Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness”:
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the Beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our national government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, AD 1789
George Washington
The Purple Donkephant Fundraiser
Announcing the Purple Donkephant – A collection of wayward items from supporters of the Constitution Party of West Virginia and made available to the public as a fundraising project for “Principles over Politics.” Items can be shipped at cost or picked up at one of our meetings. For more information or to donate your own items, call our hotline at (304) 591-7076 or contact the fundraising committee at PurpleDonkephant@gmail.com. Read More
Welcome New CPWV Officers
The CPWV is pleased to announce its new slate of State Officers for the 2012-2013 term. At yesterday’s meeting in Weston, in the shadows of one of our state’s famous landmarks, the party unanimously elected the following officers:
Brenda Donnellan – Chairwoman
Jeff Becker – Secretary, National Committeeman
Jeffrey-Frank..Jarrell – Vice-Chairman, National Committeeman
Denzil Sloan – National Committeeman
Gene Stalnaker – Treasurer
Betty Quintana (not pictured) – Trustee
Read More
CPWV Platform Position on Education Adopted
At the November 12, 2011 State Party meeting, officers of the CPWV adopted the following platform on Education:
Thomas Jefferson once said, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.” A well educated and inquisitive public is essential to an informed electorate which is then capable of defending our liberties and maintaining our American way of life. John Milton, author of the classic Paradise Lost, said “The end of all learning is to know God, and out of that knowledge to love and imitate Him.” Thus the mark of a quality education is that it inspires lifelong scholarship and devotion to the tenets of our Creator. This begins in childhood with elementary lessons preparatory to a broadened high school curriculum, and is then refined to meet piqued interests and aspirations via vocational, college and university plans of study. Ideal voters are thus those who have become self-learners instilled with a passion for knowledge and who look to numerous sources to quench their thirst for truth and understanding.
Because it is public education which, through taxation, statutes, bureaucracy, and elected school boards, finds itself in the political arena, this is where the CPWV takes its strongest interest.  We also seek to protect the rights of private, parochial, and homeschoolers, as well as promote the use of public libraries, museums, and historical sites as places of learning. Since Article XII § 1 of the West Virginia State Constitution mandates that “the legislature shall provide, by general law, for a thorough and efficient system of free schools,†public education in our state must accurately reflect each of the key words of this requirement.
Legislature: The word “legislature†specifically refers to the West Virginia State Legislature which is presently comprised of one hundred and thirty-four duly elected State Delegates and Senators. Our legislature does not include any members of federal Congress or any employees of any federal, non-governmental, or international agencies. Thus, by law, only Mountain State residents may have any control over our educational process. According to the 10th 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.” The federal Department of Education is without authority here and all mandates from it, its deceptively named sub-agencies such as the proposed Office of Rural Education, or any other outside groups are without force.
Provide: The word “provide†means to make available for voluntary use. It does not mean to force or coerce which is the action of tyrants. And, because learning requires an open and receptive mind, effective education cannot be forced upon our youth. The natural law of our Creator assigns the authority and responsibility of educating children to their parents.  So that parents need not defy conflicting statutory law by refusing to send their children to schools of which they disapprove, compulsory attendance laws, and especially those for preschool and kindergarten, should be repealed. Another reason for repealing compulsory attendance laws is that, much like perishable food which will spoil if not eaten, it is wasteful of public funds to attempt to provide education to those who would refuse it. Therefore, public education should only be maintained for children who enter the classroom prepared to learn. This preparedness is the onus of the parent/guardian who must ensure that their children arrive at school with a motivated interest in learning.  Because of this key symbiotic parent-child relationship, we hold that the concept of education as a fundamental right is patently erroneous and it has no constitutionally preferred status.
General Law: The term “general law†refers to public legislation which becomes statutory law in the form of West Virginia Code. In order to be lawful, these new written edicts may not conflict with the natural law of our Creator or the organic structure or protected rights of our Constitution. The “general†nature of these laws signifies that they leave room for development and implementation at the county level, establish basic educational expectations, and allow teachers to independently instruct and train their pupils without micromanagement.
