Boston gathering exposes rifts in GOP; Cleveland Tea Party Patriots Co-founder comments

and Mr. Priebus‘ choice for featured luncheon speaker Thursday at the RNC:

 “Boston gathering exposes rifts in GOP, despite Priebus’ best efforts”

Here’s an excerpt from Ralph Z. Hallow’s article in the Washington Times over the weekend:

BOSTON — Once again attempting to achieve the impossible for a single party in a two-party system, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus did his best at the RNC’s summer meeting here to show respect for the many competing strains of thought in his party. 

Unfortunately for Mr. Priebus, the effort to acknowledge everyone satisfied almost no one. 

Some blasted him for violating conservatism’s freedom-first principles when he won unanimous passage of a resolution to ban two major TV networks  from hosting 2016 GOP presidential nomination debates.

Others hit him for quietly helping to table resolutions to undo party rules changes that Mitt Romney’s campaign had pushed through last year. 

Still others hammered him for featuring as speakers neoconservative war hawk Bill Kristol, the President Obama-praising New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Sen. Scott P. Brown of Massachusetts, the antagonist of social conservatives. . . .

. . .To the surprise of many RNC members, Mr. Christie, Mr. Priebus‘ choice for featured luncheon speaker Thursday, won enthusiastic approval from the Boston audience members for what they said was the solidly conservative content of his speech — despite his past squishy views on abortion, same-sex marriage, gun-control and immigration and, just before the 2012 elections, his high-profile chumminess with President Obama who extended generous federal aid to New Jersey after Superstorm Sandy. 

“Christie knocked it out of the park on Thursday here,” said Pastors & Pews founder David Lane, who attended the RNC meeting. “If he gets the social issues down, he will be formidable.”

“He gave a fabulous speech but would I support him for the nomination? No way,” said Louisiana GOP Chairman Roger Villere. “Would I support him if he were our nominee in 2016. Yes.”

Not so for tea party groups around the country.

“Typical of a Republican Party that has lost its way and is being led by a faltering conservative compass,” said Cleveland Tea Party Patriot cofounder Ralph King. “Conservatism and the United States need someone like Ronald Reagan. And Mr. Priebus, Governor Christie is no Ronald Reagan.”

Arizona tea party activist and former Maricopa County GOP chairman Rob Haney said that “tea party sentiment is more like, ‘It’s time to dissolve the RNC and start over. Tea partiers feel betrayed by even those whom they had championed, like Chris Christie — and the RNC for its flip to pro-amnesty on immigration.”

Where do conservative value voters go? 

Steve Salvi interview on the Shamnesty bill

42 Days to Obamacare : If you have not yet signed the online petition Don’tFundIt, go here. You will receive an email to confirm that you intended to sign the petition. As of 2 pm on Mon., Aug. 19, there were over 376,800 signatures, and counting.

Steve Salvi interview on the Shamnesty bill

Steve Salvi, founder of the Ohio Jobs & Justice Pac, shares his thoughts on what will happen in the United States if S. 744 gets passed by the House of Representatives. Salvi sees S. 744 as amnesty for illegal immigrants, and argues that supporting millions of illegals with U.S. taxpayer money at a time when many Americans are hurting economically makes little sense. He feels that if an amnesty bill passes the House, it will put the final "nail in the coffin" for America as we know it.  

The interview was taped at the March for Jobs Rally held in Washington, D.C., on July 15, 2013. View it here. 

And here are members of the current Hall of Shame GOPs:

A conservative alternative to Obamacare

45 Days to Obamacare : If you have not yet signed the online petition Don’tFundIt, go here. You will receive an email to confirm that you intended to sign the petition. As of 4 pm on Fri., Aug. 16, there were over 348,500 signatures, and counting.

Rep. Tom Price's alternative to Obamacare

Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) proposed an alternative to Obamacare that Patriots should know about – especially when commentators such as Newt Gingrich criticize the GOP for failing to come up with an alternative. From National Review Online:

The bill aims to provide affordable coverage for all through a series of tax credits and deductions designed to entice individuals into the insurance market with positive incentives, as opposed to Obamacare’s solution of fining those who refuse to purchase health insurance. “It’s a carrot instead of a two-by-four,” Price says. “Regardless of where one fits in the economic spectrum, there is a financial incentive to purchase health coverage that the individual wants, not that the government forces them to buy.”

The law would allow individuals to opt out of Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal health-care-benefit programs in favor of receiving a tax credit; an individual’s health coverage would be “portable” — no longer tied to an employer — so losing a job wouldn’t also mean losing insurance; individuals and small businesses would be able to access insurance pools that reduce risk for those with pre-existing conditions, and they could purchase plans across state lines. Tort reforms would cut down on physicians’ practicing “defensive medicine” and driving up costs by ordering unnecessary procedures in an effort to avoid lawsuits. 

