Archive for August, 2009
Why we must March on Washington
Posted by Brendan in FreedomWorks on August 27, 2009
Throughout history governments have ignored the rights of citizens and instead have maximized their own power. Those in public office have used it for their own personal gain, or to take wealth from some and give to others in order to maintain their own power. It is a classic model that hasn’t changed much in thousands of years.
The modern iteration of this is a leviathan federal government run by a political party based precisely on such principles. The bread and circuses of Roman times have merely been replaced with redistribution of wealth and a paternalistic state.
The other major political party in America ostensibly believes in limited government and free markets, but as the previous administration proved, these principles are practiced only when convenient. Sometimes it may be necessary to disregard the free market, “in order to save it.” How disapointing.
The flame of liberty does not depend upon the success or failure of either political party in America. No one politician, or party can keep that flame lit well into the future. Ultimately it is up to those that care deeply about freedom to stoke the embers, and protect them from the wind.
In the last year or so those of us who cherish liberty have been pushed up against a wall. We have watched the federal government bail out the elites on Wall Street for their own bad decisions. We have seen a new president waste a trillion dollars on failed economic ideas and increase our debt to dangerous proportions. We have heard the soaring rhetoric and watched the media fawn all over this new president who we are told is a new FDR. But we don’t want another FDR. We want our freedom, we want less government in our lives and we want to be left alone.
As we watched the size and scope of government grow exponentially this year we rose up in protests across the country. It is not in our character as conservatives and libertarians to protest, but we had exhausted all other forms of communication to our elected officials. In late February hundreds, or maybe thousands of Americans responded to the call for another Boston Tea Party by demonstrating in cities across the country.
We were mocked, we were doubted and we were vilified. They said that we were merely acting out, or that we wouldn’t be able to muster another protest like that. Weeks later, on tax day, more than a million of us came out again to send a much louder message to our elected officials. We had spent the previous weeks organizing, making signs, pleading with our friends and family to come out and be seen and heard. We made history that day and shocked the elite media, which couldn’t quite figure out what was going on. Again, we were told that the protests wouldn’t continue, that we weren’t real.
But we pressed on, and continued to plan events around the country on July 4th and July 17th. The media essentially ignored us and barely mentioned the growing movement beneath their upturned noses. In early August everyone seemed surprised when thousands of us showed up at town hall meetings across the country and took advantage of our chance to meet face to face with the same politicians that have been voting for socialism in America. Now the attacks from the media and the left became more forceful, more ugly, more false. Finally, we had gotten our feet under us as a movement and had began to push back against the forces of socialism. The scene across the country was, I’m told, reminiscent of the sixties. Only this time the radicals were the ones protesting against left-wing establishment.
Now we come to the heat of August, and the protests and town hall meetings are keeping the pressure on the politicians. As one woman in Pennsylvania told a prominent senator, “You have awakened a sleeping giant.” This month the media and the left will continue to write us off, or malign us, but we will press on. And once the dust settles and the politicians return to Washington, they will think that it is all over. They only wish.
As the politicians return, we will follow them to Washington. We will come from every state, in big cities and small towns, to descend upon the capitol building with one voice. Our message will be a simple one: we demand our freedom. We reject the growth of the federal government and want our republic restored. This is not, and never will be, a socialist nation.
We will march on Washington on September 12th because we must. Because we have to turn the temperature up on the politicians to remind them once again that we will not go quietly into the night. We will work harder and out-organize the taxpayer-funded left wing groups that are on the dole. We, the producers of this country will not be taken over by the looters and their representatives in Congress.
A march on Washington is necessary because it is the natural next step for a growing movement that started with a spark in Cape Coral, Florida and Elkhart, Indiana. A movement where a handful of people inspired others thousands of miles away to take to the streets because if the folks in Cape Coral could do it, so could the folks in Elkhart. We march on Washington because it will take a massive gathering of liberty-loving Americans to make an impact on Congress and the president that stops the current slide to socialism. When the national and international press see that the American people have gathered by the thousands in one place, at one time, to stand in solidarity with the constitution and the declaration of independence, no longer will we be denied or written off.
We have the opportunity to come together at this march and make our mark in a way that previous Americans before us have. We can keep the flame of liberty lit for future generations, but we all have to put in the work to do so. We are only two weeks away from September 12th, a day that we can finally speak in one, loud voice for freedom. I believe that if we can pull this off, we can stop the government takeover of health care and the energy sectors, and stop this rapid socialist experiment before it eliminates any more of our liberty.
