First, there was this from Henson, Published on the Asheville Tea PAC website  (link below):

It’s a big fat lie.  I was there and I know.

The fake audio of Lynda Bennett was a hoax manipulated by people who were seeking revenge.  The rest of the story is even more interesting.

Lynda Bennett is a huge supporter of Trump. Lynda Bennett was scolding a group of angry guys for their behavior.

This group did not want US Senator Richard Burr, NC Senator Jim Davis or Commissioner Ensley on the palm cards being distributed by the Haywood County Republican Party. Lynda was asking people to get behind the candidates that had been elected during the primary because it was the right thing to do.

The Hoax started with a recording at GOP headquarters of a get-out-the-vote materials organizational meeting.  When we realized they were recording, we asked them to stop.  They did not.

Lynda was expressing her view that it was not right for ‘Never Trumpers’ in the rest of the Republican Party to refuse to get behind the Presidential nominee selected by the voters. She made it clear that it was not right. This group was behaving like ‘Never Trumpers’ by trying to deny Burr, Davis, and Ensley the place they earned in the primary and denying the voters their choice.

The ‘Fake’ recording hoax changed the meaning of the words. Lynda is a big supporter of President Trump. This group knew that. She waved signs for Candidate Trump many times over the election cycle. She worked at the polls. This group was intent on hurting her and Candidate Trump by making it appear she did not support him.

It is not hard to cut and splice an audio which is exactly what they did to make it say something totally different than what the speaker actually said.

I was there and I know what happened.

People volunteering at the headquarters to organize to get voters out heard what was said and understood her. These guys changed the audio to misrepresent the truth. She has proven her loyalty to Trump.  One of the guys posted the hoax hundreds of times on the Internet. They did not care about the truth.  They had an agenda and did not care who they hurt.

These people were opposed to Jim Davis and now their lies are turning against them. By hurting Lynda Bennett – they actually help the very person they hate.

Richard Burr’s office called these guys down for striking his name and others from the palm card. Eventually, they had their keys to the Haywood County GOP headquarters taken away to prevent them from doing more damage.

Eventually, some in this group were censured by the NCGOP to prevent them from attending any more Republican meetings. These are the people spreading bold-faced lies.

Those of us that know these guys, know how bad they are. Lynda Bennett did nothing wrong. She supported our Republican candidates against their attacks and she was paid back with lies and a hoax.

Lynda Bennett supports President Trump in her words and deeds.

Ken Henson,

Chair of the Haywood County Republican Party

828 506 0205

Fake News Audio Hoax of Lynda Bennett – Exposed!

Then this from Lynda Bennett’s campaign website (link below):

STATEMENT FROM HAYWOOD REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIR

KEN HENSON:

Manipulated Audio of Lynda Bennett

It’s a big fat lie.  I was there and I know.

I am the Chairman of the Haywood Republican Party. Everyone that was there knows that this audio has been manipulated to sound like the exact opposite of what really happened.  It has been twisted to have different meaning from what Lynda was trying to say.

The audio of Lynda Bennett was manipulated by people who are seeking revenge..

Lynda Bennett is a huge supporter of Trump. Lynda was scolding these guys for their behavior.

We were in a work session at the headquarters to create the palm cards with our candidates on it. This should have been simple, but a small vocal faction did not want our elected Republicans on the palm cards (especially TRUMP),  to be distributed by the Haywood County Republican Party. Lynda was asking them to get behind the candidates that had been elected during the primary because it was the right thing to do. They continued to oppose the candidates.

The Hoax started there.

Lynda was expressing her view that it was not right for ‘Never-Trumpers’ in the rest of the Republican Party to refuse to get behind the Presidential nominee selected by the voters.

These guys were behaving like ‘Never Trumpers’.  She made it clear that it was not right when people go around saying “I am never Trump. I am never Trump.” She made it clear that people who are working in the party as officers or supporters of the Party cannot say that about the Republican candidates.  But they kept on complaining about the candidates and she responded that they still sounded like People that say “I am never Trump”.

