The LaRouchians Will Not Go Away

Disclaimer: I believe the Royal Drug Cartel is the second wackiest conspiracy theory in the history of history. At one time it was the king of the hill of all bizarre conspiracy theories. All good things come to an end and at some point last decade, Queen Pablo Elizabeth surrendered her crown to the 9/11 Truthers.


Political cults are rarer than religious cults and their attrition rate seems to be atrocious. At some point I would like to examine the appeal (for lack of a better term) of Lyndon LaRouche and the sustainability of a movement that has flourished in the face of political oppression. For sheer longevity the LaRouchians might just be the most successful political cult in US history. Is there an Anti-Mason in the house to refute this claim?

Kesha Rogers' Senate campaign might be a watershed for the LaRouche Movement. The DNC has been hijacked by Anti-American extremists and the Larouchians might fill the centrist void. Ideologically, the L-PAC crew is more in line with traditional Democratic values than is Tim Giethner or Cass Sunstein or Eli Emmanuel. For that matter, the Clintons are arguably ideologically closer to the Princes of Pamphlets and Petitions than they are to Barack Obama. The Clintons do not oppose the premise of American prosperity or the idea of American exceptionalism.

The deck is stacked against Kesha Rogers but so what? The deck was stacked against Lyndon LaRouche too and he's still going strong. Rogers is a fighter and whatever else one might say about her, she loves her country and wants what is best for this great land. And at the risk of being redundant, she adamantly opposes Obamacare. Thus, she is better qualified than her Democratic opponent.

The Democratic hierarchy is sanguine if not smug about their future. I see their status as similar to the GOP's position in the second term of Richard Nixon. Watergate was floating to the surface (can you mix metaphor better than that?) and the citizenry was disgusted with the president's abuse of power, trivial in comparison to the current tyrant-in-chief's thug tactics. The Class of 74 was a Democratic Feast that ushered in such luminaries as Tom Harkin, Max Baucus, Henry Waxman and Patrick Leahy.

Nixon turned red states blue and he was perhaps the best thing to ever happen to the Democratic Party. Barack Obama might ultimately damage his own party as much as Nixon hurt his. There are few centrists remaining in the Democratic Party. The flight of traditionalist Democrats has left a huge void. That void might just be filled by the followers of Lyndon LaRouche.

Off-Topic: Billy Sol Estes' Letter To A Federal Prosecutor Stating That LBJ Had Conspired To Kill Eight People

And yes, one of the murdered is John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

Another is Josefa Johnson, the president's sister.

LETTER #2 - FROM DOUGLAS CADDY:

August 9, 1984
Mr. Stephen S. Trott
Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division
U.S. Department of Justice
Washington, D. C. 20530
RE: Mr. Billie Sol Estes
Dear Mr. Trott:
My client, Mr. Estes, has authorized me to make this reply to your letter of May 29, 1984. Mr. Estes was a member of a four-member group, headed by Lyndon Johnson, which committed criminal acts in Texas in the 1960's. The other two, besides Mr. Estes and LBJ, were Cliff Carter and Mac Wallace. Mr. Estes is willing to disclose his knowledge concerning the following criminal offenses:
I. Murders
1. The killing of Henry Marshall
2. The killing of George Krutilek
3. The killing of Ike Rogers and his secretary
4. The killing of Harold Orr
5. The killing of Coleman Wade
6. The killing of Josefa Johnson
7. The killing of John Kinser
8. The killing of President J. F. Kennedy.
Mr. Estes is willing to testify that LBJ ordered these killings, and that he transmitted his orders through Cliff Carter to Mac Wallace, who executed the murders. In the cases of murders nos. 1-7, Mr. Estes' knowledge of the precise details concerning the way the murders were executed stems from conversations he had shortly after each event with Cliff Carter and Mac Wallace.
In addition, a short time after Mr. Estes was released from prison in 1971, he met with Cliff Carter and they reminisced about what had occurred in the past, including the murders. During their conversation, Carter orally compiled a list of 17 murders which had been committed, some of which Mr. Estes was unfamiliar. A living witness was present at that meeting and should be willing to testify about it. He is Kyle Brown, recently of Houston and now living in Brady, Texas.
Mr. Estes, states that Mac Wallace, whom he describes as a "stone killer" with a communist background, recruited Jack Ruby, who in turn recruited Lee Harvey Oswald. Mr. Estes says that Cliff Carter told him that Mac Wallace fired a shot from the grassy knoll in Dallas, which hit JFK from the front during the assassination.
Mr. Estes declares that Cliff Carter told him the day Kennedy was killed, Fidel Castro also was supposed to be assassinated and that Robert Kennedy, awaiting word of Castro's death, instead received news of his brother's killing.
Mr. Estes says that the Mafia did not participate in the Kennedy assassination but that itparticipation was discussed prior to the event, but rejected by LBJ, who believed if the Mafia were involved, he would never be out from under its blackmail.
Mr. Estes asserts that Mr. Ronnie Clark, of Wichita, Kansas, has attempted on several occasions to engage him in conversation. Mr. Clark, who is a frequent visitor to Las Vegas, has indicated in these conversations a detailed knowledge corresponding to Mr. Estes' knowledge of the JFK assassination. Mr. Clark claims to have met with Mr. Jack Ruby a few days prior to the assassination, at which time Kennedy's planned murder was discussed.
Mr. Estes declares that discussions were had with Jimmy Hoffa concerning having his aide, Larry Cabell, kill Robert Kennedy while the latter drove around in his convertible.
Mr. Estes has records of his phone calls during the relevant years to key persons mentioned in the foregoing account.
II. The Illegal Cotton Allotments
Mr. Estes desires to discuss the infamous illegal cotten allotment schemes in great detail. He has recordings made at the time of LBJ, Cliff Carter and himself discussing the scheme. These recordings were made with Cliff Carter's knowledge as a means of Carter and Estes protecting them selves should LBJ order their deaths.
Mr. Estes believes these tape recordings and the rumors of other recordings allegedly in his possession are the reason he has not been murdered.
III. Illegal Payoffs
Mr. Estes is willing to disclose illegal payoff schemes, in which he collected and passed on to Cliff Carter and LBJ millions of dollars. Mr. Estes collected payoff money on more than one occasion from George and Herman Brown of Brown and Root, which was delivered to LBJ.
In your letter of May 29, 1984, you request "(1) the information, including the extent of corroborative evidence, that Mr. Estes sources of his information, and (3) the extent of his involvement, if any, in each of those events or any subsequent cover-ups."
In connection with Item # 1, I wish to declare, as Mr. Estes' attorney, that Mr. Estes is prepared without reservation to provide all the information he has. Most of the information contained in this letter I obtained from him yesterday for the first time. While Mr. Estes has been pre-occupied by this knowledge almost every day for the last 22 years, it was not until we began talking yesterday that he could face up to disclosing it to another person. My impression from our conversation yesterday is that Mr. Estes, in the proper setting, will be able to recall and orally recount a criminal matters. It is also my impression that his interrogation in such a setting will elicit additional corroborative evidence as his memory is stimulated.
In connection with your Item #2, Mr. Estes has attempted in this letter to provide his sources of information.
In connection with your Item #3, Mr. Estes states that he never participated in any of the murders. It may be alleged that he participated in subsequent cover-ups. His response to this is that had he conducted himself any differently, he, too, would have been a murder victim.
Mr. Estes wishes to confirm that he will abide by the conditions set forth in your letter and that he plans to act with total honesty and candor in any dealings with the Department of Justice or any federal investigative agency.
In return for his cooperation, Mr. Estes wishes in exchange his being given immunity, his parole restrictions being lifted and favorable consideration being given to recommending his long-standing tax leins being removed and his obtaining a pardon.
Sincerely yours,
Douglas Caddy

http://home.earthlink.net/~sixthfloor/estes.htm

The Most Under-reported Story Of This Era: The Return Of Inflation

The federal economists are notorious for loopholing statistics. They are good at substituting "substitute goods" so as to hide price increases.

I wish I had kept better records but I can tell you that ground beef, chicken thighs, corned beef and a host of other retail food items have risen in price in the past few years.

Chicken thighs were stable at 99 cents/lb. for a long time. Then they hit $1.09/lb followed by $1.19/lb. Ground beef took a similar trajectory. Pork chops too but it's hard to standardize pork because there is a variety of cuts. Like chicken, there seems to be a price increase of 10 to 20 per cent.

The following data are from USDA and are long but I am posting them in their entirety because we paid for this information and it is ours. No need to politely excerpt here. If you like, cut to the very end.

Oh btw, be prepared for an emerging "food price increase due to climate change" narrative.

You can link below but the entire article is reproduced below. Summary: USDA is predicting modest food price increases, not the 10-20 per cent I am paying.

http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-price-outlook/summary-findings.aspx#foodCPI

Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Food (not seasonally adjusted)

The all-items Consumer Price Index (CPI), a measure of economy-wide inflation, rose 0.4 percent from December 2013 to January 2014 and is 1.6 percent above the January 2013 level. The CPI for all food increased 0.4 percent from December 2013 to January 2014, increased 0.1 percent from November to December 2013, and is now 1.1 percent above the January 2013 level.

• The food-at-home (grocery store food items) CPI was up 0.7 percent in January and is up 0.5 percent from last January. The food-at-home CPI increased 0.9 percent from 2012 to 2013—one of the smallest year-over-year increases in decades; and
• The food-away-from-home (restaurant purchases) CPI increased 0.1 percent in January and is up 2 percent from last January.

ERS revises its food price forecasts if the conditions (such as the feed grain crop outlook or weather-related crop conditions) on which they are based change significantly. Despite lingering commodity price effects from the severe 2012 drought in the Midwest, retail food prices were flat in 2013. Several agricultural commodity prices, particularly sugar and coffee, decreased in 2013. Fuel prices were moderate, and exports decreased for several major U.S. commodities. Relative to 2012, prices rose considerably for poultry, eggs, fish, and fresh vegetables; however, prices fell for nonalcoholic beverages, sugar and sweets, fats and oils, and other meats. For the remaining food categories, prices were mostly unchanged. From January to December 2013, average supermarket prices fell by 0.2 percent.

Looking ahead to 2014, ERS forecasts that food price inflation will return to a range closer to the historical norm. Inflationary pressures are expected to be moderate, given the outlook for commodity prices, animal inventories, and ongoing export trends. Retailer margins, having contracted since the drought, may expand in 2014 if input prices rise, which should contribute to inflation. The food, food-at-home, and food-away-from-home CPIs are expected to increase2.5 to 3.5 percent over 2013 levels. This forecast is based on an assumption of normal weather conditions; however, severe weather events could potentially drive up food prices beyond the current forecasts. In particular, the ongoing drought in California could potentially have large and lasting effects on fruit, vegetable, dairy, and egg prices.

There are no changes to the CPI forecasts this month. See Changes in Food Price Indexes, 2012 through 2014 .

Key Month-Over-Month Changes in the Food CPI

The food-at-home CPI is an average of individual food CPIs, weighted by their relative importance or share of consumer expenditures. In the past month, the food-at-home CPI increased by 0.7 percent—the largest monthly increase since January 2012 (also 0.7 percent); this indicates that prices in most food categories rose. Fresh fruit prices rose by 1 percent, and fresh vegetable prices rose by 1.5 percent; however, these increases are not attributable to the drought in California. In the case of fruit, the price increase is due mostly to unusually cold winter at the end of 2013 that reduced supplies from Florida and elsewhere in the southeastern United States. Fresh vegetable prices were driven largely by potato prices, which are primarily grown outside of California; potato prices rose 5.8 percent in January due mostly to seasonality. Fish and seafood prices rose 2.2 percent in January and are 6 percent above the January 2013 level. ERS will monitor fish prices closely in the coming months to see whether this indicates a longer-term rise in prices or merely reflects a sharp comparison with prices from one year ago, which followed several months of price decreases.

Prices for eggs fell 1.1 percent in January and are 6.1 percent above last year’s level. Egg prices are highly seasonal and are among the most volatile price series that ERS forecasts. Beef and veal prices fell 0.1 percent in January but remain 1.8 percent above last January’s level. Many retail beef prices are at or near record, inflation-adjusted levels.Dairy prices remain 0.4 percent below the January 2013 level, although dairy prices had increased 0.5 percent last month. Fluid milk prices increased another 0.9 percent last month, due in part to a strong international demand, suggesting that the dairy CPI is poised to increase in the first half of 2014.

Producer Price Index (PPI) for Food (not seasonally adjusted)

The Producer Price Index (PPI) is similar to the CPI in that it measures price changes over time; however, instead of measuring changes in retail prices, the PPI measures the average change in prices paid to domestic producers for their output. The PPI collects data for nearly every industry in the goods-producing sector of the economy. Of particular interest to food markets are three major PPI commodity groups—crude foodstuffs and feedstuffs, intermediate foods and feeds, and finished consumer foods. These groups give a general sense of price movements across the various stages of production in the U.S. food supply chain.

The stage-of-processing PPIs—measures of changes in farm and wholesale prices—are typically far more volatile than their counterparts in the CPI. Price volatility decreases as products move from the farm to the wholesale sector to the retail sector. Due to multiple stages of processing in U.S. food supply systems, the CPI typically lags movements in the PPI. Examining the PPI is thus a useful tool in understanding what may happen to the CPI in the near future.

ERS does not currently forecast industry-level PPIs for crude, intermediate, and finished foods and feeds, but these have historically shown a strong correlation with the all-food and food-at-home CPIs. Crude foods and feeds posted a monthly increase of 3.6 percent from December 2013 to January 2014, and intermediate foods and feeds posted a monthly increase of 1.4 percent. Finished consumer foods were up 0.6 percent from December 2013 to January 2014. The direction of these indices was mixed for the past several months, and retail food prices may accordingly be flat or even decrease over the first quarter of 2014. However, increases in all three of these industry-level PPIs, particularly if sustained, suggest that retail food price inflation is poised to accelerate.

The farm price for cattle increased 7.5 percent in January, while wholesale beef prices rose 5.1 percent. These changes are consistent with reports that unusually cold weather across the U.S. in late 2013 disrupted cattle flows to feedlots and increased production costs for ranchers. Farm-level vegetable prices rose 6.9 percent last month. As seen in changes in the CPI, these changes mostly reflect seasonality and are not related to the California drought. However, it is clear that the drought could potentially add pressure to prices already on the rise. Farm egg prices fell 28.1 percent on the month, underscoring the high volatility of this food category. The decrease in the farm price of eggs is due, in part, to seasonality, higher yields, and lower feed costs in the beginning of 2014. Usually such sharp changes in eggs prices are quickly countered by changes in the opposite direction. ERS will closely monitor eggs prices to assess the situation and to see if adjustments to the forecast are needed.

Here is but one of many dissenting opinions.

Looks like a trip to the grocery store will be a more expensive endeavor in the near future as Beef, Hogs, Coffee, Grains and Milk are rapidly moving higher since the start of this year.

Is the weather to blame for higher prices? Just kidding. Did any of you make it to the grocery store when the weather was bad? Skip eating?

 http://advisorperspectives.com/dshort/guest/Chris-Kimble-140313-Commodities-Update.php

More dissent.

Got milk? You probably will next year — reports of $8-a-gallon milk are overblown, but there are some food items that will have you digging deeper in your pockets next year. 
Beef: Where’s the beef, indeed? Beef prices have been on a tear lately, experts say, and it’s not likely to let up anytime soon. Corinne Alexander, an associate professor at Purdue University, tells trade publication Supermarket News that because of several factors, “beef prices are probably going to stay high for at least the next few years.

Read more: Bread, Beef and Other Foods That Will Cost Way More Next Year | TIME.com http://business.time.com/2013/12/16/oh-god-no-bread-beef-and-other-foods-that-will-cost-way-more-next-year/#ixzz2vx1gEwNz

There were plenty of news stories about price inflation leading up to the 2012 election. Obama won and a sense of resignation fell over the land. If numbers no longer matter, why report them? We lost at the polls and now we would lose at the grocer (and so would our conquerors but they are too stupid to notice.) Just about everyone loses. 

We can only ignore inflation for so long. Maybe this will be like homelessness or the national debt or the crumbling of America. These are problems when Republicans are in office but since Obama has occupied the White House,,,zzzzzzz.  Please ignore the elephant in the room.

John Coleman on Roger Revelle, Al Gore and global warming

John Coleman, founder of the Weather Channel and global warming skeptic gives a historical perspective to the global warming hoax.

Obama polls well in Kenya not so much here

This is such a pathetic attempt to prop up a failed presidency. Obama's polling numbers just hit a record low in the WSJ/NBC with only a 41% approval compared to a 54% disapproval. MSNBC has to go all the way to Kenya to see what people there think about him. Why Kenya? Why not Hawaii? or Illinois? or Indonesia? How about Columbia University? Not surprisingly Ronan Farrow finds Obama to still be popular in Kenya which I suppose will really hearten Mary Landrieu, Kay Hagan and Mark Pryor.


Here is the contrarian opinion.

Why Not Another Contract With America?

Running a political party is probably harder than it looks but why don't the Republicans do what has worked for them in the past? In 1994 the GOP picked up 54 seats in an atmosphere that was not half as rancorous as it is today. They did this by promoting eight reforms and ten bills that were market-tested and hard to oppose. They called this The Contract With America.

It seems like a simple strategy. On most issues most of the time the Republican position lines up with the will of the people. They don't have to pass 3,000 page bills with fine print and a lot of horse trading to get their way. Unlike the Democrats, they don't have to deceive. (That is not to say that they are above deception but just that it is optional for Republicans.)

The GOP tried something like The Contract in 2010. It was a muddled document that was pretty much unreadable. The Republicans picked up 63 seats in November but they could have done even better. Dick Morris said that one hundred seats were in contention. Maybe with something a vision a little more concise...

Just six to ten bullet points that are already focus-group approved. Can you do that, Mr. Priebus? I didn''t think so.

Sheila Jackson Lee tell us the constitution is 400 years old

This is the downside of ultra safe congressional districts. Once a constituency is saddled with a nincompoop it has no redress. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee who once thought the Apollo moon landing occurred on Mars now would have us believe the constitution is 400 years old.


Go girl!

Judge may allow discovery in McGraw Hill case

It's beginning to look as if the trial judge will allow McGraw Hill to seek information from former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner it has requested. McGraw Hill has subpoenaed Treasury Department email. Three days after McGraw Hill subsidy Standard and Poor downgraded US debt Geithner called the CEO of McGraw Hill stating that "there would be consequences" for the downgrade.
At a hearing Tuesday in Santa Ana, U.S. District Judge David Carter said he's concerned about why Geithner would have made the call to McGraw Hill's chairman three days after the downgrade, other than for it to have a "chilling effect."
"Why is Geithner calling?" Carter asked. "What is he doing on the phone?"
The judge didn't issue a final ruling on S&P's request before taking a recess.

Better Stay At Fox, Scott Brown: Bob Smith Throws His Hat In The New Hampshire Senate Race

I cannot believe that I am excited that a paleo-conservative has entered the New Hampshire Senate Race. I do not refer to my self as a conservative but I usually vote that way. Of course I was worried that Scott Brown was going to win the GOP primary by default. Hard for me to get excited about any RINO but one who betrays us on Dodd-Frank? Unforgivable.


As mentioned, I was not always wild about Bob Smith. He was more of a Republican robot than a philosophical conservative. He was loyal to the GOP and voted the party line about 98 per cent of the time. When the younger Sununu beat him in the primary in 2002, I watched with detached amusement. Kind of like watching the Angels play the Marlins, two teams I don't really care about (but who have produced some entertaining players over the years.)


To this day, I do not understand the root of the Smith-Sununu rivalry but I know that it is one of the most bitter feuds anywhere in the country. So acrimonious that Smith would endorse John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. He has apologized and I think the GOP voters will forgive him.


Whatever else can be said about Bob Smith, you know where you stand with him. He is predictable, if not predictably dull. But hey, I am pretty dull myself. Worse traits than projecting a subdued personality. Go Bob!

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From his website, here is Senator Smith's biography:






My life changed forever on March 28, 1945. My dad, a naval aviator, was killed on that date in a military aircraft crash into the Chesapeake Bay off Oceana Naval Air Station, Virginia. It was two days before my fourth birthday. Donald E. Smith joined the U.S. Navy as a seaman, during the darkest days of the Depression in 1932. He told the recruiter that he wanted to join the navy to “learn a trade.”
After serving in the fleet, Seaman Smith was accepted to the Naval Academy Prep School and then entered the Naval Academy in 1934. Upon graduation from Annapolis in 1938, Smith went on to flight school at Pensacola and flew numerous combat missions in the North Atlantic and South Pacific during World War II. He had risen to the rank of Lt. Commander and had been sent home from the war and assigned a Squadron Command at Oceana ten days before he was killed.
Like so many military families touched by the tragedy of war, my mom did her best to pull her life together. She brought my brother and me back to New Jersey where her parents owned a small farm near Trenton. My widowed mother worked hard as a department store clerk and cashier for an insurance company to support her young children with the aid of her parents. Tragedy promoted patriotism and my mother never let my brother and me forget that our dad was a hero, not only to his family, but his country.
What might have been a life of travel from duty station to duty station as part of a navy family would now become more predictable for me. I learned about hard, physical, farm labor, but I also learned about responsibility. My character, values and patriotism were molded by my mother and grandparents on that farm over the next decade.
I also learned about politics at an early age from my grandfather, who was a rock solid Republican. I learned so well that as an eleven year old, I bet my neighbor a chicken that General Eisenhower would defeat Adlai Stevenson in the 1952 election. Ike and I both won and I proudly claimed my chicken. My political career was off and running!

Navy Veteran Of Vietnam

I followed in my father’s footsteps and joined the U.S. Naval Reserve during the Cuban Missile Crisis. After I graduated from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania in 1965 with a Political Science Degree in Government and History, I served on active duty with the Navy for two years. One of those years was aboard the USS NAVASOTA (AO-107) in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Vietnam War. Prior to deployment, I married my college sweetheart, Mary Jo Hutchinson. After returning home from Vietnam, I taught school in California for a while and then we settled in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire in 1970.
Life in a small town was good. I taught American history and government and coached football and baseball at the high school level. In a few years I left teaching and purchased and managed a small real estate firm.
Mary Jo and I raised our three children in New Hampshire.

 

Reagan Ignites My Passion For Public Service

Living in the “Live Free or Die”, conservative, state of New Hampshire with the “First in the Nation Primary” re-kindled my political interest.
I ran for local school board and won three times, serving as chairman for 2 terms. In 1976 a governor from the state of California decided to enter the New Hampshire Primary to challenge then President Gerald Ford. I remembered Ronald Reagan as that courageous conservative, who led California during our years living there after returning from Vietnam. I immediately became a volunteer and watched in awe, as he came within a few delegates of wresting the nomination from Ford at the 1976 Republican Convention.
I knew Reagan would be back in the fight in 1980 and it was his effort to “restore America” which motivated me to run for Congress in New Hampshire in 1980. Reagan became President of the United States that year, but it would take Bob Smith three attempts to finally be elected to the Congress in 1984, joining Reagan in his second term. I was excited to be part of the Reagan team in the fight to build up our national defense, enhance world security by challenging Soviet Communism around the globe, to cut taxes and to inspire us to face the challenges of the future with optimism.

United States Congressman, New Hampshire (1985-1990)

Service on Veterans Affairs Committee and Science and Technology Committee
I entered the Congress in 1985 thrilled to be a part of the “Reagan Revolution”, but I soon realized that a freshman Republican congressman in a hopeless minority would have little hope of changing things. Then I met Newt Gingrich and became part of the Conservative Opportunity Society (COS). Judd Gregg (NH), Bob Walker (PA), Connie Mack (FL), Trent Lott (MS), Duncan Hunter (CA), Vin Weber (MN), Dan Burton (IN), Newt, myself and very few others held our meetings in a small room on Capitol Hill each week to devise a strategy to win back the House of Representatives. We wrote a book called “A House of ILL Repute” and fought for the next ten years, until victory was ours in 1994 with the Republican takeover of the House in the “Contract With America.”
I left the House in 1990 when I was elected to the U. S. Senate from New Hampshire, but I was always proud of my involvement in the “cause” in the early years of my political career. We stood on principle and we won elections in both the House and the Senate. The highlights of my House and Senate career are listed below and further amplification on these issues may be found in other locations on the website.

United States Senator, New Hampshire, (1991-2003)

Service on the following Senate Committees:

• Environment and Public Works Committee, Chairman 1999-2001, Ranking Member 2001-2003
• Ethics Committee, Chairman (two years)Armed Services Committee, Member, 1991-2003
• Chairman Acquisition and Technology Subcommittee of Senate Armed Services Committee (Responsible for oversight and budget for all new military technology programs)
• Chairman Strategic Forces Subcommittee of Senate Armed Services Committee (Had direct oversight and budget responsibility for missile defense systems and offensive missile platforms such as submarines, aircraft and land launchers)
• Member Judiciary Committee (Participated in hearings for all federal judicial nominations)
• Voted for Justice Thomas and voted against Justices Ginsberg and Breyer

Awards and honors Highlights

• Airline Security Award from the Allied Pilots Association for supporting guns in the cockpits
• Golden Gavel Award for chairing the U.S. Senate for over 100 hours
• National Security Leadership Award for votes promoting a strong national defense
• National Taxpayers’ Union Best Friend Award for votes saving taxpayer dollars
• Bill of Rights Defender of the Year Award presented by Gun Owners of America for defending the Second Amendment
• League of Private Property Voters for promoting and protecting private property rights
• Numerous awards from American Legion, Disabled Veterans and other veterans groups for work on POW/MIA accounting and overall support of veterans issues
• Nationally recognized by Humane Society of the United States and other groups for introducing and passing legislation for the prevention of animal abuse
• Ranked in the top 5 percent of the House and Senate as one of the most conservative members on social, economic and military issues
• Pro-Life Leader in the House and Senate for 18 years

Run For President In 1999-2000

In 1999 I entered the race for the 2000 Republican nomination for President of the United States. I campaigned extensively in the early primary and caucus states of New Hampshire, Iowa and Louisiana. Also in that race among others were Pat Buchanan, Gary Bauer and, of course, George W. Bush.
I picked up thousands of supporters and contributions along the trail, but as the months wore on, it became apparent that the Republican Primary voters wanted Bush. In the summer of 1999 I withdrew from the race and endorsed then Governor, George W. Bush of Texas.

Leaving The Republican Party

In my Senate duties I became increasingly frustrated with the Republican Party leaders and officials who were constantly refusing to fight some of the extreme liberal appointments of President Bill Clinton on key administration positions, especially liberal activist federal judges, such as Ruth Bader Ginsberg. I was one of only THREE senators to vote against putting her on the Supreme Court.
I simply could not understand why senators who claimed to be “conservative Republicans” would vote for Ginsberg. In addition Clinton was pushing his aggressive gun control agenda in the Congress and Republican leaders were content to let much of it pass, when we could have easily blocked it.
Furthermore, most Republicans left it to me, and a very few others, to fight the pro-life battles as many were afraid of the political consequences.
At this point I made a decision which would have a dramatic impact on my political career. I resigned from the Republican Party and became an Independent. I did not plan to make this a final move. My objective was to “shake up” Republicans. In my Senate floor speech (which is posted on my website), when I resigned from the party, I warned my colleagues and the entire Republican hierarchy, that, if you continue to place your politics above your principles, the American people will soon figure it out and banish you from power.
While an independent, I always supported the principles of the Republican Party. It is interesting to note that while the leadership often lost the support of such “Republicans” as Senators Jeffords, Snowe, Collins and Specter, my voting record was consistently over 98% in support of Republican Party principles.
Unfortunately, I was proven correct regarding the voter’s reaction. Although President Bush won two close elections, the Republicans in Congress made the same mistakes their Democrat predecessors made. They had scandals, arrogance prevailed, debt and spending rose, government grew larger, we did nothing to secure our borders and the Rove strategy of division and special interest politics failed miserably, causing us to lose the House and Senate and finally the White House in 2008.

Returning To The Republican Party

After four months, I felt that I had made my point and I informed Senator Lott that I felt that I could fight for the principles of the Republican Party more effectively from within rather than outside the party. Sadly, just days after informing leadership of my decision to return, Senator John Chafee passed away suddenly. Republican party leaders, to their credit, decided to allow me to keep my seniority on all committees and I was selected Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee.
I then “plunged” into my Senate work and the election of George W. Bush as President. I campaigned extensively and raised money for him in New Hampshire where he won a very close election. As we turned the page into 2001, I was beginning to “gear up” for my re-election campaign in 2002. However, the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington put my campaign on hold in September of 2001 as, like the rest of America, I was focused on responding to the aftermath of that terrible and tragic attack on our nation’s homeland.

My 2002 Republican Senate Primary

I knew that I would have a tough general election opponent in Democrat Governor Jeanne Shaheen. Since the Republicans accepted me back into their Senate ranks and my active support for the election of President Bush, I was confident that my loyalty would be repaid with the full support of President Bush and the Republican Party establishment in my re-election. I was wrong.
Just a couple of weeks after the 9/11 attacks, Congressman John Sununu announced he was going to run in against me in the Republican primary election in 2002. President Bush and I had a good relationship even though we were opponents in the 2000 Presidential primary. As stated earlier, I had supported him and raised money for him in the 2000 general election for President. In addition I had nearly a 100 percent record of support in nearly 18 years in the House and Senate in support of the core conservative issues of our party.
I felt very comfortable asking Karl Rove, the President’s Deputy Chief of Staff and top political operative, for an endorsement in the primary. A few days later he informed me that “the President would in fact endorse my re-election in the primary, that he would do so publicly and help me to raise money.” I relayed my gratitude to the President. Karl Rove then came to NH and in direct response to a reporter’s public question stated “that President Bush would endorse Senator Smith as soon as the filing period had ended.” After my opponent subsequently filed against me and I inquired about the President’s endorsement I was tersely informed “It is not going to happen.”
This signal to the establishment of the state and national Republican Party to work against me or withhold support was the major reason I lost the primary. When people ask me why this happened, I can only guess that they thought my opponent’s poll numbers against then-Governor Shaheen were better than mine and they did not want to lose the seat.
I believed then and believe now that “winning is not winning”, if you sacrifice loyalty and principles in the process. My frustration and anger and what I perceived to be a betrayal caused me to send a “letter of endorsement” to John Kerry in the 2004 Presidential election race. It was a stupid mistake. I do not support John Kerry on any significant issues. I did something in anger and I apologize for it. If some want to hold this against me, I fully understand.
In any case, that is the past and the future is what matters. I do not hold any grudges. As Willie Nelson says in one of his songs,

“I find it easy to forgive, but forgetting seems to take the longest time.”

This election is about rising to the challenges of the future not dwelling on the past. I am running for US Senate again because I believe that I have the qualifications and leadership qualities to meet those critical challenges and lead our nation forward.
The 2002 primary was a bitter election battle and a devastating personal loss for Mary Jo and me. However we still maintained our New Hampshire home on Lake Winnipesaukee which was then and is now our family compound. After watching with dismay these past several years as Republicans seem to have lost their way and then seeing the results of the 2008 and 2012 elections, I could no longer stand on the sidelines and watch. I need to get back into the arena. I believe that my background as a former U.S. Senator is a unique opportunity for New Hampshire to benefit from my experience and leadership on the major issues facing our nation and our state today.
That is why I am running again for the U.S. Senate. Among other issues, I intend to focus on repealing Obama Care, laying out a plan to balance our budget and reduce the nation’s debt, replacing the current tax code with a fairer less complicated system, reducing the size of government, enhancing our national security, providing assistance for veterans and our troops and ending illegal immigration.
While others will tell you what they will do, I invite you to review my website and see what I have done. New Hampshire and our nation needs more than anything else at this moment in history, a passionate, principled, no-nonsense, proven conservative leader, not another politician. Check out my record and I hope you will agree that I can, have and will always put principle above politics as your United States Senator. I am asking you to join me in the spirit of Ronald Reagan and rise to the challenges we face in a positive campaign. We are Americans. We can meet any challenge as we defend our freedoms and values!
I look forward to meeting you on the campaign trail. I would be honored to have your support! Thank you.

- Senator Bob Smith

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