Immigration Revolt Amongst Conservative Base

The GOP base is going into full revolt over this immigration bill/easy amnesty bill that the Bush administration and some 'Pubs in Congress are pushing. The blogs aren't being quiet, either. The donors, however, are apparently being deafening in their silence. A lot of buzz about this today. Needless to say, the Republicans need to do a SERIOUS about-face on this issue. Right now, I'm REALLY supporting a Fred Thompson/Duncan Hunter ticket come 2008.

--- The Washington Times reports that small-donor contributions to the RNC are off 40% from where they should be, mostly due to the grassroots donors who are rebelling against this immigration bill.

--- The News Buckit calls for the U.S. to "enforce the laws on the books and protect that border!" That kind of common sense is too much for Congress to figure out, I guess. They also note that Bush's poll numbers were hovering around 33-35% before this mess, but that this bill could so alienate himself from the GOP base, that he could possibly poll below Nixon's Watergate-era poll numbers (25%) if he continues pushing this bill.

--- La Shawn Barber has now lost all faith in President Bush, referring to him as "an idiot", and stating that Bush will go down in history as a man who turned America into a 3rd world country.

--- Peggy Noonan makes an astute observation..."What political conservatives and on-the-ground Republicans must understand at this point is that they are not breaking with the White House on immigration. They are not resisting, fighting and thereby setting down a historical marker--"At this point the break became final." That's not what's happening. What conservatives and Republicans must recognize is that the White House has broken with them."

And asks a good question...

"Why would they speak so insultingly, with such hostility, of opponents who are concerned citizens? And often, though not exclusively, concerned conservatives?"

--- Laura Ingraham is angry with this whole immigration bill, too...and she takes Linda Chavez to task on it. H/t to Hot Air for the audio.

--- Michelle Malkin reports on the protests outside of Trent Lott's office this morning.

--- Hot Air notes that in the latest Rasmussen Reports poll, only 16% of Americans believe that this immigration bill will reduce illegal immigration, 74% disagree...including 41% that believe this bill will increase illegal immigration.

Interesting Look at the 27th Scandal

Virginia Virtucon has an interesting look at the accusations and stories that Ben Tribbett (Not Larry Sabato) has been posting as of late. It seems Ben is jumping the gun and overlooking the facts behind the statements on a few points.

Of course, the fact remains is that Mark Tate was still indicted on the election fraud and perjury counts...but how quick some are to dismiss that fact and attempt to find out all the supposed "dirty dealings" of the Republican Party of Virginia.

Apparently, I'm Not Clear Enough For Some...

This is, hopefully, the last I have to speak on this issue. I'm going to even bullet-point this so I make myself clear.

1. I don't think that Republitarian's constant harping on the Mary Sayre/DUI issue is right, and is overstating the issue. If he had mentioned that this is a fact, and left it at that, I wouldn't have an issue with it.
2. I do believe that Republitarian was provoked into publishing any dirt possible on Sayre because he felt he was being unfairly attacked by pro-Sayre bloggers.
3. I don't think Republitarian should have threatened Virginia Virtucon.
4. I'm not defending Republitarian's actions, as I think he's gone WAY over the line on this issue.
5. I'm not defending Bloggers4Sayre, either.
6. I'm simply stating things as I see them from a 3rd party perspective. If Republitarian and the Sayre bloggers want to continue this war of words and actions, so be it...I will have nothing more to do with this spat.
7. I don't have the "anti-Sayre blogger" viewpoint that most at Daily Whackjob have.
8. I actually like Scott Sayre a lot, politically-speaking, and I would readily endorse him if there weren't constant controversies involving his supporters and others.

See the lengths I have to go to just so people understand MY point of view?

A View of America

I've heard many people, mostly on the left, that state that blind patriotism and love for your country is apparently only for morons. Some even say that true patriotism is to exercise your right to question the government and the direction of the country. I know I certainly exercise those rights, that's a large part of why I have this blog.

