Liberty Guard
  • Projects
  • About
  • Leadership
  • Podcast
  • Blog
    • From The Desk of Bob Barr
    • Liberty Updates
    • Media Appearances
    • All Articles
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Join
DONATE
Tuesday, July 1, 2025
Liberty Guard
  • Projects
  • About
  • Leadership
  • Podcast
  • Blog
    • From The Desk of Bob Barr
    • Liberty Updates
    • Media Appearances
    • All Articles
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Join
DONATE
Liberty Guard
Liberty Guard
  • Projects
  • About
  • Leadership
  • Podcast
  • Blog
    • From The Desk of Bob Barr
    • Liberty Updates
    • Media Appearances
    • All Articles
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Join
Monthly Archives

March 2015

From the Desk of Bob Barr

The “Transformative” Tyranny of Mandatory Voting

by Liberty Guard Author March 25, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

The longer Barack Obama serves in office, the more difficult it becomes to really consider him as “President of the United States.” The man’s respect for, and his understanding of, our form of government appears to diminish with each speech he gives, and with each action he takes as President. Still, he is if nothing else, consistent.

Barack Obama has been consistently truthful with the American people in telegraphing his desire of “fundamentally transforming” the United States of America. He exhorted citizens to do precisely that by voting for him in 2008. His signature legislative victory – Obamacare – delivered in 2010, is in the final stages of transforming health care in America from a system driven by the doctor-patient relationship, to one controlled from start to finish, and directly or indirectly, by government.

Obama’s drive to “transform” has not stopped at the ocean’s edge. Through a continuing series of inept moves in the Middle East, Russia, and elsewhere, he has succeeded in transforming America from an influential world superpower, to a nation as much mistrusted as respected on vital security matters.

As disturbing as are these realities, even more frightening is the extent to which Obama yearns still to dislodge America from its foundation as a nation unique in placing individual liberty at the pinnacle of political power. His clear objective is to transform us into a society in which government mandates control virtually every aspect of citizens’ lives.

Obama’s latest plan is to transform the “right” to vote into the “requirement” to vote.

During a speech last week to the City Club of Cleveland, Obama declared himself a fan of mandatory voting. The President deflated America to other countries that are practitioners of forced voting. He opined, for example, that in Australia (a country that remains part of the British Commonwealth), citizens are required to vote; and concluded that instituting a similar mandate here would be “transformative.” He is right. Taking away peoples’ right to decide whether to vote in a particular election, and forcing them under penalty of law to vote, would be “transformative”; but certainly not in a good sense.

The world thus envisioned by Barack Obama would be a country in which everyone has a right to health care, to a college education, to a job, and to everything else the benevolent government decides the people should have; everything, that is, except the right to decide whether to vote. Obama noted favorably that the result of mandated voting would be to increase voting by the core constituencies of the Democratic Party; though the Voter-in-Chief paid lip service to the broader goal of increasing the overall percentage of voters who actually vote (which is low).

Voting in this Bizarro World would become simply another burden of being a citizen; right up there with paying taxes or carrying government-defined health insurance.

Some observers – many, perhaps — might be inclined to shrug off these latest musings of Barack Obama as simply “food for thought” offered by a president in the last two years of a second term. What gives them real currency, and why we ought to be extremely concerned about them, is the propensity already demonstrated by this President for doing what he wants via executive orders, whenever the Congress or the American people fail to give him what he wants through lawful and constitutional process. In this same mold, Attorney General Eric Holder misses no opportunity to attack efforts by state legislatures to protect their voting procedures against fraud by ensuring that only lawful citizens vote.

At the end of the day, there are innumerable ways this Administration could try to link federal benefits to voting, either directly or indirectly.

As a child, I lived in many other cultures and countries, including some in which voting was a requirement enforced by military force. This had the effect of driving up the percentage of people “voting” to laudable heights – but at the same time, driving down individual freedom to depressing depths. However, so long as those advocating for such forced measure can remain in charge – and they usually can in such a system – for them, it is a desirable arrangement. For the rest of us, not so much.

