Showin’ Little Sovereignty For Show

By Kleinheider Posted on May 5, 2009 at 3:12 pm

From a presser:

The full Senate voted unanimously on Monday to approve a resolution claiming Tennessee’s “sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.” The proposal, SJR 311 sponsored by Senator Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge), is designed to send Congress a message that the federal government has overstepped its Constitutional bounds by mandating a massive amount of federal policies upon the states in violation of the Amendment.

“The language of the Tenth Amendment is clear and concise that the federal government’s powers are limited to a specific set of activities,” said Senator McNally. “The federal government was created by the states specifically to be an agent of the states, not vice-versa. It was such an important point with the founders that they specifically provided for this sovereignty in our Constitution.”

The resolution also points out that Article IV, Section 4 says, “The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government.” In 1992, the United States Supreme Court ruled in New York v. United States, that Congress may not commandeer the legislative and regulatory processes of the states.

“States are demonstrably treated as agents of the federal government,” added McNally. “This means that many federal laws are directly in violation of the Constitution of the United States.”

The resolution concludes by giving “notice and demand to the federal government, as our agent, to cease and desist, effective immediately, mandates that are beyond the scope of these constitutionally delegated powers.” Upon passage, the resolution will be sent to

The President of the United States, Congressional leaders and the Tennessee Congressional delegation.

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Tags: state sovereignty  

Reclaiming The Tenth

By Kleinheider Posted on March 30, 2009 at 7:36 am

State Rep. Susan Lynn explains why she is urging a resolution in the General Assembly reaffirming states’ rghts:

Lynn indicated the resolution is needed because states “are demonstrably treated as agents” of the federal government.

“Many powers and federal mandates are directly in violation of the 10th Amendment to the Constitution; this limits our freedom and costs taxpayers untold billions of dollars — or should I say trillions? … We should also demand that the federal government halt and reverse its practice of assuming powers and of imposing mandates upon the states for purposes not enumerated by the Constitution.”

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Tags: state sovereignty, Susan Lynn