This alert concerns two important pieces of legislation before Congress. First,

people have found that they are not always powerless when dealing with dangerous legislation in the Congress. The massive outcry by readers of this blog and other blogs, listeners to my radio show, and hundreds of thousands of other people lead to the liberals in Congress losing on their first try ram the Disclose Act through the Senate.

            This is the bill that would violate the First Amendment rights of millions of Americans in conservative political groups, corporations, and small businesses by limiting their ability to participate in the upcoming 2010 election process by buying and airing advertisements. At the same time, labor unions and liberal groups like Moveon.org, are exempt from the provisions of the bill. Ironically, this legislation that claims to require disclosure was written in secret, amended in secret, and is bypassing the normal committee channels in order to keep its provisions from being known to as many of the American people as possible.

            After its recent failure to get the sixty votes for cloture needed so the legislation could be brought to the Senate floor, Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) has vowed to keep bringing the bill up over and over until they get it passed. So, it is necessary for everyone to keep a watchful eye on this and other blogs since it may be necessary to keep contacting your Senators until this proposed law is finally dead.

            Another piece of extremely important legislation is that extending the Bush tax cuts that will expire in a few months. Many liberals want them to die entirely and that would impose on Americans the largest tax increase in history. President Obama has tried to placate many taxpayers by saying that he is willing to go along with extending the tax cuts for Americans making less than $200,000 per year. In other words, he will only increase the taxes on the rich, yet who are most of these so-called rich people? The vast majority are small business owners who often use much of their profits to expand their businesses and create more jobs for their fellow Americans.

            During the past 18 months many of these entrepreneurs who are responsible for creating most of the jobs in the private sector have been reluctant to spend any money on expansion and new jobs for fear that the Obama administration would do exactly what it is proposing, increase their taxes. In fact, these tax increases may cause many small businesses to cut back and actually eliminate jobs. Some economists are predicting this could be the final nail in the coffin that Obama is constructing to bury the American economy.

            The framers of the U.S. Constitution were fearful that giving the Federal government a broad power to tax meant giving it too much power to control individual Americans and their businesses. Thus the taxation power was severely limited in the original Constitution. It was broadened considerably by the passage of the Sixteenth Amendment in 1913 that allowed the implementation of the income tax. However, even with that amendment it is clear that taxation was not meant to be used as a method to punish successful Americans, to redistribute wealth, or to destroy the American Free Enterprise system. Yet that is exactly the way it is being used by the Obama administration and Congress.

            Remember, we already have massive tax increases being imposed on us by the health care bill the U.S. economy can’t survive any more. Contact your Congressional representatives and your Senators and let them know that you support the extension of the Bush tax cuts for all Americans.  

           Almost a year ago when the health care bill debate was just heating up I pointed out that the bill would set up health care rationing, particularly for seniors. I also stated that instead of doctors, patients, and family members it would be federal bureaucrats that would be making life and death decisions for people. Of course, I was not alone in this, but those of us that saw these things in the bill were attacked by the White House, the liberals in Congress, and most of the mainstream news media. We were called liars and fear mongers and the American people were assured by Obama himself that there would be no health care rationing.

            That was then. The bill has passed and the assurances of the President have now been shown to be meaningless. He has used the power of recess appointment to bypass the Senate and appoint a radical socialist physician, Donald Berwick to be the head of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). This is the government agency that will be in charge of administering these programs nationwide and overseeing the massive cuts the health care bill makes in Medicare.

            `The reason that Obama essentially made this appointment under the cover of darkness is because he could not risk having open Senate hearings about Donald Berwick’s background and ideology. The American people would have been appalled at what came out in these hearings and even some Democrats might have been forced to vote against his confirmation.

            Berwick has long been an outspoken supporter to the British health care system that is based on heavy rationing of health care. People may wait months to even see a doctor and even longer periods to get live saving tests or surgery done. Berwick thinks that is just wonderful and he has made the following statement about health care in this country: “The decision is not whether or not we will ration care. The decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open.”

            This controversial physician has also said:  “Any health care funding plan that is just equitable civilized and humane must, must redistribute wealth from the richer among us to the poorer and the less fortunate. Excellent health care is by definition redistributional."

                        So there you have it. The person that will be making the decisions on who gets health care in the United States and what type of health care is delivered believes in everything that we were assured would not be in the final law.

            As the dawn of each new day of the Obama presidency comes about it is beginning to look like we have a man in the White House who not only doesn’t represent the wishes of the American people, but holds us in utter contempt and will go to war with Americans in order to shove his own personal agenda down our throats.

            For example, the American people overwhelmingly support the efforts of the people of Arizona to stem the tide of illegal immigrants coming into their state by enforcing Federal law. Obama’s response has been to have his Department of Justice file suit against the people of Arizona and in support of those who have openly broken our country’s laws.

            The people in this country have also been overwhelmingly opposed to blanket amnesty for those who have entered this country illegally and even most members of Congress are afraid to even try to pass an amnesty bill during this election year. So The President is seriously considering granting amnesty by Executive order despite the fact that he has no power under the Constitution to make such an order.

            And finally, one of the most sacred rights that Americans hold dear is the right to vote without fear of being intimidated at the polls. During the November 2008 election such intimidation was done openly at a polling place in Philadelphia, PA. Members of the New Black Panther Party were filmed in front of the voting place carrying weapons and wearing paramilitary uniforms. They were yelling at white voters using racial slurs and telling these people that they were about to find out what is like to be ruled by a black man.

            These men were arrested and civil charges were filed against them by the Department of Justice. Even though the case had already been won and it was just a matter of determining a penalty, the Obama DOJ under Eric Holder ordered the case dropped. According to J. Christian Adams, a DOJ attorney who had worked on the case and recently resigned as a result of what happened, the word was given to the attorneys that no cases would be brought against blacks for voter intimidation of whites.  

            Never in our nation’s history has a President of the United States shown such utter disregard for the will of the people and their rights under the Constitution. It is not only a violation of his oath of office, but it is something that more and more Americans are becoming outraged over. Perhaps it is time for the President to be reminded that he works for us and we are not his subjects. We had a King once that tried to enforce his will upon a ragtag group of American Colonials that he considered his interiors. Things didn’t work out too well for that King.

Michael Connelly

http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/

mrobertc@hotmail.com

In January 2010 the United States Supreme Court made a landmark decision in the case of “Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.” The case was a challenge against so-called campaign finance rules adopted by Congress and enforced by the FEC that limited the ability of businesses to participate in the political process by contributing money for things like issue based advertising.

            In a 5-4 decision the Court ruled that this law was a violation of the 1^st Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. The Justices found that corporations and the shareholders who own these businesses have the same rights to free speech as any other groups or individuals, including labor unions. This decision infuriated those on the far left to the point that President Obama took the unprecedented action of publicly scolding the members of the Court when they sat in front of him during his State of the Union address. He claimed that the ruling opened the door to foreign corporations to influence our elections. That is not true.

            However, since the liberals in Congress are now facing the prospect of heavy losses in the upcoming November 2010 elections they have introduced legislation in the House of Representatives to adopt new regulations that would clearly violate the ruling of the Supreme Court and the provisions of the 1^st Amendment of the Constitution. As usual, this is a lengthy and complicated piece of legislation but the intent is clear. The free speech right of businesses and other groups that traditionally support conservative Republican candidates will be severely limited in future elections. On the other hand, the groups such as labor unions that traditionally support liberal Democrats in elections will be allowed to basically do as they please. Their rights are not limited under the provisions of this legislation.

