Above the law?

 

 

Montana Media folks from Helena may have stumbled onto a "Secret GOP Caucus Meeting"  ...yeah, so what else is new?

 

The GOP has a long history of secret caucus meetings and they were nearly always found out.  It's like they keep doing the same dumb things while hoping for a different outcome.

 

Why they insist on doing this is the bigger mystery.  Do they paint a pentagram on the floor and mumble unimaginable chants, or do they burn voodoo dolls in the likeness of Democrats?  Maybe they drink strange brew and bay at the moon. 

 

When Montanans read about the secret shenanigans of Legislative Members  of the State's Grand Old Party, their credibility drops like a rock.  But, onward they march with nary a discernible care in the world.

 

It is important to note that the Montana House and Senate GOP believe they are within their rights to hold secret meetings while discussing the peoples' business.  They have often said as much and, evidently, will continue to do so.

 

Actually, in the past they have pushed for even more brazen measures. They have tried many times to disallow the media from attending their regular caucus meetings.  Subsequent law suits by the media seem to do little to change their minds.

 

Considering they are Hell bent on ignoring the law of the people, one must ask three or four questions.

 

Do they feel they are above the law...or do they feel the laws are for someone else?

 

Or both?

 

And what do they not want the Montana People to know?

 

 

 

 

Guess who DIDN'T come to "dinner"...

 

 

Somehow, this has taken a very wrong turn, and it looks like the turkeys have scored a big win this time.

 

Sadly, too many of the pilgrims decided to sit this one out and those that did show up were outnumbered at "ye ole voting booth chopping block."

 

It was supposed to be a great day at the Thanksgiving Feast for the pilgrims this year, because there were many things yet to be settled with the Indians.   They hoped to finally have the votes to remove large amounts of dark money from future elections.  Hopes were also high to resolve issues like sustaining the Affordable Care Act, protecting Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security from the turkeys who would rather see them all turned into tax breaks for the richest 2%.

 

 

Surveys show that only one-third of America's registered pilgrims went to the polls this month.  Assuming the GOP garnered slightly more than half of that one-third, we can safely assume they had a "landslide victory" with a minuscule half of one-third of the votes!

 

Concluding that thought, the turkeys are definitely gobbling their heads off with all kinds of vengeance toward the pilgrims this Thanksgiving.  Ugly threats abound from the head turkeys, and the luckless pilgrims are clearly on the turkey's menu this year.

 

Also, a message to the two-thirds of the pilgrims that stayed home:  "Ye shall reap that which ye didn't sow."

 

...gobble, gobble.

 

 

 

 



What's you excuse, buddy?

 

Something needs to be said about what happened on Tuesday, November 4, 2014...and I don't mean the winners and losers, either.

 

Patrick Romain, Editor of The Weekly Leaf (Fort Lee, NJ) wrote, "...the election reveals a number of alarming trends that are weaking America's democratic tradition.  Only 1/3 went to the polls to cast their votes, which is down even further from 2010 and 2012 of those participating votes."

 

Approximately $3.7 billion was spent to sway voters' choices.

 

"America's national media continues to hype and encourage confrontation and disagreement at the expense of focusing on critical policy issues," Romain wrote.  "Promises by newly-elected Majority Leader Senator McConnell on election night communicated cooperation, only to abandon it within 24 hours."

 

He and Speaker Boehner quickly displayed their long-time attitude of sustaining the climate of polarization.

 

The real meat of this polarized political scene can be mostly placed at the feet of our national media.   They refuse to make  "Breaking News" issues of hypocritical claims and outright lies by candidates and their political parties, which leave voters uninformed and blinded.  That means the voters are left accepting only what they want to accept.

 

Voters aged 18-29 represented only 13% of total votes." (Edison Research exit polls)

 

It has been shown that 60% of consistently liberals and 78% of consistently conservatives are  more likely to vote." (Pew research)

 

Most importantly, the majority of those who voted this year, think America is on the wrong track and the economy is poor...EVEN THOUGH ALL INDICATORS ARE SHOWING JUST THE OPPOSITE!  Where do they get that information?

 

 

I have been a loyal CNN viewer for years, but when it comes to informing our country of the real truth behind America's Politics, they fail miserably.  They are good at jumping on governmental problems, such as the VA mess, but terrible at America's political leaders in the House and Senate. (Evidently, those stories don't earn Pulitzer Prizes.)

