Evil is not an abstract concept. It is not some ephemeral quality difficult to define or subject to the whims of relativism. It is not just an act, but the intent behind the act.

It is evil to steal the fruits of labor derived from the sweat of the body or the effort of the mind and give it to another. This is not liberty; it is not freedom; it is not American. I choose to give to those less fortunate. In doing so, I exercise my right to decide the distribution of my efforts. I reject the very idea of a few who would lord over me, full of such contempt and drunk on power their twisted logic excuses and rationalizes their actions. Only a sick mind belongs in such a pit of malfeasance.

Should I ever be held in contempt such vultures, I proudly would stand up and identify with a shout the charge to be fact, for indeed I have nothing but contempt for the leeches. They do not own me, though they will try. They do not honor my rights, though they claim to. They are, to their very core, evil.

It is those who practice that act of theft in the pursuit of power, those that enslave the populace to their so-called charity, who need us. We are free. We live in the spirit of liberty. We do not need them. I deem their actions unlawful and abhorrent. Even their might will not frighten me into submission.

Who are these lowly thieves they should defy the wolves of liberty? Do not fear them, for even in their sickness they are aware of our power and are afraid. They can break neither you nor I, and this fact troubles them and defines them by their fear of us. Right is on our side, our spirits bright with the shining light of liberty. Their darkness cannot withstand even the smallest of candles among us. Together, the evil of socialism they represent will perish, and all signs of their foulness swept into the dustbins of history. By will, by conviction, and by moral rightness shall we prevail. They are like leaves and will blow away with the slightest wind – the smallest of breezes. No arms will be required, no martial weaponry, but only the weapons of the mind. Our enemies are feeble. If we recognize and own this fact, their weakness will be no match for our resolve.

I hereby swear to work tirelessly in the effort to vanquish the ideology of thieves, the evil of socialism, and the enemies of liberty; to aspire to bring this nation back to its constitutional foundations where the power lies in the individual. I vow to honor the ideas of empowerment and independence, to make them terms of common use and action, understood in their original context and intent. I vow to buttress such thought through sheer will and determination, and in doing so drive the vultures far away. I vow to set the foundation of such thought so when evil dares to return in any guise, its unsightly countenance will be turned away once again by those who come after me.

Cross-posted.

I’m not counting on these bozos to repeal ObamaCare, even with a 2/3 majority. It just is not going to happen and is part of the denial phase of losing our liberties to contemptuous tyrants. It will soon become apparent this approach is a non-starter. Looks good, sounds good, is inspiring to think about it, but it ain’t gonna happen, so let’s look for the real solution. You will find it in the 10th Amendment.

Kill the bill – invoke the tenth, written by the Tenth Amendment Center and fresh off the presses offers the real solution, along with some eye opening insights:

Lenin said:

“Medicine is the keystone of the arch of socialism” and “The goal of socialism is communism.”

Chew on that one for a bit.

The article continues:

Thomas Jefferson said:

“Whensoever the General Government assumes undelegated powers, its acts are unauthoritative, void, and of no force”

That is, unless we wish to give them that power over us. Even a cursory reading of not only the Constitution, but also the context of the times it was written in make this clear. The article continues:

Ignore Washington D.C.

They are ignoring you, return the favor. In his speech on Saturday, Obama referred to you as “astroturf”. In political terminology that insinuates that you were paid for your phone calls and someone picked up your travel expenses and bought your dinner for your troubles. That’s one way they ignore you. Another way they ignore you is to use an unscrupulous process to pass an unconstitutional health care bill that changes the foundation of your country overnight.

If you’re like me, when you call representatives, write letters or attend tea parties, you pick up the tab and sacrifice your own personal time in hopes that someone will listen. I’d much rather spend my time and money with my family, business or hobbies than hoping my actions will result in my federal representatives actually representing. And anyone that could have done anything about the health care bill is in Washington D.C., you can’t meet with them, you don’t know them and you cannot reasonably hold them accountable. How can you really expect them to feel any pressure to represent you? Yes, morally your expectations are valid because they should do the will of the people. Unfortunately, the reality is without the power to exert an opposing force, you will continue to be disregarded as a mere annoyance.

The later could not be more true. We are an annoyance and until we realize that, the politicians in Washington will continue happily along the path of political expediency and play on your emotions for their own political gain. Nowhere in their political calculus does their exist an iota of concern for you, unless expressing it so benefits them. Live it, learn it, and never forget it. If you want to win this, then concentrate on the one area where you actually can make a difference. Learn where the leveraged pressure is. Concentrate on the one area where a long-term solution is readily available to you. No band-aids, no wishful thinking, but hard work, perseverance, convictions, and liberty collide in the perfect storm of freedom.

Brian Roberts continues:

Ghandi had it nailed:

“First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win. “

For the most part, the federal government has ignored any resistance to the health care bill. Tea Parties have been ridiculed as radicals of all varieties such as “tea baggers”, “astroturf”, “racists”, and “domestic terrorists”. But, they have never formally acknowledged the existence of this movement. Once we begin to focus our attention on the state governments, everything changes. The media will be unable to ignore a block of defiant states. Personally, you will be ridiculed as a “tenther” (I think this is pretty cool) but once states exhibit defiance it will not be long before the federal government shifts it’s focus to the states not the individuals. That’s when you will know that you are not being ignored anymore.

At a minimum, your state will be ridiculed as out of touch with reality, as constitutional rogues, racists, and more. The governor of your state and your state representatives will be positioned as little more than common rabble rousers and will be the target of incredible pressure to compromise. But this must be overcome before we can win and we must solidly stand with state representatives. Federal funds will be used to coerce states to comply as has been common practice for some time. This will be specifically painful with health care because defiant state’s federal funds will be used to finance compliant state’s health care. However, this cannot be allowed to stand for any significant amount of time so states must be influenced to pass state legislation that denies the federal government what they covet most, tax revenue.

From here on, resolve will be the key. Not just your resolve, but the resolve of the rest of the citizens in your state. So it’s our responsibility to educate neighbors and make sure the right state representatives are in place.

Get enough states to do this and we will win. The question remains, do we have the resolve as a people? Are we ready to be revolutionary like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ghandi using non-violent passive-aggressive civil disobedience and constitutional nullification? We have been ignored, stepped on and spit out by Washington. Is it so surprising we would actually do something about it? At what point does one stop taking the insults to ourselves, the assaults to our liberties, and push back? I think the answer it clear. That time is now.

Cross-posted.

The time to step up is now. We fight not just for our country, but for our families and for those not yet born. The information below is voluminous and it is merely a primer. Taking back our country requires understanding the power of the states in contrast to federal power. It requires we grasp the historical context of how the federal government absconded with powers the founders clearly never intended it to possess.

Michelle Malkin makes an excellent implicit case for why nullification is the only way back to federalism and the Tenth Amendment Center provides extensive education and commentary on the subject itself. Let us start with Michelle as she questions the ability of Republicans to lead us out of the sinkhole:

Now, I want you to read every word of what Andy McCarthy has to say about the GOP leadership’s abandonment of Jim Bunning — and what it says about the lack of Republican fortitude in the war against the permanent, ever-growing Nanny State.

Andy speaks the truth. Hard truths. And fiscal conservatives/Tea Party activists need to shout them from the rooftops. I’ve invoked Phyllis Schlafly many times over the past year in urging the GOP to provide true choices instead of echoes. Actions speak louder than words. So, alas, does feckless inaction.

Maine’s Susan Collins took to the Senate floor to assure Americans that Bunning’s radical views about Congress’s not spending yet more billions it doesn’t have “do not represent a majority of the Republican caucus.” And sure enough, they didn’t. Once Bunning backed down, the measure passed by a whopping 78-19.

Think about that. We are talking about $10 billion in a year when Leviathan is slated to spend a total of $3.6 trillion. The majority of Senate Republicans joined Democrats in concluding that the allocation of every one of these 3.6 thousand billion dollars is so vital that not one of them could be sacrificed in favor of unemployment insurance. So another $10 billion just gets heaped on the already unfathomable trillion-dollar deficits stacking year upon year.

Read the entire post.

The realization that salvation exits with neither political party is an a priori and tacit argument the federal government is responsible for creating this mess and cannot, by design, be the architect of solutions to restoring fiscal responsibility and individual freedom. This is not to say principled politicians do not exist in Washington – I can think of a few – but most politicians are just that…politicians. Self-interested, disconnected, contemptuous elitists. For those in the Tea Party, it is a calculated risk that your candidate somehow is cut from a different cloth. In reality, you will fare no better than the average citizen. As I write these words, salivating, power hungry impostors wait to prey on the wishes and dreams of Tea Party members everywhere. I am your candidate, they will say. Even those with honest designs are not immune to the corrupting influence of Washington, for the system is fundamentally broken and it is impossible to remove a sitting U.S. Congress member. It is not, however, impossible to recall a governor or a state legislator and it is here that Tea Parties, nullification, and real power collide in the perfect storm of the restoration of constitutional governance.

So what is one to do? The answer – nullification. No, nullification is not secession and no, nullification is not a violent act. The Tenth Amendment Center describes nullification as follows:

First, nullification has, in fact, been somewhat successful in the past and more recently as well. Second, as President Obama loves to say, “Let me be clear”: “Official” nullification has ALREADY HAPPENED.

Before I explain why “official” nullification has already happened, let me briefly give some examples of what nullification is NOT.

Nullification is not secession or insurrection, but neither is it unconditional or unlimited submission. Nullification is not something that requires any decision, statement or action from any branch of the federal government. Nullification is not the result of obtaining a favorable court ruling. Nullification is not the petitioning of the federal government to start doing or to stop doing anything. Nullification doesn’t depend on any federal law being repealed. Nullification does not require permission from any person or institution outside of one’s own state.

So just what IS “official” nullification you might be asking?

Nullification begins with a decision made in your state legislature to resist a federal law deemed to be unconstitutional. It usually involves a bill, which is passed by both houses and is signed by your governor. In some cases, it might be approved by the voters of your state directly, in a referendum. It may change your state’s statutory law or it might even amend your state constitution. It is a refusal on the part of your state government to cooperate with, or enforce any federal law it deems to be unconstitutional.

