Not to be lost in all this is the real reasons we are faced with this unlikely and volatile mix to start with. It boils down to this; we have been ruled by two political parties that have financially bankrupted our nation. Their mismanagement provoked a reaction in the people who assembled en-mass to protest and form Tea Party Groups who have set out to do something about it. The result of all this is a very nasty political runoff in the 8^th district.

All of this has come about because of the failure of both parties to govern with sound fiscal and moral principles and then, after seeing the response of the people they have continued to turn a deaf ear. Setting the Democrats aside it is clear that the Republican establishment has failed miserably to recognize why the Tea Party exists. Early on they began damage control and sought to capitalize on the Tea Revolution by pulling the Tea Partiers under the big tent. They wooed many by saying we share the same values while laughing at us behind closed doors. This is the result of many years of poor management of our nation’s resources and the Party that is supposed to represent conservatism bears the larger part of the blame. Here are just some of the more notable picks from our Republican establishment:  John McCain, Jumping Jim Jeffords and Socialist Dede Scozzafava.  Let’s be honest, there are many more like these. Has the Party changed?

What Next?

First, everyone should already know but just in case, the “Tea Party” is not a political party and doesn’t intend to be. (This should put you political operatives at ease….at least on this one issue). Anyway this is not a party it is a revolution. Additionally it will be necessary to give some history of the groups in the 8^th district in order to clarify which candidate has the support of the tea party in the 8^th district runoff and why.

For now it is necessary to digress so that we may set the stage before the runoff.

Last year when the revolution started it appeared to be a sudden reaction to the new Obama administrations massive bailouts, private sector takeovers and spending.  I would like to point out that this was only a spark that ignited the revolution. It is what lies beneath and what came before that provided the fuel that started this whole movement. The tea party revolution is a visible, public display of something that has been fomenting for years. Here are two examples.

1. For all of my adult life I have heard, “The Republicans are taking us over the same cliff, only slower”.  We would laugh as if it were a joke but the truth is this statement came out of an underlying knowledge that we were headed for a disaster and both parties were complicit in creating it. We have felt this way for more than 30 years.
2. In 2007 congress decided they wanted to push amnesty which was in effect a pool of cheap labor for industry (Republicans), and more voters (Democrats).  Citizens barraged congress to voice their opinion and “burning up the phones” became a household term used to describe how conservatives of all stripes stopped Amnesty.  Being a year before Barak Obama was on the radar and two years before the bailouts, what caused this sudden move to stop congress?

Revolutions are never a sudden change in the attitude of the populace. They are a public manifestation of an attitude that was in the making for some time before. It is an underlying social discontent. Some historians use the term “massive social discontent” to describe what precedes a revolution.

In this nation, unlike any other in history we are we are faced with a rare opportunity to change our government peacefully because our Forefathers, in concert with their most profound spiritual values were wise enough to pen the Bill of Rights that secures our freedom to respond to this problem. I might add that the first amendment is no small entry into the more noble annals of mankind. Consider this transcending quote by William Cobbett, “Tyranny has no enemy so formidable as the pen”. Our First amendment guarantees that we will never have to use the Second as a defense against tyranny.

Seeing that a peaceful revolution was occurring it was my intent to build a member organization capable of channeling that discontent into productive and meaningful actions that would challenge our politicians and/or replace them. After all, is there anybody that would disagree that this would be the ultimate aim of the tea revolution? Yes, all of us who identify with the principles will act accordingly on their own but it is just as true that without organization you will accomplish little. Imagine if no one had taken the time to organize the Obama/Celgard protest in Charlotte. So more than anything it is how much organization is needed and in this case I am asking you; how much organization is needed to save our nation from despotic dysfunctional Parties and tyranny?

Now who are those who we call Tea Parties and who are those groups in the 8^th district that both candidates are referring to when they claim they are the Tea Party candidate?

The Tea Parties are primarily made up of fiscal conservatives and those who recognize that expansion of government is directly tied to shrinking individual freedom. With this said the core values of most “Tea” groups in our nation are fiscal sanity (which includes principles of free market economy), less government, and individual liberty. In addition there are many people who identify with the principles the Tea Parties but have never attended a meeting of any sort. Although these people believe the same they are not a “member” as the term implies.

Throughout the 8^th district there are four tea groups. One is ours, We The People NC (WTPNC) and from ours came one, We the People Stanly (WTPS). Separately a group was born in Cumberland County called We The People of the Sandhills (SWTP) and another called Tea Party Patriots (TPP) which resides in Richmond County.

