Katy's Conservative Corner

It's Almost Tea Time

Thursday, April 15th is the dreaded tax day.  If you cannot make it to Washington for the big Tax Day Tea Party and rally, check out one of many such rallies across the Ole' North State.

The NC chapter of Americans for Prosperity has set up the website:  NC Tax Day Tea Party  It  has a listing of every Tea Party in North Carolina, and they urge you to make it out to one. 

Your blogger will be attending the rally at the North Carolina State Capitol since she cannot be in our nation's Capitol. 

If your Tax Day Tea Party isn't listed on the site, please contact the AFP  to add yours.

Liberals Infiltrate

Please note that the liberals are just waiting for our side to slip up and do something that they can make news with.  For example, they want us to use ugly language, spit on people, or some other dastardly deed, but as conservatives, we will not fall for their traps.

Like in Washington a few weeks back, they will try to infiltrate our rallies by "blending in".  However, to this blogger, they will stick out like sore thumbs.  They'll be the ones with the video cameras, and without American flags and signs, and their clothes will be bland, rather than red, white, and blue.  Watch for them and tread lightly.  Be polite yet ignore them.  That will frustrate them as they want us to get mad so they can get a "good video" for You Tube.

Have fun and let this blogger know what those liberals try to pull.  It's our protest day of the taxes THEY have put on us.  

Last Stand Against Health Care Reform - The Rally

 On Saturday, your blogger, along with hundreds of others from North Carolina, and thousands from across the nation, loaded up on buses, planes, trains, and automobiles, and made our collective ways to our nation's Capitol.  It was the most beautiful day we had seen all year and the weather there was much better than it was in Raleigh, KCC later discovered.

KCC's Live Posts on Twitter

Because your blogger had to carry everything she brought, she could not live blog the event from her laptop.  Thus, she posted updates on her Twitter site.  Go here to read them.  

You do not need to have a Twitter account to read them.  Just scroll back to Saturday's posts to see what KCC wrote and thought.  KCC's twitter account is not quite as "family friendly" as is her blog.  :-)

 North Carolinians Storm the Capitol

For a small fee of $25, North Carolineans could ride one of about ten buses that were organized by the NC Chapter of Americans for Prosperity.  From Raleigh, the trip was relatively quick and our group arrived precisely at noon at the South Lawn of the Capitol.  Already, speakers were rousing the crowd and masses were gathering.  

Buses departed from every part of the Ole' North State and were ready to rally.  People made phone calls on the way, and were advised as to the polite way to get their points across to opposing Members of Congress.

Lamestream Media Says "Don't Come into Washington"

 What should NOT have amazed this blogger, was that  the "lamestream" media was actually telling people NOT to come into the District.  The traffic was too bad, they stated. They did their best to keep our numbers down, but it did not work.

 Indeed there were numerous rallies going on that day.  The Communist Party USA was supposed to be rallying somewhere, and an anti-war group took over Lafayette Square, across from the White House.

Your blogger stood beside a retired New York City police captain for a few minutes.  He was well-versed in crowd counting and estimated the group to be between 65,000 - 70,000.  Meanwhile, the "lamestream" media was calling the crowd at only 1,500 - 2,000.  They were declaring that Americans were happy with the bill and wanted it to pass.  Even MSNBC disagreed and declared that 60% of Americans were unhappy with the bill.  Your blogger is certain that MSNBC vastly low balled the number,  but they were right that most Americans opposed this bill.

Much more on this rally coming soon.  Watch this space for updates!

 EDITOR'S NOTES:   KCC also took videos of some of events of the day. 

More on the Communist Party later.  Let's just say they were not quite who they said they were.  

Your blogger thanks the North Carolina Chapter of the Americans for Prosperity for getting everyone, buses, bus drivers, in under 24 hours!  

Chris Marie Farr, grassroots director of the NC AFP told riders of one of the Raleigh buses, that she had no idea what was actually going on, as she'd been buried in logistics in getting people together for 48 straight hours!