 

Since CNN is on 24/7/365, you'd think they could find time to report on what really matters: giving people the straight scoop through earnest fact-checking!
 

Isn't it more important than the hours and hours of coverage of some guy named Bourdain, traveling around the world and eating exotic food?

 

  

  

 



How do you like 'em now?

 

 

 

I've been scouring the pages of my thesaurus, trying to find new words to describe the Republican Party and their plans of destruction.  There are few remaining that I - and others - haven't used.

Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) is Chairman of the House Budget Committee and author of an insane proposed budget bill that includes - among other nasty things - a change to our present Medicare Program.  He insists the program must disappear and be replaced with a voucher system.  As you can expect, all radical Republicans are in full agreement with this hair-brained idea.

The voucher idea fits right in with the other ridiculous plans the GOP has in store for you, the witting or unwitting, voters who opened the gates for these thugs.  Other dangerous ideas include privatization of Social Security, elimination of Medicaid, and repeal of their thorn-in-the-side "Obamacare."

Nearly all of those Republican Politicians who will vote for such outlandish proposed bill are millionaires and multi-millionaires.  As you probably know, our newly elected Montana U.S. Senator is among the latter.  And, you probably also know that he will never be at the front of the line for Medicare, Medicaid, "Obamacare," or Social Security.

Their excuse for gutting these programs is that we can no longer afford them.  We can, of course, afford the trillion dollars or so that will give the richest 2% of us further tax breaks.  (Yes, that's part of their plan, too.)  And, they were also in favor of two unfunded - and unnecessary -  wars.

To paraphrase the title of an old western song, "How do you like 'em now?"



 

    

"Get 'er done!"

 

 

I've changed my mind about whether the XL Pipeline should be built or not.

 

Yeah, I know...it has something to do with Tuesday's election results.  Since it  sounds like the All-New, Republicanized United States Senate is going to see that the pipeline gets built anyway - come Hell or high water - I have decided the best thing to do is build the damn thing!

 

Let's build it and then hope that the press will do their job and reveal exactly who is going to reap the profits from this "dirty oil highway" from Canada to Texas.  (How much will be reaped will also be interesting.)

 

We all know that when 99.8% of the GOP in America puts their greedy little minds behind a project like this, it's going to be worth a mountain of money to somebody within their ranks.

 

God knows, it won't be worth a pimple on the hind end of an elephant to the 35 full-time workers after construction is completed. 

 

After completion, when the pipeline springs a leak - and it certainly will - we can always blame the XL Line on the president who signed it into law...with the GOP's gun at his head.  By the way, there is evidence already on file in America about an on-going project to clean up a leak of tar sands oil that has been going on for years, with no completion date in site.  This kind of oil is known to make the most destructive mess of all oil spills.  

 

So, let's get 'er done, as they say, and move on to more pressing things, like turning Medicare in a voucher program, privatizing Social Security, killing Medicaid altogether, and repealing "Obamacare."

 

Oh, it's going to be a grand time, folks!

 

 

 

 

 

  

The Final Words...

 

 

If you believe most of the media, you will soon see a stampeding herd of Elephants winning elections  in local, state and national offices.

 

This could all be very true.  The "Shadow" used to begin each of his radio shows with,  "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?"

 

The Elephants have convinced a plethora of voters that our president is pure evil and any politician who dares appear in the same state with him will be humiliatingly defeated at the ballot box.

 

Even though the many  successful endeavors the Obama Administration has achieved - especially in the economic arena - the media refuses to give him credit.  The president has brought this nation back from the brink - a perilous eight-year period that was carried out by the misdeeds of the previous administration - and still he receives no credit.  It has been further noted that Obama's lowest approval rating has been higher than the lowest ratings of any president since John F. Kennedy.

 

There are those who know that the real haters of this president are opposed to the man and his color more so than the body of his work.  It is obvious, and it rears its ugly head often and with aggression.  And still, the media will not go there.  It explains a lot of the Elephants hostility, but it falls on American Media's deaf ears.

 

Whatever the outcome on November 4th, 2014, the real story will be revealed by the actions of the winners, once in office.  We will be shown who told us the truth and who promised things they had no intention of delivering.  We will watch their voting records with extreme curiosity. 

