Federalist Papers 2009
Healthcare in America-Socialism through Legislation

Paper 2: Constitutionality

The healthcare bill that has now passed the House of Representatives,(H.R. 3982) violates no less than three Amendments to the U.S. Constitution; the 5^th, 9^th, and 10^th amendments are being
neglected by our congress in the name of progressive politics. These violations of our constitution should not be tolerated; Neither by our elected politicians, or by the citizenry of our Country.

The fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that: No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

The healthcare bill violates the last sentence of the 5^th Amendment, because, according to the bill, anyone who fails to purchase insurance will be fined, and or imprisoned. The money taken by the government is being taken without just compensation. From the moment you enter this world as an American citizen, you are required by law to pay the government for your existence. This is the first time in the history of the United States that a fee will be imposed upon the taxpayers, without a choice, and without being compensated. People, at whatever age, who have chosen not to get health insurance, because they are generally healthy, and it is financially beneficial not to have insurance, will no longer have that choice. Your money is your private property, and the government cannot take it without just compensation.

The 9^th Amendment states: The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

The 9^th Amendment protects all of the rights of the citizens that are not specifically written in the Constitution. The framers drafted the Constitution with the presumption that We the People, have all of the rights, and only put in the constitution, the limits to these rights. The rights protected are referred to as “unenumerated” rights, and include those inferred by other legal rights, as well as natural, fundamental, and background ones. The Ninth Amendment combines with the tenth to protect the rights and situations not provided for in the previous eight amendments.

The 10^th Amendment states: 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 10^th Amendment is the most direct, and most violated, of all of the constitutional amendments. Congress has been violating this amendment ever since the 1942 Wickard vs. Filburn case, when the Roosevelt Court Ruled that a farmer growing wheat on his own farm, for his own cunsumption, was violating government production limits, even though his wheat was never sold.

The court reasoned that by not selling his wheat, the farmer was effecting interstate commerce. This one case set the precedent for government intervention into every aspect of our lives. From Social Security to education, the federal government has interfered into areas, that our framers never intended. All of these programs, can, and should, be run by the states.

Our Congress is pushing through a Healthcare insurance reform plan that is unconstitutional on many levels. When, are We, the People, going to finally take a stand against a federal government that has run amuck. It is our duty as Americans, to be the protector of the Constitution, and ensure it’s survival, for the generations that come after us.