Wednesday, May 30, 2012

A CALL TO ACTION--A Message from Tea Party Patriots

This week:

Insisting Republican Senators Uphold American Values and Interests by OPPOSING LOST ( the Law of the Sea Treaty)!

PASSION: This treaty is designed to get more money from the U.S. to fund Left-wing globalist projects which are rarely in the interest of the United States. The proposed treaty also nibbles away at U.S. sovereignty which now extends to the outer edge of the Continental shelf. Potential revenues from mining resources in the seabed may run to trillions of dollars. Why should we give control of this area, important to us for both financial and security reasons, to the United Nations, the vast majority of whose members are openly hostile to us and to our interests?

ACTION: Today's passion to action focuses on those Senators who have not signed the letter from Senator Inhofe to Majority Leader Harry Reid, declaring their opposition to the LOST Treaty. We are demanding that they sign immediately. Start calling now and don’t stop until they do. Go team: let’s melt the phone lines to our senators’ offices.


CCTA Watchdog Report on the Second Craven County Budget Workshop

May 30, 2012

The second almost full day session of work on the budget was held on Tuesday May 29, 2012. As I did on the first session, I will give you my take on the budget and various subjects discussed that I feel all of our members will be interested in. There will be another session on Monday 4 June 12 at 1:00 pm in the County Administrative Building at the corner of Broad and Craven Streets. I hope some of you will attend. After this meeting, the public hearing will be held on the budget in the same room at 7:00 pm. If you find something in this report you would like to address with the Board of Commissioners, PLEASE BE THERE!

You can find the budget on line at http://www.cravencounty.com/admin/documents/2012/FY2013_ProposedBudget_May-21-2012.pdf.

Before the meeting, I was challenged on my belief that the county budget is actually growing in comparison with last years. My point is that if the budget grows by the same amount in the coming year as it did in the past year, the growth rate will be about 5%. The Commissioners then proceeded to validate my concerns by gathering a consensus that $25,000 should be added to the budget for The Coastal Women's shelter, $10,000 for RCS' Homeless Shelter (a reduction to half of last year's as a message that RCS should look for other funding for their shelter), and Hwy 70 and Hwy 17 lobbying groups each got $25,000 added to the budget (a $5,000 cut for Hwy 17), and Merci Clinic got $10,000. The Red Cross got $4,000. The Commissioners requested that the directors of Promise Place and Structured Day Reporting come before them with more details about their requests. They also wanted more information about the City of New Bern's request for $24,000 to hire an advertising agency to develop a "brand" to promote our area. They want the county to pay to hire North Star, a company based in Nashville that does this sort of work. It seems to me that New Bern is on a big spending spree and should leave the county out of it. The Commissioners asked for more information.


The Commissioners are trying to reduce the budget for Special Appropriations, but they look at a request from an agency or organization and discuss the good work they do and say that if they don't get taxpayer support, the county would have to take over the work, or citizens would have to do without it. I believe they should first consider that charity is not a legitimate function of government. Should the service provided by this organization be paid for by the government or by the concerned citizens directly? Take the RCS Homeless Shelter mentioned above as an example. 26 churches originally started this program. There are over 300 churches in Craven County and some of the original member churches no longer contribute. RCS stands for Religious Christian Services. More churches have built onto their church buildings than participate in this very worthy charity. That's because in the past it has been easier to convince 7 commissioners to give them taxpayer money than to get off their duffs and get church goers to support them. That appears to have changed with the current commissioners. A BRAC lobbing group asked for $7,500 without indicating how it was to be spent and, so far, have received nothing. Swiss Bear has also, so far, received nothing. The town of Havelock made an off the wall request for $440,019 (No, that is not a typo!). They got nothing.


If commissioners do believe that an organization performs a legitimate function of government, they should then look at the specifics of the request like the organization's budget and what specifically they intend to do with the taxpayer money. Most of these requests are not accompanied by such supporting documentation. The organization merely gives the Commissioners a wish list and quotes what good work they do. THAT IS NOT ENOUGH! County staff is beginning to learn that as the Commissioners are more and more insisting on detailed information before granting their requests. The organizations getting money in the Special Appropriations part of the county budget need to learn that as well. As noted above, the commissioners have made a good start on this.


At the first budget study session , the first discussion of the day was what to do with the current (2012) surplus. Since no decision was made, I am repeating the options presented by the finance officer:

1. Let it flow into the fund balance. Money would be available for unforeseen needs in the future.
2. Appropriate in next year's budget.
3. Lower the tax rate.
4. Put it in the Capital Reserve fund for future capital improvements without having to borrow.
5. A combination of two or more of the above.

Some commissioners still point to the removal of 12 county staff positions as evidence that county government is getting smaller, not larger. So I repeat, Some 12 or so employees have been let go due to a "Reduction in Force (RIF)." However, it was noted that the total allocation for salaries and benefits in the recommended budget is 1.3% ABOVE THE CURRENT BUDGET! The RIF and the increase helps pay for the 3% COLA the other employees are getting. They may be smaller in number, but they are more expensive! And, to me, there is still too little documentation, facts and figures, to justify the new employees requested by the county manager.


The proposed budget includes an increase of $20,000 for legal services. The commissioners have asked the county attorney to come before them to discuss his proposals and possibly to negotiate with him. That is a good step, but why not really open up the possibility of savings by putting our a request for bids?

There was no discussion of the provision in the new budget to increase in the rescue squads' base budgets from $170,000 each to $185,000 each. What new need is to be met by that? It seems to me that it is the same mentality that just expects the price of government to continue to grow. No justification for this increase has been offered or requested.

The Director of Social Services came before the board with yet another idea for greatly expanding county government. He started his presentation by stating that there are 15,635 Medicaid patients in Craven County and an estimated 15,000 citizens who don't carry insurance. His contention seemed to be that those people are not being seen by doctors in the area now, so there are over 30,000 people in the county who aren't able to get medical care from the private providers. He proposed that the county DSS apply for "Federally Qualified Health Center" status. Allowing them to provide service to nearly one third of the Craven County population. Here is what I have found out about these FQHCs:

"The FQHC benefit under Medicare was added effective October 1, 1991, when Section 1861aa of the Social Security Act (the Act) was amended by Section 4161 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. FQHCs are "safety net" providers such as community health centers, public housing centers, outpatient health programs funded by the Indian Health Service, and programs serving migrants and the homeless. The main purpose of the FQHC Program is to enhance the provision of primary care services in underserved urban and rural communities." Taken from a .gov outreach website.


The Director of Social Services asked the board for $45,000 to hire a consultant to guide DSS through the process of qualifying as an FQHC. He held out the threat that if DSS doesn't do it, someone else might and get all that government support. The Director stated that the FQHC might have a multiple million dollar budget and could be set up in 6 months.

This was a new idea presented to the Board of Commissioners and they asked for time to study the proposal and get more information and details and find out from Merci Clinic what they think of the proposal. There are other people to consider like those in private medical practice. I think the Director believes the FQHC would provide a valuable service that would not hurt private practice, but I'm not so sure. I DO KNOW THAT I THINK THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD GET OUT OF HEALTH CARE AND NOT EXPAND THEIR PRESENCE THERE!

BY THE WAY, STILL THINK THE SIZE OF COUNTY GOVERNMENT IS GETTING SMALLER?

Well, a big surprise to me was the retiring (resignation?) of Mr. Davis, the Director of the Economic Development Commission. The Commission was apparently formed under the "Committee of 100" and the only control the county commissioners had over it was in the area of their budget. I have heard dissatisfaction expressed about this in the past, and I had some sympathy for the commissioners on that because they had to commit taxpayer money to the organization without a voice in how it managed it's affairs. It was very expensive and showed very little tangible results. The county will take over the operations of the Economic Development Commission and bring it under county staff control with the over-site of the elected Board of Commissioners. This seems a better arrangement to me. There might even be a reduction in taxpayer funding required.


The Commissioners are still struggling with a proposal to withdraw from the Regional Library System. I'd like to see that. I want a more autonomous county government without all these regional government setups (RPOs and the like). Regional groups are open invitation to implement Agenda 21.

Then came the request from Cove City Fire Department for $30,000 matching funds they would like to have for gear the firemen wear to a fire. This request was made by Commissioner Taylor, who conferred with the firemen by phone during the meeting. The threat was that if the Board did not grant the request, the rating of the department might drop and citizens in that area of the county would have to pay higher fire insurance premiums. Several commissioners were reluctant to grant this request because the fire commissioners had been informed that they would have to budget within the fire tax funds provided by the citizens of their fire districts. If Cove City fire department received general fund taxpayer money, all other fire departments would want additional funding as well. I agree with this assessment. Either have fire taxes, and live within them or do away with them and provide county wide funding. Not a mixture of the two. I see no fairness in that. It got kind of comic when someone suggested that maybe they could get a grant from someone to get the matching funds for their grant request. WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO? Commissioner Taylor said he would get back with the Board on this issue.


Commissioner Tyson was kind enough to read my last report and take it seriously. About the assigning of the county garage to the Water Department, Commissioner Tyson stated that Rusty Hayes is the Director of the County Water System and, as such, is better able to supervise the county mechanics. I guess, the water system operation and maintenance being more mechanical in scope than directing a bus operation. I'm still not so sure. Oddly enough, I once owned and operated a large bus company. I would have hated to have the fleet maintenance manager report to someone else. I guess time will tell. I do appreciate Commissioner Steve Tyson commenting on it.

I've got one more beef then I will sign off for now. Commissioner McCabe (a really nice gentleman, in all other ways) proposed several government cost increasing measures. Fortunately, his requests weren't granted by the board although sometimes supported by Commissioner Sampson, and sometimes not. He asked for:

1. A 6 % pay increase for county employees instead of the 3% raise.

2. A 3 % increase in Commissioners pay.
3. A $1300 increase in Commissioners travel allowance annually.
4. He stated that if an organization asked for more funding, give it to them.

I wonder if the citizens of his district really want him to continually try to redistribute the wealth in the county and get as much as possible for himself. IS THIS WHAT THE PEOPLE OF HARLOWE AND HAVELOCK WANT?

Respectfully submitted:
Hal James

Coastal Carolina Taxpayers Association
Issues and Watchdog Committee Chairman

Beaufort Patriot Tea Party--Meet Dan Forest Candidate for Lieutenant Governorand More!

May 31, 2012, 7:00 pm: Beaufort Patriot Tea Party--Meet Dan Forest Candidate for Lieutenant Governor, 4535 US High Way 264 west, West end of Building next to Mount Olive College, Washington NC 27889.

This will be a great opportunity to learn about the new growing insider political machine in Raleigh and to meet a fellow Patriots. Dan Forest will be our keynote speaker along with Mike Causey for Insurance Commissioner and John Tedesco for Superintendent of Public Schools and Kenn Gardner for Secretary of State but there is also much that you will learn about what is really going on behind the scenes. You need to know more about the Caucus effect at both the State and Federal Level.

This is a must come-to meeting. Please contact your friends and neighbors about this special meeting. beaufortpatriotteaparty.com


Don't be confused if you have seen announcements that these same candidates will be speaking at the Eastern NC TEA Party meeting in Greenville. They will be in Greenville and will then come to Washington.

ENC TEA PARTY--MEET DAN FOREST, MIKE CAUSEY AND JOHN TEDESCO!

May 31, 2012, 6:00-8:00 pm: Dan Forest Meet and Greet, The Warehouse Restaurant, 204 Main St., Winterville, NC.

Please Join ENC Tea Party and the Pitt County Republican Women as we welcome Dan Forest for a dynamic and informational power point presentation. Dan Forest is a businessman, a home school father of 4 children and a well-informed candidate on issues that matter! Dan will be available for a meet and greet before 6:00. Dan will speak at 6:00 pm, followed by Mike Causey, Candidate for NC Insurance Commissioner speaking at 6:40 finishing up with John Tedesco, Candidate for NC State Superintendent speaking at 7:00. We will conclude the meeting with an inspiring clip from The John Birch Society on the Strength of America.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS MEETING AS WE JOIN PITT and LENOIR CHAPTERS OF THE ENC TEAPARTY IN SUPPORT OF OUR STATE WIDE CANDIDATES FOR THE JULY 17 RUN-OFFS! For more information contact: Karen Kozel, karenkozel@yahoo.com.

Don't be confused if you have seen announcements that these same candidates will be speaking at the Beaufort Patriot Tea Party meeting in Washington. They will be in Greenville and will then come to Washington.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Eric Holder and IRS Administrators Due to Advise Hundreds of African-American Pastors on How to Best Participate in 2012 Election

Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri revealed on MSNBC Tuesday that lawyers from the ACLU, IRS administrators, and even Attorney General Eric Holder will soon be speaking with hundreds of pastors in the African-American community on how they can best comport themselves throughout the 2012 election.

“We will have representatives from nine denominations who actually pastor somewhere in the neighborhood of about 10 million people,” he said, “and we’re going to first of all equip them with the information they need to know about what they can say and what they cannot say in the church that would violate their 501c3 status with the IRS.” [Emphasis added]

While they won’t specifically tell people whom to vote for, the respected speakers will discuss “draconian” (hint) voter identification laws, and the Congressional Black Caucus expects the move will only help the Obama’s campaign.

CONTINUED:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/eric-holder-and-irs-administrators-due-to-advise-hundreds-of-african-american-pastors-on-how-to-best-participate-in-2012-election/

Senate Will Consider Equal Pay Bill

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women who work full time earn on average only 77 cents for every dollar men earn. Senate Democrats say a new bill called the Paycheck Fairness Act would help address the problem. Introduced by Sen. Barb Mikulski (D-Md.), the bill would update the 1963 Equal Pay Act. But Republicans say the vote is a stunt that would push more pressing legislation aside.


CONTINUED:  http://www.congress.org/news/senate-will-consider-paycheck-fairness-act/

ENC Tea Party and the Pitt County Republican Women Welcome Dan Forest

Please Join ENC Tea Party and the Pitt County Republican Women as we welcome Dan Forest for a dynamic and informational power point presentation.  Dan Forest is a businessman, a homeschool father of 4 children and a well-informed candidate on issues that matter!  He is refreshlingly unapologetic in his Conservative platform. He is currently running for Lt Governor. Mike Causey is going to speak.


Dan will speak at 6:00.  He will be available for a meet and greet before 6:00.

Thursday, May 31, The Warehouse Restaurant

204 Main St, Winterville NC.  6:00-8:00pm

U.S. House of Representatives: the week ahead

May 29, 2012

The Senate is in recess this week.  The House returns for legislative business tomorrow, and will be voting on:

The Food and Drug Administration Reform Act (HR 5651) revises and extends the user-fee programs for prescription drugs and for medical devices, to establish user-fee programs for generic drugs and biosimilars. Sponsor:  Rep. Frederick “Fred” Upton [R-MI6] and 5 bipartisan cosponsors.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr5651

The Federal Communications Commission Consolidated Reporting Act (HR 3310) consolidate the reporting obligations of the Federal Communications Commission in order to improve congressional oversight and reduce reporting burdens.  Sponsor:  Rep. Steve Scalise [R-LA1] with 9 Republican cosponsors.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr3310

The Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act (PRENDA) (HR 3541) prohibits discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex or race.  Sponsor:  Rep. Trent Franks [R-AZ2]  with 98 cosponsors (including 3 Democrats).  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr3541

The Divisional Realignment Act (HR 5512) realigns divisions within two judicial districts.
Sponsor:  Rep. Bennie Thompson [D-MS2] with 4 cosponsors (3 of which are Republicans).  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr5512


The Servicemember Family Protection Act (HR 4201) provides for the protection of child custody arrangements for parents who are members of the Armed Forces. Sponsor:  Rep. Michael Turner [R-OH3] with 72 cosponsors (6 of which are Democrats).  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr4201

The Secure Border Act (HR 1299) achieves operational control of and improve security at the international land borders of the US.  Sponsor:  Rep. Candice Miller [R-MI10] with 32 Republican cosponsors.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr1299

