Can State Senator Bright Beat Lindsey Graham

South Carolina, and for that matter the entire non-establishment GOP is sick of Lindsey Graham. Many names have been thrown around, but no one has emerged as a definitive candidate just yet. Three names do stick out the most though. If Graham is going to be beat it has to be done in the primary. If South Carolina is serious about having a solid US Senator who will not tred on their constitutional rights they will have to come together on one candidate to contest
Graham. If the vote is split in any way, Graham will walk away victorious. That’s the hope of the Graham campaign anyways.

Is Lee Bright the one to Beat Lindsey Graham?

One name is State Senator Lee Bright. Bright is said to be nearing a decision soon. However, he has been troublesome for South Carolina from the start. First, his poll numbers are troublesome. Bright was down in the polls by more than 10 points against  the liberal leaning, alleged rapist State Senator Hawkins and was far behind in fundraising. It was not until Governor Haley stepped in to help Bright and save the South Carolina’s image that he was able to squeak out the primary win. If Bright is to take on one of the most heavily funded US Senators it is concerning that he could not out raise and out poll a State Senator that one police investigator referred to as “one of the strongest rape cases I have ever seen.” Second, even if Bright can overcome his troubles at the polls his financial crisis presents another problem. Bright’s company owes Capital Bank more than $318,000 and is currently facing foreclosure threats. Bright prides himself on being a fiscal Conservative, but is having trouble with his own finances. This is something Graham will surely attack him on. Many within the state are against Bright running. One  federal congressman has even asked him not to run. To Bright’s defense, he does have an incredibly strong voting record. However, many worry that’s not nearly enough to put him over the edge against Graham.

Another name to stick out is State Senator Tom Davis. Davis is extremely popular in South Carolina, particularly the grassroots. Davis even has a National audience with 17k Facebook fans, and 7k Twitter followers. His social media presence dwarfs most federal representatives all around the country. However, Davis does not feel the time is right and wants to focus on South Carolina legislation.

Next is the most recent, and perhaps strongest name being floated around Nancy Mace. When we previously reported on Mace we had no idea of the viral response that would follow. Her name went viral and internal statistics show that her name has been shared more than 30k times on social media networks within the last 48 hours. Those hoping to draft Mace to run against Graham created a Facebook page last night. The page reached more than 500 fans in less than 24 hours and is growing by the minute. In contrast, Lee’s Facebook draft page has only 200 fans and has been active for over 5 months. What makes Mace so popular? For one, she has Tom Davis’ blessing. Davis is now a major force behind propelling Mace to run against Graham. Second, Mace is the daughter of Brigadier General Emory Mace (US Army, Retired), and first ever female graduate of The Citadel Military College of South Carolina. Mace is also the founder of The Mace Group LLC holding a Master’s of Mass Communication and Journalism, and a Bachelor’s of Business. She is a contributor to The Daily Caller and The Hill, giving her a National platform. Mace is also the author of “In the Company of Men: A Woman at The Citadel”. These credentials make Mace an incredibly strong contender and the Nation has taken notice. Mace has told us that Super PACs are starting to eye her and consultants have now been in contact. However, Mace is still unsure of what her next move will be.

With Davis out of the picture, it seems that the two possible primary candidates are Bright and Mace. With Bright’s financial issues, polling problems, and lack of fundraising many are wondering if Bright’s motive is to advance liberty, or his own personal agenda for a bigger stage. Both have solid intentions and goals for advancing liberty, but whoever ends up taking on Graham will need to be a well funded, well articulated, sharp candidate free of baggage.  The Graham machine’s gears are starting to turn and they will be working overtime as this unpopular, establishment Republican is not going to go out quietly.

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The 2013 Budget You Haven’t Heard About: Rand Paul’s

Since Obama took office there has not been a budget and the country has been operating at $1.1+ Trillion deficits. Obama has already missed the legal deadline to submit a budget for the next FY. This makes 4 years in a row. In February, 2012 the office of US Senator Rand Paul proposed a budget. With Paul (R-KY) being pushed as a major Presidential contender in 2016 what could we expect from a Paul presidency in regards to the budget?

