CRYSTAL COAST TEA PARTY PATRIOTS
MEETING MINUTES OF
8 JANUARY 2013

Meeting was held at Roland’s Barbecue Restaurant in Beaufort, NC.
Meeting was called to order at 6:00pm by Chairman BOB CAVANAUGH.
Pledge of Allegiance was led by BOB
Invocation by LYN BAKER.
Attendance – 24

BOB gave an update on EDITH WADE’s health progress.  Her last tests indicated that she was tumor free.  She will be going through one more treatment and they will test her again and then wait and see.

BOB said he missed the ROWE and McFADYEN swearing-ins.  He was unable to get away from work but understood from those who did attend that they both were very impressive and the food was outstanding, and well attended.  After his swearing-in at the Court House, CLINT ROWE held his reception at the Flame Restaurant and McFADYEN had his reception at the court house where he was sworn in.  To those who, like BOB, missed them, “You should have been there!!!!!”  We were/are so proud of “Our New Judges”.

KEN LANG reported on both ROWE and McFADYEN’s events, and on SANDERSON’s special Oath of Office Ceremony, swearing- in by Judge Newby, Sunday, January 6 at the  Havelock Tourist and Event Center.  Sen. Sanderson said he had planned to order enough cake to serve maybe a  hundred and fifty, but changed his mind and made it for 200.  As he went to leave the store something told him to turn around and go back and change the order for enough for 400.
There was such a large crowd in attendance that they had to open the whole area (had only opened ½) to take care of the large attendance, so cake for 400 might still have not been enough to serve all who showed up.  A lot of dignitaries (both local and state) spoke at the event and those newly elected spoke kindly and highly of Carteret County and the support they had received from the voters there….(including newly elected NC Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest, who was also complementary of Carteret County and their support he had received)…..  It was very obvious that they appreciated all the support we had given them.  It was a  very special occasion for all who attended.  One of the things that Judge Newby talked to KEN about was going back to placing the party affiliation next to the Judges’ names on the ballot.  This, plus indicating if the candidate was an incumbent, had been removed by the Democrats when they had started to lose power.  The input they had received was, it was definitely wanted put back by the majority.

PEGGY GARNER said she had attended all the events, but wanted to tell about something that had occurred with David McFadyen.  She had been joking with him at his swearing-in about how hot those robes were and he had wholeheartedly agreed as he slightly opened his robe and showed her how his shirt was soaked.  He said not only that but he had on wool pants so he really was hot.  At Sanderson’s Peggy went up and said “Aren’t you glad that you don’t have to wear that hot robe tonight.  He asked her if she recognized that robe.  She asked, No, should I?  He informed her that while he did not have to wear it, the robe was still in attendance.  Judge Newby had gotten an hour or so out of Raleigh when he realized that he had forgotten his robe he needed for the swearing-in.  They made a few calls and finally got up with David, so he had brought his robe for Newby to wear.  That was his robe Newby was wearing for the swearing in.  We all told him he needed to get it autographed by Scooby, Dooby, Newby.  It was definitely a keepsake now.  KEN said he told Newby that we were never going to get David’s head back down to normal size, because Newby had worn his (Dave’s) robe for the event.

BOB asked how many of our political representatives were in attendance.  We listed Greg Lewis, who spoke, Richard Fowler, Richard Hunt, Bob Pruitt….Howard said Bill Smith had planned to attend but got mixed up with the times and by the time he realized his mistake it was too late and did not make it…..

David McFadyen assured us that he would make every attempt in the world to attend some of our meetings.  That he would not forget us and what we had done for him.  We all told him he was going to be too busy to squeeze outside meetings into his schedule.  District Court judges pretty much see it all (involved with all types of cases) and are lucky to even see their families much less go to meetings.

HOWARD said he wanted to let everyone know how great the Craven County Sheriff’s Department treated us when we went to the swearing-ins.  PEGGY was not able to walk up the steps to the second floor and the officers brought us up a handicapped ramp and allowed us to use the elevator and come in through the front of the court room where the judges came in.  We received the royal treatment from them and we truly appreciated it.   KEN said HOWARD even told the Craven County Sheriff that he needed to bring Asa Buck in and show him how you were supposed to treat folks.  When we ran into Asa the next day, HOWARD told him what he had told the Craven County Department.  Asa told him he really was trying to get thrown into jail wasn’t he?  HOWARD said he wasn’t worried.  Asa had already told PEGGY, when she said something to him about locking HOWARD up, that he didn’t want him in his jail.  He created too much disturbance.

LYN BAKER said the whole event in Havelock was very uplifting.  Everyone left feeling good.  Norman Sanderson said with a Republican governor, a super majority in the House and Senate, that North Carolina can lead the nation by showing them how you do things right and you get things done.  Norman gave such an uplifting speech.

