The Republican Plan for Surrender

In a CNN interview on Tuesday, Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced the Republican slogan, “repeal and replace”, for the fall campaigns.  He goes on to say, “…we’re going to remind the American people of that in the future and hopefully we’ll be able to repeal the most egregious parts of this [health care bill] and replace them with things we could have done on a bipartisan basis much earlier this year.”

“Repeal and replace” is a catchy slogan and no doubt it will catch on with the American people.  What is overlooked is that it is, in the final analysis, a slogan for surrender, the surrender of our liberty, the surrender of our Constitution, and the surrender of our future.  As we have pointed out in previous blogs, “Fixing Health Care”, and others, the federal government has no authority over America’s health care –period. The so-called “general welfare clause”, “the elastic clause” or the “commerce clause” does not give them that authority and neither does any other.

In order for progressivism (American socialism) to succeed, it must first destroy our Constitution. It has been working toward that end for over a hundred years and in the last year; it has all but finished the job.  All it needs now is for the Republican Party to cooperate in its destruction by attempting to “play nice” and come up with a “bi-partisan” solution for our current perceived health care crisis.

After over a century of watching progressives chip away at our Constitution and therefore our liberty, most of us still have not figured out their method of operation.  At one time, we were a Constitutional Republic.  Today, after passage of the health care bill, we are a progressive (American socialist) oligarchy.  We did not go from republicanism to progressivism overnight. We got to where we are today one-step at a time, one compromise after another.  The time for compromise and “bi-partisanship” has passed. Today it is victory or defeat.

We have been attempting to exist in a middle ground between progressivism and capitalism for generations, all the while knowing that the two are mutually exclusive. That middle ground is fast disappearing and there is no longer any ground on which to stand. Progressivism is a cancer on our body politic. It is eating away our economy, our liberty, our Constitution and our children’s future. It can no longer be tolerated by any American who loves our country and our way of life.

Our only hope for the future is elected officials that will take seriously their oath of office to “support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic”. Replacing an unconstitutional Democratic plan with an unconstitutional Republican plan may slow down our demise, but it will not replace the liberty we have lost.  We can no longer afford to vote for a candidate simply based on his or her party label. We have to make it clear to every politician, if they want our vote they will have to support the Constitution without reservation.  That is the only constitutionally mandated duty an elected official has.

Article VI makes the first duty of all officials in the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal, as well as the state governments, the support of the Constitution. We are a Republic, not a Democracy.  In a republic, it is the law that rules, not the will of the people, majority or otherwise.  The law for our government is the Constitution of the United States; it trumps the political ambitions of politicians, the opinions of judges, and the self-serving desires of the people until it is replaced by revolution, anarchy, or lawful amendments.

Getting Ready for the 2010 Elections

America, as a free nation of liberty and opportunity is rapidly approaching the point of no return.  If we continue to allow our professional career politicians to lead us in the direction we are now going we will very soon find ourselves living in a country where our personal freedoms and our opportunity for personal success depends on the whims of an elite ruling class rather than our own abilities and ambitions.

The next two election cycles may be our last opportunity to take back our country and our government from the statists who are threatening our liberty and our economic well-being.  As with charity, politics begins at home.  The state of Illinois is near the bottom of the list in personal freedom, and near the top of the list in corruption.  Our economy is in shambles, with jobs leaving the state, rampant crime, an education system in shambles and a burden of taxation that grows harder to bear every year.

It is imperative that we take advantage of the growing unpopularity of the Obama administration and the Democratic Party in the next two election cycles.  It goes without saying that we are where we are today because of the decisions our citizens have made in the past.  Too many people wrongly believe that the role of federal government is to solve our problems and that the role of the state government is to provide personal favors in exchange for political support.

We need to make some drastic changes in 2010 in order to set the stage for the battle ahead in 2012.  The place to begin is in the primary elections.  It is important that we replace those politicians in the Republican Party that do not adhere to the principles of republicanism.  It is equally important that we get rid of the politicians who continue to show allegiance to the party   and their own career goals instead of the people they represent.

I believe that enough Illinois voters are fed up with petty, power hungry politicians who use their opportunity for public service only for service to themselves and their political cronies, that we can really make a difference in the next elections.  Voters are tired of watching those they support and vote for using their offices as stepping stones either to the accumulation of personal wealth and power or stepping-stones to federal prison.  They do not like the political dynasties being built by the Daleys, Strogers, Madigans and others.

2010 is likely to be a year of confusion and misery for many Americans, including Illinoisans.  It can also be a year of opportunity for patriotic citizens who wish to return government to the principles that have been shown to work for the past two hundred and twenty years.  Hopefully it will not be a year for third party “spoilers” to stifle reform by siphoning votes away from conservative candidates in the Republican Party who might have a chance otherwise to replace a statist candidate already in office.

We will not be supporting any political party in 2010, Republican or otherwise.  Instead, we will be supporting candidates who subscribe to the republican principles as articulated by the Founding Fathers; candidates who show they understand and support the purpose of government as set forth by the Declaration of Independence; who recognize the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” for everyone, and will promote and protect those rights.  Most of all we will support candidates who demonstrate the knowledge and willingness to defend the Constitution of the United States.

Admittedly, there is not an overabundance of candidates at the present time who meet these qualifications, but it is early yet.  It is too early, in fact, to formally endorse any candidate.  However, there are at least two candidates who seem to have these qualifications that we will be watching closely in the months to come.

The first one is Adam Andrzejewski, Republican candidate for Governor.  He alone stands out among the seven Republicans running for Governor as someone who understands the principles of government as fought for by the patriots during the Revolutionary War and contended for so diligently in the first four decades of the young republic.  He has some innovative  ideas for solving health care problems at the state level.  He also advocates some practical approaches to education, taxes, corruption, job creation and budgetary policy.

Another candidate that is worthy of our attention is Jeff Danklefsen from the 14th Congressional District.  Jeff is a newcomer to the political arena.  And while he does not seem to have the business background or entrepreneurial spirit so many successful candidates possess, he is a rock solid conservative and represents the type of thinking we need from those representing us in Congress.

We will be gathering more information on these and other candidates as the primary season progresses.  In the meantime, we urge everyone to get involved in the coming elections, especially the primaries.  This is by far the most important election of our lifetime.  The future of the nation and the future of our children and grandchildren depend on the outcome.

Still Waiting For That Republican Form of Government?

“The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government…” ~~Article 4, Section 4, U.S. Constitution

Throughout our history, the one thing all American Patriots have agreed on is that republicanism is the ideal political philosophy for our form of government.  The Framers not only believed in this principle, they also knew what it meant.

Like patriotism, freedom, liberty, democracy and deity, republicanism is an abstract term and therefore difficult to precisely define.  Most modern nations lay claim to the label of “Republic”, yet few are governed by republican principles.  It is obvious that the Soviet Socialist Republics that made up the Soviet Union, The Republic of China, and the United States of America do not have the same form of government.  Yet, they all bear the name “Republic”.

If Thomas Jefferson, THE champion of republicanism found its definition elusive, it is no wonder that the average American has difficulty in wrapping their mind around the concept.

“It must be acknowledged that the term republic is of very vague application in every language… Were I to assign to this term a precise and definite idea, I would say purely and simply it means a government by its citizens in mass, acting directly and personally according to rules established by the majority; and that every other government is more or less republican in proportion as it has in its composition more or less of this ingredient of direct action of the citizens. Such a government is evidently restrained to very narrow limits of space and population. I doubt if it would be practicable beyond the extent of a New England township.” –Thomas Jefferson to John Taylor, 1816

In searching the Founding Documents and other writers of the era to discover the idea the Framers had in mind when they wrote Section 4 of Article IV, we come up with two principles that seem to define its core meaning: The rule of law, and representative government. Neither of these is adhered to, in the constitutional sense, by our government today.

The Rule of Law

It is true that the rule of law is necessary for an ordered society.  It is equally true that the rule of law has throughout history, been the primary tool of tyranny.  Therefore, it is evident that the Founding Fathers did not simply have in mind a “nation ruled by law and not by men” when they devised a republican form of government for our nation.  What they meant by “republican government” was a government ruled by laws derived from a Constitution written and approved according to the collective will of all the people, clearly setting forth the authority and duties of government and restricting it to those powers only.  Article VI of the Constitution declares it, along with its duly ratified Amendments to be “The Supreme Law of The Land” and “the judges in every state shall be bound thereby”.

In order for a Constitution to be effective as a basis for government it must be (a) written, (b) permanent, and (c) unchangeable other than by lawful amendment procedures.  The claim by our present Administration that the Constitution is a “work in progress” to be altered and “perfected” by each succeeding generation is a contradiction of the very meaning of the word itself.  It undermines the foundation of republican government and places the liberties of our citizens at the mercy of whatever group of politicians that happens to be in power at any given time.

Article I of the Constitution declares, “ALL legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States…”  Through the years, Congress has devised the means for escaping responsibility and accountability for particularly onerous and unpopular laws by establishing bureaucracies and departments within the Executive Branch with “rule making” (legislative) powers.  The torrent of regulations and rules flowing from these bureaucratic, regulatory agencies, sometimes by executive order and frequently by judicial mandate, are direct violations of both the letter and spirit of the Constitution which gives ALL legislative powers to the Congress.

Representative Government

Closely associated with the principle of “rule of law”, is that of “representative government“.  It was clearly the intent of the Framers that law governing the activities and welfare of the people would be made by representatives, chosen by them, to serve in this capacity for a short period of time.  While Congress collectively may be said to be elected by the people, individually each member is elected by less than one percent of the total population.

It is this fact, among others, that prompted the Framers to place strict restraints on the powers of Congress, limiting it to matters of national necessity.  James Madison summed up the powers of the national government in Federalist No. 41.

“That we may form a correct judgment on this subject, it will be proper to review the several powers conferred on the government of the Union; and that this may be the more conveniently done they may be reduced into different classes as they relate to the following different objects:

1. Security against foreign danger;
2. Regulation of the intercourse with foreign nations;
3. Maintenance of harmony and proper intercourse among the States;
4. Certain miscellaneous objects of general utility;
5. Restraint of the States from certain injurious acts;
6. Provisions for giving due efficacy to all these powers.”

These “enumerated powers” are spelled out in Article I, Section 8 and emphasized in the Tenth Amendment.  For a commentary on the more controversial ones click HERE.

The idea of a federal legislature, not accountable to the collective will of the people, making laws affecting the lives all the people regardless of their unique circumstances and needs, was precisely what the Founders were attempting to avoid when they established a republican form of government with clear boundaries between the powers of the national and state governments.

This principle has been so corrupted over the past century that we now find ourselves in the absurd position where citizens of our poorest states are taxed to fund the profligate spending of those in some of our richest states; Where frugal and productive citizens find the fruits of their labor confiscated from them “by law” to provide luxuries to citizens in other states who are less productive and less frugal than themselves.

That a Congresswoman elected by a fraction of the citizens of one state can dominate legislation and spending affecting the citizens of all states, or that a Senator from one of our least populous states can impose his will by legislation on the most minute details of the lives of more than three hundred millions of citizens would be unthinkable by our Founding Fathers.

It is these perversions of government that have led to revolutions in the past and will again in the future, if allowed to go unchecked.  Whether the revolution takes place at the ballot box or in the streets remains to be seen.

Republican Tent Starting to Leak

Senator Arlen Specter announced Tuesday that he was switching his party affiliation to the Democrats.  Predictably, the self-appointed Republican advisors attributed his defection to the growing trend of intolerance among the Republican rank-and-file toward politicians whose views differ from their own.  The Republican Party, we are reminded, is the party of the “big tent”, big enough to accommodate all species of political animals.

Big tents are fine, if you are running a circus.  However, the Republican Party is not a circus; it just looks that way.  Tents are intended to be temporary structures, and are notoriously unstable in the face of a storm.  If republicans (small “R”) are to regain the stature they have enjoyed in providing leadership for the American people over the past four hundred years they are going to need a structure somewhat more stable than a tent.

The Republican Party needs an edifice with a foundation strong enough to withstand any storm, even the “prefect storm” it is facing today.  Historically conservatism has been the foundation of the Republican Party since its founding in 1854.  The fortress of conservatism that protected the liberty of the people for more than a century began to be disassembled, stone by stone, in the Republican Party along with the rise of progressivism during the twentieth century.

Republicanism did not start with the Republican Party.  The words most frequently used by the founders before and after the Revolutionary War in their political discourse were the words, “republican” and “republicanism”.  These words are synonymous with what we mean when we talk about conservatism today—almost.  Republicanism in the Founders generation was based on six principles, not just the three most often used today to describe the “three legs” of conservatism:  small government, low taxes and private property.  In fact, the three legs of the conservative stool are not the most important as understood and practiced by the Founders.

Those principles were:

1. Faith in God and His divine providence.
2. Rule of law and zero tolerance for corruption.
3. Allegiance to the Constitution.
4. Limited government powers delegated by the people.
5. Powers to tax limited to those necessary to run government.
6. Right to private property as the fruits of labor.

Too many conservatives seem to have forgotten the first three principles while focusing totally on the latter.  While virtually all conservatives subscribe to these principles intellectually, few in the political class practice them in their public service.  Unless the Republican Party and its conservative base wishes to follow the Whigs into the dustbin of history, they need to return to the principles that have been shown to work over and over again.

The fact that Arlen Specter decided to rejoin the Democrats in a last ditch effort to salvage his political career is significant only to the extent that it prompts the Republican Party to reexamine its position.  From its inception, politics in America has been divided into two camps.  Those camps were summed up by President Reagan as those who believe government is the answer and those who believe government is the problem.  The departure of Specter is, hopefully, only the first step in the realignment of the two parties.  That realignment would be helped along if others would follow Specters example and align themselves with the party that most reflects their worldview, particularly, Olympia Snow, Susan Collins, John McCain, Lindsey Graham and a few others.

As attractive as the idea of a “big tent” might be, we do not have that luxury at this time in history.  We need to follow the example of Ronald Reagan in attracting Democrats and Independents to our side by converting them to republicanism not by compromising republican principles.  It worked for Jefferson in 1800 and it worked for Reagan in 1980.  It will work for the Republican Party in 2010 and 2012, but only if it restores the first three principles of republicanism to the party and uses those principles, as well as the latter three, to persuade others to join them.