Goodbye America, I Hardly Knew You

The United States Federal Government has become a clear and present danger to the Republic and to the United States Constitution.  It is too big, too bloated, too ineffective, too inefficient, too pervasive, too omnipresent, too counterproductive, too corrupt, and simply too destructive.  This leviathan indiscriminately consumes and devours everything in its path.  Long ago it unhinged itself from its constitutional moorings and has taken on a life all its own unfettered by constitutional restraints and laws, functioning on the whims of a handful of highly placed masterminds.  We are becoming a nation of men, not laws.  We are becoming a nation of majority mob rule which leads inexorably to anarchy, chaos and tyranny.  The federal monster is devoid of common sense, devoid of reason, devoid of rationality, devoid of any link to The People, and devoid of any sense of responsiveness to wishes and needs of The People.  In the few instances where the federal government has clear responsibility it has proved itself wholly derelict in its duty, that being defending our borders, printing the money, and delivering the mail.  Any projection of power outside of these areas is unwise and unconstitutional.  The federal government has no constitutional power or authority in the areas of agriculture, education, energy, environment, health care, housing or private business.  It is taxing and spending and regulating and meddling our country into oblivion.  It is systematically attacking and usurping the freedom and liberty of the people by ignoring and convoluting the Bill of Rights.  Please take note Washington; it is the Bill of Rights, NOT the bill of needs.  These rights come from God, not government.  They are inalienable, they cannot be taken away.  It is the function of government to defend these rights, not squash them.  The People do not need the approval or permission of the Courts or the Government to hold and exercise these rights.  We fought a bloody war at our nation’s founding to secure these rights for the People.  I used to think that it is beginning to look like 1776 again but the more I observe our current dilemma it reminds me more of France, 1789.  Our pampered politicians, judges and bureaucrats live like kings and queens while the People suffer.  They are blind and deaf to the underlying misery and unhappiness throughout the land.  They live in a protected bubble; wining and dining, traveling, playing golf, enjoying concerts, just yukking it up and telling each other how great they are.  The emperor has no clothes.  We know this is all a lie, an illusion.  The economy is actually crashing down all around us.  The moral societal fabric is unraveling.  The People do not believe, do not like, and do not trust our politicians, our judges and the bureaucrats.  I believe that the motives of some of those in government are, simply put; evil.  For some reason the States, the foundational building blocks of our nation, the agencies that formed the federal government for their benefit now seem unwilling to exercise their constitutional 10^th Amendment duty to reign in this runaway federal behemoth by holding its feet to the constitutional fire.  The States are the vehicles by which the People project constitutional power over the federal government when elections alone fail the need, which they have.  Most people believe that elections are rigged and fraudulent.  It seems that we are headed down the same path of destruction as all of the great nations and empires of history.  And sadly, I don’t know if there is anything that can be done to stop this inexorable decline into dissolution.  May God help us and have mercy upon us.  And please, please bless the United States in America.

Conversion on the Road from Philadelphia

Something has gone dreadfully wrong on the road from Philadelphia, September 17, 1787.

When Benjamin Franklin stepped out of the Constitutional Convention at the end of that fateful day following its acceptance, the story is that a lady, Mrs. Powel asked him what the drafters had given us, “Well Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”  He purportedly replied, “A Republic, if you can keep it.”

Nearly 225 years later what is the verdict, have we kept it?  In fact, do most Americans even know what a republic is?  Do they know that the real power is vested in the States, not the federal government?  Do most in government even know this?

There is a general undertone of uneasiness in the body politic, a sense of foreboding.

The powers of the federal government are actually quite few and limited, by design.  Most of our Founders and Drafters were quite leery of a strong, centralized government.  And rightfully so. 

Those powers are to defend our borders and defend our interests at home and abroad, coin the money and deliver the mail.  And that’s about it.

The federal government is not constitutionally tasked to manage the nation’s agriculture or education or energy or health care or retirement or certainly the nation’s businesses.  Nor is it very effective or efficient when it tries to do all of this.

These things under our Constitution are, and rightfully should be relegated to the States and entities within the States.  Taking care of the individual needs of people is not found in the Constitution and is not a legitimate function of the federal government.  Quite frankly, it’s not very good at it.  When it comes to helping people, those closest to the person and the situation are best suited to help those in need.  Our history is one of family helping family, friends and neighbors helping friends and neighbors, churches and benevolent foundations helping those in their congregations and communities, and local villages and cities helping those in their midst.  As a last resort one might look to the State.  The least favorable prospect would be to look to some faceless bureaucrat in a cold, gray building far off in Washington, D.C. for help.   

Unfortunately, over the decades the federal government, like a growing leviathan has been sucking up all of the oxygen and national resources leaving precious little in local communities and charitable coffers for benevolent works.  It has illegally usurped the responsibilities of State and local governments amassing enormous power in Washington while chipping away our personal freedoms, liberties and private property rights. 

