Supporters of healthcare reform claim it’s about accessible and low-cost health coverage for Americans. If that were true, they’d reject Nancy Pelosi’s bill, HR 3962. Usually, critics write about the economic reasons. But there’s another huge problem . . .
The bill is an unprecedented attack on personal liberty.
HR 3962 will hamstring our finances. But it’s also full of blatant attacks on individual liberty.
For instance, chain restaurants and vending machine owners will be forced to publish calorie information on their menus. That’s not interstate commerce… unless the state line cuts through a McDonald’s counter. Congress can’t order private property owners around this way, and the Free Press clause of the First Amendment also clearly forbids this mandate. Calorie reports may be nice, but that’s outside of the government’s lawful scope.
HR 3962 also violates the broad 9th Amendment protection of individual liberty, and the 10th Amendment’s requirement that federal power be limited to only those functions listed in the Constitution.
Even though the Supreme Court has blown a gaping hole through many Constitutional protections of economic freedom — and blamed their lawlessness on the Commerce Clause power to regulate interstate commerce — it’s apparent that even this wide hole is too small for Congressional ambitions. Does anyone on Capitol Hill even know what interstate commerce is?
Republicans displaying their “Red State pride” following the results of Tuesday’s elections need to face reality. The two GOP gubernatorial election victories in Virginia and New Jersey were unsurprising and expected. Now if a true limited government conservative beat out Bloomberg in the New York mayoral race there would be a reason for celebration.
The reason Bob McDonnell beat out Creigh Deeds in Virginia was not because McDonnell represents some new style small government Republican. McDonnell won because Deeds made campaign mistakes. McDonnell made none. Deeds lost the race more than McDonnell won it.
The same is true for the New Jersey race. Corzine, a former chairman at Goldman Sachs, easily became a scapegoat for a failing economy and political corruption. So, he lost.
What Tuesday’s election results really demonstrated was a lack of conviction for either Democrats or Republicans. When the political spectrum shines red, then blue, then red, then blue, over and over again something tangible comes to light:
America is not rooting for either party to win. America is rooting for the underdog.
Ron Paul appeared on Fox Business News tonight with David Asman on the “Nightly Scoreboard”. They discussed several topics in a nearly 10 minute segment. As usual, Ron Paul just delivers the truth.
by John Browne – Senior Market Strategist, Euro Pacific Capital
Last week, to the delight of its media cheerleaders, the government announced that economic growth had returned and the recession had ended. But before we start celebrating one quarter of modest growth, we should realize the only force driving this apparent recovery is an enormous increase in government spending. To finance its largesse, the government is now borrowing at a rate that has ordinary citizens and the international community extremely concerned.
Leading into the first election season under Obama’s reign, this unprecedented government borrowing and spending is creating a false sense of security. The activity has allowed GDP to increase despite stagnation in corporate and consumer spending.
Small businesses – the most important creators of new jobs – are nervous. Due to uncertain economic conditions and a high degree of regulatory uncertainty, they are hoarding cash rather than investing. Indeed, their largest expenditures are often solely to replenish inventories.
Likewise, consumers are rationally hording their resources. Year over year, consumer spending – which constitutes 70 percent of GDP – is essentially flat. With such a large segment of the economy quiescent, the percentage increase in public sector spending has to be very large in order to push the GDP upward.
The new government spending spree has focused on major stimulus initiatives, including the new homebuyer tax credit and ‘cash for clunkers’.
Allow me to apologize in advance for my continued adoration of the great Robert Higgs. In his latest piece he details the reasons why he is hesitant to champion “solutions” to the tyranny of State power. Higgs is a modern day H.L. Mencken. Sure, he’s a cynic and some may consider him a pessimist, but he’s always thought-provoking and entertaining for freedom-loving readers.
Here’s an excerpt:
I trust that by this point I need not belabor my point at greater length. To recapitulate: “solutions” to the ongoing growth of government are available for a dime a dozen. I have a bag full of them myself, and every one of them is utterly worthless as a means of achieving the ultimate goal. Every genuine solution must be carried through, and any serious solution will require enough people and money to carry out the activities necessary to bring it about. Marshalling people and money may in turn require ideological conversions on a substantial scale, which themselves may require a great many people and a great deal of money, if such conversions are possible at all, given the existing configuration of vested interests (broadly construed).
Moreover, another potent constraint always lurks in the background. Although we need not spend much time at present in dwelling on this issue, the fact remains that if any truly effective measures were approved to rein in the government, the rulers in all likelihood would resort to whatever legal or illegal violence proved necessary to prevent those measures from taking effect. Thus, I am quite sure, for example, that if Ron Paul were ever, by a miracle of miracles, to be elected president, he would not live to take the oath of office. Opponents of the government’s ongoing growth must bear in mind that we are dealing with violent, heavily armed, utterly unscrupulous people who, if pushed to the brink, will stop at nothing to retain their power and privileges.
In defense of Rep. Watt, however, it’s not totally his fault. His district is the most obviously gerrymandered in North Carolina, following I-85 like a snake from Charlotte to Winston Salem. It is overwhelmingly Democratic, and his re-election has never been seriously challenged. Why should he represent the people when he is electorally invincible?
While we may not be able to hold Rep. Watt accountable, we can fight back. His attempt to eviscerate HR 1207 must be approved by the full Financial Services committee.
We can block that approval, and restore the original bill. It is especially important that each member of the Financial Services committee hear from their constituents the clear message that Rep. Watt’s proposed changes are unacceptable. And you must act now because . . .
“Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.” - Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence
On the Fifth of November, 1605, a group of Catholic freedom fighters, or terrorists from the monarch’s perspective, attempted to blow up the aristocratic House of Lords and King James I due to relentless religious persecution. Guy Fawkes, a former soldier and demolition expert, was caught below Parliament with 800 kilograms (1760 pounds) of gunpowder. Guy was tortured for days to divulge the names of his other conspirators, then sentenced to be hanged, then drawn and quartered. Rather than suffer the ripping apart of his body by horses, Fawkes jumped into the air and snapped his neck. Read More »
A new poll was released today for the Kentucky primary election in Kentucky next May. The results show Rand Paul now leading Grayson by 3%. He made up 9 points and his opponent Grayson dropped 5 points since the last poll.
This is wonderful news and hopefully will fuel the fire so that Rand can end up with an easy victory in May. Keep on fighting!
It seems like the more the American people demand that Congress slow down and read its bills, the more Congressional leaders arrogantly counter with mammoth legislation they want to pass in a hurry.
The latest example is the 1,900 page healthcare monstrosity the House leadership unveiled last week. They want a vote on it this week!
I believe they’re overreaching, and helping to build our movement.
This is what I wrote in my personal comments . . .
Congress passed the Patriot renewal bill in 2006, only to discover later that someone had inserted a provision allowing the President to appoint U.S. Attorneys without Senate approval. This year, Congress passed the stimulus bill with the AIG bonuses.
Nearly everyone in Congress was shocked when they learned what they had passed. This happened because Congress didn’t read these bills before they voted on them. This is irresponsible.
Liberty Maven
by John Browne – Senior Market Strategist, Euro Pacific Capital
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