Michael Maharrey’s weekly newsletter for March 23. 2020
Visit Michael’s website HERE.

More Thomas Jefferson; Less Rahm Emanuel

You may recall political strategist Rahm Emanuel’s sage advice to government.

“You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is an opportunity to do things that you think you could not do before.” Well, I prefer Thomas Jefferson’s advice.

“In questions of power then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the constitution.”

Unfortunately, when panic ensues, people are far more likely to defer to Emanuel and his ilk than Jefferson. When people get scared, they want government to “do something.”

Anything.

And that’s exactly what we’re seeing right now.

A couple of weeks ago, Trump declared a state of emergency under two federal laws: the Stafford Act and the National Emergencies Act (NEA). The Stafford Act allows the federal government to “support” state governments to address an emergency. Incidentally, there is no constitutional authority for such an act. The NEA gives the president even broader authority. It authorizes the president to invoke special powers contained in more than 100 other provisions of federal law.

According to The Atlantic:

“There are laws that enable the president to shut down or take over radio stations, freeze Americans’ bank accounts, unilaterally limit international trade, and detail U.S. forces to other governments. And the NEA has no requirement that the powers the president invokes relate to the nature of the emergency.”

In fact, the president has already invoked the Defense Production Act claiming it empowers him to force private companies to produce things to fight the virus. Trump said the act allows him to do “a lot of good things, if we need it.”

This was intended for war. Now it’s being used for a “health crisis.”

Power always expands.

This is exactly what the Constitution was intended to prevent.

I’m sure a lot of people will agree these are “good things.” They will cheer Trump’s “bold leadership” in the time of crisis. But here’s an important thing to remember, put beautifully by my friend Jim Babka.

 “The power you give a politician you love today, to do something you want, is a power that will be used tomorrow by a politician you loathe, to do things you’ll hate.”

Every dot and tittle of power the president seizes during this “crisis” will be available to the next president when he or she decides to use it. Government power only grows. It never contracts.

It would be wise to remember that truth during this time.

We need a little more Jefferson and a little less Emanuel.

If you want to learn more about just how far the federal government has gone off its constitutional rails, check out Constitution – Owners Manual: The Real Constitution the Politicians Don’t Want You to Know About. You can find more information and links for ordering at ConstitutionOwnersManual.com.