Mike Pence Wins Values Voter Summit Straw Poll

This one kind of surprised me. I know it's probably not indicative of how the majority of conservative voters would vote, but if you'd asked me who I thought might top the list Mike Pence wouldn't have come to mind at all. I like him, have no problems with him being up there, but still a surprise. 

Who would you vote for if the election for president happened this year? Lots of good choices on the list below.

Mike Pence Wins Values Summit Straw Poll

U.S. Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) has won Family Research Council Action's third-ever Values Voter Summit Straw Poll. Gov. Mike Huckabee finished in a close second place.

Only FRC Action members who were present at the event were allowed to vote.

Family Research Council Action President Tony Perkins released the following statement in reaction to the 2010 Values Voter Summit Straw Poll: "The results of the presidential straw poll reflect the outcome of recent elections. Those who are truly conservative, fiscally and socially, are enthusiastically supported by voters."

The following are the straw poll results:

Presidential Candidate Name Total Votes Percentage

Mike Pence 170 24%
Mike Huckabee 159 22%
Mitt Romney 93 13%
Newt Gingrich 72 10%
Sarah Palin 51 7%
Rick Santorum 39 5%
Jim DeMint 38 5%
Bobby Jindal 15 2%
Mitch Daniels 13 2%
Chris Christie 11 2%
John Thune 11 2%
Bob McDonnell 10 1%
Marco Rubio 10 1%
Paul Ryan 7 1%
Haley Barbour 6 1%
Ron Paul 5 1%
Jan Brewer 1 0%
Undecided 12 2%

Vice Presidential Candidate Responses:

Mike Pence 119 16%
Sarah Palin 112 15%
Rick Santorum 75 10%
Paul Ryan 51 7%
Jim DeMint 45 6%
Mike Huckabee 43 6%
Marco Rubio 43 6%
Bobby Jindal 36 5%
Bob McDonnell 31 4%
Chris Christie 25 3%
Mitt Romney 25 3%
Newt Gingrich 24 3%
Jan Brewer 20 3%
John Thune 15 2%
Mitch Daniels 10 1%
Haley Barbour 6 1%
Ron Paul 5 1%
Undecided 38 5%

Members of FRC Action are only allowed to vote once. For more information on the Values Voter Summit, log onto www.valuesvotersummit.org.

Reading "Going Rogue"

I'm partway through reading Sarah Palin's book, Going Rogue. My husband bought it for me for Christmas, but got tired of hearing me talk about reading it (I knew he'd bought it for me) and finally broke down, gave it to me early .

Even though I have pages to go, I had to share a few thoughts on it.

With all the negative, with all the horrific things going on in the economy, with terrorism, with the choices being made in D.C., with the health care debacle, cap and tax... it is SO refreshing to read her book. It's like a breath of common sense fresh air. I find that I long for someone like her to take over the helm in Washington and across the country.

She just seems to have the ability to cut through the muck and get to the core of issues. I love her approach, her way of reasoning and how grounded she is in so many areas.

I hear the David Letterman's and others who trash her as they look down their noses and know that there was a time in my life when I would have been "on their side". I wouldn't have liked their nastiness, their belittling ways, their snobbery, but if I'd continued down the path I was on earlier in my life, I'd be over on that general side. Thank goodness I put my feet onto a different path!

I find it fascinating that all these people with millions of dollars, all these people who are so insulated from the real world, can judge someone based on their arbitrary criteria.

Ah well, not much I can do about their mean spirited-ness. It seems to me that those at the top end of the economic scale, those at the very bottom, and those with deep insecurities always have to find someone to look down upon. For those at the top I think it may be a combination of guilt, lack of purpose, a need to justify their existence in their own mind and a need to fit in with their friends.

I think if anyone reads Going Rogue with an open mind, without negative preconceived notions etched in stone, they will find a true American spirit inside the pages. Oh that our elected officials had a tenth of her convictions, patriotism, values, honesty and common sense.

Time for a Religious Freedom Tea Party?

Almost every day I receive something in my inbox from someone regarding attacks on religious freedom in the United States. I hate to say it, but I generally glance and discard most of them as I get thousands of emails a day and just don't have time to read them all.

However, the increasing numbers and the similarity in tone and topic have finally saturated into the brain matter. Now I'm starting to pay attention.

This morning I saw this column by Chuck Norris and it greatly concerned me. His column (below) focuses on an incident in California where a Bible Study group is being told to "cease and desist" the "religious gathering". If they are to continue they must get a "major use permit" of some sort.

Living in Fayette County, Georgia, it seems rather far-fetched that there might be a problem with gathering in a home for a Bible study. At least on the surface almost everyone in this community respects the Church and religious freedoms. After all, we're in the so-called "Bible Belt".

Gathering in homes for Bible Study occurs every day across the nation and probably (hopefully) across the world. Almost all, if not all, churches have groups that meet in homes for prayer and study. Youth groups meet at church member homes. Women's groups meet at church member homes. Prayer groups meet at church member homes.

Now, to be fair, I can understand a neighbors concern if once a week 30, 50, 100 cars park on the street for a Bible study. It could get pretty aggravating week after week. However, if you read the article, this appears to step way over a parking concern line... and around 15 people were meeting.

In the California incident, the "law" asked the home owners if they said "amen", if they said "Praise the Lord" to determine whether to force them to stop or get a permit. They got a lawyer.

So tell me, how many of you have regular swimming parties at your house for your kids sports team? How 'bout those of you who meet in homes for Bunco or cards regularly? What about all the candle, makeup and kitchen container sales that sell via home parties? Why were they trying to stop a Bible study?

It's not just religion that's under assault these days. It's capitalism. It's our legal system. It's the election integrity (did you read where the Department of Justice has said that Georgia can't stop illegal aliens from voting????). It seems that ever value and every aspect of the Constitution and the foundation our country was built upon is being nipped at and in some cases, shredded.

The Tea Party "movement" shows that there are those who are making a stand. The growing number of blogs and emails protesting various attacks shows that more and more are waking up to what's going on in our country. However, it seems we may be in the midst of the "perfect storm" when it comes to American values and freedoms.

It's not just a matter of awareness now, we need action. We need more voices. We need to be working together. We need to do it quickly, loudly but peacefully.

Here in Fayette County, where we're in a nice warm cocoon, it's especially important for us to pay attention. The attacks may not be happening in our back yard, but there is a big "YET" that should be added to the end of that statement. We can't afford to be complacent.

We need to put feet to our prayers. We need to watch the news, watch those emails and get involved. Churches across the spectrum of denominations need to reach across those technical divides and hold hands to fight any attack on religious freedom. Maybe we need to start considering having a different kind of tea party, one that openly, prayerfully, protests the erosion of religious freedoms.

Got Your Permit To Study the Bible?
By Chuck Norris

Recently a California pastor and his wife were required by San Diego County officials to obtain a permit to hold a Bible study in their home.

"What?! Is this a joke?" I wondered as I heard the news for the first time. It was no joke. Rather, it's a First Amendment nightmare and possibly a foreshadowing of what's to come.

Are you prepared for a future in which you hear, "Got your permit to study the Bible?"

On April 10 (Good Friday), a county code enforcement officer visited the home of David and Mary Jones after receiving a complaint about their Christian gatherings. The Jones' attorney, Dean Broyles, president of The Western Center for Law & Policy, conveyed in disbelief, "The county asked (Mrs. Jones), 'Do you have a regular meeting in your home?' She said, 'Yes.' 'Do you say "amen"?' 'Yes.' 'Do you pray?' 'Yes.' 'Do you say "praise the Lord"?' 'Yes.'"

The officer then warned the family to "cease and desist" the "religious gathering" or they would face weekly fines. A few days later, the county delivered a citation claiming that the Joneses were guilty of "unlawful use of land" and mandating them to "stop religious assembly or apply for a major use permit."

Click here to continue reading Chuck Norris' column

A $50 lesson

Rec'd via email:

I recently asked my friend's little girl what she wanted to be when she grows up. She said she wanted to be President some day. Both of her parents, liberal Democrats, were standing there, so I asked her, 'If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?' She replied, 'I'd give food and houses to all the homeless people.'

Her parents beamed and were so proud.

'Wow...what a worthy goal.' I told her, 'But you don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow the lawn, pull weeds, and sweep my yard, and I'll pay you $50. Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where the homeless guy hangs out, and you can give him the $50 to use toward food and a new house.'

She thought that over for a few seconds, then she looked me straight in the eye and asked, 'Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50?'

I said, 'Welcome to the Republican Party.'

Her parents still aren't speaking to me.

(Thought you might enjoy a bit of levity encased truth this Monday morning... yowzer, watching the stocks tumbling again!)