The Richmond county group has a philosophy that is a mix between conservatism and socialism. It is a small group of about a dozen and because their core philosophy does not concur with that of other Tea groups they have alienated themselves from the mainstream of the Tea Parties in the 8^th. The Sandhills We The People started as a tea party in the spring of ’09 with around 350 patriots. Since, they have become more formally organized and have joined forces on several occasions with WTPNC. We The People Stanly, as mentioned earlier began when a group of Stanly residence who were attending the events held by WTPNC decided to start their own organization in Stanly County. They comprise of around 250 and are currently somewhat inactive. WTPNC is comprised of a list of around 700 and holds meetings in the range of 300 – 500 which makes us the largest and most active in the 8^th district. Because we are at the center of the controversy it is necessary to elaborate some on who we are.

The mission of WTPNC is “To Unite and Equip People to Preserve, Protect and Defend the U. S. Constitution”. (You can find our statement of beliefs at (http://wethepeoplenc.org/mission.htm) Dedicated to the principles of free market economy, less government and individual liberties we have worked hard to grow an organization capable of managing the activities that we see are necessary to fulfill our mission.

We were started as an organization; not as a “Tea Party” but we fully espouse the spirit of the Tea Revolution. Our meetings in 2009 were designed to reach others who were concerned about where our country was headed. Our monthly meetings grew in size very rapidly until we were meeting at 500+.

We are governed by a CEO, President and a board of directors that preside over the many activities we are engaged in. Most all activity is governed by parliamentary procedure. In addition our weekly board meetings are attended by many members who are invited to be part of the “round table”. These members are able to have as much input with their ideas as any board member. The only qualification for this participation is that they adhere to our mission, values and beliefs. This we believe has formed a successful model where there is solid management coupled with grass roots participation of the many different types of people who make up the Tea Party Revolution.

Our organizational structure is based on the goal to educate, organize and engage. It is made up of two legs; education and activism. Our education ranges from economic literacy and constitutional studies to training candidates and volunteers for future races. Our activism ranges from open protests to letter writing and organizing events for mass meetings.

Following our mission, vision and values it is necessary that in order to affect change we also needed a committee that can legally speak with a political voice and raise money for the candidates that we feel will advance our mission. Therefore we established a Political Action Committee (PAC). (More on this later.)

Now, which candidate and why.

Several weeks ago a controversy started when an article came out in the Independent Tribune with a title that originally said, “Local Tea Party Members Endorse Johnson”. The article tried to paint a picture that these people mentioned were all in the 8^th district when in fact most were in the 9^th and 12^th. Since it is now proven that only one of those mentioned is a leader in the 8^th district (TPP in Richmond County), the Independent Tribune changed the title to “Regional Tea Party leaders support Johnson”. This article was a blatant attempt of the Johnson campaign to paint Harold as the tea party candidate. We didn’t even look at ourselves that way until Johnson chose to attack us and now the attacks continue with Harold saying he is the “real tea party candidate”.

It was through WTP-PAC that we researched and had face to face Q and A meetings with many candidates with whom we asked questions that reflected our core values of free market economy, limited government (shrinking government) and individual liberty. The conclusions of that committee culminated in the endorsement of eleven politicians which were publicly recognized on April 19, 2010 at an event held at the Cabarrus County Government Center. Additionally we published the endorsements in the Independent Tribune and on a voter card which was handed to voters on Election Day. One of those endorsements went to Tim D’Annunzio.

I would like to confirm that Harold Johnson is the tea party candidate…. of some…. in the 9^th and 12^th districts. Trouble is that you are not running in the 9^th or 12^th, you are running in the 8^th.

Harold, we had nothing against you and said nothing derogatory about you.  You simply failed our qualifications when you sat across the table for 2½ hours and answered questions. It was absolutely clear that you were just as uninformed on the issues in early April as you were in December and woefully empty on solutions. The leadership of WTPNC, the roundtable and many others in our group have had discussions with you and drawn the same sad conclusions. In addition, with the state of our nation as it is there was no sense that you were on a mission to go to Washington with a passion to save our nation from collapse.

Further it was very disturbing to find that you were asked to come to the eighth district so that the Republican Party would have someone to run against Tim D’Annunzio.

You also failed to meet with and otherwise fill out a questionnaire that We The People Sandhills asked you to fill out.  http://wethepeoplenc.org/sandquestions.htm After the same careful consideration that group, the second largest in the 8^th decided on their own that you did not share their values. You have not earned the right to call yourself the tea party candidate in the 8^th district. In fact you have shown by your actions that you are more prone to follow the Party by showing disdain for any Tea Partiers that disagree with you. I know this because I am intimately aware of the “back room” discussions you had.

