Letter to the Editor: Climate Change Debate

Several centuries ago the “consensus” of scientists of the times agreed the earth was flat.  Now those who dare to question those who live and breathe the gloom and doom of “global warming” are often called “flat-earthers”.  Honest dissent or questioning of the “consensus” leads to derision and ad hominem attacks.

A number of Sun Journal readers have weighed into the debate, and there seems to be very little middle ground.  Those who have bought the “consensus” theory are not open to another opinion, and often overlook startling facts, especially that a few years ago the “consensus” was the earth was rapidly cooling, and an Ice Age was on the near horizon.

The EPA has declared carbon dioxide a “pollutant” which poses a danger to human health and welfare.  By doing so, the EPA will be able to regulate every single economic activity in America; even if those regulations won’t do anything to impact climate.  Former EPA administrator, Lisa Jackson, admitted as much in an analysis showing that US action to reduce greenhouse gases would have no impact on climate because of growing emissions from China and India.

It’s distressing to see few pointing out the inconsistencies of the alarmists.  At Georgetown University recently, President Obama gave a speech stating the earth has been warming at an accelerated rate over the past 15 years.  But Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, head of the UN’ global warming science body, the IPCC, has recently admitted there has been no global warming for 17 years.  Guess the president didn’t get the memo, but neither did Al Gore.  Mr. Gore’s misstatements have included:  “The Earth has never been hotter and “There has never been more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than we have now”. 

Many scientists believe the Earth was at least as hot around 1100.  During that period the Vikings discovered and settled Greenland.  Food was plentiful in Europe and people prospered.  That “warming” period was actually beneficial to the adaptable humans.  As far as carbon dioxide, geologists have found evidence to prove carbon dioxide levels were 20 times as large in the distant past as they are now.

Many of the theories of the climate alarmists are not only wrong, but dangerous.  Their views are influencing our government to take actions which will negatively impact us all.  While many of these people profess to care about the poor and disenfranchised, their actions will more adversely affect those very people through rising gas and heating costs.  America’s prosperity is undermined, jobs are destroyed, and the sovereignty of our country is threatened by unaccountable bureaucrats from the United Nations.

Instead of trying to stop the “dissenters”, would it not be better to have more open debate before we commit scarce resources and apply draconian measures to a subject that appears to be less than “settled”?

Nancy Murdoch, CCTA Education Chairman

Havelock, NC

The Washington Examiner, January 22, 2014

Check out the Headlines!

Environmental groups file court motion seeking EPA action on ozone standard

Obama's election commission aims to reduce voting headaches

The rise and fall of Bob McDonnell

Obama praises Roe v. Wade on 41st anniversary

Mitch McConnell releases powerful ad featuring a throat cancer survivor

Happy New Year! Feds list 141 new regulations in only three days

Daily Caller, January 3, 2014

It’s a new year and you know what that means — new regulations. The Obama

administration has wasted no time in writing them.

The website Regulations.gov lists 141 regulations that have been posted by federal agencies in the last three days alone. Of these regulations, 119 are “rulemaking,” meaning they establish a new rule. Twenty-three are “non-rulemaking,” meaning the regulations do not establish a new rule.

The largest group of regulations has to do with energy and environmental issues, many of them issued by the Environmental Protection Agency. One new EPA regulation is an amendment to a rule on hazardous emissions from lead smelters.

The EPA has come under fire from lawmakers for cracking down on emissions from coal plants and other carbon-heavy fuels and materials. The agency is also working on 134 major and minor regulations that will take effect in the coming years.

In particular, the agency is under fire for a rule that will be finalized later this year capping carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, effectively banning coal-fired power plants from being built.

“If these regulations go into effect, American jobs will be lost, electricity prices will soar, and economic uncertainty will grow. We need the federal government to work as a partner, not an adversary, and to invest in America’s energy future,” said West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin.

Read more!  http://dailycaller.com/2014/01/03/happy-new-year-feds-list-141-new-regulations-in-only-3-days/#ixzz2pMyZyX7A

Alan Caruba: The Power Mad EPA--the threat is the EPA, not the mercury!

Barely a week goes by these days without hearing of some new demand by the Environmental Protection Agency that borders on the insane.

Increasingly, EPA regulations are being challenged and now reach the Supreme Court for a final judgment. This marks the failure of Congress to exercise any real oversight and control of an agency that everyone agrees is now totally out of control.

