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America’s Churches Must Speak Out: Pulpit Freedom Sunday, October 7, is their Opportunity

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The 2012 U.S. presidential election season is getting vicious, and the nation recognizes that there is a great deal riding on this election. Despite the constant bantering and outright verbal attacks (between friends on Twitter and Facebook), the widespread interest is frankly much better for American than listless hopelessness. People care.

As it does on a regular basis, Americans United for Separation of Church and State is getting after churches for caring too much. Americans United has sent out a letter warning churches not to engage in politicking because, “tax law prohibits 501(c)(3) groups from supporting or opposing candidates.” The letter even warns about voter guides that are too one-sided in how they address the issues.

Most churches would like to keep their 501(c)(3) status and continue to offer tax deductions for tithes and offerings. They therefore tread very carefully during election time. Some pastors, however, are weary of being muzzled. These believe the church has a responsibility to address political issues, just as men of God have done throughout history, and they want to fight for their First Amendment right of free speech in their churches. These pastors will be speaking out very clearly about political matters and will offer their views on specific candidates on October 7, which has been dubbed Pulpit Freedom Sunday. If lawsuits ensue, these pastors hope that they will result in a Supreme Court decision to overturn the Johnson Amendment, the 1954 amendment to the tax code forbidding politicking in churches.

In an analysis of the history behind the Johnson Amendment, James D. Davidson of Purdue University said in 1998, “The ban on electioneering has nothing to do with the First Amendment or Jeffersonian principles of separation of church and state. The First Amendment speaks of religious freedom; it says nothing that would preclude churches from aligning themselves with or against candidates for political office…” Davidson argues that it was then-Senator Lyndon Johnson’s push against McCarthyism and effort to hold Democratic control over the Senate that motivated the amendment in 1954.

Even now, though, there’s no law that says churches cannot offer a microphone to political causes. They may right now, under current law, preach for or against candidates all they want. Churches and charities just may not keep their 501(c)(3) tax exempt status if they engage in overt campaigning.

What Should Churches Do?

Jesus told his disciples, “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.”(Matthew 5:14) That applies first and foremost to the Spirit of God in us, shining out in our everyday lives. Living for Jesus Christ and putting him first in our lives is the most vital thing we can do, whatever our political positions.

Because the government of the United States is in the hands of the people, though, Americans are in a greater position to move things politically than were the people of First Century Rome. We Americans have a responsibility to oversee our representatives, to hold them accountable, and to make our voices heard. Individual Americas, whatever their religious beliefs, are not only free but should speak out to make sure that our local and federal public servants are doing their jobs well.

Read more from this story HERE.

Video: Obama Voters Got Burned in 2008; Now Changing Their Vote

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Although I don’t believe that Romney will turn this country around, he’s a far cry better than Obama.

The following ads feature voters that recognize they’ve been snookered and are striking a different path in November.

Let’s hope Romney-Ryan doesn’t let them down, too.

Here’s the short 30 second ad:

And the longer version:

This series of ads is sponsored by a group that says, “Americans who voted for Barack Obama in 2008 share why they’re changing their vote in 2012 and will be casting their ballot for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan in November. Learn more at WhyIChangedMyVote.com.”

Radio Hosts Suspended For ‘Anti-Muslim’ Remarks (+video)

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By NewsGuy. A popular northern California morning radio team was abruptly suspended Tuesday, after calling on their listeners to make cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed to teach Muslims a lesson about American-styled free speech.

“Some of you people that are good with the computer – make an anti-Mohammed ad post it to Al Jazeera,” said Jack Armstrong of the San Francisco Bay Area morning team Armstrong and Getty on Monday. “We need to swamp them with ads until they grow up.”

The comments were brought about during a heated discussion about last Friday’s rioting in the Muslim world over a YouTube video defaming the Prophet Mohammed and Islam. “It’s absolutely unbelievable that we [the United States] have been put in a position where we’re apologizing [for the video], and nobody condemns them [for their violence],” Armstrong said.

Armstrong and Getty also mocked President Obama and the US State Department for what they described as an “apology” to Muslims about the video.

“Nobody delivers the incredibly complicated message of, ‘listen, you can burn this embassy or you can ignore it [the video] completely, the results will still be the same,’” added co-host Joe Getty. “Just settle down.” Read more from this story HERE.

Here’s a local news report on the co-hosts’ controversial statements:

Video: Drunk Ohioans Assault Cardboard Cutouts of Obama, Romney, Ryan

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Here’s a video that’s not very informative except that it gives you a bit of a feel for how average but somewhat intoxicated Americans think the president and his challenger are doing:

Religious Liberty IS the Winning Issue this Election

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In a new poll from the Susan B. Anthony List, 69 percent of likely swing voters in Virginia, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Florida disagreed with the notion that “the federal government should force institutions to pay for drugs that violate their conscience or religious belief.” Fifty-one percent of them “strongly disagree.”

