Underwood’s congressional office Thanksgiving Day tweet mid-afternoon seems more appropriate for April Fool’s Day for people who actually believe what they read from their IL-14 congresswoman
How much longer before she no longer represents McHenry County in the U.S. House of Representatives?
Please McHenry County Blog readers, tell me you weren’t fooled by the “cheat sheet” Underwood sent on Thanksgiving Day mid-afternoon via tweet.
And she dares to use President Biden’s “Big Lie” of “it’s paid for”?
Don’t laugh too hard (and people thought indoctrination was only taking place in the public schools)!
Here is the press release from County government. (Please see my comment below.)
McHenry County Board Approves 2022 Budget and Levy
WOODSTOCK, Ill. – The McHenry County Board approved a 2022 budget that once again reflects its financial strength and resiliency by rejecting an inflationary increase.
The $215.8 million budget is balanced, with a property-tax levy that will remain flat, except for capturing new growth, which is the inclusion of newly developed properties in the total property tax assessment.
This is the 11th straight fiscal year in which the County Board did not take an inflationary levy increase.
McHenry County government’s tax levy is lower today than it was in 2008.
“County government is not immune from the tumultuous economic times wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, and it faces a number of expensive mandates imposed on us by the General Assembly.
However, with rising inflation, increased fuel costs, and nationwide supply chain issues hurting households and small businesses throughout McHenry County, now is not the time to be increasing our tax levy,” County Board Chairman Mike Buehler, R-Crystal Lake, said.
The County Board last approved a levy increase in 2011 – the state tax cap law allows local governments to capture an increase from the previous year’s tax extension equal to the rate of inflation as calculated by the Consumer Price Index. Furthermore, the County Board has demonstrated a commitment to tax relief by reducing its levy for three consecutive years, saving taxpayers more than $28 million over the three-year period had the levy remained at its 2016 amount.
The County Board is holding the levy flat despite a number of new unfunded state mandates.
McHenry County faces a loss of millions in revenue because of a state law forcing the end of its contract with the federal government to house immigration detainees, as well as new laws mandating the purchase of body cameras for the Sheriff’s Office, and expanding voting opportunities and ballot access.
The county has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the state law forcing the end of the immigration contract is unconstitutional.
Maintaining a flat property tax levy does not guarantee that a taxpayer’s bill next year will not increase due to a higher property assessment or other local governments increasing their tax levies. County government accounts for slightly less than 10 percent of a McHenry County property owner’s tax bill.
McHenry County took its open and transparent budgeting process to a new level this year by offering it for public display through Questica OpenBook, a powerful tool that allows viewers to take the budget apart for as deep a look as the user wishes.
The budget, which has been on public review since October, can be found on the McHenry County website at www.mchenrycountyil.gov.
Taxpayers also can visit the county’s Financial Dashboard, an online tool for reviewing revenues and expenses, both overall and year-to-date, since the 2017 fiscal year; it can be found at www.mchenrycountyil.gov/financialdashboard. McHenry County’s fiscal year begins Dec. 1.
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If the County Board had not taken the inflationary increase (new growth), the same amount of money as was collected last year would have been spread over more assessed valuation, thus reducing people’s tax burdens.
With McHenry County being one of the highest property taxed counties in the country, that is the easiest way to reduce the tax burden, in my opinion.
Maybe Kinzinger gonna run for governor by taking to calling trash other Republicans, latest Congresswoman Lauren Boebert?
In case you missed it, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (R, CO-03) did what so many other Republicans do when they take on the Leftist Squad, whether in DC or at a safe distance from DC — stick foot in mouth.
From the desk of John Lopez: The original Squad from the 2018 freshmen class of Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D, NY-14), Ilhan Omar (D, MN-05), Rashida Tlaib (D, MI-13) and Ayanna Pressley (D, MA-08), and joined this year by Congresswoman Cori Bush (D, MO-01) and Congressman Mondaire Jones (D, NY-17) have terrible ideological views that all hope will not ever see the light of passage in Congress.
But when Republicans veer out of ideas and take to 1-on-1 confrontation like then Congressman Ted Yoho (R, FL-03) in 2020, Congressman Paul Gosar (R, AZ-06) and now Boebert, they always come out on the short end of stick, and make fools of themselves.
