Tea Party Patriots Live » healthcare reform

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around…?”

tomt — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 23:03:26 +0000

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” A rhetorical question, for sure, however, this question comes to mind when I think of the recent weekend spent in Washington, D.C. A small group from Central Florida, including several OCREC members (Jason Hoyt, Linda O’Keefe, Barbara Seidenberg, Kelli McNair-Lee and Peter Lee), made the trip up the weekend that Congress was voting on healthcare reform. Yes, we knew the odds were not in our favor, as a scheduled vote meant that the votes were there to pass it. Nonetheless, each of us felt that not only was it our civic duty to stand up against this federal intrusion into our lives, but, at the end of the day, we wanted to be able to say, with all certainty, that we did everything within our power to affect the outcome of this vote. We owe future generations no less!

Well, we all know how the vote turned out, which made the trip back home all the more longer, but, was the trip worth the effort and expense? What was gained from this endeavor? On the Saturday before the vote, approximately 40,000 ‘concerned’ Americans gathered, with just 3 days notice, from all across the country, to voice their opposition to the actions being considered by our so called ‘representatives’. After the rally, many of these same patriots went to the Congressional Office Buildings to lobby the legislators. Jason Hoyt, Barbara Seidenberg (Babs) and I went back to our hotel to do our weekly radio show, Tea Party Patriots LIVE (WORL 660 AM). Our plan was to return to the Capitol grounds for the second hour of our show, which we did.

As we approached the Capitol, I saw a site that stunned me to my very core, a site that has only been rivaled once in my life, which was witnessing the birth of my first child. Upon witnessing my daughters birth, it reinforced, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the idea that God does indeed exist. Upon witnessing thousands of American citizens standing shoulder to shoulder, many holding hands, as they literally and figuratively surrounded the U.S. Capitol in it’s entirety, in a futile attempt to get those inside to respect the will of the people, well…it reinforced my belief in the citizens of this country, in the American spirit and the future of this great nation! So was the trip worth it? You betcha! It could only have been a better experience had more of my fellow citizens made the decision to go…

Which brings me back to my opening question…did it even happen? I saw no media presence at the time, have seen precious few mentions of it in the press, since, and little discussion on it. So, if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Tom Tillison

A Double Standard That Must Go!

tomt — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 03:35:02 +0000

There’s a double standard in the media here in America that we conservatives are foolish to continue accepting. While participating in the rally held in Washington, D.C. this past weekend to oppose the unconstitutional healthcare reform that was being voted on, I personally witnessed numerous attempts by the left to provoke an incident with the peaceful demonstrators. We were even warned, in casual conversation with the Capitol Police, that there were professional ‘instigators’ in the crowd. Considering, it was a minor miracle that there was no violence…

The area chosen to gather after the initial rally, which was held on the west side of the Capitol , was on the south side of the building, as there was a balcony near the House chamber. The crowd was down close to the building, so as to be heard as they chanted, and one would have to walk down a slight decline to get to them.

The left’s efforts started with several individuals on bicycles, which they were walking through the crowd (I assume so they could use the bicycles as a shield between themselves and us). These individuals would go from person to person and challenge their opposition to healthcare reform, being very persistent in their position. This effort was more or less ignored by most, or was shrugged off by others, as these instigators were more of the intellectual type, and, therefore, not very aggressive in engaging people, and, eventually, these instigators withdrew.

The second wave was several individuals with what appeared to be Haitian accents, who came down into the crowd and very aggressively challenged those present. I heard one refer to us as rednecks and racists. It was quite an experience as a natural born American citizen being insulted and ridiculed by immigrants, legal or not, as they demanded that our government, and our tax dollars, provide something for them. One of these individuals was escorted out of the crowd by the Capitol Police, as he was getting very close to accomplishing his goal. These instigators came and went throughout the night, each time being as aggressive as they could be without drawing the attention of the Capitol Police. One of these final efforts resulted in one of these instigators doing something in the crowd that caused a loud bang, although I could not see what that was, upon which he bolted from the crowd in a dead run with 6 – 8 policeman in chase.