The best thing that the federal government could do is to give the people their money and freedoms back and then, well, quite frankly get the hell out of the way!

Someone PLEASE Turn ON the Lights!

A government that has the power to dictate your light bulb choices and to compel you to buy health insurance has the power to control, regulate and dictate every aspect of your life.  Is this what the Pilgrim’s loaded into the Mayflower, crossed a merciless sea and faced an unknown world of harsh conditions and menacing savages for?  Seriously, this is why they came to the New World?  Our Founders fought off the tyrannical yoke of King George just so that they could regulate trans-fats?  The men who wrote the Declaration of Independence, won a revolutionary war and then established a constitutional republic had a healthy distrust of strong centralized government power and an unwavering respect for religious freedom, personal property and individual liberty.  The current administration has demonstrated an insatiable appetite to regulate and dictate every aspect of our personal lives in direct violation of their responsibilities and constraints as clearly outlined in the Constitution.  They seek to circumvent the constitutional limits placed upon their power by imposing myriads of extra-legal rules and regulations and fines through bureaucracies and agencies which have no legislative authority.  They command people and businesses through intimidation, confusion, complexity, threats, fear and bluffs.  They demean and disparage people who cling to the actual wording and intent of the Constitution.  These people are called hicks and hayseeds and throwbacks and outdated anachronisms.  The Constitution is referred to as either a living, breathing document subject to endless reinterpretation by liberal, activist judges to mean whatever is expeditious to their cause at the moment; or an old, dead document written by dead white men in an old language that no one today can understand which might have meant something 200 years ago, but is without relevance today.  They completely ignore the fact that the framers understood this evolutionary reality and provided the amendment process just for this eventuality.  Wisely, the framers made this process just difficulty enough that it could not be employed for capricious, fleeting fads of the day.  But this is just too inconvenient for the libs.  Better and quicker to have judges impose dictates and legislate from the bench.  Let’s face it, to the Obama administration, the Constitution is nothing more than dirty, used toilet paper.  Such a rogue administration, in the interest of promoting ‘The General Welfare,’ will try to impose any and every possible progressive policy and program upon a nearly helpless populace.  Under this tyranny abortion is celebrated but you go to jail if you kill an endangered mouse or cut down a tree on your own property without a government permit.  Here’s what’s coming, mark my words.  You must drive a hybrid car and let us control the thermostat on your home furnace.  It’s now illegal to buy Edison’s light bulb, instead you must use the expensive one with the funny glow that blows up and spews mercury all over your kids.  If they can’t get Cap and Trade environmental legislation through Congress, no problem just instruct E.P.A. to enact it as a regulation and presto!, Al Gore’s carbon credit business takes off.  You can still buy cigarettes (they need the tax revenue, and hey, most libs smoke), but you can’t smoke anywhere, including your own car or house.  You can still buy booze (tax revenue again, and who can forget Ted Kennedy?) and now marijuana, but not trans-fats, Happy Meals or salt (unless you’re Barack and Michelle Obama, ribs anyone?).  Coke or Pepsi, we’ll decide for you.  If you’re a Christian (and yes, most of our Founders really were) keep it in the church and keep your mouth shut about it and keep your shirts and crosses out of the schools, work places, public parks, government buildings and proceedings and Friday night high school football games.  The government will dictate to G.M. (Government Motors) how many Volts to build and then when no one buys them they will regulate gasoline cars out of existence.  Oh you don’t have to give up your car, but they will just regulate the domestic oil industry out of existence and drive up the price of gasoline until no one can afford it.  They refuse to enforce our borders and sovereignty and then arrest our border agents when they shoot drug-running illegals in the butt.  We the people wind up paying for housing and transportation and food and medical care for illegals who break our immigration laws, come here and take our jobs.  Then, instead of prosecuting and deporting these illegal invaders, this administration wants to reward them with amnesty and a fast-track to citizenship (thereby guaranteeing a new voting block of entitlement-driven supporters).  This administration is printing and borrowing money, spending and racking up debt at a dizzying and unprecedented rate, almost certainly guaranteeing national insolvency, collapse of our currency and runaway inflation.  They are systematically taking over our health care system, thereby controlling one-sixth of our economy and having control over beginning and end-of-life issues for population control and meeting financial targets.  Is there any evidence that anyone in government knows more or is better at managing our health care industry that those people actually working in the industry every day?  No!  Where is the evidence, what is the track record?  Medicare is broke.  Medicaid is broke.  Social Security is broke.  They dictate to banks to make bad loans and then when the banks fail the feds step in, bail them out and take over the mortgage banks and the loans.  Guess what, the federal government now owns most loans (and homes) in America.  Gee that’s comforting.  There is no nook or cranny of your life safe from this marauding band of control freaks.  There is a word that describes this type of government-industry complex:  fascism.  Don’t flip out, I am not saying that Barack Obama is Adolph Hitler, but his policies are fascist pure and simple.  For some reason he hates the way this country is structured and is dead-set on ‘transforming’ America.  He has elevated class warfare and racism and religious intolerance to new levels.  He is the most un-American and anti-American President I believe that we have ever had in office.  Nobody had ever heard of this guy and he had never done or accomplished anything before George Soros catapulted him onto the national stage with all of that ‘Hope & Change’ and ‘Yes We Can’ baloney.  There is no substance there.  Just promise the masses bread and circuses.  We are at a crucial point in our nation’s history.  If this collective mind-set is allowed to continue running our government and our lives I sincerely believe that the United States of America is doomed.  We must dispatch this evil administration and all of its minions to the dustbin of history in the next election (sooner if we can get the Congress and Courts to do the right thing) or I fear we face some sort of civil war or see states begin to separate.  Good, hard-working Americans are not going to tolerate this foolishness and live under a boot of tyranny.  Enough is enough.  The line in the sand has been crossed.  May God have mercy upon us all and bless America once again.