Boebert’s stupidity for her idiotic remark sure betrayed what she really felt about Omar, which is not the teachings of Christ Boebert says she believes.
And it’s not a case of a Millennial indiscretion, as both Yoho and Gosar are in their 60s when they went after AOC.
But giving Kinzinger a chance to look good, sadly is a terrible side effect, given Kinzinger calling Boebert trash is like the pot calling the kettle black.
Look for Boebert to be censured, and possibly lose her committee assignments too, as what happened to Gosar, and look for Kinzinger voting to sanction Boebert, too.
Victim’s Mother to Seek Remedy in Court for First Time in Illinois
Schaumburg IL, November 27, 2021 – A potentially landmark victims’ rights case will resume being heard in a Winnebago County courtroom on Monday.
The case is the first time a crime victim is pursuing his or her rights under the Illinois Constiution’s victim rights amendment know as Marsy’s Law.
Elizabeth Alvarado, the mother of a victim of a fatal DUI crash in 2016, has requested a Winnebago County Circuit Court order a “re-do” of a hearing to address the violation of her rights as a victim.
The prosecution failed to discuss with Alvarado a plea deal that reduced the charges against the defendant. They also failed to notify Alvarado of the plea and sentencing hearings that took place without her, depriving her of the opportunity to appear and be heard in the matter.
According to the court filing, the omissions violate the Illinois Constitution and several statutory provisions.
Despite the length of the Case, Alvarado has remained an active and committed participant throughout the process.
Argument on Alvarado’s Case will take place on Monday, November 29, at 1:30 pm.
“I just don’t understand why they did this to me,” said Elizabeth Alvarado, the mother of the victim in this case.
“How could they have just forgotten about me? How could this have happened?”
The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (AAIM) has been helping Alvarado navigate the criminal justice system since the Case was first filed in 2016.
AAIM is now helping to seek remedies for violating her Marsy’s Law rights.
To learn more about the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists, visit www.aaim1.org For more information on the rights guaranteed to victims in Illinois through Marsy’s Law, learn more here.
From Tony Colatorti, running for the Republican nomination for McHenry County Sheriff, comes an invitation to a fundraiser on December 6th at his restaurant in Algonquin:
Officer Struck by Car During Arrest of Robert Burrow
On Thursday, November 25, 2021 at approximately 10:15 PM, the Marengo Police Department was requested to be on the lookout for a white Buick, driven by a white male with blonde hair, dressed in black.
The vehicle in question had reportedly fled the Crystal Lake Police after an incident in their city.
Robert Burrow
The vehicle registration belonged to a subject by the name of Robert Burrow.
Officers followed the route the vehicle took and located it in front of 7015 S. IL Route 23.
The driver was initially still in the driver’s seat.
Our officer again made contact with the lone subject, who had now exited the vehicle and was attempting to get to another vehicle stopped nearby.
The subject was taken into custody and during the arrest, began pulling away from the officers and used our squad car to push his feet against in order to defeat the arrest.
The subject was identified as Robert A. Burrow, 20, of 3602 River Rd, Sterling, IL.
Mr. Burrow was charged by the Marengo Police Department, with the following offenses:
Aggravated Battery to Peach Officer (Class 2 Felony)
Aggravated Battery with Deadly Weapon (Class 3 Felony)
Resisting a Peace Officer (3 counts – Class A Misdemeanor)
Fleeing or Attempting to Elude (Class A Misdemeanor)
Mr. Burrow was transported to McHenry County Jail. His bail was set at $75,000 (10% to apply) for both the Marengo and Crystal Lake incidents.
The Marengo police department wishes to remind the public that a charge is merely an accusation and all those charged are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Luna’s history of Twitter user violations prevented her over 200K followers Twitter account from receiving the coveted blue check mark in spite of winning the Republican nomination in 2020
Luna’s fight for Twitter verification (and check mark that goes with it) started in February of 2020, and included her FEC complaint from October of 2020, lawsuit against FEC in May of 2021 and final dismissal of Lawsuit mid November of 2021
Note from McHenry County Blog: The topic of verification by social media, and the coveted “check mark” which comes with it, to many, separates serious candidates from minor candidates. While many candidates have sought the coveted verification, Big Tech’s rules are not applied equally, and Anna Paulina Luna’s 2020 campaign is an example of a Republican candidate who not only filed, but WON her party’s nomination last year, but was denied verification by Twitter.
