Richmond Patriots

07/31/2021

Today, I offered my vision for Virginia’s future. We must invest in Virginians. I called for $1.5B of the state’s surplus to be given back to taxpayers & allocated the $4.3B in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act for job growth, education, & public safety.

My vision is a Virginia with safe neighborhoods, where our children can play without worry, where the elderly can take a walk without fear, with police partnering with communities to patrol and keep everyone safe.

Our plan will reinvest in Virginia families and provide immediate relief to taxpayers, reinvigorate Virginia’s job machine, reestablish excellence, empower parents in education & rescue public safety.

Democrats have had 8 years to get this done. It’s time for a change in leadership. We’re going to build Virginia’s future, together.

01/03/2021

On this day in 1777, George Washington wins the Battle of Princeton. It was the Americans’ second stunning victory in only 9 days!

As you will remember from yesterday’s post, Washington and his men were in a bit of a bind when night fell on January 2, 1777. British troops, led by Charles Cornwallis, had returned to Trenton to recover the ground that they’d lost during the battle of December 26. The British had attacked the Americans three times, near Assunpink Creek, but they had been repelled each time. It was getting dark, and Cornwallis decided to retire for the night. He allegedly remarked that he had “the Old Fox safe” and would “bag him” in the morning.

I guess Washington didn’t get the memo?! He and his army snuck away during the night, leaving behind a small contingent of men who kept the campfires burning and otherwise maintained the appearance of an occupied American camp. The British did not realize Washington was gone until it was too late.

In the past, such a disappearance would have meant that the Americans were retreating. Not this time! Instead, Washington and his men disappeared down back roads, and they made a wide sweep across the New Jersey countryside. Their goal? Princeton, where Cornwallis had left some of his troops behind. At daybreak on January 3, some of those men were preparing to leave and join Cornwallis at Trenton. Instead, imagine their surprise when they saw the Americans coming!

An American officer, Henry Knox, later wrote: “They could not possibly suppose it was our army, for that they took for granted was cooped up near Trenton. . . . I believe they were as much astonished as if an army had dropped perpendicularly upon them.”

British troops were already marching toward Princeton when they saw a portion of the American force approaching. The two sides met in William Clark’s orchard. The fighting was intense, and the British were fighting well. British Captain William Hale later remembered that “we kept possession of the orchard for twenty minutes, turning one of their own guns upon them.” The Americans were also fighting courageously, but they began to break when some of their officers were killed. One of these officers, General Hugh Mercer, was struck down with the butt of a musket. As British soldiers gathered around him, one demanded: “Call for Quarters, you damned rebel.” Mercer refused! Instead, he lunged at them with his sword, yelling: “I am no rebel.” Mercer was bayoneted multiple times and left for dead on the field.

Fortunately, at that critical moment, more American reinforcements began to arrive.

Perhaps most importantly, Washington himself arrived, and he took charge of the situation. He shouted to the soldiers: “Parade with us, my brave fellows! There is but a handful of the enemy, and we will have them directly.” His presence on the battlefield inspired the men. One soldier later wrote: “I shall never forget what I felt at Princeton on his account, when I saw him brave all the dangers of the field and his important life hanging as it were by a single hair with a thousand deaths flying around him. Believe me, I thought not of myself.”

I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: I really do not think we can overestimate the importance of Washington’s leadership at critical moments in our history.

Before long, the British were retreating, quickly. Washington took off after them on his horse, yelling: “It’s a fine fox chase, my boys!” The remaining troops in Princeton itself also ended up surrendering or retreating.

So the answer to yesterday’s question: Yes! I suppose there was a fox hunt on January 3, as Cornwallis anticipated. And perhaps you could say that a fox got bagged. But that fox wasn’t Washington.

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01/03/2021

A group of GOP senators led by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, will object to the Jan. 6 certification of the presidential election results next week unless there is an emergency 10-day audit of the results by an electoral commission.

12/26/2020

On this day in 1776, General George Washington wins the Battle of Trenton. 1776 had been a difficult year. The victory provided a much-needed morale boost.

As discussed in yesterday’s post, the beginning of December found Washington and British General William Howe on opposite sides of the Delaware River. As the weather deteriorated, Howe had decided to go into winter quarters. Washington, instead, decided to make a difficult crossing of the Delaware. His plan was to arrive at Trenton at 5 a.m., well before sunrise, so he could launch a surprise attack.

It wasn’t to be. Instead, Washington arrived at Trenton at 8 a.m., one hour after sunrise. Moreover, Washington had a smaller force than anticipated because two prongs of the American army had decided that the Delaware crossing was too difficult to attempt.