Paul proposes completely eliminating or cutting the following agencies, organizations and laws:

• Eliminate the Government Printing Office: (Spent $30 million in tax payer money in 2010 printing materials such as comic books. The seldom, if ever read Congressional Record cost $782/page to print. Paul proposes using the internet to display documents.)
• Eliminate the following under the Department of Agriculture: Agriculture Research Service (Agriculture, like all other industries, can perform its own research and development without the use of federal subsidies), National Institute of Food and Agriculture (States and colleges already fund the activities carried out by this branch), National Institute of Food and Agriculture (Modern technology has eliminated the need for this branch), Block Grant Food Stamps and Child Nutrition Program (Money will be returned to the states so that it can be most efficiently distributed to those in need).
• Eliminate the Department of Commerce: “Department of Commerce is nothing more than a hall closet where you throw in everything that you don’t know what to do with.” – Robert Mosbacher, Former Secretary of Commerce
• Eliminate the Department of Education; preserve the Pell Grant program at FY2008 levels: The growth in education spending at the federal level has gone from nearly $35.5 billion in 2001 to an estimated $70.2 billion in FY2012 – nearly a 100 percent increase. Today, the Federal government spends an average of $10,000 per pupil every year – more than double what we spent in 1970 – yet, the results have been disappointing at best. Reading and Math scores from 1971 – 2008 did not trend proportionally with the large spending increases, and overall achievement had declined in science scores.During the first half of the past century, America ranked among the most educated populations in the world. Since that time, the role of the federal government in education has expanded significantly, accounting for as much as 10 percent of all government spending in FY2009. As the role of the federal government in education has increased, conversely, the U.S. rankings have been falling below other economically developed countries. In December 2010, the OECD reported that the U.S. continues to fall relative to world educational levels. Returning this money to the states will not only improve education, but drastically improve our deficit.
• Eliminate the Department of Energy: Transfer the Atomic Energy Agency and all nuclear research laboratories to re-established Atomic Energy Commission. Examples of waste and fraud include: $10,000 in federal grants to design footwear from renewable resources; and $96.2 billion for Yucca Mountain, a nuclear waste repository in Nevada that will likely go unused; $535 million in loans to the now bankrupt Solyndra Corporation; and a $2.1 billion loan guarantee to German developer to help finance a 1,000 megawatt solar thermal power plant in southern California.
•  Cut Defense Spending– Policy Proposals: Modernize military force size (bring the troops home). Reduce overseas presence (close embassies that cost our country billions of dollars, quit subsidizing Asian, European, and Middle Eastern countries with American tax dollars to fund their military campaigns and national security. Allow them to be sovereign Nations).  Transition security forces to Afghanistan governments (end our presence in Afghanistan and return the country to its people and own government). Reduce waste, fraud, and abuse (Paul provides the following examples: The Pentagon can’t account for $9 billion that was meant to be provided to the Iraqi government; The Department of Defense paid over $285 billion to contractors engaged in fraudulent behavior over a three-year period; and Nearly $200 million was transferred to the Army’s personnel fund after funds were lost and overspent.With a budget larger than that of most countries, and a facility (the Pentagon) ranked as the largest office building in the world, the Pentagon claims that due to its enormous size, accurate financial reporting is complicated:The DOD obligates an average of $2 billion to $3 billion every business day and handles hundreds of thousands of payment transactions, which take place in thousands of worldwide locations, including war zones. This lack of accountability on paper puts the department at high risk of major losses in cash and inefficiencies, and just like any other federal bureaucracy, the DOD should be held accountable and forced to comply with regular audits. Currently, the DOD has been provided six years to organize and prepare for the scheduled audit in 2017).-“We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search of absolute security.” -General Dwight D. Eisenhower, “Our national debt is our biggest national security threat.’ -Admiral Mike Mullen, Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Abolish the TSA and privatize airport security
• Collect delinquent taxes from federal employees
• Reduce Federal Travel
• Repeal Davis Bacon Law
• Ban Union Labor Project Agreements
• Sell Unused Federal Assets
• Reduce Federal Vehicle Budget
• Sell Excess Federal Lands
• Sell Equity Stake in GM, Chrysler, & AIG
• Rescind all unspent Budget Authority after 36 months
• Allow Line Item Veto
• Open ANWR and the Keystone Pipeline to allow for more energy independence 
• Reform the Tax Code to a Flat Tax
• Adopt a Balanced Budget Amendment to the US Constitution
• Freeze Foreign Aid Funding at $5 Billion
• Reform Social Security: According to the 2011 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Social Security Trust Fund, Social Security has a current unfunded liability of $6.5 trillion in present value (over 75 years) – or nearly $60,747 per household.
• Reform Medicare through new Act called, “Congressional Health Care for Seniors Act”: The Medicare Trustees indicate that the unfunded obligation for the program over the next 75 years is $24.4 trillion. This is simply not sustainable and reform must occur. This act allows for all seniors to be enrolled into the same health care plan as their Members of Congress and other federal employees. By all accounts, elected officials and federal employees receive the finest health insurance in the country. It is time for every senior to get the best health care in America. Not only is the Congressional health care plan better, it’s less expensive. Taxpayers will save more than $1 trillion over the first 10 years and reduce Medicare’s 75-year unfunded obligation by $16 trillion. Individual seniors will save thousands of dollars from their personal health care budgets each year while receiving more generous health . While only 73% of doctors accepts Medicare, more than 90% accept FEHBP (Federal Employees Health Benefits). The quality, access, and costs will greatly improve for all seniors.
• Repeal the Patient Accountability and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)

