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Ogre's Politics & Views

April 30, 2007

Tax Freedom Day

Tax Freedom Day� will arrive on April 30 this year, the 120th day of 2007. That means Americans will work four months of the year, from January 1 to April 30, before they have earned enough money to pay this year's tax obligations at the federal, state and local levels. Government is by far the most expensive thing Americans buy.

Tax Freedom Day has arrived later each year for four years running. In 2003, the Bush administration enacted its biggest tax cuts, and Tax Freedom Day arrived April 18, matching 1984 for the earliest Tax Freedom Day in the last three decades.

In percentages, government at all levels now takes 32.7 percent of the nation's income. The highest ever was in 2000 when it took 34.0 percent, and the lowest tax burden in recent years was 29.5 percent of income in 2003.

Since Ogre works hard, I can assure that I'm working and paying a bit more and a bit longer for those who do not work. If you want to thank me, get a job and vote for someone who let me keep the damn money I work for myself.

Posted by: Ogre at 02:02 PM | Comments (17) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Democrats and War Funding

Obviously, there has been quite a bit of news lately about the Democrats and their alleged "war funding bill." And, since it has to do with politics, there's been lots of lies and half-truths. I'd like to make a couple things clear about how a Democratic form of government works.

One part of that bill is absolutely unconstitutional. The Democrats clearly, according to the US Constitution, cannot set a time, date, or place to withdraw the troops. That's not their job. In fact, if the bill passed into law, if there were judges who actually interpreted the Constitution, I could see them invalidating that portion of the law because Congress cannot (despite what the Democrats believe) simply pass a law and have it happen. The Democrats don't know it, but they're not God.

However, the funding portion of the bill IS perfectly constitutional. Staying at war in a republic is supposed to be very difficult. One person, the president, is not supposed to have the power to keep a country at war indefinately -- he's GOT to have cooperation from the people and their representatives (the Congress). If they don't agree, then there's no war. However, the Democrats are going about this the wrong (unconstitutional) way.

If the Democrats want to stop the war, they DO have the absolute power to stop it. They can simply defund it. That is absolutely and completely in their power. All they have to do is pass a bill that does not allot the funds to pay for the troops. That would be constitutional. That would effectively stop and end the war because the president wouldn't have the money to continue the war. And, if the Democrats honestly believed that the people of the country wanted an end to the war, that is the bill they would pass.

Unfortunately, the Democrats aren't interested in results. They apparently don't believe their own words when they claim that the American people want an end to the war. If they want to end it, stop funding it, period. Pass a clean bill that has nothing in it but funding for the war. Then we wouldn't have all the politics associated with the current bill. Just defund it -- if you really want to end it. The fact that they won't defund it shows that they're not really serious about wanting to end the war -- instead they simply are running for election and they see this as a way to get the most votes.

That's really sad, but yes, the current bills and votes in Congress are all about getting votes for the next election -- at the expense of our troops and our national security.

Posted by: Ogre at 01:08 PM | Comments (17) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

CA Transit

Yes, folks, if you are reading this in the United States, you, personally, are now financially responsible to get "hundreds of thousands" of people in California to work. Why? Because if you don't, the government will imprison you or shoot you. And no, that's not sarcasm or hyperbole, it's the absolute truth...and that's really sad.

What have we become in this country? Are there any people, anywhere in the country that are capable of doing anything without government? Certainly there is nothing left that we are permitted to do without asking government for permission, but there should at least be a few things we can do without government help. Alas, no.

What I'm referring to is the CA tanker fire that burned the bridge. You see, Arnold (governor of CA) has decided that people in the state are incapable of getting to work in any way, shape, or form without his help. So he is going to make thousands of buses available for people to use to get to work today -- and he's "declared a state of emergency" -- which means that the federal government will give him the money to do so. Therefore, YOU are paying to get people to work in CA today because the government thinks you're too stupid to find a way to get to work without them.

This really does just amaze me. This once-great country has come so far from a place where rugged individualism and hard work were hallmarks of it's people. We had a limited government once that was a necessary evil, but that stayed out of the way of progress and hard work. But today? It's absolutely disgusting to see how much government interferes with life -- and how horribly inefficient they are when they do so.

When did the people demand that government hold me personally responsible for ensuring that people in a state 3,000 miles away get to work? When did the people of that state decide that they would use the monopolistic force of government to extort my labor for their benefit? And when did I lose the freedom to "the enjoyment of the fruits of [my] own labor" (NC Constitution, Article I, Section 1)? Oh, how I yearn for freedom.

Posted by: Ogre at 12:06 PM | Comments (922) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Programming Note

Today will continue posts about the North Carolina Conservative Leadership Conference that happened last Friday and Saturday. If you missed Ogre's live blogging of the event, please do check the links in the upper right corner of the main page, or check here for an index of all the posts from the weekend event. Regular programming will continue tomorrow! And thank you for stopping along.

Well, that was the plan for today -- only I left my notebook with all my notes somewhere I can't get to it today! So instead, today will be mostly regular programming, while tomorrow will have updates, comments, and other final notes about the conference.

Posted by: Ogre at 11:02 AM | Comments (20) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

April 29, 2007

Conservative Leadership Conference Index

Lunch with Rudy
Waiting Entertainment
Rudy Speaks
Conveying the Conservative Message
Illegal Immigration
The Reagan Legacy
Friday Dinner
Day Two
Breakfast
Future of Conservatism
NC Budget and Taxes
Lunch Session
Education
The 2008 Presidential Campaign
Dole Protesters
Dinner with Dole
Lt. Governor Steele

Posted by: Ogre at 05:00 PM | Comments (2620) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

April 28, 2007

Dinner with Dole

Time for Dinner with featured speaker Senator Dole. More to come later this evening! Also scheduled to speak is candidate for NC governor, Bill Graham.

Bill Graham:

The gas tax saves money [note: Bill Graham was the big driver around stopping the Democrats in NC from raising the gas tax substantially recently].

On education: if the Democrats want that issue, give it to them! They've been responsible for the education and look how bad it is. They're doing a horrible job, so let's show them the right way to do it.

Unlike others this weekend, I believe we will win in 2008! Here's how:
We need to articulate values for people to rally around: cut taxes and reduce government.

We have more state employees than we have people employed in manufacturing in this state. Therefore, we have more people consuming and destroying via government than are actually producing things.

Tens of thousands of new voters are needed -- we need to go out and get those people to vote.

He's sick and tired of losing and we're not going to do it any more.

Dole is his political hero: She is dedicated to conservative values.

Senator Dole was up next:

She is running for re-election in 2008 and has already raised $1.7 million for that effort. The losses in 2006 were not against conservatives: the Democrats who won campaigned on conservative ideas, but then caved and voted for Pelosi as their leader.

The National Democrats have unionized TSA making us less safe -- 92% of labor money is given to Democrats. "Rewarding labor unions at the expense of national security is just plain wrong."

The new Democrat budget increases taxes $700 billion. Washington simply spends too much money, and the new majority is showing that it is out of touch with the American people.

Policy in Iraq should be driven by national security, not by politics. Reid's "War is Lost" comment was absolutely reckless and irresponsible. Congress should not micromanage the war. She supports Bush's increase in troop numbers to SUPPORT Iraq -- not an open-ended commitment, but an aid to help Iraq obtain stability. The government of Iraq must demand stability from within.

We must secure the border. No comprehensive plan will work unless the border is secured. Amnesty is NOT the solution (much applause here). We do need a guest worker program for jobs Americans don't want. But at the same time we must address the lack of ICE agents to complete the deportations of dangerous criminals.

Currently, the average illegal is getting $22,400 more in benefits from government than they pay into the system. That's $397 billion from 2004. Any policy that increases immigration will cost a lot of money -- and Democrats already are attempting increase the national debt by $2.4 TRILLION.