Thorough: The word “thorough,†being the first adjective for “system,†refers to the curriculum of a comprehensive and well rounded education. The CPWV holds that a thorough education is a broad one which consists of the following eight academic characteristics:
1)     Reading is paramount.  The road to education lay through great books.  No man is educated unless he is acquainted with the masterpieces of his tradition – books that have endured.  The wisdom that lies in the works of the world’s greatest thinkers is to be captured and brought to bear on modern society’s problems.  However, revision of literature, for the sake of readability (including condensed versions), ostensibly for young readers, is an Orwellian danger. A curious reader is a life-long self learner.
2)     Writing and grammar skills come from reading experience.  Compositional ability is directly connected to the quality, quantity, and variety of books read.  Thus, hand-written essays and book report assignments should be expanded. Also, foreign languages, studies which strengthen ones understanding of their own tongue, should be emphasized; particularly the romance languages and Latin.
3)     Mathematics and the analytical sciences are crucial to the development of critical thinking skills.  Problem solving without electronic devices should be the emphasis of basic algebra, geometry, trigonometry, chemistry, and physics. Real laboratory experiments should be reinstated without fear of lawsuits.
4)     Comprehensive health education should include courses in biology, botany, and nutrition with sex education confined to the study of basic anatomy and pathology rather than social issues. Earth sciences and ecology should be taught with respect to man as the dominant species.
5)     In his 1788 book On the Education of Youth in America, Noah Webster said “Every child in America should be acquainted with his own country. He should read books that furnish him with ideas that will be useful to him in life and practice. As soon as he opens his lips, he should rehearse the history of his own country.” American history and civics should include basic law and political content and must replace “social studies.â€Â Geography, world, European, ancient, and West Virginia history should be interwoven into these studies.
6)     Learning to speak properly and effectively deliver an oral message is something which forces the student to simultaneously develop a strong command of his language as well as the detail subject matter. It also instills self confidence and improves social skills. An increase in student presentations and class debates with attention to forensics and reasoning are suggested ways to improve proficiency in this area.
7)     All teaching is related to basic assumptions about God and man.  Education as a whole, therefore, cannot be separated from religious faith.  In fact, public education began so that people could read the Bible on their own.  A Biblical foundation, which is the basis for our laws and civil rights, should be a part of the curriculum, even if at least as literature. School prayer and invocations at sporting events should be permitted at the option of local school boards.
8)     Consensus and leadership workplace skills should be left to parents and civic groups such as scouting, 4H, and church groups. This includes the curbing of compelled fundraising.
Efficient: The word “efficient,†being the second adjective for “system,†refers to the intensity of the curriculum and the management of its administration. First and foremost, the myriad of distractions in today’s schools must be eliminated. These include all personal electronic devices (zero tolerance), Channel 1, daytime extracurricular activities, and excessive student interaction. Where possible, pupils should be separated by gender and coed physical education should be prohibited. To keep focus on the teacher and students on task, desks should be arranged not in distracting groups, but in rows (by random seating) or, even better, in cubicles. Computers should be kept in a designated area for research and scholastic purposes only. Since unruly and discourteous students are disruptive to the learning environment, corporal punishment must be reinstated and judiciously used as it is in twenty-two other states. We entertain a return of the reform school as a discipline measure. Because self respect is a prerequisite to respect for others, particularly teachers, obnoxious attire, hair, and jewelry should be abated through the implementation of simple dress codes. Federal government control of education is inefficient as well as unconstitutional. Thus it is that we seek local school control beginning with parents, school administration and then the county authority. To better understand their school issues, we encourage parental attendance in the classroom.
System: The word “system†refers to the pedagogy of the individual schools.  It is the specific instructional methodology that prepares adolescents for adult life – the “learning ladder†to success. We strongly oppose Global21 agenda outcome based education and reject teaching to standardized tests where test results are tied to funding. The real purpose of testing is for teacher evaluation to improve the instructional method. Recognizing that the bell curve is natural and some students will excel while others will not, we favor replacing, after the elementary level, age-based classes with ability-based training.  Most lessons should be textbook based rather than group-think consensus projects. Guidance counseling for career-based course selection needs to be expanded at the middle school level, not earlier, with emphasis on college preparatory, professional, and vocational decision paths. We are adamantly opposed to the consolidation of school districts and aver that individual counties have ultimate administrative and supervisory authority, not the state or regions via centralized power. Under no circumstances should the federal government be involved in national teacher certification, educational curricula, textbook selection, learning standards, comprehensive sex education, or psychological/psychiatric research testing programs.
