April 11, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement thanking State Rep. Paul Curtman (R-Mo.) for leading the effort in the Missouri House to urge the Missouri Congressional delegation to adopt U.S. Rep. Ken Buck’s (R-Colo.) Article I supplemental:

“Representative Paul Curtman gets it, and is a fighter for limited government at the state and federal level. He recognizes the importance of reestablishing Congress’ Article I authority to return the power in our government to the people. Rep. Curtman’s courageous decision to lead the charge in Jefferson City urging passage of Congressional legislation that dramatically asserts Congress’ will on more than fifty areas where the executive branch has overreached its authority is an example for state legislators across the nation.

“We appreciate Representative Curtman’s leadership on limiting government both inside of Missouri and beyond, and urge the Missouri House to advance his resolution, H.R. 1256, to urge passage of the Article I supplemental in the Congress. The Congressional delegation from Missouri should follow Curtman’s example and listen to Missourians whose express desire is to reign in the federal government’s fiscal and regulatory abuses, and return to the Constitution’s separation of powers.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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April 8, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging Senators Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) to stand by the 2nd Amendment and reject President Barack Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland:

“The decisions that these four Democrat Senators make will likely define their legacies in Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Justice who replaces Antonin Scalia will determine the balance of power on the Court, and there are no do-overs.  President Obama has waged a determined and largely failed campaign against the individual right to keep and bear arms due to the Supreme Court’s seminal D.C. v. Heller decision that affirmed that the Second Amendment is indeed a protection of those individual rights.  The Garland appointment is Obama’s lame duck last chance to overturn Heller and impose some strange collective construct to the clear words written into the Constitution as a primary protection against abusive government that ‘the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.’

“Heidi Heitkamp, Joe Manchin, Joe Donnelly and Michael Bennet will not face any other decision more important than the one confronting them with this Obama nominee.  There will be no hiding behind press statements decrying Court rulings if they vote to confirm Obama’s choice, rather than allowing the upcoming Presidential election to decide the future direction of the Supreme Court and indeed the nation as a whole.  Americans for Limited Government urges Heitkamp, Manchin, Donnelly and Bennet to send a strong message to the entire country that our individual rights are not political play things, that Heller is the law of the land, and that they support allowing the people decide through their votes, the future direction of our nation.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 29, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement calling on the Missouri legislature to pass Senate Bill 919 which advances economic liberty and free market principles in Missouri:

“Senator Schmitt’s SB 919 empowers local retailers to increase their choices about refrigerated shelf space and offer broader beer product choices to their customers to meet demand.

“Should this measure pass, Missouri would be joining sixteen other states by passing a modest reform to this post-Prohibition era restriction that has outlived its usefulness, including in Colorado and Wisconsin which continue to enjoy thriving craft beer industry as a result.

“Americans for Limited Government commends Missouri legislative leaders for fighting for the freedom of small businesses in Missouri to make their own decisions based upon the needs of their local markets.  It is through thousands of these individual business decisions that consumer demand is met, and small businesses thrive or not based upon how well they meet the wishes of the communities they serve.

“The Missouri House of Representatives is urged to move forward with this simple, common sense measure.  As a national organization dedicated to reducing the size and scope of government at all levels, Americans for Limited Government proudly urges the House of Representatives to pass SB 919, allowing local retailers a greater freedom of choice on shelf space and opening up their retail markets to small craft beer producers seeking to gain market share.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 24, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement blasting Sen. Jerry Moran’s (R-Kan.) statement that “the process ought to go forward” for President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland:

“Jerry Moran’s decision to cave on considering Obama’s Supreme Court nominee is incomprehensible.  As the former head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Moran spent the past two years telling America that they needed a GOP majority to stop Obama from fundamentally transforming America.  Now, Moran is opening the door for a Supreme Court nominee who would lock in Obama’s agenda for a generation.  This is an outright betrayal of the very GOP Senate majority which Moran successfully led the fight to achieve.  Jerry Moran needs to understand one simple fact, stopping Obama’s agenda is his job, and pandering to the hard left which demands that he kowtow to their whims is hopefully a misquote rather than his considered position.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 24, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in response to Vice President Joe Biden’s statement on that “Senate Republicans are failing to fulfill their Constitutional obligation” by not holding hearings considering President Barack Obama’s nomination to the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland:

“It never ceases to amaze me how nimble Joe Biden is with his argumentation. We agree with Senator Joe Biden of 1992 who opposed election year nominations, and disagree with Vice President Joe Biden who argues otherwise. 1992 Biden extolled the precedent of opposing election year nominations, and that argument remains valid today, even if it is an inconvenient truth for the Obama administration.

“The astounding irony of Vice President Joe Biden bemoaning partisanship in the current Supreme Court nominee debate is particularly bitter coming from the man who played a large part in making ‘Bork’ a verb. Rather than overlooking his galling hypocrisy, the Senate should continue to stand up for the American people’s right to choose the direction of the Court through the impending presidential elections. After all I’m certain that 1992 Biden would agree that failure to consider an end of term nomination is part of the Senate doing its Constitutional job.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 21, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement thanking U.S. Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) for defending Congress’ constitutional power of the purse to offer policy riders in appropriations bills being challenged by members of the Senate:

“John Fleming gets it, he understands that one of the few ways of rolling back President Obama’s outrageous abuse of executive authority is by utilizing Congress’ constitutional power of the purse. Fleming’s statement in favor of utilizing policy riders in the appropriations process demonstrates once again that he is one of the true leaders in the battle to restore the constitutional separation of powers.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 17, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement encouraging the House Energy and Commerce Committee to focus on upholding the law that defunds the Internet Giveaway rather than enabling it in a hearing today that considers a proposal to end U.S. oversight of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions. Currently, there is an active prohibition against spending dollars to proceed with the Internet transfer in place:

“One of the few exercises of Congress’ constitutional power of the purse to stop bad policies has been against the Obama Internet giveaway the past two years, where no funds can be used to relinquish responsibility, or to even consider relinquishing responsibility, of the highly critical functions of assigning and routing IP addresses and domain names. It’s against the law and yet here we are having yet another hearing pretending the proposal can be considered. It cannot be.

“For all of House leaders’ talk of restoring Congress’ Article I authority, it is incredible that they do not appear even willing to acknowledge or defend that power when it is actually exercised. We look forward to the hearing, to see what members’ plans are to oversee the laws they enacted that prohibit any tax dollars from being used to consider the NTIA proposal they are now considering.

“Energy and Commerce Committee leaders are right. The Internet giveaway would be irreversible. There are no do-overs. That is why they should be hammering the NTIA on why they have been spending tax dollars to develop this proposal in violation of the twice-enacted Duffy defund that prohibits the Internet giveaway.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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March 16, 2016, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement praising Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) for not acting on President Barack Obama’s nomination for the Supreme Court, D.C. Circuit Chief Judge Merrick Garland:

“President Obama has exercised his constitutional prerogative to nominate someone to the late Antonin Scalia’s seat on the Supreme Court. Senate Leader McConnell and Senator Grassley are right to exercise the Senate’s prerogative to not consider Obama’s nominee during this election season. The presidential election should determine control over the Supreme Court, as that is the people’s decision to make. We appreciate McConnell and Grassley standing up for the people against Obama’s attempt to intimidate them into rubber-stamping his Supreme Court choice.”

Attachments:

Does The Senate Have A Constitutional Responsibility To Consider A Supreme Court Nomination?, Washington Post – Fact Checker, Glenn Kessler, March 16, 2016 at https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/03/16/does-the-senate-have-a-constitutional-responsibility-to-consider-a-supreme-court-nomination/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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