ARPEC Endorses Candidates for the October 12th Election
Congressman Ralph Abraham
Candidate for Louisiana Governor |
Greg Spiers
Candidate for BESE District 6 |
Kathy Edmonston
Candidate for House District 88 |
Fact-Checking Eddie Rispone's Attacks on Ralph Abraham
Below is a response from Ralph Abraham's campaign to accusations by the Eddie Rispone campaign.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham said he would donate his congressional salary to charity, but he lied, and bought himself a new airplane instead. (Citation used: The News Star, June 20, 2017).
THE TRUTH: False AND intentionally misleading. 1.) After his election to Congress, House Ethics ruled that Abraham could no longer receive private income as a part-time practicing physician. Despite this ruling, Ralph Abraham nonetheless DID donate his salary to charity in his first term of Congress. He and his wife have continued to give hundreds of thousands of dollars to charity each year. 2.) The article Rispone cites actually references an airplane that Ralph Abraham owned well before running for public office, purchased in 2013. Ralph Abraham sold that plane in 2017, and used said proceeds to purchase a plane virtually identical to the one he previously owned.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham (missed more votes) than any Congressman in America. (Citation used: 9/2/19 Pro-Publica)
THE TRUTH: Rispone’s attack on Abraham’s attendance record is intentionally misleading. It does not specify the time period this statistic is selectively referencing. In the 114th Congress (2015-16) for example, Abraham missed only 2 votes out of 1,325 (0.15%). In the 115t h Congress (2016-18), Abraham missed only 18 votes out of 1,210 (1.49%).
*For historical context, Louisiana is one of a very small number of states (1 of 5) who hold their Gubernatorial Elections in an off-year cycle, relative to congressional election cycles. In the competitive 1987 Louisiana Gubernatorial Campaign, three U.S. Representatives ran for Governor: Note their attendance records over the same period.
In the 1987 Gubernatorial Campaign:
U.S. Rep. Buddy Roemer missed 60.12% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
U.S. Rep. Bob Livingston missed 46.73% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
U.S. Rep. Billy Tauzin missed 57.32% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
In the 2019 Gubernatorial Campaign:
U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham missed 43.40% of votes between 01/01/19 – 09/17/19.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Called on President Trump To Step Down. (Citation used: 10/08/16 The Advocate)
THE TRUTH: This statement is FALSE, and INTENTIONALLY misleading.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Joined Nancy Pelosi To Oppose a Border Wall. (Citation Used: HR 1625, March 22, 2018. HR 1636, June 27, 2018.)
THE TRUTH: 100% FALSE. Rispone’s attack uses two instruments of legislation as a reference. Abraham voted NO on the first referenced piece of legislation because it fell far short of the President’s request for border wall funding, and he voted NO on the second instrument reference because it would have granted AMNESTY to illegal aliens.
1.) Abraham voted NO on HR 1625 (2018 Omnibus), and was joined by Rep. Mike Johnson, Rep. Clay Higgins, Rep. Garret Graves in voting NO. Rep. Nancy Pelosi voted YES. This bill only included $1.6 billion for the border wall, much less than the $25 billion requested by the President. He said the following after voting against this bill. "This 2,200 page omnibus dropped less than a day before we voted on it, and no one could possibly have read it all in that amount of time. I do know enough to see that it breaks the budget compromise we struck last month by tacking on billions in extra spending on pet projects, rather than focusing on the money our military and border security need. Dropping a $1.3 trillion spending bill - one that breaks a deal we struck just last month - hours before it needs to pass is an irresponsible way to govern, and that’s why I voted against it," Dr. Abraham said
2.) Abraham voted NO on HR 6136 (Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018) in the 115th Congress, because it would have granted AMNESTY to illegal aliens. Abraham was joined in voting NO by Rep. Mike Johnson and Rep. Garret Graves. The bill ultimately failed. He issued the following statement after the vote. "My constituents have made it very clear to me that they do not want amnesty for illegal immigrants, and my vote today against the immigration bill reflected my commitment to them that I will never support amnesty. While the bill included some good things, it went too far in granting amnesty for about 2 million people who came into this country illegally," Dr. Abraham said.
