Why I'm Here

[Gaye Ellis]

The reason that I joined this network is to try to gain insight into why blacks become Republicans. I was just elected Republican Executive Committee Chair of my county and part of my job will be outreach. Currently, we have only 17 of 56 precincts represented, so you see the need to recruit precinct leaders.

Not sure what I expected, but reading through the posts, the rhetoric of the mainstream media is evident - that Beck and Limbaugh are racist - and it surprises and disheartens.

As you know, the GOP as a whole is in disarray. My county GOP has become a social club with endless luncheons and dinners, where the choir talks amongst themselves. When the past Chair gave me the "stuff" that went with the job, there was An Open Letter to the Republican Party that said that, though we perform charitable works as individuals, we don't do it in the name of the party. It continues saying that many in the minority community don't respond to Reagan's assertion that "the best anti-poverty program is a job" because they have not had any real-life experience that shows them how to get a good job - that perhaps we could hold workshops on how to write a resume, how to interview for a job, how to keep a job, etc. This must be done in the party name.

This was the example that the letter gave - I'm sure there are other ways to reach out. Frankly, the GOP is scared of it's own shadow right now, having run a Democrat-lite candidate that could not articulate core conservative principles, because he didn't feel them in his gut. The choice was absolutely clear to those who are engaged, but there are so many who are not.

I'm a white woman who's here to learn, if you'll have me.

[Martin Harkless]

Gaye,

Here's why I vote republican. As a former Democrat, from a family of democrats, I saw many inconsistencies from what be prayed on Sunday and voted for on Tuesday. Also I've had a rough life, lost my parents early, was raised by relatives, and joined the military, I realized along the way that the things I worked for were always the best. I also learned my Decisions could shape my outcome. So I got tired of the lefts victim mentality, and desire to always blame someone else. While I realize there are racial challenges in America, some evident others not so evident, I have traveled the world, and I feel that this country still offers the best chance at success. So my mentality no longer fits that of the typical African American Democrat.

I see the jar half full and i believe that if a person gets the right knowledge and wisdom their success cannot be stopped. I see where my people make bad choices that limit their future and then blame others for the lack of success. I'd like to change that.

I hope this helps

Martin Harkless
USMC MSgt ret
Www.mharkless.igniteinc.biz

[jack thomas]

Gaye...I appreciate your efforts to "help" the poor souls in the Black community but the first thing you must deal with is the naked truth that people like Glenn Beck , Shawn Hannity ,  Rush Limpballs , Ann Coulter etc are nothing but racists..And when a party insults Black people , tries to suppress the vote of Black people , disrespects the Black president , supports the racist tea party mvement , and offers no solutions to help the country , why do you think Black people and other minority groups don't support the GOP...???..The GOP economic policies DO NOT WORK....They didn't work when Reagan was in office , they didn't work when Herbert Bush was in office and they surely did not work when stupid Bush was in office...Now the democrats are not angels nor do they have all the answers..But they seem to care more about the common American than the GOP does..The American economy has done better under democratic presidents...you can look it up...and like him or not..our current president saved the country from a depression that the GOP had no answers for...So if you REALLY want to do some serious outreach the first thing the GOP MUST do is STOP THE RACISM...Denying that it is a problem will only make your job harder and more elections won by democrats...The voter suppression "drive" by the GOP backfired in the result of more Black people and other minorities determined to vote in record numbers..Listen to some of the members of the GOP such as Bobby Jindal who understand thatr the policies and tactics of the GOP must change since the voting demographic is no longer dominated by the white electorate...Times have changed...Racisim in the yeass to come will result in dire consequences for those that practice it....Now , like I said , if you really want to have outreach with the Black community , you may want to think about what I've said here because these same questions will asked of you in the future...Once again...STOP THE RACISM...

[jack thomas]

I have a friend that does the "Ignite" business and I have a relative in ACN...good luck with that...By the way , can you tell me why Black people should vote for a party that tries to suppress their vote...????.And please don't try to whine about voter fraud and other "denial type" right wing talking points , just answer the question honestly....
 
Martin Harkless said:

Gaye,

Here's why I vote republican. As a former Democrat, from a family of democrats, I saw many inconsistencies from what be prayed on Sunday and voted for on Tuesday. Also I've had a rough life, lost my parents early, was raised by relatives, and joined the military, I realized along the way that the things I worked for were always the best. I also learned my Decisions could shape my outcome. So I got tired of the lefts victim mentality, and desire to always blame someone else. While I realize there are racial challenges in America, some evident others not so evident, I have traveled the world, and I feel that this country still offers the best chance at success. So my mentality no longer fits that of the typical African American Democrat.

