More Conservative Love For Dino Rossi

Joe Fuiten, pastor of Cedar Park Assembly of God in Bothell, founder of Positive Christian Agenda, and a director of the Family Policy Institute of Washington, is widely recognized as one of the leading figures in the conservative Christian movement in Washington state.

In another coup for Washington U.S. Senate candidate Dino Rossi, who was just endorsed by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and FreedomWorks, Fuiten has also just bolstered Rossi's conservative credentials with an endorsement:

I believe Dino Rossi is the right person to challenge Patty Murray. He has the good values that I appreciate. I have spent some time talking with Dino about the moral issues as well as the economic challenges. If we get him elected, he will represent us well. He also has the political savvy to run a successful campaign. It takes money and sophistication to win. He has both. This is not the time to run a novice against a wily campaigner like Patty Murray.

I appreciate Clint Didier and Paul Akers and think they are good men but I don't think they are the ones who can be successful in the November election.

The August election is all about November. We know how close Dino Rossi came to being elected Governor in two rather anti-Republican years. I think people will rally to him in a year like this when the Democrat brand is increasingly tarnished. I want to give Dino a great Primary victory that will propel him into the General.

Fuiten's endorsement will help allay any doubts among conservative Christians concerning Rossi's stance on abortion that might have been raised by a pro-life group allied with Rossi's opponent Clint Didier earlier this year.

Queen Christine Imposes Cap And Trade By Decree

I have long understood that Washington Governor Christine Gregoire’s political appetites were ravenous and probably insatiable. And I have also long wondered how she was dealing emotionally with the glass ceiling she hit with both of Washington’s United States Senate seats occupied by Democrats, thus choking off her ascent to loftier offices. Well now I have my answer. She has decided to jump straight past the democratic process and assume the role of monarch or dictator.

It is standard procedure around the world for tin pot dictatorships to maintain a facade of republican government with a puppet legislative body. No Soviet dictator ever really thought that the Supreme Soviet would cast even one dissenting vote against his policies. North Korea’s Dear Leader, Kim Jong Il, never has to worry about dissenting votes from his Supreme People’s Assembly.

And while Governor Gregoire is not likely to send Washington’s legislature to a gulag or to the bottom of Puget Sound in cement overshoes, she shows it little more respect than any other dictator.

During this last legislative session, one of Governor Gregoire’s top legislative priorities was to impose cap and trade climate change legislation on the state. Squeamish Democrats, fearing the havoc such a scheme would inflict on the state’s already weak economy, wisely let the proposal die. Queen Christine wasn’t happy. So she imposed it by executive order. She even admitted that she was usurping the legislature’s constitutional role in the process. At the press conference where she announced her diktat Queen Christine proclaimed: “What we’ve done in the executive order is everything that was in that final bill—plus. Plus! There’s more in the executive order than what was in the final bill that did not pass the Legislature.”

Further she proclaimed that her diktat would, “protect our natural resources, while creating thousands of green-collar jobs and strengthening our state’s competitiveness in the global race for a clean energy economy.”

As for those “green collar jobs,” an investigation by the Sacramento Bee found that nearly all the jobs created by similar climate change legislation in California were state regulators sent out to harass businesses and citizens and choke off real economic growth.

What she presumed was a puppet legislature did not give her what she wanted. So she simply ordered it done, as any dictator would. The legislature should consider itself fortunate that she did not also order summary executions as well and have the uncooperative legislators’ heads mounted on pikes around her mansion as a reminder to others that there is a price to be paid for crossing the queen.

Not only did she impose her law by diktat, but she ordered the Department of Ecology to withhold money specifically appropriated by the legislature for other projects and redirect the spending toward her global warming agenda. The legislature appropriates money. Her job is to spend it as ordered by the legislature and to do so efficiently. She can’t capriciously rearrange appropriations to suit her mood.

One has to wonder what is going through her head. I’m not certain that King George was this crazy. Congressional Democrats, who have shown a tin ear on every other policy, were wise enough not to impose cap and trade nationally, knowing full well the economic horrors it would precipitate. Just a few hundred miles down I-5 from the queen’s realm, California has devastated its own economy with a similar law. It’s no wonder that the Washington legislature took into consideration what passing such a law would likely mean for their careers, their constituents’ prosperity or both. It wouldn’t take much more than the most common sense to reject this idea. And that’s what the legislature did.

It may be that her persistent 35% approval rating told her that her political life was in its death throes anyway and it was time to go all in. Who knows? But what she did is certainly illegal. We do have a constitution that defines and separates powers. If the governor’s office can simply overrule the other branches of government, then we truly do live under a dictatorship.

Thankfully, the Evergreen Freedom Foundation is suing the governor trying to reverse her power grab. The EFF General Counsel, Michael Reitz, remarked what should have been obvious: “We have democratic process for a reason. The people of this state expect their lawmakers and elected officials to follow the law just like anyone else. The governor shouldn’t bypass the Legislature, regardless of her objectives.”

Replace the Arrogance of Power with Service

When incredibly smart and successful elitists like Cathy Areu can go on national television and say, “if they’re illegal, who cares?” in a heated panel debate with the likes of Ann Coulter and get away with it, then you finally get a real sense of how arrogant liberal leadership has become in this country. The rule of law has little influence when it comes to progressive and racial politics; the will of the people has little relevance.

And so without regard for the overwhelming demand by Arizona voters to stop a massive invasion of illegal immigrants, drug and weapons traffickers at the southern border through meaningful enforcement of law, our post racial President and Attorney General insult them instead, branding them racist and misguided, and preemptively inhibits their self determination by attacking them in court. With no loss of irony, the former Arizona Governor, now Secretary of Homeland Security exemplifies the complete failure of federal leadership through her inability to perform the basic fundamentals of office. She will not secure the homeland. How is it possible that our government could devolve to such ineffectual and patronizing leadership? Is it really true that in the absence of prioritized federal resources, the States and citizenry are not allowed to help or defend themselves? At least one judge believes so and another federal department plans to skirt the law entirely.

In a controversial ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton, Arizona’s attempt to protect their citizens and enforce the rule of law was substantially put on hold. In a nutshell, Bolton says it is the Feds job to do it and by allowing the State to act would put a burden on the Federal government. There was apparently not a legal question about Federal malfeasance putting an undue burden on Arizona. On a subtler front, recent reporting of an internal memorandum at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reveals that the agency was researching ways to reduce the threat of removal for individuals present in the U.S. without authorization, and to do so without legislative input.

The federal government seems out of control in its effort to “fundamentally transform America.” It is quite adept to tax, create overwhelming debt, take over private business, write administrative rules and executive orders, and otherwise burden the citizenry with poor performance, but somehow believes that it is wrong for citizens to burden the federal government with something as basic as the rule of law. They have forgotten their roots of power and replaced it with arrogance.

This coming November, the 2010 mid term elections will be the most important election in decades. We are at a time in history when Americans will decide to either be ruled by elitists wielding the arrogance of power, or served by representative "government of the people, by the people, for the people.” I will be voting the latter. It is time to shift the pendulum of ideology back to fundamental Constitutional values.

One Governor, Two Washingtons

In 2008, Washington Governor Christine Gregoire, referring to the famed "Cascade Curtain" that divides Western and Eastern Washington economically and ideologically as well as geographically, said "It is time for us to unite again as one Washington and move forward."

