Tying together strands from the legal reasoning in the twin Supreme Court cases on Obamacare, we find a principle that just might shield individual Americans from the coercive force of the federal government if it were ever properly applied. It’s a simple fact in the insurance business: the more policyholders file claims, the more pressure…
Two shocking rulings handed down by the Supreme Court recently – one, King V. Burwell, rewriting precise language in the Affordable Health Care Act, the other, Obergefell V. Hodges, assuming federal authority to define marriage, illuminate a central flaw in the American system of government – as it now exists. That flaw is the lack…
SACRAMENTO, Ca. (July 15, 2015) – Yesterday, a California Assembly Committee unanimously passed a bill that not only bolsters restrictions on state officials from seizing property without due process, but throws a wrench into federal efforts to do the same. Previously passed by the Senate, it moves one step closer to the Governor’s desk. Introduced by…
The victors of war write its history in order to cast themselves in the most favorable light. That explains the considerable historical ignorance about our war of 1861 and panic over the Confederate flag. To create better understanding, we have to start a bit before the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
Whenever a bill to allow industrial hemp farming – note, this is different than marijuana legalization – comes up in a state legislature, the leading opponents are generally law enforcement groups. These police lobbies almost always base their opposition on flawed logic and outright falsehood. A recent conflict between marijuana growers and hemp farmers in…
At least five prominent Republican governors are advocating state resistance to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations regarding climate change and carbon emissions. If done by multiple states, this would likely nullify those EPA rules in practice. Buoyed by assistance from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, they are calling on states to deny enforcement resources for an anticipated regulatory plan from…
The Supreme Court majority ruling ignored this long-term clarity and instead chose, as they did in 2013, to violate the document they are charged with upholding.
It happened in the blink of an eye. With one favorable Supreme Court decision, scores of libertarians joined establishment progressives and conservatives, picked up daggers and thrust them into the heart of the Constitution. It was bizarre watching people who used to talk about the evils of centralized government and federal usurpation of power suddenly…
SALEM, Ore. (July 10, 2015) – The Oregon Senate killed a bill that would have shut down the recently launched industrial hemp industry, ensuring that hemp farmers will be able to continue to growing their crops, further nullifying in practice the federal ban. The Senate voted 13-17 against HB2668. The legislation would have essentially halted…
CONCORD, N.H. (July 11, 2015) – On Monday, New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan signed a bill into law that expands the state’s current medical marijuana program, further nullifying in practice the federal prohibition on the same. Introduced by Rep. Stephen Schmidt (R-Wolfeboro) and five bipartisan co-sponsors, House Bill 476 (HB476) adds “epilepsy, lupus, Parkinson’s disease,…