Recently the EPA ruled that New York City had to replace 1,300 fire hydrants because of their lead content. The ruling was based on the Drinking Water Act passed by Congress in 2011. 

As Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) pointed out while lambasting the agency, “I don’t know a single New Yorker who goes out to their fire hydrants every morning, turns it on, and brushes their teeth using the water from these hydrants. It makes no sense whatsoever.” Reportedly, the Senate is poised to consider legislation exempting fire hydrants if the EPA does not revise its ruling.

The EPA is not about making sense. It is about over-interpreting laws passed by Congress in ways that now continually lead to cases before the Supreme Court. The Court is composed of lawyers, not scientists. In an earlier case, they ruled that carbon dioxide (CO2) is a “pollutant” when it is the one gas that all vegetation requires. Without it, nothing grows and all life on Earth dies.

Continue reading.

Coal advocates to storm Capitol Hill - CowboyByte

Coal executives and miners will storm the Capitol next week to put pressure on Congress and the White House over regulatory policies that they say are killing jobs.  Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and 30 members of Congress will participate Tuesday in the Count on Coal coalition’s rally.

McConnell has vowed to make what the GOP is calling the administration’s “war on coal” a main issue in his 2014 reelection campaign.

After the Environmental Protection Agency announced a listening tour to gather feedback on new regulations for power plants, McConnell cried foul, claiming the tour did not include any stops in coal-reliant states.

Read more at http://cowboybyte.com/25559/coal-advocates-storm-capitol-hill/#Q8RLwsgKpDIPpGk2.99

Could the Obama Administration’s Next Scandal Be Brewing at the EPA?

May 30, 2013

With the continued Benghazi investigation, IRS political targeting and DOJ press surveillance, could a scandal at the EPA be the next shoe to droop for the Obama administration?


The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) been closely following the EPA’s misuse of private communication to conduct public business, and fees the agency has placed on conservative groups seeking information that they usual waive for media and watchdog groups. After successfully gaining access to former EPA Chief Lisa Jackson’s emails, CEI is now suing to gain access to the text messages of Gina McCarthy, the senior EPA official the President has nominated to now run the agency.

CEI’s Chris Horner joined “Wilkow” Thursday to discuss his organization’s request to access text messages sent by Jackson and McCarthy, and what they’re looking for.

“Where are these text messages? Are they really engaging in serial, coordinated, systematic document destruction in violation of criminal law?” he asked. “Because I have an affidavit in one of my lawsuits from NASA admitting that they are. OK, so this is not far-fetched, this is rather near-fetched.”

Horner noted that McCarthy is being promoted to an “enormous budget” and “enormous responsibility” and there are questions that need to be answered.

He went on: “The bigger issue the EPA is going to have to answer is: Are you just in contempt of Congress and violating the law by refusing to turn things over? Or are you really serially and systematically destroying records?”


“If so, these consequences have to go beyond people resigning to end the issue — we have to have real consequences because these are not their records, they’re ours,” Horner concluded.

CONTINUED:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/30/could-the-obama-administrations-next-scandal-be-brewing-at-the-epa/

BENGHAZI: IT’S US VS.THEM

Democrats act all outraged at the suggestion that Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton would ever do anything to endanger the lives of personnel stationed overseas in order to win re-election.

Well guess what – that’s exactly what happened. They lied, gave orders to stand-down, didn’t send help, failed to act, changed the facts, covered-up, lied some more, went to Vegas, lied again, got help from Candy Crowley, got some other people to lie, intimidated witnesses and are now going after the folks testifying to the truth. Since they took office the Administration has been holding a gun to the head of nearly every American in its quest to exact maximum pain on each of us to achieve Barack Obama’s political objectives. First, printing and spreading money around to their supporters, then bribing members of Congress to pass legislation, and now engaging in activity and cover-ups such as Fast & Furious, the Sequester and now the murders in Benghazi.


It makes me wonder what they’ve done that we don’t know about.

What we do know is that whether it’s public unions, the IRS, the Justice Department, the EPA and a whole lotta other government personnel – it’s clearly become a case of Us versus Them. When kids are denied tours of the White House as the Muslim Brotherhood lines its coffers with taxpayer money – you know the federal government is lined up against us. When pilots come over loudspeakers to announce you’re being delayed because of a phony sequester crisis – you know the federal government is lined up against us. When teachers and their unions fail to teach your children basic math, science and English, yet scream for more money and pensions – you know what it is:


Government is no longer the parasites, they are the host organism and as far as they’re concerned we are here to feed the monster and shut the hell up.