HR 3670 requires the Transportation Security Administration to comply with the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.  Sponsor:  Rep. Timothy Walz [D-MN1] with 22 bipartisan cosponsors.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr3670

The WMD Intelligence and Information Sharing Act (HR 2764) establishes weapons of mass destruction intelligence and information sharing functions of the Office of Intelligence and Analysis of the Department of Homeland Security and to require dissemination of information analyzed by the Department to entities with responsibilities relating to homeland security.  Sponsor:  Rep. Patrick Meehan [R-PA7] with 5 cosponsors including 3 Democrats.  (House vote Wed.) https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr2764

The Jaime Zapata Border Security Task Force Act (HR 915) establishes a Border Enforcement Security Task Force program to enhance border security by fostering coordinated efforts among Federal, State, and local border and law enforcement officials to protect US border cities and communities from trans-national crime.  Sponsor:  Rep. Henry Cuellar [D-TX28] with 2 Repbulican and 1 Democrat cosponsoring.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr915

The Mass Transit Intelligence Prioritization Act (HR 3140) directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to prioritize the assignment of officers and analysts to certain State and urban area fusion centers to enhance the security of mass transit systems.  Sponsor:  Rep. Jackie Speier [D-CA12] with 1 Republican cosponsor.  (House vote Wed.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr3140

The Export Promotion Reform Act (HR 4041) further enhances the promotion of exports of United States goods and services. (House vote Wed.)
https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr4041

The Intelligence Authorization Act (HR 5743) authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 2013 for intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the United States Government.  Sponsor:  Rep. Michael “Mike” Rogers [R-MI8] and no cosponsors.  (House vote Thurs.)  https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr5743

The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013 (HR 5854).  Sponsor:  Rep. John Culberson [R-TX7] and no cosponsors.  (House vote Thurs.)
https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr5854

The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013 (HR 5325)
Sponsor:  Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen [R-NJ11] and no cosponsors.  (House vote Thurs.) 


https://www.popvox.com/bills/us/112/hr5325

Letter to the Editor: A threat approaches... by CCTA Member Lou Call

May 29, 2012

A threat approaches…

There are forces at work in our Nation’s Capitol that wish to dismantle our Constitution and will do so by bypassing Congress by any means possible.

Perhaps the most dangerous threat to our liberties comes from the United Nations Small Arms treaty which is supported by the Obama administration and our Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

Our 2nd Amendment reads: ‘A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.’ Our Founding fathers lacked trust in any government including our own to respect the rights of free citizens. They placed in the hands of the law abiding individual(s) the means by which to forcefully oppose a tyrannical government in our Nations future, both foreign and domestic.

The Oath of Office for the President of the United States affirms this in these words: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic;”

The UN Small Arms Treaty is going to be used to circumvent our 2nd Amendment and eventually our total Bill of Rights. They believe that a one world government is sovereign whereas Americans believe that the individual is sovereign.

Appearing before the UN Small Arms committee last summer, Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President of the NRA had this to say in regards to the make up of the committee.

“Their member list reads like a who’s who of human rights abusers. I was in New York to testify before this committee. I stood in front of representatives from China, North Korea, Cuba, Syria, Sudan-all those great bastions of freedom.”

Under our laws all treaties must be passed by a 2/3 majority in the Senate; no problem you say! Yet we have a president that just bypassed the Senate when, by Executive Order 13547, ratified the LOST Treaty. A Google search for Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST) ratified by Obama’s Executive Order 13547 will support this.

We live in dangerous times and it’s becoming obvious that elements within our government are out of control. The man in the oval office has no problem side stepping the legislative branch of government when it suits his agenda.

Perhaps Samuel Adams said it best when he wrote, “Let the Constitution never be construed to authorize Congress..to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms.”

A closing thought. America is still a beacon for the rest of the World…proof that ordinary people can be trusted with extraordinary power and that set free, we can live in peace, govern ourselves and control our own fates.

Louis Call
New Bern, NC

Obama, Clinton Selling Out U.S. Sovereignty in Secret

Is the Obama administration secretly negotiating treaties with globalist bodies, in violation of the Constitution? That’s the question on the minds of a number of political watchdogs, who argue that the White House is doing an end run around Congress and the American people in order to lock the country into agreements on the environment, fishing rights and even gun ownership with the United Nations (UN).


On Feb. 7, former Bill Clinton campaign manager Dick Morris dissected a host of international “sneaky treaties” that, he says, “Once signed and ratified, have the same status as constitutional law and cannot be altered or eclipsed by Congress or state legislatures. And their provisions must be enforced by U.S. courts.”

The most egregious of these would be U.S. membership in the International Criminal Court(ICC). This tribunal that has jurisdiction across the globe could prosecute elected U.S. leaders for entering into a war without UN approval. These “crimes of aggression”—even if approved by Congress under an official declaration of war—could still land the president or cabinet members in prison. The ICC’s reach supersedes the rulings of any U.S. court, thereby posing a serious threat to constitutionally-guaranteed trials by a jury of our peers.

CONTINUED:  http://americanfreepress.net/?p=4207

Monday, May 28, 2012

Only God and Americans can save the U.S. from Obama

To Americans everywhere:

As Wes Riddle of Texas has written, “The term Republic had a significant meaning for all early Americans. The form of government secured by the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution, and the Constitution was unique, requiring strict limitation of government power. Powers that were permitted would be precisely defined and delegated by the people, with all public officials being bound by their oath of office to uphold the Constitution.


The Constitution made it clear that the government was not to interfere with productive nonviolent human energy. This is the key element that has permitted America’s great achievements and made America the political and economic envy of the world. We have truly been blessed.”

To all who cherish our individual liberty, do not despair. Let us not give up in our effort to save our Representative Republic from the now constant attacks from president Barack Obama and his czars upon our system of Constitutional Law. We, the American people, must unite and come together now as never before in the history of this great nation. If we will stand with each other, as the American people, forgetting political party ties, we can and must save ourselves and keep this Republic from being destroyed and replaced by Barack Obama Socialism. It is our responsibility to do it. The founders of the American Republic structured the system so we could always do just that.

We, the governed, have sole consent as to whom we allow to sit in power in our Capital. Like all human beings do, per our nature, we make mistakes. A mistake was made by electing Barack Obama as president in 2008. We now must admit it to ourselves, suck it up and make a correction. Stopping Socialism is the most important issue before the American people today. The president, upon taking office, swears to defend and protect the Constitution. Barack Obama has done neither. It is a matter of public record that he has, in fact, intentionally done the exact opposite. We must be united in purpose to save our Republic from Obama and Socialism.

What is INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY? Because I was born (73 years ago) and raised in the small American town of Henryetta, Oklahoma, I have never personally experienced government oppression, as have so many billions of people throughout history all over this world. So I, like most Americans, have taken it for granted and assumed it would always be thus in this country. I began a search to answer for myself the real meaning of Individual Liberty, and also Is America an exceptional country because of it? As you recall, Barack Obama said publicly he does not believe it is. In all my wildest dreams I could have never imagined an American President thinking that, much less hearing a president of the United States make that statement.

As I began, I was reminded very quickly that freedom is not something granted to us by the government. It is not something the government allows us to have, but one of our God given unalienable rights. It is one of the sacred rights of all mankind endowed upon us by God Almighty, our Creator. If we are herded and driven like cattle, dictated to by government as though they own us and we are subjects of that government, it is because we have lost our God-given right to be free, which He bestowed upon us at birth.

I learned in my search, of all the wonderful things America is about, that Individual Freedom is our most precious and greatest treasure. Individual Liberty is the absence of government restraint on our ability to think and act for ourselves. Individual Liberty is being free from government oppression and regulation, and it automatically carries with it individual responsibility for our own decisions and actions. Freedom is the capacity for self-determination. It is not cast in stone to forever be, but it is a condition, and conditions can change. Individual Freedom can grow and expand, but it can also shrink and disappear. The spirit of Liberty has to be in the population. Individual Freedom will only be preserved as long as there is devotion to freedom expressed in the hearts and actions of the people. Our desire for Individual Liberty must be stronger than Obama’s desire to turn us into his subjects under a Socialist government of America or we will become slaves to him and that government. He will have accomplished his goal.

