WND EXCLUSIVE

STATES GO FULL THROTTLE TO LIMIT FEDS

Hundreds of bills looming in legislatures on Common Core, NSA, marijuana

Bob Unruh

It’s only days, a few weeks at most, into the 2015 season for state legislatures, and already there are hundreds of bills looming that  challenge the power of Washington on issues ranging from Common Core to marijuana and the National Security Agency, according to a new report.

The Tenth Amendment Center, which tracks legislation at the state level, has listed some 200 state bills “seeking to block or limit federal power.”

“Sponsored by both Democrats and Republicans, these bills range from narrowly focused legislation that would allow terminally ill people access to experimental drugs and medical treatments despite FDA regulations, to bills that would deny resources and assistance from states to the NSA. Other legislation addresses the Second Amendment, the federal prohibition of hemp and marijuana, Common Core, the use of drones for surveillance, the Affordable Care Act, and even federal grant programs that arm local police with battlefield-ready military equipment,” the center said.

Center Communications Director Mike Maharrey told WND the observed “dissatisfaction level” in states is far higher now than the group has seen before.

Last year, he noted, there were half as many bills challenging federal power.

200 and counting

Maharrey said the rejection of Washington’s micromanagement is “broad-based” as well as “bipartisan.”

Many of the bills, he said, are going to pass.

And many, he noted, are a rejection not necessarily of federal laws but of the rules imposed by bureaucrats.

He suggested the marijuana issue as an example. Multiple states allow the legal use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, and Washington and Colorado allow it for “recreational use.”

Maharrey noted when the federal government wanted to ban alcohol, it required a constitutional amendment and another amendment to repeal it. Yet the bureaucrats have created a framework now that could be used to punish states that allow marijuana use.

WND reported just weeks ago on the use of executive action and regulations to run Americans’ lives.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, described the problem posed by professional government managers.

“You can’t fire them every two years, as is the case with representatives, or every six years, as is the case with senators. But you can fire your representatives and senators. And so, the ultimate decision-making authority needs to rest with people who are elected,” he said.

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The White House has stated it will not wait for legislation to implement so-called “net neutrality” rules because it the Federal Communications Commission can simply write new regulations.

The White House claimed the regulations would ensure Internet service providers treat all Web content fairly, but critics say it would give the federal government virtual control over the content of the Internet.

For instance, they say the government could effectively censor content it finds objectionable by simply slowing the delivery speed.

Additionally, broadband companies say the burdensome regulations would drive up costs and drive down investment and innovation.

Rules

The Obama administration is particularly fond of regulations:

• Nov. 24, 2014: The White House quietly released plans for 3,415 regulations ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday

• Dec. 23, 2014: It crammed in more than 1,200 new regulations just before the New Year

• Dec. 31, 2014: A report found 21,000 regulations so far under Obama with 2,374 set for 2015

The White House also has changed Obamacare with nothing more than Obama’s pen and is trying now to change immigration and amnesty laws through executive memos.

But Lee said that for every one page of legislation signed into law, there are 100 pages of regulations.

And he said those regulations are written by unelected bureaucrats with little, if any, input from the people’s elected representatives in Congress.

He said it’s because Congress has given virtually unhindered rule-making power to bureaucrats with little resistance.

Lee offered an even more graphic illustration, on display in the reception area of his D.C. office: a small stack of 800 pages comprising the bills passed in 2013, dwarfed by a cabinet full of the 80,000 pages of proposed regulations those bills generated.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2015/02/states-go-full-throttle-to-limit-feds/#lu8fzwl1RtWO4TE0.99

My comments: Obama and the Democrats strive for COMPLETE CONTROL of every facet of American life, whether by Law or Regulation. They will use ANY MEANS Legal or Illegal. Let us pray that the Righteous STOP THEM. If Obama gains control of the Internet this Blog will be forced to end and others like it.