Miscellaneous

The biggest news is from Oklahoma, where sponsor Rep.Gary Banz put on a bravura performance in floor debate of an hour or more, resulting in a 53-42 win.  Next to Arizona,  most of us figured our biggest test was Oklahoma, infested with Birchers.  With Dr. Coburn carrying our banner in the Senate, all of a sudden it looks real.

In Idaho HJR 18 was introduced with 35 of the 70 member House as co-sponsors.  The Senate awaits, and the implacable opposition of Senate Majority Leader Bart Davis.  Kasich and his team, especially Dave Luketic, are pulling out all the stops to convince Sen. Crapo to intervene on our behalf.  If that doesn’t work I may fly to Boise in two weeks and make the Senator an offer he can’t refuse.

In South Carolina we passed out of a Judiciary subcommittee 5-0, with both Democrats aboard.  This was the big hurdle, with subcommittee Chairman Bright the key.  Other obstacles may arise, but this was the big one.

We’re poised to pass the West Virginia Senate today, and the skepticism of the Assembly Speaker seems to be waning.  We have a bipartisan supermajority of sponsors in the Assembly, so passage is assured if we get to the floor.  Time is our enemy, with a Saturday adjournment looming.

We’re up in committee in the North Dakota Senate a week from tomorrow.  They’re moseying along in the Peace Garden State, but final passage will just be a formality.

In Wisconsin sponsor Chris Kapenga has emerged as a leader of that legislature.  He just got passed, and got signed into law, his bill making Wisconsin the 25th right to work state.  That task accomplished, he’s ready to turn his considerable energy and skills toward passage of ours.  Last year the mule headed opposition of Senator Glen Grothman beat him.  This dope is now in Congress, where he can’t do much harm, so Chris has a clear field.  On Wisconsin!

Add those states up, and we’re at 32, with Montana, Wyoming and Arizona remaining.  After I see Davis in Boise in a couple weeks I’ll be heading to Laramie, and Wyoming Senate President Phil Nicholas.  I’m going to present him with the opportunity of a lifetime.  If he accepts, and agrees to engineer a special session, on April 12th I’ll be driving to Salem, then up to Olympia, and to Helena to meet Speaker Austin Knudsen and the comely President of the Senate, Debby Barrett.  I’ll present the same offer, and if they accept, and agree to get the votes needed for a special session, I’ll be off to Salt Lake and Phoenix.  I hope to get a one on one with Senate President Andy Biggs.  That would be fun.

If this scenario doesn’t play out, it’s not the end of the world.  There’s always next year.  But we can hang this skin on the wall in a couple months.  The sooner the better, in so many ways.  Everyone is jacked.

I feel like we’re in a boat, stuck in a tidal mudflat.  We’ve seen the incoming tide.  We can feel it now, as the boat begins to rise.  And when we float, we’re free.

Decision time nears in West Virginia and Idaho.  I don’t need to be involved in these or the other five target states, so my involvement shifts from one phase to the next.  I’ll be in Juneau tomorrow night, and meet with Senate President Kevin Meyer Tuesday morning.  If that goes as well as I expect it to, we’ll head up to the third floor and see Gov. Walker and his AG.  If that goes well I intend to go to Colorado and Wyoming later this month, and to Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada in April.  A drive trip.  Nice country, and maybe good weather.  If things look good, in May I’ll probably do North Dakota south to Texas, and over to Louisiana.  Maybe a few other states if necessary.  I have family commitments in June and July, so I want to get this done, the sooner the better.

I feel good about going to Juneau.  It’s been 25 years.

Memories.

It will organize, I believe, along party and regional lines, which largely coincide.  Broadly defined, the Mountain West* will have nine votes and is solidly Republican, except for New Mexico and Colorado, which are split.  Washington can be added to this group, for the purposes of this discussion, and is split as well.  These ten can be the core of a 26 member majority.  They have a great deal in common, and share, to a large extent, a common political culture.  Once they have formed a coalition of sorts, based on common goals and concerns, they can expand to the six borderline Western states** running from North Dakota south to Texas.  If accommodations can be made between these two blocs, which is certainly quite doable, the Western Coalition would have 16 votes.  The solidly Republican South has ten votes***.  What I call coal country, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and Virginia, is another group of four.  The upper Midwest****, plus New Hampshire is the final bloc of red states, with five members.

