answers on a variety of issues in this race. We have no plans to invoke the horse any further to avoid misinterpretation.”

Mitt Romney has taken to the campaign trail with renewed vigor. He has found his voice in defending all the entrepreneurs who make our economy work. From small business owners to mom and pop companies to medium sized corporations, Romney knows about building a business and the sacrifice ordinary Americans make every day to do that work.

The Obama campaign has no choice but to continue on a strategy of only negative campaigning. There is no good record to tout as a reason to re-elect Barack Obama to a second term. It is interesting that the party that claims to be the party that is most supportive of women again jumps ugly on Mrs. Romney.

You know what helps Mitt Romney get fired up on the campaign trail?  Attacks on his wife. His is a true marriage partnership and their respect for each other is clear in every interview they do together. If Mitt Romney continues with his current level of energy and passion in his speeches - giving voice to the struggles of ordinary Americans working for a better life and building our economy - Barack Obama will lose in November.

Let's hope that happens. We can all use a change.

Cruz Stands Firm As Dewhurst Bends To Fit In

Tuesday night a televised debate was held in Dallas between Ted Cruz and David Dewhurst, the two Republican candidates running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen Kay Bailey Hutchison. The primary run-off election day is July 31 and early voting begins Monday and goes through the week.

There are two more meetings feature the two together, that I know of anyway. A debate will be held on Monday, July 23, sponsored by King Street Patriots and Fox 26. And, I will be attending the evening event hosted by Village Republican Women on Tuesday, July 24.

To say that most people are ready for this race to be over is an understatement.

After the debate Tuesday night, the predictable happened. Both campaigns sent out emails claiming victory. Also, the Dewhurst campaign announced the endorsement of former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, who was the number three finisher in the primary election held on May 29. My opinion on that move is that it is from a campaign feeling the heat. Dewhurst is looking frazzled and somewhat desperate at this point.

An interesting article was written by a moderate-leaning author in the Dallas Morning News. He points out what many others have stated after the debate - Dewhurst is trying to out-conservative Ted Cruz and ends up looking inept. It is a good piece and worth reading. The man is a Dewhurst supporter and clearly does not want Ted Cruz to be the next senator from Texas. Here is the interesting part of the article:

But it was frustrating last night watching him contort himself into something that he is not. On the issue of immigration, for example, Dewhurst ran away from his previous support for a guest worker program. That was one of several examples where it seemed like he was trying to twist himself into a right-wing knot, all so he could outmaneuver Cruz in their July 31 runoff.
I found myself wanting Dewhurst to come out swinging and defend his work as lieutenant governor. On the issue of taxes and school funding, for example, I wished he had challenged Cruz and asked whether he thought the state should have ignored the Texas Supreme Court and not found a better way to fund schools?
Instead, Cruz trapped Dewhurst into a debate over whether or not the lieutenant governor had favored a payroll tax to fund schools. Dewhurst spent much of his time explaining that he didn’t favor that tax, when he should focused on the larger point: The Texas Supreme Court had declared the Legislature must find a more constitutional way to fund schools, Dewhurst got involved in helping find an answer alongside other Republicans, and the answer they came up with was a new business tax along with a substantial local property tax cut.
In other words, Dewhurst had a chance to explain how his work as lieutenant governor had been good for Texas and why it has prepared him for the U.S. Senate. But Cruz, ever the skilled debater, rope-a-doped him.
As a result, Cruz came away looking like a guy who knows what he believes, while Dewhurst looked painfully contorted. This leads me back to what I’ve written about in previous posts, and that is I wish center-right Republicans like Dewhurst would just defend their ground, and not try to out-conservative hard-righters like Cruz.

The divide between the two campaigns and their supporters has been evident for some time now.  Cruz is portrayed as a Tea Party right wing extremist nut job with a short temper and stubborn streak.  Dewhurst is portrayed as a squishy moderate who will work with the other side and therefore appease the Democrats. Needless to say, media types are supportive of Dewhurst.

I think it comes down to this: do you want someone who will shake things up and challenge others to stand firm or do you want a standard Republican who is looking to take the next step in his career?  Do you want fresh blood or do you want a good guy who will enjoy being a part of the club?

It's not personal for me. I think both men are good people and both men have served Texas in admirable ways. For me, it is more long term planning. I want someone who will shake it up and demand that senators do their job. I want someone who knows who he is, not someone who will bend a bit too far out of his own skin to fit in.

I support Ted Cruz.

Obama Comes Clean on Wealth Re-Distribution Dreams

Last Friday President Obama traveled to Virginia, a swing state, as he has frequently done to campaign for re-election. In Roanoke, he made a statement that will come back to haunt him for the rest of the campaign. There is a good piece over at Red State today on the mistake President Obama made in his reasoning for higher taxes on the successful in our country. This is the part of his speech that so very clearly shows the stark contrast between his idea of re-distribution of wealth and free enterprise:

There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me — because they want to give something back. They know they didn’t — look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own. You didn’t get there on your own. I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something — there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.

