Quote: 

"Repeal that [welfare] law, and you will soon see a change in their manners. St. Monday and St. Tuesday, will soon cease to be holidays. Six days shalt thou labor, though one of the old commandments long treated as out of date, will again be looked upon as a respectable precept; industry will increase, and with it plenty among the lower people; their circumstances will mend, and more will be done for their happiness by inuring them to provide for themselves, than could be done by dividing all your estates among them."

If you see a story that you believe would be useful and important to our readers, simply respond to this email with a link and a brief description of why it is important.  (Even if it may be obvious)

Defund Or Be Challenged

Sen. Ted Cruz Discusses Defunding Obamacare with Bret Baier

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

The Idiot's Foreign Policy

Posted by Daniel Greenfield @ the Sultan Knish blog 

Rarely has there been a policy as universally supported in Washington and as universally rejected by Americans of all ages, races, genders, incomes and religions as the proposal to send weapons to the Syrian terrorists.

The average American who has never heard of the Al-Nusra Front, is utterly in the dark about the differences between the various brigades of the Free Syrian Army and hasn't the faintest idea that the entire thing has been a Muslim Brotherhood operation of varying degrees of subtlety from Day 1, still thinks that sending weapons to them is a terrible idea.

Even a public that is weary of war and not at all enthusiastic about jumping into another one would rather invade Syria than arm the Syrian rebels. 

At least those are the results of a recent Quinnipiac poll which found that sizable majorities of Republicans, Democrats, men, women, Whites, Blacks and Hispanics (and possibly even the mysteriously reclusive White Hispanics) all opposed the proposal to send arms to the rebels; even without being told that rebel is a polite term for Islamic Jihadist and Islamic Jihadist is a polite term for the guy wearing explosive underwear next to them on their vacation flight. 

FoxNews.com | By Doug McKelway | July 26, 2013  

Despite her husband being the butt of late night jokes, and water-cooler ridicule, Huma Abedin is standing by Anthony Weiner, and he, by her. "I love her," Weiner said at a press conference Thursday. "She loves me. We have a son. Nothing else matters."

 But Abedin is facing her own troubles -- less salacious than her husband's, but potentially more severe.

On June 13, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) wrote her and Secretary of State John Kerry asking why Abedin, the deputy chief of staff at the State Department under former Secretary Hillary Clinton, was granted status as a "special government employee" after the birth of her son.

That  title allowed her to work from home as a part-time consultant to State, earning $135,000 as a government employee -- while also earning  $355,000 as a consultant for Teneo, where former President Bill Clinton is a board member.

The Blaze | Jonathon M. Seidl | Jul. 26, 2013 7:20am   

The federal government has demanded that major internet companies turn over users' stored passwords, two sources told the respected tech website CNet.

So what exactly does this "escalation" - as CNet calls it - mean?

"If the government is able to determine a person's password, which is typically stored in encrypted form, the credential could be used to log in to an account to peruse confidential correspondence or even impersonate the user," the report says. "Obtaining it also would aid in deciphering encrypted devices in situations where passwords are reused."

But it doesn't end there. The government is not only requesting the passwords, but its also asking for algorithms and even security questions:

The Reading Eagle today is coming to cover the Religious Freedom Rally. In fact, Harry Dietz, the Editor seems extremely interested in seeing what kind of a turnout we will have. With this being said would you please try and come and bring your friends with you from noon to 1 PM across the Penn Street Bridge on this Saturday, July 27th. Parking is at RACC.  

 

Mike Souders

www.unitepa912.com

Friends, if you are on Facebook please go to this link,

https://www.facebook.com/groups/overpassesforobamasimpeachmentpennsylvania/

ask to join, I'll let you in. Then go to "Events" tab and look for Berks County's Protest...RSVP on there or drop me a email

This is gaining steam FAST Nationwide!

Check out the link!!!

http://anniuen.me/2013/07/09/overpasses-gains-steam-as-other-notable-activist-groups-join-in/

We are going to "Occupy" the sidewalk above 222N just past the Rt. 12 split. This overpass, end of Berkshire Blvd., IS a pedestrian overpass with a catch fence and plenty of parking in adjacent shopping mall.

Bring your flags, signs and enthusiasm!

Join the page today and RSVP!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/overpassesforobamasimpeachmentpennsylvania/

Mike Souders

www.unitepa912.com

RALLY FOR "OVERPASSES TO IMPEACH OBAMA"

MULTI-TEA PARTY and 912 RALLY

JOIN US SATURDAY, AUGUST 3 AT NOON - mark you calendar!

RT. 202 AND MALL BLVD. IN KING OF PRUSSIA  (location of previous rallies)

BRING FLAGS, SIGNS AND YOUR ENTHUSIASM FOR FREEDOM AND LIBERTY

THIS IS PART OF A NATIONWIDE EFFORT TO IMPEACH OBAMA. THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE GROUP IS LARGE AND ACTIVE. COME AND BE PART OF IT.

PLEASE SHARE THIS MESSAGE WITH YOUR GROUPS AND PLEASE JOIN THE RALLY.

--
Mark Driver

484-302-6336

mailto:mark@vfpatriots.com

http://www.vfpatriots.com

www.papastors.net

US House passes bill to protect local educational control 

FIRST EVER!!  KIDS PATRIOT CAMP 

WEDNESDAY, JULY 31st  9:30am-12:00pm

Quakertown Memorial Park, 600 Mill St,  Quakertown

FREE!   FUN!   EDUCATIONAL!    (see flyer attached)

Needed:  

• Children who have completed grades K-5th who would like to have fun while learning about our Founding Fathers and our great country
• Parents/grandparents who would like to observe and learn with their kids/grandkids  
• Volunteers (teens-adults) who love to work with children to assist 

Register children here:    http://afpfpa-friedmanday-patriotcamp.eventbrite.com/

Volunteers contact CCG VP of Activities & Events Kathy Bessler at KEBCHICK@hotmail.com.  (First come, first served)

My 8 year old Joseph and I will be there.....hope you and your children or grandchildren will join us!  For liberty, Jaime

Here's a little more detail from AFP organizer Katy Abrams....

Ideally I am expecting about 30 or so kids.  Two hours will be various learning/activity stations and the last half hour will be snack time with a birthday cake celebrating economist Milton Friedman's 101st birthday.  The stations will be really easy to run.   I am in need of 3-4 adult/teenage volunteers to help run the various stations. 

Here are some photos from our Gettysburg camp  so you get an idea of what it is we do: http://www.flickr.com/photos/afppennsylvania/sets/72157634550317850/

In Liberty,

Katy Abram

Director of New Media

Americans for Prosperity - Pennsylvania

@KatyAbram

@AFPPennsylvania

VALLEY FORGE PATRIOTS AUGUST 9^TH MEETING

PHOENIXVILLE SENIOR CENTER

7:00 PM TO 9:00 PM

THIS WILL BE A WORKING MEETING.  BE PREPARED TO HAVE A LITTLE WRITER'S CRAMP.

Common Core is a huge issue for our schools and students as well as the taxpayers. The cost of implementing Common Core Standards (CCS) in PA will be $650 million or more over seven years at a time when we are facing a severe pension crisis. The PA legislature was bypassed when PA signed on to the CCS. There is no evidence that this costly and transformational initiative will result in better learning outcomes. In addition, we believe that we will lose local control over our school boards and over the education of our students.

For our August meeting we will have a Common Core post card writing blitz and we urge you all to join in the effort. VFP will supply pre-stamped post cards, as well as bullet points to write and addresses of legislators. This is a nationwide effort that we are coordinating with Pennsylvanians Against Common Core.

It is most important that we contact and continue to contact legislators since this Common Core initiative is already being implemented. Of course, the leftist teachers unions will be spaming mail, probably on the clock as usual. If you have kids, grandkids, neices and nephews you need to care about this. Hope to see you there with your writing utensils.

To learn more log on to: www.NoPaCommonCore.com

From a trusted friend:

As some of you may know, I am associated with Coventry Christian Schools as a parent of a graduate (2010) and as member of the Board of Trustees.   Last October we spent a wonderful evening honoring Mark Niehls at our revitalized Founder's Dinner and celebrated our shared heritage in the remarkable community that is Coventry Christian Schools. Our vision for future Founder's Dinners is to inspire and inform not only our alumni and current CCS families but to inspire and inform the Tri-County Area and even our region by hosting speakers and artists who can uniquely assist us in celebrating the heritage, core values, and mission of CCS while also lifting our vision for an even greater future built upon the foundation of our past. The caliber of our speakers and guest artists should provide us with wonderful opportunities to share our CCS story with new partners in Christian education. Proceeds from the dinner will be applied to our annual Coventry Kids Fund for CCS scholarships.

This year we are proud to announce that our distinguished guest and speaker is Dr. Benjamin Carson, and our dinner's theme is "Faith of Our Fathers: The Role of Faith in American Schools." Please join us as we welcome Dr. Carson to the Tri-County Area and celebrate the great things God is doing at CCS!  

