Oath Keepers is an American nonprofit organization[1] that advocates that its members (current and former U.S. military and law enforcement) uphold the Constitution of the United States should they be ordered to violate it.[2]
The Oath Keepers' motto is "Not On Our Watch!", and their stated objective is to resist those actions taken by the U.S. Government that overstep Constitutional boundaries.[3]
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The Oath Keepers were founded on March 2009 by Stewart Rhodes and incorporated in Las Vegas, Nevada as a non-profit corporation.[4][5] Rhodes is a Yale Law School graduate, a former US Army paratrooper, and a former staffer of Congressman Ron Paul.[6] The Oath Keepers as a group have grown to include chapters in many states across America.[7]
The Oath Keepers feel that their sworn oath to the American Constitution, grants them not only the right, but the duty to refuse unconstitutional orders. The Oath Keepers organization has published a list of orders that they claim they will not obey, the list is as follows:
1. We will NOT obey orders to disarm the American people.
2. We will NOT obey orders to conduct warrantless searches of the American people.
3. We will NOT obey orders to detain American citizens as “unlawful enemy combatants” or to subject them to military tribunal.
4. We will NOT obey orders to impose martial law or a “state of emergency” on a state.
5. We will NOT obey orders to invade and subjugate any state that asserts its sovereignty.
6. We will NOT obey any order to blockade American cities, thus turning them into giant concentration camps.
7. We will NOT obey any order to force American citizens into any form of detention camps under any pretext.
8. We will NOT obey orders to assist or support the use of any foreign troops on U.S. soil against the American people to “keep the peace” or to “maintain control."
9. We will NOT obey any orders to confiscate the property of the American people, including food and other essential supplies.
10.We will NOT obey any orders which infringe on the right of the people to free speech, to peaceably assemble, and to petition their government for a redress of grievances.
Oath Keepers Orders We Will NOT Obey Full Length Video
The 10 points of the Oath Keepers Oath are based on fundamental language in the United States Constitution, including the 2nd Amendment to the United States Constitution, popularly known as the 'right to bear arms'. They also have basis in upholding the 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which protects the people from warrantless searches and seizures of their property, the 6th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which protects people from detention or arrest of their person without a Writ of Habeas Corpus (an arrest warrant), and the 10th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which provides for states rights and sovereignity.
In the Southern Poverty Law Center's (SPLC) 2009 report The Second Wave: Return of the Militias, Larry Keller, a writer for the SPLC, wrote that the Oath Keepers "may be a particularly worrisome example of the Patriot revival."[8] Keller described Richard Mack, an Oath Keeper, as a "longtime militia hero"[8]:7[9] and quoted him as having said, "The greatest threat we face today is not terrorists; it is our federal government… One of the best and easiest solutions is to depend on local officials, especially the sheriff, to stand against federal intervention and federal criminality."[8]:7 Mack, a former sheriff, responded by denouncing the SPLC's claims.[10][11] Rhodes, the founder has countered the SPLC claim of racism by pointing out that he's one quarter Mexican and part Native American.[12]
Rhodes has appeared on several TV and radio shows to discuss Oath Keepers.[1] Lou Dobbs talked with Rhodes on his radio show and criticized the SPLC for "perpetuating the same kind of intolerance it claims to condemn."[1] On Hardball with Chris Matthews, Matthews and Rhodes discussed both the SPLC report and issues involving the Oath Keepers and extremists.[7]
MSNBC's political commentator, Patrick J. Buchanan, quoted Alan Maimon in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, as saying "Oath Keepers, depending on where one stands, are either strident defenders of liberty or dangerous peddlers of paranoia.” Mr. Buchanan explained their existence on the alienation of white America, concluding that "America was once their country. They sense they are losing it. And they are right." [13]
Oathkeepers cite the following events surrounding troop deployment during Hurricane Katrina, as examples of justification for military personnel and peacekeepers to reaffirm their oaths to defend and protect the US Constitution.
As legal scrutiny continued over the orders to confiscate legal firearms or arrest the movement of evacuees, Oath Keepers located military and police personnel who had refused the original orders on their belief they were unlawful, including a military intelligence detachment of the Utah National Guard under SSG Joshua May. Said SSG May in an April 2010 Oathkeepers interview "I'd like to put a challenge out to my fellow servicemen..know your Constitution, know why you put your hand up and said 'Yes I will.' You need to understand that and what your obligation to that is. If you remember your oath, you solemnly swore to do that, so help you God. Take it seriously."
The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) 809.ART.90 (20), makes it clear that military personnel need to obey the "lawful command of his superior officer," 891.ART.91 (2), the "lawful order of a warrant officer", 892.ART.92 (1) the "lawful general order", 892.ART.92 (2) "lawful order". In each case, military personnel have an obligation and a duty to only obey Lawful orders and indeed have an obligation to disobey Unlawful orders. Criminal prosecution and courts martial are applicable for military personnel who obey unlawful orders, as seen in United States vs Keenan, and the Court-Martial of Lt. William Calley, both of whom defended on the grounds of the Nuremburg Defense/Superior Orders and both of whom were found guilty of murder. More recently, defendants involved in the scandal at Abu Grahib prison also raised the Nuremburg/Superior Orders Defense, with the result that eleven soldiers were found guilty and convicted in spite of defending that they were 'just following orders'. However, military personnel who disobey what they believe to be unlawful orders, do so at their own risk and may be subject to court martial proceedings. [19]
Among organizations indicating similar strong support of the US Constitution include the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), whose mission statement is listed as "The ACLU is our nation's guardian of liberty, working daily in courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and laws of the United States guarantee everyone in this country. These rights include:
The ACLU also works to extend rights to segments of our population that have traditionally been denied their rights, including people of color; women; lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgender people; prisoners; and people with disabilities. "
The ACLU does not provide services in defense of the 2nd Amendment as it is their official position that the 2nd Amendment is a collective right and not an individual right.[20] [21]