Worcester County Freedom Trail

Vernon Robinson is a conservative Republican running for Congress in North Carolina. While that doesn’t solve our local problems, he’s a great guy and can use all the support we can provide. He’s being hounded by Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition and a slew of other radical left organizations.

You’ve got to check out his recent ad that features Jesse Jackson, the Twilight Zone, and “Leave it to Beaver”…http://www.vernonrobinson.com/media/twilight.mov

In 2004, Robinson ran for Congress and lost by fraction. He’s running again and has a great shot at it. He’s up against Congressman Brad Miller who has a voting record that’s more liberal than a majority of the Democrats in Congress…in a district where one in three voters owns a gun, one in four males is a veteran, and three in five voters describe themselves as “born-again Christians.”

Find out more about Vernon Robinson’s campaign.

A recent survey by Election Research focused on the “Conservative Base” and how they are responding to issues of the day. The survey was targeted at about 250,000 pro-life, pro-traditional marriage homes in 47 states. Here are the results:

- 89.18% are registered to vote

- 62.91% have a favorable opinion of President George W. Bush

- 26.91% have a favorable opinion of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

- 55.21% consider themselves to be Republican

- 87.11% have contributed to or financially supported a political campaign, church, or other religious or not for profit organization

- 26.52% are in favor of a worker visa program that would allow illegal immigrants to stay, work, and live in America but not obtain full citizenship rights

- 1.49% support the Supreme Court decision that allows government to take their home or their church and give it to a business that will pay more in taxes

- 73.12% have Internet access at home, school, or work

The other 45% of the respondents who don’t consider themselves Republican must be in that growing group of unenrolleds!

Well, the SJC is at it again. Yesterday, it issued its decision in Sandra Cote-Whitacre et al vs. Department Of Public Health upholding, by a 6-1 margin, a 1913 law prohibiting the issuance of a Massachusetts marriage license to nonresident couples where the laws of the state where they reside would prohibit such a license. Eight homosexual couples from various states filed suit in Massachusetts because Governor Romney foiled their attempt to acquire a marriage license in Massachusetts by applying the 1913 law.

Judge Spina, author of the majority opinion and clarion dissenter in Goodridge, spelled out what “prohibited” means. He stated that a prohibition in another state includes a declaratory statement prohibiting homosexual marriage either in a law, an appeals case or by the state’s constitution. Furthermore, where no such clear prohibitive statement exists, the common laws of a state control. That is, if a state’s marriage laws always recognized marriage as one man and one woman, then all other definitions are excluded, and therefore prohibited.

While supporters of traditional marriage claim V for victory, the opposition quietly says, yes! The door has been left open by Margaret Marshall, impeachable author of the Goodridge diktat on homosexual marriage. She disagrees with Spina, in her concurring opinion, that where a state has made no declaratory statement prohibiting homosexual marriage either in a law, an appeals case or by the state’s constitution, no such prohibition exists. In such a case, nonresident homosexuals ought to be issued a license. If that happens, the next step in the agenda would be to take back the ill-gotten marriage license to the home state to challenge the marriage laws of that state.

Eight such states and the District of Columbia fall into Marshall’s category; New York and Rhode Island are two. Two of the plaintiffs in this case come from those states and their cases have been sent back to a lower court for it to be determined whether a prohibition exists in those states. Those cases will likely return to the SJC with a 4-3 ruling in favor of Marshall’s twisted opinion.

U.S. Supreme Court, here we come! What are the odds that Alito, Scalia, Roberts, and Thomas will convince a fifth Supreme Court judge to join them?

The last time Beacon Hill saw an initiative petition to amend the state Constitution to define marriage as one man and one woman, it simply ignored it. The then Senate President Birmingham (the Senate President becomes the chairman during a Constitutional Convention (Con Con)) simply gaveled the Con Con closed without a vote. I remember sitting in the Gallery watching as he gaveled the Con Con closed. The Gallery erupted in chants, “Let the people vote!” For nearly an hour or more the Halls of the State House thundered with that rally cry to no avail. The homosexual lobby convinced Birmingham to violate the Constitution and not vote on it. That was 2001.

Fast forward to 2006, and the State House has another initiative petition to define marriage in the Constitution. The signatures for this petition numbered an historical record of 170,000 with 123,000 being certified by the Secretary of State. Before this petition makes it to the ballot in 2008, the Con Con must vote on whether to put the question on the ballot in 2008. Fifty of the 200 members of the Con Con must vote in two consecutive legislative sessions to put it on the ballot.

The first of the two Con Cons is scheduled to come up this May, and already the murmurs are circulating that a vote won’t be taken. Not only that, but there is also question on whether traditional marriage supporters can muster 50 votes. These legislators are out of control! They listen to a small proportion of the homosexual activists, while ignoring the Constitution, which declares that the Legislature shall vote on such a petition, and vast majority of voters who want to vote on the measure!

These folks need to hear from the vast majority! Let the people vote! This is not a question of homosexual marriage; this is a question of letting the people have their grievances redressed. Tell them: Let the people vote!

Visit www.voteonmarriage.org to find out more.

The hot issue in Washington this week is the immigration reform bill to address not only flow of illegal aliens coming across our borders, particularly from Mexico, but also to deal with the “stock” of illegal aliens currently in the Country. The flow is a border security/national security issue of securing our borders so no Jihadistan Terrorist smuggles a weapon of mass destruction onto our soil. The “stock” presents similar national security problems, but it also creates burdens on our already too-heavily-taxed system as well as creating incentives to increase the flow (Others have gotten in without getting caught, why not me?). The U.S. economy does, however, rely on immigrant labor for many activities particularly agriculture.

The week began with RINO Senator Arlen Spector (R-PA) giving a wink and a nod to many of the provisions of the McCain (R-RINOLAND)-Kennedy (D-MA) illegal-alien-amnesty bill. The bill due for floor debate contains massive giveaways such as amnesty for the stock, and for the ability negotiate wages, to join unions, etc. (Sounds like a plan for voter fraud to me, but hey I’m Mr. Pessimism.). And the typical cadre of bleeding heart Democrats have lined up behind the bill. The giveaways are a lot like those called for by our State House Democrats in wanting to give bargain basement prices on Massachusetts higher education to illegal aliens in Massachusetts.

Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) will attempt to strengthen to the eventual Senate measure by introducing his own bill which contains strong measures for border security. Whether he will succeed remains untold. Whatever the outcome in the Senate, the immigration bill will face stiff opposition from the House, where immigration reform means calling illegal aliens felons and sending them back from where they came. If they want to come into this great nation, they must come in the right way.

Of course, the Constitution gives the Congress control over naturalization, but naturalization arises out of our Country’s rich Christian heritage of providing shelter to the alien. Treating aliens fairly was a commandment given by God to Moses. But, of course, God also commanded Moses that aliens must obey the laws He gave Moses in the desert. The Constitution took account of this by giving the Congress that control.

The Founding Fathers never envisioned the type of unfettered compassion of the Democrats both at the State and Federal levels. They want to provide jobs, health care, welfare, and low-cost higher education without accountability. They want to allow these folks an opportunity to join unions! Simply shameless!

The House version sounds best. Stiff penalties need to be imposed to stem the tide of the flow and create strong incentives for people to enter this country legally. Sending illegals back sends such a message. However, any reform measure needs to include some form of guest worker program to fill gaps in our labor supply that currently exist. The number one priority, and the highest Constitutional mandate, is to provide for the national defense, and that means securing our borders. Any bill short of that will be a disaster.

Don’t miss out on a great opportunity to meet the new Lt. Gov. candidate and former State Rep. Reed Hillman. He will be the featured speaker at the 85th Annual Lincoln Day Breakfast hosted by the Women’s Republican Club of Worcester County and the Massachusetts Federation of Republican Women. (OK, I know we missed Lincoln’s birthday, but at least there shouldn’t be snow on the ground!)

The event starts at 10:30am on April 8, 2006, at The Manor Restaurant in W. Boylston. Great food, great company. Don’t miss it! $30 pre-reg, $35 at the door. Contact Pat Knox.

