I Refuse to Obey the Law

What's good for the goose...
In yet another demonstration of contempt for the rule of law and the separation of powers, the Obama administration has announced that it will no longer enforce our immigration laws.  Secretary of Homeland Insecurity Janet Napolitano proclaimed in a letter to the Senate that she will suspend deportation proceedings and grant amnesty to those who ostensibly fit the criteria of the Dream Act – a bill that was defeated with overwhelming bipartisan support of Congress.  Hence, Obama is publicly declaring that he will ensure our laws are not executed faithfully.

This unprecedented abdication on the part of the president begs the question – what sort of message does this convey to our youth regarding the inviolability of the rule of law?

What other laws will this president refuse to execute faithfully?  Will he direct the EPA to enforce cap and trade, or instruct the DOI to block the issuance of drilling permits?  Oh, he is already doing that.

And, most importantly, if the president is above the law, then why should any of us be compelled to adhere to laws that we regard as undesirable or unfair?  If Obama can refuse to enforce his core constitutional duties, why can’t we disregard his individual insurance mandate – a law that is an anathema to the constitution?

Ironically, the very illegals that remain in the country as a result of Obama’s shirking of his constitutional duties, will receive healthcare benefits from the unconstitutional Obamacare.  Remember when Obama claimed that illegals would be barred from those benefits?  Well, as Congressman Joe Wilson so presciently and succinctly declared, “YOU LIE.”  I guess the real question is this: does an illegal have the authority to opt out of the individual mandate?  Or can they play both sides of this lawlessness?

Not only has this president refused to uphold our immigration laws; he has thwarted the states and law enforcement agencies from doing so.  He has taken the unprecedented step of siding with foreign nations and suing two of our states for upholding the laws that he refuses to recognize.  This is the most profound and dangerous form of extremism in our government today, as it undermines the very core of our political system.

What if citizens would stop paying taxes, or refuse to participate in Social Security?  If the executive branch can countermand a law of Congress, why can’t the voters – those who grant Congress its authority – do the same?

This administration is setting a dangerous precedent.

Congress must reassert its constitutional authority over immigration law.  They should hold public hearings and shed some light on the darkest corners of this administrative power grab.  Additionally, as part of any budget negotiations for the FY 2012 continuing resolution, Republicans should ensure that no funds are allocated for the joint DOJ-DHS task force charged with granting these administrative amnesties.

This extreme president is beneath contempt.  He must be stopped.

Cross-posted to RedState.com

Michele Bachmann: Don't Forget Obamacare

The clock is ticking and our options are shrinking

The most effective proposal for dealing with the debt ceiling vote that has the backing of conservatives is the Cut, Cap, and Balance plan brought forth by the RSC.  Accordingly, virtually every major conservative organization has coalesced around a pledge forcing all members of Congress to support the plan as a condition to raising the debt ceiling.  The presidential candidates are also being recruited to sign the pledge, with Jim DeMint promising to support only those who sign to it.

Yesterday, Mitt Romney announced his support for the pledge, joining every other announced Republican candidate except Jon Huntsman and ….Michele Bachmann?

While Bachmann is a strong supporter of the RSC plan, she is still tepid about signing the pledge.  CNN is reporting that Bachmann told DeMint she is still contemplating her support for the pledge because she wants it “to go a little further.”  Bachmann said at a town hall in South Carolina that she would like to add the defunding of Obamacare to the pledge as another precondition to raising the debt ceiling.

While it is probably a good idea for Bachmann to sign the pledge despite her reservation, she should be applauded for refocusing attention on Obamacare.  We all agree that our long-term budget crisis, including reform of the existing entitlements, should be our paramount concern.  However, we must not lose focus of the urgent need to defund the newest entitlement, Obamacare, precluding it from being enshrined as the entitlement to end all entitlements.