Gregoire's Office of Financial Management has been holding hearings all over the state to discuss balancing the looming $3 billion budget shortfall next year.  The only hearing east of the Cascades was held last night at Spokane Community College.  Even though Governor Gregoire had attended all four previous budget hearings in Western Washington, she did not attend the one in Spokane.  According to the Spokesman-Review, Gregoire stated in a video introduction that she “had a long standing commitment that has kept me away.”

And what exactly was that "long standing commitment?"

According to Joel Connelly at the Seattle-PI, Gregoire held a $1,000 a person fund raiser last night at Wild Ginger restaurant in Seattle.

It would appear that the only budget concerns the governor has are for her reelection.

Didier/Akers Big Announcement Shocker: Waaahhh. No One Pays Attention to Us

Washington U.S. Senate candidates Clint Didier and Paul Akers held a highly-touted joint BlogTalkRadio appearance this evening to hint at dark conspiracies by "the establishment" to excuse their extremely low polling numbers and poor fundraising (Didier raised less in the second quarter AFTER Sarah Palin's endorsement than what he had raised previously.) No actual evidence was provided by the duo.

And the pair somehow felt they could taunt Republican frontrunner Dino Rossi, who is 25 plus points ahead of both Didier and Akers, into debating them.

This evening's morbidly comical announcement by the odd couple of tall, booming Didier and the short, nasal, Dick Vitale-esque ("I'm a lean thinker, baaaby!") Akers absolutely smelled of the desperation of two campaigns clearly out of gas and out of time. It was very poor political move to make on the eve of ballots showing up in voter's mailboxes.

To make matters worse, there were technical flubs galore:

Didier fumbles big announcement

So, Republican Senate candidate Clint Didier hypes an "important announcement" Thurday evening on his website.

People were invited to go to blogtalkradio.com or phone in a specific number to hear it at 7 p.m. When I phoned in just before 7 p.m., I heard a hilarious dispute between what sounded like campaign staffers arguing about who should, and who should not, be able to speak on the phone conversation. The line went quiet after one person ordered several other people to figure the whole thing out. I then tried to call back in, but got a busy signal.

And despite minutes of surfing, I can't find Didier on blogtalkradio.

Anybody else have better luck?

Some even reported hearing the word "clusterf*ck" used.  Not very impressive for two candidates that claim to be "innovators."

Former Senate candidate Chris Widener tweeted that Akers and Didier had "jumped the shark."  Bryan Myrick at Red County put it best:

The pair of candidates, presumably rushing to beat the clock as their airtime ran out like the sand from an hourglass – an apt visual metaphor for what was occurring in realtime to their political careers -- insinuated that powerful forces in Washington, D.C. are working hard to manipulate the election and take the choice away from Washington state voters.

All in all, a true amateur hour by two rookies who, to use one of Didier's football metaphors, are not going to make it out of training camp.

Is Ann Coulter The Only Conservative Commentator With Balls?

Ann Coulter has some advice for Republican and Tea Party spokesman. Grow a pair!

Since Obama became president, the only recorded violence at Tea Parties or Town Halls has been committed by liberals. Last fall, a conservative had his finger bitten off by a man from a MoveOn.org crowd in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Two Service Employees International Union thugs have been charged with beating up an African-American selling anti-Obama bumper stickers at a St. Louis Tea Party in August 2009.

Respected elder statesmen of the Democratic Party have referred to Obama's "Negro dialect" (Harry Reid), said he would be getting them coffee a few years ago (Bill Clinton), and called him "clean" (Joe Biden). And that's not including the former Ku Klux Klan Democratic senator, the late Bob Byrd.

So I'm thinking that maybe when conservatives are called racists on TV, instead of saying, "There are fringe elements on both sides," conservative commentators might want to think about saying, "That is a complete lie."

A Visit from the Messiah!

According the Seattle Times, we can soon expect a visit from America's Messiah, President Obama. He is making the journey back to Seattle between August 1-17, his first since the presidential election, to help Patty Murray defeat her challengers. Of course Obama will come out to support Patty! Who else will blindly vote for all his asanine proposals regardless of cost?

I think that Obama's visit is truly a kiss of death on Patty Murray's campaign. How desperate do you have to be to scuttle back to a state that you haven't visited in 2 years to keep a Senator elected? His approval rating is a dismal 43%. Why would Murray even WANT him here?

I guess we didn't have to wait as long for the Second Coming as I thought!

Rossi Racks Up Endorsements from DeMint, FreedomWorks

Despite all the talk of Republican Washington U.S. Senate Rossi candidate being a "RINO," the "establishment candidate" and "dismissive of the Tea Party," he has just picked up endorsements from a key figure and organization in the Tea Party movement.

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), widely considered the champion of limited government, lower taxes, and fiscal restraint in the Senate, has just endorsed Rossi:

"When I met with Dino a couple months ago, he made it clear he was only interested in running if Republicans were serious about saving our country from fiscal collapse," DeMint will say in announcing the endorsement. "I've studied his record and his positions on the key issues, and it's clear that he will stand up to the establishment in both parties."

Rossi also has been endorsed by FreedomWorks, the organization behind the Tea Party Express.

Rossi has earned the PAC's "Champion of Freedom" designation because of his commitment to fiscal responsibility and steadfast defense of the Constitution.

In stark contrast to Senator Murray, Dino Rossi is a steadfast opponent of the "Obamacare" health care takeover and has pledged to work towards its effective repeal. He also opposes the job-killing cap and trade energy tax hike and supports strict fiscal discipline and reigning in the out-of-control spending that continues to plague Washington, D.C.

Rossi has also signed the grassroots "Contract From America": a ten-point platform crafted with the input of tens of thousands of tea party and limited government activists from all across the country. The Contract best represents an agenda that will stay true to the guiding principles of the U.S. Constitution.

New Rossi Radio Ad Hits the Airwaves: "Our Country Is In Trouble"

Washington U.S. Senate candidate Dino Rossi has a new radio ad playing statewide starting today.




The script is below the jump:

King County Republicans Call for Rep. Geoff Simpson's Resignation

Washington state Rep. Geoff Simpson (D-Covington) made an appearance in Seattle Municipal Court yesterday where he was charged with gross misdemeanor assault for an incident involving his ex-wife at Seattle Children's Hospital on May 22.  According to the Covington Reporter:

The police report stated Simpson entered his daughter's room at the hospital after she requested he not visit her. The daughter was recovering from surgery that occurred May 19.

In the police report Simpson's ex-wife stated she tried to stop him outside the room and he "pushed her out of the way and back into the room." According to the report the ex-wife stated he used the door to force her out of the room. The ex-wife stated in the report he then, "barricaded the door and shut the blinds."

The police report stated a social worker described the incident to the Seattle police officer as the ex-wife did

Simpson plead not guilty.

Simpson's ex-wife also filed for a protection order against Simpson on May 27, which was granted; the third such order has been filed against Simpson.

These charges (Simpson was arrested for domestic violence in 2008 but the charges were dropped) have prompted the King County Republican Party to call for Simpson's resignation.  KCGOP chair Lori Sotelo stated in a press release that Washington Democrats are not calling for Simpson to resign for fear of losing his seat in the hotly-contested 47th Legislative District.

“The loudest message in the continuing saga of Geoff Simpson is the silence from Democratic leadership in the state House and state Democratic Party,” said Sotelo. “Tolerance should never apply to domestic violence issues.  Simpson has a history of aggressive behavior and obviously doesn’t have the sound judgment to know when he’s disqualified from serving in public office.”