March 25, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
From the Desk of Bob Barr

Iran brouhaha highlights total lack of foreign policy leadership

by Liberty Guard Author March 20, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

“Traitors,” screamed a tabloid New York newspaper. “Heroes,” proclaimed conservative pundits. Actually, the 47 Republican Senators who signed a March 9th “Open Letter to the Leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran” are neither traitors nor heroes; and neither is the President or the leadership of the House of Representatives. In fact, the ridiculous name-calling generated by the “Open Letter” authored by Freshman Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas — whose tenure in the Senate was all of about nine weeks when he circulated his letter — symbolizes the infantile depths to which the quality of American foreign policy has fallen in recent years. There simply is no leadership, anywhere.

Back in the day — let’s say during the Administration of Richard Nixon — we had presidents who, despite obvious flaws, understood politics among nations. In Nixon’s case, even his political enemies readily admitted he parlayed that expertise into widespread respect for the United States.

Secretaries of State, going back at least to the early days of the Cold War, were almost always highly respected men and women possessed of substantial academic and real-world credentials in international affairs. Whether Republican or Democrat, rarely were serious questions raised at home or abroad about their professional gravitas.

The caliber of those chosen to represent the United States at the highest level of foreign affairs reflected an understanding dating to our nation’s founding that America’s real and perceived position of leadership in the world really did matter. Yet, increasingly in recent years those heading the bureaucracy at “Foggy Bottom” are there because of politics, not diplomacy.

Similarly in the Congress, past leaders of both major political parties recognized the vital importance of placing representatives with a deep understanding of America’s position and interests in the world at the helm of key committees. Veteran members of the House and especially the Senate occupied leadership positions on the Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees of both houses.

Today, we simply have what we have.

We have a president who by all outward signs, neither understands nor cares about foreign affairs; a shallowness reflected in his diplomatic and national security teams. From the start in January 2009, this president has lurched from one ill-advised position to another; embracing policies that very often contradict themselves along the way.

First, Washington embraced the “Arab Spring” without even understanding what it was about; it just “sounded good.” We threw our long-time ally Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak under the bus; only to be blindsided by the anti-West moves by the successor government headed by proponents of the Muslim Brotherhood.

One country to the west in Libya, this administration sat by while strongman Muammar Gaddafi dutifully complied with his promise to forsake and dismantle weapons of mass destruction; only to then throw him under the bus too when self-proclaimed “reformers” showed up and demanded aid and recognition from the West. Now, we are pariahs in that country; which has joined others in the region in descending into sectarian bloodletting with a pronounced anti-U.S. undertone. The 2012 Benghazi tragedy followed directly from our earlier naïve actions in that country.

And now we have Iran; a country far more complex in many ways than Iraq, Egypt, Syria or Libya. A country that has long-yearned to be counted among the ranks of nuclear powers, and is well on its way to achieving that goal. It is a country ruled since 1979 by fundamentally anti-American and anti-Israel religious zealots. And Obama has chosen to deal with the regime

Into the middle of this boiling political cauldron steps The Freshman — Sen. Cotton — who does not even occupy a seat on the Foreign Affairs Committee. He audaciously drafts a letter to the leadership of Iran, in the midst of sensitive, ongoing negotiations between Washington and Tehran. Amazingly, Cotton was able to convince 46 of his Senate Republican colleagues — including some of its most senior members — to join him in this unprecedented move. Whether they all read the letter first — much less understood its message — is unclear.

Sure, the letter reflects the domestic political positions championed by the Republican grass roots; and yes, it goes over well at political events back home and in Tel Aviv. The letter even displays an accurate understanding of powers Congress possesses under our Constitution — powers the Senate and House often talk about but rarely act upon.

However, in terms of a responsible and timely way to assert that congressional power, it ranks about as high as the vision which Barack Obama and John Kerry bring to the negotiating table — ill-timed, ill-advised, and ill-prepared.

Until both houses of Congress and leaders of both parties once again elevate understanding of international relations above sound-bite politics, and until we have a president who actually cares about and understands international power politics, we’d all be better off if they simply stayed home and stayed quiet.

Read more: The Marietta Daily Journal – Iran brouhaha highlights total lack of foreign policy leadership

March 20, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
From the Desk of Bob Barr

FAA Stifling Private Drone Use and Innovation

by Liberty Guard Author March 18, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

Amateur drone hobbyists, beware! If you happen to make one red cent from any video filmed with your small drone – or if Uncle Sam thinks you are — you might soon receive an unwelcome notice in the mail or an ominous visitor at your door. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is cracking down on what it deems to be “commercial use” of drones or “Unmanned Aerial Vehicles” (UAVs), as it prefers to call them. The agency is turning amateur hobbyists and small business owners into potential outlaws should they ignore the FAA’s demands to “cease and desist” from operating any drone in what its regulators deem to be a “commercial” manner.

