Posted on 08/09/2014 6:48:28 PM PDT by flamberge
During the August recess, the Congressman had scheduled a number of “town hall” meetings at various locations in his district. One of those meetings was held in Loveland, Colorado on Saturday, August 9th.
About 60 people showed up for this event. It was a mixed crowd of mostly older men and women, with an odd sprinkle of 20-somethings seated in the first row. An intense looking woman in her 70s brought in a placard exclaiming “End US Aggression Now”. An equally intense looking man in his 50s, wearing motorcycle leathers, and a spectacular moustache, was sporting a black T-shirt that said “I’ll keep my guns and my money – You keep the ‘Change’”.
Visible security was provided by one city police officer, who watched impassively from the back of the auditorium. A person dressed in ordinary civilian clothes, but wearing ear-buds was outside the building watching people enter.
The first order of business was to announce the recipients of the Congressional Award Gold Medal honoring Allouette and Daniel Greenige, both residents of Loveland, for their community service activities. These were the 20-somethings in the first row, with a few of their friends. After the announcement, they smiled for polite applause, then left.
For introductory remarks, the Congressman apologized for the lack of successful actions in the current session particularly the failure to pass bills on immigration reform and energy policies. He explained that no action was likely until October. “All remaining Congressional actions will occur in the lame duck session” he said. He stated that he has cancelled any planned vacation during November and December in order to attend to late-breaking legislation at the end of the year.
On the topic of the immigration crisis the Congressman said:
When asked by an audience member “Why can’t we close the borders?” the Congressman replied “With you and what army?”
[Editorial Note: I do seem to recall that we have some kind of army. So does Mexico]
On the topic of education the Congressman explained:
On the topic of health care the Congressman was quite clear that he supports “Obamacare” as “by-and-large, the ACA is a big step forward”. When asked “why is healthcare a responsibility of the Federal Government?” the Congressman answered “Take that up with the Judges”.
A mother in the audience asked why "class 3" drugs were no longer covered by her ACA-compliant health insurance policy (Since January 1). She has a young daughter with severe juvenile arthritis who is going blind, and she cannot afford list price for the "class 3" anti-inflammatories used to control this syndrome (about $5000/year).
Congressman Polis suggested that the mother look into one of the ACA Exchange policies.
[Editorial Note: The Colorado Exchange policies typically have a $6000 deductible before any benefit payments and a 30% co-payment after the deductible is met. The premium for one person is approximately $5000 per year. Exact terms vary by residential Zip Code.]
On the topic of “Infrastructure” (Mostly highway construction) an audience member asked “How can we get our fair share of transportation money?” The Congressman explained that funding was set until May of next year, but contractors typically bid 30%-40% higher prices for projects with short-term funding and that five-year funding programs were needed.
To obtain long-term funding for transportation projects, the Congressman proposes a “National Infrastructure Bank” which would require “voluntary investments from Multi-National Corporations”. [No one in the audience seemed to understand the proposal]
On the topic of Israel, the Congressman was unambiguous in his condemnation of HAMAS – in spite of repeated critical questions from a pro-Palestinian activist in the 4th row of the auditorium. “HAMAS must renounce terrorism”. “We do not give money to HAMAS” he said. “HAMAS gets their money from [private individuals in] QATAR”.
He mentioned that every year he has a Palestinian and an Israeli intern in his Washington DC office, and “This year it got testy between the two”.
It was odd to hear repeated critical questions to the Congressman from a pro-Israeli activist seated in the 2nd row of the auditorium. Polis explained that he supports a two-state solution with certain land swaps. By way of justification, he mentioned that the IRA had renounced terrorism and “Things worked out in Ireland”.
The two conflicting political activists in the audience carefully ignored each other.
On general questions from the audience, the Congressman mentioned that he supported term limits of 8-12 years duration and favored a rule for “single-subject” bills, similar to a rule used in the Colorado legislature (a bill may address only one subject area and cannot be amended to add other subjects). “Multi-subject bills are really, really bad for democratic accountability” he said – but “the leadership of both parties will never allow this [rule change]”.