There were about 1,500 Hessians stationed at Trenton. (Hessians were German troops that had been hired by the British.) Interestingly, the Hessian officer in charge at Trenton, Johann Gottlieb Rall, had received two warnings that Americans were coming. He dismissed them both. A small shooting incident between some Hessian guards and an American patrol had occurred on Christmas Day, and Rall thought this was the attack of which he’d been warned.

He did not believe Americans capable of a larger attack, especially given the terrible weather.

Indeed, that weather turned out to be both a blessing and a curse. The snow and ice made the crossing almost impossible, but it also kept the Hessians from realizing that an attack was under way.

Americans attacked at 8 a.m.

One American officer, Henry Knox, later wrote: “The storm continued with great violence, but was in our backs, and consequently in the faces of the enemy.” Thus, the Hessian guards couldn’t tell what was happening at first. Once they realized what was happening, they began an orderly retreat back into the city.

The Americans had been up all night; they were tired, wet, and cold, but they fought gallantly. They set up cannons and cleared the main streets quickly. Meanwhile, the side streets were full of Hessians and Americans engaged in hand-to-hand combat. Things were happening quickly. Snow and gunpowder smoke swirled around and added to the confusion. Before long, Rall ordered a retreat to a nearby orchard, but the Hessians found themselves surrounded. They laid down their arms and surrendered: 900 of them were taken prisoner; 500 escaped; 21 were killed; 90 were wounded. By contrast, only four Americans were wounded and none were killed.

The battle was over in less than 45 minutes. Washington had won a stunning victory just when it was needed most.

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12/23/2020

12/17/2020

This is how a REAL JOURNALIST does their job. Spread this interview.

This is about the examination of the Dominion Voting Machines and its software in Michigan.

‎Show Full Measure After Hours, Ep After Hours: Newly-released exclusive forensic analysis of Dominion Voting machines in Michigan - Dec 14, 2020

12/15/2020

Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., is leading an election challenge in Congress to the Electoral College vote for Joe Biden to be president.

12/15/2020

Hmm...

12/15/2020

Happy Bill of Rights Day!

On this day in 1791, Virginia ratifies the Bill of Rights, making those ten constitutional amendments the law of the land. The Bill of Rights, of course, includes protections for such things as freedom of speech, the right to a trial by jury, and the right to keep and bear Arms.

Ratification of the Bill of Rights couldn’t have been too surprising. The country had been stewing over the idea for years, ever since the Constitution was first proposed to the states in September 1787.

At the time, anti-Federalists were quick to denounce the proposed document, partly because it lacked a bill of rights. On the other side, pro-Constitution Federalists such as James Madison argued that a bill of rights was unnecessary. The national government created by the Constitution was one of limited powers. It had ONLY the power specifically given to it by the Constitution. Why create a list of things that it cannot do? Creating such a list might cause confusion about the limited nature of the new national government.

Nevertheless, the agitation for a bill of rights continued. Many states ratified the Constitution, but also sent recommendations for amendments to the 1st Congress.

As for James Madison, his position changed over time. At the Constitutional Convention, he seemed unconcerned when a bill of rights was not included in the Constitution. Nevertheless, he was wavering after about a year. In October 1788, he told Jefferson that he generally favored a bill of rights—assuming it did not give the national government new powers by implication—but he “never thought” that omission of these amendments was “a material defect” in the Constitution. Instead, he viewed a bill of rights as a mere “parchment barrier.”

In other words, a bill of rights was simply words on paper. The *real* protection for people’s rights lay in the structure of the Constitution—a structure with separation of powers and other checks and balances.

By June 1789, Madison’s position had evolved still more. By then, he was an active advocate for a bill of rights, and he presented a set of proposed amendments to the Congress. Madison gave a long speech to the House in which he explained his reasons. He still worried that a bill of rights, because it “enumerat[es] particular exceptions to the grant of power,” might cause some to assume that any rights “not singled out, were intended to be assigned into the hands of the General Government.” However, he thought the Congress might write the amendments in such a way as to guard against that problem. And he thought that adoption of a bill of rights might assuage some concerns among the public. If amendments can be adopted that “will not injure the Constitution,” even as satisfaction is given “to the doubting part of our fellow-citizens,” then Madison believed that the effort was worthwhile.

By September 1789, the Congress had approved 12 amendments that it sent to the states. Ten of these were approved as the Bill of Rights that we celebrate today.

What do you think? Was Madison right the first time, in 1787? Or was his new position in 1789 better?

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If you enjoy these history posts, please see my note below. :)

Gentle reminder: History posts are copyright © 2013-2020 by Tara Ross. I appreciate it when you use the shar e feature instead of cutting/pasting.

12/14/2020

Gov. Cooper enacted new restrictions last week

12/14/2020