READ MORE:  http://joeforamerica.com/2013/05/benghazi-its-us-vs-them/

Morning Bell: The 10 Worst Regulations of 2012

It seems that no aspect of American life can escape government regulation. In the past year, regulators drafted rules that addressed everything from caloric intake to dishwasher efficiency.


Most of these rules increase the cost of living, others hinder job creation, and many erode freedom. Not all regulations are unwarranted, of course, but increasingly, the rules imposed by the government have less to do with health and safety and more to do with whether government or individuals get to make basic pocketbook and lifestyle decisions that affect them. And it is not just the regulators who are to blame. Congress writes laws that give unelected bureaucrats the broad powers they wield.

Today we bring you 10 of the worst regulations from 2012:

1. HHS’s Contraception Mandate
The Department of Health and Human Services on February 15 finalized its mandate that allhealth insurance plans include coverage for abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization procedures, and contraceptives. To date, 42 cases with more than 110 plaintiffs are challenging this restriction on religious liberty.

2. EPA Emissions Standards
The EPA in February finalized strict new emissions standards for coal- and oil-fired electric utilities. The benefits are highly questionable, with the vast majority being unrelated to the emissions targeted by the regulation. The costs, however, are certain: an estimated $9.6 billion annually.

3. Fuel Efficiency Standards
In August, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in tandem with the Environmental Protection Agency, finalized fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucksfor model years 2017–2025. The rules require a whopping average fuel economy of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Sticker prices will jump by hundreds of dollars.

CONTINUED:  http://blog.heritage.org/2012/12/28/morning-bell-the-10-worst-regulations-of-2012/?roi=echo3-14113239833-10781953-3bf731e1253b8d40187a4680578bdda0&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Morning%2BBell

Top 10 Obama anti-business, anti-job actions

President Obama loves to complain that he inherited an economic mess. That may be true, but his wrong-headed policies have only made matters worse, taking actions that hurt businesses and stunt job growth.

1. Obamacare costs

Obamacare will impose a new cost on many small businesses that currently do not provide health insurance for their employees and will pressure many to shift workers to part-time status to get below the measure’s “50-worker” loophole. It also means all companies will have to re-evaluate their health care coverage and make changes to come into compliance with federal guidelines or pay fines of up to $3,000 per worker. The Congressional Budget Office says the bill will lead to 800,000 fewer jobs by 2020.

2. Small business tax hikes


The expiration of the Bush tax cuts for individuals making over $200,000, or families making $250,000, will hit many small business owners, an increase that will hit as those same owners are still trying to dig out of the recession. Considering that small businesses are the main creator of jobs in the nation, every dollar taken from them in tax hikes is that many fewer dollars available for expanding employment.

3. EPA’s burdensome regulations

Regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency put a tremendous burden on businesses, making job creation more difficult. The agency’s rules on air quality standards are curtailing energy produced from coal-fired electrical plants, causing a rise in electricity prices and making scarce a major resource that is abundant in America.

CONTINUED:  http://www.humanevents.com/2012/10/06/top-10-obama-anti-business-anti-job-actions/

XTREME OBAMA?

• Extreme gas prices (was $1.80 in 2008)

• Extreme food prices (EPA regulations)

• Extreme health care (Death Panels)

• Extreme foreign policy (kill list)

• Extreme on Israel (sides with Muslims)

• Extreme taxes (HC) Obama care (tax)

• Extreme business failures (Solyndra)

• Extreme anti religion ( Anti Christian)

• Extreme Medicare policy (Billions taken by B. O.)


EXTREME LIES

EXTREME LIES


EXTREME LIES



• EXTREME ATTACK ON FREEDOM

FORWARD (He says)

To where? To what?

EPA Defines Ditch As Navigable Waterway In Attempt to Grab Power Over Land Owners

The Environmental Protection Agency has been exercising its muscle in trying to take control of virtual all water supplies in the United States, including those on private property.

In the process, they are making it difficult to near impossible for land owners to use their property if the EPA finds as much as a bucket of water on it.

In the western US, numerous land owners and municipalities have been told they can no longer use their wells for water as they are tied into groundwater that may drain into a stream, river or lake elsewhere. Tombstone, Arizona is a prime example of how the EPA and the Obama administration have cut off the town’s main water supply.

