Since 2003, when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down archaic sex laws and the Massachusetts high court ruled that gay couples had a right to marry, we’ve heard right-wing activists and politicians, including President, Bush denouncing “activist judges� and “judicial tyranny.� But even when a state court allows the legislature to decide whether or not to call family protections for gay couples “marriage�—as was the case in Vermont seven years ago and is the case in New Jersey now—right wing leaders cynically complain.

The Christian right’s reaction to the New Jersey court ruling on marriage for same-sex couples proves that no matter how our governmental institutions address this issue, right- wing leaders will attack these institutions and scapegoat gay people. Read the rest of this entry »

At first blush, it appears gratifying to finally have Congress pass and the President sign into law the Border Fence Act of 2006. Our goal at the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps has always been to see the rule of law brought back to the border. We have sought to show the government what we think homeland security should look like and how achievable and cost effective absolute operational control of our border can be. When you have obvious vigilance at the border you vastly decrease the current steady waves of migrant trafficking, drug dealers, possible terrorists, gang members, rapists, thieves, weapons and sex traders, and untold contraband into our country.

As important a first step in long-overdue federal action this legislation may seem to be, some wise and experienced legislators have raised important and unavoidable questions as to whether the Department of Homeland Security intends to actually fund the proposed 700 miles of fencing authorized by this legislation. Other critical questions revolve around the technology and budgetary standards of the proposed fence design and construction. We need to build an actual fence, not just endlessly propose border security options. Politicians and bureaucrats must stop playing “virtual� smoke and mirrors games that threaten our national security and unnecessarily cost American taxpayers billions upon billions of dollars.

The cost of the “virtual� fence scheme being discussed by DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff is astronomically inflated from real-world necessity. Some estimates have been as high as $3 million per mile.

The Minutemen are building real, actual, cutting-edge technology fencing and barriers at a mere fraction of the cost of such proposed “virtualâ€? fence designs. Why would we not build an actual fence that actually works? Read the rest of this entry »

I’m the Libertarian/Republican candidate for Congress in NY’s 11th Congressional District and I was recently asked my opinion on the subject of gay marriage. I think it should be not only legal but compulsory. I’d like to see those guys get up each morning and apologize just like us straight married guys do. Give us something in common.

Last week’s New Jersey Supreme Court decision demonstrates once again that federalism works. The genius of our founders is on display in the Garden State. This decision makes it clear that the people of New Jersey don’t need federal intervention to deal with the question of how to treat gay and lesbian couples.

Not surprisingly, anti-gay groups and desperate politicians have used this decision to renew their push for the unnecessary anti-family Federal Marriage Amendment. This amendment tramples on the principles of federalism and is an unprecedented incursion into state affairs. Two hundred and twenty-five years of history show that the recognition and protection of families is an issue best handled by the states. Republicans have consistently advocated the importance of state and local governance. Rightly so, the GOP has railed against federal mandates and requirements. Now some in the party want to throw federalism out the window.

During the 2000 Vice-Presidential debate, Dick Cheney responded to a question about how same sex relationships should be recognized by government, “I think different states are likely to come to different conclusions, and that’s appropriate. I don’t think there necessarily should be a federal policy in this area.â€? Read the rest of this entry »

Sunday, the Houston Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority hosted a candidate’s forum in their beautiful community center. They heard from, and grilled state and federal candidates. The audience was extraordinarily well informed, and it was particularly nice to see a huge number of young people.

The moderator, who also writes a column on the economy for the Houston Chronicle was well informed and kept up the pace, from education, to local services, to the economy and loss of jobs, to trade and immigration (and the tremendous impact on our social services), to tax reform and social reform, to the Iraq War.  Judging from the applause, four billion dollars a week for a war of choice is not popular. Read the rest of this entry »

I am Bill Winter and I am running for Congress in CO-06 against Tom Tancredo. You can learn more here. I recently read an article talking about how the House passed a $448 billion Military Spending Bill. Notice the 1.9 Billion dollar line item for “for new jammers to counter improvised explosive devices in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

I also recently received a letter from a small Colorado-based defense contractor, EOJT, which has developed innovative products that could save American lives in Iraq. Their number one product is exactly the kind of jammer described above. In other words, the U.S. House of Representatives just authorized 1.9 BILLION dollars for development of jammers to protect our troops…

…and we have a guy who already has one ready to go right here in Colorado!

