Press release: January 6, 2011

Readers please pass this press release on to your media contacts

FOR  IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Maryland CAN conference drawing grassroots activists from across the state

Annapolis, MD – January 6, 2011 Eager to get down to work  networking, conservatives from across the state of Maryland will converge Saturday at the MD Conservative Action Network conference in Annapolis.  Registration numbers have well exceeded the 100 mark organizers had originally planned for.  “It looks like we are now headed toward 175,” said Ann Corcoran of Washington County one of the three meeting planners.

“For political liberals who called grassroots conservatives and tea partiers ‘astroturf’ and predicted we wouldn’t last long, this sure sends a different message, especially in traditionally blue Maryland.,” Corcoran continued.  “No astroturf here, no funding, just three ladies with a will to get Maryland moving in the right direction.”

Hailing from all but five Maryland counties, grassroots conservatives of all stripes will hear discussions led by former Gubernatorial primary candidate Brian Murphy, former candidates for Congress Charles Lollar and  Robert Broadus, newly sworn in Congressman Andy Harris, and State Delegate Ron George.  Also on the agenda are Sheriff Jenkins of Frederick County, ACORN whistleblower Anita MonCrief, and the leader of Raging Elephants, Texas activist Claver Kamau-Imani.

Tonya Tiffany of Howard County, a member of the Maryland Society of Patriots and one of the three meeting planners said, “The ‘conversion politics’ Apostle Claver will be discussing is the most exciting part of the day for me because we are going to learn how to find people with conservative values wherever they live and whatever their political affiliation has been, and join forces with them to change the political landscape in Maryland.”

By far the largest number of registrations has come from Montgomery County.  “That doesn’t surprise me,” said Cathy Trauernicht, the third meeting organizer and  Montgomery County resident. “During the US Senate primary campaign for Jim Rutledge, we saw in Montgomery County a deep and very active group of people who felt strongly about conservative principles and who have grown weary of the tax and spend, spend, spend mindset both in Montgomery County and in Annapolis.”

“We will have succeeded on Saturday if we are able to bring grassroots activists of all stripes together, many meeting for the first time, and go away with plans to work together and meet again,” concluded Trauernicht.   “We hope MD CAN will serve as a bulletin board of sorts for all conservative interest groups in Maryland.”

For more information on the conference visit the MD CAN website here and check out the complete list of speakers for Saturday, or contact Ann at 301-964-5442.

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News for January 5th

It’s getting crazy (in a good way)!  Registrations are around 150 and counting with lots of e-mails to say conservative grassroots activists are coming, telling me registrations are in the mail or coming at the door!

But, please don’t put any more registrations in the mail from here on out! Let us know you are coming by e-mail because lunch/seating orders were placed yesterday and although we can make some adjustments in the next few days we can’t completely throw the hotel into a frenzy.  E-mail me, Ann ( acorco9104@aol.com ) to pre-register.

Also, since we are just grassroots folks ourselves and have no financial backing for this conference each of you who tell me you are paying at the door, will have lunch ordered, so we must pay the hotel whether you come or not!  If you change your mind, please let us know today (Wednesday) or Thursday.

As I process your registrations today and tomorrow, you should get an e-mail confirmation from me, so please look for that.

Vegetarians! You have a veggie lunch option so let me know if you are one of those who have pre-registered and didn’t use a registration form and thus didn’t know you had a choice.  All other lunch boxes will have a variety of sandwiches.   Again, acorco9104@aol.com.

Questions, please check FAQS here.  Note the question about the weather.  Everyone is instructed to pray for good weather!

Conference Agenda is here.  Be sure to note we have added on a training session from 5 p.m to 6:30 p.m. on “Conversion Politics” which you are welcome to stay for.

Vendor tables

We didn’t know those would be so popular!  Here is a list of groups and organizations that will have booths (tables) in the main concourse so that you can learn more about what they are doing.   We recommend you come early to register (8:30 a.m.) to enjoy coffee/breakfast pastries and visit groups with tables. The program begins promptly at 9:30 a.m.