Founded in 1958, the FAA’s primary – and extremely important – responsibility is to keep the airspace safe and navigable for aircraft. Indeed, in recent years the FAA has done a commendable job at this important task. However, in the finest of bureaucratic fashions, it always searches for new areas in which it can meddle, and for which – of course – it can justify larger budgets. Its latest target: small drones.

Small UAVs — those under 55-pounds — are becoming increasingly popular among hobbyists and small businesses. Rather than embracing this new technology and developing safety regulations that foster innovation while protecting public safety, the FAA apparently has instead decided simply to do whatever it can to stifle development and innovation of this emerging and exciting technology. The regulatory fog thus created has caught amateur drone enthusiasts and small businesses in an untenable situation.

Consider Jayson Hanes who, since 2013, has flown drones as a hobby; capturing stunning views from Tampa and surrounding areas, which he then posts to his popular YouTube channel (his most popular video has nearly 100,000 views). However, without any evidence that Hanes had received one thin dime for his drone videos, the FAA sent him a formal letter accusing him of operating a drone for “commercial purposes,” which would place him in the same regulatory class as commercial jumbo jets.

Hanes’ story is similar to that of Maine drone hobbyist, Steve Girard, who was contacted by the FAA nannies earlier this month and told to take down his website, which sold drone-shot aerial footage. “We just want to do a small business,” Girard told his local news. “We know how to fly it and respect people’s privacy. We do it safely.”

The FAA claims it is looking further into how, and why, both these citizens were contacted, but these are far from the only incidents in which the agency has used scare tactics, such as “cease and desist” letters and legal threats, to force hobbyists and small businesses to stop using drones. Notably, the FAA’s demands are being made without any evidence whatsoever that these “commercial” drones pose any danger to life or property.

As Vice.com technology reporter Jason Koebler noted last year, more than a dozen businesses have received threatening letters from the FAA about their drone use. This bureaucratic harassment is particularly troubling given that the FAA’s supposed ban on “commercial use” of drones is itself legally dubious, and has been virtually unenforceable since it was first concocted in 2007.

Troubling also is the impact of such tactics on the overall development and growth of the drone industry. One UAV industry report released in 2013 estimated that drone integration in the US economy could create more than 70,000 jobs in the first few years, with an economic impact in the tens of billions of dollars. Proposed uses for UAV’s include everything from inspecting farm crops and cattle ranches, to inspecting buildings, bridges and pipelines; all at far lesser cost in dollars and risk to humans.

To be fair, the benefits of UAV use are not completely lost on the FAA. Last month, after more than half a decade of inaction, the agency finally released its proposed rulemaking on the use of small UAVs for commercial use. While the proposed rules constitute an important step forward in providing at least some clarity and notice for current and future private drone users, the underlying desire to control by the FAA remains obvious in its regulatory outline, and presents serious challenges for future economic development and deployment of UAVs.

It is not a question of whether the FAA has a role to play in ensuring that drones are deployed with due regard for public safety; and the agency should in fact be moving more expeditiously in that regard so drone users are properly are on notice as to the legitimate safety regulations with which they must comply. But the FAA should keep its regulatory mitts away from questions of why citizens use drones, especially when constitutional rights such as those protected by the First Amendment are concerned.

The public comment period for the FAA’s proposed rulemaking on small UAVs closes April 24th, so those concerned with this issue must hurry to make their voice heard.

March 18, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
From the Desk of Bob Barr

ATF Hand In the Cookie Jar Slapped Down

by Liberty Guard Author March 11, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

Yesterday, March 10, 2015 was a Red Letter Day. No; it had nothing to do with Hillary’s e-mail “coming out party” at the United Nations. And, no, ISIS has not forsaken its bloodlust ways. It’s perhaps even more remarkable.

A federal government agency has backed down!

Specifically, on Tuesday, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (affectionately known simply as “ATF”) publicly admitted failure and backed away from its misguided and disingenuous attempt to ban one of the most popular ammunition rounds in civilian use.

