The Rule of Law is a fundamental principle that our country was founded on. The rule of law respects us as equals. It allows us to organize our lives, plan our futures, and resolve disputes in a rational way. In our country laws are created by elected representatives through a system of checks and balances. This method was created so that the law makers were accountable to the people. Make bad laws and get voted out of office.

Being held accountable for the laws you vote for while a member of congress puts extreme limits on what representative is willing to vote for. Over the years this has proved annoying for Congressmen, Senators, and the President who may want to enact laws that the people don’t want. In the last election we saw the result of congress passing many laws, including a Healthcare bill, that the people clearly didn’t want; the largest single change in the House of Representatives about 75 years. This is a good thing as it allows the people to hold their elected representatives accountable. To get around voting for unpopular laws, congress has delegate it’s law making authority to bureaucrats. This allows unpopular laws, termed regulations, to be enacted without the elected official having to be held accountable for the creation of a new law the people don’t want. Worse yet this allows large corporations to force laws that will benefit the large corporation at the expense of the people without having to have a new law passed.

Case in point: ABC’s Jonathan Karl Reported that The Federal Highway Administration (FHA) is ordering all local governments — from the tiniest towns to the largest cities — to go out and buy new street signs. 3M one of the few makers of reflective sign material successfully lobbied the FHA to change the regulations to include:

• Whenever street name signs are changed for any reason, they can no longer be in ALL CAPS.
• Increase the size of the letters on street signs from the current 4 inches to 6 inches on all roads with speed limits over 25 miles per hour by January 2012.
• Install signs with new reflective letters more visible at night by January 2018.

In Dinwiddie County, Virginia — with lots of roads but not many people — the cost comes to about $10 for every man, woman and child.

“The money is better spent on education, or the sheriff’s department or on public safety than something like that,” said Harrison Moody, chairman of the Dinwiddie Board of Supervisors.

Many local residents in Dinwiddie say their current street signs work just fine, and they see no reason to change them.

“There are a lot of people out there that are hungry,” said Dinwiddie resident Thomas Davis. “Why spend [money] on street signs when everybody can read a street sign or, if you don’t know where you’re going, get a GPS.”

This is a prime example of Too Much Government, and the mentality of ruling elite who think they know what is best for everybody. Don’t think this is Obama or Democrat bashing. These changes to the law were originally started under Bush. Changes in bureaucratic regulations are changes in laws, laws should have to voted on by the Senate, House, and signed by the President. We have allowed our elected officials to horribly overstep their bounds and responsibilities, creating institutions that can create laws, tax the public, and limit individual liberty without being held accountable to the voter.

Who knows better how local dollars should be spent, the federal government or local government? This is a case where the federal government is forcing local government to spend money they don’t have on things that may be good, but take away from much more urgent needs. In Milwaukee this will cost the cash-strapped city nearly $2 million — double the city’s entire annual for traffic control.

This is not an example of the Rule of Law, but an example of am unaccountable bureaucratic dictate. What this change in the law amounts to, is a transfer of wealth from the citizens to 3M. This is a typical and predictable unintended consequence of liberal ideology trying to make everybody “safer” for their own good. The idea that because people might vote out a representative who makes an unpopular vote or decision, it is necessary to create bureaucracies to insulate elected officials is now the preferred method of liberal ruling elites to circumvent the will of the people. The FHA mandates to change signage is an example of an unfunded, unaccountable mandate of elitist big government working with elitist big business to take your money and avoid being held accountable.

What would you tell your elected representative if he/she came back from Washington having voted to force your local town to change and update all its signs during these hard economic times?

Bill Posey

MELBOURNE, FL – Congressman Bill Posey (R-Rockledge) provided the following testimony to the EPA regarding Florida’s water standards. The remarks were delivered on his behalf by his District Director:

“I want to take just a couple of minutes to express my concerns about the proposed regulations and how they would adversely impact our local businesses, our state’s critical agricultural community, and state and local government budgets.

“There is strong opposition to the proposed EPA regulations based on sound reasons.  In fact, 23 members of Florida’s Congressional delegation wrote EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on December 2, 2009, expressing our concerns about the proposal and its adverse economic impact on the state.   Concerns over the regulations have been expressed to me by small business owners, agricultural producers and elected officials.  I would urge the EPA to listen to the concerns that are expressed today, to take these concerns into consideration, and to adjust your approach to accommodate these concerns in this particularly trying economic time.

