On June 26^th, the House of Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 by a vote of 219 to 212. The bill, also know as “Cap and Trade” legislation, should more appropriately be called “Cap and Tax” legislation because the federal government is trying to “CAP” Americans’ Freedoms and then “TAX” the necessities of living like gas, food and even heating oil.

This bill, like so many other pieces of major federal legislation in recent years, was rammed through congress by the Democratic leadership without even giving the members the time to read it, let alone understand it, all in violation of their now worthless promise to create a more transparent legislative process. The Democrats added 300 pages of amendments to the legislation at 3:00AM on the day of the vote, giving the members of congress less than 12 hours to read the whole 1,200 page bill. Rep. Joe Barton asked repeatedly during the debate on Friday afternoon if there was even a copy of the bill anywhere in the House chamber and Democratic Rep. Ellen Tauscher, who was sitting in the speaker’s chair, repeatedly avoided the question. No full copy of the legislation was ever produced. What was the rush and why were the American people and their elected representatives denied the ability to read the bill before it was voted on? How does this help the American people?

Even the proponents of this massive tax bill acknowledge that it would only have a minimum impact on future concentrations of greenhouse gases and would only reduce the earth's future temperature by 0.1 to 0.2 degrees C by 2100, an amount too small to even notice. The truth is that there is no Global Warming crisis. That is why the proponents of global warming had to change the name to “climate change” because the earth is actually in a cooling cycle. All of the hype and threats of a looming climate crisis have been carefully manufactured and generated solely for the purpose of getting this massive bill through Congress, with a minimum of debate, before the American people realize that they have again been conned, lied to and of course, required to pay even more repressive taxes. How does this help the American people?

The current Democratic majority in Congress, aided by some cowardly Republicans, seem to be constantly working against the freedom, liberties and desires of the American people. They love the “cap and trade” concept because there is a fraudulent public perception that they are taxing evil corporate “polluters” and protecting the American people from global warming and pollution. This is simply not the truth. History shows us that once the government is allowed to create a scarce new commodity like the “rights to emit certain levels of carbon” and then creates the government control mechanism that mandates that all businesses that emit carbon must buy or otherwise obtain these “rights” from the government, the cost for these “rights” is inevitably passed on to all consumers in the form of higher prices at the wholesale and retail level. How does this help the American people?

Peter Orszag, former Director of the Congressional Budget Office and now Mr. Obama’s Budget Director, testified before Congress back in 2008 that “price increases are essential to the success of a cap-and-trade program.” The American Petroleum Institute claims this legislation would mean $4.00 or more for gas at the pump and will cost Americans billions of dollars in higher costs, kill jobs and will not deliver any of the environmental benefits promised. The Black Chamber of Commerce estimates the bill will result in a net loss of over 2 million jobs a year, that is in excess of any new "green" jobs that might be created. How does this help the American people?

Wouldn’t it be simpler just to impose stiff fines on the companies that pollute? Putting a price on these “rights” to carbon emissions is regressive because the burden to pay for these rights will ultimately fall disproportionately on the nation’s poor and middle-income households who spend a larger percentage of their paychecks on things like gas to drive to work, groceries or home heating. It also allows big polluters with a lot of money to keep polluting as long as they buy or somehow obtain these new “rights.” How does this help the American people?

The House version of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 is a very clever scheme devised to redistribute income and wealth. Unlike Robin Hood, who took money from the rich to give to the poor, the federal government will be acting more like the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, because this legislation is designed to take money from the working class and the poor, in the form of high prices and give it to the Wall Street “green tech” investors, private bankers and “green energy” special interest groups who will be involved in the creation of a carbon emission “rights” trading system. How does this help the American people?

Not only will the cost of this Cap and Trade legislation drive up the price of everything that is manufactured in the United States, it will also make American made products more expensive and a great deal less competitive on the world markets. If enacted into law, it will begin the process of a massive transfer of manufacturing jobs and wealth from the United States to second and third world foreign countries that have no such restrictions on their manufacturing and energy producing companies. How does this help the American people?

This is not just a new massive tax increase on hard working American citizens, but rather it is a premeditated and calculated move to further take control of the American economy by the Politburo in the current federal government. This current “cap and trade” bill is bad legislation. It has been written by corrupt politicians and special interest groups for the benefit of those groups.  If enacted as written, this bill will be as disaster for Americans in terms of the economy and their individual freedoms and liberties.

Americans must remember that we cannot fully enjoy our freedoms and liberties in America unless our government is limited. For as our government grows and becomes more intrusive, as it is today, it is our freedoms and liberties that are becoming limited! 

Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King introduced an amendment that would bar the Census Bureau from disbursing taxpayer funds to the activist group ACORN — but Democrats immediately squelched the measure, King disclosed.

In a release issued on Tuesday, after the amendment regarding the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now was introduced, King said: "It is time for every member of this Congress to go on record in support of or opposition to ACORN. ACORN and its estimated 270 corporate affiliates comprise a complex organizational and financial spider web with all the appearance of a criminal enterprise. ACORN is facing charges of voter fraud and tax violations, yet it has received over $53 million in taxpayer funds.

"Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank and his liberal friends have opened the taxpayers’ wallet to as much as an additional $8.5 billion that could be accessed by ACORN.
"ACORN could soon be running the 2010 census if President Obama, a former ACORN employee, follows through on plans to have ACORN ‘partner’ with the Census Bureau. It is time to cut off ACORN’s access to taxpayer dollars and put an end to ACORN’s involvement in the 2010 census."

On Wednesday, King's office issued another release that read in part: "Last night, Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi and Democrat leaders passed a gag rule to ensure" that King’s amendment "never made it to the House floor."

King stated, "This Pelosi Congress is violating its commitments to the American people so it can protect its political cronies like ACORN . . .

"Democrats refuse to allow a debate, let alone cut off ACORN’s access to the taxpayers’ wallet . . .
"Justice demands that Congress cut off ACORN’s access to taxpayer dollars and put an immediate end to ACORN’s involvement in the 2010 census."

Rep. King told Newsmax in early June that he believes ACORN "has completely the face of a criminal enterprise, and it should be thoroughly investigated by Congress and the Department of Justice."

Text of Speech by John Wallace - delivered at the Albany Tea Party's "March on Albany" Rally, in Albany, New York on June 16, 2009.

I want to thank the members of the Albany Tea Party for giving me the opportunity to say a few words at this great gathering for Freedom and Liberty. Our country's Founders told us that Governments get their just powers from the consent of the governed and whenever the government becomes destructive of these ends, it is not only the people's Right, but it is their Sacred Duty to change the government, and that includes the dysfunctional New York State Government.

My fellow citizens, although some foreign countries and terrorists groups do indeed pose serious threats to our country and our state, in 2009 the greatest threats to our freedoms and liberties are not coming from them, but rather, they are coming from within our own country; from our federal government and from our New York State government, because they no longer represent us. That is why we have come here today from all parts of the state, from all walks of life and from all political parties and views: TO RECLAIM OUR FREEDOMS AND LIBERTIES.

The America people, including those of us who live here in New York State, are losing our freedoms and liberties because of corrupt politicians, political correctness, a lack of basic common sense by our leaders, as well as the negative influence of special interest groups who are pushing their questionable agendas upon New Yorkers and the rest of the American people from a hundred different directions at once.

In 1863, Abraham Lincoln, described our nation as "a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. I'm afraid that is no longer true. In 2009, we now have federal government and a New York State government of the special interest groups, by the special interests groups, and for the special interest groups.

To those New York State and federal elected officials who may be listening out there today, "We The People" have some demands to present to you today:

We demand FREEDOM FROM CORRUPT ELECTED OFFICIALS who accept millions of dollars in bribes from Special Interest groups every year.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE INVASION OF ILLEGAL ALIENS that costs the American taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars every year. We demand that New York State cut off the honey pot of welfare and free medical care that attracts illegal aliens to our State and is bankrupting us; that you mandate employers use an E-verify system in NY and we also demand that you never issue illegal aliens' drivers' licenses.

We demand FREEDOM FROM ELECTION FRAUD. We demand an honest and verifiable election process that produces a permanent, verifiable paper record of the peoples' votes. We demand that the New York State Legislature repeal its motor-voter laws that enable non-citizens and illegal aliens to vote in our elections.

We demand FREEDOM FROM A MULTI-LINGUAL SOCIETY by passing legislation designating English as the official language of the United States and New York State with all official government documents, including ballots, printed in English only; for it is our common language that unifies us and will preserve us as one nation.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE COLLECTION OF RACIAL AND ETHNIC DATA ABOUT US THAT IS USED TO SEPARATE US INTO GROUPS, (by NYS and the federal government) much the same as Hitler did in Nazi Germany in the 1930's. We no longer ask people about their religion; why do we still ask about their race and ethnic background? We the People should not longer be classified as white-New Yorkers or black-New Yorkers: for We are just New Yorkers; We should no longer be classified as black-Americans or Hispanic Americans; for We are just Americans!

