Flipping Racial Minorities The Byrd

Two Big endorsements from the Republican Liberty Caucus - Nevada and Oklahoma

From Eric Dondero:

The Republican Liberty Caucus met in conference call Monday night and resolved to officially endorse two high profile Republican candidates: Sharron Angle for US Senate in Nevada and Randy Brogdon for Oklahoma Governor.

Interestingly, the RLC had backed Angle in 2008 in a failed primary run for Congress against now-Congressman Dean Heller. (She lost by a very slim margin.)

RLC National Committeeman Aaron Bitterman comments:

Voters interested in supporting a candidate who will work to reduce the size of government should enthusiastically support Sharron Angle for U.S. Senate in Nevada.

The bonus is that electing Angle will rid our country of Majority Leader Harry Reid.

On Brogdon, Bitterman had this to say:

Brogdon is in a tough election with Congresswoman Mary Fallin, the establishment favorite, to win the Republican primary taking place July 27.

As a State Senator, Randy Brogdon proposed or passed …

• The Healthcare Freedom of Choice Act
• The Real ID Opt-out Bill
• The Freedom Firearm Act
• The Tenth Amendment Resolution

Brogdon was also the lead sponsor of the Stop OverSpending Initiative (TABOR) and was instrumental in supporting an initiative to protect private property rights in response to Kelo v. New London.

It should also be noted that Brogdon has had a longstanding friendship with the Republican Liberty Caucus. He's affiliated with Howie Rich's Americans for Limited Government. He's also been a guest speaker and attendee on a number of occasions at Oklahoma Libertarian Party meetings.

IMPORTANT!

From the Editor: We will have a very special announcement regarding Sharron Angle on Thursday morning. You will not want to miss this.

Another stupid Muslim Terrorist Story

Unfortunately with Deadly Consequences

From Cliff Thies:

The headline of the London Daily Mail reads "Innocent couple died 'after wrong house was fire-bombed in bungled honour killing'."

An innocent couple died in a house fire at the hands of assailants who got the wrong address in a botched honour killing, a court heard today.

Abdullah Mohammed, 41, and his wife, Aysha Mohammed, 39, were overcome by smoke and fumes after an accelerant was poured through their letterbox and set alight.

Their killers were ordered by another man to avenge his family's honour but instead of firebombing 135 London Road in Blackburn, Lancashire, they started the blaze at 175 London Road, the court heard.

Opening the case at Preston Crown Court, Brian Cummings QC said: 'The prosecution allege that Sadik Miah, Mohammed Miah (no relation) and Habib Iqbal were directly responsible for starting the fire that night

'The prosecution say, on behalf of his family, Hisamuddin Ibrahim wanted to kill a man by the name of Mo Ibrahim (no relation) to punish him for damaging the family's honour for having an affair with his married sister, Hafija Gordi.'

Just another stupid Muslim terrorist story? No! More like another story of creeping Sharia Law.

Abdullah Mohammed, 41, and his wife, Aysha Mohammed, 39, who were murdered in a botched 'honour killing,' were indeed an 'innocent couple,' as the headline puts it. Ditto their minor children who, thankfully, survived. But so were the persons the murderers intended to kill. In Great Britain, as in our country, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Even then, the punishment is to fit the crime. Guilt is not to be determined by any Sadik, Mohammed, Habib or Hisamuddin, with punishment determined by primitive tribal standards masquerading as a religion, and executed by hired assassins. It's bad enough that immigrants don't respect the rule of law. But, for the editors of a great newspapers to accept that the intended victims might not be innocent is much worse.

Photo of London row houses not actual site of fire.

Sexy Russian Spy busted!

From Cliff Thies:

With all the bad news in the world, the wars, the depression, the oil spill, finally, some good news: hot Russian spy babes are back! The headline read "sexy Russian spy busted!" And is she ever! And those eyes. If the North Vietnamese could break John McCain, could anybody blame me if she forced me, with those eyes, to tell her everything???

More photos at the NY Post

Photo hat tip Humble Libertarian

Republican for Congress hopes to bring Kansas hard-working, individualist values to Washington

Tim Huelskamp, a Reagan Conservative for Congress

From Eric Dondero:

There's a hot primary in Kansas to replace Republican Todd Tiahart who is moving up to the Senate. Tim Huelskamp, currently in 3rd in a field of 7, is the Tea Party favorite.

From his website:

Yesterday at massive TEA Parties across Kansas, Senator Tim Huelskamp spoke about the importance of the 10th Amendment. “The 10th Amendment was added to the U.S. Constitution for one purpose – to restrict the power of the federal government. But for years,” noted Huelskamp, “Washington has increasingly ignored any limits on their power – especially with the passage of their most recent stimulus and bailout bills.”

Huelskamp also has another big endorser, one with solid libertarian-conservative credentials, Texas Governor Rick Perry.

“There is only one candidate in this race that will keep the state of Kansas and our nation moving forward in the right direction, and that’s Tim Huelskamp…I do not make this endorsement lightly and only offer my support when I am certain of a candidate’s strong conviction…Tim is without a doubt one of those candidates and I am proud to offer my endorsement of his campaign.” -- Rick Perry

And an endorsement from yet another famous Texan:

“Tim Huelskamp will do the work to fight for lower taxes and spending and for more freedom in Washington. I have been very impressed by Tim’s record of fiscal responsibility. We need people like Tim Huelskamp voting with me in Congress.” -- Ron Paul

Finally, Huelskamp is backed by the economic libertarian Club for Growth.

Huelskamp has been a State Senator since 1996 serving on the Agriculture committee. He is a rancher himself, from Western Kansas.

One interesting personal note on Huelskamp. He and his wife Angela have four adopted children including the two girls, who are from Haiti.

Welcome polling news on Nikki Haley post nomination

From Eric Dondero:

Here it is folks. The very first poll numbers for Nikki Haley two weeks after she secured the Republican nomination. And the news is, to put it mildly, quite good.

From Rasmussen (via Hedgehog.)

GOVERNOR – SOUTH CAROLINA (Rasmussen)
Nikki Haley (R) 52%
Vincent Sheheen (D) 40%

New York Libertarian for Governor: Supreme Court gun ruling changes everything in Plaxico Burress case

From Eric Dondero:

New York Libertarian for Governor and gun rights attorney Warren Redlich said in Albany yesterday that Plaxico Burress's conviction should now be overturned. The Supreme Court ruled yesterday in a 5 to 4 decision, that New York State gun laws are unconstitutional.

In McDonald v. Chicago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Chicago's ban on handguns is unconstitutional. In doing so, it ruled that the 2nd amendment does in fact apply to the states.

Redlich said:

"This landmark ruling will require New York State to take immediate action to amend its gun laws so they do not violate the constitution. It is a striking victory for gun owners and for anyone who believes in the fundamental rights the constitution provides."

Burress was a New Jersey resident convicted under New York's gun laws. Redlich added:

"Given that New York State makes it impossible for an out-of-state resident to get a gun license, Burress’s conviction should be overturned."

Note - Redlich is running on the Libertarian line, but is also a local elected Republican.

