The Patriot Post Digest 1-5-2016

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The Patriot Post Digest 1-5-2016
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Daily Digest

Jan. 5, 2016

THE FOUNDATION

“Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom of Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops that can be, on any pretense, raised in the United States.” —Noah Webster, 1787

FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Obama’s Gun Actions Lack Teeth, but Set Bad Precedent1

By Nate Jackson

One of the cardinal lessons of shooting a firearm is to be aware of what’s behind your target. In other words, don’t fire down range if there’s anything there you don’t want to hit. It’s clear from newly announced executive actions that Barack Obama knows exactly what’s down range, and he’s aiming for it — that would be you, law-abiding gun owner, as well as the constitutional restraints on his office. But take heart; it’s not all bad news, and even the bad isn’t as awful as it could be. Obama just needs to prove he’s not a lame duck by doing something — anything — about those dreaded guns.

As we noted yesterday2, the Gun Salesman of the Decade has resolved to spend much of this year focused on guns, thus perpetuating the trend of more Americans buying firearms. His focus could also turn out to be very bad for his own side, both at the ballot box in November and for the advancement of more stringent gun restrictions, such as magazine capacity limits, outright bans and the like, none of which he actually tries to achieve with this series of actions.

That isn’t to say there’s nothing to see here. Two items in his list bear particular focus: Mental health considerations and expanded background checks.

Obama plans to allow health care providers to provide information about mentally ill patients to the FBI for its background check system. No one wants a mentally ill and potentially violent person to be able to buy a firearm in order to hurt or kill people, but we expect that Obama telling states and agencies to violate HIPAA and snitch on patients isn’t going to survive in court. The sticking point has always been what constitutes sufficient mental problems to override Second Amendment rights. Furthermore, Obama’s implied assertion that this will deter “gun violence” is dubious.

The background check provision is both worrisome and peculiar, in that it could have some interesting effects that Obama didn’t' intend.

Obama will direct the ATF to focus on what it means to be “engaged in the business” of selling firearms. “Quantity and frequency of sales are relevant indicators,” the White House fact sheet3 says. “There is no specific threshold number of firearms purchased or sold that triggers the licensure requirement.”

In other words, Obama took a vague requirement and … did nothing to make it more specific. Instead, it will be left to the ATF to look for people “engaged in the business.” As The Truth About Guns' Nick Leghorn put it4, “Either the Executive Action is simply Obama paying lip service to ‘closing the gun show loophole’ by appearing tough on private gun sales while actually doing nothing, or this is Obama being purposefully vague to allow his ATF to go after as many people as possible.”

On the other hand, Obama, already Gun Salesman of the Decade, might also become “kitchen table FFL dealer” creator of the decade. If he’s going to blur the line around what constitutes “engaged in the business” of selling firearms, then more Americans than ever could soon become not only gun owners but licensed firearms dealers.

Complicating the process by which trusts obtain items regulated by the National Firearms Act (NFA) targets already law-abiding gun owners, not criminals. If you try to find examples of NFA-regulated items being used in crimes, you’ll have to go back at least a decade. Even then there’s some disagreement since the federal government doesn’t track those crimes, likely because then they’d have to admit crime with such items isn’t a real problem.

In short, there is absolutely no rationale for Obama changing anything related to NFA items. It’s just a way to say “screw you” to the most enthusiastic gun owners — the “bitter clingers,” if you will. Most people can’t afford a $30,000 fully automatic M16, but most of the people who can are likely Republicans who donate heavily to the NRA.

Obama has done nothing to deter crime. Does anyone expect the gang bangers of Chicago, for example, to suddenly engage in only lawful firearms transactions? Murder is against the law, no matter the weapon used. Criminals won’t comply or be deterred by this new hoop.

It’s also worth reiterating that these measures wouldn’t have stopped a single recent mass shooting, from Newtown to San Bernardino. Obama knows that, which simply means he’s aiming for what’s beyond the target.

Meanwhile, one positive change is that people will no longer need permission from their local Chief Law Enforcement Officer to obtain an item regulated under the NFA, like suppressors. In some states, that’s a big deal, because individuals can’t procure NFA items when their sheriff or police chief refuses to approve any and all NFA applications.

Obama wants to appropriate “funding for 200 new ATF agents and investigators to help enforce our gun laws.” As we have noted previously, enforcement under Obama has become lax. We’re hardly in favor of expanding bureaucracy, but if enforcing the laws already on the books becomes a focus, then it might be a welcome change.

