United States Constitution, Article 1
Section. 8.
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;
To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;
To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;
To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.
Accordingly, and taking them in order, let's look at the action of the Federal Government in relation to their defined limits of authority.
To borrow Money on the credit of the United StatesNo mention of the Federal Reserve and its actions recently in purchasing the debts of private companies and sovereign nations to preserve "too big to fail" entities.
To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;This means normalizing trade and tariffs, and ensuring that each State doesn't blockade or embargo a neighbor (Like California is trying to do to Arizona right now). This does NOT mean that the "Commerce Clause" is a blank check to commit acts and actions not enumerated here in Article 1 Section 8.
To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;This does not mean that illegal aliens should be granted amnesty and citizenship because a political party wants more
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;Our official, Constitutional Dollar, is a fixed amount of silver, and the value of Gold is relative to this. Any other paper "fiat" currency not redeemable in Silver is government-sanctioned theft of the People's wealth and is a violation of trust with the People. Under the next clause, the Federal Reserve should be prosecuted:
To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;Enough said.
US Postal Service (and I will even accept the Interstate Highway system as "post Roads"), and the Patent and Trademark Office. Check.
To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;Federal District Courts are authorized, check.
To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;This charter of authorization (which defines the scope of the Navy authorization below) means the our Government has written into its charter the duty to ensure safe passage on the open ocean of its citizens. Unlike the next clause, no formal declaration of war is required after "piracy" has been defined. Why we need to do the Presidential kabuki dance every time a Maersk Alabama-like incident occurs is beyond my comprehension.
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;As in Colonial times, the Congress has the authority to engage "privateers" with Letters of Marque, in order that they could become a force-multiplier against acts of piracy and other offenses against the citizens. This also means that, if the Congress so desired, privateers could act to defend our borders, and local militias (see "militia", below) were obligated to act to defend their communities and also to deter invasion.
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;Standing armies were heavily frowned upon by the Founders, and the appropriation limitation of funding for 2 year cycles was designed as a check against the entrenching of power by the military. A standing Navy posed much less threat to Liberty, and provided a significant defensive deterrent to aggression, so no such funding prohibition is listed in Section 8.
To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;The military was to be under the control of the civilian government.
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;"You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass" Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, Imperial Japanese Navy, World War 2.
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
Who are the Militia?
The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.In short, every citizen is the militia with preference towards able-bodied males of draft age. In this light, civilian arms, as guaranteed by the Second Amendment, are necessary for the defense of the nation and their possession shall not be infringed. Further: "Who are the militia? Are they not ourselves? Is it feared, then, that we shall turn our arms each man against his own bosom? Congress shall have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birth-right of an American ... The unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the People."— Tench Coxe, 1788. (Suck it, BradyBunch)
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;The District of Columbia is the Federal seat of Power, and Congress has the control over the laws therein. Any land designated for Federal use shall be purchased from the States and such purchase shall be agreed-to by the State Legislatures. Federal eminent domain land-grabs are unconstitutional if not agreed-to by the states and appropriately compensated.
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.The Congress is authorized to legislate only in the areas where Federal power is enumerated. It is time we reminded them of that.
This weekend is a holiday celebration. Memorial Day is the day we commemorate all of the brave men and women who have fought for, and died for, our country. Too much blood has been shed to preserve the Liberty enshrined in our Constitution. Many of these soldiers went to foreign lands to fight against fascist dictators (even lawfully-elected ones) and communist oligarchies. These fine soldiers, seamen, and airmen, were fighting for the ideal that is Freedom. They did so with the absolute moral certitude that genocide was wrong. They fought against regimes which subjugated their citizens, enslaved their minorities, and killed their political opponents who dissented.
They did not fight these enemies of freedom so that their own government could emulate them. They did not fight Communism and Fascism and Socialism so that their government could violate Article 4, Section 4 and become just like the enemies they defeated. We are constitutionally guaranteed "a Republican form of Government", not a Democracy. Just because SanFranNan and Dingy Harry can muster 51% of the votes does not make their actions legal or proper.
I hope you will enjoy this Memorial Day holiday. Please take some time to reflect upon the truths laid out in our Constitution. Take the time to compare the actions of our government with the limitations imposed upon it by our Charter. The mere fact that any specific piece of legislation hasn't yet been overturned by the judiciary does not make it proper or acceptable or Constitutional. Ultimately, the power rests with the People to enforce this.
Oh, and make sure you thank the people you know who are military, current or former. They have pledged themselves to the service of this country for your Liberty. They have written a blank check to Freedom, payable in an amount up to, and including, their very lives. That is the pledge which defines Honor. Never forget.
God Bless.
Pax,
Newbius
3 comments:
Long but GOOD! thanks!
An excellent article, if a little incomplete...
No discussion of Congress's powers should exclude those granted it by the Civil War Amendments.
Most importantly, Amendment 14 guarantees due process and privileges and immunities (such as they are) and equal protection under the law and gives Congress the power to enforce these things through legislation.
One can argue that immigration, health care reform, and other issues addressed by Congress exceed the scope of their powers, but it's important to remember that Section 8 isn't the be-all, end-all recitation of Congressional power and that the Constitution has changed over time, and that it's changing even now.
Lord Obsidian,
Actually your exceptions prove the rule for me. The additional scope was granted through the amendment process. Those powers that Congress granted unto themselves by statute, and which exceed their enumerated (even by amendment) powers, are usurpations.
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