Senate has Final Chance to Vote Down NDAA and Block Military DetentionThe final version of the National Defense Authorization Act has passed the House and will be voted on in the Senate on Thursday. Despite tens of thousands of emails and calls the wording in the bill which would allow indefinite military detention of US citizens has not been changed substantially.  The offending sections have been renumbered to cause confusion. They are now sections 1021 and 1022  (You can read the conference report in this PDF), and although there are slight changes in the language it still allows for military detention of civilians at the discretion of the President.

The only remaining way to block this unprecedented attack on our civil liberties and to preserve our Constitutionally guaranteed rights is to vote down the entire bill on the Senate floor and send it back to committee for revision.

Representative Justin Amash (RLC-MI) was surprisingly successful marshalling Republican opposition in the House but there just weren’t enough votes.  He wrote of our efforts:

“For those of you who don’t believe that your calls and e-mails to Members of Congress work, let me assure you that they do. Members “freak out” when they receive more than half a dozen calls on any issue.”

“Thanks to our efforts, several Members of Congress are reconsidering their support for the NDAA provisions that permit the indefinite detention of Americans without charge or trial. They have approached me on the House floor to let me know. Please keep up your efforts.”

Law enforcement, national security agencies and the military itself all oppose this aspect of the NDAA. Like most Americans we believe in a strong and effective national defense and the unqualified support of our troops, but that does not mean we should sacrifice our most basic legal protections under the Constitution in our pursuit of the War on Terror. We certainly shouldn’t make our own troops the enemies of our people in the service of a government which has forgotten the principles on which our nation was founded. If we give up everything which makes America a great nation in pursuit of a tiny bit of additional safety then the terrorists have won.

Please help support our work to bring our government under control and restore our liberties by donating using the PayPal link below. You can also join the RLCto become part of our network of member-activists.

You may think that this sort of insane legislation which totally undermines our Constitutionally protected rights can’t be real. You may find it hard to believe that most Republicans are supporting it. You may not think this could happen in your America. Yet this outrage is entirely real and our only hope is to demand that our elected representatives listen to our concerns and stand up for liberty by voting down the NDAA and resubmitting it without these provisions.

It is very unlikely that President Obama will veto this bill and we cannot rely on his judgement on this important issue. Even if you previously wrote in during our efforts to stop the bill in the Senate and during Reconciliation, please take this opportunity to write your Senators using the form below to ask them to vote down the final version of the NDAA and get to work fixing it and protecting our liberty. We encourage you to customize the text to express your personal concern and outrage.

If you prefer to call your Senators on Monday, use our tool to get their phone numbers.

Since his election in 2010, Justin Amash (RLC-MI) has been one of our big successes in the House of Representatives. He has been a consistent voice for liberty and fiscally responsible government and has set a new standard of accountability which ought to be an inspiration for everyone in public office. Since he was elected he has posted multiple updates to his Facebook page every day that the House is in session detailing the issues being voted on and explaining his votes and his decision making process.

Rep. Amash has had his position in the 2012 election weakened by a redistricting plan designed to strengthen the positions of big-government incumbents in his state by transferring some of his voters to their districts and saddling him with more Democrat votes. It’s still a very winnable district, but he needs all the help he can get.

The key to winning elections for liberty candidates when fighting the entrenched system of perpetual incumbency is to raise money from outside of a single district and to reach out to Liberty Republicans all over the nation for support. With Ron Paul retiring we need to hold on to every seat we can. I don’t do this often, but I’m sending out a plea to Republican Liberty Caucus members and supporters nationwide to do what they can to help keep Justin Amash in Congress.

The best way to donate is through his 48-hour moneybomb which ends tomorrow. You can donate at AmashforCongress.com.

The Republican Party has been handed many opportunities by the need to redraw congressional districts on the basis of the 2010 census. Some strong Republican states like Texas have grown substantially, offering the opportunity for several new seats for Republicans in Congress. Other states lost population, leaving Republican lawmakers with difficult decisions and scrambling to hold onto gains made in the 2008 election.

This situation has the potential to reverse some of the gains made by grassroots candidates supported by groups like the tea parties and the Republican Liberty Caucus who brought many new Republicans into the House of Representatives last fall, some of them in states which are losing seats in redistricting and are controlled by very small Republican majorities in their state legislatures.

