Bill Text: MS HC79 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: States' sovereignty; affirm based on constitutional principles.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Failed) 2012-05-03 - Died In Committee [HC79 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2012-HC79-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2012 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Representative Brown (20th)
House Concurrent Resolution 79
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION AFFIRMING THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE STATES BASED ON CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION.
WHEREAS, the State of Mississippi recognizes in Article 3, Section 5 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 that "All political power is vested in, and derived from, the people; all government of right originates with the people, is founded upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole."; and
WHEREAS, the State of Mississippi recognizes in Article 3, Section 6 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 that "The people of this state have the inherent, sole, and exclusive right to regulate the internal government and police thereof, and to alter and abolish their constitution form of government whenever they deem it necessary to their safety and happiness; provided, such change be not repugnant to the Constitution of the United States."; and
WHEREAS, as a part of the Bill of Rights, the Ninth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "[The] enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people," and the Tenth Amendment provides that "[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."; and
WHEREAS, the several states of the United States of America did not provide for unlimited submission to a central government, but constituted a general government under the United States Constitution with definite powers and for certain purposes, reserving for themselves the power of self-government and self-regulation and all other rights and powers not specifically given to the central government; and
WHEREAS, when the central government assumes powers that were not specifically delegated to the central government by the states and the people, its acts are not authoritative and are void and of no force or effect; and
WHEREAS, the central government is not the exclusive or final judge or arbiter of whether it possesses such powers or the extent of such powers, since the measure of such powers is the United States Constitution, which is in essence a contract among the several states, each of which has an equal right to judge for itself violations and infractions thereof; and
WHEREAS, the United States Constitution delegates to Congress the power to punish treason, counterfeiting the securities and the current coin of the United States, piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offenses against the law of nations and no other crimes whatsoever; and
WHEREAS, all acts of Congress that assume to create, define or punish crimes other than those so enumerated in the United States Constitution are not law but are altogether void and of no force or effect; and
WHEREAS, the power to create, define and punish such other crimes is reserved and, of right, appertains solely and exclusively to the individual states, each within its own territory; and
WHEREAS, the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which provides that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and petition the Government for a redress of grievances," delegates to the central government no power over such matters as religion, speech and the press; and
WHEREAS, because the United States Constitution therefore does not delegate to the central government any powers over the freedoms of religion, speech and the press, such powers are reserved to the states or to the people, and the states may determine for themselves the extent to which such freedoms may be exercised without being abused and to which restrictions on such freedoms may be tolerated without destroying such freedoms; and
WHEREAS, all acts of Congress which abridge the freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are not law but are altogether void and of no force or effect; and
WHEREAS, by this resolution, the State of Mississippi conveys its support for the positions already taken by the State of Georgia and the State of New Hampshire in reaffirming the principles under which the United States Constitution was adopted, recognizing the limits on the powers of central government, and standing against any notion that the states have delegated any powers to the central government other than those specifically delegated in the United States Constitution; and
WHEREAS, any act of Congress, Executive Order of the President of the United States or judicial opinion of any federal court that assumes a power not delegated to the government of the United States and that serves to diminish the liberty of any of the several states or their citizens shall constitute a nullification of the United States Constitution by the government of the United States; and
WHEREAS, such acts by Congress, by Executive Order of the President of the United States or by judicial opinion of any federal court that shall act as a nullification of the United States Constitution by the government of the United States include, but are not limited to: establishing martial law or a state of emergency within one (1) of the states without the consent of the legislature of that state; requiring involuntary servitude or governmental service other than pursuant to, or as an alternative to, incarceration after due process of law; surrendering any power, delegated or not delegated, to a corporation or foreign government; any act regarding religion, further limitations on freedom of political speech or on freedom of the press; and further infringements on the right to keep and bear arms, including prohibitions of type or quantity of arms or ammunition:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby affirm the sovereignty of the states based on principles set forth in the United States Constitution, and affirm that if any act of Congress, any Executive Order by the President of the United States or any judicial opinion of any federal court that is contrary to the delegated powers expressly granted to the central government in the United States Constitution is put into force, all powers previously delegated to the United States by the Constitution shall revert to the several states individually, and any future government of the United States shall require ratification by three-quarters of the states seeking to form a government of the United States and shall not be binding upon any state not seeking to form such a government.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the members of this Legislature affirm the sovereignty of the states under the principles upon which the United States Constitution is based and stand with the several states in seeking to ensure that the federal government only exercises those powers and acts in those areas in which it is specifically delegated powers by the Constitution, with the residual mass of powers being within the province of the several states to exercise and act as each state deems appropriate.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the President of the United States, to the Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Secretary of State of the United States, to the presiding officer of each house of the legislature in each state and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.
