E-Newsletter No. 72                     December 2019     

Last month we discussed the progressive agenda and the Left’s erroneous view that the US Constitution is a “living constitution.” This view enables the Left to advance its belief that the General Welfare clause is an open invitation to have the federal government grow to be whatever the political elites in Washington DC want it to be. 

There are 4,543 words in the original US Constitution (excluding the subsequent amendments).  The original constitution, along with all twenty-seven amendments that have since been ratified, is oftentimes published in a booklet format that usually totals around twenty pages. 

The federal government’s General Printing Office periodically publishes a book entitled “The Constitution of the United States of America:  Analysis and Interpretation”.  This book, oftentimes referred to as The Constitution Annotated, contains an analysis of virtually all Supreme Court cases that are relevant to interpreting the constitution.  The latest edition of this book is now over 3,000 pages long and weighs more than ten pounds.  Very few citizens know about the existence of this book, and even fewer know about its contents, but in effect, it represents the printed version of the “living constitution” under which we now live.

Under the original constitution, one of the Supreme Court’s primary functions was to hear testimony about a wide variety of matters and make rulings based on the original intent of the country’s Founders.  But over the years, there have been a number of unfortunate rulings that have contributed to the unchecked growth of the federal government.  Many of these Supreme Court rulings occurred during the 1930s and 1940s under pressure from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was one of our country’s first “progressive” presidents.  FDR and the Democrat Congress pushed through several “non-constitutional” programs, such as Social Security, that have contributed to the growth of the federal government and drive a large portion of its taxation and spending, AND “borrowings” from future generations.

FDR’s progressive Supreme Court also made several “interpretations” that fundamentally altered some of the Founders’ original intentions.  One of the worst examples is in regards to the Commerce Clause (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3) which gives the Congress the power “to regulate Commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states…“  The case in question is Wickard vs Filburn, and dealt with an Ohio farmer and his wheat crop.  The federal government had passed The Agriculture Adjustment Act of 1938 to establish quotas for wheat production (aka as meddling in the marketplace).  Roscoe Filburn produced twice as much wheat than the quota allowed, and he was fined under the act. 

Filburn challenged the fine, claiming that the excess wheat could not be regulated because it was for private consumption to feed his animals and not to sell on the market.  The wheat was never in commerce, and therefore could not affect interstate commerce.  Unfortunately, the Supreme Court ruled against him, stating that because he produced additional wheat, he would not go into the marketplace to buy wheat for his private use, which affected interstate commerce (even though his “excess” production was for “intra-farm” use and was non-commercial).

Similar perversions of the Commerce clause over the years have greatly expanded the size and scope and jurisdiction of the federal government.  These instances of meddling in the marketplace have enabled the federal government to further intrude into various aspects of our lives.  Because of the size and coercive power of the federal government, there are oftentimes significant price distortions in the marketplace.  Some of these examples are particularly noteworthy, such as the meddling in the home mortgage loan marketplace, the effects on the cost of higher education, and the total disruption of the health insurance marketplace.

By the way, this past month, the federal government’s “on-book” debt passed the $23 trillion mark.

US Debt Clock – – November 1st – $69,505 per citizen / December 1st – $69,895