Dr. Carson is a highly regarded neurosurgeon and motivational speaker who has addressed various audiences across the country. He is one of the most honored and recognized physicians in the world and holds more than 60 honorary doctorate degrees along with hundreds of awards and citations. He is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States. He is the author of five books and is the founder of the Carson Scholars Fund. The 2009 award-winning movie entitled Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, starring Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Carson, premiered on TNT and is based on his memoir. Dr. Carson is an authentic disciple of Christ, has been married to his wife Candy for more than 37 years, and is the father of three sons.

The 2013 Founder's Dinner, which will once again be a part of our Homecoming festivities, will be held at the historic Sunnybrook Ballroom in Pottstown on Sunday, October 13th, 2013. Doors will open at 4:30pm, followed by dinner at 5:15. Dress will be business/professional.    Tickets will be priced at $100 until May 15th, then will be $125, so reserve your tickets for the reduced price.

^th

All of us at Coventry Christian Schools, look forward to sharing this very special evening with you and acquainting you with the school and its mission!

Blessings,

Sponsorships are available as well and are as follows:

Gold Sponsor                    $3,000

•        Two tickets at Speaker's Table
•        Two tickets at Headmaster's Table
•        Listed as sponsor on school website through 12 months post event
•        Listed as sponsor on pre-event print marketing
•        Mentioned by name at event
•        Full Page ad in Dinner Program

Silver Sponsor                  $1,500

•        Two tickets at Speaker's Table
•        Listed as sponsor on school website through 12 months post event
•        Half page ad in Dinner Program

Bronze Sponsor                $500

•        Two tickets at Headmaster's Chairman's or Founder's Table
•        Listed as sponsor on school website through 12 months post event

WHAT IS COMMON CORE?

Common Core, or the Common Core State Standards Initative (CCSSI), as it is known at the State and Federal level, is a set of national education standards that will fulfill the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, through a waiver system. (The NCLB Act was put into place by Congress in 2001 and signed into law by President George W. Bush). Many states were failing to meet the NCLB Act requirements and, therefore, wanted something to replace NCLB.Common Core is part of the UN's plan for complete federal control over our education systems and the "Dumbing-down" of America.

 

Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI) are not state standards in the first place, and are nothing more then further federalization of our state education systems.

 

COMMON CORE IS A TROJAN HORSE AND TIED TO THE UNITED NATIONS (UN)

If you cannot see that Common Core is tied to the United Nations you have not done your homework! The major funder of the Common Core Movement is the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which has pledged $60 million dollars to this effort. Bill and Melinda Gates are tied to UN through-and-through and have spent money in America and overseas for UN programs in Africa and all over the world for decades.

From the Conservative Teachers of American organization, they wrote an article entitled: "Common Core Standards and the Federalization of Education." In this article we read: "Many are concerned that the Common Core Standards, once successfully implemented, will provide unfettered access of our educational system by the United Nations. Some textbooks and curricula for our public schools have already been written by the [United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization] UNESCO and the International Baccalaureate program, that is currently in many school districts, across the United States. Grabbing additional access is a natural next step. Once they write the curricula, they must have authority to develop all testing tools."

 

The UN involvement in the American educational system has already been facilitated by treaties signed by American presidents from both parties. Those documents include but are not limited to: Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Treaty on the Rights of the Child, Civic Education: Classroom Connections, and Agenda 21.

 

The  US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development (since 2003), is the nexus of the UNA-USA and Global Leadership Coalition at the Department of Education, which altogether leverages the UN Decade on Education for Sustainable Development 2005-2014.  UNESCO, the lead agency of the Decade, defines Education for Sustainable Development as "education for everyone everywhere" for the "lifelong learning" of "present and future generations".  

 

The UNA-USA sponsors Model UN across America and tailors its Global Classrooms curricula to whichever setting the kids happen to be participating.  Children are unknowingly trained to respond with prescribed consensus to the situations, simulations and stimulation's of the particular activity (Delphi Technique).  Global Kids is the CFR arm of Connect All Schools Consortium, a new Department of Education network, led by Independent Sector and The White House via United Planet Partners.  Global Kids is preparing children for Agenda 21.  

 

The White House, NSA and CIA now have website divisions aimed at kids.  The Public Education Network is a national association funded by Independent Sector donors: plus Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Department of Education

 

"Funders" of the Rockefeller Foundation-backed International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), "Members" of the the Sustainability Consortium, backed by the EPA and BSR (Rockefeller Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, State Department) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-backed International City/County Management Association (ICMA): Center for Sustainable Communities (an ICLEI "Partner") are "partnered" with local schools and governments.  

 

From the Partnership for 21st Century Skills aligning the Common Core State Standards with "professional development" content for teachers and principals and Lego Robotics curricula for students (Carnegie Mellon/Lego Education); to software curricula through websites like: cyberschoolbus.un.org, icivics.org, atomiclearning.com, renlearn.org, brainpop.com and ttl4.sunburst.com; to the weekly deliveries of Time for Kids magazine and textbook curricula into classrooms; kids are programmed with UN-defined values.  State Governors administer Federal funds to "Community-Oriented Policing" systems like Crime Stoppers (The UN, FBI and other law enforcement and corporate partners administer Crime Stoppers International), the local student-equivalent of the Department of Homeland Security's' "See Something, Say Something" campaign; whereby children see hand-drawn posters of child characters on school walls displaying "Eyes Looking", "Ears Listening", "Mouth Reporting" with a hotline to call.  Presidents Bush and Obama have personally followed the George H. W. Bush/Clinton trail of the Agenda 21/ Sustainable America megabanks-maze in "bipartisan" fashion. 

 

UNESCO PLEDGES SUPPORT OF COMMON CORE

From UNESCO's document "The Vision of Education Reform in the United States" it states: "My department has been pleased to partner with the US Agency for International Development to help ensure that our best domestic practices are shared world-wide. The United States provides over a billion dollars annually to partner countries working on educational reform. Our goal for the coming year will be to work closely with global partners, including UNESCO, to promote qualitative improvements and system strengthening....Ultimately, education is the great equalizer. It is the one force that can consistently overcome differences in background, culture, and privilege."

 

THE UN'S AGENDA 21- COMMON CORE IMPLEMENTER!

In the United Nations Agenda 21 (Guide for the 21st Century), Chapters #25 and #36 specifically talk about education of our children:

 

Principle #25- "Children and Youth in Sustainable Development." In the "Activites 25.9.d" it states: "Ensure access for all youth to all types of education, wherever appropriate, providing alternative learning structures, ensure that education reflects the economic and social needs of youth and incorporates the concepts of environmental training, implementing innovative methods aimed at increasing practical skills, such as environmental scouting."

 

Principle #36- "Promoting Education, Public Awareness and Training." In the Activities Section of this document in "36.5.g" we read: "Within two years the United Nations system should undertake a comprehensive review of its educational programmes, encompassing training and public awareness, to reassess priorites and reallocae resources. The UNESCO/UNEP International Environmental Education Programme should, in cooperation with the appropriate bodies of the United Nations system, Governments, non-governmental organizations and others, establish a porgramme within two years to integrate the decisions of the Conference into the existing United Nations framework adapted to the need of the educators at different levels and circumstances. Regional organizations and national authorities should be encouraged to elaborate similar parallel programmes and opportunies by conducting an analysis of how to mobilize different sectors of the population in order to assess and address their environmental and development education needs."

 

In the Activities Section of this document in "36.5 h" we read: "There is a need to strengthen, within five years, information exchange by enhancing technologies and capacities necessary to promote environment and development education and public awareness. Countries should cooperate with each other and with the various social sectors and population groups to prepare educational tools that include regional environment and development issues and initiatives, using learning materials and resources suited to their own requirements." Sounds just like PARCC and SLDS. ASU's Institute for Global Sustainability and their "Sustainable Cities Network" is doing a fine job "brain-washing" our students in our high schools on sustainability, global warming (aka climate change), etc. Go here to meet the ASU sustainability schools!

 

 

COMMON CORE SCIENCE STANDARDS TEACH GLOBAL WARMING!

The new Common Core Science Standards that are up for review teach Global Warming (aka Climate Change)! Here is Research and Commentary on the Common Core Science Standards" from The Heartland Institute.

Please spread the word to all AMERICAN PATRIOTS!

Reality Check.....COMMON CORE EDUCATION = COMMUNISM IN AMERICA!

Common Core Education is the INDOCTRINATION of our CHILDREN. 

DO NOT LISTEN TO THE GOP ESTABLISHMENT RHETORIC FROM MIKE HUCKABEE!!! 

The Development of Common Core, Explained by Michael Chapman

The video says this is a clip from the 1989 National Governors'Assoc conference on Education:

Sr. Director of Mid-Continental Regional Education Laboratory, Dr. Shirley McCune

 She says about education:

#1) Total transformation of our society

#2) Teaching of facts and information (knowledge) is no longer the primary purpose of education

#3) Close connection between economic (sustainable) development and human capitol (human resource labor for a planned economy)

A group that allowed this kind of rhetoric to be said at their meeting? I don't think I want them developingeducational standards!  Please read to the bottom for transcripts from the 1987 NGA meetings chaired by Bill Clinton.  These transcripts are eye-opening.  They are clearly more concerned with workers for the manufacturing.  They seem to have concerns that we have students who can't read well enough (non-English speaking especially) to function in the manufacturing plants, and then on the other end of the spectrum... too many with higher ed degrees who don't WANT to work in the manufacturing.  So... what to do about all this?  Hummm.... standards!  Make sure they read well enough to function as the industrial workers, but not so well that they don't want to!!!   This is the John D. Rockefeller goal of the early 20th century when he started pushing for compulsory government schooling and funding the building of government schools. 

NOW.... review the transcripts below of the conferences chaired by Bill Clinton: 
National Governor's Association website  (find all annual meetings here with transcriptsm- )
1986-87 NGA Chair Gov. Bill Clinton's Initiative

Making America Work: Productive People, Productive Policies

March 25, 1986

1987 Winter Meeting with Bill Clinton as chair, you will find on page 12 that the governors unanimously adopted a policy to adopt an INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY.    http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/1987NGAWinterMeeting.pdf

1987 Annual meeting.   See page 34of this document to see how those governors seem to be concerned that we aren't training our students for the "workforce." They are concerned that the professors of higher ed are telling students to strive for more than the job of working in the manufacturing plants.  On page 40 they start talking about standards needed in education.  " See page 42 with this statement by Governor Sinner (great name!) to Lee Iacoccoa: "But you also made a point about the terrific cost to industry of the disparity between states in these regulations and I wondered, with all the fuss and the furor that we make over states' rights...."  http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/1987NGAAnnualMeeting.pdf 

June 11, 2013: Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) leads the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee in a markup of the Strengthening America's Schools Act of 2013, an education initiative to replace No Child Left Behind.  http://www.c-spanvideo.org/event/220036

At the June 10 Common Core forum in Fayette County, Superintendent Barge stated over and over again that if Georgia wants to change these standards at any time, we have the ability to do so.   The testimony below contradicts this belief by Superintendent Barge and confirms that states who adopted the Common Core standards DO NOT have the ability to change the standards in any way on their own.

2:23:00 - Rep. Tim Scott discusses his amendment to Harkin's bill.  Instead of states being forced to adopt blanket standards like Common Core as a prerequisite for funding, let's put decision-making back in the hands of parents and teachers in our communities."

2:31:00 - It is admitted that states who want to change the CC standards,the Secretary of Education would have to approve it.  States DO NOT have the ultimate decision making abilities!

2:39:00 - Alexander reads page 89 of the bill stating that any changes to standards MUST go through the Secretary of Education for approval.

As are most of the amendments offered by Republicans to this education bill, the Scott Amendment is defeated 12-10.

DATA COLLECTING: Senator Burr at the 1:00:00 mark reveals information about ADDITIONAL data points that this legislation will add to the data mining.  He says that his count is now 500 data points.  

TEACHER EVALUATIONS: Senator Alexander at 2:00:00 mark discusses his amendment to end federally mandated school and teacher evaluations.  He says states had a "gun to their head" to adopt the teacher evaluations because they were desperate for NCLB waivers.   He makes the charge that the Harkin bill creates a "NATIONAL SCHOOL BOARD."  The Gates Foundation involvement is mentioned frequently.  

Harkin says over and over "this is voluntary."  If states don't want to implement the programs in the bill we just don't accept the money!"    More strong evidence that our states need to "just say no" to all federal education dollars.   As is pointed out in this debate: Any private business that entered into a partnership where the partner who contributed 10% funding got 80-90% of the control (as is the case with education funding under NCLB and Common Core) the partnership is DOOMED TO FAIL!

Angela Bean
Fayetteville, GA
StopCommonCore.com 

We all know how tough it is to maintain your morals in today's media world. Here are two gifts from the AFA to you, each meant to help you navigate your way through media today:

1. Free Article: How to Watch TV Without Compromising Your Values  2. Free Guide: 300 Family Friendly Movies

The article discusses how far TV has fallen in recent years and outlines some practical steps you can take to protect your family.

And the free movie guide is a great way to find movies for family night that the whole family can enjoy.

I hope these tools are a blessing to you!

At the Boston Marathon we all witnessed what happens when people become radicalized by an extreme Islamic ideology.

IT IS TIME THAT EVERYONE GET EDUCATED ON THIS ISSUE.

Watching The Third Jihad is the ultimate way to share this knowledge with other Americans.

Share the film, the third jihad with 5 friends,
and we will send you a FREE DVD of our award-winning film Obsession - Radical Islam's War Against the West - a must-see for every American.

---

---

AGENDA 21 RESOURCE PAGEs

APC Newswire

Produced by American Policy Center
Email: admin@americanpolicy.org  Website: americanpolicy.org
Tom DeWeese, President
Kathleen Marquardt, Editor

Mandatory Biometric Enrollment
Lawsuit - UPDATE
(fingerprinting, facial recognition, iris scan, DNA, etc.)
By Mark Lerner:  Co-Founder Constitutional Alliance

If you value liberty and understand how dangerous government mandated biometric ID is to our freedom, you need to read and understand every word of what I am writing about today. Something very important is happening so stay with me.
 
Over the years, the Constitutional Alliance has consistently fought against mandatory biometric ID and for the right of all citizens to be free of it.  Government mandated biometric ID is the lynchpin of the modern surveillance society.  The amount of control this system gives government over individuals is an anathema to a free society and we oppose it being imposed on anyone - period.  You cannot reconcile a free society with a surveillance society.
 
The founders of this country called religious freedom "the first freedom" because it is a precondition for other important rights..  Try to imagine the value of freedom of speech, or freedom of association without religious freedom and you will quickly see why religious freedom, also referred to as 'freedom of conscience' is so important.
 
Here is the Big News
 
This past week, 19 June 2013, a Motion for Summary Judgment was filed in Kaye Beach's lawsuit in the state of Oklahoma (You can read it here).  This is a pre-trial motion that presents the undisputed facts of her case and makes the strongest assertion based on those facts, that her rights are being violated.  The Motion for Summary Judgment asks the Judge, based on these undisputed facts, to rule in her favor.  Kaye fully expects a favorable ruling on this Motion but in the event that this doesn't happen, her lawsuit will continue on. You need only to read the first 30 pages of the Motion to understand the arguments Kaye and her attorneys have made.  If you choose to read further you can read about the answers the Department of Public Safety (the department that oversees the issuance of driver's licenses) gave to Kaye's "Discovery Motion". 
 
Kaye Beach's lawsuit, is the only substantial challenge to government mandated biometric ID, to my knowledge, that exists anywhere in our country.
 
Here is a brief recap of the issue and basis for Kaye's legal challenge;
 
Kaye is opposed to mandatory biometric identification which is required of her if she wishes to have a state issued driver's license or ID card.  As we know, the ability to drive a vehicle and also banking, many financial transactions, as well as a host of other necessary daily activities are dependent upon having a government issued photo ID most commonly presented in the form of state driver's license or ID card. Try to go without one and you will soon find (like Kaye has!) that not having a valid ID is no small matter.
 
In September, 2011 Kaye filed a lawsuit against the state of Oklahoma for the unwarranted collection of her biometrics and for violating her religious freedom, both of which are protected under Oklahoma law.  Kaye is a born again Christian.
 
Here is why this case is important for everyone 

Read more:

We must stop the call for a  Constitutional Convention! 

Article V of the Constitution:

1. Gives NO guidelines for how to conduct a Con Con. 
2. NO rules on how delegates will be eligible or selected
3. States have NO Guarantees they will even be represented
4. Con Con could result in a COMPLETE CHANGE of our way of government
5. There simply are NO controls over the delegates once selected.             

Read more:

ImmigrationCounters.com provides the key numbers and events related to illegal immigration in the United States. Using the latest government and private sources, research and analysis trending data is factored at their individual rates of increase. For information about the research behind the individual counters clickhere Data Sources.  ImmigrationCounters.com supports legal immigration and respect for all humanity yet highlights the significant impact of illegal immigration in America. 

ImmigrationCounters.com informs the public of the realities of illegal immigration while challenging the myths and misinformation surrounding it. After decades of passively watching this problem grow, most Americans are now more aware of the severity of this issue. Our government has demonstrated a complete lack of urgency to control illegal immigration both on the borders and within the interior. Because of this large failure that which traditionally had been the American way of welcoming immigration is now dividing the country because of one word, illegal. Opposing illegal immigration and wanting the laws enforced is not un-American. It is time to set the record straight on what is un-American, illegal is un-American.

