by Javier Manjarres

The Shark Tank has been chronicling Ozzie deFaria’s congressional campaign by fairly and accurately calling him out on missteps that either he or his campaign has made thus far in the Republican congressional primary.

The Sunshine State News stated that Mr. deFaria has boasted of raising $400K in total receipts. This is true, deFaria has raised $394,613 since jumping into the race to unseat Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

But deFaria is trying one of the oldest tricks in political campaign finance, which is to put out a big bold fundraising number when in reality the dollar amount he is actually posting is hollow at best.

Dear Supporter -

This week, thanks to you, I’m pleased to say that we reported nearly $400,000 in total receipts. Over 1,700 people from 48 states have donated to my campaign, and we have over $200,000 cash-on-hand. Because of you, we’re beginning to put the resources in place to win. -Ozzie deFaria

The truth is this- Of the almost $400K that deFaria has reported, $273,173 is from himself. Meaning that since deFaria got in the race in the 4th quarter of 2011, he has only been able to raise $121,441 from “individual” donors, whereas Karen Harrington, the incumbent candidate in the race, has reported $218,739 from ‘individual’ donors-about a 2-to-1 advantage for Harrington over deFaria.

According to the Sunshine State News article, deFaria took a shot at Karen Harrington for carrying $232,783 in debt.  This attack seems hypocritical since deFaria has accrued a larger debt-load than Harrington-$40,390 more debt, to be exact. In fact, Harrington has only lent herself $5000 to her campaign in the 2012 election cycle- the rest of her sizeable debt is from the 2010 election cycle.
deFaria’s debt amounts seem a little fuzzy.  Below you will see that deFaria’s FEC report summary posts that he has only lent his campaign $150,000.  However, the total of $273,783 categorized as ‘candidate’ by the FEC is from other monies donated or loaned to the campaign from deFaria. If this is the case, why isn’t the extra $123,173 listed as a loan?

Upon reviewing the individual postings on his FEC report, there are (3) Schedule A (Itemized Receipts) posts that were made in March of 2012 that clearly show deFaria contributing to his debt load (candidate).  The first post was made on 3/1 for $12,000.07. The second was made on 3/30 for $50,000.  These two posts alone added with the previous ‘candidate’ obligatory total add up to the $273,783 that is posted under ‘candidate’ obligation.

Interestingly enough, there is a the third Schedule A (Itemized Receipt) post for $50,000, that was also made on 3/30. This particular post is a bit confusing in that it is listed as an itemized receipt, yet deFaria subtracts it from the initial $273,783, making it in essence a reimbursement?

Another of deFaria’s claims that needs to be looked at is his assertion that he has over $200K cash on hand. Again, this is true, deFaria actually has $201,684 cash on hand. The interesting note about this figure to point out is that deFaria had to infuse an extra $50K on the very last day of the reporting cycle to bring him to that total of $201,684.

Again, this is just political smoke-n-mirrors by deFaria- it’s not illegal and it’ s another political tactic that is widely used, but it’s also just a little bit shady of him to misrepresent his campaign like this.

There is nothing wrong with pouring one’s own hard earned money into a political campaign, it is actually a very noble and admirable move by anyone who is willing to put some ‘skin in the game.’  But the problem with deFaria’s cash infusion is that his campaign is trying to make it seem as if he as raised all that money from individual donors.

We decided to dig into the Federal Election Commission (FEC) reports to get an accurate assessment of ‘all’ the candidates that have reported to the FEC.  Look over the FEC reports and decide for yourself. If you like the post, please share it below.

