Updates: The Rally is Postponed and so is DISCLOSE…for now…
The protest in support of the 10th Amendment Foundation’s lawsuit against the Unconstitutional aspects of the Health Care Reform Law has been postponed.
The lead council on the 10th Amendment Foundation’s legal team has been beset with a serious medical condition. There will be another date planned soon. We will work with the Foundation to give us more lead time for preparation this time.
Good News; the Democrats lost a cloture vote by 2 votes today to do a straight 50+1 vote on the DISCLOSE Act. DISCLOSE is patently unconstitutional and is designed specifically to silence groups like the Tea Parties from becoming involved in the political process.
Not only is it a blatant infringement of the 1st Amendment, it carves our exceptions for groups like Unions and the NRA, which is an obvious violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
Both Warner and Webb (predictably) voted for Cloture. In a procedural move, Harry Reid voted against his own bill so he could reintroduce it at a later date once they have bought off the required 2 votes necessary to force a 50 + 1 vote.
Here is a great analysis that correctly equates DISCLOSE to the Alien and Sedition Act, as so blantantly infringing upon Civil Rights, that it must be opposed.
The Roanoke Tea Party will not yield to this law if it is passed and will express our 1st Amendment Rights in complete disregard to the DISCLOSE Act.
We are free men and woman and we will not be cowed by the Tyranny of the Federal Regime. We have rights, conferred by our maker. Reid, Pelosi and Obama have no standing to usurp these rights and we WILL NOT BE MOVED.
JOIN THE RESISTANCE. JOIN THE ROANOKE TEA PARTY.
Update on the Cuccinelli Lawsuit
Attached is information on the Cuccinelli Lawsuit against the Health Care Reform Bill….
Dear Friends,
I am writing you today with an important update regarding Virginia’s lawsuit to overturn the individual mandate contained in the recent healthcare bill.
On May 24 the Federal government responded in the U.S. District Court with a motion to dismiss the suit.
This is routine and we expected this to be their response.
My team and I will respond to this motion to dismiss by June 7. The Federal government then has until June 22 to reply to Virginia’s response.
There’s going to be a lot of back-and-forth, and I intend to make sure to keep you in the loop throughout this process!
Today, I want to let you know about a webcast we’re going to be holding on June 16th to discuss where we are on the case, what you can expect going forward and the constitutional issues involved.
As an early supporter of my efforts on this case – I wanted to make sure you have a chance to participate in the healthcare discussion.
Will you join me in participating in this webcast?
This webcast is free and open to the public; however, to view the webcast you must register on my website by clicking here. Please keep in mind that this webcast is not paid for at taxpayer expense.
I hope you can join me in this discussion – following the update, there will be a question and answer period. Please pass this along to all your friends and family!
I hope to see you on June 16th!
For Liberty,
Ken Cuccinelli, II
Attorney General of Virginia
Tax Day Tea Party rally
All the details about Thursday’s rally at ElmwoodPark are posted here, including information on several of our speakers.
We also have this updated video…
Tax Day Tea Party rally video
Sign the petition…get your neighbors to sign the petition….Be a 10ther.
That’s right be a 10ther…one who supports the 10th Amendment. Let’s make the 10th Amendment cool again.
What can YOU do?
Show your suppport for Ken Cuccinelli by signing this petition today. Have your friends, relative, co-workers and everyone you talk to that’s angry about Health Care “reform” sign it. We need to make sure everyone in the USA knows that we suppport our Attorney General.
Contact his office in Richmond to voice your support for his legal challenge in defense of the citizens of Virginia.We are not only fighting for our rights…but the success of this lawsuit can change the course of our entire nation. While the petition is not strictly necessary, we need to ensure that our leaders don’t lose heart when the enemies of freedom attack and distort Cuccinelli’s record. Cuccinelli continues to be hammered by negative press and hounded by hoardes of negative emails and calls. Cuccinelli needs our support.