 Kudos to Chris and the entire  NC AFP team!  God bless them in what they do.  They don't get rich and it's a labor of love for them.  Give this group a donation.   Help them out.  Any amount helps!  DONATE TO NC AFP.

ALL PHOTOS  COPYRIGHT 2010 K BENNINGFIELD, KATY'S CONSERVATIVE CORNER

No photograph can be used without written consent of the photographer, K Benningfield.  Email for permission here.

Help AFP Keep This Health Care Ad on TV (Video)

 The Americans for Prosperity is fighting hard against Obamacare 2.0 and they need your help.  They are raising money to keep this ad on the air and need your donation.  Please watch the video and join us in sending whatever you can.  This group is fighting for all of us.

North Carolina is one of the founding states of AFP with more joining each year.  Let's show that we are here for them again.  So many of KCC's fellow conservatives join her and her husband at their annual summit entitled "Defending the American Dream".  Last year, NC took up (at least five bus loads), with many more people driving or flying separately.   

Watch this short video and see what you can do to help this important cause out.  Dallas Woodhouse and Chris Marie Farr are fighting hard for us in NC and a small staff of hard workers are doing the same in DC.  God bless them all!

Marco Rubio Kicks Off CPAC (Video)

 State House Speaker Marco Rubio (R-Fla) as he kicks off CPAC 2010. The Roman Catholic son of Cuban exiles, got most people excited and in the mood for some good old-fashioned politicking.  

He said all the right things on all the right issues for hawkish conservatives, such as terrorism and standing by our allies like Israel and still lives in a working class neighborhood.

Speaker Rubio is running against Governor Charlie Crist (R-Fla) in the GOP primary for the United States Senate. Rubio is the conservative in the race, and thus the one who got the special invitation to keynote CPAC.  This speech is one for the ages, and is worth watching again and again.  We'll see him at the next Republican National Convention.

Enjoy the video and leave your respectful comments on the blog: 

Glenn Beck Closes Out CPAC by Rob Benningfield (Video)

Was there a preacher in the house?  There had to be, but that voice, it was unmistakably that of TV personality Glenn Beck.

The popular Fox News host started by saying how Rush Limbaugh and Ronald Reagan are his personal heroes.  

He admired Reagan's optimism.  Like Reagan, Beck believes "it's still morning in America", though, he said, we may have to wake up with a hangover puking in the toilet first.  

He warned that progressivism "is the cancer eating up America, and that it unfortunately not only infects the Democrat Party, but many Republicans as well."  

Beck even condemned President Theodore Roosevelt (who I admire) as an early progressive.  Beck argued:

 "it's not enough for Republicans to just suck less than the other side.  The GOP must admit its mistakes (an addiction to spending and big government) and reform itself".

He compared the GOP's failings to those of golfer Tiger Woods.  Beck asserted that, like Woods, all addicts will continue their behavior as long as they do not get caught.  

 He then asked the same question everyone has been asking Woods, to the GOP: "You got caught!  Are you sorry?" 

Beck says he'd be more than happy to support the Republican Party if they only admitted their mistakes and showed genuine contrition.  He wants them to do honest soul searching.

Then Beck noted that progressives are a political minority in this country, yet they keep advancing their agenda.  How?  Because they know how to package and sell their ideas.  They've got Hollywood's help, too.

Beck stated that we have a right to fail. 

Without failure, how do we learn and grow and improve?  Why should a company be "to big to fail", so that it gets a taxpayer-funded bailout?  

Beck cited his own battle to overcome alcoholism and the long way back. .  He asserted conservatives believe everybody has the right to *pursue* happiness or success, not to be given happiness or success by the government.  He insisted you don't have a right to free food, free housing, free higher education, or free medical care.  You have to work for it and earn it.

Beck noted he couldn't afford to attend college, so he educated himself.  He said there's no shame in being a self-made man, in showing ambition and working hard to become successful, so government shouldn't punish small businesses for working hard to be successful.  Beck reminded the Marriott Ballroom crowd  that business creates jobs, not the government.  

