Who are the people that make up the tea party? Short answer, they are regular American citizens. See this link to Wikipedia for some polling data that backs this up. Are you surprised to hear that’s who you are?  I doubt it.

You’ve seen the media barrage trying to tear us down – but you know the truth. For my part, the brand name “tea party” doesn’t really matter all that much. “We the People,” is much more important. You are all just folks! You want no government contracts, no handouts, no special favors, no ego trips, no favored status.

Tea Party members want to restore and preserve a free and prosperous America. But, there are those wish we had never shown up – and heaven forbid we dare to speak out!

If we know who we are, who is it that opposes us?

Most of our opposition comes from three sources:

1). The Hard Core Left. This group is obvious. Communists, Socialists, Marxists, Greens, Statists, Enviro-statists, Progressives, most Democrats, etc. These folks are generally easy to spot, no surprise there.

2). Cronies or “Special Interests.” These are people who manipulate the coercive power of government to forward their own interests. These are the folks who get special laws, regulations, and favors to help themselves get ahead of and/or eliminate their competition. As long as they get what they want, the Constitution and the people be damned. The socialism that benefits them today will feed all of us to the alligators tomorrow. But, they are too blind or uncaring to see it.

3). Entrenched Republicans. These are Republicans who have enjoyed term after term of control of their offices with no real competition (i.e. especially those in “safe” districts). Sometimes they manage to get themselves wrapped around the axles of the cronies or other special interests. They do as they wish because the voters are either not informed or motivated enough to unseat them. They have a lock on their offices and they are prone to bully away any challengers. They benefit from name recognition, media connections, cash, and a sleeping electorate. They are for the status quo because it suits them. In the end, the will of the people takes a back seat to their personal grip on power.

If we are to turn our country around, we must bring it closer to the people – that’s you!

I mentioned in a previous message (click to view) how Congress has an approval rating that is in the low teens, yet over 80% of incumbents still get re-elected. Does that sound like a government that is close to the people? Of course not! Certain politicians acquire power and they never let go. When this happens, the will of the people becomes lost. The Constitution generally takes hits, as well.

People are policy. If we want to change the policy – and the direction of the country – we have to change the people in charge.

The 2012 Ohio Primary is March 6th!

Visit the Clermont Board of Elections website to learn more about early voting, absentee voting, polling locations and more (click to visit).

If you aren’t doing so already, get involved! Volunteer, Contribute and Vote. Help advance some fresh faces to government so it stays closer to the people. This is the moment! What we do or don’t do now is what matters most.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org

“Local citizens must take the selection and support of local candidates more seriously if we are to turn our country around over the long term. It is not someone else’s responsibility – it is ours.” Clermont Liberty PAC, January, 2012 Newsletter

So, I often tell the story how, “If you keep doing what you are doing, you’ll keep getting what you are getting.” You have probably heard me tell it.  Consider:

• Only 26% of likely voters say the country is on the right track according to Rasmussen (view current poll).

• Congress’ approval rating is 13% according to a January ABC News/Washington Post poll (view story).

• Yet, Congressional incumbent re-election rates are well over 80% (view charts).

But it’s not just Congress getting re-elected regardless of approval. It’s also true in local incumbent races. There are a lot of reasons why, not the least of which are access to campaign cash and name recognition.

If you are upset with the track the country is on - what are you doing that’s different to fix the problem?

Seriously. Have you donated to a new local candidate yet? Have you volunteered to help out? Have you helped support a group like the Clermont Liberty PAC that is trying to make a difference for several new local candidates?

If so, great! If not, what are you waiting for?

With all our nation’s present troubles, we should regret most the damage being done to our children’s future. In the name of collective ‘entitlement’ and ‘investment,’ we daily steal from future generations who are defenseless to stop us. Our debt now nears $16 trillion. Is this fair?  Is this just? It is an outrage!

Yet, who is standing firm to fight it?

Have we forgotten who we are? Have we forgotten our sense of duty and responsibility? Have we thrown all common sense to the wind?

People will ask one day, “Did you see what was happening? Did you try to do anything about it?”  Future generations will surely wonder that so many sat on their couches, voted for the same people over and over again, and expected different results.

It is now forty days to the Ohio primary – what are you doing differently?

This is the moment – volunteer, donate, get involved!

Do it today.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org    

I am taking a step back from my recent rants about what is happening now – Fast & Furious, Solyndra et. al., the EPA, and so forth. This is about the bigger picture. Where are we? How did we get here? And what to think about all of it. While all of the other stuff is, indeed important, it is at a too immediate a level. Take a breath, read, and think awhile. There are two pages to the article. Both are worth reading, and reflecting.

http://spectator.org/archives/2012/01/18/now-playing-the-sustainability/

The Ohio primary is now less than 50 days away. When we first started our group in 2009/2010, it was in the beginning of a primary season. While the county Republican Party was casting its votes for primary endorsements, we were just learning what a party “central committee” was.

