Texas Saddle Up Straw Poll Results: 4 Way Presidential Split, Romney Shunned - Ted Cruz Sweeps US Senate Poll - Congressional Polls

SADDLE UP TEXAS RESULTS – IN PERSON

the full list of results can be seen at http://saddleuptexaspoll.com/ I did not post all the state and local race results because it would be really long. Below are the major race poll results

FEDERAL CANDIDATES
CIRCLE ONE CHOICE FOR PRESIDENT
Newt Gingrich		23.8%
Rick Perry		19.4%
Ron Paul		27.9%
Mitt Romney		6.6%
Jon Huntsman		1.1%
Rick Santorum		21.2%
Charles “Buddy” Roemer		0.0%
CIRCLE ONE CHOICE FOR SENATE
Glenn Addison		19.9%
Tom Leppert		3.0%
David Dewhurst		10.3%
Curt Cleaver		0.0%
Ted Cruz		47.8%
Charles Holcomb		0.7%
Ben Gambini		0.0%
Lela Pittenger		7.2%
“Doc Joe” Agris		1.2%
Craig James		9.9%
CIRCLE ONE CHOICE FOR CONGRESS FROM ONE CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT ONLY
DISTRICT 3	Sam Johnson	0.0%
	Josh Caesar	0.0%
	Harry Pierce	0.0%
DISTRICT 4	Ralph Hall	75.0%
	John Cooper	25.0%
	Lou Gigliotti	0.0%
DISTRICT 6	Joe Barton	86.7%
	Joe Chow	6.7%
	Frank Kuchar	6.7%
DISTRICT 8	Kevin Brady	61.3%
	Larry Youngblood	38.7%
DISTRICT 10	Michael McCaul	70.6%
	Ernie Beltz, Jr.	8.8%
	Eddie Traylor	20.6%
DISTRICT 11	Mike Conaway	0.0%
	Chris Younts	100.0%
DISTRICT 13	Mac Thornberry	66.7%
	Pam Barlow	33.3%
DISTRICT 14	Michael Truncale	8.8%
DISTRICT 14	Tim Day	1.1%
DISTRICT 14	Randy Weber	14.3%
DISTRICT 14	John Gay	1.1%
	Bill Sargent	0.0%
	George Harper	9.9%
	Jay Old	1.1%
	Mark Mansius	0.0%
	Robert Gonzalez	62.6%
	Felicia Harris	1.1%
DISTRICT 15	Jim Kuiken	0.0%
	Eddie Zamora	100.0%
	Dale A. Brueggemann	0.0%
DISTRICT 22	Pete Olson	48.5%
	Barbara Carlson	51.5%
DISTRICT 24	Kenny Marchant	0.0%
	Grant Stinchfield	0.0%
DISTRICT 25	Wes Riddle	40.0%
DISTRICT 25	Dianne Costa	0.0%
DISTRICT 25	Michael Williams	60.0%
	Dave Garrison	0.0%
	Bill Burch	0.0%
	Chad Wilbanks	0.0%
	Brian Matthews	0.0%
	Justin Hewlett	0.0%
DISTRICT 27	Blake Farenthold	83.3%
	Don Al Middlebrook	16.7%
DISTRICT 33	Bill Lawrence	0.0%
DISTRICT 33	Chuck Bradley	33.3%
	Roger Williams	66.7%
	Monte Mitchell	0.0%
DISTRICT 34	Trey Roberts	0.0%
DISTRICT 34	Paul B. Haring	0.0%
DISTRICT 34	Bill Tofte	87.0%
	John Grunwald	4.3%
	Marc Young	0.0%
	Adela Garza	4.3%
	Jessica Puente Bradshaw	4.3%
DISTRICT 35	Susan Narvaiz	0.0%
	Rob Roark	100.0%
DISTRICT 36	Kim Morrell	0.0%
DISTRICT 36	Lois Dickson Myers	4.5%
DISTRICT 36	Stephen Takach	2.3%
	Jim Engstrand	84.1%
	Jerry L. Doyle	0.0%
	Mike Jackson	9.1%
	Ky D. Griffin	0.0%

DHS Monitoring Blogs? David Bellow tells KETK NBC, “Good! They Might Learn Something!”

below is an article about my interview with KETK NBC that Texas GOP Vote posted on their website:

Texas GOP Vote blogger David Bellow was recently on KETK NBC in Tyler, TX to discuss the recent revelations that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been monitoring blogs and other social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Drudge Report and Huffington Post.