“The state of Florida has been a national leader in making our waters cleaner.  Florida has in place today some of the most robust standards to support water quality improvement.  Unfortunately, the proposed regulations fail to recognize this and instead impose a blanket approach to water quality that fails to recognize the variability of Florida’s water resources and the positive steps Florida has already taken.  Furthermore, rather than this being a science-driven approach, it has been a timeline driven approach that lacks the transparency that our local governments and businesses deserve.  If allowed to be implemented, these regulations will cause serious economic harm to our state while having uncertain environmental benefit. If, that is, the proposal is even economically attainable.

“The EPA should set aside the proposed regulations and begin to work again closely with the State of Florida to utilize the state’s existing efforts to enhance water quality, rather than disrupt Florida’s successful ongoing efforts and divert limited resources to initiatives that may not be the most effective.

“Agriculture faces higher costs and increasing pressures due to overseas competition.  The proposed regulations would further compromise Florida’s competitiveness, result in further job loss, raise the cost of agricultural production, and impede our recovery from the recession.  Additionally, in this era of heightened awareness of the threats of terrorism and the need to secure our nation’s food supply, it is critically important that we retain our domestic agricultural production.  Regulations that lead to the loss of domestic production could result in greater reliance on foreign producers, thus potentially compromising the safety of our nation’s food supply.

“Many businesses are struggling to keep their doors open.  Costly regulations would raise the cost of doing business in Florida and the United States, hampering our ability to remain competitive and create jobs here in Florida.   With an unemployment rate of nearly 12 percent, we cannot afford to see the costs of doing business in Florida increased further.

“Finally, state and local budgets are stretched thin.  Not only would the loss of additional agricultural production and small businesses limit our state’s ability to create more jobs, but the loss would also make it more difficult for the state and local governments to balance their budgets.  The costs of complying with these proposed rules do come with a cost. There will be budget tradeoffs for local governments.  Costly regulation should not be imposed in a vacuum because they do impact every sector of our economy.

“Thank you for this opportunity and thank you for listening to the concerns of Florida residents.”

CLICK HERE to read the letter from the Florida Delegation to the EPA Administrator.

Marlene O'Toole

If you have been living under a rock lately you may have missed the push by states to get 10^th amendment resolutions passed.  These are to remind the Federal Government of States Rights and State Sovereignty.

Most recently Montana passed a fantastic piece of legislation called the Montana Firearms Freedom Bill.  What does this bill do?  Simple, It tells the Federal Government that any firearms or ammunition created, built or sold in the state of Montana are not subject to Federal Legislation.

Representative O’Toole has introduced such legislation in the Florida House.  Her bill HB-21 is almost the same as the Montana Bill.  When I called her office for comment she was out of town.  But I will be following up with her about the bill.  I hope everyone interested in the bill in the State of Florida will call all of his or her Representatives in the State House to support this bill.

Also there is a rumor that Sen. Carey Baker is going to introduce a companion bill in the Florida Senate.  Sen. Baker is currently running for Commissioner of Agriculture in Florida.  This office oversees concealed weapons permits among other things.

This will be a great issue to watch and hopefully get passed!

Gov. Charlie Crist is reconsidering his opposition to drilling off Florida’s shores, a sentiment he used to share with former governers Lawton Chiles, Dem., and Jeb Bush, Rep.

Back in August 1993, disaster struck as 300,000 gallons of heavy fuel oil spilled off the shore of Tampa Bay – devastating 15 miles of Florida beaches. ”We had several thousand sea turtle hatchlings die,” says D.T. Minich, head of the St. Petersburg/ Clearwater Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.  “It was a disaster … and we don’t want that to happen again.”  The effects on the environment and, most poignantly for politicians, on Florida’s precious tourism industry have kept off shore drilling initiatives at bay.

But the oil industry has been making new pushes in Washington and Tallahassee for off shore drilling.  Gov. Crist says, “We’ve got to review exactly what the policy is and make sure it can provide energy diversification. But at the same time, we’ve got to protect our beautiful beaches.”  The ‘policy’ he refers to is an amendment approved by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources that allows oil and gas drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, 45 miles off Florida’s west coast and just 10 miles off beaches in Florida’s panhandle.  The amendment is headed to the floor of the full Senate.

