Another Limp List of Primary Ballot Propositions!

Over the next few weeks, I’d like to work my way through the ballot propositions passed by our State Republican Executive Committee (SREC). I find a few that are pretty good, a few that are the same old rhetorically proposed platform issues that we continually feel we need to reassert ourselves on and then some of the issues that are driving a wedge in us as a party.

I have a few weeks to go over these, so I won’t overwhelm anyone with my take on them all at one time. But I thought it would be good to put them out there. I would like for those of us who will vote on them to have some idea of what it is that the SREC thinks are the important issues for Texas Republicans to weigh in on.

I’ll keep from ripping the SREC on the issues they left off.

1. Texas should replace the property tax system with an appropriate consumption tax equivalent.

2. No government entity should ever construct or fund construction of toll roads without voter
approval.

3. Republicans in the Texas House should select their Speaker nominee by secret ballot in a binding caucus without Democrat influence.

4. Texas should require employers to screen new hires through the free E-Verify system to protect
jobs for legal workers.

5. Texas families should be empowered to choose from public, private, charter, or homeschool options for their children’s education, using tax credits or exemptions without government constraints or intrusion.

6. Texas should protect the privacy and safety of women and children in spaces such as bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers in all Texas Schools and government buildings.

7. I Believe abortion should be abolished in Texas.

8. Vote fraud should be a felony in Texas to help ensure fair elections.

9. Texas demands that congress completely repeal Obamacare.

10. To slow the growth of property taxes, yearly revenue increases should be capped at 4%, with increases in excess of 4% requiring voter approval.

11. Tax dollars should not be used to fund the building of stadiums for professional or semi-professional sports teams.

So there they are. All 11 propositions in all their glory.

Read them, love them, hate them, debate them… WHATEVER…

I will be diving into these in the coming weeks, but with all that’s listed, I can’t help but wonder, where are the propositions for a balanced federal budget, addressing the current issues with the CPS system, the tax-payer funded boondoggle that is wind-generated power…. Geez!!

Those are just three off the top of my head, but I did say I’d keep from ripping the SREC – FOR NOW!!

Anyway, take a look at them and we can get into more details in the days to come.

Good Night!!
Bill

Election Filing Starts TODAY!!

If you are thinking of running for office this year in the GOP Primary or serving as a member for the county Executive Committee then here are some important dates for the upcoming March 2018 Primary Election.

September 12, 2017 – First day to file for office for the positions of Precinct Chair.

November 11, 2017 – First day to file for a place on the 2018 Primary Ballot.

December 11, 2017 at 6:00 pm – Last day to file for a place on the 2018 Primary Ballot.

January 1, 2018 – First day to apply for a ballot by mail.

February 5, 2018 – Last day to register to vote in the 2018 Primary Election.

February 20-March 2, 2018 – Early Voting for the 2018 Primary Election.

February 23, 2018 – Last day to apply for a ballot by mail (received, not postmarked).

March 6, 2018 – Primary Election Day.

Along with the state and federal elections, this years slate of local Milam County Offices up for elections are as follows:

County Judge

Commissioner, Pct. 2

Commissioner, Pct. 4

County Clerk

District Clerk

County Treasurer

Justice of the Peace, Pct. 1

Justice of the Peace, Pct. 2

Justice of the Peace, Pct. 3

Justice of the Peace, Pct. 4

If you have any questions or concerns just contact me at williamwhitmire@yahoo.com

Thanks,

Bill

BREAKING RECORDS!! 2016 Early Voting – Week 2 – Day 3

Here are the early voting totals to date and it’s official…. WE BROKE OUR OWN EARLY VOTING RECORD….

Here are the totals following yesterday’s voting.

For November 2, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 161 (105)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 147 (132)

Buckholts Community Center – 18 (28)

Thorndale VFW – 62 (36)

Ballot by Mail – 12 (13)

Limited – 3 (0)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 403 (314)

Up-To-Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1948 (1722)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1579 (1218)

Buckholts Community Center – 208 (170)

Thorndale VFW – 631 (359)

Ballot by Mail – 491 (295)

Limited – 19 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4895 (3783)

The 2016 to-date total of 4895 has already broke the 2012 total number of 4752 early voters and we still have two days of early voting left. To add to those already high totals, we also have maintained pace at 30% ahead of 2012 numbers, and as of yesterday, over 33% of all the eligible voters in Milam County have already voted.

