All of the actions and movements we have been discussing raises a potential crisis that grows more and more real everyday as the Federal government spins out of control: can the center hold? Will these issues eventually be resolved by the courts to everyone’s satisfaction or are we looking at widespread civil and state government disobedience?
And will this disobedience be contained to just the most current issues or will it become a way of life, where the country outside of Washington decides that Federal laws and regulations are merely suggestions, to be followed or ignored as one pleases? Fascinating times.
And will this disobedience be contained to just the most current issues or will it become a way of life, where the country outside of Washington decides that Federal laws and regulations are merely suggestions, to be followed or ignored as one pleases? Fascinating times.
Let’s continue our review today of who is taking anti-Federal government steps and what the main issues are:
1) The Capitalism Institute recently did a web article where it listed out all of the states that are moving forward to combat the Federal government on a number of fronts:
- At least nine states have taken a legitimate stand to protect themselves against Obama Care:
- Arizona
- Oklahoma
- Missouri
- Tennessee
- Mississippi
- Georgia
- Indiana
- Ohio
- South Carolina
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Missouri
- Mississippi
- Tennessee
- Idaho
- Kansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Virginia
- West Virginia
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- Arizona and California have introduced legislation which would ban the NSA from conducting any of Obama’s illegal domestic spying within their state borders.
- The Idaho state government introduced a bill which would nullify the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) unconstitutional (and economically-destructive) regulations.
- South Carolina‘s House just recently voted unanimously (100-0) to ban the use of drones without a warrant.
Unprecedented actions to tell the Federal government and the Washington political class to get out of town. The article can be accessed at the following link, which in itself has links to each of the state level actions listed above. There you can verify what is going on in detail in each state on each issue:
2) As the so-called “nullification movement” has grown, one source has taken the lead in helping to restore the tenets of the Constitution and freedom in the country. The Tenth Amendment Center is dedicated to helping states use the nullification power of the Constitution to fight Federal government overreach, Washington tyranny, and the destruction of liberty. The Capitalism Institute article mentioned above also contained some of their philosophy:
We don’t identify with political parties. When Republicans are in power, we get lambasted by the right for being “communists” for opposing unconstitutional republican programs. When Democrats are in power, we get lambasted by the left for being “racists” for opposing unconstitutional democrat programs. If you’re not catching any flak, you’re not over the target.
And since our goal is the Constitution, we’re always over the target to the establishment. The Constitution. Every issue, every time. No exceptions, no excuses.
Their extensive website can be accessed at:
Not only are the actively fighting back against Obama Care, spying on citizens, gun control, and the RPA, they are also active on other at least thirteen un-Constitutional laws, agencies, and programs, including Common Core, indefinite detention, and the TSA.
Their effort is legitimized by the very simple Tenth Amendment to the Constitution: The powers not delegated to the Untied States by the Constitution, or prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
This Amendment is very specific: if the Constitution does not specifically allow a program or function, the Federal government has no right to force it on the states or citizens, and the states and citizens have no obligation to obey it, since it is not a valid function under our system of government.
This is not been an issue in the past since the Federal government was never so overbearing and intrusive into our lives as it has become recently. This has nothing to do with being racists (let’s nip that argument in the bud right now), it has nothing to do with being lawless, it has nothing to do with being selfish, it has everything to do with being true to the Constitution and principles of freedom it bestowed on every U.S. citizen.
Maybe if this movement had started earlier we would not have a $17 TRILLION national debt, we would not have a Federal government that spies on every communication we create, we would not have a Federal government that assassinates citizens without due process, we would not have a Federal government that thinks it contain detain citizens indefinitely without trial, etc.
3) Even the main stream media is getting the sense is that the ground is starting to tremble underneath the Federal government. A USA Today article from February 23, 2014, "Americans Rising Up Against Government; Three Examples Of Pushback Against the Ruling Class," discussed some of the same types of disobedience and actions we have been discussing this week:
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently canceled plans to build a nationwide license plate database. The department had put out a bid request for a national system that would have allowed the Federal government track millions of people's comings and goings in their car, just like it does by tracking data about every electronics communications we make.
But the proposal and plans were suddenly shut down, accompanied with the unconvincing explanation that it was all a mistake, oops! Could it be that somewhere, somehow enough pressure was put on the department to shut down what is obviously a Federal overreach into the privacy of innocent citizens rather than a silly mistake? Score one for the Fourth Amendment and privacy.
- The Federal Communications Commission withdrew another intrusive Federal government plan, a plan that was supposed to "monitor" news coverage at not only broadcast stations, but also at print publications that the FCC has no authority to regulate. In Communist Russia this was called the Pravda principle of free journalism, the ruling political class controlled the news.
Unbelievably in a supposedly free country, the "Multi-Market Study of Critical Information Needs," or CIN, involved the FCC sending people to question reporters and editors about why they chose to run particular stories.
Besides violating the First Amendment guarantee of a free press, many found this type of government intrusion to be right out of Orwell’s 1984 novel. What is interesting, and really suspicious, is who ordered the monitors since according FCC Commissioner: "This has never been put to an FCC vote; it was just announced." No one seems to know who announced it and who wanted it but the outrage across the country was enough to kill the program, at least for now, and protect the First Amendment intact.
And it is not just states and citizens fighting back against the Federal government. In Connecticut, it is citizens fighting back against a recent Connecticut state gun control law. According to the article, in Connecticut a massive new gun-registration scheme is also facing civil disobedience: "Three years ago, the Connecticut legislature estimated there were 372,000 rifles in the state of the sort that might be classified as 'assault weapons,' and 2 million plus high-capacity magazines. ... But by the close of registration at the end of 2013, state officials received around 50,000 applications for 'assault weapon' registrations, and 38,000 applications for magazines."
If the state estimates are even close to being right, it is pretty obvious that a lot of Connecticut citizens are telling their own state government to take a hike and are just ignoring what is meant to be a state law affecting everyone in the state. In this instance there are two very unattractive options for the state government.
First, the state’s law enforcement forces could go door to door and arrest citizens suspected of being in violation of the law. This could have three possibly bad consequences:
- The storming of residents’ households to make arrests and look for weapons could be a public relations disaster as it looks like storm troopers breaking down innocent people’s doors without sufficient cause.
- It is pretty obviously that the state does not have a good handle on who has what weapons so the breaking down of doors could prove pretty fruitless but cost a lot of money and bad PR.
- Someone takes their Second Amendment rights very seriously and starts fighting/shooting back rather than having their door broken down by a SWAT team, resulting in gunfire and possible loss of life.
The second bad option for the state political class is described by the USA Today article: “The Hartford (Conn.) Courant is demanding that the state use background-check records to prosecute those who haven't registered, but the state doesn't have the resources and it's doubtful juries would convict ordinary, law-abiding people for failure to file some paperwork.”
Bad options all around for the state political class that has overreached into the lives and Constitutional rights of its citizens and now finds itself in a box with only bad options as next steps.
The author of the article, Glenn Harlan Reynolds, finishes with a sentiment that we have also raised this week: “Though people have taken to the streets from Egypt, to Ukraine, to Venezuela to Thailand, many have wondered whether Americans would ever resist the increasing encroachments on their freedom. I think they've begun.”
Thus, the original question stands: will the center hold? Stay tuned.
Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:
www.loathemygovernment.com
It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.
Please visit the following sites for freedom:
Term Limits Now: http://www.howmuchworsecoulditget.com
http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.robertringer.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w
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