A young bright star was extinguished on March 19, 2011.  Army Spc. Rudy Acosta a 19 year old from Santa Clarita was killed by a foreign national paid to guard our troops in battle.

Mr. Holt sites a letter from our Congressman Buck McKeon which was sent to the Signal and to Leon Panetta, our Secretary of Defense.  In it apparently Congressman McKeon expresses his “disappointment” about how long it took to get the report, and he “identified several areas and procedures that could be improved to prevent future insurgent attacks of this nature.”

Are you kidding me?  This is absurd and patronizing first to the Acosta family and secondly to us, whom the Congressman is suppose to represent!

First, let’s fix the immediate issue.  Don’t let citizens of nations that we’re at war with guard our troops.  Rather have either our troops guard themselves or at least US private contractors … Duh!  This is simply common sense.  Would you have criminal street gangs guard our police and sheriff stations?  Would you have child molesters guard our schools?

This is not a complex issue requiring committee meetings and reports.  When our troops are eating meals, sleeping, or enjoying some much needed down time, they should not have to worry that the person guarding them might kill them.

Second, the bigger issue … massive governmental incompetence from our local Congressman to the Secretary of Defense.

Congressman McKeon is the “Chairman of the Committee of Armed Services” for goodness sake!  Assuming he’s being truthful (which I doubt) this means that our government is completely inept.  If the Chairman of the Committee of Armed Services can’t get a simple report from the military than who can?

Moreover, according to the story the report was actually completed on April 14.  That means that Congressman McKeon sat on his hands for 8 months!  He should have demanded that as soon as the report was completed it is to be delivered to his desk.  Or at minimum McKeon should have been checking regularly on the status of the report, clearly he was not.

So what then was the catalyst causing the Chairman of the Committee of Armed Services to check on such an important report?  Well, he received on Friday, December 16, the day after the Signal reported a story on this issue, and three days after McKeon’s Chief of Staff was confronted by Mr. Acosta (Rudy’s dad) at a local GOP event.

Apparently it takes public disclosure of their incompetence for the McKeon machine to do their job.  Congressman McKeon has a duty to provide oversight to our military.  He is our voice to protect our young men and women serving in the military.  Congressman McKeon has a duty to provide answers to a grieving family in his district.  He has failed on both accounts.

It’s time to vote out Congressman McKeon and replace him with someone who will do their job!

Strategically it makes sense.  Look at Brett Favre.  He teetered for several years.  Finally he was forced out (although he didn’t take the hint, and went to another team).  If the Packers held on to Favre for nostalgic reasons, or if they believed that only Favre could carry the torch they would never have had the rise of the amazing Aaron Rodgers … they wouldn’t be in the midst of an undefeated season … they wouldn’t be the defending Super Bowl champions!

Buck McKeon is our Brett Favre!  It’s time for him to hang up his hat.  It’s time find a new champion to carry the conservative torch.  Buck’s effectiveness is waning.  He lacks influence.  He’s not connected to us anymore.  He is part of the political ruling class (especially now with his desire to put his unqualified wife in the seat vacated by Cameron Smyth).

We need a change.  We need someone who will listen to us, respond to us and represent us!  Surely we can find someone with the passion and desire to make a difference for us as our Congressman.

What do you think?  Is there someone out there who can lead?

Moreover, these states also suffer the greatest casualties from gangs, drug trafficking and human trafficking.  If it’s this easy for thugs to illegally cross the border undetected how much more is it for terrorists who plan for years their strategies?

We must deal swiftly and resolutely with the border issue for our security and economic survival.  However we also need to figure out what to do with those illegal immigrants who have come here just to work and have been here for many years.  Many of them have raised families, which adds to the economic burden but must be acknowledged.

The crime of illegally immigrating to the United States must be punished, and it can be done in a humane way using common sense and justice.  Here’s my simple idea:

1. If you’ve been here for less than 10 years with no criminal history you get deported with an option to return legally.