The manipulated recording hoax changed the meaning of the words into the exact opposite of what she was saying. We do not have access to the part of the audio that clears up the confusion because they have only released a portion of the conversation.

Lynda is a big supporter of President Trump. She waved signs for Candidate Trump many times over the election cycle. She worked at the polls for all the candidates including Trump at the top of the ticket. She helped organize a victory party at headquarters. Everyone that knows her over here knows she worked for Trump during the election.

Lynda, along with several others, hosted a huge “2017 Trump Inaugural Ball”. She spent two weeks decorating for the event. There was no charge for the Ball. We all pitched in – out of our packets – to cover all of the expenses for the food, the music, and the decorations.  We wanted to be able to share in the excitement of the Trump Inauguration. Over 250 people attended the Haywood Inaugural Ball. Everyone knew the hosts of the party were Trump Supporters.

This small group of guys have tried to hurt many other Republican volunteers over the last few years. Many people have been attacked by them with innuendos and falsehoods. This was not a new tactic for them. Now they are are intent on hurting Lynda.

After the Trump victory, Lynda Bennett was elected as the Secretary of the Haywood Republican Party. Then two years later she was promoted to vice-chair. Our county is very pro-Trump and they know that Lynda is too.

It is not hard to cut and splice an audio and that is exactly what they did – to make it say something totally different than what the speaker actually said. I was there and I know what happened. These guys changed the audio to misrepresent the truth.

She has proven her loyalty to Trump.  One of the guys posted the hoax hundreds of times on the Internet. They did not care about the truth; they had an agenda and did not care who they hurt.

Richard Burr’s office called these guys down for striking his name and others from the palm card. Eventually this group had their keys to the GOP headquarters taken away from them to prevent them from doing more damage.

Eventually some in this group were censured by the state NCGOP to prevent them from being able to attend any more Republican meetings and from holding offices. These are the people spreading bold-faced lies. Lynda Bennett did nothing wrong. She supported our Republican candidates against their attacks and she was paid back with lies and a hoax.

Lynda Bennett supports President Trump in her words and deeds.

Sincerely,

Ken Henson, Chair of the Haywood County Republican Party

https://lyndaforcongress.com/home/trump/

What rules were violated?

On page 36 of the North Carolina Republican Party Plan of Organization, one finds the following:

F. REFRAIN FROM UTILIZING POWERS OF OFFICE IN REPUBLICAN PRIMARY Each Officer and each Member of any Committee created pursuant to this Plan of Organization shall refrain from utilizing the powers and dignity of his or her office or position in any Republican Primary for public office at any level. Nor shall any Committee created pursuant to this Plan of Organization make or issue, in any way, manner or form, any endorsement in any Republican Primary for public office. Nor shall any Committee issue any contrary endorsement or withhold support from any non-partisan judicial candidates properly endorsed pursuant to this Plan of Organization.

No one who is familiar with the leadership of Haywood County GOP should be surprised.  In typical form, Henson blusters, but does not address the issue.

Perhaps he needs to read the NCGOP Plan of Organization, or have someone read it to him.

I can remember when Grass Roots North Carolina fought diligently to protect the gun rights of North Carolinians.  Lately, it seems that they have lost their way.  At least when it comes to fact checking the propaganda they distribute.

First they endorsed Linda Bennett for Congress from North Carolina’s District 11, based only on her responses to a survey and stated positions.

Next, they sent out an email that included this:

“a Meadows staffer”???

Inquiring minds want to know – when was Lynda Bennett on Meadows’ staff?

Also, when have those “malicious rumors” been “proven false?

F. Paul Valone, we would like to see some answers.

Haywood County GOP Chairman Ken Henson allegedly wrote a statement of support for Lynda Bennett which is published on her campaign website.

I use the word “allegedly”, as few who have worked with Henson would believe that he wrote it.  But this isn’t about who wrote the letter, it is about facts and logic that should be taken into account when reading that letter.

Everyone that was there knows that this audio has been manipulated to sound like the exact opposite of what really happened. It has been twisted to have different meaning from what Lynda was trying to say.

