PoliticalAction.com Blog

President Obama delivered a speech at the Department of Justice to announce the outcomes of a broad-ranging and unprecedented review of U.S. intelligence programs.

The review examined how, in light of new and changing technologies, we can use our intelligence capabilities in a way that optimally protects our national security while supporting our foreign policy, respecting privacy and civil liberties, maintaining the public trust, and reducing the risk of unauthorized disclosures.

Additionally, President Obama issued a new presidential policy directive for our signals intelligence activities, at home and abroad. This directive lays out new principles that govern how we conduct signals intelligence collection, and strengthens how we provide executive branch oversight of our signals intelligence activities.

President Obama spoke from Las Vegas about creating a fair and effective immigration system that lives up to our heritage as a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants.

“I’m here because most Americans agree that it’s time to fix a system that’s been broken for way too long.” President Obama said. “I’m here because business leaders, faith leaders, labor leaders, law enforcement, and leaders from both parties are coming together to say now is the time to find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as the land of opportunity. Now is the time to do this so we can strengthen our economy and strengthen our country’s future.”

The good news, President Obama said, is that for the first time in many years, there is bipartisan support for comprehensive immigration reform. But action must follow.

“We can’t allow immigration reform to get bogged down in an endless debate. We’ve been debating this a very long time,” he explained. “As a consequence, to help move this process along, today I’m laying out my ideas for immigration reform.”

President Obama’s proposal for immigration reform has four parts. First, continue to strengthen our borders. Second, crack down on companies that hire undocumented workers. Third, hold undocumented immigrants accountable before they can earn their citizenship; this means requiring undocumented workers to pay their taxes and a penalty, move to the back of the line, learn English, and pass background checks. Fourth, streamline the legal immigration system for families, workers, and employers.

You can watch the President’s full remarks on this plan for common sense immigration reform below:
Watch this video on YouTube

Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice… moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.
— Barry Goldwater

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA — Washington state and Colorado legalized recreational use of marijuana. Manager of the initiative in Washington, Alison Holcomb said, “Today the state of Washington looked at 70 years of marijuana prohibition and said it’s time for a new approach.”

“Federal law still says marijuana is an illegal drug, so don’t break out the Cheetos or gold fish too quickly.”—John Hickenlooper, Governor of Colorado

PENNSYLVANIA —

Your vote is your voice and your right. That’s why our efforts to protect the right to vote did not end with the Oct. 2 court decision that put a hold on the voter ID law for this election.

We have been working hard to educate voters about the fact the voter ID law is not in effect for now — a challenging task with the commonwealth’s misleading “Show it!” campaign and misinformation circulated by the state and several townships. We fought in court, unfortunately unsuccessfully, to force the state to clarify the state of the law to the public. Make sure you know your rights on Election Day by reading our voters’ rights brochure (in pdf).

ACLU of PA is part of a large coalition of groups who are working to identify and respond to problems on Election Day. Around the sate, we have lawyers on the ground, ready to go to court if needed to defend the right to vote. Call the Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to report any problems.

Thank you for supporting us throughout this crucial fight to make sure every eligible voter gets to cast a ballot.

Sincerely,

Reginald T. Shuford Executive Director, ACLU of Pennsylvania

Texas Straight Talk – A Weekly Column
Rep. and Presidential Candidate Dr. Ron Paul

If you thought the “Transportation Security Administration” would limit itself to conducting unconstitutional searches at airports, think again. The agency intends to assert jurisdiction over our nation’s highways, waterways, and railroads as well. TSA launched a new campaign of random checkpoints on Tennessee highways last week, complete with a sinister military-style acronym–VIP(E)R—as a name for the program.

As with TSA’s random searches at airports, these roadside searches are not based on any actual suspicion of criminal activity or any factual evidence of wrongdoing whatsoever by those detained. They are, in effect, completely random. So first we are told by the U.S. Supreme Court that American citizens have no 4th amendment protections at border crossings, even when standing on U.S. soil. Now TSA takes the next logical step and simply detains and searches U.S. citizens at wholly internal checkpoints.

The slippery slope is here. When does it end? How many more infringements on our liberties, our property, and our basic human rights to travel freely will it take before people become fed up enough to demand respect from their government? When will we demand that the government heed obvious constitutional limitations, and stop treating ordinary Americans as criminal suspects in the absence of probable cause?

