That Americans are angry
with the federal government is nothing new. As a general rule,
Americans STAY angry with the federal government. So what? Nothing
changes, anger and discontentment notwithstanding.
Oh! Occasionally,
grassroots effort can be mustered in sufficient quantity to stop
whatever happens to be the latest effort by the miscreants in
Washington, D.C., that tramples our freedoms. But only occasionally.
The only recent triumph I can think of was when G.W. Bush, Lindsey
Graham, and John McCain tried to ram an amnesty bill for illegal
aliens through Congress. But never fear, Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi,
and Harry Reid will pick up that particular baton soon enough.
I'm old enough to
remember when giving the Panama Canal away was opposed by virtually
everyone outside the Beltway. It changed nothing. Jimmy Carter and
Congress gave it away, anyway. Most people oppose the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq. So what? Our troops are not only still there,
but more are on the way. Most people believe children should be
allowed to pray and read the Bible in school. So what? They still are
forbidden from doing so. Most people believed former Alabama Chief
Justice Roy Moore had the right to post the Ten Commandments in his
courtroom. So what? He was forced to take them down, anyway (and
removed from office in the process). I could go on, but you get the
point.
Anger and opposition to
Washington's policies and edicts--no matter now egregious--hardly ever
translate into anything beyond words of frustration. And Washington
politicians don't pay much attention to rhetoric--not even their own.
You see, the wizards in
Washington and on Wall Street have us figured out. Along with their
compatriots in the propaganda press corps, they know that no matter
how loudly we scream, how much we protest, or how angry we become, the
system is rigged to protect them. The best we the people can seem to
come up with is "throwing the bums out" every two or four years. BUT
NOTHING CHANGES--at least, not in terms of restoring the fundamental
principles of freedom and constitutional government.
Throw out George H.W.
Bush in 1992, and nothing changes. Throw the Democrats out of Congress
in 1994, and nothing changes. Throw Bill Clinton's party out of the
White House in 2000, and nothing changes. Throw out G.W. Bush's
Republicans in 2008, and nothing changes. The only thing that happens
with a changing of the guard is an escalation in the pace of whatever
version of socialism--or Big Government program--is currently in
vogue. With Bush it meant expanding the Warfare State. With Obama it
means expanding the Welfare State. But both do everything they can to
expand Big Government.
When will we awaken to
the reality that Washington, D.C., has had the American people chasing
their tails for decades? People, wake up! As long as we continue to
focus our attention and energy on Washington, D.C., we will only
continue to supply more rope to those who wish to hang us.
Washington, D.C., is too
far gone to salvage. Admit it! Washington is a cesspool, a landfill,
and a putrid pond of corruption and duplicity. Neither the Republican
nor Democratic Party will ever allow a principled constitutionalist to
become its Presidential nominee. No matter whom we elect as President,
the beat toward Big-Government socialism and one-world
internationalism will go on without interruption. Big Government
scalawags own the entire federal system, including Big Media, Big
Business, Big Labor, Big Religion, and Big Special Interest Groups.
They are all feeding at the government teat.
Therefore, it is
absolutely obligatory that freedom-minded Americans refocus their
attention to electing State legislators, governors, judges and
sheriffs who will fearlessly defend their God-given liberties. And, as
plainly and emphatically as I know how to say it, I am telling you:
ONLY THE STATES CAN DEFEND OUR LIBERTY NOW! And awakening to this
reality means we will have to completely readjust our thinking and
priorities.
It means awakening to
the fact that Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Bill O'Reilly (and the
rest of Big Media's talking heads) are, for the most part, irrelevant
to providing real solutions to the continuing loss of liberty. And, in
truth, they are, more often than not, part of the problem, because
they continue to focus our attention on Washington, D.C., and off the
source of genuine solution, which lies with the states drawing a
constitutional line in the sand for freedom. Good grief! Beck and
O'Reilly have recently even advocated for higher federal taxes! Yeah!
That's a real solution: more power and money to Washington, D.C. Ughhh!
Instead of getting all
worked up about what Glenn Beck says or what Sarah Palin says or what
CFR member and Big Government neocon Newt Gingrich says, start paying
attention to what your State legislators and candidates are saying.
If we had more State
legislators such as Washington State's Matthew Shea; Georgia's Bobby
Franklin; Pennsylvania's Sam Rohrer; New Hampshire's Dan Itse;
Michigan's Paul Opsommer; Oklahoma's Randy Brogdon, Sally Kern and
Charles Key; Montana's Rick Jore, Greg Hinkle, and Joel Boniek;
Tennessee's Susan Lynn; South Carolina's Michael Pitts and Lee Bright;
Missouri's Jim Guest and Cynthia Davis; and sheriffs such as South
Carolina's Ray Nash, Arizona's Richard Mack and Joe Arpaio, Montana's
Jay Printz and Shane Harrington, etc., it wouldn't matter what those
nincompoops inside the Beltway do. The federal government cannot
violate your rights and steal your freedoms without the consent and
approbation of your State government.
