 Media:
This page includes articles about the Clinton County Tea Party, as well as other media written by us or about us.
Click on a link or scroll down to see more:
Articles about the CCTP:
Letters to the Editor written by our members:
An article written by Democratic candidate for State House, Bill Horne, about our candidate forum:
TEA Party forum cordial, interesting
Folks, from time to time I am asked to speak to different groups and events in our area. Last week, I was invited to speak to the Clinton County TEA Party. I have to admit that the only things that I knew about the TEA Party movement were what I have read and heard from the major media.
I always take what information I receive from the major media with a grain of salt. The major media has its own kick going for it. I also have a personal belief that if someone has a different opinion about an issue than I do, maybe it is because they know something that I don’t know.
This personal belief has served me well through the years. I learn a lot more from listening than trying to force feed my own opinions onto someone else. The meeting was very similar to a town hall meeting – with the exception that it was run very well.
Basically, after opening remarks, there was an extended period of time devoted to questions from the audience. When all was said and done, I was reminded of something President Reagan said to the effect, “If someone agrees with me 80 percent of the time, we are friends.” By my account, the audience and I were about 70 percent in agreement, 20 percent in disagreement – although we understood each other’s position – and about 10 percent in partial agreement and partial disagreement.
So, we were not enemies by any means.
In the areas of partial agreement, there was agreement on a problem and disagreement on how to fix it. I mention this because all across our country citizens are angry and becoming more angry by the day. The TEA Party is the most recent format for expressing this anger and is currently getting the most attention. The Libertarian Party has been around for a long time, but mostly in the shadows. The Green Party is in a very similar situation, as is the Populist Group. I am not going to mention all parties, but these four have caught our attention.
The Populist Party made its biggest slash during the late 1800s, but recently has enjoyed resurgence. All four of these minor parties have legitimate issues.
The new group that really gets my attention is the one that seems to have been formed by some members of one of the large banks that we just bailed out.
This party, Plutonomism, is reported to have begun in 2005. This word is manufactured from plutocracy. The definition of plutocracy is government by the wealthy. Jim Hightower recently wrote about this and it is easy to find on the Internet. There are three basic questions that each economy must answer: what to produce, how to produce and for whom to produce. For example, we can produce one $25 million yacht so the CEO of BP can take a day off and go watch his big boat in a race, or we can produce 5,000 $5,000 family fishing boats. Currently, fewer and fewer families can afford a fishing boat.
One of the things that all the groups but the Plutonomism Party, has in common is that they all know that something is wrong with our economic system. They just don’t agree about what it is. Jim Hightower, in a recent column, stated, “Society does not range from right to left but from top to bottom.”
This explains why I hear politicians frequently being asked the question: “Will you work with the other party to get things done?”
My belief is that the super-large corporations have taken control of our government and their money carries more weight than our votes.
Thomas Jefferson is my favorite president. He was probably our smartest president. He had deep thoughts on just about every subject.
Here is what he said about corporations and government in a letter written in 1816. “I hope we shall…crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country.”
So, here we are almost 195 years later with most of our key government positions being filled with people on loan from the large corporations. And we wonder why, after a bill is passed, nothing seems to change. Another Jefferson quote, “Whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, the people, if well informed, may be relied on to set them to rights.” Now seems to be the time to do just that – set things right.
Thanks, to the Clinton County TEA Party. It was a very cordial and interesting evening.
Bill Horne is a professor at Southern State Community College and a columnist for The Highland County Press.
Click here to see the original article online |
An article written by the Wilmington News Journal about our candidate forum:
Tea Party hears from Horne, Rosenberger
JOHN CROPPER
Staff Writer
The Clinton County Tea Party hosted two of the three candidates for the Ohio House of Representatives 86 district on Thursday night at Lebanon Citizens National Bank in Wilmington, the first in a series of moderated community forums.
Bill Horne and Cliff Rosenberger, the Democratic and Republican candidate, respectively, fielded questions from the audience about the state deficit, abortion rights and the role of the federal government.
“We’re going to disagree, but I’m here anyway,” Horne told the crowd of about 50 Tea Party supporters.
Van Pratt, vice president of the local tea party, asked the audience to be civil during their discussion but encouraged people to speak up.
“We want you to join your voices with ours to change the course of this country,” he said.
Though the two candidates did clash on several key issues — immigration and health care reform, among others — they both agreed on the need for state budget cuts, term limits for politicians and the importance of small businesses for the state economy.
Judy Stoughton asked what the candidates would do to help reign in deficit spending in the capital.
“I will spend every second and hour of my time in Columbus going line by line to see what we can cut from the budget,” Rosenberger said. “If people sitting around the dinner table have to decide between medication and food for the family, so will the governor.”
Horne, a Hillsboro native, farmer and professor at Southern State Community College, answered similarly. “I will definitely vote to cut spending. If I get to Columbus, my wife and I are going to visit every agency to see what can go,” he said.
Throughout the evening, Horne’s responses returned to problems caused by large corporations. Asked whether he approved of the recent health care reform bill in Washington, Horne responded: “I do. Corporations are the problem. Our wages have been steadily declining since 1977. I am in favor of the [health care reform] bill for what it does for the working poor.”
