It was exciting to open USA Today to see this headline and to confirm that we are a different Republican campaign, securing national coverage, getting traction across the Commonwealth.
A few weeks ago, a USA Today reporter heard about the growing interest in my campaign for the U.S. Senate and our success reaching out to working class folks that are "non-traditional" Republican voters. She joined me on a typical Saturday at a flea market in North Chesterfield. I have to say this is one of my favorite quotes:
"Kelvin Simmons, an undecided and first-time voter in line to visit Santa Claus with his children, said he hasn't seen any other Senate candidates visit North Chesterfield, or the flea market, which has become a community gathering space as well as a place for small businesses to launch. It's because of this approach, Simmons said, that he believes Garcia has a shot at unseating Kaine. "I think he wants help for all of us people out here, so I feel he might be good for it," Simmons said. "He's here for the people."
You can read the complete article HERE
We're getting ready to say goodbye to 2023. Honestly, I won't miss it.
From continued sky-high inflation to record illegal immigration, from the ongoing war in Ukraine to the war in Israel and the explosion of anti-Semitism in America, it's been a challenging year.
If we could ask for just one thing in the New Year, I believe it should be that America would turn back to the God of the Bible.
America is facing multiple challenges, many of which can be traced to the decline of our Judeo-Christian values.
We have an epidemic of broken families and children without fathers in the home. There is an epidemic of corruption on Wall Street, in government and even at your local school board.
There are epidemics of despair, depression and drug addiction. There is an epidemic of gender confusion.
There is an epidemic of violent crime. A growing number of people don't fear punishment in this life and don't believe in eternal life.
We need a revival here in America.
Our nation was founded by people who came here to freely worship God. Christian pastors gave birth to the revolutionary fervor that won our war of independence.
George Washington said it was only because of God's hand that we prevailed over the British empire. And our founders boldly declared that our liberty comes from God, not government.
My prayer for 2024 is that America will rediscover the wisdom and truth of the Bible and turn our hearts back to the God.
And I promise that throughout the year ahead, with your prayers, continued support and God's blessing, I will continue to "fight the good fight" for Faith, Family and Freedom!
Earlier this week, millions of Americans and people around the world celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas Day. It is one of the most sacred events on the Christian calendar. Jesus's birth is what Christmas is all about.
But something strange and disturbing happened at the Biden White House. There was no official statement from the Biden White House regarding Christmas Day, no official Christmas proclamation.
There were just a couple of social media posts from Joe and Jill Biden letting us know that they were enjoying some "quiet reflection" and encouraging others to find "peace in the silent night" and "warmth from those surrounding you." Those generic platitudes could have applied to almost any occasion.
In another post, the Bidens celebrated our men and women in uniform and the sacrifice many of them are making being overseas, separated from their families. And that's perfectly fine.
But there was something obviously missing from any of these statements – Jesus Christ, the whole reason for the season!
Sadly, there is a pattern here of blatant disrespect for Christianity from this White House. Joe Biden has repeatedly omitted God from his Thanksgiving Day proclamations, and now he's dumped Jesus from his Christmas messages.
By the way, he did it last year, too!
So, this isn't an accident. It's deliberate, and it's deliberately insulting. They have abandoned the faith of our fathers and now worship neo-Marxist ideologies instead.
A Striking Contrast
I'm sure some people may be saying, "C'mon, man. Not everyone is a Christian. Joe's just trying not to offend anyone."
Well, can you imagine Biden issuing a gay pride proclamation that doesn't mention the whole LGBTQ agenda? Many of us are offended by that radical nonsense, but he doesn't care if you're offended.
Think of all the holidays (holy days) we're supposed to celebrate. There's a day for Easter, a day for Christmas and a day for Thanksgiving. There are other events we celebrate like Washington's Birthday, Independence Day and Veterans Day.
Meanwhile, a very small percentage of the population demands that we celebrate their lifestyle during Pride Day -- I mean Pride Week. No, it's actually an entire Pride Month, which some want to extend ad nauseam. (Here and here.)
