Early Voting Ends Today at 2:00pm
You watched the debates, you took our survey (or didn’t), attended the PPP Event or looked at the Voters’ Guide. Now it’s your chance to vote for the GOP Presidential Candidate of your choice. For most of us, it’ll be a difficult choice – but don’t use that as an excuse! If you anticipate for any reason that you won’t be able to make it on Election Day, January 31st – then vote early – by either going to an Early Voting Location or voting by Absentee Ballot.* Always check with the Supervisor of Elections if you have any questions either on their website or at (561) 656-6200.
Important – if you aren’t registered as a Republican – you will not be able to vote in the Presidential Preference Primary.
EARLY VOTING STARTS THIS SATURDAY!
Presidential Preference Primary Election
DATES
Saturday, January 21, 2012 through Saturday, January 28, 2012
HOURS OF OPERATION
Monday – Friday 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Saturday & Sunday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
VOTING LOCATIONS
Jupiter Branch Library, 705 Military Trail, Jupiter 33458
Palm Beach Gardens Library, 11303 Campus Drive, Palm Beach Gardens 33410
Supervisor of Elections Office, 240 South Military Trail, West Palm Beach 33415
Wellington Branch Library, 1951 Royal Fern Drive, Wellington 33414
Hagen Ranch Road Library, 14350 Hagen Ranch Road, Delray Beach 33446
Lantana Branch Library, 4020 Lantana Road, Lake Worth 33462
Belle Glade City Hall, 110 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd West, Belle Glade 33430
Boca Raton City Hall, 201 West Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton 33432
*ABSENTEE BALLOTS can be requested in many ways – by phone, online, requests can be faxed, a designated person can pick one up for you, you can mail in a postcard. You can also select in advance for which upcoming elections you desire an absentee ballot – so if you already know that you will be out of town for the primary in August or for the General Election in November – do it now – while you’re thinking about it. For more information on how to get your Absentee Ballot and when/how to send it in click here. Or go directly to the online form.
Opportunity to see Speaker Gingrich
Palm Beach County Tea Party wants to educate and inform voters, so we encourage all of our members to see the GOP Primary Candidates as they come to our area in the next two weeks. Here is an opportunity to hear Newt. Note that RSVP is Required.
RJC Florida Region presents
An Exclusive Event with
Speaker Newt Gingrich
Friday, January 27, 2012
The RJC Florida Region
is Proud to Present:
An exclusive opportunity to meet with
Presidential Candidate
Speaker
Newt Gingrich
Friday, January 27, 2012
Registration is at 2:30pm
Program is at 3:30pm
South County Civic Center
16700 Jog Road
Delray Beach, FL
Click here for map and directions.
RSVP Required / Seating is Limited
We are sorry, but we cannot accommodate those who do not RSVP in advance
RSVP to Leah Sabin at (561) 995-9445 or by
e-mail: florida@rjchq.org.
The Republican Jewish Coalition does not endorse any single candidate in the Republican Primary for President. We offer the opportunity for any major candidate or their designated surrogate to address our membership.
EPA and Administration Again Out of Control
The administration and the EPA are in the process of promulgating two job killing bills that will result in much higher electricity costs in our nation, drive existing manufacturing jobs overseas, and create disincentives for foreign entities to invest in manufacturing in this country.
The first is the Mercury & Air Toxics Standards (known also as the Utility Maximum Achievable Control Technology or MACT rule), and the Cross State Air Pollution Rule, CSAPR. Both stem from the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments.
Legislatures in Washington, including the democratic controlled house and Senate previously tried to issue similar rules, however, these were thrown out by the courts during the Bush administration. This left both rewrites to the Obama administration and his EPA and they are pushing these onerous regulations forward.
The rules of the CSAPR ratchets down the permitted sulfur and nitrogen oxide emissions in 27 upwind states, to limit harm to air in downwind states. Some 45 plaintiffs—mainly upwind state governments and power companies—allege irreparable harm if the rule takes effect when proposed January 1, 2012. A recent court ordered a stay which in fact will delay this implementation date. If in fact these rules are promulgated and compliance will be required in 2012, utilities have gone on record saying they will have to shut down existing coal facilities (coal generates 50% of the energy in the US), and inevitable power shortages will result with rotating brown outs and black outs.
