From FAIR:
FAIR Legislative Update July 11, 2011
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Administration Quietly Signs Cross-Border Trucking Agreement with Mexico
Last Thursday, Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Ray LaHood quietly signed a controversial cross-border trucking agreement in Mexico City with Mexico’s Secretary of Communications and Transportation. (DOT Press Release, July 6, 2011) The comment period on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) proposed regulations for a pilot program had closed in early May after receiving more than 2,000 comments. (Houston Chronicle, July 6, 2011; 76 Fed. Reg. 20,807, Apr. 13, 2011)
The cross-border trucking program with Mexico has been in dispute since the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed in 1994. (CNN, April 27, 2011) NAFTA originally authorized Mexican trucks to transport goods into the U.S. beyond the border zone, to begin in 1995. (NAFTA Secretariat) Although President Clinton signed NAFTA into law, he refused to implement the cross-border trucking provisions of the agreement with Mexico, thereby limiting Mexican tractor-trailer trucks entering the U.S. to a radius of 20- to 50-miles of the ports of entry. (Secretariat File No. USA-MEX-98-2008-01; FMCSA Pilot Program on NAFTA Long-Haul Trucking Provisions) At that point, the Mexican trucks would have to transfer their load onto a U.S.-domiciled carrier. (The Texas Tribune, Jan. 23, 2011)
The Mexican government saw President Clinton’s refusal to implement the program as a violation of NAFTA, filed a complaint with the NAFTA tribunal, and won a favorable ruling. (Secretariat File No. USA-MEX-98-2008-01) In 2001, President George W. Bush took steps to comply with the NAFTA tribunal ruling by announcing he would initiate the cross border trucking program. Congress responded by passing language in the Fiscal Year 2002 Department of Transportation (DOT) appropriations bill that prohibited funds from going to the program until certain preconditions and safety requirements were met. (DOT and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002, Section 350 (Pub. L. 107-87)) In 2007, the Bush Administration again proposed a cross-border trucking pilot program, arguing that the preconditions and safety requirements under Section 350 had been met.
In 2009, acknowledging the views of the U.S. public and its transportation workers, Congress passed and President Obama signed a spending bill into law preventing the DOT from funding the program. As permitted by NAFTA, Mexico retaliated by enforcing $2.4 billion in tariffs on over 90 U.S. products. (Secretariat File No. USA-MEX-98-2008-01) The Congressional ban on funding lasted only through the Fiscal Year 2009, and the Obama Administration has been pushing for a re-start of the cross-border trucking program since early this year. (New York Times, Jan. 6, 2011) According to the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 2007 (Pub. L. 110-28), DOT must first test granting authority for cross-border trucking operations through a pilot program. (FMCSA Pilot Program on NAFTA Long-Haul Trucking Provisions) As such, this purportedly three-year pilot program was authorized by the Transportation Secretaries on Thursday. (DOT Press Release, July 6, 2011)
Under the new pilot program, Mexican trucks are granted access to U.S. highways in exchange for Mexico dropping the retaliatory tariffs it imposed on U.S. goods. (See Memorandum of Understanding ; Agreement on Lifting of Retaliatory Measures) Mexico will suspend 50 percent of the tariffs within ten days and the remaining 50 percent within five days of the first Mexican trucking company receiving its U.S. operating authority. (DOT Press Release, July 6, 2011) This could be soon, as Mexican truckers can begin applying for permits immediately, with the first Mexican tractor-trailers coming across the border as early as August. (New York Times, July 6, 2011)
Just as the last pilot program was halted by Congress moving to defund the program, several Congressmen are already pushing to prevent the pilot program, citing dangers posed by Mexican trucks to U.S. motorists and implications for national security. Representative Peter DeFazio (D-OR) was particularly incensed that the DOT inserted a provision in the agreement to have American taxpayers foot the bill to outfit Mexican trucks with the Electronic On-Board Recorders which are required for Mexican trucks to meet the safety standards. (Memorandum of Understanding) “As we debate deep and harsh cuts to programs that help middle-class families,” he said, “it is outrageous that taxpayers are being told to foot the bill for the Mexican trucking industry to comply with American safety standards.” (New York Times, July 6, 2011) On May 4, 2011, in anticipation of this pilot program, 44 members of Congress wrote to President Obama urging him to forego this latest plan to open the borders to Mexican trucks. (Letter to Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, May 4, 2011) In their letter, the Congressional members wrote: “this proposed program could impact the safety of our roads and may create a security breach along our southern border.” (Id.) The Congressmen said that while they “understand the need to work to remove the unfair tariffs that Mexico has imposed on U.S. agriculture products as a result [of not implementing the program], doing so should not come at the expense of the safety of our highways.” (Id.)
Organizations representing U.S. truck drivers are also voicing loud concern over the program. President of the Teamsters Union, Jim Hoffa, stated in a press release that “this so-called pilot program is a concession to multinational corporations that send jobs to Mexico. It erodes our national security. It endangers motorists. It ignores the rampant corruption among Mexican law enforcement. It lowers wages and robs jobs from hard-working American truck drivers and warehouse workers.” (Hoffa Condemns Mexican Truck Pilot Program, July 6, 2011) Hoffa also questioned the legality of the pilot program, noting the agreement’s reference to “permanent operating authority” being given to some Mexican motor carriers exceeds the DOT’s legal authority. (Id.; Memorandum of Understanding)
As stated in the Memorandum, the pilot program is to last for a period of three years and will consist of three stages. (Memorandum of Understanding) Stage 1 will begin when a Mexican motor carrier is issued a provisional operating authority. (Id.) The motor carrier’s vehicles and drivers will be inspected each time they enter the United States for a period of three months. (Id.) Stage 2 will begin after a Mexican motor carrier has spent a minimum of three months in Stage 1. (Id.) During Stage 2, the motor carrier’s vehicles will be inspected at a “level more comparable to those of motor carriers operating in the U.S. commercial zone, but sufficient to meet the legal requirements for a statistically valid sample of safety data.” (Id.) After reaching Stage 3, a motor carrier’s vehicles will have unfettered access to U.S. highways as long as they are found to have a satisfactory rating under the latest compliance review.
Another City Prepares to Issue ID Cards to Illegal Aliens
In a scene mirroring last month’s Senate hearing on the DREAM Act, pro-amnesty advocates holding signs saying “Richmond IDs for all” crowded a packed hearing room to watch the Richmond, California City Council unanimously approve the first round of votes on an ordinance to allow the city to issue municipal ID cards to illegal aliens. (Richmond Confidential, July 6, 2011) Under the ordinance, illegal aliens must only establish proof of identity (which can be done by showing an easily fabricated matricula consular ID card), provide proof of Richmond residence for 15 of the past 30 days, and pay a fee not to exceed $15 ($10 for minors). (See Ordinance at §§ 2.64.030, 2.64.050; see also FAIR’s Matricula Consular ID Cards Talking Points) The municipal ID card, which also functions as a pre-paid debit card, will make it easier for illegal aliens to open bank accounts, as well as grant them access to public benefits such as use of the City’s bus services, libraries, and pools. (See Ordinance at § 4; Contra Costa Times, July 6, 2011)
The ID cards “[moves] our city in a just, in an equitable and in a healthy direction,” said Richmond Councilwoman Jovanka Beckles, sponsor of the ordinance. (The Bay Citizen, July 6, 2011) “This is a way to empower that segment of our community that might not feel empowered.” (Id.) Richmond Mayor Gayle McLaughlin also spoke in support of the ordinance and called for comprehensive immigration reform: “Of course we want to see a comprehensive and humane immigration reform policy … but in the meantime, while that seems to be stalled at the national level, we think municipal ID is really a step in the right direction.” (ABC7 News, July 6, 2011) True immigration reformers, on the other hand, are speaking out against the ordinance. “If this ordinance passes, it will encourage higher illegal immigration and therefore would put more pressure on Richmond schools and other infrastructure and therefore on the city's budget. And Richmond is pretty much broke,” said Yeh Ling-Ling, Executive Director of the Alliance for a Sustainable USA. (Id.)
Richmond, a sanctuary city, must still approve a second round of votes on the ordinance (scheduled to take place in two weeks) before it can take effect. (Id.) If the City Council approves the ordinance, Richmond will join several other cities in California’s Bay Area, such as San Francisco and Oakland, in issuing the municipal ID cards to illegal aliens. (Id.) Three New Jersey cities, Princeton, Trenton, and Asbury Park, as well as New Haven, Connecticut, also have municipal or community-based ID programs used by their city governments. (New York Times, May 16, 2010)
Congressmen Smith and Aderholt Encourage Napolitano to Enforce the Law
In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano last week, Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX) and Representative Robert Aderholt (R-AL) expressed concern over the Obama Administration using its executive authority to ‘circumvent’ Congress’ authority over U.S. immigration policy. As such, the Congressmen wrote to urge the Secretary to stop any actions being taken by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that would prevent immigration laws from being fully enforced.
The Congressmen referenced a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) memo circulated last year by top USCIS officials, recommending liberal use of deferred action and parole authority. An additional ‘seemingly-authentic draft DHS memo’ retained by the House Judiciary Committee further revealed an internal proposal to grant deferred action to the “entire potential legalization population,” as well as to illegal aliens who would have been eligible for legalization under the failed DREAM Act. The Congressmen’s letter points out that since DHS can grant work authorization to illegal aliens who have been granted deferred action, it is essentially a grant of legalization.
Representatives Smith and Aderholt also brought attention to the more recent memos issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton. (See FAIR Legislative Update, June 27, 2011) The Director’s memos reiterated to ICE personnel the availability of prosecutorial discretion. The Congressmen called the memos a “grossly irresponsible expansion of the use of prosecutorial discretion for the apparent purpose of administrative amnesty.”
Furthermore, the Congressmen reminded Secretary Napolitano that the Constitution grants Congress alone the authority to dictate immigration policy. And while DHS has argued that its limited resources have resulted in the Department’s disregard of immigration laws, the Congressmen pointed out that Congress has consistently provided above and beyond the budget requests of ICE since its creation. Both Congressman Smith and Aderholt strongly encouraged DHS to ensure the men and women of its agencies have the encouragement and support of its officials to rigorously enforce immigration laws.
A Nation In Distress
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Quartzite, Arizona: Interesting Happenings
From Comittee of Safety Digest:
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:55:56 -0700
From: "Gary Hunt"
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Quartzsite, Arizona -- Interesting
happenings
To:
Message-ID: <003f01cc4015$5007ef90$f017ceb0$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Shades of Worchester, Massachusetts, 774 (see The End of the Revolution
and the Beginning of Independence
)
They need a Committee of Safety.
from: http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/
SUNDAY 10 JULY 2011
It's true -- Quartzsite is officially in a State of Emergency. According
to most police, this would indicate that normal law is suspended.
What is not so clear is why this declaration was made on Sunday morning
-- nor why the situation has been veiled in secrecy and even untruth.
Following a meeting Sunday morning at which Jennifer Jones [The Desert
Freedom Press] reported
that she could hear enough of the meeting from outside the closed and
locked doors of the town hall gallery to know that attorney Martin
Brannan indicated that the town was in a state of emergency, Vice Mayor
Barbara Cowell reported to reporter Doug Guilford that there was no
emergency status. Their propaganda newspaper click HERE
, wasted no time in calling
everyone that reported this incident liars for alerting the public that
there had been just such an action taken.
Cowell subsequently refused to state what the meeting was about, and
later stated that she was confused about 'what the meeting was for.'
Perhaps I can shed some light on this issue.
The declaration of a state of emergency is a very serious undertaking.
Not only are laws temporarily suspended, so, too, are the rights of the
people. Until 1983, the declaration of martial law was all that was
typically implemented -- but even then only in situations of grave
danger. In other words, there was no real difference between declaring a
state of emergency and what was commonly referred to as 'martial law.'
Even now, the two must be interpreted according to what is transpiring
using what is intended to be accomplished as a guide. A law enforcement
official -- in this case Police Chief Jeff Gilbert -- can essentially
dictate during such a situation. Again: the rights of the people are
actually suspended.
Quartzsite is not in grave danger and to hold a special meeting to
address such a falsified threat and misrepresented level of danger is to
greatly over exaggerate what is transpiring here. Obviously, they wanted
to prevent the Mayor from having any authority -- but what else are they
trying to accomplish?
To so abuse whatever power by which such a state is declared is
indicative of very large problems indeed.
The right to declare a state of emergency is a state mandated right that
is held only by the elected Mayor of a municipality. [County situations
are governed by the reigning official there.]
Quartzsite, however, has attempted to suspend that right in order to
specifically prevent me from having any power whatsoever. This concerned
a question about water safety that happened when I was running for
office. Typical for Quartzsite, no officials were on duty -- or could
even be reached -- during that incident to properly respond. This story
is located here.
I and others were ultimately accused by these same two people -- town
manager Alexander Taft and police chief Jeff Gilbert -- of intentionally
attempting to create a panic in an effort to discredit me. There was
absolutely no foundation for such an accusation.
In the Arizona Independent story today, Gilbert is quoted as having said
that Jennifer Jones has been attempting to incite riots in the wake of
the video of her arrest during a Town Hall meeting becoming a sensation
on the Internet. The AZ Central story makes no mention whatsoever of the
QUARTZSITE10 [ten police officers representing 80% of the police force]
who have accused the Chief of Police with criminal activity -- while
providing over 200 pages of documentation to substantiate those claims.
There is, you see, a pattern of behavior here. They try to discredit
those that are exposing them -- and, more often than not, they use
entrapment to accomplish that goal.
If you muddy the water enough can the public be so confused they'll be
afraid to render a judgment?
While the Mayor's official duties were immediately restricted as I took
office in an unprecedented incident in which the 'acting Mayor' Wes
Huntley refused to vacate the Mayor's seat [while being booed by a large
audience of people] until most of the duties and responsibilities of the
Mayor's office were effectively rescinded by votes of the sitting
council, I was finally sworn in.
I was then not allowed my badge for an extended period of time and was
never allowed to utilize the Mayor's office at the Town Hall facility.
When I attempted to speak to Alexandra Taft at her office at Town Hall,
I was met by an angry Joe Winslow [now infamous in the Quartzsite video
in which he similarly attacks Jennifer 'Jade' Jones.]
Winslow charged towards me yelling, "You get the hell out of here --
you're not wanted here!"
This is a pattern of behavior with them. The council people are all hand
picked. They are the 'easily controlled. The gentleman orchestrating
all of this has bragged that he handpicked each of them -- including
Taft. His name is Dan Field and he now works at the county after people
in Quartzsite were demanding his ouster from here.
This council would never continue hiding these books in the wake of all
of this media attention and public outcry if there were not damning
evidence in those books.
Taft and her relative, the newly appointed 'Assistant Town Manager' Al
Johnson, have been accused of removing books from the Town Hall while
the Town Clerk was on vacation. They are hiding what they know will
prove the case against them -- a pattern of deceit.
I fully expect these people to continue their illegal activities in the
wake of the national media attention they are now receiving.
We will continue to expose these acts and report their illegal meetings,
demanding accountability and an independent audit of the financial
records to determine the extent of the crimes in committed in
Quartzsite.
Unwarranted accusations and attempts to confuse the issues will not be
useful to them in their plight.
They're still going to have to open the books and they're going to be
exposed, no matter how many crises they attempt to manufacture in an
effort to avoid disclosure.
And there's one significant difference now --
The world is
watching.
I'm Ed Foster, Mayor
Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
An American, without apology;
and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I
would rather be alive.
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:55:56 -0700
From: "Gary Hunt"
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Quartzsite, Arizona -- Interesting
happenings
To:
Message-ID: <003f01cc4015$5007ef90$f017ceb0$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Shades of Worchester, Massachusetts, 774 (see The End of the Revolution
and the Beginning of Independence
They need a Committee of Safety.
from: http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/
SUNDAY 10 JULY 2011
It's true -- Quartzsite is officially in a State of Emergency. According
to most police, this would indicate that normal law is suspended.
What is not so clear is why this declaration was made on Sunday morning
-- nor why the situation has been veiled in secrecy and even untruth.
Following a meeting Sunday morning at which Jennifer Jones [The Desert
Freedom Press
that she could hear enough of the meeting from outside the closed and
locked doors of the town hall gallery to know that attorney Martin
Brannan indicated that the town was in a state of emergency, Vice Mayor
Barbara Cowell reported to reporter Doug Guilford that there was no
emergency status. Their propaganda newspaper click HERE
everyone that reported this incident liars for alerting the public that
there had been just such an action taken.
Cowell subsequently refused to state what the meeting was about, and
later stated that she was confused about 'what the meeting was for.'
Perhaps I can shed some light on this issue.
The declaration of a state of emergency is a very serious undertaking.
Not only are laws temporarily suspended, so, too, are the rights of the
people. Until 1983, the declaration of martial law was all that was
typically implemented -- but even then only in situations of grave
danger. In other words, there was no real difference between declaring a
state of emergency and what was commonly referred to as 'martial law.'
Even now, the two must be interpreted according to what is transpiring
using what is intended to be accomplished as a guide. A law enforcement
official -- in this case Police Chief Jeff Gilbert -- can essentially
dictate during such a situation. Again: the rights of the people are
actually suspended.
Quartzsite is not in grave danger and to hold a special meeting to
address such a falsified threat and misrepresented level of danger is to
greatly over exaggerate what is transpiring here. Obviously, they wanted
to prevent the Mayor from having any authority -- but what else are they
trying to accomplish?
To so abuse whatever power by which such a state is declared is
indicative of very large problems indeed.
The right to declare a state of emergency is a state mandated right that
is held only by the elected Mayor of a municipality. [County situations
are governed by the reigning official there.]
Quartzsite, however, has attempted to suspend that right in order to
specifically prevent me from having any power whatsoever. This concerned
a question about water safety that happened when I was running for
office. Typical for Quartzsite, no officials were on duty -- or could
even be reached -- during that incident to properly respond. This story
is located here
I and others were ultimately accused by these same two people -- town
manager Alexander Taft and police chief Jeff Gilbert -- of intentionally
attempting to create a panic in an effort to discredit me. There was
absolutely no foundation for such an accusation.
In the Arizona Independent story today, Gilbert is quoted as having said
that Jennifer Jones has been attempting to incite riots in the wake of
the video of her arrest during a Town Hall meeting becoming a sensation
on the Internet. The AZ Central story makes no mention whatsoever of the
QUARTZSITE10 [ten police officers representing 80% of the police force]
who have accused the Chief of Police with criminal activity -- while
providing over 200 pages of documentation to substantiate those claims.
There is, you see, a pattern of behavior here. They try to discredit
those that are exposing them -- and, more often than not, they use
entrapment to accomplish that goal.
If you muddy the water enough can the public be so confused they'll be
afraid to render a judgment?
While the Mayor's official duties were immediately restricted as I took
office in an unprecedented incident in which the 'acting Mayor' Wes
Huntley refused to vacate the Mayor's seat [while being booed by a large
audience of people] until most of the duties and responsibilities of the
Mayor's office were effectively rescinded by votes of the sitting
council, I was finally sworn in.
I was then not allowed my badge for an extended period of time and was
never allowed to utilize the Mayor's office at the Town Hall facility.
When I attempted to speak to Alexandra Taft at her office at Town Hall,
I was met by an angry Joe Winslow [now infamous in the Quartzsite video
in which he similarly attacks Jennifer 'Jade' Jones.]
Winslow charged towards me yelling, "You get the hell out of here --
you're not wanted here!"
This is a pattern of behavior with them. The council people are all hand
picked. They are the 'easily controlled. The gentleman orchestrating
all of this has bragged that he handpicked each of them -- including
Taft. His name is Dan Field and he now works at the county after people
in Quartzsite were demanding his ouster from here.
This council would never continue hiding these books in the wake of all
of this media attention and public outcry if there were not damning
evidence in those books.
Taft and her relative, the newly appointed 'Assistant Town Manager' Al
Johnson, have been accused of removing books from the Town Hall while
the Town Clerk was on vacation. They are hiding what they know will
prove the case against them -- a pattern of deceit.
I fully expect these people to continue their illegal activities in the
wake of the national media attention they are now receiving.
We will continue to expose these acts and report their illegal meetings,
demanding accountability and an independent audit of the financial
records to determine the extent of the crimes in committed in
Quartzsite.
Unwarranted accusations and attempts to confuse the issues will not be
useful to them in their plight.
They're still going to have to open the books and they're going to be
exposed, no matter how many crises they attempt to manufacture in an
effort to avoid disclosure.
And there's one significant difference now --
The world is
watching.
I'm Ed Foster, Mayor
Gary Hunt
An American, without apology;
and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I
would rather be alive.
Illegal City Council Meeting In Quartzite, Arizona
From Committee of Safety Digest:
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:42:40 -0700
From: "Gary Hunt"
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Illegal City Council meeting in
Quartzsite, Arizona
To:
Message-ID: <00be01cc4056$87593f80$960bbe80$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, Arizona
Gary Hunt,
Outpost of Freedom
July 11, 2011
[Note: There have been many rumors flying around about the request for
Mayor Ed Foster's attendance at an illegal City Council meeting, on
Sunday, July 10, 2011. To assure that what is occurring in Quartzsite,
Arizona, doesn't get blown out of proportion with rumors, speculation
and falsehood, I contacted Mayer Foster, this afternoon, to make sure
that the truth does come out, and unfounded rumors return to whence they
came.. GH]
Mayor Ed Foster, of Quartzsite, Arizona, was invited to a meeting. He
chose to go to that meeting and felt that there was no duress involved
in making him attend.
When he arrived at the City Council chambers, he was standing just
inside of the doorway when he heard the door shut and the lock click. A
photographer who had wanted to attend the meeting was barred by that
action.
Dozens of City residents held their ears to the door in an effort to
hear what was transpiring in this meeting that the Mayor described as an
illegal meeting, meeting only the quorum criteria, under state law, for
a meeting. No prior notice; closed meeting; no agenda -- all of the
normal requisites for openness in government have been dispensed with.
The results of the meeting, under the watchful eye of the City Manager
and Chief of Police, was that those two appointed entities have
superseded the elected officials (people's choice), and placed the Chief
of Police in charge of the town, as an emergency measure.
The nature of the emergency is said to be fear, based upon threats
received by various members of the Council, City employees and
officials. When asked if any of the threats came from Quartzsite
citizens, the answer was that the threats were coming from all over the
country, and from other countries. There were, apparently, no threats at
all received from any locals people.
Why, then, does the emergency warrant a change in City government from
elected officials to appointed, and, presumably, unable to be recalled,
only fired. But, then, if they are in charge, who can fire them?
The attention that the recent incident involving the 'arrest" of
Jennifer Jones has become viral. It appears that the politicians in the
capitol, Phoenix, in both the Governor's and the State attorney's
offices are beginning to listen to what they had refused to acknowledge,
in the past. This mat also by true of the La Paz County Sheriff, who has
sent officers to Quartzsite, with instructions to not get involved.
Now, if we are, truly, a nation of self-governed people, then it
behooves the rest of us to understand that if it can happen in
Quartzsite, it can happen where you are -- just as those in Virginia
realized that what was happening in Massachusetts could also happen to
them, 236 years ago.
So, in light of the Founder's willingness to participate in support of
others who found themselves under the yoke of despotic government, lend
what you can by calling, or, at least, emailing, those involved in this
charade of government tyranny.
(for some information regarding the recent activity, see
http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/)
Government officials with the capacity to support the citizens of
Quartzsite - Ask them to aid Mayor Foster:
Governor Jan Brewer: (602) 542-4331
online email
link:http://www.azgovernor.gov/EmailPage.asp?link=http://www.azgovernor.
gov/Contact.asp
Contact.asp&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550>
&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550
State Attorney General: Tom Horne (602) 542-5025 -- Media Contact for
SAG: amy.rezzonico@azag.gov
Also, Open Meeting Law Complaint Form
If you feel you have
been the victim of or have information of Violations of the Open Meeting
Law please file a complaint
with our office.
La Paz County Sheriff , Don Lowery: (928) 669-6141 email:
mailto:dlowery@lapazsheriff.org
* * * *
Bad guys - let them know what you think:
Chief of Police, Jeff Gilbert: (928) 927-3889
City Manager, : Alex Taft: (928) 927-3889
Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
An American, without apology;
and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I
would rather be alive.
And this, related, also from Committee of Safety:
From: hunt@outpost-of-freedom.com
To: committeeofsafety@oneamericanpatriot.com
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:42:40 -0700
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, Arizona
Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, ArizonaGary Hunt,
Outpost of Freedom
July 11, 2011[Note: There have been many rumors flying around about the request for Mayor Ed Foster's attendance at an illegal City Council meeting, on Sunday, July 10, 2011. To assure that what is occurring in Quartzsite, Arizona, doesn't get blown out of proportion with rumors, speculation and falsehood, I contacted Mayer Foster, this afternoon, to make sure that the truth does come out, and unfounded rumors return to whence they came.. GH]Mayor Ed Foster, of Quartzsite, Arizona, was invited to a meeting. He chose to go to that meeting and felt that there was no duress involved in making him attend. When he arrived at the City Council chambers, he was standing just inside of the doorway when he heard the door shut and the lock click. A photographer who had wanted to attend the meeting was barred by that action.Dozens of City residents held their ears to the door in an effort to hear what was transpiring in this meeting that the Mayor described as an illegal meeting, meeting only the quorum criteria, under state law, for a meeting. No prior notice; closed meeting; no agenda -- all of the normal requisites for openness in government have been dispensed with.The results of the meeting, under the watchful eye of the City Manager and Chief of Police, was that those two appointed entities have superseded the elected officials (people's choice), and placed the Chief of Police in charge of the town, as an emergency measure. The nature of the emergency is said to be fear, based upon threats received by various members of the Council, City employees and officials. When asked if any of the threats came from Quartzsite citizens, the answer was that the threats were coming from all over the country, and from other countries. There were, apparently, no threats at all received from any locals people.Why, then, does the emergency warrant a change in City government from elected officials to appointed, and, presumably, unable to be recalled, only fired. But, then, if they are in charge, who can fire them?The attention that the recent incident involving the 'arrest" of Jennifer Jones has become viral. It appears that the politicians in the capitol, Phoenix, in both the Governor's and the State attorney's offices are beginning to listen to what they had refused to acknowledge, in the past. This mat also by true of the La Paz County Sheriff, who has sent officers to Quartzsite, with instructions to not get involved.Now, if we are, truly, a nation of self-governed people, then it behooves the rest of us to understand that if it can happen in Quartzsite, it can happen where you are -- just as those in Virginia realized that what was happening in Massachusetts could also happen to them, 236 years ago.So, in light of the Founder's willingness to participate in support of others who found themselves under the yoke of despotic government, lend what you can by calling, or, at least, emailing, those involved in this charade of government tyranny.(for some information regarding the recent activity, see http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/)Government officials with the capacity to support the citizens of Quartzsite - Ask them to aid Mayor Foster:Governor Jan Brewer: (602) 542-4331
online email link:http://www.azgovernor.gov/EmailPage.asp?link=http://www.azgovernor.gov/Contact.asp&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550State Attorney General: Tom Horne (602) 542-5025 -- Media Contact for SAG: amy.rezzonico@azag.gov
Also, Open Meeting Law Complaint Form If you feel you have been the victim of or have information of Violations of the Open Meeting Law please file a complaint with our office.La Paz County Sheriff , Don Lowery: (928) 669-6141 email: mailto:dlowery@lapazsheriff.org* * * *Bad guys - let them know what you think:Chief of Police, Jeff Gilbert: (928) 927-3889City Manager, : Alex Taft: (928) 927-3889 Gary Hunt
Outpost of FreedomAn American, without apology; and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I would rather be alive.
_______________________________________________
CommitteeOfSafety mailing list
CommitteeOfSafety@oneamericanpatriot.com
http://lists.oneamericanpatriot.com/mailman/listinfo/committeeofsafety
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:42:40 -0700
From: "Gary Hunt"
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Illegal City Council meeting in
Quartzsite, Arizona
To:
Message-ID: <00be01cc4056$87593f80$960bbe80$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, Arizona
Gary Hunt,
Outpost of Freedom
July 11, 2011
[Note: There have been many rumors flying around about the request for
Mayor Ed Foster's attendance at an illegal City Council meeting, on
Sunday, July 10, 2011. To assure that what is occurring in Quartzsite,
Arizona, doesn't get blown out of proportion with rumors, speculation
and falsehood, I contacted Mayer Foster, this afternoon, to make sure
that the truth does come out, and unfounded rumors return to whence they
came.. GH]
Mayor Ed Foster, of Quartzsite, Arizona, was invited to a meeting. He
chose to go to that meeting and felt that there was no duress involved
in making him attend.
When he arrived at the City Council chambers, he was standing just
inside of the doorway when he heard the door shut and the lock click. A
photographer who had wanted to attend the meeting was barred by that
action.
Dozens of City residents held their ears to the door in an effort to
hear what was transpiring in this meeting that the Mayor described as an
illegal meeting, meeting only the quorum criteria, under state law, for
a meeting. No prior notice; closed meeting; no agenda -- all of the
normal requisites for openness in government have been dispensed with.
The results of the meeting, under the watchful eye of the City Manager
and Chief of Police, was that those two appointed entities have
superseded the elected officials (people's choice), and placed the Chief
of Police in charge of the town, as an emergency measure.
The nature of the emergency is said to be fear, based upon threats
received by various members of the Council, City employees and
officials. When asked if any of the threats came from Quartzsite
citizens, the answer was that the threats were coming from all over the
country, and from other countries. There were, apparently, no threats at
all received from any locals people.
Why, then, does the emergency warrant a change in City government from
elected officials to appointed, and, presumably, unable to be recalled,
only fired. But, then, if they are in charge, who can fire them?
The attention that the recent incident involving the 'arrest" of
Jennifer Jones has become viral. It appears that the politicians in the
capitol, Phoenix, in both the Governor's and the State attorney's
offices are beginning to listen to what they had refused to acknowledge,
in the past. This mat also by true of the La Paz County Sheriff, who has
sent officers to Quartzsite, with instructions to not get involved.
Now, if we are, truly, a nation of self-governed people, then it
behooves the rest of us to understand that if it can happen in
Quartzsite, it can happen where you are -- just as those in Virginia
realized that what was happening in Massachusetts could also happen to
them, 236 years ago.
So, in light of the Founder's willingness to participate in support of
others who found themselves under the yoke of despotic government, lend
what you can by calling, or, at least, emailing, those involved in this
charade of government tyranny.