Beck ended his sermon by promising that the future is not cast in stone.  Our best days are not behind us.  Our grandchildren do not have to have a lower standard of living than we have.  

Watch Glenn's speech, as he delivered it on Saturday evening:

Editor's Note: This post, like all others at CPAC, was brought to you by our sponsor, RedState.   RedState provided the Blogger's room and gave KCC the ability to cover the conference in a unique way. Not every blogger who applied received credentials, yet there were over 100 different conservative blogs represented, with a few liberals amongst us, as well.  We all had a great time, and many thanks go to our fearless leader, Erick.  

Read RedState's take on Glenn Beck's speech.

Ann Coulter's One Liners AT CPAC (Videos Added-Updated)

 When the time came for conservative columnist and humorist Ann Coulter to take the stage at CPAC, the audience roared in approval.  She told one liners as if she thought of them right on the spot and reminded everyone that she is truly a hard core conservative. 

Overview

 She mentioned, how she "loved bombs", supported national security, the defense of our allies, and she mentioned a few social issues that are important to her. (She reminded this blogger a bit of her own mindset as blogger's high school nickname was " 'Ole Nuke 'Em 'Till They Glow". )

A large group of Ron Paul followers appreciated that she paid tribute to their cause by saying that she appreciated that he was pro-life and that she liked everything except his foreign policy.  

She also got a lot of laughs when she weighed in on your blogger's least favorite former U.S. Senator.  "John Edwards may go down in history as earning the National Enquirer it's first Pulitzer Prize."              
 Coulter told punchline after punchline and your blogger couldn't even begin to take notes of them all.  However, Coulter did close with this:

"Keith Olberman is a girl.  Yes, Keith Olberman is a girl." Yes, out of left field, but it was still funny!

North Carolinian Gets First Question

In the ten-minute question and answer session, Wake County's Jonathan Bandy (below, left in a 1998 file photo) went to the microphone asked the first question.

"I'm from North Carolina and what can we do to get more newspaper coverage of slimeball John Edwards?"

  Coulter shot back, "I can't believe anyone at this conference is still reading newspapers. I'm sure the National Enquirer is available in North Carolina." 

 Probably not the answer the former State Young Republican Chairman was looking for.  Your blogger thinks he probably meant more fair coverage of Edwards.  

KCC believes that the worst culprit in the state in the John Edwards love fest, remains a Triangle-area TV station ( that streams online, for national readers).

WRAL's "Special" Relationship With Edwards?

This blogger dislikes WRAL-TV relationship with the former U.S. Senator.  It has disgustingly followed Edwards around for 16 years and have covered every single move Edwards makes. When it came to Elizabeth's cancer, their marital problems, their children, his mistress, his hair, his former aide's book, or his cars, nothing was too "up close and personal" for channel 5.  

Back when the former Senator was running as John Kerry's veep, people complained to the station about "too much Edwards", but co-anchor Pam Salsby, with her ever-rotating hairdos, took to the airwaves to explain that "this is a local story and people want to know".  

-Another question from the audience was: "Did you ever date a liberal?"  Coulter paused, smiled,  and slyly answered, "He wasn't (liberal) for long".  

Catch the entire speech, along with the funny Q&A session, in the videos below.  You'll laugh your socks off and you'll wonder how someone could be so quick on her feet.  Fellow blogger and top selling author Michelle Malkin, doesn't particularly like Coulter, because Coulter has a tendency to shoot from the hip.  However, Coulter likes to make light of situations and make people laugh.  She's more of a conservative comedian, while Malkin is a serious writer and conservative journalist.  KCC enjoys them both.

Ann Coulter Speech Part I:

Part II of Ann Coulter Speech:

Ann Coulter Q&A Part I (after the speech)

Ann Coulter Q&A Part II

Editor's Notes

KCC picked up the nickname "ole nuke 'em 'till they glow" in 1983, when she was a Junior at New Bern Senior High School.  Her Advanced United States History teacher (and the following year, her Advanced United States Government teacher) Howard Matthews, was a solid conservative, which often sparked debate in class amongst the students.  