If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business — you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

Clearly, business people around the country are taking offense at such reasoning. If President Obama wishes to soak the rich, this is not breaking news for him to state that position. But, this time he tries to justify that position by stretching his logic to include such items as roads and bridges. These infrastructure items are paid for by all of us. If you fill up a gas tank in an automobile, you pay for road building and bridge repairs. That is what gas taxes are used for in states. To justify raising income taxes on the most successful among us by saying that action will produce more roads and bridges is simply wrong. Clearly a smart man like Barack Obama knows where the funding for infrastructure originates. This is just further proof that it is all about wealth re-distribution.

This campaign is shining a spotlight on the basic belief system of Barack Obama, as wasn't so clear in 2008.  When candidate Barack Obama  made news for answering a question from Joe the Plumber in a spontaneous interaction along the campaign trail in 2008, Obama let the phrase "re-distribute" slip as he spoke of taxing Americans. While that answer made the evening news cycle and was included in GOP ads, it was never given the serious attention it deserved.

As a Republican voter, I am happy to hear such honesty come from President Obama. Finally he is telling us who he is in a very precise way. He is an old school, 1960's style liberal. Though his is a dying breed, he continues the fight. To those in the Obama camp, government is the answer to challenges in our daily lives. It is the basic difference between the two political parties that has been blurred in recent years. Republicans believe that personal responsibility is the key to success. Government has a first requirement to keep our borders secure and protect our citizens. Entitlements were not to secure voting blocks but to provide a safety net for those truly in need - the elderly, the disabled, children.

President Obama insulted a whole lot of hard working, sacrificing men and women last Friday in Roanoke. To him, he was simply talking on the stump. He doesn't even understand his mistake. This is understandable. Barack Obama has never worked in the private sector. He has no personal reference to jobs creation, making a payroll, building a business from a home basement to a building in town. He doesn't understand personal sacrifice in that way.

In order to recover from this economic malaise, our country needs the leadership of an experienced business man. We need someone who understands how jobs are created and how personal wealth is made. We need someone who understands the folly of simply throwing billions of dollars at the economy in hopes of recovery. That is a dream that has failed Mr. Obama.

Obama Sneers at Entrepreneurs and Business

All you ever questioned about President Obama's thoughts on free enterprise, capitalism and small business creation has been answered, loud and clear. In his latest kerfuffle on the campaign trail, Barack Obama declared that "If you've got a business --- you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen."  Take that, business owners.

Obama was trying to make the point, I think, that the evil Republicans don't want to do anything but cut taxes on wealthy people and that means they don't want good roads or police officers on the streets or clean water or a working highway system.  See, shipping trucks have to drive products on roads and teachers have to provide education so that a student has the knowledge needed to work and Republicans are evil. Especially Mitt Romney, who is very successful and also very wealthy.

Never mind that Barack Obama has absolutely no work experience in the private sector. At all.

Here is some response from those on the ground trying to do the work that Barack Obama has never done in his adult life.

National Federation of Independent Business’   statement:

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 16, 2012 — The following statement is the response from NFIB President and CEO Dan Danner to President Obama’s declaration over the weekend that “If you’ve got a business — you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.”
“What a disappointment to hear President Obama’s revealing comments challenging the significance of America’s entrepreneurs.
“His unfortunate remarks over the weekend show an utter lack of understanding and appreciation for the people who take a huge personal risk and work endless hours to start a business and create jobs.
“I’m sure every small-business owner who took a second mortgage on their home, maxed out their credit cards or borrowed money from their own retirement savings to start their business disagrees strongly with President Obama’s claim. They know that hard work does matter.
“Every small business is not indebted to the government or some other benefactor. If anything, small businesses are historically an economic and job-creating powerhouse in spite of the government.”

President Obama doesn't have a clear understanding that the government does not create jobs. People create jobs. Government can provide an atmosphere friendly to job creation - responsible regulations, common sense tax reforms, and so on. President Obama has never created a business. He has never been responsible for payroll. He has not lived a life of personal sacrifice to grow a business in his community.

This economic recession has the worst recovery on record. It is the slowest recovery of any recession since the Great Depression. This president has surrounded himself with those who have book knowledge of the economy and little in real life experience. When he does form a committee for advice from those in the business community, he turns around and ignores the advice presented to him.

President Obama holds out the government as the creator of the Internet and all the jobs that have come with its expansion. Well, the Internet was created through the Defense Department which is the very department that Barack Obama continues to whittle down at every opportunity.

President Obama holds out the space program created by President Kennedy as a shining example of taxpayer investment into a government sponsored job creator. Unfortunately Barack Obama shut down the moon program.

President Obama has a disturbing record of rewarding his big bucks campaign contributors with plum mega million stimulus spending money. He practices crony capitalism. You may remember candidate Barack Obama spoke negatively of such practices in 2008.  That was then, this is now.

With no experience in private enterprise, President Obama offers straw men in his campaign stump speeches to paint Republicans and Mitt Romney as the bad guys. This is not the remedy Americans and business owners and job creators need to pursue our economic recovery.

We need a real business man in the White House to turn this economy around, to accelerate the recovery. Americans need to retire Barack Obama.

