Pull the Plug on Obamacare Rally (Ohio)

Rally to Pull the Plug on Obamacare

PRO-FAMILY MOVEMENT & TEA PARTY UNITE

 TO “PULL THE PLUG” AT BOEHNER’S OFFICE

Defund Obamacare Rally in Troy, Ohio Next Tuesday! 

August 20, 2013 – For Immediate Release

With unprecedented unity, the pro-family movement, Tea Party groups, and freedom-loving Ohioans are joining together outside Speaker John Boehner’s district office (12 South Plum Street in Troy, Ohio) to stand against the funding of Obamacare with a “Pull the Plug” Rally next Tuesday, August 27, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m.

Among those speaking are former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of Tea Party Patriots, Brent Bozell, founder of ForAmerica, Doc Thompson from The Blaze, Ted Stevenot of Ohio Liberty Council,  Janet Porter of Faith2Action and many more.

“Symbolic votes against Obamacare are great, but now it’s time to pull the plug on funding the monstrosity that threatens our lives and livelihoods.” said Ken Blackwell, “Join us next Tuesday to encourage the Speaker to pull the plug on Obamacare before it’s too late!”

“If the President can delay Obamacare for Big Business, Big Government and Big Labor, Speaker Boehner can do it for the American people, and we are calling on him to do it,” stated Jenny Beth Martin of Tea Party Patriots.

“Why would we give the keys to our healthcare to the same branch of government that continues to target Tea Party and Conservative groups, denying them the right to assemble?” asked Janet (Folger) Porter, president of Faith2Action, who is organizing the event. “We must pull the plug on Obamacare before he pulls the plug on us!”

“The citizens of Ohio have spoken loudly and clearly by passing the Healthcare Amendment: Keep Obamacare out of Ohio!” added Beth Cox of the Preble County Liberty Group. “Speaker Boehner: Please defund Obamacare and save lives.”

The American Retirement Death Spiral

From Tea Party Patriots --

Veronique de Rugy spells out exactly why Social Security is unsustainable:

A single man earning the average wage ($43,500 in 2011) who retired in 1980 would have paid a total of $96,000 in Social Security taxes and received lifetime benefits of $203,000, or about 211 percent of contributions. A single man earning the average wage but retiring in 2010 faces a vastly different situation: He would have paid $294,000 in taxes to receive benefits of just $265,000, or about 90 percent of contributions. For the same person retiring in 2030, taxes of $398,000 yield $336,000 in benefits, or just 84 percent of contributions.

These numbers were found, according to de Rugy, “C. Eugene Steuerle and Stephanie Rennae, researchers at the liberal Urban Institute.” (Readers may remember Tea Party Patriots examined a report on the federal budget co-authored by Steuerle earlier this year.) Clearly, this system is both unsustainable – the Trust Fund for Social Security is projected to be empty in the near future – and not a good investment for retirees.

What happens if you combine Medicare benefits with Social Security benefits? The disparity between taxes and benefits for single men and women in 1960, 1980, 2010, 2020, and 2030 are enormous, according to Steuerle and Caleb Quakenbush: 

There you have it. The 15.3% of your income that goes to your Medicare and Social Security retirement benefits is to not be around for much longer without changes, but they’re going to keep paying you less and less per dollar of forced investment. The only way out of this death spiral is aggressive reform.

Oh, and the life of these programs? Amnesty will shorten this already bleak life expectancy.

Action Alert: Stop the Gang of 8 Immigration Train Wreck

According to a recent press release issued by Jeff Sessions, US Senator from Alabama, the central sales pitch for the Gang of Eight's immigration legislation has been the claim of strong border security triggers that are supposed to be the "toughest border immigration enforcement measures in U.S. history." But the promised enforcement is nowhere to be found, in fact, this bill would actually weaken requirements previously enacted by Congress-while granting extraordinary new discretion to the Department of Homeland Security to waive security protocols, removal proceedings, and denials of entry. 

This bill also repeals the proven E-Verify workplace enforcement system.

Click Here to Read the Complete Press Release

This Amnesty Bill, like Obamacare, is a massive piece of legislation that is quickly ramming its way through the Senate. During one of the Judiciary committee hearings it was clear that the Senate has not had enough time to read and understand all of the impacts of this bill.

Take Action

No More Train Wrecks

You may have heard last week that Senator Max Baucus, The Architect of Obamacare, said that its implementation was going to be a "train wreck!"

Now the Senate is dead set on pushing another piece of legislation that has all of the same characteristics of Obamacare - The Amnesty Bill. 

The Senate is on recess this week, so this is perfect timing for you to show up and let your voices be heard!

If you don't stand up against the "Gangsters of Eight", who will do it for you?

This Week's Action Items

Tuesday: Tuesday is Social Media Blitz day and "Tweet It Tuesday." The hashtag campaign this week is: #NoMoreTrainWrecks. Click for Sample Tweets and Facebook Posts

Wednesday: Today's focus is on making phone calls and visiting the district office for your U.S. Senators to drop off letters. Click to Find Your Senators Local Offices

Click for Thank You Letter for Senators who are standing for principle (Note: Senators Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, Jeff Sessions, James Inhofe, and Rand Paul will receive these letters.)

Click for Train Wreck Letter for Senators who are not doing anything to stop the ramming of this bill

Click to Call Your Senators
Thursday: Thursday's focus is on hosting Street Rallies at busy intersections. The ideal time for these rallies is 5:00-7:00 pm (local time). 

Click for How to Host a Sign Waving Event
Click for Sample Sign Messages

If you are organizing any events for the week, please let us know so we can help you promote it.

Friday: On Friday we will re-cap all of our activities this week and begin planning for next week’s theme and messaging opportunities.

Socialism Roaring Back in Europe

From Tea Party Patriots --

The next time someone tells you America should be more like Europe, tell them to check out this socialist disaster:

Senior figures in Germany are now arguing that some richer home owners in countries like Spain, Portugal and Greece have so far avoided paying their fair share to rescue the euro, leaving Germany paying too much.

Taxes on property or other assets would mark a significant change in Europe’s approach to funding bail-outs for eurozone members. Until now, the cost of rescue packages for countries like Ireland, Greece and Portugal has fallen largely on people who invest money in either those countries’ bonds or – in the case of Cyprus – bank accounts.

Prof Peter Bofinger, an adviser to Mrs Merkel, said that levies on bank accounts are the wrong way of funding bail-outs, because rich people are able to shift their money out of the country.

“The resourceful rich just move their money to banks in northern Europe and avoid paying,” Prof Bofinger told Der Spiegel, a German magazine.

Instead of taxing cash, European Union governments should in future target property and other, less mobile assets, he said.

“For example, over the next 10 years, the rich should give up a portion of their assets,” Prof Bofinger said. Spain was last year forced to seek international help to prop up its banks. Despite recent signs of progress, some analysts believe the Spanish government itself could also have to seek a bail-out in order to pay its debts.

The discussion basically boils down to this: Germany is the wealthiest and most economically powerful nation in the European Union and has been ponying up for bailouts of other nations. Nations in trouble say this is only fair. German economists disagree:

The ECB study found that the “median” wealth in Cyprus is €267,000 (£227,600), compared to just €51,000 in Germany.

The median or midpoint level – which strips out the distorting effect of the super-rich – was €183,000 for Spain, €172,000 for Italy, and €102,000 for Greece, and even €75,000 for Portugal.

Average wealth in Cyprus is €671,000, far higher than in the four AAA creditor states: Austria (€265,000), Germany (€195,000), Holland (€170,000), Finland (€161,000).

Prof Feld said the report showed that people in the crisis countries are richer than the Germans. “This shows that Germany has been right to take a tough line of euro rescue loans,” he said.

It’s easy to be torn on this. Do we blame Germany’s leaders for calling for higher taxes in other countries? Socialist policies on taxes don’t work, but it’s also not right for Germany to shoulder so much weight for bailouts. This is the crux of the problem – on either side of the coin, Europe continues its disastrous fall into socialism. Bailouts and higher taxes are not free market solutions to Europe’s fiscal straits, and will simply make a government-created problem worse.

Keynesian economists in America argue that we don’t have to worry about Europe’s fate – investors are still putting money into America at high rates, we have our own currency, and interest rates are low. Once again, they completely misunderstand the problem. Just because we have more breathing room is no reason to finance bad decisions.

Tea Party Patriots put Senator Marco Rubio on Notice; Stop Acting Like Nancy Pelosi

As part of the Tea Party Patriots D.C. Intervention initiative yesterday, Tea Party groups across the country descended upon the local offices of all 50 U.S. Senators to express their outrage regarding Senate Bill 649 - over reaching gun control legislation - and the secretive immigration reform bill to be introduced in the Senate.

