Federal Government: When Enough is Enough

Our forefathers had it right in the very beginning. Weary of over regulation and taxation without representation by King George’s British rule, colonial Americans sought not only independence, but a form of sovereign government never before attempted. The US Constitution and the Bill of Rights not only guaranteed freedom of the individual but protection from an overbearing government. More than anything else the United States of America would be a republic that would govern according to its very own constitution dedicated to protecting the rights of its citizens. The emphasis would be on relegating the federal government to a limited role and allowing individual states the freedom of governing themselves.

Our forefathers intended such aspects of American life to include freedom from over taxation (no income taxes) and law makers within state legislatures to ratify legal issues primarily as opposed to running everything through Capitol Hill. They knew that the private sector could do things more efficiently and cost effectively than relying upon federal government bureaucracy to solve problems.

Central banks more than once in two centuries failed to stabilize US currency or control inflation and were dissolved. President Andrew Jackson threw out the central bank during his administration. Yet, the Federal Reserve once again emerged during Woodrow Wilson’s administration just before the outbreak of World War I. The Revenue Department destined to become the IRS also made its debut at that time.

Time and again the ominous shadow of big government rears its ugly head and threatens to bury the original intentions of our Colonial Patriots, who sought refuge from its excesses and stifling presence. Here we are today, treading water in a financial quagmire thanks to the Clinton administration’s lifting of economic safety measures, which allowed Wall Street to go wild, as federal housing lending giants Fannie Mae, Freddie Mae, and Freddie Mac were ridden into the ground by such Democratic leaders as Rahm Emmanuel, Franklin Raines, and others. These men and others earned large sums of money while riding that hell-bound train to its demise as their mismanagement bankrupted these institutions. Where is accountability or enforcement in the light of these revelations? Justice seems to be a very dim prospect when considering that the criminals in the private sector have also held positions as federal regulators as well as the latter.

In a foreseeable scenario, the Fed is forced to buy large shares in the bad debt of all major US banks, bail out the car makers, become a controlling partner in the airlines just as in the case of Amtrak. How long will it take some official in Washington DC to finally admit that we have sunken into the depths of socialism. Meanwhile, the news media force feeds us more loving Obama rhetoric and elementary school children are taught to adore his posters in the classroom. I can’t help but see a nauseating parallel between the looming figure of Chairman Mao and his admiring hordes in Red China.