Above are only a few of the highlights from the 103  page budget proposal. Senator Paul’s Budget balances in only 5 years. The full text of the budget can be read here.The above budget highlights are a sensible step towards fiscal responsibility, which is something America will be in dire need of come 2016.

More than 80 American Entities Have Applied for Domestic Drone Authorization

As Reported by EFF: The Federal Aviation Administration has finally released a new drone authorization list. This list, released in response to EFF’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit, includes law enforcement agencies and universities across the country, and—for the first time—an Indian tribal agency. In all, the list includes more than 20 new entities over the FAA’s original list, bringing to 81 the total number of public entities that have applied for FAA drone authorizations through October 2012.

Some of these new drone license applicants include:

• The State Department
• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
• Barona Band of Mission Indians Risk Management Office (near San Diego, California)
  

  Map of Drone Authorization in USA
  Source: EFF

• Canyon County Sheriff’s Office (Idaho)
• Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office (Northwest Oregon)
• Grand Forks Sheriff’s Department (North Dakota)
• King County Sheriff’s Office (covering Seattle, Washington)

There are multiple new entities in Ohio alone, including:

• Medina County Sheriff’s Office
• Ohio Department of Transportation
• Sinclair Community College
• Lorain County Community College

The list comes amid extensive controversy over a newly-released memo documenting the CIA’s policy on the targeted killing of American citizens and on the heels of news that Charlottesville, Virginia has just become one of the first cities in the country to ban drones. This new list should contribute to the debate over whether using domestic drones for surveillance is consistent with the Constitution and with American values. However, Brennan, the newly Obama proposed director of the CIA, will not answer as to whether or not drones will be used on American citizens.

GOP Pushes Rubio 2016 Ticket as the Only Ticket

Senator Rubio (FL-R) was selected by the GOP mainstream to deliver the rebuttal to the President’s State of the Union address. This was swiftly followed by Time magazine naming Rubio, “The Republican Savior.” He has been pushed by the mainstream GOP as a Tea Party candidate who can bring the party together. However, upon review of his voting record many problems arise. Does the liberty title stick?

Marco Rubio, “We choose more government instead of more freedom” (RNC Speech, 2012). It is hard to imagine what reaction our founding fathers would have had to Rubio’s speech. Even more disappointing to them would have been the thunderous applause he received only a few seconds after he dared to utter those words. Rubio is of course referring to Americans having their constitutional rights stripped away by the Patriot Act and the NDAA.  The NDAA being the legislation that allows for indefinite detention of US citizens without right to trial, due process, etc. Obama’s own judge ruled it unconstitutional. Obama of course said that the ruling was unconstitutional and was an attempt to override the power of his presidency. So Obama appealed the ruling. Rubio’s Senate vote on the NDAA provision to unconstitutionally detain you? Senate Amendment 1126 was introduced to prohibit the federal government from detaining US citizens without due process and trial. Rubio voted Nay. Here is the full Senate vote. It is interesting to note that more Democrats voted against President Obama than did Republicans. Proving that the GOP is indeed in no way currently in a position to call themselves champions of the Constitution. Rubio gave a foreign policy speech that essentially proves he’s eye-to-eye with Obama in regards to blatant disregard of the Constitution when it comes to war. He may even have more radical views on policy than did Bush junior. When Senator Rand Paul, KY-R) introduced Senate Bill 3576, which if passed would have stopped the federal government from handing billions of dollars to the very people that attack us, Rubio refused to vote, which is essentially voting not to support it. Here is the full Senate vote. Rubio’s lack of support for this bill only proves his inability to respect and understand the Constitution of this country.

One must look to the mistakes of 2012 to see why the GOP lost. They could not secure the youth vote, or the liberty vote. Propelling a candidate who does not have a solid record on the Constitution will only continue to split the GOP. We haven’t heard of many Libertarians or Tea Party goers that believe in choosing more government instead of more freedom. Karl Rove has recently declared a war on the Tea Party and all liberty candidates promising to quite them with his money and the mass of donors he has gathered. However, how Tea Party is Rubio if Rove and the very unpopular mainstream Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) tried to push him as the 2012 VP running mate to Romney? One must wonder why Rubio is not under fire from Rove as is the rest of the Liberty movement.