 

A politician's lies have a way of coming home to roost.

 

 

 

 

   

The Richer The Are, The Harder They Fall

"IT COULD HAPPEN"

 

 

As a television weatherman might say, "Let's go into the storm for a better look."

 

Congressman Steve Daines (R) - and rich out-of-state billionaire friends - have spent millions and will probably spend much more to gain a U.S. Senate seat.

 

Candidate Amanda Curtis (D) - and Montana friends - has a few hundred thousand and one television ad and is working hard to gain the Montana U.S. Senate seat.

 

Meanwhile, back at the political pollsters,  Daines has a whopping lead of SIXTEEN PERCENTAGE POINTS...AND NARROWING!

Since everyone knows that political offices can be bought, shouldn't that be a much bigger number than 16%?

It's time for Montanans to vote on Nov. 4th for someone who will represent them instead of those billionaires in distant states.  Those guys have bigger fish to fry and are only interested in getting a warm body from Montana - as long as he is a Republican, and even better, one with a Tea Party mentality.

So, Montana...do you want to vote for who YOU want, or do you want to let OUT-OF-STATERS vote for you?
 

 

 

  





Doing the right thing for Montana...

The following are two letters from the pages of The Bozeman Daily Chronicle's "letters to the editor:"

 

"Amanda Curtis will do right

by Montanans in Washington"

 

   "Montana's elections are decided by the independent voters in our state.  These discerning citizens place substance over money and expensive TV ads.  They can spot the manipulation of outside interests like the Koch brothers, who support fellow multi-millionaires to carry on their political agenda in Washington.

   The race for our vacant Senate seat is more important than ever.  The control of the Senate will determine whether middle-class America will be represented or will lose out to the one percent who also control Wall Street.  The vast majority of Montanans are middle-class citizens striving for representation.

   Amanda Curtis will represent us best by speaking clearly on vital issues, she will not vote to close down the government.  She knows how to work with everyone, regardless of political affiliation.  She is beholding to no one except her constituents.  The reason she is not appearing on your TV screens dozens of times during the day is because she does not have a 'political machine' who owns her, she is her own person and will remain so.

   Let's surprise the political pundits by sending Steve Daines back to the House (his fancy house)."

 

Maria C. Vazquez de Spitler

Bozeman

 

 

"Ordinary Americans benefit

when you vote Democrat"

 

   "In 2010, Mitch McConnell said, 'The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.'  And so all the obstructionism perpetuated by the Republicans has been to achieve that goal and having failed, to blacken anything Obama and the Democrats have tried to do.  Never mind that Republican efforts have hurt the majority of Americans and have stalled the proper working of our government.

   Nevertheless, the unemployment rate has dropped to under 6 percent, the economy continues to improve, even though Republicans refuse to raise the minimum wage, and the Affordable Care Act has extended health insurance to over 20 million Americans.

   So when you go to the polls, consider well who is really on the side of ordinary Americans, not millionaires.  Vote for Democratic candidates like John Lewis, who have the interests of most Americans, the State of Montana, the country and our earth as their concern."

 

Barbara Kligerman

Bozeman

 

 



 

 



The Once-Grand Symbol...

 

 

It is with such pitiful irony that the mascot for the Republican Party was chosen because of its benevolent and seemingly ageless adoration from people around the world. 

 

The elephant is one of the most admired creatures on Earth. They are known to show exceptional grief at the loss or injury of their own, and are the center of attention in circus tents around the world.  They are one of the most photographed animals, and are adored by adults and children alike.  An elephant's slow, methodical movement as it goes about the required tasks are legendary.


None of that, however, has defined the political party to which it has long been its symbol.  The political party has, in fact, become much the opposite.

The elephant's once-revered attraction - its highly-prized tusks - has become its downfall.  Much like the political party it symbolizes, it will eventually be brought to extinction because of the greed of people.

The followers of the "elephant party" will fight to poach the last tusk from the last elephant before slipping into the dust bin of American Political history.

Moral:  Next time, my Republican friends, chose a bag of gold for your symbol. It's inanimate, needs no special care, and better suits your image.

...and it will still buy you all of the elections your little hearts desire.





   

Money, Money, Money...

 

 

As of October 6, 2014, Congressman Steve Daines has spent $1.5 Million on almost 12,000 television ads.

