What do Democrats Think about NASCAR Fans

Found this at the Arkansas Republican Assemblies. It is regarding Democratic aides in Congress asking staffers to get immunized before attending a race in S.C. This is a must watch for anyone who is a NASCAR fan and thinks that Democrats care about them.

Growing up in Flint, I have seen pickups that display both UAW stickers and NASCAR stickers, side by side. Before anyone thinks the Union/Democrat coalition cares about you, realize that they think you are diseased.

Which Southerner Would Michiganders Like Better?

Originally posted on 8/30/07. Today is the last day to register online for the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference. If you are sa Mike Huckabee supporter and have not registered, please register. I get to make some coffee and get back to my blouse. I will be back to my blog soon.

I was thinking about Mike Huckabee coming to the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference and the fact that he will be in the great state of Michigan, along with the recent support from Machinist and Aeronautics Workers. Michigan, especially in Flint (where I grew up), Lansing and Detroit is Union Country.

During one of the earlier blogger's conference calls I asked Gov. Huckabee about his slogan "I Like Mike," if he took that idea from the old "I Like Ike" slogan. He answered that it was a friends idea, but wish he had thought about it originally. He said something to the effect of "Speaking of slogans, I didn't know there were any rednecks in Michigan." While he was well meaning, there are quite a few rednecks in Michigan. More on that later.

As I have said before, one of my grandfathers was an Arkansan with an eighth grade education before working for General Motors. This is the story of many GM workers from GM's heyday, 1940's through 1960's. Many people in Flint and Lansing, possibly Detroit, are either from the South or have Southern roots.

While I don't agree with this, these people will look to Southern candidates. This is due to "voter identification." They will take a closer look at who they identify with more. Most members of the Union of Auto Workers of the above mentioned cities are Democrats. Like my grandfather, many of them vote for "Yellow Dog Democrats."

This time might just change. While I don't like the actual organization of the UAW, I have the utmost respect for the men and women who work in the shops. These people have a high regard for family values. A family values candidate will resonate with them.

On the Republican side, the Southerners are Mike Huckabee and Fred Thompson. I don't know either of these men's schedules for in Michigan, except the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference. Now, there won't be too many UAW workers at this conference, if any. But, there will be newspapers and TV news stations that represent the cities these people are from. I doubt to many people in Flint will care to pay much attention to the conference. I will get my family in Flint to pay attention and tell their friends along with the distant side of the family.

This, along with other reasons, is why I pray that Mike Huckabee doesn't change his message of "Main Street" Republican, just to appease the base that will be there. People who are not "Wall Street" Republicans will be watching. Everyone in Flint, Lansing and Detroit need to see that Mike is for us "little guys," the blue-collars. They need to see that he cares about all Americans; rich or poor, Republican or Democrat, black or white.

I would love to see him in Flint. I would not be able to actually see him there, but I sure would send my family. Why would I like to see Mike Huckabee in Flint, such a liberal town? His message would resonate with Flintites.

Flint used to be such a nice town. Not quite in my time. In my time that's when the city started going downhill. Back then it was fun to pile up the family in the car and to go into town to watch them blow up or bulldoze an old GM plant. In hopes, perhaps of them building a newer facility.

That never came. Now it is sad to go to Flint. There are boarded up houses and factories. So many people layed off, on unemployment, gang activity and whatnot. I WANT MY FLINT BACK!

Mike Huckabee can make people realize that it is about more than just Democrats versus Republicans. It's about people. It's about the economy. It's about the Fair Tax being fair for everyone.

Mike Huckabee came from humble roots, in Hope, Arkansas. He was the first male in his family to attend college. His father worked two jobs to put a meal on the table and shoes on his kids' feet. Mike Huckabee knows what it is like to struggle and work hard to make his dreams come true. That is what the shopworkers from the forties to the sixties know about. That is what their children and grandchildren know about.

