Tenth Amendment Remembered

...from Tenth Amendment Center CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (July 31, 2019) – Last night, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Mayor Marc McGovern proposed a measure to ban facial recognition technology in the city. Cambridge could become the fourth U.S. city to ban facial recognition technology. Oakland, San Francisco, and Somerville, Massachusetts, have all passed ordinances to prohibit active use of facial recognition technology by city […] July 31, 2019 at 04:52PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Today in history, on July 31, 1788, President of the first North Carolina Ratification Convention, Samuel Johnston, stood in Hillsborough and reluctantly conceded that the convention was unlikely to ratify the Constitution. “We may indeed appoint ambassadors to the United States of America, to represent what scruples North Carolina has in regard to their Constitution. […] July 31, 2019 at 04:09PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The latest political soap opera centers on Baltimore, with two sides relentlessly going after each other. But, of course, they all seem to miss the bigger picture – and the Founders warned us what would lead to “corruption, plunder and waste.” Path to Liberty: July 31, 2019 PODCAST VERSION Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | […] July 31, 2019 at 12:44PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center I recently took a trip that required me to fly. I was filled with a sense of dread as I got ready to head to the airport, which is sad because I used to really enjoy flying. You see, I love airplanes. I have since I was a little kid. I actually worked in the […] July 30, 2019 at 11:13PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center U.S. Attorney General Robert Barr recently ordered the reinstatement of the federal death penalty, ending a 16-year pause in executions at the federal level. The Department of Justice announcement brought cheers of support from “Constitutional Law-and-Order Conservatives” whose desire to “uphold the law” trumps their desire to uphold the federal limitations set forth in the […] July 30, 2019 at 02:36PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Here we go. Big spenders Donald Trump and Nancy Pelosi teamed up to ramp things up to another new level for Washington D.C. Raising spending, and suspending the debt ceiling until 2021. On this episode, Michael Boldin talks about how George Washington and James Madison both warned of the dangers of this kind of insane […] July 29, 2019 at 12:49PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center COLUMBUS, Ohio (July 29, 2019) – Earlier this month, the Ohio Senate gave final approval to a bill that would legalize the sale of CBD in the state. This would not only open up markets in Ohio; it would also take a crucial step given the FDA’s continued regulation and prohibition of CBD. A large bipartisan […] July 29, 2019 at 07:23AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The challenge for originalists is whether they can justify state sovereign immunity using originalist interpretive techniques. July 29, 2019 at 05:43AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Today in 1868, the United States general government claimed that the 14th Amendment had received the endorsement of the requisite number of states to add it to the Constitution. Notwithstanding the contention that the 14th Amendment was not properly ratified (I share in the belief that it was not, along with several prominent American historians […] July 28, 2019 at 06:22PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The U.S. House recently passed a bill to gradually raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025. The move simultaneously taps into both constitutional and economic foolishness. In the first place, Congress doesn’t have any constitutional authority to legislate wages. This power is “reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” More […] July 27, 2019 at 06:58AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center WASHINGTON (July 26, 2019) – Trump’s bipartisan spending deal took a step closer to reality on Thursday when the House passed a budget bill by a 284-149 vote. The bill increases discretionary spending from $1.32 trillion in the current fiscal year to $1.37 trillion in fiscal 2020 and then raises it again to $1.375 trillion the […] July 26, 2019 at 01:36PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The federal government has a math problem. A big one. And math doesn’t change its results based on the political party or goals of people adding things up. On this show, we’ve repeatedly covered how the feds lack the resources to do much – at least without significant help from the states. And the latest […] July 26, 2019 at 01:02PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center An interesting new paper by Josh Blackman on precedent vs the original constitution in federal courts. From the abstract at SSRN: The tension between originalism and stare decisis is well known. Many of the Supreme Court’s most significant constitutional decisions are completely unmoored from the original public understanding of the Constitution. A Supreme Court Justice […] July 26, 2019 at 10:04AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center A CIA written Bill called the Intelligence Authorization Act (SB 3153) would criminalize whistleblowers and reporters. Section 733 Sense of Congress on WikiLeaks: “It is the sense of Congress that WikiLeaks and the senior leadership of WikiLeaks resemble a nonstate hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors and should be treated as such a service by […] July 25, 2019 at 10:35AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Enough already. Enough with the distractions. Enough with the partisan jousting. Enough with the sniping and name-calling and mud-slinging that do nothing to make this country safer or freer or more just. We have let the government’s evil-doing, its abuses, power grabs, brutality, meanness, inhumanity, immorality, greed, corruption, debauchery and tyranny go on for too […] July 25, 2019 at 08:24AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center I recently appeared on the Wasatch Report with Suzanne Sherman to talk about the real-world impacts of government overreach, particularly the drug war and the surveillance state.  