The next effort was the kook from Code Pink, who’s name I cannot remember…small woman with short blond hair. She came through the crowd with another gentleman carrying a homemade banner on a pink sheet, promoting healthcare reform. Most did not take her seriously, although, several crowded around the banner as she walked through the crowd, to prevent it from being seen. Not sure if this was effort was coordinated with the others, or if she was doing this on her own.

The next attempt was a couple of individuals with very large professionally made signs, one stating ‘Public Option Now’ and the other a oversized picture of Obama and Biden. Again, these two waded down into the thickest part of the crowd with these large signs, attempting to block out the anti-reform signs and banners. This resulted in some very spirited jockeying for position by each side, until finally, a Capitol Policeman intervened. After a little undercover work by one of ours, who went over and professed his support for their effort, he was told that the signs were provided by MoveOn.org.

The final attempt was by young college age kids, as several groups of 6-8 would come into the thickest parts of the crowd and start counter-chanting, in support of the bill, as those around them were chanting ‘kill the bill’ or what have you. Again, this got quite contentious, and I was sure that something was going to happen. One group would go in for as long as they could, then would pull out, only to be replaced with another group. This continued up to the actual vote, and once the results became known, the group in the crowd at this point became very obnoxious, attempting to get into our faces. Again, kudos to the Capitol Police, who, once they realized what was happening, very quickly forced the group out of the crowd.

Interestingly, there always seemed to be an ‘independant’ journalist or two trailing in the background of most of these occurances…

A long story I know, but this experience showed me firsthand how vicious the left is in their tactics, then all I hear the past two days is the media reporting on how angry and violent the ‘tea party movement’ is. To put it bluntly, it’s a blatant misrepresentation of the truth! And, this double standard will continue if we don’t start demanding fair treatment. The civility and restraint on the part of the conservative protestors was nothing short of inspiring, as their attention all along was on having their voices heard by our so called ‘representatives’. It’s a sobering thought when you realize that the real story of what’s happening in America, a great awakening of it’s citizens, is being buried by ideologues pushing a far left agenda. Will journalistic integrity ever return to our media?

Tom Tillison

If There Must Be Trouble…

tomt — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 17:24:09 +0000

by Tom Tillison

It now appears that a vote will come down this week on health care reform. I need not point out that this vote very well may dictate the direction our country takes for decades to come. It will also define our generation in the annals of American history…

All things that we cherish and hold dear are now being threatened. What will YOU do? Will we, as American citizens, be up to the task? Will we honor our civic responsibility and the memory of our founding fathers? Can we look our children and grandchildren in the eye and be able to say ‘I did all that I could do’?

In today’s age, we throw quotes around as if they’re so many nickles, however, I ask you to take a silent moment and really read the following quote;

“You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children’s children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done” — Ronald Reagan

There is a rally being held in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, for those who can, you should be there! For those who cannot, then you should visit the local office of your U.S. Representatives. In most cases, that will take an hour out of your day. For those who cannot do that, a phone call or fax will work just as well.

This is a serious time in America, folks…does it matter to you how our generation will be viewed by those who follow us? We CAN make a difference, if we harness that great American spirit, as so many have done before us, and unleash it upon those who wish to oppress us!

“If there must be trouble let it be in my day, that my child may have peace” Thomas Paine

Florida Healthcare Freedom Act – Action Alert

tomt — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:34:08 +0000

Please contact the five Senators below today by email and voice mail to their Tallahassee offices, and urge them to vote YES on SRJ 72 Thursday in the Senate Health Regulation Committee.

Thursday morning, March 4, at 8AM, the Health Care Freedom Act, Senate Joint Resolution 72 (SJR 72) will be heard before the Senate Health Regulation Committee. The bill is sponsored by Senator Carey Baker (R), who is not on the Committee. If passed by the Senate and House with 60% of the vote, a proposition will be placed on the ballot in 2010 which would supersede any other laws to force Floridians to buy Health Insurance or restricting their options.

Two of the Committee members, including the Chairman, Don Gaetz, and Mike Bennett, have cosponsored the bill. You may of course contact them as well.

There are five other members of the Committee, including the Vice Chairman, Eleanor Sobel (D). See their contact info below.

