CONSTITUTION - Uncategorized - Independence Institute

Yet Another Multi-State Convention Uncovered 0
- March 11, 2015
For many years, opponents of a convention for proposing amendments argued that the law governing such a convention was unknowable because the only precedent for such a gathering was the Constitutional Convention of 1787. This was always an ignorant claim, since even high schoolers learn that Annapolis, Maryland hosted a “convention of states” the previous
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New Study Shows Campaign Disclosure Rules Violate First Amendment 0
- March 3, 2015
This article was first published at the American Thinker website. Many commentators and politicians have attacked the Supreme Court’s 2010 case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission for holding that citizens do not surrender their First Amendment rights when they organize under state corporation law. The Vermont state legislature has even adopted an application
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Chief Justice John Marshall: Not the Big Government Guy You Might Think 0
- February 22, 2015
Chief Justice John Marshall (in office 1801-1835) is often identified with an expansive “big government” interpretation of the Constitution. Fans of big government cite him as an ally; opponents as an enemy. This view of Marshall is a caricature. It is true that Marshall was a Federalist—he occupied a place on the political spectrum of
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What Is Tonnage?0
- February 4, 2015
Article I, Section 10, Clause 3 (I-10-3) of the Constitution forbids states from imposing any “Duty of Tonnage” without the consent of Congress. During the Founding Era, tonnage was a levy imposed on the cargo capacity of ships entering or leaving harbors. As the Constitution’s words indicate, it was a species in a larger class
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What is an “Excise?”0
- January 25, 2015
Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the Constitution reads as follows: The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the Common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United
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Article V Opponents Now Peddling Article 23 Years Out of Date 0
- January 18, 2015
The latest tactic in Article V opponents’ game of “Whac-A-Mole”* is the circulation of an article 23 years out of date. The article was published in 1992 and is entitled A New Constitutional Convention? Critical Look at Questions Answered, and Not Answered, by Article Five of the United States Constitution. It was authored by John
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