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Note From the Publisher
When asked by a reporter where Congress gets the constitutional authority to require Americans to buy health insurance, Nancy Pelosi peered over her glasses and responded, “Are you serious? Are you serious?”
Democrats in Congress, egged on by their president, are, as this is written, racing against the clock to pass Obamacare, one of the most massive intrusions into the personal affairs of the American public in history, and one of the most unconstitutional. Given their oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, potentially unconstitutional legislation is troubling, to say the least. But what is worse is that Democrats in Congress and the president (who once allegedly taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago law school) really don’t give a rat’s ass what the Constitution says.
The wisdom of the Constitution is its protection of liberty against the actions of government. The first 10 amendments — the Bill of Rights — set forth the vast difference between the American form of government and the European. Americans consider liberty paramount, and the rights protected are individual rights — things like the right of free speech, exercise of religion, the right against unreasonable (government) searches and seizures, and so on. Ask a German or Frenchman what rights he has, and he’ll tell you the right to a good meal, a good job, pension, and housing, and good and free health care.
Liberals have always felt constrained by the Constitution. Barry Goldwater, who was in battles with more than a few liberals, wrote years ago that the Constitution “was intended to frustrate a tyranny of the masses and self-seeking demagogues.” Liberals’ goal in life is largely to expand government power at the expense of individual liberty and, where the Constitution gets in the way, as it usually has, they will do whatever they can to stretch, discount, change, or otherwise subvert the Constitution; too often, liberal judges have been willing accomplices in that exercise.
Although Congress has, over the years, attempted to enact bills of questionable constitutionality, Obamacare may push such efforts to new horizons. Never has Congress mandated that citizens must buy anything, and there is no authority within the Constitution to authorize it to do so. If Congress can force people to buy health insurance, after all, it can force people to do anything at all.
The Constitution’s commerce clause — which enables Congress to regulate interstate commerce — is cited as the most likely authority for Obamacare. And the commerce clause has been stretched by the courts to authorize federal involvement of policies never dreamt of by the founders. But never, except in wartime, has the Supreme Court authorized an expansion of federal power such as is envisioned by Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, and to do so now would require it to traipse vastly further to the left than it ever has before.
For Congress, at the behest of the president, to spend the better part of a year debating a legislative proposal so blatantly unconstitutional is irresponsibility at its utmost. It undermines the Constitution, and it places the courts in the position of supervising democracy that the other two branches seem incapable of doing. Let us hope that when the time comes, the courts will use their constitutionally given powers to preserve individual liberty rather than defer to an irresponsible Congress and president.
About the Author
Alfred S. Regnery is a former publisher of The American Spectator. He is the former president and publisher of Regnery Publishing, Inc., which produced twenty-two New York Times bestsellers during his tenure. Regnery also served in the Justice Department during the Reagan Administration, worked on the U.S. Senate staff, and has been in private law practice. He currently serves on several corporate and non-profit boards, and is the Chairman of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute .
His first book, Upstream: The Ascendance of American Conservatism, was published in 2008. The book has been praised as one of the best authoritative accounts on the history of the American conservative movement.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (35) | Leave a comment
More Articles by Alfred S. Regnery
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http://spectator.org/archives/2010/03/06/constitution-care
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Alan Brooks| 3.15.10 @ 8:41PM
If this gives notice to the GOP not to become complacent in:
a) running and electing the uncharismatic and oversensitive Bush 41
b) running and failing to elect the same candidate in '92.
c) running-- merely because he was an elderly war hero-- and failing to elect an inferior candidate in '96.
d) Running and failing to elect another elderly war hero in '08.
Perhaps George W. Bush was good enough to be president in peacetime; yet he was (it is safe to say) over his head in such a complex and complicated assymetrical war as the one we have been in for going on nine years.
So if you don't like Obama, and it goes without saying Mr. Regnery does not like Obama, then convince or try to convince the GOP to run higher quality candidates for POTUS.
Wally Kalbacken| 3.18.10 @ 8:25PM
What struck me first as curiously in conflict with Obama's credential as a "lecturer in Constitutional Law at the U of C" was his remark last spring about Chrysler bondholders as "speculators." One of the things they were not speculating about was their priority in liquidation, which is oftentimes stated on the face of the bond. Obama wanted to browbeat people who had contracted into a certain liquidation priority and treatment, into something less. And he ultimately did it. That made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. So this healthcare stuff is just more of the same. He is shameless.
Bud Parker| 3.21.10 @ 2:50PM
1. The Health Care Bill, currently before the Congress, is replete with violations of the Constitution. It is obviously unconstitutional for the Congress to mandate that we purchase health care! What would be next, a mandate that everyone must purchase a government bond every pay day? No, the government cannot constitutionally mandate how we are to spend our money! I believe that the Fourth Amendment would apply here.
2. This Health Care Bill also provides coverage for criminal immigrants, (illegals) which is very clearly a violation of Title 8 of the United States Code, which makes it a FELONY for ANYONE to provide assistance to criminal immigrants! And, "anyone" includes the President, the Congress, Governors, Mayors, bleeding-hearts, Republicans, democrats, and Churches; the law does not differentiate, nor does it exclude!
