Coralville Courier

You might be a RINO if.....

The REAL View (That means it's an opinion piece for those of you who live in University Heights)

By Mike Thayer

 

You might be a RINO if.....

 

You're a member (cough) of the Republican party in Iowa's Second District, one of those Moderate Miller-Meeks/Vander Plaats supporters (now there's an inconsistent set of choices), you're cheering on BVP's dissent in deciding not to endorse Branstad, and that's OK................

 

But it's NOT OK for Johnson County's most vocal Conservative and Publisher of the Coralville Courier to exercise simliar dissent in not being willing to jump on the MMM bandwagon....

 

Such is the behavior and hypocrisy of a RINO ladies and gentlemen.

 

I get accused of not being a GOP team player for failing to cast blind post-primary support for MMM despite what I know about her, I'm asked to sacrifice my core values......  It's even suggested by some area RINOs that my lack of support for MMM will perhaps tear the area party apart. 

 

Wait a minute.....  According to RINOs, dissent against MMM is wrong post-primary, not blindly jumping on her bandwagon simply because she has an 'R' next to her name is not team play..... 

 

But cheering on BVP's post-primary dissent is somehow OK?  How is THAT dissent a demonstration in team play, but dissent against MMM isn't?  How is failing to jump on the primary winner's bandwagon (MMM's) wrong, but failing to jump on the primary winner's bandwagon (Branstad's) is suddenly cool?  How on earth is that consistent in argument?  When it's suggested dissent against MMM could possibly tear the area party apart - that's considered a valid concern - but dissent against Branstad possibly tearing the state party apart isn't a valid concern?

 

What team are the RINOs on?

 

Anyone who really knows me knows that I call 'em like I see 'em regardless of party, that I'm a big believer in lower taxes, smaller government, less intrusive government, I frequently write of GOP ideals and convey Ronald Reagan conservative values on a daily basis, and yet I'm somehow not being a GOP team guy.....

 

But those who exercise a double-standard, those who are thinking with their right brain and not their left, those who are willing to sacrifice core Republican values in the name of winning an election, those who are pretending dissent against MMM hands Loebsack a victory but dissent against Branstad doesn't hand Culver a victory....

 

Well that's not team play, it's RINO hypocrisy. 

 

We need to call these people out on the carpet and question their reasoning, challenge their logic, expose their inconsistency.  Their behavior is hurting the party folks.  You want party unity?  Then we need to be honest in what we believe in.  With party health comes victory.

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Inept leadership = failure

Paul Chesser submitted a link to a great article today regarding how the manipulative King Obama has failed yet again.....  The American people aren't buying his progressive notions and Senators are sensing that....  defaulting to spin and manipulation of their own.....  That's not leadership, it's not thinking outside the box, it's just flat out inept.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/29/barack-obama-energy-bill

Liberal ideas lead to consequences like a Gulf oil spill

OK, OK, so the headline may be a bit inflammatory, perhaps it should read "Inept ideas lead to consequences....."  But then again, to be inept is to be liberal.... 

The judge tells it like it is....

Branstad 2010 releases latest ad, “Rally”

URBANDALE, IA. -- The Governor Branstad 2010 campaign today unveiled its latest ad, “Rally.”

“The point we will continue to drive is that Iowa deserves a government as good as its people,” said Branstad 2010 Campaign Manager Jeff Boeyink. “Terry Branstad offers a stark alternative to Chet Culver in offering a return to clean, open, honest and transparent government in Iowa. This ad shows an enthusiastic, passionate reformer.”

The script of the ad, in Gov. Branstad’s own voice, is as follows:

We’re all here for one reason: To give Iowans a government that is as honest, as hard-working; that is as good as the people of this state.

To those communities fighting to stay alive, to the workers hunting for good jobs, to those families hoping for a better education for their kids – change is coming!

For those Iowans who want honest, open and scandal-free government – change is coming!

We did it before, and we can do it again!

For more information on the Branstad/Reynolds ticket, please visit www.GovernorBranstad2010.com.

UI named 'Best Buy' in new Fiske Guide

The Fiske Guide to Colleges 2011 has named the University of Iowa one of its 45 "Best Buy" universities.

The UI is one of 21 public colleges from across the country selected as "Best Buys." These institutions fall into the inexpensive or moderate price category, have four- or five-star academic ratings, and have an excellent quality of life for students on campus.

"Being recognized as a Fiske Guide Best Buy validates our efforts to provide an excellent education at an affordable cost," said Michael Barron, UI director of admissions and assistant provost for enrollment services.

The Fiske Guide does not rank universities numerically but assesses the strengths and weaknesses of more than 330 colleges and universities in the United States, Canada and Great Britain.

The guide says the UI is "…one of the most dynamic schools in the country – and one of the best values to boot. Iowa is known for breeding stellar nurses, future doctors and, of course, wrestlers." It adds: "Much more than a campus among the cornfields, Iowa boasts a beautiful university that is ever evolving."
 
