Victory! And more on our Governor and is participation in the Council of Governors.
SUCCESS! SB 417, SB 311, and SB 283 (Health Care Freedom Act) have passed the General Assembly and are now headed for the Governor’s desk. Governor McDonnell is expected to sign them into law. There was some last minute manuevering by Progressives in the GA to derail this, but their efforts failed. Again, none of this would have happened without Tea Party support.
While we are confident our new Governor will support Health Care Freedom, repeated calls and emails to the Governors office have yielded no real answers to why McDonnell has agreed to participate in President Obama’s Council of Governors. Read more about this dangerous idea here. Make sure you take the time to write and call the governor and ask him to pull out of the Council. All of that information can be found on the same link….as well as info on our upcoming March 8th business meeting.
Much more to come on McDonnell’s participation in the Council of Governors. We have alerted all of the Tea Party groups in the state and we hope concerted efforts will persuade McDonnell to pull out of this potentially disasterous Council.
Victory Part 2
Update: More national mentions from today….Michelle Malkin has a post.
Ken Cuccinelli on Neil Cavuto….
Our victory on the Health Care Freedom Act made the front page of the Washington Post.
The concept was a major focus of a rally by tea party activists last month that drew more than 1,000 to Richmond. Jamie Radtke, chairman of the Federation of Virginia Tea Party Patriots, said that it was a focus of major lobbying by volunteers who affiliate with such groups in Virginia and that the vote showed they are achieving bipartisan support.
“This is a major victory for our movement,” Radtke said.
This will likely get play in other major media outlets today.
Unified action by Tea Party groups across the state made this happen. Won’t you join us on Feb. 4 for our first monthly business meeting? Working together we can make a difference. More information on Feb 4th here.
Victory!
From the Richmond Times Dispatch:
With five Democrats defecting, the Virginia Senate today passed a Republican measure that says Virginians don’t have to buy health insurance.
Voting 23-17, the Democratic-controlled Senate kicked to the House a bill by Sen. Frederick Quayle, R-Suffolk, that supporters say will send a message to Washington about its efforts to overhaul the health-care system.
The Quayle bill was the first of three nearly identical proposals by Republicans. The others are carried by Sens. Stephen Martin of Chesterfield and Jill Vogel of Fauquier. They passed by the same margin as the Quayle bill.
Quayle said the legislation is important, because it’s a way of telling Congress that Virginians believe the federal goverrnment is overstepping its authority.
The bill will now go to the House of Delegates where a Republican majority makes it very likley this will become law in 2010. This is a HUGE victory for the Tea Party. The fact that the legislation was able to pass a Democrat control senate is proof of how unpopular the federal health care legislation is in Virginia. This would not have happened if not for our grassroots lobbying efforts.
We will look to keep our momentum going in 2010. Join us at our Feb 4th business meeting and help us continue the battle to save our nation. More information here.
Update From Richmond on the Health Care Freedom Act (HB10)
Update! The health care bill hits the Senate floor for a vote Friday. If the 2 Democrats that voted for this in committee hold strong….and all of the Republican’s stay united…this would end up in a 20-20 tie. And then the Lt. Governor would cast the deciding vote. Presumably he would vote for this (but with Bolling you never know). A lot of things have to go right, but getting this through the Senate (which is the biggest obstacle) is within grasp. Contact your local Senator and let them know to please vote for SB 417.
Below is a post from the Tertium Quids website regarding SB 417, the Senate version of HB10 that we lobbied for in Richmond on January 18. Great news as the Health Care Freedom act passed a major legislative hurdle.
None of this would be happening without our massive Tea Party rally in Richmond on January 18th. We are making a difference! Notice that this wouldn’t have gotten out of committee without Democratic support. As always, it’s about the ideals and not the political party.
The stronger we get, the more effective we become, so please join us for our public meeting on Feb 4th to keep our movement going strong into 2010…and beyond.
“SB 417, a bill that protects Virginia residents from being forced to purchase healthcare coverage, PASSED the Senate Committee on Commerce & Labor, 8-7. THIS IS BIG. Senators Colgan and Puckett crossed party lines to vote for this bill. No one in the room expected the bill to pass the committee, and now the bill goes to the Senate!! Three identical bills, patroned by Sen. Quayle, Martin, and Vogel all passed simultaneously. These bills could come up for a vote in the Senate as early as Thursday. A play-by-play of the committee will be coming soon.
For now, e-mail and call Senators Puckett and Colgan THANKING them for voting yes on SB 417, SB 311, and SB 283. This is as important as calling a committee member to vote. We have to thank these guys and let them know that we appreciate them coming across the aisle to support our effort.
