Friend –

The numbers are in! Thanks to you, we narrowly beat out our Republican counterparts in July and maintained our advantage year-to-date. [RSV: And thanks to the stimulus, we were able to do that by funneling money to our union cronies]

Make no mistake: you’re driving our success. Over a quarter-million of you have made a contribution this year to help us take back the Speaker’s gavel from the reckless Tea Party Congress. [RSV: If only they truly were our congress, if they were we'd be much better off]

I’m pleased to report we’re ahead of schedule in our drive to win the Majority. We’ve laid out our campaign plan in our “Drive for 24” Grassroots Investor Report. Download your copy here [RSV: no thanks]

Some key stats I wanted to make sure you see:

We only need 24 seats to win the House.
The math is simple:[RSV: They know math...Think they know how much 15 Trillion is?] There are 61 seats President Obama won now held by Republicans – including 18 districts won by Senator Kerry in 2004. If we win 10 of 18 Kerry-Obama seats and 15 of 43 Obama-only seats, that’s 25 seats, more than enough to win the Majority:

But we won’t stop there. We are also targeting seats that John McCain won in 2008 to put Republicans on the defensive across the country.

In each of these races, we are aggressively holding Republicans accountable for their wrong priorities. [ RSV:You know that whole stopping wreckless spending thing?]

Thanks to your support, this month we launched our “Accountability August” campaign holding 44 Republicans accountable for their bad budget choices. [RSV: As opposed to the Democrats NO budget choices...+2 years and counting and we are still waiting on the budget from 2010]

[RSV: What the NYT printed a press release from the Democrats? Shocker]

Our message is breaking through. [RSV: And it stinks like old man farts! ] Voters are fed up with Republicans playing political games with our economy and their plans to end Medicare.

The latest polls show a serious case of buyer’s remorse:

• Gallup poll (August 12th): Democrats lead Republicans in the generic ballot by 7 points (51-44).
• PPP poll (August 10th): Independent voters overwhelmingly disapprove of the Republican Majority in the House (68 disapprove/20 approve).[RSV: Actually the 'overwhelming' number of voters disapprove of CONGRESS as a whole]
• If the election was today, PPP thinks Democrats would win the House. [RSV: If only the election could be held today. We can't survive 1.5 more years of Obama]

One more stat: We have all-star recruits [RSV: If they are anything like your 'all-star' Obama we've got nothing to worry about] running in 45 Republican and open districts throughout the country. That’s well ahead of where we thought we’d be at this point. Our goal is to put at least 60 Republican seats in play when all is said and done.

Read more about our campaign in your Grassroots Investor Report [RSV: Link removed...as if we are going to promote that drivel]

More than the how, it’s the why we are doing this. ]RSV: Because you are a bunch of scum bag communists?]

We’re fighting to create jobs. [RSV: Stellar job guys] We’re fighting to protect the rights of women [RSV: Murder babies] , workers [RSV: Lazy bums in unions aka: Vote Buys] , seniors, [RSV: Don't you know they want to push granny off a cliff?] and the middle class [RSV: The one that Obama is destroying] . Republicans are fighting to end Medicare [RSV: Where is the Democrat plan to save it?] to pay for more tax breaks for Big Oil [RSV: Those evil oil companies, How dare they supply AF1 and Slow Bus 1 with fuel] and right-wing special interests [RSV: Tea Party terrorist]. Simply put, the Tea Party agenda is not working for middle-class Americans.[RSV: Working just fine for me]

24 seats puts us back in charge so we can create jobs[RSV: More Stimulus] , protect Medicare and Social Security[RSV: And pigs fly] , and out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world [RSV: you forgot out-source to the world because your stupid regulatory policies send business over seas].

Thank you for everything you do to make that possible. [RSV: Suckers!]

Steve Israel
DCCC Chairman

[RSV: What no "it's all bush's fault" thrown in for good measure!?!?!]

by Tom Cranmer

- Why is the budget not a “budget?” It is more of a forecast of revenues and expenditures.

- Why are expenditures self-adjusting? By law they have to be balanced with revenues. In 2010 VA had a $400 million surplus. The Sunshine Review reported the “Revenue Stabilization Fund has shrunken from $1.19 billion in 2006 to $295 million in 2010.”

- What are the biggest tricks in the budget? To delay funding $600 million of pension plans, according to the VA Pilot. The Sunshine Review notes the Institute for Truth in Accounting “does not consider Virginia’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, and those of the other states, to be accurate representations of the state’s financial condition because the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles basis does not include significant liabilities for the pension plans and for other post employment benefit, such as health care.”