Someone made the point to me that some of those voters might be voting for the other side and there is truth in that; however, with the rather lethargic voting turnouts we’ve had the last few years, I am excited to see us moving in the right direction.

Keep up the awesome work!!

Two more days of Early Voting left, so get out there a vote. 

As a note, the polls will close early on Friday to allow everyone the opportunity to attend services for Porter Young. Our condolences go out to his family and many friends.

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting – Week 2 Day 2

After the Tuesday’s Early Voting polls closed, we are closer to going over the 2012 mark but still a bit shy; however, what a huge leap in voter turnout we are having overall this year. I got a call today from on the folks at the state party and they have taken notice of the vote here in Milam County. They are very impressed at our voter turnout considering there are no contested races on the local slate.

I told them, “that’s because Milam County Voters pay attention to what’s going.”

Here are the totals following yesterday’s voting.

For November 1, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 133 (147)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 153 (115)

Buckholts Community Center – 23 (20)

Thorndale VFW – 53 (36)

Ballot by Mail – 2 (8)

Limited – 0 (0)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 364 (326)

Up-To-Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1787 (1617)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1432 (1086)

Buckholts Community Center – 190 (142)

Thorndale VFW – 569 (513)

Ballot by Mail – 479 (282)

Limited – 16 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4492 (3469)

Pretty good stuff folks. Well over a thousand more have voted in this year’s election than at the same time in 2012. Hopefully that holds steady.

I have received some more calls about faulty voting machines and such. Let me say once again that we have not had any erroneous votes, nor have we had any machines changing votes. I would offer that we all should check our ballots before we press the “Cast Ballot” button. As always, if you are not sure about something please ask one of the election officials to help you out, they are there to help you.

We have had some reports of voters coming to the polls with less that helpful attitudes and I would just ask each of us to take the time and give the election workers a chance. They are all hard-working folks who are out here to help us vote, not take any abuse.

Early Voting continues through Friday, November 4^th, followed by Election Day this coming Tuesday, November 8^th.

Thanks Again,
Bill

A Sign of This Election!

Sign found recently in Rural Milam County.

For a while it was a chore to get some Trump/Pence signs but we finally did. As a matter of fact, in past years we have only ordered about 200 yard signs for the presidential race and usually had some left over. This year we have had to order them twice and are still running low.

Part of the reason is the demand, but part of it is the blatant vandalism by those who do not agree with the Trump candidacy.

Now as many have been keen to go after the Dems for this sort of shenaniganry, I will not do as my local county Dem counter-part habitually does and resort to some namby-pamby name-calling rant about how the other party is the most terrible thing incarnate of the world.

NOPE!!

I’ll just tell you this is the worst year on record for GOP signs to be vandalized in all sort of manner. I’ve seen people paint on the signs as shown above. But this year they have resorted to drawing some items that would be more appropriate for a sign belonging to a Democrat like Anthony Wiener.

Heck, some of these hooligans had the time to steal a Trump sign, cut it into the shape of Anthony Wiener’s favorite body part, and then put it back where they got it.

Honestly, if it wasn’t so vulgar, the cutting on the signs might be worth leaving since the cutting draws added attention to the signs – But we are better than that.

But we are better than that……AND, even if someone wanted to vandalize a Dem sign…...GOOD LUCK FINDING ONE!!!

Anyway, it’s been a tough year on signage…. Unless you’re a sign maker.

Signing Off,

Bill

2016 Early Voting – Week 2, Day 1

A good start to the second week of Early Voting and as usual, the second week tends to slow down a bit. But regardless of the slowdown, we are still moving ahead and should break our records for Early Voting sometime today or tomorrow.

For October 31, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 176 (146)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 152 (128)

Buckholts Community Center – 18 (15)

Thorndale VFW – 65 (35)

Ballot by Mail – 21 (20)

Limited – 1 (2)

Military – 1 (2)

Total – 434 (348)

Up-To- Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1654 (1470)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1279 (971)

Buckholts Community Center – 167 (122)

Thorndale VFW – 516 (287)

Ballot by Mail – 477 (274)

Limited – 16 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4128 (3143)

Currently, nearly 29% of Milam County Voters have already voted in this year’s election. AND we are still above the 2012 totals by over 30% and on pace to easily break the 5,000-voter mark during Early Voting.