(for some information regarding the recent activity, see
http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/)
Government officials with the capacity to support the citizens of
Quartzsite - Ask them to aid Mayor Foster:
Governor Jan Brewer: (602) 542-4331
online email
link:http://www.azgovernor.gov/EmailPage.asp?link=http://www.azgovernor.
gov/Contact.asp
Contact.asp&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550>
&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550
State Attorney General: Tom Horne (602) 542-5025 -- Media Contact for
SAG: amy.rezzonico@azag.gov
Also, Open Meeting Law Complaint Form
been the victim of or have information of Violations of the Open Meeting
Law please file a complaint
La Paz County Sheriff , Don Lowery: (928) 669-6141 email:
mailto:dlowery@lapazsheriff.org
* * * *
Bad guys - let them know what you think:
Chief of Police, Jeff Gilbert: (928) 927-3889
City Manager, : Alex Taft: (928) 927-3889
Gary Hunt
An American, without apology;
and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I
would rather be alive.
And this, related, also from Committee of Safety:
From: hunt@outpost-of-freedom.com
To: committeeofsafety@oneamericanpatriot.com
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:42:40 -0700
Subject: [Committees of Safety] Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, Arizona
Illegal City Council meeting in Quartzsite, ArizonaGary Hunt,
Outpost of Freedom
July 11, 2011[Note: There have been many rumors flying around about the request for Mayor Ed Foster's attendance at an illegal City Council meeting, on Sunday, July 10, 2011. To assure that what is occurring in Quartzsite, Arizona, doesn't get blown out of proportion with rumors, speculation and falsehood, I contacted Mayer Foster, this afternoon, to make sure that the truth does come out, and unfounded rumors return to whence they came.. GH]Mayor Ed Foster, of Quartzsite, Arizona, was invited to a meeting. He chose to go to that meeting and felt that there was no duress involved in making him attend. When he arrived at the City Council chambers, he was standing just inside of the doorway when he heard the door shut and the lock click. A photographer who had wanted to attend the meeting was barred by that action.Dozens of City residents held their ears to the door in an effort to hear what was transpiring in this meeting that the Mayor described as an illegal meeting, meeting only the quorum criteria, under state law, for a meeting. No prior notice; closed meeting; no agenda -- all of the normal requisites for openness in government have been dispensed with.The results of the meeting, under the watchful eye of the City Manager and Chief of Police, was that those two appointed entities have superseded the elected officials (people's choice), and placed the Chief of Police in charge of the town, as an emergency measure. The nature of the emergency is said to be fear, based upon threats received by various members of the Council, City employees and officials. When asked if any of the threats came from Quartzsite citizens, the answer was that the threats were coming from all over the country, and from other countries. There were, apparently, no threats at all received from any locals people.Why, then, does the emergency warrant a change in City government from elected officials to appointed, and, presumably, unable to be recalled, only fired. But, then, if they are in charge, who can fire them?The attention that the recent incident involving the 'arrest" of Jennifer Jones has become viral. It appears that the politicians in the capitol, Phoenix, in both the Governor's and the State attorney's offices are beginning to listen to what they had refused to acknowledge, in the past. This mat also by true of the La Paz County Sheriff, who has sent officers to Quartzsite, with instructions to not get involved.Now, if we are, truly, a nation of self-governed people, then it behooves the rest of us to understand that if it can happen in Quartzsite, it can happen where you are -- just as those in Virginia realized that what was happening in Massachusetts could also happen to them, 236 years ago.So, in light of the Founder's willingness to participate in support of others who found themselves under the yoke of despotic government, lend what you can by calling, or, at least, emailing, those involved in this charade of government tyranny.(for some information regarding the recent activity, see http://www.quartzsitemineshaft.com/)Government officials with the capacity to support the citizens of Quartzsite - Ask them to aid Mayor Foster:Governor Jan Brewer: (602) 542-4331
online email link:http://www.azgovernor.gov/EmailPage.asp?link=http://www.azgovernor.gov/Contact.asp&keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=450&width=550State Attorney General: Tom Horne (602) 542-5025 -- Media Contact for SAG: amy.rezzonico@azag.gov
Also, Open Meeting Law Complaint Form If you feel you have been the victim of or have information of Violations of the Open Meeting Law please file a complaint with our office.La Paz County Sheriff , Don Lowery: (928) 669-6141 email: mailto:dlowery@lapazsheriff.org* * * *Bad guys - let them know what you think:Chief of Police, Jeff Gilbert: (928) 927-3889City Manager, : Alex Taft: (928) 927-3889 Gary Hunt
Outpost of FreedomAn American, without apology; and one who can think of no other time and place, in history, that I would rather be alive.
_______________________________________________
CommitteeOfSafety mailing list
CommitteeOfSafety@oneamericanpatriot.com
http://lists.oneamericanpatriot.com/mailman/listinfo/committeeofsafety
Quartzite Police Officers Refuse To Follow Unlawful Orders. Read Their Official Letter
From Oathkeepers:
July 12th, 2011
Quartzsite Police Officers Refuse to Follow Unlawful Orders. Read Their Official Letter
35
NOTE FROM STEWART:
Full disclosure -- I am now the official legal counsel for both Jennifer Jones and for Ed Foster, the Mayor of Quartzsite, Arizona, regarding all of the many well documented abuses of their civil rights, and in particular, their First Amendment protected rights of free speech, assembly, as well as their rights to take part in the political process, by the Quartzsite Chief of Police and Town Council. This is in my individual capacity as a lawyer, not as the President of Oath Keepers. I want to make that clear. But I do see this as part of my responsibility to keep my oath, and in particular the oath I swore as a lawyer, to defend the Constitution. Sometimes the law can indeed be used as a sword of justice, so please wish me luck in helping them hold the town council and the Chief of Police accountable!
For the Republic,
Stewart Rhodes
Oath Keepers -- You may have heard about the situation in Quartzsite, Arizona. The town council and the Police Chief there are now in full spin mode in reaction to national media attention being focused on their well documented pattern of silencing political opponents by means of intimidation and false arrest, including at public meetings. Now they are claiming that there is an “emergency” which requires them to cancel normally scheduled and open public meetings, by claiming that they are in danger -- claiming they have received threats.
An easy way to cut through all the spin is to read the written report submitted by ten of the police officers in the Quartzsite Police Department, expressing their vote of no confidence in the Chief of Police, and requesting an independent investigation of misconduct by the Chief. Their letter lays out many violations of the law and of the rights of the people. This is from the men and women who work in that department, who feel compelled to step up and speak out, at risk of their jobs. These officers are a stellar example of what all police should be doing when unconstitutional behavior happens in their departments, and they are keeping their oaths. Our hats are off to them! The whole document is worth reading, but the following quotes are particularly valuable in understanding what is going on there:
From page 4 of the document:
We feel It Is our duty to inform the citizens of this community and the rest of the public, that we do not stand behind Chief Gilbert, or condone any of his criminal actions, nor will we jeopardize our own careers by following orders we know are unconstitutional, or by not reporting his criminal behavior. As it is apparent to us that a vote of No Confidence In Chief Gilbert is not enough to ask for his resignation with cause, we feel that notifying your constituents of the kind of man and Officer that is being allowed to run the Quartzsite Police Department is the only avenue left to convince you to start an honest investigation into a serious matter. [emphasis added]
Quote taken from page 7 of the document
Over the last two years the problems have continually got worse. Chief Jeff Gilbert is fixated on the politics in this town. He is personally involved in them and all his time and attention is directed towards political gain to benefit of himself. He is obviously biased towards certain council members and is against and outspoken to other candidates and council members. He runs license plates just to find out names of people whose vehicles are parked at businesses/residences of people he doesn’t like. Not for an investigation, but to gain personal Information about people for his political benefit. He runs criminal history reports through NClC to try to find “dirt” on candidates or citizens supporting the candidates he does not like. Our policy clearly states that we are not to get involved in politics and must remain unbiased at all times. He orders officers to pull over and arrest/cite violations of citizens he feels are against him or he doesn’t like. Not because they have committed a violation that he wants enforced equally, but because it is someone he doesn’t like. Clearly this is a misuse of his power. He will target officers and go after them if he feels they are going against him. Candidates, supporters of him or friends can be in the same violation, even have outstanding valid warrants and officers are told to leave them alone. He caused the firing of the town prosecuting attorney because Chief Jeff Gilbert felt the Town Attorney would not follow through on or file ridicules charges against people involved In a certain political group, he practices selective enforcement in the community against people who do not like him, agree with him, or may go against him. He also directs the officers to do the same. This selective enforcement by Chief Jeff Gilbert can influence decision and can initiate negative actions with highly negative results; this practice can also leave the Qualtzsite Police Department employees and the City of Quartzsite open to accusations and lawsuits and liability. This also gives Law Enforcement, as a whole, a bad Image.
Additionally, Chief Jeff Gilbert has made it clear that he does not have the time to be involved in the daily operations of this department. His attention is diverted to his involvement in politics. He is not involved with the department and is hardly ever present. He takes no interest to those he commands. It is perceived that Chief Jeff Gilbert is oblivious to the decisions, actions and day to day operations of the department, unless it involves politics or someone involved in politics. [emphasis added]
….
In closing, we would like to remind you that we are not troublemakers, malcontents or disgruntled employees. We are employees of the Quartzsite Police Department, who have given our hearts and souls to serve the citizens of Quartzsite. Our dedication to the citizens of Quartzsite and the other employees of the Quartzsite Police Department gives us the courage to write this very difficult letter. Our agenda is strictly based in the well-being of the Quartzsite Police Department, and Town of Quartzsite so we may provide the greatest level of service to the much deserving members of this community.
Quarlzsite Police Officers Association Letter regarding Police Chief
We salute these officers for their courageous stand. They serve as an excellent example of what needs to happen all across this nation, and they serve as an example of the truth that there are good police officers out there. We Oath Keepers already know that, since we have many great officers within this organization, but the stand by these ten fine Arizona peace officers now serves as a clear example for the whole nation to see.
For those who are not up to speed on this situation in Quartzsite, here is the video that sparked national attention. In this video, a local activist and alternative media journalist, Jennifer Jones, is arrested at a town council meeting during a Call to the Public (open public comment time) for no apparent reason other than the city council members not liking the content of her speech. The council members order the Police Chief to arrest Mrs. Jones over the objections of the Mayor, Ed Foster, who stated “the lady has the floor. She’s exercising her First Amendment rights …. You are in violation of my rules of order.” She was arrested anyway:
Jennifer Jones has, in fact, been arrested three times by the Chief of Police, in similar incidents. And the Mayor of the town, Ed Foster, has also been arrested twice by the Chief of Police, simply for speaking his mind and expressing his official opposition to the Chief’s actions. Quartzsite, Arizona is now ground zero in the fight for free speech, the right to peaceably assemble and petition government for a redress of grievances, and the fight against abuse of power and corruption in local government. Stay tuned! -- Oath Keepers
ADDITIONAL NOTE FROM STEWART:
Both Jennifer Jones and Mayor Foster (a Marine veteran) should be commended for their courage, as should the officers who are standing up against their own Chief of Police. What is most disturbing is that this is simply a particularly visible example of the kind of corruption that is absolutely pervasive across the country. I have seen it over, and over, all across America, whether it be GOP central committees (and the Dems are the same, but I don’t go to those), city councils, county commissioners, police chiefs, sheriffs, judges, legislators, you name it, it is the same, with few exceptions -- the rule of men, rather than the rule of law (the Constitution), and a sense of entitlement to rule that will use any and all dirty tricks against anyone who stands up to them. What I have seen down at the local level is every bit as corrupt and totalitarian minded as anything that comes out of the US Congress or the White House. Just petty little tin-hat versions.
It’s enough to make a person just throw up their hands and give up. But, the answer is that we need to take our city halls, our county buildings, our local courts, our police departments, and our Sheriff Department BACK and kick out the corrupt career political hacks. The same goes for your local political party. Take it back. That is where the real battle ground is, right there in your home town and country, rather than Congress.
There are a few notable exceptions to this pattern, such as Sheriff Mark Gower, and Sheriff Palmer of Grant County Oregon (as Sheriff Mack noted in his article on our main site) and we should not forget that. But we also need to see clearly how bad it really is. Nearly every single community suffers from willful, corrupt politicians who care not a whit for the rights of the people or for the Constitution, caring only for their own naked power. They are oath breakers who should be seen as a cancer on the body politic, and rooted out before they kill the host.
The exceptions show us what is possible. The rule shows us what must be corrected. The politicos have been left alone to run things so long they begin to have the delusion that they are above us, as a superior class of rulers. It’s time to wake them up with a bucket of cold reality and kick the bums out.
The people of Quartzsite are showing what needs to be done everywhere in the United States. Remember how the polticians freaked when us commoners called them on the carpet at town hall meetings across the country in 2009? Well, that hasn’t stopped. People are finally waking up to their responsibility to go to those meetings and actually participate, to keep an eye not just on their Congresscritters, but also on their local politicians. And the politicos don’t like it, hence reactions like we see in Quartzsite.
We need to kick out the career and patronage good ol boy networks that act like petty organized crime families and replace them with average folks who have not intent to stay in there for life. Run, serve a term or two, and get out! Let some other patriotic civic minded citizen take their turn, serve a term or two, and get out. Rinse and repeat.
We are heading for some seriously hard times, and the character, constitutional knowledge, and courage of those in local office will be pivotal in whether we slide into tyranny or see a renaissance of liberty rise up from the ashes of the coming hard times. We will see hard and dangerous times. It is coming. But how we handle it, and whether we come out the other end free, will depend on what we do right now, and that includes most especially who we put into positions of leadership at the town and county level.
Look what one good, principled, knowledgeable, brave Sheriff can do, such as Sheriff Palmer of Grant County Oregon, and imagine what we could do if we had more men like that, or MORE PEOPLE LIKE YOU, OR YOU YOURSELF, in office.
If we all sweep our own political “porch” clean, the whole nation will be swept clean, from the bottom up.
For the Republic,
Stewart Rhodes
July 12th, 2011
Quartzsite Police Officers Refuse to Follow Unlawful Orders. Read Their Official Letter
35
NOTE FROM STEWART:
Full disclosure -- I am now the official legal counsel for both Jennifer Jones and for Ed Foster, the Mayor of Quartzsite, Arizona, regarding all of the many well documented abuses of their civil rights, and in particular, their First Amendment protected rights of free speech, assembly, as well as their rights to take part in the political process, by the Quartzsite Chief of Police and Town Council. This is in my individual capacity as a lawyer, not as the President of Oath Keepers. I want to make that clear. But I do see this as part of my responsibility to keep my oath, and in particular the oath I swore as a lawyer, to defend the Constitution. Sometimes the law can indeed be used as a sword of justice, so please wish me luck in helping them hold the town council and the Chief of Police accountable!
For the Republic,
Stewart Rhodes
Oath Keepers -- You may have heard about the situation in Quartzsite, Arizona. The town council and the Police Chief there are now in full spin mode in reaction to national media attention being focused on their well documented pattern of silencing political opponents by means of intimidation and false arrest, including at public meetings. Now they are claiming that there is an “emergency” which requires them to cancel normally scheduled and open public meetings, by claiming that they are in danger -- claiming they have received threats.
