by Ron Hart

From Fox News, "Pelosi's Office Sat on Massa Mess?" March 12:

Lots of drama surrounded the allegations against former New York Congressman Eric Massa who is accused of sexually harassing his aides, but these grave charges were not news to some top Democrats.

It turns out that the San Francisco speaker's office got wind of the allegations in October. That's when Massa's chief of staff told Pelosi's office that the former congressman was living with his aides and behaving in ways that made them uncomfortable. But the speaker's office didn't do a thing about it.

Rep. Michele Bachmann quoted in Politico:

"The real story about Massa is that it appears Speaker Pelosi’s office may have known about the sexual harassment between him and his employees as of last October, but they laid on that story... this is what it looks like. It looks like they laid on that story until they couldn’t get Massa’s vote; then, suddenly, these charges got out and this guy was forced to resign. This is how dirty it’s getting."

Eric Massa became the New York Democratic Party’s biggest political embarrassment in weeks. Even in our TMZ-era of politics, Massa lowered the awkwardness threshold. This latest scandal follows on the heels of Gov. David Paterson’s forced step-aside after rumors his office was rife with graft, corruption, drug use and interoffice casual sex. On the positive side, Paterson’s staffers were never late for work.

Remember, Paterson himself followed Eliot Spitzer, who resigned after it was revealed that he was a hooker enthusiast. That bastion of liberal Democrats, New York, which is Obama’s vision for us, is on a roll.

Eric Massa’s bumbling replies to accusations that he groped male staffers, whom he lived with, achieved a CNN first: he made Larry King appear the most lucid one in an interview.

In fairness to Massa (and as he is quick to point out), the alleged groping took place on his 50th birthday. For all you frugal male friends of Massa who don’t know what to get him for his 51st birthday, you can’t go wrong with letting him tickle you for an hour.

Massa also told the media, while dodging the question himself, to “ask his wife if he was gay.” I am no political strategist, but I would imagine after years of marriage she is probably in on this gig. I did some rare research and determined that Eric Massa has fathered two children with his wife: one right after the Burt Reynolds semi-nude centerfold came out in Cosmo magazine, and the other shortly after Scott Brown’s magazine photo appeared in1982. It was then that Massa got interested in politics, with particular attention to polling his constituents.

Per interviews, Massa spent several vividly memorable years “on a ship with 10,000 men.” Massa probably left the Navy after his dream of being a rear admiral was crushed; he learned that it was an actual high-ranking command position.

Nanny “Swamp Boss” Pelosi was slow to react to the Massa situation, citing an ethics investigation. The Democrats have had ongoing “ethics investigations” into both Massa and Charlie “Weekend at Benefactors” Rangel. Pelosi found it hard to act on the ethics investigations, since not a trace of actual ethics has been uncovered.

Maybe Pelosi can use Massa to tickle terrorists for information instead of the method she abhors, water-boarding. It would fit right in to her oh-so cute stance on national defense.

Ron Hart is a southern libertarian humorist and writer living on the northwest coast of Florida. RonaldHart.com

From Eric Dondero:

Formerly Self-proclaimed "NeoConservative" turned diehard Progressive Michael Lind has a hit piece on libertarians at the NeoLiberal Salon, "Bring it on Ayn Rand Geeks: Why the emergence of the libertarian right is good news for progressives" March 15.

Lind makes the case that the Right will suffer from the stridently anti-Government "libertarian" wing of the GOP. He acknowledges with the decline of the religious right, and NeoCons, the libertarians or Ayn Randians are emerging as the leading intellectual force among Republicans, led by Glenn Beck, the Cato Institute, Congressman Ron Paul and fiscal conservative Cong. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.

Read the full article here.

But a few paragraphs down, Lind makes a major blunder, which highlights his unfamiliarity with the libertarian movement.

It is hardly surprising, then, that libertarianism is the beneficiary by default of the relative decline of its rivals on the right, neoconservatism and the religious right... Now two of the stars of the emergent right, Ron Paul and Paul Ryan, are professed disciples of the Mary Baker Eddy of egotism...

"The reason I got involved in public service, by and large, if I had to credit one thinker, one person, it would be Ayn Rand," Ryan told a convention of Randians in 2005. Ron Paul named his son Rand Paul.(Emphasis mine)

I worked for Ron Paul, on and off, in various capacities for 15 years, from 1987 to 2003. This included the 1988 Libertarian Presidential campaign as his Travel Aide. Rand, or as we knew him then, "Randy" was involved in his father's presidential effort, particularly the last few months of 1988.