See KETK NBC news video here: http://www.ketknbc.com/news/big-brother-eyeing-websites-bloggers

Basically, the DHS recently came out and said they have been monitoring social sites and blogs. They call it a social networking media capability program. They are doing this so that they can collect information used in providing situational awareness and establishing a common operating picture. That is a whole bunch of words. What they really should say is that they just want to see what is going on and they want to see what people are saying/reporting on their blogs.

Some people told KETK NBC that this was Big Brother and that they did not like it. When Bellow was asked about it he said, “I think that is great. They might learn something.”

Bellow went on to explain that when he puts something on a blog, “I am putting it out for the public to see. I want them to see it. So I am not at all bothered that they are reading it.”

Bellow is a conservative Republican blogger and he posts stories sometimes that the mainstream media does not know about or does not want to cover. He said that, “if the Department of Homeland Security is looking at blogs, I think that is a great idea because I think they could learn a lot.”

For instance, “If the DHS could not have been so politically correct and if they read some of the information that Major Nidal Hasan put on forums, they would have known that he was a Muslim terrorist and the entire Fort Hood Massacre could have been avoided. Of course, the Obama Administration believes that those soldiers died as a part of workplace violence only and not a part of a terrorist attack by a Muslim who hates America.”

Also, “the Obama Administration could really learn a lot about how dangerous the Mexican border is by reading blogs. If they read some blog then they would know about the violence from drug cartels that is spilling over onto American soil. They would know about the tens of thousands who have been killed along the border and about all the shootings with American law enforcement and drug cartels. Then Obama would not be coming to Texas making jokes about how we will not be happy until there is a moat with alligators. No, we just want to be safe from the violent drug cartels.”

SHOCKING Texas/Mexico Border WARZONE PICTURES and VIDEO: Massive Battle Across Texas Mexico Border - Machine Guns and Explosions - Morning of April 21, 2011

Violent Mexican Drug Cartels Target Texas School Children for Gangs, Drugs and Death

Bellow does say that there would be an issue with storing information or accessing private information, but what he puts on a blog is put there for the purpose of being read and there is no expectation of privacy for what you put on a public online blog. The real problem right now is the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that was just passed and signed into law that allows Americans on American soil to be detained secretly without due process and without even a trial. That is the bigger problem we are facing right now.

Convict TX Activist Bishop Guillory Lowered Crime in 10 Worst US Cities? Sex Parties & Strippers at his Palace? (video)

A Texas Activist, Bishop L.J. Guillory, tells the Jasper City Council that his work has eliminated, or lowered, the crime rate in the top 10 most dangerous cities in the United States of America.

Click Here to Watch Video:

Bishop L J Guillory is a smooth talker. He can make you believe anything. Heck, he probably believes it himself! He started a "government oversight agency", Ombudsman International Inc, and many people believe that he was impersonating a DOJ official during a Jasper, TX Election. He calls himself the Ombudsman General. He is a convicted felon. He is no Bishop. He does not even act Christian with all the talk about strippers and the sex parties that go on at his "palace" in California that is not even owned by him (he just wants you to think it is his palace). He even tells the Jasper TX City Council that he put an end to or lowered crime in the top ten worst crime cities in the US!

More Info:

Jasper, TX Officials Say Convict Activist "Bishop Guillory" Posed as a Department of Justice Agent in Election

Of Course, Guillory is going to pull the race card and call me racist for trying to put an end to corruption in East Texas. The fact is that I do not look at color of the bad guy. I go after the bad guys no matter what color their skin is! Like when I went after a White Justice of the Peace in Hardin County: Criminal Complaint Filed Against Lumberton Justice of the Peace Butch Cummings

 

Butch Cummings (a Justice of the Peace) even cursed and threatened me with bodily injury if I exposed that he had tried to rig his election by coercing his opponent to drop out of the race.

Click Here to Watch Video:

 

More East Texas Corruption: Cherokee County Republican Chairman Steve Loony Arrested on Felony Charges

As a State Republican Executive Committeeman (SREC), I am elected to represent the Republicans in 16 counties in East Texas. Cherokee County is one of my counties. They are a great county with good Republicans. There is also a bunch of corruption, mostly stemming from good old boy democrat networks because Democrats have long been in power in East Texas. For the last year, there has been controversy swirling around about the County Republican Party Chairman. Loony was elected into his position when several Democrat officials switched Republican and supported Loony as the chairman. Don’t get me wrong, I want all the good conservative Democrats to wake up and switch Republican. I welcome that. Not everyone who switches are good people though and certainly some of them do it just so they can still get elected. There was not much I could do for Cherokee County though because the county chairman is an elected position, so I just told the people of Cherokee County that if they do not like their chairman then they need to just elect a new one. This kind of thing is best handled at the local level by just electing someone new if they do not like their current chairman. The SREC cannot really even do anything anyways because, like I said, we cannot remove an elected official from office. If things get bad enough then the SREC can pass a resolution opposing the actions of a county chairman and asking that chairman to step down, but we cannot remove anyone. We actually just recently passed a resolution disapproving of the inappropriate actions of the Upshur County Republican Chairman.

