One of my favorite amendments to the Constitution is having a good year, and now I’ve finally become aware that it has its own advocacy group.
In 2009, seven states passed sovereignty resolutions under the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Two states passed laws nullifying some federal firearms laws and regulations. States with Medical Marijuana laws in direct opposition to federal laws reached thirteen. In 2010, some expect the ante to be raised significantly.
“Already, over a dozen states are considering laws or state constitutional amendments that would effectively ban, or nullify, any proposed national health care plan in their state, and we expect that number to reach at least twenty in 2010,” said Michael Boldin, founder of the Tenth Amendment Center. “In conjunction with 20+ states that have already said “No” to the Bush-era Real ID act, another dozen or more considering state laws to nullify federal gun laws, and the steady growth of states refusing to comply with federal marijuana laws, some might consider what we see today to be an unprecedented state-level rebellion to the federal government.”
The principle behind such legislation is nullification, which has a long history in the American tradition. When a state nullifies a federal law, it is proclaiming that the law in question is void and inoperative, or non-effective, within the boundaries of that state; or, in other words, not a law as far as the state is concerned.
“Nullification has been used to stand up for free speech, resist the fugitive slave laws, reduce tariffs and more. It’s a peaceful and effective way to resist the federal government, and might be our only hope for moving towards the constitution. Legislators drawing this kind of line in the stand should be commended,” said Boldin.
Grassroots activists around the country are looking to the Tenth Amendment and nullification to bolster their efforts too. Tenth Amendment rallies are planned in at least 10 states before the end of January, including Virginia, Washington, Alabama and Texas. “These aren’t tea party protests, or tax protests, or any of the other topics that were popular last year,” said Boldin. “These are rallies solely in support of the 10th Amendment, State Sovereignty or Nullification – something that indicates a major shift from the grassroots, and shows potential for the growth of a popular mass movement in support of the Tenth.”
A recent article in the New York Times included “Tenther” as a top buzzword for 2009. In response, Boldin said, “With people looking to resist D.C. through state laws on everything from national health care to medical marijuana, the 10th Amendment appears ready to be front and center in the national debate once again this year.”
Personally, I don’t see why there’s a national debate on the Tenth Amendment because it’s not debatable, the amendment exists. Just as a reminder, the Tenth Amendment reads:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited to it by the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
This was inserted by the Founding Fathers in order to limit the power of the federal government. While tyranny at the time was embodied by the British Crown, the tyranny of our time comes in the form of an overreaching government, and states are reacting to the usurpation of their local powers by faceless bureaucrats and overly zealous members of Congress in Washington.
A longtime complaint of mine has been those situations where Congress passes laws to withhold funding from states unless they adopt laws in line with the vision Washington has. Nanny state laws (like seat belt laws, motorcycle helmet restrictions, and blood alcohol levels) tend to come from these ideas at the federal level and put the state in such a position where they have little choice to adopt the law and keep the federal funding spigot open. As the states fall more and more into this trap, Congress exerts more and more power over their affairs – and by extension ours.
Yet while “Tenthers” are thought of as strictly conservative, items associated with the liberal side of the spectrum such as medical marijuana (along with possibly euthanasia and gay marriage) could also be beneficiaries of “nullification.” Truly, this isn’t a partisan issue but one of state’s rights, and with all the other claims for “rights” being bandied about these are cases where those seeking their rights have a legal leg to stand on.