On the topic of taxation, the Congressman says he supports a “Flat Tax” with one personal deduction and one tax rate. Jared Polis says “It’s a good idea, Colorado has it” referring to the state income tax system. He is against any form of “National Sales Tax”. He stated that he wants to save the Social Security System – by increasing the taxable amount of wages from $108,000 to $250,000, and by “means testing” (reducing) the benefits payouts for well-to-do individuals.
In response to a question from the audience, I was astonished to hear the Congressman express unambiguous support for “shall issue” concealed carry laws with mandatory full reciprocity in all fifty states. I looked carefully for any sign of “printing” on his clothes, but could not determine if he was carrying any sort of weapon.
Excellent reporting.
Obviously you are ineligible to work for the Denver Post.
Loveland is a pretty conservative town.
Boulder has been sending stormtroopers there to try and split the vote.
Wish I had been there
he’s a gay dimocrat, ergo he can’t be trusted no matter what he says.
Philip Gara LaMarche is a secretive political operative who funnels billions of dollars from undisclosed donors to nonprofits and astroturf groups. But you won't hear unhinged Harry Reid railing Queegishly about him on the Senate floor. Why?
Here's why: LaMarche is a militant leftist philanthropist. He's a protected elite -- Columbia University grad, former ACLU leader and Human Rights Watch official -- with ready access to the White House. He and the left's other dark money managers preach transparency and openness, while plotting behind closed doors to secure power at every level of government.
LaMarche currently heads the shadowy Democracy Alliance (DA). In internal documents obtained and published this month by John Hinderaker of the Power Line blog, the group currently describes itself as the "center of gravity" for the progressive funding world.
DA enrolls wealthy liberal "members" who coordinate and finance a web of at least 132 left-wing groups. Though some of their members' and partners' identities have been exposed, DA takes great care to promise a cloak of donor secrecy "to provide a comfortable environment for our partners to collectively make a real impact."
While they bash Wall Street publicly, DA leaders have quietly recruited venture capitalists, bankers and hedge fund moguls -- along with union bosses and red-diaper trust fund babies -- to fund their takeover goals. Public school educators who belong to the American Federation of Teachers, headed by $500,000-plus yearly salaried President Randi Weingarten, should know that $230,000 of their hard-earned union dues go to DA, as Lachlan Markay of the Washington Free Beacon has reported.
While they bemoan "income inequality," DA brass have wined, dined and wooed 1-percenter plutocrats with swanky get-togethers featuring New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Kentucky Secretary of State and Democratic Senate candidate Alison Grimes, and popular "comediennes" Stephanie Miller and Lizz Winstead.
"Over the past nine years," the organization brags to potential contributors, DA has "aligned leaders in the progressive movement and political infrastructure" to "achieve victories at the ballot box and in policy fights." Their agenda spans "social justice," "climate change," "voting rights," gun control, illegal alien amnesty, campaign finance and sustained "strategic investment" to turn red states blue.
That's exactly what DA members Jared Polis and Tim Gill succeeded in doing in once-GOP-dominated Colorado in 2008.
LaMarche previously served as president and CEO of The Atlantic Philanthropies. As I first reported five years ago, that entity was offshore----a Bermuda-based political front stocked with acolytes of progressive billionaire George Soros. The "charity" run by LaMarche dumped some $40 million to help fund the astroturf Health Care for America Now group. As the tax disclaimer for HCAN discloses, "HCAN is related to Health Care for America Education Fund, a project of The Tides Center, a section 501(c)(3) public charity."
The Tides Center and its parent organization, the Tides Foundation, in turn have seeded some of the country's most radical activist groups of the left, including the communist-friendly United for Peace and Justice, the jihadist-friendly National Lawyers Guild and the grievance-mongering Council on American-Islamic Relations.
The faux populist HCAN, coordinated from 1825 K Street, provided invaluable ground and air support to reinforce Democratic messaging on Obamacare. LaMarche met with Valerie Jarrett for hours-long meetings on at least two disclosed occasions before the health care juggernaut's passage. By November 2009, he had visited the White House nine times.
