10th Amendment movement spreading
Protesters at a "tea party" in Raleigh, N.C., last month said they were "tired of pork."
Public and legislative outcry regarding government spending has led to a new grassroots movement, called “The Tenth Amendment Movement.” Others refer to it as the New Boston Tea Party.
Whatever you call it, it means that state lawmakers and citizens are asking for their 10th Amendment rights back. The 10th Amendment states:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Texas signs state sovereignty resolution
Texas Governor Rick Perry today signed a resolution that reaffirms his state’s rights under the 10th Amendment.
“Millions of Texans are tired of Washington, D.C. trying to come down here to tell us how to run Texas,” Perry said in a speech supporting House Concurrent Resolution 50.
This new movement seems mostly spurred by the trillions being spent by the federal government on installment loans for insurance companies, bailout money for banks and the stimulus package.
On the bandwagon
Last month, the House of Representatives in Oklahoma and South Dakota signed sovereignty resolutions as well. Some Florida residents are working on getting a similar resolution passed in their state.
Several “tea parties,” or tax protests, are scheduled this week in Florida. This time around, protesters say, “tea” stands for Taxed Enough Already. Five protests will take place in one county, Brevard.
Brevard a microcosm for country
The Republican Liberty Caucus of Central East Florida has organized the tea parties for Brevard County. Organizers say one of the main goals of the protests is:
Calling attention to and collecting signatures for a petition to Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Legislature to reject stimulus funds on 10th Amendment grounds.
Similar movements are happening in many states. Check out full coverage at Pajamas TV.
One of the tricky bits about using an Amendment backing to an argument is that if it’s misused, consequences can happen. It all comes down to SCOTUS decisions – or the Supreme Court Of The United States. If the Supreme Court takes issue with it, the states may end up having to take stimulus funds.
Numbers of Texans feel there is just too much tax increase and that government spending is spiraling out of control. Many believe that the government’s enormous spending bills were loaded down in wasteful spending and pet projects that have no immediate, direct impact on the economy. And it’s obviously clear that the biggest disappointment is the tax increases. Tax increases seem to appear on almost everything regulated by the government, and the people are not about to give in that easily.