I see the jar half full and i believe that if a person gets the right knowledge and wisdom their success cannot be stopped. I see where my people make bad choices that limit their future and then blame others for the lack of success. I'd like to change that.

I hope this helps

Martin Harkless
USMC MSgt ret
Www.mharkless.igniteinc.biz

[Martin Harkless]

Jack,

. I've made money with ignite every month so thanks for your concern. I don't think it's all due to voter fraud, some of it may be to make it harder for those who supported the president to vote. However Dems did the same thing to the military. Didnt hear about how they been trying to change our voter rights did you? We vote absentee and most military vote goes republican, so answer why Dems are trying to shorten the period we have to get our ballots in? Answer honestly. Both parties play same game. The problem is it only offends when it isn't the party one supports....truth.

[jack thomas]

I heard about the military voting situation and like I've said many times...It depends on who you ask and how much research you've done...

 

"Mitt Romney wrongly suggests the Obama campaign is trying to “undermine” the voting rights of military members through a lawsuit filed in Ohio. The suit seeks to block state legislation that limited early voting times for nonmilitary members; it doesn’t seek to impose restrictions on service members.

In an Aug. 4 Facebook posting, Romney called the lawsuit an “outrage,” and said that “if I’m entrusted to be the commander-in-chief, I’ll work to protect the voting rights of our military, not undermine them.” He painted the court filing as an attack on the ability of service men and women to vote: “The brave men and women of our military make tremendous sacrifices to protect and defend our freedoms, and we should do everything we can to protect their fundamental right to vote.”

Conservative blogs and opinion pieces have also misrepresented the case, claiming in headlines that President Obama was suing to “restrict military voting.” A fundraising email appeal from a group called Special Operations Speaks — which wants to “remove Barack Obama from the White House” — wrongly says that Obama “deploys army of lawyers to suppress military’s voting rights,” claiming that “Obama needs the American military to not vote, so he has set out to make it as difficult as possible for them to do so.” But that’s not what the Obama lawsuit aims to do at all.

The lawsuit, filed by the Obama campaign, Democratic National Committee and Ohio Democratic Party in July against Ohio’s secretary of state and attorney general, asks for an injunction to block implementation of state laws that modified in-person early voting regulations. In the last presidential election, all Ohio residents — military and otherwise — could cast their votes in-person early up through the Monday before Election Day. But contentious legislation passed by Ohio’s GOP-controlled Legislature in 2011 limited early voting for nonmilitary residents, giving them a deadline of 6 p.m. Friday before the election. Military members and overseas civilians could still vote through Monday. Both parties have squabbled, with Democrats saying the law is a suppression of nonmilitary votes and Republicans arguing that they are just easing a burden on polling places and guarding against fraud. (Mail-in absentee ballots are not affected; the new regulations affect in-person early voting.)

Contrary to conservative claims, the Democratic lawsuit seeks to restore early voting “for all Ohio voters.”

"Romney blatantly misrepresents the lawsuit’s clearly stated goal to restore early voting for “all” voters. On Aug. 5, the Romney campaign’s legal counsel, Katie Biber, issued a statement that continued to wrongly cast the lawsuit as an attempt to curb military voting rights. She wrote that “the Obama campaign and the DNC argue it is ‘arbitrary’ and unconstitutional to provide three extra days of early, in-person voting to military voters and their families.” The lawsuit, however, argues for restoring the rights of nonmilitary residents, saying the state election law “arbitrarily eliminates early voting during the three days prior to Election Day for most Ohio voters, a right previously available to all Ohio voters.”

Biber goes on to say it is “commendable that the Ohio legislature granted military voters and their families this accommodation.” But that distorts the facts. Military voters and their families previously had this accommodation. What the legislature did last year was restrict early voting for civilian residents.

We received an equally misleading interpretation of the lawsuit from the attorney who filed the motion on behalf of the military groups. Kevin T. Shook of Frost Brown Todd LLC told us in an email: “We are unaware of any other case in which a political candidate, much less the Commander-in-Chief, has sued a state for trying to make it easier for members of the military to vote.” But the suit isn’t about making it easier for military voters, it’s about making it harder for others.