Your own rule is that when the other guy attacks you have the right to attack back but I have more integrity than that so here is my answer to your attempt to drive a wedge in the Tea Party of the 8^th. We continue to grow stronger and there are other elections coming up. Who knows, maybe by then if there are still elections you will understand these are perilous times or maybe you will still be just another empty suit given to us by a power hungry Republican Establishment who still hasn’t got it.

If there are others that think that you are capable of doing the job I hold nothing against them. If their desire is to have someone who “can beat Kissell” and it is not important that we stand up to the Party that has proven themselves so inept, so be it. If others believe as you do; that we need to “slow the growth of government” instead of stopping it and reversing it, so be it. And if others feel like they need government to help them like you say “Government’s role should be doing things for citizens that citizens cannot do for themselves” then so be it. After all this is only about whether or not we will even exist as a free and prosperous nation in 2 – 4 years.

Let the record be known as it is written here that Tim D’Annunzio is the candidate that was endorsed by WTP-PAC and represents most who call themselves members of We The People NC and We The People of the Sandhills, the two largest and most active tea party groups in the eighth district.

Michael Kelly

Founder WTPNC

This is an entry from Mr. Thibault’s facebook page where he tells about Tim D’Annunzio’s lawsuit and then added an insult (Dr. Evil video)  with the comment “Vid of how they figured $5 Mil: http:/bit.ly/bL9XUk “  :

Now that’s real professional and impartial, don’t you think? This is just another example of political elitism. We have to send these guys a message this year too, it’s our agenda, not their own personal/political agenda they are suppose to be working toward. Is it time to take back the party and restore it to at least it’s stated value’s and remind them who they represent?

This is the insulting video that comes up when you click the http:/bit.ly/bL9XUk link on the facebook page and Twittertweet:

This is a screen shot of the tweet where he sent that same insulting message.

And here’s a response to someone who was questioning his impartiality.

This is another example of the kind of  professional response we can expect from the Chairman of the Cabarrus County GOP. I’m not sure but I don’t think his background as a Mechanical Engineer allows him to determine what’s a frivolous lawsuit.

What’s even better is if you look at the top where his tag line says follower of Christ. Mr. Thibaut, if you really are a Christian then I think you need to read that book they call the Bible a little more and then try to start acting like one.  Your comments are not becoming of a true follower and were just mean spirited and calculating. Some prayer might be in order as well. You may need it if you plan on continuing in your current capacity.

It’s starting to get really embarrassing being part of the Republican Party in this county, and state! I am seriously considering re-registering as an Independent.

RAEFORD, NC - Tim D’Annunzio, Republican candidate for Congress in North Carolina’s 8th Congressional district, today made the following statement after his fourteen year old son was harrassed and intimidated byNBC 17 reporter Kim Genardo.

“Yesterday after informing the NBC 17 producer that we would not be taking part in their debate due to the fact that it had become apparent they were formatting the debate to favor their former colleague Harold Johnson and his attack machine, the producer demanded that I go on camera explaining my withdraw.  When I refused, he next went into a series of threats about the stories they will do if I didn’t reconsider participating, and I continued to refuse them an interview.  I told them I wouldn’t be taking part and they will need to do Johnson’s dirty work without me.

“Today they sent a reporter to one of my businesses anyway, who sought out my fourteen year old son.  She then used deception and intimidation to get him to call me on his cell phone.  The reporter then went on to demand I appear for an interview to explain myself.  Again, I refused to take part in their charade and political set-up, and told her they would have to create this story without me. And again she followed up with threats.

“I called NBC 17 and eventually spoke to a news director about the inappropriate threats and the reporter’s inappropriate behavior with my fourteen year old son.  He informed me that he saw nothing wrong with any of it.  At that point I realized that this was further confirmation of their motives, and I knew I had made the right decision to not play into their hands and participate in their debate and charade.

“We will continue to move forward going directly to the voters and not allow the news media, the Republican establishment, or Harold Johnson to determine what our message will be.  As we have all seen, their tactics are rooted in personal attacks without any substantive discussion of the issues and the voters have time after time shown they aren’t interested in this type of politics.”

Previous statement on the withdraw from debate:

“Based on our attorney’s advice and due to the collaboration between the Harold Johnson campaign and the news media to use partial truth, innuendo and accusations to unfairly smear me, I have decided to withdraw from the debate that was to be taped on June 8, 2010.  Harold Johnson has canceled or refused numerous scheduled, live debates and is only willing to debate in a setting that can be controlled and altered by his allies.

