Now We Know

Some have called Rand Paul's filibuster historic. Some have called it pointless. It has simultaneously been referred to as a success and as a failure. Senator Paul did indeed get Eric Holder to admit that the President believes it is unconstitutional to use drones against Americans on American soil without a trial, which is what he was asking for. But many believe that words are cheap, especially when those words come from anyone in the Obama Administration. And it may indeed be that this means nothing for the future of drone usage in America. Sen. Paul himself has said that this is just the beginning of the fight. But if the filibuster achieves nothing else, it did have one extremely important outcome. In the world of politics, it can be hard to distinguish one person from the next. Corruption is everywhere and words, as mentioned above, are cheap. It can be very hard to know which politicians mean what they say, and which care only about their own pockets. Well Rand Paul's filibuster made things a whole lot clearer on Wednesday.

As Senator Paul stood on the Senate floor for just under 13 hours, fighting to bring attention to the erosion of our rights as Americans, he was joined by fellow senators. But only a handful. 14 Republican senators stood behind, and with, Rand Paul as he tried to defend the Constitution. Only 1 Democrat senator did. 15. 15 (16 including Paul) out of 100 chose to go against their parties, president, and the status quo in order to try and make sure Americans retain their rights. That is a staggering number. Yet many of us have believed for a long while that most of our representatives in Congress are sell outs. Now we know who they are. Republican or Democrat, it does not matter. What matters is our Constitution which defends our Freedom. Either you are fighting for it, or you are fighting against it.

Those fighting for it include: Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Pat Toomey (R-Penn.), John Thune (R-S.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wy.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.).

The Blaze also reports that Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) was in attendance and supported Paul’s filibuster by bringing the senator a thermos and an apple, a likely reference to “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” However, Kirk, who recently returned to the Senate after suffering a stroke, did not speak during the filibuster. The Blaze article also has a full list of the other 32 Republican senators who did not choose to join the filibuster.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) was the only Democrat to support the filibuster, much to the chagrin of liberals who, whaddaya know, also don't want drones killing Americans without due process on U.S. soil. The ACLU and John Cusack were discouraged at the lack of Democrat support.

I think we all are a little discouraged that the men and women we elect to defend our rights are willing to so easily sell us down the proverbial river, but at least now we know who we can trust to stand up for us and who we can't. My advice: Don't ever vote for anyone not on that list again. Rand Paul's filibuster may not have achieved much, but it has exposed the dirty politicians from the (relatively) clean ones. Now we know who to trust. And as G.I. Joe taught me: knowing is half the battle.

(It should be noted that a number of representatives from the U.S. House also attended to support the filibuster, but I have yet to find a definitive list of who as of yet. If I do, I will update with it.)

UPDATE: In an op-ed Paul wrote for the Washington Post, he included the members of Congress who stood with him during his filibuster. Sixteen House Republicans showed up in the Senate to show solidarity. They are: Louis Gohmert (TX), Thomas Massie (KY), Justin Amash (MI), Ron DeSantis (FL), Doug LaMalfa (CA), Garland Barr (KY), Trey Radel (FL), Michael Burgess (TX), Jim Bridenstine (OK), Raul Labrador (ID), Keither Rothfus (PA), Paul Gosar (AZ), Steve Daines (MONTANA), Bill Huizenga (MI), Richard Hudson (NC), and David Schweikert (AZ). It should also be noted that Senator Angus King, an Independent from Maine, also stood on the floor in support of Paul.

Rand Paul - The Last American?

"Are we so complacent with our rights that we would allow a president to say he might kill Americans?"

That is the crux of what was an almost 13 hour filibuster by Kentucky Senator Rand Paul that began just before noon yesterday and ended well after midnight tonight. A rare "talking filibuster" by Paul held up the confirmation hearing of CIA head nominee John Brennan, but the filibuster had little to do with Brennan himself and everything to do with the frightening drone policy that is being implemented by the Obama Administration. Rand Paul asked a simple question that deserves a simple answer. Does the Executive Branch of our government have the right to kill Americans on American soil with drones, and if so, by what guidelines? Senator Paul was driven to hold up Senate proceedings until he was given an adequate answer to that simple question...and he may have done so well into tomorrow if not for the need of a bathroom break. (For the life of me I don't know how he made it nearly 13 hours without one!) His numerous requests for an answer to that simple question were all ignored or skirted by the President, Attorney General Eric Holder, and John Brennan. And so Paul held up the Senate to make it known that this is an important issue, maybe the most important of our time. Because if the Executive Branch can ignore the 5th Amendment, then it can ignore them all and we are two steps away from outright dictatorship.

Because of the length of the filibuster, the issue was brought to light. Infamously liberal groups like the ACLU and the Huffington Post agreed with Rand Paul. Yet, I fear that the answer to the question above is a deafening 'yes.' The majority of Americans are too complacent with our rights. As Greg Gutfeld said, President Obama has been gifted with the most distracted society since Ancient Rome (and we all know how that turned out). Instead of Bread and Circuses we have Beyonce and Siri. I believe history does repeat itself. And I'm also starting to believe Mark Twain was right in saying that nothing can be done to stop that; that man's nature only leads to the repeating of history's mistakes. Looking at today's America, how can one come to any other conclusion? Rand Paul may very well be the last American standing.

Martial Law in the U.S.? All signs point to yes.

I haven't really written much here lately, because I haven't found much worth writing about. The news stays relatively the same: the United States is slipping into a Communistic third world dystopia. The Democrats are working hard to strip Americans of freedoms. The Republicans are feigning dismay while quietly pushing for the same. Only a handful of Congressmen and Women are actively trying to slow the decay.

But it's a pointless fight.
This country was predicated on the will of the people. It still is to a degree. But the majority of U.S. citizens are either too concerned with what celebrity wore what to what award show or too uninformed about what's going on within our government to understand just where we seem to be headed. For the small amount of citizens who are aware and concerned, there's not really anything new to them and not really anything that can be done to change it. So, I for one, have been concentrating on more personal matters. I believe a lot of us are these days. We're keeping our family and friends close and our supplies closer. It's funny how those who are actively preparing for any number of disasters are looked upon as fools...yet if/when it hits the fan, who's going to be the fool then?

As to where exactly we are headed, well I can only point to the signs. The signs like the Indefinite Detention clause in the NDAA (which Obama has given his word that he will never use...forgive me if I'm unswayed), that gives the government the legal right to arrest and hold any American citizen for an indefinite amount of time with no trial. That means they don't ever need proof to lock up citizens for life.

Then there's the Drone Strike controversy in which the White House has said that they have the legal right to kill American citizens with drones...again, without any proof needed. And more disturbing is that John Brennan, the man Obama wants to be the next head of the CIA, has refused to answer whether they could use drones on Americans on American soil.

And I'm sure by now most have heard about the Department of Homeland Security's purchase of 2 billion rounds of ammunition...a majority of that hollow point bullets that are NOT used for simple target practice because of their price. However, a new story is the $2 million worth of "No Hesitation" targets that the DHS has purchased for its target practice. Those include an old man, a pregnant woman, and a child. Now why on the good green earth would the government need targets of pregnant women and children!?? They've said it's because they need to prepare their new recruits for their new job. So apparently their new job will be shooting at American citizens, including women, children, and the elderly.

A year ago if you would have told me that the United States government was preparing for Martial Law, I would have laughed in your face. Now, all a thinking man can surmise is that that is exactly what they are preparing for. Why, when, or how is anybody's guess. But as of right now, all signs point directly to Martial Law. Only a fool would be unprepared.