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Senator Russell Pearce predicts Supreme Court will uphold SB1070

February 7, 2012 By 29 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 7, 2012
CONTACT: Sen. Russell Pearce

Ban Amnesty Now president says America’s highest court will not turn back on states’ rights

PHOENIX—Senator Russell Pearce, the author of SB1070 and newly-appointed president of America’s largest grassroots anti-illegal immigration organization, said today the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to hear arguments on Arizona’s contested SB1070 legislation was great news for every legal U.S. citizen.

“When the activist judges in lower federal courts bowed to Barack Obama’s whims and put illegal aliens ahead of American citizens, undermined the Rule of Law, they followed in the president’s footsteps in perpetrating a great injustice against our nation, our citizens Constitutional rights and the state of Arizona,” said Pearce.

“We are a nation of fifty sovereign U.S. states, not a nation of 50 subservient states to be dictated to by a Big Brother leviathan. When the Supreme Court rules, I expect that Washington will learn an important lesson in its proper role, not just on immigration but in its role in governance,” Pearce said.

“We send far too much money to Washington for this to be the treatment we get in return. Sovereign U.S. states and legal U.S. citizens were never meant by our Founding Fathers to become penniless orphans in some Twilight Zone version of a Charles Dickens story, begging for scraps from an all-powerful, dictatorial federal government which waves full ladles of nourishment above our heads but never pours anything into our bowls,” said Pearce.

“When the Court rules, I expect power to return to the states, and Ban Amnesty Now by then will be working diligently to pass SB1070-style legislation in all 50 states, like Alabama, South Carolina and Georgia already have” he said. “The president can sue every state if he pleases, or he can get out of the way while we do the job Washington won’t in protecting our great nation from illegal aliens.

“I fully expect we, the legal citizens of Arizona and America, will win in the Supreme Court on SB1070, just as we did with Arizona’s Employers Sanction Law, the toughest in the nation, which goes after illegal employers and protects American jobs and was upheld five-to-three in the Supreme Court,” said Pearce.

While 6 of the 10 provisions of SB1070 were upheld, four main provisions of the contested SB1070 were blocked from implementation by lower courts, including:

(1) requiring law enforcement officers to make a reasonable attempt to determine the immigration status of a person stopped, detained or arrested if there is reasonable suspicion that person is an illegal alien;

(2) creating a crime of failure to apply for or carry “alien-registration papers”;

(3) permitting the arrest of an illegal alien in which there is probable cause to believe the individual committed a public offense that makes him or her removable from the U.S.; and,

(4) making it a crime for illegal aliens to solicit, apply for or perform work.

“America is greater than any one man, than any one president,” said Pearce. “I believe the court will rule on the side of law, our Constitution, and states’ rights, and that we will prove our nation can indeed work again. This will be an important ruling, an important milestone, in a long road ahead to restoring the rule of law, America’s economy, political and national security.”

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Filed Under: Illegal Aliens, Illegal Immigration, Judicial, Legislation, Press Release, State Government, States Rights Tagged With: , ,

OBAMACARE: A Panel Discussion at the Goldwater Institute

February 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

A Panel Discussion: OBAMACARE

Phoenix, AZ – On Wednesday, February 8, 2012, Arizona Mainstream Project (AMP) will bring to the public a panel discussion on Obamacare.  Speaking on this panel will be Goldwater Institute’s Senior Attorney Diane Cohen and Director – Center for Economic Prosperity Byron Schlomach, Dr. Jeff Singer, and former AZ Congressman John Shadegg.  550 KFYI Talk Host Terry Gilberg will be the moderator for the discussion.

Each panel member will share their personal expertise and direct involvement with uncovering the facts about The Affordable Care Act and how it has begun and will continue to negatively impact the lives of ALL Americans.  You will gain a better understanding of this law and how it applies to your access to health care, the current legal battles, and how you can help stop this anti-American and socialistic agenda.

Diane Cohen:

The Affordable Care Act mandated states to establish insurance exchanges by 2014 or have exchanges set up by HHS. These exchanges are nothing more than invitation-only clubs where only government sanctioned insurers can play. They must meet all the federally mandated medical coverages/benefits specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. In an effort to preserve some sovereignty, states, even some who opposed the federal healthcare law, including Arizona, are rushing to get federal money to set up these exchanges. Diane Cohen, Senior Attorney, of the Goldwater Institute will refute this notion.  Ms. Cohen has testified before Congress on the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). She will explain what effect this fifteen-member board of political appointees will have in our future.

Dr. Byron Schlomach:

Byron will discuss how government is at the root of our problems in health care, making it the problem, not the solution. He will show you how our income tax system plays a major role in determining what our health care system looks like and how it operates.

Dr. Jeff Singer:

Dr. Singer will discuss the ways in which “Obamacare” will affect the patient doctor relationship, the relationship of the doctor with the state, the relationship of the patient with the state, the loss of personal autonomy, and the ultimate decrease in quality and rationing of heath care that will inevitably result from “Obamacare.”