House GOP Invites Diversity Mandates to Intel Agencies

Aside for oil drilling-related legislation, there weren't any high profile partisan legislative fights on Capitol Hill last week.  The major piece of legislation that was brought to the floor and ultimately passed the House last week was the highly bi-partisan reauthorization of appropriations for our intelligence agencies (H.R. 754).  The bill passed 392-15.  Unfortunately, it is these "non-controversial" bills that are prone to insertions of reckless amendments.  After all, who is watching the banal congressional proceedings of consensus legislation?

On Thursday, Republicans allowed Democrats to offer two amendments that would mandate pilot programs and studies to facilitate diversity within the intelligence agencies.  I don't begrudge the GOP leaders for running an open process and allowing Democrats to offer amendments.  The problem is that they adopted the amendments by voice vote, instead of voting them down.  Well, if the timeworn bromide that "Republicans only control one-half of one-third of government" is sufficient justification for failure to pass prudent legislation, it should certainly justify their scuttling of multicultural amendments.

Here are the two amendments:

GOP Leadership is Pathetic

Republicans are so scare of their own shadow that they agreed to fund 99% of Pelosi's budget, along with Obamacare for another six months!

Only the Dead Wood Ceases to Function in Gov't Shutdown

There is a popular misconception promulgated by the media that a government shutdown would lead to an apocalyptic cessation of the vital functions of our country.  This is a fallacious and insidious attempt to intimidate Republicans into capitulating to Democrats' big government budget demands.  The reality is that all vital functions of government will still function.  It is actually only the impotent and unconstitutional agencies that will shut down, and frankly, many of them should do so permanently.  Here is a great list compiled by the Wall Street Journal of vital functions that will stay open during the impending shutdown:

SOCIAL SECURITY: As an entitlement program funded through payroll taxes rather than annual spending bills, Social Security is likely to keep sending out checks, most analysts and government officials believe. But the White House has warned that a shutdown could affect new applicants.
MILITARY OPERATIONS: All uniformed military personnel would likely be exempted from a shutdown. Operations in Afghanistan would continue. Current law gives the Pentagon authority to incur expenses for wartime operations and to sign new contracts for certain needs.

POSTAL SERVICE: The U.S. Postal Service would see no interruption in service or shutdown of post offices, since it’s funded by customer payments.

AIR TRAFFIC: Air-traffic control continued without interruption in the prior shutdown. Transportation officials would not disclose contingency plans for a future shutdown. Passenger and baggage screening by the Transportation Security Administration would continue in a shutdown, an official said.

BORDER SECURITY: Border security is also listed in government documents as an exempted activity.

VISAS and PASSPORTS: Applications for U.S. passports and for visas to enter the U.S. went unprocessed in the 1995 shutdown, to the frustration of travelers, airlines and travel agents.

NATIONAL PARKS: These were closed during the 1995 shutdown, along with national monuments and museums.

FEDERAL RESERVE: The Federal Reserve, which does not rely on appropriations, would remain open with normal staffing.

The RINOs Declared War on us Long Ago, It's Time We Reciprocate

The liberal Republicans were never on our side, and the events of this year only prove the obvious.  They are not moderates.  These government statists are  literally Republicans in name only.  They fundamentally agree with the Democrats on almost every core issue.  These are not the people that we can have an inclusive tent with, or any tent for that matter.

I used to be one of those pundits who saw value in RINO's on a very limited basis, in a situation "where the conservative cannot win".  The circumstances surrounding Arlen Specter, Bob Bennett, Charlie Crist, Bill McCollum, Lisa Murkowski, and Mike Castle, in conjunction with the lessons of the failed Republican congress of the Bush era, teaches us that there is no use for RINO's in the party.  Quite the contrary, they are more destructive to our image, messaging, and long term goals than the Democrats.  They score more points for the other team than the Dems would dream of on their own.

Then we waste millions of dollars on their reelection so they can officially become Democrats or run on another ticket to ensure that the Democrat wins.  While conservatives always unite to reelect these bums in the general election, the RINO vermin refuse to support the conservatives.  They are not Republicans at all, they are leftist ruling class people who will not part with their power.  We must defeat every one of them.