Far more worrisome than the specific proposals themselves, Obama’s actions continue a tyrannical trend: He demands his ideological preferences be passed into law, and when Congress declines, he takes action to do it anyway. As House Speaker Paul Ryan put it, Obama “is at minimum subverting the legislative branch, and potentially overturning its will.” Ryan added, “This is a dangerous level of executive overreach.”

Specifics aside, this lawlessness not only is a grossly unconstitutional executive overreach in itself, but it sets a precedent and a legacy that is dangerous to our Republic.

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

GOP Sends ObamaCare Repeal to Obama’s Desk5

Fulfilling a promise made by Republicans in 2010, House Speaker Paul Ryan has dodged and weaved through congressional rules and is on the verge of passing a bill that would repeal ObamaCare and deny federal funds to Planned Parenthood. For the first time, an ObamaCare repeal — by way of a bill called Restoring Americans' Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act — will arrive on Barack Obama’s desk. By waiting until the New Year, GOP lawmakers could use the process of budget reconciliation, a process6 that can be used only once a year because it dodges filibuster efforts from the minority.

“This is our best shot to stand up for our principles on behalf of the American people,” read a statement7 from Ryan’s office. “‘You can use this bill once a year, and we’re using it for this,’ Speaker Ryan said recently on Bill Bennett’s show. In doing so, we’re forcing the president to confront the failures of this law once and for all.”

For actual ObamaCare repeal, the bill will accomplish little other than important election-year symbolism. Republicans have not passed a replacement for ObamaCare, nor do they have enough votes to overcome the inevitable Obama veto. The Congressional Budget Office said Monday the bill would trim the nation’s deficit8 by a half-trillion dollars over 10 years. Furthermore, at a time when Obama is guiding the national debate through his gun control executive orders, Ryan is focusing on Obama’s failed policies ahead of the 2016 election.

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The Patriot Post Digest 1-5-2016
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Saudi Arabia and Iran Grow Heated as U.S. Steps Back9

The Middle East is splitting (again) along sectarian lines. Saudi Arabia and its allies United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed diplomatic ties with Iran over the weekend. It’s part of a trend where Middle Eastern countries can no longer trust the United States to provide the stability it has provided in decades past. On Saturday, Saudi Arabia, a predominantly Sunni country, executed a Shia Sheikh, Nimr Baqr al-Nimr. The predominantly Shia Iran reacted violently, as a mob ransacked and set fire to the Saudi Embassy in Tehran. In the midst of this, the Obama administration, fresh off “ensuring peace” in the region through the Iran nuke deal, backed away10 from this squabble. “I guess the point is there’s plenty of blame to go around,” Barack Obama’s spokesman Josh Earnest said, “and what we would like to see is all sides begin to take the kinds of steps that will deescalate and not inflame the tensions that are obviously pretty raw right now.”

But this kind of hands-off approach is exactly what got the region to this point in the first place. Commentator Charles Krauthammer noted11 that America’s modern relationship with the Saudis dates back to the 1930s, when the two countries agreed to trade oil for security. Now that Obama has emboldened Iran by giving it billions of dollars and dropping sanctions, Saudi Arabia must ensure its own peace. “I think they are acting fairly desperately,” Krauthammer said.

The net effect will be greater insecurity for the West. While Middle Eastern counties focus on each other, the terrorism cells in the region can operate with greater freedom to carry out their aspirations. As Mark Alexander said12 in his essay on the Iran nuke deal, “Terror does not tolerate a power vacuum.”

How Many Illegal Aliens Live in America?13

The most frequently cited number of illegal aliens in the U.S. is 11 million. But where does that number originate? According to14 William Campenni at The Daily Signal, “Three main players were involved in generating that number of 11 million illegal immigrants: Pew Research Center, the Center for Immigration Studies and the Department of Homeland Security. But they were only masseurs of the source data, which comes from the Census Bureau by means of two surveys: the Current Population Survey and the American Community Survey.” Campenni argues that in reality no one knows what the number is because illegals often sneak across the border; they’re not checking in when they come. He adds, “Sarah Saldana, who runs Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the chief deportation agency and part of Homeland Security, testified Dec. 2 before Congress that the illegal population could be as high as 15 million.” Furthermore, “In 2005, a Bear Stearns study estimated the total number of illegal immigrants at 20 million using other data perhaps more valid than sole reliance on Census Bureau surveys.” What if, 11 years later, that number is far higher still? In short, there’s really no sure way to know, but those invested in amnesty have an incentive to make the number as low as possible.