John Shadegg:

President Obama promised that the cost of health care would go down and it hasn’t. A recent HHS press release acknowledged that premiums have gone up by as much as 12.8% in the last year after the rates were reviewed by state bureaucrats under the provisions of Obamacare. Obama has also promised that if you liked your health care plan, you could keep it. Yet, we now know that Obamacare mandates will not allow anyone to keep the plan they had. As the nation’s economy struggles, Obamacare increases taxes by 800 billion dollars and crushes jobs. Learn how free market solutions will reform health care in ways that promotes quality and reduces costs for all Americans.

Date: Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Location:  Goldwater Institute Auditorium
Address: 500 E. Coronado Road, Phoenix,  AZ

Time: 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm (doors open at 5:30)

Light snacks and beverages will be served

Cost:  $10.00 per person

To reserve your seat we encourage you to RSVP and purchase tickets in advance

Go to: http://www.arizonamainstreamproject.org/#q=Seminars-18

or send payment to:

Arizona Mainstream Project
15029 N. Thompson Peak Parkway
Suite B-111 Box 589
Scottsdale, AZ 85260

This panel discussion will be STREAMED LIVE from AMP’s website.

A “Live Stream” button will be available on our homepage www.ArizonaMainstreamProject.org on the day of the event.  Follow the instructions to access the live video stream.

Contact: Honey Marques, Executive Director, at 808-283-3661 or honey@arizonamainstreamproject.org

Arizona Mainstream Project is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit charitable grassroots organization whose mission is to attract, educate, and mobilize the people of Arizona around America’s founding principles and leadership. AMP believes in the principles of a constitutionally limited government, free markets, fiscal responsibility, and individual liberty to promote the common good and prosperity for the people of Arizona.

Filed Under: Advertising, Conservatives, Federal Government, Government Reform, Health Care, Legislation, Press Release, Regulations, Special Event, States Rights, Taxation, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Recently seen entering the State of Arizona

January 26, 2012 By 3 Comments

Arizona: An Obama-Free Zone

Filed Under: Arizona Politics, States Rights Tagged With: ,

Sign The Petition Supporting Governor Jan Brewer!

January 26, 2012 By 48 Comments

Please sign the petition supporting Governor Jan Brewer in her defense of the State of Arizona.

As we all witnessed on Wednesday afternoon, Governor Brewer, was confronted by President Obama as he stepped off Air Force One in Mesa. As the Governor has testified, he did not take kindly to an excerpt in her book, Scorpions for Breakfast, about an accounting of her defense of SB 1070. He also treated Governor Brewer with disrespect as he walked away from her while she spoke with him.

Please support Governor Brewer as she stands up for Arizona against an administration that has failed us on border security, failed us through Fast & Furious and even has brought a lawsuit against the State of Arizona.

Thank You Governor Brewer!

I Support Governor Jan Brewer!

I support Governor Jan Brewer for standing her ground while remaining respectful to President Obama during his recent visit to Arizona.

I support Governor Jan Brewer in her defense of Arizona against an administration that is suing the State of Arizona for passing strong immigration laws such as SB 1070.

I also support Governor Brewer in her effort to seek the truth and justice for the death of Border Patrol Brian Terry after the Obama Justice Department got caught red-handed ran a covert gunwalking operation to smuggle guns into the hands of Mexican drug cartels through Fast & Furious.

Thank You Governor Brewer for standing up for Arizona!

SIGN NOW
140 signatures

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Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Elected Officials, Petitions, State Government, States Rights Tagged With: ,

A Photo Tells A Thousand Words: Obama Confronts Brewer, Gets Earful

January 26, 2012 By 19 Comments

Thank you Governor Brewer for not backing down when confronted by President Obama this afternoon.

This is Our State and even the President needs to show a little respect when he touches down on our turf, especially turf that once sent our men and women off to battle.

Lesson to President Obama: Never mess with a Governor who eats scorpions for breakfast!

Filed Under: Elected Officials, Federal Government, Freedom of Speech, State Government, States Rights Tagged With: , ,

Statement by Governor Jan Brewer Regarding President Obama’s Visit to Arizona

January 25, 2012 By 3 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2012
CONTACT: Matthew Benson

“I welcomed President Obama to Arizona this afternoon, and we spent a few moments discussing this state’s economic turnaround. This was the President’s opportunity to see the Arizona Comeback firsthand.

“First, let me say I don’t doubt that the President wants what he believes is best for this country. He and I simply have starkly different visions of what that is.

“The President and I each took office in January 2009. We each stepped into grim circumstances. Just speaking for Arizona, I inherited a per capita state-budget deficit judged among the worst in the country, an economy in freefall and a clobbered housing market.

“My first action as Governor was to issue a regulatory moratorium so that state government could not impose any more needless rules on business. The President’s first move was to rush through an $800 billion stimulus spending plan that saddled the nation with more debt.

