News Blog for social, fiscal & national security conservatives who believe in God, family & the USA. Upholding the rights granted by God & guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, traditional family values, "republican" principles / ideals, transparent & limited "smaller" government, free markets, lower taxes, due process of law, liberty & individual freedom. Content approval rests with the ARRA News Service Editor. Opinions are those of the authors. While varied positions are reported, beliefs & principles remain fixed. No revenue is generated for or by this "Blog" - no paid ads - no payments for articles.Fair Use Doctrine is posted & used. Blogger/Editor/Founder: Bill Smith, Ph.D. [aka: OzarkGuru & 2010 AFP National Blogger of the Year] Contact: editor@arranewsservice.com (Pub. Since July, 2006)Home PageFollow @arra
One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics
is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. -- Plato
(429-347 BC)
Read "Six Reasons to Oppose the ERA." Instead of lobbying for special rights in the face of growing opposition, the Left is promoting legislation that would quietly usher in their agenda through the backdoor at the state level. Now, state Rep. Lindsley Smith (D) is dusting off the amendment in a campaign to "protect women," when in fact, the U.S. Constitution already does so. Smith is pushing her state to ratify the ERA, which seeks not to end discrimination, injustice, or chauvinism, but to undermine motherhood, traditional sexuality, and innate gender differences.
The ERA specifically states that there can be no discrimination based on "sex," language which has since been used in the courts as an argument to legalize same-sex marriage in such states as Maryland, Hawaii and New Mexico. Now the Left, desperate to find some way around public opposition to homosexual marriage, hopes to revive the amendment under the guise of "female oppression." As the Arkansas Republican Assembly has pointed out, the ERA is problematic because it surrenders more rights than it confers. If approved, the ERA could forfeit: women's rights by requiring them to serve in the military; voters' rights by allowing the courts to interpret whether the ERA nullifies the state's marriage protection amendment; and the right to life by requiring the state to pay for abortions as it would for any other "medical procedure." Again - reconsideration and a new vote on the ERA may be scheduled in Committee without the previously well documented testimony previously presented. So take action right away.
The ERA movement in Arkansas is part of an aggressive strategy to obliterate the traditional family.What happens there could determine the fate of the ERA in America. Committee Members' Names, Email and Contact Info for the are on line at -- Click Now! Tags:Arkansas, Equal Right Amendment, ERA, HJR1002
Arkansas: Help Defend Your Hunting & Fishing Heritage! Senate Joint Resolution 7 (SJR7), an NRA-backed Constitutional Amendment sponsored by State Senator Steve Faris that would recognize hunting and fishing as constitutional rights, passed the Senate Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs. Please continue contacting members of the House Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs, and urge them to cosponsor Senate Joint Resolution 7 (SJR7) For additional details on this proposed Constitutional Amendment that would recognize hunting and fishing as constitutional rights, please click here.Tags:Arkansas, fishing, hunting, SJR7
Commerce chief pushes for 'North American integration'
Communiqué shows SPP far more than just 'dialogue' with Canada, Mexico - WorldNetDaily: While the Bush administration insists the controversial Security and Prosperity Partnership is just a dialogue with Canada and Mexico, a State Department cable released to WorldNetDaily shows Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez pressing to implement major trilateral initiatives to help "capture the vision of North American integration. "The cable was among some 150 pages of State Department SPP documents recently released to WND under a Freedom of Information Act request. Howard Phillips, who has formed a coalition to block development of a "North American Union" and formation of NAFTA superhighways, told WND the document "makes clear that the agenda of SPP is to pursue major economic integration that redefines U.S. businesses into a 'North American' definition" . . . [Read More]Update Info:North American Union: evolution by stealth? Tags:Carlos Gutierrez, Howard Phillips, NAU, North American Union, Security and Prosperity PartnershipTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Federal judge strikes down internet porn law as violating free speech Removes 'wall of protection between children and hardcore pornographers'
LifeSiteNews.com: A US district court judge stuck down a 1998 law passed by Congress against Internet pornography that made it a crime for commercial website operators to let children under 18 view pornographic materials. Senior U.S. District Judge Lowell Reed Jr., who presided over the four-week trial last fall, ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that the 1998 Child Online Protection Act (COPA) violated a constitutional right to free speech. The judge ruled that while the law intends to protect children from commercial pornography, parents can protect their children through software filters and other less restrictive means that do not impinge upon the rights of others to unrestricted access to pornography . . . [Read More]
