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The Constitutional Amendment Con
American Spectator ^ | 09 aug 2010 | W. James Antle, III

Posted on 08/09/2010 5:58:17 AM PDT by rellimpank

Last Friday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) let the cat out of the bag: his sudden crusade to reform birthright citizenship is directly related to his need for political cover on amnesty for illegal immigrants.

"Yeah, I think it's fair to say that I need to go home to South Carolina and say: listen, I know we're all upset that we have 12-14 million people illegally, " Graham told National Review's Daniel Foster. "I'm going to have to be practical. We're not going to deport or jail 12-14 million people." Graham's practical solution is the same old "comprehensive immigration reform," the logic of which is that it would not be amnesty for grand theft auto if the perpetrator got to keep the car in exchange for paying a fine and promising to read the owner's manual.

Of course, Graham already gave away the game when he entertained a constitutional amendment to clarify what the 14th Amendment says about birthright citizenship. The New Republic's Jonathan Chait recently snickered at the number of conservative constitutional amendments floating around that have been endorsed by "mainstream Republicans," but the joke is really on conservatives: a no-hope constitutional amendment is the usual way a GOP politician pays lip service to some conservative concern he plans to do nothing about.

A classic example is the antiabortion human life amendment. At its peak in 1984, it got 49 votes in a Republican-controlled Senate with a sympathetic, articulate pro-lifer in the White House -- 18 votes short of passage, two shy of a simple majority. Fast forward more than twenty years to the federal marriage amendment. With a 10-seat Republican majority in the Senate and a sympathetic if inarticulate president, the gay marriage amendment failed 49 to 48.

(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: constitution; illegals; immigration
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To: DoughtyOne

“As I understand it, Lindsey was a lot more like DeMint when he first entered politics. As close as he is to McCain these days, I chalk at least part of it up to John turning another political figure to his way of thinking. “

Maybe McCain orchestrated the Chamber of Commerce “acquisition” of Lindsay.....or Soros and McCain.


41 posted on 08/10/2010 7:17:09 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.Go troops! " Vote out RINOS. They screw you EVERY time" Jim Robinson)
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To: stephenjohnbanker

Yep, I agree. Contempt it is...

Well it’s mutual. I can guarantee that.


42 posted on 08/10/2010 7:19:31 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: DoughtyOne

” What bothers me more than just about anything else, is that we have a major bastard in Arizona that we all know is a Leftist prick sellout. Can we clean up that mess? Not without having to overcome the endorsement of everyone’s favorite harlot. “

Haywoth announced his run on Feb. 15, and by March 1st, Palin was in full campaign mode. She destroyed Hayworth’s momentum which was huge, and murdered his fund raiding momentum as well. ALL just as planned!


43 posted on 08/10/2010 7:22:15 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.Go troops! " Vote out RINOS. They screw you EVERY time" Jim Robinson)
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To: DoughtyOne

Fund raising, that is....or maybe fund raiding is more accurate ;-)


44 posted on 08/10/2010 7:25:25 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.Go troops! " Vote out RINOS. They screw you EVERY time" Jim Robinson)
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To: sickoflibs

I suggest 60 day terms each year. Any longer and they just turn to mischief.

I suggest we not pay these people. I suggest they be required to keep more than one foot in the private sector, so they have to live under the same rules they draft for everyone else.

I suggest the funds they collect for one election be required to be spent on that election, or returned to sender.

No way should they be able to run for higher office, hold over funds from that campaign and then drown their opponent in a lesser election with redirected funds.

There needs to be a better way to recall them. They should serve at our pleasure and be subject to recall on a moment’s notice. Make the bar real low, to set up a mid-term recall effort. No longer would they be able to screw us in years one to four of their term, then be able to kiss up to us in the last two years before they stand for election again.

As for term limits, I’m actually all for it, but I believe the courts will say that if the people want the politician for longer than two terms, they should have the option.

We definitely need to both limit their mischief and make them more accountable.

When you have to spend 9 months of the year in your hometown supporting yourself, it’s not very much fun to have your neighbors yelling, “Hey, F U asshole!” across the street.

And when your business dries up, you begin to sit up and take notice.


45 posted on 08/10/2010 7:31:03 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: stephenjohnbanker

Yeah, who knows in that infested cesspool called W., D.C.


46 posted on 08/10/2010 7:34:12 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: stephenjohnbanker

Yep. It’s a sad sad tale to be sure.

Little Miss “I’m the smartest person in the room” sure killed that impression, but quick.