 

Also, Americans for Prosperity, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Karl Rove's American Crossroads - categorized as "Republicans and Allies" have spent $188,000 on an additional 2,600 television ads.

 

Amanda Curtis has $505,000 on hand and has not spent a dime on television ads, thus far.

All of that said, you would think Daines should be leading by thirty or forty points.  He isn't, and the margin is narrowing.  Many think the outcome will be decided by who shows up to vote. There are enough following Curtis in their hearts, but whether they show up to support her at the ballot box is another matter.

Daines is a Tea Party multi-millionaire who is not necessarily loved by mainstream Republicans, but they will tolerate him if he can add to their count in the U.S. Senate.  They'll try to deal with him after he is seated.

Curtis is the obvious favorite of many Montanans because of her desire to resurrect the Middle and Lower Class who have been plowed under by the  rich and their relentless drive to "buy" political office seats and further feather the nests of America's richest.  But, those Curtis followers will have to get off their butts and get to the ballot boxes or it will be another win for the money guys.

I have often wondered what a guy feels like when he knows he can afford to spend millions just to "buy" a Senate seat and satisfy his own ego? The return on his investment, based on Senator wages, is certainly no great enticement.  I would rather know that I got the win because people voted for me, and not because I had the most money.  And, why are all of those out-of-state money bags dictating our Montana election?  Think about that one.  What are they expecting in return for their money?

Determining winners in races based on who holds the most money is a hard thing to swallow and it leaves a terrible taste in your mouth.  Even worse, that taste will last until the next election and undergo many more hardships to 99% of the American citizens.




The "Rich Grinch"...

 

 

A huge and terrifying issue is lurking just over the horizon. At the close of the day on November 4th, after all of the votes are counted, Montana may be in for a nightmare they didn't count on happening. 

 

So soon after Halloween and less than two months before Christmas, the massive money monsters will do their best to "buy" a seat in the United States Senate with none other than Steve "Shut 'er Down" Daines from Montana.

 

It's unlikely, but anything is possible in politics these days.

 

Who, you ask, could possibly vote for a guy who is a multi-millionaire Tea Party Republican with evil intentions on his mind?  Intentions, to be specific, such as:  Turning Medicare into a voucher system, Privatizing Social Security, Eliminating Medicaid altogether, and Repealing "Obamacare," to name just a few. 

 

If you haven't mailed in your ballot yet, please give serious thought to the two candidates running for the U.S. Senate from Montana.

 

You already know what you'll get from Daines.

 

Listen, and learn, from his opponent Amanda Curtis.  She is, simply stated, the exact opposite. She will cast votes in the U.S. Senate for the Middle and Lower Class in Montana...and that amounts to about 99% of us.

 

If you are sympathetic toward the corrupt manipulation of the rich in our political system, then by all means - vote for "Shut-'er-Down" Daines.

 

But if you think the "Rich Grinch" has damaged America enough, and you are in favor of returning things to our Middle and Lower Class citizens - vote for Amanda Curtis.

 

Don't let the Grinch steal from us again!

 

 

 

An 'unhealthy' fight...

It's hard to believe that the Grand Ol' Party is still trying to scare the heck out of folks with their warped version of the Affordable Care Act - better known by their sarcastic name: "Obamacare."

 

They insist on telling us that it's not worth the paper it's written on.  Tell that to my son and his family.  They are saving close to $600 per month and they are enjoying better coverage and a lower deduction!  Millions of Americans are enjoying similar coverage.  Is the ACA perfect?  Of course not!  After all, Republican Politicians facing re-election fought the bill tooth and nail.  If not for them, we certainly could see a bill closer to perfection.

 

Depending on which party gets control in November, we will either see the GOP try to cut the funding of the ACA or the Democrats try to make improvements.

 

America ranks far down on the list of countries that offer better health care coverage.  Considering the wealth of our nation, that is an atrocity!  There are so many other things we find ways to fund, while we neglect the health of our citizens.  When it comes to listing the accepted human rights of a nation, good, affordable health care coverage should be at or near the top of the list.  Instead, the Republican Party of America consider it something they can personally afford but too expensive to offer the other 98%.  Sad.

 

Here in Montana, we have a candidate for the U.S. Senate that stands with the 1% regarding "Obamacare.  (Of course, he also stands with them on gutting just about all of the government programs for the Middle and Lower Class Americans.)