Ozzie deFaria    (Link to FEC)

* Column 1 is Total Disbursements;  Column 2 is Cash on Hand; Column 3 is Total Loan(s); Column 4 is the Last reporting date

Receipts $394,614   Individual   $121,441    PAC   $0    Party   $0   Candidate   $273,173    Other   $0

$192,934

$201,680

$150,000

03/31/201

Karen Harrington (Link to FEC)

Receipts $235,168   Individual   $218,739    PAC   $10,000    Party   $0   Candidate   $5,000    Other   $1,429

$131,202

$106,684

$232,783

03/31/2012

Joe Kaufman (Link to FEC)

Receipts $186,175   Individual   $170,427    PAC   $7,500    Party   $0   Candidate   $8,248    Other   $0

$112,598

$77,440

$8,248

03/31/2012

Gineen Bresso (Link to FEC)

Receipts $23,769   Individual   $22,769    PAC   $1,000    Party   $0   Candidate   $0    Other   $0

$964

$22,805

$0

03/31/2012

Juan Eliel Garcia

Receipts $13,950   Individual   $13,950    PAC   $0    Party   $0   Candidate   $0    Other   $0

$7,959

$5,991

$0

03/31/2012

(Cross-Posted at The Shark Tank)

The political funny season continues to bring out the worst in candidates who can’t help resorting to disingenuous political tactics that try to curry favor with potential voters.

One such case is the one of congressional candidate Joe Kaufman. Kaufman is running to replace Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and is presently trailing in his contested Republican primary against  thepopular grassroots front-runner, Karen Harrington.  Kaufman has been criticized for continuing to insist that, “It takes a Kaufman to beat a Wasserman,” a remark that many interpret as bigoted.

More on Joe Kaufman-

During the 2010 Republican U.S. Senate race that was ultimately won by now Senator Marco Rubio won, Joe Kaufman was part of the Bob Smith(pictured in blue) for U.S. Senate team.  Yes, this is the same Bob Smith who made a full-throated endorsement of Sen. John Kerry over President George W. Bush in 2004.  While helping to lead Bob Smith’s Senate campaign, many in South Florida speculated if Joe Kaufman was involved in the reprehensible racial slurs and attacks that came out of Team Smith that were directed at Senator Rubio.(Read more- Joe Kaufman Opposed Marco Rubio)

Kaufman also recently appeared on the Daily Show and things didn’t go so well. In addition to his disastrous appearance, Kaufman verbally attacked one of the most influential Rabbis in South Florida. (Watch ‘The Daily Show’ clip, and read the post-The Daily Joke)
In what can only be described as an act of desperation, Kaufman has added an “Endorsement/Support” category to his campaign website with the “endorsement/support” of Sarah Palin.  How exactly did Kaufman score Palin’s “support”, you might ask?  At February’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC)  in Washington D.C., Kaufman approached Governor Palin after her CPAC speech, and as she signed autographs, Kaufman told her that he was running for office.

While I wasn’t a witness to the encounter, Kaufman’s video makes one wonder if Palin was actually directing  ”support” to, let alone if she had any idea who Kaufman was?

Watch this video compilation of several of Kaufman’s attempts at getting politicos to endorse him, including the Palin incident. You be the judge.

Watch the video

Let’s concede that Palin was actually directing her wishes to Kaufman, but the fact of the matter is that if Palin were truly going to give Kaufman either “support” or and endorsement, if wouldn’t have been done in the context of an ambush style manner while she was signing autographs with her fans.

Exploiting the encounter even further, Kaufman has recently mailed out a fundraising letter enclosed in an envelope that has an image Governor Palin on it with her quote along side it.  By any reasonable standard, Kaufman is shamelessly exploiting Palin’s kind gesture to further his candidacy and create the impression that there is a closer relationship and support from her then there actually is beyond Kaufman’s video tape of him asking her for an autograph.  

Equally duplicitous is the letterhead that his campaign mailers are being sent on that are designed to make its recipients believe that he is a member of Congress.  His letter head states, “From the Desk Joe Kaufman, Republican-U.S. Congress along with a seal of an eagle, eerily similar to the seal that is used on the official congressional seal.

It is unfortunate that Mr. Kaufman continues to revert to trickery in an attempt to convince potential supporters that his candidacy is commanding more support than it actually is.  So what does Governor Sarah Palin have to say  about her good name being expoited like this?

