Free Republic

Congressman John Shadegg (R-AZ) spoke with Freedom Radio immediately after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the 1,990 page health care bill Thurday. Here's a excerpt: Listen to the full interview with Congressman Shadegg and get Honest Conservative's take on the bill tomorrow, Sunday night at 8 PM Eastern, on Freedom Radio. The call in number is 646-478-5613.

Congressman John Shadegg joins HonestConservative for a Sunday NiteCap @ Freedom Radio. Congressman Shadegg has introduced the Health Care Choice Act, H.R. 4460, a bill which would empower consumers by allowing them to purchase an affordable health insurance policy with a range of options. The Health Care Choice Act will break down state-imposed barriers to insurance and allow individuals to purchase health insurance, in much the same way as they currently purchase auto or homeowner’s insurance, from states outside the one in which they reside. Ultimately, this would force the health care industry to price plans more competitively, meaning lower...

Three House Republicans are scheduled to hold a press conference on Wednesday morning to "make public a national security threat on Capitol Hill." Reps. Sue Myrick (R-N.C.), John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) and Paul Broun (R-Ga.) will hold a 10 a.m. press conference in the Capitol on the homeland security issue. The congressional daybook schedule does not provide further details. According to a source familiar with the issue, the press conference will focus on a non-profit group that has "known terrorist ties."

Today at 4:30PM eastern a blogger conference call was held by Representatives John Shadegg (R, AZ) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R, WA). The subject we spoke about was that of House Republican's ideas and problems on healthcare reform issues in both the Senate and the House. The following are my notes of the call, any direct quotes are in quote marks but the rest is my summation of what was said. The call opened with a welcome from Cathy McMorris Rodgers who introduced herself and Rep. Shadegg. Rodgers talked of the situation in the House and reminded us that 44...

Click on the link to hear the interview with Rep. Shadegg

Now on Fox. Shadegg being interviewed. Says Obamacare has been rammed through two more committees in Congress in past 12 hours and looks like there may be no way to stop it nor any way to pay for it except ever higher taxes on we who pay them (but will cover all illegals). Bill will end all existing healthcare options, according to Shadegg. Private, Tricare, Medicare, all replaced with Obama's healthcare rationing. Going outside the system will be a crime punishable by imprisonment and fine. Developing. Have to wonder what Pelosi is threatening reps. with.

Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) already has a favorite for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination: South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. During an appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Thursday, Shadegg said, "I like a lot of people in 2012 on the Republican side. I'd probably have to go with Mark Sanford first. I think Mark has proven that he is young, energetic, has new ideas and is a fresh face of the Republican Party."

As a reminder of the federal government's limited powers, 20 representatives want to ensure that every single piece of legislation passing through Congress includes a statement citing specific constitutional authority for enacting it. Sponsored by Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., H.R. 450, or the Enumerated Powers Act, states, "Each Act of Congress shall contain a concise and definite statement of the constitutional authority relied upon for the enactment of each portion of that Act. The failure to comply with this section shall give rise to a point of order in either House of Congress. …" When he introduced the proposal Jan....

An Arizona congressman says it is a problem when U.S. officials fail to speak clearly – for example not calling a terrorist a terrorist – when discussing the dangers the nation faces in confronting enemies. U.S. Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., was interviewed by Greg Corombos of Radio America on the issue of new orders in the Obama administration that words such as "war on terror" and "enemy combatant" no longer be used. Shadegg said those terms are specifically descriptive so that people can understand what's going on.

On Friday the 13 of February 2009 both houses of the US Congress passed the largest spending bill in the history of our nation. The final amount of the bill is reported to be $787 Billion. Congressional staffers have been inundated with calls, emails, and faxes by Americans responding to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, otherwise known as the Stimulus Bill. The voters contacting Washington, DC have voiced clearly that they are against this bill for the past two weeks. Congressman Dr Broun of Georgia left Washington, DC Friday evening and caught a flight home. Once he...

Though not widely reported, rumors slowly began circulating last month that former GOP presidential nominee John McCain may face a primary challenge in 2010 from former Congressman J.D. Hayworth. (Rep. Jeff Flake and Rep. John Shadegg were both likely candidates for the open seat if McCain were to win the presidency, but it appears unlikely either would challenge McCain.) McCain, of course, would be hard to beat. He garnered close to 54 percent of the vote in Arizona's general election. More importantly, he easily won the state's primary, garnering more than 47 percent of the vote (though exit polls show...

Just confirmed on Fox News: Shadegg will change his vote to a "Yes" on the bailout. He voted no previously.

