“The government of the United States can claim no powers which are not granted to it by the Constitution, and the powers actually granted must be such as are expressly given or given by necessary implication.”
Since recess appointments have been getting a great deal of press attention lately, and because it appears Obama and Congress don’t have a firm understanding of the actual text and history of the clause; I thought would quickly explain the constitutional purpose of the recess clause beginning with its earliest roots. The recess clause to [...]
I wish to briefly address the assertion the folks occupying Wall Street – and elsewhere – are merely exercising their First Amendment right to peaceful assembly. The constitutional provision to peaceably assemble extends no further than to peacefully assemble for a lawful purpose such as circulating a petition to present to government. It is not [...]
Remember that trucking provision under NAFTA (The North American Free Trade Agreement), which was ratified in November of 1993, allowing Mexican trucks to access border States highways by 1995 and to all US highways by 2000? The trucking provision of the agreement has never been fully implemented due to safety concerns of Mexican trucks, which [...]
The United States Supreme court tells us their “case law firmly establishes Congress’ power to regulate purely local activities that are part of an economic ‘class of activities’ that have a substantial effect on interstate commerce.” The question explored here is whether such “case law” is supported in any way by the history, text and [...]
I’m afraid overbearing domestic airport security is really not about serious domestic threats to airline safety but more about modern liberal political correctness that says profiling is wrong. Because profiling would be considered a greater tragedy then what occurred on 9/11 by Civil and Human Rights Activists, everyone is left to equally endure the humiliation [...]
The New Jersey Committee to Recall Robert Menendez v. Nina Wells addressed the question whether it is proper to recall a siting U.S. Senator by holding: The matter is ripe for adjudication and the text and history of the Federal Constitution, as well as the principles of the democratic system it created, do not allow [...]
Excerpts from President Monroe’s Special Message on Internal Improvements, May 4, 1822: If, then, the right to raise and appropriate the public money is not restricted to the expenditures under the other specific grants, according to a strict construction of their powers respectively, is there no limitation to it? Have Congress a right to raise [...]
This may be old news by now, but I wanted to add a few remarks regarding the Association of Community Organizations (ACORN) argument that a House resolution amounted to a “bill of attainder” that resulted in a cut off federal grant money to the group. Judge Nina Gershon agreed, writing, “They [ACORN] have been singled [...]