2. If you have been convicted of any felony you get deported and refused re-entry permanently.

3. If you’ve been here for longer than 10 years with no criminal history you are given temporary transitional visas under the following guidelines:

• You must acquire legal residency within 5 years
• You’re wages are garnished for back taxes of $4,000 per year, split evenly between the state and federal government (that would be equivalent to what they would have paid in federal taxes if they earned about $27,000 annually)
• Any felony conviction results in immediate deportation with permanently refused re-entry

I’m sure this plan is not perfect, but let’s bring some sanity to this problem and solve it!
 

If the enemy of my enemy is my friend, then the Occupy contingent would be more closely aligned with Al-Qaeda.

Al-Qaeda has for years targeted Wall Street as the source of capitalism, greed and materialism.  Occupy … ditto.

Al-Qaeda implemented plans to disturb or destroy Wall Street.  Occupy … ditto.

Al-Qaeda has engendered support from the national mainstream media and the left (same thing).  Occupy … ditto.

Clearly Al-Qaeda and Occupy have differing motivations however their target and goals seem identical.  The problem is that if they achieve their goal then our economic and political system will be vulnerable to the agendas of both the Occupy misfits and the Al-Qaeda terrorists.

Are you grateful that you can worship or not as you want? – Thank a Vet

Are you glad that you speak English instead of German or Japanese? – Thank a Vet

Are you excited to publicly express being gay? – Thank a Vet

Are you empowered because you can vote? – Thank a Vet

Are you thankful that you can sit in front of a government building for weeks demanding to be given benefits paid for by the very people you complain about, while other men and women are sitting thousands of miles away from their homes risking their lives in some stinking desert? – Thank a Vet!

My dear young friend, It’s not a “bubble” it’s a value system.  If someone is Republican they might be either liberal or conservative.

If you are liberal you believe that the federal government has the primary responsibility to protect you and provide for your needs.  They believe we are protected by government regulations, and we are provided for by taking money out of your paycheck and giving some of the money you’ve earned to other people.

If you are conservative you believe that the federal government’s responsibilities are outlined and limited to what is in the Constitution and the subsequent Amendments.  Specifically:

• Protecting citizens God-given rights (on-going)
• National Defense (on-going)
  
• Establishing Federal Courts (done)
  
• Copyright Protection (on-going)
  
• Establishing a national set of weights and measures (done)
  
• Establishing Post Office (on-going)
  

Everything else should be taken care of by the individual citizen or the state government.

The problem with getting outside a “bubble” is that requires destroying the bubble … and that bubble can never be restored.

If you think that you should make the decision about who to help with your money and how much you should give them, then you my young friend are not liberal, you are conservative.

Currently there is a man, a husband, a father of two, sitting in prison waiting for his execution.  His crime?  He’s a Christian in a Muslim country.

Youcef Nadarkhani an Iranian citizen has been tried and convicted in the Iranian judicial system for being a Christian.  He was given three chances to deny his faith in Jesus to spare his life … He did not recant.

Congress has launched a major bipartisan effort to empower Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton to apply political pressure to Iran for this crime against humanity.  To date 39 Congressmen have signed it.  However, my Congressman, the “Conservative” Howard P. Buck McKeon (R CA-25) has not!

Buck I can’t understand why you would be silent on this important issue.

As my representative in Washington I demand that you make my voice heard and sign this letter!  If you refuse I will do all I can to replace you with someone who will represent me … Mr. Congressman you represent me, not your interests.  You work for me and I will fire you and replace you if you don’t do your job!
 

The Second Amendment reads, “A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

Thus our right to keep and bear arms is not to hunt or to keep thugs from stealing our stuff … it’s to have citizens armed with weapons and able to form militias to protect our State from oppressive governments!

Funny how it seems to get back to an out of control Federal government usurping the rights of individuals and States.

These people are either woefully ignorant, or disingenuous at best.  The Tea Party supports the 10 Amendment, “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.”  In other words the Federal governments powers and authority are limited to those few and specific things assigned to it.

