Defending Our Constitution and Election 2012

This Saturday, October 27th, the Douglas County TEA Party will be holding a free, family event called, “Defending Our Constitution” Rally.  Event organizers Brenda Breeden Bohanan and Beth Martinez and intrepid band of volunteers have been working very hard to make this event a memorable one.  There will be great bar-b-que offered by the award winning Landmark Café, music, and a number of great speakers, including Phil Kent of “The Georgia Gang”, who is the keynote speaker.  Youtube sensation Lewis Shaeffer, retired Marine and singer will present his rendition of the National Anthem.  This is also a critical rally, and call to action to all citizens of this county, whether you are a Republican, a Democrat, or an Independent, to get out and do one of the most important civic duty you have and vote.  You are encouraged to come out to the Clinton Nature Park, on Ephesus Church Road, from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm.  Be sure to bring lawn chairs and blankets for seating.

This election season has been particularly rancorous, on both sides and at all levels.  There is a decision that must be made as to which direction this country will follow, and whom will take us there.  I have heard a lot of derision from some circles that they are not happy with anyone running, why bother vote?  Though I can appreciate their positions regarding the candidates, I can’t agree on their position that not voting sends a message.

Those that gave their lives in the Revolution, our War of Independence, and the efforts of the Founding Fathers, gave us that right to vote.  They broke from a tyrannical king that believed he could rule us with an iron fist and drain us of our money and resources to meet the bloated needs of his monarchy and kingdom.

Since then, we have seen the blood of our warrior heroes shed, in conflict after conflict, defending the freedoms we have in this country, protected by – not granted by the US Constitution.  This contract – is one of the most unique to ever be created where the citizens of this Republic, laid on paper the chains to bind what should be a limited Federal government.  These rights our military members serve to defend, these are God given rights, not rights that have been bestowed upon us by a man or a government.

The Constitution not only defines the form of government we have, it states outright – “Federal Government – you may not infringe upon these rights, you are only bestowed these enumerated powers and no more.”

You can read them for yourself – go ahead and get a copy of the Constitution.  If you don’t have one, you can read it online here, even download a PDF of it - http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html.  Go to Article 1, Section 8 – the Enumerated Powers of Congress.  As you read this list, you will note that there is a vast array of things that Congress does that go WAY beyond the scope of this.  The Federal budget (at least the last one that was actually passed by both bodies of Congress and signed by the President) has expenditures within it that are wholly unconstitutional and alarmingly, makes up just over 75% of the Federal budget.   Is it any wonder our deficits are running over a trillion dollars a year?

Prior to 1913 and the advent of President Wilson, personal revenue was not taxed.  Then came the controversially passed and ratified 16^th Amendment, which now allows Congress to tax personal income.  Not surprisingly came around the same time, the 17^th Amendment which radically transformed the role and manner of election of our Federal Senators.  Then the Federal Reserve Act which took the role of coining and managing our monetary system from the US Treasury and placed it in the hands of a privately owned bank called the Federal Reserve.  This wholly violates the Constitution. 

Let me elaborate more on the 17^th Amendment and how it has been used to radically transform our country and immensely undermine the intent of our Founding Fathers allowing for the passage of laws, acts, and spending that would never have been passed without the 17^th Amendment.  Prior to 1913, as written in the Constitution, Federal Senators were appointed by the legislatures of the States that they represented.  The governors of those states would then sign off on the appointments and off to Washington they would go.  If they voted or acted in any way that went against the wishes of the state, they were subject to recall and replacement.

Our Founding Fathers knew that greed was a part of the hearts of men, and with no way to be sure that all men elected to represent the citizens can all be of good moral and ethical character, a stop gap needed to be in place.  The House of Representatives was to be the body of representatives that directly represented the people.  It is out of this body that legislation regarding money and expenditures were to be originated.  But the danger was any majority could pass a series of things to rob the treasury blind and cause indebtedness.

So, the Senate was created to be that stop gap, giving the individual states the power to say to the House – NO.  The system worked well until the passage, ratification, and implementation of the 17^th Amendment.  Now – the people got another representative in Congress, by electing their Federal Senators by popular vote.  This gave big money and lobbying interests a way to influence what happened in Congress.  By backing Senators with campaign money and such, they could sway who got elected, how they voted, and more.

Had things not been changed – there is little doubt FDR’s slate of New Deal legislation would never have passed, nor Johnson’s Great Society, nor Obama’s Affordable Health Care Act.

Our rights, protected by the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, are under attack more so than ever.  Both parties are really to blame for this, through inaction or direct action to undermine the Constitution.  You have to vote, to make your voice heard.  Not only in the general elections held the first Tuesday of November, but in the primaries as well.  It’s too late now, but it is the primaries where we have a voice in WHO will be on that November election.  Sadly, we have had across this nation abysmal participation in the primaries by registered voters.  Then everyone complains that they don’t like who’s on the general ballot.

It is because of that abysmal participation, around 20%, that we have incumbents for the most part unchallenged.  Why some 90% of incumbents get re-elected time after time, despite a less than 10% approval rating for Congress.  You want better candidates – start running for office, or finding someone to lift up to run for that office, and make sure you get out in the primary to vote for him or her.  Help to get your neighbors out to vote and if they are not registered, help to get them registered.

Get out and vote November 6, your voice DOES make a difference.  Voting is a part of the solution to fixing what’s wrong in Congress.  There is another part of the solution that is also sorely being overlooked, rarely participated in, and rarely enforced by civic minded citizens.  I’ll cover that in another article on November 7^th.