AG Candidate Dan Branch Joined House Democrats Seeking to Expand 3rd Trimester Abortions

the following article is by Bob Price posted at Texas GOP Vote:

In the wake of yesterday's court ruling blocking Texas from implementing portions of its newly passed pro-life law requiring abortion doctors to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of their abortion facility, it becomes even more clear why we must have a Texas Attorney General who is as solidly pro-life as our current AG, Greg Abbott. After a little research into the records of the candidates to succeed Abbott, it is apparent one candidate does not fill those shoes - Dan Branch.

During the 79th Legislature (2005) SB 419 was introduced to continue functions of some medical boards in Texas. During the debate on this bill in the House, Representative Dan Branch authored an amendment to allow and expand 3rd trimester abortions.

Texas law restricts these late term abortions to cases where the baby has irreversible brain damage. Branch's amendment sought to expand this to irreversible damage to a "vital organ". After Branch argued in support of his amendment, the House voted to table it. Branch joined with House Democrats to vote "Nay" on the motion to table.

Democrats will continue to use the courts to overturn advances made to protect life by Republicans in the Texas Legislature. We must have an Attorney General whose commitment to pro-life issues is unquestionable. After yesterday's court ruling, General Abbott filed an emergency appeal to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. Branch's record raises concern about whether he would have filed a similar appeal.

General Abbott's spokeswoman, Lauren Bean, issued a statement yesterday on behalf of the Attorney General. “The court upheld part of the law and enjoined part of the law. The State has already appealed the court’s ruling. We appreciate the trial court’s attention in this matter. As everyone – including the trial court judge – has acknowledged, this is a matter that will ultimately be resolved by the appellate courts or the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman, a candidate for Texas Attorney General, reaffirmed his committment to pro-life issues in a statement yesterday.“I am disappointed by Judge Yeakel’s ruling," Smitherman stated, "but I applaud General Abbott’s decision to seek an emergency appeal. As Attorney General, I will vigorously defend Pro-Life laws in the state of Texas. Judge Yeakel’s inappropriate refusal to acknowledge that the statute was rationally related to preserving the life of unborn children and protecting women’s health will hopefully be corrected upon appellate review.”

Perhaps this attempt by Branch to expand abortion rights in Texas was behind Texas Right to Life's omission of Dan Branch in their recent endorsements of Barry Smitherman and Ken Paxton. His being left off that list was a clear statement by this leading pro-life group.

If you are a pro-life voter in the 2014 Republican Primary, I think it is safe to say you can take Dan Branch off your list for consideration. Texas needs a solidly pro-life Attorney General and Dan Branch doesn't cut it.

- See more at: http://www.texasgopvote.com/regions/texas/ag-candidate-dan-branch-joined-house-democrats-seeking-expand-3rd-trimester-006014#sthash.9vrxHPvc.dpuf

Smart Meters FORCED onto Texans by Ken Paxton and Dan Branch – TRUTH REVEALED - Votes Don't Lie

see updated article with more information here: 

Ken Paxton Supporters Revert to Name Calling When Shown Paxton’s Vote to Mandate Smart Meter Fee for ALL Texans

Fact: Texas Attorney General Candidates Ken Paxton and Dan Branch voted in 2005 to FORCE Texans to get a Smart Meter and FORCED Texans to pay for them. The laws they voted to approve reveal the shocking truth that even they cannot deny. They passed laws that specifically forced the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) to implement Smart Meters and to create a fee for Texans to pay for them. Texas Attorney General Candidate Barry Smitherman is the only candidate in the race who has listened to the outcry from conservatives and in response has teamed up with conservatives in the Texas Legislature, like State Rep. David Simpson, to try to amend the law and make Smart Meters optional instead of mandatory. Legislators Ken Paxton and Dan Branch have done NOTHING to try to introduce or promote any bills to stop the mandatory Smart Meters.

It is time people heard the truth. I am tired of Texas Legislators passing the blame. I am tired of fellow conservative groups believing the lies about who actually created and mandated Smart Meters. Voting records do not lie. In this article I will show you the exact laws that Paxton and Branch voted on to mandate Smart Meters. The Legislature and the yes votes that Paxton and Branch made are why Texans were forced to get and pay for Smart Meters. No one else is responsible.

Smart Meter outrage took the Texas scene by storm within the last few years. Texas Conservative groups were rightfully mad about these intrusive, big brother, potentially health hazardous Smart Meters. Some conservatives mistakenly got upset at the PUCT. The truth is that it was the Texas Legislature that passed the law to force Smart Meters onto Texans. It was the Texas Legislature that passed the law to force Texans to pay for the Smart Meters, not the PUCT.

In 2005, the Texas Legislature passed HB 2129, mandating a fee for the implementation of smart meters and encouraging the adoption of smart meters. Both Ken Paxton and Dan Branch voted aye on this bill.

Section 7(h) of HB 2129 states: “The Commission (PUCT) SHALL establish a nonbypassable surcharge for an electric utility or transmission and distribution utility to use to recover reasonable and necessary costs incurred in deploying advanced metering and meter information networks to residential customers…

Section 8(a) of HB 2129 states: “In recognition that advances in digital and communications equipment and technologies, including new metering and meter information technologies, have the potential to increase the reliability of the regional electrical network, encourage dynamic pricing and demand response, make better use of generation assets and transmission and generation assets, and provide more choice for consumers, the legislature encourages the adoption of these technologies by electric utilities in this state.

Section 8(b) of HB 2129 states: “The Public Utility Commission of Texas shall study the efforts of electric utilities to benefit from the use of advanced metering and metering information networks. The commission SHALL present to the legislature on or before September 30 of each even--‐numbered year a report detailing those efforts and identifying changes in the state’s policies that may be necessary to remove barriers to the use of advanced metering and metering information networks or of other advanced transmission and distribution technologies.”

In 2007, the Texas Legislature passed HB 3693, again making clear its intention that smart meters be deployed as rapidly as possible. Again, Ken Paxton and Dan Branch voted for this legislation.

Section 20(i) of HB 3693 states: “Subject to the restrictions in Subsection (h), it is the intent of the legislature that net metering and advanced meter information networks be deployed as rapidly as possible to allow customers to better manage energy use and control costs, and to facilitate demand response initiatives.