In 1775 Alexander Hamilton said, “The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the hand of the divinity itself, and can never be erased.” President Bush said a few years ago, “History moves toward freedom because the desire for freedom is written in every human heart.”

In his address at the Gettysburg National Cemetery, president Lincoln declared, “It is for us the living to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus so nobly advanced.” That unfinished work for which so many American soldiers willingly go to the battles of war, and which so many have given the full measure of devotion, is the cause of The United States of America as an exceptional country of INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY. I here declare to you, that work will never be finished. It is up to each generation to continue the work and keep the American spirit of Individual Freedom alive in every heart.

Barack Obama campaigned on “fundamental change in America.” Had he given us the details of what he meant by that, I seriously doubt he would have been elected. Americans were not looking to change Individual Liberty for subjugation to an expanding Federal Socialist government with more and more regulation of almost every aspect of our lives. We have become a strong and exceptional nation through the self reliance of Individual Freedom, and the preservation of that liberty through the spilling of the blood of our fellow patriots. The more power we allow Barack Obama and the Federal Government to amass the less Individual Freedom we will have. Freedom is a birthright from God. If we become government slaves it is because we allowed it to be taken from us.

Our great nation was given birth, out of the womb of a bloody revolution for liberty, as a Representative Republic of Free Individuals, not one of Socialism and collective slaves of government. Americans everywhere, we had better get involved and take a stand against government control of our lives. Now is not the time to be silent as Barrack Obama attempts to dismantle this great country and bring it down to a lower level of the Socialist countries of Europe. Now is the time for us to be resolved to protect and defend our Individual Freedom. We hear it said Obama is not a leader, that he is incompetent. It is very true that he is not a leader for a Representative Republic of Free Individuals, for he does not believe in the system of government which our Founders established. But he is an exceptional leader in the effort to turn America into a Socialist nation.

To everyone who will listen and hear, never believe for a moment that Barack Obama is incompetent. I submit to you, he knows exactly what he is doing and why he is doing it. He spent most of his early years studying and learning how to do it under the teachings of the Socialist Revolutionary Saul Alinsky; his Chicago neighbor Bill Ayers, and others. These men now have one of their own positioned in the White House. As Barack Obama summarized at the height of his campaign: “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” He does not believe we are an exceptional nation. Be not deceived, Barack Obama sees America very differently than our Founding Fathers and how you and I see America.

I earnestly pray that Barack Obama is defeated in his bid for a second term as president. Given the manner in which he is now shredding the Constitution, if given four more years to act, knowing he doesn’t have to answer to us for his actions, the damage he can and will do in tearing down and destroying this country as a Representative Republic, is at present unimaginable.

Please feel free to pass this to whom ever you wish. You may leave my information below intact. I am not afraid.

God Bless America, Please.

SOURCE:  http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/46941?utm_source=CFP+Mailout&utm_campaign=b8e1ff45e8-Call_to_Champions&utm_medium=email

Fact Check: Obama off on Thrifty Spending Claim

The White House is aggressively pushing the idea that, contrary to widespread belief, President Barack Obama is tightfisted with taxpayer dollars. To back it up, the administration cites a media report that claims federal spending is rising at the slowest pace since the Eisenhower years.

"Federal spending since I took office has risen at the slowest pace of any president in almost 60 years," Obama said at a campaign rally Thursday in Des Moines, Iowa.


The problem with that rosy claim is that the Wall Street bailout is part of the calculation. The bailout ballooned the 2009 budget just before Obama took office, making Obama's 2010 results look smaller in comparison. And as almost $150 billion of the bailout was paid back during Obama's watch, the analysis counted them as government spending cuts.



It also assumes Obama had less of a role setting the budget for 2009 than he really did.

Obama rests his claim on an analysis by MarketWatch, a financial information and news service owned by Dow Jones & Co. The analysis simply looks at the year-to-year topline spending number for the government but doesn't account for distortions baked into the figures by the Wall Street bailout and government takeover of the mortgage lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The MarketWatch study finds spending growth of only 1.4 percent over 2010-2013, or annual increases averaging 0.4 percent over that period. Those are stunningly low figures considering that Obama rammed through Congress an $831 billion stimulus measure in early 2009 and presided over significant increases in annual spending by domestic agencies at the same time the cost of benefit programs like Social Security, Medicare and the Medicaid were ticking steadily higher.

A fairer calculation would give Obama much of the responsibility for an almost 10 percent budget boost in 2009, then a 13 percent increase over 2010-2013, or average annual growth of spending of just more than 3 percent over that period.

CONTINUED:  http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Obama-Spending-Fact-Check/2012/05/26/id/440358?s=al&promo_code=F07C-1#ixzz1w1c2n6qq

An open letter to Congressman Walter Jones:

There is something terribly wrong in our country today, and there is no place where it is more evident than what is happening in Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The inhabitants of this tiny island that consists of seven villages, are under siege by the allowances of repressive government no less than the framers of the Constitution were, who out of desperation fled from their homeland where generations of "their" families had lived. We the people of the United States are supposed to be living under the rule of law created by our founding documents, guarantying our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Those fundamental rights are systematically being stripped away from us and one would wonder if there is any solution.


The simplicity of the early days of the Audubon Society, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other similar wildlife groups who saw the necessity of protecting and preserving our precious natural resources, and rightfully so, has evolved into a very radical and deliberate paradigm shift towards a sense of absolute control over the public by these agencies and special interest groups. But the most unbelievable aspect about what is happening is how all of these groups somehow trump the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. They have become the puppeteers of our society and there influence affects every aspect of our daily lives, from commerce, to tourism, to recreation.

Generations of families have made their living on our beaches and the waters of the Pamlico Sound, but today many have had to leave the prosperity of the fishing and crabbing industry because of restrictions and regulations that have been imposed upon them by the Marine Fisheries since 1976. For the ones who struggle to carry on the generational tradition, it becomes more and more difficult, and less and less lucrative every year.

There are hundreds of square miles of water that make up the Pamlico Sound, but it is almost impossible to keep a sufficient ferry channel open between Hatteras Island and Ocracoke because of all the environmental hype and seasonal regulations restricting pipeline dredging, out of fear of disturbing some eel grass, a fish, or a bird. The channel that connects the two islands serves not only as the lifeline, but is also the evacuation route for the residents of Ocracoke Island during hurricane season. Within the past couple of years a million and a half dollars have been spent trying to quick fix the problem utilizing the Army Corps of Engineers sidecaster dredge. The results of that in Hatteras Inlet can best be summed up in a quote by Albert Einstein. "To keep doing the same failed thing over and over again, expecting a different result, is insanity."

CONTINUED:  http://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?p=13302761

Sunday, May 27, 2012

It is time for the first step to restore the Constitution

May 27, 2012
by David DeGerolamo

The 92 Syrians killed by the Assad regime will become the rallying point for Western intervention in yet another war or kinetic action. The truth is that there never was a UN ceasefire. Like Iran, Syria talks and the West appeases. This is not a call for war; although war will be the convenient excuse to misdirect our attention from an EU (and then US) economic collapse. The truth is that Syria knows that whatever they do, Putin will back them up militarily. The same reasoning applies to Iran. If Putin is the key to the Middle East, why is Obama not concentrating on the root cause? Or is he waiting to be reelected in order to have more flexibility? We have to consider the possibilities that:

1. The president of the United States has no interest in the Middle East other than to establish a Muslim caliphate.

2. The president has every reason to appease Putin as a fellow Communist as he was taught by his childhood mentor, Frank Marshall Davis.
3. The president has placed Islam over Israel.
4. The president has made the United States a "paper tiger" in the world's eye.
5. Congress, the Supreme Court and the US military are not going to save our nation.

Item number five needs to be further explained.

