American Conservative Union rates Senators and Congressman. 2021 scores released.

 

by Rod Williams, 04/26/2022 - The Center for Legislative Accountability (CLA), an initiative of the American Conservative Union Foundation (ACUF), has just released its 2021 scorecard for U.S Senators and Congressmen. The ACU ratings is the longest-running conservative congressional scorecard. 

The American Conservative Union (ACU) was founded in 1964 and is the oldest ongoing conservative lobbying organization in the U.S.  The ACU is the organization that puts on CPAC, (American Conservative Union Conservative Political Action Conference), the largest gathering of conservatives in the world. 

I have been a long-time supporter and member of ACU but since the organization has gone Trumpinista-populist, I have let my membership lapse. ACU is no longer part of my annual giving.  

I have attended two CPAC's, 20212 and 2015. You can read of CPAC experiences here, and here.  At those events, I was impressed by the speakers and the panel discussion, and the general tenor of the event.  Not only did one hear from the popular conservative politicians of the day, but from conservative authors and intellectuals and from advocates of various causes who had booths in the exhibition hall. While there was a range of opinions and people advocating for many causes, there were no crazies that I could see. There were no conspiracy theorist booths or what a  sane conservative would call "hate groups."   At this year's event, CPAC became pretty much a Trump rally and one of the featured speakers was Marjorie Taylor Green. I have no desire to attend CPAC with its current perspective.  I wonder if the John Birch Society or Q-Anon had a CPAC booth?  I don't know, but with Marjorie Taylor Green a featured speaker, I wouldn't be surprised. 

Despite my becoming disappointed in the direction of CPAC, ACU's scorecard is first-class work. The score is based on how members voted. ACU publishes the list of bills that went into compiling the scores. To view the ACU site where one may read the bills and may filter the data in various ways follow this link. 

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Tennessee General Assembly honored as the most conservative legislature in the country at CPAC

...the American Conservative Union, which organized the conference, honored the Tennessee General Assembly as the most conservative legislature in the country. This is the first year the organization has given the award.

Kelsey and state Rep. Timothy Hill, R-Blountville, accepted the award.

"I'm proud of our record as the most conservative state in America," Kelsey said.
"We've balanced our budget," Kelsey said. "We've stopped Obamacare Medicaid expansion. We've cut taxes repeatedly. We've passed a constitutional amendment to forever ban the state income tax. This is a record we should be proud of, and I appreciate the American Conservative Union has recognized that success." (link)

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Tennessee must concentrate resources on most violent offenders, Kelsey says

Senator Brian Kelsey

By Michael Collins of The Commercial Appeal,  NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Tennessee and other states with limited resources to fight crime must make sure they are concentrating their efforts on the most violent offenders, state Sen. Brian Kelsey told a gathering of conservative leaders Saturday.

"Those are people who are committing murders, burglaries and robberies — those are the people we need to be focused on," he said. Kelsey, chairman of the state Senate Judiciary Committee, was one of the members of a panel on criminal justice reform at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, an annual gathering of conservative activists and elected leaders meeting just outside Washington.

....40 percent of the state's prison inmates are people incarcerated for violating their probation and parole. ....offenders convicted of aggravated burglary serve just 30 percent of their sentence....(link)

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Representative Marsha Blackburn Remarks at CPAC

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Snapshots from CPAC

Dr. Ben Carson

Sarah Palen gave the closing keynote address

Rod Williams (that's me) shacking hands with Allen West

I attended CPAC with my good friend Gene Wisdom.
Gene with Senator Rick Santorum

A panel discussion on, "More Guns, Less Crime. How Law Enforcement is Begging to Embrace a
Well Armed Civilian Population." Left to right: Chris Cox, Ex. Dir. National Rifle Association; Emily Miller, Senior Opinion Editor The Washington Times; David Clarke, Sheriff Milwaukee County  Wisconsin, The Honorable Sandy Adams, former U.S. Representative. Sheriff Clarke made a persuasive argument that an armed citizenry was an aid to law enforcement.

Not many state legislators were panel members. Second from the left is Senator Mark Green of Tennessee on a panel discussing "Healthcare After ObamaCare: A Practical Gide for Living When No On Has Insurance and America Runs Out of Doctors."  He did us proud. 

Judge Jeanine Pirro speaking at The National Security Action Conference

Ann Coilture seated on the right. She is sassy and funny and biting.
I like her much better in person than on TV

Rod Williams (me), a costumed Patriot, and Gene Wisdom

There is more to CPAC than the official program. This car parked right outside
the front door of the Gayload Convention Center could not be ignored. It got
a lot of attention and a mixed reaction. 

Lynda Farley of Kentucky, Liberty Van artist and owner, has put over 300,000
 miles on the Liberty Van using it to promote conservatism and smokers rights. 

The Car won Best of Show at a Houston "Art Car" show in
the "Free Speech" divison. I did not know there was such a
thing as an "art car" show. Visit the web site "The Liberty
Van."

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Notes from The National Security Forum not at CPAC. What should be America's role in the World?

CPAC was great! At CPAC you hear from all of the top tier conservative politicians. I heard rousing speeches by Rand Paul, Mike Lee, Marco Rubio, Ben Carson, Newt Gringirch, Sarah Palin and many others. There were also panel discussion on gun rights, health care, prison and sentencing reform, the budget crisis, marijuana legalization, the roots of the conservative movement, the libertarian and conservative tension and fusion, and more.

In addition there were movies and entertainment and an exhibit hall with dozens of booth manned by people promoting their cause, viewpoint, product, organization or publication. Despite CPAC being great however, it was not as great as last year. My only complaint is that this year there were fewer small break- out session. I like the cheer-leading and rah rah political rally and theater, but I also want sessions of substance that make me think and sessions where I learn something. The break- out session provide a greater opportunity to ask questions and interact with a panel of experts and see famous scholars and authors up close. They provide an opportunity to delve into more detail on a topic on interest.

One thing I wanted was a more in-depth discussion of foreign policy and America's role in the world. CPAC did have some panel discussion on this topic but they were in the big room with thousands of people. Unless you were up close, it was almost like watching it on TV.  Also, the panel session are short and may only last thirty minutes and have five people on a panel. That is hardly time to get in-depth on a topic. I ending up not being disappointed however. I got my fill of discussion of foreign policy issues, but I got it from a source that was not officially part of CPAC.

Across the street from the Gaylord where CPAC was taking place, at the Weston Hotel, Breitbart News Network hosted an event called "Uninvited: The National Security forum during CPAC." The event included a full day of events with top conservative leaders, scholars, ex- generals and other foreign policy experts and it was free to anyone attending CPAC. The speakers had impressive credentials and were well respected scholars and experts in their field and had  distinguished careers. They provided in-depth exploration of the security threat facing the world, America's national interest, and America's role in the world.  Panels included: "The Muslim Brotherhood and their enablers," "Amnesty and Open Borders," "Behghazigate,"  "The Case of Peace through Strenth,"  "Crisis in the Ukarine," and more. Ted Cruz spoke at the event and the closing address was by Judge Neanne Pirro.

While I do not think America can be the world's policeman and we cannot solve every conflict, neither do I think we can disengage from the world. I am convinced that President Obama's weakness and attempt to solve the worlds problems by simply being nice and "leading from behind" has inviting aggression on the part of our adversaries.  The cutting of America's military strength to pre World War II levels will only invite further aggression. While I opposed the invasion of Iraq and think the neo-conservative policies of George W. Bush were a mistake, and while I do not think we can spread Democracy everywhere and nation-build in countries that do not have the prerequisites for Democracy, neither do I think we can ignore the expansionist desires of Russia and China and the threat from radical Islam and the nuclear danger posed by North Korea and Iraq. We need to have a thorough debate about America's role in the world and develop a realistic foreign policy. Barack Obama is leaving the world a much more dangerous place than he found it. We must again realize the World is a dangerous place and take a leadership role in maintaining the peace. This was a thought provoking and insightful conference.

Herman Pirchener shown speaking, Frank Gaffney the moderator, Clare Lopez,  Sebastian Gorka, Ariel Cohen, and Joel Pollack (not shown) discuss "Crisis in the Ukraine: Putin's Bid for USSR 2.0 and the needed U.S. Response."

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Ben Carson at CPAC: I won't let the PC police shut me up!

“I will continue to defy the PC police who have tried … to shut me up,” said Carson, a former neurosurgeon, to the CPAC audience. “I still believe marriage is between a man and a woman.” “Of course, gay people should have the same rights as everyone else. But they don’t get extra rights,”

This was the first time I had ever heard Dr. Carson speak in person. He was great!.  