Conclusion:

If you notice in the above laws that were passed and approved by Ken Paxton and Dan Branch, the word SHALL was used. The word SHALL means it must be done and is NOT optional. The Texas Legislature mandated the PUCT to implement smart meters by passing a law stating that the PUCT SHALL do it. The Texas Legislature also used the word NONBYPASSABLE in reference to the fee that Texans must pay to implement the Smart Meters. Like shall, nonbypassable means it is mandatory and not optional. So before anyone starts to say that the Legislature did not intend for Smart Meters to be mandatory or that the PUCT should have just not implemented smart meters, you need to check your facts. We Texans do not live in Obamaland. We do not just decide which laws to enforce or not enforce like Obama does. The Texas Legislature passed laws creating and mandating Smart Meters and instructing the PUCT to make it happen. The PUCT followed the law that was passed by the Texas Elected officials. Obama thinks he can just ignore laws passed by Congress, but here in Texas we hold ourselves to a higher standard and the PUCT did the only thing they could and they followed the law passed by Paxton and Branch.

The Legislature is to blame for Smart Meters, not the PUCT. The Texas Legislature even went as far as to pass a bill in 2007 encouraging the RAPID deployment of Smart Meters. So they wanted to force them on us and then they wanted to make it happen as soon as possible. After reading the wording of the laws passed by Paxton ad Branch, no one can deny that Smart Meters were created and pushed by the Legislature. Furthermore, the only authority that can stop smart meters, besides a Judge, is the Texas Legislature. If people are mad about Smart Meters, which they should be, then it is up to Texas Legislators like Ken Paxton and Dan Branch to take a stand and amend the law that they wrongfully voted for. The PUCT and Barry Smitherman have taken a stand with conservatives and asked the Texas Legislature to change the law, but so far the legislature has done NOTHING, including Ken Paxton and Dan Branch doing nothing.

Mandatory Smart Meters are a big problem. Maybe no one in the Texas Legislature knew about the problems that would arise when Smart Meters first came out. But hey, now you know! So what are you going to do to fix the problem? You change the law. At least Barry Smitherman is actually trying to fix the problem. The legislature and the laws they passed are to blame. Since the negatives of Smart Meters have been made know, Smitherman has listened to conservatives and he has tried to get the Legislature to change the law. The legislature, including Paxton and Branch, has not responded.

So Thanks alot Ken Paxton and Dan Branch for passing Smart Meters and thanks alot for not trying to change the law to correct what you previously approved. Smitherman is the only Texas Attorney General Candidate brave enough to listen to conservatives and respond by trying to correct the problem and by trying to get the legislature to change the law and not make smart meters mandatory.

So that is the truth about who created, Pushed, Mandated, and is still allowing Smart Meters to be forced onto Texans who also are forced to pay for them.

Texas Voter Poll: Barry Smitherman Has Higher Favorability Percentage and Leads Attorney General Race vs. Paxton and Branch

I was doing some research this week regarding the Texas Attorney General Republican Primary Election 2014. I came across a professional survey that was released a couple of months ago. I was surprised that I had not seen any coverage of this poll. The results were pretty clear cut. Barry Smitherman leads Ken Paxton and Dan Branch in both favorability and a poll of who Texas voters would elect for Texas Attorney General if the election were to be held now.

Below are the highlights from the poll:

Wilson Perkins Allen Opinion Research conducted a study of likely Republican Primary Voters in Texas. Respondents were screened to ensure that they were neither a member of the news media nor a public relations company. The sample for this survey was stratified based on gender, age, and geography. This methodology allows us to minimize post-survey “weighting” which can reduce the reliability of survey results.

Respondents were contacted by phone via a live telephone operator interview May 13-15, 2013. The study has a sample size of 751 likely Republican Primary voters in Texas with a margin of error of ±3.6%.

Key Findings

Barry Smitherman has a stronger name ID than Dan Branch and Ken Paxton.

The question was asked, “After I read each one, please tell me if you have a favorable or unfavorable impression of that person.”

Barry Smitherman – 14% favorable

Dan Branch – 5% favorable

Ken Paxton – 8% favorable

Smitherman has a seven point lead on the overall ballot with more than three quarters of likely GOP Primary voters undecided. Smitherman is very competitive in Paxton’s and Branch’s home region of Dallas-Fort Worth, and he has an 11 point lead in the greater Houston area.

The question was asked, “If the Republican Primary election for Attorney General were held today, for whom would you vote if the candidates were...”

All Likely GOP Primary Voters:

Barry Smitherman – 13%

Dan Branch – 4%

Ken Paxton – 6%

Undecided – 77%

Raging Elephants Radio - David Bellow talks with Doc Greene about ATF and IRS Kountze, TX Corruption

David Bellow will be a guest on Doc Greene's show today, 10/24/2013 at 11 a.m.

Doc Greene's show is part of the great lineup on http://www.ragingelephantsradio.com/

Raging Elephants Radio is a great new, conservative, online streaming radio program headed by Apostle Claver.

You can listen live by clicking on the link above.

We will be discussing a situation in Kountze, TX involving the ATF using the IRS to target a pastor.

Ted Cruz tops President 2016 poll at Values Voter Summit

Texas Senator Ted Cruz is still flying high after his brave showdown against Obamacare. He helped show the nation the problems with Obamacare and got the attention of everyone. This noble deed has not gone unnoticed. Ted Cruz was selected as the top Presidential Candidate for the 2016 election by the attendees at the 2013 Values Voter Summit.

from Fox News:

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz decidedly won the presidential straw poll at the 2013 Values Voter Summit, solidifying his status among religious conservatives.

Cruz, a first-term senator and Tea Party favorite, has emerged as one of the Republican Party and conservative movement’s most dynamic leaders –  highlighted by his effort to defund ObamaCare.

Cruz, who appears to have presidential aspirations, took 42 percent of the vote, with Dr. Ben Carson and former Pennsylvania Sen. and GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum each getting 13 percent.

Though the 2016 race is years off, the annual summit in Washington is considered an early indication of how conservative voters are leaning.