My personal appeal to you is to spend the next two weeks helping to spread the word about this event. Charter a bus, recruit more people, call talk radio and do everything else in your power to alert your fellow Americans to this cause. If we work together we can make history and throw a counter punch to big government that will put it on the ropes. From there, we can begin regaining our liberty and restoring our republic to its original founding. This is why we must march on Washington on September 12th.
White House Press Secretary Goes After Dick Armey and FreedomWorks
Posted by Brendan in FreedomWorks on August 20, 2009
White House chief propagandist Robert Gibbs blamed FreedomWorks for the ruckus being caused at townhall meetings, and for making noise in general in opposition to Obamacare. Well, guilty as charged when it comes to encouraging folks to attend townhall meetings and ask tough questions, but we certainly don’t encourage shouting anyone down. Either way, clearly we have gotten under the president’s skin in this healthcare fight. Sometimes David beats Goliath.
From the transcript:
MR. GIBBS: I think the President mentioned the other day that there are insurance companies that are for the status quo.
Q Like?
MR. GIBBS: Well, I think we’ve produced a list. I’ll try to find that for you. There’s groups that have run commercials, right? Dick Armey’s group has been out there. I’d point you to Dick Armey’s comments on Medicare today, as well. But Dick Armey’s group is out there actively getting people to go to town halls and yell at members of Congress. The Conservatives for Patients’ Rights, the gentleman who has in his list of lifetime accomplishments, “receiving the largest Medicare fine in the history of the entire program,” who spent millions of dollars to go on TV and criticize health care reform. I think that’s a list of people that are special interests who oppose a change and reform in health care.
Insurance Companies and PhRMA support Obamacare
Posted by Brendan in health care on August 19, 2009
Liberals are trying to make the case that the right is shilling for insurance companies by trying to defeat Obamacare. If that is the case, then why are PhRMA and the insurance companies running $150 million in ads to SUPPORT Obamacare? See for yourself.
After watching the ad, read this report from ABC News.
The new $4 million ad airing this weekend on the Sunday talk shows comes from the original producer of the first series, and is sponsored by two large insurance companies, Families USA and PhRMA. The ad will run for several weeks on cable and broadcast networks.
March on Washington gaining momentum
Posted by Brendan in FreedomWorks on August 17, 2009
Check out today’s great media hit on the March on Washington in US News and World Report.
Paul Bedard wrote the following for his “Whispers” column
The angry Americans expressing themselves at lawmaker town halls around the country are heading to Washington. A planned September 12 taxpayer march on Washington, initially focused on taxes and corporate bailouts, is gaining momentum from the recent town halls where the administration’s healthcare proposal has been hit for being too big and expensive. Organizers are now expecting thousands to parade on the White House and Congress to demand that Washington keep taxes low. Initially a follow-up to the springtime tea parties, the Saturday “Taxpayer March On D.C.” is bringing together “tea party patriots, ‘Resistnet,’ FreedomWorks, Campaign for Liberty, and a host of other limited-government groups to storm the Capitol,” organizers say. A conservative organizer tells Whispers that “a lot of unhappy taxpayers are busing in from as far away as 700 miles” and that much of the crowd will include seniors worried about healthcare and personal finances.
On the organizing site for the march, http://912dc.org, buses are being chartered and hotel deals are being offered to those coming to Washington.
The national tea party will come right as Congress is returning to Washington to renew negotiations over the energy bill, healthcare reform, and multiple appropriations bills to fund the government. Some organizers are hopeful that enough people participate to send Congress a signal before voting on those proposals begins.
Also, Glenn Beck of Fox News has been promoting the March on Washington, which is coming together nicely. I have my next meeting with the National Park Service and U.S. Capitol Police on Wednesday morning.
Obamacare protesters are gaining support among independent voters
Posted by Brendan in health care on August 12, 2009
Check out this new poll showing support for the protesters against Obamacare.
In a survey of 1,000 adults taken Tuesday, 34% say the sometimes heated protests at sessions held by members of Congress have made them more sympathetic to the protesters’ views; 21% say they are less sympathetic.
Independents by 2-1, 35%-16%, say they are more sympathetic to the protesters now.
The tide is continuing to go against the liberals in Congress and the White House. I guess they are bearing the fruit of calling protesters un-American, racist rednecks. The groundswell is building and the left is retreating. And the people will chase Congress back to Washington and take the protests to Nancy Pelosi’s front porch on September 12th.
