The Patriots List

Senator John Cornyn of Texas has rightfully asked President -- and I mean no disrespect to the office here -- Obama what he intends to do with the list of political opponents he has begun compiling. Naturally, the reactions from those quarters -- the quarters where I live -- has ranged from indignant to concerned, and those reactions are entirely appropriate.

Indeed, there is no exaggerating the seriousness of the threat that Barack Obama poses to our freedom. His actions, thanks to modern database technology, are not just petty: They are actually dangerous, as Byron York of the Washington Examiner indicates (via John Hinderaker) when he examines the legal ramifications of that despicable move.

The White House request that members of the public report anyone who is spreading "disinformation" about the proposed national health care makeover could lead to a White House database of political opponents that will be both secret and permanent, according to Republican lawyers on the Senate Judiciary Committee who are examining the plan's possible implementation.

Hinderaker reacts:

A secret and more or less permanent dissident database--in America! That's quite an accomplishment for an administration still in its seventh month. It seems longer, somehow.

This is chilling, but if this is something to keep in mind at all, it is only in a tactical sense. A few people have tasted the possible short-term consequences of opposing Obama at various town hall "meetings" across the country, as reported yesterday: One man was attacked for bearing what


Nancy Pelosi might call a "swastika," (above, HT: Alan Sullivan) and another was pushed or slapped in the face (Click through images 9-16.) simply for defending the same health care system that Ted Kennedy used when diagnosed with brain cancer.

Now imagine what the man in charge of the executive branch could do, were he so inclined, and bear in mind the violent metaphor he used last night while speaking to his constituency of union thugs and ne'er-do-wells. This is what he wants you to imagine -- while forgetting that the consequences of failing to stand up to him will be far worse in the long run. (Here is one example.)

Myrhaf is right:

The left is statist, and therefore more authoritarian. It is the party for "control freaks." The pro-freedom right (as opposed to the pragmatist welfare staters and the religionists) is a leaderless phenomenon of America's tattered tradition of individual liberty. The left is the party of totalitarian cynicism and lies. The opposition -- call it the Tea Party movement if you will -- is an honest reaction by millions of good people to the shocking loss of freedom in America. All the left can do is hope to "define" their opponents with smears that are actually a self-portrait.

The slaps and punches are just the start, regardless of what we do. Now is hardly the time to back down.

We will survive Obama only by successfully fighting him. Do not be deterred by his pathetic scare tactics or the public confession that is his "enemies list." This is a roll of honor: Be sure to join it today.

Is anyone out there selling Gadsden Flag armbands? I'd happily buy one.

-- CAV