The Biker Republic » Constitution

Bob Wright’s speech to Tea Partiers in El Paso.

Renegade — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:28:54 +0000

Many thanks to Mike V. over at Sipsey Street for posting this inspiring piece.

Folks,

This is another hard-hitting speech from Bob Wright, Ist BDE New Mexico Militia and former Minuteman.

Mike
III

John,

I have concluded that the best way to format this “report” is in the form of a personal letter to you.

As we discussed, I was invited to address a group in the El Paso/Las Cruces area. This invitation was the result of one of the members of this group hearing me address the gathering in Mountainair back in September. The member who invited me told me he wanted my talk to his group to be as hard hitting as the one he had heard up north.

The Group I addressed appeared to be of higher economic strata than typically attends.

I started with a quote from, von Clausewitz, about he necessity of knowing what kind of war one was actually fighting. How one must not try to make the war fit your theories, but rather base strategy on what the war really is. I told them it would be helpful to first look at where we had come from before we started plotting a course forward. I started off with my history, it seemed to get their attention when I pointed out that I was one of a handful of men who had actually led hundreds of armed men on real missions in defiance of a President. That gave me an insight into many aspects of this movement that others don’t have. I walked the group through the evolution of the movement from the ‘70’s survivalists to the early neo militias of the ‘70’s and 80’, thru the height of the Militia movement of the ‘90’s.

I talked about the rise of the Minutemen in defiance of George W. Moved on over to the angry and strident advocacy of the tea party rallies and town hall confrontations of the summer. I pointed out that the Minutemen were successful in achieving their goal of bringing illegal immigration to the forefront of American Politics BECAUSE of their defiance. Same with the Tea Party/ Town Hall effectively stopping the Obama administration and forcing this ridiculous farce we see now. The point I hammered home was it is only when we start trying to go mainstream or get to thinking we need to be polite that we become impotent.

I then moved into Just standing up and being insistent was not enough. We had to find others to stand up with us. We needed to be able to put 500 People on the State house steps with 48hrs notice. We need to unite. I then observed that our movement historically has been unable to unite. Told them how at the last “Patriot Summit” I had attended, no one came to Unite, rather had come to have everyone unite behind their particular cause.

I then began the argument that a return to Constitutional Governance could Unite the “Patriots” of this country. The Constitution is the only thing that covers all the reasons for anger.

“We can spend the rest of our lives fighting these one hundred different fronts. Or we can realize that no matter what your issue is, be it 2nd Amendment, Land Rights, Health Care, Cap and Trade, Children’s Protective Issues, Taxes, the Federal Reserve, or whatever. Each of these issues had the same root cause. That cause is a Federal Government who has ignored the limits placed on them by the Constitution. The Government we suffer under is a usurper Government. An illegitimate body operating outside all legal boundaries established at this government’s founding.

We can continue to stand apart in sullen indifference to those fellow patriots who are focused on a different usurpation than we, or we can UNITE behind that Constitution. All patriots recognize that document as the essential foundation of what it means to be American. (At this time, someone made a smart assed comment about the birth certificate controversy and I diverted some what and said, ”Look, I agree something is fishy about the document, however never fall into the trap that being American is solely a matter of geography. One could be born in Independence Hall on the fourth of July. But, if he doesn’t have certain key beliefs, he is not really an American. Those key beliefs are enshrined in those two essential documents: The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution of the United States.) I then used that to segue back into the talk about uniting with other Patriots behind the Constitution.

I then said, “People like to throw around that word revolution…. Sounds so…dangerous maybe a little sexy. But the truth is the American People are the Government. Clearly those people we picked to be our representatives to the National Government have stopped listening to their employers. The clear message on Amnesty sent by the American people…by YOU, the clear message sent on this Healthcare debacle… by YOU. Same, same Cap and Trade, Gun Control, Gay Marriage and a plethora of other issues made clear, by the American people, what their will was, and completely ignored by our representatives.

I submit to you tonight that REVOLUTION has come to Our Republic. That, it is the Government who now stands in OPEN ARROGANT REBELLION TO IT’S PEOPLE. They have made it CLEAR that they do not represent us anymore. Remember this, if you remember nothing else. The elitist conservative Republican Senator has far more in common with, and will identify far more with an elite Liberal Democrat Senator than he will ever identify with you!
If this Republic is to be saved, it will not be saved by the very bureaucrats who seek to destroy it. If the Republic is to be saved, it must be saved by YOU! You working in unison with other Patriots who are committed to seeing the Constitution returned to its place of Supremacy.