The issue of illegal immigration doesn't need more laws, studies or debates, it needs leadership and enforcement. America doesn't need immigration reform, it needs leadership reform. Because our government has failed to enforce the existing immigration laws, why should anyone be confident they will do so with expanded immigration reform? Because of these failures, legislators have been addressing the problems at their local levels with bills to manage it incrementally, piece-by-piece, rather than trying to fix the national problem at once--an impossible task. What most Americans expect is to have our borders secure, enforcement of the existing laws within the interior, meaningful punishment of employers who hire illegally and removal of incentives such as birthright citizenships and public school enrollments without status verifications. We must also address the fact that we're soft on criminals caught in crimes and aren't deported. No other country would allow this to continue. 40% of them entered the country legally and overstayed their visas. Yet there's still no reliable method to verify if Visa overstays have left the country. Another incentive that must be addressed is the birthright citizenship program that has resulted in millions of children and parents receiving instant rights and benefits. Some have called them "GPS babies" and this certainly cannot be what the authors of the 14th Amendment intended to occur. Public housing and other benefits are provided for the illegal parents through their 'anchor children' while citizens are turned away because of limited resources. This antiquated program must end. Government agencies and officials at all levels must address the costs associated with this kind of abuse. Past mistakes have been made in attempts to fix illegal immigration and our communities can no longer afford these kinds of mistakes.

Read more:

Who voted in Congress yesterday to defund the NSA domestic spying program, and who didn't. (List and graph)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                  Contact: Aaron Clark

Wednesday, July 24, 2013                                                                                              215-579-8102

                  Fitzpatrick: NSA Overreach Must be Stopped

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Fitzpatrick (PA-8) released the following statement

Wednesday regarding his vote in support of the Amash-Conyers Amendment to the

Department of Defense Appropriations Bill:

"Tonight, I stood on the side of personal liberty and voted in favor of the Amash-Conyers

Amendment which would have curtailed the blanket collection of phone records by the NSA.

While I am disappointed the amendment was not passed and attached to the bill, its strong

bipartisan support should put the president on notice about the very serious concerns many

members, and Americans, have about the expanse of government agencies like the NSA.

My vote- along with that of others- was based on continuing concerns about the overreach of

parts of the PATRIOT Act. While I fully acknowledge law enforcement needs information to

combat terror tactics, it's important that the personal privacy and liberty of my law-abiding

constituents

be honored."

RedState Morning Briefing

For July 26, 2013

1.  The Ephialtes Establishment in the Republican Party

I can see how the GOP loses in November of 2014. The establishment and base have moved so far apart the base is about ready to go third party or sit at home. If the GOP does not make a stand against Obamacare, they will not see the energy they need to effectively compete in 2014.

Let me explain what is happening and what will happen.

Karl Rove's Crossroads group commissioned a poll by North Star Opinion Research. The poll found most Americans do not want the GOP to block "health care reform." That's right, Crossroads repeatedly called Obamacare "the healthcare reform law" and was shocked to find people oppose stopping reform. Go figure.

But that poll has been circulated to Republican leaders and they have soiled themselves over it. That is why Mitch McConnell will not support Mike Lee's strategy to draw a line in the sand against funding Obamacare. That is why John Cornyn withdrew his name from Mike Lee's letter. That is why Richard Burr of North Carolina calls defunding Obamacare "stupid."

These men are about power, not principle. They've chosen to let polls lead them instead of leading people.

Already, Byron York is out with a piece saying the GOP will not defund Obamacare. Next we will most likely see Kim Strassle of the Wall Street Journal write one of her semi-regular hit pieces on Mike Lee, Ted Cruz, and the rest of the conservatives who want to stand their ground.

Then we will see Jenn Rubin begin another hyperbole laden attack on Jim DeMint and Ted Cruz.

The actual editorial page of the Wall Street Journal will chime in to yet again attack the Hobbits for daring to stand on principles. The Democrats will then dangle the shiny object of the Keystone Pipeline before the GOP. Like dogs scrambling for scraps at the table, the GOP will take it and their editorial friends will hail this as a grand bargain worth taking. Pay no attention to Obamacare being implemented.

We have seen this before. The GOP leadership will cave and dazzle the base with shiny objects. They will then send out fundraising letters in courier type telling you to stand with them and send them money if you want Obamacare defunded.

Leonidas and three hundred Spartans held the pass at Thermopylae against overwhelming Persian odds until Ephialtes betrayed them and led the Persians on a path around. If the Republican Establishment were in Greece, they'd stand with Ephialtes. So desperate are they to regain power, the Republican Establishment will be led by those who promised President Romney and spent hundreds of millions of dollars getting the status quo. . . . please click here for the rest of the post →

2.  The Consultants Who Brought Us President Romney & The GOP Senate Majority Oppose Obamacare Defunding

These Republican consultants do not know how to win. Perhaps we should set our minds to winning this fight instead of listening to the consultants who told us steel tariffs in Pennsylvania, No Child Left Behind, Medicare Part D, TARP, the General Motors bailout, and President Romney were the way to build a Republican Majority.

It's worth nothing that were these Republican consultants helping with colonial strategy, there would never have been a revolution. The American Revolution was not originally popular. It took convincing to make the case over time and even then it remained unpopular among the upper middle class of the Middle Colonies for quite some time. Thank God these pukes weren't around then. . . . please click here for the rest of the post →

3.  Obamacare: The Law of Unintended (but Perfectly Foreseeable) Consequences

Senator Marco Rubio is one of 15 Republican Senators who have pledged not to vote for any continuing resolution that funds Obamacare. In the video above, he gives his reasons why.

Obamacare has yet to take effect, yet it should be abundantly clear to anyone with a pulse that among its many flaws, the abominable law gives employers an incentive to shift workers from full-time to part-time status. . . . please click here for the rest of the post →

4.  Do These Republican Senators Support Obamacare?

5.  Texas Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) No Longer Supports Defunding Obamacare. Call Him at 202-224-2934 to Ask Why

Senator Mike Lee has been collecting signatures to a letter pledging to defund Obamacare.

Senator John Cornyn was an original signer of the letter. This has been confirmed by multiple outlets, including the Blaze, and confirmed by multiple Senate sources.

But, after pressure from Senator McConnell's office and others, Senator John Cornyn has yanked his name from Senator Lee's letter. . . . please click here for the rest of the post →

6.  North Carolina's @SenatorBurr Thinks You're Dumb. Call Him at (202) 224-3154 & Tell Him Defunding Obamacare is Smart

Do you think the GOP should hold the line on Obamacare? Do you think the GOP should tell the Democrats no continuing resolution will contain funding for Obamacare? If you do, Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina thinks you are dumb.

Senator Mike Lee's strategy on Obamacare is very simple. Don't let the implementation begin. He has gotten a number of senators to sign a letter pleading they will oppose any continuing resolution that funds Obamacare. Yesterday, Senator Burr declared this "the dumbest idea I've ever heard of."

Heritage Hotsheet

Experts on the Day's Hottest News

Items for July 26, 2013 

House GOP-ers: Defund Obamacare in CR
Politico

Republican party chair: Gay marriage, abortion still priorities for GOP
Washington Post

Syria death toll now above 100,000, says UN chief Ban
BBC

Justice Department to challenge states' voting rights laws
Washington Post

North Korea to put captured US spy ship on display
Breitbart

U.N. to Celebrate 'World Toilet Day'
The Weekly Standard

Reid Says Tax Overhaul Must Boost Revenue
Wall Street Journal 

Latest Heritage Research:

BACKGROUNDER
Enhancing South Korean-U.S. Naval Capabilities Is Critical to American Interests

COMMENTARY
How Daring is President Obama's New Climate Action Plan?

07/26/2013  

Can Obamacare Get the Young Blood It Needs to Live?  

What would it take to get you to enroll in Obamacare? A folksy song? A celebrity endorsement? An ad in a porta-potty?

Taxpayer money may be used for all of those things and more as October 1-the date when the health insurance exchanges are supposed to open-approaches.

But all the campaigns and millions of dollars in advertising may not be enough, especially for the demographic Obamacare so desperately needs: young people.

Why Obamacare NEEDS Young People

The Obama Administration estimates that of the projected 7 million exchange enrollees next year, 2.7 million need to be young adults to make the premiums work. If young people don't show up for Obamacare, premiums for everyone else in the exchanges will skyrocket-which, of course, dramatically increases the cost for taxpayers.

Quick Hits:  

• More Americans than ever want Obamacare repealed. 
• Want to learn more about the Obamacare nightmare? We suggest you check out The Transom.
• Reckless government spending isn't funny, but this new sitcom is.
• The myth of GOP obstructionism. 
• Why is this immigrant so fired up against amnesty?
• Doggie hair gel and other weird places your tax dollars are going. 
• Shhhh. Republicans are defending earmarks. 
• Ready for another potential Obama Administration scandal? 
• Top 10 signs the Obama scandals aren't "phony." 