One common complaint from voters is that we so often see such poor choices on the ballot. Liberty groups all across the country took note of this and began working on ways to impact the problem. This is the reason why so many of us ran for and became elected to party central committee.

Some say, “All politics is local.” They are right. It is through local elections that we fill the pipeline with future leaders. If we want to change policy, we need to change the people. If we want to see a change at the top, we must work to change the bottom.

This past November, the vote took place in Clermont County to determine local Republican party endorsements. This time our voices were definitely a part of the debate, and the vote. Many ‘tea party’ favored candidates were successful in either winning endorsement or in keeping their opponents from winning endorsement.

New principled local politicians represent the future. I am always saying you can’t do things the way you have in the past. If you want to make a difference, you must do something different.

Ways to Make a Difference

Voting, volunteering, and contributing are the three key actions an ‘active’ voter can do to have an impact (versus a ‘passive’ voter who only casts a vote and then goes home). Here are at least three potential paths to greater involvement:

1). Provide support for individual candidates. View a list of the local primary candidates (click here). Search for their websites online.

2). Support political parties. Help hand out and fund slate cards that advance party candidates.

3). Learn about entities like the Clermont Liberty PAC. This group is made up of citizens who wish to promote local candidates that represent the core values of fiscal responsibility, Constitutional limited government and free markets (learn more).

It is now crunch time. If you keep doing what you have been doing, you will keep getting what you are getting. Challenge yourself to do something more!

This is the moment.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org

“In the end, they wanted security more than they wanted freedom.” Edward Gibbon, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

A few follow-ups from the meeting…

We heard a presentation from Duke Energy about the smart meter technology that is being rolled out in Ohio. Our own Calvin Pauley provided a list of pros and cons, and we had a lively discussion. Here is a link to some FAQs on the topic from Duke.

In a separate discussion, we talked about collectivism and the danger of favoring the rights of “men” (the collective) over the rights of “man” (the individual).

In this dialog, we touched on two tragic stories.

• One was a story from the French Revolution of the “Martyrs of Compiegne.” The martyrs were a small group of nuns who were sentenced to death in 1794 by the French “Committee of Public Safety.” They were condemned in part because they were judged to be unproductive to society. The nuns courageously faced the guillotine, singing together. One by one, they were cut down, their voices dropping from the song until the last voice – then silence. Read more about them here.
• Another story was from Germany in 1945. The National Socialists (Nazi’s) carried out the killing of millions of people in the name of the collective state. Here is a link to the YouTube clip from the Band of Brothers series that we watched. Note the role of the Americans as liberators.

There are many tragic stories such as these. The greater point is that when a society forgoes the rights of individuals, anything goes. Focused state power and the abandonment of individual rights provide fertile ground for disaster.

Americans must continue their vigilance in upholding limited government and the protection of the individual and unalienable rights of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness (i.e. property). It is essential that we champion these rights in order to sustain the greatness and freedom of America.

We talked a bit about Trevor Loudon’s recent book, Barack Obama and the Enemies Within. This book illustrates in detail the leftist (communist/socialist) political collaboration that helped bring Barack Obama to the national scene. We must work to do the opposite! We must build a strong local political foundation from which strong conservative leaders can emerge.

We watched a brief video from the Clermont Liberty PAC on the topic of local engagement. Learn more about the PAC at this link.

The next class in the Making of America Series will take place on Monday, January 9th, 6p.m. at the Union Township Civic Center. Admission is free. Come learn more about America’s founders and the fundamental structures of our government. All are welcome!

Our next countywide meeting will be Tuesday, February 7th, 7p.m. at the Holiday Inn Eastgate.

Please mark your calendar and bring a friend!

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org
“The battle did not last long. Around noon, everything was calm again. The SS had fled and the resistance had taken charge of the camp. At six o’clock that afternoon, the first American tank stood at the gates of Buchenwald.”  Elie Wiesel, Night, pp. 115

Join us while we support Tina Sanborn, as she becomes an official member of the West Clermont School Board on Monday, January 9th, Union Township Civic Center.  Small ceremony to be held before the scheduled school board meeting, which begins at 7pm.  (Arrive by 6:45 pm)  Congratulations Tina!

The education committee of the Clermont County Tea Party is pleased to present this fall and winter the, The Making of America” series from the National Center for Constitutional Studies.

• The course is long, but we have decided to announce and present each class separately in order to allow the opportunity for all to feel welcome to attend when they can.
• It will not be necessary to attend each and every session in order to get a lot out of this course, but to make the classes you can and get the most you can out of them.
• In this way, more will attend, bring friends, etc. to help promote the cause of educating our neighbors in their liberty.

