The Fifth Amendment of the Bill of Rights mandates government procedures to protect the natural, inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness recognized in the Declaration of Independence. The amendment contains five protections for these natural rights. The Fifth Amendment’s first protection requires the federal government to use a grand jury to […]
The Fifth Amendment: Procedural Protections for Natural Rights
March 17, 2014 by
The First United States Congress proposed 12 amendments to the Constitution in 1789. The states ratified ten of the proposed amendments: The Bill of Rights. The Fifth Amendment contains five procedural rights. If the government seeks to take someone’s life, liberty or property it must follow the Fifth Amendment’s rules. The Fifth Amendment “No person […]
Court Approves “Heckler’s Veto” over Flag Wearing Students
March 2, 2014 by
“Freedom has more often been lost in small steps by progressive incrementalism, than by catastrophic upheavals such as violence or war.” –James Madison. A cut was sliced into the First Amendment‘s Free Speech protections on February 27, 2014 by the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The court upheld a California high school’s decision to […]
Constitutional Impeachment: An Alternative to Assassination
February 22, 2014 by
The Constitution‘s Impeachment Clause regarding the president and all civil officers of the United States is in Article II and reads: “The President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” The Constitution’s Article […]
11th Amendment Overrules the Supreme Court
February 14, 2014 by
The Supreme Court interprets the Constitution. If the Court makes an unpopular decision, the recourse is an amendment. This happened with the Eleventh Amendment. During the Revolutionary War a South Carolina merchant, Captain Robert Farquhar sold supplies to the State of Georgia on credit. Following the War, Georgia refused to pay Farquhar asserting that he […]
Book Review: The Second Revolution and The 2nd Amendment
February 9, 2014 by
“The laws that forbid the carrying of arms … disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes…. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an […]
What a President Can Legally Do With a Pen and a Phone, Part I
February 3, 2014 by
President Obama brought national attention to the idea of running the country by “executive order” with his now famous: “I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone”. He made that intent clear during the 2013 and 2014 State of the Union Addresses as well: “… if Congress won’t act soon … I will… I will […]
Constitution’s Origination Clause: Why Revenue Bills Start in the House, Part 3
January 21, 2014 by
Part 1 examined the history and purpose of the US Constitution‘s Origination Clause. Part 2 introduced the Senate practice of “gut and replace” that pretends to comply with the Origination Clause. This article explains why “gut and replace” violates the Constitution.[1] The Origination Clause provides that laws for raising revenue[2] must have started in the […]
The Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution
January 19, 2014 by
While the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, it did nothing regarding the legal status of the former slaves. The 14th Amendment gave them citizenship and did much more. At the end of the American Civil War Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 granting US citizenship to former slaves. The constitutional authority off Congress to […]
What a President Can Legally Do with His Phone and Pen, Part II
David Frost: you’re saying is that there are certain situations … where the president can decide that it’s in the best interests of the nation or something, and do something illegal. Richard Nixon: Well, when the president does it that means that it is not illegal.[1] “… if Congress won’t act soon … I will.” Barack Obama, […]