"If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you."
Michigan is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Ojibwe term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake".
Michigan is the eighth most populous state in the United States. It has the longest freshwater shoreline of any political subdivision in the world, being bounded by four of the five Great Lakes, plus Lake Saint Clair. In 2005, Michigan ranked third for the number of registered recreational boats, behind California and Florida. Michigan has 64,980 inland lakes. A person in the state is never more than six miles (10 km) from a natural water source, or more than 87.2 miles (140.3 km) from the Great Lakes coastline.
Michigan is the only state to consist entirely of two peninsulas. The Lower Peninsula, to which the name Michigan was originally applied, is sometimes dubbed "the mitten," owing to its shape. When asked where in Michigan one comes from, a resident of the Lower Peninsula may often point to the corresponding part of his or her hand. The Upper Peninsula (often referred to as The U.P.) is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac, a five-mile (8 km)-wide channel that joins Lake Huron to Lake Michigan. The Upper Peninsula is economically important for tourism and natural resources.
Michigan was the 26th state to join the Union on January 26, 1837.
To find which Congressional District you live in, checkHERE (PDF)
Both of Michigan's representatives on the House Financial Services Committee voted for the Paul/Grayson Amendment to overwrite the Watt Amendment that gutted key provisions of the Federal Reserve Transparency Act.
Thad McCotter's (R-11th district) vote improves his record on issues the Campaign For Liberty has taken a position to 7 votes for Liberty and 5 votes against. McCotter has stood strong against bailouts and Federal Reserve secrecy, but voted for increasing regulations against natural food and medicine, voted for a $2 billion taxpayer subsidy for "clunkers", and voted to expand economic war with Iran, despite Iran's continued adherence to Non-Proliferation Treaty terms of peaceful nuclear development.
For freshman Gary Peters (D-9th district), his vote to restore the Federal Reserve Transparency Act was his first vote for Liberty of his career. Previously, Peters had voted against Liberty each and every time we looked.
Former Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has chosen Michigan to kick off her book tour.
The lightning rod politico, who's often listed in the 2012 Republican presidential field, will sign copies of "Going Rogue" at the Barnes & Noble book store at 7 p.m. Nov. 18 at 3195 28th St. SE in Grand Rapids....
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The above is a snip of a Detroit News article, I think you C4L patriots on that side of the state could go with lit and inform those in line to get her book and signature that we are out here as a second to none resource if they wish to participate in effecting change.
We could also get a few people in line to ask Mrs. Palin if she would join the C4L in Alaska to support our cause and get an opinion on our alternative health care plan as well as those in line. She has no real allegiance to any one group, so why not...she thought Ron Paul was in her words " a cool guy", so lets have some fun with this while doing a little recruiting and informing.
If someone could were a C4L shirt or hat and bring a camera to get this on video, it would be great to post on C4L
Some of you saw the interview on CNBC...at the end they talked about
having him on for a few hours, as a guest host, which they do.
So just for fun, lets let 'em know.
https://register.cnbc.com/email/EmailSupport.jsp
click the above and on the drop down menu, find "squawk box" and send
a quick note
Last night the West Michigan Liberty Coalition met to strategize for 2010 elections and meet a few state reps and candidates for state congress.
2010 Election Strategy Eric Larson led the discussion with important information about the Kent County GOP. He reasoned that public unrest with Democrats will be extremely high, and it may be an excellent opportunity to turn over a few key seats, not just at the state level, but at the local level as well.
To ensure that these seats go to the right people (liberty-minded, principled folks), Eric stressed that we get involved as basic Precinct Delegates (see kentgop.com to get started), which is free, easy and effective. As a Precinct Delegate, you would have the power to get the right candidates on the ballot so we can set the right policy for the Republican party.
Eric Larson is a member of the Campaign for Liberty, and is one of the most knowledgeable people about the political process. He is an extremely valuable resource for getting involved and taking back the Republican party, so I highly suggest you contact him for more info.
Also, coming soon on the District 3 page - look for open seats in coming elections that you and your liberty-minded, principled friends and family may be able to fill.
