Scalia: Supreme Court should recognize U.S. religious heritage

NEW YORK (AP) - Justice Antonin Scalia has defended the Supreme Court's accommodation of religion in the public sphere in recent rulings, saying the founding fathers would want it that way.

Scalia told the Jewish newspaper Hamodia that it was never U.S. constitutional, social, or legal tradition to exclude religion. He said the First Amendment "certainly does not mean that government cannot accommodate religion, and indeed favor religion."

Scalia noted that the Supreme Court allowed the Ten Commandments to remain on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol, and suggested that the United States may enjoy God's protection "because we honor Him as a nation. We invoke Him in our country."

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=685812

Cantwell & Murray Vote

On the confirmation/nomination of Cass Sunstein (see 9.9.09 entry)-

Cantwell- Yes
Murray-Yes

On the confirmation/nomination of Sonia Sotomayor as Supreme Court Justice-

Cantwell-Yes
Murray- Yes

On the confirmation/nomination of Robert M. Groves as Director of the Census Bureau:

Cantwell- Yes
Murray- Yes

**Article about Groves: http://blog.heritage.org/2009/07/13/could-2010-census-include-make-believe-people/#more-10589

On the nomination of Harold Koh as Legal Adviser to the State Dept.

Cantwell- Yes
Murray- Yes

**Articles on Koh:http://blog.heritage.org/2009/05/11/koh%e2%80%99s-goal-for-the-legal-trade-in-arms-ban-it/#more-6550

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/05/06/the-second-amendment-vs-international-law/#more-6316

You Wont Hear About It In The News

Heres an article you wont hear talked much about...

OWOSSO, Michigan, September 11, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A pro-life activist was shot multiple times and killed this morning in front of Owosso High School in Michigan while he was protesting abortion, according to local police cited in the Flint Journal newspaper.

Cantwell & Murray Vote

On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Nomination of Cass R. Sunstein, to be Administrator of the Office of Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget )

Cantwell- Yes
Murray- Yes

Let me explain what this vote meant. Cass Sunstein was nominated by the President as Administrator of the Office of Regulatory Affairs (Regulatory Czar). He has to be voted on by the senate, but a republican senator tried to block it. The block requires a cloture vote that requires 60 votes to remove the block. This wasnt the actual vote for nomination- but just as bad. Here's why:

Cass Sunstein-
1. Author of "Animal Rights" & "Nudge"
2. Has said that "animals should be able to bring suit, with human beings as their representatives".
3. Takes a dim view of the 2nd amendment.
4. Wants to end the eating of meat.
5. Wants to require everyone to be an organ donor.
6. Believes you should not be able to remove rats from your home if it causes them pain.
7. Believes there is nothing special about human beings.
Just to name a few....


In his new position he will be deciding what the laws mean and how they should be enforced. He can use the USDA to take dairy and meat out of school lunch programs. He could use the Dept. of the Interior to stop hunting and fishing on federal lands. He could add animals to the endangered species list to cripple farmers (already being done). He has a strong and undeniable animal rights agenda and should NOT be confirmed.

Please write and call the two senators and ask them to vote NO on his confirmation!

State Senator Jim Kastama

Our State Senator, Jim Kastama has sent an open invitation to sit down and discuss “the state budget was difficult to balance this past legislative session. We are not, however, out of the woods yet. There is even discussion in Washington, DC about a “Stimulus II” Plan.”
“How should we manage this recession? What concerns do you have in your own life that you want your elected officials to know? Share these thoughts with me in a small gathering of your neighbors and friends.”

Senator Kastama has offered to meet to discuss these issues and any others that are on your/our minds. He has also made himself available in the evenings if this would be more convenient. He has been contacted and may be coming to my neighborhood on South Hill, Puyallup. Please call if you would be interested in attending. (206) 412-9554-Leah

Congress On Break

Sorry, not a lot to report, congress has convened for the summer and will return Sept. 7. Please be watching the two largest issues- the Health care Bill (no # yet) and H.R. 2454 (Cap & Trade) that already passed the House. If it passes the senate it will be the largest single tax increase in American History, so PLEASE call and write Cantwell & Murray (links provided to the right) and ask them to vote NO!

Planned Parenthood Spokane

Released Aug. 9 by the pro-life weblog Abortion in Washington (AIW) and based on an audit by the state’s Department of Social and Health Services – showed Planned Parenthood of Inland Washington billed Medicaid for oral contraceptives without prescriptions or with invalid ones; overbilled for condoms; billed Medicaid for post-abortion antibiotics under family planning, which is banned; billed office visits to receive a prescription or an injection as a consultation with a physician, which costs more, and billed for pregnancy tests on women when they were unnecessary.

Planned Parenthood was told to pay back $630,000 plus interest, according to AIW.
The audit of Planned Parenthood, which occurred from 2004 to 2007, was reported by the Spokane Spokesman-Review in May.

Planned Parenthood affiliates performed more than 305,000 abortions in 2007, the most recent year for which statistics are available. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the national organization, received more than $349 million in government grants and contracts during the financial year of July 2007 to June 2008. The organization’s total revenue was $1.04 billion during that time period.