47 posted on 08/10/2010 7:35:44 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: stephenjohnbanker

Or fungeraising... ;-)


48 posted on 08/10/2010 7:36:36 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: DoughtyOne

“When you have to spend 9 months of the year in your hometown supporting yourself, it’s not very much fun to have your neighbors yelling, “Hey, F U asshole!” across the street “

LOL!! Now they just ignore us. Part of the contempt I maintain they have for us now.


49 posted on 08/10/2010 7:43:34 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.Go troops! " Vote out RINOS. They screw you EVERY time" Jim Robinson)
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To: stephenjohnbanker

Yes, absolutely.


50 posted on 08/10/2010 7:45:28 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: DoughtyOne; All

” And when your business dries up, you begin to sit up and take notice. “

Life long Marxist George McGovern opened up a bed & breakfast over 10 years ago, and went bankrupt? The reason he gave was due to the amount of local state, and federal regulation, paperwork and taxes. Ah, sweet retribution ;-)


51 posted on 08/10/2010 7:50:57 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.Go troops! " Vote out RINOS. They screw you EVERY time" Jim Robinson)
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To: stephenjohnbanker

What a blithering idiot...

He was trying to be Barack Obama in 1972. Back then our populace wasn’t dumbed down enough.

Sweet retribution indeed...


52 posted on 08/10/2010 7:57:45 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: DoughtyOne
RE :”As for term limits, I’m actually all for it, but I believe the courts will say that if the people want the politician for longer than two terms, they should have the option.

The presidential term limits came from a constitutional amendment and that is very unlikely to pass now for congress as with the phony Graham-nesty amendment.

But on the other hand congress sets it's own rules and decides who they will seat outside of the courts power. Each house could vote to set their rules for term limits, one idea is if they are elected a 3rd term they lose all leadership positions and those on committees such that a new-bee has more power than them. I am not saying they would do it but I am saying Republicans are not talking about real reforms. We can already see the limits of the Tea party movement.

53 posted on 08/10/2010 8:02:42 AM PDT by sickoflibs ( "It's not the taxes, the redistribution is the federal spending=tax delayed")
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To: sickoflibs

I agree with your thoughts. I hadn’t given consideration to the loss of appointments after the second term. That’s an interesting new tool to me.


54 posted on 08/10/2010 8:11:15 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: sickoflibs

The deportation of millions of illegals argument has been debunked many times over. The key: Make it really painful for businesses to hire illegals. In the absense of jobs they will go home the same way they got here—i.e. reverse migration.

Of course, this assumes our existing immigration laws are finally enforced.

Graham is not only a RINO he is a dumb RINO.


55 posted on 08/10/2010 8:53:29 AM PDT by dools007
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To: DoughtyOne
RE :”I agree with your thoughts. I hadn’t given consideration to the loss of appointments after the second term. That’s an interesting new tool to me.

Here at work I give political/economic related informal lectures (as you can imagine) and I always get asked “And then what is the solution” and I have many of them but I always tell them that I cant imagine congress doing them. Term limits is a great example. It was promised 16 years ago by Republicans in the contract with America.

Both parties got us caught up in the ‘us vs them’ game. For democrats they say 'you better vote for us or the racists/corporations will get you'. Republicans say ‘vote for us or the terrorists/marxists will get you’. Plus many voters want the spending regardless of party.

56 posted on 08/10/2010 9:23:18 AM PDT by sickoflibs ( "It's not the taxes, the redistribution is the federal spending=tax delayed")
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To: dools007

Cut off government services to illegals. When they show up at schools, welfare offices, hospitals, or in court to sue deport them. Then they will be cut off from the candy.


57 posted on 08/10/2010 9:25:32 AM PDT by sickoflibs ( "It's not the taxes, the redistribution is the federal spending=tax delayed")
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To: sickoflibs

Yes, sadly you’re right.


58 posted on 08/10/2010 9:27:06 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Latest most accurate Az Poll to date, of 14 likely voters: McCain 137%, Hayworth -37% (+/- 92%))
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To: FrankR

Amen. Self deportation thru strict enforcement of no-citizen?/no-service. Maybe we could add a 1-800-squeeler line to DOJ to report lack of enforcement. (Seriously)


59 posted on 08/10/2010 9:28:57 AM PDT by urtax$@work (The best kind of memorial is a Burning Memorial.........)
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To: rellimpank
"I'm going to have to be practical. We're not going to deport or jail 12-14 million people."

Well, Lindsey, Dude!
I am the American Taxpayer; and I will have to admit my task is easier than yours...

We'll just have to @*#^$(*@&!^% elect someone who can!

Enjoy the rest of your life.

60 posted on 08/21/2010 12:16:04 AM PDT by Publius6961 ("In 1964 the War on Poverty Began --- Poverty won.")
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