Cherokee County Chairman Steve Loony Arrested on Felony Charges

I received a call from a Republican in Cherokee County a couple of days ago. I was told that Steve Loony was arrested. Steve Loony is innocent until proven guilty, but this is still very disappointing and gives the good Republican Party of Texas a bad image. There are other candidates running for Cherokee County Republican Chairman and I would imagine that, after this arrest, Loony will probably not be elected again.

The following is the full story of Loony’s arrest from TylerPaper.com

Republican Party Chairman Facing Felony Charges

By TIM MONZINGO
Staff Writer

The chairman of the Cherokee County Republican Party is facing felony charges stemming from investigations into his work as a public servant.

Stephen Looney turned himself into the Cherokee County Jail Monday on charges of tampering with government records with the intent to defraud or harm, and theft of property greater than $500 but less than $1,500 by a public servant, according to documents from the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office.
Both are state jail felonies.

The charges have caused Republicans in the county to call for his resignation.

Danny Morris, the president of the Cherokee County Republican Club, said he would like to see Looney step down from his position as chairman before the end of his term.

“The things that he’s done has given a black eye to the party,” Morris said. “The longer he stays as chairman of the party I think the more damage we’re going to have in the eyes of the public.”

Morris said he did not want Looney to seek reelection in the next round of primaries.

Cherokee County District Attorney Elmer Beckworth said an indictment was issued for Looney in December.

Beckworth said the charges came from an investigation conducted by the Health and Human Services Commission, for which Looney worked as a specialist with Adult Protective Services.

“I was contacted by an investigator for the Health and Human Services Commission, Office of the Inspector General,” Beckworth said. “(The investigator) met with me in June and later sent me a detailed report regarding this investigation.”

He said the charges were related to plumbing work done on property when Looney was employed by the Adult Protective Services.

Looney resigned from the department in Dec. 28, 2010.

Included in a Department of Health and Human Services memorandum, dated Dec. 20, 2010, was a recommendation for Looney’s dismissal based on alleged violations of 10 Health and Human Services human resource rules.

In that memorandum, which was not related to the charges on which he was indicted, it was alleged Looney rented a house he owned to an Adult Protective Services client and told the client to request the agency put a stove in the property. Several other allegations were made about improper conduct at the agency.

Beckworth said the two charges he was indicted on stemmed from separate incidents presented to him in the file complied by the Health and Human Services Commission.

“It was more than one incident, but the same course of conduct,” Beckworth said of the investigation into the incidents leading to the charges.

Looney was out of jail as of Tuesday afternoon after posting a $20,000 bond. He did not return phone calls for comment on the arrest or call for resignation before press time.

US Supreme Court Hears Texas Redistricting – Voting Rights Act Section 5 might be Found Unconstitutional – Late Decision Might Mean 2 Texas Primary Election Dates instead of 1…. again

The US Supreme Court heard the oral arguments in the Texas Redistricting Battle on January 9^th, 2012. If the Supreme Court does not make a decision soon then Texas might be forced to change the Primary election date again. Some of the elections would still be on April 3rd, 2012 and some would be pushed back to a later date. This is due to the fact that the State Republican and Democrat Party Conventions have to be in June or July. Those cannot just be cancelled. Hopefully the US Supreme Court makes a decision soon so that Texas can get things sorted out in time to still have all the Primary Elections on the same date in April.

It is hoped the Supreme Court will also rule that Section V of the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional. Several states have filed Amicus Briefs in support of striking down Section 5. Basically, it is not constitutional that the Federal Government has one set of rules for some states and one set of rules for other states. Some states get to do what they want in redistricting and voter id laws but other states have to have their laws approved by the Justice Department (a biased, non elected federal entity).

Go to www.txredistricting.org for more info on this Texas Redistricting/Supreme Court mess

Texas Sonogram Abortion Bill is Ruled Constitutional - 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds the Law & Removes Injunction

Major Victory for the State of Texas and for life!