The utility MACT rule responds to a court decision that mercury emissions cannot be traded like pollutants covered by CSAPR. So the Utility MACT rule sets standards that every generating site must meet, in effect ending, the “grandfathering” of old coal and oil plants enable by pollutant trading systems.
The Utility MACT rule was due to be final in November but the court gave EPA a one-month extension to consider final comments. It is now under Office of management & Budget review, and is due out shortly. If promulgated, it will take effect in 2015, giving utilities three years to ready their facilities.
There’s no debate that the MACT rules would mean shutdown of many smaller, older coal plants that can’t be upgraded economically, and expensive upgrades to many other coal facilities. Shutdown predictions run somewhere between 30 and 70 gigawatts (this represents approximately 300 plants or more). EPA estimates this rule will cost $10.9 billion annually in the next decade, for retrofits and replacements. As is always the case, when a governmental entitity estimates cost, you can pretty much expect that in the end, these costs will be between 5 times and 10 times their estimates. These costs therefore can be expect to be $100 billion or more. These costs incurred by the utilities will flow directly to ratepayers as the utility industry is a regulated industry—that’s you and me. Putting these controls into place with these associated costs does not produce one single kwh of electricity. If fact, the systems to be installed actually consume large amounts of power, so in effect, we are paying huge dollars for less power.
The costs, like those for CSAPR, are unevenly distributed, affecting coal-dependent utilities and regions more heavily. Most of the heavy manufacturing in this country are in fact in states where there is a higher concentration of coal plants. The reason of course for this is that coal power other than nuclear is the cheapest power—cheap power—results in competitive products. Competitive products result in companies growing and increasing jobs. These higher costs will result in these businesses being less competitive in world markets. Result—shutdowns—less jobs.
The good news is that just a few days ago, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit temporarily blocked the Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) just two days before it was set to go into effect. The federal court ordered the EPA to continue administering the previously promulgated Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) until a final decision can be made on the merits of the rule, likely this summer or fall. Pundits believe that this is only a delay and later this year, the courts will rule in EPA’s favor.
House Republicans have made repeated attempts this year to stop EPA, but none of those efforts are even getting to a vote in Harry Reid’s obstructionist Senate.
It is a well known and proven fact that low cost electricity directly correlates with GDP growth and prosperity of citizens within one’s country. We have been blessed as many other countries have not, with plentiful natural resources, coal ,natural gas, rivers and streams for hydro, and geothermal. Yet, this administration consistently places barriers in our ability to utilize these God given resources. It simply makes no sense.
Look at the average cost of electricity among many OECD nations. The reason why their costs of electricity are higher is real simple. They simply do not have the natural resources in their country to use in power plants. They must import—therefore, the costs are significantly higher. But we all know, the Obama administration wants to level the playing field—that’s right—they clearly do not want the US to have a competitive advantage. Look at the costs measured in cents per kwh.
Australia 19.7 cents/kwh
Denmark 39.3 cents/kwh
France 18.6 cents/kwh (they are 50% nuclear and why they are less than their fellow Europeans)
Germany 35.6 cents/kwh
Ireland 27.3 cents/kwh
Italy 27.2 cents/kwh
Spain 26.3 cents/kwh
Sweden 26.2 cents/kwh
USA 11.6 cents/kwh
China 5.1 cents
India ` Unknown but heavily subsidized by the government—estimated to be less than 5 cents/kwh
kwh
In China, 77% of current power generation is coal—China is rich in indigenous coal resources, and China is in fact the largest energy producer in the world. They are building coal plants at a significant rate per year. The last time I checked, their added generation per year is more than 20 times that of the US-almost all of which is fossil fuel production—coal. China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal. Their own supply and purchases 2010 rose 25 percent from a year earlier. This is why their cost per kwh is so low—coal produces cheap power!
