In an amusing turn of events Governor Abbott has taken a BIG step into the Nullification camp. On Friday after the Supreme Court officially gave their rubber stamp of approval on gay marriage, Governor Abbott told his department directors to not take action against any state officials who act or refuse to act on account of their “sincere religious belief.” “This order applies to any agency decision, including but not limited to granting or denying benefits, managing agency employees, entering or enforcing agency contracts, licensing and permitting decisions, or enforcing state laws and regulations,” Abbott wrote.
Abbott, while not a vocal denouncer of the use of nullification in politics, has generally shied away from its use or talking about it directly. Even when Constitutional Attorney Kris Anne Hall specifically wrote a letter to then Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, at the request of his constituents to see how he stood on the matter of nullification, when we contacted her she informed us that he never replied to the letter. But now, however, with such a clear violation of his political voting base’s beliefs, it didn’t take long for Governor Abbott to see the light.
“As government officials, we have a constitutional duty to preserve, protect, and defend the religious liberty of every Texan.”
Though this article might be poking a little fun at Governor Abbott, he is absolutely right in his statement on his constitutional duty. In fact, every single individual who takes an oath to defend, preserve, and protect our constitution is responsible in their duties to defend it in their everyday affairs. And while the issue of marriage has become clouded, it doesn’t change the fact that this duty includes police, sheriffs, county officials, city officials, state officials all the way up to the federal level. This is clearly stated in Article IV of the Constitution:
“The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution….”
Governor Abbott’s awakening is nothing new and while nullification has no political affiliation other than with the constitution, many people don’t see its relevance until it is their rights that the government has become hostile toward. Nullification has always been a tool to push back against the encroachment of the federal government ever since its inception in 1798 but, today its history is almost always cast in a disparaging and incorrect manner. This is why political think tanks like The Tenth Amendment Center were formed, to try to put a proper constitutional perspective on Nullification and its use.
The heart of the matter is always the question of has the federal government overstepped its bounds as clearly laid down by the constitution. For close to 150 years the Constitution’s checks and balances mostly held fast. But in the early 20th century, those checks and balances were dramatically weakened and in some cases swept away altogether. Federal power slipped its constitutional moorings and began to expand dramatically. (You can read this article to explain where most of the expansion happened) And now with our national debt growing out of control, continuous wars, and the falling of our standards of living, it is clear that the “one size fits all” government that we have morphed into can no longer sustain a population of 319 million. Besides, it isn’t hard to look at the books of our founding to see that the fears of the people of the founding generation have come true and the boundaries between our states and the federal government have been breached.
So, welcome aboard Governor Abbott and when it’s a Republican President, court, law, etc. that’s the offender we’ll be glad to welcome the Democrats aboard when they suddenly begin to start seeing the light.