(Cross posted @ The Shark Tank)

Congressional candidate Ozzie deFaria is not just doubling-down on with his questionable use of a photo-shopped dog collar around DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s neck, he’s actually betting the house that his tactic will win him the Republican congressional nomination in August.

deFaria’s most recent campaign email addresses recipients as “Fellow Patriots” in hopes of convincing them that he is a legit “Tea Party” candidate.  deFaria is not actually someone whom most would consider a Tea Party “activist”, he is actually a wealthy business executive that is self-financing his campaign and ‘banking’ on his  business acumen to win the Republican nomination.

But deFaria is continuing to mislead potential supporters with highly questionable allegations in his campaign solicitations.  The latest- somehow, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz “threatened” him.  Here’s deFaria email-

Wasserman Schultz told a close associate of mine that she was offended by my use of the picture at right, which I used to highlight her as Obama’s biggest Attack Dog (hence the collar).

She then told my associate that, “Ozzie will get what’s coming to him.”

We all know what that means… Debbie and the Obama attack machine are going to spend millions of dollars to destroy my family, my reputation, and my professional life in South Florida.

“We want him (deFaria) to win.” anonymous Democrat operative

What he’s doing here is playing up to the rabid Tea Party base.  And the really sad thing is it just might work.-Local 10, ABC Affiliate

With so many legitimate and significant issues to challange Rep. Wasserman Schultz on, that a candidate (
Ozzie deFaria) is lowering himself to the likes of Liberal Talking-Heads, by using personal attacks. The Tea Party, by and large, refuses to delve into personal attacks and focuses instead upon issues…limited Government, the Constitution and Free Markets…In this race, as with any race across the Country, candidates have more than enough issues to differentiate themselves rather than sinking to personal attacks. I can assure you that the Tea Party does not support candidates who do not conduct themselves with respect and decorum.- Tom Gaitens, FreedomWorks State Director

So now the table is almost set for the Democrats to feast on what will be an indefensible blunder that could very well affect Republicans up and down the ballot- and it’s precisely the opportunity that Democrats always look to exploit.  Rest assured, Democrats are salivating at the opportunity to tie Congressman Allen West, Senator Marco Rubio, the eventual Republican presidential nominee, Republicans, and the Tea Party as racist, sexist, mysogenist and outright “extremists.”

So ask yourselves the following- why has deFaria not rolled out any endorsement from any elected Republican?  According to deFaria, businessman Wayne Huizenga has endorsed him, but for how long?  We reached out to Huizenga, but he could not be reached for comment.   Considering that deFaria is not backing away in the least from his polarizing campaign advertisements, what member of any legislative body would put their career and reputation on the line by backing deFaria?  Supporters of deFaria would be well advised to reconsider all of their options if they are indeed serious about defeating Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

By Javier Manjarres

Coral Springs,FL- Newt Gingrich was heckled by a woman who managed to make her way to the front of the crowd, and he was clearly distracted by her obnoxious attempt to try and gain his attention.  Gingrich attempted to address her incoherent line of questioning as best he could, and as you will see in the video, Gingrich responded to her perfectly.  We asked the woman if she was a Ron Paul supporter or if she was part of the Occupy Wall St. movement, she said indicated she was not associated with either.

Karin Hoffman, Gingrich’s Broward County Co-Chair (previously been featured here on the Shark Tank) attempted to try to diffuse the situation. Unfortunately, Hoffman only compounded the situation when she grasped at the woman and put her hand on her, prompting the woman to object. Another campaign advance man stepped in to explain to her that her safety could be in danger, and she took offense and tried to turn it around on the campaign.

Inexplicably, Hoffman turned around and struck the photographer and the video camera, right in front of two police officers.(End of video) Assault charges could be forthcoming, and it’s fair to ask if she is suited to be representing Newt Gingrich in Broward County.

Gingrich Heckled, Staffer (Karin Hoffmann) Assaults Cameraman at Campaign Event(End of video) Assault charges could be forthcoming, and it’s fair to ask if she is suited to be representing Newt Gingrich in Broward County.

At Common Law, an intentional act by one person that creates an apprehension in another of an imminent harmful or offensive contact.-Legal Dictionary

Watch the video

Sunshine State News  reported yesteday that Congressional candidate Karen Harrington has been endorsed by Congresswoman Sandy Adams. Congresswoman Adams has made news around the country for going after  Attorney General Eric Holder for his possible involvement and/or knowledge of  the failed ‘Fast and Furious’ firearms deal that resulted in the death of a U.S. Border Patrol agent.

Adams joins former Presidential nominee Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and Congressman Steve Southerland,  to openly endorse Harrington’s candidacy, as she tries to unseat DNC/Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the upcoming November general election.(See Website)

“Karen Harrington is the clear choice to help get South Florida voters back to work and our economy moving again. Karen has the type of grassroots work ethic and small business experience necessary to bring her friends’ and neighbors’ desires for change to Washington, D.C. I look forward to having another strong female conservative in the Florida delegation and working with her to fix what is broken in Congress.”-Congresswoman Sandy Adams

(Cross-post: The Shark Tank)

By Javier Manjarres

Congressional candidate Ozzie deFaria raises questions about the integrity of his campaign when he photo-shopped  a dog collar around Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s neck for one of his advertisements, before stating on video that she “needed to be sent back to the pound.” Ozzie deFaria has now double-downed on his own ignorance by unapologetically repeating the ‘pound’ statement again.(Original post on deFaria)

At the recent Southwest Broward Republican Organization (SWBRO) monthly meeting which featured deFaria as the keynote speaker, deFaria referred to Wasserman Schultz to a “dog” and that she “needed to go back to pound.”  deFaria may believe that this kind of shock-value remark will  give his campaign a boost,  but in reality it is a sheer lack of character on his part that could be used by the  Democrat Party to paint all Republicans as “extremists” and “sexists” who are unfit to represent Americans in the U.S. Congress.

Watch the short video here

deFaria’s lapses in judgement are being talked about across the state and in Washington, D.C., as political insiders and Members of Congress have scoffed at deFaria’s tactics and are expressing the same concerns that his actions play right into the Democratic Party’s  media narrative. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) placed deFaria in their ‘Young Guns’ program, but because of his actions, more members are beginning to distance themselves from the embattled congressional candidate and the race all together.

Congressman Pete Sessions, Majority Whip Eric Cantor, and Congressman Mark McCarthy did not want to comment on the matter and referred all media requests on this issue to the NRCC.  NRCC’s Regional Press Secretary Nathaniel Sillin responded to our media request in true D.C. form and probably the smartest way to deal with this embarrassing situation- he punted the ball by not answering any direct questions about deFaria.

This is a smart play by the NRCC, because if they openly distances themselves from deFaria, it is essentially admitting that they made a mistake in judgement about deFaria.  If the NRCC were to come out and defend deFaria, they make the case for the Democrats that the entire Republican Party is filled with those same extremists, misogynists and sexists.  Needless to say, the Republican Party is in quite a pickle here- it’s a lose-lose situation for them.

We posed the following question to the NRCC:

Does the NRCC approve of such rhetoric, and is this what Americans are to expect from the new breed of Republican ‘Young Guns?’

This is Nathaniel Sillin’s official NRCC response to my question:

This race is a referendum on Debbie Wasserman Shutlz’s relentless pursuit of a job-destroying tax and spend big-government agenda.  Gas prices are skyrocketing in South Florida. Rather than fight for energy independence and lower gas prices on behalf of Florida families,  Wasserman Schultz appears committed to pursue the same failed policies that only benefits the anti-job interest groups who are bankrolling Democrat campaigns.” – NRCC Spokesman Nat Sillin

It will be interesting to see if the state and local Republican Party organizations will follow suit and turn their back on deFaria were he to come knocking for their support. One Florida State legislator told the Shark Tank,”What an embarrassment, does he even think that he has a chance?”  The Broward County Republican Party (BREC) led by Richard DeNapoli is said to be quietly supporting deFaria’s campaign.

deFaria’s opponents in the Republican primary are Juan Eliel Garcia, Joe Kaufman, Gineen Bresso and Karen Harrington, who ran against Wasserman Schultz in 2010, and is considered the favorite to win the primary.