James Watkins Deserves Watching State-wide

If you are concerned about how dense metro voting blocks influence life in your more rural backyard, then you and your representatives should not only be watching the James Watkins for Congress campaign but emulating it. You may even want to invest in it

.

Entering the field for Washington State’s Congressional District 1, James Watkins and his wife, Ashley, are running hard for what is shaping up to become a critical post primary battle against Pelosi protégé, wanna-be governor, and 14-year incumbent, Jay Inslee. This important race is one that deserves watching State-wide.

“… there are too many Democrats and Republicans and not enough Americans. I want to be an American.”

As the trend toward conservatism builds toward the August primaries, constituents have come to expect the usual promises from the usual suspects… they are financial conservatives talking about more jobs and small government with less spending. Ok. Got that. There are a few who talk about paying more attention to founding documents. Yes, we’ve heard it before and the timing is more important than ever. But setting the tone as something more real than “hope and change” in the Watkins campaign is that he emotionally stakes himself out as an American; an American uncompromised in his desire to represent the will of Americans. He unabashedly honors the Constitution in the context of the Declaration of Independence and he doesn’t wince when he says so. Considering that many of our current leaders in Congress don’t seem able to do that, and indeed some have even suggested they shouldn't, these stands are vital to any resurgence of liberty. But something more – the entire Watkins campaign actually seems to embody the rural context of representative government by demonstrating it. They frequently engage smaller communities, not just the big voting blocks, to listen and understand the needs of independent voters. How many times has your representative been to your community to just talk with you? And through all of this, he ices the cake with confident articulation of well-established business and government competencies. How can you not like that balance?

So in that context and standing in the hot Silverdale sun while the rest of us were roasting in tent shade, James coolly raised his right hand and replied to a direct question on party politics, “… there are too many Democrats and Republicans and not enough Americans. I want to be an American.” Spot on. I suppose there will be a few vile ideas about what that could mean, but I assure you in the context of the remark it was very clear and well received. It means he isn’t running to represent the party establishment in the District of Columbia. He wants to represent us. What a refreshing concept. 

James seemingly clings to what may be an endangered idea; that his role as a Congressman would be to represent the diverse constituency of his Washington State district and not those of whom Michelle Malkin has called the corruptocrats of the other Washington; that concrete beltway we call D.C. Instead, James talks about the needs of every day people dealing with an out of control government, and he cares about people in small counties not just big cities. He cares about small business and rural interests and he seems to have a grasp of how managing small things well add up to big things getting done… like his ideas about truth in spending and truth in budgeting; things that people and businesses have to do every day but remain so elusive to government. And like all those small things that enable jobs instead of those massive and unmanageable programs that destroy them. I get the sincere impression that James knows how to be small and deliver big instead of the other way around. I get the impression James can do what he says. This is the kind of candidate independent voters have been looking for.

On top of this, James Watkins has taken a hard stand on seeing the direct relationship between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Now think about how important that must be when our next likely Supreme Court Justice, Elena Kagan, has “no view” of how natural rights are related to the Constitution. The Watkins view defends our way of life. The Kagan lack of view is dangerous to our way of life. If you need one, that sounds like a pretty good litmus test to me.

When we get to the bottom line about how things will shape up in Congress this November, tail wagging in the Puget Sound is going to directly influence the entire state and country. While candidates like James Watkins vigorously overcome far left ideology, the next immediate challenge for conservative resurgence is nurturing a more responsive and capable leadership for harvest. Knowing who good leaders are is one thing; putting them in office is another and keeping pace with the deep blue pockets of Pierce and King County is an incredible task. So if there ever was a time for taking a good look over the mountains to invest in government leadership, now is the time. James Watkins deserves watching, State-wide.

Obama Our Lying President

Bob Clark

Is Obama a Pathological Liar?

Forgive me but when the openly lesbian Rachel Maddow (a leftwing crackpot) went completely bonkers on her MS/NBC show calling every Republican or bi-partisan conservative a liar, I just couldn’t resist responding!

Rachel, here are the many lies your hero President has regurgitated up on his teleprompter (thank your lucky stars you don’t have to clean up after him):

A FEW OF THE MAJOR LIES FROM OBAMA!

Obama promised to publish all “non-emergency” legislation to White House website 5 days before he signed the bills.
Lie: He has never done that.

Obama promised to keep lobbyists out of his administration.
Lie: He has more lobbyists in high level posts in his administration than any President since Lyndon B. Johnson.

Obama promised to end all taxation for seniors making 50,000 dollars per year or less.
Lie: He added on taxes for seniors in the Stimulus bill and the first budget also he has reneged on this promise plus he has raised fees on senior’s healthcare in his big boondoggle healthcare bill.

Obama said he would give a $3,000 refundable tax credit to small business for each additional new full time employee hired.
Lie: Has never even proposed a bill in Congress to accomplish this.

Obama promised to allow withdrawals of 15% up to $10,000 from retirement accounts without penalty (although subject to the normal taxes).
Lie: He asked that the measure be eliminated from the Stimulus bill.

Obama promised that he would never sign an appropriations bill that had “ear marks” in it.
Lie: He has signed trillions of dollars in earmarks with no end in sight. I give you the stimulus bill.

Obama promised a new climate in his administration and a move past bitter, partisan rhetoric.
Lie: One of his first acts as President was a brazen and false series of vicious attacks on Rush Limbaugh followed by an attack on the Congressional Republican Leadership. He refused to meet with them for more than 6 months during the beginning of his presidency.

Obama promised the elimination of capitol gains taxes for small businesses.
Lie: He is raising it to 20% and is increasing taxes for all small business making 200,000 dollars or more (which is the case for 75% of all small businesses).

Obama promised a $4,000 tax credit for college expenses.
Lie: He asked that the provision be removed from the “Student Loan bill”.

Obama promised new transparency On the White House website, the Obama administration claimed it would be "the most open and transparent in history.
Lie: Obama has been the most secretive administration since the Nixon White House. He has also held the fewest press conferences of any President in the 20th century. At one point going 6 months between press conferences.

Obama, appearing in front of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, said Jerusalem should be Israel's undivided capital, saying, "Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided."
Lie: After Palestinian leaders reacted with anger and rage to this statement, Obama immediately flip-flopped on his support for Israel's stance on Jerusalem and when hearing that Israel had approved 5 year old permits to build apartment buildings “IN ISRAEL” near Jerusalem; he reacted with anger and had a disastrous first meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House.

Obama in a major TV address said Healthcare Reform would reduce the deficit by $143 billion over the first ten years; and would reduce the deficit by $1.2 trillion dollars in the second ten years.
Lie: CBO is now saying the “reform” could cost at least 1.5 Trillion Dollars with most of that going to the nation’s deficit.

Obama promised “no cuts” in Medicare after he was elected.
Lie: Healthcare reform cuts Medicare Advantage by $500 Billion dollars.

Obama promised the .75 Trillion dollar stimulus bill would create 8 million new jobs!
Lie: Studies show less than 65,000 new or saved jobs as a result of the largest, failed pork barrel spending program in US history.

Obama promised that the stimulus bill would have “thousands” of shovel ready projects that will help “huge” numbers of small businesses across “our great” nation!
Lie: Of the very few “shovel ready projects” in the bill, they are mandated to only go to union certified contractors, leaving out some 95% of small businesses across the USA.