Cruz Campaign Responds to Vicious Dewhurst Attack

This is an email I received today from the David Dewhurst for U.S. Senate campaign:

Ted Cruz was fined the maximum penalty by the U.S. Senate Ethics Commission for breaking the law and failing to submit his Personal Financial Disclosure. Now, Texans are learning what Cruz was hiding. Ted Cruz is representing Robert Mericle, a child-exploiting, judge-bribing felon of the infamous “Kids for Cash” scandal

A video was attached and a button to share it on Facebook. Then it continued:

Is there anybody Ted Cruz won’t represent if the price is right? Mericle was involved in a bribery scheme that paid judges to sentence thousands of children to his private jails. After Mericle pleaded guilty, Ted Cruz chose to represent him and argue in court that he shouldn’t be required to pay for his scandalous and reprehensible actions. Not only was Ted Cruz hiding in his disclosure that he was still feeding from the trough of Chinese intellectual property thieves, he was hiding his work for an architect behind one of the worst offenses of judicial malpractice in American history. Every parent in Texas should be appalled that Ted Cruz would choose profit over principle. A shameless profiteer who would not have the best interest of our children in mind is not worthy of office. Sincerely, Megan Hanson Dewhurst for Texas

So we know that Team Dewhurst is feeling the pressure that comes with creeping desperation. Recently, one poll was released showing Ted Cruz up over Dewhurst by 9 points. The Dewhurst folks denied the importance of that poll as it was, in fact, a Cruz campaign internal poll. But, just a few days later, two more polls came out with much the same results. One polling company in particular - PPP - is a liberal leaning polling company. This camapaign was nasty enough without this latest fuel to the fire. The header to the email was: Texas Parents Beware! I'm not kidding. In response to this disgusting email, the Ted Cruz campaign offers the following:

Quick Facts: 1. Ted had NO INVOLVEMENT WHATSOEVER with any criminal proceedings involving Robert Mericle or the Pennsylvania prison scandal. 2. Ted has always been completely transparent about his clients—Mericle has been listed on Ted’s public disclosures FOR OVER A YEAR, since May 2011. 3. The only matter Ted worked on was a civil appeal of a breach of contract case between Robert Mericle and a private insurance company, NOT THE MATTERS DEWHURST CLAIMS. SUMMARY David Dewhurst’s latest attack is yet another shameless distortion of the facts. At no time has Ted ever represented construction company owner Robert Mericle in either the criminal or the civil ligation stemming from the alleged misconduct. Ted has only represented this individual, Robert Mericle, in litigation with a private insurance company. On the same day that two independent polls verified that Dewhurst is losing the runoff, he amplified his consistent pattern of trying to deceive Texas voters about his own record and Ted Cruz. Dewhurst lied about Ted on China and amnesty – and then he covered up his own previous support for amnesty for everyone “here today illegally” by directing state employees to delete his amnesty speech from his official, taxpayer-funded website. After spending over $13 million in false attacks on Ted, Dewhurst has lost all credibility. His latest attack is falsely attempting to tie Ted to Robert Mericle’s involvement in a Pennsylvania juvenile detention facility scandal. But Ted’s legal work had nothing to do with the underlying criminal scandal; instead, he simply worked on a civil appeal between Mericle and an insurance company.

Check out the web page for yourself and learn the truth. Early voting begins in seven (7) days. I encourage you to vote for Ted Cruz. Can't make the early voting days next week? Then go on election day, July 31. Just vote, fellow Texans. It's important.

What Happened?

What happened to the candidate that said if you don't have a record to run on, you try to scare voters to run away from the other candidate? Just one of many statements declared by then candidate Barack Obama in 2008 that have now become his own strategy in 2012, given his failed record in office.

Mitt Romney Scores Big Win in Speech to NAACP

Mitt Romney, Republican candidate for President, accepted an invitation to speak to the NAACP convention being held in Houston this week. To say that he smashed a couple of stereotypes as he made that speech is an understatement. Though promoted in the local media as a "surprise" that Romney accepted the invitation to speak, as a NAACP vice president did on a local Sunday morning show, that spin won't work. Not only is it not a surprise to anyone willing to honestly look at the record of Mitt Romney in public office and private life, it should also be noted that his father, former Michigan governor and conservative activist, marched for civil rights back in his day. So much for that feign of surprise that Romney isn't some kind of racist.

Mitt Romney comes out the victor in this political tussle. He accepted the invitation to speak - something that Barack Obama did not do - and walked on stage in full confidence mode. He was met with a standing ovation from the crowd, to their credit. There were many times that spontaneous applause broke out during the speech. There were a couple of times that boos were heard, too. One long, sustained boo from the crowd happened when Romney dared to tell the truth - that Obamacare is a job killer and he will repeal it if he is elected. Romney waited for the boos to stop and then went off teleprompter and explained the follies of Obamacare from the perspective of job creators. That is something Barack Obama is incapable of doing and would not do anyway. Mitt Romney knocked it out of the auditorium with his words on education reform. The crowd clearly approved of his message. He spoke of the need to put education dollars to follow the student, not to simply do to the schools. He spoke of the need for expansion of charter schools and school choice. That is a clear winner with those who are raising children in poor and urban areas. The full transcript from Romney's speech can be found HERE.