“I just spoke with Senator Cruz and he wanted me to convey to you his deep appreciation for your enthusiastic and … that he was very grateful to know that there are Americans across the country who are standing with him as he stands for your values here in Washington, D.C.,” said Tony Perkins, the head of the Family Research Council,  which is hosting the three-day event, according to The Washington Times.

more here: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/10/12/cruz-wins-religious-conservatives-2016-straw-poll/

Rep. Stockman: September brings fourth-worst Obama Failometer Score - Black Unemployment Still Higher than under Bush

The following press release was sent to me from Texas Congressman Steve Stockman:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, October 22, 2013
Contact: Donny Ferguson, Donny@mail.house.gov

Economy still floundering as September brings fourth-worst Obama Failometer Score
Black unemployment still higher than any month under Bush
Labor force participation ties 35-year low
Job growth drops 12 percent

WASHINGTON - The nation's economy continues to flounder and full recovery appears even further away, according to an objective mathematical measurement of the nation's economic indicators released Tuesday by Congressman Steve Stockman (R-Texas 36.)

The economy continues to fail to recover under Obama as Obama Failometer Score stood at 1,173 last month. This is the fourth-worst Obama's Failometer score this year.

Obama can set the Failometer to zero simply by outperforming George W. Bush on the economy and fulfilling his 2008 and 2012 campaign promises to help blacks and Hispanics gain economically.

"ObamaCare is sand in the gears of our economy.  Job growth slumped 12 percent in one month and black unemployment is still near record highs," said Stockman "Our economy won't recover until we replace Obama's failed policies."

"Under Democrats misery is becoming the new normal.  We can do better."

The Obama Failometer uses a fixed mathematical score to calculate four economic indicators from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  The figures from the monthly reports are weighted to provide a balanced total score, which ranges from zero to 1,000. A score of 0 represent economic stability and racial equality. The higher the score, the deeper the economic failure.

So far, Obama is worse than Bush.

Since its creation Obama has failed to generate a Failometer score that can be contained within the chart's range of zero to 1000.

The Obama Failometer Score was originally displayed on a ten-foot-long billboard displayed in the hallways of the Capitol's Cannon House Office building.  House officials ordered it torn down in January after Democrats complained.

Here is how the Obama Failometer Score is calculated:

FACTORS MEASURED AGAINST BUSH

Monthly jobs created: The Hamilton Project, a liberal economic policy group, stated last year the economy must create 321,000 jobs a month in order to return the economy to pre-recession employment levels by December 2016, the end of Obama's term.

As the economy continues to flounder under Obama that number has grown, but the Obama Failometer will continue to use it, which gives him some statistical relief.

Obama promised to not only restore the economy to where it was under Bush, but grow it.  So far Obama has failed to even perform as well as Bush.

This Obama Failometer score portion is calculated by subtracting the number of jobs created in the previous month from the 321,000 jobs claimed necessary by the liberal Hamilton Project and dividing by 1,000 to balance it against other factors.

The BLS reports the economy created only 148,000 jobs last month, 173,000 fewer than needed to restore the economy.  This portion of the Obama Failometer Score is 173.

Civilian labor force participation rate:  The civilian labor force participation rate, the ratio between those 16 and over in the labor force against the national population of those 16 and over, is an important measure of economic health.  After puttering along during the Bush administration, including through the "Bush years" of the recession, under Obama it has plunged sharply.

This Obama Failometer score portion is calculated by subtracting the monthly civilian labor force participation rate from the average Bush administration rate and multiplying by 100 to balance it against other factors. According to data from the BLS, under Bush the average monthly civilian labor force participation rate was around 66.2 percent.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the monthly civilian labor force participation rate last month stood at 63.2 percent, the worst rate since August 1978 and 3.0 percent worse than Bush's average of 66.2 percent.  This portion of the Obama Failometer Score is 300.


FACTORS MEASURED AGAINST OBAMA'S OWN RHETORIC

Black unemployment:  No one has suffered more economically under Obama than black Americans. Obama's election and re-election has meant crippling poverty for the black community.

This Obama Failometer score portion is calculated by taking the monthly unemployment rate for blacks and subtracting the monthly unemployment rate for all Americans, and multiplying it by 100 to balance it against other factors.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the black unemployment rate last month was 12.9 percent, while the national overall rate was 7.2 percent.  That is a gap of 5.7 percent. This portion of the Obama Failometer Score is 570.

Compare Obama's performance to Bush's.  The highest monthly unemployment rate ever for blacks under Bush was 12.1 percent.  Obama's lowest rate is now 12.6 percent in Jul.  He has never performed as well as Bush's worst black unemployment rate.

Bush's average black unemployment rate was 9.7 percent and an overall national average of 5.2 percent, a 4.5 percent gap that gives Bush a score of 450.

Hispanic unemployment:  Despite winning the Hispanic vote, Obama's liberal policies have caused widespread damage to the Hispanic community.  Thanks to Obama, they continue to lag behind the national average in many economic factors.

This Obama Failometer score portion is calculated by taking the monthly unemployment rate for Hispanics and subtracting the monthly unemployment rate for all Americans, and multiplying it by 100 to balance it against other factors.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the Hispanic unemployment rate last month grew to a stunning 8.5 percent, while the national overall rate was 7.2 percent.  That is a gap of 1.3 percent.  This portion of the Obama Failometer Score is 130.

The Hispanic unemployment rate hit its all-time historic low of 4.7 percent during Bush's last term.  It is almost twice that rate under Obama.

THEREFORE, THIS MONTH'S OBAMA FAILOMETER SCORE IS 1,173.

#  #  #

AgendaWise Sues Joe Straus and Dewhurst for Denying 1st Amendment Press Rights to Texas Conservatives

Agendawise has sued Texas House Speaker Joe Straus and Texas Senate LT Governor David Dewhurst for denying them equal first amendment press rights. Specifically, the Texas Tribune was allowed server space to broadcast the live feed from the floor of the Texas Legislature’s Senate and House proceedings. 

AgendaWise is an online conservative news organization that has asked for, and been denied, the ability to also broadcast the live feed for the Texas Legislature proceedings.

I think I know why moderate RINO Republican Joe Straus does not like the thought of allowing this conservative group having equal access to the live feed. This particular conservative group has not been too kind in the articles they have written about Straus.