Nullification carries with it the force of state law. It cannot be legally repealed by Congress without amending the US Constitution. It cannot be lawfully abolished by an executive order. It cannot be overruled by the Supreme Court. It is the people of a state asserting their constitutional rights by acting as a political society in their highest sovereign capacity. It is the moderate, middle way that wisely avoids harsh remedies like secession on the one hand and slavish, unlimited submission on the other. It is the constitutional remedy for unconstitutional federal laws.

With the exception of a Constitutional amendment, the federal government cannot oppose (except perhaps rhetorically), a state’s decision to nullify an unconstitutional federal law without resorting to extra-legal measures. But such measures would more than likely backfire, since most Americans still affirm that might does not make right.

There is no question as to whether or when “official” nullification will happen: It has ALREADY HAPPENED. In fact, not only has it happened recently, it has been a success! Perhaps this is why the federal government hopes you will never hear about it. According to the Tenth Amendment Center:

25 states over the past 2 years have passed resolutions and binding laws denouncing and refusing to implement the Bush-era law [REAL ID Act]..While the law is still on the books in D.C., its implementation has been “delayed” numerous times in response to this massive state resistance, and in practice, is virtually null and void…

…There are a whole host of peaceful actions that a state government can adopt if that day comes or appears to be just over the horizon. These measures range from county sheriffs requiring that federal agents receive written permission from the sheriff before acting in their county, to setting up a Federal Tax escrow account, which could potentially de-fund unconstitutional federal activities by requiring that all federal taxes come first to the state’s Department of Revenue.

Besides state interposition, the other thing Washington would have to consider, is whether enough of their agents would actually obey orders to punish people for exercising their constitutional rights. There is a significant chance that enough of them would either publicly or privately decide in advance to ignore such orders. As the probability of this increases, it becomes more likely that Washington will not risk overplaying its hand. The reality is that Washington just doesn’t have the manpower to enforce all their unconstitutional laws if enough states choose to defy them.

More on federal tax escrow accounts and the willingness of federal agents to execute orders deemed unconstitutional below.

For more information about nullification I strongly encourage the reader to visit the Tenth Amendment Center (TAC) and type in nullification in the search bar. Lots of very interesting reading. Additional information can be found at the Social Security Institute.

The TAC also writes Our Goal is Federalism, not “States’ Rights”:

Foundationally, states don’t have rights as a government, states have power. Power at the federal and state level is derived from the consent of the governed, the people, who do have rights our governing agreements were designed to protect. Inspired by careful historical study, years of debate, considerations, and the declarations of colonies, towns, and associations (prior to July of 1776) the fundamental rights of the people were articulated in the preamble of our Declaration of Independence…

…Let every member of every organization supporting state sovereignty and federalism cleanse the language so our opponents cannot easily attack the wrong target. Should they target federalism and the original meaning we can defeat them with truth. Freedom is not outdated, federal government is an agreement among the people of different sovereign states, the 10th Amendment has never been repealed, and virtue is still necessary for securing our posterity’s future rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

So if I were to ask you to identify the final arbiter of the U.S. Constitution, the correct answer is not the U.S. Supreme Court, but rather the states themselves. Allowing the U.S. Supreme Court – part of the judicial branch of the federal government – to rule on federal powers presents a problem. Dr. Larry Hunter informs us (emphasis mine):

The resolution explicitly disclaimed that the national government was the judge of its own powers. Allowing it to judge its own powers would be akin to permitting an agent, rather than the principal, to determine the breadth of the agent’s authority. The law of agency at its most basic level recognizes that an agent can act as such only subject to the consent and control of the principal to whom the agent owes a fiduciary duty (see Restatement [Second] of Agency, sec. 1). Just as A, B, and C, the partners in a business firm, decide what authority to give their agent Z, so the parties to the Constitution decide the powers of the national government. In light of such logic, Jefferson proclaimed in the resolution that “each party [to the federal compact] has an equal right to judge for itself, as well of infractions as of the mode and measures of redress” (Virginia Commission 1964, 144). For Jefferson, the people acting through their states — the authentic organs of government — were the final arbiters of constitutional interpretation. Jefferson feared that giving the federal government the exclusive power to interpret the Constitution through the Supreme Court would lead to arbitrary government. As John Taylor later wrote in his Construction Construed and Constitutions Vindicated, “a jurisdiction, limited by its own will, is an unlimited jurisdiction” ([1820] 1970, 131). With the states stripped of the power to construe the Constitution, the enforcement of constitutional limitations on the central government would be chimerical. Thus, it is not surprising that none of the convictions under the Sedition Act were appealed to the Federalist-dominated Supreme Court. The Republicans did not want to give the Court an opportunity to set a dangerous precedent.

If we remain sheep, apathy lays the foundation for us and our descendants of a people enslaved to the whims of a capricious few. Nullification begins with the state legislative and executive bodies, when the previously lorded over sheep transform into self-reliant wolves. It requires of us and our state leaders great strength of character and leadership. If they are not up to the task – we can replace them. At times, we must be prepared to stand with them shoulder-to-shoulder – literally and figuratively. The goal of any nullification movement is critical mass. Using ObamaCare as an example – assuming it passes, if enough states nullify the law and governors coordinate the effort with the will and strength of the people at their backs, ObamaCare will collapse. Federal repercussions will be swift:

When I talk to people about these principles – most agree, like Martin Luther King Jr. said in his famous “Letter from Birmingham jail,” that there is a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. But, they’ll often ask, even if states pass laws to nullify unjust and unconstitutional federal acts, the feds will still continue to tax us and punish our states financially for not complying – so what can we REALLY do?

One idea, which will take a great deal of courage on the part of the People and their state governments, is to establish what’s being called a “Federal Tax Escrow Account” or a “State Authority and Federal Tax Funds Act.”

Already introduced in Georgia (HB877), Oklahoma (HB2810), and Washington (HB2712), such laws would require that all federal taxes come first to the state’s Department of Revenue. A panel of legislators would assay the Constitutional appropriateness of the Federal Budget, and then forward to the federal government a percentage of the federal tax dollars that are delineated as legal and Constitutionally justified. The remainder of those dollars would be assigned to budgetary items that are currently funded through federal allocations and grants or returned to the people.

Naturally, the U.S. Supreme Court would label such an act unconstitutional, but as stated above, such an action by the Supreme Court amounts to empty words and rhetoric. The natural progression of such actions, given enough states and a determined populace, will be the nonviolent return of federalism. While it is possible events unfold in such a manner leading to a showdown between, for example, national guard troops and/or civilians and the U.S. military, it is highly unlikely the U.S. Military will follow orders that are obviously unconstitutional. After the forceful removal of guns from citizens in the aftermath of Katrina, many in law enforcement and the military began a serious a deliberate debate on the issue. Oath Keepers states the following on their site:

The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their Houses, and Farms, are to be pillaged and destroyed, and they consigned to a State of Wretchedness from which no human efforts will probably deliver them. The fate of unborn Millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this army” — Gen. George Washington, to his troops before the battle of Long Island

Such a time is near at hand again. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this Army — and this Marine Corps, This Air Force, This Navy and the National Guard and police units of these sovereign states.

Oath Keepers is a non-partisan association of currently serving military, reserves, National Guard, peace officers, fire-fighters, and veterans who swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic … and meant it. We won’t “just follow orders.

Included in the link is a list of orders member will not obey.

We can take great lessons from Martin Luther King, Jr. and his approach to the civil rights movement, as well as Gandhi and the issue of British colonialism in India. A passive-aggressive approach can work if executed correctly.

It is no longer the case that most of us sacrifice for our freedoms. We know of those who did so in the past and do so even today. We honor them on special holidays and then go about our business. Lately, some find themselves prone to attend rallies, send faxes, call and email their federal representatives, only to sit back and watch Washington arrogance ignore our calls for sanity.

It is now clear to many the way forward – the only way forward – is through the states. We may slow our slide into fiscal disaster and European style socialism with leveraged federal pressure, but inaction at the state level – read nullification – we only delay the inevitable. So now is the time to begin. Now is the time to transform.

Perish as sheep, or thrive as a wolves. In short, stand alone and afraid, or join forces and through sheer will, dedication, and commitment to fundamental principles of freedom take back this country not with the gun, but with the mind and with the moral conviction you are right.

Thought I would write a quick diary entry even though this is also in the comments. I know it may not meet the requirements of an entry, but this needs exposure fast if it is true:

According to Fox News. He is buying the Executive Order BS. He as looking for such a deal according to Life News:

http://www.lifenews.com/nat6158.html

Also from the Hill is a report saying they are close to a deal: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/88079-stupak-we-are-close-to-deal-with-the-white-house

Due to the timing and the fact I just heard this on Fox, it seems they may have reached a deal. Melt the phone lines of the Stupak bloc and do it now. The voters are not stupid. Executive orders are temporary and governement controlled healthcare will, at some point in the future have federally funded abortion. The only soltion is to KILL THE BILL.

This guy must be an idiot.

From National Review, here is the rules ruling for tomorrow:

The rule sets up the following votes for tomorrow: The first will be on the rule itself; the second the infamous Senate-passed health-care bill, which still includes the Cornhusker Kickback, the Louisiana Purchase, the Gator Aid, and the Cadillac Tax; the third on a motion to recommit on the “sidecar” reconciliation package; and the fourth the on “sidecar” bill itself.

I admit to being a little confused reading that Orrin Hatch is telling House Democrats it won’t be the last vote they have. The Senate will have to vote on the House reconciliation package and if one comma is changed in the Senate, its back to the House.

But if the House passes the Senate bill, is ObamaCare not just one Presidential signature away from becoming law? The answer appears to be no as Ed Morrissey from Hot Air indicates:

Not only does the most gentlemanly of Senators blast his lower-chamber colleagues for their belief that reconciliation will sail through the upper chamber unchanged, Orrin Hatch warns Senate Democrats that an attempt to push it through will mean “war.” If they believe Republicans will just sit back and allow Democrats to run roughshod over the minority, they will find themselves in a battle they’ll regret “for the rest of their lives”

But here is the part that caught my attention

At one time, Democrats considered using a ping-pong strategy to keep refining the bill rather than attempting to do it through reconciliation. It appears that Republicans have now adopted the idea to keep it from passing. If they can alter the bill in their Senate vote — and it might be hard to do, considering they only have 41 votes — then the House will have to reconsider the new language before passing it along to the President for his signature. In the meantime, it will take a long time to get through the various amendments and points of order, and if Republicans really want to make it a “war,” they can make everything else in the Senate come to a halt, too.

