Henry Lamb
Obama's private army?
By Henry Lamb
Who knew that Obamacare provides for a "Regular Corps," and a "Ready-Reserve Corps," of officers and individuals who are appointed by the President? Commissioned officers are subject to active duty at the call of the Surgeon General. The new law provides $17.5 million in each of the first four years to recruit and train these reserves.
During his campaign, Obama said "We cannot continue to rely only on our military...we've got to have a civilian security force just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded. We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we've set."
Section 5210 of the Patient's Protection and Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) may be the beginning of Obama's civilian security force. This section amends Section 203 of the U.S. Public Health Service Act. Why it was included in the massive health care bill is a question in search of meaningful answers. Judge Andrew Napolitano from FOX News has a few questions of his own,.
The new law says "The purpose of the Ready Reserve Corps is to fulfill the need to have additional Commissioned Corps personnel available on short notice (similar to the uniformed service's reserve program) to assist regular Commissioned Corps personnel to meet both routine public health and emergency response missions."
The law requires the Ready Reserve to participate in "routine training" to meet the general and specific needs of the Commissioned Corps. The Ready Reserve "shall" be ready for involuntary calls to active duty. The Ready Reserve must be prepared to respond to orders from the President to go anywhere in the country, or anywhere outside the country.
It's hard to see how such a civilian security force under the direct control of the President might be justified, in view of the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878. This law prohibits the federal government from using federal troops for law enforcement purposes within the United States.
This is the law that prevented President Bush from sending the military into New Orleans immediately after Katrina. The federal government may not send in the troops without a specific request from the state. After Katrina hit, the federal government was ready to respond, but could not until the request was made from the state.
Language in Obamacare seems to remove this prohibition. The law says the Ready Reserve Corps: "...shall be available and ready for involuntary calls to active duty during national emergencies and public health crises, similar to the uniformed service reserve personnel." Since the President declares national emergencies and public health crises, it would seem that this new Ready Reserve Corps need not be concerned about the Posse Comitatus law.
What, exactly, will the Ready Reserve Corps do in the event of a national emergency or public health crisis that the National Guard is not already doing? If more people are required, simply increase the recruiting goals. There is no need to create a new branch of service with its attendant bureaucracy and officer corps.
This is exceedingly dangerous ground. The Constitution does not give the federal government any police power. In fact, the Constitution requires the federal government to stay out of the states' business except in the very limited ways expressly authorized by the Constitution.
Obama has already expressed his contempt for the idea that the Constitution limits the power of the federal government. There is not an enumerated power that authorizes the federal government to force individuals to purchase anything. Nevertheless, Obamacare forces individuals to purchase health insurance.
Democratic Representative Phil Hare spoke for 220 Congressional Democrats when he blatantly said he didn't care about the Constitution.
With this demonstrated disregard for the Constitution by both the President and the Congressional majority, the new Ready Reserve Corps could, indeed, be the beginning of Obama's new civil security force. Recruits are already being prepared. This short video shows a class in a charter school in Kansas City which provides an example of what to expect.
Obama promised that when he was elected, he would "fundamentally transform America." Perhaps voters naïvely thought that he meant ending corruption, back-room deals, partisan bickering, and the arrogance that seems to infect Washington politicians. It is clear now that what he meant was a transformation from a democratic Republic to a Marxist autocracy. Rather than making government more open and transparent, as he promised, he brought his Chicago hit squad to Washington to twist arms and pull fingernails, when necessary, to gain control over his domain.
Obama's army is quick to label opponents as right-wing racist radicals in an effort to discredit them. This label might be considered a badge of honor because it is not bestowed upon Marxists and their supporters. If a Marxist is a person who accepts the philosophy of Karl Marx, and an American is a person who accepts the philosophy of the U.S. Constitution, then it is possible to be a Marxist in America, but it is not possible to be an American and a Marxist. The two philosophies are mutually exclusive.
