“Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves, and, under a just God, cannot long retain it.” Abraham Lincoln
It seems there is a collective sigh with the news that the Senate will not move Sen. Feinstein’s (D-CA) “assault weapon” ban to the Senate floor. Some have touted the move as Democrats coming to their senses. But what does this really mean? Has the crisis been averted?
I am reminded of all the movies and TV series where you see the good guy corner the bad guy and inexplicably he lets the bad guy off the hook. Later, the bad guy invariably comes back to do more harm. Like this villain, the people who want to infringe on your Second Amendment rights will not stop! Already Obama is vowing to push for the ban regardless of its support.
The ban would have required 60 votes to pass. With the Democrats’ 55 senator voting block, which includes Independents that usually vote with them, the vote would fall short if all Republicans stood the line. With all the RINO’s in Congress, that’s not a sure bet. A USA Today article reported Sen. Reid (D-NV) commented on dropping the Feinstein ban, stating, ”Right now, her amendment, using the most optimistic numbers, has less than 40 votes. That’s not 60.”
The Democrats’ low voting block is attributed to reelection bids for the Second Class of the Senate, who come up for election in 2014. The Democrats fear losing seats in Congress if the Second Class Senators vote with the Democrat block. So if I understand this correctly, if the seat weren’t up for election, they would vote for infringing on the Second Amendment? Is Reid telling us that Senators may lose their seat because infringing on the Second Amendment is not the desire of their constituents? Is this an admission that The People no longer have real representation in Our Congress? Well, I’m appalled! Okay, not really.
We all know the many troubles that face our nation. Both major parties have their problems and vote party lines, so I endorse neither. From my perspective, Obama and his ilk are trying to move this country in a direction that is inconsistent with the principles laid out in the Constitution. The Democrat party’s solution to our woes has been Government growth and more spending, even though Reid has refused to bring a budget to the Senate floor since April 2009. The Republican party seldom fares better when they are in control of Congress and now we can hardly recognize what the Republican Party represents. In the end, very few Congress members actually care about their constituents and only serve their party, union, or special-interest masters.
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Our country is in dire straits financially. Both parties talk about making meaningful cuts, which is little more than lip-service. For nearly two years Congress could have dissected the federal budget and gotten rid of programs like I mentioned in my article Sequester This! Instead we have all of them protecting their sacred cows, or pigs if you prefer. The whole time putting on Kabuki Theater to make Americans think they are working hard. Enough of the B.S., put up or shut up!
In 2014 we have an opportunity to make significant changes to the Government and put a stop to the waste. We need to start looking for candidates who adhere to constitutional principles and are fiscal conservatives. Do not think that it is a long way off, a lot of planning and funding must begin in order to find the right people to take back our country. Start vetting all the people who seek the privilege of serving the nation. We must demand integrity and honesty.
The entire House of Representatives is up for reelection in 2014. Below is a list of Senate seats up for grabs in 2014. Check them all out, do they deserve to go back to Congress? Has their record proven them worthy of support by The People? If not, start informing others.
| DEMOCRATIC PARTY | REPUBLICAN PARTY |
| AK – Mark Begich | AL – Jeff Sessions |
| AR – Mark Pryor | GA – Saxby Chambliss |
| CO – Mark Udall | ID – Jim Risch |
| DE – Chris Coons | KS – Pat Roberts |
| IL – Dick Durbin | KY – Mitch McConnell |
| IA – Tom Harkin | ME – Susan Collins |
| LA – Mary Landrieu | MS – Thad Cochran |
| MA – Mo Cowan | NE – Mike Johanns |
| MI – Carl Levin | OK – Jim Inhofe |
| MN – Al Franken | SC – Lindsey Graham |
| MO – Max Baucus | TN – Lamar Alexander |
| NH – Jeanne Shaheen | TX – John Cornyn |
| NJ – Frank Lautenberg | WY – Mike Enzi |
| NM – Tom Udall | |
| NC – Kay Hagan | |
| OR – Jeff Merkley | |
| RI – Jack Reed | |
| SD – Tim Johnson | |
| VA – Mark Warner | |
| WV – Jay Rockefeller |
For the Senators of the First Class (reelection in 2018) and Third Class (reelection in 2016) we must hold them accountable for their actions. For instance, and probably tied to the withdrawn support of her “assault weapons” ban, Feinstein just quit the Senate Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee. Metroactive, a Silicon Valley news outlet, reported that Feinstein was approving contracts for her husband’s company that profited billions of dollars.
Whether or not her husband’s company might be the best fit for the contracts, Feinstein should never have been involved in the process of approval. And yet, the major news outlets have not reported much on this, nor has the Senate announced an investigation by the Ethics Committee. Generally, this is a conflict of interest under Senate Rule 37.4. Of course Feinstein’s fellow California Senator, Boxer presides over the Ethics Committee. Please feel free to contact the Senate or House Committees on Ethics for this and other violations in the Senate.
People ask what can we do to reestablish our nation on constitutional principle. Well, you need to get involved and be heard. What does it take to shoot off an email to your members of Congress? We often hear that that freedom isn’t free, we must work hard to maintain the gift that has been given each of us.
Written by Anthony J. Wells. 3/20/2013
Molon labe!
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