Good Golly! Would any Republican care to comment on Senator Rand Paul’s campaign to pass a:
Constitutional Amendment that would preclude senators and representatives from passing laws that don’t apply equally to U.S. citizens and Congress, the executive branch and the Supreme Court.
Really…that’s the most important Constitutional issue that Senator Paul can imagine?
Consider these Amendments, more important than:
A Balanced Budget Amendment? Four year required and submitted budgets concurrent with the second, third, fourth and first years of Presidential Terms.
A Term Limit Amendment? … say Two President, Three Senate and Nine House consecutive terms…
An Amendment to Repeal The Seventeenth Amendment? … its passage would return to the Sovereign States the political wherewithal to enforce the intent of the Tenth Amendment.
A Federal Election and Campaign Contribution Amendment? … limiting Federally Regulated Media (Cable, Radio, Airwaves) candidate campaign advertising to 90 days prior to election day, and limiting the amount that can be spent, not contributed, to a fixed amount for each separate Presidential, Senate and House campaign. It would allow the balance of contributed funds to be remitted to the General Funds of the Separate Sovereign States…
A Free Speech Amendment? … clearly defining the Founder’s purpose of the First Amendment, to allow and protect all “Non Commercial” Public and Political Speech, and allowing the prosecution of those who promulgate Obscene material and Pander to Perverse, Degenerate and Malignant Behavior for commercial purposes…
A Freedom of Religion Amendment?… to allow any citizen, individually, corporately and while in any government employment, to state their beliefs, act lawfully upon those beliefs, and refuse coercion of any nature to violate those beliefs. Essentially a “Conscientious Objector,” it would also allow public displays of a “religious nature” in and on all public lands, or the absence thereof, and public prayer of a “religious nature” in and on all public lands, including schools, and allow the absence thereof, by any individual, corporation or government entity…
A Right of Association Amendment?... prohibiting any Governmental entity from outlawing discrimination based on race, color, religion or national origin in hotels, motels, restaurants, theaters, and all other public and private accommodations whether engaged in interstate commerce, or not…
An Interstate Commerce Amendment?… clearly defining the term, and its applications, limits and remedies under Federal Law…
An Amendment to Repeal the 16th Amendment? … and allow Congress to proportionally by population levy annually against each Sovereign State an amount necessary to fund the Federal Government. Each State would then decide the proper and preferred method of taxation of its citizens to raise the amount required by the levy, with full enforcement powers necessary there to…
An Ex Post Facto Remediation Amendment?… an Amendment which would prevent any remedy at law to be applied to a present citizen population based on the malfeasance of a past citizen population. If the cause of action occurred prior to time in which remedy is sought, and there is no preponderance of evidence to suggest the malfeasance continues, then no remedy may be adjudicated.
An Amendment to repeal the Nineteenth Amendment?… Equality under the law, yes; the right to vote, no! Men can’t have babies, women can’t have votes. After all, the Suffrage Movement promulgated propaganda informing mankind that allowing woman the vote would improve the conditions of mankind, and create a more civil and harmonious body politic. Hah! More humans and particularly more Americans have died from the causes of war, poverty, disease and crime since the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment than in all our previous American History and indeed, in mankind’s previous history since Creation! This amendment might be difficult to pass, but is severely needed.
I submit that Senator Paul is posturing for votes, or electioneering, and is competing for the national press attention given some other Republican Senators.
If Republicans Senators had any character they would stand up and demand the Nation be allowed to vote, up or down, on a Balanced Budget Amendment. Apparently the only “Boxer” in the Senate doesn’t wear them, and also has no character, and, worse, is a Democrat from the Left Coast.
So my friends from Lincoln’s party, What think you of Senator Paul’s proposal?
Note: This article will be published in an essay on bullsullivan.com with amended notes and expanded commentary as soon as I set the table, prepare and cook a three course meal, seat and serve my mother, carry on pleasant conversation with her and attend to her dining needs, finish our supper, clean off the table, do the dishes and pans, clean and straighten out the kitchen and turn off the lights. All tasks of which are traditionally feminine gender roles, but my mother is Ninety Three, so I willingly do, I might add, very well, what so many women complain of doing, do poorly, or do not at all. “Let’s get the kids a Happy Meal from McDonald’s or we can microwave some chicken nuggets for dinner…”
A Republican Responds:
Bull, maybe there are a lot of things under that umbrella of his amendment.. seems those in Congress have a whole lot of privilege. You should ask him.
You miss my point. Passing a Constitutional Amendment is at best a difficult process, and at worst, impossible. Two thirds in both Houses of Congress, Thirty Eight States, a time limit… Why would anyone distract fellow American’s from the absolutely necessary Amendment to Balance the Budget, and limit debt? Nothing else proposed by anyone over the past fifty years would have the same salubrious effect, and the National Government will never be limited in size, scope of influence and power until the spendthrifts in DC are curbed! The purse is absolute power!
