Bill Marcy for Congress
This was the official website for Bill Marcy's 2012 run for the U.S. House to represent the 2nd Congressional District of Mississippi. Marcy was the only candidate in the March 2012 Republican primary in Mississippi's 2nd District. Leading into the general election, he received the endorsement of U.S. Rep. Allen West of Florida. He eventually lost in a three way race to the incumbent, Bennie Thompson (D). The content below is from the site's 2010-2012 archived pages.
A Message from Bill Marcy
The 2nd District needs a better tomorrow, a stepping stone to a brighter future. While others work to set America back, we will work to take America forward.
Every day, our Government takes one more step towards encroaching on our civil liberties, and worse yet, spending our hard earned money on policies that do not meld with our core value system. And some of our Congressional leaders are battling for power and position within their political parties, instead of representing the constituents.
I believe that our Constitution guarantees – life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The Government’s job is to govern, not to restrict our prosperity as secured by natural law and the rights of the individual.
Together, we can point our Country back to the values that our Founding Father’s envisioned. I’m Bill Marcy, and I want to be a part of building the landscape of better education, better jobs and a better, safer life for our children.
Editor's Note: Several weeks after we launched this website, we noticed we were no longer showing up for searches for "Bill Marcy", or even for "BillMarcyForCongress.com". We had been #1 for both. Our webmaster could find nothing wrong. We share office space with a pretty robust IT team who was also stymied, but suggested we consider the site might be penalized in Google. We never heard of such a thing, but after several days of frantic searching we stumbled onto Bob Sakayama's Google-Penalty.com. Bob is the recognized expert in Google penalties and he proved it immediately by pointing out that our site had something called a meta noindex tag on every page. Our dev team then admitted they had added that while they made some changes they did not want indexed and forgot to revert it. Long story short, we shot ourselves in the foot, but fortunately the Google penalty expert found the problem within 5 minutes, didn't charge us for his time, and we were back! Whew!
ISSUES
Energy
It is insane that in America, we do not take full advantage of our own domestic energy resources. We have large oil and gas resources within our national boundaries, but, currently we are buying oil and natural gas from countries that have openly vowed to support the destruction of our Nation. We need to stop giving our money to our enemies. I will support all forms of alternate energy sources; however, these resources will take time to develop and be commonplace so in the meantime our current energy needs must be fulfilled by our national oil, natural gas and nuclear sources.
I will not allow our country to be crippled by the so called “Globe Warming Environmental Terrorists”. Like our other enemies, the environmental terrorists are not trying to protect our environment but rather “fundamentally change” our country by using an energy crisis to push their belief in a world government. This does not mean that I’m against recycling or protecting our environment, but it does mean that I’m against reducing America’s standard of living just to “provide a level playing field” between countries. America is the greatest Nation on the face of the planet and our mission should be to lead the world by finding better solutions to everyone’s energy needs.
Bailouts
I do not support bailing out the people and businesses that created the current economic crisis. Rewarding failure is not the American way. I do not believe in the idea that anyone or anything is “too big to fail”. Failure is often the route to innovation and innovation is the road to prosperity. About his many failures while inventing the lightbulb, Edison was quoted as saying, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Edison knew that failure was simply part of the price of success, as did our Founding Fathers who guaranteed all Americans the “pursuit of happiness” not it’s achievement.
Defense
The first responsibility of the Federal Government as outlined in the Constitution is to provide for the “common defense” of the Nation; a goal which requires a military force that is second to none in technology, advanced weaponry and the infrastructure to support an advanced global fighting force.
I support our troops and will assure they have the best equipment to fight our enemies. Our forces must be able to project our Nation’s power throughout the world at a moments notice. In order for our military to accomplish this mission we need a strong, effective Navy. Soon, we may face a Chinese Navy which is expanding rapidly. We must be focused not only on present threats, but working to prepare for future threats as well. September 11, 2001 was a wake-up call and the United States must never be caught unprepared again.