I checked the most updated White House visitor logs (as incomplete and shoddy as they are). LaMarche has tripled his visits over the past five years. He is listed 23 times (21 under "Philip G. LaMarche" or "Philip LaMarche" and twice under "Gara LaMarche"). LaMarche also donated $18 million through The Atlantic Philanthropies to a Chicago charity headed by Valerie Jarrett.
Friend of Barack and Val. Bagman for Soros. Community organizer for progressive billionaires. Chances are, LaMarche and his operators have affected you, your statehouses, your businesses and your freedom, no matter where you live. Know your enemies.####
I would believe about 5% of what he said.
Vote-crazed Dummycrats figure that can hang onto their seats b/c:
<><> EXHIBIT ONE---h/care.gov web site is first and foremost a voter-registration site. Obamacare is a HUGE voter fraud machine----plugging unsuspecting enrollees into Democrat voter rolls.
Local couple upset after receiving pre-marked voter registration card from "Covered California" (Cali O/Care)
10news | 03-29-2014 | Preston Phillips / FR Posted by Kevin in California
A local couple called 10News concerned after they received an envelope from the state's Obamacare website, Covered California. Inside was a letter discussing voter registration and a registration card pre-marked with an "x" in the box next to Democratic Party.
=============================================
<><> EXHIBIT TWO--Another surprise (cackle). Turns out Obamacare is a vehicle for consolidating Dummycrat power.....w/ a multi-billion dollar slush fund.
The Untraceable $8 Billion ObamaCare PR Budget---truly govt fraud at its finest. Egged on by Pelosi, no one in Congress told Americans about Section 4002---which mandates an $8B untraceable fund to "promote" Obamacare (apparently b/c Boobamba had so little confidence in his signature legislation).
In 2010 Taxpayers are extorted $500 million, in 2011, $750 million, 2012, $1 billion, 2013, $1.25 billion, 2014, $1.5 billion and in 2015 and on, $2 billion........
....the reasons for all those O/Care delays, fixits, exemptions, waivers, extensions, etc, are becoming crystal clear......
===============================================
<><> EXHIBIT THREE---Yet another Obamacare scam ----the way Obama/Dummycrats siphon off tax dollars:
Some observers note that the Democrat-controlled Senate passed Obamacare "after a series of unsavory transactions that purchased the aye votes of several shrewdly extortionate Democrats"....with a huge pile of money still unaccounted for.
The most unsavory was Landrieu's $4.3 billion "Louisisana Purchase."
THE PAPER TRAIL IS HUGE Sen Landrieu (Scumocrat-LA) sold her aye vote in what Forbes Magazine dubbed "The 'Louisiana Purchase" that included a massive $4.3 Billion to Landrieu
FORBES REPORTED the Democrats’ nailed Landrieu’s support for Obamacare w/ a greenback bribe. Landrieu, critics believe, pledged her vote in exchange for some $200 million more additional federal funds for Louisiana. Except that, due to a drafting error, the law ended up giving Louisiana $4.3 billion: more than twenty times the assigned amount. MORE HERE http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml
===============================================
BACKSTORY In the fall of 2009, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) was trying to get the necessary 60 Dimocrat votes to pass the Affordable Care Act. He needed every Dim on board, which gave waffling senators a great deal of leverage. In Landrieu's case, she connivingly saw that selling her aye vote could get her maybe $200 million federal dollars. Obama complied. Reid chalked up another vote for Obamacare. But not the measly $200 million but $4.3 billon was attached to the Obamacare bill earmarked for Landrieu.
=================================================
How $4.3 billion to Landrieu was calculatedly attached to the Obamacare bill, and how Obama and Reid failed to catch and fix it, is yet another indictment of the Obamacare atrocity. The payoff to Landrieu should be investigated as an indication of how EVERY Democrat came to vote for Obamacare....and will help elect more lock-stepping Democrats.
JEST WONDERIN' Did Polis get a cut of the $4.3 billion?
That could possibly be a generous estimate.
But when a politician lies, that in itself may convey useful information.
What they lie about is what is important to them.
Excellent information. Thank you!
I would assess as "probably true" several comments from Congressman Polis.
All of it needs to go viral.
Beautiful---we should get that on tee shirts.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.