Tuesday, September 30, 2014

More proof the CRC Scam is still alive: Herrera's failure lives

Don't be fooled: the CRC Scam is very much alive.

And, of course, neither Oregon nor Washjington will be required to "pay back" a dime.  Why they have to lie about it?

Well, that just continues the pattern.
States granted extension on CRC funding
Washington, Oregon may have to pay back tens of millions 
The current Interstate 5 Bridge, seen here looking toward the Oregon shore from under the lift span, is actually two bridges. The upstream bridge is older. (/The Columbian) Buy this photo

By Eric Florip, Columbian transportation & environment reporter 
Published:  
Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on emailShare on printMore Sharing Services0 
At the request of Washington and Oregon, the Federal Highway Administration has granted a five-year extension on the money it doled out for the now defunct Columbia River Crossing project. 
The extension means the two states won’t immediately have to repay tens of millions of dollars they were given for the proposed Interstate 5 Bridge replacement. Federal rules require a project receiving federal aid to begin right-of-way acquisition or construction within 10 years, or pay the money back. Washington received its first federal funds for the CRC in 2004; Oregon got its first allocation in 2007. 
Now, both states will have until Sept. 30, 2019 to come up with something to show for that money. The extension was granted in a Sept. 19 letter from the Washington and Oregon heads of the Federal Highway Administration. 
“During the extension period, we will continue to work with (both state transportation departments) and others on resolving the remaining challenges and moving forward with the construction of transportation improvements that meet the purpose and need underlying the CRC project,” the letter read. 
A federal highway representative couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday. 
Despite the request, both states say the status of the CRC hasn’t changed. The $2.9 billion project completely shut down in May, without any funding or enough political support from either state’s legislature. The former downtown Vancouver project office has been vacant since. 
“At this point, the project has been closed out, and we have no plans to restart it,” said Travis Brouwer, assistant director of the Oregon Department of Transportation. “Until Washington takes action, Oregon has no intention of restarting the project.” 
Washington State Department of Transportation spokesman Lars Erickson said his agency still considers the CRC closed. 
“The status has not changed,” Erickson said. “The project is in the books for us.” 
Both states, however, appear to be holding out hope that the CRC could restart someday. Washington Transportation Secretary Lynn Peterson had argued the state should have 20 years to start construction because it used federal funds on a conservation easement 2012. ODOT Director Matthew Garrett separately asked for a 10-year extension for his state, saying in a letter to federal officials that the CRC had been delayed because of Washington’s inaction. Garrett’s letter didn’t mention that an Oregon-only version of the CRC died in the Oregon Legislature earlier this year. 
“The need for this important multimodal project has not diminished, and grows with every passing day,” Garrett wrote. “I hope that our past and deliberate progress in Oregon has demonstrated our commitment to this nationally significant project.” 
The Federal Highway Administration didn’t fully grant either state’s request. Instead, it granted the five-year extension to 2019. 
Washington and Oregon could be on the hook for a substantial amount of money if they’re forced to repay. Federal officials earlier indicated that the two states had received a combined $187.5 million for the CRC as of April 2013. More than $100 million of that went to Oregon. 
The CRC spent $200 million in planning by the time the project folded. The shutdown came after years of delays, setbacks and missteps, and sharp political acrimony. 
The project would have replaced the I-5 Bridge between Portland and Vancouver, rebuilt freeway interchanges and extended light rail into Vancouver.
One of the many reasons this stupidity is still alive is because Jaime Herrera, our worthless do nothing of a congresswoman, has done nothing to stop it.

Just remember.

Perhaps the best political ad of the cycle against Landrieu. (2:20)

Reminds me of a local congresswoman in some respects.


 

The difference between a C3G2 hater and a liberal.

With apologies to cfbleachers:
I have spent months on these pages attempting to expose the distinction between a C3G2 hater and a liberal.

The Indoctrinator and his indoctrinated. A propagandist and his propagandized.

The knee jerk C3G2 hater is now hard wired to drool on Pavlovian command. They not only can't process facts, evidence and truth...they are conditioned to repel it.

The mens rea is different. The C3G2 hater is a fringe left nutjob intent on wrecking local government in the forlorn hope they can take it over... again. The C3G2 hater desperately wants to be associated with the "good guys". They want to be compassionate, tolerant, kind and open-hearted. And they are willing to hate and shun in order to prove it.

C3G2 haters create a caricature of non-leftists based upon incessant, unrelenting slander, fraud, suspect class warfare and hoaxes.

Those fooled by their positions are indoctrinated to accept The Narrative without examination...in fact, ANY questioning is treated as heresy and brings forth a nasty rebuke.

Facts, truth, evidence and logic are not effective because they require a willingness to question and examine that simply does not exist within the C3G2 hater. Unless and until it does exist...only horrific and painful repercussions of leftist inanity and evil will wake them from their brain dead cult adherence.

The C3G2 hate group disguised as charter lackeys are counting on that.
I can't wait to disappoint them.

So.... how's those "No boots on the ground" thingies working out for us?

From the psychotic liar who brought us Obamacare ("If you like your plan, you can keep your plan!") here's the latest on those "not-boots on the ground" in Iraq.

2100 pairs of boots not on the ground in Iraq 
| September 30, 2014 | 7 Comments Share this:
last convoy out of Iraq
SSG E sends a link to Defense News which reports that 2100 Marines will be positioned in Kuwait as the Quick Reaction Force for Iraq operations; 
Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SPMAGTF) Central Command will be equipped to perform noncombat evacuation, humanitarian assistance, infrastructure support, tactical aircraft recovery, fixed-site security and theater sustainment missions, said Brig. Gen. John Love, assistant deputy commandant for plans, policies and operations.  
Plans to deploy the unit predate the conflict in Iraq and Syria with the Islamic State. Love, who spoke Sept. 25 at the Modern Day Marine expo, made no reference to the militant Islamic group or where the unit would be deployed, and a Marine Corps spokesman would say only that the Marines would be based in multiple locations. 
Evacuations and aircraft/pilot recoveries are “noncombat” operations until they aren’t. I lost count, but I think this doubles the number of troops now involved in operations in Iraq. It’s good planning to have that large QRF ready outside of Iraq, but it’s unfortunate that the White House was unable to be honest with the American people from the beginning regarding how many troops will be involved in this mission.
I've never been one to abide liars.

Even with this, the slimeball in the White House is playing politics: instead of announcing it loudly and widely, it gets put out in dribs and drabs... like he's ashamed of it.

And in all likelihood, it's because he is.

My take on the statewide elections.

I-1351 The pay teachers tons more money scam.

If the WEA is for it, I'm against it.  Even many democrats hate this.

Vote "NO."

I-591 The Anti-Gun Grabber Initiative.

Speaks for itself and is an obvious "YES"

I-594 The Gun Grabber Initiative.

Punishes the law-abiding for the acts of the law-breaking.

Vote "NO."

The Supreme Court Justices.

NONE of these morons should be re-elected: they all injected their fringe-leftist politics into the judicial realm by attempting to take over the legislature.

Do not vote for any incumbent justice.

Anything not mentioned here is because I don't, as yet, have a position.

The irony of Paul Montague's democratian LTE

It reeks with it:

Letter: Expanding council adds viewpoints

         Published:
Thanks to the freeholders whom voters elected last November for putting together a solid and balanced county charter for voters to approve this November. Clark County had around 12,000 residents when the Washington Constitution was approved in 1889, which established our current form of county government. At more than 400,000 residents, our county is ready for a form of government that gives residents better representation, provides separation between policymakers and county managers, and gives residents a way to replace county laws they disagree with.

Expanding the county commission from three to five members will give us more voices on the council, smaller districts, and better representation of the needs of each district. Having five councilors will make it harder for one or two members to hijack county government for narrow ideological purposes and will assure more viewpoints making policy decisions. It's time for a new charter that really serves the needs of the residents of Clark County. Make sure to vote for the charter and get your ballots in the mail by Nov. 4.

Paul Montague

Vancouver
The problem with a C3G2 hater writing this kind of babble generally is that you can presuppose that, since they're driven by fringe-left hatred and the Madore Derangement Syndrome that every thing they're saying is likely false... and has a "narrow ideological purpose" which has not one damned thing to do with what's best for us... instead, having it all to do with what's best for "them," and SCREW us.

With Montague, there's no doubt.

Montague is a bitter man: he was fired from his gig at Identity Vancouver for failing to get the CRC Scam passed and managing to alienate everyone elected to office smart enough to oppose it.

He lied repeatedly in his public efforts to get this rip off through the process, even though he knew that the entirety of this fraud was based on getting loot rail into Clark County and had nothing to do with any of the lies he used in his efforts to make it happen.

That, of course causes his hatred of anyone to the right of Mao to have been channeled in other directions, such as the abysmal failure of his HatePAC and his rabid support of this fringe-left fraud known as the Charter.

You see, the biggest, most obvious fallacy of this idiot's LTE is the very idea that he ever GAVE a rat's ass about "adding viewpoints."

When it came to the CRC/Loot Rail scam, there was no "additional viewpoint" this lowlife gave a damn about.  and that's his problem here: few people even have a clue as to who this mutt actually is.  I wish I didn't, for example.

But during the CRC Wars (Which, have I mentioned, he lost?) there was no lie he wouldn't tell in his effort to rape this community.

Everything he said in this LTE is an out and out lie, already discredited the last time this idiocy was tried:

COMMISSIONERS ELECTED BY DISTRICT ONLY

Statement against:

“Using districts/wards for representation has merit if there is a large and diverse electorate, particularly if the voters are spread over a large area which makes it difficult for citizens to gather in a common meeting place.”

“However, Clark County does not face this condition, therefore districting is unnecessary. Local government should elect their representatives from the county as a whole, thus ensuring that the concerns of all citizens will be taken into account in making decisions on public matters.”

“A district system for Clark County would almost certainly result in competition and conflict between districts. No commissioners would be accountable for looking after the county as a whole, but instead would protect the much more narrow concerns of his or her particular district. Since county commissioners have both legislative and executive duties, creating such parochialism would be destructive of the public good. The problems and corruption associated with the Chicago ward system are widely known.”

“Districts also actually reduce your representation. The way it is now, you vote for all three county commissioners. Under districts, you’d only get to vote for one. It takes away your right to choose all of your commissioners.”

“We should keep the present system of electing our commissioners at the district level in the primary and at large in the general election. Vote no on districts.”

“For more information, contact: NoHomeRule Committee; Email:
Written by: Carrie Parks 2002

“Rebuttal of statement for:”

“Going to districts will result in competition and conflict. Commissioners won’t have to be responsive at all to anyone outside their district. Now you vote for all three commissioners. Under districts, you’d only vote for one. We need our commissioners to look out for the good of the county and all of its citizens as a whole.”

“Vote no on districts.” Written by: NoHomeRule Committee 2002

INCREASE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS FROM THREE TO FIVE (2002 voter's pamphlet)

“Statement against:”

“Increasing from three to five county commissioners is unwise at a time of financial decline in state and county revenue. Adding two more commissioners with associated staff, supplies, office space and equipment, etc. would cost $464,100 per year. Is it really worth spending the extra money? Will adding two more people improve the County Commissioner’s decisions or rulings or improve services to the citizens?”

“There are more pressing issues facing the county than adding more politicians to the payroll. You could add 10 new employees with salaries of $35,000-$40,000 per year for the same price as two new commissioners. The extra expense of nearly half a million dollars will take money away from services and salaries of people doing the front-line work that directly benefits citizens. Wouldn’t it be better to spend this money on police and fire protection, social services or health district functions? The idea of cutting back commissioner salaries to pay for the extra positions has been suggested, but a separate salary commission would have control over that, not the voters. What’s on the ballot is a straight up or down issue, with no means to adjust, compromise or weigh the additional costs against the whole budget.”

“Vote no on increasing the number of commissioners.”

“For more information, contact: NoHomeRule Committee; E-Mail:
nohomerule@attbi.com; Web Site: http://nohomerule.home.attbi.com”
Written by: Carrie Parks 2002

“Rebuttal of statement for:”

“In the coming year, Washington will face a $1-$2 billion budget deficit, meaning more cuts to county and city funding. We just can’t afford two more commissioners right now.”

“The money would be better spent on direct services to citizens.”

“Please vote no to adding more commissioners.”

Written by: Carrie Parks & Tom Armstrong,
co-chairs, NoHomeRule Committee 2002

Oddly, the democrats who wrote this were not particularly persuaded by the arguments presented either by the C3G2 haters OR Montague.

He's proven his buffoonery.  Do yourself a favor and vote "no" to send him and others like him the message that the will of the people will not be trifled with.

Monday, September 29, 2014

Watch as Craig Pridemore tells us all to drop dead.

As a democrat, naturally Pridemore disrespects the voters.  It's what they do.

Here, he confirms that he thinks we're stupid.

One of these candidates respects the will of the voters.  One insults that will.  Watch this video, courtesy of Lew Waters and decide for yourself:



Pridemore is possessed of rank arrogance and that fringe-left narcissism.  Rejected for Congress and State Auditor by his own party, now he's coming back as a practitioner of that fringe-left mob mentality.

As a father of the CRC Scam and a hater of all things David Madore, we need to send him... and his fellow leftist nutters... a message they can't ignore:

Vote Stewart.  You'll be glad you did.

Is Mussolini Mikey Briggs insane? Or merely delusional?



It takes a special kind of stupid... a special kind of moron... to actually claim that he "won the election" fairly decisively or any OTHER way.

Here's a reminder, Musso: you got embarrassed.  You managed a 37.97% vote out of 100%.  The GOP picked up the rest.  Even a clueless psycho like Bully Winningham got 2000 more votes than you did, and she was SIMILARLY crushed, 42% to 58%.

Further, given that you're a self-delusional, pro-CRC liar, you have a better chance of winning the lottery than you do winning this district.  In fact, it's pretty clear you're not even a 4th tier candidate.

Had Vick not found opposition from his right,i t's likely that he would have received 60% of the vote, even as worthless as he is as a representative.  In the end, he has one huge advantage that you can't overcome:

He ain't you.

My prediction: Mussolini Mikey Briggs is going to be squashed like a little fringe-left bug.

I'm not voting for either one of these clowns... but the self-delusion of Briggs that he "won" an election where, in reality, he was crushed?

That's just bizarre.

In the end, this is going to be one of those races where Lefty Lou endorses Vick since he's a do-nothing GOP'er in Charlie's Country, and idiot stick can't win regardless.  But to claim "Not really. If you recall before the Primary, I had less money and fewer signs than either of my two opponents... and I won that election fairly decisively". without explaining that BOTH of your opponents crushed you in fundraising and that the combined GOP vote was a complete repudiation of your fringe-left views?

I mean, dayam!

Likely local outcomes in the general.

County races:

Clerk - Weber.

That I'm not voting for him doesn't mean others won't.  I tried to warn him to actually act on his campaign promise of eliminating his job as an elective position, but he failed to do that.  None the less, even the fringe-left democratian has pointed out that "He has performed the job well and has done nothing to embarrass his office."

In short, except for his party affiliation, they find nothing objectionable about him and, were he a democrat, he would certainly be endorsed for re-election... yet another sign of the rag's incipient Madore Hatred Syndrome.

I don't care for either of them and won't vote for either.  That said, this is a GOP tide and unknown partisan leftists like Pauli-Hammond are in for a tough sled.

Prosecutor: Golik.

Golik's administration of the Prosecutor's office has been more of a model than a partisan slugfest.  Brent Boger's endorsement sealed the deal for me, and the combination should be enough to lift him out of the GOP tide.  I'm not going to vote for anyone just because they have a letter after their names.

Treasurer:  Likely Colas.

Colas has both a compelling resume' and has found some irregularities in the office of the treasurer.  That Doug Lasher has been in office longer than most of Clark County has been alive is no reason to keep him there.

Colas makes a great case that Lasher is losing us money.  And that's reason enough, I believe, to replace him and give Colas a shot.  However, it's a steep hill to climb, given Lasher's name familiarity, and this call is subject to revision if I don't see a wave of effort coming to rectify that sort of thing.

Sheriff: Atkins

Atkins is an adult.  Gardner is a child.  Atkins is a cop, Gardner is a social worker.

I've busted Gardner for his arrogance and narcissism.  The Lame Brain Shane Train screwed up by going all in as part of an effort to put a nanny into the office by not only going outside the county but outside the state to get someone with the background that Gardner, himself, lacks.

Marc Boldt's endorsement along with the rest of the rabid left doesn't help.

Gardner is broke (Only reporting 5 donors this month and now having spent a few thousand more than he's raised) and getting terrible, unbelievably useless and expensive advice from fringe-left nutter Jim Mains.  His endorsement list is a who's who of CRC Scammers.  He'd be perfect for the job of Clark County Social Worker, but not for top cop.

Atkins continues to extend his fund raising lead and has even garnered support from Betty Sue Morris and the county Prosecutor, democrat Tony Golik.

That combination is just too strong... and it's Atkins.

Assessor: Van Nortwick.

Four years ago, Lefty Lou Brancaccio used his soap box to savage Peter Van Nortwick, again showing his partisan hatred by endorsing a woman in that office who had not voted during the entirety of her LIFE.

The guy running against Van Nortwick, Wertz, is running because, as I understand it,  he's pissed off at how something turned out between himself and Peter's office.

Wertz is a Ridgefield City Councilman who also ran against Tom Mielke in 2012.  Essentially, it takes genuine anger to unseat an incumbent, or some level of incompetence (See Lasher, for example)

Van Nortwick is likely to take this as Wertz has raised a whole $750.  That shows that people have already voted with their wallets.

Commissioner: Stewart.

Craig Pridemore has made it clear that he'll ignore us and fight for his fellow fringe-leftists and the other special interests who own him like the 13th Amendment was the 13th Suggestion.

Jeannie Stewart has fought her way through personal tragedy and she has a record of fighting for the people on the CRC Scam, that Pridemore has major ownership of, that he can only dream of.

Stewart in a walk.

The County Charter: Will be crushed.

This is likely to be the biggest ass-whoppin' since the '95 loot rail vote.

Partisan hatred is not a reason to change the structure of our government, particularly when neither former Commissioner Betty Sue Morris nor former Commissioner Craig Pridemore had any problem with the system we have in place right now.

In the end, nothing the pro-Charter scammers can say gets them over that hurdle: if it was all that bad, then why didn't Pridemore or Morris do something about it when they were commissioners?

East County Advisory Vote: PASS

It will pass this time like it passed last time.  And I'm going to revel in it since it pisses off the C3G2/democratian haters

17th District:  Wilson

All seats currently GOP in Clark County will be GOP after this election.

Both seats in the 49th will remain democrat.

The only seat in play is Stonier's in the 17th.

Stonier has no real argument to keep the seat.  She claims she's voted against taxes.  But like every other fringe-left nutter, she's OCD about the CRC Scam and she offers absolutely NOTHING along the lines of addressing our cross-river traffic inadequacies.

But the number one reason to get rid of her is that no matter how conservative she tries to act, she's a vote for the fringe-left leadership of the House.  That and that alone is enough.

Linda Wilson has and is running a stellar campaign, one of the best I've seen by a first time challenge candidate.  She will surf the tide of GOPdom and will actually be a damned fine representative.

This is all subject to change: after all, there are 35 or so days left... and that can be an eternity.

But it seems fairly straight forward.

3rd Congressional: Herrera (Unfortunately)

Dingethal's only chance was to separate out from his fellow fringe-left nutters, move to Herrera's right and become the one thing the fringe-left nutters cannot stand: a conservative democrat.

His lack of responsiveness doomed him to the point where he was broke and has been broke.  That Herrera is equally worthless just means that neither of them are worth voting for.

Democratian's partisan bias continues.

Look, I'm no Weber fan for the public  reason the democratian utilizes:
 In 2010, as a political novice, Weber ran for the office with a platform of abolishing it. For that election, he wrote in the Voters' Pamphlet, "We need to manage our public money better. One way to do that is to eliminate elected offices that have very limited functions. … If elected I will work to eliminate the office which will save the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. While I work to phase the office out, I will do everything I can to save taxpayer money."
Unfortunately, he made no real effort to do that.  As I have written repeatedly, I cannot and will not support someone who lied to get into office.

That applies to Tim "The Liar" Leave-it, who's lies to get elected concerning his position on the CRC/Loot Rail scam were so egregious he should be put on the "no fly" list.

It applies to Scott Weber. Naturally, then that would typically mean that I might vote for Pauli-Hammond.

Let's see.

So, for the rag, then, they tell us that Weber did an OK job.
To be fair, the argument can be made that county clerk should be an unelected position, or at least a nonpartisan one — although endorsements in this race fall mostly along party lines. And, to be fair, while Weber is a reluctant politician, he has improved online access to documents and has reduced printing in his office to "paper-on-demand." He has performed the job well and has done nothing to embarrass his office.
"He has performed the job well and has done nothing to embarrass  his office."

And should that... and that alone... not be the basis for endorsements?

Shift your attention, however, to leftists the rag has endorsed in the past and will endorse now: could that description apply to The Liar Leavitt?  What about Jim "Molehill" Moeller?

Nothing they write about P-H justifies replacing a guy who, they admit, "...has performed the job well and has done nothing to embarrass his office."

So, no... I will not vote for either.  You see, it's not so much the outcome... it's the reasoning and the bias behind it.

Here's an example of that transference:

The democrat front C2G2 hate site loves her.  One of it's primary haters had this to write about her:



  • Michele Wollert ·  Top Commenter
    I talked with Ms. Pauli Hammond for the first time a couple of weeks ago and was so very impressed with her client-centered and compassionate approach to those who must navigate the court system, especially when they have been traumatized. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and confidentiality. I will let her own words explain: 

    "I am also a passionate advocate for programs to prevent against domestic violence and elder abuse as well as for lower income families to get the assistance they need in a friendly, compassionate and expedient manner. I plan to provide sufficient access to the resources needed to fill out and file the correct paperwork, such as in-house Kiosks with step by step instructions in a private secure location."

    Deanna Pauli Hammond has my vote and endorsement, too.

Not that Wollert's endorsement means anything positive, but like most of us, Wollert knows no more about the Clerk's Office than she does brain surgery.

In the end, Wollert's "support" along with that of her fellow leftists is not based on who's best... but is, instead, based on rank partisanship.

No, I am not going to vote for Weber.  But I am also not going to vote for any rank partisan who's primary concern is her party affiliation instead of service to the people.

The democratian has no particular reason to recommend Pauli-Hammond, save her political affiliation.  And while they may not endorse everyone using that reasoning, let's remember, they have sunk so low that they've endorsed a candidate in the past simply because he wasn't the incumbent.
“...although sincere and well-intentioned, lacks even a rudimentary understanding of the important policy questions for Southwest Washington and the state. About the only attribute in his favor is the fact that he’s not Don Benton. And on that admittedly flimsy basis, we endorse Peterson.”
This KIND of hatred is what drives both the democratian, which spewed that garbage on Benton's 2000 Senate race endorsement, merely because the democrat clown they ran wasn't Benton, but also the C3G2 haters and the pro-Charter scammers.

Had Pauli-Hammond stuck to saying she was better for the job and then proved it (which I do not believe she has, since she knows no more about how the Clerk's Office is run than the democratian knows anything about truth or fairness.) and distanced herself from being a fringe-left nutter, then I could, possible have voted for her.

After all, for example, I am voting for Tony Golik, who's measured approach to what, like the Clerk's Office, should be a non-partisan office at most and an appointed office at best stands as an example of the right thing to do.  I could have voted for her, as well.  But her rabid partisanship also disqualifies her from holding that office.

Had Scott Weber even gone through the motions, this would be a non-issue.  I warned him repeatedly.  And repeatedly, he ignored me.

I expect that the democratian will continue their pattern of partisan hatred and situational ethics so present in their endorsements.  I expect that they will apply one set of standards to the candidates they support and a different set of candidates to those they support.  And, I expect that most of those will be democrats.

Sadly, this is one of those seats along with my congressional vote and the vote in the Briggs-Vick House race that will get a write-in from me.  And, as always, democratian support usually stands as a major reason to do the opposite, given that the rag has a history of pettiness, situational ethics, lies and exaggeration to get what they want at the policy level.

Montague's HatePAC continues to Flounder.

Another week goes by... and the crickets chirp like the Tabernacle Choir.

Montague's HatePAC is, of course, a democrat front:  All you have to do is look up Montague's donations to see:

Report PRIDEMORE CRAIG A  MONTAGUE PAUL MR   9/18/2014 $100.00 G
Report PRIDEMORE CRAIG A  MONTAGUE PAUL MR   9/11/2014 $100.00 G 
Report STONIER MONICA J      MONTAGUE PAUL             9/6/2014  100.00 G   
Report WINNINGHAM MAUREEN MONTAGUE PAUL      9/5/2014 $100.00 G  
Report ECONOMIC VITALITY PAC MONTAGUE PAUL        8/1/2014 $52.03 N
Report ECONOMIC VITALITY PAC MONTAGUE PAUL        8/1/2014 $45.79 N
Report ECONOMIC VITALITY PAC MONTAGUE PAUL        8/1/2014 $31.00 N
Report GARDNER SHANE K          MONTAGUE PAUL      7/16/2014 $100.00 P     
Report ECONOMIC VITALITY PAC MONTAGUE PAUL   7/14/2014 $100.00 N     
Report CLARK CO DEMO CENT
COMM NON EXEMPT
                 MONTAGUE PAUL          6/7/2014 $120.00 N
Report WA SENATE DEMO CAMP MONTAGUE PAUL   5/29/2014 $100.00 N    
Report CLARK CO DEMO CENT
COMM NON EXEMPT 
                MONTAGUE PAUL          5/5/2014 $200.00 N
Report KIMSEY GREGORY A MONTAGUE PAUL            3/13/2014 $150.00 P

His tracks are plain: his motivation is the same partisan hatred driving the C3G2 hate site.

The fact that he can't raise any money is yet another sign of his utter irrelevance.

Hatred drives him.  Hatred drove the rag's worthless coverage of his firing disguised as a resignation so he could "devote full time" to his hatred.

And what does his scam have to show for it?

$400.  And he's provided $100 of that himself.

Yes... people with any brains are staying away from the HatePAC in droves.

Flounder is amused.  

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Why does Bully Winningham have to lie... all the time? Doubles down on the CRC Scam and once again, she attacks Moeller, Wylie and Pridemore.

I get that she's desperate.  But she's also despicable.

I get that she knows she going to get crushed.  I get that she's broke and in debt.  I get that it seems she only received a single donation from within the district this month... for $50.

But does she... or that woman she's wasting all that money on... Heather Stuart... really believe she can lie her way to a win?

I just observed Our Liz crush Bully in the side-by-side that CVTV does every election.

As usual, Bully lied repeatedly about who she is and what she'd do in the unlikely and even more unfortunate possibility that, God-forbid, she would get elected.

When you start from a fact that's undeniable: specifically, that for the vast majority of time the democrats have been in charge of the entirety of this government, including all 3 branches for extended periods of years, one has to wonder:

Who, exactly, is responsible for the Supreme Court's fantasy decision called McCleary?

Is it the party that's been in the minority for the better part of at least 3 decades?

Or is it the democrats?

Hhhhmmmm.... that's a toughy.

So, when you claim you "haven't seen a lot of results in recent years," have you considered whining to those responsible?

And then, to claim that you think it's important to "stop all the bickering."

You campaign started out on a series of lies designed to wrongly portray our Liz as the demagogue you, yourself happen to be... and then YOU complain that there's "too much bickering?"

Hypocrite, much?

The lies you make up about people telling you they "don't want career politicians?"

You mean like Jim "Molehill" Moeller?  Or Sharon Wylie?

Or Craig Pridemore?

Look, I get that they're fringe left loons just like you, but what do YOU have against them?

That's as stupid as you beating up Rep. Pike for taking Tesoro/BNSF donations when your own caucus, including Molehill Moeller, has sucked up 10's of thousands of their dollars.

And that's pretty stupid.

And then you go on to lie about how you, too, would "listen to the voters."

If that's true, then how come you've never once bothered to answer my questions concerning the CRC Scam?

And, as Liz pointed out at least twice, and as you twice ignored: the people of this district DO NOT WANT THE CRC SCAM.

And you don't give a damn.  YOU want it, like every other leftwing nutjob... so SCREW what we want.

And you continue to lie about Liz's training wage bill, and even go so far as to make up a fictional person who "cried" when you lied to her about it.

That's at least as true as your lies about their not being any traffic lights in Bangalore.

You claim you would listen to your fellow left wing "community leaders."  Well, what about listening to the people?

Where do we fit into your fantasy?

You're endorsed by a union?  big whoop.  All the nutjob unions can endorse you.  That doesn't mean spit.

Your whining about the airport being in proximity of the rail lines which are going to carry that oil whether the terminal is built or not, for example: didn't you learn anything from when I bitch slapped you for your oil terminal panic effort?  And throwing in the airport, like anything would happen there NO MATTER WHAT an oil train did?

Pathetic.

More lies about the I-5 Bridge: "Can't sell apples in California if you can't get them over the I-5 Bridge."

Really?  Why is that?

Have we dropped the I-205 into the river?

You mean that apples couldn't go AROUND Portland?

Bully, I despise you not just because you lie, but because you do it so badly.

You offer up nothing but your I-5 fetish, which, of course, is all you fringe-left nutters have got.

Our Liz tells us she'll listen to the voters.  You tell us that what we've got to say won't matter, and then make up even MORE lies as if the people of Clark County had not crushed your CRC Scam at the polls just last year.

Delusion, much?

Like I've been saying: only one of these two cares what we want.  Only one listens.  Only one looks out for us instead of the special interests who own her like the 13th Amendment was a suggestion.

Outsource THAT, Bully.

Bad times for the leftists in the 1-8.

Terrible fundraising continues to plague the speed bumps also known as the democrats in the 18th District for the legislature.

Mussolini Mikey Briggs continues to get dribs and drabs of throw-away money from the unions he wears out kneepads for... but in the end, he's only raised a paltry $15,975.

Maureen "Bully" Loserham, who has discovered by now that a psychotic lie of a campaign just doesn't get it done, has done somewhat better, although the unions who allegedly curse outsourcing jobs are likely to have some explaining to do given their hypocrisy.

Bully has put together a bit more impressive $27,846.  Her problem is that she's also spent far more, including wasting big money on Heather Stuart, who, I'm told, practically threw up at how moronic Bully's speech was at the democrat goat-rope back in what... March?

The writing is on the wall.  For the entire month of September, Bully has only scammed ONE donation from within the 18th District, based on a review of the zip codes.

One.  For $50.

And that speaks volumes.

Folks, as weak a clown as Lumpy is, he's actually raised $66,500.  He's even, so far, transferred $12,500 of it back into surplus... and it's going to be FASCINATING to see what he does with THAT money.

Our Liz, OTOH, has raised $79,831.  And she doesn't outsource any jobs.

It's just sad that both of these clowns were so hard core, fringe-left partisan haters, absolutely out of touch with this district.  They lived... and died... because of their rabid support of the CRC Scam.

In reality, the only question is this: as weak as Lumpy is... and he IS weak... will Mussolini even top 40%?  Vick is going to win, though he nearly lost the seat to an actual, working, conservative, (3 things Vick is not) but the question is by how much... and in the next two sessions, is he actually going to get off his ass and DO something?

As for Bully, the same applies.  A campaign of lies and vitriol has gotten her precisely no where.  Fortunately, we will soon be rid of her as well, so she can go back to Bangalore... and lie some more about traffic lights.

Fortunately for them, it will all be over soon, and they will both be consigned to the trash heap of leftist political history, never to be heard from again... like all of the others buried in the 1-8.

The talking point Charter lies by the C3G2 haters.

Keeping in mind the fact that the vast majority of the C3G2 hater/Charter Scammers were of the same ilk that made every effort to scam us with the CRC/Loot Rail rip off, you must remember at all times:

There is no lie, no exaggeration, no attack, no effort to mislead that these low-life's will not use to try and get people to support their legalized coup attempt, aka, the Charter.

It is the precise, same mindset.  It is a replay of the same arrogance, the same superiority, the same "the 'No' side doesn't know what they're talking about" attitude.

Any time anyone smart enough to both read this legalized, partisan coup attempt makes an objection to this effort, the automatic response is that the person objecting is wrong.

Every.

Single.

Time.

We're not wrong, of course: but the "Yes" side is driven by pure, unadulterated hatred, much like the C3G2 hate site.  And hatred alone by no means rises to the level required to replace our entire government structure.

For example, this lie by a C3G2 hater:
  • Jamie Hymas Warren · Top Commenter · Paraeducator at Vancouver School District
    Dennis Henry, the Charter Yes campaign is not about a vendetta. It is a way to bring people closer to their own County government. It is true that the idea started when many county residents feel they lost their voice and weren't being heard or served by the people elected to serve them. The charter form of government gives people more of a voice. That is good governance.
 This is, of course, demonstrably wrong.  And that it's demonstrably wrong shows the hatred the "Yes" side is relying on as a basis for their actions here.

Number 1:  "Yes" co-Chair, democrat former commissioner Betty Sue Morris held that office for 12 years or so.

In all that time, she made absolutely no effort to reorganize county government into anything that remotely resembles this abortion.

If it was good enough for her when SHE was a commissioner, then it's good enough for me now that she's not.

Number 2.:  When democrats controlled the county commission up through January, 2013,  they recoiled at the thought of a charter.

Here's how the democrats saw it: (From the democrat news letter:)
Streamlining and modernizing the machine appeals to the progressive psyche, but the folks who have convinced the Board of Clark County Commissioners to consider adopting a new county charter have other agenda priorities.
They hope to give rural interests dominance over urban values. They suppose they can make it harder for county government to raise and spend money on social problems and infrastructure capital.
Clearly, at this point, they no longer care about that: and they don't care about it because the bar is set so high that it is essentially impossible to get the number of signatures required to change the Charter... not to mention that once we HAVE a charter, we can never get rid of it.

Combine these facts with the truth that had democrats retained control of the commission, we would not be seeing any charter effort of any kind AND we certainly wouldn't be seeing a complete government reorganization... and yes, unlike the lies the C3G2 haters keep heaping up, the fact remains:

Hatred is what's driving this.  Hatred of David Madore.  Hatred of Don Benton.  Hatred of Tom Mielke.  Hatred of all those opposed to the CRC/Loot Rail scam.

They can deny it all they like, but it's pure, partisan, hatred.  The facts speak for themselves.  And, as they channel their inner-CRC/LootRail "the opponents don't know what they're talking about and what they think doesn't matter anyway" selves, remember: it's partisan hatred driving this idiocy.  It's partisan butthurt that the CRC Scam has been temporarily suspended.  And it's partisan revenge that is the nexus for the "Yes" side of this issue... as few, if any of the haters pushing this ever voted for either Madore OR Mielke.

They lie when they use the phrase "separation of powers" which has zero application here.  They lie about the wall separating the people from the bureaucracy.  They lie about it being "bad for 3 commissioners to be elected county wide" while simultaneously telling us how great it is for one commissioner being elected county wide... when if it's bad for 3, we all know it's bad for one.

And, of course, the worst part of all of this is that these people want US to jump through hoops to change the charter with a 37,000 + signature requirement while they skip all of that by attempting to ram this idiocy down our throats with NO signatures.

The typically leftist double standard reeks.

Do not be fooled.  This is partisan hatred run amok.  And we can vote this effort out and put one in that actually makes sense.

Vote "No."  You'll be glad you did.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Lefty Lou goes full moron with his ongoing Madore jihad.

(Transcribed by Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12.5)

We already know that this legalized coup attempt known as the Charter, is all about the left’s hatred of David Madore. This is all about reining him in and weakening him politically, because these people cannot win at the polls.

That this is obvious, is clear from the co-chair of the charter campaign, who though she was a County Commissioner for 12 years, made no such effort to completely restructured government, in any way that would have resulted in weakening her politically, or reducing her political power.

Certainly, then, if the structure was good enough for Betty sue Morris, then it’s good enough for me now.

As a result, one of the problems Lefty Lou has… And he does have many… Is that he has absolutely no credibility when it comes to matters concerning projects or taxes within the confines of Southwest Washington.

Lefty, who has advocated strongly over the years for some of the most devastatingly bad projects in this region’s history, including the CRC/loot rail scam, followed by the ballpark scam where integrity meant nothing to him, is motivated by his hatred of David Madore.

Today’s column is part of the insidious campaign, practice by leftists, where under the guise of “journalism”, Lefty continues his in–kind campaign against David Madore.
Now, today’s babble is about the East County bridge project.

Let me say at the outset that Lefty Lou, like everyone else in this country, is entitled to their own opinion. Much like I’m entitled to point out that his opinions, as warped as they are, are driven by his rank hatred of what he views as a political enemy. Madore’s an enemy because he has been successful at derailing lefty Lou’s agenda. And Rule Five-ing their enemies through ridicule, is all that the left has.

In this instance, the one glaring gaping hole that all leftists in the area have is a complete lack of alternatives.

Of course it’s easy for moron like Lefty Lou or Tim Leavitt or Craig Pridemore or Jim Moeller or any other leftists, to come out swinging against an idea that Commissioner Madore may have. And it really doesn’t matter what idea, or policy Madore has: good, bad, or indifferent, these slime will come out swinging against it because they hate the man.

Just like, it’s my privilege to point out that none of these clowns offer any kind of alternative.

Now I recognize why they fail to do that, and those reasons are at least twofold:

Reason number one: the CRC is not dead. Nothing about it is dead. What it is, is in something approaching suspended animation. Ultimately every leftist running for office down here, and every Leftist jock sniffer like Lefty Lou, has within them the strong hope that Republicans/conservative Democrats will lose control of the Senate, and open up the floodgates for idiotic projects like the multibillion-dollar slave-yoking CRC.

Because of reason number one, reason number two is simple: since the only thing these people are interested in is getting light rail into Clark County, reason number two is obvious.

Specifically, if the left were to offer any other alternative, they would have a split problem: specifically, that Republicans have already offered every possible solution for cross-river traffic issues. That means that any other solution that the Democrats would support would be reduced to the level of “me too”.

As a subset of that problem, the Democrats who would advocate additional solutions besides the CRC know that that would weaken the chance of bringing the CRC back to life. Since their sole focus continues to be on the CRC that eliminates any possibility of any of these clowns offering up any other possible solutions.

Lefty Lou is no exception. It’s easy for him to whine, bitch, moan and complain… But where he fails along with every other leftist, is he fails to provide any other solutions.
What Lefty should be doing is taking his own advice: don’t do stupid stuff.

More specifically: don’t print stupid stuff.

And unless Lefty or any other Democrat, none of whom have the courage to offer any other solution, can come up with alternatives, then they really don’t have anything to say about any project.

In one of the more idiotic aspects of Lefty Lou’s continued bleating about David Madore, is that all he’s doing is preaching to the choir. As the readership of his Izvestia Pravda continues to decline, he should know that he is preaching to the convinced.
I have to wonder, does he really think that the idiocy of his column today, has convinced anyone of anything except that he’s an ignorant jerk?

I haven’t read the comments underneath the story and I’m probably not going to bother to. But you know that the vast majority of them will be of the C3G2 Hater variety, the fringe left variety, and most certainly by people and never voted for Madore to begin with.

It’ll be just more of the amen choir. But none of them will offer any other solution. None of them.

Mark my words.

In fact, Lefty Lou’s horse is so dead, and beaten, that no one pays any attention.

Here’s what I know: the East County bridge advisory vote is going to pass. There’s nothing Lefty can do about it, because there’s nothing he will do about it.
Having destroyed his credibility on the CRC by lying, exaggerating, twisting, attacking, and supporting the Pit Yorkie’s virulent attacks against anyone opposed to their scam, Lefty Lou’s got no credibility in this community. I can already envision him filing Worker’s Comp. claim for the permanent shoulder damage that’s resulted from his incessant patting of himself on the back for accomplishments both real and imagined. (And by far, mostly imagined.)

But in the end, when this thing passes, you can expect that Lefty Lou will continue to bitch and piss and moan, all without offering any viable alternative of any kind.
And by “viable alternative,” I mean an alternative that the people of this County will actually support.

Because with the exception of the left and the Downtown Mafia that Lefty Lou so wears out multiple sets of kneepads for on a regular basis, he speaks for no one but himself.

That the people of this County are going to vote for this project, even in an advisory manner, is meaningless to him. He no more cares about the will of the people of this County than he cares about getting his hair color right.

Just for one example, Lefty Lou’s obsession with the I-5 bridge, which is doing perfectly well, is a revisionist history that reeks… positively reeks… with his hypocrisy.

If he wants to be beating somebody up over the I-5 bridge, then he needs to be beating up the Gov. of Oregon and the Gov. of Washington, neither one of whom would listen to the chorus down here that said: “get light rail off this bridge, and we can actually look at building it.”

The fact that Lefty Lou is stuck on replacing the I5 bridge, is illustrative. It’s a symptom of what the left is trying to do, by refusing to come up with any other viable alternative. With them, it’s the I-5 bridge and light rail or nothing. And they are out to punish anyone who stands in their way, from that goal.

So for them, the only project that they will support is one that replaces the I five bridge, brings light rail into Clark County, and yolks us with ever-increasing tolls starting with $2000 a year or more for each commuter for the indefinite future generally and at least four decades specifically.

You’ll note that it’s easy for Lefty Lou and those like him to support something that they are not going to have to pay for. The vast majority of the scum supporting the CRC scam, were never going to have to pay the tolls. That’s why I believe that each and every individual, who so rabidly supported the CRC scam, should volunteer to pay a tax, equal to the average yearly amount of money that commuters are gonna have to pay to cross that bridge just to go to work.

None of them of course will ever volunteer to do that.

So here’s some advice to Lefty Lou and those of his ilk:

Don’t like the East County bridge?

Then vote no. But I think that the days of the left ignoring the will of the people of this County?

I think those days may be over. Much like their days in power may be over.

And by the way Lefty, that Stonier just toed the leftist line, that’s no particular reason to vote for her. Because like you, she fails to offer up any alternative.

I always tell my clients when they’re running for office that it’s easy to say no. Lefty Lou says “no” all the time, when he doesn’t happen to like the item being discussed.

But where the rubber meets the road?

That’s where you come up with solutions as a part of your “no”. And that’s the part of the argument that the CRC scammers like Lefty Lou have yet to master: they always say “no”, but they never have anything else as an alternative. They start with the fallacious premise (“replacing the I5 bridge is the priority”… All the while leaving out the part that’s driven the entirety of this project: which is ramming light rail down our throats in Clark County.) And then doubled down on that, because in their world, there simply is no other alternative that they’re willing to discuss.

Ultimately, none of these clowns actually talk about this in their campaigns. Those that might, believe they have some sort of political death wish going on. So it keeps their lips sealed shut.

But what Lefty Lou doesn’t get is that the people of the 17th district hated the CRC is much as everyone else in the County, since as he may recall, only five precincts in the entire County out of over 200 actually supported it. And that includes the entirety of the 17th district.

So yeah, as far as that goes, I agree with them: the voter should decide which candidate has the better handle on this issue.

And that of course, is Lynda Wilson. Stonier doesn’t care what the people of her own district want when it comes to issues like transportation. Because if she did care, she wouldn’t be such a bitch about the CRC scam. And, she’d have different solutions: of which she has none.

In closing, one only has to ask themselves this question: if this advisory vote were on an issue that Lefty Lou and the downtown Mafia actually supported… Do you think we would see Lefty trowling out any of this garbage?

Of course not.

But hypocrisy is always been how Lefty Lou has rolled.

This then, is just Lefty… Doing that.

Friday, September 26, 2014

September has been a tough month for the Lame Brain Shane Train.

Left to the sad device of having donors split donations with family members to show fake support, even then, the Gardner Campaign has only reported at total of 9 donations for the entire month of September... and 3 of those are from split families, so, that true number is actually six.

Gardner is, effectively, not only broke but in the hole, as of the last expenditure report (Gardner has raised $35,800 in cash but spent well more than that, but since he hasn't reported any September expenditures and Mains is wasting most of his money on a losing campaign, the number has got to be higher than that.) seriously in debt.

Clearly, Gardner's fund raising letter was either an abysmal failure or he hasn't bothered to report the results.  Either way, it's clear he has a better chance of winning the lottery than he does putting $50G together.

Meanwhile, the presumptive sheriff-elect, Chuck Atkins, has a somewhat different story to tell:

Donations: 57.  Split family donations: 1.

Even Betty Sue Morris and Tony Golik have donated to Chuck Atkins' campaign.

Chuck has raised $80,000 in cash.  He's showing about $20,000 on hand.

At this point, the clock is winding down, and it's like the Shane Train ain't got no coal, no tracks and no where to go.

Nailing the charter gerrymandering effort: a CTran taxing district redux!

Those supporting the charter scam generally, and Betty Sue specifically, are trying to lube us up for the charter by lying about the districts.

During the Battle Ground Bruhaha, Betty Sue said this:
“Also, on your chair, you have the maps… Here’s a district map. Now I’d like you to look for just a minute, at the red numbers.  These districts are drawn by the County’s mapping department, and they are drawn according to the statutory requirement that all districts have the same number of people.
So, we're told that there's a "statutory requirement" that all districts have the same number of people.

OK.  Got it.

THEN we're told:
“But if you look at the red numbers, they are the number of registered voters… And registered voters are the ones who do elections and make a difference so in the two districts outside the city of Vancouver, there are 17,000 more registered voters.
They gerrymandered these districts deliberately because they don't want those 17,000 voters voting for conservatives in the other 2 districts.

There could be 17 MILLION more voters in the rural seat and that would make no difference.

This isn't even a bone for a dog.

It's for ONE DISTRICT.  It has ONE VOTE ON THE COUNCIL.

This is an example of the art of "bright, shiny object" politics.  in fact, the ENTIRE point of keeping these 17,000 votes out of these district is ENTIRELY to make it MORE likely that they'll be controlled by leftists, since in their minds, these 17,000 votes have a far greater likelihood of voting for conservatives.

It's the same kind of gerrymandering these clowns did on the CTrans taxing district: a deliberate exclusion of tens of thousands of rural votes from voting... but not from paying the taxes these clowns ram down our throats.

And do not be fooled: this isn't ANYTHING about "shifting the political center": it's about keeping conservative voters out of the Vancouver districts... just like gerrymandering the CTran taxing district was about keeping conservative voters from weighing in on taxes.

The whole thing is one big lie.

An utter, complete, lie.

Remember back in the bad ol' days when this county voted down the 2004 CTran tax scam, and their response was to set up a tax district to exclude tens of thousands of us from voting on these questions... but not excluding us from paying the taxes they rammed down our throats? 
“So the political center of gravity shifts to the north. It shifts to the small cities, it shifts to the people in the suburbs and it shifts to the rural landowners. And it’s about time, for my perspective, that the rural landowners have their own representative.
When CTran scammed their tax district, they literally pulled out a precinct map and excised the "no" precincts out with an x-acto knife to draw the boundaries... some of which are literally one street wide, so they could chop the vast majority of the precincts in this county which had voted "no" on the CTrans tax issue... to dramatically increase the likelihood of it's passage.

This is them... doing that.  And they're doing that to reduce the impact of rural voters in this county, to reduce our say, but not out burden.

And do not be fooled: this isn't ANYTHING about "shifting the political center": it's about keeping conservative voters out of the Vancouver districts... just like gerrymandering the CTran taxing district was about keeping conservative voters from weighing in on taxes.

So, what does the muslim beheading in Oklahoma mean?



First of all, a woman in Oklahoma WAS beheaded.  (Check the link.)

Second, it appears that a muslim did it.

So.... what does this mean to us?

What are we supposed to do?

These things are not pleasant to ponder.

First and foremost, this is the LAST thing Obama needed to have happen on his watch.

He fumbled the ball on Isis, and thousands have died as a result.

Now, an own-goal where a defenseless woman was slaughtered... a second attacked... and (Gasp!) saved by a GUN!

The politics of this could get real ugly, real fast.

Secondly, how does this kind of thing impact our lives individually?

Does anyone believe, realistically, that this will be the last time something like this happens?

What if it begins to happen in other places?

Was this the wake-up call?

How does our government protect us?

How do we protect ourselves?

This isn't going to help those rabidly attempting to punish us with I-594, the gun-grabber initiative.

Are we going to have to begin to round-up muslims like we rounded up the Japanese?

Would it be unconstitutional?

Likely.  But is the Constitution a death warrant?

What happens if the president uses this to declare martial law?  What happens if this becomes more wide-spread?  What do we do?

I have some ideas on this sort of thing... but my ideas and $5 will get you a latte at Starbucks.

The horror of this act is likely to result in an emotional response.  Those in government who blow this off as an isolated instance do so at their own peril, politically.

This is why they make the big bucks.

I'm just dying to know what our erstwhile congresscritter will want to do.  My guess is that, like in most things of any importance, the answer is "nothing..." if there's any response at all.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Military to recruit illegal aliens.

Wonderful.

We're shrinking the size of the military, getting rid of combat hardened and tested service members, and we're going to replace them with illegal aliens.

Gang members rejoice!

Military to allow undocumented immigrants to serve

 512 158 2LINKEDIN 47COMMENTMORE
A small number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. will have an opportunity to join the military for the first time in decades under a new Department of Defense policy unveiled Thursday.
The new rules will expand an existing program allowing recruiters to target foreign nationals with high-demand skills, mostly rare foreign language expertise or specialized health care training.
For the first time, the program — known as Military Accessions in the National Interest, or MAVNI — will be open to immigrants without a proper visa if they came to the U.S. with their parents before age 16. More specifically, they must be approved under a 2012 Obama administration policy known as Deferred Action for Child Arrivals, or DACA.
The new Pentagon policy may be the first phase of a broader government-wide effort to ease pressure on immigrants and create new paths to citizenship. President Barack Obama, frustrated with the failure of Congress to pass any substantial immigration reform, has vowed to aggressively use his presidential authority to change the way immigration policies are carried out.
The Pentagon program is capped at 1,500 recruits per year. Officials say it's unclear how many of those might be unlawful DACA status immigrants as opposed to others who are also eligible for military service under MAVNI, including those with legal, nonpermanent visas such as students or tourists.
Estimates suggest between 1.2 million and 2.1 million children, teenagers and young adults in the U.S. have no legal immigration status but meet the criteria for the DACA program. Those targeted by recruiters under the MAVNI program likely will be immigrants with language skills critical to national security, such as Arabic, Chinese, Pashto or Persian.
But Pentagon officials don't know how many of those immigrants have actually learned their ancestral language to the proficiency required by the military.