And when Joe Biden issues his "pride" proclamations, there's no ambiguity at all about what we're supposed to be celebrating.
But think about that striking contrast for a moment. Easter and Christmas each get a day. But the LGBTQ movement gets an entire month and more?!
This country was founded by Christians on Judeo-Christian principles. It wasn't built by LGBTQ people on LGBTQ principles. We're not a majority LGBTQ country. But Christians aren't demanding that the whole country celebrate us at their workplaces for an entire month or more.
Something is deeply wrong if Biden can thank everyone but God in his Thanksgiving proclamation, and Christmas gets watered down with platitudes, while the birth of Jesus Christ is totally ignored.
More than one billion people around the world and at least half of America believes Jesus is the Son of God!
I will give Biden credit for one thing, however. Because of the damage caused by his policies, he's probably causing more people to pray for mercy!
A Big Merry Christmas
In stark contrast to Biden's meaningless mush, former President Donald Trump issued a tremendous Christmas message that completely embraced the meaning of the holiday. Here's what Trump said:
"Melania and I would like to wish everyone a happy, joyous, and wonderful Christmas season.
"In this holy time of year, Christians everywhere give thanks that over 2,000 years ago, God sent his only Son into the world to be the savior of all mankind. The birth of Jesus Christ is the true miracle we celebrate each Christmas.
"He is the ultimate source of our joy, our hope, and our sense of peace and goodwill as we gather with family and loved ones. It is such a great time of the year. This is why we can never stop saying that beautiful phrase, 'Merry Christmas.'"
"This holiday, we give thanks for the many blessings God has bestowed upon us. We pray for the safety of our men and women in uniform at home and abroad. And we ask God to guide us, give us strength, and watch over us in this pivotal year ahead.
"With His help, by this time next year, we will be well on our way to making America safer, stronger, greater, and more prosperous than ever before."
"Once again, Melania and I wish you a very Merry Christmas. God bless you all. May 2024 be the best year of our lives."
Faith Under Siege
While far too many Americans take religious liberty for granted, many of our Christian brothers and sisters around the world go to church on Sundays and at Christmas knowing it could well be the last thing they ever do on this earth.
In nations that abandon or reject Christianity and where the government suppresses religious freedom, it's anything but a joyous time of year.
In the days leading up to Christmas, Muslim terrorists attacked multiple Christian villages in Nigeria. More than 160 Christians were slaughtered, and many more were wounded. The world yawned.
In Nicaragua, the communist regime is waging an all-out assault on Christian leaders. And, of course, the crackdown on Christians continues unabated in communist China.
And closer to home, there was a string of arson attacks on churches in Canada this weekend. More than 100 churches have been vandalized or burned to the ground over the past two years. Four were burned in the past two weeks.
Did you read about this in your local paper? Nope. Unless you looked for it, you would have no idea that there is an epidemic of church arsons just north of the border.
And as we have reported to you, there are growing attacks and desecrations against churches here in the United States, as well as attacks against faith-based ministries that help women in challenging pregnancies.
As Christians, our faith is in God. As Christian citizens blessed to live in America, our fate is in our hands. Just as our Founding Fathers stood up and demanded their rights, it is time for men and women of faith to stand up and say, "ENOUGH!"
Protecting our southern border is vital for the health of our communities. That fact has been completely lost on Democrats — and the results have been disastrous.
Criminals, traffickers, cartel members, even TERRORISTS are coming into our country through our open southern border.
Since Joe Biden took office, more than 8.2 million illegal immigrants have crossed into our country from the south—including 1.7 million gotaways.
Biden has allowed illegal immigrants to flow into our country without vetting who they are. With them, countless pounds of fentanyl and methamphetamine have poured in. Just in October, 1,318 pounds of fentanyl and 9,539 pounds of methamphetamine were seized.
The drugs that slipped through the cracks are flooding into our communities and killing our loved ones.
We are paying the price for Joe Biden's incompetence in American lives, and the death toll keeps rising. |
A nation without a border is not a nation. |
The Colorado Supreme Court has construed the 14th Amendment to bar Donald J. Trump from running for President. Does that Court have jurisdiction to construe and execute Section 3? It does not. Is President Trump ineligible to appear on the ballot because of Section 3? He is not.