Come out to the April 1 Tea Party Meeting at the Voice of the Blue Ridge on Melrose Ave at 6:30 PM. We will have some additional actionable items.
Educate yourself
Understand the Constitutional issue at hand by clicking here.
Get information on local GOP debates here.
Explanation of the 10th Amendment Issue: Why I’m a 10ther.
In response to a comment on a recent post, I wrote a response that I think encapsulated the main points around the Constitutional issues/10th Amendment issues. I have taken the post (with a few minor edits) and put it here as an educational tool for our membership.
Why I’m a 10ther
A recent post lambasted our obsession with the Constitutional issues and stated in part that Health Care reform was the least of our worries…according to the poster (who interestingly enough had a CIA email address), we should be thankful brave politicians like Periello stood up to the Big greedy insurance conglomerates….yada yada yada. Same liberal pablum you’ve heard for years…
Here was my response with a few edits…
“Health care reform is about money and freedom. It is going to wreck the best health care system in the world, instead of fixing it’s warts, have the government control 1/6 of the US economy and destroy the Constitution. I would say that that constitutes something to be very worried about.
Insurance companies aren’t the biggest issue and their ads haven’t somehow caused millions of people across the country to join the tea party movement. Special interest groups advertise positions all of the time….what you are seeing is an unprecedented paradigm shift in the US body politic. From being sheep…to rising up and taking control of our country back.
The Republicans biggest mistake in fighting the health care bill was not focusing more on the Constitutional issue. All of the bad things that are in the bill are certainly worthy of disdain, but it is a moot point if the whole concept of the bill violates the 10th Amendment of the Constitution. Now it looks like a ploy…since they lost the legislative fight.
The Constitution matters. The bill requires people to purchase something. The Feds are using the Commerce Clause that allows the US government to regulate interstate commerce as their justification for usurping states rights that are laid out in the 10th Amendment. But if I choose not to buy health care coverage, there is no commerce. So how can you use the commerce clause for that? It makes zero sense and that is why the bill is patently unconstitutional.
The Roanoke Tea Party has always been focused on the Constitutional issues and if you were to review past blog entries on our site….you’ll see it is a recurring theme. That is why, while others were focused on the bills specific language, we and other Tea Party groups were in Richmond helping to get the Health Care Freedom Act passed so that the state has the basis in place to fight constitutional issue in the Federal Court system and through nullification at the state level.
The Constitution matters. As big of a deal as the health care bill is, it pales in comparison to the long term negative affect of allowing this law to stand. Because if the Federal Government can compel you to purchase something against your will with the threat of fine or imprisonment, that destroys the last vestige of constraint on the Federal government. It destroys the very contract that we have between the government and the governed. The 10th Amendment matters. The US Constitution matters.That is why I am proud to call myself a 10ther.
The real sheeple are those that will allow the Federal Government to have practically dictatorial powers…and not expect them at some point to use that power to control the US citizenry. Socialists know they can’t push their agenda through democratically…so they will cram it down our throats…just like they did with Obamacare.
I am appalled by what happened to Periello and to Eric Cantor as well. But Periello is a typical politician. He was put into power with a huge infusion of DNC cash, He is beholden to Nancy Pelosi. He knows that his support of Cap and Trade has already damned him forever with conservatives…so he voted for health care to secure his base. Now he’ll run a campaign trumpeting his political courage. Hogwash.
I respect your passion, but you are misinformed. Hopefully, you can keep reading our site material and get your facts straight.
Chip Tarbutton
Roanoke Tea Party
Action Alerts, Debate Videos and a big thank you to MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow: I’m a Tenther!
Check out this blog entry from Rachel Maddow on MSNBC.com. Since like 24 people watch MSNBC, you probably missed this, but Maddow is equating Ken Cuccinelli and the rest of us that are fighting for our 10th Amendment rights to “truthers.”
Maddow users the term “tenthers” to describe us. As if believing in the 10th Amendment is equivalent to believing that 911 was an inside job. That is the metality of the left. And these are the kind of people that are attacking Ken Cuccinelli as he fights to protect our 10th Amendment rights. And according to Ken his office is being inundated with hateful emails and calls.