According to Courthouse News Service, AgendaWise claims that state Sen. Eltife and Rep. Geren rejected its request for space in the server closet at the Texas Capitol.
     It claims the defendants - all Republicans - violate the First Amendment by denying it access, and that they did so because AgendaWise reporters have "frequently criticized political stances held by defendants."
     Geren "has expressed his dissatisfaction with the reporting of AgendaWise online, accusing AgendaWise Executive Director Daniel Greer of telling lies and criticizing former AgendaWise board member Michael Quinn Sullivan," the complaint states.

Michael Quinn Sullivan is also the head of Empower Texans and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility. Sullivan has hammered Joe Straus in recent years for his fiscal irresponsibility and for raising money, via guys like Rep. Charlie Geren, to go towards defeating conservatives in the Texas House of Representatives.

Agendawise wants the live feed in time to be able to broadcast the Texas House impeachment hearings that Joe Straus has been pushing against a University of Texas Regent Wallace Hall. This regent was investigating financial issues and kickbacks within the University of Texas. Straus is trying to stop this regent from uncovering the truth by calling for an investigation. Apparently Straus thinks it is an impeachable offense for the regent to, well, do his job and make sure the University is being run legally and ethically.

Christian Mom Scores Big Victory After School Banned Daughter’s ‘God’ Assignment

from The Blaze:

Officials at Lucy Elementary School in Memphis, Tenn., have reversed course after a teacher banned a 10-year-old student from writing about God for a class assignment.
The school decided to accept and grade Erin Shead’s work after her mother, Erica, spoke out to media and after the Liberty Institute, a conservative legal group, got involved, WREG-TV reported.
Erin received a 100 percent on her work.
The situation began last month when Erin and her classmates were asked to pick one idol to write about. When Erin picked God, her teacher sent her home with the completed assignment and told her to choose someone else. Erin then selected Michael Jackson, whom the teacher accepted.

A photo of Erin’s assignment about admiring God (Image source: WREG-TV)

Erica Shead was angry and began speaking out when she learned that her daughter’s God-themed assignment wouldn’t be accepted.
“I didn’t want any money. I strictly wanted Erin’s right to be able to express herself not to ever be taken away again,” Shead said of the debate surrounding her daughter. “It was kind of like, wow, she can talk about Michael Jackson but she can’t talk about God.”
more here: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/10/17/they-cannot-take-god-out-of-our-children-mom-scores-big-victory-after-school-banned-daughters-god-assignment/

the following is from Fox News:

US Army defines Christian ministry as 'domestic hate group'

By Todd Starnes
Todd's American Dispatch
Published October 14, 2013

FoxNews.com

• 
  Special to Fox News

Several dozen U.S. Army active duty and reserve troops were told last week that the American Family Association, a well-respected Christian ministry, should be classified as a domestic hate group because the group advocates for traditional family values.
The briefing was held at Camp Shelby in Mississippi and listed the AFA alongside domestic hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan, Neo-Nazis, the Black Panthers and the Nation of Islam.
A soldier who attended the briefing contacted me and sent me a photograph of a slide show presentation that listed AFA as a domestic hate group. Under the AFA headline is a photograph of Westboro Baptist Church preacher Fred Phelps holding a sign reading “No special law for f***.”
American Family Association has absolutely no affiliation with the controversial church group known for picketing the funerals of American servicemembers.

It looks like the Obama administration is separating the military from the American people.

“I had to show Americans what our soldiers are now being taught,” said the soldier who asked not to be identified. “I couldn’t just let this one pass.”
The soldier said a chaplain interrupted the briefing and challenged the instructor’s assertion that AFA is a hate group.
“The instructor said AFA could be considered a hate group because they don’t like gays,” the soldier told me. “

read more here: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/10/14/us-army-defines-christian-ministry-as-domestic-hate-group/?intcmp=latestnews

More Texas School Teachers are Armed with Guns - The latest is in East Texas

from the Beaumont Enterprise:

Some employees at an East Texas school district are now armed on campus.

The Huntington Independent School District board passed the policy allowing some staff to carry arms in March, and beginning Friday they were able to arrive on campus with their weapons.

Superintendent Eric Wright told the Lufkin Daily News the board approved the new policy in response to the fatal shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in December. Twenty children and six adults were killed in that incident.

Wright says staff with concealed carry permits that want to bring their arms on campus underwent several training programs, including a firearms proficiency test, a psychological evaluation, an active shooter class and a firearms safety course. He refused to name the armed staff members.

Texas Open Carry Come And Take It Gun Rights Rally At THE Alamo 10/19/2013

Only in Texas.... well, actually I should correct myself to say that rallies like this only happen in Texas. People open carrying guns happens all over America. Surprisingly, open carrying modern handguns in Texas is illegal even though many other states have some form of open carry gun rights. It is legal to open carry a rifle in Texas though and that is what will happen this Saturday at the Alamo in San Antonio, TX.

The rally will be Saturday, October 19th, 2013 starting at 10a.m. at the Alamo in San Antonio, TX.

The purpose of the rally is to protest the San Antonio Police Department's ticketing of law abiding citizens who openly, and legally, carry their rifles.

Fear is really the only thing that causes people to want to deny law abiding citizens their second amendment rights. The liberal media has trained people to be shocked when they see someone in public with a gun in a holster or over their back. Funny, I have never heard of a shooting at any of these gun rallies or at gun shows. There was just recently an open carry BBQ in Michigan and no one got shot.

Jerry Patterson, the Texas Land Commissioner who oversees the Alamo grounds, will be one of the main speakers at the event.

According to the event flyer:

We will gather for an armed march in response to the San Antonio Police Department policy of harassing law abiding citizens and gun owners. We cannot stand by any longer in silence. They have been left unchecked too long. This day we will stand under weight of arms and declare: "This Is Our Line In The Sand!" We will stand as free men and women. And we will take back the rights that Chief McManus believes he can revoke. Our right to bear arms shall not be infringed!

Sponsored by:

DontComply.com
OpenCarryTexas.org
Texas Open Carry
Gun Rights Across America
ComeAndTakeItAmerica.com
William Barret Travis

TX Judge Rules Beaumont ISD/DOJ Election ILLEGAL – Admin Got Paid to be a Fugitive

No surprise here, Beaumont ISD is once again in the news for, well, being corrupt. There are actually several new stories of corruption that I could write about, but I am just going to focus on the two biggest recent stories. First, BISD has had their planned November School Board Election declared illegal because, well, it violates Texas state law. Second, a top BISD Administrator had charges filed and a warrant out against her for blocking a public entrance and she was given paid suspension while she was running from the law.

