Meet Candidate Rick Wilson

Rick Wilson, Candidate for the 5th Congressional District, will be giving a presentation on Thursday, December 17 at Vassar's Bullard Sanford Memorial Library.  The presentation, from 6:30pm to 8:00pm, is sponsored by  the Western Thumb TEA party.  Rick will speak on two subjects.  He will be talking on the threat to the United States of an EMP (Electro-Magnetic Pulse) attack, a subject he has also presented to the Tri-City 9/12 group.  Most of the evening will be on the "transcendent threat of our time - radical Islam."

The library is located at 520 W. Huron Av. In Vassar, Michigan.  You can find more information on Rick Wilson's campaing and positions at his website: http://www.rickwilsonforcongress.com/.

Rick has had a busy November campaigning, meeting with the Saginaw Valley State University College Republicans on November 3, meeting National Republican Party Chair Michael Steele at an Ottawa County GOP luncheon on November 12, and attending the Michigan Farm Bureau candidate training course on November 18 and 19.

Oakland County "Packing" Party

As we enter the holiday season, please join the Oakland County Republican Party, the West Oakland Republican Club and the Fix Michigan Center for a holiday "Packing Party" for our troops overseas.  This is a great way to say "THANK YOU" for all that they do!  As you know, every day these brave men and women put their lives on the line fighting for our freedom, so join us to partake in the holiday spirit and pack a care package for our troops.

The party will be on Wednesday, December 9, from 4:00pm - 7:00pm., at the Rock Financial Showplace, 46100 Grand River Av., Novi, Michigan.  You may call 248-254-3425 for additional information, or check the Oakland County Republican Party website at: http://www.oaklandgop.net/.

The following items are always in need, so please bring donations with you:
granola bars, candy bars, trail mix, gum, instant oatmeal, dry drink mix, chips, hard candy, cookies, crackers, dehydrated fruit, protein bars, cereal bars, nuts, cereal (individual boxes), energy bars, beef jerkey, easy open cans of tuna or chicken, Ramen Noodles, non-perishable instant foods, soap, body wash, Q-Tips, Chapstick, conditioner, stick deodorant, disposable razors, shampoo, asprin, Tums/Rolaids, feminine products, hand sanitizer, baby wipes, Kleenex, hair rubber bands for women, phone cards, magazines, books, DVD's, socks, Ziplock bags, playing cards, hand held games, crossword puzzles, paper, envelopes, pens, CD's, cards, letters, pictures, and small toys for local kids.

PLEASE NO AEROSOL, NO ALCOHOL, NO PORK PRODUCTS, and NO POLITICAL MESSAGES.

TeenAge Republicans Fall Leadership Day

The Michigan Federation of TeenAge Republicans will be hosting a half-day's activities in leadership development during the Michigan State Committee's meeting on December 5.  If you can get your teenagers to Lansing for this, it should be fun and useful.  Deb Drick, owner of "Trainings with Impact!", a consulting firm in Livingston County, will be presenting training opportunities for youth to make them better prepared to express their views, take their opinions on the campaign trail, and recruit other youth to join them.  Deb is a good Republican and member of the Howell School Board, and is donating her time for this project.  The Federation hopes to have visits that morning from statewide candidates, Party Chair Ron Weiser, and of course, the participation by all of the Youth Committee.

The Michigan State Committee has generously made provision for a room at the Lansing Center to hold about 35 comfortably, with food and drinks for the 8th through 12th graders.  The time and location are 10:15am - 2:00pm, Saturday, December 5, at the Lansing Center, 333 E. Michigan Av., Lansing, Michigan.  You can RSVP or obtain more information by contacting either Cindy Pine, Youth Committee, at pinegop@charter.net or 810-231-4971, or Larry Ward, MRP, at lward@migop.org or 517-487-5413.

Our Out-of-control National Debt

If you want to find out just how bad the national debt really is, you need look no farther than the Treasury Department's Monthly Statements.  Each month they publish a report, available as the PDF link near the top of the page at http://www.fms.treas.gov/mts/index.html, that has a fascinating amount of detail and bigger numbers than almost anywhere else on the planet!

The headline of the October report was, "The Interest on Treasury debt securities is $22.8 billion, which is 7 percent of the total current month Federal Outlays."  That means that 7% of the total budget is now spent just paying interest.  And that's before all the stimulus money has even been borrowed and allocated!  This year saw a record deficit of $1.4 trillion, which is a full $1 trillion more than last year.

John Milne has been following this report all year and the most telling statistic he found was that the government has run a deficit every month during Fiscal Year 2009.  This is not the typical pattern, because some months the Treasury receives more tax payments than other months.  Typically, December, January, April, July, and September are actually surpluses, but not this year!  Not even April showed a surplus, when everyone has to settle their income taxes and it is typically the highest revenue of the year.  And, just in case someone wants to tell you it's all due to the recession bringing in too little revenue, it's not.  The  Democrats in Congress have spent nearly $700 billion more than either of the previous 2 years.  Of course, the big problems with borrowing so much money will all show up in the future, as the bills continue to come due.

Look for the Democrats to raise taxes, in a vain attempt to cover some of this debt (it never works), and higher interest rates to entice suckers to loan to a government that cannot repay, and high inflation that saps your income.  And that's why we need to elect more Republicans to Congress; to cut back on the outrageously high spending, cut taxes again (which always raises more revenue), and avoid the growth-killing programs the Democrats are trying to create in health care and energy.