When I go to state function and meetings, one of the primary qualifications for a county in how the state and federal folks look at us is how many of us vote. The higher the voting percentage in a county the more interest those in office take in us.

In an election like this year’s election, this is where we make our mark. Are we always looked at as a small county, or as a county where an overwhelming majority of our population get out and vote to make a difference? This is the most important election in the history of our country and it’s up to us all to get out and vote to make that difference.

Early Voting is open until Friday, November 4^th. Election Day will be Tuesday, November 8^th throughout Milam County. I will list the polling places in the next few days, but remember, you can vote in any of the Milam County Locations…so go out and Vote!!!

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting – 1st Week Totals

As we enter the second week of Early Voting for this year’s General Election, here are the numbers. I am excited about these numbers as it truly shows how serious we are taking this election here in Milam County even without any locally contested races.

First Week Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1478 (1324)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1127 (843)

Buckholts Community Center – 149 (107)

Thorndale VFW – 451 (252)

Ballot by Mail – 456 (254)

Limited - 15 (10)

Military – 18 (14)

Total – 3694 (2795)

As of right now, our voting numbers at staying around the 30% mark higher than in 2012.

After only the 1^st week of this year’s Early Voting, nearly 80% of those that voted early in 2012 have already voted.

Keep up the great work.

Early Voting continues in Milam County through Friday, November 4^th.

Thanks Again,

Bill

2016 Milam County Ballot

Someone emailed me to ask where they could find a sample ballot for the General Election.

I know it was printed in the newspapers and I believe it is online on the www.milamcounty.net site; however, I figured I would put it on this blog as well.

This is the ballot for Precinct 1 voters. The state and federal ballot is the same; however, each precinct has some precinct specific races and none of the local races are contested. If you’d like to see the list of Republicans running for local, state, and federal offices you can go to www.milamgop.org and check there.

Here are the two sheets that comprise the ballots. If you can't read on them you should be able to click on them to enlarge them.

If you have any questions or concerns you can always email us at milamgop@yahoo.com

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting - Day Three

As we enter Day 4 of Early Voting for this year’s General Election, here are the numbers. Once again they are impressive here in Milam County as they are throughout the state and country.

For October 26, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 257 (180)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 191 (154)

Buckholts Community Center – 37 (16)

Thorndale VFW – 68 (49)

Ballot by Mail – 41 (10)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 594 (409)

Two Day Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 763 (663)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 706 (512)

Buckholts Community Center – 89 (53)

Thorndale VFW – 243 (156)

Ballot by Mail – 410 (232)

Limited - 2 (0)

Military – 14 (12)

Total – 2227 (1628)

Those number are exceptional and show just how motivated Milam Country is this year to get out and vote in this HUGE Election.

As of right now, our voting numbers at nearly 37% higher than in 2012.

After only 3 days of this years Early Voting, 47 % of those that voted early in 2012 have already voted.

Keep up the great work and remember, if you can't make it during the week then there will be Early Voting this Saturday, October 29th, from 7 am to 7 pm at the County Clerk's Office in Cameron.

Thanks Again,

Bill

Early Voting - Day Two

Well the second day of early voting has concluded and the number of voters is really setting some new high water marks for the entire country and things are no different right here in Milam County.

Here are some of the stats here in Milam County after two days of Early Voting.

For October 25, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 245 (223)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 243 (177)

Buckholts Community Center – 36 (21)

Thorndale VFW – 91 (41)

Ballot by Mail – 4 (17)

Military – 0 (2)

Total – 621 (481)

Two Day Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 506 (483)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 515 (358)

Buckholts Community Center – 52 (37)

Thorndale VFW – 175 (107)

Ballot by Mail – 369 (222)

Military – 14 (12)

Total – 1633 (1219)

As you can see we are on a tremendous pace to break some Early Voting Records here in Milam County, even without any contested races in the local elections. Currently, Early voting is alread7 33% more than in 2012, that's pretty impressive!!

