Posted on 02/12/2011 7:42:44 AM PST by smokingfrog
INSIDE a grange hall in a rural stretch of South Jersey, hundreds of men and women who've embraced tea-party politics cast skeptical glances and tough questions when their local Republican congressman took the stage.
"Why don't you ever come to our meetings? How do you expect our grandchildren to be able to live in this world?" they asked U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo.
One man questioned LoBiondo about death camps of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a popular conspiracy theory on the far right, and his suspicions seemed confirmed when the the congressman didn't know what he was talking about.
But after the guest of honor, Brian Aitken, spoke to the Greenwich Tea Party Patriots of South Jersey about his arrest, conviction and prison sentence for having handguns he purchased legally in Colorado, the crowd was smitten and wanted to know two things in particular.
"Did you get your guns back?" two men asked Aitken, who stood on a bare stage with an American flag and a Gadsden flag, which shows a coiled rattlesnake poised to strike.
The other question is something Aitken's been getting quite a bit since Gov. Chris Christie commuted his seven-year prison sentence on Dec. 20.
"Do you have any political aspirations?" asked Matt Pinto, of Hammonton.
"Yeah," Aitken said, "to stay out of politics."
"Oh, come on, we need more people like you to get involved," Pinto replied.
The speaking engagement on a recent Tuesday night in Salem County was Aitken's first public appearance since his story made international headlines last year. He said he chose the Greenwich Tea Party because it focuses on educating people about the Constitution, but he has more speaking engagements lined up in coming months.
(Excerpt) Read more at philly.com ...
Do you even know that facts of the Aitken case?
Anything short of a full and complete pardon is a travesty.
Stop being an apologist for Christie.
Yes.
Anything short of a full and complete pardon is a travesty.
Actually the travesty is that this case ever was brought. A pardon does not make that go away and it does not stop it from happening in the future. The course Aitkins is pursuing now will force the state to rule on and clarify the law. You wish to stop him. Do you want this to happen in the future?
Stop being an apologist for Christie.
Stop being an advocate for big daddy government.
You are pushing for government to do things to Brian Aitkins for his "own good" that he has neither asked for or wants.
He is an adult you know. Fully capable of make decisions without your help or advise.
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