Rattled by the presence of Tea Party groups protesting against him, one time Tea Party darling, Florida Senator Marco Rubio quickly scribbled out a response (or lame excuse) to his wavering position on the secretive immigration reform bill. 

To read Rubio's response click here. 

Senator Rubio (202)224-3041 - we are not buying it!

From Breibart -- (Emphasis Added)

After Tea Partiers in Florida protested at the home state offices of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) on Tuesday at an event organized by Tea Party Patriots, Rubio quickly, but largely unsuccessfully, tried to reaffirm his commitments to conservative principles when it comes to the immigration fight.

The group of Tea Party conservatives was protesting Rubio for his part in the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” pushing immigration reform and argued in a press release over the weekend he is the “star spokesman for a secretive, small group working on a bill that purports to address illegal immigration and the entire US immigration system as a whole.”

“Not only might the legislation be bad policy, it has already gone outside of the normal process,” the Tea Party group wrote in the release.

After the protests themed around how some normally conservative senators needed a “DC Intervention” ended, Rubio fired off a letter to Tea Party Patriots members pleading with them for continued support. “Over the years, the Patriot movement and I have worked together on many causes and I want to respond personally to correct some misinformation regarding my involvement in the work to reform our country’s broken immigration system – misinformation that has prompted visits by some of you to my offices across Florida and in Washington,” Rubio wrote in a letter addressed “Dear Patriots.”

“First, there is absolutely no truth to the idea that I will support any immigration legislation that is rushed through Congress in typical Washington fashion,” Rubio wrote. “Already, I have fought and continue to fight to secure commitments for greater transparency through committee hearings and mark-up sessions that will allow senators on the Judiciary Committee ample opportunities to review and amend any immigration legislation before it is considered by the full Senate for additional debate and scrutiny. As a result, not only has the Judiciary Committee agreed to delay its first hearing on this issue, it has agreed to add an additional one next week.”

Tea Party Patriots co-founder and national coordinator Jenny Beth Martin told Breitbart News she was disappointed in Rubio’s letter response to the protests. “Sen. Rubio has quickly forgotten how the rest of the country views a 1,500-page bill that is deliberately being rushed through Congress,” Martin said. “He may be aware of details in the bill but the rest of the Senators, and certainly the American public, are not. He thinks he may be thoroughly educated on how the sweeping legislation will affect every facet of our lives, and on the consequences of his proposed changes, but he cannot be. It's simply too large an undertaking for him to have already fully analyzed all of the ramifications of this bill.”

The legislation was originally supposed to be introduced on Tuesday, but as of the close of business, no bill has been filed. The bill is expected to be about 1,500 pages long. Originally, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) scheduled a single hearing for Wednesday afternoon on the legislation — just one day after its planned rollout. However, Leahy rescheduled the hearing, at which Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is supposed to testify, for Friday.

After Monday's Boston terror attack bombings, the senators postponed their scheduled Tuesday press conference at which they would tout the bill but still planned to file the bill. By the close of the business, they did not meet the deadline.

Martin said that “[a]ssuming the bill is released tomorrow, that gives us only 1 extra day for the hearing this week.”

“The other crumb they are throwing to placate us is the Judiciary Committee's so very gracious agreement to add one additional hearing next week, as though that is enough time for the Senators to deliberatively review the bill and all of its potential consequences,” Martin added.

In his letter to Tea Party Patriots members, Rubio also wrote: “Immigration reform is a difficult issue. It represents the kind of broken government that Tea Party members across our country were fed up with in 2010, and an issue that inspired me to run in order to change the way Washington works.”

Martin took serious issue with that claim.

“Senator Rubio's stated goals to change the way our government works - an entity that he acknowledges is broken - do not mention the constitutional basis of the bill or the fiscal impact of his version of Pelosi's ‘pass it so we can find out what's in it’ legislation,” Martin told Breitbart News. “Sen. Rubio needs to reevaluate his goals and how he hopes to achieve success. He must do this in order to ensure that his measurement of success is rooted in the constitutional principles that are the foundation of our country, and that whatever bill he passes does not drive our country into further debt.”

Well, Ain't That a Daisy.... White House can still Afford to Smell the Roses!

From Tea Party Patriots --

From Politico, the pain of sequestration doesn’t appear to extend to the White House gardens  today and tomorrow:

Tours of the White House itself remained canceled because the cuts have left Secret Service short on manpower to staff them. But there will be enough agents to staff the garden tours, the official said.

The tours are slated to happen this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Guests will be able to view the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, Rose Garden and South Lawn of the White House, as well as the White House Kitchen Garden.

The tours are free and open to members of the public who can pick up tickets starting at 8 a.m. both days. The National Park Service will distribute them on a first-come-first-served basis, one per person, at the Ellipse Visitor Pavilion at 15th and E streets.

Of course, nothing is “free” in government. The gardens are maintained from a budget, the National Park Service is distributing tickets, and Secret Service agents are on hand. Despite this, while the White House continues to cut tuition assistance for the Army and Marines, as well as tours of the White House itself – but not  President Obama’s golf game – its most important occupant seems to think garden tours are worth keeping.

Priorities.

House Starts Talks on Debt Ceiling & 2014 Budget

From Tea Party Patriots --

Next week, the House Committee on Ways & Means is having two important hearings. Below are some basic details to be aware of:

First, on Wednesday, the Subcommittee on Oversight will hold a hearing for Members of Congress who have submitted or cosponsored bills in the 112^th and 113^th Congress that address spending prioritization if the debt ceiling is breached. From the Committee’s website:

Congressman Charles W. Boustany Jr., M.D. (R-LA), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced the Subcommittee will hold a hearing examining the government’s ability to prioritize its obligations and continue operations should the U.S. Treasury reach its statutory debt limit. The hearing will take place on Wednesday, April 10, 2013, in Room 1100 of the Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 A.M.

Oral testimony at this hearing will be limited to Members of Congress who have introduced or co-sponsored legislation related to the government’s ability to continue operating when the debt limit has been reached during the 112^th or 113^th Congresses. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Subcommittee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.

While it is unlikely the debt ceiling will be breached, this could be a very informative hearing to see which Members of Congress have various ideas to prioritize spending.

On Thursday, another hearing is scheduled – the annual Ways & Means hearing with the Secretary of the Treasury. With the President’s budget scheduled to arrive on April 10, the hearing is being held the next day:

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) today announced that the Committee on Ways and Means will hold a hearing on President Obama’s budget proposals for fiscal year 2014.  The hearing will take place on Thursday, April 11, 2013, in 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 A.M.

BACKGROUND:

On April 10, 2013, the President is expected to submit his fiscal year 2014 budget proposal to Congress.  The proposed budget will detail his tax proposals for the coming year as well as provide an overview of the budget for the Treasury Department and other activities of the Federal government.  The Treasury plays a key role in many areas of the Committee’s jurisdiction.

In announcing this hearing, Chairman Camp said, “The Ways and Means Committee is committed to comprehensive tax reform that eliminates tax loopholes, simplifies the code, and lowers rates.  Tax reform that accomplishes these goals can strengthen our economy, create more jobs and allow American workers to start seeing an increase in their paychecks again.  This hearing will provide both the Committee an opportunity to review the President’s tax proposals and Treasury Secretary Lew the opportunity to describe how the Administration intends to work with the Committee and Congress to pass and enact comprehensive tax reform.”

While the President’s budget is mostly a formality in general, and especially since it’s over two months late, the hearing should be very informative as to whether or not we’ll actually have normal order for the budget process in Fiscal Year 2014. (I think it’s highly unlikely, given the major differences between the House and Senate budget resolutions, but it’s always possible.)

The function of these hearings is mostly to give Members the ability to create soundbytes for constituents and the media.  However, occasionally, good things come out of these hearings – Senator Cruz’s recent hammering of Attorney General Eric Holder is one example of this. Hopefully, the two hearings will be more like the latter, and less like the former.

President Obama Ignores Congress with Executive Order on Gun Control

From Tea Party Patriots -- 

Just before Easter weekend, President Obama signed an Executive Order to move forward his gun control agenda, giving federal agents greater access to information on gun owners and their weapons. From The Hill:

The executive steps will give federal law enforcement officials access to more data about guns and their owners, help keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill, and lay the groundwork for future legislative efforts.

Despite minimal publicity given to the Executive Order itself – it was signed late on a Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend – the order authorizes a million dollar ad campaign for gun safety. New York Mayor Bloomberg has expressed support for the campaign, which could mirror his own gun control ads.