I am running for president because I know that my policies and vision will help hundreds of millions of middle class Americans of all races, will lift people from poverty, and will help prevent people from becoming poor. My campaign is about helping the people who need help. The course the President has set has not done that — and will not do that. My course will. When President Obama called to congratulate me on becoming the presumptive Republican nominee, he said that he, “looked forward to an important and healthy debate about America’s future.” To date, I’m afraid that his campaign has taken a different course than that. But, in campaigns at their best, voters can expect a clear choice, and candidates can expect a fair hearing — only more so from a venerable organization like this one. So, it is that healthy debate about the course of the nation that I want to discuss with you today. If someone had told us in the 1950s or 1960s that a black citizen would serve as the forty-fourth president, we would have been proud and many would have been surprised. Picturing that day, we might have assumed that the American presidency would be the very last door of opportunity to be opened. Before that came to pass, every other barrier on the path to equal opportunity would surely have come down. Of course, it hasn’t happened quite that way. Many barriers remain. Old inequities persist. In some ways, the challenges are even more complicated than before. And across America -- and even within your own ranks -- there are serious, honest debates about the way forward. If equal opportunity in America were an accomplished fact, then a chronically bad economy would be equally bad for everyone. Instead, it’s worse for African Americans in almost every way. The unemployment rate, the duration of unemployment, average income, and median family wealth are all worse for the black community. In June, while the overall unemployment rate remained stuck at 8.2 percent, the unemployment rate for African Americans actually went up, from 13.6 percent to 14.4 percent. Americans of every background are asking when this economy will finally recover — and you, in particular, are entitled to an answer. If equal opportunity in America were an accomplished fact, black families could send their sons and daughters to public schools that truly offer the hope of a better life. Instead, for generations, the African-American community has been waiting and waiting for that promise to be kept. Today, black children are 17 percent of students nationwide — but they are 42 percent of the students in our worst-performing schools. Our society sends them into mediocre schools and expects them to perform with excellence, and that is not fair. Frederick Douglass observed that, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” Yet, instead of preparing these children for life, too many schools set them up for failure. Everyone in this room knows that we owe them better than that. The path of inequality often leads to lost opportunity. College, graduate school, and first jobs should be milestones marking the passage from childhood to adulthood. But for too many disadvantaged young people, these goals seem unattainable — and their lives take a tragic turn. Many live in neighborhoods filled with violence and fear, and empty of opportunity. Their impatience for real change is understandable. They are entitled to feel that life in America should be better than this. They are told even now to wait for improvements in our economy and in our schools, but it seems to me that these Americans have waited long enough. The point is that when decades of the same promises keep producing the same failures, then it’s reasonable to rethink our approach — and consider a new plan.

The proof that this section of Romney's speech was particularly affective is that Obama surrogate Joe Biden made a point of saying that education policy is tucked far away on the back burner for the Romney campaign, in his speech Thursday morning to the NAACP. The proof of the victory Romney scored in his very acceptance of this invitation was underscored in the desperate attempt of all of the media outlets trying to maintain the Obama narrative that Romney is out of touch and of course, the narrative that Republicans are racists. All media, both local here in Houston and nationally, played the part of the speech when Romney was solidly booed over his words on Obamacare as the lead of their reports on the convention speech. It was the quick and easy way to report on the event. Romney also received a standing ovation as he left the stage. He remained strong in his positions and didn't pander to the crowd. He has found a second wind in his campaign, it appears, and he has a new confidence about him. This plays well to all audiences. There was never any misconception that Romney would find a friendly audience ready to hang on his every word. There was never any hope that for once the Democratic black voter would consider a Republican candidate for President. It's not going to happen. It's certainly not going to happen with a black candidate for president. It is a shame that this current president shows this loyal group nothing but disrespect by not accepting their invitation to appear before them since he received their votes in 2008 yet goes next week to Austin to do a fundraiser for his re-election campaign. He takes their support for granted and they reward him. Old habits die hard. The party that counted on bringing generations of poor Americans under the patronship of government programs, thus guaranteeing a consistent voting block, preys on this dependence. They use scare tactics and they use blind loyalty to their benefit. Plus, black unemployment is almost double that of any other group. Where exactly are the rewards for this loyalty? Mitt Romney is a winner. He is a leader. He is not afraid to face opposition. Remember, he worked with a legislature in Massachusetts that was overwhelmingly Democratic in his days as governor, which prepared him for this day. Mitt Romney won by simply showing up.

RHCIA Holds GOP Debate for Harris Co Sheriff

Tuesday night the Republican Hispanic Citizens in Action held a forum for the two GOP candidates in a run-off for Harris County sheriff.  This event was billed as the "Epic Battle of the Year".

   I enjoyed meeting the father of U.S.Senate candidate Ted Cruz. He is a sincere and humble man with a strong fighting spirit. A pastor, he blessed the meeting with prayer. He is a long time conservative activist in Republican politics. He spoke of his work in the Reagan campaign and of his habit of talking about politics at the family dinner table when Ted was a boy.

