Cece Heil endorsed by Campaign for Working Families

Cece Heil, candidate for the Republican nomination for the 5th Congressional District, has received the endorsement of Campaign for Working Families. CWF is a non-partisan political action committee (PAC) dedicated to electing pro-family, pro-life and pro-free enterprise candidates to public offices.

CWF was founded by Gary Bauer in 1996 to represent the interests and values of America's traditional families in the political arena. Since then it has raised millions of dollars for conservative pro-family candidates across America.

CWF also produces an annual scorecard where they rate Senators and Congressmen. Incumbent Democratic Congressman Jim Cooper received a dismal 9% score from CWF in the most recent scoring, the next to the lowest of any of Tennessee’s nine congressmen. Cooper did score higher than Memphis’s Cohen, however, who scored a perfect zero. Tennessee Congressmen Roe, Duncan, Wamp, and Blackburn scored perfect 100% ratings in the last scoring.

Gary Bauer, chairman of CWF, has been a long-time political leader of what is sometimes referred to as the “religious right.” He is a former president of the influential Family Research Council.

In making the endorsement of Heil on behalf of CWF, Baur said, “Your tireless leadership in support of pro-family, pro-life and pro-free enterprise polices is greatly valued by CWF and all our members. I’m proud to stand with you in the fight for faith, family and freedom!”

“I am humbled and honored to receive this endorsement,” says Cece Heil. “When serving in Congress I will prove worthy of this vote of confidence.”

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Update: Is Marsha Blackburn Endorsing David Hall?

I may have been a little late in hearing this but I heard a rumor today from one of the candidates seeking the 5th Congressional District Republican nomination that David Hall's campaign had created a robo call and a audio bite posted on the Hall campaign website that appears to be an endorsement from popular 7th District Republican Congressman Marsha Blackburn.

We now know that the Marsha Blackburn endorsement is not an endorsement of Hall's current campaign but is an old endorsement from 2008 when Congressman Blackburn endorsed Hall in a campaign for a different office. Unless Hall has a good explanation, I would have to conclude that this was unethical, deceptive, and stupid.

Blackburn's office responded to an inquiry today with this statement: "The Blackburn campaign has asked Hall to remove the audio that was recorded in 2008 for Hall's State Senate race. Rep. Blackburn is not endorsing a candidate in the TN-05 GOP primary."

David Hall has been asked for a comment and I will post an update when I get it. I would like to here his explanation.

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Hartline brings message, music to campaign kickoff events around the 5th congressional district, June 12-13

NASHVILLE, June 3, 2010, Hartline for Congress – The Hartline for Congress campaign is pleased to announce campaign kickoff events in all three counties in the 5th congression district on the weekend of June 12-13 – events that will feature both the message and great music.

Supporters from all three counties are invited to attend the grand opening of the Hartline for Congress campaign's headquarters in Nashville on Saturday, June 12. Jeff Hartline and his college band, “Natural Sound,” will perform.

The campaign announces the following events:

Cheatham County – Saturday June 12, 9-10:30 a.m. Come out to RiverBluff Park and meet Jeff, hear some great music from "The Willis Clan" and have some coffee and pastries while spending the morning hearing about Jeff's campaign for Tennessee's Fifth District. RiverBluff Park in Ashland City, 175 Old Cumberland, Ashland City, TN, 37015

Davidson County – Saturday, June 12, 4-5:30 p.m. Come to the Grand Opening of Jeff's Campaign Office's for his campaign and meet Jeff as well as many of his campaign staff. There will be live music provided by Jeff's college band, "Natural Sound" and food for all! Hartline for Congress Campaign HQ, 2416 21st Avenue South, Suite 203 & rear parking lot, Nashville, TN 37212

Wilson County – Sunday, June 13, 2-3:30 p.m. Come to Charlie Daniels Park to meet and hear Jeff Hartline, hear some great music and enjoy some ice cream! Charlie Daniels Park in Mt. Juliet, 1038 Charlie Daniels Parkway Mt. Juliet, TN 37122

More news from the Hartline for Congress campaign: http://hartlineforcongress.com/pr.html .

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New Polling Data on Illegal Immigration

LATEST POLLING SHOWS:
Forty-three percent of all Americans say that illegal immigration is a serious problem. !
The other 57 percent said, "No hablo inglas"

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Dale Peterson for Argiculture Commission

If I lived in Alabama, I would vote for this guy. I would be afraid not to.

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RIES PROPOSES CONGRESS USE “ROBERT’S RULES”

Press Release, Nashville, 6/3/2010.

Bob Ries, Candidate for Congress in the 5th District of Tennessee, is a Conservative seeking the nomination of the Republican Party. Ries says there is an easy way to eliminate wasteful spending and earmarks, while making it easier to force our representatives to read Bills before they vote on them.

He says there is a Constitutional way to eliminate wasteful spending, earmarks and also the need for a Line Item Veto. Congress simply needs to adopt the same rules of Parliamentary Procedure used by State Governments, Municipal Governments and almost every other Organization in this Nation (except our Federal Government): ROBERT’S RULES OF ORDER.

Robert’s Rules would require that every Bill have only one main idea. It could be amended no more than two times, and each Amendment must pertain to the main idea in the original Motion. Most Bills would require very few pages, would not require assistants to pour over thousands of pages, and every bill could be easily read and understood by our elected representatives, BEFORE THEY VOTE ON THE BILL.