“Here in Arizona, we passed a historic economic package that included corporate tax reductions and targeted job incentives that make our state among the nation’s most inviting for business investment and relocation. In Washington, D.C., the President spent the better part of two years pushing a health care scheme that reduces consumer choice and saddles states with tens of billions in additional costs.

“This much is clear: Arizona is on the way back, with job growth over the last year rated 7th-best nationally. Our state budget is not only balanced, we have a surplus. Most important, we are putting in place the fundamentals for sustained economic growth: quality education, competitive tax policy and low regulation.

“Don’t be mistaken, I’m bullish on our nation’s future. But I’m convinced the path the President has pursued is the wrong one. I hope he takes some of the lessons of Arizona back with him to Washington.”

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Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Elected Officials, Press Release, State Government, States Rights Tagged With: ,

“Conservatives” Angling for a NEW National Tax?

January 18, 2012 By 4 Comments

 

Right when we should be CUTTING spending (not just the rate of increase, but ACTUAL spending) and lowering taxes, certain elements of the RNC and “think tanks” are angling not just to keep existing spending and taxes going but ADD an entirely NEW federal tax for us to pay.

What the heck is going on, aren’t we in the midst of a teaparty?

=====
 
Is a European Style VAT Tax the GOP’s Answer to the Growing Federal Funding Crisis? 
 
With all the GOP candidates fussing over Mitt Romney and his track-record at Bain Capital, does it not strike anyone as odd that none of them are putting the screws to the Massachusetts Republican in debates over his unwillingness to rule out a European-style Value Added Tax (VAT)?
Mitt and VAT (Valued Added Tax)
While Romney says he doesn’t want to go down the path of European socialism, in a recent Wall Street Journal he did not rule it out and even suggested that it might be an option.
 
The lack of clarity on this subject is ominous given that a VAT is probably the only way to come close to funding the federal government at its current levels of outrageous spending. Since none of the other candidates are forcefully calling Romney out on the VAT issue, I suspect an eventual Republican betrayal on establishing a VAT tax is likely.
 
As a reminder, a VAT would tax goods at ALL layers of production, from their origin as raw material to manufacture to final product.
 
Rising levels of federal deficit spending create momentum toward the VAT “solution.” Debt-addicted central governments in Europe and the United States have no intention of dealing with the true causes of the financial crisis.
 
To get to a VAT from here, all the political class needs to do is wait around for a “responsible” Republican to come around and act as a tax collector for the welfare state. My point is the Big Government people have already established the new unsustainable spending baselines.   All they need now is a gullible Republican to come in and “do something.” Paralysis and dysfunction are their friends, because it will lead to a crisis that may well result in the imposition of the VAT tax.
 
=======
 
Interestingly, the imposition of a VAT by the federal government is currently illegal and unconstitutional.
 
So, how do they implement it?
 
 
So, what does “balanced budget” mean?  To you, me, the teaparty, and normal people it means to bring spending in line with revenues.  I.e. don’t spend more than you have.
 
But once you enter the twisted mind of a politician, “balanced budget” means RAISING REVENUE to match the amount of money you WANT TO SPEND.
 
Since
a) imposition of a VAT by the federal government is now illegal and unconstitutional,
b) congress and certainly our state legislature lacks any will or spine to CUT REAL spending (not just rates of increases), and
c) it requires a constitutional amendment to pass this new tax,
there is no other conlcusion to draw than this travesty certain state legislators want to desecrate our God-inspired constitution with will lead to anything other than a new federal tax to meet spending targets the government wants to achieve.
 
Frankly, any state legislator who believes otherwise is an idiot.  (Yes, I just called you that.  Embrace it.)  A real Republican would be withholding remittance of tax receipts to the federal government, not empowering the federal government to levy yet another tax from Arizonans.
 
The fact that Republicans are behind this one is disgusting and only proves that RINO hunting should be an active and ongoing endeavor by any real American patriot.
 
Our God-inspired constitution is just fine, thank you.    Leave it alone.
 
Teaparty, y’all!
 
Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Campaigns & Elections, Constitutional Law, Debt, Federal Budget, Spending, States Rights, Taxation

Washington spending: Have we learned our lesson yet?

January 5, 2012 By 6 Comments

by Nick Dranias
Goldwater Institute

Promises of reduced spending swept dozens of self-proclaimed conservatives into power during the 2010 congressional elections. What did they do? They gave President Obama the power to lift the federal debt limit, twice failed to move a Balanced Budget Amendment proposal out of the House and promised spending cuts that look increasingly illusory.

As history increasingly shows, Washington’s limitless ability to incur debt is one of the greatest errors in our Constitution. Fortunately, there is no reason to wait for Congress to propose what Thomas Jefferson called the “Missing Amendment.”

Federalist No. 43, written by James Madison, emphasizes that Article V of the U.S. Constitution empowers “State governments to originate the amendment of errors.” This means state legislatures can compel Congress to call a convention for proposing constitutional amendments when 34 of them pass “applications” requesting one.