So what’s the problem? I’m glad you asked! Read the rest of this entry »

It is long overdue for the nation’s political and government leaders to come together, change course and begin to implement policies that more fairly allocate the burden of the war effort on our citizens.  We are engaged in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that no doubt will have lasting consequences for the nation in terms of costs - both human and budgetary.  Clearly the time is right to appreciate the need for national sacrifice to support such endeavors. Yet, this notion of shared sacrifice is not embodied in the Administration’s domestic policies that unevenly spread the burden of the war effort by providing tax cuts to the wealthiest among us while shortchanging programs that benefit veterans and the middle class.  Current policies under the Republican-controlled government expect veterans to sacrifice twice - once when they serve their country in uniform, and a second time after they return to civilian life - in the form of higher health care fees, pared-back health care budgets, and delayed and denied access to care.

I think we can do better and I am confident that we as Americans are capable of joining together for the common good and begin to share in the sacrifice that our servicemembers, veterans and military families are currently experiencing.  Unfortunately, this Administration has never asked the public to share in this burden equally.  Rather, the Administration appears to be disconnected from the harsh realities facing our servicemembers, veterans, and military families - preferring instead to promote tax cuts for the elite while shortchanging funding for veterans and military families.  In contrast, my Democratic colleagues in the House of Representatives have tried to increase funding for veterans’ health, expand TRICARE health care for the members of the National Guard and Reserves and worked to defeat Administrative efforts to raise veterans’ health care fees.  We must continue these efforts.

Friends, the time is right to change course and head in a new direction.  We must begin asking the nation to share in the sacrifice during this time of war and truly support our servicemembers, veterans and military families.  Our comfort, peace and security depend on them; they should know they can depend on us.

The day was spent south of Houston, near NASA, taking my Mom to vote and visiting Armand Bayou and the parks with picnicking veterans. Here’s some e-mails I’ve received. I enjoy corresponding with folks, and the tech folks say I’ve exchanged over 100,000 personal e mails with my campaign blackberries over the last three years, excluding the e-blasts we send.

Country people are wonderful. Direct, intelligent, hard working, they’ve educated me that a bushel of wheat goes for about what it did in the late ’40s, while diesel and tractors are hugely expensive. Horse owners face theft of horses for markets for slaughter for human consumption, as the horse slaughter prohibition stagnates in committee along with Agricultural Relief Legislation. Read the rest of this entry »

When political analysts label election races as “competitive,â€? money is a big factor in their calculation. But, overall, is the 2006 midterm election really all that competitive? Fifty-four congressional races around the country lack either a Democrat or a Republican — no warm body to take on the dominant party. (Democrats occupy 43 of those seats, and they can count on holding them.) While money is fueling intense competition in many races, and that’s where the media focus is, money also prevents competition by fending off challengers who cannot match the incumbent’s fundraising.

If history is to be any guide, most elected readers of this blog should expect to return to Washington next year. In the last three elections, since the 2000 contest, an average of 97% of House incumbents have won re-election, as have 87% of senators. Political analysts have been saying that 2006 could be a Democratic watershed event akin to the “Republican takeoverâ€? in 1994. But that year, 90% of House members still won re-election, as did 92% of senators. Read the rest of this entry »

The day was spent in large part on talk radio and answering questions generated from our press releases, available in the news section of my website. I also approved our latest TV commercial and posted to YouTube and radnofskyvideo.com.

Conservative talk radio hosts are quite polite and courteous here in Texas. The outrageous, insulting, sneering behaviour has been missing in interviews I’ve experienced over the last three years. The callers are well informed. There’s a few ringers, all asking about ANWR to start and finishing with “per capita” arguments justifying Texans’ donation of our federal gas dollars to other states the callers must feel need the dollars more than we. And there’s the occasional caller like the fellow yesterday who explained about women’s inability to lead and the importance I go back home and take care of my children.

I mentioned to the caller he’d have a heck of a time deciding between Kay Bailey
Hutchison and Barbara Ann Radnofsky! Read the rest of this entry »