History has shown that Big Government expands quickest in the immediate aftermath of a crisis - real or manufactured.

Whether it's a sitting president when I was an impeachment manager, or a Republican president who has taken liberties with adherence to the law, to me the standard is the same.

It's not a gun control problem; it's a cultural control problem.

Despite two decisions, in 2008 and 2010, by the U.S. Supreme Court unequivocally affirming that the Second Amendment to the Constitution guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms against infringement by the government, state legislatures continue to do just that - enact laws that significantly infringe this fundamental human right.

For far too long the American public and business sector have kept their silence as civil liberties have been whittled away by statutory and regulatory measures.

I sense that conservatives have largely already tuned out to the coming elections, after six years of burgeoning federal spending and inaction on key issues, such as immigration. The Republican Party has become the party of the government status quo, and conservatives see no reason to reward it with their votes.

It is high time for some congressional oversight backbone.