We are the nation of Velcro, the light-bulb, the microwave, the Ford Model-T, and the Wright Brothers. We fought and defeated tyranny and fascism. We’ve walked on the moon. Where others see impossibility, our nation sees a challenge. Pessimism and hopelessness are not American characteristics. As the price of gas climbs higher and higher, doomsday scenarios are playing out in the media. Americans aren’t buying it, they’re demanding a solution. But our can-do nation is suffering at the hands of “can’t-do” congressional leadership. After months of prohibiting a vote on increased domestic oil production, House Democrats have gone on summer...

Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain may be thrust into the public spat between House Republicans and Democrats over the Democratic leadership’s decision to take summer recess without vote on offshore oil drilling. The Democratic leadership allowed the legislature’s scheduled summer break to begin August 1 without holding an up-or-down vote on increasing domestic oil drilling. Republicans stayed behind to protest the decision and have been delivering speeches on the floor of House in support of more drilling. In a briefing with bloggers in House Minority Leader John Boehner’s office August 5, Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz ,said he would “love...

The Arizona House Republican is running for reelection after his colleagues asked him to reconsider. You heard it here first. In an interview moments ago, he told me: At the end of the day, there are two things that are important to me: My family and the fight for freedom. I had consulted with my family and reached the decision that I would fight for freedom from somewhere else. And there has been a reaction to that decision. The overwhelming reaction has been that people would like me to keep up the fight for freedom inside the U.S. House. I...

About the only consolation Republicans can take from the presidential race right about now is that the Democrats are even more screwed up than they are. Some consolation. But that might be the only glint of optimism for Republicans, as the mutiny by conservatives against the party's all-but-crowned presidential nominee is far wider and far deeper than many would care to admit. Let's face it, John McCain has gone out of his way to poke conservatives in the eyes for years, and conservative leaders who are now in open revolt command an awful lot of influence over millions of grassroots...

U.S. Rep. John Shadegg said Thursday he will reconsider his decision to retire at the end of his term. He began wavering after learning that more than half of the Republicans in the House have signed a letter asking him to stay. Shadegg, 58, unexpectedly announced his retirement Monday. The letter is the first of kind and scope in recent memory. One of its three authors, Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, said he and the others collected 135 signatures in about two hours Thursday afternoon. Pence expected to obtain additional signatures today. Shadegg said he was aware the letter was...

Arizona Republican John Shadegg will give up his House seat at the end of the year — the latest in a string of retirements in the minority-party caucus. Shadegg said battling for conservative principles in the Democratic-led House has become more difficult, and “there are better places for me to fight that fight.” Shadegg left open the possibility of running for the Senate in 2010 if Republican John McCain of Arizona wins his White House bid. “At this point, there isn’t a seat. But the conservative movement gets me out of bed every morning. It’s what I believe in,” Shadegg...

Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) will announce this evening that he will retire from the House upon the conclusion of his current term, according to a well-placed Republican source.

Presidential candidate John McCain's sweeping victories on Super Tuesday revealed what could be a post-partisanship era in politics. Republican voters across the country turned away from the party's more conservative candidates and selected the Arizona senator again and again in primary contests from New York to California. The ultraconservative radio talk show hosts, bloggers and newspaper columnists simply didn't resonate with the party's majority members - the soccer moms and NASCAR dads who never attend precinct meetings, but showed up on election day. Whether those high-profile opinion givers like it or not, McCain is their man. Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.,...

Here's Redstate's account of how House Republicans cleverly forced the Democrats out from behind the trees on the Kucinich plan to impeach VP Cheney."Shaddeg, you magnificent bast*rd."Read it, and laugh at how foolish the Democrats (continue to) look. Here's Michelle Malkin's play-by-play. The thing that totally made me crack up this morning---so loud that i feared I might wake my two-year-old in the next room---was the picture accompanying Redstate's post.Understand that I am really fond of VP Cheney. Personally, I feel like he's the nation's wry, kindly uncle. (Apparently other people think he's the devil, but those people are afflicted...

In at least one critically important way Iraq is not Vietnam. No Viet Cong or North Vietnamese leader declared war on the United States. No one asserted that that war was one step in a global effort to destroy the United States and drive it from the face of the Earth. Our defeat did not inspire and strengthen a worldwide movement to attack the U.S. And, Vietnam did not provide a base of operation and a stream of income to fanatics seeking weapons for our destruction. And make no mistake, if we fail in Iraq, if we leave there defeated,...

