The ROOSTER HAS LANDED………….again.
BE LIKE PAUL REVERE………SEND THE WORD
OFF WITH THEIR HEADS
(Or; Health care mandate is a Tax??)
Where is the Queen of Hearts when you need her? Oh, to know the “Adventures in Wonderland” as fiction rather than having to live it for real. Chief Justice says that the monster Health Care law survives as a Tax. Come on gang. Look at him. Someone already took off his head. What kind of tax is he talking about? Where is the authority for Congress to impose such a mandatory, across the board, tax on each and every citizen. Upps!! Sorry your not a citizen anymore, you’re a Subject. If the Constitution has any life left, then that life tells us what the taxing power is and is not. The ruling signed by CJ Roberts demonstrates a basic weakness in Constitutional knowledge and understanding. I am shocked. Shocked I tell you, Shocked.
In the beginning, the founders created a Republic, from independent States. The Constitution laid out how this Republic would get its money. Powers were granted to the Federal Government and those not given, were reserved to the States. Then and now the “ole” Document did not grant a general power to directly tax individuals or income. The only way to get a direct or general tax was indirect, that is the Federal Government had to ask the State to tax you to get the State’s apportioned obligation which it then paid the Feds.
“Art. I section 2: …direct taxes shall be apportioned among
the…States.”
Section 2, still means the Feds have no ability to send you, “Josephine Citizen”, a tax bill, except as modified by Amendment.
The request to the States had to come from the House or if started in the Senate had to be approved by the House. See Section 7.
“Section 7. All bills raising Revenue shall originate in the House…”
All Taxes etc, as limited by the above Section 2, have to be set by Congress. Get it? Gall Darn it!!! Please get it. The Federal Government was not given the right to directly tax you. It could directly tax the States but not you. No Sales tax, no VAT tax and even no income tax (until the 16th amendment) came along. Please understand. The Constitution does not and did not give a general power to tax individuals. Section 8 is very specific.
“Section 8. The Congress shall have the power to lay and collect (1) Taxes, (2) Duties, (3) Imposts and (4) Excises…but all (2) Duties, (3)imposts and(4) Excises shall be uniform….” [Numbers added]
Read the plain language above. Notice that the founders did not include “(1) Taxes” in the second part of section 8. “Taxes” would not be uniform, because they were apportioned between the States. The apportionment was unequal because it was based on population and no states had equal population. . Reread section 2 above. “Direct taxes shall be apportioned among the States.” Duties etc had to be uniform because they were imposed on obligations, on transactions, not individuals. 2, 3, & 4 were the only way the Federal Government could directly tax. If you believe (1) Taxes was supposed to be in the second part then each tax would have to be equally applied. Flat tax folks. No exceptions.
Ok, no direct taxes on individuals and that is the way it was until 1913. In that year an amendment was added to the Constitution which, for the first time, allowed the Federal Government to send a tax bill direct to you. This was the 16th Amendment and in its plain language says the following.
Amendment 16: Status of Income Tax Clarified.
“The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census….”
So that is it. Incomes only, not heads, not individuals. Incomes folks. Thru the Looking Glass so to speak. There is no more in the Constitutional language. In other words there are no words which say the Federal Government can Levy a Head Tax, which is what the Health Care Provides. Do you understand?? No words give that power to the Federal Government, so where does it come from? Thin air. An acid air which destroys the whole concept.
The continual push to get the Federal Government to spend more money has always required the ability to get more. Courts, in a multitude of little ways, have allowed water into the boat to accommodate, without regard to the plain language of the one document which gives power to the federal government. And that is exactly what CJ Roberts just did as well. Damn the Constitution Full Tilt Ahead!
He simply said that under the “Taxing power” of the Federal Government the Health Care law could stand. He is blind, dumb, or sucks his thumb. My God folks can’t anybody read anymore? Has everybody caved in on the power of the Constitution? Where am I, in Wonderland? Or am I seeing all this through the Looking glass? Beam me up Scotty, there is no Constitution left down here.
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RoosterBradford is a former lawyer, politician and radio show host of “The Rooster Crows” He is the author of several books and articles. You can obtain his most recent book, “It is S.A.D.” from Amazon-Kindle. His web page, is “The Rooster crows.net. “
Rooster Bradford, gives up all rights to this article and seeks no compensation for its use. July 1, 2012