Pennsylvnia Federation of College Republicans

Last week I had one of the coolest experiences of my fledgling political life. When John McCain came to Pittsburgh for two days, I got to drive press van #2 in the motorcade.

To paraphrase Karen Hughes, former counselor to President Bush, in her terrific description  of campaign life, driving in a motorcade is long hours of tedium punctuated by moments of frantic activity and, occasionally, sheer terror.

We picked up Senator McCain at the airport last Tuesday. Actually, when Straight Talk Air landed and we headed off for our first stop, I got to haul some gear and luggage belonging to the press corps. (This is why this is only one of the coolest things I’ve ever done, and not the coolest.) Because I initially didn’t have any people in my van, I wasn’t inside the official police escort, which means that as we sped down the highway a number of cars jumped in between me and the motorcade. That’s where the “sheer terror” comes in - I was convinced that I was going to lose sight of the rest of the convoy and spend the rest of my life driving aimlessly around western PA in a large van with only some suitcases for moral support.

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You first need to understand a little about Iran in order to fully understand the situation and what I am about to say. Iran is run by the Shiite, which historically hate the Sunni, similar to how to Sunni historically hate the Shiite. Historically these two have committed terrorist acts against each other, exiled each other, and all around have a bad relationship.

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Let me preface this most recent article with the following statements: This is my last article/response on this issue. It’s taken me a while to decide whether or not I should post the following article, and I will tell you why. This country becomes more divided every day. Divided on issues simply because the other side thinks it is a good idea. The kind of bickering that has persisted thus far becomes only a portent to the future of this country. I have spoken with several close relatives and friends about this issue, and have reflected over the best way to handle it. Though I wrote an article filled with passion, I understand that we cannot agree on everything. However, when it comes to the point when we get to arguing on things we actually agree on, I get very frustrated with the situation. Therefore, our invitation to the Drexel College Democrats is still open, and will be until the Drexel College Republicans hopefully host the event. It wasn’t hard for us to honor those killed in other circumstances, I don’t understand why this is any different. Maybe you believe this is not the right time nor place, but please remember this invitation in the future.

My Response:

Rhetoric is the only thing the Democrats have to argue anymore. This early into the Presidential year, and we have not only the Democratic Presidential nominee drinking the Liberal koolaid, but the College Dems are too. The Drexel College Democrats have sought out any and every way to denounce our promotion of 9-11 Remembrance day. Not surprisingly, there is little substance to their argument, as is the same to any Democrat’s policy. They just throw in some buzz words here and there, and the job is done.

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One of the most powerful and valuable projects that I have ever participated in throughout my years in college is the 9/11 Never Forget Project. This program, which is sponsored by the Young America’s Foundation, centers around a memorial created to remember all of those who perished on September 11^th, 2001. The memorial involves a display of 2,977 flags, one for every person who died that day. It is important to note that this project, even though it is commonly sponsored by College Republican groups, is not a political event in nature; anyone is welcome to participate in this event.

As the President of the Robert Morris University College Republicans, I headed up this project on our campus. We brought together volunteers of every political belief and spent three hours on Monday, September 10^th, 2007, creating the tribute on the front lawn of our student center. On Tuesday, September 11^th, all of the students, faculty, and staff were asked to participate in a moment of silence (which was voluntary) as the bells on campus chimed at 9:11am. We left the memorial up until the afternoon of Friday the 14^th to give the campus community a time to reflect. We received several wonderful comments (from individuals of various political beliefs) and it is something that we look forward to doing again this year.

As I stated before, this IS NOT a political event. Those that try to make this project out to be a political event are missing the point. The point is to make light of a major event that happened in the lives of college students today. My parents can remember where they were when they heard that John F. Kennedy, Jr. had been assassinated; our generation can remember where they were when we heard that the Twin Towers had fallen. I have found that this particular event brings people of all beliefs together, regardless of what anyone may say.

If you are interested in hosting this event at your school, please contact Patrick Coyle from the Young America’s Foundation at 1-800-USA-1776.

Politico.com is reporting that the Democratic National Campaign Committee plans to spend $554,000 in TV advertising on behalf of current congressman Jason Altmire in the 4th district as he tries to fend off a challenge from former congresswoman Melissa Hart.

