The Supreme Court is Invalidating the Founder’s Intent

No matter what decision the Supreme Court reaches regarding Obamacare, the SCOTUS is and has been acting unconstitutionally for decades since FDR. The US Constitution is clear on the role of the court as are the Federal Papers and the many correspondences between the founders about its role simply as arbiter not legislator. Legislation and law were intended to be introduced and voted on in the House first and foremost. The Constitution is clear about who holds the law making responsibility. There is no alternative including interpretations of laws by the SCOTUS. They were only meant to validate or invalidate a laws legitimacy based on the founder’s intent.

Let’s start with the intent. The intended purpose of the Constitution was to limit Federal Power. The clearest and easiest evidence to understand and to support that is the Tenth Amendment. Why else would the founders/states have insisted on this addition if the intent was not to limit central power? The US Constitution would not have been ratified without the guarantee of the Bill of Rights which includes the 10^th Amendment. The Bill of Rights in total underlines the distrust the states and the people had for this newly formed central government. Today it is painfully apparent how little the power of the Tenth Amendment has been utilized in the fight to curb centralized programs, but it has seen a renewed commitment to make it relevant again.

The SCOTUS was intended by the founders to simply be the referee to ensure the legislature was only passing laws that met the limits and protections within the constitution. Madison believed the role would be utilized on a very limited basis and in the federal papers he insists the concern about precedence was unwarranted. He suggested that every case that came before the SCOTUS would be looked at from the perspective of the original intent and not subsequent cases. How wrong he was. The precedence of the SCOTUS has been used to rewrite original intent to mean whatever the court wanted it to mean. This has been seen with the Commerce Clause. Its intent was to make trade regular between the states so there was a “uniform” set of laws guiding how the states traded. The coastal states could have easily introduced additional tariffs and taxes to the other states due to their proximity and importance in the delivery of foreign goods. It was not intended to be used as a way for the federal government to force the states to comply with its wishes simply because they participated in commerce. It was more efficient to have one representative dealing with foreign governments and trade agreements so the states would not have 13 different sets of rules that could be used to divide and create mischief by foreign governments especially France and England.

There have been a number of torturous interpretations based on precedent and ideology that have slowly but surely undermined our freedoms and decisions as a people. The suggestion that if we buy something or make something that is considered “commerce” that that becomes a reasonable opportunity for the federal government to regulate it and tax it to pay for the regulation is a warped view of the constitution. There is no requirement of the SCOTUS to consider any previous cases. That is what they need to do in the Obamacare case. They need to read and look at the original intent of our constitution.

That is where the crux of my argument lies. We now have a completely politicized process that does not fundamentally begin with a review of the constitution; it begins from the ideological views of the justices. As a conservative I pray the more conservative judges begin with the constitution in this healthcare case. But no one person can argue that every decision of late that the SCOTUS has ruled on is based in politics. Yes they occasionally reference the constitution but too often reference precedence. Completely opposite of what Madison argued would be the case.

The growth and intrusiveness of the Federal Government is being refereed by a party (SCOTUS) that has a self interest in the growth of that same government. If President Obama gets to choose two or more justices for the Supreme Court does anyone believe it will be a legitimate institution to protect our founding document? We will have reached the point of a nine person dictatorship if the SCOTUS becomes all powerful in the making and determining our future laws and original intent of the Constitution.

The states and the Governors of those states along with the legislatures need to take up the cause of liberty and limited federal power. They can do that by nullifying the laws they disagree with and believe are unconstitutional. Nullification is a legitimate course of action found within the constitution. We can’t rely on the Supreme Court for much longer because it is already politicized but if this president gets a few more picks it will no longer be on the side of the people and the states.

It is time for the states and the people to read, understand, and protect the US Constitution. It is the greatest weapon in the fight for liberty. Much more reliable than any SCOTUS.   

Where Do We Agree?

Is there anywhere in the political arena the American people agree? Or has it all become “knee jerk” politics so whenever a Democrat says something a Republican disagrees and visa versa?  Here are some areas I think we can all agree:

·         Gas prices are too high

·         Too much debt is dangerous to our future

·         The political process is broken

·         Government workers making much more than the people paying the bills is not right

·         College tuition is close to being unaffordable

These are a few areas I think most Americans could agree and have little dispute. The problem comes when you ask the question: How do we fix it?

Defining problems is the easy part of politics. Implementing solutions is the impossible task. Let’s take these in order.