Free: The word “free,†as an adjective for schools, has several meanings among which are: no direct costs, open to children of all demographics, and unencumbered by government bureaucracy.  Financially, since it is largely property taxes which fund our schools through socialistic wealth redistribution, the public deserves to get its money’s worth.  Since academic performance has been on the decline in America since the 1980s, it is clear that progressive increases in technology spending have not been good value. The proliferation of computers, smart boards, and other devices in the classroom is more distraction than instruction. School monetary focus needs to be on basics like maintaining attractive teacher salaries and making sure that each student has their own subject textbook rather than relying only on classroom sets. Allocated spending which results in expensive unused books and canned teaching materials should be eliminated. Assistance to low-income families in meeting school supply or nutrition needs must be borne by charity. As long as totally free from federal subsidies, we support equitable local tax relief or voucher programs for families whose children do not attend government schools. Additionally, the public has the right to access, for the purpose of lawful public assembly and with reasonable use policy, school facilities after regular hours.
Schools: The word “schools†refers to places of academic learning where the purpose is intellectual development, not social pleasure. Our system of public education was not created for entertainment or free day care purposes. We reject the idea of schools as the cultural hub of a community. All extracurricular non-academic activities must be held after school and either privately funded or turned over to other local civic groups. So called “work enrichment†experience programs are nothing more than shameful compulsory volunteerism which promotes the odious global agenda and should be abolished.  Youth who are not interested in developing their mental acumen need not attend our public schools.
The reduction of a citizen to an object of propaganda, private and public, is one of the greatest dangers to our Republic.  A prevalent notion is that the great mass of the people cannot understand and cannot form an independent judgment upon any matter; they cannot be educated, in the sense of developing their intellectual powers, but they can be bamboozled.  The reiteration of slogans, the distortion of the news, the great storm of propaganda that beats upon the citizen twenty-four hours a day all his life means either that democracy must fall prey to the loudest and most persistent propagandists or that the people must save themselves by strengthening their minds so that they can appraise the issues for themselves. Thus it is that we support the unimpeded right of parents to provide for the education of their children in the manner they deem best, including home, private or religious.  We oppose all legislation from any level of government that would interfere with or restrict that liberty.
State Meeting – Weston, THIS Saturday Nov. 12
The next state meeting of the Constitution Party of West Virginia will be held on Saturday, November 12, 2011 at noon. The location of this meeting will be Kathy’s Kitchen in Weston, Lewis County (centrally located). The address is 143 Water Street. Easy to find. See the directions below. This meeting is open to the public.The CPWV will nominate and elect its Executive Committee officers for the 2012-2013 term. The elected Chairman will also appoint officers to other positions. Those of you interested in being actively involved with our party administration need to first be registered to vote Constitution Party and current with annual party dues. You can do this at your county courthouse and check the “Other Party” box on the voter registration form followed by writing “Constitution” on the line.
Resolution on the Presidential Ineligibility of Barack Hussein Obama
By unanimous consent of the CPWV Executive Committee at meeting duly assembled at Terra Alta, Preston County, WV, September 11, 2011, the following resolution has been proclaimed and simultaneously proposed for introduction at the upcoming CP National Party meeting on October 7th/8th in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho.
Whereas, Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution states that No person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President…
Whereas, Barack Hussein Obama was not born until the 20th century and was thus not a Citizen of the United States in the Year of Our Lord, 1788 when our Constitution was adopted.
Whereas, Article I, Section 8, Clause 10 of the United States Constitution states that The Congress shall have Power …To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations.
Whereas, The Law of Nations is a set of books by the Swiss writer Emerich de Vattel and was originally published in the French language in 1758. This important work was studied by our founders, particularly as evidenced by George Washington’s two-hundred year overdue copy from the New York Public Library, and defines the principles of the law of nature applied to the conduct and affairs of nations and sovereigns. Its clear reference in the United States Constitution is proof positive of our Founders’ desire that it be a primary source of understanding.