The Means Justify the End?

I detect an insidious mentality permeating the federal government, particularly the Obama administration and the Congress.  It is the idea that the authority to tax, granted by the 16th Amendment is an automatic authority to spend that money on anything at all.  This has led to a backwards approach to government spending, i.e.; Congress decides that it wants to spend money on some program (for which there is no Article 1, Section 8 authority) and then simply justifies the decision based upon its authority to raise taxes (in their mind for any foolishness they desire).  The means justifies the ends.  Congress needs to understand that the power to tax means that Congress has the authority to raise taxes to fund the legitimate, constitutional functions of the federal government (Article 1, Section 8 again).  It does not mean that Congress can fill a bucket with tax dollars and then spend them willy nilly on every silly thing that comes to mind.  If we are to preserve, indeed save our Republic we must insist that the Congress understand that the Preamble to the Constitution is just that, a Preamble which in legal terms carries no empowering authority but is merely a statement of why the following document (which does include empowering language) is being written; that the 16th Amendment empowers the federal government to raise taxes only for its legitimate Article 1, Section powers; that their specific powers and authorities reside in Article 1, Section 8; that the Necessary and Proper Clause merely authorizes them to enact laws to carry out their legitimate, constitutional powers in Article 1, Section 8; and that the Interstate Commerce Clause is a very narrow and specific clause relating to preventing States from erecting undo burdens to commerce, not granting Congress unlimited power to do virtually anything it wants.  If that were the intent of the writers, why have Article 1, Section 8?  That sort of begs the question.
Short of reigning in the scope of the federal government along the lines of the preceding provisions, I see no hope of salvaging the idea of the Republic of the United States IN America and most likely the federal government will collapse under the weight of unsustainable taxation, spending, debt and entitlement.
Wake up!

My New Year's Resolutions for the Federal Government

1)  Abolish lame-duck sessions of Congress or seat the new Congress immediately after the election.
2)  Transition to a Flat or Fair-Tax (NOT a V.A.T.); eliminate the graduated income, estate and capital gains taxes.
3)  Go back on the gold standard.
4)  Abolish anchor babies, seal the borders and enforce the immigration laws currently on the books.
5)  Give the President the line-item veto.
6)  All new bills in Congress will be one bill, one topic, one vote.
7)  All bills in Congress must explicitly cite the Article 1, Section 8 authority for any new government program, spending or legislation.  (Hint: ObamaScare, Social Security and Medicare; just to name a few, have none)
8)  Adhere to the strict, limited and original text and meaning of the Interstate Commerce Clause.
9)  Abolish the unconstitutional precedent of executive branch agencies implementing rules, fees, fines and penalties.  Only Congress can make law and there is no provision in the Constitution for Congress to delegate that authority.
10)  The Constitution requires that the President be a natural-born United States of America citizen, but makes no process for certifying that stipulation.  Congress should enact legislation that requires prospective presidential candidates to certify their birth status by a legally recognized method to their respective party officials, to Congress, to the Supreme Court, to the State Governors and legislatures and to the people at large through the media prior to their nominating convention. 
11)  All legislation must treat all citizens, companies and institutions equally; no special treatment, no special punishment, no special sweetheart deals and no exceptions for anyone.
12)  All members of the federal government; whether elected, appointed, contracted or hired shall be equally subject to all laws of this country.  Period.
13)  Audit the Federal Reserve and abolish its autonomous authority over our currency.

