What Is The "General Welfare Clause?"--John Albert Dummett, Jr.

It’s a wonder why this nation has not descended into total and complete anarchy considering that the original form of government we all signed up for only exists in name only and not in actuality.

The Founding Fathers of this nation, in their wisdom knew that an all powerful government would limit the freedoms and liberties of its citizens. As such they carefully decided what powers that the federal government would have over the union of individual States. There are eighteen such powers listed in the United States Constitution that limit the federal government. All other laws not specifically granted to the federal government belong only to the States.

Most people in America today actually think that it is the federal government that has the last word when it comes to the law, but nothing could be further from the truth. Any school aged child should be able to tell you that this nation was originally comprised of thirteen colonies. Each one of these colonies went by their own rules and regulations and had their own charters or Constitutions. Many had their own form or worshiping God as well. When those original colonies grew to the point to where they were able to carry on trade with the other colonies, a standardized method was needed to help conduct business effectively and to promote harmonious feelings between the different colonies.

It became crystal clear to the individual colonies that they needed outside help to facilitate trade between them. As an example of what they faced many toll roads were built, each with their own rules regulations and provisions. Disputes arose between the colonies where these roads intersected and they realized that they needed a central authority that would regulate trade between the colonies reasonably and fairly. When the colonies decided to relinquish some of their sovereignty to foster prosperity between all the colonies, they gave over some very limited powers to the central government. Each colony codified laws and regulations that governed the day to day business of that colony.

By forming a central government that made rules and regulations to carry out commerce between the States, many of the antagonisms between the States were thwarted. These new States however in no way wanted the newly formed federal government to ever exercise complete and total control over the individual colonies. Before any of the colonies would agree to form a nation they made absolutely sure that the central government created to oversee things, such as trade between the States and defense of the States, would never have absolute power to determine the fate of any State. The States gave to the federal government eighteen enumerated powers that were never to be exceeded without a Constitutional Convention.

Many folks today have been conditioned to think that the government in Washington D.C. has the last word when it comes to running this nation. The many generations of Congressmen who hold office in Washington have hoodwinked us to think they get the authority to implement any law they wish and apply it to the States based upon the General Welfare Clause. They dictate, and we blindly accept, that there is nothing in the Constitution that says they can’t exercise any power not granted specifically to it. There are historical documents that explain the General Welfare clause and the limits placed on Congress, but the people we elect don’t feel the rules in any of those documents apply to them. They think the Constitution, which everyone knows places limits on government, gives Congress unlimited powers. Even Thomas Jefferson feared a strong central government when he said "Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but only those specifically enumerated."

What will dumbfound people is when they examine for them selves the actual powers granted to the Federal government as they are spelled out in the Constitution. One wonders how it could have been so easy to usurp the powers belonging only to the States. The Federal Government continues to usurp the powers of the States to this very day. Now they even stoop to extorting States by denying them federal grants and monies if they do not accept the dictates of the central government.

Here are the 18 powers listed in the Constitution as being granted to the federal government. All other laws not specifically granted to the federal government belong only to the States. The General Welfare clause that the federal government always cites when they exert control over the States, includes the below six items. These were agreed upon in the Constitutional Convention when this nation was formed and were written of in Federalist Paper 41 to pacify the people of New York because they were astute enough to know if you give any strong central government an inch they will take a mile. The six powers of the General Welfare Clause are:

1. Security against foreign danger.
2. Regulation of the intercourse with foreign nations.
3. Maintenance of harmony and proper intercourse among the States.
4. Certain miscellaneous objects of general utility.
5. Restraint of the States from certain injurious acts.
6. Provisions for giving due efficacy to all these powers.

No where in the list does it mention that the Federal Government was to incorporate into our nation’s psyche the idea that there would be huge government welfare programs that would take care of everyone and everything. What we need to do is pound it into every person who is running for public office that the six items mentioned in the General Welfare Clause and the eighteen enumerated powers in the Constitution lets congress know it has limits on what it can and can’t do. If I am elected President of the United States I will beat them over the head with it every day until they get it through their thick skulls and I will not sign any bill into law that is contrary to the powers granted to the federal government.

