Posted on 03/25/2012 6:51:53 AM PDT by Kaslin
In El Paso, Texas, Democrat Mayor John Cook is literally doing whatever he can to cram his political preferences down the throats of El Pasoans who voted against him. His latest effort in this regard has been convening a grand jury in El Paso to possibly indict those who oppose his policies, based solely on their speech.
It all began in 2010, when the City Council passed a measure granting taxpayer-paid benefits for same-sex couples. The citizens responded by passing a city-wide referendum overturning the measure. Not pleased that his policies were thwarted by the people, Cook went to the City Council again and instituted the benefits anyway, basically telling the people whom he represents that they’re not running the show—rather, he is.
Making matters worse, Cook himself cast the tie-breaking vote in the City Council vote that “overrode” the referendum and the will of the people.
As a result, various citizens, including pastors, people associated with ministries, and pro-family groups throughout the city, have united and collected the signatures needed to hold accountable public officials who threw out their vote. Not to be outdone, the Mayor has now sued these Christians and is using a Texas election law to stop the recall election. The city’s district attorney has even convened a grand jury and is threatening to prosecute every church member he can who took part in gathering petition signatures.
If this seems like a Rod Serling moment to you, and if you’re listening now for the Twilight Zone music to start playing, I regret to inform you that this is reality. This is really happening. This is how those in power abuse that power. Just as President Obama has ignored the rule of law and the will of the American people via his abortion pill/birth control mandate, so too the mayor has run roughshod over the citizens of El Paso and doesn’t plan to do anything but continue his stampede.
The very mayor who told one woman at a city council meeting, “You can take your freedom of speech outside,” is not about to be challenged.
We have to remember—for ideologues, the vision they want to implement is always more important than the people they represent.
Fortunately, the Christians in El Paso who have fought against this measure are not without a voice and legal representation. The Alliance Defense Fund has come along beside them and has collected more than 250 signed affidavits from local citizens who are terrified that they may go to jail for their legitimate political and free speech efforts.
ADF understands that the mayor can’t be allowed to put his opponents in jail just because they participated in a valid effort that he doesn’t favor – unless El Paso has suddenly relocated to Communist China.
The citizens of El Paso deserve better, and ADF is trying to make sure they get it by seeking a change in the Texas election law so that there is no longer any ambiguity about every state law’s need to respect rights protected by the First Amendment. In the meantime, the mayor cannot abuse this election law, intended to regulate financial political contributions, to stifle the political activity of his opponents. That battle is on appeal to the Texas Supreme Court on an expedited basis.
This isn’t Cuba or North Korea: it’s the United States of America. And here, where religious liberty and freedom of speech and assembly are constitutionally protected, the will of the people takes precedence over the arrogance of those who wish to set up their own kingdoms.
Bump
Of possible interest to the NM Ping List..
(Those of us in the southern end of the state, anyway.. )
When does Cook face reeelection? Aren’t there two-year terms in El Paso, a liberal stronghold? There is no city manager but a strong-mayor/council government. Grand juries are for felonies, or are they in the nation the American people have created themselves?
I'm not blaming New Mexico for El Paso's problems, but I see it hasn't calmed down that much...
I just finished reading Murder In The White Sands. That'll give you some idea of what I mean...
Why anybody would want to live in that hell hole is beyond me.
Yep. See my post #5...
This is not surprising since this is a Democrap. Corruption reeks from bottom to top and top to bottom. These morons who use their dirty tactics used against conservatives are too stupid to realize that one day those tactics will turn and be used against.
Time for a recall election.
My suggestion is to vote with their feet.
I had the extreme misfortune to be in El Paso on several occasions.
To put it quite bluntly: It sucks.
Period.
It is a bastion of liberals nitwits, almost as bad as Austin.
The elected officials are arrogant, corrupt and borderline fascist pieces of crap.
I really, really cannot see why anyone would want to spend any time whatsoever in the stink hole.
Just my opinion.
Your mileage may differ.
From Wiki
John Cook (born February 27, 1946; Brooklyn, New York) is an American teacher, businessman, veteran, civic leader, and member of the Paso Del Norte Group. Cook has been Mayor of El Paso, Texas since defeating incumbent Joe Wardy in June 2005, and was reelected in 2009 to a second four-year term.[1] Due to the City Charter’s term limits clause Cook will not be eligible for a third term in 2013.[2]
What a stupid idea. If the people who oppose this corrupt regime simply leave, the regime will be left behind with even more of an electoral mandate to do whatever they please.
Check out Sunland Park.
Half the Rat's around here are under Federal indictment for charges ranging from "money laundering" to "conspiracy with intent to distribute" and they still keep getting re-elected.
“What a stupid idea.”
Reason #1 why I don’t spend more time here. You can’t write “respectfully disagree?”
It's involved but extremely alarming -- locals expressing their opinions in Letters to the Editor were threatened and I think actually hauled into court. The Robert Womack Case
It's been years since I read this. I cannot point to anything specific about the case. Dentist Dr. Womack wanted to buy an out-of-business service station and convert it to a parking lot. The environment nutcases, government and private, got involved and pure insane horror followed. You'd think that they'd caught him planning the 9/11 attacks.. no wait, he would have been treated with more respect than we was -- even after 9/11.
>>Due to the City Charter’s term limits clause Cook will not be eligible for a third term in 2013.<<
Why not? He has shown that he will do what he damn well pleases, regardless of what anyone or anything says. But then, what do you expect from a Demoncrat, from a Yankee, who thinks that the South should be punished forever, etc.
Even so, it is an example of what Thomas Sowell calls "stage one thinking" - concerned with immediate remedies without regard to long term consequences.
This citizens of this community need to spend a half hour or so studying the actions in Athens TN where citizens with backbone took action against a corrupt government and won.
In Athens TN, corruption could not be removed at the ballot box so loyal Americans took up arms against the vermin in power.
Every community which does not go after corrupt government just puts us ALL at greater risk.
Government power is no different than cancer. If you ignore it it will get bigger and more consuming and almost impossible to eradicate.
We’re getting closer and closer to being a third world country.
Eventually violence and bloodshed follows crap like that. IMHO
“Time for a recall election.”
...and/or Pitchforks and torches!
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