Your blogger was the hardest of the hardliners in class, regarding Communism, and the running gag in class was "why don't we just nuke 'em and be done with them"?  Naturally, your blogger knew, even at such a young age that such a thing wouldn't be a practical solution, but received the nickname anyway. 

She believed then, as she does now, that we should NOT negotiate with Communists or terrorists. Those people are irrational and cannot be trusted to keep their word.   

Liz Cheney Speaks To CPAC by Rob Benningfield

 Liz Cheney, the brilliant daughter of former Vice-President Dick Cheney and Co-Founder of Keep America Safe, was introduced by ACU & CPAC Chairman David Keene.  Unfortunately, I had to leave her midday Thursday speech prematurely.

I did get to hear her lambaste President Barack Obama, though.  Liz said that "experts" had predicted the death of the conservative movement after the brutal 2008 elections.  They were wrong.  Scott Brown's win in Massachusetts shocked and frightened Obama and the Democrats, who had misjudged America's tolerance for socialist politics.

Liz decried how Obama did not govern from the center, as many people naively thought he would.  Instead he raises taxes to pay for nationalized healthcare.  He does not believe in American exceptionalism. Instead he traveled the world to apologize for America's perceived "transgressions."  He even incredibly wants to give foreign terrorists the same constitutional rights as US citizens.

Later, Liz surprised the audience by introducing her father.  Vice-President Dick Cheney, who I wish had been our former *President*, spoke briefly to a delighted audience.  The senior Cheney earned a standing ovation by predicting 2010 would be a great year for Conservatives, and that Obama would be a one-term President.  He even received such an ovation just for entering the room.

EDITOR'S NOTE:  Rob Benningfield is loving husband of your blogger.  He is at CPAC helping to write stories for this blog, and seems to be having a great time.  Thank you Rob for putting up with me! I love you.

Rob is an electrical engineer with both an undergraduate and graduate degree from North Carolina State University's College of Engineering.

 Sponsorship of Blogger's Lounge:

Blogger's Lounge at CPAC is generously sponsored by RedState.

RedState is the leading blog for right of center online activists. Established in May of 2004 by Ben Domenech, Mike Krempasky, and Josh Trevino, RedState has played an integral role in the right’s fight online against the left. RedState continues to be the most widely read right of center blog on Capitol Hill and is the most cited right of center blog in the media.

RedState has a community of tens of thousands of readers. It has a Board of Directors of six members, four permanent and two who rotate annually.  Katy's Conservative Corner is very proud to be a part of the blogging team here and thanks RedState for their help in providing access.

NC GOP Honors Lincoln's Birthday during Black History Month

The North Carolina Republican Party recently sent this out to it's members, reminding them of the early beginnings of the party:

 On August 19, 1864, two men held a meeting at the White House. The men could not have been more different; their lives could not have been more alien to the other. Yet, drawn mostly by a common cause and perhaps by the forces of destiny, these two men came together in an effort to secure the future of African-Americans, a future that had been argued over in a violent civil war for over three years. Never before or since have two men so singularly important to a group of people come together as on that summer day in 1864, when Abraham Lincoln welcomed Frederick Douglass into his office.

As we celebrate Lincoln’s 201st birthday, we can look back and thank Lincoln and Douglass for bringing two races together in a way that did not seem possible in the middle of the 19th Century. Borrowing a phrase from Mr. Lincoln, “it is altogether fitting and proper” that in the month of Lincoln’s birth, we also celebrate Black History Month. Certainly, African-American history would be much different were it not for the history-altering actions of Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Douglass.

 Lincoln and Douglass  (left) enjoyed a deep friendship that grew out of a shared set of principles: individual liberty, personal freedom, and the divinely-inspired value of every life. These principles drove Frederick Douglass to escape slavery and guided Lincoln as he rose to become the first President from a party founded on freedom and liberty.

With Lincoln as our first president, and Douglass as our first African-American statesmen, the Republican Party should be proud of our heritage. 

