As we all celebrate and give thanks for living in a nation founded on individual freedom, we need to remember eternal vigilance is the price of that freedom.
Mayor Annise Parker's Fourth Term Coming Under The Guise Of Sylvester Turner, If We Let It Happen
61% of Houston voters said 'no' to the Parker-Turner bathroom ordinance. The Parker machine is all in for Turner because they know HERO will return if Turner is elected.
Both Parker and Turner think voters who voted down HERO were stupid and ill informed. They don't respect you or your opinions. And they think you won't bother to return for the runoff so Turner can win a low turnout race.
To stop Annise Parker's fourth term, vote for Bill King who will be a Mayor for all of Houston, not just the radical left, and will get Houston back to basics.
Why Won't The Republican Party of Texas Move The 2016 State Convention From Dallas Or Demonstrate Why We Can't?
The left-wing run city of Dallas recently amended its so-called anti-discrimination ordinance to allow men to go into women's bathrooms and locker rooms.
In reaction, GOP conservative leaders led by former Harris County Republican Chair Jared Woodfill, and SREC members led by Bonnie Lugo, and state officials led by Representative Molly White are urging that if the convention can be relocated without penalty, it should. Dallas officials believe their bathroom ordinance will take business from Houston. Instead, why don't we take business from pro-HERO Dallas?
What is really disturbing is that the RPT Chair Mechler is stonewalling efforts by GOP officials to review the deal with Dallas to see if the convention can be cancelled penalty free. What is he hiding? We don't know. This is not principled leadership, but instead is evading the truth. If Mechler wants to continue as State Chair for a conservative GOP he needs to get with the program.
Richard Russell - RIP
Richard Russell, the founder and editor of Dow Theory Letters, wrote on markets, faith and America from 1958. A World War II bombardier in Europe, he was a real American hero. He enriched many people's lives economically and spiritually. Another great one has fallen.
That Lingering Illegals Problem In America And The Radical Muslim Threat
After all the recent terror attacks, if anyone with half a brain is not concerned about who we let into the U.S., they are delusional.
Former Senior Special Agent of the INS, Michael Cutler, recently commented on the problem. We are not following our laws on immigration or refugee inadmissibility. That probably is not a big surprise given how our immigration laws are flaunted.
Specifically, we are not doing the required inspections that insure many things. These inspections going back in U.S. history have always been used to determine who gains entry.
The law requires per Title 8 U.S. Code Section 1182 enumerates the grounds for excluding aliens from the U.S. and includes aliens infected with dangerous communicable diseases, suffer from extreme mental illness, and are prone to violence, aliens who are criminals, human rights violators, war criminals, spies or terrorists. Finally that list also includes aliens who would likely become public charges or displace American workers.
Now you would probably say the so-called refugees Obama wants from Syria don't qualify by law, and you would be correct.
If we don't get control of who is in the U.S., then the warning in the 9/11 Commission report on terror travel threats to the homeland have come to fruition: "It is perhaps obvious to state that terrorists cannot plan and carryout attacks in the US if they are unable to enter the country. Yet prior to September 11...no agency of the US government thought of border security as a tool in the counterterrorism arsenal. Indeed, even after 19 hijackers demonstrated the relative ease of obtaining a US visa and gaining admission into the US, border security still is not considered a cornerstone of national security policy...it must be made one."
When are we going to elect a President who will make border security (wherever it is) a top priority for national security and terrorist policy? We are living on borrowed time. The next radical Islamic terror strike is coming to the U.S. sooner rather than later, unless we get our act together.
Hillary's Accomplishments
By Bruce Bialosky, Contributing Editor
The recent Democratic debates showed what was being hidden by the press for months - Hillary Clinton is running against an inept candidate and an arm-waving socialist more interested in revolution in America than winning the nomination of the party he somewhat inhabits. More than ever we must focus on the accomplishments of Ms. Clinton during her long public life.
This really came to the fore because of Carly Fiorina. Ms. Fiorina finally has received notice as a candidate and her comments about Hillary gained parallel fame. Fiorina has said that "Like Hillary Clinton, I too have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles around the globe. But unlike Hillary Clinton, I know that flying is an activity, not an accomplishment." This caused Ms. Clinton to send copies of her recent memoir Hard Choices to all the Republican candidates except Jim Gilmore as a means supposedly to educate them on her accomplishments. I have read the book and thus could speak to those accomplishments, but better yet why should we take my word or her word or any Republican's word. Politico solicited the thoughts of 20 prominent Democrats as to Hillary's accomplishments; thus, we have their thoughts on what they believe she has accomplished.
In the comments from these Democrats, many of them Clinton allies, the responses fall in to three categories. The first is some actual programs she participated in that have become laws whether you agree with them or not. The second is stated accomplishments which are totally debatable as to their benefit. The third is statements which are vapid.
For example, multiple people suggest Clinton was key in passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. This bill was submitted by Barbara Mikulski in 2009 as soon as the Congress opened and was passed in the initial days of the Obama Administration with the new Democratic majorities. It was signed 21 days after submittal. I can find no significant dispute to this bill passing (it sailed through both houses) and I can find no reference in any material to work done by Clinton.
Clinton is also given credit for key work on the SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program). This is a bill which was sponsored by Senator Ted Kennedy in 1997. First Lady Hillary Clinton definitely participated in moving this bill toward becoming law. Some argue she did not, but it is clear she was helpful in getting this piece of legislation passed.
Then there are the multiple insipid statements made in her support. Bill Richardson, a Clinton ally, former Energy Secretary, and Governor of New Mexico, had this to say: "As Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton was key in rebuilding America's leadership and prestige overseas after the Bush years. She restored our alliances with the EU and key Asian allies as well as key relationships in Africa and Latin America." This is a nice attack on Bush, but does not speak of any accomplishment by Clinton. That is completely separate of the fact that our standing in the world has vastly declined under Obama and Clinton.
Then there is the person she worked most closely with in the Senate - Chuck Schumer (D-NY). His statement was seconded by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT). Her principal accomplishment as defined by them and as stated by Schumer, "Hillary Clinton was instrumental in helping secure $21 billion in federal aid to help New York rebuild after 9/11. She fought tooth and nail to protect the first responders who rushed into danger when the towers collapsed and was pivotal in the passage of legislation that helped those first responders who got sick get the care and treatment they deserved."
You all remember America rising up and stating - no money to New York. Was there anybody other than four cranks sitting in their underwear on their couches arguing against taking care of the people of New York and the first responders after 9/11? That is the kind of perception of accomplishment that validates Fiorina's comments.
The thrust of Fiorina's assertions focus on Clinton's time as Secretary of State. We can all have a lot of fun with the comments from Bill Burton - a well-known Obama acolyte. He listed Clinton's first two accomplishments as 1. Her China speech on women; and 2. Her role in killing Osama bin Laden. Gosh, those bespeak the leadership and bravery of this woman. Who would have ever wanted to kill Bin Laden had it not been for her leadership?
A lot of comments were about the New Start treaty. There is significant disagreement on the accomplishment of this agreement. It limited our ability to deploy anti-missile defense systems for us and our allies in Europe. It also gave Russia a significant advantage in tactical nuclear weapons which are not limited by the treaty. One thing is clear -- it was the forerunner for the Iran deal in that the verification aspects of the deal are miniscule. Also, it did wonders for our relationship with Russia and our Eastern European allies which is in shambles.
Multiple people gave Clinton credit for ramping up the sanctions that that legitimately brought Iran to the table. Unfortunately, the negotiations were left for Obama and the effete Kerry, and the value of the deal is highly in question and could not even pass Congress.
The overall tenor of the commentaries was best represented by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV). He said "Secretary Clinton was also an outspoken champion for women around the world. She set records for travel while leading the State Department and used every trip to empower the women of the 112 countries she visited. She made gender equality a priority of U.S. foreign policy. And she created the ambassador at large for global women's issues, a post charged with integrating gender throughout the State Department."
If Ms. Clinton wanted clarity on her accomplishments then she should have sent her book to these people who were seemingly as baffled in describing what she has done for the past 25 years as most everyone else.
Bruce Bialosky is the founder of the Republican Jewish Coalition of California and a former Presidential appointee. You can contact Bruce at bruce@bialosky.biz.
TCR on the Air
Red, White & Blue featuring TCR Editor Gary Polland and liberal commentator David Jones on Fridays at 7:30 pm on PBS Houston Channel 8.1, replaying Saturdays at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 8.1, Mondays at 11:30 pm on Channel 8.2 and on the web at www.houstonpublicmedia.org.
The current show as well as past shows are available on YouTube.
About Your Editor
Gary Polland is a long-time conservative and Republican spokesman, fund-raiser, and leader who completed three terms as the Harris County Republican Chairman. During his three terms, Gary was described as the most successful county Chairman in America by Human Events - The National Conservative Weekly. He is in his sixteenth year of editing a newsletter dealing with key conservative and Republican issues. The last fourteen years he has edited Texas Conservative Review. As a public service for the last 13 years, Gary has published election guides for the GOP primary, general elections and city elections, all with the purpose of assisting conservative candidates. Gary is also in his 14th year of co-hosting Red, White and Blue on PBS Houston, longest running political talk show in Texas history. Gary is a practicing attorney and strategic consultant. He can be reached at (713) 621-6335.
|