'High Hopes or Higher Hype and Hooopla?'
By William Bailey (05/18/08)
In, approximately, six short months . . . “We the People” will go to that hallowed place, the voting booth to elect a President and members of both House and Senate. As it probably should be, most of the hype and hoopla has to do with the Presidential election. However, of equal, and in some ways greater, importance will be the election of those who serve (?) us in the Congress of the United States.
While the decision of who will occupy the “people’s house” for the next four years is critical, the decision of who will represent us in Congress rises to the same level. The President is the leader of the “free world” . . . the Commander-in-Chief of the military. He nominates those he wishes to serve in the cabinet and those on the Federal “bench”. He can submit treaties and other international agreements to the Congress for its consideration. He is the “head” of the Executive Department of our government. There are some things, however, the President cannot do.
Under the Constitution of the United States, it’s the Congress that passes laws . . . it’s the Congress that sets the budget of the United States . . . it’s the Senate that has the power to approve or reject the nominees submitted by the President. It’s the Senate that has the power to approve or reject treaties and both houses have to approve trade and other international agreements submitted to it by the President. Yes . . . the President has the power of the “veto pen” on laws and budgets. Such is not the case with nominees.
So, will November see some high hopes or more high hype and hoopla ? It’s up to us, that’s “We the People”.
Remember that, at present, the Senate has 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans. It’s not, currently, a filibuster-proof or veto-override body. In November, there are 33 Senate seats up for consideration . . . 21 must be defended by Republicans while Democrats have only 12. In the case of the Republicans, a number of the seats are expected to be “hotly” challenged.
In the House of Representatives, all members are up for election. Currently, there are 232 Democrats and 202 Republicans with one vacant seat. It appears that there will be less than
50 close races.
In my opinion, the one basic factor that should guide our consideration of who gets our vote (either for President or the Congress) is who will be bold enough to step forward and pledge to return to the government envisioned by the founders under the Constitution. If the candidate(s) won’t do that, then they are unworthy of my vote.
Anyone who watches either C-Span or C-Span 2 and the “goings on” of the Congress has heard (ad nauseum) the statement that it’s the Congress that has the “power of the purse”. And, there’s a lot of truth in that phrase. If that be true (and it is) then we have to seriously consider where blame is to be placed for the financial condition of this country . . . in a deep hole of debt and going deeper. As has been said many, many times . . . “you don’t get out of a hole by digging it deeper”. It would appear that the Congress has yet to learn that lesson. Thomas Jefferson had a couple of thoughts on this subject. In 1787, he wrote to Fulwar Skipwith stating, “ . . . the maxim of buying nothing but what we had money in our pockets to pay for; a maxim which, of all others, lays the broadest foundation for happiness.” In 1820, he wrote the following to A.L.C. Destutt de Tracy, “It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. ” It goes without saying that the Congress has, most assuredly, not followed that advice. The Congress continues to function under ( what I choose to call) the J. Wellington Wimpy philosophy. Those older among us will recall that this was a character from the Popeye comic strip who often stated, “I will gladly pay you next Tuesday for a hamburger today”. The only problem is that “next Tuesday” never comes. However . . . a Tuesday in November will be here before we know it and “We the People” will have some important decisions to make.
In many ways, we will be determining whether we have a Constitutional Republic or continue our march toward a social democracy. “The founding fathers gave us a Constitutional Republic, which severely limited the power of government. It gave the American people the greatest freedom any people had ever enjoyed, and with that freedom they built the most dynamic, prosperous society in history.” (Constitutional Republic vs. Social Democracy; Samuel Blumenfield; http://www.worldnetdaily.com ; April 17, 2008). Mr. Blumenfield continues, “Are the American people hankering for social democracy ? Do they want socialized Medicine ? Do they want more government regulation and higher taxes ? The founding fathers very wisely give us the Bill of Rights as added protection against government tyranny. And computer technology is providing the individual with the power to speak out and be heard. But what must come out of this coming election is some indication of where this country is headed.” Recent poll numbers indicate that 79% of Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction. Only 18.7% approve of Congress.
In an article published May 13, 2008, writer Dennis Prager puts it this way, “But if ‘headed in the wrong direction’ really does mean that for most Americans that voting Democrat will put our country on the right track, it is hard not to conclude that America has begun the decline that has ended all great civilizations. For if the Democratic Party---given how far left it has become - comes to control Congress and the presidency, America’s values will soon stray so far from what they have been since its founding that it is difficult to imagine ever being able to undo the change.” (“Fork on the road: Let’s not veer left”; http://www.worldnetdaily.com ; article no. 64146).
Chuck Norris (former “Walker, Texas Ranger”) puts it this way: “The 9th and 10th Amendments specify that the federal government may not do anything that isn’t spelled out in the Constitution. That is why, after citing 200 pages of constitutional abuses and violations by our government, Judge Napolitano concludes in his book, “Constitutional Chaos” that the whole government has constitutionally run amuck, and we must question and be leery of its future motivations and directions.” (“Has the U.S. constitutionally run amuck ?; http://www.worldnetdaily.com ; 5/12/2008; article no. 64016).
Again, one must remember that it’s the Congress that enacts laws, approves budgets, etc.
Right now everyone is concerned about the high price of gasoline. And that’s as it should be. And blame for this condition is being handed out in so many directions it’s difficult to follow. However, according to one member of Congress (Rep. Ernest Istook) the Congress is where the blame should really go. According to Congressman Istook, “We don’t have a shortage of oil and gas reserves; they’ve just been placed off limits. They include parts of Alaska, other public lands, the Gulf of Mexico and offshore areas. The American Petroleum Institute (API) reports that opening up these areas would provided enough oil to power 60 million cars for 60 years, plus enough natural gas to heat 60 million homes for 160 years. But, 85% of coastal water have been placed off limits , along with similar restrictions on 75% of the onshore prospects.” In addition to this situation, there have been NO new refineries built in the U.S. in over 30 years. So . . . we continue to pay the outrageous prices.
On a related subject . . . gas and food prices . . . inflation. I believe it is timely to point out that when the government calculates the inflation rate, costs of fuel (energy) and food are excluded. Since food and energy prices can spike upwards, as they have this year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates “core inflation” without food and energy prices, under the rationale that food and energy prices spikes are merely temporary price shocks that would distort the measurement of underlying long-term inflation.
To a family faced with paying rising food costs to feed the kids and skyrocketing gas costs just to get to work, the definition of “core inflation” at 2 percent is a joke, not at all reflective of the increased dollars the family has to shovel out.
The voice of “We the People” must be heard in November . . . probably more so than in the recent past. That’s why your vote for members of Congress is so critical. Ask the candidates running in your area whether they will pledge to return to a Constitutional Republic or continue down the road toward a social democracy then make your decision accordingly.
Insofar as the “other” election is concerned, from what I hear and read, there are a large number of Americans who don’t really have a predilection and/or preference for any of the “known” candidates. That’s why the Congressional election(s) are going to be so vital and important to the future of this nation.
The only way this situation is going to get corrected is for “We the People” to stand up and say . . . “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”.
High hopes or higher hype and hoopla . . . guess it’s left up to us.
William D. Bailey
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