            Members of Congress and the Obama Administration who have drafted and support this legislation are well aware that it violates the Constitution and will inevitably be struck down by the Supreme Court. However, the game plan is obvious. The legislation will be rammed through Congress using any means necessary. Much of the work is being done in secret and the proposed legislation, HR 5175, has already passed a key House Committee and will soon be brought to the House floor for a full vote. Then it will immediately go to the Senate for Action.

The new law is designed to go into effect 30 days after it passes and is signed by the President. This means the FEC will begin enforcement well prior to the November elections. Businesses, particularly small family owned corporations will not have the money or personnel to begin to understand the law and meet its requirements. They will be forced to sit out the upcoming elections or face penalties for violating the new law.

            The liberals are also counting on the fact that the Supreme Court will not have an opportunity to hear any lawsuits challenging the radical law until after the election. The Democrats feel that enforcing these unconstitutional limitations on free speech will give them the edge they need to win many close elections for Senate and House seats. This type of tactic violates everyone’s rights.

            I encourage all of my readers to immediately contact their Senators and Representatives and let them know that the American people are well aware of what is happening here and will not tolerate it. The legislation is also referred to as “The Disclose Act.”

The motto of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York is “Duty, Honor, Country” and it has been important to all the members of that august military school who have graduated from it and served our nation though the wars they have fought for many years. Yet, according to the current president of the United States, Barack Hussein Obama, (yes, I am being politically incorrect by citing his full name), that has now been changed to “Duty, Honor, and the New international Order”. In other words, our country is no longer relevant in his eyes.

            On May 22^nd when the President made his commencement address to the graduating cadets who have made it their job to defend our country, he effectively threw our nation under the bus and he stopped being the President of the United States and became the leader of the world, or at least his vision of that world. Unfortunately for him, the fact that most of the other leaders in the world now view him as a weakling and a joke didn’t faze him. His ego is too immense for that.

So what is this New International Order? Well, according to Obama, "The international order we seek is one that can resolve the challenges of our times,'" he said. "Countering violent extremism and insurgency; stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and securing nuclear materials; combating a changing climate and sustaining global growth; helping countries feed themselves and care for their sick; preventing conflict and healing its wounds." The response of these graduating cadets and their families was lukewarm at best. In fact, they appeared to be stunned by his remarks.

When you add to this speech the recent remarks the President made in his joint press conference with Mexican President Calderon, when he basically declared that our borders are no longer relevant we get a clear picture of where he plans to take us. This means that that anyone, including International terrorists who cross our borders for the sole purpose of killing Americans, are now free to enter our country.

I am a Constitutional lawyer and I believe in our Constitution so I analyze everything from that perspective. The Constitutional implications of this “New International Order” are immense and very dangerous to our country. There are few countries in our world that provide the protections to their citizens that we provide in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Most other nations do not aggressively protect freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom of the press like we do. They do not protect their citizens from illegal searches and seizures or provide them the right to a speedy trial by a jury of their peers if they are charged with a crime. In addition, they certainly don’t protect the right of their citizens to “keep and bear arms.”

Yet, our President is making moves to side step these rights. He and his Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, have decided to sign the United Nations “Small Arms Treaty,” which they believe will effectively destroy the 2^nd Amendment to the Constitution. They believe they have the votes in the U.S. Senate to ratify this treaty and then start eliminating the weapons that many Americans keep in their homes for their personal protection.

However, they have a problem. In 1957 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that International Treaties, even if signed by the President and ratified by the Senate, do not take precedence over the provisions of our Constitution. Obama hopes to avoid this by appointing new members to the Supreme Court that believe that the Constitution is no longer relevant and will support his view that he can do anything he wants through treaties. I don’t believe he has the votes yet in the Supreme Court to accomplish that, but we can take no chances. Sixty seven members of the U.S. Senate must vote to ratify such a treaty so we must inundate our Senators with phone calls, faxes, and emails to let them know they will be hdld accountable if they vote for ratification.

As Americans who cherish our freedom we must understand that this new “International Order” will destroy our legacy as a free people. We will be subjected to the will of a government that has no regard for us a nation, but instead subjects us to the rule of individuals with their own agendas that replace the rule of law on which our nation was founded. I for one am not a subject of the Government of Obama’s vision of the United States or of the United Nations. I am a free American and I live and if necessary will die as such.

I am an American who believes in the provisions of the U.S. Constitution that recognize my rights. These are not rights given to me by our government, but rights that are inherent and cannot be taken away by Congress or by the President. These include my right to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and the right to keep and bear arms in defense of my family and my country. I will not allow these rights to be stolen from me by my government or some vague “new international order.

When I took my oath as an officer in the United States Army, I swore specifically as follows:

“I, Michael Connelly, having been appointed a 2^nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army under the conditions indicated in this document, do accept such appointment and do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter, so help me God.”

This oath is specific. I took it and pledged to defend my country and its principles as stated in the Constitution. I did not swear to support any individual such as a particular President of the United States or any political party and I certainly did not swear allegiance to a “New International Order.” Yet, while President Obama and members of Congress took a similar oath they are choosing to ignore it and attempt to subject us to the whims of a few individuals who will take us back to the days prior to the American Revolution when Americans were subjects of a European empire and not a free people.

I encourage everyone to read the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and then swear your allegiance to it. Here are two links to these critical documents:  http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html, http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html

Then let every member of Congress that represents you know that you have read these documents and intend to enforce them, and that you expect your elected representatives to abide by the oath of office they took to uphold the Constitution. Let them know that failure to do so will result in your vote against them in upcoming elections.

Duty, Honor, Country still has meaning to me and my fellow veterans, and I hope it has meaning to you too.

Michael Connelly

http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/

mrobertc@hotmail.com

As another Memorial Day approaches many Americans look on it as just another day off of work or school when they can sit around and barbecue hamburgers and drink soft drinks and beer. Yet, to those of us who are veterans know the true meaning of the holiday. Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day and was established in 1868 to honor the memory of members of the American military who have died defending the United States of America. Its first official observance was on May 30, 1868 when flowers were placed on the graves of soldiers, both Union and Confederate who died in the Civil War. It was later expanded to include all of the Americans who died in the wars fought by this country to preserve our freedom and it became an official Federal Holiday in 1971.

            On this 2010 Memorial Day I want everyone to look at some staggering figures about our American heroes. Beginning with the American Revolution, a total of 43,362,376 men and women have served in the U.S Military during all of the wars we have fought including the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Of these, 655,231 were killed in battle while another 540,254 have died during their service due to other causes. That is a total of 1,195,485 Americans who have died in wartime while wearing the uniform of our country. In addition, 1,468,196 have been wounded. There are currently approximately 24,000,000 military veterans still alive in our nation.

            So who were these people, who as someone pointed out, wrote a blank check to their country laying their lives on the line for poor pay and often deplorable living conditions. They were and still are, our fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, and friends and neighbors. They fought and they died at places that the history books often mention in passing, it they are mentioned at all. Places like Saratoga and Yorktown where our freedom was secured, and battlefields like Gettysburg and Fredericksburg, where many brave Americans died fighting each other. Then there are the battlefields of World War I like Belleau Wood where U.S. Marines fought valiantly and suffered heavy casualties to stop the German advance, and the fights during World War II on the beaches of Normandy and Iwo Jima that opened the door for American victories in Europe and the Pacific. The ink was barely dry on the Japanese surrender document when thousands of Americans were sent to battle the communists in the Korean War.