The plan is based on six principles: affordability, accessibility, quality, responsiveness, innovation, and choice. “All of those principles are violated by the Affordable Care Act,” Price says. “When you step back and look at those principles, it guides you to a system that allows patients and families and doctors to be in charge.” 

And yet when Republicans talk about health care, few actually point to Price’s bill as an alternative plan, which only reinforces the perception that the GOP has no plan beyond repealing Obamacare.

More on Rep. Price's website here, including the bill itself AND proposed legislation to prohibit the IRS from enforcing Obamacare. 

Two Senators and one GOP who are on not on board with delaying Obamacare and who need to hear from us:

Sen. Tom Coburn

Washington D.C.:

Main: 202-224-5754

Fax: 202-224-6008

1800 South Baltimore

Suite 800

Tulsa, OK 74119

Main: 918-581-7651

Fax: 918-581-7195

100 North Broadway, Suite 1820

Oklahoma City, OK 73102

Main: 405-231-4941

Fax: 405-231-5051

Sen. Richard Burr

Federal Building

151 Patton Avenue, Suite 204

Asheville, NC 28801

Phone: (828) 350-2437

Fax: (828) 350-2439

100 Coast Line Street, Room 210

Rocky Mount, NC 27804

Phone: (252) 977-9522

Fax: (252) 977-7902

Washington, DC

Phone: (202) 224-3154

Fax: (202) 228-2981

2000 West First Street,  Suite 508

Winston-Salem, NC 27104

Phone: (800) 685-8916

Phone: (336) 631-5125

Fax: (336) 725-4493

City Hall

181 South Street, Room 222

Gastonia, NC 28052

Phone: (704) 833-0854

Fax: (704) 833-1467

201 North Front Street

Suite 809

Wilmington, NC 28401

Phone: (888) 848-1833

Phone: (910) 251-1058

Fax: (910) 251-7975

Rep. Paul Ryan

20 South Main Street, Suite 10

Janesville, WI 53545

(608) 752-4050

5455 Sheridan Road, Suite 125 

Kenosha, WI 53140 

Phone: (262) 654-1901 

Fax: (262) 654-2156

216 6th Street 

Racine, WI 53403 

Phone: (262) 637-0510 

Fax: (262) 637-5689

# # #

Speaker Boehner, just say it: NO conference

47 Days to Obamacare - If you have not yet signed the online petition Don’tFundIt to delay Obamacare, go here. You will receive an email to confirm that you intended to sign the petition. As of 3 pm on Weds., Aug. 14, there were over 301,800 signatures, and counting.

 Speaker Boehner : NO conference on Amnesty

The following extract is from an editorial at National Review Online; it provides patriots with the message for Speaker Boehner on any House bill on Immigration “Reform”

Nothing if not a shrewd political operator, [Sen. Chuck] Schumer knows that the best chance for the Gang of Eight bill is a House-Senate conference and that the only way to get there is incremental legislation in the House. Incremental fixes to the immigration system make sense on the merits, and House Republicans understandably want to show that they favor their own set of reforms rather than oppose anything and everything. But incremental bills are destructive if their ultimate purpose is to get to a conference committee that would bless a version of the Gang of Eight bill. House leadership aides pooh-pooh the possibility of a conference committee. Well, then, there is a simple way to allay our fears and those of other opponents of the Gang of Eight — for Speaker Boehner to make a blood-oath commitment to oppose any conference committee.. . . 

Instead, Boehner was unwilling to say even what his own position is on immigration on Face the Nation a few weeks ago, repeatedly describing his role as that of a “facilitator.” This is, needless to say, not confidence-inspiring. The speaker has said in the past that he favors comprehensive reform, and there is enormous private pressure from the Republican establishment and donor class to pass a comprehensive bill by hook or crook to “put the issue behind us.” . . . 

It would be a travesty if the House leadership subverted the will of its conference to find a way to rescue the Gang of Eight bill. Speaker Boehner should crush Schumer’s hopes and give his word — no conference.

Contact info for GOP Speaker John Boehner:

Butler County Office  PH (513) 779-5400

Miami County Office PH (937) 339-1524

Clark County Office   PH (937) 322-1120

D.C. Office

PH  (202) 225-6205

FAX (202) 225-0704

And his mailbox (send postcards):

Speaker John Boehner

7969 Cincinnati-Dayton Road, Suite B

West Chester, OH 45069

NO Immigration Bill in the House, Mr. Speaker!

NO Immigration Bill in the House, Mr. Speaker!

