Lawlessness rises in our streets, in our Texas and DC Capitols, and in the halls of “Justice.” Lawlessness will grow until We the People WORK to restore order. The political ruling class is more destructive than rioters because it is they who set the stage for the current chaos in the streets and in our elections. The Rule of Law has been so bastardized – by politicians in both parties – that it has been downgraded to a political menu from which the ruling class picks and chooses to suit their political convenience. How do you think illegal immigration took root? How did election law become a suggestion?
The elite decide which law applies, when it applies, and to whom it applies. Rather than a nation ruled by laws that consistently apply to everyone, all of the time, we are ruled by whims of men. Our Founders warned against this because this is how liberty dies!
The safeguarding “walls” of our country are now breached. The Rule of Law is brazenly shred before our very eyes. Time to demand and stand for the Constitutional States of America! Before we can help lead that charge, Texas patriots, we have some housecleaning to do ourselves! We are not to be subjects of any earthly, self-appointed king issuing executive orders that violate our state constitution and our rights.
We can see 2022 from here, but the Austin elites have a plan too. It is one you won’t expect. Beware of “shiny” objects meant to distract you from the mission – saving Texas! Watch for a political newcomer to emerge shortly after the 2021 legislative session is over. A deal has been made. They have constructed for you a “savior” who cannot and will not save Texas.
We will always support the Trump Way – “America First” and a non-California lite, robustly free Texas! How about you?
We recently had two outstanding Allied Security Operations Group presentations (Athens & Temple) about Human Intelligence Operations or HUMINT.
Intel operatives are male. They are female. Spies or “information miners” come in all shapes. They come in all sizes. They are all races and ages. They can be sweet talking, bold, shy or the quiet type. They are from the Left and the Right.
Political, cultural, and social interactions are used by adversaries who employ “social engineering” techniques to manipulate and regulate human behavior. They infiltrate civic groups and political organizations using deception to manipulate individuals into divulging confidential or personal information that can be used in several harmful ways. Sabotage your get-out-the-vote plan? Delay your political mailers and sign deliveries? Scramble your block walking? Distract your organization with a personal attack?
Don’t be a source for lobbyists, political consultants, and other types of saboteurs! Watch what you say, where you say it, and to whom you say it. Why do you think I always refuse to attend any meeting in an Austin restaurant? [Hint: They hire waiters and waitresses, don’t ya know?]
If you are a group leader with sensitive information – for heaven’s sake – don’t upchuck everything you think you know on social media! For example, when you post, “I met with a group to discuss XYZ.” Really? Well, congratulations, you just let every political operative out there know that you are a walking billboard!
Finally, for those who drink adult beverages – don’t be an idiot. Drinking alcohol at political events is just plain stupid. Loose lips sink ships.
The National Voting Rights Act (NVRA) specifies that list maintenance activities on voter registration lists cannot be conducted within 90 days of a federal election.
The NVRA allows states to implement provisions for the maintenance of voter rolls at their discretion above and beyond the NVRA’s requirements if they are uniform and non-discriminatory. The NVRA is a floor, not a ceiling. For more information on the NVRA see this webpage from the Department of Justice.
This week Gov. Abbott and his Secretary of State blew right past the federal deadline to perform list maintenance and verify Texas voter rolls to remove non-citizens, felons, and the deceased. They did not get it done. They never even tried after the acting Secretary of State was appointed by Gov. Abbott in August 2019!
Want to know HOW we know they didn’t try? We didn’t hear the Democrats, Big Media, and every other loony Leftist group screaming to the top of their lungs!
NOTE:
If ANYBODY can provewith documentationthat a complete verification of our statewide registered voter list has been completed since the end of the 86th Legislative Session on May 27, 2019, send it! We will make your proof public and apologize to the Gov. & his SOS.
Shaking your head and asking “WHY?” a Republican Governor would not make this a priority?We have no answers for you. No, not one.
