True Obedience to Governing Authorities

 As Christians, we are commanded by God to submit to the governing authorities.  (Romans 13:1-7, I Peter 2:13-14, Titus 3:1-2).  However it is clear that these commandments do not apply when it means disobeying commands from God’s word.  For Americans, it does not mean they must always obey unconstitutional laws and orders.  There is great deal of confusion about this in the church today. The leaders of my own church have accused me of putting the Constitution above God.  I am not saying that Christians should go out of their way to disobey unconstitutional orders, engage in violence or protest in the streets about it.  But the commandments in Romans 13:1-7, I Peter 2:13-14 and Titus 3:1-2 do not mean that we must obey the authorities when they give orders beyond the scope of the authority that has been given to them. 

God’s Word does not teach that we are to submit to those who have authority.  The direct object of the verb “submit” (or “be subject to”) is “authorities” or “human institution”, not the person who has the authority.¹ Pay close attention to the wording of I Peter 2:13-14 (ESV).  A person is not an “it”.

Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.

At that time, the emperor was supreme.  This means that the institution of the emperor took precedence over all the other governing authorities within the empire.  More to the point, according this commandment, subjection to the authority of the emperor was to take precedence over all the other governing authorities within the empire.  God did not say that subjection to all authorities is to be “as supreme”.  Subjection to the authority of governors is qualified by the phrase “as sent by him”, where the word “him” obviously refers to the emperor.  It is very clear that this means that the commandment to be subject to the institution of governors applies only when they are acting under the authority of the emperor, not when they are acting on their own accord. If God had meant for us to obey every order from everyone in authority without regard to what authority they have been given, then the words “supreme” and “as sent by him” are completely meaningless and misleading.

When the people asked for a king in I Samuel 8, God granted their request.  That does not mean the king would be perfect or that people should put the king above God.    It is not a contradiction to say that the people chose to have a king as supreme, while also saying that God established the kingship and its supremacy. 

The American people asked for a Constitution to be their supreme authority and it was approved by their legitimately elected representatives just as the same as laws (e.g. laws against drunk driving) were properly approved in more recent times. 

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

U.S. Constitution, Article VI, Clause 2

It is not a contradiction to say that the people chose to have a constitution as supreme, while also saying that God established it.  That does not mean that the Constitution is perfect, inspired by God as the Bible is, or that it is to be put above the Bible.  But it is the supreme authority in the same way as the king of Israel was in I Samuel 8 and as the emperor was in I Peter 2:13-14.  If this is not so, then who (or what) is the supreme in America today?  When did God grant Supreme Court justices, presidents, governors, health departments, etc. authority that is above the Constitution?  Is the phrase “as sent by him” in I Peter 2:13-14 completely meaningless for us today?

It is God’s will that we obey the authorities according to what has been given to them by the Constitution (and other laws pursuant to it).  Who are we to say that God can’t do that?  I’m not going to put God in a box and say that he can’t set up a government with a constitution as supreme.  I’m not going to tie his hands and say that it is always his will that we regard the governor the same as an emperor.  People are not above the law.

When the Jews accused Paul of violating the law, he did not submit to their authority (or to that of Felix or Festus).  Instead, he appealed to the supreme, who was Caesar.  If Paul could do this, then there is certainly nothing wrong with Christians appealing to the Constitution (or other laws) when those who have civil authority overstep the authority that has been given to them.  It makes no difference whether it be because of a violation of the separation of powers or any other limitation of power in the law. I suggest reading Acts 21:27-25:11. 

Most people recognize the fact that governing authorities have geographical limits to their power.  For example, if the prime minister of England were to give an order, most of all of us would agree that it would not be sinful for an American to ignore the order while not on British soil.  According to the law, the power of the prime minister of England does not extend to the United States.  Christians need to realize that other legal limitations on the power of the governing authorities are just as relevant.

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

U.S Constitution, 10th Amendment

This enumeration of rights shall not be construed to impair or deny others retained by the people, and all powers, not herein delegated, remain with the people.

