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How Did Government Get So Big?
Most American politicians spend their time raising money and working on laws that enrich various constituencies. This helps them raise more money. Even though they deny it and may believe their own lies, their sole purpose is to figure out how to relieve you and I of our money and to give it those who keep them in power. This mentality became more pronounced over the last 70 years as result of three events in American politics. All three occurred between 1936 and 1942.
- Expansion of federal income tax withholding to all income earners
- 1936 Supreme Court interpretation of the Constitution's General Welfare Clause
- 1942 Supreme Court interpretation of the Constitution's Commerce Clause
Even though these events triggered explosive government growth, there were other events such as the Civil War and the creation of the Federal Reserve Bank that laid the foundation for these events. These three events sealed the Republic's fate, and I suspect were an "over correction" to the misery caused by the Great Depression. This is similar to the over correction that can occur when a driver runs off the road then fishtails back onto the highway almost losing control of his vehicle. Even though the Great Depression was the result of bad economic policy and government intervention, the misery of the 1930's made politicians eager to "grab the steering wheel." They were desperate to manhandle the economy back onto the road to prosperity and were unaware of the long-term harm they were bestowing upon us. The political and economic blunders of the 1930's and 1940's are classic examples of how government intervention does more harm than good.
Tax Withholding
There was no such thing as a federal income tax until the 16th amendment to the Constitution was passed in 1913. From 1913 until World War II, federal income tax only applied to the wealthiest 5% of our population. Instead of fixing this injustice, President Roosevelt extended it to all citizens. The tax withholding laws should be repealed immediately. This will allow Americans to "feel" the tax bite every month.
In 1980, the lowest half of income earners only paid 8% of the total income taxes collected. Today they pay 4% and the percentage gets lower each year. We are close to having a minority of our citizens providing 100% of the federal income taxes collected. Once the majority pays zero income tax and receives government benefits free of charge, it is common sense that they will continue voting for bigger government and more freebies. The aging baby boomers will have no incentive to vote for less government. This group of aging Americans combined with the growing number of unionized government employees and young single parents will expect more government support from a shrinking tax paying minority. If this trend continues, productive people will take their property and talents somewhere else. They will work to find a productive and secure location to live. Overcoming barriers is the history of mankind. This is true when the barriers are mountains, deserts, and oceans. It is also true when the barriers are artificial government regulations.
The Constitution's General Welfare and Commerce Clauses
Most of the laws enacted in the U.S. today use the FDR era interpretations of these two clauses as their authority. Ask your congressman or senator to provide the constitutional authority for their various congressional votes. If they respond, they will most likely stand on a bastardized interpretation of the General Welfare or Commerce clauses in Article I section 8. It does not matter which party they're in.
General Welfare Clause
The Constitution's "general welfare" clause in Article I section 8 was meant to serve as a brake on Congressional power. The Constitution gave Congress the authority to levy taxes so they could execute the limited powers listed in section 8. These powers could only be exercised for the "general welfare" of all states. Congressional spending could not be used to favor one state or commercial interest over another. To empower Congress with "general welfare" authority, the authors could have skipped the list, and instead given them global or general authority. Having constitutional power over any and everything would have made the list of powers superfluous.
Commerce Clause
The Constitution's "Commerce" clause also comes from Article I section 8. It gives Congress the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the states. Prior to America's independence, many states had erected protectionist laws that created barriers to free trade. This clause was supposed to shield against excessive economic state power. It was one of the main checks and balances put into the Constitution. Congress is the part of federal government that is supposed to keep states from overreaching their authority and inadvertently harming other states. No state is supposed to be able to create laws that disadvantage people or commerce in another state. Congress incorrectly uses this clause to regulate anything that can be sold, purchased, or manufactured; based on the premise it will eventually be "touched" by interstate commerce.
What Did Our Founders Believe About Federal Power?
Our Founding Fathers did not create the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution in a vacuum or with ease. They debated, argued, swore, bullied, sweated, swore and be-damned, then debated and argued some more. Their passion for freedom was real. It was tested with very real threats of violence, poverty, and death.