Senator Charles J. Colgan (D) (804) 698-7529 district29@senate.virginia.gov
Senator Phillip P. Puckett (D) (804) 698-7538 district38@senate.virginia.gov
THANK these guys today for their votes. “
Next meeting February 4th. Plus updates on HB 10 and a plea from our fellow Patriots in Charlottesville.
Our first public meeting of 2010 will be held on Thursday, February 4 at the Roanoke County Public Library on Rt 419, just across from the Cave Spring Post Office. We will meet from 6:30-8:45 p.m., and all are welcome.
There will be an open meeting like this each month from here on out, and we hope that you will make a point to attend as often as possible.
The primary purpose of the 2/4 meeting is to outline the structure of the organization now that we are incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia. We chose not to seek a non-profit status, as that places very strict limits on political activity. Instead, we are organized as a membership-based group, with leadership chosen in regular elections.
Our current board members have agreed to serve as the interim officers of the organization, but elections will be held once we have things properly laid out. There will be two levels of membership: regular members can join at no charge, but only voting memberships will be able to take part in elections. There will be a nominal fee to become a voting member.
We have a lot of plans for 2010, and we want your feedback and input. Fundraising will be a big part of what we do moving forward, as the membership fees we collect will not support much in the way of promotion or advertising.
Please make a point to attend this meeting. We need to start planning very soon for another Tax Day Tea Party protest on April 15, and will need volunteers and organizers for much of the work that’s yet to be done. We want this year’s event to be even bigger than in 2009!
We also want to begin taking over local political parties with an influx of Tea Party members. Your help is sorely needed! Any questions…contact me at chip.tarbutton@gmail.com
HB 10 has ben given a committe assignment. This Health Care Freedom act is an important step for Virginia to start standing up to the Feds and asserting our 10th Amendment rights. Info on HB10 is here.
The bill has to get approved through this committee to get to the floor of the State Legislature. If you could contact these committee members and urge them to support the bill, that would be helpful. By having 2,000 Tea Party members show up on lobby day, we have made this bill a top priority. We need to keep the pressure on!
Delegate Timothy D. Hugo (R)
> (804) 698-1040
> email: DelTHugo@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Harry R. Purkey (R)
> (804) 698-1082
> email: DelBPurkey@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Thomas Davis Rust (R)
> (804) 698-1086
> email: DelTRust@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Daniel W. Marshall, III (R)
> (804) 698-1014
> email: DelDMarshall@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Benjamin L. Cline (R)
> (804) 698-1024
> email: DelBCline@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Jackson H. Miller (R) (Co-Patron HB10)
> (804) 698-1050
> email: DelJMiller@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate G. Manoli Loupassi (R)
> (804) 698-1068
> email: DelMLoupassi@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Joseph P. Johnson, Jr. (D) (Co-Patron HB10)
> (804) 698-1004
> email: DelJJohnson@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Kenneth C. Alexander (D)
> (804) 698-1089
> email: DelKAlexander@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Jennifer L. McClellan (D)
> (804) 698-1071
> email: DelJMcClellan@house.virginia.gov
> Delegate Delores L. McQuinn (D)
> (804) 698-1070
> email: DelDMcQuinn@house.virginia.gov
If you can make it to Charlottesville Friday, please do. More below from Mark Lloyd from the Lyncburg Tea Party. We need to get Periello out…and a Conservative in….
Patriots of the Virginia Federation,
I know many of you rallied yesterday in Richmond and made the legislature sit up straight and take notice. Great job!
However, this fight is only just beginning. THIS IS A CALL TO ACTION!!!
WE NEED YOU HELP IN CHARLOTTESVILLE! We have the attention on national media in this upcoming GOP primary and in our efforts to unseat Tom Perriello (Pelosi-ello).
THIS FRIDAY, January 22nd, we are hosting the first of our three TEA Party GOP Debates. We will have NATIONAL MEDIA present and we MUST show a BIG CROWD!
Please send this to all your friends. I would like to see this event turn into TEA Party rally. The media MUST see that we are engaged in the process and are a MOVEMENT with MUSCLE!
If at all possible please join us and LET THEM SEE YOU JOIN US! We need your bodies on camera and your voices being heard.
Date: THIS FRIDAY, January 22nd
Time: 7PM
Location: Lane Auditorium
401 McIntire Rd., Charlottesville, VA, 22902
I know this is a sacrifice for many of you, but this is going to send a message to be heard not only in Virginia, but all across the nation.
If you have any questions please contact me mklloydva@gmail.com or Carole Thorpe patriotista@aol.com .
Come on and join us. Charlottesville is Thomas Jefferson’s home town and I know you will feel his spirit when you show up and help take back the country he worked so hard to build.
In Liberty,
Mark Lloyd
VA5th TEA Parties
Lynchburg TEA Party
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