Crawford outlines his plan for border security

from Blogs for Borders

On Monday, Arkansas GOP Congressional candidate Rick Crawford outlined his 3-phase plan for US border security. Crawford is a Northeast Arkansas small businessman and a veteran of the US Army, not a Washington politician or bureaucrat. Our professional politicians and bureaucrats for years have refused to make the hard decisions required to secure our southern borders.

Crawford calls the porous southern border our “most exploited border” and a “national security threat.” His 3-phase plan includes,

• Phase 1:Build a wall.
  • “Not hang a piece of corrugated tin, not a virtual wall for aesthetics” says Crawford, but a defensible wall with 8-10 lawful points of entry.
• Phase 2:Document the undocumented.
  • Allow a six to nine month period to allow any undocumented worker or illegal immigrant to return to one of the secure points of entry and register. At this point they’ll be “on the grid,” said Crawford. “They don’t get a driver’s license, they don’t get a benefit card,” he continued.
• Phase 3:Active enforcement.
  • Following phase 2, there will be a determined effort to find those who have not registered. It will be assumed at this point that any undocumented alien is in the country for illicit purposes and law enforcement will be empowered to “take appropriate action.”

Perhaps electing real people who are accustomed to making hard decisions in the real world is the first step needed to get a real solution to our illegal immigration problem.

1st District GOP Candidates to speak in Cabot, AR Monday

from the Tea Party of Lonoke County, AR

The Lonoke County Republican Committee has announced both GOP candidates for Arkansas’ 1st Congressional District will speak at the committee’s regular monthly meeting on Monday. Rick Crawford and Princella Smith will address the committee and take questions.

Though the Tea Party of Lonoke County is non-partisan, the course charted by the Democrats who now run our country makes this election cycle unique. The first vote new members make will be to elect the Speaker of the House. In 2010, sending any Democrat to Washington to represent the 1st District will be equivalent to voting for Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for Speaker.

We simply cannot afford another two years suffering under this left-wing zealot who has been a rubber stamp for every part of President Obama’s Socialist agenda.

For that reason, the 2010 Republican primary is crucial. Conservatives in Arkansas MUST participate in the May elections to decide the GOP nominee so we send the very best candidate to the general election in November. We need a GOP candidate who represents Arkansas’ conservative values and understands the concerns of Arkansas’ conservative majority.

We need as many as possible to attend these events to get to know the candidates. For years, we have allowed state GOP party loyalists and even the national infrastructure of the Republican party to choose the nominee who would oppose the Democrats who have failed to represent us in DC. In 2004, only 8484 of the 54000 who participated in the GOP Senate primary were 1st District voters.

We MUST motivate more 1st District voters to participate in the Republican primary this year if we hope to deliver a conservative candidate who will be palatable to a majority of those who vote in November. One way to do that is by getting to know these candidates. Meet them, speak with them, listen to them, and then choose who you think will best represent us in Washington. Then tell your friends. Spread the word. Let people know you’re excited about this candidate, or that one and tell them why!

If we can accomplish that mission, we can choose a conservative candidate who can win in November. It will be an historic accomplishment because the last time the 1st District was represented by a Republican was in 1875.

But we need an historic election to undo the historic damage to our country inflicted by the Obama administration.

Crawford entered the race and has been campaigning since last April, long before anyone suspected Marion Berry would choose not to run. In fact, many believe Crawford’s long-running campaign may have dealt the death blow to Berry’s chances to win re-election. The veteran from Jonesboro embraced the Tea Party early in his campaign and promises to support its platform of 1) Limited Government, 2) Fiscal Responsibility, and 3) Accountable Elected Officials. Before Smith announced she would challenge him in the GOP primary, Crawford committed to make himself available to Lonoke County voters at the upcoming Meet & Greet in Cabot later this week.

A Google search for any relationship between Princella Smith and the Tea Party movement turns up empty. In fact, it’s difficult to even find an article that mentions both her and the protest movement that swept the nation last year and turned the 2010 election cycle into a boiling cauldron for many Democrats across the country.

Smith touts her knowledge of “how things work” on Capitol Hill as one of her qualifications to represent Arkansas’ 1st District, but that may not play well with Tea Party activists who are generally disenchanted with Republicans and Democrats in Washington. On the issues, she and Crawford apparently agree with and support the planks in the national GOP platform.

Her youth may become an issue as well. Most of the four years since she graduated college have been spent in DC working with establishment Republicans like former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, and most recently with Congressman Anh “Joseph” Cao (R-LA) who was the only GOP House member to vote for Obama’s government takeover of health care.

So both candidates espouse conservative ideals. But the most important thing in this election cycle will be to nominate candidates who can capitalize on the energy of the Tea Party movement, a person who will be a friend to the movement even after he or she has an office in DC.