Hugh Hewitt, one of my favorite political authors, has a new book out, Painting the Map Red: The Fight to Create a Permanent Republican Majority. It’s a must-read as we all know the 2006 election is going to be interesting. The Senate is in disarray, the House is fighting more than its share of scandals, and the radical left is boiling over.

But Hewitt says there is still time — not only to avoid devastating losses, but for the Republicans to make significant gains. From the online book reviews:

Bestselling author, political strategist, and nationally syndicated radio host Hugh Hewitt shows you how conservatives can take down the Democrats, expose their liberal extremism, and reignite the Reagan Revolution.

Cool! I can live with that.

I have no idea if this is true, but what a great story. Thanks to Jane Gupta of the Mass Federation of Republican Women for passing this my way.

92 students filed into a crowded auditorium, gowns flowing and caps on their heads. This class would not pray during commencements, though. Not by choice, but because of a recent court ruling prohibiting it. The principal and students were careful to stay within the guidelines allowed by the ruling. They gave inspirational and challenging speeches, but no one mentioned divine guidance and no one asked for blessings on the graduates or their families.

The speeches were nice, but they were routine…until the final speech received a standing ovation.

A solitary student walked proudly to the microphone. He stood still and silent for just a moment. Then, it happened. All 92 students, every single one of them, suddenly SNEEZED!!

The student on stage simply looked at the audience and said, “GOD BLESS YOU, each and every one of you!” And he walked off stage…

The audience exploded into applause. The graduating class found a unique way to invoke God’s blessing on their future with or without the court’s approval.

Today’s Globe Online headline touts how Attorney General Reilly is now seeking $108M in refunds for Big Dig overruns.  This is the first time he’s ever done so.

Ground was broken on the Big Dig in 1991.  Reilly’s been in office since 1999.  For those of you keeping score at home, that is just 6 months shy of HALF of the project’s lifespan.  Anyone else find it ironic that until now he’s made no inquiry into the multi-billion dollar overruns?  But of course, until now he was never in a race for Governor.

Even the liberal rag Globe is suspect of the sincerety of his intentions, stating:

The demand letter was sent about four months before the Democratic State Convention in June, at which Reilly is seeking the nomination for governor. The demand letter may blunt possible criticism of Reilly that he has taken too long to resolve the refund issue, even if the claim results in a lawsuit that would be years away from being litigated. 

Of course the Globe might begin posturing itself to support the more liberal Deval Patrick, so attempts like the above to appear balanced aren’t that surprising.  Can anyone imagine the Globe’s outrage over the Big Dig if we had a Republican AG?

Which brings me back to the title of this blog entry.  Reilly has been gently handling the Big Dig with kid gloves for over 7 years now.  SEVEN YEARS.  Not addressing it for a year or two is understandable – there may have been bigger issues to tackle.  But for SEVEN years there’s not so much as a single corruption charge levied, then now, 4 months before the convention he lobs this grenade in Bechtel’s laps?

WE THE CITIZENS should file a class action suit against the Attorney General for abdicating HIS responsibilities to defend us against fraud and corruption.  Think that lawsuit would make the Globe’s frontpage?

Yes, I know it’s outside of Worcester County, but Isaac Mass is a great guy. And his run for Franklin County Registrar of Deeds deserves all the support it can get.

It’s an interesting situation. Last July, the incumbent switched from R to D after two terms in office. He got bad advice. Because he was both an R and a D within the last year, he can’t get his name on either ballot. He also missed the deadline to drop down to unenrolled. So, he’s working on a sticker campaign for the D primary. It’s a long shot, though, as the district has 35 precincts in 26 towns.

Isaac owns a small real estate firm in Greenfield. He’s a 4-term, at-large City Councilor in Greenfield, a member of the Franklin County Selectman’s Association, a former member of the Franklin Regional Council of Governments Planning Board, and a Governing Board Member of the MA Association of Town Finance Committees. He’s also a vet and member of the MassGOP State Committee (a very active one, I might add).

Donations to the campaign can be sent to Isaac Mass Associates, Friends, and Neighbors (IMAFAN), 50 Linden Ave, Greenfield, MA 01301. Or call 413-768-8500.