However, before we break open a bottle of The Bubbly, it must be kept in mind that this victory may be only temporary. As we know from actual experience over the past six years, the Obama Administration consistently and repeatedly has failed to live up to its self-styled status as the most honest and “transparent” in history.

This latest foray into heavy-handed regulatory warfare began a month ago when ATF – reversing a 29-year old decision – issued a “proposed” rule change that would designate .223-caliber “green tip” rifle cartridges (also known as “M855” ammunition) as “armor piercing.” The regulation would do this by removing the ammunition from the list of ammunition “exempted” from being considered “armor piercing.” The change would have made it unlawful for citizens – who use these cartridges by the millions in the widely-popular rifle platform known as the “AR-15” – to purchase or possess M855 ammunition.

M855 ammunition is used by target shooters and other sportsmen because of its accuracy, relatively reasonable price, and wide availability. It has never been documented to be have been used in handguns by criminals against law enforcement; despite claims by ATF that it is has been thus employed (which was the Bureau’s stated reason for the ban).

Unsaid in ATF’s proposed ban is the fact that the AR-15 rifle, which uses the M855 round, has long-been the “poster boy” for demonizing firearms by the gun-control crowd. This crowd, using the intimidation and fact-distortion tactics common to Liberals in politics and the media, has tried repeatedly in recent years to pass legislation limiting the availability of the AR-15. Unfortunately for them, and fortunately for those of us who understand and support the Constitution’s Second Amendment protections, gun-control efforts in this regard have failed.

But, the gun control folks have a friend in ATF; and through regulatory sleight-of-hand, the Bureau tried to slip one over on the American people. The Bureau had gone so far as to publish a newly-revised regulatory manual explaining that M855 ammunition was now considered an unlawful “armor-piercing” round – even before the public comment period for the proposed regulation was ended. That proved to be a “Bridge too Far.” A massive, public anti-ban comment avalanche, coupled with several bipartisan letters in opposition to what ATF was doing from the Congress, has forced ATF to rescind its proposed ban.

Clearly, however, the leopard has not changed its spots. This Administration, including the current leadership of the ATF in particular, remains strongly committed to restricting, rather than protecting, the people’s right to keep and bear arms – including ammunition. If the dozens of members of Congress who publicly stood in opposition to this latest “executive action” by President Obama, and if the tens of thousands of average citizens who did the same, think that the battle is won and they can take their eye off the ball and rest easy, think again.

Just as Obama and his Department of Justice (which is about to get a protégé of Eric Holder as his replacement) have thumbed their nose at the rule of law in other areas, including immigration, if left to their own devices even for a moment, they will not hesitate to find some other way to accomplish what ATF was unable to do this go round.

March 11, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Media Appearances

Malzberg | Bob Barr says the Hillary Clinton Email Scandal is “typical Clintonism” | Newsmax

by Liberty Guard Author March 6, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author
March 6, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Liberty Updates

Liberty Update – Net Neutrality

by Liberty Guard Author March 5, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author
March 5, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
From the Desk of Bob Barr

Message to Republicans — Motives Do Matter

by Liberty Guard Author March 4, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

“I didn’t intend to question President Obama’s motives or the content of his heart,” former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani recently wrote in the Wall Street Journal. Giuliana made this startling statement in defense of his earlier observation that Obama does not truly “love America.” Not surprisingly, Giuliani’s criticism had pushed the Left to apoplectic fits. Obama’s defenders rushed to the aid of their Savior-in-Chief; characterizing Giuliani as a washed-up “has-been” taking cheap shots at the man he failed to beat in 2008. Less expected, however, were the droves of Republicans who jumped aboard the “motives-don’t-matter” bandwagon.

While Giuliani’s initial criticism of Obama was not unlike that of other conservatives during the last six years, many Republicans lost no time jumping in front of the cameras to distance themselves from Giuliani and echo his mantra. “I don’t think it helps to question the President’s patriotism or motives,” said Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. He was joined by other Republican notables, including 2016 presidential hopefuls Rand Paul and Marco Rubio. Jeb Bush observed it was proper to question the President’s “policies” but not why he does what he does.

