Ron Paul Freedom Writer Responds to U.S. Senator's Email
I received a response from my Senator last night. This is what he had to say and what I wrote back. by John Armstrong
(libertarian)
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Note: I have changed the Senator's name since he wrote this email to me personally. I don't know that this was necessary, and will let you know the Senator's name privately via email, but I don't want discourage his writing back by making this seem like a personal attack. Unless noted, the text remains unchanged. I think Ron Paul would have had something very similar to say himself. This is why Ron Paul is excluded from a number that may initially seem inaccurate in the article below.
Thank you for taking the time to contact my office regarding S. 2248, the FISA Amendments Act of 2007. Your input is important to me, and I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts.
Like you, I believe that protecting our civil liberties is a fundamental responsibility of the federal government. However, I believe that we must strike a balance between preserving civil liberties and having the resources necessary to protect our country.
On February 12, 2008 I voted to pass S. 2248 as approved by the Senate Intelligence committee. In this particular case, because the federal government asked the telecom companies to comply with allowing surveillance, it does seem reasonable that the federal government should provide them protection from lawsuits stemming from compliance. Furthermore, I strongly believe that Americans can be assured that their constitutional rights will be protected while our government retains the tools necessary to track terrorists throughout the world.
Thank you again for your letter. I hope you will continue to share your thoughts with me.
I understand your need to keep your job. I understand that your beliefs are espoused by many people in my potentially soon to be former party. I also think that most of your votes are as good as any vote that could be expected by a modern politician. But your response saddens me as your constituent, and more so as your fellow American.
When you took office this is what you placed your hand on the Bible and swore you would do:
"I do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States."
Actually, that isn't what you swore those are just the words found in the very first bill ever passed by the Senate because it was that important. Since politics feels the need to complicate very simple things, this is what you personally swore to do:
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God.
You didn't swear to protect the country from terrorists. You swore to defend the Constitution. You didn't swear to support the Constitution so long as it was convenient or to do so as long as the rest of your party did; you swore to support and defend the Constitution.
When the Federal Government decides to address an issue that the people have not empowered them by Amending the Contract to address the issue, what makes America, America--our freedom (whether it be in the form of financial freedom or Civil Rights)--is lost.
There is never a danger serious enough to "strike a balance" to fight that threat if "striking a balance" means usurping freedom from the people without our consent in order to do so. If you don't remember what powers we the people actually consented to the Federal Government, please read the last line of Section 8, Article 1, of the Contract where this is spelled out quite simply. And before you talk to me about the Marshall Court's "elastic clause", do two things: First, ask yourself if you can do that and then ever again say anything about "activist judges." Then read the Tenth Amendment. If I'm missing something, please let me know.
I'm sure as a Republican you don't support Socialized Healthcare (especially since you know about the debacle of Tenncare in our state), but just look at the words of your explanation and tell me how a Democrat couldn't use them to say this:
Like you, I believe that protecting our civil liberties is a fundamental responsibility of the federal government. However, I believe that we must strike a balance between preserving civil liberties and having the resources necessary to provide healthcare for our nation's most disadvantaged citizens.
There aren't enough terrorists in the world to destroy the country you claim your vote helped protect. But when our liberty is lost, what's left of our country? Ronald Reagan won office running on this exact premise and inspired the country.
Now that the GOP has decided that the Constitution doesn't matter, the road has been paved for an outright socialist named Obama to ascend to the throne this November and implement programs that would make FDR blush. Why? Because 534 politicians sworn to uphold the Constitution have decided that winning a majority election gives them a "mandate" to do what they feel is best for the other 300,000,000 of us without our consent. I am horrified that I have to remind a Republican that this country is not a democracy.
If I don't call attention to this issue in my own party, how can I with any integrity criticize the Democrats' schemes to lead us into socialism? Unless the GOP remembers the ideas of our Founders, and promoted by Goldwater that ushered Reagan, and the class of 1994 into office, we have no right to criticize the Democrats' similarly unconstitutional polices.