July 26, 2013   

Today's Articles:

Mann vs. Steyn: Heresy Shall Be Crushed
Daren Jonescu
It looks as if Mark Steyn and the National Review are going to need a smarter judge More

Poor Lil' Huma
J. Robert Smith
Huma's problem is getting Anthony to keep it zipped -- in more ways than one. More

Rolling Stoned: From Che Guevara to Dzojar Tsarnayev
Charles Jacobs and Ilya Feoktistov
The Rolling Stone's cover glamorizing Dzojar Tsarnayev should not have surprised More

Patriot Tour
Elise Cooper
A conversation with Marcus Luttrell, U.S. Navy SEAL and proud American. More

European Union Plays Judge And Jury
David Singer
With its decision concerning Israeli interests on the West Bank, the European Union has put itself in something of a bind. More

Catholic Hospital Association Continues to Provide Cover for ObamaCare's Abortion Funding
Kavon W. Nikrad
Now supports the HHS abortion mandate. More

Putin: Lord of the Ring?
Ken Blackwell and Bob Morrison
Did the Bush White House blunder on the Super Bowl ring affair? More

American Thinker Blog

Murder Most Swedish
July 26, 2013
How is the US like Sweden? Its low murder rate. That is, if you include in the statistics only non-blacks in the US legally. More

CA, NY Democrat AGs Use Color of Law to Break Donor Privacy Law
July 26, 2013
Using their positions as the "charitable officials" More

Macroeconomic Austerity Works
July 26, 2013
Even a liberal government in Canada can do it. More

Does the NAACP Really Believe the 'Right to Life' is the 'Most Fundamental of Civil Rights'?
July 26, 2013
The fact is that abortion and racism have long found common cause. High time the NAACP noticed. More

Wash. Post columnist applauds Kerry's diplomacy at Israel's expense
July 26, 2013
John Kerry and the Arabs have brought some toxic gifts to Israel's negotiation table...and the Post can't stop singing the former's praises. More

Carlos Danger's Big Career Move
July 25, 2013
Just a few weeks after carrying the biggest flag in the Gay Pride parade, Anthony Weiner's wienermobile is about to come to a screeching halt. More

Obama: 'Phony scandals' effort 'needs to stop'
July 25, 2013
Barack Obama is pitching the line that the scandals engulfing his administration are "phony" and is blaming the Republicans More

Obama speaks on the economy and no one cares
July 25, 2013
The president is 'going into reruns." More

Senate passes student loan rate deal
July 25, 2013
Caps loan rates at 8.25%. More

Obama's Misery Index Approaches Carter Years
July 25, 2013
The U.S. misery index reached its highest level since May, 1983. More

The Windsors and the Weiners
July 25, 2013
Early prime-time viewers still suffering from Downton Withdrawal Syndrome were this week treated to two unfolding dynastic reality specials. More

Obamacare national marketing campaign to cost $700 million
July 25, 2013
You could sell an abstinence program to Anthony Weiner if you had $700 million. More

AFTERBURNER w/ BILL WHITTLE: The Lynching

Scarborough EXPLODES On Jay Carney. I'm Not Someone You Talk Down To From Your Podium

Race In America! - President Obama & The Race Problem! - O'Reilly Talking Point

Detroit in RUINS! (Crowder goes Ghetto)

Sen. Ted Cruz Discusses Defunding Obamacare with Bret Baier

LibertyNEWS TV - Obama Goes "Back to the Future"...Again!

7/24/13 Congress divided over authority of NSA programming

Obama Says Scandals Happening Under his Watch Are 'Phony Scandals'

How to Defund ObamaCare by Katherine Rosario   Published 2013-07-24
Share on Facebook

Replace the Dismal Speaker of the House John Boehner by Doug Ross   Published 2013-07-24
Share on Facebook

Secretive Trans Pacific Partnership and the Sleeping Republicans by Phyllis Schlafly   Published 2013-07-24
Share on Facebook

Rogue State Weapons Smuggling by John Bolton   Published 2013-07-24
Share on Facebook

Jihad to Free Morsi and Establish a Caliphate and Destroy Israel by Ryan Mauro   Published 2013-07-24
Share on Facebook 

Muslim Brotherhood Groups: Full Court Press Against Ray Kelly

CAIR and other U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entities are working hard to block Kelly's nomination to head Homeland Security. More

In response to: Riots in France After Woman Fined for Violating Veil Ban

Army Conducts Nighttime Exercises In Downtown Chicago (Video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Mort Amsel. Following up on recent and unannounced training exercises in Florida and Washington state, the U.S. military is conducting a drill in Chicago. The Windy City's Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) told the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday it is providing support for "routine military training exercises," including flying...

Click here to read, "Army Conducts Nighttime Exercises In Downtown Chicago (Video)"...

.......................................................................................................................

Black Neighborhood Watchman Kills White Teen Boy: The Black George Zimmerman You're Not Allowed To Know About (video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Live Free or Die. Does the mainstream media in America have an agenda in the Trayvon Martin - George Zimmerman case? There was certainly a media influenced uproar surrounding the case; why didn't they pay as much attention when a black neighborhood watchman shot and killed a white teen boy? This is the story...

Click here to read, "Black Neighborhood Watchman Kills White Teen Boy: The Black George Zimmerman You're Not Allowed To Know About"...

.......................................................................................................................

Putin Controls the Chessboard, Obama's In Deep Trouble

CURATOR: John Rolls. Dave Hodges * The Common Sense Show Ed Snowden told us that we were being spied upon. Everyone, outside the sheep in this country already knew that. Therefore, it is child's play to conclude that Snowden has damning information which could threaten the survival of the Obama administration. And...

Click here to read, "Putin Controls the Chessboard, Obama's In Deep Trouble"...

.......................................................................................................................

When Will The Economy Collapse? Storm Clouds Gathering Brand New Video (video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Live Free or Die. When will the economy collapse; is there a way to really know? According to this brand new video from StormCloudsGathering, we need to be on the lookout for several clear signs that are linked below the video. Unlike what the politicians and the mainstream media are telling us, the economy...

Click here to read, "When Will The Economy Collapse? Storm Clouds Gathering Brand New Video"...

.......................................................................................................................

Fukushima, A Possible Life Extinction Event That Won't Go Away

CONTRIBUTOR: Northeast Intelligence Network. Written by Mitch Santell Producer, The Hagmann and Hagmann Report You will find in this posting a recent global map that was provided to us by Rose Paige who is the Founder of The Con Trail. This social network headquartered in the South Island of New Zealand has over 1,400...

Click here to read, "Fukushima, A Possible Life Extinction Event That Won't Go Away"...

.......................................................................................................................

The Lynching Of George Zimmerman- The Facts Presented By Bill Whittle (Video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Wake up America. By Susan Duclos In a video titled "Afterburn with Bill Whittle: The Lynching," he careful walks through the facts of the George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin case, from the night George Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin in what he claims was self defense, the fact the jury acquitted Zimmerman, the subsequent...

Click here to read, "The Lynching Of George Zimmerman- The Facts Presented By Bill Whittle (Video)"...

.......................................................................................................................

Juicing Instead Of Heating Can Cure Illnesses --Raw Cannabis (Videos)

CONTRIBUTOR: N. Morgan. I, myself, have never tried juicing cannabis, but this could be the answer for many people who cannot afford to make Hemp Oil. This stands to reason, since when you burn cannabis, it changes it molecular structure and may be effecting the potency of its healing properties....

Click here to read, "Juicing Instead Of Heating Can Cure Illnesses --Raw Cannabis (Videos)"...

.......................................................................................................................

Spain Train Crash Caught On Cam (Video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Mort Amsel. The crash killed 78 people and injured 141 others of which 36 remain critical. A terrible, avoidable tragedy. These people were just riding a train... -Mort...

Click here to read, "Spain Train Crash Caught On Cam (Video)"...

.......................................................................................................................

How The Establishment Will Attempt To Bring Down The Liberty Movement (video)

CURATOR: John Rolls. Brandon Smith * Alt-Market.com How does one destroy an idea? Further, how does one destroy the truth? Corrupt governments have been struggling with this dilemma since men wore loincloths and worshiped fire. Fortunately for those of us in the "lower strata" of social organization, honorable ideas and indelible truths have...

Click here to read, "How The Establishment Will Attempt To Bring Down The Liberty Movement"...

.......................................................................................................................

Will Weiner Pull Out? Late Night Jokes, Limp Support, And More (Hysterical Videos)

CONTRIBUTOR: Wake up America. By Susan Duclos Even serious reporting on Anthony "Carlos Danger" Weiner's junk problem lends itself to ridicule because every word has to be parsed so that unintentional wordplay isn't used, although the temptation is irresistible to some, as evidenced by Drudge headlines, such as Support from New York Democrats goes...

Click here to read, "Will Weiner Pull Out? Late Night Jokes, Limp Support, And More (Hysterical Videos)"...

.......................................................................................................................

