I was immediately caught off guard when President Obama started the State of the Union Address with a reference to the United States Constitution. It was odd to hear a president that has done so much to distance himself from the Constitution, suddenly quote it. I certainly mean no disrespect to the office or the person; it just seemed out of place, based on the first twelve months.
In the past year, the Congress and the President have worked hard to push every American away from the Constitution. For instance, the President has repetitively challenged congress to mandate that every American purchases health care, which is NOT detailed in the Constitution. The federal government has purchased controlling stock in banks, insurance and car companies, which is NOT permitted in the Constitution. The federal government wants to determine the salary of corporate leaders, take over student loans, further the role of national education, punish energy companies for not being “green” enough, control state budgets by giving money with strings attached, all of which are NOT detailed in the Constitution.
In a further slap to the Constitutional separation of powers, the President scolded five members of the Supreme Court and forty members of the Senate for not fulfilling his wishes. He told the Senate that he wants certain bills on his desk immediately. He told Republican leadership that they will meet with him monthly. He told Congress that he has signed an executive order to force them to work on the deficit. He sounded like a CEO scolding unproductive departments in his company. Our government is not a business; it is a Republic which consists of three equal branches. The Congress does not work for the President. The Congress is a co-equal branch of government that should provide some balance and perspective to the executive branch. That is the Constitution.
Just as a side note: did it seem odd to anyone else that everything bad in America was a result of “the previous administration?” The one shining success that the President noted was the future troop withdrawal out of Iraq. According to the President, he has singlehandedly stopped the war in Iraq. One problem, the Bush administration had already worked on a plan to pull combat troops out of Iraq. While the timetable is faster than the Bush plan, it is also slower than “candidate Obama’s” 16 month withdrawal. Either way, it seemed odd to blame President Bush for everything bad and then take credit for something he had put into place.
This is a strange season in our nation. A year ago, all the talk was about a permanent Democrat majority and the take over of every major area of our economy. Now, the tide has changed and people are talking about the Constitution and the wisdom of “Checks and Balances.” I wonder what is about to happen in our nation in the days to come. Is it possible that a nation is about to step out of the malaise of central control and into the sunshine of liberty?
Here Here! Finally a candidate who sees the constitution and the checks and balances for what they really were intended to be! Under the leadership of President Obama, our country is becoming more and more socialist, leaving us, the citizens, with fewer rights and more penalties! I think our founding fathers would be so disappointed to see the way that the constitution has been pushed aside for personal agendas and power. I’ll be voting for you Mr. Lankford! We need more dedicated, sold-out for Christ, patriots in our government, and I cannot wait to see how God uses you to change our nation.
God Bless You,
Katrina Jones
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof …
U. S. Constitution, Amendment I
In 1802, President Jefferson wrote a letter to a group of Baptists in Danbury, Connecticut, in which he declared that it was the purpose of the First Amendment to build “a wall of separation between Church and State.”
The Writings of Thomas Jefferson 281 (A. Libscomb ed., 1904).
The course of constitutional neutrality … is to insure that no religion be sponsored or favored …
U. S. Supreme Court, Walz vs Tax Commission of City of New York
The fundamental law of our nation — the basis of our liberties — is the Constitution, not the Bible. Indeed, it is the Constitution that elected officials are sworn to uphold.
I hope that if you make it to Congress you remember this.
Hey Anonymous,
I agree. Protection of Amendment I is critical. The purpose of Jefferson’s ‘separation of church and state’ statement was to keep government out of religion, not to keep religious people out of the government. This idea leads me to three thoughts.
When a Congressman is sworn in he places his hand on a Bible and solemnly swears to uphold the Constitution. I have to wonder then, which is more important, the document that verifies his commitment or the one he is committing to uphold and defend?
Our government is a representative republic. It means we as citizens have a responsibility to elect officials that best represent our worldview. When we vote for a candidate we’re not choosing part of that candidate, but the whole. It’s why I’m more likely to choose a person of faith with a Biblical worldview, whose actions demonstrate an interest in upholding those values that line up with Biblical principles. This is not the establishment of any single, institutional religion, but the expression of one’s belief through the decisions they make and the way they go about making them.
Finally – I’ve read the information at JamesLankford.com. I’ve watched his public comments. Mr. Lankford has spoken often about the significance of the Constitution and how important it is for us to uphold and defend that document. He is certainly a man of faith with a Biblical worldview, but in none of his comments does he indicate he is in this race for religious reasons. I have seen a quote by him that says he is running to be the next representative from the 5th district of Oklahoma, not a pastor to the state.
Truly, Truly our government is not a business and yet too many of us for too long have allowed it more power than the Constitution gives it. Too often we are swayed by enticing language, such as now President Obama is paving the way for students to only give 10% after their graduation date from their earnings and then after twenty years a forgivness plan on the debt. At what point did our government move into providing for our families instead of protecting the people. “For when Congress once begins to stretch is power beyond the limits of the Constitution, there is no limit to it, and no security for the people” (“Not Yours to Give” by Edward S. Ellis).
Press on James – May eyes be opened and wildfires started -
“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds.” Samuel Adams — It is still “We the People”