She strongly supports the president getting the line item veto to veto earmarks and pork spending.

She says that we need to continue to support judges who will support the Constitution. She applauds the recent ruling on partial-birth abortion.

Regan, when he came to Washington, knew why he wanted to be president. He had a clear vision and he made people believe in themselves again. His legacy to the world is freedom. She finished by quoting Regan: " Don't let anyone tell you that America's best days are behind her--that the American spirit has been vanquished. We've seen it triumph too often in our lives to stop believing in it now."

Posted by: Ogre at 10:00 PM | Comments (19) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Dole Protestors

A quick shot of the "massive" impeach Bush protest at Senator Dole's arrival:

Look carefully, that's it. Many more pictures to come on this one.

Posted by: Ogre at 09:55 PM | Comments (571) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

The 2008 Presidential Campaign

This session is scheduled to go from 3:45-5:00. Scheduled speakers are:
Fred Barnes, The Weekly Standard and Fox News
Rick Reed, Political Media Consultant
Rufus Edmisten, Former NC Secretary of State (D)
Chris Henick, Giuliani and Partners
Marc Rotterman, Republican Media Consultant

Apologies for the delay on this post - I don't know when it will actually go up. Apparently the Sheraton Hotel is having issues with it's internet connection. People have been dispatched to fix the problem.

After this session is our only break of the day (from 5-6). Then will be the last session, dinner with Elizabth Dole. According to Teach, there's rumors of a protest outside for Senator Dole. Apparently the over/under on the turnout is a whopping five people. I've been watching the entrance all day, and I've seen no sign of any protesters. Between 5 and 6 I'll be watching for them, camera in hand. I wonder if they've called other media. Maybe, just for entertainment's sake, I should attempt to interview them...

Marc Rotterman:

Republicans lost in 2006 because we didn't stand for anything. We became the party of big government. He speaks as a conservative first, Republican second. No Child Left Behind was a loser. The prescription drug bill was not a good idea. We lost economic conservatives because the debt keeps going up and the leadership did nothing to stop it. And Republicans never fully responded to the various scandals. FEMA failed to respond. What we need in 08 is for George Bush to get a boost -- he's got to get a strong push before he goes out -- if he's down, that will not help the Republican Party.

In 2004 we should have extended the tax cuts instead of social security. This is the "show me the money" primary. Hillary and Bill are going to continue to raise a lot of money. Barack was rather unsure of himself. Marc thinks it will be either Hillary or Richardson for the Democrats.

Romney is ahead in the money and polls. Rudy is close behind and McCain is in third. The whole thing may be over my mid-Febuary next year.

Competency and Authenticity are the two key words in this race. If we're arguing about abortion and gay rights in the primary, we're going to lose the general election. This race is about national security and the American people trust Rudy on national security. McCain is second in most polls; but he is most associated with Iraq; and no one can win from Washington, DC. Because of McCain-Feingold, Marc could never support him.

Romney is ahead with money, but fourth in polls. He has a huge credibily problem with conservatives and the American people. He's not going to sell in the Bible belt. He's switched too many of his positions to be trusted.

All the others are "searching for Reagan." A lot of people would like to see Fred Thompson run. He can raise money, but he hasn't run good campaigns in the past. Newt is a possible dark horse as a replacement for Reagan.

If this race is about Iraq and Bush, we lose. Republicans have to say how they're going to win the war on terror and how they're going to keep the economy moving.

Fred Barnes:

How to win in politics by Bush: You can fool some of the people all of the time -- and he concentrated on those people. The future in politics is never a straight-line projection from the past. Events always happen to make changes. I haven't the slightest idea of who will win the Republican nomination or the presidential election.

I don't think the 2006 election was just about Iraq -- Republican are in deep trouble. I don't think Republicans have much of a chance of winning back the House or Senate. President Bush has GOT to finish strongly. If he's in the same position in 2008 as he is now, Republicans are going to lose the White House.

Whenever a Republican president finishes weakly, Democrats win the White House. Tied to this is a strong turnaround in Iraq. A turnaround is essential. When you're a party of a war that's being lost, it's not helpful.

Immigration: Republicans need to resolve the immigration issue (much applause). They need to resolve it to satisfy those who want a border that does not drive away Hispanic voters. Just building a fence may solve the immigration problem, but it does not solve the political problem associated with it. It's a horrible issue for Republicans because it divides them so angrily.

Republicans need a BIG IDEA. Republicans don't have one right now. They also need a big Democratic blunder. Democrats have a strong advantage in voter self-identification: 50% to 35%. As you can tell, I'm pessimistic.

Rufus Edisten (D):

I am a Sam Irvin Democrat who believes that the Constitution says what it says. I am a recovering politician. We need to quit hating one another because of what we believe.

There's a possibility of a number of firsts. We could have the first female president. We could have the first African-American president; the first Morman president. This thing is so mixed up right now, it's hard to make any real predictions.

This country has come to a rush for money. A handshake today doesn't mean anything. Today in the political process, it's all about money. He's been told that you cannot go anywhere as a candidate unless you're raising money. We have allowed political consultants to take over the process.

Were it not for some of Bush's problems, Republicans would have no problems winning the presidency. The American people like safety -- but there have been so many "mess-ups" that something has to change. The Bush label is a bad label. There's been a lot of hubris in this administration -- and people don't like that. There needs to be some more humility.

We're just about where the fall of the Roman Empire was when they were just buying one another off.

The Democrat debate was horrible. He'd rather watch paint dry. I believe that the two sleepers are Fred Thompson -- I worked with him for a year during Watergate. Fred Thompson has got what it takes, and he's presidential. The other side sleeper is algore. If algore were to appear months down the road that there are so many people that are confused that he would win the nomination.

Audience questions focused on campaigns and money -- people asked about media, bloggers, and how to get the press to have coverage. Today the press only asks, "Who's going to win?" instead of "Who are these people?" Television sound bytes have also gotten smaller and smaller over the years -- making it harder for candidates to get the message out.

National polls today on the presidential race are absolutely, completely meaningless and useless today. They just have no meaning, but you see them reported all the time.

Posted by: Ogre at 08:46 PM | Comments (27) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Education

This forum is scheduled from 2:15-3:30. Speakers to appear (according to the schedule) are:

Bob Luddy, Founder Franklin Academy & St. Thomas More Academy
Terry Stoops, Education Policy Analyst, John Locke Foundation
Representative (unnamed) from NC Public Schools.

Ogre's note: Are they really going to find a person from inside the state system to come to a meeting like this? This is going to be a feeding frenzy. I wonder if anyone will ask how much money is enough -- and if they'll be honest and give the real education system answer: MORE. Update: Howard Lee was the Public Schools representative that was here for an earlier session, but did not return for this session.

Bob Luddy:

We are failing our children. Reforming education has become an industry in itself. The tests and the testing system is complete fraud. They are changed and adjusted over the years to produce results that are desired instead of using them to measure the actual skills and abilities of the children.

Why don't government schools work?

They deny student and parental choice.
They preclude normal free to choose competition. The government system goes out of it's way to remove any possibility of choice in education.
They are heavily unionized. In NC we have NCAE -- which advocates full time AGAINST the student.
Moral relativism is the norm in the schools -- which destroys parenthood. And the schools use the parents as a scapegoat for anything that the student does wrong. Teachers are not able to correct students or the teacher will get in trouble.
They are socialistic by their very nature. They own the schools, the cirriculum, the teachers, and the philosophy.

Charter schools are a good step forward. A good environment helps control the behavior of the student. People want and desire this type of school. Applications in North Carolina are very very high compared to the available seats.

Community schools are best. Students who can just walk to their schools are simply best. Bussing students in the early mornings to strange places is dangerous. This type of school can bring the community together so people can take pride in the school and the community. But best would be to allow parents to pick which kind of school they want for their children.