What Shook argues in the motion is that the suit “reasonably may lead” a judge to make it harder for the military — something the lawyers on Obama’s side haven’t asked for, and have told the judge they don’t want to happen. When we followed up with Shook about that, he said he was still concerned about a ruling that could set “a dangerous precedent that could jeopardize other laws making it easier for a military voter to vote.” But that’s no excuse for misrepresenting what the other side has said.

Some voters may well appreciate a discussion of the merits and ramifications of an equal protection legal argument. But what they got from the Romney campaign is a falsehood."

Now the question I posed to you was ...

"By the way , can you tell me why Black people should vote for a party that tries to suppress their vote...????."

 
Martin Harkless said:

Jack,

. I've made money with ignite every month so thanks for your concern. I don't think it's all due to voter fraud, some of it may be to make it harder for those who supported the president to vote. However Dems did the same thing to the military. Didnt hear about how they been trying to change our voter rights did you? We vote absentee and most military vote goes republican, so answer why Dems are trying to shorten the period we have to get our ballots in? Answer honestly. Both parties play same game. The problem is it only offends when it isn't the party one supports....truth.

[Martin Harkless]

How has the black vote been suppressed, by requiring a valid ID? By keeping Felons from voting? Which part of the law is aimed at blacks?

I agree with you it depends on who you ask, if you ask military members they will tell you they didn't / don't get their ballots in a timely manner and their states are not being held accountable by the federal Govt.

[jack thomas]

The GOP has already admitted that they tried to suppress the minority vote so let's stop playing games about whether it was done or not...This is the problem Black people have with Black republicans...Some of you NEVER want to admit the deep racist problems in the GOP and you continue to give weak excuses to defend them..So Stop it..We already know that voter suppression was part of the 2012 GOP campaign so let's get back to the question....

 

"By the way , can you tell me why Black people should vote for a party that tries to suppress their vote...????."

Martin Harkless said:

How has the black vote been suppressed, by requiring a valid ID? By keeping Felons from voting? Which part of the law is aimed at blacks?

I agree with you it depends on who you ask, if you ask military members they will tell you they didn't / don't get their ballots in a timely manner and their states are not being held accountable by the federal Govt.

[Ernest James Sordelet Jr.]

To Jack Thomas, do you have the article or video that shows RNC chair saying the GOP tried to suppress minority voters?

[jack thomas]

Sounds like you have a problem dealing with the truth since you already know the GOP tried voter suppression on miniority voters...But since your photo shows that you may actually be Martin I'll have to let you research that for yourself...Now "Martin"....can you answer the question or are you still clinging to the fantasy that the GOP just loves Black voters...

 

"By the way , can you tell me why Black people should vote for a party that tries to suppress their vote...????."

 

Ernest James Sordelet Jr. said:

To Jack Thomas, do you have the article or video that shows RNC chair saying the GOP tried to suppress minority voters?

[Martin Harkless]

Haha two different people I promise.

[jack thomas]

No problem ..just seemed a little strange that you two have the same uniform and...well forget it...... let's get back to the question that nobody here seems to want to answer....

"By the way , can you tell me why Black people should vote for a party that tries to suppress their vote...????."

 
Martin Harkless said:

Haha two different people I promise.

[Ernest James Sordelet Jr.]

Mr. Thomas I assure you although we are two separate people because we share the same uniform we also share a brotherhood that transcends anything the uninformed will ever know. More importantly we both signed blank checks to America equal to our lives because we love it so. You see Jack we are more about the country than a party but I know we share the same beliefs: We expect personal accountability and responsibility not handouts. We know that respect is earned not legislated, we know that we are designed for achievement and endowed with the seeds of greatness not by the government but by our creator. The party you follow is the party that tells black Americans because they are the ancestors of slaves they are born inferior and therefore need "them" to succeed. Keep in mind any success that is given is just as easily taken away. You follow a party who has no problem killing a fetus but scream to the highest court to let a child molester go because he is misunderstood or because he or she had a bad childhood and therefore they are not responsible for their actions. Jack as you lurk the halls of this site please learn that we "conservatives" deal in reality and logic not emotional attacks based on rumor and conjecture. Until you are able to produce some sort of evidence that backs your claim of GOP voter suppression your accusations are moot. Can you tell me why black people vote for the liberal "self titled" enlightened mantra that despises christianity  and the strength of the black family.