The order adds to a recent announcement of a new $20 million Department of Justice program that offers grants to states that provide more mental health and criminal history information to federal databases.

As part of President Obama’s comprehensive plan to reduce gun violence, the Administration is committed to enhancing and strengthening the national criminal record system in support of stronger firearm background checks.

The order also directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – whose area of expertise has more to do with small pox than small arms – to study “causes of gun violence.” The Institute of Medicine has been awarded the contract despite the fact Congress has blocked funding allowing the CDC to conduct gun control research since 1996.

Between redirecting funds to areas specifically banned by Congress, using other funds for government-sponsored commercials, and encouraging states – with money – to share more information about their citizens, it’s not surprising President Obama did this when no one was looking.

Interest Payments: America's Silent Killer

From Tea Party Patriots --

When discussing and debating federal spending, liberals focus on defense spending and some subsidies. Conservatives focus on everything else.

However, a new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report discusses something many politicians and pundits miss – the fiscal threat of interest payments:

Following a recent hearing, we were asked by a Member of Congress: “How would higher-than-expected interest rates affect federal budget deficits over the next decade? In particular, what would be the effects of these scenarios:

1. Interest rates rise to their average levels over the 1991-2000 period;
2. Interest rates rise to their average levels over the 1981-1990 period; and
3. Interest rates follow a path that is consistent with the average of the 10 highest projections shown in the October 2012 and February 2013 releases of Blue Chip Economic Indicators.”

CBO projected Scenario 1 would have interest rates of 4.9% and Scenario 2 rates of 8.8%, as compared to the current 4% projection in CBO’s baseline analysis, from 2018 to 2023. In other words, interest rates would be much, much higher. Treasury note rates would also be higher:

Similarly, rates on 10-year Treasury notes would average 6.7 percent between 2018 and 2023 under scenario 1 and 10.6 percent under scenario 2, compared with 5.2 percent in the baseline projections.

What were the results? Devastating:

In other words, if interest rates go up even a little, the entirety of sequestration will be wiped out. And while entitlement spending will be the largest driver of our debt in coming years, interest payments on the debt will be even larger. The Treasury Department projects that interest will be almost as much a burden on the budget as budget as Social Security, and by the time today’s newborns are in their mid-twenties, interest will be the biggest item in the federal budget.

The only real answer to this problem is cutting spending. CBO notes a number of caveats to its estimates, including the impacts of inflation, an improving economy, and interest rates on the cost of interest payments. But only cutting spending, and substantively so, will prevent rates and payments from becoming unsustainable.

One other thing: CBO only examines publicly held debt, which is less than three-quarters of the total debt of the United States. So their estimates above are very likely to underestimate the total burden of interest payments on the federal budget.

Speaker Boehner and President Obama say we don’t have a spending problem now. They also have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell us.

Another Part of Obamacare Ready to Get the Axe

From Tea Party Patriots --

Another piece of Obamacare may soon be on the trash heap of history:

Medical-device companies scored a political victory when the Senate voted in a non-binding resolution to repeal a new device tax, and now they are turning their attention to the House, especially U.S. Representative Ed Markey.

The 2.3 percent tax went into effect in January and is supposed to help offset the costs of implementing President Obama’s landmark health reform law. But the device industry argues that it would cost Massachusetts’ largest companies more than $411 million a year, according to a new analysis by the Pioneer Institute that will be released in April, just before the first payment is due.

The Senate voted 79-20 to repeal the tax Thursday evening in a bipartisan budget amendment in a non-binding resolution. Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and William “Mo” Cowan signed on to the repeal, following a flurry of last-minute lobbying from Massachusetts medical device makers of New England Democrats.

Rep. Markey voted against repeal of the tax last year, but says he opposes the tax on principle. The problem? Keeping Obamacare funded:

Markey says he has not signed onto the current bill because it does not specify how the repeal would be paid for.

“I am concerned about the impact that the device tax could have on the medical device industry and job creation in Massachusetts,” Markey said. “I opposed the inclusion of this tax in the House health care reform bill. I would support repealing the tax, as long as the revenue replacing it does not impact middle-class families or their health care benefits.”

With clear bipartisan support for repeal, there’s a good chance the tax will be overturned. However, two top Democrats – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) voted against repeal, which means a fight may still be ahead. On the other hand, the 1099 tax in Obamacare was overturned some time ago, giving precedence to elimination of a tax created in the health care law.

