Staff Writer

Podcasting has quickly grown to become a highly competitive info-market. Busy people want information, but need it on demand, on their terms, and podcast listener-ship has grown exponentially due to advances in do-it-yourself technology and enormous access provided by iTunes and others.

At the top of the podcast kingdom are a couple hundred top-rated shows that are largely re-broadcasts of already popular radio programs, such as Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and others. There are also a handful of podcasts that reached the top without any name notoriety, but by simply producing a great show and having it catch on.

One such podcast that hopes to fall into the latter group is The Persistent Conservative. Having published its first show on November 11, 2009, it’s still new and much of its popularity is due to word of mouth from a core group of conservative fans on Twitter.

After a painfully boring, tedious learning curve in how to podcast correctly, Collin Buck and Scot Cerullo managed to find the right software, microphones and working knowledge to put together and publish a decidedly right of center political program that differs from other shows in many ways.

“The idea was to put together a weekly show that was irreverent, informative, almost like a magazine, with content juxtaposed to itself,” Co-Founder Scot Cerullo said. “Recording a funny skit back-to-back with thoughtful content, along with a variety of other entertaining elements, satire and music has been our goal.”

The podcast, which began with two subscribers, Scot and Collin, has grown on average by over 150 new subscribers per month through the iTunes portal and their website, also of the same name, and with conservative fans on Twitter and numerous Google searches, continues gaining strength.

One of the mainstays of the weekly podcast is a segment titled Green Tip of the Week, in which Collin and Scot spoof the political left with “letters” written by listeners, exclaiming how they are attempting to reduce their carbon footprint, make better use of green energy, but always with a politically incorrect solution, and always designed to point out the “lunacy of the left”.

Another show element that sets The Persistent Conservative apart from some of its competitors is Collin Buck’s impressions of Arnold Swartzenager, Bill Cosby, Obama, Sean Connery and many other characters, who are written into loosely-followed scripts that create caricatures and over-the-top scenarios that have met with considerable approval from listeners.

“We want to deliver a message, and to do so we have to keep our audience interested and entertained,” Scot said.” “So the first rule of thumb we follow is not taking ourselves too seriously.”

No one has accused the creative duo of taking themselves too seriously. In one recent episode, they were bragging about their new tinfoil hats and in another how they had recently made upgrades to what they call the “Liberal Defense Grid”, a supposed electronic smart fence that protects “Cabin 1″ from stray liberals who per chance wander onto the property. (Cabin 1, for the uninitiated, is the location from which the podcast is supposedly recorded. It is claimed to be a real cabin set deep in the farmland of Upstate New York).

Both Scot and Collin are intent on growing the show to professional standards, and to keep it fresh with new ideas, new content and input from listeners. “We want to be responsive to what our audience is saying,” Collin said. “We want to appeal to a large demographic but also pay tribute to the guy in the back of the room with some one-off humor and occasional references that only a true political wonk would get.”

The art of  “old-style radio” may well be coming full circle in this podcast effort, with the use of sounds, humor, acting, skits, along with good, solid content. If you are interested in checking out this new kind of political show, you can subscribe free at iTunes. Just type in “The Persistent Conservative” in the search box, click subscribe, and that’s it.

*Editor’s Note: Collin Buck is an award-winning sales trainer, possesses a Mensa-level IQ and has a photographic memory. Scot Cerullo is an award-winning sleight-of-hand magician, former delegate in the 1984 election cycle, and likes shiny things.

Lady Libertas is pleased to announce my all out Endorsement for Brian Reilly for US Congress in Florida District 20.

Readers of Lady Libertas will remember me mentioning Brian Reilly last summer when I met him at the Tea Party Rally in Fort Lauderdale on July 4. ( See original post here )

Lady Libertas was impressed with Brian last summer and, certainly now, we need a GREAT Conservative & national grassroots support  to beat Debbie Wasserman-Schultz-the-Pelosi-Clone and the Democratic war chest that she will have access to!

Brian fell off the radar for a few months and it even looked like he was not going to be running towards the end of the year.  Lady Libertas found out after Christmas that Brian lost both of his parents last year and had dropped out of the race.  Thankfully, Brian rallied and supporters from Florida District 20 reached out and asked him to re-enter the race.  And he did.  And Lady Libertas is thrilled!

Brian’s campaign is picking up steam and will be kicking off at the BREC on 3/22 in Fort Lauderdale.

Javier from the Shark Tank has done a wonderful interview with Brian.  Javier is THE Florida Political Commentator Extraordinaire at The Shark Tank which is also where you can find all the MARCO RUBIO updates as well.

