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acroyearThe Non-Libertarian Tea Party : Dispatches from the Culture Wars:
better still if the media just stopped giving them headlines.
on the other hand, supporters of the health care bill can say stupid (and mostly irrelevant) things as well:
Democrats Say Dumb Things Too : Dispatches from the Culture Wars:
But you'd be better off saying those things rather than quoting the Declaration of Independence (which is, for that matter, NOT binding law in any way at all) while claiming to be quoting the Constitution.
Especially not a mere 2 weeks after the Constitution was read out loud in the House Chambers.
The keynote speaker was former Governor Gary Johnson who is rumored to be running for president. Gary is highly regarded in the state for his outstanding leadership during two terms as governor. He slashed the size of state government during his term and left the state with a large budget surplus. His speech brought enthusiastic applause from the sparse crowd. Governor Johnson should have stopped while he was ahead.anybody surprised? not really. there is no common strand in the tea party whatsoever beyond "if the Democrats want it, then by God, i'm against it". and existing solely as the antithesis of another party is a great way to grab headlines, but a shitty way to run a country.
When Tea Party members were invited to ask questions, someone asked the governor if he supported legalization of marijuana. Gary responded that he did. His remarks brought a chorus of boos from the crowd. Gary went on to make the case for legalization based on the cost of incarcerating pot smokers, but the crowd wasn't having it. The boos erupted again.
better still if the media just stopped giving them headlines.
on the other hand, supporters of the health care bill can say stupid (and mostly irrelevant) things as well:
Democrats Say Dumb Things Too : Dispatches from the Culture Wars:
Rep. John Lewis of Georgia being asked about the individual mandate in the health care reform bill and where in the constitution the authority to impose that mandate comes from. He was utterly clueless.One can say it is a right under a (wide) reading of the 9th Amendment, plus use the known arguments for the bill as being defended by the Commerce Clause, the Taxation Clause, and the Necessary and Proper Clause (the 14th would only be used to make sure that there was no discrimination in the Bill, and perhaps defends the end of pre-existing conditions measure).
Q: What area of the constitution do you think gives Congress the authority to require that individuals purchase insurance?
A: Well, you start off with the preamble to the Constitution, you talk about the pursuit of happiness. You go to the 14th amendment, equal protection under the law. We have not repealed the 14th amendment. People have a right to have healthcare; it's not a privilege, but a right.
But you'd be better off saying those things rather than quoting the Declaration of Independence (which is, for that matter, NOT binding law in any way at all) while claiming to be quoting the Constitution.
Especially not a mere 2 weeks after the Constitution was read out loud in the House Chambers.
