Kokesh's 700 mile NW Campaign Swing

[ronpaulhawaii]

Ok, we are on the road, (where I am most at home :D). It has taken a couple days to get settled. Now, I'll try to get a thread going to keep you guys updated on our progress. We started in Santa Fe where Adam and the team canvassed the Farmers Market. While there we registered our first new republican of the journey :) A good beginning. We drove north and stopped in 2 small towns, (including the incumbents small hometown) where we set up the RV, talked to a few folk, signed up some volunteers, got a spontaneous donation, and lots of smiles... (The ukulele might help for the drive bys - hehe) We stayed overnight in Espanola where it was pretty quiet.

Yesterday we drove north to the small town of Abiquiu, where we had a meeting set up with a General Store owner. Bob was a democrat but openminded and made some phone calls to his friends to come down and meet Adam. We stayed a couple hours and Adam met with 15 to 20 people while I stayed outside and manned the rig.

http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs056.snc3/14332_200750217952_663957952_3898902_2184614_n.jpg

By the time we had left we had signed up 5 former Dems as new Republicans. We are finding out that most people here are registered dem but vote republican due to machine politics...

Continuing north we drove to the town we are in "Chama", set up roadside, where Adam started redoing the simple window dressing until a GOP exec came down to talk and give us contacts and a local newspaper owner came down to interview us, etc.

It is morning now and Adam is out talking to some Elk hunters who are dressing their take. About to head into Chama proper and canvass some businesses, then off to Dulce...

I'm going to try to get Adam to record a short vid to recap the journey so far. Things are going well for this, our first "shakedown cruise" As alaways we need to ask for donations, in this case for fuel/etc. costs, so I've set up a chip-in for $500. Fuel should be about half that, but every penny will be put to good use. Help if you can, whether by donating, or posting the chip-in around

http://michael4rpr.chipin.com/kokesh-rv-fuel-fund

Oh, and Adam says Aloha :)

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs056.snc3/14332_200750212952_663957952_3898901_2662053_n.jpg

PS, donations of $20.10 to the chip-in will also enter you in the raffle below ;)

[ForLiberty-RonPaul]

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs056.snc3/14332_200750212952_663957952_3898901_2662053_n.jpg

lol :D

[Kevin_Kennedy]

That's great! I can't think of too many candidates that would have the dedication to go around their district in an RV. Sounds like a good time though!

[ronpaulhawaii]

Will try to write a post about the last day or so. Very busy... Adam did a local radio interview this
am that covered a large area and nailed questions on health care and veterans issues. He recorded it on his I-Phone and we'll try to get it up later. For now here is a vid from yesterday when we stopped at the Jicarilla Apache Nation government building to introduce ourselves to the officials.

YouTube - Kokesh at the Jicarilla Apache Nation (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtBMH_j3ALU)

http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs076.snc3/14332_201198052952_663957952_3903135_7207950_n.jpg

[ronpaulhawaii]

Busy busy...

http://kokeshforcongress.com/node/410

by Adam Kokesh



Today is officially day 3 of the Kokesh for Congress RV Trip Shake Down Cruise and I am reminded at every turn why New Mexico is called the “Land of Enchantment.” On Saturday we kicked off the tour in Santa Fe. We started at the Farmer's Market before catching Nathaniel Mahlberg performing at the Collected Works Bookstore. The Santa Fe community is distinctly “left leaning” but because of the dissatisfaction with the Democratic party, almost every one we spoke to there was willing to hear our message and most were supportive.

We were on the road by one-thirty, since we had three more stops that day. Our first was the Tesuque Village Market where we got our first spontaneous donation, and Baloo got some treats from a local, who was supportive of the campaign too! He was a transplant, and after making some insightful analogies about Mayor Daley, he said, “I'm from Chicago, so I know what you're up against here in New Mexico!” A lot of people in the district understand what it means for us to be challenging “the machine” and are deeply appreciative of what we've taken on.

In Pojoaque we parked the RV in front of the True Value and met with supporters while enjoying a great place for signage visibility right on the side of the busy 84/285/503/502 interchange. When it got dark, it was on to Espanola for dinner at JoAnn's Ranch O Casados Restaurant and an early bed time for a Saturday at the end of a long day of work.

The next morning we headed up to Los Trujillo's in Abiquiu for a meeting with members of the local community. We heard some incredible stories about the local corruption in the Democratic party and how the county officials have been destroying the economy and exacerbating poverty by making Rio Arriba County one of the most difficult places to do business. There were a total of 6 Democrats at the meeting, and by the end of it, five of them were registered Republican!