            Turn next to the Vietnam War where over 55,000 Americans died yet never lost a battle. However, though the actions of the politicians in Washington D.C. the war itself was ultimately lost and the history books blame it on the military. Yet, it was the Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airmen who fought that war were often ignored or even spat upon when they returned home. It was not until recently that their contribution to the freedom of our nation was acknowledged. To them, I can only say “Welcome Home.” Well done my brothers and sisters in arms.

            Since then our valiant heroes have fought and died in Grenada, Panama, Operation Desert Storm and the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. However, liberal politicians and members of the left wing news media continue to attack them for doing the job of defending freedom. Our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq are subjected to Rules of Engagement by the current administration that severely limits their ability to protect themselves and our way of life. This is being done under the banner of “political correctness.”

            There is no such thing as a “politically correct” war. When the lives of Americans are threatened and our very existence hangs in the balance there is only one way to fight, and that is to win. Our men and women in our military know this, and despite the restrictions imposed upon them by politicians who have never served in the military and know nothing about the sacrifices required, our troops continue to do their duty to us and our nation. On this Memorial Day we must honor them and all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. They were and are the best of us. If we allow them to be forgotten then we inevitably lose our own identity as a free people and “the government of the people, by the people, for the people,” will indeed “perish from the earth.”

            I will ask this of each person who reads this. Enjoy your Memorial Day, but make a special effort to contact someone, whether a family member, a friend, or even a stranger, who you know has served in the military or is currently serving. Just tell them “Thank you for your service to our country”. You have no idea how much that will mean to them. Also take a moment to honor those we have lost, either by visiting the grave of a veteran, or just saying a brief prayer. They will hear you and they will know that their sacrifices were not made in vain. 

Michael Connelly

U.S. Army Veteran

mrobertc@hotmail.com

www.michaelconnelly.viviti.com

The Mojave Cross was erected in the Mojave Desert of California in 1934. It was set up by a group of World War I veterans to honor the over 50,000 U.S. soldiers who lost their lives in that war defending freedom. It became a place where veterans of WW I and all of the subsequent wars fought by our soldiers came to heal their wounds, both physical and psychological. It is a monument to the brave men and women who have sacrificed their all to preserve our country.

            Then it came under attack by the ACLU because it was on property owned by the U.S. Government and according to the left wing ACLU that was a violation of the Constitutional provisions that require separation of “church and state”. In fact, there is no such language in the Constitution. However, in order to protect this war memorial to our veterans the Congress of the United States acted several years ago to transfer the land that contains the cross to a private organization, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

            Of course, the ACLU challenged this as unconstitutional and a Federal Court of Appeals ruled that the cross must be removed. However, since the case was being appealed to the United States Supreme Court, it was ordered that the cross be covered so no one could be offended by it while the Supreme Court considered the case. Then, this year, the Supreme Court ruled that the transfer was legal and sent the case back to the original District Court to modify its ruling. The cross was finally uncovered and veterans could again kneel in its shadow and remember their fallen comrades.

            This apparently infuriated those on the far left who despise our nation and the military veterans who have defended it. The cross has recently been torn down and removed by cowardly individuals who acted under the cover of darkness. The VFW has offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the capture and prosecution of those responsible and has also vowed to rebuild the cross. The ACLU is already moving to prevent that.

            However, what I find most interesting is the response of the so-called national news media to this story. Most of the media has ignored the story with the exception of NBC, MSNBC, and ABC. Those news sources have speculated that the theft of the cross must have been done by “metal scavengers”. That is ridiculous because the few dollars that would be gained by the metal in the cross would not be enough to cause anyone to risk the destruction of a national monument and the possible repercussions.

            This matters little to the far left media that is intent on protecting anyone who would destroy the values that most Americans hold dear. Just take a look at what else has happened in this atmosphere of “Political Correctness”. On May 5^th, high school students in California were sent home because they wore patriotic clothing with the American Flag to school when the school was celebrating “Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican Holiday. The students were told that the depiction of the American flag might offend the Mexican students in the school. On the same day, a student in Houston, Texas took down a Mexican flag that was prominently displayed in his school. His mother had called the school to protest the fact that the flag was displayed but her calls were ignored by the school administrators. The student was suspended for his actions.

            Both of these incidents occurred in schools within the United States in schools funded by the people of the United States who pay for these schools with their taxes. Also, in the last few days the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles, California have decided to punish the State of Arizona for enforcing Federal immigration laws against illegal immigrants. These cities have announced that they will void legal contracts with the state of Arizona because they have dared to enforce the law.

            Unfortunately, that is just the beginning of the attacks on our rights under the 1^st Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. A recent decision by the United States Supreme Court dealt a severe blow to the Obama Administration’s efforts to take control of the Internet. The decision basically said that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had no Constitutional authority to regulate the Internet. Yet, the FCC is now moving to declare the Internet a “public utility” and regulate it anyway. This action would allow the FCC to decide what providers are licensed to provide Internet services and the ultimate goal is to eliminate most of the conservative websites on the Internet. In other words, the blog you are reading now and the link to my radio show, titled “Our Constitution” will disappear. You will only be allowed to access sites that support the Obama Administration’s efforts to turn our nation into a Socialist nation with none of our basic Constitutional freedoms intact.

            In the meantime, there are bills making their way through Congress that would provide Obama with other ways to not only control the content of the Internet, but also the content of television and radio broadcasting. Then, we have the statements by the President’s newest nominee to the Supreme Court, who has said that she supports limits on free speech when they contradict government mandates or leftist positions. A prime example is her efforts to ban military recruiters from the Harvard University campus despite the fact that this violated the law.

            When our founding fathers wrote the Constitution and then added the Bill of Rights it was not meant to be a “living document” that evolved over time and was subject to change at the whim of the President, Congress, or even the Courts. In fact, its provisions were set in stone so that the basic and inherent freedoms of the American people could not be altered. One of the most important mandates was the one that provided for a free press. It was believed that the press would always be there to question the actions of the Federal government and let the people of our country know when the government was trying to infringe our rights.

            Unfortunately, we now find ourselves in a situation where much of the so-called “mainstream news media” is siding with the current administration and only reporting what it is told to report. It is even calling for restrictions on those members of the media who dare to disagree with the Obama Administration. This is unprecedented in our history and we must respond. For example, the NBC television network and its affiliates such as MSNBC are effectively propaganda organizations for the left wing agenda. This is not just true in the news programming, but even the network’s entertainment shows are filled with anti-American propaganda. As a result, I don’t watch any programs on NBC and I encourage others to take the same position. The sponsors of this network will soon get the message. In fact, recent reports indicate that the network has severe financial problems.

            The bottom line is that since the American Revolution it has always been the people of the United States of America who have taking the definitive action to defend our Constitution and the freedoms that we hold dear. Many have done it, and continue to do so, by offering their lives on the battlefield as members of the military. Others have done it by speaking out on the home front and refusing to spend money with those businesses or groups that will ultimately use these funds to undermine our way of life.

            As Americans, we have always been in a position to control our own destiny. That must continue now in our defense of the 1^st Amendment that is under constant attack. We have the power with our votes, our money, and our right to disagree with those who seek to control us. We must exercise it aggressively in order to defend our Constitution.  

The liberal news media is hysterical, the President of the United States is threatening to have Federal agents reviewing every arrest that is made by State and Local authorities, and the Attorney General of the United States is considering filing a suit in Federal Court to have the law declared unconstitutional. All of this is allegedly being done to protect “Civil Rights”. At first glance, you might think that this was something written about the efforts to abolish the segregation laws in the deep south in the 1960s.

