Now that would be a fun thread...which Amendment has damaged America more? 17th or 19th? As for me? 19th.
Article XX Section 2:
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.
Should state: The Congress shall assemble once a year for 2 - 3 days max.
Any longer and they screw everything up.
The 17th created the problem of the 19th. Root causes man. Think about it. Why are there welfare moms wanting Gov bennies. 17th.
My tag line speaks my feelings. Article The First would go a long way to fixing our problem with representation. A lot of terrible ideas were born out of the 1930s.
Broaden the discussion to all 4 amendments ratified in the Progressive Era: 16 (1913), 17 (1916), 18 (1919), 19 (1920).
Of course, the 19th was repealed in 1933 by the 21st Amendment so maybe it should be excluded. I’d contend the adverse results of the 19th are exactly the reason to have it in the discussion. IMO, all of these amendments having as a source the Progressive movement interlocks them to the point where trying to consider them in isolation is nearly impossible. Say what you will about their goals or methods, the Progressive movement had a single-minded vision and worked to achieve it. Compare to the ability of today’s Republicans to get anything done...
The 19th, without a doubt!
Get rid of the 19th and the anchor baby law and the liberals would never win another election.
And ignoring the 10th has done a great deal of harm as well.
The “Progressive Era” amendments (16-19) were all very damaging . 18 was repealed; the other three should be as well.
My wife is the one who convinced me that the 19th was at least as bad as the 17th. I had not really believed the 19th was okay but had been uncomfortable with the thought of dissing the ladies. Now I have heard from several women saying what wife said and a female cousin who is very “progressive” saying how wonderful the 19th is because it is responsible for the advance of Progressivism. Women are biologically predisposed to prefer security and protection for themselves and their children and in the aggregate will vote that way. Freedom and independence are relatively not so important. As marriage declines in frequency and in permanence that predisposition is reflected in the vote more and more. Women increasingly vote for a husband substitute and for someone to make everyone “be nice.”
The 14th.
Not in and of itself, mind you, but due the made up jurisprudential doctrine of incorporation
.
How's that?
Well, consider the commonly held belief that the government [federal, state, county, municipal] cannot regulate (e.g.) speech due to the first amendment — this is the result of incorporation — but when you look at the actual text of the first amendment its first word is Congress
and thereby names exactly who or what it applies to. Since states/counties/municipalities don't have a congress applying the first amendment as written to them would do nothing, therefore the amendment is altered to suit the situation in order to apply against the applicable government entity… but this requires a de facto amendment altering the first amendment.
— that is how the judiciary usurped the power to alter the Constitution, and it is from that that the majority of the damage the Judiciary has done stems.
As blogger Instapundit says,”Embrace the healing power of ‘and’.”