So, the way I see it, the West is in the catbird’s seat, if they can stick together.  I get the impression these people, even the leadership, don’t know each other.  They may get together at ALEC or some other national meeting, but by and large they’re completely focused on their own state, and its people and problems.  That’s the way it was when I was in the Alaska Legislature.  We didn’t care how they did it in the lower 48, and didn’t appreciate any advice from strangers.  A popular bumper sticker back then was “We don’t give a damn how they do it outside.”  We were the Upper One.   I pick up on that same attitude all over the west, in every Capitol I’ve been in.  These are my kind of people.  In order to organize, and take advantage of their numbers, they need to get to know each other.

Maybe I can help.

*Alaska, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana.

**North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

***Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

****Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

In Utah that would be Rep. Kraig Powell.  We got Utah, #26, today because of him.  Last year, mid-session, Kraig volunteered to give it a go.  Other members were afraid of being primaried by the Eagle-Birchers.  It was kind of a last minute deal.  I went back and spoke to the Conservative Caucus and testified in committee, but despite all of Kraig’s efforts we lost 32-41.  But we set the stage for this year.  If Kraig hadn’t stepped up to the plate last year we wouldn’t be celebrating tonight. That’s what patriots do.

We’re on the floor in the Oklahoma House next week.  Rep. Gary Banz has been working the bill, but right now is around ten short.  Dr. Coburn’s speech to the House Caucus put us in play.  If we’re not sure of the votes I think we should pull the bill and try next year.  We’ll be stronger next year.  Much stronger.  We’ll have the enthusiastic support of the oil and gas industry, for instance.

Everything’s set in West Virginia for next week except Speaker Armistead.  Bill Fruth will visit with him before the vote.  We should get it, but if we don’t we will next year.  We’ll have the coal industry with us.

We’ve got a subcommittee vote in South Carolina next week, with Senator Bright the swing vote.  Dave Guldenschuh had a long talk with him, but couldn’t get a read.

We’re depending on Senator Crapo in Idaho.  Kasich is calling him this weekend.

North Dakota will have us in Senate Committee on the 19th.  No sign of trouble.  Bill Fruth, road warrior, will go to Bismarck to testify.

The Reagan Project may put up a booth at Freedom Fest  in Vegas in July.  If we do I’m going to lay a bet on Kasich for President.  Because we are going to get this done, and he’ll get the credit, and it’s a very big deal.  Bigger than anyone understands, quite yet.

I see a bright future ahead.

Money does not stink.  That’s what the Romans used to say, and look what happened to them.

I’ve always hated money in politics, maybe because I never had any.  But I’m a libertarian, and a free speech zealot.  I don’t want the government regulating speech, period.  When the Framers, in the First Amendment, said, “Congress shall make no law….” they didn’t allow for exceptions.  But now I’m open to the idea of allowing individuals complete freedom to spend their own money, and preventing corporations, unions and PACs from spending any.  Full immediate disclosure of all contributions on the internet.  I’m signing up with Wolf-Pac, and I’ll support calling an Amendment Convention on campaign finance reform.  Let’s have a Convention, and see what they come up with.  If it manages to get ratified by 38 states it will represent a national consensus.  That’s how our system was designed.

What really got to me was last year’s Republican primary in Mississippi.  Thad Cochran has no business in the U. S. Senate.  He’s old and feeble and just does what he’s told, which is raid the Treasury for his contributors.  Republicans in Mississippi had enough of him, and wanted him out.  But Haley Barbour and the big money boys played the race card, disgracefully, and bought him six more years.

These same geniuses are all lined up behind the brother of the last dope they put in the White House, W.  Yeah, that’s what we need, yet four more years from the stupid wing of the GOP.  On the Democrat side these wizards want Hillary, who is a complete joke.  Her major qualification for office is a lifetime of enabling the sexual predator she married.

But Jeb Bush is not going to get the Republican nomination.  We’ve had this dog food before, and the greatest sales job in the world won’t make it taste any better.  And now it looks like the Democrats may be ready to turn on the Clintons and their sleaze machine.  They will, if they’re smart.  She’s a terrible politician, and she won’t change.  The quicker they dump her, the better, for them.  The reverse for the R’s.  The longer this woman and her contemptible husband are center stage, the better, if you’re an R.

West Virginia Speaker Armistead is holding up our bill, and talking about doing it next year.  I hope this is not inspired by the example of Phil Nicholas.

Looks like Senator Crapo is the key to Idaho Senator Bart Davis’ heart.  The request will be made to Crapo.  He’ll get the message.  I don’t know anything about him.  Maybe he’s a patriot.

There’s a hitch in my run for Congress.  You can’t file until January.  This upsets my plan.  I’ll have to come up with a new one.  Actually my whole strategy is based on the political conditions in California a year from now.  Right now, it makes sense.  A year from now, maybe not.

God, it would be fun.