HOWARD said they all said they needed us to back them up….come up there (to Raleigh) and let them know that we are behind them all the way, or if not, why.  BOB agreed and said we need to let them know we are still here and watching what is going on.

BOB said since this is our first meeting of the New Year – he would like to wish everyone a “Happy New Year”.  He said he is still in a funk about the election and it is getting worse.  With the shooting in Conn, where 20 kids got shot, the fiscal cliff deal where the American people got shot again, and now the big push for gun control.  He said he was really leery about things going up before the Supreme Court because he feels our chief justice is a closet liberal.  Talk now is Obama doing everything by executive order, bypassing the Congress, and daring people to take him to court for not following the Constitution.  KEN said he was afraid that the gun law legislation was going to be like Obamacare….that everything was already done through closed door sessions before it was brought before the public and we wouldn’t have a chance to change anything.  This commission with Biden and his group is just for show.  Everything has already been decided and it will be shoved down our throats again.

HOWARD said, back to the swearing in ceremonies….he did not see any reports on the liberal news media (papers, radio and TV) about these events.  Only ones who did report was the conservative media.  This is just another example of our liberal press.  If it doesn’t make them look good, forget it/ignore it.

ERIC BROYLES thinks they are using the gun control issue to take our eyes off the debt ceiling. That way they can sneakedly slip that one through before we know what happened.  KEN said this is true.  If you will think about it they usually have three or four other things going on at the same time.  In this case, you have the gun legislation, debt limit debate, immigration policy because Obama has said he is going to push immigration reform, sequestration, Obama’s appointments (Secretary of State, etc) that he knows will create a large outcry.  It is like the old magician’s trick.  You get something out here in one hand, to get everyone’s attention and it takes your eye off the ball and what they are really doing, while they pull off their magic trick without you even realizing what is going on.

Discussion on gun control and what we see going on, locally and nationally….how the facts are being misrepresented, etc.  The media should be required to know the facts prior to reporting.  Laws are already on the books (in most states) that make getting a gun legally a big hassle…paperwork, getting people to vouch for you, time waits, etc.  It is not as simple as the media would have you believe.  How they are drawing WalMart into the discussion, etc…. WalMart does not even sell handguns as far as anyone in the meeting knew.  Discussion on Gun Shows and their requirements.  Laws are set for sale of handguns, but illegal actions occur everyday, so what good will MORE gun laws do if those already effect are not being followed right now.  Look at Chicago….they have some of the strictest gun laws in the nation and still have the highest crime (gun involved) in the nation.

Discussion on the upcoming Republican convention in March.  (Precinct Meetings are in February.  Do not have a set date yet.  If you are interested in running for a precinct office, you need to go, sign up, provide contact information, etc. and vote.  Office candidates are desperately needed, so your interest will be greatly appreciated.  Time involved in holding a precinct office is minimal, so do not let that deter you from getting involved.)  The next step is the county convention which is held at the Leon Mann Senior Center (second or third Saturday in March) and usually lasts about a half day.  This is where the county party officials are elected.  If you are interested in getting even more involved you can go to the  third district convention where we can have an even bigger voice through numbers.  We need to be getting involved and learning what we need to do to strengthen the party.  We only have about 60 days before the convention, so we need to prepare…ask questions and prepare.  BOB said the Onslow group was getting organized and working closely with the Republican party in strengthening their group.  Right now they are trying to find a strong leader (chairman) to guide them as well as more precinct chairmen.