Whereas, Book 1 of The Law of Nations, Chapter XIX, § 212 (Joseph Chitty numbering) – “Citizens and natives” reads:
The citizens are the members of the civil society; bound to this society by certain duties, and subject to its authority, they equally participate in its advantages. The natives, or natural-born citizens, are those born in the country, of parents who are citizens. As the society cannot exist and perpetuate itself otherwise than by the children of the citizens, those children naturally follow the condition of their fathers, and succeed to all their rights. The society is supposed to desire this, in consequence of what it owes to its own preservation; and it is presumed, as matter of course, that each citizen, on entering into society, reserves to his children the right of becoming members of it. The country of the fathers is therefore that of the children; and these become true citizens merely by their tacit consent. We shall soon see whether, on their coming to the years of discretion, they may renounce their right, and what they owe to the society in which they were born. I say, that, in order to be of the country, it is necessary that a person be born of a father who is a citizen; for, if he is born there of a foreigner, it will be only the place of his birth, and not his country.
Whereas, the 1995 memoir Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance repeatedly references Barack Hussein Obama’s father as being of Kenyan citizenship.
Whereas, the April 27, 2011 “Certification of Live Birth” (long form) birth certificate posted on the whitehouse.gov website confirms that the Kenyan, Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., is the father of the current White House occupant.
Whereas, the Immigration and Naturalization Services records of Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., as recently obtained by the “Arizona Independent,” confirm his dual Kenyan and British citizenship.
Whereas, Amendment 20, Section 3 of the United States Constitution states that …if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party finds that the putative president Barack Hussein Obama is not a natural born Citizen and has thus failed to qualify for the office of U.S. President.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party advocates the immediate removal of the usurper and the installation of an eligible candidate to the office of acting President.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party calls upon Congress to act in its 20th Amendment capacity to immediately reconvene the December 2008 Electoral College and appeals to it to hold a new vote amongst all eligible 2008 party nominees and independent candidates so as to elect a legitimate president to fill out the remaining term.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party also calls upon Congress to act in its 20th Amendment capacity to immediately pass such laws as may be necessary to lay before the public with unquestionable legal authority that body of government or official(s) which is to have primary responsibility in determining presidential eligibility. We the people demand an end be put to the audacious questions of standing and passing the buck between members of Congress and the judiciary for this critical issue.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party calls for an immediate independent investigation into Barack Hussein Obama’s background, actions, associations, and public and private records and demands thorough and swift prosecution of all those persons and organizations involved in the perpetration, cover-up, enabling and abetting of any and all associated fraud.
Resolved, that the Constitution Party calls for the nullification of all laws and executive orders enacted by the Obama administration including the removal of Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan as well as all other persons appointed to any and all offices by the putative usurper president.
Motor Vehicle Laws Platform Position Adopted
By unanimous vote of its Executive Committee, at meeting duly assembled in Terra Alta, Preston County, September 11, 2011, the Constitution Party of West Virginia has adopted the following state platform position:
Motor Vehicle Laws
Free people have a common law right to travel on the roads and highways that are provided by their government for that purpose. This natural right is an unrestricted one as long as there is no damage or violation of the property or rights of others. The 1215 Magna Carta, the basis of all of our American founding documents, enshrined this right to travel in Articles 41 and 42 which respectively state, “All merchants may enter or leave England unharmed and without fear, and may stay or travel within it, by land or water, for purposes of trade, free from all illegal exactions,” and “It shall be lawful to any person, for the future, to go out of our kingdom, and to return, safely and securely, by land or by water.” Additionally, in Shapiro v Thompson, 394 U.S. 618 (1969), Justice Potter Stewart noted in a concurring opinion that the right to travel “is a right broadly assertable against private interference as well as governmental action. Like the right of association…it is a virtually unconditional personal right…” The Articles of Confederation had an explicit right to travel, and we hold that the right to travel is so fundamental that the Framers thought it was unnecessary to include it in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. “The right to travel is a well-established common right that does not owe its existence to the federal government. It is recognized by the courts as a natural right,” declares Schactman v Dulles 96 App DC 287, 225 F2d 938, at 941.
Therefore, licensing of travelers cannot be required of free people because taking on the restrictions of a license requires the surrender of an inalienable right. This is confirmed in the Federal court decision Murdock vs. Pennsylvania 319 US 105 (1942) which said, “A state cannot impose a license, tax or fee on a constitutionally protected right.” As such we support legislation such as the Georgia Right to Travel Act, House Bill 875 (November 2009) and advocate replacing the state-issued license for travelers with a simple and privately issued (through DMV accredited training schools) Operator Competency Certificate. Note that this OCC would not be a form of identification and would only be for the sole purpose of promoting the safe operation of motorized conveyances on public roads. As exhibited at the Washington, DC Museum of American History’s “Transportation in America” display, wallet-sized operator’s certificates worked just fine for us for many years until they were surreptitiously converted into licenses in the 1950s. They contain no photographic images or biometric identifiers and are not part of or accessible by any criminal database or national ID system. Other forms of State ID such as passport cards are currently available and should remain completely voluntary.