As far as this immunity for the telecommunications industry goes, do you know who would be suing these telecommunications companies? People whose Constitutionally protected rights had been violated would be. It wouldn't be the few real terrorists the law did catch. I think they'd be occupied.
Asserting that passing this law granting immunity is "reasonable" because the Federal Government is the one who asked them to do something the companies knew they could be sued for is ludicrous, Senator. That's like saying it's reasonable for the government to hire an assassin who may accidentally kill a few innocent people along the way but that's okay since he'll eventually kill the bad person whom he was targeting and when that person is killed more people will be safe than the ones who were killed. And, oh by the way, the innocent victims' families have no recourse because the government gave immunity to the assassin since they asked him to do it in the first place.
What should have been granted was immunity to future legislation against the companies who refused to comply with this unconstitutional law.
So essentially you voted to pass a law the Federal Government has no power to enact under the Contract, that clearly violates the Fourth Amendment of that Contract, which will certainly imprison some innocent people and deny them Habeus Corpus as protected by Sec. 9, Art. 1 of the Contract (since they are innocent, they pose no threat to the public), and then subsequently denies them the ability to seek legal recourse for the violation of these rights.
Forgive me if I seem unwilling to accept your "strong belief" as assurance that my (and other individual's) civil rights will be protected. If I can't count on someone to protect those rights after swearing on the Bible they will do so, I can't "reasonably" accept that a simple "strong belief" will suffice.
With that said, I appreciate your writing me back. This isn't meant as a personal attack towards you, heaven knows you're better than Harold Ford, Jr. would have been. I don't blame you personally for your vote. You just did what you felt was in the best interest of the country.
Old Yeller's owners didn't shoot the real Old Yeller, they shot the one infected by rabies. Our Party has been infected with some rabies-like virus after 9/11.
I am 30 years old. I will pay nearly $40,000 in taxes this year (thanks for using the 'stimulus package' to give that money I earned to people who never paid it and returning none to me by the way). That sum is more than my parents earned collectively when I was growing up. I got to this point, and it is just the beginning, by taking full advantage of my freedom and inspiring others to do the same. I'm not okay with that freedom being taken from me. When voters like me realize that the party they grew to trust in love is no longer safe to be around because they have been infected with something that makes them treat the Constitution like Democrats, we will sadly have to do to the GOP what Old Yeller's young owner did to him at the end of the movie when he realized the dog he had grown to love was no longer the one standing before him.
Please remember who you are and what our party stands for. It would be a shame to have to watch the GOP be put down because of a disease that is curable if treated early enough. The cure is following the real Contract with America: The Constitution of the United States that you swore to support and defend against all enemies foreign and domestic (even if the domestic ones are members of your party).
Senator [name deleted], I hope you have it in you to do the right thing from this point forward. Your seat is not on the line this year, so you have time left. Doing the right thing will be the only way to win back Congress and the White House.
But if you can't find it in you, that's okay. As I may have said before, I wouldn't want something as insignificant as your sworn fidelity to your Country to interfere with your loyalty to your party's ideologies.
Your fellow American,
John Armstrong
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Thank you for caring enough about our country to take an active roll in defending our freedom. God knows we need more people like you. I love reading your articles. Please don't ever give up the fight.
Bravo John, very well said and very articulate. I only wish it would make a difference, but you and I both know it won't...sadly. We, as a nation, have lost our way. We are unwilling to make the sacrifices needed to return this nation to greatness...they're all looking for that
I just want to point out one very important factor within your letter, one all those writing to their representatives should incorporate. A key to this was the way you began, reminding the Senator of the oath of office and what she/he swore to defend. Too many are 'whipped' to stand with their parties. It's hard to defend the constitution with every vote, Dr. Paul supporters understand this, but that is their oath. Thanks for setting a good example of holding our representatives to that oath!
I am 32 myself and I'm working to be a mechanic through an apprenticeship here in Canada. I feel as though I'm sitting on the top of a ticking time bomb, metaphorically speaking, being in a neighbouring country to the US. It's not the people, but the politics that I fear. Between all I've read about the Federal Reserve, who owns it, what they want to do to the population, North American Union, and the legislation to allow US and Canadian troops to jump borders freely, it scares me.