BOB announced for those who had not heard….KEN LANG is now the President of the Republican Club in Carteret County.  (Applause)  Next meeting will be held this Thursday at Rib Eyes in Cape Carteret.  All Republicans are invited.  LYN asked what went on at these meetings.   FRED said they meet, eat, go home and meet again next month.  KEN said it is not quite that bad.  Richard Hunt had been chairman the last two years and he usually tried to have a speaker at the meetings (a candidate if there was an election coming up) similar to what we had done with the TEA Party meetings, with a Q&A after.  Then they would have a short business meeting, depending on what has to be done and a 50/50 that BOB handles for income.  What he hopes to do this year in addition to that is to have some better fund raisers.  As BOB learned from running for Congress and what he has learned from this last election cycle, you do not do anything in politics without money.  Example was Judge Newby who ran out of money 4 to 6 weeks early and needed signs.  Everyone was requesting them but they were not available do to money shortage.  KEN had requested that the Carteret County Republican Party purchase some signs, but he was soundly rejected for a lot of reasons that he does not understand.  The Party refused to get involved.  A week or two after that a fellow from Guilford County (Lee Haywood) called him and told him they were going to buy a bunch of Newby signs and wanted to know if we wanted to contribute.  The TEA Party did not have any money in our Treasury to speak of, so he called the Republican Men’s executive members and asked them to donate $500.00 and they agreed.  GOP Chairman Greg found out about it and offered to help, so they worked out a deal where the Party put in $250 and the Men’s Club put in $250.  KEN’s goal is to get the Men’s Club more active in conducting fund raising activities.  That is where the power is for any political organization lies.  Since it is so hard to get the Republican Party to let loose some of its funds, he is hoping the Republican Men’s Club can increase their treasury and have the funds to handle some of these what he considers important use of funds.  KEN plans to continue having speakers.  This week they have a fellow that works for the state who will be talking on fiscal policy, taxes and stuff like that.  KEN has also contacted NC Civatas to come down and talk to them about tax reform, because they have done a big study on how NC should reform its tax policy.  He has, in February, Americans for Prosperity, to talk about their legislative agenda for NC.  Right now he is focusing on NC not the national type stuff.  The meeting starts at 7:00, but people usually start arriving about 5:30ish to order dinner and socialize.  Question was raised about how much it costs to join the group.  KEN said $25.00 right now and you do have to be a registered Republican.  He plans to have some folks look at their bylaws and make some suggestions….ie right now it is limited to men only who are allowed to join (women can come as guests).  Another suggestion is associate memberships for the spouses of the members.  There is a Women’s Club in Carteret County also.  The women’s group meets during the day time and there are a lot of professional women who would come to meetings but work so are unable to attend during the day.  They also allow non-members to attend a couple of meetings as guests to determine if they are interested in joining.

Discussion on the voting during the last election…some not voting for either candidate…some unhappy with party candidate and how he was selected by the establishment not the average voter, how the base was treated, the political divide, etc.  What needs to be done to ensure this does not happen again and what can we do about it?  We need to give the people a clear choice.
The Republican Party has a long way to go to get back on track.  Somehow we are going to have to change our way of thinking.  One of our biggest hurdles is the liberal news media and none of us know exactly what to do about them.  Obama seems to be made of Teflon and nothing or no one seems to be willing to go against whatever the “One” wants.  Talk radio and Fox are about the only conservative outlets we have and liberals do not watch or listen to them, so how can you get our message out.  ERIC said the Democrats are experts at “divide and conquer” and are making great use of it.  We need to learn how to bounce it back at them instead of letting it overcome us.  They are experts also at utilizing the ignorance of the people to their benefit.
VERNON THOMPSON said we, the conservatives, are not going to take over and control as long as we continue to vote for the moderate candidates and not stick to our core values of conservatism.  The moderates will continue to rule and tell us what we can and can not do because we are always going to be in the minority.  Also discussed moving our primary up to an
earlier date so that our votes would count more – both pro and con….(primaries closer together, not all on one day, but not drug out so long a period of time either – months).

KEN said it was a little late but he wanted to let us know about a rally in Raleigh tomorrow called ‘Honor Your Oath” Rally.  He thinks it will be well attended especially by folks in Wake, Gilford, Moore, all up in that part of the state.  It is from noon to 4:00.  They plan to have a number of speakers there.  He had talked to Linda Sanderson about it and either she and/or Norman plan to be there for it.  It is going to be at the Halifax Mall if you plan to be up that way tomorrow you might want to check it out and see what it going on.

BOB said some of you all may have seen an email floating around about a TEA Party Convention  in South Carolina this weekend.  South Carolina is one of the few states where the TEA Party has taken over the GOP.  Basically the agenda will pertain as to how the TEA Party did it.  The convention is open to all TEA Party folks. KEN said he would send the announcement out to the membership for anyone who would like to go.

HOWARD gave an update on PEGGY’s health situation….her heart catherization and results and the scheduling of a check on a leaking heart valve problem tomorrow.  Has to be there at 7:00 with the procedure scheduled at 9:00.  BOB said he was glad she was getting all this done before Obamacare came into effect.

Short discussion on pig cooking.  Will discuss further next meeting.  VERNE told us he had a small cooker and he had cooked an approximately 50 lb pig and if we would like to have a little get together, he would be glad to cook a pig for it.  Not expert enough to cook for the Newport Pig Cookin’.

Welcomed new attendee – Jimmie Spruill.  He gave us a brief on who he was, why he was in attendance tonight, and what he believed in….(maybe what we need is a good old depression to get this country back where we should be).

Voted to go back to the Golden Corral when it reopens if they will accept us.  Ruth volunteered to keep in contact with the personnel in charge there.

Meeting adjourned at 7:35.
Minutes submitted by Secretary PEGGY GARNER