Content of Obama’s 23 Unconstitutional ‘Executive Orders’ on Gun Control Nowhere to be Found

Obama held a press conference on the 16th of January. In this press conference Obama said, “Here are a few of the executive actions I am announcing today.” Other than a few vague words, the White House has not released any documentation of the supposed 23 executive orders. In fact, the last executive order signed by Obama was on December 27th, 2012 and had nothing to do with gun control. What were the 3 (not 23) documents that Obama signed at

Obama Provides Remarks on Gun Control

this press conference shortly after hugging young children on stage with him? They were the 3 presidential memorandums listed here from the 16th of January. Memorandums are in no way similar to directives legally enforced by executive order. What does this mean? Forbes reports that 23 executive orders were signed by the President. Along with other mainstream media sources it would seem that the President has already signed these orders into law. If they have become law, the White House has refused to release any content of the executive orders listed. Two scenarios exist here. Either Obama actually has not yet taken any meaningful action as he has told many of the American public who are rallying for him to, or the White House has kept the true content of the executive orders hidden from the public. Regardless of whether these executive orders exist or not, one must realize that the President signing any executive order regarding gun control is unconstitutional because it bypasses the legislative branch. Executive orders can only be directed to departments of government over which the President has authority.

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Breaking: Senate Approves Removal of Debt Ceiling

The Senate has just approved total suspension of the debt ceiling until May 19th. The measure passed 64-34 with 2 abstaining. Senator Manchin (D-WV) was the only Democrat to vote against the legislation saying that, “It simply delays the problem instead of resolving the issues we face.” Manchin was joined by a majority of Senate Republicans. McConnell (R-KY) voted against the legislation after Senate Democrats refused to accept any amendments to the bill that would cut spending. According to Senator Rockefeller (D-WV), “Raising the ceiling above the $16.4 trillion limit was

Manchin (D-WV) Stands Alone Against Democrats on Suspending Debt Ceiling

the responsible thing to do.” Senator Graham (R-SC), who is expected to be challenged for his US Senate seat in the GOP primary in 2014 also voted to approve the debt ceiling suspension. Graham was joined by McCain (R-AZ), former 2008 Republican Presidential candidate.

Four GOP Amendments were offered, but all failed to pass. To clarify, votes were to table amendments, which is why Yeas are higher than Nays.

• First, which would have required a dollar in spending cuts for every dollar increase in the debt ceiling, was introduced by Senator Portman (R-OH) and failed 54-44.
• The second amendment offered by Portman, which also failed with a 52-46 vote, would have implemented automatic continuous spending resolutions if Congress does not agree on appropriation bills. But if Congress still didn’t act within 120 days of the spending bills, the amendment would have reduced government spending by 1% immediately and cut an additional 1% for every 90 days following.
• Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced an  amendment, which would have prohibited the transfer of F16s, tanks and additional defense weapons to Egypt. Amendment was rejected on a 79-19 vote to table. (Graham-SC, Alexander-TN, Corker-TN, McCain-AZ and McConnell-KY are among those who voted to continue sending militarily aide.)

• An amendment from Senator Toomey (R-PA) requiring the Secretary of Treasury to prioritize federal spending if the debt ceiling is not raised again failed with a 53-45 vote. This amendment would have guaranteed 3 types of payments: interest on the debt, Social Security checks and active duty service member salaries, even if the debt ceiling was not raised.
• Last, the final vote before last passage was on a motion to recommit the bill, introduced by Senator Vitter (R-LA). His motion would have directed the Senate Finance Committee to find dollar-for-dollar spending offsets for this three-month debt ceiling suspension. It failed on a 53-45 vote — 60 votes were needed for passage.

Breaking: Senate Confirms John Kerry as New Secretary of State

 

Kerry Hears News of Senate Confirmation

John Kerry has just been approved as the new US Secretary of State. His approval will relieve  Hillary Clinton of her position. The vote to approve was 94-3. John Kerry at 69 years old is a decorated Vietnam veteran, the 3rd wealthiest member of the US Congress, and 2004 Democratic Party presidential nominee. US Senator Bob Corker, (R-TN), the top Republican on Foreign Relations, said of Kerry, “My sense is he will be open to listening”. In regards to the ever growing liberty movement Kerry has stated, “The media has got to begin to not give equal time or equal balance to an absolutely absurd notion-“

