Kevin Duffy on the political divide in the U.S. over government shutdowns

There is a huge political divide taking place in the U.S. over the government shutdowns.  Democrats have dug in their heels, essentially doubling down on the lockdowns and doing everything they can do to delay reopening.  The Republicans appear to be largely united in reopening.  This divide is happening within states.  E.g., Georgia (Republican governor) was one of the first to open, but the Atlanta mayor (Dem) resisted.  Here in Pennsylvania, we have a Democrat governor because the two main cities, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, are highly progressive.  Other than the suburbs of those cities, the rest of the state is a sea of red.  Commissioners of 6 counties (all Republican) are planning to reopen in defiance of the governor (see here).

This is extraordinary, something I haven’t seen in my lifetime: open disobedience at the local government level.

For once, the Republicans are actually on the right side of an issue.  This will be the only issue in the November elections.  I think that means Trump wins in a landslide despite his inept handling of the economy and the bailouts, stimulus packages, and money printing (which will do untold damage).  More importantly, it will have ramifications for the elections of congressmen, senators, and state governors.  There is the potential for a terminal blow to the Democratic Party.

I almost always tune out politics because nothing changes, but it feels different this time, at least at the margin.  If the progressives become politically homeless, we still have to contend with the Republican Party… which is a disaster.

~ Kevin Duffy, May 11, 2020

Tom DiLorenzo on nullification

Prior to 1865 there were many instances of presidents, Congress, and the people of the free, independent, and sovereign states simply ignoring the opinions of the black-robed deities of the Supreme Court, under the quaint belief that there are three branches of government, not just the judiciary branch, and on top of that, the people of the states also had an equal voice, as articulated in the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution. New England states nullified the Jefferson/Madison trade embargo; Wisconsin and other states nullified the federal Fugitive Slave Act; Jefferson and Madison wrote articles of nullification regarding the suppression of free speech under the Sedition Act (the Virginia and Kentucky Resolves of 1798); South Carolina nullified the 1828 Tariff of Abominations; the New England states relied on the idea of state interposition or nullification to not participate in the War of 1812; and so on.

~ Tom DiLorenzo, "Back When There Were THREE Branches of Government (Not to Mention "The States" or the People)," LewRockwell.com, March 18, 2017