In India, thermal plants account for over 65% of generation—that is almost all coal- AND 14.1 GW of new thermal mostly coal is under construction and expected to be put into use by December of 2012—2.1GW of hydro, and 1 GW of nuclear. Just to give you a feel, in the US—we have about 6 GW under construction, much of which is gas fired combined cycles to replace retired coal plants. It is literally impossible to permit a new coal plant in the US today.
We also know that the Europeans previously implemented very onerous emissions limits requiring huge investments in back end equipment—thus also contributing to their high costs of electricity. Once again, this administration is exercising a policy of “let’s follow the European model”.
One thing for sure, the court’s stay decision will contribute to regulatory uncertainty for power companies and power markets in a time of significant EPC rulemaking activity. The order suggests that litigation will remain a wild card for compliance and market planning.
This regulatory uncertainty along with this administration’s onerous rule making and over regulation continues to dampen any recovery in our country. They simply don’t understand the concept that the private sector can deal with bad news, but they cannot deal with uncertainty—so when companies are faced with huge uncertainty, they don’t expand, they don’t invest, and they don’t create jobs. I guess we shouldn’t expect anything else from a President who has never held a real job, who surrounds himself with advisors, 80% or more of which also never had a job in the private sector. They simply are incapable of understand the capitalist business model since they have never done it!
America’s air is markedly cleaner than it was 40 years ago when the Clean Air Act was passed. Just a few stats, between 1980 and 2010, carbon monoxide has been reduced 82%; Lead by 90%; nitrogen oxide by 52%, and sulfur dioxide by 76% without any significant change in the fuel mix of our generation assets in the US. That means the industry has heavily invested in cleaning up coal and gas plants so that today they are extremely clean. The mission, however, of the EPA is to incrementalize and tighten down any pollutants without regard to cost impact and will not be satisfied until these fossil assets are shut down completely. The economic costs due to the rule of diminishing returns, simply is not practical. Costs to the EPA of implementation mean nothing—they are out of balance with reality and until we get an administration that can “balance” them, we will continue to threaten our nation, our way of living, and our economic prosperity and most importantly, our national security.
Gun Case Resolved for Tea Party Patriots Leader Mark Meckler
Many of our Palm Beach County Tea Party members met Mark Meckler last September when he and Dawn Wildman visited all three of our chapters. Just before Christmas, you may have read that Mark was arrested in LaGuardia airport on a firearms charge. The liberal media portrayed this as a major arrest and that Mark was facing 15 years in prison due to a firearms charge. This situation has been resolved positively Mark can finally explain what happened. Since our major media outlets will not cover this positive outcome, I want to share Mark’s statement with you. It is lengthy but well worth the read!
From Mark Meckler:
On December 15, 2011 at approximately 5:15 a.m., I was at LaGuardia International airport preparing to check in for a flight out of the city. During a routine check-in, I requested a firearms declaration form from the ticket agent. It was my intent to declare and check my unloaded firearm.
I purchased this firearm legally, and I have a valid concealed carry permit for it issued in California. The unloaded gun was locked inside a TSA-approved travel case, and the case was locked inside my checked luggage. I carry the firearm for my personal safety, having received numerous threats due to my role in the Tea Party Patriots. I have checked this firearm at airports dozens of times before, all across the country.
As I traveled through LaGuardia that morning, I passed TSA signs telling me I had the right to check this unloaded firearm in my luggage, and that I am required by law to declare the firearm to the ticketing agent. This is exactly what I did.
The ticketing agent provided me with the declaration form, and I signed it and returned it to her. She advised me that she would need to call Port Authority police to inspect. This is not unusual when traveling with a firearm. Procedures vary from airport to airport, from airline to airline, and even from day to day, and as a law-abiding citizen, I have always been happy to cooperate.
Unfortunately, that day, I didn’t realize that I was about to cross paths with New York City’s anti-Second Amendment stance. Upon showing my case and the weapon to the officer who arrived on the scene, and after a few brief questions, she advised me that she was placing me under arrest for violating New York City’s firearms laws.
To say that I was stunned would be an understatement. I am from a law enforcement family. My mother is a retired correctional officer, and I have spent my life around folks from the law enforcement community. I have always considered myself a law-abiding citizen. I have never been arrested before. I have never been in police custody. I can never say those things again. On December 15th, 2011, I was arrested, handcuffed at the ticket counter, and taken to a waiting squad car for transport to the Port Authority Police station at LaGuardia.