The House is counting of getting this over and done with. At a minimum, they must understand the process, if the Senate GOP bucks up, could be dragged on for a very long time, keeping it front and center in American’s minds. And to boot, if the Republican’s are able to get any changes (which actually is easier than Ed seems to think as the parliamentarian would have to side with the Dems on every point of order) then its back to the House for another vote. To make matters worse, it could then ping back to the Senate followed by a pong to the House. The never ending nightmare that pushes us closer and closer to November.

I think that if centrist Democrats like their jobs and aren’t drinking the Obama and Pelosi kool-aid, it would be in their best interests to kill this thing tomorrow and get it off the books until the next Congress where it can be taken up again and we can have real reform minus the lies, deals, and propaganda. If not then, I’d be fine with waiting until Obama is out of office in 2013.

Still, keep up the unrelenting pressure and let’s hope this monstrosity dies tomorrow.

Fred Barnes’ eye-opening op-ed in the Washington post is a wake-up call to wavering Democrats and even those leaning yes or committed yes. The Pandora’s Box that is the current health-care reform legislation best be left with the lid on, wrapped up in chains, and chucked into the deepest depths of the ocean:

America will be in a constant health-care war if ObamaCare is enacted. Passage wouldn’t end the health-care debate. Rather, it would perpetuate ObamaCare as the dominant issue for decades to come, reshape politics, create an annual funding crisis in Congress, and generate a spate of angry lawsuits. Yet few in Washington seem aware of what lies ahead.

We only have to look at Great Britain to get a glimpse of the future. The National Health Service—socialized medicine—was created in 1946 and touted as the envy of the world. It’s been a contentious issue ever since. Its cost and coverage are perennial subjects of debate. The press, especially England’s most popular newspaper, The Daily Mail, feasts on reports of long waiting periods, dirty hospitals, botched care and denied access to treatments.

And the people of this country, contrary to what our dear leader continues to spout, are very tied into the process, understand reconciliation and the “Slaughter Solution”, and not liking what they see:

Democratic leaders believe the public doesn’t focus on the process of how legislation is enacted. But in this case they’re wrong. I’ve been amazed at how many people understand “reconciliation”—a process that allows budget and spending bills to pass in the Senate with only 51 votes, instead of 60. Many voters are also now studying the details of the “Slaughter solution,” which would allow the House to “deem” the Senate health-care bill to have passed without actually voting on it and then to vote through changes to the Senate bill. These legislative shortcuts are already infuriating ObamaCare’s opponents.

Also contrary to the Democratic leadership’s position is that ObamaCare will not go away as an issue – not know, not next year and not in 2012. Lawsuits, party platforms and campaigns that run on repealing or de-funding enough aspects of ObamaCare to virtually kill it, will drag this out and make it the issue. Senate comity will be all but destroyed with dire consequences and partisanship in government will reach new unimaginable confrontational heights. This bill is absolute poison to the system, exposes the slimy “inside the Beltway” machinations, and indicates to the American people the fundamental lack of fairness when a small group of people can control the lives of 300 million others, while showing contempt not only for the Constitution, but the people of this country, and the will and best interests of a majority of the electorate.

Power and a complete lack of reason has gripped the Democratic party, heralding their demise and the ultimate demise of ObamaCare. The people will not rest nor sit idly by to be lorded over by a bunch of power-hungry elitists so disconnected to the reality outside their bubble that some actually believe they know what is good for us better than we and are willing to destroy the best healthcare system in the world in the process. Take a look at the NHS. Great Britain has 60 million people. You are about to try an experiment with 300 million people with 1/6 of the U.S. economy. The law of unintended consequences is the real law under consideration of passing. It is also called Murphy’s law.

I’d seriously consider what your doing. The consequences of your actions will not ultimately lead to the enactment of ObamaCare – we will see to that in one way or another – and you will have fallen on your sword for an President and a leader who, in the end, look at you as a pawn they are all too willing to sacrifice. Their contempt for you should anger you, not motivate you to vote yes.

Things are changing, and the old rules are out. Those who make decisions based on the now antiquated habits and culture that is DC politics are in for a shocking surprise. The electorate is awake and watching. We know what’s going on and the rules have changed.

Tread very lightly.

Cross-posted.

Thus begins the anger of the states. Starting with Idaho and soon to be joined by 37 other states weary of the over-reach of federal power:

Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter is the first state chief executive to sign a measure requiring his attorney general to sue the federal government if Congress passes health care reform.

Legal experts say the measure, signed today, will likely be struck down. But Idaho’s new law reflects growing frustration with President Barack Obama’s health-care proposal.

If Federal courts strike down 38 state lawsuits, listen for the sound of Gabriel’s horn, as the overt evidence of federal contempt for the people and the states would be impossible to conceal. The feeling of déjà vu, burned into our cultural identity, so palpable even from a distant time, is summated by a single word – liberty.

The distant land of a sovereign parliament, transported to our shores centuries later, is now centralized in DC. The overlords have returned in a different guise; the mask slips, and they are revealed.

We recognize and reject the tyrants – as is our duty.

Cross-posted

Music to my ears:

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) gave a speech today at the Kill The Bill Rally in St. Paul in which she entreated Americans to refuse to comply with the Obamacare law on health care if the Democrats use the Slaughter Rule to “deem” the Senate bill passed without actually voting on it. Bachmann said that if such tactics are used, “then the bill is illegitimate, and we don’t have to lay down for this. It’s not difficult to figure out.”

Check out the video around 20:00 minutes in.

Bachmann’s rhetoric is the hottest to date, but her call for civil disobedience is only one of a large number of examples of conservative legislators seeking official rejection of Obamacare across the country. Here in Louisiana, for example, state sen. A.G. Crowe has authored S.B. 26, the Louisiana Health Care Freedom Act, which would seek to nullify Obamacare on a host of grounds as violating state and federal law and provides…

Dan Riehl takes a different view on her statements, but states himself that:

Personally, I can’t see myself bending to what would be, in effect, a non-law. The word to attempt a takeover of such a significant portion of the economy and American life through un-Constitutional means is tyranny, not law.

The comments in Dan’s post are heading in the same general direction I have noted on other sites. Powder keg is an understatement and passions are very high. If millions refused to comply through whatever means, does one arrest all of them?

More states are joining in. The real unanswered question is – in what form should this civil disobenience take?

Great article at the Tenth Amendment Center by Michael Boldin concerning Health Care nullification:

When a state ‘nullifies’ a federal law or regulation, it is passing legally-binding legislation that makes the federal act in question void and inoperative, or ‘non-effective,’ within the boundaries of that state; or, in other words, not a law as far as the state is concerned.

Current nullification efforts around the U.S. have states passing laws that effectively defy federal laws and regulations on firearms, marijuana, identification cards and more. In 2010, we expect to see similar legislation in response to Health Care, No Child Left Behind, Federalization of the Guard and more.

The most asked question is – once such a law is passed, what next?

Nullification laws imply, per the quote from James Madison in the referenced post that:

state governments not only have the right to resist unconstitutional federal acts, but that, in order to protect liberty, they are “duty bound to interpose” or stand between the federal government and the people of the state.

New Hampshire’s House Bill 1648 has some teeth and includes penalties for federal agents. Other legislation is even more severe.

One of my favorites: Myth Busting: the ‘Constitutional Expert’. A must read.

Here is a map of states that are passing, have passed, or killed health care nullification legislation.

Ever have one of those days when something just nags at you and suddenly pops into your frontal cortex with a big WHAM!

I just did. It looks like the Democrats are 10 votes shy in the House and heading in the wrong direction.

Dreier said that Republicans won’t know until later this week whether the Democrats will pursue a form of what has come to be known as the “Slaughter Solution” to avoid a direct vote on the Senate bill. But in the memo, Dreier’s office gives three “flavors” such a rule could take. It could simply self-enact the Senate bill and send it to the president to sign. It could deem the Senate bill passed upon passage of the reconciliation measure in the House. Or, in the most unprecedented option, it could deem the Senate bill passed in the House only when the Senate passes the House reconciliation measure.

The referenced Dreier is Rep. David Dreier (R., Calif.). As all of the “flavors” of the Slaughter Solution are blatantly unconstitutional it seems a forgone conclusion that if the House does not get the votes for normal passage they will attempt to deem it passed and the Supreme Court will strike down the entire law. The fig leaf is too obvious in this case. There will be no “I voted for the rule but voted against the bill”. Such an insult to our intelligence will not go unanswered. But what if, in the land of the crazies, Democrats actually believe the Slaughter Solution is not an answer to their legislative woes, but rather a doorway of escape.

In the fairy dust world of the Democrats, they seem to think some voters will believe the Supreme Court saved us from ObamaCare and just move on while other voters – namely their base – will pivot their anger away from the perpetrators of ultimate stupidity and blame the SCOTUS. If true, the contempt of the Democrats for the intelligence of their own base is palpable, or maybe they’re on to something, but that’s another topic.

The Democrats could not be more incorrect. The backlash alone could create a constitutional crisis in this country the likes of which most of us have not seen even if the SCOTUS strikes down the law on constitutional grounds. The severity of the destruction alone at the ballot box in November will be electoral equivalent of a 10 megaton bomb – they are literally going to destroy their own party.

As an exit strategy, it may appear to make sense if you live in with Alice in Wonderland. In the real world the Democrats should never have broached the Slaughter Solution to begin with. This is a open and explicit grab at power, even if the solution is being used as their escape hatch. I could be wrong on this one, but if I am not, the Democrats are truly about to self-destruct.

This is all the more reason that, if I were a Democrat, I would vote no and distance myself from Pelosi as fast as physically possible.