MORE POPULAR STORIES

PepsiCo's Naked Juices Have to Drop 'All Natural' Label After $9 Million Class Action Lawsuit

CONTRIBUTOR: Natural Society

Fukushima is No Longer a Japanese Problem. It is a Global Media Blackout Problem. It is a West Coast Problem. It's Now Our Personal Problem... (video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Tom Dennen, the paranoid historian

10 Photos That Show The REAL Trayvon Martin

CONTRIBUTOR: MR. Conservative

Methane Bubbling In New Orleans 70 Miles From Sinkhole! (Must See Video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Mark Brander

50 States 'Resign' From US Corporation? (video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Live Free or Die

Big Sis' Shockingly Dirty Secrets Go Public

CONTRIBUTOR: The Liberator

Chilling Obama Calls For End To Catholic Schools

CONTRIBUTOR: The Liberator

Woman Attacked By 15 Dogs Eaten To The Bone While Waiting For Bus

CONTRIBUTOR: The Liberator

Disturbing News on the Early Opening of the NSA's Utah Datacenter and the FBI

CONTRIBUTOR: Ventura County Tea Party

5 Preps To Make Before The Collapse (video)

CONTRIBUTOR: Live Free or Die

Daily Email - July 25, 2013
    Top Story  Obama's Misleading Obamacare Claims
By Bethany Stotts  |  July 25, 2013
Supporters of Obamacare were given reason to celebrate on July 17 when The New York Times announced that health care premiums in the Empire State could "tumble" 50% because of the new health care exchanges. "Obama touted recent news from New York, California, Oregon and other states that have reported that insurance companies will charge [...]
    From the AIM Blogs
Jay Carney: Obama Focused on Economy, Not "Phony Scandals" [Video]
By Don Irvine  |  July 24, 2013

Jeff Zucker: The Future of CNN is Digital
By Don Irvine  |  July 24, 2013
  Guest Column  The Huma Unmentionables
By Andrew McCarthy  |  July 25, 2013
Charlotte's revulsion over Huma Abedin's calculated "stand by your man" routine is surely right. Still, it is amazing, as we speculate about Ms. Abedin's political future, that the elephant in the room goes unnoticed, or at least studiously unmentioned. Sorry to interrupt the Best Enabler of a Sociopath Award ceremony but, to recap, Ms. Abedin [...]
    AIM Newswire
Egyptian Military Pressures Islamists with call for Protests

Turkey kills 1 civilian crossing into Syria along border

Al Jazeera complains the Egyptian Gov't Intimidates Them 

Thursday, July 25, 2013

To: Friends & Supporters

From: Gary L. Bauer


Obama's Running On Empty

Since his reelection eight months ago, President Obama has been coasting, and it's showing. His approval ratings are tanking. His signature legislative accomplishment, Obamacare, is as unpopular as ever. Seeking to regain his footing ahead of some critical budget battles in the months ahead, Obama decided to give yet another speech on the economy.

But how many times can this White House "pivot to the economy"? By one analysis, they've tried well over a dozen times. In fact, ABC's Rick Klein said in February that Obama has "pivoted enough to have spun himself around, more than a few times."

Indeed, Obama's worn-out message seems to be wearing thin even among his loyal media cheerleaders. The Washington Post's Dana Milbank summed it up well, writing: "...just six months into his second term, Obama is fresh out of ideas. ... And so the president, it seems, is going into reruns."

Leadership requires more than just good speeches.


Phony Scandals?

There were a couple of things in Obama's speech yesterday that warrant some discussion. Yesterday the president declared that Washington has been distracted by an "endless parade of distractions and political posturing and phony scandals." Really?

When the IRS scandal broke, President Obama condemned the targeting of Christian, conservative and Tea Party groups as "outrageous." Obama said, "There is no place for it, and [those responsible] have to be held fully accountable." He went on to say, "I have got no patience with it, I will not tolerate it, and we will make sure that we find out exactly what happened on this."

Is this the phony scandal he referred to yesterday? More than three-quarters of the American people think this "phony scandal" deserves a special prosecutor.

Maybe Obama was referring to Benghazi. If that is a phony scandal, why has his administration gone to such extraordinary lengths to prevent the survivors from testifying? If it was phony, he should want everyone to know the facts.

The American people do not think these are "phony scandals." A June Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found that 58% of Americans questioned the Obama White House's honesty and integrity as a result of the Benghazi scandal, and 55% felt the same way as a result of the IRS scandal.


Obama's Alternate Reality

After rehashing his class-warfare rhetoric, Obama then offered his audience a false choice between his left-wing agenda and a grossly distorted view of conservative values, saying, "That's not the vision I have for this country.  It's not the vision you have for this country.  That's not the America we know."

This is coming from a man who is clueless about what America is. He is committed to "fundamentally transforming" America into a European-style, socialist welfare state. He doubled down on Obamacare yesterday, even as members of his own party are turning against it.

America was founded on the notion that our liberty comes from God. But Obama is extremely uncomfortable with the concept of American exceptionalism. According to Obama, America is no more exceptional than England or Greece.

He has denied our Christian heritage. Speaking before foreign audiences, Obama has said, "We do not consider ourselves a Christian nation," and "If you actually took the number of Muslims Americans, we'd be one of the largest Muslim countries in the world."

That is a bizarre and inaccurate statement. There are more Muslims in Azerbaijan, Burkina Faso and Kazakhstan! Yet Obama has the audacity to lecture us about the right vision for America.


Holder v. Texas

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that his Justice Department is seeking to force the state of Texas to abide by pre-clearance requirements to change the state's elections laws. This is a process that prevents states from reforming their election laws without first getting the Justice Department's permission. Holder's declaration comes exactly one month after the Supreme Court's decision that such pre-clearance requirements were unconstitutional.

Writing for the court's majority, Chief Justice John Roberts noted that Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act relied on "a formula based on 40-year-old facts, having no logical relationship to the present day." But just like the George Zimmerman case, the left insists on finding racism where there isn't evidence it exists.

In his speech, Holder promised that today's action "it will not be our last." A former Justice Department spokesman told the Washington Post, "It's a pretty clear sign that a lawsuit against the Texas voter-ID law is also on the way," and he suggested that Holder may go after similar laws in other states too.

Whatever one might think about its policies, you have to admire this administration's determination. While conservatives tie themselves in knots worried about the niceties of polite discourse, this administration will do anything and everything it has to in order to advance its agenda.

Don't like laws on marriage or immigration? Ignore them!

Don't like the Supreme Court rulings? Disregard them!

Can't pass cap and trade legislation through Congress? Regulate it!

Can't make Obamacare's mandates work? Suspend them!

This was not the vision our Founding Fathers had for a country dedicated to the rule of law. But if we are going to preserve the vision of our Founders, the next Republican administration had better be just as committed to fighting for conservative values so we can reverse the damage of the Obama nightmare!


The Left's Pro-Abortion Extremism

Texas State Senator Wendy Davis is in Washington, D.C., today for a series of fundraisers. As you may recall, Davis became the left's latest heroine for filibustering a bill banning late-term abortions. House Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi and other leading liberals were there to cheer her on at a breakfast event just blocks from Capitol Hill.

Davis is being coy about her future, but many Democrats are hoping she runs for higher office. They might want to think twice. Contrary to the many misconceptions of the liberal media, most Americans do not share the left's tolerance for late-term abortions.

Today the Washington Post released yet another poll finding that Americans overwhelmingly support banning late-term abortions. Only 27% of Americans opposed banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. A recent poll conducted for the left-wing Huffington Post found similar results.  

The Editors' Top Picks

  Rep. Amash: "Washington Elites Fear Liberty"  Rep. Justin Amash says Obama's emergency statement against his amendment to cut the funding of NSA's massive collection of phone records demonstrates the Elites' fear of liberty.
  Obama Speaks on Economy to Distract from Scandals, Falling Poll Numbers  With falling approval ratings and an escalating unhappiness over various and sundry scandals, it was time for the president and his obedient media to get out of town.
  Vote on Amash Amendment Reveals Ruse of Two-Party System  The fact that a majority of Republicans voted against and a majority of Democrats voted in favor of the Amash amendment demonstrates that the Establishment draws support from both major parties.
  When Atlas Shrugged at Detroit  A former Detroit business owner tells his story and explains how the city's economy was killed with bad policy.
  The Benefits of a Classical Education  While a "progressive" education highlights perceived societal flaws and teaches what to think, a classical education emphasizes cultural bulwarks and teaches how to think.
  Atheists Lobbying for Their Own Military Chaplains  Atheists have been lobbying Congress to have their own military chaplains - something chaplains who have served in the armed forces say doesn't make sense 

THURSDAY COLUMN

If Obama Had a City, It Would Look Like Detroit

Detroit Is a Metaphor for Obama's America

"The multiplication of public offices, increase of expense beyond income, growth and entailment of a public debt, are indications soliciting the employment of the pruning knife." --Thomas Jefferson (1821)

Launching the next leg of his perpetual campaign, Barack Hussein Obama took his "Change the Subject" snake oil sales pitch -- which he prefers to call the "Better Bargain for the Middle Class" tour -- on the road this week. In this, his 18th "political pivot" back to jobs, he is endeavoring to portray the feeble "economic recovery" -- less than 1 percent GDP in each of the last four years -- as his greatest success story. He will re-refocus on the "Republican sequester," blaming it for his economic policy failures.

Obama's objective is to rally support for even more taxes, spending and debt, in advance of upcoming budget negotiations with House Republicans.

