The Founding Fathers went to great lengths to think of
everything that could possibly happen, when drafting
the U. S. Constitution and all-in-all, they did a pretty
good job of it. But like so many things in life,
decisions, rules and laws are based on certain
assumptions. If the assumptions are wrong the
decisions, rules and laws can also be wrong,
misguided, or result in unintended consequences.
In establishing the three branches of government the
Founders assumed that each branch would operate
independently under the limits of the constitution, but
that no one branch could go off the tracks far enough
that the other two branches couldn't bring the errant
branch back on the tracks. They further assumed that
there would be sufficient individual members in each
branch of government that would be honorable,
honest, forthright and would right a wrong if they saw
one. If one or more members strayed from the
constitution, or engaged in illegal or unethical activity,
those honest members would use the applicable
legal mechanisms to correct the situation, or make
such a fuss that public opinion, armed with sufficient
votes, would drum the bad members out of office. The
assumption being that there would always be more
honorable office holders than dishonest ones. In
other words, the process was assumed to be self
correcting.
Unfortunately, with all of their prowess, vision of the
future and the knowledge of history and human
behavior, the Founders erred badly in their
assumption that a body of men who hold power would
not continuously strive to increase their power, in spite
of the Separation of Powers doctrine embedded in the
core of the constitution. They further erred in
assuming that the PEOPLE would pay attention and
hold those men with the power, accountable. Both
assumptions have turned out to be grossly wrong and
what you see around you today, nationally and
internationally, are the result of those wrong
assumptions.
The Founders provided mechanisms in the
constitution for weeding out the bad ones through
impeachment or recall proceedings. Except for one
thing; these men and women of power will protect
their own and there is no inside power to keep them
from doing so. The only other power to offset the
corrupt ones is the outside power of WE THE PEOPLE
through our votes. That only works if the outside
power even cares.
The lust for power is all consuming and can be for way
too many politicians, a deep-seated obsession or
compulsion. The objective being, stay in power at any
cost, or by any means to feed the obsession, not
unlike a drug or alcohol addiction. Corrupt power is
contagious and can infect those around the corrupt
ones. Many new politicians, consumed by the desire
to do good by getting elected to office, soon find when
they get to their post, they have no power at all, other
than what is dolled out to them by the senior ones. If a
new politician makes any attempt to change the
system or to weed out the corruption, he is
immediately ushered off to some non-descript area
where he can do no more harm. If he is ineffective as
a politician, he soon loses his seat to a more
aggressive politician who is eager to "play
ball".
The other day we watched a special on Fox News with
Chris Wallace on the corruption that is "earmarks" in
the U. S. Congress. Chris trotted out three examples
of where politicians used earmarks to profit
individually, or provide funds to their family members,
using the taxpayers' money to do it; millions of dollars
of taxpayers' money. And this was only three
examples. These congressman have not been
punished, penalized, sanctioned, demoted, or voted
out of office for their misdeeds. One congressman
that Chris interviewed, who has made attempts to
clean up the practice of earmarks, has found himself
ostracized and removed from the oversight
committee. The senior ones "esplained" it to him.
Don't mess with the system, corrupt or not!
In their obsession to remain in office, the corrupt ones
will promise any amount of taxpayer money to be
dolled out to those who have not earned it, in the
hopes that the recipients of taxpayer money will vote to
keep the politician in office. Or they will use their
political power to pander to special interests that can
also garner votes, favors and money. The corrupt
politicians have been so successful that the lion's
share of the politicians in federal, state or local
government, are corrupt, as well as the lobbyists they
pander to, as are the recipients of our taxpayer money,
who got something for "free". We now have a
condition in which the politicians do not care anything
about constitutional limits because they have found
they can violate those limits with impunity. Once the
precedence's have been set to violate their oath of
office to preserve, protect and defend the constitution,
and there is no penalty for their violations, the practice
continues unabated.
Now we know that not all politicians are corrupt and
some are actually trying very hard to make a
difference. But the inertia of the "system" and the
length of time that it has been corrupt, makes their job
almost impossible unless ...... the PEOPLE give them
a hand and certain limits are placed on politicians,
which we discuss below.
So what if most of the politicians are corrupt, in one
form or another? What if they all have decided that the
system is King, even if it is corrupt, and to survive and
stay in office, they have to "play ball", no matter what
their political affiliations may be? To expect that the
politicians or the bureaucrats, at any level of
government, will clean up their own act, is naive at
best and dangerous at worst. There are five peaceful
solutions to a situation that is hopelessly out of control
and decidedly corrupt, with our very freedom and
liberty in peril.
1) Term limits must be demanded by the people and
instituted at all levels of government. Period! No more
than two consecutive terms for any office holder in any
federal, state or local position. Why should the
President be limited to two terms but all other office
holders can make a career out of being a politician? A
career that eventually leads to a system of corruption,
which we have now.
2) A strong oath of office must be required to be
sworn to on oath by all office holders and the penalties
for the violation of that oath must be stiffened to heavy
fines and imprisonment.
3) Penalties for exceeding the limits of the federal or
state constitutions must also be stiffened with severe
fines and imprisonment. Right now there are very few
penalties for being a corrupt politician.
4) The head or director of any bureaucracy can be in
office for no more than four years. When a bureaucrat
is found guilty of fraud, corruption, abuse or waste of
the taxpayer money, they must be punished to the full
extent of the law, instead of being promoted, as
happens far to often. If there is no punishment for
illegal or corrupt behavior in government, there is no
deterrent.
5) The voters have got to take a deeper interest in
politics and get involved on a much larger level than
they are now.
In short, the voters had better start holding their
elected officials accountable and to the limits of the
constitution, or they get what they deserve; waste,
fraud, abuse and corruption. And they are today,
getting what they deserve for not paying attention for
far too long, to those who hold power over
them.
If the foregoing steps are not taken and soon, there
may be only one other solution left to those of us who
cherish liberty and are determined to see that it is
defended and maintained in perpetuity for our children
and our grand children. The final solution, if imposed,
will seriously disrupt the lives of all Americans,
perhaps beyond repair. It is our firm hope that the final
solution will never become necessary.
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