We have met the insane, and it is the Democrat party. I think its time for the Democrat caucus to throw Pelosi to the curve. While they’re at it, add Slaughter to the pile.

Last Wednesday, all 41 Senate’s Republicans signed a letter promising to hold Democrats to the letter of the Senate rules concerning reconciliation. These rules determine what items may be included in a package of alternations to the health bill Democrats intend to shove through Congress violating minority rights in an effort to take over 1/6 of the U.S. economy while simultaneously inserting themselves between you and your doctor.

Will it be enough to scare Democrats in the House? I have my doubts. I believe the GOP must shut down the entire Senate now on all legislation until ObamaCare is moved off the Senate and House calendar and both leaders promise to keep it off the calenders until the next Congress. However, I am hearing from inside sources the Senate GOP is skittish about this approach. Skittish about protecting our liberties? As one strategist put it who has created enough decision trees on the matter to wallpaper a house:

…the only viable strategy I can see is for the Republicans to begin the process of shutting down the U.S. Senate until the Democrats agree to MOVE ON — move off healthcare until the 112th Congress convenes.

I hope the Senate GOP knows what it is doing. I would not put it past VP Biden to overrule the parliamentarian and force this through. I have seen no evidence to the contrary that the entire Democratic party is in self-destruct mode and displaying outward signs of an obsessive-compulsive disorder bordering on seriously neurotic behavior when it comes to ObamaCare.

I was born in Canada. At the age of six my father moved his family to this country to escape socialism. I am 43 years old, have 25 stents (that’s right, I said 25) in three major heart arteries. I have had four heart attacks since the age of 38. If Obama, Pelsoi, Reid, et al. think I am scared of them, think again. I have defied death four times. In comparison, you are cockroaches to be stepped upon.

You hear that Obama. Come and get me. If your unconstitutional bill passes using the Slaughter Rule (which itself is blatantly unconstitutional) then it is my intention to increase my exemptions on my W4 form to ensure the tax revenue for your bill is denied you until next year and then I may consider paying – may. Am I entitled to the number of exemptions under penalty of perjury? You bet I am – I deem it so.

I hope millions will do the same. For then you will have neither the manpower nor the ability to enforce your unconstitutional law. If the Democrats think they are stubborn by shoving this down the throats of an unwilling public, we will show you the true meaning of stubborn.

I am not going to wait for the Supreme Court to rule ObamaCare unconstitutional. If they do, fine, if they do not, fine. In my mind this is the last proof one needs that nullification is the only option to stop the madness that is Washington DC – regardless of what the SCOTUS ruling is on ObamaCare. Too many other violations of our rights as defined in the Constitution require addressing. Only the states can fix this problem now and only if many of them stand together.

Washington, this time you have gone to far. Your tiny brains cannot begin to comprehend the storm that will hit you should you not kill ObamaCare now. If clear-headed Democrats still exist in the Congress, then I would highly recommend that enough of them get together and write a letter to Pelosi telling her exactly where she can put her bill and that they will not, under any circumstances, vote for either the Slaughter Rule or for ObamaCare. The well has been poisoned and the game is over. Recognize that or go down in history complicit in the destruction of your own party.

Will I pay the tax penalty for underpayment? No, I will not. I deem it true that the penalty is not required of me. I deem the President and any liberal who votes for the Slaughter rule or for ObamaCare unfit for office and a traitor to this country. As President it is your job to stand up and say enough when the constitution itself it being trampled upon. The fact you do not clearly demonstrates your contempt for this document. As you swore to uphold it, any failure to do so had better be met with your removal from office when we take over in 2010.

Resolved: The federal government derives its power from the people and state’s of this country. This has been true from the times of the Constitution itself.

Resolved: The federal government has overstepped its bounds and grabbed power to the point that it has corrupted the minds of many politicians with such a level of contempt and insanity that the only recourse is to fight tyranny. As it states in the Declaration of Independence, it is our duty to fight tyranny. Not our right – out duty. It can be done peacefully and will be done peacefully. Our leaders not longer hold power. Rather, it is power that holds them.

Enough is enough. Bring. It. On.

Not only will you lose your precious ObamaCare, you will kill progressive politics and set it back a century or more. You will have done more in one year for the rights of the people and the states than we could possibly have imagined and you will, in the process, remove yourself as an obstacle to liberty for a very, very long time.

Today is the day to not ask questions – it is the day for action. The Senate GOP must shut down the Senate, and halt the normal course of business in Washington on all matters of legislation for the foreseeable future until ObamaCare is dead or until the 2010 elections. No longer will fig leafs and wobbly excuses suffice. Do it and do it now. Use this time to expose those who would abscond with our liberty by ignoring the very document that made this country great. The campaign for 2010 starts today. The Democrats have lost the mandate, their jugular is exposed and now is the time to move in for the kill. Show yourselves to be field mice who scatter at the slightest noise and the results will not be to your liking. Show yourselves to be wolves and lions and we will consider you strong allies.

And would someone please send Pelosi, Obama, and Slaughter the School House Rock cartoon “I’m Just a Bill”? Perhaps this better fits their intellectual capacity to understand basic civics. Then we can move on to the alphabet.

Go ahead Obama, make my day. I want to be the poster child that brings you down. I want to chronicle for the world a new narrative of David vs. Goliath. I want this to be the beginning of an army of Davids, taking down your entire agenda and shattering it to pieces around you. You are a thief of liberty, a manipulator, and an egotistical maniac, keeping company with like-minded thieves. This is the beginning…of the end. I will not rest until the states have taken back their rightful place in the power structure and I want you to know that you will be responsible for heralding in a new age of liberty – much to your chagrin. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get back to clinging to my gun and my bible.

Oh, and by the way I am hearing from the AP you are open to some deals now on your bill. The only deal that is acceptable is for your bill to die a well-deserved death until the next Congress can take it up. We need health care reform in this country. We just don’t need your version of it. I’d like my doctor and I to make decisions concerning my health care thank you very much, and I would appreciate it if you would quit lying through your teeth about the benefits of your bill. You are past the point of looking like an disingenuous fool on this issue.

I hope they have the spine or their electoral gains will evaporate. The GOP must shut down the Senate starting early next week. Not just on healthcare, but everything. Grind it to a halt. This is from Senate insiders with knowledge of the battle to come in the next couple of weeks. As one strategist emailed me:

…the only viable strategy I can see is for the Republicans to begin the process of shutting down the U.S. Senate until the Democrats agree to MOVE ON — move off healthcare until the 112th Congress convenes.

The Democrats are ready to rip off the band-aid:

The advice went out to freshman and sophomore House Democrats, blunt talk to help them through a tricky vote on health reform.

“At this point, we have to just rip the band-aid off and have a vote — up or down; yes or no?” the memo said. “Things like reconciliation and what the rules committee does is INSIDE BASEBALL.”

As Pelosi is now looking for Senate assurances before the House healthcare vote, it is clear that not only the House but the Senate as well requires our immediate attention:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Friday said she will need “certain assurances” from Senate Democrats before the House votes on healthcare reform as early as next week.

Pelosi did not say what those assurances would be, but acknowledged that extracting them would be necessary to counter lingering concerns from within her caucus that the Senate will not be able to pass a reconciliation bill.

“With reconciliation, a simple majority, a constitutional majority, I think members are much more comfortable with the fact that this reconciliation will happen,” Pelosi said at her weekly press conference. “Nonetheless, there are certain assurances that they want, and that we will get from [Senate Democrats] before I ask them to take the vote.”

The Democrats have lost the Mandate from Heaven they once enjoyed and are attempting to literally enact a bill that will destroy our healthcare system, raise taxes, stifle economic growth during a deep recession, and nationalize over 1/6 of our economy. We should not take this lying down. Neither should GOP members of Congress. This was never about Stupak or abortion. Any government takeover of healthcare will result in the use of taxpayer dollars at some point in the future to federally fund abortions. A vote to improve ObamaCare with any Stupak-like language is a vote for ObamaCare. But the real reality is at this time it just does not matter. What matters now is derailing this bill.

The Senate GOP should not make us go through a repeat of the embarrassing display of spineless behavior displayed last year. Next week shut down the Senate. We are counting on you.

It’s time to go into campaign mode and draw this out until the Easter recess. No more need to think about parliamentarian tricks. Such worries have no impact whatsoever on the current situation. After the Senate GOP began to obstruct is exactly the time when they began to win over the electorate.

Nobody wants this bill, so I repeat the GOP must stand up and shut down the Senate. Regardless of what the legislation is, shut down the Senate. Don’t wait for healthcare abortion side bills and reconciliation to come barreling down on your heads and then obstruct. Start doing it now and don’t stop until Senator Reid promises to drop ObamaCare until the following Congress. There is no excuse for waiting and the American people are counting on the Senate GOP to stand up for us.

The Democrats lack a mandate on healthcare. This issue must dominate every nook and cranny of network and cable news, in every blog, and in every opinion piece and editorial. Take the healthcare dominance of the news cycle now and increase it exponentially. Make this a referendum on the Democratic party and its contempt for the governed.

Obstruct. Obstruct. Obstruct.

I find it interesting the Department of Homeland Security deems it necessary to warn of rightwing extremists, as they ignore the fact of leftwing extremism. As a point of fact, making its rounds within the United States is a little book titled The Coming Insurrection. From the product description on Amazon:

The Coming Insurrection is an eloquent call to arms arising from the recent waves of social contestation in France and Europe. Written by the anonymous Invisible Committee in the vein of Guy Debord—and with comparable elegance—it has been proclaimed a manual for terrorism by the French government (who recently arrested its alleged authors). One of its members more adequately described the group as “the name given to a collective voice bent on denouncing contemporary cynicism and reality.” The Coming Insurrection is a strategic prescription for an emergent war-machine to “spread anarchy and live communism.”

Written in the wake of the riots that erupted throughout the Paris suburbs in the fall of 2005 and presaging more recent riots and general strikes in France and Greece, The Coming Insurrection articulates a rejection of the official Left and its reformist agenda, aligning itself instead with the younger, wilder forms of resistance that have emerged in Europe around recent struggles against immigration control and the “war on terror.”