Since the NRCC refused to directly answer our questions about deFaria, what do you think about deFaria’s actions?

 (Cross-posted at The Shark Tank)

(Cross-Posted at The Shark Tank)

Republican congressional candidate Karen Harrington, the front runner in the primary race to unseat Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz is being targeted by a smear campaign that has crossed line from between being juvenile to possibly being a matter of public safety for law enforcement.  Over the past several months, the reported smears against Harrington’s character and campaign have been posted on the free public website Craig’s List. Until now, the rants have been nothing more than harsh but unsubstantiated political rhetoric aimed at damaging Harrington’s good name.

Today a note was posted on Craig’s List asking for Muslims to attend a ‘Bible Burning’ event at one of Harrington’s restaurants. The post lists the restaurant’s address and states that the ‘burning’ will take place on Saturday February 25th between 1-3pm.  The Pembroke Pines police have been notified and they are treating this as  serious public safety issue. The Pembroke Pines Police Department will have a presence between those hours listed in the post and they have opened up an investigation into the author of the post.

We can speculate that the author of this post is either one of Harrington’s competitors in the primary race or one of their misguided loyal supporters.  Several of the candidates in the race could be brought into question since some of them have a history of making false and demeaning remarks toward Harrington or towards women.

Joe Kaufman has been going around telling Rabbis and anyone who will listen that Harrington is a supporter of Hamas and has actually hired an CAIR/Hamas sympathizer to her campaign.  Joe Goldner has called Harrington a “Political Whore” on many occasions and also spews the same Hamas rhetoric about Harrington as Kaufman has.  Ozzie deFaria has also taken a leap onto the fringe, proclaiming that a certain female elected official whose initials are ‘DWS’ needed to be sent back to the pound and featured a political ad that drew a dog collar around her neck.

It remains to be seen who is actually behind smear campaign.  Here is the Craig’s List post in question:

ATTN: FELLOW MUSLIMS – PLEASE ATTEND OUR BIBLE BURNING

Date: 2012-02-24, 11:12AM

 

Salaam Aleikim

The Muslim Brotherhood of South Florida is pleased to announce our first BIBLE BURNINGAll believers in the TRUE GOD ALLAH are encouraged to attend & participateSaturday,

Feb 25, 1 – 3PM

xxx NW xxth Ave
Pembroke Pines, FL xxxxxBYOB
(Bring your own bible…TO BURN)

• Location: ALL BELIEVERS IN ALLAH ARE WELCOME
• it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

Original URL: http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/pol/2868355694.html

---

this craigslist posting was forwarded to you by someone using our email-a-friend feature – if you want to prevent these, please go to:
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Congressional candidate Ozzie deFaria is beginning to melt under the political spotlight, as he once again is displaying a lack judgment and temperament that be able to sustain the rigors of a congressional campaign.   The Shark Tank recently questioned deFaria’s campaign advertisements as well as certain aspects of his background, a scrutiny which all congressional candidates should expect.  But deFaria’s knee-jerk reaction to our story is unfortunately revealing- rather than deal directly with our documented and legitimate criticisms, he chose to malign your humble correspondent and the Shark Tank.  This response shows that deFaria is not only thin skinned, he wound up embarrassing the Republican Party and his campaign.

Our report cited the following facts:

• deFaria’s posting of DNC Chairwoman Wasserman Schultz wearing a dog collar
• deFaria stating that Wasserman Schultz needed to be “sent back to the pound.”
• deFaria untruthfully stating the reason why Congresswoman Allen West tore into Wasserman Schultz in an email last year
• deFaria’s admittance that he used a phony ‘Tea Party’ organization to promote his campaign
• a list of public record court cases in which deFaria is named as a Defendant or a respondent

deFaria took issue with our criticism that asserts that his own words and deeds are questionable and will diminish his campaign- did he not take the time to think that his line of attack against Wasserman Schultz not only isn’t very original, but that it could be potentially used against him if he were the Republican nominee?  (Shark Tank- original deFaria story here)

deFaria is actively promoting this ‘Doggie Debbie’ website and told the attendees of the recent SRLC convention in Charleston that ‘DWS’ “needed to be sent back to the pound.”continuing with the “Debbie is a Doggie” motif.  We simply questioned if deFaria’s repeated caricature of Debbie as a dog with an aggressive looking dog collar is really a smart way to criticize her and broadly appeal to the masses of people in her congressional district.

