{"id":896,"date":"2022-05-31T17:54:57","date_gmt":"2022-05-31T21:54:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rheagop.org\/?p=896"},"modified":"2022-05-31T17:54:57","modified_gmt":"2022-05-31T21:54:57","slug":"the-rhea-county-republican-june-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rheagop.org\/the-rhea-county-republican-june-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"The Rhea County Republican – June 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE\u00a0<\/span>RHEA COUNTY REPUBLICAN<\/span><\/h1>\n

ADVANCING THE CONSERVATIVE CAUSE<\/span><\/h3>\n

Vol. 6 \u2013 No. 4\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 June 2022<\/em><\/p>\n

The original content of this publication is copyrighted.\u00a0 Requests for reprinting may be obtained by contacting the Editor and Publisher at: <\/strong>pyrope84045@mypacks.net<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Table of Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n

Editorial <\/strong>———————————————————————–1<\/strong><\/p>\n

What We Don\u2019t Know <\/strong>—————————————————- 3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Public Schools Continue to Fail<\/strong>—————————————4<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thank You Tennessee Representatives <\/strong>—————————5<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Impending Chip Shortage<\/strong>—————————————–6<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thoughts On Going Cashless <\/strong>—————————————–7<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Sky Is Falling! The Sky Is Falling! <\/strong>—————————-10<\/strong><\/p>\n

Comments From Candidates <\/strong>————————————— \u00a012<\/strong><\/p>\n

Comments From Representative<\/strong>———————————– 12<\/strong><\/p>\n

Comments From Correspondents <\/strong>———————————13<\/strong><\/p>\n

Legislative Report<\/strong>——————————————————- 16<\/strong><\/p>\n

Rhea County Republican Party News <\/strong>—————————- 30<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lagniappe <\/strong>—————————————————————– 31<\/strong><\/p>\n

Contact Your Elected Representatives Today! <\/strong>————— 32\u00a0 <\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A QUESTION PLEASE<\/strong><\/p>\n

IF<\/em><\/strong> the Republicans gain a majority in both Chambers, who are your top three choices<\/u><\/em><\/strong> to serve as Speaker of the House and Senate Majority Leader?\u00a0\u00a0 Please send your responses to:<\/p>\n

pyrope84045@mypacks.net<\/a><\/p>\n

Respondents will be entered for a drawing to win a $25.00 gift card!<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

EDITORIAL<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kris Bancroft, Editor<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The final decision as to whether or not the taxpayer will be forced to pay off the $1.6 Trillion student debt still looms in the future.\u00a0 Whether Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Schumer can wrangle enough votes between now and the mid-terms to pass a bill cancelling all student loans remains to be seen but you can bet such a bill has top priority among the Democrats.<\/p>\n

What is their motive?<\/p>\n

Looking at Mr. Biden\u2019s poll numbers (as unbelievable as it may seem, 33% of voters still<\/em> \u201capprove\u201d of his performance), the Democrats have become desperate and frantic<\/em> \u2013 they fear<\/em> the Giant Red Tsunami will give the Republicans a 2\/3rds<\/sup> majority in the House and a significant majority in the Senate.<\/p>\n

They don\u2019t want<\/em> to lose the power to tell the Republicans to sit down and shut up when they protest some piece of anti-American legislation.\u00a0 They don\u2019t want<\/em> to lose the control that enabled them to filibuster a bill out of existence, or to make cheap shot remarks during committee hearings.\u00a0 They don\u2019t want<\/em> to be relegated to the ash heap of history when they\u2019re defeated on November 1st<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

The best gambit the Left has is to use their majorities to buy as many votes as possible, and buying votes is precisely<\/em> what this $1.6 Trillion bill is all about.<\/p>\n

How many votes will it buy?<\/p>\n

The average<\/em> student loan debt is reckoned to be in the neighborhood of $110,000. \u00a0Passing a $1.6 Trillion would pay off slightly more than 14.5 million student loans, which could easily be translated as 14.5 million votes!\u00a0 Those votes (plus whatever cheating the Democrats can get away with this November), would be enough to change the outcomes of elections in many districts and prevent the Republicans from gaining a 2\/3rds<\/sup> majority in the House.<\/p>\n

Some \u201cmoderates\u201d have advanced the idea that Congress should allow those who have taken out student loans to: \u00a0(a) make the debt dischargeable in bankruptcy, and; (b) require any college or university that accepts federal student loans to guarantee said loans by not<\/em> offering degrees in non-marketable subject matter.<\/p>\n