In the last 8 years, people have fought for more Charter Schools in North Carolina. However, the education powers absolutely oppose any competition. Therefore, Democrats will simply not allow any more Charter schools in the state. He believes the solution is to simply build independent community schools (200-400 students) and that will create tremendous pressure on the public schools [Ogre's note: I don't think so. If there's pressure on the public schools and the Democrats are in charge, they'll simply make the independent schools illegal]

Next up, Bob Stoops:

We're in a global society. Our students are competing with students around the world. The US ranks 24 out of 29 countries.

One group suggests that students need to be in more classes more hours per day. Our students are already in math classes 4.7 hours per week. That's about an hour MORE than the other countries. Turkey gives their students 6 hours instruction a week- they rank 28th. Japan gives 4.5 hours per week- they rank 1st. It appears that hours per week has no effect on ability.

Direct instruction is the best way to teach, according to the US Dept of Education. That's what many charter schools do, but no public schools do.

Another claim is that we need to educate our students more days per years -- including all year. After all, some other countries do. US gets about 169 hour per year. The average is 140. Japan gives 175 hours per year. Turkey and Mexico give 214 hours per year. More is NOT always better.

The US teachers supply about 1,000 teaching hours per year. Japan teachers average about 635 hours per year. The average is 700 hours. Our teachers have a heavier load than other countries.

The US has the second highest per-pupil expenditure in the world (second to only Switzerland). $31,500 is the average NC starting entry level salary. National average: $27,000. 15-years of exp, avg worldwide is $37,500; in NC it's $43,000. That makes NC the 10th highest in the world.

We have the highest number of computers per student in the entire world. 27% of principals actually complain that instruction is hindered by lack of computers and software!

Some will say that our children are more creative, even if they aren't learning. That's simply not true, as can be seen by checking something simple like the number of patents granted to those countries in the Pacific Rim. They nuture creativity for 6 years of their life.

We need to follow models like that of Bob Luddy's schools, or we will never get anywhere.

Legislative Agenda for the Democrats:

NCAE has SEVEN full-time lobbyists in the General Assembly. There are at least 30 full-time lobbyists that are working all day long to protect the education system and establishment against parents and children. Educational aristocrats are pumping money into their own programs -- which is why the system does not change.

NC is one of only two states that does not allow collective bargining from the teacher's union. NCAE is trying hard to change that this year. Most teachers work 39 weeks out of the year. The average salary is close to $44,000. A first-year teacher is granted 4.5 days of leave. A teacher with 20 years gets 33.5 days out of the classroom for leave.

Despite the fact that 1/3 of the students in high school are failing out, the only solution the Democrats have suggested is to raise the mandatory attendance age from 16 to 18. The governor wants every single student to go to college (for free). One of the Democrat candidates for governor wants to spend billions for "connectivity" in schools -- web cams and other things that will have zero effect on learning.

Posted by: Ogre at 06:19 PM | Comments (25) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Lunch Session

Scheduled to speak are:

South Carolina governor Mark Sanford
Former MD Lt. Governor Michael Steele
US Congressman Walter Jones

The camera is still not working. It's very odd, it just acts if I haven't turned the switch on. I'll keep playing with it, but for the time being, there's no more pictures. Now I'm going to go eat and take notes for the lunch session!

Okay, we're eating while they're talking. And there's another seminar that starts right after this session is over. If you missed this conference, you really did miss a lot of really good speakers and great conservative stuff. Make your plans now to come next year.

The first speaker (during the salad) was Congressman Walter Jones who was elected in 1994 as part of the Republican revolution.

We need to put integrity back into politics. We have got to get corruption out of politics. If you want to test a man's character, give him power. The mandate needs to be to reduce government -- because if you reduce government, you can reduce taxes.

There are four issues we need to focus on: tax relief, education, defense, and integrity and corruption. If you really want to test a man's character, give him power. We need a mandate to reduce federal government, which can allow you to reduce taxes. In 1995 we were 4.9 trillion dollars in debt. Today it's 9 trillion. And it's growing by 1.64 BILLION a day. People are simply not demanding accountability.

Illegals shouldn't get a free ride in our education system. We're spending $7.4 billion to educate illegal aliens. We're spending $3.4 billion providing medical services to illegal aliens. We should not reward illegal activity (much applause).

I've never voted for a budget because it authorizes foreign borrowing and that's wrong. When you add up all the obligations of government, right now, including all it's liabilities, the accumulated debt of the US government is $50 TRILLION.

Conservatives, both Republican and Democrat, are the only hope for this nation's future. We must hole representatives accountable. "America is on the wrong road today." Only the truth will sustain a nation.

Note: This man was VERY passionate about his ideals and beliefs.

During the main course, we got to listen to Michael Steele, former Lt. Governor of Maryland.

And during the dessert, South Carolina governor spoke.

Very clear battle with freedom on one side and government on the other. We live at a pivital point in human history. Every other threat in history has been external. Today's biggest problem is internal. With great power comes great responsibility. One man with great passion is a majority. Referenced William Wilburforce who dedicated his life to ridding England of slavery. Referenced Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks' single act of courage changed our nation.

I'm here to encourage you all and to tell you all that you can each make a difference in this pivital point in American history. With Katrina, we didn't unearth poverty, we unearthed dependence. He invoked the life cycle of a Democracy, putting emphasis on the dependency that leads to bondage and slavery.

Contract the reaction to Katrina with the people in this country 200 years ago: the individual was the sole repository of power in our government system that was created. The only power in the government existed by the sole consent of the governed. There has been an awful lot of consent over the last 200 years.

We need to find a way to increase involvement in this movement. We need to find more time of our own; or just get someone else involved by talking to them. Education represents the great frontier of the conservative movement. Until we get our arms around this monopolistic system that does not produce results, we're going to have mighty problems. But don't give up on the small things.

But always remember that to win a war, it takes casualties. Too many people in the political sphere won't even consider allowing themselves to be a casualty. He spent a lot of time losing. If more people would have the courage and be willing to take risks -- even if you might lose. Churchill: "Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm."

Continue to focus on taxes and spending because that is where the rubber hits the road. The bottom line matters. Remember that this is a movement, not a transaction. It took Wilburforce his entire life to complete his movement. And look for ways to be happy warriors.

It is my belief that if we all work together as conservatives, we can make remarkable differences in the history of this world.

They also released the results of a straw poll taken throughout the weekend:

For President
Rudy 34.8%
Thompson 23.7%
Gingrich 14.2%
Huckabee 8.4%
Romney 7.1%
Tancredo 5.2%
Hunter 2.4%
McCain 1%

For Governor
Smith 62.4%
Orr 24.7%
Graham 8.5%

(Still developing)

Posted by: Ogre at 04:30 PM | Comments (15) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

North Carolina Budget and Taxes

This forum runs from 11:00 to 12:15. Scheduled speakers are:

Robert Pittenger, NC Senator from Mecklenburg
Nelson Dollar, NC Representative
Art Pope, Former NC Legislator
Mike Walden, Professor, NC State University
Jameson Taylor, Policy Fellow, Civitas Institute.

(Programming note: the camera is suddenly not working. Yikes. It just won't turn on. And yes, I tried a new battery.)

Nelson Dollar:

The current budget process is a joke. The committee met to "approve" various parts of the budget. He attended the committee meeting, and the committee members didn't read anything, they were just told to approve the budget. The Democrats passed it without question.

The current budget will also be raising taxes this year, requiring taxes on all services in the state to bring in huge amounts of new money to the legislature. There is likely to be a huge increase in taxes and fees and perhaps even allowing towns and cities to create and raise new taxes themselves. There has been much discussion about "modernizing" taxes, but NO discussion about the modernization of SPENDING.