Under Section 5 of the 14th Amendment, the Colorado Supreme Court lacks jurisdiction. Even if it had jurisdiction, President Trump never "engaged" in "insurrection or rebellion" against the United States, and he never provided "aid and comfort" to an enemy of the United States within the meaning of Section 3. Section 3 does not apply. Colorado's erroneous speech-based decision not only deprives voters of their right to choose a president but also infringes Americans' First Amendment rights to challenge government officials and actions.
Section 3 reads in pertinent part: "No Person shall . . . hold any office . . . under the United States . . . who, having previously taken an oath . . . as an officer of the United States . . . to support the Constitution . . . shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or conform to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability." Section 5 reads in pertinent part: "The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article."
Colorado's Supreme Court erroneously held itself possessed of jurisdiction and Trump disqualified to run for elective office. The United States Supreme Court should swiftly overrule that decision. It should make clear to all states that they do not have jurisdiction to construe and execute Section 3, a function reserved to the U.S. Congress by Section 5.
The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments arose in the aftermath of the Civil War between the United States of America (USA), which operated under the Constitution of the United States, and the Confederate States of America (CSA), which seceded from that Constitution and the laws thereunder, adopted its own Constitution and governing laws, and engaged in war against the USA from 1861 to 1865. The purpose of the Amendment was to prevent those enemy combatants and supporters from holding elective office or serving as electors. The amendment's primary objective was negated when in 1872 Congress passed the Amnesty Act. That Act removed the disqualification of most Confederates by a two-thirds vote of Congress in accord with Section 3.
Nevertheless, Section 3 remains a part of the Constitution, but the Colorado Supreme Court lacks jurisdiction to interpret and execute it. Under Section 5, only Congress has that legislative power. Moreover, the Colorado Supreme Court's construction of Section 3 is so broad as to penalize free speech, which allows every American citizen, including the President, to challenge government officials and actions. By its plain meaning, Section 3 applies to actions to overthrow the government or obstruct constitutional duties to prevent the functioning of government. It does not apply to political speech protected by the First Amendment critical of officials and government actions, to pleas that election fraud be uncovered or that a fraud tainted election not be certified.
Indeed, it is every candidate's constitutional right, and, in the case of President Trump, his Article II duty to "take care that the laws are faithfully executed," that he or she be free to condemn election fraud and call into question the results of elections tainted by fraud.
Under Section 5, Congress alone has the authority to enforce the amendment through appropriate legislation, not the states and not state courts. Under Section 3, President Trump cannot be denied his place on the ballot unless he "engage[d] in insurrection or rebellion against" the United States in a manner analogous to the Confederates who took up arms to overthrow and defeat the United States. The amendment is not intended to deprive individuals of their First Amendment right to speak against election fraud or election certification, only to disqualify from elective office those who engaged in or aided enemy acts to overthrow the United States.
Section 3 reaches those who gave "aid and comfort to the enemies" of the United States. An enemy is not merely a protestor but those at war with and who attempt to overthrow the United States (akin to the CSA and its officers). The language is borrowed from the Treason Clause (Art. III, Sect. 3, Cl. 1: "Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort"). President Trump did not give aid and comfort to any enemy of the United States. He did not give aid and comfort to individuals who committed violence, property destruction, or even trespass. He urged protestors to be peaceable and law abiding.
The United States Supreme Court should reverse Colorado's decision and send an unmistakable message to the states that they have no jurisdiction to construe and execute Section 3.
This article was written on Dec 21, 2023, and published on Townhall.
Jonathan Emord is a leading constitutional law and litigation expert, the author of five critically acclaimed books, and a Candidate for the US Senate.
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For my family, Christmas is a celebration of the birth of our Savior. It is a time for us to remember when God sent His Son to Earth as a baby, fully God and fully man, to live a perfect life and die for our sins to make our resurrection possible. We celebrate the true Reason for the Season during this time of gathering with our loved ones.