There would be no superfluous projects contained in the Bill, since every main idea would need it’s own Bill to be passed by both Houses of Congress. Think about it. If someone wanted to spend taxpayer money on a bridge to nowhere, to study the sex life of albino tadpoles, to build a special building in some Representative’s District, or any other wasteful “pet” project, it must pass both Houses of Congress on it’s own merits.

I am confident that few Politicians would have the nerve to introduce some of these wasteful projects (included as almost hidden riders in the past) on their own separate Bills.

I propose The House and Representatives, and the Senate; adopt Robert’s Rules of Order for their Rules of Proceedings. Since Article 1, Section 5, Clause 2 of the Constitution states: “Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings”, this would not require a Constitutional Amendment, only a common sense agreement.

Comment: This is one of the brightest ideas I have seen come out of this campaign. It makes so much sense it will probably never be adopted, but I have no doubt that if Bob Ries is elected to Congress that he will fight for it. During my service in the metro council we had a council rule that the text of a bill could not be broader than the caption, thus if the bill was titled, "An act to authorize the purchase of police car radios," one could not amend it to fund expanded library hours. If congress was under the same rational restraints we would see a more frugal government.

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Something fishy on Capitol Hill

Act Now to Stop this Irresponsible Wasteful Spending.

Members of the State Legislature left Nashville last Thursday for the Memorial Day weekend without passing a budget. They reconvene tomorrow. Normally they would not be coming back to town. They would have passed the budget before Memorial Day and would have ended the legislative session. The only point of disagreement keeping them from passing a budget was whether or not to fund $16.9 million to build a fish hatchery in Carter County, the district represented by House Speaker Kent Williams. The hatchery would create 22 new state jobs.

The State House is supporting the measure but not the Senate. The State and House must reconcile their differences in order to pass a budget. The almost evenly divided State House is nominally in the hands of Republicans, however Republican Kent Williams became speaker of the House though a back-door deal engineered by Democratic Representative Gary Odom. When electing the speaker, all of the Democrats supported Republican Kent Williams and he voted for himself thus denying the seat to Jason Mumpower who was the Republican choice for speaker who lost by one vote. As part of this deal, Democrats maintained control of some House Committees. So, in essence the Republicans are opposing the fish hatchery and the Democrats are supporting it.

Glen Casada the Republican House Caucus Chairman and the de facto Republican leader in the house has been very outspoken in his opposition to the fish hatchery provision in the budget. "We on our side, the republicans, Ron Ramsey, felt like the fish hatchery is a pork barrel project and a $16 million waste of taxpayers money and we won't give on that,” says Casada.

Democratic leader Mike Turner, on the other hand, defends the project saying, "If this isn't the time to help the people of the State of Tennessee, somebody tell me when is.”

Justin Owen with the non-partisan government watchdog group, Tennessee Center for Policy Research says the fish hatchery is pure pork. "You do the math. That's about $768,000 a job. Obviously the people who work there aren't going to get paid that. The rest is government waste," says Owen.

Democrats who sanctimoniously paint republicans as willing to let children die because Republicans did not include funding for an infant mortality study in the budget have gone to the mat for the fish hatchery funding but not for the infant mortality study funding they profess to care so much about. Many would conclude the fish hatchery is a reward to Kent Williams for being a Benedict Arnold.

The fish hatchery was the only issue keeping the legislature from reaching agreement on a budget last Thursday, but today I heard a state law maker speak who said that now the whole budget process has broken down and everything is back on the table. By law, the state budget has to be in place by July 1. If a budget is not in place by that date I am not sure exactly what happens, but I assume the state government shuts down and employee will not be paid.

Now is the time to write your state Representative and urge them to do the responsible thing and pass a state budget without this wasteful spending project. At the same time the state is laying off 850 state employees it does not need to be spending $17 million dollars on an unnecessary project to reward Kent Williams.

To find out who your Representative is and how to contact your Representative follow this link: http://www.capitol.tn.gov/house/members.

Source of quotations is a News Channel 5 report.

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Carbon Tax Credits for Sale

I did not go out of town this holiday weekend. In fact I only put about 12 miles on my car all weekend. If you are an environmentally conscious person and took a weekend trip or a day trip, you negated all of the carbon savings you have done all year by doing such things as paying extra on your electric bill to purchase green power, by cutting your computer off at night and by lowering the thermostat. You should feel guilty for taking that Memorial Day weekend trip. I know you wanted to go the lake to kayak with your daughter or go to the beach to spend time with your mother or meet your friends at that far away concert but it takes carbon to do those things. I understand wanting to have it both ways. I want to help you.

Since I did not go anywhere this weekend, I have some carbon credits to sell you. Buy my carbon credits. I did not go on a trip so you could. If you buy my carbon credits it will be as if you did not go on a weekend trip out of town and as if you only drove your car 12 miles. Let me take your guilt. The price of my carbon credits are negotiable. To learn more visit Buy Your Carbon Off-sets Here.

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Memorial Day

In Flanders fields
by John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

As we mark this Memorial Day Weekend, let us never forget that Freedom is not free. Let us continue to carry the torch of freedom.

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