[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 124 (Wednesday, September 17, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H7482-H7483]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    FEDERAL BUREAUCRATS ON THE RISE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas [Mr. Paul] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, another Member severely 
criticized me on the House floor for declaring on C-SPAN that indeed 
many Americans justifiably feared their own government. This fear has 
come from the police state mentality that prompted Ruby Ridge, Waco and 
many other episodes of an errant Federal Government.
  Under the constitution, there was never meant to be a Federal police 
force. Even an FBI limited only to investigations was not accepted 
until this century. Yet today, fueled by the Federal Government's 
misdirected war on drugs, radical environmentalism, and the aggressive 
behavior of the nanny state, we have witnessed the massive buildup of a 
virtual army of armed regulators prowling the States where they have no 
legal authority. The sacrifice of individual responsibility and the 
concept of local government by the majority of American citizens has 
permitted the army of bureaucrats to thrive.
  We have depended on government for so much for so long that we as 
people have become less vigilant of our liberties. As long as the 
government provides largesse for the majority, the special interest 
lobbyists will succeed in continuing the redistribution of welfare 
programs that occupies most of Congress's legislative time.
  Wealth is limited, yet demands are unlimited. A welfare system 
inevitably diminishes production and shrinks the economic pie. As this 
occurs, anger among the competing special interests grows. While 
Congress and the people concentrate on material welfare and its equal 
redistribution, the principals of liberty are ignored, and freedom is 
undermined.
  More immediate, the enforcement of the interventionist state requires 
a growing army of bureaucrats. Since groups demanding special favors 
from the Federal Government must abuse the rights and property of those 
who produce wealth and cherish liberty, real resentment is directed at 
the agents who come to eat out our substance. The natural consequence 
is for the intruders to arm themselves to protect against angry victims 
of government intrusion.
  Thanks to a recent article by Joseph Farah, director of the Western 
Journalism Center of Sacramento, CA, appearing in the Houston 
Chronicle, the surge in the number of armed Federal bureaucrats has 
been brought to our attention. Farah points out that in 1996 alone, at 
least 2,439 new Federal cops were authorized to carry firearms. That 
takes the total up to nearly 60,000. Farah points out that these cops 
were not only in agencies like the FBI, but include the EPA, U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife, and the Army Corps of Engineers. Even Bruce Babbitt, 
according to Farah, wants to arm the Bureau of Land Management. Farah 
logically asks, ``When will the NEA have its armed art cops?'' This is 
a dangerous trend.
  It is ironic that the proliferation of guns in the hands of the 
bureaucrats is pushed by the antigun fanatics who hate the second 
amendment and would disarm every law-abiding American citizen. Yes, we 
need gun control. We need to disarm our bureaucrats, then abolish the 
agencies. If government bureaucrats like guns that much, let them seek 
work with the NRA.
  Force and intimidation are the tools of tyrants. Intimidation with 
government guns, the threat of imprisonment, and the fear of harassment 
by government agents puts fear into the hearts of millions of 
Americans. Four

[[Page H7483]]

days after Paula Jones refused a settlement in her celebrated suit, she 
received notice that she and her husband would be audited for 1995 
taxes. Since 1994 is the current audit year for the IRS, the 
administration's denial that the audit is related to the suit is 
suspect, to say the least.
  Even if it is coincidental, do not try to convince the American 
people. Most Americans, justifiably cynical and untrusting toward the 
Federal Government, know the evidence exists that since the 1970's both 
Republican and Democratic administrations have not hesitated to 
intimidate their political enemies with IRS audits and regulatory 
harassment.
  Even though the average IRS agent does not carry a gun, the threat of 
incarceration and seizure of property is backed up by many guns. All 
government power is ultimately gun power and serves the interests of 
those who despise or do not comprehend the principles of liberty. The 
gun in the hands of law-abiding citizens serves to hold in check 
arrogant and aggressive government. Guns in the hands of the 
bureaucrats do the opposite. The founders of this country fully 
understood this fact.

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