The specific powers granted to the federal government are defined in Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution:

1. The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
2. To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;
3. To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
4. To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
5. To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
6. To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
7. To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
8. To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
9. To constitute Tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
10. To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;
11. To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
12. To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;
13. To provide and maintain a Navy;
14. To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
15. To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
16. To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
17. To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And
18. To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

Please go to my campaign site if you want to see America restored. We do not need change because all we get is a change in faces. We need to restore America to the way it was meant to be instead of what it has become.

John Albert Dummett, Jr.

(785) 783-0554

johndummettjr@gmail.com

http://www.johndummett4president.webs.com/

A lesson that should be taught in all schools and colleges

I like this teacher.

A lesson that should be taught in all schools and colleges....

Back in September of 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School in Little Rock, did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom.

When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks.

"Ms. Cothren, where're our desks?"

She replied, "You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk."

They thought, "Well, maybe it's our grades."

"No," she said.

"Maybe it's our behavior."

She told them, "No, it's not even your behavior."

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom.

By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms. Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room.

The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, "Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you."

At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it.

Twenty-seven (27) U.S. Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Martha said, "You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don't ever forget it."

The Death of a Corrupt Senator

HEAVEN AND HELL

While walking down the street one day a Corrupt Senator was tragically hit by a car and died.

His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.

"Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in," says the Senator..

"Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from the higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."

"Really? I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the Senator.

"I'm sorry, but we have our rules."

And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.

The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him.

Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people.

They played a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and the finest champagne.

Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy who is having a good time dancing and telling jokes.

They are all having such a good time that before the Senator realizes it, it is time to go.

Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises...

The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens in heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him, "Now it's time to visit heaven."

So, 24 hours passed with the Senator joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.

"Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity."

The Senator reflects for a minute, then he answers: "Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell..

Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above.

The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulders.

"I don't understand," stammers the Senator. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened?"

The devil smiles at him and says,

"Yesterday we were campaigning. Today, you voted."

Vote wisely on November 2, 2010.

Specks and Planks

Tuesday, September 14 Specks and Planks Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Matthew 7:5 Recommended Reading Luke 6:37-42 Early in the film version of the near-disastrous Apollo 13 space flight, astronaut Jim Lovell is in his backyard, looking up at the moon that hangs small in the night sky. He holds up his thumb and it blocks out the entire moon from his sight. How could something so large be obscured from view by something so small? It's all a matter of perspective. Things aren't often as they seem; sometimes a small thing can obscure something larger and more important. For instance, we may see a sin in the life of another person but fail to see our own giant, judgmental attitude. The small sin of another has blocked our view of our own larger problem. Jesus put it this way: Don't worry about the speck in another's eye until you've removed the plank from your own eye. Until our own eye is clear from a judgmental spirit, we are unqualified to judge the sins of another. Yes, the other person may have sinned, but God has not appointed us the judge of him. Of all the sins in the world, God calls us to be concerned about only one before any other: our own. Once we have removed our plank, we can help our brother remove his speck. No man's conscience is to be a judge for another. C. H. Spurgeon Read-Thru-the-Bible Malachi 1:1-Matthew 1:25

We Read The Constitution!

Press Release

September 6, 2010
Mary Ann Hartzler, Event Organizer
mahunt100@yahoo.com
http://www.wereadtheconstitution.com/
Local Residents to Gather on Sept. 18
for Public Reading of U.S. Constitution

Topeka Residents Take Part in Nationwide Readings of the Entire United States Constitution

When: September 18, 2010, 3:00 p.m.
Where: South Lawn, Kansas State Capitol Building

In an effort to help revitalize the nation’s civic culture, residents of Topeka, Kansas will come together at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 18, 2010, at the Kansas Capitol for a public reading of the U.S. Constitution.

The event will feature Vicki Tiahrt, wife of Congressman Todd Tiahrt, Patricia Stoneking, President of the Kansas State Rifle Association, ordinary citizens and other distinguished guests as public readers. It is one of hundreds of celebrations to be held on the same day in cities and towns all across the United States.