 

Amanda Curtis strongly disagrees with him.

 

 

A Newspaper's lame endorsement...

 

 

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle says hometown guy, Cong. Steve Daines, deserves Senate support. Yeah, we know...shock!  The real shock, however, is in the reasoning behind the newspaper's endorsement.

 

I had to read their opinion a couple of times, looking for found reasoning as to their decision.  The headline certainly states that "Daines deserves Senate support," but the body copy leaves you asking, "Why?"

 

The best I could come up with was the fact that his opponent, Amanda Curtis - "while a rising star in the Democratic Party and came to the race too late with too few resources and too little experience" - isn't worth wasting our vote.

 

Is that a reason to vote for Steve Daines?

 

Is the fact he wants to privatize Social Security a reason to vote for him?  Is the fact that he wants to turn Medicare into a voucher program for our seniors a reason to vote for him?  Is the fact he wants to obliterate Medicaid and "Obamacare" a reason to vote for him?

 

This endorsement is a hatchet job on Amanda Curtis from the get-go and an endorsement for Steve Daines without any good reason. They end the endorsement by stating they "urge him to work with Montana's senior senator Jon Tester, particularly on issues related to the management of public lands, issues that are so important to Montanans."  Doesn't the Chronicle have access to Daines' voting record?

 

If the only reason the Chronicle could come up with for not voting for Curtis was her inexperience, then I will give you my endorsement:

 

I will take an INEXPERIENCED Amanda Curtis over an EXPERIENCED hatchet-wielding Tea Party Republican Steve Daines any day! 

 

 



Really...I'm just like one of you...

 

 

I am usually quick enough on the TV remote control mute button to stifle the outrageous claims made by Congressman Steve Daines. 

 

This evening, I was caught at the dinner table without the remote and had to suffer through most of the "No, really...I'm just like one of you" tall tales.  There's fibs, white lies, lies, bald-face lies, and whoppers.  This was a super-sized whooper.

 

Everyone knows Daines wants to repeal "Obamacare."  We also know he wants to privatize Medicare and hand out vouchers, instead, to Seniors.  Bluntly spoken, he would like to do away with Medicaid, altogether.  And when it comes to Social Security, he wants to carve it up until it isn't worth the powder to blow it to you-know-where.

 

All of that is about ten light years from what he said on his television advertisement this evening.  He said:  "I want to protect Social Security, save Medicare, and make sure Americans have good health care coverage."  (Of course, he didn't have the courage to say what is really on his greedy little Conservative Tea Party agenda.) 

 

The alarming thing about his views on the programs that he and his rich friends are so anxious to chop up in little pieces are never revealed to the voters prior to the election.  If he wins, however, they will found out soon enough.

 

As a multi-millionaire (he reported somewhere between $9 and $33 million) he could care less about the programs the rest of us find so necessary.

 

His opponent, Amanda Curtis, understands the fight she - and most Montanans - fight in the trenches on a daily basis. Daines and his friends hold most of the money in the country and their only plans, if elected, are to make even more.

 

Good for them...but they shouldn't plan on doing it by taking away from the Middle and Lower Classes.

 

We need Amanda Curtis in the U.S. Senate.



 

Minimum Wage Hype...

 

 

 

We've all heard small business owners whine about a proposed increase in the minimum wage.  Whine, whine, whine!

 

Several years ago, a friend of mine owned a small business.  He, his wife, and two part time minimum wage young people supplied the retail sales for the store.  On the horizon, a twenty-five cent an hour minimum wage increase was being proposed.  He and his wife ran around town like chicken little, crying that if their store survived at all, at the very least, prices would have to go up significantly.  Being a believer in fair wages, I sat down at my computer and zeroed-in on just how destructive this was going to be.  His two part timers were averaging 1000 hours per year.  One thousand hours times two part timers equals two thousand hours, times $.25 per hour equals $500 for the year.

 

My friend and his wife spilled more coffee than that!

 

Along with part time and below poverty level living, a worker quickly develops an attitude of poor company and employer loyalty.  They see no need to show pride in their work and they will be constantly looking for a better paying job. Absenteeism is high, and frustrated employees produce constant turnover for the company.