Obama promised that his bailout package would be deficit neutral and not cost the taxpayers a “cent”.
Lie: Bailout millions to Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and American International Group will likely never be repaid according to the Wall Street Journal. Part of the Washington Mutual deal with JP Morgan Chase was the provision that the US government would assume all of the “bad” mortgages involved. Total potential cost of all the bailout deals to the taxpayer: 1 TRILLION DOLLARS! In addition the FDIC is now on the hook for about 750 Billion Dollars in bad loans from failed banks it has shut down and at the last minute not covered in the bailout bill.

Obama said he would not rest until BP oil spill stops!
Lie: After saying this he went on a two week vacation.

Obama on foreclosures said this, “We have launched a housing plan that will help responsible families facing the threat of foreclosure lower their monthly payments and refinance their mortgages.”
Lie: This program has been a tragic failure with hundreds of billions of dollars wasted as some 73% of all refinanced mortgages later went back in default and foreclosure.

Editor’s note: I have been alive through 13 Presidents and my family owned an early television set beginning in 1949. They say that the Vietnam War was the first TV war! Wrong, it was the Korean War. All I can say is that this is without a doubt one of the very few Presidents that I have seen that can read lies off his teleprompter/script and look the camera straight into the eye and smile. Obama now has a reputation of saying anything to just about anyone to gain their support. I regard him as a true pathological liar and I think the majority of the American people are not fooled by him. I also point out that I don’t have room on this blog to list all of the Obama lies, only the major ones; for more details go to this website for an education

Don’t Let Brigitte Gabriel’s Past Become Our Future

If you’ve ever seen Brigitte Gabriel on Fox News go head-to-head with a politically correct progressive, debating the chilling reality of radical Muslims infiltrating the United States, your thoughts are probably like mine, “Wow! Who is this woman who does not believe in political correctness and tells it like it is about the rise of global Islamic terrorism?”
 
Naturally, I was excited to see Brigitte in person at a Lake Stevens church on Sunday, and listen firsthand as she shared her personal story about Islam and the creation of her organization – ACT! for America – that is trying to both educate Americans and get them involved (i.e. ACT!). After being moved by her accounts of terror and her call for action, I not only want to get involved, but I want to persuade others to get involved too.

Brigitte Gabriel immigrated to America after her country of birth – Lebanon – was overtaken by militant Muslim fundamentalists in the 1970’s. It was fascinating to hear Brigitte’s tales of spending years in hiding in Lebanon, all because she was Christian. Prior to the Muslims taking over, Lebanon was the only majorly Christian country in the Middle East. If you asked the Lebanese in the 1960’s if they ever thought their country would lose its Christian majority, they would have laughed at the absurdity of that notion, said Brigitte. Now in the 2010’s, liberal and progressive Americans might want to quit laughing at the same prospect.

Because of political correctness and because of intimidation and accusations of racism against anyone who dares to speak the truth, Islamic radicalism is able to slowly but surely take root in the United States. Europe is now called “Eurabia,” said Brigitte. “Do not believe that what is happening in Europe now won’t happen here.” She went on to name the dozens of major U.S. cities where Islamic-extremist hubs have been identified as existing, and Seattle is one of them.

Brigitte speaks her mind because she experienced personally in Lebanon what happens when people don’t speak out. “I throw political correctness in the garbage can where it belongs!” bellowed Brigitte to an applauding crowd Sunday. “I’m sick of having someone call me a Lebanese-American, or refer to themselves as an African-American or an Asian-American. We are just Americans!” She continued by reminding us that the U.S. is the last country available for people like her to immigrate to. It is the last bastion of the democratic values that celebrate life and liberty, as opposed to the authoritarian values of Islamo-fascism, which celebrates death, terror, and tyranny. “My past is your future!” shouted Brigitte, “unless you stand up and put a stop to radical Islam.”

Brigitte created ACT! for America to provide Americans a means to be a collective, grassroots voice that will rise above political correctness and intimidation. Her organization had 60,000 members in 2009. Now it has 115,000 members and is growing at a dazzling pace. There are local ACT! for America chapters in Washington State, and the best way to find out about how to join and learn about the rise of global Islamic terrorism and how to deter it, is to sign up online at http://www.ActForAmerica.org. You can sign up for email alerts, find your local chapter, or even start a chapter.

By growing ACT! for America at its annual doubling-in-size pace, it will develop into an even more powerful lobbying force in state and national government. And this is vital when it comes time to compel legislators to pass laws that will keep America a democratic nation – a nation that remembers its Judeo-Christian roots, that never forgets the reasons we were attacked on September 11, 2001, and that never forgets the ideology that drove those attackers.

Edmund Burke said, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Brigitte countered this notion by telling the packed house at Cavalry Chapel in Lake Stevens that, “Islamic evil will not prevail because good men and women will do something!” And she was assuming that the hundreds sitting in the audience on Sunday will indeed do something. I am one of those hundreds that is going to sign up online and find a local chapter so I can not only learn but help spread the word. If the hundreds who read my article will each pass on Brigitte’s call-to-action from ACT! for America to a dozen friends and family, we will not just grow the organization by over a 1,000 more members, but we will help lessen the chance of Islamo-fascism growing in the U.S.

-Dan Michael
organizer of the Puget Sound Conservative Underground (www.meetup.com/pugetsoundconservativeunderground/)

p.s.
Still need to be convinced this is a worthwhile cause worth spreading the word? Watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk4E-B5LDkw&feature=player_embedded

Judicial Candidate Touts Career Prosecutor Experience

Bronson Faul, candidate for Yakima County District Court Judge Position 4, sat down for an interview at the Sunny Spot Restaurant in Sunnyside, Washington. Among the reasons he gave for voters to consider him for the position, is his history as a career prosecutor.

Bronson Faul For Yakima County District Judge Position 4

“Of the three candidates for this position, I am the only one that is actively prosecuting crime in court on a daily basis.” said Bronson.

He said that in this valley, this is very important. Last year, 78% of voters renewed a one-cent sales tax dedicated to law and justice in Yakima County. Bronson said “This tells me that the community is sick and tired of gangs, and crime in general.”

Bronson is currently serving with the City of Yakima, prosecuting crime there. Formerly, he was with the Yakima County Prosecutor's Office. His experience as a prosecutor has helped to shape his views of the law. Examples he gave of this, are training law enforcement officers, and also conducting ride-a-longs with officers. He said this experience has helped him to understand their perspective when they bring cases to the court for prosecution.

Another benefit of his experience as a prosecutor is that “I always get to do the right thing for the community.” said Bronson. He pointed out that defense attorneys and representatives for corporations sometimes have to represent the interests of their clients, instead of the community at large.

Because of legal restrictions on judicial candidates, Bronson would not say how he would rule on gang crime cases. However, he did reiterate that he has past experience being tough on gang crime, and is very aware of the gang war going on in the valley. One trend that is particularly troubling to him, is older gang members encouraging and forcing younger kids to carry guns, and commit crimes with them.

He said the reason they do this is because they believe that the young ones will not get severe sentences for crimes because they do not have a long criminal history. In response, the office where he currently works has taken a tougher stance when it comes to sentencing, asking for maximum punishments even for first offenses involving guns. Bronson said this is helping to reduce crime.

Two areas that Bronson feels he could make an impact after being elected are in reducing crime, and also in making the court more efficient. He described to me how smarter sentencing of the small percentage of troublemakers causing a disproportionate amount of crime can actually reduce the overrall crime rate in the community. In addition, he sees several promising areas where new uses of technology can streamline court operations, and save taxpayers money.