Of the seven candidates who sought the Republican nomination in IL-14 in 2020, all six with Twitter accounts were verified by Twitter and received the checkmark, but the standard was not applied universally, and a primary winner saw she was at a disadvantage in her general election race last year.
The potential application for candidates entering the 2022 election cycle is reason why this story about FL-13 being published.
======================
Anna Paulina Luna
Anna Paulina Luna (R, St. Petersburg) has recently completed a nearly 2-year-long fight for a checkmark from Twitter.
Nearly two years later, including a year-long Federal Election Commission (FEC) complaint and a 6 1/2 months-long federal lawsuit, Luna’s Twitter account still does not have the coveted Twitter checkmark of verification.
And she has 203K followers through November of 2021.
On October 22, 2020, Luna’s congressional campaign filed a complaint with the FEC to compel Twitter to grant Luna’s campaign Twitter account with the verification checkmark. The FEC received the 33-page complaint from Luna’s congressional campaign on October 26 of 2020, and initiated an FEC “matter under review” or MUR, tracked under MUR 7832.
On October 26, 2021, after a year-long review including inputs from Twitter, the FEC voted 6-0 to deny Luna the relief she sought from the FEC to compel Twitter to verify her Twitter account @RealAnnaPaulina, given Twitter, in the FEC’s mind, had not violated the Federal Elections Campaign Act.
Twitter responded to the FEC under MUR 7832 on December 14, 2020, and included the following, per an October 28, 2021 story in Business Insider:
“Twitter pointed out that Luna had violated their website’s terms of service several times before becoming a congressional candidate, citing a litany of controversial comments including comparing Hillary Clinton to herpes during a Fox News interview, declaring that Kamala Harris believes that ‘child rape and the slavery of Hispanic women and children is a joke,’ and comparing Immigration and Customs Enforcement vehicles to ice cream trucks.
“Twitter also pointed to advertisers’ concerns about extremist content as a justification for denying Luna her verification. They noted in particular that Procter and Gamble told Twitter and other companies that they ‘simply will not accept or take the chance that our ads are associated with violence, bigotry or hate.’ “
“Twitter has the right to refuse to verify Florida GOP House candidate Anna Paulina Luna over her history of ‘posting abusive content,’ FEC Says” by Bryan Metzger, 10/28/21
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On June 16, 2021, the FEC issued a preliminary finding exonerating Twitter of any wrongdoing and to dismiss the complaint.
Six months into the FEC complaint, Luna’s congressional campaign filed a federal lawsuit in DC Court against the FEC to compel action on Luna’s complaint.
On October 26, 2021, the FEC implemented the preliminary report, and the MUR 7832 was closed.
On November 15, 2021, after initial response from the FEC on July 9, 2021, Luna and the FEC in a joint decision agreed to dismiss the federal lawsuit without prejudice and a court order.
From the desk of John Lopez: Did Anna Paulina Luna’s past catch up with her and contribute to Twitter denying her candidacy with a verified checkmark badge? The answer appears to be a definite yes.
The Twitter account in question, @RealAnnaPaulina, has 203K followers, but has been meticulously scrubbed of all its content, only going back little over a month in its Twitter timeline.
Given Luna’s past, pre 2020 tweets she posted to her account, which was created in early 2017, included discipline as late as the summer of 2019.
Those Twitter disciplinary actions, based on Twitter’s response to the FEC last December, was enough for Twitter to deny Luna’s main Twitter account the checkmark.
So for 2022, with Luna seen as the clear frontrunner going into the 2022 election cycle in the now open FL-13 race, looks like she’s taking a different approach.
Note the reference to “follow my official campaign account”:
Luna’s 2022 congressional campaign launched a separate campaign Twitter account.
Under @VoteAPL, Luna’s campaign Twitter account should be clean of any Twitter violations.