ARRA Editor's Comment: To protect children, why can't others (adults) have "restricted access to pornography." Children need protecting -- they are not "impinging." We believe that the "majority of adults" would also appreciate some form of restricted access where they would be able to determine when (if ever) and where they want pornography available to them on the Internet. Again the minority desires are encroaching on the rights and desires of the majority. The issue is not free speech which still exists; it is an issue of open access to the eyes and minds of those who are minors and even to a majority of adults who don't even want access verses restricted access where the adult must "open the door and enter the place" where the pornography is displayed. What's next Judge - open sex publicly at 1st Street and Main Street in every city? I hope not. The Internet has become the "corner of 1st and Main" for public communication today and pornography need not be displayed at this point. Go town the street, turn left and enter the restricted location would be far more acceptable. Let's hope this case is appealed. Tags:ACLU, internet, pornography, protecting childrenTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Help Ensure Adopted Children have a Mother AND a Father
Arkansas bill, SB959 that would prevent homosexuals and adults in illicit relationships from adopting children has already passed the Senate, and it now needs help to ensure similar success in the state House. This bill merely affirms what social science has revealed again and again - the best environment to raise children is when a mother and a father are joined in marriage. Even the infamous Massachusetts Supreme Court, in a dissenting opinion to their notorious same-sex "marriage" case, argued that a mother and a father represent the best chance to raise healthy and successful children.
This bill reminds the people of Arkansas that the well-being of children must be our priority. Children represent the future, and we must cultivate that future with public policy that seeks their best interests. Some facts to consider: · A study of convicted child molesters, published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, found that "86 percent of offenders against males described themselves as homosexual or bisexual" (W. D. Erickson, M.D., et al., in Archives of Sexual Behavior 17:1, 1988).
· The rate of homosexual versus heterosexual child sexual abuse is staggering," said Reisman, who was the principal investigator for an $800,000 Justice Department grant studying child pornography and violence. "Abel's data of 150.2 boys abused per male homosexual offender finds no equal (yet) in heterosexual violations of 19.8 girls." See more staggering statistics at this link that could be used in emails or letters to committee members.
· A Florida’s law banning adoption by homosexuals was upheld by the 11th U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals. [quoted in article below]
According to Laura Kellams, NWANews: Two accused of sabotaging bill: One of the chief backers of a ban on adoption and foster parenting by homosexuals on Thursday accused the governor and speaker of the House of working behind the scenes to kill the legislation. Jerry Cox, executive director of the Family Council, said House Speaker Benny Petrus assigned the bill to an unfriendly committee, House Judiciary, in an effort to defeat it. He said Gov. Mike Beebe is putting pressure on lawmakers with vague comments about the bill’s constitutionality. ... [Read More]
Please act now and support the best interests of adoptive children - ask your state representative to support Senate Bill 959. Call, write, and email the members of the House Judiciary Committee Members, especially if the member is in your district. One legislator advised that letters are more effective than emails. Address letters to: Representative ___, State Capitol, Little Rock, AR 72201. Call the House Switchboard 501-682-6211 and leave a message for one of these committee members and ask them to vote for SB959 the ban on gay adoption. Governor Beebe's phone number for messages is 501-682-2345; his email is mike.beebe@governor.arkansas.gov
Help Ensure Adopted Children have a Mother AND a Father
Tags:adoption, Arkansas, Family Council, foster care, homosexuality, Jerry Cox, Senate, Shawn WomackTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
House Set Timetable for Troops in Iraq - Retreat And Butter
by Anne Flanherty (AP): A sharply divided House voted Friday to order President Bush to bring combat troops home from Iraq next year, a victory for Democrats in an epic war-powers struggle and Congress' boldest challenge yet to the administration's policy. Ignoring a White House veto threat, lawmakers voted 218-212, mostly along party lines, for a binding war spending bill requiring that combat operations cease before September 2008, or earlier if the Iraqi government does not meet certain requirements. Democrats said it was time to heed the mandate of their election sweep last November, which gave them control of Congress. ...
