LANSING, Mich., Nov. 16, 2007

Mich. Appeals Court Blocks Jan. 15 Primary

State Court Of Appeals Ruling Leaves Campaign Calendar In Flux

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(AP)  The Michigan Court of Appeals on Friday upheld a lower court's ruling that the Jan. 15 presidential primary law is unconstitutional.

In a 2-1 ruling, Judges Patrick Meter and Donald Owens said the law clearly allows information from a publicly funded election to be used for private purposes. The law lets the Michigan Democratic and Republican parties keep track of voters' names and whether they took a Democratic or GOP primary ballot but gives no public access to that information.

The ruling was a blow to state officials who had hoped the Court of Appeals would let the Jan. 15 primary go forward.

The delay also is affecting the nation's second presidential contest, the New Hampshire primary. New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner says he won't set the date of his state's presidential primary until it's clear what's going to happen with Michigan's election.

A spokesman for Attorney General Mike Cox, whose office had appealed the lower court ruling, said no decision had been reached on whether to take the case to the Michigan Supreme Court.

"We're disappointed with the court's decision," Matt Frendewey said.

Lawmakers could fix the law so it would pass legal muster, but so far have failed to get legislation past both houses. State GOP Chairman Saul Anuzis said after the ruling was released that it's up to Democrats to act.

"Right now, the only thing standing between a presidential primary and voters is the Democrat (sic) Caucus in the Michigan House of Representatives," he said in a statement. "There is strong bipartisan support for a presidential primary on January 15, but time is running out."

© MMVII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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by peaceprophet November 19, 2007 12:02 AM EST
RON PAUL IS NOT YOUR FATHER''S REPUBLICAN
Ron Paul represents a different Republican Party from the one that Iraq, deficits and corruption have soured the country on. It''s ironic that other GOP candidates are scared to death of his message, because his positions are more conservative than theirs. Being anti-war; pro-life; pro civil liberties; pro Second Amendment; pro States rights; pro secure borders; and in favor of a sound economics policy IS TOTALLY CONSERVATIVE. The Republican party has "lost its way," Paul said during a recent GOP debate. Like the limited federal government principles espoused by Dwight D. Eisenhower, his school of Republicanism stands for a certain idea of The Constitution that much of the power asserted by modern Presidents has been usurped from Congress, and that much of the power asserted by Congress has been usurped from the States. Though Paul acknowledges flaws in both The Constitution (it included slavery) and The Bill of Rights (it doesn''t go far enough), he still thinks a comprehensive array of positions can be drawn therefrom: against gun control; for the sovereignty of States; and against foreign-policy adventures like the ones currently being played-out in the Mid-East. After ten terms of service as a U.S. Congressman, Ron Paul has demonstrated a consistent track record of adherance to The Constitution unmatched by anyone in either party. Ron Paul does not represent your Father''s school of political thought. He represents your Founding Fathers.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 11:43 PM EST
RON PAUL WILL RESTORE U.S. SOVEREIGNTY
All of the trade deals and world government organizations, which all of the presidential candidates support (except Ron Paul), such as the ICC, NAFTA, GATT, WTO, and CAFTA, are all a major threat to our nation''s sovereignty. They transfer power from our government to unelected foreign elites. The ICC wants to try our soldiers as war criminals. Both the WTO and CAFTA could force Americans to get a prescription to take herbs and vitamins. The WTO has forced Congress to change our laws to meet their needs, and not our own. If anything, the WTO makes trade relations worse by giving foreign competitors a new way to attack U.S. jobs. The NAFTA superhighway, being built by a Spanish company, is just one part of a plan to erase our borders and create the North American Union, a single nation State like the EU, out of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, with a new, unelected bureaucracy and money system. Forget about controlling immigration under the NAU scheme. There won''t be any borders anymore, or a free America. Our limited, constitutional government will be gone forever. Let''s not forget the UN either. It wants to impose a direct Carbon Tax on us. Ron Paul successfully fought this move in Congress last year, but if we are going to stop ongoing attempts of this world government body to rule over us, we need someone in the White House who knows how to say "No." We must withdraw from any organizations or treaty that infringes upon our nation''s sovereignty.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 11:38 PM EST
RON PAUL KNOWS HOW TO STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
The talk must stop. We must secure our borders now. A nation without secure borders is no nation at all. It makes no sense to fight terrorists abroad when our own front door is left unlocked. Ron Paul has a plan: (1.) Physically secure our borders and coastlines. We must do whatever it takes to control entry into our country before we undertake complicated immigration reform proposals. (2.) Enforce Visa rules. Immigration officials must track Visa holders and deport anyone who overstays their Visa or otherwise violates U.S. Law. This is especially important when we recall that a number of 9/11 terrorists had expired Visas. (3.) No amnesty. Estimates suggest that 10 to 20 million people are in our country illegally. That''s a lot of people to reward for breaking our Laws. (4.) No welfare for illegal aliens. Americans have welcomed immigrants who seek opportunity, work hard, and play by the rules, but taxpayers should not pay for illegal immigrants who use hospitals, clinics, schools, roads, and social services. (5.) End birthright citizenship. As long as illegal immigrants know their children born here will be citizens, the incentive to enter the U.S. illegally will remain strong. (6.) Pass true immigration reform. The current system, and those proposed by ALL other candidates, is incoherent and unfair, and would allow up to 60 million more immigrants into our country.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 11:24 PM EST
RON PAUL CAN WIN THE ELECTION
Ron Paul can win the GOP nomination. If he does, I predict a landslide victory in November of 2008. Even the oddsmakers in Vegas aren''t willing to discount his chances. They''re currently giving him 2:1 odds to win against Hitlery if he gets the nomination. Romney, McCain and the globalist, sell-out Giuliani aren''t given anything better than a 45:1 chance of winning if they get the GOP nod. All it takes is for formerly apathetic individuals to get off the couch and nominate him in their local Republican primary or caucus process. Political parties are nothing more than tools. Those who read the manual and use the tools properly will win the nomination for their candidate. For the past 20 years, many good people have stayed at home and accepted whatever candidate they let others select for them. This year, those people are learning how to use their vote to make a difference. In order to do so, you must participate in the Republican primary election or caucus process in your county, precinct or district. Nothing else matters. If we do this, we win. If not, we lose. The GOP has been suffering from declining participation for decades. Fewer than 10% of registered voters have ALL the power because they actually participate. Now the remaining 90% must surge to use their vote as a tool to bring about positive and long overdue political change in this country. The time to act is now. The time for political revolution has come. The time for Ron Paul is NOW!
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 11:20 PM EST
RON PAUL SETS NEW GOP FUNDRAISING RECORD
Freedom is apparently popular, folks. I''m glad it is. In just 24 hours (on Nov 5, 2007), Ron Paul raised over $4,200,000 in grass roots donations from his supporters nationwide, eclipsing Mitt Romney''s previous one-day (Republican) record of $3.1 million. Do the math folks. Ron Paul certainly isn''t getting any money from the bankers or the military industrial complex like all the sold-out, New World Order candidates on the left and the right who pretend to be his equal. He''s getting support from millions of people who share in his Hope For America.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 11:14 PM EST
RON PAUL WINS GOP STRAW POLL IN FRESNO
Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul won the November 15th straw poll at the Salute to Republican Leaders fundraiser hosted by the Fresno County Republican Party. Congressman Paul won with 35 percent, beating Rudy Giuliani, who garnered 33 percent of the vote. This win attests to the strength of the Paul campaign in California. There are over 140 registered Ron Paul volunteers in Fresno among thousands of registered volunteers throughout the Golden State. "Across California, the Paul campaign is energizing new voters to register Republican and is re-registering disaffected Republicans who are excited about Ron Paul''s candidacy and his support of traditional Republican principles," said Jeff Greenspan, Ron Paul''s regional coordinator. In his address to the Fresno County Republican Party, Greenspan said, "We are pleased to support Republican party ideals in California, the Republican party of Fresno County, and the party of Ronald Reagan." Of 41 recent straw polls across the U.S., Ron Paul has won 21, with numerous second and third place finishes.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 10:59 PM EST
RON PAUL WINS STRAW POLL IN WASHINGTON STATE
Texas congressman Ron Paul won the South Sound Ronald Reagan Republican Club (SSRRRC) 2008 presidential primary straw poll with 38 percent of the vote at their October 26 meeting in Pierce County, Washington. This is his third SSRRRC win; Dr. Paul won their August and September polls with 28 and 48 percent respectively. Fred Thompson placed second in all three polls. This latest one of many straw poll successes nationwide for the GOP presidential candidate and leading war opponent. "Dr. Paul enjoys great grassroots support in Washington and across the nation," said Paul spokesman Jesse Benton. "His numerous straw poll victories show that Americans embrace his message of freedom, peace, and prosperity, and are ready to put a real Republican in the White House." Dr. Paul''s September 14 rally in Seattle, Washington drew over 1,300 supporters.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 10:54 PM EST
CBS NEWS CAUGHT CONDUCTING RIGGED POLLS
Most people can see right through the prejudice CBS News obviously has towards Ron Paul. In the few times they''ve covered him at all, I''m suprised they didn''t have one of their graphics artists Photoshop some devil horns on top of his head in that worst ever photograph they always use of him. CBS obviously thinks that if they pretend Paul isn''t a top-tier GOP candidate, then their readers and viewers will eventually think so too. Whenever they are forced to do a story on Paul, because some other mainstream source is covering him for some reason, the fact that their editors work overtime to slant their stories in such a way as to either marginalize his accomplishment, or present Paul in the most negative light possible, is obvious to anyone with a modicum of intelligence. "What about their polls?," you ask? As far as the CBS News poll is concerned, they don''t even include Paul on the list of GOP candidates which pollees can choose from, and then afterwards, report to you that Paul doesn''t even rank in their final tally. Ron Paul is getting major grass roots support nationwide. He has over 71,700 meetup group members in 1,198 Groups from 938 cities nationwide, with another 7,277 people more folks just waiting to hear when a new meetup group will start-up near them. He''s won ALL of the viewer phone-in polls in ALL of the GOP debates he''s been in, and has raised more money ($4.2 million) in one day than any other GOP candidate ever. Go Ron Go!
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 10:44 PM EST
POLLSTERS CAUGHT SKEWING RESULTS
Ron Paul breaks fundraising records, wins phone-in and Internet polls, yet why are his national poll numbers so low? A Zogby pollee recently revealed what happened to him when he took part in their national, 2008 presidential election poll. Upon confirming Ron Paul as his choice for President, the poll then branched out into a myriad of bizarre and intrusive questions which would discourage most people from completing the process, and thereby making their vote for Ron Paul null and void. "The first part of the poll was about which candidate one prefers, with candidates from both parties being available as choices. Great! However, after I finished answering positively for Ron Paul, the poll got very interesting," he writes. "As anyone who is familiar with how polls work is aware, polls are branching in their structure. Answers you give to one section of the poll will determine what questions you will receive in the next section of the poll." The pollee then relates his confusion about the fact that the poll threw up 20 questions about cooking rice before another extensive set of questions regarding personal sexual behavior. "This went on for a number of pages and was rather intrusive," he said. "It dealt with sexual positions, sexual fantasies, sexual preferences and similar intimate subjects. Of course neither rice cooking or sexual behavior have anything to do with presidential elections or politics in general. Or at least it shouldn''t!"
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 10:34 PM EST
HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more torture prisons
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more erosion of Social Security to pay for militarization
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT (globalist trade cartels)
-- No more North American Union (loss of U.S. sovereignty)
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more national ID cards (Real ID Act)
-- No more government invasion of your privacy
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more unlimited federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men"
- Samual Adams

"Ron Paul doesn''t represent your Father''s school of political thought. He represents your Founding Fathers."
- Me
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 10:30 PM EST
RON PAUL IS THE NEW WAY
What we need is a President who will show us the way. Not the old way. Not the same way, but a NEW way. Think about this for a minute. What if we pulled all of our troops out of South Korea? They''ve been there for 50+ years. What if we quit worrying about Iran, but instead, realized that its having a nuclear weapon will not mean the end of the world? What if we pulled all of our troops out of the Middle-East, and brought them all home? What if we realistically addressed the National Debt, and paid attention to REALLY DOING SOMETHING about stopping illegal immigration? These are the ideas of Presidential candidate, Ron Paul. He''s a ten term Congressman and a physician who has delivered over 4,000 babies. He''s an intellectual who''s published four books, three of which are devoted entirely to sound economics and one to foreign policy. He was raised on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania as a pious Lutheran, but now he attends a Baptist church. Paul is given to mulling things over morally. Whenever he recollects the helicopter pilots he treated as an Air Force Flight Surgeon (Captain) during the Vietnam War, a war which he now says was "totally unnecessary and illegal," he laments, "They were gung-ho. I''ve often thought about how many of those people never came back." Candidates with the high level of personal integrity and proven track record of adherence to The Constitution, Congressman Paul has always demonstrated only come around once in a lifetime, if we''re lucky.
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by peaceprophet November 18, 2007 8:25 PM EST
TO APATHETIC AMERICANS
Voter disenfranchisement and apathy infects the heart of our Republic. Get off your couch, put your remote control down, and become active in your nation''s political process. The pathetically few people that do vote in this country, a.k.a., "the ruling class", who currently get to decide under what kind of conditions (and Laws) you and your family will live, are certainly involved. I can assure you of that. In fact, the ruling class would be much happier if you would just continue to stay home and watch TV in your pleasantly distracted and brainwashed, stupor. That way they can continue to elect their political ****** to office, and continue to maintain their grip on 100% of the political power they currently own in this country. If you voted (God Forbid), it would cancel-out their vote, and they would lose control. They can''t have that. Now can they? If you don''t vote, my friends, you''re nothing but an unwashed "Pleb" to those that do, and the ruling class should rightfully consider themselves superior to you in every way. They do, after all, have all the power, while you have none. If you''re too apathetic and powerless to do anything for yourself more time-consuming than driving down to Mickey D''s to buy a milk shake in order to sieze control of your life, and your country''s destiny, then perhaps you deserve to be ruled over like the "Pleb" that you then are. The time to act is now. The time for political revolution has come. The time for Ron Paul is NOW!
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by bhappy2-2 November 18, 2007 1:53 AM EST
HEY CBS-
Why is there a comment section for this story:
Mexico Assails U.S. Pols On Immigration
If YOU aren''t going to SHOW the comments? Are you afraid the citizens of America might PISSOFF the president of mexico by telling him he can take his 20 million ILLEGAL ALIEN INVADERS home? Are you concerned we, the citizens of America, might tell him if his CRIMINALS don''t want to be harassed they should SELF DEPORT? Why don''t you show the comment about these ILLEGAL ALIEN INVADERS and their sorry excuse for a president? What makes him think he can dictate ANYTHING to OUR COUNTRY when his country is so bad HIS people are leaving in droves?
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:52 PM EST
"Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have ideas."
- Josef Stalin
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:50 PM EST
"The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home."
- James Madison

"We have nothing to fear but fear itself, and those who would exploit our fear for power and their own personal, selfish, cynical gain."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

"When the people fear their government, you have tyranny. When the government fears the people, you have liberty."
- Thomas Jefferson
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:48 PM EST
ARE WE A NATION OF LAWS?
Consider the Patriot Act. The Law is 342 pages long, or 57,000 words, making it a bit longer than Dostoevsky''s "Notes from Underground" or, if you''re partial to pigs, about twice the size of Orwell''s "Animal Farm." The Patriot Act is the reigning champion of our government''s recent un-American activities. When it was first paraded before Congress and the Senate following the 9/11 attacks, few Members, other than Congressman, Ron Paul dared to vote against it. Most in Congress simply gave it their rubber-stamp of approval, without ever reading it. Why bother? It was, after all, named the "USA Patriot Act." It must be a good thing. Right? Now in effect, the Law wrecks a generation''s worth of constitutional protections against government snooping, legalizing police-state tactics in searches and seizures, criminalizing certain forms of speech and political activity, and opening the way for the mistreatment of foreigners in government custody and wholesale expulsions and imprisonment. It is a repugnant, unnecessary Law that goes against the very principles its name wrongly implies. Yet, it remains unchecked and unbalanced by public opinion, Lawmakers or the Courts. So, yes, we''re a nation of Laws. But the Laws aren''t much to speak of when they''re designed to hoodwink the public to win its docility. Neither is public responsibility much to speak of these days when its docility is secured with nothing more than a ploy-riddled play on the word "patriot."
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by brundage3 November 17, 2007 7:41 PM EST
The person who posted that our" candidate is not a person of substance, integrity or consistancy. (Of course he says that without saying it! That is he says HIS candidate is the ONLY one with these atributes. That means "Your" candidate does not!)

BUT Ron Paul does NOT say such things. See him interviewed and he is the picture of "nioce"and even praises various Senators and Giovernors! So...

He is the most vicious type of political candidate. He lies by being nice while he says not a word about the "supporters"who attack his opponents as being unethical, inconsistant, self indulgent, self centered hacks.

Paul supporters and many, many others in America should awaken to reality. A person with ideas other than your own, is just a much a person of valuie as you! And maybe even more!
Scott
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:39 PM EST
CLINTON MAKES BUSH DICTATOR
With the full support of Senators Clinton, Obama and McCain, President Bush recently signed into Law the John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which, according to Senator Leahy (VT), will actually "encourage the President to declare Martial Law." It does so by revising the Insurrection Act, a Laws which limits the President''s ability to deploy troops within the United States. The Insurrection Act has historically, along with the Posse Comitatus Act, helped to enforce strict prohibitions on military involvement in domestic Law enforcement. With one cloaked swipe of his pen, Bush has now undone all of those prohibitions. The John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which was signed by the President in an unpublicized ceremony, allows the President to declare a "public emergency," suspend Congress; The Constitution; and to take control of state-based National Guard units without the consent of your Governor or local authorities, in order to "suppress public disorder." President Bush seized this unprecedented power on the very same day that he signed the equally odious Military Commissions Act. The two Laws compliment one another. One allows for torture and detention abroad of those who dissent and are stripped of their citizenship, while the other seeks to enforce acquiescence at home by allowing the President to order the military onto our streets in a domestic Law enforcement role, which is already being done. Vote for Liberty. Vote for Ron Paul.
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:38 PM EST
CLINTON ALLOWS BUSH TO PARDON HIMSELF
Buried deep inside Military Commisions Act, which was FULLY SUPPORTED by Senators Clinton, Obama and McCain, is a provision which pre-pardons President Bush and all the members of his administration for any crimes which they may have committed all the way back to September 11, 2001. Why that far back? That kind of makes you wonder. Huh? I can''t help but recall what Nixon said during an interview following the Watergate scandal when he said, "If the President does it, by definition, it''s not illegal." History never repeats itself, folks. It only rhymes. At least Nixon had enough class to wait for another President to pardon him for his crimes against our country. Bush apparently doesn''t want to take that chance. He has to consider the risk that Ron Paul will become our next President.
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by peaceprophet November 17, 2007 7:28 PM EST
CAMPING OUT WITH HALIBURTION
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act, which was supported by Clinton, Obama and McCain, permits militarized police round-ups and detention of protesters ("potential terrorists") and other "undesirables" for detention in facilities which are already contracted for and under construction by Kellog, Brown & Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton. This Law, which was sold to an "emergency managed" and willfully gullible public in the wake of the 9/11 attacks as a necessary measure needed by our President in order to fight his "global war on terrorism," permits the indefinite detention of American citizens who resists the foreign and domestic agenda of our President. The Journal of Counterterrorism & Homeland Security International reported recently that global engineering and technical services powerhouse, Kellog, Brown & Root announced during January 2006 that its Government and Infrastructure division had been awarded a (no bid) Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract to build these detainment camps with a maximum total value of $385 million over a five year term, and that this contract called for the company to build "temporary detention and processing capabilities" to augment existing U.S. government Detention and Removal Operations and to support "the rapid development of new programs." New Programs? Could it possibly get any worse? Why would the president be so concerned about Americans protesting? Aren''t we all happy campers?
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