Dr. Michael Walden -- works with consumer economics:

When talking about taxes, he will combine local and state taxes. Then consider all the income of the state of North Carolina as a pie. Over the last 30 years the slice (of tax income) has increased from 9% to 11%. Property taxes have stayed the same; sales tax has increased slightly; corporate income taxes has trended down a little; transportation taxes (gas and vehicles) have gone down; but there's been a jump in income tax. 1.3% to 2.3% -- that's a HUGE jump. Fees have increased from 2% to 4% today.

If a tax bracket is not indexed for inflation -- the federal government does, but North Carolina does not. So if you make more income, just enough to keep up with inflation, you will be pushed into a new tax bracket and actually be forced to pay more in income taxes.

Spending in NC has increased from 11% to 15% today (of all money spend in NC?). Higher education has been taking much more of the economic pie. Public safety has increased from .7% to 1.2%. Highway spending has gone down from 1.5% to 1.0%. That's one reason why NC roads are in bad shape. The big mover in the budget has been transfers- any government program that takes government money to either supplement income of individuals or purchase things for them. Transfers has gone from 2% of the economic pie to 4.5% today. Medicaid spending is the largest single increase.

He also mentioned that the education system, specifically the higher education is perhaps attracting more students than they should. More students are showing up that really aren't motivated because of the very low rates and high subsidies the government spends now.

Art Pope:

Bad politics leads to bad policies. The Democrats in the General Assembly go through very predictable patterns. When times are bad, the Democrats pass tax increases because they want more money for government. Then, when times are good, Democrats never reduce the taxes.

When the Republicans last controlled the House (199, they left over $1 billion surplus. In 1999 when the Democrats took power back, with a good economy, the Democrats increased spending 8.6% in 1 year: over $1.1 billion. When the economy slowed down, they were caught with a shortfall. In 2001, after 9-11, they passed another budget that had a HUGE shortfall -- with dozens of so-called "temporary" tax increases -- which are still in place TODAY.

Democrats continue to claim they support tax cuts, but they keep passing tax increases each and every year. This year we over-collected almost $1 billion in taxes. But no taxes were repealed. There is a projected increase of $1.5 billion for this next year. That's almost $2.5 billion MORE than the government had last year. Based on the governor and the House budget, they are somehow SHORT $230 million. Yes, you read that right -- they collected almost two and a half billion MORE dollars, but they STILL claim that they don't have enough money to spend!! No Democrats are making any suggestions to give that money back to the taxpayers or to reduce taxes in any way.

North Carolina is giving away money everywhere. They're giving money to companies, including Chinese communists -- they know better than citizens how to "work the system." Google and Dell are taking tax money away from working citizens.

People need to call their NC legislators and tell the elected officials that they are exercising their constitutional rights to advise those legislators to not pass those bills. People need to remind the legislators that it's their constitutional right because the legislature recently passed a law to make it more difficult for people to contact legislators without registering.

Robert Pittenger:

Democrats want to keep things they way they are. Those who are in power want to stay in power -- and most people don't want to change. We have the highest corporate and individual taxes in the southeast. If we reduced $320 million in spending, we could reduce the corporate tax rate by 2%. NC's tax rate is 2% higher for corporations than South Carolina.

Look at how Bush's tax cuts have stimulated the economy. There's been a 35% increase in the federal coffers because of the tax cuts. NC has lost 400 companies in the last couple years who have moved to SC and VA because of the heavy tax burdens. TN doesn't have any individual taxes at all. We are losing businesses every day due to the heavy tax burden. Medicaid expenses are growing faster than the increases of money coming into the state.

Jameson Taylor:

NC has moved from 25th to 33rd in rankings of the highest taxed states. Spending is the biggest problem. 4.9 private employees now exist for each government employee -- that's the lowest number ever -- meaning the highest number of government employees ever.

NC has also become more dependent on the federal government. In 1996, NC generated 2.19 for each dollar the federal government spent in NC. In 2005 it was 1.56. At this rate, by 2016 The federal government will be the #1 source of income for the state.

While we increase spending on education (even while the population of students is DECREASING), we also have to increase spending on health care for the elderly. We simply cannot keep increasing spending in both areas. We need to reform the system now or leave a legacy of high taxes and a very weak economy for our children.

NC's population is growing faster than other states -- primarily because of illegal immigration. These illegals consume more government services than they pay into the system via medical and educational costs, primarily. Most of the taxes they do pay go to the federal government, not the state government.

To solve these problems, North Carolina needs to save more and stop spending. This will take serious, basic reform. We need fundamental tax reform. He encourages everyone to focus on one particular tax or issue; learn about it; study it; then make your voice heard on that issue.

Posted by: Ogre at 02:59 PM | Comments (636) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Future of Conservatism

The next session is about to start (and I have yet to type up all my notes from breakfast!). This one is "Future of Conservatism." Scheduled to speak are Richard Viguerie, the founding father of modern conservatism; Grover Norquist, president Americans for Tax Reform; Ruth Samuelson, NC Representative from Mecklenburg; John Dodd, President, Jesse Helms Center; Karen Rotterman, Republican Media Consultant; and Thomas Stith, Vice President of the Civitas Institute.

Speaking first is KarenRotterman:

Karen Rotterman -- worked for Reagan Administration. Press secretary for Jim Martin who was running for governor of NC.

True conservative leadership is compassionate, common sense, thoughtful, careful, and visionary.

Compassion because we want people to live the American Dream -- but it should never come with a free price tag. We want people to know the history of this nation -- both good and bad. We owe it to every single children to have the opportunity for education. We want our kids to stay in our classrooms so they don't end up in our courtrooms -- that is a conservative idea. We need to get back to basics because that is what people understand.

We need to listen as much as we talk. NC is one of the few states that puts the burden of medicare on counties -- causing the counties to raise taxes and divert resources from schools. These counties cannot thrive with this burden on them. The media is going to tag conservatives: "gun-toting;" "right-wing;" "crazy" -- but we have to bring them home to the reality that we are common-sense conservatives who want less government. We need to explain what we have common. We need to make it clear we want to protect our country.

We need to tell people that we want a North Carolina's Driver's license to mean something. There are various states today that will not accept a North Carolina driver's license as identification. Illegals are breaking our laws, driving on our roads, causing accidents, and killed our citizens. We need to convince people that conservatives are going to work for people and make things right: "You've got to stand for something or you'll fall for anything."

To get our message out, we need to make it simple and funny. People remember funny ads. But we do need more funding.

Next up, Grover Norquist:

Heath Shuler just voted to increase taxes. But he likes his mother and dislikes bad language, so that should make up for it. This tax increase will cost the average North Carolina resident $2,671.96. Blue dogs have conservative voters, but they vote with the liberals -- Shuler voted for the tax increase, he voted to put Nancy Pelosi in charge of everything, he voted to support unions over people.

We used be to the Lincoln party -- now we're the Reagan party. Conservatives stand for smaller government. Who are these people?

Taxpayers who don't want their taxes raised.
They don't want their property rights violated.
Gun are important. (This brought a lot of applause). We just want to be left alone with our own second amendment rights. We don't insist that every 4th grader read a book about "Heather has two hunters."
Business owners who want to be left alone to run their business.
This is the "Leave us alone" coalition -- including various religious people who just want to be left alone to raise their children the way they see fit. They want the freedom to raise their children in their faith without government interference.

Nobody wants anything from anyone else on these issues. Despite the 2006 bad year, the coalition is staying together much better than the coalitions on the left -- they can hang around and be friends as long as there is more money coming in from government to their table. If conservatives do their job right and take government money from the statists, their coalition will dissolve and break up because it is made up of competing parasites, not friends. Our job is to force them to gnaw on each other, not us.