Voting for the bill were 216 Democrats and two Republicans - Wayne Gilchrest of Maryland and Walter Jones of North Carolina. Of the 212 members who opposed the bill, 198 were Republicans and 14 were Democrats. The bill marks the first time Congress has used its budget power to try to end the war, now in its fifth year, by attaching the withdrawal requirements to a bill providing $124 billion to finance military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of this year. ... In the Senate, Democratic leaders will need 60 votes to prevail - a tall order because they will need about a dozen Republicans to join them. And should lawmakers send Bush a compromise House-Senate measure, both chambers would need two-thirds majorities to override him - margins that neither seems likely to be able to muster. [Read More]
Retreat And Butter - Editorial, The Washington Post: Today the House of Representatives is due to vote on a bill that would grant $25 million to spinach farmers in California. The legislation would also appropriate $75 million for peanut storage in Georgia and $15 million to protect Louisiana rice fields from saltwater. More substantially, there is $120 million for shrimp and menhaden fishermen, $250 million for milk subsidies, $500 million for wildfire suppression and $1.3 billion to build levees in New Orleans.
Altogether the House Democratic leadership has come up with more than $20 billion in new spending ... [R]epresentatives who support the bill -- for whatever reason -- will be voting to require that all U.S. combat troops leave Iraq by August 2008, regardless of what happens during the next 17 months or whether U.S. commanders believe a pullout at that moment protects or endangers U.S. national security, not to mention the thousands of American trainers and Special Forces troops who would remain behind. ...
[H]ouse Democrats are pressing a bill that has the endorsement of MoveOn.org but excludes the judgment of the U.S. commanders who would have to execute the retreat the bill mandates. ... [Democrats] should not seek to use pork to buy a majority for an unconditional retreat that the majority does not support. Tags:Iraq War, Withdrawal, timeline, democrats, US House, US CongressTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
While HB1703 waits in the Arkansas Senate committee, one has to ask how such a "subversive plan to ditch the electoral college" and overturn the process that has worked well for over 200 years. Phyllis Schlafly detailed in an articlelast year the background of the "gang of frustrated liberals" and the consequences if their proposal was taken seriously.
Colorado and Tennessee have Rejected bills to abolish the electoral college. A Colorado house committee voted 10-1 to kill the bill that would enter Colorado into an interstate agreement to elect the president by popular vote. A law professor from Regis University, Jim Riley, said the bill's "effects would be potentially catastrophic for the nation." Another law professor, Robert Hardaway from the University of Denver, predicts that "without the electoral college, close votes would be a nightmare." Close presidential elections could result in "recounts in every precinct, in every state." (Rockymountainnews.com 3/9/07) In Tennessee, a similar bill did not spark enough interest to even receive a hearing.
As Schlafly rightly pointed out: The Electoral College is the successful vehicle by which a presidential candidate achieves a majority in a functioning political process. Abraham Lincoln won less than 40 percent of the popular vote and relied on his Electoral College majority for his authority. Basing the election on a plurality of the popular vote while ignoring the states would be like the New York Yankees claiming they won the 1960 World Series because they outscored the Pirates in runs 55-27 and in hits 91-60. No one challenges the fact that the Pirates fairly won that Series, 4 games to 3. Tags:Arkansas, Colorado, Electoral College, Phyllis Schlafly, Tennessee
Family Hangs in the Balance of New Budget Increased Income Taxes on Families Expected
by Tony Perkins, FRC Blog: As you fill out this year's IRS paperwork, enjoy your family tax breaks. If the new Senate leadership has its way, they may be among your last. This week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) unveiled a resolution that calls for a balanced budget by 2012. While it seems like an insurmountable task, liberals have found an easy solution. They'll simply reverse every GOP tax cut and raise an extra $900 billion in revenue.