Like most “outrages” on the Left, the Democrats’ blustering was a time-tested trick to force squeamish Republicans to back down. In fact, the Democrats were using the very tool they have employed so effectively for years – question Republicans’ motives. How many times, for example, have we heard liberal wags claim that any criticism of Obama or Attorney General Eric Holder reflects Republican racial animus; or that opposition to redefining marriage is motivated by “homophobia?” Even GOP efforts to reform welfare is attributed to a mean-spirited hatred of the “poor.” In these and countless other instances, Liberals openly and shamelessly question conservatives’ motives; often in very personal terms.

Motives do matter; so why are so many Republicans so squeamish about admitting this, especially when such criticism is pegged to important matters of national security and other fundamental policy issues? Common sense dictates they should know better. Giuliani, who first rose to national prominence in the 1980s as the hard-charging United States Attorney in New York City, certainly must recall that establishing a motive or knowledge of bad acts is an essential element of a successful prosecution. It’s Criminal Law 101.

In the political arena, inquiring into and understanding why a decision-maker undertakes certain actions as opposed to others — actions that may affect our entire economy or our nation’s defense — is a vital first step in developing alternative policies and correcting mistakes.

For example, the refusal by Republicans to subject the President’s motives to public debate is doing exactly what Obama is doing with regard to ISIS — criticizing the terror organization’s actions without understanding the reasons it commits atrocities. If we do not understand the mind of the enemy, we doom ourselves to flailing around in the dark against an adversary without any real hope of defeating him.

President Ronald Reagan orchestrated the defeat of the Soviet Union not simply by criticizing the self-evident inefficiencies of the Soviet economy, or the deplorable living conditions created by its authoritarian regime. He did so by enunciating the moral depravity at the core of the Communist philosophy, as the “evil empire” it was. Only by understanding and articulating what motivated Communists was Reagan able to outflank them; ultimately sending the USSR to the “ash heap of history,” as he predicted would happen.

As was true in the 1980s, so it is now in this 21st Century. Condemning the unconstitutional actions of the Obama Administration is appropriate and essential (even obvious). But this makes sense only if and when we begin to deconstruct the motivations for such actions in order to truly understand the enemy we face. Otherwise we are just shooting in the dark.

Many of today’s Democrats, reflecting the philosophy underlying this Administration, are no longer motivated solely by the benign desire to help others using the power of government. Instead, Obama and those in his Administration appear clearly to act based on a genuine disdain for and rejection of the American traditions of free markets, private property, and individual rights; principles they see as a moral blight on society rather than as a foundation from which to protect and strengthen our nation.

If the GOP truly hopes to defeat this brand of toxic “progressivism,” it had better learn to defend its positions aggressively, rather than backing down whenever the media or its political adversaries play the “motive” card.

March 4, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Liberty Updates

Liberty Update – Term Limits

by Liberty Guard Author March 4, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author
March 4, 2015 0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

Keep in touch

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube Telegram

Search Archives

Recent Posts

  • A European, Socialized Pharmaceutical Marketplace Should Have No Place in America

    May 9, 2025
  • Bob joins NTD News

    March 27, 2025
  • Government Over-Regulation Is Handing China The Energy Future

    March 19, 2025
  • The Climate Control Movement In Europe Is Alive and Still Kicking

    March 6, 2025
  • The Regulatory State Continues to Target Fantasy Sports

    February 27, 2025

About Us

  • Liberty Guard
    3330 Cumberland Blvd.
    Suite 500
    Atlanta, Georgia 30339
  • Email: [email protected]

From The Desk of Bob Barr

A European, Socialized Pharmaceutical Marketplace Should Have No Place in America
Government Over-Regulation Is Handing China The Energy Future
The Climate Control Movement In Europe Is Alive and Still Kicking

Latest Videos

Not My Fingerprints
Idiots In Full View
Biden Administration Champions Stupid Idea

Get Liberty Guard Email Updates




©2024 Liberty Guard, Inc. All rights reserved.

Designed and Developed by Media Bridge LLC

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube Telegram
  • Refund and Data Policies
  • State Disclosures
  • Join
Liberty Guard
  • Projects
  • About
  • Leadership
  • Podcast
  • Blog
    • From The Desk of Bob Barr
    • Liberty Updates
    • Media Appearances
    • All Articles
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Join