How do we bring the price of gas down? The left will say we have to get away from oil for environmental reasons. Meanwhile they stop the expansion of nuclear power plants that could reduce the dependency of cities and towns across the nation on fossil fuels. But they don’t like nuclear either. They want us to use solar and wind but you can’t power an economy on such unreliable sources of energy.

We have more oil than Saudi Arabia in our country but the left doesn’t want us drilling to get it. We could increase the supply 200 fold but they want us off oil. We will never get off of oil in my lifetime.

The way the right wants to reduce gas prices is to increase supply. That is the way to go about it and the right supports alternatives but they know the reality of alternatives is years away. In the meantime we are not “destroying” the environment. We are destroying the economy.

The debt has a simple solution; reduce spending to equal revenue. The Left wants to raise taxes on the “rich.” This sounds great but will make no difference to reducing the debt. The only spending they will cut is “corporate loopholes.” Everything else is sacred.

For the right they want to eliminate federal programs that are not defined in the Constitution. It is a moral and Constitutional argument. Individual liberty with some safety nets for the truly needy and an end to the generational dependency.

Corruption has taken over our politicians and the process. Morality is gone and we have only self- interested people running for office with a political agenda that fuels the divisive environment. The solution is to get rid of the party system.

Government workers pay and benefits should be tied to their private sector counter parts. I think everyone agrees except for the government workers and union bosses.

College tuition will go down when the government stops subsidizing it. The easy access to college along with easy access to student loans is driving the price through the roof. Get the government out and prices will plummet. We also need to re-define the industries which need a college degree. Too many degrees do not prepare students for work. Which may be OK but students and parents need to know that going in. An English degree will make you a better writer but it may not land you a high paying job.

There are many things we agree upon but trying to fix them remains the biggest political problem we face…

GOP Endorsements

I normally could care less what another politician thinks in the election process. Their endorsements never make a difference in my choice of candidates that includes talk radio personalities like Rush, Mark, Sean, Hugh, Michael, Glenn, etc… I respect the fact that they have opinions and arguments that may persuade me on revisiting the issues with candidates but I like most conservatives make up my own mind.

The Jeb Bush endorsement is different in one way, it ensures we don’t have to deal with him as a candidate at a brokered convention. His support says to the voters that all of this talk about nominating him as a candidate is debunked. That is good news.

This endorsement is going to fuel the fire of Mitt being the “establishment” candidate because Jeb is definitely part of the establishment GOP. The problem is I don’t think Mitt is an “establishment” guy. I could be wrong and someday in the near future I hope Mitt has the opportunity to prove all of the conservatives who doubt him wrong. I think Mitt’s experience with troubled company balance sheets is going to take one look at the federal budget and start making the changes necessary for a balanced budget. He could go down in history as the president that saved this country from financial disaster. The risks are too big to ignore or put to the “out years” of the budget.

So as far as endorsements go I suggest that politicians keep them to themselves because thinking voters really don’t care. But for Jeb to come out now sends a message that it may be time for all of the Newt, Santorum, and supporters of a brokered convention to start to gel this process so we can start focusing this campaign on the Obama record. The longer we have to focus on the past three years the greater chance we have of taking back the next four…

Capitalism Works Every Time…

If you replace the word capitalism with “individual choice” you start to understand the reason we are so prosperous as a nation and people. This election cycle we are seeing a very dangerous tactic by the president and his supporters by demonizing “capitalism.” In the view of too many Americans, Capitalism has become a negative word. As a nation there is no quicker path to the bottom than to bite the system that feeds the prosperity we enjoy.

“Individual choice” to engage in trade with others works best because the individuals involved in the transaction know what is the best outcome of that transaction. The two parties assess the others offer and decide if it is worth the exchange of value to each party. An example would be a person needs food and a farmer needs a barn. The farmer and the carpenter decide what the value is in the transaction. The carpenter may ask for 6 months’ worth of corn in exchange for building a barn. If that trade is acceptable the two parties transact business. If not they either renegotiate or find another person that will find the transaction terms acceptable. The final transaction will be the result of “market” principles in action. Individuals decide for themselves the value of goods in the market.

