CONTINENTAL CONGRESS '09: THE NEXT STEP FOR A FREE PEOPLE
by
Tom DeWeese
January 13, 2010
NewsWithViews.com
In recent years Americans have become more and more alarmed at the lack of adherence to the U.S. Constitution exercised by Congress and other elected representatives. The list of violations has grown large indeed.
Some have tried to fight the violations through the election process, attempting to remove those representatives who have perpetrated them. Others have tried to fight infringing legislation as it is introduced. Still others have fought in the courts, attempting to defend liberties in front of judges who have sworn to uphold the Constitution.
To date, little has worked as many elected representatives and court rooms openly defy the Constitution, calling it antiquated. Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court announce that they now look to international law for precedence and guidance, rather than the Constitution. Government at all levels is growing ever further from the reach of the people. In such a growing desperate situation is it possible to restore the Republic to the vision of the Founding Fathers?
On November 11, 2009 116 delegates from 48 states gathered at Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles, IL to see if they could bring together a plan to restore the Republic and reign in our runaway government. The event was the Continental Congress 2009 and was the brainchild of Robert Schulz, President of the We The People Foundation.
Throughout 2009, Schulz traveled the nation speaking out on the need for the People to take action to restore the Republic, citing in each case that “the Constitution cannot defend itself.” As he explained it, “for 14 years, the People, through various means, have exhausted their administrative and judicial remedies – for example, the People have used their First Amendment Right “to petition the Government for a ‘Redress of Grievances,’ and have received no legitimate response from either the Judicial, Congressional or Executive branches.”
That action that Schulz envisioned was taken directly from the history of the nation, specifically the actions taken by our nation’s founders in 1774 when they were faced with a similar government that refused to listen. Then they called a Continental Congress with delegates representing the 13 Colonies. And so, just as in 1774, Continental Congress 2009 was called, with delegates elected by popular vote in each state. Their purpose was to review the Government’s violations of the Constitution and come up with a workable plan to fix it.
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For ten solid days the delegates met, debated and worked in committees until the wee hours of the night to review the Government’s violations of fourteen of our Constitutionally guaranteed rights. Each matter was then referred to a sub-committee that was charged with recommending “Remedial instructions” to federal officials and to each of the several States, and Civic Actions for the People of the nation to take to assure elected representatives follow through with their instructions. I was privileged to have been elected as the first delegate from Virginia. I was also honored to address the Congress on issues such as the North American Union and to serve on the Property Rights Committee.
The final document produced by the Continental Congress, containing all of the reviews of violations, instructions to Congress and state legislature and the civil actions have been tied into one document called the “Articles of Freedom.” Schulz summed up the work of the Continental Congress 2009, saying, “The Articles of Freedom demonstrate that we are in our Republic’s 11th hour. It is undeniable that the leaders and members of each branch of the federal Government have failed to uphold their oaths of office, are ignoring the Constitution, committing acts far outside the law, and when petitioned for redress by the People they refuse to respond.”
What happens now to the tireless efforts of delegates? The work has only just begun, as each member of Congress and each state legislature will be personally presented with a copy of the Articles of Freedom as the demands of the People. It is, of course, expected that most officials will again ignore the documents.
That’s why the most important work will be to get the Articles of Freedom into the hands of millions of Americans across the nation, asking them to join the effort to bring pressure on Congress for action. The Continental Congress 2009 intends to enjoin a critical mass of at least 15million Americans to sign the Articles of Freedom. The documents will be used to give the TEA Party rallies a specific goal. Candidates for office, hoping to gain the support of the recharged freedom movement will be asked to sign the Articles of Freedom as their pledge to uphold the Constitution if elected.
If we Americans don’t claim and exercise our right to hold our servant government accountable, then each of our natural, un-alienable, individual rights will atrophy and die. Indeed, this process is well underway.
The documents and more details may be seen at the website www.cc2009.us. They will also soon be brought to your community through rallies, public meetings and into your mailbox as part of a direct mail campaign. All are planned as part of the effort to build the critical mass of Americans necessary to make these documents historic, effective and powerful.
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It is vital that every freedom-loving American take the same action as our Founders, to sign and support the Articles of Freedom and demand that our elected representatives take the actions outlined in these historic documents.
The Articles of Freedom establish the pathway back to Constitutional governance. It is time to instruct our servants on how to remedy what we have allowed them to ruin.
� 2010 Tom DeWeese - All Rights Reserved