The Drama over at Beaumont ISD is never ending. I am not a gambler, but if I was I would be willing to bet good money that if you polled Texans from around the entire State, most of them will have heard of Beaumont, TX (and Jefferson County) and believe it to be one of the most corrupt places in all of Texas.

Beaumont ISD Election Ruled ILLEGAL – BISD Tried to Use Holder’s DOJ to Push Illegal Election via Voting Rights Act

Ok, so let me make this long story short. Beaumont ISD is corrupt. The people of Beaumont wanted to really shake things up so they legally had a petition drive to change the board from 7 single member districts to 5 single member districts with 2 at large members who would be elected by the entire city and not from poorly drawn single member districts. The petition was successful and it was placed on the ballot to be voted on by the entire city. The people of Beaumont spoke and voted to change the BISD to a 5-2 plan.

The Beaumont ISD districts were also changed during all the redistricting in 2012. State Law requires all members of the school board to be up for re-election after redistricting.

Well, election time come around for BISD. The election was supposed to be May 2013. BISD says a big “forget you” to the people of Texas and decided they will not implement the 5-2 plan and they also say they will not put all 7 members up for election.

BISD goes running to Eric Holder’s Department of Justice and says that a 5-2 plan is racist and must be stopped. Holder used the Voting Rights Act section 5 and refused to give preclearance to the 5-2 plan. So BISD decided to move ahead with a 7 member district election.

After a ping pong match between Federal and State Courts, and after the election got pushed back to November 2013, the Voting Rights Act giving DOJ automatic preclearance of election changes in Texas got struck down by the United States Supreme Court.

With DOJ preclearance not needed anymore, BISD no longer had a reason to refuse to implement the 5-2 plan. They refused anyways and it ended up in court again.

Just yesterday, the 9^th Court of Appeals in Beaumont, TX declared Beaumont ISD’s upcoming school board election to be ILLEGAL.

Beaumont ISD Communications Director Jessie Haynes Given Paid Leave while she was Investigated and eventually Charged and had a Warrant out for her Arrest – Haynes pleads the race card

Ok, so here is the short story. Jessie Haynes did not want certain members of the media to be at a press conference, so she blocked the public doorway in the BISD Administration Building. Jerry Jordan of SETinvestigates.com has been exposing corruption in BISD and so Jessie Haynes took it upon herself to deny Jordan the ability to go into the public press conference. School Board Trustee Mike Neil (one of the good guys) showed up and tried to go into the press conference. She denied the school board member entry as well. Neil went to open the door anyways and that is when she took a football tackle stance and tried it looked like she was going to try to tackle the school board member. Above picture of the incident was taken by Jerry Jordan.

Charges were filed against Jessie Haynes and she had a warrant out for her arrest. While she was a fugitive, she was put on paid suspension and was getting a paycheck. Once she turned herself in and got out on bail, she was given her job back by Superintendent Timothy Chargois. Chargois seems to be continuing BISD down the corrupt path that former Superintendent Carrol “Butch” Thomas.

Oh, and what defense does Jessie Haynes claim? She claims everyone is racist against her. No surprise she pulled the race card. Oh, and just to be safe, she added in that she is a victim of violence against women. Interesting she should bring up violence against women because she was seen getting bailed out with Tyler Thomas Jr., who was accused of beating his girlfriend, and also when his father was a deputy for Hardin County his father was caught in a sting with a prostitute.

Barry Smitherman Missed ZERO Votes out of 21,000 in 9 Years – Texas Attorney General Race Update

I recently wrote an article revealing that Texas Attorney General Candidates Ken Paxton and Dan Branch missed several hundred votes each in their past 6 sessions in the Texas Legislature. Missing hundreds of votes in inexcusable considering these votes shape State law and they have a huge impact on the people the laws apply to. I contended that this shows a lack of the commitment and leadership that is needed to be the next Texas Attorney General. I suggested that Conservative Republican Barry Smitherman is the real deal leader that Texas needs as Attorney General because he has proven himself to be a committed, effective, passionate conservative Republican.

I have had a few people tell me that the missed votes were no big deal because everyone misses votes and Smitherman is sure to have missed some votes too. Smitherman can’t be as good as he sounds right? I also had people tell me that they agree that the missed votes were not good, but just showing something negative about Paxton and Branch does not necessarily make Smitherman better than Paxton and Branch.

Wanting to know how many votes Smitherman has missed over the years was a valid question. If I want to show that Smitherman is really a better leader than Branch and Paxton, then I need to look up all the number of votes that Smitherman missed over the years. That is the only way for people to compare Smitherman’s dedication to that of Paxton and Branch.

The answers I found blew me away. I knew Smitherman was good, but I figured he had to have missed a couple votes here and there.

Barry Smitherman has missed ZERO VOTES out of over 21,000!

In the past 9 years at the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) Barry Smitherman made over 21,000 votes without ever missing a vote or missing a single meeting!

Well there you have it. Barry Smitherman really is as good as he sounds. Smitherman has proven time and again that he is not just talk. His record shows that he really does stand for conservative Republican values on a constant basis. From cutting budgets and reducing spending, to standing for religious rights of Kountze, TX Christian cheerleaders, to opposing Abortion, to building Texas up to be self-sufficient, to suing Obama 7 times, etc., etc. Smitherman is a committed, passionate Conservative Republican who I believe is the best leader to be the next Attorney General of Texas.

