As always, meetings take place every Monday at the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille located at 911 East Morehead Street in Charlotte. The meetings are from 6:00 to 7:30, with a social hour in advance. Please join us!

~CAUTION Leadership Team

Possible Action Items:

Charlotte Matters is proud to announce THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION (Heritage Action for America) and AMERICAN MAJORITY will be in Charlotte on WEDNESDAY, MAY 23RD at The Big View Diner (16637 Lancaster Hwy Charlotte, NC 28277, corner of Ardrey Kell & Johnston). We will be learning about the awesome new technology called “GRAVITY” developed just for conservative activists. Registration and dinner begin at 6:15pm and the presentations begin at 7:00pm. (Dinner is available to purchase from a limited menu.)
Click on the link below to see a short video on this unbelievable new tool!
GRAVITY: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuBq2OfspyQ
Click Here for free registration:
http://americanmajority.org/events/charlotte-nc-activist-training/

Mecklenburg Evening Republican Women’s Club will be meeting Tuesday May 15th from 6 to 8 at Red Rocks Café. Featured will be Karen Duquette of the Civitas Institute speaking on “Does Obama Care: the consequences of The Affordable Health Care Act”. Also speaking will be Ada Fisher, NC Republican Committeewoman speaking on “News from the Republican National Committee”. If you want to go please R.S.V.P. to Susan Spaulding: spauldingone@yahoo.com

Charlotte City Council has a Budget Adjustments meeting scheduled for Wednesday May 16th at 3:00. Good chance to see where the City is progressing on the Budget & your property taxes, if you can get involved.

North Mecklenburg Republican Women will have their next meeting on Tuesday June 12th at 6 to 8 PM located at NorthStone Club, 15801 NorthStone Drive, Huntersville. For info contact: Mary Lou Richardson at nomeckrw@gmail.com

Greetings! Our regular meetings take place every Monday at the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille located at 911 East Morehead Street in Charlotte. The meetings are from 6:00 to 7:30, with a social hour in advance.  Due to the election on Tuesday, and many volunteers working last minute campaign duties, CAUTION will have a Movie Night.  Come and be inspired by the greatest American President of the 20th Century as we prepare to defeat the worst of the 21st Century as we watch “Ronald Reagan: An American Journey”!  Please join us!

CAUTION is in the news again!
In a recent article from the Observer regarding the District 9 Congressional race, our group and our own Dennis Peterson get a mention.  Check out the article HERE.

~The CAUTION Leadership Team

As we prepare to vote, a reminder from the Declaration of Independence:
We hold these truths to be self evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness – That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the Goverened, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall deem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.  Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established, shall not be changed for light and transient Causes; and accordingly all Experience hath shewn, that Mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the Forms to which they are accustomed.

Reminder to vote in the Primary on May 8, 2012

Confused on whom to vote for in Council of State races?  Confused on whom to vote for in other State races? Civitas has polled the candidates to help.  Just go to the below link (If they did NOT answer, then that IS an answer):
http://www.nccivitas.org/2012/candidatesurveyresponses/

This is a John Locke analysis of the District 9 candidates
http://charlotte.johnlocke.org/blog/?p=18085#.T5ml_wAmiaA.email

Possible Action Items:

Charlotte City Council has a Budget Adjustments meeting scheduled for Wednesday May 16^th at 3:00.  Good chance to see where the City is progressing on the Budget & your property taxes, if you can get involved.

North Mecklenburg Republican Women will have their next meeting on Tuesday June 12^th at 6 to 8 PM located at NorthStone Club, 15801 NorthStone Drive, Huntersville.  For info contact: Mary Lou Richardson at nomeckrw@gmail.com

Interested in showing your support for the NC Voter Photo ID?
Civitas has a campaign to push our Legislators to take this up again.
They will need:
Name / Address/ E-mail / Signature (required to process)
Scan and e-mail to: voterid@nccivitas.org

~The CAUTION Leadership Team

Confused on whom to vote for in Council of State races?  Confused on whom to vote for in other State races? Civitas has polled the candidates to help.  Just go to the below link (If they did NOT answer, then that IS an answer):
http://www.nccivitas.org/2012/candidatesurveyresponses/

This is a John Locke analysis of the District 9 candidates
http://charlotte.johnlocke.org/blog/?p=18085#.T5ml_wAmiaA.email

Info on the NC House of Representatives /NC Senate: via Bill Brawley & Phil Berger:

Originating in the Senate is the “Excellent Public Schools Act”.  This Bill includes the end of Tenure and the movement to a Pay for Performance system.  Here are a few of the bill’s highlights:
Fourth grade is typically when students stop learning to read and start reading to learn.  Those who can’t make this foundational shift are far less likely to finish high school. The Excellent Public Schools Act ends the irresponsible promotion of third-grade students who aren’t reading at grade level, and creates new reading-intensive instruction. These changes allow us to build upon the progress made in last year’s bipartisan budget, which funded more than 1,000 additional teachers in the early grades.
Students with the best teachers learn more. This bill requires local school leaders to craft plans to pay teachers based on merit and effectiveness (pay for performance). The bill will also establish a North Carolina Teacher Corps program – modeled on Teach for America – that will give recent college graduates and mid-career professionals a direct path to teach in disadvantaged areas.
Administrators not only should reward excellence – they should be empowered to remove the handful of under performing teachers from the classroom if they don’t improve. By granting job security to all who teach a few years (tenure), the current system rewards mediocrity and punishes excellence. Under the new plan, teachers will have annual contracts renewed based on performance.
Right now, you probably can’t tell if a school is failing or succeeding. They should be graded A-F, just like you were when you attended school. This transparency will help officials and parents challenge complacency and encourage improvements.

The Senate has approved and SB 731 is now in the House.  This Bill prevents “city appearance standards”.  Research is being done on this to see if it is related to AGENDA 21.

Bill Brawley is sponsoring a House Bill to make it easier to sell the over 2,000 parcels of unused land bordering roadways (1 to 4 acres) which are now having to be maintained by the Department of Transportation.

The House is studying how to move the Asheville Zoo Society to a greater percentage of Private Funding under the current Public/Private arrangement.  This is currently in the Public/Private Partnership Commission.

Charlotte City Council Need to Hear OUR Voices!
Please see the following request from Bob Diamond Precinct Organization Chairman:
Andy Dulin and Warren Cooksey have asked for everyone who can to show up with signs that say ‘Don’t Raise My Taxes;’ or whatever you’re comfortable with, at every City Council meeting for the next month.  Andy and Warren are the only ones on City Council who will be voting against the 9 percent city tax increase. The liberal members of the Charlotte City Council have bowed to that kind of pressure in the past.

Please come if you can. Bring as many friends as possible.  Thank you for your help.

Possible Action Items:

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus will be at the Mecklenburg GOP Headquarters this Tuesday, May 1, at 9:30am.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/events/319382228135749/

Interested in showing your support for the NC Voter Photo ID?
Civitas has a campaign to push our Legislators to take this up again.
They will need:
Name / Address / E-mail / Signature (required to process)
Scan and e-mail to: voterid@nccivitas.org

Do you have a hunger for the Constitution?  Hillsdale College has a class that is required to graduate, but you can take it for free!  Take it for a grade or just audit it.  Either way you win.  The next class will start in about 1 week.  Go to:
http://www.rushforhillsdale.com/

Tonight, CAUTION is going to take a break from discussing the issues of the election to perform a history lesson. Mel Morganstein is going to educate us on the origins of Earth Day and Dennis Peterson is going to compare that to how Arbor Day was founded.

Also, we will get updates from those that attended BlogConCLT Charlotte, the 9th Congressional District Convention, the Charlotte Matters Fundraiser with Jason Lewis, and other events.

And we will share our favorite Obama dog recipes…

Our regular meetings take place every Monday at the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille located at 911 East Morehead Street in Charlotte. The meetings are from 6:00 to 7:30, with a social hour in advance.

~The CAUTION Leadership Team

*************************************************************************************************************

Confused on whom to vote for in Council of State races?  Confused on whom to vote for in other State races? Civitas has polled the candidates to help.  Just go to the below link (If they did NOT answer, then that IS an answer):
http://www.nccivitas.org/2012/candidatesurveyresponses/

Possible Action Items:

Mecklenburg County Young Republicans have their monthly meeting this Tuesday April 24th at Dilworth Neighborhood Grill from 6:30 to 8 PM.  They will host a 9th Congressional District Debate that will start at 7 and is hosted by Bill Brawley.

SMART (South Mecklenburg Alliance of Responsible Taxpayers) will have their monthly meeting on April 26th from 6:00 to 8:00 at the Raintree Country Club.  They will be hosting a non-partisan Meet the Candidates Forum.

Fredrick Douglass Foundation has their monthly meeting on Thursday, April 26th.  Director Earl Phillip says it should be a “good meeting”.
For more info go to:  http://www.facebook.com/events/238618859570257/

Southern Mecklenburg Republican Club will hold their monthly meeting on Thursday April 26th at 6:30.  It is held at Harpers Restaurant located at Carolina Place Parkway.

