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Oh, what has Brad Johnson wrought? Recently he wrote a letter to the Washington Times threatening secession if the SCOTUS didn't uphold the rights of individuals to bear arms, and now a group of Montana's elected officials - led by Johnson and Dennis Rehberg - have written up an "extra-session resolution" that same topic:
AN EXTRA-SESSION RESOLUTION OF INDIVIDUAL LEGISLATORS OF THE 60TH MONTANA LEGISLATURE AND OTHER ELECTED MONTANA OFFICIALS URGING THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT THAT ANY "COLLECTIVE RIGHTS" HOLDING IN D.C. V. HELLER WILL VIOLATE MONTANA'S COMPACT WITH THE UNITED STATES...
Additionally, these fellas say that a decision contrary to their views on the Second Amendment violates the state's compact upon entering the Union, that, if broken, will lead to...what?
Montana reserves all usual rights and remedies under historic contract law if its Compact should be violated by any "collective rights" holding in Heller...
Of course there's no way in h*ll these fellas will ever follow through on this threat. None whatsoever. They neither have the actual ability nor the courage -- if Rehberg is any guide -- to follow through on this resolution. Two numbers:
$1.66. That's the amount of federal money we receive for every $1.00 we pay in federal taxes.
250. That's the estimated number of nuclear warheads the federal government has here in Montana.
Remember, this group's ringleader - Rehberg - has folded each and every time in the face of government authority when civil liberties have been on the line. Patriot Act. Real ID. Torture. Habeas corpus. Domestic spying. Warrantless wiretapping. He supports waging war without a declaration from Congress, and the theory of the unitary executive. In short, his stance on civil liberties was succinctly expressed by our state's Republicans' choice for president:
"Our most basic civil liberty is the right to be kept alive."
Imagine how that will look on Rehberg's battle flag.
No, this isn't a courageous stand, it's a political stunt in an election year. Our state's attorney general has already written a brief to the Supreme Court on the DC Gun Ban, but he's a Democrat. So what's left, but to holler and yell and make big threats you can't follow through on?
Good thing for the Montana secessionists the SCOTUS will probably uphold the status quo, rule the ban unconstitutional, and affirm the individuals' right to bear arms. Otherwise people might expect them to do more than talk.
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