Jeb Bush is courtingdereliction of duty

Worldnetdaily ^ | 3-29-2005 | Dr. Alan Keyes

[EternalVigilance]

Posted: March 29, 2005 11:44 a.m. Eastern

© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

The Florida state constitution declares unequivocally that in the state of Florida "the supreme executive power shall be vested in a governor … ." The word supreme means highest in authority. There can be no executive authority in the state of Florida higher than the governor. No state law can create an executive authority higher than highest in the Florida constitution. Therefore no court order based upon such a law can constitutionally create such an authority.

If the governor tells the local police in Pinellas County to step aside, they must do so, or else be arrested and tried for an assault on the government of the state, which is to say insurrection.

(If Gov. Jeb Bush fears that for some reason they would question the authority of his representatives, then he should take the necessary law enforcement officials to Tampa in person, thus making the situation crystal clear.)

Since Florida's highest law grants him supreme executive power, the governor's action would be lawful. No one in the Florida judiciary can say otherwise, since the whole basis for the doctrine of judicial review (which they invoked when they refused to apply "Terri's law") is that any law at variance with the constitution is no law at all.

Gov. Bush has said that he recognizes the injustice being done to Terri Schiavo but is powerless to stop it. He is obviously not powerless, and his view of injustice is fully warranted.

The Florida state constitution declares: "All natural persons, female and male alike, are equal before the law and have inalienable rights, among which are the right to enjoy and defend life and liberty … ."

The word "inalienable" means that the rights in question cannot be given away or transferred to another by law. Now, by allowing Michael Schiavo to starve his wife to death, Judge George W. Greer transfers to Schiavo the exercise of her right to life, doing on her behalf what the Florida state constitution declares she herself could not do (since an inalienable right cannot be given away).

Schiavo's decision, and any element of the law it is based on that has the same effect, are therefore unconstitutional on the face of it.

The governor of Florida cannot be obliged to enforce unconstitutional edicts, nor can he be faulted for acting to stop an evident violation of the constitution. In his oath as governor he swore to "support, protect and defend the Constitution and government of the United States and of the state of Florida."

As supreme executive, he is obliged to act in their defense, and no court order can relieve him of this responsibility.

Any order by Judge Greer that seeks to prevent him from doing his sworn duty, as he sees fit, is invalid, and any attempt by the judge to incite armed forces to enforce his order would be an act of judicial insurrection against the constitution and government of Florida.

The judge may have whatever opinion he pleases, but when he attempts to use force to back it up, he breaks the law, going against the constitution of the state, which is to say against the supreme law in Florida.

In Federalist 81, when Alexander Hamilton lists the safeguards against "judiciary encroachments on the legislative authority," he cites in particular "its total incapacity to support its usurpations by force."

Accepting the notion that judicial orders at any level may constitute an executive power superior to the chief executive would give the judiciary just such a forceful capacity.

When every judicial decision carries the implied threat of armed insurrection, a key safeguard of liberty and self-government is removed. If any state governor, or the president of the United States acts so as to encourage the judiciary to assume such executive power, or the people to believe that it may constitutionally do so, he undermines the integrity of all our constitutions, and of American self-government as a whole.

This constitutes a grave dereliction of duty and would in saner times clearly be grounds for his impeachment by a legislature intent on defending the Florida constitution against "judiciary encroachments."

By God's grace, however, Terri Schiavo still lives, and Gov. Bush may yet act to redeem himself and his constitutional authority. Courageous action would be an act of statesmanship, defending the integrity of our constitutional system and the ultimate sovereignty of the people.

We have long been awaiting the statesman who could turn a crisis into such healing. Like Ronald Reagan before him, Jeb Bush could prove himself such a man. For Terri's sake and for the sake of constitutional self-government in America, he should act now. For failure to do so, he has no excuse.

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Be sure to visit Alan Keyes' communications center for founding principles, The Declaration Foundation.

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Former Reagan administration official Alan Keyes, was U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Social and Economic Council and 2000 Republican presidential candidate.

[advance_copy]

The governor can never back down from a threat like that.

He can and he must if the threat comes from courts (including the FL Supreme Court) and it is backed up by the local police.

[infocats]

"I cannot understand why people think they can just pick a law out of the middle of a case and say it proves the whole rest of the case is no longer valid. That's just nuts."

Possibly because it such an emotional issue, regardless of position, that it drives otherwise rational people to become a bit nuts.

[advance_copy]

Was the reason DCF did not take her was because they did not have the legal right to or was it due to the extenuating circumstances you describe?

Both.

[Publius Valerius]

'Due process' refers to a trial for a charged criminal

No it doesn't--specifically when it concerns property. If the government is taking away a property right of mine, it is required to give me due process, and I'm certainly not a charged criminal. Due process definitely extends well beyond the world of criminal law.

[kingattax]

please find for me in either the United States or the Florida State Constitution the specific article that designates a court order from a state circuit judge as a "law".

If you cannot, please stop loosely and without foundation saying that Gov. Bush or anyone for that matter has to obey the "law"

[EternalVigilance]

Do you have anything to add that is of substance?

Why is Terri Schiavo not included when Section Two says 'persons'??

[tallhappy]

He can and he must if the threat comes from courts (including the FL Supreme Court) and it is backed up by the local police.

Remember that Andrew Jackson impeachment?

No? Me neither.

[bvw]

Judge Greer's last order was that he, Greer, had determined Terri's wishes and that those wishes were to die. In doing so Judge-Murderer Greer ignored testimony and evidences that would be contrary to HIS wishes for her death, and selected the most flimsy testimony for her purported deathwish -- old hearsay, and hearsay in a cicumstance that is passing, that is after watching an tear-jerking TV movie.

Here are the points:

1. The government agent in the person of Judge-Murderer Greer cherry picked testimony to favor a outcome he desired.

2. The government agent Judge-Murderer Greer ordered Terri to die by starvation.

3. The government agent Judge-Murderer Greer made a judicial claim that Terri's wishes had been determined and determined irrevocably, even by her guardian, Micheal Schiavo.

4. The government agent Judge-Murderer Greer has refused any relief, no mercy, no rehearing, no examination. (Excepting only a *drop* of wine!)

Current law? No sir -- total Judical Majesty.

[EternalVigilance]

Well, Terri Schiavo is not anyone's property.

And she has never had a lawyer of her own, either. She's had nothing but representation that wants to off her at their earliest convenience.

Certainly you don't believe that she has had the kind of representation that is required before the state can kill a person.

Certainly you don't think that, even if she had been convicted of a capital crime, any civilized nation would kill her by thirst and starvation.

[Melas]

Keyes is proving once again why he's ignored at the polls. Keyes most recent rants about the monarchal powers of the governor are just further proof.

Although I made my feelings known, for the most part, I held back when Keyes was running against Obama. Mostly, out of deference to Jim, who supported Keyes. I wish I hadn't now. Most of us knew he was going to be lucky to break out of single digits, and most of us knew why he was going to do so poorly. We're just seeing more of the same right now.

[kingattax]

where in the United States or Florida State Constitution does it say that the judiciary has the authority to enforce ANYTHING ?

[Palladin]

EV...so many of these pro-death people are simpletons. You have to explain it to them in simple terms.

Death--bad.

Life--good.

Terri--alive.

Jeb--useless.

Prolifers--rock!

[UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide]

The Florida governor can suspend the sheriff of any county (or any county official not subject to legislative impeachment) for misfeasance (such as obstructing the lawful duty of the DCF) and appoint his own man as a replacement. Then he can have them stand down.

I've been emailing this around but no one has responded:

FLORIDA CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE VIII - County Government
Section 1
(d) COUNTY OFFICERS. There shall be elected by the electors of each county, for terms of four years, a sheriff, a tax collector, a property appraiser, a supervisor of elections, and a clerk of the circuit court;

ARTICLE IV - Executive
SECTION 7. Suspensions; filling office during suspensions.--
(a) By executive order stating the grounds and filed with the custodian of state records, the governor may suspend from office any state officer not subject to impeachment, any officer of the militia not in the active service of the United States, or any county officer, for malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, or commission of a felony, and may fill the office by appointment for the period of suspension. The suspended officer may at any time before removal be reinstated by the governor.

ARTICLE III - Legislative
SECTION 17. Impeachment.--
(a) The governor, lieutenant governor, members of the cabinet, justices of the supreme court, judges of district courts of appeal, judges of circuit courts, and judges of county courts shall be liable to impeachment for misdemeanor in office.

[EternalVigilance]

Address the substance.

[EternalVigilance]

:-)

[Laura Earl]

Great now you two can go get a room!

[malakhi]

I would have appointed a Guardian Ad Litem to act on Terri's behalf a long time ago, and to insure that all requisite medical tests were made to determine her true physical condition, and to ensure that those currently representing her had no hidden agendas.

Report of Guardian ad litem Richard Pearse (in .pdf format)

[EternalVigilance]

Excellent find, and right on point!

[advance_copy]

where in the United States or Florida State Constitution does it say that the judiciary has the authority to enforce ANYTHING ?

It doesn't. The laws of Florida say the police do that, and that they are bound by court orders.

[Melas]

Answer the specific points in the article.

I'll answer the only point that really needs to be addressed. Keyes is confused on what supreme executive authority means. It doesn't mean that the governor has the supreme authority in the state as Keyes has either misread (which I doubt) or twisted (bingo) it to mean.

What it means is that Keyes is the supreme executive authority, ie the highest office in the executive branch. Likewise, the FL assembly has the supreme legislative authority, and the FL SC has the supreme judicial authority. What Keyes isn't telling you, is that the supremacy of the governor as the supreme executive, in no way diminishes the powers of the other branches of government. It's not a monarchy Alan, period.