Ohio Constitution, Article I, Section 20

In the United States, every American citizen is a “governing authority”.  If you do not believe this, then you should not vote.  Every time you vote, you are wielding civil authority which can impose, increase, eliminate or ease restrictions on other citizens or penalize them for disobeying.  If we are to completely obey every person who has civil authority without regard to the scope of authority given to them by law, then we must obey any order given by any citizen just as if that citizen were a governor or President of the United States. God is a God of order, not chaos.  Without respect for the scope of authority in the law, subjection to it is impossible and the command to do so is essentially meaningless.

When Jesus told his disciples to “observe whatever they tell you” in Matthew 22:3, it is obvious that he did not intend for it to be an absolute.  Jesus said, “…beware of … the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (Matthew 16:12) 

When the scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus to show them a sign, he refused to give them what they asked for. (Matthew 12:38-39, 16:1-4)  When asked by what authority he did “these things”, he refused to answer. (Luke 20:1-8)

The ruler of the synagogue gave the people a clear and direct order:  "There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come [to the synagogue] on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day." (Luke 13:14) But Jesus did not refrain from healing people on that day, which is a clear violation of the order. He said, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" (Mark 3:4)  This clearly indicates that, when it comes to rules that ought to be obeyed, it is the real law that counts, not rules of the Pharisees. 

When they accused the disciples of violating handwashing laws and for picking grains on the Sabbath, Jesus rebuked the scribes and Pharisees, not his disciples. (Matthew 12:1-2, 15:1-2, Mark 2:23-24, 7:1-5, Luke 6:1-5)  The disciples could have obeyed these orders without sinning.  (There is nothing sinful or unscriptural about washing your hands before eating or refraining from picking grains on the Sabbath.) 

Luke 5:29-30 says, “And Levi made him [Jesus] a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them.  And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ‘Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?’” According to several sources I have read, the Pharisees did have a rule forbidding eating with sinners.  (The justification was that if you eat food that was not tithed, then you are guilty of violating the commandment to tithe.)  It is very clear from Luke 5:29-30 that Jesus not only violated the scribes’ and Pharisees’ rule, but he approved of his disciples doing it as well.  I see no evidence whatsoever in the Scriptures that Jesus’ statement in Matthew 22:3 went beyond the lawful authority that was given to the scribes and Pharisees.

If out of fear of the government, we allow them to infringe on our rights to worship as we please while exceeding the limits of their authority, we will lose our freedoms. If the government were to ban Bibles overnight, Christians might resist.  But what if the government slowly infringes on our rights little by little, making it more and more difficult to spread the Gospel little by little?  At what point will we stop giving in? The effect is the same regardless of the motives of the politicians.

Just as there were hundreds of rules of the scribes and Pharisees, there are countless laws, statutes, ordinances, precedents, regulations and orders given to us today by our elected (and unelected) officials in our government.  The Internal Revenue Code alone has 7500 pages. To tell people that they have to obey all of them, even the ones that are unconstitutional, is to place a huge burden on them.  If you don’t even attempt to obey (or even read) all these yourself, then how you can you tell other people that they have to without hypocrisy?  The hypocrite obeys rules that are popular, get a lot of media attention, or that make themselves look righteous.  The truly righteous man obeys the legitimate laws diligently and quietly without regard to how well known they are or how well they are being enforced. (c.f. Colossians 3:22)

Finally, besides the “as sent by him” qualifier, there is also another qualifier written into the passages on governing authorities.  We are only required by these commandments to submit their authority when it is “to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good”.  When their mandates punish people for doing good or reward them for doing evil, they are acting outside the authority that God has given them and such mandates can be ignored.

In summary, the doctrine of “obey the person, not the authority” is dangerous, overly rigid, burdensome, and untenable and ignores scriptural qualifiers and counterexamples.  We are to submit to all governing authorities within their jurisdiction, but we are not to regard all of them “as supreme”.