Here’s the opportunity to meet your next Congressman Lonoke County!

One of these two will replace Marion Berry next year, if we get involved and work to choose the best one in May.

Rick Crawford Announces Official Bid for Congress; Outlines Legislative Priorities

This evening Rick Crawford formally announced his candidacy for a 2010 run for Arkansas’ First District as United States House of Representatives. At present, he will be running against the Democrat incumbent Congressman Marion Berry. Crawford’s announcement was made at a public event held at the farm of David Hodges in Jonesboro, Arkansas.

Crawford was literally born in the service of his country on a military base while his father served. After graduating from high school, Rick enlisted in the United States Army where he served as a bomb disposal technician. He served four years and advanced to the rank of Sergeant and earned numerous medals for service in the U.S. and Southwest Asia. He also had the privilege of serving on numerous U.S. Secret Service security details supporting presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush among other U.S. and foreign dignitaries. He understands his “oath” to preserve and to protect the United States of America and the need to support our military.

After serving in the Army, Rick attended Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and earned a B.A. in Agriculture Business and Economics. Since graduating, Rick’s career has been primarily focused on agriculture in both agri-communications and general agri-business. He has been a news anchor and agri-reporter on KAIT-TV in Jonesboro, Farm Director on KFIN-FM in Jonesboro and producer/anchor of the syndicated Delta Farm Roundup TV show airing in Cape Girardeau, Missouri; Jonesboro, Arkansas; and Greenville, Mississippi. Rick has also been a featured agri-columnist in the Northeast Arkansas Business Today publication. He now owns and operates the AgWatch Network – a farm news network heard on 39 radio stations in Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky as well as TV stations in Little Rock and Jonesboro.

In 2006, Rick also helped shape agriculture and agriculture policy for former Republican Congressman and Undersecretary of Homeland Security Asa Hutchison in his bid to be Arkansas Governor. Rick is a broadcast council member of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. Rick is also a member of the 4-H Foundation Board of Arkansas. Rick currently serves as first vice-chairman of the Craighead County GOP Committee. Rick and his wife Stacy – also an ASU Alumnus – live in Jonesboro. They have two children – four-year-old Will and 22-month-old Delaney.

Crawford outlined his legislative priorities for the many in attendance.

“Today marks a new day in the First District”, Crawford said. “I am a small businessman, I own an agri-business and understand the challenges farmers face, and I am a military veteran who is better qualified to represent the First District of Arkansas than the incumbent”. Crawford went on to outline his priorities for Congress; “We need to grow the economy, create jobs, and rein in federal spending.”

Crawford emphasized his conservative philosophy on the role of the federal government. “It is time we take conservative principles, Arkansas values, and tested leadership back to Washington and get our nation back on track”.

Crawford also outlined key initiatives that will benefit the lives of the everyday Arkansans:

The Economy

• Cut taxes across the board for every taxpayer
• More incentives for businesses to mitigate risks and create jobs

Federal Spending & The National Debt

• Cut wasteful spending and start paying off our national debt
• Reduce the size of our government so businesses can grow again and prosperity can be realized by every American

Healthcare Reform

• No government run health care
• No public option
• No government funded abortions, end of life counseling programs, or euthanasia initiatives
• Free market principles to help bring costs down and increase access to quality care

Agriculture

• Create programs where farmers can mitigate risk through tax credits and tax cuts so farmers are not leveraged every year
• Allow farmers to have group insurance coverage like other businesses

“Today starts a new day in which the voices of everyday Arkansans will be heard in Washington”, Crawford said. “As your next Representative, you can be assured I will stand for your values in Congress.”

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ARRA News Service

Does Marion Berry (AR-01) Accept Federal Farm Subsidies?

So which is it, Congressman? View the following video and referenced articles to find the truth! Marion Berry has long denied that he owns any farms that accept subsidies, yet his response to a question on the topic yesterday seems to contradict this. And the data shows “slick” Berry is may seem more dim witted with age but he has been more than smart enough to fleece the public for years.

Blue Dog Berry – Not so Blue With Farm Subsidy – Ken Cook at Mulch reports: Blue Dogs Are Big Winners In Subsidy-Laden Farm Bill . . .

Arkansas Rep. Marion Berry (D) Cashing In on Federal Service . . . receives farm subsidies . . . – Consider if you will, between 1996 and 2000, farm and land-holding companies that Berry owns with relatives in eastern Arkansas have received $750,449 in federal crop subsidies, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture records. . .

The Other King of Pork — AR Representative Marion Berry – Congressman Marion Berry (D-AR) promises more pork barrel spending now that the Democrats are in charge of Congress. This is no surprise. Last year, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette wrote, “Arkansas’ Rep. Marion Berry would like to be known as the king of pork. “Nothing would please me more,” he says. . . .

BOOT BERRY