            However, that is not the case because the reactions I am referring to are those being directed at the sovereign state of Arizona for daring to try and stem the tide of illegal immigrants, illegal drugs, and violent criminals flowing across its southern border. This is a tide that is destroying the state’s economy and causing massive increases in crime including the murder of American citizens on the border who dare to complain. Yet, the American public is being told that this law will cause violations of civil rights and so a boycott of Arizona is being called for to punish the citizens of the state because they overwhelmingly support the new law.

            So what exactly does this law say? Well, it is Senate Bill 1070 passed by the Arizona Legislature and I have read the entire bill and it was indeed a pleasure because it is a comprehensive and straightforward piece of legislation that is only 17 pages long. Compare that to the health care bill recently passed by Congress that was over 2700 pages and the pending Cap and Trade Bill that is over 1400 pages long. I can guarantee that everyone in the Arizona legislature read the bill before they voted on it, unlike Nancy Pelosi, who informed members of the Congress that they needed to pass the health care bill so they could find out what was in it.

            In a nutshell, the new Arizona law tracks the Federal law that has been in existence for 23 years but is no longer enforced by the Obama Administration. The people of Arizona, through their elected representatives, have simply taken the laws against illegal immigration adopted by Congress and made them into state laws that can be enforced by local authorities. They have found this necessary because it is estimated that over 50% of the illegal aliens that enter the United States and 50% of the illegal drugs that are brought into this country from Mexico now come across the Arizona border.

            Since President Obama’s response to this crisis situation was to reduce the number of Border Patrol agents on the southern border with Mexico by 346 members, the people of Arizona were left with little choice but to take action on their own since the Federal Government has abdicated its responsibility to provide for the “common defense” of the American people. We should make no mistake here, what is happening on our southern border is an invasion that is robbing Americans of much needed jobs and subjecting our citizens to the violence that is being perpetrated by the Mexican drug cartels and spilling over into our country.

            Despite the wildly exaggerated claims being made by the left, particularly those in media outlets like the major networks such as NBC and CNN, the Arizona law does not provide for the wholesale rounding up of Hispanics on every street corner in Arizona. The police must have probable cause to believe someone is in the country illegally or they must catch someone in the act of breaking another law. Then the authorities will have the right to detain the person and determine their immigration status. It is not the state that requires documents to prove legal status, it is a requirement of Federal law that all legal immigrants in the United States have written authorization from the Federal Government to be here.

            If such authorization can’t be verified in the Federal data bases then the person involved is considered an illegal and is breaking the laws of both the Federal and State governments. They are essentially trespassing on American soil and charging them with this crime is no more a violation of their civil rights than arresting someone who has broken into someone else’s  home. The charge that this will result in racial profiling is ludicrous. The American people are not as ignorant as the elitists on the left like to portray us. We are quite aware, even if Attorney General Eric Holder is not, that the vast majority of the people crossing the U.S. border from Mexico are not Irish and they don’t speak Gaelic. They are Hispanic and speak Spanish. 

            The Arizona law also tracks the Federal laws by making it a State criminal offense to smuggle people into this country illegally and for businesses to hire people who are in the country illegally. I personally believe that it is time for the Obama Administration to be reminded that the rights guaranteed by our Constitution are for those individuals who are citizens of our nation and those who have immigrated here legally. I do not believe that the Founding Fathers ever intended for them to apply to those who cross our borders illegally in order to violate our laws. Providing them with due process is fine, but giving them special consideration because the current Administration and Congress want to eventually make them citizens who will vote for candidates of the Democratic Party is unacceptable.

            It is time that we start looking out for the Civil Rights of our own citizens. The State of Arizona is doing just that and any attempts to stop it from exercising its rights under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution are beyond the powers authorized in the Constitution to the President or Congress.

            As for the proposed boycott of Arizona, my response is simply this. I personally intend to visit that beautiful state as often as I can and spend as much money as I can afford. I encourage all of my friends and readers to do the same. It is time for all of us who continue to fight to be free Americans to stand together. As Benjamin Franklin said, “We must all hang together; else we shall all hang separately.”

http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/

Many of us have predicted that since the Obama Administration and its lackeys in Congress are emboldened by the fact that they appear to have successfully ignored the will of the American people and passed the so-called “health care reform bill” that they would come at us with more unconstitutional legislation. I wish we had been wrong, but unfortunately, it is happening as we thought it would.

First and foremost is the “Cap and Trade Bill” that Nancy Pelosi forced through the House of Representatives. This is HR 2454, a bill to impose massive regulations on American businesses and homeowners to placate the advocates of the now thoroughly discredited “global warming theory”. When even some of the most Socialist and liberal countries in Europe are having second thoughts about the concept of global warming the Obama Administration though Harry Reid, the majority leader in the Senate, has vowed that there are enough votes to force this legislation on the American people despite their opposition to it.

This bill, which is 1422 pages long, will impose large tax increases on the production of energy in the United States that will increase the average yearly cost of electricity for American families by anywhere from $1500.00 to $3,000.00 per year. Within a year of its passage it will also impose on American homeowners the requirement that in order to sell their homes they must comply with energy efficiency and water requirement upgrades that could average about $6800.00 per home. This is being done with no regard to the fact that many homeowners are already facing foreclosures because they can’t sell their homes for enough to pay off existing mortgages.

Congress has no authority under the U.S. Constitution to enact this kind of legislation.

However, that doesn’t seem to matter anymore. I said from the beginning that the health care legislation was not about health care at all, but about control of the economy and the American people. I can safely say the same about Cap and Trade. It is not about global warming but about putting more power and control into the hands of an elite few. As far as the Obama Administration and the leaders in Congress are concerned, we are no longer citizens of a free country; we are now subjects of an all powerful Federal Government. That is exactly what our Constitution was designed to prohibit.

Unfortunately, that is just the beginning. A new Immigration Reform Bill is soon to be introduced in Congress to provide those people who have entered our country illegally with amnesty and to provide them with a fast track to citizenship and voting rights. Congress has always had the power to control immigration in the United States yet, it has never before considered making people who entered illegally into American citizens on a mass scale.

The clear purpose of this legislation is to increase the voting block for a particular political party in a number of key states such as Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Florida, and California. This is being done when many American citizens are losing their jobs to illegal immigrants and despite the opposition of the overwhelming majority of the American people. Yet, even some Republicans like Lindsay Graham of South Carolina are apparently supporting this legislation.

In addition, there is the Financial Regulatory Reform Bill, HR 4173 that will once again give enormous power to Obama and his Czars to essentially take control of banks and other financial institutions. This will ultimately lead to the Nationalization of the banking industry. This has been done in socialist countries with disastrous consequences. Most of what the President and his Czars will be allowed to do will not have to be approved by Congress so once again the final losers in this will be the American people.

Other dangerous bills pending in Congress are: H.R. 45: “To provide for the implementation of a system of licensing for purchasers of certain firearms and for a record of sale system for those firearms, and for other purposes”. In fact, this bill is so comprehensive that it would virtually destroy the right of individuals in the United States to keep and bear arms, a right that has recently been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. I personally find it interesting that this bill was introduced by Rep. Bobby L. Rush of Illinois. He is a long time political ally of President Obama, but he is also a former Black Panther and convicted felon who spent time in jail for a firearms violation.

Then we have several bills pending in the Senate and the House to establish background checks for private individuals purchasing firearms from other private individuals at gun shows. This is clearly outside of the Constitutional powers of Congress. There is also Senate Bill 773 introduced by Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia to give President Obama and the Federal Government the power to regulate the content of the Internet and to give President Obama the power to take control of the Internet entirely by declaring a Cyber Security crisis. What constitutes such a crisis is left up to Obama.

