Tyranny In The Maryland House Of Delegates

by Tim Brown

The House Health & Government Operations Committees (HGO) and the House Judiciary (JUD) considered SB 281/ HB 294 in a joint voting session on Friday, March 29th 2013 and approved the governor’s gun control package. The Maryland Minutemen captured the full segment in the Maryland House of Delegates. Delegate Mike Smigiel (36^th District) spoke up on the matter, pointing out that the legislators had told the public one thing but were pushing a law that said something else. He offered an amendment, but it appears there was some legislative “hanky panky” going on. This video documents what those, who are in control of the legislative process in the Maryland State House, do to get their way. They change the rules (Watch the video).

You’ll notice immediately at the start of the video that Smigiel is pointing out exactly what was done to the vote count. Clearly there are many representatives in the Maryland State House that cannot be trusted. Smigiel says that bill should have passed, which would have punished a criminal for using a firearm in the commission of a crime.

He then went on to address his colleagues about the amendment put forward. “This amendment,” he said, “will make sure that those who are committing violent acts with firearms are held accountable and punished and kept in jail.”

The amendment also removed any chance of probation or time off for “good behavior.” Smigiel said if Maryland was serious about dealing with the issues of criminal use of firearms, then maybe they ought to start dealing with those who commit crimes with firearms. Sounds reasonable enough, don’t you think?

However, Smigiel points out that the legislation before them, the governor’s bill, would punish legal firearms owners if someone broke into their home and used their gun in the commission of a crime! Notice that the other delegates are barely paying attention.

“There is not one line in this bill that punishes a bad guy,” Smigiel declared.

Obviously, that right there is the issue. As I’ve said all along, all law is morality and someone’s morality will be legislated. In the case of the Maryland governor’s legislation, the roles are reversed and the law abiding citizens are legislated as criminals. Smigiel’s amendment would have altered that.

Pick up the video at 8:20 to see, following the vote to pass the amendment that would have targeted the criminal, how the power brokers made an unprecedented move. They wanted to recount the votes and Delegate Smigiel called them on it. He said there was a good vote and then people went around and “whipped” people into changing their votes. “That’s not democracy, that’s tyranny,” he exclaimed.

Delgate Smigiel told Freedom Outpost that the original count, which you can see in the video, was 24-21. He then said one person changed their vote, that would make it 23-22. “You’re not allowed to change your vote when it’s going to change the outcome of the vote,” he said.

“We never allow anyone to change their vote in judiciary,” he continued. “On the floor you can keep changing votes all the way up until the last vote, where it would change the outcome. You’re not allowed to change that. So the guy couldn’t have changed his vote.”

In addition Smigiel said, “Then the chairman said he was going to vote.” However he didn’t vote in the previous round and Smigiel explained that the chairman does not vote, according to parliamentary procedure, unless there is a tie. “He voted to make a tie,” said Smigiel.

“If there’s a tie, then we lose,” the Maryland delegate said. “But we didn’t lose, he put it up for a new vote.”

Smigiel’s point was that the chairman and others were engaging in shenanigans to get the outcome they wanted and breaking virtually all the parliamentary rules that they normally engage in.

Smigiel provided the votes sheet on SB 281, which you can view below:

Amendment VoteS and Full Committee Vote on SB 281

Smigiel also took to his own blog to point out the steps that would be taken to stop the legislation in its tracks and if unsuccessful, what route they would take. He writes,

“First, the fight to stop this legislation is not over. We need to have the biggest turnout yet on the day of the hearing in the House. I expect they may say one day and do it the next day just to get a lot of people discouraged so we should have an A and B plan. That way we will have folks ready to be here the second day if they should cancel the first scheduled day of the floor debate. We need the galleries packed on what ever day the bill is argued on the floor. We need witnesses against the crimes against liberty when they are committed.

Second, the groups that have been going through the public donor lists of the gun grabbers and contacting the businesses and unions, veterans, masons, and other fraternal organization members to tell them not to donate to the gun grabbers or their businesses and groups will be boycotted by the millions of Marylanders who are Second Amendment supporters. This tactic has already proven to be very effective and will probably be effective when those coming to Annapolis happen to be holding copies of the donor lists of their favorite liberal legislators so they can be shown you have the list when you go to talk to them. They understand dollars.

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If the Governor gets a bill we will challenge it in the courts and also at referendum.

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If we are unsuccessful in the courts and at referendum then I will stand to nullify these laws, alongside of all those Patriots who understand that no legislature, no executive nor any court can pass or interpret any law to infringe upon those rights which are unalienable and which government is prohibited from infringing upon by the Constitution. We will not surrender those rights which were bought at the expense of the blood and treasure of so many Patriots who came before us.”

Maryland, like other parts of the country are being swallowed up by Socialists and Communists. It’s good to see that Mr. Smigiel has a spine and is willing to expose the corruption taking place there in the Maryland House of Delegates.