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Greetings from CPAC 2014

I am having a great time at CPAC! If you are a conservative junkie like me, this is the fix you need. This three day event attended by about 8,000 activist with speeches by leading conservative politicians like Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Mike Lee, Ben Carson and dozens of other is invigorating! it is not all politicians however. Retired Generals, college professors, authors, and think tank scholars sit on thought provoking and educational panels discussing prison reform and rehabilitation, American security and America's place in the world, response to the crisis in the Ukraine, can the fusion of libertarians and conservatives hold, school choice, alternatives to Obamacare, and other topics. In addition, there are movies with conservative themes and training session on use of social media and campaign management and other topics. There is also an exhibition hall with scores of exhibitors promoting their cause, or publication or organization. A lot of the joy of being here is the interaction with others and meeting other conservative activist from around the country.

I have not attempt to blog while here, because I would rather experience it than be reporting on it and there are large organizations and media outlets doing a better job reporting on it than I could do. Much of it was carried live on CSPAN. When this is over, I may post a few pictures and do a little recap of the conference.

Today, Tennessee State Senator Mark Green set on a panel on health care. He did a great job. If you are a conservative who is passionate about politics, you need to plan on attending CPAC next year.

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Great deal on CPAC for young people

From Young Americans for Liberty:

Deadline: Monday @ 10pm EST

The first day of CPAC is this Thursday, which means it's last call for tickets and lodging.
You have until tomorrow, Monday, March 3rd at 10:00 PM EST to register for CPAC through YAL:http://www.yaliberty.org/cpac
Students can secure a ticket for $25 or a ticket and 3-night hotel room for only $70.

 

Here are the discounted prices so every YAL member can afford to attend:      STUDENTS
     CPAC ticket -- $25 (save $35)
     CPAC ticket + 3-night hotel room w/4 people -- $70 (save $310)
     CPAC ticket + 3-night hotel room w/2 people -- $115 (save $265)      NON-STUDENTS
     CPAC ticket -- $180 (save $120)
     CPAC ticket + 3-night hotel room w/4 people -- $225 (save $155)
     CPAC ticket + 3-night hotel room w/2 people -- $270 (save $110)

Prices do not include your transportation, but everyone who registers for CPAC will get a FREE "I Stand with Rand" t-shirt. Visit our event page if you have any questions.
Here are the event details:What: CPAC 2014 When: Thursday, March 6th to Saturday, March 8th Where: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center,  201 Waterfront St, National Harbor, MD 20745 Hotel: Holiday Inn, Check-in: Thursday, March 6th, Check-out: Saturday, March 8th, 2460 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA 22314,  (10 minutes away) 

We're short on time and supply, so if you want to represent the liberty movement at the most prestigious conservative conference in the country, register before Monday at 10:00 PM EST: http://www.yaliberty.org/cpac, See you there, Ed
Edward King
Director of Programs & Operations, Young Americans for Liberty

 

My Comment: I attended last year for the first time and it was wonderful. Read about my experience here.  I am going back this year. It is educational, inspirational and fun. I wish I would have attended when I was young. I am going to sweeten the deal for the first four young people who sign up. The first four people who have not registered who takes advantage of this deal will get an extra $25 scholarship from me. Register then email me. Rodwilliams47@yahoo.com.

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Gene Wisdom featured in Guardian story.

Gene Wisdom

My friend Gene Wisdom, with whom I went to CPAC this year, is featured in the below article in The Guardian. This article was published March 16th, but it just now came to my attention. Gene Wisdom is a local conservative activist and heads the Conservative Fusion book club. His essay's have appeared in this blog.

CPAC 2013: An angry and beaten US right fires out scattergun wacky policies in hunt for victory

Gene Wisdom, a 55-year-old conservative from Nashville, Tennessee, was no fan of Barack Obama. Clutching a book called The Communist, he was waiting eagerly to meet the book's author, Paul Kengor, so that he could sign it. The book, which detailed the life of black American journalist and labour activist Frank Marshall Davis, bore a startling subtitle: "The untold story of Barack Obama's mentor." That worked for Wisdom. "It is very convincing," he said.

Believing that the president is more or less a communist would be surprising in many political circles, including many Republican ones. But Wisdom was not just queuing at another book launch. He was one of the crowd at the largest and most important conservative gathering in the American political calendar, where the outlandish is commonplace. (read more)

I would disagree with the view expressed in the Guardian that says the Conservative Political Action Conference, "fires out scattergun wacky policies in hunt for victory," or "does not do moderation or restraint," or "it appears to maintain only a loose connection with political realities," or "where the outlandish is commonplace."

While the conference is unabashedly conservative, as the name implies, there was very little presence of the nutty right. There were paleoconsevatives, and libertarian conservatives, and religious conservative and conservatives whose primary focus was economics and conservatives whose primary focus was traditional values. However, there were very few right wing nut jobs. There were no racist or right wing militia-types.  There was only one session, out of about two hundred or so, that openly advocated nullification. There was no booth of the John Birch Society or the conspiratorial Alex Jones's Info Wars. There was not even a Glenn Beck booth. There was no seminars on Agenda 21 that I recall, and no talk about FEMA concentration camps.  This was a gathering of mainstream conservative, but a fairly big-tent gathering, and not all conservative agree on all issues, so on some issues there were panelist or speakers who advocated moderation on the issue of abortion or gay marriage or the war on drugs and there were some who ademantly advocated immigration reform while others denounced any immigration reform as amnesty. I think the Guardian wrote their story before attending the convention.

To read more on my experince at CPAC, follow this link. 

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The 20 Best Quotes from CPAC 2013

20) “I was told I got 10 measly minutes, but just in case, I brought 13 hours worth of material.” -- Rand Paul
 
19) “American Journalism is dead… They have behaved like hockey goalies in front of Barack Obama’s net.” -- Roger Noriega

18) “The GOP of old has grown old and moss covered.” -- Rand Paul
 
17) “If standing for liberty and the Constitution makes you a Wacko Bird, then count me a proud Wacko Bird.” -- Ted Cruz

16) “If these experts keep losing elections, keep raking in millions, if they feel that strongly about who should run in this party they should buck up and run or stay in the truck. The architects can head on back to the Lone Star State and put their name on the ballot.” -- Sarah Palin

This is good. I was glad I was there to hear it. To see the rest of the list, click here. 

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Great Time at CPAC!

Rod Williams and Gene Wisdom at CPAC

I just returned from the three-day annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington D. C. and had a wonderful time! For a conservative political junkie activist like myself, the experience of CPAC must be similar to what a hard core country music fan feels when they attend fan fair. CPAC is three days of political rally, workshops, education, training, and networking. It is educational, motivating and exhilarating.

The event was actually in Maryland, across the river from D. C. at the Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center in National Harbor. I went to the event with my friend Gene Wisdom. We flew up together and shared a room at the Hapton Inn, directly across the street from Gaylord Hotel but a lot less expensive than the Gaylord.

CPAC is sponsored by The American Conservative Union which is America’s oldest and largest grassroots conservative organization founded in 1964. The ACU has hosted CPAC in the Nation’s Capital since 1974. I never did get a confirmed count of the number of people attending but heard numbers of between 8000 and 10,000. There is no liberal equivalent of CPAC.

Senator Marco Rubio

It is hard to summaries the three days, there was so much going on. At any one time there was one big event going on in the big room and from one to four other break-out session going on at the same time. In addition, there was the exhibition hall with several hundred booths where you can talk to the representatives of various organizations promoting their various causes. In the exhibition hall you can learn a lot about what these groups are doing and about issues and how to get involved. You can also get lots of freebies. I came home with nine tee shirts, a ball cap, four books, several tote bags, a poster of Ronald Regan, and numerous ink pens, and label pens and buttons.

At the back of the exhibition hall there is a place where book signings occur. While I did not pursue getting autographed copies of books, for those who do it is a chance to get the autograph, shake hands with and get your picture taken with the big names in the conservative movement. Even though I did not get in line to get a book autographed, I accompanied Gene to get several autographs and it is fun to see the famous politicians and authors up close. In addition to all of this there are movies and documentaries being shown in a theater. Not being able to do it all, I skipped all of the movies but many of them sounded interesting.

Sarah Palin pokes fun at New York Mayor Michael

Bloomberg's call to ban large sodas

While it is great to be in the big hall hearing the leading conservative luminaries of the day making their speeches, the room is so big that you are not close to the speaker. Unless you are in the VIP seating, which is more expensive, you are really seeing them on big screens. While it is a thrill to know you are seeing them live and be in a big hall with maybe eight thousand people joining in the applause and cheering, you are not up close and personal with the speakers. In the break-out sessions, you can be close. Those events are much more intimate and most have a question and answer period following the speech or panel discussions.