We should be proud, also, of the contributions of many African-Americans to the Republican cause over the last 150 years. Conservative leaders like Joseph Rainey, the first African-American Congressman, and Booker T. Washington (below) gave African-Americans a national voice in the Republican Party. The first African-American in the U.S. Senate, Republican Hiram Revels, was born in North Carolina. John Hyman, a former slave in North Carolina, was elected to Congress to represent the state in 1874. Countless other African-Americans have helped shape political history in North Carolina, and today, African-Americans hold elected positions at the state level and within the leadership of the NCGOP.

 As we celebrate Black History Month and reflect on the birth of President Lincoln, let us reaffirm those principles that gave rise to the Republican Party so long ago. Let us resolve that individual liberty, not government control, is the founding principal of our country. Let us pledge to further the work of Lincoln and Douglass, and carry their principles as our banner as we march to victory in November.

Editor's Note:  KCC thanks the NC Republican Party for sharing this information with us.  We couldn't have said this better ourselves.  We appreciate the contributions of all black Americans and honor them, this month and always.

Sen. Burr To Open Mobile USO Unit in Raleigh

 According to an email received from leaders of the  Wake County Republican Women, U.S. Senator Richard Burr, will be in Raleigh on Friday in his official capacity, to officially open the USO's Mobile Unit of North Carolina.  

The event, held at the National Guard headquarters on Reedy Creek Road (just off Blue Ridge Road and the Wade Avenue extension), will begin at 10:30 a.m. and is open to the public.

Please come out and support our troops and the USO!

Note: Your blogger is a member of the Wake County Republican Women.

Reader Mail: Delirium Tremens

Delirium tremens

Alcohol intoxication and alcohol withdrawal

For some reason, our governments last year infusion of a massive stimulus into the retrenched and dying economy and later withdrawing it reminds me of the parallel in alcohol intoxication and alcohol withdrawal both of which cause delirium tremens (DTs) and are potentially fatal. Although I am not an economist, I see very little wisdom in the governments drunken behavior and wild mood swings. I wish Washington would act more thoughtfully and avoid these dangerous CT like gyrations.

 

Assad Meymandi, MD, PhD, DLFAPA

Editor's Note: Dr. Meymandi, born in Iran,  is a Raleigh-based psychiatrist who has been published on a number of subjects.  He has previously written for this blog and has been a Republican activist.  His love for our country is unparalleled.

Virginia Foxx Makes It Official

 It's official.  Thursday morning, Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC, 5th) announced that she is running for re-election.  She has represented the Fifth Congressional District since 2005 and is one of this blogger's favorite conservatives.

She told the press that "representing North Carolina's Fifth District is a great honor" and that she promised "to continue to hold Washington accountable and rein in its reckless spending and wasting of taxpayers' hard earned money".

Foxx is a strong proponent of keeping taxes low and ensuring that the government lives within its means. Last year Foxx opposed the bank bailouts, the auto bailouts and other massive spending programs like the trillion dollar stimulus package.

During her third term Foxx successfully shepherded a bill through Congress to improve on-base housing for soldiers in the Army. Her bill to stop the 2008 bank bailout also passed the House last January.

Check out her campaign website, here.  

The Republican Response (Video)

Newly elected Governor, Bob McDonnell (R-VA) did an excellent job in his response to President Obama's pack of lies and mis-truths.  He is now a rising star on the national political scene and is a figure to watch. He'll also be at CPAC, and this blogger is looking forward to seeing him.  

 Here is his speech, exactly as delivered:

Why Not Sarah?

This morning, your blogger was discussing with a friend, how amazed we are why those on both the right and left get so negatively emotional when they discuss former Alaska Governor, Sarah Palin?  "Why are her naysayers so afraid", we wondered.

Palin has it all and is a politician out of central casting. She is smart, no-nonsense, and practical.  She's devoutly conservative and is an adoring mother.  Currently on her book tour, she's traveling with her young son Trig and her show-stealing daughter, Piper.  Monday, she made a stop in North Carolina, meeting with troops and their families at Fort Bragg.