After the Constitution was submitted to the states for ratification in 1787 a series of essays, known as the Federalist Papers, were published throughout Colonial America in support of ratification. The principle supporters of a strong central government, and authors of the Federalist Papers, were James Madison and Alexander Hamilton.
Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, and Thomas Jefferson were considered anti-federalist, advocating that the Constitution, as written, was confusing in the areas of "general welfare" and "commerce" regulation. They thought these phrases might imply more federal power than was intended. To help settle the debate, both groups agreed to immediately add some amendments to the Constitution that would clarify the issues in dispute. These first amendments were to be a list of "Thou shall not" federal rules meant to clarify federal limitations.
The congressional delegates initially submitted over 190 possible amendments. Duplicates were thrown out and they ended up with 12 amendments that were submitted to the states for ratification in 1789. Ten were ratified and became the Bill of Rights. They were a direct result of state fear related to the very misinterpretations you are now reading about. The states had just ratified the Constitution and wanted additional protection from federal power. They wanted a clear understanding about the rights of the people and the limitations on federal government. The Ninth Amendment says that the rights of the people, in these first 10 amendments, were not limited to rights not yet specified. The Tenth Amendment says that the federal powers not specifically listed in the Constitution are left to the states and the people. The power of federal government was supposed to be limited to the list in Article I section 8. Those powers were, and remain today, the power to:
- Borrow money on the credit of the United States;
- Regulate commerce with foreign nations, between the states, and with Indian tribes;
- Establish uniform rules and law concerning naturalization and bankruptcies;
- Coin money and fix the standards for weights and measures;
- Provide for the punishment of counterfeiting;
- Establish post offices and post roads;
- Regulate copy right law;
- Constitute courts inferior to the Supreme Court:
- Define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas;
- Declare war;
- Raise and support Armies with funding limited to 2 years;
- Provide and maintain a navy;
- Make rules that govern the army and navy;
- Provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions;
- Provide for the organization, arming, and disciplining of the militia;
- Govern the District of Columbia;
- Make all laws, which are necessary to execute the forgoing powers.
The people were to have unlimited rights, as long as they did not infringe on somebody else; and federal government was to have limited power to regulate those rights. Where is the power that checks federal government today? The ballot box is all we have to contain the monster. Our Founders knew that democratic elections alone were a recipe for failure. That's why they created a representative republic. Based on the current size and uncontrolled appetite of federal government, it is easy to see that the fears expressed by the anti-Federalist were right on target.
I cannot imagine the state of tyranny we would be in today had the anti-federalists not demanded the safeguards constructed in the Bill of Rights. Without the Bill of Rights, the federal assault on individual liberty and freedom that we see raging out of control today would have occurred much sooner in U.S. history.
Despite their disagreement, both Federalists and anti-Federalists believed that Congress should be limited to the powers specifically listed above. There are many examples that support the Founding Fathers view that Congress is limited to these powers alone. Here are several such examples. The first 3 are from James Madison, who authored the Constitution and was its strongest supporter. The second 3 are from Thomas Jefferson. His second quote poignantly predicts the 1936 and 1942 Supreme Court decisions that unleashed the federal beast.
James Madison 1788 - "The powers of the federal government are enumerated; it can only operate in certain cases; it has legislative powers on defined and limited objects, beyond which it cannot extend its jurisdiction." 1
James Madison 1792 - "If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the General Welfare, the Government is no longer a limited one, possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one, subject to particular exceptions." 2
James Madison 1831 - "With respect to the words 'general welfare', I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by it creators." 3
Thomas Jefferson 1791 - "They are not to do anything they please to provide for the general welfare, but only to lay taxes for that purpose. To consider… {Otherwise}, would render all the preceding and subsequent enumerations of power completely useless. It would reduce the whole instrument to a single phrase, that of instituting a Congress with power do to whatever would be for the good of the United States; and, as they would be the sole judges of the good or evil, it would be also a power to do whatever evil they please…Certainly no such universal power was meant to be given them. It was intended to lace them up straitly within the enumerated powers and those without which, as means, these powers could not be carried into effect." 4
Thomas Jefferson 1815 - "I hope our courts will never countenance the sweeping pretensions which have been set up under the words 'general defence and public welfare.' These words only express the motives which induced the Convention to give to the ordinary legislature certain specified powers which they enumerate, and which they thought might be trusted to the ordinary legislature, and not to give them the unspecified also; or why any specifications? They could not be so awkward in language as to mean, as we say, 'all and some.' And should this construction prevail, all limits to the federal government are done away." 5
It looks as if Jefferson's foreboding hit the nail on the head. Our economic freedom and liberties were ambushed and hog-tied in 1936 and 1942.
