Remembering a State’s Sovereignty

by J.D. Longstreet
Some of the state politicians in Oklahoma have taken a very good look at the US Constitution and they have seen, and apparently understand, the transformation the American people have allowed in the manner in which the 50 states of the “United States” are governed.

The US Government was created, by the states, to act as an agent of the states. It was to be controlled by the states. That is what the US Constitution dictates. The thirteen colonies were independent, sovereign, “states”, or countries, at the end of the War for Independence from Great Britain. Those thirteen countries created something called “The United States” as an agent, or an agency, of the states to exist and to work on behalf of, and under the control of, the states. But, that is NOT the way the US government operates today. Today the states are considered agents of the US government with the US government in control. It is unconstitutional, but that is the way things go in America today.

But, in Oklahoma, things may be about to change.

The Oklahoma House of Representatives passed House Joint Resolution (1089) reclaimimg their sovereignty. Here is a portion of the text of Oklahoma’s HJR 1089:

“Whereas, the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States reads as follows: ‘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.’; and Whereas, the Tenth Amendment defines the total scope of federal power as being that specifically granted by the Constitution of the United States and no more; and whereas, the scope of power defined by the Tenth Amendment means that the federal government was created by the states specifically to be an agent of the states; and Whereas, today, in 2008, the states are demonstrably treated as agents of the federal government. … Now, therefore, be it resolved by the House of Representatives and the Senate of the 2nd session of the 51st Oklahoma Legislature: that the State of Oklahoma hereby claims sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the Constitution of the United States. That this serve as Notice and Demand to the federal government, as our agent, to cease and desist, effective immediately, mandates that are beyond the scope of these constitutionally delegated powers.”

You may look it up for yourself at:

http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/Webapplication1/webform1.aspx

So… how did we get here? We got here through ignorance and apathy… not necessarily in that order.

It seems Southern Americans have always had an exceptional interest in, and a strong sense of the value of state’s rights. We have been aware of them since the first draft of the Constitution. We even fought a war in a valiant, yet hopeless, attempt to preserve them.

The US federal government is too big, too strong, and, in the opinion of many Americans, myself included, it has assumed powers it does not have, powers not granted it by the US Constitution. And WE let it happen. American citizens allowed their/our government to grow in size and strength until it is involved in practically every aspect of a US citizen’s life today. And guess what? We are begging it to grow even more and take over even more of what’s left of our lives. Why, we even have one candidate for President PROMISING to do just that and American citizens are flocking to his camp in droves!

The folks in Oklahoma may be about to raise America’s “awareness” of what we have squandered, of what we have given away, and of what we have lost as a result.

We have no way of knowing what the Oklahoma legislature will do when next they convene, but we HOPE they will look favorably upon this bill (House Joint Resolution 1089) and pass it. If we had our “druthers” we’d like to see a similar bill passed in all the legislatures of the 50 states. But, it won’t happen. Why? Because it means Americans would, once again, have to take responsibility for more of their/our own actions and inactions. We are absolutely NOT prepared to do that. Not any more. See, being invaded, conquered, occupied, and having your homes burned to the ground, your cities bombarded, burned, looted, and left in smoking ruins, and then suffering the indignity of being reconstructed, or as the modern phrase has it… “re-educated”… sort of gets your attention while, at the same time, serving as an example to any other states who may be considering doing something so foolish as thinking THEY have rights the federal government, in it’s questionable wisdom, did not grant them.

For the most part, modern Americans do not even understand state’s rights. They/we have no inkling of what state’s rights are … or rather… were… before we allowed the federal government to squash them. However, state’s rights are easily defined. Read the US Constitution. If the power is not explicitly stated to be that of the federal government by the constitution… it is a right of the states. If the states don’t particular care about the right in question, then it is the right of the people. Read it: “…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.” That is right out of the tenth amendment to the US Constitution. It is a part of our Bill of Rights. In fact, a number of states insisted that the 10th amendment had to be in there… or… they would not ratify, or “sign on to” the constitution in the first place. The state I call my home today was one of those hardheaded states.

Oklahoma has just remembered what all the states have forgotten… our sovereignty. Pray God we all remember… before it is too late.