Monday, December 06, 2010

Nullifying ObamaCare?


Nullifying ObamaCare?
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet


Prior to the American “War Between the States,” the southern states began to nullify those laws passed by Congress they felt were overbearing, or would harm the people of the states in any way. It was a legal approach toward a too powerful federal government, which was created by the states to act as an agent of the states and not as the master of the states.

We don’t see much of that today. The federal government has had a great deal of success through their government run schools of re-educating the citizenry that the states are subservient to the federal government.

There are some reports that at least ten states are currently, or soon will be considering nullification laws in their sovereign states that would make ObamaCare illegal with their borders. Fourteen other states are suing in the courts in an effort to have ObamaCare overturned and tossed out. We wish them all good luck.

If a new bill, which has already been filed in Texas ahead of the 2011 session of the Texas state legislature should pass it would nullify Obamacare. The bill provides penalties of up to $5,000 in fines and up to five years in jail for anyone guilty of the "felony" of attempting "to enforce an act, order, law, statute, rule or regulation" of ObamaCare.

The bill was pre-filed by Leo Berman, a Republican, from Tyler, Texas. It is House Bill 297 in case you would like to look it up.

The bill would simply nullify Obama’s federal health care law in the state of Texas. Texas HB 297 says that federal health care legislation is invalid in the state of Texas, is not recognized by the state of Texas, is specifically rejected by the state of Texas, and is null and void and of no effect in the state of Texas. The bill explains: “The federal Act is not authorized by the United States Constitution and violates the Constitution’s true meaning and intent as expressed by the founders of this country and the ratifiers of the Constitution.”

Just so everyone knows the bill is serious it says, plainly and simply the following: “"a person who is an official, agent, or employee of the United States or an employee of a corporation providing services to the United States commits an offense if the person enforces or attempts to enforce an act, order, law, statute, rule, or regulation of the United States in violation of this chapter." The bill goes on to say: “assumption of power by the federal government in enacting the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590; Pub. L. No. 111-148) as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872; Pub. L. No. 111-152) interferes with the right of the people of this state to regulate health care as they determine is appropriate …”

Understand this: This nullification of a federal law within a state is legal. It is well within the scope of all the sovereign states. In fact, James Madison often praised as the writer of the Constitution, but undeniably one of those who did said that the states have a duty to assert their power as a sovereign state when the federal government oversteps its authority. Madison had this to say in the Virginia Resolution of 1798: “That this Assembly doth explicitly and peremptorily declare, that it views the powers of the federal government, as resulting from the compact, to which the states are parties; as limited by the plain sense and intention of the instrument constituting the compact; as no further valid that they are authorized by the grants enumerated in that compact; and that in case of a deliberate, palpable, and dangerous exercise of other powers, not granted by the said compact, the states who are parties thereto, have the right, and are in duty bound, to interpose for arresting the progress of the evil, and for maintaining within their respective limits, the authorities, rights and liberties appertaining to them.”

Somewhere along the line, Americans have forgotten that the states are sovereign. They are separate countries with their own governments elected by the people of those states. We have forgotten the formation of the federal government was an act of the states, not to create their own master, but to create a servant of the states.

I suspect many of the leaders of the various states are frightened witless that should they buck the federal government, the same thing will happen to them as happened to the southern states when they asserted their right to secede from the union and form their own country over their dissatisfaction with a federal government that had grown, even at that early stage of American history, into a near tyrannical regime. They fear the revenge with which the federal government savaged the southern states. It was called “Reconstruction” and it was damaged the southern states even more than the shooting war.

As a southerner, I am convinced the current federal government has stepped way across the line with ObamaCare and deserves to be confronted with nullification laws in as many states as believe it to be the act of a federal government grown intoxicated with power and intend to use that power to force their will on the people of the states who want no part of the takeover of a huge chunk of the US economy and intervene directly into the lives of Americans who do not want them there.

The states have a right, AND the DUTY, to say no. We will not bow to the will of an out of control federal government that has over-stepped its constitutional restraints.

ObamaCare is a slap in the face to freedom loving Americans across this great land. The states must band together to stop it and destroy it.

J. D. Longstreet

NOTE: Two articles you might enjoy reading on this same subject can be found at:

Tenth Amendment Center
And theWorld Net Daily

11 comments:

  1. I am guessing that Bush v Gore is an abomination, viewed thusly.

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  2. What about the supremecy clause of the Constitution? Federal law overrides state law.

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  3. my single mother has diabetes. can't afford health insurance.

    the party of no is keeping her sick, no christian god-fearing person can sit idly by and watch health providers dictate you brothers health.

    blood is on your hands, sir.

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  4. Is the TX legislature also going to have the balls to refuse the money that comes in with any of the federal health bills?

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  5. The supremacy clause does not mean all federal law trumps all state laws. Only constitutional federal laws. Any federal law that is unconstitutional does not trump state laws.

    "This constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof"

    you forgot that part of the supremacy clause.

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  6. How many people are going to be happy paying for it with their federal taxes, yet being fined $5ooo for trying to use it. Beyond even that, if this law passes with that wording... wouldn't even paying your federal taxes be a violation of state law? Inherent problems with this need to be thought about in advance, not just reacted to when they happen

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  7. In case you were wondering. You can't just say something is unconstitutional and THEN say its nullified in the state. The supreme court or Federal Courts have to declare that it is. Texas has every right to try to declare this in Federal courts, but instead they decided to pass a law in their state that is completely useless.

    There you go.

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  8. [quote]Anonymous said...

    my single mother has diabetes. can't afford health insurance.

    the party of no is keeping her sick, no christian god-fearing person can sit idly by and watch health providers dictate you brothers health.

    blood is on your hands, sir.[quote]


    You sir, are an idiot. Your post revealed that you A.dont give a crap enough about your own mother to help her as you fully expect that other folks to do it for you.
    b. cast blame on a party that you apparently disagree with rather than manning up and helping your own mother out.

    This is not the country of ... give stuff away free to people paid for by other peoples money. But people like you have forgotten that and demand a government tit to suckle from cause you are apparently so lazy that you cant provide for your own family that you demand others to do it for you without wanting to contribute yourself.

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  9. I agree with the person quoting the one from above...

    and add...

    The BLOOD is on YOUR hands for not helping out.

    Dont expect somebody else to do it for you if you dont first put forth some effort.

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  10. This is total BS:


    "I suspect many of the leaders of the various states are frightened witless that should they buck the federal government, the same thing will happen to them as happened to the southern states when they asserted their right to secede from the union and form their own country over their dissatisfaction with a federal government that had grown, even at that early stage of American history, into a near tyrannical regime. They fear the revenge with which the federal government savaged the southern states. It was called “Reconstruction” and it was damaged the southern states even more than the shooting war."


    The truth is that these leaders worship the Federal Government and it power. They support it in the hopes that they will be "lifted up" into its ranks (Cabinet Post, Ambassadorship, Czar of something, etc). They are power-hungry sycophants and are easy to spot and thus should be voted away. Any State Government Official, elected or appointed, that is not fighting tooth and nail against the current MO of the Federal Government is an immense and immediate danger to the welfare of the citizens of their State.

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  11. I think this is wonderful. People are actually thinking about the consequences of federal action and state inaction. The federal government has a defined, limited role. The many states have a defined, limited role. All power not expressly granted to the Fed is retained in the states. All the power not expressly granted to the states is retained in the people.

    The Fed oversteps its authority primarily through the commerce clause: WICKARD v. FILBURN, 317 U.S. 111 (1942). Absolute power, corrupts absolutely!

    ReplyDelete

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