Please check out Brian Reilly’s Interview on the Shark Tank and please stop in and donate to Brian – we need a Real Conservative!

Brian is a successful Business man with businesses in his hometown in upstate New York and in Florida in District 20.

Brian is a real Conservative who has worked on Wall Street and returned to Main Street – he has met payrolls and created jobs.

Brian stands for Less Government, Low Taxes, Support of Israel and a strong defense against Terrorism.

Brian worked in New York on 9/11 and lost friends as the towers fell that horrible morning.

and did I mention that Brian’s Mom was a Reagan?  HA – Could he be the Reagan we need for Florida District 20?

Lady Libertas says YES!

Brian Reilly hits all the buttons for Lady Libertas – Please give him your support!

Stop in at the Shark Tank and leave some comments and visit Brian’s Site.

Let’s take the Pelosi-Clone that is Wasserman-Schultz OUT with a Real Conservative!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgSgieqllgE]

Brian Reilly for Congress Main Website

Brian Reilly for Congress (@BrianReilly2010) on Twitter

Brian Reilly for Congress on Facebook Fan Page

The Shark Tank for all Florida Politics Updates

by scot cerullo

With his first year as President under his belt, many initial Obama supporters have become disillusioned over the unrealized Hope and Change that drove the 2008 campaign like nitrous oxide.

Obama supporters, independents and a great number of Democrats are scratching their heads because, having climbed this historic political mountain together, having signed on to various get-out-the-vote ground operations, now stand at the pinnacle of the mountain and, looking over the horizon, do not see the post-partisan, post-racial utopia Obama articulated repeatedly and promised unequivocally during his campaign .

The lofty rhetoric that told of a new way of doing business in Washington, the brilliant young leader promising to right the wrongs of past administrations and restore America’s good name in the world, well, it’s kind of fizzled out.

Still, he had a majority in the House of Representatives and a super-majority in the Senate, so clearly a few missteps wouldn’t affect the powerful change to come.

Yet somehow, despite all the talk, and there has been much of that, a year after the election unemployment remains at an amazing 9%, people are walking away from their homes, and health care, something consistently rated low on the list of priorities among people in poll after poll, seems to be the all-consuming agenda item of this dynamic new kind of politician.

Obama supporters have discovered that Obama is long on enunciating problems, but short on providing effective remedies. Supporters are finding out that all that talk of post-partisanship simply has not materialized. In fact and quite oddly, this new-breed-of-politician has polarized Washington and the electorate in a manner not seen in modern political history.

Some argue that by not reaching out to small business, indeed ignoring the inclusion of the free market in any of his large-scale, government solutions, Obama is actually exacerbating a recession that by now, by historical records, should be resolving itself.

I won’t list the many errors the Obama administration has made over the past 12 months. They are there for anyone who cares to turn on their computer, TV or pick up a newspaper.

What I will point out is that Obama is governing against the will of the people. Never in modern history have so many apolitical voters gathered en masse to exclaim their disapproval. From the Tea Parties that began in the spring of 2009, the Town Hall meetings which pitted frightened taxpayers against tin-eared elected officials, to the massive, historic, and highly under-reported march on Washington, Obama appears to want to wish these people and their concerns away in favor of his ideas, his plan for America.

But time has a way of providing nuance and context. Reasonable people may disagree about a given issue, but in total the voting public has moved from unbridled enthusiasm to quixotic, to anger and dismay. It’s become so bad that Obama has both the Left and the Right angry.

But the November mid-term elections are coming. And this time, many voters don’t just want to see the GOP win, they want to see conservatives win. In one short year they miss having a leader who respects the free market, small business, and the notion that working hard and earning good money is nothing one should apologize for.

While President Obama may have had no track record or resume prior to his election, he does now. And it is dismal. We have discovered that rather than being post-partisan, his is ultra-partisan, rarely allowing Republicans to contribute ideas. Remember when George Bush asked Ted Kennedy to help him write the Education bill? That kind of politics hasn’t been around for some time.

The recent regional elections in Massachusetts, New Jersey and elsewhere are setting precedents and screaming out to the nation that many voters cannot wait for November.

While I never believed in Obama’s world view or politics, and it saddens me that it’s taken his election to prove I may be right, I am comforted by the mass awakening that is taking place and hope that it translates into quality conservatives being elected in November.

Finally, I offer this caution: Voters are not looking for the same GOP candidates from before. They are looking for tough, conservative leaders who have the strength and fortitude to make the hard, unpopular decisions that too many politicians put off for another day.

