Republican Roundtable Update/ September 2009

Don’t Forget Your September 8 Meeting & Dinner Reservations!
The next meeting of the Roundtable will take place on Tuesday, September 8, at the St. Andrew Bay Yacht Club in Panama City. A buffet dinner begins at 6:00 p.m., and dinner reservations are necessary so that the Yacht Club can plan for adequate food and staff. Please make your dinner reservations with BCRR Treasurer Melissa Thompson at
melissa@efileamerica.com or 527-7384
Don Arias to Speak at September 8 Meeting
Lt. Col. Don Arias (USAF, Retired) will be the guest speaker at the September 8 meeting of the Roundtable. Don works in the Public Affairs division of the Air Force Special Operations Command at Hurlburt Field, Florida. His brother was murdered in the 9/11/01 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, and since then Don has taken a special interest in counter-terrorism. He is an outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s handling of terrorist detainees at Guantanamo.
Roundtable meetings are held at the St. Andrew Bay Yacht Club on Bunker’s Cove Road in Panama City. A buffet dinner begins at 6:00 p.m. and costs $15 per person, including tax and tip. To make your dinner reservations, please contact Roundtable Treasurer Melissa Thompson at 527-7384 or Melissa@efileamerica.com

A brief business meeting will begin at 6:45 p.m., and the program should begin around 7:00 p.m. We are fortunate that Colonel Arias was able to arrange his schedule to speak to our club. His presentation will be an apt memorial to the innocent victims of nihilist terrorism just eight years ago this week. Don’t miss this special program!
August 11 Free-For-All Discussion
The free-for-all discussion at the August 11 meeting of the Roundtable centered on two hot topics; the Florida U.S. Senate race and socialized health care. Roundtable members and guests revealed themselves to be informed and engaged on both subjects. Many thanks to Barry Borror for moderating the sometimes rowdy conversation!
9-12 March on Washington, DC
Several Bay Countians are joining thousands from across the country for the largest Tea Party yet - the Tax Payers March on Washington September 12, 2009. As with people from across the country, we are going by plane, bus, RV and car. A bus is leaving out of Tallahassee full of Bay Countians and other CD2 folks.
I met several in Jackson County who are going and I have heard that 25 buses are leaving Georgia, and over 200 buses are coming out of Pennsylvania. Florida will be well represented with an Amtrak train going up the East Coast with Tea Party folks. Check out the FOX cable channel for their report on the Tea Party Express going from Sacramento to DC across 16 states and 36 cities to culminate at the march on the 12th.
We will be taking the 1600 anti-socialist-healthcare petition signatures to CD2 Representative Allen Boyd and to Florida Senators Nelson and LeMeaux while there.
Glen Leirer

BCRR Executive Board Adopts Budget
The Roundtable executive board, in regular session on August 6, adopted a budget that established a $1,500 reserve fund. The budget also earmarked $400 for the Roundtable’s project to assist ROTC programs in four Bay County high schools this fall.
Roundtable Members Attend #RPOF Quarterly Meeting
Roundtable president Teresa Eaton and treasurer Melissa Thompson, along with Bay Co. Republican Party Chairman John Salak and Republican State Committeewoman Melissa Hagan, attended the quarterly meeting of the Republican Party of Florida on August 21 and 22. They attended meetings designed to help grassroots Republicans become more politically effective in their communities. Salak and Hagan are former presidents of the Roundtable.

Roundtable T-shirts Still Available
Thanks to BCRR Treasurer Melissa Thompson and BCRR Legislative Watchdog Glen Leirer, the Roundtable T-shirts are still available to members at the cost of $10 per shirt. The shirts feature a large version of the club’s great-looking logo on the back, and a smaller version on the front.

A Message from Your Roundtable President . . . Fellow Republicans, While driving home from the most recent meeting of the Roundtable’s executive board, I realized I don’t say this often enough, and you should know the truth. The officers of your Republican Roundtable are smart, dedicated, efficient and ardent-hearted. They deeply love the Republican Party and its founding conservative principles, and they are determined to do everything within their power and ability to right the course. When Republican Party leaders on state and national levels are steering the armada into a helter-skelter sea of socialism, the decision by the crew of a small Bay County boat - to steer home to the calm, clear waters of conservatism - is not a frivolous decision. As the sage counseled, “Never remain neutral, for the victor will consider you part of his spoils.” Friends, your Republican Roundtable officers will never be anyone’s spoils. May God continue to bless America with individuals who have the courage of their convictions.

Teresa