The next point is critical. How far should we go in order to restore Constitutional Government? We must make them understand, with no room for confusion that we are prepared to go to ANY length to restore the Republic. We are ready to undertake ANY hardship, complete ANY unpleasant task, endure any retribution, and turn our energies, our creativity, our devotion to all tasks, no matter how repugnant, that insure our children and grand children inherit the same birthright we inherited.”

One of the more popular quotes from our founders is the, “We Pledge Our Lives, Our Fortunes and Our Sacred Honors”. A dramatic statement oft repeated by Patriots everywhere, but what does that pledge really mean?

I pledge my Life…. most think what that means is they are willing to die for Liberty. However, that pledge means so much more. What that pledge really means is, you dedicate your life to that cause. It is not about dying folks, its about LIVING for the cause…. Living for liberty. Every day, is another day to battle those who seek to deny us, that which is ours by birthright, and we should REJOICE in that battle! We should not dread it or fear it or resent it. Whole generations go by in boredom and mediocrity, denied a chance to prove the greatness of their generation. We have been blessed to live in a time where greatness is what the time demands. Thank God that you are going to be part of that greatness. We know our cause is right, we know our cause is just and in accordance with both law and history. We know that we must not fail, for failure has consequences far beyond our temporal existence. Our failure will punish countless generations in every corner of the globe, not just our own beautiful republic.

I Pledge My Fortune… most of us think our “fortune” may be seized by a tyrannical government or “I’ll buy a really expensive weapon and a lot of MRE’s, and that will be my commitment on fortune. Yes, you can do that. No one will compel you to do any thing else. However, if we use our founders pledge as the standard this pledge means so much more than the example I just gave. What the pledge meant to our founders was their fortunes were now at the disposal of the “cause”. Most of us have read the e-mail that goes around about what happened to those who made that original pledge.
Read that and you get an idea what that pledge really means. The original pledges stripped their plantations of supplies and horses and gave to the cause. That would be comparable to you giving one of your cars to the cause, a spare computer, most of your savings, and because those plantations were the original pledges source of income, you would donate most of your paycheck to the cause, as well.

But no one will compel you to fulfill this pledge, or regulate to what level you have to fulfilled it. That is up to you and your conscience. But even now, in the back of your mind there is a hope that SOMEONE is building a resistance. Subconsciously, you pray that should our political efforts fail that there are hard men out there ready to do the hard things necessary to preserve our way of life. But… are you ready to support those hard men as they build the skills and logistical tail that will be necessary?? Are you ready to commit your fortune to putting beans in the belly and bullets in the bandoleers of those hard men we fantasize are out there… somewhere???

Our Sacred Honors: Honor is a word that has lost favor in the modern world. It’s meaning as it relates to the founders is lost on a land of relativism and public education. So, with your indulgence I will tell you what this means to me. If I willingly take this pledge, then how do I honorably fulfill that pledge? I believe that first I must remain focused on the cause I have pledged myself to. Next, every aspect of my life must be filtered through that pledge. Do I take vacation to Vail/Cabo, or do I spend my vacation at the rally in Santa Fe, or working a Minuteman line in Arizona, or training a Unit from Alabama or Texas?? Keeping the pledge in mind what is the “Honorable” thing to do?? When I do any self-assessment I must judge everything about myself as to how it relates to this great cause. Have I done all I can do? Did I handle the meeting with another group well? Did I keep the success of the cause foremost in my mind when dealing with a difficult patriot, or did I allow ego, or impatience to over ride? Because I have willingly made this pledge, I MUST judge myself by how well I serve that cause.

In addition, I expect to be judged by my peers, fellow patriots, family and friends by the same criteria. And most important I believe that this Nation and the Liberty we enjoy are gifts from a benevolent God. It follows then, that even as I face the judgment seat of the Majesty of Heaven, my dedication to that pledge will be factored.

I concluded shortly after, and the floor was opened for questions. During this period, someone in the crowd asked, “How it was that the Government thought they could get away with it”. Fixing the group with as stern a visage as I could manage, speaking softly and bringing my voice up in tenor and tempo as I spoke, I said: ”They spit in the face of our God and declared OUR GOD unfit to be in our schools, and WE DID NOTHING!!

They have turned our women away from our homes and our children and transformed them into some perverse version of some oversexed Junior High kid’s fantasies. And WE DID NOTHING!!

They take our tax money and hire perverts to come into our schools and tell our male children the most vile of sexual deviancy as an “alternative” they should explore. That’s right. YOU pay people to pervert your children, and WE DO NOTHING!!

Why shouldn’t they expect us to knuckle under? We always have! Let’s surprise the heck out of them this time. Let us unite into a grass roots conflagration of Constitutional fervor that NO Congressman dare stand in front of.

Let us be willing, and if necessary, anxious to utilize all of the founders protections. Let us not fear the most dreaded of courses, but rather let our souls sing with the songs of our fathers as we begin the restoration that will be our Legacy, our Legend, our Gift to all that come after us.

More disparaging remarks from the Kenyan

Renegade — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:07:49 +0000

According to Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, who supports the health care bill, the president asked, “Does anybody think that the teabag, anti-government people are going to support them if they bring down health care? All it will do is confuse and dispirit” Democratic voters “and it will encourage the extremists.”

As I am still reeling from the despicable and despotic act which 215 traitorous “Representatives” past into law Saturday evening, this comment touches nerves that I try not to expose.

“They got us surrounded, the poor bastards.”

Remember these?

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PELOSI: Buy a $15,000 Policy or Go to Jail

Renegade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:45:55 +0000

The original article can be found here.

The collectivist tyrants trying to push this totally unconstitutional bill upon our citizenry have really not been paying attention or are so arrogant as to think they will get away with this. It is quite the joke, they are going to tell a Three Percenter, like myself that I am going to bow at the statist feet. I wish them a lot of luck. They will need it. They got us surrounded, the poor bastards.

JCT Confirms Failure to Comply with Democrats’ Mandate Can Lead to 5 Years in Jail
Friday, November 06, 2009

Today, Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee Dave Camp (R-MI) released a letter from the non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) confirming that the failure to comply with the individual mandate to buy health insurance contained in the Pelosi health care bill (H.R. 3962, as amended) could land people in jail. The JCT letter makes clear that Americans who do not maintain “acceptable health insurance coverage” and who choose not to pay the bill’s new individual mandate tax (generally 2.5% of income), are subject to numerous civil and criminal penalties, including criminal fines of up to $250,000 and imprisonment of up to five years.

In response to the JCT letter, Camp said: “This is the ultimate example of the Democrats’ command-and-control style of governing – buy what we tell you or go to jail. It is outrageous and it should be stopped immediately.”

Key excerpts from the JCT letter appear below:

“H.R. 3962 provides that an individual (or a husband and wife in the case of a joint return) who does not, at any time during the taxable year, maintain acceptable health insurance coverage for himself or herself and each of his or her qualifying children is subject to an additional tax.” [page 1]

– - – - – - – - – -

“If the government determines that the taxpayer’s unpaid tax liability results from willful behavior, the following penalties could apply…” [page 2]

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Read the complete article here.

Bob Wright on “Our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”

Renegade — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 03:48:15 +0000

I picked this up at Sipsey Street

A beanie tip to Mike for sharing this powerful post. Few articles written cause reflection, education, determination and resolve. This is definitely one of them.

Bob Wright, my good friend of almost 15 years, told me of the speech below in a phone conversation recently. I found it so compelling that I asked him to write it down so I could post it. Here it is. I think you’ll be impressed too.

Mike
III

While speaking at a patriot gathering in North New Mexico recently I remarked to the crowd that each had quoted a founder or one of the founding documents.

I asked them what they thought Pledging “Our Lives, Our Fortunes, and Our Sacred Honor” really meant?

Lives

I asked, “how many here today were willing to say that either we win this fight or we die?” For that is what the pledge really means.

Did they realize that not only are we talking about existence on this temporal plane, but when you pledge your life that means you pledge all of the mechanics and resources that make your life what it is. Dedication to other causes, save the worship of your God, falls to the rear of the hierarchy. All other causes find themselves not only subordinate to this solemn pledge, but often co-opted to serve the cause to which this pledge was made.

Most of those who hear these words “we pledge our lives” see in their minds eye the glorious martyrdom against staggering odds, for the cause of freedom, liberty, apple pie and the American way. While some may/will make that sacrifice, most will sacrifice their lives in the service of this cause in a more tedious but no less difficult and honorable fashion.

Once you make this pledge, your life now belongs to the cause of liberty. Your decisions can no longer be based on what you want or what will take you somewhere but must now be based on one criterion alone. How will my action further the cause to which I have pledged my life? Are you ready for that?? Do you have that dedication?? And just so your decision’s not too easy or casually made, understand a very ugly death may be all you will get for your dedication.

All of the Patriots present, with varying degrees of enthusiasm assured me, themselves and all there they were so prepared. In order to insure we all understood the full ramifications of that pledge I was compelled to point out that the REALITY was that when we took the pledge we took it not only in our individual name but in the name of our spouse and others. For the history of tyranny assures us the tyrant will see it in such a light.

Fortune

What does it really mean to pledge one’s fortune? I think most consider the $3000 to $10000 dollars they spent buying a racy black gun and a store of MREs to have fulfilled that commitment. I suggest that such timidity in the face of the known price paid by those who made the original pledge is disgraceful.

Once the pledge is made, your fortune, like your life is now in the service of the cause to which you made this pledge. Don’t panic, no one wants the combo to your safe or the password to the ATM but…if you mean the pledge as the Founders meant it, then the purpose of your fortune is to support this cause.

Most in the Patriot circle have read the material put out by Rush Limbaugh’s father regarding what happened to the original pledgers. Do not make this pledge if you do not think that kind of price is worth it. I am not just talking about money or property. The treasure that is your youth will likely be spent in this great cause. Many will find themselves losing the greatest of treasures, our spouses and children as the reality of the fierceness of the coming storm tears husband from wife and parent from child as the more timid seek distance from those who have volunteered themselves into harm’s way.

Are you prepared to make this kind of commitment? Are you ready to delay the addition on the back of the house in order to fund an ammunition or food fund?? Are you prepared to sacrifice the trip to Vail, or Cabo or wherever so you can sponsor one of your High speed low drag members to one of the firearms training institutes so they can bring the most modern of technique back to you and your compatriots?

How about donating a case of ammo you have stored to the local Militia Unit? Are you able to make this kind of commitment? Are you the real Three Percenter in your group? It will take this kind of unlimited commitment to win this struggle. Our Founders knew that when they gave us this particular legacy and standard. If your commitment is not such that you too are willing to make the sacrifice of treasure of all kinds, then make not this pledge. Do not dishonor the pledge and the memory of those made by taking it with any less dedication than those who have gone before.

Sacred Honor

Honor is a word long in disuse in our modern society. But I believe that it is one of the most important words of the language. “Our Sacred Honor”. What does that mean to us, today?

I look at it like this, if I pledge MY sacred honor it means that from that time on my whole self worth and all I will ever be judged by is the success of the endeavor I have pledged that honor to. Nothing else I do will satisfy that pledge. Fail to fulfill either of the two areas discussed above and you have sacrificed this most valuable of all human virtues….honor. Sacred honor means that all others will look at you through the prism of your commitment to this pledge.

Your family and loved ones will always judge you by this pledge and your honorable fulfillment of it. Even the judgment of heaven will be percolated through the defining acts you take to fulfill this noble pledge.

You must remember that the commitments discussed here are of the most solemn and serious of nature. Not only is this pledge made to your fellow patriots, but to the majesty of Heaven as well. You have placed your entire worth on the table. Are you ready for that?

Clearly there can be no casual Patriots. One who understands the blessings of liberty and treasure them can never be casual in the vigorous defense and protection of this beloved commodity.

These are the ideas I tried to impart to them.

Bob Wright
Eunice, NM
3 November 2009

Ron Paul: Prepare for the Worst!

Renegade — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:15:59 +0000

I post this with a lot of sorrow. It is not because I didn’t know what Dr. Paul has to say is true. It is because I know that he is correct. As you visit with your families during these holidays, look at your prodigy and ask yourself what are you willing to do to ensure their liberty.

Any number of pundits claim that we have now passed the worst of the recession. Green shoots of recovery are supposedly popping up all around the country, and the economy is expected to resume growing soon at an annual rate of 3% to 4%. Many of these are the same people who insisted that the economy would continue growing last year, even while it was clear that we were already in the beginning stages of a recession.