I was subsequently transferred, in handcuffs, to the Queens Central booking facility in New York City. I was charged with felony possession of a firearm with intent to do harm. I spent the day in Queens…in jail.
It was a nightmare that I can scarcely describe to you. Until you have felt the handcuffs on your wrists, and until you have heard that cell door close behind you, it is impossible to understand what it means to actually lose your liberty. And since that day, my liberty has been at stake, and because of that threat, based upon the advice of counsel, I’ve been unable to publicly speak about this case. Today the silence ends.
I am pleased to announce that the criminal case against me has been dropped. Although I was originally charged with a violent felony, the case against me was resolved with a plea to “disorderly conduct. ” Disorderly Conduct is not a felony or a misdemeanor, or even a crime. The facts underlying my plea are that I declared a legally purchased, properly licensed and unloaded firearm at an airport counter. Apparently, much to my surprise, in New York City, it is considered “disorderly conduct” to exercise your constitutionally guaranteed, Second Amendment rights.
Strangely, now that the case against me is over, the authorities refuse to return my firearm. There is no law that allows them to confiscate a weapon in this manner. They simply say “no” when you ask for your weapon back. This is apparently their “policy.” This is apparently done regularly in New York. This is government robbery. Not only is New York City anti-Second Amendment rights, but they are depriving citizens of their legally owned property. My lawyer has advised me that I can attempt to pursue the return of my firearm, but that to do so would cost me more than the firearm is worth. I am not alone in facing this tyranny. It has happened to hundreds of people in the New York metro area. My lawyer, Brian Stapleton, has handled over 400 of these cases himself, so he is an expert on the subject.
While the end of this case is the end of a horrible nightmare for my family and I, it is not the end of this fight. It is just the beginning. Since the original incident, I have received more emails, phone calls, texts and tweets of support than you can possibly imagine. To those people, I want to say heart-felt thanks on behalf of my entire family. We have come to know that we are not alone in this particular fight. Apparently, this happens to hundreds of people per year in New York City. And New York City is not alone in its attack on our rights. This sort of Constitutional abuse, Second Amendment and otherwise, is taking place all over the nation. And we as citizens must stand against it. We must protect our rights, or we will lose them.
Many of you know me as someone who is willing to stand and fight for self-governance in this country. I’m no politician, and I’m not from a powerful or connected family. I’m an average American citizen. And I stand shoulder to shoulder with millions of other Americans who, despite enormous obstacles, and despite the politicians and ruling elite who oppose us, intend to return this country to the bounds of the United States Constitution.
The politicians and ruling elite will try, but we must not let them label us Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal. We cannot let them make us fight against each other. Too much is at stake. We the People are losing our sovereignty to the government. We the People, must stand and fight for our inalienable rights.
I’m not alone in this fight. There are so many laws, that no one can possibly know or understand them. We are all affected. From the inner city to the farm, from the heartland of America to the coasts, people are under pressure from a government that no longer serves them. From my home in California, to the farmland of Kansas… from the small towns of South Carolina to the metropolis of New York, every year the legislatures pass thousands of laws and regulations that do not serve the people.
The legislators don’t read the bills they pass, and even if they did, they couldn’t understand them. Our criminal justice system is terribly broken, and no longer serves the people and the communities it was intended to serve. Our regulatory system is broken; small businesses and the communities that rely on them crushed under the weight of unnecessary regulation.
We are, step by step, destroying the heart of America. And we are doing so because we are not governing ourselves according to the Constitution. It’s up to us…the People.
It’s time to stand for self-governance. It is time to stand for the plain meaning of the Constitution. Every word of the Constitution is important, and we must fight for them all. We must fight for every inch of this country, from the inner city to the smallest rural town. We are, all of us, first and foremost, American citizens. We’ve always governed ourselves…and we always intend to. And we’ve always been willing to stand when freedom is at stake. It is time to stand…time for all of us, every race, every religion, every gender, every American to stand up and fight for liberty and take responsibility for governing ourselves.
No one should ever have to go through what my family has been through, simply for exercising a fundamental right, specifically enumerated in the United States Constitution. I am committed to making sure no one does. And I’m willing to work with anyone…anyone, who agrees that it’s time for the people to govern themselves once again.
Will we as citizens fight for our inalienable right to govern ourselves, or will we quietly allow ourselves to be “governed” into submission by a ruling elite, disconnected from our citizens and our communities? Only history will tell, but I intend to fight.
Mark Meckler
A 2012 Conservative’s view of the Republican Party
This is the impression of a conservative once-upon-a-time Republican who was left behind when the Republican Party moved left to join the progressive Democrats.
The Republican Party hierarchy appears to be threatened by the rise of conservatives in their midst who won elections in 2010 and could challenge the party hierarchy for influence and power if these conservatives grow stronger and more numerous.
That Republican Party hierarchy has done its best to marginalize the conservative members of Congress.
That Republican Party hierarchy responded to the perceived conservative threat by turning a cold shoulder to the more conservative presidential candidates and has orchestrated carefully timed endorsements of their liberal candidate.
That Republican Party hierarchy has done nothing to change a New Hampshire voting procedure that allows progressive Democrats and Independents to vote for the Republican Party’s liberal Republican candidate. If the Republicans allow Democrats to help them pick their nominee, why not let illegal aliens help too? At the same time the Republican Party hierarchy threatens to punish Florida, which requires that only Republicans vote in the Republican primary election, for adjusting the date of their primary election. Date adjustment is apparently a much more serious transgression than non-Republicans voting for a Republican nominee.
That Republican Party hierarchy has arrogantly taken the position that conservatives, concerned about the direction the progressive Marxist incumbent White House occupant has taken the country, will have to vote for their Republican nominee no matter how liberal that nominee is. That Republican Party hierarchy behaves like it is the only game in town and the conservatives can take it or leave it. Do they not know that many conservatives are seriously considering the “leave it” option?
That Republican Party hierarchy seems oblivious to the need for an enthused electorate that will beat the bushes and provide funds to help their candidate get elected.
That Republican Party hierarchy does not seem to understand or care about the role enthusiastic Tea Party members and other conservatives played in the election of the conservative Republicans in 2010.
That Republican Party hierarchy does not seem to understand that one option for conservatives is to turn their enthusiasm and money to conservatives running for Congress and local offices and to ignore the Republican Party’s progressive presidential candidate.
That Republican Party hierarchy apparently cannot conceive of the possibility that their 2012 liberal presidential candidate who does not fire up the conservative base can suffer the same fate as their 2008 liberal presidential candidate who did not fire up the conservative base.
This conservative’s view: A conservative replacement for the progressive Republican Party cannot come too soon.
February Jupiter/PBG Chapter Meeting Features Author Ron DeSantis
| DATE: | Monday, February 6th, 2012 |
|---|---|
| TIME: | Doors open 5:30pm. Buffet at 6pm. Meeting starts at 7pm, $15 per person (tax and gratuity included) |
| PLACE: | Abacoa Golf Club 105 Barbados Drive Jupiter, Florida Click HERE for Map |
| RSVP: | Click on the RSVP button below, or email to rsvp.jupiter@gmail.com, or call 561-316-7475. |
The video below is an introduction to the topic. We look forward to seeing you there!!!
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February Boca Chapter Meeting Features Author Ron DeSantis
| DATE: | Tuesday, February 7th, 2012 |
|---|---|
| TIME: | Doors open 5:30pm. Buffet at 6pm. Meeting starts at 7pm, $15 per person (tax and gratuity included) |
| PLACE: | a href=”http://www.bocagreenscountryclub.com/”>Boca Greens Country Club 19642 Trophy Drive, Boca Raton, FL 33498 Click HERE for Map |
| RSVP: | Click on the RSVP button below, or email to rsvp.boca@gmail.com, or call 561-302-1479. |
The video below is an introduction to the topic. We look forward to seeing you there!!!