Hot-wired to the movement of ’77 in Italy, its preferred historical reference point, The Coming Insurrection formulates an ethics that takes as its starting point theft, sabotage, the refusal to work, and the elaboration of collective, self-organized forms-of-life. It is a philosophical statement that addresses the growing number of those—in France, in the United States, and elsewhere—who refuse the idea that theory, politics, and life are separate realms.

I eagerly await the Department of Homeland Security’s admonitions of the dangers of leftwing extremism.

Our own Declaration of Independence – a bit more eloquent – was used as a preamble to describe the abuse of power by Great Britain and subsequent call-to-action for independence. The beginning is a generalization of the human condition under any form of tyrannical government:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government.

Civilization is a thin veneer that separates us from the hardships of raw survival. While western civilization has provided us with the opportunity to enjoy the more heady pursuit of philosophy, our love affair with the mind and its capacity for abstract thought often precludes us from noting the ephemeral nature of civilized discourse. Such is the blessing and the curse of living in a society such as ours. In our ignorance of the transient nature of civilization we are freed from a constant anxiety visiting itself upon us, blinding us to a harsher reality that peeks from just around the corner – that mass violence can, and has, occurred in America.

The start of the Revolutionary War did not come about through “light and transient causes”, but through “a long train of abuses and usurpations”. Historians estimate that approximately 40-45% of the colonists actively supported the rebellion against England, 15-20% of the population of the thirteen colonies remained loyal to the British Crown, and the remaining 35-45% attempted to remain neutral. While hard to gauge how many males would support violence as a means to secure liberty from oppression, I believe the number not to be small. How many of these would consider it their duty “to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security”? I am of the impression, given my arguments below, that any such action taken by the citizenry of this country would quickly escalate, swelling the numbers of those opposed to a power grab by a centralized government and willing to take up arms to settle their grievances. If one believes I am a fear-monger, think of this: America has enjoyed one of the longest stretches of peace within our borders than almost every other nation on this planet. There were those who thought something like 9/11 could not happen here. They were wrong. Given the current supercharged political climate and the blistering pace at which standard pillars of American society are falling, I do not belong to the “it can’t happen here” crowd. I do, however, hope it does not happen here. Unfortunately, the signs I see do not point me in a direction of comfort concerning this matter. Many whom I have spoken to share the same sentiments. Unless the current administration changes course and desists in usurping the personal rights held dearly since the birth of this nation, it is my belief that a great violence shall overtake our nation.

In the struggle for the life and death of liberty there exists no greater potential for instigating revolution than trampling on the will of the majority in an attempt to steal away rights endeared to our hearts. As America watches treasured traditions and freedoms quickly vanish from the landscape, it is my fear that battles fought with words will morph into something far more nefarious.

White House spy programs, carbon taxes, the plunging value of the dollar, a stimulus package that is not stimulating, exploding deficits that saddle us and future generations with huge tax burdens, government takeovers of the private sector, and a slew of other offenses are beginning to build up a certain sort of pressure. Should health care be rammed down our throats, whether along with cap-and-trade or not, the result could very well be explosive.

Any society, particularly ours, is nothing more than a social contract among citizens to follow a basic set of precepts. As our individual survival is paramount, these group covenants typically address issues related to our own physical and mental well-being, allowing the parties to enjoy a certain level of freedom and to thrive. Don’t murder me; don’t steal from me; don’t cheat me; protect me. In our own peculiar American civilization, many of these intersect with the ideas of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These are the most basic tenets of our civilization, and in reality apply to most Western civilizations. They lead to laws against killing and stealing; laws of fair-business practices, and the recruiting and training of a military. With these basic needs protected, remaining resources concentrate on agriculture, infrastructure, education, and a host of other higher functions: philosophy, mathematics, science, engineering, and the arts, to name a few.

In the advanced stages of civilization it becomes easy to forget just how close we are to savagery. If you take away the contract – or a centralized power continuously and unabatedly attacks our liberties, usurps our power, and abuses us – then like a cornered wild animal we will turn on those who commit such grievous insults, grab back our liberty and take back our power. At first, the attempts will be benign, including legal actions such as 10th Amendment assertion of states rights. However, should the courts rule for the centralized power, allowing the assaults on liberty to continue, then rebellion in some form or another may take place. Will it be the pursuit of legal resolution , civil disobedience, secession, domestic terrorism, or outright rebellion? While hard to quantify, qualitatively the list appears to progress from most likely to least likely, with the possibility of overlap. However, domestic terrorism is a real threat – from both leftwing and rightwing extremists. As the Irish Republican Army once told the Prime Minister of England – we only have to be right once, you have to get it right every time. Such actions would forever change the landscape of our country and I fear the current administration is on track to create such an explosive atmosphere. My fear is that any armed resistance from one side will quickly draw the opposing side into conflict. Whether the sphere of influence for either side widens, drawing in those more moderate to the conflict, remains to be seen. We have already witnessed leftwing SEIU members commit acts of violence against peaceful town hall protesters. This after what almost appears like a cloaked tacit approval to “hit them back twice as hard”. The source of the last statement – the President of the United States. Political language is often parsed for hidden meanings, which is why politicians must be very careful how they use the powerful weapon of speech. For some, it will be difficult to discern whether the leader of the free world, through either naivety or actual support, is recommending violent resistance through a form of passive aggressive use of speech. Combined with flagging spy programs, pre-screened audiences at Presidential town halls, plants at Congressional town halls masquerading as doctors to lend credibility to a health care reform plan which, at its very core, cannot be defended, the signs are troubling. Naturally, the natives are getting restless. Years of not trusting government, combined with the current political atmosphere, the level of engagement by those opposed to the path charted by a very liberal administration, buyer’s remorse by many who voted for “hope and change” and are getting more than they bargained for, and some Congressional members stating they will vote for health care reform in the face of majority disapproval by constituents, is setting the stage for a showdown. What shape the conflict will take remains to be seen.

The civic body can only take so much insult before rebellion. No other species on the planet possesses the savagery and cunning of homo sapiens; there is a reason we rule the earth. Our higher functioning brain evolved for survival – civilization is a side effect, and is nothing more than another tool for survival. Take away this tool, and others quickly take its place. We may cherish our moral and ethical framework, but events in history prove over and over again that this framework has no power over our more basal instincts when the facade is ripped away – regardless of how we wish it to be. This is the human condition. Everyone will throw out the rules at one point or another if pushed over the brink.

In such a situation, instinct is now the driving force to reacquire principles and rights, and the sphere of influence for social contracts in such situations shrinks drastically. It is a blessing and a curse of our own civilization that we are unable – and unwilling – to see just how fragile all of this is. We spend so much time caressing our ideologies and cooing over how clever we are that we miss the point. To survive we must be pragmatic before we are ideologues, or at least a better balance must be struck between the two. There is so much more we need to do to ensure our own survival and the survival of our civilization, and it must start with those who, unbeknown to them, are stirring the pot by absconding with our liberties. That they do this with ideology is the real danger. Blinded by this very ideology, they are myopic to the consequences of their actions. There is nothing conducive whatsoever in any of the proposals coming from the liberal establishment of this country. An insurmountable intellectual gap separates reality from anything resembling utilitarian ideas. The reactionary forces will themselves be ideological, for it is principles and ideas which drive us towards and away from civilized behavior – they are our only point of reference. America’s leadership is setting America up for full-scale disillusionment. We sit on a social powder keg.

Take for example the complete lack of pragmatism regarding cap-and-trade. First, if one believes global warming is man-made, the current cap-and-trade bill only moves around the chess pieces as it were. In the process, a transfer of wealth from energy using states to states using less energy through the purchase of carbon credits on a market will have zero affect on the global climate as greenhouse gasses will not be reduced. Even if greenhouse emission reductions are mandated, as they are, if China and India do not participate, America is put at an economic disadvantage. Where is the pragmatism here?

Recently the Australian Senate rejected cap-and-trade due to a seismic shift in the public’s opinion concerning man-made global warming. It now appears that evidence is pointing to other sources of global warming and not industry as the cause. Yet we still suffer from global warming hysteria in this country. Read A Tax On Thin Air. Using what now amounts to shaky science, we are about to submit our economy and future generations to an oppressive centralized regime for reasons that appear more groundless by the day, especially in light of the explosion of the climategate scandal. Try to entertain an opposing opinion to the anthropocentric global warming meme and you are likely to be compared to a holocaust denier. It is this complete lack of imagination on the part of liberals that is so infuriating. And this is not the only subject matter of which liberals are guilty of such transgressions against simple logic. Their tendency towards the illogic on a host of issues and the subequent sacrifice of our liberties in pursuit of a solution that places more control into the hands of a centralized behemoth defies common sense. Yet here we are.

Reihan Salam writes in Pelosi Is Wrong (emphasis mine):

If Obamacare eventually passes in some form, I’ll make you a guarantee: these ferocious protests will keep getting bigger and louder.

To get a glimpse of America’s future, consider France. The French have the health-care system that Americans desperately want [polls strongly repudiate this last point - I am not quite sure what the Mr. Salam was thinking when he wrote this rather obvious misrepresentation]: it combines private providers and patient choice with a large and generous public insurance system, one that keeps out-of-pocket costs extremely low for working families. The French system is also dramatically cheaper than our own. But whenever there’s a move to tweak the system in some way say, to gently nudge patients to get the approval of a general practitioner before seeing a specialist the French go absolutely mad with rage. Doctors go on strike, massive street protests ensue, the riot police come out: it’s a crazy scene.

And it makes perfect sense: as more life and death decisions are placed in the hands of democratically elected legislators, politics become more than an occasional nuisance. When your wages are stagnant or your health insurance premiums are zooming skyward, you don’t blame your boss or bad luck; instead, you blame the knuckleheads running, or rather ruining, the country. You come to feel as though you can’t just wait until the next election: You need to make your voice heard now even if that means taking to the streets or throwing a punch. We can call the protesters un-American. Yet America has gone through long periods of roiling unrest before and it can happen again.

Some may not wait for the next election. I plead with our leaders to tread lightly or I fear they may send us down a path none of us really wants. Whether from the left, right, or middle, things could get ugly out there.

