Tag: Rockwall County Republican Party

Leadership for the smallest county and for the entire state of Texas

A ‘Hearing’ on the Border Wall – Are you listening?

I write to inform, not to foment debate. How can there be a good debate without the knowledge of facts?

Intelligent people are always ready to learn.
    Their ears are open for knowledge.
Proverbs 18:15

A great American pastime is the game of armchair quarterback. It’s a game in which we are all players at one time or another. Isn’t it easy to sit in the comfort of your home, calling better plays than the quarterback on the gridiron?

Armchair quarterbacks in Foggy Bottom and across the country are calling plays in the Rio Grande Valley, but quarterbacks actually on the field (the Rio Grande Valley) hold perspectives different from the armchair quarterbacks.

The people most affected by illegal border crossings and tandem crimes committed by illegalssteven r covey quote on listening want very much for the rest of us to listen to them.

The current border wall project isn’t a new idea. It’s already there. About 700 miles of ‘already there’.

It was our 43rd President George W. Bush who, on October 26, 2006, signed into law the Secure Fence Act. I defer to a PBS video produced July 3, 2009, that provides a broad view of the construction of a segmented fence across our southern border, its effects on U.S. property owners along the border, and the opinions of Americans whose lives have been dramatically affected by the fence.

Do you notice the title? PBS doesn’t attribute the fence to either President Bush or to President Trump. PBS rightfully tags the project “Obama’s Border Fence“.

Video source: PBS NOW, July 3, 2009

A current (August 12, 2017) report from the Austin Statesman titled Advocates stage first big Texas protest against border wall reflects sentiments of hundreds of brown-skinned and white-skinned border residents.

My wife and I were born and raised in South Texas, she, right on the border. Our viewpoint is not that of armchair quarterback. I suppose you could label us bench warmers who have seen and experienced Rio Grande Valley life since the 1950’s.

Where is the border? How many borders between the U.S. and Mexico are there? What’s the history of the Mexico-U.S.  border culture and economics?

There are three borders. The one you know about is the geographical (continental) border you see on road maps. There are two other borders not shown on typical road maps: the two immigration borders. Immigration borders? Isn’t that big river an immigration border? In a word, no.

U.S. citizens regularly drive across the border to shop or dine or just visit friends. Your present automobile liability insurance has you covered. Likewise, when Mexican citizens shop in Texas, for example, their Mexican automobile insurance covers them, as well.

The above holds true so long as motorists don’t cross the respective immigration borders (my term) without proper insurance and official permission (a visa). The immigration borders are officially called the border region.

us-mexico-border-region-CDC-map
The border region extends 37 miles south of the continental border, 37 miles north, 37 miles east into the Gulf of Mexico, and 37 miles west into the Pacific Ocean, as per the La Paz Agreement of July 8, 1966.

Historically, a chain of cross-border economic areas defines the official border region. There are Mexican citizens who live in Mexico and work in Texas, likewise U.S. citizens who live in Texas and work in Mexico.

There is a suggestion that Mexico should pay for the border wall. Is this reasonable? Do you know that over half of all illegal immigrants that cross our southern border are OTMs, Other Than Mexicans?

Reference:

Pew Research: What we know about illegal immigration from Mexico, March 2, 2017

Illegal aliens were deported at a much higher rate under the Obama administration than under the present Trump administration. Both liberal and conservative news services confirm this fact among these are the Washington Post, Politico, Newsweek magazine,  Vox, and AOL News.

Chinese illegal immigrants are second only to border crossings by illegal aliens from Mexico and Central America, combined, according to the NY Times, March 6, 2017. Unlike our neighbors to the south that cooperate with deportations, we have no such cooperation from communist China.

Combative rhetoric, devoid of facts, posits unproductive confrontation.

Do I oppose President Trump’s commitment to defending our nation? No. I applaud his boldness and courageous leadership. Do I suggest there is a dearth of knowledge on the matter of border protection? Obviously, yes.

Can we talk? Are we ready to learn?

John White
Rockwall, Texas

Government-Off-The-Rails – A sordid tale of establishment corruption

mueller expands his probe again
Image: Frontpage Magazine 21 July 2017

The stated purpose for the Special Prosecutor is to investigate possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

So, when did Mr. Donald Trump become Candidate Donald Trump? The answer is July 2016 when he announced his candidacy.

It’s time for all Americans, regardless political affiliation, to rise up and say ENOUGH!! Enough of this mindless campaign to overturn the 2016 Presidential election.

Mueller expands his “investigation” a second time for a span of TEN YEARS prior to the 2016 elections.

Background: Mueller is a Democrat, a former FBI director who hired a staff of Democrat lawyers that were all Clinton contributors. Even Senator Chuck Schumer should have the discernment that this is government-off-the-rails.

While there is ZERO evidence of wrongdoing by Mr. Trump, there is ample evidence of wrongdoing by Mrs. Clinton. Why is there no investigation of her? Have the establishment people so compromised Jeff Sessions that he cannot do the right things?