North Mecklenburg Republican Women will have their next meeting on Tuesday May 8th at 6 to 8 PM located at NorthStone Club, 15801 NorthStone Drive, Huntersville.  For info contact: Mary Lou Richardson at nomeckrw@gmail.com

Interested in showing your support for the NC Voter Photo ID?
Civitas has a campaign to push our Legislators to take this up again.
They will need:
Name
Address
E-mail
Signature (required to process)
Scan and e-mail to: voterid@nccivitas.org

Do you have a hunger for the Constitution?  Hillsdale College has a class that is required to graduate, but you can take it for free!  Take it for a grade or just audit it.  Either way you win.  The next class will start in about 1 week.  Go to:
http://www.rushforhillsdale.com/

Reminder to vote in the Primary on May 8, 2012

Greetings! 

We have a full lineup at CAUTION tonight and hope you can join us!  We’ll be conducting a brief rundown of both sides of the Amendment One debate with a couple guest speakers, listening to a presentation on the Federal Reserve by Terry McIntyre, and several candidates have indicated a desire to meet our group.
 
As always, our regular meetings take place every Monday at the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille located at 911 East Morehead Street in Charlotte. The meetings are from 6:00 to 7:20, with a social hour in advance.  See you there!
 
Continuing from last weeks newsletter, we’ll round out the Council of State positions we’ll be voting for on May 8^th, and provide some upcoming events you may find interesting.
 
Focus item for this week:
North Carolina Council of State: Continued…

State Treasurer

                                Currently (D) Janet Cowell
 
Duties include:
Banker for the State of North Carolina
Chief Investment Officer ($74B in assets)
Manages the State Pension Fund / 401K for public employees
Oversees State / Local debt
Works with Bond Rating agencies
Administers the State Disability program
Chair Person of the NC Banking Commission
 
Serves on the State Board of Education (along with Lieutenant Governor)
Serves on the Board of Community Colleges (along with Lieutenant Governor)

Superintendent of Public Instruction

                                Currently (D) June Atkinson
 
Duties Include:
Implements public school laws and policies
Administers a $9 Billion budget from state and federal funds
Oversees the curriculum / instruction / testing operations
Serves on the State Board of Education (along with Lieutenant Governor)

 Commissioner of Insurance

                                Currently (D) Wayne Goodwin
 
Duties Include:
Regulation of the insurance industry
Issues licenses for industry professionals
Provides insurance education
Handles consumer complaints
Oversees the Office of NC State Fire Marshall
Administers the NC Workers Compensation Act / Tort Claim Act / Childhood Vaccine-Related Injury Act

Commissioner of Labor

                                Currently (R) Cherie Berry
 
Duties include:
Inspections of elevators / amusement devices
Oversees safety in the workplace rules / regulation
Enforces State OSHA compliance
Record keeping on worker safety issues
 
Commissioner of Agriculture

                                Currently (R) Steve Troxler
 
Duties include:
Provides service to the farm industry and agribusiness
Meat and poultry inspections
Food and drug safety programs
Oversees veterinary regulations
Operates / manages the State Fair / Mountain State fair / Five state farmers markets
Can provide help in a natural emergency
 
 
Confused on whom to vote for in Council of State races?  Confused on whom to vote for in other State races? Civitas has polled the candidates to help.  Just go to the below link (If they did NOT answer, then that IS an answer):
http://www.nccivitas.org/2012/candidatesurveyresponses/
 
 
Possible Action Items:
 
MERWC – Mecklenburg Evening Republican Woman’s Club is having their monthly meeting on April 17^th @ Red Rock Café featuring Key Note Speaker Earl Phillips of the Fredrick Douglass Foundation.  In addition the District 5 County Commissioner Candidates will be on hand.  Join them from 6 to 8.
 
SMART – South Mecklenburg Alliance of Responsible Taxpayers will have their monthly meeting on April 26^th at 6:00 at the Raintree Country Club.
 
The Ballantyne Breakfast Club had a standing room only crowd this past Saturday at an info session on the possible Town of Providence/Ballantyne.  Legislators attending included State Senator Bob Rucho and State Representative Bill Brawley.  PLEASE see Jay Privette at the Monday CAUTION meeting for more details!
 
Fredrick Douglass Foundation has their monthly meeting on Thursday, April 26^th.  Director Earl Phillip says it should be a “good meeting”. 
For more info go to:  http://www.facebook.com/events/238618859570257/
 
Interested in showing your support for the NC Voter Photo ID?
Civitas has a campaign to push our Legislators to take this up again.
They will need:
Name
Address
E-mail
Signature (required to process)
Scan and e-mail to: voterid@nccivitas.org

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/04/02/3146692/no-more-debt-gop-hopefuls-for.html#storylink=cpy#storylink=cpy

CAUTION President Dennis Peterson voiced his excitement for the event, “We reached out to all of the candidates in this race, regardless of Party, and are very pleased that nine out of the eleven Republican candidates have agreed to join us.  That is terrific for our membership and I think that it shows the level of respect our organization is achieving in this community.”

With 13 candidates vying for the open seat created by the announcement of Rep. Sue Myrick’s retirement, CAUTION believes it is important for voters to hear from the candidates who are asking for their vote. Having the candidates side-by-side and answering a variety of questions will help voters determine the candidate that best reflects their values.

The participating candidates are:

Andy Dulin, Jon Gauthier, Ric Killian, Ken Leonczyk, Richard Lynch, Edwin Peacock, Jim Pendergraph, Michael Shaffer, and Mike Steinberg.

Republican candidates Dan Barry and Robert Pittenger and Libertarian candidate Curtis Campbell expressed their regret of prior commitments.  Democrat candidate Jennifer Roberts did not respond to communication.

###

March 27, 1:00

Americans for Prosperity – Hands Off My Health Care Rally to The Supreme Court, DC

Bus Fare: $15, Buses leaving from 12 NC locations.

March marks an important and unfortunate anniversary. It will have been two years since President Obama forced his unpopular health care takeover onto the American people. Americans for Prosperity has educated the public about the dangers of government interference in the health care market for the past several years and now the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments and make a ruling on that very issue.

The U.S. Supreme Court will be considering the constitutionality of several elements of the President’s health care bill. This may be our best chance to overturn this offense against our health care freedoms. That’s why Americans for Prosperity will be hosting a Hands Off My Health Care rally for free-market grassroots activists from North Carolina and across the country near the Supreme Court on March 27th.

Buses will be leaving from these NC locations the day of the event: Bolivia, Charlotte, Fayetteville, Goldsboro, Greensboro, Raleigh, Rocky Mount, Sanford, Southern Pines, Wake Forest, Wilmington and Wilson.

For more information visit www.HandsOffMyHealthcare.com or call(919)839-1011

March 29, 4:00-7:00

Concord Bridge Consulting, Tim Daughtry

“Waking the Sleeping Giant” Conference

Greensboro, NC

$50 includes workshop and workbook

For more information contact tdaughtry@concordbridgeconsulting.com

March 31, 7:00am-2:30

Concerned Women for America, Stand Strong Together Conference

First Baptist Church, Charlotte, NC

Free event, $7 box if you want it.

Registration closes March 21

For more information contact director@northcarolina.cwfa.org

We will examine the role of pastors, church leaders, congregations, ministries and coalitions in influencing public policy.

STAND STRONG TOGETHER will examine the legal, theological and practical questions concerning our influence in our churches, communities, elections, legislature and more. There will also be a time of prayer, fellowship and networking.

Earlier this week, we were saddened to learn that our dear friend D.J. Wilson had passed away in her home.

This amazing woman was a dedicated servant leader; never stingy with her time, always available for a kind word or a warm hug, and will truly be missed by the many organizations and individuals she touched.

This Monday, CAUTION will forgo our regular political meeting and instead spend time in remembrance of one of our own.

There will be an opportunity for all to share their fond memories.

It has been requested that we all dress in her favorite color – purple.

There is an open invitation on Facebook. Please share with all those who knew D.J.

Our gathering will take place Monday, March 12, from 6:00-7:30pm at the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille.

Thank you, and God bless.

~The Caution Leadership Team

The Tea Party movement is at a crossroads.

This February marks the three-year anniversary of the Tea Party, and with the 2012 presidential election in full swing, many are wondering whether the Tea Party will be a factor in bringing down the Obama presidency and have the ability to drive real government reform. Others are wondering if the movement has run out of gas at the start of the final lap (as a Ryun, I must periodically make running analogies). In all honesty, the answer is both. The Tea Party is at a crossroads in 2012. One route will slowly take it into relative obscurity and the other can lead it to having an even greater impact than it has had already.

As part of assessing those two paths, we should take an honest look at the good, the bad, and the ugly of the Tea Party movement. First, the good: there is no doubting the impact the Tea Party movement has had on the American political landscape since its inception. How many political movements can you name that within a year and half of inception impacted national elections the way the Tea Party did in 2010—even starting in the fall of 2009 in New Jersey and Virginia? The movement hit American politics like a tsunami, creating a seismic shift in the U.S. House and at the state legislative level. The most impressive aspect of that success is that many of the Tea Partiers who came out in 2009 were for the most part new to the process, and yet 18 months later, their learning curve had accelerated enough to make a significant national political impact.

