Bryan Fischer
States' rights would be safe in the hands of a President Perry
By Bryan Fischer
Follow me on Twitter: @BryanJFischer, on Facebook at "Focal Point"
Gov. Rick Perry has been castigated by some conservatives and 10th Amendment aficionados for his public support of federal amendments to protect the sanctity of life and the sanctity of marriage.
They accuse him of abandoning his commitment to federalism, states' rights, and the 10th Amendment and committing unpardonable Tea Party heresy in the process
But to consider amending the federal Constitution as an abandonment of the 10th Amendment and states' rights is absurd.
You can't get any more "states' rights" than amending the Constitution, for one simple reason: only the states can amend the Constitution in the first place.
Unless proponents can get voters in 38 states to agree with them, our supreme legal document remains unchanged.
When the Constitution is amended, this is the exact opposite of the federal government imposing something on the states, but is rather a manifestation of the states expressing their political will. If anything, it's the states imposing something on the federal government. Everybody ought to get pumped up about doing something like that.
We must never forget that the Constitution, indeed the federal government itself, is the creation of the states, not the other way round. The creator — the states — have the right to amend the document they created as they see fit.
It's a challenging process, and there is a very high threshold to reach, as it should be, which is why the Constitution has only been amended 27 times in 224 years. It can't happen without the direct authorization of three-fourth of the states.
So not to fret, constitutionalists. The 10th Amendment and the Constitution would be safe in the hands of a President Perry. He hasn't changed his commitment to federalism in the slightest.
(Unless otherwise noted, the opinions expressed are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Family Association or American Family Radio.)
© Bryan Fischer
August 10, 2011
Follow me on Twitter: @BryanJFischer, on Facebook at "Focal Point"
Gov. Rick Perry has been castigated by some conservatives and 10th Amendment aficionados for his public support of federal amendments to protect the sanctity of life and the sanctity of marriage.
They accuse him of abandoning his commitment to federalism, states' rights, and the 10th Amendment and committing unpardonable Tea Party heresy in the process
But to consider amending the federal Constitution as an abandonment of the 10th Amendment and states' rights is absurd.
You can't get any more "states' rights" than amending the Constitution, for one simple reason: only the states can amend the Constitution in the first place.
Unless proponents can get voters in 38 states to agree with them, our supreme legal document remains unchanged.
When the Constitution is amended, this is the exact opposite of the federal government imposing something on the states, but is rather a manifestation of the states expressing their political will. If anything, it's the states imposing something on the federal government. Everybody ought to get pumped up about doing something like that.
We must never forget that the Constitution, indeed the federal government itself, is the creation of the states, not the other way round. The creator — the states — have the right to amend the document they created as they see fit.
It's a challenging process, and there is a very high threshold to reach, as it should be, which is why the Constitution has only been amended 27 times in 224 years. It can't happen without the direct authorization of three-fourth of the states.
So not to fret, constitutionalists. The 10th Amendment and the Constitution would be safe in the hands of a President Perry. He hasn't changed his commitment to federalism in the slightest.
(Unless otherwise noted, the opinions expressed are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Family Association or American Family Radio.)
© Bryan Fischer
The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)