Source St Augustine News

WASHINGTON (26 June) – U.S. Rep. Gus M. Bilirakis (R-Fla.), representing Florida’s 9th Congressional District, today issued the following statement after opposing the House “Cap & Trade” plan – H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009:

“As Floridians face double digit unemployment for the first time in 34 years, the last thing we need is an energy tax that will drive energy costs through the roof for families and hamstring small businesses who are trying to survive and create jobs. This deeply flawed bill will severely disadvantage American businesses and shift jobs to other nations like China and India who do not cap emissions. We must balance the need to protect our environment with the need for economic growth and job creation. Unfortunately this bill fails to effectively strike that balance and will do more harm than good.

“Congress should instead increase domestic energy production, promote energy efficiency, and encourage private investment in renewable energy technologies as part of a comprehensive plan to address our energy needs.”

on the web: Bilirakis House Site

The Cap and Trade Bill has passed the House of Representatives today.  Votes were 219-212. This bill will be responsible for fining and penalizing the emission of Carbon Dioxide.

The US government will set a limit or cap on the amount of a pollutant that can be emitted. Companies or other groups will be issued emission permits and are required to hold an equivalent number of allowances (or credits), which will represent the right to emit a specific amount. The total amount of allowances and credits cannot exceed the cap, limiting total emissions to that level. Companies that need to increase their emission allowance must buy credits from those who pollute less. The transfer of allowances will be referred to as a trade. In effect, the buyer is paying a charge for polluting, while the seller is being rewarded for having reduced emissions by more than was needed. Thus, in theory, those who can easily reduce emissions most cheaply will do so, achieving the pollution reduction at the lowest possible cost to society.

The only group that is currently doing a cap and trade program is the European Union.

In Central Florida the break down of Representative’s votes is:
Alan Grayson – Yea
Adam Putnam – Nay
Bill Posey – Nay
Kathy Castor – Yea

FULL LIST OF VOTES

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Orlando) returned a phone call just a few minutes ago to let me know how he was going to vote on the Cap and Trade bill. Rep. Grayson will be voting in FAVOR of the bill.  The bill will create a $50 Million dollar Hurrican Research center in Central Florida.  When asked how many jobs that would create he responded “To early to tell”.

I asked if this was the primary reason he voted for the bill and he stated No.  He said “the bill will create green jobs, and punishes polluters.”  He also said that he is glad that for the first time in memory that a State of the Art facility will be built in Central Florida and it will be bringing Florida into 21^st century technology.

—– Statement from Alan Grayson on the House floor—–

COLLOQUY BETWEEN MR GRAYSON AND MR WAXMAN

Mr. Grayson: Mr. Chairman, I rise to enter into a colloquy with the Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Mr. Waxman.

My intention today is to draw attention to the need for further research and work concerning the effect of ongoing changes in climate and on the frequency and intensity and effects of hurricanes.  As you know, damages from hurricanes—in terms of human lives, infrastructure, and property—have grown in scope and cost, and it is critical that we continue to make progress in furthering our understanding of the science behind hurricanes.  Doing so will ultimately help vulnerable communities in my district, in Florida, and elsewhere in the United States prepare for, and reduce the impacts from, hurricanes.

I ask that a portion of allowance value in H.R. 2454 be directed towards research on hurricanes at a new $50 million National Hurricane Research Center in my district in Orlando. The National Hurricane Research Center in Orlando will be a worldwide center of expertise in the 21st century science of meteorology.  In a world already affected by global warming, it will help develop both short-range and long-range hurricane forecasting, conduct practical research on mitigation of hurricane damage, disseminate to the public real-time information on hurricanes, advise policymakers and the public, and expand knowledge on what can and should be done to impact the intensity, duration, frequency, course and human and property consequences of hurricanes.

Mr. Waxman: I share the gentleman’s concern about the need for research on hurricane intensity and frequency and effects.  The harms from hurricanes are only going to increase with global warming, and we need to better understand the connections and impacts.

H.R. 2454 includes domestic adaptation provisions giving states substantial resources to study and adapt to climate change.  Based on our estimates, the bill will provide up to $1 billion per year from 2012, when the program starts, through 2021.  From 2022 through 2026, the amount will be over $2 billion annually.  Research on hurricanes is explicitly listed as an authorized use of these revenues.  The project the gentleman mentions is among the type of activities that would be eligible to receive funding under these provisions.

