I
heard a few days ago that Lt. Governor, Casey Cagle, threatened to
use his position as president of the state Senate to kill a proposed
sales tax exemption on jet fuel. The move was aimed at Delta Air
Lines after their recent announcement they would no longer offer
discounts to NRA members. Then, this
morning, I hear that lawmakers officially struck down the exemption
yesterday. From Reuters.com,
we read the following:
Delta
said it was ending a discount program for NRA members and had asked
the gun rights group to remove its information from the group’s
website after the Feb. 14 slaying of 17 students.... Georgia
Republicans had criticized the airline’s move to cut its ties to
the NRA. They were led by Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, president
of the state senate, who vowed to kill any tax legislation that
benefited Delta. The bill that passed the Georgia House of
Representatives and Senate on Thursday had previously included tax
exemption language that had been projected to save Delta some $40
million a year in jet fuel tax.
Really, people? OK,
I know this isn't rocket science but come on! The first amendment is supposed
to protect us against government retribution when we speak out on
certain issues. If the NRA speaks out against gun control, people
have the right to protest them. If a company like Delta Air Lines
decides not to offer discounts to members of the NRA, that's their
right. I don't have to like it. I don't have to fly on
Delta. I can go on social media and tell everyone who will listen
that they should boycott Delta because of their actions toward the
NRA. That is what freedom looks like. When government officials use the power of their office to punish a company exercising its God
given rights of speech and association, that is what tyranny looks
like.
A
straightforward reading of the First Amendment shows that it
specifically forbids the government from infringing on our right to
free speech or association. In other words, the First Amendment
doesn't restrict what Delta can do or what the NRA or what I can do;
it restricts what the government can do. I will also remind you that
we're talking about gun control – a heated political issue. So GA
Republicans are specifically punishing Delta Airlines because of its
political speech! How much more blatant of a violation does this
have to be before more conservatives speak out against it?!
It
was just a few years ago when I
spoke out against my own state of KY for trying to take
away a sales tax exemption from the Ark Encounter. How is this any
different? It was Democrats then but I'm an equal opportunity
opponent of despots. As they say, "What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander." I do not overlook tyranny just because the
tyrants have a little “R” after their names.
People
have the right to be stupid and Delta has the right to offend
millions of NRA members. They will have to live with their decision
when the offended members stop flying on Delta or start calling for
boycotts. But when they suffer political reprisal because of
their position, they will have an ally in me. I do not want the
government choosing sides in political debates, even if they happen to be on my side this
time.
Further
reading:
