Judge Napolitano heads to Richmond for Liberty Fest

Perhaps the most illustrious took place in John’s Church where Patrick Henry famously delivered his “Give me liberty or give me death” speech in March 1775.

Richmond is set for another outbreak of liberty next month when the Virginia Campaign for Liberty will present ‘The Virginia Liberty Fest” at the Richmond Convention Center on September 18, 2010.

Star attraction will be Judge Andrew Napolitano known to all viewers on the Fox News Channel as their senior judicial analyst providing on air legal analysis every weekday as well as hosting his own show “FreedomWatch” on the Fox Business Network. He also fills in for the high-rating firebrand Glenn Beck.

Judge Napolitano is a leading advocate for states’ rights and will feature in a forum on “State Sovereignty in a Republic” as the keynote speaker. ‘The Judge,’ as he is known, and other special guests will discuss and articulate the need to invoke the 10^th Amendment in order to protect state sovereignty and individual liberty.

“The citizens have been remiss in their responsibility to hold our elected officials accountable and it’s time that we all engage in the process and take our country back,” said Donna Holt, President and Executive Director of Virginia Campaign for Liberty.

The Liberty Fest will bring together Virginians from all across the Commonwealth as well as tea party groups and other patriot and liberty organizations. The day will provide grassroots training in three separate seminars intended to build an even greater army of liberty activists to lobby the 2011 legislature and beyond according to Ms. Holt.

“The U.S. Constitution is at the heart of what Virginia Campaign for Liberty stands for, and they demand our government have fidelity to its own governing document and states’ rights under the 9^th and 10^th Amendments of the Bill of Rights,” Ms. Holt explained.

Holt went on to say “We believe that the free market is the most just and humane economic system and the greatest engine of prosperity the world has ever known.”

Judge Napolitano is also a voracious writer and has published five books on the U.S. Constitution; Constitutional Chaos: What Happens When The Government Breaks Its Own Laws; the New York Times bestseller, The Constitution in Exile: How the Federal Government Has Seized Power by Rewriting the Supreme Law of the Land; A Nation of Sheep; Dred Scott’s Revenge: A Legal History of Race and Freedom In America; and the New York Times bestseller Lies the Government Told You: Myth, Power, and Deception In American History.

The Judge is a leading advocate for states’ rights and is noted for saying: “I believe that the States created the federal government and not the other way around. And that the power that the States gave to the Federal Government they can take back.”

Donna Holt says the Virginia Liberty Fest will strengthen an understanding of history and the foundational principles necessary to maintain liberty. The event is set to examine federalism from historical, constitutional and moral perspectives and look at why the 10^th Amendment is so important to the sovereignty of the states.

“We want the average citizen to know how to persuasively communicate our movement’s mission and message and master the political process at the local, state, and national level.”

The Campaign for Liberty is an organization founded by Congressman Dr. Ron Paul in 2008 as a way of continuing the massive grassroots support he garnered during his presidential run. It focuses on educating elected officials and the public on constitutional issues. Dr. Paul’s name is often mentioned for another presidential run in 2010 which he has yet to rule out.

Ron Paul is scheduled to attend The Virginia Tea Party Patriots Convention to be held in October along with other special guests including high profile independent broadcast journalist, Lou Dobbs.

Donna Holt and the Virginia Campaign for Liberty have been instrumental in recent major legislative victories including the campaign “Stop Dangerous ID” which after a rally and successful first time lobbying their bill to prohibit certain dangerous provisions of Real ID passed both houses of the General Assembly and was signed into law in July 2009.

The Virginia 10^th Amendment Revolution legislative campaign was launched in November 2009 when VA Campaign for Liberty built a coalition of tea party groups and an estimated 2400 people rallied at the State Capitol to support their two bills.

Then there was the now high profile Virginia Health Care Freedom Act which passed both Houses and the VA Campaign for Liberty was the only organization invited to a special signing ceremony. Donna Holt still has the pen Governor Bob McDonnell used to sign their bill into law on March 114, 2010. This law is the basis for the lawsuit brought by attorney general Ken Cuccinelli on behalf of the Commonwealth against the federal government on the individual health care mandate. A U.S. District Judge ruled Monday that the suit can proceed and declined the Obama Administration’s motion to dismiss. Conservatives cheered the ruling whilst reform supporters downplayed it as a simple procedural step in a looming legal battle. It is widely expected to end up in the Supreme Court.

The current health care legal battle is front and center in the debate for states’ rights and individual liberty and will a major topic for discussion at the Liberty Fest both on stage and off.

Other speakers at the Virginia Liberty Fest include Jamie Radtke, President of the Richmond Tea Party, Daniel McCarthy, Senior Editor of The American Conservative Magazine, Tom DeWeese, President of the American Policy Center, John Taylor, President of Tertium Quids and Rob Schilling of Newsradio 1070 WINA. Music will be provided by singer/songwriter Jordon Page known for his song “Liberty.”

Ken Cuccinelli once joked whilst a guest on C-SPAN earlier this year, "We just can't have liberty breaking out everywhere."

Richmond, it would seem, is once again the center for Liberty.