Sixty-six percent said they’d reject candidates who support the HHS mandate. Forty-four percent of them said they are “much less likely” to support a candidate who supports such restrictive efforts.

If you’re wondering what you can do to make a difference not just in this election but in our future understanding of liberty itself in the United States, commit yourself to educating on this issue.

Mitt Romney’s best moment on this issue was in Ohio in July when he said “I feel we’re all Catholic today.”

He explained that: The president and his administration said they are going to usurp your religious freedom by demanding that you provide products to your employees, if you’re the Catholic Church, that violates your own conscience.”

Read more from this story HERE.

American Taliban lawyer Appointed to Third-Highest Position in Obama’s Justice Department

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A lawyer who came to prominence for his full-throated defense of a subsequently convicted terrorist was quietly promoted to the No. 3 slot at the Department of Justice last month, a post that puts him in charge of the administration’s policy regarding Guantanamo Bay detainees.

The move has raised red flags on Capitol Hill and elsewhere among national security stalwarts who argue that the promotion could imperil the country’s longstanding war on terrorism.

The Obama administration appointee at the center of the debate is Tony West, a longtime Justice Department lawyer who received national attention for his aggressive defense of John Walker Lindh, the so-called American Taliban who is currently serving 20-years in prison for colluding with al Qaeda in Afghanistan and taking up arms against U.S. troops.

Late last month, President Obama appointed West as the DOJ’s acting associate attorney general, a posting that does not require Senate confirmation. He formally began the job on Monday.

As the department’s third in command, West is tasked with defending a broad array of legal matters, such as Obama’s controversial health care law and civil rights issues. He also will be in charge of “litigating national security cases, such as habeas corpus petitions brought by detainees at Guantanamo Bay,” according to the DOJ.

Read more from this story HERE.

Obama’s “Bump in the Road” is Really a Pot Hole on the Highway to Hell

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In comments made during a CBS ’60 Minutes’ interview, Barack Obama described violent attacks on embassies in the Middle East and the murder of US ambassador Chris Stevens and three others, as “bumps in the road.”

When asked if recent events in the Middle East had changed his outlook on supporting the Arab Spring, Obama responded: “Well, I’d said even at the time that this is going to be a rocky path. The question presumes that somehow we could have stopped this wave of change. I think it was absolutely the right thing for us to do to align ourselves with democracy, universal right, a notion that people have to be able to participate in their own governance. But I was pretty certain and continue to be pretty certain that there are going to be bumps in the road because, you know, in a lot of these places, the one organizing principle has been Islam.”

A coordinated military maneuver, confirmed by the head of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center as a terrorist attack, that employed rocket propelled grenades and other heavy weapons, which was launched on the anniversary on 9/11 against an American embassy that directly led to the death of four Americans, including an ambassador, is a “bump in the road”?

During the interview, Obama admitted that his campaign ads had made mistakes, but somehow, CBS News didn’t find that piece of information newsworthy enough to share with their viewers.

When asked if he was disturbed by fact checkers proving assertions in his ads were untrue, Obama responded: “Do we see sometimes us going overboard in our campaign, are there mistakes that are made, areas where there is no doubt somebody could dispute how we are presenting things? You know, that happens in politics.”

That happens in politics when a campaign cannot run on its record in office, is so desperate to win that it deems it necessary to employ every long used dirty “progressive” smear tactic and suffers from a severe shortage of ethics, morals and socially redeeming qualities.

Remember when the United States was unquestionably Israel’s strongest ally? Not anymore. According to Obama, Israel is merely “one of our closest allies in the region.”

Since his inauguration, Obama has attempted to appease the Islamist world with an “even-handed” approach. Now Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has serious doubts about American resolve to stand behind Israel.

For his part, Obama admitted to viewing Netanyahu’s requests for the U.S. to take a harder stance against Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons as “noise” he must ignore when making American security decisions.

Is it sheer coincidence that the exact same word was used to describe Israel by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? “I have spoken about this topic at length, previously. We generally speaking do not take very seriously the issue of the Zionists and the possible dangers emanating from them. Of course they would love to find a way for their own salvation by making a lot of noise and to raise stakes in order to save themselves. But I do not believe they will succeed. Iran is also a very well recognized country and her defensive powers are very clear.”

Is this any way for America to conduct foreign policy? Does having cities in twenty different countries descend into weeks of anti-American violence and murder sound like a “bump in the road” or more like just cause for alarm? Does treating long-time ally Israel like they are simply “one of our closest allies in the region” sound like a recipe for successfully enlisting new allies in the future? Is this what Americans view as making America safer? Is this what Americans see as elevating America’s standing in the world view?