In 2011, with the work of ?Tea Party groups in Ohio, Issue 3, a state referendum on Obamacare, made the ballot with the collection of an astounding 441,000 signatures and then passed overwhelmingly on election night. That’s just one of the highlights of the movement’s progress. There are numerous examples of local groups and local leaders making change happen in their communities, with victory after victory, new leaders, voter integrity and transparency projects, and efforts to stop spending increases.

Now here’s the bad news: the Tea Partiers are losing the battle of definition. Consider the polls that deal with questions of limited government, accountable elected officials, free enterprise, and other core issues of the Tea Party movement. Most polls show support for these ideas somewhere between 60 and 70 percent. But if you add the Tea Party label to these ideals, most poll numbers will drop 15-20 points.

Recent polls show support for the Tea Party hovering around the mid-40s, demonstrating that the American people have trepidation about who and what the Tea Party is. Politics 101 is the battle of definition and the people who define themselves first typically win. The Tea Party has not won the battle of definition, and right now finds itself on the losing end of that fight.

Part of the reason it’s losing is the behavior of so-called national Tea Party groups. That brings us to “the ugly.” One of the most visible of these groups is Tea Party Express, which is just a name slapped over the Our Country Deserves Better political action committee. While it poses as a legitimate Tea Party organization, it is really nothing but a front for Russo and Associates, a group of long-time Republican consultants sitting in Sacramento, California.

Nearly 75 percent of all monies raised by the Tea Party Express ends up funneled to Russo and Associates, not the movement, making the owners of the firm a small fortune. “Express” backed some of the biggest losers of the 2010 cycle including Christine O’Donnell, Sharron Angle, and Joe Miller. They’ve blown millions on hotels, cruise ships, and dinners at five-star restaurants, all while soliciting money from the grassroots and backing candidates that will permit them to hijack their campaigns.

Recently Tea Party Express’s Co-Chairman, Amy Kremer, formerly of Tea Party Patriots, another national group, lost a lawsuit to Jenny Beth Martin and Mark Meckler of the Tea Party Patriots over email lists Kremer allegedly took when she left her previous organization. Their tempest in a teapot is made more absurd by the fact it appears they’re fighting over who will be the leader of a leaderless movement.

The Tea Party Patriots’ leadership has also been involved in cease-and-desist letters over any local group that tries to use “tea party patriot” in its name, though no one really owns that term. Another group, Tea Party Nation, was sued in July 2011 for more than $640,000 by the Venetian Resort in Las Vegas for failure to pay the monies owed for an event that was eventually canceled.

The ugly part of the movement is not confined just to the national groups, but extends to some local groups that have devolved into battles for control instead of focusing on meaningful work that brings real change. They would do well to remember the words of Reagan: “There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn’t mind who gets the credit.”

It’s time for the Tea Party to evolve and leave some of its past behavior behind. It’s time for the national groups to be forced back into the shadows in favor of the thousands of local organizations that still can make a difference. The movement always has been, and always will be, about the local leaders and groups. The national groups could go away tomorrow, and the movement would be fine. The local leaders go away, and the movement dies.

IT’S TIME FOR THE NEW conservative grassroots to grow into sturdy oaks that can shape the landscape for decades to come. The Tea Party has been more effective than many ever thought it could be, but it needs to be more than it has been since roaring onto the political stage in 2009. The movement and many of its leaders have fought their way to the front lines of American politics and have now earned the right to take command of the army.

With the conservative movement lacking real leadership and conservative institutions failing cycle after cycle to have an impact on policy, the real Tea Party has been a rare example of effectiveness in winning elections. As the major party structures have taken a back seat to more effective outside groups, the Tea Party has proven what so many have said for so long—fiscally conservative principles are American values that will resonate with the majority of voters.

Now it’s time to move beyond the money-making schemes and media hype. At a grassroots level, these now battle-hardened activists must become community leaders, candidates, and, yes, party officials. They need to focus on taking over the process in a very real way. As a force, they proved in 2010 and 2011 that they can overpower the unions and liberal groups that hijack elections across the country.

The Tea Party has been the driving force in American politics for nearly the last three years. Obama can’t make that claim. The Republicans can’t either. They wouldn’t have their majority without thousands of local Tea Party groups who mobilized to bring an end to Nancy Pelosi’s Congress.

If the Tea Party will evolve, and become sustainable with a more concise mission (we’re taking over the local city council vs. we just want more freedom) and ability to fundraise, it can and will be a force beyond 2012. The Tea Party must become that slow-burning coal fire, hot and steady. But if it cannot get past the negative impressions and the internal dissension, it will become nothing but a footnote in American history.