Apr 12 2010

Tax Day Tea Party

A whole lot of groups will be meeting at the Tax Day Tea Party in Olympia, WA on April 15th!

For us in Cowlitz County we have a few choices.

TEA FOR TWO on TAX DAY!
Olympia & Seattle, Washington
Thursday, April 15, 2010
12 pm – 8 pm
Olympia, North Capitol Steps/Seattle, Westlake Park
416 Sid Snyder (Olympia) / 401 Pine St (Seattle)

Olympia: 12 pm – 3 pm with speakers David Boze, Amber Gunn, Kirby Wilbur, Tea Party Charlie, music & more! North Capitol Steps. Then join the caravan heading north to Seattle!

Seattle: 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm with speakers Dori Monson, Liberty Belle, improv comedy, and live music! Westlake Park, downtown Seattle.

For those in Cowlitz that cannot make it up, not to worry, there will be a group at the Allen St. Bridge in Kelso from 12pm to 6pm, so come by and show your support when you can.

Also, We the People are hosting an event on Saturday in Vancouver! So no excuses!

We the People Freedom Rally

Saturday April 17th, 2010
11:30am to 1:30pm
Esther Short Park ~ 301 W. 8th Street
Vancouver, WA.

Our Great line up of Speakers
and live music will inspire and challenge you!

• Victoria Taft ~ KPAM 860 AM
• Rev. Wayne Perryman ~ Author
• Juliana McMahan ~ Evergreen Freedom Foundation
• Samuel Adams (Tom Niewulis)
• Tom Hann ~ Founder We The People SW WA
• Greg Noelk ~ Columnist for Wapathub.org

A Family Friendly Event presented by:
We The People of SW Washington

www.wepeeps.org
www.wapathub.org

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Apr 3 2010

Government of the People, by the People…. When the People DO IT!

I am so very excited to see the renewed energy of my fellow citizens taking action in the upcoming election process and governance.

The Tea Party movement has been such an invigorating and rewarding adventure of true grassroots politics and I am excited to see how it is evolving into a true platform for information, expression and action.

A great example of this is the Washington Patriot Hub and the We The People of Vancouver group, these are citizens coming together to share information and take an active role in both the governance and election processes.

As a citizen who attends my city council and county commissioner meetings often, I used to be one of only a few conservative citizens in the room. Often I was the only conservative to ask questions or make statements. Not anymore.

Local groups like this are providing training and encouragement to citizen on how to involve themselves in the process, how to influence the legislation and policy our elected officials often decide in the absence of the common man.

They are also taking the considerable time to run local candidates though a vigorous vetting process. No longer will we be left with inside politics and endorsements based upon “who you know”. They taking back the right of the People to ask the questions, influence the process and watch the interviews. No back room deals here.

The “Hub” specifically is a great clearing house of candidate and issue information as it is gathered by regular folks and accountable to regular folks.

From the Washington Patriot Hub site:

About The Washington Patriot Hub

“Today’s Committee of Correspondence”

In early October of 2009 many leaders gathered together over coffee and outlined some of the challenges we all faced. They saw the need for a better way for all members to communicate and the idea for the Washington Patriot Hub was born.

The Washington Patriot Hub is not a group or organization. It is a central communication vehicle for groups around the state that share common goals where they see a for change, some of which are:

* Education
* Energy/Cap & Tax
* Healthcare
* Illegal Immigration
* Precincts
* States Rights
* Sovereignty
* US Constitution
* Taxation
* Voter & Census Fraud

Local groups working together can build committees and share the research, planning and manpower so we can beat back the progressive agenda. As we have all learned over the last year, it is a monumental task just trying to keep up with it all. Every group has members that give varying amounts of time that is scheduled around their lives, family and work. With so many issues coming towards us all so quickly, we need to pool our resources and work together. Although we do not agree on all things, but where we do we can be a force for change.

1776 – “Unite or Die”

2010 – “Unite or Fail”

If you are interested in getting involved in your area, check out the sites above. Even if you are just looking for information on candidates, take a look.