- What is the biggest progress in the budget? No new taxes and to require state employees put in 5% of their pension contribution (before they put in zero). However, they got a pay raise to cover it.

- What period does the budget cover? Two calendar years — 2011 and 2012.

- What’s the trend of the budget over those years? Steady at almost $38 billion both years.

- How is the expenditure budget divided up? First by receipts called “Non-General Funds” targeted to specific activities such as grants from the federal government (like medicaid) and special fees (like college tuition) and special taxes (like gasoline taxes). Second by General Fund (primarily from income taxes) divided up by activity at the discretion of the legislature and governor. General revenue declined in 2009 and 2010, but is forecast to increase annually by 5-6% in 2011-12.

- What is the most important part of the budget? The Non-General Funds make up nearly 60% of the budget, so if the grants and fees don’t come in, the activities they are tied to get reduced.

- What’s the money spent for primarily? Education first and health second. Together they make up two-thirds of the budget.

- As a taxpayer, what’s my share of the expenditures? About $5,000, including the federal taxes you are paying, which are recycled back to Virginia. Thus for a family of four that’s $20,000 per year!

- Do I have a big debt I have to repay? Fortunately not. It is only about $1,000 per person. That’s why Virginia is one of the few states with the highest bond rating.

- How could the expenditures by reduced? Primarily by reducing taxes. Politicians will spend every dime they collect. Special interest groups would have to be told: “Ain’t no money honey.”

Being that Governor McDonnell and others in Richmond are talking about spending 4 billion dollars maybe we should stop and take a look at “what is in a billion” eh?

Author Unknown

How many zeros in a billion? This is too true to be funny.

The next time you hear a politician use the Word ‘billion’ in a casual manner, think about Whether you want the ‘politicians’ spending YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, But one advertising agency did a good job of Putting that figure into some perspective in One of its releases.

• A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
• A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
• A billion hours ago our ancestors were Living in the Stone Age.
• A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.
• A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, At the rate our government Is spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain…

let’s take a look at New Orleans …
It’s amazing what you can learn with some simple division.

Louisiana Senator,
Mary Landrieu (D)
Is presently asking Congress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS To rebuild New Orleans . Interesting number…What does it mean?

Well .. If you are one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, and child)

• You each get $516,528.
• Or…. If you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans , your home gets $1,329,787..
• Or… If you are a family of four….Your family gets $2,066,012.

Washington , D. C
HELLO!
Are all your calculators broken??

• Building Permit Tax
• CDL License Tax
• Cigarette Tax
• Corporate Income Tax
• Dog License Tax
• Federal Income Tax (Fed)
• Federal Unemployment Tax (FU TA)
• Fishing License Tax
• Food License Tax
• Fuel Permit Tax
• Gasoline Tax
• Hunting License Tax
• Inheritance Tax
• Inventory Tax
• IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
• IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
• Liquor Tax
• Luxury Tax
• Marriage License Tax
• Medicare Tax
• Property Tax
• Real Estate Tax
• Service charge taxes
• Social Security Tax
• Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
• Sales Taxes
• Recreational Vehicle Tax
• School Tax
• State Income Tax
• State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
• Telephone Federal Excise Tax
• Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
• Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
• Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
• Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
• Telephone State and Local Tax
• Telephone Usage Charge Tax
• Utility Tax
• Vehicle License Registration Tax
• Vehicle Sales Tax
• Watercraft Registration Tax
• Well Permit Tax
• Workers Compensation Tax

(And to think, we left British Rule to avoid so many taxes)

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago…..And our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt….
We had the largest middle class in the world…..
And Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened?

Can you spell: ‘POLITICIANS!’

By Kurt Feigel
Lynchburg Tea Party President

In the latest communication from the LT Governor Bill Bolling, we are exposed to the insanity that reigns in Richmond, VA among so many of our so called representatives.

The machine is moving full speed ahead to get this absurd transportation package rushed through. The fools that have been elected seem to think we are stupid. That we don’t notice the revolving sales pitch that hits us every legislative session. ” The Sky is falling, If you don’t support this bill the end of the world will be upon us”.

Every year we are told of the “Crisis” that awaits us if we don’t pass X,Y or Z bill. When X,Y, and Z all = $$$. Money we don’t have. Money they want to take from us…those of us that pay taxes at least. Money that flows mostly into the northern part of the state. Money that is either borrowed, begged or stolen from the taxpayers.

In the near term, infrastructure investment is the quickest, most effective action we can take to restart manufacturing. By working with our partners at the federal level, we can invest in critical infrastructure by passing a federal highway bill that is responsibly funded, and we can do the same at the state level.

