Quid Est Veritas: Repealing Our Heritage

By Patrick Weadon
Many years ago a group of prominent and successful American political leaders came to believe that the country had lost its way. They believed the federal government in Washington was too powerful and that a majority of the elected representatives in D.C. were against the principles they considered critical to their survival as free men.

They concluded the only way to ensure their interests were served was to reject the federal government’s authority and withdraw from the nation. At the time they made this decision, other political leaders warned them that their refusal to obey federal law was exceedingly dangerous and would lead to bloodshed and the dissolution of the Union.
Well, as we all know the group in question would come to be known as the Confederate States of America. This new “nation” would be built on the idea of the racial superiority of the white race and fueled by an intense desire by its leaders to ensure African Americans would forever remain in chattel slavery.
Confederate leaders quickly found out that trying to run a government without any central authority can be a problem. One of the CSA’s first acts was to establish a draft to fight the war. This prompted Joseph Brown, then-governor of Georgia, to denounce the Confederacy’s efforts to raise an army as “a dangerous usurpation of state’s rights and individual liberty.”
In short, the leaders of the South learned firsthand in 1860 what the Founding Fathers had come to realize in 1789; namely that a federal government stripped of power is no government at all. This is why men like Jefferson, Hamilton, and Washington jettisoned the Articles of Confederation in favor of a new document, the Constitution.
Article V, Clause 2 (The Supremacy Clause) of that document (and previous case law) makes it clear state law will be found to violate the supremacy clause when either of the following two conditions (or both) exist:
1) Compliance with both the Federal and State laws is impossible
2) … or state law stands as an obstacle to the accomplishment and execution of the full purposes and objectives of Congress…”
In short, the supremacy clause gives the federal government the final word on Constitutional issues. The South’s refusal to accept this and yield to the legitimate powers of the federal government would lead to a horrible war in which over 600,000 people would die.
One would think present day leaders, on both sides of the aisle, would understand why, at the end of the day, the federal government must have the power to run the country. However, in the world of politics some stupid ideas never die.
Congressman Eric Cantor of Virginia is one of the bright young conservative leaders on Capitol Hill. I rarely agree with him on anything, but he, unlike some of the nut jobs (a-la Christine O’Donnell) that have jumped on the tea party band wagon, appears to be in full possession of his mental faculties. So, I was distressed to read in the New York Times that he supports the odious “repeal amendment,” which would grant state legislatures the power to veto any federal law or regulation if two-thirds of the legislatures approved.
This recent effort, like the concepts of nullification and secession in the past, are to my mind misguided and blatantly unconstitutional. It sounds good, but in reality this most recent effort to strip the federal government of its power is nothing more than a backdoor way of returning our nation to a time when we were ruled by the Articles of Confederation, not the Constitution.
We should be working to preserve our nation, not tear it apart. When you are part of a democratic republic, you need to understand that sometimes you are going to have to put up with laws you disagree with. The good part is you always have the ability to vote for someone who will change things (I’m not sure, but I think the last election demonstrated this fact in spades).
The bottom line is you either support our nation and our constitution or, like Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee, you are against them. If you are against them, you might be able to think of yourself as many things, but not an American. It’s hard for some people to accept, but nullification and session are the tools of traitors, not patriots.
So, go ahead my conservative friends, continue to revel in your visceral hatred of President Obama and the Federales. But at the end of the day, no matter what the issue, let’s find a way to work together as Americans and avoid embracing silly, juvenile and discredited schemes that seek to undermine our national unity.