¹ To illustrate this principle, suppose that a woman is governor of a state.  The woman’s husband is required to submit to the authority of the governor just as any other citizen of the state.  But he is not required to relinquish his role as head of his household.  If his wife tries to use her authority as governor to usurp her husband’s authority, God does not require him to submit to her orders in that regard.  On the other hand, she is not required to submit if he tries to use his authority to in a way that interferes with her official capacity.  Each authority has its own dominion (i.e. there is a biblical “separation of powers”) so that there is no conflict or confusion about it. 

What Democrats Want, Day 1, Countdown to Oblivion? BIDEN

As of today, there is only 1 day until the most consequential election in American history. It’s show time! This is what they say about many past elections, but this is really it. For if the Democrats seize power – control of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate and the Presidency – and doing it by hook or by crook (the justifies the means, you know) America as we know it will be forever changed. America envisioned and created by the Founding Fathers will disappear into the shadows of history.

The ungodly secular-humanists/Marxists slow march through America’s institutions over the last 100 years or so will have reached a crescendo – fulfilling Mr. Obama’s fundamental transformation of control of the masses.

Envision with me what a Socialist Democratic Party, takeover, a bloodless coup, a regime change, would look like. This is one in a series of daily articles leading up to the 2020 General Election.

 

JOE BIDEN is a place warmer at best. The Democrats are using him to bide time. They are using this man who has obviously lost some of his faculties, but he is perceived as not coming across as radical and abrasive as the radical socialist Bernie Sanders, who is the ideological center of today’s communistic socialistic Democrats.

What would follow Biden‘s demise in 3 or 6 months if the Democrats win the 2020 Election, God forbid, is a George Soros’ hand-picked Vice President and President-in-Waiting, Kamala Harris. She is the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate. She’s to the left of even Sen. Sanders.

Early this morning on a replay of the Red-Eye Radio program as I was listening, I heard mention of a newspaper editorial which caught my attention. I will share some of the more pertinent points from that editorial.

After calling the President every name in the book…one newspaper out on the Wild West Coast in the State of Washington endorsed Donald Trump for President. Spokane’s Spokesman-Review newspaper wrote an “Editorial: With misgivings, vote Trump for president…”

 

Newspaper Endorsement for President

 “Donald Trump is a bully and a bigot. He is symptomatic of a widening partisan divide in the country. We recommend voting for him anyway because the policies that Joe Biden and his progressive supporters would impose on the nation would be worse.

“The list of Trump’s offenses is long...

“Voters knew his character in 2016 and elected him anyway. Four years later, the nation is still standing. Indeed, in many ways it flourished until the pandemic upended everything.

 

Ø  “The economy and markets roared under Trump’s championship of market-based solutions and individualism.

 

Ø   “Unemployment among communities of color reached record lows.

 

Ø  “He reset trade and diplomatic relationships in America’s favor.

 

Ø  “He provided historically high support for traditionally Black colleges.

 

Ø  “He rolled back extreme environmental regulations and led the way for U.S. energy independence.

 

Ø  “He backed federal sentencing reform to address inordinately high American incarceration rates.

 

Ø  “And he’s committed to supporting law and order in American cities.”

 

Newspaper’s Rejection of the Democratic Candidate

“Biden might win on personality and comity, but his policies would strike at the economic well-being of the country.

 

“He favors:

“massive growth in government and a historic increase in federal spending through

 

·        green initiatives,

·        free health services,

·        free education and

·        other ideas grounded in reliance on the state as savior rather than creating an environment in which individual liberty and hard work can thrive

 

Ø  “Public employee unions would hold outsized power and demand greater spending.

 

Ø  “To afford it all, Biden and a Democrat-controlled Congress would have to impose unprecedented tax increases or accept catastrophic deficit spending.

 

“Taxes and spending likely would increase under Trump, too, but the nation stands a better chance of moderation and reform with him in the White House than it does with Biden pushed left by progressives intent on reshaping America to fit their fantastical vision.

“This is an election that pits a wretched human being whose policies and instincts for helping America thrive are generally correct against a doddering, doting uncle who would hand out gifts the nation can’t afford in order to win people’s love. Given that choice, economic policy and principle should prevail. Vote for Donald Trump.”