Then we headed further north to Chama and set up our table near the Lowe's Supermarket where we met with some local vendors, a couple veterans, and Bruce Harshman of the Chama Courier. Most of the Democrats we've met with thus far have been very resentful of their party and those that were supportive but did not want to change their registration cited “business reasons” for maintaining their party affiliation, even though they often vote for Republican candidates. It seems Republicans have a hard time getting permits around here and don't do so well with elected Democratic officials.

This morning, as we were heading off to breakfast at Fina's Diner, I got a chance to speak with four hunters who were cutting up a bull elk on the back of their truck. They were from Farmington and had heard about our “Out Shoot a Marine” event to celebrate the Marine Corps birthday. We took a few hours to meet with local business owners, then it was on to the Jicarilla Apache Nation. Just before crossing onto the rez, we had lunch at the Morning Star Cafe with Darell Vigil, who gave us some great insight about native issues and the Jicarilla economy. We introduced ourselves to tribal officials who were very enthusiastic about the message and seeing a young candidate getting involved in politics. We talked about tribal sovereignty, religious freedom, and leveling the economic playing field by ending corporatism and getting back to sound money . . . and it really resonated with them!

From my travels around the district so far, I've already learned a lot about how people feel about national politics. It seems that the grassroots base of both parties are so grossly misrepresented by their leadership that they have more in common with each other than anyone who represents us in Washington. When I tell people that I'm running to not only challenge the Democratic machine here in New Mexico, but also to redefine what it means to be a Republican to reflect the grassroots, it really resonates across the board. When you have a message that speaks to that, it's guaranteed to bring people from across the spectrum together around a campaign.

[ronpaulhawaii]

We've been way too busy to do much updating. That is a good thing...

We finally made it to our GOP opponents stronghold where we were pleasently suprised to find many people had already heard of us, had signed our petition, etc.. The local volunteers are busy :) I posted about the "Outshoot a Marine" contest in the other thread. No-one outshot Adam... We parked in front of a busy gun shop and signed up a few new voters; got a bunch of signatures on our nominating petition and generally just made a good impression. The next day we did media outreach in the morning, scored another AM interview that we recorded this morning. In the afternoon we visited businesses in Aztec, with two very active local volunteers, it went very well. Again more new voters and lots of sigs on the petitions.

We ended the day in front of an Auction House on a busy highway owned by supporters where we parked our mobile billboard and talked to some key people from the area.

This morning we did the radio thing. Then headed out towards Shiprock, stopping at roadside businesses where we secured a sign drop at very high traffic location. Looking forward to be able to afford 4X8 signs (hint hint).

We had lunch in Shiprock at the largest Chapter House in the Navajo Nation. We met with soem officials who gave us their blessing to canvass the area. They also booked Adam to speak at the Sunday meeting. Sharing Mutton Stew with Navajo elders is a memory I'll treasure... Finally we left Shiprock and headed deep into the reservation, stopping at a few stores and another Chapter House, which again booked Adam to speak. Now we are at the house of a Medicine Man who is introducing us around, more to come... here are some pics

Business visiting
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs056.snc3/14332_203819742952_663957952_3924053_1051939_n.jpg

MTK Auctioneers
http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs076.snc3/14332_203819747952_663957952_3924054_6684972_n.jpg

MTK 2
http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs076.snc3/14332_203819752952_663957952_3924055_6988528_n.jpg

Nelson Cambridge, our Navajo guide
http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs061.snc3/12867_574786186844_13303243_34110100_1143045_n.jpg

In front of the Gun Shop in Farmington
http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs041.snc3/12867_574551961234_13303243_34102893_4517302_n.jpg

And Baloo keeps us busy
http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs061.snc3/12867_574629710424_13303243_34105633_4768952_n.jpg

Still time to enter the Rifle Raffle. Needless to say we will need your donations to win this seat. Click the pic in my sig and Be a Part of It

[torchbearer]

thanks for the update.

[AdamT]

Lovin' this thread.



http://www.ronpaulforums.com/image.php?u=1425&type=sigpic&dateline=1257534556

Just entered.

[Eric21ND]

Awesome update! Nothing beats pounding the pavement and meeting the locals face to face. Keep up the good work, btw do you have a map of the district Adam is campaigning in?

Are you guys really having a rifle raffle?? :)

[DirtMcGirt]

Awesome... you guys are doing it the right way!!!
I dream of the day when our Liberty candidates get together for a group victory picture...