During a seemingly endless stump speech in Galesburg, Illinois, on Wednesday, Obama droned on for nearly 8,000 words, not one of which was "Detroit." "We've come a long way since I first took office," he arrogantly proclaimed. "As a country, we're older and we're wiser." (Seriously, he said that -- as if he alone had raised the collective wisdom of the nation.) However, he did not mention that we're deeper in debt than ever and perilously close to insolvency as a nation, that his socialist policies have failed as such policies always do, that most economic indicators are flat or down, that the number of impoverished families continues to grow, and that his administration is deeply mired in some very troubling scandals.

Regarding those scandals, he characterized his IRS Patriot hit list and the alteration of theBenghazi attack script just ahead of his 2012 re-election bid as an "endless parade of distractions ... and phony scandals." But there is nothing phony about the IRS targeting conservative groups, or the murder of Americans in Benghazi.

Last week, Obama lost more ground with his most loyal constituency, black voters, when the political value of the Zimmerman/Martin case died with the jury's not-guilty verdict.

Desperate to improve his favorability ratings, and to divert attention away from his administration's failings on every level -- including his increasingly beleaguered scheme to nationalize health care -- Obama is betting that his appearances before adoring, handpicked audiences will bolster his national approval. Given the endless media coverage of these staged events, that is probably a good bet.

Unfortunately for Obama, in the same week he announced his "economic success" summits across the nation, the city of Detroit announced its Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing -- with no way to cover billions in unfunded liabilities. That's the largest municipal bankruptcy in history. As you recall, just before his re-election last year, Obama claimed Detroit as one of his success stories: "We refused to let Detroit go bankrupt. We bet on American workers and American ingenuity, and three years later, that bet is paying off in a big way."

Obviously not. Obama's "road forward" has proven to be a dead end for Detroit, as it has for the whole nation.

Recalling Obama's politically motivated remark to make the Zimmerman/Martin case part of his campaign last year -- "If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon" -- the obvious parallel for Obama in this instance would be, "If I had a city, it would look like Detroit."

Detroit is an apropos metaphor for Obama's America. It is the prototypical terminal manifestation of the Democratic Party's socialist economic policies that have created ever-expanding urban poverty plantations in once-great cities across the nation. That in turn drives the departure of middle-class families for greener pastures in outlying suburban counties with better schools and lower crime.

Over just the last decade, some 240,000 of Detroit's residents (25 percent of its population), and thousands of businesses, fled the city's oppressive taxes and corrupt one-party government. Indeed, Detroit was a bustling city of nearly 2,000,000 residents as far back as 1950; today, that number is just over 700,000. (Not coincidentally, Detroit's last Republican mayor, Louis Miriani, served more than a half-century ago, from 1957 to 1962.)

Traveling through Detroit, as with other blighted urban centers, I can't help but recall my travels through the urban wastelands of the Soviet Union in the 1980s. Ironically, Russian leaders today understand the importance of lower taxes and decentralized government as a catalyst for free enterprise and economic growth, while Democrat leaders in our nation advocate policies that stifle economic growth and centralize government.

The miles of shuttered businesses and fields of collapsing homes are also reminiscent of "Starnesville," the fictitious auto-manufacturing center in Ayn Rand's dystopian novel, "Atlas Shrugged." Rand wrote, "A few houses still stood within the skeleton of what had once been an industrial town. Everything that could move, had moved away... Beyond the town, on a distant hill, stood the factory of the Twentieth Century Motor Company..."

When Ayn Rand published her novel in 1957, Detroit had the highest per capita GDP in the nation. But Detroit, like Starnesville, became a desolate wasteland after the socialists gained political control of the city. Likewise, its decline is a harbinger for the rest of our national economy.

Read more:

WHO told these Republican "experts" they know what they are talking about?

Jul 25, 2013 06:13 am | Coach Collins

By Kevin "Coach" Collins

Who pats these fools on the head and anoints them as "experts?"

The Politico finds it significant that "the usually gregarious consultant to Sen. Marco Rubio uncharacteristically resisted eight days of calls and emails seeking his thoughts for this column [on the Immigration bill]."

Presumably with their eyes toward the heavens the authors called Rubio's push for amnesty a liability "at least for now."

Using quotation marks around the word, Politico dismisses the notion that Rubio was "played" by Uncle Democrat aka Chuck Schumer and other Senate Democrats.

Sen. Lindsey Graham who is very likely to face a primary for his part in granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens gave Rubio some advice: "If he's got some influence in the House, now is a good time to use it."

The Politico praised Rubio for "masterfully" winning over "important talkers like Bill O'Reilly on Fox" without realizing that O'Reilly couldn't get himself ... Continue Reading:WHO told these Republican "experts" they know what they are talking about?

comments | read more

P.S. Tell Your Friends!

Morning Jolt  . . . with Jim Geraghty

July 25, 2013

When Party Loyalty Demands You Support a Creep, It's Time to Walk Away

It is not necessarily the most important question before us, but it is one that's persistent and widespread this week: Just what is Huma Abedin thinking?

The delightful Kemberlee Kaye asked why so many Democratic women are willing to overlook, accept, or forgive creepy and awful behavior from their elected officials:

"Public service has nothing to do with bedroom service. 98.4367% of men cheat. I do know a few good men who don't. Leave Weiner alone," Tamara Holder tweeted. Bogus statistic aside, why should anyone ignore the actions of a sexual predator*, particularly one currently seeking the mayorship of the largest city in the United States? And the young women he sought out? What about them?

See also Ted Kennedy, John F. Kennedy, Bob Filner, Eliot Spitzer, John Edwards and Al Gore.  Their legacies, at least in the minds of the collective left, do not include their abhorrent treatment of women. No, no, Democratic women wouldn't dare criticize the way these power-drunk politicians treated their wives, mistresses, ladies of the evening, et al. At least not publicly.

*If you momentarily feel the instinct to dispute the notion that Weiner was a sexual predator, keep in mind he chatted online with a 17-year-old girl but assured the world that "nothing inappropriate took place."

We should try to resist the temptation to believe that you and I are better, smarter, or more moral than other people because we're conservatives. That's just not true. You and I are better than everyone else because you read this newsletter.

Yes, you can find plenty of folks on the Right who fail to live up to their own ideals or general standards of acceptable behavior. But thankfully, for all of our flaws, you don't see a lot of conservatives arguing that certain creepy behavior has to be accepted out of party loyalty. And that represents a key philosophical difference with the Left, at least in practice.

Whether you come from a more socially conservative perspective or a more libertarian one, your philosophy gives you some strong arguments about why this sort of behavior is unacceptable.

If you're socially conservative, your values are likely shaped by a Judeo-Christian teaching that every person is created by God and thus deserving of respect, etc. So besides the usual Biblical/Torah-based teachings -- don't commit adultery, etc. -- sexually harassing your underlings, using an employee as a sexual plaything, or using your wife as a human shield during an embarrassing press conference is to objectify them and is pretty obviously not in line with God's teachings.

If you're libertarian, one of your core tenets is the value of the individual and the need to protect the rights of the individual -- and sexual harassment undoubtedly represents an infringement upon the rights of an individual. You may have less of an issue with adultery between consenting adults or even with prostitution (freely agreed contracts!) but ultimately whatever happens must be agreed upon by both/all parties. Cheating on one's wife and humiliating her in a public scandal isn't usually part of an agreed contract. (Someday we may have a political power couple in an open marriage, and it will be interesting to see what the public reaction will be.)

However, modern liberalism usually defines the world in terms of groups and group rights. The rights of the individual are much less important (see how often the Left criticizes our society as too individualistic or "go it alone") and their vision of a wise redistribution of money, power, authority, rights, etc. often requires the correct person or group to be in charge. Having the Left's preferred people in charge is, in fact, the preeminent value on the Left, and any other "rule" can be broken in its name -- i.e., it's okay to serve on corporate boards and make lots of money, as long as you donate to the party, etc. 

In short, the rights of a female employee of San Diego mayor Bob Filner don't amount to that much in the minds of a lot of San Diego Democrats, compared to the need to keep Filner in charge so he can enact their preferred policies. In fact, when forced to take a side, they side with the powerful man running the gravy train:

The local Democratic Party has known for a long time about sexual harassment allegations against Bob Filner, a former Democratic assemblywoman said in a Thursday interview.

"I blew the whistle on this two years ago to the Democratic Party leadership," former Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña said.

Saldaña said that in summer 2011 six prominent women in local politics, business and education told her that Filner had physically or verbally harassed them. Saldaña had been exploring what turned out to be an unsuccessful bid for Congress and the conversations came in the context of the 2012 elections.

Saldaña said she contacted former party Chairman Jess Durfee with the allegations and Durfee was among a group of Democratic leaders who met with Filner to discuss them that summer. She said nothing happened.

"As disgraceful as Bob's behavior has been, it's been tolerated by our Democratic Party leadership," she said.

