9th District Congressional Candidates on FYN’s Candidate Day

Election, Politics

Mike Scupin, Roger Fitzpatrick, Paul Broun, Doug Collins, and Bernie Fontaine speak on FYN’s Candidate Day for the citizens on the eve of the election day.

https://youtu.be/GT_o0UdWgWU

Dawson County Election Results

News, Politics

General Primary Election Results
With 100 % of precincts reporting
May 24, 2016

U.S. House 9th District
Doug Collins 50,272
Paul Brown 18045
Roger Fitzpatrick 8,667
Mike Scupin 2,795
Bernie Fontaine 2,269

State Senate, 51st District

Steve Gooch 20,593

John Williamson 7,562

Chairman County Commission
Billy Thurmond 3,041
Peter J. Hill 1,000

County Commission Dist. 2
Chris Gaines 2,015

Tim Davis 1,924

County Commission Dist. 4
Julie Hughes Nix 2,556
Heather Hulsebus1,495

Sheriff
Tony Wooten 1,526
Jeff Johnson 1,156
Jeff Perry 1,031
Frank Sosebee 533

Tax Commissioner
Andi Henson Juliette 1,212
Nicole Stewart 1,025
Johnny Glass 983
Karin McKee 899

Dawson Elections Chief Pleased with Early Turnout

News, Politics

DAWSONVILLE — With the May 24th General Primary election day fast approaching, Director of Elections and Registration Glenda Ferguson and her staff have been kept busy during the advanced voting period.

“So far, as of 9 a.m. Friday, 990 ballots have been cast for an average of about 100 per day,” Ferguson said. “I always want to see more, but I’ve been very pleased with the turnout so far. ”

Ferguson said in 2012, about 40 percent of the county’s 15,800 voters waited until election day to cast a ballot. If that percentage holds true this year, total turnout could approach 8,000.

Among the key races to be decided are Dawson County Sheriff where Tony Wooten, Jeff Johnson, Jeff Perry and Frank Sosebee are the candidates.

Voters must also decide who will fill the Ninth District Congressional seat currently held by Doug Collins. Collins is facing a serious challenge from former 10th District Congressman Paul Broun, Lanier Tea Party Patriots founder Mike Scupin, White County educator Roger Fitzpatrick and retired Army and National Guard Brigadier General Bernie Fontaine.

At the state level, District 51 State Senator Steve Gooch of Dahlonega is being challenged by John Williamson, co-founder of the Gilmer County Tea Party.

Locally, voters must fill two vacant seats on the Board of Commissioners after Chairman Mike Berg and District 2 Commissioner James Swafford decided not to run again.

Bill Thurmond and Peter J. Hill will compete for the Chairman’s seat and Chris Gaines and Tim Davis are the candidates in District 2. In District 4, incumbent Julie Nix has drawn a challenge from Heather Hulsebus, former Chairwoman of the Dawson County Republican Party.

The Tax Commissioner race features four candidates, Andi Henson Juliette, Karin McKee, Johnny Glass and Nicole Stewart.

No Democrats have qualified in any of the races, so the winner of the General Primary will take office in January.

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Fitzpatrick Has Strong Performance at Town Hall

News, Politics

GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Roger Fitzpatrick, an ex-Marine and former White County administrator, appears to have established himself as the No. 1 contender for 9th District Congressman Doug Collins’ job with a strong performance during the AccessWDUN/Gainesville Times town hall meeting at Brenau Downtown Center last night.

Fitzpatrick demonstrated confidence, knowledge of the issues and likeability in responding to questions from a near-capacity crowd that showed its appreciation with loud and frequent applause for the Cleveland, Georgia native.

In addition to Fitzpatrick and Collins, the 90-minute event featured Lanier Tea Party Patriots founder Mike Scupin, retired Army and National Guard Brigadier General Bernie Fontaine and former 10th District Congressman Paul Broun. The challengers took turns answering questions from attendees as well as tweets from WDUN Radio’s listening audience.

Fitzpatrick, who served nine years in the Marine Corps Reserves and 32 years as a White County teacher and administrator, said veterans would be better served by getting rid of the Veterans Administration and allowing private industry to fill that role. He also called for an end to the Department of Education, saying, “The federal government has no business in education.”

