Lois Lerner, You're So Smug!

Remember Lois Lerner?  Yeah, the lady who was at the head of the IRS and the one who allegedly started targeting Tea Party and Conservative groups from having tax-exempt status in hopes to halt their progress in raising up conservative candidates and taking issues to the streets.  

I was part of one of the Tea Party groups that was targeted, Katy Tea Party Patriots and was lucky enough to be there in person at the first day of the hearings to hear opening statements from Darrell Issa and others on the Government Oversight Committee.  I even wrote about it for Texas GOP Vote, only my second article I had written for the state wide blog and you can read it here.  

The hearings continue and she may be held in contempt.  I'm sure you have seen the infamous picture of her circulating on the internet, the one taken on day one of the hearings.  She just looks so...well...so...'smug'.  

So, in honor of this smug look on her face, I took it upon myself to change the lyrics from Carly Simon's "You're So Vain", to "You're So Smug".    Yeah, I did.


You walked into the hearing, like you were walking onto a yacht. 
You're brief strategically tucked under your arm, your breath was smelling of contempt. 
You had one eye on Darrell Issa as he watched you take your seat. 
And all the while you were screwing the tea party, screwing the tea party and...

You're so smug, you probably think this vote is about you
You're so smug, I'll bet you think this vote is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

The room was waiting with baited breath
to hear what you had to say
When you started to testify, then pleaded the fifth
I thought Trey Gowdy would heave

But you gave away your right to plead the fifth once you said you were exempt
I had some dreams that you would be held in contempt, held in contempt

And.. 
You're so smug, you probably think this vote is about you
You're so smug, I'll bet you think this vote is about you
Don't you? Don't you?  Don't you?

I had some dreams that you would be held in contempt, held in contempt
You're so smug, you probably think this vote is about you
You're so smug, I'll bet you think this vote is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

Now, who of you knew that the Political Chicken was a singer/song-writer?  I know, shocker, right?  That concludes this version of Political Chicken karaoke, tune in next time to hear us sing one to the The Georgia Satellites, "Keep You're Hands To Yourself".

Golf and Baseball and Outreach, Oh, My!

"People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care."  Would you tend to agree with that statement?  Then let me ask you this: do people really care anymore?  Do people really care for others and go the second mile for them when there is really nothing in it for them, other than being blessed by blessing others?  I would say yes and I can do even one better than that, I can give you an example.

My good friend and fellow Republican Joe Ablaza cares for children getting a chance to play baseball and he proves it because yesterday, he teamed up for a second time with The National Latino Peace Officers Association, Southeast Harris County Chapter.  The N.L.P.O.A Southeast Harris County Chapter is a 501 (c) 3 organization committed to youth and community programs. The association is 100% volunteer driven and donations from our many wonderful supporters help finance our programs. If you are a resident of the area, please support the Association’s events. The funds raised are applied to our many law enforcement and youth programs.

The Magnolia Little League is one such youth program that the NLPOA supports. One of the Core Values of the NLPOA is to “Bridge the Gap” into the Hispanic community. 
 
Our first tournament was a resounding success with over 60 golfers and $4,000 raised! With your support Magnolia National Little League will have another great year. 


We often hear about outreach, and how Republicans are supposedly so 'bad' at it.  Joe Ablaza said it best when he said this about Republican outreach, "I recently took a big picture look at why Republicans like me are not well received in these parts.  My best guess is that we are not known for the good deeds we do in these communities.  We need to do a better job at community building in areas like the East End of Houston before we can ask for votes.  Is there a better way to show we care than helping kids play ball?  My proposal is this: come out and play golf.  Let’s have a good time on the links and give back to the community at the same time.  After we make this a success, let’s find another way to help out these communities.  When we are done with that let’s move on to the next thing, and then the next because it is the right thing to do.  First and foremost, we will all reap the benefits of stronger kids and communities, no doubt there.  Little by little we will also be regaining the credibility that we need to turn things around."

Quick!  Let's review to see if you've been paying attention: Going golfing to support children so they can play America's greatest pastime?  What could be better?  Well, I'll tell you; going golfing with Lt. Governor David Dewhurst at the oldest 18-hole golf course in Texas, that's what!  The Lt. Governor used to play this course when he was a kid and he just happens to be running for re-election and is in the midst of a runoff to secure the spot that he's held since 2003, and he's no stranger to serving his fellow man. 

