10th Amendment Issue: Texas Sends Rangers To Border Because Federal Government Failed To Address Problems

Count on this happening more and more often in the coming months and years. As the Federal Government over-reaches its powers in some areas (i.e. health care, financial institutions, auto industry, etc.) and fails in its responsibilities in other areas (i.e. border control, anti-terrorism policies, etc.) the several states will begin invoking the 9th and 10th Amendments of the Constitution of the United States and begin taking action of their own.

This story, from MSNBC of all places, is one example of it:

Special teams of Texas Rangers will be deployed to the Texas-Mexico border to deal with increasing violence because the federal government has failed to address growing problems there, Gov. Rick Perry said Thursday. "It is an expansive effort with the Rangers playing a more high-profile role than they've ever played before," Perry said of the Department of Public Safety's elite investigative unit. The forces, dubbed "Ranger recon" teams, are the latest effort "to fill the gap that's been left by the federal government's ongoing failure to adequately secure our international border with Mexico," he said.

This action brings with it several implications, not the least of which is that if Washington D.C. does anything to try and stop the State of Texas from continuing this action, it will highlight the fact that Federal Government did fail in one of its greatest responsibilities and ignoring it will produce the same exact result.

More:

"They'll be deployed to high-traffic, high-crime areas along the border," he said. "They'll give us boots on the ground, put people in these hot spots no matter what or where they may exist." Perry said the effort also would focus on remote areas where farmers and ranchers have complained of being overrun by smugglers and gangs from Mexico in numbers that also overwhelm local law enforcement and border patrol officers. "Washington is shortchanging them, not giving them the support they need," Perry said. "As a result, we're having to dedicate our resources to deal with the challenges we have along the Texas-Mexico border and ensuing issues that porous border has created all across state of Texas."

If the Obama administration wishes to bring any type of legal action against the State of Texas for this, I say bring it on. We need debates like this to help educate the American people as to exactly what kind of person Obama really is.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Texas Governor Sends Rangers To Mexico Border
Associated Press via MSNBC
September 11, 2009

Democrats' Break Looking Like A Bad Trip

I can think of so many venues when Conservative speakers went onto liberal college campuses and then were shouted down by radical students. No one in the media or the Democrat party even batted a single eye-lash when that happened.

But, now that it is happening to various members of Congress, mostly Democrats, they are calling the action "shameful" or labeling thier constituents as a "mob, sent by the local Republican and Libertarian parties” that “came not just to be heard but to deny others the right to be heard."

Just yet another case of Dem hypocrisy, eh?

Alex Isenstadt and Abby Phillip of the Politico have this:

Angry protesters shouted down Democrats at public events from Texas to Pennsylvania over the weekend, leaving the party only one real hope for getting its message out over recess: a backlash. In Austin, Texas, Rep. Lloyd Doggett was drowned out by a group of noisy, sign-waving demonstrators who shouted, “Just say no” as he tried to talk about health care reform. ... In Morrisville, Pa., Rep. Patrick Murphy was forced to scrap plans for a one-on-one meet-the-congressman session when people in the crowd started shouting. Murphy switched to a town hall format mid-event and even then had to ask the audience at times to “be respectful.” And at a health care event in Philadelphia, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius were repeatedly interrupted by booing and heckling. “We can shout at one another, or we can leave the stage,” Sebelius said at one point. “It’s up to you.”

For months, the American people have been telling their Congressional representatives that we do not want socialized medicine. Congress refused to listen. Now, the people are taking their message directly to the various members of Congress.

But, never ones to learn from any mistakes, the Dems are pushing back in the worst way they possibly can: They are trying to label average Americans as being radical or fringe extremists:

"The last place Republicans ought to be moving their party is even more to the fringe of the political spectrum," said Eric Schultz, a spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Added a senior Democratic strategist: "It may be out of necessity, but for Republicans, relying on the fringe elements of the party to be the face of opposition on health care is a dangerous game. The birthers and the tea party folks aren’t controllable, come off as angry and out of control and couldn’t care less about the issue at hand."

Alienating mainstream voters is not the way to get them to vote for you in 2010, especially when you consider the fact that a good portion of the people protesting this socialized medicine bill are Democrats. This is not an issue about party affiliation, it is about saving America's health care system from the fate suffered by Great Britain and Canada's health care systems.

The people who participated in those Tax Day Tea Parties are regular folks who want an out-of-control government to bring itself back under control. That is not a fringe idea. It is a common sense idea and the Dems and other members of Congress ignore it at their own peril.

Even Arlen Specter is starting to see the light:

Specter, who was booed in Philadelphia over the weekend, told The Associated Press that it’s “highly likely” other senators will soon meet the same fate.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Democrats' Break Looking Like A Bad Trip
Alex Isenstadt and Abby Phillip
The Politico
August 4, 2009

Mexican Police Officer Killed Because He Was Armed With A Toy Gun

This comes from the "Well, Duh!" Department.

From KRGV News Channel 5, Harlingen, Texas:

REYNOSA, Mexico - City officials in Reynosa say their police officers need their guns back. The Mexican military took the officers' guns away last week. Mexican officials say one of their own was shot when he was trying to stop an armed robber. The officer pulled out a toy gun, since he did not have a real one. The suspect did not give in, and instead he allegedly shot the officer several times. Reynosa officials say this proves unarmed police are in danger.

This also proves that the gun-control nuts who think that passing laws to disarm everyone will somehow make us all safer, are absolutely wrong. Looks like the Mexican military forgot to take the guns away from the criminals before they took them away from the police.

And how many among us believe that the criminals will voluntarily turn in their firearms just because some leftist politicians passed a law?

As for Reynosa, now that the criminals know the police can't fight back, do you think the violent crime rate will go up or down? My bet is that it is going to spike upward.

You can access the original story on-line here:

Reynosa Officer Killed After Trying To Use Toy Gun
KRGV Channel 5 News
November 15, 2008

McCain And Obama Differ On Supreme Court Appointees, Global Warming Innocent Of Hurricanes And Doctors Head To Texas

Three really good stories today. Let's start with McCain vs. Obama on Supreme Court Justices. McCain has promised to appoint strict Constitutionalists in the mold of Justices Alito and Roberts. Obama is promising activist Justices who are more emotional rather than rational.

From the L.A. Times:

Sen. McCain (R-Ariz.), in a speech two weeks ago, echoed the views of conservatives who say "judicial activism" is the central problem facing the judiciary. He called it the "common and systematic abuse . . . by an elite group . . . we entrust with judicial power." On Thursday, he criticized the California Supreme Court for giving gays and lesbians the right to marry, saying he doesn't "believe judges should be making these decisions." Sen. Obama (D-Ill.) said he was most concerned about a conservative court that tilted to the side of "the powerful against the powerless," and to corporations and the government against individuals. "What's truly elitist is to appoint judges who will protect the powerful and leave ordinary Americans to fend for themselves," he said in response to McCain. ... Obama has also praised current Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and David H. Souter. "I want people on the bench who have enough empathy, enough feeling, for what ordinary people are going through," Obama said.

Remember, it was "empathy" and "feeling" that brought about the socialist policies that have universally been disasters wherever they have been adopted.

It is not just a theoretical policy debate. Whoever is elected in November will probably have the chance to appoint at least one justice in the next presidential term. The court's two most liberal justices are its oldest: John Paul Stevens turned 88 last month, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 75. McCain promised that, if elected, he would follow President Bush's model in choosing Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr.

Right now, they way things are going for us Conservatives, John McCain represents our last, best hope for keeping the Judiciary in the hands of Justices who truly respect the Constitution and all of the principles our Founding Fathers wisely wrote into it.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

John McCain And Barack Obama: Two Visions Of The Supreme Court
David Savage
Los Angeles Times
May 19, 2008

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A new study coming out the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is showing evidence of what many of us already knew: Global Warming is not responsible for hurricanes, despite Al Gore's screeching claim that the hurricane season of 2006 was going to be twice as bad as 2005. (The truth is that 2006 was notable for it lack of storms.)

According to Fox News:

Ever since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, hurricanes have often been seen as a symbol of global warming's wrath. Many climate change experts have tied the rise of hurricanes in recent years to global warming and hotter waters that fuel them. Another group of experts, those who study hurricanes and who are more often skeptical about global warming, say there is no link. They attribute the recent increase to a natural multi-decade cycle. What makes this study different is [Tom] Knutson, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fluid dynamics lab in Princeton, N.J. He has warned about the harmful effects of climate change and has even complained in the past about being censored by the Bush administration on past studies on the dangers of global warming. He said his new study, based on a computer model, argues "against the notion that we've already seen a really dramatic increase in Atlantic hurricane activity resulting from greenhouse warming." The study, published online Sunday in the journal Nature Geoscience, predicts that by the end of the century the number of hurricanes in the Atlantic will fall by 18 percent. The number of hurricanes making landfall in the United States and its neighbors — anywhere west of Puerto Rico — will drop by 30 percent because of wind factors. The biggest storms — those with winds of more than 110 mph — would only decrease in frequency by 8 percent. Tropical storms, those with winds between 39 and 73 mph, would decrease by 27 percent.

I know the libs just hate it when they are confronted with real facts and data rather than the emotionalistic rhetoric of a man who is making millions of dollars off of his eco-pandering. (BTW, someone should ask Al Gore how much profit he makes every time he sells a carbon credit. If it is higher than the 6% margin that the oil companies make, someone should investigate Al for price gouging.)

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Study: Hurricane Spike Not Caused By Global Warming
Associated Press via Fox News
May 19, 2008

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And finally, we note that doctors are headed for Texas. Why? Tort reform. It is once again economical in Texas to open new practices withour having to worry about ambulance chasers like John Edwards using you and your insurance company to make themselves rich while at the same time driving health care prices so high that the lower class can no longer afford it.

From the Wall Street Journal:

In 2003 and in 2005, Texas enacted a series of reforms to the state's civil justice system. They are stunning in their success. Texas Medical Liability Trust, one of the largest malpractice insurance companies in the state, has slashed its premiums by 35%, saving doctors some $217 million over four years. There is also a competitive malpractice insurance industry in Texas, with over 30 companies competing for business. This is driving rates down. The result is an influx of doctors so great that recently the State Board of Medical Examiners couldn't process all the new medical-license applications quickly enough. The board faced a backlog of 3,000 applications. To handle the extra workload, the legislature rushed through an emergency appropriation last year.

And this is a really good idea, one that might have stopped John Edwards from doing so much damage in North Carolina:

One judge now makes all pretrial discovery and evidence rulings, including the validity of expert doctor reports, for all cases. This creates legal consistency and virtually eliminates "venue shopping" – a process by which trial lawyers file briefs in districts that they know will be friendly to frivolous suits. Trials still occur in plaintiffs' home counties.

I know, I know. The libs will still blame the "greedy" insurance companies in the rest of the U.S. But it is clear that liberal trial lawyers who seek their fortunes at the expense of insurance companies are the true culprits.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Why Doctors Are Heading For Texas
Joseph Nixon
The Wall Street Journal
May 17, 2008