Texas passed a law in the 2011 Legislative session that requires a sonogram to be performed for women who are contemplating killing their unborn baby. This would allow the woman to be fully informed about what she is doing and who is inside of her.

This law was challenged in court U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks put a hold on key provisions of Texas’ new sonogram law.

This ruling was appealed to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The 5^th Circuit today struck down the injunction against the Sonogram Bill and ruled that the bill is constitutional.

Jeff Mateer, the General Counsel for the Liberty Institute, posted this comment on his Facebook page:

Breaking News -- Victory at 5th Circuit: The Court (Edith Jones opinion) holds recently enacted Texas Sonogram law constitutional. The Fifth Circuit reversed Judge Sparks, vacating his granting of preliminary injunction, which had stopped enforcement of the Texas Sonogram law.

Below is a Previous Story from earlier this week from the Liberty Institute blog:

Sonogram Bill Goes Before 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Today 

Today, the Sonogram Bill (HB 15) will go before the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. The State of Texas will be seeking to overturn U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks ruling that put on hold key provisions of Texas’ new sonogram law. The Sonogram Bill, which requires doctors or certified sonographers to perform a sonogram on women seeking an abortion at least 24 hours before the procedure, was overwhelmingly passed by the Texas Legislature and signed into law by Governor Perry this past legislative session.

Liberty Institute, on behalf of Texas State Senator Dan Patrick and Representative Sid Miller – authors of the Sonogram Bill in the Texas Senate and House respectively, filed an amicus brief with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the law. Liberty Institute argues that HB 15 is consistent with Supreme Court precedents and only requires the disclosure of truthful and accurate information to allow women to make informed decisions regarding their pregnancies. Liberty Institute was also involved in helping lawmakers draft the best language for this legislation and provided legal advocacy at numerous legislative hearings on this matter when pro-abortion advocates tried to stop this effort.

Read the legislators’ amicus brief filed with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Texas Medical Professionals Performing Abortion Services v. Lakey.

Texas US Senate Debate Jan 12 w/ Cruz, Dewhurst, James, Addison & Leppert. Cruz #1 in Fundraising So Far

Finally! The top three Texas US Senate Candidates will be in the same room together for a candidate debate!

On Thursday, January 12, 2012 at 7 p.m., Empower Texans and the Texas Public Policy Foundation will co-host the first debate of the Texas Republican US Senate candidates of 2012! You can watch the debate live online by going to http://www.empowertexans.com/

Confirmed participants are: Glenn Addison, Ted Cruz, David Dewhurst, Craig James and Tom Leppert. They are trying to take over the Texas US Senate seat that will be open thanks to Senator Kay Baily Hutchinson retiring.

Thus far, the two candidates who seem to be in the lead (and getting all the attention) are Ted Cruz and David Dewhurst.

David Dewhurst is the Lieutenant Governor of Texas and is extremely wealthy. He is the leader of the Texas State Senate. He has name recognition and money to easily fuel his campaign. Ted Cruz is the former Solicitor General for Texas. He does not have much name recognition or money, but he is the Tea Party darling and has garnered impressive endorsements from big conservative Republicans and conservative organizations (such as Club for Growth, National Review, YCT, Red State, Dr. James Dobson, Senator Jim DeMint, Senator Rand Paul, George Will, David Barton, etc.) His big draw is that he is seen as a fresh face and he has actually argued for his conservative principles in front of the Supreme Court and won (defeating Obama in one case).

Cruz and Dewhurst have Drawn Most of the Attention in this Race

It is only logical that Texans want to see these two debate each other on the issues. Surprisingly, there have been no debates between the candidates so far. Ted Cruz has offered to have debates but so far David Dewhurst has not accepted. David Dewhurst probably has hoped that he could rely on his name recognition to keep him in the lead without having to debate Ted Cruz. I can’t say that I blame him because Cruz has debated in front of the Supreme Court and is a very good speaker. It probably was a good strategy on the part of Dewhurst, but it was a strategy that could only work as long as Ted Cruz was not a major threat. Surprisingly though (or not surprisingly), Ted Cruz has been rocketing up the polls, has been fundraising well, and has been getting big conservative endorsements every week. Now that Cruz is no longer a long shot and he is at the top of the Senate race with Dewhurst, people want to see a debate.

Bloggers from all over Texas have demanded to see the two top senate candidates in a debate with each other. Big conservative organizations like King Street Patriots and the Grassroots Texans Network have offered to put on the debate. David Dewhurst has even taken some heat from Texas newspapers like the San Antonio Express News for not scheduling a debate with Cruz.

