In My Naivety
I just sent the following letter to John Conyers, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee:
Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
2426 Rayburn Building
Washington, DC 20515Congressman Conyers,
I am writing to encourage you to bring H.R. 1359, the Enumerated Powers Act, to a vote as quickly as possible. I realize I do not live in your district and I am not one of your constituents, per se, but in your capacity as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee you are in a position to take actions and make judgments which affect every citizen. As such every citizen is in effect your constituent.
I am one of a growing number of Americans who attribute many of the problems we face in this country today to the fact that all three branches of government have strayed far from the framework devised by the Founding Fathers as enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. I am also among the many who believe the best way to address those problems is to return to constitutional principles.
As you know the Enumerated Powers Act would require each Act of Congress to “contain a concise and definite statement of the constitutional authority relied upon for the enactment of each portion of that Act.” Had such a provision been in place in 2002 it might have hindered the introduction and passage of H.J.R 114, the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002, a bill which you voted against. Since there is no authorization in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution allowing Congress to delegate its war making powers to the President “as he determines to be necessary,” H.J.R 114 might have had a bit more trouble getting through the House of Representatives. The same might be said of S 3930, the Military Commissions Act of 2006, another bill you opposed. Had a specific constitutional authorization to suspend habeas corpus been required, American citizens would still be protected from imprisonment without charge and without legal representation based simply on a determination of the President. I could also mention the USA PATRIOT Act and who knows how many other usurpations enacted into law in flagrant disregard of limited powers delegated to the federal government by the states.
I cite so many examples from the recent past because as you are no doubt aware the Enumerated Powers Act has been introduced in one form or fashion in every session of Congress since the 104th in 1995. If it had been passed then we might have prevented much of degradation of the rule of law that has occurred since. In an ideal world such a law would not be required since every member of Congress would live up to their oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world and members of Congress ignore that oath daily, so such a law is required and I urge you to give passage of the Enumerated Powers Act your highest priority.
Of course I’m still waiting for a response to a letter I sent to another Democratic congressman I sent almost a year ago, so I’m not holding my breath for an answer.