The UI has been named a Best Buy in the 2006-2011 Fiske Guides, as well several other guides, in past years.

For more information on the Fiske Guide, visit http://www.sourcebookscollege.com and http://fiskeguide.com. For more information on UI Admissions, see http://www.uiowa.edu/admissions/.

More improper government, drawing names for houses

Editor's Note:  The following is from a press release issued by the city of Iowa City and "Community Development"...  The city should not be in the housing business, taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize townhouses and condos, there are churches, charities and non-profits out there that do this folks...:

It's kind of like a combination of a raffle and Bingo -- except the people whose names are drawn in this event will win an extra-special prize: the chance to buy a brand new home through Round 2 of the City of Iowa City's Single Family New Home Construction Program. Established to help replace some of the housing units lost in the 2008 floods, the program will facilitate construction of 37 new housing units throughout the City this year, including single-family detached homes, townhouses, duplexes, zero-lot lines and condos. Homes will range in price from $125,000 to $180,000, with a 25% downpayment assistance program also available to qualifying homebuyers. Home-building will get underway this summer.

The public drawing will begin at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, June 29 in the Emma Harvat room of City Hall, 410 E. Washington Street. It will determine the order in which applicants will choose their home, with any applicants from flood-impacted households going first, followed by first-time homebuyers, and finally, Johnson County residents.

The deadline to submit an application was June 25. In order to qualify for the program, applicants had to show an annual household income that falls below the area median income, and qualify for a mortgage loan from a local participating lender. A total of 52 households have applied.

In the event that some applicants whose names are selected may not be able to fulfill the purchase requirements for a home, completed applications will continue to be taken and added to a waiting list. Applications are available on the City's website at www.icgov.org/newhomes, but must be submitted to The Housing Trust Fund of Johnson County, which is administering the program for the City. For more information on the application process, contact HTFJC at 319.358.0212 or e-mail Tracey Achenbach at tachenbach@htfjc.org or Andrew Donham at ADonham@htfjc.org.

Supreme Court upholds Second Amendment

"Supreme Court justices vote on the Constitution, they determine whether something is constitutional or not. They voted on Second Amendment today, and it squeaked by 5-4, after having been ratified centuries ago. I can think of no more powerful way to put this." ~ Rush Limbaugh

Branstad: LSA numbers show “steady drumbeat of mismanagement”

URBANDALE, IA. -- The non-partisan Legislative Services Agency (LSA) today announced that Iowa school district general fund levies increased by 8.8 percent, and their cash reserve levies increased a whopping 54 percent. The report is found here: http://www.governorbranstad2010.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/FinalFY11_SchoolAid_062510_v1.1.pdf   

Both increases amount to hundreds of millions of dollars in higher property taxes, all before including any increases by local counties and cities that may come in the future. In response, former Gov. Terry Branstad issued the following statement:

“Governor Culver’s reckless and irresponsible management have amounted to massive property tax increases on Iowa’s property owners. He ignored repeated warnings, claiming nothing was wrong. Now, taxpayers are forced to pay for his mismanagement, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars in higher property taxes.

“Iowa needs a government that is again as good as its people, not the steady drumbeat of mismanagement currently coming out of the governor’s office.”

For more information on the Branstad/Reynolds ticket, please visit www.GovernorBranstad2010.com.

Jacoby to face opposition after all.....

Press Release submitted by Dustin Krutsigner

My name is Dustin Krutsinger, and I will be running for Iowa House District 30 as a Libertarian.  I am a lifelong Iowan currently living in Coralville.  I have been a registered nurse for the past 7 years and until recently worked in the Surgical ICU at the University hospital.  I am now in my third year of medical school at the Carver College of Medicine.

Many Americans are understandably upset about the out of control spending and assaults on personal liberty coming out of Washington.  There is something we as Iowans can do to prevent this.

The US Constitution sets limits on the roll of the federal government and reserves all other responsibilities to the states.  Washington has ignored the Constitution for some time now.  This has led to the massive national debt and government officials micromanaging our daily lives.

All states, including Iowa, have the means and responsibility to its residents, to prevent Washington from overstepping its bounds.

I am running to promote this plan for returning power to Iowa.  If the Iowa Legislature retakes authority usurped by the federal government, you and your neighbors will have much more impact on the regulations, laws, taxes, etc imposed on Iowan’s.

For more information about the campaign please visit the campaign website www.dustin2010.com or follow us on facebook: Dustin Krutsinger for Iowa HD 30.

Wyoming Governor: GOP Contenders Hold Commanding Leads

All four Republican hopefuls hold solid leads over the top two Democratic challengers in the race to be Wyoming’s next governor.  A new Rasmussen Reports survey of Likely Voters in the state finds that not one Republican candidate earns less than 44% support.  Meanwhile, neither ex-state Democratic chairwoman Leslie Peterson or Laramie Mayor Pete Gosar picks up more than 28% of the vote.