Today I will tell my two U.S. Senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, to end the witch hunt that threatens our national security, our international prestige, and, if allowed to continue, will cause investors to lose confidence in the United States of America. When investors lose faith in the economy, there will be a disastrous depression the likes of which the world has never seen.

John White
Rockwall, Texas

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Immigrants – Who Needs Them?

Debates and discussions on the subject of immigration policies go unresolved due to intransigent postures of the persons on either side of the issue.

us-immigration-and-naturalization

Does the United States of America need immigrants? This is a great question. Let’s ask a few more questions.

What is a sustainable population? For the U.S.A., a sustainable birth rate is 2.1 births per woman. In 2016, our nation’s birth rate was 1.9 births per woman.

us fertility rate 2016

“Today, almost 50% of women between the ages of 25 and 29 are childless. In fact, the highest rate of childless women aged 15 to 44 since the US Census Bureau began tracking it in 1976 was reported in 2014 when 47.6% of American women had no children.” – Population Education

How does the U.S. compare to some other nations? In 2016, the birthrate of Japan was 1.45 births per woman. In Russia, the rate was 1.77 births per woman and 2.18 in Mexico.

Do Immigrants Steal Jobs from Americans? Another great question. Let’s test the job market.

How many posted job openings go unfilled? The following article from Forbes reports,

“At a recent media event touting the need for apprentice programs, Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka pointed to the latest news from the U.S. Department of Labor: There are currently 6 million job openings in the United States.

The data come from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), which is released monthly. The survey reports an increase of 400,000 job openings at the end of April 2017 as compared to April 2016.

The job market is so strong that businesses and economists believe the inability to find workers is harming economic growth and could encourage companies to move operations. Zimmer Biomet, a maker of artificial orthopedic devices located in Warsaw, Indiana, cannot find sufficient workers for its factory. “It is struggling to find enough workers, despite offering some of the region’s best pay and benefits,” according to the Washington Post.”

What is the future of a nation for which the birth rate cannot sustain it?

I propose my fellow Americans set aside intransigence on either side of the immigration issue to take the time to question the present and future of our nation with respect to sustaining the population and our common prosperity.

While our nation was founded on solid Christian principles, the principles don’t fund functions of government. Taxpayers do this. Government tends to uphold spending as the birthrate declines, leaving the next generation of Americans saddled with ever greater levels of taxation.

One can argue that the federal government has an insatiable appetite to spend. While both parties claim to want to reign in spending, both seem to try to outdo the other while in control of Congressional ‘purse strings’.

Debates are healthy because they lead to finding common ground essential to making America great again.

John White
Rockwall, Texas

Durable Government: Foundations vs Framework (Do you know the difference?)

“God isn’t mentioned in the Constitution” say the atheists and the ignorant. I agree. The Name(s) of God are not to be found anywhere in the U.S. Constitution.

The heads of my liberal naysayers will explode when I say this about the foundation ofdurable government our nation: The Constitution is not the foundation. It is the framework.

Let’s define terms. Shall we? The following definitions are from the WordReference.com online dictionary.

Nation – a large body of people, associated with a particular territory, that is sufficiently conscious of its unity to seek or to possess a government peculiarly its own.

Foundation – the base on which some structure rests.

Framework – a skeletal structure designed to support something.

We the People began to become a nation while still under the constitutional monarchy of Great Britain. Before the American Revolution, our colonial forefathers were citizens of that global empire.

Thirteen individual and autonomous states comprised our particular territory when these colonies signed a peace treaty with that empire in 1783.

Each of the thirteen states drew up their own constitutional frameworks of government. It was a compact between those thirteen states that united us as a confederacy. The framework of  that confederate government could be likened to a shack that was unable to weather storms.

On May 25, 1787 delegates of all the states except Rhode Island convened a constitutional convention in Philadelphia. The original intent was to modify or fix the confederate constitution so the states could go forward as a strong nation. This did not happen.

After weeks of debates and hand-wringing, the convention was wholly unfruitful. It was at this point Founding Father Benjamin Franklin took the floor with his famous speech that turned the convention upside down. You can read his famous speech via this link: Franklin’s Appeal for Prayer at the Constitutional Convention

Instead of fixing an unworkable confederacy, the convention of 1787 produced the U.S. Constitution, the framework of our present-day federal government.

Construction professionals know to first lay a sturdy foundation before hammering together the frame of a structure.

Our present-day Constitution is a rhetorical framework for government that rests upon a philosophical foundation.

The Declaration of Independence declares the philosophical foundation for these United States of America. I quote from the second paragraph:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed...”

Creator – a person or thing that creates.

The philosophical foundation upon which the framework of our government rests is acknowledgement of  God as our supreme authority.

To my knowledge, there are only two nations in all history that share this same philosophical foundation: Israel and the U.S.A.

To support the above, I refer you to page 66 of the book titled One Nation Under God: A Factual History of America’s Religious Heritage By Leon G Stevens.