 

When we talk to someone who works in a store and actually makes a living wage, most of them are proud of the company.  That attitude is contagious and it makes us want to do business there.  Fairly-paid employees will come to work happy and display improved productivity.  The employer can experience much lower turnover, as well.

 

Many employers fight minimum wage increases with untruthful and deceptive arguments, threatening all consumers that their merchandise pricing will have to increase.

 

Instead, they should be looking at the benefits of happy, satisfied employees making a decent living and staying around for awhile.

 

 

 

 

 



What else do you need to know?

"How did you people get so screwed-up?"

 

 

Our hometown newspaper has announced that they will be publishing "highlights" of the Republican and Democrat platforms in print, and "complete" platforms on line.

 

That caused me to think about the importance of that.

 

Since an unofficial guess on my part would say 95% of the people are voting party line instead of by candidate, the platform information would be about as helpful as giving an IQ test to a fence post.

 

It also raises a question in my mind as to which platform issues will be chosen as "highlights?"  While I don't know what percentage of Montanans have access to the newspaper's web page, we can assume a fair number of them aren't able - or will not take the time - to see the entire platforms.  That, of course, is not the newspaper's fault.  To publish the entire platforms is not their job.  The political parties should see that all Montanans have that information.

 

In order to do my small part in assisting voters to know the facts about Republicans and Democrats, I will wrap up the differences this way:

 

     Republicans are for big business, lower taxes for themselves and their rich friends, and no regulations that would impede corporations from making money while overlooking dirty air, unclean water, and a blind eye to global warming information.  They want to repeal or privatize Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and "Obamacare."  They are against raising minimum wages to help millions of people climb out of poverty.  They are against all unions.  They want their children educated in private schools by well-paid teachers, but want public school teachers living in poverty and working two jobs.  They are also known as a group that can't seem to find the room for minorities in their small tent.  Lastly, they seem to feel it is okay for their mega-rich friends to "buy" political offices.

 

     Democrats are - point-for-point - opposed to everything listed above.  They want to take entry-level minimum wages  out of poverty.  They want to force corporations to bring back the jobs they sent overseas or face huge tax penalties.  They want to toughen the regulations on companies. They are in favor of government programs that were conceived to assist our less fortunate as well as our hard-working Americans.  They are in favor of giving good, decent wages to the classroom teachers we entrust to educate our children.  The money we pay these people is deplorable.  Finally, they know the importance that minorities have, and always will have, in this country's success.  Finally, they adamantly believe the rich of this country should not be allowed to "buy" politicians.

 

Those points are what steers me in my voting process.  Maybe some day we'll be able to get back to voting for the best man or woman instead of the "best political party," with the understanding that he or she will represent the people instead of the special interests that put them in office.

 

Until then, as a wise woman once said, "A man's gotta' do what a man's gotta' do."

 

...and I gotta' trust that voters will be registered, ready,  and running to the polls. 

 

 

Frankenstein, the GOP, and the Lady

 

 

Word has it, Republicans have stepped up their efforts to show women they truly care. They have even gone to great lengths to slide a few dollars toward a GOP candidate out there in the vast hinterland of America.  After all, a Republican woman in the Senate is better than no Republican at all!  Or, as the RWGs (Rich White Guys) say,  "A woman is as good as a man...only cheaper."

 

We are fast approaching Halloween and the GOP guys with "neck bolts" are hoping to create a surge of voters among the fairer sex.  A lightening bolt here, a puff of smoke there...voila!...they create women "followers" to help their men get elected.  A sort of revamping of the old story  "...and woman sprung forth from the rib of man."  In the original story, however, woman was given life to propagate the species.  Today, a GOP woman is only useful for her vote and little else.

 

The Democrats, however, have a different way of doing things.  There are women who deserve to be "leaders," instead of "followers."  They no longer need to walk three paces behind their man, and they can actually raise the IQ and Common Sense level within the chambers of the U.S. House and Senate beyond party politics.

We all know there is a "neck bolt" guy running for the U.S. Senate from Montana this November.  The lady in the race doesn't get the media attention she deserves but she makes more sense to Montana Voters than anyone has for a long time.  She speaks their language...not the ramblings of a mega-millionaire.

I highly recommend you listen to her closely.  The truth is refreshing!




 

Is 'Reasonable' in your vocabulary?

 

 

Reasonable people can disagree.  Unreasonable people can lie, cheat, disrespect, deceive, misrepresent, hide, stonewall, filibuster...and who knows what else.