Do not<\/em> be misled:\u00a0 In either case, the taxpayer is on the hook for covering the bankruptcy and it seems totally unacceptable to a rational human being that a waitress, or a truck driver, or a plumber should have a part of their earnings confiscated by their government in order to pay off a student loan for someone who thought earning a PhD in \u201cZombie Studies\u201d would be a good idea.<\/p>\n

To the objective thinker, the only<\/em> acceptable means of discharging a debt is for the individual who accrued the debt to pay it back through monthly installments or through work of actual benefit to the taxpayers.<\/p>\n

When all is said and done, the question of the moment then become this:\u00a0 Are you \u2013 the reader \u2013 willing to take just a few moments of your time to make a call or send an email to your elected representatives \u2013 both in the House and Senate \u2013 stating in no uncertain terms that you consider being forced to pay for someone else\u2019s mistakes, e.g. student loans, is totally wrong, and that you could not vote for someone who supported paying off this $1.6 Trillion debt?<\/p>\n

If you are fortunate enough to be represented by Republicans, they will appreciate your thoughts and share them with their Democrat colleagues.\u00a0 If your luck isn\u2019t so good \u2013 if you are represented by one or more Democrats \u2013 you have an opportunity to send chills down their spine and cause them to have nightmares.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

WHAT WE DON\u2019T KNOW<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kris Bancroft, Editor<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Back in December, 2021, Larry Turner, Inspector General for the Department of Labor, testified that as much as<\/em> $163 Billion may have been erroneously paid to persons who fraudulently applied for unemployment relief under the provisions allowing for relief<\/em> due to the effects of the Wuhan virus. https:\/\/www.hsgac.senate.gov\/imo\/media\/doc\/Testimony-Turner-2022-03-17-REVISED.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

On 16 May, Representative Vern Buchanan (R-FL), appeared on Larry Kudlow\u2019s TV program (FBN), and stated that not only had that amount been confirmed<\/em> by Mr. Turner\u2019s office, it is suspicioned that the actual amount of said \u201crelief\u201d could be as much as $400 Billion.<\/p>\n

So, where did the money go?<\/p>\n

An investigative journalist with the Washington Post<\/em> shared some insight on that question:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn many cases, the criminals stole the unemployment funds using real Americans\u2019 personal information. \u00a0They bombarded states with applications filed in the names of actual workers or people in prison \u2014 sometimes to such a degree that, in the case of Maryland, fraudulent claims came to outnumber real requests for help, according to state correspondence reviewed by The Washington Post. \u00a0Criminals employed tools known as botnets to fire off thousands of applications, federal officials say, often with a single computer click. \u00a0And they openly swapped tips for defrauding the government on popular websites and apps, including the messaging service Telegram. \u00a0That has continued this year, as research showed at least two dozen groups with nearly 200,000 members openly discussed ways to avert states\u2019 defenses and siphon funds just over an eight-week period in March and April.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tactics are laid bare in a wide array of federal documents, congressional testimonies, technical reports and court filings, as well as interviews with roughly two dozen government officials and outside experts. \u00a0Some of the malicious actors potentially even avoided detection, at least for a time, after the Labor Department refused to supply information needed to assist federal fraud investigations \u2014 a hurdle the White House intervened to resolve last year\u2026In recent months, a wide array of state and federal law-enforcement agencies have sprung into action, training their sights on domestic criminals and gangs, as well as sophisticated networks based in Nigeria, Russia and Eastern Europe.\u201d https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/us-policy\/2022\/05\/15\/unemployment-pandemic-fraud-identity-theft\/<\/a><\/p>\n

To put these numbers into some practical context, please consider the current estimated population of the United States is 320 Million.\u00a0 If<\/em> those in charge of disbursements allowed $163 Billion to be paid out to people who didn\u2019t qualify for the payments, that equates to their being responsible for allowing the fraudsters to dip into the pockets of every Citizen \u2013 man, woman and child \u2013 in America to the tune of ~$509.<\/p>\n

