Why Tom Cotton invoking federalism as his excuse for not objecting to electors is misguided

The United States of America is a constitutional republic built on the foundation of limited-government federalism. We need more, not less federalist principles to reduce the influence of the federal government over the states, as well as to reduce state restrictions over counties and cities. The closer the power is to the family and the individual, the better America can be.

Senator Tom Cotton invoked federalism as his excuse for not joining other conservative Senators in objecting to the electors offered by at least six states, electors who were selected based on contested election results. And for the most part, he is correct. The Constitution establishes the power of selecting electors is given into the hands of the state legislatures. Congress should not act against them based on this premise…

…except that’s not what’s happening. Where Cotton gets it wrong is in not attributing the selection of electors to the executive branches in these states. The combination of election irregularities, unconstitutional state mandates that circumvented state legislatures, and outright voter fraud that has been covered up by the states’ bureaucrats makes for a circumstance in which the United States Congress MUST get involved.

Federalism is about checks and balances. It’s about giving the people every possible recourse to oppose tyranny from every level of government. Nine times out of ten, that tyranny is coming from Washington DC. But 2020 demonstrated a reversal. The tyrants are at the state and local level, now. They impose draconian lockdowns that are often unconstitutional. They have been absorbing more power, consolidating it in the executive branches and away from state legislatures. And yes, they applied the same tyranny to this election, creating atmospheres where voter fraud was easy and then covering up the voter fraud itself.

Ideally, it would have been the state legislatures who did their duty and fully investigated the elections. Most held hearings and wrote letters, but they did not act in time or with enough force. This is why Congress, the last step before the President-elect is officially named, must act on January 6th. Federalism is about handling things in the proper order. It does not preclude one branch or one level of government from acting to oppose tyranny when previous steps along the path were not properly executed.

Here is Cotton’s statement:

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) released the following statement on the joint session of Congress later this week:

“I share the concerns of many Arkansans about irregularities in the presidential election, especially in states that rushed through election-law changes to relax standards for voting-by-mail. I also share their disappointment with the election results. I therefore support a commission to study the last election and propose reforms to protect the integrity of our elections. And after Republicans win in Georgia, the Senate should also hold more hearings on these matters. All Americans deserve to have confidence in the elections that undergird our free government.

Nevertheless, the Founders entrusted our elections chiefly to the states—not Congress. They entrusted the election of our president to the people, acting through the Electoral College—not Congress. And they entrusted the adjudication of election disputes to the courts—not Congress. Under the Constitution and federal law, Congress’s power is limited to counting electoral votes submitted by the states.

If Congress purported to overturn the results of the Electoral College, it would not only exceed that power, but also establish unwise precedents. First, Congress would take away the power to choose the president from the people, which would essentially end presidential elections and place that power in the hands of whichever party controls Congress. Second, Congress would imperil the Electoral College, which gives small states like Arkansas a voice in presidential elections. Democrats could achieve their longstanding goal of eliminating the Electoral College in effect by refusing to count electoral votes in the future for a Republican president-elect. Third, Congress would take another big step toward federalizing election law, another longstanding Democratic priority that Republicans have consistently opposed.

Thus, I will not oppose the counting of certified electoral votes on January 6. I’m grateful for what the president accomplished over the past four years, which is why I campaigned vigorously for his reelection. But objecting to certified electoral votes won’t give him a second term—it will only embolden those Democrats who want to erode further our system of constitutional government.”

His fears are valid. Correcting this election will set in motion events and opportunities for Democrats to further seize control for Capitol Hill. But that’s a bridge we need to cross when it comes. The clear and present danger is a fraudulent election yielding a result that was not properly and lawfully established by the people. If we were talking about small amounts of voter fraud, then Cotton would be correct. But what we’ve seen is nothing short of a massive, coordinated effort to steal the election.

The system failed. That’s no excuse for Congress to abdicate their oath to defend the Constitution. The system needs to be fixed, but first and foremost the election results must be corrected. Tom Cotton’s reasoning is misguided.

COVID-19 lockdowns are taking down an independent news outlet

Nobody said running a media site would be easy. We could use some help keeping this site afloat.

Colleagues have called me the worst fundraiser ever. My skills are squarely rooted on the journalistic side of running a news outlet. Paying the bills has never been my forte, but we’ve survived. We have ads on the site that help, but since the site’s inception this has been a labor of love that otherwise doesn’t bring in the level of revenue necessary to justify it.

When I left a nice, corporate career in 2017, I did so knowing I wouldn’t make nearly as much money. But what we do at NOQ Report to deliver the truth and fight the progressive mainstream media narrative that has plagued this nation is too important for me to sacrifice it for the sake of wealth. We know we’ll never make a ton of money this way, and we’re okay with that.

Things have become harder with the coronavirus lockdowns. Both ad money and donations that have kept us afloat for a while have dropped dramatically. We thought we could weather the storm, but the resurgence of lockdowns that mainstream media and Democrats are pushing has put our prospects in jeopardy. In short, we are now in desperate need of financial assistance.

The best way NOQ Report readers can help is to donate. Our Giving Fuel page makes it easy to donate one-time or monthly. Alternatively, you can donate through PayPal as well. We need approximately $17,300 to stay afloat through March when we hope the economy will be more open, but more would be wonderful and any amount that brings us closer to our goal is greatly appreciated.

The second way to help is to become a partner. We’ve strongly considered seeking angel investors in the past but because we were paying the bills, it didn’t seem necessary. Now, we’re struggling to pay the bills. This shouldn’t be the case as our traffic the last year has been going up dramatically. June, 2018, we had 11,678 visitors. A year later in June, 2019, we were up to 116,194. In June, 2020, we had 614,192. In November, 2020, we hit 1.2 million visitors.

We’re heading in the right direction and we believe we’re ready talk to patriotic investors who want to not only “get in on the action” but more importantly who want to help America hear the truth. Interested investors should contact me directly with the contact button above.

As the world spirals towards radical progressivism, the need for truthful journalism has never been greater. But in these times, we need as many conservative media voices as possible. Please help keep NOQ Report going.