Planned Parenthood has been the target of an undercover investigation during the last year that has shown staff members circumventing the law. Employees at seven PPFA affiliates in five states – Alabama, Arizona, California, Indiana and Tennessee — have been caught on video seeking to cover up alleged child sexual abuse. Lila Rose, a UCLA student, has led the hidden-camera operation by posing as a minor with an adult boyfriend by whom she is pregnant.

In a different undercover investigation by Live Action, the organization Rose leads, Planned Parenthood workers in seven states were caught on audio tape agreeing to receive donations designated for abortions of African-American babies.

http://erlc.com/article/life-digest-planned-parenthood-fined-for-overbilling/

Cash For Clunkers?

As you may have heard- the cash for clunkers program was a wild "success" , if encouraging people to get more in debt can ever really be a success....

How I see it, encouraging people to get rid of cars that still work and are quite possibly paid off- to get new cars and new debt is a gross insult to common sense. Yea, my car with 130,000 miles is getting old and all dinged up- but it still works. It still serves the purpose for which I originally bought it- to get from point A to point B. So should I trade it in- get that SUV I've been coveting and rack up 30,000 in debt? Im no financial advisor- but I dont think that would be the wisest choice....

Health Care Bill 102

Here is the best info so far on what's really in the health care bill...at the end of the article it goes line by line through the bill to show what's actually in it. A must read:

http://www.morningstarministries.org/Articles/1000054411/MorningStar_Ministries/Media/Special_Bulletins/2009/Special_Bulletin_19.aspx

We Did It!!!

Saturday, July 25, 2009 - Was a very good day at the Capitol in Olympia with over 138,000 R-71 signatures turned in! The required number of signatures is 120,577. They had only 68 days- and they did it- it will now be put to the people on Nov. 4 !!!!

Referendum 71 Update

I saw a sad thing the other day...as you read below there is a movement here in WA to make marriage between a man and a woman- they have only a couple days left to get all the signatures they need to put it to a vote....

I went to Wal-Mart yesterday and a gentleman was standing at the door trying to collect signatures for this mission. I had already signed but I stood and talked to him for a minute. He had just had someone throw a grocery cart at him and he and he told me how he and his group had had to endure names, swear words and having their sign sheets torn up. I was appalled- I had no idea so many people out there were so bigoted about this issue. Aren't we all entitled to our own opinions? Would a conservative be able to get away with such vile behavior? I think not....

Another Reichert Dissapointment

Dave Reichert once again votes to enlarge the size of the federal government....Are we sure he's really a republican?? I think he's a donkey dressed in elephant clothing. He voted YES to the House ROAM Act...see details below.

Galloping to the aid of the nation's wild horses and burros, the House voted Friday to rescue them. But the effort may get penned up in the Senate. The bill passed the House, 239-185, with Republican opponents arguing that it underscored wrongheaded Democratic priorities by focusing on animals instead of people at a time when the nation's unemployment rate is approaching double digits. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that enacting the Restore our American Mustangs Act would cost about $200 million over the next five years. Currently, the wild herds roam over about 33 million acres of Western land. To comply with the bill, the Bureau of Land Management would need to find an additional 20 million acres, primarily after 2013, at a cost of up to $500 million, according the CBO.

Health Care Bill 101

Here is just a sampling of what is contained in the Health Care bill:

1. The health care bill is 1,018 pages. But at least they gave us a full week to read it!

2. One troublesome provision calls for a home visitation program that would bring state workers into the homes of young families to improve “the well-being, health, and development of children”. Lawmakers intent on increasing the federal role in education into the preschool years have inserted the language into the mammoth health care bill.

3. Amendment #201- Based on this amendment, taxpayer dollars used to subsidize insurance for a low-income citizen, regardless of how he or she feels about abortion, can also be spent on an abortion obtained by someone else in the same insurance network. Moreover, under the Senate Committee bill, the federal government would determine the standard benefits that an insurance plan must include in order to exist on the market. In effect, as a result of the Mikulski amendment, all health plans would have to cover abortion services.

4. Amendment #205- Medicaid is a poorly performing welfare program. Ideally, it should be reformed, not expanded. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) introduced this amendment to ensure that the Committee bill’s provisions do not expand Medicaid eligibility standards and attempt to increase the number of Medicaid enrollees.

5. Amendemnt #226- Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) proposed an amendment that would require all members of Congress and their staffs to enroll in the newly created public health insurance plan. This means that they would be required to give up their private insurance coverage (nationwide there are 283 plans competing for federal employees’ dollars), which is today provided through the popular and successful Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP).

6. Amendments set to prevent higher taxes and medical care rationing failed and could not be added to the bill!

Please use the links on this blog to email your representatives and tell them to vote no!!!

Washington State Referendum 71

Opponents of recognizing same-sex relationships plan to file a referendum that repeals the latest addition of rights to the state domestic partners registry. Senate Bill 5688 substantially expands the registry to include all state rights accorded to married couples, and it passed in this year’s Legislature.