I don’t know about you but:
I’m Proud to be a Tenther!
We are going to make some T-Shirts proclaiming that we are tenthers…look out for them on our online store soon.
Show your suppport for Ken Cuccinelli by signing this petition today. Have your friends, relative, co-workers and everyone you talk to that’s angry about Health Care “reform” sign it. We need to make sure everyone in the USA knows that we suppport our Attorney General.
Contact his office in Richmond to voice your support for his legal challenge in defense of the citizens of Virginia.We are not only fighting for our rights…but the success of this lawsuit can change the course of our entire nation. While the petition is not strictly necessary, we need to ensure that our leaders don’t lose heart when the enemies of freedom attack and distort Cuccinelli’s record.
Spread this far and wide!
The Roanoke Tea Part co-sponsored a debate between candidates for the chair of the Botetourt County Republican Party and the 6th Congressional Disctrict Republican Party. The video is now available on line and on Valley Vision TV.
The Roanoke Tea Party does not have a position on these internal GOP positions. However, many of our members have expressed an interest in participating in upcoming mass meetings. While leadership of the Tea Party will not engage in these meetings, we certainly encourage our local members to attend the meetings. We offer this video to give you some insight into the candidates so you can make up your own mind, if you are interested in attending a mass meeting.
Here is contact information for all 4 candidates.
Botetourt County Chair
6th District Chair
Nullification. This is why we worked so hard to pass HB 10
The Roanoke Tea Party is proud of its role in helping pass the Health Care Freedom Act, which gives Virginians the right to refuse the unconstitutional mandates of the Health Care Bill.
Here is a blast from the recent past on our participation in the rally.
Ken Cuccinelli has publicly vowed to sue the Federal government.
Bob McDonnell put out this press release. (Finally)
They will come under fire for this, but The Health Care Freedom Act was passed with bi-partisan support. The Senate committee that passed this on to the full State Senate had a Democratic majority. We call on all Virginians to support our state leaders in this fight. Our state has rights under the 10th Amendment and this is the first step in fighting to take back those rights from an oppressive Federal Government.
Make sure they know you appreciate their support. Flood them with thank you notes and calls.
http://www.oag.state.va.us/ Here is the contact info for Cuccinelli.
http://www.governor.virginia.gov/ Here is the contact info for McDonnell.
The point here is that we have a lot more influence on our state legislators than our mostly worthless Federal officials. We will continue to work in the state to reassert the 10th Amendment and help secure these freedoms for all Virginians.
Moment of Crisis…And the Roanoke Tea Party’s Manifesto
Sorry for the delay in this post. We have had problems with the site for the past couple of days. I am traveling (a long ago planned wedding I’m attending in Newport News) and tied up with family stuff. The timing couldn’t be worse. However, I think most of the Congressman know what they are going to do…they are just savvy enough to try and wrangle more sweetheart deals from the Democratic leadership. At this point, I think the die is pretty well cast. But in case I’m wrong…let’s keep up the pressure on Boucher and Periello.
The slaughter solution has passed. And now the Democrats are bribing and cheating their way to a 216 person vote in the House. So the Democrats are willing to destroy the Constitution to pass this bill. The process is unconstitutional, the bill is unconstitutional. The result:
Your freedoms are in peril.
The specifics of the bill aren’t important now…though we all know that this isn’t going to help anyone but Democrats who are trying to seize power. If the government can subvert the Constitution to create laws without the consent of the people, our Republic is in an unparalleled crisis.
Thanks to Congressman Goodlatte for his support of the Constitution. From a message that Goodlatte sent to the Roanoke Tea Party yesterday.
“I wanted to let you know about a resolution that the Congressman co-sponsored which would prevent the speaker from bringing a rule to the floor unless it allows for an up-or-down vote on the Senate health care bill, and additionally he gave a speech on the house floor yesterday along with 124 other members of the Republican caucus against not only the health care bill itself, but also against the process by which the Democrats are trying to ram this through the House.”
