Constitution

Supreme Court’s Word Game Saves Obamacare

by Sheldon Richman July 2, 2012

The Supreme Court decision upholding the health-insurance mandate in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) has an Alice-in-Wonderland feel to it. As Lewis Carroll wrote in Through the Looking Glass, “When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.” Chief Justice ...

The Constitution versus the Executive-Branch Departments

by Laurence M. Vance June 12, 2012

The U.S. federal government contains a myriad of agencies, bureaus, corporations, commissions, administrations, authorities, and boards organized under 15 cabinet-level, executive-branch departments headed by a secretary (or, in the case of the Justice Department, an attorney general). Although Republicans created the latest, most bloated, and most hated department (Homeland Security), they sometimes talk about eliminating or consolidating various other ...

Does the First Amendment Protect the Freedom of Association?

by Laurence M. Vance May 9, 2012

The Augusta National Golf Club — where the Masters golf tournament has been played since 1933 — is in the news again, and not because Tiger Woods failed to earn a fifth green jacket. The exclusive club has come under fire again because of its male-only membership policy. And although the club has traditionally extended membership to the ...

Supremacy of the Tenth

by Rich Schwartzman April 19, 2012

There’s been a small debate going on in the Pennsylvania legislature, one that should be larger, louder, and receiving much more publicity. It’s a debate between proponents of the Tenth Amendment and advocates of the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution. At issue is a proposed amendment to resolution H.R. 49. The resolution claims that the state has sovereignty under the ...

The First Amendment Needs a Rape Kit

by Wendy McElroy March 13, 2012

The newest attack of vague language is aimed at your 1st Amendment rights of Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Assembly and Freedom to Petition. It is found in the pending legislation of H.R. 347.… As currently worded, it might as well have been called the “Federal We’re Too Important To Be Annoyed By Your Protest Act ...

The War on Terrorism, the Constitution, and Civil Liberties (video)

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 20, 2012

On February 18, 2012, the Future of Freedom Foundation sponsored a panel entitled "The War on Terrorism, the Constitution, and Civil Liberties" at the 5th annual International Students for Liberty Conference. The panel included Bruce Fein and FFF president Jacob G. Hornberger and was moderated by Jack Hunter.

FFF/YAL Civil Liberties College Tour: War on Terrorism, Civil Liberties, and the Constitution (videos)

by Jacob G. Hornberger February 17, 2012

In the second week of February 2012, the Future of Freedom Foundation and Young Americans for Liberty cosponsored a panel entitled "The War on Terrorism, the Constitution, and Civil Liberties" that included Bruce Fein, Glenn Greenwald, and FFF president Jacob G. Hornberger. The panel visited Columbia University in New York, Indiana University/Purdue University in Indianapolis, Middle Tennessee State University ...

In Defense of Censorship

by Laurence M. Vance February 15, 2012

I was intrigued by the headline I saw in an evangelical magazine: “Google, iTunes, Facebook All Censor Christian Views.” The article turned out to be about the recent release at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., of a report by the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) on censorship by “new media” communications platforms. The report is called True Liberty in a ...

The Catholic Bishops and the Morality of Government Mandates

by Tim Kelly February 13, 2012

The Catholic bishops are absolutely correct in their criticism of the Obama administration’s decision to require all employers, including all religious institutions, to provide health insurance that makes contraceptives, sterilizations, and abortion-inducing drugs available to their employees. The mandate is both unconstitutional and morally objectionable. The Obama administration appears to be making the political calculation that the controversy will subside ...

A Bill of Guarantees

by Rich Schwartzman December 16, 2011

The best document ever written to preserve the liberty of a free people isn't a complete document at all, but just a part of one. Its the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Those ten paragraphs capture the essence of what it means to govern a government. Are they perfect? No, but how much in ...

Statist Baggage on the Airlines

by Laurence M. Vance December 7, 2011

First it was the TSA; now its the airlines. In addition to getting their bodies squeezed by the TSA, airline passengers are now getting their wallets squeezed by the airlines as well. Some airlines have begun charging $5 for printing out your boarding pass at the airport. Even if you print from a self-service kiosk, you'll still pay a $1 printing ...

President Obama on the Role of Government

by Laurence M. Vance August 1, 2011

In his speech last week from the East Room of the White House to the American people on deficit reduction and debt-ceiling negotiations, President Obama inadvertently presented us with his view of the role of government: We all want a government that lives within its means, but there are still things we need to pay for as a ...