Now the EPA is using the Clean Water Act to seize control of lands throughout the country, often in violation of law and the Supreme Court. In the early 2000’s, John Rapanos wanted to build a shopping mall on his land in Michigan. Some of the land was swampy, so he drained it and filled it in so he could build. Even though he was 20 miles away from a waterway that was designated as ‘waters of the United States’, the EPA told Rapanos that his property was navigable because it was connected to a tributary that flowed in to the waters of the US. They levied millions of dollars in fines against him and ordered him to return the land to its original state.

CONTINUED:  http://godfatherpolitics.com/5689/epa-defines-ditch-as-navigable-waterway-in-attempt-grab-power-over-land-owners/

A Massive Land and Water Grab

By Alan Caruba

Environmental Protection Agency in league with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

The tension between the states and the federal government is built into the U.S. Constitution and the Tenth Amendment stipulates that “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.”

The Constitution was written in an era of monarchies by men who were determined to preserve the rights of individual citizens and of the sovereign republics, the states, who were coming together for their common protection and welfare without ceding any powers to the federal government that would deprive them of the governance of their states. The Founding Fathers were well aware that it is the nature of all governments to seek to accrue more and more power at the expense of citizens and states or provinces within their borders. The rise of the so-called environmental movement has given ample proof that their concerns were well-grounded. I yearn for the day when we stop calling them “environmentalists” and simply the communists that they are.


CONTINUED:  http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/47281?utm_source=CFP+Mailout&utm_campaign=b5b6195f79-Call_to_Champions&utm_medium=email

Did Buffett Help Obama Kill Keystone Pipeline to Reap Financial Gain?

The Blaze.com

As the nation’s gas prices skyrocket, critics argue that President Obama’s recent rejection of the $7 billion, “shovel-ready” Keystone XL oil pipeline, followed by his continued vow to “double down” on green energy, is a clear sign the administration plans to do little of substance in terms of American oil exploration. The move has also stirred controversy about the president’s real intentions concerning job creation and reducing pain at the pump for everyday Americans.


TransCanada and the Keystone XL oil pipeline

TransCanada filed an application to build the nearly 1,700-mile underground pipeline in 2008 and passed two rigorous State Department reviews. In February 2010, South Dakota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) granted a permit based on a thorough work up of the project.

“There has been a great deal of work and due diligence leading up to this decision,” said South Dakota Public Utilities Commissioner Dustin Johnson in an interview with DownStreamToday. “The record compiled in this case is pretty impressive. In the end, I feel the conditions we have placed upon this project ensure that it will be constructed in a manner that is sensitive to South Dakota and her people.”


Another Public Utilities official said he believed “the process by which this application was considered was open, thorough and fair” and Keystone openly pledged to station full-time personnel in South Dakota to respond to any emergency situations that may have arisen, according to the report.

That was apparently not enough for the White House, however, which sent TransCanada and others back to the drawing board in January 2012, citing environmental concerns.

To bypass obstacles created by special interest groups and the Environmental Protection Agency, a March 2012 amendment was introduced in the Senate that would have eliminated the need for a federal permit, while addressing environmentalists’ worries by placing more autonomy in Nebraska’s hands. After a vote, however, the measure was squashed 56 to 42.


If allowed, Keystone would have brought a reported 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Alberta, Canada, to U.S. outposts and refineries on the Gulf Coast and created thousands of jobs.

In the wake of Obama’s political maneuvering, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper deemed the U.S. an unreliable energy partner and is thus expanding his country’s crude export. The move will result in Canada eliminating the discount it once afforded the U.S. on its oil products.

The administration’s alleged reason for rejecting the application for the pipeline submitted by Calgary-based TransCanada was said to be based on a “recommendation” by the State Department, which concluded there was not enough time to assess alternate pipeline routes. Yet, as we have pointed out, the pipeline was under review for no less than three years and was approved earlier. In addition, if environmental concerns were truly the catalyst for rejecting the pipeline, why then would the president seem comfortable with operating pollutant-emitting freight trains along a Northern railroad line through the United States?

Warren Buffett’s Burlington Northern Railroad

What would prompt the president to turn the lights out on what critics argue would have been an environmentally-sound, job-boosting, oil-producing project that would benefit the nation and preserve the financially beneficial Canadian-U.S. oil relationship? What does President Obama have to gain by rejecting Keystone XL and who else stands to benefit from his decision?


