As a former member of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, I haven’t had much use for unions and their members. I was less than impressed with my fellow union workers, and went on to self-employment as a contractor.

But sometimes, union members have the right attitude.

Thoughtcrime in the new regime:reporting the truth.

From Big Journalism:

WJLA-TV, a Washington, D.C. ABC affiliate, suspended reporter Doug McKelway following his alleged “partisan” comments at a liberal rally on Capitol Hill marking the three-month anniversary of the Gulf oil spill. Video of the broadcast tells a different story:

According to several of McKelway’s colleagues, the newsman’s reporting may have lapsed into partisan territory when he commented live on the air about the oil industry’s influence in Washington, particularly its contributions to Democratic politicians and legislators.

The Washington Post

This is not an isolated incident.

Just a few days ago Gateway Pundit reported that GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt, who owns 80% of NBC Universal, gathered the CNBC reporters together in early 2009 and took them to task for ‘negative’ reports about Barack Obama.

I think that’s what you might call ‘owned’.

Otherwise known as H.R. 5175. “Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections” Give me a break.

Official Summary
4/29/2010–Introduced.Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections Act or DISCLOSE Act –
Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) to prohibit:

(1) independent expenditures and payments for electioneering communications by government contractors if the value of the contract is at least $50,000; and

(2) recipients of assistance under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA) from making any contribution to any political party, committee, or candidate for public office, or to any person for any political purpose or use, or from making any independent expenditure or disbursing any funds for an electioneering communication. Applies the ban on contributions and expenditures by foreign nationals to foreign-controlled domestic corporations.

Treats as contributions:

(1) any payments by any person (except a candidate, a candidate’s authorized committee, or a political committee of a political party) for coordinated communications; and

(2) political party communications made on behalf of candidates if made under the control or direction of a candidate or a candidate’s authorized committee.

Revises the definition of independent expenditure to mean, in part, an expenditure that, when taken as a whole, expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate, or is the functional equivalent of express advocacy.

Requires any person making independent expenditures exceeding $10,000 to file a report within 24 hours.

Increases the period before a general election during which a communication shall be considered an electioneering communication.

Requires corporations, labor organizations, and other covered organizations to include specified additional information in reports on independent expenditures of at least $10,000.

Sets forth special rules for the use of general treasury funds by covered organizations for campaign-related activity.

Authorizes covered organizations to make optional use of a separate Campaign-Related Activity Account for making disbursements for campaign-related activity.

Prescribes additional information to be included in certain radio or television communications by persons (including significant funders of campaign-related communications of a covered organization) other than a candidate, a candidate’s authorized committee, or a political committee of a political party.

Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to require registered lobbyists to report information on independent expenditures or electioneering communications of at least $1,000 to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Requires certain covered organizations to disclose to shareholders, members, or donors information on disbursements for campaign-related activity.

Authorizes judicial review of the provisions of this Act.

Wow. Tea Party and political action committees, look out. Any organization, really.

Most organizations are understandably appalled by H.R. 5175, like Wisconsin Right to Life:

In yet another move to curtail free speech in America, the House of Representatives plans to vote on a measure, the “Disclose” Act (H.R. 5175), which is intended to make it extremely difficult for corporations, including groups like Wisconsin Right to Life, to freely participate in the election process. The House bill carves out exceptions for labor unions and the National Rifle Association, making the measure especially insulting.

It is completely discriminatory for certain “favored” organizations to be allowed free speech while Wisconsin Right to Life, its chapters, its parent organization, and its colleagues in other states are restricted and even silenced.

Congress is attempting to put these new restrictions in place as soon as possible to blunt the impact of the January 2010 Citizens United U.S. Supreme Court decision which overturned previous speech restrictions enacted by the Congress.

Clearly, the provisions in the “Disclose” Act will ultimately be found unconstitutional.
The goal appears to be to mute the voices of citizen groups for the November elections and for as long as they can get away with it.

The GOP is actively attempting to destroy this monstrosity while the NRA worked for an exception and got it. They feel a bit guilty about it, too. One look at the language of their recent email confirms this. The ‘we needed to do this for you…’ for example.

So they made a deal with the democrats. Some people may call this selling out, but I think they were simply playing inside the beltway politics and won. Good for them. Didn’t say it was ‘right’; it is what it is. Unfortunately, there are many other gun owner and sportsmen organizations out there that would be silenced.

The National Rifle Association believes that any restrictions on the political speech of Americans are unconstitutional.

In the past, through the courts and in Congress, the NRA has opposed any effort to restrict the rights of its four million members to speak and have their voices heard on behalf of gun owners nationwide.

The NRA’s opposition to restrictions on political speech includes its May 26, 2010 letter to Members of Congress expressing strong concerns about H.R. 5175, the DISCLOSE Act. As it stood at the time of that letter, the measure would have undermined or obliterated virtually all of the NRA’s right to free political speech and, therefore, jeopardized the Second Amendment rights of every law-abiding American.

The most potent defense of the Second Amendment requires the most adamant exercise of the First Amendment. The NRA stands absolutely obligated to its members to ensure maximum access to the First Amendment, in order to protect and preserve the freedom of the Second Amendment.

The NRA must preserve its ability to speak. It cannot risk a strategy that would deny its rights, for the Second Amendment cannot be defended without them.

Thus, the NRA’s first obligation must be to its members and to its most ardent defense of firearms freedom for America’s lawful gun owners.

On June 14, 2010, Democratic leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives pledged that H.R. 5175 would be amended to exempt groups like the NRA, that meet certain criteria, from its onerous restrictions on political speech. As a result, and as long as that remains the case, the NRA will not be involved in final consideration of the House bill.

The NRA cannot defend the Second Amendment from the attacks we face in the local, state, federal, international and judicial arenas without the ability to speak. We will not allow ourselves to be silenced while the national news media, politicians and others are allowed to attack us freely.

The NRA will continue to fight for its right to speak out in defense of the Second Amendment. Any efforts to silence the political speech of NRA members will, as has been the case in the past, be met with strong opposition.

This unconstitutional piece of leftist trash might come to the House floor as early as today. I’d say now is the time to contact members of congress about H.R. 1575.

“When we want an opinion of free speech from islamic fanatics, we’ll damn well tell them what it is.”
~ Chris Muir

South Park creators were censored by Comedy Central because of threats from islamic nutsacks, so Savage created the May 20th holiday called Everybody Draw Mohammed Day.
I’ve never seen South Park but that fact hardly matters. Unless we want to end up like Europe, we need to cherish and promote the right of free speech.

Thus, my drawing of the ‘prophet’ might appear a little on the crispy side, but it will be styled in the spirit of the moment. And yes, bacon will probably be involved.