The real tragedy occurs when Americans incrementally become accustomed to this treatment on the roads just as they have become accustomed to it in the airports. We already accept arriving at the airport 2 or more hours before a flight to get through security; will we soon have to build in an extra 2 or 3 hours into our road trips to allow for checkpoint traffic?

Worse, some people are lulled into a false sense of security and are actually grateful for this added police presence! Should we really hail the expansion of the police state as an enhancement to safety? I submit that an attitude of acquiescence to TSA authority is thoroughly dangerous, un-American, and insulting to earlier freedom-loving generations who built this country.

I am certain people will complain about this, once they have to sit in stopped traffic for a few extra hours to allow for random searches of cars. However, I am also certain it merely will take another “foiled” plot to silence many people into gladly accepting more government mismanagement of safety.

Vigilant, observant, law-abiding, gun-owning citizens defend themselves and stop crimes every day before police can respond. That is the source of real security in America: the 2nd Amendment right to defend oneself. The answer is for people to be empowered to protect themselves. Yet how many weapons might these checkpoints confiscate? Even when individual go through all the legal hoops of licensing and permits, the chances of harassment or outright confiscation of weapons and detention of citizens when those weapons are found at a TSA checkpoint is extremely high.

Disarming the highways and filling them full of jack-booted thugs demanding to see our papers is no way to make them safer. Instead, it is a great way to expand government surveillance powers and tighten the noose around our liberties.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GgNfD0vu9c&feature=player_embedded

Texas Congressman and 2012 Presidential Candidate Ron Paul discusses the idea of a national id card.

It is often said that a convert to a cause is more fervent than those born to it. That is probably true about me and my “conversion” as an immigrant to this great country.

In that spirit of passionate desire for my adoptive land to become everything it was meant to be, may I humbly suggest, America, that Ron Paul is Your Man.

Just a few years ago, I was excited to follow Obama’s success in the hope that he would undo the worst of the un-American shenanigans of the Bush administration, including the abrogation of rights of American citizens, the killing of citizens of lands that don’t threaten us and the wholesale transfer of wealth from those that create it and play by the rules to those that do neither of those two things.

Perhaps I was a little caught up in the excitement, but my intentions were good.

More…

Why Is It The Truth-Tellers Always Get Canned?

Some news stories give me pause about whether those in government have any concern at all for the rights of the American people. The detention of Bradley Manning is one of those stories. If he did what authorities claim he did, he most certainly broke some serious laws, and for that, there should be consequences.

Regardless of his guilt or innocence, the seriousness of his actions, or whatever, one thing is clear: No American should be stashed away in the brig, under questionable conditions and treatment, without a timely day in court.

An American accused of a crime should be innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This basic principle has been firmly established in our laws since the Founders, and has been hailed by Americans of all political stripes as a staple of a free society. If Bradley Manning is guilty of a crime, he will have to deal with the consequences of his actions. His guilt, however, is a matter for the judicial system. The rule of law works only as long as the government has to play by the rules set forth in the Constitution and proves its case in the judicial system. This case is no exception.

Last week, P.J. Crowley, a State Department spokesman, called Manning’s treatment, “ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid.” Three days later, the Obama Administration asked him to step down– so much for this administration’s promise of transparency. A government spokesman who tells the truth, or even his own observation, about what the government is doing shouldn’t be the one to ‘take the fall’ for yet another embarrassing example of Federal arrogance.

We have a judicial system that works pretty well if we actually use it and make sure all have access to it. This case is no exception. If the facts and the evidence can’t stand the light of day, then we have a much bigger problem than WikiLeaks. It’s a problem that that involves a lack of transparency, too much secrecy, and a general disregard of civil liberties.

It is clear that freedom and individual rights still have to be fought for every day before an overzealous government swallows them. Sadly, the Washington insiders and political commentators in the media, whom have all been silent on this scandal, will not do it for us. We have to fight for our rights ourselves.

Good governing is simple. I practiced it for 8 years while Governor of New Mexico. Government should protect us from individuals that do us harm, but should be out of our lives otherwise.