Debate will be held at 7 p.m. on January 12, 2012, at the Downtown Austin Hilton

The people of Texas will finally get what they want. They get a debate between Cruz and Dewhurst.

That is not all they get though.

There are other candidates in this US Senate race too, even though Cruz and Dewhurst have stolen the spotlight.

I personally am voting for Ted Cruz, but I certainly want to be fair and list all the candidates in the race. It is also important to note that I am not voting against any candidate. For instance, just because I personally support Cruz over Dewhurst does not mean I dislike Dewhurst. I just think that, out of all the good guys, Cruz is the best conservative guy for the job, he has won in the US Supreme Court, and he is a fresh face.

The Other Texas US Senate Candidates:

Craig James (no website?) just recently joined the US Senate race. James has some name and face recognition because he has been working for ESPN and is seen on TV regularly by anyone who watches ESPN. James certainly makes the race more interesting but he has a lot of catching up to do.

Glenn Addison is from Magnolia, TX. He owns a funeral home business. He is a pretty nice guy but he has not gained much traction and does not have much money.

Lela Pittenger is a very nice, Christian conservative but she has not gained any traction and does not have much money.

Tom Leppert is a former mayor of Dallas. He certainly has great name recognition in that part of Texas. He also has lots of personal money to spend on his campaign. He certainly has the potential to be one of the top candidates but he has just not been able to get the attention like Cruz and Dewhurst.

April 3^rd, 2012 Republican Primary Election

The 2012 Republican Primary Election will decide who wins out of these 5 gentlemen and 1 woman. This Primary Election should will on April 3^rd, 2012. The Supreme Court could change that date though. It has already been pushed back to April from March because of a couple activist judges and a big Texas Redistricting mess. One of the Federal Judges in this Redistricting Battle is Brother in Law of Texas Democrat Senate Caucus Chairman. Is that crazy or what?

With half a dozen candidates in this US Senate race, it is unlikely that any one candidate will get a majority of the vote. There will likely be a runoff election between the two top vote getters.

    Ted Cruz is Leading in Fundraising/Individual Contributions and Social Media

Below are the fundraising totals for the top 3 candidates, as of the last Campaign Finance Reports that have been posted on the Federal Election Commission’s website. I have also posted some interesting social media info about Cruz and Dewhurst).

As you can see below, Cruz is the fundraising leader and has received the most individual contributions. Leppert and Dewhurst are close behind though. What is most interesting about these fundraising totals is that Cruz has raised all this money with very little money to start with. Dewhurst and Leppert each put 2 million dollars or more of their own money into their campaign in the form of candidate loans. Cruz has only put loaned his campaign $70,000 or his own money. This would indicate that Cruz has a significant amount of grassroots support and his name is really getting circulated around Texas.

It is also interesting to see that Cruz has really dominated the social media. He has significantly more friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter than any other candidate so far.

Ted Cruz

Individual Contributions: $2,753,833

Candidates Loans: $70,000

Unique Donors/Contributors: 2,217

Facebook Friends/Fans: 68,740

Twitter Followers: 18,048

David Dewhurst

Individual Contributions: $2,456,934

Candidates Loans: $2,000,000

Unique Donors/Contributors: 1,157

Facebook Friends/Fans: 25,393

Twitter Followers: 5,702

Tom Leppert

Individual Contributions: $2,462,297

Candidates Loans: $2,600,000

Unique Donors/Contributors: 1,681

Iowa Caucus Results: Big Win (tie) for Santorum - Perry & Gingrich Alive - Romney Flat - Paul Competing

Rick Santorum had a huge victory in the Iowa Caucus. He came within 8 votes of beating Romney out for first place. This 25% tie (almost a win) win will give Santorum the media attention he needs to compete in future Primaries and Caucuses. Romney and Santorum share the delegates from Iowa with Romney getting 13 and Santorum getting 12. It really is a joke to think that these early primaries and caucuses can carry so much weight. The winner only gets 13 delegates! It takes over 1000 delegates to win the nomination!

There is a long race ahead and I sure hope the media does not conclude who the winner is until after all the states have voted and someone has the over 1000 delegates needed to win. 13 votes means nothing and yet it is silly how much hype that Iowa and these other early states get.

The hype will help Santorum get more exposure and money so that is good for him. Romney comes out bad in this deal because he could not win. As other conservative candidates drop out we will see Romney's numbers stay about the same and some other candidate's numbers go up because there is clearly a large section of "anyone but Romney" voters.

