by Mike Maharrey | Sep 10, 2018 | Constitution, General Welfare Clause, Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson rejected the “anything and everything” view of the general welfare clause that so many hold today. Conventional wisdom holds that the Constitution’s “general welfare” clause authorizes the federal government to do... 
by Mike Maharrey | Jul 18, 2018 | Constitution, General Welfare Clause, James Madison
The “general welfare” clause serves as a go-to for people who want the federal government to come in and solve various societal problems. The clause has served as the justification for federal welfare programs, government healthcare, federal meddling in... 
by Mike Maharrey | Jun 5, 2017 | Founding Principles, General Welfare Clause
The words “provide for the common defense and general welfare” rank among the most abused phrases in the Constitution. I often refer to this as the “anything and everything clause.” Partisans on both the political left and right use... 
by Mike Maharrey | May 5, 2017 | Constitution, Constitution 101, Eleven Years, General Welfare Clause
Many people use the general welfare clause as their “the federal government can do anything and everything clause.” Others have turned the phrase “provide for the common defense” into a similar justification for federal overreach. Progressives tend to invoke the... 
by Rob Natelson | Jan 26, 2015 | Constitution 101, General Welfare Clause
Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the Constitution reads as follows: The Congress shall have Power [1] To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the Common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties,... 
by Tenth Amendment | Dec 28, 2014 | Commerce Clause, Constitution 101, General Welfare Clause, Historical Documents, Thomas Jefferson
Barely 8 months before he died, Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Virginia politician William Giles about the threat posed by the usurpation of states rights by a growing federal power. He identified federal powers claimed under the commerce and general welfare clauses as...