Mo Brooks: Rebuts vicious, scurrilous fake news media and Socialist Democrat attacks
As one of America’s most effective conservative leaders, I defend my honor and reputation against scurrilous, George Orwellian, 1984, Socialist Democrats Politics of Personal Destruction, the same attack strategy used in 2012 against then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and nonstop against President Donald Trump with false Russian Collusion charges and the 2019 sham impeachment effort. Let’s be clear, this entire smear campaign is about intimidating, censoring, and suppressing the ability of American citizens to fight at the ballot box the efforts of Socialist Democrats to seize control of the United States of America. So that I am unambiguously clear, American citizens’ recourse is at the ballot box (maybe this comment will deter Socialist Democrats and Fake News Media from again shrilly shouting false claims of violence advocacy). As you read these remarks, I ask that you consider two quotes. First, as Jesus said in the Bible, John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free”. Second, I quote the words of American patriot Martin Luther King, who stated in 1958 that, “True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.” I ask the Members of Congress, the citizens of the great State of Alabama, and the citizens of America, to bear these words in mind, set their political stridency aside, and strive for justice. Before I get into the meat of my remarks, let me add that January 6 was supposed to be a day of great debate on the floors of the House and Senate about voter fraud and election theft that is supposed to propel America to more honest or accurate elections. Instead, our message was hijacked by people whose illegal breach of the Capitol did a great disservice to our cause and America. Those who engaged in illegal conduct should be ashamed of themselves because their attack on the U.S. Capitol destroyed two months of debate and work. Those who engaged in the illegal breach of the U.S. Capitol could not have done more damage if they had followed any script written by the Democrat National Committee. I take great offense at anyone who suggests I am so politically inexperienced as to want to torpedo my honest and accurate election system effort I spent months fighting on. Mo Brooks Background Let me share a little about myself. My long-time acquaintances and family would describe me as a straight arrow or a “square”. I have never smoked tobacco. I don’t consume alcohol. I have never taken illegal drugs. I have never been accused or convicted of any felonies or misdemeanors. In half a century of driving, I have never had a DUI, a reckless driving ticket or even a speeding ticket. I did once misjudge a traffic light and deservedly got a ticket, but that is it. I have never had a vehicle wreck in which anyone claimed I was at fault. My parents raised me to be a good, self-supporting citizen and I have strived to be just that. My parents also encouraged me to participate in government if the opportunity arose, as this was a part of my ancestry. On my mother’s side, we have a North Carolina ancestral history that includes a county sheriff, a state legislator, a board of education member, a road commissioner, and the like. In fact, the first rest stop you come to on I-40 when you enter North Carolina from Tennessee is named after my grandfather, D. Reeves Noland. I am proud of that ancestry. I have tried to follow it. As such, I have served the public for 36 years as a Tuscaloosa assistant district attorney, an Alabama legislator, the Madison County District Attorney, a county commissioner, and U.S. Congressman. In my 36 years as a public servant, I have a perfect ethics record, having never been found guilty of an ethics violation, large or small. I am proud that, in 1982, I was the first Republican legislator ever elected in Alabama House District 18. I am proud that, in 1983, I was the first Republican legislator ever elected in Alabama House District 10. I am proud that, in 2010, I was the first Republican elected in Alabama Congressional District 5 in more than 130 years. I am proud that, in the history of the State of Alabama, no person has successfully carried the Republican banner in general elections more than I have. You can imagine my dismay upon learning that Socialist Democrats, without ever even bothering to first discuss this matter with me to discern the truth, and without any substantive and connective evidence, so viciously besmirch my good name and character that took 66 years to build. It is with that as a background, that I will address how misplaced and malevolent the motives are of those who falsely accuse me of bad conduct. Accusation Flaw #1: Mr. Malinowski, in his Censure Resolution, alleges that “Representative Mo Brooks addressed a rally in Washington, DC, attended by numerous members of known extremist and anti-government groups, including the Proud Boys, QAnon, Boogaloo Boys, and Oathkeepers, who would shortly thereafter march to seize the United States Capitol” That statement is meaningless because it omits a key fact. Mr. Malinowski fails to allege I knew any of that! Why? Because I did not know any of that. For the record, I have never knowingly associated or communicated with any of those groups in my life and I certainly had no inkling any of these groups were a part of the Trump rally at the Ellipse. Perhaps, at some political event, I have had a photo with one, or a five second conversation with another, but, if so, I don’t recall it and paid no attention to it. Per my cell phone records, on Tuesday morning, January 5, I had a telephone call with Brian Jack, White House Political Director. He asked me to speak at the Trump rally the next day, Wednesday morning. I had never attended a Trump
Bradley Byrne: Our sacred honor
Bradley Byrne suggests everyone get a copy of the Declaration of Independence and read it.
Selma Online offers free civil rights lessons amid virus
The project attempts to show students how events in 1965 shaped voting rights.
Hillary Clinton commemorates boycotts, says U.S. must address injustice
Standing in the pulpit where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led the historic Montgomery bus boycott, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton reached out to black voters Tuesday saying the U.S. is still plagued by injustices such as mass incarceration and attempts to roll back voting rights- and she urged Americans to rebuild their bonds with one another. “We must be honest about the larger and deeper inequalities that continue to exist across our country,” Clinton told a majority black crowd at the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church at an event commemorating the boycott. In a speech on the 60th anniversary of Rosa Parks‘ Dec. 1, 1955, arrest for refusing to give her bus seat to a white passenger, Clinton praised the heroes of the civil rights movement, but said much remains to be done. “Our work isn’t finished. We must pay it forward. There are still injustices perpetuated every day in our country, sometimes in spite of the law, sometimes, unfortunately, in keeping with it,” Clinton said. King preached his Sunday sermons at the church from 1954 to 1960 and was catapulted onto the national stage by the boycott. King’s daughter, Bernice King, gave the benediction after Clinton’s speech. Clinton has made frank discussion about the country’s lingering racism a central theme of her primary campaign, in an effort to woo the coalition of minority, young, and female voters who twice catapulted Barack Obama into the White House. In recent months, she’s met with the families of young black people killed in police shootings and held conversations with Black Lives Matter protesters. She’s rolled out policies aimed at revamping the criminal justice system, an issue that she and her rivals – Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley – each pitch as they court black voters who will help choose a nominee. Clinton is working to solidify her advantage over Sanders, her closest rival, among African-Americans. Black voters could make up more than half of the primary electorate in the early voting state of South Carolina and several other Southern states, including Alabama, that hold March primaries. She told the crowd that mass imprisonment of nonviolent criminals such as drug offenders does little to reduce crime, but much to rip apart families. “Right now an estimated 1.5 million black men are missing from their families and communities because of incarceration and premature death. And too many black families mourn the loss of a child,” she said. Clinton praised the work of police who build trust and confidence with the public, but she called for reforms and “a new course in how we approach punishment and prison.” Clinton also decried what she called efforts to erode the voting rights that minorities won decades ago in the civil rights movement. “Unfortunately, there is mischief afoot and some people are just determined to do what they can to keep other Americans from voting,” Clinton said. Invoking King’s words, that love and justice are intertwined, Clinton challenged Americans to examine themselves and their own preconceived notions and try to reach a greater understanding with others who may not look, or think, like them. “We each need to do the hard work of rebuilding our bonds with one another. This isn’t just about strengthening ties between police and citizens, although that is very important. It’s about strengthening ties across society, between neighbors, colleagues, even among people with whom we profoundly disagree,” Clinton said. A crowd formed a line Tuesday morning for the 300 seats in the small church, decorated with garlands and poinsettias for Christmas. “She is going to be president,” retired elementary school principal Maggie Stringer, 80, said emphatically. “At least I can say I did see her and I’ve been in her presence.” Stringer was a 20-year-old student and a member of the church during the Bus Boycott. “Oh, the energy. As someone said, the cup was full. It just spilled out and it seemed like it reached everybody,” Stringer said. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Hillary Clinton to speak at Montgomery bus boycott anniversary event
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is traveling to Alabama to mark the 60th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Clinton will speak Tuesday morning at the Montgomery, Alabama, church pastored by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. during the boycott. Her speech falls on the anniversary of Rosa Parks‘ Dec. 1, 1955 arrest for refusing to give her bus seat to a white passenger. Her arrest sparked the 381-day boycott of Montgomery buses by blacks to protest segregated seating. In stops in the South, the Democratic presidential front-runner has been working to solidify her advantage among African-American voters. Black voters make up a major portion of the Democratic primary electorate in Southern states holding early primaries in 2016. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
KKK distributed “recruitment flyers” in advance of Selma march 50th anniversary
Civil rights supporters were not the only people observing the 50th anniversary of the march on Selma. The KKK also left about 4,000 flyers throughout Montgomery and Selma to mark “Bloody Sunday.” Robert Jones, grand dragon of the Loyal White Knights of the KKK, told reporters that the group had been distributing flyers for about two weeks before the event held Sunday, March 8. “We pretty much put out fliers, some against King and some against immigration,” Jones told Emily Hill of AL.com. “It’s time for the American people to wake up to these falsehoods that they preach about MLK.” KKK members drove by random homes, tossing bags with a flier and a rock onto doorsteps. Jones said the rocks were like “paperweights.” The KKK was not “upset” about the Selma gathering, Jones said. “Everybody has a right to gather in this country, freedom of speech,” he added, although he did admit “frustration” over support for Martin Luther King, Jr. People are “supporting a man they don’t know about,” he said. The purpose of the flyers was to way attract new members by reminding the community that the Klan is still out there,” Jones told AL.com. “The Klan is still out there and we are watching,” CBS 8 Montgomery reported that Selma Avenue residents notified the news station about the KKK fliers after calling police. Several municipalities nationwide have recently reported finding Klan recruitment flyers, including Hamilton, Ohio; Alexandria, Louisiana; and Spokane Valley, Washington. Many of flyers encouraged residents to report neighborhood troubles to a 24-hour “Klanline.” Louisiana’s The Town Talk website says that one flyer gives a number with a recording saying the KKK is “unapologetically committed to the interests and values of the white race.” Callers can also leave messages; ask for information, media inquiries or check on Klan applications. Thousands gathered on March 8 to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge as Selma celebrated the 50th anniversary of the conflict between police and civil rights activists. The protests led directly to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 signed by President Lyndon Johnson.
