Immigration and the Washington Power Structure: Time to Tell Washington Who Is in Charge

In this week's Winning the Future:

• Bloomberg Is Proof That We Should Repeal the Rest of McCain-Feingold
• Repeal McCain-Feingold and Give a Middle-Class Candidate a Chance
• Back to the Immigration Fight
• 24 Hours Left to Call Your Senator
• Don't Give Up If the News Is Bad Tuesday
• By 84 to 12, the American People Support the Key Proposition of American Solutions
• The American People Want to Defend our Country and Defeat our Enemies
• And if You Wonder Why We Want to Defeat Our Enemies...
• Pearl Harbor is a Great Independence Day Gift
• I am coming to Iowa on Thursday

Like Jason in Friday the 13th movies who returns again and again, the Bush-Kennedy-McCain immigration bill refuses to die. It's back this week for a vote in the Senate tomorrow. More on this important fight in a moment, but first I just had to share with you some great news.

BREAKING NEWS - SUPREME COURT RULES IN FAVOR OF WISCOSIN RIGHT TO LIFE AND AGAINST MCCAIN-FEINGOLD GAG ORDER LAW

In a substantial and important victory for democracy and free speech, the Supreme Court just hours ago announced that the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law cannot completely stifle the free speech of citizens and groups such as Wisconsin Right to Life, which brought the challenge to the McCain-Feingold law's assault on liberty.

The case arose when Wisconsin Right to Life was prohibited from running an ad urging listeners to call their Wisconsin senators and tell them not to filibuster President Bush's judicial nominees. Today, this exercise of free political speech has been vindicated by the nation's highest court.

The 1st Amendment to the Constitution says: "Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech." It does not say Congress can abridge speech it doesn't like.

By striking the first significant blow against the McCain-Feingold anti-free speech law, the court has struck a blow for the constitutional rights of all of us. Yet there is more work to do. We must continue the vigorous work of groups such as Wisconsin Right to Life to ultimately repeal this pernicious law's censorship of the American people.

Bloomberg Is Proof That We Should Repeal the Rest of McCain-Feingold

The other news this week is that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg changed his party affiliation from Republican to Independent as the first move toward what many people think will be a run for President.

I think Bloomberg has done a terrific job as mayor, and people of New York who've twice picked him to lead their city seem to agree. He has every right to decide to run for President, and I hope he does. He will make a fantastic addition to the race.

But the possible Bloomberg candidacy highlights yet another of the anti-democratic, pro-Washington power structure aspects of the McCain-Feingold so-called campaign finance law.

Michael Bloomberg is a billionaire with plenty of money to spend on campaigning. When he ran for re-election as mayor, he reportedly spent $112 a vote. If Bloomberg enters a three-way presidential race as an Independent and spends just half of what he did per vote for his two campaigns for mayor, the amount would be enormous. In this model, if Bloomberg targeted the same number of votes as Clinton did in 1992 to win 43% of the vote and the presidency, Bloomberg would spend upwards of $1 billion dollars. That's BILLION with a B.

Repeal McCain-Feingold and Give a Middle-Class Candidate a Chance

The tyranny of the anti-free speech McCain-Feingold law is that it cripples any middle-class candidate from matching the resources Mayor Bloomberg has ready in his bank account. While Mayor Bloomberg can simply write a check, McCain-Feingold forces less wealthy candidates to raise money in impossibly small amounts to compete.

The perverse effect of McCain-Feingold is that it has made money in politics more important, not less.

I wish Mayor Bloomberg all the success in the world. But Congress should take this opportunity to level the playing field and repeal McCain-Feingold.

A truly functioning campaign system would take power out of Washington and return it to its owners - the American people. Such a system would allow individuals to make unlimited contributions to candidates for Congress in their district, so long as it is reported immediately on the Internet and is transparent and accessible.

Back to the Immigration Fight

Let's hope we don't have to go all the way to the Supreme Court to get a sensible law to protect the border. The good news is that I've heard from lots of you who found my 10, simple, direct steps to a legal immigration system to be a very useful alternative to the disaster being kept on life-support in the Senate.

