Editors Note: Today’s Wealth Daily comes to you from the latest addition to our editorial team, Laura Woolfrey-Macklem. Laura is a former Washington Insider who once served as a press secretary in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
With a vast knowledge of the inner workings of Washington and a keen eye for government wrongdoings, she has become one of the most sought-after independent journalists exposing the continued erosion of our Constitutional rights. She is also a long-time friend and a true patriot.
Take it away, Laura…
I’ve never met a prouder serviceman than my grandfather.
He had been a World War II Marine, a drill sergeant.
There was an American Legion not far from our house, and when he came to visit, my sister and I would march there with him (literally, march)…
My Pop-Pop’s march demanded chatter: “Left, left, you had a good home when you left, right, left.” He would take us for Shirley Temples, and we would chin up at the bar with veterans and listen to their stories.
It was clear that war and military experience was woven into the very fabric of their being. And although their traumatic experiences had been uncomfortable, the memories were where they found comfort.
These thoughts came flooding back as I saw footage of World War II veterans roll their wheelchairs and clunk their walkers up to the World War II Memorial, only to be turned away because of the government shutdown.
Interestingly, not very far from the memorial is the National Mall, which is also federal land…
It was there where President Obama made an exception to the shutdown for illegal immigrants and their activists to have a rally on the mall in regards to legislation allowing illegal immigrants to apply for citizenship.
Minority House Leader Nancy Pelosi actually had the nerve to get up on stage and thank Obama for making an exception for this rally.
Disgusting
At first, I was mad.
But then I realized this type of shameless arrogance is actually frightening, when our leaders exempt themselves from laws…
While Obama was making an exception for illegal immigrants, a 77-year-old woman and her 80-year-old husband were being evicted from their cabin in Nevada because it sits on federal land.
Ralph Spencer, a Korean War veteran, and his wife have owned the Lake Mead cabin since the 1970s. They were told they had 24 hours to vacate the premises.
Mrs. Spencer said they were allowed to go back for her husband’s scooter and walker, but couldn’t get back to retrieve all their clothes, so they had to go shopping. The couple is living with family until the government allows their return.
According to the Washington Times, a park ranger in D.C. was told to “make life as difficult for people as we can,” calling it “disgusting.” And apparently park rangers are doing just that, employing malicious tactics to upset the American people in an attempt to blame Republicans.
Pat Vaillancourt was on a guided tour at Yellowstone National Park. She and her tour group were stopped from even taking pictures of Old Faithful, because they were “recreating.” The tourists were staying at “Old Faithful Inn,” and were under house arrest when the geyser was going to blow.
“There was a sign that said, ‘All tourists must remain within the (Old Faithful) inn.’ They would not let you go near the geyser — the geyser was only 90 yards away,” said Valliancourt. “They would not let you take pictures.”
She said 10 or 15 minutes before Old Faithful was about to blow each time, the rangers blocked it off.
While some park rangers were busy wielding their power at national parks, others were trying to shut down privately funded facilities, such as Mount Vernon and Claude Moore Colonial Farm, both historic Virginia sites.
Thuggish Moves
Fortunately, the thuggish moves of the government to shut down Mount Vernon didn’t quite work out, since it’s owned by the Mount Vernon Ladies Association. (The rangers did assert they had the right to shut down the parking lot, however, as the federal government owns the lot jointly with the Mount Vernon Ladies.)
The Claude Moore Colonial Farm wasn’t so lucky…
Even though the federal government does not pay one penny towards the farm, because it’s on federal land, they shut it down. The operator of the farm had to cancel events and they lost $20,000 in revenue.
“When the government re-opens, they are funded,” said the farm’s operator, Anna Eberly. “When we reopen, we don’t have federal funding.”
Thanks to public outcry, the farm is operating again.
What’s interesting is Obama’s pick-and-choose method of what to shut down. For instance, Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” government website is operating, but the National Park websites are not.
When you go to the National Park website, you get this message: “Because of the federal government shutdown, all national parks are closed and National Park Service webpages are not operating.” But surf over to Michelle Obama’s webpage, and you find a colorful website including pictures of Mrs. Obama dancing with kids.
Unfortunately for some kids, while this website stayed open, the Amber Alert website was shut down. (The site was later reinstated as a result of public uproar.)
These are just a few stories of government playing politics with people’s lives — making exceptions for themselves, while coming down in a dictator-like fashion on American citizens for spite.
Recently, I was teaching my daughter about the American Revolution, and it made me realize we are on the threshold of needing another one, but not of guns and force…
We need to peacefully protest, to write our representatives, and vote with knowledge, not with party line.
What do you think?
Voice your values,
Laura Woolfrey-Macklem
