Governor Schwarzenegger Acknowledges the Power of Prayer

Fresno Mayor, Alan Autry prays for the upcoming special election

Since his election I like many others, have been praying for a godly leaders to speak into the life of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. I prayed that it would be someone who is not awed by the Governor’s star power and will speak honestly and openly to him about his faith. Well folks, I believe that our prayers have been answered…in the form of Fresno Mayor Alan Autry.

Mayor Autry was the keynote speaker and the Governor’s Annual Prayer Breakfast. He shared his heartfelt testimony. And in doing so, he demonstrated a genuineness that is rare in today’s political environment. But was most interesting was the testimony given by Governor Schwarzenegger in his follow up remarks.
As reported in the Sacramento Bee:

He told the crowd about kneeling on the floor of a City Hall office in Fresno to pray with Mayor Alan Autry in 2002, when Schwarzenegger was pushing his initiative for after-school programs.

"He says, 'Let's kneel down and let's ask the Lord to help us,' " Schwarzenegger recalled. "So I slowly kneeled down, and now he started praying, started praying for after-school programs, started praying for our children.

"I started praying, 'I hope no one comes through this door right now. Please, God, don't make someone come through this door right now and see us two kneeling here on the floor, on this hardwood floor.'

While comical, his comments also demonstrated an acknowledgement of the power of prayer. The Governor went on to share that Mayor Autry also prayed for him as he entered the 2003 recall election and that he believed that much of the success he had in both elections was a result of those prayers. He even closed by asking the Mayor to pray for the upcoming special election. Right there in front of everyone at the breakfast!

As I have said before, Governor Schwarzenegger may not be the Christian Conservative many of us wished he was. But he is a man with a good heart who appears to be headed in the right direction. And with a man like Alan Autry in his life, I feel confident that he will receive godly counsel. Let’s pray that this continues to be the case.

...Keep and eye on Mayor Alan Autry! I think we can expect big things from him!

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com

Was Howard Dean Right?

It is not often that find myself agreeing with DNC Chairman Howard Dean. But I have to admit, that his characterization of the GOP as a "white Christian party” is not easily dismissed.

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Convicted Democrat Politician Still Profits From His Crime

Never let it be said that crime doesn’t pay. It surely paid for one crooked politician. You Might remember Tom D’Alessio. He was one of New Jersey’s most powerful Democrat politicians until he was caught in an extortion, bribery and embezzling scandal. Well it looks like he’s up to his old tricks.

The New Jersey Star Ledger Reports:

Two months after he was released from federal prison after serving time for political corruption charges in 1998, the former Essex County Executive set up a charitable foundation.

D'Alessio called it the Evergreen Fund and has bankrolled it with more than $1.8 million of the nearly $2 million that was left in his campaign fund.

Last year, the foundation reported it gave out $37,750 in contributions of $500 or so to dozens of organizations like the March of Dimes, the United Way and the Boy Scouts. It also paid D'Alessio an $81,708 salary as executive director, leased a $45,665 Mercedes-Benz for him and purchased a $432,000 luxury condominium on Marco Island along Florida's Gulf Coast.

And it was all perfectly legal.

But this is nothing new for D'Alessio.

D'Alessio, once among the state's most powerful Democrats, was indicted in 1992 on charges of siphoning funds from his campaign accounts to pay for a trip to Aruba and using money raised from supporters for personal investments and real estate ventures. A jury two years later found him innocent on those counts, but convicted him of extortion, bribery and money laundering in accepting a $59,000 bribe from a Florida garbage-hauling company. He was sentenced to a 46-month federal prison term.

And what do you think the IRS is going to do about it? According to Trent Stamp, executive director of Charity Navigator in Mahwah, which evaluates philanthropic groups they probably won’t do a thing.

"They gave tax-exempt status to a convicted felon in the first place," he said. "Why do you think they will come back and scrutinize the operations of that organization now?"

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com

California Assisted Suicide Bill is Brought Back to Life

That’s Right! Thanks to the legislature’s “gut and amend” process physician assisted suicide is alive and well. All of the language of AB 654 (Berg) , which failed to get enough votes to pass the Assembly, has been put into AB 651 (Levine) which did pass the Assembly and is currently in the Senate.

AB 651 As introduced, dealt with disease management, but the amended version of AB 651 is the reincarnated version of the California Compassionate Choices Act. My guess is that the author, Assemblyman Levine believes that it will have an easier time passing in the Senate.

The good news is that this bill will have to come back to the Assembly again for passage. However, passage in the Senate may be enough to convince some Assembly Democrat holdouts to get on board.