 

Conclusion

Wow, the editors use some really scathing words when referring to both candidates. The editorial focused on the President’s positive credentials in dealing with the economy, however he also is much better than Mr. Biden on most social issues as well. The newspaper editorial apparently did not want to further offend its reader by going there.

 

Overall President Trump is the preferable candidate for President on a number of issues, primarily for a respect for the U.S. Constitution and his respect for and work on behalf of all human life.

What Democrats Want, Day 2, Countdown to Oblivion? CHAOS

 

As of today, there are only 2 days until the most consequential election in American history. This is what they say about many past elections, but this is really it. For if the Democrats seize power – control of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate and the Presidency – and doing it by hook or by crook (the justifies the means, you know) America as we know it will be forever changed. America envisioned and created by the Founding Fathers will disappear into the shadows of history.

The ungodly secular-humanists/Marxists slow march through America’s institutions over the last 100 years or so will have reached a crescendo – fulfilling Mr. Obama’s fundamental transformation of control of the masses.

Envision with me what a Socialist Democratic Party, takeover, a bloodless coup, a regime change, would look like. This is one in a series of daily articles leading up to the 2020 General Election.

 

THE Democrats use chaos and crises to their full advantage. This post will outline the myriad of ways that chaos is being allowed to occur in Democrat controlled enclaves.

 

Pre-Election Rioting

Allowing rioting, looting, arson, and assaults to seemingly proceed unhindered in a whole host of predominately Democrat -led cities in hopes of dashing President Trump’s re-election chances.  Democrat mayors are championing civil unrest by refusing to allow the police to confront and control the criminal behavior of rioters.

Not only do these Democrat mayors tie the hands of police, their city councils move to defund, dismantle and/d downsize police departments, which will cause even more chaos and destruction.

Why would any voter in their right mind retain any mayor who allowed wholesale rioting to occur without any significant restraint?  In one city, Portland, Oregon, the mayor is up for re-election. Portland has had over 100 days of continuous rioting. A recent article told the story, “Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, challenger Sarah Iannarone diverge on police, priorities in tight race.” Tight race? Wheeler should be run out of town on a rail!

 

Post-Election Rioting

More Democrat politicians’ rhetoric is stirring up the mobs to do even more damage in cities especially if President Trump is reelected. Expect more chaos.

 

An Exaggerated Response to the Communist Chinese Coronavirus

The COVID-19 panicdemic has been weaponized and has caused chaos throughout the culture. The CDC and Dr. Fiasco and others have provided the President with inconsistent, suspect or even bad information. Data is being withheld or manipulated for the purpose of creating unnecessary fear in the public. Are we being prepared for unnecessary mandatory vaccines to further control the population?

Mostly left-wing radical progressive socialist governors and mayors have largely overreacted, overreached and overstepped their authority in reaction to COVID-19. State and Federal legislators have pretty much sat on their hands and watched the chaos progress.

To make matters worse, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi held up any further help to provide relief to individual and businesses hurt by the Communist Chinese coronavirus to also hurt the President’s chance to retain power for the next four years. She held up the help because she was intent on bailing out big-spending Democrat led cities and states.

 

The Mainstream Media and Social Media are Fuel the Chaos

Seemingly both the Mainstream Media and the Big Tech Social Media organizations have worked on behalf of the Democratic Party pushing a Leftist agenda. They provide primarily negative reporting on anything that President Trump does. They blame President Trump for the riots, for the climate, for “racism,” for all the ills of society. This fuels chaos as well.

The media, both the mainstream and social media giants work hand in hand acting as the public relations or marketing arm of the Democratic Party.

 

Rigging Elections

Several states (mostly Democrat-led) have instituted voting procedures that increase the possibility of voter fraud.

They have unnecessarily lengthened early voting days. Major news like the Hunter Biden laptop content revelation suggesting the need to investigate the possible corruption on the part of Hunter Biden and bring into question Joe Biden involvement in improprieties, which may lead to possible conviction, have caused some early voters to try to change their votes.

