That Government is Best which Governs Least (Part 1)

as published: http://www.scadvocate.com/2013/12/10/editorial-keith-a-patterson/

While it remains unclear which Founding Father originated the above truism, its insight, wisdom, and sheer reality are self-evident. Sitting among the ashes and discarded refuse of what was once the greatest society in world history, the adage seems quite an understatement. That’s because destruction of the American republic from within itself (without a shot fired, as long predicted by America’s enemies) is nearing completion largely due to this precept being ignored – ignored both by the governed and by those doing the so-called governing.

As destructive and deadly as the President’s annihilation of the world’s best ever health care system is, Obamacare is merely the latest in a long line of un-American, power grabbing, freedom crushing, tyrannical, people enslaving, UNCONSTITUTIONAL government initiatives. Even if all “grand schemes” of the past century were born of good intentions (most are documented otherwise), they would still incontrovertibly demonstrate the above maxim. None perform as they were sold to the public. All cost many times what Americans were told they would. Each is fraught with costly waste, fraud, and abuse. The detrimental unintended consequences (or intended?) usually far outweigh the propounded benefit. Clearly, government isn’t the solution of first resort, cannot effectively do most of what it undertakes, and is best limited to its constitutionally authorized or mandated functions and services.

The relentless push toward committing national suicide through Comprehensive Immigration Reform (code for creating 30-50 million new left wing voters), rather than the Federal Government doing its actual job, securing our borders under existing statutes, vividly illustrates the problem. Is 7-10 million small business employees already having lost their healthcare insurance under Obamacare frightening? Let’s see what hits the fan when the estimated additional 150 million employees of medium and large companies soon experience the same.

Of course that’s all by design and is the intent of Obamacare. At that point Washington will pronounce that “Single Payer is the only answer! We must enact it now, before this broken system, destroyed by Capitalism, collapses, leaving the American people without healthcare!” Code for “Washington now owns you, controls you completely, and if you ever become seriously ill, it is Washington’s decision alone whether you live or die.” The left wing media mocked Sarah Palin for coining the expression “death panel”. Folks, it exists (Independent Payment Advisory Board – IPAB), it’s 15 people, has already issued death sentences, and we’ve not even reached the goal of Single Payer yet!!

Yes, “that government IS best which governs least”, because all this misery and mayhem (and much more) directly result from America’s 100+ years of infatuation with the antithesis of that proverb. During that century, the governed have allowed Progressives and Statists to replace the liberty of our Constitutional Republic with servitude under the all-powerful centralized federal behemoth in Washington today. Broad abuses of the commerce and takings clauses and of the borrowing, spending, and taxing authority, plus judicial legislating and congressional delegating (to unelected regulatory bureaucracies) are a few of the illegal practices by which the overthrow has been perpetrated. The three branches sometimes usurp one another in their insatiable thirst for increased extra-constitutional power and, at times, have colluded to broaden the oppressive powers of their kingdom as a whole.

The Founders feared out-of-control centralized government, and its threat to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for the governed, which we’re living today. They fought literally for years over precise wording to enshrine in our Constitution safeguards against it. In part two, we’ll visit that struggle and the resulting Constitutional language that has been ignored for a century. We’ll look at proposed remedies and means to potentially restore the Constitutional Republic that once existed in North America. Until then, I recommend that patriot readers of this column grow by educating yourselves regarding the Article 5 Convention constitutional amendment process and “nullification”, plus visiting http://CPOTN.com to begin YOUR contribution to the restoration movement.

Keith A. Patterson Burns

TRY THE CONSTITUTION

I speak to the countless Tennesseans chafing under the escalating burden of government malfeasance and political tyranny that typifies our federal government and state legislatures today. I wrote off the donkey party forty years ago, and discontinued financially supporting the elephants in 1996. Like scores of other hardworking, proud, constitution-trusting Americans, I’ve always known that strong doses of Free Enterprise, Individual Freedom, Limited Government, and Traditional American Values are the keys to a bright American future. And, along with many like-minded fellow citizens, I’ve held out hope that our misguided GOP, nudged and coaxed by the grassroots holding its feet to the fire, would become home to a rebirth of constitutional thinking and advocacy of constitutional public policy.

The national Republican Party’s dismal, steadily worsening performance throughout the tenure of Obama’s administration, and the inane activities of a Republican “super-majority” in our state legislature, vividly illustrate that the day we all hoped would never come has arrived – the day we acknowledge that the GOP is not salvageable and that we have no more time to wait around for what will never happen.

