WHERE WAS THE STAR BANNER

Good morning.

It was with great anticipation that I opened up Sundays edition of the Ocala Star Banner. I was wondering how the Town Meetings went with Cliff Stearns. But coverage was no where to be found.

So, were was the Star Banner ? I thought, maybe it will be in Mondays paper. So I waited, again with great anticipation for this mornings edition. But I was disappointed again.

I used to do two to three sets of town meetings a year. There was ALWAYS a reporter and a photographer in the audience. This was always followed by a Sunday article and picture.

Did the Banner not think that this was important enough to warrant an article? Did they not care?

The answer is neither one. The newspaper and broadcasting industries are suffering from a bad economy. So in their zest to cut costs, they simply don't have the staff to cover these events anymore.

They are going about it entirely in the wrong way.

While the fat cats in the big offices continue to draw major paychecks, these organizations are cutting their lower end staff members. Take a look at the stock prices for the major broadcasting and print companies. They are all in the toilet, while the big boys on top get major bonus's.

Maybe if the New York Times did some cutting at the top, they could have the staff to put out a quality newspaper. If they are not going to cover local events, why should I buy the paper ?

best to you all

TOWN MEETINGS WITH STEARNS

Good Morning

This Saturday, Congressman Stearns will hold public town meetings at four locations in Marion County. The schedule is :

Saddle Oak Club @ 9 a.m. 6045 SW 55TH COURT
Southwest Christian Church @ 10:30 9045 SW 60TH AVE.
Palm Cay Oasis Clubhouse @ 1 p.m. 8085 SW 106TH PLACE.
Marion Oaks Community Center @ 3 p.m. 294 MARION OAKS LANE.

There are many questions that need to be asked. I would ask them, but he would never call on me.

So I thought I would suggest a few for those who may be in attendance. It also is great "food for thought"

It's time for a change !!

1) CONGRESSMAN, A RECENT LETTER TO THE EDITOR WAS PUBLISHED FROM THE HUSBAND OF ONE OF YOUR PAID STAFFERS. WHY WAS IT NOT MADE PLAIN THAT THE WRITER HAD THIS CONNECTION ?

2) DID ANYONE ON YOUR STAFF HAVE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF THIS LETTER BEFORE IT WAS PUBLISHED ?

3) HAS IT EVER BEEN YOUR POLICY TO HAVE YOUR PRESS SECRETARY WRITE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, THEN GIVING THEM TO A STAFF MEMBER OR CONTRIBUTOR TO SUBMIT ?

4) CAN YOU GIVE US A LIST OF THE BILLS THAT YOU HAVE PERSONALLY WRITTEN SINCE YOU WENT TO CONGRESS IN 1989 ?

5) WHAT BILLS THAT YOU HAVE WRITTEN ARE CURRENTLY BEFORE CONGRESS ?

6) DO YOU FEEL THAT IF CONGRESS HAD DONE SOMETHING ABOUT OUR DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL BACK IN 1990 THAT WE WOULD BE FACING AN ENERGY CRISIS TODAY?

7) HOW DO YOU JUSTIFY ASKING FOR OUR VOTES WHEN CONGRESS AS A WHOLE HAS A 9 % APPROVAL RATING ?

8) IF YOU HAD TO DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN, WOULD YOU STILL SUPPORT THE FAILED BUSH POLICIES ?

9) WHY ARE YOU ASKING FOR CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM US, WHEN YOU HAVE OVER 2.5 MILLION DOLLARS IN YOUR “WAR CHEST ?

AND 10) YOU ARE RUNNING FOR YOUR 11 TH TERM. HOW DO YOU RESPOND TO PEOPLE WHO SAY WE SHOULD HAVE TERM LIMITS TO AVOID HAVING “CAREER POLITICIANS ” AND DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE MADE THIS A “CAREER ?

BONUS QUESTION …. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE STEARNSMUSTGO WEB SITE ?

Town meetings can be a great learning experience. Mr. Stearns is very good at public speaking, altho he has slipped a bit in the last few years. I encourage you to attend, listen and ASK !!

I'll be standing by ....

On a side note, a friend emailed me this link to a star banner blog

http://blogs.ocala.com/default.asp?item=2238172

This poster (David Rhea)makes some interesting comments and is well worth the read.

My favorite part is ""But as a leader on the energy and the environment, Stearns in asleep at the wheel. He brags about having a plan (all the sudden) for energy - but it is at the expense of the environment. In fact, Cliff Stearns has a horrible record of voting against energy independence and the environment."

Best to you all

WHERE HAS HE BEEN ??

WHERE HAS HE BEEN

That is a great question. And it was asked in a recent letter to the Star Banner from James M. Johnson of Ocala. I have never met Mr. Johnson and know nothing about his political affiliation. However he says, “Rep Stearns has had ample time to make his mark in our Congress and has not stepped up to show the necessary leadership we expected when we sent him to Congress”

I could not have said it better myself. As I said earlier in our musings, what has Cliff Stearns done for our district? Show me the bills he has introduced in Congress. Other than jumping on someone else’s “coat-tails”, he has done little in 20 years for this district.

Mr. Johnson goes on to say, “if he cannot change his philosophy of leadership to help bring our Congress together as necessary to serve all of us, he should admit his leadership failure and step down while we search for better leadership quality” BRAVO

The key here are the words, “serve all of us.” Not just Republicans or Democrats, but ALL OF US. That is why we sent him to Washington. All he has done lately is support some failed policies and follow along with all his “cronies.” Its time for a “leader” not a “follower.”

But it didn’t take long for a response. Before the ink was dry on this newsprint, another “pro” Stearns letter appeared. (I give the Banner credit here for printing both sides) This letter came from Kenneth R. Lowe. I am sure once I find time to research Mr. Lowe, I will find he is a major “cash” supporter of Mr. Stearns. Again, let me point out, there is nothing wrong with this, it just shows a pattern of pro letters coming from ONLY staff, staff members families and cash supporters.