Democrats resist the idea of cleaning up voter rolls – removing deceased or those who have moved or have not voted for a considerable length of time. Why? Because it gives them room to cheat.

Democrats push for mail-voting. Absentee voting is one thing, this requires the voter to apply to vote absentee, usually because they are otherwise incapacitated or will be out-of-town on election day, etc. mail-in voting involves sending ballots out to everyone who has previously registered to vote, regardless of whether they are living or dead, have moved, or haven’t voted for years. It is open season for voter fraud where this is “legal.”

Ballot harvesting is another questionable tactic used in some, primarily Democrat, states. Political operatives can collect ballots from voter and may even complete some of those ballots in favor of their candidate(s).

Democrat officials try to circumvent at every turn the commonsense requirement for voter identification. They shop for favorable Leftist judges to do their bidding.   

All of these questionable voting practices help to also fuel the chaos, especially the anticipated problems following a close election.

 

Open Borders

The Democrats have fought the President every step of the way as he has attempted to secure the border and demanded that illegal aliens wishing to enter the country do so following immigration laws. Without secured border you don’t have a country. The result is chaos and increased crime, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, terrorism, etc.

Can you still see the photos of caravans of South and Central Americans making their way to the southern border and American Leftist funding and encouraging them to come?

The Democrats hope to “recruit” these potential new Democrat voters via amnesty, thus ensuring a one-party political system in the near future.

 

Sanctuary Cities

Another chaos inducing policy of the Democrats is establishing sanctuary cities for illegal and criminal aliens as a shelter against federal agents who want to process certain violators or criminals for deportation. These cities harbor these criminals and law breakers and refuse to cooperate with federal Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE). Several of these sheltered individuals have committed murder, rape and other crimes while being “protected” from justice.

 

Conclusion

You can see that the sinister hand of the Democrats is behind much of the chaos occurring today and that which will surely occur tomorrow.

The solution is to vote Republican and join the movement to #WalkAway from ALL of the Democratic Party candidates.

What Democrats Want, Day 3, Countdown to Oblivion? DEMOCRATIC AGENDA

THE meme below highlights the Democratic agenda – what they want to do - for the next four years and beyond should the 2020 General Election result in a Harris-Biden presidency, a Chuck Schumer-led Senate along with a Nancy Pelosi-led House. This would give the Democrats full control of both the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. And if you take the Democrats’ threats of court-packing of the Supreme Court, they could very well be in-charge of the entire government.

 

 

Elizabeth Johnston, the Activist Mommy, in a recent Facebook video outlined how a Biden/Harris Administration would endanger America, especially America’s children. She also identified some unsafe, even deadly policies we could expect if the Democrats are given full power.

She contrasted the Democrat agenda with what continuing another term for President Trump would mean in policy and in practice.

 

A vote for Biden (Harris) is a vote to

Ø  Defund the police who keep our communities safe

Ø  For domestic terrorists who riot and loot on the streets of America

Ø  Take away God-given Second Amendment right to protect ourselves and our families from those same rioters

Ø  Giving sex and drug traffickers a free ticket into our communities through open border

Ø  Continue the murder of unborn children (abortion)

 

By contrast a vote for President Trump is a vote for

Ø  Law and order, doing all he can to keep the police fully funded

Ø  Ending sex traffickers and locking up pedophiles

Ø  Continued defense of the unborn (Life)

Ø  Upholding our Second Amendment rights

Ø  Protection of religious freedom

 

A Time of Choosing

To keep children safe, as is the desire of nearly every conscientious parent, requires one to vote Republican, to re-elect President Donald Trump.  Anyone voting for Joe Biden (Kamala Harris) is voting to endanger the public citizenry, especially children born and unborn.

The choice for the voters in this election is a stark contrast. Voters will be choosing between two very different worldviews. On one hand, Biden (Harris) offer a mostly godless secularism and socialism. On the other hand, the Republicans represent mostly biblically sound principles with free enterprise capitalism.

You are voting for either freedom for the people (the Republicans) or you are voting for oppressive tyranny of the people (the Democrats.)

