States Rights

Hi

In this blog I would like to address an issue which is rarely discussed. That issue is the rights of the various states. The United States was formed as a union of 13 states, each with its own governing body. For purposes of protection and for the additional purpose of ease of commerce the separate states formed a central government. This is evident in the examination of the constitution of the nation. The Bill of Rights ( Amendments I through X ) were mostly framed in a restrictive mode, that is, they were crafted so as to limit the powers given to the central government. Many of the amendments are worded in words such as, " The federal government ( congress ) shall not pass any laws, etc. Amendment X reserved the powers not given to the central government but reserved this power to the states. These acts were intended to curb the power of a " big brother style of government ". Over time there has been an evolution which has caused amendments to be passed. This blog is aimed at Amendment XVII. which defines the make up of the Senate. Prior to the passing of this amendment the senators were chosen by the states, but in a democratic manner. When the amendment was passed it changed the way senators were chosen, giving that means of selection to the people. I am not against " People power ", in fact the exact opposite is true. I firmly believe in giving the power of government to the people. Abraham Lincoln said it far better than I could, " government of the people, by the people and for the people". I cannot improve on that, could you?

The problem is how do we give the power to the people, At first glance it would appear that having the senate chosen by the people is people power, but let's look further. Our congress is made up of two separate chambers, the house and the senate. If we wanted a legislative agenda formed by the people, why have two houses? Also, please note that the make up of the separate houses is different. The senate has a term of six years, the house two years. The senate votes on treaties, confirmation of federal judges and cabinet members, the house has no say in these matters. This was done to insure a fair central government which would not be dominated by the more populous states. Amendment XVII changed that, now we have a conflict between the purposes of the two houses of congress. Amendment XVII has virtually " legislatively castrated Amendment X ". Modern senators have now over politicized the senate, the governing rule for federal judges is not are they good jurists, but do they support Roe v Wade. The term " Bork " has come to mean a verbal assault on ones character. Did our founding fathers really want this to happen?

How do we protect ourselves and our nation from further erosion of the people power, simple, repeal Amendment XVII. I may be the only voice expressing this sentiment, but I honestly think that it is worth bring forth for discussion. More on this later, I promise.

For now, keep the faith and patriotism, pray for our heroic troops.
GOD Bless.