Updates: Common Core and government shutdown

President’s Day Updates from Ohio Tea Party Patriots’ Marianne G:

If you've been involved in the Common Core Opt Out Campaign, you are well aware of how crazy it was last week.

It started on Saturday with Heidi Huber from Ohioans Against Common Core, coming to Mansfield to give patriots the low down on the rights of parents to refuse the PARCC testing on behalf of their children.

Tuesday and Wednesday HB 7, the bill offering Safe Harbor to our children, passed unanimously through committee and the House, and from what I'm being told, it should pass through the Senate quickly also.

Then hit the tidal wave of parents opting out and refusing the PARCC testing for their children.  There were stories of bullying from administrators, lies, disciplinary threats to teachers, and even a deceptively worded letter from the ODE.

It would great if we could get a feel regarding how many people opted out, and hear their stories and successes.

Please take a moment to complete this quick survey.  Your name and email is not required.  Hopefully, this information will give us an idea of how many kids are not participating in the PARCC tests, what districts experienced the most opt outs, and how people were received by administrators.

Click Here to Complete the Survey

Heroes and Teachable Moments

The battle for the future of our children and their education has created heroes and teachable moments.

The Heroes are the parents that have showed up at School Board meetings and questioned administrators.  The parents who have exercised their right to direct the education of their children by refusing to allow them to participate in the useless and stressful PARCC testing.  The parents that refused to back down and have protected their children.

From those acts of heroism have come teachable moments. Moments that will teach children that you must be willing to stand for something, even if it means there are repercussions; that peaceful protests and freedom of speech are our rights, and no one can take that away, no matter how much they bully.

Kudos to all the hero parents who fought, and continue to fight, for their children.

Government “Shutdown” 

As expected, the media is already fear-mongering with the “government shutdown” threat related to DHS funding.

Three times the Senate Democrats have refused to invoke cloture and allow debate on HR 240, the House passed Homeland Security Funding bill.  One might call that being obstructionists. So where's the media now?

Democrats are opposing the amendments stripping funding from Obama's 2012 and 2014 executive orders lifting a deportation threat for millions of illegal immigrants.  Rather than allow debate, they are obstructing.  Speaker Boehner, believe or not, is standing his ground! Click Here to Read More

Regarding a “shutdown”, Congress has nothing to do with payroll or paying lenders - that's the job of the President and his Treasury Department.  When reporters or Democrats accuse the GOP of forcing a “shutdown,” turn them around and direct them to the executive branch, for it is the President who authorizes a “shutdown.”

Secondly, a government “shutdown” shuts down only  17% of the government.  That 17% is what’s considered to be “non-essential”.  If they're non-essential, why are they there to begin with?

In the case of DHS, 83% or their employees are classified as “essential” - they still work and still get paid. 

Doesn't seem so scary now.

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Update on Health Care Compact initiatives

Update on Health Care Compact initiatives:

In just a few weeks, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in another Obamacare case. This one, King v. Burwell, challenges the legality of subsidies in states that are part of the federal exchange.  As the many challenges to Obamacare demonstrate, there is still a great deal of uncertainty about the health care law, its future, and how to implement it.

Many states have decided that health care decisions are better left to the states, rather than to Washington bureaucrats or to the Supreme Court’s interpretation.  That’s why so many state legislators and activists across the country are turning their attention to the Health Care Compact – governance reform that empowers participating states to design their own health care system.

In fact, the Health Care Compact has more momentum now than ever:

•  Last week in Ohio, the Health Care Compact was introduced in the House.  (Ohio residents should click here to contact their representatives and ask them to support House Bill 34.)

• Just days later, the Health Care Compact was introduced in Montana as House Bill 348. (Montana residents can call 406-444-4800, request their state representative and ask them to support HB 348.)  
• And in Vermont, citizens are gathering co-sponsors and expect the Health Care Compact to be formally introduced in the coming days.

If these states pass the Health Care Compact, then Ohio, Montana and Vermont would be the 10th, 11th, and 12th states participating in the Compact – and that’s not counting other states like Michigan that are beginning to consider the legislation.

The Health Care Compact is the ONLY proposal out there that takes all health care decision-making authority out of Washington, D.C. and returns it to the states. 

Cleveland Tea Party Patriots can click here to contact their representatives.

