Posted on 03/08/2012 9:29:20 AM PST by CanadianYankee
I believe it is past time to push back against the attempts to silence concervative speech. Especially those initiated by members of the Rat party like Bob Hagen,(D)(OH).
To that end, I intend to send the following to my Ohio representative. Any helpful suggestions from my fellow FReepers would be greatly appreciated.
Petition:
Fundamental to good governance is how power and authority are allocated and applied in a variety of public realms. Public officials, by virtue of the authority accorded the roles and positions they occupy, exercise varying degrees of power as they carry out their functions. For a government charged with the responsibility of protecting the rights of the individual citizens it governs there, by necessity, must be standards set in place that assures that those public officials will use their power and authority properly and responsibly?
Whereas:
State Representative Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown, D-60th, would appear to be engaged in the misuse of office his by attempting to influence, in his capacity as Ohio State Representative, District 60, WKBN-AM (570) Radio of Youngstown, Ohio to stop future broadcasts of the Rush Limbaugh radio show on said station with the intent to harm to Mr. Limbaugh, it is the purpose herein to bring this matter to the attention of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio.
Facts:
1) State Rep. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown, D-60th, acting in his capacity as a member of The General Assembly of the State of Ohio, is circulating a petition (http://signon.org/sign/take-limbaugh-off-youngstown.fb1?source=c.fb&r_by=87553) (copy attached) to be delivered to Bill Kelley, General Manager, WKBN asking for the removal of Rush Limbaugh, a private citizen, from Youngstown radio airwaves. (see " Hagan petition to get Limbaugh off Youngstown airwaves gaining support", Youngstown Vindicator, March 6, 2012) (copy attached)
2) Representative Hagen clearly identifies his status as a representative on said petition.
Legal Question:
The action by State Rep. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown and, by extension, the state of Ohio against Mr. Limbaugh would appear to result in:
1) an act contrary to SECTION 1. CONDUCT, of the LEGISLATIVE CODE OF ETHICS FOR MEMBERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE 129th OHIO GENERAL ASSEMBLY, EMPLOYEES OF ANY LEGISLATIVE AGENCY, AND CANDIDATES FOR THE 130th GENERAL ASSEMBLY which states: All members of the Senate or the House of Representatives shall conduct themselves at all times so as to reflect credit upon the member's respective chamber of the General Assembly, shall obey all rules of the member's respective chamber of the General Assembly, and shall conform the member's conduct to this Code of Ethics. All employees of the Senate or House of Representatives and all employees of any legislative agency shall conduct themselves at all times so as to reflect credit upon the employee's respective chamber of the General Assembly or institution of employment, shall obey all rules of the employee's respective chamber of the General Assembly or institution of employment, and shall conform the employee's conduct to this Code of Ethics.
2) a violation of Limbaugh's Fourteenth Amendment rights under the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees that “no state shall deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law”?
3) a violation of Article I, Section 9, Clause 3, and Article I, Section 10, Clause 1 of the Constitution of the United States re: Bill of attainder.
4) an act not consistent with the conception of liberty of the press as it has been historically conceived and guaranteed under the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.
5) an act contrary to ARTICLE I-11, FREEDOM OF SPEECH; OF THE PRESS; OF LIBELS; ARTICLE I-10, TRIAL FOR CRIMES; WITNESS; Article I-16, REDRESS FOR INJURY; DUE PROCESS; ARTICLE I-18, SUSPENSION OF LAWS; ARTICLE I-20, POWERS RESERVED TO THE PEOPLE; ARTICLE II-32, DIVORCES AND JUDICIAL POWER; ARTICLE IV-1, JUDICIAL POWER VESTED IN COURT; ARTICLE IV-18, POWERS AND JURISDICTION OF JUDGES. and ARTICLE I-5, TRIAL BY JURY of the Ohio Constitution.
Significance:
The opinion herein is that actions, such as those undertaken by Representative Hagen in this instance, allowed to stand, may establish a precedent that would serve to empower officials of the government to use the full force of their status, as an official of the State, to coerce any citizen of that state to act in any manner, or to cease acting in any manner, based solely on the dictates of that official, without due process of law.
It is therefore requested that:
The General Assembly of the State of Ohio or any committee, officer, or member(s) deemed appropriate by the assembly to undertake such matters, consider the conduct set forth, and take any action warranted under the powers granted to the assembly under ARTICLE II-6, POWERS OF EACH HOUSE; ARTICLE II-23, IMPEACHMENTS; HOW INSTITUTED AND CONDUCTED; ARTICLE II-24, OFFICERS LIABLE TO IMPEACHMENT; CONSEQUENCES; ARTICLE II-38, REMOVAL OF OFFICIALS FOR MISCONDUCT or any other law or statute judged applicable by the assembly.
Signed: This 8th day of March, 2012
Can you imagine the $h-t Storm if an R had started an OFFICIAL campaign to protest/boycott against a station that had dropped him?
First, you need to point out to people that the state governments are pre-empted from regulating the broadcasting industry.
Second, you need to point out to people that Congress has forbidden the FCC to get involved with content issues (other than indecent, obscene or profane speech pursuant to 18 USC 1464).
The statute that states this is 47 United States Code, Section 326 (a provision of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended):
Nothing in this chapter shall be understood or construed to give the Commission the power of censorship over the radio communications or signals transmitted by any radio station, and no regulation or condition shall be promulgated or fixed by the Commission which shall interfere with the right of free speech by means of radio communication.
I would overwhelm them with examples of the same or worse statements being made by the likes of the Huffington Post, Daily KOS, etc who started these boycotts. Also, how about calling them out on this language in every-day media. You probably can’t go through one hour on MTV or one “The real housewives of xx” show and not hear that or worse.
The communists party including this RAT will keep trying until it happens.
“I would overwhelm them with examples of the same or worse statements being made by the likes of the Huffington Post, Daily KOS, etc...”
Michelle Malkin has a wealth of examples here:
Good points...
I would also consider if the Representative used State-funded computers or composed/edited/or posted said petition either from his State office or on State time.
If so, then he may be quilty of not only poor judgement but also a misdemenor.
Good points...
I would also consider if the Representative used State-funded computers or composed/edited/or posted said petition either from his State office or on State time.
If so, then he may be quilty of not only poor judgement but also a misdemeanor.
Thank you nd76! I will add those points to content. This is exactly the type of thing I was looking for from my request.
Let those who command the knob (the listening audience) decide whom may remain on the air and whom may not. This novel thought will not sit well with Progressives.
And this is what Rush,Hannity, Michelles (both of them0, Levin, et al should be doing.....point out the hypocrisy and the totalitarianism of suppressing free speech . . . any name calling regarding this, like “hypocrites” or “oppressors of free spend” or “First Amendment haters” should be used in words and phrases that the common folk will understand. Let them know the Constitution is under assault.
In short, turn the tables on these mofos.
Now isnt this interesting? From Wiki:
Environmental issues
A a staunch liberal, Hagan is against measures that would allow drilling for oil and natural gas in Ohio state parks. In debate on the bill, which went on to pass the Ohio House of Representatives, he went on to question whether Republicans who supported the measure were on drugs. He was later reprimanded for diving into personalities over the issue.
And this:
Before entering electoral politics, Hagan worked for 15 years as a locomotive engineer for CSX Transportation, which he still is involved with today.
CSX Transportation (reporting mark CSXT) is a Class I railroad in the United States. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles.[1]
CSX needs a few phone calls and emails about what kind of freedom-suppressing people it employs
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