Americans want more than rhetoric - either pro or con - on this issue. They want results. Barry Casselman wrote in the Washington Times last week:

"Previously, I was critical of those who opposed the effort to fashion a new omnibus immigration bill because they had no detailed and workable alternative to the present impasse. Mr. Gingrich has come up with such an alternative, and I agree that it is much better than the omnibus bill. It not only satisfies the concerns of conservatives, but also the broad, majoritarian base of America's political center."

I'm gratified that so many Americans - including leaders such as Wisconsin Republican Congressman Paul Ryan - have found my 10-point immigration plan helpful.

24 Hours Left to Call Your Senator

Still, despite the fierce opposition of the American people, the Washington power structure is determined to force a vote to avoid a filibuster on the Bush-Kennedy-McCain bill.

The vote is scheduled for tomorrow. That means you have 24 hours to call your senator and remind him or her that this is an issue of the Washington power elite versus the American people, and there should be no mistaking where the American people stand: We are angry and frustrated and want to see this bill gone.

And there is still hope that we can succeed. Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a strong supporter of secure borders and the rule of law, has said that those who support the American people are gaining ground. We can still defeat this bill. Call your senator now and say "no" to this Washington power elite nightmare.

Don't Give Up if the News Is Bad Tuesday

If the Washington power structure does succeed in forcing its will on the American people Tuesday, remember: There are still lots of procedural tactics that conservatives who support the American people can use - just as you know liberals would use - to defeat the bill. So keep the pressure up. This battle is not over until it's over.

By 84 to 12, the American People Support the Key Proposition of American Solutions

Ask the American people and we'll tell you: We know our government isn't working, and we know it will take real changes to make it work.

My new organization, American Solutions, polled the American people and found that by a consistent 84-to-12 margin, Americans favor real change in how we control our government and how our government controls us:

• 92% believe we need to provide long-term solutions instead of short-term fixes (only 5% believe it is unimportant);
• 80% believe we must strengthen and revitalize America's core values (only 9% believe that is unimportant); and
• 67% favor moving the government into the 21st Century (only 15% believe that is unimportant).

If you feel the same way, join us July 23 for a briefing on the key principles for transforming government and giving citizens more choices of higher quality at lower cost. You can participate in person by going here or join us on the Internet by going here.

Please join us July 23. It will be the start of something transformational in American politics.

The American People Want to Defend our Country and Defeat our Enemies

The same American Solutions poll found that the source of America's difficulties abroad today is not the American people but our inarticulate and unimaginative officials all across government - people who now preside over our nation instead of lead it.

• 85% of Americans believe we must help defend America and her allies (only 10% believe that is unimportant); and
• 75% believe we must defeat America's enemies (only 16% believe that is unimportant).

Stay tuned to "Winning the Future" for more exciting and exclusive polling results from American Solutions. And go to AmericanSolutions.com now to join us.

And if You Wonder Why We Want to Defeat Our Enemies...

There is no greater explanation for why Americans feel so strongly about protecting our nation and defeating our enemies than a new book that goes to the source - our enemies themselves - and chillingly captures their evil intent in their own words.

In the Words of Our Enemies by Human Events editor Jed Babbin is an eye-opening tour of America's enemies, from Osama bin Laden to Hugo Chavez and the Iranian and North Korean dictatorships. Babbin cites the very words of this gallery of rogues to show that America faces a long and hard war for the survival of our civilization.

Babbin's invaluable book provides an invaluable service: We've been warned - now it's up to us to make sure we have the leaders necessary to mount America's defense.

Newt Gingrich

P.S. - In the run-up to our first ever "Solutions Day," we're hosting free team meetings in various states to discuss how you can help strengthen and renew the values of our country, move our government in a new and positive direction, and help defend against the threats facing our country.

This Thursday, June 28, I will be hosting team meetings in Sioux City, Iowa City, and Des Moines. Click here to find out how to attend. I hope to see you at one of the following American Solutions Events:

8:00 a.m.
Fiona's Firehouse Bistro
1211 5th Street
Sioux City, IA 51102

11:30 a.m.
Quality Inn Iowa City
2525 North Dodge Street
Iowa City, IA 52245

4:00 p.m.
West Des Moines Marriott
1250 Jordan Creek Parkway
West Des Moines, IA 50266

P.P.S. - It's summer reading time, so before you head off to the beach, pick up my new novel, Pearl Harbor. It also makes a fantastic Fourth of July gift. Get it for someone you love here.