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Common Core House Floor Vote Expected Wednesday, February 11th

From our friends at Ohioans Against Common Core:

Due to the urgent need for action to protect Ohio students, HB7 is expected to be on the House schedule for a floor vote tomorrow.

When – Wednesday, February 11th. House session begins at 1:30 pm

Where – House Chamber & viewing gallery, Ohio Statehouse

Action – Call and turn out! Contact your State Representative and let him know you fully support HB7 and the urgent need for passage. If you are able to attend, let your Representative know so he/she can have you recognized as a guest in the gallery.

Please help us make a presence in the viewing gallery. Given the time wasted this year to testing, some parents intend to make a statement and pull their children early from school so they can be there, too. What a positive lesson in civic engagement, all a direct result of their parents’ tireless fight against Common Core.

If your schedule prevents you from attending, please pass along to grandparents or others whose schedules would allow. Hope to see you Wednesday!

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EARLIER EMAIL ANNOUNCEMENT OF HB7 INTRODUCTION
PLEASE READ IF YOU MISSED AND SHARE WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS

Wednesday, January 29th, HB 7 was filed as an emergency measure by Representative Jim Buchy.

If passed, H.B. 7 will provide the same protections from PARCC testing that the Ohio legislature voted to provide to districts, schools and teachers.

H.B. 7

1) Prohibits 2014-2015 PARCC scores from being utilized for promotion or retention now, or at any point in a child's education career.

2) Provides option to take the End-of-Course exams (currently PARCC & AIR) at any time within the student's high school career, or opting to never take EOC exams, instead choosing one of the other options to earn their high school diploma; e.g., a remediation free ACT/SAT score, passage of an approved job skills assessment, or earning an Honors diploma.

It is extremely important that parents act now to OPT OUT their children from any and all PARCC and AIR assessments. Don't wait to protect your child.

Keep in mind, when the legislature deliberated this last year, they voted to protect the adults. Their vote serves as an admission that the major problems with Common Core and the testing were expected.

What legislator can justify not extending the same protections to our children? 

Make sure your House Rep knows you expect his co-sponsorship and support for HB7. Find your Rep's number here and call today. If he/she has already signed on, take the time to say thank you and then call HB7 Sponsor, Rep. Buchy to extend a thank you, as well.

Direct family and friends to OptOutOhio.com

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Ohio Looking to be 10th State to Pass the Health Care Compact

For Immediate Release

February 6, 2015

Contact: Marianne Gaseicki
mansfieldteaparty@gmail.com

Ohio State Reps Committed to Giving Citizens Control of Their Health Care

Health Care Compact (HB 34) Introduced in Ohio House

Ohio - We would like to applaud Rep. Wes Retherford and Rep. Terry Boose for introducing the Health Care Compact (HB 34) and for remaining steadfast in their commitment to putting Ohio and its citizens in charge of their own Health Care destiny and decisions.

The Health Care Compact is the only Constitutional avenue for Ohio citizens to have a voice in their own health care decisions by providing true health care freedom. Passing the Health Care Compact will also give the Ohio legislature the legislative and fiscal freedom to make health care in Ohio truly reflective of the health care needs of our state.

With nine other states having already passed the Health Care Compact, thereby putting the health care concerns of their citizens first, we look forward to the Ohio legislature and Governor Kasich duplicating their efforts by making Ohio the tenth state to pass the Health Care Compact.

To find out more about the Health Care Compact, please go to www.healthcarecompact.org.


Ralph King

Marianne Gasiecki

State Coordinators (OH)

Tea Party Patriots

Common Core testing

Common Core testing comes to mind:

See our earlier post on the meeting in Mansfield tomorrow morning to "Opt Out Of Common Core assessments" here. 

Opt Out of Common Core meeting details

Want to OPT OUT of

COMMON CORE related Assessments

But Still Have Questions?

What’s Next in the Fight to

Rid Our Schools of Common Core?

PARCC Testing Begins February 16^th   

Protect Your Children!

JOIN US for a FREE presentation

WHEN:  Saturday, February 7^th @ 10:30 a.m.

WHERE:   Ontario Public Library

2221 Village Mall Dr., Mansfield, OH (click for map)

Guest Speakers

Heidi Huber – Founder, Ohioans Against Common Core - The real story on Opting Out of PARCC and why it's critical to reclaim your child's classroom.

