How About a Congressional ‘Clawback’ for Taxpayers
The pay czar apparently has retroactive powers to deprive specific Americans of money they have already been paid under legally binding contracts. If that sounds like an ex post facto law to you, it does to me too. If it sounds like an unlawful taking, or an abuse of the equal-protection clause, you can sue Kenneth Feinberg and the Feds.
Now suppose our politicians decide to stage a “revolution from above,” as Stalin called it, and take the voters for an estimated 13 trillion dollars over the next ten years with an unwanted medical takeover, cap and tax provisions, and the kind of abuse of power that Chris Dodd and Barney Frank have been getting away with for decades, without fear of retribution. What can the voters do?
In 1994 they voted in the Gingrich Congress, electing a GOP majority in the House for the first time in forty years. Four years later Bill Clinton was impeached. Yes, Clinton was never tried or convicted by the Senate. But nobody could have predicted in 1994 that a fabulously popular president would be on the ropes four years later. Those things happen in politics. The fact that they do happen should put the fear of God into the politicians. Or at least fear of the voters.
We need a clawback law for politicians. If your representative or senator deprives millions of Americans of our preferred medical insurance by hook or by crook, if companies go out of business because carbon taxes make it impossible to operate, and if your constitutional rights are materially violated, you should be able to elect a new majority that can “claw back” their ill-gotten gains. Such as depriving corrupt congresspeople of their pensions or clawing back money they make afterwards. It’s the Kenneth Feinberg precedent.
The alternative is a permanent European-style ruling class. In Europe, all politicians have de facto permanent tenure. Obedient party politicians get promoted in the unlikely event they get defeated. That’s what the European Union is about.
The EU provides a lifetime tenure track for politicians and bureaucrats in all the member countries. That’s how Brussels can control everything from the top. Ambitious politicians in Britain, for example, can look forward to better-paying and more powerful positions in Brussels if their party is defeated. That is how British Labor politicians were able to control events from Brussels even after Margaret Thatcher led the Tories to victory. That is also why the EU can keep ignoring the voters who don’t want their countries to get deeper and deeper into the corruption that is Brussels. The EU admits that it has a “democracy deficit,” but it’s in no hurry to change it. It doesn’t need the voters any more.
This is the basic question in politics: How do the people keep power-hungry pols from running out of control? In Europe they can’t anymore.
What about America? I don’t know the answer. I don’t know if anybody knows with this administration.
It’s just possible that the Feinberg precedent may show us the way.
hmmm, for the EU, you are right, but since Lisboa treaty will be the rule, we’ll have a bit the same constitutional system as your’s, an elected president, a foreign affairs office… the European parliament will prevail on the Brussels commission.
Up to now populations weren’t really interested in EU parliament and in their own EU deputees, though laws that were voted by them prevail on our nationals.
In term, national deputees will have no more justification, and might get cut down, while the european’s will get more attention.
Now, this is where “global world economy” is driving us, there isn’t anymore “hope” for singular and small countries like 2000 years gave the habits to differency each others, this is kinda sort of Roman empire bis in rule.
I am not afraid of that, since specific provinces in each country will have more weight than in their nationals.
Pay for performance, where have I heard that?
We can’t even get term limits from the thieves, how in the world will they vote to take away their ill gotten gains?
how about drug testing for these scoundrels. half will be gone in quick order.
Interesting idea. Would it include gratuities, fees, baksheesh and stipends from lobbyists and interested parties?
My thought is that public service in congress should be similar to military service.
The congressmembers have very responsible positions; they should be compensated at the grade of colonel.
Their jobs are clearly much more hazardous to their health and safety; they should be required to retire after 8 years of service with the thanks of a grateful nation and a pension of 50% of their former pay. (A military man has to serve 20 years to get 50%, but that’s okay.)
Upon retirement, they shall be entitled to lifetime medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs (and take their chances on HIV, Hepatitis, etc from unsterilized equipment). At age 65 they can use Medicare and Tricare if they still exist and they can find a participating doctor.
On a designated day every November, the post office and the banks will take a day off in their honor.
That sounds like a great idea. I say kick the bums out all together.
Sign up at http://www.handsoffamerica.net to join others who think it is time to drain the swamp.
There will be an attachment to the bill….doing with healthcare plan, Reid will see to it and it will sail through…
And how about a clawback of the millions Gorlick and Raines looted from Fannie and Freddie? I like the way Enemyofthestate thinks, but eight years service to the nation should not result in any pension. Prison time for Barney Frank and Chris Dodd would be over-compensation for their “public service”.
Maybe they could “clawback” the wagyu that Obama served at the White House.
Let’s see here. No COLA for SS; well fine but why a 2% COLA for federal workers and an auto raise for congress although three failed attempts were made to roll back the congressional raise and the federal workers raise was reduced from 2.4%. I say let’s have a TEA Party and take over our two Houses in our Capitol. And when our employees pledge to behave themselves we’ll let them back in. However, we will fire all of them when the first legal opportunity occurs; that would be November 2010. And if Mr. Obama wants to react as the Iran government did, we will know where he stands.