deFaria’s feeble response to our criticism was made in an obscure Broward website that has a history of running cover for the embattled Broward Republican Executive Committee (BREC), and the site that has done all but endorsed deFaria.  It’s also the same website that Redstate’s Erick Erickson smacked down last year for its lack of journalistic integrity and hack reportage.

What’s most humorous about this sad saga is that deFaria’s official statement claims that he was the victim of a “vicious attack” that he posted on his campaign website:

We’ll never know who paid for his most recent attack on Ozzie, but it’s not a coincidence that Debbie Wasserman Schultz said ‘Ozzie will get what’s coming to him’ and then a local paid political blogger launched a full front assault on Ozzie’s character.  The charges made on the hit piece are either false or extremely misleading.

The Shark Tank blog has lost all credibility as a legitimate source of information.  As explicitly outlined on the website truthaboutjaviermanjarres.com, the blog’s owner, Javier Manjarres, is nothing more than a political bounty hunter who consistently and regularly attacks the conservative opponents of the people who pay to advertise on his website.- Ozzie deFaria

That’s right dear readers, deFaria thinks that the Shark Tank’s criticism of his campaign tactics comes at the behest of and is paid for by none other than DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.  In addition to this LOL implication, deFaria also cites an anonymous and libelous website which targets yours truly- a site which was authored by the same Charlie Crist-supporting establishment Republicans in Broward County who are his chief supporters.  Beginning to see the bigger picture here?

Unfortunately, knee-jerk reactions like deFaria’s tend to be devoid of rationality, and his response isn’t one that will reassure voters about his judgement.  How can deFaria call our “charges” (his characterization) “false or extremely misleading,” when we’re simply calling attention to and questioning his own campaign advertisements and statements?  Whether it is what he said to the SRLC (on video below), his depiction of Debbie with a dog collar around her neck, or his public records, did the Shark Tank fabricate or distort any of these?  You be the judge.

deFaria tweeted that he has “nothing to hide,” yet he’d rather disparage his critics rather than provide a coherent response to his supporters that is grounded in fact.  Instead of showing the requisite character, discipline, and leadership with his response, deFaria decided to attack the messenger rather than intelligently respond to the message.   What’s to hide, right?

By Javier Manjarres

Businessman Ozzie deFaria has garnered ‘On the Radar’ status with the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), a significant boost to his campaign  for the Republican nomination in Congressional District 20.  When the congressional redistricting is completed, most of what now comprises the 20th congressional district will become the 23rd congressional district.

While 2010 nominee Karen Harrington enjoys significant name recognition and strong grassroots support, deFaria could pose a real threat because of his ability to self-fund, and his new found support from the Republican establishment in Washington, D.C. will likely assist his fundraising.

But while deFaria has proven that he is a successful businessman and is showing a glimmer of a fundraising prowess, he’s also at times shown that he lacks the discipline and judgment needed to serve in Congress.

Case in point- deFaria inexplicably posted an image on his website in which he super-imposed a dog collar around the neck of Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.  It’s understood that political candidates use gimmicks and stunts to bring attention to their campaign, but the denigrating depiction of Wasserman Schultz as a dog isn’t very smart, and it’s likely that most women won’t be amused.

deFaria’s  move is reminiscent of an incident back in 2009 in which another Republican congressional candidate who was looking for attention scribbled the initials ‘DWS’ on a gun range target and then proceeded to fire at it- right in the presence of the assembled media.  The actions of that night gave the GOP a black eye, and deFaria’s actions are likely to have a similar effect.

