Posted on 04/15/2013 7:43:15 PM PDT by Republican Wildcat
Top Kentucky and Tennessee officials rallied over the weekend to urge the Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District to halt plans to erect barricades to 10 dams along the Cumberland River because of hazardous conditions near the dam.
Republican U.S. Sen. Rand Paul and U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell joined up with Republican U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield of Hopkinsville and Tennessee Republican U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander push back against the decision, which would prevent boaters from getting near the dams.
The Army Corps of Engineers want to restrict access near the 10 dams along the Cumberland River because of powerful currents that can capsize boats and drown fisherman. Since 2009, three deaths and ten near deaths have been reported at the dams, according to the Corps.
But the members of the federal delegation say the issue has more to do with the division of power between the state and the federal government. And McConnell called it an example of an out-of-control “nanny state.”
“They’re trying to tell us what we can do. Where we can do it. How often we can do it. As if they’re smarter than all the rest of us,” McConnell said.
Paul echoed McConnell’s statements, saying it’s more of an issue of how out of touch Washington is with Kentucky.
“It’s not that the federal government is inherently stupid. Although it’s a debatable question. It’s that they’re just too far away,” Paul said. “That’s why we wanted a division of government.”
Whitfield filed the Freedom to Fish Act in the House in February as a measure to stop the Corps from erecting the barricades. The group said they would do everything in their power to allow fisherman to boat near the dams.
(Excerpt) Read more at mycn2.com ...
LOL! I wonder what his FR screen name is.
/johnny
I really do believe they want to be able to boat close to the dams ~ 'cause they don't care!
Wellll, there was a case in Pa. a few years ago when a tugboat lost control of it’s barges and went over a dam. Two or three tugmen were drowned. Of course, it all depends on how much of the river will be off limits to fishermen. Either way, I can see it’s a state’s issue.
Not a state issue. All navigable waterways in the United States fall under the jurisdiction of the US Army Corps of Engineers and have for over a century.
Their right public safety is the Provence of the state and individual. Washington has no business butting in.
Let the State or its citizens decide what risk is acceptable.
“Not a state issue. All navigable waterways in the United States fall under the jurisdiction of the US Army Corps of Engineers and have for over a century.”
If its dammed it anti exactly navigable, and even if it were its still inside the State, and Not under Federal jurisdiction.
I’m sorry I don’t see that in the Federal Constitution. I see interstate commerce but their anti no commerce here and even if there were the federal safety regulation has nothing to do with commerce!
“Wellll, there was a case in Pa. a few years ago when a tugboat lost control of it’s barges and went over a dam. Two or three tugmen were drowned. Of course, it all depends on how much of the river will be off limits to fishermen. Either way, I can see it’s a state’s issue.”
You know to “regulate Commerce” means to make regular not to obstruct or to prohibit or to make safe. Just to make regular as in abolish state barriers to commerce. Washington over the last 100 years has run away with that clause to justify everything under the sun.
This act which concerns safety has nothing to do with commerce, nor any regulations there of.
I see. My mistake.
You may be under the mistaken impression this government stays within its constitutional boundaries. It hasn’t since Washington was President. It’s been one encroachment after another for over 200 years.
If there’s a boat on it, it’s navigable. Navigable also include any waters that have been traditionally navigated and USACE also administers waters that have a significant physical, biological, or chemical nexus with and navigable waters.
As a “foolhardy” kain-tuck-eh”ian who happens to live within “spitting” distance of that dam and lake, I can tell you that our _main_ problem with it, is out-of-town boaters, mainly from the northern states....like Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. From the first of April until the last of September, the locals usually stay off the lake and out of the way. After putting up with the hassle from out-of-towners with that kind of attitude, no, we really don’t care how close to the dam y’all get. :-)
Well a mans got a right to be stupid, he just don’t got a right to injure others.
“If there’s a boat on it, it’s navigable. Navigable also include any waters that have been traditionally navigated and USACE also administers waters that have a significant physical, biological, or chemical nexus with and navigable waters.”
I know what the Federal employees in black robes said about their own power.
I simply can’t accept such a ridiculously broad power grab, whether it happen yesterday or a 100 years ago.
“If there’s a boat on it, it’s navigable.”
That’s not entirely true. I worked for a CA company and we were discharging some clean cooling water from a press into a local creek. One day the Coast Guard showed up and asked us for our “discharge permit.” It seems that the creek flows into a non-navigable river, which, in turn, flows into San Francisco Bay ( sometimes). Since, at times water flows through this “collection,” the creek is, by definition, “navigable,” One of our engineers said we didn’t know because they hadn’t parked their Cutter out back! Someone should have put the Army Corps of Engineers out of business right after WWII. They are just an arm of the EPA.
Yeah - that’s the “significant nexus” aspect. But USACE doesn’t make the rules - congress does.
And the heck of it is, the States gave their power away a hundred years ago. The 17th Amendment was an invite to consolidated power the national government couldn't refuse.
Those kay-wackians ~
It’s not that the USACE is being “smarter than the rest of us”, in this case it is McConnell being dumber than Ashley Judd, or pandering to those who are. It’s their dam, and their responsibility to set safety rules. Are they being over-cautious? Of course. Is the dams’ main purpose to create fishing spots? Of course not. May as well bitch that the FAA doesn’t let air passengers walk in front of jet engine intakes on the apron. Isn’t that a violation of our right to go wherever we damn please also?
Sure, we know it.....and to us, they have been gone from our wonderful state for too long and have been indoctrinated with the liberal “nawthern” agenda for so long, that they think they know more than us poor old white trash hillbilly folks, and therefore have a “better than us” attitude. It all boils down to personal responsibility. I mean, if you can’t see a 700 foot dam looming in front of you and aren’t cognizant enough to be aware that it can have a heck of an undertow.....well, we just figger you’re on your own. The “local yokels” just try to stay out of their way and hope summer is over fairly quick. LOL (I have “kin” in those states and I’m not vilifying what I don’t have personal knowledge of....just what we’ve encountered on a personal level.)
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