Bronson has collected a number of endorsements from elected officials in Yakima County as he seeks the District Judge Position 4. 15^th District State Senator Jim Honeyford (R-Sunnyside), as well as 15^th District State Representatives Bruce Chandler (R-Granger), and David Taylor (R-Moxee) are endorsing him. Yakima Mayor Micah Cawley, Zillah Mayor Clark, and a number of others are supporting his election effort as well.

The Wind Blows At Rossi's Back

For once, Dino Rossi competes in a statewide election in a favorable political environment. And it shows.

Rossi sees a much different political landscape in 2010. Incumbents have already proven to be in jeopardy this cycle, as evidenced by the defeat of long time incumbents in West Virginia, Utah, and Pennsylvania. The most recent Rasmussen poll of the likely head-to-head race between Murray and Rossi has Rossi leading 48% to 45%. Rossi, the former state Senate leader, says he has never enjoyed the luxury of having the political winds at his back.

Former Republican Party Chairman Chris Vance says Rossi has a good chance if the anti-incumbent wave across the nation is big enough. Washington State has provided upsets in those upheaval years. In 1994, President Clinton's first mid-term election and the year the Republican Party took back the House of Representatives, Democratic Speaker of the House Tom Foley was defeated in his eastern Washington District by George Nethercutt.

Read more: http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/07/25/100-days-to-decide-wa-senate-race-tightens/#ixzz0unwfgR6I

Time for Apprentice Activists to Step Up to the Master Level

The past two years have seen a rise in what I call the “apprentice activist.” I was one of them. I was not involved in politics prior to 2008 other than to vote in elections. But in 2009 I “woke up” and attended a tax day Tea Party in downtown Seattle (thank you, Keli Carender!) and also joined other similar-minded activists outside Jay Inslee’s office and near Overlake Hospital in Bellevue, protesting Obamacare. I then stepped up a bit and actually helped promote additional protests at Northgate, Mercer Island, Seattle, and Olympia. I felt pretty good about myself – I had made intelligently-worded signs mocking our current politicians and their outlandish legislation, took time out of my day to attend Tea Parties and sign-waving protests, and yelled, “No new taxes!” and “Stop Obamacare!” in unison with thousands of other Conservatives and Constitutionalists throughout the Puget Sound.

But even though I felt good that I had indeed awakened and was seeing others like myself awakened, I questioned if it was enough to make a difference. I realized that it wasn't too difficult to participate in a Tea Party or similar protests. When I stand around holding a sign with people I agree with, it can certainly be both fun and fulfilling, but I have to admit it’s also fairly easy. And it’s not supposed to be easy to make change, especially in our liberal Washington State.

So I decided I needed to step up from being an “apprentice activist” to being a “master activist.” And I encourage all my fellow apprentices, who also recently awakened and have been doing a little tea-partying and a lot of complaining about what is going on in Congress, Olympia, and the White House, to also step up.

It’s not enough that we only chant about our grievances at a rally, and it’s not going to be enough to make a difference in the November elections if after wisely choosing which Conservative candidates to vote for in 2010, we revert to sitting back and waiting for our ballots to arrive in the mail. A master activist campaigns for his or her chosen candidates in any or all of these ways:

Patty Murray's Post-Senate Career Options

With Senator Patty Murray (D-Seattle) trailing even the eccentric Clint Didier in the polls, she might want to start polishing her resumé in preparation for her third career. Keeping the wolf away from the door usually isn’t a problem for retired politicians. The reason is that even the simplest politicians make enough friends that their influence becomes a marketable commodity. You’ll never see a failed politician standing on a street corner with a hand lettered cardboard sign reading, “will wreck health care for food.”

Liberal politicians have other career alternatives as well. For example, the ever vigilant and unbiased mainstream news media always has openings. George Stephanopolous (This Week on ABC), Chris Matthews and Lawrence O’Donnell (MSNBC) and the late Tim Russert (NBC’s Meet the Press) all went from work as highly partisan Democratic political aides to objective journalism without missing a beat. And I think that this is Patty Murray’s true calling. I even have a network for her – CNN.

First of all, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to work at CNN. And Patty Murray is no rocket scientist. In fact, her greatest achievement during her tenure in the Senate has been to move up from being the 100th smartest senator to the 99th position. She didn’t get any brighter. It’s just that Oregon elected Ron Wyden and he jumped right into the 100th spot and has held that title tenaciously.

Her intellect makes her a great fit at CNN. One of the network’s premier news anchors is Wolf Blitzer. One does not have to watch Wolf Blitzer long to appreciate that he’s about as sharp as a marble. But Blitzer was not satisfied with being thought a fool. He removed all doubt with an appearance on Celebrity Jeopardy. On that game show Wolf Blitzer posted a historically low score, well into negative numbers. You can watch his painfully inept appearance on YouTube.

Another of CNN’s star attractions is Rich Sanchez. Among his other achievements, while on live television, Rick Sanchez could not find the Hawaiian Islands on a map, duplicating Ron Wyden’s inability to find Bosnia on a globe. Sanchez eventually found the Galapagos Islands and decided they must be the Hawaiian Islands. Right ocean anyway. Another time, after repeating without verification that there were far more death threats against Barack Obama than any other modern president, he learned from the Secret Service that his information was not true. So, like the good, responsible journalist he is, he blamed the Secret Service for not correcting him sooner.

But what really makes Patty Murray a perfect fit for CNN was her claim several years ago that the reason that Osama Bin Laden was so popular in the Muslim world was that he provided baby sitters.

"We've got to ask, 'Why is this man (Osama bin Laden) so popular around the world?' ... "Why are people so supportive of him in many countries ... that are riddled with poverty?

"He's been out in these countries for decades, building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building day-care facilities, building health-care facilities, and the people are extremely grateful. We haven't done that.

"How would they look at us today if we had been there helping them with some of that rather than just being the people who are going to bomb in Iraq and go to Afghanistan?"

Such penetrating insights fit perfectly into the CNN model. Not only is she every bit the intellectual powerhouse as either Rick Sanchez or Wolf Blitzer, she has the foreign policy acumen of CNN reporter Reza Sayah. Sayah was recently explaining Barack Obama’s latest foreign policy initiatives to the Muslim World: “Well, I think the U.S., the Obama administration, is convinced that this is the right approach. In addition to the military approach, you have to have an economic approach. They say it's an interesting project here. If Mrs. Clinton has her way in the months and years to come, Pakistan will export more of its delicious and very juicy mangoes. Americans will eat them. It will all be a part of the fight against militants.”

So that’s all we have to do to defeat Islamic extremism – buy and eat Pakistani mangos. After all, buying Saudi oil and fattening the sheiks has done wonders to tamp down extremism there.

All CNN needs now is for Patty Murray to explain how day care centers will finish off the Jihadi threat.

Political News Magazine

BOB CLARK


WPC GOES NUTS! The Washington Policy Center has gone over to the far left! This year’s environmental lunch features one of the most extreme of the global warming crackpots Dr. Roger Pielke, Jr. Todd Myers, WPC’S resident environmental whacko, knows nothing about science in general and claims to be their “expert” on climate change and is himself an environmental extremist. I have debated the guy and I can assure you he knows little or nothing about the issue.


Gay Groups Stunned. Reported cases of Venereal Diseases in King County and Seattle were up dramatically in this latest report and the big shocker HIV and AIDS (includes only AIDS cases not previously reported as HIV) came in YTD as of the end of June as a major increase and a shock to Seattle and King County Public health departments; this included an outbreak of Gonorrhea. Gay rights groups and the health departments are AGAIN putting out the word about UNPROTECTED SEX!


