CONSTITUTIONAL CONVERSATIONS
All Facts Matter
by
M. E. Boyd, Esq., “Miss Constitution”
Miss Constitution thinks it time to separate fact from fiction. Opinion and analysis are important and welcome at a certain point but right now the Public needs to know facts.
FACT: The American social order has been the bullseye lately for three distinct but devastating occurrences: a world-wide virus that compelled the President to call a national emergency and shut-down the economy; the death of a man in police custody that has triggered wide-spread protests; and the revelations, under oath, of abuse of power in the federal executive branch that have the potential of rising to the seditious.
FICTION: The President and/or state and local leaders can create rules regarding handling the virus that violate United States Constitutional rights against government power as a response to the emergency. That anyone knows for sure that the death of George Floyd was the result of racist motives by either the officer directly responsible for this death or any of the other three officers arrested as aiding and abetting in his death. That a plot to disrupt or damage the Presidency of Donald Trump is political, not legal, and not subject to legal accountability.
Let us address these fictions, one at a time.
- Responses to the virus
The Constitution of the United States is the Supreme Positive Law of the Land and any rule or regulation cannot violate a citizen’s rights against government power whether it is the federal government or state and local government. The public’s right to speak out about public policy is maintained; the public’s right to peaceably assemble is maintained; the public’s right to worship is maintained; the public’s right to personal liberty in earning a living is maintained. No government can lock down, bankrupt, prevent worship or assembly except within extremely strict guidelines no matter what the emergency. All government rules about the virus must be narrowly drawn to support a specific, legitimate government purpose. That purpose was to bend the curve of the virus so as not to overwhelm medical facilities. That was accomplished so that should be the end of the restrictions. The phasing-in process is to be seen as suggestions, guidelines, admonitions, NOT ORDERS that carry the force of the law. Some Governors and Mayors are completely out of control and completely outside of the bounds of our Constitutional rules. Miss Constitution can only conclude that many citizens and many citizen representatives have no clue about the parameters of their power. Citizens think they have little to none and their representatives think they have a great deal. Both are wrong.
- The death of George Floyd
We do not yet know whether race had anything to do with the behavior of the police officer charged with murder in George Floyd’s death or with any of the other officers. We do not know what union rules came into play after the officer was charged or the history and record of any of the participants. There will be a full investigation by both the state of Minnesota and the Department of Justice in this case as the response to it has been immense. Citizen protest and assembly are perfectly Constitutional but may be managed in the interests of public safety and within the Constitutional rights of other citizens. Closing down a highway or bridge prevents ambulances and other emergency vehicles from attending to duty and may cause injury to another citizen. That issue may be addressed by authorities. Any rules around the virus cannot prevent the protests but suggestions can be made regarding masks and other prudent health measures. If a violent or unlawful element changes the nature of the protest from peaceful to criminal the protest may be stopped or other measures taken, including additional force from whatever source is necessary to prevent injury and property damage. This includes the national guard or the military in an extreme case of anarchy. The federal government supersedes state and local governments if needed to restore order and prevent violence. Our Constitutional rights exist within the Rule of Law. Mobs rarely separate fact from fiction. Mobs are governed by emotion, not reason. Mobs are easily manipulated by persons with alternative motives. That is why we, through our Constitutional system, put a high premium on proven facts.
- Sedition
What has taken place relative to a Peaceful Transfer of Power prior to and after the last national election for President is the least noted by the public but the most important of all three of the crises we face as a nation, in Miss Constitution’s view. Though painfully slow, getting to the bottom of this issue will affect whether we keep our Republic or lose it. Finding the facts around this issue is not for the faint-hearted.
CONCLUSION: Miss Constitution comes to three conclusions about what we have endured as a nation. These are her opinions; these are not facts. She thinks there will be another virus unleashed on our nation and hopes we are not again surprised and prepare intensely now. Miss Constitution rejects the notion of systemic and implicit racism and thinks not only do the majority of white citizens admire the black community, she thinks the two communities are historic and necessary partners. No policy is needed more than whatever it takes to restore the black family to its former strength. Finally, Miss Constitution thinks that the rot within is real. She thinks Americans do not know enough about their system to know how to see the rot clearly. She calls for authentic civics, history, philosophy, and economics education. Once the public is clear regarding facts versus fiction, justice will be real, justice will be tough, justice will be fair, but justice will be done. George Washington would have taken steps Miss Constitution cannot bring herself to name if he were convinced that anyone under his command intended to injure this nation or its leadership.
Copyright©2020 by M. E. Boyd, Esq., “Miss Constitution”
info@missconstitution.com