Well, that day has come. As state after state goes bankrupt, those thinking of running for office would do well to take a cue from the newly elected Republican Governor of New Jersey, Chris Christi. His recent speeches and his plans for his state speak volumes about how we will need to proceed as a viable nation.

We already know the alternative as Obama is demonstrating it each day.

Lady Libertas has popcorn popping and will be sitting back and watching the Eric Massa saga unfold today.

Eric Massa is the US House of Rep Congressman from NY-29 who announced his resignation last week due to a House Ethics Probe about misbehavior during a wedding and inappropriate comments.  Massa apparently has decided to take out the Democratic Leadership on his way out the door. He claims he is being ousted due to his NO vote on health care.

To clarify, Massa is indeed a NO vote on healthcare but he is voting NO because he is a Single Payer advocate – so he wants MORE government involvement in health care.  Now on to the good stuff.

Massa set the tone for the interview at the outset:

“I will not go quietly into the evening,

I was set up for this from the very, very beginning. If you think that somehow they didn’t come after me to get rid of me because my vote is the deciding vote in the health care bill, then ladies and gentlemen you live today in a world that is so innocent as is not to understand what is going on in Washington, D.C.”

Eric Massa continues on his rampage – Allow Lady Libertas to walk you through some of the juicier bits of the interview:

“Rahm Emanuel is son of the devil’s spawn. He is an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive.”

Now, Lady Libertas cannot disagree with that one.  Nope – not one bit.  Apparently, Massa speaks from experience as he recounts an experience with Rahm (the mouthpiece of Obama!?):

“When I voted against the cap and trade bill, the phone rang and it was the chief of staff to the president of the United States of America, Rahm Emanuel, and he started swearing at me in terms and words that I hadn’t heard since that crossing the line ceremony on the USS New Jersey in 1983,” Massa said. “And I gave it right back to him, in terms and words that I know are physically impossible.”

Massa does not stop there.  He goes on to call Rep. Steny Hoyer a LIAR. This is better than the ridiculous Academy Awards any day. From Fox News:

And he said the accounting provided by Hoyer and his staff is a fabrication.

Hoyer’s office claims the majority leader’s staff was notified the week of Feb. 8 about the allegations, that Hoyer was “immediately informed” and that he told his staff that Massa should refer the matter to the Ethics Committee within 48 hours, or he would do so himself. According to Hoyer’s office, Hoyer learned “within 48 hours” from the ethics committee staff and Massa’s staff that the Ethics Committee had been contacted.

“Steny Hoyer has never said a single word to me at all, not ever, not once,” Massa said on Sunday.

“Not a word. This is a lie. It’s a blatant false statement. And that’s what triggered me to understand what in fact is going on.”

Then, in a shameless maneuver, Massa appeals to the American people to stop his resignation:

“I’m not going to be a Congressman as of 5 o’clock [Monday] afternoon. The only way to stop that is for me to rescind my resignation. That’s the only way to stop it. And the only way that’s going to happen is if this becomes a national story.”

and he tells another caller:

“I can’t call Fox News. You guys gotta call Fox News. I can’t do it. … Here’s why. I’m in the center of this storm, so obviously I’m not objective.”

WOW!  Devil’s Spawn, Cursing from the Obama Administration, Lies from Congressional Leader’s and all wrapped up in an Ethics investigation or PLOT to hear Massa tell it.  Considering that Massa has inappropriate behavior on New Year’s – the House Ethics Committee did move pretty fast, especially if you compare the Rangel ethics investigation and the several others still outstanding.

Countdown to 5pm begins – what will happen next?

Original Stories on Right Pundits here (Devil Spawn by Donald) and here

Breitbart has some of the audio from the Radio Interview with Eric Massa here

Lady Libertas Original Story

Lady Libertas reached out to the Leaders of the Austin area Tea Party groups to get their official statements on Joseph Stack and to confirm … once and for all (this means you moonbats) … that Joseph Stack is NOT A TEA PARTY MEMBER and his actions are condemned unequivocally by everyone involved in the Tea Party.

Lady Libertas would like to extend thoughts and prayers to the victims of the Joseph Stack attack. The suicide of this disturbed man and the death and pain that he has caused are heart wrenching. It is being reported that there was one additional death as a result of Joseph Stack flying his plane into the building to achieve his own suicide.

Lady Libertas was stunned and outraged by the coverage of the Joseph Stack attack in the liberal blogosphere and then the main stream media. Headlines began appearing claiming that Stack was a Tea Party member and that the violence that he wreaked was a hallmark of the Tea Party movement. Donald, on Right Pundits, quickly broke the story (see full story here) of the Fake Facebook account attributed to Stack and set up by the mysterious Emily Waters. Donald provides links to the screenshot of that facebook account and how it was set up by Emily Walters with the Gadsden Flag and the Liberty Tree quote by Thomas Jefferson (and seen below). This facebook account and the distortions by liberals are nothing more than smear campaigns seeking to deface the Tea Party movement and prove some imagined violent agenda. The violent agenda of the Tea Party movement does not exist except in the fevered imaginings of the far left and the liberal media.

Somehow, this deranged girl thinks that misrepresenting a dead man and the Tea Party is all about her free speech.  Facebook removed the fake Stack Facebook account she created and her account so she has had her boyfriend open another Fake Stack Facebook account and filled it with more lies.  We can expect her to be writing for Huffington Post by the weekend, I am sure.  People are dead and Emily Walters is getting her 15 minutes of infamy by smearing Tea Party.  How Very Progressive of Her.

By Thursday evening, the mainstream media began to report the liberal blogospheres rantings that Joseph Stack was a Tea Party member as truth. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Lady Libertas reached out to the leaders of the Tea Party groups in the Austin, Texas area to get their reaction and to ask if Joseph Stack was a member of any of their groups. Leaders from the various Tea Party groups in the Austin area and a 912 group all confirmed that Joseph Stack was not and has never been a member or affiliated with any of their organizations.

Lady Libertas spoke by phone with Greg Holloway, Member of the Board of Austin Tea Party Patriots and Co-Founder of Common Sense Texans. Greg’s wife, Judy Holloway is the Founder of Austin Tea Party Patriots. Greg and I had a heartfelt conversation about the Joseph Stack incident. I asked Greg what his reaction was when he heard that this man had flown a plane into a building in Austin.

“The biggest thing that we found today in Austin, no matter what political affiliation Joseph Stack had, is the human tragedy. We are sorry for him and the people hurt today. This is a personal and community tragedy. Our prayers go out to the victims and to the family of Joseph Stack.”

Greg confirmed unequivocally that Joseph Stack did not belong now or ever to Austin Tea Party Patriots.

“Joseph Stack is not on any lists and was not a member.”

We discussed his view of the Tea Party and why anyone would think Joseph Stack was a member.

“Why would he be a Tea Party member? It could have easily been said he was a member of any group. They are just ridiculously mistaken by saying he was a member of Tea Party. Tea Parties are designed to help people, to bring people back to the Constitutional Principles. We want to make the country a good place for all people, not just a select few. We use civil mechanisms, the rule of law, elections, legislation to achieve our goals. Violence has no place at all in what we do.

These are real people. There was a real tragedy. How these left wing blogs are behaving has nothing to do with what happened today.

I hope there are plenty of friends and family available for the victims and the Stack family. If there is anything that Austin Tea Party Patriots can do for them, we are here to assist.”

Lady Libertas also reached out to Head Organizer, Heather Liggett of Austin Tea Party. Heather provided me with the following statement:

“I can say with affirmation that Joseph Stack was not a member of the Austin Tea Party nor was he a member of The Tea Party Movement. Within Mr. Stack’s own writing, one can see clearly that are no shared values or principles with the Tea Party.

After reading Mr. Stack’s February 18, 2010 statement, it is evident he supported anarchy. The Tea Party movement does not advocate anarchy. The Tea Party movement believes in our founding principles so eloquently written in our Constitution.

Mr. Stack repeatedly showed disdain for free-market principles in his statement. The Tea Party movement knows that every American success is rooted in the freedom of our capitalist principles.

Mr. Stack did not believe in paying taxes. The Tea Party movement believes in taxes for the defense of Our Great Nation; however like the majority of Americans – be they Democrat, Republican or Independent – we all believe in reform of the current tax structure. We only differ on the type of reform that is best.

Mr. Stack saw churches as corrupt entities and called them “monsters of organized religion.” He spoke of being “brainwashed to believe that there is freedom” and declared “violence is the only answer.” The Tea Party movement believes in God, and we know the valuable contributions our churches make each day to our communities across this land.

Thousands of Tea Parties have been held nationwide, a million Tea Partiers marched in our nation’s capital, and not a single act of violence was ever committed by a Tea Party supporter.

