SPECIAL, SPECIAL--SEP11-12 TRIP TO WASHINGTON D.C.
UPDATE ON MARCH ON WASHINGTON PLANS: (SUNDAY 9/6)
First the good news: We have gotten an extension until Wednesday the 9th for everyone getting in their money--BUT that is an absolute deadline.
As of tonight we have FOUR SEATS LEFT ON THE 57 SEAT BUS.
We will be leaving Abingdon at 6:00 AM on Friday from the Holiday Inn Parking lot west of Exit 19 (towards Abingdon) of I-81. Cars may be left at the Holiday Inn Parking Lot (closest to the Comfort Inn parking lot). We will pick up additional people at the Flying J closest to Wytheville at 7:00 AM. (We will also pick up people as we leave I-81 and get onto I-66.
In addition to good fellowship on the way up to DC, we will try to formalize the creation of the 1st Tennessee Chapter of the 10th A.F. and also the 9th Virginia Chapter. We will also have the opportunity to talk about the constitutional issues and the more than 15 points where a national health/insurance governmental take over violates the Constitution (including the 1st article, the 1st amendment, the 4th amendment, the 5th amendment, the 10th amendment, the 13th amendment, the 14th amendment, and even the 16th amendment) so that we will have all the "ammunition" we might need in talking with the legislators.
We should arrive at the Best Western--Pentagon just south of DC between 12 noon and 1:00 PM. We are in communication with Congressman Boucher; Senator Warner; and Senator Webb and one or more Tennessee Senators Friday afternoon between 3 and 4 PM. (We will divide into delegations to meet with the legislators at the Capital). Those who are going to meet with the legislators will take the metro to go into Washington. It is hoped that we will have enough people, in addition to those who want to actually talk to the legislators, to take around a letter from the Foundation to every Congressional office in the House and Senate office buildings. (Some may feel as if they need to rest Friday afternoon and they can stay at the hotel.)
It is possible that we will get together with some other groups for a religious service at Walter Reed about 6:30 before we go back to the Best Western-Pentagon for dinner on our own.
On Saturday, the 12th we will get together for Breakfast (already paid for) before boarding the bus(es) to go to the Metro station to go into Washington to the starting point for the march. The march will be about a mile long. (We will be taking at least 1 wheel chair in case anyone has problems making the entire walk who wants to go anyway.) We will also try to have water bottles available, but it will be a good idea to bring your own. It also would be a good idea to bring a back pack to carry 10 AF brochures and drinks and other "supplies" for the march. In addition do not forget to bring your home made signs.
After the march and speeches are over we plan on going by the National Archives to see and read the original constitution for ourselves. Then we will board the Metro to go back to Northern Va. where the Bus(es) will pick us up for the trip home.
IF we have as many as 34 more sign up between now and Wednesday we will plan on taking another smaller bus with us. If you want to go or know anyone who wants to go the total cost Not including meals up and back and the Metro passes (about $12.50) will be $100 for people who are already members and $125 for those who are not (the extra $25 will be for the membership donation and 10th Amendment Foundation Tea Shirt.
We will have to have all money in by Wednesday afternoon.
If anyone has any Questions, write me at tenthamendmentfoundation@yahoo.com.
Strother+
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This to serve two purposes:
1st to thank everyone for their participation in the anti-national health takeover group at Congressman Boucher’s Abingdon Town Hall. There were close to 1200 people there and from the signs and 10th Amendment Foundation tea shirts and applause it was clear that we outnumbered the pro-socialized medicine group by better than two to one, even with Acorn and the unions trying to bring out their members. The big result was that with the letters and demonstrations and town hall turnouts, Congressman Boucher (who was a solid Obama supporter) committed himself to at least vote against AND WORK AGAINST a “public option.” That is 1 major defeat to the pro takeover crowd (unless Mr. Boucher goes back on his word--which will be one more neil in his electoral coffin if he does. You all have been great!)
2ndly is to let everyone know what arrangements we have made for the September 11-12 March on Washington:
We have arranged for from 1 to 3 busses that can take up to 57 people each. We have also arranged for up to 86 hotel rooms (at double occupancy) at something less than $99.00 +tax (including Saturday morning breakfast.) Based upon everything, if we have between 100 and 171 people going we can do it for a total cost of $100 per person or less for the entire trip, not including each individual’s lunch and dinner Friday and lunch and dinner Saturday and the round trip Metro fare into Washington. (We will be staying at the Best Western, Pentagon Hotel).
Those going will be picked up by the buss(es) at the “Headquarters” (903 E. Main St. -- next to the Ski Haus in Abingdon off of Exit 19 I 81) at 6:00 A.M. Friday morning the 11th of September. We will plan on picking up people from Tazewell, Wytheville, and points west at the Flying J Truck Stop on I 81 north of Wytheville at 7:00 AM. We will have a meeting with Congressman Boucher Friday afternoon. We will be working on on having delegations meeting with Senators Warner and Webb on Friday afternoon to talk to them about voting against the health care take over and cap and trade Friday afternoon. For the Tennessee people I would hope that they would make arrangements to talk to Senators Alexander and Corker at the same time. We will get back together Friday night at the hotel (arrangements for busses at the Metro station to be arranged).
The busses will take us to the Metro Saturday morning and pick us up at the Metro Saturday Afternoon to bring us back to S.W. Va. Ted Dingler is arranging our itenerary in D.C. and our connection with the other 9-12 people in DC. Information on Ted's area will be put here as soon as we get it. We should be home before midnight on the 12th.
The mission of those going will not only be to have a good time, but to have a good discussion with our Congressman and Senators, and to join in the Patriots’ March on Washington on the 12th. It will also be to serve as missionaries for the 10th Amendment Foundation to try to make contacts for people to help set up chapters in as many other congressional districts and States as we can to help carry on the fight.
If you want to join us, please let me know by return e-mail as soon as possible. I will let you know about payment procedures as soon as I get word that you are joining us. Basically, everyone will going will be a member of the 10 AF. If you have not formally joined as yet, you can do so on the bus (an additional donation of 25.00 which includes a 10th A F tea shirt) Hopefully we will all be wearing 10th AF tea shirts at the march to identify ourselves.
If you want to come we really will need a return e-mail asap and your money by no later than Monday, August 31st. Your checks should be made out to The 10th Amendment Foundation, Inc. and sent to 903 E. Main St. Abingdon, Va. 24210
If you have any questions you can call me at 1-276-628-3422 or 1-276-614-5956 or e-mail me at Tenthamendmentfoundation@yahoo.com.
Strother+
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Ladies and Gentlemen of Southwest Virginia,
I am delighted to be able to report on what I think show really important results from all of the work that we all did in regards to our mail ins at Congressman Boucher’s office and the demonstration last Wednesday, and all the letters and telephone calls that you all made over the last several weeks. Many people will say so-and-so is going to vote a certain way regardless. What can we do to change anything (except to try to vote him out of office next year?)
Well, would it surprise you to know that Congressman Rick Boucher, who was so much into the national health care proposals of President Obama and the Democrat Congress that he took a busload of people to Washington to testify in favor of the (unconstitutional) National Health Care proposal, actually voted against it in the all important Energy and Commerce Committee on Friday? WELL, HE DID! He was one of the 28 committee members (including all the Republicans and several of the “Blue Dogs” who we wrote and called (Congressmen Barrow, Melancon,and Stupak) who voted NO on the committee passage of the bill.
It is true that Congressman Boucher was called on to vote last and so he knew that it had already passed without his vote. (At that point the vote was 30 YEAS and 27 NOS, so he could vote NO without defeating the passage of the bill in committee. However, at the very least that shows that we got Congressman Boucher’s attention and that he realizes the intense feeling of the concurrent majority of the people of the 9th Congressional District against any National Health Care proposal that violates the Constitution. (The bill as passed by the Energy and Commerce Committee does have some significant “improvements” over what passed out of the House Ways and Means Committee, but it is still a take over of power that the Congress simply does not have.)
Now, while thanking him for recognizing our concerns at the committee level, we need to keep the pressure on him over the “August recess” to do everything that we can do to see that he does not vote in favor of the bill when it comes to the floor of the House (even if, and especially if, his vote is the determining vote.) Congressman Boucher will be having a “town meeting at Virginia Highlands Community College starting at 9:00 (we need to be there at 8:15) on August 20th in Abingdon. We need as many people as we can possibly get there. This is really, really important. Just as 1400 of you showing up on Wednesday with Obama’s visit led to Congressman Boucher’s voting against the bill in Committee, we need to make sure that he sees more people at his town hall meeting who are totally against any health care bill BECAUSE IT VIOLATES THE CONSTITUTION, than people who may be for it. We want to thank him for voting against it in committee (even though it had some improvements.) and then we want to give him strength to vote against it on the floor.
The issue now is to do every thing we can legally do to make sure that Congressman Boucher (and all the “Blue Dogs” in the House) and Senators Webb, Warner, and Alexander understand that the concurrent majorities of both Virginia and Tennessee are strongly against unconstitutional power takeovers by Congress and/or the national administration, and will not forget any representative or Senator who violates their oath of office by voting for any such unconstitutional program after they get back to Washington after the August recess. (That is the time for all of us to reinvigorate our efforts to show our Congressmen and Senators that such unconstitutional measures are NOT acceptable.)
At this point once more, I want to thank all of you and congratulate you on your successes to date. But winning the battle is not winning the war. We’ve still got a lot of work to do, but we can win if we all do everything we can to make this a truly democratic republic.
Congratulations and thank you all.
Strother+
Dear Laura,
Please see the letter I sent yesterday to about 400 Virginia members of the Tenth Amendment Foundation in the 9th District of Virginia. This is something that I think all those opposed to National Health Care should do and do right away. Please feel free to use any or all of the letter to send to your contacts. This is something that we need to do that all over the country, and not just to Senators Webb and Warner and our local members of Congress from Virginia. I hope everyone all over the country will send it to their contacts--and then send additional e-mails to their contacts reminding them again to take their letters to their local Senatorial and Congressional local offices. Here is that letter:
The National Health Care legislation and the Cap and Trade bill in the Senate must be defeated if we are not going to see major, major changes in what we have always known to be our country as the "land of the Free and the home of the Brave."
Friday and today we had the mail in event. (About 50 letters were to Warner and to Boucher on Friday. We had another Mail in today--again about 50 letters to each.)
Anyone can go into both Boucher's office across from the county courthouse in Abingdon and Warner's office in the Federal Courthouse any regular work day from 9:00-4:30.
I know that those of you who did not come Friday or Today couldn't come, because if you could have you would have been here. The votes are not quite ready to be taken. You all still have time (in the next week or so) to write a letter to each of our Senators and to Congressman Boucher and hand deliver it at your convenience to their District office (or mail it to Senator Webb at his office at 507 E. Franklin Street, Richmond, Va. 23219).
Going in to take the letter to their district office has a double effect: 1) You are sure that they get the letter (since it goes to them in special courier pouch the day you take it in) and 2) when you take it in to their office you get to talk to their staff person one on one. He or She is required to take notes of your conversation and to brief the Congressman or Senator on all conversations he or she has with any constituents. When you go into the office be sure to ask that they answer your letter specifically--not a form e mail or a form letter. This will give a third impact: either they will have to reread your letter to dictate a non-form letter to you or--if they do not answer your letter with a direct answer, we can later come back and let the rest of the voters know that the Congressman or Senator doesn't value their constituents enough to answer their correspondence directly.
I think we may have some hope that Warner will vote against both cap and trade and the national health care bill. I realize that Congressman Boucher voted for the Cap and Trade. (If you want to say that he already has 1 strike against him with that vote that's fine. Reminiding him that a vote for National Health Care without a Constitutional amendment to allow the Feds to so that will be an even clearer violation of his oath of office to uphold and defend the constitution. That would be strikes two and three. If you have ever voted for any of them before, tell them that -- but tell them you will not ever vote for them again if they vote for National Health Care (make this for both Cap and Trade and the National Health Care if you're writing to a Senator. Be nice but strong.
I know you are concerned enough about the way our country is going to do this because you were concerned enough to come to a tea party. Please do not let this go by. Get everyone you know to do the same. Do not let it go by without taking action. That is how the Germans found themselves under Hitler!
Strother+
P.S. Thanks to all those who did come.
PPS. To tea party organizers and other local leaders: To get (and give) information
for the letters that you can suggest to your contacts see 10thamendmentfoundation.org
CONGRESSMAN
BOB GOODLATTE