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE ATTACKS ON FAMILY FARMERS and private organic food growers through heavy handed overregulation of our water and food supplies for the benefit of big corporations who for some reason remain exempt. We do not need a National or a New York State Animal Identification System and the use of GROWTH HORMONES and GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOODS should be BANNED IN NEW YORK and the rest of the country because they are Dangerous to our health.

We demand FREEDOM FROM DESTRUCTIVE INTERNATIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS like NAFTA AND CAFTA that have resulted in the loss of many thousands of jobs in New York State and millions of jobs across the country. These agreements have destroyed the once strong manufacturing base in New York, and the rest of America as well.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE ENDLESS CYCLE OF WAR. Only Congress has the Power...To declare War," but no Congress has declared war since December 8th, 1941, the day after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The U.S. Congress did not declare war on North Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam, Grenada, Lebanon, Somalia, Haiti, Panama, Serbia or Bosnia. Since World War II, over 115,000 U.S. military personnel have died and many hundreds of thousands more wounded in undeclared wars and so-called peacekeeping missions to enforce mandates of the United Nations.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE UNITED NATIONS AND FROM THOSE WHO ARE PUSHING FOR A NEW WORLD ORDER, who seek to destroy our national sovereignty through international treaties and agreements. We not only demand that America get out of the UN; we also demand that the UN get out of New York and America.

We demand FREEDOM FROM UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND EXCESSIVE TAXATION at all levels of government. Its time to repeal the unconstitutional Income tax as well as the outrageous School Taxes in New York.

We demand FREEDOM FROM OUT OF CONTROL GOVERNMENT SPENDING. Its time that our New York State and federal governments do what the rest of us have to do: Don't spend more than you take in.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE INCESANT ATTACKS ON OUR SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS including recent attacks right here in Albany County. Thomas Jefferson told us that the main reason for the people to keep and bear arms was not to defend themselves against some foreign power, but to protect themselves against tyranny by their own government. Law abiding American citizens have a right to keep and bear arms. It is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right that we will defend with our lives. YOU WILL NOT TAKE OUR GUNS!

We demand FREEDOM FROM ATTACKS ON OUR INDIVIDUAL PRIVACY AND FROM A REAL ID CARD. We do not want the New York State government, in the name of security, to imbed radio frequency ID chips in our driver's licenses to tag and track us like animals.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE DRUGGING OF 6 MILLION OF OUR CHILDREN EVERY DAY FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY. 10% of all 6-18 year old boys in the United States are currently on psychotropic drugs like Ritalin for attention deficit disorders, despite the fact that there is no independent, scientifically accepted valid test for these disorders.

We demand FREEDOM FROM AN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM that de-emphasizes academic knowledge and has dumbed-down our children to a point where many of them can't find America on a world map, but they know how to put a condom on a cucumber. The present system in New York State, and the rest of the country, is designed for INDOCTRINATION, not EDUCATION.

Here in New York, the parents need School Vouchers, School Choice and Homeschool support to ensure that our children have a better chance to learn and become more productive members of society. We give the unconstitutional Federal Department of Education a failing grade of "F" and demand that it be abolished. And to the NYS Department of Education: We are putting you on probation.

We demand FREEDOM FROM THE PRIVATE CONTROL OF OUR NATION'S MONEY SUPPLY. In Our Constitution, the people of the United States granted Congress the power to coin Money and regulate its Value. We never gave a private group of international bankers on the Federal Reserve Board the constitutional power to print Trillions of dollars of worthless, fiat money, backed by absolutely nothing that is destroying our economy, putting our country and New York State into bankruptcy and making debtors of our grandchildren and great grandchildren before they are even born.

Thomas Jefferson warned us that a private central bank (like our Federal Reserve) which issues the public currency is "a greater menace to the liberties of the people than a standing army." We agree. The Federal Reserve should not just be audited, it must also be abolished.

THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THERE ARE STILL NO LIMITS TO WHAT WE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE CAN DO, ONCE WE DECIDE TO ACT:

In 1776, our Founders stood up, put their lives and fortunes on the line and declared their freedom and independence from the chains and shackles of the King of England. In 2009, Americans must once again be willing to stand up and publicly declare their Freedom and Independence, not from the King of England, but from the chains and shackles of our own government and from those traitorous individuals and organizations who pull the strings of the politicians and the media like puppet masters from behind a curtain of secrecy, bribery and deception.

The fight for our freedoms and liberties must begin here and now. We must put aside those minor differences that have separated us in the past and unite as one strong political force to restore our Freedoms and Liberties now. We must recruit more freedom loving Americans into our ranks and grow our numbers by the millions.