Event Organizer Mary Ann Hartzler said, “This event, and the hundreds like it across the country, is our way of expressing our respect and reverence for the importance of the nation’s founding charter and its relevance today.”

“This is a real grassroots effort, of ordinary Americans talking to each other on the Internet, to show there are people who think the nation’s civic culture is important. No matter what your political party affiliation, people should be able to rally around a celebration of the signing of our founding charter. Everyone should be familiar with the Constitution and what it says. We happen to think it is time for it to be read aloud,” Hartzler said.

In addition to local organizers, the We Read the Constitution Project is backed by national groups including Let Freedom Ring, Constituting America, Americans for Prosperity, The Heritage Foundation, and many others.

###

History of Islam and how they build VICTORY MOSQUES

History of Islam and how they build VICTORY MOSQUES...

by Pamela Kafir Liner on Monday, September 6, 2010 at 3:46pm

The HISTORY OF ISLAM may hold answers to WHY it is so important for Moslems to build that GROUND ZERO MOSQUE.

In 630, Muhammad led 10,000 Muslim soldiers into Mecca and turned the pagans' most prominent spot, the Ka'aba, into the Masjid al-Haram Mosque.

In 634, Rightly Guided Caliph Umar conquered Syria and turned the Christians' most prominent spot, the Church of Job, famous for being visited by Saint Silva in the fourth century, into the Mosque of Job.

In 637, Caliph Umar conquered Hebron and turned the second-most prominent spot in Judaism, the Cave of the Patriarchs, into the Ibrahimi Mosque. (This was repeated by Saladin in 1188.)

In 638, Muslim generals Amr ibn al-As and Khalid ibn al-Walid conquered Gaza and turned the prominent fifth-century Byzantine church into the Great Mosque of Gaza.

In 638, Caliph Umar conquered Jerusalem.

In 691, Caliph Al-Malik ordered the _Dome of the Rock_ built on the most prominent spot in Judaism, the Temple Mount, followed by Caliph Al-Walid building the Al-Aqsa Mosque there in 705.

In 651, Muslims conquered Persia and turned Zoroastrian temples in Bukhara and Istakhr into mosques.

In 706, after Muslims took Damascus from the Byzantine Empire, Caliph Al-Walid turned the prominent Orthodox Church of St. John the Baptist into the Umayyad Mosque.

In 710, Gen. Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Pakistan, defiled the prominent Sun Temple in Multan, which house the great idol "sanam," and erected a mosque.

In 784, after the conquest of Spain, Emir Abd ar-Rahman turned the prominent Visigothic Christian Church of Saint Vincent into the Great Aljama Mosque of Cordoba. After the conquest of Egypt, Caliphs al-Mamun (813-833) and al-Hakim (996-1021) turned prominent Coptic Christian churches and Jewish synagogues in Cairo into mosques.

In 831, Muslims conquered Palermo, Sicily, and Asad ibn al-Furat turned the prominent Church of Saint Mary of the Assumption into the Great Mosque of Bal'harm. In 1193, Muslims conquered Delhi, India, and Qutbuddin Aibak turned the Red Citadel in Dhillika, the most prominent spot of the last Hindu rulers, into the Qutb Minar Mosque.

From 1250-1517, Mamluk Muslims controlled the Golan Heights and used the ancient Synagogue of Katzrin as a mosque.

In 1387, Turkish Muslims conquered Thessaloniki and turned the Katholikon Monastery and the Church of Aghia Sophia, which housed the relics of Saint Gregorios Palamas, into mosques, as Symeon of Thessaloniki recorded: "The greatest number of the buildings of the churches fell to them, of which _the first_ was the Holy Church of the Savior. … These were trampled underfoot and the infidels rejoiced in them. … Most of thhe religious buildings in the city were despoiled, while altars were demolished and sacred things profaned."

On May 29, 1453, Sultan Mehmet II conquered Constantinople and turned the great Byzantine church, Hagia Sophia, into the Ayasofya Mosque. The _largest_ church in Christendom for a thousand years, the church's four acres of gold mosaics were covered with whitewash and Quran verses.

