Michael Oberndorf
Spineless parasites
By Michael Oberndorf
If there is anyone left out there who still doesn't get why the Tea Parties are pretty much done with the Republican Party, a recent Senate vote should finally bring on the Great Epiphany. In a cloture vote this week, 11 senators voted with Democrats, allowing the Marxist/neo-fascist Democrats to approve the nomination by Obama-Soetoro of a former director of Planned Parenthood to a federal district court judgeship (http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/11-republican-senators-permit-former-pla). It seems giving the president the prerogative of an up-or-down vote on his judicial nominees — something that Democrats feel no compunction to do for Republicans — is more important to these 11 than keeping an activist, leftist abortionist off the federal bench. And then, to add insult to injury, these arrogant drains on the treasury had the nerve to, after voting for cloture, and thus knowingly allowing the Democrat majority to win the nomination vote, all vote against the nomination, so they could tell the rubes back home, "See, I really am a conservative!"
Just so you can vote against these spineless parasites come next election time, they are: Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Scott Brown (R-MA), Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe both (R-ME), Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson both (R-GA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Mark Kirk (R-IL), John McCain (R-AZ), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and John Thune (R-SD).
Unfortunately, Republicans have not been so concerned with their role in advise and consent on other nominees, like the 39 so-called "czars," outrageous radicals, unconstitutionally appointed by Obama-Soetoro, without even a nod to the Senate. An occasional mumbled complaint from Senate Republicans about being blatantly ignored surfaces, but is played by the media to make the Senate Republicans look like the ineffectual, bumbling morons far too many of them actually are. One could feel real compassion for these intellectually challenged oafs, if not for the fact that they are allowing our country to be taken apart, piece by piece, right in front of our eyes.
In theory, booting these dangerously inept people out of office by election, and replacing them with trustworthy patriots should solve the problem. However, a fundamental part of the problem is that the system that exists today to elect senators in the first place is not the one instituted by the Founders and originally mandated by the Constitution. Far from it.
In the beginning, senators were elected by their state legislatures, in order that they should go to Washington and represent the various states at the federal level. Congressmen were to represent the people. By having a very accountable state legislature choose the senators, voters were assured that the senators were carefully chosen to represent their state, and not some vote-buying, big money special interest. But then came 1913.
Perhaps the most disastrous year ever for constitutional government in America was 1913. This was the year that the privately owned Federal Reserve was created and given the unconstitutional power to control and print currency, among many other things. It was also the year that the 16th Amendment was passed, which made the income tax permanent. And to make sure the states would go along and not resist these usurpations and vast extensions of federal power, the 17th Amendment was also passed, making election of senators the result of statewide popular vote.
No longer would the state government have direct control over federal senators. By electing them with a statewide popular vote, they became beholden to those who supplied the money necessary to run election campaigns. Instead of answering to the legislature, made up of many representatives from small districts, many of whom were business people operating in small towns, often neighbors, personally known by the voters, the senators now became remote, unapproachable figures, career politicians, bought and paid for by people with way more money than you or I have access to., and whose interests often do not coincide with ours.
The result of all this is scenarios like the one that I opened this column with, occurring on a nearly daily basis. Bad enough that we have a corrupt, radical Marxist administration running the executive branch, but to have it aided and abetted by an insensitive, unresponsive, uncontrollable, and easily corruptable Senate is intolerable. We need to take some radical action ourselves, and repeal the 17th Amendment (http://repealthe17thamendment.blogspot.com/, http://www.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2008/10/24/repeal-the-17th-amendment/). We need to do some serious pest control, and rid our once proud capitol, of these self-serving, spineless parasites.
© Michael Oberndorf
May 8, 2011
If there is anyone left out there who still doesn't get why the Tea Parties are pretty much done with the Republican Party, a recent Senate vote should finally bring on the Great Epiphany. In a cloture vote this week, 11 senators voted with Democrats, allowing the Marxist/neo-fascist Democrats to approve the nomination by Obama-Soetoro of a former director of Planned Parenthood to a federal district court judgeship (http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/11-republican-senators-permit-former-pla). It seems giving the president the prerogative of an up-or-down vote on his judicial nominees — something that Democrats feel no compunction to do for Republicans — is more important to these 11 than keeping an activist, leftist abortionist off the federal bench. And then, to add insult to injury, these arrogant drains on the treasury had the nerve to, after voting for cloture, and thus knowingly allowing the Democrat majority to win the nomination vote, all vote against the nomination, so they could tell the rubes back home, "See, I really am a conservative!"
Just so you can vote against these spineless parasites come next election time, they are: Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Scott Brown (R-MA), Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe both (R-ME), Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson both (R-GA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Mark Kirk (R-IL), John McCain (R-AZ), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and John Thune (R-SD).
Unfortunately, Republicans have not been so concerned with their role in advise and consent on other nominees, like the 39 so-called "czars," outrageous radicals, unconstitutionally appointed by Obama-Soetoro, without even a nod to the Senate. An occasional mumbled complaint from Senate Republicans about being blatantly ignored surfaces, but is played by the media to make the Senate Republicans look like the ineffectual, bumbling morons far too many of them actually are. One could feel real compassion for these intellectually challenged oafs, if not for the fact that they are allowing our country to be taken apart, piece by piece, right in front of our eyes.
In theory, booting these dangerously inept people out of office by election, and replacing them with trustworthy patriots should solve the problem. However, a fundamental part of the problem is that the system that exists today to elect senators in the first place is not the one instituted by the Founders and originally mandated by the Constitution. Far from it.
In the beginning, senators were elected by their state legislatures, in order that they should go to Washington and represent the various states at the federal level. Congressmen were to represent the people. By having a very accountable state legislature choose the senators, voters were assured that the senators were carefully chosen to represent their state, and not some vote-buying, big money special interest. But then came 1913.
Perhaps the most disastrous year ever for constitutional government in America was 1913. This was the year that the privately owned Federal Reserve was created and given the unconstitutional power to control and print currency, among many other things. It was also the year that the 16th Amendment was passed, which made the income tax permanent. And to make sure the states would go along and not resist these usurpations and vast extensions of federal power, the 17th Amendment was also passed, making election of senators the result of statewide popular vote.
No longer would the state government have direct control over federal senators. By electing them with a statewide popular vote, they became beholden to those who supplied the money necessary to run election campaigns. Instead of answering to the legislature, made up of many representatives from small districts, many of whom were business people operating in small towns, often neighbors, personally known by the voters, the senators now became remote, unapproachable figures, career politicians, bought and paid for by people with way more money than you or I have access to., and whose interests often do not coincide with ours.
The result of all this is scenarios like the one that I opened this column with, occurring on a nearly daily basis. Bad enough that we have a corrupt, radical Marxist administration running the executive branch, but to have it aided and abetted by an insensitive, unresponsive, uncontrollable, and easily corruptable Senate is intolerable. We need to take some radical action ourselves, and repeal the 17th Amendment (http://repealthe17thamendment.blogspot.com/, http://www.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2008/10/24/repeal-the-17th-amendment/). We need to do some serious pest control, and rid our once proud capitol, of these self-serving, spineless parasites.
© Michael Oberndorf
The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)
