Is Your Representative Representing YOU?

When the Amash amendment to defund unconstitutional activity in the NSA came up in the House of Representatives, I was disappointed to learn that my representative, Luke Messer, voted against it.  I took this as a direct vote against the Constitution, and so, a direct violation of his Oath of Office.  And I informed him as such.  But that got me thinking: If he would willfully violate his Oath in this circumstance, where else might I find unsavory activity?  So I did some digging.


The websites I used for my research were The U.S. House of Representatives Roll Call Votes and Luke Messer on the Issues (can search a different candidate), among others.  Here is what I found:

• 2011-2012 campaign funds: http://www.fec.gov/disclosurehs/HSCandList.do - a total of $745,068 personally contributed, or nearly 75% of his total campaign fund.  This alone demonstrates that Mr. Messer is not just another rank-and-file citizen, and further demonstrates the fact that our government is no longer "Of the People."
• 3/6/2013: Messer voted "Yea" on H.R. 933, which included a provision that has come to be known as the "Monsanto Protection Act."  This act has shielded the GMO-giant Monsanto from any legal action that would prevent them from producing and distributing their genetically modified foods, even if it is found that these "foods" cause harm to humans.
• 4/12/2013: On unanimous consent (Including Messer): S.716 (introduced by harry Reid) was passed.  This legislation removed the barriers to insider trading in Congress, which places all elected representatives above the law in terms of making a profit from the stock market.  They can now freely trade on insider information, and as such, their stock portfolios tend to outperform any in the private sector.
• 7/25/2013: Vote results for Amash Amendment to defund NSA wholesale violation of 4th Amendment: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2013/roll412.xml.  Messer voted against this amendment.  This demonstrates a clear lack of reverence for his Oath of Office, in which he swore to protect, defend, and preserve the Constitution of the United States of America.  Meanwhile, Mr. Messer says he supports protecting the Constitution (http://www.ontheissues.org/IN/Luke_Messer_Government_Reform.htm).  Which is it, sir?  You cannot have it both ways, and your actions thus far have spoken louder than your words.
• Once again ignoring our Fourth Amendment rights, Luke voted YES on CISPA (http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2013/roll117.xml)
• Mr. Messer opposes same-sex marriage as well as pro-choice policies.  As for me, I would not personally choose to get married to a man, nor would I push a woman to get an abortion in the case of an unwanted pregnancy.  In the pregnancy case, I would suggest she give the child up for adoption.  However, it’s none of my business how someone else chooses to live their life – it is not fair of me to deprive another of their right to live as they choose.  For this reason, I am both pro-choice (before the first trimester is over) and pro-same sex marriage.
• As a positive note, Mr. Messer supports gun owners (http://www.ontheissues.org/IN/Luke_Messer_Gun_Control.htm).  While it is great that he supports at least some parts of the Constitution, his Oath does not permit him to choose not to abide by the Fourth Amendment.  His Oath omitted the words “The parts of the Constitution which I deem relevant.”
• He has no declared stance on Social Security, which is an issue of National importance.  As for me: I know SS is completely bankrupt, and it’s because our leaders borrowed every single penny from the Trust Fund that was supposed to last until 2036.  The program is broken and is further bankrupting our country.  This must be addressed, and a neutral stance on the issue is not productive.
• What about his opinion on free trade?  On this, he is also undeclared.  Free trade has led to the mass exportation of jobs from the U.S. overseas, which has been one of the leading causes of the decline of our country.  We must eliminate Free Trade Agreements and once again institute tariffs on imports; this would both incentivize the USA to produce more than it consumes as well as provide an additional revenue stream to fund government.
• Messer is neutral on maintaining US sovereignty from the United Nations.  This is directly contradictory to Messer’s stance on guns when you consider the U.N. small arms treaty.  While he was with the unanimous vote against funding for this treaty, he needs to take an official stance on U.S. sovereignty from the U.N.
• Messer seems to support expansion of the Military Industrial Complex.  He supports this expansion under the name of “giving the military what they need to keep America safe.”  The US military spending dwarfs all other countries’ spending combined.  To keep the U.S. safe, we would only need to bring all our troops home and deploy them to defend our own borders.  We need to get out of undeclared illegal wars in countries where we have no business.
• Messer has not publicly taken a stance on staying out of Iran.  He needs to do this: Remaining complicit in the U.S. involvement in Syria will allow us to be led into World War 3.  Mr. Messer – where do you stand?
• On green energy: While it’s true we should continue to use coal and domestic oil, it is folly not to at least look into alternative energies.  On the surface, Luke seems to completely oppose looking into green energy.
• 8/2/2013: It is agreed that Congress will have 75% of the cost of their Obamacare covered by the federal government.  In other words, We the Taxpayers (including businesses) get to cover the increased cost for Congress in addition to the 72% increased cost to ourselves.  This does not seem like equal application of the law, and I am curious to get Mr. Messer's feelings on the matter.

