The Original 'Takings' Clause

Bethany Blankley | ReligionToday.com Contributor | Updated: Jul 27, 2012

The Original 'Takings' Clause

There was a time in when Samuel, the last judge of Israel, was asked by his people to replace the rule of judges. The  Israelites wanted one authoritative king, but Samuel warned them that a king will take more and more from his people. Samuel's prophecy holds true for Americans today.

Samuel warned the Israelites:

“The king will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots…”

“The king will take your daughters to be cooks and bakers…”

“The king will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards…”

“The king will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves…”

Samuel was right. With the Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), otherwise known as Obamacare, Americans are now slaves to the encroaching authoritative power of the federal government and proverbially up the creek without a paddle to the tune of over $2 trillion.

The verb “to take” means to “get into one's possession by force, skill,” which is exactly what Congress and President Obama have done by instituting the largest tax increase in American history through Obamacare.

Rather than provide affordable, accessible healthcare to all Americans, the government will take more money from taxpayers in the tune of $675 billion on top of the $1.8 trillion that the ACA is estimated to cost over a period of ten years. Americans will be fined and/or pay more money for less in healthcare services. And many will be priced out of the market, unable to afford prescription drugs and exorbitant premium increases. Additionally, through the at least 21 taxes existing in the ACA, more income will be taken from Americans.

Unlike the monarchy of ancient Israel, America’s founders wisely created a republic to ensure a balance of power, and liberty and freedom for its citizens. In 1816, Thomas Jefferson wrote, "To preserve [the] independence [of the people,] we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude.”

The founding fathers’ decision to limit the powers of the federal government, including the president’s, was clearly defined in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution and in the Tenth Amendment, which ensured that the powers not granted to the federal government were reserved to the states.

Unfortunately, the federal government has increasingly taken more from its citizens, decreasing their liberty, and blatantly disregarding the Constitution. As the wise philosopher Jay Leno quipped in 2011, "They keep talking about drafting a constitution for Iraq. Why don't we just give them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart guys, it's worked for over 200 years, and we don't appear to be using it anymore."

What is at stake is not just restoring a balance of power to our government, but reducing the federal government’s encroaching power to take more and more from the American people.

Supreme Court Justice Roberts sent a clear message to the American people when he sided with the liberal justices to uphold the ACA as constitutional. In essence, he said, “If you don’t want to pay these taxes, elect a new president and new members to Congress. You got what you asked for.”

Americans have one chance this November to vote out politicians in Washington, D.C., who spend more than they have, simply by taking more and more from them. Americans can demand that there be term limits instituted for members of Congress. And most importantly, Americans can vote for a new president to repeal the largest tax increase in American history that was disguised as “healthcare reform” and elect new members of Congress to limit what the government takes from them.

As members of a republic, Americans have a voice and a means to limit the federal government’s power. If they don’t use their voice, they may be taken for all their worth.

Visit Bethany Blankley's website at bethanyblankley.com.

Publication date: July 25, 2012

 

 

 

 



The Original 'Takings' Clause