In an interesting twist, a bill that would have ended the gut and amend process AB 92 authored by Assemblyman Tim Leslie (R-Tahoe) was put to death in it’s first committee hearing.

Apparently, it’s ok to kill people, but it’s not ok to kill bills that kill people.

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com

Was Ice Cream Truck Bill Designed to Aide in War on Terror?

My buddy Jedd forwarded the following to me from The Roundup:

Apology time? Way back in March, Gov. Schwarzenegger derided the Legislature for not engaging on serious issues. "But it does look like the legislators, facing the deadline for filing legislation, did find time to introduce bills on cosmetic surgery for dogs, the name of our baseball team in Anaheim and where ice cream trucks can park," the governor said. The latter referred to AB 1148 by Lodi Assemblyman Alan Nakanishi, which would make it a crime for ice cream trucks to double park.

The bill never even got a hearing, but now that a Lodi ice cream truck driver has been arrested with suspected ties to al-Qaida, it does beg the question: Did Nakanishi know something we didn't? Maybe AB 1148 really is a matter of vital national security!

We smell a gut and amend coming...


What I want to know is: What did Nakanishi know and when did he know it?

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com

City Should Consider Patriot Act Resolution “Thank You for Ignoring Our last Patriot Act Resolution!”

I know…Wishful thinking!

But in light of the recent discovery of a terrorist sleeper cell in the Sacramento suburb of Lodi, I hope that this incident has woken up all those folks who crowded the Sacramento City Council chambers a few years ago to decry the Patriot Act.

On November 14, 2003 the Sacramento Bee reported:

With the Sacramento City Council chambers packed to capacity by opponents of the USA Patriot Act, council members voted 8-1 Thursday to approve a resolution against the controversial anti-terrorism law.

The vote came after two hours of comment, mostly from groups opposed to the Patriot Act, and makes Sacramento the 209th community nationwide to approve a resolution against the law, which passed in the weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

I was there. The discussion was passionate and civil. However, there was very little discussion of the policing powers granted under the Patriot Act.

It was not mentioned that most of the powers granted in the act were already available to law enforcement to investigate organized crime. This legislation only expanded their ability to use them in investigation of terrorism. There was also little discussion of the fact that of 21,000 reported potential abuses of these powers, not one could be substantiated by the bipartisan congressional panel assigned to investigate them.

Robbie Waters was the only member of the council to speak against the resolution, saying that he had been given no evidence to show that the act has been used improperly or has infringed on anyone's civil liberties.

"In two years, there's not been a single court case holding where the act has been abused," Waters said

And for those of you who are unaware, the Patriot Act expires at the end of this year and must be renewed. I hope that those who opposed it’s passage a few years ago will keep in mind what could have happened here in Sacramento, had it not been for the Patriot Act.

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com

Was Howard Dean Right?

It is not often that find myself agreeing with DNC Chairman Howard Dean. But I have to admit, that his characterization of the GOP as a "white Christian party” is not easily dismissed.

First of all, is the Republican Party White? Any objective onlooker would have to agree that the ethnic diversity of our party does not reflect the diversity of America. All too often, as I attend party events, I am one of few, if not the only Black in the room. There are generally a few more Latinos and Asians. But for the most part, the Republican Party is pretty white. But that does not mean that our party is not diverse.

We have diversity of ideas. In the Republican Party you can have divergent viewpoints on some issues and still be in leadership. You can be pro-life or pro-choice (President Bush vs. California Governor Schwarzenegger). You can be for or against affirmative action (Colin Powell vs. Ward Connerly). You can stand for traditional marriage or support giving rights to same-sex unions (Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich, Jr. vs. Vermont Governor Jodi Rell). But in the Democrat party unless you support abortion on demand, racial preferences, same-sex marriage and a whole host of other liberal policy initiatives; you will be silenced. Democrats only believe in the image of diversity, Republicans believe in diversity of ideas.

Secondly, is the Republican Party Christian? The GOP was founded on the same principles as our nation; that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. These principles find their roots in Christian faith and biblical scripture.

John Quincy Adams once stated, “Is it not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer's mission upon earth? That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity?”

So if being Christian means that we support the Christian Principles upon which our nation was founded, then Yes. We are Christian. But the real question to Mr. Dean and other Democrats is “Why aren’t you?”

As George Washington said in his farewell address “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great Pillars…”

So in the final analysis, Dean’s generalization of the GOP may be correct in image, but not in substance. We are a party of principle first and image second. And unlike their Democrat counterparts, Republican leaders are not interested in making meaningless political statements to appease a few special interest groups. They seek to make a meaningful difference in the lives of all Americans.

Craig DeLuz

Visit The Home of Uncommon Sense…
www.craigdeluz.com