This is a claim that Lynda never spoke those words in that arrangement – that the audio was somehow manipulated to change the meaning of the words. That is clearly and unequivocally what the quote above says.

The audio of Lynda Bennett was manipulated by people who are seeking revenge.

More of the same – the audio was manipulated.  Furthermore, a motive of revenge is claimed.  Revenge for what?

The claim that the audio was manipulated will be repeated yet again. Never mind the fact that for less money than the Bennett camp has spent on “Official Conservative Ballots”, they could have had an expert analyze the recording and confirm the claim if it was true.

But the claim that the recording was manipulated is false. We know this because several witnesses present when the recording was made attest to it’s authenticity.

Lynda Bennett is a huge supporter of Trump. Lynda was scolding these guys for their behavior.

Here appears the other explanation for the audio – that Bennett was scolding others for their behavior.

So, we are supposed to believe that the altered audio shows Bennett scolding others?  If so, the alteration would help Bennett, not harm her.

Lynda was expressing her view that it was not right for ‘Never-Trumpers’ in the rest of the Republican Party to refuse to get behind the Presidential nominee selected by the voters.

Here again we have another incarnation of the second story. She wasn’t stating her own position, she was chastising others.

The manipulated recording hoax changed the meaning of the words into the exact opposite of what she was saying.

Now we’re back to the original story – that the audio was manipulated.

Many people have been attacked by them with innuendos and falsehoods.

And Ken Henson threatened me with violence, and lied about my actions. Another HCGOP crony filed a specious assault charge against me on which I was acquitted, despite dishonest testimony by several HCGOP ExCom members that failed to corroborate the charge. Bennett’s “testimony” was most Oscar-worthy.

These are not empty allegations – there were witnesses in every case.

After the Trump victory, Lynda Bennett was elected as the Secretary of the Haywood Republican Party. Then two years later she was promoted to vice-chair.

Use of the word “promoted” above might seem odd, but it is quite appropriate.  Bennett was in fact elected vice-chair – in an election where no one else was allowed to be nominated.  This too can be confirmed by witnesses.

It is not hard to cut and splice an audio and that is exactly what they did – to make it say something totally different than what the speaker actually said. I was there and I know what happened. These guys changed the audio to misrepresent the truth.

We now return to the original claim that the recording was altered. Never mind the fact that several witnesses attest that this is not the case.

Eventually some in this group were censured by the state NCGOP to prevent them from being able to attend any more Republican meetings and from holding offices.

By and large, the evidence against people was that they had dared to call out RINOs in local government.   Henson omits the fact that the censures all have a time limit.

The evidence against me consisted of a single Facebook post – a picture of a funny Gary Johnson for President t-shirt. The charge against me, which I had to travel to Cary to defend,  was not upheld, but that isn’t something that Henson or anyone else in the Bennett camp will admit.  I still have my evidence packet.

These are the people spreading bold-faced lies. Lynda Bennett did nothing wrong.

There was nothing wrong with not being a Trump supporter during the primary. There is everything wrong with lying about it.

When people are telling the truth, they have one story – the truth.  When people have two stories, especially when one obviates the need for the other, they are most likely lying.

 

 

You can read Statement from Haywood Republican Chair Ken Henson here.

(note:  clicking the link above may result in a security warning from you browser.  It did when I clicked it.)

I was shocked to discover that Grass Roots North Carolina would “recommend” a political neophyte whose support for the Second Amendment is limited to recent statements of support.

Andy Stevens, apparently a GRNC official, first states that GRNC doesn’t make endorsements.  While factually correct, that is a bit of a dodge.  Like the NRA, GRNC has a separate organization, GRNC-PVF, that makes “recommendations”.

Stevens declined to explain why GRNC-PVF made the recommendation they did, or explain the difference between a “recommendation” and an “endorsement”.

When a supposedly credible gun rights organization makes a “recommendation” like this, it has to make thinking people wonder why.

https://www.grnc.org/grnc-pvf/grnc-pvf-alertsupdates/1135-2020-candidate-recommendations

I sense a significant amount of anger in our online discussions.