All taxes take money from Republicans and give it to Democrats. The conservative coalition is interested in freedom above all else.

2006 we spent too much money; the Iraq war chased away independents; and there was too much corruption. We need to spend less. None of the members of the coalition leave when government spends more. There is no group that really cares today when government spends more. There is no NRA for government spending that can move votes.

Next is John Dodd, president of the Jesse Helms Center.

Republicans lost because they showed arrogance and were Republicans first and conservatives second. As conservatives, we first have to be conservatives -- that's what Jesse Helms did. In 1972 he was working with a group to determine if conservatives should start their own party or try to remake the Repbulican party. The committee decided to attempt to make the Republican Party the conservative party. It is imperative that we remember that and think about that.

As conservatives, we need to get back to our basics and support leaders that will stand by their convictions and their bold ideas. Privitizing Social Security and the Flat Tax were introduced by Jesse Helms back in the 1970s. Helms used to say, "We don't have to win every battle, but we have to keep fighting." My messasge is: let's get back to the basics.

It only takes a few dedicated powerful people to make changes in this world.

Next up, Thomas Stith:

We stand on principle and many times that means we stand alone: and I'm okay with that.

Are we a conservative state? Over 45% of the population self-identify as conservative, only 14% liberal. Issues: public education, taxes, and controlling immigration. We are conservative as a state, voters are conservative, but we do not have conservative leadership in this state.

We can connect with younger voters with the issue of taxes. People need to understand how much the current leadership in North Carolina wants money that they earn. Since 1985, NC spending has increased 318%.

Being illegal in this country is NOT a civil right (again, much applause).

I would agree that education is the new civil right. Over 1/3 of our children in NC don't graduate from high school. We're going to have to come up with conservative solutions to healthcare -- but that's not socialized or univeral healthcare.

We cannot afford at the local level to forget our principles. We need to stand by those principles even if it means standing by ourselves. We need a partnership between the thinkers and the politicos -- working with elected officials (and those who want to be) to develop policy. There needs to be a defined leadership for conservatives in North Carolina. VOTERS in this state don't know who is running the state. We also need to expand our base and reach out to those individuals who share our values.

We don't need to compromise, we are right.

We are about to get into another census where gerrymandering will continue. We need to develop a strategy now to determine how we're going to lead this state and stop the gerrymandering. We need to start right now, today -- because the other side is already making plans. If we don't develop the plans now, we are already behind.

One member of the audience, a current Representative said that we need a unified message. In the mountains, people think Jim Black is a Republican. We need a message across the state to tell people what Republicans really stand for. We don't have a way to show and tell people across the state what the conservative and Republican position is. Republicans in this state are not putting out a unified message.

Another audience member asked how in the world that Karen could say that there is ANY student in the entire state that is denied any educational opportunity. And he asked if it were reasonable to expect every student to have and earn a diploma. She talked about the governor and being a teacher and charter schools -- and absolutely did not answer the question at all.

Posted by: Ogre at 01:36 PM | Comments (18) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

NCCLC: Breakfast

About to start is the Breakfast Session of the conference. Scheduled speakers are:

US Congressman Heath Shuler (D)
2004 Republican Candidate for NC Governor, Patrick Ballantine
2008 Candidate for NC Governor, Fred Smith

Hopefully they'll let us finish eating before they start talking (they did) so I can get some good pictures this time. Full disclosure: I really like Patrick Ballantine -- he helped me when I ran for Senate many years ago and is just a very nice person. I really don't like Heath Shuler -- and not just because he's a Democrat; or because he voted for America to surrender in Iraq; or because he's a carpetbagger who only moved to NC after living his whole life in TN to get elected to Congress. He was a QB at TN and I'm a big Gator fan.

First up is Senator Fred Smith, who is running for governor of North Carolina this year:

Fred Smith says he is a social and fiscal conservative. He says that we need to hold the current leadership in Raleigh Responsible:
Responsible for the failed education system that has a 1/3 dropout rate.
Responsible for Durham ripping up $22 million of concrete for a failed transportation system.
Responsible for the current system of bribery and corruption.

Fred Smith says that government is for the children. It's about protecting the children. In fact, he says that Education has become the civil right of our time. Government needs to realize that the student is the customer and government needs to respond and react as if that is the case.

Smith strongly supports the taxpayer protection act to protect the taxpayers from the government. He supports Jessica's Law and doesn't understand why the government won't protect our most vulnerable -- our children. He says that we must have affordable health care. He says it needs to be market-driven and affordable. He says that one big way to drive those costs down is to put in place liability reform so that doctors aren't forced to practice "Defensive medicine."

He says we must solve the immigration crisis -- and if Washington won't do it, then we're going to have to do it on the state level (this brought the loudest applause of the morning). He says that the NC government must allow it's people to vote on a Constitutional Amendment that will allow government to defend and define marriage.

He finished by saying that conservatives are going to have to put forth that extra effort -- just a little extra effort is all that's needed to start to make a difference. Conservatives have to put out that effort to change the leadership in Raleigh.

Next up is Patrick Ballantine. He ran for governor in NC in 2004 and won the Republican nomination.

Ballantine started by saying that this is a defining moment for conservatives. It's time to bring back the outrage. When Reid talks about the war being lost, where's the outrage? When Global Warming lunatics talk about using just one pieces of toilet paper, where's the outrage? When Hillary might be president, where's the outrage?

The pendulum has swung left as far as it is going to go. Conservatives are starting to stand up -- but we need leadership. We need to unite behind a truly conservative leader. When the left claims we stand for tax breaks for the rich, we need to tell them, "No, we stand for tax breaks for taxpayers." Our NC governor has raised taxes every year he's been in office.

Our values are right, but we need to tell people that. It's time to restore honesty and character in government.

Phil Kiver, author of 182 days in Iraq joined us and spoke next. He is planning on signing books after the breakfast -- and he had a few stories about his time in Iraq.

He mentioned that today Iraqi's aren't dying in Iraq, they are dying FOR Iraq. And he wants to know why, since children were fighting and dying in Iraq for their country; why the leadership in Congress couldn't.

Next up, Heath Shuler. Apparently NC Blue, a far-left political blog, has been blasting Congressman Shuler for daring to appear at this conference. According to Art Pope, his is one in the Democrat party who has the courage to claim that he is a conservative in the Democrat Party.

Heath spent a lot of time talking about family, God, and the influence his mother had on his life. He can't understand why there's not more people living like his mother did: living for those who have less; and living for those who didn't have all that she did.

Drinking and language at a meeting for a mutli-million deal greatly offended him as he attended a meeting. He was a professional football player at a meeting and the executives were drinking and swearing a lot. He decided to pray at the meal and through that leadership, no more drinks were ordered at the table; and no more foul language was used. However, he still refused the deal that was offered him because he didn't want to remain in the company of such people.

He says that there are 44 members of the "Blue Dog Democrats" in Washington. They are conservative Democrats who are fiscal conservatives; pro- business; and pro-gun. At the same time, the progressive caucus is only 22 strong. John Tanner is one of the most powerful members of Congress -- because he is a Blue Dog and the Democrats need the votes of the Blue Dogs to get legislation to pass the Congress.

Even though we may disagree on some issues, we can agree and make a difference for the children. However we fund universal health insurance -- we must first be responsible for our own personal health. We have to commit to eating better and going to the doctor on a regular basis; and have wellness programs in the communities: preventative medicine. We have to move into the area of preventative medicine. We have to allow people who cannot afford to see a doctor be able to see a doctor. [Ogre's note: So he stands for Hillary-care, it sounds like to me]

He says that he is pro-life and voted against government funding of stem-cell research using aborted babies. If you look at the votes on many recent bills, you will see that the majority of the minority agrees with the Democrat position: like raising the minimum wage. We need to work together, no matter what the press does or says.

"If we all give just a little bit, imagine where we can go."

"Don't forget what this future is for: your children and grandchildren."

[Ogre's note: Damn, I am SO sick of the "for the children" line! It's making me SICK. SHUT UP with "for the children."]

Posted by: Ogre at 11:48 AM | Comments (21) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Day Two of the NC CLC

It's day two -- and I don't know how I'm going to make it through the day. Yesterday was great with lots of good conservative ideas and lots of good talk. But I never sleep well in a hotel, so I'm already exhausted -- and there's a whole pile of forums on tap for today:

Breakfast Session from 8-9:15
General Session: Future of Conservatism: 9:30 - 10:45
Issues Forum 3, NC Budget and Taxes: 11:00 - 12:15
Lunch Session 12:30 - 2:00
Issues Forum 4, Education: 2:15 - 3:30
General Session, 2008 Presidential Campaign: 3:45 - 5:00
Dinner Session with Senator Elizabeth Dole: 6:00

And then I've got a 3-hour drive home. Oh, it's going to be an exciting day, so be sure to drop by all day if you want to hear about what's happening.

Now I'm going to get dressed for breakfast and see if I can find someone to complain to about the selection of the Sheraton for this conference. The hotel is fine, but I don't like having to break the law to remain armed and protect myself at a conservative conference. Surely they could find a hotel that didn't have various signs that say, "No guns allowed."

Posted by: Ogre at 10:52 AM | Comments (15) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

April 27, 2007

Friday Dinner

Next up is the dinner and speeches. If their planes arrived, we're supposed to see Former MD Governor Bob Ehrlich; Congressman Patrick McHenry; Congressman Virginia Foxx; and NC Gubanatorial candidate Bob Orr.

But the Ogre is going to eat now, so you'll have to check back later tonight for updates, pictures, and reports!

Update: After the 3-hour drive here and the running around all afternoon, the Ogre is beat. I've got lots of notes, but the posting is going to be delayed -- but there's TONS more coming ALL DAY LONG tomorrow, starting with a breakfast with a Congressional DEMOCRAT!

Yes, do come back early tomorrow to find out what a NC Democrat wants to tell a gathering of conservatives -- and yes, I just checked, he voted FOR the America Surrenders Bill.

Posted by: Ogre at 10:34 PM | Comments (21) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

The Reagan Legacy

This session is back in the big room -- with all conference attendees invited to one place at one time. Scheduled speakers are:

Craig Shirley, author of the "Reagan Revolution;" Frank Donatelli, Former Director for Political & Intergovernmental Affairs in the Reagan White House; Frank Gaffney, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense in Reagan Administration; Patrick McHenry, NC Congressman [Ogre's Representative]; and Jim Gardner, Former NC Lt. Governor.

Once again we find ourselves waiting for people from Washington who are delayed! In the meantime, we're being entertained against by the Wake Forest Rowesville High School choir. They are absolutely excellent.

There appear to be some areas of the country that are having weather problems. The flight that three of the panelists were on has been canceled; so they are not able to attend. Only two of the panelists are participating: Congressman Patrick McHenry and Jim Gardner. Mr. Gardner was the person who seconded Ronald Reagan's nomination in the 1968 Republican National Convention in Miami.

Congressman Patrick McHenry:

Every Republican candidate today claims they are the next Reagan. There is no way any presidential candidate can be another Reagan. We need to take the current policies and apply Reagan ideas to them. We need market-based reforms. We need education reform -- not Ted Kennedy style. We have to take what Reagan left us and apply those principles to a wide array of instances. You have to apply that mindset to our modern challenges.

Peace through strength is an important idea that we need to apply today. We have to apply Reagan principles to modern time. We have to have a clear agenda. When Reagan ran, everyone knew what he stood for. He gave people hope. The reason Republicans lost the Congress is because they ran out of ideas. They gave people no reason to vote for them.

Jim Gardner:

Mr. Gardner ran for Congress back in the late 1960s. He heard Reagan speak during Goldwater's run for president. He heard Reagan speak when he was governor of California; and he heard Reagan speak as president. One of the biggest reasons that Reagan was so popular and so good is because he had not only a clear message, but a very consistent message.

When Jim Gardner was running for governor, he was looking around for ideas of things he could do for the state. All he had to do was look at California. He saw Reagan not only destroy a deficit; when he left CA there was a large surplus.

He told a story about Reagan on a traveling trip and said that Reagan was an absolute true gentleman. Ronald Reagan was a rock-ribbed, no-nonsense conservative. When they lost the nomination in 1968, Reagan won two state: California and North Carolina.

Lots of stories about personal meetings with Reagan and what a great man and great communicator he was. One story is about how Reagan acted in his later days in the presidency -- he would act as if he couldn't hear the press when they were in the room, but the moment they left the room; he was sharp as a tack.

He talked of the shining city on the hill. He read a portion of Reagan's last address to the nation:

And that's about all I have to say tonight, except for one thing. The past few days when I've been at that window upstairs, I've thought a bit of the `shining city upon a hill.' The phrase comes from John Winthrop, who wrote it to describe the America he imagined. What he imagined was important because he was an early Pilgrim, an early freedom man. He journeyed here on what today we'd call a little wooden boat; and like the other Pilgrims, he was looking for a home that would be free. I've spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don't know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace; a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity. And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That's how I saw it, and see it still.
And how stands the city on this winter night? More prosperous, more secure, and happier than it was 8 years ago. But more than that: After 200 years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm. And she's still a beacon, still a magnet for all who must have freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places who are hurtling through the darkness, toward home.
We've done our part. And as I walk off into the city streets, a final word to the men and women of the Reagan revolution, the men and women across America who for 8 years did the work that brought America back. My friends: We did it. We weren't just marking time. We made a difference. We made the city stronger, we made the city freer, and we left her in good hands. All in all, not bad, not bad at all.
And so, goodbye, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

Just arrived is Frank Gaffney, who was the assistant Secretary of Defense for Ronald Reagan:

The most important Reagan legacy is that he freed the Soviet Union and freed thousands of people. To those who would claim he had nothing to do with that, Mr. Gaffney has one word: rubbish. Ronald Reagan dramatically changed the entire face of the world and international community. As communism was trying to enslave people around the world, Reagan accomplished the destruction of the Soviet Union without actually having to go to war (at least the old-fashioned way).

While the yoke of totalitarian communist slavery has greatly been lifted -- with various notable exceptions like China; another political ideology has risen that attempts new totalitarian slavery: islamofacism. And that movement is not about religion or faith, but about power. Four or five ideas from the Reagan legacy that helped destroy the Soviet Union that might be used today to destroy islamofacism.

Reagan was very clear of the identity of the enemy. Referring to the Soviet Union as the "Evil Empire" was a powerful force. Reagan promoted the idea that communism was evil incarnate and HAD to be resisted -- no matter the number of "smart" people who tried to live "in peace" with them. Just as we identified and were not afraid to call the enemy the enemy then; we need to do that today. Political Correctness must go away and we must clearly identify the enemy. We need to differentiate between pro-American Muslims and islamofacists.

Reagan used the military and intelligence services of our country. The war we are engaged in, the war for the free world, is a global conflict with people who are determined to destroy us. It's not just Islamists, but China, North Korea, and Hugo Chavez. Our military needs to be able to respond to this threat. If we follow Ronald Reagan's playbook, we can reduce the need for a direct military conflict. "Mr. Gorbachev, TEAR DOWN THIS WALL" was a political confrontation. It was a political battle. It undermined the self-confidence of the Kremlin. It emboldened people had been oppressed and yearned for freedom. And it made it clear that it didn't have to be this way. It showed that people had a champion. We need a political champion to discredit these enemies and encourage people like anti-Islamist Muslims: those who will stand up and challenge the islamofacists. It's not just a few, it's a rising force.