What did grassroots leaders do to push the issue?
We held press conferences and activist meetings. We toured the state talking about election fraud. We worked on election reform bills (which top Republicans killed last session). We testified at hearings. Letters were sent to Gov. Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and the legislature, signed by more than 300 grassroots political influencers. Thousands of calls went into the Capitol.
The result?Crickets. No response from our Republican Governor, Lt. Governor, or the self-disgraced Speaker Bonnen (who gets plenty wound up about folks who don’t wear masks 24/7). And now less than 90 days before an election that will determine much about the fate of this nation, Texas still sits here with an unverified voter list.
Nobody checks to verify citizenship. Nobody. Bad addresses? Plenty! Scores of people living at the same address? Yep! Deceased people on the rolls? Sure thing. Felons on the rolls? Yes, indeedy.
Who exposed the unverified voter list? Was it a State Representative, a State Senator, or any politician?
NO! It was Aaron Harris, then Executive Director of Direct Action Texas.
Aaron comes from the conservative Texas grassroots and is the ONLY candidate in this race with a proven record of actively fighting in the conservative grassroots trenches for years on fiscal, social, and rule of law issues. Aaron Harris successfully challenged, at risk of arrest, McKinney’s unconstitutional electioneer prohibition ordinance – and won in court – setting a free speech precedent.
Because of the bulldog nature of Aaron Harris, when he ran into voter fraud in 2014, he documented it, and exposed it. His work with Direct Action Texas then led to numerous criminal convictions for voter fraud and the passage of SB5 in 2017 – the largest election reform bill in decades. Aaron promised results and he got them, taking ballot fraud from “conspiracy” to policy in 18 months, passing both the House and Senate with wide bi-partisan support. Aaron didn’t quit but went on to expose the fact that non-citizens are registered to vote in Texas, have voted, and will continue to vote because NOBODY at the local and state levels of government verifies citizenship.
Conservative grassroots activist extraordinaire & TX Conservative Grassroots Coalition leader Adam Cahn Spots Yet Another Vulgar Example of:
The Texas Elite Ruling Class vs The Rest of Us
Adam Cahn’s witty blogs are often joltingly revelatory, but this one made me mad enough to spit railroad spikes. I’ll wager you won’t find it amusing either.
Thanks, Adam, for shining light on yet another example of how the Austin political elites roll with this June 9, 2020 post in Cahnman’s Musings. (If you don’t follow Adam’s blog, you really should!)
Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott – this year (on March 13, 2020 at the beginning of the Wuhan Virus Debacle), Texas Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Phil Wilson was allowed to also continue his regular job as the General Manager of the quasi-state agency – The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA).
Since Wilson’s $636,694 salary at the LCRA happens to be double the salary and benefits of the Texas HHSC Executive Commissioner job, it was conveniently lucrative for the path to be cleared for him to keep that salary and forgo the lower HHSC salary.
Mr. Cahn’s blog got us thinking about the timing of Mr. Wilson’s hire and Abbott’s contact tracing contract. Here’s our list of unanswered questions:
1. Why is a quasi-state agency “river authority” paying over $636,000 per year for a General Manager? 2. Why is Gov. Abbott entrusting the state agency charged with leading the COVID-19 response to a part-time commissioner? 3. Why did HHSC Executive Commissioner Phil Wilson sign the $295 million contract with MTX Group for contact tracing – approving it in two days – apparently without running due diligence backgrounds on MTX and the CEO? (Note: As we’ve reported, grassroots leaders have uncovered plenty of questionable information about the contract, MTX Group and its CEO that Mr. Wilson apparently overlooked.) 4. How long can anyone hold two high level demanding jobs before mistakes become deadly – especially since HHSC regulates nursing homes, operates nearly two dozen state hospitals and state-supported living facilities, and is one of the largest state bureaucracies with 36,600 employees? 5. Why is this double posting considered constitutional, legal, or even ethical and how long will the Abbott-ignored legislature allow this kind of elite nest-feathering to go on without question?