While I feel that much of it is justified, we all need to make sure it is kept under control.

On Tuesday evening, we saw an object example of anger out of control.  Fortunately, it wasn’t one of us providing the example, it was one of the Commissioners.

For any of us to go down that road can only hurt our cause.

I would further remind everyone that is was not realistic to expect that on Tuesday night there would have been significant action on our cause.  Things just don’t work that way, and for good reason.

It is therefore premature at this point for us to speak against any of the Commissioners, or all of them, for inaction on our issue.

One or two may be deserving of criticism for their actions.  If we’re going to focus energy against someone, let it be them.  Even then we must be careful and recognize how our actions will be seen by others, particularly those who don’t yet agree with us.  We don’t want to wind up looking like that Commissioner.

We are engaged in a process that will likely take a few months to conclude.  We must remain engaged, calm, respectable, respectful, and legal if we wish to prevail.

Anybody can become angry – that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.

Aristotle
Molon Labe

I have had some time to organize my thoughts since last Tuesday’s meeting of the Haywood County Commission and our progress to date, and would like to share them with you.  These are my thoughts and mine alone.  No one is asked to agree with me, nor am I attempting to tell others what they should think.  I welcome reasoned and respectful discussion with anyone regarding the following.

Did We Succeed?

My answer would be an unqualified “yes”.  My hope for Tuesday’s meeting was that we get the attention of the Commissioners, and we clearly did that.  I am sure that some of you hoped for more, which leads me to my next topic…

Reasonable Expectations

I am pretty sure that except in the case of emergency, the  Commission cannot act on an item that is not on the agenda.  While we might find this frustrating, it really is for our protection.  We must be told in advance of actions the Commissioners plan to take, so that we can participate in the process and make our voices heard before action is taken.  For this reason, I didn’t expect we’d get a resolution passed last Tuesday night.

Having watched the Commission act on other issues in the past, I would expect the issue to be discussed at two or three Commission meetings before significant action is taken.  Hopefully, the Commission might restrict action on our issue to their evening meetings, so that more of us can attend and be heard.

In any case, it is a process that doesn’t happen quickly.  If we are to prevail, we must remain engaged.

What would a resolution do?

That depends on just how it is worded.  It might be purely symbolic, and affirm the Second Amendment rights of the people of Haywood County.

Other counties have gone further, stating in their resolutions that no county resources shall be used to abridge the Second Amendment rights of citizens.

Ours might turn out like one of the two above, or somewhere in between.  Or we might not get one at all.  But we get nothing if we give up.

If we get a resolution, even if it merely symbolic, it sends a message to Raleigh that is helpful to legislators sympathetic to our cause.

The Commissioners

General observation: There seems to a disconnect in some cases between the statements of Commissioners published in Smoky Mountain News on January 7 and their positions stated at the Commission meeting on Tuesday.  My overall feeling is that they want us to think they have been working on this issue, but I see little evidence that is in fact the case.  Had they indeed been working on the issue, I suspect they would have answered differently when asked specifically about the Second Amendment Sanctuary issue.

Here are my observations on the Commissioners, with the most favorable ones first and least favorable ones last.

Brandon Rogers

Commissioner Rogers had the most clear and concise comments on the issue at the January 21 meeting.  I believe he merely chose poorly when answering the question posed by Smoky Mountain News, by not being specific enough.  It is clear to me that Commissioner Rogers supports some sort of resolution, whether specific to our Second Amendment rights, or more general and covering all of our Constitutional rights.

Tommy Long

Commissioner Long opined that it might be best to draft a resolution affirming all of the Constitutional Rights of the people of Haywood County, rather than just Second Amendment rights.  He seems to have a good rationale in support of this, and it appeared that Commissioner Rogers agreed with him.  Sadly Commissioner Long spoke for so long that by the time he was done it was hard to tell exactly where he stood.

Kirk Kirkpatrick

I am surprised to be placing Commissioner Kirkpatrick at the middle of the pack.  He promised to carefully consider the issue, which is really all that any of us can expect.  Additionally, I found his comments regarding the societal conditions that cause us to seek a Second Amendment Sanctuary to be insightful.

Kevin Ensley

Had it not been for the performance of the  next person on this list, Chairman Ensley would have wound up at the bottom of the list.  He insulted the majority of attendees by claiming that we were there because of “fake news” we had seen on Facebook.  And yet he claims he doesn’t even use Facebook! So how could he possibly know what we might have seen there?

Chairman Ensley also presumed to tell us how we should best spend our energies protecting our Second Amendment rights.  I am a NRA Life Member and support the NRA to the extent that I can, but they aren’t the only game in town.  And I know that when it comes to influencing local government, a group of dedicated citizens is far more powerful than any national organization.

Mark Pless

This is the hardest part of this article to write, because it’s already raising my blood pressure, and I want to keep this objective and professional.

In my opinion, Commissioner Pless made a huge mistake by reacting with such anger and by saying things like “I didn’t sign up for this”.  Yes sir, you did.  If you can’t handle a persistent activist constituent without losing your cool, perhaps you shouldn’t be in office.

If Commissioner Pless, in his heart of hearts, knows that it was wrong to have sent that email, he would have, in my opinion, been better served by saying: “it was wrong of me to send that email, and I apologize”.  He would have earned some respect from me, and I suspect also from quite a few others.

If Commissioner Pless thinks it was right to send that email, then in my opinion he is not suited for public office, and should resign his seat.

In any case, I found Commissioner Pless’s demonstrated anger to be completely inappropriate for a public official at any level of government.  Video of his comments regarding his email to Eddie Cabe can be seen at the end of this post.

Commissioner Pless, like Chairman Ensley, also insulted most attendees by claiming that we were only there because we had been lied to, on Facebook and elsewhere.  I found that highly offensive.  As a Facebook user, Commissioner Pless has far less excuse for making such and absurd claim.

Yes, I spent a lot of effort getting people to show up at the January 21 meeting, as did many others.  I didn’t tell anyone that the Haywood County Commission wanted to take our guns, and I know of no one else who did so.

Conclusions

To use a military analogy, we haven’t yet won the war, but we did very well in the first battle.

Effort and engagement on our part does not guarantee success.  Nothing will.  But disengagement and lack of effort does guarantee failure.

Molon Labe!

Commissioner Pless explains his email suggesting that a citizen move to another county.

 

 

In the interest of keeping things honest, and not dishonestly inflating apparent support, please do not sign this online petition if you have signed a paper petition or if you are certain to attend the County Commission meeting on January 21 at 5:30 PM.

Please pay attention to the first field of the form below.  I failed to do so when testing the form, and was recorded in the database as “Ms. Paul Yeager”.  Just click on that field, and select the appropriate term.

Make Haywood County a Second Amendment Sanctuary

Read the petition

Ms Mr Mrs Miss Mx. Dr.

I request that the Haywood County Commission pass a resolution stating support for the Second Amendment rights of those of live and/or work in Haywood County North Carolina.

**your signature**

BCC yourself

 

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Join us in urging the Haywood County Commission to declare our county a Second Amendment Sanctuary.

Attend the County Commission meeting on Tuesday, January 21 at 5:30 PM in the Commission Chamber in the Historic Haywood County Courthouse at the Corner of Main and Depot streets in Waynesville.

The meeting begins at 5:30, but be sure to arrive early to sign up to speak.

Download the Flyer in PDF format by clicking here.

Download the Petition in PDF format by clicking here.

HRA is raffling off 30 guns in 30 days!

1000 tickets will be sold for $30 each or 4 for $100, and each ticket has 30 chances to win!

Each day in August, the daytime Cash 3 Lottery drawing will determine the winner for that day.  That winner receives the gun listed for that day on the raffle calendar shown below.

All guns will be transferred to the winners through a Federally-licensed firearms dealer in full compliance with Federal and State law.

Complete rules and a copy of the raffle calendar are available  here.

For further information contact Jeremy Davis at 828-246-2468 or davisj5717@charter.net.