When Twitter decides to verify all federal campaign accounts, if 2020 was a pattern here in IL-14, it will take place after the filing of petitions in the respective states.
Assuming Luna, when she files her nominating petitions in April for the August 23 Florida primary, has kept her campaign Twitter account clean of violations, it will likely be verified.
That must be the plan, and a lesson for Illinois candidates.
Once petition filing takes place in March for congressional races as well as the gubernatorial primary, assuming the Twitter accounts have kept themselves clean of Twitter rules violations, the checkmark should be forthcoming.
In Luna’s case, she’ll be behind 2020 rival, and 2022 rematch Republican primary opponent Amanda Makki.
Finally, the reason Luna was denied the Twitter checkmark, namely her past tweets from her @RealAnnaPaulina Twitter ID is a good reminder, once again, what a user does under their Twitter ID, it will come back to haunt them as it did with Luna.
And this is before one considers screenshots being taken of questionable tweets, or Facebook or Instagram posts.
If something bad is out there in cyberspace through social media and one is running for elective public office, it will be found and used against them.
External references from the FEC:
MUR 7832 including all documents with Anna Paulina Luna campaign’s 2020 complaint can be viewed here
Anna Paulina Luna v FEC litigation can be viewed here
(The Center Square) – That check from Facebook for violating Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act by cataloging faces without permission isn’t in the mail yet.
It could still be a while.
Despite that, the case appears to be having other impacts.
Facebook users located in Illinois after June of 2011 were eligible to file a claim in a class-action lawsuit against the social media giant for violating the state’s BIPA law.
Illinoisans had a deadline of Nov. 23, 2020, to join the class action settlement.
However, two class members appealed, preventing payments from being made.
“This appeal prevents payments from being made to any class members,” according to the website.
“Class Counsel remains committed to using every possible legal means to expedite this timeframe.”
Abe Scarr with Illinois Public Interest Research Group said such appeals can take time.
“That can take up to one or two years on average,” Scarr said. “I know there have been efforts to expedite the appeal but so far no success there. Unfortunately, we’re going to have to wait another year if not two to hopefully finally have some settlement here.”
Payments are expected to be up to $400 per person, but a fact sheet says an exact amount can’t be given.
That depends on how many claims are filed and the cost of fees and other attorney expenses.
While the delay may be frustrating, Meta announced earlier this month Facebook will no longer use facial recognition “as part of a company-wide move to limit the use of facial recognition in our products.”
“This change will represent one of the largest shifts in facial recognition usage in the technology’s history,” a statement from Meta said Nov. 2.
“More than a third of Facebook’s daily active users have opted in to our Face Recognition setting and are able to be recognized, and its removal will result in the deletion of more than a billion people’s individual facial recognition templates.”
Scarr said that’s a positive development, though he remains guarded.
“Knowing Facebook and Meta, I wouldn’t count on them completely stopping using facial recognition technology,” Scarr said.
“But there seems to be some progress on that and across the country, growing recognition of some of the privacy harms that have to do with facial recognition technology.”
“Looking ahead, we still see facial recognition technology as a powerful tool,” Meta said. “Facial recognition can be particularly valuable when the technology operates privately on a person’s own devices.”
At its last meeting, the McHenry County Board voted without dissent to remove Leslie Schermerhorn from her elective office of Regional Superintendent of Education.
Otherwise ger term would have ended at the end of November, 2022.
Schermerhorn was appointed in 2012 to replace Joe Williams, who was elected, but got a better paying post.
McHenry County sent out the following press release:
McHenry County Board Seeking Applications for Regional Superintendent Vacancy
WOODSTOCK, Ill. – McHenry County Board Chairman Mike Buehler is seeking applications to fill the vacant office of Regional Superintendent of Schools.
The County Board declared the vacancy at its Nov. 16 meeting after voting to remove former superintendent Leslie Schermerhorn from office.
The Regional Superintendent of Schools is responsible for duties such as teacher certification and background checks, truancy enforcement, administering GED exams, conducting school safety inspections, and auditing the county’s school districts for fiscal viability and adherence to state curriculum requirements.
The Regional Superintendent of Schools also acts as the ex-officio secretary of the Regional Board of School Trustees.