Could the answer be found in this Texas Tribune quote which Cahn refers to as “this gem”?
“(Phil) Wilson has had a long career in and around state government, at least once making news for out-earning predecessors in the same positions. As executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), his starting salary was $100,000 more, 50% higher, than the previous head. Wilson was also deputy chief of staff to Gov. Rick Perry, who appointed him secretary of state, and worked as a lobbyist and corporate officer for Irving-based Luminant, an electricity generator.”
Socialist State Rising in the West? The prolonged government reaction to the Chinese virus has done more to turn the US toward socialist state status and has done it faster than Bernie Sanders or AOC could have ever envisioned.
Democrats, poised to exploit the economic wreckage long after the Chinese virus has gone, intend to make the crisis payouts permanent.Hear the clamor rising for a taxpayer-funded guaranteed “living” salary?
In Texas, we are well on our way with the waiving of “looking for work” requirements in state unemployment benefits. Not only are the unemployed no longer required to look for work, but they can refuse to go back when their employer calls them back. Owners of businesses are contacting us with the predictable news that some workers will make more on unemployment and do not wish to return to work.
Friday, May 2, 2020 State of the Lone Star facts that hurt:
More than 75% of Texas businesses remain shut down.
There are more than 1.94 MILLION Texans out of work.
Sales tax collections are down 9.3 percent from April 2019, the steepest decline since January 2010. Other state revenue declines are steep…
Motor vehicle sales & rental taxes — $164 million, down 45 percent from April 2019, the largest monthly drop on record in data going back to 1983;
Motor fuel taxes — $284 million, down 12 percent from April 2019, the steepest drop since 1991;
Natural gas production tax — $67 million, down 48 percent from April 2019;
Oil production tax — $191 million, down 45 percent from April 2019;
Hotel occupancy tax — $24 million, down 63 percent from April 2019, the deepest drop in data going back to 1990;
Alcoholic beverage taxes — $57 million, down 55 percent from April 2019.
TX Attorney General Ken Paxton has sided with Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkinset al against The People. Paxton doubled down on Abbott’s executive order Thursday after some county judges and district attorneys said the order was “vague” (true) and “unenforceable” (true – if your intent is lawful enforcement) relating to hair and nail salons, barbershops, bars and gyms.
AG Ken Paxton said the governor’s order was “neither vague nor unenforceable, and local governments are prohibited from allowing businesses to reopen unless they are recognized as essential or reopened services under the Governor’s order.” In the past Ken Paxton has refused many times to defend state laws (TX Advance Directives Act, Ethics Commission rules) that conflicted with his interpretation of the Constitution. Where did THAT Ken Paxton go?See the full article here: https://bit.ly/2WfGuml
In Case You Missed It
If you are as sick as I am of anything related to COVID-19, social distancing, gov’t officials telling you to wash your hands for the five thousandth time and everybody and his dog Skyping, Zooming and FaceTiming, you may have tuned out and missed these important articles that rose above the noise this week.
Click on the article title to read. Click on the source to read more and bookmark. If you don’t have time now, save for later.The contents are well worth pondering and sharing.
Before I close this laptop and turn off the phone (the one that I dream of sailing off my back deck like a Frisbee), here’s one last sobering thought for the week sent to me by a thoughtful patriot:
Our State Legislative Branch definesa crime in statute. The Executive Branch enforces the statute. The Judicial Branch ensures it is applied and interpretedfairly. If Gov. Abbott can define a crime and also enforce it, we have violated the Constitution.
Think about it… If the governor can define a crime and then also send his troopers to arrest you, that is called a banana republic.
Texans, we must stay in this fight. Have a peaceful Sunday.
Freedom is murdered – not in one fatal blow – but by a thousand disloyal cuts.