34% of the Founding Fathers’ quotes came directly out of the Bible

Atheists, agnostics and liberal educators diligently and relentlessly strive to blot out all mention of God in text books, public institutions, universities, and even the hallowed halls of Congress. But, there it is.

John White
Rockwall, Texas

 For in him [God] we live and move and exist…

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Speaker Joe Straus: You claim to be Republican, but your actions suggest otherwise

republican majority

Mr. Speaker, I read the duties of the Speaker of the House from your own website. Nowhere on that list of duties do I see a duty to autocratically obstruct the will of the people, as expressed by the majority seating before you.

I know you as a gentleman. Will you remain a gentleman in the special session?

If you believe Governor Greg Abbott’s agenda unpopular, bring all the items to the floor for a vote to prove your point.

Powers & Duties

The speaker is the presiding officer of the house of representatives. The Texas Constitution requires the house of representatives, each time a new legislature convenes, to choose one of its own members to serve as speaker.

As presiding officer, the speaker maintains order during floor debate, recognizing legislators who wish to speak and ruling on procedural matters. The constitution also requires the speaker to sign all bills and joint resolutions passed by the legislature. As a member of the house of representatives, the speaker may vote on all questions before the house.

The other duties and responsibilities of the speaker are determined by the members of the house in the House Rules of Procedure, which are adopted by a majority vote of the members at the beginning of each regular session of the legislature. The members give the speaker the authority to appoint the membership of each standing committee, subject to rules on seniority, and to designate the chair and vice chair for each committee. Under the rules, the speaker is responsible for referring all proposed legislation to committee, subject to the committee jurisdictions set forth in the rules. The rules also allow the speaker to appoint conference committees, to create select committees, and to direct committees to conduct interim studies when the legislature is not in session.

John White
Rockwall, Texas

Illegal Aliens: Mexican Government Spits Against The Wind

A word of wisdom to the Mexican Consulate General of Mexico, Dallas. There is a proverb that warns, “He who spits against the wind, spits in his own face.”

The Mexican government and a select number of your fellow countrymen unlawfully in our country demand favor and mercy with respect to residency issues. Your collective disrespectful and unruly behavior assures neither.

 

trump toilet paper
Report, The Washington Times – Thursday, June 1, 2017

 

No doubt you are forgetful of the Mérida Initiative that addresses our mutual interests in combating the flow of illegal drugs in our shared part of the world. My country, the USA, appropriated $2.5 billion USD from 2008 through 2015 to assist Mexican self-defense against the illicit drug trade.

Yes, there is an angry sentiment among my countrymen on the issues of illegal immigration by your countrymen. Your disrespectful affronts against the President of the United States of America and the People of the United States of America will further galvanize a movement toward construction of a wall between our countries.

You are spitting against the wind.

John White
Rockwall, Texas

Memorial Day History: What is it you don’t know about the Liberty Bell?

liberty-bell.png

Consider these statements by notable American leaders.

“The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.” – John Adams

“I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth- that God Governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?” – Benjamin Franklin

“If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under.” – Ronald Reagan

When Barack Obama trumpeted all the many and wonderful benefits Islam brings to the world, the news media applauded. When President Trump acknowledges our Christian heritage, a maelstrom of negative stories flashes across the continent.

John Hancock was the “Donald Trump” of his day. Like Mr. Trump, Mr. Hancock was a hard-working successful businessman who opposed oppressive taxation and mind-numbing government regulations. So it was he who financed the Boston Tea Party. Didn’t you know this?

John Hancock was the financier of the American Revolution and it was by his intellect and financial expertise our Patriots were outfitted with guns and ammunition. Didn’t you know this?

For the above reasons, John Hancock was awarded the privilege of being the first to sign the Declaration of Independence.

As Governor of Massachusetts, Hancock called on the citizens of that state to pray “that the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may be established in peace and righteousness among all the nations of the earth.”

God raised up John Hancock at just the right time to turn back the tide of tyranny that was enslaving our people. 244 years later, God raised up Donald Trump to turn back the tide of the tyranny of bureaucracy and unholy socialism.

Politicians led us into the mess in which we find ourselves wallowing in astronomical debt and public unrest fomented by an atheistic former president and his fellow atheist, a would-have-been successor to the Democrat throne. As in the beginning of our nation, God has given us this year a leader who understands finance and has already undone an enormous amount of bureaucratic swamp land.

Some years ago, while attending The Response in Houston, a young woman reporter from Politico asked me if Governor Perry would suggest the Republican Party for the salvation of America. I answered, “No, he will say that Jesus Christ is the only salvation for our country.” He did as I predicted and she published that interview in her news magazine.

The volume of blood shed by our armed forces in the defense of our liberty is MORE THAN ONE AND A HALF MILLION GALLONS!

I pray that God will have mercy on America, that he will protect and promote our president and vice president, and that this nation does not succumb to godless ideologies that have decimated the populations of nations ruled by despots.

Memorial Day affords dual opportunities for us to honor our fallen warriors and for us to acknowledge, as Ronald Reagan said, that we are a nation under God and we choose to not go under.

John White
Rockwall, Texas