What are the first things Obama will do after being sworn in? (Let’s assume for a moment he gets that far. He still runs the risk of being indicted in Illinois if his main money-man Tony “the fixer” Rezko “spills the beans” in exchange for a lighter prison sentence. Further, the Supreme Court has given Obama and the Democrat National Committee until December 1 to respond to a Writ of Certiorari in the Philip J. Berg lawsuit demanding that Obama prove he is a natural born citizen eligible to serve as President. One might wonder why the Kenyan government has ordered its records on Obama kept secret; what records would they have if he was born in Hawaii like he says?)

Obama made an incredible number of promises to get elected, most of which require vast amounts of cash the federal government doesn’t have. Of course, that minor stumbling block hasn’t prompted any of the nation’s past Presidents to put many of their plans on hold, but a national health plan won’t be first out of the gate for the recently-anointed messiah.

Like a sailor on leave a few days before pay-day, Obama may not yet have the cold cash to buy a round for everyone in the bar but he might still be itching to have a little pent-up fun. There are a number of things Obama can do without the need to raid the Federal Treasury. Count on him to do some or all of the following:

Obama promised Planned Parenthood that the first bill he will sign as President will be a federal law outlawing all state restrictions on abortion. (If your pregnant 14-year old is in her 9th month, she can have a partial birth abortion without your being notified.) The legislation is referred to as the “Freedom of Choice Act," although there is not much choice for a fully-formed baby in the birth canal whose skull is pierced and whose brains are sucked out by the abortionist. Passing this bill won’t cost the federal government any money, so look for Obama to sign it immediately; he owes Planned Parenthood and the seemingly eager-to-abort young women voters who got him elected. (If you support unrestricted abortion rights, that is your privilege, but don’t stop reading.)

Obama has also promised the trade unions that he will sign the “Employee Free Choice Act.” In traditional (i.e., pre-Obama) organizing drives, unions get employees to sign cards indicating an interest in joining the union. If enough cards are signed (at least 30 per cent of the employees), the union and the employer plead their cases before the workers and a secret ballot is then held to determine whether the union has been granted the right to represent the employees. (The union needs to surpass the 50 per cent mark.) The pending legislation will eliminate that pesky secret ballot requirement, granting the union power as soon as it has gathered more than 50 per cent of the employee signatures on the cards. No person in his right mind would believe that an employee visited at work or at his home by union representatives asking to sign a card in front of them will not be subject to intimidation. Union reps do not, after all, resemble Mr. Rogers or Wally Cox, they resemble Dick Butkus or Mike Tyson. Obama apparently feels quite comfortable taking away the right to a secret ballot… what the hell, it’s only an American tradition. (Eliminating secret ballots was one of the things the unions got in exchange for forwarding more than $100 million in forced union dues to the Obama campaign.)

Just to make sure the unions have unlimited power over businesses, Obama  supports legislation prohibiting employers from hiring replacement workers during a strike. If you own a business and your employees go on strike to demand $30 per hour, you will not be allowed to hire replacement workers for less - even though other capable people may be quite willing to work for $25 per hour. If you are not a business owner but you would like that $25 per hour job, sorry – Obama says no, you can’t have it. (Do you think this law might raise prices? Or cause bankruptcies? Or prompt more businesses to go overseas?)

High on Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s “to do list” is what is laughingly referred to as the “Fairness Doctrine.” President Reagan got rid of that relic in the 1980s. The Fairness Doctrine had required “equal time” for opposing political viewpoints. In practice, it tended to discourage the expression of any political viewpoint on television. Pelosi’s new version calls for “fairness” only on the radio; she apparently figures that television and newspapers are more than fair enough. (They do, after all, have Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, and the New York Times Democrat-talking-points-regurgitators). The “fairness doctrine” would essentially get commentators like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and Mark Levin kicked off the radio, because the stations would lose money trying to air liberal talk shows for the same amount of time every day. (If Rush gets three hours per day, your station had better also give three hours to Michael Moore.) Pelosi’s goal is not “fairness,” it is silencing critics. Obama will support that astoundingly anti-American legislation, despite it being a complete infringement of First Amendment rights – as Ronald Reagan properly recognized. (If Obama gets to appoint one or two new justices to the Supreme Court, this blatantly unconstitutional law may nevertheless be allowed to stand.)

Obama will attempt to get legislation outlawing all "concealed carry" state laws - or whatever he thinks he can get away with. Based on his voting record in the Illinois State Senate, Obama would ban guns completely if he could. (He didn’t use his cowardly 130 “present” votes on anti-gun laws.) If there’s a big enough stink and Obama can’t get his way, expect at the very least a stiff federal tax on all guns and ammunition. (Do not doubt that Obama has absolutely no regard for the Second Amendment to the Constitution.)

Twelve to 20 million illegal immigrants will be turned into American citizens by Democrat “amnesty” legislation.  Obama will support laws giving illegals a “pathway to citizenship.” The existing pathway (entering the country legally and following existing rules to become a citizen) is clearly too cumbersome for Obama and his fellow Democrats - although they’d likely consider it just fine if Hispanics tended to vote Republican.) If half of those 12-20 million new citizens are of voting age, that's 6-10 million more Democrat voters - probably Democrats forever.

Look for attempts to make Puerto Rico the 51st state. That means two more Senators, and six or seven new Congressmen – likely always to be Democrats.

Look also for attempts to make Washington, D.C. the 52nd state. That would guarantee two additional permanently Democrat Senators and at least one additional Democrat Congressman. (This would require an Amendment to the Constitution, however, thus making becoming a state more difficult for D.C. than for Puerto Rico.)

There may be a few more things Obama will push for immediately, but the above are likely the ones that the average citizen should be worried about.

As soon as you get wind of any of these coming up for a vote, write your Senators and Congressman and tell them, "Vote for that bill and you will lose your election in 2010." That will only work with reasonable legislators who are sensitive to the wishes of their constituents, but there are certainly some Democrats in Congress who will not go along with Obama, Pelosi, and Reid (the “OPRah triumvirate”) on these issues. If enough Americans complain loudly enough and often enough, they can get these bills stopped. The “Fairness Doctrine,” in particular, calls for a highly-organized march on Washington. Love or hate Rush Limbaugh as you choose, but to silence him at the end of a federal gun barrel is against everything America stands for.

The 2008 election is over, but you should still remain informed and stay involved. At the very least, be prepared to write letters, make phone calls, or send faxes. If you think these are serious issues, do your best to thwart Obama’s plans. Stage local protest marches. Carry signs. Call the media and get television news coverage. March on Washington. Beat Obama at his own game: community activism.

Do nothing, and lose your precious liberties. The fight to retain freedom may be difficult, but the fight to restore it after it has been taken away is harder still.

Don Fredrick

November 5, 2008

Copyright 2008 Don Fredrick