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October 9th, 2020
Quote of the Week: "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"
Quote of the Week: "Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life.”
Quote of the Week: “It’s imperative that we have the tools necessary to respond to this public health emergency and protect the health and wellbeing of each and every Minnesotan. This emergency is not over.”
In This Issue:
MARTIAL LAW Governor Walz will bring the legislature into special session for the fifth time since the May 2020 adjournment of the regular session. Again, the purpose of the special session is to allow the legislature the opportunity to vote down this extension of emergency, unilateral powers. Recall that the statute granting these powers, which is unconstitutional for a variety of reasons, has a goofy “legislative veto” that allows for the extension unless both houses of the legislature affirmatively vote to deny the extension. Every time, the Senate has voted down the extension of the emergency while the House has abdicated its core constitutional obligations and acquiesced to the de facto imposition of martial law in Minnesota. The governor claims he needs to act in unilateral fashion because he simply can’t get laws passed through the legislature. What’s interesting about the claim is that he has signed 66 bills into law since he first declared these unilateral powers on March 16th, 2020. Moreover, many of these laws deal specifically with COVID-related issues and, in fact, some outright codify aspects of the executive orders. Put another way, there is ample evidence that the governor can work with the legislature to pass laws in the constitutionally mandated manner and meet the needs of the state regarding the virus. This evidence clearly demonstrates that the governor is simply engaged in a power grab that relieves him of the inconvenience of dealing with the legislature while also eliminating the need to compromise and bargain, features of democratic government. Unilateral decision making of the kind we have seen over the past seven months is reminiscent not of democratic government but of authoritarian government. It’s obvious that the only way these powers will be relinquished is either through an election outcome in November that delivers pro-democratic Republican majorities in both the House and Senate, or the other outcome is that the judicial branch nullifies the law as an unconstitutional delegation of the legislative function to a separate coordinate branch of government. It is basic constitutional jurisprudence, called the Non-Delegation Doctrine, that one branch of government cannot give away its inherent powers to another branch. This doctrine upholds a core aspect of republican government that the power of the sovereign should be subject to a system of checks and balances that prevent tyranny and uphold the rule of law. The Minnesota Legislature doesn’t have the authority to give away the law-making function to law-making by executive order and certainly not for months on end with no end in sight. This is precisely the ruling of the Michigan Supreme Court that recently ended the unilateral law-making of another Democrat governor. What a truly disgusting mess. IRONY The unilateral law-making of Governor Walz claims another victim. That victim is Bethesda Hospital in Saint Paul. How ironic that this hospital is the state’s designated COVID care site, caring for the those most impacted by the virus, primarily elderly Minnesotans infected through yet a different Walz policy negatively impacting people. The hospital has announced that it and another hospital will close, thereby reducing the very hospital capacity we were told needed to be conserved, providing the pretext for those same unilateral powers. So, we need to shut down the state to preserve health care resources, while those resources are being reduced by the laws designed to preserve them. During the battle of Hue in Vietnam (1968), an American commander ironically noted that the city had to be destroyed in order to save it, a quote that came to define the illogical and somewhat insane saga that the war had become. Bethesda Hospital is Minnesota’s Hue. Walz must destroy healthcare resources in order to preserve them. FEAR The last three years have clearly demonstrated that anti-Trump forces will go to any length in their attempt to destroy the man. While the Russia hoax will soon prove to be the most poisonous effort (because it is the most treasonous), the hysterical castigating of the president over his recent COVID comments are also emblematic of Trump Derangement Syndrome. After being released from Walter Reed military hospital in great health despite testing positive for COVID, the president tweeted out words of optimism and encouragement, proclaiming that Americans shouldn’t live in fear of COVID. Predictably, the commentariat went bonkers, claiming that Trump was downplaying the seriousness of the virus and even disrespecting those harmed by it. What a bunch of total BS. Was FDR downplaying the Great Depression when he uttered his famous “fear” quote? Was he showing disrespect for those who had lost everything in the crash? Was FDR doing the same when he optimistically said that America would defeat the twin evils of Nazism and Imperialism. Disrespecting those who died in combat? Of course not. It is a core duty of the president to offer the nation optimism and comfort when the chips are down. Every president has done it, regardless of the situation. Trump is rightly panned for often failing to act presidential. Here, he fulfills a basic function of the office and the Left immediately pounces. Donald J. Trump is truly in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation. The Left has clearly lost it. |
 Harold Hamilton
Welcome to my web site!
I created this website in response to governmental waste and abuse in Anoka County. Many taxpayers don’t know that our local governments spend millions of tax dollars every year on things like public relations teams, lobbyists, and junkets to places like Hawaii. Since there seemed to be no place to turn for the “other side” of these issues, I created the Anoka County Watchdog. My intent is to create a one-stop-shop where concerned taxpayers can find fact-supported information and other resources to counter the governmental machine. Many people want to confront their elected officials regarding waste and abuse but feel they don’t have the information they need to make an effective argument. This web site offers that information. Some of our elected officials in Anoka County have become arrogant and unresponsive, forgetting that they work for the very people who put them in office. It’s high time to hold them accountable for their decisions. Sincerely, Harold E. Hamilton (harold@anokacountywatchdog.com) Email: harold@anokacountywatchdog.com
US Mail: Anoka County Watchdog C/O K Solutions LLC 3083 Victoria Street Roseville, MN 55113 (Anonymous submissions accepted!) |
