Tenth Amendment Remembered

...from Tenth Amendment Center The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798 offer us a pathway to a more free society. Fearing espionage from foreign powers and criticism of its foreign policy from U.S. citizens, President John Adams and the Federalist Congress passed what came to be known as the Alien and Sedition Acts during its Quasi War with France in 1798. The Alien Acts gave the federal government the authority to deport and imprison non-citizens in the United States that were viewed as dangerous to the republic. The Sedition Act outlawed any speech that criticized the actions of the President and Congress during wartime. Ironically, this set of laws designed to crack down on dissent spurred the authoring of two of the most powerful criticisms of centralized governmental power in U.S. history–the Kentucky Resolutions and the  Virginia Resolutions  of 1798.These Resolutions were authored in secret by founding fathers James Madison and Thomas Jefferson and were pass...

...from Tenth Amendment Center SPRINGFIELD , Ill. (Dec. 29, 2017) – A bill introduced in the Illinois House would expand concealed carry reciprocity in the state and foster an environment more hostile to federal gun control. Rep. David Reis (R-Olney) introduced House Bill 4183 ( HB4183 ) on Dec. 14. The legislation would expand conceal carry reciprocity by amending the Illinois Firearm Concealed Carry Act to allow for non-resident license applications from any state or territory of the United States that requires firearm training and a background check of an applicant for a license to carry concealed firearms. Under the current law, applicants for a non-resident license must live in a state that has laws related to firearm ownership, possession, and carrying, that are substantially similar to the requirements to obtain a license in Illinois. Passage of HB4183 would significantly expand the number of non-residents legally allowed to carry a concealed firearm in Illinois. NATIO...

...from Tenth Amendment Center While the federal government has some authority to regulate electricity flowing across state lines under the commerce clause, the federal government has seized much more power than it was legitimately delegated. As I reported earlier , on Sept. 28, 2017, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry proposed a new rulemaking to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Under the authority granted to the Secretary under the Department of Energy Organization Act, Perry proposed that the FERC should use authorities claimed under the Federal Power Act (FPA) sections 205 and 206 to assure that “reliability and resilience of the electric generation resources are fully valued.” The proposal is called RM18-1-000; the date by which Secretary Perry wants FERC to resolve his proposal was recently put off until early January. Secretary Perry claims the FERC has the power to regulate the rates of electricity in interstate commerce. He bases this claim on sections of the ...

...from Tenth Amendment Center The United States leads the world in the importation of hemp, with China and Canada acting as the top two exporters. And yet the federal government continues to prohibit the commercial production of hemp.  According to a  2005 Congressional Research Service report , the U.S. remains the only developed nation in the world without a commercial hemp industry. In 2014, Congress cracked the door open for hemp in the U.S. with an amendment to the 2014 Farm Bill. The law allows hemp cultivation for research purposes, but prohibits “commercial” production. So, what exactly does this mean in practice? Nobody really knows. Executive branch interpretation of the law has led to widespread confusion about what is and is not allowed. Ultimately, states should simply ignore federal law and develop commercial hemp industries within their borders. The 2014 farm bill includes a provision allowing a handful of states to begin limited research programs growin...

...from Tenth Amendment Center Local law enforcement agencies around the country are acquiring drones at a dizzying pace, often with financing from the federal government, asset forfeiture, and in some cases, private grants. According to a report released last spring by the Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College, 347 local agencies in 43 states acquired drones between 2009 and March 2017. The agencies included 121 sheriff’s offices, 96 police departments, 69 fire departments, 43 other city or county government agencies, and 18 statewide first responder departments. Texas ranked as the number one state for local government drone acquisitions with 28. California was second with 23 and Alabama ranked third with 20. The vast majority of drone acquisitions happened just last year. In 2016, 167 departments are believed to have acquired drones. This was more than all previous years combined and double the number of acquisitions in 2015. According to the report, precisel...

...from Tenth Amendment Center MADISON , Wisc. (Dec. 27, 2017) – A bill filed in the Madison Senate would help facilitate healthcare freedom outside of government insurance regulatory schemes. A bipartisan coalition of 32 senators and representatives introduced Senate Bill 670 ( SB670 ) on Dec. 21. The legislation specifies that direct primary care agreements (sometimes called medical retainer agreements) do not constitute insurance, thereby freeing doctors and patients from the onerous requirements and regulations under the state insurance code. SB670 also includes provisions defining direct primary care agreements and establishing modest requirements. The bill goes a step further than direct primary care legislation passed in other states. SB670 would require the state Department of Health Services to set up a pilot program for direct primary care for Medicaid recipients. Rep. Joe Sanfelippo (R-New Berlin) chairs the Assembly Health Committee and signed on as...