When you couple this substantial gaffe with a statement he made at the recent Southern Republican Leadership Conference (SRLC) in South Carolina where he stated, “we must send her back to the pound,” it’s clear that deFaria is fixated on the ‘Debbie is a Doggie’ motif, but is that really an intelligent way to critique her?

deFaria hypocritically calls Wasserman Schultz a sexist on the website (see picture), and fails to understand that his depiction of ‘DWS’ can be interpreted as exactly that, sexist.

Unfortunately for deFaria, it doesn’t end there. In the same video clip (below), just before he states that ‘DWS’ must be sent back to the pound, deFaria, reading from a scripted speech, untruthfully states why Congressman Allen West called Wasserman Schultz ‘vile and despicable.’ deFaria states that West called her ‘vile’ specifically because Wasserman Schultz blamed the Tea Party for the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords.

http://youtu.be/wdUnTCWL4FE  <<<<Video

This type of shameless pandering is nothing more than a stunt to create the perception that deFaria is aligned with West.

West  called out Wasserman Schultz after she spoke out against him on the House floor inWashington,D.C.

Late last year, the Shark Tank called out deFaria for using a phony Tea Party organization to solicit funds from activists.  The organization in question, National Tea Party Alert.com depicted him as a ‘Tea Party’ candidate. deFaria told me that it was only a mail program he purchased, in essence confirming that this National Tea Party.com was not really a tea party organization but a for-profit business that had nothing to do with the Tea Party movement. This organization actually attacked Governor Sarah Palin. (Source: Phone Tea Party)

When you run Congress or any office for that matter, most everything is going to be on the table.  deFaria, like many other Americans, has had run-ins with the law and has been party to several litigations that have been made public- some good, some bad. Here is a short list of deFaria’s public court records:

CACE11005287 -2011 Auto Negligence(Pending) (Circuit)

DVCE05007368 -2005 Repeat Violence (Domestic Violence)

COCE05011501 -2005 Civil litigation (Circuit)

06011986MM10A-Misdemeanor (Circuit)

09033561TI30A -Traffic Infraction (Circuit)

COWE07027615 - 2007 Small Claims litigation (Circuit)

Now either the NRCC didn’t bother to closely vet deFaria or they are fine with deFaria’s “colorful” background- which do you think is most likely?

Were deFaria to win the Republican nomination to take on Wasserman Schultz, you better believe that the Democrats will use his unfortunate lack of judgment to label all Republicans as extreme sexists- and deFaria would be the proverbial Republican punching bag .

(Cross-posted at the Shark Tank)

By Javier Manjarres

Senator Marco Rubio recently delivered a compelling and emotional speech on illegal immigration at the annual Hispanic Leadership Network meeting, but Rubio may have left many in the room, and perhaps across the country wondering if this speech marked the beginning of a ‘softening’ by Rubio on this important issue.

At the very beginning of his speech, Rubio was heckeled by pro-Dream Act activists, who were there in protest of the Senators hard-line views on immigration, making the case for his continued anti-amnesty position.

During the course of his remarks, Rubio stated that there is “broad bi-partisan support for a notion that we should somehow figure a way to accommadate them (Dream Act Kids).”

While Rubio has come out in opposition to the Dream Act, Rubio has always questioned what is to happen to the children who were brought here to this country illegally by their parents.

Rubio campaigned on a pro-legal immigration platform and thus far he has been staunchly against any form of amnesty for illegal immigrants, but he has hit a couple of bumps along that road that give immigration hawks cause for concern.

During his 2010 Senatorial campaign, Rubio was slammed by pro-illegal immigration contingency when he made this controversial statement critiquing the Arizona Immigration law:

States certainly have the right to enact policies to protect their citizens, but Arizona’s policy shows the difficulty and limitations of states trying to act piecemeal to solve what is a serious federal problem. From what I have read in news reports, I do have concerns about this legislation. While I don’t believe Arizona’s policy was based on anything other than trying to get a handle on our broken borders, I think aspects of the law, especially that dealing with ‘reasonable suspicion,’ are going to put our law enforcement officers in an incredibly difficult position. It could also unreasonably single out people who are here legally, including many American citizens. Throughout American history and throughout this administration we have seen that when government is given an inch it takes a mile.-Senator Marco Rubio

Rubio’s Senate campaign took heavy criticism for this statement and immediately went into damage control mode to try to mitigate the fallout. Rubio immediately back-peddled and the damage was limited.

