FARM BUREAU 9-1-1

At their April, 2010 meeting the Washington Farm Bureau board of directors approved our own push back campaign. We call it Farm Bureau 9-1-1. Think of it this way -– when the fire alarm goes off do we run to the fire or away from it? Historically Farm Bureau members have run to the fire when our way of life is threatened as it is now. 

“I hold it that a little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical.”
-- Thomas Jefferson

“What’s real in politics is what the voters decide is real.”
-- Ben Wattenberg

Has there ever been an assault on American core beliefs as we see today? 

Consider this:

• Unprecedented belief that the U.S. is headed in the wrong direction.

• Unprecedented expansion of government and spending.

• We face substantial tax increases and a national sales tax (Value Added Tax) that in Europe runs 20% -- in addition to the federal income tax.

• A soaring $13 trillion deficit.  We have indebted our children and grandchildren if this spending spree continues.

Ronald Reagan said Congress spends like a drunken sailor. Well, that disrespects drunken sailors. Sailors quit drinking when they run out of money.

• A declining dollar and impending inflation.

• Federal contractors must be unionized and drives up costs 20%.

• GM, Chrysler and other U.S. businesses have been taken over by the federal government.

• In a bout of tom foolery GM used new federal loans to pay off old federal loans and brags about how well GM is doing. 

• How many more businesses “too large to fail” will be taken over by the federal government?

• Unemployment continues to soar at 10% and above 12% in some places.

• Are we militarily weaker? Does a nuclear Iran threaten the U.S. and our allies?

• Are we still a beacon of freedom to oppressed people?
• We didn’t want nationalized healthcare in the first place but Nancy Pelosi said, Congress had to pass it so we “could see what was in it.” 

WELL WE SEE IT NOW AND WE DON’T LIKE IT!

• In the “passage of time is the best truth detector” category -– after democrats pushed socialized healthcare through the house, President Obama receives word from the Medicare’s Office of the Actuary that Obamacare does not cut costs and isn’t even neutral.  It drives up costs! 

And while we are taking a critical look at the federal government, don’t think we haven’t noticed what’s going on in Olympia. 

• Initiative 601 that limited tax increases was smashed and new spending (and taxes) abound. 
• After all the cries of "devastating cuts," the new $30.45 billion general fund budget is a cut of less than 1.5 percent over previously proposed general fund spending, and is an actual increase in total state spending (general fund, transportation & capital budgets) from $58.67 billion to $60.56 billion.
• The lack of willingness to make cuts has resulted in taxes that will surely slow our state's economic recovery and prolong the recession. Presented with a perfect opportunity to make fundamental changes to the public sector, legislators decided to use band-aids, hoping the economy magically improves before the next budget cycle.

Okay, so you didn’t have to read all of that to know we are headed in the wrong direction. Thank goodness Americans are pushing back -– and will push back harder in the November, 2010 elections. Many elected officials will get pink slips from their districts and hopefully commensurate with the number of Americans who are without jobs.

We think enough is enough. 

At their April, 2010 meeting the Washington Farm Bureau board of directors approved our own push back campaign. We call it Farm Bureau 9-1-1. Think of it this way –- when the fire alarm goes off do we run to the fire or away from it? Historically Farm Bureau members have run to the fire when our way of life is threatened as it is now. 

The words of Michael Barone from the Wall Street Journal are appropriate. He said there is a battle in America between the "the culture of dependence and the culture of independence."  

America is not France. We fought a revolutionary war to NOT be like Europe and we don’t want to be like Greece -– they have run out of other people’s money and face financial ruin unless the rest of Europe bails them out. If we fail to get our financial house in order, who will bail out America? 

Even today it is not in our hearts to allow a large central government to regulate every aspect of our lives.

Here is what the Washington Farm Bureau is doing to protect our freedoms:    

1. A group of WFB board members are working with key staff to fine tune the detailed plan.
2. We will use this blog to inform and agitate.
3. We will return to our activist training program. This is a return to what Farm Bureau invented -– grassroots action. We are planning to have multiple teams of members advancing Farm Bureau’s goals in every county and every political campaign. Send an email to this address and let Pat Batts know you’d like to attend a one day Vision College training session.
4. We will create some coalitions and we will be part of others in separate but coordinated activities.
5. We will launch an ambitious plan for our members to raise money for candidates who support our principles and to get them elected.

We understand the desire to throw the bums out. We certainly don’t need liberals and liberals-lite or big spenders and big spenders-lite. This campaign is all about undoing what has happened since last November when frustrated voters supported change. But is this the change voters expected?  

WE MUST SUPPORT CANDIDATES WHO ARE ELECTABLE AND SHARE OUR VALUES. 

Farm Bureau in Washington state is bi-partisan. We often support candidates from both political parties. For this campaign, we are asking two questions:

Which party is the party of high taxes and runaway spending?

Which candidates will un-do the damage that has been done in our state and our country? 

6. We will have a legislative strategy to advance key issues like lower taxes and a smaller government that allows us to live free lives.

7. We will have meetings throughout the state to lay out our goals, the issues and, to train and encourage more member involvement. We will keep on doing this, and more.

8. We believe we must change the direction of our country and it must happen now!

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