Related articles:

Barry Smitherman saved Texas Taxpayers OVER $130 MILLION – Slashed Spending, Cut Budgets – Attorney General Race Update

Texas Right to Life Endorses Barry Smitherman for Attorney General

Smitherman REJECTS Budget Increase - Paxton, Branch APPROVE Increases - Texas Attorney General Race

Paxton and Branch Missed Hundreds of Votes in Legislature – Texas Needs a Full Time Attorney General

Statement by Barry Smitherman in response to USDOJ Challenge to Texas Voter ID Law

Congressman Stockman Investigating ATF use of IRS & Perjury to Target Kountze, TX Pastor

An ATF agent, Tom Harm, is being investigated for allegedly using the IRS to target a Kountze, TX pastor, Tony Thornton. Harm, a former IRS agent, was caught on a recording telling Mr. Thornton that he is going to snoop around in the pastor’s finances and taxes. Next thing you know, Mr. Thornton’s personal, business and ministry tax returns were all three hit with audits at the same time. Where did at least one of the audits come from? None other than that corrupt Cincinnati, Ohio IRS office that is now famous for targeting conservative groups. The audits all came back clear, but the point is that if it is true that Mr. Thornton was targeted by the IRS via this ATF agent, and the evidence suggests that it is, then this is a HUGE problem. It is illegal and must be stopped.

This is not just about a local pastor and an ATF agent. This is about the ATF having the ability to get the IRS to target anyone they want with an audit. This is one of the big reasons that Congressman Steve Stockman’s office has started an investigation. Regardless of what you think about the pastor, if the ATF agent can target this pastor then who else has he and will he target using the IRS? Who knows, maybe I will be targeted next because the ATF agent does not like this article I wrote?

At the end of this article you can see a copy of the letter that Congressman Stockman sent to the U.S. Attorney’s Beaumont office regarding the possible problems with the ATF and IRS in this case. The previous U.S. Attorney in Beaumont before this current one could not get any indictments against Thornton because the proof was not there to back any case against Thornton. Now with evidence of wrongdoing by the ATF agent and the IRS, the current U.S. Attorney in Beaumont might just have to drop the case. They have already pushed the case back several years.

The Kountze, TX Church Fire – Accusation of a Rouge ATF agent lying, committing perjury, spreading rumors, etc.

In addition to using the IRS to target people, there is also evidence that this ATF agent committed perjury to the Grand Jury in order to get an indictment, spread false rumors, and used his position to oppress members of the East Texas community of Kountze. Heck, the ATF agent even was asked if the interviews with Kountze community members were being recorded and the Agent said no, but then a court ordered the agency to turn over all the evidence and sure enough the meetings with community members were being recorded and the ATF agent is heard in his own recording telling Kountze community members that they were not being recorded.

Again, regardless of what you think happened or did not happen in Kountze, TX, it is wrong for any government agency to act above the law and violate the rights of people. If they do it to this pastor then they can do it to you.

I love the community of Kountze and I loved the church community at First Baptist. It was tragic what happened and I want the truth to come out too. That being said, the community should not have their rights trampled on by the government using unlawful tactics.

Here is how it all started. Several years ago, the First Baptist Church in Kountze, TX burned to the ground.
The ATF comes in to try to find out what happened. They go around town spreading rumors and intimidating people by telling them things like “they are not allowed to tell anyone they were talked to and if they do then the ATF will know.” The intimidation was not getting them anywhere so they then start spreading false rumors such as saying that the Pastor was having an affair with his secretary. A local county official asked the ATF agents why they were saying these blatantly false things and the ATF agent replied and said that they were starting the rumors to stir the community and see if someone comes forward with something true. This of course is outrageous. I respect the ATF’s job of trying to find out how the church burned down, but the government cannot intentionally spread false rumors and intimidate people like this. I suppose it is not all that surprising that the ATF did this considering the ATF allowed thousands of weapons to be sold to Mexican Drug Cartels, and one of the weapons was used to kill a border patrol agent Brian Terry.

Pastor Thornton was the President of the Hardin County Disaster Relief Fund. There was some controversy surrounding this non-profit disaster relief group. Philip Klein of the Southeast Texas Political Review came up with the idea that this group’s secret documents were stored in the church office and so the Pastor must have burned the church to burn the non-profit’s documents. I am currently supporting and writing about Klein’s employee Stephen Hartman who was illegally arrested trying to serve lawsuit papers to corrupt Jefferson County Judge Layne Walker. I cannot support Klein’s belief that the church was burned down because of documents in the church office. How can I be sure? I know there were no documents in the church office because I used to go to First Baptist Church and I worked with the youth group and was in and around every part of the church office. There were no secret rooms with documents.

The ATF of course found NO EVIDENCE at all that any documents were stored in the church. They have found NO EVIDENCE that Pastor Thornton was at all involved in the church burning. They have not even provided any reason why they believe the church burning was even arson. No one has been indicted or charged in connection with the church burning.

The ATF agent did not want to walk away from the investigation empty handed though, so he started looking at the Hardin County Disaster Relief Fund. Sure there were some problems with the fund, but it had nothing to do with the fire. One of the contractors sending invoices to the fund for repairs to hurricane damaged homes was discovered to have sent some invoices in even though no work was done. When Pastor Thornton and the group’s board found out, they took action and put a lien against the construction company to recoup the funds. The Disaster Relief fund no question should have done a better job of making sure the work that was supposed to be done was getting done. Out of hundreds of homes though, most of the money in the fund went to actually help the hurricane victims who needed help. There were even a few who lied on their application to get disaster funds and said they had no money even though they made nearly 100,000 bucks a year. Unfortunately, that happens in all areas of government and it should be cracked down on everywhere, not just in regards to this disaster fund.

Then there was the allegation that it was illegal for some of the materials that the fund purchased had come from Pastor Thornton’s lumber company. This turned out to be a non-issue because Pastor Thornton had denied anyone being able to buy lumber from his yard with Disaster fund money unless the board and State of Texas approved it. The State of Texas sent Pastor Thornton a letter stating that it would not be a conflict of interest and the Board approved it. Even then, materials with the Disaster group’s money were purchased from several different lumber yards, with Pastor Thornton being only one of the many places where materials were purchased.  The ATF agent saw this letter from the State and he said that he does not care if the State of Texas said there was no conflict of interest because he is the Federal Government and can trump the State.

Then lastly, there was one true mistake that Pastor Thornton made. Pastor Thornton’s wife was dying and it was expensive. Thornton made the bad decision to take some money out of the disaster fund to pay for his wife’s medical bills. He paid back the money with interest before anyone found out and then he admitted and apologized to the disaster fund board for what he had done even though they would have never had caught him. This was all before any investigations happened. I am not defending these actions. There is no question that this was not the right thing and a big mistake and it would have been stealing had it not been for him paying it back, regardless of the reason Pastor Thornton had to take the money. With the money paid back and the board taking the matter into their own hands and handling it internally, there was no evidence to prosecute for stealing money because, before any investigation, the money was put back.