Raging Elephants
American Majority/Emerging Corruption
Maryland Society of Patriots PAC
Accuracy in Media
Freedom Works
Help Save Maryland
Friends of Charles Lollar
Protect Marriage Maryland
Teenage Republicans
Americans for Prosperity
New Day Maryland
New Renaissance in Education
RISE-America
Leadership Institute
Maryland Right to Life
Maryland Young Americans for Freedom

County counts!

In terms of the number of registrants, Montgomery County leads the pack by far!  That means of course that we will be turning Montgomery County around in the coming election—right!

Anne Arundel County is second, Carroll County third and Frederick fourth!

And, alas, we have no registrants so far from:  Allegany, Caroline, Charles, Garrett, Queen Anne’s, and Somerset.  Update:  We got a Charles countian!

Contact information distribution

We had previously asked if we could distribute your name, county and e-mail address to attendees at the conference.  We have decided to ask each of you for permission at registration and then distribute to those who wish to be included after the conference.

This is a networking opportunity and we would like people to reach each other after leaving on Saturday, so it would be great if you felt comfortable giving out your contact e-mail address, but we understand if you don’t.   We will be asking on Saturday!

Media contact request

One of the projects I hope to undertake following the conference is to build a media list for the state of Maryland—newspapers, radio programs, TV, bloggers etc.—with up to date contact e-mails for editors.  This would be a list that MD CAN would make available to any conservative group in the state.   I believe we need to keep our issues constantly in front of all media, even before the unfriendly media outlets.

So, please begin sending me your local media contacts—most outlets have a news editor e-mail address and an opinion editor address that news and op-eds can be sent to.  That is what I am looking for!   Thanks!  acorco9104@aol.com

LOOKING FORWARD TO MEETING YOU ALL ON SATURDAY!

Ann, Cathy, and Tonya

Update: If you are looking to stay at the DoubleTree Annapolis overnight either on Friday or Saturday nights, we have a room rate for MD CAN registrants of $99 plus tax. So be sure to call the hotel directly and mention MD CAN, we should still have rooms available.

Here is the latest news…..

Registrations are coming in fast and furious and our numbers are hovering around 150!   That is way beyond our expectations.

Tomorrow we will have more news.   But, please don’t put any more registration forms in the mail because we would hate for them to be sitting in a mailbox after we have left for Annapolis on Friday afternoon!

You may e-mail me, Ann, acorco9104@aol.com and pre-register.  More info. tomorrow morning!

Last day to mail registrations!

We are really excited! Registrations are pouring in!  Over 100 have already registered!   However, today (yesterday, January 3rd) is the last day to print out a registration form and get it in the mail to us in time.  The form is here.

Because there has been so much interest generated in the last few days….

If you cannot get to the post office today, you may contact me, Ann (acorco9104@aol.com) and pre-register.  We will then honor the $40 registration fee when you arrive.   However, if you do that, you must show up!   Not wanting to sound too mean, but we have no funding for this event other than your registration fee, so if we order your lunch this week and you don’t come after all, we must eat it (financially!).  So don’t pre-register unless you are sure you will be there.

However, we are not turning anyone away at the door!  For those who have not pre-registered, or won’t decide until late in the week, the fee at the door will be $50.  Please bring cash or a check.

Some logistical issues

Everyone whose registrations we received as of last Friday should have gotten e-mails from me confirming your registrations and making a few additional corrections, etc.  Let me know if you did not receive confirmation.  As soon as registrations come in today and later this week, you should hear from me.

We had an early version of the registration form that said registrations would begin at 9 a.m., we subsequently moved that time to 8:30 a.m. There will be coffee/tea and refreshments so come early and meet fellow conservatives and visit the information tables that various groups will have set up.   The program begins promptly at 9:30 a.m.

An early form did not have a vegetarian option for lunch, so be sure to contact me, if you do not have that on your form and would like a vegetarian wrap for lunch.

Another thing that was added late to our agenda was the training workshop by Apostle Claver that is free and will run from 5 p.m. to 6:30 in another room at the DoubleTree Hotel.  That session will be in addition to his scheduled session earlier in the afternoon.

Very important! Since this is a networking conference we want all of you to continue to communicate and work together after the conference. To accomplish that objective, we are planning to have available a contact list with your name, county and e-mail address for all attendees.  If you do not wish to be listed, please tell us before Thursday of this week.

