It amazes me that Ben Carson, who is identified as a “conservative” and indicates he embraces our Constitution said he thinks “. . . the Department of Education should monitor institutions of higher education for political bias and withhold federal funding if it exists…”
Under Carson’s thinking, the fox ought to be in charge of the henhouse. But those who support our Constitution and its list of particulars for which Congress is authorized to tax and spend federal revenue know very well that Congress is not authorized to tax for and finance public school systems adopted by the States.
Let us look at the facts.
Prior to the adoption of our existing Constitution, the People of Maryland delegated the power for a state funded and regulated educational system to their state elected officials, and not to a national governing power --- the wording being as follows:
“The General Assembly, at its First Session after the adoption of this Constitution, shall by Law establish throughout the State a thorough and efficient System of Free Public Schools; and shall provide by taxation, or otherwise, for their maintenance.”
The Maryland Constitutional also states, in emphatic terms:
“the People of this State have the sole and exclusive right of regulating the internal government and police thereof, as a free, sovereign and independent State.”
In fact, under Art. 3 of Maryland’s Constitution, the command is for local regulation and funding of education as opposed to a federally funded and regulated public school system!
The Maryland Constitution also states:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution thereof, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people thereof.”
This very provision of Maryland’s Declaration of Rights is also agreed to by the People of the United States by their ratification of the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States!
Now, with respect to our federal Constitution and its delegated powers, we find Delegate Charles Pickney, on August 18th of the federal Convention which framed our constitution proposed a broad power "To establish seminaries for the promotion of literature and the arts and sciences". But this proposal was rejected by the Convention in favor of a limited grant of power expressed in Article 1, Section 8, Cl.8, of the proposed constitution. The limited power, later agreed upon by ratification of our Constitution authorizes Congress "[t]o promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” And what is authorized to accomplish this? by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
The fact is, the federal Department of Education and its current functions are in defiance of the defined and limited powers granted to Congress. And every time a member of Congress votes to fund this agency they are committing a fraud upon the people of the United States and are usurping a power not granted!
So, why do members of Congress and those running to be President want to fund this rouge agency? Mr. Carson has told us why. He wants our federal government to be in a position to blackmail the States into following its sense of “political bias” and to hell with our Constitution and its defined and limited powers.
JWK
As nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression. In both instances there is a twilight where everything remains seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all must be aware of change in the air - however slight - lest we become unwitting victims of darkness.___Supreme Court Justice William Douglas
Under Carson’s thinking, the fox ought to be in charge of the henhouse. But those who support our Constitution and its list of particulars for which Congress is authorized to tax and spend federal revenue know very well that Congress is not authorized to tax for and finance public school systems adopted by the States.
Let us look at the facts.
Prior to the adoption of our existing Constitution, the People of Maryland delegated the power for a state funded and regulated educational system to their state elected officials, and not to a national governing power --- the wording being as follows:
“The General Assembly, at its First Session after the adoption of this Constitution, shall by Law establish throughout the State a thorough and efficient System of Free Public Schools; and shall provide by taxation, or otherwise, for their maintenance.”
The Maryland Constitutional also states, in emphatic terms:
“the People of this State have the sole and exclusive right of regulating the internal government and police thereof, as a free, sovereign and independent State.”
In fact, under Art. 3 of Maryland’s Constitution, the command is for local regulation and funding of education as opposed to a federally funded and regulated public school system!
The Maryland Constitution also states:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution thereof, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people thereof.”
This very provision of Maryland’s Declaration of Rights is also agreed to by the People of the United States by their ratification of the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States!
Now, with respect to our federal Constitution and its delegated powers, we find Delegate Charles Pickney, on August 18th of the federal Convention which framed our constitution proposed a broad power "To establish seminaries for the promotion of literature and the arts and sciences". But this proposal was rejected by the Convention in favor of a limited grant of power expressed in Article 1, Section 8, Cl.8, of the proposed constitution. The limited power, later agreed upon by ratification of our Constitution authorizes Congress "[t]o promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” And what is authorized to accomplish this? by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
The fact is, the federal Department of Education and its current functions are in defiance of the defined and limited powers granted to Congress. And every time a member of Congress votes to fund this agency they are committing a fraud upon the people of the United States and are usurping a power not granted!
So, why do members of Congress and those running to be President want to fund this rouge agency? Mr. Carson has told us why. He wants our federal government to be in a position to blackmail the States into following its sense of “political bias” and to hell with our Constitution and its defined and limited powers.
JWK
As nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression. In both instances there is a twilight where everything remains seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all must be aware of change in the air - however slight - lest we become unwitting victims of darkness.___Supreme Court Justice William Douglas