Mr. Grayson: Mr. Chairman, I understand that H.R. 2454 includes provisions directing allowance value towards state adaptation.  I hope that we will be able to work together as this bill moves forward to make certain that hurricane research receives full funding, and that we are able to ensure that the work of the National Hurricane Research Center will be supported.

Mr. Waxman:  The gentleman has discussed this project with me, and I think it is a very worthwhile project.  I look forward to working on it and making it a priority as the legislative process moves forward.

Mr. Grayson: I thank the Chairman for your support of our efforts to ensure that our hurricane research efforts are adequately supported.

Congressman Bill Posey seems to be one of the few Congressman actually representing his constituents in Washington DC.  Mr. Posey was one of the first members of Congress to sign on to HR-1207 (Audit the Fed Bill) which now has over half of Congress Co-Sponsoring it.  I had the chance to ask Mr. Posey about Cap and Trade today.

His response is most likely the best I have heard so far. Here is his statement which is a Central Florida Politics exclusive.

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Congressman Posey’s district covers Brevard, Indian River and some of Polk County.  He was elected in 2008, since that time he has become a valued asset to his area constituents.  Mark Cross is one of those constituents. Here is what he had to say about Congressman Posey

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Congressman Posey’s office also released the following statement regarding cap and trade.

Posey Opposes Cap & Trade – National Energy Tax

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Bill Posey (R-Rockledge) provided the following statement as he prepared to vote against the Waxman-Markey “Cap & Trade” National Energy Tax legislation.  At press time it was uncertain if the bill would proceed to a final up or down vote as Democrat leaders were lacking the votes among their members to secure passage of the bill.   The 1500 page energy tax bill was amended at 3AM this morning with an additional 309 pages of legislation which has yet to be examined by Members of Congress. Below is Congressman Posey’s floor statement on the “Cap & Trade” National Energy Tax legislation to explain his vote:

“I rise to express my strong concerns about the bill before us – a bill which no one has read.  This morning members of Congress were told about the addition of 309 pages that were added to this bill early this morning.  No one has read it.

“Why the rush?  Why does Congress have to pass this bill today, before everyone can read it and understand what this new language is doing?  When Congress did this with the stimulus bill earlier this year it was discovered after passage of that bill that it contained bonus payments for AIG employees.  But this bill, affecting every segment of our economy, has much broader applications we and the American people have a right to know what is in this bill, how it will affect the American people, and what impact it will have on our economy.   Nobody knows that this morning.  We do not even have a cost estimate on this latest version of the bill from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).  No one knows what it will cost.  My rule is that if you are not going to give Members of Congress the time to read the bill, a cost estimate of the bill, and an ability to understand its impact on the taxpayers and American businesses, I’m going to vote no.

“Supporters of the bill claim that it will only cost the average American $175 per year.  This is a fatally flawed estimate for three reasons (1) this figure is derived from a selective reading of the CBO cost estimate, (2) 3 days after the CBO issued their cost estimate 300 additional pages were added to the bill, and (2) at 3am last night another 309 pages were added to the bill.  This bill has grown by nearly 70% since CBO’s cost estimate was prepared.

“The CBO estimate has serious deficiencies. In fact if you read the entire CBO estimate you would find that they highlight the deficiencies, deficiencies that are being conveniently ignored.  The most critical flaw is that CBO picked a year as the basis for their estimate that is before the most costly parts of the bill take effect.  This excludes hundreds of billions of dollars from the cost estimate.  The footnote on page 4 of the estimate says that they exclude from the costs estimate the “decrease in gross domestic product (GDP)” resulting from the bill.  Most estimates conclude that it will result in $1 – $2 trillion in lost economic activity in the U.S. translating into a loss of over 2.5 million jobs.  The CBO fails to incorporate tens of billions of increased costs to the states which will be passed on through higher state taxes.  CBO lists a number of other cost estimate omissions.

“When you factor in the deficiencies of the CBO estimate most analyses put the cost estimate at between $750 and $3100 per year.  Washington has a habit of underestimating the cost of legislation. They are doing so again today.  That’s why this bill was significantly changed last night and rushed to the floor before Members of Congress have had a chance to read the bill and understand what the changes do.