Rob Coburn – Pres., Garaway School Dist. Board of Education Role and responsibility of district Boards of Education to the community and its students.

Marianne Gasiecki – State Co-coordinator Tea Party Patriots

Promoting parental and district activism to get results.

Invited legislators will be added upon confirmation.

Seating is limited.  Please RSVP by Feb 1^st  

@ Optoutohio@yahoo.com

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Speaker J. Wellington Wimpy

Art credit: www.daveposh.org

It’s Not Just Tactics, Mr. Speaker

By Jenny Beth Martin

7:27 PM 01/25/2015

The Daily Caller

“The issue with the Tea Party isn’t one of strategy. It’s not one of different vision … It’s a disagreement over tactics, from time to time,” said Speaker of the House John Boehner, on 60 Minutes Sunday night.

More than a year ago, Speaker Boehner took serious offense when conservative groups criticized a budget deal he favored. They had “lost all credibility . . . I don’t care what they do.” So irrelevant is the Tea Party movement that the Speaker took to 60 Minutes to complain about its criticism of him Sunday night.

The Speaker trivializes the differences that led to the biggest intraparty rebellion against a sitting Speaker since the Civil War. His first problem isn’t with outside groups, it’s his own GOP colleagues in the House. When one out of every ten takes the extraordinary step of standing before his colleagues and calling out the name of someone else for his job, he should realize he’s got a problem.

As for us, our opposition to his leadership centers on our belief that we do NOT, in fact, share visions and strategies.

For example, we oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants because we believe it would not be fair to the millions waiting in line to get into America legally, nor to the millions who already arrived legally after waiting in line. Amnesty rewards lawbreaking, and only serves to incentivize further lawbreaking.

The Speaker, on the other hand, dances to the tune of the Chamber of Commerce, whose members and supporters want cheaper labor, and are, consequently, major proponents of the kind of comprehensive amnesty legislation that passed the Senate in 2013 and which the Speaker clearly wanted to put on the floor of the House last year before Dave Brat’s stunning upset of the former Majority Leader put the kibosh on those plans.

Moreover, we seek a federal government that is actually smaller than the one we have now, not merely one that is smaller than the one Barack Obama would prefer. We note with disdain the Speaker’s willingness to sign off on budget and debt ceiling increase “deals” that appear to have been negotiated by Popeye’s J. Wellington Wimpy — he will gladly give the president a spending/debt ceiling increase now, in exchange for the promise of spending cuts to come Tuesday. And when Tuesday arrives, somehow the spending cuts never materialize.

Similarly, we seek the repeal of Obamacare because we believe it tramples the fundamental liberties guaranteed us by our Constitution, destroys patient choice, degrades the quality of health care delivered, increases costs, and will ultimately break the bank. The Speaker, on the other hand, seems perfectly content to tinker at the margins (1099 repeal? Medical device tax repeal?) secure in the knowledge that many of his major funders — the health insurance and pharmaceutical companies who support Obamacare because of its mandates, which lead to a massively growing client base, and, hence, increased profits — don’t actually want him to fight to repeal the legislation.

Here’s a test of the Speaker’s assertion that our differences are merely differences in degree, not kind: Why has he refused to lead his GOP Conference to vote in favor of the bill introduced by his colleague Ron DeSantis of Florida, which seeks to overturn the August 2013 OPM [Office of Personnel Management] ruling granting generous employer subsidies to Members of Congress and their staffs for the purchase of health insurance through the Obamacare exchanges, in clear violation of the law? That legislation is a fundamental part of a strategy designed to raise the temperature inside the offices of the Democrat Members of Congress whose votes are needed to build the necessary majorities for repeal in both House and Senate; yet, given multiple opportunities to put the bill on the floor, he has refused to do so.

Finally, I would note one other difference with the Speaker’s view, specifically regarding his assertion that the Tea Party’s opposition is manufactured for fundraising purposes: Every dollar we raise is contributed voluntarily, by donors whose only interest is seeking to influence their government to tax less, spend less, and stop running up a massive debt. They seek little from the government other than to be left alone, and we have nothing to offer them other than our promise that we will use the resources they contribute to do the best job we can to achieve our shared vision of greater personal freedom, economic freedom, and a debt-free future.

JENNY BETH MARTIN is co-founder and national coordinator of the Tea Party Patriots, the nation’s largest tea party organization.

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