It is the Legislature's intent that, for all purposes under state law, state registered domestic
partners shall be treated the same as married spouses. Any privilege, immunity, right,
benefit, or responsibility granted or imposed by statute, administrative or court rule, policy,
common law or any other law to a person because he or she is a spouse, shall also be granted
or imposed on equivalent terms, substantive and procedural, to a person because he or she is
in a state registered domestic partnership.

They will have until July 25 to gather 120,577 valid voter signatures to secure a place on the November 3 ballot. A yes vote on the referendum would be to sustain the Legislature; a no vote would overturn the law. The filing will temporarily suspend the new legislation, (Senate) Bill 5688, which was to take effect July 25, 90 days after adjournment of the Legislature.

I will keep you updated on how many signitures they have.....

Hate Crimes Legislation 101

The bills in questions are Senate S. 909 and House Bill 1913. The House bill already passed through the house and will need to be voted on by congress.

While it may sound good to have a "Hate Crimes" bill, I will list just a few reasons why it is not.
1. There is a provision in the bill that allows prosecution of "Hate speech" limiting your 1st amendment rights to free speech- in particular over the Internet, tv and radio. YOU WILL BE PROSECUTED.

2. It allows for double jeopardy- if convicted (or not) of a crime at a state level, the federal government (according to the bill) can charge you twice for the same crime!!!

3. All crime is hate crime- but according to this bill, some people are afforded special protection. Heres an example, say I am assaulted and the perpetrator is arrested and charged with aggravated assault. The next day and homosexual is assaulted IN THE EXACT SAME MANNER, not only can that perpetrator be charged with aggravated assault, but get a hate crimes enhancement tacked onto it. Shouldn't all crimes be treated fairly, and based solely upon the extent of the crime? How can the government know what's going on in someone elses heart and mind. You cant PROVE the man who assaults a homosexual or minority did it only out of targeted hate. But this bill allows the government to "assume" the motivation of someone's crime and give them a stiffer penalty because of it. Is this justice?

Now you know.....

Tea Partiers

I just wanted to say thank you once again, everyone who came and joined us for the July 4th Tea Party in Olympia. I know a couple of the speakers were long winded- that wont happen again. There were about 1000 of us, I estimate. And I met some really fine folks. Thanks again so much for taking time out of your special day- and sharing it with us. I will post future events here- and pictures- so come back again soon.

Passage of Cap & Tax Bill

To my great sadness, the Waxman-Markey Climate legislation passed today, narrowly 219-212. Eight Republicans voted yes- the decisive factor in this vote! To find out more about the Cap and Trade bill, and how it will destroy this country, please refer to blog entries below. Needless to say, the 1300 page bill (THAT NO ONE READ) is the largest single tax increase in American history, and everyone is too focused in the death of Micheal Jackson to care. I am very frustrated!

Below you will see how your representative voted, I am calling on everyone to not allow anyone who voted for this piece of legislation to be re-elected. I personally will be going door to door next election to ensure it. We have been sold out!

Brian Baird(D)- YES
Norman Dicks(D)- YES
Doc Hastings (R)- NO
Jay Inslee (D)- YES
Rick Larsen (D)- YES
James McDermott (D)- YES
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R)- NO
Dave Reichert (R)- YES
Adam Smith (D)- YES

Have They Lost Their Minds?

H.J.Res. 5 is a Constitutional amendment to remove the limit on the number of terms one may serve as President. It effectively would repeal the 22nd Amendment, which was approved by Congress in 1947 and ratified by the states in 1951. Over the past six congressional sessions, several members of Congress have introduced similar legislation, including Sen. Harry Reid in 1989 ( S.J.Res. 36). As is likely the case in the 111th Congress, the resolutions have never proceeded out of committee. Furthermore, given its past history, it is not likely that such resolutions have been or are currently tied to any specific presidential session.

Do the Representatives really have nothing better to do than write up such stupid resolutions? Even though it's unlikely to pass, aren't there more pressing issues. And this speaks volumes about their ideology and theories of the governments proper role!

H.R. 1256

Regarding H.R 1256, Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act:

Cantwell- Yes
Murray- Yes

Giving the FDA more power to regulate tobacco products.

Bad Press Better Than No Press

My awesome neighbor forwarded a very interesting article today from The Olympian regarding the July 4th Tea Party. It makes for interesting (and frustrating) reading:

http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/888282.html

But lets get something straight- it's not anti-Obama, it's anti-big, irresponsible, un-accountable government! Yes, there might be some anti-Obama signs, many of us disapprove of his policies- we just want to get back to the beliefs of our founding fathers. And each president has taken us farther and farther away from that.

Secondly, snide comments like "top state Democrat says he’s not yet worried about the effort to build a backlash movement against the new president." are completely unnecessary. My personal favorite is "The two Olympia-area men said they are not in competition." Well duh.
Or how about- "The right-of-center activists compare the administration to socialists." His policies are socialist- look it up in a dictionary!

Any ways...read it for yourself- and try not to throw things.