   R.W. Bray was introduced to the audience and allowed to speak, too. He is the President of Young Republicans of Houston. He is running for Tx Senate, District 6. Currently in Democratic control, Bray wants to bring the conservative message to his district. He is a Hurricane Katrina survivor and made Houston his home after that storm. Should he be successful, Bray would be the first black Republican in the Texas senate seat.

   Though this event was billed as an epic battle, what it was was a one-sided deliberate attack on candidate Carl Pittman. That is the only conclusion I come to after the experience. I don't mind that the audience was maybe 90% filled with supporters of Louis Guthrie. That can happen at a political meeting. What I did mind was that both campaigns agreed to the ground rules - one of which was to not go negative on the other candidate.

   I am not working with either campaign. I am, however, a supporter of Carl Pittman.

   Jack Cagle was the moderator and I think he did a fair job of it. He remained impartial and that was appreciated.

  An interesting exchange occurred as Cagle asked the candidates if they would like to comment on a recent story about the race in the Houston Chronicle. Pittman said he didn't hold the Chronicle in particularly high regard but supports the First Amendment and all that that entails. Guthrie said that the newspaper is run by "Commie hippies". Classy, right? He shows a definite lack of a verbal filter, certainly in public.


   The forum ended on a sour note. Unless you were a devout Guthrie follower, which many were, it can't be denied that Guthrie went into good ole boy mode to yuk it up. Some folks like that system of government, I understand. Those voting in the GOP primary in the D.A. race proved that. I cannot remember the last time I left a political event feeling as I did after this one. As I left, I went up to a member of the group who put forth the ground rules to the campaign and also asked the last four questions - those described as "surprise" questions. When Mr. Guthrie went negative in his closing remarks, she didn't call him on it and that was unfortunate, to say the least. She told me and another audience member that she didn't know he would do that and was surprised. We both told her she should have spoken up, for the audience's sake and for transparency.

   Fair is fair.

   That aside, the final remarks came after the final four "surprise" questions, which were clearly written by the Guthrie campaign. All four had to do with the resume of Mr. Guthrie and it was one-sided, to say the least. Also, the specifics of the questions had little to do with the job both seek. In the final remarks, Carl Pittman went first. He asked for support and he spoke of the importance of knowing the Constitution and of public safety being the top priority. He didn't attack his opponent. Mr. Guthrie started off his final remarks by declaring that there are differences between the two - some visible, some not. Mr. Guthrie is white and Mr. Pittman is black. Classy, right? It plays into the talk on the campaign trail of the racism expressed in hushed tones. Truly disappointing. Guthrie went on to state that he has only contributed to Republican candidates in his life and attacked Pittman at this point again. And he boasted of not being endorsed in the primary by the Houston Chronicle, as Mr. Pittman was the candidate the newspaper endorsed. What Mr. Guthrie didn't mention is that he sought the endorsement as did the others running in the primary. Mr. Pittman did not bring up the endorsement as he spoke, I might add.

   This is one nasty political battle. Both candidates have a past. Mr. Pittman has one incident in his professional folder. It was of a personal nature and has been dispelled publicly. Mr. Pittman is still employed with the Harris County Sheriff Department.  Mr. Guthrie cannot make that claim. There are many incidents, all of a professional nature. His last incident, for which he was fired, is still under appeal. His type of campaign is very much the kind of the past. We all deserve better.

   I was going to lay low about this race but after tonight's performances, I have decided to be silent no more. More to come on this campaign later. I'm still cooling off.

RNC Launches Jobs Outsourced by Obamanomics Website

The Republican National Committee (RNC) launched a new website today which puts into map form the "stimulus" monies that have gone overseas, though we as taxpayers were promised this money would create millions of American jobs here.

Over his four years in office, Obama promised that he would focus on creating "jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced." However, as he racked up trillions in new debt, billions of dollars did go to create jobs that were outsourced or spent overseas. Whether it is electric cars made in Finland or solar panels in Mexico, taxpayers would be astonished to learn that their hard earned money went abroad for jobs that weren't created in the United States.

The interactive map can be found HERE

Back in October, 2008, then candidate Barack Obama said the following:

"And I will invest $15 billion a year in renewable sources of energy to create five million new energy jobs over the next decade - jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced; jobs building solar panels and wind turbines and a new electricity grid; jobs that will help us eliminate the oil we import from the Middle East in ten years and help save the planet in the bargain. That's how America can lead again."

How confident Barack Obama was in his ideas of how to get our failing economy back on track. He thought all he had to do was blame George W. Bush and the Republicans for everything and leave it all to the Democratically controlled Congress to pass laws from their grand ideas and he would implement them. It was the last gasp of ultra liberal 1960's ideology. Instead, he allowed billions to be wasted in the name of job creation. Barack Obama does not understand economics and he certainly does not understand job creation. We will be paying for Barack Obama's arrogance and ignorance for quite some time.

Where Are the Jobs, Mr. President?

With the disappointing jobs report for the month of June reported Friday morning, along came the 41st repeat of the standard response coming out of the White House, including from President Obama himself: we can't pay much attention to one report's statistics. Except he said it for the 41st time. While the president is unable to admit a pattern of continuing failure, the American voter is painfully aware of the despair and frustration in the atmosphere.

