The North American Union is Really a
Debate Over Political Ideology
By Tom DeWeese,
American Policy Center ;
letters@canadafreepress.com
Thursday, March 22, 2007
If you believe
there should be no borders marking a specific entity called the
United States of America, then a North American Union will not
concern you. If you believe
nationalism, meaning love and pride of country, is a bad thing, then
a North American Union will not concern you.
If you believe government control of the market, of health care, and
of energy policy is a positive force, then a North American Union
will not concern you. If you believe anyone should be allowed to
enter our nation, even illegally, obtain work, taxpayer-paid social
programs, and owe no allegiance to the U.S., then a North American
Union will not concern you.
On the other hand, if you
believe the United States is the most unique nation on Earth with a
government designed to protect your natural liberties, an economic
system unlike any other -designed to create economic independence,
and a judicial system unknown to any other nation, then a North
American Union is a threat to all you hold dear.
Those currently working on
such a plan do not share your ideals; they do not support your
political positions. They do not understand nor care about your
concerns. It's their political ideology and they see nothing wrong
with what they are doing. They consider your opposition to their
plans to "harmonize" the U.S. with Mexico and Canada old fashioned
and out of date.
The question
is where do you stand?
The other side intends to
marginalize your love of country and support of limited government.
In fact, the other side doesn't want to debate the issue at all. It
just wants to force its way on you, without discussion, without a
vote, and without your involvement. And that is why they are trying
to operate in secret.
Those of us who oppose this
Union on ideological grounds intend to force that debate and let the
American people decide how they wish to be governed. And that is why
the other side is attacking us so viciously.
Incredibly, some of the most
vicious attacks have come from so-called spokesman on the
right--apparently threatened by other conservatives who question
Bush Administration polices. For example, In December of 2006, news
commentator Michael Medved fumed and spewed in a couple of blogs and
on his radio show about the "nuts" and "crazies" who question the
true purpose of the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP).
The Charge:
"This paranoid and groundless frenzy
has been fomented and promoted by a shameless collection of lunatics
and losers; crooks, cranks, demagogues and opportunists, who claim
the existence of a top secret master plan to join the U.S. , Canada
and Mexico in one big super-state and to replace the good old Yankee
dollar with a worthless new currency called 'The Amero'." Michael
Medved, December 28, 2006.
The Truth:
Mexican economist and researcher
Miguel Pickard wrote in an article, published by foreign press,
detailing the "deep integration" planned for North America. He said
there will be no single treaty and nothing will be submitted to
legislatures of the three countries. Instead, he says, the plan for
a "merged future" will be implemented through "the signing of
regulations not subject to citizen review." He went on to report of
several secret meetings held in all three nations, after which
representatives signed "close to 300 regulations" installing a
"Unified American Border Action Plan."
Pickard went on to express his view
that President Bush is "vigorously pushing" the idea of a "North
American community." Pickard concluded by saying the schedule calls
for beginning with a customs union, then a common market, then a
monetary and economic union, and finally the adoption of a single
currency.
Democrat Congressman Barney Frank
said in a letter concerning the Security and Prosperity Partnership,
"It was done for the United States by the President, with no
Congressional involvement. Indeed it is not even a treaty because it
has not been ratified by the Senate."
CNN Anchorman
Lou Dobbs said during a report on the SPP, "Have our political
elites gone mad?"
The Charge:
"Another
delusion usually associated with these fears involves the
construction of a 'Monster Highway' some
sixteen lanes wide through Texas and the Great Plains,
connecting two nations on either side for the borders for some
nefarious but never-explained purpose." Michael
Medved, December 28, 2006
NOTE:
If you add the 10 vehicle lanes and the 6 railway tracks you
have the number 16. Then you add the utility part of the Corridor
with the buried pipelines (water, oil, gas), fiber optics, and
overhead high power electric transmission lines. The Corridor
footprint (dimensions) provides enough space for concessions such as
fuel stations, restaurants, etc. There is no doubt that the
Corridor CDA is planned as a throughway with few ingress and egress
points with connections across the North American continent. No
other state has "made public a plan" to execute the same footprint.
The Truth:
In April, 2006, TxDOT released a
4,000 page Environmental Impact Statement that described a corridor
that will be 1200 feet wide (the size of four football fields). It
will parallel Interstate 35, and be five lanes north and five lanes
south (3 lanes for cars, 2 lanes for trucks). In the middle will be
pipelines and rail lines. It will also have a 200 ft wide utility
corridor. The corridor will start in Laredo, TX, run past Austin to
the Texas-Oklahoma border. Plans ultimately call for building some
4,000 miles of highway with--rail lines and utility lines combined
into super-corridors throughout Texas over the next 50 years.
"The Oklahoma-to-Mexico stretch would
be just the first link in a 4,000 mile, $184 billion network. The
corridor would be up to a quarter mile across, consisting of as many
as six lanes for cars and four for trucks, plus railroad tracks, oil
and gas pipelines, water and other utility lines, and broadband
cables." Associated Press, July 21, 2006.
Central to the construction
of the Trans Texas Corridor is the massive taking of 584,000 acres
of private rich farm land, ranches and homes. Supreme Court approved
Eminent Domain will be used to acquire the land.
The Trans Texas Corridor is
the first leg of what is called the NAFTA Super Highway scheduled to
go through heartland America all the way to Canada.
The main reason for
opposition (for some nefarious but never-explained purpose) is the
lack of inspection of the truck's cargo as they carry containers
loaded in China and off loaded in Mexican ports and driven straight
through to an Inland port in Kansas City (KC SmartPort), relying
only on electronic screening for drive-through inspections.
Moreover, Mexico will control its own customs facility in Kansas
City and therefore able to inspect their own trucks on U.S.
territory.
"This spring (2006), (KC) city
officials signed off on a 50-year lease for the Mexican facility,
with an option for 50 more years...The council earlier this year
earmarked $2.5 million in loans and $600,000 in direct aid to
SmartPort, which would build and own the inland customs facility and
sublet it to the Mexican government through agreements with U.S.
Customs and Border Protection...The Mexican government would have no
significant investment and would occupy the customs facility
operation rent free...SmartPort set up the deal to avoid imposing
any expenses on Mexico above its ordinary border costs...SmartPort
meanwhile is seeking a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Economic
Development Administration to purchase high-tech gamma-ray screening
devices for drive-through inspections of truck cargo...Confusion
and secrecy have been hallmarks of the ambitious project.
At the outset, Gutierrez (President, KC SmartPort) and others have
said the customs facility would be sovereign Mexican soil similar to
a foreign embassy." Posted by the Kansas City Star, 7-18-06
Another objection to the
highway system is the fact that foreign companies will operate the
highways and collect tolls.
"On a single day in June
(2006), an Australian-Spanish partnership paid $3.6 billion to lease
the Indiana Toll Road. An Australian company bought a 99-year lease
on Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, and Texas officials decided to let
a Spanish-American partnership build and run a toll road from Austin
to Seguin for 50 years." Associated Press, 7-15-06
"One principle player is a
Spanish construction company, which plans to build the highway and
operate it as a toll road. But don't be
fooled: the superhighway proposal is not the result of free market
demand, but rather an extension of government-managed trade
schemes like NAFTA that benefit politically-correct interests."
Texas Congressman Ron Paul.
The Charge:
"The record couldn't be more clear on
the 'North American Union' - there's no one anywhere near the Bush
administration, the Congress of the United States, Cabinet
departments or even major think tanks who believes it's a good idea
to merge Canada, Mexico and the U.S." Michael Medved, December28,
2006
The Truth:
"Away from the spotlight,
from Sept.12 to 14 (2006), in Banff Springs (Canada), Minister of
Public Safety Stockwell Day and Defense Minister Gordon O'Connor met
with U.S. and Mexican government officials and business leaders to
discuss North American integration at the second North American
Forum...The focus of the event...included topics such as 'A
North American Energy Strategy,' 'Demographic and Social Dimensions
of North American Integration,' and Opportunities for Security
Cooperation'--all topics where the public interest is at odds with
that of big business elites...The public has been kept in
the dark while the business elite have played a lead role in
designing the blueprint for this more integrated North America."
Reported by the Toronto Star, 9-20-06
Attending the Banff meeting were
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, former U.S. Trade Rep. Carla
Hills, and Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Dr.
Thomas Shannon.
Arizona State University is teaching
that U.S., Mexico and Canada need to be integrated into a unified
superstate, where U.S. citizens of the future will be known as
"North Americanists."
The program openly calls for the
integration of economic issues across the continent, and in many
places goes further--such as the call for a common North American
currency and an implied joint military.
"Reformist Mexican President
Vincente Fox raises eyebrows with his suggestion that over a decade
or two NAFTA should evolve into something like the European Union,
with open borders for not only goods and investment but also people.
He can rest assured that there is one voice north of the Rio Grand
that supports his vision. To wit, this newspaper."
Robert L. Bartley, editor, The Wall Street
Journal, editorial, July, 2, 2001.
The Charge:
"Concerning the feds, the entire
horror story about 'North American Union' is based upon the
'Security and Prosperity Partnership,' an utterly innocuous, open,
above-board, well-advertised and widely publicized initiative to
promote inter-governmental cooperation to fight terrorism, the
threat of Avian flu, improve and tighten border security, and
promote mutual prosperity." Michael Medved, December 28, 2006
The Truth:
"The SPP was not created by a
treaty between the nations involved, nor was Congress involved in
any way. Instead, the SPP is an unholy alliance of foreign
consortiums and officials from several governments."
Texas Congressman Ron Paul
Also attending the Banff meeting,
according to Canadian CBC News, was Mel Hurtig, noted Canadian
author. According to Hurtig, "We're talking about such an important
thing, we're talking about the integration of Canada into the United
States. For them to hold this meeting in secret and to make
every effort to avoid anybody learning it, right away you've got to
be hugely concerned."
"According to the U.S. government
website dedicated to the project (www.spp.gov),
the SPP is neither a treaty nor a formal agreement. Rather,
it is a 'dialogue' launched by the heads of state of Canada, Mexico,
and the United States at a summit in Waco, Texas in March, 2005.
What is a dialogue? We don't know. What we do know, however, is that
Congressional oversight of what might
be one of the most significant developments in recent history is
non-existent. Congress has had no role at all in
this 'dialogue' that many see as a plan for a North American Union.
According to the
SPP website, this 'dialogue' will create new supra-national
organizations to 'coordinate' border security, health policy,
economic and trade policy, and energy policy between the governments
of Mexico, Canada and the United States. As such, it
is but an extension of NAFTA-and CAFTA-like agreements that have far
less to do with the free movement of goods and services than they do
with government coordination and management of international
trade..." Texas Congressman Ron Paul, 8-30-06
If you expect to find a Bush
Administration declaration that the United States of America will be
replaced by a North American Union, forget it.
If you think such a drastic change in our
nation won't happen without a national debate and voter
referendum--think again.
A close examination of just a
few facts shows that a legal and institutional framework is indeed
being put in place that could easily be switched into a full-fledged
regional government.
Step by step, America is
moving from NAFTA - to the Security and Prosperity Partnership of
North America--and indications are the SPP will lead toward the
creation of a North American Community as a logical precursor to a
North American Union.