This is what I found about my representative.  He looks great on the surface, but underneath it, I do not feel he has my best interests at heart, nor can he really connect with his constituents on a personal or financial level.  As such, until he changes his stances or publicly declares stances on the above issues, I would not vote for him.

So what can you find out about your representative?

The "Dangerous" Libertarian

Last week, people in positions of power reached a whole new level of hostility against the American People.  Obama's "phony scandals" line aside, Governor Chris Christie was interviewed saying "This strain of libertarianism that's going through the parties right now and making big headlines I think is a very dangerous thought."  Translation: "Individual Liberty is dangerous."  Mr. Christie has openly declared war on the idea of individual freedom.  He fully believes it is best for We the People to give up our freedoms so that our government can keep us safe.

As is typical of his ilk, Governor Christie uses knee-jerk emotional reaction to justify his views.  He believes We the People are too scared to look the families of the victims of 9/11 in the eyes and tell them our Constitutionally guaranteed rights should be enforced.  Christie: "These esoteric, intellectual debates - I want them to come to New Jersey and sit down across from the widows and the orphans and have that conversation.  And they won't, because that's a much tougher conversation to have."  I call his bluff.  Given the opportunity, I would gladly sit down with anyone who was affected by 9/11 and explain to them exactly why their rights are more important than the "safety" offered by our government.  To quote Senator Rand Paul: "Christie worries about the dangers of freedom.  I worry about the dangers of losing that freedom.  Spying without warrants is unconstitutional."

As a side-note: Rand Paul is not quite the white-knight most Liberty-minded individuals believe he is.  In order to win votes, he is against ending the War on Drugs.  He is also not against drone strikes on a U.S. citizen, even within U.S. borders.  However, on most issues, Rand Paul's position is the right one.  Unfortunately, when it comes to Liberty, picking and choosing the issues to stand up for in order to win the popular vote makes you no better than Barack Obama.

Christie went on to praise Obama for continuing the policies of the Bush administration with regard to the war on terror.  "President Obama has done nothing to change the policies of the Bush administration in the war on terrorism.  And I mean practically nothing.  And you know why?  Cause they work."  Maybe this helps to explain why the website that spells out Obama's 2008 campaign promises, such as increased protections for whistleblowers, has been removed.  Obama's handlers don't want you to be able to easily view the string of broken promises he made.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again now: Question everything, particularly the motives behind what people tell you.  What motivates a Libertarian?  What does the Libertarian ideology want for you?  Freedom.  Libertarians want you to have the freedom to do as you please, as long as you don't hurt anybody else.  The only thing a Libertarian does not want you to do is try to take away their freedoms.  What motivates Governor Chris Christie and other Obama supporters?  What do they want from you?  Unquestioning obedience.  They want you to surrender all your freedoms to the government so they can "keep you safe."  The only "dangerous thought" here is that We the People are incapable of seeing to our own safety; that we need to government to handle it for us.  This is the line of thought that will lead to the continued enslavement of our nation.  It is this line of thought that must be brought to an end.

Fear nothing.  Question everything.  Stand up for your rights.

The true dichotomy of today is not Democrat vs Republican.  It is Liberty vs Tyranny.  Truth vs Propaganda.  Freedom vs Slavery.  The sooner we realize this, the sooner We the People can take the fight to our true enemy.