The government should protect the value of individuals and their civil liberties. The government should not intervene in the private lives of individual citizens unnecessarily. Personal liberty and freedom from unwarranted governmental control or regulation should allow law abiding individuals to pursue their own desires as long as they are not causing harm to other people.

There should be less government, greater liberty and lasting prosperity for America.

Transforming these simple ideas into the guiding principles of government is what the Our America Initiative is all about. They are the motivation behind the fact that I have spent the past year and a half traveling to 32 states and appearing on countless news programs. And our message of truth and freedom is resonating.

This week, I am in California meeting with folks from all political persuasions – and they all agree with us that government is out of control. This weekend, I am headed back to Washington, DC, and next week on to Chicago. At every stop, heads are nodding in agreement that we can no longer stand by and watch as the government strips our freedoms, spends us into bankruptcy, and robs our potential for prosperity.

I can’t do this alone. Our America is growing every day, with more and more like-minded Americans signing up to help. But we need YOUR help to keep the momentum going. Your contribution today, of any amount, provides the resources we must have to keep spreading our message and put the pressure on Washington to get out of our daily lives.

One of my most important goals is to continue defending the rule of law and the civil liberties that you and I hold so dear. The Our America Initiative is growing every day, with more and more like-minded Americans signing up to get involved. Our message is one that needs to be heard, and there has never been a more important time for our fellow citizens to hear it.

Thank you for all of your support. It is truly humbling to know that so many people are united in defense of freedom.

Your energy and support is what motivates me every day to stand tall as a spokesman for liberty:

http://ouramericaInitiative.com/donate

In Liberty,

Gary Johnson

Texas Straight Talk – A Weekly Column
Rep. Ron Paul (R) – TX 14

This week marks six months since Congress passed the healthcare reform bill in what has become all-too-typical legislative chicanery. Those in power crafted a mammoth piece of legislation and rammed it through Congress under a dire sense of emergency. Insisting on time enough to read the bill was dismissed as dangerous and crazy in a time of crisis. We were told that if we really wanted to see what was in the bill we would have to pass it first. I cannot imagine the Founding Fathers intended that Congress legislate in this manner. I would think if a member is not absolutely certain the entire legislation meets constitutional muster, the default vote should be “no” in accordance with our oath of office. But now that Congress has had six months to read the new law, there is a significant amount of buyer’s remorse on Capitol Hill.

The more constituents learn about the law, the more angry they become. 60% of Americans are now to be said in favor of repealing the entire thing. Unfortunately, it is much more difficult to repeal a law than it is to pass a bill. I wrote a while back about the egregious provision to require businesses to issue 1099s for all transactions over $600 as a way to partially pay for it. I have co-sponsored legislation to fix this issue, yet this is just the tip of the iceberg.

First of all, in spite of the administration repeating over and over that this legislation would not increase costs for Americans, they are now saying they knew all along that it would. The Congressional Budget office estimates that American families will see their premiums rise by an average of $2,100 by 2016. The Wall Street Journal has reported that the cost of compliance is forcing some insurers to increase premiums by up to 20% as soon as next year. Also, in spite of repeated claims from the administration that we could all keep our plans and doctors if we liked them, the administration’s own officials are now predicting that won’t be true for up to
117 million Americans who will lose their current plans.

Major insurers are also dropping child-only plans because of mandates and price fixing on such policies leaving parents with fewer choices for their children, not more. In addition, in spite of claiming this law would contain government costs, not increase them, administration actuaries now predict it will increase healthcare spending by over $300 billion. This additional spending comes along with doctor shortages, fewer choices and more taxes, perhaps, worst of all, increases in labor cost because of health insurance mandates are discouraging employers from hiring new workers and even triggering more layoffs.

Anyone with a basic understanding of Austrian economics could have predicted the unintended consequences of these new healthcare policies. Central planning never increases choices and quality or cuts costs as promised. Price controls and government mandates always create artificial scarcity. Healthcare is not a right or privilege. It is a product, like food or clothing. As with any good or service, the free market regulation of supply and demand provides the optimal quality to the maximum number of people.

Once we realize the problems we are trying to solve today were created by government intervention beginning in the 1960s, we can begin to put patients back in control of healthcare, rather than third party oligopolies and government bureaucrats. The sooner the better.