In the previous week, Dr. Abraham voted in FAVOR of the Goodlatte-McCaul immigration reform bill, but it did not garner enough votes for passage. Dr. Abraham was a cosponsor of that bill.
"I believe the House should focus on winning over enough votes to pass the original Goodlatte-McCaul bill that accomplished everything that we as conservatives want: building a border wall, cracking down on sanctuary cities, ending the visa lottery system, and stopping chain migration," Dr. Abraham said.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Voted with Nancy Pelosi Over 300 Times.
THE TRUTH: Completely Misleading and Disingenuous. In the 114t h Congress, there were 1,200 votes, and the votes RISPONE references were all bi-partisan or minor issues such as the naming of Post Offices. Pelosi agreed with Abraham on these bi-partisan bills 290 times. For comparison, Pelosi agreed with Rep. Garret Graves 290 times, and Rep. Steve Scalise 284 times. In the 115t h Congress, out of 1061 votes cast, Pelosi and Abraham agreed on 327 votes. For comparison, Pelosi agreed with Rep. Mike Johnson 323 times, Rep. Garret Graves 317 times, Rep. Clay Higgins 321 times, and she voted with Rep. Steve Scalise, who was forced to miss votes due to hospitalization following his tragic shooting, 263 times.
THE TRUTH: False AND intentionally misleading. 1.) After his election to Congress, House Ethics ruled that Abraham could no longer receive private income as a part-time practicing physician. Despite this ruling, Ralph Abraham nonetheless DID donate his salary to charity in his first term of Congress. He and his wife have continued to give hundreds of thousands of dollars to charity each year. 2.) The article Rispone cites actually references an airplane that Ralph Abraham owned well before running for public office, purchased in 2013. Ralph Abraham sold that plane in 2017, and used said proceeds to purchase a plane virtually identical to the one he previously owned.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham (missed more votes) than any Congressman in America. (Citation used: 9/2/19 Pro-Publica)
THE TRUTH: Rispone’s attack on Abraham’s attendance record is intentionally misleading. It does not specify the time period this statistic is selectively referencing. In the 114th Congress (2015-16) for example, Abraham missed only 2 votes out of 1,325 (0.15%). In the 115t h Congress (2016-18), Abraham missed only 18 votes out of 1,210 (1.49%).
*For historical context, Louisiana is one of a very small number of states (1 of 5) who hold their Gubernatorial Elections in an off-year cycle, relative to congressional election cycles. In the competitive 1987 Louisiana Gubernatorial Campaign, three U.S. Representatives ran for Governor: Note their attendance records over the same period.
In the 1987 Gubernatorial Campaign:
U.S. Rep. Buddy Roemer missed 60.12% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
U.S. Rep. Bob Livingston missed 46.73% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
U.S. Rep. Billy Tauzin missed 57.32% of votes between 01/01/87 – 09/30/87.
In the 2019 Gubernatorial Campaign:
U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham missed 43.40% of votes between 01/01/19 – 09/17/19.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Called on President Trump To Step Down. (Citation used: 10/08/16 The Advocate)
THE TRUTH: This statement is FALSE, and INTENTIONALLY misleading.
- Abraham praised Trump as a candidate for President more than a year before the election. Abraham Credits Trump with casting light on issues. Daily World, Opelousas, LA. 21 Aug 2015, Fri, Page1
- Abraham was arguably the most outspoken member of the LA Delegation in support of Candidate Trump and among the first to endorse his campaign in Louisiana. GOP delegation begins rallying To Trump. The Town Talk, Alexandria, Louisiana. 08 May 2016, Sun. Page A3
- Abraham did express serious concerns immediately following the lewd comments on the Access Hollywood tape involving Billy Bush. Abraham has since stated the following: “President Trump used a poor choice of words, and so did I. The facts remain however that I continued to strongly support then candidate Trump, and since his election to the White House I’ve been one of his most loyal and supportive allies in Congress.”
