The Founding Fathers of the United States of America, the authors of our beloved and beautiful Constitution of the United States feared the federal government. Greatly feared the potential for power abuse by any newly formed federal government.
They were determined, these Founding Fathers were, to preserve the authority, autonomy and integrity of the 13 states responsible for determining how a federal, a central source of governmental power would work. Every delegate to the Philadelphia convention came armed and prepared to defend the sovereignty of that state. They would not give up power lightly nor would they allow any central body, any brand new government to usurp the powers, the freedoms, the rights of any of the 13 sovereign states.
This new central governmental body would be restricted in powers. It would only have certain rights which were clearly spelled out. It was not legally allowed, this new government, to go beyond those limits and where the Constitution ended those rights and powers, those of the states would remain unadulterated, inalienable, superseding the powers of the federal government. The formulation of such a document, enumerating, explaining, limiting was even more important than the rights and powers granted. The United States of America was then 13 states only, with more to come. But the 13 states were the supreme check and balance. And that was the heart and soul of Federalism.
So the Founders constructed the IX and X amendments to the Constitution to make it very clear to the Clintons, Bush’s, Obamas, Trumps and Bidens of the world, politicians bent on power and the exercise thereof how this balance of rights and powers of states and the federal government would work. The Founders told politicians and the people then in Amendment IX that the rights granted to this new federal government cannot be construed (interpreted), enlarged, added on so as to encroach upon all the other rights which were not specifically granted to the federal government but fully retained by the people, WE THE PEOPLE. In short, federal government, Washington D.C., if we don’t grant you the specific rights, all other inalienable rights belong to us. Don’t go there.
And, the Founding Fathers and amendment X dealt with powers not specifically delegated. So, federal government said the Founding Fathers, if we don’t specifically, clearly and in detail delegate certain powers to you, you can’t go there. THOSE POWERS ARE RESERVED FOR THE STATES AND THE PEOPLE!
No matter the Constitution, the federal government has become a rights and powers monster. It has little regard for Federalism. Where there were once 13 states, now there are 50. But the federal government tramples on the inalienable rights and powers of those 50 states however it wishes. It encroaches, ignores and daily grabs more and more power, and daily restricts or even eliminates certain rights of the people NO MATTER THE CONSTITUTION! WE THE PEOPLE see that happening every day and for the most part, we do little about it. We watch this power hungry governmental monster and we do little about the fact that our rights, once thought to be inalienable, crumble by the day. States become more impotent, irrelevant, ignored in the power struggle and America changes, radically changes so that 545 people out of 330 million, a House of Representatives, a United States Senate, nine Supreme Court Justices and the President rule, don’t represent, but radically rule WE THE 330 MILLION CITIZENS OF THE ONCE GREAT UNITED STATES.
This federal government cements its power day by day. So many of the House of Representatives 435 members are never heard from. They seem powerless. U.S. Senators are beholden to party leaders and are rendered powerless unless they comply. A President comes to office with promises of performance with no intention at all. Supreme Court Justices are appointed essentially with regard to how they would interpret the Constitution and apply the law. Some are faithful but others once appointed change (i.e. Chief Justice John Roberts). Once appointed, in office, it is virtually impossible to remove them. We the people are STUCK with them, the House for two years, the President for four years, the Senate for six, and the nine Justices of the Supreme Court FOR LIFE. So much for democracy, dying by the day.
The answer: the return and the revival of power and control to the states and the people. President Ronald Reagan gave us the answer:
GET GOVERNMENT OFF PEOPLE’S BACKS!
The answer is to make certain that ultimate powers do not reside in any one form of government but are divided and shared. Here the words of President Thomas Jefferson who said:
“It is by dividing and subdividing these republics from the great National one down thru’ all its subordinates, until it ends in the administration of every man’s farm and affairs by himself; by placing under everyone what his own eye may superintend, that all will be done for the best.”
Divide, and subdivide and keep on dividing that power until it finally reaches down to the very land itself, to the people, then the farmers, today the blue collar workers, all the people for then power and rights “will be done for the best,” ultimately residing, these inalienable rights with WE THE PEOPLE. But nothing close to that happens today. In fact, WE THE PEOPLE are ignored, disrespected, viewed as DEPLORABLES good only for votes and money. The federal government essentially does exactly what it wants to do and the burden to protest is on the states and the people. So do many of the states, and the Governors who in the AGE OF CORONA now wield executive authority, even arbitrarily so, like never before. Where the power of the federal government leaves off, now in so many ways rogue Governors and defiant states take over. These states and Governors generally do not combat and resist the federal government, but mimic the power grab of Washington D.C. resulting in the further corruption of rights and powers rather than delegation back to the people. More of democracy down the drain. The Founding Fathers wanted every state to have a certain inalienable independence, and become a laboratory for the experiment in democracy. They saw differing laws in different states as a democratic good. But today, sadly, all 50 states are subservient to the federal government and democracy declines.
The power of the federal government grows daily. It becomes an all encompassing power monster growing as an administrative state where laws, rules and regulations are made not necessarily by Congress, but by agencies, administrators and bureaucrats unelected but uncontrolled. These unelected federal bureaucrats are the core of a 400–agency administrative state. The Congress has delegated or abandoned its authority to these 400 agencies which do as they please without congressional oversight. The House and Senate have watched while so much power has been usurped by the President, by the Executive branch and it has failed as our elective representatives to protect and preserve our beloved democracy. No matter the constitutional principle of NONDELEGATION, that process goes on, and on daily, Congress becoming even farther removed daily. As a result, the consequence of ignoring the nondelegation doctrine is what is known as:
THE FEDERAL REGISTER.
A compilation of Executive branch rules and regulations which now consists of an astonishing:
70,000 PAGES
Literally unbelievable for virtually every page contains a rule or regulation which eviscerates the powers and rights of the states and of course WE THE PEOPLE.
Congressional legislation with presidential approval becomes more difficult to accomplish by the day. Therefore, we can expect a continued growth of rules and regulations, and the so called ADMINISTRATIVE STATE will be the real ones controlling our lives. Small wonder that President Trump and so many others call this administrative state:
THE SWAMP.
Red tape grows. Rules and regulations abound. President Trump did America one great service when he did away with so many of these administrative strangulations by Executive order. But you can be certain that Biden and his democratic associates will reverse the trend and even increase the process.
The answer: a return to real federalism where the autonomy, authority and integrity of the states revive, state borders are protected, states become laboratories for experiments in democracy, conscious of the rights of their people, even dividing state power so that by county, township and as far down local as possible, power is shared and exercised. Then and there, the real voice of the real people will be heard. Actions will matter. People will be far more inclined to participate in democracy, in the protection of their inalienable rights, and exercising the powers which our beloved Constitution, especially in amendments IX and X have reserved inalienably for them. If that process does not revive, if true democracy does not return, the America we know and love will be done and over. So, its up to you and me, my fellow Americans. We need to step up now, more than ever so that we can protect our beloved democracy, and the powers and rights which are inalienable and cannot be taken away from us. Thomas Jefferson warned that the day may come when the tree of liberty must be refreshed by the blood of patriots. May we hope that day doesn’t come but we should be ready for it, the way things are.
AMERICA NEEDS YOU AND ME NOW MORE THAN EVER! ANSWER THE CALL!