Tenth Amendment Center executive director Michael Boldin made a prediction the other day.
“In 8-10 months, you’ll see Republicans and some Tea Party people suddenly OK with much of Obamacare, as long as it’s not called Obamacare.”
I hope he’s not right, but I have a sneaky suspicion he will be.
There’s nothing like partisan politics to bring out the hypocrisy in people. I was amused when the same characters who have called me a “Neo-Confederate” and a racist started talking about secession last week. The 180 degree turns started the day after the election. Lawrence O’Donnell was on CNBC talking about “separation of powers,” pointing out that “the Constitution anticipated this. The Founding Fathers anticipated Donald Trump.”
It was as if O’Donnel was trying to prove me right. I heard about his comments just an hour after I posted a short article on my website predicting the left will suddenly become very interested in limiting the power of the federal government.
“For years, I’ve preached the danger of ignoring Constitutional limits just because your team wants to get things done. At some point, the other guys take over. When they do, the power your team usurped to “get things done” is turned against you. The left is about to learn that lesson the hard way.”
But the question is – – have conservatives learned the lesson of the Obama era? They’ve bemoaned ever-expanding executive powers and railed against unconstitutional overreach for eight years. Now that their guy – or at least somebody who is more their guy than Obama – is in office, will they fight his unconstitutional actions? Because I guarantee you there will be many.
Some will certainly look the other way when Donald ignores the Constitution, because they like the policy outcomes his overreach brings about. I can assure you, I will not look the other way and neither will the Tenth Amendment Center. We plan on sticking to our guns. The political actors may have changed, but we plan to continue insisting they all follow the Constitution every issue, every time, no exceptions, no excuses.
Michael Maharrey is a journalist, author, and speaker. He speaks at events across the United States, and frequently appears as a guest on local, national and international radio shows advancing constitutional fidelity and liberty through decentralization. He has written three books: Our Last Hope – Rediscovering the Lost Path to Liberty, Smashing Myths: Understanding Madison’s Notes on Nullification, and Nullification Objections: Dismantling the Opposition. He currently serves as the national communications director for the Tenth Amendment Center.