Let us hope it is ideas and not violence that resolves our differences. In my humble opinion, the Obama administration is pushing the envelope and the buttons that could very well lead to the violence I and most of you would wish to avoid. The time for leadership is now. Obama, the time to listen to the American people is now.

The above essay, written August of last year, started me on a quest to understand if there is a constitutional non-violent way to take back our liberties from an oppressive centralized regime.  When I came across the idea and constitutionality of nullification and the fact it has been used successfully in the past in a non-violent way as pointed out by Judge Napolitano, it became clear to me nullification is the path forward to regaining our liberty without resorting to violence.  Failing that, our only option is to live under tyranny or the balkanization of the United States, with daily reports of the tactics of assymetrical warfare we only read or hear about on the nightly news; those things that happen only in other countries.  I reject this as necessary IF we are willing to perform the tasks necessary to take our country back peacefully.  If we do nothing, I fear the extremists from either end of the poltical sprectum will begin their campaigns of terror.  Given recent events in the news, some would say it has already started.

Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, “All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.”

This is more true today than ever before.

Cross-posted at Wolves of Liberty

I am 43 years old with 25 stents in three major heart arteries; the American healthcare system saved my life. My stents are drug-eluting, the same state of art stents recently received by Bill Clinton. In Canada, my birth country, many are not so lucky. There, rationing, lack of innovation, and a shortage of expertise are real problems and no perversion of the truth changes this reality.

In the UK, my wife’s birth country, the National Health Service denied the life-saving breast cancer drug Herceptin to women on the basis of cost. It required a lawsuit to settle the matter. I often wonder how many women unnecessarily died in the interim. NICE decides which drugs and treatments are available on the NHS in England and Wales. Google the the two words “NICE denies” without the quotes. Clearly, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is anything but nice.

To put this in perspective, the population of Canada and the UK is 30 million and 60 million respectively. Obama, Pelosi, Reid and company are attempting to overhaul a system to address the needs of over 300 million people. Such an act is patently absurd and the approach is anything but sane.

Great deeds are not accomplished by great men and women; great deeds are done by normal people facing extraordinary circumstances. It is through actions during troubling and trying times taken by those of us who are ordinary that mold and shape what will become a great and historical figure. Right now, in the Senate and the House, a single Democrat or group of Democrats have the chance to become great in the eyes of this nation. From broken promises of transparency to outright lies, the Obama administration and the leaders of the Democratic Party in the House and Senate have consistently taken this country down a path it does not want to travel.

Who among you is willing to remove the “for sale” sign on your vote? Who among you will stand up to the strong arm of Chicago style politics and stare down the administration with an icy glare? Show us that greatness is still a quality that means something. Step up and protect us from this madness.

The profligate vote buying in the Congress has gotten out of hand. The special treatment granted and federal lucre handed out to the states of a few balking members of Congress has been disgraceful. This is not compromise, it is bribery pure and simple.

As neither party in the Congress truly understands what is in the health care bill, the law of unintended consequences demands a deliberative and transparent process. The purpose behind rushing through this bill is political and completely disconnected from serving the best interests of this country and the people who live in it.

It is time for a new style of politics, not one of obfuscation, hidden backroom deals, and broken promises. Yet lately it seems many politicians in the Democratic party are pitting themselves against the will of the American people – liberals, independents, and conservatives. America needs someone of great quality to stop this madness—someone who understands the responsibility derived from freedom and position.

It is said, “The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people.” Many in the Democratic party appear deaf in this regard. We the American people implore rational Democrats in the Congress to stand on principle, to separate themselves from the pack, be the guardian of freedom and put an an end to the madness of what is obviously not healthcare reform, but rather a blatant attempt to grab and consolidate power. This so-called healthcare reform or health insurance reform or whatever it is called today, does nothing to address the real issues facing the American people, and the process itself will destroy the best healthcare system in the world.

We urge you to vote against this bill; stand up to leaders willing to abandon you to the political wilderness in an obsessive-compulsive neurotic pursuit of an ideological creed. Dire, unnecessary, and unforeseen consequences face this country if healthcare reform is enacted in any of its current instantiations. We all agree healthcare reform is necessary, however there is no doubt in the minds of a majority in this country the current approach is the wrong approach. The wholesale change of over 1/6 of our economy calls for a deliberative process, not the mad dash for the finish line advocated by leaders of your party whose palpable contempt for you and the majority of the electorate is both disgraceful to the legislative process and tyrannical in nature. We urge you to lift the veil of deafness and hear our voices.

The following quote below is from Dr. Hunter’s blog at Social Security Institute. If Republicans refuse to vote strategically as indicated in the referenced post, say goodbye to electoral gains for the GOP in November. A vote for any Stupak language effectively ushers in the end of any budding alliance between Tea Parties and the GOP. In short, lean and lean hard on the GOP to think carefully about any vote that expedites the passage of ObamaCare. Any vote for strengthening anti-abortion language in the healthcare bill is a vote for ObamaCare. To the point, anything that assists in the passage of ObamaCare is a tacit approval of ObamaCare. Excuses will not extricate the GOP from a blatant strategical failure and the subsequent loss of any goodwill by the electorate. There are many of us who will not rest until the public is completely aware of any betrayal of the Republican party concerning this matter. Obstruction and strategic voting is the only way to ensure the GOP maintains electoral gains.

As for Stupak and those who claim to strongly resist federal funding of abortions, the game is up. Insult our intelligence and look for another job. It does not take a PhD to understand that once government controls healthcare, federal funding of abortions is a soon-to-be foregone conclusion. Just a little legislative fix down the road and say hello to your tax dollars being used to kill the unborn. Stupak knows it, the GOP knows it, and the pro-life groups know it. To use this occasion to fund-raise knowing full well protection for the unborn is only temporary is pathetic. I hope the Tea Parties and other concerned citizens will inform pro-life groups that if they support ObamaCare in any way, they are supporting the use of federal funds for abortion regardless of what the language says or will soon say regarding this issue. They will pay and pay dearly for their worship of the dollar over the lives of the innocent.

If the tactic is to hang one’s hat on the Senate reconciliation process, Stupak knows better unless he is a complete idiot. Once the House bill is passed, ObamaCare is law, and the Democrats will pivot to jobs and off the issue in an effort to save their collective electoral butts. In either case neither Stupak nor any who claim to be in his camp would deserve re-election. A Representative who is disingenuous or a half with is no choice at all – unless the choice is to shove them out the door.

The following two posts, dated last year, still apply to the degree that strategic voting is discussed. It is shameful we must include the likes of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as opponents to the public will but also as opponents to the protection of the unborn. This organizations’ only issue with ObamaCare is federally funded abortion. Fix that in the legislative language and they are quite happy with ObamaCare, even with the knowledge that federally funded abortion is all but guaranteed if ObamaCare passes. Hypocrisy, political expediency, and just plain stupidity are on the lunch menu today. We have met the enemy and he is us. The time of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory is nigh.

Although the following posts are dated, much of the information is pertinent to the current situation:
Killing ObamaCare In The Senate – The Need For Strategic Voting and The Endgame Strategy To Kill ObamaCare – Lessons From The House Bill

From Dr. Larry Hunter:

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops already has instant messaged their willingness not just to acquiesce in such shenanigans but also to actually mobilize the faithful to oppose any point of order in the Senate in order to lubricate passage of ObamaCare through the Senate:

The Roman Catholic bishops signaled Thursday that if agreement is reached with House leaders on anti-abortion language, the church would work to get the votes needed to protect the provisions in the Senate — and thereby advance the shared goal with Democrats of health care reform.

Now is the time for opponents of ObamaCare to focus, focus, focus on preventing Hoyer from maneuvering them into this corner. The only way for opponents of a government takeover of healthcare to prevent getting mouse trapped by a Separate Stupak is to recognize that the Stupak language and all Stupak lookalikes are a snare and a delusion.

NO legislative language will prevent ObamaCare once enacted into law from transforming very quickly into a federal abortion mill that provides abortion on demand. Given the obscure language inserted into the Senate Bill by Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), which is being totally ignored by anti-abortion groups, even the strongest Stupak-like language will fail to stem a tide of transformative interpretations of bureaucrats and judges, which are sure to produce federally subsidized abortion on demand.

The Mikulski language gives plenary authority to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to require every public and private healthcare plan in the nation to include “preventative services,” which is defined to include “abortion care.” Even without the Mikulski provision, both the House and Senate bills are shot through with provisions that will lead inevitably to federally subsidized abortion on demand.

There is simply no way cleanse the final bill of this authority without starting over. Hence, what anti-abortion Members of Congress and the pro-life groups must understand is that the only route to protecting the unborn from the effects of this bill is to defeat the entire bill. As long as Members of Congress and pro-life groups labor under the delusion that they can make ObamaCare safe for the unborn, they will actually serve as the President’s useful idiots and facilitate federal abortion on demand.

The political problem is there are many libertarians and moderate Republicans who oppose anti-abortion laws. This fact unnerves many Republican Members of Congress who therefore attempt to straddle the abortion issue so as not to offend moderate Republicans who agree with their libertarian constituents on abortion.

Stupak is a perfect straddle, which has the unfortunate by product of removing the last remaining block preventing enactment of ObamaCare into law. Unless Republicans refuse to take a pass on Stupak-like language, i.e., vote present on any Stupak vehicle however it is presented to them in the parliamentary chaos likely to ensue once the legislative bum’s rush begins—they will actually set the stage for enactment of ObamaCare into law.

The reluctance of Republican Members of Congress to help defeat Stupak language on strategic grounds is a huge political miscalculation. This miscalculation results from failing to comprehend the coincidence of interests on ObamaCare among libertarians/moderate Republicans and anti-abortion conservatives. Because of this blind spot, Senate Republicans are poised to make the same fatal mistake they made the first time around when they failed to comprehend the necessity of strategic voting on abortion language.

Read the whole thing.

