Category Archives: Maryland Politics

Is Voter Intimidation on the Rise?

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How would you feel if your personal information was distributed to a newspaper because you signed a petition regarding a controversial issue?  You would probably feel violated and feel threatened by groups who may vehemently disagree with the specific issue.

In Maryland, there are thousands of people who may be feeling violated as the state Board of Elections released a database containing the names and addresses of those who signed the petition in support of traditional marriage between one man and one woman on the general election ballot in November.  The Washington Blade obtained the database to show its readers who signed the petition to bring this law to question, which would make same-sex marriage legal in Maryland.

Does this sound like voter intimidation to you?  After all, this database could be used to empower groups who support same-sex marriage to target those who may disagree with them and forcibly persuade voters to change their stance on this issue.   For example, similar actions have been taking place like this throughout the country.  While a majority of this has been focused on those who do not support same-sex marriage, these tactics could extend to other issues as well.

When one goes to sign a petition on bringing a controversial issue to a general election ballot, they should not feel threatened for voicing their concerns.   While this information was likely obtained through a FOIA request, this information should not have been released in its entirety to readers of a publication.  This is bad journalistic efforts on behalf of The Blade to release the database to its readers, in an attempt to possibly threaten those who disagree with them on same-sex marriage.

If this action can happen in a neighboring state, this same thing could happen in the Commonwealth of Virginia.  This election is crucial in so many ways, and it does not need to go down to illegal and coercive tactics to persuade people to vote one way or another.  If there are differing issues, it is best to follow proper political discourse and respectfully disagree.

CATO on the Auto Bailouts

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As you know, I am vehemently against the auto industry bailouts.  I do not believe it is the role of the government to bail out businesses and Wall Street.  There are other means to solving this crisis, like bankruptcy declarations, etc.  The CATO Institute has a compelling video about the bailouts featuring Dan Ikenson.

Call your Senators and Congressmen and demand that they vote against the bailouts to promote fiscal prosperity for America.   You should mention that it was not the vision of our founding fathers to bailout American businesses who are simply failing, because of a lack of innovation and being fiscally irresponsible.  The Capitol switchboard is 202-224-3121.

Another Name Thrown Into The Hat for RNC Chairman

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It now appears that Newt Gingrich and Michael Steele are both battling it out for the RNC Chairman’s race.   According to the Washington Times, both Gingrich and Steele have been trying to line up supporters to become the next Chairman.  I like Michael Steele, but I also like Newt Gingrich as well, and I would like to propose the compromise deal.  Why can’t they both become co-chairmen of the party?  Both Gingrich and Steele bring up policy proposals, but Gingrich has had prior success in a leadership position within the party.

Before I even begin to discuss the qualifications, we need to discuss how to get the party back on track.  First, we need to throw out the existing leadership.  Let’s start on a new page with new leadership.  Then, let’s get to work by making every candidate sign a statement.  This document will state that as a candidate, I stand for the founding principles of limited government, government accountability, full transparency of government spending, fiscal responsibility and constitutional adherence.  If the candidate or public official  violates the pledge, then it is the party’s responsibility to recruit candidates who will stand for and agree to these principles.

Then, we need to highlight the public official or candidate’s position on these core principles and ensure strong candidate training (fundraising, grassroots activism, public speaking, etc.).  In some districts, it will be impossible for our candidates to win, but we should never stop working hard and at least, aim for limiting the incumbent or Democrat within a 5-15% margin.  I believe this is an essential part of the state political parties.

Lastly, we need to have a clear plan to get back to our roots and have fundraising efforts revolve around this new change.  This plan has got to return us back to solid conservative principles, not make us wishy-washy on the issues or core beliefs.  It’s all or nothing!  I believe this is the only way we’ll be able to gain prominence again.

These are just a few ideas, and I am sure there will be more to include along the way.  I am sick of losing races, and I think we need to do something to stop the hemorrhage now!

It’s Election Day, so…

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GET OUT and VOTE.  This is a crucial election and every vote counts today.  Right now, our liberties are at stake, and we can not afford to sit idle.

Crystal Clear Conservative proudly endorses:

John McCain/Sarah Palin for President and Vice President

Jim Gilmore for Senate

Keith Fimian for Congress (VA-11)

Frank Wolf for Congress (VA-10)

Bob Goodlatte for Congress (VA-6)

Virgil Goode for Congress (VA-5)

Eric Cantor for Congress (VA-7)

Randy Forbes for Congress (VA-4)

Thelma Drake for Congress (VA-2)

Rob Wittman for Congress (VA-1)

Andy Harris (MD-1)

Roscoe Bartlett (MD-6…my former Congressman)

Bill Russell (PA-12…Get Murtha out of office!!)

Should Felons Be Allowed to Vote?

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     According to ACORN and Barack Obama, the answer is sadly “yes.”  For law-abiding citizens, this is a slap in the face by allowing those who commit felonies to have an opportunity to vote.  

      This has no doubt opened the doors to voter fraud throughout America.  First, fraudulent acts include the following:  letting felons vote, registering dead people and pets, voting twice, and persuading/forcing someone to vote against their will.   ACORN has been guilty of three of these acts.  The obvious one is registering felons to vote.  You can see evidence of this in mostly all of the major cities, including The New York Times and the Orlando Sun-Sentinel.   Additionally, this type of behavior occurred rampantly throughout Baltimore during the 2006 campaign, when felons were registered to vote (which ironically provided Governor Martin “Scumbag” O’Malley a victory).

      Both ACORN and Barack Obama are corrupt.  Corrupt, by allowing this type of illegal behavior to occur and threatening the Democratic process.   It is a shame that fraudulent activity is taking away every vote in America.  Hopefully, justice will be served.

Crystal Clear Conservative Question Day

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        Y’all know what today is, right?  It is question day (a new segment) here at Crystal Clear Conservative.   So, please leave your questions for the CCC Blog Squad (CCC, 200 Grande, HokieFan and The Columntator) about anything (ranging from entertainment, culture, 2008 Elections, sports, etc.).     

      In case you don’t already know, we have added two new contributors to this blog.   HokieFan reflects his love for Virginia Tech sports, but he adds a new spin to the blog (knocking some common sense balance to the once-duo at CCC).   Then, there is The Columntator, who is a wealth of knowledge in politics and history.   Of course, they will be contributing to the blog soon, so give them your warm welcome.

       Leave your questions, and we will respond throughout the day/evening/weekend.

Here’s Our New Policy On A.P. stories: They’re Banned

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The Associated Press went after Drudge Retort for having the audacity to link to their stories along with short quotations via reader submisisons. Drudge Report is doing nothing different than what Digg, TechMeme, Mixx and dozens of other sites do, and frankly the fact that they are being linked to should be considered a favor.

As a local blog, I often look to the AP for sources when writing posts. I always do what is right and cite them, along with posting the link to the article that I am referencing. If the AP decides to make bloggers pay for the articles, then they are doing a great disservice to the blogs who link to their sites when citing the article in a post.

H/T to Shaun Kenney  and TechCrunch

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