Add to this mix the rather strange Executive Orders issued by President Obama exempting an international police agency, Interpol, from having to obey some U.S. laws; the apparent attempt to take control of the National Guard Units away from the Governors of the 50 States and place them entirely in control of the President, and the recent order to make hospitals allow gays and lesbians to have visitation rights with patients. In all of this I see a pattern of the President usurping powers reserved in the Constitution to the States and individuals.

Whether you agree with these acts are not, the fact is that under our Constitutional form of Government these are the actions of someone who considers himself a Dictator, not an elected Representative of the people and the sovereign States of the United States of America. Yet, it is clear that not only is Congress unwilling to put the reins on Obama’s misuse of the powers of his office, this same Congress is preparing to transfer even more power to him.  

As Americans who value our freedom it is incumbent on us to let our representatives in the House and our Senators know that we are not the ignorant masses they seem to think we are. We are well aware of what is happening and we will hold them accountable.

          When I first read the original health care reform bill, HR 3200, it was akin to trying to cross a minefield in combat. The bill was a mishmash of confusing sections that established a massive Federal government takeover of the health care system in the United States. However, reading the version finally passed and signed into law by President Obama requires that I cross that same minefield with a blindfold on. The entire bill is a blatant attempt to hide what is really going on when it comes to the Constitutional implications for individual Americans and the states that we live in.

            I won’t even attempt to deal with all of the items covered in the bill because that would probably require a book. Instead, this is a summary of the most important parts of the bill that will deal a severe and possibly fatal blow to the Constitution of the United States of America.

            1. The passage of this bill far exceeds the powers granted to Congress under the provisions of Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution which specifically states what Congress can do.

            2. The bill grants powers to President Obama and the Executive Branch of government that are not authorized under the Constitution.

            3. The new law requires every American, simply by virtue of the fact that they are alive, to purchase health insurance from private companies that will be heavily regulated by the Federal government. This is not authorized under the commerce clause of the Constitution and the Supreme Court has never rendered a decision saying that such power exists.

            4. The legislation not only requires people to purchase health insurance, but establishes the terms and conditions that such insurance plans will have. In other words, Americans will be forced to enter into contracts for coverage that they may not want or need.

            5. Failure to comply with the requirements to buy health insurance or even health insurance approved by the Federal Government will result in punitive action against American citizens. People will be fined for this failure although the bill calls it a tax. This is an effort to bypass the provisions of the 5^th Amendment to the Constitution which provides protection against the taking of our property without “due process”.

            6. This tax will be collected by the Internal Revenue Service that will have an additional 16,500 agents and auditors hired to enforce it. This opens the door for people who fail to pay the “tax” being subjected to criminal penalties.

            7. In order to facilitate the actions by the IRS the Federal government will have real time access to the formally private information of Americans including medical records and financial information. This is a violation of our right to privacy and the 4^th Amendment protection against illegal searches and seizures.

            8. The imposition of this so called “tax” also violates Article 1, Section 9 of the Constitution that limits the type of taxes that Congress can levy.

            9. The bill also takes away from the states their historic right to regulate the health care industry, including health care insurance, within their own borders. Everything will now be regulated by the Federal government. This is a clear violation of the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution.

            10. In addition, the legislation will force State Governments to add millions of people to Medicaid, yet the Federal government will not be funding most of this. In other words, the bill will force the states to impose massive tax increases on their citizens in order to pay for this coverage. Congress has no authority to do this and it is another clear violation of the 10^th Amendment.

            11. The impact on senior citizens in the United States will be immediate and devastating and will entail a breach of contract between Americans and their own government. We are required to pay taxes for Medicare coverage and have a right to expect that they will have adequate health care coverage when we reach age 65. However, enormous cuts in the funding of Medicare under the provisions of the new law will deny us the coverage we have paid for and inevitably lead to the rationing of health care for senior citizens.

            12. There are also numerous new taxes imposed under this law ranging from taxes on so called “Cadillac” policies that provide a high level of coverage, to taxes on medical devices, and even taxes on tanning booths. I consider all of these to be questionable under the powers granted to Congress in the Constitution.

            These are just some of the important Constitutional issues about this bill, yet there are other disturbing aspects that Americans need to consider. For example, the bill does not prohibit Federal Funding of abortions and that is something many Americans want. Yet, the votes of some members of Congress who opposed this provision were purchased by the President’s promise to sign an Executive Order prohibiting such Federal funding. In fact, he did sign such an order shortly after he signed the health care bill. This was a ruse. The President has no authority under the Constitution to issue an Executive order changing the provisions of a law passed by Congress that he has just signed. The Executive Order is meaningless.

            Finally, there is another section of the legislation that has nothing to do with health care. It is an authorization for the Federal Government to take complete control of the granting of student loans for our children to further their education. If you are preparing to send your son or daughter to college you will no longer be able to go to your local bank to take out a student loan. Instead, federal bureaucrats will decide who gets student loans and under what terms and conditions. What will be owed to the Federal government besides the repayment of loans? Will some type of Federal service will be required and will your child have to attend a university approved by the Government. The potential implications are staggering.

            For my part, I will continue to work with my friends at the U.S. Justice Foundation,  http://usjf.net/ to file a lawsuit to challenge the Constitutionality of this law. For the time being at least my retirement from the practice of law appears to be over. But, I truly believe the future of our country is at stake.

            It is the beginning of the winter of 1777 and 12,000 ragged and ill equipped men, the remnants of what appeared to be a thoroughly defeated Continental army, followed General George Washington into a winter encampment in a place called Valley Forge. They had little in the way of food or warm clothing and 2,000 of them die that winter while the British rejoice over the apparent defeat of the rebel army. Yet, this battered, but proud, group of Patriots will emerge in the spring of 1778 and continue the fight and ultimately defeat the British and establish a new and free nation.

            Fast forward to the winter of 1944. The Germans have broken through the American lines with overwhelming numbers and surrounded the 101^st Airborne at a Belgian town called  Bastogne. Yet, the Screaming Eagles of the proud division of paratroopers refused to surrender. So, to their north the Germans attempt another breakthrough at another Belgian town named Sadzot. In the middle of the night of December 28^th the Nazi SS troopers overran my father’s unit, Company B of the 87^th Chemical Mortar Battalion.

In less than an hour half of the men in the company are killed, wounded, or captured and all of their mortars are lost as well as most of their vehicles. However, by morning the American survivors have joined with a small group of paratroopers and combat engineers, counterattacked and taken back the town along with all of the lost mortars and other equipment. They then proceed to hold off attacks by German tanks and infantry for several days until they are relieved. The Battle of the Bulge and the war are ultimately won.

Just a few years ago left wing politicians in this county like Senator Harry Reid and then Senator Barack Obama were somberly and somewhat gleefully announcing that the war in Iraq had been lost and that funding for our troops and their fight should be cut off. Yet, our warriors went on to win anyway. It turned out that all of the dire predictions of American defeat from 1777 to today have been premature and ultimately wrong.

Now we have another premature celebration of the demise of America going on. The so-called “progressives” in the Congress and the Obama administration are celebrating the fact that they have successfully bypassed the Constitution and undermined American Democracy by passing the Healthcare Reform Bill that is designed to change our country forever into a socialist nation with a massive government that controls our lives and limits our individual freedoms.

Well, I have some bad news for all of the socialists, or progressives, or whatever you choose to call yourselves this week, you have made a huge mistake. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Japanese Admiral Yamamoto who led the attack said that: “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” I suggest to President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid that you have awakened the giant again and that this giant, made up of freedom loving Americans, is going to be coming at you from every direction you can imagine.