A Tale For Two Cities

It has become quite clear to me that the people of this nation are dividing into two distinct camps. One group wants the federal government to control and regulate everything; wages, salaries and profits while providing everything from health care to food to housing to transportation to education and beyond. The other camp wants exactly the opposite. "Don't tread on me!" They want the federal government to do no more than is expressly authorized in the Constitution. Period. The first group doesn't even know what the Constitution is, have never read it, couldn't find a copy if their life depended on it. And they don't give a rip. To them the nation is the federal government and the federal government is the nation. Some dusty old scrap of paper written by racist, slave-owning rich white men over two hundred years ago has no relevance for their lives. Constraints upon the power and size of the federal government seem strange and ridiculous to them. They don't understand all of the fuss about "States' Rights" and can't quite grasp why some states allow things and others don't. To them this whole business of dividing the country up into different states with different rules and laws makes no sense; it confuses them. I believe that many of them really believe that the states are merely administrative subdivisions of the federal government, that they in essence work for the federal government much like counties are subdivisions of state governments. This first group doesn't understand why anyone would want to limit the scope and power of the federal government. Why, isn't that just limiting what it can give you and do for you? This is what decades of pathetic (intentional or unintentional?) education of our children in the areas of American history, heritage, economics and government has led us. Sadly, far too many people have no idea how or why this nation came to be. They have no concept of what is required for successful self-government. They do not understand how wealth is created or exactly what money is and where it comes from. The relationship between business and labor and capital completely eludes them. This first camp is the 'entitlement at any cost' camp. They willingly surrender all of their freedom, liberty and wealth to the federal government in exchange for a guarantee (now that's rich) of security and provision (however meager) for their entire lives. They wind up with no control or responsibility for what happens to them. Like lemmings over the cliff. As the old saw says, the man who surrenders freedom in exchange for security will have neither. The federal leviathan will never look after their personal best interests as well as they would. They become assimilated into a huge amorphous mass of people, leading dull and boring lives simply serving the beast. That may be existence but it is not living.
Some in the press say that we are more divided now that during our Civil War time. While I don't foresee another civil war, I do believe that we as a nation must decide if we intend to remain the constitutional republic we were founded to be and commit to following the Constitution. Or do we make a deliberate decision to jettison our constitutional moorings and launch out into the darkness with no map or compass, destined to become like the failed socialist societies of Europe? I certainly hope not. It does seem to me that time is short and we freedom-loving remnants have a very tight window in which to reclaim our national freedom and liberty and greatness or risk irretrievably losing them forever. It is time for bold action!

Hold the Milk and Pass the Cookies

It is madness to let the federal government have the final say on what the Constitution says and means, vis-a-vis federal powers. The States wrote the Constitution which created the federal government to handle a few specifically described communal needs on behalf of the States. That's it. It was not created to usurp their power and authority over the myriad issues concerning the citizens of those various States. And the federal government certainly was not granted authority to determine what it's powers should and would be over the States and the citizens. That would be madness (just look around us). That which is created can never be greater than that which creates it. The States are not beholden to the federal government; the federal government is beholden to the States. To permit the President, the Congress and the Supreme Court to determine and have final say over what the Constitution says and means and what their powers and authorities are which derive from it, would be like putting children in charge of the cookie jar. Soon there are no more cookies and the kids have tummy aches. Well, our federal government has drained our treasury dry and the nation is quite sick. But don't expect the federal government to fix itself and relinquish power back to the States. Our only hope is for the States to resume their rightful authority and put the federal government back in its place. Soon. Very soon.

R.I.P America

Our representative republic is dead.

The Constitution is null and void.

We have no legitimate federal government.

God help us.

A Taxing Dilemma

Every penny taken out of taxpayers' pockets by the federal government should be done so with great fear and trembling.

Breach of Contract

Five political appointees in black robes do not unmake the Constitution. There is no such thing as the Supreme Court, there are only nine justices. People who are imperfect and biased. When the justices function within the boundaries of the Constitution I respect their opinions. When they stray beyond those boundaries, which they have many times I have no respect for their opinions. They then become part of the problem instead of the solution. It is the duty of the President and Congress to reign in the justices when they exceed their assigned authority. There are many horrific rulings which need to be nullified. They do not own the Constitution or have the final, ultimate say about what it means. The Constitution is a contract between the States, which wrote the Constitution and thus created the Federal Government; and the People. The Supreme Court is not a party to that contract. We can all read it and understand what it means. It's time for the People to take back their Constitution and put the Supreme Court, the Congress and the President in their respective places. Which is the back seat, not the driver's seat.