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PPP Event provides new GOP Primary Candidate insights
The joint Presidential Preference Profile Event between Palm Beach County Tea Party and South Florida 912 was held at the First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach. We’d like to give special thanks to the First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach for allowing us to use these beautiful facilities, and for making the arrangements. Thanks especially to Jimmy Scroggins, Senior Pastor and Linda Thornton, Senior Pastor Assistant and all who were involved. And thanks to Joy Stone, member of the congregation, and a member of both South Florida 912 and Palm Beach County Tea Party for making the initial contacts for us.
The event was intended to inform the grassroots activist members of both groups about the candidates in the upcoming January 31st Florida GOP Presidential Preference Primary, and to provide them with additional information to motivate them to join the campaigns for the final 3 weeks prior to the primary.
Pam Wohlschlegel, Chairman and County Coordinator for Palm Beach County Tea Party and Florida Chair for Tea Party Patriots. introduced David DiCrescenzo, Publisher/Editor in Chief of The Patriots Press and long-time South Florida 912 member, who led us in a heart-felt, moving invocation. Then Jason Shields, another long-time South Florida 912 member and leader, led us in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Pam asked for a show of hands on how many undecideds were in the audience. Over 60% percent raised their hands. She spoke about the hard work ahead and how both PBCTP and South Florida 912 plan to work together to achieve success in 2012. Cooperation, Collaboration and Communication were to be the hallmarks of 2012!
Pam turned the podium over to Shannon Armstrong, Founder of South Florida 912. Shannon asked the attendees how many went to the first 9/12 March on DC in 2009. Several in the audience had. She asked us to consider how much intensity we felt then and in the 2010 election campaign and did we feel that now? If not – we have to look within ourselves and regain that intensity as we head towards this most important election in 2012. She then introduced the Master of Ceremonies for the evening, Brian Mudd, Program Director 1290 WJNO & 1230 WBZT Financial Analyst & Co-host for The Morning Rush.
Brian also spoke motivationally – encouraging all of us to listen to the candidates’ positions and to pick our candidate, but to all get behind the eventual winner to ensure a win in 2012. He asked Fred Scheibl, long-time member of South Florida 912 and co-founder of Palm Beach County Tea Party, to explain what the evening was about. Fred gave the ground rules.
Each of the candidate representatives were to have 5 minutes to discuss their candidates values on:
- Leadership – what makes a good leader, who they admire
- Character – which attributes of character are most important, which guide their lives
- Worldview – what is America’s role in the next 20 years, what are our top three economic problems, top three foreign policy challenges?
- Quality of Solutions – What is the major advantages of your tax plan, your doctrine on foreign interventions, your approach to the size of government
- Governing style – How will you get things done? How will you “change Washington?” How will you differ from Barack Obama? From George Bush?
The next portion of the agenda was to discuss Policy Positions and each surrogate could pick from any of the following areas and speak for another 5 minutes: Tax Reform, Spending and Deficit, Size of Government, 10th Amendment, Health Care, Regulations, Trade/China, UN/NATO/EU, Arab Spring, Role of the Military.
Finally – the reps would get 3 minutes each to wrap up and solicit volunteers, after which Brian would moderate 10 minutes of questions.
Fred explained that the PPP Voters’ Guide was a combination of responses provided by each of the campaigns coupled with the research done by several Palm Beach County Tea Party and South Florida 912 members. The complete guide is 44 pages long, but the 4 page summary is also available online. Thanks to all of the members who participated – in particular Alex Berry, Richard Bock, Joe Burge, Barry Carson, Mary Farrell, Laura Henning, Gary Summers and Kim Winker.
Brian then introduced the candidate surrogates:
For Newt Gingrich: Tami Donnally, PBC Co-Chairman
For Ron Paul: Francisco Rodriguez, PBC Co-Coordinator
For Rick Perry: Craig Briscoe, Southwest FL Regional Director
For Mitt Romney: Fran Hancock, PBC Co-Chairman
For Rick Santorum: Starla Brown, Southeast FL Regional Coordinator
Each of the surrogates were volunteer activists with extensive experience. All should be congratulated on the amount of work they put into preparing for the Event and in their outstanding detailed and eloquent descriptions of their candidates Worldview and Policies. Thanks to all of you! Well done!
