My first reaction to Pastor Steven Anderson’s account of his encounter with the Border Patrol and subsequent tazing and beating was outrage. A little background: I have been subject to abusive behavior by police for no apparent reason, and I have a deep suspicion of authoritarian figures who step on the Constitution either by virtue of torture or violation of the 4th amendment rules relating to searches or anything else.
I’m also a Christian with a deep, deep dislike of the bad name poorly-educated so-called theologians like Pastor Anderson taint all of us with. A basic Google search indicates that the man resides on the deep extreme of the extreme right wing, which makes all of this just that much more bizarre. Because no matter what wing you sit on or what bad religion you might practice, we’re still Americans with constitutional rights.
The problem is that those rights were deeply eroded by the Bush Administration and amazing hack job they did on our civil liberties, as Liz Ditz pointed out in a comment on the Anderson family blog.
I want to point out that the searches of American citizens on American soil is a legacy of the Bush Administration’s attack on civil liberties, not something President Obama put into place.
I advise you to look at the website https://www.checkpointusa.org/ and the companion blog, https://www.checkpointusa.org/blog/.
There is a scholarly article, Fascism Anyone? by Laurence W. Britt, which identifies 14 warning signs of fascism.
The article The Fourteen Points of Fascism compares Britt’s 14 warning signs with the behavior of Bush and individuals in his administration.
Here is another video that Pastor Anderson has posted on his YouTube channel from February, 2009. The video is approximately 28 minutes long. It begins badly and degenerates from there.
That video is the reason I won’t hold up Pastor Anderson as any kind of grass-roots libertarian hero-leader. First, he is well-known to the Border patrol. By his own admission at about 23:10 on the video, he intentionally baits them at “many checkpoints”. He travels from California “often”, and does not ever consent to searches or inspections. In fact, he is completely uncooperative from the start, taking a combative and challenging stance with sworn peace officers who are within the limits of the current laws and regulations on the books, and who explain this to him many, many times.
After he is given the full explanation and citation under the law for the authority to search, he does not acquiesce, choosing to escalate the war of words.
Unfortunately, the law is the law. I don’t like it and you shouldn’t like it, but it’s still the law, and orchestrating confrontations with law enforcement is not necessarily the most effective method of getting that law changed. US Border Patrol agents are in a dangerous line of work, and whether Pastor Anderson likes it or not, they were within their rights and authority under current laws.
As much as he’s trying to paint this as an Obama administration attempt to be anti-Christian and evil, that part just comes off as silly stuff that dilutes his more weighty message. (he also thinks President Obama is not an American, just to give some perspective). These expanded interpretations of the 4th amendment are legacies left by George W. Bush, and should be changed the way any law is changed — either challenge it in the courts or get the Congress to change it.
Baiting the Border Patrol again and again at legally authorized checkpoints? Not such a great strategy. My sympathy factor went down by a few points, but on this I agree: Let the rule of law be the rule of law as defined by the Constitution. That means there should be no warrantless wiretaps, expanded search criteria, or other erosions of our fundamental rights as Americans.
I suggest, however, that Mr. Anderson take a class or two in how to effectively negotiate and communicate with others. He does his cause and the cause of libertarians everywhere no favors by swaggering his way through US Border Patrol checkpoints, at a time where gun and drug smuggling is at an all-time high, drug smugglers are at war with the Mexican army with guns purchased in the US, and they’re out there risking their lives daily to enforce the laws we, the people, have permitted to be placed on the books.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Mr. Anderson clearly was in the wrong in this situation and he should consider himself blessed to have gotten out as easily as he did.
1. As a pastor and a professing Christian, he should be aware that the Bible says to those that are put in authority over you and to “Honour the king.” Note that the Bible was written during the Early part of the Roman Empire- not exactly a Christian-friendly time- and they were still admonished to honor the government.
2. This search was constitutional and it would have bee constitutional had it happened before Bush or Obama were elected President. The Supreme Court has upheld that a trained drug dog alerting at a checkpoint is sufficient probable cause for a search of a vehicle. Therefore, this was not a violation of the 4th Amendment.
3. These officers were not playing Rambo. They negotiated for much longer than was necessary and use only the minimal force necessary to subdue him.
Kudos to the officers! They deserve commendations for their patience and restraint.
You wrote “Unfortunately, the law is the law. I don’t like it and you shouldn’t like it, but it’s still the law, and orchestrating confrontations with law enforcement is not necessarily the most effective method of getting that law changed. US Border Patrol agents are in a dangerous line of work, and whether Pastor Anderson likes it or not, they were within their rights and authority under current laws.”
While I totally disagree with the way Pastor Anderson handled himself, he was 100% legally in the right.
The 4th amendment reads:
““ The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
James Madison, the father of the constitution said “As a man is said to have a right to his property, he may be equally said to have a property in his rights. Where an excess of power prevails, property of no sort is duly respected. No man is safe in his opinions, his person, his faculties, or his possessions.”
Thomas Jefferson wrote “Whensoever the General Government assumes undelegated powers, its acts are unauthoritative, void, and of no force.”
The laws on the books allowing these unconstitutional searches are by the intent of those who WROTE the constitution “void and of no force”
Albert Gallatin wrote during the ratification of the constitution “The whole of the Bill (of Rights) is a declaration of the right of the people at large or considered as individuals …. It establishes some rights of the individual as unalienable and which consequently, no majority has a right to deprive them of.”
In this case, the government has bordered on treason against the constitution. No matter how disrespectful the pastor was, he was standing up against tyranny.
Building a fence is a dumb idea and a waste of money. Checkpoints in that area may be a distance from the border, but they are placed (as I understand it) in areas where there is a greater likelihood of stopping an influx of people crossing that border. Even in California, there’s a checkpoint in San Clemente, well away from the border.
It isn’t the existence of the checkpoint. It’s how they handle the searches at the checkpoint. It seems to me that some training in probable cause would be worthwhile, for starters.
Karoli:
What’s your viewpoint on abandoning all these checkpoints that are well within the United States (I mean a large distance away from the border) and are “on the border” in terms of violation of rights, and building a huge fence that spans the entire Mexico-US border, 50 ft high and 20 ft into the ground (those illegals sure know how to dig tunnels!) which will do nothing but severely limit immigration, and give workto thousands of Americans for a good amount of time.
It will also send a message to the Mexican Gov’t that on one side blames the U.S. consumers of drugs for their drug-cartel violence, and on the other side instructs the Mexican people how to cross the border? And really, do we really care if we piss of Mexico? What have they done for me lately/ever?
I would enjoy hearing your viewpoint on this issue, as you didn’t suggest an alternative solution.
Hmmm. I’m guessing you didn’t really read what I wrote, since I defended his rights, though I did criticize him and will continue to be critical. This is the guy who prays for our President to die. I don’t have to like or respect him to respect his rights.
As for tearing down his credibility, when someone resorts to Border Patrol baiting in order to create a scene and a ruckus, when they pray for the death of our President (an unpatriotic act, no matter how you cut it), they have no credibility with me.
Nor do you. But I respect your right to say whatever you’re going to say….because it’s your right.
“Unfortunately, the law is the law.”
Wasn’t not paying taxes and holding tea parties illegal around, oh, 1776?
Wasn’t slavery legal too awhile back?
I don’t know what your problem is, and why you discounted what this guy did by tearing his job credibility/intelligence apart and describing the way he “baits” these guys for the first half of this hackjob of an article.
You mention “orchestrating confrontations”… so by driving on the highway you are orchestrating confrontation? That’s like saying someone deserves to get beaten for going to the wrong part of town.
And look at you, God’s gift to the internet and people everyone, telling him to take a class? Talk down to people much? It must be easy sitting around typing crap about people who actually do stuff.
This article is a typical liberal hackjob, readers beware…
Step 1: Rip the person personally of any credibility
Step 2: Abstain from any/all logic
Step 3: Talk down to the person of subject, particularly education
Yes we can! Change! … complete nonsense
I have listened to Anderson for a couple of weeks now and I find him refreshing….I am tired of all the nonsense in the church. Feels like the world only its called church. In Pastor Andersons defense he is probably one of the few I have heard that rightly divide the word of God and is not ashamed to go that narrow path. He is a modern day Paul. He knows how to teach, he isn’t hateful at all. He just says what the Bible says, he is the messenger. Just because you don’t get it don’t make him wrong, because he believes as I do that THE WORD OF GOD is true, let every man be a liar. I pray you will listen to sermons he preaches and admit that the way we been doing Church isn’t Gods Way.