I was there when he formally announced to everyone that he wanted us all to refer to him as "Rand." His motivation was two-fold; his admiration for Ayn Rand, and the distinction of Rand as unique and more formal sounding.

Ron Paul's reaction at first was a bit negative, beliving his son's name change decision to be a little silly. But he soon got used to it.

I believe Rand did eventually go to the courthouse here in Brazoria County, Texas and officially get it changed.

But there's no doubt Rand made the change entirely on his own. It is entirely incorrect for Lind to assert that it was Ron Paul (and presumably Carol Paul) who named his son "Rand."

Hedgehog has new polling data for two races of libertarian-leaning Republicans running for US Senate.

In Pennsylvania, Toomey continues to lead, as he has done since last summer, in all but one or two polls which showed him slightly behind.

US SENATE – PENNSYLVANIA (Rasmussen)
Pat Toomey (R) 49%
Arlen Specter (D-inc) 40%

Out West, libertarian Republicans are pulling for libertarian-conservative military veteran and state assemblyman Chuck DeVore. A few others are supportive of Carly Fiorina.

US SENATE – CALIFORNIA (Rasmussen)
Barbara Boxer (D-inc) 43%
Tom Campbell (R) 41%

Barbara Boxer (D-inc) 46%
Chuck DeVore (R) 40%

Barbara Boxer (D-inc) 46%
Carly Fiorina (R) 40%

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie held a press conference on Tuesday to announce his appointment of a five member Privatization Task Force. The members include Chairman, Dick Zimmer, Todd Caliguire, Kathleen Davis, John Galandak and Dr. P. Kelly Hatfield.

Christie elaborated on the purpose of the Task Force. From The Gov Monitor:

"Delivering programs and services to our citizens is government’s primary job, but I have asked the Task Force to look for places where we can do this in a more efficient, cost-effective way by having the private sector do it,” Governor Christie added. “This full review will allow the Lt. Governor and me to make carefully informed decisions on where and how to do this as we continue to responsibly manage state government. It will also make recommendations for how privatization could improve operations and reduce costs for municipalities, school districts and counties."

Dick Zimmer is a former 4-term Congressman. During the 1990s he served on the Republican Liberty Caucus advisory board. Galandak is the former President of the Foundation for Free Enterprise.

Galandak in particular is receiving a ringing endorsement from one of the States' top Libertarians, not too mention some advice.

From Dr. Murray Sabrin NewJerseyNewsroom.com:

I have known John for 25 years, and we worked together for more than 20 years delivering the World of Free Enterprise program to public school children, primarily in Bergen County. John has the unique perspective of a business association trade leader who understands completely the strengths of the free enterprise system and how taxes, government spending and regulations undermine prosperity and job creation.

John should not be shy in advocating a massive downsizing of state government, and in keeping with sound free market principles, steep cuts in taxes and an overhaul of the regulatory climate in the Garden State.

In addition, John should also advocate for free enterprise education. He should call for teachers, principals, administrators, parents and other stakeholders to run local public schools. That means schools becoming nonprofit institutions, relying on tuition, fees, grants and other non-tax means to pay for all school costs.

Sabrin, an economist at Ramapo college, is a two-time Libertarian candidate for US Senate. He's also a former National Vice-Chairman of the Republican Liberty Caucus.

by Eric Dondero

It was late 2009. Two big elections, with national implications loomed. The liberal media orgasmed over the fact that the campaigns of Bob McDonnell for Virginia Governor, and Chris Christi for New Jersey Gov. had not yet invited Sarah Palin to their states to campaign for their elections. Notably, outside of Rudy Giuliani in New Jersey, virtually no national political celebrities participated in either race.

And in 6 short months things have changed dramatically.

From Politico "Demand for Obama wanes among Moderate Democrats":

Some cite the president’s surely busy schedule. Others point to a practice of not bringing in national politicians to appear on their behalf. While these members aren’t necessarily attempting to distance themselves from the administration, there is nevertheless a noticeable reluctance to embrace him by a certain class of incumbent now that the president’s approval rating has fallen to a new low in the latest Gallup survey, 46 percent.

