The University of Idaho Argonaut

When a child disobeys his parents, he is punished. When a person vandalizes private property — even if he or she truly believes doing so would benefit the people — it is still illegal. When members of Congress break the rules, we all must change our lives to conform to their wishes.

Let’s back up to some basics. In 1789 the states created the federal government. The states gave certain powers to the federal government, but kept some powers for themselves. These instructions are the Constitution. Without it, Congress has no power, and the states have the power to change those instructions if they deem necessary.

Imagine my anger when I heard that as part of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s new health care bill, Congress is trying to force all American’s to buy health insurance. Whether it’s from the infamous “public option” or from an “approved” company, most Americans would be required to buy it. This is illegal. The Constitution does not give the federal government any control over health care, and the Tenth Amendment — which is a part of the same Bill of Rights that protects our speech and right to fair trial — specifically says that unless Congress is granted a power, the states retain it.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time the Federal government has stolen rights from the states. In 1798 Congress passed a law making it illegal to print anything malicious about the government. In 2001 Congress passed the Patriot Act. It limited certain rights for those accused of terrorism. Both of these laws were unconstitutional. Both times, members of Congress blatantly disobeyed the directions given to them by the states, and now they are trying to do it again.

Some could say the Constitution doesn’t matter any more. The world has changed since the founding fathers. Who cares? The founding fathers are gone. Their accomplishments were amazing, but they also believed governments derive “their just powers from the consent of the governed.” We, as the people, can make any change to the Constitution we want.

But until we do, our federal government still finds its only source of power in the Constitution. Every time we vote, or participate in government, we re-ratify this form of government. It doesn’t matter that the founding fathers wrote the Constitution, it matters that we continue to agree to live under it, and until we change those instructions, our government must listen to the people.

Let’s stop picking and choosing which rules we are going to follow, or the vandals can keep making grammatical errors with spray paint.

The vandalism on this billboard in downtown Moscow is an example of an indvidual picking and choosing which laws to follow. When Congress does it, it’s considered legal. ­Jeffrey - Argonaut

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