I would also encourage you to attend the vetting meetings. What a great opportunity to find out for yourself who deserves you all important vote.

We The People – Vancouver: Candidate Vetting Meetings
Meetings on 1st and 3rd Tuesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Harney Elementary School
3212 E Evergreen Blvd, Vancouver, WA 98661 (map)

Agenda for April 6th Candidate Vetting:
Sean Salazar – US Senate
David Hedrick – US House Congressional District 3
Shannon Barnett – WA 18th Legislative District

Agenda for April 20th Candidate Vetting:
Arthur Coday – US Senate
Jaime Herrera – US House Congressional District 3
Jon Russell – WA 18th Legislative District

WeThePeople-Vancouver have active teams of people focused on education and civic responsibility.

Join one of the following committees:
Elections Committee
Legislation Committee
Education Committee
Local Government Committee
Events and Fundraising Committee

We look foward to seeing you at our next meeting or an upcoming event.

www.WeThePeople-Vancouver.org

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Apr 1 2010

Memo: Jaime Herrera and SEIU

Below is the memo from Casey Bowman, the campaign manager for Jaime Herrera, explaining the “Pro Union Vote” Herrera was supposed to have taken.

I certainly understand her vote, trying to get fair reimbursement for small business owners who are getting short changed by the State of Washington. It is not unlike the poor reimbursement rates that doctors receive from Medicare and other “state run” health insurance. In the end the average consumer pays more to cover the real cost of care. More than a few Conservatives voted for this bill in the House and Senate, they tried to right a wrong, which is more than some have done.

This was NOT a great bill, but that is often the case we you are trying to get something done while a bunch of liberals have the majority. We can fix that by electing more Conservatives like Jaime Herrera!

As always Jaime is a candidate with a voting record, you can see what she has done and will do for yourself. Her voting record can be found here: washingtonvotes.org

From: Casey Bowman, Campaign Manager, Jaime Herrera for Congress

Memo: Jaime Herrera and SEIU

It won’t shock you to learn that there’s a false accusation being made in the race for Washington’s 3rd Congressional Seat, but you might be surprised at just how off base the claim is that Rep. Jaime Herrera is a big union supporter. In 2008 Jaime was endorsed by every major business group in Washington state, including the Association of Washington Business, NFIB, Independent Business Association of Washington, Washington Restaurant Association and others. She has never supported compulsory unionism and never will. She is a strong opponent of “card check” because she has seen the excesses of union leaders and is fully aware of the threats and intimidation that card check would inflict on workers.

To prove the false claim that Jaime is a big union supporter, her detractors point to legislation, HB 1329, she supported involving child care centers. Their claim is that the legislation forced “compulsory” unionization of child care workers. That simply is not true. Here are the facts:

· Washington state reimburses child care centers for care of kids under the state’s sponsorship. Many of these business owners believe that they should receive a better reimbursement rate from the state for caring for the most vulnerable children.

· The bill allowed child care center owners and workers to choose to have SEIU represent the business in negotiating better reimbursement rates from the state.

· The bill said nothing about unionizing the workforce. Child care center workers wouldn’t pay union dues or fees and wouldn’t be forced to join a union, at any time. The bill was at the request of the small business owners of day care centers.

Those are the facts about this legislation. Again, Jaime has never supported compulsory unionism and never will. That is why she is such a fervent opponent of card check. If the facts don’t sound anything like the claims of those attacking Jaime and her voting record, then you should ask them why they are spreading these false claims.

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Mar 25 2010

Tea partiers air doubts about Dick Armey

Check out this post on Politico regarding the slow burn FreedomWorks is fanning with its actions.

Tea partiers air doubts about Dick Armey

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Mar 22 2010

FreedomWorks, Ignoring the Grassroots they claim to Represent

You may have heard that a Washington, DC-based organization named FreedomWorks recently endorsed David Castillo in the 3rd Congressional District primary race.

FreedomWorks’ website claims the organization is made up of “grassroots volunteers,” and supports those who “fight for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.”

