Some of you are aware that I’m quite the Twitterholic. I tweet under the handle @Gabby_Hoffman and am not afraid to say that I tweet up quite the storm. My Twitter musings range from conservative politics to historical events. On occasion, I also include fashion and animal posts. Whenever I’m traveling for work or for leisure, I tweet pictures of monuments or interesting points of observation. All in all, I’ve grown to like and rely on Twitter.
Why would a young conservative like me use Twitter, you ask? Easy: we’ve got to win the social media war against the Left.
January 12, 2013 will mark three years since I started on Twitter. (In twitterspeak, I’ll be celebrating my third Twitterversary.)
At first I was reluctant to tweet. This social media medium was extremely confusing and foreign to me. I was perplexed by the RT symbol, follow button, and hashtags. It was not until a young conservative conference in Summer 2010 that I started to use Twitter. Once I got the hang of Twitter, I couldn’t stop using it.
In the nearly three years I’ve been on Twitter, I’ve garnered almost 22, 000 followers. What’s the key to this? Playing hashtag games, helping tweets turn into news stories, and promoting friends and fellow activists. I’ve also used Twitter to promote my articles.
As a recent college graduate and newly employed young person, I will see roughly $700-800 of my paycheck going to the government this year. Why should I – someone who maintains a job and contributes to society – surrender so much of my hard-earned money in taxes? Why should anyone with a job be punished with more taxes?
Here are my thoughts from the article:
Gabriella Hoffman’s paycheck is a little lighter today, thanks to a payroll tax increase that is forcing millions of Americans to make the kind of tough budget cuts their representatives in Washington lawmakers seem unwilling to tackle.
Hoffman, a 21-year-old Virginian who works at a nonprofit, estimates her paycheck will be roughly $30 less this biweekly pay period, or about $780 annually, thanks to the end of a two-year cut on payroll taxes, which fund Social Security. The tax has risen back up to 6.2 percent from 4.2 percent, costing someone making $50,000 annually about $1,000 per year and a household with two high-paid workers up to $4,500.
“As a newly-graduated person, someone coming straight out of college, I don’t like the idea of having less money coming to me due to the selfish interests of people in Congress who don’t have any interest in reducing our financial problems,” Hoffman told FoxNews.com. “This is an impediment for future economic growth. It’s going to make it harder for young people like myself to get married, find a better job, you name it.”
Hoffman admits the hike won’t completely alter her spending, but the University of California-San Diego graduate said she will definitely have it in mind when it comes to leisure activities and entertainment.
“Although it’s a small quantity on a monthly basis, just having less money going into my paycheck will prevent me from doing things and force me to be more frugal,” she said. “I’ll be more cautious with my spending.”
And I topped off my criticism of this tax hike with this quote:
Hoffman, meanwhile, said she already has all the answers she needs.
“Any tax increase is not good for young people,” she said. “What it does is diminish your hard work and you’re slapped on the wrist. This administration is punishing people who are making money. They don’t like the concept of free enterprise. They think these problems will be solved in Washington by taking away more of people’s incomes.”
The 113th Congress was sworn in this past week. Divided government still dominates in the nation’s capital (Democrats still control the presidency and the U.S. Senate), and President Obama promises to be more partisan and equally tyrannical in his second term. Nevertheless, my generation should look forward to the addition of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) to the 113th Congress.
Cruz, a conservative champion and fearless defender of the Constitution, promises to be a much-needed conservative voice in the U.S. Senate. With Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) resigning to assume Ed Feulner’s post at Heritage Foundation, Cruz will likely take over DeMint’s role as the stalwart conservative voice in this respective chamber.
Earlier this morning on Fox News Sunday Cruz said, “I don’t think what Washington needs is more compromise. I think what Washington needs is more common sense and more principle.”
He also criticized the nomination of former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel to the Secretary of Defense post citing his long-track record of being anti-Israel and being a detriment to healthy U.S.-Israel relations.
If you haven’t watched the entire interview, you can view it below.
A few days earlier, Senator Cruz published a column in the Washington Post urging Republicans to promote “opportunity conservatism.”
He writes, “So let me suggest an alternative course: opportunity conservatism. Republicans should conceptualize and articulate every domestic policy with a single-minded focus on easing the ascent up the economic ladder.”
Cruz adds, “That does not mean adopting the wealth-redistribution policies of the left. Among other problems, collectivist approaches to our economy simply do not work. They fail to produce economic prosperity or to improve the material conditions of the populace. And they lead to bankruptcy and economic collapse, as Europe demonstrates daily.”
And then he finishes with this point: “Why do millions of people from all over the world come to the United States? Because no other nation has offered such opportunity. Nowhere else can so many come with nothing and achieve anything.”
Senator Ted Cruz understands the problems that my generation faces. As a first-generation American born to a Cuban father, Cruz notions that freedom and prosperity-not welfare and government handouts-best uplift people.