On the issue of malfunctioning machines, refer to my blog from yesterday where I addressed this issue. In summary, the issue comes when a voter uses the straight-ticket selection. 

If you vote straight-ticket, the machine will need you to select "Cast Ballot" more than once in order to count your vote. In the past it only took selecting "Cast Ballot" once to do so; however, now it will require you to view the summary before actually casting your vote to make sure you actually want to use the straight-ticket selection.

As a rule of thumb, make sure you see the completion screen with the flag on it before you vacate the polling booth. If you don't see that Flag Screen then ask for help, the Election Staff will be more than happy to assist you.

So let's all get out and vote. vote Early or on Elections day but please do go out and vote.

Thanks,
Bill

Early Voting – Day One

As we all know, this year’s Presidential Election is anything but normal.

After looking at opening day totals, I would like to thank everyone for all their support. The first day or early voting saw large numbers of voting throughout the state and Milam County is no different.

Below I have posted the voting totals for yesterday below and the 2012 totals of Milam County Voters.

For October 24, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 261 (260)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 272 (181)

Buckholts Community Center – 16 (16)

Thorndale VFW – 84 (66)

Ballot by Mail – 365 (205)

Military – 14 (10)

Total – 1012 (738)

The total of 1012 voters casting ballots yesterday represents nearly 7 % of the eligible voters in Milam County. Not bad for the first day of voting

The number of voters voting yesterday was a 137% increase from the 2012 election and we have already received 15 more ballots by mail than the total received in 2012.

With these numbers showing up all over the state and country, it would appear 2016 may break all records for voter participation.

Early voting runs through November 4^th and the County Clerk’s office will be open from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm Saturday, October 29th for voting as well. You can vote at any of the locations.

There are still a limited number of Trump signs available, email me for directions on how to get one.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at milmgop@yahoo.com or at 254-482-0354.

Thanks,

Bill

Campaign No-No’s – I Promise this is SHORT!!

Each campaign season we start off with the highest of aspirations as I pray that we have honorable and up-beat elections based on the issues of the office being sought and the qualifications of the individuals running for those office. Ideally the hope would be that a candidate is qualified to handle the office, understands the entirety of the work done by the office, and wants to serve the constituency that elects them – IDEALLY!!

Sadly, there are some folks who run for office based on one issue; be it to run as a stepping stone to another office, a grievance towards the current officeholder, or an ego that feels the need to occupy that office. Inevitably we have one, or maybe two candidates that fit this bill just about each election cycle.

In the last few days I have had some talks with some concerned voters about a couple of issues and I feel the need to speak out and clear up a few things as they are currently known to the best of the knowledge of the Leadership of the Republican Party of Milam County – AND ME!!

I’ll make these quick and Easy.

1.       Currently, all the candidates running for office are in good standing with the Republican Party of Milam County.

2.       Currently, the entire slate of Republican Candidates is in good health and prepared to continue in or assume office following this year’s elections.

3.       AND, Currently, none of the candidates running for office in Milam County is in any trouble legally, and/or civilly.

Like I said, this is to the best of the knowledge of me and the leadership of the Republican Party of Milam County, and we stay pretty well informed.

So if you hear anything to the contrary, hear any GOP candidate making derogatory comments towards their opponent or another elected GOP officeholder, or you have concerns about something a candidate says, then feel free to give me a call, shoot me a text, hit me up on Facebook, or send me an email and I will be happy to discuss this with you.

I am here for all the candidates; however, I have and always will work towards the goals of fairness and civility in the election process here in Milam County.

Thanks,

Bill

williamwhitmire@yahoo.com

254-482-0354

2016 Republican General Primary Ballot Propositions

Below are the Ballot propositions that will appear on the 2016 GOP Primary Ballot on the March 1^st Primary Election. These propositions were proposed by various parties and worked their way through the process to be approved for the ballot by the State Republican Executive Committee (SREC).

Out of the 52 propositions presented, 48 did not make it. It is important to remember that these propositions are not laws, but are propositions the party will use to set policy for future elected officials to use as a guideline while in office.

As always there are some folks who were incredibly upset at some of the propositions that were or were not included; however, the one that definitely generated the most controversy was the following:

 “If the Federal Government continues to disregard the Constitution and the sovereignty of the State of Texas, the State of Texas should reassert its prior status as an independent nation.”