Everywhere she goes, the crowds are  huge.  Palin is not allowed to even personalize copies of the books she's signing.  She just says "hello" to the purchaser and moves to the next person in line.  This devotion on the level of rock star status.

During the 2008 Presidental campaign, Vice Presidential candidate Palin drew larger crowds than did the Republican nominee, Senator John McCain.  Many conservatives told the press that they turned out only to vote for Palin, not to vote for McCain.  Clearly, people see something in her that they like and they appreciate her home spun conservative values.  

Your blogger has grown tired of hearing the same old line: Sarah Palin is not "smart enough to be President."  Gov. Palin is extremely bright and history has shown that it doesn't take a member of Mensa to occupy the White House.  

Ronald Reagan was an intelligent man, but he made sure to surround himself with the people he felt were the best in their areas of expertise and then he let them do their jobs.  He didn't micro-manage as President James Earl Carter had done in the previous administration.  

Carter's management style proved to be his undoing, especially with his  botched rescue attempt of the American Hostages in Iran in April of 1980.

Today, KCC is saddened to see so many (liberal) women feel threatened by Gov. Palin's success.  It seems that there is some sort of female jealousy about. They feel if you oppose abortion, support the death penalty, and act like a lady, liberal women run, not walk away.  

 Even Oprah got into the act last week on her show, when she interviewed the former Governor.  She tried every way she could to imply that Palin was in some way, a poor mother.  Yet, Palin handled Winfrey's intrusive and tacky questions deftly, with class and dignity.

Let's hope this doesn't extend to our fellow Republicans.  It's certainly okay to support the candidate of one's choice, but to run down opposition in one's own party is simply not acceptable.  

Palin may not have handled the infamous Katie Couric interview  the very best she could have, and she clearly received some very bad advice during it, but she's easy on her feet when talking about her book, Levi Johnson, and her passions about her husband and family.  Additionally, she enjoys discussing her world views and her ideals, and even becomes a little preachy to a liberal interviewer.  

The very fear she insights in liberals is exactly what the Republican party needs in 2012.  The GOP is above affirmative action for women or blacks.  We want the most qualified individual and Sarah Palin is clearly in the bunch of contenders for 2012.   

Right now, Palin says she is focusing on getting conservatives elected in 2010 and will worry about 2012 later.  But when that time comes, anyone would be foolish to count Governor Sarah Palin out.

NOTE: Your blogger purchased Palin's book online via Amazon for $14.00 and received it in less than seven hours.  She didn't pay extra for shipping!  Talk about service!

If you read this blog post some place other than at Katysconservativecorner.com, please go online to make your comments.  A lively discussion is encouraged, but name calling will be removed.

COPYRIGHT 2009 KATY'S CONSERVATIVE CORNER - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Mary Katharine Ham: Media Not Telling Whole Story (videos)

Popular FoxNews contributor, Town Hall guru, and North Carolina native, Mary Katharine Ham (left, with Dallas Woodhouse, state President of the NC Americans for Prosperity chapter) spoke at the Saturday evening reception of the Defending the American Dream Summit.  

Ham told the crowd that conservatives are NOT racists, astroturf angry mobs, domestic terrorists,or hate mongers.  

Our group of Tea Partiers, she said, are simply a group of unsatified, patroitic Americans who are exercising  free speech according to  first amendment rights.

She compared our protests to the protests of the anarchists at the recent Pittsburgh G20 Summit. 

 In all of the Right's Tea Party protests combined, only 11 people were arrested, most of which were for minor infractions, such as pulling down signs.  Only two of those were for actual assaults.

Seven of the 11 acts were commited by liberal counter-protesters.

At the Pittsburgh G20 Summit, the anarchists were in a completely different league, Ham said.  They vandalized cars, smashed shop windows, threw rocks at law enforcement, and 65 were arrested.

Naturally, according to Ham, the press ignored the anarchists, and chose only to focus on the few bad apples in the conservative "mobs" at the tea parties and further tried to whip up  fear and hysteria among the general public.  

Ham admitted that she was tired of the "mainstream press" trying to demonize conservatives.