Now about the other Republican Southerner. I don't know much about Fred Thompson. He seems rather lazy. Another blogger said Fred reminds him of a rich Plantation Owner. I say he reminds me of the foreman. The meanest guy on the plantation who did all the cruel stuff. But perhaps the fellow blogger has a point. The plantation owner sat around and let the other guy, the foreman, do all the dirty work, along with those in the field doing the backbreaking work. This smugness does not work in Flint. The people of Flint would not welcome someone like Fred.

Now about the Democrat Southerner. I do know John Edwards is the son of a millworker. I do know he has a big mansion. I do know he wants everyone to get rid of their SUVs, while he continues to drive his. The part about him coming from humble roots would generate with those in Flint who have Southern backgrounds or ancestry. That's where it ends. They don't like big shot lawyers. They don't like hypocrites.

The UAW may go all out to tout their prized Democrats. But I think once the good people who belong to the UAW, along with those retired from the shops, would give Huckabee a chance once they got to hear about him. No freakin way would they go for Hillary or Barack. As much as I hate to say it, while it's not right, they will look at gender and skin color. It shouldn't be this way, but some older Flintites are set in their ways. But also the liberalness is what will ultimately turn them off to those two.

Now, about other Michigan rednecks. I think, or at least hope, that Flintites are getting sick of the limousine liberals. People in Flint are humble, from humble backgrounds. My dad or grandpa told me that back in Arkansas and when first in Flint he would hunt rabbit and "varmint" (as Mitt Romney has so eloquently put it) to put food on the table. Also, when I went to my grandma's funeral I was told that the family also used to raise chickens along with veggies and fruits. Who plucked those chickens? My aunts.

There were other families doing the same things. These are people who came from states like Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and of course Arkansas. The remaining people of Southern backgrounds are family values, love the American Flag (don't say it...), support our troops, pro-lifers once they figure out the truth, don't believe in gay marriage, etc. These decent folks have been abandoned by the Union that was supposed to help them. And the Democrat Party that they were told would "take all their troubles away," which never happened.

While I have been talking about the white side who came from the South, I haven't forgotten about the black people of Flint, Detroit and Lansing. Most of these people have Southern roots also. Some of them are descended from slaves who came to Michigan to work other types of industry, just after the Civil War. Some of them were GM workers who came up to Michigan from the South for the same reasons as my grandfather, to make a better life for their families. And now, like the white descendants of Flint, their descendants are wondering "what now?".

As a white girl, I don't feel appropriate talking about what it is like to "grow up black" in Flint. But it is definitely appropriate to have empathy.

Sorry for such a long post. I hope ya didn't fall asleep ;). I am only getting started. I haven't even said everything on my mind about this.

God Bless from the Upper Peninsula in Michigan!

If you are in Flint or near Flint, demand that Mike Huckabee come to Flint.

Michael Moore

I sure did miss a lot while I was gone. Originally I was going to try to catch up my blog on what I missed, but I think it would be easier to just begin in the present. One thing I do want to do is give a commentary on the Michael Moore situation. After all, what kind of Michigan Republican would I be if I didn't? I am working on a post about Mikey "no-Moore" and Mike Huckabee's reaction to "Sicko", the movie not Michael Moore.

Tomorrow I am planning on renting the "Roger and Me" movies to give a commentary on that, Flint, Detroit, General Motors and UAW. I will have my movie snacks of beer and Jiffy-Pop. But one problem, I think I will need to buy some Pepto-Bismol in order to watch Michael Moore on film. I can't risk buying the cheapo Family Dollar stuff. If anyone has any other ideas how to help with nausea, please let me know.

Talk about product placement .

God Bless from the Upper Peninsula in Michigan!

I'm Baaack!

Hello, dear readers. I am back to the UP. I missed alot during my hiatus. I hope y'all kept up with Mike Huckabee news. I will try to update this blog this weekend or early next week. I want to thank my readers who sent kind comments.