He borrowed a line from President Bill Clinton when asked what is the most important issue facing the nation. “It’s the economy stupid,” he said. But, he added that getting government out of the way so businesses can thrive was a close second.

An issue that has plagued Collins throughout the campaign and has him in deep trouble with voters in the ultra conservative 9th District has been his support for President Barack Obama’s Omnibus bill. The bill provides funding for Planned Parenthood, the Muslim refugee program, sanctuary cities and a foreign worker program that costs Americans jobs at a time of increasing concerns about terrorist threats against the United States.

When Collins tried to explain his vote, he was shouted down by angry voters and his response was drowned out until Fitzpatrick’s Marine training kicked in and he stepped forward to admonish the audience, saying, “Show some respect, please.” The intervention earned Fitzpatrick the crowd’s admiration.

Collins then continued, saying, “The facts are if you could have gotten Planned Parenthood out of the Omnibus bill you would have done it but you couldn’t. The way you get it done is through the reconciliation act or a bill which I had voted for prior to that.” But that explanation failed to sway his opponents.

Fitzpatrick said, “Anything that would violate the moral conscience of a decent individual or the original intent (of the Constitution), you cannot vote for.” He also pointed out that Planned Parenthood is now paying for transgender operations.

Scupin called Collis’ explanation the “Doug Collins Dog and Pony Show” and said, “It doesn’t just happen with Planned Parenthood. It happens with nearly every vote he makes up there. He’s against the Department of Education because of how it effects his wife when she teaches and yet he votes to fund it. This has got to stop. Either you’re for it or against it.”

Broun said, “I would not have voted for the Omnibus bill. I never have.”

Voters also wanted to know if the candidates would support presumptive Republican nominee for President Donald Trump.

Fontaine said, “Of course I support Donald Trump.”

Scupin said, “Donald Trump is the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party and as such I definitely will support him. Donald Trump rose to the top of the Republican Party not because of Donald Trump but because of the Republican Party.Their failure to do the right thing when they had the opportunity is what gave him a path to this victory.”

Broun said, “The people have spoken. We need to have the people’s choice be the nominee of our party. I don’t want to see the establishment try to steal away the people’s choice.”

Collins seemed a bit more hesitant, saying, “If Trump is our nominee, I’ll support the nominee. But what about the values Donald Trump has. The question is where do you stand on conservative values? Will you be the standard bearer of our party’s values? The fact is that nobody in this room would be happy with Hillary Clinton in the White House. Nobody who would be happy with a socialist running the White House.

Fitzpatrick said, “I voted for Ted Cruz and would do so again but Donald Trump won the nomination and I will support the nominee. Whoever gets in there — and I sure do hope it’s Donald Trump — you’ve got to work with and if he stands up and does something I don’t like then he needs to be called out on it even if he is a Republican.”

Union County Republican Party / Union-Towns TEA Party 51st State Senate District, 9th Congressional District, and U.S. Senate Forum

Featured, Featured Stories, Politics

Union County Republican Party / Union -Towns TEA Party Forum 4/30/2016.

Scroll down to watch video of each forum.

forum moderator

Moderator Brian K. Pritchard

Republican U.S. Senate Candidates Dr. Mary Beth Bacallao and Mr. Derrick Grayson

john steve

51st District State Senate Republican Candidates John Williamson and Steve Gooch

9th group

Republican 9th District Congressional Candidates Roger Fitzpatrick, Paul Broun, Bernie Fontaine and Mike Scupin

https://youtu.be/ssQFt4An3Y4

 

https://youtu.be/iZIcMh42pbI

https://youtu.be/wuVWAUfxOxk

Lumpkin County Republican Party 51st State Senate District, 9th Congressional District, and U.S. Senate Forum

Politics

Lumpkin County Republican Party Forum 4/30/2016.