Funny…just a few days ago at the State of the Union we were told that we needed to “Invest”. It was code for SPEND. It was a LIE and even after a historic election defeat against big spenders, nothing has changed. Americans are still overwhelmingly saying NO! Politicians are still overwhelmingly ignoring the will of the voters. Further, since when is anything that is done “for the public benefit” ever “responsibly funded”?

Here is another gem:

Infrastructure investment is a proven economic engine with lasting results. Not only does it drive growth, it creates lasting benefits. The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that 30,000 jobs are created for every $1 billion spent on highway infrastructure, yet we are spending less than 40 percent of what is needed to upgrade our surface transportation system nationwide. In fact, only 3 percent of the U.S. stimulus package was dedicated to rebuilding highways, roads and bridges.

$1 Billion devided by 30,000 jobs = $ $33,333 per job Not a very good return on investment.

I’d really like to see someone research where the money went. Where did all the BILLIONS of dollars that were allocated for repair and maintenance go? New Vehicles? Bonuses? Unions? Welfare freeloaders?

For the last 10 years we’ve grown the size of government in VA and in D.C.
Maybe instead of squandering the money on every idiot pet project they can think of it should have been spent on the roads.

Anyone that has driven in Northern Virginia can attest to the fact that the money hasn’t gone into the roads. Unless you count the Asphalt patch jobs on Cement…Genius. I never took materials classes in college but even I know that those 2 materials do not go together.

By fast-tracking new construction projects, we can inject economic activity and create jobs in the building industry. Investing in infrastructure drives job growth, productivity and competitiveness in manufacturing. That’s why I am supporting efforts like “I Make America” (www.IMakeAmerica.com) – a campaign by equipment manufacturers to urge Congress and the White House to work together to pass a federal highway bill.

Sounds like more of the same liberal crap that has gotten us into the mess we are already in. A mess of $14,000,000,000,000 of nationl debt. A mess of billions of dollars in state debt. A mess that we can not pay back. A mess that equates to over $125,000 for every taxpayer in America.

Notice also how we need to “fast track” these projects. Is that so we won’t feel the knife sticking into the back of John Q Taxpayer who thought he was voting for fiscally conservative representation?

For years, Virginia’s leaders have talked about building a transportation system for the 21st century, but little has been done. We must improve our transportation infrastructure so our system of roads, rail and bridges can support the needs of Virginia businesses and residents.

That is because “for years” Virginia’s “leaders” have been robbing Peter to pay Paul. In the private sector we call that “embezzlement”. Politicians call it “fast tracking” and “investment”.

This year, Gov. McDonnell has proposed an aggressive transportation plan that is designed to ease congestion and shorten commutes for working Virginians – and allow state businesses to take advantage of the economic opportunities afforded by a state-of-the-art transportation system.

The Tea Party on Lobby Day was given an audience with the Governor. We do appreciate that. However, it was not really the Q and A session we were expecting, it was instead a sales meeting that is so common with the big spenders in Richmond and D.C.

They were hoping that we would be uninformed and ignorant. They were wrong. We are a lot more politically and economically savvy than they realize. Governor McDonnell’s “aggressive transportation plan” is nothing more than smoke and mirrors. It’s full of all this talk of the “state of the art transportation system” but once again will not deliver. It’s no different than the previous 10 years of stupid plans that have failed us. Only this one further enslaves us with more debt we can ill afford.

Now is the best time in modern history for Virginia to get this done…The time to act is now.

As opposed to the last 10 years? The Voters realize that much of the problems were started because of the theft by Democrat Governors and Legislators. That doesn’t justify a continuation of this practice.

I have an idea. How about they cancel the Metro Extension that is costing us $7 Billion dollars ( $3.83 Billion for Phase 2 + $2.76 Billion for Phase 1 = $6.59 Billion ) and use that money to pay for the “needed repairs” and “infrastructure investment”.

I’ve yet to meet one person that honestly believes that Richmond politicians will “fix the roads”.

Kurt Feigel is a Tea Party Leader in Lynchburg, Virginia and the Communications Director for the Virginia Federation of Tea Party Patriots

Read the idiotic screed from Bill Bolling in it’s entirety here:

Pro-Manufacturing Policies Will Put Virginians to Work
By Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling

Getting our economy moving again and creating jobs are the most important issues currently facing state government. Gov. Bob McDonnell has made me the point person in his administration for creating jobs, and my No. 1 priority is to make Virginia the best state in the nation in which to do business.

While we are targeting a number of strategic economic sectors as a part of our overall job-creation efforts, we want to make certain that Virginia continues to attract quality manufacturing companies. We need to be a state that makes things, not just a state that consumes things.