From his website: "Lieutenant Governor Dewhurst has been a longtime community leader in his hometown of Houston, where he has served on numerous civic and charitable boards. A college basketball player at the University of Arizona and champion cutting horse rider, Dewhurst was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2009."  He showed up as a special guest to show his support for Magnolia National Little League to ensure their success going forward.

 For more information or to make a donation, go to magnoliayouthbaseball@outlook.com.  Tell them The Political Chicken sent ya!

Politics and Motherhood: Making It All Work

I know that most of you know me as a political blogger, and I am.  Not only do I love to write, I also like to read other blogs, mostly about exercising, cooking and some other political blogs.  One food blog in particular that I love is a blog called Iowa Girl Eats.  I found it completely by accident a few years ago and I fell in love with it immediately.  The woman who writes it lives in Iowa, obviously, and she writes recipe blogs complete with snapshots of the cooking process and the finished product.  She has a way of styling her photos that I love and she writes in a way that I can completely relate to!  I started following her blog just a short time before she became pregnant with her first child.  Since giving birth to her precious son, Lincoln, she has taken up writing another blog on her food blog called My Mommy Mind.  Though my children are older than her seven month old son, all of them feeling and acting much older than they are at the tender ages of ten, eight and almost six, her blog spurred me to think about my own children and their development, all at the ages and stages I find them at now.

What I would I attempt to call the kid related blogs if they were going to be done at regular intervals?  I have no idea, but I do have some things that have developed over the past few days that I would love to share with you, so here goes.

I am a home school mom first and foremost and have over the past few years become heavily involved in the local political scene.  I was part of several Tea Party groups and definitely still consider myself a tea partier, but I'm not anchored to one group in particular at this time.  Like most of you with jobs outside the home and families, I play a balancing act with life as a stay at home, home schooling momma and sometimes, I hate to admit, the schedule weighs heavily with political meetings and campaign activities.  Much, much heavier than it should.

I think that all moms and dads can relate to such a dilemma, but I think it's what we do when we find ourselves out of balance that remains most important.  This is where I found myself last Friday night, weighing the options of running for a position, not one that appears on the ballot in November, but one that is a party elected position and that which is voted on by the state convention attendees.  I was almost certain that I was going to do it, so much so that I began lining up supporters and spreading the word quietly until I heard a voice contradicting all the plans I had made.

You know that scripture that says, "Be still and know that I am God...?"  Well, I haven't been very 'still' lately as many of you can attest to and I started wondering why; why couldn't I be still?  Was I afraid of what I was going to hear if I was standing still?  I think I nailed it on the head right there.  I was afraid of what I was going to hear from God.  I listened all evening and into the early morning and it was then that I decided that it was in fact, the Lord speaking to my spirit that now was not the time for me to run for this position.  At the front of this decision was my husband, my children and my commitment to them as not only their mom, but their teacher and caregiver.  Those are big responsibilities not to be taken lightly.  Politics will always be there, the youth of my children and my family will not.

I also began thinking not only of the time away from them that this position might enforce, but also of the quality of time when we are together.  I don't want to live my life with my kids in what I would consider 'distracted mode', constantly thinking of the next political thing or project to do.  It's nice sometimes just to not only be 'still' by yourself with God, but to be 'still' with your kids and family as well.  I feel that my children deserve better than that.


Whenever we hear of women and work and toil in the same sentence or blog, for that matter, we often think of the Proverbs 31 woman.  To tell you the truth, I get tired just thinking about her.  She is fearless and tireless in all of her efforts to provide a home for her family.  One verse, the next to last one, has stuck with me for many years and it goes: "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."  Moms and Dads, may we all be blessed and known for our love for our families and for the Lord.

 

March 2014 Texas Primary: Why Local Elections Matter

What do you think of when you hear the term  'nanny state'?  Are you like me and you automatically think of some portly, elderly British woman with knee highs and thick dark glasses looking down her nose while standing over a small child?  Does that term conjure up images of a tight, restrictive control over ones subjects, just aching for them to make the tiniest mistake so their privileges, or what's left of them, can be snatched away in one fail swoop? Wikipedia defines it as Nanny state is a term of British origin (and primary use) that conveys a view that a government or its policies are overprotective or interfering unduly with personal choice.^[1] The term "nanny state" likens government to the role that a nanny has in child rearing.  It is defined by Dictionary.com as "a government perceived as authoritarian, interfering, or overprotective" and has also come to be associated with intrusive practices of having the government basically "baby" the populace by being in charge, in control of, and even financing all of its needs. Some governance claimed to represent a nanny state are those that emerge from application of public health, risk management of health and safety policies.