Friday in Washington, the remaining House Republicans gather to vote for minority leader and minority whip. If they want to position themselves in the near future to change those modifiers from "minority" to "majority", they would best serve their party by voting for reform candidates untainted by associations with Hastert-era leadership. Republicans need to elect Rep. Mike Pence, R-Indiana, their minority leader. Head of the Republican Study Committee, Pence is a principled, well respected conservative who.....

WASHINGTON -- The depleted House Republican caucus, a minority in the next Congress, convenes at 8 a.m. in the Capitol Friday on the brink of committing an act of supreme irrationality. The House members blame their leadership for tasting the bitter dregs of defeat. Yet, the consensus so far is that, in secret ballot, they will re-elect some or all of those leaders. In private conversation, Republican members of Congress blame Majority Leader John Boehner and Majority Whip Roy Blunt in no small part for their midterm election debacle. Yet, either Boehner, Blunt or both are expected to be returned...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Rep. John Boehner of Ohio upset a former deputy to indicted Texan Tom DeLay on Thursday to become majority leader of the scandal-rocked U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. Roy Blunt had appeared to be the front-runner, based on a long list of public commitments, but Boehner, who campaigned on a vow to seek to renew the party's "spirit and vision," defeated Blunt and Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona in a secret election by fellow Republicans. Boehner had 122 votes to Blunt's 109. Shadegg dropped out after a first ballot loss. Boehner's election represented a shake-up in...

The Associated Press is reporting that House Republicans failed to elect a new leader on the first ballot of voting today. Acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt (R.-Mo.) fell seven votes short of the 117 needed and will now face Rep. John Boehner (R.-Ohio) in a runoff.Here are the totals, according to the AP: Rep. Roy Blunt: 110 votes Rep. John Boehner: 79 votes Rep. John Shadegg: 40 votes Rep. Jim Ryun: 2 votes Stay tuned for more details.

As some House Republicans campaign to oust their scandal-blemished GOP leadership team, they are facing an obstacle back home. It seems many voters could not care less. In interviews, more than a dozen Republican lawmakers who are home for a long January break said constituents are talking a great deal about high gas prices and even a best-selling book about killing the Internal Revenue Service, but not much about the intrigue gripping Capitol Hill. Even many of those voters who are closely following the leadership contest or the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal reportedly tend to deride all lawmakers as money-grubbing...

Maverick Republican Sen. John McCain today endorsed his fellow Arizonan, Rep. John Shadegg -- throwing a new quirk in the race for House majority leader, which will be decided tomorrow in a private meeting among Republicans. Although McCain has at times bucked the GOP (most notably on campaign finance reform), Shadegg welcomed the endorsement from his home-state senator. (HUMAN EVENTS first reported on January 12 that Sen. Jon Kyl would support Shadegg.) "I appreciate having Sen. McCain's support today because he is a long-time advocate of reform in this area," Shadegg said. "Neither of us discovered this issue in the...

Corruption Scandals Cast Shadow on GOP Leadership Race By Jonathan Weisman Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, January 30, 2006; Page A01 In eight concise paragraphs, two moderate and two conservative House Republicans put into writing last week what they say many of their colleagues quietly fear: the GOP's plunging poll numbers, rising public support for a Congress controlled by Democrats and the increasing belief among voters that the Republican Party is corrupt. House Republicans will gather Thursday to elect a successor to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) as majority leader, and the perceptions of corruption, though "neither fair nor accurate ....

Growing opposition to Rep. Roy Blunt (Mo.) among conservative bloggers threatens to generate political momentum against his campaign to permanently replace Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) as House majority leader, according to those who have studied the growing influence of alternative media in politics. A growing number of influential conservative bloggers are throwing their support behind Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.), who is also running for majority leader, while Blunt is drawing negative reviews. Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), the third candidate in the race, is receiving a better reaction from conservative bloggers than Blunt. But Boehner has garnered fewer accolades in the...

The editorial page of The Washington Times has reviewed the interest-group and ideological ratings and rankings of the three Republican House members -- John Boehner of Ohio (first elected in 1990), John Shadegg of Arizona (1994) and Roy Blunt of Missouri (1996) -- seeking the post of House majority leader, which Tom DeLay permanently vacated recently. >snip Mr. Shadegg, who has compiled five 100% ratings in 10 years from the American Conservative Union (ACU), has a lifetime ACU rating of 97.6. With four 100% ratings over 14 years, Mr. Boehner's lifetime ACU rating is 93.4. Mr. Blunt, who has received...