Senator Byrd's replacement: Such and Ugly Process in such a Pretty State

by Clifford F. Thies

West Virginia’s law provides that the Governor fills vacancies in the U.S. Senate and certain other offices when there is no more than 2 ½ years in the unexpired term of the office. In cases where there is more than 2 ½ years, the Governor’s appointee shall serve only until a person who has timely filed for the primary is be elected in the subsequent election and takes office. As the filing deadline was, this year, on January 30th (the primary having already been conducted), this would seem to mean that the Governor fills vacancies in the U.S. Senate of up to 3 years. And, in particular, will fill the vacancies resulting from Senator Robert Byrd’s passing for the more then 2 ½ years remaining on the term of his office.

Or may not.

In West Virginia, the filing deadline for independent and third-party candidates is July 30th. Independent and third-party candidates are not nominated by primaries under West Virginia law. Instead, they are nominated by petition. Furthermore, the idea that only somebody nominated by one of the major parties recognized by the state of West Virginia can be elected to fill a vacancy is a violation of the federal constitution, in that it would create an additional qualification for office and the courts have clearly ruled that states may not do this. Therefore, it seems to me, it may be possible for independent and third-party candidates to timely file by July 30th to fill the vacancy created by the passing of Senator Byrd.

Were independent and third-party candidates to be allowed to file, it would seem to me that members of the major parties should also be allowed. An easy enough way to do this is to allow them, as well as the independent and third-party candidates to be nominated by petition. A better way might be for the major parties to nominate by convention in cases where vacancies open with more than 2 ½ years unexpired but after it is practical to file for the primary. However, devising such an involved scheme would be better left to the legislature of the state, than be declared by a court.

The state Attorney General should be petitioned by the Republican Party for a ruling, allowing them to nominate by convention by the July 30th or to allow its members to be nominated by petition by that deadline. In addition, an appeal of the AG’s decision be prepared, and, petitions be drawn up and circulated to nominate a candidate for the office.

Editor's Note - Cliff makes his home in Winchester, western Virginia, on the east slope of the Appalachians.

UPDATE: "Flipping Racial Minorities The Byrd," an Op Ed by Wes Messamore.

Joker Turned Senator Al Franken Bored to Tears over Elena Kagan

by the Left Coast Rebel

Why was Al Franken so bored at Elena Kagan's testimony today? Perhaps it's because Al Franken knows what is bouncing around in Elena Kagan's skull and considers the 'hearings' even less than a moot point. Does liberalism cause narcolepsy?:



Or does narcolepsy cause liberalism?

Narcolepsy of the brain, if I were to surmise from Elena Kagan's empty, flowery, worthless speechifying today.

Exit question - Does, "I've learned that we make progress by listening to each other across every apparent political or ideological divide..."

Substitute, 'I do solemnly swear to faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States under the Constitution and laws of the Unites States, so help me God?'

If so, then perhaps the 'redistribution of wealth to it's rightful owners' really has replaced 'the pursuit of happiness.'

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL)did a pretty good job today at the Kagan hearings and even dropped the 's' word. Does Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) sum up precisely that which I did above?:



Cross-posted to Left Coast Rebel, Proof Positive.

Weekend at Byrdie's

From Cliff Thies:

Robert Byrd passed away five days short of the 2 1/2 year mark, which would have clearly allowed the Governor's replacement to fill out his unexpired term. (The Governor is a Democrat).

Five days! Do you think, maybe, the Democrats could have just kept his death quiet for five days?


From the Editor: Obvious photoshop of Byrd. Sorry, we couldn't resist.

Rand Paul Money Bomb Today

**By: Guest Blogger Wes Messamore

Rand Paul's campaign for U.S. Senate representing Kentucky has launched what is being billed as the "first money blast of the general election."

The campaign seems to prefer the term "money blast" to the grassroots neologism "money bomb" coined by supporters of Congressman (and father to Rand) Ron Paul's bid for U.S. President in 2007-08.

In a campaign that constantly faces down charges of radicalism, the choice of words can make a difference. Ostensibly the campaign wants to avoid violent imagery, including the word "bomb."

Speaking at a recent fundraiser in Washington D.C., Rand Paul said:

'"You'll see that they want to paint me -- the Courier, the Herald, even some of these national newspapers up here -- as being 'extreme,'" Paul said. "One of the answers I learned from my dad, because they tried to do this to him, is flip it around and ask, what's extreme? It's extreme to have a $2 trillion deficit."'

As of 11:00 am Eastern Time, Rand Paul had raised over $33,000 for the day and discouraged supporters at RonPaulForums.com expressed their hope that Rand would raise a lot more by the end of the day:

"I donated first thing (see post # 4) and I'll be back for a second round this evening. If others want to stand by and watch Maddow and Matthews steal a victory from us, they are welcome to do so, but I won't be part of that."

"This student is nearly tapped dry
Eating Mac n Cheese for the next 2 days"

In an e-mail to his supporters today, Dr. Paul wrote:

"My opponent is a big government, tax and spend trial lawyer. He has done little in his life but run for or be in office.

He is exactly what I mean when I say we won't change Washington until we change the kind of people we send.

I am a career physician who has built and run a small business. I believe in fighting for Liberty and for restoring our government to Constitutional limits.

I won't be just another vote in Washington. I will stand up and fight for reform.

I know you support these same ideals. And I am counting on you to stand with me today."

Supreme Court Affirms Our Natural Right to Self-Protection

by The Right Guy

The Second Amendment – The original homeland security.
Anonymous

The supreme court today struck down the Chicago gun ban. In a 5-4 decision, the court overturned the 1982 ban on guns in Chicago. The 1982 ban was so restrictive that no firearms could be legally owned or possessed within a domicile in the jurisdiction of Chicago. None.

The statist and fascist mayor Daly had this to say:

Daly said his primary goal would be to protect police officers, paramedics and emergency workers from being shot when responding to an incident at a home. He said he also wants to save taxpayers from the financial cost of lawsuits if police shoot someone in the house because the officer felt threatened.

"If the ban is overturned, we will see a lot of common-sense approaches in the city aimed at protecting first responders," Daley said. "We have to have some type of registry. If a first responder goes to an apartment, they need to know if that individual has a gun."

In other words, we may have to allow people to own firearms, but we will regulate you to death. The safety of police and other first responders is a red herring. In States like Texas, Arizona, Florida and Utah (Along with Vermont and Alaska) have the most liberal laws in regards to gun ownership, and I mean truly liberal. Police there generally do not have a problem with individuals legally possessing firearms. This is a fall back measure by Daly to restrict people based on his illogical and statist world view.

Writing for the court in a case involving restrictive laws in Chicago and one of its suburbs, Justice Samuel Alito said that the Second Amendment right "applies equally to the federal government and the states."

This is a happy day for liberty loving people, even with the continued threat from social progressive statists like Daly, Obama and others. Alito's affirming that gun ownership extends to the states sends a clear message to left wing progressive ideologues that our natural rights will be defended, promulgated and affirmed at all levels of government, no matter how much it pains them in their pursuit of making us Farm Animals®.

Thank you for reading this blog.

Afghanistan: G-8 announces 5-year commitent, the right course?

by Clifford F. Thies

Sometimes you have to put 1 and 1 together to get 2. One day, the President names General Petraeus, hero of the surge in Iraq, to be commander of allied forces in Afghanistan. A few days later, the G-8 releases a joint statement that includes a commitment to five more years of international military assistance to that country.

When he announced his surge in Afghanistan, President Obama also announced a timetable for withdrawal. Beginning in 2011, U.S. troops were to begin withdrawing from the country. The pre-commitment to a timetable for withdrawal aligned with candidate Obama’s criticism of President Bush for making withdrawal from Iraq based on "conditions on the ground,” a standard that appeared to commit the U.S. to have a military presence in Iraq indefinitely.