Don’t Miss Patriot Humor

Check out Meanwhile in Oregon…15

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MORE ORIGINAL PERSPECTIVE

ANALYSIS: Asset Forfeiture Provides Windfall for Law Enforcement17
Due Process Lost With CA’s Mental Health Laws18
ObamaCare in 201519
Obama’s Obscene Travel Bill20
Air Force Athletes Can Pray Before Game21

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

Tony Perkins: GOP House: Resolved to Reconcile22
Dennis Prager: Yes, Muslims Should Be Asked to Condemn Islamic Terror23
Michael Barone: Battening Down the Hatches, Reminiscent of the 1930s24

For more, visit Right Opinion25.

TOP HEADLINES

Baltimore Ends 2015 With Record 344 Murders26
Pacific Fleet Shrinks Even as China Grows More Aggressive27
Census: Immigrant Population to Increase 715% by 206028

For more, visit Patriot Headline Report29

OPINION IN BRIEF

Tony Perkins: “In the race for the most outrageous laws of the New Year, the Big Apple surged ahead with its supposed ‘anti-discrimination’ measure. Under it, the city is severely punishing individuals, employers, and businesses for addressing a transgender by the wrong pronoun (which includes bizarre configurations like ‘ze’ and ‘hir’) or refusing to let them take advantage of ‘single-sex facilities or programs.’ … For example, if a company’s dress code forbids men from wearing wigs and make-up, it could be fined a quarter of a million dollars — regardless of whether the rules are important to the business’s safety or day-to-day operations. As if that weren’t burdensome enough, company health plans will also have to include coverage for expensive ‘gender-affirming’ care like voice training, hormones, and surgery. … If Americans wondered where the road of the bathroom bills lead, this is it. Once extreme LGBT lobbyists have their foot in the doors of local legislatures, there’s no end to the government’s power to punish freedom and common sense. Imagine subjecting a church pre-school or religious charity to these rules! A finding of noncompliance could financially destroy them. Make no mistake — this is a harbinger of things to come if Americans don’t follow in Houston’s steps and make their voices heard!”

SHORT CUTS

Insight: “The worst thing that can happen to a good cause is not to be skillfully attacked, but to be ineptly defended.” —Frederic Bastiat (1801-1850)

The BIG Lie: “I’m … confident that the [gun control] recommendations that are being made by our team here are ones that are entirely consistent with the Second Amendment and people’s lawful right to bear arms.” —Barack Obama

Non Compos Mentis: “Barack Obama … decided that after that [after the Sandy Hook massacre] he was going to do everything that he could. He hadn’t been very interested in [gun control] in his first term, but after that, he was going to do everything in his power and if people don’t like it, his attitude is, ‘See you in court.’ And that is — you know, that’s one way for a president to act. The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order, right? The president is as big a man as he can be, as Woodrow Wilson, not very popular now, used to say, so, you can expand the powers of the office if you feel strongly enough about it and that’s what Obama’s doing.” —liberal pundit Jonathan Alter

Braying Jackass: “I’ve always felt the Rebel flag was some American Swastika. And, well, now, all of a sudden, people are talking about it, and now they’re banning it, and now it’s not OK to have it on f— licence plates, and coffee cups, and stuff. And people are starting to question about stuff like statues of Bedford Forrest in parks. Well, it’s about damn time, if you ask me.” —film director Quentin Tarantino

Dezinformatsia: “In a well-known paper, economists Angus Deaton and Anne Case found that over the past 15 years, one group — middle-age whites in the United States — constitutes an alarming trend. They are dying in increasing numbers. … The answer might lie in expectations. … The United States is going through a great power shift. Working-class whites don’t think of themselves as an elite group. But, in a sense, they have been, certainly compared with blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and most immigrants. They were central to America’s economy, its society, indeed its very identity. They are not anymore.” —Fareed Zakaria

And last… “Just as the drunk looks for his lost keys under the streetlight because that’s where the light is, Obama focuses his energies where it is easiest.” —Jim Geraghty

Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis!
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.