Liberty Banquet

August 14, 2009

Address by Robert L. Schulz

Chairman

We The People Foundation for

Constitutional Education, Inc.

Ladies and gentlemen:

It is a privilege to stand before you tonight to talk about our beloved America, our Constitution, about The Rights of Free Men and about a plan to bring our government back under the control of our constitution – a plan of and by and for the people – a plan called Continental Congress 2009.

Yes, there will be a Continental Congress in November of this year, not a Constitutional Convention, but a Continental Congress.  They are two very different things.

A Constitutional Convention is called by the state and federal governments for the purpose of amending the Constitution.

The upcoming Continental Congress is being called by The People, not to amend our Constitution, but to defend and restore the one we now have.

It is acknowledged by the Free People of America that The Creator gave to The People, through our Founding Fathers, the greatest governing documents ever given to mankind – our Declaration of Independence, our Constitution and our Bill of Rights.

It is no secret that America is the last bastion for Freedom on this earth.   We, The People of America have been entrusted to live by and protect these documents that show the pathway to freedom, not only for ourselves, but for all mankind.

Make no mistake, The Cause of America is still The Cause of the world, for the Lamp of Liberty was lit here, and nowhere else.

However, The Constitution of The United States of America is being violated.  It has been violated over many years, by many administrations, by every branch of government, by each party.

Today, these violations are increasing in number and severity.

We’ve heard about many of these violations during this conference.

Is it any wonder that we suffer?  

For every violation of The Constitution, our nation is being undermined, our people compromised, our way and quality of life diminished - our society depraved and pauperized.

With confidence, I can say that all of our national suffering and distress would never have happened, had our elected officials obeyed our Constitution.

Consider just a few of the violations:

Meddling in the internal affairs of other countries without any constitutional authority whatsoever;

Undeclared wars in violation of the war powers clauses of Articles I and II;

The gifting and lending of public money and credit to private corporations for decidedly private purposes – bailouts – without any constitutional authority whatsoever;  

A debt-based, fiat currency controlled by the Federal Reserve system, a cartel of private banks, all in violation of the money clauses of Article I;

Direct, un-apportioned taxes on labor in violation of the tax clauses of Article I;

Invasion of our privacy and a developing police state in violation of the privacy clauses of the Fourth Amendment;

Unenforced immigration laws in violation of that mandate, plainly worded in Article II, that requires the president to “faithfully execute the laws”;

A president who refuses every request to provide evidence that he is a natural born citizen, as Article Two of The Constitution requires.

The counting of our votes in secret, as all machines do, in violation of our constitutional right not only to vote but to know that our votes are being accurately counted; 

Federal gun control laws that violate the Second Amendment of the Constitution;

And, on top of all this, we have government officials who are hell bent on transitioning America from a Constitutional Republic to a democracy.

They encourage us to rely exclusively on the electoral process to get us out of the mess we are in.   They say, in effect, if you don’t like what’s going on, vote for someone else.

Beware! To believe this is to fall right into the hands of those who would transition us from a Constitutional Republic to a democracy.

Yes, of course, we need a government.

Yes, of course, we want to elect those who would wield governmental power.

Yes, of course, we should all vote.

Yes, of course, we should all perform due diligence and vote for those who we believe will act to secure our individual, unalienable rights, as guaranteed by the Constitution.

However, to encourage people to rely exclusively on the electoral process – the promises and assurances of men, rather than the guarantees of the Constitution, is wrong and dangerous.

Our rights do not depend upon the will of any majority; not one more than half the number of people voting in our polling places, or in the halls of Congress or on the bench of the Supreme Court.

With respect, if someone leads you to believe that your only option is to rely on the electoral process, you are being misled.

Yes, we need to elect good people, and God Bless those who are now seeking office with a view to constitutional obedience!

But, above all, we, the people need to begin to look beyond the ballot box. We need to begin to hold our elected officials accountable to our Constitution-- regardless of their political stripes, or whether we voted for them.

We need to be better informed about our rights:  the specific restrictions, prohibitions and mandates that are meant to chain down these officials.

Freedom isn’t so much about the freedom to do something as it is about the freedom from wrongful government.

In addition, we need to be better informed about the disconnection between the acts of our elected officials and the specific provisions of the Constitution. We need to start connecting those dots.

Finally, it is imperative that the people be better informed about how to intelligently, rationally, professionally and non-violently hold government officials accountable to the Constitution, whenever they take one step outside the boundaries we have drawn around their power.

Every violation of the Constitution has a huge effect on our quality of life, our society, our economy.