Unhinged

I have come to the sad realization that I must foreswear any and all fealty, support, trust, faith, allegiance, respect and recognition of the current United States Presidential Administration and United States Congress, both the House of Representatives and the Senate and the Federal Court System; in short the current alleged United States Federal Government. This decision has not come quickly or without careful consideration. For many years I have firmly believed that the majority of legislation, spending and federal programs have been and remain unconstitutional and illegal under the strict limitations and enumerated powers of the United States Constitution. Repeated elections of new Congresses and Presidential administrations have not remedied the situation and the federal courts have been wholly unwilling to correctly interpret and enforce the supreme laws of the land upon a recalcitrant federal behemoth. What recourse do loyal and patriotic true Americans have? To submit to and recognize such a renegade government merely provides a guise of false legitimacy. I cannot in good conscience be a party to such activity. The election of this current President and Congress has drastically accelerated the dissolution of any illusion of a grounding of the federal government upon the foundation of the Constitution. As witness the move to nationalize private banks, nationalize the automobile manufacturing industry, nationalize the private health care system, nationalize the mortgage industry, nationalize retirement savings accounts in Social Security, abridge First Amendment rights in considering reinstating the so-called Fairness Doctrine, promoting and enabling abortion thus denying constitutional rights to unborn U.S. citizens, attempting to restrict the free exercise of religion in public schools, government institutions and public forums, attempting to restrict Second Amendment gun rights, refusing to defend our borders and sovereignty, refusing to enforce legitimate federal immigration laws and generally usurping the States and People of their retained rights by passing laws, spending money and establishing federal programs for which there is no specific enumerated federal authority or power. Quite simply, the current federal government is illegal and unconstitutional. Not to mention fiscally and morally bankrupt. No doubt, the people who fought to obtain our freedom and established this nation would be horrified to see how subsequent generations of public servants have perverted and bastardized their gift. How shameful and disgraceful. I just pray that we come to our senses and correct the course of our foundering ship of state before we pass the point of no return. Until then, I hold the current federal government in contempt and shall work to reinstate the United States Constitution and a legitimate federal government.

Honey I Think We Took A Wrong Turn

Greetings Congressman XXXXXXXXX,

Thank you for your letter regarding the current automobile manufacturer crisis. I applaud your fortitude in opposing bailouts or loans and your thoughtfulness in offering a different tack. I am sure that local car dealers are frustrated with having too many unsold vehicles on their lots. This no doubt stems from the credit crunch precipitated by the Democrats’ mismanagement of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac and somewhat to the high price of many domestic vehicles, which is part of the broader automaker problem. Unfortunately I believe that offering a consumer tax credit to purchase those vehicles is only a short-term band-aid which will not cure the bigger disease in the industry. Additionally, it once again uses the federal tax code for social engineering, something that I loathe.
There is no doubt that cars made by the Big-3 are too expensive. The problem does not stem from corporate jets and bigwig bonuses. One factor is too much intrusive federal (and state) regulation of automobile standards. These ridiculous rules put too much of a burden on the carmakers, thus preventing them from making cars that people actually want to buy and can afford. The standards don’t really save lives or the environment. Secondly, union influence over the automakers’ business practices has become too onerous and too expensive. This has only happened because the federal government has empowered the unions thusly. The total benefit packages for autoworkers are insane and financially unsustainable. There is absolutely no reason for workers to have this much influence over private businesses. And they wouldn’t, save for the Congress- mostly liberal Democrats. Other than egregious safety violations or abusive tactics, workers should have no further say in how a private company runs its business. If they don’t like it, they can find a job elsewhere.
So both of the major reasons for the failure of the automakers falls back in the lap of the federal government. The last thing we need is for the feds to try and fix the situation! The best thing that they could do is to get out of the mess. Strip the unions of their unreasonable power and rescind the insane regulations. Then hands off! Let the automakers go through Chapter 11, reorganize, dump the old union contracts and get about building cars that Americans actually want at prices they can afford and that compete with other manufacturers. This talk about the Big-3 being too big to fail is silliness. We are not talking about failing; we are talking about reorganizing and emerging stronger and more competitive. Many airlines have successfully navigated this process. Maybe the federal government should consider it. When I was taking flying lessons the instructor taught me that when a plane is stalling and going into a spin I had to take my hands off of the controls to let the plane stabilize. That violates all of your natural instincts. But trying to fight the spin is certain death. We need the federal government to do the same thing in this, and many other situations. Unfortunately, the nature of the government and politicians is to always try to do something in every situation. After all, isn’t that what we hired them for? To simply do nothing seems irresponsible, right?
I seriously think that we would all be better off to send the President, Supreme Court, House and Senate home and pay them to sit there and do nothing for two years. For as we learn in medicine, first do no harm. The private market is a great thing when allowed to work unfettered. However, it has not been allowed to work freely in the automobile industry for many, many years. It’s time to get back on the right road.
By the way, I believe that these principles should also be applied to the health care system. Ah, but that’s another topic for another day.
Thanks for your service Congressman!