Politicians are in the habit of believing that there is a legislative solution to every problem. For example, if some undesirable behaviour is prevalent, make it illegal, and no-one will do it right? Wrong, obviously. When something is already illegal and people do it anyway, pass a new law to make it even more illegal. Yeah, right. That always works. And so it is with allegations of legislative corruption. What is needed is new laws to stop people offering bribes to legislators. Except that offering bribes to legislators is already illegal, and people do it anyway. The sad thing is,...

With little more than a week to go before House Republicans elect a successor to Rep. Tom DeLay (R.-Tex) as their majority leader, Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona gained major momentum. In just the last 24 hours, the House Policy Committee chairman and favorite of conservative activists won the nomination of four colleagues—two of whom are not exactly considered conservatives of the Shadegg-Newt Gingrich stripe. Yesterday, Rep. Charles Bass (R.-NH), a well-known moderate GOPer, weighed in for Shadegg for leader in the contest against Majority Whip Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Rep. John Boehner (Oh.). “I want moderate Republicans to understand...

The Republican Congress can’t seem to touch health care without making America sick. While Health Savings Accounts are a recent plus, the long-feared Medicare drug benefit premiered January 1 to widespread panic. Seniors are confused and frustrated, while fiscal conservatives stand aghast as tax dollars fly from the Treasury like bats fleeing a cave. Congress can redeem itself with a simple and cost-free cure rather than an elaborate and expensive complication. The Health Care Choice Act, sponsored by Rep. John Shadegg (R., Ariz.) and Sen. Jim DeMint (R., S.C.), would let American consumers purchase health insurance across state lines, just...

“We said it wouldn’t be politics as usual, and we’ve got to deliver.” That is what newly elected Rep. John Shadegg (R.-Ariz.) told the National Journal in February 1995, the first time in 40 years a Republican majority had controlled the House of Representatives. Since then many of Shadegg’s GOP colleagues have fully assimilated to Washington’s spendthrift political culture, making their peace with big government. Not Shadegg. This is why Human Events endorses Shadegg’s bid to become the new majority leader in the House of Representatives. Of the three candidates running for the job—Representatives Roy Blunt (R.-Mo.), John Boehner (R.-Ohio)...

Your opponents for the majority leadership voted for the Medicare prescription drug plan and the No Child Left Behind education program, both of which President Bush pushed hard for. You voted against both. As majority leader, could you actually stand up against a Republican President if he tried to push through another program that you opposed because it expanded government in an unwarranted way? Rep. John Shadegg: The answer to that question is: Yes. I think the sentiment of the Congress has changed. Many members of the House now recognize that we need to define ourselves as opposed to the...

A choice, not an echo By Colin McNickle TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, January 22, 2006 John Shadegg has written his Republican Party leadership obituary. At least in this Republican Party. The Arizona congressman, a dark-horse candidate to become House majority leader, has invoked the "G"-word in a GOP that, for the most part, treats the principles of Barry Goldwater like a teenage girl treats a fresh pimple on prom night. That would be with disdain and derision. What a shame. Not for Rep. Shadegg, mind you; but for real Republicans, true conservatives and a badly wanting country.

1.19.2006 The Congressman Has No Clothes Rep. Roy Blunt, the man who wants to succeed Tom DeLay as House Majority Leader, wrote an editorial in today’s Wall Street Journal entitled: “Our Record of Accomplishment Speaks for Itself.” He was referring to House Republicans and he was not being facetious. Something is rotten in Denmark folks. “I'm proud of what House Republicans have accomplished on this front over the last several years,” Blunt writes. Hmmm? As House Minority Whip, surely Mr. Blunt cannot be proud of presiding over the $27 billion in earmarks that weaseled their way into appropriations bills last...

With three lawmakers vying for House majority leader, the battle is coming down to which one can persuade his Republican colleagues that he can lift the cloud of corruption threatening GOP control of Congress in midterm elections.Until this week, it looked as if acting majority leader Roy Blunt (R) of Missouri may have had the votes to lock up the race. But a surprise endorsement on Thursday by Rep. Mike Pence (R) of Indiana, who heads the Republican Study Group, the largest group in the GOP caucus, also signaled that key conservative votes are in play - and that reform...

Ronald Reagan ran for President to change America. In the end, he changed the world. Today, on the 25th Anniversary of his Inauguration, we should remember his legacy and remind ourselves that what brings Republicans together is far stronger than what pulls us apart. When we are the party of ideas, we win because our ideas are better. As Republicans, we believe in a smaller, more efficient federal government, returning power to the states, lower taxes, and individual freedom. None of these beliefs is shared by our Democrat colleagues, who continue to rely on old-fashioned, big government solutions to every...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Arizona Rep. John Shadegg's longshot bid to become the No. 2 GOP leader in the House got a boost Thursday when he was endorsed by the leader of a group of more than 100 conservative lawmakers. "We need leadership with the energy and vision to steer this Congress back to our roots of fiscal discipline, limited government and traditional values," said Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, chairman of the Republican Study Committee. More than one-half of the 110-member committee had endorsed a candidate in the race to succeed Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, as majority leader. About 40...