The introduction of a third party like government into the market to decide what the “price” for goods and services is and the way they are distributed is socialism. A third party decides how much time people need to spend working and what wage they will receive for that time “spent” on the job. This third party is not part of the transaction except for the part of deciding how the transactions will take place and how the terms will be distributed. No matter what the individuals in the transaction think about the terms, the terms remain the same (“equal”). If those terms are not acceptable to the parties the parties remove themselves from the “market’ and the market stalls, and dwindles away. Nothing gets done and things stagnate or more likely a “black market” is created to get around the third party arbiter.

The economy and the world revolves around billions of “individual choice” transactions that all together make up a vibrant economy. The reason the “individual choice” model is so efficient is because people will only do the transactions that make sense to their individual circumstances. They make the best choice for themselves and their families. They control the choices they make and every transaction adjusts based on the needs of “individual choice.”

There are times when “individual choice” is “cruel” to the other party by rejecting what they have to offer. But unlike a system like socialism that attempts to force the transaction to move forward, in the “individual choice” model that rejected party must rethink, retool, reduce the price, (or many other possibilities), make a change that is acceptable to the other party.  It forces changes that can result in failure but can also result in a more efficient offer or product. It forces people to be creative, diligent, hardworking and in a word it is competitive. The strong survive and the weak either change or fail.

So even though socialism touts “fairness” it is not fair at all. It distorts the “individual choice” and replaces it with forced transactions. It never works for a greater length than individuals figure a way to work around it or stop working at all. So the next time you hear someone criticize capitalism ask them if they believe in “individual choice”? Most likely they will and then explain that capitalism is a system of individual choices which produces the best outcomes for all willing to work hard in our society…

It’s the GOP Alternative; Stupid…

I am seeing more and more articles on how Romney can’t close the deal because he is not “conservative enough.” I am not so sure that Mitt will not govern as a conservative because if we look back at my favorite President, Ronald Reagan, the same argument could be made about him. I think Romney will govern conservatively because this election will result in an even more conservative congress who will hold his feet to the fire.

The reason Mitt stays at the head of the GOP primary fight is the lack of a viable alternative. The more people see Santorum and Newt, the more they dislike them as a choice against Obama. Don’t get me wrong, most conservative voters will vote for “anybody but Obama” so no matter who gets the nod, they will win the conservative vote. But the alternative to Romney is extremely weak. That is the problem and that is why there is so much talk about a brokered convention.

The problem with a brokered convention is the likelihood it will piss off the Tea Party and Republicans that are done with a GOP establishment that has ruined the Republican Party. If at the convention a “new” candidate is introduced and not vetted properly we could end up with 4 more years of Obama. If God forbid they put up a Jeb Bush for example, I will vote for a third party alternative. I will never vote for another Bush. Not because I don’t like them but more on the lines of we have plenty of other people that would make better candidates and I hate political “Dynasties.”

So it is back to the alternative to Romney? There really is little alternative for the GOP primary voter to choose besides Mitt. I for one am not as worried as many of my fellow conservatives that Mitt will govern on the right. Mitt will be the nominee and it is in our best interest to get behind him and hold him accountable to conservative Reagan principles…

Santorum Doesn’t Excite Me…

I find the more I listen to Rick Santorum the less I like him. Between him and Newt I find myself cringing at the prospect of having to vote for either of them. I will vote for them of course because Obama is a disaster.

There is a really vitriol attitude toward Romney from both of these candidates. I know they are being criticized in the primary by Mitt’s election machine and all the “warts” of the candidates are coming to light. But this is small potatoes compared to the efforts that will be unleashed in the general election cycle.

I am disappointed in the entire field of GOP candidates but the reality is that one of these guys will be the nominee. The only hope I hold onto is the selection of a vibrant VP, like a Rubio, Ryan, or conservative woman running mate. I am sure I am not alone.

I do not hold the opinion that this “extended” primary is bad for the Republicans. I think having four candidates speaking out on the economy, jobs, debt and deficit, is amplifying the conservative message. Instead of having one chosen candidate to counter, the democrats have to spread their demolition machine in four different directions.

So if we can’t have a really good choice for GOP candidate, at least the messengers are all giving the media more reason to cover the issues that will ultimately lead to the defeat of this president. Gas prices could be $2.50 a gallon, the Federal Reserve is out of control, religious freedom and all freedom as a matter of fact is under assault from this administration, and it may be time to have a president that understands the private sector elected to office. All of these candidates make for good talking points in the media. At least that is something to be excited about…

No Voter ID: Do Democrats Want to Vote for You?

