In his 1801 inaugural address, Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, called for "Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations -- entangling alliances with none." The "entangling alliance" posing the greatest threat to the national sovereignty of our Constitutional Republic is the United Nations. It is time for this failed multinational alliance to meet the fate of its discarded predecessor, the League of Nations. However, the thrust of the people's objection to U.S. allegiance to the UN is not simply that the UN is ineffective (though it certainly is), but that subjecting the sovereignty of the U.S. to the whims of this external legislative body is patently unconstitutional.

Though the list of failed UN mandates and programs is long, its failure to disarm Iraq after the Gulf War and its obstruction of our sovereign right to defend our national security, most notably since the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks, makes clear the constitutional and moral imperatives to disengage from the UN now.

The Constitutional Imperative -- Our Declaration of Independence states: "...Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed...." This assertion is repeated in the U.S. Constitution, Article I, Sections 1 & 2, which reads, "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. ... chosen ... by the People...."

By definition, an "entangling alliances" is the transfer to, or usurpation of, parliamentary authority (as differentiated from the terms of a treaty) by any governing body other than the people of the United States and their elected representatives. This authority and its attendant power cannot be constitutionally transferred to an international body. The United Nations has incrementally evolved into a legislative entity, which now defines itself as a worldwide governing authority.

Nothing more clearly bears this out than does our national experience over the past 19 months, as France, Germany and Russia have used their influence in the Security Council to further their respective economic interests, over and against concerns for international security. These nations have clearly used the UN as a forum of obstruction in their effort to prevent regime change in Iraq, in order to ensure Iraq's tyrant dictator would honor their corrupt "oil for food" arrangements. And what comment could better reveal the inadequacy of the UN than chief weapons inspector Hans Blix's proclamation, "I am more concerned about global warming than any major military conflict."

France, Germany and Russia continue to use the UN's Security Council as a political action committee, now insisting that they, via the UN, be given the authority to oversee U.S.-British efforts in the interim administration and rebuilding of Iraq -- again, solely for economic gain.

The Moral Imperative -- The UN -- a body ostensibly committed to global peace and justice -- utterly failed to prevent genocide in Rwanda, the Balkans and Cambodia. The UN has likewise failed to create an enduring peace in the Middle East; vilifying Israel at every turn, while embracing terrorists like Yasser Arafat. The recent appointment of Libya to head the UN Human Rights Commission, and Iraq's chairmanship of the UN Commission on Global Disarmament is laughably indicative that the UN lacks any fixed moral bearing.

The United Nations, then, is not merely morally ambiguous, but morally evil -- a clearing house for the ambitions and economic interests of "Old Europe" and lesser nations -- undeserving of the support of our country. Beyond the UN's failure to effectively advocate liberty and freedom for all people as an arbiter of international and civil conflict, it now wants to dictate all manner of economic, social and cultural standards worldwide through wealth redistribution, environmental constraints, sustainable development, family planning and even gun control -- all of which are in direct violation of the sovereign rights of the American people.

The Solution -- More so now than ever before, momentum is building to emancipate the U.S. from the control of the UN. The time has come to revisit our Declaration of Independence, our Constitution, and restore sovereignty to the people. Indicative of this shift in public scrutiny is the newly proposed bill in the House of Representatives, H.R. 1146, calling for complete U.S. withdrawal from the UN. Rep. Ron Paul, the bill's sponsor, introduced the American Sovereignty Restoration Act which would, among other things, require the President to terminate all participation by the United States in the United Nations, terminate any and all U.S. taxpayer funded support for the UN, and prohibit American Armed Forces from serving under the command of the United Nations anywhere in the world.

Patriot Petitions encourages all American Patriots to stand up in defense of the Constitutional sovereignty of the United States and petition the President and Congress: "Terminate U.S. Membership in the UN".