Ed Fulop – South Florida 912 Project organizer and long-time member served as our time-keeper. The representatives had clearly timed their presentations and most finished well-within their allotted timeframes!
Mid-way through the presentations, Brian pointed out the quality, depth and caliber of the positions of any and all of the GOP candidates when contrasted with the current administration. We should be proud to support any of these folks!
After the Q&As, Fred gave the current results of the member Surveys from both the South Florida 912 and Palm Beach County Tea Party websites. When tallied together, the tied overall winners were Congressman Paul and Senator Santorum. The survey remains on the websites and you are welcome to continue to take and/or modify your ratings of the candidates.
Finally, Jason Shields announced the 50:50 winner and the meeting concluded. Many stayed to talk with the various candidates representatives.
Thanks to all who participated. Please feel free to distribute the links to the complete Voters’ Guide and to hand-out/print-out the short version to all whom you think may benefit from it. We want informed voters at the upcoming Primary and hope these tools will assist you in your decisions.
Some pictures from Iris:
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American Jobs and Energy Sacrificed to Obama’s Political Ambitions
By Barbara Samuells, Founder of 912 Super Seniors
Note well, Republican Congressmen and energy conscious American citizens, there is no chance this president will approve the Keystone Pipeline even to please his constituents with a another decrease in payroll taxes and an increase in taxes on millionaires. He will get what he wants some other way, the Chicago way.
Know that this president will never allow the Keystone Pipeline anymore than he will allow the Utica, Ohio shale oil project to go forward. Political calculations trump all else for this administration . On Nov. 8, Ohio’s Issue 3 offered its citizens a voice on the mandates of Obamacare. Ohioans were the first and the only Americans who actually got to vote on Obamacare. By two to one, they voted “NO“. The 20 month effort of over 4400 volunteers who collected petition signatures to put Issue 3 on the ballot resulted in every Ohioan having the chance to reject the forced healthcare mandates of PPACA, known as Obamacare.
Quick as a wink Ohioans received their first punishment for voting against Obama’s signature accomplishment. The Utica, Ohio shale oil project was stopped in its tracks by a federal agency, the USDA.
Like the Keystone Pipeline, this shale oil resource in Ohio would provide needed energy sourced outside the Middle East. Ohio’s Department of Natural Resources estimates a possible yield of 5.5 billion barrels of oil and 15.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The Utica, Ohio project would create 200,000 direct jobs by 2015.
Also, like the pipeline, it has been halted by Obama’s political muscle. After Ohio’s stinging rejection of Obamacare the USDA imposed a six month delay for “additional research” thus enabling the environmentalists who know there must be damage to forests, water or something, but need more time to find it. What are the chances the delay will turn into more delays and an eventual ban of the entire project? Energy and jobs are denied to teach a Chicago style lesson to Ohioans and any Americans daring to challenge this president’s plans.
The message to Americans is clear and the Chicago playbook is wide open. The loss of many thousands of jobs and the energy we sorely need is nothing compared to the raw political power used to keep uncooperative American citizens in line.
MAJOR 2012 FLORIDA LEGISLATURE ISSUES
The 2012 legislative session will begin on January 10, 2012 and end on March 9, 2012
There are two major constitutionally required activities for the session, redistricting and appropriating. Some legislative leaders have said that not much more will get done in the allotted 60 days.
1. REDISTRICTING
In 2012 the legislature is required to redraw both the U.S. congressional district boundaries and the state legislative district boundaries. The effort must be consistent with provisions of the U.S. and Florida Constitutions and the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965
1.1 U.S. CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT BOUNDARIES
Florida is required to change its existing congressional district boundaries because it is adding two representatives for the 2012 election.
The U.S. Constitution states in ARTICLE I., Sect. 2. “Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to the respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct.”
The Census Bureau reports that in the 2010 census the total US population was 308,745,538
The Census Bureau also reports that in the 2010 the Florida population was 18,843,326
If the population were to be distributed equally to each member of the U.S. House of representatives, each of the 435 members would represent 709,760 people (308,745,538/435=709,760), and Florida would have 27 congressional districts (18,843,326/709,760=27). At the present time Florida has 25 congressional districts so the increasing state population requires the addition of two more representatives. These are to be elected in 2012.