There is a common thread that ties every Tea Party across this country to the Austin Tea Party, and that thread is our eternal optimism in America. Tea Partiers believe in the American Spirit, the American Dream and the freedom of the people to peacefully assemble and use the powers granted in the Constitution to restore our nation. Mr. Stack was void of optimism. It is ironic that some members of the media are void of integrity and would try to make an association where one does not exist, as spelled out by Mr. Stack himself.”

Lady Libertas touched base with Toby Marie Walker, the Head of Waco Tea Party. Toby Marie also confirmed that Joseph Stack was not listed on their membership list and condemned the violent attack and sent an official statement over for me to use.

From Toby Marie Walker, President: “The Waco Tea Party does not condone or advocate acts of violence, the person who committed this violent act was not a member of the Waco Tea Party nor have we had any contact with him.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the the victims and their families.  We would like to thank the first responders and others in law enforcement for their service and dedication to the community.

“The Waco Tea Party promotes fiscal responsibility, free markets and Constitutionally limited government.  We are not an anti-government or anti-tax group, we are an advocate of our taxes being spent wisely and levied reasonably.  Suggesting that the tea party movement is somehow connected to the incident is ludicrous, the perpetrator’s own statements in his manifesto suggest he had far different beliefs than those in the Tea Party Movement.”

“Those responsible for trying to drag the tea parties into this tragedy must be desperate.  “Never let a good tragedy go to waste” is their mantra, and that is obvious here.  At a time when decent Americans are shocked and praying for those affected, they were gleeful in creating misinformation to pin on a principled movement (in reference to Emily Walker who created the facebook account).  She should be ashamed of herself.”

Lady Libertas, with the assistance of SarahInTx (awesome #Twister in Austin!), reached out to one of the 912 groups in the Austin area.  Sarah is an active member of the Caldwell County 912 Project and she contacted  the leadership on my behalf regarding the Joseph Stack attack.  Sarah forwarded me the statement that came back to refute all liberal misrepresentations that Joseph Stack embodied Tea Party principles or behaved in a way that is endorsed by Tea Parties.  This is the statement that I received from Sarah that came to her fromTracy Forester of the Caldwell County 912 Project:

“Joseph Stack was not a member of the Caldwell County 912 Project. To the best of our knowledge, he was not a member of any 912 or Tea Party group. His actions were deplorable and are contrary to everything that the 912 Project and the Tea Party movement stand for. There is no justification for violence, no matter the grievance. The following question must be answered by each member before they join as a member on our meetup site: “Do you agree to be a peaceful and open minded member of this group?”

You will also find our mission statement [on the site}. Our goals are education, information and involvement.

Lady Libertas has yet to find an authentic Tea Party Group or Tea Party Member that endorses or agrees with the horrific actions of Joseph Stack.  We all knew that.

A few, final thoughts.

Thank you to Greg and Heather, Marie, Sarah and Tracy.  I reached out and you responded immediately. You are all True Patriots and I salute the work that you are doing on behalf of our Republic.

Lady Libertas has been involved with the Tea Party Movement for almost a year. I have met some of the most amazing human beings through participation in the Tea Party. It is an amazing group of individuals from every imaginable walk of life, socio-economic level, and political party affiliation. We are white, black, brown, yellow, and red, white & blue. We have joined together not because we are all exactly the same in our beliefs but because we all love our country and we believe that it is in trouble. Tea Party is unique in its uniqueness. Each group is different but there has never been violence condoned or performed in the name of Tea Party. Only the terminally misinformed would mistake our passion for aggression.

One person’s insane actions, no matter what they believe does not define a movement. And that goes for Amy Bishop too.

The next few days will be immensely difficult for everyone involved as they attempt to recover from this unexplainable tragedy. Let’s hope that the left can leave off their political machinations, smear campaigns and fake facebook accounts to allow the victims, families and people of Austin time to wake up from this nightmare and begin to heal.

Lady Libertas Salutes:

Greg Holloway~Member of the Board of Austin Tea Party Patriots

Heather Littenger~Head Organizer of Austin Tea Party

Toby Marie Walker~Chief of Chaos & President of Waco Tea Party

SarahInTx - #Twister & Patriot - Please say HI to her on Twitter!

Tracy Forester - Caldwell County 912 Project

Donald from Right Pundits has also provided an update and a release of a statement by Emily Walters on his blog post:  Who is Emily Walters?.

Bungalow Bill is also on the unfolding Emily Walters is a Lying Liberal by updating his blog with new screenshots:  Who is Emily Walters & why is she trying to reinvent Joseph Andrew Stack on Facebook?