Six Against Six Million

The Olympic Spirit

Official Beijing 08 Logo

You have to wonder what the Chinese were thinking when they created their official Beijing 08 logo. Given the recent events in Tibet I could not help but help try to raise awareness of what is going on. If you have not heard about what has been going on in Tibet then please take the time to get informed.

So why has the United States not withdraw from the Olympics? To answer that question all you have to do is follow the money. I won't get into that in this post, but I can say this. If the Olympic torch passes anywhere close to Chattanooga I am going to be there waving the sign below.

Olympics Firing Squad

I found the firing squad image here: Origninal
Also, check out this site. They have some other interesting Beijing 08 logos. http://www.beijinglogo.org/

Congressman Wamp, Carpe Diem

Last Friday I sent in an opinion on the Chattanoogan.com. It was in response to an opinion piece submitted by Zach Wamp. His opinion piece was about energy policy, and I just could not help but respond. I think our congressman has the political backing to really get things done in Washington. I really love the quote that says, "What would you attempt to do today if you knew you could not fail." Well, this is what I said:

Delegates meet tonight to hear sheriff candidates

Tonight the Republican sheriff candidates will be speaking to those of us who were elected as delegates last Monday evening. I look forward to hearing what they have to say. I have done a bit of research and as of now there are two candidates I am ruling out.

In researching one of the candidates I found that he had spent 3 years in Iraq training the new Iraqi police force. This candidate spoke on March 22nd 2007 at the local Rotary Club about his time in Iraq. I do realize that his views on us being in Iraq has very little to do with the local sheriff race, but the quote below came as quite a kick in the teeth.

Below is the exact quote I got from the speech he gave at the Rotary Club. This quote was given at the end of the speech during the question answer time. He was answering a question about the working relationship he had with the Iraqi people, and at the end of his answer began to tail off into another subject. At around the 30:30 mark this is what he said:

What? I really could spend way to much time unpacking all the implications of this kind of justification for us being there, but all I am going to say is this. When we invaded Iraq, which by the way was one of the few Arab countries where being a Christian was still legal, there were 1.2 million Christians living in Iraq. Today there are less than 600,000.

22,000 Scientist Sign Petition Refuting Carbon Footprint Initiated Global Warming

Yes that is right, 22,000 Scientist have signed. Check out the graphs on this page.

Update: I should have added a bit more info when adding this post the first time. These 22,000 scientist are not saying that there is no global warming. What they are saying is that the earth has been warming for 400 years, which coincides with the end of the last mini ice age that hit Europe. The evidence looks pretty convincing that the warming we are experiencing now has to do with an increase in activity on the sun, and has nothing to do with our carbon footprint.

Come on! You can do better than that.

You would think if you had a good enough brain to make it through law school you could remember who you drove with for 6 hours.

I guess you can say what you want when reelection is not until Aug. 2014.

my first response to a Chattanoogan.com opinion piece

To get the context please go here and read the original opinion by Bruce Caldwell. Below is my response, which can also be read here.

The rEVOLution's Next Steps...getting local

Looking at last night numbers we have an extremely strong base of support in our local area. We are in the process of getting the foundation laid for Ron Paul Republicans to get elected locally, but we need to know who you are. For those of you who have not given us your name, email address, and phone number at either the last meetup group or the Rand Paul rally we need to know who you are! We need to stay organized and we need to be able to get in touch with you when Ron Paul Republicans run for office.

Please if you have not gotten your name on the list, then please email me privately. So far we have 180+ people signed up, but there are several thousand of us locally that we need to be able to get in touch with. Please forward this post to local Ron Paul supporters that might not be on the list. This includes all Ron Paul supporters in Tennessee's 3rd Congressional district (Wamp's district).

Please email me at j.d.gidcumb[AT]gmail.com

CNN = reliable, fair, balanced, unbiased

I just don't get it. Ron Paul takes second in LA, second in NV, second in delegates in ME, and they can not even put him on their site! Please vote!

Barna Group: Republicans have lost Born Again voters

What is it going to take for the Republican party to see that they have lost their way? I for one still believe there is hope for a Republican reformation.

Ron Paul Tops Military Donations, Again

This time, the victory was decisive. Paul received approximately three times as many Army donations as Senator John McCain, twice as many from the Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, and more military donations overall than all the other Republican candidates combined. from

Number of donors:

• Ron Paul - 931
• McCain - 466
• Huckabee - 141
• Romney - 125

more

Ron Paul is insane

Chattanooga Ron Paul Rally

Rand Paul, the son of Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, will speak in Chattanooga on Saturday, February 2nd at 9 AM at 1601 Rossville Ave. Below is a map to the Rally location.

Update:
Here are some other Chattanooga area bloggers talking about it:
Scott is going to be there with his kids and hot coffee. | Joe over at TennesseeTicket.com did a post as well.....Any others?

Canvassing Chattanooga for Dr. Paul

This past weekend I took my maiden voyage into the mad crazy world of door to door Canvassing. Well, it was really neither mad nor crazy, and it was surprisingly a lot of fun. I was pretty nervous leading up to hitting the streets, but just as all the canvassing experts said once you get started it can be a lot of fun.

We decided to hit the precinct that David Shinn lives in because he was the veteran at canvassing and he had also gone and signed up as a precinct captain on the Ron Paul website, so he had all the addresses we needed to hit.

On Saturday there were three in our group that hit the streets. I know several other groups in Chattanooga area headed out as well. On Saturday it was David Shinn, Jim, and I who worked together. On Sunday it was just David S. and I. By looking at the google map it looks like we hit a minimum oft 430 homes on those two days. I would guess that between our group and the other groups that we hit well more than 1000 homes on those two days.

Next weekend should be another good weekend for hitting the streets. Hopefully the soreness will have gone by then. I used to hike a whole bunch, but this cube life is killing me!

Grand Opening of Cleveland Ron Paul headquarters

Last night was the Grand Opening of the Cleveland Ron Paul headquarters. We were only able to stay for about a half hour, but the turnout was really good. What strikes me as the funny about this clip is that for some reason John David is in the piece 3 times.

I just noticed that Edwards is on the first frame of the clip.....LOL

Dr. Ron Paul Endorsed by Jane Roe

This is a really huge endorsement, and it happened on the 35th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Here is what she said:

For those who do not know Norma McCorvey aka Jane Roe's story then here is a link to her wikipedia entry. I have to say that this endorsement makes me feel much better about my post done back in November about Insurgents taking over the National Right to Life. With that in mind I would like to welcome all the Thompson supporters to the Dr. Paul campaign! We are glad to have you!

Interview on WGOW this morning

Summer and I were on WGOW at noon today to talk about Ron Paul. We were on from 12:00 to 1:00, and we had a really good time. This was my first time on the radio, so I had not clue how it would go. It was a lot of fun, and something I would love to do again.

Here is a link to the MP3. It is close to 10 megs, so if you are bandwidth challenged then you might want to forgo the download. Here is the link: WGOW interview about Ron Paul

Thanks Joe for the copy!

Cal Thomas | Ron Paul

Cal Thomas had a little commentary yesterday about the current election cycle.

Here is a quote:

Here is a link to his commentary: here

please wakeup

My life mission is quickly becoming to do what I can to fix this precious country of ours. REAL ID

Ron Paul, the only true Republican on the stage.

This was my favorite exchange from last night's debate.

CAMERON: Congressman Paul, yet another question about electability. Do you have any, sir? There's always the question as to whether or not...

(LAUGHTER)

... you are, in fact, viable. Your differences with the Republicans on the -- with the rest of the Republi-cans on this stage has raised questions about whether or not you can actually win the Republican nomi-nation, sir.

PAUL: Well, we've only had two little primaries so far. So it's pretty premature to decide which one is going to be the candidate.

But, you know, when you think about it, if you measured everything I've ever said, every vote I've ever taken against the Constitution, you know, I'm a strict constitutionalist.

Are you suggesting the Republicans should write me off because I'm a strict constitutionalist? I'm the most conservative member here. I have voted, you know, against more spending and waste in govern-ment than anybody else.

(APPLAUSE)

So you're suggesting that I'm not electable and the Republicans don't want me because I'm a strict fiscal conservative, because I believe in civil liberties? Why should we not be defending civil liberties and why should we not be talking about foreign policy that used to be the part of the Republican Party?

PAUL: Mr. Republican Robert Taft didn't even want us to be in NATO and you're saying now that we have to continue to borrow money from China to finance this empire that we can't afford?

Let me see if I get this right. We need to borrow $10 billion from China, and then we give it to Mushar-raf, who is a military dictator, who overthrew an elected government. And then we go to war, we lose all these lives promoting democracy in Iraq. I mean, what's going on here?

(APPLAUSE)

And you're saying that this isn't appealing to Republicans? Where did this come about? I think this is the Republican message. I defend the platform. It used to say we'd (inaudible) the Department of Education. It doesn't say that now.

We, as Republicans, went and doubled the size of the Department of Education, so where have we gone? I think we've lost our way. And then the insinuation that I am less Republican because of that?

HUME: Congressman, thank you very much.

hat tip: eric

latest political quiz

hat tip: 10,000 Monkeys and a Camera: Onward!

Evangelicals, Huckabee, and a moment of weakness

I have to admit I have been restraining myself with regard to Huckabee. I did my research on the candidates a few months back, and it did not take long for me to put Huckabee on the list of candidates I could never vote for. I have been surprised with how quickly my fellow evangelicals have fallen for him in spite of his record. Though, in one respect I have to admit that I fully understand their love affair. He is so well spoken, and heck, he was a preacher. He speaks of Christ in such a loving and sincere way. I have to admit that even an ardent Ron Paul supporter like me flirts with the idea that the reason Huckabee is being scrutinized is because of some kind of spiritual warfare working against God's chosen man.

I think that if those evangelicals still supporting Huckabee were to be honest they would have to agree in some part that they have flirted with the same thoughts. This is kind of a tricky topic to dance around because right now I am talking about two different aspects of Huckabee's record. First is the ethical concerns that are starting to hit main street media. The other problem is his pro big government stance, which in itself is not a moral issue, though most evangelicals in a one-on-one / completely off-the-record conversation, would admit that being an economic liberal is, to some degree, a moral issue for them.

This is where it gets even stranger, most evangelicals have a trump card and that trump card comes in play if the person is a Christian and is believable. Then the fact that the candidate is a Christian wins out. Honestly, I have fallen into the same trap. At times I was willing to give up liberties because I trusted someone's character. It is almost like all reason was lost.

While I most certainly agree that there is spiritual warfare, I think my fellow evangelicals err on the side of assuming that because he is so outspoken about his faith, that when they see his record being put under the fire that they assume there is some kind of spiritual warfare going on, and that they need to defend him even more. Again, it is almost like all reason is lost.

What keeps coming to mind is what my mother used to tell me as a teenager. She used to say "David you need to stop having excuses for everything you do. Sometimes you just need to admit your wrong and move on. . ." or something like that. It strikes me that Huckabee has excuses for everything.

Not that this is news to a lot of people, but here is what the media is starting to report.

Huckabee and Socialized Education

Wow! Wow! Wow! This guy is really out there. Check out this article on red state. Looks like Huckabee backs P-16. No wonder homeschoolers and Huckabee aren't a match made in heaven.

Homeschoolers against Huckabee

As a homeschooler I was shocked to hear Huckabee's record on homeschooling in the state of Arkansas. Here are just a few of the stumbling blocks that homeschooler in Arkansas now have to deal with. Here is a link to the whole article: Huckabee's homeschool record

hat tip four-eight-four

Ron Paul Raises $6 Million in One Day

Great work everyone!

Here is a copy of the official press release.

Candidate has most successful fundraising day in American political history

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA -- Texas Congressman Ron Paul?s presidential campaign had a record fundraising day yesterday.

In a 24-hour period on December 16, the campaign raised $6 million dollars, surpassing the one-day record of $5.7 million held by John Kerry.

During the day, over 58,000 people contributed to Dr. Paul?s campaign, including 24,940 first-time donors. Over 118,000 Americans have donated to the campaign in the fourth quarter.

The $6 million one day total means the campaign has raised over $18 million this quarter, far exceeding its initial fourth quarter goal of $12 million.

"The outpouring of support shows what a powerful message freedom is," said campaign chairman Kent Snyder. "Americans are tired of the same old Washington, and they are rallying around Dr. Paul?s message of freedom, peace and prosperity."

Congressman Paul will be campaigning in Iowa today and will be holding a press conference at 12:45 pm at the Des Moines Marriott in the Des Moines Room. Members of the press are strongly encouraged to attend.

Today is the day! Give what you can.

"Our lives, our fortunes, our sacred honor"

Ron Paul on Cramer

This is really a huge plug for Ron Paul. Cramer loves Ron Paul's take on the Fed.

Get your credit card ready!

To say "I can't wait until Sunday" is an understatement!

Huck spend your buck

For all those potential "Huck spend your buck" supporters out there, here is an article for you: Huckabee: The Biggest Big-Government Conservative

National Review might be warming up to Dr. Paul

Is the national review starting to come around? I sure hope so. Check out this article. Imagining a Ron Paul Presidency

Ron Paul tops google zeitgeist

So there you have it, Ron Paul tops the list as the most googled presidential candidate. via google zeitgeist.

Ron Paul most googled candidate

Pledge to vote for Ron Paul

Okay, this is an easy one. Just click the image and sign up. If there are two of you in a home then sign up for both of you. The idea is to make sure that all Ron Paul supporters are contacted on the day that their state primary or caucus is held. This is just incase something crazy happens and you need a reminder. This is also a really good way to get numbers of how many people are going to vote for Ron Paul. It only takes a second. Pledge Away...

Hat Tip:turn left

Oh, by the way. Fox Den Lane is now in the top 5 for baby carriers on google. Now if we can just get there for Baby, Baby Backpacks, and Baby Slings.

Ron Paul Float at the Cleveland Christmas Parade

This past Saturday evening a group of us got together and entered a float in the Cleveland Christmas parade. I wanted to get a picture up a few days back, but for some reason I am just now getting around to doing a post on the Parade.

The guy who was going to let us use his truck for the parade had to bail out at the last minute, so my truck became the float. We had a fun time decorating the truck with Christmas lights, garland, and Ron Paul signs. While waiting for the parade to start I even meet another local blogger/Ron Paul supporter named Carrie (if I remember her name correctly). She blogs over at The Princess Diaries, and she just stopped by to say hi and to ask a question about the Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup group. We did take the opportunity to load her down with as much literature and bumper stickers as she would take. :-)

Ron Paul Float at the Cleveland Parade

Because I was driving I did not get to hand out any of the Ron Paul material, but in all I would say we handed out between 500 and 1000 Slim Jims. We had such a great time. The reception from the crowd could not have been much better. I had a good time driving, but those that got to hand out material looked to be having the most fun. For me the highlight of the night had to be those Ron Paul supports standing in the crowd that had no clue we were coming. When they would see the float they would flip out for a second screaming "Go Ron Go", "Ron Paul Hope for America", or just the plain "RON PAUL".

In all it was a great opportunity to get Ron Paul's name out on a local level, and for the price I am not sure there was any better bang for the buck.

Ron Paul takes chattown by storm

Wow what a night! Last night the Ron Paul Chattanooga meetup group met at Ryan's on Lee highway. It was a HUGE success! Fun was had by all. Here is a picture I took and it should give a little idea of how many people were there. In all I would say we had about 50 people at the meeting, with another 15 or so that showed up to sign the delegate petitions and to pick up bumper stickers and yard signs. I am starting to think it is safe to assume that the number of Ron Paul supporters in the Chattanooga area is well into the 1000s.

The highlight of the night was the conversation that took place once the meeting was over. I met some really great people who also share my concerns about this country and where we are heading. Nothing I could write would really do justice to the conversation we had so I am not going to even try.

I will just say this; last night really has me thinking about starting a Chattanooga think tank for promoting Constitutional awareness in District 3. I have no clue where I would put it on my plate, but having the opportunity to review and debate current, past, and pending legislation with fellow constitutionally minded people from District 3 could be a great way to reintroduce fellow Chattanoogans to the United States Constitution. I will have to put some more thought into this over the next week or so.

Do you live in District 3 (Zach Wamp's District)?

There are 5 people from District 3 who are running as delegates, and we really need your help. Each of these 5 people needs 150 signatures from registered voters who live in district 3. You may sign all five petitions.

If you would like to help out then please drop by and sign the petitions. There will also be Ron Paul yard signs, bumper stickers, and a ton Ron Paul info to be had by all. Please come by and bring a friend. You do not have to be a member of the meetup group to come by. Right now the most important thing we can do is get our District 3 delegates in place.

The next Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup is tommorow night (Thursday 15th). So far we have about 45 people that will be there. We need 150+ so we need you!

If you have questions then please leave a comment. If not, then here is the info on when and where. We have the back room in Ryan's reserved. You do not need to eat if you would rather not. Please come. Also, you can call me if you need to: 505-1467

Insurgents take over National Right to Life

I can hardly believe that a great organization such as the National Right to Life would back Fred Thompson. I am appalled actually. I put this on the same plain as Robertson backing Rudy. Clearly the most pro-life candidate right now is Dr. Ron Paul. Seriously, let Fred Thompson's actions speak for themselves. He has done lobbying for Pro-Abortion groups in the past. NRL what were you thinking?

Please send the NRL an email and ask them what they were thinking: National Right to Life Committee
512 10th St. NW
Washington, DC 20004
(202) 626-8800
NRLC@nrlc.org

Ron Paul on Face the Nation

If you missed Ron Paul on Face the Nation this morning then here is the video.

A must read blog post

Check out this post from Chattanooga blogger sjames. I am so glad to see the support that Ron Paul is getting. Every day I meet people who are getting excited about this guy. Here is a link to the post: Ron Paul and Fred Thompson

Boston Tea Party 2007

Don't miss the Boston Tea Party of 2007! The Ron Paul Revolution is really picking up steam, and it is all being done grassroots! This is a once in a life time opportunity to help get America back on a constitutional footing. Don't miss December 16th. I have heard a lot of people say they are going to give $17.76 because the $100 was out of their price range. What matters is the number of people that give not that you could afford the $100. I gave on the 5th of November, so I can not afford to give $100 again. Though, you can count me in for $17.76.

Ron Paul. One Day. $4.3 Million.

What a day!!!!

Go Ron Go!!!! Here is the Associated Press story.

Carpe Diem!

Today is the day, now is the time.

Campaigning for Ron Paul in Chattanooga

Today I spent an hour down at the Ron Paul table that the Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup group setup at North Gate Mall. I can not believe how energizing it was to hand out flyers and to get to speak with people about Dr. Paul and what he stands for. In the hour I was down there we probably handed out 100+ flyers. I personally had some really good conversations with people who had never heard of Dr. Paul.

What I am most surprised about is how receptive most people are. Though, I guess it should not come as a shock. When people pick up on the message of freedom and of our need to get back to a constitutionally minded government lights just turn on. It is really fun to see people walk away from a conversation saying "This is the type of politician I have been looking for".

Well, if you have not gotten a bumper sticker or a yard sign then head down to North Gate tomorrow and pick one up. Also, here is a link if you have not signed up for the Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup group.

This November 5th

If you want Dr. Paul to be the next president, then now is the time to act. On November 5th Ron Paul supporters are trying to raise $10,000,000. The goal is to make it the biggest one day political donation event in history. The plan is to have 100,000 people donate $100 each.

Over the last two weeks there has been about 16,000 people that have signed up. Between now and next Monday (November 5th) please take some time to think about whether you should give. The time between now and the Primaries will go quickly. If you want Ron Paul to be the next president then now is the time to act. If you have not done your research yet then please do so now. Just head out to Ron Paul 2008 and check out his issues page. Again time is short.

If you plan on giving then head out to This November 5th and sign up by giving your email address. They are taking an email address to get the number of people that are going to give. Then on November 5th go to Ron Paul 08 and give.

Samuel Adams Quote

Somebody in the Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup group has this quote in her e-mail signature, and I just thought I would pass it on.

With the above quote in mind, please consider joining a Ron Paul Meetup Group near you. Currently the Chattanooga Ron Paul Meetup group has 118 members and is growing every day. Come on Join in the fun.

Ron Paul in Iowa

MSNBC has a little write up about Ron Paul and him campaigning in Iowa. Here is my favorite quote. I just hope he is right. Well you know... minus that whole Howard Dean holler.

Read more here.

Please watch this video and give me your opinion.

I found a link to this video clip over on webdsb. It is from the June 5th 2007 debate at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire. I doubt anyone was watching the debates back then, so I thought I would share. Also, this is my first time linking to God Tube.

Once you have had the chance to watch the clip I would like your opinion.

I really agree with Dr. Paul on just about every issue, but I am not sure how we best get out of Iraq. I stated in a comment last week that one of my biggest concerns was that we do right by the Iraqi people.

So tell me this, is the best thing for the Iraqi people for us to get out and force them to stand on their own two feet? If not, then what do you propose?

Ron Paul in the New York Times

I just really like this guy.

Please do comment.

Ron Paul has an iPhone

Ron Paul and the iPhone

It even looks like he has an iphone version of his website. I will have to check out some other candidates to see if they have an iPhone version as well.
image via flicker

Ron Paul Leads in Donations from Military Personnel

From January through September of this year the breakdown of donations goes like this:

Ron Paul received $63,440
Barack Obama received $53,968
John McCain received $48,208

Ron Paul at the Robert Taft Club

The more I hear this guy the more I am convinced he is the right man for the job and the country. I don't mean to say he is an easy choice, but he is absolutely the right choice. Please block out some time to listen to what he has to say.

Ron Paul Revolution

Dr. Paul wins Nevada Conservative Leadership straw poll. Mitt Romney comes in second.

Check out how Ron has placed in all the Republican Straw Polls. Do you see a trend?

Ron Paul Revolution

More on Ron Paul

James Dobson: Please Endorse Ron Paul

Please Help Stop Tiller.

Please take a moment to visit this site and sign the petition, as well as e-mail the Kansas state legislators mentioned on the site. Dr. George Tiller (A.K.A., "Tiller the Killer") has been infamous for many years for performing late-term abortions. He has killed thousands of babies in his practice, in direct violation of state law: it is illegal in Kansas to have an abortion after 21 weeks, except to save the mother's life, or when, "irreversible physical harm" to the mother will result from the pregnancy. He has not observed those requirements, yet the state has refused to charge him for his crimes.

We have a scriptural duty to do all that we can to stop the slaughter of these precious little ones. Here is the link to the petition:

http://www.chargetiller.com/

And here is a site with more info:

http://www.operationrescue.org/

Thank you.

Imus and the lack of Grace

Where is the grace in this situation? Do we honestly think that Imus made the remarks out of hate? I mean when he called Bob Corker "Bob Cracker" where was the uproar then? I guess the dynamics of the situation are a bit different, but seriously, this whole thing was obviously a joke gone wrong.

Has he not apologized profusely? The apology should have been truly accepted and then we could have moved on. I really think the original two week suspension by CBS was a good idea. But this knee jerk reaction by CBS is completely lacking in grace.

I really think there should be a reverse boycott of the companies below. I am listing some contact info just in case you feel like calling to complain.

Advertisers boycotting the Imus Show:

• American Express ph (1-800-528-4800) email: Monica.Beaupre@aexp.com
• Sprint Nextel ph (1-800-SPRINT1) email
• Staples ph (1-800-3STAPLE) email
• Procter & Gamble ph(513-983-3939) email
• General Motors ph(???) Email

And don't forget CBS: Here is CBS Radio's Phone number 212-846-3939

Just for the record I don't even watch the Imus show. Though, five or six years ago there was a period of a month or two where I would occasionally watch his show in the morning. I did admire the work he did with kids. Though, I was never a fan.

one more link

I just wanted to add one last link out here related to the Karl Rove photo. Ron, the mastermind behind the whole prank was interviewed on HotAir.com by Michelle Malkin. I was seriously impressed by Ron in the interview. Not because he named me by name but because he is extremely well spoken. Please take a few minutes to listen if you have not already.

Link to Fox News Story about the Karl Rove Photo

Today's Times Free Press cartoon commentary

This is funny. A friend at work just tipped me off to today's political cartoon in the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Enjoy.

From the Times Free Press

A Bit More About the Karl Rove Photo

Original

Photoshopped version

The times free press is doing an article, and I will post a link once I get it.

Update:
Here is the link to the Times Free Press article. It looks like it made the front page of the online and print addition.

Offical Whitehouse Photo

Well, I finally got the Official photo in on Saturday from when Bush came to Chattanooga. Due to my scanner being dirty and my MoveableType thumbnail creator not working right now the image looks a bit grainy. I think the autograph is real. I know sometimes they just use a really good printer, but the autograph itself looks done by hand. I will have to check out Ben's and David's photos to see if they are exactly the same.

Also, I want to thank a Chattanooga photographer named Jon for offering to scan the image for me. Maybe I can even talk him into removing Elvis from the photo. :-) Though really, how often do you have a picture with the President of the United States and Elvis in one shot? Not often I bet.

Let me be the first to say it.

Charmaine Yoest

Mother in the Middle

Wow this is my week. First I meet President Bush at Porkers and now I have won a, hopefully autographed, copy of Charmaine Yoest's book Mother in the Middle: Searching for Peace in the Mommy Wars. Charmaine and Jack hit their 300,000 visitor mark last week and decided to give away a copy of Charmaine's book as a prize. They were doubtful they would actually find the 300,000 visitor so they also threw in that if the winning visitor could not be found that they would give the book to the person with the best comment. Well, evidently liked my comment.

The book should be pretty good, and I am sure it will lead to some interesting discussion between Leslie and me.

About Charmain Yost:
Charmaine is currently the Vice President of Communications at the Family Research Council. She has written several books and has been a guest and political analyst on tv shows such as NBC's Today Show, CBS's Evening News and CBS's This Morning; NBC; MSNBC; Hardball with Chris Matthews; Hannity and Colmes; The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer; CNN's Crossfire, Headline News, The Jesse Jackson Show; McLaughlin's One on One; Technopolitics with Jim Glassman; C-SPAN's Washington Journal and she was a regular guest on ABC's Politically Incorrect.

I ate lunch with the leader of the free world.

President Bush came to Chattanooga today to promote his new policies aimed at making health care more affordable. Since we (David Blackburn and I) were not invited to hear him speak we decided to head down to see the Presidential motorcade as it went by the Chattanooga Trade and Convention center. The motorcade was really disappointing. It went by in about 8 seconds and I could not really get any pictures. By the time the motorcade made it to where I was standing Ben and Jason had also shown up and we headed over to Porkers BBQ for lunch.

President Bush as Porkers BBQ

We had been at Porkers about a half hour when our waitress came by and whispered to us that the secret service was there scoping the place out. After hearing that bit of news we started eating as slowly as possible hoping to be able to stick around. Within just a few minutes the Secret Service were walking around, and they began setting up tables. By that point we were done eating and the bill was sitting on our table, so in an effort to stick around Ben and I took one for the team and ordered dessert. We tried to eat as slowly as possible and we tried to make small talk. But by that point everyone left in the restaurant knew he was coming and were just trying to kill time.

President Bush Porkers BBQ

After a little more time had passed he and his entourage came in. There was a really great round of applause as he entered, and you could tell everyone there was genuinely excited about seeing him. It seemed to be a nice warm welcome. I was a bit nervous at first about taking picutures, but at some point one of the Secret Service Guys warned the President that they were getting ready to take pictures, he said okay, and before I new what was happening about 10 or so photographers rushed in and began taking pictures. It was at that point I stood up and tried to get a few shots. The lighting was bad so none of them really turned out, but I am posting them anyway.

President Bush in Chattanooga

They eventually sat down to eat and one of the Secret Service members told us to just sit tight and we could meet the President after he finished eating. He really never got a chance to eat much because every time someone would get up and start walking out the door he would jump up to greet them before they left. He was just a really nice guy.

Karl Rove in Chattanooga

After he was done eating he started to make his rounds. He walked up to our table and shook our hands. All I could think to say was "It is an honor to meet you Mr. President". I think he said something to the three of us at the table but I really can't remember what. At the point he started to walk off I asked if I could get a picture.

He said sure, and pulled Me, David, and Ben in close and Bush took my camera and handed it to his photographer. The photographer took the picture, or thought that he had, and the President gave me a little punch in the stomach and walked off. Remembering what happened when I got a picture with Ford when he visited Chattanooga, I decided to look real quick at the picture, but it had not taken. So I looked at his photographer and told him it had not taken. The photographer got Mr. Bush's attention and he came back and took two quick pictures with the Presidents photographer's camera. The photographer then gave me a card that I have to mail in and they are going to send me a copy of the picture. How cool. I will post it when I get it in. Until then you will have to make due with the lame pictures I took.

After the President walked out Karl Rove started to walked by and I took his picture. Once the picture was taken I stuck out my hand and he shook it and said "Karl Rove". I guess I should have said my name but my reply was "Oh, I know, great to meet you."

At that point there were only about 20 or 30 people left in the restaurant and the President was walking out to get in his limo. We really knew we were fortunate to be sitting just 12 feet from him for more than a half hour, but it was not until I looked out the window and noticed several hundred people standing outside trying to get a peek, until it really hit me. I can't tell you how fortunate we were. What a honor to meet all these people.

Zack Wamp outside of Porkers

Oh yeah, after the President had pulled away we paid our bill and left Porkers. As we got outside I noticed