Perry is still very alive after this Iowa Caucus. The winner only got 25% and there were 5 candidates that got in the double digits. Perry ended up with 11%. That shows that the voters are very split between candidates. Perry has lots of money that he can spend on future races. All it takes for Perry to turn the corner is for Perry to survive until some of the big states. By then, some of the other candidates might have dropped out so those candidate's votes could go to Perry as the anti-Romney or anti-Paul candidate. For instance, Texas has a later Primary thanks to the Activist Judges trying to take over redistricting. Many of the states voting before Texas will have half of their delegates taken away because they did not follow RNC rules. If the candidates keep splitting the votes in the early, low population State Primaries, then a big win in a place like Texas could drastically change the race because of the amount of delegates that Texas has.

Ron Paul showed that he is getting more votes than just his base with 22%. Quite frankly, people are getting sick and tired of the status quo and so more and more people are thinking that a drastic change is what is needed. Ron Paul will probably be in the race for a while and he certainly cannot be ruled out.

Newt Gingrich is in the same boat as Perry, except without the money that Perry has. Newt got 14 percent and he could be a guy that people turn to in order to get away from Paul or Romney. That is if Gingrich lasts that long.

Michele Bachmann and Jon Huntsman both got single digits. I guess it is too early to rule anyone completely out, but with little money to get their message out they might not make it very long into the next few months.

Celebratory Bullets Cause Injury and Damage in Texas Border Town on New Year’s Eve (pictures and video)

On the night of January 31^st, 2012, many people in Rio Grande City, TX were too scared to even step out of their houses for fear that they might get hit by a bullet. The Starr County Memorial Hospital could not give me any patient information, but they did confirm that some individuals (at least one) were treated at the hospital on New Year’s Eve for wounds caused by bullets falling and hitting people. 

This area of the Texas/Mexico border has seen its share of violence from Mexican Drug Cartels. Last year I posted an article about a massive drug cartel battle that happened close to Rio Grande City in Roma, TX (VIDEO and Pictures: Massive Battle Across Texas Mexico Border -Machine Guns and Explosions - Morning of April 21, 2011)

These New Year’s Eve 2011 bullets were not from drug cartel guns though. 

These bullets were from residents of Rio Grande City, TX celebrating the New Year by foolishly shooting their guns into the air. I called the Rio Grande City Police Department and asked them about the celebratory fire that had occurred. The Detective I talked to was very polite and open to talking about the incident. He told me that this is something that happens all along the border, not just in Rio Grande City, and it has gone on since he was young. He said that what goes up must come down and that throughout the years there have been random damages from bullets going through roofs, etc.

My brother, James Bellow, lives in this border town and he reported this information to me (he stayed living on the border after his Army National Guard Border Mission was complete). He was quite disturbed to be in an American city and have something so uncivilized and dangerous like this happen on such a widespread scale. On this same night, a boy in Florida was critically injured when a celebratory bullet shot through his scull as the boy watched fireworks.

Gunfire could be heard all night in all corners of the city. The bullets were dropping everywhere and many people were too scared to even go outside. My brother said that one man had a bullet hit him in the back. He said that some had hit people’s roofs. My brother himself even received damage because he had a large .40 caliber bullet damage his truck (see pictures of truck below).

My brother also used his cell phone video camera to capture audio of the constant sound of high caliber, rapid gunfire (see video below to hear gunfire).

Truck Damage from .40 Caliber Bullet:

Video (AUDIO) of gunfire on New Year’s Eve 2011 in Rio Grande City: (Yes, some of what you hear in this video is only noise from fireworks but the gunfire is pretty easy to distinguish)

 

Rio Grande City Police Say Woman Murdered an Illegal Immigrant – But was it Self-Defense/Fear for Life? Something Sounds Fishy…

As I was scanning through the internet to see if I could find any other media reports of the injuries and damage caused by the New Year’s Eve celebratory fire in Rio Grande City, I came across a very interesting story involving a woman charged with murdering an illegal immigrant and attempted capital murder.  Something seems very strange about this story and it seems as though the police are closing the case without even getting any evidence.