In the past I have been a supporter of FreedomWorks, they have provided support and infrastructure to conservative grassroots over the years.

However, this endorsement is very disheartening to me; you see FreedomWorks endorsed Castillo without ever asking Jaime Herrera for an interview or even a single piece of information.

I can tell you that Jaime Herrera has a lot of grassroots support here in Cowlitz and throughout this district – she was formally endorsed by the Cowlitz County GOP party delegates (regular folks) last weekend – because she has a record of fighting for lower taxes, less government and more freedom.

So what “grassroots” are they claiming to represent? How did the “grassroots” in the 3rd Congressional District influence this endorsement? It sounds all too hollow, but read on.

In the press release that Castillo and FreedomWorks sent out regarding the endorsement they stated “FreedomWorks has provided organizational muscle to the tea party movement across the country. It is currently at work on a 2010 Tax Day Tea Party on April 15th in Washington, D.C.”

As many of you know I have be very active in the grassroots for years, I was an organizer (in a small way) of the first Tea Party rally in Portland, OR in February of 2009, long before FreedomWorks ever got involved, before even Fox News gave us any credence. (Only Victoria Taft gave our local rally any real coverage)

While I appreciate the support FreedomWorks is now providing, the “muscle” has been provided by the People! We the People! It is a citizen’s movement and cannot be leveraged or co-opted for political gains. I resent and protest the idea that some national group, any PAC, is trying to use the people’s movement for their own inside the beltway gain.

So how could this have happened? No input from the real grassroots, no interviews of the other Conservative candidates, not even a request for positions. It sounds so hollow, so…. Politics as usual….

Newsflash!!!! David Castillo used to work for FreedomWorks. Instead of listening to those of us who have been putting our shoes to the pavement in support of smaller government and lower taxes since before Fox News even knew we existed, FreedomWorks made a blind endorsement of someone with an insider’s connection.

Before FreedomWorks brings its DC money into this race and blindly supports one candidate, I urge you to contact them and let them know that they have ignored the grassroots.

If you support Jaime Herrera, you should let them know that, too. Tell them that any organization claiming to represent the grassroots should have an open and fair endorsement process where every candidate gets a chance.

Here’s how you can contact FreedomWorks:
• Submit an online message here: http://www.freedomworks.org/contact
• Call them at 1.888.564.6273

Keath Huff

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Feb 26 2010

Open Letter to the 3rd CD Conservatives

Hello fellow Conservative, my name is Keath Huff.

As a Tea Party organizer and long time conservative activist I was appalled by the recent voice mail I received about my friend Jaime Herrera.

You may have received that call as well, and like me you may have thought it came from a Democrat.

Unfortunately it did not, though it was almost word for word the same comments a liberal Democrat recently uttered.

This phone call, with its blatantly false accusations, came from a politician, that much is for sure.

And that is why I am contacting you, I will not sit on the sidelines while another “politician” plays the game of destructive insider politics.

While Jaime has been in Olympia fighting to protect us from the Liberal agenda, including the dismantling of the people’s will on I-960, this politician could not even use his own voice for his propaganda.

I have worked hard with many of you to rid ourselves of the politicians and the political games.

We want conservative statesmen and stateswomen and a process of the people, by the people and for the people.

That is why I am asking you to join me in supporting Jaime Herrera for Congress and help me say “no more” to the politics of old.

Now is the time for the people, now is the time for conservative leadership, now is the time for Jaime Herrera.

For more information about Jaime Herrera, or to find out how you can help, visit Jaime Herrera’s Web Site.

Keath Huff

UPDATE

To be clear… The false allegation that Jaime is an absentee legislator is FALSE. The record is clear. Check out her voting record, which is available at washingtonvotes.org

UPDATE 2

Check out the piece written by Liz Mair

“A representative of the Washington State Legislature with whom I spoke
today confirmed that none of the committees on which Herrera serves met
on Thursday; nor were any votes taken in the Washington State House of
Representatives on that day. That, specifically, has one prominent
Republican in the district outraged a…t Castillo’s attack.”

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