March on Washington – Update
Posted by Brendan in FreedomWorks on August 11, 2009
We’ve received a lot of emails and phone calls from you about updates on the 9-12 March on Washington. Many of you are wondering where we stand, 30 days out from the historic event. I wanted to take a few minutes tonight to update you.
Every day I talk to someone new who is chartering a bus or booking a flight to come to DC on 9-12. The energy is high, the momentum is growing and the day is getting closer. We are trying to keep track of registrations for the March, but we know that many more people will simply come without registering. That is fine, but we do need to get an estimate of the expected crowd for logistics purposes.
As one wise conservative sage, Morton Blackwell, always says, “You should underpromise and overachieve.” That is what we are trying to accomplish by not giving the media any crowd estimates that they can use against us. We want to surprise them and shock the nation by the massive turnout that we expect on 9-12. I can only ask you to trust our judgment in this, and promise you that we will have a huge turnout.
We are in meetings every couple of days, locking down more logistics for the three day event, booking speakers, managing our volunteer list, marketing the event, doing interviews and raising money. These things are taking up a lot of our time, and we know that if we all work hard, it will pay off big time on 9-12. What we really need from all of you is the following: help calling talk radio stations; posting comments on blogs; alerting the local media to cover the event; helping us raise money to pay for the expensive equipment and supplies; and recruiting as many people in your neighborhood to come with you to DC.
If all the people reading this blog post help us by doing these things, we are guaranteed a successful event. The potential for this event is huge, and it is up to every one of us to commit to recruiting as many people as we can to come.
Finally, be sure to check our agenda page for updates on training sessions, grassroots lobbying, press conferences and the March details. This will be the most up-to-date source for breaking news about the March. Other sites are helping spread the word, but they may have incomplete or incorrect information. Be sure to let them know if something changes on this site.
We have a lot planned for the 3-day March on Washington, and we are excited to work with you for the next month to ensure its success. We have worked hard all year to take a stand for liberty, and we have made an impact in the debates in Congress. But now we must come together in the spirit of previous marches on Washington, and unite for one day, in one place, to display our power as a movement. We have the potential to be the kind of historic movement that makes a long-lasting impact on our country. Namely, we the people have the power to stop the movement toward socialism taking place in our country. We have the power to stand up and defend our Constitution from the politicians and their political hacks and machines. And we have the power to defeat big government and its enablers, and save our country from those that wish to fundamentally alter it.
Ask yourself, what would Thomas Jefferson do in these times? What would Samuel Adams or Thomas Paine do? Please join us in working harder than ever the next month to focus on one event that will shock the nation, and make enough noise that our voices echo into the ages. Together, we can do this. See you in September.
Community Organizing can stop Obamacare
Posted by Brendan in health care on August 5, 2009
I just got back from a short vacation to find that FreedomWorks is getting a lot of the credit (or blame) for all the townhall activity against Obamacare the past few days. One of the most entertaining things about the liberal outrage, and the media’s reporting on the matter, is that they are missing the story that grassroots Americans are simply using Saul Alinsky’s community organizing tactics against Obama.
I have talked to hundreds of local organizers by phone, and thousands by email, and let me be the first to say that no one controls them. These folks are given advice by those of us who have organized campaigns, but the effort, the passion and the activity is real, and it’s done on their own dime. FreedomWorks serves as a wealth of policy information and grassroots support, but no one can force people to show up at townhall meetings or district offices. The folks showing up care deeply about the direction this country is headed, and they aim to kill cap and trade and the government takeover of healthcare. Utilizing Alinsky’s “rules for radicals”, they just might achieve both of these goals.
Liberal blogs and even mainstream reporters are getting so much of the story wrong that it is scary. Should I be surprised? Maybe not, but I guess my view of journalism is a bit too much to expect. Very few journalists, and literally none of the wacky bloggers like DailyKos or FireDogLake bother to email or call someone at FreedomWorks to get our side of the story. They just spew their inaccurate and misleading information and hope their robotic readers will repeat the talking points. Seems to be working on Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann.
This is going to be a long, hot August Recess for Congress. But that is exactly what you get when you try to turn the U.S. into a socialist country. Too many Americans value their liberty to let this happen without a fight, and I’m proud to say that I know a lot of these people, and will be working alongside them for the next few months.