Given that the Senate amendment is non-binding, it has no force of law. But it is a good sign that an overwhelming majority of the Senate is expressing an opinion against this tax, which means legislation has a good chance of passing in the future.

Medicaid Expansion is Wrong Way for Ohio

The below is from Marianne Gasiecki, Founder of the Mansfield Tea Party and Tea Party Patriots Co-State Coordinator for Ohio....

From the Columbus Dispatch --

Ohio Right to Life President Michael Gonidakis recently accused tea party leaders of being more interested in their own ideology than in the health of Ohio residents .

Jeff Malek, coordinator for the Wadsworth 9-12 Group, was quoted as saying, “Instead of trying to understand why so many conservatives reject the expansion of Medicaid in Ohio, Mr. Gonidakis falsely accuses the tea party of a sentiment that has never been expressed by anyone within the movement.”

Unlike Gonidakis, the tea party and other conservative organizations believe that life has value and should be treated with dignity and respect, something Medicaid cannot provide.

A recent report from the Government Accountability Office revealed that children on Medicaid receive worse care than children with no insurance. Mothers seeking specialty care for their children covered by Medicaid were denied appointments 66 percent of the time and dental appointments 64 percent of the time.

Medicaid patients with head and neck cancer are 50 percent more likely to die. Regarding other major surgical procedures, Medicaid patients have a longer length of stay, the highest hospital costs and the highest risk of death. How is that caring for our residents?

Gov. John Kasich stated he was using his lessons learned from the Good Book as justification for the expansion of this huge government program, urging lawmakers to examine their consciences and not let concerns about government spending trump this “moral imperative.” Debt is frowned upon in the Bible; in fact, it is considered to be a sin to incur debt without paying it back. Even our Founders frowned upon burdening future generations with our debt.

I'm also confident in saying that, when taking care of our fellow man, it doesn't mean providing inferior care, and yet that’s exactly what Gonidakis and Kasich are promoting.

Chris Long, president of the Ohio Christian Alliance, expressed a similar sentiment: “In my years of pastoring in the inner city, no one was denied medical care. In fact, the people that I pastored who were at or below the poverty line received excellent medical care with existing programs.”

Many conservative organizations, and governors, have offered free-market-based solutions to providing cost-effective, quality care to those in need. If caring for our fellow man is truly the objective, that is the direction our legislators should take us.

Marianne Gasiecki
Ohio State Co-Coordinator
Tea Party Patriots

In Washington: Ethics are for Little People

From Tea Party Patriots -- 

In the real world, violating the law (or even the strong, likely suspicion of violating the law) brings down the wrath of one’s superiors. Apparently, not in Washington:

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is standing behind Rep. Robert Andrews (D-N.J.) despite calls for the veteran lawmaker to relinquish his leadership post while he is investigated on ethics charges.

Pelosi and other members of the Democratic leadership, including Whip Steny Hoyer (Md.) and Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra (Calif.), backed Andrews on Wednesday as he battles charges of using campaign funds for family trips.

What did he do? Merely use campaign dollars for a wedding trip:

In 2012, the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) released a report charging Andrews with tapping tens of thousands of dollars in campaign funds to pay for a 2011 trip to a wedding in Scotland and multiple jaunts to Los Angeles with his daughters.

….It referred the case to the House Ethics Committee last year, citing “substantial reason to believe that he improperly used congressional campaign and Leadership PAC funds for personal use.”

Andrews has argued the trips were political because the groom in the Scotland wedding and his daughters were volunteer campaign aides.

OCE sharply disagreed, stating that the House Democrat “engaged in no political activity, gave no political speeches, raised no campaign funds and did not discuss his campaign.”

The OCE, which does not have subpoena power, also said Andrews failed to provide investigators with his congressional and campaign calendars and supplied credit card statements “after making significant redactions.”

Of course, Rep. Andrews is claiming innocence:

Andrews has maintained his innocence and says the charges against him are “politically motivated.” He said the Ethics Committee investigation that was announced on Tuesday would exonerate him.

“This review will confirm that I have always followed the rules and met all the standards of the House,” Andrews said in a statement. “I will eagerly provide answers to any questions the committee has. In the meantime, I will continue to work as hard as I can and serve my constituents and our country as a member and in any other capacity in which I am chosen to serve.”