Doctor, Heal Thyself

(Responding to an emergency room physician letter-to-the editor asking Obama and the feds to provide more funds for emergency rooms to become the safety net for people needing basic medical care who do not have health insurance)
The federal government lacks the constitutional authority and power to fund or manage emergency rooms (not to mention that is is busted, it has no money). They are a horribly ineffiencient and expensive avenue for delivering family medicine to the needy. The feds have already made a wreck of the health care system and any further meddling by them will only greatly worsen the situation. Let's clean up the tort system, get malpractice premiums and product liability costs down and reduce the union driven cost of labor. Give people portable medical savings accounts which unties insurance from employment. Finally, relink payment between the actual consumer (patient) with the provider so that people can shop for insurance and shop for care to find the best care for the best price. Let the market actually work and get the artificial, inflationary constraints of government out of the equation. For those that still need help with basic medical care let the states figure out the best way to help deliver it, but not through emergency rooms.

No More Blood From Turnips

If the President directs Treasury to bail out the automakers in defiance of the Senate decision last night, then it is about time for the American people and corporations to start withholding their federal income tax payments. We must protest and starve this ersatz, unconstitutional federal government into submission.

Please Wake Up Paul Revere!

The U.S. Constitution and the American experiment are truly dead.  This unconstitutional, neo-Nazi automaker bailout loan is just another of many nails in the coffin.  Over the last few months we have witnessed the surreal vision of the federal government nationalizing one private industry after another.  It has been fast and easy enough to make Adolph blush.  The American people don’t want it yet our moronic ‘public servants’ are trying to cram it down their throats.  I will not purchase a car made by the new Big-3 and will urge everyone I talk with to do likewise.  Take heed, the federal government is not too big to fail.  Hear the winds of the second American revolution beginning to blow. 

Is Anybody There, Does Anybody Care, Does Anybody See What I See?

On the Third Day of October in the Year of our Lord Two Thousand & Eight,
At one o’clock in the afternoon, Mountain Daylight Time;

With the flourish of his pen President Bush dissolved the political bands which have connected this federal government to the Constitution which formed it. What was for over two centuries is no more. The United States of America no longer exists in the form into which we born. Our elected servants have jettisoned our Constitutionally based representative Republic and what will replace it is anyone’s guess. All that can be said is that our freedoms, liberties and Constitutional protections have vanished before our very eyes today. The constraints placed upon the federal government by Article 1, Section 8 of the now defunct U.S. Constitution have been nullified and tossed out with the rest of the document. Truly we are now sailing dangerous stormy seas with no rudder. We don’t even have a skiff made of paper.
Who will constitute the new government to replace the one which just passed away? When will it be created? What form of government will it be? Our best guess based upon the private market take-over bill that was enacted today is that it will be a socialist collective state. No doubt people of a liberal redistributionist mindset will seek to form and control the new government. Beyond that we cannot speculate at this time. The coup d’etat is still too fresh in our minds.
One must surmise that all of the laws and institutions of the old government are now null and void. The federal court system, Social Security, federal income taxation and the Internal Revenue Service no longer actually exist. Who now commands our military assets and personnel? These are sobering questions which must be quickly and thoughtfully resolved so as to attempt to maintain peace and order among the people.
The next few months and years will be a time of uncertainty and ideological struggle among the differing factions within the populace as we attempt to find our way in the dark with no light, save the One from Heaven to guide us. Let us fervently pray for peace and wisdom to prevail during the coming conflict. As we look forward to a new government we should pause to look back and reflect upon the guidance of those who formed our first government upon this continent. While we have now tossed out their handiwork it would seem prudent to a least feign deference to their collective knowledge and wisdom to inform us. The States, which formed the first federal government now hold the highest power in the land and they must act collectively in the best interests of the People to maintain stability and lay the framework for a new federal government, if they so choose.
May God have mercy upon us all.

The Stated Case for the States

I have asked many times in this forum how the people can reign in a rogue federal government. The answer of course is that the state legislatures are the true reservoirs of that power. Consider, the states existed before the federal government, they created the federal government and their constitutions existed before they wrote the federal constitution. So why won't the states exert their power and bring the feds back within their limited boundaries? Just follow the money trail. The federal government has diverted the tax flow away from state capitols and instead to D.C. That money is then doled back out to the states as subsidies and federal projects based upon state compliance with federal mandates. Naturally, the federal bureaucratic machine extracts its pound of flesh first, thereby diminishing the return to the states. How clever. It would be much more efficient and responsive to the local needs of the people if the states took responsibility for these tax dollars and projects. The level of government closest to the people (and typically the smallest) that can deal with an issue is usually the best. Think about it, there really are very few problems that demand federal solutions. Maybe a dozen, if that many. So let those of us who yearn for a return to a small, constitutional republic ponder how we can convince the various states to flex their muscles and bring sanity back to the federal monster.

Government, Mend Thyself?

How do ‘We the People’ rein in the runaway federal government? My how things have changed in just over 200 years. What started as a compromise between thirteen fledgling colonies to provide a few functions that they felt could be accomplished more efficiently collectively rather than individually, has become a monstrous doomsday machine, devouring everything and everyone in its path. It has its long bony finger in just about every pot in the country. As the old saw goes, a government that has the power to give you anything you want also has the power to take everything you have. And don’t think it’s not trying. From your money to your kids to your freedoms, nothing is safe from its reach. In the midst of this why are so many people so complacent?