The problem has always been about certain politicians.  Most of them could compromise and eventually agree on what was best for the country.  You'll recall stories of President Reagan and Speaker O'Neill vehemently debating an issue until a decision was made.  The two of them would then sit down for a drink after the dust had settled, confident that the right decision was made for the good of the country.

But, today, you can throw all of that out of the window.

It would be bad enough if all we had to contend with were cranky, polarized politicians, but it has gotten much worse than that.  It seems the country is divided into two groups:  Those who are only concerned with a win for their own political party, or those who have undergone their version of a self-inflicted lobotomy to sever all nerves that would allow politics into the thinking process of their brains. 

Both of these groups are a detriment to our country.

The answer to a politically polarized society is to ask but one question concerning all issues:  Is it good for America?

We cannot simply fight for a win for our favorite party and throw rocks at the opposition if we lose.  That wasn't how our framers wanted it and it shouldn't be how we want it. Honest and fevered debates are encouraged, but when winners are chosen, it should end.

The past several years have been torture for both supporters and opponents of our president.  It is not the end of the world if our guy didn't win, but it seems like you can catch glimpses of the end days when the losing side begins what appears to be another civil war.

We are a better nation than that.

 

A Better Memory Than An Elephant...

 

 

 

Question:  Who has a better memory than elephants?

 

Answer:      VOTERS!

 

 

If you forget everything else you've heard during this political election cycle, remember this:

 

    Why in the world would we want to turn over what little

    bit of rights we Middle and Lower Class now have.. to the

    election of more Republicans who will simply turn over
    what's left to the country's richest?
   

 

Montana's U.S. Senate Republican Candidate, Steve Daines, is not only in favor of more power to America's rich and super-rich, but he is ONE OF THEM!  His financial report shows assets worth somewhere between $9 and $33 million.  Who do you think he will continue to represent?  He proved his allegiance to the rich - which was a vote for himself, too - when he was elected as a Republican Tea Party Member in the U.S. House, and voted their wishes straight down the party line. 

 

And need we remind you that he is also in favor of repealing - or privatizing - Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and "Obamacare."  He and his friends are on a deadly course to decimate the Middle and Lower Class programs in order to give even more tax cuts and corporate welfare to the rich.

 

The majority of Americans want to eliminate the big money, big business, buying of politicians, and power-grabbing that is going on in our politics.  Why do we - here in Montana - want to elect Daines and add to that problem?

 

The answer is to get everyone to the ballot boxes this November.  If that doesn't happen, we're back at square one.

 

GO VOTE!

 

 

Register and Vote...It's Your Responsibility

We all know that Congressman Steve Daines voted to shut down the government.  He was just lip syncing what the U.S. House GOP and his old pals, the Tea Party, wanted him to say.

 

But the point to remember is WHY he voted the way he did:  The House GOP, at the urging of the radical  Tea Party, was trying to repeal "Obamacare" (more than 50 tries in all) or they would shut down the government.  "Shut 'er Down Steve" thought this would be a great idea and went along with them.  Does anyone really think he is his "own man?"  It is going down in history as one of many stupid maneuvers by Daines and his Tea Baggers.

 

Daines, as a multi-millionaire (between $9 and $33 million by his own report) has had heaps of cash thrown at him by the big money boys as they work to get him elected.  If successful, he could stand tall with the same rich and super-rich while repaying  their generosity with Senate votes.

 

But that is not what the majority of Montanans want or need.  Montana - and America - has handed over too many rights and too much control to the wealthy already.

 

We need to stop that evil in the November Election, and we can start by telling Steve Daines to unpack his bags because the only way he'll get to Washington D.C. is as another rich lobbyist.

 

Amanda Curtis can do the job Montanans want done, thank you very much!

 

Evil Begets More Evil...

 

 

Let's begin with these statistics:  U.S. Senate Candidate Amanda Curtis declares her total assets amount at less than $50,000.  U.S. Senate Candidate Steve Daines declares his total assets amount at between $8.9 million and 32.7 million.

 

Now, to believe the Republican/Tea Party rhetoric that the middle and lower income folks want the rich and mega-rich to hand over some of their money is the biggest whopper ever conceived.  I have never heard one person request such a proposal.