Lest we fall victim to the “an alternative party can’t win” mentality, consider the following: The Republican Party was formed in 1854, with little Southern presence. Four years later it had assimilated members from the “two major parties”, and held majorities in most northern states. Six years after its inception, the party’s Presidential candidate was victorious in the election of 1860, catapulting it to a 72-year domination of the national political scene.

Are you ready to begin working “productively” on restoring the republic left to us by the Founders – working within a political vehicle structured to meet the challenge of holding its leaders and candidates accountable to the U. S. Constitution? If so, I encourage and challenge you to investigate the Constitution Party of Tennessee and the National Constitution Party. Each is organized as a “bottom-up” entity, where leadership and party standard-bearers answer to the rank and file. Compare that with the “top-down” dictatorial nature of today’s entrenched GOP machine, continually favoring tax-and-spend big government progressive candidates over true reform-minded Conservatives and Constitutionalists, squelching all threats to RINO legislators and candidates by the latter.

I speak to all Tea Partiers and everyone else sick of gagging on the slavery being foisted upon us without recourse by the cesspool that Washington has become. We all should commit to upholding only that standard under which the USA became the greatest force for good the world has known. Through this I believe we can, over relatively few election cycles, duplicate the meteoric rise of that new party founded in 1854. And only if we make this commitment and follow through, can these United States of America become once again a shining city on a hill, home to the most free and prosperous people on Earth. So . . . let’s do this. 

Why The Constitution Party?

Keith A. Patterson / 17 August, 2013

As I’m driving back from a Friday evening bike ride around the lake, radio abuzz in the F150, Mark Levin audaciously observes to a caller “Well, how about we enforce the Constitution, from the bottom up!” And I’m immediately struck by the fact that Mark just answered the question at the heading of this article – a question being asked of me lately, pursuant to my decision to go all-in with Tennessee’s soon-to-be majority political party.

This must have been the 50th talk radio caller I’d heard during the week wringing their hands over the exact same thing. Where do we turn as time after time after time a clueless, impotent, misguided band of GOP legislators fumbles the ball and fails to represent those who worked hard to elect them? Failure seen in their daily deliberate choices to A) capitulate to tyranny, B) violate their oath to uphold and defend the Constitution, and C) continue being a source of America’s problems rather than seizing numerous opportunities before them to become a source of solutions.

Those three statements of fact concerning dismal Republican performance (as much at the State level as Federal in many cases) are plenty to be concerned over and sickened by. But to go a step further, we’re witnessing every day those GOP failures 1) inflicting unnecessary financial and economic hardship on good hardworking citizens, 2) rapidly and ruthlessly abridging the God-given Liberty and Freedom our Founders authored the Constitution to protect, 3) cursing us with moral and ethical decay of the fabric of American society, and 4) destroying the Culture, Security, and Sovereignty of this nation.

Those acquainted with me for a while know that in the past I’ve resisted the “alternative party” mentality, holding out hope that the Republican Party could be reformed to serve as the home of Constitutional Conservatism and true government reform. Like many others, I’ve struggled with concerns over “how much influence can a third party have” and whether it could ever overtake the “two major parties” in what some like to call (erroneously) our “two party system”. Such was the dilemma of Levin’s caller, along with many of those other fifty I mentioned. And it demands sober deliberation of whether a viable alternative to the GOP is available as a vehicle to reverse the decline of America and restore the Constitutional Republic that once existed on this continent, which Levin correctly asserts has not been here for some time.

It’s evident that today’s GOP does not warrant serious consideration as a vehicle for the type of change that’s needed – change that will stem the tide of decay in America and that is aimed at re-instituting Constitutional government. Sadly, it doesn’t even “want” consideration as such. An entrenched “top-down” dictatorial machine, with a “business as usual”, “go along to get along”, “Progressive Light” mindset – really? An entity that fights tooth and nail against true reform and all would-be reformers among its ranks – seriously?

So – why the Constitution Party? – you ask. Are you interested in a grassroots bottom-up Constitution based reform movement, where party leaders and candidates are held accountable to the Constitution and adherence to the platform, and are ousted by the rank and file for failure to uphold either? If so, you need to seriously investigate the Constitution Party of Tennessee (https://constitutionpartyoftennessee.com) and the national Constitution Party (http://constitutionparty.com). Then, if you still have doubts about “influence” and the “ability to make inroads” amid the prevailing political landscape, just remember that the candidate of the newly formed Republican Party won the Presidency only six years after the party was founded. And the fact that he did so while winning only 39.8% of the popular vote reminds us that, when there are more than two major candidates in a race (including U.S. Congressional or U. S. Senate, State Legislature, or any election), victory doesn’t always require exceeding 50%, or anywhere near it.