The timetable for withdrawal may have made sense to President Obama at the time it was drawn up, based on various assumptions of what could be accomplished with the resources available; but, right off the bat, problems developed. First, there were problems assembling the resources assumed in the plan. Our own troop level was only increased gradually due to a variety of problems, and none of our allies committed to additional troops or agreed to relax restrictions on the deployment of their troops already in the country, and a number of our allies announced withdrawals of their troops.

Second, the Taliban didn’t cooperate with the plan. They zigged when the plan assumed they were going to zag, increasingly operating across the borders of Afghanistan with Iran and Pakistan, and being augmented by international jihadists. Instead of encountering only scattered resistance, our forces find themselves engaged with a fierce and resourceful enemy. This has not been the “walk in the park” that the Obama Administration had assumed.

Thus, as things failed to go according to plan, President Karzai of Afghanistan said the allied forces will not defeat the Taliban, meaning not according to President Obama’s timetable. Local Afghanis started to accommodate themselves to their soon-to-be evil masters. The now dumped commander of the allied forces, General McChrystal, agitated for more troops and became increasingly frustrated with the civilian leadership.

Following his appointment of General Petraeus President Obama seemed to fudge his policy of a timetable for withdrawal with a policy of conditioning withdrawal on conditions on the ground. He said that his timetable was not “race for the exits,” but a “conditions-based,” open-ended transition.” My, my, why didn’t President Bush think of saying that? And now comes a five-year commitment by way of a G-8 announcement.

Independent of the tacit admission that Bush was right about basing withdrawal on conditions on the ground, there is the geopolitical question as to what is the mission in Afghanistan and is it worth the cost of another five years of war? The original mission in that country was merely to overthrow the Taliban and to secure Kabul for the so-called central government of the country. For some reason, this changed into securing the entire country for that so-called government. Neither President Bush nor President Obama has bothered to tell us, the American people, why this is in our national interest.

Idaho Republican Party shifts hard to the Libertarian-Right

From Eric Dondero:

It's being dubbed a "Red Meat" state convention. Idaho Republican delegates met in convention in Idaho Falls over the weekend and adopted a hardline platform. From the Deseret News:

Take the party's new platform, updated Saturday to include a loyalty test for candidates, a provision recommending Idaho withhold taxes from the federal government, further efforts to limit marriage to "naturally born" men and women — even a GOP-sanctioned admonishment for residents to stock up on gold and silver to gird against the ravages of U.S. dollar inflation, should it come to that.

a recommendation to revise the Idaho Constitution to give Idaho the right to take over federally managed U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management territory.

(Bold emphasis added.)

Also, two Tea Party stalwarts were elected to the GOP Executive Committee - Secretary and Treasurer positions. The Party is already Chaired by a hardline conservative Norm Samanko who won reelection.

The latest from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer - Mr. Obama "Do your Job!"

Arizona Libertarian for Governor Bruce Olson challenges Gov. Brewer to be Tougher on Border Security

From Eric Dondero:

Libertarian candidate for Governor of Arizona Bruce Olson admires Republican Governor Jan Brewer in general, but wants her to be even tougher on border security.

Yesterday he issued an open letter to his opponent. Olson sent a copy along to Libertarian Republican.

Governor Brewer:

This morning I read your article in the paper. Here’s a idea. Take an hour out of your campaigning day, and do what your charged to do. Be the Commander in Chief of the Great State of Arizona. Forget obama, hes not coming, he has no paperwork. Put out a call for volunteers to develop and deploy the state militia we are ready. Instruct the Border Patrol to return to the border fence and no more than one mile inside the border. Send the Armed State Guard to the border to back up the Border Patrol . Locate two General Aviation aircraft equipped with RC-9 or -10 cameras with gps link, deploy them to the border and mountain ridges, identify the location of repeaters with freq finding technology. Send in the Huey’s with gunners and take them out. Use the militia to mop up. You are at war , and the longer you fool around using this issue as a campaign tool, the more people are going to get killed or worse. We need a Commander in Chief in Arizona, its for certain we dont have one in the District of Columbia. You want to be a sovereign state,prove it.

Bruce Olsen

Note - Olsen refers to himself as a "Wayne Root Libertarian," and a strict Constitutionalist. To challenge Brewer in the Fall, he must first win the Libertarian Party nomination. His opponent for the nomination is leftwing Libertarian and perennial candidate Barry Hess. The Libertarian primary is in August.

BruceOlsen4Gov.com

Schwarzenegger moves quick - immediate end to Casino Welfare Queens (and Kings)

LR FOLLOW-UP

From Eric Dondero:

We reported last week on local newspaper stories out of California, uncovering EBT machines in California Casinos. Welfare recipients could access easy cash for the blackjack tables, slot machines, and poker.

The Governor was caught by surprise. But to his credit he has put an immediate stop to the practice.

From Mydesert.com:

Spurred by a newspaper's report that California's welfare debit cards can be used to withdraw cash in more than half the casinos in the state, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday issued an immediate ban on state-provided cash assistance at ATMs in gambling establishments.

The Los Angeles Times disclosed that Electronic Benefit Transfer cards work in automated teller machines at 32 of 58 tribal casinos and 47 of 90 state-licensed poker rooms. The report also found the state Department of Social Services published a list of useable ATMs where the EBT cards that work like debit cards could be cashed.

“I will use every available power I have to protect taxpayers from waste, fraud and abuse in government,'' Schwarzenegger said.

Dave Weigel - Honest to Goodness "Leftwing Libertarian"

by Eric Dondero

By now many of you, especially those of you who are rightwing blogosphere junkies are aware that Dave Weigel as resigned as the "Conservative" Blogger for the Washington Post.

I cry no tears for Dave's departure. I will say he's always been friendly in his dealings with me and with this political website. Well, at least recently. But no less, I'm not sorry to see him go. Mainly because he was not in any way a Conservative.

Rather, Weigel is the perfect Leftwing Libertarian.

And ironically, because of this hub-bub, the term Leftwing Libertarian or variations of, have been spread all over the blogs.

We here at Libertarian Republican take credit for pushing these terms "Leftwing Libertarian," and "Right Libertarian," or "Rightwing Libertarian." We most certainly are the main political website representing the Right Libertarian movement.

The difference? Mainly foreign policy. Right Libertarians are Pro-Defense, and generally less skeptical and even downright supportive of the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. We Right Libertarians are also more tolerant of Pro-Life Libertarians, Christian Libertarians, and Libertarians personally opposed to Gay Marriage for example. We Right Libertarians tend to be more Pro-Death Penalty, and tough on Crime. And most certainly, we are much tougher on Immigration than your typical Libertarian.

Weigel represents the complete opposite view. He's stridently non-interventionist. He was an open Obama supporter in 2008 when he worked for Reason. He's been disdainful of Sarah Palin.

Thankfully, this is getting picked up. From HuffPo:

But within the Washington Post, Weigel's politics (he is a libertarian with clear progressive leanings) appeared to surprise management, some of whom assumed he was a conservative.

From VodkaPundit at PJ Media:

I’d read Weigel starting with his stint at Reason about three years back. He was always caustic, often funny, and typically cranky — an angry left-libertarian. Now, left-libertarian isn’t the most tenable position... From the moment Weigel started at the Post, it became pretty obvious that he wasn’t a libertarian of any sort, left or otherwise. And if you followed his Twitter feed, his “progressive” tilt, and open hostility towards most anyone to the right of, say, Dave Weigel, weren’t even debatable.

