Category Archives: Public Policy

Choose You This Day

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Choose you this day. Those words are familiar. It is likely that you have already finished the phrase in your mind.

In his final address, to the nation of Israel, Joshua stood before the nation that he had led into the Promised Land. He reminded them of God’s providential care. He reminded them of God’s abundant blessings.

Joshua also warned them of the danger that lurked and would attack the foundation of their freedom. Then Joshua challenged the people to make a willful, conscious, decision to choose.

Joshua concluded with his decision. “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15)

Today, America stands at the point of decision. We are in a time like never before.

The primary issues today are no longer about the size of government, tax policy, or regulation. Today we see mob violence, destruction, and an intentional, planned, assault on America.

What began as calls for the removal of memorial statues, has now taken on the face of mob destruction and violence. Today statues of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt are not only criticized but defaced and damaged.

Princeton University removed Woodrow Wilson’s name from its Public Policy Center. The Democrat Party in Orange County, California called for the renaming of the John Wayne airport because of comments he made in an interview with Playboy magazine half a century ago.

This mob frenzy has surpassed mere political correctness. It has now metastasized into a cancer that is out to destroy America itself.

Democrats blame President Trump for the violence while at the same time they call for abolishing the police. Seattle handed over several blocks of the city to a lawless mob who apparently could not settle on the name of their newly formed republic, “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone” (CHAZ) or “Capitol Hill Organized Protest” (CHOP).

In the first month of CHAZ/CHOP, there were at least six shootings. After three shootings in a 48 hour time frame, one being fatal, the Mayor of Seattle boldly proclaimed that the city “will not allow for gun violence to continue in the evenings around Capitol Hill.”

The Mayor’s proclamation was so effective that 72 hours later there was another shooting. A week later yet another shooting left a 16 year old dead and a 14 year old in critical condition.

Meanwhile, Democrats, including Sanford Bishop, are characteristically silent about the lawlessness, crime, destruction, and decay. The problem is that Democrats have controlled these areas for decades. What happened in a matter of weeks in CHAZ/CHOP was just Democrat leadership on steroids.

Today, America stands at a critical crossroads. The violence and destruction that we see around our nation share no DNA with the values of the people of the 2nd District.

I am speaking up and standing up for your values. I am speaking up and standing up for you as I challenge Sanford Bishop.

I need you to stand with me. I need you to put skin in the game with me.

I am regularly asked if the Republican party will support our race. Yes they will, but they need to see that the people of the 2nd District are standing up. Now is the time to take a stand.

When you donate to Don Cole for Congress, the money stays with my campaign and is focused right here on my campaign. Your contribution will go to promote your values and you can count on that.

You may have never donated to a political campaign before. Now is the time, today is the day.

We are at a time as never before. Right now, you, not anyone else, but you stand at a point of decision.

Some of my readers have already given generously and sacrificially. If you have not given to my campaign yet, then I ask you to do it now.

The number of individual donors is just as important as how much the donors give. Will you put some skin in the game by donating as little as $2.20 (2nd District in 20) or $20.20 (Send DC to DC in 2020)?

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Want to mail a check? Send to: (See Campaign Disclosure Notice At the bottom of this e-mail:


Don Cole for Congress
P.O. Box 1181
Cordele, GA 31010

Thank you in advance for putting your skin in the game with me and making an investment in America. May God bless you and may God bless America.

Sincerely,

By clicking “Donate”, I certify that the following statements are true and accurate:

– I am a U.S. Citizen or lawfully admitted permanent resident

– This contribution is made from my personal funds, not from an account maintained by a corporation, labor union, or national bank, and is not being reimbursed by another person or entity.

– I am not a federal government contractor.

– I understand that this contribution is not tax deductible.

Federal law requires us to use our best efforts to collect and report the name, address, occupation, and employer of individuals whose contribution exceeds $200 in an election cycle.

The maximum amount an individual may contribute is $2,800 per election. The primary and the general are considered to be separate elections.  For contributions received on or before May 19, 2020, your contribution (up to $2,800) will be designated for the primary election, and the next $2,800 will be designated for the general election.  For contributions received after May 19, 2020, your contribution will be designated to the general election.

Federal law prohibits contributions from corporations, labor unions, federal contractors, and foreign nationals

If you would rather contribute by mail, please send a personal check made payable to “Don Cole for Congress, Inc.” to:

Don Cole for Congress, Inc.
P. O. Box 1181
Cordele, GA 31010

Please include your full name, address, email address, occupation and employer in the envelope.

PAID FOR BY DON COLE FOR CONGRESS, INC.

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Enough With the Politics

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Democrats in Washington have sunk to a new low. They should be focusing on an immediate response to an immediate need. Instead they use this crisis to kick Americans when they are down.

President Trump, in a two hour press conference yesterday, expressed frustration at Senate Democrats. The President said that they had an agreement but Democrats wanted to tack on provisions totally unrelated to the immediate need.FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather

Day of Prayer – March 15, 2020

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Yesterday, President Trump declared today, March 15, 2020, as a National Day of Prayer for all Americans Affected by the Coronavirus Pandemic and for our National Response Efforts. I am including a link to the President’s Proclamation at the end of this note.

Our National Motto is, “In God We Trust.” It is in times of emergency or uncertainty that we return to those four simple words. FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather

Brothers in Arms

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There is a tight bond that ties men who served together in the military. Young men in their late teens and early twenties from different communities, different cultures, different religious backgrounds, different ways of life were put together for a primary purpose – to defend the United States of America. 

Veterans from 549th MP Company Ft. Davis/Coco Solo Canal Zone 1971-1976

Over a period of a few months, the men from diverse backgrounds became brothers in arms. Those few months in the lives of these men created a tight bond that would stand out uniquely for the rest of their lives.FacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailFacebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmailby feather

Jay Powell

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As a pastor, being around funeral homes is a part of the ministry. I have heard funeral directors sometimes comment, “they come in threes.”

Beth Slocum called me early yesterday morning and told me that her brother, and my friend, Jay Powell, died. Like everyone else who heard the news, it was a shock.

Jay was not ill. He was actively engaged in his law practice and as a leader in the Georgia Legislature. This came out of nowhere.

Beth and Jay’s father, A. J. Powell, passed away last September. He lived to be 100. That is one where family and friends grieve over a loved one but also understand that 100 years is more than most have on this earth.

In October, Beth’s husband, Jody Slocum, died after a very short illness. That one hit hard.

Beth and the whole family were leaning on Jay to work through all the legal matters of their father’s estate.

Now her little brother who also is one of the most respected leaders in the Georgia House of Representatives died of a sudden heart attack. The question that everyone asks at a time like this, “Why?”

The only thing that I could think was the old gospel song, “We’ll Understand it Better By and By.” As I write this, I am listening to a Bill Gaither Homecoming Vocal Band with the full audience singing that old song.

You may facing something that you don’t understand and find some comfort in this old song as well. Here’s the link.

I get a chance to travel around South Georgia and visit with farmers. Any time I was in Mitchell County, I made it a point to stop by Jay’s law office. If he was in, and not with another client, he always asked me to come back to his office to visit for a while.

The simple wooden table in his office usually had law books and papers stacked around with one set, in front of him, marked up with his notes. It may have been a deed, will, or a bill in the legislature that would impact millions of citizens of Georgia.

He never seemed too swamped or overwhelmed to sit and talk for a while. He shared observations on politics and always wanted my take on various matters. Rural Georgia will miss his leadership and advocacy. All of Georgia will miss his straight shooting.

Once he voted no on a bill than I advocated. I could not understand his vote and sent him an e-mail asking. He wrote back that he wanted to meet and talk about it. We did have a chance to talk a little while later.

There was no pounding the table, defensiveness, avoidance, or power play. He simply walked through several provisions in the bill that he felt were not thought through before passing.

We started the visit as close friends and ended it just as close, if not closer. I told him that I understood the particular concerns that he raised, but still felt that the bill was good and glad that it passed and was signed by Governor Kemp.

I recall one particular time that is still vivid in my memory. We had visited about several matters. I was serving on a state board at the time. The agency leaders were constantly rolling out new rules and I was pushing back.

In this particular visit with Jay in his law office, we talked about a lot of different issues but the agency matters were peripheral at most. As I got up to leave his office, he stopped me and simply said, “I want you to know that I appreciate you taking on the bureaucracy.”

I miss Jay and going through Camilla will never be the same. For family members, there are no words. The best I can offer is that we’ll understand it better by and by.

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My Take on the Schiff Hearings

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I have had several people ask me about the hearings that the House Intelligence Committee held over the past two weeks. I heard a lot of interpretations, understandings, and opinions from witnesses, but no facts that differed from the transcript of the phone call to the Ukrainian President that President Trump provided. 

The witnesses were all connected with the State Department or Intelligence community. They appeared to be disturbed over the call because the President did not follow their talking points or because he made the call at all. 

It was clear that Democrats set the rules to prevent Republican participation to the fullest degree possible.  When Republican Congressman David Nunes attempted to yield a portion of his time for questioning to Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, Schiff ruled her out of order because the rules, adopted just two weeks earlier, only allowed Nunes to yield time to the legal counsel.

One of the most revealing moments came when Republican Jim Jordan asked Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman to name the individual to whom he spoke about the call. Vindman had earlier testified that he spoke to someone in the intelligence community. 

Vindman had also testified that he did not know who the whistleblower was. When Jordan asked to whom Vindman spoke, Chairman Schiff immediately interjected that he was not going to allow the witness to identify the whistleblower.

Jordan pointed out the obvious logic that if Vindman does not know who the whistleblower is and Schiff had publicly stated that he did not know who the whistleblower is, then how was Vindman outing the whistleblower?

What happens next? It looks like the Intelligence Committee will make a recommendation to the House Judiciary Committee to proceed with formal impeachment hearings. 

The report will present the opinions of the unelected bureaucrats as the troubling proof that the President abused his authority and should be removed. I do not think that Republicans will be allowed to provide a minority report .

Since Democrats have a majority, the Schiff report will be treated as the gospel. Democrats in the House will wring their hands in anguish over this travesty by the President as the Judiciary Committee begins its hearings.

Democrats will wield the power in the House of the simple majority and try to find one Republican to join them. If they find just one Republican to join them, be prepared to hear the term “bi-partisan majority impeachment”  until you are sick of hearing it.  

The high stakes match up comes if Nancy Pelosi goes through with this for a full impeachment vote. Once the matter goes over to the Senate, the Republicans are in control and they will not be gagged. 

All of this going on here at Christmas time is the lump of coal in the stocking for the American people every time they turn on the news. There is a bright side to this though.

Given the dismal viewership ratings of the Schiff hearings, Americans won’t be watching the news. They will be too busy watching Hallmark Christmas movies and shopping.

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