But earlier in his political career when he was Speaker of the Florida House, Rubio was labeled as being “pro-amnesty” for illegals when he blocked the passage of six immigration reform bills that were to be heard in committee. Rubio stated that these bills did not make it out of committee, and he noted that a similar bill introduced in 2009 also never made it out of committee.

Congressman David Rivera (R-FL), one of Rubio’s closest friend from his days in the Florida Legislature has introduced the Adjusted Residency for Military Service Act — the ARMS Act. It’s a variation on the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to some children of undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally.-Miami Herald
There is now talk that Rubio may co-sponsor the measure in the Senate, a move that will undoubtedly set off a backlash from Tea Party and other grassroots groups against the Senator.

Marco Rubio supports the military component of the Dream Act, but the problem for Rubio is that this measure is another form of amnesty and it would wholly discredit him as being against any form of amnesty for illegal immigrants. Rubio believes that citizenship is only granted to those illegals who get discharged from the Armed Forces with an Honorable Discharge, but both Rivera and Rubio are completely disconnected with the unintended consequences that will fall upon the country if this measure is adopted.

Let’s raise a couple obvious, and not so obvious questions about the this Military-only Dream Act.

First of all, how is this going to be paid for? If you have 100,000 illegal immigrants that attempt to enlist in the armed forces, where will they serve, especially in light of the drastic military cuts that President Obama has proposed?

Of those 100,000 illegals that enlist, how many will wash out of their respected Basic Training programs? As of 2006, the wash-out rate for enlistees in the military is as follows:

What do we do with those 13.6% of Army wash-outs, or 14% of the Navy’s wash-outs? Do we offer them a consolation prize for not being able to serve the opportunity to gain U.S. Citizenship?

Aside from the high wash-out rate and the shrinking military, what about those illegal immigrant soldiers that receive a ‘General’ discharge, as opposed to an Honorable Discharge?

General discharges are given to service members whose performance is satisfactory but is marked by a considerable departure in duty performance and conduct expected of military members. Reasons for such a characterization of service vary, from medical discharges to misconduct, and are utilized by the unit commander as a means to correct unacceptable behavior prior to initiating discharge action (unless the reason is drug abuse, in which case discharge is mandatory). A commander must disclose the reasons for the discharge action in writing to the service member, and must explain reasons for recommending the service be characterized as General (Under Honorable Conditions). The service member is normally required to sign a statement acknowledging receipt and understanding of the notification of pending discharge memorandum. They are also advised of the right to seek counsel and present supporting statements.

In addition, service members are required to sign documents acknowledging that “substantial prejudice in civilian life” may be encountered under a general discharge.^[2]Despite this, some personnel think because the discharge is described as general under honorable conditions, it is as good as or the same as an honorable discharge. Concerning VA disability and most other benefits that is true; however, a general discharge may preclude participation in the GI Bill, service on veteran’s commissions, and other programs where a fully honorable discharge is required. However, one state,Illinois, prohibits discrimination against a veteran from housing or employment on the basis of unfavorable discharge from military service per the Human Rights Act of 1970.-Wikipedia

Another question to consider is the following- how long does an illegal immigrant have to serve before he or she is ‘Honorably Discharged’ and receives their citizenship- is it 2 years, 4 years, 6 years, or more? And what if the soldier decides to make the military a career, what then? Do ‘what if’?’ provisions need to be added to the agreement regarding extended military service?

Another question- once these illegal immigrants become citizens by virtue of their military service, will they be allowed to immediately request the rest of their families?

Senator Rubio, Congressman Rivera, and others who support this military amnesty measure seem to be completely blinded by the rantings and pressures coming from the pro-amnesty lobby, and their support of this measure could very well help open an ominous “Pandora’s Box” of future amnesty measures.

(Cross-posted: The Shark Tank)