It's come to this. After a year in which America saw government bodies commit unprecedented violations against the constitutional rights of ordinary citizens in the name of "public safety" because of COVID-19, two counties in Nevada have had enough. This week, Elko County and neighboring Lander County both declared themselves to be "constitutional counties," meaning that the elected commissioners in both counties "declared that the Bill of Rights will be upheld in their jurisdictions, even if it means standing against unconstitutional acts by state and federal authorities." They are the first two counties in the entire country to make this declaration.
As Elko County, Nevada Commissioner Rex Steninger explained on "Washington Watch," the Bill of Rights is quite clear on what rights every American has. "The First Amendment guarantees us the right to freely practice our religions and to peacefully assemble," he said. "Yet the governors across the country told us we had to stay in our houses for a short time. They told us we couldn't gather with our friends. They even told us to close our churches and to not celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. Those are all violations of our constitutional rights."
Steninger expressed hope that Elko and Lander counties will be an example for other counties across the country to follow. "I do hope that this catches on... County by county, state by state... This [could be] the beginning of other counties to catch on. And even today, I received emails from as far away as Virginia congratulating us and showing interest that they want to do the same thing."
Steninger also noted how united his county board was on the resolution, which got a unanimous vote with no opposition from his fellow commissioners. Lander County's similar resolution saw only one commissioner vote against it. Speaking to the Epoch Times, Steninger said the public has been "overwhelmingly supportive" of his county's resolution.
This example of taking a strong stand for what is right is how national movements begin. America's independence was won by those who saw a clear injustice and took a legal stand against overreaching, unaccountable authorities. As these Nevada counties demonstrate, lower authorities have every right to push back against higher authorities when they step out of the bounds of their constitutional mandates.
As Steninger observed, "Adopting this resolution ... is a first step in reclaiming our Republic and the God-given rights guaranteed by our Constitution."