The White House got a taste of the awkwardness to come last week in Missouri when Democratic Senate candidate Robin Carnahan and Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.) were both no-shows at a fundraiser Obama keynoted in suburban St. Louis. (Sen. Claire McCaskill, an early Obama supporter who received some of the event’s proceeds for her 2012 re-election campaign, did attend.).

Meanwhile, Gov. Palin is criss-crossing the country, appearing for Republican candidates, at local GOP functions, at Tea Party rallies, and even sold-out co-appearances with Glenn Beck. Just in the last few days, she's been to Melbourne and Orlando, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma.

And her speeches are punctuated by increased confidence, a sassiness, and a notably more biting tone against the administration.

In Orlando, according to NewsMax she told a packed audience of 1,300:

"These days, the left lectures us, and they apologize for us, and they mock, and they spend the better part of a year talking down to us. Then they tell us that Americans would learn to like their programs if only we were smart enough to understand them.

"Well I’ve got news for them. We understand plenty. We know what they’re trying to do... We don’t like it. We don’t want European-style ObamaCare. We want a system that reflects our values, and our principles, and Americans’ love of freedom... We want solutions that are uniquely American."

Obama meanwhile, went to Missouri late last week. There were empty bleachers. He was off-key and inarticulate. And as the Politico story points out, he was snubbed by the Democrat candidate for US Senate, in Carnahan's own hometown.

But according to the big media mavens, Palin's still the one who's "unelectable."

Politico recently conducted a survey of Tea Party leaders, and their views on current elected officials and other political celebrities involved with the movemement. They got some somewhat surprising results.

From Ken Vogel at Politico (via Rightosphere):

Asked to rate on a 10-point scale the extent a series of conservative figures embodied the principles underpinning the tea party movement, respondents gave the highest grades to flame-throwing media personalities including Glenn Beck (who earned the highest average ranking: 8.4), Michelle Malkin and Andrew Breitbart above conservative Republican stalwarts who have actively courted tea party support, including Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina (who scored an average rating of 7.9), Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota (7.8) and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (7.5).

Though Palin, who was McCain’s vice presidential candidate in 2008 and is eyeing a run for the GOP presidential nomination, earned the most votes when respondents were asked who they’d like to see win the presidency in 2012 — followed by [Ron] Paul and Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin — more than half of respondents declined to name a preference, citing either a desire to focus on the midterms or ambivalence about the field of prospective Republican candidates.

But Palin's endorsement of ex-running mate McCain may have hurt her a bit with Tea Partiers. Continuing:

Even Palin, who generally earned high marks from respondents, came in for some criticism for endorsing McCain, declaring the GOP should “absorb as much of the tea party movement as possible,” and for her lack of experience.

“Sarah Palin is a popular person right now, but she needs to be under the wing of an educated — book-smart, not so much university-professor smart — person to learn how this is so much deeper than knowing details related to foreign and domestic policy issues,” said Scott Mittlestadt, who started a small tea party group in Valdez, Alaska, called Patriots of Valdez. “I think her education would excel under the guidance of Glenn Beck.”

Diehard Anti-Iraq War crusader Democrat Sen. Russ Feingold, has fallen substantially behind a candidate who hasn't even announced.

In the latest poll just released by the Wisconsin Policy Research Inst. affiliated with the Univ. of Wisconson-Madison, Tommy Thompson leads Feingold 51% to 39%. (Source: Milwaukee Journal)

Feingold has already gone on the attack, accusing the former Governor of being a tool of Washington insiders. In a recent email, according to FreedomEden, he said the following:

"I’ve spent years and years taking on the special interests. And Tommy Thompson spent years taking them on as clients."

Feingold is best known for his fierce opposition to President Bush and the War in Iraq. He was one of only a handful of Senators to vote against the resolution to go into Iraq in 2002. Then later on he made the unusual move of threatening to cut off funding for the Troops while still in the battlefield. Finally, he called other Democrats who still supported the Military "timid."

Note - Tommy Thompson is the brother of longtime Libertarian Party member and Mayor of Tomah Ed Thompson, who is currently a Republican candidate for State Senate.

Younger Paul a military "interventionist"

The Houston Chronicle (Washington Bureau) had a piece over the weekend, "Kentucky clamor has Texas Roots." The Chronicle contrasted Rand Paul's differences with his famous father, most assuredly over their foreign policy views.