An easy way to cut through all the spin is to read the written report submitted by ten of the police officers in the Quartzsite Police Department, expressing their vote of no confidence in the Chief of Police, and requesting an independent investigation of misconduct by the Chief. Their letter lays out many violations of the law and of the rights of the people. This is from the men and women who work in that department, who feel compelled to step up and speak out, at risk of their jobs. These officers are a stellar example of what all police should be doing when unconstitutional behavior happens in their departments, and they are keeping their oaths. Our hats are off to them! The whole document is worth reading, but the following quotes are particularly valuable in understanding what is going on there:
From page 4 of the document:
We feel It Is our duty to inform the citizens of this community and the rest of the public, that we do not stand behind Chief Gilbert, or condone any of his criminal actions, nor will we jeopardize our own careers by following orders we know are unconstitutional, or by not reporting his criminal behavior. As it is apparent to us that a vote of No Confidence In Chief Gilbert is not enough to ask for his resignation with cause, we feel that notifying your constituents of the kind of man and Officer that is being allowed to run the Quartzsite Police Department is the only avenue left to convince you to start an honest investigation into a serious matter. [emphasis added]
Quote taken from page 7 of the document
Over the last two years the problems have continually got worse. Chief Jeff Gilbert is fixated on the politics in this town. He is personally involved in them and all his time and attention is directed towards political gain to benefit of himself. He is obviously biased towards certain council members and is against and outspoken to other candidates and council members. He runs license plates just to find out names of people whose vehicles are parked at businesses/residences of people he doesn’t like. Not for an investigation, but to gain personal Information about people for his political benefit. He runs criminal history reports through NClC to try to find “dirt” on candidates or citizens supporting the candidates he does not like. Our policy clearly states that we are not to get involved in politics and must remain unbiased at all times. He orders officers to pull over and arrest/cite violations of citizens he feels are against him or he doesn’t like. Not because they have committed a violation that he wants enforced equally, but because it is someone he doesn’t like. Clearly this is a misuse of his power. He will target officers and go after them if he feels they are going against him. Candidates, supporters of him or friends can be in the same violation, even have outstanding valid warrants and officers are told to leave them alone. He caused the firing of the town prosecuting attorney because Chief Jeff Gilbert felt the Town Attorney would not follow through on or file ridicules charges against people involved In a certain political group, he practices selective enforcement in the community against people who do not like him, agree with him, or may go against him. He also directs the officers to do the same. This selective enforcement by Chief Jeff Gilbert can influence decision and can initiate negative actions with highly negative results; this practice can also leave the Qualtzsite Police Department employees and the City of Quartzsite open to accusations and lawsuits and liability. This also gives Law Enforcement, as a whole, a bad Image.
Additionally, Chief Jeff Gilbert has made it clear that he does not have the time to be involved in the daily operations of this department. His attention is diverted to his involvement in politics. He is not involved with the department and is hardly ever present. He takes no interest to those he commands. It is perceived that Chief Jeff Gilbert is oblivious to the decisions, actions and day to day operations of the department, unless it involves politics or someone involved in politics. [emphasis added]
….
In closing, we would like to remind you that we are not troublemakers, malcontents or disgruntled employees. We are employees of the Quartzsite Police Department, who have given our hearts and souls to serve the citizens of Quartzsite. Our dedication to the citizens of Quartzsite and the other employees of the Quartzsite Police Department gives us the courage to write this very difficult letter. Our agenda is strictly based in the well-being of the Quartzsite Police Department, and Town of Quartzsite so we may provide the greatest level of service to the much deserving members of this community.
Quarlzsite Police Officers Association Letter regarding Police Chief
We salute these officers for their courageous stand. They serve as an excellent example of what needs to happen all across this nation, and they serve as an example of the truth that there are good police officers out there. We Oath Keepers already know that, since we have many great officers within this organization, but the stand by these ten fine Arizona peace officers now serves as a clear example for the whole nation to see.
For those who are not up to speed on this situation in Quartzsite, here is the video that sparked national attention. In this video, a local activist and alternative media journalist, Jennifer Jones, is arrested at a town council meeting during a Call to the Public (open public comment time) for no apparent reason other than the city council members not liking the content of her speech. The council members order the Police Chief to arrest Mrs. Jones over the objections of the Mayor, Ed Foster, who stated “the lady has the floor. She’s exercising her First Amendment rights …. You are in violation of my rules of order.” She was arrested anyway:
Jennifer Jones has, in fact, been arrested three times by the Chief of Police, in similar incidents. And the Mayor of the town, Ed Foster, has also been arrested twice by the Chief of Police, simply for speaking his mind and expressing his official opposition to the Chief’s actions. Quartzsite, Arizona is now ground zero in the fight for free speech, the right to peaceably assemble and petition government for a redress of grievances, and the fight against abuse of power and corruption in local government. Stay tuned! -- Oath Keepers
ADDITIONAL NOTE FROM STEWART:
Both Jennifer Jones and Mayor Foster (a Marine veteran) should be commended for their courage, as should the officers who are standing up against their own Chief of Police. What is most disturbing is that this is simply a particularly visible example of the kind of corruption that is absolutely pervasive across the country. I have seen it over, and over, all across America, whether it be GOP central committees (and the Dems are the same, but I don’t go to those), city councils, county commissioners, police chiefs, sheriffs, judges, legislators, you name it, it is the same, with few exceptions -- the rule of men, rather than the rule of law (the Constitution), and a sense of entitlement to rule that will use any and all dirty tricks against anyone who stands up to them. What I have seen down at the local level is every bit as corrupt and totalitarian minded as anything that comes out of the US Congress or the White House. Just petty little tin-hat versions.
It’s enough to make a person just throw up their hands and give up. But, the answer is that we need to take our city halls, our county buildings, our local courts, our police departments, and our Sheriff Department BACK and kick out the corrupt career political hacks. The same goes for your local political party. Take it back. That is where the real battle ground is, right there in your home town and country, rather than Congress.
There are a few notable exceptions to this pattern, such as Sheriff Mark Gower, and Sheriff Palmer of Grant County Oregon (as Sheriff Mack noted in his article on our main site) and we should not forget that. But we also need to see clearly how bad it really is. Nearly every single community suffers from willful, corrupt politicians who care not a whit for the rights of the people or for the Constitution, caring only for their own naked power. They are oath breakers who should be seen as a cancer on the body politic, and rooted out before they kill the host.
The exceptions show us what is possible. The rule shows us what must be corrected. The politicos have been left alone to run things so long they begin to have the delusion that they are above us, as a superior class of rulers. It’s time to wake them up with a bucket of cold reality and kick the bums out.
The people of Quartzsite are showing what needs to be done everywhere in the United States. Remember how the polticians freaked when us commoners called them on the carpet at town hall meetings across the country in 2009? Well, that hasn’t stopped. People are finally waking up to their responsibility to go to those meetings and actually participate, to keep an eye not just on their Congresscritters, but also on their local politicians. And the politicos don’t like it, hence reactions like we see in Quartzsite.
We need to kick out the career and patronage good ol boy networks that act like petty organized crime families and replace them with average folks who have not intent to stay in there for life. Run, serve a term or two, and get out! Let some other patriotic civic minded citizen take their turn, serve a term or two, and get out. Rinse and repeat.
We are heading for some seriously hard times, and the character, constitutional knowledge, and courage of those in local office will be pivotal in whether we slide into tyranny or see a renaissance of liberty rise up from the ashes of the coming hard times. We will see hard and dangerous times. It is coming. But how we handle it, and whether we come out the other end free, will depend on what we do right now, and that includes most especially who we put into positions of leadership at the town and county level.
Look what one good, principled, knowledgeable, brave Sheriff can do, such as Sheriff Palmer of Grant County Oregon, and imagine what we could do if we had more men like that, or MORE PEOPLE LIKE YOU, OR YOU YOURSELF, in office.
If we all sweep our own political “porch” clean, the whole nation will be swept clean, from the bottom up.
For the Republic,
Stewart Rhodes
TSA: Six Year-Olds Thoroughly Searched, Stun Guns Let Through
From Jihad Watch:
TSA: Six-year-olds thoroughly searched, stun guns let through
America is safe from six-year-old boys, but what's the big deal about a stun gun or two aboard an airplane? It isn't as if any Islamic jihadists want to fly airplanes into tall buildings, right? If there even are any Islamic jihadists.
"Stun gun left in jet seat," by Daniel Edward Rosen in the New York Post, July 11:
A flight-crew member found a stun gun on a JetBlue plane that had just discharged its passengers at Newark Airport after a flight from Boston, a source told The Post last night.
The FBI was conducting an investigation Monday after the Striker 1800 stun gun was found Friday by a cleaning crew inside the back pocket of a seat on board Jet Blue flight 1179, myFOXny.com reported. The plane had just arrived from Boston and all passengers had disembarked....
Posted by Robert on July 11, 2011 6:02 AM
TSA: Six-year-olds thoroughly searched, stun guns let through
America is safe from six-year-old boys, but what's the big deal about a stun gun or two aboard an airplane? It isn't as if any Islamic jihadists want to fly airplanes into tall buildings, right? If there even are any Islamic jihadists.
"Stun gun left in jet seat," by Daniel Edward Rosen in the New York Post, July 11:
A flight-crew member found a stun gun on a JetBlue plane that had just discharged its passengers at Newark Airport after a flight from Boston, a source told The Post last night.
The FBI was conducting an investigation Monday after the Striker 1800 stun gun was found Friday by a cleaning crew inside the back pocket of a seat on board Jet Blue flight 1179, myFOXny.com reported. The plane had just arrived from Boston and all passengers had disembarked....
Posted by Robert on July 11, 2011 6:02 AM
Libertarians Call For Arrest Of TSA Agents
From Domas Jefferson, The Liberty Post:
Libertarians Call For Arrest Of TSA Agents
Monday, 04 July 2011 09:19
From The Libertarian Party of Florida:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 4, 2011
Libertarians Call On Florida Sheriffs To Arrest TSA Agents
PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA - In a strongly-worded email sent today to all of Florida's 67 county sheriffs, the Libertarian Party of Florida demanded the arrest of TSA agents for violations of the U.S. and Florida Constitutions, and accused TSA agents of committing sexual battery. The letter reads as follows:
Dear Sheriff,
On this day in 1776, our forebears founded this Nation by declaring their independence from an oppressive government. This beautiful and timeless document expressed the self-evident truth that all people have certain inalienable rights, upon which no government can infringe. They asserted that governments are formed among men to secure these rights, not to impede or restrict them.
The Libertarian Party of Florida is reaching out to you, and to all of Florida's 67 Constitutional Sheriffs. We, The People of the State of Florida must turn to you as our last line of defense against a federal government that is usurping authority and ignoring the rule of law.
I am referring specifically to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and their egregious violations of the United States Constitution, as well as the Florida Constitution and state law.
Every single day, TSA employees conduct electronic and bodily searches upon tens of thousands of Florida citizens and visitors at airports, and more recently at bus terminals, rail stations, and highways. They are searching the persons and seizing the effects of travelers without warrant or probable cause. Specifically, they are in blatant violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which reads as follows:
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
These TSA agents are also in clear violation of Article One, Section 12 of the Florida Constitution, which reads as follows:
"Searches and seizures.— The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, and against the unreasonable interception of private communications by any means, shall not be violated. No warrant shall be issued except upon probable cause, supported by affidavit, particularly describing the place or places to be searched, the person or persons, thing or things to be seized, the communication to be intercepted, and the nature of evidence to be obtained."
In addition, one of the methods by which the TSA agents conduct these searches, referred to as the "Enhanced Pat Down," is clearly within the definition of felony sexual battery, as codified in Florida Statute 794.011.
I would like to point out that this statute clearly defines that it is a first degree felony when sexual battery is committed by a law enforcement agent in paragraph 4(g), which reads:
"When the offender is a law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or correctional probation officer as defined by s. 943.10(1), (2), (3), (6), (7), (8), or (9), who is certified under the provisions of s. 943.1395 or is an elected official exempt from such certification by virtue of s. 943.253, or any other person in a position of control or authority in a probation, community control, controlled release, detention, custodial, or similar setting, and such officer, official, or person is acting in such a manner as to lead the victim to reasonably believe that the offender is in a position of control or authority as an agent or employee of government."
As Sheriff, you have the absolute duty to enforce the law uniformly and without prejudice. You are, at best, engaged in selective enforcement by choosing to further ignore these flagrant violations of federal and state law. At worst, you are complicit.
If you have TSA agents within your county that are violating the law, then you must act. Warn the TSA agents that they are subject to arrest if they continue to violate the law. Should they continue, then you must begin making arrests.
We urge you to remember the oath you took to support, protect and defend the Constitution of both the State of Florida and the United States of America. On behalf of all Floridians, the Libertarian Party of Florida calls on you to do exactly that.
We turn to you, our Constitutional Sheriffs, to enforce the law in accordance with your sworn duty.
Sincerely,
Adrian Wyllie, Chairman
View this entry with comments (registration required to post)
Libertarians Call For Arrest Of TSA Agents
Monday, 04 July 2011 09:19
From The Libertarian Party of Florida:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 4, 2011
Libertarians Call On Florida Sheriffs To Arrest TSA Agents
PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA - In a strongly-worded email sent today to all of Florida's 67 county sheriffs, the Libertarian Party of Florida demanded the arrest of TSA agents for violations of the U.S. and Florida Constitutions, and accused TSA agents of committing sexual battery. The letter reads as follows:
Dear Sheriff,
On this day in 1776, our forebears founded this Nation by declaring their independence from an oppressive government. This beautiful and timeless document expressed the self-evident truth that all people have certain inalienable rights, upon which no government can infringe. They asserted that governments are formed among men to secure these rights, not to impede or restrict them.
The Libertarian Party of Florida is reaching out to you, and to all of Florida's 67 Constitutional Sheriffs. We, The People of the State of Florida must turn to you as our last line of defense against a federal government that is usurping authority and ignoring the rule of law.
I am referring specifically to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and their egregious violations of the United States Constitution, as well as the Florida Constitution and state law.
Every single day, TSA employees conduct electronic and bodily searches upon tens of thousands of Florida citizens and visitors at airports, and more recently at bus terminals, rail stations, and highways. They are searching the persons and seizing the effects of travelers without warrant or probable cause. Specifically, they are in blatant violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which reads as follows:
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
These TSA agents are also in clear violation of Article One, Section 12 of the Florida Constitution, which reads as follows:
"Searches and seizures.— The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, and against the unreasonable interception of private communications by any means, shall not be violated. No warrant shall be issued except upon probable cause, supported by affidavit, particularly describing the place or places to be searched, the person or persons, thing or things to be seized, the communication to be intercepted, and the nature of evidence to be obtained."
In addition, one of the methods by which the TSA agents conduct these searches, referred to as the "Enhanced Pat Down," is clearly within the definition of felony sexual battery, as codified in Florida Statute 794.011.
I would like to point out that this statute clearly defines that it is a first degree felony when sexual battery is committed by a law enforcement agent in paragraph 4(g), which reads:
"When the offender is a law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or correctional probation officer as defined by s. 943.10(1), (2), (3), (6), (7), (8), or (9), who is certified under the provisions of s. 943.1395 or is an elected official exempt from such certification by virtue of s. 943.253, or any other person in a position of control or authority in a probation, community control, controlled release, detention, custodial, or similar setting, and such officer, official, or person is acting in such a manner as to lead the victim to reasonably believe that the offender is in a position of control or authority as an agent or employee of government."
As Sheriff, you have the absolute duty to enforce the law uniformly and without prejudice. You are, at best, engaged in selective enforcement by choosing to further ignore these flagrant violations of federal and state law. At worst, you are complicit.
If you have TSA agents within your county that are violating the law, then you must act. Warn the TSA agents that they are subject to arrest if they continue to violate the law. Should they continue, then you must begin making arrests.
We urge you to remember the oath you took to support, protect and defend the Constitution of both the State of Florida and the United States of America. On behalf of all Floridians, the Libertarian Party of Florida calls on you to do exactly that.
We turn to you, our Constitutional Sheriffs, to enforce the law in accordance with your sworn duty.
Sincerely,
Adrian Wyllie, Chairman
View this entry with comments (registration required to post)
Obama Says Americans Aren't Paying Attention
From Glenn Beck:
Obama says Americans aren’t paying attention
Tuesday, Jul 12, 2011 at 11:50 AM EDT
President Obama held yet another press conference yesterday to remind the American people that he is doing everything in his power to solve the looming debt crisis and budget debate.
Though the President’s remarks did little more than strengthen the argument that he is in way over his head (especially in regards to the economy), the mainstream media has once again come to his defense. In fact, reporters practically begged President Obama to solve the crisis during yesterday’s press conference.
Glenn and Pat were not so convinced of the President’s capability this morning on radio.
It has become a habit of the administration to speak about the American public as though they are ignorant fools and this press conference was no exception.
“Talk down to me some more, Mr. President,” Glenn said in response to theses remarks:
VOICE: Only 24 percent of Americans say you should raise the debt limit to avoid an economic catastrophe. There’s still 69 percent who oppose raising the debt limit. Is it the problem that you and others have failed to convince Americans that we have a crisis here and how are you going to change that?
OBAMA: Let, let me distinguish between professional politicians and the public at large. The public is not paying close attention to how a treasury auction goes. They shouldn’t, they’re worrying about their families, they’re worrying about their jobs, they’re worrying about their neighborhood. They’ve got a lot of other things on their plate. We’re paid to worry about it.
Considering how well the debt talks have been going so far, it is safe to say that the American people surely have a lot to worry about, and the government’s actions, or lack there of, to this point are certainly cause for concern.
Advertisement
“We’re trained professionals. Back away. We’ve done a good job at this whole debt thing for years now. The people shouldn’t pay attention to it,” Glenn joked. “This notion that people should pay attention is nonsense.”
At the end of the day it is clear that the country in trouble, and no matter how many softball style questions the media may throw the President’s way, it is time for the American people to wake up and pay attention.
“Yes, they should (pay attention). America, do not listen to this man,” Glenn said. “You should know what treasury auctions even mean. You should know the consequences. It’s your damn money, and your country. But they’ll take care of it. They’ve taken care of it so far, haven’t they? “
Obama says Americans aren’t paying attention
Tuesday, Jul 12, 2011 at 11:50 AM EDT
President Obama held yet another press conference yesterday to remind the American people that he is doing everything in his power to solve the looming debt crisis and budget debate.
Though the President’s remarks did little more than strengthen the argument that he is in way over his head (especially in regards to the economy), the mainstream media has once again come to his defense. In fact, reporters practically begged President Obama to solve the crisis during yesterday’s press conference.
Glenn and Pat were not so convinced of the President’s capability this morning on radio.
It has become a habit of the administration to speak about the American public as though they are ignorant fools and this press conference was no exception.
“Talk down to me some more, Mr. President,” Glenn said in response to theses remarks:
VOICE: Only 24 percent of Americans say you should raise the debt limit to avoid an economic catastrophe. There’s still 69 percent who oppose raising the debt limit. Is it the problem that you and others have failed to convince Americans that we have a crisis here and how are you going to change that?
OBAMA: Let, let me distinguish between professional politicians and the public at large. The public is not paying close attention to how a treasury auction goes. They shouldn’t, they’re worrying about their families, they’re worrying about their jobs, they’re worrying about their neighborhood. They’ve got a lot of other things on their plate. We’re paid to worry about it.
Considering how well the debt talks have been going so far, it is safe to say that the American people surely have a lot to worry about, and the government’s actions, or lack there of, to this point are certainly cause for concern.
Advertisement
“We’re trained professionals. Back away. We’ve done a good job at this whole debt thing for years now. The people shouldn’t pay attention to it,” Glenn joked. “This notion that people should pay attention is nonsense.”
At the end of the day it is clear that the country in trouble, and no matter how many softball style questions the media may throw the President’s way, it is time for the American people to wake up and pay attention.
“Yes, they should (pay attention). America, do not listen to this man,” Glenn said. “You should know what treasury auctions even mean. You should know the consequences. It’s your damn money, and your country. But they’ll take care of it. They’ve taken care of it so far, haven’t they? “
Friday, July 1, 2011
Senate Spectacle Thumbs Nose At Immigration Law
From Human Events:
Senate Spectacle Thumbs Nose at Immigration Law
by Audrey Hudson
07/01/2011
Allowing hundreds of illegal aliens to participate in a congressional hearing sends a dangerous signal that it's okay to flout immigration laws in the U.S.
That’s what some immigration watchdogs are saying about a Senate hearing Tuesday that intended to commend those who came to this country at a young age with their parents but were never granted legal status.
Adding to the oddity of the occasion, which HUMAN EVENTS reported on earlier this week, the high-ranking witness testifying at the hearing was Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, the nation’s chief immigration enforcement official.
“It sends a signal that one of the top law enforcement officials in the country is clearly on their side and ignoring the rule of law,” said Bob Dane, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
“It’s one of the most profound and outrageous juxtapositions we have ever seen in a public hearing,” Dane said.
“If ever there was a doubt which side of the law this administration is on, this visual graphic told the full story,” Dane said.
The panel was led by Majority Whip Sen. Dick Durbin (D. –Ill.), who is sponsoring legislation called the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act to give legal status to those under age 35 who arrived in the United States before age 16, provided they complete two years of college or serve two years in the military.
“The young people who would be eligible for the DREAM Act call themselves dreamers,” Durbin said at the hearing. “Over the years, I have met hundreds of these dreamers, and hundreds of them are here today.”
After introducing about a half dozen of those in the audience by name, Durbin asked “everyone here today who is a DREAM Act student to stand and be recognized.”
Nearly everyone in the audience, which seats more than 300 people, stood.
“Thank you so much for being here,” Durbin said.
"When I look around this room, I see America 's future. Our doctors, our teachers, our nurses, our engineers, our scientists, our soldiers, our congressmen, our senators and maybe our President."
“Maybe he’s expecting to change the Constitution,” said Steven Camarota, director of research for the Center for Immigration Studies.
Camarota, who testified at the hearing, described the packed audience as a “well-organized showing.”
“Durbin knew explicitly who would be there, and it was all planned, nothing was spontaneous,” Camarota said.
“It sent a signal that we do not take our laws seriously. That you can come into a Senate chamber and admit it publicly and to the press, in large numbers, and it does not matter. It’s extremely troubling,” Camarota said.
Press staffers for the Republican members who serve on the subcommittee did not respond to requests for comment on the incident.
The intent of the hearing was to reassure some factions of the Democrat base that their issue was being tended to, “and yes, he's [Durbin’s] hoping that it will help him at election time,” Camarota said.
Dane said that Democrats used the hearing to create a “visual symbol” and “mainstream” the issue that children of illegal aliens were brought here through no fault of their own, and should therefore be given citizenship through congressional action.
Dane called the bill a “massive amnesty bill designed as an education initiative.”
“It’s a game to suggest they have legitimate standing. It’s audacious and represents the scraping of the rule of law by the Senate,” Dane said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Audrey Hudson, an award-winning investigative journalist, is a Congressional Correspondent for HUMAN EVENTS. A native of Kentucky, Mrs. Hudson has worked inside the Beltway for nearly two decades -- on Capitol Hill as a Senate and House spokeswoman, and most recently at The Washington Times covering Congress, Homeland Security, and the Supreme Court.
Senate Spectacle Thumbs Nose at Immigration Law
by Audrey Hudson
07/01/2011
Allowing hundreds of illegal aliens to participate in a congressional hearing sends a dangerous signal that it's okay to flout immigration laws in the U.S.
That’s what some immigration watchdogs are saying about a Senate hearing Tuesday that intended to commend those who came to this country at a young age with their parents but were never granted legal status.
Adding to the oddity of the occasion, which HUMAN EVENTS reported on earlier this week, the high-ranking witness testifying at the hearing was Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, the nation’s chief immigration enforcement official.
“It sends a signal that one of the top law enforcement officials in the country is clearly on their side and ignoring the rule of law,” said Bob Dane, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
“It’s one of the most profound and outrageous juxtapositions we have ever seen in a public hearing,” Dane said.
“If ever there was a doubt which side of the law this administration is on, this visual graphic told the full story,” Dane said.
The panel was led by Majority Whip Sen. Dick Durbin (D. –Ill.), who is sponsoring legislation called the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act to give legal status to those under age 35 who arrived in the United States before age 16, provided they complete two years of college or serve two years in the military.
“The young people who would be eligible for the DREAM Act call themselves dreamers,” Durbin said at the hearing. “Over the years, I have met hundreds of these dreamers, and hundreds of them are here today.”
After introducing about a half dozen of those in the audience by name, Durbin asked “everyone here today who is a DREAM Act student to stand and be recognized.”
Nearly everyone in the audience, which seats more than 300 people, stood.
“Thank you so much for being here,” Durbin said.
"When I look around this room, I see America 's future. Our doctors, our teachers, our nurses, our engineers, our scientists, our soldiers, our congressmen, our senators and maybe our President."
“Maybe he’s expecting to change the Constitution,” said Steven Camarota, director of research for the Center for Immigration Studies.
Camarota, who testified at the hearing, described the packed audience as a “well-organized showing.”
“Durbin knew explicitly who would be there, and it was all planned, nothing was spontaneous,” Camarota said.
“It sent a signal that we do not take our laws seriously. That you can come into a Senate chamber and admit it publicly and to the press, in large numbers, and it does not matter. It’s extremely troubling,” Camarota said.
Press staffers for the Republican members who serve on the subcommittee did not respond to requests for comment on the incident.
The intent of the hearing was to reassure some factions of the Democrat base that their issue was being tended to, “and yes, he's [Durbin’s] hoping that it will help him at election time,” Camarota said.
Dane said that Democrats used the hearing to create a “visual symbol” and “mainstream” the issue that children of illegal aliens were brought here through no fault of their own, and should therefore be given citizenship through congressional action.
Dane called the bill a “massive amnesty bill designed as an education initiative.”
“It’s a game to suggest they have legitimate standing. It’s audacious and represents the scraping of the rule of law by the Senate,” Dane said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Audrey Hudson, an award-winning investigative journalist, is a Congressional Correspondent for HUMAN EVENTS. A native of Kentucky, Mrs. Hudson has worked inside the Beltway for nearly two decades -- on Capitol Hill as a Senate and House spokeswoman, and most recently at The Washington Times covering Congress, Homeland Security, and the Supreme Court.
Obama Regime HUD Violates ACORN Funding Ban
From Judicial Watch:
JW Probe: Obama’s HUD Violates ACORN Funding Ban
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Wed, 06/29/2011 - 6:18pm
A Judicial Watch investigation has found that the Obama Administration recently violated the ban on federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) by giving the famously corrupt group tens of thousands of dollars in grants to “combat housing and lending discrimination.”
Congress passed a law (Defund ACORN Act) in 2009 to stop the huge flow of taxpayer money that annually went to ACORN after a series of exposés about the leftwing group’s illegal activities. Judicial Watch has been a leader in investigating ACORN by requesting public records and taking legal action to uncover details of its fraudulent voter registration drives, involvement in the housing market meltdown and its close ties to President Obama. Read all about it here.
This week a JW probe uncovered that Obama’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently awarded a $79,819 grant to an ACORN reincarnation called Affordable Housing Centers of America (AHCOA). Incredibly, the government’s federal expenditure website openly describes the recipient as ACORN Housing Corporation Inc. and lists the group’s New Orleans address at 1024 Elysian Fields.
HUD’s press release announcing the award is more discreet, however. It lists the recipient of the $79,819 grant as Florida-based Affordable Housing Centers of America, even though it’s the same ACORN offshoot. In all, HUD awarded 108 “fair housing organizations” more than $40 million to educate the public and combat discrimination. The allocation represents a $13.2 million increase over last year’s allotment to end housing discrimination against minorities.
In addition to disregarding the ACORN funding ban, the grant is astounding because federal investigators have previously exposed fraud by the same ACORN/AHCOA affiliate. Last fall an audit by HUD’s inspector general found that it “inappropriately” spent more than $3.2 million in grants that were supposed to be used to eliminate lead poisoning in its housing program.
A separate investigation, also conducted by HUD’s IG, determined that ACORN embezzled millions of dollars for “housing counseling” and destroyed documents to hide the fraud. In that report, the IG reveals that the scope of ACORN’s money laundering is impossible to fully track, though it determined with certainty that HUD laws and policies were widely violated when ACORN spent big chunks of public funds to pay the lucrative salaries and “fringe benefits” of its employees.
JW Probe: Obama’s HUD Violates ACORN Funding Ban
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Wed, 06/29/2011 - 6:18pm
A Judicial Watch investigation has found that the Obama Administration recently violated the ban on federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) by giving the famously corrupt group tens of thousands of dollars in grants to “combat housing and lending discrimination.”
Congress passed a law (Defund ACORN Act) in 2009 to stop the huge flow of taxpayer money that annually went to ACORN after a series of exposés about the leftwing group’s illegal activities. Judicial Watch has been a leader in investigating ACORN by requesting public records and taking legal action to uncover details of its fraudulent voter registration drives, involvement in the housing market meltdown and its close ties to President Obama. Read all about it here.
This week a JW probe uncovered that Obama’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently awarded a $79,819 grant to an ACORN reincarnation called Affordable Housing Centers of America (AHCOA). Incredibly, the government’s federal expenditure website openly describes the recipient as ACORN Housing Corporation Inc. and lists the group’s New Orleans address at 1024 Elysian Fields.
HUD’s press release announcing the award is more discreet, however. It lists the recipient of the $79,819 grant as Florida-based Affordable Housing Centers of America, even though it’s the same ACORN offshoot. In all, HUD awarded 108 “fair housing organizations” more than $40 million to educate the public and combat discrimination. The allocation represents a $13.2 million increase over last year’s allotment to end housing discrimination against minorities.
In addition to disregarding the ACORN funding ban, the grant is astounding because federal investigators have previously exposed fraud by the same ACORN/AHCOA affiliate. Last fall an audit by HUD’s inspector general found that it “inappropriately” spent more than $3.2 million in grants that were supposed to be used to eliminate lead poisoning in its housing program.
A separate investigation, also conducted by HUD’s IG, determined that ACORN embezzled millions of dollars for “housing counseling” and destroyed documents to hide the fraud. In that report, the IG reveals that the scope of ACORN’s money laundering is impossible to fully track, though it determined with certainty that HUD laws and policies were widely violated when ACORN spent big chunks of public funds to pay the lucrative salaries and “fringe benefits” of its employees.
EPA Gives Millions In Foreign Handouts
From Judicial Watch:
EPA Gives Millions In Foreign Handouts
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Tue, 06/28/2011 - 3:34pm
The Obama cabinet secretary who launched a costly program to make America’s minority communities green has sent millions of taxpayer dollars to environmental causes overseas, including China, Russia and India.
Ranking members of a congressional energy committee call it “foreign handouts” amid record deficits, soaring unemployment and a looming debt ceiling in the U.S. The money—$27 million since 2009—has been issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which is headed by Lisa Jackson.
The cash was issued via 65 foreign grants that don’t even include Canada and Mexico, according to a report issued this week by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Among the enraging foreign handouts are $1.2 million for the United Nations to promote clean fuels, $718,000 to help China comply with two initiatives and $700,000 for Thailand to recover methane gas at pig farms.
An additional $150,000 went to help the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) combat fraud in carbon trading and $15,000 to Indonesia’s “Breathe Easy, Jakarta” publicity campaign. This sort of federal spending does not reflect the priorities of the American people, according to a letter that several lawmakers sent Jackson in the report’s aftermath.
Since being appointed EPA Administrator, Jackson has gone on a manic spending spree to bring “environmental justice” to low-income and minority communities. Under the program, dozens of leftwing groups have received millions of taxpayer dollars to help poor and indigenous people increase recycling, reduce carbon emissions through “weatherization,” participate in “green jobs” training and avoid heat stroke.
The EPA's budget has also surged 34% since Jackson took over to a whopping $10.3 billion. The figure includes $43 million for efforts to reduce greenhouse gases that the agency claims “endanger” public health. Nearly half of the EPA’s budget goes to grants that fund state environmental programs, nonprofits and educational institutions that help promote the agency’s agenda.
EPA Gives Millions In Foreign Handouts
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Tue, 06/28/2011 - 3:34pm
The Obama cabinet secretary who launched a costly program to make America’s minority communities green has sent millions of taxpayer dollars to environmental causes overseas, including China, Russia and India.
Ranking members of a congressional energy committee call it “foreign handouts” amid record deficits, soaring unemployment and a looming debt ceiling in the U.S. The money—$27 million since 2009—has been issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which is headed by Lisa Jackson.
The cash was issued via 65 foreign grants that don’t even include Canada and Mexico, according to a report issued this week by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Among the enraging foreign handouts are $1.2 million for the United Nations to promote clean fuels, $718,000 to help China comply with two initiatives and $700,000 for Thailand to recover methane gas at pig farms.
An additional $150,000 went to help the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) combat fraud in carbon trading and $15,000 to Indonesia’s “Breathe Easy, Jakarta” publicity campaign. This sort of federal spending does not reflect the priorities of the American people, according to a letter that several lawmakers sent Jackson in the report’s aftermath.
Since being appointed EPA Administrator, Jackson has gone on a manic spending spree to bring “environmental justice” to low-income and minority communities. Under the program, dozens of leftwing groups have received millions of taxpayer dollars to help poor and indigenous people increase recycling, reduce carbon emissions through “weatherization,” participate in “green jobs” training and avoid heat stroke.
The EPA's budget has also surged 34% since Jackson took over to a whopping $10.3 billion. The figure includes $43 million for efforts to reduce greenhouse gases that the agency claims “endanger” public health. Nearly half of the EPA’s budget goes to grants that fund state environmental programs, nonprofits and educational institutions that help promote the agency’s agenda.
Blagojevich Fourth Illinois Governor Convicted Of Corruption
From Judicial Watch:
Blagojevich 4th Illinois Gov. Convicted Of Corruption
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Discussion
.
Last Updated: Tue, 06/28/2011 - 11:34am
Rod Blagojevich will join an all-star lineup of disgraced Illinois politicians when he becomes the state’s fourth governor to serve time for corruption in the last three decades.
After deliberating for 10 days a federal jury convicted Blagojevich of 17 corruption charges for, among other things, trying to sell President Barack Obama’s old U.S. Senate seat. Prosecutors retried the impeached governor after a jury deadlocked on 23 of 24 counts last summer.
Judicial Watch has for years investigated Blagojevich’s corrupt activities and JW covered both trials in Chicago. In 2007 JW sued to obtain public records relating to Blagojevich’s federal investigation and in 2008 JW Director of Litigation Paul Orfanedes testified before the Illinois House Special Investigative Committee considering Blagojevich’s impeachment.
In 2009 JW obtained public records that prove Obama and Blagojevich had repeated contact after Obama became president even though the White House has vehemently denied it. The subject came up repeatedly at both trials because secret FBI wiretaps capture Blagojevich negotiating a bribe in exchange for appointing Obama’s pal to the senate.
Obama’s top aide (Rahm Emanuel, who recently became Chicago mayor) pushed Blagojevich to appoint the president’s good friend, Valerie Jarrett, to the Illinois Senate seat, according to trial testimony from Blagojevich’s one-time chief-of-staff. A longtime confidante of Obama’s, Jarrett eventually followed him to the White House and serves as a key advisor.
Blagojevich, a two-term governor who won every public office he ever ran for, was also convicted of trying to shake down the head of a children’s hospital and an Illinois racetrack executive. Technically, he could be sentenced to hundreds of years in prison but will likely go away for about a decade, according to legal experts quoted in local press reports.
It will make him the fourth Illinois governor to go to jail for felonies since the 1970s. The most recent, Republican George Ryan, is currently serving 6 ½ years for racketeering and fraud. In 1987 Democrat Dan Walker was convicted of bank fraud and in 1973 Democrat Otto Kerner was convicted of more than a dozen counts of bribery, conspiracy and perjury.
Illinois has a strong public corruption legacy that has seen at least 79 elected officials convicted for wrongdoing in the last few decades. Among them are more than a dozen prominent state legislators, city officials, county judges and even a popular mayor.
The problem is so pervasive that a few years ago the state’s largest newspaper published an editorial declaring a campaign against the Illinois “culture of political sleaze.” The piece lists several examples of public corruption and accuses all Illinoisans of not asking enough integrity from public officials, laws and the people paid to enforce them.
Blagojevich 4th Illinois Gov. Convicted Of Corruption
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Discussion
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Last Updated: Tue, 06/28/2011 - 11:34am
Rod Blagojevich will join an all-star lineup of disgraced Illinois politicians when he becomes the state’s fourth governor to serve time for corruption in the last three decades.
After deliberating for 10 days a federal jury convicted Blagojevich of 17 corruption charges for, among other things, trying to sell President Barack Obama’s old U.S. Senate seat. Prosecutors retried the impeached governor after a jury deadlocked on 23 of 24 counts last summer.
Judicial Watch has for years investigated Blagojevich’s corrupt activities and JW covered both trials in Chicago. In 2007 JW sued to obtain public records relating to Blagojevich’s federal investigation and in 2008 JW Director of Litigation Paul Orfanedes testified before the Illinois House Special Investigative Committee considering Blagojevich’s impeachment.
In 2009 JW obtained public records that prove Obama and Blagojevich had repeated contact after Obama became president even though the White House has vehemently denied it. The subject came up repeatedly at both trials because secret FBI wiretaps capture Blagojevich negotiating a bribe in exchange for appointing Obama’s pal to the senate.
Obama’s top aide (Rahm Emanuel, who recently became Chicago mayor) pushed Blagojevich to appoint the president’s good friend, Valerie Jarrett, to the Illinois Senate seat, according to trial testimony from Blagojevich’s one-time chief-of-staff. A longtime confidante of Obama’s, Jarrett eventually followed him to the White House and serves as a key advisor.
Blagojevich, a two-term governor who won every public office he ever ran for, was also convicted of trying to shake down the head of a children’s hospital and an Illinois racetrack executive. Technically, he could be sentenced to hundreds of years in prison but will likely go away for about a decade, according to legal experts quoted in local press reports.
It will make him the fourth Illinois governor to go to jail for felonies since the 1970s. The most recent, Republican George Ryan, is currently serving 6 ½ years for racketeering and fraud. In 1987 Democrat Dan Walker was convicted of bank fraud and in 1973 Democrat Otto Kerner was convicted of more than a dozen counts of bribery, conspiracy and perjury.
Illinois has a strong public corruption legacy that has seen at least 79 elected officials convicted for wrongdoing in the last few decades. Among them are more than a dozen prominent state legislators, city officials, county judges and even a popular mayor.
The problem is so pervasive that a few years ago the state’s largest newspaper published an editorial declaring a campaign against the Illinois “culture of political sleaze.” The piece lists several examples of public corruption and accuses all Illinoisans of not asking enough integrity from public officials, laws and the people paid to enforce them.
Billions To Make Public Housing Decent, Energy Efficient
From Judicial Watch:
Billions To Make Public Housing Decent, Energy Efficient
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Discussion
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Last Updated: Mon, 06/27/2011 - 2:31pm
To justify yet another exorbitant social welfare program, the Obama Administration has published a creative, in-depth study that says public housing needs a $25.6 billion overhaul to make it “decent” and energy efficient.
The money will come from American taxpayers, who already subsidize the 1.2 million public housing units that are often occupied by delinquents and illegal immigrants. Just last year, President Obama’s fraud-infested stimulus financed the $4 billion renovation of nearly 400,000 “affordable homes.”
But the administration has long pushed for the overhaul of all government-funded housing, arguing that it’s long overdue for “large-scale improvements required to make the housing decent and economically sustainable.” As examples Obama’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development says plumbing and electrical systems must be replaced to increase “energy efficiency.”
This week the agency published a rather lengthy report (Capital Needs in the Public Housing Program) making a case for the funding. HUD officials brag that the analysis includes the “first extensive look at the estimated cost of energy and water conservation projects” in public housing.
Under Obama the agency has already created a number of “new initiatives” to address public housing shortages and conditions of existing units. Among them is Choice Neighborhoods, which last year received $65 million to “transform distressed neighborhoods” into “sustainable mixed-income neighborhoods.”
Another Obama-era HUD program, Rental Assistance Demonstration, will spend $200 million to make “standard, life-cycle improvements” in more than 250,000 public housing facilities nationwide.
Billions To Make Public Housing Decent, Energy Efficient
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Mon, 06/27/2011 - 2:31pm
To justify yet another exorbitant social welfare program, the Obama Administration has published a creative, in-depth study that says public housing needs a $25.6 billion overhaul to make it “decent” and energy efficient.
The money will come from American taxpayers, who already subsidize the 1.2 million public housing units that are often occupied by delinquents and illegal immigrants. Just last year, President Obama’s fraud-infested stimulus financed the $4 billion renovation of nearly 400,000 “affordable homes.”
But the administration has long pushed for the overhaul of all government-funded housing, arguing that it’s long overdue for “large-scale improvements required to make the housing decent and economically sustainable.” As examples Obama’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development says plumbing and electrical systems must be replaced to increase “energy efficiency.”
This week the agency published a rather lengthy report (Capital Needs in the Public Housing Program) making a case for the funding. HUD officials brag that the analysis includes the “first extensive look at the estimated cost of energy and water conservation projects” in public housing.
Under Obama the agency has already created a number of “new initiatives” to address public housing shortages and conditions of existing units. Among them is Choice Neighborhoods, which last year received $65 million to “transform distressed neighborhoods” into “sustainable mixed-income neighborhoods.”
Another Obama-era HUD program, Rental Assistance Demonstration, will spend $200 million to make “standard, life-cycle improvements” in more than 250,000 public housing facilities nationwide.
DHS Stealth Amnesty Cover-Up Exposed
From Judicial Watch:
DHS Stealth Amnesty Cover Up Exposed
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Discussion
.
Last Updated: Mon, 06/27/2011 - 2:34pm
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security lied to Congress and the media to cover up a secret amnesty program that dismissed the deportation of illegal immigrants across the U.S., including those with criminal convictions.
The scandalous story of how the government agency charged with keeping America safe systematically cancels pending deportations was first reported by Texas’s largest newspaper last year. The remarkable program stunned the legal profession and baffled immigration attorneys who say the government bounced their clients’ deportation even when expulsion was virtually guaranteed.
After the story broke other media outlets began to dig around and Senate leaders launched an investigation into the stealth amnesty program that led to a 40% increase in the dismissal of deportations last year. Homeland Security officials denied it existed and scrambled to conceal details, according to new information revealed by the newspaper that originally cracked the story.
Internal Homeland Security documents obtained under public records laws prove that agency officials destroyed internal memos of the secretive process and lied to cover up the wrongdoing. Through a spokesman, one Texas Senator involved in the probe confirmed that DHS misled the public and Congress about its policy of directing dismissals of cases against criminal aliens.
Some of the records are heavily redacted, but it’s clear that illegal immigrants with criminal records were spared removal under the program, which was administered by high-ranking officials and attorneys at DHS.
In one internal email, a chief council at one agency branch blames the media for falling behind on the number of deportations his office discharged. "The problem is every time I'm about to wield a blunt instrument to our docket, some case shows up in the press that gives me pause," he writes in an internal electronic mail.
The same chief council also praises his counterpart in another busy immigration office—in Miami Florida—for leading the way on dismissals of deportations and lamenting that his office had “fallen way behind.”
Judicial Watch has also investigated this deplorable back-door amnesty program and earlier this year sued DHS to obtain information because the agency ignored a federal public records request that dates back to July 2010.
DHS Stealth Amnesty Cover Up Exposed
View
Discussion
.
Last Updated: Mon, 06/27/2011 - 2:34pm
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security lied to Congress and the media to cover up a secret amnesty program that dismissed the deportation of illegal immigrants across the U.S., including those with criminal convictions.
The scandalous story of how the government agency charged with keeping America safe systematically cancels pending deportations was first reported by Texas’s largest newspaper last year. The remarkable program stunned the legal profession and baffled immigration attorneys who say the government bounced their clients’ deportation even when expulsion was virtually guaranteed.
After the story broke other media outlets began to dig around and Senate leaders launched an investigation into the stealth amnesty program that led to a 40% increase in the dismissal of deportations last year. Homeland Security officials denied it existed and scrambled to conceal details, according to new information revealed by the newspaper that originally cracked the story.
Internal Homeland Security documents obtained under public records laws prove that agency officials destroyed internal memos of the secretive process and lied to cover up the wrongdoing. Through a spokesman, one Texas Senator involved in the probe confirmed that DHS misled the public and Congress about its policy of directing dismissals of cases against criminal aliens.
Some of the records are heavily redacted, but it’s clear that illegal immigrants with criminal records were spared removal under the program, which was administered by high-ranking officials and attorneys at DHS.
In one internal email, a chief council at one agency branch blames the media for falling behind on the number of deportations his office discharged. "The problem is every time I'm about to wield a blunt instrument to our docket, some case shows up in the press that gives me pause," he writes in an internal electronic mail.
The same chief council also praises his counterpart in another busy immigration office—in Miami Florida—for leading the way on dismissals of deportations and lamenting that his office had “fallen way behind.”
Judicial Watch has also investigated this deplorable back-door amnesty program and earlier this year sued DHS to obtain information because the agency ignored a federal public records request that dates back to July 2010.
George Soros' Money And Secretaries Of State Project Could Tip Elections In All Fifty States
From the White House Watch:
George Soros’ Money Could Tip Elections in All 50 States
Posted on July 1, 2011 by Michael Oberndorf
by Michael Oberndorf
A little-noticed story in The Washington Times last week should scare the heck out of real Americans. George Soros, whose name should now be pretty familiar to most conservatives, is involved in a far-Left scheme to elect Secretaries of State, gaining control of each state’s election machinery and thus, be in a position to influence the outcome of local, state, and national elections.
As many have learned, Soros is an unrepentant, apparently sociopathic fascist, who got his training from the Nazis during WWII, confiscating the property of fellow Jews who had been shipped off to the death camps. He is the man who made billions manipulating currencies and wrecking the Malaysian and British economies. Soros is a major source of money behind a number of radical leftist outfits, like MoveOn.org, the Center for American Progress, the now-defunct but reorganizing ACORN, Apollo Alliance, the National Council of La Raza, the Tides Foundation, The Huffington Post, Southern Poverty Law Center, Sojourners, People for the American Way, Planned Parenthood, and the National Organization for Women. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and has participated in the Bilderberg Group.
The group in question here is the Secretaries of State Project (SSOP), formed in 2006, supposedly to “to stop Republicans from ‘manipulating’ election results.” Over the years, it has become clear that when the Left accuses conservatives or Republicans of something, it is a sleight of hand move to cover up the fact that it is the very thing it is doing.
They have been far too successful with this strategy, having won 11 of 18 elections, including Nevada, Minnesota, and Ohio. All three states have had recent elections where fraud was obvious, or highly likely. In Nevada, Sharron Angle was slightly ahead of Harry Reid in the polls just before the election, but was defeated by an impossibly large margin, most likely, from the votes of illegal aliens. Al Franken kept “finding” uncounted ballots that, miraculously, were all for him, and accepted by the Secretary of State. In Ohio, voter fraud was described as “massive” yet and dismissed by the Secretary of State. Nothing to see here, folks. Let’s just move along, now.
SSOP is anything but a grassroots organization representing the working class. The Times reports, along with billionaire Soros, its donors include:
furniture company heir John R. Hunting; computer company executive Paul Rudd; medical-supply firm heiress Pat Stryker; venture capitalist Nicholas Hanauer; ex-Clinton administration official Rob Stein; Tides Foundation founder Drummond Pike; real estate developer Robert Bowditch; charitable foundation co-chairman Scott Wallace; clothing executive Susie Tompkins Buell; real estate developer Albert Dwoskin; child psychologist Gail Furman; and Taco Bell heir Rob McKay.
All of them are members of Democracy Alliance.
But wait. These are the Super Rich. Many have inherited their wealth. How can they be “progressives?”
Could it be that “progressive” is a euphemism for “fascist?”
These enemies of freedom are extremely well funded and have been working at systematically undermining our election system for at least five years, while we have trustingly slept. The Republican leadership seems to have been competently unaware of all this. Until The Washington Times article, I had never heard of SSOP, nor knew how successful they have been. I hope the Republican leadership was as ignorant as I. If they were not, and knew all of this, then their negligence in informing the party rank-and-file suggests complicity verging on the criminal.
We are way behind in getting where we need to be to ensure that the 2012 election is not completely stolen by the inventors of election fraud. The Tea Parties are our best, and perhaps only, hope to play organizational catch-up. States with Democratic Secretaries of State need to have Tea Party committees that demand and get election monitoring and oversight abilities as soon as possible. In addition, every state that has a Secretary of State who oversees elections needs to make placing a conservative in this office its top priority. Great candidates for the other offices cannot win if the elections are open to manipulation or question.
We are no longer the America that could point a righteous, accusing finger at the phony elections of banana republics, and communist and fascist dictatorships. That all changed with Democrat Lyndon Johnson and his incredibly corrupt Great Society welfare state. The once anti-communist labor unions who have been the base of the Democrat political machine, are now, like Marxist Obama-Soetoro’s personal favorite, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), openly pro-communist. Corruption and fraud rule on the Left.
We must act swiftly, fearlessly, and decisively. To hesitate is to be lost.
About Michael Oberndorf
Michael Oberndorf, RPA, is an archaeologist by profession, and Legislative Committee Chairman of Freedom21. He is a regular columnist for renewamerica.com, patriotpost.com, canadafreepress.com, and floydreports.com.
George Soros’ Money Could Tip Elections in All 50 States
Posted on July 1, 2011 by Michael Oberndorf
by Michael Oberndorf
A little-noticed story in The Washington Times last week should scare the heck out of real Americans. George Soros, whose name should now be pretty familiar to most conservatives, is involved in a far-Left scheme to elect Secretaries of State, gaining control of each state’s election machinery and thus, be in a position to influence the outcome of local, state, and national elections.
As many have learned, Soros is an unrepentant, apparently sociopathic fascist, who got his training from the Nazis during WWII, confiscating the property of fellow Jews who had been shipped off to the death camps. He is the man who made billions manipulating currencies and wrecking the Malaysian and British economies. Soros is a major source of money behind a number of radical leftist outfits, like MoveOn.org, the Center for American Progress, the now-defunct but reorganizing ACORN, Apollo Alliance, the National Council of La Raza, the Tides Foundation, The Huffington Post, Southern Poverty Law Center, Sojourners, People for the American Way, Planned Parenthood, and the National Organization for Women. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and has participated in the Bilderberg Group.
The group in question here is the Secretaries of State Project (SSOP), formed in 2006, supposedly to “to stop Republicans from ‘manipulating’ election results.” Over the years, it has become clear that when the Left accuses conservatives or Republicans of something, it is a sleight of hand move to cover up the fact that it is the very thing it is doing.
They have been far too successful with this strategy, having won 11 of 18 elections, including Nevada, Minnesota, and Ohio. All three states have had recent elections where fraud was obvious, or highly likely. In Nevada, Sharron Angle was slightly ahead of Harry Reid in the polls just before the election, but was defeated by an impossibly large margin, most likely, from the votes of illegal aliens. Al Franken kept “finding” uncounted ballots that, miraculously, were all for him, and accepted by the Secretary of State. In Ohio, voter fraud was described as “massive” yet and dismissed by the Secretary of State. Nothing to see here, folks. Let’s just move along, now.
SSOP is anything but a grassroots organization representing the working class. The Times reports, along with billionaire Soros, its donors include:
furniture company heir John R. Hunting; computer company executive Paul Rudd; medical-supply firm heiress Pat Stryker; venture capitalist Nicholas Hanauer; ex-Clinton administration official Rob Stein; Tides Foundation founder Drummond Pike; real estate developer Robert Bowditch; charitable foundation co-chairman Scott Wallace; clothing executive Susie Tompkins Buell; real estate developer Albert Dwoskin; child psychologist Gail Furman; and Taco Bell heir Rob McKay.
All of them are members of Democracy Alliance.
But wait. These are the Super Rich. Many have inherited their wealth. How can they be “progressives?”
Could it be that “progressive” is a euphemism for “fascist?”
These enemies of freedom are extremely well funded and have been working at systematically undermining our election system for at least five years, while we have trustingly slept. The Republican leadership seems to have been competently unaware of all this. Until The Washington Times article, I had never heard of SSOP, nor knew how successful they have been. I hope the Republican leadership was as ignorant as I. If they were not, and knew all of this, then their negligence in informing the party rank-and-file suggests complicity verging on the criminal.
We are way behind in getting where we need to be to ensure that the 2012 election is not completely stolen by the inventors of election fraud. The Tea Parties are our best, and perhaps only, hope to play organizational catch-up. States with Democratic Secretaries of State need to have Tea Party committees that demand and get election monitoring and oversight abilities as soon as possible. In addition, every state that has a Secretary of State who oversees elections needs to make placing a conservative in this office its top priority. Great candidates for the other offices cannot win if the elections are open to manipulation or question.
We are no longer the America that could point a righteous, accusing finger at the phony elections of banana republics, and communist and fascist dictatorships. That all changed with Democrat Lyndon Johnson and his incredibly corrupt Great Society welfare state. The once anti-communist labor unions who have been the base of the Democrat political machine, are now, like Marxist Obama-Soetoro’s personal favorite, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), openly pro-communist. Corruption and fraud rule on the Left.
We must act swiftly, fearlessly, and decisively. To hesitate is to be lost.
About Michael Oberndorf
Michael Oberndorf, RPA, is an archaeologist by profession, and Legislative Committee Chairman of Freedom21. He is a regular columnist for renewamerica.com, patriotpost.com, canadafreepress.com, and floydreports.com.
The Sons Of Liberty #8: The Organization Of An Un-Organized Militia
From Outpost of Freedom:
Sons of Liberty
No 8
July 21, 1994
"That the Inhabitants of this County do meet on a certain Day appointed by this Committee, and having formed themselves into nine Companies, to wit, eight for the County, and one for the Town of Charlotte, do choose a Colonel and other military Officers, who shall hold and exercise their several Powers by Virtue of this Choice, and independent of Great-Britain, and former Constitution of this Province."
So reads the Fourth Resolve of the RESOLVES ADOPTED IN CHARLOTTE TOWN, MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, MAY 31, 1775. Clearly the institution of the militia was predicated upon the authority of the citizenry as expressed through the Committee. The Mind has spoken, and the Body shall respond.
The sophistication of military units has evolved considerably in the past two hundred years. It is from the Second Regiment of the Florida Militia that the model structure for militia was taken. This model is loosely modeled after the United States Military and, perhaps, will establish a much more viable entity than might otherwise be created.
It should be remembered that military discipline is a necessity when dealing with military matters. The success of the operation and the survival of the unit is based upon the units ability to function as a team. It must also be equipped and versed in both its own activity and, as much as is possible, that of the enemy. It must also be diverse for our brains must compensate for deficiencies in equipment and manpower. As was true two hundred years ago our tactics can change the balance against what might otherwise be superior forces with which we might become engaged.
S-1 Clerical
The administrative agency necessary to conduct the activities of the militia.
S-2 Tactical
Planning, strategy, application of intelligence gathered and training.
S-3 Communications
From phone trees to communication with other units to battlefield communication.
S-4 Financial
Responsible for the acquisition and utilization of funds for the militia.
S-5 Public Affairs
An extension of the Public Affairs Committee of the Committee.
S-6 Logistics
Supplies, medical equipment and personnel, procurement, &c.
S-7 Command
This section is comprised of those officers appointed by the Committee, one of which would be assigned to take charge of each of the above sections.
The militia, by it"s very nature, should remain in a state of readiness. Discussions of a political nature should be excluded from all militia activities. Respect for rank and chain of command should be mandatory. Discipline, individual and unit responsibility should be primary.
The S-6 section, assuming either limitation of unit funding or desire of personnel to acquire equipment not issued by the unit, should be constantly in touch with other units and suppliers to assure that the best price possible be negotiated in every purchase. The acquisition and training of medical personnel is imperative for the very survival of the members, if under training or actual call of the militia. There should be no short cuts applied to this consideration. Ideally the militia would be funded by the Committee, and perhaps by it"s own fund raising activities. Issued equipment would serve much better than individual equipment utilization.
The S-5 section might be described as a psych-warfare or propaganda arm of the militia. In war every exigency warrants consideration.
The S-4 section is responsible to assure that all of the financial needs of the unit are met. Budgets prepared for and submitted to the Committee are a responsibility as well as fund raising on it"s own, should the need arise.
The S-3 section should, with the aid of S-6, procure the necessary equipment to assure that the unit is able to communicate (especially in a combat situation) with itself and other units operating in the area or operation. It is also advisable that they secure means to intercept enemy communications and to decode same.
The S-2 section is responsible for the overall planning and implementation of the militia. It might also be referred to as the intelligence section. Strategy, tactics, intelligence acquisition and dissemination are absolutely necessary for a successful campaign.
The S-1 section is responsible for all administrative functions, preparation and distribution of written orders and communications to all members of the unit. Determination of need for maps and other necessary information would be developed by this section. Acquisition requests should be administered by S-6.
S-7 section is the extension of the will of the people. Once orders are given, however, this section should not allow flexible (political) considerations to de-stabilize the unit or create risk to the militia. Composition of this section should be by selection of the Committee. However, dismissal for cause, should be the purview of the section itself. All officers should be commissioned by the Committee. However S-7 should provide recommendations to the Committee, based upon experience, not popularity.
Sons of Liberty
No 8
July 21, 1994
"That the Inhabitants of this County do meet on a certain Day appointed by this Committee, and having formed themselves into nine Companies, to wit, eight for the County, and one for the Town of Charlotte, do choose a Colonel and other military Officers, who shall hold and exercise their several Powers by Virtue of this Choice, and independent of Great-Britain, and former Constitution of this Province."
So reads the Fourth Resolve of the RESOLVES ADOPTED IN CHARLOTTE TOWN, MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, MAY 31, 1775. Clearly the institution of the militia was predicated upon the authority of the citizenry as expressed through the Committee. The Mind has spoken, and the Body shall respond.
The sophistication of military units has evolved considerably in the past two hundred years. It is from the Second Regiment of the Florida Militia that the model structure for militia was taken. This model is loosely modeled after the United States Military and, perhaps, will establish a much more viable entity than might otherwise be created.
It should be remembered that military discipline is a necessity when dealing with military matters. The success of the operation and the survival of the unit is based upon the units ability to function as a team. It must also be equipped and versed in both its own activity and, as much as is possible, that of the enemy. It must also be diverse for our brains must compensate for deficiencies in equipment and manpower. As was true two hundred years ago our tactics can change the balance against what might otherwise be superior forces with which we might become engaged.
S-1 Clerical
The administrative agency necessary to conduct the activities of the militia.
S-2 Tactical
Planning, strategy, application of intelligence gathered and training.
S-3 Communications
From phone trees to communication with other units to battlefield communication.
S-4 Financial
Responsible for the acquisition and utilization of funds for the militia.
S-5 Public Affairs
An extension of the Public Affairs Committee of the Committee.
S-6 Logistics
Supplies, medical equipment and personnel, procurement, &c.
S-7 Command
This section is comprised of those officers appointed by the Committee, one of which would be assigned to take charge of each of the above sections.
The militia, by it"s very nature, should remain in a state of readiness. Discussions of a political nature should be excluded from all militia activities. Respect for rank and chain of command should be mandatory. Discipline, individual and unit responsibility should be primary.
The S-6 section, assuming either limitation of unit funding or desire of personnel to acquire equipment not issued by the unit, should be constantly in touch with other units and suppliers to assure that the best price possible be negotiated in every purchase. The acquisition and training of medical personnel is imperative for the very survival of the members, if under training or actual call of the militia. There should be no short cuts applied to this consideration. Ideally the militia would be funded by the Committee, and perhaps by it"s own fund raising activities. Issued equipment would serve much better than individual equipment utilization.
The S-5 section might be described as a psych-warfare or propaganda arm of the militia. In war every exigency warrants consideration.
The S-4 section is responsible to assure that all of the financial needs of the unit are met. Budgets prepared for and submitted to the Committee are a responsibility as well as fund raising on it"s own, should the need arise.
The S-3 section should, with the aid of S-6, procure the necessary equipment to assure that the unit is able to communicate (especially in a combat situation) with itself and other units operating in the area or operation. It is also advisable that they secure means to intercept enemy communications and to decode same.
The S-2 section is responsible for the overall planning and implementation of the militia. It might also be referred to as the intelligence section. Strategy, tactics, intelligence acquisition and dissemination are absolutely necessary for a successful campaign.
The S-1 section is responsible for all administrative functions, preparation and distribution of written orders and communications to all members of the unit. Determination of need for maps and other necessary information would be developed by this section. Acquisition requests should be administered by S-6.
S-7 section is the extension of the will of the people. Once orders are given, however, this section should not allow flexible (political) considerations to de-stabilize the unit or create risk to the militia. Composition of this section should be by selection of the Committee. However, dismissal for cause, should be the purview of the section itself. All officers should be commissioned by the Committee. However S-7 should provide recommendations to the Committee, based upon experience, not popularity.
The Sons Of Liberty #7: The Colonies Are Declared To Be In A State Of Rebellion
From Outpost of Freedom:
Sons of Liberty
No 7
July 21, 1994
"Whereas by an Address presented to his Majesty by both Houses of Parliament in February last, the American Colonies are declared to be in a State of actual Rebellion, we conceive that all Laws and Commissions confirmed by, or derived from the Authority of the King or Parliament, are annulled and vacated, and the former civil Constitution of these Colonies for the present wholly suspended. To provide in some Degree for the Exigencies of the County in the present alarming Period, we deem it proper and necessary to pass the following Resolves, viz."
So reads the introductory paragraph of the RESOLVES ADOPTED IN CHARLOTTE TOWN, MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, MAY 31, 1775, by its Committee of Safety. Understanding that the Committees were formed as secondary forums because the entity created by the Crown was also controlled by the Crown, we can see that the people were dissatisfied with the imposition of authoritarian rules with it"s foundations far away in England. Those governing by British authority were bound to principles and laws established by rulers rather than the people themselves. Even prior to the adoption of the Mecklenburg Resolve, most communities had established their Committees to represent the interests of the people, not of the Crown.
Within many of the Committees were subcommittees formed to deal with issues of importance. The relevancy of those specifics may not apply in our current world and state of affairs, yet to model contemporary committees to address the issues of today might be warranted.
Recently, in working with one community to establish a Committee, we developed the following list of committees from which they would begin to establish viability in their organization. The Committee of Safety would be comprised of the following committees:
1. Executive Committee
2. Committee of the Whole
3. Ways and Means Committee
4. Historical Research Committee
5. Contemporary Research Committee
6. Political/Judicial Advocacy Committee
7. Political/Judicial Evaluation Committee
8. Public Affairs Committee
The idea, in a desire to be truly republican in nature, was that members of the Committee, all of whom would be members of the Committee of the Whole, would join no more than one of the remaining committees, with the exception of the Executive. Then, within each of the committees an election of a spokesman would be made. A desire to elect comprehensive thinkers rather than outspoken advocates (like politicians) would be encouraged. Those elected would then constitute the Executive Committee which in turn would select it"s chairman. Membership in only one of the lesser committees was limited to allow the greatest degree of productivity. If any members assigned a task were unable to complete said task without good cause, he would be possibly subject to removal from the committee rather than allow glorification at the risk of productivity.
Issues submitted to the Executive Committee would be directed to the appropriate lesser committee. The lesser committee would evaluate and determine if they were the appropriate committee. They would then determine whether the issue warranted the application of the resources and would return this recommendation to the Executive Committee for assignment or rejection. If assigned, the issue would be evaluated by the assigned committee and reported back in a timely manner to the Executive for consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
Briefly evaluating the responsibilities of the lesser committees, Ways and Means would be assigned the responsibility of determining fund raising activities or means as well as provide for material and equipment necessary for the conducting of business of the Committee. Historical Research would be consistent, and supportive, of many activities being conducted by the researchers currently exposing our true heritage and law. Many existing organizations might encourage their membership to participate in this committee. Contemporary Research would attempt to sort out information regarding issues of the day, such as Weaver and Waco, and any other matter of importance to the community, investigating to establish credible information and weed out misinformation. Political/Judicial Advocacy would be the pre-election group that would evaluate and determine desirability of candidates and/or issues to be included on the ballot.
The Political/Judicial Evaluations committee would evaluate the activities of those currently in office, or even the local media. Their evaluations and reports would be the foundation for an accurate evaluation of the status of our relationship with the government which rules from Washington, D. C. Any investigation by this committee should result in a complete and thorough report to the Executive Committee. It would then be submitted to the Committee of the Whole which then would leave no doubt that the person identified was in violation of the Constitution or Nature"s Law, regardless of how those actions related to statutory law. If the statutory law did not exist, would the person investigated be considered, perhaps, guilty of a crime against the Constitution or Nature? The information developed in this committee should be disseminated to the entire community, by whatever means necessary, so as to educate more than just the membership of the Committee. The Public Affairs Committee would take on the task of dissemination of information, as directed by the Executive Committee, to the membership, the community, the press and other Committees.
The Executive Committee would be charged with the overall conduct of the Committee and would appoint Ad Hoc committees when issues developed that were of a temporary nature. The Executive Committee would also charge the militia should circumstances ever require that the militia be called into active duty. The Committee acts as the Mind and gives direction to the Body (the militia).
There are some things that are worth giving for,
and the cause we have chosen is such.
If you give any less than necessary,
All that is not given is lost.
Sons of Liberty
No 7
July 21, 1994
"Whereas by an Address presented to his Majesty by both Houses of Parliament in February last, the American Colonies are declared to be in a State of actual Rebellion, we conceive that all Laws and Commissions confirmed by, or derived from the Authority of the King or Parliament, are annulled and vacated, and the former civil Constitution of these Colonies for the present wholly suspended. To provide in some Degree for the Exigencies of the County in the present alarming Period, we deem it proper and necessary to pass the following Resolves, viz."
So reads the introductory paragraph of the RESOLVES ADOPTED IN CHARLOTTE TOWN, MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, MAY 31, 1775, by its Committee of Safety. Understanding that the Committees were formed as secondary forums because the entity created by the Crown was also controlled by the Crown, we can see that the people were dissatisfied with the imposition of authoritarian rules with it"s foundations far away in England. Those governing by British authority were bound to principles and laws established by rulers rather than the people themselves. Even prior to the adoption of the Mecklenburg Resolve, most communities had established their Committees to represent the interests of the people, not of the Crown.
Within many of the Committees were subcommittees formed to deal with issues of importance. The relevancy of those specifics may not apply in our current world and state of affairs, yet to model contemporary committees to address the issues of today might be warranted.
Recently, in working with one community to establish a Committee, we developed the following list of committees from which they would begin to establish viability in their organization. The Committee of Safety would be comprised of the following committees:
1. Executive Committee
2. Committee of the Whole
3. Ways and Means Committee
4. Historical Research Committee
5. Contemporary Research Committee
6. Political/Judicial Advocacy Committee
7. Political/Judicial Evaluation Committee
8. Public Affairs Committee
The idea, in a desire to be truly republican in nature, was that members of the Committee, all of whom would be members of the Committee of the Whole, would join no more than one of the remaining committees, with the exception of the Executive. Then, within each of the committees an election of a spokesman would be made. A desire to elect comprehensive thinkers rather than outspoken advocates (like politicians) would be encouraged. Those elected would then constitute the Executive Committee which in turn would select it"s chairman. Membership in only one of the lesser committees was limited to allow the greatest degree of productivity. If any members assigned a task were unable to complete said task without good cause, he would be possibly subject to removal from the committee rather than allow glorification at the risk of productivity.
Issues submitted to the Executive Committee would be directed to the appropriate lesser committee. The lesser committee would evaluate and determine if they were the appropriate committee. They would then determine whether the issue warranted the application of the resources and would return this recommendation to the Executive Committee for assignment or rejection. If assigned, the issue would be evaluated by the assigned committee and reported back in a timely manner to the Executive for consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
Briefly evaluating the responsibilities of the lesser committees, Ways and Means would be assigned the responsibility of determining fund raising activities or means as well as provide for material and equipment necessary for the conducting of business of the Committee. Historical Research would be consistent, and supportive, of many activities being conducted by the researchers currently exposing our true heritage and law. Many existing organizations might encourage their membership to participate in this committee. Contemporary Research would attempt to sort out information regarding issues of the day, such as Weaver and Waco, and any other matter of importance to the community, investigating to establish credible information and weed out misinformation. Political/Judicial Advocacy would be the pre-election group that would evaluate and determine desirability of candidates and/or issues to be included on the ballot.
The Political/Judicial Evaluations committee would evaluate the activities of those currently in office, or even the local media. Their evaluations and reports would be the foundation for an accurate evaluation of the status of our relationship with the government which rules from Washington, D. C. Any investigation by this committee should result in a complete and thorough report to the Executive Committee. It would then be submitted to the Committee of the Whole which then would leave no doubt that the person identified was in violation of the Constitution or Nature"s Law, regardless of how those actions related to statutory law. If the statutory law did not exist, would the person investigated be considered, perhaps, guilty of a crime against the Constitution or Nature? The information developed in this committee should be disseminated to the entire community, by whatever means necessary, so as to educate more than just the membership of the Committee. The Public Affairs Committee would take on the task of dissemination of information, as directed by the Executive Committee, to the membership, the community, the press and other Committees.
The Executive Committee would be charged with the overall conduct of the Committee and would appoint Ad Hoc committees when issues developed that were of a temporary nature. The Executive Committee would also charge the militia should circumstances ever require that the militia be called into active duty. The Committee acts as the Mind and gives direction to the Body (the militia).
There are some things that are worth giving for,
and the cause we have chosen is such.
If you give any less than necessary,
All that is not given is lost.
The Sons Of Liberty #6: In Defense Of The Freedoms That Are Our Birthright
From Outpost of Freedom:
Sons of Liberty
No 6
July 17, 1994
"In our own native land, in defence of the freedom that is our birthright, and which we ever enjoyed till the late violation of it--for the protection of our property, acquired solely by the honest industry of our fore-fathers and ourselves, against violence actually offered, we have taken up arms. We shall lay them down when hostilities shall cease on the part of the aggressors, and all danger of their being renewed shall be removed, and not before."
Declaration Of The Causes And Necessity Of Taking Up Arms
The Committee was the political entity which directed the Militia into whatever activity was deemed appropriate. Shortly after the events at Lexington and Concord, on April 19, 1775, the various committees, by sending delegations to their colonial capitals, represented their "constituents" to a higher level, of necessity. The colonies then selected the appropriate delegates and sent them to Philadelphia where the Second Continental Congress was convened.
During this Congress, a document was submitted and ratified by those representatives attending. This document was known as the Declaration Of The Causes And Necessity Of Taking Up Arms, and was executed on July 6, 1775. The document, in part, is quoted above.
This single act caused many of the minds (Committees) to direct their respective militia to join the colonial militia under George Washington. The militia then grew from that of a community to that of a nation. The manifestation of Republican form of Government had begun.
Throughout the Revolutionary War there were many militia units that maintained their integrity as guerrilla fighting units. Others mustered into the Army of the Revolution. Even though the units were of different natures, they were able to fight well together and submit to a chain of command that developed downward from George Washington.
Frequently, militia units would support the regulars (Continental Army which was eventually furnished blue and white uniforms by the French) with sniper fire with their longer hunting rifles while the Army units fought with tactics similar to those employed by the British. This teamwork was the combination that made it possible for the colonies to cast off the yoke of British rule and displace the greatest military power the world had ever known. Against overwhelming odds this rag-tag army, established under republican principles, and a belief in their Creator, was able to turn the World Upside Down.
Sons of Liberty
No 6
July 17, 1994
"In our own native land, in defence of the freedom that is our birthright, and which we ever enjoyed till the late violation of it--for the protection of our property, acquired solely by the honest industry of our fore-fathers and ourselves, against violence actually offered, we have taken up arms. We shall lay them down when hostilities shall cease on the part of the aggressors, and all danger of their being renewed shall be removed, and not before."
Declaration Of The Causes And Necessity Of Taking Up Arms
The Committee was the political entity which directed the Militia into whatever activity was deemed appropriate. Shortly after the events at Lexington and Concord, on April 19, 1775, the various committees, by sending delegations to their colonial capitals, represented their "constituents" to a higher level, of necessity. The colonies then selected the appropriate delegates and sent them to Philadelphia where the Second Continental Congress was convened.
During this Congress, a document was submitted and ratified by those representatives attending. This document was known as the Declaration Of The Causes And Necessity Of Taking Up Arms, and was executed on July 6, 1775. The document, in part, is quoted above.
This single act caused many of the minds (Committees) to direct their respective militia to join the colonial militia under George Washington. The militia then grew from that of a community to that of a nation. The manifestation of Republican form of Government had begun.
Throughout the Revolutionary War there were many militia units that maintained their integrity as guerrilla fighting units. Others mustered into the Army of the Revolution. Even though the units were of different natures, they were able to fight well together and submit to a chain of command that developed downward from George Washington.
Frequently, militia units would support the regulars (Continental Army which was eventually furnished blue and white uniforms by the French) with sniper fire with their longer hunting rifles while the Army units fought with tactics similar to those employed by the British. This teamwork was the combination that made it possible for the colonies to cast off the yoke of British rule and displace the greatest military power the world had ever known. Against overwhelming odds this rag-tag army, established under republican principles, and a belief in their Creator, was able to turn the World Upside Down.
The Sons Of Liberty #5: A Well-Regulated Militia
From Outpost of Freedom:
Sons of Liberty
No 5
July 16, 1994
"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
This, the Second Amendment to the Constitution for the United States of America is probably the most recognized of the Bill of Rights. What, however, constitutes a well regulated militia is less understood.
If we look back at the concepts understood by the Founding Fathers we might better understand this concept. The Founders recognized two aspects of life, and applied them to the governments that they existed in and later into the government they were to create. They recognized that life, itself, required a recognition of the distinction between the moral (mind) and physical (body) aspects. The moral aspect determined morality, circumstances and developed opinions and decisions. The body, on the other hand, reacted to the direction of the mind once the decision was made. This concept was applied to the republican forms of government that developed even under British rule. Each of the colonies had a degree of autonomy dependent upon the specifics of the colonies charter. Ultimately, each was subject to the decisions of the Parliament in London which, from time to time, exceeded what the colonists perceived to be the limits of it"s authority. The Stamp Act of 1765 was an example of that authority. In this act the taxes were mandated with virtually no input by the colonies. Although subsequently repealed, with some exceptions, the Act was truly "taxation without representation."
Each of the communities had established both a mind (Committee of Safety) and a body (militia) comprised of mostly the same people. Older members might join only the Committee while younger ones might join only the militia. Generally, however, the majority of the membership of each was made up of the same people. Why, then, was there a need to have the two functions?
Firstly, the militia was a military unit. Discipline, chains of command, order and regimentation were necessary to the performance of the militia. Without the strict adherence to the military approach, the lack of discipline might prove fatal in the event the militia were called to duty.
On the other hand, the Committee debated issues of the day. Those who might be privates and officers could sit in the forum of the Committee, which would be contrary to the discipline of the militia, and debate the political issues of the day. Ultimately, the Committee would have to call the militia to service after determination of necessity was made. Once the order was given to the militia to activate, the militia responded with the discipline and demeanor necessary for it to function effectively. Regulated by the direction of the moral entity (the Committee) the militia could properly be defined as well regulated.
Today we have lost the lesson of the separation of the two aspects (morality and action) because of the conditioning and educational indoctrination of the contemporary government. Perhaps this lesson from the past will help us to reestablish the well regulated militia which is necessary to the security of a free state.
Sons of Liberty
No 5
July 16, 1994
"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
This, the Second Amendment to the Constitution for the United States of America is probably the most recognized of the Bill of Rights. What, however, constitutes a well regulated militia is less understood.
If we look back at the concepts understood by the Founding Fathers we might better understand this concept. The Founders recognized two aspects of life, and applied them to the governments that they existed in and later into the government they were to create. They recognized that life, itself, required a recognition of the distinction between the moral (mind) and physical (body) aspects. The moral aspect determined morality, circumstances and developed opinions and decisions. The body, on the other hand, reacted to the direction of the mind once the decision was made. This concept was applied to the republican forms of government that developed even under British rule. Each of the colonies had a degree of autonomy dependent upon the specifics of the colonies charter. Ultimately, each was subject to the decisions of the Parliament in London which, from time to time, exceeded what the colonists perceived to be the limits of it"s authority. The Stamp Act of 1765 was an example of that authority. In this act the taxes were mandated with virtually no input by the colonies. Although subsequently repealed, with some exceptions, the Act was truly "taxation without representation."
Each of the communities had established both a mind (Committee of Safety) and a body (militia) comprised of mostly the same people. Older members might join only the Committee while younger ones might join only the militia. Generally, however, the majority of the membership of each was made up of the same people. Why, then, was there a need to have the two functions?
Firstly, the militia was a military unit. Discipline, chains of command, order and regimentation were necessary to the performance of the militia. Without the strict adherence to the military approach, the lack of discipline might prove fatal in the event the militia were called to duty.
On the other hand, the Committee debated issues of the day. Those who might be privates and officers could sit in the forum of the Committee, which would be contrary to the discipline of the militia, and debate the political issues of the day. Ultimately, the Committee would have to call the militia to service after determination of necessity was made. Once the order was given to the militia to activate, the militia responded with the discipline and demeanor necessary for it to function effectively. Regulated by the direction of the moral entity (the Committee) the militia could properly be defined as well regulated.
Today we have lost the lesson of the separation of the two aspects (morality and action) because of the conditioning and educational indoctrination of the contemporary government. Perhaps this lesson from the past will help us to reestablish the well regulated militia which is necessary to the security of a free state.
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