Undoubtedly the sad state of education over the last 50 years, whether accidental or intentional has led to a pervasive misunderstanding of our nation’s history and governmental structure. While the progression of our founding started with settlements which became colonies which became states which begat the federal government, many people don’t really understand this. I think that there is a belief amongst too many that the states are merely subunits and extensions of the federal government. Nothing could be further from the truth. The states created the federal government to serve them. In fact, the states had to have individual state constitutions before they could draft a federal constitution. The federal government is actually subservient to the states. Well, at least it was originally intended to be that way. That is why U.S. Senators were originally elected by the states, not the people. The President is actually the President of the United States of America, not the people directly. This explains the existence of the Electoral College. The people elect their respective states’ slate of Presidential Electors who meet and select the President. They usually vote the wishes of the people of their state, but are not bound to and on occasion have not. The President, and originally the Senate represented the states, not the people of the country at-large. Truth be told, the election of the President should be a relatively minor event. Given the President’s relatively minor role in the day-to-day running of the federal government, the things that really impact the average citizen’s life on a daily basis; I am amazed at how much time, money and attention is focused on that one election. It’s the state elections that should really be the battleground since the states wield most of the power in the country. After state elections the election of federal Representatives should occupy more of the people’s interest. After all, the House of Representatives was designed to be the People’s House. That is why tax and spending bills must originate there. It is the people’s balance to the states’ representation.

A strict reading of the Constitution and Bill of Rights is a sobering and eye-opening experience. You can’t read those documents and fail to come to the conclusion that probably 80% or more of the meddling of the federal government is simply unauthorized and furthermore expressly prohibited. The Ninth and Tenth Amendments are the most ignored tenets of the lot, while the Fourteenth is one of the most misinterpreted and misapplied. The Founding Fathers had a strong fear of powerful centralized government, a la King George (no, not Washington). Thus, these amendments stipulate that powers not specifically granted to the federal government are reserved to the states and the people. Today it seems that the federal government has the position that it holds all power and grants some limited power at times to the states, and none to the people. And the band played The World Turned Upside Down. For example, look at the metastatic bastardization of the infamous Interstate Commerce Clause. This innocuous little passage has been twisted so as to give cover to the Feds to regulate virtually anything and everything on a whim. The Founders realized that every future situation could not be addressed at the time of the writing of the Constitution so methods of amending it were written into the document. That process has been utilized 26 times since ratification. Sadly, the various branches of the federal government have taken it upon themselves to simply ignore these established legal procedures and in effect ‘amend’ the Constitution anytime following its edicts becomes obstructive to their agendas. The recent Kelo Supreme Court decision granting eminent domain authority for private rather than public use is perhaps the most egregious example of adverse illegal ‘constitutional amendment’ in memory. The protection of private property was a central motivation for the establishment of our nation and the Constitution. I sincerely believe that the five justices who voted in favor of Kelo committed an impeachable offense and rightly should have been impeached and removed from the bench.

So what are we suffering masses to do? Well, I see several possible responses.

The simplest and by default the current state of affairs is to do nothing and tolerate whatever abuse we are handed. This is the response of ignorance and apathy. By taking this course of inaction we will have effectively repealed our Constitution and become a nation ruled by the whim of the government. All of our rights and protections will be null and void for all practical purposes. The federal government will be free to take whatever it wants at any time and to regulate any and every aspect of our lives. This would usher in creeping socialization of many aspects of our lives and ever-increasing taxes and regulations. Productivity will invariably falter and businesses will begin to move off-shore and overseas, with resultant loss of jobs and shrinking tax base. As more and more illegal aliens pour across our non-existent borders, the strain on social services and the shrinking tax base will be disastrous for the economy. The preeminence of the United States on the world stage will decline to no more than the level of the decrepit European socialist states, producing little and providing no incentive to its citizens to achieve more than long vacations and short work weeks.