From E.D. Kain at the Washington Examiner:

It appears the Post either didn’t realize Weigel was not a conservative (but rather a left-leaning libertarian)

There's much, much more. Dave Weigel and "Left Libertarian," is all over the blogs right now.

Leftwing Libertarian and Right Libertarians are relatively new terms. The more they get bandied about the better for those of us on the Rightside of libertarianism. For, we are at the very apex of the Libertarian-Conservative movement.

So, in a way I guess we do owe Dave Weigel some gratitude after all.

Jeff Perrry, Republican for Congress - Washington still hasn't heard us

Libertarian-Conservative

Tea Party-backed. Supported by longtime Massachusetts Libertarian Republican State Senator Bob Hedlund of Weymouth.

Massachusetts 10th Congressional District running against longtime Democrat incumbent Rep. William Delahunt. Regarded as the best shot for the GOP to pick up a seat in Mass.

JeffPerryforCongress.com

Republican Liberty Caucus of Texas opposes State Party plank against Gay Rights

Release from the Republican Liberty Caucus of Texas, June 24:

Republican Liberty Caucus of Texas Calls on Party Leaders to Address Problems with Anti-Gay Platform Planks

AUSTIN, TX - At the state Republican convention earlier this month the Texas GOP abandoned the Republican tradition of respecting the Constitution and protecting individual liberty and privacy rights by adopting a platform which includes planks which propose an attack on the civil liberties of some of our citizens.

The platform advocates policies which would make it a felony to perform a same-sex marriage in Texas, which would re-criminalize sodomy and which would take away the rights of gay parents in custody cases. These proposals are contrary to the values of most Texans and go against the Republican tradition of standing up for individual liberty.

The Republican Liberty Caucus strongly opposes the Texas GOP platform’s anti-gay and anti-liberty planks. We call for the state party to take action to address this problem. While it may not be possible to repeal or change the party platform, the state leadership should issue a clear statement that the platform is non-binding and does not represent the core, shared beliefs of Texas Republicans or of our candidates.

In a year in which we are looking forward to extraordinary opportunities for a great slate of Republican candidates in Texas, it would be a terrible mistake to shackle them to a platform which will alienate many potential supporters. This platform will weaken the
party at a time when a strong coalition of Republicans and independents is needed to stop the radical agenda of Democrats in both Austin and Washington.

“We need to focus on keeping the government out of our pocketbooks; especially in Texas,” said Texas RLC Chairman, Joey G. Dauben.

“There are far more pressing problems for the GOP in our state to worry about. While I personally disagree with same-sex marriage from a Biblical perspective, marriage is a contract between individuals and God, not with the government. If we want government out of our wallets and our boardrooms, we should also keep government out of our churches and our bedrooms.”

The Republican Liberty Caucus believes that true conservative leaders should be dedicated to cutting government spending rather than wasting resources by advocating policies that open the state up to lawsuits and create conflict. We need to put aside divisive issues and focus on real problems. We should work to bring Texans together to protect the interests of our state and its people and to oppose the radical tax and spend agenda of the Democrats that is bankrupting our nation.

We call on the state party to send a clear message to voters that the this platform does not represent the highest ideals of our party and that as a party we support individual liberty and equal rights for all Texans.

More info www.rlc.org

Republicans may only need 216, not 218 to win control of the House

West Virginia Dem nominee says he might not Vote Pelosi

From Eric Dondero:

The magic number for Republicans to win the House, being bandied about by the media, is "218." That's a needed pick-up of 40 House seats by Republicans in November. But the actual number may be lower - a pick-up of 39.

Meet West Virginia State Senator Mike Oliverio. He recently won the Democrat primary for US Rep. WV District 1, beating longtime incumbent and scandle-plagued Rep. Alan Mollahan. Oliverio ran as a strong pro-life, social conservative Dem.

At a recent forum, ironically with Dick Morris as the guest speaker, Oliverio made the following remarks (via The Wheeling News-Register, April 29) :

"I will vote for the candidate in the best interest of West Virginia," Oliverio said following the event. "Hopefully, there will be a better candidate than Nancy Pelosi."

Other sources have cited that Oliverio actually "pledged" during the primary campaign not to vote for Pelosi. One progressive blog even describes Oliverio as a "Tea Bagger," backed by local WV Tea Party groups. Oliverio is strongly opposed to cap and trade legislation.

While a vote for John Boehner for Speaker of the House from Oliverio may not be in the cards, Oliverio's remarks could be interpreted as urging a compromise choice. If a House line-up is close, 216 to 215 for example, a Blue Dog Democrat, like Mississippi's Rep. Gene Taylor or Idaho Rep. Walt Minnick for Speaker could be a distinct possibility. (Minnick is a former Republican who has the most conservative voting record of any House Dem.)

Note - there are currently no Republican congressional nominees who have indicated that they would vote for anyone other than House minority leader Boehner for speaker.

Sharron Angle still leads Harry Reid with a comfortable margin

Despite attack ads by the Reid campaign hitting Angle on being an extremist, she is holding steady in the latest polling numbers released. The liberal media has also piled on, digging up supposedly controversial statements from Angle, many of which have since proven to be false or exagerrated.

From Rasmussen (via Hedgehog):

US SENATE – NEVADA (Rasmussen)
Sharron Angle (R) 48%
Harry Reid (D-inc) 41%

A Tea Party favorite, Angle has also received the enthusiastic backing of 2008 Libertarian Party Vice-Presidential candidate Wayne Root, a fellow Las Vegan.

Editor's Note - Libertarian Republican will have a very special announcement tomorrow regarding Sharron Angle.

Fiscal Conservative Susana Martinez slightly ahead in NM Governor race

There is virtually no change in the New Mexico Governor race since Susana Martinez secured the Republican nomination last month, coming out well ahead of a field of 5. Martinez was endorsed by Sarah Palin.

An earlier poll released right after her win, had her 1 point ahead of Democrat Diane Denish.

Latest from Rasmussen (via Hedgehog):

GOVERNOR – NEW MEXICO (Magellan)
Susana Martinez (R) 44%
Diane Denish (D) 43%

New Mexico has not had a Republican Governor in 8 years.

Christians arrested at Muslim Festival in Michigan

For exercising Free Speech Rights.

Anti-Semitic Violence in Germany: Muslim Youths throw Stones at Jews during Dance Festival

1939 Germany, all over again

From Eric Dondero:

Lower Saxony lies in the Northwestern region of Germany. It borders the North Sea and the Netherlands to the west. Hannover is one of the States' largest cities.

Hannover has a unique history in regards to the Jewish Holocaust. In 1938 the city was a major site of the famous Kristallnacht. A centuries old Jewish synagoge was burned to the ground. The local Jewish population were deported soon after. Most were eventually exterminated in German Death Camps, including at Auschwitz in Poland.

Hannover is the closest major city to the famous Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, where hundreds of thousands of German, Dutch, Polish, and Hungarian Jews were killed by the Nazis. Among the most famous of detainees at Bergen-Belsen, a young Dutch girl named Anne Frank.

Now this breaking news...

AP/Yahoo News: Youths attack Jewish dance group in Germany

BERLIN – Arab youths threw stones at a Jewish dance group during a street festival in Hannover, injuring one dancer and forcing the group to cancel its performance, German police and dance officials said Thursday.