It seemed amusing to me that they wanted to punish the Wall Streeters and take back their bonuses while doing a “don’t look at the man behind the curtain” when it came to their own culpability. I wondered if the portion kicked back to the congress critters be exempt?
Obama has done all of America a great service. Through sheer incompetence and a socialist mindset (redundant, I know) he has made the average American aware of just how much freedom we can lose to our government, and just how little our Constitution protects us when the ruling class cares little of Constitutional protections.
The 2010 and 2012 elections cannot come soon enough.
Perhaps it’s high time for a few midnight visits to congress members with a bucket of tar and a pillowcase of feathers. I don’t think it would take many of these late-night constituent gatherings to send a cold a chill down the thin spines of the other 535 members with the blunt message that it’s past time to shape up, fly right and stop the madness.
“if companies go out of business because carbon taxes make it impossible to operate,”
This is already happening, ethanol policies are shutting down the cotton business in southern states. Any animal feeding business is drowning in high feed costs. The politicians are taking the market out of business.
Can we have hangings for treason on the steps of the Capitol building? Start with Dodd, Raines, Pelosi and Frank… you know, to be equally fair and politically correct.
What about the use of the Recall power? Not every state has it, but many do. Start recall petitions against the Senators and Representatives who abuse their power. The removal of only one of these pecksniffs before their term is up will put the fear of God into the rest of them.
“The alternative is a permanent European-style ruling class. In Europe, all politicians have de facto permanent tenure. Obedient party politicians get promoted in the unlikely event they get defeated. That’s what the European Union is about.”
No, there could be a third alternative in a country that has an increasingly well-armed citizenry: revolution.
Another interesting factoid: one of the biggest differences between Europe and the U.S. is that the self-anointed ruling class cannot automatically count on the support of either the armed forces or the police. If most of them throw in their lot with the citizenry against the government, then the current political class will find the world to be cold, cruel place.
Make that 12 years- that’s easier to deal with because a Senate term is 6 years.
Good luck with the clawbacks. Do you have a Plan B?
Sorry Mr. Lewis, but you’re wrong when you wrote, “Yes, Clinton was never tried or convicted by the Senate.” He was in fact tried with the trial running from Jan. 7, 1999 through Feb. 12, 1999 and the trial was presided over by William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. He was acquitted of perjury by a 55 to 45 vote, and obstruction of justice resulted in a tie vote of 50 to 50. So while it is accurate to say he was not convicted, it is inaccurate to say he was not tried.
Why stop here? If punishing those who earn lots of money is the intention, why not go after the professional athletes who routinely knock down $10-20 mil per year, or A-list actors and actresses who earn up to $20 mil per film? I realize that the difference is that the government has not bailed out the sports teams nor the entertainment industry. However, Zero’s stated intention during the campaign was redistribution of wealth. Why not start with the highest-earning athletes and actors?
Answer – corporate CEOs aren’t unionized.
Don H wrote: What about the use of the Recall power?
Unfortunately the SCOTUS ruled that unconstitutional. Only legal way is to vote them out. Of course we could scare them into resigning. A little tar and feathering of those Dean selected for hanging might do the trick. I picketed some congressional offices, but I have yet to hear anyone picketing their homes as ACORN has done to CEOs. What’s fair is fair especially for those who have supported ACORN.
MarkJ has an interesting point.
What will happen if the masses can’t take it anymore? One wonders, and I’m very sure the thought has crossed the minds of those pushing us to the limit.
There is a rule; I call it the 10/90 rule. Ten percent of the people run the world while ninety percent wonder what happened and who did it. Even in the American Revolution, the vast majority of the people either favored British rule or sat on the sidelines when the fighting started. It is the old sheep/wolf/sheepdog story as told by Dave Grossman.
I fear when the 2010 elections come to pass and there are obvious cases of voter intimidation, voter fraud and maybe outright theft (i.e. Philly and Minnesota), people are going to snap. The left is playing a very dangerous game, and they know it. They are hoping most people will just stand on the sidelines and take the repeated hits they are dishing out.
We are truly living in interesting times. People are afraid and confused as to what is happening, overwhelmed by the speed and diversity of the actions of our leaders. This is not by accident. As I have said for a while now, the toughest thing to do when inside a revolution is to get perspective. You simply can’t get enough distance from all the events to get a good picture. Over the centuries I’m sure there were many citizens of many countries who were just stunned to find out they were no longer free.
Better yet, lets take EVERYTHING they have.
Take all their money.
Take all their property.
Take all their clothes, cars, jewelry, TVs and cell phones.
Take EVERYTHING they have and them dump their sorry a$$es onto the street.
Did I mention to take EVERYTHING they have or will have? Leave them NOTHING.
Then let them enjoy their new freedom.