As part of the plan, Democrats would reinstate the tax penalty on married couples, causing the standard deduction for joint filers to shrink from 200 to 167 percent by 2011. Also, liberals recommend slashing the child tax credit in half, reducing it from $1,000 to $500. Although Congress has managed to whittle the death taxes down to nearly nothing under the current code, Democrats would resurrect them in four short years. Unfortunately, the tax rates would rise substantially in every bracket, even among low-income taxpayers who would be forced to pay Uncle Sam at a 15 percent rate. Under the measure, taxes on both dividends and capital gains would increase by Jan. 2009. ... [Read More] Tags:Democrat, FRC, increased taxes, taxes, Tony Perkins
U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) responded today to plans by the amnesty coalition of Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and their announcement to push for yet, another amnesty and provide a path to citizenship to people who have broken the law." The President and his new Democratic allies in Congress seem hell-bent on cramming this mass amnesty down the throats of the American people whether they want it or not," said Congressman Tancredo. "They keep changing the shade of lipstick, but like I've said time and time again, it's still the same old pig."
The House version of the bill is expected to be introduced this week, while Senators Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ) dropping their companion bill likely next week. The Gutierrez/McCain legislation would allow Illegal aliens who pay a $2,000 fine and pass background checks to continue working for six years before they apply for a green card. It would also make those illegals eligible for amnesty if they could "document" that they arrived in the United States before June 1, 2006. Only the "head of the household" would have to leave and reenter the U.S. to complete their green card application. These former (six years ago) illegal aliens would not have to return to country of origin. They could just travel to Canada or Mexico to finish laundering their status. Children, elderly, single heads of household, business owners and those in military service are exempt from this component. Tancredo concluded, "The core elements of the bill are intact from last year's version, so the main question is whether freshmen Democrats who campaigned on a platform of strong border security and no amnesty will keep their pledges. I hope their constituents will see to it that they do."Tags:amnesty, illegal immigrants, Jeff Flake, John Mccain, Luis Gutierrez, presidential candidate, Ted Kennedy, Tom TancredoTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Bob Parks, Black and Right: The following video says what many of us had said and wished the Whitehouse press secretary would say ... [ Bob Parks is a member/writer for the National Advisory Council of Project 21, and VP of Marketing and Media Relations/Staff Writer for the New Media Alliance, Inc.]
Tags:Black and Right, Bob Parks, Iraq War, military troops, videoTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
By Susan Jones: Liberals call it a "hate crimes prevention" bill, but conservatives denounce it as "anti-Christian" legislation.Whatever you call it, the bill is back -- reintroduced by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) on Tuesday. Liberals are pressing for passage, and conservatives are pressing President Bush to veto the bill if it reaches his desk. "If there was ever a bill which needed to be vetoed -- this is it," said Traditional Values Coalition Executive Director Andrea Lafferty. "Most Christians might as well rip the pages which condemn homosexuality right out of their Bibles because this bill will make it illegal to publicly express the dictates of their religious beliefs." . . . [Read More] Tags:free speech, Hate Crime Bill, hate speech, homosexual activism, John Conyers, religious freedom, U.S. House, US CongressTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Gunning for Gun Owners -- Under fire from narcissistic journalists
by Michelle Malkin: "The Second Amendment," Charlton Heston used to say, "is America's first freedom." The Second secures the rest.It's a message narcissistic journalists need to hear again. A decade ago, Heston chastised the media in a National Press Club speech for its collective ignorance, apathy and open hostility toward gun owners' rights: "Clearly, too many have used freedom of the press as a weapon not only to strangle our free speech, but to erode and ultimately destroy the right to keep and bear arms as well. In doing so you promoted your profession to that of constitutional judge and jury, more powerful even than our Supreme Court, more prejudiced than the Inquisition's tribunals . . . [Read more]See also: Community suggests gun possession is illegal for residents Rudy's gun-control agendaTags:gun control, Michelle Malkin, second amendmentTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Republican Party General Chairman Senator Mel Martinez: Alberto Gonzales is a man of integrity and high ethical standards. He has pledged to cooperate with Congress and I am confident he will. I have said that it is irresponsible to pronounce judgment on the replacement of the U.S. Attorneys before we have the facts. Unfortunately, some would prefer to make political pronouncements instead of getting the facts. There is no question that U.S. attorneys, like all political appointees, serve at the pleasure of the President. That was true when Bill Clinton's Justice Department replaced all 93 U.S. attorneys, and it remains true today. The Democrats may feign outrage to distract from their discord on the serious issues our nation faces, but sooner or later they will have to face the real responsibilities of governing.Below, please find a link to the President's remarks on this issue that he made last night: President Bush Addresses Resignations of U.S. Attorneys Tags:Alberto Gonzales, Attorney General, Bill Clinton, Mel Martinez, President George Bush, Republican, RNC, US AttorneysTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Phyllis Schlafly: Our federal and state highways and bridges are among America's great assets; they enable us to drive freely and safely all over our country, and they belong to all of us, paid for by our taxes. But they are expensive assets; they require maintenance, repair, and expansion due to rising population and traffic. Anyone who does much driving on our highways in ordinary sedans knows how crowded with big trucks our highways already are. So we're not happy that President Bush's latest concession to Mexico is to allow Mexican trucks for the first time to have open access to all our highways, roads and bridges. ...
Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters went to El Paso to make the announcement that for the first time, starting in April, 100 Mexican trucking companies will be allowed to make deliveries anywhere in the United States, and she put no limit on the number of trucks the 100 companies can operate. This is a major step toward Bush's vision of a North American community. ... [Read More] Tags:highways, NAU, North American Union, Phyllis SchlaflyTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link".
Yesterday, state Sen. Shawn Womack (R- Mtn Home), 34 years old, suffered a "cardiac episode" about 8:30 a.m. at the state Capitol Tuesday morning and was taken to a hospital. He was taken to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, where doctors were running tests. Womack fell ill T uesday morning and was not at a meeting of the Joint Budget Committee, where he is a co-chairman. He was taken from the Capitol by ambulance to a Little Rock hospital.
People who have seen Womack said the senator was doing better, but that he shouldn't have visitors. He was to undergo some test today. If positive, he may even return to the Senate today or tomorrow. His wife, Melinda is with him. Womack is a true friend to the conservatives and of Christians. He recently got the Ban on gay adoption bill through the Senate which is now before the House for consideration. He also serves on the several committes where his viewpoint on pending legislation is critical. Please pray for Senator Shawn Womack and his wife Melinda. Tags:Arkansas, Senator, Shawn Womack
Arkansas House Reverses Itself and Passes Electoral College Bill
Update: This bill was defeated by one vote in committee in the Arkansas Senate. It can not be reintroduced until 2011. Of interest was why did Rep. Monty Davenport push a bill that his constituents overwhelmingly oppose. He has now announced that he plans to run for Arkansas Land Commissioner in 2010. Obviously, he's been seeking to cultivate funding from outside of his normal constituents for his future campaign.
HB1703, proposed by State Rep. Monty Davenport (D-Yellville) that would make Arkansas part of a movement to adopt a presidential-election system based on the popular nationwide vote passed the House by a vote of 52-41 and was sent to the Senate yesterday and is before the Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee. The House had previously rejected Davenport's bill on Monday on a 45-51 vote after members questioned the impact it would have on Arkansas' role in national politics. Davenport wants to direct Arkansas members of the Electoral College to vote for whichever presidential candidate won a majority of votes nationwide, regardless of how that candidate fared in Arkansas.
The proposed bill is part of an agenda advanced by a group trying to do away with the traditional role of the Electoral College. If this bill becomes law, Arkansas' votes and influence in Presidential elections would have no real effect on the selection of a President. A group of States with large populations would control the Presidential elections. Our countries forefathers created several protections in the constitution to protect the smaller populated states: each state would have 2 senators and the president would be chosen by the Electoral College process verses by a general popular vote.
If other states go along with the plan, it could have changed the way the nation elects presidents. Legislatures in North Dakota and Montana have rejected the plan. The Colorado Senate approved the measure last month. The California Legislature endorsed the agreement last year, but the governor vetoed it. The Electoral College has performed its function for over 200 years ... by ensuring that the President of the U.S. has both sufficient popular support to govern and that his popular support is sufficiently distributed throughout the country to enable him to govern effectively. ... Proposals to abolish the Electoral College, though frequently put forward, have failed largely because the alternatives to it appear more problematic than is the College itself. The fact that the Electoral College was originally designed to solve one set of problems but today serves to solve an entirely different set of problems is a tribute to the genius of the Founding Fathers." William C. Kimberling, Deputy Director, FEC National Clearinghouse on Election Administration.