The teenagers also used a megaphone to shout anti-Semitic slurs during the attack Saturday, Hannover police spokesman Thorsten Schiewe said.

"I don't remember such a dramatic attack in Germany in recent times," said Michael Fuerst, the head of the Jewish community of the state of Lower Saxony.

Six suspects have been identified — five Arabic immigrants and one German — and police are looking for the other three, police said.

An official with an association of German Jews, Stephan the Central Council of Jews, was quoted:

"This latest incident shows something we have not experienced before: A growing radicalization of young Muslims, which affects not only the Jewish community but the entire German community."

There are other reports that the Muslims were shouting "Juden Raus" (Jews get out), during the assault; taunts eerily similar to those lodged by German residents at Jews during the 1939 deportation.

Meanwhile, the Association of Jewish University Students in Germany is attributing the recent rise in Anti-Semitic violence to the unrest in the Gaza strip. They describe a marked increase in death threats and slurs on Facebook and by email in the last few weeks.

Pamela Geller, liberty champion and publisher of the Ayn Rand-oriented blog Atlas Shrugs, commented on the Jewish dance group stoning:

The Muslims are finishing the work of the Mufti al-Husseini, Hitlers allym and mass slaughterer of Jews during the the holocaust. Sixty years later it's the Muslims are dragging the rest of the world with them, in their genocidal dreams of annihilating goodness, creativity, production, inventiveness, benevolence, charity, medicine, technology and all of the gifts of the Jews.

Photos are of the camp at Bergen-Belsen. (H/t Wiki for Bergen-Belsen historical facts.)

Radical Islamists murder rampages against Westerners, non-believers Worldwide

Muslim mob hacks up Fillipino Catholics with Machetes

From MSNBC June 20: Hooded gunmen kill 4 commuters in Philippines:

About 30 hooded attackers, believed to be Abu Sayyaf militants, shot and hacked horrified victims as they ran for their lives in the southern Philippines, police said Thursday. Four people died and six were wounded in the ambush on a village road.

“They were fired upon as they ran. One of the attackers hacked a 10-year-old boy, who survived,” Mendoza told The Associated Press.

“We found the bodies and survivors scattered outside the jeep. It’s sad, these outlaws don’t have any regard for life.”

The suspected al-Qaida-linked militants apparently were trying to divert government troops from a weekslong offensive in a nearby town...

Gun down "Westernized" Soccer fans in Somalia

From Reuters, June 16: Soccer Fans Executed For Watching World Cup

Gunmen believed to be from a radical Islamic group in northeast Mogadishu, Somalia, shot two people dead during an impromptu raid on a house where people were watching a World Cup match Saturday night, Reuters reports.

A witness told reporters that masked militants "stormed into the house" and open fired at the World Cup viewers, killing two instantly. The militants rounded up about 10 other fans, but left the bodies in the home, the witness said.

The incident came on the heels of a national ban on viewing "un-Islamic" World Cup games made by the local militia group al Shabaab, which controls much of south and central Somalia by force...

Slice Ukrainian boy's throat playing in a Sandbox

From Fox News June 19:

A 5-year-old Ukrainian boy was slaughtered by an alleged religious fanatic as he played in a sandpit with his friends, Pravda reported Tuesday.

The stranger strolled up to little Viktor Shemyakin before pointing to a tree and saying: “Look, there is a bird up there.”

When the youngster glanced upward the maniac plunged a knife into his throat, Pravda said.
The June 18 killing has threatened to ignite tension in the town of Dneprovka, in Ukraine’s Crimea region, after it emerged that the 27-year-old knifeman was a suspected Muslim fanatic, the Russian online newspaper reported.

“The man screamed Allahu Akbar (Arabic for 'God is great') when killing the boy, "said a shocked local. “The kid was slaughtered like a goat."

Editor's Comment - the attacker screamed "Allahu Akbar" while he was slicing the boy's throat, yet Fox describes him as an "alleged" religious fanatic.

Rand Paul: US has a "Special relationship" with Israel, support her right to defend herself

From Eric Dondero:

John Hawkins (photo), Editor and Publisher of Rightwingnews.com, is a longtime friend and past contributor of Libertarian Republican blog. He had an opportunity recently, to interview Republican candidate for US Senate Rand Paul. He asked a number of questions including NAFTA, Cap and Trade, Immigration, and Minimum Wage.

Pro-Defense Libertarians may be most interested in Paul's response on Israel, Nukes and Iran. Hawkins commented to Paul, that a concern he hears among fellow conservatives is that Paul might share the same rabidly non-interventionist views of his Father. Paul responds:

I think you know our national security and our defense is the most important thing the federal government does. It is an enumerated power and it's something that will always be first on my mind when considering what our government should be doing.

With regard to Israel, I think we do have a special relationship. They're a special ally. They're the only democracy in the Middle East and I will not vote to condemn Israel for defending herself. I think that summarizes it fairly well.

On Iran:

I think that Iran having nuclear weapons would destabilize the Middle East and it's not a good idea. I'm in favor of the U.S. not subsidizing corporations that do business with Iran. I'm also in favor of...not doing business with companies that do business in Iran....There's no reason we should be subsidizing companies that are doing business with a country that seems set on destabilizing things in the region.

Read the entire interview at - Rightwingnews.com

Gina Elise, Pin Up for Vets, on the passing of Edith Shain

by Gina Elise

From the Washington Post, June 24 "Edith Shain, nurse kissing Navy man in Eisenstaedt's WWII photo, dies at 91":

Edith Shain, 91, widely believed to be the uniformed nurse whose lip-locking embrace with a Navy sailor at the end of World War II was captured in a photograph that became one of the most iconic images of the time, died of cancer June 20 at her home in Los Angeles.

Ms. Shain was working at Doctors Hospital in New York on Aug, 14, 1945, the day the war ended with the surrender of Japanese troops. She and thousands of other jubilant New Yorkers flooded Times Square, where a young man in Navy blues was smooching women as he made his way through the crowd.

"Someone grabbed me and kissed me, and I let him because he fought for his country," Ms. Shain said. "I closed my eyes when I kissed him. I never saw him."

The phrase is true: A picture is worth a thousands words.

Edith's picture in Times Square personified the exuberance of America's victory at the end of WWII. Images last forever. This image will illustrate for generations to come the joy of returning home from war--and that is timeless. Google lists this picture as the most famous kiss ever.

Although Edith has passed, this shot will remain forever in people's hearts. This homecoming will be forever repeated as long as Americans go off to war. I posted this picture today on Facebook, in honor of Edith, and received a comment from a mother: "I was sad to hear of her passing. Seeing this picture is always stirring but especially right now since my soldier just returned home yesterday."

I feel very honored to have participated in parades with such an iconic figure. I hope that my Pin-Ups For Vets photos also inspire boosts in morale for our troops who are looking forward to returning home.

From the Editor - regular readers of Libertarian Republican may be aware that our friend Gina is the saluting navy gal at the top of our blog. We've promoted her most wonderful charity effort PinUpforVets.com over the years. She's even been a guest twice on "Libertarian Politics Live." We urge our readers to contribute to Gina's very worthy cause, to help our Veterans in VA hospitals nationwide.

I served in the US Navy, 1981-85 aboard the USS Kittyhawk CV 63, and USS Luce DDG-38, Persian Gulf War, and Indian Ocean.