Scroll down to watch video of each forum.

mary kay derrick

Republican Primary U.S. Senate Candidates Dr. Mary Kay Bacallao and Mr. Derrick Grayson

john steve

Republican Primary 51st District State Senate Candidates John Williamson and Steve Gooch

9th group

Republican Primary 9th Congressional District Candidates Roger Fitzpatrick, Paul Broun, Bernie Fontaine and Mike Scupin

 

https://youtu.be/DEwu_VWtA8k

https://youtu.be/G9btkRfBW_c

https://youtu.be/OXtFSefwoeA

Congressional Panel 4/22/16

Election, Politics

BKP sits down with 4 Congressional Candidates to talk about issues facing America and Georgia.

https://youtu.be/l7SvcCEld4I

Tuesday is Deadline to Register for May Primary

News, Politics

DAWSON COUNTY, Ga. — Much is at stake in state and local elections May 24 but you can’t vote if you’re not registered and the last day to register is Tuesday, April 26.

One of the most important races is in the 9th District where incumbent U.S. Congressman Doug Collins of Gainesville has come under fire from conservatives for his support of President Obama’s Omnibus bill. His challengers include former 10th District Congressman Paul Broun, Lanier Tea Party Patriots founder Mike Scupin, White County educator Roger Fitzpatrick and retired Army and National Guard Brigadier General Bernie Fontaine.

State Senator Steve Gooch of Dahlonega is running for reelection in the 51st District and has drawn a challenger in John Williamson, co-founder of the Gilmer County Tea Party.

There are two vacant seats on the Board of Commissioners after Chairman Mike Berg and District 2 Commissioner James Swafford decided not to run again. Bill Thurmond and Peter J. Hill will compete for the Chairman’s seat and Chris Gaines and Tim Davis are the candidates in District 2. In District 4, incumbent Julie Nix has drawn a challenge from Heather Hulsebus, former Chairwoman of the Dawson County Republican Party.

There is also a four-way race to replace retiring Sheriff Billy Carlisle and all four candidates have many years of experience in law enforcement. The candidates are Frank Sosebee, Jeff Johnson, Jeff Perry and Tony Wooten.

The Tax Commissioner race also features four candidates, Andi Henson Juliette, Karin McKee, Johnny Glass and Nicole Stewart.

Advance voting begins Monday, May 2 and runs through May 20 (Mon. – Fri.). All advanced voting takes place at the Dawson County Board of Elections Office 96 Academy Avenue, Dawsonville.

No Democrats have qualified in any of the races, so the winner of the General Primary will take office in January.

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Challengers Blast Congressman Collins In Live Debate Broadcast on FYN TV

News, Politics

ELLIJAY, Ga. — In a fiery hour-long debate broadcast live on FYN TV and moderated by Fetch Your News owner Brian K. Pritchard Friday, four challengers — Paul Broun, Mike Scupin, Roger Fitzpatrick and Bernie Fontaine — took turns attacking Georgia’s 9th District Congressman Doug Collins on issues ranging from his support of President Obama’s Omnibus bill to what they see as his less than conservative voting record.

Fitzpatrick, a long time educator from White County, said Collins’ voting record is not representative of the 9th District, which he called, “the third most conservative district in the entire United States. If you look at the Conservative Review website, which grades everybody according to the original intent of the Constitution, Mr. Collins has a 59 percent voting record,” Fitzpatrick said.

By far the number one issue his opponents used to batter Collins was the Omnibus bill which most conservatives view with contempt because it provides funding for the Dreamer’s Act for children in the U.S. illegally, sanctuary cities, refugee programs, Middle East immigration programs that have been exploited by terrorists and Planned Parenthood.

Former 10th District U.S. Congressman Paul Broun said “The greatest moral issue we face as a nation is the killing of over one million babies every year and it must stop. The Omnibus bill funds Planned Parenthood while they go on butchering babies and selling baby parts.”

Broun added, “I have never voted for an omnibus bill and I never will.”
That gave Collins an opportunity to launch a conter attack. Collins claimed Broun voted for an omnibus bill in December 2007. “Either that’s an incompetence issue or you’re just lying,” Collins shot back.

Broun said his vote was not for the bill at all, but an amendment to the bill and that every Republican but one voted for the same amendment. “This is just more of the lies and distortion we get out of the Congressman,” Broun countered.

