We live at a crucial time.  Never has it been more urgent to make a difference for America.  

And the most important place we make a difference for America is within our own homes with our families.

We must nurture, teach, and fortify our kids, many of whom are immersed in indoctrination in their schools, their entertainment, and the world around them.

As events unfold, it appears inevitable that our children will have challenging times.  They need us to prepare them to be happy and successful in tough times.  As moms, we can help them become people of character, intellect, compassion, and competence. 

Again, no work is more important than the work we do in our families.  President Reagan taught, “The family has always been the cornerstone of American society.  Our families nurture, preserve, and pass on to each succeeding generation the values we share and cherish, values that are the foundation of our freedoms.”

Many of us want to help America in other ways too.  For you, it may be in your child's school or on the city council.  You might teach a Constitution class or help out at a homeless shelter.  We each need to look in our hearts and decide what we really care about. 

We can find inspiration and learn how to be effective leaders by studying the lives of others who have made a difference.  Each year we pause to remember a great leader for equal rights, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Although he was not a perfect man, he was a powerful leader when it came to correcting the awful injustices endured by his people.

How did Martin Luther King Jr. have such powerful influence?  In his book, Start with Why, Simon Sinek asks and answers the question, "Why are some people more influential than others?"  He looks at leaders like Martin Luther King, and shares what they did that made them effective. 

In this TED video, Simon shares the essence of what he discovered.

People of Powerful Influence

• Lead with their heart. 
  
• Know WHY they do what they do. 
  
• Tell others what they believe and WHY they do what they do.
  
• Attract people who believe what they believe.
• Are driven by their cause, purpose, and belief.
  

(Picture Credit: Mayor Mia Love)

Martin Luther King Day is the perfect time to celebrate the life and work of Dr. King. Here are some activities and resources for you to enjoy.  Choose a few that are best for your family.


1. Learn about Martin Luther King's life.  The Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King  has a short video biography you can watch.  And Martin Luther King Jr. for Kids is a cool video that was made by Anna, a five year old girl, and her mom, Lolly.  Or you could make a video with your family!


2. The Wrath of a Great Leader tells how Dr. King had to wrestle with his anger and what we can learn from his experience.  You might want to read the article with your family, or tell a few stories from the article and discuss some of the questions at the end.  This is a great way to help kids understand the power of channeling anger for a higher purpose.


3. Listen to Dr. King's speeches.  Here is a link to an excerpt from his  I Have a Dream speech.  (The text of the full speech is there too.)


4. Make posters or pictures of your dreams for America or write about them in your journal. Discuss how you can help make them come true.


5. Read Martin Luther King's Pledge.  Talk about how he and his followers agreed to govern their lives with love.  It took great character to live by Dr. King's pledge, but it empowered them to serve.  


6. Create your own Family Pledge.  Discuss rules and principles your family would like to live.  Talk about how those rules can help your family and those around you.  Write up your Family Pledge and review it regularly. 


7. Read and discuss all or part of  Dr. King's earliest recorded sermon in which he said, "Now that’s what we’ve got to do in our world today. We’ve left a lot of precious values behind; we’ve lost a lot of precious values. And if we are to go forward, if we are to make this a better world in which to live, we’ve got to go back. We’ve got to rediscover these precious values that we’ve left behind."


8. Choose a way your family can make a difference in your neighborhood or community.  Talk about people who may be struggling, how they might feel, and how you can help.  You could help an immigrant family, befriend an elderly neighbor, assist a child who is struggling in school, or help at a local shelter.  


If we each make a difference in our own unique way, we can make the world a better place!

Every President of the United States makes a solemn promise to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution:

"I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. So help me God."

~The Presidential Oath of Office

Love this video!  It was made by Anna, a kindergarten student, who wanted to create a video about Martin Luther King Jr. for kids.  

It has two important messages:

• We should treat everyone fairly.
  
• When people care about something important, they can go to work and make a difference, just like Martin Luther King and Anna did.  That makes them heroes!
  

Thank you, Anna!  Making a nice video like this takes lots of time.  We really appreciate your work!

The Obamas began one of the most important weekends of their lives helping to paint shelves at Burrville Elementary School.
They were joined by young people from the neighboring community.

The young people were encouraged to establish a habit of serving others.  President Obama shared an example of one family who takes time to serve every holiday weekend.

The fate of the Feinstein Gun Ban - and the rest of President Obama's radical Big Government agenda - could be decided as soon as Tuesday. 

That's when the fight over Harry Reid's scheme to SHUT UP all opposition by weakening the U.S. Senate filibuster is scheduled to take place. 

Should Harry Reid and his allies succeed, President Obama will have virtually free reign to run roughshod over the United States Senate, setting the stage for even more radical assaults on our liberties. 

You and I have already seen the damage President Obama is willing to inflict - even going ignoring our Second Amendment rights through Executive Orders. 

Can you imagine President Obama and his statist pals could inflict with Senate serving as nothing more than a rubber stamp for his radical agenda? 

As I've said before, America doesn't need a king. 

The U.S. Senate was intended to be a place where legislation was slowed down, where debate took place and where amendments were offered. 

You see, current Senate rules require 67 votes - a two-thirds majority - to shut down debate and change the rules. 

But for weeks now, Harry Reid has been working to ram through his "nuclear option" scheme with just 51 votes. 

Inside vote counts show he was scrambling to reach that threshold. 

But instead of fighting this scheme every step of the way, rumors are some of my colleagues are pushing for preemptive defeat by looking to cut a "deal." 