I am not writing this article to try to say that Tony Thornton did not make mistakes and should not have to answer for his actions to the extent of what is true based on evidence, not rumors and lies. I am not writing this article to say that the church fire was not arson. I am not writing this article because I want to cover up the truth. I do want to know who burned down the church I loved and used to attend. I do want the community of Kountze to heal. I want to make sure government agencies and organizations using government funds are transparent and cut out waste and fraud. That being said, it is wrong for the government to target anyone they want using IRS audits and spreading rumors as part of an investigation technique. It is especially wrong for an agent to lie in order to secure a grand jury indictment. Just provide the facts and evidence and let the Grand Jury decide. Furthermore, as a former member of the church, it is just plain ridiculous to say that the church stored the paperwork and computers of the disaster relief fund. That I do know for a fact.

I applaud Congressman Stockman for standing by his constituents in Hardin County and opening an investigation into the actions of the ATF and IRS handling of this situation. Again, not matter what you might think about the situation and who might have done what, it is wrong for the government to abuse their power because if they do it to one person they can and will do it to others.

Letter from David Covey of Congressman Stockman’s office to the Beaumont U.S. Attorney in charge of the case against Pastor Thornton (letter originally posted online by Philip Klein):

Dan Branch Tweet Takes Shot at Ted Cruz? Wants Republicans to Give in to Obamacare?

Texas Attorney General Candidate Dan Branch upset many conservatives yesterday over something that he retweeted on twitter. Given the current standstill in Washington, the post from Branch seemed to imply that conservatives, like Ted Cruz, should not stand so strongly against Obamacare.

I suppose I am not surprised. Dan Branch has a long record of teaming up with Democrats to oppose the majority of Republicans and conservatives during his time in the Texas Legislature. That man can NOT become our next Texas Attorney General. He will compromise with Obama in court instead of fighting tooth and nail against him.

Yesterday, Dan Branch retweeted a Ronald Reagan quote "I'd rather get 80% of what I want than to go over the cliff with my flag waving"

Any other time, in normal debates, this quote would ring true.

These are not normal times though. American is crumbling under an enormous amount of debt and Obamacare might be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Senator Ted Cruz and House Republicans have taken a stand against Obamacare in order to save America. The Republicans have even offered reasonable compromises like just delaying it for a year. The Democrats are not budging so that has led to a "government shutdown" which is really just a government slimdown.

Given the current government situation and the timing of the retweet from Branch, some believe that it was a jab at Ted Cruz and other conservatives who are holding the line against Obamacare. It would seem that Branch might want conservatives to give in more in order to end the shutdown. Branch is wrong though. Standing against Obamacare is not going to end with Republicans going off a cliff with our flags waving. Fighting Obamacare till the end will save America from the cliff that she is sure to go over if Republicans DO give in. So stand strong Ted Cruz and fellow conservative Republican Congressmen.

If Branch meant something else by the retweet then it sure needs to be clarified because many people saw it as invoking conservative hero Ronald Reagan as a plea to conservatives to give in to the Democrats instead of "going off of a cliff" while completely opposing Obamacare, even though the cliff is what standing against Obamacare is saving us from!

This kind of statement sure fits in with Branch's history of compromising conservative values. If you remember, Dan Branch was a member of the original gang of 11. These 11 Republicans teamed up with all of the Texas Democrat State Representatives to kick out the Republican House Speaker and pick a more Democrat friendly, pro-choice, moderate House Speaker Joe Straus.

I personally support Barry Smitherman for Texas Attorney General. He is a proven conservative statewide leader who has shown that he will stand for Texas and fight Obama without backing down.

Paxton and Branch Missed Hundreds of Votes in Legislature – Texas Needs a Full Time Attorney General

Texas deserves a full-time, dedicated Attorney General who shows up to work every day. Candidates Ken Paxton and Dan Branch have missed SEVERAL HUNDRED votes each during their 6 sessions in the Texas Legislature. That shows a severe lack of the leadership that is required to run the Office of the Attorney General, the second largest state agency in Texas.

Ken Paxton

Don’t get me wrong, Paxton is a conservative. But is he the best conservative leader for the job compared to conservative candidate, and proven statewide leader, Barry Smitherman? Just being conservative does not mean much if you don’t show up to vote. According to preliminary numbers, in his six sessions, Ken Paxton has missed a total of 314 floor votes. In committees during his six sessions, he has missed 273 votes.

Dan Branch is even worse than Paxton when it comes to missing votes. According to preliminary numbers, in his six sessions, Dan Branch has missed a total of 570 floor votes. In committees during his six sessions, he has missed 292 votes.

Dan Branch

Conservatives are already not fans of Dan Branch because of his ties to pro-abortion RINO Speaker Joe Straus, so Branch’s missed votes will probably not mean much to the conservative Republicans who already do not like him. Conservatives should be shocked though when they read this article and learn about the inexcusably high number of votes that Ken Paxton did not care to show up for.

When Paxton entered the race, a couple of conservative State Representatives contacted me and let me know that, as much as they think, like I do, that Paxton is a great guy, they do not believe he has the dedication and leadership required to run a statewide agency. They told me about the many votes he missed. They even told me that this past year in one of the special sessions, they recall that the Senate had to wait for him to show up before they could vote on an important bill. The Senate had a hard enough time fighting Wendy Davis and the Democrats, they shouldn’t have to also battle with their fellow Republicans not showing up on time to vote.

Barry Smitherman

Not only is Smitherman conservative, but he actually shows up and gets involved at a high level that is rarely seen. Anyone who has ever met Barry Smitherman will tell you that he is one of the most dedicated leaders they have ever met. Smitherman gets involved and stands up for conservative, Republican values in just about everything, from big things to small things, all while running a statewide agency, the Texas Railroad Commission. From suing Obama 7 times to supporting the Kountze Cheerleaders who held signs with Bible Verses, Smitherman has proven himself to be a reliable, conservative statewide leader.