It is a privilege to serve you in Virginia's 5th District as your representative in Washington, to fight for your freedoms, and to make your voices heard. Tracey and I wish you a very Merry Christmas, and I look forward to continuing to represent you and defend your constitutional freedoms in the New Year.
Congress Must Act to End the Crisis, Says FAIR
The following statement on the release of November border encounter data was released by Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR):
(December 22, 2023, Washington, D.C.) "The Biden Border Crisis continued to rage out of control in November, with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reporting total nationwide encounters of 308,728 people attempting to enter the United States illegally. This crisis, precipitated by the deliberate policies of this administration, is not only unsustainable – it threatens the security of the United States and the American people.
"November marked the fourth consecutive month that total encounters topped 300,000, putting us on pace for some 3.6 million encounters for FY 2024. In just the first two months of this fiscal year, we have nearly exceeded total encounters for all of FY 2020. Without dramatic action to change course, total nationwide encounters on track to reach 11.5 million, not including an additional 2.2 million 'gotaways' by the end of President Biden's term next January.
"Our unsecured borders and flagrant abuse of our asylum policies and parole come at a time of heightened concerns to our national security. FBI Director Christopher Wray recently testified before Congress that he sees 'blinking red lights everywhere [he] turns,' and that 'all the threats are elevated at the same time.' Despite these dire warnings, the Biden administration refuses to secure our borders, making it all the more imperative that Congress act.
"Congress has that opportunity now. President Biden is requesting a supplemental foreign aid package to help Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan protect their security. Republicans are justifiably demanding that that aid be coupled with real border security for the United States, particularly at a time of elevated threats of terrorism against our nation. Such legislation has already been passed in the House of Representatives in the form of H.R. 2, the Secure the Border Act.
The November CBP data and the record-setting encounters of more than 12,000 illegal aliens in a single day earlier this month make it clear that Congress must force President Biden and his administration to secure our borders by including H.R. 2 in the foreign aid bill. Moving the foreign aid package forward with a mere framework of a deal or half-measures that depend on the good faith of an administration that deliberately created the crisis at our border, would squander Congress' best opportunity to end it."
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Wishing you peace on Earth and a very merry Christmas from our family to yours!
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For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6 (NIV)
In God We Trust,
James Lankford
United States Senator for Oklahoma
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This is so on target. Is there now one set of rules of one class of people and a different set of rules for others.
This is not the American way. We profess to treat everyone equally.
If one class of people is allowed to plagarize on dissertations and peer reviewed publications, it implies that they are unable to do the work without cheating. That they are unequal for the position based on their own qualifications.
Just think about the implications of that...
The battle continues in Washington as it does every day. 2023 has been an extremely challenging year in our nation's capital and throughout much of the country.
We have struggled through another year of economic malaise and all kinds of unfortunate headlines from shocking crime waves and Senate sex scandals to record illegal immigration and drug overdoses.
But through all the acrimonious debates, as important as they are, no headline can turn our hearts away from the child whose birth we are about to celebrate.
When the Christ Child came into the world, his cry pierced the night and split all of human history in half. Over 2,000 years ago, a baby was born in order to die so that we could live.
I can't predict the outcome of the Washington wars, though I believe God would have me fight here as best as I can. But I can safely predict that one day every head will bow and every knee will bend before the King of Kings. The final victory has been won. All that is required of us is that we choose life.
While the focus of Christmas is, of course, Christ's birth in Bethlehem, I am reminded every year of the holiday's unique role in the birth of America.
It was on Christmas night in 1776 that George Washington crossed the Delaware River in a daring surprise attack on the Hessian mercenaries. Washington's victory at the Battle of Trenton was a turning point in the American Revolution. Surely God was there.
Take comfort, my friends, that the God of Abraham is with us still!
May each of you feel the presence and warmth of the Living Lord this season. As the anticipation of Christmas reaches a crescendo, may we not forget what defines the holiday – the birth of Christ, God's gift to each of us, that whoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life. |
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| Merry Christmas! |
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