This would be nothing short of a DISASTER. 

You and I both know who gets left out in the cold whenever the leadership both parties get together to gut years of precedent. 

If any deal to weaken the filibuster is RAMMED into law, it could pave the way for massive new assaults on our liberties, including; 

*** The Feinstein Gun Ban and a new national gun registration scheme hidden under the guise of "background checks;" 

*** Giant new tax hikes spending increases instead of cuts in the looming battle over the debt ceiling; 

*** New massive spending schemes that make "ObamaCare's" $2.6 TRILLION price tag look fiscally responsible. 

And that won't even be close to the end of it. 

Make no mistake. Any deal would leave constitutional stalwarts in the Republican Party severely hampered in our ability to stop President Obama's legislative onslaught....

This insider deal-making and rule-gutting allowing President Obama and his pals to remake our country into a statist utopia MUST stop. 


In Liberty,

Senator Rand Paul 

An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before but had recently failed an entire class. 

That class had insisted that Obama's socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. 

The professor then said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class on Obama's plan". All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so no one will fail and no one will receive an “A”.... (substituting grades for dollars - something closer to home and more readily understood by all).

After the first test, the grades were averaged and everyone got a “B”. The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy. 

As the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride
too so they studied little. The second test average was a “D”! No one was happy. 

When the 3rd test rolled around, the new average was an “F”. 

As the tests proceeded, the scores never increased as bickering, blame and name-calling all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of anyone else. 

To their great surprise, ALL FAILED and the professor told them that socialism would also ultimately fail because when the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great, but when government takes all the reward away, no one will try or want to succeed. 

Human nature will always cause socialism's style of government to fail.  It is as simple as that.

1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.

2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.

3. The government cannot give anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.

4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.

5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation.

Relaxed and radiant from her multi-million dollar Hawaiian vacation, Michelle Obama paused to announce the "next phase of our movement for change."  

She creates a sense of ownership and potential by promising, "This is your movement."  It will be shaped by "your energy and ideas" and will "be whatever you make of it."   

Her message invokes purposes we all believe in -- "to lift up our families, to strengthen our communities, and to help all our children fulfill their God-given potential."  
  
The words are inviting, but Barack Obama's actions have revealed an incredibly destructive agenda.  He is spending trillions of dollars to create a vast government bureaucracy that is preparing to watch what we do and control how we live.  

Obama has done more to destroy our Constitution, and the protections it provides, than any other person in history.  

Now they are "Organizing for Action."  They will train and empower their followers, and support grassroots efforts to impact local issues.

This short message is cause for deep concern if you understand Obama's radical agenda.

"Obama for America will transform into a non-profit, tax-exempt group, that will attempt to leverage the re-election campaign's powerful grassroots organization and social media operation, as well as its rich voter database and vast email distribution list, to build up public support for the president as he pushes for agreements over the debt ceiling and the federal budget, gun control legislation, immigration reform, and other objectives."  ~CNN.com

“The spirit that Conner and Cayden show every day, and in every race, is in perfect keeping with what we look for in our annual SportsKid of the Year search.  

They are true examples of the good that can be accomplished through sports and we are proud to honor them.”   

~Sports Illustrated

In just days, President Obama will cross his fingers and swear to uphold the United States Constitution at his second inauguration ceremony. 

In the meantime, he and his anti-gun pals are scheming to shred it. 

Just moments ago, President Obama announced his 23 anti-gun initiatives - even going so far as to use Executive Orders to bypass our gun rights and our Second Amendment. 

As I explained in a recent interview, America doesn't need a king with no respect for law or the Constitution! 

Our Founders fought a revolution to STOP this kind of madness. 

And if you value our God-given right to keep and bear arms, it's absolutely critical you and fight back by signing your Second Amendment Protection Pledge IMMEDIATELY. 

What's at stake? 

There are almost too many schemes to list. But the worst of President Obama's schemes center around; 

*** The Feinstein Gun Ban - to criminalize firearms that look "scary;" 

*** A thinly-veiled national gun registration scheme hidden under the guise of "background checks" to ensure federal government overlords gain every bureaucratic tool they need for full-scale gun confiscation; 

*** An outright BAN on magazines holding more than 10 rounds. 

And that's not even close to the end of it. 

Since even before my election, I've been committed to the protection of our gun rights. 

Like most Americans, I understand that stopping crime doesn't begin with adopting Chicago's gun laws! 

All that would do is ensure law-abiding citizens are powerless in the face of a criminal threat. 

That's just common sense that's been proven time and again in study after study. 

All over the world, higher rates of civilian ownership of firearms translate into more safety - not less. 

And as more and more Americans are becoming armed, our national crime rate continues to fall. 

Yet President Obama continues to lecture Americans on the inherent evil of firearms - all from the center of a slew of armed guards. 

I'm committed to stopping the Obama gun control assault, but I need you to stand with me....

Many of my colleagues have their head in the sand and their fingers are in the air right now. 

They're waiting to see where all the political chips fall before deciding how to vote. 

So it's up to you and me to turn up the heat. 

So please sign your Second Amendment Protection Pledge and agree to your most generous gift of $250, $100, $50, or $25 to RANDPAC TODAY! 

In Liberty,

Senator Rand Paul 

P.S. Just moments ago, President Obama announced his 23 anti-gun initiatives - even going so far as to use Executive Orders to bypass our gun rights and our Constitution. 

I'm committed to fighting them tooth-and-nail, but I can't do it without your help.