The present congressional district boundaries are the result of the liberal application of Gerrymandering. For example, the 16th congressional district represented by Tom Rooney of Tequesta stretches from Palm Beach County on the Atlantic Ocean to Punta Gorda in Charlotte County on the Gulf of Mexico.
The recently enacted provisions of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Florida Constitution (SECTION 16) enumerated in Section 1.2 below apply to the congressional district boundaries and make the work of the legislature more challenging.
The challenges are political, not a simple matter of mathematics. It is necessary to have districts that are compact and utilize existing political and geographical boundaries. Many state politicians see that it is their challenge is to redistrict while minimizing the impact on the electability of incumbent politicians.
The plan developed by the legislature will have to be approved by the U.S. Justice Department (a Voting Rights Act requirement) and be in place for the primary election in August.
1.2 FLORIDA STATE LEGISLATURE DISTRICT BOUNDARIES
The Florida State Constitution states in “SECTION 16. Legislative apportionment.—
(a) SENATORIAL AND REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICTS. The legislature at its regular session in the second year following each decennial census, by joint resolution, shall apportion the state in accordance with the constitution of the state and of the United States into not less than thirty nor more than forty consecutively numbered senatorial districts of either contiguous, overlapping or identical territory, and into not less than eighty nor more than one hundred twenty consecutively numbered representative districts of either contiguous, overlapping or identical territory. Should that session adjourn without adopting such joint resolution, the governor by proclamation shall reconvene the legislature within thirty days in special apportionment session which shall not exceed thirty consecutive days, during which no other business shall be transacted, and it shall be the mandatory duty of the legislature to adopt a joint resolution of apportionment.”
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The Florida State Constitution also states in “SECTION 21. Standards for establishing legislative district boundaries.—In establishing legislative district boundaries:
(a) No apportionment plan or district shall be drawn with the intent to favor or disfavor a political party or an incumbent; and districts shall not be drawn with the intent or result of denying or abridging the equal opportunity of racial or language minorities to participate in the political process or to diminish their ability to elect representatives of their choice; and districts shall consist of contiguous territory.
(b) Unless compliance with the standards in this subsection conflicts with the standards in subsection 1(a) or with federal law, districts shall be as nearly equal in population as is practicable; districts shall be compact; and districts shall, where feasible, utilize existing political and geographical boundaries.
(c) The order in which the standards within subsections 1(a) and (b) of this section are set forth shall not be read to establish any priority of one standard over the other within that subsection.
History.—Proposed by Initiative Petition filed with the Secretary of State September 28, 2007; adopted 2010.
1Note.—The subsections of section 21, as it appeared in Amendment No. 5, proposed by Initiative Petition filed with the Secretary of State September 28, 2007, and adopted in 2010, were designated (1)-(3); the editors redesignated them as (a)-(c) to conform to the format of the State Constitution.”
The federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 requires the creation of a district that performs for racial minorities where (1) a minority population is geographically compact and sufficiently numerous to be a majority in a single district; (2) the minority population is politically cohesive; (3) the majority votes sufficiently as a bloc to enable it usually to defeat the minority-preferred candidate; and (4) under all of the circumstances, the minority population has less opportunity than others to participate in the political process and elect representatives of its choice.
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2. BUDGETING AND APPROPRIATING
Funds for operating the state must be appropriated in bills passed by the legislature and approved by the Governor.
This is normally a lengthy process involving the drafting of proposed legislation by the various representatives, the holding of hearings by legislative committees of both the House and Senate to consider the bills and recommend changes, and the passage of the bills by both houses after they have been reconciled to be identical.
3. OTHER LEGISLATION
As of January 8, 2012 approximately 700 bills were submitted in the House for consideration and 900 bills in the Senate and more are being submitted daily.
The media outlets are replete with reports by various advocates and opponents of proposed legislation endeavoring to get their issues before the public in an effort to influence which, if any, bills will get passed.
Legislative leaders have said not much more than redistricting and appropriating will get done.
