Congress Is Sticking Its Ding-Dong Where It Doesn’t Belong … AGAIN!

J.J. Jackson* | May 31, 2005

Congress is proposing to do something it does not have the authority to do. It is trying to regulate the private industries of Major League Sports and dictate to these leagues how they WILL test for substance abuse “or else”.

Substance abuse is bad. I don’t like it. And I personally think that it cheapens the performance of athletes in the leagues. But we already have a ton of laws on the books to punish people that use controlled substances be they right, wrong or indifferent. H.R.2565 and S.1114 have been introduced into the House and Senate respectively and are affectionately titled the “Clean Sports Act of 2005″. Aw … how cute and how fuzzy. I guess every usurpation of Constitutional power needs such a cute and inspiring name like this in order to draw support.

What it should really be called is the “Congress Adds More Powers to Itself Not Found In The Constitution Act of 2005″. Of course, 95% of everything that Congress passes into law would fit into that category these days.

Yes, the Bill sounds nice and yes, it is going to get a lot of support because it strives to do something many people want to have done and that is prevent drug use. But there is a problem. And as previously stated, that problem is that it is Unconstitutional.

Article I, Section. 8 of our Constitution grants Congress the following powers:

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;

To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;

To establish Post Offices and post Roads;

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;

To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marquee and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

To provide and maintain a Navy;

To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;–And

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

I know I harp on it A LOT, but “promote the general Welfare” does not mean that government has the right to do anything they want. In fact James Madison who was a principle architect of our Constitution said of the general Welfare clause in Federalist #41 the following:

It has been urged and echoed, that the power “to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts, and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States,” amounts to an unlimited commission to exercise every power which may be alleged to be necessary for the common defense or general welfare. No stronger proof could be given of the distress under which these writers labor for objections, than their stooping to such a misconstruction.

Had no other enumeration or definition of the powers of the Congress been found in the Constitution, than the general expressions just cited, the authors of the objection might have had some color for it; though it would have been difficult to find a reason for so awkward a form of describing an authority to legislate in all possible cases. A power to destroy the freedom of the press, the trial by jury, or even to regulate the course of descents, or the forms of conveyances, must be very singularly expressed by the terms “to raise money for the general welfare.”

But what color can the objection have, when a specification of the objects alluded to by these general terms immediately follows, and is not even separated by a longer pause than a semicolon? If the different parts of the same instrument ought to be so expounded, as to give meaning to every part which will bear it, shall one part of the same sentence be excluded altogether from a share in the meaning; and shall the more doubtful and indefinite terms be retained in their full extent, and the clear and precise expressions be denied any signification whatsoever? For what purpose could the enumeration of particular powers be inserted, if these and all others were meant to be included in the preceding general power? Nothing is more natural nor common than first to use a general phrase, and then to explain and qualify it by a recital of particulars. But the idea of an enumeration of particulars which neither explain nor qualify the general meaning, and can have no other effect than to confound and mislead, is an absurdity, which, as we are reduced to the dilemma of charging either on the authors of the objection or on the authors of the Constitution, we must take the liberty of supposing, had not its origin with the latter.

See that? Madison himself said that the powers of Congress included in what is meant by “general Welfare” immediately came after this statement.

So what were they again?

1) To borrow Money on the credit of the United States; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

2) To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

3) To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

4) To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

5) To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

6) To establish Post Offices and post Roads; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

7) To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

9) To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

10) To declare War, grant Letters of Marquee and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

11) To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

12) To provide and maintain a Navy; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

13) To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

14) To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

15) To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

16) To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings; Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

17) –And To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof. Nope, nothing in there about regulating drugs or telling a business how to test for drugs.

So why does Congress think for one second that they could get away with this unconstitutional act? The answer is because for the most part the people of this country are ignorant as to what the Constitution says and what those words mean. And they are ignorant because the government run schools keep them that way … and they like it that way. Anyone truly remember leaning about Federalist #41 in school when they were teaching you about the Constitution and what the Founders gave us? I didn’t think so.

And it isn’t going to change any time soon because the status quo of ignorant Americans means those in Congress can keep doing unconstitutional things and it means they can get more power for themselves.

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