Lanier Tea Party Patriot Founder Mike Scupin said he would never have voted for the Omnibus bill and questioned how Collins could “swear an oath to the Constitution of the United States then vote for  it when it had so many unconstitutional things in it.”

Fontaine, a retired Army and National Guard Brigadier General who ran against Collins four years ago, said, “Congress was dysfunctional then and its dysfunctional now. What we have is a systemic problem with two career politicians against three citizen candidates.”

TEA Party of Gilmer County 9th District Debate; Paul Broun and Roger Fitzpatrick have heated exchange over the topic of ethics.

Politics

TEA Party of Gilmer County host 9th district debate. Candidates left to right: Mike Scupin, Paul Broun, Roger Fitzpatrick, Bernie Fontaine.

Congressman Doug Collins did not attend.

A must watch video.

https://youtu.be/KNTC5VB9z_w

Scupin & Fontaine Jointly Ask FEC to Investigate Collins and Collins Campaign Citing Evidence of Purposeful Violations

Politics

Below is the press release from Hank Sullivan. 9th District Congressional Candidates Mike Scupin and Bernie Fontaine send a letter to the Federal Election Commission concerning Congressman Doug Collins and the Collins campaign.

 

Today, Georgia 9th District candidates for US House of Representatives Mike Scupin and Bernie Fontaine signed a joint letter of complaint to the Federal Election Commission in Washington, DC, citing evidence that US Representative Doug Collins, his campaign and campaign consulting firm, The Stoneridge Group, have knowingly and willingly violated FEC regulations regarding the FEC requirement of attaching campaign disclaimers to all public communications authorized and paid for by a candidate or his/her campaign committee.  The letter asks for a full investigation of Collins and the Collins Campaign, including Collins’ campaign consultant.

The joint letter, which can be found below, and a companion video, cites evidence of three recent instances in which the Collins Campaign, including Rep. Collins personally, and his campaign consultant The Stoneridge Group(SRG), have used a proprietary news and commentary website known aswww.zpolitics.com, owned and operated by the founder and owner of SRG, to offer paid Collins campaign materials to an unsuspecting public, resulting in a process of information laundering, posturing these paid campaign materials as objective news and commentary, and with no campaign disclaimers as the FEC requires, rather than as part of a political campaign supporting Collins in his bid to be reelected 9th District US Representative.
The letter released jointly by Scupin and Fontaine offers solid evidence of these FEC violations and asks for the FEC to perform a full investigation regarding the involvement of the Collins campaign, including Collins himself, Collins’ campaign staff, Collins’ campaign consultant SRG, SRG’s owner Jason Williams and the workings of Williams’ personally-owned and operated website, Zpolitics.com.

The letter can be read below:

 

Hall County GOP 9th District Congressional Debate. Doug Collins, Paul Broun, Mike Scupin, Roger Fitzpatrick, Bernie Fontaine

Politics
Hall Paul Broun

Paul Broun FetchYourNews.com

Hall Mike Scupin

Mike Scupin FetchYourNews.com

Roger Fitzpatrick

Roger Fitzpatrick FetchYourNews.com

Hall Doug Collins

Doug Collins FetchYourNews.com

Hall Bernie Fontaine

Bernie Fontaine FetchYourNews.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3DEHrYkA0g&feature=youtu.be

