[Wonder Warthog]

"As soon as the Constitution was ratified, the states were no longer sovereign. It took a while for it to become obvious, and for all the various supreme court cases interpreting the constitution to pile up, but it was a fait accompli. The Constitution killed state sovereignty."

Still can't agree. State sovereignty is plainly stated in the Bill of Rights. I agree that the Supreme Court didn't help matters, by ignoring the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, but the outcome was far from inevitable. It took an illegal war to accomplish.

[Huck]

State sovereignty is plainly stated in the Bill of Rights. I agree that the Supreme Court didn't help matters, by ignoring the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, but the outcome was far from inevitable.

The 9th amendment has nothing to do with state sovereignty. The 10th amendment is the one in question:

Amendment X

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

The key phrase is "powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution." Who decides what that means? The Supreme Court. The federal beast decides for itself. And as we know, the "general welfare" clause, the implied powers of the necessary and proper clause, the various and ever growing "commerce clause" power give the fedzilla almost unlimited scope. And all that was teed up and in place at ratification.

[Huck]

Try antifederalist 46.

http://www.wepin.com/articles/afp/afp46.html