The classes will run from 6-9pm and the first class is on September 12th (Monday) at the Union Township Civic Center in the Queen City Room (lower level) A&B.

Monday, January 9th
The Powers of Congress I & II

Monday, January 16th
Commerce Naturalization and Bankruptcy

Monday, January 23rd
The Money System
Three More Powers of Congress

Monday, January 30th
Four More Powers of Congress
The War Powers

Monday, February 13th
Remaining Enumerated Powers
Restraints on Congress

Monday, February 20th
Restraints on States
The Most Powerful Political Office in the World

Monday, February 27th
Powers & Duties of the President
The Federal Judiciary

Wednesday, March 7th
Jurisdiction of Federal Courts
Appellate Powers, Jury, Treason

Monday, March 12th
Union of States & Amendment Process
The Finishing Touches

Monday, March 19th
Bill of Rights & The First Amendment

Monday, March 26th
Amendments 2 through 12

Tuesday, April 3rd
Amendments 13 through 16

Monday, April 9th
Amendments 17 through 27
Striving for a Higher Level

Refer questions to Scott Nichols at 513-843-5551 ext 110 or brokerageceo@cinci.rr.com

This schedule will also be available to pick up at the monthly meeting (first Tuesday of the month: Holiday Inn Eastgate).

There are books available for the course, but they are in short supply. The cost of the books are $30 and will be available at the monthly meeting. There is no other additional cost to this class.

We hope to see many of you attending the class as it helps to make for great discussion and additional learning opportunities!

It is a theme that you have come to expect from me. Once again, the administration is bypassing congress to achieve its own ends. In addition to the congressional end run this story (below) hits the trifecta of administration malfeasance.

The company is a stimulus supported and financed entity.
The US Military, which is in disfavor by the administration, becomes the vehicle for achieving their ends’.
The favored biofuel is priced at $15 per GALLON, about 4x the price of JP4 (Jet fuel).

You might want to find a barf bag before reading.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/12/13/navy-buys-biofuels-for-15-per-gallon-from-stimulus-linked-firm/

Flush the Washington toilet in 2012.

Another great meeting! Many thanks to all those who attended.

Here are a few follow-up items:

1). Learn more about and get involved with the Bethel Asian Longhorned Beetle Co-op. Visit their website: www.bethelalb.com

2). Click to watch the 60 Minutes video we saw on insider stock trading in Congress, video.

3). Visit the website where financial disclosure statements including stock trade information for members of Congress can be viewed: opensecrets.org 

4). Here is an Amazon link for the book, Throw Them All Out, by Peter Schweizer, (click). A great Christmas present!

5). George Pattison’s swearing in ceremony is Friday, December 9th at 4:00p.m. Location: Judge Shriver’s courtroom at the Municipal Courthouse on SR 222. Reception open from 3:00-4:30p.m. at the same location. All are invited.

6). Clermont Tea Party Christmas Party will be held Thursday, December 15th, 7p.m. at the Miami Township Civic Center.

7). Learn more about the Clermont Liberty PAC at their website.

Our next countywide Clermont Tea Party meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012, 7p.m. at the Holiday Inn Eastgate.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org

“‘They are Man’s,’ said the Spirit, looking down upon them. ‘And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased…” A Christmas Carol, pp. 99, Charles Dickens, 1843

Next Tuesday, December 6th, at 7p.m., we will be holding our monthly Clermont Tea Party meeting at the Holiday Inn Eastgate.

2012 is now less than 30 days away! 

• Per Rasmussen Reports, 76% of likely U.S. voters say our country is on the wrong track (view).
• The very survival of our Republic may depend on the outcomes of next year’s elections.
• All of us must change the way we think about our part in elections and become more involved in the electoral process.
• Learn more at this month’s meeting about what you can do to make more of a difference in the critical upcoming elections.

This is the big dance folks. There has never been a more important time to get involved.

See you all on Tuesday!

You probably will not like the way the (linked) article begins. You definitely will not like the way it ends, but it does serve as a clarion call to the enormity of the task facing us, if we are to restore the Republic we once had. For far to long, we and, to a slightly lesser extent, our parents have lived our self absorbed lives without being personally and intimately involved in the political process. As a consequence, we let the government govern without sufficient popular oversight. Now we have a leviathan that is only controlled by its need to feed on itself and grow.

If we are going to be able to reverse course, we all need to be involved, and to redouble our efforts to engage others to get similarly involved.

I would welcome other views on this.

I am thankful that we live in the greatest country on earth. I am thankful for God’s gift of freedom to mankind. I am thankful that our founders gave us a Constitution that includes “checks and balances” so we can protect that freedom.