We also appreciate Tom Periello for his courage in crossing over and voting against the Slaughter Solution. Yet he is going to vote for the bill? What sense does that make?
However, Rick Boucher went along with the Slaughter Solution. Congressman Boucher, you voted against the bill the first time around…and now you vote for the unconstitutional procedure to pass the unconstitutional bill you originally opposed? What?!?!?
The root cause of this problem is that we have progressives who are either too incompetent to see the constitutional issues with this bill, or willing accomplices to the greatest constitutional crisis in this nation since the Civil War.
So what do we do?
There is a rally in DC today at noon at the Capitol. I am watching it now. At some point, I think these rally’s are losing their effectiveness. I prefer hounding your Congressman, Leave Goodlatte alone, or thank him for showing leadership on this…but if you are in Boucher or Periello’s district
Call him
Call him
Call him.
“All politics is local”…make them fear for their jobs.
Governor McDonnell, we need every voice now. Sign the Health Care Freedom Act and join the fight! It has been sitting on your desk for over a week. What are you waiting for? We could have been the first state to approve nullification. But Idaho has beaten us to the punch.
Thanks to AG Ken Cuccinelli for his leadership on nullification and his willingness to fight for the rights the Federal government are trying to steal from us.
All of this is just, in the words of Ken Cuccinell, a rear guard action. If you were uncertain about the direction of progressives in DC, events of the past few days should have removed all doubt. The latest Gallop Poll shows Congressional approval at 16%. The question remains: what we are going to do about it?
The answer is we have to change the equation. It’s simple.
Step 1:
Get the current crop of progressives out of DC and Richmond.
The GOP is flush with confidence and joy as they feel they will sweep back in to power in November. We want to help that happen. Not to mention in 2011 when every State Senator is up for re-election. With the current environment and our active support, we can make this happen. As a local group we need to focus primarily on local races and get good men and women into office. But here’s the rub…
What are the new politicians going to differently? If it is the same economic policies that the GOP Congress and Bush pursued from 2000 – 2006 when they had a majority, we will end up in the same place we are today…with the people getting frustrated with the GOP and voting Democrats back in…
Is that really what we want? Is that what we are fighting for. Never Again.
Step 2:
Whoever is in power needs to be accountable to:
Support the Constitution
Show Fiscal Responsibility
Defend Individual Liberties
Support the Free Market
The Roanoke Tea Party does not care what your party affiliation is…but we do care deeply if you defend these basic principles. We are looking at Bob McDonnell just as critically as we would look at any Governor. He’s not getting a pass because he has an R behind his name. For those who put party loyalty above our principles, the Roanoke Tea Party is not the place for you.
Lastly, as the Roanoke Tea Party continues to grow, we need to continue to focus most of our energy on issues that are local to us…The Roanoke Valley, The New River Valley and Bedford/Lynchburg. We need to ensure that good candidates are representing us at every level of government: from school boards to Congress. From House of Delegates to the US Senate.
If you really support these basic principles, you can look at a piece of legislation and know that it violates these principles. Never mind that McDonnell’s a Republican. If you look at his original Jobs bill, it is full of tax breaks for “Green Jobs.” By doing this, the government is subverting the free market by targeting tax breaks to the businesses the government deems as good.
That does not support Free Markets. And we should oppose it.
Step 3: Repeat Steps 1 and 2 forever
We all have to get past party issues and look at how well are elected officials are upholding their principles. Forever.
The other advantage of acting locally is that no one knows what will happen to the economy. With the oppressive debt both parties in DC have piled up over the past few years, Moody’s is considering downgrading the USA’s bond rating. Did you hear that? The USA, the greatest economic force in the history of the world, may being downgraded!
Glen Beck picked up on this last night. If the federal government goes bankrupt, we may be faced with a historical shift in this nation. Everyone likes to say “when things get better…we’ll be fine.” But please note that the Moody’s report also predicted unprecedented social upheaval when the US government finally starts to address the fiscal mess. What does that mean? No one knows for sure.