Even though I continue to complete this apprenticeship, it is not my passion in life. I come home everyday and I contribute to my own little blog and read insatiably about political discourse, the Canadian and US constitution, parliament and congress, economics, etc.. I know that I am meant for something more, yet I struggle to see how to get there from here.
The one thing that is clear to me is the 'why' of my endeavour. The 'why' being where i'm going and what the purpose is behind it. What's my purpose? What direction? What is the best good life I could hope for myself?
I had a revelation of sorts about a year ago regarding where I wanted the direction of my life to go. The simplest thought entered my mind, and I've been changed ever since. One day I was under the hood of a truck I was working on, and no-one was around....just me and that engine. My co-workers always viewed an engine as "how" it could be fixed....I always wondered "why" it worked. Those I know seem to focus on how they're going to get out of or into something, I tend to wonder why I'm doing what I'm doing. It's important that I mention this in this way to make the point I'm failing to get to quickly. Anyway, all of a sudden, this ran through my mind as though someone had forced it in there:
"Spend your life defending established laws and the constitution of your country, and by doing so you will have lived the best good life for yourself through doing what you can, for as many people as you can, by embracing the noblest of causes, but at the same time, finding a true purpose for yourself." I had been reading about the aforementioned topics for years at that point and there had always been something bothering me. I felt that my life was missing something. I found what that something was, and in the process I found out the best secret I had been hiding from myself. That something was the feeling that what I was contributing to society wasn't noble in it's cause. There is nothing wrong with what I'm doing, I'm not hurting anyone, but I'm also not helping either. I started looking at what I was doing with my life as "what good is helping to fix their car when their emotional and financial freedoms are being taken away from them?" I know a lot of people feel as though they want to make a difference, and I'm no different, but I'm not so concerned with making a difference as I am trying to find out the why of our problems, though an open mind is vital. I believe that in doing so, the difference will materialize through sober sceond thought and well considered discourse. I may regret using a movie for an example here, but in the movie 'Jurassic Park' the line "They were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they never stopped to think if they should." seems fitting some days up on the hill. Where are we going as a people? We've established that only in a free society can you maximize the answer to this question.
It felt good knowing that my heart and mind was seeking out such a realization with the purpose of doing something about it. What I am doing right now as a career isn't helping my country or my place in it because it's not contributing to the health of the greater good....and that bothers me everyday. They say to pick your battles. I guess you could say I've been looking for a battle my whole life, but until now nothing I found seemed worth fighting for. I have been looking to "fight the good fight" as some have said. Guiltless moral and ethical personal development as an individual expressing his career objectives and life course through what I believe to be the MOST IMPORTANT THING is what I strive for now.
Now of course the thoughts were a little more in depth than phrased here, but regardless, i know in my heart, when I look back on my life, that day under the hood of that truck will become the defining moment that changed me forever and showed me the truest form of myself. Ever since I've struggled to figure out what to do to be a member of parliament. I have only a partial university education, and it's not in the field of politics. I've put myself into this apprenticeship as an effort to see my children more often than when I was working full-time plus going to school full-time. They need me now, not later. So I've put my passion to the side for now so I can concentrate on being there for them. My struggle with this is the parallel reference it makes to the "why fix their car if they're losing their freedoms" mindset. Do I stand here and do nothing for their future freedoms to be here for them now, or do I sacrifice my time with them to go and fight for their future freedoms at an emotional expense? Moreover, what kind of nation do we live in when this is even a concern for an average citizen? It is my hope to be in a position to run for office one day, and to become a member of my parliament so I can "fight the GOOD fight". This IS a battle I am picking. It's the most important one, for me as an individual and as a citizen, and for my children's future. I'm not sure exactly how to do all of this yet, but as I've said, I have the why, so my focus on the how will hopefully be more concise and clear. I have always cared about others than myself and wish to see everyone do well as an individual no matter who they are. This can only happen in a free society with true free market capitalism, where access to education is more abundant because the money in our pockets will go further as the money returns to a value-backed currency, so they can afford to pay for tuition costs that don't continually increase (faster than inflationary rates at this point).