America’s Rating as a Free Country Continues to Plummet

Freedom can be defined in many ways. However, one of the greatest indicators of freedom and liberty is economic freedom. True free-market capitalism is the basis of individual liberty. However, America is no longer a top 5 contender, and we haven’t been for a years. Actually, America is barely even in the top 10. The 2012 Index of Economic Freedom study reports that America continues to fail. Who took first place in economic freedom in 2012? The

Source: http://www.gfmag.com/tools/global-database/economic-data/12067-economic-freedom-by-country.html#axzz2JI3AV7Pz

answer may surprise you. It was Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s score was an 89.9%, which was a 0.2% increase from 2011. Following Hong Kong in order: Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Canada, Chile, Mauritius, Ireland, and finally America at number 10. America’s economic freedom score was a 76.3%, which is down 1.5% from 2011. In fact, America is no longer even rated as a “Free” nation, which is a title granted only to countries with a score above 80%, but a “Mostly Free” nation. Right behind America rated at number 11 is Denmark. Denmark places the highest total tax pressure on its citizens in the world.

This study takes the following 10 benchmarks into account when rating countries: Freedom from corruption, property rights, individual fiscal freedom, restrained government spending, monetary freedom, business freedom, labor freedom, trade freedom, investment freedom, and financial freedom. As mentioned earlier, economic freedom is more vast than it may sound on the surface. It includes all of the above benchmarks, which affect our everyday lives. Money is not the root of all evil; however it is at the root of our lives and if we are not economically free one must ask themselves if our freedom is simply a fallacy. There are 9 other countries more economically free than America and our rating is dropping drastically. In 2010, America was rated number 8.  With the numbers trending down and all of the benchmarks trending towards negative values America’s rating should not be expected to improve when the 2013 ratings are released.

There can be no liberty unless there is economic liberty. -Margaret Thatcher

Breaking: GOP to Suspend Debt Ceiling All Together, and Constitution

Update (1/24/25): The House voted to approve HB 325 with a vote of 285 to 144. Interestingly, 199 republicans voted to pass, 33 voted not to pass, and 86 democrats voted to pass, while 111 voted not to. The Senate vote is on January 31st.

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The House GOP has opted to forego raising the debt ceiling to a set cap for a three month extension as previously reported. The new decision made by those who control the flow of legislation in the House is to now simply make the debt ceiling limitless until May 19th. Even though Republicans could have requested that at least some sort of spending cuts would be part of this new legislation not a single dime of cuts were requested.

This new legislation has multiple negative connotations.

• It essentially nullifies Article 1 of the US Constitution. Removing the ceiling all together gives the Federal Government the power to spend without House approval.
• It establishes precedent that the ceiling is purely arbitrary and could be abolished, as many in the Democratic party have suggested.
  

  Reid and Boehner

• It gives the Federal Government the potential to spend possibly trillions of dollars with no approved allocation within the next 5 months.
• It breaks the promise the GOP made when they took over the house. You now, the one where they said all legislation must remain within strict constitutional authority.
• The new legislation does not actually cease pay to Congress if they do not come up with a  budget by the deadline. It only puts their paycheck into an account for them until they do (How will they ever survive…? Oh yea, special interests pays well we are told.)

Senate Democrats have said they will produce a budget resolution that will include increased revenues, and they have promised to consider the debt-limit boost to arrive from the House. Increased revenues is highlighted above due to the fact that it is again a constitutional violation of Article one, which delegates this power only to the House. Regardless of the Constitution, Senate Democrats no longer feel they need to abide. Just as they refused to do so with the Fiscal Cliff, and Obamacare when it came to them taking the power to raise revenue. The vote is set to occur Wednesday, January 23rd.

Breaking: House Republicans to Raise Debt Ceiling

House Republicans have agreed to vote on legislation as early as next week to raise the debt ceiling for 3 months. However, they sent a warning to the

Speaker of the House John Boehner

Senate that they must work with them to come up with a budget deal before they “agree to a long-term ceiling raise”. It seems that House Republicans have no serious intentions to cut spending since they have already indicated that they are willing to vote for long-term debt ceiling raises. However, the measure would make it to where Congress will not get a paycheck if a budget deal is not met before the 3 month deadline of April 15th. If we are to look at the fiscal-cliff ‘deal’ (resulting in a threat of national credit rating downgrade), can we be sure a budget passed by the Senate and Obama will be any better than what we had before? Obama recently held a news conference where he said he will not negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling. It seems that the President got his message across without having to sign an unconstitutional executive order as has been speculated. Will this tactic of allowing the President to raise the debt ceiling in exchange for a budget for the first time in years actually work? Only time will tell. US Senator, Rand Paul (R-KY) says he will vote it down.