A possible cure for what ails America.
Several months ago I published “A More Perfect Constitution”. Its language in many places is directed at abuses that have arisen in America’s governance. Because of its daunting length, I suspect that few readers have digested it whole, and that even fewer reader have been taken notice of the many places in which the document strives to undo the damage that has been done to Americans’ liberties. This series of posts highlights that language in bite-size chunks. Links to all excerpts are given at the end of this post.
V. OBLIGATIONS AND POWERS OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES
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B. Specific Powers of Congress
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4. Congress may not:
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b. sustain or make laws that result in the imposition of costs on the government of any State or the governments of all of them;
c. either directly, through the empowerment of a regulatory agency, or as an incidental effect of legislation determine what goods and services are exchanged in intra-State, inter-State, or international commerce (except to regulate the international flow of weapons, military technology, or information that might compromise national security), or determine how such goods and services are produced or priced; or determine how businesses so engaged are operated;
d. levy taxes or duties on exports from or imports to any State, give any preference to one State over another in its regulation of commerce, or determine the routes of commerce between the States; …
f. except pursuant to an authorization of war, appropriate any monies for the use of foreign nations or peoples….
h. make any law whose direct effect is to establish, support, favor, bestow financial benefits on, or restrict the privileges of a particular person or class of persons, business or class of businesses, or other private institution or class of private institutions;
i. make any law whose direct or indirect effect is to provide old-age, survivors’, disability, or medical benefits to any person, except that Congress may by law provide pension and medical benefits for members and former members of the armed forces of the United States, and pension benefits for civilian employees of the government of the United States;
j. sustain for more than ten years after the ratification of this Constitution any extant programs that provide old-age, survivors’, disability, or medical benefits not contemplated in the preceding clause;
j. authorize or allow any agency of the government of the United States effectively to exercise legislative or judicial power on its behalf;
k. authorize any agency to act independently of one of the three branches of government established by this Constitution; or
k. make any law or appropriation or take any other action that contravenes any part of this Constitution.
5. Treaties
a. The Senate must ratify all treaties and agreements with foreign nations and international organizations, except those agreements that the President is by law empowered to execute pursuant to a ratified treaty.
b. The Senate may not ratify any treaty that directly or indirectly places the United States, its territories or possessions, its property, its citizens, or its armed forces under the jurisdiction or control of any foreign power or international organization.
c. The Senate may not ratify any treaty that contravenes any provision of this Constitution or any constitutional law previously enacted by Congress.
7. Acts of Congress may be revised or revoked as provided in Articles VII, VIII, and IX of this Constitution. [Stay tuned.]
Excerpt 1, from Article II: CITIZENSHIP, VOTING, AND RELIGIOUS TESTS FOR OFFICE
Excerpt 2, from Article III: RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES OF CITIZENS
Politics and Prosperity 