© Henry Lamb
April 11, 2010
Who knew that Obamacare provides for a "Regular Corps," and a "Ready-Reserve Corps," of officers and individuals who are appointed by the President? Commissioned officers are subject to active duty at the call of the Surgeon General. The new law provides $17.5 million in each of the first four years to recruit and train these reserves.
During his campaign, Obama said "We cannot continue to rely only on our military...we've got to have a civilian security force just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded. We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we've set."
Section 5210 of the Patient's Protection and Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) may be the beginning of Obama's civilian security force. This section amends Section 203 of the U.S. Public Health Service Act. Why it was included in the massive health care bill is a question in search of meaningful answers. Judge Andrew Napolitano from FOX News has a few questions of his own,.
The new law says "The purpose of the Ready Reserve Corps is to fulfill the need to have additional Commissioned Corps personnel available on short notice (similar to the uniformed service's reserve program) to assist regular Commissioned Corps personnel to meet both routine public health and emergency response missions."
The law requires the Ready Reserve to participate in "routine training" to meet the general and specific needs of the Commissioned Corps. The Ready Reserve "shall" be ready for involuntary calls to active duty. The Ready Reserve must be prepared to respond to orders from the President to go anywhere in the country, or anywhere outside the country.
It's hard to see how such a civilian security force under the direct control of the President might be justified, in view of the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878. This law prohibits the federal government from using federal troops for law enforcement purposes within the United States.
This is the law that prevented President Bush from sending the military into New Orleans immediately after Katrina. The federal government may not send in the troops without a specific request from the state. After Katrina hit, the federal government was ready to respond, but could not until the request was made from the state.
Language in Obamacare seems to remove this prohibition. The law says the Ready Reserve Corps: "...shall be available and ready for involuntary calls to active duty during national emergencies and public health crises, similar to the uniformed service reserve personnel." Since the President declares national emergencies and public health crises, it would seem that this new Ready Reserve Corps need not be concerned about the Posse Comitatus law.
What, exactly, will the Ready Reserve Corps do in the event of a national emergency or public health crisis that the National Guard is not already doing? If more people are required, simply increase the recruiting goals. There is no need to create a new branch of service with its attendant bureaucracy and officer corps.
This is exceedingly dangerous ground. The Constitution does not give the federal government any police power. In fact, the Constitution requires the federal government to stay out of the states' business except in the very limited ways expressly authorized by the Constitution.
Obama has already expressed his contempt for the idea that the Constitution limits the power of the federal government. There is not an enumerated power that authorizes the federal government to force individuals to purchase anything. Nevertheless, Obamacare forces individuals to purchase health insurance.
Democratic Representative Phil Hare spoke for 220 Congressional Democrats when he blatantly said he didn't care about the Constitution.
With this demonstrated disregard for the Constitution by both the President and the Congressional majority, the new Ready Reserve Corps could, indeed, be the beginning of Obama's new civil security force. Recruits are already being prepared. This short video shows a class in a charter school in Kansas City which provides an example of what to expect.
Obama promised that when he was elected, he would "fundamentally transform America." Perhaps voters naïvely thought that he meant ending corruption, back-room deals, partisan bickering, and the arrogance that seems to infect Washington politicians. It is clear now that what he meant was a transformation from a democratic Republic to a Marxist autocracy. Rather than making government more open and transparent, as he promised, he brought his Chicago hit squad to Washington to twist arms and pull fingernails, when necessary, to gain control over his domain.
Obama's army is quick to label opponents as right-wing racist radicals in an effort to discredit them. This label might be considered a badge of honor because it is not bestowed upon Marxists and their supporters. If a Marxist is a person who accepts the philosophy of Karl Marx, and an American is a person who accepts the philosophy of the U.S. Constitution, then it is possible to be a Marxist in America, but it is not possible to be an American and a Marxist. The two philosophies are mutually exclusive.
© Henry Lamb
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