Interested applicants can submit a resume and/or short bio to MJBuehler@mchenrycountyil.gov as soon as possible.
Under state law, applicants for the position must:
• Have a master’s degree; • Have earned at least 20 semester hours of credit in professional education at the graduate level; • Hold a valid all-grade supervisory license, or a valid state limited supervisory license, or a valid state life supervisory license, or a valid administrative license; • Have at least four years of experience in teaching; • Have spent at least two of the previous four years in full-time teaching or supervising in public schools, or as a regional superintendent in Illinois; and • Be of good character.
Applicants must live in the boundaries of Regional Office of Education District 44, which are generally coterminous with McHenry County’s boundaries.
The appointee must also be a Republican, like the former officeholder, as determined by the individual’s declared party affiliation in the most recent primary in which they voted.
While the seat is up for election at the Nov. 8, 2022 general election, the appointee’s term expires June 30, 2023.
The appointee is welcome, and encouraged, to run for election to a full term.
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Missing from the press release are two elements:
The salary, which is $116,300. It is paid by state taxpayers and, as I read the State Constitution, will be paid for her entire elective term.
The residency requirement is significantly different from “generally coterminous with McHenry County’s boundaries.” Residents of District 300, which covers Algonquin and most of Lake in the Hills, are not eligible. In addition, the region covers all of Huntley District 158, even that portion of Sun City in Kane County.
Biden’s national approval is 37%, with 54% disapproving for a net approval of -17 with130,749 responses through November 23, 2021. In a separate survey with nearly 200,000 responses, Biden has a -14 favorability rating. According to Civiqs, his favorability went negative on January 28, 2021, and has gotten steadily worse since that date.
Looking at the subgroups in the survey, the news for Team Biden is no better. Nationally, the president does not have a positive net approval in any age group. His support is lowest with Americans aged 18-34, a demographic the Democrats have long taken for granted. There is also not a single education level where Biden earns a net positive approval. Even college-educated voters, who increasingly voted Democrat over several election cycles, only reported a 38% approval rating.
From McHenry County Libertarian Party Chairman Jim Young:
McHenry County Libertarians is having a 50th Anniversary of the Libertarian Party party on Dec. 13 at the Rusty Nail. Drinks begin at 6:30 and dinner at 7:00.
The cost of this is $25.00.
Please make reservations by Dec. 1 so we can inform the restaurant of the number coming
Young asks reservations be made at JSYoung1776@gmail.com.
Grooming in Illinois law is defined as luring a child into unlawful sex using the internet. HB1975 would update the definition to include in-person interactions and written communication, said Faith Colson, the bill’s namesake. Colson was sexually abused by a teacher about 20 years ago while in high school in Schaumburg.
Here’s an article that outlines what gym teacher William Saturday, a.k.a., Mr. Hands, did in Crystal Lake:
McHenry County Board Candidates Answer Seven Questions – Return of Title X
World Magazine wrote a August 23, 1997, cover story about the Title X fight that started at the McHenry County Board.
Instead of finding a quote from each of the nine District 1,2 and 3 candidates for McHenry County Board who were featured in the McHenry County League of Women Voters Forum, let’s take a look at their answers to one question.
World Magazine August 23, 1997, Title X cover.
Some background first.
William Saturday, a North (now Bernotas) Middle School gym teacher got enamored with one of his female students.
(When I asked a niece about the same age, but from another middle school about Saturday, she replied, “Oh, you mean Mr. Hands.”)
The night she graduated from middle school, they had sexual intercourse.
Saturday got tired of using condoms and drove her to Woodstock’s McHenry County Health Department on a Saturday for a shot of Depo-Provera, a three-month ovulation suppressant.
Then Saturday decided to get married.
The jilted high schooler went to the Crystal Lake Police, who wired her.
She contacted her lover and got him to admit the affair.
He went to jail for a felony.
An uproar came from the public when parents learned that their minor children could get birth control medication and condoms without their permission.
The battle which ensured pitted Pro-Lifers against Pro-Choicers.
Considering the League approved all of the questions asked at the County Board forums and a question about Title X’s return has been previously asked to all Board candiates, I have to assume that its predecessor organizations (before being merged into one County League) were on the losing side of the County Board fight to stop taking Title X money from the Federal government.