“We have offered the news media outlets who are sponsoring the debate the opportunity to continue with the debate in a live format, instead of taped for later broadcast. We have asked that it be aired to the entire 8th district instead of their intended selected areas that will most benefit Mr. Johnson.  Their refusal to fully broadcast the debate live indicates an intention, or at least the opportunity for manipulation, of the full content.

“Instead of a debate that will be filtered and edited by the news media, I will instead be holding two live telephone town hall events to go straight to the top and directly to the voters with the truth. These will be held on June 8 and 9 at 6:30pm, with more information to follow.

“I thank my supporters who have continued to stand by me through these attacks from Johnson and his former colleagues in the news media, and I will keep fighting to set the record straight.”

There are links embedded in the text below but to see all the documents that bring a lot of the false allegation to light in one place go HERE.

The attacks by the media, Republican establishment, and his opponent Harold Johnson have been orchestrated to derail the campaign of Tim D’Annunzio. Tim is setting the record straight and facing his attackers head on – by proving these accusations wrong, one at a time.

Myth #1: Tim D’Annunzio is a ”religious zealot” who believes he found the Ark of the Covenant, that he is the Messiah, and that God is going to drop a pyramid on Greenland.

Fact: It’s no secret that Tim is a born-again Christian. When his life seemed to be falling apart,  Tim turned to Christ and began to study the Bible. As a Christian, he has interpreted God’s word as written in the Bible to apply to the modern day. Tim believes God has a plan for his life, just as He does for all Christians. For this, Tim’s religious views have been attacked and misinterpreted by the liberal news media.

Myth #2: Tim is a drug addict with a criminal past.

Fact: Tim had a troubled upbringing. He escaped a culture of gangs and drugs by joining the military and moving to the Ft. Bragg area, where he’s lived for over 30 years. If you don’t believe that Tim has no criminal record from his younger years, click here to view a report from a background check that Tim voluntarily did on himself.

Myth #3: Tim was dishonorably discharged from the military.

Fact: Tim was Honorably Discharged from the Army in November, 1984, with several letters of recommendation from his commanders. Click here to view his honorable discharge papers.

Myth #4: Tim didn’t pay child support for his three children.

Fact: When Tim was starting his business, he was living below the poverty line, and lived modestly with his family in a doublewide trailer. Child support was set higher than the income he was making at the time. He was making virtually no money for almost two years and was unable to contribute full payment at times to the support of his children. He paid the arrearage and monthly payments on time the remaining years. Tim went on to build and grow a manufacturing/sewing company, and he held two patents to which made his product “one of a kind.” With much success, Tim sold his self-made business for $30 million. Three of his adult children now work for his company and live nearby in Raeford.

Myth #5: Tim is a “loose cannon” who can’t control his temper.

Fact: Tim is a family man, married to his wife Colleen for almost 15 years, and has 6 children. As proven by  overwhelming number of votes he received from those who know him in his hometown of Raeford, and nearby in Fayetteville, Tim is a successful businessman who would not be where he is today without discipline, hard work, and a clear head. In the parts of the district where Tim is not as well known, the media has portrayed him in a negative light.

Tim is a man who didn’t have any opportunities handed to him. He has worked for everything that he has and is thankful to God for it.  You can count on one thing for certain – Tim will tell you the truth just as he has from day one.

Sources tell us that the D’Annunzio campaign found out this week that the debate will only be broadcast in the Fayetteville area. D’Annunzio won strong support in the Fayetteville area in the primary and any more gains there will not add to the total benefit for the entire 8^th district.

What about the other 90% of the 8th district? This means that the main stream media will control what you will hear and read. Based upon the track record of the media we can expect that this will be slanted.

With control of the sound bites in the hands of the media what do you think the rest of the 8^th district will hear?

This is another attempt by the Johnson campaign and his allies in the news to control what you hear. They have put D’Annunzio in the untenable position of being portrayed as the bad guy either way he goes. Here’s to you Mr. Johnson, you and your media friends have pulled the wool over the eyes of the 8^th district once again.

I think he should do it anyway but then again I am not the expert here. On the one hand doing the debate will leave it in the hands of the media to get the news out to the other 90% through sound bites and that would be disastrous for D’Annunzio as they have proven to be squarely against him.(so much for unbiased reporting)

On the other hand not doing it will make the whole district think he backed out and that won’t look good. Maybe it is that backing out is the best option of two very bad options.

We can say that politicians control the media but it is really that the media controls the people and whatever politician they like gets the benefit.