My view of everything that pertains to the solutions for a nation may not be as refined or elaborate as others may be quite yet, though that is only a matter of time. The point I'm trying to make here is.....I see a dire need for focusing more on the 'why', and putting the 'how' as the secondary goal, not the other way around. It is my inherent desire to find out why something is that makes me feel as though I could be a valued member of those making the decisions affecting a nation, because it is the why that needs to be addressed fully rather than merely focusing on only how to get somewhere. I truly believe that if you keep the why close to your heart, the how will be a journey worth taking.
I believe a nation to be it's own individual. And just as individuals change those around them as they change themselves, so to does a nation. Right now this nation (and yours) is changing, and it seems not for the best. There are established laws and rights that need protecting, for what I see as the most fundamental and purposeful reasons. I wish to dedicate my life to protecting that. Period. I've moved all over this country, had many different jobs, and have seen many different ways of living life, and it gives me the greatest pleasure to see people find purpose and direction in life for themselves. That is becoming the single most difficult thing for most to do today as their choices become more and more limited. If this is the case, what's the point? It's through freedom that our best hopes and dreams can become a reality.
In the meantime, i will continue to read your articles, as i enjoy them very much. They inspire me to keep my eye on the ball and to never forget what is important. Not money, nor fame, nor false worship or power can come close to what a free nation can offer everyone. It's a two-fold win whereby as individual liberty is maximized, so to are the opportunities to share that with others, and that translates into better communities and better health for everyone, both mentally and financially.
Keep up the good work, I hope to send another email your way from my constituency office one day. Thanks for all that you do John.
It is refreshing to know that people like me are not alone. There will be many Ron Pauls coming in the next few years so rest assured this is not a passing political fancy but is an education for the American Citizens to review their 6th grade study of the Constitution. I still cannot find anywhere in the constitution where it encourages
Posted By: John Armstrong
Date: 2008-02-28 13:55:43
If you missed my newest post, this article was removed from the google news search items. Â I might change the first paragraph and repost it under a different name that doesn't say "U.S. Senator" in the title. Â
Posted By: patrick henry
Date: 2008-02-28 15:22:07
Bravo John on point again.
 You know whats funny, I got the exact same email verbatum from him too. My response was no where near as good as yours. But hey at least I know someone else on "THE LIST".
I like you have hit the crossroads. Our roads traveled are very different I am sure but we both hold many of the same beliefs on the balance the free market economy brings. As a student of history I have always had the highest respect for those who wrote the Constitution. Thanks to the growing message of Liberty, it is coming to tlight again why the Constitution was framed as it was.
   If I was a Canadian, I would also be quite disturbed by the possibility of a North American Union. Your country as it is looking right now would stand to lost the most from the Union. I am sure many would disagree with me but my current outlook of the American economy is very bleak. Lets think who benefits the most from Canadian oil in the NAU?
Â
John,
Another excellent article. You motivated me to write to my Senator. I will post his response as I get it. I am sure my letter will not be nearly as good, but we shall see his response.
Â
 Don't despair not even Google can stop Liberty. Every post is an inspiration.Â
It is refreshing to know that people like me are not alone. There will be many Ron Pauls coming in the next few years so rest assured this is not a passing political fancy but is an education for the American Citizens to review their 6th grade study of the Constitution. I still cannot find anywhere in the constitution where it encourages
It is refreshing to know that people like me are not alone. There will be many Ron Pauls coming in the next few years so rest assured this is not a passing political fancy but is an education for the American Citizens to review their 6th grade study of the Constitution. I still cannot find anywhere in the constitution where it encourages
Posted By: Eric Nordstrom
Date: 2008-03-03 00:27:39
Magnificent!
Personally I would scan and post the letter for viewing. Might put a little fire under the little senators ass. His reply SHOULD be enough to warrant his release from his seat. We truly need to introduce an amendment that demands compliance with the constitution by all who take the oath. The penalty for non-compliance should be more than just release of office, but should also include serving time in a federal prison.
The senator is clearly admiting that he is breaking the law.
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