A false recovery is under way. I am reminded of the outlook in 1930, when the experts were certain that the worst of the Depression was over and that recovery was just around the corner. The economy and stock market seemed to be recovering, and there was optimism that the recession, like many of those before it, would be over in a year or less. Instead, the interventionist policies of Hoover and Roosevelt caused the Depression to worsen, and the Dow Jones industrial average did not recover to 1929 levels until 1954. I fear that our stimulus and bailout programs have already done too much to prevent the economy from recovering in a natural manner and will result in yet another asset bubble.
Article Controls

Anytime the central bank intervenes to pump trillions of dollars into the financial system, a bubble is created that must eventually deflate. We have seen the results of Alan Greenspan’s excessively low interest rates: the housing bubble, the explosion of subprime loans and the subsequent collapse of the bubble, which took down numerous financial institutions. Rather than allow the market to correct itself and clear away the worst excesses of the boom period, the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Treasury colluded to put taxpayers on the hook for trillions of dollars. Those banks and financial institutions that took on the largest risks and performed worst were rewarded with billions in taxpayer dollars, allowing them to survive and compete with their better-managed peers.

This is nothing less than the creation of another bubble. By attempting to cushion the economy from the worst shocks of the housing bubble’s collapse, the Federal Reserve has ensured that the ultimate correction of its flawed economic policies will be more severe than it otherwise would have been. Even with the massive interventions, unemployment is near 10% and likely to increase, foreigners are cutting back on purchases of Treasury debt and the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet remains bloated at an unprecedented $2 trillion. Can anyone realistically argue that a few small upticks in a handful of economic indicators are a sign that the recession is over?

What is more likely happening is a repeat of the Great Depression. We might have up to a year or so of an economy growing just slightly above stagnation, followed by a drop in growth worse than anything we have seen in the past two years. As the housing market fails to return to any sense of normalcy, commercial real estate begins to collapse and manufacturers produce goods that cannot be purchased by debt-strapped consumers, the economy will falter. That will go on until we come to our senses and end this wasteful government spending.

Government intervention cannot lead to economic growth. Where does the money come from for Tarp (Treasury’s program to buy bad bank paper), the stimulus handouts and the cash for clunkers? It can come only from taxpayers, from sales of Treasury debt or through the printing of new money. Paying for these programs out of tax revenues is pure redistribution; it takes money out of one person’s pocket and gives it to someone else without creating any new wealth. Besides, tax revenues have fallen drastically as unemployment has risen, yet government spending continues to increase. As for Treasury debt, the Chinese and other foreign investors are more and more reluctant to buy it, denominated as it is in depreciating dollars.

PA State Legislator Attacked By Soros/MoveOn.Org

Renegade — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:17:02 +0000

A beanie tip to T for posting this to our email list.

Samantha Clarke, Legislative Assistant
State Representative Daryl Metcalfe
12th Legislative District

Rep. Daryl Metcalfe
12th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
(724) 772-3110
(717) 783-1707

RepMetcalfe.com
Contact: Ty McCauslin
(717) 772-9979

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 26, 2009

PA State Legislator Attacked By Soros/MoveOn.Org-Connected VoteVets.Org

Operation Free exposed as front group working to subvert America’s Constitution and sovereignty through climate
control, energy cap-and-tax agenda

CRANBERRY-Pennsylvania State Representative Daryl
Metcalfe (R-Butler County) officially responded
today to an attack ad now running on KDKA radio and
several other local stations urging listeners to
contact his district office and demand that he
resign.

“The sponsors of this ad are attacking me because
my comments have exposed that Operation Free’s
radical leftist agenda has absolutely nothing to do
with America’s national security, energy
independence or protecting our environment, but is a
direct attack on our Constitution,” said Metcalfe,
a U.S. Army veteran whose honorable service record
between1980-84 includes defending the West German
border during the height of the Cold War.

Operation Free is a front group for a vast
“non-profit” coalition that includes the Truman
National Security Project, the National Security
Network and the sponsor of the ad campaign
VoteVets.org. VoteVets.org supports a far-left
group of state and national politicians, including
U.S. Congressman John Murtha. All of these groups
are affiliated and receive funding from billionaire
George Soros and his even more controversial
political organization MoveOn.org.

“I stand by my original comments,” said
Metcalfe. “Any veteran lending their name to
promote the leftist propaganda of global warming and
climate change, in an effort to control more of the
wealth created in the U.S. economy, through
cap-and-tax type policies, is a traitor to the oath
he or she took to defend the Constitution of our
great nation. If someone is advocating for our
government to make statutory or regulatory changes
in policy or enter into treaties that violate our
Constitution, and they have taken an oath to uphold
and protect that same document, then they are
traitors to that oath.

