Day: January 29, 2024

Houck Explains Candidacy At Bucks Meet And Greet — Congressional candidate Mark Houck explained why he was running to a dozen persons at a meet-and-greet petition party at the Doylestown home of Dawn Bancroft.

Houck is seeking to replace incumbent Brian Fritzpatrick as the Republican nominee for Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District. The district is Bucks County and part of eastern Montgomery County.

Fitzpatrick has held office since 2017.

The primary election is April 23.

Houck’s priority is ending lawfare.

Lawfare is the use of the legal system against political opponents while letting supporters break the law at will. Examples would be 22-year sentences for Jan. 6 protestors while dropping all charges from the far more destructive attacks on the White House and its surroundings in the summer of 2020.

Or giving the guy who nearly killed Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky) just 30 days albeit that was later extended to seven months with six months home detention.

Or what happened to Houck.

Houck had long worked as a sidewalk councilor outside the Planned Parenthood Elizabeth Blackwell Health Center in Philadelphia and had always taken pains to follow federal and local laws staying 50 feet from the entrance doors. In October 2021, anti-life activist Bruce Love approached Houck’s 12-year-old son and shouted obscenities at him. Houck pushed him away. Love reported an assault to police. Local authorities felt the complaint was spurious and took no action.

Yes, even District Attorney Larry Krasner declined to press charges.

So the Biden “Justice” Department got involved and charged him with violating the FACE Act — a federal law that makes it a crime to injure, intimidate, or interfere with anyone providing abortion services.

Houck’s attorney asked for a time and place for Houck to surrender himself.

What happened next was something one would think could never happen in America.

At about 6:30 a.m., Sept. 23, 2022, FBI agents in helmets, body armor and carrying assault rifles descended on the Houck family’s rural Kintnersville home. There was loud banging on the front door and the bell ringing insistently. Houck asked who it was. FBI came the answer and Houck was ordered to open up. He could not see who they were, it should be noted.

Wonder if our brilliant feds considered how criminals can use this ploy for a home invasion. It would certainly make it less likely for a thug to have to face a homeowner with a gun.

Anyway, Houck told him he had seven babies in the house which might have been a bit of a fib as his kids were past the infant stage. It calmed down the lawmen, though, and he let them in.

His wife, Ryan-Marie, at this point was on the scene. The feds were pointing their guns at Houck and the children. Ryan-Marie demanded to see a warrant. The feds told her they didn’t need one. Houck who was in a t-shirt, shorts and flip flops asked if he could put on some clothes.

The request was refused. Houck was handcuffed in front of his kids and hauled away.

Houck said he was shackled with a belly belt and chained to a table for six hours before being released on his own recognizance.

He expected to be offered a plea deal. His attorneys, however, told them that was unlikely as the feds win 98 precent of their trials. It’s the accused that asks for the plea bargain, his attorneys said.

Houck was looking at an 11 year sentence plus fines.

Houck declined to seek a deal. As trial date approached, however, the feds shockingly offered one calling for no prison time or fines. His attorneys urged Houck to accept but he refused.

They said to talk to his wife and he agreed.

Ryan-Marie said he could take the deal but if he did he couldn’t come back.

They prayed about it. Taking the deal would set a precedent that would weaken free speech for all Americans, they realized.

Houck was going to trial.

The jury was picked. Many, if not most, had been supportive in some way of Planned Parenthood.

The trial ended Jan. 30, 2023. The jury had deliberated for but an hour before declaring not guilty.

It’s a time of miracles.

Houck was then approached by parties asking him to take on Fitzpatrick who votes with the Democrats 70 percent of the time.

He prayed about it and decided to.

Believe it or not, he’s getting support from Bucks GOP committee people. Fitzpatrick is still getting most of it but he shouldn’t be cocky.

Houck’s second issue is immigration. He said Fitzpatrick had ignored it until just a few weeks ago when Speaker Mike Johnson convinced him to visit Eagle Pass, Texas to see the crisis for himself.

Houck says that 10 improvised explosive devices have been found near the border. What about the ones that haven’t been found?

Whatever, could they be used for?

Some former high-ranking FBI agents have an idea.

Houck notes that the most immigrants that could be reasonably vetted in a year — in other words enter legally — is 500,000.

That’s about as many as came across just in the last two months.

Neither Fitzpatrick nor the Democrat seem motivated to deal with the crisis.

Regarding abortion, Houck says he will back any bill that saves lives even those including exceptions for rape, incest and life-of-the-mother.