All of its provisions are inextricably intertwined. The Constitution was meant to be construed in its entirety: it’s all part of a grand design.

When the current violations of The Constitution are viewed together, is it any wonder we are on the seeming brink of collapse?

Millions of people know there is something happening at this time that is very wrong. More and more, people are raising their voices and demanding to be heard, but do not know what they can do to stop the wrongs that are taking place.

We see people hurting and expressing their anger and frustration.

There is an energy building.  Where will it lead?

A solution is only as good as the definition of the problem.

Is there a practical and appropriate plan for The People to restore constitutional governance carried out in decency and good order?

Yes! That plan is Continental Congress 2009. A plan that is authorized by the last ten words of the First Amendment, otherwise known as the Accountability Clause.

The Founders knew all about human frailties, the love of money and power, and the natural tendencies of elected officials to turn away from the Constitution and their oaths of office in favor of re-election, personal riches and recognition.

The Founders knew this day would come.

They knew that all the Constitution’s guarantees were for naught unless the Constitution included an Accountability Clause – an unalienable right – a natural power of The People to claim and exercise, whenever they had evidence that any elected official was violating the Constitution.

They knew that any right that is not enforceable is not a right.

So, they included a provision -- a tool -- that the people could utilize to hold their government officials accountable to the rest of the Constitution.

The last ten words of our First Amendment is the Accountability Clause. It guarantees The Right of The People to petition the government to redress violations of the Constitution.

It is referred to by constitutional scholars as the Capstone Right – The Right that caps all others.

Think about it. What good is the Constitution if, when the government violates it, the people can’t hold them accountable, except by relying on the will of the majority, as if this was a democracy.

Make no mistake. As the historical context and purpose of the words demonstrate, The Founders included this guarantee to hold the government accountable as an absolutely necessary and critical element in the overall balance of power between the people and their elected government officials.

There are a total of five rights guaranteed by the First Amendment: worship, speech, press, assembly and the right for redress.

Unlike the first four, no court has ever declared the meaning of the Accountability Clause – the last ten words of the First Amendment.

Before Americans can truly say, "The God who has given us life has given us liberty," before the evolution of liberty can be said to be complete, one elusive milestone needs to be achieved: a clear and resounding demonstration of the power of the last ten words of the First Amendment – the individual's right to hold government officials accountable to the rest of the Constitution.

The result would be an enormous shift of power from the government back to the people where the ultimate power was meant to reside in the first place.

Claiming and exercising our power under the accountability clause is a five step process.

First, there has to be some evidence that the government is violating the Constitution.

Then, someone has to put together a formal Petition for Redress of the violation. This is legal document that cites a specific provision of the Constitution, a factual account of the acts of the government that violate that provision, and the remedy being sought.

Then, the petition must be formally served on the government officials, with proof of service.

Then, the government is obligated to respond. Silence is admission.

Finally, if the government does not respond, the people have the right of enforcement.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the We The People Foundation for Constitutional Education, a nationwide organization with the support of tens of thousands of people, has completed the first four steps of the process.

For the last fourteen years, we have been formally, legally, professionally, and peacefully petitioning the government in the wake of any and all of these violations, in an effort to stop the devastating effects each violation has on our people and our country.

The government’s answer has been silence.

What is the appropriate next step for a Free People?

Our years of petitioning, with no response, has produced not only a clear record of tyranny, but a plan for The People, one we believe will make the difference.

We are taking a page from the Founding Fathers’ play book.    A Continental Congress was convened in Philadelphia in 1774 when the colonies had spent eleven years petitioning their government based on violations of their rights and escalating grievances.

They did not go to Philadelphia in 1774 to separate and declare their independence from Great Britain.  They went there merely to discuss their grievances and to decide on a course of action.

It is time for us to do the same.

Continental Congress 2009 will be a national assembly convened Of The People, By The People, For The People, broadcast before the world, that will consider the mess we are in and how we got there;  look at the magnificent blessings we have been given through our Constitution; make a major historic record of the violations which have taken place and their effects on our people and nation; and then decide together what peaceful and legal means can be followed to restore constitutional obedience in America.

Continental Congress 2009 is not a political event.  Its delegates will be citizens, not elected officials.

State legislators will be invited to attend as observers, not participants, for it would be the ultimate conflict of interest to have elected officials as delegates to CC 2009, a Congress whose purpose it is to defend the supreme rule book that is designed to govern the behavior of our elected officials.

This is not a partisan plan.  Focusing on the Constitution clears away parties, politics, personalities and puts the focus where it should be and should have been all along.

Again, Continental Congress 2009 is not a Constitutional Convention.

Continental congress does not rely on the electoral process or the approval of the government in any way.

It will bring together all our freedom loving people to decide how best to hold our government accountable.  

The dates are now set and the location decided, with planning well under way.

Three citizen-nominated and elected delegates representing The People from each state and the District of Columbia will gather for this national assembly from November 9-22 at the Pheasant Run Conference Center in St. Charles, Illinois.

Here will be established a formal historical record that will document and broadcast before a worldwide audience for all to hear, violations of the Constitution which have taken place over many years, crossing all branches of government and both political parties, which are devastating America.

The delegates will collaborate, debate and develop real-world strategies and civic actions to restore constitutional obedience.

It is a massive educational opportunity for the American people – a focused look at the magnificent document we have been given as the supreme governing law of our land -- combined with the ultimate civic action.

Please get involved. There is much to be done.

Time is of the essence.

We have a special web site through which you can click on your state and find out what is taking place there and join in!

Volunteer groups have been organized to inform, to encourage and to coordinate citizen participation leading to this historic event.

You can nominate a delegate from your state! Please do so as soon as possible.

Nominations are being taken through September 1, 2009.

Delegates will be elected from a national pool of American citizens required to have a proven passion for the Constitution.  It is our hope that the delegate seats will be filled by “America’s Best” as constitutional scholars, authors, activists and champions of popular sovereignty.

I look around the room tonight and say that every speaker at this conference and others should be delegates to Continental Congress 2009.

Preparation is underway for a national CC2009 Delegate Election Day to take place on Saturday, October 10, 2009.  State coordinators and volunteer teams are in the process of identifying appropriate voting centers in all fifty states and the District of Columbia.  This election is constitutionally valid, using visible and transparent vote counting.   We want to set a modern day example of electoral procedures that are constitutional in nature and extent.

In summary, Continental Congress 2009 is not a political or partisan event.  It is an opportunity for Americans to learn more about their Constitution; to be educated about its prohibitions, restrictions and mandates; to consider what America would be like if we followed it;  and to decide if that vision is important enough for the people to do what is necessary to embrace it.

Continental Congress can be the catalyst to bring everyone together so our voice will be heard at this defining moment in our history.

We invite every American who loves our Constitution and believes in our Founding Documents as the supreme governing law in our land, to be part of this historical event, a means through which our country can be restored and achieve its destiny.

The colonists of the American revolutionary days did not want to separate from the mother country – they did not want to go to war and break the ties with the continent from which most of them had come.

They were forced into it by the lack of response from their government of the day to their Petitions for Redress of grievances.  With each petition sent to the ruling authority of the time, King George and Parliament, the situation worsened until the Sons of Liberty were branded as traitors, a price put on their heads, and martial law enforced.  They were forced to take action.  They demanded no more than their just due, and would be satisfied with nothing less than they demanded.

That is why the Founding Fathers were so literal when they included in the Bill of Rights, The Right to Petition for Redress of violations of the Constitution.

They had just fought a long, drawn-out war of independence that had left them determined that any government they might form in the future would never take them down the same pathway where their natural rights and civil liberties would be endangered.

Just like the colonists of the day, we want to remain and be acknowledged as good law abiding citizens.

None of us are looking to be labeled as domestic terrorists bent on undermining the federal government.  How is it that those who would now arise in defense of our very foundation would find themselves considered a threat?

We shall not bow to fear.

As we come together, more and more, through our various paths and shared collaborations, our voices will be heard.

The records will be made, as it is here today. Our concerns will be addressed under the rights insured us by the constitution.

We are honor-bound as the succeeding generations of our forefathers, to be ever watchful that the governing body of laws contained in the constitution as written and adopted by them, are obeyed and followed.

May we never settle for anything less.

We who are gathered here tonight are following in the footsteps of those brave men of 1776, who found the courage to make a written record of the will of the people to be free.

They signed their names to the Declaration of Independence.

Now We The People of this day of 2009, have the opportunity to reaffirm our allegiance and dedication to The Principles contained in the Sacred Documents of The United States.

Through these, our right actions and intents, inspired by love for god and country and our fellow citizens, do we enter into this sacred ceremony to make a New Record for America.

I invite you to join me in what now follows, if you feel to do so, to carry on what began in the Federal Reserve Room at Jekyll Island in May of this year.

Judith and I will read the words of The Freedom Scroll.

It is our hope that the meaning of each word will go out into the ethers and travel onwards, silently entering the hearts and minds and feelings of our people, expanding outward to this world, awakening all to a New Day for Liberty.

Thank you.