Tenth Amendment Remembered

...from Tenth Amendment Center I recently appeared on the Erase the State podcast to talk about political decentralization and foiling the feds through nullification. In this interview, I make the case that centralized power is the biggest threat to our liberty. That means it’s imperative that we devolve power away from Washington D.C. How do we do it? Nullify. I also explain why it’s important to understand the original meaning of the Constitution, even if you’re a hard-core libertarian who isn’t interested in a “statist document.” Mike Maharrey November 30, 2019 at 02:56PM

...from Tenth Amendment Center Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) proposal for a federal  wealth tax  is flatly unconstitutional. This is despite two letters of support from 17 law professors, who apparently signed their names without fully investigating the subject. The  Constitution  distinguishes between direct and indirect taxes. Indirect taxes must be uniform throughout the country. Congress must impose the same tax rates on citizens of all states. But Congress must draft direct tax laws so their revenue is “apportioned” among states by population. Because wealth varies among the states, federal direct tax statutes must feature different rate schedules for each state. The 16th Amendment waived that requirement for income taxes, but not for other direct levies. Warren’s proposed wealth tax is a classic example of a direct tax. However, it would impose the same rates everywhere without regard to state boundaries, thereby violating the Constit

...from Tenth Amendment Center “A free people claim their rights as derived from the laws of nature, and not as the gift of their chief magistrate.” That’s how Thomas Jefferson put it in 1774. And it truly stands the test of time. Rights are not gifts from government. They don’t come from documents, or courts, or legislation – or anything of the like. But this essential principle is increasingly lost on a general public more concerned with the political soap opera of the day rather than the fact that both major parties have aggressively attacked the Constitution and liberty for decades. And what they’ve left, they treat as government-granted privileges – not rights. It’s not liberty if it comes with a government permission slip. As the great revolutionary leader James Otis, Jr. put it, “When our rights are invaded, it is high time to throw aside prudence.” We are so thankful to have the Founders’ wisdom available to us today – and for the ability to share this kind of inform

...from Tenth Amendment Center If you have a car that’s up on blocks without any wheels and a rusted out engine, you’re not going to get it running by switching out drivers. And yet this is the strategy most people use when it comes to politics. They focus all of their time, energy, and money on getting the “right people” elected to go to D.C. And nothing ever changes. Between you and me, I suspect there is no such thing as the “right people.” Not when it comes to liberty. I mean, there are obviously some people who are better than others. But the right people? I doubt it. Not in the world of national politics. The real problem is even the best people can’t fix a system that is as hopelessly broken as the federal government. It is so far from the Constitutional system the founding generation established, I doubt any of the founding fathers would even recognize it. The bottom line is Washington D.C. is never going to limit the power of Washington D.C. I don’t care who you send t

...from Tenth Amendment Center If you give politicians an inch, they’ll take a mile. John Dickinson was one of the leading writers in the early days of the conflict. He insisted that the colonists needed to “oppose a disease at its beginning,” before the sickness could spread. Writing under the penname “A Farmer in Pennsylvania,” Dickinson published a series of essays now known as   Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania in a Philadelphia newspaper. Dickinson used his pen to vigorously oppose the Declaratory and Townshend Acts.  The American colonist had effectively nullified the hated Stamp Act by refusing to enforce it and actively resisting its implementation. They defeated the mighty British empire utilizing virtually every strategy and direction available – from resolutions and declarations, to protest, resistance and even non-compliance by government officials. But the British weren’t about to concede their authority over the colonies. When Parliament repealed the Stamp Ac

...from Tenth Amendment Center Supporters of the monster state count on people being unaware of the original, legal meaning of the Constitution. They push so many lies that I can hardly keep track of them all. Here are the top-8 that came to mind first. (1) Federal law is always supreme over conflicting state laws (2) Only the Supreme Court determines if something violates the Constitution. And their decision is final. (3) The “general Welfare” clause means Congress can pass whatever it wants to supposedly “help” people around the country. (4) The way to deal with unconstitutional federal programs is “vote the bums out” or sue in federal court. (5) The “necessary and proper” clause means the feds can do just about anything. (6) The Constitution is “living and breathing,” and it must be interpreted differently now to change with the times. (7) Every problem has a federal solution. (8) The “commerce clause” empowers the feds to regulate or even prohibit things that in any way

...from Tenth Amendment Center COLUMBIA , S.C. (Nov. 26, 2019) – A bill prefiled in the South Carolina House would ban police from using facial recognition and biometric surveillance technology in conjunction with body-worn cameras. The law would not only help protect privacy in the Palmetto State, but it would also hinder one aspect of the federal surveillance state. Rep. Leon Stavrinakis (D-Charleston) and Rep. Todd Rutherford (D-Richland) introduced House Bill 4709 ( H4709 ) on Nov. 20. The legislation would prohibit police from installing, activating, or using any biometric surveillance system, including facial recognition, with an officer body-worn camera or on information collected by an officer’s camera. The bill defines a biometric surveillance system as any system that gathers “physiological, biological, or behavioral characteristics that can be used, singly or in combination with each other or with other information, to establish individual identity,” including facial re