Senator Rand Paul is yet another hubristic wonder, thinking that he can change the system from within, and not risking his position, his election, by speaking out plainly against waste, fraud and a total lack of budgetary control by the Congress. He rationalizes, as so many do, “I have to be re-elected to do any good…I am more valuable to the conservative cause here than if I say what needs to be said and lose an election…” What a load of crock…
Senator Cruz put his money where his mouth is, and no one in the Republican Party rallied to his aid. Now, I don’t think he is the brightest lamp in the room, but until these boys begin to act like men, and do what has to be done, well, the slide toward the tipping point of hedonism and fascism will continue.
As a Christian Minister, I firmly believe that it is G-d’s Will being done, just as was done by “good Jews” nice men, priests high and low, and wealthy nobles, in Isaiah and Jeremiah, when they just couldn’t give up the ostensible rewards of Idolatry, to accept the discipline of G-d.
JER 2:8 The priests said not, Where is the Lord? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
Quoting the Holy Scriptures is not politically correct, and even when using more modern textual translations, we don’t hear the Lord’s voice in any of these Congressmen who serve mammon, not G-d. We are a nation corrupted by idols and false gods, and we will fall. Only prayer will save us, and then only if the Lord anoints one man to stand up righteous in G-d and speak the truth…and an Amendment like Senator Paul proposes is a waste of time and political capital. Believe me, it is not WWJD, but what would He have me do, and few, if any, are asking that question.
A second response from the same Republican:
Well, when you put it that way… . I do agree. I like Cruz very much as you might have noticed, mostly because he, although just a man, seems willing to stand for his principals.
One final note, they are not Senator Cruz’s principles, they are G-d’s, revealed to man in the Holy Scriptures. Stewardship, caring for the gifts of G-d to the people of G-d, for every thing we have is from the Father… I do believe that Senator Cruz also believes this; good men must rally around him and encourage others to speak as he does…as he says he does for the 27 million Texans, and as I hope, for the one true Almighty G-d! There are no compromises between Heaven and Hell, it is one way or the other, no one can serve two masters, and yet so many in Congress attempt to serve hundreds…
Another Republican Response:
Bull Sullivan is a Christian Minister? Holy …
Not to worry, I am a terrible minister, and do very little harm to the Gospel. On top of that, I am an unchurched Anglican, my ordinate passed away years ago, and as such am a member of the least “modern” protestant high church, what with our deep and abiding Anglican affection for the archaic 1928 Book of Common Prayer, and our love of the King James Version of The Holy Bible. I hope this reassures you that Christ’s Church is in good hands, that is, in someone else’s! I spend too much time marveling at G-d’s creation and reading His Word, oh yes, and praying to be a threat to get out and obsess over the “social gospel.” I strongly believe that:
G-d is Good, G-d does Good, we do His Good, or we do no Good at all.
The Republican responds:
Not too worried. I figure I can screw up until I reach my Death Bed. Convert to Catholicism at the last minute, and I’m clear.
Hey, that worked for Constantine, or so Roman Catholic Scholars say. My view on this is that I hope it turned out better for him that it did for the Roman Empire…Rome was sacked soon thereafter, and the Western Empire fell with a thud into the long lasting “Dark Ages”… and who really cares about the Eastern Empire, although it and its excesses lasted in various forms until the fall of Constantinople in 1453.
The first Republican responder comments:
Speaking of the Book of Common Prayer.. Bull, did I ever tell you about my husband’s family? …his 11th Great Grandfather is the Archdeacon Edmund Cranmer.. brother of Thomas Cranmer the Archbishop of Canterbury and author of said book? Long history in Husbands family of Preachers.. some you might have hear of… My side had some preachers too, just not famous ones.
All true preachers of the Gospel are famous… to G-d! You have mentioned your husband’s relationship with Saint Thomas Cranmer…take that Saint Thomas Moore!!! You are related to him as I am related to Rowland Taylor, by marriage. My son counts himself ( not really, he doesn’t seem to impressed) with being a direct descendant of Saint Rowland, martyred by Bloody Queen Mary in 1555, the year before Saint Thomas was martyred by the same Roman Catholic Queen. Thankfully, the Queen died in 1558, and we are spared the ignominy of speaking Spanish in the English Colonies, and worshiping the Pope, Long Live Elizabeth I, Long Live the Reformation!
Now, lets consider, in view of the debate over the “religious” intent of the Founding Fathers, and the inclusion of religious belief in politics therefrom, the most important line of text that you, or any Political Scientist, or Christian Theologian, or Politician, progressive or conservative, will read in this article, and perhaps, in your entire study of the History and Systems of American Governance:
G-d is Good, G-d does Good, we do His Good, or we do no Good at all.
Think about this text.
Is it substantially contained in the Holy Scriptures?
Pray about it.
Is it commanded that we live according to the demand of this text?
Consider the Founding Fathers, consider George Washington?
Did he understand this text, and live a life of example and obedience to the demand, we do His good or we do no good at all.
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More coming, see my next comment this week: On the role of Religion in Making Government Policy Decisions.