All opinions aside, the facts are the facts. There is no denying that Paxton and Branch missed HUNDREDS of votes when they thought no one was watching. This is inexcusable and displays a long history of a lack of leadership and commitment. They missed the votes that were not being graded by the conservative groups. They missed the votes that they thought were not important. Well the truth is that, even if the votes were not important to them, they were important to someone. Every bill impacts someone’s life or business and if someone runs for office they are expected to show up to vote. What happens if Branch or Paxton become the next Texas Attorney General? Will they ignore the cases that they think are small and unimportant? Sometimes the small cases are the ones that end up in the Supreme Court and end up taking away our Constitutional rights.

When I was on the Texas State Republican Executive Committee, I would always get frustrated when some of the members would try to end debate of important issues, or leave early because they did not want to have to be in the meeting past dinner time. I never understood it. We only meet 4 times a year and we vote on important issues that impact the Republican Party for the entire State of Texas. That is what we were elected to do and the least we should be expected to do is to commit to sitting through the full meeting and debate the issues before voting on them. We were certainly not elected to leave the meetings early to go watch the big Saturday Night College Football games. I had a long drive home to and on the days that the meetings went long, if I did not have money for a hotel room, I would stop into one of our great Texas State Parks and sleep in my car.

Everyone has something important come up every once in a while that might make them miss a meeting or a vote, whether or not they are on the SREC or in the Texas Legislature. But missing several hundred votes is a pattern of bad leadership and a low level of commitment that should be unacceptable for anyone on in the Legislature, and especially unacceptable for someone wanting to run the Office of the Texas Attorney General.

related article:

Smitherman REJECTS Budget Increase - Paxton, Branch APPROVE Increases - Texas Attorney General Race

Michael Q. Sullivan Responds to Wendy Davis Announcing to run for Texas Governor

Good afternoon! 

Wanted to make sure you saw the press statement we issued a few minutes ago. 

-mq

______________________
Michael Quinn Sullivan
EmpowerTexans.com
1836Campaign.com
Direct: 512-850-4336 

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Morgan Williamson (TFR press)" <press@empowertexans.com> 
Subject: Statement on Wendy Davis candidacy
Date: October 3, 2013 15:28:27 CDT
To:

Texans for Fiscal Responsibility EmpowerTexans.com Update or unsubscribe.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 3, 2013 CONTACT: Morgan Williamson (512) 693-9553 mwilliamson@empowertexans.com or press@empowertexans.com

Statement on Wendy Davis’ Entrance To 2014 Gubernatorial Race

AUSTIN, Texas – As State Sen. Wendy Davis enters the 2014 gubernatorial race, the president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility – Michael Quinn Sullivan – offered the following statement.

“On issue after issue, Wendy Davis has styled herself as a politician eager to please a narrow band of entrenched, liberal special interests. Her policy positions would put the state on a spending spree the likes of which we have never seen. Sen. Davis has refused to sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, thereby putting the best economic interests of Texans behind bloated bureaucracies eager for more power and money.

“As an avid proponent of ObamaCare and Medicaid expansion, Wendy Davis has established herself as someone willing to turn the Lone Star State into Texafornia.

“Wendy Davis wants to turn Texas blue by way of a sea of red-ink and a flood of high taxes.

“Finally, Davis’ professional interests have clearly been designed over the years to profit from the positions of public trust she has held. Whether illegal, unethical or just wrong, Texans are not well-served by an officeholder who stretches past breaking the relationship between their public life and private income.”

 
(A website dedicated to the questions about Wendy Davis’ ethical choices, www.WendyDavis.org, provides additional information.)

Federal Workers Offended by Obama's Partisan/Misleading Email Sent to All Government Work Inboxes Blaming House of Representatives for Shutdown

David Bellow Exclusive:

Crossing the line? President Obama sent a partisan/non-factual email to all Federal employees blaming the Republican controlled House of Representatives for the shutdown and claiming that the Senate and the President have nothing to do with the government shutdown. (see Obama's email below)

Federal Workers are not allowed to send partisan/political emails to other government workers using their government email accounts while they are on duty. They do not expect to read any partisan emails either, especially from the government. The government leaders understand this and anything that is sent out is typically always non controversial and non-partisan. That was not the case this week. Imagine the surprise that many federal workers got when they clocked into work and got a partisan email from President Obama blaming the House of Representatives for the Shutdown and claiming that the Senate and President had nothing to do with the shutdown. The email made no mention that it takes three to shutdown the government. The House and Senate and President all have to agree on a budget in order to keep the government going. The shutdown is just as much the Senate's fault for not approving what the House passed as it is the House's fault for not approving what the Senate passed. If you read the email from President Obama you would think that it is only the fault of the House of Representatives because they are not going along with the good plan from the Senate. Oh, and the email made no mention of the threats to veto the House bill. Yes, as much as the President denied his role in this shutdown in the email to all federal workers, the shutdown is just as much his fault because he has threatened to veto everything the House has offered. Also there was no mention of the fact that he, and not Congress, made the decision to shut down the WWII memorial from even allowing veterans to visit it. This memorial does not even need to be "funded" in order to allow people to freely walk to it and look at it.

Below are some of the most outrageous, partisan quotes that Obama sent in a letter to all federal workers via their government work email inboxes: (my comments are in red)

"This shutdown was completely preventable. It should not have happened. And the House of Representatives can end it as soon as it follows the Senate's lead, and funds your work in the United States Government without trying to attach highly controversial and partisan measures in the process." (the Senate and President can also end it as soon as they follow the House's lead. The President forgot to mention that)

"I will continue to do everything in my power to get the House of Representatives to allow our Government to reopen as quickly as possible, and make sure you receive the pay that you have earned." (Ah yes, it is only the House that is not allowing the government to keep running. So the Senate and President have nothing to do with it?)

"more than 50 current or former Federal employees have received the Nobel Prize for their efforts." (Not sure how this has anything to do with the Shutdown, but they also gave war starting Obama the Nobel Peace Prize, so really how credible is one of those awards nowadays?)

"It was grants from the Department of Energy that helped businesses unlock new sources of renewable energy" (like the money given to Solyndra the solar panel company that took taxpayer money and went bankrupt while the executives of the company made millions?)

Click on the document bellow to see the full letter that President Obama sent on October 1st, 2013 to all federal workers. The particular letter below was sent to all Department of Justice workers from President Obama via Attorney General Eric Holder: