It is one week till the August 3rd elections. If you STILL have not done your homework and do not know what is going to be on the ballot, click HERE to be directed to the StlToday article on what is being voted on.
While all of the measures, primaries, etc. are important, I believe there are two that are of most importance to anyone living in Missouri and specifically the first district. Those are Prop C and the Congressional House of Representatives primary. By now, I have bent over backwards to give you information on the candidates. That said, once again, here are my interviews with the three running against Lacy Clay
Candice Britton interview - HERE Robyn Hamlin interview - HERE Martin D. Baker interview - HERE
I will say it one more time. We HAVE to get rid of the Clay political dynasty. The Clay's have done nothing but run on their name and empty promises that the populace of north city and county continue to accept. Ask yourself one question, what has Lacy Clay done to make north city and county of St. Louis a better place. Sure, he coordinates a job fair, but that is it. He has done nothing to help bring more jobs, he has done nothing to promote economic stimulus. Instead, he is for taxation and unbridled spending. Tax the "rich" is what he wants to do.
Let me tell you who the "rich" are according to Lacy Clay. The rich are the small family run businesses all over the area. These are the franchises like the Shell stations, or the local dry cleaners, the mom and pop restaurants and sports bars, the shaved ice stands, the local electricians and plumbers, etc. These are the "rich" according to Lacy. Of course, Lacy has never really worked a job so he would not truly understand earning a living or working for his money. Instead, he sees himself as duke that can take money from lobbyist so he can pay his dues while at the same time blasting companies. Just check out these two videos.
With the first one, Lacy blasts WalMart for their employee practices
With the second one, he says he is going to keep their lobbying money anyway
This is the hypocrisy that we have in office right now. If this was a Republican, Lacy and the press would be all over this issue.
Do the right thing and vote this clown out. Let's have a November election that pits Candice Britton vs either Martin Baker or Robyn Hamlin.
In regards to Prop C. I simply say this. Do you want the option to participate in Federal Healthcare plan or do you think participation should be mandatory. That is it. If you think that it should be optional, then you should vote for Prop C. I could go on and on, but the fine people over at Citizens Commission on Human Rights of St. Louis have put together a very good piece on this that you can find HERE.
In closing, in the end it is up to you. It is up to you to show up at the polls and it is up to you to vote. Men and women for the last 200 years across the great country have died for your rights. Those rights include your right to vote. Please do so and do so intelligently.
P.S - If you have already made up your mind, please consider donating your time and or money to a candidate. $5 can make a difference. Buying a yard sign or bumper magnet can help get the word out. If you have an available day and cannot afford to donate money, donate your time by handing out leaflets or working a phone bank. Please help out however you can. I can say I have. Can you?
So Lacy came out today and chided the Republicans for not wanting to extend jobless benefits. He believes that it is hypocrisy on the part of the Republicans for wanting to a way to pay for this extension. This is, of course, the new strategy from Obama, Pelosi and such. We sawe Clair McCaskill saying the same thing last week. All I can say is, oh Lacy and company; how little you seem to understand the problem.
Let me explain it to you and I will try and use basic terms so you can understand it. I would not want to talk over your head.
You are upset that the Republicans voted for two “unauthorized wars” as well as the Bush tax cuts. - There are a couple of problems with this statement.
Congress authorized the President to go forward in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Just because you voted against it does not mean it was unauthorized.
The Bush tax cuts were not to blame for the fiscal problems; it was Congress spending above the budgeted baseline. Additionally, the original Bush tax cuts helped bring the economy back after the 2001 economic downturn.
You also stated, "The people objecting to the extension of unemployment benefits because they're not paid for never talked about that when they passed two tax breaks for the rich.” - The reality is the tax cut actually benefited the lower income brackets more than it did the rich. In 2007, according to CBO and Joint Committee on Taxation data, the increased child tax credit, marriage penalty relief, 10 percent bracket, and AMT were to have a combined budgetary effect of $114 billion. By comparison, capital gains, dividends, and estate tax cuts were projected to reduce 2007 revenues by just $36 billion. Based upon that alone, you can see that tactic of pitting the Republicans as pro rich does not really apply.
You stated “I know that there are thousands of Missourians who need their unemployment benefits”. – I have no doubt that there are many people who are in need of some form of wages. That said, these benefits have been extended several times. We CANNOT continue to extend these benefits without end. Let’s face it. Many of these jobs were eliminated. They are no coming back. As long as the government continues to dole out money for free, there is no reason for these people to go and find another job. And don’t you dare say there are no jobs because that is an outright lie. There are plenty of jobs available, unfortunately too many people are not willing to take an entry level position with a company or they are not willing to take the money they have been given to get job training.
Lacy, the American people are tired of government reckless spending. This is not just a Republican thing, this is across the board. There is a reason that Republican and Democrat incumbents are being booted from office. The government is not living within its means.
Think of it this way. My family and I have a budget. We use it to pay our bills, donate to charity and do fun things like rent movies, etc. When we want to make a purchase, we have to save money to do so. If we have to make a purchase, like our furnace goes out, etc., we will either put it on the credit card or work out financing terms. When we work out financing terms, we know that we will have to pay it off within a time limit. Now, if we have too many things on credit, we cannot get credit anymore and have to either do without or get rid of one set of payments to deal with making another set.
The American people are demanding that our government do the same. We are tired of all of Congress running reckless with our hard earned money.
So yes Lacy, is there a bit of hypocrisy among some Republicans. Yes. But they are at least learning their lesson. The American public will not stand for it.
Oh and by the way. I do not know if your mother ever told you this, but two wrongs do not make a right.
I just want to start this entry by first thanking the three candidates for their response to Jeremiah. While I have not heard back from Jeremiah, I am sure he was pleasantly surprised and is now well informed.
We are now less than three weeks from the August primaries. Do you know who you are going to vote for? Have you done your research? If not, do so now. Know full well who you are voting and what you are voting for. We are now baring witness to what happens when people vote for someone without really listening or researching what that person is all about.
Now, on to some other things. Depending upon where my research takes me, I may be out of the loop for a bit. I am digging into some things that MAY turn into something or nothing at all. Of course, if it is something, you will read about it here. That said, I am also thinking about expanding the offering of this blog.
While I have mainly focused on the issues of MO 1st district on a federal level, I would like to expand out and talk about some of the local issues. Specifically, I would like to tackle some of the issues affecting areas like Florissant, Hazelwood, Maryland Heights, Ferguson, Jennings, and just north St. Louis County on a state level. So, I am reaching out to you, the readers of this blog and making an offer. If you would be interested in participating by writing on issues at a city, county or state level I would welcome it. If you are interested or would like to help in some way, please email me so we can discuss further.
Nearly 1 year ago (7/23/09) I started this blog. I was not sure anyone would even read it. But as I stated then, I was tired of not being listened to. I wanted to make a difference and did not know how. In the past I had donated to campaigns and talked up candidates, but it had grown beyond that. With this tiny blog, I have been able to bring to light many of the things that the St. Louis Post Dispatch just will not report. No one else was reporting on Lacy's tight relationship with the Rent to Own and Payday Loan industry. No one else was highlighting the HUGE campaign payments Lacy is making to his sister. With a little research and the willingness to do so, I was able to uncover these things and bring them to light. You too can do the same. If you want to be a part of this movement, a movement to bring back fiscal responsibility and small government to the citizens of North St. Louis City and County, then help me.
With primaries less than a month a way, people in the first district are starting to take notice. Personally, I have seen an increase in my traffic; especially the interviews I conducted with Candice Britton, Robyn Hamlin and Martin D. Baker.
It was with great luck that I received the following email from a reader.
Dear Middle Class Joe,
I recently began reading your blog and could not agree with you more about Clay. He and his father before him have been a bane to St. Louis and need to be ousted as soon as possible. I must tell you though that this will be a rough thing to do. Much like his daddy, Clay plays dirty. He has also made it so that he has a built in demographic in North St. Louis city. With all of these things said, I hope there is still a chance that he can be removed from office this year.
I have been talking to people at my church and office about voting for someone else as I plan to do. I do not know who I will be voting for but it will not be Lacy. As I talk with my collegues and friends I keep hearing people say things like they would rather deal with the devil they know than the devil they don't know or Lacy has not really hurt us, so why should I remove him from office?