However, why is it that some people refuse to have any kind of a moment where they simply stand up and say "I love America! It's the greatest country in the world!"

My mother has told me that when she came to this country (which was in 1971, during the Vietnam war), she was amazed that the straight-up, unconditional love American citizens had for their country. Now, she says, unconditional love for our nation is at an all-time low, and it wasn't even this bad during the tumultuous decade of the 1970's.

I'm inclined to agree. To have an unconditional love for America, flaws and all, is something that many people look down upon as being ignorant, or simply out-dated. Some believe that there is no place in modern America for this kind of old-fashioned patriotism.

"Why not?", I ask.

I don't subscribe to the theory the common, everyday liberal hates America. They simply have a different view of it. I do believe that there are some who hate America as she has been and as she is now, and think that rapid changes need to be made to our society...namely, adding in socialist ideologies. There are many instances that liberal ideology can be helpful in guiding America down the right path.

However, other than during the Great Depression, when has the federal government really had (or needed to have) a consistently heavy hand in our day-to-day lives? The answer is really, never. Most recessions and economic downturns have been short-lived, due to the strength of the American economy, not due to large increases in government influence in industry, commerce, and society.

Yes, our nation has it's flaws. Yes, we're not completely rid of racism, religious bigotry, homophobia, and sexism. However, one of the glorious aspects of this nation is the fact that our government is designed to allow the average citizen to live their lives without consistent governmental interference. To change that will change the entire definition of American society.

I still take pride in the fact that I am an American. I am a citizen of the United States of America, and I LOVE it. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else in the world. I do take offense when other nations attack and denigrate the country that allows me to live as free a life as possible in this world. I truly believe that in this country, we are allowed life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...we might not all get that happiness, but at least we have the opportunity to pursue it.

I support our military, and the need for a strong military to defend our shores and to stop tyrants from encroaching on the established freedom of others. I believe in lower taxes, smaller government, American-style capitalism, and a certain moral standard about our society. I also believe that prejudice against religions, races, sexual orientations, and gender is wrong, but as a nation, we have always moved forward in eliminating those prejudices from our land.

In the end, though, I believe that our nation, in a general sense, does the right thing most of the time. Sometimes we stumble, sometimes we aren't fully prepared, sometimes we have to admit that we messed something up, and once in a long while...we're wrong about something. However, most of the time, we are usually right.

Now I ask you, what's wrong with that?

Chaz Evans-Haywood is Popular, and for Good Reason

Between Virginia Virtucon, SWAC Girl, NOVA Townhall, In-Politically Correct, John Maxfield, and even his own opponent Myron Rhodes (Republitarian), Chaz Evans-Haywood is a very well-liked guy and has been ringing up tons of compliments and endorsements from conservatives in the blogosphere during his campaign for Rockingham County Clerk of Court.

Chaz has a good amount of experience in the political arena, having served as a Regional Representative for former Senator George Allen, as well as District Representative for Rep. Bob Goodlatte.

His open letter to the residents of Rockingham County and the City of Harrisonburg really outlines his credentials well.

Myron has had plenty of good ideas that I can agree with, as well. However, while I can see why he brought up the issue with Sayre's wife, I also believe that he could have used better judgment in how he went about bringing up this issue, instead of simply slamming Sayre for it because of his grudge against the Bloggers4Sayre.

So, the Podium now endorses Chaz Evans-Haywood for Rockingham Clerk of Court.

Republitarian and the Bloggers4Sayre

I goes without saying that the 24th District Primary has become a wild affair in the VA blogosphere.

Republitarian (Myron Rhodes, in case you read about this elsewhere and see his name) pretty much conceded to me that I was right to think that his recent avalanche of stories, sentiments, and opinions against Scott Sayre were not necessarily because he didn't like the candidate or was a fan of Emmett Hanger. It was because of the fact that many of the Bloggers4Sayre group attacked him for what they felt were pro-Hanger sentiments.

