Politics Information |
Is The Bill Of Rights Necessary?
The Bill of Rights to our Constitution caused -- and still causes - some contradiction, confusion and danger with the Constitution itself. It is unfortunate that a bill of rights was included with the Constitution. Due to a general misunderstanding about the Constitution at the time of its ratification, a bill of rights was added to the Constitution in order to obtain ratification of the Constitution itself: "In the course of the foregoing review of the Constitution I have taken notice of, and endeavored to answer most of the objections which have appeared against it. There, however, remain a few which either did not fall naturally under any particular head or were forgotten in their proper places. These shall now be discussed. ? The most considerable of these remaining objections is that the Constitution of the convention contains no bill or rights." Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Papers #84. Indeed, during the convention itself, a motion to prepare a bill of rights to the Constitution was "passed unanimously in the negative." September 12, 1787; Notes Of Debates In The Federal Convention Of 1787 Reported By James Madison. But why no bill of rights? "A minute detail of particular rights is certainly far less applicable to a Constitution like that under consideration, which is merely intended to regulate the general political interests of the nation, than to a constitution which has the regulation of every species of personal and private concerns. It has been several times truly remarked that bills of rights are, in their origin, stipulations between kings and their subjects, abridgements of prerogative in favor of privilege, reservations of rights not surrendered to the prince. Such was Magna Carta, obtained by the barons, sword in hand, from King John. Such was the subsequent confirmation of that charter by subsequent princes. Such was the Petition of Right assented to by Charles the First in the beginning of his reign. Such, also, was the Declaration of Right presented by the Lords and Commons to the Prince of Orange in 1688, and afterwards thrown into the form of an act of Parliament called the Bill of Rights. It is evident, therefore, that, according to primitive signification, they have no application to constitutions, professedly founded upon the power of the people and executed by their immediate representatives and servants. Here in strictness, the people surrender nothing; and as they retain everything, they have no need of particular reservations. The truth is, after all the declamations we have heard, that the Constitution is itself, in every rational sense, and to every useful, a bill of rights. The several bills of rights in Great Britain form its Constitution; and conversely, the constitution of each State is its bill of rights. And the proposed Constitution, if adopted, will be the bill of rights of the Union." Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Papers #84. However, in the debates of the state conventions, the most criticized feature of the Constitution, voiced by the opposition, was the lack of a bill or rights: "One criticism repeatedly advanced (against the Constitution) was the absence of a bill of rights. This matter had been discussed very briefly on the floor of the Philadelphia Convention, where George Mason had introduced a resolution, supported by Elbridge Gerry, to appoint a committee to prepare a bill of rights. Roger Sherman had replied briefly that the various state constitutions already had bills of rights, which should prove sufficient under the new government, and Mason's motion had then been defeated 10 to 0. But in the ratification controversy, absence of a federal bill of rights became a focal point of attack upon the Constitution by the Antifederalists, who pointed out that since the new government had a sphere of sovereignty of its own and functioned directly upon individuals, the absence of a bill of rights prepared the way for encroachments upon the liberties of the people. The absence of a bill of rights proved a bargaining point for the Federalists in some of the state conventions, for they were able to pledge the adoption of a new bill or rights by amendment once the new government was established. In several conventions, among them those in Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia, the Federalists at the last moment won over certain moderates in the opposition with this understanding. Several of the state conventions submitted proposed amendments containing bills of rights at the time that they ratified. These were made the basis of the first ten amendments to the Constitution, adopted by Congress in 1789 and by the states within two years after the establishment of the new government." The American Constitution; Its Origins And Development, 5th Edition, by Alfred H. Kelly and Winfred A. Harbison, 1976, pp. 142-143. And what danger did and does the Bill of Rights present with the Constitution itself? "Bills of rights, in the sense and to the extent in which they are contended for, are not only unnecessary in the proposed Constitution, but would even be dangerous. They would contain various exceptions to powers which are not granted; and, on this very account, would afford a colorable pretext to claim more than were granted. For why declare that things shall not be done which there is no power to do? Why, for instance, should it be said that the liberty of the press shall not be restrained, when no power is given by which restrictions may be imposed? I will not contend that such a provision would confer a regulating power; but it is evident that it would furnish, to men disposed to usurp, a plausible pretense for claiming that power. They might urge, with a semblance of reason, that the Constitution ought not to be charged with the absurdity of providing against the abuse of an authority which was not given, and that the provision against restraining the liberty of the press afforded a clear implication that a power to prescribe proper regulations concerning it was intended to be vested in the national government. This may serve as a specimen of the numerous handles which would be given to the doctrine of constructive powers, by the indulgence of an injudicious zeal for bills of rights." Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Papers #84. To maintain the integrity of the Constitution an amendment was drafted and included in The Bill of Rights. It reads: "The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." Amendment 9, Constitution of the United States. Its inclusion was to prevent the rights listed in the other amendments (as well as those amendments which have been added since then) from being construed as the only rights of the people.¹ Indeed, the constitutional operation of the federal government would be exactly the same if The Bill of Rights were not there at all. However, The Bill of Rights is a part of the Constitution. A result of a comprise based upon a misunderstanding of the Constitution itself. _________________________________ ¹ See Griswold v. State of Connecticut: 381 U.S. 479, 486-493, at footnote 4 (concurring opinion of Justice Goldberg, The Chief Justice, and Justice Brennan) [1965] get case © 1993 Daniel Joseph Goodman Questions? Comments! xGoodmanx@excite.com Dan Goodman, known as J.D. Goodman or "J.D." is a legal researcher. Other articles authored by "J.D." relating to the area of law are, How Well Do Know The Constitution and State Citizenship Is Alive And Well. Like doing your own legal research. I invite you to try my website, The Legal Connection, at http://www.angelfire.com/nb/thelegalconn/index.htm. This article is written to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is written with the understanding that the author is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or, other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. The author, therefore, disclaims any responsibility for any liability or loss incurred as a consequence of the use and application, either directly or indirectly of any information presented herein.