As the UN, the US Congress has been rendered impotent by individual greed, partisan politics and the administration. Obama's plan to bypass Congress and the Constitution went unchallenged by both Congress and the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is more concerned with prestige than power. Proof? Eric Holder's mismanagement of the Department of Justice. We now live in a country "without rule of law" (WROL). Any country which does not (or will not) enforce its laws is only a precursor to tyranny or revolution. Our military generals and admirals have sworn allegiance to the commander-in-chief. However, the more important points are the politics, power and money that these military leaders are enjoying or constrained by. What does a retired military leader do? They start (or work for) a military subcontractor where their monetary spoils are used to purchase Plan B estates outside of the United States. This Ayn Rand scenario as outlined in Atlas Shrugged is also the same strategy as the "leaders" in Washington. If Plan A works, they will enjoy even more power under a dictatorship. If Plan A fails and the people restore Liberty and the Constitution, Plan B is also a great life. What did you think a $5 trillion deficit last year was buying besides votes? So where does that leave the People? If the Constitution is not being obeyed by our government, it is up to the former soldiers who have sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution to take action. Your oath and sacred honor dictate it. Your country is calling for you to save it. It is time for the first step to restore the Constitution. Or do we want our children to be shown in movies like below?

Friday, May 25, 2012

The Intolerable Acts: NDAA & AGENDA 21 PRESENTATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


LIVE BROADCAST AT HTTP://LIVESTREAM.COM/theintolerableacts

NDAA & AGENDA 21 PRESENTATION for North Carolina General Assembly, (PUBLIC WELCOME & ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND)

Wednesday, May 30, 2012
4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Room 544 - Legislative Office Building
300 N. Salisbury Street, Room 515
Raleigh, NC 27603-5925

LIVE BROADCAST AT HTTP://LIVESTREAM.COM/theintolerableacts

Mr. Stewart Rhodes, founder of Oath Keepers, will be speaking about the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) along with Jeff Lewis, co-founder and National Director of the Patriot Coalition, and Rep. Glen Bradley, sponsor of H.R. 982 & H.R. 983.

Mr. Rhodes and Mr. Lewis, along with Patriot Coalition General Counsel Richard D. Fry, co-authored model NDAA resolutions that have been introduced and/or adopted by sheriffs, other law enforcement, county commissions, and state legislators across the country.

Legislators need accurate, honest information to make informed decisions regarding We the People's business. Provisions in the 2012 & 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) violate no fewer than 14 provisions of the U.S. Constitution, including over half the Bill of Rights, and many more provisions of the North Carolina Constitution and Declaration of Rights.


FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT REP. GLEN BRADLEY BELOW, OR JEFF LEWIS AT 252-876-9489, EMAIL: JEFF@PATRIOTCOALITION.COM

END PRESS RELEASE


From: Rep. Glen Bradley
To: @House/Members , @Senate/Members

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In cooperation with Jeff Lewis of the Intolerable Acts and the Patriot Coalition, we are holding a one hour educational presentation on Agenda 21 and the NDAA with a multimedia presentation and a discussion of what these items are and how they affect us and the people of our state.

This training session will take place from 4PM until 5PM on Wednesday May 30th, in room 544 of the Legislative Office Building.

Coffee and water will be available. All members are invited and strongly encouraged to attend.

Thank you!
Glen Bradley
Representative Glen Bradley, North Carolina State House
District 49: Franklin, Nash, Halifax
Raleigh Office:  glen.bradley@ncleg.net
(919) 733-5860
NC House of Representatives
300 N. Salisbury Street, Room 536, Raleigh, NC 27603-5925
District Office:  Rep@NC49.org
(919) 728-0449
District 49 NC House Office
144 Ridgewood Road, Youngsville, NC 27596

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Beaufort Patriot Tea Party Meeting--May 31, 2012 at 7:00 pm

Meet Dan Forest for Lieutenant Governor ATBeaufort Patriot TEA Party Meeting will be held Thursday May 31, 2012, 7:00 p.m.
4535 US High Way 264 west.  West end of Building next to Mount Olive College. 
Washington NC 27889

This will be a very important meeting to learn about :  Things of vital importance to our State and community.
Reports from other Candidates.  How the July Primary works.  AND

Special guest Speaker Dan Forest Candidate for Lieutenant Governor.

Please contact your friends and neighbors about this special meeting.

See the bio below for details on Dan Forest.  Check out Dan’s Website www.danforest.com

Dan Forest is a candidate for Lt. Governor of North Carolina. A strong fiscal and social conservative, Dan has over 23 years of experience as a business leader, architect and entrepreneur.


He is a former Senior Partner with one of North Carolina’s largest Architectural firms – Little Diversified Architectural Consulting – having served as President of the firm’s Durham office.


Dan holds two undergraduate degrees from UNC Charlotte and is a graduate of UNC Charlotte College of Architecture. He is the founder of the Triangle Leadership Forum where he serves as president of the board. Dan serves on the board of the North Carolina Committee of The Heritage Foundation, serves on the board of The Faith Driven Consumer and is the former chairman of the board of Wake Forest Pregnancy Support Services.


He lives in Raleigh with his wife, Alice, and four children – ages 6 to 18.

beaufortpatriotteaparty.com
The Beaufort Patriot Tea Party

The Heritage Foundation: New Common Sense-- Constitutional Countdown

What can someone accomplish in four months? It’s possible to play an entire NFL football season, but you’d need another full month to complete the playoffs. You could try to build a new home. But you’d need plenty of cooperation from your contractor to get it finished on time.

Or you could try to write, from scratch, the greatest governing document in history.

Well, no point in trying for that last one, since it’s already been done. That’s right. The U.S. Constitution, which has enabled our country’s growth and success for more than 220 years, was written in a mere four months.

The remarkable four months that gave us the Constitution began on May 25, 1787. State delegates gathered to discuss ways to replace the failing Articles of Confederation. The process proceeded in several stages. One scholar on the Constitution Convention Gordon Lloyd divides the summer into a four-act drama.


Act I (May 1787) centers around the Virginia Plan, which was a proposal for a bicameral legislature, with representation based on state populations. The New Jersey Plan, by contrast, proposed a unicameral legislature with equal representation for all states. The smaller states favored the New Jersey plan, because they feared losing their voice to the larger states under the Virginia Plan. Nevertheless, the Act concludes with the adoption of the Virginia Plan and the creation of a bicameral legislature.

In Act II (June and July), the Convention is at a stalemate. Many delegates are concerned that they have exceeded the Congressional mandate to revise the Articles of Confederation and are worried about the possible failure of an extended republic. The Connecticut Compromise (adopted in mid-July) assuages the majority of these fears. The Compromise blends both federal and national characteristics, thus enabling a republic to succeed on a large scale. Under the Connecticut Compromise, we first encounter the form of Congress that we have today: one in which the House represents the individual people, and the Senate represents the states more completely.

CONTINUED:  http://links.heritage.org/hostedemail/email.htm?CID=12085614116&ch=9E92A909EB85888624F11C173AA2DF49&h=ebc78d740837e06ee426a03b59cbf8a1&ei=suzdAa8tN

The Senate Once Again Refuses to Pass a Budget

Even the most liberal Senators wouldn’t attach their name to it.

Last Wednesday, the U.S. Senate unanimously rejected President Obama’s budget with a 0-99 vote, following a similar disastrous 0-414 defeat in the House. You read that right: even Majority Leader Harry Reid and his ring-leaders Senators Dick Durbin and Chuck Schumer voted it down. Why? Because the American people could easily see that it spends too much, taxes too much, and puts us even further into debt.

The Senate also rejected four conservative budget alternatives, with House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan’s budget and Senator Pat Toomey’s “Restoring Balance” budget receiving the most votes among them. AFP issued a key vote urging support of both the Ryan and Toomey plans.

No Democratic Senator cast a single Yea vote for any budget, preferring to criticize their opponents while avoiding accountability for what they do support. This is the third year in a row the U.S. Senate has failed to pass a budget, and it’s no coincidence that we’ve also seen three straight years of trillion-dollar deficits.

Will the President Go Back on his Promise to “End Corporate Welfare”?

Also last Wednesday, both chambers of Congress passed a bill to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank and increase its loan limit from $100 billion to $140 billion. Now the bill is sitting on President Obama’s desk, awaiting his decision.