Sen. Thad Altman (R)
(850) 487-5053
altman.thad.web@flsenate.gov

Sen. Andy Gardiner (R)
(850) 487-5047
gardiner.andy.web@flsenate.gov

Sen. Dennis Jones (R)
(850) 487-5065
jones.dennis.web@flsenate.gov

Sen. Eleanor Sobel (D)
(850) 487-5097 (V)
sobel.eleanor.web@flsenate.gov

Sen. Al Lawson, Jr. (D) Democratic Minority Leader
(850) 487-5004
lawson.alfred.web@flsenate.gov

Please contact these five Senators by email and voice mail to their Tallahassee offices, and urge them to vote YES on SRJ 72 tomorrow in Committee.

The Florida Health Care Freedom Act allows a vote on an amendment to the Florida Constitution that says any “law or rule shall not compel, directly or indirectly, any person, employer, or health care provider to participate in any health care system,” and specifies people and employers can’t be fined for not buying insurance. This bill does not ban federal programs such as Medicare and Medicaid in our state; it simply focuses on restricting the federal government from forcing Americans to participate in an insurance policy, public or private.

ObamaCare – Whether You Like It Or Not

tomt — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:53:40 +0000

Unless we American citizens act, and act with fury, we shall get ObamaCare, whether we like it or not. And, we don’t like it;

	Support	Oppose
Rasmussen Reports	41	53
Newsweek	40	49
Pew Research	38	50
ABC News/Wash Post	46	49
Quinnipiac	35	54
Ipsos/McClatchy	37	51
NBC News/Wall St. Jrnl	31	46
CNN/Opinion Research	38	58
NPR – POS/GQR	39	55
USA Today/Gallup	39	55

Reconciliation appears to be the weapon of choice, and Nancy Pelosi is calling on her fellow Democrats to throw themselves down on the sword, urging her colleagues to back a major overhaul of U.S. health care even if it threatens their political careers. Reconciliation is unprecedented and unusual for a few reasons.

First, the left is using reconciliation as a procedure of last resort to get ObamaCare passed. ObamaCare passed the House in November and the Senate on Christmas Eve, yet they are resorting to reconciliation because they know they can’t get one Republican to support the President’s health care bill in the Senate.

Second, reconciliation has never been used to amend a bill that has yet to pass. It will be used to pass a new bill that amends the Senate passed version of ObamaCare.

Finally, reconciliation has not traditionally been used to steamroll the will of the American people. The American people should take note that Washington continues to view their opposition with contempt and politicians would like you to believe that they know what is best for America.

Your federally elected officials are telling you right now — You shall get ObamaCare, whether you like it or not.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO TELL YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS?

A Tea Party Patriots Live Exclusive!

tomt — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 14:48:44 +0000

A Tea Party Patriots Live Exclusive!

State Representative Eric Eisnaugle announced on our show yesterday that he will introduce legislation this coming week asking FL Attorney General Bill McCollum to file a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of ObamaCare, should it pass. It is indeed comforting that some of our state rep’s are starting to realize that the citizens of Florida are looking to them to stand guard over an oppressive, over-reaching federal government! To those State Representatives who’ve not gotten on board yet, I borrow the line from the popular movie ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’; “Come on in, boys, the water is fine!”

Florida Health Care Freedom Act

tomt — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 04:01:25 +0000

The Florida House will be in committee the 1st and 3rd weeks of February and there’s still have time to influence the Health Care Regulation Policy Committee. Please continue the effort to contact Nick Thompson, chairman of the committee, and encourage him to take up the Florida Health Care Freedom Act.

His contact information is:

Tel # – 239-533-2411
Email – http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/SEctions/Representatives/emailrepresentative.aspx?MemberId=4373&SessionId=64

We can also continue this effort once they’re in committee, here is a contact number in Tallahassee for the committee – 850-487-2242

If you have not already done so, please go to www.FLFreedom.org and sign on as a citizen sponsor of this legislation. You will also be able to see if your local elected officials have signed on as co-sponsors. If not, contact them and urger them to do so – http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/

PLEASE SHARE THIS INFORMATION WITH ALL CONTACTS!