 

What folks are really saying is clear.  They don't want the rich and mega-rich to keep "buying" politicians.  Is that so hard to understand?  Is that not an un-American tactic if there ever was one?

 

The evil of buying a politician begets more evil.  More evil begets buying more evil politicians.  More evil politicians begets more corrupt government.  More corrupt government begets plutocracy - government by the wealthy.  A more plutocratic government begets oligarchy - a government in which a small group exercises control for corrupt and selfish purposes.  And that begets a nation in peril!

 

When we step into the voting booth in less than two months, let's keep in mind just who we really want to send to represent us.  Do we want to send those who were bought and paid for by  the rich, or do we want to send in someone who will represent the  rest of us?

 

In the final tally, it's up to "us."

 

  

 

 

 



The 'Haves' and the 'Have-Nots'...

Let's elect Amanda Curtis to be the first Montana woman to the U.S. Senate!  Not just to be the first woman, but because she is the best choice.

 

Everything Curtis stands for is what every Montanan wants in Senate representation.  She stands with the Middle and Lower Class of Montanans and will fight hard to keep this country from being handed over to the "Haves."

 

Her opponent, Cong. Steve Daines, has sold his soul to the mega-corporations and mega-money people (like the Koch Brothers) and he will certainly do their bidding if he is elected.  He has already let it be known that he is in favor of repealing or privatizing such programs as "Obamacare," Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

 

Amanda Curtis will fight hard to retain those programs that are so successful and greatly needed to keep our Middle and Lower Class from completely disappearing.  The disastrous route that the GOP and Tea Party has taken America has led to a near-annihilation of working-class Americans...all because of their drive to enrich the wealthiest of our nation, with a veiled and false promise that the "trickle down" theory will help the rest of us.
 

Vote for Amanda Curtis to the U.S. Senate, to turn these bad ideas around!  This isn't between Republicans and Democrats...this is between Republicans and the Middle and Lower Class.

 

   

Vote With Your Mind and Heart...

 

 

And when he was asked about the Tea Party, the Elephant said, "This, too, shall pass!"

 

Congressman Steve Daines (R-MT) seems to be running from his Tea Party ideology...but not from the Koch Brothers' Tea Party money.  And that's unfortunate.

 

It's funny how some politicians eventually find that any old port in the storm will do.  Daines has wobbled and weaved,  tottered and teetered, and lurched and lied... in order to keep ahead of the criticism heaped on his Tea Party mentality.

 

But we also know that this particular politician has no scruples about imparting whatever message he thinks you'll want to hear.  He has been known to vote against the Food Stamp Program and then run home to Bozeman and volunteer to work Meals on Wheels for a photo opportunity.  He also tells us he's working hard to get jobs for Montanans while we read about the thousands of jobs he sent to foreign countries while he was an executive for a mega-corporation.

 

That's how most mega-millionaires operate.

 

But that doesn't mean how our next U.S. Senator from Montana should.

 

Vote for Amanda Curtis. She knows what Montanans need that they won't get from millionaire Daines.  She knows that America's richest do not need more tax breaks and corporate welfare.  She knows that this is an election battle that is not between Republicans and Democrats, but rather between the wealthy and the middle and lower class!

 

 

 

 

Forced Overhaul...

 

 

 

For those of you who use the statement, "You can't fix stupid," or those of you who won't accept the fact that what the GOP is doing is stupid, you all have to admit that what they are doing is wrong, wrong, wrong!

 

As far as I am concerned, the word "stupid" may not even apply here.  That would imply that they don't know any better, and I won't accept that premise for a minute.  They know exactly what they are doing.

 

The GOP's efforts to impeach the president is groundless, as is the efforts to sue him.  They have set up more roadblocks than a construction crew on the repair of a thousand-mile highway project.

 

Their purpose, of course, is to falsely inform the American People that if they vote for one more Democrat, they will spell doom for our country.  Even though this president has a long list of positive achievements - mostly involving the massive clean-up of the previous administration's messes - they believe the people are somehow oblivious to those facts.

 

It's true that the GOP needs a complete overhaul.  A recent poll shows that a majority of the American People do not like how the Republican members of the U.S. House and Senate have handled their jobs, and they also no longer trust them.

 

Let's help them fix their problems by sending them home.  A kind of forced help, if you will.

 

Don't sit home and ignore the November Election!