NAFTA - Who Started It?

I am so sick of hearing that Bill Clinton started NAFTA. I distinctly remember Ronald Reagan campaigning for what he termed the North American Accord in 1979. Though the details were yet to be hammered out, it was during Reagan’s 2 terms in office that the agreement was first proposed and drafted. The torch was then passed to President Bush, Sr.

The finished product arrived on Clinton’s desk in 1993. He did approve it, sending it on to Congress, where the bill was passed by a Republican dominated chamber in 1994 and then signed by the President, who would have lost a Veto fight even if he were against it; which he was not.

The point here is that the divisive politics of our current era tend to distort and mislead us all. And the real kicker is that neither side will listen to the cold, hard facts of the matter.

NAFTA was a huge benefit to politicians of both parties due to the large amounts of cash funneled to both sides by various lobbyists’ intent on getting the bill passed in order to benefit large corporations with cheap labor. Thus, both sides are filthy with guilt. To not understand this is to be blinded by ignorance.

"Out of Order" by Sandra Day O'Connor (2013)

The most remarkable thing about this book is that it has never been written before; but then again, we never had a Supreme Court Justice like Sandra O’Connor before either. An accomplished author, the Honorable Justice has taken all of the tales about the Supreme Court; its history, it’s members, it’s legends and tall tales; and place them all in one book.

With the same style and dry sense of humor which marked her previous memoirs, the Justice has written an account of the daily workings of the Supreme Court in the 21^st Century, and how those changes reflect the changes of our constantly changing nation. The Court is really kind of a mirror of whom we are, and if we don’t like what we see, then we have to make the changes ourselves.

History buffs will enjoy all of the minutiae in the book, as well as some funny stories about the Justices themselves; both living and deceased. Some were liked by their colleagues, some were loathed. The important thing being portrayed here is that the Justices are just people, entrusted with the care of the Law in our nation, and as outlined in the Constitution they are sworn to uphold.

Exploring the appointments of the various Presidents lends a unique insight into history. There have been only 3 Presidents who never made an appointment to the Court. There have also been issues which the Court has come head to head with the Executive branch in their attempt to interpret the meaning of the law under our Constitution.

Sometimes they have gotten it wrong, as in Plessy v Ferguson, the so-called “separate but equal” ruling in the late 19^th Century. That mistake stood for 50 years, or more, but the point is that it was corrected. We live in an elastic nation, and Justice O’Connor has written a book that does our Court system, and the people who have set on the bench, a great service in making them appear more “human” than they have been portrayed before. This was a very quick and enjoyable read.

What Are They So Afraid Of?

Two years ago, when the country was in the first half of the so-called "Recession", both houses of Republicans and Democrats could not seem to find the $38 Million necessary to extend Unemployment for 12 weeks. It was just around Thanksgiving, with Christmas coming fast, when they held the fate of so many, hostage for so long. $38 Million; a drop in the Sea of Debt compared to the billions wasted in Iraq, when we should have been concentrating on Afghanistan instead. When we should have been rebuilding our own infrastructure and providing shovel ready jobs for the Unemployed, instead of padding the pockets of Halliburton and their ilk.

You can imagine my reaction the other day when I read that the Congress, and the Senate, both Republicans and Democrats alike, had approved $50 Million to be spent on security measures for next year's Democratic National Convention, which is to be held in Charlotte in September. I wondered, first, will this be a repeat of the last Democratic Convention in 2008? At that event protesters were kept several blocks away from the proceedings, in a state of irrelevance, to exercise their First Amendment Rights.

The second thought that came to mind was that the North Carolina National Guard will be on deployment to Kuwait at the time, leaving a "hole" in our security measures. Who will be filling that breech, and how much extra will that cost compared to having the local National Guard performing this duty? This is one time that finding the answer does not require you to "follow the money", but to follow the power instead.

Executive Order 12656 was signed into law by President Reagan in November 1988, just before he left office in January 1989. On the surface it appears to be about the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but scratch the surface and sniff a bit, and the implications of this sweeping document stink. Remember, Presidential Executive Orders, become law simply by their publication in the Federal Registry. Congress is not consulted, nor the Senate notified. They become laws, whether Constitutional or not.

Executive Order 12656 names the National Security Council as the principal body that would consider any emergency powers, should they become necessary. Not Congress, not the Senate; the National Security Council. This allows them, at their own discretion, to conduct domestic intelligence and surveillance in the United States, as well as restrict the freedom of travel by its citizens. Further, this Order; I cannot bring myself to call it Law; grants the authority to this unelected Council to isolate large groups of civilians in the event of mass demonstrations and civil unrest. The National Guard could be federalized to do the bidding of the Council. The Council may even suspend local, elected officials, replacing them with regional military commanders. Much of this law was written with Colonel Oliver North, celebrated figure of the Iran-Contra scandal. He was hailed as a hero by President Reagan even as he was fired him for stealing missiles, which were then sold to Israel, who in turn sold them to Iran as a defense against Iraq during their 8 year war with one another. Of course, at the time, Iran was being sanctioned and not allowed to buy weapons from anyone.

What has this to do with the Convention next summer, and the National Guard being out of the country? Plenty. With the local National Guard out of the country, then who will fill the void should it become necessary to do so? With protests likely to be taking place in numerous cities around the country, and some of those National Guard units deployed overseas as well, it is possible to have foreign troops on the ground, here in America, policing the Convention. Feel safe yet? If the American "peace" officer in the photo above is willing to pepper spray you like a roach, then what would a "Peacekeeper" from NATO be willing to do?

Here is a great link concerning Presidential Executive Orders in general, listing some of the most sweeping ones; http://dmc.members.sonic.net/sentinel/gvcon5.html

And here is a link to Executive Order 12656 in it's entirety;

http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/EO12656.htm