Over the last several decades, the US Supreme has repeatedly overturned presidential executive orders and laws passed by Congress as a gross overreach of government. When the founding fathers drafted and ratified the Constitution in 1787, Congress was enacting the will of the states. It was the sovereign states that created the federal government and ratified the founding document. The founders continually expressed concerns the federal government could grow too big for its pants and enact tyranny on its people. Today, that word isn’t well accepted, yet the idea is the government could become overhand, corrupt, and unfair.
So, how did they solve the problem? You may be familiar with the idea of checks and balances and the separation of powers. It’s usually reserved commentary for issues between the branches of the federal government. Yet, another layer of checks and balances is found by limiting the federal government’s authority in its complex relationship with the states.
The 10th Amendment doesn’t add or take anything away from the Constitution. Instead, it tells Americans how to interpret it. It’s the lens through which we evaluate the government’s actions. Thomas Jefferson said the foundation of the Constitution rested on the 10th Amendment. In practice, the provision divides power between the states and federal government and is a driving tool to protect individual liberties. It’s a principle known as federalism.
There are two primary things the crucial amendment does.
- It only authorizes the federal government to exercise the powers granted to it in the founding document. Therefore, it is limited in scope and ability.
- It gives the states and the people to exercise authority not given to the federal government.
It’s the reason why states oversee education and health policy. It’s also the reason the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. Under Article 1, Section 8, the Constitution provides several enumerated (or clearly defined) powers granted to the federal government. It can print money, regulate commerce, declare war, raise and maintain a military, and establish a post office. In total, there are 27 specific powers vested to the federal government.
Here’s where things get sticky. Under the “Necessary and Proper” clause, Congress can make laws that are important for it to carry out the duties of the government. The question is, for example, is abortion a duty of the federal government? The 1973 Warren Court ruled that privacy issues meant it did. Yet, the 2022 court overturned the ruling saying the ’73 court got it wrong and violated numerous Constitutional rules, including the 10th Amendment.
Why? Because the Constitution didn’t grant the power of the federal government the authority to establish abortion as a right since it’s not an enumerated power. Nor is it directly protected by the Bill of Rights. It’s also neither necessary and proper to the function of the government.
The 10th Amendment gives responsibility to the states and the people. In Printz v. United States, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote federal commands or dictates to the states were “fundamentally incompatible with our constitutional system of dual sovereignty.”
That’s the rub. Who is more powerful? The states which created the federal government or the politicians and bureaucrats that run it? The states are only limited by their own constitutions and, in theory, are more powerful in dictating laws and rules than the federal government. If you don’t like something a state does, you have the right to leave for another one that best meets your beliefs and how you want to live.
If any one issue shows this in practice, abortion is it. Yet, it’s hardly the only issue. The 10th Amendment serves a vital purpose in restraining the federal government. It’s necessary and needed more than ever the less aware Americans are of its importance to their everyday lives.
Don Purdum, Political Analyst
Copyright 2022, ConservativeEra.com