[ronpaulhawaii]

Lovin' this thread.



Just entered.

:)


Awesome update! Nothing beats pounding the pavement and meeting the locals face to face. Keep up the good work, btw do you have a map of the district Adam is campaigning in?

Are you guys really having a rifle raffle?? :)

Glad you guys are enjoying it. Not as easy to do updates as on the bike rides, where I was by myself and not sharing my connection/computer. We stayed last night on Nelson's property where a group came down to practice for an upcoming healing ceremony. Got video, will upload when possible...

And yes, we are really having a rifle raffle. We had one locally and the national one is a "sister" raffle. Due to laws we are only able to "award" a cash equivalent for a Remington 770. Kinda better that way as the winner may want something else...

Just click the pic and donate $20.10 to enter :D

[ronpaulhawaii]

Growing the GOP "Liberty Base"

YouTube - Voter Registration Maildrop (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3FC8zpABX4)

Help us with gas money for this very large district, and maybe win our raffle, by donating $20.10 to the campaign. http://www.kokeshforcongress.com/

Be a part of it :)

[kaleidoscope eyes]

Love these updates, keep 'em coming! :)

[ronpaulhawaii]

A great day so far. We left Nelson's this AM to go visit some businesses and a couple flea markets...

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs049.snc3/13637_204857587952_663957952_3932810_2884147_n.jpg

Ended up running across a Veterans Parade in a small Navajo Nation town

http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs049.snc3/13637_204857602952_663957952_3932812_1523376_n.jpg

where we met both a the local President and a Nation delegate who is President of three different chapters (yes, he is that popular)

I helped them rig some flags onto one of the cars while Adam made the rounds. Then they invited us to the Annual Vets Dinner, where they introduced Adam to the crowd of about 100 and had him speak for a bit. They also invited us to speak to the full chapter meeting tomorrow. While at the banquet, Adam sat with Marines from 3 wars and they signed his petition and volunteer list

http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs069.snc3/13637_204857582952_663957952_3932809_4619859_n.jpg

I have a video of his speech, but wont be able to upload and not sure of the quality yet. It was well received and people came up afterward to talk and ask questions. By the time we left most everyone was wearing buttons and giving us thumbs up.

Quite a day...

Onward and forward

:D

[ForLiberty-RonPaul]

this is the best thread on RPFs at the moment! I hope you guys are taking plenty of video, me wants to seeeee :D

*everyone looks cold btw

[torchbearer]

Good job Adam!

[dr. hfn]

freaking awesome thread! Don't bother with this thread though if you don't have the time...

[ronpaulhawaii]

Back at homebase on the rez. Drove through a thick snowstorm... Earlier, we were wondering how we were going to reach out to a remote community. Found a bingo night, stopped in; after introducing ourselves to the organizers they suggested we donate a shirt for a prize, then introduced Adam to speak to the crowd... haha

And here is a pic from outside the front door

http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs110.snc3/15762_574826246564_13303243_34111056_980629_n.jpg

[mamakar]

Lov'in it

[Cowlesy]

Awesome updates --- great work!

[ForLiberty-RonPaul]

hey! where u guys at?! :D

[ronpaulhawaii]

hey! where u guys at?! :D

:) - just got back to Santa Fe. :cool:

The last few days were very busy :D Will be catching up in general tomorrow tomorrow...

Very valuable experiance, very successful trip. Looking forward to making them even better...

:)

Thanks for asking

[ronpaulhawaii]

http://kokeshforcongress.com/posts/showing-respect-true-native-sovereignty


SHOWING RESPECT FOR TRUE NATIVE SOVEREIGNTY

BY ADAM KOKESH, ON NOV 17, 2009
While I was attending the Native American Prep School, I learned a lot about the importance of tribal sovereignty. There are many ongoing challenges for native nations relating to the federal government. This is a significant issue that I care deeply about. It is deeply offensive for me to see the Constitution to which I swore an oath disregarded as it pertains to individual and states' rights. However, to see the independence of native lands -- that our government actually refers to as sovereign -- so blatantly disrespected by current policy troubles me in a way that no other crime of our federal government does.

Here in the Navajo Nation, when the tribal government passes certain laws, they must be approved by the Secretary of the Interior through the Bureau of Indian Affairs. When a medicine man picks up an eagle feather to use in religious rituals, he must first have a piece of paper from the government giving him permission to possess it. When Navajos drive off the reservation, they are subject to racial profiling. When uranium mining companies contaminate the environment here and send cancer rates sky-rocketing, victims have little recourse.