What Democrats Want, Day 4, Countdown to Oblivion? CHINA (Part 3)

As of today, there are only 4 days until the most consequential election in American history. This is what they say about many past elections, but this is really it. For if the Democrats seize power – control of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate and the Presidency – and doing it by hook or by crook (the justifies the means, you know) America as we know it will be forever changed. America envisioned and created by the Founding Fathers will disappear into the shadows of history.

The ungodly secular-humanists/Marxists slow march through America’s institutions over the last 100 years or so will have reached a crescendo – fulfilling Mr. Obama’s fundamental transformation of control of the masses.

Envision with me what a Socialist Democratic Party, takeover, a bloodless coup, a regime change, would look like. This is one in a series of daily articles leading up to the 2020 General Election.

IN previous posts we discussed the fact that China has stolen or were provided military secrets and intellectual property, that China was the source of the COVID-10 virus (see Day 66 post); that China has persecuted its citizens for religious and other reasons; that China has infiltrated American colleges, and that China has been allowed to take advantage of American companies (see Day 65 post).

Surveilling and Harassing Former Chinese on U.S. Soil

New Jersey

Communist China is in the news again, this time for following dissidents and those revealing truth about the regime to this country and following, harassing and threating them and their families.  Just last week the “FBI, DOJ announce indictment against 8 Chinese operatives.” This FoxNews.com article stated that Federal agents arrested 5 suspects accused of harassing a New Jersey resident on behalf of the Chinese government,  3 other Chinese had returned to China before the indictment.

The article reports "the alleged acts were part of China's Operation Fox Hunt, which the Chinese government claims is an international anti-corruption campaign, but the U.S. believes to be a plot to target political opponents and critics.” This is a violation of America’s sovereignty. There is some suspicion that there is a lot of this type of activity going on in this country. It must stop. Was this permissive environment which the Obama Administration permitted to exist?

Texas

In Midland, Texas Bob Fu, the president of China Aid, has received death threats and currently is being protected by U.S. law enforcement.  China Aid is an international human rights organization that seeks to expose the human rights violations of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and promoting religious freedom in the country. (source: www.mnnonline.org).

Joe Biden, Hunter Biden and Communist China

The New York Post reported some shenanigans involving Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter. There were some questionable dealings involving China, Russia and Ukraine. This news is deliberately being suppressed by the mainstream medias and the big tech social media. They want theBigGuy elected at all costs.  

The NY Post article, “With confirmation on Hunter’s influence-peddling, Joe Biden has explaining to do,” raises the question, “will anyone push him to answer some simple questions?” The mainstream media and social media are claiming it is Russian disinformation. It sure doesn’t look like it. It needs to be investigated. There are a lot of things that need to be investigated concerning the Democrats Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.  

Which Party Would Deal With the China Issue the Best?

Do you want a possibly compromised Joe Biden and/or a fellow socialist Kamala Harris in a position to deal forthrightly with the Communist Chinese Party? Or do you want President Donald Trump, who has already confronted the Chicoms and has deal with them with a strong arm?  

No wonder why some ask, “How does China 'interfere' in the US presidential election?” If the Red Chinese would be interfering. it certainly would not be in support of the Free Market Capitalist Trump.

What Democrats Want, Day 5 Countdown to Oblivion, the DC SWAMP (Part 2)

As of today, there is less than a week, 5 days until the most consequential election in American history. This is what they say about many past elections, but this is really it. For if the Democrats seize power – control of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate and the Presidency – and doing it by hook or by crook (the justifies the means, you know) America as we know it will be forever changed. America envisioned and created by the Founding Fathers will disappear into the shadows of history.

The ungodly secular-humanists/Marxists slow march through America’s institutions over the last 100 years or so will have reached a crescendo – fulfilling Mr. Obama’s fundamental transformation of control of the masses.

Envision with me what a Socialist Democratic Party, takeover, a bloodless coup, a regime change, would look like. This is one in a series of daily articles leading up to the 2020 General Election.