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Joined Nancy Pelosi To Oppose a Border Wall. (Citation Used: HR 1625, March 22, 2018. HR 1636, June 27, 2018.)
THE TRUTH: 100% FALSE. Rispone’s attack uses two instruments of legislation as a reference. Abraham voted NO on the first referenced piece of legislation because it fell far short of the President’s request for border wall funding, and he voted NO on the second instrument reference because it would have granted AMNESTY to illegal aliens.
1.) Abraham voted NO on HR 1625 (2018 Omnibus), and was joined by Rep. Mike Johnson, Rep. Clay Higgins, Rep. Garret Graves in voting NO. Rep. Nancy Pelosi voted YES. This bill only included $1.6 billion for the border wall, much less than the $25 billion requested by the President. He said the following after voting against this bill. "This 2,200 page omnibus dropped less than a day before we voted on it, and no one could possibly have read it all in that amount of time. I do know enough to see that it breaks the budget compromise we struck last month by tacking on billions in extra spending on pet projects, rather than focusing on the money our military and border security need. Dropping a $1.3 trillion spending bill - one that breaks a deal we struck just last month - hours before it needs to pass is an irresponsible way to govern, and that’s why I voted against it," Dr. Abraham said
2.) Abraham voted NO on HR 6136 (Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018) in the 115th Congress, because it would have granted AMNESTY to illegal aliens. Abraham was joined in voting NO by Rep. Mike Johnson and Rep. Garret Graves. The bill ultimately failed. He issued the following statement after the vote. "My constituents have made it very clear to me that they do not want amnesty for illegal immigrants, and my vote today against the immigration bill reflected my commitment to them that I will never support amnesty. While the bill included some good things, it went too far in granting amnesty for about 2 million people who came into this country illegally," Dr. Abraham said.
In the previous week, Dr. Abraham voted in FAVOR of the Goodlatte-McCaul immigration reform bill, but it did not garner enough votes for passage. Dr. Abraham was a cosponsor of that bill.
"I believe the House should focus on winning over enough votes to pass the original Goodlatte-McCaul bill that accomplished everything that we as conservatives want: building a border wall, cracking down on sanctuary cities, ending the visa lottery system, and stopping chain migration," Dr. Abraham said.
RISPONE’S ACCUSATION: Ralph Abraham Voted with Nancy Pelosi Over 300 Times.
THE TRUTH: Completely Misleading and Disingenuous. In the 114t h Congress, there were 1,200 votes, and the votes RISPONE references were all bi-partisan or minor issues such as the naming of Post Offices. Pelosi agreed with Abraham on these bi-partisan bills 290 times. For comparison, Pelosi agreed with Rep. Garret Graves 290 times, and Rep. Steve Scalise 284 times. In the 115t h Congress, out of 1061 votes cast, Pelosi and Abraham agreed on 327 votes. For comparison, Pelosi agreed with Rep. Mike Johnson 323 times, Rep. Garret Graves 317 times, Rep. Clay Higgins 321 times, and she voted with Rep. Steve Scalise, who was forced to miss votes due to hospitalization following his tragic shooting, 263 times.
Video: ARPEC Forum for Parish Council and Parish President Candidates
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Ascension RINO
There are presently five Ascension Parish councilmen who are registered Republicans. Find out their record for last three and a half years on taxes, government, and freedom while serving on the Ascension Parish Council. Four of the five are on our "RINO" watch list! Click on "Ascension RINO" to see each scorecard.
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Click on the picture below to see a presentation.
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LOCATION:
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ATTENTION: November 12, 2019 6:30 p.m. The Cabin Restaurant General Store |
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