Traveling around the Navajo Nation these past few days has been an enlightening and rewarding experience. When I started looking at this race, one of the things that stood out to me in the demographics analysis was the relatively low participation of the native populations in the election of 2008. From speaking to people here who were involved in the Obama campaign, the Democratic Party establishment has taken the native vote for granted and never bothered to reach out. I was determined to change that.

Our first stop was the Shiprock Chapter House where we met up with Nelson Cambridge, our most enthusiastic volunteer on the rez.

http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/7308/nelsoncambridge.jpg

When I first met him several weeks ago at his house in Two Gray Hills, I was impressed by his political acumen. His collection of political campaign buttons going back to the 70's filled an entire suitcase and he had impressive stories to match. Not only has he been getting the youth here engaged with the campaign, but he's been invaluable in introducing us to important local leaders. After enjoying some mutton stew and fry bread, he introduced us to Lula Jackson, the Chapter Secretary, and we made arrangements for a chance to address their meeting on Sunday.

On Saturday, Nelson joined us in the RV and we drove around to different Chapter Houses to distribute campaign literature and reach out to the leadership. In Sheepspring, we decided to check out the flea market, and got there just in time to catch the annual Veterans Remembrance Parade.

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/706/navajovets.jpg

After meeting several other Marine vets, we were invited to participate in the celebration at the Chapter House afterwards, and I was invited to speak as a special guest. I ended up sitting next to Marines from three generations who had served on four continents!

That evening it was on to the Crownpoint Chapter House for bingo night. We arrived early and after speaking to several chapter members, one of the old ladies, in prime form for Navajo humor, told me, “I'll vote for you, but only if you brought a prize for bingo!” I ran out to the RV in the driving snow, grabbed a volunteer t-shirt, and ran back in. I introduced myself to the organizer and asked her if I could donate a prize and explain it to the crowd. She graciously introduced me and I got another chance to address a welcoming crowd and spread the message, which was well-received. We had a long drive back to Two Gray Hills that night, and it was a harrowing one through a serious snowstorm with some crazy crosswinds that made it difficult to keep the Kokesh for Congress RV on the road.

The Shiprock Chapter House meeting Sunday morning was a lot of fun. This was local democracy in action and a truly vibrant community event. While the official notes are taken in english, most of the meeting is conducted in Navajo. After my remarks, Marine Corps vet Tommie Yazzie, who was taking detailed notes, jumped up and did a complete translation. We had put out a big pile of buttons, stickers, and fliers on the table in the middle of the room and by the time I was dragged away by our very capable team, they were all dispersed and it seemed like everyone was wearing a campaign button! We hustled the RV down to the Newcomb Chapter meeting where I got to have my picture taken with Miss Newcomb and met some great new volunteers.

Our time on the rez has been a lot of fun, and everyone on the team has new friends we look forward to seeing again. People here are sick of being taken for granted, and are eager to be involved in the political process. There is a great culture of connection between generations here, and everyone feels a responsibility to make things better for their children. Everyone can see the federal government taking on unprecedented powers, and they know that they are being taken from we the people. It has been deeply satisfying to provide folks with an opportunity to stand up for their rights and demand that power be returned to their communities

[Cowlesy]

http://kokeshforcongress.com/posts/showing-respect-true-native-sovereignty

Excellent stuff! Here is to hoping all the folks you met turn out and vote!

[ronpaulhawaii]

Excellent stuff! Here is to hoping all the folks you met turn out and vote!

We expect to be make a strong GOTV for the elections, building the infrastructure now.

Here is the radio interview from Chama mentioned earlier. I just got, converted, and clipped the audio last night so link is a "sendspace" download

http://www.sendspace.com/file/r44pxs

[Cowlesy]

//

[ronpaulhawaii]

At the largest Chapter House in the Navajo Nation

http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs031.snc3/11840_213419992952_663957952_4003230_2549848_n.jpg

"I swore an oath..."

http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs031.snc3/11840_213420012952_663957952_4003231_2109440_n.jpg

[ForLiberty-RonPaul]

Dear Nathan,

Your contribution of $15.00 was received. Thank you for your support!

Sincerely,
Kokesh for Congress Staff

Confirmation code:
T0DB578QBLYZ


sorry it ain't much. Will be living off of store brand bread and peanut butter this month.....just like last month. keep it up!

[Aratus]

RPH! cool!

[Aratus]

Awesome updates --- great work!

ditto! an' then some!