This isn't encouraging. From Breitbart Big Government:

According to reports on Sunday, conversations between Speaker of the House John Boehner and President Barack Obama regarding immigration reform have been ongoing. White House spokesman Jay Carney said last week, “My sense is they spoke about a variety of the issues that are coming up for action by Congress.” A spokesman for Boehner reportedly refused comment on what exactly Obama and Boehner spoke about.

Short report, but the comments below the article show that some readers are paying close attention. We all need to speak up. Loudly. Sen. Cruz asked Tea Party Patriots for a veritable tsunami of calls and mail (he is of course leading the charge to delay Obamacare, but both initiatives are critical). So .... Cleveland Patriots need to call Boehner's office and stuff his mailbox with postcards. For the next several weeks.

NEED HELP? If mailing postcards seems like too much trouble, here's the tip of the day: you can prepare 30 postcards in about 5 minutes. If you would like a sheet of 30 printed address labels, including to the Speaker and the GOP leadership (multiple office addresses), please email Cleveland Tea Party Patriots at clevelandteaparty@gmail.com with your mailing address, and we'll mail one out to you. (Postcards are cheap to send, they get through security faster, and your message can be short. Buy postcards in quantity at your neighborhood post office -- pre-stamped.) All you have to do is write a one-line message, sign, and affix your return address sticker below your signature. I mail mine out maybe five at a time. Any other patriots in your household? We can send out extra address label sheets and you can complete your postcards around the kitchen table.

Meanwhile, here again are contact details for Speaker John Boehner:

Butler County Office  PH (513) 779-5400

Miami County Office PH (937) 339-1524

Clark County Office   PH (937) 322-1120

D.C. Office

PH  (202) 225-6205

FAX (202) 225-0704

And his snail-mailbox (more postcards):

Speaker John Boehner

7969 Cincinnati-Dayton Road, Suite B

         West Chester, OH 45069 

Why ANY immigration bill in the House spells disaster

Tea Party Patriots to Speaker John Boehner: 

No. Immigration. "Reform." Bill.

Aug. 9-2013: Breitbart reports:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Friday that if House Republicans end up sending their collection of immigration bills to a conference with the Senate, Democrats and illegal immigration advocates would win.

“If we go to conference, we would win,” Reid told a Nevada radio station.Reid’s comments are the latest in a long line of Senate Democrats and House Republicans openly stating that the plan for amnesty for all of America’s illegal aliens rests in the House passing a group of immigration bills, then going to a conference with the Senate “Gang of Eight” bill.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), a member of the Gang of Eight, said on Wednesday that the House GOP piecemeal strategy is “OK by us” because the Senate would combine all the bills in a conference. 

“We would much prefer a big comprehensive bill but any way that the House can get there is okay by us,” Schumer said. “I actually am optimistic that we will get this done. I’ve had a lot of discussions with members of both parties in the House. Things are moving in the right direction.”

Schumer’s fellow Gang of Eight member, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), also recently pleaded with left-wing activists at the Center for American Progress, asking them to help get pro-amnesty lawmakers to a conference. “Get us to a conference," Menendez said. "In a conference, we can negotiate the notion of bringing all those bills together and get to common ground."

Conservatives are increasingly concerned that any conference between the House and Senate will be dominated by supporters of amnesty for the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants. The final bill, they believe, would look much more like the Senate Gang of 8 bill than any individual bills passed by the House.  

With his remarks, Sen. Reid seems to agree with that assessment. 

Here is an earlier CTPP blog with Amnesty Action plans. Keep calling, faxing, and sending postcards. 

August Town Hall in northeast Ohio with Rep. Jim Renacci

If you have not yet signed the online petition to delay funding Obamacare, go here.  You will receive an email to confirm that you intended to sign the petition. As of 6 pm on Friday, Aug. 9, there were over 284,000 signatures, and counting (and 52 days left to delay Obamacare).

Congress on Recess: 

Only one Town Hall in northeast Ohio

NumbersUSA closely monitors legislation concerning immigration “reform," amnesty, and border security issues. Their website lists town halls and forums across the country during the August recess, and there is only one listed in northeastern Ohio on the Tri-C West campus:

Rep. Jim Renacci Veterans Forum

Location: 11000 West Pleasant Valley Road, Parma, OH 44130 (at York Rd.)

Event Date: Wednesday, August 14, 2013 6:00pm to 8:00pm EDT

Host:  Rep. Jim Renacci

Contact Phone:  (330) 334-0040

If you attend this forum, you will want to express  (1) your opposition to ANY immigration bill brought to the floor in the House (which could then be passed into conference with the Senate and its Gang of Eight, and we’d end up with some brand of amnesty and insecure borders), and  (2) support for passing a Continuing Resolution on October 1 that defunds Obamacare but otherwise keeps the government funded.  

Representative Bill Johnson (R) is holding numerous town halls downstate, in and around Marietta. If you or friends and relatives are in that area, please share this link with them.