Not surprisingly, states and citizens are increasingly recognizing that Article V was designed to tackle the problem of the federal debt.

Last session, two states — Louisiana and North Dakota — passed National Debt Relief Amendment (NDRA) applications. They request an Article V convention to require any increase in the federal debt to be approved by a majority of state legislatures. Legislators in 20 states, including Arizona State Senator Linda Gray, will sponsor the NDRA this year.

Moving the federal debt debate to state legislatures would enable states and ordinary citizens to exert far more influence than they currently have. And the logistics of complying with this amendment would require the federal government to prepare budgets, debt financing proposals, and fiscal contingency plans months in advance.

The National Debt Relief Amendment would decentralize power, establish transparency and encourage basic fiscal responsibility. But no one should hold their breath waiting for Congress to propose it. The only realistic option is to impose it from the outside, and Article V of the U.S. Constitution gives us this power.

Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: Article V research resources

New York Times: Obama Waits Before Asking for Increase in Debt Limit

RestoringFreedom.org: The National Debt Relief Amendment

Filed Under: Debt, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Government Reform, Spending, State Government, States Rights

Arizonan Exceptionalism: A Conservative Voice in the Wilderness

November 29, 2011 By 5 Comments

By Kelly Townsend

Arizona continues to be a shining star in the midst of liberal darkness that shrouds our country. As we hear reports of inequality regarding the treatment of the Tea Party vs. the treatment of the Occupy protesters in Richmond and other locations, I wish to give thanks the leaders of our great State for their support and fair treatment of our groups over the last two and a half years.

Kelly Townsend

Not once have we received resistance to our events, been unduly denied permits or access to public areas, nor harassed in any manner. On the contrary, the City of Phoenix has provided police protection for our members and has provided freedom of expression of our first and second amendment rights. We have always felt free to express our message, even when it is alongside the violent opposition.

Indeed, Arizona has been a beacon for those wishing to lift their voices in protest, not only for the Conservative voice, but also for the law-breaking entitlement groups who hate our State and our country. When a group of illegal immigration proponents threw a large American flag on the State Capitol grounds, placed a toilet seat on it and instructed their children to stomp their dirty shoes over it in defiance of our laws, the Arizona Capitol police protected their 1st amendment rights as well.

Yes, here in Arizona you can wave your Mexican flag on the porch of the Capitol and declare that it is truly Mexico, not the United States, and get away with it. As abhorrent as that seems, it is the nature of Arizona to uphold the law and the rights of her people, even when it hurts. We applaud our great State, and offer her example to those officials in other parts of our great country who have forgotten what it means to respect the protection of the Constitution.

Kelly Townsend is Co-Founder of the Greater Phoenix Tea Party.

 

Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Conservatives, Culture, Freedom of Speech, Government, Guest Opinion, Political Correctness, Political Parties, Political Science, Protests, States Rights Tagged With:

Seminar on Sharia Law: What We Need To Know, presented by Al Fadi

November 29, 2011 By 18 Comments

INVITES YOU TO ATTEND

Sharia Law:  What We Need To Know

PRESENTED BY AL FADI

Date: Saturday, December 3, 2011
Time: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Location: The Scottsdale Bible Church  Room E-210
Address: 7601 E. Shea Blvd, Scottsdale, AZ

Al Fadi is a former Wahabbi Muslim from Saudi Arabia.  He is the researcher, editor, writer, and translator for numerous ministries, including “Answering Islam” and runs an outreach center called; the Center for Islamic Research & Awareness. The center focus is to bring awareness regarding Islam, to build bridges with Muslims, and to provide expert input on issues related to Sharia Law and Democracy.

Al is the editor, co-author and contributor of “The Qur’an Dilemma” (both English & Arabic versions) – a critical analysis book of the Qur’an. He is also the director of TheQuran.com Group (www.theQuran.com) which desires to assist both Muslims and non-Muslims who seek to learn more about the main source of Islamic teachings, the Qur’an, to research it, to critically analyze it, and to better comprehend its contents without the traditional religious and cultural barriers designed to indoctrinate and encapsulate the minds of many truth seekers.

Al has a Masters in Engineering and is currently working on completing his M.Div. in Biblical Communications. He is an invited teacher/lecturer on Islam and related Islamic study topics. He is an invited guest speaker and trainer at numerous churches and mission agencies on the topic of Islam & Evangelism to Muslims. As a former devout Muslim, he is an expert on the teaching and challenges of Islam. In addition, Al is an invited guest/expert on numerous Arabic evangelical Satellite TV and Radio shows on the topics of Islam and the Middle East.

