Del. Bob Marshall, of Virginia, called me last night. The reason will excite you. He wanted to thank me for the role DownsizeDC.org played in achieving a major victory.
Mr. Marshall's bill, HB 1160, has passed BOTH houses of the Virginia legislature, including a 39-to-1 vote in the Senate this past Tuesday. This bill prohibits the state of Virginia from assisting the federal government in the unlawful detention of United States citizens. Remember . . .
The Executive Branch gained this power of "kidnapping" as a result of a confusing provision in the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). That criminal statue contained tricky language that has fooled many reporters, citizens, and even members of Congress. The measure was deceitfully written to make people think it exempts U.S. citizens when it does NOT! This linguistic deceit was likely intentional. But it's even more important to defend the principle that citizenship is morally irrelevant, because . . .
The rights that this criminal edict violates are Pre-Constitutional. These rights must be honored for ALL people, NOT just citizens.
DownsizeDC.org has been fighting this bill since before it was enacted. Now, we are helping Delegate Marshall with a vital tactic -- non-cooperation by the states!
Delegate Marshall not only thanked me for our support on the phone, he also acknowledged our help in the news release announcing this victory.
If you want to thank Delegate Marshall for HB 1160 you can do so at his Facebook page.
In addition, if you live in Virginia, please call the Governor and tell him to sign HB 1160 into law. The phone number is: 804-786-2211
We are working with other groups, like the Tenth Amendment Center, to achieve similar victories in other states. An even stronger bill is already pending in Tennessee, and we'll be encouraging you to support it when the time comes. Meanwhile . . .
DownsizeDC.org has influenced this fight in yet another crucial way. We've been encouraging people to start using precise language to describe this issue. What the Feds have done is criminal. It is NOT merely unlawful detention; it IS actually the crime of kidnapping. We should call it that. I'm happy to report that other groups AND state legislators are following our lead in this regard.
We're fighting organized crime, otherwise known as statism. Getting the language right is a big part of our battle. You should be pleased to learn that both the Downsize DC Foundation and DownsizeDC.org continue to provide strategic leadership in this area.
Congratulations for the role you played in this victory. And remember, we can always do more if we have more. Visit our secure contribution form: https://secure.downsizedc.org/contribute/
Jim Babka
President
Downsize DC Foundation
& DownsizeDC.org, Inc.
D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h
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