Call to Action: Arkansas' electoral votes may be small but they are so important that presidential candidates and their campaigns must consider Arkansas voters. If this bill becomes law, presidential candidates will be able to ignore Arkansas entirely. It will not matter to them which way Arkansas votes as long as they win the larger populated areas in the U.S.. Why surrender our "minority" voice that was so wisely protected for us by our forefathers? Please contact your State Senator and ask them to protect the voice of Arkansas by voting NO on HB1703. See Also:U.S. Electoral College The Pro's and Con's of the Electoral College System Tags:Arkansas, elections, Electoral College, House
By Bobby Eberle, GOPUSA.com: The 2006 elections rightfully showed that conservatives are in a funk. There were no issues to rally around, and voters rejected Republicans who didn’t stand on principle. That same funk has continued into the 2008 presidential race. No Republican currently in the race has managed to excite the conservative base, and with the Democrats energized to regain the White House, the Republican Party definitely needs a spark. That spark is former U.S. senator and actor Fred Thompson. For the sake of the party and the conservative movement, we should all urge him to run. [Read More] See Also:Wamp Says Thompson Likely To Run For President A Conservative Who Can Win Analyst says Sen. Thompson would prove tough opponent for GiulianiTags:Fred Thompson, GOP, presidential candidate, Republican
Mainstream media ignore pro-troop gathering in D.C.
American Thinker: Over the weekend, anti-war protesters gathered in Washington DC to march on the Pentagon, reminiscent of a similar march back in 1967. There was plenty of coverage of this demonstration, and that of sister demonstrations around the world. What many of you might not know was that there was a gathering of people who not only support the troops, but are tired of the anti-war crowd getting all of the publicity. Surprised? If you depend on news sources like the Washington Post, New York Times, and television stations like ABC, CBS, NBC and CNN, then it's no wonder that you are. The Gathering of Eagles joined forces with Move America Forward's pro-troop caravan to meet at the Vietnam Memorial Wall, which is originally where International ANSWER wanted to kick off their march on the Pentagon ... Park Service personnel ... final estimate of 30,000 pro-troop people who flew, drove, or bused in. In the myriad of articles about this event, ... this estimate is not included along with the "thousands" who were there on the side of "peace."... [Read More] Tags:Washington, D.C., Gathering of Eagles, media bias, support troopsTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Tell Your Representative to vote NO on H.R. 1433! Eagle Forum: Earlier this year, Democrats attempted to pad their majority by giving certain congressional voting rights to delegates from 5 non-state territories -- the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. As we predicted, that was just the beginning. Now, they are taking the bold and unconstitutional step of granting full voting rights to the D.C. delegate by voting on the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act (H.R. 1433). Sponsored by Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), this bill, scheduled for a vote this Friday, would establish full House of Representatives voting rights for the District of Columbia and add an additional seat to Utah, the next state in line to pick up a Congressional seat in reapportionment . . .[Click for more]See also: D.C. voting rights and congressional politics (Tod Lindberg) Bush opposes bill giving D.C. the vote (United Press International) Contact your senators!Contact your representatives! ARRA Note:The Constitution says "the several states" shall send representatives to Congress - not the District or Territories. Utah will get their additional vote when reapportionment occurs and a bill is not needed. Tags:Washington, D.C., voting, voting rightsTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Update on 2-Prong Approach in House Threaten Free Speech
TVC: The new liberal Democrat leadership running the House of Representatives has an insidious 2-pronged approach to take away the voice of grassroots America and your right to freely petition your government leaders. 1st assault -- the House Grassroots Lobby bill will probably be introduced and voted on with only 24 hours notice.It is clear that Speaker Pelosi intends to include in the measure a provision like Sec 220 that violates the First Amendment rights of citizens to freely petition their government which we stripped from the Senate bill. The grassroots lobby language will make any person or group who alerts 500+ people do extensive reporting 4 times a year on Every Single Letter, Phone Call, Email, plus the cost, to send out to alert you and others.
Here are a few examples of the damage this language will do as cited by TVC lawyers and experts:
Require pastors who reach 500+ people to register as lobbyists.