The road ahead will not be easy and the traitorous enemies within our own country are very cunning, unscrupulous and have unlimited resources. But they are no match for an army of united and determined citizens like us who are prepared to fight the hard battles that lie ahead, as our Founders did 233 years ago, and WE WILL PREVAIL!

Let the word go forth that the year 2009 will mark the beginning of a journey that will leave future generations of Americans a legacy of individual freedom and liberty, a first class education system, a clean environment, a strong and sovereign America with an honest, limited government that will offer unlimited opportunities for their future. For there is no doubt: WE WILL PREVAIL!

Thank you all for coming here today and may God Bless a Free and Sovereign America!

The words "No Taxation without Representation" began as a slogan in the period 1763-1776 just before the first American Revolution. The slogan summarized the primary grievance of the American colonists in the Thirteen Colonies who believed the lack of representation in the British Parliament was an illegal denial of their rights as English citizens. The colonists believed that the laws excessively taxing them for services they did not receive were illegal.

On the evening of December 16, 1773, three companies of fifty men each, masquerading as Mohawk Indians, passed through a tremendous crowd of spectators, went aboard the three ships, broke open the tea chests, and heaved them into the harbor. As the electrifying news of the Boston "tea party" spread, other seaports followed the example and staged similar acts of resistance of their own. Eventually the movement for freedom and liberty expanded with the colonists declaring their independence from England in 1776.

It has become apparent to most Americans that our elected representatives in Congress, just like the British Parliament of the 1760's and 1770's, are no longer representing the interests of the American people. Our congress routinely passes legislation that benefits a wide variety of special interest groups at the expense of the average American citizen and taxpayer. Through the use of special interest bribes, also called campaign contributions, America now has the best congress that money can buy. Our government is now as corrupt as any banana republic or communist government in history.

American taxpayers are seeing their taxes go up at every level of government, oftentimes for services and programs that they do not benefit from, nor approve of. Our local government and school taxes are rising at a rate far exceeding any increases in our incomes. The U.S. congress and the Federal Reserve are printing fiat money (backed by nothing) as fast as the printing presses can print it and the American taxpayers are starting to get angry about the increasing burden of taxation placed upon them and they have every right to be angry.

The American taxpayers who live up to their responsibilities and who work hard (often holding two jobs) to pay their bills with less take-home money are:

1.                  paying for ongoing failed social engineering experiments in housing and education,

2.                  paying for the funding of anti-American, socialist organizations like LaRaza and   ACORN,

3.                  paying for a variety of services provided to 15 million +/- illegal aliens,

4.                  paying for the bailout of large international banks, Wall Street Firms and the auto industry

5.                  paying for the bailout of real estate investors and people who are unable or unwilling to be responsible adults and who fail to pay their own bills, including their mortgages.

Many American citizens, particularly those who pay taxes, are frustrated by a government that no longer represents them, but rather represents the interests of an oligarchy of political and financial elites, as well as special interest groups, who exert unconstitutional and illegal control over our government and economy for their personal gain.

The members of this ruling elite are not loyal Americans who have the best interests of the county in mind, but rather they are traitorous individuals who are loyal to no country but who benefit financially or politically by keeping our country in a constant state of war, by dumbing down our education system, by devaluating our currency, by separating us into categories by race and ethnic origin, by drugging 6 million of children with mind altering drugs, by flooding our country with illegal aliens, by and by chipping away at our nation's sovereignty, freedoms and liberties.

I believe that Americans are fast approaching a point of frustration and anger with their own government similar to what the American colonists reached in the 1770’s. Americans want to take their country and government back from the corrupt political and financial elites who control it. The massive attendance by average American citizens at the Tea Party Rallies across the country in April of 2009 was a sign that the people have had enough. Just like the original Boston Tea Party and those that followed, the Tea Parties of 2009 will someday be seen as the beginning of the Second American Revolution. Although the Tea Parties of 2009 were an important first step, there is much more work to be done.

Americans must now put aside all of our minor differences that have separated us in the past and unite as one strong political force. We must become united by our major common goals and not divided by our minor differences. We must become active in politics and support only those candidates that are honest, ethical, of good moral character, who take no special interest money and who support smaller, less intrusive federal, state and local governments.

Together, freedom loving American citizens must begin the journey that will leave future generations of Americans a legacy of individual freedom and liberty, a first class education system, a clean environment, a strong and sovereign America with an honest, limited government that will offer unlimited opportunities for their future. If we stand together and are willing to fight for our freedoms and liberties as the original American colonists did, we can give it to them.