Since when does asking someone for a photo ID represent an attempt at discrimination? When you ask the bartender for a drink at the airport they ask for your ID. When you choose to use a check at any grocery or retail store you are most likely going to be asked for a photo ID. In almost every aspect of life there is an expectation that we have an ID to validate we are who we say we are.

The Attorney General of the United States is suing a numberof states to stop them from implementing voter ID laws. He says it is a form of disenfranchisement and discrimination against minorities and people likely to vote for Democrats. Hmmm! Why would having a photo ID impact voters that lean democratic? Could it be that dead people have a hard time showing ID? Could it be that democrats tend to vote multiple times and if a photo ID is implemented it could put a damper on that practice?

In every state you can get a government issued photo ID at no charge. It takes a bit of initiative from the person that needs the ID but is it too much to ask a voter to do? In a representative republic, making the effort to vote is one of our responsibilities. And to be honest I don’t think a person unwilling to make the effort to get an ID should be able to vote. If you don’t think it’s that important to make the effort to get a photo ID to vote, you are probably not informed of the issues and I would rather you didn’t vote. I know that sounds strange to some but maintaining freedom and our constitution is a responsibility that must be taken seriously.

The future of our republic is on the line and we need to make sure that the integrity of our elections is intact. We can’t afford to allow dead people, illegal people, or people too lazy to get the credentials necessary to vote to undermine our country. Everyone that is legally eligible to vote has the ability to do so if they just make the effort. The next step will be democrats wanting to vote for people. Don’t laugh its coming…

A Focused Electorate

The pundits keep suggesting that the GOP Presidential field is weak due to the lack of any candidate’s ability to break away from the pack. Well I see it another way. I believe the fact that voters are “shopping” for the “perfect” candidate shows a determined interest in the ousting of the current President. I also believe “low turnout” in the primaries is actually the result of people that know that whoever is nominated by the GOP will be their choice because for them it is anybody but Obama.

To suggest the GOP and Tea Party voters are not energized is to suggest these people that reversed the course of Obama in 2012 have somehow given up? Are you kidding? This silent majority is chomping on the bit to pull a lever, punch a hole, or fill in a circle on Election Day to oust Obama. I predict voter turnout on the conservative side of the leger will be the largest in history. There is a pent up frustration and longing for change that will be realized if the conservative voter has the opportunity to do so.

If you compare this “shopping” for a candidate with your personal shopping habits it is much the same in comparison to the way you shop when you are buying a diamond engagement ring and something for the evening meal. The attention and discrimination you use to buy the perfect diamond shows a much more important purchase than choosing pizza or hamburger. This election has the voters shopping for a diamond ring. It is an extremely important “purchase.” This election is not a casual meal of pizza or hamburger. A choice for dinner that will have little impact on our life.

So as the pundits try to sort out what is happening in the electorate it is painfully obvious to us here in the electorate. We are going to defeat Obama any which way because this is the most important election in our lifetime. We are “buying” the diamond ring in the GOP primary. But in the end it will be a massive turnout for anybody but Obama.

Rush to Judgment…

Rush Limbaugh had a bad week last week. I was away on my first cruise totally disconnected from the political world and I come back to find a big controversy buzzing around Rush. Well, there is always a left wing vulture circling the most effective conservative commentator in history because when you are as powerful and influential as Rush you are the big kill. You are the next “Watergate” to be taken down. You are the feather in the cap if successfully neutralized. As I watched the coverage on the way home I realized this was a bit more than usual.

What the left fails to understand is that attacking Rush for a poor choice of words may seem like blood in the water, but it is actually a battle cry for conservatives. Conservatives that support Rush would go to the front line of battle at the first request made by Rush. As a General in the conservative army he would command enough troops to take down this handful of pencil neck lefties in a heartbeat. Actually as we speak, there are 8 former advertisers in board rooms across America re-thinking their decision to abandon Rush. You see, when you abandon Rush you have abandoned 20 million consumers that would go to war with this man.

Rush has been at the front lines of the battle against liberals determined to take away our freedoms and constitutional rights. He has always been “controversial” to the left but he has always spoken clearly for the conservative American. He is representative of the majority of Americans that make this country great. We take an assault on Rush seriously. As every one of these advertisers will see, they have made a tactical error. Conservatives don’t scream from the rooftops, they act. Just like most conservatives will never buy a GM or Chrysler product again, these sponsors will see conservatives act with their market principles. We will stop considering their products and services just as many did with GM and Chrysler. We will not go around and sign petitions. We will just stop using the products.

