Think you can vote in the Presidential Preference Primary? Check your voter registration!

New to Florida?  Don’t vote at every election (municipal, primary, general)?  Why not?!

Many of us are all fired up and ready to vote in the upcoming Presidential Preference Primary on January 31.  But not all folks know that Florida is a ‘closed primary’ state – which means that one can only vote in the primary for the candidate(s) in the party in which one is registered.  If you are NPA (no party affiliation) or registered in a party other than Republican or Democrat (should President Obama have an opponent qualified in the primary) – you will not be able to vote for the Republican or Democrat  Party candidates.

So take a look at your voter registration card and make sure that you’re registered in the party in whose primary you plan to vote.  No?  Then you have until January 3, 2011 to change your registration (or to register to vote if you’re not already).

Information on how to register or modify your registration can be found at the Supervisor of Elections Voter Registration website page.  Upcoming elections and the voter registration cut-off dates for each can be found at Upcoming Elections.  And get familiar with the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections website, because it has lots of invaluable information on precinct makeup, registrations by party, election results and answers to questions you may have on everything voter related in the county.  Check it out!

Get Mobilized for 2012 – Lantana Library, 11/6

Cut Spending Now Rally in West Palm Beach on October 19th

Americans for Prosperity launched a National Cut Spending Now tour  in Washington State.  Since then, they have been mobilizing grass-roots activists in rallies across the country – culminating in their fifth annual Defending the Dream American Summit Washington DC on November 5th.  In addition to having speakers and displays at each stop, activists will have the opportunity to sign the Cut Spending Now petition, to tell Washington to cut spending now and restore the basic principles of economic freedom that will revive American growth and create jobs

The West Palm Beach stop on the tour will be on Wednesday, October 19th at 5:30 pm in Centennial Park, 100 S. Clematis Street.  Guest speakers will include AFP President Tim Phillips, Florida Director Slade O’Brien and local Patriot Leaders.

Wear your Palm Beach County Tea Party or other patriotic shirts!

For more information contact Slade O’Brien at sobrien@afphq.org or at 561-441-5866.  Click  on Cut Spending Now for an event flyer.

Taking Action Starting Today!

A week ago I woke up at 1:30am sitting on the couch with the television blaring, my headsets still on, and a stiff neck.   But all was ok because the first words I heard were “Two for two”.  That is, conservatives won the 9th Congressional seat in New York and easily kept the House seat in Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District.

I am sure that all of you have read and heard about both of these big wins so I won’t bore you with restating the facts.  However, I do want to take this moment to congratulate all of the estimated 30 to 40 million tea party members and followers who are voicing their opinions and will not be silenced.  This was not just a New York moment, this was a “tea party moment” and we need to savor it.

Ok, now we have finished savoring and we need to start thinking and planning for 2012.  We need your help!  There are so many things that you can do — whatever your circumstance.  Here are a few Palm Beach County Tea Party teams that I hope you will consider joining:

• Oversight Team  (federal, state, or local) — Pick an elected official, a legislative body, a candidate, or an issue you are interested in and track them like a bloodhound. Share any news and/or blogs you consider important.  When you find information we should know, send it to us and we will send  your information out to  our membership, post it on our websites, facebook, etc..

• Media Contact Team — This is an exciting new team where you will interact with specific media!  You will follow and provide responses to articles, posts, etc.

• Connect Team — This is a critical team where you welcome new members and integrate them into PBCTP.  Its a great way to meet new people and tap into their passion directing them to the right activity within the Tea Party

• Social Media Team — Help plan and implement training courses for our members so they are more savvy tapping into social media tools like facebook, twitter, and our website. Create strategies to effectively use these new media to effectively get our message out.

• Newsletter Team —  We are putting together our first Palm Beach County Newsletter.   If your passion is writing, we need you!

• Operation Reach Out Team — Reach out into the business community, colleges, nursing homes, and special shows like Antique Shows, meeting with private organizations, etc.

• Fundraising — We have a robust fundraising team that is working on two big fundraisers, a Gold Party and Fashion Show.  We need more ideas and help on implementation of ideas.

• Event Planning Team– Help plan monthly meetings, candidate forums, special movie nights, rallies, etc.

To get more information about or to join one of these teams, please email us at info@palmbeachcountyteaparty.org.

Lastly, someone told me the other day that:

“There is not a Tea Party person that cannot take on a significant role to help move us to victory in 2012.

If you cannot join one of the above teams, you can always join the Donor Team!”

To join the Donor Team, simply hit the Donate button below!

October 3, Jupiter – The Devil at my Doorstep

October’s meeting of the Jupiter Chapter on 10/3 will feature the author of “The Devil At My Doorstep“, David Bego.

Individuals and small to mid size business owners who believe in employee privacy rights and the American Dream must attend this unique opportunity to speak with the man who stood up to Andy Stern and the SEIU and won.

Please RSVP with all those attending and if for the buffet or just the meeting. The meeting will be held at the Double Tree Hotel, 4431 PGA Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens. Buffet begins at 5:45PM and the meeting promptly at 7:00 PM.

Click the button below to RSVP:

or call 561-444-8086

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County Tax Rate Comes Closer to TAB Target

Last evening at about 11:00pm, the County Commission voted to set the county-wide tax rate at $4.79 per $1K valuation, up 0.8% from last year. While still technically an increase, it is much better than the number set in the July meeting and an indication that all the work of the last few months has had an effect.

Thank you to those who attended or wrote letters and emails, but a very special thanks to those who stood up at the meeting and spoke their mind. Of the 80 people speaking at the meeting, 75% were there to protect “their” county funded programs, but 25% were on our side, a rising tide.

From South Florida 912, speakers included Marianne Polulack, Iris and Fred Scheibl, Rita and Jim Boger, Victoria Theil, Albert Key, Alison Rampersad, Nancy Hogan, Mike Lameyer, Shannon and Doug Armstrong, and Jason Shields.

Palm Beach County Tea Party was represented by Anita Carbone.

For a synopsis of the meeting and what the tax decision means, see: A Surrealistic Budget Hearing on the TAB website.

Call to Action – County Budget Meeting, 9/13

This is a call to action for next week’s county budget hearing, Tuesday evening, 9/13/11 at 6:00pm. The meeting is in the county government center, 301 North Olive in West Palm Beach. Come early as the meeting is expected to be crowded.

As you prepare for the meeting, here are some resources that may be useful:

• September Talking Points
• Sample email and 3 minute remarks
• The 2012 TAB Proposal – September Update
• September Budget Hearings – Some Background

Also check the “News Articles” tab on the TAB website for the latest budget stories from the Palm Beach Post, Sun Sentinel, and others.

Those on the “receiving” side of the budget will be out in force. Those of us on the “paying” side must also have their voices heard. If you can’t attend, send an email. Addresses for the commissioners and administrator can be found on right side of the TAB website, or you can email all at once at: BCC-AllCommissioners@pbcgov.org.

For some specific details about this meeting, see the 9/9 TAB email.

Progressives Demonizing of the Tea Party: Can We Turn The Tables?

It’s painfully obvious that the progressives and far left have been quite successful at turning the Tea Party movement into the son of Dracula, if credible polls are to be believed. In particular, the Congressional Black Caucus being the most blatant and egregious offender in anti-Tea Party fervor and rhetoric..

It is interesting to note that not even a single democrat House member has come forward to condemn the insidious and incindiary remarks made by our good friends Maxine and Andre that ranged from, “The Tea Party should go straight to HELL..” from Maxine Waters – and that people like you and I would, quote,”like to see those of color strung from a tree” from our  pal Andre..

No matter how incredible their statements may be, they have successfully thrown gasoline on an imaginary fire that’s becoming very real in the eyes of many independents, who will decide the race next year. We are LOSING these voters righ now. We must act. There is no doubt we have the superior intellectual tools to win the war of words against the progressive propagandists, and win we must.

This is a crisis of image that we must, but have yet to overcome. The imaginary ‘spitting incident’ and contrived ‘racial name calling’ at the capitol rally almost 2 years ago have all become very real in the minds of many independents with the constant repetition of the false accounts, and now just flat out lies about how you and I feel about those of color.

These kinds of false attacks prove two things in particular:

1> We have won the battle of logic, words, and actions. This means these cries of  the racism wolf are the pathetic death-throes of an opposition left with no argument, and no achievements to tout for their failed social polices. What’s left? An Alinsky maneuver deigned to distract the public awareness of their failure by picking a target (the Tea Party) and attacking it relentlessly with the most vile and vitriolic salvos possible.

2> That none of that matters if they win the war of hearts and minds, even if they have to lie to do it. They are using the same tactics as Goebbels who successfully hoodwinked an entire nation once touting, “The bigger the lie, the easier it is to convince the general public.”  We cannot let these tactics win the day, but right now this may be the case going into the November election season next year.

It’s time for the Tea Party movement to assess just how the battle of public perception can be won on a national level. Our common sense message must be transmitted in a way that makes sense, as well as in a fashion which can debunk these bald-faced lies and outlandish contrivances of a far left in over-drive to kill our message, as they have none of their own.

The coming campaign season will bring out the very worst in American politics to date in the media. The candidates we endorse in the primary must have the skills to successfully counter the kinds of lies and smears that are most certainly on the way, and will make what we’ve seen so far look meek by comparison.

What we say, and how we vote will make a difference now more than ever, as only 39% of Americans approve of the tea Party movement, if Gallup is accurate here. This shows a free-fall from a high early last year of nearly 50% in some polls, and well OVER that in others.

The mean season leading up to November 2012 has begun. Our message must not be obfuscated by those who would win the war of hearts and minds by twisting the truth when it serves them because they have no argument left to win the war to the White House and the Congressional majority in 2012.

God Bless

 

 

 

 

 

PBC Charter Review – Call to Action – Deadline August 26th

Back in June, the County began public meetings about its ongoing Charter Review.  If you recall – the County Charter is its ‘constitution’ and describes Home Rule. There are 20 Home Rule or Charter Counties in Florida. Palm Beach County does not have a formalized Charter Review process, and this is the first comprehensive review to have taken place.

The Charter and the county’s charter review website can be found here. While there are a few changes that the Commissioners would like, citizens can input their own suggestions via the County Website. Suggestions are limited to 300 words per suggestion. Here is a link to the survey page. You can make as many submissions as you like.

Personally, I am not in favor of a few changes favored by several of the Commissioners – a) changing the county commission makeup to include a few at-large commission districts, and b) to have non-partisan elections for County Commissioners.

I have a few changes that I am submitting in order to make for better governance without bogging down the document or specifying so much detail that the slim charter becomes unmanageable. You may have others. If you would like to submit any of the ones listed below, just click on the [copy] to the right of the suggestion you would like to copy, and then cut/paste from the text that comes up and submit that to the survey link above. Each of my submissions are shorter than the 300-word limit per submission.

Friday, August 26, is the last date on which submissions will be accepted on the county website.

Volunteers Needed

The Palm Beach County Tea Party is seeking volunteers to join our grassroots action team.

During the elections next year, this team will use a variety of tools to educate the public on the candidates and their positions. Methods will include making phone calls, walking neighborhoods, attending candidate rallies, and generally spreading the word about candidates who espouse our core principles of Fiscal Responsibility, Limited Government and Free Markets.

In August and September, we are starting a pilot project to hone our skills, debug our tools, and work to prevent another increase in our county tax rates. Participants who complete an assignment on this project will receive formal recognition as a Palm Beach County Tea Party Grassroots Activist, and be included in future team activities and events.

Projects will be starting the first week in August, so sign-up now! Given the August heat, most activities will involve making local calls from the air-conditioned comfort of your home, and attending several public meetings. If you can join us, please send a note to action@palmbeachcountyteaparty.org and someone will contact you shortly.

Thank you,
The PBCTP Action Team

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