Tag Archives: politics

Radio Talk Show Host to Run Against Foxx

From a press release received this afternoon:

Billy Kennedy, a Watauga County talk radio host and community leader, will formally announce his candidacy on February 8 for the U.S. House of Representatives, 5th District of North Carolina. The “Billy Kennedy Caravan” will stretch from Boone to Raleigh that day, with stops in Wilkesboro and Winston-Salem…

Billy Kennedy is a well known Friday morning personality on WATA-AM 1450 “High Country Radio,” where he has co-hosted “Watauga Talks” for several years. Kennedy has turned the “Watauga Talks” spotlight onto the work of non-profits, charitable organizations and community-building efforts. He regularly interviews both elected officials and candidates running for office. Kennedy is known for his willingness to confront tough issues and ask hard questions… 

Kennedy believes Washington is out of touch with working peoples’ lives and values. “My father always taught me to stand up for what was right and fair,” says Kennedy. “I see very little of what is right and fair on either side of the aisle in Washington.”

Here's his website: http://www.billykennedyforcongress.com/

The Obama Head Fake?

So maybe health care reform is just a decoy:

But other issues that once consumed Congress are now sailing into law, often without much public notice. Senior White House political adviser David Axelrod said his opponents in Congress are absorbed with defeating Mr. Obama's health-care overhaul, what he calls "the shiny object that they've chased." As a result, he contends, other measures have been left to pass into law.

Earlier in the article:

Last week, Mr. Obama signed defense-policy legislation that included an unrelated measure widening federal hate-crimes laws to cover sexual orientation and gender identification — 12 years after it was first introduced. The same legislation also tightened the rules of admissible evidence for military commissions, an issue that consumed Congress in debate in 2007 but received almost no attention this go-round.

Other new measures signed into law since the administration took office, all of which kicked up controversy in past congresses, make it easier for women to sue for equal pay, set aside land in the West from development, give the government the power to regulate tobacco and raise tobacco taxes to expand health insurance for children. Congress and the White House, in the new defense-policy bill, also killed weapons programs that have survived earlier attempts at termination, among them, the F-22 fighter jet, the VH-71 presidential helicopter and the Army's Future Combat System.

Lewisville Native at Center of Washington Controversy

53 Republican members of the US House of Representatives are calling for President Obama to remove Kevin Jennings from the position of 'safe schools czar'.  From an article in The Hill:

The lawmakers accused Jennings of "pushing a pro-homosexual agenda" and said that Jennings's past writings exhibit a record that makes him unfit for the position.

"We respectfully request that you remove Kevin Jennings, the Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, from your Administration," the Republicans wrote. "It is clear that Mr. Jennings lacks the appropriate qualifications and ethical standards to serve in this capacity."

Apparently Mr. Jennings is a native of Lewisville.  I'm not really up on this issue, but it sounds like they're trying to get rid of him based on problems they have with his background, not anything he's actually done in his position.  We'll have to wait and see how it plays out.

Below's the full text of the letter that the 53 House Republicans sent to the President.  I'll let you draw your own conclusions about their logic:

October 15, 2009

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President,

We respectfully request that you remove Kevin Jennings, the Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, from your Administration. It is clear that Mr. Jennings lacks the appropriate qualifications and ethical standards to serve in this capacity.

As the founder of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), Mr. Jennings has played an integral role in promoting homosexuality and pushing a pro-homosexual agenda in America’s schools—an agenda that runs counter to the values that many parents desire to instill in their children. As evidence of this, Mr. Jennings wrote the foreword for a book titled Queering Elementary Education: Advancing the Dialogue About Sexualities and Schooling. Throughout his career, Mr. Jennings has made it his mission to establish special protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students to the exclusion of all other students. The totality of Mr. Jennings’ career has been to advocate for public affirmation of homosexuality. There is more to safe and drug free schools than can be accomplished from the narrow view of Mr. Jennings who has, for more than 20 years, almost exclusively focused on promoting the homosexual agenda.