Saldaña said Filner never personally harassed her and declined to say who alleged to have had run-ins with the mayor. She said former City Councilwoman Donna Frye, who is calling for Filner's resignation over unspecified sexual harassment allegations, inspired her to talk.

Saldaña has a long history of conflict with Filner, most prominently over a failed border sewage treatment project about a decade ago. She also wound up endorsing him for mayor.

Party leaders, she said, made it clear that if people didn't support Filner they wouldn't receive their support again.

Most of us recoil from that as a soulless and ghoulish way of seeing people, as insignificant cogs whose well-being is easily sacrificed in the name of the "greater good." But that's why we're on this side.

Discussing this on a conservative e-mail list, Emily Zanotti of NakedDC noted:

A lot of these Democratic men use their power and position to cow these women. Sanford was a schmuck, but his affair was consensual. Weiner (and Clinton and Spitzer) all had affairs with women who basically worshiped them. The latest girl revealed to be messaging  Weiner kept saying, 'I can't believe I'm talking to you!' 'wow, you're so awesome,' etc. Clinton banged an intern. Spitzer paid sex workers. 

It's a combination of power-broking and power-worship that probably results from the ideology but takes on a really perverse sexual form.

While we're on the subject . . . dear mainstream media: every disgraced politician wants the kind of soft-focus powder-puff coverage that People gave Weiner and Abedin in 2012 to help their redemption narrative. Don't give it to them.

"I'm very happy in my present life," Weiner, 47, tells PEOPLE in an exclusive interview. "The only next dramatic steps I'm planning on are Jordan's first," he says, referring to his 6-month-old son and remaining noncommital on whether he will run for office again.

In his first joint interview with wife Huma Abedin, who is deputy chief of staff to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the couple address how they survived Weiner's lewd text and photo scandal that led to his resignation, as well as who has diaper duty.

Around the same time as that interview, Weiner was beginning his online relationship with his new 22-year-old object of affection.

Oh, GreenTech Automotive. What Are We Going to Do with You?

WatchDog.org catches a key business partner of GreenTech Automotive in a . . . well, in recognition of GreenTech's hair-trigger reflex for $85 million lawsuits when it feels it has been libeled, let's just characterize this as a circumstance in which the facts appear to contradict a company statement.

Yesterday word broke that the Department of Homeland Security inspector general's office is investigating Alejandro Mayorkas, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, over alleged intervention to obtain approval for Gulf Coast Funds Management to expand its operations in Tennessee and Virginia. USCIS initially rejected GCFM's request.

"At this point in our investigation, we do not have any findings of criminal misconduct," the e-mail from the Homeland Security inspector general states. The office is investigating "alleged conflicts of interest, misuse of position, mismanagement of the EB-5 program, and an appearance of impropriety by Mayorkas and other USCIS management officials."

According to Gulf Coast Funds Management's Form I-924A filed with the U.S. Customs and Immigration Services, GreenTech is GCFM's only client. This was the case back in 2009, too.

Here's the Gulf Coast company statement:

Gulf Coast officials forcefully denied the AP report to an NBC affiliate in Richmond and claimed that they are not a part of any federal investigation.

"Gulf Coast Funds Management (GCFM) has not sought assistance from USCIS to resolve a rejected appeal. In fact, we are not aware of any investor visa applications associated with our Regional Center being denied," said Gulf Coast attorney Simone Williams. "GCFM is not part of any investigation by Department of Homeland Security."

Notice the careful wording. They may not have sought assistance to resolve a rejected appeal . . . but they did reach out to Mayorkas on those applications, contending that the federal agency was dragging its feet.

Here's what WatchDog.org found in its research, FOIA requests, etc.

Two years ago a Gulf Coast attorney emailed Mayorkas, asking him to expedite processing of 81 investor applications.

"Is there anything we can do to have the (applications) adjudicated and direction provided on the remaining cases?" asked attorney Dawn Lurie in a July 7, 2011 email. Then on Jan. 23, 2013, Mayorkas received another email from a second Gulf Coast lawyer.

This time she said 31 petitions were pending, but singled out two applicants for special consideration.

"Undue delay by USCIS in reviewing our (petitions) has jeopardized our marketing efforts, as prospective investors are reluctant to invest in GTA without seeing our petition approval record," wrote Simone Williams.

Meanwhile, Ryan Nobles of NBC's affiliate in Richmond and a Memphis station teamed up to report on claims that workers in their facilities . . . aren't really building cars.

The former employee told us that in his more than a year in a half on the line maybe 30 cars were built and most of them never left the building.

"They would take everybody and put them out on the line and we would stand over the car with tools in our hand and look like we were doing something to the car but we wasn't doing anything," he said.

The worker claims the company had them put on a show for what he believed to be foreign investors. According to [Greentech spokesperson Marianne] McInerney he simply misunderstood the training process of a complex and new technology.

"There's what we would call a training build."  

Wealthy Guy Who Golfs Frequently and Hangs Out with Millionaires Laments Income Inequality

The editors of the Wall Street Journal:

The President summed up his economic priorities close to the top of his hour-long address. "This growing inequality isn't just morally wrong; it's bad economics," he told his Galesburg, Illinois audience. "When middle-class families have less to spend, businesses have fewer customers. When wealth concentrates at the very top, it can inflate unstable bubbles that threaten the economy. When the rungs on the ladder of opportunity grow farther apart, it undermines the very essence of this country."

Then the heart of the matter: "That's why reversing these trends must be Washington's highest priority. It's certainly my highest priority."

Which is the problem. For four and a half years, Mr. Obama has focused his policies on reducing inequality rather than increasing growth. The predictable result has been more inequality and less growth. As even Mr. Obama conceded in his speech, the rich have done well in the last few years thanks to a rising stock market, but the middle class and poor have not. The President called his speech "A Better Bargain for the Middle Class," but no President has done worse by the middle class in modern times. . . .

The core problem has been Mr. Obama's focus on spreading the wealth rather than creating it. ObamaCare will soon hook more Americans on government subsidies, but its mandates and taxes have hurt job creation, especially at small businesses. Mr. Obama's record tax increases have grabbed a bigger chunk of affluent incomes, but they created uncertainty for business throughout 2012 and have dampened growth so far this year.

The food stamp and disability rolls have exploded, which reduces inequality but also reduces the incentive to work and rise on the economic ladder. This has contributed to a plunge in the share of Americans who are working-the labor participation rate-to 63.5% in June from 65.7% in June 2009. And don't forget the Fed's extraordinary monetary policy, which has done well by the rich who have assets but left the thrifty middle class and retirees earning pennies on their savings.

Mr. Obama would have done far better by the poor, the middle class and the wealthy if he had focused on growing the economy first. The difference between the Obama 2% recovery and the Reagan-Clinton 3%-4% growth rates is rising incomes for nearly everybody.

ADDENDUM: Ron Fournier, formerly of AP, now with National Journal: "If leadership was merely about speaking to converted, winning fights & positioning to blame, America would be in great hands." 

NRO Digest - July 25, 2013

Today on National Review Online . . .

Today's Headlines:  Thursday, July 25, 2013

Navy Using Video Game 'Avatars' to Combat Sexual Assault; Sailors to Act Out 'Scripted Scenarios'

Obama Denounces Congress for Focusing on 'Phony Scandals,' Promises More Executive Action

Magna Carta, Anne Frank's Diary and--Che Guevara Papers: UN Culture Agency Honors Castro's Comrade

Only CNSNews.com brings you the news the liberal media ignores! Please help us with a tax deductible gift today.

Ill. Legislator Repeats, Then Disavows Suspicions that Chicago Police 'Are Killing Some of These Kids'

Civil War: Dem Compares Obamacare Fight to Gettysburg

Congressmen, Veterans Demand Select Committee to Investigate Benghazi Attack

Magna Carta, Anne Frank's Diary and--Che Guevara Papers: UN Culture Agency Honors Castro's Comrade

Global Study: Atheists in Decline, Only 1.8% of World Population by 2020

Low Expectations for Obama's Partisan Economic Tour

Republicans' Latest Attack on Obamacare Involves IRS 
Bachmann: Does the GOP in the House Have the 'Guts to Fight' Obamacare?

Now you can access all the latest breaking news from CNSNews.com on your smartphone. Check out our mobile website today! 
Biden Jokes He Might Run for Office -- In India

$299K Grant To Help Pacific Islanders Understand Their Own Language

$500K to See How Oil Industry Impacts Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Rape, Stalking in Dakotas, Montana

Gov't Spending $544,188 to Promote HPV Vaccine

Legislation Extending Federal Protection for Cross-Dressers Heads to Full Senate 
President's Men Preach Climate Change As Responsibility of All Mankind

Kerry's Vietnam Comments Focus on the Past, Skirt Human Rights Concerns Today

COMMENTARY:

Anthony Weiner: Danger Is His Middle Name
By Ben Shapiro
This is what happens when society decides that honor is not a central value. Politicians can lie to the media then somehow spin those lies as a "private matter." There are always more Weiners where this one came from, so long as Americans keep standing for this nonsense.