Congressional Constitution Caucus’ Weekly “Constitution Half Hour”
Enumerated Powers Act
Washington,
Mar 6, 2007 -
Mr. Speaker,
We are here today to announce our support of the Enumerated Powers Act authored by our good friend from Arizona, Mr. Shadegg. As the Founder and Chairman of the Congressional Constitution Caucus, I urge my fellow Members to cosponsor this legislation.
Article VI, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution states: “The Senators and Representatives before mentioned…shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution.” On January 4th, each of us followed this constitutional mandate and swore such an oath. Yet in the past two months, we have passed legislation without first considering the very document that grants us legislative authority. As a result, taxpayer dollars are being wasted on programs and projects that overstep the constitutional jurisdiction of the federal government. And personal freedoms and state priorities and state priorities are being overshadowed or even forgotten.
Unfortunately, this trend is not new to the 110th Congress. In recent decades, there has been a sharp escalation of funding for existing federal programs and creation of new ones. The bloated bureaucracy we have today is certainly not the type of central government envisioned by our forefathers. As Thomas Jefferson wrote in an 1808 letter, “The same prudence which in private life would forbid our paying our own money for unexplained projects, forbids it in the dispensation of the public moneys.”
It is time for us to explain our distribution of taxpayer dollars. Our constituents should be assured that we our upholding the document that protects their freedoms. Otherwise, the federal government will continue to overstep its boundaries, encroaching on the freedom of the people.
Our Founding Fathers deliberately wrote a constitution of enumerated powers. While some countries have attempted to limit government by writing constitutions that specify every single area in which the federal government does not have jurisdiction, the framers knew that such a constitution would be unnecessarily tedious. Therefore, in Article I, Section 8, the founders specifically listed congressional powers. The 10th Amendment grants all other legislative powers to the states.
It makes sense that Congress should perform only the duties prescribed by the Constitution. The United States has thrived as a nation precisely because the freedom of the people has been protected by a limited government. The Constitution is the anchor that protects American citizens from the storms of a controlling central government.
James Madison assured early Americans in The Federalist No. 45 that “the powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the Federal Government are few and defined.” Madison continued to operate under that belief even after the Constitution was ratified. In fact, his last act as president was to veto the Bonus Bill, which authorized federal funds for public works projects.
Today, Members justify passing legislation that is even more expansive than the Bonus Bill. They argue that Article 1, Section 8 allows us to pass any legislation, as long as it provides for the “general Welfare” or is “necessary and proper.” Madison would have been appalled by our liberal interpretation of these terms. In The Federalist No. 41 he asked, “For what purpose could the enumeration of particular powers be inserted, if these and all others were meant to be included in the preceding general power?” n, in Federalist No. 41
James Wilson, the author of the General Welfare clause explained to the Pennsylvania ratification convention that the words “necessary and proper” are “limited, and defined by the following, ‘for carrying into execution the foregoing powers.’ It is saying no more than that the powers we have already particularly given, shall be effectually carried into execution.”
For these reasons, Madison explained that he could not sign the Bonus Bill unless an amendment allowing such an expenditure were first added to the Constitution.
Mr. Shadegg’s commonsense legislation follows Madison’s logic by ensuring that every bill introduced in the U.S. Congress include a statement declaring the specific constitutional authority under which the law is proposed to be enacted. Following such a guideline would help return our nation to the principles of limited government, Federalism, and the 10th Amendment. And, such a principle is not only consistent with our oath, but it is also a smarter use of our constituents’ tax dollars.
The Enumerated Powers Act will stem the flow of unconstitutional legislation by compelling Members to reconsider the intended role of the federal government. I strongly urge all members of the Constitution Caucus to co-sponsor this legislation. Congress must begin to justify its actions to the states, local governments, and, ultimately, the people themselves.
Mr. Speaker, I thank you and yield back the balance of my time.