Democrat Rep. Kanjorski of Pennsylvania - "Defective Americans"

From Eric Dondero:

Provided by the office of House Republican Minority Whip Rep. Eric Cantor. Stunning statement from a ranking Democrat in the House. While defending against a provision in the Financial Regulatory bill, longtime Pennsylvania Congressman Paul Kanjorski says those affected are not just "minorities, or defective Americans..."

Kanjorski obviously mis-spoke in referring to the handicapped, disabled Veterans, and those with special needs. But if a Republican would have used such a term?

Casino Welfare! California recipients Go Wild! with Taxpayer Money

From Eric Dondero:

Seven years in office, and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is just now uncovering a huge scam from the previous administration. In the late 1990s, Democrat Governor Gray Davis instituted a program that would allow welfare recipients to access "Fast Cash," out of ATMs. The ATMs included machines located at the States' numorous Indian-owned Casinos.

The money drawn from the accounts can be used for any purpose: Booze, Black Jack, Concert tickets, 24-hour Buffets, even tipping Cocktail waitresses. There is absolutely no accounting or oversight.

From the LA Times, June 24, "California welfare cards can be used in many casino ATMs":

The cards, provided by the Department of Social Services to help recipients feed and clothe their families, work in automated teller machines at 32 of 58 tribal casinos and 47 of 90 state-licensed poker rooms, the review found.

State officials said Wednesday they were working to determine how much money had been withdrawn from casino ATMs by people using the welfare debit cards.

Schwarzenegger reacts:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who learned of the issue when asked to comment for this story, promised to take immediate action.

"We have instructed our vendors to prohibit these cards from being accepted at ATMs located in casinos and card rooms," Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said Wednesday. "It is reprehensible that anyone would use taxpayer money for anything other than its intended purpose."

Fortunately, this strengthens his hand against Democrat lawmakers screaming about his proposed "drastic" budget cuts to welfare programs. Continuing:

Schwarzenegger had already threatened to eliminate the state welfare program in his May budget proposal, and that was before he and his Republican allies in the Legislature knew that the cash could be accessed by people strolling from poker games to blackjack tables.

"In a time when we have a $19-billion deficit, and we're taking a serious look at the future of many safety-net programs, it's appalling to think that welfare beneficiaries can use their cards in a casino," said Seth Unger, spokesman for the Assembly Republican Caucus.

Meanwhile, Republican for Governor Meg Whitman has made cutting waste, fraud and abuse in California's massive welfare budget a key campaign plank. Also from the LA Times, May 17:

Whitman insisted that the state budget could be brought under control by targeting "waste, fraud and abuse" -- as well as making cuts to social services.

The State currently suffers from a $19.1 Billion deficit.

A Tale of Two Generals: Shinseki got better treatment than McChrystal

by Clifford F. Thies

General Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan, is in trouble, supposedly, for an “interview” published in the rock music magazine “Rolling Stone.” More correctly, he is in trouble for his and his staff officers’ criticism of the civilian leadership of the U.S. government, at times personal. According to General McChrystal, the U.S. is not committing enough soldiers to Afghanistan to accomplish the mission, nor – reading between the lines – enough time.

There was another high-ranking officer who, not so long ago, criticized the civilian leadership. That officer was General Eric Ken Shinseki, Army Chief of Staff from 1999 to 2003. General Shinseki was publically critical of the Bush Administration for not deploying enough troops to Iraq during the early years of the occupation. President Obama rewarded General Shinseki, following his election, by naming him Secretary of Veterans Affairs. But, now, with the Army boot on the other foot, President Obama doesn’t like criticism of the civilian leadership.

In both cases, I appreciate the arguments made by the generals. Overwhelming force saves lives. Not only the lives of our soldiers, but also the lives of the civilian populations we are seeking to defend. But, in both cases, from where is this overwhelming force to come?

Following the Persian Gulf War, we incorrectly concluded that, in future engagements, we would be supported by the rest of the world. We therefore put our focus on high tech weaponry. Our ground units were made smaller, more strategically-deployable and more lethal, and we cut the number of ground soldiers almost in half.

As a consequence of this reconfigured force structure, when we invaded Iraq, we were able to achieve victory very quickly. The Army to the west and the Marines to the east pushed through to Baghdad, sweeping away the enemy. But, then, we had little ability to follow-up with a ground force large enough to occupy the country. We had thought blue-helmeted troops from the U.N. would do the job. But, they were scared off by the ferocity of the resistance.

We then had to require extraordinary sacrifices, in terms of length and frequency of deployments, from our regular military forces and we also called upon the Guard and Reserves . Eventually, a reconstituted Iraqi Army was able to stand up to and defeat the resistance.

The story in Afghanistan is both similar and different. We won the war in Afghanistan through the adroit use of partisan armies, special operations forces and the devastating firepower delivered by air forces. Sometime after this - don’t ask me when - the mission morphed into one of “reconstructing” the country. (Not that Afghanistan ever was “constructed” in any meaningful sense.)

After he was elected, President Obama and his staff, advised by the military, committed to a surge in Afghanistan, similar to what was done in Iraq. The idea was that the Afghani army would be made capable of defending the country. Well, this is just not happening according to plan, although in his most recent report, General McChrystal says that we are “still capable of winning.”

It is for President Obama to decide what to do now: either to withdraw our forces according to the timetable in the plan, or else to commit enough forces and time to get the job done. Obviously, no democratic leader wants to become associated with a long and costly war. Look what it did to the Republicans in 2006 and 2008.

The Victory Speech: A Republican Star is Born

Some Highlights:

Nikki makes a pointed reference to Governor Mitt Romney for coming out and supporting her before anyone else, when she was way down in 4th place.

She makes a heartfelt reference to Sarah Palin who endorsed her at a critical point in the campaign.

Bound to spark some controversy, she singles out Gov. Mark Sanford for inspiring her campaign and for giving her ideological direction for tax cuts and fiscal conservatism.

On a more personal note, perhaps the most touching moment, she thanks her husband for being her "rock" through the sometimes troubled times of the campaign. Husband Michael can be seen in the background, clearly getting emotional, red-eyed and welling up. (Approx. 3 minutes in).

Libertarian wing of the GOP triumphs in Primary Elections

From Eric Dondero:

Last night was a clear victory for the libertarian wing of the Republican Party. Libertarian-backed candidates swept primary elections all around. The Tea Party, Club for Growth, Sarah Palin brigades and the Republican Liberty Caucus were all victorious from Utah to South Carolina.

The biggest win was undoubtably Nikki Haley in South Carolina in the run-off with 65% of the vote. Her opponent was a traditionalist establishment SC politician Gresham Barret. She was dubbed the "Sanford libertarian" candidate. She had early backing from Sarah Palin. She also received the endorsement of the Republican Liberty Caucus.

Even HuffPo editorializes this morning:

Already, 2010 is shaping up to be an anti-establishment year with angry voters casting ballots against candidates with ties to Washington and the political parties.

Perhaps no other contest illustrated that better than Haley's. A state legislator with the backing of tea party activists and Sarah Palin, she overtook the old-boy network.

Another big SC win; Tim Scott for Congress. He was supported early on by the fiscally libertarian Club for Growth, Palin, and his former opponent Katherine Jenerette.

