STICK A FORK IN THIS TURKEY; SHE'S DONE

Busby In Full Retreat

Following her statement Thursday night, Francine Busby has been in full retreat/coverup mode. Just to refresh peoples’ memories, here’s the exchange:

Toward the end, a man in the audience asked in Spanish: “I want to help, but I don’t have papers.” It was translated and Busby replied: “Everybody can help, yeah, absolutely, you can all help. You don’t need papers for voting, you don’t need to be a registered voter to help.”

Her opponent, Brian Billbray jumped all over that:

Bilbray said at worst, Busby was encouraging someone to vote illegally. At best, she was encouraging someone who is illegally in the country to work on her campaign. “She’s soliciting illegal aliens to campaign for her and it’s on tape, this isn’t exactly what you call the pinnacle of ethical campaign strategy,” Bilbray said.

She’s now switched from being totally on defense to trying to go on the offensive. Here’s how she’s trying to dig out of the hole:

Busby said that Republicans are now twisting her words. She does not in any way support or advocate that illegal immigrants vote, she said. “I was clarifying the question that was being asked in Spanish and then stated that you do not have to be a registered voter to help the campaign because there were many people who appeared to be to be under 18 in the group who wanted to volunteer,” she said in a statement. “I’m not surprised that the Republican Party is making this last-minute, desperate ploy and it is absolutely false.”

Francine, I’m not surprised that they’re using that against you either. You made a monumental mistake. When candidates make monumental mistakes, especially this close to an election, I’d be shocked if they didn’t hold you to it. As for the garbage that this is a “last-minute, desperate ploy”, give me a break. If anything, you’re the one who should be desparate. You just told people that you weren’t worried with whether people are legal immigrants or not and you weren’t worried whether they helped you. And you said it in a congressional district that’s solidly Repulbican.

This race is essentially over. Anyone expecting Francine Busby do win should contact me immediately so I can bet the ranch against her winning. Stick a fork in her. She’s done.

CALIFORNIA STUDENT SUES SCHOOL FOR PRACTICING MEXITUDE

Put on your seatbelts, folks. It’s time for another bumpy ride on The Mexitude Express.

From a ChristianNewsWire press release:

The public interest firm of Lively, Ackerman & Cowles filed suit on behalf of Jurupa Valley High School student Joshua Denhalter on Thursday afternoon. The First Amendment suit alleges that the public high school has intentionally interfered with his right to speak out on the issue of illegal immigration.

Mr. Denhalter alleges that on March 27, 2006, dozens of high school students, mostly of Mexican-American descent, illegally walked out of school in protest of legislation (HR4437) that was being proposed by the U.S. Congress concerning illegal immigration. He was not one of these students and chose to act lawfully.

Instead of illegally walking out of school and being truant, Denhalter chose to organize a legitimate and lawful counter-protest/assembly during the lunch hour on or about March 30, 2006. The peaceable assembly was to take place across from the school on a public sidewalk (i.e., a traditional public forum).

The peaceable assembly would not have disrupted school activities because Jurupa Valley High School has an “open lunch” period. This means that students are free to come and go during this time. As such, any student could have “walked out” during the lunch to attend the assembly and there would be no disruption or violation of truancy laws.

Denhalter was suspended on March 30th when he refused to stop handing out flyers for his assembly. He was told that it was because he was “advocating the disruption of school activities” — yet the students who actually walked out of class went unpunished.

Furthermore, between March 27 and March 30, 2006, the school allowed MECHA to sponsor an on-campus rally in opposition to HR4437. Denhalter asked for permission to sponsor a similar counter-rally on campus but was flatly denied by the school district’s board.

Finally, just the week before filing of this complaint, on May 25, 2006, the school prohibited Denhalter from wearing a “Save Our State” t-shirt by telling him that he needed to turn the shirt inside out and not ever wear it again. The content of the political speech set forth on the shirt was the sole basis for this censorship and prior restraint of Denhalter’s rights. He seeks a restraining order allowing him to express himself freely as to political matters until the end of the school year (i.e., June 21, 2006).

Are you just as surprised as I’m not? Time after time, people in power — from the president, to our elected representatives, to school administrators — are trampling over the rights and will of the American people.

As loathe as I am to say it, I’m beginning to agree with Jake that it is going to take violence — and God only know how much — to see a breakthrough on this issue. I hope it isn’t so…but, frankly, I feel that hope is all I’ve got left.