Mr. Lowe writes, “I applaud Congressman Cliff Stearns for offering a series of bills that will expand our domestic energy production.” This is fine, applaud all you want, but you don’t tell me the bill numbers that Stearns wrote and placed before Congress.

I recently received a very colorful mailing (paid for by you and me) from the Congressman. It does list some house bills he supports. (And some I support as well) Even he does not say he wrote these bills. I guess if I support them, then can I be a Congressman too ?

There is one thing that puzzles me here. Every time a letter appears questioning Mr. Stearns’ actions, a rebuttal letter appears almost instantly. Except when I wrote in about the letter written by the husband of a staff member. Perhaps they could not come up with a reasonable response to that letter?????

Join us here early next week for more. Congressman Stearns has some of his famous “town meetings” scheduled for July 26^th. Now this one I have to give him kudos on. He does more of these meetings than most Representatives and he is really good at it. And I hope his successor takes a lesson, and continues this practice.

I will share the schedule with you and maybe suggest a few “questions” you can ask. I would attend, but he would never call on me.

And in the future I will share my “Watergate Connection”, and tell you what a real Press Secretary is like.

Best to you all

SOLAR ENERGY - NOW IS THE TIME

Good morning.

I have a habit of picking on the Ocala Star Banner whenever I get a chance.

I also think that credit should be given for good Journalism. The Banner’s Editorial page editor (Brad Rogers) seems to “get it”.

The editorial this past Sunday (7-13-08) the Banner takes Congressman Cliff Stearns to task for not helping the State of Florida become a leader in solar energy research.

The Banner writes that Stearns opponent in November Tim Cunha, will push to make the University of Florida, which is in the sixth district, a leading research center for the development of solar energy. We think this is a great idea and goal, as Florida should be the leader in Solar Energy. After all, we ARE the Sunshine State.

The Banner points out, “Stearns, as he did in a recent op-ed article in the Star Banner, touts his commitment to solar power enhancement, as well as his membership in the Congressional Renewable Energy Cacus”

Sounds good, doesn’t it? But Read on. “But we’re not aware of any major inititive he is pushing that resembles the goal spelled out by Cunha.”

The editorial goes on to talk about a bill that Stearns voted against, that would have done a great deal to promote solar energy. But yet, Stearns voted against it.

The Banner doesn’t leave their link up forever, but a copy of the editorial is available at Mr. Cunha’s web site. http://www.timcunha.com/node/65 and will also be available at www.stearnsmustgo.com

As usual, the Congressman tries to make it look like he is supporting an issue, but takes NO ACTION to do the job he was hired by us to do.

What does Stearns want us to do? In a town meeting at Marion Oaks a few years ago, he said that we “should build cars that run on coal” Are you kidding me? My family and my wife’s family were from West Virginia. We have seen first hand what coal mining does to the environment, not to mention the heath of miners. This is NOT the answer. The answer lies squarely on “Technology”. This includes hydrogen fuel, solar energy as well as nuclear. You would think that someone with a degree in Electrical Engineering would understand that.

Supporting Solar are you? Please Mr. Congressman, show us ONE bill that you have introduced in Congress that supports Solar Energy. Just one. Yes, you vote on bills, you jump on the bandwagon of someone else’s bills. Maybe that’s why you are called the “do-nothing Congressman”

best to everyone

Hello friends,

This is a multiple choice question.

You are called into your boss’s office at 9 AM. He (or she) sits you down and says, “The Company has done an evaluation of your job performance. We have given you a 9 % performance rating. Your first thought is:

A) They are going to give me a raise

B) The company likes the job I am doing

C) They are going to FIRE ME in 30 seconds

Of course, if you work anywhere except one place the correct answer is “C”

The one exception is the US Congress.

In a report issued this week, the percentage of voters who give Congress good or excellent ratings has fallen to single digits for the first time in Rasmussen Reports tracking history. This month, just 9% say Congress is doing a good or excellent job. Most voters say Congress is doing a poor job, which ties the record high in that dubious category.

http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/congressional_performance/congressional_performance

I realize that anytime someone quotes “numbers” they are probably incorrect. So I “goggled” several ways of searching “congressional approval rating” I came up with some interesting facts

http://rendevouswithdestiny.blogspot.com/2008/05/gallup-poll-congress-approval-rating-at.html

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0708/p03s04-uspo.html

I really like and admire the Christian Science Monitor. In my 35 years in Broadcasting, I have found them to be a MOST accurate and most balanced news organization.

So, lets say the number is wrong. Maybe its 10 %, even 20 %, or for the sake of argument, even a 30 % approval. That rating would get ALL OF us fired from our jobs, now, today or tomorrow.

So, I ask you all today, WHY DO WE TOLERATE THIS ?????? 9 PER CENT ??

What most people do not understand is that “WE” are the employer. These people work FOR US. If you and I don’t do a good job, our employer has the obligation to their stockholders to get someone that can.

We have the SAME obligation to our company, the U.S.A.

This is not a partisan issue, and has nothing to do with your political party affiliation.

The Republican had their chance until 2006, and they did NOTHING. And the Democrats have not fared much better. 9 PER CENT ??

Don’t take my word for it. DO THE RESEARCH. Be pro-active, and don’t wait for the other guy to do it. Then vote them ALL OUT.

And to Congressman Stearns, I ask….”How can you go on day after day knowing that no one trusts you, or approves of the job you are doing.” 9 PER CENT ??

And to those we give the honor of serving, I say “O.K. here is your chance. Prove me wrong”

9 PER CENT is the lowest approval rating in history. We should all be ashamed. I know I am.

All the best