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“I would not look to the United States Constitution if I were drafting a Constitution in the year 2012”
Amazingly, these words are from United States Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in a New York Times article entitled ‘We the People’ Loses Appeal With People Around the World.
The article goes on to quote a number of “Law Scholars”, Professors, Foreign Judges and our own Supreme Court Justices, all lamenting that our Constitution is out of touch with the modern world.
One may dismiss the above quote coming from Ginsburg, a dedicated Socialist who worked for the A.C.L.U., has advocated the use of foreign law in shaping her opinions and has shown little respect for our Constitution throughout her career.
However, her fellow Justice, the supposedly ultra-conservative and strict constructionist Antonin Scalia is quoted as saying “ The bill of rights of the former evil empire, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, was much better than ours…we guarantee freedom of speech and of the press, big deal. They guaranteed freedom of speech, of the press, of street demonstrations and protest, and anyone who is caught trying to suppress criticism of the government will be called to account. Whoa, that is wonderful stuff!” All I can think of saying is, Holy C&@p!
It is very frightening that these “reputable” scholars and Justices do not understand the meaning and intent of the Constitution they have sworn to honor and uphold. The drafters and ratifiers would be appalled at how the Supreme Court has “interpreted” a document meant to secure the rights of the people, not grant rights.
These scholars seem to forget that thirteen individual and sovereign entities declared independence and fought a long bloody war to secure that independence against a tyrannical central government. These States created and then delegated certain limited and enumerated powers to their own central government in the hopes of securing the blessings of “Life, liberty and property (happiness)” to them and their posterity.
The contentious debates during the State ratifying conventions were replete with concerns that they were delegating too much power to the central government. It was only because a “Bill of Rights” was promised to allay those concerns and …”in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of the (federal governments) power that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added” that the Constitution was even ratified, and only by three votes in New York!
James Madison in Federalist number Forty-Five states: “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government, are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation, and foreign commerce; with which last the power of taxation will, for the most part, be connected. The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the State.”
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Most scholars seem to forget that there were thirteen individual Constitutions already guaranteeing “freedom of press, religion, speech, fair trials, and the right to keep and bear arms” long before the United States Constitution came into being. It was these individual and sovereign states and their constitutions, created by the people that protected their individual rights and liberties, not the United States Constitution or Federal government because neither were yet created!
The United States Constitution was eventually adopted by the people of those States as a means to secure the liberties of the States united. The “scholars” quoted in the article do not seem to understand that the created cannot be greater than the creator. The States created the Federal government and its Constitution to protect their interest, not the rest of the worlds as some may believe. In fact, who cares what they think anyway.
NOTE: The preceding was recorded at the close of Tenther Radio Episode 37 on February 29, 2012. The show airs live online every Wednesday at 5pm Pacific Time here. Find us on iTunes at this link.
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