“Operation Free and VoteVets.org stand with the likes of
Congressman John Murtha, who accused our marines of killing
‘innocent civilians in cold blood.’ I stand with the vast super
majority of my fellow veterans in defense of the U.S.
Constitution,” concluded Metcalfe.

My Journey for Your Freedom

Renegade — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:20:02 +0000

This is a very thoughtful look into our present circumstances in this country. It is written with experience. It is posted wide as a “Must Read”. Here is the intro.

I came from where we are heading, I grew up in a Communist country. Unfortunately I see a lot of parallels between the then and there, and the here and now. I look at this national emergency as a manufactured crisis that provides the government with everything to do whatever they please.

There are many rumors, and they may just be rumors about something brewing in DC. This administration has worked very hard to begin a takeover of the government, and I don’t see them stopping. If they make the decision to go that route, no law, not even the Constitution will stand in their way. They are looking for power over the entire nation.

Where is the military if the government goes against the Constitution? Where is the police?

I wrote the following for the 4th of July, I hope it is an eye opener for all.

Here is the article, a “Must Read”.

God Bless Each

“Your rights have been suspended”

Renegade — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:30:49 +0000

Welcome to Shreveport: Your rights are now suspended.
Over two months ago, the National Association for Gun Rights first broke this incredible tale out of Shreveport, Louisiana.

At the time, no other gun rights organization had touched the story. But when we tracked down the victim for an interview, we couldn’t believe what we heard, and we immediately sent out a nationwide alert.

The story went viral overnight.

If this tale of government abuse moves you, send it to a friend or family member to get the word out.

——————————————————————————–

According to Cedric Glover, mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana, his cops “have a power that [. . .] the President of these Unites States does not have”: His cops can take away your rights.

And would you like to guess which rights he has in mind?

Just ask Shreveport resident Robert Baillio, who got pulled over for having two pro-gun bumper stickers on the back of his truck — and had his gun confiscated.

While the officer who pulled him over says Baillio failed to use his turn signal, the only questions he had for Baillio concerned guns: Whether he had a gun, where the gun was, and if he was a member of a pro-gun organization. No requests for a driver’s licence, proof of insurance, or vehicle registration — and no discussion of a turn signal.
Accordingly, Baillio told the officer the truth, which led the police officer to search his car without permission and confiscate his gun.

However, not only does Louisiana law allow resident to drive with loaded weapons in their vehicles, but Mr. Baillio possessed a concealed carry license!

What does such behavior demonstrate, other than transparent political profiling — going so far as to use the infamous Department of Homeland Security report on “Americans of a rightwing persuasion” as a how-to guidebook, no less?

Mr. Baillio made no secret of his political affiliations: An American flag centers a wide flourish of pro-freedom stickers and decals on his back windshield.

In fact, when Baillio asked the officer if everyone he pulls over gets the same treatment, the officer said no and pointed to the back of his truck.

Baillio phoned Mayor Glover to complain about this “suspension of rights” only to find that his city’s morbidly obese “commander in chief” was elated at the story: According to Glover, Baillio got “served well, protected well, and even got a consideration that maybe [he] should not have gotten.”

Thankfully, Mr. Baillio recorded a good bit of that phone call. You can watch a video with the transcriptions here. I’ve reproduced a chunk of the call below:

Baillio: (in the context of being asked about the presence of a gun) Well, I answered that question honestly, and he disarmed me.

Glover: Which would be an appropriate and proper action, sir. The fact that you gave the correct answer — it simply means that you did what it is you were supposed to have done, and that is to give that weapon to the police officer so he could appropriately place it in a place where it would not be a threat to you, to him, or to anyone in the general public.

[. . .]

Glover: My direction to you is that, had you chosen not to properly identify the fact that you had a weapon and directed that officer to where that weapon was located; had you been taken from the vehicle, and the officer, in the interest of his safety, chose to secure you in a safe position, and then looked, found, and determined that you did, in fact, have a weapon…then, sir, you would have faced additional, [inaudible], and more severe criminal sanctions.

Baillio: So what you’re saying is: I give up all my rights to keep and bear arms if I’m stopped by the police: Is that correct?

Glover: Sir, you have no right, when you have been pulled over by a police officer for a potential criminal offense [which would be what?! - DB] to stand there with your weapon at your side in your hand [Baillio's weapon was nowhere near his side or his hand, and Glover knew that. -- DB] because of your second amendment rights, sir. That does not mean at that point your second amendment right has been taken away; it means at that particular point in time, it has been suspended.

