The Pander Problem

The following unsolicited testimonial previously was written by Dorothy F. Keys:


"Have you ever noticed that, when the subject of politicians comes up, people immediately voice negative thoughts?

It may be that many seek political office for all the wrong reasons--power, prestige, personal agendas, etc.

And, when the less-than-sincere politician is exposed, we are quick to voice our unfavorable opinion.

Conversely, how often do we voice our enthusiasm or praise hard-working civil servants?

Is it any wonder when many are asked to consider running for political office, the response is "absolutely not!"?

The harsh criticism, scrutiny, unfair attacks, and unrealistic expectations that are virtually unavoidable in the current political landscape would cause many of us to turn away from contributing in this way.

My question today is, How do we promote and encourage good people, those with ethics and a sincere desire to preserve our rights, to run for office?

We only can do this by supporting those who do serve with our best interest in mind and by voicing the positive.

For that purpose, I write today to strongly encourage voters to support Delegate Larry D. Kump of the 59th District in the Eastern Panhandle.

Having known Larry for 25 years, I can personally attest to his integrity, personal accountability, work ethic, love of liberty, and sincere desire to preserve the fundamental rights afforded to us by our Constitution.

Larry is not your run-of-the mill politician.

He understands his role and takes seriously his responsibility in being the voice of the citizens he represents at the State House.

Larry listens to his constituents and is not afraid to take on the establishment.

He will not pander for votes and is not self-serving.

He is genuinely interested in preserving our freedoms, fighting for our rights, and giving his all regardless of what personal criticism he may face from the opposition, even within his own political party.

How I wish we had more politicians like Larry!

And maybe that is possible IF we show our support for Larry, vote for him, acknowledge the excellent job he has done in representing West Virginians, and thereby encourage others with this same selflessness to run for office.

A vote for Larry is a vote for what is best for West Virginians!

Let's all do our part!"

West Virginia Gun Rights Endorsement

Dear Friends,

It's not often that the National Association for Gun Rights praises politicians for their actions.

The truth is, many supposedly "pro-gun" politicians want to wave the white flag and just accept President Obama’s anti-gun agenda.

But in West Virginia, thanks to your phone calls and emails, 6 Delegates took a firm stand for gun rights: Mike Folk, Larry Kump, Jim Butler, Larry Faircloth, Cindy Frich and Eric Householder.

As you know, these Delegates introduced HB 4472, the Firearms Protection bill to safeguard the Second Amendment rights of West Virginia citizens from anti-gun zealot Michael Bloomberg and President Obama.

But what you don't know is how leadership in both parties made personal attacks on the sponsors of HB 4472 and demanded they help kill their own bill.

Or how establishment gun groups cut dirty deals and joined party leadership in trying to punish supporters of this strongly pro-gun bill.

That's why West Virginia Gun Rights, and our friends at the National Association for Gun Rights, mobilized thousands of West Virginians in support of HB 4472.

And thanks to your calls to action, bill sponsor Mike Folk and the 5 co-sponsors stood up to Obama and moved the bill forward.

They forced the bill to a vote and every Delegate in West Virginia is now on record.

The bad news is the bill was defeated by a vote of 90-10, so now we know who is genuinely pro-gun, and not just a dimestore cowboy.

This is a huge step toward protecting the state from Obama and Bloomberg’s radical anti-gun agenda.

...

For Liberty,


Mark Nelson
Executive Director, West Virginia Gun Rights

Positive Logic vs. Chaos

A letter to the editor, previously was published in "TheJournal" newspaper in Martinsburg, West Virginia:

by David L. Woods, Hedgesville, West Virginia

I've long wondered how one qualifies to endorse any political candidate. Yet if one has visited all 50 states (while living in a scattered dozen), before settling for two decades in West Virginia, as I have - one might qualify as knowing our nation.

Or if one had worked his way through a number of colleges and universities earning an AB, MA, MBA and Phd., and later taught communication and management (mostly as adjunct professor in more than a half-dozen major universities for 50 years) - one might qualify as knowing academics.

And if one began work as a printer's devil at 14, enlisting in the Naval Reserve at 17, serving nearly 40 years, retiring as a captain, also retiring as a Navy civilian director, while serving as Washington D.C., professional for 31 years - one might qualify as knowing American government.

Meeting these three standards, I've chosen to submit this endorsement of my local West Virginia delegate, Larry Kump - one of the finest men I've ever known, and a true representative dedicated to serving the interests of all his neighbors (rather than pet personal projects).

Larry's open mind, his grasp of logic in the midst of chaos and his constant optimistic drive to make things better for all of us - seem to set him apart from fellow politicians.

We are indeed fortunate in our Hedgesville district to have a representative like Larry - truly qualified to represent us as state delegate!

Deeper Down the Rabbit Hole

Lewis Carrol would not have been surprised to see the West Virginia State Legislature dive "down the rabbit hole" during the 2014 Session, which was twice extended, and then immediately followed by an extraordinary special session.

As the Governor continued to ponder a veto of Pro-Life and 2nd amendment bills passed by the Legislature, the State Budget was a major source of legislative angst.

In order to meet our Constitutional requirement to balance the budget, the Legislature finally dipped into our "Rainy Day Fund" to meet that mandate.