Before we started the show, Suzanne said to me, “Did you ever imagine the days of general warrants would be the good old days?” She’s right. Government surveillance […] July 25, 2019 at 08:07AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center “It’s the law!” A lot of people believe that if there’s a law on the books – no matter how unconstitutional or wrong – that the law needs to be enforced until it’s overturned in court or repealed by congress. Here’s a surprise for you – a lot of people are totally wrong. Path to […] July 24, 2019 at 12:43PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (July 24, 2019) – Today, a bill that reforms Arkansas’ asset forfeiture laws to prohibit the state from taking a person’s property without a criminal conviction in most situations went into effect. Arkansas has already taken a step to shut a loophole that would allow state and local police to circumvent the more […] July 24, 2019 at 05:42AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (July 24, 2019) – Today, an Arkansas law decriminalizing the manufacture and possession of firearm sound suppressors in the state goes into effect. The new law not only removes a layer of state regulation; it will help foster an environment hostile to federal gun control in Arkansas. Sen. Bob Ballinger (R-Berryville) introduced Senate Bill […] July 24, 2019 at 05:12AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center This show is being updated to a new name - Path to Liberty - and in this special update, I'll do my best to explain what’s going on here today. In short, not only did I realize that another show had been using the same name well-before ours launched in July 2018, but also - what started out as a test run for a show has really grown into something more all-encompassing of our work. July 23, 2019 at 07:05PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center John Mikhail (Georgetown University Law Center) has posted The 2018 Seegers Lecture: Emoluments and President Trump (Valparaiso University Law Review, forthcoming) (56 pages) on SSRN.  Here is the abstract: The topic for my 2018 Seegers Lecture at Valparaiso University Law School was the original meaning of “emolument” and its implications for President Trump. In this revised and […] July 23, 2019 at 01:02PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center You often hear that an action is “constitutional” or “unconstitutional.” More rarely, you hear the term “extra-constitutional.” Exactly how do these words differ? An action is constitutional if taken in accordance with a governing constitution. The governing constitution may be written or unwritten. In Britain, to become law a bill must pass the House of Commons and […] July 23, 2019 at 11:28AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Years ago, when I was first dipping my toes into the world of political activism, Tenth Amendment Center founder and executive director Micheal Boldin told me, “Never call the 202 area code!” I didn’t get it. If I was going to be a political activist, I was going to have to call Washington D.C., right? […] July 23, 2019 at 08:41AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center HONOLULU, Hawaii (July 22, 2019) – Earlier this month, a bill to decriminalize marijuana possession and expunge the records of certain marijuana offenders became law without the governor’s signature. The new law takes another step toward nullifying federal cannabis prohibition in effect in the state. Twenty Democratic representatives sponsored House Bill 1383 (HB1383). The new law decriminalizes […] July 22, 2019 at 06:41AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center You’ll often hear the term “states’ rights” thrown around. When I use that term (and I really don’t like to) somebody will invariably respond, “States can’t have rights. Only people have rights.” You know what? They’re right. A geographical area can’t have rights. That’s nonsensical. And a state government can’t have rights. It has powers. […] July 21, 2019 at 08:56AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so. Local governments and private corporations are using facial recognition to secretly blacklist people, despite having no valid reason to do so. A recent article in the Idaho Statesman proves that local governments are using facial recognition to ban residents from accessing city-owned buildings. The Boise city […] July 19, 2019 at 12:53PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center We’ve all heard the claims – various clauses of the constitution, rather than limiting federal power, are used as a justification for more and more of it. From the necessary and proper, general Welfare and commerce clauses, to the preamble, federal “supremacy” and more – there are a lot to choose from. The hardest part […] July 19, 2019 at 12:30PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center In this episode of Thoughts from Maharrey Head, I debunk the “one nation” myth. Most Americans think July 4, 1776, birthed a “nation.” It didn’t. It actually birthed 13 independent nations that soon formed a union. The notion that Independence Day birthed a nation is part of a broader “one nation” myth advanced by the […] July 19, 2019 at 07:46AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The fact that politicians, central bankers, and “too big to fail” bankers all oppose a gold standard is a tacit admission that hard money would serve as an effective constraint on their activities. July 19, 2019 at 06:44AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center CONCORD, N.H. (July 18, 2019) – Last week, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu signed a bill to create a process to expunge certain marijuana charges form people’s records. Passage into law would take another step toward nullifying federal marijuana prohibition in effect in the Live Free or Die State. A bipartisan coalition of seven representatives […] July 18, 2019 at 05:18PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center As usual, I find Kurt Lash persuasive – in this case, his recent guest post (responding to John Mikhail) on the Tenth Amendment.  