Have you heard about Operation Choke Point? It’s the unconstitutional initiative launched by Eric Holder’s Department of Justice, and it was meant to force banks and other financial institutions into working with the DOJ in tracking down companies suspected of illegal activities without due process; a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable search and seizure.
While the goals of this program sounded noble–just as EVERY scheme concocted by the liberal left–the proverbial good intentions used to black top the road to Hades eventually became evident when Obama used his pen and phone to take the program on its own little political Star Trek.
In other words, boldly going where no law had gone before.
How? By taking a heaping cup of Operation Choke Point, adding just a dash of Dodd-Frank, and mixing it up to create a means to shut down businesses whose only crime is their belief in the Constitution.
While the FDIC claimed at the time that the DOJ plan had been scuttled, the reality is that Obama went on to use and abuse it to do what he is unable to do under the Constitution.
In light of the harassment dealt to a long line of businesses considered “risky” by the administration, such as: gun dealers, ammunition manufacturers and tobacco shops, Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mike Lee (R-UT) have introduced the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act to shut down the unconstitutional program.
Cruz explained the purpose of shutting down Operation Choke Point:
“Under President Obama’s reign, the DOJ has abandoned its longstanding tradition of staying out of politics and has instead become a partisan arm of the White House. The Obama Administration initiated Operation Choke Point to punish law-abiding small businesses that don’t align with the president’s political leanings. The DOJ should not be abusing its power by trying to bankrupt American citizens for exercising their constitutional rights.”
And Lee added:
“Our right to bear arms — a right granted by God and protected by the Constitution — is fundamental to the protection of all our other rights. An executive branch bent on taking away this right, through any administrative means necessary, is a danger to all Americans. That is why I am proud to co-sponsor the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act, which would end the federal government’s ability to abuse financial regulations to target firearm proprietors like they did during Operation Choke Point.”
We need to defend the Constitution while we still can by letting our Senators know that we expect them to vote for this bill.
David Leach is the owner of The Strident Conservative, your source for opinion that’s politically-incorrect and always “right.” David is also a contributor to RedState.com.
His daily commentary is nationally syndicated via Salem Radio Network.
