Resist DC: A
Step-by-Step Plan for Freedom Part
1
by State Rep. Matthew Shea
(WA-4th)This summer,
legislators from several states met to discuss the steps
needed to restore our Constitutional Republic. The federal
government has ignored the many state sovereignty resolutions
from 2009 notifying it to cease and desist its current and
continued overreach. The group decided it was time to actively
counter the tyranny emanating from Washington
D.C.
From those
discussions it became clear three things needed to
happen.
- State Legislatures need to pass 10 key
pieces of legislation “with teeth” to put the federal
government back in its place.
- The people must pass the legislation
through the Initiative process if any piece of the
legislative agenda fails.
- County Sheriffs must reaffirm and
uphold their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution of
the United States.
With the advent of
the Tea Party Movement, many people have been asking how
exactly we can make the above reality. What follows is
Part I of the outline of that plan regarding
state legislation, the action steps any concerned citizen can
take to see this legislation to fruition, and the brief
history and justifications behind each.
Step 1:
Reclaim State Sovereignty through Key Nullification
Legislation
Our Constitutional
Republic is founded on a system of checks and balances known
as the “separation of powers.” Rarely, however, are the states
considered part of this essential principle.
Nullification is based on the
simple principle that the federal government cannot be
the final arbiter of the extent and boundaries of its own
power. This includes all branches of
the federal government. In the law this is known as a
“conflict of interest.”
Additionally, since
the states created the federal government the federal
government was an agent of the states; not the other way
around. Thus, Thomas Jefferson believed that, by extension,
the states had a natural right to nullify (render as of no
effect) any laws they believed were
unconstitutional.
“co-States,
recurring to their natural right…will concur in declaring
these acts void, and of no force, and will each take
measures of its own for providing that neither these acts,
nor any others of the General Government not plainly and
intentionally authorized by the Constitution, shalt be
exercised within their respective
territories.”1
Alexander Hamilton
echoed this sentiment in Federalist #85 “We may safely
rely on the disposition of the state legislatures to erect
barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.”
2
It is clear then
that State Legislatures can stop the unconstitutional
overreach of the Obama administration through nullification. Here is a list
of proposed nullification legislation to introduce in all 50
States.
- Nullification of Socialized Health Care [current efforts] [example legislation]
- Nullification of National Cap and Trade [example legislation]
- Federal Enumerated Powers Requirement (Blanket
Nullification) [details]
- Establishment of a Federal Tax Escrow Account [example
legislation]
If imposed,
socialized health care and cap and trade will crush our
economy. These programs are both unconstitutional, creating
government powers beyond those enumerated by the Constitution.
If those programs are nullified, it will give the individual
states a fighting chance to detach from a federal budget in
freefall and save the economies of the individual
states.
Next, blanket
nullification.
The Federal
Government, particularly the House of Representatives, needs
to abide by its own rules. In particular, House Rule XIII 3(d)
specifically states that:
“Each report
of a committee on a public bill or public joint resolution
shall contain the following: (1) A statement citing the
specific powers granted to Congress in the Constitution to
enact the law proposed by the bill or resolution.”
3
Needless to say,
this rule is generally ignored. The idea behind blanket nullification is that if the
Congress does not specify the enumerated power it is using
according to its own rules, or the power specified is not one
of the enumerated powers granted to Congress in the United
States Constitution, then the “law” is automatically null and
void.
Lastly, the federal
government cannot survive without money. I know that seems
obvious but many states are missing the opportunity to use
money as an incentive for the federal government to return to
its proper role. Most visibly, states help collect the federal
portion of the gasoline tax. That money should be put into an
escrow account at the state level and held there. The Escrow
Account legislation includes a provision that all consumer,
excise, and income taxes payable to the federal government
would go through this account first. This would do two things.
First, it would give states the ability to collect interest on
that money to help offset revenue shortfalls. Second, it would
allow states to hold that money as long as needed as an
incentive for the federal government to return within the
enumerated boundaries of its power.
Step 2:
Erect an impenetrable wall around the County Sheriff
and the 2nd Amendment.
As recently stated
in the famous Heller opinion by the United
States Supreme Court, the right to bear arms “is an individual
right protecting against both public and private violence” and
“when the able-bodied men of a nation are trained in arms and
organized they are better able to resist tyranny.”
4
Thus, it is clear
that the 2nd Amendment not only protects the right to
self-defense but that right extends to defending oneself
against tyranny. As with any historical attempt to establish a
dictatorship weapons must be seized or severely regulated.
5
Here is a list of
legislation to prevent this from happening, some of which has
already been introduced in states around the
country:
The county Sheriff
is the senior law enforcement officer both in terms of rank
and legal authority in a county. This comes from a tradition
of over 1000 years of Anglo-Saxon common law. Anglo-Saxon
communities were typically organized into “shires” consisting
of approximately 1000 people. 6
The chief law
enforcement officer of the shire was the “reeve” or “reef.”
Hence, the modern combination of the two words, as we know
them today, “shire reef” or “Sheriff.” 7
Consequently, the
Sheriff’s pre-eminent legal authority is well established.
This was confirmed in Printz v. United States. 7
Justice Scalia quotes James Madison who wrote in
Federalist
39:
“In the
latter, the local or municipal authorities form distinct and
independent portions of the supremacy, no more subject,
within their respective spheres, to the general authority,
than the general authority is subject to them, within its
own sphere.”9
Sheriff 1st
legislation would formally declare that all federal agents and
officers must give notice of, and seek permission before, any
arrest, search, or seizure occurs. Thus, federal agents and
officers seeking to enforce unconstitutional laws must go
through the county Sheriff first.
Extending the
castle doctrine to one’s person would go a long way toward
eliminating the arbitrary “no carry” areas. Like Virginia
Tech, it is these areas where guns for self-defense are most
needed.
Many gun and
ammunition tracking schemes have been, and are still being,
attempted. The intended purpose of “reducing gun related”
crime is never realized. Instead, law-abiding citizens are
punished with regulatory burdens and fees. Quite
simply we need transparency in government not in the
people.
The Montana FFA
simply returns to that original understanding regarding
firearms made, sold, and kept within a state’s
borders.
This list is by no
means exhaustive. However, it does contain some immediate
steps that can be taken toward freedom and restoring our God
honoring Constitutional Republic. Hitler’s laws of January 30
and February 14, 1934, should serve as a stark reminder of
what happens when state sovereignty is
abolished.
In the coming few
weeks I will publish the next part of the
plan.
Matthew Shea
[send him email] is a State
Representative in Washington’s 4th District. He’s the author
of HJM4009 for State Sovereignty. Visit his website.
Copyright © 2009 by
TenthAmendmentCenter.com. Permission to
reprint in whole or in part is gladly granted, provided full
credit is given.
NOTES:
1. Kentucky
Resolution of 1798, Thomas Jefferson, Adopted by Kentucky
Legislature on November 10, 1798. 2. Federalist No. 85,
Publius (Alexander Hamilton), August 13 and 16, 1788. 3. Rules
of the House XIII 3(d), “Content of Reports,” Page 623, 110th
Congress. 4. District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. ___
(Actual Pages 11, 13) (2008) 5. Id at (Actual Page 11).
6. https://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/history/ancient/1859-teutoburg-forest-the-battle-that-saved-the-west
7. https://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=sheriff&searchmode=none
8. Printz v. United States, 521 U.S. 898 (1997) 9. Federalist
No. 39, Publius (James Madison), January 16, 1788 10.
Tempering the Commerce Power, 68 Mont. L. Rev. 95 (2007).