I try and explain some of the things you have said on your blog, but it takes some knowledge of government that these people either do not have or do not care to know about. I want Clay out of here, so what can I tell these people in very basic terms as to why they should not vote for Clay and vote for someone else.
Thank you and keep up the good fight,
Jeremiah
Originally, I was going to reach out to Jeremiah myself but after giving it some thought, I sent this email out to the three candidates I have interviewed and asked each of them to answer Jeremiah's question.
Prior responses are below.
Next, we have Martin D. Baker's response. Martin is running as a Republican in the upcoming primary. His response to Jeremiah is as follows:
The simplest answer I can give is a phrase that Ronald Reagan was fond of saying..."are you better now than you were four years ago?" During Congressman Clay's regime (its in my opinion a regime because he was handed the seat by his father, which makes it an aristocrical regime) North St Louis and the district as a whole has seen property values drop, unemployment rise, and the quality of life decrease. The Clays have built their reputation on fear mongering and also continuing the lie in North City. They have went into the black community acting as though they were one of us, yet have not once attempted to allay the fears of the area. Because he shows up at the churches and community centers he gives the impression he cares. I can say without any fear, HE DOES NOT CARE. He doesn't care because he will always poll well within the community so why should he make any effort to meet the needs of the constituency. I would say long ago he forgot who he works for , but he never learned in the first place. When you have a built in group that will deliver percentages in the near 80 to 90 percent range you think thats a mandate when its just lack of knowledge. When I visit people in North City on a practically daily basis, I tell people how their taxes have increased, how the value of their dollar has decreased and how its apparent that jobs are leaving because many of them dont have one now. This cannot stand anymore. The time has come for the people to take their government back from the stewards who have not shown fitness nor worthiness to continue to serve. I humbly ask for your support with the promise and commitment to bring government to the people and to never forget who I serve. Martin D Baker Republican Candidate US Congress Missouri First District
Next, we have Robyn Hamlin's response. Robyn is running as a Republican in the upcoming primary. Her response to Jeremiah is as follows:
Lacy Clay is in office because his father was very well known and name recognition is what many people vote for while in the voter booth. Unfortunately, this has not been good for our area. Lacy Clay votes for "entitlements" very consistently which have the effect of economically enslaving many in our area. Look around the area and you will see more and more businesses that have left over the last decade.
Lacy Clay finally signed on as a co-sponsor to Audit The Federal Reserve when he realized that there were enough to pass the bill then he worked hard and voted against it.
If you look at his voting record many times he does not vote on controversial issues if his vote is not needed by the democratic progressives. He is very savvy when it comes to keeping his area "in line". He has to pay the national democratic committee $150,000 a year from his campaign contributions to keep his job.
We need job friendly legislation here for small Main Street businesses. Our country prospers when people are allowed to follow their dreams, not when congress decides what business is allowed to win or decides what businesses will lose.
Lacy Clay thinks that partial birth abortion is okay and that everyones tax dollars should support it. I could go on and on.
It is important that people look at the overall game that he is playing with us. When checking his votes when he votes against his party to keep our area "in line" just check to see if he voted that way because his vote was not needed to pass it and he was given the okay by Barney Frank and/or Nancy Pelosi to vote against it.
Another thing, when he votes to increase our debt do we ever hear what the terms for repayment are? He is on the financial services committee. Why do we never hear about the repayment terms?
On Independence Day, we take note that this country was founded because people were being taxed without representation. We must remember when we ask our government to take out more loans that the children forced to pay for that debt are not getting representation. Instant gratification at the expense of our children and grandchildren is nothing to be proud of. It's time to pay our own debt. Let Independence Ring!
The first response is from Candice Britton who is running as a Democrat in the upcoming primary. Her response to Jeremiah is as follows:
Jeremiah,
I said I would run a clean respectful campaign I meant it. Some of your friends said “they would rather deal with the devil they know than the devil they don’t know”. I would not try to convince them to vote against Mr. Clay. I would provide them with information on the candidates running for the CD1 seat. If you have chosen a candidate tell them why. For the first time in a long time you can vote for a candidate. You don’t have to hold your nose or not vote at all. All of us are not out of the same mold. You have real choices this time we all are not devils, there are some good folks running in the August 3, 2010 Primary.