A strident Libertarian Republican, Jenerette is a friend of this website. Her campaign was managed in large part by LR contributor Stephen Maloney. Taking our cue from Katherine and Stephen, LibertarianRepublican.net did the same. Katherine commented on Scott' victory last night at FITS News (Will Folk's highly controversial website):

Great choice. The Libertarian Republican’s lined up behind Tim Scott as well!

Finally in SC, establishment GOPer incumbent Rep. Bobby Inglis lost his race to Tea Party favorite Trey Gowdy.

Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute, and a sometimes contributor to Libertarian Republican comments on his International Liberty blog this morning:

There were closely-watched primaries yesterday in South Carolina and Utah. Most of the attention was on the Palmetto State, where an Indian-American woman won the GOP nomination for governor and an African-American won the nomination for the first district congressional seat. Both are positive developments since the respective candidates appear to be solid, limited-government conservatives. But the most important race, in my humble opinion, was the battle to unseat incumbent GOP Congressman Bob Inglis, who was a TARP-supporting, pro-tax Republican... he got completely stomped as voters wisely recognized that he had become a fan of big government.

Inglis received national notoriety for having dissed Glenn Beck at a town hall meeting, telling his constituents to "turn him off."

Outside of South Carolina the news was just as good for libertarian-leaning Republicans. Mike Lee won his GOP primary for US Senate in Utah with 52%. Lee campaigned on a platform of "Less is more in Washington." He is now virtually guaranteed to be the next Senator from the State. Political blogger Michael Stephens wrote this morning "TEA party wins again... everywhere!":

The TEA party won in every race in every primary again June 22!!! Utah is my favorite, with a close race. Mike Lee will be a new member of the senate in January. The GOP moved to the right.

The Chairman speaks; the Nikki Haley and Tim Scott victories in South Carolina

From the Washington Post this morning, "Nikki Haley, Tim Scott win Republican primaries in South Carolina":

"Tonight, to me, is one of those pages you turn with a smile on your face," said Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele, who is black. "But it's also part of a longer narrative that the party has struggled to tell over the past 20 to 25 years. Within our ranks, among our grass-roots, are a number of very exciting and very engaging candidates who don't look like or sound like what people have come to expect to be typical Republicans. I'm very proud of that."

Note - Steele is a libertarian-leaning Republican, former Lt. Governor in Maryland.

Libertarian Republican was one of the first GOP sites to support his nomination for RNC Chair.

The Scott Victory and what it means to Black Conservatives

Here's how Hip Hop Republican (a site for Black Conservatives), describes the Scott victory this morning:

It was a victory for conservative Republican insurgents and a sign of the changing of the guard in the South: Scott, a member of the South Carolina state House, defeated Paul Thurmond, son of the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, who retired from the Senate at age 100 in 2003. Thurmond ran for president in 1948 on a segregationist platform.

BookerRising.net, another top Black Conservative site called Scott a potential future "icon for the GOP," and added:

Mr. Scott will have only nominal Democratic opposition in November from perennial candidate Ben Frasier (who is also black). If Mr. Scott wins in November, he would become the first black Republican congressman to represent South Carolina in Congress in more than a century, since George Washington Murray of Sumter stepped down after two terms in 1897.

Scott was quoted after his win, in the Post and Courrier:

“The relevance of me being black is really, fortunately irrelevant. The voters voted for a guy who they felt represented their values and their issues and their philosophy.”

For his part, Thurmond said of his opponent's win:

“If some bridges are torn down because of this, that’s a great thing.”

South Carolina - Haley, Scott wins; a look at the Numbers

PRIMARY ELECTION ANALYSIS

From Cliff Thies:

Based on nearly complete results, it is clear that the paths to victory were different for the two candidates we backed in South Carolina. In the Gubernatorial race, Nikki Haley won by basically getting the same number of people to vote for her in the run-off that she got to vote for her in the first round. Her opponent improved on his initial showing but only slightly. Nikki's percentage jumped from 49 to 65 percent because of the drop-off in voter participation by about 20 percent.

In the First Congressional District race, Tim Scott tremendously increased his vote count. Paul Thurmond also increased his vote, but by nowhere near as much. As the drop-off in votes was about the same in the 1st C.D. as statewide, there is no reason to think Scott's improvement was because of new found enthusiasm for him among the district's black votes, who constitute 20 percent of the electorate and who vote overwhelmingly Democratic. I would be interested in seeing if poll-watchers have any direct information regarding this. On the basis of the statistics, I would say that Scott simply got a lot of the Republicans who voted for other candidates in the first round to back him the second round.

Note - 4th place finisher Katherine Jenerette, a libertarian Republican, enthusiastically threw her support to Scott for the run-off.

Palin is now 9 to 3 in GOP Primary and Special Election wins

Sarah Palin's Golden touch

The Hill is headlining this morning:

Palin racks up two more wins

They note last night's two big election victories:

Palin had endorsed gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley and publicly stuck with her amidst allegations of an extra-marital affair. She also endorsed Republican Tim Scott against Paul Thurmond in South Carolina's 1st congressional district.

In both elections, Palin-backed candidates were far from assured victors. The Palin record overall so far:

The three Palin-backed candidates who have lost this season: Tim Burns in Pennsylvania's special election, and GOP House candidates Vaughn Ward in Idaho and Cecile Bledsoe in Arkansas.

The nine who have won: Senate candidates Carly Fiorina in California, Rand Paul in Kentucky and Rob Portman in Ohio; gubernatorial candidates Terry Branstad in Iowa, Nikki Haley in South Carolina, Susana Martinez in New Mexico and Rick Perry in Texas; and congressional

Note - all except Branstad, have been enthusiastically backed by Libertarian Republican.

Mahram = Modern Slavery of Muslim Women, and soon the West

Slavery in the Middle East ignored by liberal media

From Eric Dondero:

Why the silence from the American Left? Why do so-called Human Rights groups ignore the gross violations of personal freedom posed by Radical Islam?

(H/t Jawa)

Geert Wilder's policy of No Welfare for Immigrants good for the Dutch, Canadians, AND the USA

If they don't contribute they ought not get free hand-outs; what a concept

by Eric Dondero

Geert Wilder may not have won outright the recent elections in the Netherlands. His Party placed 3rd. However, his views are having an enormous influence, in his homeland, and now even here in North America.

First place finisher Mark Rutte of the (conservative, free market) Liberal Party VVD was quoted right before the election:

"Everyone who comes to our country to contribute is welcome. But we need to put a stop to the influx of disadvantaged migrants who come here only to end up dependent on social security."

This was a blatant adoption of Wilderism late in the campaign. And it worked.

The Dutch leading the way for the US, Canada

Now some Canadians are calling for similar policies. From lfpress.com, June 20:

Canada faces a similar dilemma. Thanks to the calamitous ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada in the 1985 Singh case, all foreigners who arrive in Canada, including phony asylum seekers with false documents, are now entitled to the same health and welfare benefits as Canadian citizens.

Herbert Grubel, emeritus professor of economics at Simon Fraser University, estimates the annual net cost to Canadian taxpayers of government benefits for immigrants amounted in 2002 to a monumental $18.3 billion.

That's absurd. Following Rutte's example, Canadian parliamentarians should invoke the notwithstanding clause of the Constitution to enact laws that bar welfare benefits to immigrants for at least a few years and curtail appellant rights against deportation orders so that foreigners who break the law or pose a serious security threat can be expedited out of the country.