This North Carolina blogger apprecites the excellent work being done by Miss Ham, part of the new leadership of the conservative movement.  

Thank goodness we have people like her, who are witty, sarcastic, and extremely bright.  She can out debate any liberal on virtually any topic, simply by using common sense.  Common sense is something we need more of, in our North Carolina state government,  in Congress and in the White House.  

Please enjoy the videos of the actual talk, shot by Ed Morrisey of the Hot Air blog. 

Editor's Note:   Thanks Ed! Sorry I didn't get the chance to chat with you at the Summit but you were constantly busy, and so was I.

/p>

Helms Honored (and boycotted) by NC Lawmakers (updated)

From the files of better late than never, North Carolina lawmakers will begin discussing  the life and work of the late U.S. Senator Jesse Helms Tuesday afternoon.   The stalwart conservative senator died last July 4th.

Read the entire (biased) story from the Associated Press, here.

Hat tip: State Government Radio

UPDATED: Your blogger eagerly listened to the reading of the Joint Resolution honoring Helms via the live stream on the Internet.  Republicans and Democrats alike, remanisced over the years working with, for, and sometimes against him.  Many spoke of visiting him at his offices in Washington as youngsters and how kindly the Senator always greeted them. 

Even NC Senate leader Marc Basnight (D-Dare) spoke about a time when the two worked together on a rock jetty in Oregon Inlet.  Your blogger remembers this issue, as she was living in the District as a child.

Oddly, on the second reading, one Senator voted "no" and on the third reading, the resolution passed unaniously.  In the audience were his family, including Mrs. Dot Helms, the Knott family, and one of your blogger's favorite people, Eddie Woodhouse.  We hope to have a statement from Mr. Woodhouse on KCC about today's activities soon.

UPDATE 8:20 EDT: The Associated Press has reported that many legislators decided to boycott the debate and vote on honoring Helms.  Read the full story, here.

Obama Signs Reagan Tribute with frail Nancy Looking on

President B. H. Obama did something right...or left.  Since the current "President" and the late President Ronald Reagan were both left-handed, it seemed fitting that Obama signed the bill creating a Reagan tribute with his left hand. (photo: copyright 2009 Reuters)

Nancy Reagan, the late President's widow, looked on during the signing.  Your blogger asks for prayers for the former first lady, as she looked weak and frail.  As much as our former President was loved, no one loved him more than she did.

The bill creates a panel to plan and carry out events to honor Reagan’s 100th birthday in 2011. He died in 2004.

According to Reuters:

Obama slowly escorted the 87-year-old Reagan into the White House Diplomatic Room for the ceremony, as she clutched onto his arm and walked with a cane.

His remarks were almost Reaganesque.

“President Reagan helped as much as any president to restore a sense of optimism in our country, a spirit that transcended politics — that transcended even the most heated arguments of the day,” Obama said.

Upcoming NC FreedomWorks Events by Allen Page (video)

FreedomWorks North Carolina has some exciting events in the next few days, and you are invited! Please come out and join us as we talk about ways to fight for lower taxes, less government and more freedom in North Carolina.

On Friday, June 5th, we are excited to host a young up and coming conservative activist and writer, Jonathan Krohn. Here are the details of our events this Friday, which will consist of a book signing and speech by Jonathan. 

11:30am - 1:30pm

Hanes Mall Golden Corral

180 Hanes Mall Circle

Winston-Salem, NC

7:00pm - 9:00pm

Herman Park Center

Green Room

901 East Ash St

(corner of Herman and Ash)

Goldsboro, NC

Jonathan Krohn is the author of Define Conservatism, a book about the four principles Jonathan believes are essential to conservatism. Please try to come out to one of these events, if you can. We appreciate your hard work and support for freedom!

Allen Page is the State Director of FreedomWorks North Carolina

Editor's Note:  Your blogger met and chatted with the conservative prodigy at the AFP Rally, Wednesday, and found him to be delightful, and funny.  Don't miss seeing this pleasant young man, and bring $13.50 to purchase a copy of his book.  