Healthcare
The United States has the best health care in the world. When was the last time you heard of someone flying to Canada or Mexico to get medical treatment? The Liberals say that health care in America is broken, but when was the last time you heard of anyone dying in the streets because they were refused medical assistance? Every hospital in the U.S. is required to treat anyone who is sick or injured without regard to their ability to pay. Liberals have framed the debate and made it about a presumed broken “health care system”. They argue that their solutions can be paid for by removing waste and fraud from Medicare; to which I say, “remove the waste and fraud from Medicare first” then you’ll have the funds to help provide insurance to those who cannot afford to pay for insurance. It is not necessary to take over 1/6th of our Nation’s economy to solve our health care problems.
A few simple things can be done without huge government bureaucracies and without spending more of money we do not have.
For example, we can guarantee insurance be portable so following a person from job to job. We can make sure insurance companies do not “cherry pick” applicants by covering only those without pre-existing conditions. We should promote Heath Care Saving Plans. We should make medical care costs transparent to the patient. We should re-engage consumers in the process by making doctor and hospital success rates available and accessible so patients can make their own decisions about their treatments. We should allow insurance companies to sell products across State lines to increase the pools of applicants and reduce insurance costs. And finally, tort reform needs to be passed as soon as possible to reduce malpractice insurance costs which have skyrocketed in the past two decades due to attorneys who file “Jackpot Injury” cases or play the game of filing of frivolous injury lawsuits in an effort to force unjustified settlements.
Government involvement in any program only increases the cost. One final question on this topic: Can you name one single government program that has ever come in on-time and under budget? If not, then why would we trust the government to take over our health care?
Taxes
The tax burden on the citizens who pay taxes is abusive. Democrats have used the tax code to reward their supporters and to punish those would oppose their socialistic programs. The American citizens are willing to pay for constitutional items; such as national defense, bridges and highways, but are not willing to pay for “pork projects”.
The preamble of the constitution clearly states the federal government is limited on what tax payer’s money can be spent. I will support holding government to these constitutional limits. I believe the “Fair Tax” plan is the only fair way to fund Constitutional Government.
Pro-Life
What is called abortion is really the killing of unborn children. Since the 1973 Roe vs Wade Supreme Court decision, there have been over 45 million unborn babies killed of which 17 million of these precious lives have been minority children. This is a continuation of the Democratic/Progressive policies of the 1900s, specifically the eugenics movement which believed there were people who were unfit to live. These murderers have directed most of these killings toward minority and poor children.
There is no debate that infants in the womb are people. We need to protect the lives of the unborn.
Immigration
My immigration policy is very simple. If you come into this country illegally, you must go home. Legal immigration has always been good for America. But, our policy which allows the freeflow of immigration through un-controlled borders is a danger to the national defense of America.
Not only do illegal immigrants come across our borders, but it has already been proven that terrorists have crossed our border with Mexico on more than one occasion. It is only a matter of time until terrorists use our lack of border control to attack us. Southern border states have been fighting hard against the drug kingpins who are flooding their streets with drugs and crime; their fight is made infinitely harder with our open border polices. We do not need more laws against illegal immigration; we simply need to enforce the laws we already have on the books. Homeland Security starts with secure borders.
Although I was born in Mississippi, I grew up as an military brat staying in various states as my father's posting lead us from Virginia, to Alaska, to Rhode Island, and then finally Annapolis. I now live in New York City having just recently moved. It was the first time since college that I moved with real to goodness professional movers. It had always been myself and friends helping. I am now spoiled. I guess one always expects some glitches in a move, but mine went so smoothly. I still have a lot of family in Mississippi. Politically, we are all over the place ,but my grandparents are staunch conservative Republicans and proud of it. My parent's generation is pretty mixed both Republican and Democratic. My generation of cousins also sit from both sides of the political aisle. Me, I am probably the farthest left and the most progressive along with my siblings. We hang far out on a long branch of the family tree. I remember visiting my grandparents when I was in college. I came down to Mississippi in my hip, cool clothes that were so NYC lower east side. I wore several studded choker collar necklaces, had a couple of piercings, and sported a tattoo on my arm and neck. Dressed in shades of gothic black and grey, I certainly stuck out down in Mississippi. I remember my grandmother giving me the slow glance that traveled from the top of my short boy cut hair, down to my scuffy motor cycle boots. She didn't say a word, but gave me a warm and welcoming hug. Jump ahead to the present day, I know my grandparents supported Bill Marcy in 2012 and Trump in 2016. My clothing is still predominantly in grays and blacks. The tattoos have been added to, and my choker collar shave become more sophisticated. I'm still me with my liberal leanings, but when I see my now very elderly grandparents it doesn't matter. We all love one another. Family first. We just don't discuss politics!
More Background on BillMarcyForCongress.com
BillMarcyForCongress.com was the official campaign website for Bill Marcy, a Republican candidate who ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District during the 2010 and 2012 election cycles. This site served as the central digital hub for Marcy’s congressional campaigns, providing voters with information about his platform, campaign news, and ways to support or contact the campaign. While the website is no longer actively maintained, its role and content during its operational period offer insight into the digital strategies and political climate of early 2010s congressional campaigns.
Historical Context and Campaign Background
Bill Marcy’s Political Campaigns
Bill Marcy’s congressional bids took place in a period of heightened political polarization and digital transformation in campaign strategies. In 2010 and 2012, Marcy ran as a Republican candidate in Mississippi’s 2nd District, a seat long held by Democrat Bennie Thompson. Marcy was the sole candidate in the 2012 Republican primary, advancing to the general election where he faced Thompson and other challengers. Despite endorsements from prominent Republicans, including then-U.S. Representative Allen West, Marcy was ultimately unsuccessful in both attempts, with Thompson retaining his seat.
Website Launch and Purpose
The launch of BillMarcyForCongress.com aligned with the broader trend of candidates establishing dedicated campaign websites to reach constituents, disseminate information, and mobilize supporters. Such websites became essential for modern campaigns, serving as platforms for policy statements, event announcements, volunteer recruitment, and fundraising.
Website Features and Functionality
Core Content and Tools
BillMarcyForCongress.com included several standard features typical of campaign websites during the early 2010s:
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Candidate Biography and Platform: The site provided detailed information about Bill Marcy’s background, political philosophy, and positions on key issues relevant to Mississippi voters.
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News and Updates: Regular updates about campaign events, endorsements, and media appearances kept supporters informed and engaged.
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Contact and Volunteer Forms: Visitors could sign up to volunteer, request campaign materials, or contact the campaign directly.
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Donation Portal: Like most campaign sites, it facilitated online fundraising, allowing supporters to contribute directly to Marcy’s campaign.
Data Collection and Privacy Practices
A 2013 academic analysis of congressional campaign websites, including BillMarcyForCongress.com, highlighted the widespread but often opaque collection of voter data. The study found that congressional campaigns, while less technologically advanced than presidential campaigns, still collected significant amounts of personal information from visitors, often without clear disclosure. This practice raised concerns about transparency and privacy, as many sites—including Marcy’s—did not adequately inform users about how their data would be used.
Technical Issues and Search Visibility
During its operation, BillMarcyForCongress.com experienced technical challenges that temporarily affected its visibility in search engine results. An accidental implementation of a “meta noindex” tag on all pages led to the site being de-indexed by Google, making it difficult for voters to find via search. This issue was resolved after consultation with a search engine optimization expert, highlighting the importance of technical proficiency even in local political campaigns.
Reviews and Public Reception
Voter and Media Response
As a campaign website for a congressional candidate in a predominantly Democratic district, BillMarcyForCongress.com was primarily targeted at local voters, party supporters, and media outlets covering the race. While there is limited evidence of formal reviews in mainstream media, the site was referenced in Federal Election Commission (FEC) documents and academic literature as part of broader analyses of campaign practices.
Federal Election Commission Scrutiny
The FEC reviewed Bill Marcy’s campaign in response to complaints regarding the lack of proper disclaimers on campaign advertisements and delays in filing required organizational documents. The FEC noted that the campaign failed to file timely financial reports for expenses, including those related to the campaign website. However, the Commission ultimately dismissed the matter, noting that the advertisements contained sufficient identifying information to avoid misleading the public. This episode underscores the regulatory scrutiny faced by campaign websites and the importance of compliance with federal election laws.