In the end, this proposition only garnered 16 of 62 votes, so in reality it wasn’t very well received by the SREC. What’s your opinion?

Below are the four ballot propositions that will appear on the March 1^st Primary Ballot:

1. Texas should replace the property tax with an alternative other than an income tax, and require voter approval to increase the overall tax burden. YES/NO

2. Texas cities and counties should be required to comply with federal immigration laws or be penalized by loss of state funds. YES/NO

3. Texas should prohibit governmental entities from collecting dues for labor unions through deductions from public employee paychecks. YES/NO

4. Texas and its citizens should strongly assert 10th Amendment Rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution which states “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States Respectively, or to the people.” YES/NO

Well, there are the four issues the SREC felt warranted a place on the ballot. If you have any ideas, propositions, or resolutions you would like to add to the process, then please come to your precinct convention and the County Convention and present your ideas.

The convention is where resolutions and propositions are received and forwarded to the state. IT’s also where delegates are elected to go to Dallas for the State Convention in May. This year’s state convention will elect delegates the national convention in July held in Cleveland, Ohio. Current plans are to hold both of the Precinct and County Conventions on March 19^th at a time and place to be determined.

If you haven’t been to the conventions, then you are truly missing out on one of the most important parts of the election and governing process.

One last note, tonight is the ballot drawing for a place on the March 1^st Primary Ballot. If you are interested to see the process work, then come on by. It will be held at 411 E. First Street in Cameron.

Until Next Time!!

Bill

Updated Filing GOP Filing list for Milam County!

Hello Everyone,

There are still a few people who have spoken with me about filing for office. They have until 6:00 pm, Monday, December 14^th to get with me and sign up. Since last week, Odes Foster of Milano filed to run for County Commissioner, Precinct 3.

For the final day of filing, I will available from 1:00 pm until 6:00 pm at 411 E. First Street in Cameron to accept applications.

To date the following have filed for office on the GOP Ballot.

District Judge

John W. Youngblood (Incumbent)

District Attorney

Bill Torrey (Incumbent)

Sheriff

David E. Greene (Incumbent)

Herbie Vaughan

County Tax Assessor

Sherry Mueck

County Commissioner, Precinct 1

Richard "Opey" Watkins (Incumbent)

County Commissioner, Precinct 3

John L. Fisher (Incumbent)

Odes Foster

Constable, Precinct 1

John Anderle (Incumbent)

Constable, Precinct 2

Charles L. “Charlie” West (Incumbent)

Kenny Schneebeli 

Constable, Precinct 3

Jay Beathard (Incumbent)

I also spoke with current Tax-Assessor Kolette Morgan and she said she will not be seeking reelection to office citing her health concerns for not wanting to go through an election.

I would also like to let you know about the 6^th Annual Reagan Day/Texas Independence Day Dinner set for February 4^th, to be held at the Cameron VFW post. Times to be announced in the coming week. All of the local GOP candidates will be there, as well as many of the state GOP candidates as well. The Republican Women of Milam County will be hosting this event and put on the finest dinner and fund raiser of the year. More information to follow on this. There will be a ticket for each of our Milam County Press outlets.

That’s about it for today. Have a wonderful and safe rest of your week and for those traveling for football games and such, be careful out on the roads.

Thanks,

Bill

Bill Whitmire

Chairman,

Milam GOP

254-482-0354

Filing for office - Who has as of yet!!

Good Morning,

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Here is the list of those to file for offices as of this morning.

District Judge

John W. Youngblood (Incumbent)

 

District Attorney

Bill Torrey (Incumbent)

 

Sheriff

David E. Greene (Incumbent)

 

County Tax Assessor

Sherry Mueck

 

County Commissioner, Precinct 1

Richard "Opey" Watkins

 

County Commissioner, Precinct 3

John L. Fisher

 

Constable, Precinct 1

John Anderle

 

Constable, Precinct 2

Charles L. “Charlie” West

 

Constable, Precinct 3

Jay Beathard

I will update this list from as there are updates. I will also update on the Milam GOP Facebook site as they com in and will post on the Milam GOP Twitter page as they com in.

As always, if you have a question or concern please feel free to call or email me.

Thanks,

Bill