...from Tenth Amendment Center In jury after jury but few of the hundreds engaged in what has been dubbed the Battle of Bunkerville have been prosecuted in a historic confrontation between the federal government and its citizens over western land. A confrontation which at its peak had government snipers aimed at the unarmed Bundy family, and friends of the Bundy’s, coming from points as far away as New Hampshire and Florida, some few of these had their rifles aimed at the government snipers. Had the government not backed down it could have resulted in a nasty blood bath with many more throughout the West ready to aid the family. Three trials were held in 2017, the first in April ended in a mistrial, another in July had mostly acquittals, and a third in November on ringleaders Cliven Bundy and his two sons Ammon and Ryan and a co-defendant Ryan Payne, ending in another mistrial. The most recent was complicated by the government’s withholding 3,000 pages of evidence, some showing the...

...from Tenth Amendment Center JEFFERSON CITY , Mo. (Dec. 26, 2017) – A bill pre-filed in the Missouri House would legalize medical marijuana for qualifying patients in the state, setting the foundation to nullify unconstitutional federal cannabis prohibition in practice. Pre-filed for introduction by Rep. James Neely (R-Cameron) for the 2018 session of the Missouri legislature, House Bill 1554 ( HB1554 ) would expand existing laws on the books pertaining solely to experimental medications and hemp oil to broaden them to encompass medical marijuana. Medical marijuana would be provided if the following conditions are followed: The department shall issue a hemp extract or medical cannabis registration card to a parent who: (1) Is eighteen years of age or older; (2) Is a Missouri resident; (3) Provides the department with a statement signed by a neurologist or physician that: (a) Indicates that a minor in the parent’s care suffers from intractable epilepsy and may benefit from t...

...from Tenth Amendment Center ANNAPOLIS , Md. (Dec. 26, 2017) – A bill prefiled in the Maryland House would require police to get a warrant before obtaining any information collected by “smart meter” technology. Passage of the bill would help protect privacy and ensure personal information doesn’t end up stored in federal databases. Del. Alfred Carr (D-18) prefiled House Bill 56 ( HB56 ) in October. The legislation would prohibit law enforcement officers from obtaining utility data recorded by a smart meter without a search warrant. Smart meters monitor home energy usage in minute detail in real time. The devices transmit data to the utility company where it gets stored in databases. Anybody with access to the data can download it for analysts. Without specific criteria limiting access to the data, these devices create significant privacy issues. Privacy Concerns The proliferation of smart meters creates significant privacy concerns. The data collected can tell anybody who hold...

...from Tenth Amendment Center One of the things that really excites me is finding ways to use state and local power to confront federal overreach that doesn’t appear on the surface to have any direct connection to the states. For instance, after Edward Snowden began releasing information revealing the extent of federal warrantless surveillance, we developed a strategy to… Mike Maharrey December 26, 2017 at 01:21PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center by Ryan McMaken, Mises Institute Why was James Madison so critical of democracies? Moreover, why was he so concerned about them when, according to the definition he provided, “democracies” basically don’t exist anywhere, either in his time or in our own.  Today, many conservatives like to claim that “the Founding Fathers” opposed democracy and supported less majoritarian republics. However, as is nearly always the case whenever “the Founding Fathers” are involved, a more accurate statement would be “ some  Founding Fathers” condemned democracy. Indeed, many of the Founding Fathers — especially among the Anti-Federalists, openly described themselves as being in favor of “democracy” and “the democratical spirit.” This is no coincidence. By attacking democracy, Madison was attempting to discredit the more decentralized and more democratic state governments that were preventing the sort of powerful and centralized government that Madison wante...

...from Tenth Amendment Center This blog is featured in the latest Tenther newsletter, which everyone in the nullification movement gets daily or weekly.  Be one of them  – and  Become a member here  to support the TAC. First, and foremost – Merry Christmas!  I speak on behalf of the entire TAC team – bloggers, researchers, volunteers – everyone who makes this train push forward: We wish you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I also wanted to share with you a gift that James Madison left for all of us.  Below, you’ll find two links – one to a really interesting article about this gift from Madison, and the other – a link where you can  donate to support our work .  If there’s ever a time to pitch in to help us stand for the Constitution and liberty – that time is right now.   And I cannot say it enough – we are extremely grateful for your support! On to James Madison. It was Christmas Eve in 1798, ...

...from Tenth Amendment Center This article is featured in is today’s Tenther newsletter, which everyone in the nullification movement gets daily or weekly.  Be one of them  – and  Become a member here  to support the TAC. On Christmas Eve, 1798, the Virginia Senate gave final approval to a proposal from James Madison, which we know today as the Virginia Resolutions of 1798. By December of that year, the United States was in a full-blown constitutional crisis, and James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were stealthily leading the fight to push the federal government back within its prescribed limits. During the summer of that year, Congress passed four acts together known as the Alien and Sedition Acts . President Adams signed each of these acts into law. With winds of war blowing across the Atlantic, the Federalist Party majority wrote these laws to prevent “seditious” acts from weakening the U.S. government. Federalists utilized fear of the French to sti...