We have discovered yet again that there are broad and vague laws on the books that conflict with the State Constitution. Reported methods used by some (not all) local officials to enforce powers given to them under state statutes also appear to be violations of the US Constitution. We will address only state and local issues herein.
Governor Abbott – with the best of intentions to protect the people of Texas from a highly contagious and life-threatening disease – has suspended various laws pursuant to Tex. Gov. Code § 418.016, which says the governor may suspend “certain laws and rules” during a declared disaster. Gov. Abbott and his advisors based their actions on a set of federal government guidelines that relied on COVID-19 models that have been very, very wrong.
Under the powers granted by the state legislature – a city can take any action necessary to promote health and suppress disease under Texas Health & Safety Code Sections 122.005 (general law) and 122.006 (home rule). These actions could include quarantine, examining and regulating hospitals, regulating ingress and egress from the city, and fining those who do not comply with the city’s rules.
Article I, Sec. 29 of the Texas Bill of RightsBill of Rights Excepted from Powers of Government and Inviolate. “To guard against transgressions of the high powers herein delegated, we declare that everything in this “Bill of Rights” is excepted out of the general powers of government, and shall forever remain inviolate, and all laws contrary thereto, or to the following provisions, shall be void.”
While Article III, Sec. 62 of the Texas Constitution provides for continuity of government following an “enemy attack,” it only allows temporary suspensions of regular order, but plainly states, “Provided, however, that Article I of the Constitution of Texas, known as the “Bill of Rights” shall not be in any manner affected, amended, impaired, suspended, repealed or suspended hereby.”
Remedies & Solutions
The failure to abide by the Health and Safety Code orders is a third-degree felony. Third-degree felonies in Texas carry a possible punishment of two to ten years in prison and a fine up to $10,000, per criminal charge. Not an option.
Texas Scorecard’s Tony McDonald said it best, “…there is a difference between authority and power. Just because these current orders are not authorized doesn’t mean that government agents don’t have the power to fine or imprison citizens for noncompliance.”
Counselor McDonald also appropriately stated, “…appealing to the judicial branch is no sure thing, even when one is correct. There are various doctrines, such as standing—the requirement that a person have a particularized injury different than that of everyone else in the community—that regularly work as a bar to judicial relief from unauthorized government action. Moreover, the courts have traditionally been especially poor guardians of liberty in times of crisis. (One need only think of the free-speech cases in WWI, the Korematsu internment decision in WWII, or post-Katrina and post-9/11 judicial decisions as chief examples of judicial abdication of duty in crisis).”
This is not the first time we’ve seen government overreach and it won’t be the last. This is not the only discovery of state laws that conflict with the Texas Constitution.
So, what do we do? As outlined in my interview with Texas Scorecard’s Brandon Waltens, it would be a great exercise in civic responsibility for liberty-loving Texas grassroots leaders to review the existing statutes – in light of what you have experienced in your own county and city – and determine where the laws should be amended and/or repealed. Prepare to discuss specifics with your state legislators as soon as we can get businesses open and people back to work.
Now is also the time to evaluate the methods your local officials have used to enforce emergency powers. Applaud those who have done a good job leaning toward liberty, but for those who took this crisis as an opportunity to be onerously heavy-handed, it’s time to fire them. Start looking for candidates to replace them!
Your call to action – starting NOW:
President Trump wants to get the US open for business. We could not agree more!
Contact your state legislators and your local officials with this message:
1) We want you to publicly plan now to get businesses open and Texans back to work. 2) We want you to prioritize current spending based on core essential services and institute an immediate hiring and salary freeze. 3) We want you to cut spendingon all items outside of core essential services. 2020 sales and hotel/motel tax collection projections are now useless – through the floor. Cut your spending now! Texans don’t need, don’t want and don’t deserve any property tax hikes! Period.
We’ll be back next week with more practical ideas about how to cut spending in local government.
Until then, be safe. Tell your family and friends how much you love them. Pray for your community, Texas, and our nation. Be thankful. Evaluate your priorities.