It was previously reported on The Blaze that Warren Buffett’s Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC railroad — a unit of Buffett’s Omaha, Nebraska based Berkshire Hathaway — would be among those poised to reap sizable gains by the administration’s decision to reject TransCanada Corp’s oil pipeline permit. According to Bloomberg, Berkshire Hathaway completed its roughly $26.4 billion purchase of Burlington Northern, issuing new stock and paying out $15.87 billion in cash.

“Whatever people bring to us, we’re ready to haul,” Krista York-Wooley, a spokeswoman for Burlington Northern told Bloomberg. If Keystone XL “doesn’t happen, we’re here to haul.”

CONTINUED:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/did-buffett-kill-the-keystone-pipeline-to-reap-financial-gain/

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

Introduced: S. 2237: A bill to provide a temporary income tax credit for increased payroll and extend bonus depreciation for an additional year, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Sen. Harry Reid [D-NV]: This bill or resolution is in the first stage of the legislative process. It was introduced into Congress on March 26, 2012. Most bills and resolutions are assigned to committees which consider them before they move to the House or Senate as a whole.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/s2237

Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act - Vote Passed (73-26, 1 Not Voting): This bill would ease reporting and regulatory requirements for small businesses trying to raise capital in order to take the company public. The House passed the bill on March 8, 2012. The Senate adopted an amendment to the bill which will require the House to vote again. It is expected the House will pass the bill this week and send the bill to the president. Sen. Richard Burr voted YES and Sen. Kay Hagan voted YES.
http://capwiz.com/military/issues/votes/?votenum=55&chamber=S&congress=1122

The Clean Water Restoration Act: The Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing And Other News--If you have not seen this legislation: S2122 Defense Of Environment And Property Act of 2012 and HR4171 The Focus Act, please forward and share the information because they help to continue to restrengthen private property rights, restrengthens states rights related to water decisions, repeals language that overcriminalizes individuals and businesses. http://www.weekendmorningbuzz.vacau.com/

Help Efficient, Accessible, Low-cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2011 - Vote Passed (223-181, 4 Present, 23 Not Voting)--The House passed this bill that would eliminate the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) and cap damages in medical malpractice lawsuits. IPAB was created by the 2010 health care law and is charged with finding savings in Medicare spending. It has no members yet. The Senate is unlikely to take up the bill. Rep. Walter Jones voted YES.
http://capwiz.com/military/issues/votes/?votenum=126&chamber=H&congress=1122

THE BLAZE: Supreme Court Sides With Private Property Owner in Landmark EPA Case

March 21, 2012
Today, the Supreme Court has sided with an Idaho couple in a private property rights case, ruling they have the right to go to court to challenge an Environmental Protection Agency policy that blocked construction of their new home and threatened fines of more than $30,000 a day.

In 2007 the EPA halted private property owners Mike and Chantell Sackett from building a new home on their property adjacent to a scenic lake in Idaho. The reasoning? The agency said part of the property was a wetlands that could not disturbed.

The first phase of construction had already been completed on the private residence when federal officials showed up and ordered a halt in the work. A fine of $30,000 a day would be levied against the Sackett’s were they to continue building. The couple was then disallowed by the agency to obtain the permits needed to continue construction in local courts.


CONTINUED:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/supreme-court-sides-with-private-property-owner-in-landmark-epa-case/

Federal Watchdog & Tea Party Report—March 20, 2012

Defend Property Rights Against EPA 'Navigable Waters' Overreach
The notorious Clean Water Act of 1972 has been used by both the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to curtail mining, control land use in agricultural zones, stop expansion of energy companies, and bring an end to construction projects. The ‘navigable waters’ authority is one of the many dangerous avenues that have allowed the agency to engage in enormous unconstitutional assaults on the rights of property owners. Farmers, ranchers, homeowners, business owners, and municipalities have been forced to abide by costly, and sometimes impossible-to-achieve, EPA mandates that have little or nothing to do with protecting the environment and even less to do with exercising legitimate federal authority.

Legislation introduced by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) would target these abuses by the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. The Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2012, S. 2122, with seven cosponsors so far, would rein in the EPA's regulatory overreach over "navigable waters" on private property that has destroyed the American dream of home building for many Americans. A companion bill will soon be introduced in the House. EPA could actually track the flow of water up a pipe and into your house, and call that a navigable water.

H.R. 452: Medicare Decisions Accountability Act of 2011: To repeal the provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act providing for the Independent Payment Advisory Board. Sponsor: Rep. Phil Roe [R-TN1]. Status: Reported by Committee. The committees assigned to this bill or resolution sent it to the House or Senate as a whole for consideration on March 8, 2012. This bill would repeal the so called “Death Panel” which would have 15 bureaucrats appointed by Obama with only 1 person from the healthcare arena allowed. Rep. Roe says this bill has bipartisan support, but will likely be merged with HR 5 Malpractice Reform Bill which does not have bipartisan support.

Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act: The U.S. Senate has approved of a $109 billion bill that provides two years of funding for transportation and transit projects around the country. The bill may or may not be taken up by the U.S. House Representatives depending on if they choose to write a separate House bill, but hopefully what will be left out of any final version is an amendment by Montana U.S. Sen. Max Baucus. His amendment funds the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) to the tune of $1.4 billion for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 — quite a jump from the $323 million it is currently receiving in FY 2012. This Fund helps purchase and protects lands across the country. Evidently the line of thinking within the Senate is more U.S. lands are in need of being purchased and protected by the federal government. (Sen. Burr voted against this bill and Sen. Hagan voted for it.)

UPCOMING VOTES
Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act - H.R.3606: The Senate is scheduled to take up this House-passed bill that is intended to make it easier for small and mid-sized companies to go public.

Help Efficient, Accessible, Low-cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2011 - H.R.5: This House bill would place caps on damages in certain medical malpractice lawsuits. Heritage Foundation Opposes Federal Tort Reform Bill. The problem with most of the proposed reforms in H.R. 5 is that the law governing medical malpractice claims is a state issue, not a federal issue. Despite H.R. 5's reliance on the Commerce Clause, Congress has no business (and no authority under the Constitution) telling states what the rules should be governing medical malpractice claims.

Republican and Democratic Congressmen are trying to amend H.R. 5 to protect states' and individual rights before the House votes on it later this week. Americans who cherish their God-given rights should call the U.S.Capitol switchboard at 202-225-3121, ask to speak with their Congressman and insist that he/she oppose that bill unless the unconstitutional language is removed.

Two important rallies coming up as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear the case on the constitutionality of Obamacare:

March 24, 2012: Tea Party Patriots, Road to Repeal Rally, 12:00 Noon, Washington, DC https://www.roadtorepeal.com/

March 27, 2012: Americans for Prosperity, Hands Off Our Healthcare Rally, Upper Senate Park, Washington D.C. http://www.americansforprosperity.org/north-carolina#ixzz1nAcbtEO3

Please read below about this important bill and then call your Senators!!

Defend Property Rights Against EPA 'Navigable Waters' Overreach


The notorious Clean Water Act of 1972 has been used by both the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to curtail mining, control land use in agricultural zones, stop expansion of energy companies, and bring an end to construction projects. As The New American Senior Editor William F. Jasper stated, “The ‘navigable waters’ authority is one of the many dangerous avenues that have allowed the agency to engage in enormous unconstitutional assaults on the rights of property owners. Farmers, ranchers, homeowners, business owners, and municipalities have been forced to abide by costly, and sometimes impossible-to-achieve, EPA mandates that have little or nothing to do with protecting the environment and even less to do with exercising legitimate federal authority.”

Legislation introduced by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) would target these abuses by the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. The Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2012, S. 2122, with seven cosponsors so far, would rein in the EPA's regulatory overreach over "navigable waters" on private property that has destroyed the American dream of home building for many Americans. A companion bill will soon be introduced in the House.


"Environmental protection must be balanced with the fundamental American right to private property,” Sen. Paul has said, adding, "It is time to bring common sense to federal water policy, and I do so on behalf of the thousands of property owners across the country who have been met with aggression from the EPA and Army Corps for wetlands issues."

From Sen. Paul’s website are these provisions in The Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2012:

•Redefine "navigable waters" to explicitly clarify that waters must actually be navigable in fact, or "permanent, standing, or continuously flowing bodies of water that form geographical features commonly known as streams, oceans, rivers and lakes that are connected to waters that are navigable-in-fact."
•Excludes ephemeral or intermittent streams -- the streams that sometimes form when rain falls -- from federal jurisdiction.
•Restrains the EPA and the Army Corps from regulating or "interpreting" the definition of a navigable water without Congressional authorization.
•Protects the rights of states to have primary authority over the land and water within their borders.
•Prohibits federal agents from entering private property without the express consent of the landowner. [Emphasis added.]
•Requires the government to pay double the value of the land to any landowner whose property value is diminished by a wetlands designation.

Passage of this bill would result in less regulatory heavy-handedness by the EPA and the Corps of Engineers in their dealings with property owners and businesses by ending their authority over truly non-navigable waters. However, this bill is stuck in the Senate Committee for Environment and Public Works, chaired by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) who has a pattern of opposing any attempts to rein in the EPA’s out-of-control powers. Here is a list of the Senate Majority and Minority leaders of the Committee that you can call immediately and ask for their support to get this bill reported out of committee and passed by the Senate:

Senate Majority Members

Barbara Boxer (202) 224-3553
Max Baucus (202) 224-2651
Thomas R. Carper (202) 224-2441
Frank R. Lautenberg (202) 224-3224
Benjamin L. Cardin (202) 224-4524
Bernard Sanders (202) 224-5141
Sheldon Whitehouse (202) 224-2921
Tom Udall (202) 224-6621
Jeff Merkley (202) 224-3753
Kirsten Gillibrand (202) 224-4451

Senate Minority Members
James M. Inhofe (202) 224-4721
David Vitter (202) 224-4623
John Barrasso 202-224-6441
Jeff Sessions (202) 224-4124
Mike Crapo (202) 224-6142
Lamar Alexander (202) 224-4944
Mike Johanns (202) 224-4224
John Boozman 202) 224-4843

When graded from a constitutional perspective, this is an A+ bill. It should help tremendously to rein in the EPA's and the Corps of Engineers' aggressive regulatory tactics that harm American businesses and families.


Urge your Representative and Senators to cosponsor, support, promote and pass this important bill today using our prewritten, editable email message.

Thanks.
Your friends at The John Birch Society

Americans for Prosperity: 112th Congress Mid-Term Review Key Vote Scorecard

Americans for Prosperity just released its Mid-Term Review Key Vote Scorecard grading Members of Congress on what AFP feels were the most important economic votes in 2011.


We looked at the 17 top free-market votes in the Senate and 15 in the House. The issues included votes to repeal the President’s new health care law, halt the EPA’s onerous greenhouse gas regulations, and cut federal spending in the budget and appropriations bills. AFP also includes the signature of our No Climate Tax Pledge in the scorecard.

Five senators and thirty-nine representatives earned a perfect A+ score, voting with AFP’s free-market position on every issue in 2011. See how your Members of Congress voted!

When we were analyzing the scores, a few interesting trends emerged. First, there is a lot of work left to do to promote economic freedom. While 44 lawmakers had a perfect score, a whopping 128 of them received a score of zero, voting against AFP’s position on every issue.

Second, President Obama claims that his agenda is being stifled by an intransigent and ideologically-rigid block of Republicans swept into office by the 2010 elections. However, (to our dismay) the actual voting records do not support this. Almost half of the House GOP received a B grade, failing to support the free-market position between two and four times last year. In reality, Democrats put up the most “ideologically pure” scores, especially in the House, continuing a trend reaching back to at least the 110th Congress.

We hope you find our scorecard to be a useful tool in holding your elected representatives accountable for their votes on economic freedom.


Americans for Prosperity ranks Members of Congress based on their votes on the most important free market issues. Click the links below to explore current and past congresses:


http://americansforprosperity.com/scorecard?tr=y&auid=10169858

Winston Salem Journal: Roll Call Votes in Congress for December 18, 2011

By Journal Now Staff

Here's how members of North Carolina's congressional delegation voted on major issues in the week ending Friday.

House

2012 military budget: Voting 283-136, the House on Wednesday approved the conference report (HR 1540) on a $662 billion military budget for fiscal 2012, including $117.2 billion for war in Afghanistan and Iraq, $52.5 billion for the military's health care system and $14.9 billion for naval shipbuilding. The bill requires that captured members of organizations such as al-Qaida be held in U.S. military custody and subjected to military justice. But terrorist suspects apprehended on U.S. soil who are U.S. citizens or resident aliens must be assigned to America's civilian criminal-justice system and thus accorded constitutional rights of due process. The bill toughens economic sanctions against Iran by denying access to the U.S. financial system to any foreign bank that conducts business with the Central Bank of Iran.

A yes vote backed the conference report.  Voting yes: Reps. G.K. Butterfield, D-1st; Renee Ellmers, R-2nd; Virginia Foxx, R-5th; Mike McIntyre, D-7th; Larry Kissell, D-8th; Patrick T. McHenry, R-10th; Heath Shuler, D-11th.

Voting no: Reps. Walter B. Jones, R-3rd; David E. Price, D-4th; Melvin L. Watt, D-12th; Brad Miller, D-13th.  Not voting: Howard Coble, R-6th; Sue Wilkins Myrick, R-9th.

Republican payroll-tax plan: Voting 234-193, the House on Tuesday passed a Republican bill (HR 3630) to renew through 2012 the temporary law under which employees this year are contributing 4.2 percent of their pay rather than the standard 6.2 percent to the Social Security Trust Fund. The bill also would speed construction of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to southern Texas; repeal Environmental Protection Agency air pollution curbs on industrial boilers; extend soon-to-expire unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless; reduce the maximum number of weeks for jobless checks from 99 to 59 while allowing states to impose requirements such as testing recipients for drugs; extend for two years existing Medicare reimbursement rates for doctors; and allow businesses to write off 100 percent of capital investments in a single year.  The bill awaited Senate action.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.  Voting yes: Ellmers, Jones, Foxx, Myrick, McHenry

Voting no: Butterfield, Price, McIntyre, Kissell, Shuler, Watt, Miller.  Not voting: Coble.

Sanctions on Iran: Voting 410-11, the House on Wednesday sent the Senate a bill (HR 1905) to toughen existing U.S. economic sanctions on Iran.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.  Voting yes: Butterfield, Ellmers, Jones, Price, Foxx, McIntyre, Kissell, McHenry, Shuler, Watt, Miller  Not voting: Coble, Myrick

2012 intelligence budget: Voting 396-23, the House on Friday sent to President Barack Obama the conference report on a fiscal 2012 budget (HR 1892) of about $55 billion for U.S. intelligence agencies, up 4 percent from 2011. When certain military outlays are counted, the total U.S. spy budget for 2012 is expected to top $85 billion. A yes vote backed the conference report.

Voting yes: Butterfield, Ellmers, Price, Foxx, McIntyre, Kissell, McHenry, Shuler, Watt, Miller

Voting no: Jones   Not voting: Coble, Myrick

Fiscal 2012 appropriations: Voting 296-121, the House on Friday sent to the Senate a bill (HR 2055) to appropriate $915 billion in fiscal 2012 for the 10 Cabinet departments and related agencies that have not yet received regular appropriations three months into the budget year. Among the bill's many policy changes are ones to delay new energy-efficiency standard for light bulbs and bar the District of Columbia from using its own funds to finance abortions. The bill grants major spending increases to the Pentagon and Securities and Exchange Commission while imposing flat, reduced or only slightly increased budgets on most other departments and agencies. When combined with regular appropriations enacted last month, the bill raises total 2012 discretionary spending to the $1.043 trillion mark set by last summer's bipartisan deal on raising the debt ceiling.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.  Voting yes: Butterfield, Ellmers, Price, Foxx, McIntyre, Kissell, Myrick, Shuler, Watt, Miller

Voting no: Jones, McHenry.  Not voting: Coble


CONTINUED:
http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/dec/18/wsmet14-roll-call-votes-in-congress-for-dec-18-ar-1726099/

Why the EPA Train Wreck Must Be Stopped!

Behind the scenes, while Washington and the United States focus on the debt crisis, President Obama’s EPA has been quietly implementing one of the most radical and costly policies of his administration. Ever since the failure of cap-and-trade, the administration has turned to the EPA to carry out its radical environmental agenda. Immediately after the 2010 election Obama was quoted saying “Cap-and-trade was just one way of skinning the cat; it was not the only way.” The EPA is in the process of completing and finalizing 30 major regulations and 170 major policy rules that would impose hundreds of billions of dollars of compliance costs on the economy, killing jobs and threatening the economic recovery. Because of the disastrous affects that the EPA’s new regulations will have on the already struggling economy, many have taken to calling the administration’s aggressive stance the “EPA train wreck.”


CONTINUED:  http://www.freedomworks.org/publications/end-of-the-line?src=nl