Require registration and reporting by individuals and organizations who may never have face-to-face contact with members of Congress or staff and who only call upon citizens to weigh in on a legislative issue.
Require registration and reporting as lobbyists by vendors hired by any entity to mobilize public involvement in a legislative issue in Congress.
Require public reporting of amounts paid by the above groups for all letters, phone calls, emails, faxes, etc.
Fines and penalties would be established for failure to report amounts spent to mobilize public involvement in legislative issues.
No pastor or individual who sends out Action Alerts, emails, letters to Congress has the time to also send this info to the government.
2nd assault against citizens -- is H.R. 984 the Executive Branch Reform Act (Waxman/Davis bill). It would require more than 8000 Executive Branch officials including the Armed Forces to file reports 4 times a year on Every Single Email, Phone Call, Fax or Other Communication from Ordinary Citizens who are simply seeking to express an opinion on various issues. This is completely unreasonable. The Executive Branch would not be able to do anything else but fill out these reports. Making a mistake can result in a $50,000 fine!
The Washington Post reported on March 6 that Speaker Nancy Pelosi backs the measure and expects it to get a vote in the House. The above proposals are designed to remove the two most important protections contained in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution – free speech and the free exercise of religious beliefs. They want to put in language that would eliminate all grassroots warning systems.
Share this update with friends and family. Call, fax and email your congressman concerning these critical issues. Liberals are tired of hearing from the people. They dislike your emails and faxes calling attention to the issues that traditional families believe are important. They wish to shut you, your pastor, and grassroots support groups like the NRA, Focus on the Family, Grassroots.org, Pro-life groups, Traditional Values Coalition, etc., down by using bureaucracy, reporting requirements and fines. A citizenry educated and engaged is the greatest protection against tyranny and the liberals know this and will do anything to wipe-out the grassroots.
Tags:2nd Amendment, First Amendment, free speech, grassroots, religous freedom, Tradional Family Values CoalitionTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
When we hear our leaders talking about the economy, world trade, and the principles of economics, maybe it is time we have these principles translated so that all of us can understand them. If you’ve ever been bored sitting in Econ 101 you’ll enjoy this refreshing explanation by Yoram Bauman, "the world's first and only stand-up economist." I love how he differentiates between macro and micro: “Microeconomists are people who are wrong about things in specific. Macroeconomists are people who are wrong about things in general.”
Tags:Defender of Economic Freedom award, Economics, humor, video
Why the Left Hates Conservatism and Right Politics
by PL Booth, The Blue Eye View: What is it that makes the left so rabid? Why do they hate conservatism and Republicans? And why won’t the Republican Party respond in kind when its tenets are attacked, often maliciously and without real basis in fact. In my opinion, the left is rabid because it has largely accepted the tents of Socialism, Communism, and rejected Christianity, Godly values, and morality in general.[Read More] Tags:conservatism, liberal, PL BoothTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
by Jon Gilmore, RPA: On Saturday, March 17th, Karen Ray was hired as the Executive Director of the Republican Party of Arkansas, starting May 1st. Ray will replace Clint Reed who served for two years and recently accepted a position at the Republican National Committee. Ray currently serves in the Bush Administration as the Confidential Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security. Previously, Ray has served at the Department of Labor and on the 55th Presidential Inaugural Committee. In 2004, Ray served as the Central Arkansas Field Director for the Republican National Committee Coordinated Campaign, Arkansas Leadership Committee. Ray is a native of Mississippi and is a graduate of Mississippi College in Clinton, MS. [To Read Karen Ray's bio] Tags:Arkansas Republican Party, GOP, Karen Ray, RepublicanTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Documentary's scientists, climatologists agree: 'The whole thing stinks'
British TV Channel 4: We've almost begun to take it for granted that climate change is a man-made phenomenon. But just as the environmental lobby think they've got our attention, a group of naysayers have emerged to slay the whole premise of global warming. ... A dramatic documentary, produced by the UK's Channel 4 TV, deviates from the rest of today's dire presentations on impending global-warming disaster. In "The Great Global Warming Swindle," British TV director Martin Durkin interviews scientist after scientist who claim the current hysteria over global warming is, in a word, nonsense. . . . [READ More] Tags:climate change, global warmingTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