Will Grigg from ProLibertate, an excellent freedom blog, has this to say:

According to Glover, a police officer may properly disarm any civilian at any time, and the civilian’s duty is to surrender his gun — willingly, readily, cheerfully, without cavil or question.

From Glover’s perspective, it is only when firearms are in the hands of people other than the state’s uniformed enforcers/oppressors that they constitute a threat, not only to the public and those in charge of exercising official violence but also to the private gun owner himself.

NAGR spoke with Mr. Baillio, and he told us that he’s in the process of securing the official procedures and codes for firearm handling and private property confiscation for the Shreveport police department.

So far, the city has been half-heartedly cooperating with him.

“I felt sick,” Baillio told NAGR. “My uncles didn’t die for this country so I could surrender my rights like a wimp. I felt terrible. I was just thinking of all that my family has done for freedom in this nation — including dying — and here they are disarming me at a traffic stop.”

What to do?

Read Luke’s commentary here, and participate in the discussion by leaving a comment.
Send this around. This kind of behavior cannot go unchecked.
Call Mayor Glover’s office to complain: (318) 673-5050.

I’ll leave you with one last consideration. As a licensed firearms instructor in charge of a hundred different students every month, I’m often asked if citizens should voluntarily inform police officers of the presence of a firearm during a routine traffic stop.

While different states have different laws, my answer for Colorado citizens is an emphatic “No”: Colorado law doesn’t require you to volunteer that kind of information, and this case in Louisiana proves why, if at all possible, you should never invite trouble by doing so.

For Liberty,

Dudley Brown
Executive Director

P.S. NAGR maintains a gun rights blog that our members use to keep abreast of current gun rights developments.

Quote of the Year

Renegade — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:33:04 +0000

“We swear an oath to the Constitution, not to a man, even if he makes a thrill run up your leg when he talks.”

Stewart Rhodes
Founder, Oath Keepers

Here is the link to Oath Keepers and the video.

And this is what the collectivist call journalism. It is no more than an outlet for Mathews to spew his venal lies to the sheeple. The fact that the SPLC is a lying bunch of liberal trash taking our money (through taxes and grants) to bolster the collectivist liberal agenda is well known and documented. Potok, being the pitiful soul that he is did nothing but further bolster that truth.

Visit Oath Keepers

“They’re gonna need a bigger jail.” Yeah, and a whole crap-ton of deputies.

Renegade — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 15:15:43 +0000

The original article can be found here.

How much closer to the wall can we be pushed?

March on Washington, 12 September 2009,

Carrie Budoff Brown has been tracking this story at Politico.com.

September 24, 2009

Flout the mandate penalty? Face the IRS

Americans who fail to pay the penalty for not buying insurance would face legal action from the Internal Revenue Service, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation.

The remarks Thursday from the committee’s chief of staff, Thomas Barthold, seems to further weaken President Barack Obama’s contention last week that the individual mandate penalty, which could go as high as $1,900, is not a tax increase.

Under questioning from Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), Barthold said the IRS would “take you to court and undertake normal collection proceedings.”

Ensign pursued the line of questioning because he said a lot of Americans don’t believe the Constitution allows the government to mandate the purchase of insurance.

“We could be subjecting those very people who conscientiously, because they believe in the U.S. Constitution, we could be subjecting them to fines or the interpretation of a judge, all the way up to imprisonment,” Ensign said. “That seems to me to be a problem.”

Ensign’s argument, however, wasn’t persuasive to the committee — which rejected an amendment from Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) to eliminate the individual mandate.

Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) was the only Republican to vote with Democrats to preserve the mandate.

Ensign pressed for an explanation of what would happen to someone who didn’t knuckle under to the mandate. This is what he received in reply.

Brown writes:

September 25, 2009

Ensign receives handwritten confirmation

This doesn’t happen often enough.

Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) received a handwritten note Thursday from Joint Committee on Taxation Chief of Staff Tom Barthold confirming the penalty for failing to pay the up to $1,900 fee for not buying health insurance.

Violators could be charged with a misdemeanor and could face up to a year in jail or a $25,000 penalty, Barthold wrote on JCT letterhead. He signed it “Sincerely, Thomas A. Barthold.”

The note was a follow-up to Ensign’s questioning at the markup.

To which “jd” commented at Politico:

“They’re gonna need a bigger jail.”

“Yeah, and a whole crap-ton of deputies” comments Mike V. at Sipsey Street Irregulars.(my emphasis)