Thomas Jefferson 1817 - "Our tenet ever was…that Congress had not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but were restrained to those specifically enumerated, and that, as it was never meant that they should provide for that welfare but by the exercise of the enumerated powers, so it could not have been meant they should raise money for purposes which the enumeration did not place under their action; consequently, that the specification of powers is a limitation of the purposes for which they may raise money." 6
To paraphrase the last Jefferson quote"
"Congress can only raise and use taxes in the execution of those powers listed in Article I section 8. We never intended for Congress to have unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare. Congress is restricted to those powers specifically listed."
Common sense says it's not logical for the Founding Fathers to have listed specific powers had they intended Congress to have unlimited authority.
These interpretations changed when President Franklin D. Roosevelt bullied the Supreme Court into siding with the view of omnipotent federal power. I respectfully submit that the FDR era interpretations, coupled to tax withholding, allowed our government to transition into the monstrosity we have today. Everything became a democratic set of elections with the majority always getting what it wants.
If Congress is a guardian angel in charge of our general welfare and all commerce, what is left for us to decide? Where is the boundary of congressional limitation? How can Congress possibly know which decisions are best for my family and me? If Congress is responsible for everything, where does my responsibility lie?
The perverted interpretations of the welfare and commerce clauses, combined with permanent tax withholding--all from the FDR era--have turned our free republic with check and balances, into a parliamentary democracy. Those with the votes get what they want. These interpretations allow Congress to create laws that plunder and interfere with free market principles. The expansion of tax withholding made sure that Congress had a direct pipe into our bank accounts. Instead of using constitutional power to protect us equally from bad state laws, they've turned the Constitution into a hi-powered vacuum to take property from anybody they choose. Our property is then given to whoever squeaks the loudest or supports their expedient power.
There is no denying the relationship between these 3 events in American history and the rapid unbridled growth of government. Incumbent lawmakers retain their power by pandering to various constituencies. It's very simple. The incumbents stay in power by giving away money. How else can you explain $65 BILLION a year in corporate welfare? How else can you explain public assistance for each and every citizen? Go into a room full of randomly selected people and find-ANY-adults that do not receive some sort of subsidy, benefit, tax credit, tax deduction, or special exclusion or grant. Make sure you count home interest deductions, social security, childcare credits, and public schools.
Our future actions and the future actions of government are unknown. We can decide between government sponsored security or defense of our God given rights. Do we want all power and property to belong to the state, or do we want to live free?
Have you ever known criminals to voluntarily stop their theft? I submit that this is rare indeed. What do our political leaders expect us to do? Do they think we will continue to lay down our rights and turn over our property without complaint? Do they think we will continue to succumb to their growing and blatant injustice? I think this likelihood is also a fairy tale. Common sense tells us that injustice will eventually be challenged.
1 - Elliot's Debates, Speech in the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 6, 1788; Library of Congress
2 - Madison, James, 1865. Letters and Other Writings of James Madison, (Published by order of Congress, Philip R. Fendall editor), volume I p. 546
3 - Madison, James, 1865. Letters and Other Writings of James Madison, (Published by order of Congress, Philip R. Fendall editor), volume IV pp. 171-172
4 - Jefferson, Thomas, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson Memorial Edition, (Lipscomb and Bergh editors) volume III, p.148
5 - Jefferson, Thomas, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson Memorial Edition, (Lipscomb and Bergh editors) volume XIV, p. 350
6 - Jefferson, Thomas, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson Memorial Edition, (Lipscomb and Bergh editors) volume XV, p. 133
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