9th District Congressional Candidates Debate

News, Politics
GAINESVILLE, Ga. —  Incumbent 9th District U.S. Congressman Doug Collins faced off against four Republican challengers in a mostly civil, but occasionally heated and even emotional candidate forum hosted by the Hall County Republican Party Saturday morning.
A standing room only crowd listened as former 10th District Congressman Paul Broun, Lanier Tea Party Patriots Founder Mike Scupin, retired White County educator Roger Fitzpatrick retired U.S. Army and National Guard Brigadier General Bernie Fontaine and Collins fielded questions ranging from taxes to the budget to foreign intervention and illegal immigration.
Some Republicans and many Tea Party members have been angered by Collins’ vote for President Barack Obama’s Omnibus bill, which they point out funds Planned Parenthood, amnesty and the Syrian refugee replacement program. Saturday, he stood alone in defending that vote.
“There were things in it I didn’t like.” he said. “But it was preferable to a continuing resolution. The difference is the continuing resolution maintains spending from the prior year with no changes allowed. The Omnibus bill actually allows for some cuts.”
Broun said, “I have never voted for an Omnibus bill and I never will. There was no reason to vote for that bill.”
Scupin said, “I would never vote for an Omnibus bill either. They are ill-conceived. They allow everyone to put something in there and invariable they are unconstitutional.”
Fitzpatrick said he would not vote for an Omnibus bill. “There is too much in there and they don’t let you vote on the merits of the bill,” he said.
“Get rid of the Omnibus spending bill and get back to reality,” Fontaine added.
Broun drew loud applause from the audience when he said he wants to get rid of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “The EPA has been a tremendous threat to jobs and industry in this country,” he said. “I was disappointed when I read in the Gainesville Times that the EPA would not fund Glades Reservoir, a multi million dollar
capital improvement project in Hall County.
A question about sending American troops into harm’s way, drew an emotional response from Fontaine, a Viet Nam veteran with 30 years of military experience. The Suches resident was moved to tears in saying he could not support an authorization for use of military force (AUMF) in Syria.
“Not under the current Commander in Chief,” he said, his voice breaking. “We need a Commander in Chief that will listen to our military leaders. We need to take this a lot more seriously and if we’re going to go to war, we need to go all out. I said that in 1961 in Viet Nam when I went up for my first promotion and I haven’t changed my mind.”
Moderator Joe Shubert spent more than five minutes grilling Broun on the conduct of his former Chief of Staff David G. Bowser, who this week was named in a federal indictment charging him with misappropriation of taxpayer funds during Broun’s 2008 campaign.
“To make any allegation that I misused taxpayer money is absolutely false,” Broun said. “If I was deficient in my budget then I would have had to pay it out of my own pocket which I never did. I actually returned money back to the federal government every single year.”
After the forum, Broun’s campaign manager Ryan Neel said he felt Shubert was badgering his client by asking question after question, something he did not do with any other candidate.
Despite that, he was pleased with his candidate’s performance.
“I thought he did really well,” he said. “We were able to shine a light on things that have been overlooked, especially Collins’ vote for the Omnibus bill.”
Collins said he thought the forum went well. “I’m never afraid to get in front of the people and tell the truth.” He also said he gave a good accounting of his vote for the Omnibus bill saying, “11 of 12 Georgians voted for the bill.”
Hank Sullivan, Scupin’s campaign manager declared victory for his candidate. “Mike killed them,” he said. “Look at the applause he got from people that really don’t know him. He did a great job of telling people the truth and being honest with the people.”

9th District Congress Candidates Meet in Forum

News, Politics

GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Independence Day won’t roll around for three more months, but expect plenty of fireworks when the Hall County Republican Party hosts a forum for candidates for 9th District Congress at its headquarters on Queen City Parkway Saturday at 10 a.m.

In fact, the pyrotechnics have already started. Incumbent Congressman Doug Collins has three other challengers in retired White County educator Roger Fitzpatrick, Bernie Fontaine, a retired U.S. Army and National Guard Brigadier General, and Lanier Tea Party Patriots Founder Mike Scupin.

But so far, Collins and Broun have aimed most of their early firepower at each other.

A Collins campaign ad blasts Broun for “nearly bankrupting his congressional office budget with an excessive amount of taxpayer-funded mail” during a failed bid for the U.S. Senate.

Collins received extra ammunition this week when it was announced that Broun’s former Chief of Staff David Bowser was indicted for supposedly using taxpayer funds to cover the cost of a campaign consultant.

But as politicians often note, you can indict a ham sandwich. Broun a physician who was first elected to represent the 10th Congressional District in 2007 and served until his unsuccessful campaign for the U.S. Senate in 2014, calls the indictment a “political witch hunt.”