Look at how much influence and control the Communist / Elitist / Humanist / Leftist / Liberal / Marxist / Progressive MINORITY has wielded over the last few decades – because they’ve been allowed to by virtue of good people doing nothing to counter the idiotic beliefs and policies they advocate. And it works in the other direction too. According to Samuel Adams, “It does not take a majority to prevail . . . but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.” That, of course, is evidenced in the fact that only a small minority of colonists supported the American Revolution, yet a nation was born.

Can the Constitution Party and your support of it become the needed difference maker in the battle to save this country? Can it? Unequivocally, I say – YES it can. Friends, we can do this. Just like with the Republicans in 1860, the set of issues is tailor made. The outrage, the passion, the willingness to contribute, the yearning for freedom, the sick feelings from watching evil people tear down the greatest nation to ever see a sunrise on Earth, all of these are at their zenith and becoming stronger. And they will crescendo all the way from here into the next decade, if we’re willing to think outside the political box the talking (air) heads want us to remain within.

To all my Tea Party friends, let me say that the Tea Party is great and I support it. I’m in it, I’m on board, and I’ve always been one of you and at one with you, since it sprang to life after the first Obama inauguration in 2009. I continue supporting all Tea Party efforts focused on restoring the Conservative ideals of limited Constitutional government, border security, strong national defense, election integrity, fiscal responsibility, free enterprise, personal liberty, American and individual state sovereignty, etc. But the Tea Party is not a political party (something required in order to win elections), nor should it ever become one. The Tea Party’s mission and greatest value are in functioning as a loosely organized coalition whose goal is to pursue the above ideals through education and activism. Tea Party support of qualified candidates followed up with Tea Party pressure on those elected representatives and the various government branches and agencies to act responsibly and within Constitutional limits are invaluable contributions of the Tea Party movement.

But the Tea Party currently finds it difficult to successfully support reform-minded Conservative candidates, as those candidates are constantly undermined and thrown under the bus by the leadership of their own political party – the GOP! And when real reform-minded Conservative candidates manage to be elected as Republicans, Tea Party efforts in supporting them to actually legislate in a Conservative and Constitutional manner are torpedoed by the GOP legislative leadership. They keep them quietly over in a corner, locked out of any responsible positions and chairmanships that might lead to their doing anything other than upholding the status quo. GOP-affiliated strategists and consultants, like Karl Rove and Bill Kristol, continually lie to the American people and to Republican leadership about all the harm that will come of letting these folks actually do what they were elected to do. It’s going to “destroy the party”, “ensure that no Republican is ever elected President again”, cause the GOP to “lose the House”, and on and on and on ad nauseam with their disgusting, tired, shopworn status quo “protect the big government Progressive Light GOP establishment machine” tripe – while the country crumbles to oblivion before our eyes because they aren’t willing to save it!! And they aren’t interested because it means giving up their portion of the unconstitutional pie.

No, the GOP and its associates are NOT a solution to the demise of America. And continuing to go that route will only hasten her destruction. Conversely, when supporting candidates running under the Constitution Party banner, candidates bound by the Constitution and the party platform of “returning to limited Constitutional government”, the Tea Party will never have to fight a good candidate’s own political support apparatus, or fight with that person’s own party legislative leaders once they are elected. And it’s unlikely the Tea Party will have to fight with Constitution Party affiliated elected representative themselves, to have them stand up for the issues on which they were elected.

The national Constitution Party and the Constitution Party organizations of the various states have fought numerous legal battles over ballot access during the last few election cycles. These battles continue to be fought and continue to be won, but not easily. The difficulty stems from whispering in the ears of judges and attorneys general that is being done behind the scenes by folks affiliated with the Demicans and Republicrats, who feel threatened by affording equal ballot access to a viable alternative to them. But we are close, the momentum is building, the conditions are right. When enough of us are sufficiently fed up to take that out-of-the-box leap, we will soon achieve a level of electoral success that precludes continually having to petition for ballot access, and will be granted the same permanent legal status as the Donkeys and Elephants.

I suggest that we all think about how much we love and appreciate America, the Constitutional Republic known as the United States of America that our Founders created, and compare that with whatever you call this nightmare we’re living today on the same real estate. And I don’t know how that vision can yield any other decision than to join together under the banner of the Constitution Party to re-birth what they gave us, which the haters of freedom and lovers of centralized government power have been taking apart piece-by-piece for over 100 years. The pace of the dismantling is increasing exponentially today. We’re running out of time, and I pray we all see the vision sooner rather than later. Please consider joining us. Remembering what Sam Adams had to say gives me hope, and I believe we CAN get this done.

KAP