Legislative Authorities Enumerated Powers The powers granted to the federal government in relation to legislative powers are listed in Article I, Section 8. These authorities are also known as “Express Powers.” Implied Powers is a concept invented by Alexander Hamilton while he served as treasury secretary in 1791. He wrote in a report titled, “Opinion on the Constitutionality of the Bank of the United States” that “there are implied, as well as express powers, in the Constitution, and that the former are as effectually delegated as the latter. Implied powers are to be considered as delegated to the federal government equally with the express ones.” Hamilton, in his report, went on to argue that a nationalized bank was one of these implied powers. Hamilton’s argument stated that his power to create a nationalized bank was implied as “necessary and proper” for the federal government to carry out its enumerated powers, such as borrowing money, regulating currency, and providing for the general welfare of the country. Thomas Jefferson disagreed, arguing that the express powers delegated to the federal government by Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution were expressly stated because they were the only powers granted to the federal government by the sovereign States when they ratified the Constitution. New authorities could only be granted by the amendment process, which includes the requirement of ratification by three-quarters of the States. The Concept of Implied Powers remained, and the statists of history have used Implied Powers to rewrite the Constitution through regulatory actions, and liberal judicial activism. From the emergence of Implied Powers came the theory that the Constitution is a living document that can be modified at will through interpretation and the use of Implied Law. Hamilton’s concept of Implied Powers laid the groundwork for generations of lawyers and judges using the courts, rather than the amendment process, to alter the Constitution, and render the limiting principals powerless. The concept of Implied Powers is one of the concepts that have fed the false idea that the courts “interpret” the Constitution. Alexander Hamilton also argued that there were “resulting powers” as well, which are powers that exist as a result of any action the government takes. These “resulting powers” are de facto constitutional by virtue of the fact that the action by the federal government occurred in the first place. With the use of the concepts of Implied Powers and resulting powers, Hamilton believed the central government had unlimited powers to act as any member of the federal government deemed necessary. By Douglas V Gibbs https://facebook/pages/Constitution-Study/1406898299555635
Posted on: Mon, 07 Apr 2014 22:40:50 +0000
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