By Matthew Hayward   The Second Bill of Rights , proposed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during his State of the Union address in 1944, aimed to provide a series of economic rights to all Americans. By proposing constitutional amendments to enact these rights, it was implicitly acknowledged that the power to implement these policies did not exist within the current constitutional framework. This blog will discuss the progress made towards adopting and implementing the Second Bill of Rights proposals without any constitutional amendments and highlight the dangers of ignoring the constitutional amendment process. We will conclude with a reminder of George Washington's warning on the importance of the constitutional amendment process. The Second Bill of Rights and Ignoring the Constitutional Amendment Process Roosevelt's Second Bill of Rights proposed a series of social and economic guarantees, such as the right to employment, education, housing, and healthcare. However, inste...

The 18th and 21st Amendments are Fantastic! They give us a clear guide to the powers and lack of powers of government. Of course, the enumerated powers  found in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution is another good place to look. But this is more of a  kinesthetic  approach.  The 18th Amendment was passed to create alcohol prohibition, a power not clearly granted to the government prior. The 21st repealed the 18th. Think about modern-day federal powers; where did they get all that power? President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed a second Bill of Rights in 1944. While I disagree with what he proposed, it is invaluable to recognize that by making such a proposal, it was the clear government did not currently possess the power to implement said proposals. Things like: * "The right to earn enough to provide adequate food, clothing, and recreation;." * "The right of every family to a decent home;." * "The right to adequate medical care and the ...

By Matthew Hayward Agreeing with the following video during the Bush administration would have made me a left-wing nut job. Now I am just an American that believes in the rule of law.  This Fourth of July, I celebrate being an American who believes freedom is based on government limits. Liberal or Conservative, I don't care what you call me; I just want to live in a society and country where I can have faith in my elected officials and have a functional process to remove them when they have lost the people's trust. Sadly this is not that Country.  America is so far from being a true Democratic Republic that it is disgusting. We live in the illusion of a free society where markets are manipulated, interest rates set, and competition legislated away. We live in a time where if given a choice, more than 50% of adults in the US would vote to throw out all elected officials if given the option to do so.   Unforchantly not everyone is allowed to vote, and those who...