“This 1200-plus page bill started out as legislation aimed at improving the environment but it has become a means of raising money to pay for larger, more intrusive government while having little impact on the global environment.

“The idea behind “Cap and Trade” is to purposely increase the cost of energy that is produced using fossil fuels like natural gas, coal or petroleum.  Nearly 85% of electricity across the U.S. is generated using these sources of fuel.  The price of everything you buy will go up, from gas to food, because there will be a hidden national energy tax built into the price of everything.

“Senator Cardin (D-MD) told the Washington Post that, “This is the greatest revenue generating [read tax] proposal of our time.”  This bill moves money from the family budget to Washington.

“Estimates are that this bill will have a negligible effect on the global environment.  It is estimated that if enacted, this bill will lower the global temperature by a fraction of a degree, which is consistent with the annual fluctuation in global temperatures.  Also, this fails to acknowledge the fact that China, India and the rest of the developing world are exempt from such regulations and their emissions will far exceed any reductions that result from this bill.

“This costly national energy tax will put American products at a competitive disadvantage and further erode the ability of the American worker to compete with China, India and the rest the developing world.  The result will be the loss of millions of jobs as more businesses move to countries that will not impose these caps on their citizens.  Businesses that otherwise might have built facilities in the U.S. will instead open up factories in countries that are exempt from these regulations.  It’s no wonder China has called for the U.S. to pass this energy tax bill.  With a national unemployment rate nearing 10%, it’s estimated that this tax will cost Americans another 2.5 million jobs.

“I oppose this plan and will vote against it because it is not good for the American worker, small businesses, seniors on fixed incomes, or families struggling to pay their bills and mortgages.  Washington doesn’t need more of your money, it needs to control spending. Europe adopted a similar plan several years ago and it forced jobs to leave Europe, caused electricity prices to skyrocket, and they have little to show for the costs. It’s all pain and no gain.  Check out the non-partisan Tax Foundation’s online energy tax calculator (www.taxfoundation.org/capandtrade) to figure out how much it may cost you.

“Finally, it is a sad day for the Congress and the American people that the Speaker chose to rush this bill through the Congress without an open debate and amendment process.  Members of Congress asked that 224 amendments be allowed to be considered to this bill.  Unfortunately, the Speaker allowed only one amendment to be offered.  Among the amendments denied were one to: (1) suspend the bill if gas exceeds $5 per gallon; (2) suspend the bill if electricity prices increase more than 10%; and (3) suspend the bill if unemployment exceeds 15%.  These and many more amendments were reasonable and worthy of consideration.  They should have been allowed as they are in the best interest of the American people.

“Again, I rise in strong opposition to this bill and urge my colleagues to vote down this bill.  It will further harm our economy and slow our economic recovery.”

The Hav-A-Tampa cigar factory in Tampa will close and lay off 492 employees.

Hav-A-Tampa is a division of Altaic USA Inc., which filed a required notice with the state of Florida that it will shut down its factory at 3901 Riga Blvd. in Tampa and begin the layoffs on Aug. 24.

Some non-manufacturing functions will move to another facility in Brandon, but none of the affected employees will be relocated to that facility, the company said in its notice.

Rick McKenzie, the company’s vice president of human resources, says business has been hurt by rising taxes. A new federal tobacco tax went into effect in April and will help pay for a health insurance program for low-income children.

Congressional Candidate Eddie Adams Jr. gave this statement regarding the closing “There are no good taxes. This is the primary result of taxation on tobacco.  Tobacco has been determined to be a legal product, but Federal government and the state government see this as an easy opportunity to generate money for the Federal and State government.  The more you tax a product or industry the less that product is going to sale.  So now we have Hav A Tampa laying off 500 people that will be looking to the government for handouts.  All because the Federal and State government thought this would be a great way to generate money.”

Congresswoman Kathy Castor’s office did not return our phone call about the plant closing.  Castor has supported federal legislation (HR-1256) that increased taxes on Tobacco products.

The company’s Web site says Hav-A-Tampa cigars were originally trademarked in 1902.

The company operates other production facilities in the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

In addition to Hav-A-Tampa, Altadis hand-made cigar brands include H. Upmann, Playboy, Dutch Masters, Muriel, Phillies and Romeo y Julieta.

On the Web: HAV A TAMPA

Eddie Adams Jr. for Congress