Refreshments will be served

Cost: $10 per person

Go to www.arizonamainstreamproject.org to make payment by credit card.  If making payment at the door, please RSVP to Susan Leeper at 480-998-5022 or susan@arizonamainstreamproject.org

 

Filed Under: Advertising, Culture, Ethics, Family, Freedom of Speech, History, National Security, Political Correctness, Religion, State Government, States Rights, Terrorism, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

States must “Just Say No” to Obamacare health insurance exchanges

October 4, 2011 By 4 Comments

by Diane Cohen
Goldwater Institute

Obamacare gives states an option: Either establish insurance exchanges by January 1, 2014, or the Secretary of Health and Human Services will establish one for them. An “exchange” is essentially a bureaucracy where federally-mandated and regulated health insurance may be bought and sold. Amazingly, some states that otherwise oppose Obamacare, including some who have joined the Florida lawsuit that is on its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, are choosing to implement these exchanges.

These states may be under the mistaken belief that if they set up an exchange, they will preserve a modicum of state sovereignty – a belief perpetuated by the supporters of Obamacare as well as by some insurance companies. But these exchanges will be governed by federal regulations and mandates, leaving no flexibility – exactly the situation that has put many states in a bind with runaway Medicaid costs. The State of Arizona has already received a $1 million planning grant from the federal government and just last week Governor Brewer’s office submitted a request for an additional nearly $30 million to establish Arizona’s exchange.

States that establish exchanges are doing nothing short of the federal government’s dirty work. Worse still, they are being complicit in enforcing and entrenching this unconstitutional law.

In its legal briefs filed around the country in defense of the health care law, the federal government has argued that the exchanges are critical to enforcing the law’s individual mandate. That is because the exchanges will be used to determine whether an individual is exempt from the mandate and will report to the federal government, by name and Social Security number, those individuals who are exempt, as well as those who are not in compliance with the mandate.

By 2015, while the federal mandates on exchanges will remain, federal funding for them will be gone. All that states get by establishing exchanges are more federal mandates. What they will give away will be much greater – state sovereignty and the liberty of their citizens.

The choice is very simple: states that oppose Obamacare should just say no to the exchanges. And for those states like Arizona that have already received money, they should follow the lead of Florida, Oklahoma, and Kansas and send it back.

Diane Cohen is a senior attorney for the Goldwater Institute’s Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: Coons v. Geithner (federal health care lawsuit)

Heritage Foundation: States should return Obamacare Grants

Mackinac Center: Michigan Creeps Closer to Obamacare Exchange

Cato Institute: Should Missouri Create a Health Insurance Exchange?

The Federal Health Care Blog: Preparing for the Exchanges

Filed Under: Constitutional Law, Federal Government, Government, Health Care, Legislation, State Government, States Rights

