December, 2014, Part 2, Will The Center Hold: Common Core, Suing The Feds, and Gun Control Rebellion

On a semi-regular basis, we check in with a continuing theme in this blog that we call: “Will the center hold?” Never in my life have I seen a political class so out of control and consequently, we are witnessing a backlash against this overreaching and intrusive political class. 

Which raises a question: are we getting to a point that one day soon we may see Washington enact a law or create a regulation and the rest of the country simply ignores it? What happens when the country tells Washington to go pound sand on something and refuses to support it? Will the center hold or does the country splinter into who know what?

Most of this backlash and pushback is against the un-Constitutional overreach of the Washington political class. Those in Washington have been pushing a variety of issues and actions that do not sit well with large parts of the country. These issues include, but are not limited to, gun control, Common Core education standards, Michelle Obama’s healthy eating/school lunch legislation, Federal government land grabs, NSA spying on innocent citizens, IRS harassment, etc.

Over the past two days, we updated where state and local governments and individual citizens are rebelling against this overreaching and increasingly repressive set of politicians. When reviewing these updates keep in mind the overall question: will the center hold once the rest of the country actually starts to ignore Washington dictates?

Today is the second of two posts to address the “will the center hold” question, the first was posted yesterday.

1) Regarding the push back against Common Core education standards, the Heritage Foundation did a story on their website on December 20, 2014 about how it is being resisted across the country. It was written by Edwin Feulner and was originally published in the Washington Examiner.

Mr. Feulner discusses the reality that parents, teachers, students and lawmakers have become increasingly vocal in their resistance of the Federally developed and implemented Common Core standards and are starting to take action to get out from under those standards. As an example, he cites Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal who once backed Common Core, stating in 2012 that he expected Common Core to “raise expectations for every child.” 

However, two short years later, Jindal decided to pull Louisiana out of the program. He believes that the states and the country were lied to and sold a bad program, likening it “bait and switch.” scam. 

According to this writer, nineteen states have made significant efforts to push back against Common Core. Indiana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Louisiana have exited the standards altogether already, and others appear poised to do likewise. Why the rebellion, beyond the obvious reason that where Common Core has already been implemented, learning has degraded? Consider a quote from education researcher Lindsey Burke: 

“Adopting Common Core national standards and tests surrenders control of the content taught in local schools to distant national organizations and bureaucrats in Washington. It is the antithesis of reform that would put control of education in the hands of those closest to students: local school leaders and parents.”

Another Federal, mandated, dictatorial program that is not going anywhere if the trend of dumping Common Core continues to spread, leaving the country again poorer and without a solution.

2) No state has pushed back more against Washington’s overreach than Texas. Consider the push back tally that was recently reported by the www.youngcons.com website:

• Texas is one of 24 states that are suing the Obama administration and the Federal government for his illegal and un-Constitutional orders on immigration.
• The latest four states to join the effort are Arkansas, Michigan, North Dakota and Oklahoma.
• Texas has now sued the Federal government 27 times since Obama came into office six years ago. 
• President George W. Bush was sued three times in eight years by Texas during his eight years in office.

The article goes on to tally the “wins” and losses” in this suing the Federal government game by Texas. And while keeping the Federal government in line is definitely the right thing to do, one would have hoped it could have been done by following current laws on the books and the Constitution by the Washington political class rather than diverting taxpayer wealth into lawyers’ pockets and lawsuits.

3) Sometimes out of control government actions are not confined to Washington’s efforts to control our lives. The Maryland state government recently enacted a law a law banning “assault weapons” and magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds. New gun buyers in Maryland must also submit their fingerprints and undergo mandatory gun training. Failure to comply with the law can result in a three-year prison sentence and/or a $5,000 fine.

In response to these attacks on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans, 21 other states have come together in a law suit to abolish the new, restrictive gun control laws in Maryland and make sure that they are not implemented elsewhere. While the law which was immediately challenged and upheld by a Federal judge, it is now being reviewed in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. 

4) Staying with the protection of Second Amendment rights by an overreaching political class, consider some facts that were included in a November 12, 2014 article in the Reason magazine’s Hit and Run blog that was written by J.D. Tuccille:

• Tens of thousands of Connecticut gun owners became potential felons rather than comply with that state's new gun registration law. 
• New York's similar gun registration law resulted in such low compliance when it went into effect that government officials refused to reveal how many people have and have not abided by the law. This secrecy resulted in the New York State Committee on Open Government saying the secrecy “thumbs its nose at the law” itself.
• Large numbers of Washington state’s residents are not happy about i594, a law that requires background check requirements on even private transactions, and planned a rally in mass disobedience December, 2014. Research shows that the Washington rally did occur and was well attended by over 5,000 Second Amendment rights supporters. 

More examples of citizens rising up to resist politicians violating the Constitution and freedom and liberties. 

Common Core rejection, record number of lawsuits against the Federal government and this Presidential administration, non-violent civil disobedience, and a whole host of other resistance efforts to overreaching politicians continues to raise the issue: what happens if the Washington political class issues a law or regulation and the rest of the country simply ignores it? Will the center hold? More excitement sure to come as the Obama administration strives to create any kind of legacy for this failed presidency, an effort sure to be resisted by the rest of America and Americans.

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:

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Please visit the following sites for freedom:

Term Limits Now: http://www.howmuchworsecoulditget.com
http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.bankruptingamerica.org
http://www.conventionofstates.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w