Villages Tea Party President, Aileen Milton welcomed John Birch Society field coordinator Keith Dunn to the podium at the organization’s April meeting Monday evening at the Savannah Center.
After an invocation given by Village of Santiago resident, Lamar Young, and the singing of ‘America the Beautiful,’ Keith Dunn discussed Article V of the constitution, which describes two methods for amending our Constitution.
One method is via a Convention of States (which is identical to a Constitutional Convention); and the other is by a 2/3 majority of both legislative houses. Dunn alluded to efforts currently under way to bring about an ‘Amendment Convention.” He cited a danger in doing so, since any such convention called for a specific limited purpose might possibility get off track, and our Constitution could be destroyed.
The John Birch Society does not believe our Constitution is deficient, flawed, broken or defective. They do not believe the document needs to be changed. Rather, they believe our populace needs to be educated regarding what our Constitution actually says and what it stands for.
Our Constitution provides for a system of checks and balances among our three branches of government — the executive, legislative and judicial branches. Dunn cited the Power of Enumeration wherein powers do not belong to the Federal government unless the specific authority is given to them in the Constitution. “Every elected government official has sworn an oath to support and defend the Constitution,” Dunn said. “Powers which are not granted by the Constitution to the Federal government are reserved for the States or the people.”
Dunn listed specific powers — including foreign aid, the environment, housing, health care, education, energy, agriculture and transportation — for which the Federal government is NOT empowered by the Constitution. “For the Constitution to have any power, it must be enforced, as it stands, by its creators: the States, and “we the people,” Dunn asserted. He emphasized States can impose themselves on a tyrannical Federal government through the process of Nullification. “States have a right — and also a responsibility,” Dunn said, “to oppose situations in which the Federal government oversteps its authority.” But since our States receive, on average, one-third of their general budget from Washington, D.C., a political conundrum frequently exists. They, therefore, often feel they must go along with Federal policies, Dunn implied.
The John Birch Society wants all non-aligned independent voters to pick a party — any party — and get involved. Vote in its primary election. They want American voters to learn about the Constitution; to know who their elected officials are and what they stand for; to monitor how their legislators are voting in Washington and to hold them accountable for their actions. “The Constitution is not the problem,” Dunn asserted. “It’s not the document. It’s the lack of understanding and enforcement of the document, and a general lack of interest, an apathy, among much of the electorate.”
A major goal of the John Birch Society, an educational and activist organization, is to restore Constitutionally-limited government. They aim to build an informed electorate, because they believe people will commit themselves to fighting for America’s freedom when they understand the issues.
Keith Dunn was an IT-systems analyst for a Department of Defense contractor in Northern Virginia. After moving to Florida in 1990, he worked as a web designer for the nations leading medical practice management software company. He now represents the John Birch Society in various Florida locations, speaking about Constitutional issues.