The following is from the Social Security Institute. If Republicans refuse to vote strategically as indicated in the referenced post, say goodbye to electoral gains for the GOP in November. Those wishing to stem the tide of third party challenges and the resulting repercussions to both local and state elections, as well as ushering in the end of any budding alliance between Tea Parties and the GOP better pay close attention. In short, lean and lean hard on the GOP to think carefully about any vote that expedites the passage of ObamaCare. Any vote for strengthening anti-abortion language in the healthcare bill is a vote FOR ObamaCare. To the point, anything that assists in the passage of ObamaCare is a tacit approval of ObamaCare. Excuses will not extricate the GOP from a blatant strategical failure and the subsequent loss of any goodwill by the electorate. There are many of us who will not rest until the public is completely aware of any betrayal by the GOP. Obstruction and strategic voting is the only way to ensure the GOP maintains electoral gains. From Dr. Hunter:

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has telegraphed the strategy House Democrats are considering to shove ObamaCare down the throat of a resistant American public:

• Both Houses pass separate legislation that can be portrayed as sufficiently “anti-abortion” to satisfy Congressman Bart Stupak and his supporters; which will
• Mousetrap Republican Members of Congress and pro-life groups into supporting the bills; which in turn will make it possible to
• Pass the Senate Bill in the House; with the promise that
• The Senate Bill’s abortion language will be struck from the bill in a reconciliation package and justified as reducing federal outlays.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops already has instant messaged their willingness not just to acquiesce in such shenanigans but also to actually mobilize the faithful to oppose any point of order in the Senate in order to lubricate passage of ObamaCare through the Senate:

The Roman Catholic bishops signaled Thursday that if agreement is reached with House leaders on anti-abortion language, the church would work to get the votes needed to protect the provisions in the Senate — and thereby advance the shared goal with Democrats of health care reform.

Now is the time for opponents of ObamaCare to focus, focus, focus on preventing Hoyer from maneuvering them into this corner. The only way for opponents of a government takeover of healthcare to prevent getting mouse trapped by a Separate Stupak is to recognize that the Stupak language and all Stupak lookalikes are a snare and a delusion.

NO legislative language will prevent ObamaCare once enacted into law from transforming very quickly into a federal abortion mill that provides abortion on demand. Given the obscure language inserted into the Senate Bill by Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), which is being totally ignored by anti-abortion groups, even the strongest Stupak-like language will fail to stem a tide of transformative interpretations of bureaucrats and judges, which are sure to produce federally subsidized abortion on demand.

The Mikulski language gives plenary authority to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to require every public and private healthcare plan in the nation to include “preventative services,” which is defined to include “abortion care.” Even without the Mikulski provision, both the House and Senate bills are shot through with provisions that will lead inevitably to federally subsidized abortion on demand.

There is simply no way cleanse the final bill of this authority without starting over. Hence, what anti-abortion Members of Congress and the pro-life groups must understand is that the only route to protecting the unborn from the effects of this bill is to defeat the entire bill. As long as Members of Congress and pro-life groups labor under the delusion that they can make ObamaCare safe for the unborn, they will actually serve as the President’s useful idiots and facilitate federal abortion on demand.

The political problem is there are many libertarians and moderate Republicans who oppose anti-abortion laws. This fact unnerves many Republican Members of Congress who therefore attempt to straddle the abortion issue so as not to offend moderate Republicans who agree with their libertarian constituents on abortion.

Stupak is a perfect straddle, which has the unfortunate by product of removing the last remaining block preventing enactment of ObamaCare into law. Unless Republicans refuse to take a pass on Stupak-like language, i.e., vote present on any Stupak vehicle however it is presented to them in the parliamentary chaos likely to ensue once the legislative bum’s rush begins—they will actually set the stage for enactment of ObamaCare into law.

The reluctance of Republican Members of Congress to help defeat Stupak language on strategic grounds is a huge political miscalculation. This miscalculation results from failing to comprehend the coincidence of interests on ObamaCare among libertarians/moderate Republicans and anti-abortion conservatives. Because of this blind spot, Senate Republicans are poised to make the same fatal mistake they made the first time around when they failed to comprehend the necessity of strategic voting on abortion language.

The vast majority of libertarians and moderate Republicans who oppose anti-abortion laws also oppose laws that force taxpayers to subsidize abortion. Consequently, where it comes to ObamaCare, there is a coincidence of interests between the so-called “social conservatives” who want to outlaw abortion and libertarians and moderate Republicans who want to outlaw forcing those who oppose abortion as a matter of conscience from being forced to subsidize it.

Given the fact that there is no practical way to prevent forced taxpayer subsidization of abortion once the government takeover of healthcare is a reality, the only way to satisfy the interests of all three groups is to prevent a government takeover of healthcare in the first place. And, the only way to prevent President Obama and congressional Democrats from succeeding with a government takeover of healthcare is to prevent a cosmetic “fix” to the abortion problem, i.e., Stupak, which would give sufficient political cover to Stupak Democrats to vote for the Senate Bill. As long as Republican Members of Congress fail to grasp this fact, they will be unable to oppose or at least walk away from any cosmetic “fix” to the abortion problem such as a Separate Stupak would offer. In other words, by voting for a Separate Stupak, Republicans would actually grease the skids for ObamaCare to be enacted into law.

Therefore, the common ground among social conservatives, libertarians and moderate Republicans is to oppose any legislative provision, including a Separate Stupak, that requires or ultimately leads to government subsidization of abortion.

It may sound harsh but the truth often is harsh: If ObamaCare passes into law it will be the fault of Republicans and the pro-life groups who have the power, without even breaking a sweat, to stop this monstrosity in its tracks.

No Separate Stupak, Stupid.

The time to step up is now. We fight not just for our country, but for our families and for those not yet born. The information below is voluminous and it is merely a primer. Taking back our country requires understanding the power of the states in contrast to federal power. It requires we grasp the historical context of how the federal government absconded with powers the founders clearly never intended it to possess. The answer is clear – a lack of understanding and apathy. If you find you are too busy to take the time to understand your role in taking back this country and ending the fiscal insanity, then your contribution to this countries demise is a forgone conclusion. If you say, “I am too busy with my job” or “I have children”, know that if you fail to act quickly that job may not exist in a year. Know that you will watch in dismay your children and their children’s future abandoned to those whose very existence is to take from you and continue taking from you, leaving nothing but small remnants of a once great spirit of independence, until that too is gone. If you are prone to apathy, leave this page. If you are ready to begin the fight towards your freedom, continue reading.

Michelle Malkin makes an excellent implicit case for why nullification is the only way back to federalism and the Tenth Amendment Center provides extensive education and commentary on the subject itself. Let us start with Michelle as she questions the ability of Republicans to lead us out of the sinkhole:

Now, I want you to read every word of what Andy McCarthy has to say about the GOP leadership’s abandonment of Jim Bunning — and what it says about the lack of Republican fortitude in the war against the permanent, ever-growing Nanny State.

Andy speaks the truth. Hard truths. And fiscal conservatives/Tea Party activists need to shout them from the rooftops. I’ve invoked Phyllis Schlafly many times over the past year in urging the GOP to provide true choices instead of echoes. Actions speak louder than words. So, alas, does feckless inaction.

Maine’s Susan Collins took to the Senate floor to assure Americans that Bunning’s radical views about Congress’s not spending yet more billions it doesn’t have “do not represent a majority of the Republican caucus.” And sure enough, they didn’t. Once Bunning backed down, the measure passed by a whopping 78-19.

Think about that. We are talking about $10 billion in a year when Leviathan is slated to spend a total of $3.6 trillion. The majority of Senate Republicans joined Democrats in concluding that the allocation of every one of these 3.6 thousand billion dollars is so vital that not one of them could be sacrificed in favor of unemployment insurance. So another $10 billion just gets heaped on the already unfathomable trillion-dollar deficits stacking year upon year.

Read the entire post. The realization that salvation exits with neither political party is an a priori and tacit argument the federal government is responsible for creating this mess and cannot, by design, be the architect of solutions to restoring fiscal responsibility and individual freedom. This is not to say principled politicians do not exist in Washington – I can think of a few – but most politicians are just that…politicians. Self-interested, disconnected, contemptuous elitists. For those in the Tea Party, it is a calculated risk that your candidate somehow is cut from a different cloth. In reality, you will fare no better than the average citizen. As I write these words, salivating, power hungry impostors wait to prey on the wishes and dreams of Tea Party members everywhere. I am your candidate, they will say. Even those with honest designs are not immune to the corrupting influence of Washington, for the system is fundamentally broken and it is impossible to remove a sitting U.S. Congress member. It is not, however, impossible to recall a governor or a state legislator and it is here that Tea Parties, nullification, and real power collide in the perfect storm of the restoration of constitutional governance.

So what is one to do? The answer – nullification. No, nullification is not secession and no, nullification is not a violent act. The Tenth Amendment Center describes nullification as follows:

First, nullification has, in fact, been somewhat successful in the past and more recently as well. Second, as President Obama loves to say, “Let me be clear”: “Official” nullification has ALREADY HAPPENED.

Before I explain why “official” nullification has already happened, let me briefly give some examples of what nullification is NOT

Nullification is not secession or insurrection, but neither is it unconditional or unlimited submission. Nullification is not something that requires any decision, statement or action from any branch of the federal government. Nullification is not the result of obtaining a favorable court ruling. Nullification is not the petitioning of the federal government to start doing or to stop doing anything. Nullification doesn’t depend on any federal law being repealed. Nullification does not require permission from any person or institution outside of one’s own state.

So just what IS “official” nullification you might be asking?

Nullification begins with a decision made in your state legislature to resist a federal law deemed to be unconstitutional. It usually involves a bill, which is passed by both houses and is signed by your governor. In some cases, it might be approved by the voters of your state directly, in a referendum. It may change your state’s statutory law or it might even amend your state constitution. It is a refusal on the part of your state government to cooperate with, or enforce any federal law it deems to be unconstitutional.

Nullification carries with it the force of state law. It cannot be legally repealed by Congress without amending the US Constitution. It cannot be lawfully abolished by an executive order. It cannot be overruled by the Supreme Court. It is the people of a state asserting their constitutional rights by acting as a political society in their highest sovereign capacity. It is the moderate, middle way that wisely avoids harsh remedies like secession on the one hand and slavish, unlimited submission on the other. It is the constitutional remedy for unconstitutional federal laws.

