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StumbleLETTER TO THE EDITOR:
Flagrant disregard for the Constitution
Thursday, March 18, 2010 | 2:04 a.m.
Men of vision and honor poured their wisdom into penning the Constitution of the United States. It was written to protect man from his arch nemesis: human nature. Congress was established as two distinct houses.
Concerning the House of Representatives, the Constitution states, “The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every second year by the people.” A short term was chosen to encourage responsibility to constituents.
Concerning the Senate, the Constitution states, “The Senate shall be composed of two senators from each state, chosen by the state Legislature thereof, for six years, and each Senator shall have one vote.” This method of selection was chosen to ensure each member state equal sovereignty and influence over the affairs of our central government. Senators could better concentrate on the needs of the state and the nation, sans the worry of re-election, contributions and partisan politics. States could exert control and influence over their senators, and senators guilty of malfeasance could be censured or recalled.
The 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913. This amendment essentially changed the Senate to an elected position, by the people of their respective state. It was a major shift in power from the states to big donors and major political parties.
Now we have both houses of Congress viewing problems and enacting legislation from the same perspective (re-election and keeping big contributors happy). This flagrant disregard for our original Constitution has led to an out-of-control central government and a Senate run amok.
Congress is racking up unsustainable national debt, passing anti-American trade laws, and bankrupting American entitlement programs. Our destiny, our sovereignty and our fortunes are being determined and manipulated by global corporations, big labor unions and foreign governments.
In retrospect, the 17th Amendment was the beginning of the end for our republic. Repealing the 17th Amendment would decentralize power in Washington, restore a major check and balance of our Congress, and return power and sovereignty to all states.
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Americans send elected officials to Washington, D.C., to be their representatives, to cast votes that represent the will of the people. But the Obama Administration and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are pushing Congress to pass a sweeping health care reform bill, without a vote.
Our Founding Fathers must be turning over in their graves over the flagrant disregard for the Constitution by the Obama Administration and the Democrats.
Obama said recently: "I don't spend a lot of time worrying about what the procedural rules are in the House or Senate..."
Well, maybe he should...
I'm sure you do understand the concept of Separation of Powers. So why do you think the Executive need concern himself with whatever procedural rules the Legislative Branch writes for itself? These procedural rules are not in the constitution. Each house is free make up its own.
"Forget health care, the real issue is the total disregard for law and rightful interruption of the constitution. Surely this is one more step to a dictatorship."
Tell me, specifically where has the constitution be interrupted? If anything the senate has been stalled by procedures the Republicans have used.
Democrats have learned well from Republicans when they had control of Congress and the White House. Who do you think used these tactics when Democrats disagreed with them?
We have nothing resembling "Men of honor and vision" in Washington now. We have men of rob, steal, grope, lie and cheat. Instead of men like Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin we have losers like Rangle, Frank, Reid, and, Dodd. With "leaders" like that I wonder how much longer this country can hold together.
Hey StanG, LarryVegas doesn't understand the separation of powers.
Georgie W. and Dickey butchered the constitution with signing points and executive privileges, so the right thinks that is the norm.
jlb101,
It will hold together just fine...as long as know nothings like you are not in charge. Now go back out to the golf course and leave the reasoning to those with critical thinking skills.
Schaffer-You dumb loser, you have never had an intelligent thought in your head. It has turned to mush from reading Mao's little book and the Democratic talking points. Get a real job and work hard and someday you won't have to work and can play golf. Life is good. Your envy is obvious.
Executive privilege and Barack Obama are synonymous. Look it up.
Whenever the liberals are pushed into a corner their argument is always "Bush did it". Why is that?
They all voted for him because of Change, Change, Change!!! But as he continues to fail at everything, they tell us that to be just like Bush makes him OK.
It's amazing how our elected officials who are supposed to uphold our laws, have for years been finding ways to tweak and get around our laws, and they're getting away with it.
Wego...one step to a dictatorship...Yeah right!! dictators take power through massive oppression and killing off adversaries. As I have stated numerous times my folks grew up under Hitler. If this were nazi Germany and Obama were Hitler every republican opposed to his policies would be dead and every blog that came out against Obama policies would be shut down. Many on this blog would be in prison or dead.
What we have going on currently is the exact OPPOSITE of a dictatorship. Massive amounts of money coming divergent interest groups pushing our leaders in every direction.
La Raza has come out against the health bill because of the way they perceive it treats immigrants. Do you really think a group like La Raza would even exist under a dictator?????
Are Constitution was written by real men not the (LIBERAL WELFARE LOVING WUSSYS IN WASHINGTON NOW) Give me this give me that' Hey pal grow-up live your own life and act like a real man you 21st century progressive loser.
jlb101: Jefferson and Franklin were two of the best "gropers" in America's history Please do not undervalue their contributions in this area as it undermines your credentials as a constitutional scholar.
Repeal of the 17th Ammendment would be a great thing to do. But instead of that, there is a good deal of support of making the office of President be elected by popular vote. I hope I do not live to see that day, but I probably will.
No surprise from POWERPLAY......Same old, same old rant....Pretty much the same thing coming from jlb101. Boy, are they ever boring!
Actually the writer of the letter made several good points, but he missed the whole reason the 17th Amendment was passed.
The passage of the 17th Amendment took the selection of United States Senators out of the corrupt hands of state legislators, and put the selection into the hands of the voters...
This was and still is a very good thing...
Before the passage of the 17th Amendment, big business (the railroads and the oil companies) openly bought Senate seats. State legislators walked away with "big bucks" for selecting those people as Senators who had been hand-picked by corporate America.
Contrary to what some people may think, the present situation (voters electing the U.S. Senators) is far better than having the state legislators do it....
There's no question that we have TOO much money in politics; TOO much money deciding the electoral process, but having the voters in each state select the U.S. Senators is the best way to go....
The passage of the 17th Amendment came out of the Populist movement and was part of the Progressive Era that greatly changed the face of politics in America....
Nobody knows the personal idiosyncracies of men who have been dead for centuries. All we have to go on about them is what has been left from their efforts to institute a system of government that empowers the one with brains and an ungodly work ethic. The system of government is known as the US Constitution. But, over the years, common man with zero brains and a blase work ethic have diluted it down to plastic tacks.
Affirmative action, the 14th amendment, the 20th amendment, and other social experimentations that are total failures, were pinned on us that were part of building this nation. Were we to return to the basic building blocks, downsize government, and put those zerobrainers back in the ghetto and/or barrio, we'd return to glory and superwealth.
George W Bush tried to set up a Dictatorship.
Barack H. Obama is trying to establish a working democracy again.
Pierre Beau Regard is dead wrong on his assessment of what is happening.
The GOP is beholden to Big Business and Big Insurance and Big Banks.
They have disdain for working people.
They also don't care for small businesses either.
They love monopolistic capitalism.
Companies like Walmart who control over 50% of the retail. That is who they love.
So you small government Right Wingers don't even know who you are supporting.
You are supporting Groups that want to dismantle our rights.
The right wing will turn the USA into a police state.
I see POWERPLAY is still convinced that the Founding Fathers were very conservative.....an argument can be made that the opposite was true...
The form of government created by the Founders was the first of its kind (on a large scale...) that had ever been created. Despite the fact that only approximately 20% of the population actually had the right to vote or hold public office, the system was very liberal/radical when compared with other governments found through out the world...
Of course, Great Britain's government offered a great deal of citizen participation in the governmental process, but it did not come close to what the Founders created in this country...
The government created by the Founders was so liberal/radical in nature that most of the countries in Europe was sure that the American experiment would fail...In their mind, it was only a matter of time!
They all had the same question: How was it possible to put the power of government in the hands of the people and not have anarchy?
Most of the Founders had studied and were influenced by Enlightenment Era thinking, and that influence is clearly seen in our system.....
Yep, for their time, the Founders were far more liberal in their views about government than we give them credit for....
Adam Clayton Powell was elected and the House did not seat him. They can use what procedures they want in the house and Senate, they always have and the Supreme Court lets them. Stop listening to rant-radio nut bars like Mark Levin.
I believe Diamonddogg has hit the nail on the head with many of his points...
"Frenchy" is continuing to do what he normally does....His latest rant about the failure of the 14th & 20th Amendments is beyond funny...
I'm surprised "Frenchy" didn't come out against the 13th, 15th, and 19th Amendments as well...
Maybe he would if he knew what they consist of....
Maybe the little guy also believes that Native Americans should never been given citizenship, and a major mistake was made when the Alien & Sedition Acts were allowed to expire?
One has to wonder, where in the world does he come up with some of his rants.....
The 10th was essentially gutted by later ones. States now have very little self-rule.
Thanks El Lobo! I always appreciate your posts as well.
The Founding Fathers started the Revolution.
I am going to call them Revolutionaries.
That is against the Status Quo.
That is not conservative.
That is change through violent overthrow of the British Government.
That is Progressive.
The GOP is beholden to monied interests.
They are not concerned with working people.
They have nothing but disdain for working people.
Americans realize this, except for the ones that have had thirty years of brain washing.
Countries like China and Mexico treat their workers poorly, and this what the GOP wants to do to the American Worker.
So to heck with them, and their addle-minded supporters.
The above posting is raw sewage ripe for transportation to ACORN Hqs.
Comment removed by moderator. Comment contained vulgar language.
"But the Obama Administration and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are pushing Congress to pass a sweeping health care reform bill, without a vote."
Deem and Pass (also called a "self-executing rule") has been used by both parties since at least the 1970's, but since the Republican Revolution in 1994 its use has skyrocketed.
Newt Gingrich (remember him?) used Deem and Pass a whopping 90 times from 1995 to 1998 on everything from immigration reform to line-item veto.
When Dennis Hastert was elevated to Speaker, he used it 112 times over the next three Congresses.
Republican Congressman David Dreier, one of the biggest critics of Deem and Pass, used it 35 times when he chaired the Rules Committee in 2005-2006. In fact, one of the times he used it was taken to court by the then-minority Democrats...and the court upheld the rule as legal.
OBAMA'S DISAPPROVAL RATING EXCEEDS HIS APPROVAL RATING!!!
Not only has Obama's job approval reached an all-term low -- 46% -- in the latest Gallup Poll daily tracking surveys.
His disapproval rating also has reached a high point, and that 48% DISAPPROVAL in Thursday's results of the last three days' daily tracking polls stands two points higher than Obama's approval rating.
"President Barack Obama's job approval is the worst of his presidency to date," Gallup's Jeffrey Jones reports today.
55 PERCENT OF AMERICA NOW OPPOSE OBAMACARE!!!
As America waits for Congress to act on health care, a Fox News poll released Thursday finds 55 percent oppose the reforms being considered, while only 35 percent favor them.
I envision PierreBeauRegard wearing a long flowing robe and a pointy tin foil skull cap.
If it weren't for the progressive critical thinking of our Founders we wouldn't have a United States.
Keep in mind most of the world was ruled by Kings and Queens with a fuedal system in place.
The State was the Church, and many came here to escape persecution.
It was progressive thinking that changed it for us as a nation.
A FOX News poll. Chuckle, chuckle.
Go FAUX!
Actually LarryVegas, outside of Fox's polls, it's closer to 50/50.
And most like the plan when it is explained properly.
Unfortunately the lies the Republican leadership are spewing are having an affect.
They are most definitely taking advantage of the publics ignorance.
Hey VernosB: It's the progressive left wing politicians today that want the United States to look more like Europe. "Explain That"
Poor little POWERPLAY...
Actually, my little friend.....There are several things that Europe does that we would benefit from by going that route. Contrary to what you & most of your brain-dead right-wingers believe, we could learn a lot from Europe.....
They aren't perfect, but in certain areas they have us all beat to hell!
Now look for POWERPLAY or one of his buddies to tell me that maybe I should move to Europe if I like it so much....
We might even hear a "love it or leave it" remark or two....Ha! Ha!
Yep, the predictable behavior of right-wingers....Ha! Ha! Ha!
I see LarryVegas couldn't resist listing some poll numbers....the only problem is the "little independent guy" (I can't resist making that remark...) had to resort to FOX NEWS in order to find such a poll....
Why would someone quote Fox News for one poll, and then a different polling institution for another?
Let's compare apples to apples, here.
According to Gallup, who Larry used to claim there's some mythical problem with Obama's poll numbers?
http://www.gallup.com/poll/126521/Favor-...
45% support, 48% against health care reform.
More than 138,000,000 Americans support reform, according to Gallup.
So every time you hear the Republicans claim that "no one wants this bill," think of the 138 million Americans who do want it, and the others who will benefit from it's popular provisions.
Marxist-Democrats are marching to an African drumbeat, heading toward November wearing Palestinian money belts (loaded with C4).
El Lobo you got an inferiority complex. Why do you try and practice "success through intimidation" and it springs right back on you. What a tuff guy. Oop's
I see all the leeches, social parasites, and freeloaders are posting today worried that Stupid in the White House, won't give them free health care. Wouldn't it be too bad if they had to pay for their own.
diamonddog,
A working democracy? Is that what you think is happening when the Speaker Pelousy says, "We have to pass the bill so you can see what's in it." or "It's more insider and process-oriented than most people want to know, but I like it because then we don't have to vote on the Senate bill."
You call it Democracy when they hid the text from us while they bribe states with the Florida Flim flam? The Cornhusker kickback? The Louisiana Purchase? Is this really how you think democracy should work?
We don't even know what is in this bill. Do you really trust the government so much that you're willing to blindly vote for a bill you're not even allowed to read?
That's crazy ignorance.
Oops....I meant blindly support a bill.
Hey Henderson, I got an extra musket if'n ya need it? Good post
When this thing passes and people are able to buy any type of health insurance coverage they need they will love it.
When they realize that Obama will not shoot grandma in the head they will love it.
I was around when medicare was passed and Reagan said it would result in a hammer and sickle in every window. That doctors would flee medicine. There wouldn't be enough doctors. What happened...nothing... medicare has become probably the highest rated health delivery system in the world. Plus the hammer and sickle doesn't even exist in Russia anymore.
A working Democracy? The GOP sold the middle-class workers down the river.
Sec of Labor Elaine Chao(Mrs. Mitch McConnell) will be remembered as the most corporate friendly Labor Secretary in history.
What did that mean for workers? Rulings for Big business and against workers in way too many cases.
Employers hired undocumented workers by the train load in the last eight years. The employers knew that labor laws would not be enforced, so they broke every law that could. Underpaying workers, working people of the clock,
Letting workers work in unsafe areas.
There were many untold crimes against workers.
All these Crimes Happened under Elaine Chao's regime. She was GWB's Secretary of Labor.
This showed me that the GOP doesn't care about labor.
All the GOP cares about is Big Business and Big Banks.
As far as political polls, know this they do not call Cell phones. Enough Said!
fremmasmind said.....
"El Lobo you got an inferiority complex. Why do you try and practice "success through intimidation" and it springs right back on you. What a tuff guy. Oop's"
????????????????
zippert1 said....
"I was around when medicare was passed and Reagan said it would result in a hammer and sickle in every window. That doctors would flee medicine. There wouldn't be enough doctors. What happened...nothing... medicare has become probably the highest rated health delivery system in the world. Plus the hammer and sickle doesn't even exist in Russia anymore."
Exactly! Similar things were said about the passage of Social Security. It has been copied and duplicated time and time again through out the world...
It's still around and will be 100 years from now!
Raw sewage from two outstanding manure spreaders.......la_wobo and flim flam man.....ha ha
PierreBeauRegard.......
"Sticks & stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me...."
zipper1 nice in the fantasy land where you live? No one likes SSC and no country copied it. Pulled that out of thin air did we? And Medicare has become exactly what Reagan said, good Doctors did live by the thousands, cost skyrocketed, fraud and graft have become out of control and every agency, hospital and doctor knows it. Now to try and make up for the losses the Administration is cutting payments in half and pretending that it's about management when it's really about cover-up to ease the rape of our wallets called the new healthcare bill.
SSC is broken and how you can even pretend that it's not is amazing. Congress has been robbing it for years and last month the GAO has said it will be out of cash completely between 2037 and 2040.
Although it's controversial to say it half the country is thinking it. Its time to act on the constitution and start over. Not in some subversive or violent way. But to start the legal process and through the entire congress out. Regardless of the side your on, right or left no one's agenda is working anymore. No, one's goals are getting accomplished. There was a time when good people from all sides and perspectives could have a discussion and work out their problems and come to agreeable compromises in the best interests of the nation.
Today all we have is fighting, lies, manipulations, cheats and greed. People will little to know interest in the best interests of the nation or its people and only an interest in power and greed. We need to have reasonable people in office who can act like adults with ethics and integrity. People who pass laws that apply to them as much as to the people, elected leaders who pay their taxes, honor their wives and children, don't lie and cheat and steal from the people they are supposed to serve.
If we had trustworthy leaders we would not have all the fighting and fears. People are tired of being lied to by the left and the right. This administration has proven to be every bit as bad as the last only the left has it's egos into it too deeply to admit it yet, too bad for all of us.
LMAO!!
@ carbonware..
What is SSC?
Yes, I'm curious.....What is SSC?
Robert Carreau
tell me, are you a partial moron, or a full one. I am so sick of my old party, yes the Republicans. Perhaps we should rename them the doomsayers. Sadly many drones believe this garbage. Everyday some right wing want to be revolutionary comes up with another angle how the government is destroying the country. Please...I am quite sure Reagan, if there is a after life, is rolling over in his grave.
If you believe in the hereafter. Hereafter don't be putting the bad mouth on the letter writers. We 100 percent morons depend on them writing so we can comment.
Carbonware...If you think people don't like social security and medicare try taking them away from the 44 million that get it.
You think the elderly folks at the townhall meetings were screaming for the elimination of the above??? They want more!!!!! They were protesting cuts to medicare advantage. When the elderly are polled about medicare over 90% say they like it. Many of these people had battles with big insurance for years before they got old enough to qualify for medicare.
These crazy republicans can't stop lying. That's
why we booted these losers out of the White
House.
Health care reform will pass.
Keep Hope Alive!!! Lmao!!
Throw the bums out! Vote out ALL incumbents next election(s).
Look at the failure that is the United States Postal Service. If the government can't even run the Post Office efficiently, and remember, every American is a USPS customer, what makes you think they can be trusted with the health care of every American? Our government does one thing well, and that is the military.
Wake up before you find yourselves standing in line for your socialized medicine.
Henderson...what you don't get your mail?????????? I do!!! Maybe they don't like you.
zippert1,
I see, you're clearly an underachiever. There are more efficient ways to deliver the mail without operating at a deficit of billions of dollars per year - especially when you have the ENTIRE COUNTRY as your customer.
henderson said.....
"Look at the failure that is the United States Postal Service. If the government can't even run the Post Office efficiently, and remember, every American is a USPS customer, what makes you think they can be trusted with the health care of every American?"
________________________________________
Hmmmmmmmm....it appears that henderson should be appointed as our next Post Master General......
In his mind, he could turn the post office into a money making operation.....
Hmmmmmm.....I wonder, however, if some one should tell the little guy that the Postal Service is actually a "Quasi-governmental operation." It's not a government owned corporation!
El Lobo,
I wonder if you should alert the Post Office and let them know they're not a government agency. They clearly think they are.
"The Postal Service is the first government agency to publicly report its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to receive third-party verification of the results."
"usps.com is one of the most frequently visited government sites, with more than 413 million visits in 2009 -- averaging 1.1 million visitors each day."
"Named the Most Trusted Government Agency 5 consecutive years"
"A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation.
Source: The USPS website
http://www.usps.com/communications/newsr...
DUH!
What good is a system when the majority living under it want nothing more than to earn enough money to exit it? Truth is one is either not participating or working hard to reach that state.
Something stinks.
La_lobo strikes again with another blatant distortion of the facts, i.e., that the USPS is not government run. Let's give him/her a title:
La_lobo Goebbels.
Forget health care, the real issue is the total disregard for law and rightful interruption of the constitution. Surely this is one more step to a dictatorship.
The only vote that should be debated is whether to impeach, censure or otherwise remove all these traitors.
That is only part of the constitution that has been re done and our rights lost. To many people vote on new laws that they are clueless to what they are really approving, and everyday we are losing more rights.We are already more than half way to being a dictatorship country.
We are way past time for a revelution. The only problem with having one now is our government would send in the national gaurd and just wipe us all out.
I dont know about everywhere but here in the United States of Nevada our entire government especially the justice system is out of control and is in desperate need for restructure.
To my good buddies Henderson & Pierre...
I believe I said the U.S. Postal System is a Quasi Governmental Agency. This article seems to point that out...
"The United States Postal Service (USPS) is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly referred to as the "Post Office", "Postal Service", or "U.S. Mail".........
...........The Post Office Department was created in 1792 as part of the United States Cabinet........
Since its reorganization into an independent organization, (1983) the USPS has become self-sufficient and has not directly received taxpayer-dollars since the early 1980s. The decline of mail volume due to increased usage of e-mail has forced the postal service to look to other sources of revenue while cutting costs to maintain this financial balance.[3]
Employing 656,000 workers and 260,000 vehicles, it is the second-largest civilian employer in the United States (after Wal-Mart) and the operator of the largest civilian vehicle fleet in the world."
More on the Postal System.....
"The USPS is often mistaken for a government-owned corporation (e.g., Amtrak), but as noted above is legally defined as an "independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States,"
More on the Postal System.....
"The Postal Reorganization Act signed by President Richard Nixon on August 12, 1970, replaced the cabinet-level Post Office Department with the independent United States Postal Service. The Act took effect on July 1, 1971."
NEED I SAY MORE..............
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Stat...