Today’s post was written by our Rey Gonzalez. Thanks Rey, for an excellently written piece.
How many of you/us have taken an oath of office? I would say anyone who has ever worn a badge or shield upon their chest, and or a military uniform. Examining the oath, we see that we are swearing before God, the the Federal, State or local government, that we will support or uphold the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State and local laws. I will add that when one took the oath and didn’t fully intend to adhere to that oath, then they are disingenuous and have no place being in government, the military or any level of law enforcement.
There is an apparent cultural dilemma lately when taking such oath of office raises a predicament or quandary. Do I (we) enforce a law that is in opposition to the United States Constitution? Or should we enforce and or take action based on law and/or a legal supervisory order, consistent with law? One go-to simple guide that addresses this dilemma is to read about the Constitution, the powers delegated to Congress by the Constitution, the applicable laws passed by Congress and Supreme Court case law. In this piece, I ask you (we) to review and become familiar on how to deal with such, all while taking into account what you swore before God and Country. I am including samples of such oaths for your perusal.
Military
I, (state your name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.
FBI
I [name] do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
State/Local
“I, (STATE YOUR NAME________), do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of ____________, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties the office of the (INSERT AGENCY HERE) to the best of my skill and judgment, SO HELP ME GOD.”
Where does the oath of office for Federal/State/Local employees come from?
….and if I may add you legal eagles.
The legal precedent for the oath of office comes from Article VI of the Constitution. I’m no constitutional scholar but I enjoyed reading it and tried to think about what our founders were thinking of as they drafted this. Now, Article VI covers three topics: (1) who is responsible for debt, (2) the Constitution is important, and (3) government agents need to swear an oath to protect this Constitution. Apparently, those who drafted and finalized our Constitution, and Article VI, included and expressed one very important issue; the Constitution is like super important and it shall be the supreme Law of the Land.
As such, all police officers, sheriffs, state troopers, marshals, or federal law enforcement officers swear and affirm an oath similar to the above examples. They/we are duty bound under penalty of law to honor that oath every day we go out and put on our badge, pin on a star or wear a military uniform. In paramilitary organizations, there is a rank structure. If no such rank structure existed, discipline and/or criminal/civil cases would be non-existent. There are no exceptions to such oaths. There is no hurricane exception, no natural disaster exception, and certainly no COVID-19 exception. In law enforcement agencies, personnel are duty-bound to enforce laws and/or obey LEGAL orders given by superior officers. The emphasis is on “legal.” Police officers who follow orders which they knowingly believe to be illegal may be subject to criminal or civil penalties. There is case law explaining that one may/must/shall not follow thru on such illegal laws/orders. The same is true for the military, although the word LEGAL or Constitutionally Afforded to the Executive remains absent where it should be included, and made very clear “…that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me…”
The aforementioned short exchange brings me to what started rumbling in my head some time ago, but has persisted more lately, that is, what happens if the people, constitutionally responsible for governance: a government of the people, by the people, for the people, decide to abolish such unethical and miscreant officials from our current system and start a more constitutionally protected form of government, one with no kickbacks, no quid pro, no lobbying, no insider trading to become rich while serving in politics, no loopholes, no power to create mandates or laws by unelected bureaucrats, insist that Congress, as is explicitly written in our Constitution, is solely responsible for laws and the government’s purse, and most importantly, term-limited ?
Should it occur, where will the military and law enforcement stand? Will they choose to unite with the millions and millions of law abiding citizens who have, for decades, supported, backed them, and thanked them for their service? Would they consider such patriot civilians, a militia, who will stand with them, next to them, and support them at such a time? I am of the belief, and God-praying hopeful, that they will; not all, I know, but most of them.
I know the audience here in this venue is limited. I thank you for taking the time to read my words. I do hope, somehow, my words are spread to a larger audience, no matter if they’ve never taken an oath. And for those of you/us/we that have, we stand with you.
God bless the United States of America.