See Jonathan address the 2009 CPAC, below:

Tom Fetzer for State GOP Chairman

Katy's Conservative Corner proudly Endorses Tom Fetzer for Chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party. Below, your blogger, a self-described Republican since the age of 9, offers her personal perspective:

Your blogger first met Tom Fetzer (left) in 1985, while an 18-year-old freshman at Meredith College.   He was a handsome young 34-year-old, brought in by our club chairman to help increase attendance at our College Republican meetings. 

He told of his work with Senator Jesse Helms, the Congressional Club and how he had learned from  Tom Ellis and Carter Wrenn.  Ellis was the man who saved Ronald Reagan's Presidential campaign in 1976 and paved the way for his election in 1980.

He also told us of his work on the 1984 infamous campaign between Senator Helms and Governor Jim Hunt.  Your blogger volunteered on that campaign as a senior at New Bern Senior High School that year.   She loved the line "Where do you stand, Jim",  which pointed out Governor Hunt's many inconsistencies. 

In 1988, Fetzer ran for Congress in the elusive 4th District against David Price.  He raised a record $800,000 in that race.

Tom's most remarkable achievement, in the opinion of this blogger, came in 1993.  A large group of conservatives were angry with the Raleigh City Council over their spending $52,000 of OUR tax monies for an "art tower" (left) on Capital Blvd.  The thing was ugly, at best, and no one understood what it was.  Most thought it was a cell phone tower.

Tom Fetzer made this art tower the albatross to hang around the necks of the liberals on City Council.  He lead the charge, and solidified the conservative vote (both Democrats and Republicans) in Raleigh, swept into office and brought a conservative City Council with him. 

He served three terms, before handing the job off to another great conservative, Paul Coble, the nephew of Senator Helms.  Those were heady days in Raleigh. 

Tom Fetzer has served as a board member with the John Locke Foundation for a number of years.  He believes in the principles of a smaller government, lower taxes, and  opposes government corruption on every level.  He is a true conservative as he supports socially conservative issues, too. He believes in traditional marriage, is pro-life, and backs gun rights. 

Your blogger supports Fetzer for State Chairman because he is a PROVEN FUNDRAISER, and understands the GRASSROOTS.  He has knocked on thousands of doors and has made many more phone calls.  He understands organization at that most basic level. He believes in utilizing new technologies, (just as your blogger has been preaching, for two years).

Additionally, your blogger has heard from numerous sources, that North Carolina Democrats are shaking in their boots at the prospect of a Tom Fetzer chairmanship.  He's well known, dynamic, and can take on the media, with one hand tied behind his back. 

Because Tom Fetzer has all of the critical attributes, Katy's Conservative Corner proudly endorses him for State Chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party.

Editor's Note: Learn even more about Tom here.

Liberalism: Religion of Political Class in DC, Raleigh by Kevin Connor

Dear Friends:

As the loss of our liberty looms and freedom shivers in the shadow of socialism, we must reject this new worldview of government first, hand in our pocket liberalism that is creeping into every level of our lives and destroying the freedoms granted to us by our Constitution and bequeathed by our Creator.

America is being weakened spiritually, morally and economically.  Our inalienable rights are now an indulgence of government and freedom has never been so fragile, so close to slipping away as it is at this moment in our history.

Liberalism is the new religion of the political class in Washington and Raleigh.  They continue to seize power denied by the Constitution to the detriment of our liberty and we must stop the theft of our freedom.

When we gather in Raleigh in June for the State Convention, let us rally on Halifax Mall as a means to peacefully voice our opposition concerning the seizure of our liberty and the mismanagement of the public treasury.

We must halt the invasion of this intrusive socialist government by offering voters an alternative to a Liberal Orwellian Democratic Party that seeks to strangle economic mobility, suppress freedom and surrender American sovereignty.

From My Cold Dead Hands! – Charlton Heston (left)

Respectfully,

Kevin Conner

Dare County Republican Party Chairman

Hatteras, North Carolina 27943

(252) 256-3210

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