THE RE-DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

July 4, 2011 By 5 Comments
On the 235th Anniversary of our original Declaration of Independence, July 4, 2011
The Declaration of Liberty-loving Citizens in all Fifty United States of America,
When in the Course of human events, it becomes Absolutely Imperative for Us to recall with great pride, why we dissolved the political bands which had connected us with England, and assumed among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitled us, the profound greatness of which no one at that time could possibly have envisioned; it’s vitally necessary that we remind both ourselves and the rest of mankind of the causes which propelled us to that separation and the reasons to “Re-Declare our Independence today.
We hold that these truths are so completely obvious: 1. That all men are created equal. 2. That we are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable Rights. 3. That among these unalienable rights are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. 4. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of ‘We’ the governed. 5. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of ‘We the People’to alter or to abolish it, AND to institute new leadership of that Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to Us shall seem most likely to affect Our Safety and Happiness.
Reasonable caution certainly will dictate that Our Government, long established, having created the most prosperous nation on Earth, should not be changed for trivial reasons and deceptive opportunities; and certainly Our experience has shown, that we have been much more likely to put up with the theft of our liberties, and abuse of our rights, while such thefts and abuses are tolerable, than to restore those rights by abolishing the forms to which we are accustomed and had served us so well for such a very long time. But when a long train of abuses and destruction of our rights, pursuing invariably the same Goal clearly indicates a design to reduce us to absolute Slavery, it is Our right, it is Our duty, to throw off such Bureaucratic and Political chains, and to provide new Guards for Our future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of We the People; and such is now the necessity which constrains us to replace those former Systems of Government that have lost sight of what had made the United States of America the greatest Nation in the history of Mankind. The history of this current President and his administration, as well as many administrations before, is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having as their goal, the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over all aspects of our lives. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to the honest observers everywhere across the Globe. And let them be our jury, remembering all the while that we already have the one True Judge and law-giver:
1)     They have vetoed Laws, designed to protect our Rights as written in the “Bill of Rights”.  And have instituted other laws destroying those Rights.
2)     They have prohibited State Governors from enforcing Laws of immediate and pressing importance for the protection of the people, by stopping their enforcement till his Justice Department is ordered by the courts to allow such enforcement.  ; and when so ordered, They have utterly neglected to enforce them.
3)     They have refused to pass other Laws for the protection of large voting blocks of people, unless those people would relinquish their liberties for paltry provision, liberties inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
4)     They have called together Congress at ridiculous times for votes on extremely crucial legislation, preventing the careful consideration of these critical matters, for the sole purpose of bullying  Congress into compliance with such measures.
5)     They have usurped the Congress’s legislative responsibilities repeatedly, with executive order, for staunchly opposing his repeated invasions on the rights of the people.
6)     They have abused the sacred right of the people to have open and legitimate elections: By preventing an honest and accurate accounting of those who ARE citizens and entitled to vote, and then refusing to allos those who are entitled, specifically military personnel overseas.
7)     They have worked to infiltrate the population of these States with those who are committed to the destruction of these self-same states and the sovereignty of this Country; by obstructing reforming the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; to encourage their migrations without documentation, and thus destroying the opportunities of Citizens and working to cause the collapse of our economic system.
8)     They have obstructed the Administration of Justice, by appointing Judges who do not respect the Constitution of these United States.
9)     They have empowered Judges committed to a tyrannical agenda, who will adjudicate the law to enrich and support allies in tyranny, and also to abuse the rights of those committed to Constitutional principles.
10)   They have erected a multitude of New bureaucracies, and sent out swarms of Officers to harass and bully our people, and tax them out of their substance.
11)   They have established unconstitutional quasi-military police forces in a myriad of bureaucracies to arrest and unlawfully detain people who allegedly violate unlawful regulations by such illegitimate agencies: including the Environmental Protection Agency, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and EVEN the Department of Education!
12)   They have affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power, making them answerable to NATO, the United Nations, and other extra-Constitutional authorities.
13)   They have combined with such Un-Constitutional entities to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
a)     For creating an unconstitutional policing organization that would usurp the powers of the States to enforce laws;
b)     For protecting them, by a mock Trial, or by no trial whatsoever, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States;
c)     For making us dependent on foreign Trade with all parts of the world for our energy needs, and other goods by creating a climate in our own States that is utterly hostile to the conduct of business;
d)    For imposing Taxes, duties and fees, on us without our Consent;
e)     For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury; such as the IRS, and the EPA.
f)      For subjecting our military personnel to illegitimate jurisdictions to be tried for pretended offences;
g)     For abolishing the free System of American law and replacing it with a regulatory entity with powers to fine, imprison or confiscate our property without due process.
h)     For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments;
i)       For rendering our own State Legislatures impotent and irrelevant, and declaring that they are invested with power to legislate for us in most cases under Federal mandates and threat of severe sanctions.
14)   They have abdicated and conspired to dismantle our republican form of Government here, and declared us out of the Protection of the Constitution and waging War against our Liberties.
15)   They have prohibited access to our resources, ravaged our Coasts, strangled the economic vitality of our towns, and destroyed the lives of our working people with utterly despicable and evil restrictions based on fraudulent and false threats to the environment, and false accounting of resources.
16)   They have at this time granted un-American paramilitary and police organizations to ‘enforce’unlawful orders and arrest peoples who reject the authority of these groups,
17)   They have constrained our fellow Citizens to become separated into divided factions, creating divisions and resentments, and thus causing them to attack, kill or demolish other groups, thus leading to the collapse of the social order.
18)   They have encouraged and incited domestic insurrections amongst us as ‘Community Organizers’, and have encouraged invasion by aliens to our country, on our cities and communities, by these merciless street gangs and mobs, from outside our borders, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions who would dare to stand up to them.
In every stage of these Abuses, We have patiently asked for our Legislators to listen to us in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince (or ‘Messiah’), whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have we been lacking in petitions and requests to our elected leaders. We have warned our elected office holders and un-elected bureaucrats, from time to time of attempts by the Congress to extend an unwarranted control and jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our citizenship and the wars we have fought to preserve Liberty. We have appealed to their natural sense of justice and fairness, and we have implored them due to the ties of our common citizenship in our Great nation to disavow and cease these destructions of our liberties, which, would inevitably destroy our communities and positive interactions. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of our common heritage. We must, therefore, grudgingly acknowledge, that those who denounce our New Declaration, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in our struggle to restore Liberty, and in their acknowledgement of our position: Friends.
We, therefore, Patriots of these United States of America, in complete Solidarity across this great country, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rightness of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these 50 States, solemnly publish and declare, That We the People, and these United States where we reside are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent Peoples; that we are Absolved from all Enslavement to the Autocratic and Unresponsive Elected officials and Un-elected bureaucrats, and that all unwarranted regulatory and unjust enslavement by these self-appointed arbiters of our freedoms, is and ought to be totally eliminated; and that as Free and Independent Peoples, We have full Power to resist them, Re-establish our Liberty, ally ourselves with other freedom loving people, freely conduct business, and to do all other actions and choices which Free Peoples may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our every breath, our dreams and our very being.
Filed Under: Education, History, Holiday, Special Event, States Rights Tagged With: , ,

Arizona State Bar protects checks and balances

June 29, 2011 By 1 Comment

by Nick Dranias
Goldwater Institute

In a recently issued ethics opinion, the Arizona State Bar declared, “a lawyer may ethically counsel or assist a client in legal matters expressly permissible under the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act…despite the fact that such conduct potentially may violate applicable federal law.” Whatever one may think of the wisdom of Arizona’s new medical marijuana law, the Bar apparently takes principles of state sovereignty seriously enough to shield lawyers from blanket claims that helping clients violate federal law is unethical.