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open template $TEMPLATEfilename, exiting |
RELATED ARTICLES
Connecticut Does Not Need Further Income Tax Hikes! Industrial Recruiting. The absence of a state income tax in Tennessee was cited by Nissan Corporation as one of the quality of life factors it considered for its workers when it decided to build a large plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, to produce the Nissan Altima and other vehicles. Oil Prices Effect The United States Competitiveness Just because we have been leading the World in innovation and computer intellectual property, expertise and design does not mean we can afford to let our manufacturing dominance continue to depart the US soil. We once made everything here. Housing Bubble, Interest Rates, Timber Costs; What Has Changed? What has really changed in the housing market with regards to timber dumping from Canada, lumber costs since the Professional Building Magazine issue in Sept. 2001. Truckers Take Some Hits and Keep On Trucking After 9-11 insurance rates on Independent Truck Drivers and smaller trucking companies showed an average increase of over 30%. Larger trucking companies are generally self insured, however incessant lawsuits have also hurt them and caused higher self insurance funds causing decreased earnings and thus higher over all shipping rates to the consumer. Entrepreneur Lashes Out at Linear Thinking Government Regulators I am personally calling for a total disbanding of the regulatory agencies as we know it immediately. This needs to be done from the inside out. China Finds Humans to Test Bird Flu Vaccine On, in Qinghai China is serious about breaking into the bio-tech field and has a vaccine to stop H5N1 Bird Flu strain. Recently they admitted over 160 people died and today they now admit it was actually 460 people. Government Overregulation of Broadcast Content Could Backfire Rush is right! The government's stepped up bid to regulate broadcast television content is indeed frightening. Limbaugh made his comments during one of his regular radio broadcasts last year. Super Voting Ink and Vaccines In the future when we decide to help nations vote and enter their new freedom of democracy at a time when we have significant resistance in the form of a guerilla contingency or insurgency we should specially modify the ink die to prove a vote was cast to identify the good citizens.By mixing a specific chemical which is safe biologically, but shows up under UV light, we can tell when they approach a check point at night if they are the good guys or bad guys. The Unborn and Cloning The UnbornWith all this cloning in the news one can't help but to treat himself to the human embryo side of the moon, I mean: womb; it's just brings me back to old news days 20 to 25-years ago. Not sure how far we've come, where we are going, and for the most part, where we are at. True Democracy and a Way Forward The process of researching this topic has been an interesting one. It seemed that it would be easy to find information on the Twelve Cycles of Truth if it formed the basis for the Iroquois Confederacy. The Macedonian Lottery Every conflict has its economic moments and dimensions. The current conflict in Macedonia perhaps even more so. Maryland Lawyers and Politicians Want More Regulations We know that in Maryland, which some call "Merry Land" due to its completely liberal skew that Sarbaines Oxley laws were born. These laws no matter what anyone will tell you, have done more to upset our trade deficits with China than any other single factor. Liberal Agenda and Communism; Lance Rants If we go hog wild towards the liberal agenda where everything is equal and everything is fair and it does not matter if you produce or not or have any productivity all you're still entitled the same amount of potatoes, then you will find every American in line for said potatoes. Think of this unemployment lines of 2000 as our inability to live within reality as we listen to podium pushers promise us the world of unattainable dreams, of an unreachable utopia for the impossible price of FREE? Oh really since when? Quite frankly it cannot exist without the commitment, integrity and teamwork that built this country in the first place. World Power Brokers Readying for WWIII Einstein when ask how did he believe WWIII would be fought said that he didn't know, but replied; "WWIV will be fought with sticks and stones!" A scary notion indeed; bet we all hope he is wrong about that. Yet as we look at the World today and the differences, which separate our world and divide us as one unique species on the surface of this pale blue dot, one has to see the logic of Einstein's prediction. Lack of Peace, Reaching Critical Mass You have in front of you two buttons, one is green the other is black. The green button represents peace and love, the black button represents war and hate and you were put in charge of choosing what the rest of humanity will experience on earth. What Is The Filibuster All About? The filibuster has been a tool available to U.S. Suicide Prevention in Prisons Prison guards and corrections professionals are hard at work insuring that suicides do not take place. They have special attire, suits, straps, rubber rooms and event blankets, which cannot be tied in knots. Bosnia - An Economy in Search of a State Bosnia-Herzegovina (heretofore "Bosnia") is an artificial polity with four, tangentially interacting, economies. Serbs, Croats and their nominal allies, the Bosniaks each maintain their own economy. Enlightenment Experiments Pierre Dupont de Nemours:After arranging the Armistice that ended or settled outstanding issues after the Revolutionary War Pierre Dupont de Nemours came to join the Royals including the Hapsburgs who were living near Jefferson and other esoteric Merovingians in and around Delaware. He and his family became important armaments manufacturers and it is reasonable to remember what Eisenhower said in his Military-Industrial Complex speech. The Halakah and Neo Cons These leaders like the Rothschilds who backed Crowley's Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn or Hitler's Golden Centurion groups around the world, have members of their De Brix clan who have been adept at esoterics for a very long time. When Cosimo De Medicis paid to have the Corpus Hermeticum translated and put his clan name on the book (De Brix) he was not the first 'dabbler' in these arts from this family. |
home | site map | contact us |