The resolution of the fight in the 1990’s was one worthy of Solomon, in my opinion.
The Board dumped the $40,000 Federal program because the bureaucrats who wrote the rules in the early 1970’s included a provision that there could be no discrimination on the basis of age.
That meant services from any money accepted had to be offered to girls and boys, no matter how young.
So the County Board kicked out Title X…
But (and here’s Solomon part) substituted county money to provide the services covered by Title X with the exception of contraceptive services to minors…unless a youngster had parental permission.
McHenry County, by the way, is the only county in the country that has deep-sixed Title X.
The issue even made it to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.
You can read a comprehensive cover story from World Magazine here.
As far back as 2010, the radical Pro-Abortion group Personal PAC asked the following question to candidates:
Will you SUPPORT the availability and accessibility of family planning services for everyone in Illinois regardless of age?
That question was added because of the action by the McHenry County Board.
I asked the question to Jack Franks at his Woodstock County Board Chairman Town Hall Meeting and he refused to answer it.
The League asked about applying to Title X Federal money again Tuesday night.
From the answers, one can figure out that a lot of the candidates had no clue about the 1997-98 controversy.
Suzanne Ness
First was District Two Democrat Suzanne Ness.
She pointed out that Title X was “money that we as a County don’t take.
“I don’t understand why we leave that money on the table.
“I am in favor [of taking Title X grant money].
Carolyn Schofield
Next was District 2 candidate Carolyn Schofield.
It was “before my time’ [on the County Board],” she said.
She was certain that such a consideration was “something would stir up a lot of tension.”
Josh Howell
The third District 3 candidate, Josh Howell said there “were a number of strings that Board members at the time were not willing to [accept].
He indicated he was not in favor of changing current policy.
Lori Parrish
District 3’s Lori Parrish said, “I need to learn a whole lot more about that.
“When an entity receives Federal funding there are a number of stings attached,” the former District 47 grant writer continued.
Kelli Wegener
Kelli Wegener, also from District 3, agreed with Parrish, said
“It’s a very controversial subject.
“There are many ties.
“All need to be educated about it.”
Joe Gottemoller
Joe Gottemoller of District 3 was the only candidate who knew the history of the controversy.
“Do you remember the 14-year old girl brought to the County for birth control?” he asked.
The issue was about whether a child could come in without the parents being told.
He said he didn’t thing that parents should be excluded.
Christopher Spoerl
District 1’s Chris Spoerl said, “as a CPA, [I know that] not only strings are attached, [but that a government has] to worry about replacement [of income currently spent on the function]. He pointed out that shifting current money was usually not allowed.
He admitted to not being “up on Title X.”
He said he would approach the issues “from a cost-benefit” point of view.
“Normally, I’d take it,” he added.
Michael Vijuk
District 1 Democratic Party candidate Michael Vijuk was in favor of taking the money.
“I’m in favor of Title X.”
He added, that the County “would have to abide with the strings.”
Robert Nowak
The final respondent, Robert Nowak, is also from District 1.
“I’m a little unsure of this,” he said.
“I’m a little concerned about being attached to young children twelve years old and not notifying the parents.”
Anna Paulina Luna with husband Andy Gamerzky 4/3/21
Catalina Lauf with Luna’s latest book
While Luna’s 2022 campaign soars with President Trump’s endorsement and headlining a fundraiser in Mar-a-Lago next month, lies about her past continue to surface including her and husband’s divorce and remarriage within a year
From the desk of John Lopez: If anyone runs for public office, especially a high profile race where control of the U.S. House of Representatives could be in the balance, everything about a candidate will come out.
Especially if there is a paper trail filed in courts in multiple states.
Catalina Lauf & Anna Paulina Luna 4/3/21
In addition to the candidate in question, Anna Paulina Luna (R, FL-13) being a friend of former IL-16 Republican candidate Catalina Lauf (R, Woodstock), who has received $3,500 in financial support from Lauf’s Defense of Freedom PAC through June 30, 2021, this follow-up story to a previous article being shared because in the interim period, documented proof Luna lied in early September of 2021 just more proof, lies will be exposed in a campaign.
