Todd Akin, Sarah Steelman and Tea Party Express

In listening to Todd Akin today on The Dana Show, he stated that he only became aware of the Tea Party Express endorsement of Sarah Steelman yesterday. If that is true, it is symptomatic of why Tea Party Express chose not to endorse him in the race.

I have known Amy Kremer since early 2009 and she told me over a year ago that they had been approached by Sarah Steelman about an endorsement in the race. She also told me that they wanted to effect the Senate races and they saw the Missouri race as key to that effort. Their desire to endorse in key Senate races is well known to all conservative candidates in those races.

It should surprise no one that national level PACs would be interested in this race. It certainly should not come as a surprise to Todd Akin. I told the Akin campaign directly months ago that they needed to reach out to Tea Party Express, FreedomWorks and the National Taxpayers Union along with Jim DeMint and other conservative orgs for their endorsement and help with fundraising. I also warned them of just such an endorsement of Sarah Steelman by Tea Party Express. I urged them to lead on issues and increase their outreach to grassroots and conservative orgs. I personally offered to help assist with that outreach, using what connections I have to assist in those efforts. I repeated those offers to the Akin campaign twice over the last month. My offers were rebuffed at each attempt.  The first outreach which Todd Akin attempted to Tea Party Express came last night after the announcement of an impending endorsement had already come out.

If you want someone’s vote you have to ask for it. If you want someone’s endorsement the same rule applies.

I like Todd Akin, I value his service and his consistent voting record. But that is not enough to win this race. Sarah Steelman has been actively courting conservative PACs and Orgs for over a year. She is bearing the fruit of that hard work, and from what I hear there will be more endorsements from other conservative PACs to come.

PACs have the right to endorse. In doing so they are expressing their First Amendment right to political speech. They are not forcing anyone to vote according to their endorsement. If you disagree with their point of view then issue an endorsement of your own. Call up the campaign of your choice and volunteer your time, or money. Donate your blog, facebook posts, or twitter feed to assist in the support of your candidate of YOUR choice.

Don’t just get angry, GET ACTIVE.

Bachmann for Speaker

With the latest betrayal by John Boehner of the grassroots tea party conservatives that put him in the Speaker’s chair, it is time for him to go.

The GOP had no GOTV push in 2010.  All that money had been blown by Michael Steele. The reason that the GOP has a majority in the house and John Boehner is Speaker of the House is because the tea party did the job that the GOP was unable to do. We got conservatives elected to Congress.

When it came time to choose a speaker Michele Bachmann threw her name in the ring, to no avail. Imagine a House under a  Speaker Bachmann. Do you think the summer debt deal debacle would have happened? Would this payroll tax “compromise” have occurred? At the very least we would have a Speaker that could articulate the conservative point of view and would not shrink from a fight. She is twice the man Boehner is.

Michele Bachmann is going nowhere as a Presidential candidate. The office she should run for is Speaker of the House. She should suspend her Presidential candidacy, return to D.C. and mount a campaign for Speaker.

She should do it today.

From Judicial Watch: Court Rules Citizens Can Record Police (And other Governmental Officials)

Recently there was an incident at a Claire McCaskill Table Talk at which Senate staffers attempted to restrict constituents ability to record either by video or audio means a public meeting designed to foster communication between constituents and their governmental representatives.

Video H/T SharpElbows.Net

Although the case which Judicial Watch is reporting on was brought by a man who recorded the actions of police in their official governmental duties, the decision clearly applies to other governmental officials as well.

From the Judicial Watch article:

But a few days ago the federal appellate court settled the issue, ruling that the filming of government officials engaged in their duties in a public place fits comfortably within the principles of protected First Amendment activity. The court also noted that police officers are to expect to deal with certain “burdens” as citizens practice First Amendments rights.

“Gathering information about government officials in a form that can readily be disseminated to others serves a cardinal First Amendment interest in protecting and promoting the free discussion of governmental affairs,” the three-judge panel wrote, adding that police officers should have understood this all along and that videotaping public officials is not limited to the press.

“Moreover, changes in technology and society have made the lines between private citizen and journalist exceedingly difficult to draw,” the court continued. “The proliferation of electronic devices with video-recording capability means that many of our images of current events come from bystanders with a ready cell phone or digital camera rather than a traditional film crew, and news stories are now just as likely to be broken by a blogger at her computer as a reporter at a major newspaper. Such developments make clear why the news-gathering protections of the First Amendment cannot turn on professional credentials or status.”

Perhaps Politicians and their Staffers should take note, and REMOVE such illegal signs in the future so as to not create hostile environments in public meetings.

You can read the entire article at the link below. Perhaps Senator Claire McCaskill and her staffers should as well.

Court Rules Citizens Can Record Police | Judicial Watch.

Gibson Press Release Details Bullying By Obama Justice Dept.

Another example of abuse of authority by the Obama Justice Department.  The original press release can be found at the link below.

Gibson Press Release.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Gov’t says wood is illegal if U.S. workers produce it
Thursday, August 25, 2011

The Justice department bullies Gibson without filing charges

The Federal Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. has suggested that the use of wood from India that is not finished by Indian workers is illegal, not because of U.S. law, but because it is the Justice Department’s interpretation of a law in India. (If the same wood from the same tree was finished by Indian workers, the material would be legal.) This action was taken without the support and consent of the government in India.

On August 24, 2011, around 8:45 a.m. CDT, agents for the federal government executed four search warrants on Gibson’s facilities in Nashville and Memphis and seized several pallets of wood, electronic files and guitars. Gibson had to cease its manufacturing operations and send workers home for the day, while armed agents executed the search warrants. Gibson has fully cooperated with the execution of the search warrants.

• Raid shut down Gibson factories and cost company money
This is the second time that federal agents have raided Gibson facilities and disrupted production – this time causing lost productivity and sales.

• Wood seized was Forest Stewardship Council Controlled
The wood the Government seized on August 24 is from a Forest Stewardship Council certified supplier and is FSC Controlled, meaning that the wood complies with the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council, which is an industry-recognized and independent, not-for-profit organization established to promote responsible management of the world’s forests. FSC Controlled Wood standards require, among other things, that the wood not be illegally harvested and not be harvested in violation of traditional and civil rights. See www.fsc.org for more information. Gibson has a long history of supporting sustainable and responsible sources of wood and has worked diligently with entities such as the Rainforest Alliance and Greenpeace to secure FSC certified supplies. The wood seized on August 24 satisfied FSC standards.

• Nearly two years later, no charges have been filed
In 2009, more than a dozen agents with automatic weapons invaded the Gibson factory in Nashville. The Government seized guitars and a substantial amount of ebony fingerboard blanks from Madagascar. To date, 1 year and 9 months later, criminal charges have NOT been filed, yet the Government still holds Gibson’s property. Gibson has obtained sworn statements and documents from the Madagascar government and these materials, which have been filed in federal court, show that the wood seized in 2009 was legally exported under Madagascar law and that no law has been violated. Gibson is attempting to have its property returned in a civil proceeding that is pending in federal court.

The Justice Department has asked the judge to stop the court case indefinitely.

• Information sought in raid was already made available
Since 2009, Gibson has fully cooperated with the Government’s investigation of wood and has provided substantial documentation regarding Gibson’s wood-buying activities over the years. Yet, the Federal Government raided Gibson’s facilities on August 24, 2011, without warning or communication of any kind. Had the Government simply communicated with Gibson, Gibson would have cooperated without having to stop its production and send workers home.

• Not about illegal logging, not about conservation, not about the environment
The U.S. Lacey Act does not directly address conservation issues but is about obeying all laws of the countries from which wood products are procured. This law reads that you are guilty if you did not observe a law even though you had no knowledge of that law in a foreign country. The U.S. Lacey Act is only applicable when a foreign law has been violated.

• Gibson is innocent and will fight to protect its rights
Gibson has complied with foreign laws and believes it is innocent of ANY wrong doing. We will fight aggressively to prove our innocence.

For more information, please contact:
Henry E. Juszkiewicz
c/o Gibson Guitar Corp.
309 Plus Park Blvd.
Nashville, TN 37217
(615) 871-4500 Extension 2405
www.gibson.com

About Gibson Guitar:

Gibson is known worldwide for producing classic models in every major style of fretted instrument, including acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, and banjos. The Gibson Les Paul guitar is the best-selling guitar of all time and bears the name of the late, great Les Paul. Gibson’s line of Robot guitars, including the revolutionary new Firebird X, represents the biggest advances in electric guitar design in over 70 years. The Gibson Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Gibson Guitar Corp., and dedicates its time and services to making the place a better world for children through its support of music, education, health and human services. Founded in 1894 in Kalamazoo, Michigan and headquartered in Nashville since 1984, Gibson Guitar Corp.’s family of brands now includes Epiphone, Dobro, Kramer, Steinberger, Tobias, Echoplex, Electar, Flatiron, Slingerland, Valley Arts, Maestro, Oberheim, Baldwin, Sunshine Piano, Take Anywhere Technology, J&C Fischer, Chickering, Hamilton, and Wurlitzer.

Visit Gibson’s website at www.gibson.com.

For breaking Gibson News: Press RSS Feed.

Follow Gibson on Twitter at www.twitter.com/gibsonguitar and Facebook at www.facebook.com/gibsonguitar.

Gibson, 1-800-4GIBSON (1-800-444-2766) or www.gibson.com

Contacts:

Jeremy Singer / Gibson UK, 020 7167 2144 / Jeremy.Singer@Gibson.com

Chris O’Hearn / Gibson Australia 61 2 9929 2257 / ThrillHillEnt@BigPond.com

Hypocritical Harry

Yesterday: Senate Majority Leader Reid Demands The House Stay In Session Over The Weekend. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Thursday morning slammed House Republicans for their decision to take “the weekend off,” a shot that comes as part of a mounting Democratic effort to turn up the heat on lower-chamber Republicans to compromise on a debt-ceiling deal. … Reid said in a floor speech it is “untoward, and that’s the kindest word I can say, to have the House of Representatives out this weekend.” Reid said their absence provides a “very bad picture for our country.” (National Journal, 7/21/11)

Today: Reid Cancels Weekend Senate Session. Sen Reid tell Senate nothing for it to do tomorrow or Sunday and therefore it will not have to be in session this weekend. (@MarkKnoller, 7/22/11)

Hat Tip to Brian Patrick in Maj Leader Cantor’s Office for these. Priceless