Individuals and State Governments will be challenging you in the courts, and Americans will take you on in the polling places. In every city, town and village you will hear the voices of angry Americans and despite your best efforts we will not be silenced. You will hear the outcry of Americans of every race, religion, and creed and we will prevail.

To my fellow freedom loving Americans I say this: I am nothing special, just a retired attorney and U.S. Army veteran who loves my country. Yet, my family has fought in every war that has America has engaged in since my ancestors first joined North Carolina and Virginia Cavalry Regiments during the Revolution. Now I have two sons fighting for our nation in the military. I will not allow their fight to have been in vain.

Help in any way you can, though letters to your local newspapers, financial support for groups filing lawsuits, or simply with your prayers for our country. We all must make our voices heard and do what is necessary to save our nation. Never despair and never surrender. For if freedom in America dies, then it dies in the rest of the world. God Bless America.

What many Americans have feared for years may be about to come to pass. We have an out of control Congress and an arrogant, elitist President who believes it his destiny to transform the United States from a republic to a socialist system of government where individual freedoms are severely restricted. Congress is preparing to give the President and his Executive Branch of government what amounts to dictatorial powers over one-sixth of our economy and the private health care decisions of everyone who lives in the United States.

            Congress is not only going to pass legislation that will severely damage the balance of power established in the Constitution by our founding fathers, but it is going to go about in a manner that violates Article 1, Section 7 of the Constitution. Among other things, that article provides for each law passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate to be then sent to the President for his signature. The key word here is “passed”. It appears that there are not enough votes in the House to pass the Senate version of the health care bill so House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will continue to show her distain for both the American people and the Constitution by ignoring Article 1, Section 7 of one of our most sacred documents and send the bill to the President for his signature without an actual vote on it in the House.

            Instead she will use something being referred to as the “Slaughter Solution” named after Louise Slaughter, a member of the House from upstate New York who proposed that the idea be used to avoid a formal vote. This is also referred to as the “self executing” or “deeming” rule. The members of Congress will be allowed to vote to change the rules and authorize Pelosi to deem the Senate version of the Bill passed and send it to Obama to be signed into law. The fact that this ploy has been used in the past with other much less important legislation does not make it Constitutional. This action also allows the members of Congress to avoid another “troublesome” provision of our Constitution, Article 1, Section 5, that allows one fifth of the members of the House present to demand that the vote on any piece of legislation be recorded so the American people can know how their elected representatives voted.

            The theory is that members of the House who live in districts where the majority of people oppose the health care legislation can go back to their districts and say that they did not vote for the bill. Instead, they will have just voted for a rule change. Of course, this ruse also makes the elitist assumption that “we the people” are too dumb to know that a vote to change the rules to allow the health care bill to go forward is the same as a direct vote for the legislation. By the way, if you want to read the new version of this legislation, forget it. Even though the vote to send it to Obama is scheduled to take place in just a few days, the text of the bill has not yet been made available to members of Congress or the American people.

            The magnitude of this is almost incomprehensible. Nancy Pelosi and the leadership in the House of Representatives are telling us four things.

            First and foremost, we are being told that members of Congress will no longer abide by the Constitution of the United States and are thereby violating their oath of office.   

            Second, members of Congress will no longer be representing the will of the American people who elected them but instead are representing the will of President Obama and his vision of a socialist America.

            Third, members of Congress are done with allowing the American people to even participate in the process. Everything will be done in secret and your right to know what is being done to you will be ignored.

            Last, but not least, members of Congress have concluded that we are not bright enough to know what is happening anyway so they think we will reelect them and be grateful for all they have done for us.  

            I just have this to say to President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and the other current “leaders” of our country. Over 230 years ago an English King and Parliament made similar assumptions about a group of people who called themselves Americans. Those assumptions were wrong and things did not end well for those who underestimated the passion of Americans to be a free people. If you continue on this course it will not end well for you either. To this I pledge my life, my fortune, and my sacred honor, as did my forefathers before me.

            It is not too late to stop this abomination. Contact members of Congress now and tell them that you are not fooled and consider a vote for the Slaughter Solution to be a vote for the unconstitutional health care bill. You should further inform them that you consider such a vote to be a violation of their oath of office to uphold the Constitution of the United States and you will hold them accountable on Election Day.

            For my part, I talked to Gary Kreep at the U.S. Justice Foundation today and we are already preparing the lawsuit that will challenge the Constitutionality of the passage of the health care bill under the “Slaughter Solution” and on other Constitutional grounds. If you want to contribute to this effort you can go to the U.S. Justice Foundation Website at: www.usjf.net. The fight to defend our freedom is not over, it is just beginning.

After much anticipation, at least by the so-called mainstream media, the White House has released the new and improved version of Obamacare. Since I have already had to read two previous versions of these monstrosities in the House and two more in the Senate, I call this version Obamacare 5.0 and it is actually an easy read. It is not hundreds or thousands of pages long and it doesn’t take long for people to realize that it really changes very little. 

It must be remembered that this is not a Congressional Bill, but simply the President’s proposal to make the bill more palatable to the American public and even some members of Congress who have grown increasingly more concerned about the implications that these proposals have for freedom in this country. In that regard the proposal fails miserably. Despite the use of smoke and mirrors to hide what is really going on with the proposal and the spin that is put on it by the Whitehouse to make it sound like Obama is the smartest man in the world and has found a solution to the problems that couldn’t be resolved by the 535 members of the House and Senate the White House proposal is basically Senate Bill 3590 with a new hairstyle and thicker makeup. This is all an attempt to hide the fact that the bill is still blatantly unconstitutional.

The proposal leaves intact the mandatory provisions of the Senate bill that require every resident of the United States to buy health insurance and to further only buy that insurance approved by the Federal government. Sections 1301-1302 of the Bill set forth the requirements that each approved plan shall have, leaving consumers with no choices about what is best for their needs. Sec 1501 requires that everyone have insurance and provides stiff penalties for failure to comply. In fact, under the President’s proposal the penalties get higher and progress eventually to 2.5% of a person’s income.  All of this exceeds the authority granted to Congress in Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution and violates the 9^th and 10^th amendments that protect the rights of people and the states.

The Obama proposal also leaves intact the provisions under Section 3403 that establish an “Independent Medicare Advisory Board” that will oversee the severe cuts in Medicare and the services provided to seniors. In other words, the Executive Branch of government will ration healthcare for the elderly while at the same time controlling how much everyone else pays for health insurance and what treatments they can be provided with.

Obamacare 5.0 doesn’t eliminate any of the massive tax increases already in the Senate Bill. It plays games by delaying some of them for a short time or changing the name of the fee or tax. For example, the proposal calls for changing the fee to be charged on all medical devices to an excise tax that will raise the same amount for money. The stated purpose for that is to make it easier for the IRS to handle. (Doesn’t that make you feel better about this legislation?).

By the way, one of the new taxes established in the Senate Bill and left in under the Obama proposal is the “Indoor Tanning Service” tax. This is provided for in Sec. 10907 that amends the Internal Revenue Code to set up a 10% tax on the use by consumers of indoor tanning services. I can only conclude that this came about because of the frustration in Congress over the fact that they have not yet been able to find a way to tax the American people for enjoying the sunshine. Therefore they have gone to the next best thing, taxing tanning booths. I would love to hear someone try to explain what that has to do with health care reform.  