Is it accidental that a large number of Americans who are currently engaged in early voting are oblivious to this information?

I think we can all agree that America deserves much better than this.

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Michael Fell is a former MCA recording artist from the seminal punk rock era who toured America from coast to coast. Today, he’s a leading voice in the L.A. Tea Party movement, active since the February 2009 inception. Mr. Fell currently chairs the Westwood Tea Party, is a founding member of the L.A. Metro Tea Party Coalition, serves as the Vice Chairman of the Westside Republicans Club in L.A. CA, and is an elected Republican delegate to the L.A. 47th AD Central Committee. He’s been Campaign Manager for a primary winning Congressional candidate, as well as Santa Monica and L.A. City Council candidates. Mr. Fell is a contributing writer for https://conservativedailynews.com/, https://rightwingnews.com/, https://www.hollywoodrepublican.net/, https://beforeitsnews.com, https://www.redcounty.com/, https://www.uspatriotpac.com and, https://westsiderepublicans.com/. His opinions on today’s news events and political climate can be found on his blog: https://mjfellright.wordpress.com/

Madonna strips for “Muslim” Obama, offers profanity-laced endorsement (+video)

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Photo credit: Karen Blue

By Emily Goodin. Madonna offered a profanity-laced endorsement of President Obama at her concert Monday night, which involved the singer stripping down to her underwear to reveal the president’s name written on her body.

“You all better vote for f—ing Obama okay,” she told the crowd at Washington’s Verizon center.

Later in the show, Madonna took off her shirt and pulled down her pants to show she had “OBAMA” written in all capital letters across her lower back.

“When Obama is in the White House for a second term I’ll take it all off,” she said to cheers and whistles from the audience.

She then began singing a slow, seductive version of “Like a Virgin” while rolling around on a piano top. Read more from this story HERE.

Here’s a video of Madonna stating, “We have a black Muslim in the White House! Now that’s some amazing sh*t” (caution: profanity):

Obama USDA offering Women, Hispanic Farmers over $1.3 billion in Reparations (+video)

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By Caroline May. As part of “a new era of civil rights” at the Department of Agriculture, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced Monday that Hispanic and women farmers and ranchers who believe USDA discriminated against them can file claims to get a piece of at least $1.33 billion in cash awards and tax relief payments and up to $160 million in farm debt relief, beginning this week.

Women and Hispanic ranchers and farmers who feel the agency denied their loan or loan servicing applications because of their race or gender at various periods from 1981 to 2000 can file claims alleging discrimination from Sept. 24, 2012, to March 25, 2013, for a slice of the payout.

“Hispanic and women farmers who believe they have faced discriminatory practices from the USDA must file a claim by March 25, 2013 in order to have a chance to receive a cash payment or loan forgiveness,” Vilsack explained in a statement Monday. “The opening of this claims process is part of USDA’s ongoing efforts to correct the wrongs of the past and ensure fair treatment to all current and future customers.”

In February 2011, Vilsack announced the historic “path to justice for Hispanic and women farmers” to offer them an outlet to receive compensation for past wrongs without having to go to federal court.

This is the third settlement to interest groups the USDA is believed to have discriminated against during the Obama administration. Read more from this story HERE.

Here’s a video from an earlier version of this program where “500%” of black farmers received hundreds of millions in reparations.

Conservative PAC: Obama Using Poll-Tested ‘Scare Words’

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A conservative political action committee known for its slick but often controversial political advertisements is planning a new ad accusing President Barack Obama of using “scare words” to manipulate voters.

The National Republican Trust PAC, founded in 2008 by former investigative journalist Scott Wheeler, is the same group that released an ad four years ago slamming Obama for his ties to former pastor Jeremiah Wright, as well as the “Kill Ground Zero Mosque” ads in 2010 opposing the construction of a mosque near the site of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Now, Wheeler tells Whispers NRTPAC is preparing to release an ad he believes can sway independent voters over their lack of trust in the president. The ad alleges that Obama and his fellow Democrats rely heavily on “scare words,” or poll-tested language designed to scare voters about Republicans in their speeches.

“We’re going to show clips of Obama and other Democrats saying the same words over and over again,” says Wheeler, “and then say: ‘Do you ever wonder why you’re hearing the same thing over and again? That’s because these words have been tested. They are used to manipulate you into voting for them.'”

Wheeler cites “extremists” as an example of a Democratic scare word. He believes Democrats also use the phrase “reproductive freedom” to scare women into believing Republicans want to take away their reproductive rights.

Read more from this story HERE.