The real answer to limiting the power of people you disagree with is to stop listening. I don’t listen to liberals because they are not very smart. I don’t boycott advertisers that advertise on the View, Bill Maher, Shultz, Maddow, etc… I just don’t listen. I don’t care where a sponsor chooses to advertise because in a free market both liberals and conservatives spend money. It is when a sponsor decides to make a political statement about a topic, show, or radio personality that gets them in trouble. By bowing to liberals and leaving the Rush Limbaugh show, they have made a political statement. Very bad move. They should have stayed neutral and released a statement that made clear they do not get involved in political debates and advertise on shows that cover every political spectrum because their customers are part of every political spectrum. Issue solved.

But now I will never buy a bouquet of flowers from 1-800 Flowers or use Carbonite back up services. The other sponsors will get the same treatment. They made a decision and I have made a decision. Rush is a good man in a cesspool of political debate every day. Dealing with liberals on the left is a test of a person’s character to stay calm cool and collected. We are all human and sometimes we get angry and use language we wish we could take back. I have done it more than once in my life.

The bigger issue is we are at war with people that want to destroy our country. Our current President is their leader. Rush points out the areas in which we are under attack and it is our responsibility as conservatives to react and change things where we can. Rush educates those that will listen on the effects of policy and regulation so we can make sound assessments for the next course of action. To allow these people to neutralize Rush is to wave a white flag and surrender our country and constitution. The left will find that that is something the conservative warrior will never do. We know our history and our rights. We have a beacon of truth leading the way. He will not be stopped by the enemy. That I can guarantee…

You Can Sense it, Something is Not Right…

We are in for a rude awakening. You can feel it coming just like in the movies where things seem to be heading out of control right before a crisis. The country is going bankrupt and John McCain is calling for us to support “rebels” in Syria with more bombs and devastation. Our involvement will only come back to bite us and a question for John McCain; how are you going to pay for it? We are tapped out. It is time to leave the Muslims in the Middle East to sort out their own problems. That is why energy policy is so important.

The price of gas is skyrocketing and what is the response of this President? “I wish they were not so high…” Hmmm that makes me feel confident he is on the job. Instead of worrying about what political commentators are saying about political activists, maybe the President should reconsider the Keystone Pipeline and open all federal lands to drilling. That would be a start. These gas prices are a not so hidden tax on the economy that goes straight to the Muslims in Iran, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia who would love nothing more than our death and downfall.

The media is not covering any of the important issues with any zeal whatsoever. Unemployment is not going down, people searching for work is. We are seeing our country resetting expectations to the lowest common denominator under this president. He is spreading the misery instead of spreading opportunity. By continuing to punish wealth creators he is destroying the opportunities of the middle class. He has implemented policies that are drowning innovation and business startups. Regulations are strangling us to economic death. Just try opening up a lemonade stand or a taxi business and you will see what I mean.

Healthcare is dying. Religious liberty is under attack. Private insurance and hospitals will be converted to government bureaucracies if Obama is re-elected. And for all of you socialists it will not be for the better. Death Panels, benefit panels, and cost panels will begin to deny care, drugs, and new technologies at a breakneck speed if Obama is re-elected. We will be Europe or South America before the end of a second term. We are talking about paying for other people’s birth control when it is already “free” at any Planned Parenthood facility underwritten by our taxes. Why are we even discussing it? Because this President’s record on everything is dismal, and if people pay attention to his record, his re-election will be impossible. That is the reason behind the new mantra “War Against Women” the Republicans are supposedly engaged in. They are not. Their “war” is to unseat Obama.

Occupy “whatever” is planning chaotic demonstrations to defeat capitalism. The golden goose, capitalism, if defeated will mean the end of prosperity and America. These people are a minority but are receiving coverage that makes them seem like a majority. The good news is that gun sales have soared through the roof so I think many Americans are getting into the “Make my day” mode getting ready for these radicals. And that is what I mean by a “feeling”.

I heard a guy on the radio last night frustrated with all of this hypocrisy and double standards being practiced by the media and he was on the edge. I could feel for him and I have to say that the fuse is short for many hard working, law abiding, tax paying citizens that have had enough. We have been playing by the “rules” but it seems the rules have changed. It could get ugly soon and it will be interesting to see how many people are ready to defend their country and constitution. Like I said there is something in the air and it doesn’t feel right…