As with the overtly Draconian “Obamacare” health insurance scheme which has been ruled unconstitutional and struck down by a number of courts (U.S. District Court Judge Roger Vinson of Florida, Federal District Court Judge Henry E. Hudson of Virginia, and the U.S. Appeals Court for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta to name just a few), compulsory motor vehicle insurance is also coercion to contract and equally unconstitutional. Likewise, annual safety inspections effectively result in collusion with repair facilities which benefit from the added customers. Whereas insurance agencies and auto shops are both for-profit businesses and there is no place in a truly free society for governments to be in bed with corporations, we call for a repeal of these fascist statutes and instead advocate a return to individual responsibility. Nobody wants to intentionally risk their own lives or the lives of others on the public roads and government regulations and legislation are not guarantees of safety. Thus, travelers should only be required to sign a simple legally binding annual agreement of financial responsibility, competency, and medical and equipment fitness.
The automobile is perhaps the ultimate example of the Declaration’s “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Having a deep-rooted appreciation of our inventive and industrious heritage, we are passionate and nostalgic for them. Thus it is that our conveyances proudly belong to us and are our personal property. We seek an end to the hijacking of automobile ownership through DMV bureaucracy which covertly exchanges Manufacturer Statements of Origin (the iconic “pink slip”) for state-issued Certificates of Title and the now “privilege” of “driving.” Additionally, we favor using “number tags,” not “license plates” which generally stay with the conveyance for its life as is done in Europe. Whereas having to show tax paperwork to register a vehicle is akin to requiring a constitutionally prohibited poll tax to vote, we advocate the abolition of all feudal “property tax” rent payments. And, we declare that our constitutionally protected rights to privacy and against self-incrimination are held inviolate in our personal space inside of our modes of transportation. This is true whether it be with regard to unwarranted searches of our possessions or our personal decisions on the use of seat-belts, air bags, helmets, cell phones, daytime running lights or event data recorders.
The purpose of law enforcement is to protect and serve, not to act as revenue agents. Likewise, the only legitimate roles of the DMV are to keep track of rolling stock ownership, their associated number plates, registration tags, and operator training accreditation. Other than local bonds, all costs to provide and maintain the public roads should be borne by the annual plate tax which should be based solely on the manufacturer’s stated gross vehicle weight and not the perceived value of one’s conveyance. Since we propose eliminating its records of personal information and insurance bureau, the DMV will be greatly streamlined further reducing costs. Furthermore, we call for an end to prosecutions for victimless crimes where there are no injured parties. Operators of motorized conveyances are not criminals. Law enforcement can deal with motoring infractions in a civil and polite manner by brief detainments for safety talks and the point system. Highway speed limits should be based on average traffic pattern values rather than arbitrary numbers.
Roadblocks are properly used only to promote the public safety, particularly in emergency situations, and for manhunts and other legitimate procedures. We concur with both the Michigan Supreme Court and Justice Clarence Thomas (re: Sitz vs. Michigan) that slyly renaming them “sobriety checkpoints” opens the door to all manner of potential police harassment and intimidation and is blatantly unconstitutional on plain to see 4th and 5th Amendment grounds. Across the country, DUI roadblocks are being turned into multi-million dollar enterprises where they are used as an excuse to confiscate vehicles, assess crippling fines, and arrest motorists for a host of non-alcohol related violations. Likewise, we are opposed to unverifiable speed and red light cameras as well as anti-liberty stop and ID laws. We seek an end to street assaults against the sovereign people for failing to exhibit a State-issued confession of subject-class citizenship.