...from Tenth Amendment Center Politicians in a growing number of local governments are claiming to have created “2nd Amendment Sanctuaries.” But, so far they’ve missed the mark by a wide margin. Contrary to the rhetoric being spread in support of these efforts, virtually none of these jurisdictions have passed laws equivalent to even the most modest immigration “sanctuary city” policy. In fact, most of them aren’t passing laws at all. While there is no concrete, legal definition of a sanctuary city, when it comes to immigration, the generally-accepted view is that the local government refuses to participate in the enforcement of a narrow to wide range of federal immigration laws. San Francisco might be the most prominent of these. The “City and County of Refuge” Ordinance, also known as the Sanctuary Ordinance, was first passed there in 1989 and was amended as recently as 2013. According to the city government website , it “generally prohibits City employees from using City fun

...from Tenth Amendment Center “I would quarrel with both parties, and with every individual of each,” John Adams wrote in 1763, “before I would subjugate my understanding, or prostitute my tongue or pen to either.” He sure didn’t mince words.  And neither did many other leading founders who warned us of the dangers of rule by party, or what they more commonly called “factions.” Adams himself repeated the warning in a 1780 letter to Jonathan Jackson. “There is nothing I dread So much, as a Division of the Republick into two great Parties.” He was far from alone.  In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned us that rule by faction would lead to “a more formal and permanent despotism.” He put it this way. “The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism.” If we aren’t there already, things

...from Tenth Amendment Center COLUMBIA , S.C. (Nov. 25, 2019) – A bill prefiled in the South Carolina House would take a step toward creating a “gun rights sanctuary state” by banning state and local enforcement of any future federal gun control. Passage into law would represent an important foundational step toward undermining federal acts that infringe on the right to keep and bear arms within the state. Rep. Stewart Jones (R-Laurens) filed House Bill 4704 ( H.4704 ) on Nov. 20. Titled the “Second Amendment Preservation Act,” the legislation would ban the allocation of public funds, personnel, or property for the implementation, regulation, or enforcement of any executive orders, presidential directives or acts of the United States Congress passed after Jan. 1, 2020, that regulate the ownership, use, or possession of firearms, ammunition, or firearm accessories. In August, Jones and 40 of his colleagues in the South Carolina General Assembly sent a letter to President Trump an

...from Tenth Amendment Center While Constitution supporters are outraged about the latest extension of parts of the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, there is much more that was permanent from day one. Everything from fusion centers and information sharing, to national security letters, TSA enhanced screening and the growth of facial recognition – all come from Patriot – and its successor. Path to Liberty: November 25, 2019 PODCAST VERSION Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | Spotify | RSS SHOW LINKS: JOIN TAC Show Archives Subscribe and Review on iTunes Patriot Act Renewal: A Bipartisan Attack on Liberty Since Day One Let the Sun Set on Patriot Understanding the Patriot Act “Sunsets” 2.5 Billion. Surveillance State Goes Wild REAL ID Soon: Inescapable Extension of the Federal Surveillance State Feds Ramp up Facial Recognition as a “Convenience” at Airports Warning: TSA Facial Recognition Plan Likely to Become Part of Growing Biometric Surveillance System The Biggest N

...from Tenth Amendment Center “The truth is,” Samuel Adams once wrote, “all might be free if they valued freedom, and defended it as they ought.” The more I reflect on this great quote from the “Father of the American Revolution,” the more I think it almost perfectly sums up our work here at the TAC. We take a two-phase approach in our stand for the Constitution and liberty. First, we work to educate people on the proper role of government under the Constitution. And equally, if not more, importantly, we work to take action that advances the Founders’ vision in concrete and practical ways. But, we’re under no delusions here.  What we face – the most powerful government in the history of the world – is not something that will give way easily.  As Thomas Jefferson put it, “we are not to expect to be translated from despotism to liberty, in a feather-bed.” No matter what the odds – and we truly face a David vs Goliath situation here – we believe it’s essential to do what’s right

...from Tenth Amendment Center Lost in the media’s obsession with the impeachment circus was Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s recent testimony on the state of the economy before the Joint Economic Committee. In his testimony, Chairman Powell warned that when the next recession inevitably occurs, the US Government’s over $23 trillion debt would prevent Congress from increasing spending to revive the economy. Powell also said that the Fed’s current low interest rate policies would prevent the Fed from using its traditional methods of increasing the money supply and further lowering interest rates to jump-start economic growth in a recession. Hopefully, Powell is correct that when the next recession hits the Federal Reserve and Congress will be unable to “stimulate” the economy with cheap money and new spending. Interest rates are the price of money and, as with all prices, government manipulation of interest rates distorts the signals regarding market conditions. Artificiall