THE DC Swamp is real. Money is the root of the evil and corruption. The Swamp has its tentacles in every facet of the culture. The elite seek to control the people. The people exist to serve the Swamp.

Culture of Corruption in Washington, DC                                                                   

U.S. Representative Ken Buck in a 2017 Newsmax article wrote, “Money rules in Washington. Most Americans don't realize that influence in Congress comes with a price tag. Members are required to pay for committee assignments. Chairmen are required to pay for their chairmanships. The speaker, leader, and Whip compete for the leadership position and then must pay millions of dollars for the honor of holding the office. Lobbyists, corporations, and wealthy individuals who need something from Congress raise the money.  

Rep. Buck continues, “For Republicans, all the money raised by these charges goes to the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), supposedly to help get members elected. The reality is that NRCC funds are used to coerce members to vote with the leadership. When members don't vote the "right way," the funding dries up from the donor class, members are pressured to step down from their committee assignments, and the NRCC refuses to help finance their campaigns..." 

Corruption is a bipartisan issue both the Republicans and the Democrats do much of the same thing.

Drain the Swamp

The following is an excerpt from a WesternJournal.com article, "How to Effectively 'Drain the Swamp' in Washington DC": "A substantial number of Americans heartily support efforts to “drain the swamp” in Washington, DC. The term “drain the swamp” means to drastically reduce the number of self-serving, power-hungry politicians (Republicans and Democrats alike), lobbyists, and government workers in and around Washington, DC, who strive (live!) for self-enrichment to the detriment of America and the nation as a whole." The article addresses some ways to drain the swamp. 

Term Limits

The first way to drain the swamp is to institute term-limits for Congress. Some states like Ohio already have term limits. Unfortunately, it will be very difficult to get Congress to pass any Amendments to the Constitution because many current members of Congress would have to give up their personal golden goose.

One possible solution is to call a Convention of States Convention, which is being undertaken right now. This is dangerous because it could jeopardize the Constitution itself.

Balanced Budget

Another way to drain the swamp would be balancing the federal budget. Yeah, right. This is necessary, but both the Democrats and the Republican lack the courage to do the right thing, which is to limit spending to revenue or taxes received. Balancing the budget would mean taking a hard look at every expenditure and saying "no" to your favorite outlay. Making decisions and prioritizing expenditures is hard. No one wants to say no. It is too easy to go with the flow, the status quo.

In addition to lack of courage, there is a great amount of influence by lobbyists of all sorts that back up their requests for certain legislation with oodles of cash for campaigns and for personal enrichment of Congressional members.

Limit Lobbying by Former Members of Congress

What has become lucrative for some former Congresspersons is a job as a lobbyist. Jason Strauss wrote, "During the 2016 presidential campaign, President-elect Donald Trump proposed a series of ethics measures, including several lobbying-related provisions. They are: 

Ø  extending "cooling off" periods on lobbying the government for five years after government service; 

Ø  instituting a five-year ban on lobbying by former Members of Congress and their staffs"; 

Ø  expanding the definition of a lobbyist to cover former government officials who engage in strategic consulting; and 

Ø  issuing a "lifetime ban against senior executive branch officials lobbying on behalf of a foreign government."

Exposing and Deconstructing the DC Swamp

We must do all we can to expose the DC Swamp. We must do all we can to educate the public about the DC Swamp and to return the power back to the people. President Trump is doing all he can to clean house. But he has had only 4 years to try to turn back 80 years or more of what the DC Swamp wrestled control incrementally away from the people and our elected representatives.

Supporting legal organizations like Judicial Watch, who are actively working to expose the Deep State and the DC Swamp is important, especially since Congress lacks the will to do it.

Relentlessly presenting, petitioning, and pressing our representatives with our grievances and demands to do something about the DC Swamp.

The people need to demand that the alleged crimes of key Deep State operatives like Hillary Clinton, James Comey, John Brennan, etc. And those funding, ignoring, and covering for the rioters, all be brought to light and justice.

Reducing the size and scope of the government is sorely needed. Getting the federal budget under control is a must.

It all starts with giving President Trump three things:  re-election for 4 more years, Republican House and Senate majorities. These are the essential outcomes of the 2020 General Election.

What Democrats Want, Day 6 Countdown to Oblivion, the DC SWAMP (Part 1)

As of today, there is just 1 week, 6 days until the most consequential election in American history. This is what they say about many past elections, but this is really it. For if the Democrats seize power – control of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate and the Presidency – and doing it by hook or by crook (the justifies the means, you know) America as we know it will be forever changed. America envisioned and created by the Founding Fathers will disappear into the shadows of history.

The ungodly secular-humanists/Marxists slow march through America’s institutions over the last 100 years or so will have reached a crescendo – fulfilling Mr. Obama’s fundamental transformation of control of the masses.

Envision with me what a Socialist Democratic Party, takeover, a bloodless coup, a regime change, would look like. This is one in a series of daily articles leading up to the 2020 General Election.

 

THERE’S DC Comics and its superheroes like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Then there’s the DC Swamp with its assorted set of villains. We talked the past two day (see posts Day 8 and Day 7) about the Deep State. Well, the Deep State is only part of the DC Swamp.

 

The Washington or DC Swamp

There are various ways to define and various components of the DC or Washington Swamp. There are overlaps in the definitions for what is referred to as the DC Swamp.

 

The Washington Cartel

During the 2016 Primary Election season Sen. Ted Cruz referred to the DC Swamp as the Washington Cartel, which (is made up of investment bankers, Wall Street CEOs, trans-national corporate CEOs and others who own enough of our political leaders that they control virtually everything they need to keep pushing their global agenda.  They push for open borders, laissez faire trade, and tax avoidance for their overseas profits.  Through campaign donations and other means, they control enough of our political leaders to do whatever they see fit. They decide what legislation gets passed and what gets blocked regardless of what the voters want.) A definition of cartel is a group of parties, factions, or nations united in a common cause. It makes me think of a drug cartel, which is a common use of the word. It is an apt description of a group of people and organization working against the best interests of American people.

 

The Establishment

The DC Swamp is also referred to as the Establishment (is a very fluid term that in politics refers to a group of individuals and institutions, as well as their modes of interaction, that work to acquire, maintain, and eventually establish some sustainable network of power.)

 

Military Industrial Complex

The DC Swamp includes Military Industrial Complex (an informal alliance of the military and related government departments with defense industries that is held to influence government policy.)

The Shadow Government

Another name for the Deep State is the Shadow Government. One  website defines Shadow Government as, “the real government entity that hides within the shadows, making all of the important decisions in secret. Their political agenda and true motives are completely hidden from the public. These aren’t the people you see on mainstream media, nor are they the people you vote for; they’re the individuals who lurk in the shadows, which is precisely how they’re able to maintain control over the population, feeding the illusion of democracy.” The same website names who is part of the Shadow Government: billionaire families like the Rothschilds and Rockefellers, mainstream media networks, George Soros, and many large corporations.

Another writer identifies the Shadow Government as groups and institutions that have massive power over elected officials in Washington and include:

- The Pentagon (and its private contractor

- Homeland Security

- The Treasury Department

- The Justice Department 

- Wall Street 

- Silicon Valley (major companies like Google and Apple)

After the Senate hearing today and how the Big Tech companies are censoring free speech on their platforms you could easily add Facebook and Twitter and others to these groups.

The Shadow Government seems to be a group of elite individuals inside and outside the government that have immense powers and control many aspects of government.

The DC Swamp Was Out to Get Donald Trump from the Start

Who was behind the almost three-year long coup attempt to unseat President Trump? We know that the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation played a large part. This was the work of the unseen forces that have amassed great power and control rivaling or even exceeding the power of the people through our elected representatives.

The big question is, will the DC Swamp be able to stop the re-election of the President, even against the will of the people? I expect that they will do all they can to get the Harris-Biden presidential ticket elected

Tomorrow we will look at some ways to Drain the Swamp. Which political party do you think benefits the most from the existence and the continued functioning of the Swamp?