Here is the response from RNC Chairman Reince Priebus: This president never really left the campaign trail that led to his current position. He outsourced the economy recovery to his Democratically controlled Congress in 2009 and 2010. Instead of focusing on economic recovery, he and his Democratic majority rammed through a new entitlement - Obamacare - on a completely one-sided partisan vote. Never before has a new entitlement been voted into place with the votes of only one party. This legislation remains vastly unpopular with the majority of Americans yet we are told to move on.

As he continues on with his record breaking amount of campaign fundraisers and his non-stop traveling across the swing states at taxpayer expense, the country languishes in a malaise not seen since the Carter administration. It is the price we pay for the election of a man not up to the job. It is the price we pay for a man more concerned with his own ego and legacy than with the people for whom he serves.

Happy Birthday, America!

A good description of this day from History.com:

In June 1776, representatives of the 13 colonies then fighting in the revolutionary struggle weighed a resolution that would declare their independence from Great Britain. On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later its delegates adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 until the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence.

Those early colonists calling for complete independence were considered extremists. As time went on, however, more and more understood the need for it. A committee of five was formed to draft the declaration.

Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York were those men on the committee.

On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of Lee's resolution for independence in a near-unanimous vote (the New York delegation abstained, but later voted affirmatively). On that day, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2 "will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival" and that the celebration should include "Pomp and Parade...Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other." On July 4th, the Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which had been written largely by Jefferson. Though the vote for actual independence took place on July 2nd, from then on the 4th became the day that was celebrated as the birth of American independence.

Those celebrations proclaimed appropriate by John Adams are still a part of our modern life.

John Adams believed that July 2nd was the correct date on which to celebrate the birth of American independence, and would reportedly turn down invitations to appear at July 4th events in protest. Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826--the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

Happy Birthday, America!

A Message from Texas Federation of Republican Women

Proud to know and work with all the women in the Texas Federation of Republican Women.



We win when we work together!

SCOTUS Confirms: A Penalty Is A Tax

It is, in fact, a tax.

Cruz Fights for Full Repeal of Obamacare in Tx Senate Race

U.S. Senate candidate Ted Cruz opened his remarks on his bloggers conference call Thursday afternoon with, "It's a bad day for liberty".

Ted Cruz believes that the Supreme Court of the United States rewrote Obamacare to turn it into law with the clarification that the legislation is not a mandate for individual coverage but a tax. Chief Justice Roberts cast the deciding vote which left many conservatives scratching their heads. Instead, it is easy to understand what Roberts did. He said that his ruling was not an affirmation that the legislation was right but that if voters didn't agree with it, they should vote in other representatives.

I completely agree. As Ted Cruz pointed out during the conference call, this legislation brings into sharp focus the need for strong conservative Republican victories in November. Not only do we need to oust Barack Obama but the U.S. Senate must go back into GOP control. And, the House must remain in GOP control. Cruz says the decision "underscores the stakes in the Senate race", as the Senate will be the battleground for repealing the law.

Calling Lt Governor David Dewhurst a "good and decent man", he went on to call him a conciliator."Now is not the time for conciliation". He said there will be much pressure in the Senate to be "reasonable" to strike a compromise. Dewhurst would "run not walk to the middle" to strike a compromise. "I intend to fight every word of Obamacare".

Cruz is "not a fan of repeal and replace" because those are "weinie words" to wiggle out of total repeal of the entire bill. He said it is the natural instinct of the GOP to go wobbly and work on compromise.

Instead, Cruz offers some solutions that would empower patients and not government bureaucrats. He suggests health savings accounts and also to de-link health insurance from employment. An employee who loses his/her job should not also lose health insurance coverage.

This ruling by the Supreme Court does in fact draw our attention to the importance of the U.S. Senate races. In Texas, the choice is clear. Do you want a go along to get along Republican or do you want a Republican who has a record for fighting the good fight?

I choose Ted Cruz.

Obamacare Mandate Survives As Tax in SCOTUS Ruling

The whole ruling on health care can be read HERE:

Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the politically left members of the Supreme Court of the U.S. Anthony Kennedy sided with the conservative leaning members of the Supreme Court. According to Chief Justice Roberts, the main focus of Obamacare is not the mandate but the tax it imposes. He called it not a mandate but a tax.

Here is President Obama proclaiming that Obamacare is not a tax:



Here's the irony - then Senator Barack Obama was a loyal member jumping on the bandwagon in the Senate to deny John Roberts a spot on the Supreme Court, much less as Chief Justice. The Democrats were so very fond of complaining that Roberts was too extreme, a right wing extremist, an ideologue. I imagine that the ideologue-in-chief feels differently about John Roberts today.

