Saturday, June 12, 2010 "We The People . . ." Part VII

Saturday, June 12, 2010

"We The People . . ." Part VII

Amendment IV.

{The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized.}

WOW! Is that a wonderful Amendment or what? Can you begin to see the great importance of this document and how it affects our lives? It must be strictly adhered to or we lose its protection. Notice it is protecting us from the intrusion of government. It seems history has proven that government always wants to grow and assume power and authority over the people. Our Founders recognized this and therefore built into our Constitution these protections that we have sworn to protect.

Notice the first few words, “The right of the people . . .” “to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects . . .” It’s all about the people and protection from the government. I’m not anti-government when the government stays within its prescribed boundaries. This is really not as difficult to discern as some would have us believe. It’s just a matter of adhering to the principles that our Founders gave us.

Intrusion can be made with such simple things as health care legislation; Oh, it does sound good when promoted. But when overlaid with the Constitution, many principles by which we have sworn to live by, and many have died protecting are disregarded. This is done in favor of comfort and the desire to relinquish personal responsibility.

How do I know this? Not that hard, I just looked to our Founders and the principles they gave us.
In the defense of those who promote health care legislation, its authority supposedly falls under the General Welfare Clause of the Constitution. It is mentioned in two places, the Preamble and Art. 1, Sec. 8m Par. 1.

But how much congressional power does this clause give? Do we ask Congress? Maybe we should ask the Founders as they were the ones who produced the document and understand its original intent.
In 1792 New England was suffering a crisis in its fishing industry. Yes, we have had a crisis before. Some in Congress proposed that the federal funds be used to subsidize (bailout) the fishing industry.
James Madison (the architect of the Constitution) explained: “Those who proposed the Constitution knew, and those who ratified the Constitution also knew that this is . . . a limited government tied down to specified powers . . . . It was never supposed or suspected that the old Congress could give away the money of the states to encourage agriculture or for any other purposes they pleased.” - James Madison. “The Cod Fishery Bill,” February 7, 1792.

As to the use of the General Welfare clause Madison explained: “If Congress can employ money indefinitely to the “general welfare,” then they may take the care of religion into their own hands; they may appoint teachers in every state, county, and parish and pay them out of their public treasure; they may take into their own hands the education of children, establishing in like manner schools throughout the United States; they may assume the provision for the poor; they may undertake the regulation of all roads other then post-roads; in short, everything from the highest object of state legislation down to the most minute object of police would be thrown under the power of Congress, for every object I have mentioned would admit of the application of money, and might be called, if Congress pleased, provisions for the “general welfare.” - James Madison. “The Cod Fishery Bill,” February 7, 1792.

As you can see, Congress has done exactly what Madison warned us of. Congress has progressed and assumed power beyond that which was delegated to it by the Constitution. The question to us (we the people) is, what are we going to do now? Our government continues to grow day by day, assuming more and more authority over our lives. The federal government now reaches into what Madison called the minute object of police. This was never intended to be.

Thomas Jefferson told us: “Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare but is restrained to those specifically enumerated, and . . . It was never meant they should provide for that welfare but by the exercise of the enumerated powers.” - Thomas Jefferson. The writings of Thomas Jefferson, Andrew A. Lipscomb, editor (Washington, D.C.)

What Jefferson was speaking of are the 18 enumerated powers to which Congress is supposed to be confined, through which they can govern and administer their powers. Even if (we the people) approved the measure, they are still restrained by those 18 enumerated powers. To go beyond would require a Constitutional amendment, thus the process left to us by our Founders.
We have strayed. The government has grown beyond its reach, and we the people have become dependent and passive instead of independent and passionate. We may not be able to return unless the passion for freedom once again burns in our hearts and the wisdom of our Founders is once again proclaimed in our land.

May God bless each of you,
David