Congress Cannot Be Appointed

[RS Davis]

[glow=red,2,300]Rep. Ron Paul, MD Wrote:[/glow] In the months following the September 11th terrorist attacks, questions arose about whether Congress could continue to function if many of its members were killed or injured in a future terrorist attack. These concerns resulted in the creation of a commission that advocated a first in American history, namely the appointment of individuals to the U.S. House. A constitutional amendment has been proposed that would provide the method for such appointments following a catastrophe that killed or disabled a majority of the people in Congress.

I strongly oppose this constitutional amendment, because I believe an appointed Congress would become an unaccountable, tyrannical Congress. Over the past year I met with top scholars, attorneys, and colleagues who reject the idea of an appointed House of Representatives. Fortunately, we had success in turning many members of Congress against the proposal through a series of public lectures, meetings, and published articles. Legislation I cosponsored, recently passed by the House Judiciary committee, will enable congressional districts around the nation to hold emergency elections without resorting to political appointments. The bill has the support of congressional leadership, and should reach the House floor in coming months.

At its heart, the proposed constitutional amendment is fundamentally at odds with the right of the people always to elect their members of the House of Representatives. The term “appointed representative” clearly is an oxymoron. The House, designed as the most directly representative branch of government, must be elected to have any legitimacy. Even “temporary” appointees would be unacceptable, because the laws passed would be permanent.

- Rick

[karl]

too many people are not aware that the constitution was itself drafted and installed during times of distress. the document that guides us was forged in the time between the revolution and the counter revolution of 1812. it was also written by men that were fiercely independent and wary of a government without multiple protections against the abuse of power. the way in which certain elements have eroded the constitutions protections has been the most insidious threat we as a nation of free people have had to put up with since our founding. it may not be communism, but it is a socialism brought about by an errant belief that all men are owed happiness, not pursuit of happiness. so far only a few representatives understand the need for us to return to the basic tenets of the constitution and the ideas put forth in the writings of our founders. call them wiggs or torries but really they(our founders) were all libertarian at their core.

karl

[fiddle-footed]

How does that explain 'dead man Carnahan' being replaced by his wife ?

[karl]

carnahan was elected a senator not a congressman. congressmen must be elected to office a senator may be appointed to fill a vacancy only untill the next general election. i wish i could recall more of the details of this, i will research it though and post again with the mechanics of it all.

karl

[RS Davis]

karl said:

too many people are not aware that the constitution was itself drafted and installed during times of distress. the document that guides us was forged in the time between the revolution and the counter revolution of 1812. it was also written by men that were fiercely independent and wary of a government without multiple protections against the abuse of power. the way in which certain elements have eroded the constitutions protections has been the most insidious threat we as a nation of free people have had to put up with since our founding. it may not be communism, but it is a socialism brought about by an errant belief that all men are owed happiness, not pursuit of happiness. so far only a few representatives understand the need for us to return to the basic tenets of the constitution and the ideas put forth in the writings of our founders. call them wiggs or torries but really they(our founders) were all libertarian at their core.

karl

The more I learn about the history of our country - the more I see people like Lincoln, Jackson, Wilson, ignoring the rulings of the supreme court and basically declarig themselves temporary dictators - the more I realize that our institutions, and even our Constitution, are only as secure as we make them. They are, after all, a bunch of old lawyers without any means to enforce their decisions, and the constitution can be broadly interpreted until most of it is irrellevant.

Sometimes I wish I could start my own country and write my own Constitution.

- Rick

[karl]

Sometimes I wish I could start my own country and write my own Constitution.

- Rick

i believe, rick, that that has always been an option. it would require quite a committment, however. the founders of this country did just that and many of them buried their children and watched their world burn.

i believe we need to change this country, one way would be to attack it through the ballot box, over the next eighteen years we never return an incumbent to office, then we will have some attention or force the governments hand to make some serious changes. if the changes only offer the status quo, then we will need to take over by force.

karl

[RS Davis]

karl said:

i believe, rick, that that has always been an option. it would require quite a committment, however. the founders of this country did just that and many of them buried their children and watched their world burn.

i believe we need to change this country, one way would be to attack it through the ballot box, over the next eighteen years we never return an incumbent to office, then we will have some attention or force the governments hand to make some serious changes. if the changes only offer the status quo, then we will need to take over by force.

karl

Yeah, but I remember how well it went the last time a group of people in this country thought they had the right to voluntarily break away and do things their own way, when their government had become destructive of the ends of securing the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

- Rick

[dr snootch]

I don't know that enough people are aware of the actual problems to change things at the ballot box. Most Americans have been lulled by the media and politicians from the Big Two into believing that there exist only two parties. We've become a society of "If the (other party) stopped blocking our measures, all the country's problems would be solved."

People are so fixated on being 'right' that very few people objectively re-evaluate their own points and beliefs for relevence. We're locked in a never-ending battle of "I'm right, you're wrong and that's just the way it is"

What the two-party system should have been teaching us all these years is that we're different and only by allowing each person to live his/her life freely can everyone truly be at least sort-of happy.