And here in the United States, according to the Center on Immigration Studies:

Roughly ONE-HALF of all immigrant households with kids are accessing the welfare system, especially food and Medicaid welfare.

Recent immigrants from Mexico, Central America, Jordan, Somalia, Nigeria, India, Pakistan, Korea, Uzbekastan, wherever, should not be allowed to access automatic food stamps, health care and welfare.

The Dutch who have maintained a massive welfare state for decades now recognize this. They're country is literally going broke. Some, at least on the Canadian Right are starting to catch on. When will we here in the US, adopt such policies? And most especially, when will the Republican Party USA start pushing such an agenda?

Geert Wilders: Jordan is the home for Palestinians, they already have their own Country

From Ynet (Israel News), June 22:

Geert Wilders, who leads the right-wing Party for Freedom (PVV) in Holland, said last week he believes Jordan should be renamed Palestine. The Jordanian government responded by saying Wilders' speech was reminiscent of the Israeli right wing.

"Jordan is Palestine," said Wilders, who heads the third-largest party in Holland. "Changing its name to Palestine will end the conflict in the Middle East and provide the Palestinians with an alternate homeland."

Wilders friend and ally in the U.S. Ayn Randist Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs adds:

88% of Palestine that the Palestinian Muslims crow over -- is in Jordan... of course Wilders is historically correct. Yaser Arafat and his Jew-hating armies created this Muslim narrative of deception of "Palestine," and their lies became the accepted, twisted narrative of modern history, thanks to a corrupt and incompetent media.

Libertarian Rocker launches campaign for California Senate

From Eric Dondero:

Adrian Galysh won the Libertarian Primary for State Senate on June 8th. He has since launched an agressive campaign district-wide.

From a Galysh release:

Galysh's strong campaign brought the musician's message of government spending cuts, lower taxes, and school choice to groups including the Los Angeles Urban League of Students Candidate Forum at USC, San Fernando Valley Tea Party Patriots "Candidate Sampler", Thousand Oaks Glenn Beck 9-12 book club, LA JEMM Medical Marijuana Awareness Festival, and UCLA's Young Americans For Liberty.

An active and enterprising musician, Galysh has been hitting the pavement and reaching out to the San Fernando Valley neighborhoods through events like the perennially popular St. Nicholas Greek Festival in Northridge, San Fernando Valley Pet Care day at Woodley Park, and the San Fernando Valley Fair.

Galysh is challenging incumbent State Sen. Alex Padilla, a liberal Democrat, and former staffer to US Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Galysh's is a Prog Rocker. His specific musical style has been called "Art Guitar." (See a video of one of his live performances here.)

Libertarian Republican contributor and a former southern California lead singer for a '90's punk band Michael W. Dean commented on Galysh's candidacy:

Winning a libertarian primary is easy. Tell that boy to run as a Republican!

electAdrianGalysh.com

Liberal media frets Rand Paul is actually against Seat Belt laws

From Eric Dondero:

The liberal media is aghast. Republican candidate for US Senate Rand Paul is actually opposed to mandatory seat belt laws. And he's against smoking bans too!

From the Louisville Courier-Journal, Sunday (via The Hill), "Report: Rand Paul supported healthcare bartering"):

Paul has condemned Medicare as ‘socialism;’ denounced seat-belt and anti-smoking laws as ‘Nanny-state’ paternalism; called for voluntary, rather than mandatory, accommodation of people with disabilities; and suggested using satellites to monitor America's borders for illegal immigrants.

Kentuckians may like their fast cars and smokes more than the liberal Nanny-Staters realize. The elites in D.C. (and Louisville!) could very well get a rude awakening come November.

Next step for Idaho Republican Reps Legalize Medical Marijuana bill

LR FOLLOW-UP

From Eric Dondero:

We reported weeks ago, on Republican State Representative Tom Trail who was pushing legislation in the Idaho House to legalize medicinal marijuana. Now Trail is brining the issue up to Idaho Republican Convention delegates.

From The Times-News MagicValley.com, June 19:

Rep. Tom Trail, R-Moscow, has been working on the issue for about two years and plans to introduce legislation in the 2011 session. Before that happens, he’ll be able to gauge what other Idaho Republicans think of the idea at the party’s convention next week in Idaho Falls, when he floats a proposed resolution to delegates.

Fifteen states, including Montana, Washington, Oregon and Nevada, have laws allowing medical marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Meanwhile, one Idaho town is taking a "Sarah Palin-type" approach to the issue. (Last week Palin commented on Fox Business News that busting private Marijuana smokers should be local law enforcements "lowest priority.")

In Blaine County, there’s an openness toward medical marijuana. Hailey Mayor Rick Davis has said efforts to curb marijuana use on private property will be the local police force’s lowest priority.

Davis’ announcement came after residents passed pro-marijuana initiatives: One to allow medical marijuana, another to legalize industrial hemp and a third to make enforcement of anti-pot laws the lowest priority for Hailey police.

Davis told the Hailey City Council the decision to make pot smoking on private property the lowest police priority wasn’t easy, but it represents something that “works for those on both sides of this issue.”

Note to our Readers - if you live in Idaho and you are up on ID politics, we need to talk to you. Please contact us (contact page).

47,000 Pounds of Beer lost... And where was Obama?

From Cliff Thies:

In Chester County, South Carolina, a beer truck overturned and eight hundred thousand ounces of beer in bottles was lost. In spite of the efforts of state road crews, state and local police, and the local fire and rescue squad, not one bottle of the precious fluid was recovered. Only later did it occur to anybody, where was the President during this tragedy???

From the Herald-Tribune June 19:

RICHBURG -- The beer truck driver escaped unscathed.

The beer wasn't so lucky. The beer died. In a trickle, into red-clay dirt.

American Ale and Bud Light, thousands of dark brown bottles. Destroyed late Thursday when a 53-foot tractor-trailer fell on its side on Interstate 77 southbound in rural Chester County, in the construction zone where bridge repairs are being done.

Yes, some people will blame this beer spill on corporate greed or on the deregulation of the trucking industry. Others will point to crony capitalism and an all too unseemly relationship between the giant multinational beer corporations and the administration. But, the one thing that's for sure is blaming it on Bush is no longer resonating with the public.

Somewhere, someone is probably right now slurping down a tall one, taking it for granted, not knowing what's really at stake in the upcoming election. Come on, America, it's time to wake up! Do you want to see your Constitutional rights disappear like so many ounces of beer into the red clay along I-77? Or, are you going to protect your Constitutional rights they way you protect your very own supply of beer on the way to a tailgate party?

Photo not of actual truck.

Andre Traversa Presents "Libertarian Politics Live": Special Guests Carlos Miller and Michael Pancier

Tuesday night's topic involves both the right to privacy and free speech, both at odds. Police have been arresting people that video tape them, citing right to privacy issues. The problem is that police have video cameras in cars and these same police have allowed themselves to be videotaped when there is a positive spin to it, but suddenly it's wrong when they are caught doing something that could get them in trouble. Read the article at my blog here.

Hosts Jim Lagnese and Andre Traversa

Guests; Carlos Miller is a Florida Attorney, specializing in civil liberties issues. Carlos Miller has an award-winning blog "Photography is not a Crime" (CarlosMiller.com).

The show date: Tuesday June 22 (also you can listen after show on podcast)

The show time: 8-9pm CST Live stream at Libertarian Politics Live

Call in at 646-915-9887

Thank you for reading this blog.