There is no way to see it all, so I missed Allen West (who I saw in the hall), Dr. Ben Carson, Rick Santorum, and Rick Perry, Donald Trump, Mitt Romney, Mitch McConnell, Newt Gringrich, Jeb Bush and others. I don't feel any great loss in missing some of them but others I wish I would have seen but could not be two places at once. I did however get to see Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Phyllis Schlafly, Sen. Ted Cruz, Sarah Palin, Paul Ryan, Ann Coulter and several others. Some of the speakers were only given fifteen minutes so they gave a cheerleading-type stump speech; others had more time. Ted Cruz was the closing speaker and he must have talked for an hour but it never got boring. He was able to more fully developed a thesis.

Gene gets Ann Coulter's autograph

Who did I really like? It is hard to say; I liked so many of them. Surprisingly, I loved Ann Coulter. She has never been one of my favorite conservatives but she was charming and funny and clever with a biting sarcastic wit. Sarah Palin was a delight. She was entertaining and is full of personality and is so darn cute. Rand Paul, fresh from his filibuster was a crowd favorite and had people cheering. I also liked Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, and Ted Cruz. I guess Marco Rubio was the politician who impressed me most.  His speech was less raucous and more inspirational, yet it was close. Rand, Ryan and Cruz were all good.

The break out session covered a broad range of topics. There were sessions on how to win with generation X; the legacy of Andrew Breitbart; tax policy including discussion of the Fair Tax, the Flat Tax, and tax reform; using social media; Conservative journalism; liberty and environmental issues; immigration; fatherless children and the problem of poverty; fracking and energy policy issues; religious freedom (Diane Black was on this panel); fundraising; the social issues of abortion and gay marriage by sociologist and award winning author Charles Murray; "Can we cut defense spending and still defend America;" "How to get a job in Politics;" the status of the pro-life fight forty years after Roe v Wade; Benghazi and Middle East foreign policy, conservatives in Hollywood, and many, many more.

A few of my favorites were those put on by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. One, was "still questing after all the years" and was a discussion of Robert Nesbitt's The Quest for Community. Four distinguished scholars discussed the legacy of this book and the issues of place, community and the problem of alienation in society.

 I guess my favorite of the breakout sessions was, "The Conservative Intellectual Movement: Then and Now." The speaker for this event was George Nash, the author of the influential book, The Conservative Intellectual Movement, first published in 1976. Our book club had read this book recently and it was such a thrill to hear a presentation by the author. He spoke for about 30 minutes and then afterwards he stood in the hall answered questions and engaging in discussion for about another thirty minutes. I felt fortunate to get to have a conversation with this great scholar of the conservative movement.

Gene Wisdom and M. Stanton Evans

Another thrill was getting to chat with M. Stanton Evans, former long-time associate editor of
National Review, managing editor of Human Events, one time head of ACU and author of numerous books.

In addition to all of the official programs, it was fun to just talk to so many other conservative activist from across the country. One thing that pleased me is that there was almost none of the right wing nut fringe featured at this event. There was no John Birch Society or Alex Jones Inforwars booth and very little of the embarrassing elements of the conservative movement.

If you are a conservative activist and have never been, plan to go next year. I hope to return.

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Rand Paul wins CPAC 2013 Straw Poll

Rand Paul

CPAC, March 16, 2013, WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC 2013) concluded with Senator Rand Paul winning the CPAC Straw Poll. The Straw Poll was sponsored by The Washington Times and conducted by Fabrizio, McLaughlin & Associates.

In first place, Rand Paul secured 25% percent of the vote by registered CPAC attendees, followed by Senator Marco Rubio at 23% percent.  Former Senator Rick Santorum received 8% percent of the vote, closely followed by Governor Chris Christie with 7% percent and Representative Paul Ryan with 6% percent.

A total of over 60 names were either listed or written in.  The top two names received nearly 50% of the vote.
“We convened thousands of energized conservatives today at this 40^th Annual National CPAC 2013 from across the entire country,” said ACU Chairman Al Cardenas. “It’s been a long-standing and fun tradition at CPAC National as well as our regional CPACs to poll the attendees and get their opinion on a number of important issues.”

“The Washington Times is honored to partner with CPAC to measure the pulse of conservatives at this key moment in the movement,” said Larry Beasley, President and CEO of The Washington Times.

 The Washington Times-CPAC 2013 Straw Poll results help benchmark how conservatives perceive key issues and their preferred candidates heading into the next election. To view the final results of the poll, click here.