Governor “Crackpot” Quagmire under attack. Evergreen Freedom Foundation is suing our “Big Sister” Dictator Governor over her idiot global warming executive order, which she issued when the far left controlled legislature refused to do anything about the issue. Frank Chopp, Speaker of the House speaking publically stated that, “I’m not sure I want a bunch of government employees dictating energy policy when it is not proven that CO2 causes climate change!”

Bogus US Attorney General Investigation Goes Bust! After refusing to open a King County Voter fraud case in the first Dino Rossi/Christine Quagmire election; Mainstream left of center Republican and Attorney General John McKay of Washington was fired by the Bush Administration. Democrats went bonkers but now after tens of millions of dollars and thousands of hours of wasted time, the Department of Justice said nothing was done wrong. Really, when did you get your first clue morons?

Major Media Scandal. The Left Stream media is now busted for not just bias but illegal campaign activity. When this story came out naming names with some of their e-mails, I was shocked. Here are the three stories: Link1, Link2, Link3. I talked to an insider in Washington DC yesterday and the word is that some of these reporters are going to be investigated by the Federal Election Commission. The actions some of them took to try to do damage to Sarah Palin could be violations of Federal Law.

What’s the Real Unemployment Rate? Surprise, surprise, some media outlets are now finding out what the real unemployment rate is.

Is Hobbs in Trouble? Polls show that Dave Schmidt will steam roll Steve Hobbs in the 44th District Senate race. Even the biased, self described “California Democrat” reporter for the Washington Post owned Everett Herald, Jerry Cornfield, is conceding that Hobbs is headed for defeat.

Lying about unemployment. The Seattle Times and the Everett Herald, known for lying about the real “jobless” numbers decided to not report the 7/22 weekly jobs claims report from the US Department of Labor. Why? Because the bogus “seasonably adjusted” numbers showed an increase of 37,000 jobless claims week over week. What do the real numbers show? The raw numbers show a decrease of 13,113 week over week. Why aren’t Drew DeSilver at the Times and Mike Benbow at the Herald reporting the real numbers? Because if they do they put the lie to their bogus reporting over the last year, THAT’S WHY!

Congressman “Acorn” Rick “Bailout” Larsen Hoarding Campaign Cash!
Word has it that Acorn Rick will wait until after the primary in August and then let loose a blistering attack on John Koster going into the November election. Political observers think that Larsen is making a BIG MISTAKE going negative on Koster. Why? Voters are not interested in negative campaigns just jobs! That’s why. By the way most of Acorn Rick’s money is coming in from OUT OF STATE! Here is the latest on “Acorn” Rick’s latest bailout vote.

2012 Washington State Gubernatorial Race is Heating Up! Just at the time that Luke Esser the Chairman of the State GOP is declaring the race over and that Rob McKenna, the state Attorney General, is the only candidate to run against Christine Quagmire, word has leaked out that a very high level Republican candidate has surfaced and is giving the idea serious consideration. This self financing candidate (no I am not going to out him at this time) is going to run an advanced series of strategic polls this summer in Washington State to get an idea of the political landscape. These very expensive polls should tell the story. By the way, I know of at least 3 other individuals doing some up front leg work to see if they can run against McKenna. On the Democratic side Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown is about to declare her candidacy and believe me when I tell you that Lisa and Christine are NOT GOOD FRIENDS! Lisa, a Spokane native, is a formidable candidate now that the state’s economy has soured support for Quagmire.

I debated Todd Myers at last October's Evergreen Leadership Conference, JOHN!

Washington Residents Sue Queen Gregoire

Her climate change bill failed in the legislature, so now she's trying to impose it by diktat.

Last year, after the Washington state legislature failed to pass a climate change bill championed by the governor, she took matters into her own hands by issuing an executive order directing the Departments of Ecology and Transportation to take action to reduce climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions and increase transportation and fuel-conservation options. At a press conference, Gov. Gregoire stressed that the executive order was intended to replace her failed legislation. “What we’ve done in the executive order is everything that was in that final bill—plus. Plus. There’s more in the executive order than what was in the final bill that did not pass the Legislature,” she told reporters.

It gives one pause to consider that Governor Gregoire should record herself talking for vetting purposes prior to making such admissions in public.

Obama's Rhetoric Stalls Economy

Obama fired Shirley Sherrod because he was afraid of what Fox News might say. Corporate America are reluctant to invest their earnings and hire new workers because of what Obama does say.

In the eyes of corporate America, President Barack Obama relied on a healthy dose of industry-bashing to sway votes in Congress for health reform and the new Wall Street regulations signed into law Wednesday.

Now those efforts threaten to undermine the one agenda item essential to Democrats’ hopes in the midterms and Obama’s chances for reelection: turning around an economy still just a half step out of recession.

Some corporate leaders said Obama’s comments prove that he’s hostile to business. Others cited corporate fears of a credit crunch as banks comply with financial reform or the possibility of significant tax hikes if the Bush administration tax cuts are allowed to expire.

But it all adds up to a lack of confidence in Obama among some in corporate America — and that’s fueling a reluctance among executives from Wall Street to Main Street to deploy their large cash reserves to make new investments and hire new workers.

That, in turn, has made a positive shift in the economic climate less likely, especially in the short term, when Democrats need it most.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/40081.html#ixzz0uPcM5CHt

RightOnline 2010

I'll be joining hundreds of other conservative online activists this Friday and Saturday in Las Vegas for RightOnline 2010.  I'll be networking, gathering new tools, and learning new strategies.

Speaking at the conference are Judge Andrew Napolitano, Rep. Mike Pence, and Rep. Michele Bachmann.  I'll be posting updates from the conference here and on Twitter at @palousitics.

If you're attending, be sure to look me up!

State Budget Hearings Alert

John Barnes at the Washington Policy Center is alerting conservatives to the budget hearings that Governor Gregoire's Office of Financial Management is holding around the state.  According to Barnes, the unions are sending out emails, working hard to pack the rooms full of state workers.  He wants to spread the word far and wide so a cut spending / no-new-taxes message is heard at the hearings as well.

The next hearings are:

July 21
7–9 p.m.
Everett Community College
Parks Building, Multi Purpose Room
2000 Tower St.
Everett

July 27
7–9 p.m.
Administration Building, Room 110
Washington State University- Vancouver Campus
14204 N.E. Salmon Creek Ave.
Vancouver

July 29
5–7 p.m.
Spokane City Hall
City Council Chambers
808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd.
Spokane

A Double Dip Recession for Washington State?

At the national level a double dip recession occurs when gross domestic product (GDP) growth slides back to a negative number after a quarter or two of positive growth. A double-dip recession refers to a recession followed by a short-lived recovery, followed by another recession. Right now all across the nation, economists are starting to sound the alarms that we may be sliding into a double dip.

Breaking News: (In a stunning dramatic moment in testimony before Congress today, Fed Chief Ben Bernanke at first said he thought we might not have a double dip recession but then said that he was concerned about the "unusually uncertain" on going economic outlook for 2010!
The markets reacted immediately with the NYSE down triple digits and the dollar picking up a healthy dose of value as investors fled to cash on Bernanke’s comments. I talked to two local economists about the Fed Chief’s remarks and they all said that they now believe that Bernanke does think we are headed into a DOUBLE DIP RECESSION.)