A simple way to understand this is that your problems and needs should be handled as close to you as possible.  You are responsible to provide and protect yourself.  In some instances that job will be too big for you.  At those times those things should be handled by your family, then your community, then your State, then the Federal government.

Today we’ve turned that on it’s head and look to the Federal government first to fix our problems and provide for us.

The Tea Party is not for Anarchy, it is for each person and entity assuming its proper role and authority.
 

The principles of the Constitution are based on, or inspired by Biblical principles, Biblical principles reflect the character of God.  Many people won’t understand this but let me explain rationally and equivocally using one characteristic of God as an example.

God is love.  God wants us to love others as He does.  Life experience and logic tell you that if you kidnapped someone and forced them to “love” you, that would not be true love.  Love requires choice not force or coercion.

One application of that Biblical principle based on the character of God is that in America you have freedom of religion (not freedom “from” religion).  Each person has the right to choose to worship or not as he or she chooses. 

Why?  Because God loves you, He will not force you to love Him.

Moreover, the application of this Biblical principle is an example of America’s supremacy over many other nations.  In many nations today you do not have the freedom to exercise religion, or your choice of which religion to practice is forced upon you.  As I write this article there is a Christian father in Iran who is facing execution because he refused to renounce his Christian faith and return to Islam.

Thus The Tea Party, like our Constitution is not trying to establish a religion, it’s trying to protect everyone’s rights by relying on the wisdom of our Founders who based our laws on Biblical principles.

The bottom line is that if you are an Atheist, Muslim, Pagan, Christian, Agnostic, et.al … you have the Liberty to hold and express those views because that is your God-given right protected by our Constitution.

When it comes to our Libertarian friends two issues jump out at me right away; Morals matter and Religion matters.

While we share many concerns with Libertarians, especially when it comes to the economy, what distinguishes Tea Party members is that it is not ONLY about the economy.  Our Founding Fathers were clear, in order for this nation to survive it must by lead my moral people held accountable by moral people.

Character matters.  Social issues such as abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research are important.  What is taught to our children in schools about tolerance, sex and history are important.  And maintaining a strong military is essential.

We cannot be scared away from acknowledging the fact that America is a great, prosperous, tolerant, generous, law-abiding nation because she was founded on Biblical principles.  To the degree that we stray from that will erode our national character and benefits.
 

I understand the strategic need to use the Republican Party to get candidates into office.  However, some well-meaning GOP’ers simply can’t wrap their conditioned mind around the concept that we are not a “plank” of the GOP, we’re not a bunch of disenfranchised members of the Republican Party, and we’re not capable of being bullied by their usual tactics!

Let me state our relationship with the Republican Party plainly and clearly:  Like it or not we live in a two party system.  The Tea Party is strategically using the GOP to get conservative candidates in office.  We are doing that by replacing Liberal Republicans then winning elections against the other party.

Allow me to share two quick stories to illustrate this point.  My first meeting as a leader of our local Tea Party was in a friend’s house with about 20 other people.  As I shared this concept I was met with some blank stares and some confused people nodding their heads.  When this concept was applied to voting I asserted that I would not vote for a candidate who was not conservative simply because he/she had an “R” after their name.  There was a group gasp followed by days of angry and concerned calls and emails.

Several months later I was having a breakfast meeting with the Chief of Staff for my local Congressman.  He patiently explained to me how we needed to put up more liberal candidates in some areas so that we could win those seats to ensure a larger voting bloc in the house … blah, blah, blah.  I chuckled and told him, “That’s not the way it works anymore.  Here’s how it works.  You put up conservative candidates and we will vote for them and they will win.  You put up RJINO’s and we will not vote for them and you will lose.”

The GOP thinks the Tea Party is a fringe of the Republican Party that they can use.  They have it backwards.  The Tea Party is a distinct voting bloc that is resolute.  They are not using us, Rather we are using them!