I would ask:, “Are you happy with the path our Country is on?” I would ask:, “Who do you think got us into this mess “career politicians maybe?”
I’m running for public office because I feel that our great Country is headed in a bad direction. I feel this way because of the following reasons: A. Government spending is out of control. B. Both parties are responsible for the huge Debt and Deficit. C. Senators and Congresspersons have forgotten whom they work for, they no longer work for us. We the people. D. Democrats and Republicans refuse to work together to set a good example for our children. The deliberate feud between the parties keeps this great Country and her people divided. Due to this, they are free to do as they please, such as, enact legislation the majority of the people are against.
I’m a Democrat, who believes that one must live within one’s means (income), except in an emergency. That includes our government. I believe that we must help those who can’t help themselves, such as, senior citizens, disabled, veterans, children, homeless, mentally ill, working poor and middle class. I also want equality for women.
I believe that we must bring back our manufacturing base. No Country can survive without making its own goods. We are held like captives with our hands tied behind our backs to foreign countries (i.e. China). These foreign countries don’t have the American people’s best interest at heart. Bringing back America’s manufacturing base would also provide the jobs we desperately need. All Americans can’t go to college. Many people just want to learn a trade, work hard, have a family and live a financially secure life.
There are so many areas to cover as far as legislation that affects our lives that I can’t possibly cover everything in answering the question put to me. If you give me the privilege to serve you in the U.S. Congress, I will be 1 out of 435 Representatives. I get only one vote. I can promise you that I will fight for you and vote for your interest and not for a political party or for a personal gain.
I’m asking you to send me, Candice Britton to Washington D.C. I believe that we must set an example for our children. You don’t have to be a Millionaire, a Lawyer, a Doctor, Career Politician or have gone to an Ivy League College to run for public office to serve the citizens of this great Country.
I believe that I cannot ethically ask anyone else to do something that I would not do myself.
Therefore, I’m running for the U.S. House of Representatives. I need the support of ordinary citizens that are ready for changes. We the people need to take back our Government.
It’s up to you.
It’s in your hands. Resend “the same old thing” or send me, “fresh and new.” Before I would vote on ANY legislation, I would read the legislation with my staff. I would research the legislation to make sure that I have a good sound knowledge and understanding of the legislation before I voted. If the majority leader would not give sufficient time to research and understand the legislation before a vote, I will vote “NO”. I will use common sense and NEVER forget whom I work for…YOU the people.
On June 29th, Lacy Clay sponsored a piece of legislation. Is this a piece of legislation to impact our federal deficit? Is this a piece of legislation that will bring much needed jobs to the area? Is this a piece of legislation that will audit the Federal Reserve, as he had previously committed to? No. Instead, Lacy presented H.R. 1486. This “important” bill would recognize June 11th 2011 as National Minority Golf Awareness Day.
Take a minute and think about that. Lacy Clay is sponsoring a bill to make people aware of minorities playing golf. If you want that kind of awareness, turn on SportsCenter. My God, Tiger Woods is talked about at least once a week.
This is ridiculous.
Knowing that Lacy does nothing without his personal interests at heart, I did a little bit of looking. It just so happens that 6/11/11 is around the time of year that the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation does their annual Mervin L Jones and Stephanie Tubbs Jones Annual Scholarship Golf and Tennis Classic. I say this because in 2010 this event was held June 12 – 14th and 2009 it was held June 6 – 8th. This information is easily available by doing a search on the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation website and doing a search for Golf.
A further search found that some of the contributors to this charity golf tournament were Lacy’s friends at the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations (APRO). We all know by now the close relationship Lacy has with these people.
I am sure that with the passage of this bill, Lacy and crew will milk this tournament for more money. Heck, maybe Obama will show up. God knows he has to get his down time with all the economic turmoil and all.
I am just a regular guy, who is tired of getting the short end of the stick. After 35 years of sitting on the sidelines and saying nothing, I am speaking up and letting my voice be heard.
You can email me at mdlclssmah at gmail dot com and follow me on Twitter as MdlClssJoe