Luna was the 2020 nominee in FL-13 who lost to Congressman Charlie Crist (D) last November in a district where she underperformed President Trump by 5 percentage points.
With Crist running for governor and a very likely favorable remap by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature, the FL-13 is an open seat where Luna will face 2020 Republican primary runner-up Amanda Makki, and possibly 3 other candidates in the winner-take-all primary on August 23.
By all metrics, Luna’s campaign is flying high, including an endorsement by President Trump in mid-September, the House Freedom Caucus endorsement at the end of September, and an independent poll from reliable pollster St. Pete Polls released just over a month ago showing Luna with a commanding lead of 38% though 52% were undecided, and with a push poll question about the Trump endorsement, Luna’s lead ballooned to 64%.
And, President Trump headlines a $1K/plate fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago in early December.
Anna Paulina Luna
So what could go wrong when a candidate has the backing of President Trump? Ask Sean Parnell, the Millennial Republican candidate for the open U.S. Senate seat in Pennsylvania who had to suspend his campaign this week because of custody issues with his estranged wife.
In my honest opinion, Luna not telling the whole truth when confronted about her own past could torpedo her candidacy in FL-13, just as the push question about the Trump endorsement in the recent poll spiked Luna’s numbers, negative pushes can work the opposite through effective negative/attack ads on TV.
On October 4, McHenry County Blog published information about the revelation Luna worked in a strip club back in early 2014 in Fort Walton Beach, and how close Trump ally Roger Stone predicted Luna would lose Trump’s backing once the truth got out.
Last month’s article included portions of a Peter Schorsch of Florida Politics (FP) September 5, 2021 interview, by Scorsch, questioning Luna (APL) on the revelation of working at a striptease establishment (euphemistically referred to as “gentlemen’s club”).
Here’s the most relevant portion published last month with emphasis added:
“Florida Politics unearthed documents that raise some new questions; Luna agreed to be interviewed provide direct answers.
“FP: Court documents from early 2014 show that you briefly worked as a cocktail waitress at a gentlemen’s club while living in Fort Walton Beach. In a court filing, you wrote that you picked up this cocktail waitressing job to bring in quick money needed to travel to visit your husband at Walter Reed Medical Center, where he was recovering after being shot in Afghanistan. Given where it was, some people say this job should raise concerns about you and your character. What is the real story, and what do you say to that?
“APL: In January 2014, my husband, Andy, was shot in Afghanistan by al-Qaida fighters. I was out of the Air Force and in college at the time, and we were struggling as it was to make things work on a military salary. When I received word that Andy had been shot, I immediately scrambled to come up with the money to see him.
“The military doesn’t always pay for family to see their recovering service member, and they wouldn’t pay for mine. We were always struggling to make ends meet on military wages as it was, and I was in college on top of that.
“I’ve never experienced so-called ‘family money.’ We never had that. So, I called a friend who bartended at a local club to see if I could get a waitressing job to make quick cash to see Andy. She got me the job, I worked a few shifts to earn the money I needed, and I quit and went to see him.”
“A tough conversation with Anna Paulina Luna” by Peter Schorsch, Florida Politics, September 5, 2021
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The court documents in question has to do with a January 26, 2014 incident when Luna accused a woman of violating a restraining order at the strip club, identified as the Red Rose Gentlemen’s Club.
A Tampa-St. Petersburg vlogger (video blogger) named Bruce Poppy released a YouTube video on his unPOPular ViewPoint channel which revealed additional court documents, not in Fort Walton Beach, FL in 2014, but in California’s Orange County Superior Court filed in 2012, Luna’s petition for divorce from her husband Andy, filed under her maiden name of Anna Mayerhofer, listing her home address in Florida.
Source: unPOPular ViewPoint
So according to this filing, Anna and Andy were married on November 11, 2010, and separated nearly 8 months later on July 7, 2011.
Anna filed for divorce on August 23, 2012, and it was granted by the court, effective February 23, 2013:
Source: unPOPular ViewPoint
Given the divorce petition was referenced by vlogger Bruce Poppy,, his screenshot he displayed on his video revealed the case number. I was able to pull up the online record in Orange County, CA court records with the case number, so I verify these screenshots are accurate.
By the grace of God, in spite of the divorce being implemented, Anna and Andy were remarried, in early February of 2014, according to their marriage license being filed in Oskaloosa County, FL court:
Source: unPOPular ViewPoint
Both Andy and Anna were physically present when applying for the marriage license, and both signed the marriage license, witnessed by the deputy clerk:
Source: unPOPular ViewPoint
Now, with the court filings established as fact, let’s return to what Luna told Florida Politics on September 5 of this year:
“The military doesn’t always pay for family to see their recovering service member, and they wouldn’t pay for mine.“
The police report displayed on unPOPular ViewPoint dates the incident at the Red Rose Gentlemen’s Club took place in the early morning hours of January 26, 2014, and it references Luna began working at the strip club a few days earlier.
Please note, I’m not going to get into the argument of “was Luna working there as a cocktail waitress or a dancer”, the fact Luna confirms she worked there is the only valid point.
The date reference is crucial because it reveals the real reason the military didn’t pay for Luna’s passage money to see her recovering Andy because, given the divorce effective date and the 2nd marriage license issuance date, the two were not legally married when Andy was shot in Afghanistan in early 2014.
As shown above, Andy’s and Anna’s 2nd marriage license was dated with an issuance date of February 4, 2014, and they were legally divorced from February 23, 2013 to February 4, 2014.
As said earlier, it’s beautiful Anna Paulina Luna and her husband were able to save their marriage, in spite of being divorced for little over 11 months.
That said, telling the press, and by extension the voters, “husband” was shot serving our country, and then claiming the military doesn’t always pay for family members transport when the truth, Luna was not legally married to her husband in my honest opinion displays outright dishonesty.
Discerning voters will have to decide on August 23 in FL-13 next year, where Luna faces at least 4 other candidates (including 3 women).
But, given the truth Luna did work at a strip club, one can storyboard the attack ads, playing Vanity 6’s “Nasty Girl” for music (made famous from the strip club scene in Beverly Hills Cop in 1984), and voiceover telling about the lies Luna has said, compared with the truth and the context of working at a strip club.
The full podcast by unPOPular ViewPoint concerning Anna Paulina Luna’s records can be viewed here.
I find it difficult to believe that I am pitting up posts complaining about the Algonquin Township Board’s refusal to livestream it monthly meetings.
Transparency is usually something bragged about by Republicans.
And Republicans occupy all the positions in Algonquin Township.
The latest example of double standard is the willingness of the township to record the “Simple Strength Class” session:
Sorry to inform you that the Simple Strength class is cancelled for Tuesday November 23, 2021. Please enjoy this recorded version of Strength training from last week. Simple Strength Class Remember that there is no Chair Yoga on Thursday. We wish you a safe and happy Thanksgiving.
From a November 12th report compiled by NBC News at WMAQ-TV:
Officials in McHenry County reported that they had obligated 30% of more than nine million dollars as of Sept. 30, 2021.
Today, the county says it is now past 70% of its funds paid out.
“We actually received an extension to submit our reporting to better reconcile the grant files.
“We’re currently at 70.7% which is indicative of all the forthcoming or prospective rent payments we need to make.
“We have reported this to the Treasury to indicate that we are above the 65% obligation benchmark, and will retain our funds until 09/30/2022, or until exhausted, for assisting County residents.” – Hans Mach, Community Development Administrator.
“This is a personal mission for me,” said Mach, the Community Development Director for McHenry County who responded to NBC 5’s inquiries on the numbers.
Mach explained his county asked for and received a reporting extension with the Treasury Department in order to get a more complete picture of the needs in their community; needs Mach said he sees every day.
He can’t imagine the alternate possibility of what would have happened if McHenry hadn’t received these funds.
“When the [eviction] moratorium ended, we would have started to have a huge inundation of court cases coming through,” Mach told NBC 5 Responds.
Renters or landlords in need of assistance in McHenry County can visit this website for more info.
For Veterans Day, I searched for World War II memorials, but could not find any.
A Friend of McHenry County Blog more familiar with my high school (now renamed Crystal Lake Central High School) sent a photo of the following plaque, which lists graduates who died i World War II:
