Their journey got lost amid the shadow of the shootings at Ft. Hood and the passage of the Democrat healthcare plan, but these hearty Tea Party Patriots™ are on track in their 3,000-mile relay across the United States to draw attention to the plight of California's farmers.
The "Farmer Relief & Freedom Relay" launched its three-pronged nationwide relay on Nov. 8 from Portland, ME, Richmond, VA and Jacksonville, FL to end on Nov. 22 in Fresno, CA. The goal is to awaken Americans to the effect of restrictive state and federal environmental laws including CA's cap-and-trade act (AB 32).
"The insanity must end," says attorney Mark Meckler of Sacramento, a national coordinator of the Tea Party Patriots™. "It is devastation California's economy. We are being crushed by burdensome regulations and taxes imposed by politicians who care more for causes and political gamesmanship than people."
Another goal of the relay is to seek environmental parity between California and New Mexico.
In 2003, Congress--including Senators Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi--voted to support a temporary waiver of the Endangered Species Act in Alburquerque, NM; choosing to set aside the protection of a minnow to provide water to communities on the Middle Rio Grande.
In 2009, after eight attempts to get the same waiver on a protected minnow in the San Joaquin River Delta to provide water to farmers in CA's Central Valley, Rep. Devin Nunes, (R-Visalia) is weary, but undaunted.
"I have fought aggressively to bring our water crisis to the attention of Congress and the American people,'' says Nunes, whose district nestles in the heart of the Central Valley. "The legislation I have been offering to my colleagues is virtually identical to legislation passed in 2003 for the people of New Mexico. That bill passed the Senate unanimously and passed the House with an overwhelming bipartisan vote.
"Why was an ESA waiver good enough for the citizens of New Mexico but not California?" Nunes asks. "I will continue to force (Sen.) Feinstein and others to vote with or against the people of California."
For information on the "Farmer Relief & Freedom Relay", including the stops and schedule of events, go to www.teapartypatriots.org.
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Media Contacts:
Brad Roltgen, coordinator Central Valley Tea Party: 559-312-0509
Jenny Beth Martin, national coordinator Tea Party Patriots 770-878-1550
Dawn Wildman, CA co-coordinator Tea Party Patriots 619-606-0337