The deceased illegal immigrant, Jose Antonio Solis Sanchez, was found dead under a tree in Rio Grande City, TX. It took 2 weeks before any leads came in about what happened. Finally, the police got a lead from the man who was driving Sanchez the night he was shot. According to the driver, Sanchez was in a van with the driver and 2 other men (all men were unrelated). The van somehow ended up in the yard of the alleged murderer, Lizbeth Hinojosa Garcia. The driver says that Garcia came out yelling and shot 2 times at the van. One of the bullets struck Sanchez (Garcia and Sanchez are unrelated). The police have admitted that they do not know why the van and those men were on her private property. They police admit that they do not know what happened to the van or where it is located. The police admit they do not know how the man ended up dead over half a mile away from where he was shot. The police do not even know what the motive was for the shooting.

With that information (or lack of information), the Rio Grande Police are sure about one thing: 

The Rio Grande Police are positive that this was a cold blooded murder and NOT self-defense.

REALLY? How can you rule out self-defense or manslaughter if you do not even know the details of what happened that night? You don’t think a 28 year old mother of 2 children might possibly have feared for her life because there were 4 unknown men on her property in the middle of the night? The area is known for drugs and cartel violence after all. If you believe the driver, the woman was yelling and shot twice. She did not riddle the van with bullets trying to kill everyone in the van. Maybe she was yelling to get off of her property and then one of the men in the van did something to startle her so she reacted by pulling the trigger twice? She might not even know that she has shot anyone if the van drove off after she shot at it. Maybe she thought she saw something in the van like a gun?

I am not necessarily defending this woman. This woman very well might have committed cold blooded murder by leaving her house to intentionally kill an innocent person in a van on her yard, but this woman might likely have also feared for her life and is simply guilty of manslaughter or not guilty at all due to self-defense. WE JUST DON’T KNOW. The police have no evidence. Can the police really fully believe what the occupants of the van say? These men did not call police for weeks, have no explanation of why they were in the woman’s yard, do not know where the van is, and they did not even call for an ambulance and do not know how the man ended up dead half a mile away from where he was shot.

It all sounds very strange if you ask me. I think there is more to this story. I also think that the Rio Grande Police have jumped to conclusions by ruling out self-defense and calling this cold blooded murder before they have any evidence.

Just last year, in a different part of Texas, the Hardin County District Attorney charged Clint West with the murder of Nicole Janca. West had previously only been charged by the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department with providing alcohol to a minor. This is an example of a case getting closed before all the evidence was looked at. Thankfully the Hardin County case was reopened and more evidence was examined which resulted in the murder charge.

The Starr County District Attorney and the Rio Grande City Police Department need to step back and get the evidence first before they close the case or make any final determinations. They especially cannot rule out the possibility of self-defense yet. They should especially not close the case before they even know what happened.

Something just seems fishy about this murder charge in Rio Grande City and I sure am interested to see how the case moves forward and what new evidence will come out.

Texans Have a Voice in 2012 Presidential Primary at State-Wide “Saddle Up” Straw Poll in Houston Jan 12 – 14

Update: Andrew Breitbart just announced that he will be at this Straw Poll (see full list of speakers below)

I feel that the Republican National Committee (RNC) has really gone wrong in allowing 4 states to go ahead of the rest of the states in the Republican Presidential Primary race. Who says those 4 states represent America? Why do their decisions get to propel a candidate into the front of the race? Why should Texas, which has the 2nd most presidential delegates, have no say in the Presidential Primary? State Republican Parties cannot even control what date the State Legislature sets for the Primary Election.

Now that the activist federal judges in San Antonio have pushed back our Presidential Primary election even more, Texas might not have much of a say about who the Republican Presidential Candidate will be. One of the judges is even the brother in law of a liberal Democrat Texas State Senator.

Thankfully, there is some hope. A group has organized a state-wide Presidential Straw Poll. It is called the “Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll” and it will be at Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX on January 12^th – 14^th, 2012

There will be on-site polling taking place Saturday, January 14, for President, U.S. House and Senate and Texas House and Senate seats. There will also be the opportunity to vote in the poll remotely via phone.

There is an excellent line up of speakers and the will also be hosting some excellent grassroots training during the event. 

This is not a fundraiser for any group. In fact, they are donating a large portion of any profits to three Texas Veteran’s organizations - Texas Wounded Warrior, Lone Survivor Foundation and a VFW museum in Katy, Texas.

Giving conservatives in Texas a voice in the Presidential Primary is the sole focus of this event.

This event might not be anything close to the Iowa Caucus, but it should garner some decent media attention this year and it is a great start. It will surely get bigger and better and become a greater opportunity for Texans to have their voice heard via a large, legitimate poll. As it is now, the Republican Presidential Candidate is usually already chosen by the time it gets time for Texas to vote.