The President frequently claims he wants to end corporate welfare, and he even singled-out the Ex-Im Bank as one of the biggest offenders as a candidate back in 2008. Signing the bill to reauthorize the Ex-Im Bank would be a total reversal, so AFP has called on President Obama to veto it. AFP President Tim Phillips argued for its termination in a recent editorial in the Washington Examiner. We’ll find out later this week if the President is willing to follow through with his promises.

Americans for Prosperity® (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual's right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. AFP has more than 2,000,000 members, including members in all 50 states, and 35 state chapters and affiliates. More than 90,000 Americans in all 50 states have made a financial investment in AFP or AFP Foundation. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org

Taxpayers for Common Sense--What's the Big Secret?

May 22, 2012

The Defense Authorization Act is probably the most important policy bill for the nation’s annual spending, directing more than half of our annual discretionary budget—more than $600 billion dollars. It also sets guidance on issues ranging from detention to contracting policy. You would think that Congress would do its work such a bill in public for the taxpayers to see. Unfortunately, you would be wrong.

Tomorrow, the Senate Armed Services Committee will continue its tradition of marking up the Fiscal Year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) behind closed doors. Spending the taxpayers’ dollars in the dark is undemocratic because it encourages lobbying by special interests and prevents citizens from taking action on provisions they disagree with. This doesn’t have to happen: the House of Representatives marked up its version of the bill in public, and Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) conducts her subcommittee’s markups in the light of day.

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined dozens of other groups in asking committee members to open their debates to the public. Now, we’re asking you to do the same. Start by going to OpenNDAA.org to find your Senator’s phone number and some talking points. You’ll find a few other quick tips there as well.

Then call or email your Senator and tell them to:

1.Show Us the Bill: Release the draft Senate defense budget bill and proposed amendments to the public at least 24 hours before votes

2.Vote No to Close: Vote no to closing the debate and the votes to the public

Below are links to the page on the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate websites that allows you to search for your member of Congress using your zip code. From there it will link you directly to the page on your members' website where you can send your message (by clicking on the envelope).

U.S. House of Representatives
U.S. Senate

Time is short, so contact your Senator today and stop them from spending your money in the dark!

Sincerely,
Laura Peterson
Senior Policy Analyst, National Security
Taxpayers for Common Sense
651 Pennsylvania Ave SE
Washington, DC 20003

ENC Tea Party and Americans for Prosperity Present-- "The Unreported Growth in Government in NC"

Please join Americans for Prosperity on Saturday, May 26 from 10:00 until noon at the Warehouse Restaurant, 204 Main Street, Winterville for a breakfast seminar event. Fergus Hodgson, director of Fiscal Policy Studies at the John Locke Foundation, will present the topic "The Unreported Growth in Government in NC." This is a non-partisan event and is open to the public.


A breakfast buffet will be provided for guests and no charge. Please RSVP (to plan properly for food) – Anna Beavon Gravely: AGravely@afphq.org. Sponsored by ENC Tea Party and Americans for Prosperity.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

The Danger of Article 82 and Obama's Latest Treaty

Back in 1982, President Ronald Reagan decided not to sign a treaty known as "Law of the Sea" (LOST), a United Nations convention that would raid America's treasury for billions of dollars, then redistribute that wealth to the rest of the world by an international bureaucracy headquartered in Kingston, Jamaica. But today, the Obama Administration has revived that treaty, and tomorrow Senator John Kerry (D-MA) will hold hearings designed to illustrate its supposed benefits and generate support for its ratification. Without a doubt, Reagan's decision should stand, and LOST should remain relegated to the trash bin of history.


The rationale for LOST is that it supposedly brings order to the world's oceans, defines the rights and responsibilities of nations as they navigate and conduct business across the seas, protects the marine environment, and allows for the development of natural resources of the deep seabed. On the surface, these all sound like worthwhile goals. The thing is, the United States doesn't need to join another United Nations treaty to make it happen.

For more than 200 years before LOST was adopted in 1982 and for 30 years since then, the U.S. Navy has successfully protected America's maritime interests regardless of the fact that the United States has not signed on to the treaty. The United States' navigational rights and freedoms have been secure, and they are best guaranteed by a strong Navy.

CONTINUED:  http://blog.heritage.org/2012/05/22/morning-bell-the-danger-of-article-82-and-obamas-latest-treaty/?roi=echo3-12082694183-8715050-8003883cfb703ec5b46dca36f47a9131&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Morning%2BBell

N.C. lawmakers plan hearing on eugenics bill

I urge you to call your legislators and express your opinion on this issue.  I do not belive that current and FUTURE GENERATIONS should be punished for the actions of previous North Carolina and NC Legislators.  If we allow this--what is next?  ~Lynn

RALEIGH, N.C. -- A large crowd is expected when legislators hold a public hearing in Raleigh about a bill that would pay $50,000 to people who were sterilized against their will.


Some victims are expected to attend the hearing, which will be held Tuesday at the Legislative Office Building. So far, the N.C. Justice for Sterilization Victims Foundation has identified 132 victims, of whom 118 are still alive.

Foundation executive director Charmaine Cooper-Fuller says she expects more victims to come forward if the Legislature approves compensation.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/05/22/2081823/public-hearing-scheduled-on-nc.html#storylink=cpy

Purple Hearts for Fort Hood Victims Listed as Reason for Obama Veto Threat

TEA PARTY.ORG
May 21, 2012
by Bridget Johnson

Why? To honor the victims in this way would acknowledge that the radical Islamist perpetrators were domestic terrorists.


Before leaving for the Memorial Day recess, the House set up a showdown with President Obama and the Senate with Friday’s passage of the National Defense Authorization Act.


Three days before the $642.5 billion spending bill passed 299-120, the Office of Management and Budget released a statement of administration policy on the bill, threatening a veto if numerous provisions remained in the legislation.

“If the cumulative effects of the bill impede the ability of the Administration to execute the new defense strategy and to properly direct scarce resources, the President’s senior advisors would recommend to the President that he veto the bill,” the OMB warned, stressing this with underlined text.


The statement then outlined some of “a number” of “concerns” — 32, to be exact — including limitations on nuclear force reduction and a provision to block repatriated Guantanamo detainees from traveling to the U.S.

No. 26 on the list of veto-worthy offenses is objection to awarding Purple Hearts to the victims of the Fort Hood and Little Rock shootings.

“The Administration objects to section 552, which would grant Purple Hearts to the victims of the shooting incidents in Fort Hood, Texas, and Little Rock, Arkansas,” the veto threat states. “The criminal acts that occurred in Little Rock were tried by the State of Arkansas as violations of the State criminal code rather than as acts of terrorism; as a result, this provision could create appellate issues.”

Full article can be read here:  http://pjmedia.com/blog/purple-hearts-for-fort-hood-victims-listed-...

Legislative Update:

- Protecting Women — Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved H.R. 4970, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act (VAWA) of 2012, by a vote of 222-205. The bill would reauthorize funding for VAWA grant programs for five years, and would authorize $660 million in funding per year to help prevent domestic violence and protect victims of abuse. In addition, the bill would: streamline and consolidate some grants for maximum benefit; would increase resources for sexual assault investigations, prosecutions, and victim services; would increase penalties for sexual assault, sexual abuse, and stalking; would promote educational awareness to prevent violence and improve services for young victims; would improve emergency and transitional housing services for victims; and would enhance immigration laws to protect victims of violence.

- National Defense — On Friday, the House of Representatives approved H.R. 4310, National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013, by a vote of 299-120. The bill would authorize appropriations for the Department of Defense (DoD) and for the national security programs of the Department of Energy (DoE) for Fiscal Year 2013. This authorization is intended to enhance national security through the procurement of materiel, the modernization of the Armed Forces, and continued funding for overseas contingency operations (OCO). H.R. 4310 would authorize a total discretionary budget authority of $637 billion for Fiscal Year 2013 ($3.6 billion above the President’s Fiscal Year 2013 budget request) for programs within the jurisdiction of the Armed Services Committee. Of this amount, $546.8 billion is for “base” DoD programs (representing a $0.2 billion decrease below the levels provided for in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 [P.L. 112–81]), including $18.1 billion for Department of Energy national security programs and the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, and $88.5 billion for OCO requirements. Among other items, the bill would: provide funds to modernize three guided missile cruisers scheduled to be retired before the end of their service life; would preserve tactical airlift critical to the ability of the United States to project power, such as C-130 Hercules and C-27J Spartan aircraft proposed for early retirement; and would ease strain on the heavily stressed military by slowing the pace of the Obama administration’s end-strength reductions.
VOTES:

Butterfield, G.K. (D):Nay Ellmers, Renee (R):Yea Jones, Walter (R):Nay Price, David (D):Nay Foxx, Virginia (R):Yea Coble, Howard (R):Yea McIntyre, Mike (D):Yea Kissell, Larry (D):Yea Myrick, Sue (R):Yea McHenry, Patrick (R):Yea Shuler, Heath (D):Yea Watt, Mel (D): Nay Miller, Brad (D):Nay

Comments: The House passed HR 4310 which authorizes budgets and policy for National Defense for fiscal year 2013. The budget continues fiscal support for military projects and infrastructure improvements in Guam. In addition, the budget provides military service members a 1.6 percent pay increase. The budget did not support proposed increases in TRICARE fees and copayments for service member's healthcare services. HR 4310 will face more significant opposition in the Senate, where Senator John McCain, Chair on the Armed Services Committee, opposes the military build-up costs in Guam, projected to total $101,904,000. The Senate is expected to pass a revised edition of the bill, which will then need to be reconciled before final passage.

H.R.4119: Border Tunnel Prevention Act of 2012--Sponsor: Rep Reyes, Silvestre [TX-16] (introduced 3/1/2012).  Committees: House Judiciary; House Ways and Means; House Homeland Security.  Latest Major Action: 5/17/2012 Passed/agreed to in Senate. Status: Received in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Unanimous Consent.   Latest Action: 5/17/2012 Message on Senate action sent to the House.  Summary: To Prevent the construction and use of tunnels and subterranean passages between Mexico and the U.S. for drug trafficking, human smuggling and illegal activity.
Votes:  Butterfield, G.K. (D): Yea; Ellmers, Renee (R): Yea; Jones, Walter (R): Yea;  Price, David (D): Yea; Foxx, Virginia (R):Yea; Coble, Howard (R): YeaMcIntyre, Mike (D): Yea Kissell, Larry (D): Yea; Myrick, Sue (R): Yea; McHenry, Patrick (R):Yea; Shuler, Heath (D): YeaWatt, Mel (D): Yea; Miller, Brad (D): Yea.
Comments:  H.R. 4119 passed both the House and Senate and is expected to be signed by the President. The legislation strengthens law enforcement's ability to reduce the trafficking of drugs and to prevent human smuggling across the Southwest Border by deterring the construction and use of border tunnels. The House and Senate recognized tunnels and subterranean passage ways are frequently used for drug trafficking and smuggling between Mexico and the U.S. Law enforcement discovered 149 tunnels along the Mexico and the U.S. border, with 139 found since 2001. The significant increase in subterranean passages into the U.S. especially on the Arizona and California borders demonstrates the need for legislation to deter activity supporting the construction and use of tunnels crossing the U.S. borders. The legislation prohibits permitting the construction or use of a tunnel on a person's private property to smuggle aliens, weapons, drugs, terrorists, or illegal goods. Those convicted will face enhanced penalties and prosecution. http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20120514/BILLS-112hr4119-SUS.pdf

Introduced Legislation:

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R.5799: To modernize voter registration, promote access to voting for individuals with disabilities, protect the ability of individuals to exercise the right to vote in elections for Federal office, and for other purposes.  Sponsor: Rep Lewis, John [GA-5] (introduced 5/17/2012.  Latest Major Action: 5/17/2012 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Science, Space, and Technology, Veterans' Affairs, Oversight and Government Reform, and Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

H.R.5795: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reduce the rate of tax on domestic manufacturing income to 20 percent.  Sponsor: Rep Kind, Ron [WI-3] (introduced 5/17/2012).  Committees: House Ways and Means.  Latest Major Action: 5/17/2012 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

U.S. SENATE

S.3205: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide that persons renouncing citizenship for a substantial tax avoidance purpose shall be subject to tax and withholding on capital gains, to provide that such persons shall not be admissible to the United States, and for other purposes.  Sponsor: Sen Schumer, Charles [NY] (introduced 5/17/2012).  Committees: Senate Finance.  Latest Major Action: 5/17/2012.  Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Comments: Facebook Co-founder Eduardo Saverin has upset tax hungry Democrats with his move to renounce his U.S. citizenship in order to save up to $67 million in taxes. Senator Charles Schumer was so upset he has introduced a bill that some are calling the "Ex-Patriot Act." Senate Bill 3205 would force "Ex-Patriots" to pay a 30% tax on all future U.S. business ventures and prevent "Ex-Patriots" from returning to the U.S. Although Republicans have also expressed surprise at Saverin's decision, they are lukewarm on the need for this type of legislation. Perhaps, the Democrats should consider why someone would have to renounce their U.S. citizenship in order to save their business assets. A better use of their legislative pen would be to introduce legislation to significantly lower corporate and capital gains taxes, which would make the U.S. a more business friendly nation. http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/international-taxes/228427-norquist-compares-schumers-tax-dodger-bill-to-the-nazis

S.3200 & S.3198: S. 3200 bill to require the Small Business Administration to submit a regular National Small Business Index to Congress to assess how policies provide incentives or impediments to small business development. S.3198 to improve the entrepreneurial development programs of the Small Business Administration.  Sponsor: Sen Landrieu, Mary [LA] (introduced 5/17/2012) Cosponsors (None).  Committees: Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship.  Latest Major Action: 5/17/2012 Both bills were referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2012 SESSION

Introduced Legislation:

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 983: ACT TO PROVIDE THAT NORTH 2 CAROLINA SHALL NOT COMPLY WITH ICLEI/AGENDA 21, RELATIVE TO THE RIO DECLARATION ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT AND THE STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES FOR THE SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF FORESTS.  Sponsors: Representatives Bradley, Cleveland, Cook, and Pittman (Primary Sponsors) Norman Sanderson has also signed on.  Latest Action: May 17, 2012 Referred to Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House.

HB 925: Annexation Reform 2--Sponsor: Moffit, Tim (R-Buncombe).  Latest Action: 5/16/12 Senate Committee Substitute Adopted.  Summary:  AN ACT TO REQUIRE A VOTE OF THE RESIDENTS PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF AN ANNEXATION ORDINANCE INITIATED BY A MUNICIPALITY. The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:  SECTION 1.Part 7 of Article 4A of Chapter 160A of the General Statutes is 5 amended by adding a new section to read: "§ 160A-58.64. Referendum prior to involuntary annexation ordinance.  After the adoption of the resolution of intent under this Part, the municipality shall place the question of annexation on the ballot. The municipal governing board shall notify the appropriate county board or boards of elections of the adoption of the resolution of intent and provide a legible map and clear written description of the proposed annexation area.

Public Notice of Annexation information meetings; dates for the referendum on ballot; The ballots used in a referendum shall submit the following proposition: "[ ] FOR [ ] AGAINST and The annexation of (clear description of the proposed annexation area)." If less than a majority of the votes cast on the referendum are for annexation, the 26 municipal governing body may not proceed with the adoption of the annexation ordinance or 27 begin a separate involuntary annexation process with respect to that proposed annexation area 28 for at least 36 months from the date of the referendum. If a majority of the votes cast on the 29 referendum are for annexation, the municipal governing body may proceed with the adoption of 30 the annexation ordinance under G.S. 160A-58.55." http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2011/Bills/House/PDF/H925v4.pdf
Comments: This legislation protects individual property rights and community rights from the government's process of intrusive forced annexation to raise more tax revenue. Instead the bill gives the power back to the people through the referendum process. I would like to see an amendment to this bill which would also allow communities to petition their county government for a referendum if the city wishes to be annexed due to infrasture and county service needs. That would give the ultimate decision on annexation to the individual and prevent the government from cherry picking wealthier communities over others, who may be in greater need of county services and are willing to pay higher taxes in order to get them.

AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY GOES TO RALEIGH!

On Thursday, May 24 Americans for Prosperity will bring busloads of activists to Raleigh to encourage NC House members to stop abusive forced annexations once and for all.


Buses will leave from the locations below. Save your seat by CLICKING HERE.

8:00 am Monkey Junction, Wilmington--Home Depot 5511 Carolina Beach Road Wilmington , NC 28412 Beside Staples and across from Walmart. Cars should be parked at the back of the parking lot towards the Wachovia.
8:30 am Wilmington--Home Depot 210 Eastwood Road , Wilmington , NC

Intersection of Market and Eastwood by Gold's Gym. Cars should park in the area of parking lot shared with Kohl's.
8:30 am Lexington Walmart parking lot, 160 Lowes Blvd. , Lexington , NC 27292
9:15 am McLeansville Lions Club 1124 Mount Hope Church Rd. in McLeansville , North Carolina
9:30 am Oak Level Baptist Church, 3598 Oak Level Road, Rocky Mount, NC 27804

WEAR RED SHIRTS!

(We Cannot guarantee time of departure from Raleigh.)

It looks like the state Senate is keeping its promise to defend the recent grassroots victory over forced municipal annexation. Now, it is the state House’s turn to take up annexation reform and AFP activists will be there to encourage them to do so.

The legislation being discussed is a pair of annexation reforms that would stop forced annexations in several areas including: Goldsboro , Kinston , Fayetteville , Wilson , Wilmington , Rocky Mount and Lexington . (House Bill 5-Local De-Annexations).

A second bill would subject ALL forced annexations to a direct vote of the people affected. (House Bill 925-Annexation Reform 2).

After years of abusing taxpayers, the cities that make up the North Carolina League of Municipalities lost this fight in the court of public opinion and the General Assembly in recent months. They should not be able to use taxpayer money to receive a third or fourth bite at the apple.

Catch a bus to Raleigh on Thursday and encourage the state House members to fight for property owners by supporting these bills!

Dallas Woodhouse
North Carolina State Director
Americans for Prosperity

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen-leaders committed to advancing every individual's right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and intrusiveness of government is the best way to promote individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens to support restraining state and federal government growth and returning government to its constitutional limits. AFP is more than 1.9 million activists strong, with activists in all 50 states. AFP has 35 state chapters and affiliates. More than 90,000 Americans in all 50 states have made a financial contribution to AFP or AFP Foundation. Americans for Prosperity does not support or oppose candidates for public office. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org
 

Sunday, May 20, 2012

TPN—Alan Caruba: Can We Avoid "Taxmageddon" in 2013?

In 1959, during an interview with the late Mike Wallace, Ayn Rand, the author of “Atlas Shrugged”, said “A free market will not break down. All depressions are caused by government interference and the cure that is always offered is more of the same poisons that caused the disaster.”

After the stock market crashed on October 29, 1929, the government’s solution to the crisis was to raise the top tax rate from 25% to 63%. Successively this was increased to 79% and then to 94%, effectively choking off capital formation, investment, and the incentive to start new businesses.

Not until World War Two broke out in Europe in 1939 and threatened the security of the United States and its allies did Franklin D. Roosevelt reverse his failed policies that had stretched out the Depression, turning to private enterprise to build the airplanes, tanks, and guns that would be needed to defeat the Axis powers and, in 1941, the Empire of Japan. Capitalism saved America.

America suffered a little known shock to its economy on September 15, 2008, just a month and a half shy of Election Day, when around 11 AM the Federal Reserve noted a tremendous draw down of money market accounts in the nation to the tune of $550 billion dollars in just over an hour or so. The decision was made to close the accounts. Had they not done that, the Reserve estimated that by 2 PM the entire economy of the nation would have collapsed. Within 24 hours, the world economy would have followed.

The financial crisis this triggered was put off by letting the investment house of Lehman Brothers fail and by getting Congress to agree to a $700 billion program to bail out other investment firms and the insurance firm, AIG. Simply put, without a banking system, you do not have an economy.

Americans are in for another shock to the system on January 1, 2013 when nearly a half trillion in higher taxes will become the law of the land. Taxmageddon would be the largest tax hike in the history of the nation.

The taxes pose such a threat to the anemic “recovery” the economy is said to be having that a think tank called the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has been urging the CEOs of corporations and financial institutions to meet with members of Congress to bring pressure to resolve the gridlock that has brought the nation to the precipice of yet another financial crisis.

How bad is the prospect of January 1, 2013? A May 11th Heritage Foundation analysis listed the following:


# Income tax rates shoot up,
# the child credit rate is cut in half,
# the marriage penalty roars back to life,
# the capital gains tax rate goes up,
# the dividend tax rate soars,
# the payroll tax rate jumps two percentage points,
# the death tax is restored to its punitive past,
# the Alternative Minimum Tax relief expires, and
# a uniquely pernicious additional payroll tax hike from Obamacare takes effect unless the Supreme Court strikes down the law as unconstitutional.

CONTINUED:  http://www.teapartynation.com/profiles/blog/show?id=3355873%3ABlogPost%3A2020907&xgs=1&xg_source=msg_share_post

‘Moses Shaped America’: Despite the Naysayers…America Really Is a Judeo-Christian Nation

On his Thursday evening program, Glenn Beck welcomed Tim Ballard, historian and author of a new book detailing how the Founding Fathers were spiritually moved to created the United States based on Biblical prophecy — particularly as it relates to the ancient Hebrews. “The Covenant: America’s Sacred and Immutable Connection to Ancient Israel” is a book that will likely prove a fascinating read for both history-buffs and faith-keepers alike. Beck and Ballard discussed the importance faith had on the Founders and delved into the spirituality that guided them in their quest to establish a more perfect union.

Whether one believes in the more mystical elements of Ballard’s work, it raises awareness of a subject all-too prevalent in American life today.  America as a Judeo-Christian nation

A familiar narrative among those who refuse to accept that religion played a role in the nation’s founding, or who seek to scrub all reference to “God” from view, is that the United States was founded not by Christians, but by “deists“; not upon the Judeo-Christian ethic or tenets of the Bible itself, but rather on some idea of “pluralism” divined from thin air.

These naysayers typically assert that religious influence is “nowhere to be found” in the nation’s founding documents, nor in the framework of America’s government and legal system. Not even a depiction of Moses carrying two tablets of the Ten Commandments displayed in the highest court in the land is enough to prove to secularists that Judeo-Christianity has always been an integral part of the United States.

CONTINUED:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/moses-shaped-america-despite-the-naysayers-america-really-is-a-judeo-christian-nation/

GAO Finds Rampant Waste in $18B Federal Job-training Program

A Government Accountability Office (GAO) study, commissioned by Sen. Tom Coburn (Okla.), is bringing to question whether taxpayers should finance an $18-billion annual “investment” in federal programs that provide training to unemployed Americans. The 2011 analysis, which observed programs in fiscal year 2009, pinpointed a profuse and overlapping mesh of 47 different job-training programs administered by nine agencies.

“The vast majority of money we spend in job training doesn’t go to job training, it goes to employ people in those job training federal programs,” Coburn said in an interview with Fox News. Some programs are brimming with fraud and abuse, with taxpayer-funded dollars being spent on affairs that are in no way associated with professional training. For example, the study reported:

• Some job training participants spent their days sitting on a bus.
• Some were trained for jobs that didn’t exist.
• Others were paid to sit through educational sessions about jobs they already had.
• High school students were knowingly exposed to the cancer-causing agent asbestos as part of a job training program.
• Funds were misspent to pay a contractor for ghost employees and to purchase video games.
• Job training administrators spent federal funds on extravagant meals and bonuses for themselves.
• In one state, workforce agency employees took more than 100 gambling trips to casinos mostly during work hours.

CONTINUED:  http://thenewamerican.com/economy/commentary/item/11443-gao-finds-rampant-waste-in-$18b-federal-job-training-program