Can’t wait to meet you all on Saturday!  Ann, Cathy and Tonya

Happy New Year!

It is hard to believe that 2011 is here and that one week from today the MD Conservative Action Network Inaugural Conference will kick off in Annapolis!

If you have arrived here today because you have just learned about the event, please click on the links at the top of the page to see the conference information, speakers, agenda, registration form, and faqs to answer your questions.

You can still mail your registration form on Monday, January 3, but after that it might not reach us before we go to Annapolis on Friday.    Because this meeting was put together quickly, we weren’t able to set up a way for you to pay on-line.    We aren’t turning anyone away at the door, but in order to not have chaos at the hotel with not enough seating or lunches, we had a registration deadline of December 31st.

If you can’t get your form in the mail on the 3rd, please contact me,  Ann (acorco9104@aol.com or 301-964-5442) to register in advance.  Registration at the door is $50.

Speakers and information tables.  I just want to emphasize that speakers are all giving freely of their own time to be in Annapolis on Saturday, some will have information booths about their groups, so please visit those tables and learn  more about their organizations.  Other groups will also have information available.

Resources!  Because this conference is all about networking, we started a list (also linked at the top of this page) called ‘resources’ so we could list your group/blog/think tank, etc.  Please send me links to add to the list.    acorco9104@aol.com

County representation!  As registrations come in, I’ve been keeping a list of who is coming from each county.  I have a whole bunch of new registrations I need to record today so will be back with a report  later.  However, I do know we will be be swamped (in a good way!) with Montgomery Countians!   We red county people keep hearing about all the liberals in Montgomery County—so what gives?  Looks like conservatives in Montgomery County are on a roll!   Which one of you is going to take-on Chris Van Hollen?

Happy New Year again from Ann, Cathy and Tonya!

Press release: Apostle Claver to train MD conservatives in “Conversion Politics”

Readers, help us spread the word, send this press release to your media contacts!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Apostle Claver from Raging Elephants to Speak at MD CAN Conference Jan 8^th

Annapolis, MD—December 31, 2010 Raging Elephants is taking the nation one state at a time, and Maryland’s time is here.  Apostle Claver Kamau-Imani, founder and chairman of Raging Elephants.org is a conservative activist with a dynamic message of Conversion Politics.  His message is that there are too many people who have conservative values who vote liberal.  That must change and Raging Elephants is targeting voters with a message of ‘vote your values.’

“Raging Elephants portrays the message of innovation and outreach that every conservative candidate in this past election was trying to convey in their platform.  Raging Elephants is going to make real changes in Maryland,” says Sam Hale, founder of the Maryland Society of Patriots and recent candidate for MDGOP Chairman.

Apostle Claver will speak at the conservative networking conference MD CAN on Saturday, January 8^th, 2011 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Annapolis.  Visit the MD CAN website for more details and registration information:  https://mdcan.wordpress.com/.  (It is not too late to register if you get the registrations in the mail by Monday, 1/3, but no one will be turned away at the door.)

A dynamic speaker, Claver will discuss Conversion Politics from 3:15 to 4:00 pm and will conduct a FREE workshop immediately following the conference from 5:00 to 6:30 PM also at the DoubleTree.  Those unable to attend the conference are welcome to attend the workshop.

Raging Elephants’ Maryland Field Director, Kathy Fuller, says a good working definition of Conversion Politics is, “To find those voters who hold conservative values but don’t vote conservatively, then reach out to show them how their vote conflicts with their values.”

During the workshop attendees will learn just how to identify hidden conservatives within the ranks of minority voters and then educate and impel those voters to vote for those candidates and issues most in line with their own conservative world view. RagingElephants’ three-pronged approach employs aggressive, offensive tactics to infiltrate traditionally non-conservative voting regions. The workshop’s purpose will be to demonstrate the implementation of the RagingElephants’ program within Maryland communities.

If you are unable to attend the Conference or the workshop, Apostle Claver T. Kamau-Imani will be in the Annapolis area the 7^th through the 9^th and will be available to speak to groups of 15 or more interested in scheduling additional workshops and/or presentations. For more information please contact RagingElephants.org (http://www.ragingelephants.org/) and select “booking” to schedule a workshop.