Folks, let's get down to
where the rubber meets the road: the reason we are in the miserable
mess we are in is because the states have--either wittingly or
unwittingly--ceded their authority and independence to Washington,
D.C. Therefore, it is now critical that states reclaim their
authority--authority that is duly granted them under the US
Constitution.
All of us who call
ourselves conservatives or constitutionalists or libertarians (who, no
doubt, compose a majority, especially in "red" states) need to retake
their State governments. Elect a governor who knows how to say "No" to
the federal government. Elect a State legislature that knows how to
say "No" to Washington, D.C. Elect sheriffs and State judges who
understand the Constitution, State sovereignty, and the principles of
freedom--and who are courageous enough to defend those sacred
principles in the face of attempted federal usurpation.
The truth is, for all
intents and purposes, we could turn off television completely and be
in no worse shape. And newspapers are no better. The vast majority of
them blatantly support and promote Big Government. As Mark Twain said,
"If you don't read the newspaper, you are uninformed; if you do read
the newspaper, you are misinformed."
With Big Media, it's all
about Washington politics. Period. For the most part, the
conservative-liberal/Republican-Democrat paradigm is nothing but a
distraction at best, and a scam at worst, to keep all of us safely on
the federal reservation, where we are without hope or recourse to
actually change anything.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
freedom in America has only one hope: the resurrection of State
independence and sovereignty. Fortunately, there are rumblings around
the country that this revival has already begun.
The last time I checked,
some 38 states have introduced Tenth Amendment resolutions--or some
form of federal nullification proposals--in their State assemblies. To
follow the status of various states' rights initiatives, keep an eye
on these two web sites.
Web site one and
Web
site two.
If
conservatives/constitutionalists/libertarians would spend as much time
and energy influencing elections and policies at the State and local
levels as they attempt to do at the national level, we could turn this
floundering ship of state around. If he had the support and backing of
his State's legislature and sheriffs, imagine what ONE
constitutionalist governor could do. I get goose bumps thinking about
it!
Imagine a State with its
own financial system--its own currency, banks, regulatory agencies,
etc. Imagine a State with its own militia--under the authority of the
governor only--completely independent from any responsibility to the
President or federal government. Imagine a State with an education
system unfettered by the federal Department of Education. Imagine a
State where the BLM, the FBI, the ATF, and the DEA had to actually
submit to State law. Imagine a State with no federal bribes, or
federal "funding" as it is commonly called--except as is
constitutionally constructed (with no strings attached). Imagine a
State with its own health care system. Imagine a State with no FEMA--UNLESS
INVITED IN. Imagine a State that would not allow Washington's spooks
to unlawfully spy on law-abiding citizens. Imagine a State that
actually had a say in how much land the federal government could claim
for its own. Imagine a State where citizens never had to worry about a
national ID act. Imagine a State that would protect the right of its
citizens to freely express their faith in the public square. Imagine a
State that did not demand that its farmers put RFID computer chips in
their livestock. Imagine a State that would let you drill a well
without reporting it to the federal government. And for some really
fun mind games, imagine a State that would be willing to challenge the
constitutionality and legitimacy of the direct income tax and the IRS.
All of this--and more--is attainable with a constitutionalist State
government committed to protecting the liberties of its citizens.
I repeat: freedom in
America has only one hope: the resurrection of State independence and
sovereignty. In the US Constitution, our Founding Fathers sagaciously
reserved to State governments their independence and sovereignty,
knowing that they had the awesome responsibility of being the last
(and greatest) vanguard of liberty for the American people. They never
intended or imagined that the states would ever become a doormat for
the central government (which is what most of them have become).
In this regard, the
states that are proposing State sovereignty resolutions should
immediately band together to overturn the 17th Amendment, because this
amendment strips the states of their constitutional powers by turning
US senators into Washington insiders, who are more beholden to
Washington interests than the interests and well-being of the states
that they are supposed to represent.
If the 71% of voters who
are angry with the federal government would channel their energies
into electing constitutionalist governors and State legislators, their
anger might actually produce real and lasting change. As it is,
efforts to "reform" Washington, D.C., are like trying to teach a hog
to take a bath. Instead, let the hog wallow in the mud, but make sure
the mudhole stays small; don't let it spread to your back yard. And
keeping that Washington mudhole small is the job of the states. And,
in case you have not noticed, the mudhole has already grown to the
point that it's not just in your back yard; it's on your front porch
and about to consume your whole house.
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© 2009 Chuck Baldwin -
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