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Why This Midterm is Critical to Saving America

Originally published at Newsmax

America’s democratic form of constitutional republic is on the verge of breaking down because of political corruption at the highest levels and the concurrent decline in civility and growing mob behavior.

Fundamental and deep division prevents government from fixing itself. But we the people can and must play a decisive role in turning things around. In fact, a country with a Constitution that makes us a nation of the people, by the people and for the people, puts the real power in the hands of voters rather than the elites in Washington.

It is important to remember that in giving the power to the people, the Founders had no illusions about everyday Americans. They recognized that most citizens would not have the time or interest to understand the details of domestic economic policy or foreign policy.

But they were confident in the common sense of the people, and that people would vote for candidates and political parties with more likelihood of delivering solutions to improve their lives. They also hoped that national elections scheduled every two years would provide an important check on irresponsibility and abuse of power in government.

Incompetence and corruption in a new presidential administration can be recognized early on, which is why midterm elections are the key mechanism for course correction when there are problems in any such new administration.

Voters need only ask themselves am I better or worse off today than I was two years ago. If the answer this year is a resounding, “I am worse off than I was two years ago,” they should vote against the party in power — the Democrat Party.

Midterm elections are particularly important because they provide the people an easy and direct way to change course by electing new candidates from the opposing party in such numbers that they become the new majority, which can then stop executive branch malfeasance.

To get a sense of the gravity of our present situation, let us revisit 10 developments that have happened to America since the Biden administration took power less than two years ago, acknowledging that all these were preventable:

  • Biden’s open border policy has resulted in a record number of undocumented and illegal immigrants, criminals, terrorists and drug and human trafficking gangs crossing the U.S. southern border. Breitbart News puts that number at 5 million, and more than 150,000 Americans have died from illegal trafficking of fentanyl during this time.
  • The wholesale increase in crime in America has largely resulted from Democrat polices that have defunded the police.
  • Joe Biden signed executive orders to stop oil pipelines and reduce drilling and hydrocarbon extraction — resulting in significantly higher energy prices, a need for importing oil from undesirable states, and the loss of energy independence achieved by the third year of the prior administration.
  • The Biden administration’s failure to alleviate supply chain problems and its energy policies resulting in sharp fuel price increases became driving factors in our nation’s present runaway inflation.
  • A demoralized military under Biden has caused recruiting shortfalls across all the services, and a botched military withdrawal that precipitated an inexplicable turnover of $80 billion in advanced U.S. military equipment to our terrorist enemy, the Taliban, in Afghanistan brought dishonor and disrespect to the United States.
  • Biden has expressed no concern about China completing the purchase of 191,000 acres of U.S. farmland, including land in the vicinity of U.S. missile silos and military installations, and 300 acres near the Grand Forks, North Dakota, Space Force Base that operates our most advanced drone airframes and satellite communication technology.
  • The Biden administration has engaged in aiding and abetting censorship and deplatforming of independent voices in the legacy and social media.
  • The Biden administration’s extension of government influence and control of media narratives are in direct violation of the First Amendment.
  • The Biden administration health care agencies’ inconsistent and often harmful policies censored preventive treatments for COVID-19, while making recommendations and extending mandates that destroyed businesses, denied children access to socialization and learning, and caused unprecedented deaths and injuries.
  • The Biden administration has politically weaponized the Justice Department and law enforcement agencies in unprecedented ways manifest in raids against the homes of people exercising their First Amendment rights in protesting school boards, abortion, questioning election integrity and researching the patterns of vote fraud and electronic vote counting irregularities.

Just a few days after the August 8th FBI raid of President Trump’s personal residence at Mar-a-Lago, the IRS announced that it was hiring 87,000 new agents, a move that not only would double the agency’s present size, but make the IRS larger than the Pentagon, the State Department, the FBI and the Customs and Border Control combined.

Such an enlargement of the IRS makes little sense, until one connects the dots with the factual record. The IRS has stockpiled some 5 million rounds of ammunition, continues to acquire more, while also creating help-wanted job postings for new hires experienced and/or willing to be trained in the handling of firearms.

In September, there have been raids, seizures of phones, computers and records and the serving of subpoenas and/or search warrants on some 50 high-level Trump supporters. Collectively, these actions over that last several months suggest that United States is closer to a police state than a constitutional democracy.

Americans couldn’t have a clearer clarion to wake up and take action by voting, while also resisting inclination to retaliate or take up arms — except in self-defense. There will be various false flag events as we approach the November 8 election day, with the intention of creating civil disturbances that would justify martial law and provide justification for election postponement or promotion of another mail-in/ballot harvesting fiasco.

None of these can be allowed to happen.

It’s important for patriotic Americans to do three things in addition to voting. First, they must try to educate friends and family who may not understand what is going on and may not understand the stakes and the critical importance of this election for a course correction. Second, they should volunteer to serve at the polling places and vote counting and processing places to discourage vote fraud and irregularities.

Third, and most important, it is important to pray for God’s will to be done in America. II Chronicles 7:14, reminds us of hope for all times: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Scott S. Powell

Senior Fellow, Center on Wealth and Poverty
Scott Powell has enjoyed a career split between theory and practice with over 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur and rainmaker in several industries. He joins the Discovery Institute after having been a fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution for six years and serving as a managing partner at a consulting firm, RemingtonRand. His research and writing has resulted in over 250 published articles on economics, business and regulation. Scott Powell graduated from the University of Chicago with honors (B.A. and M.A.) and received his Ph.D. in political and economic theory from Boston University in 1987, writing his dissertation on the determinants of entrepreneurial activity and economic growth.