Broun calls his campaign the Fed Up Express and blasts Collins for being an establishment Republican who supported John Boehner for Speaker of the House and voted to pass President Obama’s Omnibus bill which, he said, funds everything from Obamacare to amnesty for illegal aliens to the Syrian refugee resettlement.

Morning Monologue 4/7/16

Election, Politics

See BKP’s full Morning Monologue with Doug Collins and the 9th District.
You can also see the interview on its own further below.

https://youtu.be/otHtNSucMXc

https://youtu.be/0v-rFHYVfRI

Debate, Time for Doug Collins and Paul Broun to square off Face to Face

Politics

Congressman Doug Collins would like to continue representing the 9th District but first he must get past four opponents in the Republican primary on May 24th. Collins is being challenged by former 10th District Congressman Paul Broun, Mike Scupin, Roger Fitzpatrick, and Bernie Fontaine.

Collins seems to be zeroing in on Broun although he has three other opponents. Scupin, Fitzpatrick, and Fontaine have been attending meet and greet events throughout the District. We are not aware of Fitzpatrick or Fontaine launching radio ads or social media campaigning; however the Scupin campaign is questioning Collins’ congressional voting record with daily attacks via social media.

The Collins campaign launched a radio ad claiming Broun abused taxpayers’ money and alleged he is under a federal criminal investigation.

Here’s the transcript:

Collins: “I’m Doug Collins and I approve this message….”

Narrator: “Career politician Paul Broun. Former congressman Broun’s hypocrisy is bad, but Paul Broun’s repeated abuse of the taxpayers’ money is even worse.

“Paul Broun claims to be an outsider. But Paul Broun’s been on the ballot 12 times in 26 years for six different political positions. He’s so desperate to further his political career, Broun’s now campaigning for Congress in a district he doesn’t even live in.

“While Paul Broun’s hypocrisy knows no bounds, Broun’s abuse of taxpayer’s money is even worse. In Congress, Broun nearly bankrupted his office budget with an excessive amount of taxpayer-funded mail. And now, former congressman Paul Broun is under a federal criminal investigation into his use of taxpayer money to aid his failed U.S. Senate campaign.

“Career politician Paul Broun’s hypocrisy is bad, but Paul Broun’s abuse of the taxpayers’ money is even worse.”

When the Collins campaign released its schedule of debates they made reference that Broun did not live in the 9th District by saying:   

“I know these counties are a long ways away for Oconee County’s Paul Broun, but since he’s running over here in the 9th I encourage him to make the drive.”

Broun has responded with a radio ad attacking Collins’ record in congress. Broun refers to Collins as “Establishment.”  Establishment is almost like a four letter word in the current political climate. The ad points out how Collins voted for the Omnibus Bill and showed support for former Speaker of the House John Boehner.

“I’m Dr. Paul Broun, I approve this message. You’ve probably heard the personal attack ads Establishment Politician Doug Collins has against me. They are full of distortions and half-truths. My daddy told me a half truth is a whole lie. And the whole truth is he’s desperate to distract you from his record. Establishment Doug Collins voted for Boehner for Speaker. Twice. Even after you told him not to. Then Collins voted for Boehner’s Omnibus Bill that fully funds Planned Parenthood, Obamacare, and Obama’s amnesty plan. Nancy Pelosi said ‘They really gave away the store.’ Attack ads can’t change a voting record. But I’m proud to talk about mine. I have a record of fighting the Establishment. I voted against Boehner as Speaker. I opposed all Omnibus bills. My record shows I’m a consistent, conservative, constitutionalist”

When Collins and Broun attend the forums they will be sharing the stage with three other candidates. Considering the time limits and the format for the forums, Collins and Broun may not have the opportunity to truly debate the issues.

Due to the busy nightly campaign schedule FetchYourNews.com, Good Morning from the Office with BKP,  has invited Collins and Broun to a debate which would be held from 8-10 am. This would be during our live morning broadcast.

FYN has sent both campaigns an invitation to participate in this one on one debate opportunity.

 Broun’s campaign has accepted stating, “I accept your invitation.  I’m certain we can arrange our schedule to accommodate your request. Please let me know. Thank you.

Paul Broun M.D.”

We have not heard back from the Collins campaign at this time.

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