On the state level a double dip is typically defined as positive economic growth (jobs, home sales, construction and etc.) following a recession when that growth peaks out and a new recession follows. If the July job numbers for the Evergreen state show a major decline, we will officially be in a double dip. One of the major signs of a return to recession is always evidenced by the results in the housing market and this week that news was a major disaster.

New home permits issued YTD were a terrible disappointment in WA State coming in at 6,470, a paltry increase of less than 2,000 from last year; thus reflecting the record number of foreclosed homes on the market in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties.

To make matter worse housing starts (new construction) slid to a low equal to the October construction off season last year; a major decline in employment in Western Washington.

Reflecting the economic reality on the ground the national home builder confidence index fell to the lowest level in 12 months, not good news!
Here is the story from the National Association of Home Builders.

However, the big disaster in Western Washington was the multi-family construction permits that were issued and that number came in at 10% less than the disaster in 2009 YTD; a major problem with jobs in the industry. Only 1,910 permits were issued this year to date. In Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma permits for multi-family construction was down some 17% year over year a catastrophe for the building industry. Olympia was one of the hardest hit down 100% from last year. Even though rentals are currently in high demand, particularly from folks who have given up their homes to foreclosure, the building industry in Western Washington is saying that the banks are refusing to finance multi-family construction projects because of the new strict FDIC reserve requirements required not just for the large banks, but the local community banks as well.

To illustrate the magnitude of this disaster, RealtyTrac is reporting that there are currently some 32,427 foreclosures in the Evergreen State year-to-date.

The hardest hit counties are Snohomish, Skagit, and Pierce. That reflects the hardest hit areas for jobs in construction this season and one of the reasons for persistent unemployment in these metro counties.

Editorial comment: I have followed job numbers in our state for more than 35 years. I also follow the economy closely and I have a vast background in math and statistics, so no-one in the left stream media can misrepresent the unemployment situation with bogus “seasonably ADJUSTED” numbers and get away with it; as the false reporting business writer Drew DeSilver at the Seattle Times and Mike Benbow at the Everett Herald both found out to their chagrin! We are in serious economic trouble because with retails sales in the tanks for two straight months in a row and B&O tax revenues along with the resulting decline in sales tax revenue, means that the state is coming very close to being insolvent in the next budget year. I am hearing that the next state legislature is facing a $9 Billion dollar hole!

Coffee Talk With Dino Rossi

Dino Rossi came to Sunnyside, Washington today, and we had a conversation about his campaign at Guerra's Coffee Co. on South First Street.



U.S. Senate Candidate Dino Rossi with Aaron Guerra, owner of Guerra's Coffee Co. in Sunnyside, WA.

I asked Mr. Rossi how small businesses, such as the one in which we were enjoying some refreshing beverages, could benefit by his election to the U.S. Senate:

Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk

A couple weekends ago was deadly in Whitman County. The Daily News reported two people died in a car accident, near LaCrosse, where speed and alcohol were thought to be factors. So many times it is the same story and people are not learning. Drinking and driving tends to lead to death on our highways.

Anyone who has lived in Whitman County for any number of years probably remembers the case where three WSU students were killed in a drunk-driving wreck caused by Fred Russell. That was another situation where drinking and driving plus speed was a factor in a head-on wreck on the Pullman-Moscow highway.

Drunk driving wrecks are nothing new in Whitman County or the state of Washington. Radio and TV are airing advertisements reminding people the cops are stepping up patrols looking for drunk drivers, but this doesn’t stop people from drinking and driving.

Rossi Does Indeed Connect with the Grassroots and Tea Parties

By Dan Michael

July 19, 2010

Six months ago, the Puget Sound Conservative Underground hosted one of the first Senate Candidate Forums. The “original 5” Republican candidates – Coday, Didier, Widener, Salazar, and Williams – spoke to 150 people in Redmond about why they were running for the Senate and what their platforms were. This was followed up by the Puget Sound Conservative Underground (PSCU) vetting the candidates individually with separate meetings where each of the candidates responded to criticisms and answered questions. From that, the PSCU members were polled, and Dr. Art Coday was chosen as our favorite candidate

Thus, it was disheartening when Dr. Coday suspended his campaign two months ago soon after Dino Rossi entered the race. Even though the PSCU’s “favored son” endorsed Mr. Rossi, many PSCU members were skeptical about immediately jumping on the Dino bandwagon. They had heard other conservative groups or bloggers refer to him as a RINO and not a true conservative like the other Republicans still in the Senate race.

Because I was hearing fellow conservatives question Dino’s passion and lack of connecting with the grassroots, as the organizer of the PSCU, I wanted to get him to speak to our members. So when I was able to talk to Mr. Rossi at Elizabeth Scott’s kick-off event for her State Representative campaign, I asked him if he’d appear before my conservative, grassroots, tea-party-connected group. You would think a “RINO” would turn and run when he heard all those “scary” adjectives describing my group.  But Dino said he’d heard great things from the other candidates who had previously attended PSCU meetings (namely Scott, James Watkins, and Art Coday) and he would be glad to set up a meeting

This past Sunday, Dino met with 50 PSCU members in Bothell and who better than Dr. Coday to introduce him, explaining why he was supporting Dino. Dino then talked to our conservative group about his reasons for running, namely that those in Washington D.C. are spending too much and growing our debt and our government too large. “The borrowing and spending is morally reprehensible,” said Dino.

Arizona Immigration Law

"The legislature finds that there is a compelling interest in the cooperative enforcement of federal immigration laws throughout all of Arizona. The legislature declares that the intent of this act is to make attrition through enforcement the public policy of all state and local government agencies in Arizona. The provisions of this act are intended to work together to discourage and deter the unlawful entry and presence of aliens and economic activity by persons unlawfully present in the United States."

This is the intent of the Arizona Senate Bill 1070 as written in Section 1. How Arizona proposes to make this a reality has become a source of discontent around the United States and with leaders in other countries. The Arizona legislature wants to "discourage and deter unlawful entry and presence" in their state. They are simply asking the laws of this country are enforced and followed. Does that really make them bad?

The text of the law is pretty short and can be read by anyone who does a quick search for the law in their favorite search engine. There is one paragraph that seems to be causing all the unrest.

Article 8 Enforcement of Immigration Laws, Subsection B states "For any lawful contact made by a law enforcement official or agency of this state or a county, city, town or other political subdivision of this state where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United State, a reasonable attempt shall be made, when practicable, to determine the immigration status of the person. The person's immigration status shall be verified with the federal government pursuant to 8 United States Code Section 1373(c)."

Reasonable suspicion is a legal term meaning an objectively justifiable suspicion that is based on specific facts or circumstances and that justifies stopping ... a person thought to be involved in criminal activity at the time.

Clearly this is not a license for a law enforcement officer or state agency to question anyone based on what he looks like -- read race. In fact, when reviewing the whole bill the term "race" is used twice and it is contained in this statement: "... shall not investigate complaints that are based solely on race, color or national origin". That passage is used in two locations within the bill.

Investigating the immigration status of someone based on specific facts or circumstances and not being based solely on race would make it hard to see where this law is racist as many people have complained.

The fallout from this law has been far reaching, but very symbolic in nature. The City of Seattle voted to boycott Arizona, but they chose to keep their contract with an Arizona company to supply the city with its cash-cow red-light cameras. Seattle showed Arizona! We won't do business with you, unless it makes us money. Take that Arizona!

The City of Los Angeles also voted to boycott Arizona. In order to not hurt their city, they have wisely chosen to ignore the fact they get energy from Arizona. So, their boycott is something like Seattle's -- a symbolic vote by an ignorant city council of feel-gooders.