Virginia has a long tradition of supporting a thriving manufacturing industry. However, during the past decade, the manufacturing sector in America has shed 5.5 million jobs. Here, in the Old Dominion, our once thriving manufacturing sector has fallen on especially hard times.

Unemployment in manufacturing remains high, and our state trails only Ohio, Michigan and South Carolina in the number of manufacturing jobs lost in the past decade. We should be focusing our efforts on the re-establishment of these jobs with smart, pro-growth policies.

In the long term, we will reinvigorate manufacturing by taking a comprehensive approach. We intend to improve the tax and regulatory climate in our state so that we can better compete nationally and globally.

We also want to improve educational opportunities so businesses know that a skilled and educated work force awaits them if they invest in Virginia. And we want to provide the incentives that attract high-quality, advanced manufacturing business to the state.

In the near term, infrastructure investment is the quickest, most effective action we can take to restart manufacturing. By working with our partners at the federal level, we can invest in critical infrastructure by passing a federal highway bill that is responsibly funded, and we can do the same at the state level.

Infrastructure investment is a proven economic engine with lasting results. Not only does it drive growth, it creates lasting benefits. The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that 30,000 jobs are created for every $1 billion spent on highway infrastructure, yet we are spending less than 40 percent of what is needed to upgrade our surface transportation system nationwide. In fact, only 3 percent of the U.S. stimulus package was dedicated to rebuilding highways, roads and bridges.

By fast-tracking new construction projects, we can inject economic activity and create jobs in the building industry. Investing in infrastructure drives job growth, productivity and competitiveness in manufacturing. That’s why I am supporting efforts like “I Make America” (www.IMakeAmerica.com) – a campaign by equipment manufacturers to urge Congress and the White House to work together to pass a federal highway bill.

For years, Virginia’s leaders have talked about building a transportation system for the 21st century, but little has been done. We must improve our transportation infrastructure so our system of roads, rail and bridges can support the needs of Virginia businesses and residents.

This year, Gov. McDonnell has proposed an aggressive transportation plan that is designed to ease congestion and shorten commutes for working Virginians – and allow state businesses to take advantage of the economic opportunities afforded by a state-of-the-art transportation system.

Now is the best time in modern history for Virginia to get this done. Construction costs have fallen, interest rates are at historic lows and our residents need the good jobs that will come with infrastructure projects. The time to act is now.

Virginians need policies that will help them create jobs. Additional investment in transportation and infrastructure is essential to a healthy, growing economy. We must take these actions if we hope to put our families, friends and neighbors back to work.

When the Governor took office he was faced with the challenge of balancing the budget while facing a 2.2 billion dollar shortfall, with a projected 4 billion dollar deficit over the next two years.  To this end, the Governor recommended a decrease in funding to education, a recommendation that has drawn recent criticism. However, these cuts are not only necessary but reasonable.

A closer examination of education shows that funding has significantly out-paced enrollment.  Over the past decade funding to K-12 education has increased by 58.9%; if you include federal stimulus funding, the total funding increased by 68.7%.  In this same period, student enrollment only increased by 7.2%.  Furthermore, even after the proposed cuts to education, funding for 2010 is still 51.9% higher than it was in FY 2000.  

Many Virginians support these proposed cuts and believe that with proper prioritization, appropriate cuts can be made without impacting the core goals of the school systems.

 “In these tough economic times Virginia families are cutting budgets and prioritizing expenses. We expect our elected officials to do the same and make tough decisions that will improve the financial outlook for our state.  We need the Governor to lead on this critical issue,” stated Angie Parker of Just Liberty.

During a recession we have to re-evaluate what constitutes necessity and what is a nice to have.  There is consensus that funding should be focused in the classroom.  One primary focus area should be administrative costs.  Currently 100% of lottery proceeds go towards education, but 39% of this money is appropriated for administrative costs.  The Superintendent of Chesterfield schools receives $234,130 in total compensation and has five assistant superintendents making over $140,000 in total compensation.  This is a general trend in school districts throughout the state.  To put this into perspective, the Governor’s salary is $175,000. 

“The school administrators are threatening to cut jobs in the classroom in response to budget cuts.  Parents concerned about their child’s education should begin to ask tough questions of their local school administrators and demand that they keep cuts out of the classroom. Another area that we could focus on is the perceived need for massive and elaborate school buildings and laptop computers for every child.  These “nice to have’s” seem less relevant to providing quality education for our students when we are forced to make cuts and prioritize expenses,” said Michelle Stanley of Richmond Patriots, who is a mom with children in the public schools.

We applaud the Governor for making the difficult but necessary decision to reduce the growth rate of funding for education.  Now it is up to the localities to insure that the schools make the right decisions about how to implement those cuts while having the least impact on the classroom.

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