It was revealed by Republitarian, and then confirmed by The New Dominion, that Scott Sayre's wife has 2 DUI convictions on her record, on in 2003 and another in 2006.

I do agree with SWAC Girl and Cliff Garstang, among others, that this issue really has practically NOTHING to do with the upcoming primary between Sayre and Hanger. This information is also inappropriate, and not the kinds of things I want to read about when it comes to deciding who a better candidate is. If Sayre's wife was running, maybe then it would be an issue. Nonetheless, it does cast Sayre in a bad light.

Where I somewhat defend Republitarian is on the issue that he was trying to remain neutral, and when he wasn't necessarily pro-Sayre in his commentary (nor was he pro-Hanger, either), he was taken to task by the Bloggers4Sayre. Spank That Donkey told me that he was taking Myron to task because up to this point, Myron had been against taxes...and that by not supporting Sayre, he was "swaying" on this issue.

However, I figured that the attacks on Republitarian were what drove him to start publishing dirt on Sayre, since it was his supporters that denigrated him for quite a while. Turns out I was right.

While Republitarian's "dirt" barely affects my view of Scott Sayre, I can't say I totally blame him for going on the offensive, considering he was initially gang-tackled by Sayre supporters even though he was remaining neutral between the two. I'm surprised that the pro-Sayre bloggers are so surprised at the backlash against what their supporting.

Personally, I have plenty of ideological similarities with the pro-Sayre/SWAC bloggers. That's why when they go on a massive swarm against someone who is remaining neutral...I'm shocked, because I didn't think that being neutral about a race that is not in your district was such a bad thing.

What I wish is that both sides could simply "cut the crap" and get back to the bigger objective of promoting solid, sensible conservatism, which is what the Republicans should be doing.

Unfortunately, I don't know if that will happen any time soon.

Mitt Romney and the Bigoted Clinton Supporter

You may have seen this already, but if you haven't, here it is courtesy of The News Buckit.

To sum it up, a Hillary Clinton supporter (who later stated he was "a liberal") was approached by GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney in a restaurant, who respectfully asks "How are you doing, sir?"

The guy says "I'm one person who will never vote for a Mormon!" That's all, just simply shouted it right at Romney.

Romney replied "Is that so?" The guy affirmed this, and Romney asked "Can I shake your hand, anyway?"

The guy shouted "NO!" Romney said "Ok", and brushed it off with a smile.

Mitt Romney showed some top-notch class and deft ability to handle an awkward situation Hats off to him for handling it for with a smile, still showing the bigoted gentleman respect, and remaining calm. The Clinton campaign immediately disavowed the comment, stating that they "strongly disagree" with the man's comments.

However, I love this quote from Romney spokesman Kevin Madden: "I thought liberals were supposed to be the protectors of tolerance as a virtue."

I don't know, but I know that's what they tell you they are...

Linda Chavez Doesn't Get It

Linda Chavez goes off the deep end.

The former Secretary of Labor nominee (who withdrew due to allegations she hired illegal aliens) made some harsh statements about those who don't support open borders and/or the Immigration Capitulation bill. Most notably, this quote here

"Some people just don’t like Mexicans — or anyone else from south of the border. They think Latinos are freeloaders and welfare cheats who are too lazy to learn English. They think Latinos have too many babies, and that Latino kids will dumb down our schools. They think Latinos are dirty, diseased, indolent and more prone to criminal behavior. They think Latinos are just too different from us ever to become real Americans."

Linda Chavez, I am a Hispanic...first-generation American on my mother's side. I don't support this plan because it circumvents the justification for having laws in this country. Illegal aliens came here illegally, and therefore do not have the right to stay here. They should be deported if caught, and made to go through the legal process to obtain legal status in the United States of America.

My mother did it. My grandparents did it. Millions upon millions of our ancestors did it. These illegal immigrants can do it, too.