For more Maryland information contact, Kathy Fuller at 410-795-3321 or via e-mail elephantsremember@yahoo.com , or Tonya Tiffany at MD CAN:  marylandcan@yahoo.com

For Apostle Claver’s biography go here.

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General conference information is here.  Agenda is here. Confirmed speakers are here.  Printable registration form is here.  Questions are answered here.  More questions?  Our contact information is here.

Absolute last day to mail registration forms is January 3rd in order to reach us in time for the conference. If you are hearing about this conference too late for the deadline to mail forms (which was actually today, December 31), please get in touch with me at  acorco9104@aol.com and make arrangements for registration and payment.

Or, you can always just register on January 8th, but the cost is $50 at the door.

Confirmed Speaker: Apostle Claver Kamau-Imani

Last but not least of our posted biographies of conference speakers is Apostle Claver of Raging Elephants.  Claver will speak in the afternoon at the Maryland CAN networking conference (agenda) and then immediately following the main conference he will be conducting a free workshop (at the DoubleTree Hotel) for anyone wishing to learn more and receive training in Conversion Politics.

What is Conversion Politics?  Kathy Fuller, Raging Elephants Maryland Field Director, gives us this definition:

“To find those voters who hold conservative values but don’t vote conservatively, then reach out to show them how their vote conflicts with their values.”

Biography

Apostle Claver Kamau-Imani is the founder and chairman of RagingElephants.org. The PAC was created to be an advocate for conservative-libertarian social, economic and political issues, to lobby political organizations and office holders, and to educate and organize the electorate on and for conservative-libertarian ideals.

RagingElephants.org is a counterweight to liberal organizations like MoveOn, Emily’s List, ACORN and Organizing for America.

Apostle Claver Kamau-Imani is the founder and senior pastor of the Corinthian Christian Empowerment Center (CCEC) in Houston.

CCEC’s primary ministry is urban missionary work and assisted living. CCEC also has established a hospice for the poor where they may be cared for and loved in an atmosphere of dignity and true Christianity.

A graduate of Lamar University with a B.S. in mass communications, Apostle Claver grew up in Beaumont, Texas in a home bubbling with political and civil rights discussions and activity. Both of his parents were active leaders in Democratic politics, the civil rights movement, and the Missionary Baptist Church.

Currently, Apostle Claver is a member of the Republican Party, and sits on the board of directors for the Greater Houston Pachyderm Club.

Apostle Claver and RagingElephants.org has appeared or been featured on many TV and radio programs including FoxNews, CNN, the Sean Hannity Show and other radio programs from coast to coast.  Print media including the Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Houston Chronicle have reported on his leadership of Raging Elephants.

Recently named one of the “Hottest Conservative Men for 2010” by LibertyPundit.net, a competition whose judges included Ann Coulter, Apostle Claver was ranked #8 out of 75 candidates.

 

General conference information is here.  Agenda is here. Confirmed speakers are here.  Printable registration form is here.  Questions are answered here.  More questions?  Our contact information is here.

Absolute last day to mail registration forms is January 3rd in order to reach us in time for the conference. If you are hearing about this conference too late for the deadline to mail forms (which was actually today, December 31), please get in touch with me at  acorco9104@aol.com and make arrangements for registration and payment.

Or, you can always just register on January 8th, but the cost is $50 at the door.

Press release December 30th, Anita MonCrief, ACORN whistleblower

Readers, this is a press release we have sent out to our press contacts in Maryland.  Please help us by copying and pasting the release into an e-mail and sending it to your local news outlets.  By the way, one of the many things we hope to accomplish on January 8th is to put our heads together and create a statewide media contact list (newspapers, TV, radio, bloggers and others) that would then be available to all of us whenever our groups want to get our conservative news out to the media.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Maryland Conservative Action Network Conference to hear from ACORN whistleblower

Keedysville, MD – December 30, 2010 The Maryland Conservative Action Network Conference to be held on January 8^th, 2011 in Annapolis, Maryland is a first-ever attempt to bring together, in one room, tea partiers and conservative activists of all stripes from across the state.  “The goal is to meet each other and plan for how we can begin to change Maryland by breaking the liberal lock on the state,” said Tonya Tiffany, a MD CAN organizer and Maryland Society of Patriots member.  “In other states conservatives in 2010 were successful in breaking the Democratic hold on state government and we plan to make sure Maryland isn’t left out of the conservative wave in the future,” Tiffany concluded.

