{"id":1366,"date":"2018-04-04T10:13:26","date_gmt":"2018-04-04T15:13:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/conventionofstates\/?p=1366"},"modified":"2018-04-04T10:13:26","modified_gmt":"2018-04-04T15:13:26","slug":"do-any-federal-agencies-actually-respect-liberty-heres-the-surprising-answer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/conventionofstates\/2018\/04\/do-any-federal-agencies-actually-respect-liberty-heres-the-surprising-answer\/","title":{"rendered":"Do Any Federal Agencies Actually Respect Liberty? Here’s the Surprising Answer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/p>\n

The recently-passed\u00a0federal budget\u00a0is incontrovertible evidence that the \u201cswamp\u201d has not been drained. And let\u2019s be realistic; the swamp is simply too vast and too, well \u2026 swampy, to be converted into habitable land by a single administration. But if mission statements are a reliable guide, we have reason to hope that the domain of the swamp rats (aka Washington bureaucrats) may be shrinking.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0recent article by Christine Emba\u00a0bemoaned recent edits \u2013 some proposed, some already final \u2013 to the mission of certain administrative agencies. Let\u2019s evaluate these according to the proper purpose of government: to secure the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.<\/p>\n

Department of Housing and Urban Development<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Old mission statement: \u201cto create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes; utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination, and transform the way HUD does business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Proposed new mission statement: \u201cto ensure Americans have access to fair, affordable housing and opportunities to achieve self-sufficiency, thereby strengthening our communities and nation.\u201dIt\u2019s nice that a federal agency would want to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities. At least until you really think about it. The idea of\u00a0government\u00a0creating any kind of community is actually deeply troubling.\u00a0People\u00a0create communities. Government \u2013 legitimate government, anyway \u2013\u00a0serves\u00a0the communities we create, and it does so in the way we dictate.<\/p>\n

This may seem like nitpicking, but in a day and age where many Americans actually seem to believe that government is the source of our well-being, provider of our needs and the grantor of our rights, it is a distinction we cannot afford to gloss over.<\/p>\n

The new proposed mission statement is a major improvement, for sure. It shifts the agency\u2019s focus on removing barriers to access rather than \u201ccreating\u201d community. It rightly focuses on pointing citizens toward self-sufficiency as the key to flourishing.<\/p>\n

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services<\/h2>\n

Old mission statement: \u201csecures America\u2019s promise as a nation of immigrants by uniting families, providing refuge, fostering economic prosperity, promoting citizenship, and protecting our nation.\u201d<\/p>\n

New mission statement: \u201cadministers the nation\u2019s lawful immigration system, safeguarding its integrity and promise by efficiently and fairly adjudicating requests for immigration benefits while protecting Americans, securing the homeland, and honoring our values.\u201dThe old statement was not particularly objectionable, but the new statement is a significant improvement, for one simple reason: it emphasizes the centrality of the rule of law to America\u2019s immigration system. As President Bill Clinton aptly observed, \u201cWe are a nation of immigrants. But we are also a nation of laws.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rule of law is central to America\u2019s greatness, because it is the cornerstone of liberty. Our government cannot \u201csecure America\u2019s promise\u201d by sacrificing the rule of law, because the rule of law is essential to that promise.<\/p>\n

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau<\/h2>\n

Old mission statement: \u201chelps consumer finance markets work by making rules more effective, by consistently and fairly enforcing those rules, and by empowering consumers to take more control over their economic lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

New mission statement: \u201chelps consumer finance markets work by regularly identifying and addressing outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome regulations, by making rules more effective, by consistently enforcing federal consumer financial law, and by empowering consumers to take more control over their economic lives.\u201dThe key difference between the old and new mission statements here is the new focus on eliminating outdated, unnecessary, unduly burdensome regulations. We should congratulate the leaders of this agency for recognizing that when it comes to administrative regulations, less is more. Tangles of red tape seldom provide any substantive benefit to anyone, but they are incredibly effective at smothering the sparks of entrepreneurial spirit that fuel a robust economy.<\/p>\n

For those of us who want to see the swamp drained, there is a long, difficult road ahead. It will require much more than any single administration can accomplish. Thanks to judicial activism that has damaged the balance of power prescribed by the Constitution, it will require\u00a0constitutional repairs.<\/p>\n

But positive shifts in bureaucracy\u2019s mission statements are a hopeful sign, because words do matter. The words of the Declaration of Independence, for instance, cast the broad vision of individual liberty that anchors our republic. Today, efforts to narrow the mission of our federal agencies reflect the continued vitality of that broad vision of liberty.<\/p>\n

The above was written by Convention of States Action National Legislative Strategist Rita Dunaway and originally published on\u00a0WND.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Image Credit:\u00a0David<\/a>\u00a0on Flickr<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For those of us who want to see the swamp drained, there is a long, difficult road ahead. It will require much more than any single administration can accomplish. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2690,"featured_media":1372,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[38,28],"class_list":["post-1366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-article-v","tag-convention-of-states"],"yoast_head":"\nDo Any Federal Agencies Actually Respect Liberty? Here's the Surprising Answer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For those of us who want to see the swamp drained, there is a long, difficult road ahead. 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