Posted on 06/07/2007 2:53:59 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Members of the independent movement can make a difference in United States politics with their ability to "spoil" elections, Linda Curtis said.
"The two parties use that word to describe us," said Curtis, a spokeswoman for the independent movement and founder of Independent Texans. "They say we're spoilers. I choose to think about it differently. We are the swing vote right now and we can swing and sway elections."
Curtis spoke with the Concerned Citizens for Responsible Government on Tuesday about pushing the independent movement forward in a positive way. People are upset with the way politicians are running the U.S., she said, and it's time to find a solution.
"There is unrest," she said. "People are trying to figure out what the heck is going on in this country. I think people are ready to hear what independents have to say."
One of the main issues the group hopes to tackle is the Trans-Texas Corridor, a stretch of highway that would run the length of the state.
"They need to slow it down," Curtis said. "We certainly need roads but this is not a road. This is a trade agreement."
Curtis attended 18 of the 54 TTC hearings that took place last summer and said the plan gives China a trade advantage, while it hurts America's neighbor to the south.
"The people of Mexico will be hurting even more," she said. "When you impoverish people across your border, what are they going to do? I know if I were one of them, I'd be jumping that fence. They're further impoverishing an already impoverished country."
The funds involved is something to take notice of, she said.
"It's scary the kind of money that's getting thrown around about this," Curtis said. "If you add up all the dollars it would take to build the corridor completely, they said it was originally $184 billion. Actually it's close to $1 trillion. It's $754 billion."
More people have taken notice of the movement, Curtis said, and 42 percent of the public self-identifies as independent.
"When people say they're independent they mean they don't identify with a party, but with the candidate," she said.
And that's one thing people need to work toward, she said. People must start voting for a candidate and for the issue, rather than for a political party.
"Corruption has no party line," said Russell Pruitt, a spokesman with the CCRG. "We tend to support party politics. I'm hoping to get people thinking about what's in their best interest. If people are informed on what's going on they will make the right decision."
Independent Texans will meet Saturday and Sunday in Bastrop to discuss ways to bring in members to the independent movement and to discuss which candidates to support in upcoming elections.
The group will continue to stand for what it believes in, Curtis said, on issues such as the TTC.
"They're in for the fight of their lives," she said. "People in Texas will not put up with this."
Trans-Texas Corridor PING!
Independent Texans will meet Saturday and Sunday in Bastrop
Thank god some good news coming our way! Lets hold the politicians feet to the fire, they’ve gotten mighty cocky in the way they have been treating the American people, and we’re NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE! We will hold all of you accountable! Sure we may have been asleep, and by asleep I mean working hard to provide for our families thinking all the while that we elected representatives that have our best interEsts in mind. Well we where wrong, and shame on us for not seeing this sooner. TIME TO GET INVOVLVED, TIME TO CLEAN HOUSE AND SEND REPRESENTATIVES THAT ARE HONEST LAWBIDING AND UP HOLD EVERYTHING THAT IS AMERICA AND AMERICAN! LETS GET RID OF THE SNAKE OIL SALESMEN WE HAVE IN WASHINGTON NOW!
The Republicans blew a once-in-a-century chance...they spent like Democrats and ruled like Democrats-lite. Had they ruled like true conservatives...well, who knows. I know they’ve alienated strict-constructionist conservatives like myself. I’ll not hold my nose again, give me a conservative to vote for or don’t waste my time. RINO’s just give conservatives a bad name.
The problem is these guys say they are trying to represent an entire 42% of the public, and then they go off and talk about something that much of the 42% probably doesn’t care much about. I want to control an entire third party myself, but I won’t try to stop globalization as my priority.
But I would prefer to control the Republican Party myself.
My friends and I are working on that. :-)
Ten years from now, I expect to be a welcome guest in the White House of an improved Republican Party.
There is room for a third party in the US however. That long eared rabbit guy what’s his name...Ross Perot...got about 20% of the vote in 1993 while acting obnoxious. A less eccentric candidate, backed with his money, might have won back then, if the electoral college would have allowed it.
It would only take $1Billion to run a third party properly. You would have to control a few TV channels and newspapers...but the Internet may soon make it so anyone can start an Internet TV station.
The thing is, the weirdo billionaires that are out there now don’t have much imagination and are clearly not being asked to sustain new political movements or new directions for the current parties. Much of the current Republican agenda is pushed via the money of Richard Mellon Scaith of Pittsburgh (the guy who pushed the Monica Lewinsky story as if a conservative man would stay true to Hillary). Rupert Murdoch is well known to be playing up to Hillary Clinton...meaning that Fox News ultimately doesn’t really mean it: they play softball.
And, of course, we all know that left winger Ted Turner isn’t going to question the radical left wingers on any bizarre topic they come up with.
I am voting against anyone that RINO Rick likes. Sorry
Thanks for the ping!
You’re welcome.
BTTT
bump.
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