Gary Pierce, a Commissioner from the Arizona Corporation Commission overseeing Arizona's electric and water utilities responded to the vote of the boycott with a letter to the Los Angeles Mayor and city council. In the letter he states Los Angeles gets approximately 25% of its electricity from Arizona. He writes to the Mayor asking that they reconsider their attempt at harming Arizona's economy if the city council doesn't have the strength to follow through with its convictions. In essence if Los Angeles wants to boycott Arizona, then they should also stop using Arizona's electricity.

What exactly are these cities boycotting? They are boycotting a law that specifically states that government officials must deal with people who break the law.

Boeing...Boeing...Gone

Boeing recently endorsed the reelection of Sen. Patty Murray:

Sen. Murray has been a true advocate and champion for the Boeing Co. and for our 75,000 Washington-based employees throughout her three terms, and therefore we support her in her reelection bid.

That undoubtedly made more than a few Boeing workers chuckle.

Those 75,000 Washington based employees of Boeing only make up 45% of the company's workforce.  What was the percentage when Murray took office in 1995, before Boeing moved its corporate headquarters to Chicago in 2001?  On Murray's watch, Boeing has made an inexorable exodus from increasingly business-unfriendly Washington.

Both Northwest Dim Bulb Senators Trailing

To the otherwise Great Northwest's shame, the two simplest minds in the United States Senate hail from Washington and Oregon. Of course, I'm talking about Patty Murray (D-Washington) and Ron Wyden (D-Oregon). Murray is trailing both of the leading Republican contenders and Ron Wyden appears to be looking up at his opponent as well.

A GOP candidate for U.S. Senator is favored by 37%, while a Democrat is favored by 36%, with the remaining 28% undecided. This is despite an 11-point Democrat edge over Republicans in voter registration.

− Just 44% believe Ron Wyden deserves reelection today, while 45% prefer a new person and 11% are unsure if they favor Wyden's reelection.

Obama Bumper Sticker Removal Kit

It even works on a Prius. "Satisfaction is not guaranteed because you've already proven that you don't make very good decisions."

Patty Murray Trails Rossi And Didier

According to Rasmussen Reports.

Washington's Senate race looks increasingly like a referendum on incumbent Democrat Patty Murray with two Republican candidates edging past her this month.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Washington State finds Republican hopefuls Dino Rossi and Clint Didier both earning 48% support in match-ups with Murray. She, in turn, picks up 45% of the vote against the two GOP challengers. Less than 10% of voters in both cases prefer some other candidate in the race or are undecided.

Perhaps she should try buying off Washingtonians affection with a daycare center.

Is Adam Smith Building a New Bridge to Nowhere? You Betcha!

Rep. Adam Smith of Washington’s 9th Congressional District likes to portray himself as what the Seattle Times calls a “raging moderate.” Smith supported the Iraq surge in 2007 and he voted against the House’s original health care reform bill.

But Smith is the chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on Air and Land Forces. And in this role, Smith is showing that he can play the pork barrel polka with the best Big Government liberal. But unlike earmark champions Patty Murray and the late Robert Byrd, Smith’s effort do not benefit his district at all, but rather fat cat corporate donors to his campaign.

Road to Olympia: The Front Lines

This is the second in a series of articles on this fall’s Washington state legislative races.

I have been hearing a lot about how voters are angry and that there is an anti-incumbent mood in the land.   Gallup recently reported that conservative enthusiasm is at its highest since 1994.

The 47th Legislative District in southeast King County, part of the sprawling suburban "Crescent" lying to the east of Seattle, is regarded as a key for Republicans to take back in order to reduce the Democratic supermajorities in both houses of the state legislature.  It's a swing district, going for Barack Obama and Dino Rossi in 2008.

Last Sunday evening, I joined Nancy Wyatt, a Republican running for the state house in the Washington 47th Legislative District, as she went doorbelling to see for myself.

Staying Ignorant With The Mainstream News Media

What an indictment of the mainstream news media! Last Sunday afternoon, Congressman Brad Sherman, who represents California’s 27th district, was challenged at his town hall meeting about a voter intimidation case that the Obama Justice Department had swept under the rug. The room erupted into shouts as Sherman first denied that the events described by his constituents had ever taken place and attributed it to internet rumor mongering. He then claimed that he was entirely ignorant of the whole affair. His constituents didn’t believe him. I did.

And two days later my sympathies were confirmed. After doing some research, Congressman Sherman confirmed to his own satisfaction that the events did transpire as described by his angry constituents and promised to write a letter to the Justice Department demanding answers.

Good luck with that congressman. The United States Commission on Civil Rights has been demanding answers for over a year now and has met only stonewalling.

He then defended himself by arguing that the reason he knew nothing about it was that the news outlets he relies upon did not cover it. He specifically cited The Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily News, the Economist, Newsweek, Congressional Quarterly and National Journal as his news sources. He then condemned Fox News for doing a better job of informing his constituents than his news sources did of informing him. If only his constituents had kept to his reading list, then his town hall meetings would be much more comfortable.

For those of you who rely upon news sources similar to Brad Sherman’s, on Election Day 2008 members of the New Black Panther Party, a black supremacist group that advocates killing white people and specifically recommends killing white policemen and white babies, had armed themselves with clubs and stationed themselves outside a Philadelphia polling station. They then challenged any white who attempted to vote there. The incident was filmed and broadcast locally, but received little attention outside of Philadelphia. In its final days, the Bush Justice Department won a default judgment against the miscreants, but as soon as Obama’s political appointees were installed, the case was dropped.

Mainstream news sources such as those listed by Brad Sherman and most others maintained their silence, even though a simple mental exercise, such as imagining what would happen if a member of Robert Byrd’s Ku Klux Klan chapter had driven black voters from the polls, would have informed better decision making.

Alternate media outlets such as talk radio, Fox News, The Washington Times, The DC Examiner, The National Review, and The Weekly Standard kept up a background drumbeat, but the legacy news media were able to ignore it and ignore it they did. Then a former career Justice Department employee came forth with more explosive charges claiming that the department was directed to give black defendants preferential treatment. That got a little more attention, but not enough to penetrate Brad Sherman’s cocoon.

As a side note, The New Black Panthers had their own page on Barack Obama’s presidential campaign website. But that didn’t get much attention either.

And Brad Sherman was not the only Democrat to find himself discomfited by constituents who were better informed on the issues than he was. Ciro Rodriguez of Texas’s 23rd Congressional District was also hosting a town hall recently. He was lecturing constituents about the glories of ObamaCare when he cited a Congressional Budget Office report. A constituent interrupted him and informed him that the CBO report he referenced had been amended dramatically and no longer supported the conclusions he was drawing. She was right. He was wrong.

He did not take it well. The YouTube video is quite amusing.

Here is another story that Brad Sherman and Ciro Rodriguez probably know nothing about. In two separate interviews with Al Jazeera and in a meeting with the ranking member of the House committee that oversees the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA Director Charles Bolden claimed that he had been given a directive from Barack Obama to make outreach to Muslim nations his agency’s top priority. He was to improve Muslim self-esteem by reminding them of their centuries old contributions to science, mathematics and engineering.

The usual suspects reported nothing about this.

In Wednesday’s Wall Street Journal, Columbia University President Lee Bollinger advocated government subsidies for the mainstream news media. Why don’t we have them experiment with reporting the news and see if that model works?