Go here for more info: www.Saddleuptexaspoll.com

Below is the latest Press Release about the Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll:

Historic State-Wide Texas Straw Poll Draws Conservative Elite

to Saddle Up in Houston January 12 – 14 at Minute Maid Park©

Conservative everyday Texans join together to empower citizens of the state with a three-day grassroots celebration.

Keynote speaker Herman Cain headlines an expanding cast of conservative luminaries, media personalities and congressional candidates participating in the inaugural Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll event.

Houston: The original mission for the devoted group of everyday volunteer Texans planning the Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll was to offer the voters of our state a more profound voice in the presidential primary process. Texas voters have been historically ignored despite the fact that Texas sends the second largest delegation to the Electoral College and possesses the second largest population in the United States.

The ambitious gathering will offer attendees the opportunity to listen to and speak directly with Federal and State candidates prior to the actual straw poll balloting scheduled from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm on Saturday January 14. Those results will be tabulated and publically announced that evening prior to the close of the event. The first of its kind state-wide poll will also allow Texas voters to cast their vote(s) remotely via phone and via paper ballot at the event.

Polling isn’t the only activity on tap during this groundbreaking affair. The event will kick off with a social mixer Thursday evening at the Club Level at Minute Maid Park. Friday morning, you will hear from conservative speakers and U.S. Senate candidates, in the early afternoon you will be inspired by a very special Veteran’s Tribute led by Ted Poe. In the evening, there will be a concert featuring entertainment from Houston native Kevin Black along with Karl Brunig, the singer/songwriter who crafted the official “Saddle Up Texas” theme song. The concert will be interspersed with conservative speakers such as Dick Armey of FreedomWorks. And throughout the three-day event, a selection of educational breakout sessions, social and networking activities is also being planned.

Attendees will have the chance to hear David Dewhurst, Ted Cruz, Glenn Addision, Tom Leppert, Lela Mae Pittenger, and Doc Joe Agris, candidates running for the United States Senate. A number of current members of the US Congress and the Texas Senate and House have also confirmed their participation. Local conservative radio talk show hosts Michael Berry, Sam Malone, Dan Patrick, Chris Baker and Matt Patrick have all signed on to emcee the event. KSEV’s Sam Malone and Jon-David Wells, host of the Wells Report on Dallas station KSKY 660, will be broadcasting live from the event on Friday.

The three-day celebration is being choreographed to offer something for everyone who attends. The planners hope their guests will be motivated and inspired by the lineup of speakers, educational opportunities and especially by participating in the state-wide straw poll itself. The organizers of the Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll want this gathering to serve as a forum where fellow Texans can become invested and engaged in their country’s election process.

The Saddle Up Texas Straw Poll organization is a registered 527 non-profit corporation. It consists of an extensive coalition of motivated volunteer organizers. Our volunteers devote their time, effort and resources in order to bring this event to fruition. The organization wants to champion Texas’ family oriented culture and hospitality and demonstrate Texas’ influence to a national audience. Texas has the second largest population in the United State and sends the second largest number of votes to the Electoral College. Our mission is to effect positive influence on the Presidential Primary through the collective voices of the concerned citizens of Texas who participate in the organization’s upcoming state wide straw poll event.

Below is the full list of Speakers that will be at the event. More are added daily.

Herman Cain
Dick Armey, FreedomWorks
Matt Kibbe, FreedomWorks
David Dewhurst, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Ted Cruz, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Lela Mae Pittenger, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Tom Leppert, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Glenn Addison, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Doc Joe Agris, Candidate for U.S. Senate
Kevin Brady, US House Rep
Ted Poe, US House Rep
Louie Gohmert, US House Rep
Dan Patrick, Texas State Senator
David Simpson, Texas State House
Tito Munoz, Founder of the Conservative Hispanic Coalition PAC and Columbian immigrant
Karen DeSimone, Founder of Truth for American Teens and guest on Glenn Beck and Sam Malone
KrisAnne Hall, Disabled Veteran and Conservative Speaker

Several radio personalities will be emceeing segments of the presentations as well as airing live from Minute Maid Park:
Michael Berry, Chris Baker, Matt Patrick, Sam Malone, Jon-David Wells out of Dallas and Natalie Arceneaux of The Civil Right.

Freedom Works and Texas Puentes will be among groups presenting training and breakout sessions, and Houston Tea Party Society will be bringing back Convention 101 to get everyone ready for the 2012 Convention Season

Media Contacts:

Felicia Cravens

832-370-7930

Nancy Dunham

832-725-7303