The DCCC is dispatching $35 million to buy ads in 31 districts nationwide. They’re spending less than a third of that money helping out their incumbents. It seems pretty clear that the Democrats are nervous about their ability to hold onto this seat. They ought to be! Congresswoman Hart is running a strong, issue-focused campaign and an excellent grassroots effort.

If you’d like to get involved, there are several opportunities to help with door-to-door efforts in the next few weeks:

Saturday 7/12, West Deer Township (Allegheny County), 4 PM - evening
 
Saturday 7/19, Pine Township (Allegheny County), 10:30 AM - 3:00 PM
Sunday 7/20,  Indiana Township  (Allegheny County),12: 30 PM - evening
 
Saturday 7/26, Mercer County, meeting at 10:00 AM in Hermitage
Sunday 7/27, West Deer Township 12:30 PM - evening
 
Satuday 8/2, Murrysville, Delmont and Export (Westmoreland County), 1030am - evening
Sunday 8/3, Murrysville, Delmont and Export, 12:30 PM - evening
 
Also, on Friday 8/1, Congresswoman Hart will be walking in West Deer Township Community Day Parade and needs a few volunteers to walk with her. Line-up is at 6 PM.

For more information or to RSVP, please contact Mike McMullen at mpmreferee@yahoo.com

“I don’t understand when people are going around worrying about ‘we need to have english only’. They want to pass a law we want just english only. Now I agree that immigrants should learn english. I agree with that BUT understand this; instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn english, they’ll learn english, you need to make sure your child can speak spanish!”
Barack Obama
July 10th 2008 at a Campaign Event in Powder Springs, Georgia.

Your kids better learn spanish says Obama

Click here for the video. Youtube has been working tirelessly to make sure these videos are deleted so this link may only work for a few hours….

Iran’s missile tests divide Obama and McCain

Direct quotes taken from Douglass K. Daniel of the Associated Press. I feel this is an extremely important article to read and I have made comments throughout. Read the rest of this entry »

Obamas terrorist friends- William Ayers, and now Hatem El-hady

        By now we have all heard and watched videos on Rev. Jeremiah Wright. If you follow politics closely you probably know about William Ayers and his wife Bernadine who was once on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list. At the time FBI also considered Bernadine the most dangerous female in the United States. Due to a technicality the couple was never jailed for the bombings. The Ayers have thrown at least one fundraiser for Obama in Chicago where they served on a charity board together. There is a great youtube video I recommend to learn more about the Ayers/Obama link.

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Israel is in a very unique situation. They are right in the middle of several countries that want to do nothing more than to wipe the country and citizens of Israel off the map. Specifically, but not limited to Iran, Syria, and Lebanon.

While I was in Israel many of you may have heard about the terrorist attack in Jerusalem where an Israeli-Arab hijacked a bulldozer from a construction site and began running into people on the street, cars with children in it, and tourist buses. In this attack 57 were injured and I could be wrong but I believe there were at least 3 killed, one of which was a very young girl not older than 12.  I had been on that very street in that very same spot not more than 48 hours before. When I heard about the attack I and the other Americans on the trip were shocked, one girl even cried. However, our Israeli guards were not nearly as shocked as we, not because they do not care, but because this attack and pointless attacks like these are not uncommon in Israel. I know just reading this Israel may sound like a scary place and you would think that the Israeli people might live in fear, but this is not the case. Even with rockets being fired into Israel, bulldozers being hijacked for the purpose of murder, or suicide bombers, Israelis live their life. Even after rockets are fired they are very hesitant to retaliate, because they unlike many of the Arab terrorist committing these unthinkable acts care about life, and look for any and all other alternatives before a military response.

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The PA College Republicans recently released their brand new website, making plenty of blogs throughout the state and even some national blogs. However, in the midst of all these blogs was one specific comment that struck me. The subscriber accused us of focusing too much on the website. There was an attitude as if this state federation were not doing our part as College Republicans.

If the website isn’t enough, where should we begin? It’s become apparent that of the youth registering to vote, the majority are registering as Democrats. This is where we should begin. In order to win an election as College Republicans, we must win the battle for the youth! But how do we get the youth vote over to the right side?

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