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CPAC 2013 to feature Rand Paul

13 Hours. Last night, Senator Rand Paul stood up for our Constitution by delivering an almost 13 hour long talking filibuster, the second longest in the history of the U.S. Senate! “I will speak as long as it takes, until the alarm is sounded from coast to coast that our Constitution is important, that your rights to trial by jury are precious, that no American should be killed by a drone on American soil without first being charged with a crime, without first being found to be guilty by a court.” Senator Paul started. Senator Paul, joined by Senators Barrasso, Cruz, Johnson, Lee, McConnell, Rubio, Toomey, and several others, filibustered the Confirmation of CIA Director-nominee John Brennan to bring attention to the use of drones against American citizens. Here’s your chance to save big when you join the ACU and see Senators Paul, Cruz, Lee, Johnson, McConnell, Rubio, and Toomey at CPAC 2013 as we all #standwithRand in support of the Constitution. To get your 25% discount, just use code STANDWITHRAND when you purchase your tickets. Registration is open now, click here. Don’t miss out, like the filibuster, this promo only lasts for 13 hours! Check out our schedule, updated daily, on the new CPAC 2013 website under “Program.” We hope you’ll join us at CPAC next week! The American Conservative UnioN

I look forward to attending the CPAC convention next week. This will be my first time to attend. In addition to Paul Rand, almost every other important conservative public figure will be in attendance: Gov. Bobby Jidal of Louisiana , Senator Marco Rubio, former Speaker of the House Newt Gringrich, Sarah Palin, Dr. Ben Carson who gave the keynote address at the National Prayer Breakfast earlier this month, Texas Rep. Ted Cruz, former Senator Rick Santorum, House Speaker Eric Cantor, Tennessee's own Diane Black and Marsha Blackburn, Allen West, and a bunch of others. There are still tickets available. If you are planning to attend drop me an email and maybe we can connect while at the convention.

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Suhail Khan discusses claim of Muslim Brotherhood take over of CPAC

According to leading conservative Frank Gaffney, CPAC has come under the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood, and told World Net Daily that Islamism has infiltrated the American Conservative Union. Suhail Khan discusses these absurd claims.

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Rod Williams has ties to Muslim terrorist organizations.

by Rod Williams, Jan 12, 2011- There are allegation that proponents of Shariah Law and Muslim Jihadist have infiltrated the conservative movement.

The most important conservative political gatherings in the nation is the Conservative Political Action Conference. It was founded in 1973 and anyone who is anyone in the conservative movement attends this annual gathering. It is often the  launching pad for conservative candidates who seek and often win the Republican Presidential nomination. Ronald Reagan, Glen Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich have been keynote speakers at the annual CPAC conference.

The sponsor of the CPAC conference is the American Conservative Union. ACU has been around since 1964 and is a leading voice in grassroots American conservative thought and activism. In addition to ACU, over 100 organization including The American Rifle Association, Human Events, and Eagle Forum are participants in CPAC.

There are two specific claims to support the charge that CPAC has been infiltrated by jihadist:

1. Suhail Khan a Washington lobbyist and attorney, who was on the staff of the George W. Bush White House, is apparently a member of a group called Muslims for America and he is also on the board of the ACU.

From a web search, it appears that Muslims for America is a pro-American, patriotic, bi-partisan organization. They state they have, "zero tolerance for any kind of terrorism." Their web site denounces terrorism and features news of Muslim clerics and Muslim leaders and Muslim pop stars who denounce terrorism.

Khan's father, it is alleged, was a founder of the Muslim Brotherhood in America and Khan was also reportedly on the board of CAIR (The Council on American-Islamic Relations) and served on committees at ISNA (the Islamic Society of North America). Both CAIR and ISNA have been classified by the US government as terrorist organization and have a relationship to Hamas.

2. The other connection is Grover Norquist. Norquist, who is married to an Arab-American Muslim women, is on the board of ACU. He is a founder of Americans for Tax Reform and is a former Executive Director of the National Taxpayers Union. He has a long history of conservative and anti-communist activism including, during the cold war, assisting the Contra rebels in Nicaragua and building support for other anti-soviet movements in the world.

Americans for Tax Reform is a 501(c)(4) lobbying organization and was founded in 1985 and is dedicated to resisting increases in the personal or business income tax. Norquist is co-founder of an organization called the Islamic Free Market Institute. It is alleged that Norquist is also associated with other Muslim organizations that allegedly have ties to terrorist organization.