As a young person, I’m largely drawn to Ted Cruz and his conservatism because like him, I’m also a first-generation American born to immigrant parents. (My parents are from the Baltic Republic of Lithuania. They escaped from it before the USSR collapsed.) Additionally, Cruz knows how to articulate conservatism and win arguments by clearly stating the problems we face and how to solve them. If young people are looking for a serious leader, then Ted Cruz is the right guy to confide in.
Welcome to Washington, D.C., Senator Cruz! My generation is counting on you.
I hope all of you are enjoying the holiday season with Chanukah, Christmas, and New Year’s celebrations. As we say goodbye to 2012 and hello to 2013, I offer you my final blog post of the year.
This year will go down in history as one of the most eventful years to date. Somehow President Obama – arguably one of the most corrupt and dangerous presidents in American history – clinched a second term in November. SCOTUS ruled the individual mandate provision in Obamacare constitutional as a tax. Shockingly, but not surprisingly, Mitt Romney lost the election. Our side witnessed devastating losses in U.S. Senate contests, as well. Unemployment rose. The country cared more about birth control politics than preserving free enterprise this election year. And the list goes on and on.
2012 was not a good year for America. Don’t kid yourselves if you think higher taxes, the implementation of Obamacare, and other policies ushered in by this administration are going to benefit us. They’ll incur more harm than good.
If you want to be encouraged for the battle ahead, check out Rebooting America founder Justen Charters in his viral “Six Trillion Dollar Man” music video for ChristinePAC. Share it with your friends and family.
Although there’s much to complain about 2012 and the consequences surrounding Obama’s re-election, I recognize that much good came out of this year. I graduated from UCSD with a B.A. in Political Science on the three-year track in June. Shortly afterward I moved from Southern California to Northern Virginia to intern at the Media Research Center’s CNSNews division. I then got hired to work for the Leadership Institute as the Northeast Regional Field Coordinator, which has been a great experience thus far. Working with conservative students is fun, hard work, and great. I’m also grateful for wonderful co-workers, and find myself incredibly happy with the work I’m doing. I’m very blessed for gainful employment!
I was also graced with many opportunities in 2012. I was a youth speaker at several conferences, appeared on many radio shows, and continued to write for various conservative media outlets. I befriended and strengthened friendships with great people and fellow young conservative activists. I met many people who I look up to including Michelle Malkin, Ken Cuccinelli, Mark Levin, Dana Loesch, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), and incoming U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), to name a few. I got to explore this country more and ventured to Texas, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts for the first time. FreePAC Dallas was a blast, and my various trips to the Northeast to meet with students were equally worthwhile. I also co-founded another youth movement – Resistance 44- with my good friend Justen Charters and gauged young people with our conservative message.
2012 wouldn’t be complete if it weren’t for my family, friends, and fellow activists. Thank you for keeping my spirits up. I’m thankful for all of you and your continual support!
Despite impending tax hikes on all Americans come January 1st (thank you, President Obama and Congress), Americans should look forward to 2013.
-Pro-life? Attend 40th Annual March for Life event. The march will be taking place on January 25, 2013 in downtown Washington, D.C.
-If you live here in the Commonwealth of Virginia, you have the opportunity to help pivot our state red and elect Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli as our next governor. Outside support is also appreciated. This is the first and most important electoral contest our side must win. (Visit Cuccinelli’s website, sign up to be a campaign volunteer, and donate money to his campaign.)
-Get involved with the National School Choice Week movement. Next year’s event takes place during the week of January 27, 2013 – February 2, 2013. This is how we outreach to people.
-Defend free enterprise and make the moral case for it. Don’t support higher taxes.
-Champion family values and undermine the welfare society.
-And most of all breathe, exercise, eat healthy, travel the country, be frugal, surround yourself with good people, and don’t succumb to pressure. Take the occasional break from politics and your electronics to enjoy the world around you.
What will I be up to in 2013? Here’s what you can expect from me:
Speaking engagements: I’m scheduled to speak at a CUFI on Campus’ SALT conference panel on student activism in San Antonio, TX on January 3, 2013, which is followed by my participation in “The Cheated Generation” panel at Maryland Conservative Action Network’s Turning the Tides conference on January 12, 2013 in Annapolis, MD. More appearances are likely throughout the year.
Look out for an e-book featuring yours truly: I, along with other young conservatives, wrote a chapter for an e-book slated for release in March 2013.
National appearance: Can’t reveal this yet, but you’ll be seeing me on the national stage in mid-to-late January.
Blogging: I’ll continue blogging for CNSNews.com, Counter Cultured, Right Wing News, and make my debut on The Blaze. Some other opportunities might come up. I’ll keep you posted.
Work: Work is my first priority, so it’ll come first before outside activities. Nevertheless, I’ll be documenting my travels, crazy professors, and leftist abuses in the Northeast if anything comes up. If you’re a student in the Northeast looking to be active on campus, please contact me here.
Rebooting America: I’ll be more involved. You should join the movement too.
Twitter: Follow my musings and tweets @Gabby_Hoffman.
L’chaim and cheers to a happy, healthy, and productive 2013!
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
4,329 films were submitted to the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. This blog had 48,000 views in 2012. If each view were a film, this blog would power 11 Film Festivals