However, I am not thankful that our debt now exceeds 100% of our GDP and that our political class appears unable or unwilling to do anything meaningful about it.  The combination of ignorance, ambivalence and greed that caused this situation is totally unacceptable. But, we will leave the topic of irresponsible public debt for another time…

Here are two Thanksgiving Day items I think you will enjoy:

1). Lincoln’s Proclamation making Thanksgiving a national holiday. On October 3, 1863, Secretary of State William Seward handwrote a proclamation from the President, acknowledging the last Thursday of November “…as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise.” The proclamation notes that many good things were still occurring in America in spite of the Civil War. It gives God the credit and calls upon the people to be grateful to Him. Every American should read this at least once. (Link)

2). “The Great Thanksgiving Hoax.” This is an article written by Richard Maybury from the Von Mises Institute. A popular email “forward,” it debunks the conventional wisdom about the story of Thanksgiving.  Maybury notes that the narrative taught to children in schools is a, “…sanitized collection of half-truths which divert attention away from Thanksgiving’s real meaning.” He ultimately illustrates that, “The real reason for Thanksgiving, deleted from the history books is, Socialism does not work…” It is an excellent article. (Link)

Please mark your calendar that our next countywide Clermont Tea Party meeting is Tuesday, December 6th, 7p.m. at the Holiday Inn Eastgate. Monumental events keep happening here. It should prove to be yet another amazing night.

In the meantime, here is wishing you and yours a most blessed and joyous Thanksgiving Day! Please remember our troops and their families in your prayers today. May God bless them for their service and sacrifice. They are our true heroes, and we are truly thankful for all they do.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont County Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org

“Do you remember when I said I was going to do my apocalypse packet? I finished it last night. Here it is.” Glenn Beck 

Just a quick note to say thanks to all of you who helped make Ohio Issue 3, the Ohio Healthcare Freedom Amendment possible. It is hard to believe that after over a year and a half of petition gathering and volunteer coordinating; this end result has finally been achieved!

It is rather irksome to hear the media say this victory is, “largely symbolic.” Yes, symbolic if you believe that state sovereignty is symbolic. But the Tenth Amendment matters to me and it is anything but symbolic:

“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

The Ohio Healthcare Freedom Amendment not only sets a barricade against federal healthcare mandates, but it also protects Ohio from self-inflicted healthcare tyranny (i.e. programs like Romneycare in Massachusetts). It is indeed a concrete and enduring victory.

Governor Kasich Visit

I also want to thank all who attended our event with the Governor on Monday. We had over 500 people in attendance and it was one of the largest (if not the largest) rallies of its kind in the state. The Governor and his staff seemed very pleased with the visit. With any luck, Clermont County will be remembered as a go-to spot for such events in the future.

(Click to view more pictures of the visit.)

Special thanks to Bob Turner for his excellent remarks at the rally. His message about the importance of Clermont County voters cannot be revisited too often. Southwest Ohio is key to defending Liberty in Ohio and in America. Even in Tuesday’s election we saw evidence of this as Issue 3 captured over 75% of the votes in our County versus 66% statewide. I am proud of all of you and your hard work!

The fight to restore and defend freedom is a marathon and not a sprint. I look forward standing shoulder to shoulder with you at the next bridge.

Yours in Liberty,

Ted Stevenot
Clermont County Tea Party
www.clermontteaparty.org

“But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.” The Declaration of Independence, 1776

Crowds gathering…over 500 in attendance!  

Bob Turner addressing the crowd.

Ted Stevenot addressing crowd.

The kids take the stage!

The Governor and guests take the stage.

State Auditor Dave Yost addressing crowd.

Senate President Tom Niehaus addressing crowd.

Governor Kasich addressing crowd.

Governor Kasich and State Representative Joe Uecker.

Many thanks to all who attended!

It is a day that commemorates all who served in uniform. Its origins date back to the Great War, better known today as World War I. After four years of horrific violence, fighting finally came to an end on “the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day of the eleventh month,” in 1918.

A year later, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11, 1919 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day.  Congress officially recognized the end of the Great War as a day of commemoration when it passed a resolution on June 4, 1926.  Legislators envisioned the people observing, “the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.”

November 11 officially became the holiday known as “Armistice Day” on May 13, 1938 by an act of Congress.  It was set aside to honor veterans of World War I.

The next sixteen years brought another World War, though, that saw the greatest mobilization of troops in the country’s history, and the greatest number of dead and wounded.  Not long after the end of the Second World War, soldiers of the United States were engaged in another conflict in Korea.  All of this led Congress to change the name of “Armistice Day” to “Veterans Day” on June 1, 1954, to honor all veterans, past and present.

It is a day to remember, a day to reflect, a day to honor those who served so that we all might be free.  For some, their service represented just a few short years, while others made it a career.  In times of war, many gave the ultimate sacrifice: their lives.

Veterans Day celebrates the service of all those who wore the uniform.  Their service over the last 235 years has ensured the freedoms that we all cherish and enjoy today.

Bob Turner