Dr. Chris Magiera talks about the Administrative State aka “The Swamp.” Please see below for the transcript.
Hello. I am Dr. Chris Magiera, a candidate for the United States House of Representatives from the 3rd Congressional District of Indiana. In the office, and on the streets, I hear the concerns of 3rd District citizens. One of the most important concerns is the infringement of our God-given natural rights and liberties by the vast administrative state, otherwise known as the Swamp. Thomas Jefferson said, “When the government fears the people, that is Liberty. When the people fear the government, that is tyranny.”
So just how big is the government bureaucracy, and what are we to do about it? I found an article in a 2017 issue of Forbes Magazine by a commentator named Clyde Wayne Crews Jr. While there are 15 basic Cabinet departments with which we are all reasonably familiar, the bureaucracy does not stop there.
An organization called the Administrative Conference of the United States, in its sourcebook of United States Executive Agencies, went on to say, “Alongside the 220 executive department components, there are also 61 independent establishments and government corporations, 8 quasi-official agencies and 16 international organizations.” And an online supplement to their manual “notes another 48 boards, commissions, and committees in existence.” They conclude by saying, “There is no authoritative list of government agencies.” That’s right, you heard me, “there is no authoritative list of government agencies.” Tell me that that just doesn’t want to make your head explode.
The best estimate that I could find of the number of federal agencies in existence was from USA.gov. And that number was 443. Each day, you have at least 443 agencies making rules that have the force of law, acting as courts to Adjudicate violations, and acting as executive to punish, fine, seize, or confiscate. And these agencies are, for the most part, directly unaccountable to the people, and in some cases, even unaccountable to the chief executive, the President.
So how did this happen, and what is the solution? Well, the growth of the massive and unaccountable administrative state was the plan of the Progressive Movement, which began in the early 1900s and really took off during the administration of FDR. The progressives felt that technology had advanced to such a degree, that the people would be incapable of governing themselves. Their belief was that the people needed to be guided by skilled technocrats. Their mantra was, “Feed, sustain, direct.” And yes, we let this happen. Skilled and manipulative career politicians arranged for the Congress to abandon the Constitution, specifically Article 1 Section 8, and to incrementally delegate congressional powers to the executive branch and its agencies.
So this, my fellow citizens, is why I stress continually in this campaign that we need to reverse the unconstitutional acts of Congressional Delegation of powers. Read my lips, “No more delegation.”
So, if Article 1 Section 8 were to be strictly enforced, what would the Federal agency bureaucracy look like? Well, it would look a lot different. There are four agencies that have a good basis in the Constitution, and those are the Departments of State, Justice, Treasury, and Defense.
You could conceivably find constitutional justification for the Department of Transportation, but that would only pertain to post roads. Commerce Department has some cause for justification, but not in its current overreaching form. The Department of the Interior would only have a constitutional justification with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and that could easily be transferred to the Department of State. As for the Post Office Department, that is completely justified by the Constitution, but its functioning has been hampered by the fact that it is made to act like a private corporation—but is governed by inefficient Federal rules. A decision has to be made either to bring the post office back into the government or cut it completely free and make it a private corporation, without government interference.
And what about the VA department and DHS? Veterans are a vital part of our society to whom we owe Eternal debt. The VA department should be folded into the Department of Defense, where it rightly belongs. The Department of Homeland Security was an enormous government power grab, made to seem necessary by playing on people’s fear. As William Pitt the younger said to the British House of Commons in 1783, “Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants, It is the Creed of slaves.” Defense of the Homeland should be performed by the defense department.
That leaves us with the problem of accountability to We the People. Changes should be made in the federal government sector that would make all agency personnel directly accountable to the chief executive. This is in keeping with the Constitution. Work in the federal system should be an at-will arrangement, which can be terminated by the chief executive for cause or not for cause. While private-sector labor unions are simply a matter of economics, federal government labor unions were not, and never will be, a good idea. In order for effective reform of the massive and unaccountable administrative state to take place, federal government labor unions must be abolished. Some form of civil service structure may be appropriate, but NOT federal government labor unions.
In conclusion, every day, our God-given natural rights and liberties are infringed by the unaccountable and massive administrative state. This administrative state is largely unconstitutional. The cure is simple. The Cure is the Constitution solution. Career politicians who rely on influence and groupthink will never be willing to reform the system. They will never drain the swamp. In order to protect your God-given natural rights and liberties, it is time to do something different. It is time to vote for someone who will uphold the Constitution 100% of the time. In 2020, It is time to vote for Dr. Chris Magiera for Congress from the 3rd District of Indiana.
Thank you.