It's a closed loop

Letter to Fay Observer:
Dear Sir:
I read the article in this morning’s paper in which GOP Chairman Tom Fetzer criticized 8th District GOP candidate Tim D’Annunzio for a series of political rumors and innuendos. Fetzer then proceeded to endorse his opponent in the upcoming primary election.

I was both saddened and angered by Mr. Fetzer’s conduct. Last year, I personally ignored numerous political rumors and innuendos about Mr. Fetzer and voted for him to become party chairman. You see, I understood that rumors and innuendo are fodder for the political sleaze peddlers and I refused to participate in such activities. I now regret my vote. I will not make that mistake ever again.

I am angered at Mr. Fetzer for his actions. Mr. Fetzer, if you wish to support someone, it is your right to do so. However, as the duly elected Chairman of our State Party, your words are not those of your personal support, they are the words of the State Party Chairman. Tradition has long dictated that our Party’s elected officials refrain from openly endorsing any candidate in primary elections, nor speaking disparagingly about a fellow Republican. Your actions pose a serious conflict of interest, are unduly divisive, disruptive, provides comfort to our political enemies and raises the potential of GOP candidates being defeated in November. As such, I call for your immediate resignation as Party Chairman.

This incident should serve as a warning to all elected party officials. If you wish to personally get involved and openly endorse a candidate in the primary, first resign your office, then proceed with all of your energy. Do NOT use your elected position to speak for me (the ordinary member) when I do not agree with you.

Sincerely,
Jeff Murray
Fayetteville, NC
]]> http://nc8true.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/30/feed/ 1 conservone http://nc8true.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/independent-tribune-article-tea-party-leaders-support-johnson/ http://nc8true.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/independent-tribune-article-tea-party-leaders-support-johnson/#comments Wed, 02 Jun 2010 10:55:09 +0000 conservone http://nc8true.wordpress.com/?p=20 Continue reading →]]> You can find the original article HERE.

Here are some facts you won’t find in the Tribune.

All six are not and never have been leaders of “Tea Parties” at all let alone in the 8^th district.

Four of the six do not live in the 8^th district.

Four of the six have never even spoken at a “Tea Party “ in the 8^th district.

Of the two in the 8^th district one has not been a part of a tea party group in more than 3 months after she left disgruntled and asked to be taken off the mailing list. She does not speak for that group despite the insinuation of the Johnson campaign or the Tribune.

As for the other individual in the 8^th, Russ Finchum, all I can say is watch this video of him.

He doesn’t preside over anything that resembles a tea party. There are more videos like this on youtube.

If Craig Nanini was truly the leader of the Charlotte Tea Party he would be violating the non-profit status of that organization by endorsing a candidate. If he is speaking as an individual it should have been noted. The article suggests he was speaking for The Charlotte Tea Party organization. That is illegal!

Additionally if any of these people are endorsing Johnson and as a leader of an organization as the article suggests they are in violation of federal law if they are not a PAC (Political Action Committee).

Chairman Fetzer

It’s my understanding that Tom Fetzer, the NC Republican Party Chairman, has been publicly throwing his weight behind Harold Johnson. Isn’t that a violation of the party’s own rules to show favoritism to a candidate before they’ve won the primary? What it says to me is that Johnson is part of the Republican establishment, or would make a good mouth piece for them. This really bothers me and smells like the good old boy, business as usual network hard at work. Tim has said he won’t let the party set his agenda, I wonder if Harold would be willing to make the same statement?

I looked at both candidates websites and another thing that strikes me is that Harold is running as the ex-marine candidate yet Tim has more endorsements from Military leaders. Does that seem a little odd to you?

Now don’t get me wrong, Harold has a great list of endorsements, but just about all of them are politicians or ex politicians.  Sounds like business as usual to me and I thought that we all had gotten a little tired of that. I don’t know about you but I want someone who is willing to upset the apple cart in DC and I see that as a real possibility with Tim D’ Annunzio. No disrespect to Harold, I applaud his Christianity and appreciate his service to our country but I see him as nothing more than another Republican Party yes man. Am I wrong?

I have no doubt that this might get ugly but I want to warn everyone that I will not tolerate out rite bulling, name calling, and/or extreme statements that can’t  or don’t have any basis in fact. If you’re the only one saying it and you can’t prove it don’t even bother because it will be deleted.

You may certainly question a position or statement but do not start quoting “fact” unless you can back it up.

As you will see I certainly believe that Tim D’Annunzio is the right candidate for the 8th district and will happily work to prove that to others through this Blog and in person on the streets and in the community at large. Go Tim!!!