Meanwhile, Rosenberger, a Clarksville native and member of Ohio Air National Guard, emphasized the importance of balancing the state budget. He highlighted a $100,000 wireless internet project in a Columbus and the Ohio Statwide Rail Plan as examples of excessive spending.
“We’re going to have to make some tough decisions in the future,” he said. “But it all comes down to the wallet. Everyday I’m going to make sure we’re being good stewards of the taxpayers money.”
Asked whether the candidates would support legislation similar to a controversial bill recently passed in Arizona, which would make it easier to identify and deport undocumented immigrants, Horne and Rosenberger disagreed. Horne said he would not support such a bill because the 14th amendment of the U.S. constitution provides equal protection for everyone inside the country, regardless of their status.
“There is a serious problem with immigration,” Horne said. “It’s a lot bigger of an issue than most of us think it is. There is no crime being committed by these people. There are no illegal immigrants, only undocumented immigrants.”
Rosenberger, who said he had the opportunity to visit the border while working in Washington, D.C. for the Department of Interior, said he would support a similar bill.
Both candidates said they would vote to cut the salaries of administrative employees of the state, and both said they would not seek tighter restrictions on gun control.
Ron Flint of Wilmington, who pressed the candidates on the issue of immigration, said afterward that he agreed with Rosenberger and not Horne.
“Mr. Horne said basically that the states have their hands tied behind their backs, and we can’t do anything,” he said. “Mr. Rosenberger said we can do something, we just have to get involved. I agree. If the federal government’s not going to do it, we have to.”
Click here to see the original article (as well as comments by readers) online. |
A letter to the editor written by our president, Bryan Siebenaller:
| 5/3/2010 12:05:00 PM |
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Tea party has formed in Clinton County
Editor, Wilmington News Journal:
Thursday, April 22, was the first meeting of the Clinton County Tea Party. Fifteen people met at El Dorado and discussed steps to create a functional, action-oriented group based on the principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility and free market economics.
We are open to anyone in the area interested in learning more about the Constitution and our republican form of government. This group will involve everyone. I have heard many people say they are upset with the increase in government powers, especially at the federal level and they just don’t know what to do. We aim to be a forum to provide what to do and how to do it. Education is our main priority to begin. Learning about the Constitution and why our country was founded as it was.
There has been much negative press regarding the tea party in recent weeks. This group is nonpartisan, is not a political party and is designed to get people involved in our political process to increase and maintain our liberties. We will hold ourselves to a high standard of conduct as we interact with the community. Any slurs, epithets and violent, unlawful behavior does not reflect the values of the tea party and will not be tolerated. We ask anyone wishing to associate themselves with the group agree to a code of conduct stating they will behave lawfully and respectfully with all those they come in contact with.
We encourage anyone interested in the three principles listed above to contact us and attend a future meeting. You can also find us at www.clintoncountyteaparty.com and on Facebook.
BRYAN SIEBENALLER
Wilmington
Click here to see the original article online |
A letter to the editor written by tea party member, Al Freeze:
Time for Americans to remind politicians of founding principles
Editor, News Journal:
Our Constitution begins with “We the people…”
Congress passes massive spending bills without even reading them, against the will of the people. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said, “We must pass the bill so we can see what’s in it.” Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said, “There’s nothing in the Constitution that says the federal government has anything to do with most of the stuff we do here.” Incredible!
Arizona federal Judge Susan Bolton overturned state law on illegal immigration that would have allowed law officials to enforce existing federal law, against the will of the people. California federal Judge Vaughn Walker, himself gay, overturned a state referendum banning gay marriage, against the will of the people.
New Jersey family court Judge Joseph Charles ruled that it was okay for a Muslim man to rape and abuse his wife because he was following the religion and Sharia law. Outrageous! Am I still living in America?
A Muslim mosque to be built in adjacent to ground zero in NYC. This is a slap in the face to America and New York City, and the politically correct politicians will do nothing to stop it.
It is time for the American people to remind the politicians what the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are all about. The Tea Party is the means to do that. It is not Republican, Democrat, Independent or Libertarian, but a group of freedom-loving patriots who are tired of seeing out founding documents trashed by Congress and the courts. I am not an official of any Tea Party group, but I am a firm believer in adhering to the principles that made this the greatest country in the history of man. Having visited 22 foreign countries, I can vouch for that! Belief in those principles is the foundation of the Tea Party movement.
The next meeting for the Clinton County Tea Party is Aug. 24 at 6:30 p.m. at the Wilmington Public Library. Information can be found at www.clintoncountyteaparty.com. All interested parties are welcome.
Our founding fathers pledged their lives, their fortunes and the sacred honor to give us a country. Some lost their lives, some their fortunes but none lost their sacred honor. Our sons, daughters and grandchildren are fighting, suffering and dying to preserve freedom and liberty for a country that may not be here when they come home. And that my friends, is shameful!
AL FREEZE
Clarksville
Click here to see the original letter online. |
If you have any questions or comments please email us at info@clintoncountyteaparty.com
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