The Ethics panel is notoriously slow-footed with its investigations — it could be months before the review of Andrews is complete.

In the meantime, he’s still pushing for more spending:

It appeared to be business as usual for Andrews on Wednesday.

He took to the House floor to defend the party’s budget, and his Rayburn Office doors stood wide open, with no reporters or cameramen stationed outside — a far cry from the mob scene that greeted New Jersey colleague Sen. Robert Menendez when separate ethics allegations against him gained attention.

Ethics violations are nothing new to Capitol Hill. The Center for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) named a full 16 Members as being under investigation for ethics charges in 2009 alone. Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) is one of the most famous, of course, though others exist – Senator David Vitter (R-LA) called prostitutes on his taxpayer-paid phone.

It is notable that Rep. Andrews reimbursed his campaign committee and leadership PAC to the tune of over $30,000. In the meantime, the House Democratic leadership is defending Rep. Andrews, noting that he has only been charged with an ethics violation, not found guilty.

What do you think? At what point should a Member of Congress be forced to retire, or otherwise be held accountable for his or her actions? Does it matter that reimbursement was made? Let us know in the comments.

"Just Voting 'No'" isn't what the Tea Party Does

From Tea Party Patriots --

Yesterday, on Fox News Sunday,” former nine-term Republican Member of Congress Steve LaTourette from Ohio said several dozen Tea Party-minded Members of Congress consistently vote “No” for the simple reason that voting “No” is what impresses the Tea Party. From Mediaite, the video clip and the following description of what LaTourette said:

“I don’t think I would say it is all Tea Party freshmen, it is those who seem more interested in voting no and going home than governing,” said LaTourette when asked by Wallace to explain the position.

And later in the Mediaite outline:

LaTourette proceeded to reiterate his point saying that the Tea Party members are an important part of the GOP but that they can’t just throw their hands up at everything and say no. They have to work together with others if they want to get anything done, he said.

“Just voting no and then holding your nose and saying ‘boy if it passes I can go home to my local Tea Party groups and say ‘I voted no!’ that’s ridiculous. That’s what makes them chuckleheads,” said LaTourette.

LaTourette’s disdain for constituent manipulation by so-called “chuckleheads” hits both ways. A number of Members have run on the Tea Party label and then voted for legislation that increased the size and scope of the federal government. Of course, by the same token, LaTourette’s point is accurate for some who claim the Tea Party mantle. Human beings are imperfect, and many or most Members are more concerned about re-election than what’s good for the nation. Thus, yes, some allegedly Tea Party Members of Congress would prefer to vote “No” in order to impress the Tea Party activists in their districts. ,

More relevantly, though, to accuse the House of simply saying “No” to important legislation (the fiscal cliff’s “Plan B,” which would have raised taxes on millionaires, was praised as a good opening gambit by LaTourette in the negotiations happening at that time) is to ignore the facts. Consider just three examples of Tea Party-minded Members of Congress often voting for good legislation:

• According to the House Majority Leader’s website, 40 jobs bills passed the House in the 112^th Congress. Only 11 of those were signed by the President.
• Tea Party-minded Members supported the House budget resolution last year, as well as the Republican Study Committee’s budget. Senate Democrats haven’t even passed a budget in four years, and President Obama’s last budget proposal was so unserious that it got zero votes in Congress.
• Tea Party-minded Members of Congress voted for the compromise law known as the Budget Control Act – which, within 18 months, was delayed and nearly overturned by a bipartisan coalition of Members of Congress.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) said it perfectly to Tea Party Patriots Local Coordinators last November – compromise is fine, as long as the ball is moved in the right direction. (The Senator cited raising the retirement age to 69, though he preferred going to 70.) Unfortunately, leadership in both parties tends to want legislation that would violate principles, and put “compromise” on the side of growing government.

This is where LaTourette’s comments lead – compromise for its own sake. As Tea Party Patriots explained earlier this year, go along to get along compromise is far too common in Washington, and extremely harmful to the nation.

Tea Party Patriots: "A Movement on Fire" (Video)

In what Roger Ebert called the "Hunger Games" meets "Brave New World", Tea Party Patriots released the trailer for their new movie "A Movement On Fire" at CPAC this past weekend.

The movie is about the "Liberty Party" standing up and fighting against the "Development Party" taking away the liberty & freedoms of Americans.