State Representatives Agema and Amash
Next we heard from state rep Dave Agema, who worded our current situation most succinctly: "You lose your freedoms one law at a time, and you lose your earnings one tax at a time." He stated the need for "principled leaders who can't be bought" for example, through PAC campaign contributions. Continuing with more topics well-received by the audience:
We must eliminate the MBT and surcharge, which is the main obstacle to business in Michigan
We must institute a part time legislature (as most states currently have)
We must get a budget in early, rather then at the end of summer
We must prioritize spending (he highlighted that something like 80% of the education budget funds teacher's paid benefits)
We must value the democratic process on the house floor, which currently doesn't exist
Representative Agema also gave valuable tips for any would-be candidates:
Knock on doors. It's simply the most effective way to reach people.
Have 2 or 3 major issues to stand for (my note: see C4L mission to get a few ideas)
If you're a candidate, the best person to knock is you. Second best is your family; third are people who know you and your platform extremely well.
Overall, I personally thought Rep Agema gave some valuable information, and he may be counted on to vote correctly on several issues. A few red flags were in his stance on war (he would increase war spending and, get this, eliminate the rules of engagement), though I do agree with his position on treating veterans well after they return. Justin Amash, darling of the West Michigan liberty movement, took the podium next. He reiterated many of the key issues wrong with the Michigan legislative branch, and emphasized the importance of monitoring what our state legislators are doing, and how they are voting. Ask yourself - does their voting record match their rhetoric?
For example, Representative Amash keeps a Facebook page which he uses to update his followers on votes. His staff also keeps statistics on how often he votes yes or no (even as a minority party, he does vote yes a significant percentage of the time).
Tracking how your legislators vote is important because they rarely hear from their constituents - but of course, they do hear from lobbyists every day. He made an undeniable point: if a representative votes against liberty, they're not going to get praise from back home, but they are going to get a mouthful from lobbyists. It's all a matter of pressure - if YOU were in this situation, who would you listen to?
While it's important we get principled people in office, it's equally important that we keep pushing them once they are in (and thanking them for doing the right thing).
I have had the opportunity to hear Rep Amash speak on a number of occasions now, and I will say he is extremely consistent, and one of the brightest hopes for liberty in Michigan congress that we have. He stated if there were just a few more like him, we could make a significant impact on the direction of this state. (This is why it's important to either, get involved as a precinct delegate to get the right people in office, or if you are the right people, run for office yourself).
Liberty Candidates Speak
The last segment of the evening featured state congress candidates Jordan Bush (#75), Rusty Richter (#77) and a representative for Nate Vriesman (also running for 77 - but was at a Veteran's day memorial last night). All of the candidates are currently not politicians, but recognize the need for principled people in politics.
Bush and Vriesman appeared to be the most principled for individual liberties; Bush advocated that when it comes to government, "less is more", he would fight against targeted tax breaks, which chooses winners and losers, and the MBT, and emphasized that "local is better" and "individual responsibility" principles must return to the forefront. Vriesman's rep similarly stated that local governments are most efficient, and that any law created in Michigan should be for the benefit of ALL.
Richter was the most engaging speaker, and highlighted that the "Republican party has mismanaged its minority status". He strayed into gay marriage (annoying, simply because we have MUCH bigger fish to fry), but is firmly against the health care scheme and proudly stated that he had never purchased (and never needed) health insurance in his life, for himself or his family.
Each of these candidates has their own website (ok, I'll do a plug here: JordanBush.com, RustyRichter.com, Nate4State.com) so we'll need to do our research, but at the outset, I would be pleased with any of these candidates working for liberty at the state level.
"Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty."
—Thomas Jefferson
Campaign for Liberty is a 501(c)4 lobbying organization which neither supports nor opposes candidates for public office and claims no responsibility for the actions of individuals or groups of individuals who use the Campaign for Liberty logo or name or who may claim to act as representatives of the Campaign for Liberty without prior written consent of the Campaign for Liberty. [?]
