The Tenth Amendment

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. (ratified Dec. 15, 1791)

Since Woodrow Wilson was President of the United States the federal government has continued to expand its influence over the States. Recently with the health care reform debate moving through Congress states are pushing back… and rightly so.

The “powers not delegated” is a powerful phrase, since so little was delegated to the United States to begin with. I have spoken in speeches lately about this very thing. Recently I was asked about the federal stimulus bill and how some cities in America now have police and fire fighters because of it. I responded that local citizens along with their elected officials should decide how many police and firefighters they need and then if they decide they need additional man-power that they should pay for it; not some tax payer in another part of the country. It’s not the role of the federal government.

Intrusion by the federal government is pervasive; DOL, OSHA, DEA, DOE, IRS, EPA and on and on. Someday, some state government backed by their citizens, will stand up against this unnecessary intrusion. That’s why I support the Enumerated Powers Act currently sponsored in Congress but not yet passed. This bill would require a constitutional test prior to bills being passed into law. Is that really too much to ask since each of our representatives takes an oath to defend and protect the US Constitution?

I have tried to make the tenth amendment one of my core principles. If one amendment can be ignored by Congress isn’t the entire document at risk? I also realize that this freedom requires responsible citizens to govern themselves. The citizens of each state should be able to decide the laws placed upon them on most issues and in that way they will make it easier to change them if necessary.