Of course, the ethics ruling is subject to many caveats, including the proviso that it “is limited to the specific facts discussed herein.” But it would be outrageous if the Bar’s opinion were merely a special favor for the medical marijuana industry. Hopefully, the ruling signals that the Bar will stand by attorneys who, in good faith, advance state law when it clashes with federal law.

In an era when the federal government increasingly exceeds its constitutional authority, it is imperative that bar associations support good faith efforts by attorneys to enforce state laws. Without this protection, bar associations would be giving the federal government carte blanche to dictate laws without any checks or balances arising from the states.

With the federal government claiming the power to force everyone to buy health insurance, and administrative agencies like the National Labor Relations Board going after states that seek to protect the right to vote by secret ballot in union elections, the freedom for attorneys to advance state laws is essential.

Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: Health Care Freedom Act Q&A

Goldwater Institute: National Labor Relations Board v. State of Arizona (Save Our Secret Ballot case)

State Bar of Arizona: Ethics Opinion

Filed Under: Constitutional Law, Federal Government, Legislation, States Rights

Defending the right to a secret ballot and Arizona’s constitution

June 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

by Clint Bolick
Goldwater Institute

Last year, voters in Arizona approved Proposition 113, a state constitutional amendment drafted by the Goldwater Institute to protect every worker’s right to a secret-ballot vote if they are asked to join a union. Voters in South Carolina, South Dakota, and Utah also added this protection to their state constitutions last year, and more states are signing up this year.

But the National Labor Relations Board wants to take that protection away, and it has filed a federal lawsuit to strike down Prop. 113. The Goldwater Institute had pledged to defend this law and the right to vote by secret ballot if it was challenged, and I am happy to report that we are fulfilling that promise. The Institute has gone to federal court on behalf of dozens of individuals – construction workers, nurses, and teachers – to stop the NLRB and keep this important protection in place for workers in Arizona and any state that passes this law.

The right to a secret ballot is one of the most sacred principles of American democracy. But that right is under attack by an out-of-control federal agency that would expose workers to coercion or intimidation when they are trying to decide if they should join a union.

The NLRB under President Barack Obama is quickly becoming a rogue agency. It has taken action to prevent Boeing from opening a new facility in South Carolina, claiming the airplane manufacturer is retaliating against unions. If a company can’t choose where to locate a facility, it has lost its economic freedom. And if workers can’t voluntarily choose whether to form a union, they have lost their freedom of association.

The Goldwater Institute will continue to stand up for the rights of all workers threatened by the actions of the NLRB.

Clint Bolick is director of the Goldwater Institute’s Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: National Labor Relations Board v. State of Arizona

Goldwater Institute: Feds threaten to sue over card check

Arizona Daily Star: Arizona sued over amendment on secret ballot for unionization

Filed Under: Constitutional Law, Jobs/Labor, Judicial, Legislation, States Rights

Goldwater Institute Helps States Declare Independence from Big Government

June 1, 2011 By 4 Comments

Goldwater Institute
News Release

PHOENIX – From light bulbs to cheeseburgers, the federal government is more involved in the details of American life than ever before – and far more than the country’s Founders ever envisioned.

“The Constitution was designed to guard our freedom by dividing power not only between the three branches of the federal government – Congress, the president, and the courts – but also between the federal government and states,” said Nick Dranias, the Goldwater Institute’s director of constitutional studies. “But the federal government has been taking control of decisions that once belonged exclusively to the states or to the people in their private lives.”

The Goldwater Institute has developed 10 innovative ideas for reinstating the constitutional roles of state and federal governments in a new, comprehensive guidebook, “Federalism-Do-It-Yourself: 10 Ways for States to Check and Balance Washington.”

In the study, Mr. Dranias highlights dozens of policies enacted by the federal government that intrude on state laws. The study also points out that, with 20 percent of the money spent by state and local governments coming from the federal government, state and local budget priorities are effectively determined in Washington, D.C.

Examples of federal overreach into state affairs abound. Officials in Pima County, Ariz., secured $16 million in federal stimulus money by proposing to adopt “obesity zoning” that would limit the construction of new fast-food restaurants. Lured by the promise of federal grants, Wisconsin towns and counties want to take away the property rights of rural families by blocking their land from being used for anything other than farming.

But more than local control is at stake, Mr. Dranias said. Individual liberty is also under siege when Congress can mandate that nearly every adult must buy a government-approved health insurance policy by 2014.