From SCOTUSblog:

In Plain English: The Affordable Care Act, including its individual mandate that virtually all Americans buy health insurance, is constitutional. There were not five votes to uphold it on the ground that Congress could use its power to regulate commerce between the states to require everyone to buy health insurance. However, five Justices agreed that the penalty that someone must pay if he refuses to buy insurance is a kind of tax that Congress can impose using its taxing power. That is all that matters. Because the mandate survives, the Court did not need to decide what other parts of the statute were constitutional, except for a provision that required states to comply with new eligibility requirements for Medicaid or risk losing their funding. On that question, the Court held that the provision is constitutional as long as states would only lose new funds if they didn't comply with the new requirements, rather than all of their funding.

You can read the ruling on the Medicaid part of the funding for the bill here. The essence of the ruling is that the states can, in fact, opt out of lowering requirements for more people to be able to meet state requirements for Medicaid benefits. The states will not lose federal funding, as threatened in the Obamacare legislation. That is in contrast to a ruling made Monday in the immigration reform legislation before the court from the state of Arizona. After that ruling, which upheld the core component that law enforcement can ask for identification verification of residence, President Obama firmly launched his middle finger to Arizona and instructed his Homeland Security Department to end federal cooperation on database information with the state. That's right - the President of the United States who is charged with keeping our borders secure and its citizens safe, told a state that it is on its own.

According to a reporter inside the room, as the ruling was read by Chief Justice Roberts, he said that the judgement is not on the correctness of the legislation but that if citizens didn't agree with it, they should elect new legislators. I agree. The races for the seats in the U.S. Senate are even more important today than they were yesterday.

Dept of Homeland Security Abandons Arizona

Immediately following the announcement of the Supreme Court's decision Monday to strike down most of the immigration law passed by the State of Arizona but to not rule against the core component - that of the ability of law enforcement to ask for proof of legal residence if stopped for a suspected violation - the government of the United States let loose with a bit of a temper tantrum and slapped the State of Arizona. There is no other description of the action. The government agency tasked with protected our country decided to no longer cooperate with Arizona with enforcing its security measures. No more use of federal databases to check on potential illegal immigrants for Arizona.

Sorry, Arizona. You are on your own. This administration has yet again shown its spite towards a state unwilling to blindly accept criticism from the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today rescinded agreements that allowed seven Arizona law enforcement agencies to check the immigration status of suspected illegal immigrants, further hindering the state’s ability to enforce SB1070 following the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling today.

DHS announced that it was terminating its 287(g) task force agreements with the Arizona Department of Public Safety; the Florence, Mesa and Phoenix police departments; and the Pima, Pinal and Yavapai county sheriff’s offices. Those were the only agencies left in Arizona that had street-level 287(g) agreements.

Several Arizona police agencies also have 287(g) agreements for their jails, which allow agencies to check the immigration status of anyone booked into jail. Those agreements will remain in place, according to DHS.

In addition to the revocation of the 287(g) agreements, DHS announced that its agents would not respond to the scene of calls from Arizona law enforcement officers who want the agency to take custody of illegal immigrants, unless those suspects met the criteria it established for its enforcement priorities. DHS said its prioritizes illegal immigrants who are convicted criminals, deportees who have returned to the United States, and people who have recently crossed the border illegally.

This little spiteful temper tantrum is quite interesting, given the fact that the decision was unanimous in the Supreme Court's ruling that the provision of checking proof of residence would be kept for now and sent back to the lower court for review. Even the most liberal Justices voted with the others in that action. As this was the centerpiece of the case, it is a major public blow to the Obama administration.

By a vote of 8-0--Justice Elena Kagan recused herself--the U.S. Supreme Court this morning upheld what the New York Times calls the "most controversial provision" of Arizona's disputed immigration law. But in a decision by Justice Anthony Kennedy in Arizona v. U.S., the court struck down three other provisions of the law.

Most importantly in all this legal wrangling is the light shined on a liberal myth - that the Supreme Court is a conservative activist institution with the balance favoring those Justices appointed by a Republican president.

Some powers do belong exclusively to the federal government, and control of citizenship and the borders is among them. But if Congress wanted to prevent states from using their own resources to check immigration status, it could. It never did so. The Administration was in essence asserting that because it didn't want to carry out Congress's immigration wishes, no state should be allowed to do so either. Every Justice rightly rejected this remarkable claim.

One lesson of this case is that the Roberts Court does not practice the radical activism of liberal myth. Its very careful jurisprudence is aimed at protecting the U.S. federalist system, in which states and the federal government share sovereignty and both possess rights that the other is bound to honor.
Some powers do belong exclusively to the federal government, and control of citizenship and the borders is among them. But if Congress wanted to prevent states from using their own resources to check immigration status, it could. It never did so. The Administration was in essence asserting that because it didn't want to carry out Congress's immigration wishes, no state should be allowed to do so either. Every Justice rightly rejected this remarkable claim.

One lesson of this case is that the Roberts Court does not practice the radical activism of liberal myth. Its very careful jurisprudence is aimed at protecting the U.S. federalist system, in which states and the federal government share sovereignty and both possess rights that the other is bound to honor.

The protection of America's borders and its residents is the sole responsibility of the federal government. The Obama administration has been most brazen in its flagrant power grabs against individual states. President Obama came into office promising to be the most transparent of presidents as well as ending the practice of using executive order to govern. He continues to go around the laws passed by Congress in a blatent disregard of this campaign promise.