Early indications are that in states where Republicans face redistricting losses the priorities of the establishment lawmakers in those states and the interests of the people of the states who brought the party gains in the last election are drastically out of sync and as they redistrict, party leaders seem poised to do a lot of harm to their relationship with the grassroots activists who are becoming increasingly necessary if they want to keep winning elections.

Early indications are that the inclination of state party leaders is to solve tough redistricting challenges by sacrificing newly elected candidates favored by the grassroots in order to strengthen the positions of establishment incumbents who are not nearly as popular with grassroots voters. The superficial benefits of this strategy for the party elite may quickly be outweighed by the backlash from activists who are not pleased with the way the Republican Party is run and just need a little nudge like this to start challenging large numbers of Republican incumbents in party primaries.

The first stand-out example of this problem appears to be over redistricting in Michigan and the fate of its recently elected third district representative, Justin Amash. Amash won a strong victory in a mixed district. Since his election he has been one of the most followed freshman congressmen and one of the most politically consistent in his adherence to the fiscal conservatism and constitutional principles which characterized the anti-establishment uprising on the right in 2010. Amash has not exactly been a clone of Ron Paul, but he exhibits the same adherence to principle over party and this makes the party leadership kind of nervous.

In his short term in office Amash has won even more support from his constituents by making himself unusually accessible, sponsoring innovative legislation including a new constitutional amendment to balance the budget, and even posting explanations of every vote he makes to his Facebook page. Amash has been singled out as one of the best new congressmen by conservative groups and even received praise from the libertarian press. He’s also angered Democrats in his district who have launched several recall petitions against him, another sign he is doing what his radical supporters want. He is in many ways the model of the kind of new political leader which the reawakened base of the political right wants to see in Washington.

Yet Amash’s popularity and success are apparently of little interest to party leaders in Michigan. When the state’s House Redistricting Committee met this week the redistricting map which they were given for approval by the state Senate would make it very difficult for Amash to win reelection while protecting and strengthening the districts of other more establishment-friendly legislators like Thaddeus McCotter, Bill Huizinga, Fred Upton and Dave Camp. It even helps solidify the districts of some Democrat incumbents like John Dingell.

The specific threat to Amash is that parts of his district had to be removed to strengthen the districts of more favored Republicans, replaced by areas which are more evenly balanced between the parties. This includes giving several towns and suburbs where he won very strong majorities in 2010 to the neighboring 2nd District held by Bill Huizinga and replacing them with parts of Calhoun county which have traditionally voted Democrat. They also moved the home of popular Democrat former representative Mark Schauer into Amash’s district, giving the Democrats a ready made challenger for the young radical.

The reasoning behind this may be that the libertarian-leaning Amash has the ability to win more independent and crossover votes than an establishment Republican, but it also means that Amash faces a much closer election, has to spend more time fundraising and campaigning, and will therefore be less effective in Congress this year if he wants to remain there after next November. Party leaders are not engineering a guaranteed loss for Amash, but they are dumping as many of their problems as they can in his district while smoothing the way for their cronies, leaving Amash to deal with their mess.

Any redistricting effort is always a series of trade-offs, and with Michigan losing one of their congressional seats the division of the remaining voter base to keep Republicans in power has to be tricky. One Democrat will clearly be out of office, but the other outcome is that the mix of Republicans may be different and Amash could very well no longer be part of the Michigan delegation. I doubt that they actively want Amash to lose, but they are putting most of the pressure and most of the risk of the election on Amash, almost offering him as a sacrificial lamb to the Democrats so that if the Democrats have a surge in 2012 and Republicans have to lose one district it will be Amash who gets voted out, not someone less principled and better connected.

Of course, if I had to pick one Republican to win against these odds with little support from his state party establishment, it would be Justin Amash. His appeal transcends the limits of the Republican Party and goes directly to disaffected and independent voters who understand that a representative with his firm principles and dedication to serving the public is worth a lot more than the R or D after their name.

No matter the outcome, this little example of how party insiders use redistricting to protect their own at the expense of those whose main allies are the grassroots voters, is a warning which every candidate and political activist ought to keep in mind when deciding where to put their support in 2012. Amash and others like him still need and deserve our support while party leaders continue to earn our disregard and disapproval by their self-serving actions. Justin Amash serves his constituents and the interests of the American people. Those who are working against him within his own party are only serving their own interests.

This article appeared previously in Blogcritics Magazine.

There are a host of upcoming Republican Liberty Caucus events that we want you to be a part of!

………………JUNE
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• San Jose Area RLC Monthly Meeting
June 20, San Jose
RSVP/learn more.

• Utah RLC Convention
June 21, Draper
RSVP/learn more.

• Los Angeles RLC Chartering Meeting
June 22, Los Angeles
RSVP/learn more.

• Virginia RLC at TV Filming Tutorial
June 22, Fairfax
RSVP/learn more.

• Minnesota RLC Meeting
June 22, S. Saint Paul
RSVP/learn more.

………………JULY
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• Arizona RLC Meeting
July 9, Tucson
Contact us for details.

• Los Angeles RLC Meeting
July 13, Los Angeles
RSVP/learn more .

• Central Texas RLC Meeting
July 15, Austin
RSVP/learn more.

• Lake County (Indiana) RLC Meeting
July 16, Schererville
RSVP/learn more

• Arizona RLC Social
July 19, Tucson
RSVP/learn more.

………………AUGUST
______________________

• Heartland Liberty Conference
(Sponsored by the Nebraska RLC)
August 6, Omaha
RSVP/learn more.

• Central Texas RLC Meeting
August 12, Austin
RSVP/learn more.

• Gary Johnson at the National Press Club
Topic: Social Issues and the Republican Party
August 19, Washington, DC
RSVP/learn more.

• Calvin Coolidge Clambake with Gov. Gary Johnson
(Sponsored by the Maine RLC)
August 26, Portland
RSVP/learn more

Republican Party of Bloomfield Hosts Rep. Justin Amash
(Sponsored by the Michigan RLC)
August 29, Metro Detroit
RSVP/learn more.

The Republican Liberty Caucus of Michigan is honored to host two distinguished guests at its 2011 State RLC Convention:

1) Congressman Justin Amash
2) State Representative Bob Genetski

This event will occur on Saturday, May 14 at Tommy Brann’s Steakhouse & Grille (4157 Division Avenue South) in Wyoming, Michigan. Festivities will kick off at 12noon and will culminate at 3pm. Please RSVP to our Facebook event invite.

The atmosphere will be a working lunch and registration is FREE, but you will be responsible for your own meal. And, we all know that liberty isn’t free — so please bring some cash because the Michigan RLC will be passing the Liberty Bucket to help defray costs and promote liberty in Michigan in 2011 and 2012.

Congressman Amash spoke at the 2011 RLC National Convention and had this to say about the RLC: “In 2005, I wasn’t involved in politics in any substantive way. I had never really thought about running for office. I began looking for organizations that shared the beliefs I had — and that’s when I came across the Republican Liberty Caucus. And, really, it’s what’s started my move toward running for office.”

He is now recognized as one of the most principled members of Congress, passionately defending the principles he and his constituents share while working to reduce the burdens that decades of Big Government has had on us all.

State Representative Bob Genetski represents District 88 in the State House. While Congressman Amash served in the House, Rep. Genetski, Congressman Amash, and a small group of other principled Representatives often voted together to reduce the influence of the special interests and restore liberty to Michigan.

We hope you can join the Republican Liberty Caucus of Michigan, Congressman Amash, and Representative Geneteski for the 2011 Michigan RLC Convention on May 14.

Congressman Amash at the RLC National Convention in February. He was a super star among those who attended!

“In 2005, I wasn’t involved in politics in any substantive way. I had never really thought about running for office. I began looking for organizations that shared the beliefs I had — and that’s when I came across the Republican Liberty Caucus. And, really, it’s what’s started my move toward running for office.” – Justin Amash

Congressman Justin Amash, 30 year old freshman RLC member from Michigan, is undoubtedly a rising conservative star with an extremely bright future. I was already impressed after spending some time with him at this year’s Republican Liberty Caucus national convention, but the longer I follow him, the more I find to like. Rarely am I this taken with a person’s integrity; and next to never is the said individual a politician, let alone a Congressman. But Amash is a glaring exception to that general rule, and I couldn’t be more excited about the precedents he’s setting. When I say that Amash is a model for the next generation, I mean it on many levels.

For starters, Amash is a pioneer when it comes to social media – which fits well with the fact that he’s only 30. At facebook.com/repjustinamash, he posts every single vote he takes with an explanation of his rationale, and links to the roll call. I’m not aware of any other politician doing this, especially so religiously. It demonstrates Amash’s dedication to transparency; another aspect of his character that I find impressive.

Additionally, it’s quite rare for politicians to be accessible the way Amash is. While it’s impossible for him to answer every single question posted on his Facebook page, I’ve noticed that he almost always responds to constituents – and on occasion, others as well. When an issue is so contentious as to merit commentary from large numbers of people, he’ll often post clarifications to his positions, and reiterate his well thought out logic.

What all of this really comes down to is the fact that Amash is highly process oriented. He takes the business of voting, and doing it within a constitutional context seriously; a model his colleagues should learn from. On his aforementioned Facebook page, Amash posted a note, explaining why he sometimes votes “present”:

“I will vote “present” on legislation in three circumstances:

(1) when I could otherwise support the legislation, but the legislation uses improper (e.g., unconstitutional) means to achieve its ends. This situation often arises when legislation is drafted in such a way that the law does not apply equally to persons or entities that are doing the same thing;

(2) when Representatives have not been given a reasonable amount of time to consider the legislation; or

(3) when I have a conflict of interest, such as a personal or financial interest in the legislation—a circumstance that hasn’t happened yet and I don’t anticipate happening.”

This speaks to Amash’s unconventional yet refreshing emphasis on procedure. He utilizes (admittedly rare) “present” votes not as a vehicle to avoid taking a position on controversial issues but to, in fact, do the exact opposite by calling attention to inherent problems with certain pieces of legislation. Amash is the most clear and direct Congressman I’m aware of – people simply aren’t used to his approach, since it’s historically been rare for a Representative to vote “present” for any reason other than to avoid the matter at hand. With Amash, that couldn’t be further from the case – and I hope that those who may have assumed that any of his votes are cop outs will reexamine their views on the matter, and engage with Rep. Amash before lashing out.

In fact, in that exact regard, Amash was recently attacked by Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren while I was smiling over the fact that he was the only member of Congress speaking with sense over the partisan noise on the “Defund NPR” issue.

As Amash eloquently explained, again, via Facebook:

“H R 1076 does not actually save taxpayer dollars; it merely blocks CPB (Corporation for Public Broadcasting) from exercising its discretion to send funding to NPR. The funds CPB does not send to NPR under the bill are returned to CPB to be spent subsidizing other private radio producers. I offered an amendment in the Rules Committee to require that any funds not sent to NPR be redirected to pay down the deficit, but the amendment was ruled out of order. Therefore, public broadcasting will not see any reduction in federal funding even if this bill becomes law.”

This kind of action speaks to Amash’s desire to reveal the truth about how Congress actually operates rather than playing up the largely irrelevant partisan talking points of the moment. Amash, like all serious conservatives, is against the federal funding of media on principle. However, unlike many of his fellow Congressmen on both sides of the aisle, he actually wants to address the issue at its root, rather than vote on a fleeting matter that’s getting a bit of attention because of a James O’Keefe gotcha stunt.

Ultimately, what I admire about Amash is that he’s confident enough in his principles to not worry about going against the grain. Why should he be concerned when he’s always able to articulately defend his positions? His style is civil, methodical, and logical to the point where he acts as a foil for the DC as usual crowd; revealing through his dedication to constitutional governance how absurd the status quo (to steal a Mike Church line) in Mordor-on-the-Potomac is.

I would love to see more Congressmen adopt his transparent, informed method of conducting government business. The amount of sense Amash makes amidst the circus that is Washington DC is sadly, what makes him “radical” – yet in reality, he’s anything but. He’s conservative in the most plainly interpreted sense. You always know what to expect from him, because he takes rare yet seemingly common sense positions, such as wanting to comprehend bills before voting on them – and is actually mindful of their constitutionality and cost. You can’t BE more conservative than that! His dedication to the letter of the law and to revealing how recklessly and deceptively our federal government operates should be commended. I can’t help but think that those who criticize Amash either haven’t been sufficiently exposed to the logic of his process – or completely have a handle on it yet oppose him anyway, because they benefit from politics as usual and the propaganda that sustains it.

For those of us who truly want to limit government and are tired of the endless bipartisan pandering that gets us nowhere, the independent-minded Justin Amash is our man. Join me in encouraging others to familiarize themselves with how he’s revolutionizing government. After all, those who irk the traditional talking heads on both sides of the aisle must be doing something right.

RLC Board member Corie Whalen and Congressman Justin Amash.