Would be nice if we had some kind of interactive map and ticker website for all of the latest government assaults on civil rights.
Roberts will be getting a call soon from his handlers in the administration.
0bama has a bunch of lefties on the court and Roberts in his pocket, so you may address him as "Your Excellency", peasant!
Well, the case is Bond v. United States, not the other way around. And the law in question is not a treaty, nor was it used to gain compliance from al-Assad.
“America is at that awkward stage. It’s too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards.” - Claire Wolfe.
Don’t forget that the Bush Clan was all for this sort of international agreement.
The repub-e are as progressive as the dims.
The shooting needs to start...
A treaty is not "the supreme Law of the Land" unless it is made "under the Authority of the United States." In other words, the United States must have the explicit Constitutional authority to do what the treaty requires or permits it to do. A lawful treaty certainly may not authorize or require the United States to do what the Constitution forbids.
Otherwise, a treaty would be equivalent to an Amendment to the Constitution--which requires a two thirds vote of the House and the Senate, and ratification by 3/4ths of the State legislatures. It makes no sense for treaties to require far less approval than Constitutional Amendments, if the Framers had intended treaties to have the same authority as the Constitution itself.
Such an interpretation would have the effect of rendering the limitations on the power of the Federal government found in the Constitution essentially meaningless.
As Alexander Hamilton explained: "If a number of political societies enter into a larger political society, the laws which the latter may enact, pursuant to the powers intrusted to it by its constitution, must necessarily be supreme over those societies, and the individuals of whom they are composed. It would otherwise be a mere treaty, dependent on the good faith of the parties, and not a goverment, which is only another word for POLITICAL POWER AND SUPREMACY. But it will not follow from this doctrine that acts of the large society which are NOT PURSUANT to its constitutional powers, but which are invasions of the residuary authorities of the smaller societies, will become the supreme law of the land. These will be merely acts of usurpation, and will deserve to be treated as such. Hence we perceive that the clause which declares the supremacy of the laws of the Union, like the one we have just before considered, only declares a truth, which flows immediately and necessarily from the institution of a federal government. It will not, I presume, have escaped observation, that it EXPRESSLY confines this supremacy to laws made PURSUANT TO THE CONSTITUTION; which I mention merely as an instance of caution in the convention; since that limitation would have been to be understood, though it had not been expressed." ~ Federalist #33
Thomas Jefferson made the same point specifically in reference to treaties: “In giving to the President and Senate a power to make treaties, the Constitution meant only to authorize them to carry into effect, by way of treaty, any powers they might constitutionally exercise.” ~ The writings of Thomas Jefferson: being his autobiography ..., Volume 9, page 181
Jefferson also said: “Surely the President and Senate cannot do by treaty what the whole government is interdicted from doing in any way." ~ A Manual of Parliamentary Practice, p. 110. 1873.
The current law of the land, per the Supreme Court, is that "constitutional rights cannot be eliminated by a treaty." ~ Reid v. Covert
This is why a conservative POTUS must take the humbling initiative to work with a conservative congress to make the office of the POTUS *less* powerful.
It would take a conservative POTUS with a huge amount of intestinal fortitude to do this. The default is the egotistical assumption that “I am superior enough to be able to use the power wisely!”, which is *never* the case.
Ever since George Washington, presidents have been continually trying to amass more power, if gradually. Eventually there was no way they could do this constitutionally, so they had to subvert the constitution. And not a single one of them even tried to surrender unconstitutional power once they had it.
Among the top powers that need to be stripped from the presidency:
1) The Presidential Signing Statement to bills passed by congress, that takes powers from both the legislative and judicial branches, is by far the most unconstitutional act.
2) The Presidential Proclamation was turned from an unimportant ceremonial statement to the means by which presidents have taken vast amounts of state lands that need to be returned.
3) All treaties are treaties. Presidents have taken to modifying treaties and to signing “sub-treaty” agreements without the approval of the senate. This must end. Presidents should be precluded from signing a treaty, even conditionally, until it is approved by the senate.
4) The War Powers Act and the Posse Comitatus Act need to be restored to their full power. The endless number of contingency plans, created by presidents, giving them the authority to seize absolute power in an emergency, must end, and any future plans must be approved by congress, or are invalid.
5) Other bad presidential acts that need changing include, but are not limited to: the creation of “czars”, a lack of parameters to “executive privilege”, contempt of congress by cabinet officers and bureaucrats, recess appointments, LOTS of budgetary matters, etc.
If you like your rights, you will be able to keep your rights. Period.
If you like your sovereignty, you will be able to keep your sovereignty. Period.
No one will take them away. No matter what.
What good is a Constitution and it amendment process if a treaty trumps it..government would be able to bypass a Constitution at will by simple signing treats. .consider. .Obama signs a treaty it a hate crime to be critical of a black leader
Includes discussion of The Bricker amendment:
... proposed by North Carolina 165 years earlier. When other states were demanding a Bill of Rights in the federal constitution, North Carolina demanded an amendment that would say
...nor shall any treaty be valid which is contradictory to the Constitution of the United States.