In 1458, Sultan Mehmet II conquered Athens and turned the Greeks' most prominent spot, the Parthenon on Acropolis hill, into a mosque. When Venetian Gen. Francesco Morosini drove the Muslims out in 1687, a cannonball hit the gunpowder stored in the mosque, blowing it up. In the 15th century, Ottoman invaders turned Saint Clement's Macedonian Orthodox Monastery in Plaosnik, Balkans, into the Imater Mosque.

From 1519-1858, Muslim Mughal rulers gained control of India and turned over 2,000 Hindu temples into mosques, including demolishing the Temple of Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, the birthplace of Rama, and replacing it with the Babri Mosque. India's Mughal Muslim ruler, Jahangir (1605-1627), wrote in Tujuk-i-Jahangiri: "At the city of Banaras [was] a temple. … I made it my plea for thhrowing down the temple … and on the spot, with the very same materials,, I erected the great mosque."

In 1543, Hayreddin Barbarossa's 30,000 Muslim troops wintered in Toulon, France, and turned the prominent Toulon Cathedral into a mosque.

In 1570, under Sultan Selim II Khan, Muslims conquered Paphos, Cyprus, and Gov. Mehmet Bey Ebubkir turned the prominent Christian church into the Great Mosque of Paphos.

In 1571, Muslims invaded Famagusta, Cyprus, and turned Saint Nicolas Cathedral, a rare Gothic church, into the Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque, and Saint Sophia Cathedral in Nicosia, constructed in 1228, into the Selimiye Mosque.

In 1588, Sultan Murat III turned the Eastern Orthodox Church of Saint John the Forerunner in Constantinople into the Hirami Ahmet Pasha Mosque.

In 1781, after having conquered the Old City of Acre, Ottoman Muslims turned the Roman Catholic church built by Crusaders into the Jezzar Ahmet Pasha Mosque, where a hair from Muhammad's beard is preserved.

In 1923, Muslims expelled Greeks from Turkey and turned Orthodox churches into mosques. In World War II, Nazis allied with Bosnians and turned the prominent Artists' Gallery Museum in Zagreb, Croatia, into a mosque.

In the 1950s, Muslims expelled Jews from Arab lands and turned synagogues into mosques. Algerian Muslims warred against French colonial rule till France pulled out in 1962, after which the Cathedral of St. Philippe was turned into the Ketchaoua Mosque. Violence against Jews caused 30,000 to flee and the Great Synagogue of Oran was turned into the Mosque Abdellah Ben Salem.

In 1974, Turkish Muslims invaded northern Cyprus, and prominent Greek Orthodox churches were turned into mosques. In 1981, Muslim immigrants to the Netherlands converted Amsterdam's historic Catholic Sint-Ignatiuskerk into the Fatih Mosque, and a synagogue in The Hague into the Aksa Mosque.

William J. Federer is the author of: "What Every American Needs to Know About the Quran: A History of Islam and the United States."

The Invincible Sword: The Sword Can Go Anywhere

Weekend, September 11 & 12 The Invincible Sword: The Sword Can Go Anywhere I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained. Recommended Reading Psalm 119:9-1 2 Timothy 2:9 Two women were recently arrested in Louisiana for bringing a Bible to jail. The problem was the version. The Bible they carried with them was the NMV--the New Methamphetamine Version. The women had hollowed the book out and were using it to smuggle crystal methamphetamine to an inmate. While it's foolish to smuggle drugs into a prison, the greater tragedy was discarding the contents of God's Book. What the inmate really needed was the Sword of the Spirit. That's a sword no metal detector will stop. The Word of God is unchained; it can go anywhere we can go, particularly if it's hidden in our hearts.  Scripture memory makes the Bible portable; you can take it with you everywhere without packing it in a purse or briefcase. It makes Scripture accessible day and night. It allows God's words to sink into your brain and permeate your subconscious and even your unconscious thoughts. It gives you a word to say to anyone, in season and out of season. Stockpile the armory of your mind with God's Word today. We must go to heaven sword in hand, all the way. Charles H. Spurgeon Read-Thru-the-Bible Haggai 1:1-Zechariah 9:17