From the Chronicle:

Despite their many similarities, Rand Paul is far less of a quirky outsider than his iconoclast father. Ron Paul is the first to admit that his son has smoother edges and better political table manners.

But most importantly, Rand Paul, 47, has more conventional conservative views on social issues and foreign policy than his libertarian, anti-interventionist dad. And that's an important reason why Rand is giving a veteran Republican officeholder a scare in the May 18 primary.

Rand Paul is also more mainstream conservative on national defense. Rand is an interventionist, unlike his father, who believes the U.S. should not send troops to global hot spots. And Rand thinks Guantanamo prisoners should be tried in military courts, while his father has suggested civilian courts.

UPDATE!

Conservative stalwart Erick Erickson of RedState endorses Rand Paul

He had already been leaning in Paul's direction. But it appears the article in the Houston Chronicle has pushed him over the top. This morning Erickson released this statement, under the title "Teriffice article on Rand Paul":

I encourage you to read it, if you're on the fence... I support Rand Paul and right now he is 15 points ahead of Grayson — a man who still refuses to take positions on big issues.

The California Libertarian Party has recruited a semi-celebrity candidate for a State Senate seat.

From the L.A. Daily News:

Adrian Galysh of Van Nuys has declared himself a candidate for the State Senate, hoping his rhetorical riffs prove as crowd-pleasing as his guitar licks.

Galysh, 35, has never before run for office, but does have three solo albums to his credit.

What does a rock musician know about government?

"I don't know anything about accruing a $600 billion debt (and) wasting people's tax money," Galysh said with a laugh on Monday. "I do know California is in dire straits and somebody has to tell the government `No."'

Playing the anti-tax chord, the Duquesne University graduate said he's "running on the ideals of limited government, fiscal responsibility and personal responsibility."

He cited an estimate that between California's budget deficit and what it owes to bond- and pension-holders, the state is in the hole to the tune of $600 billion.

If he were to say he's running on his record, he would have to be referring to the 2008 album "Earth Tones" (his latest solo effort) or the band Minnesota 13's 2008 release "Bottles, Bullets and Faith" (on which he is credited with all the guitar work).

Galysh will be challenging incumbent Democrat Senator Alex Padilla. A spokesman for the Padilla campaign commented, that the two candidates are not in accord.

[We have] "two very different visions."

"There's a difference between wasteful spending and investments we need to move our state forward," [Rose] Kapolczynski said.

As the review below suggests, Galysh has collaborated with musicians from Ted Nugent's band and Supertramp.

From a review of one of his recent albums, Earth Tones:

The "Interstellar Caf? shred fest is what you'd expect on an instrumental guitar album by a hotshot who pegged Ted Nugent bassist Marco Mendoza and Frank Gambale drummer Joey Heredia to comprise the rhythm section on Earth Tones, Adrian Galysh's third CD. But the California dude, thank goodness, loads this thing with enough musical diversity to silence players with half his talent.

The melodic title track sounds fat and airy, and "Ave Maria No Moro" is a reverent and lovely piece. Hell, Galysh even invited latter-day Supertramp guitarist Carl Verheyen to duet with him on the fast an d furious "Terrestrial Races." These are actual songs, my friends, not just excuses to solo.

More information - Libertarian Party of California http://www.ca.lp.org

Civil Disobedience or just doing one's duty upholding the Constitution?

The Congresswoman from eastern Minnesota is vastly becomming a hero to the libertarian movement. Over the weekend, at a rally held at the state capitol in St. Paul, Bachmann made the following remarks according to TPM (via Memeo):

"But mark my words, the American people aren't gonna take this lying down," Bachmann later said. "We aren't gonna play their game, we're not gonna pay their taxes. They want us to pay for this? Because we don't have to. We don't have to. We don't have to follow a bill that isn't law. That's not the American way, and that's not what we're going to do.

If they pass the bill legitimately, then yes, we have to follow the law -- until we repeal it. But if they pass it illegitimately, then the bill is illegitimate, and we don't have to lay down for this. It's not difficult to figure out. So if for some reason they're able to get their votes this week and pass this 2,700-page Senate bill -- if they get it, trillions of dollars is what it's gonna cost, when we didn't vote on it, we need to tell them a message: That if they get away with this, they will be able to get away with anything -- with anything. And you can't say you voted on a bill when you didn't, because it's fraud. But we are not helpless here. We are not helpless, there are things that we can do."

Previously pegged as a social conservative, Bachmann has been associating herself as of late more and more with libertarians such as Ron Paul, Glenn Beck, and Ted Nugent. Libertarian-leaning GOPer Sarah Palin has a fundraiser scheduled for Bachmann next month in her district.

From the Plum Line:

“Give them credit for being true to their convictions,” Pelosi said. “They don’t believe in health care for all Americans with any public role in it. That’s by and large what the Republican Party believes.”

Pelosi speaking with a roundtable of liberal bloggers yesterday.

Agenda and Convention Standing Rules 2010

*Required by Bylaws

*1.  Credential and Seat Delegates of Affiliated Counties
*2.  Credential and Seat Delegates from Unaffiliated Counties
*3.  Reading and Approval of Minutes of the last Annual Business Meeting
    John Schick, Secretary
*4.  Adopt Agenda and Standing Rules for Annual Business Meeting
*5.  Financial Report
    Dale Wedel, Treasurer
 6.    Presentation of Charters to Latest Affiliated Counties
 7.    Executive Director’s Report
    Chris Spangle, Executive Director
 8.   “State of the State” Address
    Sam Goldstein, Chair
9.    Nomination of candidates for the Barbara Bourland Light of Liberty Award
*10.  Nomination of Candidates for November General Election

read more

MAJOR VICTORY FOR LIBERTARIANS!!

Thanks to the efforts of the hardright conservative majority on the Texas Board of Education, two Libertarian Giants in Economics will now be studied in State High Schools.

From the NY Times, Justin Wolfers (Freakonomics), "Hayek propped up by Government Intervention", March 15:

How do they plan to rewrite high school economics?

In economics, the revisions add Milton Friedman and Friedrich von Hayek, two champions of free-market economic theory, to the usual list of economists to be studied – economists like Adam Smith, Karl Marx and John Maynard Keynes

Wolfers goes on to heartily approve of Friedman's inclusion, but not necessarily of Hayek. He believes him to be too obscure, based on relatively low amount of Google searches he receives in relation to other better known economists:

Sure, Hayek was an insightful economist. But insisting that high schools teach Hayek is a clear statement of ideology, not of economic science.

Free Market Mojo blogger responds to Wolfers:

Um, what’s the problem? Milton Friedman and Friedrich von Hayek are tremendously influential figures, not just in the field of economics. Can a truly honest study of the past century ignore their contributions to the world? I don’t think so. Mention them and criticize them if you must, but don’t ignore them.

There were other changes of note. Interestingly, the term "capitalism" was replaced in the textbooks by "free enterprise." additionally, early reports from Leftist bloggers had Thomas Jefferson removed from any mention in history books. This is incorrect. Jefferson was removed from only discussions of the enlightenment section not of American history. (Source: Village Voice)

by Eric Dondero

Rhode Island is having a big debate right now over toughening the States' seat belt law. Same old story. The Feds are dangling dollars over the heads of Little Rhody legislators if they'd only enact a Primary law enforcement bill. This means cops could stop a non-wearer for no other reason than for violation of the seat belt law.

Of course, it's the Democrats who are proposing the legislation. The bill has been initiated by Rep. Douglas Gablinske.

But surprisingly Gablinske has been receiving a great deal of criticism, from various constituencies.

One of his biggest critics has been his own friend, columnist Jim Baron of Woonsocket. Baron makes a uniquely 10th Amendment argument on the issue.

From The Woonsocket Call, "We don't need a mandatory Seat Belt law" March 14:

Where are the Tenth Amendment people on this? There is a growing movement of folks out there, they seem to be one of the many tributaries to the larger Tea Party movement, who want to re-assert the force and effect of the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which says that any powers not directly granted to the federal government by the constitution, or denied to the states by the constitution are reserved to the states or to the people and the feds should keep their cotton-picking hands off it. (The constitution doesn’t have the cotton-picking part; I added that.)

Well, nowhere in the enumerated powers granted to the federal government does it say anything about seat belt laws. And the Congress knows that because it didn’t pass a seat belt law. No, instead it circumvented the constitution by misusing the public purse to bribe the states to do its bidding by offering them money. Sometimes, Congress does it the other way around, by misusing the public purse to extort states to do its bidding by threatening to withhold funds if they don’t.

The Tea Party movement has cleverly steered clear of social issues. But this is one area that could be considered a social matter - 10th Amendment and Federal Bribery of State Governments - that's a natural for Tea Party involvement.

Just Released Video... Fireworks fly in the EU...

European Parliament proceedings. The PVV (Party for Freedom), representatives from the Netherlands ask for a general accounting of travel expenses and other questionable expenditures in the budget. They are joined in by members of other parties from other nations seeking more transparency and openess in accounting.

At 3:25 in, the debate becomes heated. A Socialist member yells out that the PVV-ers are "Fascist," for suggesting such an inquiry. The PVV members respond in an animated fashion; a common Dutch hand expression for "screw you."

The female PVV member is Laurence Stassen. She is a former TV news reporter.

There are three PVV members serving in the Euro Parliament out of a total of 761. They are the third largest Dutch delegation.

You can watch a video of Laurence Stassen here. For more info Dutch Party for Freedom (PVV)

Hat tip Astute Bloggers

Former liberal inspired to the Right by the Fall of the Berlin Wall

It's got a pro-Democrat lean of +18 according to the Cook Report. The 20th District of Florida is currently represented by ultra-liberal Debbie Wasserman-Shultz. She is a regular on cable news shows, particularly MSNBC, known for bashing Republicans and anything on the right-side. Shultz has a perfect 100% liberal voting record, and has been particularly out on the forefront on socializing health care. If there's a far left cause, wild-eyed Wasserman-Shultz is on the tube ready to defend it.

For years the GOP has been putting up line-holder candidates who ran less-than-serious campaigns against her. Enter Robert Lowery.

A "Marco Rubio Republican"

Lowery has been called an "Americanist." He models himself after Florida Senate candidate and son of Cuban exiles from Communism Marco Rubio.

On illegal immigration such as the Middle East, Lowery stated:

"I am happy to see that Marco Rubio and I are on the same page. I’m all about Rubio."

From RedCounty.com:

In spite of the large registration advantage that Democrats enjoy in the 20th Congressional district, Lowry believes he can win the seat because he stands on the principles that this country was founded on. “Everyone is American first, family is second and party third,” Lowry explains.

Unwavering commitment to Capitalism

What may be most inspiring is that Lowery is a former liberal himself.

From his Bio:

A student of sociology in my early college experience, I was a committed liberal (as many students typically are) attending rallies and marching on Washington D.C. That was until travels to East Berlin, Prague, and other parts of Europe, opened my eyes to the dangers of socialism, causing me to take another look at my political commitments. I made a dramatic change to conservatism, and never looked back.

When I returned from my travels in Europe, I switched degree choices and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. I had found that the only way to effectively change the world was through sound economic principles, and a commitment to Free Market capitalism.

And in addition to being a hardened fighter against Communism and Communism lite (Obama-style Socialism), Lowry champions the cause of Americanist values and the fight against Radical Islam. His website boasts, "prepared to fight for freedom every step of the way."

Yes to the US Constitution; No to Sharia Law

At a recent rally (YouTube) against CAIR (Counsel of American Islamic Relations), Lowery said:

They seek to replace our own Constitution, the law of the land, with their own Sharia Law, and that is unacceptable...

Don't ever underestimate an angry American. Britain underestimated us with the first Tea Party movement 230 years ago. Germany's Hitler seriously underestimated America, and so did Japan. We are at War today ladies and gentleman. Make no mistake. We will win this War. This enemy is right in front of us. They're in our neighborhoods. They're in our schools. They're in our universities. We must not be afraid to defend our shores from the hate that is spreading through this great Nation like a cancer...

Lowry's passionate defense of freedom against Islamic radicalism has won him the enthusiastic endorsment of Ayn Randist blogger and frequent Floridian Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs:

Robert Lowry, a stand up guy stands up to CAIR. Lowry is running for Congress in the 20th district in Florida. I will only support canddates that will fight against the overthrow of America. Any candidate that ignores the greatest threat to America should be ignored. We must fill the halls of Congress with fighters who will beat back the Islamisation of America.

Visit Robert Lowry's campaign website

LR FOLLOW-UP

From Eric Dondero:

We reported back in early February on the candidacy of Tom Emmer running for Minnesota Governor. Emmer is a state representative from the Otsego/Rockwell area. And according to the Minnesota Post he has definite libertarian leanings:

Tom Emmer, who is seen as more appealing to the Tea Party/Libertarian brand of Republicans who have become a growing factor in party politics...

Now, new poll numbers show Emmer doing quite well in general election match-ups with potential Democrat rivals. Out of six Democrats, Emmer would beat 4 of them; this despite the presence of Independent who polls 7 to 10%.

From Rasmussen via Hedgehog:

Mark Dayton (D) 38% (State Senator, frontrunner for Democrats)
Tom Emmer (R) 35%

Tom Emmer (R) 37%
Margaret Anderson Kelliher (D) 34% (Speaker of Minnesota House of Reps)

R.T. Rybak (D) 38% (Mayor of Minneapolis)
Tom Emmer (R) 35%

Tom Emmer (R) 36%
Tom Bakk (D) 29% (State Sen.)

Tom Emmer (R) 38%
Tom Rukavina (D) 29% (State Rep.)

Tom Emmer (R) 37%
Matt Entenza (D) 28% (State Rep.)

Though, Emmer must first beat Republican rival Cong. Marty Seifert in the GOP primary. Seifert is considered the slight frontrunner in that race.

Note - Emmer played hockey for the Univ. of Alaska-Fairbanks, Boston College and semi-pro for the USHL. He is currently active, serving in various capacities, with hockey leagues and sports arenas throughout Minnesota.

EmmerforGovernor.com

LR FOLLOW-UP

The three Muslim men arrested for shooting a gay man in the face, on Guerrero Street in San Francisco two weeks ago, are now suspects in a series of other shootings.

The AP reports:

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Prosecutors who have charged three cousins with a hate crime for shooting a San Francisco man with a BB gun because they thought he was gay said Friday they're considering charging the suspects in 11 similar shootings.

A video recording recovered by police from a car belonging to Mohammad Habibzada, 24, and Shafiq Hashemi and Sayed Bassam, both 21, show the cousins shooting at the other victims, Assistant District Attorney Brian Buckelew said.

Note - there is no mention of the Islamic affiliation in the AP article of the three suspects.

Stands up for Free Speech rights, against Political Correctness

Southeast Texas conservative Rep. Ted Poe, lauded controversial libertarian-leaning Dutch Member of Parliament on the floor of the US House on Thursday. Wilders has been under assault in his home country for criticizing Islamic extremism and increasing violence against Dutch citizens by Muslim youth.

New polling data shows Wilders now ahead of all potential rivals for Dutch Prime Minister. His Dutch Freedom Party stands to gain the most seats in Parliament for the June elections. The PVV recently won a majority of counsel seats in Alsmere, and the second largest amount of seats in The Hague.

Wilders is a friend and ally of U.S. libertarian/Ayn Randist Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs.

The pro-defense libertarian blog Gates of Vienna has the transcript:

Geert Wilders Is Prosecuted
And Persecuted for Free Speech
Hon. Ted Poe of Texas
In the House of Representatives

Thursday March 11, 2010

Mr. Speaker, freedom of speech continues to be shouted down by the politically correct police. In the Netherlands, it is against the law to say something that offends someone else’s religion. That is why Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders is on trial for hurting people’s feelings.

He made a movie about terrorists and radical Islamic clerics encouraging violence in the name hate. Now he is on trial for insulting Islam. He is charged with discrimination and incitement to hatred. Because Dutch law is intolerant of intolerance.

The Dutch courts say even truthful insult speech is a crime. Sounds like the law has become the enemy of free speech and a protector of the radicals.

Known as "Judge Poe," he is a former Air Force Reserves Veteran. He served as a Harris County Judge for a number of years, and was known for his unusual style of sentencing. Poe also was chosen by President Bush to be an official observer of elections in Iraq. He took the seat (Beaumont/Port Arthur/NE Houston) formerly held by Democrat Nick Lampson.

Outside the State Capitol on Saturday

Over 4,000 rally against Obama Care.

"This is dictatorial what they are planning to do..." -- Michele Bachmann

Others in attendence included HotAir.com Editor and "libertaian-conservative" Ed Morrissey and libertarian-leaning Republican candidate for Minnesota Governor Tom Emmer.