The Obama proposal delays the implementation of taxes on the so-called “Cadillac” health care plans in order to appease the labor unions but still will ultimately result in massive taxes on people who have good health care plans and place additional taxes on businesses that don’t provide government approved health care plans to their employees, even if both the business owners and employees are satisfied with what they have in place.

The plan also calls for increases in fees on brand named pharmaceuticals. It sets this increase to be administered by the IRS. Who will ultimately pay for these increases? The American taxpayers of course, and frankly I am losing count of all of the new taxes being imposed on our citizens under the health care proposals.

In addition, while the Senate and House versions of the bill add layer upon layer of new Federal bureaucracies to control our access to health care, this is apparently not enough for President Obama. He would add still another new bureaucratic agency called the Health Insurance Rate Authority to “provide Federal assistance and oversight to States in conducting reviews of unreasonable rate increases and other unfair practices of insurance plans.” The definition of oversight is obvious; it means Federal control of State regulations of insurance companies and is a clear violation of the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution.

So, what is the bottom line of Obamacare 5.0? It places control of our personal health care decisions in the hands of unnamed Federal Bureaucrats who care nothing about us or our individual needs. It provides instant access for these same bureaucrats to see or medical and financial information, it massively increases our taxes and ultimately our insurance premiums, and it reduces our access to the health care that we need. It takes away our choices and our personal freedoms and it increases the Federal deficit that will eventually land on the backs of our children and grandchildren.

I believe that the Obama proposal is in fact a ruse. It is designed to lure us into believing that the health care bill is actually about affordable health care when it is really about taking control of our lives and limiting our freedoms. It is a cover for the fact that the Senate will try to pass this bill as a “budget reconciliation act” that will only require a simple majority in the Senate instead of the usual 60 votes. We must act now to let our representatives in the House and Senate know that we are not buying into these deceptions and that they will pay a price in November at the polls if this is forced on us.

If it passes, this legislation will be challenged in the courts. I am currently working with the U.S. Justice Foundation that is preparing to file a lawsuit to challenge the Constitutionality of the legislation if it is adopted. We will not go down without putting up one heck of a fight for our freedom as Americans.

Michael Connelly

http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/

mrobertc@hotmail.com

As we wait for the Obama Administration and the Democratic leadership in Congress to make their next moves to force unconstitutional legislation like “Health Care Reform” and “Cap and Trade” down the throats of Americans there are other battles dealing with our Constitutional liberties that need to be addressed. Many of these assaults on our Constitution, our traditions, and even our history are occurring at the local and state levels and in our educational institutions.

            It is most often being done under the guise of “political correctness” a movement that has rapidly evolved from trying to encourage individuals to be more polite to each other and more sensitive to the use of language that might offend someone to an attempt by the far left to control the speech, thoughts, and actions of the American people. These blatant attempts to turn us into unthinking drones who only parrot the ideas that are deemed correct by the PC movement are aimed almost entirely at those who support the American way of life and the freedoms that most of us cherish. The effort has proven to be far reaching with PC edicts being enforced not only on public property but in private areas such as business offices and even homes.

            Some of the more recent examples include:

            A pastor and his wife in San Diego County, California were ordered by the county to stop inviting friends to their home to have dinner and engage in Bible study unless they pay thousands of dollars to the government for a permit to hold a “religious assembly”. It should be noted that the school district in this same county has set aside special times during the school day for Muslim students to engage in prayer on school property. No students of any other religions are granted the same privileges.

            In May of 2009 a woman who worked in a hospital in Mansfield, Texas proudly put up an American flag in her office prior to Memorial Day in order to honor the service of her husband and two sons who had served in the U.S. military and her daughter that was currently serving in Iraq as a combat medic. However, the flag did not stay up long because when she came into work one morning she found that the flag had been removed, wrapped around its pole, and unceremoniously tossed onto the floor in a corner.

            The lady in question, Debbie McLucas, learned that the flag had been declared offensive by another woman who worked in the office, an immigrant from Africa, and therefore the hospital had ordered it removed. When the media picked up on the story the hospital responded to the public outcry by letting Mrs. McLucas put the flag back up.

            During that same week a disabled Marine and a veteran of the Vietnam War was ordered by the President of the Homeowners Association where he lived to remove bumper stickers form his car that supported the Marine Corps. They were deemed to be “unacceptable advertising” and he was told that if they were not removed his car would be towed and he would be fined for any further displays.

            There are many more examples of this type of action around the country yet they almost pale in comparison to what is happening in our institutions of public education from elementary schools to universities. The so called “progressives” have taken almost complete control of many of our schools and are enforcing their version of political correctness on students and teachers and even trying to rewrite textbooks to alter American history to make it more politically correct.

            One of the most extreme examples involves a battle in the State of Texas where the 15 member Texas State Board of Education is currently considering changes to the American history textbooks used in the public schools. These same textbooks will be used not just in Texas, but in school districts throughout the United States. Radical left wing organizations such as the Texas Freedom Network, which is the state affiliate of the People for the American Way, and other similar groups, are demanding that all mention of American heroes like Nathan Hale, Daniel Boone, and General George Patton be removed from the history books.

            They are also insisting that any references to Columbus Day, Independence Day, and Christmas be removed. Other actions include replacing the term American with “global citizen” and replacing the reference to “expansionism and free enterprise” with “imperialism and capitalism’. In fact, many of the changes are designed to portray the United States as an evil force in the world. However, as outrageous as this is, the demands go even further. The progressives actually want to rewrite some of our most revered documents to make them politically correct. For example, has been proposed that the wording of the Declaration of Independence be altered.

            According to Mat Staver, founder of the Liberty Council, one of the most important portions of the Declaration will be eliminated in these textbooks. The section that states: “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” will be changed by removing everything in that sentence following the phrase “that all men or created equal”. In other words, American school children are to be prohibited from reading any reference to our “Creator” in the Declaration of Independence. As I write this article, the vote by the board is considered too close to call.

            Of course, these efforts to serve up political propaganda to our students in the public schools is exactly in line with what has been happening for years in many of our institutions of higher education. Many universities have managed to eliminate most professors who do not adhere entirely to progressive ideas being promoted on the campuses. There are a growing number of cases where universities are attempting to force groups of Christian or politically conservative students off of the campus entirely.

            In addition, left wing professors are openly attacking students in the classrooms who profess beliefs contrary to the beliefs espoused by these so called educators. Students are either being forced to go along with the left wing ideology they are being fed or risk receiving failing grades and in some cases denied their hard earned diplomas. Nowhere is this more evident than in a recent action being considered by the administration at the University of Minnesota.

            The university has formed a “Race, Culture, Class, and Gender” Task Force that has proposed that any student applying to get an education degree from the university will be screened to make sure they comply with the political and ideological views of the Task Force that are of course far to the left of the mainstream of America. If it is found that students do not conform to these “politically correct” beliefs they will either be denied admission or forced to attend “remedial” education courses to correct their beliefs. If they still refuse to conform they will be denied a diploma. In other words, freedom of speech, thought, and action protected under the 1^st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution will be officially eliminated at this taxpayer funded institution. If this takes hold I suppose we can all look forward to the “reeducation camps” that have always been a way that communist countries dealt with those who disagreed with the established order.

            It is time for Americans to stand up and proclaim that we are not willing to let our Constitution die for the sake of political correctness or any other catch phrase that will deny us the liberties that the members of our military have fought and died to defend for so many years. Our fight for the preservation of our heritage of freedom does not begin or end in the halls of Congress or the confines of Washington D.C. It must be fought in the State Legislatures, in the City Councils, and even in the local school boards. It is a fight we can’t afford to lose. It must be fought for our sake and those of our children.