The networking conference will feature speakers who will act as discussion leaders and one of those speakers is the well-known ACORN Project Vote whistleblower, Anita MonCrief.  Ms. MonCrief will discuss voter fraud and what we can do to combat it.  And, in her new capacity as national spokesperson and trainer for American Majority, she will discuss candidate recruitment and training.

“As a high ranking member inside ACORN, Anita learned the intricacies of Community Organizing and she is helping the American Majority fight fire with fire,” said Matt Robbins, Executive Director of American Majority. http://americanmajority.org/

Since January 2009, American Majority has conducted over 350 training sessions in 44 states. In those sessions, Tea party-minded people have learned how to bring about real change and what it takes to get America back on the right track.

MonCrief warns her trainees about what to look for when dealing with the opposition, “It plays dirty and doesn’t much care for playing by the rules if breaking them will lead to victory.“

“In Anita MonCrief, the tea party movement has a member and a leader who knows the opposition’s playbook and is opening it to us all across the country,” said writer/activist James Simpson. You can meet Anita, also the editor of Emerging Corruption (http://emergingcorruption.com/), on January 8^th in Annapolis and learn more about how we can defeat the Left using some of their own strategies.  Ms. MonCrief’s biography can be found here https://mdcan.wordpress.com/2010/12/10/confirmed-speaker-anita-moncrief/

Please visit the MD CAN website (https://mdcan.wordpress.com/2010/12/26/news-for-december-26th-agenda-posted-for-january-8th-conference/) to see the line-up of other great speakers and to get registration information.  Time is short, MD CAN would like to see registrations mailed by tomorrow, December 31^st.  But, no one will be turned away at the door.

For more information contact:  Ann Corcoran at 301-964-5442 or e-mail acorco9104@aol.com.

Please get your registrations in the mail!

Just a friendly reminder that we would love for you to please get your registration forms in the mail to us postmarked on or before December 31st! We aren’t going to turn anyone away from the Conference, but for the purpose of assuring plenty of seating, not to mention lunches, we need to get a head count in to the hotel no later than January 4th!

Also, by mailing your forms in now, you can save $10 at the door.  Advance registration is $40 per person and at the door it will be $50!

Registration form is here.

News for December 26th: Agenda posted for January 8th conference

MARYLAND CONSERVATIVE ACTION NETWORK Conference

Saturday, January 8, 2011
DoubleTree Hotel
Annapolis, MD

8:30 AM     Registration opens
Light Refreshments provided, greet old friends, meet new ones, visit information booths

9:30 AM     Conference begins

9:45 – 1o:45    Panel: “Campaign 2010: What Worked, What Didn’t, What Will”
Brian Murphy, Charles Lollar, Robert Broadus

10:45 – 11:15   “Local Activism: The Immigration Example”
Sheriff Chuck Jenkins

11:15 – 12   “Federal Pressures on the State of Maryland: How Can We Respond?”
Representative-elect Dr. Andy Harris, Delegate Ron George

Noon – 1:15   Break for Working Lunch by Interest Groups
Box lunches provided

1:15 – 1:45   “Effective Media Outreach”
Marta Mossburg (Journalist and Senior Fellow, MD Public Policy Institute)

1:45  – 2:30  “Candidate Training and Combatting Voter Fraud”
Anita MonCrief (American Majority, Emerging Corruption)

2:30 – 2:45   Break

2:45 – 3:15  “Citizen Legislator, First Time Campaigner”
Delegate-elect Kathy Afzali

3:15 – 4    “Conversion Politics”
Claver Kamau-Imani (Raging Elephants)

4 – 4:30    “From the Ground Up: Precinct Organization”
Mark Jascewsky (Howard County Precinct Director)

4:30    Conference Ends

5 – 6:30    Raging Elephants Training Workshop, open to all who wish to attend

General conference information is here.  Confirmed speakers‘ bios are here.  Printable registration form is here (please mail registration forms by December 31st!!!)  Questions are answered here.  More questions?  Our contact information is here.

We have a press release if you need something for your group’s newsletter or for a local newspaper or radio station, here.