Reagan also had a regional strategy for countering the Soviets. It was a strategy of pressing our enemies anywhere we found them and never ceding ground to them. If we leave them safe haven anywhere, it will be used to attack us.

Reagan went after the cash flow of the Soviet Union. They had an economic warfare strategy to cut off the funding that the Soviets obtained from western forces. As Reagan went after the sources of life support; so must we go after the funds that finance these islamofacist forces today. We need to stop hundreds of billions of dollars in oil transfers to people who are trying to kill us.

It took us a long time to get into this incredibly stupid and untenable position, and it will take us a long time to get out of it. We can take a lot of money from them if we recognize that many people are investing in companies that are doing business with countries like Iran, Syria, Sudan, and North Korea. There are about 450 blue-chip foreign owned and operated companies today that are providing life support to these oppressive regimes. Everyone should go to your brokers and Congresmen and say, "Is my money being invested in companies that do business with our enemies?"

Everyone has an opportunity to tell these companies that you can do business with our enemies or you can do business with me, but you cannot do both. This will do much to cut off the cash flow of the money that our enemies have access to. We need to start NOW to fight against these enemies as Reagan did, or will we be making the task of dealing with the islamofacists later on -- and it will be much more dangerous and most costly for everyone.

During Reagan's time, the left was just as insane as today's. There were many that believed it would be the end of the world if Reagan called the Soviets the "Evil empire." Only revisionist history claims that everyone was united against the Soviets. Today we need to find more people that understand that our enemies want us dead -- and we need those people in Congress.

We're fighting an ideology of hate. Terrorism is just a tactic they're using. This is not an elective war -- we did not seek out this war. They hate us because they want to rule us. Until we understand that, they will succeed.

Patrick McHenry suggests that we have had today's Tet Offensive to break our will, causing us to lose this war -- if we let them.

They suggest the book "Why They Hate Us," a book that deals with what happens to a country when you refuse to confront this islamofacism. They suggest divestterror.org and terrorfreeinvesting.com

Ogre's notes: This guy (Mr. Gaffney) is excellent. He is a great speaker and isn't afraid to say the truth. It appears that much of Reagan has rubbed off on him!

Posted by: Ogre at 08:40 PM | Comments (24) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Illegal Immigration

The first forum is over and the next is about to being. This one is scheduled to run from 3:00-4:15PM ET. They just announced that Michael Decker was sentenced for 4 years in jail for accepting a bribe to change parties which changed the majority of the NC Legislature from what the people elected, Republicans, over to Democrats.

Scheduled speakers for this event are: Mark Krikorian, Director, Center for Immigration Studies; Steve Bizzell, Sheriff, Johnston County; Fern Schubert, former NC Senator; and Ron Woodard, Director, NC Listen. Jeff Mixon is the host and moderator for this forum. The room is absolutely overflowing for this issues forum. There's at least 100 people in the room wanting to hear the conservative message about illegal immigration.

The first speaker was Mark Krikorian of NRO's The Corner:

Most of Washington is convinced there will be amnesty. They are committed to an amnesty -- the only decision is what they will call it and how they will sell it to the people. They have created a false choice: Either we have to forcibly deport everyone quickly; or we have to allow them to stay: amnesty, no matter what it's called. These are not the only two options. There's attrition through enforcment -- something that we have simply not attempted to do. Instead of forced deportation, engage in a policy of self-deportation. We have seen this actually work. About 400,000 illegal LEAVE each year for various reasons -- voluntarily.

The majority of Pakistani illegals left on their own after 9-11 when the US started to enforce immigration laws against them. We could quickly reduce the illegal population by half in 5 years with this process. There is some enforcement now -- and it works when it's tried. Illegals respond to incentives -- if you take away the incentive for them to be here, they will leave voluntarily. We are making progress right now with enforcement -- why should we stop this progress by allowing amnesty: amnesty would be a complete and total mistake. We CAN get control of this situation if we want to -- it's purely a matter of political will.

The next speaker is former Senator Fern Shubert:

Race and country of origin is irrelavant. Immigration is NOT the issue. It is about one word: ILLEGAL. It's obvious to me that if you reward certain types of behavior; then you will get more of that type of behavior. The NC DMV is now accepting federal temporary Social Security cards -- that may be expired; while they could be checking federal visas -- which would show that they were illegal. As long as some people make money off cheap labor; those people simply don't CARE.

Ms. Shubert wrote an article that outlined the cost of illegals in North Carolina. Those who support illegal immigration got the government to write a report on the "real" costs of illegals -- and they used clearly fraudulent numbers: such as calculating the cost of illegal education by simply using state numbers (ignoring federal education costs); and ignoring things like the cost of illegals that cause accidents and the insurance increases. Various studies that have shown how wonderful the economic impact of illegals are done by those who have a vested financial interest -- including reports even done by the Mexican consulate.

Why are we rewarding people who don't follow the rules? We need immigration reform; but first thing we need to reform is attitude: a lot of people are making a lot of money because they don't have to protect illegal immigrants. These people who will not reform driver's licenses should be named as accomplices in the next DUI murder by an illegal immigrant.

Ron Woodard is the Director of N.C. Listen:

NC Listen is a grassroots immigration reform organization that believes in sensible legal immigration, NOT illegal immigration. NC Congressional Republicans have a good voting record regarding illegals. Heath Schuler, just elected, says that he will vote against the illegals, but votes have not been held yet that show if he will or not. Illegal immigration is a huge source of criminals. The MS-13 gang is in various cities in North Carolina. We are spending $480 million a year educating dependents of illegals in NC. They are getting special attention while citizens' children are getting an inadequate education.

1/3 of the uninsured medical are illegals.

Are there jobs that Americans won't do? Farmers don't want to buy machinery when they can pay illegals less money and not pay benefits. We're often told that Hispanics are harder workers than Americans. Hispanic unemployment in the US is higher than overall unemployment. Who did the work before the illegals showed up? Construction workers make less now than they did in 2001. Cheap labor isn't cheap -- it's just cheaper for the employers that hire them.

We can use the 287-G program that helps local sheriffs identify illegals. We should deny government benefits to illegals. We should provide no in-state tuition to illegals. We should stop giving driver's licenses to illegals. We should fine any company that knowingly fines illegals. We should make English the official legislation of state business. Nearly all legislation introduced that will help with the illegal problem has been introduced by Republicans and Democrats continue to ignore the problem. Illegals will self-deport if you take away the incentives.

We need immigration, but we need legal immigration -- on our terms; in ways that help America, not harm it. We need to allow immigrants in without stressing and overloading our schools and government systems.

Steven Bizzell is the sheriff of Johnston County:

I'm dealing with Mexicans from Mexico who drive drunk and steal anything they can get their hands on. You can sugar coat it and call it whatever you want, but that's what I'm dealing with. Illegal is illegal. Everyone wants to talk about it; but the fact remains that they're illegal. I've got them rounded up in my jail, why aren't they [the federal government] coming and getting them?

209 were in my jail this morning. 26 are illegal Mexicans -- about 12%. We're spending $1187 a day in the county jail for medical benefits for illegal Mexican criminals. We have felony warrants for illegals and call the dept of Social Security -- and that deparment would tell us that the wanted felon was receiving benefits; but would not tell us when he was expected in next to collect his free money.

98% of the gangs in my county are being organized by illegal Mexicans. He doesn't like the 287-G program because we're already funding the federal government to enforce the borders -- so it doesn't make sense to spend even MORE money on a program that's not working.

The illegals also have no respect at all for law enforcement. Obey our laws; learn how to drive; get a driver's license; get insurance; or go home. We've got to stand up because the federal government clearly isn't going to do their job. I've had enough, I don't know about you. What do we do? I don't know.