You can watch the trailer below....

TPP at CPAC: Interviews with Jenny Beth Martin, Rep. Louie Gohmert & Col. Allen West

Jenny Beth Martin, Co-Founder of Tea Party Patriots, spoke at CPAC this past Saturday....

And below, Jim Hoft of Gateway Pundit and Dr. Gina Loudon of the Dr. Gina Loudon Show, interview one of the true fighters in D.C., TX Congressman Louie Gohmert...

Here Allen West sits down and talks with Jim & Dr. Loudon.....

Way to Go Wisconsin!

From Jenny Beth Martin, Tea Party Patriots Co-Founder and National Coordinator on the outstanding job by the grassroots Tea Party groups in Wisconsin....

From Brietbart --

The Wisconsin recall election was a local microcosm for a national debate between two competing visions for America – a debate that will be settled, one way or the other, on November 6th, 2012.

 On one side of the debate are power-hungry big government overspenders who waste taxpayer dollars on their insider pals and on their half-baked schemes to control our lives.

On the other side of the debate are We the People -- people who want to keep more of their hard-earned money, and want power-hungry politicians kept in check by the checks and balances built by our nation’s founders.

Tea Party Patriots who held up protest signs a few years ago are now willing to take time out of their lives to fight the battles that must be fought – on the ground, door to door – to save the country. We might not have as much money as our opponents, but we make up for it in passion, dedication, and sheer numbers of ground troops.

In the Wisconsin recall election, we put out the call to Patriots across America: anyone with the time and the passion to step up and save Wisconsin and save the country – by knocking on doors, stuffing envelopes or making phone calls – we would help them step up.

From as far away as Seattle and Texas, from age 16 all the way up to age 80, Tea Party Patriots answered the call. Together in Wisconsin, we knocked on 15,000 doors, made 37,000 phone calls, and distributed nearly 150,000 pieces of literature.

And we won. We beat the well-funded special interests and big government overspenders.

 Wisconsin was another Tea Party Patriots victory. Just like Massachusetts in 2010. Just like Indiana last month. And just like the massive 2010 midterm victories now dubbed “the Tea Party midterms.” 

But all of that was just a warm-up for the November 2012 elections.    

While we have been racking up victories for America, we have been strengthening ourselves for the battles ahead. 

As an organization, we have focused intently on training, educating, and preparing our troops for victory. Across America, Tea Party Patriots Local Coordinators are now trained, ready, and building their teams for November. Every time the media counts us out, we count more and more people coming through our doors – patriotic Americans who want to save the country and don’t take kindly to being told that they’re irrelevant or don’t exist.

We are mothers, grandmothers, fathers, and sons. We are soldiers, veterans, seniors, and students. We have 15 million supporters nationwide and more than 3,400 locally organized chapters. We are organized, we are trained, and we are ready to win in November.

And we will win on principle. The Tea Party Patriots’ three core principles are Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, and Free Markets. When we stick to our core principles, we rack up electoral victories for America. Our core principles are America’s core principles. They remain the same from election to election. While others focus on personal attacks, we focus on principles. People listen to our motives and vision. And, judging by our growing numbers – and our growing number of victories – our principles are resonating with the American people.

In the weeks and months to come, the Tea Party Patriots will continue to reach out to our fellow Americans and share our core principles and show why they are important to America’s future success. We will continue to take time away from our home lives to do the work that must be done to secure a better future for all Americans. And we will continue to campaign on our core values and our vision for America, which is the same vision held by the first tea partiers in Boston Harbor and the same vision written into our Declaration of Independence and Constitution by America’s founders.

But our job will not be complete in November 2012, just like our work was not complete after the “Tea Party midterm” victories of 2010. We will not rest on November 7th or any day thereafter. Elected officials are human beings and human beings are frail. We will immediately – and repeatedly – remind the human beings we helped elect why they were elected in the first place. 

Starting on November 7, and continuing through 2013 and for as long as it takes, we will keep up the pressure until the “government of the people, by the people, for the people” does the job that We the People sent them to do: fully repeal Obamacare, balance the federal budget in 5 years or less without raising taxes, and eliminate crony capitalism and corruption to allow competitive free markets to create a real and lasting economic recovery.

The Tea Party Patriots helped save Wisconsin.  Now it’s time to save America.

Visit www.TeaPartyPatriots.org to get involved.