With the exception of a Constitutional amendment, the federal government cannot oppose (except perhaps rhetorically), a state’s decision to nullify an unconstitutional federal law without resorting to extra-legal measures. But such measures would more than likely backfire, since most Americans still affirm that might does not make right.

There is no question as to whether or when “official” nullification will happen: It has ALREADY HAPPENED. In fact, not only has it happened recently, it has been a success! Perhaps this is why the federal government hopes you will never hear about it. According to the Tenth Amendment Center:

25 states over the past 2 years have passed resolutions and binding laws denouncing and refusing to implement the Bush-era law [REAL ID Act]..While the law is still on the books in D.C., its implementation has been “delayed” numerous times in response to this massive state resistance, and in practice, is virtually null and void…

…There are a whole host of peaceful actions that a state government can adopt if that day comes or appears to be just over the horizon. These measures range from county sheriffs requiring that federal agents receive written permission from the sheriff before acting in their county, to setting up a Federal Tax escrow account, which could potentially de-fund unconstitutional federal activities by requiring that all federal taxes come first to the state’s Department of Revenue.

Besides state interposition, the other thing Washington would have to consider, is whether enough of their agents would actually obey orders to punish people for exercising their constitutional rights. There is a significant chance that enough of them would either publicly or privately decide in advance to ignore such orders. As the probability of this increases, it becomes more likely that Washington will not risk overplaying its hand. The reality is that Washington just doesn’t have the manpower to enforce all their unconstitutional laws if enough states choose to defy them.

More on federal tax escrow accounts and the willingness of federal agents to execute orders deemed unconstitutional below.

For more information about nullification I strongly encourage the reader to visit the Tenth Amendment Center (TAC) and type in nullification in the search bar. Lots of very interesting reading. Additional information can be found at the Social Security Institute.

The TAC also writes Our Goal is Federalism, not “States’ Rights”:

Foundationally, states don’t have rights as a government, states have power. Power at the federal and state level is derived from the consent of the governed, the people, who do have rights our governing agreements were designed to protect. Inspired by careful historical study, years of debate, considerations, and the declarations of colonies, towns, and associations (prior to July of 1776) the fundamental rights of the people were articulated in the preamble of our Declaration of Independence…

…Let every member of every organization supporting state sovereignty and federalism cleanse the language so our opponents cannot easily attack the wrong target. Should they target federalism and the original meaning we can defeat them with truth. Freedom is not outdated, federal government is an agreement among the people of different sovereign states, the 10th Amendment has never been repealed, and virtue is still necessary for securing our posterity’s future rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

So if I were to ask you to identify the final arbiter of the U.S. Constitution, the correct answer is not the U.S. Supreme Court, but rather the states themselves. Allowing the U.S. Supreme Court – part of the judicial branch of the federal government – to rule on federal powers presents a problem. Dr. Larry Hunter informs us (emphasis mine):

The resolution explicitly disclaimed that the national government was the judge of its own powers. Allowing it to judge its own powers would be akin to permitting an agent, rather than the principal, to determine the breadth of the agent’s authority. The law of agency at its most basic level recognizes that an agent can act as such only subject to the consent and control of the principal to whom the agent owes a fiduciary duty (see Restatement [Second] of Agency, sec. 1). Just as A, B, and C, the partners in a business firm, decide what authority to give their agent Z, so the parties to the Constitution decide the powers of the national government. In light of such logic, Jefferson proclaimed in the resolution that “each party [to the federal compact] has an equal right to judge for itself, as well of infractions as of the mode and measures of redress” (Virginia Commission 1964, 144). For Jefferson, the people acting through their states — the authentic organs of government — were the final arbiters of constitutional interpretation. Jefferson feared that giving the federal government the exclusive power to interpret the Constitution through the Supreme Court would lead to arbitrary government. As John Taylor later wrote in his Construction Construed and Constitutions Vindicated, “a jurisdiction, limited by its own will, is an unlimited jurisdiction” ([1820] 1970, 131). With the states stripped of the power to construe the Constitution, the enforcement of constitutional limitations on the central government would be chimerical. Thus, it is not surprising that none of the convictions under the Sedition Act were appealed to the Federalist-dominated Supreme Court. The Republicans did not want to give the Court an opportunity to set a dangerous precedent.

If we remain sheep, apathy lays the foundation for us and our descendants of a people enslaved to the whims of a capricious few. Nullification begins with the state legislative and executive bodies, when the previously lorded over sheep transform into self-reliant wolves. It requires of us and our state leaders great strength of character and leadership. If they are not up to the task – we can replace them. At times, we must be prepared to stand with them shoulder-to-shoulder – literally and figuratively. The goal of any nullification movement is critical mass. Using ObamaCare as an example – assuming it passes, if enough states nullify the law and governors coordinate the effort with the will and strength of the people at their backs, ObamaCare will collapse. Federal repercussions will be swift:

When I talk to people about these principles – most agree, like Martin Luther King Jr. said in his famous “Letter from Birmingham jail,” that there is a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. But, they’ll often ask, even if states pass laws to nullify unjust and unconstitutional federal acts, the feds will still continue to tax us and punish our states financially for not complying – so what can we REALLY do?

One idea, which will take a great deal of courage on the part of the People and their state governments, is to establish what’s being called a “Federal Tax Escrow Account” or a “State Authority and Federal Tax Funds Act.”

Already introduced in Georgia (HB877), Oklahoma (HB2810), and Washington (HB2712), such laws would require that all federal taxes come first to the state’s Department of Revenue. A panel of legislators would assay the Constitutional appropriateness of the Federal Budget, and then forward to the federal government a percentage of the federal tax dollars that are delineated as legal and Constitutionally justified. The remainder of those dollars would be assigned to budgetary items that are currently funded through federal allocations and grants or returned to the people.

Naturally, the U.S. Supreme Court would label such an act unconstitutional, but as stated above, such an action by the Supreme Court amounts to empty words and rhetoric. The natural progression of such actions, given enough states and a determined populace, will be the nonviolent return of federalism. While it is possible events unfold in such a manner leading to a showdown between, for example, national guard troops and/or civilians and the U.S. military, it is highly unlikely the U.S. Military will follow orders that are obviously unconstitutional. After the forceful removal of guns from citizens in the aftermath of Katrina, many in law enforcement and the military began a serious a deliberate debate on the issue. Oath Keepers states the following on their site:

The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their Houses, and Farms, are to be pillaged and destroyed, and they consigned to a State of Wretchedness from which no human efforts will probably deliver them. The fate of unborn Millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this army” — Gen. George Washington, to his troops before the battle of Long Island

Such a time is near at hand again. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this Army — and this Marine Corps, This Air Force, This Navy and the National Guard and police units of these sovereign states.

Oath Keepers is a non-partisan association of currently serving military, reserves, National Guard, peace officers, fire-fighters, and veterans who swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic … and meant it. We won’t “just follow orders.

Included in the link is a list of orders member will not obey.

We can take great lessons from Martin Luther King, Jr. and his approach to the civil rights movement, as well as Gandhi and the issue of British colonialism in India. A passive-aggressive approach can work if executed correctly.

It is no longer the case that most of us sacrifice for our freedoms. We know of those who did so in the past and do so even today. We honor them on special holidays and then go about our business. Lately, some find themselves prone to attend rallies, send faxes, call and email their federal representatives, only to sit back and watch Washington arrogance ignore our calls for sanity.

It is now clear to many the way forward – the only way forward – is through the states. We may slow our slide into fiscal disaster and European style socialism with leveraged federal pressure, but inaction at the state level – read nullification – we only delay the inevitable. So now is the time to begin. Now is the time to transform.

Perish as sheep, or thrive as a wolves.

Control the narrative on Senate reconciliation and leveraged pressure against wavering House members is yours. Public knowledge of Byrd’s strong feelings against using reconciliation for healthcare as outlined here and here. This knowledge alone kills the meme that reconciliation is a harmless little fuzzy bunny that has been used before by Republicans and therefore it is perfectly acceptable to use it to overhaul 1/6 of the U.S. economy.

Ubiquitous public awareness the architect of Senate reconciliation is against using the procedural tactic to pass ObamaCare will cause vulnerable House members to reach for the Maalox and lose trust in both the process and the end result in terms of the blowback by their constituents and the unceremonious end of said Representative’s political career. Pelosi would find it even harder to garner support for ObamaCare; nobody is willing to fall on a sword for the queen of contempt. In short, House members will be tainted by the Senate procedure.

To state it another way, the Senate procedural maneuver will effectively scare away votes in the House. This will work if the GOP starts talking – and talking a great deal. Wide exposure on Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, talk radio, and in the blogosphere will only aid our cause and the goal to kill ObamaCare for good. There will be an argument that reconciliation will only be used to pass “fixes” to the bill. However, if the bill will not pass without reconciliation, then it is clear that reconciliation is the means by which the entire healthcare system will be overhauled. The argument falls apart and reconciliation is once again front-and-center as the means by which ObamaCare will be passed.

I don’t believe Pelosi will ever have the votes, but this beast of a bill won’t die, which requires an extraordinary effort on ObamaCare opponents to kill the bill for good. Right now the Democrats are controlling the reconciliation PR messaging within some of their ranks and it’s the fence sitters that worry me. The public knows something is wrong with using reconciliation to subvert the will of the electorate, but let them know the architect of the process is against it and watch public opinion push the Democratic fence sitters into the correct field of opinion. We need to control the narrative about the process and make it very painful for any Senator, Representative, or the President to even bring up the subject.

We need the birth of a new meme, one so powerful that it cannot be countered by anyone advocating quashing of minority rights in the Senate while concurrently ignoring the will of a majority of the electorate without looking ridiculous, partisan, contemptuous, and thoroughly out of touch.

Words have meaning and memes can carry far and wide. Tie in Senator Byrd’s statement’s on reconciliation with the idea of rule by tyranny. The GOP talking heads should be screaming Byrd’s views from the mountaintops and I have yet to hear a single reference to Byrd’s feelings on the matter of using reconciliation to shove healthcare down our throats.

His words are powerful. The fact that they come from him is PR gold.