Press and Media Coverage
Local and National Media
Coverage of Bill Marcy’s campaigns, and by extension his website, was primarily found in local Mississippi media and political reporting outlets. The broader national press focused on the overall dynamics of the 2010 and 2012 congressional elections, with Marcy’s campaign receiving limited attention outside the district. The website itself was not a subject of major news stories but was part of the digital infrastructure supporting Marcy’s public messaging.
Academic and Policy Analysis
BillMarcyForCongress.com was included in academic studies examining the use of digital tools in congressional campaigns. Researchers noted that while the site was representative of the era’s campaign websites, it also exemplified the lack of transparency in data practices and the uneven adoption of advanced digital strategies outside of high-profile national races.
Audience and Reach
Target Audience
The primary audience for BillMarcyForCongress.com consisted of:
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Voters in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District: The site aimed to persuade undecided voters and mobilize Republican supporters.
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Volunteers and Donors: The site provided resources for those interested in volunteering or financially supporting the campaign.
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Media and Political Observers: Journalists and political analysts used the site to obtain official campaign statements and policy positions.
Traffic and Engagement
While specific traffic data is unavailable, the site’s temporary de-indexing from Google likely impacted its reach during a critical period of the campaign. The restoration of search visibility would have been essential for maximizing voter engagement and outreach.
Notable Features and Examples
Transparency and Compliance Challenges
The campaign’s experience with FEC compliance and technical website issues serves as a case study in the challenges faced by smaller or less-resourced campaigns. The FEC’s review of the campaign’s website expenditures and advertising disclaimers illustrates the regulatory environment in which campaign websites operate.
Data Collection Practices
The academic analysis of congressional campaign websites found that BillMarcyForCongress.com, like many of its contemporaries, collected visitor data without clear disclosure. This practice was not unique to Marcy’s campaign but was indicative of a broader trend in political digital strategy during the early 2010s.
Cultural and Social Significance
Reflection of Political and Technological Trends
BillMarcyForCongress.com exemplifies the increasing reliance on digital platforms in American political campaigns. By the early 2010s, campaign websites had become indispensable tools for voter outreach, fundraising, and volunteer coordination. The site’s technical and compliance challenges also reflect the growing pains experienced by campaigns adapting to new digital realities.
Transparency and Voter Privacy
The site’s inclusion in academic discussions about transparency and data privacy highlights the evolving expectations of voters and regulators regarding online political engagement. The lack of clear disclosure about data practices on congressional campaign websites became a focal point for calls for increased transparency and public scrutiny.
Insights and Lessons Learned
Importance of Technical Competence
The episode involving the accidental “noindex” tag demonstrates the critical role of technical expertise in modern campaigns, even at the local level. A seemingly minor technical error can have significant consequences for a campaign’s ability to communicate with voters.
Regulatory Compliance
The FEC’s review of the campaign’s website-related expenditures and advertising practices underscores the need for rigorous compliance with election laws. Campaigns must ensure that their digital operations meet all legal requirements to avoid regulatory scrutiny and potential penalties.
Transparency in Data Practices
The academic critique of congressional campaign websites’ data collection practices serves as a reminder of the importance of transparency in political communication. As digital campaigns become more sophisticated, clear disclosure of data practices is essential to maintaining public trust.
BillMarcyForCongress.com played a central role in Bill Marcy’s congressional campaigns, serving as a digital platform for outreach, fundraising, and voter engagement. While the site was typical of early 2010s campaign websites, its experiences with technical issues, FEC scrutiny, and data collection practices offer valuable insights into the evolving landscape of political campaigning in the digital age.
The website’s history illustrates the opportunities and challenges faced by down-ballot candidates in leveraging digital tools, the importance of technical and regulatory competence, and the growing public and academic interest in transparency and privacy in political communication. Although the site is no longer active, its legacy provides a window into the intersection of technology, politics, and public accountability in contemporary American elections.