So, what is it we don\u2019t<\/em> know?<\/p>\n

As of the date of this edition of The Rhea County Republican<\/em>, we do not<\/em> know:\u00a0 the number of government employees who were fired for their ineptitude; we do not<\/em> know the number of US Citizens who have been charged with fraudulently filing for \u2013 and receiving \u2013 money stolen from American Citizens, we have not<\/em> been provided with a list of the countries where our money was sent and<\/em>, we have no<\/em> assurance that such fraud will never be perpetrated again.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t you think it\u2019s time we asked these questions?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/corner\/163-billion-in-pandemic-unemployment-fraud-or-error\/<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/gop-waysandmeans.house.gov\/reminder-over-163-billion-stolen-from-the-workers-and-businesses-who-needed-it-most\/<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/gop-waysandmeans.house.gov\/watchdog-less-than-1-billion-recovered-as-key-ui-fraud-estimate-increases-to-163b\/<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PUBLIC SCHOOLS CONTINUE TO FAIL<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hans Bader<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cD.C. Public Schools Spent $31,843 <\/strong>Per Pupil; But D.C. 8th Graders Had Lowest Math and Reading Scores in Nation,\u201d <\/em>reports CNS News. \u00a0Washington, DC spent more per student than any of the 50 states:<\/p>\n

The public schools in Washington. D.C., spent a total of $31,843 per pupil in fiscal year 2020\u2026Meanwhile, the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests administered in 2019 showed that only 23 percent of the eight graders in D.C. public schools were proficient or better in reading and only 23 percent were proficient or better in mathematics.<\/p>\n

The average reading test score for D.C. eighth graders was lower than the average for eighth graders in any of the 50 states. \u00a0The average math score for D.C. eighth graders tied with the averages for eighth graders in Alaska and New Mexico for lowest in the nation.<\/p>\n

By contrast, Utah spent only $9,424 per student \u2014 less than a third as much as D.C. \u2014 yet its students performed above average. \u00a0The Washington, DC schools have been spending more than any state for years, even as its students lag behind the students of all other states on tests, according to the National Center for Education Statistics:<\/p>\n

In 2019 . . . eighth-graders in D.C. public schools had an average score of 250 out of 500 in the NAEP reading test. \u00a0That was a lower average than any of the 50 states.<\/p>\n

That same year, according to NCES, D.C. public school eight graders had an average score of 269 out of 500 in the NAEP mathematics test. \u00a0That tied D.C. eighth graders with those in New Mexico and Alabama for the lowest average mathematics score in the nation.<\/p>\n

You can find all this data and more in reports from the National Center for Education Statistics.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 About the author:\u00a0 Hans Bader practices law in Washington, D.C. After studying economics and history at the University of Virginia and law at Harvard, he practiced civil-rights, international-trade, and constitutional law. \u00a0He also once worked in the Education Department.<\/em><\/p>\n

https:\/\/thebullelephant.com\/washington-d-c-schools-spent-more-per-pupil-than-any-state-but-had-the-lowest-scores-in-the-nation\/?fbclid=IwAR3mlZYlHPlJV9WXcDHQSyYSb2LKSyC0esO4grU7Av6ZHCthE6l9TjaX0Zs<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THANK YOU TENNESSEE REPRESENTATIVES!<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) ranked both of Tennessee\u2019s U.S. Senators \u2013 Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty \u2013 and five of its Members of the House of Representatives \u2013 Tim Burchett (Knoxville), Diana Harshbarger (Kingsport), Mark Greene (Ashland City), John Rose (Cookeville) and, Scott DesJarlais (Sherwood), in the top 10%<\/strong> of most conservative lawmakers in Washington.<\/p>\n

Are you curious as to where your lawmakers rank?\u00a0 The rankings for more than 15,000 elected representatives \u2013 including those in your State \u2013 may be found at the following link:\u00a0 http:\/\/ratings.conservative.org\/<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

RANDOM THOUGHTS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Caught between the wrong-headed and the soft-hearted, our country has stumbled into a shambles. \u00a0Widespread rioting and lawlessness, surging murder rates in cities across the country, and the demonization, demoralization, and depletion of the police\u2014all driven by left-wing ideologues in office and on the streets\u2014make it much harder to be complacent about criminal violence now, as so many of us were a few short years ago. \u00a0Are we ready, at long last, to wage a true war on crime?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THE IMPENDING CHIP SHORTAGE<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kris Bancroft, Editor<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

American private sector has invested more than $200 billion into the semiconductor industry and plans to invest more.\u00a0 We don\u2019t need the government to invest $50 billion more but that\u2019s in the bill.\u00a0 Also, there is a $45 billion set aside for the DOE slush fund, $78 billion for the National Science Foundation (which is ten times their normal budget), $45 billion is added to the Commerce Department to help it figure out how to secure more \u201ccritical goods.\u201d\u00a0 Then, there\u2019s a $3 billion set aside for solar manufacturing (Solyndra comes to mind), $8 billion for the UN \u201cGreen Climate Fund, Taiwan Semiconductor is investing $12 billion to build a plant in AZ, Samsung is building investing $17 billion in a chip factory in Texas,\u00a0\u00a0 Intel is building 2 factories in AZ using $20 billion of its own money but<\/em> they\u2019re using the $8 billion gifted from the taxpayer to build a semiconductor plant in . . . Germany! \u00a0Why?<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch%3Fv%3D01jc6Mvchxw<\/a><\/p>\n

As incredible as it may seem, some Democrats (a.k.a. Socialists) are whining that closing off trade relations with foreign manufacturers is \u201cProtectionism.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, what\u2019s wrong with looking out for our own citizens?\u00a0 What\u2019s wrong with \u201cprotecting\u201d our country from being drawn into foreign wars?\u00a0 What\u2019s wrong with allowing our citizens to be victimized by foreign mismanagement, or being harmed by the whims of foreign dictators?\u00a0 If America is to be free, it must first be TOTALLY INDEPENDENT and have the capability to be TOTALLY SELF-SUSTAINING.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

THOUGHTS ON GOING CASHLESS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kris Bancroft, Editor<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The worst part about shopping is going through the checkout line, but some are quick to remind us that it\u2019s getting easier.<\/p>\n

Just a few years ago, we would become frustrated as we watched the people in front of us go through their wallet or purse until they found the<\/em> credit card they were looking for and either the clerk or card holder would run the magnetic strip on the card through the reader.<\/p>\n

Just a few years before that, we would become frustrated while standing in line as we watched the people in front of us fumble for their checkbooks, write out a check for the amount of the purchase, fumble in their wallet or purse some more to find their driver\u2019s license to prove they were who they claimed to be, and then be granted the checkout clerk\u2019s blessings to carry away their purchases.<\/p>\n

Those who used \u201cplastic\u201d would submit their card to the clerk, who would place it (seldom carefully<\/em>), into the imprinter, slap an imprinter form (with two carbon copies on top of it, slide the press over the card to imprint the embossed numbers and card holder\u2019s name onto the form, and return the card to the customer after<\/em> they had signed on the dotted line, indicating they agreed with the purchase amount.<\/p>\n

Going farther back, does anyone remember the \u201cold folks\u201d who fiddled through coin purses to find the most efficient coinage so they could pay for their purchase down to the penny<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Today, people are more conscious of time than at any time anyone can recall and maximizing our time seems to be the key driver of what we do and how we do it.\u00a0 Saving time at checkout lanes gives us more time for all the important<\/em> stuff we do . . . like answering tweets and texts, or checking to see how many \u201cLikes\u201d our last Facebook post received.\u00a0 [Sarcasm implied!]<\/em><\/p>\n

For whatever reason, spending less time in the checkout lines sounds awfully convenient, and the trend toward \u201cgoing cashless\u201d has extraordinary appeal, but on closer examination we see there are some heavyweight problems we must consider \u2013 convenience is never really \u201cfree,\u201d is it?<\/p>\n

Right off the bat we see living in a \u201cCashless Society\u201d means no cash \u2013 none, zip, nada, ZERO!\u00a0 It means:\u00a0 no \u201ctuck-away\u201d funds for those wishing to escape an abusive relationship; no more garage sales or flea markets; no more cash donations for the hungry and homeless people we pass on the street; no more money slipped into the hand of a child from their grandparent; no more money in birthday cards; no more piggy banks or tooth fairies.<\/p>\n

But, it gets worse \u2013 much<\/em> worse!\u00a0 Going cashless means the banks \u2013 and, of course, the government \u2013 will have total<\/em> surveillance and total<\/em> control over all our finances.<\/p>\n

Today, when our purchases have been recorded on the soon-to-be \u201ccashless\u201d register, we most often insert our credit, or debit, card into the device with a chip reader or magnetic strip reader, and within seconds, a ribbon of paper showing our purchases, and the amount we paid for them, comes streaming out of the \u201ccash\u201d register and we\u2019re on our way.\u00a0 Sometimes, our \u201creceipt\u201d is conveyed to our smart phone \u2013 no paper (and both Al Gore and the polar bears on the ice floes smile when they hear the news that another piece of a tree has been saved.)<\/p>\n

\u201cSpooky Part Number One is:\u00a0 No one seems to mind \u2013 or is even aware \u2013 of what all takes place in those scant few seconds from the moment we insert our card into the reader and our receipt is printed but, if you\u2019re curious, this is it:<\/p>\n

The card\/chip reader determines whether your card has been reported stolen, whether or not you are a fugitive from the law, and whether or not a death certificate has been filed in Office of your home state\u2019s Medical Examiner.<\/p>\n

Each item you\u2019ve purchased is recorded in a database and an algorithm tracks your purchases \u2013 especially booze, drugs, ammunition and \u201cgun-related\u201d products, volatile chemicals, and \u201cstuff\u201d that\u2019s not \u201cgood\u201d for you \u2013 i.e. \u201cjunk food.\u201d\u00a0 A host of government agencies collect these data, e.g. BATFE, DHS, IRS, DEA, and HHS, to name a few.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If you buy too many rounds of ammunition, the government knows.\u00a0 If you buy a cleaning kit for a gun not registered to you, the government knows.\u00a0 If you donate money to an organization the government has determined to be \u201csubversive,\u201d the government knows.\u00a0 If you buy products that can be used to manufacture drugs or explosives, the government knows.\u00a0 If you buy too much \u201cjunk food\u201d (that might have adverse health effects and increase the amount of 0bamacare you need), the government knows.<\/p>\n

To add insult to the injury of having your 4th<\/sup> Amendment rights trampled by our government, please know the government gives access to these data who use them to market products that are competitive to those you routinely purchase. (Ever wonder why you get those emails, letters, and phone calls trying to sell you more of the things you routinely buy?\u00a0 Now you know.)<\/p>\n

\u201cSpooky Part Number 2\u201d follows:<\/p>\n

Now we\u2019re told, within five years, we will be living in both a \u201ccashless\u201d society and<\/em> a \u201ccard-less\u201d society.\u00a0 What\u2019s more, we\u2019re being told that our purchases will be made by allowing a scanner to \u201cread\u201d a chip implanted in our hand.\u00a0 No more wallets, no more credit or debit cards, no more identification cards or licenses. In fact, these chips are already in use!\u00a0 It is a matter of only a short, short<\/em> time before implanted chips totally replace those embedded in our credit and debit cards.<\/p>\n

Today, in both the European Union and United Kingdom, one can purchase a chip \u2013 about the size of a grain of rice \u2013 that is surgically implanted in the fleshy area of the hand, between the thumb and index finger.\u00a0 The individual bearing the chip holds their hand up to a reader and the amount of their purchase is instantly debited against the funds in their bank account.\u00a0 In a few nanoseconds, all the data mentioned previously is acquired and distributed to the \u201cappropriate?\u201d sources.<\/p>\n

To think hordes of criminals have not already devised innumerable ways they will use these chips to defraud businesses and individuals is to be hopelessly na\u00efve.\u00a0 By way of a brief illustration, a criminal could use a scanner similar to those used to capture personal information stored on smart phones, or; a criminal might cut the chip out of a victim\u2019s hand (as a short-term strategy) and tape or glue it to their own, thus gaining access to the victim\u2019s finances, or; a criminal could kidnap a victim and their family and compel them to go in person to withdraw funds from their bank account.<\/p>\n

In short, in order for all parties in business transactions to be secure in their exchange of \u201cvalue for value,\u201d it will be necessary to devise a way to make certain a chip has not been purloined \u2013 a back-up plan, if you will, and that takes us to \u201cSpooky Part Number 3:\u201d<\/p>\n

Read the following using your best Rod Serling voice:\u00a0 Imagine, if you will, you are out shopping with your newly implanted computer chip and you\u2019re making a hefty purchase from a store you\u2019ve never before entered.\u00a0 You place your right hand within range of the chip reader but, since the store management is concerned that you might not be who your chip proclaims you to be, they ask for additional verification.\u00a0 You are taken aback because you no longer carry a wallet or a purse with identification materials, but the store manager instantaneously assuages your concerns with an explanation delivered in dulcet tones:<\/p>\n

\u201cNo worries dear customer, just point your face in the direction of this verification device.\u201d<\/p>\n

You ask what type of device the store manager is pointing at.\u00a0 The response is delivered \u2013 again in that soothing voice:\u00a0 \u201cWhy it\u2019s simply a retina scanner; we\u2019ve been using them since the days when criminals figured out ways to replicate finger prints.\u00a0 As you may know, a scan of your retina is recorded on your implanted chip because no one can replicate an individual\u2019s retina.\u201d<\/p>\n

The following sources were referenced in the production of this article:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n