President Obama and his administration believe he is King, not President of the United States.

Thoughts on the Premiere Episode of HBO's "The Newsroom"

I admit it. Down deep inside this completely cynical exterior beats the heart of an eternal optimist. In the reality of the political world it is best to keep the cynicism up front and center yourself around that. In real life, though, remaining optimistic can be the difference in whether or not you can get out of bed in the morning.

So, with some feeling of anticipation, I taped Sunday night's premiere episode of HBO's "The Newsroom". I normally enjoy this kind of show. Though this one is fiction, I like a behind-the-scenes story. I'm a process oriented person and I am fascinated about the decision making process of fast paced work environments.

I have now watched the show and I have very mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I liked the fast pace, the quick verbal exchanges between the characters, the clever dialogue, the facade that this could be a real newsroom.

I am really pissed off about the fact that the story being presented in this episode was the Deepwater Horizon explosion. It was complete exploitation of a tragic event with humans still working to get back to a normal way of life. How dare the liberal yahoos in Hollywood exploit the deaths of eleven people on an oil drilling rig while attempting to score political ideological points.

This tragedy is still too raw in the minds of many people. Real people are dealing with this, not just large corporations and hot shot executives who received the publicity.

Full disclosure: my husband is an engineer on oil drilling rigs. He commissioned the sister rig of the Deepwater Horizon as the two were built in South Korea. The story hits way too close to home for me.

The Newsroom attempts to show characters with differing political views which seep into the reporting of the news stories. We know, as news show viewers that this is a real problem in journalism today. The premise of this show is to present a newsroom that is pursuing the real story, presented without political comment or opinions.

I will have to wait until I watch the next episode before I decide if I will continue to watch this show. I want to like it. I can't, however, make a reasoned judgement given the subject matter of the storyline from the first episode. I'm only human.

Dewhurst Doubles Down on Misleading Ads Against Cruz

The Dewhurst for Senate campaign has made the decision to double down on the Cruz for Senate campaign with the claims that Cruz is unfit for the job because he was involved with a case, through his employment with a large international law firm, at the appellate level dealing with copyright infringement and foreign companies. One company in particular, a Chinese owned company, is the favored bad guy in the Dewhurst ads. No mention is made of the Dubai company that was also involved. Why is that?

It is particularly offensive that the Dewhurst supporters have taken to referring to Ted Cruz as "Red Ted". That sort of ignorance is even disputed by Dewhurst himself. Do Dewhurst supporters really think that Ted Cruz is a Communist? Or are they so blinded by their support of the candidate that they are willing to appear as intellectually stunted lemmings?

Here is what the Texas Tribune, no friend to conservatives, says in fact checking the negative ads:

But the “Red Ted” label, designed to conjure up negative and shady images of Cruz, is a stretch. While Cruz could have refused to work on the case, the notion that doing so makes him a Communist sympathizer is groundless and inflammatory. Dewhurst himself said questioning Cruz's political allegiance was "ridiculous."

Cruz’s firm was retained by the company, and Cruz was called on to assist in the case, so the Dewhurst campaign’s description of him as a “legal mercenary” is also off base.

The verdict was upheld on appeal, but Cruz was not among the lawyers doing the arguing part of it, and did not appear in court. Dewhurst has referred to Cruz as "lead counsel" in the case. The technical term for Cruz's role is "counsel of record." According to legal definitions listed on the Cornell Law School website and others, lawyers who act as counsel of record are responsible for the representation of the client, regardless of whether they ever appear in a courtroom on behalf of that client. In an interview, Cruz said he has never appeared in any courtroom in regard to this case. They are also required to sign legal documents and typically cannot be removed as counsel of record without court action.

The evidence for calling the case a “China vs. America” affair is not clear cut.

Linglong wasn’t involved in the initial conspiracy to undercut Fishman’s business. Sam Vance, one of Fishman’s most trusted American employees, initiated the damage when he encouraged Fishman’s customers to cut Fishman out of the deal and buy straight from the manufacturer (based out of China), according to the lawsuit.

Vance later went on to mastermind the conspiracy to sell the tire blueprints, court documents indicate. When Fishman found out his designs had been stolen and filed suit, Al-Dobowi, the Dubai-based tire distributor, was the most noted defendant, named 172 times in the court document.

In comparison, Linglong was mentioned 49 times — yet was the only conspirator mentioned in the Dewhurst attacks.

Also, Fishman’s lawyer, August Matteis, said he had no evidence that Linglong was connected to the Chinese government. The Dewhurst campaign said Linglong was tied to Communist-led government before market reforms were introduced in the 1970s, and has used those ties to gain unfair trade advantages.

Cruz didn’t play first chair in the appeal of this lawsuit, but he has taken the lead on other international patent infringement cases, successfully arguing a $5 million intellectual theft case before the Supreme Court against a Chinese company last year.

So, the sitting Lt. Gov of the state of Texas is running a deliberately misleading political ad against his challenger which is chock full of inaccuracies, even by standards of with no dog in the hunt. That speaks to a man's character, doesn't it? Or is blind ambition and a strong sense of entitlement a combination too powerful to resist?