But I think Professor Mikhail may still be right that Hammer v. Dagenhart was wrongly decided. Hammer was the pre-New Deal commerce clause case that invalidated a federal statute banning the sale in interstate commerce of goods made […] July 18, 2019 at 01:31PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center almost everything in modern "constitutional law" is based on a myth. July 17, 2019 at 04:09PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center OAKLAND, Calif. (July 17, 2019) – Yesterday, the Oakland City Council unanimously voted to ban facial recognition technology in the city. Final passage into law would not only increase privacy in the city; it would also take a step toward limiting a massive federal surveillance program. The ordinance prohibits Oakland government agencies, including police, from “acquiring, […] July 17, 2019 at 03:05PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center HONOLULU, Hawaii (July 17, 2019) – Last week, Hawaii Gov. David Ige caved to law enforcement pressure and vetoed a bill that would have reformed the state’s asset forfeiture laws to prohibit the state from taking property without a criminal conviction in most cases. A coalition of six Democrats sponsored House Bill 748 (HB748). The legislation would […] July 17, 2019 at 02:46PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have enacted medical marijuana programs. Despite this expansion military veterans often face greater obstacles to gaining access to medical marijuana than other groups. Veterans suffer widespread health problems including chronic pain, traumatic brain injuries, and post-traumatic stress disorder at a rate higher than the general population. When veterans […] July 17, 2019 at 02:01PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center A bill has been prefiled in the Virginia General Assembly seeks to uphold the right to keep and bear arms as described in the Second Amendment and in the famous 2008 U.S. Supreme Court Heller decision. Despite the good intentions of the legislation’s backers and some correct assertions made in the text of the bill, […] July 17, 2019 at 07:46AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Remember when Republicans told us deficits mattered? Good times. But those days are long gone. The U.S. government continues to spend money at a staggering pace. The debt elevator is going up. And Republicans pushed the buttons. The Trump administration ran up another $8.5 billion deficit in June. This comes on the heels of an […] July 16, 2019 at 12:53PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center BOSTON, Mass. (July 16, 2019) – Last week, a joint committee held a hearing on two bills that would take a first step toward limiting the impact of federal programs that militarize local police. Sen. Michael Barrett (D-Middlesex) introduced Senate Bill 1358 (S1358) on Jan. 22. The legislation would require law enforcement agencies to get local […] July 16, 2019 at 12:44PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center I recently appeared on the Scott Horton Show to talk about my recent appearance on RT discussing how the U.S. weaponizes the dollar and uses the SWIFT payment system as a foreign policy billy club, along with attempts by Voice of America’s “fact-checking” arm to debunk my claims. Scott and I opened the discussion talking […] July 16, 2019 at 09:10AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Marshall's point in McCulloch about the omitted word "expressly" is probably one of the most commonly made claims about the original understanding of Tenth Amendment. It is also almost certainly wrong. July 16, 2019 at 07:39AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center SACRAMENTO, Calif. (July 15, 2019) – Last week, a second California Assembly committee unanimously passed a bill that would establish limited state-chartered banks to serve the cannabis industry. Final passage of this legislation would remove a major federal roadblock in front of the developing industry in the state and further nullify federal prohibition in practice. Sen. […] July 15, 2019 at 05:03PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Today in 1798, Jeffersonian Republicans celebrated Bastille Day as a partisan holiday. On the same day, President John Adams took this opportunity to sign the Sedition Act into law on July 14, 1798. The law criminalized bringing the president and members of Congress into ill-repute. Any common criticism that was levied was unlawful, and the […] July 14, 2019 at 04:46PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center The “Necessary and Proper” clause of the Constitution is one of the most widely misunderstood – and abused in the document. Most modern federal regulations today are justified by the Necessary and Proper Clause – possibly even more than under the Commerce or general Welfare clauses. Now, here’s the irony of the situation: Far from […] July 15, 2019 at 12:33PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center LANSING, Mich. (July 15, 2019) – A bill introduced in the Michigan House would ban the law enforcement use of facial recognition technology in the state for five years. The proposed law would not only help protect privacy in Michigan, but it would also hinder one aspect of the federal surveillance state. Rep. Isaac Robinson (D-Detroit) […] July 15, 2019 at 07:03AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center A case recently decided by the U.S. Supreme Court once again reveals the inherent danger of placing virtually unlimited authority in the federal judiciary and centralizing decision making for 50 sovereign states and over 325 million people in the hands of nine unaccountable, unelected lawyers. In Mitchell v. Wisconsin 588 U. S. ___ (2019), the […] July 14, 2019 at 06:42AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center I followed up my RT interview about how the U.S. uses its economic power as a foreign policy billy club with an appearance on the Foreign Policy Focus podcast.  For this interview, I joined host Kyle Anzalone and journalist Will Porter to talk more in depth about how the U.S. uses its position as the […] July 12, 2019 at 03:59PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Law enforcement is using license plate readers to “grid” entire neighborhoods. So, What does gridding mean? The Arizona Mirror describes gridding as: “Part of the training for the ALPR systems, Chandler police officers are taught to “grid” neighborhoods during their downtime – systematically driving up and down every street in an area, indiscriminately scooping up information on vehicles.” […] July 12, 2019 at 12:37PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Over the last few years, we’ve heard a lot of people demanding that all illegal immigrants need to be deported, literally millions of them. Depending on your point of view – this episode is either going to be good news or bad news. Either way, we’ll be talking about the top 3 reasons this isn’t […] July 12, 2019 at 11:55AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center the FBI and ICE have turned state DMV databases into the "bedrock of an unprecedented surveillance infrastructure." July 12, 2019 at 06:13AM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Aided and abetted by Congress, the Trump administration continues to spend America into oblivion. Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin wants Congress to go ahead and raise the debt ceiling before the August recess because analysts now think the government will hit its borrowing limit earlier than expected. According to a report by The Hill, […] July 11, 2019 at 11:45AM