All. The. Things.  This definition could neatly sum up what the American people are facing, at least those of us who have stared the ugly truth in the face for the past five years or so.  I am a 'mum' of three young boys.  I love my kids to pieces, and anyone who knows me can confirm my affection for them.  I would, like most 'mums' and dads, walk the ends of the earth for them and back if it would help them to succeed.  I have tried to see that they have a quality life, quality education and a solid moral foundation founded in a faith in Jesus Christ.

So tell me why in the world would I want to trust the United Nations with what's in the best interest for my children?   Why would we want government entities and unelected bureaucrats to tell us how to run our lives or what insurance to have? Any sane parent or individual wouldn't, I assure you, but that doesn't really seem to matter to the UN, the White House, Congress or the Texas State House or any of these crazy judges making decisions based on past precedent.  The time has come, however, to stand up and fight back against the tyranny that is the United Nations, that IS Child Protective Services knocking on your door because you let your children play outside 'unsupervised', that IS the United Nations Conventions of the Rights of a Child (UNCRC) and the tyranny that is every other state agency trying to tear up and stomp on the constitution.  Folks, they are coming hard and fast and they won't be satisfied with anything less than you losing control over your child, your family and your freedom.

While the rest of the world is worried about Obamacare and it's faulty website, skyrocketing premiums, et al, I'm concerned about EVERYTHING, and while I appreciate the fact that most bloggers and some Senators and Congressmen/women want to keep the conversation of Obamacare out in front, I'm happy to turn your attention elsewhere; to local and statewide elections, that is.

On the eve of early voting in a mid-term Republican primary, I'm writing this to remind you of how important elections really are and how doing your homework on the candidates that are listed on the ballot can make a huge difference in the outcomes of court cases and policy decisions that are made.  Putting liberty minded, conservative candidates into elected positions is a HUGE start! All the candidates on the ballot have websites and they would love to hear from you!  Ask the tough questions and decide for yourself.  Don't rely on the slate mailers, dubbed pay to play by myself and many other local bloggers. Read my write up about them here and another local blogger called Rhymes With Right, whom I just become acquainted with, writes about them and other local issues here.  Another local blogger, Pondering Penguin has even written about pay to play on a state level and you can check it out here.

There are a myriad of candidates on the ballot, from US Senate all the way down to Harris County Republican Party Chair.  Lots of statewide offices are up for grabs as well; Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Comptroller, Attorney General to name a few.  We also find ourselves voting for lots of judges as well; family court judges, supreme court justices for the state of Texas, etc. 

Seeing all of these positions to be chosen, important ones at that,  I hope you will answer the call to get out and vote.  Your voice counts, make it heard. Early voting starts tomorrow and goes until February 28th and election day is March 4th.  If you want freedom, in its simplest form, then why not take an active role during an election?

The People Choose, Not the Party: Taking Back Harris County from the Slates

The people choose, not the party!  The people choose, not the party!  Remember that chant?  Oh, well, I guess you wouldn't unless you were at the Freedomworks Fly-In Bootcamp held in Washington, D.C.  back in 2011.  Myself along with fifty or so other activists from across the US gathered together for three days of intensive activist training.  We then spent the last day putting our training into practice.  See, we took a little field trip to protest the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), headed then by Senator John Cornyn to protest their practice of supporting the incumbent before and during the primary.  Although we were protesting the use of those funds to promote incumbent Senator Orrin Hatch during the primary, the sentiment was that the NRSC should stay out of primary races and out the way of the voting populous.  Sound familiar?

My point in sharing that story with you is this: that scenario sounds awfully familiar to the situation the voters in Harris County and the greater Houston area face at election time.  You've seen them before; those fabulous little 'slate' mailers where a PAC or an individual recommends who to vote for.  We here call those "pay to play" or "pay for play" slates.  The candidates have money extorted from them by the PAC in the neighborhood of $5000 or more in order to 'win' their election bid.  The three most offensive are Texas Conservative Review author Gary Polland, Dr. Steven Hotze and his group Conservative Republicans of Texas and last but definitely not least is Terry Lowry and the Linkletter. 