By Rachel Kapochunas, Congressional Quarterly: The highly assertive conservative political action organization Club for Growth is best known for letting the world know which congressional Republicans it least likes — namely moderates who the group labels as Republicans in Name Only (RINOs). But the club also takes the time to laud the business-oriented conservatives who score highest on its legislative scorecard. The report from the group on its 2006 congressional ratings, released Wednesday, awarded 22 members of Congress, all of them Republicans, its “Defender of Economic Freedom” award for racking up a 90 percent score or higher. [Read More & Review List of Award winners]
What about Arkansas congressional delegation? A review of the legislative scorecard revealed: For 2006 [2005 in brackets]: For House: Best Score -- Rank 1/437 Score 100/100=%
Boozman (R-3rd Dist) Rank 94 Score 61% [in 2005: rank 110 score 63%]
Ross (D-4th Dist) Rank 246 Score 27% [in 2005: rank 262 score 16&]
Berry (D-1st Dist) Rank 248 Score 26% [in 2005: rank 235 score 28%]
Snyder (D-2nd Dist) Rank 292 Score 14% [in 2005:rank 261 score 16%] For Senate: Best Score -- Rank 1/100 Score 100/100=%
Pryor (D) Rank 57 Score 18% [in 2005: rank 69 score 6%]
Lincoln (D) Rank 60 Score 12% [in 2005: rank 63 score 11%]Tags:Arkansas, Club for Growth, Defender of Economic Freedom award, US Congress
Ronald Reagan, John Wayne members of 'hate group'?
Campus organization smeared for opposing illegal immigration, same-sex marriage - WorldNetDaily: One of America's oldest and most mainstream conservative organizations -- whose membership has included Ronald Reagan and John Wayne -- has been designated a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center for opposing illegal immigration, same-sex marriage and affirmative action. Young Americans for Freedom at Michigan State University will appear on the list in April along with groups tied to racist skinheads, Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan. Former members of Young Americans for Freedom, founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1960, include Ronald Reagan; former Sen. Dan Quayle; Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-CO; and actor John Wayne. The left-leaningSouthern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) says its purpose is to combat racism and promote civil rights . . . [Click for more]ARRA Note:Conservatives please let the SPLC know our disdain for listing the Young Americans for Freedom on their list.Tags:conservative, John Wayne, leftist, Ronald Reagan, Southern Poverty Law Center, Tom Tancredo, Young Americans for FreedomTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
CNSNews.com: Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Barack Obama (D-IL) responded on Thursday to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace's comments that homosexual behavior is "immoral," but only after they were criticized for failing to do so by a homosexual advocacy group.
"Well, I've heard from a number of my friends, and I've certainly clarified with them any misunderstanding that anyone had, because I disagree with General Pace completely," Clinton told Bloomberg News. "I do not think homosexuality is immoral." Also on Thursday, Obama released a statement on the issue. "I do not agree with General Pace that homosexuality is immoral," the Illinois Democrat noted. "Attempts to divide people like this have consumed too much of our politics over the past six years" . . . The lack of open criticism from Clinton and Obama brought a sharp response from Jo Wyrick, executive director of the National Stonewall Democrats, on Thursday. "Morality is also embodied in action," Wyrick stated. "Our Democratic presidential candidates support employment non-discrimination legislation, the extension of health-care benefits to our families and oppose constitutional amendments that attack lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people for political gain. [Click for more] Tags:Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, homosexual activismTo share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
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The ERA bill, HJR1002 is back before the State Agencies and Governmental Affairs House Committee. Previously on Feb 7, after a heated debate, the committee split on a vote of 10-10 and the proposed bill died in committee: 10 FOR the ERA: Earnest Brown, Marilyn Edwards, Clark Hall, Mark Pate, Rick Saunders, Jeff Wood, Steve Harrelson, Eddie Cheatham, Charolette Wagner, Denny Sumpter 10 AGAINST the ERA: Dan Greenberg, Lance Reynolds, Pam Adcock, Robert Jeffrey, David Evans, Horace Hardwick, Daryl Pace, Eric Harris, Rick Green, Buddy Lovell.