80% of the drug activity in Johnston county is being conducted by illegal Mexicans. It IS a problem. As Sheriff, I want the streets of my county to be safe. But in the streets, there's illegal Mexicans driving drunk all over the state. That's just not right. We are funding a society of illegals. Enough's enough.

Comments and discussion from the audience then continued:

Why are we funding illegals when we cannot fund our elderly population. When the illegals talk about being "victims," let's talk about the real victims.

A massive deportation would be a waste of time and money because they'd come back. Instead, this is a large business. A large number of people are making a lot money off illegals -- so in order to get them to self-deport, you need to get the profits out of illegals. This is the same mentality that got us into the civil war.

The chief law enforcement officer of the United States has to WANT to enforce the law. Our current president simply will not enforce the law. Why not use their drug money to deport them? If we depend on Congress to come up with a solution to illegal immigration, hell's going to freeze over before we get a solution. Why don't the governors pressure the president? Ogre notes: because they don't want to.

We have lost the battle on the word -- we can't call them criminal aliens because people just won't accept that today. What are we doing about the people who are trying to do their job like the Border Patrol agents who are going to jail for doing their job? Ron Woodard said, "You can make a difference." Most Congressmen have one goal in life: to get re-elected. You can talk to them and they will pay attention.

Money is distorting the political process. But politicians DO track letters, faxes, and calls. They track it and they pay attention to it. Calling your Congressmen and Senators will make a difference. There is less pressure to deport illegals due to the social security system -- half or more of illegals are contributing to the system which is preparing to support the retiring baby boomers.

Why not just get rid of the 14th Amendment? It was put in there for African-Americans who were slaves. The whole intent was to give citizenship for blacks after slavery. That was 1868. By now, they're all citizens. Because there are very powerful people that make a lot of money by keeping things the way they are now. Follow the money. North Carolina is rapidly become the Hispanic capital of the East Coast.

Posted by: Ogre at 06:55 PM | Comments (215) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Conveying the Conservative Message

This issue forum is about how to convey the conservative message. Featured in the picture is Rick Martinez, a radio host on state government radio. The panelist are talking about the conservative message. Interestingly, there have been numerous different answers to the very first question: "What is the conservative message and is it getting out?" Mr. Martinez was the moderator for this panel discussion.

There was discussion about gerrymandering and the fact that there is no choice in elections in North Carolina. Some members of the audience mentioned that in the North Carolina Legislature, Republican does not mean conservative -- you run as a Republican to get elected, and then you can govern any way you like.

Matt Mittan, a radio host from southeastern NC, says that we should talk about ideas, not labels. He believes that the conservative message is getting out, but the label of "conservative" isn't getting out. But he didn't care -- as long as good ideas get out.

He also says that a huge issue in North Carolina is ballot access -- libertarians are being told they simply don't exist in North Carolina because they're not allowed to be on the ballot. He says this is a BIG issue for conservatives.

Donna Martinez, another radio host and a television commentator said that she is a conservative and proud of it -- but may be a libertarian and doesn't realize it. She believes that conservatism is about personal responsibility and accountability. She believes that people should be absolutely free to make wrong and stupid choices.

Curtis Wright, a talk show host from Wilmington, says that the conservative message is what the next election will be about. But at the same time people today want to know "What's in it for me?" People want "Added value." If the conservative message doesn't show people the "Added value" of the message, people won't care.

Curtis Wright continued to say that all politics is local. Instead of focusing on national issues and Washington, we need to work on local issues and show people reasons to choose conservatives. Conservatives need to show people what's in it for them and their families. He says that too many people are involved "in the game" -- and no one cares about those people. He says that conservatives should never have to talk about what's going on in Washington and Raleigh, because the local people should be driving their activities.

Nathan Tabor says he is a Christian first, Conservative second, and Republican last. He believes that the conservative message is pro-God, pro-family, and small government.

Nathan Tabor continued that it was all about the primaries. That's where the battles need to be won. Conservatives have nothing that compares to moveon.org. He also believes that the liberals care more about the issues -- because they give more money and time than conservatives do.

One audience member strongly agreed with Curtis Wright -- that people simply do not care and will not care unless you start giving them something. Another audience member also agreed that conservatives need to show people what's in it for them. Towards the end, one audience member complained that he still did not see this panel show a clear answer to the initial question: "What is the conservative message." He outlined various points and idea.

Ogre thinks that one thing could define the conservative message and literally everything else would fall in line: Smaller Government. Unfortunately, that seems to be at odds with many people here today -- a smaller government does NOT ask what it can provide for others. A smaller government does not tell people what they will give to others -- with one exception. If you want to know what I would give you, were I elected, I'd give you one thing and one thing only: Freedom.

Posted by: Ogre at 06:16 PM | Comments (1130) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Rudy Speaks

Rudy Giuliani was introduced as "A Great Conservative Leader." Emphasis was put on his history of crime and safety; his cutting of taxes; and his efforts with welfare reform.

He was met with a great deal of cheering and applause. He started out with a few things that "we believe:"

He believes that the Republican Party, when it is working right, gives people more freedom and responsibility. He wants to give more freedom to people in choosing their education. He supports expanding options for parents in education. And he believes that rights have duties.

Regarding the recent Democrat activity about the war on terror, he asked when in history that any force that was retreating gave a schedule of the retreat to the enemy.

It is bad judgment to retreat in face of this terrorist threat.

He also believes strongly that Nancy Pelosi was very out of line in her recent trip to Syria. He agrees with most Americans who believe that "American should speak with one voice."

He is spending a bit of time talking about education. He does not support a reduction of spending in education, he says that since we're spending the money anyway, let's allow parents to select where to spend that money. He recognizes that the education system is a job protection system and he wants to make it about educating children.

More paraphrasing of his remarks:

The 2008 election will be about whether we will remain a private economy; or whether we will become a collectivist economy. "There is no question that they [Democrats] are marching us towards socialized medicine." They [Democrats] was bureaucrats making decisions, not doctors:

First of all, you should have a tax deduction [for health insurance] -- to encourage people to buy health insurance. We should expand the health savings accounts. Then, if we want to cover more poor people, we should give them vouchers. Then you get into legal reform and starting taking away this judgments and claims from trial lawyers.

Finally, one further thought on terrorism: Iraq is real important; and I think it's real important that we not retreat in Iraq. But it's not all about Iraq. The whole war on terror is not just about Iraq. If you focus just on Iraq, you can make mistakes -- like the Democrats are making. "This war on terror is a war against us."

Democrats won't admit that Islamic terrorists are dangerous. Islamic terrorists are dangerous to us. "They are planning to come here and kill us." The only way to deal with them is to remain on offense against them.

"The Constitution says that you have a personal right to carry arms." There can be restrictions, but they have to be reasonable. He agrees with the recent DC decision that prevented the ownership of arms. He agrees with restrictions such as mental illness; age; and conviction of crimes.

Developing...More notes and updates on this speech later this evening from Ogre.

Posted by: Ogre at 05:10 PM | Comments (21) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

Waiting Entertainment

While waiting for Mr. Giuliani's plane to arrive, the folks here are being quite graciously entertained by some members of a choir (sorry, I haven't been able to find out where they're from yet). Very nice entertainment while we wait:

You know, this is supposed to be "Lunch with Rudy" -- but I think everyone's going to be done eating long before he gets here. I wonder if he'll get to eat. I'm not sure I'd want to run for president if it means I have to miss meals...

Hey -- I think for next year I need to find a way to stream the audio from here. Then you could hear live what's going on if you couldn't make it here. Wouldn't that be fun?

Posted by: Ogre at 04:39 PM | Comments (13) | Add Comment | Trackbacks (Suck)

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