Another solution that is widely discussed by those actually concerned about our current course is that of trying to recruit and elect better politicians to national office. On the surface it sounds promising but history does not bode well for this fix. We have been doing just this for over 200 years and I believe that the situation is growing worse at an ever-accelerating pace. Even if we can somehow get ‘better’ people to Washington, most of them are devoured by the inside-the-beltway culture and overrun by the perpetual bureaucracy within a short time. This is one argument against term limits. That process does not address the underlying problem of bureaucratic indoctrination. While bad politicians may be thrown out, good ones are given the boot as well. Then, nothing protects newly elected replacements from being quickly corrupted. On first blush I believe that the idea of somehow getter ‘better’ people to Washington is, by itself a very dubious proposition. Keeping them ‘better’ for any period of time in that D.C. cesspool is virtually impossible. The dirty little secret is that so much of our federal government has become entrenched as self-fulfilling bureaucratic behemoths. These agencies and programs have lives of their own that exist for decades as administrations, political parties and legislators come and go. They are not affected by the prevailing political tilt of the day. They are not changed by the politicians, but rather they shape and mold the politicians to suit their ongoing needs. The bureaucrats that run these agencies and programs control huge budgets and will be in their positions long after the President and Congress change hands. They wield great influence over the legislators. By convincing the legislators to perpetuate the bureaucratic status quo, theses bureaucrats provide the illusion of great power and influence via the power of the purse to the egotistical legislators. Furthermore, legislators themselves soon become focused on their own political survival and obtaining territorial power rather than doing what is right for the country and the people that they ostensibly represent. They are unlikely to pass reform that refocuses the federal government on its rather limited constitutional responsibility and turn power (and money) back to the states and the people. Human nature being what it is they are much more inclined to seek to broaden their power and influence, not limit it. Why would they voluntarily relegate themselves to the political sideline and give the States the limelight?

So what legal recourse do ‘We the People’ have over the various branches of the federal government to hold them accountable to the Constitution? They have demonstrated repeatedly that the concept of the balance of power between the three branches has broken down. It has become an unholy triumvirate. Each enables the others so that they will in turn be enabled. With a wink and a nod they turn a blind eye to the abuses of one branch, knowing full well that branch will do the same for them. In this way, each is assured of being able to ram through its unconstitutional agenda unencumbered by any fear of checks and balances. When the police will not police the police, what are we to do? If we sue one of the branches of government for its perceived illegal activity, the case will ultimately wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court, one of the parties to the scam. How can we get justice? The fix is in. What are the penalties for a branch of the federal government violating the Constitution? It is the supreme law of the land, right? Can and would the states step up to the plate and take action? But what action? Some have put forth the idea that county sheriffs evict federal agencies from offices and buildings within their respective counties. We could defund the federal government by withholding federal income tax payments. This would be a gargantuan undertaking given that approximately 95% of income taxes are withheld from paychecks. The cooperation of businesses big and small across the country would be required and probably very difficult to secure. How about a Constitutional Convention to draft amendments to provide enforcement power and real legal sanctions against unconstitutional activity by any of the three federal branches? Do the States have the chutzpah to pull that off?

Could an armed rebellion against the federal government ever occur again here? Texas retains the right to actually legally secede from the United States and factions there have discussed that possibility. How seriously and widespread is anyone’s guess. For historical reference the opening passages of the Declaration of Independence lay out the reasons for the Colonies forceful separation from Great Britain. Similar justifications would certainly be required to convince the world and our citizens of the necessity for such drastic action, following long suffering and other peaceful attempts to redress grievances. While I am not advocating a violent overthrow of our federal government, history teaches that this is a common end to governments gone awry, even to this day. What this nation would look like after such a conflagration and depending upon what faction prevails would be anybody’s guess. The outcome would probably have a lot to do with which side the military allies, which is why many of these coup d’etats are led by generals and result in military dictatorial governments. The interesting twist in this instance is that no new Constitution would need to be drafted. The current constitution would simply be enforced and the government reconstituted according to its specific dictates. In essence, a return to normalcy. A return to the federal government that we used to have and should have. Simply put a civil war to ‘throw the bums out.’ Hopefully, we would get getter bums. We might need a few correctly enacted Constitutional Amendments to avert future similar diversions. One I can think of is William F. Buckley, Jr’s., ‘there are no penumbras or emanations.’

“Is anybody there? Does anybody care? Does anybody see what I see?”

Dear, I Think We're Lost...

The federal government has wandered so far off of the Constitutional reservation that I don't think they could find it with a Tom-Tom.

Who's Your Daddy?

We make way too big of a fuss over electing a President. You would think that we are selecting a King. Or Queen. No, that would still be a King. Well nevertheless you get the point. How is it that we have come to expect our President to be our daddy, big brother, grandfather, uncle, mother, soldier, statesman, preacher, doctor, teacher, banker and all around best friend? The President's constitutional role is actually rather limited, as is that of the entire federal government really. More akin to a city manager than a potentate. Yes, he should inspire us to greatness and represent the country on the world stage; but not have a plan and a program for every single aspect of our lives. He runs the military, negotiates treaties and enforces the federal laws. He can propose budgets, but taxing and spending bills actually originate in the House. Have you grilled your Congressman on all of the various federal programs and spending priorities to the extent that you have the Presidential candidates? I doubt it. The President really represents the interests of the states, not the people. The Congress represents the people in Washington. His power to affect our daily lives is not that great. Bureaucrats have more power to make us miserable or happy in our everyday lives than the President ever will. And we don't even know who they are. This process has become a farce; nothing more than high comedy. We need to refocus on the right priorities. That would begin with teaching and understanding the Constitution.