“States have lost their status as equal partners in governing, which has opened the door to a nearly unchecked national government that our Founders knew would be dangerous to a free society,” Mr. Dranias said. “The federal government is poised to dictate our most important choices in life, including what we choose to eat, how we use our property, and whether we get health care, unless the states begin using the legal and constitutional tools available to them.”

This report proposes 10 tools that state legislatures, county governments, and city councils can adopt to rebuff further federal intrusion, including:

• Adopt state laws to preserve and expand liberty and defend those laws in court against federal encroachment. Ten states are protecting health care freedom for their residents by enacting the Health Care Freedom Act and defending it in court.
• Forbid state and local officials from assisting the federal government in carrying out mandates when doing so threatens individual liberty. Attempts by the Department of Homeland Security to implement the REAL ID Act were thwarted because 14 states adopted laws that ordered their motor vehicle departments or similar agencies not to cooperate.
• Invoke existing coordination rights under many federal laws that require federal agencies to coordinate with state and local governments when imposing new mandates and regulations that conflict with state laws and local ordinances. Uintah County in Utah blocked the federal government from releasing diseased wild horses into public ranch lands by exercising its right to demand coordination between federal and local regulations.
• Call one or more Amendments Conventions to draft amendments to the U.S. Constitution that would limit the size, scope, and intrusiveness of the federal government. North Dakota already has taken this step with a proposal to limit federal debt, and 29 other states are considering this strategy as well.

Click here for a one-page explanation of the 10 tools to bring rebalance power between states and the federal government. The Goldwater Institute also has prepared model legislation that uses these tools to limit federal debt, protect health care freedom, and preserve private property rights. This model legislation can be viewed here.

About the author: Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

The Goldwater Institute is an independent government watchdog that develops innovative, principled solutions to issues facing the states and whose work is made possible by the generosity of its supporters.

Filed Under: Constitutional Law, Debt, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Government, Government Reform, Legislation, Press Release, State Government, States Rights

US Supreme Court rules for AZ

May 26, 2011 By 4 Comments

A m e r i c a n  P o s t – G a z e t t e

Distributed by C O M M O N  S E N S E , in Arizona
Thursday, May 26, 2011

 

US Supreme Court rules for AZ

States can yank licenses for companies that hire illegal aliens

By David G. Savage, Washington Bureau
 
 8:34 AM PDT, May 26, 2011
 
The Supreme Court on Thursday gave Arizona and other states more authority to take action against illegal immigrants and the companies that hire them, ruling that employers who knowingly hire illegal workers can lose their license to do business.

The 5-3 decision upholds the Legal Arizona Workers Act of 2007 and its so-called business death penalty for employers who are caught repeatedly hiring illegal immigrants. The state law also requires employers to check the federal E-Verify system before hiring new workers, a provision that was also upheld Thursday.
 
The court’s decision did not deal with the more controversial Arizona law passed last year that gave police more authority to stop and question those who are suspected of being in the state illegally. But the ruling is likely to encourage the state and its supporters because the court majority said states remained free to take action involving immigrants.
 
Thursday’s decision is a defeat for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, several civil-rights groups and the Obama administration, all of whom opposed the Arizona law and its sanctions on employers. They argued that federal law said states may not impose “civil or criminal sanctions” on employers.
 
But Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said another portion of the same law made clear that states were free to use their “licensing” laws to punish employers. Justices Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr. formed the majority in Chamber of Commerce vs. Whiting.
 
The Arizona law upheld Thursday was signed into law by then-Gov. Janet Napolitano, who now serves as secretary of Homeland Security for President Obama.
 
In dissent were Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor. They said federal law prohibited states from imposing their own immigration-related rules on employers. Justice Elena Kagan sat out the case.
 
Soon after the Arizona employment law went into effect, lawyers for the chamber and civil-rights group sued, contending it was preempted or trumped by federal immigration laws. But a federal judge and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Arizona measure. The Supreme Court affirmed those decisions Thursday.
 
Roberts noted that eight other states had passed similar laws. They are Colorado, Mississippi, Missouri, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
 
The other Arizona law involving police enforcement has been challenged – successfully, so far – by the Obama administration and civil-rights groups. They say enforcement of laws against illegal immigration is exclusively in the hands of federal authorities. A federal judge and the U.S. 9th Court of Appeals have put that Arizona law on hold. Gov. Jan Brewer said she planned to appeal the issue to the Supreme Court.

 

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Filed Under: Border, Constitutional Law, Crime and Punishment, Illegal Aliens, Illegal Employment, Illegal Immigration, Public Safety, States Rights

Clint Bolick on Freedom Watch

May 24, 2011 By 2 Comments

Goldwater Institute litigation director Clint Bolick joined Judge Andrew Napolitano on Fox Business Network’s Freedom Watch to discuss his new book Death Grip, about the need for more economic liberty.

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Filed Under: Constitutional Law, Economic Development, Economics, Government, Judicial, Media, Personalities, Press Release, States Rights Tagged With: , , ,
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