This latest charge of CPAC ties to terrorist organization may destroy CPAC. There has already developed a splintering in CPAC, not due to the allegation of ties to Muslim terrorist, but due to the admission of GoProud as a sponsor. GoProud is a gay conservative group and a couple of the family values type conservative organizations are pulling out of CPAC because CPAC admitted GoProud. CPAC has also been hit with an embezzlement scandal.

The allegations of CPAC jihadist ties have primarily been reported by World Net Daily, however they have also been made by other influential conservatives including Michelle Malkin, Pamela Geller, and David Horowitz.

I have no way of knowing if the allegation of conservatives with ties to terrorist organization are true or not or if the paranoid wing nuts are off on a tangent of character assignation looking for Jihadist under every bed. Certainly there have always been traitors and efforts of our enemies to infiltrate American organization and there have been front groups doing the bidding of foreign interest. It has always happened. Benedict Arnold and Alger Hiss were real people. Prior to American entry into World War II, Germany helped fund American anti-war groups and during the cold war there were numerous organizations that had domestic and foreign communist ties and supported the interest of our enemies. Still, I find it hard to believe someone of Mr. Norquest's stature and commitment to conservative causes is a Muslim Jihadist traitor.

Being part of a front group or doing the bidding of foreign interest is much different than simply having association with others who are associated with terrorist organization. People who are politically active and who try to influence opinion in the Muslim world are no doubt going to have associations with unsavory characters. People who seek to influence the opinion of others have to engage them. I am not going to declare someone guilty by association. Being married to a Muslim does not make you guilty of being a jihadist.

If Mr. Khan and Mr. Norquest are guilty, by association, of having ties to terrorist organizations, so am I. You see, I either am currently, or have been, a member of The American Conservative Union, The National Taxpayers Union, and Americans for Tax Reform. So, if Norquest is guilty of being a member of an organization that has ties to organizations that supported terrorist organizations then I am guilty of belonging to an organization that was heading by a person that was a member of an organization that had ties to organizations that supported terrorist organizations. If Mr. Khan is guilty of being the son of a founder of a terrorist associated organization , I am guilty of being a member of an organization that has on its board a man who is the son of a founder of a terrorist associated organization.

While I am confessing, I also once taught a homebuyersQuran. Also, some years ago I visited Turkey on a 15-day vacation and enjoyed it very much. I ate with Muslims and had long conversations with Muslims and stayed in Muslim-owned pensions and bought some beautiful oriental rugs from Muslim merchants. I visited the Grand Mosque and the Blue Mosque and some other mosque, the names of which I cannot recall.

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George Will at CPAC: The Dependency Agenda

This is great! This is George Will at his best.

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Another Update on what others are saying about Ron Paul's CPAC victory

The boos, Ron Paul in his own words, and Morning Joe commentary:

The Next Right, Why Ron Paul's CPAC Victory is Good for the Movement. In terms of organizing, conservatives can learn a lot from libertarians. Online, the moneybomb concept originally pioneered during the Ron Paul campaign has started to work for more conventional Republicans like Scott Brown.

The 2008 Ron Paul campaign can be compared to the 1988 Pat Robertson campaign in helping a movement find its way into the Republican Party and thus establishing itself as a permanent fixture in the party. Like Robertson, Paul did not come anywhere near capturing the nomination, but the influence of Christian conservatives -- and now libertarians -- endures.

Rush Limbaugh: All I'll tell you is that any organization that has a straw poll vote on who the party presidential candidate ought to be and comes up with Ron Paul is not an organization of conservatives. I just tell you. Something's haywire there. I know the Ron Paul people go in there, but they had been attendees to get in there. Ron Paul winning a straw poll at a conservative conference?

Carpe Diem, Dr Paul! by Mark R. Crovelli at Lew Rockwell.com: Ron Paul’s stunning landslide victory in the CPAC straw poll is an event that cannot be allowed to go to waste. Political moments this ripe are about as rare as the California condor, and Ron Paul would do us all an incalculable service if he would seize the day, and declare his intention to run in the 2012 presidential election. He needs to do this right now. Not next month, not next year, but now.

Jamie Weinstien columnists at Town Hall: Paul was received like a rock star at CPAC. Attendees burst into applause at various times throughout his speech, must notably when he stated that America should “end the Fed.” Who knew that so many people not only had a strong grasp of monetary policy, but also found monetary policy an exciting political issue?