We have a Federal Government that is bound and determined to push us into a socialist society and destroy the basic tenets of our nation. What does that mean long term….No one knows for sure.
All we can really control politically is our local elections. When our local/state /Federal officials are faced with crucial decisions soon that could alter the very direction of this nation…we must have leaders who are up to this challenge.
As a local group, we need to be educated, prepared and ready for any eventuality. Hope for the best and prepare for the worst is always good advise. At some point very soon, our state and local officials are going to have to stand up to the Federal Government and say NO. And unless we are pushing them to do that…it will never happen. Being an effective voice locally has NEVER BEEN MORE CRITICAL THAN AT THIS PIVOTAL MOMENT IN HISTORY.
As a group, we need to stop being slaves to our current system. The system we have in place can be changed if we have the courage to stand on our convictions.
When the 10th Amendment is always respected, when we always allow for a truly free markets, when we always respect individual liberties and when the government is always thrifty; we will see this nation flourish economically and are freedoms will be secured.
Keep your powder dry people, whatever happens in DC over the next few days is only the first battle. The real battle will be in November, when we start to replace politicians and hold new ones accountable.The sad part is that the battle will never be over…we will always need to be vigilant because people, being people, are going to disappoint us.
That’s why are founders created this government to ensure our God Given rights are protected.That is our mission and for the sake of our children we cannot fail.
Rally Today. Why the Slaughter Solution could be the end of the Republic….Make your voice heard..
I know everyone is busy, but if you can find the time to come out to Senator Webb’s office today (Tuesday) at noon for a rally against the Health Care bill…we would appreciate it. See the previous post for logistical information and more.
We are fully aware that the Senator has no direct impact on the decisions being made in the House, specifically on the so-called Slaughter Solution to “deem” that a bill that wasn’t debated or voted on…was actually voted on. But we need courageous people on both sides of the aisle to step up and defend the Constitution. Our Constitution is on life support now in DC….the Slaughter Solution is the final nail in the coffin. Do either of our Senator’s have the courage to stand up and defend the Constitution?
I quote Constitutional expert Mark Levin: And the Constitution….
U.S Constitution, Article I, Section VII, Clause II.
Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States; If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively…
According to Levin, James Madison himself gave special care and attention to this clause in the Constitution.
“Levin: And do you want to know why? Because this clause goes to the heart of this Republic.
This clause goes to the heart of how our representative body, that is Congress, makes laws. And so I want you to [observe] how particular the Framers were… They have to pass a Bill to present it to the President…
This is one of the most exacting clauses in the Constitution.
And, to the best of my knowledge, which extends over three decades, no Congress has previously tried to institute policies without actual statutes.
Here we have the President of the United States and Congressional leaders actually talking about the possibility of a brazen and open violation of one of the most fundamental aspects of our Constitution and Republic! How we actually make laws!
Let me be as clear as I know how. If this is done, this will create the greatest Constitutional crisis since the Civil War. It would be 100 times worse than Watergate.
…It would be government by fiat… meaning there would be no law… the mere discussion by officials in this government is such a grotesque violation of the actual legislative function of Congress [that it] puts us… at the brink. At the brink.
This is why we conservatives revere the Constitution. This is why we stress the Constitution’s words have meaning and historical context and must be complied with. Because otherwise we have anarchy, which leads to tyranny.
This is a crucial lesson for those of you who… aren’t sure what your beliefs are, or if you have any beliefs. Or aren’t sure if you even care. We have an effort underway by the one of the most powerful chairmen in Congress, the woman who heads the Rules Committee, …openly discussing gutting Congress. Gutting Congress.”
Well said sir…All we can do today is make our voices heard. But if it wasn’t clear to you how critical it is to take back DC for “We The People”….this should eliminate any doubt why our movement must succeed at getting the Constitution back at the center of every political decision.
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