3. After all is said and done, this "Health Care Bill", is yet another taxpayer financed, massive government administered, WELFARE PROGRAM, where those who can afford to purchase their own health care, are made to pay for those who won't! It really is just that simple, there is nothing complicated about it; do the words "spreading the wealth" ring a bell?
4. If this Health Care abomination is passed, their next agenda item will be "amnesty." There will be a major effort to continue the momentum gained in passing this unconstitutional law, to "legalize" those 30 million criminal immigrants, who will also be covered under that health bill, so they can then off-set the vote come November! Those criminal immigrants will be "grateful" to their democrat "sponsors", and they will vote that ticket! After their "success", those democrats will be desperate to secure those votes, those votes may save them their jobs in November! Republicans should already be working against this amnesty legislation!
It has been rumored that any democrats who are defeated in November, have already been "promised" that they will be given other cushy government jobs! One Republican Senator has promised that he will see to it that that doesn't happen; he intends to put a "hold" on those jobs, hurray for him!
5. Recourse at the State Level. Number one, all of the Governors in those States where this socialist Health Care takeover is not welcomed, should immediately take action under "nullification", and refuse to implement it in their States! Contemporaneously with that, their State Attorney's General, should seek immediate recourse through the courts, because of the disparately partial "rewards" that were given some States, for "selling" their votes in Congress, to get this passed.
6. Recourse of "We the People." We need to take a page from Saul Alinsky's book, the Obama/Hillary Clinton Bible, (Rules for Radicals) and immediately organize for application of two "neighborhood organizer's" tactics, which have proven successful for their socialist creators in the past. They are: massive demonstrations of Civil Disobedience, and Passive Resistance! For example, flooding the Accident Rooms of hospitals with "injuries" such as headaches, gout attacks, indigestion, arthritis, and so on; bring the system to its knees if necessary!
7. Advice to the Republicans: LEARN TO PLAY THE GAME! Republicans are continuously bested by democrats, because democrats are better at playing the dirty game which we call "politics!" Even when the Republicans held the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, they were quite often bested by the democrat "minority." The cause(s) for this were several, here are a few: bipartisanship (never works in favor of Republicans); reaching across the isle (same as bipartisanship); compromise (never won anything); too many RINO's in the Party, jettison their sorry asses! That means the likes of Lindsay Graham, John McCain, Olympia Snowe, and Susan Collins.
"We the People", need to demand that no one, NO ONE, is above the law! Congress cannot be allowed to exclude themselves from their own legislation! "We the People", also need to demand that "government" be conducted in the light of day, no locked door, smoke-filled rooms! All actions of the government, that are not directly related to National Security, must be subject to the scrutiny of the governed! Term limits are also in order, as is the elimination of "jobs for life" positions, such as those of Justice of the Supreme Court!
Remember too, "third party candidates" will help only the democrats, and must be discouraged. "We the People", must "take back" the Republican Party, in order to take back our Constitution and this Nation! There is simply no time to build a viably competitive "third party" infrastructure; even if that could be done, it would be too late!
Finally, an admonition! I wish to express my total disgust for the Supreme Court of the United States, which has "chosen" to remain silent as the Constitution is ignored, reviled, challenged, despoiled, and trampled upon, by the very government that swore to PRESERVE, DEFEND, and PROTECT it! Yes, The Court has "chosen" to remain silent, as the Constitution is incrementally being deposed, and the Nation as presently constituted, is destroyed! It is the Constitutional Duty of The Court, to demand that this government is functioning within its Constitutional Authority, both in the interest of the Nation and the Constitution, but even more importantly, in the interest of "We the People!" There is no Constitutional Mandate that The Court remain mute, while the Constitution is destroyed, none whatsoever!
Alan Brooks| 3.22.10 @ 11:57PM
Yeah, the Southern border situation, with its drug wars, doesn't look "too good" right now, does it?
Or for many decades hence.
A Russian immigrant might feel at home in Mexico today.
Joseph Sanderson| 3.24.10 @ 11:47AM
The Democratic Party aren't liberals. Liberal means someone who believes in liberty.
The Democratic Party stands for disregard of both individual freedom and the will of the people. They are not liberal. They are not democrats.
Ironically, the Right, which self-identifies as conservative, is actually the liberal wing (in the historical sense) of politics now.
Contrarian| 4.6.10 @ 9:43PM
One thing that I haven't heard mention of is the fact that if own a home you are mandated to pay for public education, regardless of whether you have kids and/or they attend public schools.
Frankly, this rhetoric makes me want to just cuddle up in my snuggie and read political satire. Although this is determined at the county, municipal, why are people not outraged that they are forced to pay for public education. Why are you not standing on the top of the town hall steps citing that school tax is unconstitutional?
Ted Wheatley| 6.1.10 @ 11:19PM
After you are done paying for all of that health insurance, I think that the snuggie will be the only thing left that you will be able to afford. So enjoy the blanket with sleeves while you still can. But don't be surprised when Obama places a tax on that too.