Notice I said, 'extorted'.  Yes, it is a free country and the candidates don't have to pay, but these slate mailers have made the political climate in Harris County such that if you want to win, then you shell out the money.  I have a problem with that.  The other problem that I have is that the local GOP affiliate does nothing to stop it.  Not only do they do nothing to stop it, the current county chair, Jared Woodfill is in bed with these three mailers. 

Thankfully, I'm not the only one shedding light on these practices.  The Chronicle came out with an article titled, "In your mail: Examples of 'pay for play' politics".  I should also give kudos to Ed Hubbard who was one of the original 'whistle blowers' on this practice.  He writes for a local blog called  Big Jolly Politics and has been personally driving the narrative  to bring this seedy, underbelly of local politics to the surface so that we can put a stop to it and let the people choose who they want to put in office to represent them, not the ones who are lining the pockets of these slate mailers.


James Wilson, a candidate for Texas State Senate District 7 knows the plight of the unendorsed candidate.  His opponent is slate-endorsed Paul Bettencourt and although Bettencourt will probably win his bid for State Senator, it should ultimately be because of the decision of the voters, not at the hands of a few top paid endorsers.  Here is what Mr. Wilson had to say in response to these mailers, "You won't see my name in these mailers because I refuse to PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. Your next state senator should represent our families, not the special interests of these powerbrokers. Whenever you see people with these mailers, explain to them how this corrupt system is simply un-American."


How do we end this practice?  In my opinion, it starts with you, the voter.  We have to continue to share the truth about these mailers and then we have to make them irrelevant.  How do we do that?  Simple; when you see those mailers in your mailbox, throw them out and do your own research on who is best suited to be elected.  Those mailers are counting on you not to do your own home work to decide who best represents you.  Prove them wrong!  I'll even help you get started.  If you need a sample ballot to see who and what you'll be voting on, head on over to Harris Votes.org.  On the home page you will see "Sample Ballot".  Click on that link and type in your information and you can take it from there and remember, the people choose, not the party!

Proof that Your Parental Rights are Vanishing

Elizabeth Stone once said, "Making the decision to have a child-it is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body."  I would tend to agree with that statement.  I am a mother of three children and they are my world; they are my heart.  Most parents would go to the ends of the earth to protect their children if that's what it took.   A man in Tennessee is no different than you or me in that regard.  What happened to him leaves me almost speechless.  Almost.  

I recently wrote about parental rights, and you can read or re-read the article right here on Texas GOP Vote.  I wrote about how the United Nations has decided that they know what's in the best interest for our children and they want to ratify their horrific United Nations Conventions on the Rights of a Child (UNCRC) treaty to the U.S. Constitution.  Well, it looks like we don't need any help from the United Nations to accelerate the loss of our parental rights.

It appears that a man named Jim Howe in Tennessee experienced this first hand when he went to pick up his kids from school.  From the video the family put out, "The school officer wanted us to sign a form to allow our kids to walk (unsupervised) they are 8-14 and we normally pick them up.  But the new pick up arrangement has traffic backed up over a mile on a busy highway.  We elected to walk and pick them up on this day rather than be in the mass confusion.  The officer asked us to come into the office and began his tantrum, because I had called the sheriff about the safety of this new policy."

Where do I begin?  I watched the video several times to write this and each time it got my blood pressure up.  The officer in this situation was a jackwagon from start to finish. The school asked the dad to fill out a form saying it was okay for the children to be released unsupervised.  The dad insisted that since he was there in person to pick up the children there was no need to sign the form.  I concur.  He was informed that the children would be held until after the buses left.  Excuse me?

The officer then refused Jim the right for his children to be released into his custody.  Hold the phone.  Children are NOT school property, last I checked, and school rules do not trump parental rights.  The officer here was way, I mean, way out of line.  The officer then continued to threaten to arrest him and take him to jail, to which the father responded, "Fine, I've been there before."  I cannot say that I would have remained so calm.


