Posted on 03/01/2011 9:21:41 AM PST by jazusamo
The Obama administration plans to continue with implementation of ObamaCare despite recent rulings by two federal district judges that it is unconstitutional, despite lawsuits to block it by more than half of all states, and despite polls showing that 60 percent of Americans want it repealed.
This is the most recent example of the arrogant notion that elected representatives are not required to operate within the bounds established by the Constitution or act on behalf of the people who elected them.
The federal government has increasingly assumed unlimited powers and acted against the will of the people. When they can't legislate, they regulate.
The attitude is: We know you don't want it, but we are going to force it on you anyway. Who are you to know what is best for you? You are just a pesky voter. We are entitled to discount what you say because you cannot possibly grasp our progressive agenda.
Progressives began the gradual erosion of constitutional principles around the beginning of the 20th century. The goal? To impose their superior wisdom on the rest of us.
The way progressives measure progress is by moving up from the vision of the founding fathers. But the Constitution gets in the way with its restrictions on the arbitrary powers of government. So it must be bypassed.
We the People have been undermined by all three branches of government, despite the words and intentions of the founding fathers. The legislative branch has been passing laws before anyone could learn what was in them. The executive branch has been sidestepping the confirmation process prescribed for Cabinet members in the Constitution by appointing "czars" who hold even more power than Cabinet members. And the judicial branch has been manipulating the letter and spirit of the law through constitutional misinterpretation.
Among the three branches, the judiciary has been the worst offender. It has enabled progressives to amass authority sheltered from election cycles and changing public attitudes. Through the judiciary, progressives have been able to read their own meaning into the words of the Constitution and proclaim their own version of the law.
President Woodrow Wilson was an early progressive who actively rejected what the founding fathers said and intended. He argued that the meaning of the Constitution should be interpreted by judges, and not based on its words.
In his book, Constitutional Government in the United States, Wilson wrote: "We can say without the least disparagement or even criticism of the Supreme Court of the United States that at its hands the Constitution has received an adaptation and an elaboration which would fill its framers of the simple days of 1787 with nothing less than amazement. The explicitly granted powers of the Constitution are what they always were; but the powers drawn from it by implication have grown and multiplied beyond all expectation, and each generation of statesmen looks to the Supreme Court to supply the interpretation which will serve the needs of the day."
Wilson and other progressives have failed to understand the consequence of rewriting the Constitution's meaning and ignoring the intentions of the founding fathers. If this generation is not bound by yesterday's law, then future generations will not be bound by today's law.
If law is not a body of rules and can be arbitrarily manipulated, then the rule of man trumps the rule of law. And the founding principle that "all men are created equal" is replaced by "some men are more equal than others." When people are governed by self-anointed rulers instead of elected representatives, they cannot be free.
When the Constitution was written, it was a radical departure from the despotic governments of its time. While Europeans were being ruled by the arbitrary edicts of kings, Americans revolted so they could become a self-governing people.
Because the founding fathers understood human nature, they structured the Constitution to permanently protect the people from the human shortcomings of their leaders. Human nature has not changed since America's founding. So the need still exists for the protection provided by the Constitution.
When elected representatives take an oath, it is not to the country, Congress, or constituents; it is to uphold and defend the Constitution. The Constitution is the supreme law of America. It is the blueprint that made America the envy of the world.
It has become increasingly apparent that progressive judges, justices, and elected representatives do not represent the interests of most Americans. For too long, the will of the people has been ignored.
If we are to continue with the gloriously successful American experiment of self-governance, we must protect the letter and spirit of the Constitution. It cannot protect us unless we protect it. We can do that by voting out those who bypass or undermine the letter and spirit of the Constitution.
When asked where the Constitution authorizes Congress to order Americans to buy health insurance, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said: "Are you serious? Are you serious?"
Two federal district judges have since shown that they are serious. So have the majority of states and Americans.
It will be interesting to see if the Supreme Court is also serious.
Judge Vinson was going to deliver a follow-up statement on his decision yesterday. What’s the word on that?
What I find alarming is the attitude by many liberals (due to ignorance) when informed that two federal judges have declared it unconstitutional. “So? Three judges have declared it constitutional, so it is going to happen anyway...”
Not all are Obama voters, either.
THIS pretty much summarizes the issue (especially the bolded text). In the eyes of liberals, the Constitution was framed by people who could have no idea of the "oh, so much more complex" world of today (or of 1913).
It is this arrogance and conceit of of liberals that burns me up. The framers of the Constitution knew DAMN well what the issues were, had given it a GREAT deal of thought and knew that the issues they grappled with were timeless. They were INTIMATELY familiar with the issues of oppression by a government, which is the same whether you live in 1787 or 2007, and painstakingly constructed the constitution to specifically prevent that.
We see now what happens when it is disregarded, as it has been since the early 20th century. Liberals have figured out there is no downside to ignoring it. Nobody has called them on the carpet or penalized them.
What a bunch of arrogant pukes.
You're dead on the money. The framers knew what it was to live under the thumb of the elite and did their very best in writing our Constitution to give the power to the people.
It's sad that now the liberals, progressives, leftists or whatever you want to call them don't give a hoot about contributing to the betterment of the country and making available the opportunity for people to better themselves. They want to take from those that have bettered themselves and give it to the slugs who feel they're owned a living.
The leftists who are trying to attack Justice Thomas at this very moment are prime examples. They're digging up anything they can to disparage probably the finest justice we've had for years by attacking his not asking questions on the bench and attacking his wife. The turkeys have no shame and I doubt they're going to get to first base with it, we need many more justices and judges just like him.
I haven’t seen a word on it after a quick check.
I am currently listening to Judge Thomas’ book “My Grandfather’s Son” and it is a remarkable read, when you see the journey he took to become who he is.
What I found particularly striking was his description of the first time he read Thomas Sowell’s work, and threw the book in the trash, but a few years later, when he had time to cogitate on the matters, had a chance to hear him speak, and realized that he wasn’t alone, he wasn’t the only black person outside his family who thought this way about the welfare state.
Just remarkable.
The wife read My Grandfather’s Son awhile back and I’ve meant to start on it and will do so promptly. She also bought George Bush’s and Donald Rumsfeld’s books, they’re backing up. :-)
“...We can say without the least disparagement or even criticism of the Supreme Court of the United States that at its hands the Constitution has received an adaptation and an elaboration which would fill its framers of the simple days of 1787 with nothing less than amazement.”
“Amazement”, my rear end. They would probably shout,
WHAT THE %&$* HAVE YOU DONE TO MY COUNTRY????!!!
Now, when I read your post, I had this vivid mental image of George Washington, all six foot something of him, leaning forward with a red face and that powdered wig yelling just that...
Normally by all accounts, a very reserved and controlled man.
But boy, was that imagery in my mind vivid.
Indeed.
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