Paul’s victory in the CPAC straw poll is likely not reflective of how he would do in the Republican primary. It is reflective, however, of the concern of many CPACers, and Americans as a whole, of the ballooning deficits and out of control spending in Washington.

Red State points out, "only 2,395 CPAC registrants voted in the CPAC poll. It’s the largest number of votes in CPAC straw polling history, but but less than 25% of the total turnout at CPAC" and "48% of the votes cast were from students."

Paul Mulshine of The Star Ledger at NJ.com writes, "It's encouraging to see that this convention of self-identified conservatives has finally tapped into the true American conservative tradition of small government and limited powers running back through Barry Goldwater to Robert Taft and of course Washington and Jefferson." He says Paul will be a "major force in 2012."

The Huffington Post says, "What it portends for a possible 2012 presidential run is anyone's guess. Paul had a similar cult-like following during the 2008 election, only to garner a relatively small chunk of the actual vote."

The Politico says, "Paul’s victory renders a straw poll that was already lightly contested among the likely 2012 GOP hopefuls all but irrelevant, as the 74-year-old Texan is unlikely to be a serious contender for his party’s nomination." And, points out "CPAC organizers were plainly embarrassed by the results." Politico also points out that the result was greeted by boos when the result was announced.

National Review OnLine reports: "There may have been some boos, but Paul was by far one of the more popular speakers at CPAC this year. “End the Fed!” was one of most-heard chants and his “Campaign for Liberty” group was everywhere. Heck, a lot of the time, it seemed like they, not the American Conservative Union, was CPAC’s host. Even Ann Coulter, who drew a huge crowd herself, felt compelled to give a shout out to Paul-mania, saying she agreed with everything he stands for outside of foreign policy — a statement met with cheers."

Real Clear Politics says, "the sense that Paul supporters flooded the vote will lead other Republican presidential water-testers to easily discount the results. A straw poll that will be conducted at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference this April in New Orleans will be taken much more seriously among those involved with and eagerly watching the presidential sweepstakes."

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Make a Difference Where you are

On Saturday I attended the convention of the Tennessee Republican Assembly. TRA is part of the National Federation of Republican Assemblies, which calls itself, “The Republican Wing of the Republican Party.”

About fifty people were in attendance at the convention. We networked, and socialized and ate. We heard an address from State Representative Susan Lynn on the State Sovereignty movement. Bobbie Patray of Tennessee Eagle Forum was given an award and honored for her many years of service as a lobbyist with Eagle Forum. A panel consisting of several local activists talked about the future of the Republican Party in Tennessee and the conservative movement.

One of the speakers on the panel was Ken Marrano. Ken is a tireless local political activist. He has been an organizer of the local Tea party movement, he is the organizer of the statewide association of right-of-center bloggers called TennconserVOliance, and he had received national attention for his political organizing and was on the road as part of the national Tea Party Express.

Ken said something at the meeting which I thought was so very, very wise. He said that we conservatives could make a much greater impact on the direction of our country if we focused our attention locally. Looking at his website tonight, Blue Collar Muse, I saw where he addressed this same topic in a blog post. Please read his post. Here is an excerpt:

Let’s assume 1,000,000 people marched on Washington, DC last September spending 48-72 hours and $500 each to do so. Simple math reveals a pool of 48,000,000 to 72,000,000 man hours and a whopping $500,000,000 in cash. That’s enough to put 1 to 1.5 million man hours into phone banking, envelope stuffing, and door knocking to go along with $10,000,000.00 in giving to candidates in each state in the Union!

I could not agree more. In my view, we conservatives squander a lot of our resource by focusing on Washington rather than the courthouse and the statehouse. I run into people all the time who have gone to one of the marches on Washington or to the CPAC convention or who send money to major causes funneled though large national organization. I also run into people who listen to the Rush Limbaugh or Glen Beck on a regular bases and stay riled up but never put that emotion into action.

I think staying motivated and informed is worthwhile. I am sure going off to national conventions is fun and I am sure a march on Washington is a rush; but, does it change much? To affect the direction of our nation, one can do more where one is rather than focusing elsewhere.

The Davidson County Republican Party is committed to being a competitive party in this county. People are needed to man the phone banks and conduct voter registration drives, and work the polls. There is a lot of work to do. One has a greater chance to change the direction of the country by changing it from the bottom up than from the top down. Your voice is a lot louder in your local community than it is in Washington.

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