Just listen to the officer's reaction when Jim says that the new system is going to be changed.  He asks, "Are you the boss?  Are you the superintendent of the schools?  Are you the legislator in Nashville?"  No, better than that, I'm a tax paying citizen like the other several hundred people that don't like the system. The officer replies by saying, "These are the school rules."  Translation: I'm just doing my job.  Heard that before in oh, I don't know, Nazi Germany?!?

Jim was ultimately arrested and taken to jail.

There are so many things wrong with this, but the main thing is that our parental rights are slipping away.  Thank God this dad had the guts to stand up to the system.  If you were denied access to your children, could you say you'd do the same?
 

What do the United Nations and Parental Rights Have In Common?

Children granted the right to be 'independent' of their parents.  Giving a child the right to take their parents to court over every single decision the parents make that the child disagrees with.  Think it can't happen here in America?  Think again.  The list of egregious examples go on and on and we've all heard of them before, but never actually thought that there was a possibility that we might have to live them.   Losing the ability to parent your child or perhaps losing custody of your child must be difficult and as a parent myself, I can imagine the pain and anguish that any parent and child might go through. 

Parental rights have been challenged over the years and we have all heard of famous child actors 'divorcing' their parents because their parents had no self-control when it came to their child's piggy-bank.  I can just hear Gary Coleman when he found out his parents bled his bank account dry; "Whatchyoutalkin'boutWillis"?  McCauley Culkin as well as Lindsey Lohan have both appeared in court to rid themselves of their parents.  What about the rest of us?  Are we in danger of losing our parental rights?  Short answer: YES.

A little history might be in order here, and I'll try to be brief.  We all know that the United States is part of the United Nations.  Back in 1994, the United Nations introduced the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child treaty or UNCRC for short.  It was introduced as a way to secure individual rights to children 17 and under.  At first glance, that may sound like a good idea.  Look closer though, and you'll see what kind of havoc something of this nature can bring to families all over the world, not just the United States.

From the Department for Education website, it explains in a bit more detail what the treaty would grant to children:

The convention gives children and young people over 40 substantive rights, including the right to:

• special protection measures and assistance
• access to services such as education and healthcare
• develop their personalities, abilities and talents to the fullest potential
• grow up in an environment of happiness, love and understanding
• be informed about and participate in achieving their rights in an accessible and active manner

Let me be clear, all of the bullet points listed are pretty egregious all on their own, but together, they are a recipe for disaster.  I want to go straight to the last one, be informed about and participate in achieving their rights in an accessible and active manner.   Quick, somebody get me Bill Clinton so he can define 'rights' for me!  Also, who is going to inform the children of these 'rights'?  Do they think a two-year-old is going to be able to decide who to live with given the choice between mommy who disciplines out of love or the baby-sitter who is fun and has ice cream and treats.

Not only does this treaty threaten parental rights, it threatens something else almost as sacred; United States sovereignty.   Basically, by ratifying this and other treaties to the US Constitution, we would be allowing a United Nations committee to decide what is in the best interest of the child.  Ugh.  Want to get even more fired up?  Read this list of 20 things you need to know about the UNCRC.  If that doesn't get your 'hackles up', I don't know what will.  

Now, as if this wasn't bad enough, there is yet another treaty out there, looming on the horizon.  The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities.  It's the same as the UNCRC, but worse.  Again, it makes the UN the governing body and shares the same structure as the UNCRC, except this time about persons who are disabled.

The reason I'm sharing this information is because I subscribe to Parental Rights e-blasts and this week, they sent out an email saying that Senate hearings for the UNCRPD were going to be held in the Senate and called to a vote after another hearing, set for November 19, 2013.  Translation: call your Senators and tell them a 'no' vote is in order.

Parental Rights.org and President of Parental Rights, Michael Farris have thankfully gotten out in front of this fight and he has drafted The Parental Rights Amendment; a House version and a Senate version.  They still need cosponsors (Senators and Congressmen to add their signatures) for the bills in both houses, so if you are inclined to help make that happen, visit their website to learn more about what you can do.

Let me say this; parental rights are paramount.  This makes me angry because I can't believe we are even having this conversation.  Take a look around, though.  We have continuously surrendered our freedoms to unelected bureaucrats and state agencies.  Thing is guys, the United Nations has no business coming between me and my children.  I don't know about you, but I say enough is enough.