“The use of the highway for the purpose of travel and transportation is not a mere privilege, but a common fundamental right of which the public and individuals cannot rightfully be deprived,” concludes Chicago Motor Coach v. Chicago, 169 NE 221. Thus, and especially where rights secured by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of West Virginia are involved, the legislature has no power to abrogate the citizens’ right to travel by passing statutes forcing him to waive and convert that right into a privilege. “The claim and exercise of a constitutional right cannot be converted into a crime,” ruled Miller v U.S. 230F 486 at 489. There can be no sanction or penalty imposed upon an individual because of this exercise of constitutionally protected rights. We seek a common sense and unobtrusive yet responsible approach to motorist safety.
Spirit of '76 for Phil HudOK – WRITE-IN for Governor
Appropriately enough, Phil Hudok received seventy six (76) official write-in votes in this year’s special election for governor. However, there were 425 total write-in votes recorded ( as shown by the Secretary of State’s report http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/statesummary.aspx ), so why were 268 not counted? This MUST BE INVESTIGATED!
A sincere thank you to everyone who voted for Phil on October 4th.
Phil is from Huttonsville near Elkins in Randolph County and was the CP’s ballot-qualified candidate for U.S. Congress, 2nd District last year. More information about Phil and his candidacy can be found on his campaign website at www.hudok.com.
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Redistricting Ideas & Maps Online
Constitution Party of West Virginia Chairman Jeff Becker has placed a number of redistricting ideas with detailed color maps on his website at http://jeffbecker.us. Columnist Phil Kabler commented on them in his West Virginia Gazette article last week: http://wvgazette.com/News/201106101179
There is a 30-member House of Delegates redistricting team that is holding meetings around the state on these, as well as John Unger’s State Senate task force. More information on these and other legislative activities can be found at http://www.legis.state.wv.us/redistricting.cfm
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Tea Party Hijackers
SOURCE: http://thirdpartypolitics.us/blog/2010/02/20/tea-party-hijackers
by Raymond Kish, Vice-Chairman and 2010 Candidate CP of Missouri
The Tea Party needs to make a choice between an “R” or a “D”, or so says Sarah Palin. The GOP rock star told an audience full of Tea Party members in Arkansas on Tuesday night, Feb. 16, that the Independents, who make up the Tea Party movement, need to start thinking about picking a party.
I think she is right. The Tea Party needs to make a choice, but not from within the two-party system that Palin claims we are stuck with. The Tea Party needs to decide right now whether they are going to let this movement be stolen by failed establishment candidates, or whether or not it is going to press forward and elect independent and third party candidates.
We do have choices, and they are not limited to Republicans and Democrats.
The Tea Party, from its beginning, was formed in response to the failure of both parties to listen to the will of the people. For Sarah Palin to suggest that we should pick between those same two failed parties is an insult. The rank in file members of the Tea Party movement should throw their current leaders out on their ear for allowing a movement of independents and Constitutionalists to be highjacked by either party.
Palin rightly points out that the Tea Party is not a Political party and cannot run candidates, but she is wrong to say there are only two choices because there is another choice: The Constitution Party. The Constitution Party has candidates running for office all across the United States, and the Constitution Party platform fits the Tea Party like a glove.
The Republicans and Democrats share the blame for our current economic crisis, and neither party has any real solution on how to fix it. Both parties gave us bailouts and stimulus programs adding mountains of debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay back. In spite of all that money being spent, we still had 473,000 people file for unemployment benefits in the second week of February and have lost over 8 million jobs since 2007. With a track record like that, there is no reason whatsoever that America should choose between either party currently in power.
To say we have to pick between two incompetent choices is absolute lunacy. What America needs to do right now is make the decision not to return either Party back to Washington or any State office for that matter. Vote in a party with American ideas; a Party who has an American view of how the government should be run; a party that realizes that the Constitution is more than a word you say at a rally to get some applause. They need to vote in The Constitution Party.
If Palin was a true tea party patriot, she would not be asking us to choose between a Marxist party and a Fascist party. She would be leading her followers to a truly American party. . . . . The Constitution Party.
We are a nation, who is ruled by the consent of the governed. It is time the people remove their consent from the two establishment parties and put a Constitution Party candidate into office. The only way for both establishment parties to get the message is for both establishment parties to lose. To vote for either a Republican or a Democrat is to give your consent to two political parties who have made a living out of betraying the American people, our Founding Fathers and our Constitution, which each one swears fidelity to upon taking office.
America, don’t be fooled. Neither establishment party can be trusted. Send the hijackers packing, and let’s continue to build upon a truly great movement of the people.