Equally troubling is Mr. Jennings’ self-described history of ignoring the sexual abuse of a child. In his book, One Teacher in Ten, Mr. Jennings recounts a 15-year old student confiding in him that he had a sexual relationship with a much older man. Mr. Jennings’ only response was to ask if the underage boy used a condom. As a mandatory reporter, Mr. Jennings was required by law to report child abuse, including sex crimes. Mr. Jennings cannot serve as the “safe schools” czar when his record demonstrates a willingness to overlook the sexual abuse of a child.

As the “safe schools” czar, Mr. Jennings is also charged with ensuring our schools and students are drug free. It is clear that Mr. Jennings is unfit to serve in this capacity, as well. His own history of unrepentant drug and alcohol abuse indicates that he is of the opinion that getting drunk and high as a young person is acceptable. In his memoir, Mama’s Boy, Preacher’s Son, Mr. Jennings describes his use of illegal drugs, without expressing regret or acknowledging the devastating effects illegal drug use can have on a person’s life.

Everyone that deals with the education of the most vulnerable must be a positive role model.  Our children are not blessed with the wisdom to discern and reject. Children presume the adults who educate them are approved by the larger society and their parents.  Kevin Jennings cannot gain the approval of parents who want their children safe and their schools drug free. You should replace him with someone who has a record of educating children in a safe and moral environment.

Given these very serious issues with Mr. Jennings’ record, we urge you to remove him immediately.

Sincerely,

KING
Alexander
Aderholt
Akin
Austria
Bachmann
Bachus
Bartlett
Barton
Boozman
Broun
Brown, H.
Carter
Chaffetz
Coffman
Cole
Conaway
Davis, Geoff
Fallin
Fleming
Foxx
Franks
Garrett
Gingrey
Gohmert
Hunter
Issa
Jordan
Lamborn
Latta
LuetkemeyerMarchant
McClintock
McHenry
McKeon
McMorris
Mica
Miller, J.
Myrick
Neugebauer
Olson, P.
Pence
Pitts
Posey
Rogers (AL)
Rooney
Ryan, Paul
Shuster
Smith, C
Smith, L.
Wamp
Westmoreland
Jones, Walter

How Youth Was Served in East Winston

Yesterday I wrote about the 21 year old Winston-Salem State University student Derwin Montgomery who won the Democratic primary and likely the council seat the East Ward of Winston-Salem since there's no Republican candidate.  The Winston-Salem Journal has an article about how he did it.  Please note that he didn't just do this on a whim and that some real strategy and planning went into his effort:

Montgomery, who had been running his campaign more or less alone, started delegating responsibility to fellow students. He had a "director of compliance" who helped WSSU students register to vote in Forsyth County. He had a "director of transportation" who organized vehicles to drive students to the board of elections so they could cast early ballots. He had two administrative assistants.

It paid off in a big way. A total of 440 people cast ballots for Montgomery in early voting, including 211 students at Winston-Salem State who were newly registered. That's more than the total number of people who voted in three of the other six primary races.

Sen. Franken Does the Minnesota State Fair

Former (maybe current) comedian and current US Senator Al Franken of Minnesota has gotten some YouTube love from his recent visit to the Minnesota State Fair.  Here he draws a map of the United States from memory:

And here he debates some folks about health reform and manages to actually have a novel thing called a conversation with them.  Credit also goes to the crowd for treating him with respect.

Love him or hate him I don't think there's much doubt that the man is sharp.

Battle Weary Congress Takes on Baseball Wimps

John McCain was at the Army-Navy game and during the course of an interview said that if Major League Baseball doesn’t institute mandatory drug testing, then Congress will legislate it.

Good grief. 

How about this:  Congress get’s rid of the idiotic antitrust exemption from normal regulation (i.e. monopoly status) that MLB has enjoyed for several generations and begins to concentrate on a few "small" issues:
Medicare Reform
Social Security Reform
Iraq
Figuring out the real impact of the Patriot Act
And I can go on…

Link: My Way News.