I got a new toy! My great aunt who gave me my computer also gave me a digital camera. Not only does it take pics, it takes vids! I will post an "I like Mike" video and send it to the campaign. I will let you know as soon as it gets posted on Mike Huckabee's website and also post it here.
I tried to take a vid of Flint while traveling on the bus. Unfortunately, the bus traveled on the e-way instead of going through town. Gee, I wonder why. I will talk about that later, since it is relevant to local government and economy. I will post what I took from the e-way, except ya can't see how dilapidated the town has gotten in the past 20 years, thank you UAW AND General Motors.

God Bless from the Upper Peninsula in Michigan!

Mike Huckabee at House Party in N.H.

On Sunday, June 3 Mike Huckabee attended a house party at the farm-home of Roger and May Pat Jackson, where he spoke about border control and tougher trade negotiations.

The majority of the attendees said that of the policies Huckabee proposed border security is the most important.
What are people saying of his visit?
"His answer on immigration was good," said Bruce Jackson, 23, a firefighter from Auburn. "He wants to close down the borders and track what is going on."
"He was quick on his feet and knowledgeable," , says Mary Pat Jackson

Talking about American businesses and international trade, he says this, "there is no free trade without fair trade,"

Roger Jackson, who is employed at Merrimack Street Volvo in Manchester, liked these ideas. He said that the domestic automobile industry is dire straights because it builds health care and retirement into the prices of its vehicles, expenses not always included in foreign vehicles.

He also touched on the subject of energy dependence. "The U.S. is being held hostage to foreign oil," he said.
From Fred Noyes of Epson, "I thought he failed to address geothermal resources. This country has volcanic heat beds that can be converted to steam and electricity," said Noyes who asked the candidate to consider this.
"He promised me he would look into it," he said.

Read the full story in the Union Leader.


I would like to get a little off track for a moment and speak from a Michigan perspective regarding the auto industry. Roger Jackson's comment above got me thinking. I grew up near Flint, Michigan. As most people know this is where General Motors got it's start. And of course Ford got it's start in Detroit. In fact, Flint's nickname used to be Buick City. A good majority of the kids I went to school with had fathers who worked in the General Motors plants and mom was a homemaker. Many of those kids, or at least the boys, figured they would follow their fathers into the "shops." By the time we started graduating high school this was not the case.
If you talk to the Democrats and Democrat voters in Genesee County they will tell you that the "Big wigs" in Detroit are evil and greedy. Talk to the Republicans and Republican voters in the county and they will tell you that the UAW is evil and greedy. Talk to me... I will tell you both sides got greedy.
Look at the picture in my header. That photo was taken at the Sloan Museum in Flint, Michigan. The 1955 Chevy Bel Air in the background, there is a 75% chance that my grandfather had his hand on it as it was rolling down the assembly line.
Fifty years ago and longer GM needed so many workers that they couldn't find enough locals, so they recruited men from Down South to come up to Flint to work. My grandfather was one of those men. He was a cotton farmer in Arkansas with an eighth grade education. He brought his family up to Flint so that he could provide better for them, to become what is known as a "shop rat." That is an assembly line worker. My grandparents still live in the same one story two bedroom house, where they raised 3 boys and 3 girls, my youngest uncle came way later. The girls slept in one room while the boys slept in the living room. My other grandfather grew up in Flint and didn't finish college, yet he was made a supervisor as soon as he started working there. This was the era that, "What's good for GM is good for the country." Now Michigan unemployment rates are 7.1%.
I can't say that the employee benefits are bad. I think GM was doing what they thought was right at the time. When the 70's came quality levels of cars went down. While at the same time employee salaries went up. It doesn't take an economic genius to figure how this was going to end. If it wasn't for these benefits neither of my grandparents would be in the financial situation they are. Enough blabbering! I thought I was just going to make a quick note about GM.

God Bless from the Upper Peninsula in Michigan!