FORGET MAGAZINES AND EDITORIAL PAGES. The only endorsements that really matter in the GOP House leadership contest are those from the members themselves, especially the members with clout. Two such Republicans are Jim Sensenbrenner, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Mike Pence, head of the conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC), both of whom endorsed Arizona congressman John Shadegg this week. Shadegg, an erstwhile chief of both the RSC and (more recently) the Republican Policy Committee, remains a dark horse--but he's gaining steam. "The 'Big Mo' is on our side," says one pro-Shadegg Republican.The timing of Pence's public support came...

Indiana Congressman Mike Pence has just endorsed Arizona Congressman John Shadegg for Majority Leader. Pence is the chairman of the 110 member Republican Study Committee and Human Events' 2005 "Man of the Year." www.mikepence.com

WASHINGTON--Ten years ago, the American people put Republicans in control of the House of Representatives for the first time in more than 40 years. It was a historic achievement, made possible because we stood for the principles the American people believed in: smaller government, returning power to the states, lower taxes, greater individual freedom and--above all--reform. Some Republican leaders in the House seem to have lost sight of those principles, though the American people still believe in them. Meanwhile, Americans are sick of scandals. To fully regain their confidence--and to retain and grow the Republican majority--we need to make a...

The Wall Street Journal recently leveled a devastatingly accurate assessment of congressional Republicans: "House Republicans have become more passionate about retaining power than in using that power to change or limit the federal government ... a strategy (that) has maintained a narrow majority, but at the cost of doing anything substantial." The Journal was exactly right that Republican leaders "have become ever more preoccupied with process, money and incumbency," a frame of mind in which ideas are an afterthought when not actually an inconvenience. That's why it was so encouraging when Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., threw his hat into the...

When Rep. John Shadegg jumped into the race for House majority leader last week, he called himself a "Reaganite" who would bring back the Gipper's vision of limited government. Rep. John Boehner, also running for majority leader, is sounding a similar note, quoting the 40th president extensively in his 37-page proposal on how to get the party back on track. It's telling that now, five years into the second Bush presidency, conservatives are still looking for the next Ronald Reagan to champion their ideas in Washington. Both Messrs. Boehner and Shadegg are promising to bring Reagan back because over the...

The Wall Street Journal recently leveled a devastatingly accurate assessment of congressional Republicans: "House Republicans have become more passionate about retaining power than in using that power to change or limit the federal government ... a strategy (that) has maintained a narrow majority, but at the cost of doing anything substantial." The Journal was exactly right that Republican leaders "have become ever more preoccupied with process, money and incumbency," a frame of mind in which ideas are an afterthought when not actually an inconvenience. That's why it was so encouraging when Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., threw his hat into the...

Since John Shadegg got into the House majority-leader race Friday, his supporters have been wondering, "Where is Mike Pence?" Pence heads the Republican Study Committee, the conservative caucus once led by Shadegg. Pence became a hero for conservatives around the country with his Operation Offset that called for spending cuts along with the massive new federal spending associated with Katrina, and his endorsement of Shadegg would be a significant boost for the underdog candidate. But Pence has been mum. National Review Online spoke to him yesterday in what he says is his first interview since Shadegg's entry. Even though Shadegg...

HH [Hugh Hewitt]: One of the men who would replace Tom Delay is the Congressman from the 3rd District in Arizona, John Shadegg, originally elected in the landslide year of 1994. He is now contending with Roy Blunt of Missouri, and John Boehner of Ohio, to be the new majority leader. I'm pleased to welcome John Shadegg to the Hugh Hewitt Show. Congressman, great to have you on. JS [John Shadegg]: It's great to be on. Thank you for the opportunity. Great to be with you. HH: Congressman, I want to start with Abramoff, because it matters so much, and...

Conservatives now have a chance to take back the House. The era when Republicans promised to make government smaller and smarter by abolishing hundreds of obsolete federal agencies seems a distant memory now in this era of Bridges to Nowhere. In the last five years, Republicans have enacted the largest increase in entitlement spending in three decades, doubled the education budget, nearly tripled the number of earmarked spending projects.....