What does that say about West Virginia's future?

Instead of seizing the opportunity to address bloated bureaucracy and run away entitlement spending, the Legislature instead obsessed about a huge pay raise for county elected officials and defending more "business as usual".

One Delegate did admit "disappointment", but another Delegate (from the Eastern Panhandle) quickly and defiantly counter-claimed that he is "proud".

Me?

I'm mostly embarrassed.

What about all of those otherwise overlooked and forgotten legislative proposals to lift West Virginia out of our national bottom ranking in regard to personal prosperity, individual liberty, and job growth?

Will Mountaineer voters endorse more of these same shenanigans in our 2014 elections?

Footnote: Contributions for the re-election of Delegate Kump should be sent to "Friends of Larry D. Kump". P.O. Box 1131, Falling Waters, West Virginia 25419-1131.

The Right Stuff

Thanks Jodie.

It really is a sacrifice, as well as a privilege, to serve.
I worry most about just doing what's right.

Larry

-----Original Message-----

Dear Larry,

...I think you found your true calling.

Imagine - an honest politician.

Jodie

Down the West Virginia Rabbit Hole

It's Wednesday morning, March 12th, and it looks as if that West Virginia state legislators may be held over here in a special session until Friday, maybe longer.

Confusion stalks the Democrat majority, and there seems to be conflict between the Democrat leadership in the House of Delegates and the Senate, as the Budget continues to be a major point of contention.

Meanwhile, the Governor ponders a veto of both pro-life and 2nd Amendment bills that have been passed by the Legislature.

It now appears certain that the Legislature will continue spending pretty much as usual, requiring dipping into the previously established "Rainy Day Fund", in order to meet our Constitutional mandate to balance the budget. How big of a dip is the question, and what does that say about West Virginia's future?

Speaking of dippy, the Senate President has been strangely advocating the resurrection of the consideration a of huge pay raise for county elected officials.

And, will the "Sudafed" prescription controversy once again find its way back into legislative contention?

Finally, what about all those overlooked and forgotten proposals to lift West Virginia out of our bottom ranking in regard to personal prosperity and economic growth?

And so it goes.

Sharon has a Clue

Dear Larry,
I wish we had more people like you running for office.

Hang in there, it must be a daunting task working in the legislative arena.

It amazes and scares me that many of our leaders are so clueless.

Take care.
Sharon Martin

P.S.: I like the way you think.

Legislative Review Proposed on Property Rights

 The West Virginia Legislature did not resolve ongoing residential property rights conflicts and hardships during this session, but the issue continues to be under review.

 To that end, I have drafted and submitted House Concurrent Resolution # 133.

 This resolution requests that a post legislative session interim  review by the Legislature's Joint Committee on Government & Finance "study the impact upon property rights of owners whose residences are being mandated to connect to public sewer systems, including, but not limited to, comparing findings across West Virginia to examine the need for standards regarding conflicts between private property owners and public service districts, examining the feasibility of implementing a dispute resolution process, examining the appointment and oversight of public service district board members and examining the Public Service District Sewer Ordinances of Jefferson County as potential model standards.".

 HCR 133, if approved by legislative leaders of the House of Delegates and Senate, would establish that:

" * The Legislature recognizes the paramount importance of private property as one of our essential rights; and
 
 * The Legislature and the courts of West Virginia agree that this important right should be protected; and

 * The Legislature recognizes that private property rights may only yield to overwhelming public need; and

 * The Legislature recently has been reminded of the need for diverse water and waste services; and

 * The Legislature seeks to address the need to bring the procedures of mandatory subscription to sewer services in line with best practices in order to achieve maximal results for our children and families; and

 * A greater benefit would accrue to the public if the issues surrounding private property rights and public sewer systems were examined."

 A post legislative session decision by legislative leaders of the West Virginia House of Delegates and Senate on whether or not to authorize this interim legislative study with be forthcoming at a later date.  
 

Snafu!

  "SNAFU" (Situation Normal - All Fouled Up) has been the mantra, in the soon to be concluded session of the West Virginia Legislature. 

 

 In the last few days of the session and before the final decision will be made on legislative approval of bills that have been contested between the House of Delegates and the Senate, here's just a couple more examples of what the two chambers of our Legislature thought was important:

 

 HB 4490 was passed by the House of Delegates. It is an attempt to hobble the Constitutional authority of our Attorney General to represent us on behalf of our 2nd Amendment rights, energy needs, consumer complaints, and much more.

 

 SB 6 was passed by the Senate. It is an attempt to crack down on illegal "Meth" drug manufacture, with a well intentioned but ill-conceived proposal to force law abiding citizens to get a doctor's prescription for over-the-counter "Sudafed" cold medication.  

 

 The Legislature also will be continuing, beyond the Midnight Saturday adjournment, with an extended session to pass the final West Virginia budget.

 

 This budget will include more welfare programs, state funding of Obamacare, and continued authorization to abort the lives of unborn children.  

 

 What about the multitude of legislative proposals to increase our economic prosperity, decrease bureaucratic regulations, and protect our individual liberty?

  Why were most of these good governance proposals not even given committee hearings and votes by the leadership in the House of Delegates and Senate?

 

 Inquiring minds want to know.