The battle has been joined and it has started again in its original point of origin, the great State of Massachusetts. Another shot has been fired that has been heard around the World, but this time it was not a musket shot at Lexington, Massachusetts, but it came from the ballot boxes in the same state. Americans rose up and said we will not surrender our basic human rights to a government that will not listen to us and wants to subjugate us to tyranny.

            The election of Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate was a clear signal that Americans do not want the Federal Government to control our access to health care, do not want to be taxed to pay for a socialist form of government that punishes us for our hard work and our spirit of free enterprise, and does not want to provide the protections of our Constitution to the terrorists who would kill us and destroy our way of life. Yet, it appears that the message has not yet been heard by many of those in Washington D.C.

            While the so called progressives are stunned and in disarray after they received the message from the American people they plan to continue to ignore it. They have signaled that while the current clearly unconstitutional health care bills are on the back burner, the original plan remains the same and they will try again to implement in the future. In the meantime, the hysterical reaction in the halls of Congress and among the left wing “mainstream media” should show us that the attacks on our Constitutional rights will not only continue, but be more intense than ever.

            This attitude was reinforced in the State of the Union Address by the President when he went forward with his push for the unconstitutional health care bill and also for the unconstitutional Cap and Trade bill that will impose massive regulations and new taxes on American businesses and ultimately the American people, and further limit our ability to produce energy independently. The bottom line is that Obama refused to back off of his socialist agenda and in order to implement it he is willing to violate the Constitution. In order to do this and defy the outcry of the American people he will need to resort to extraordinary measures.

            The first target will be our rights under the 1^st Amendment to the Constitution. This amendment provides us with freedom of speech and freedom of the press and this has obviously become a major irritant to the left wingers in our country. Despite the fact that the major television networks and newspapers stopped reporting the news and became propaganda organs for the Obama administration, Americans continued to receive the truth though the radio talk shows of conservatives, though networks like Fox News, and through the efforts of independent sources on the Internet. Obama’s criticism of the media in his speech was clearly not aimed at his allies, but at the conservatives on talk radio and the news organizations like Fox that refuse to follow the party line. The left wingers are now making a concerted effort to shut off these sources.

            It has begun through the efforts of Mark Lloyd, the so called “Diversity Czar” appointed by Obama who views discussions of the freedom of speech and freedom of the press provided in the first amendment as “distractions”. He has also made it clear that he thinks the approach of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela is the one to take. Chavez has shut down numerous radio and television stations that disagree with his dictatorial policies and also jailed journalists. He has continuously stifled free speech. Of course, we can’t forget the bill pending in the U.S. Senate that would give the Federal government control over the Internet and allow Obama to take complete control over the Internet in any crisis that he declares exists.

            Then we have Cate Sunstein, Obama’s “Regulatory Czar” who has openly advocated the bringing of both socialism and ultimately communism to America and has shown his total distain for the Constitution by stating that it is Obama, and not the Supreme Court, that should ultimately interpret laws as to their Constitutionality. The President’s personal views on this were certainly confirmed by his unprecedented open criticism of the Supreme Court justices sitting in front of him during his State of the Union address. He chastised them publicly for upholding the 1^st Amendment right of businesses to participate in the electoral process by contributing to candidates.  

            During the same speech Obama proclaims that he will ignore the will of the people through their elected representatives and appoint a Budget Commission that the Senate refused to vote for. He will do this by Executive order. This is another dangerous precedent that violates the Constitution and it follows his most recent Executive orders giving protections to Interpol, the International Investigative Police agency, that are not allowed to our domestic police agencies. Then there is the strange order allowing him to appoint a Commission to oversee the use of state National Guards and the military in the U.S.

            This latter action is particularly troubling since it seems to violate both the Constitution and other federal laws that have always given the Governors of each state the right to control the deployment and use of the National Guard units in their states. It further seems to allow Obama to deploy federal troops at his will to suppress what he considers domestic unrest. Does this mean he is planning to stifle protests to his administration? Who knows? We can’t tell from his speech, but as one who believes in the Constitutional rights of all Americans, I am very concerned by both the rhetoric and the actions.

When you add in the bills pending in Congress attempting to limit the right of Americans to keep and bear arms provided by the 2^nd Amendment to the Constitution and the support of this administration of the United Nations Small Arms treaty that would also attempt to limit these rights then we have even more reason to be concerned. I believe the fight is just beginning.

There is still time to make one final push to defeat the healthcare legislation in the House and Senate before a final bill is voted on. Here are some key points everyone should make when contacting their representatives:

            1. There is nothing in the Constitution of the United States that authorizes Congress or any other branch of the Federal government to force anyone living in the United States to buy anything by virtue of their citizenship or residence. There are no U.S. Supreme Court decisions that allow this under either the “Commerce Clause” or the “General Welfare Clause” of the Constitution. Yet that is exactly what both the House and Senate versions of the Bills contain, a mandate requiring everyone to buy health insurance.

            2. The requirement to have automobile insurance is not the same thing. First, it is a requirement imposed by the individual states, not the federal government, and you can’t be forced to have it if you don’t own a car or you choose not to drive.

            3.  Thus the passage of any health care bill containing such a provision is a violation of Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution and the 9^th Amendment in the Bill of Rights.

            4. The regulation of the health care industry and the health insurance industry has always been left in the hands of the individual state legislatures. To now transfer all of this power to the hands of federal bureaucrats is a clear violation of the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution.

            5. Both the House and Senate versions of the bill provide for massive tax increases for most Americans. However, the Senate version also imposes a “tax penalty” on anyone who fails to purchase the health care insurance the Federal bureaucracy deems that person or family needs. This is not in fact, a tax, but a “fine” and failure to pay it can lead to imprisonment. This is therefore an attempt to bypass the provisions of the due process clause of the 5^th Amendment to the Constitution and take away property and liberty without “due process of law”.

            6.  By the very nature of this legislation there will have to be rationing of health care. The Senate Bill lays the ground work for this on page 1,000 in section 3403 by establishing an “independent” Medicare advisory board to make decisions about everything from Medicare payments to what type of medical devices can be paid for. The bill calls for specific reductions in Medicare benefits and prohibits seniors from using their own money to get the health care they desire. This is another massive violation of the due process clause and is aimed at older Americans.

            7. What makes this and other portions of the bill even worse are the provisions though out the legislation to limit the right of Americans to seek administrative or court review of the decisions made under the law. There are also new rules established to make it extremely difficult, if not impossible for a future Congress to repeal sections of the law or even modify them. This includes the rationing provisions which ultimately allow federal bureaucrats to make life and death decisions for people. The Congress is again ignoring the 5^th Amendment.

            8.  When you further consider the fact that a large number of people will be allowed access to the personal financial and medical information of individual Americans who are enforced to enroll in the health care plans you are also inevitably looking at violations of the right to privacy and the prohibitions against illegal searches contained in the 4^th Amendment to the Constitution.

            9. Last, members of the Senate should be asked to point out the specific language in the bill that prohibits federal funds from being used to pay for abortions, protects the right of conscience of those members of the medical community that don’t want to participate in abortions, and finally provides any enforcement mechanism to keep illegal aliens from participating in the programs set up in the bill. They won’t be able to cite any of these provisions because they don’t exist.

            This is not just a bad law; it is a direct assault on the Constitution of the United States and the rights of individual Americans. If it passes my next blog on this subject will detail the legal and political steps that we can take to stop the implementation of this power grab. Hopefully, I won’t have to write that article.

Michael Connelly

http://michaelconnelly.viviti.com/