Questions & Answers

In the Category: Powers of Congress

#POW149 Has this district its own legislature like the states have? No.
#POW150 Is the district a part of a state? No, it is a territory the states have relinquished for the purpose of it being the seat of the federal government.
#POW151 Are there any other locations in the United States under similar control by Congress? Yes, and they include all forts, armories, and international docks. These are governed not by the states, but by the Congress.
#POW152 Aside from these, are there any other land or properties in the United States under similar control by Congress? Today, the Federal Government believes it has similar control over "public" land it presumes to be owned by itself. In fact, these are not "federal lands," per se, but are public lands owned by the Pe...
#POW153 Are there additional powers conferred by the Constitution upon the Congress of the United States? Congress may make any law which "shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers," that is, any law necessary to fulfill the very specific responsibilities given it by t...
#POW154 Is slavery legal? No, slavery is an affront to God and to civilization, and forbidden by equal application of the Law.
#POW155 Was slavery legal? Yes, slaves were inconsistently treated as property at the founding of our country, while yet in certain instances were in fact counted as people. As more people called for the abolition of slavery, i...
#POW156 Doesn't a citizen have a right to have his property, and to maintain his property without fear of confiscation? Yes, a citizen has the right to have and maintain his property. However, God did not make men as property to be owned by other men.
#POW157 What made slavery illegal? The Thirteenth Amendment of the Constitution made slavery illegal. However, the fact that all men were not treated equally under the law was a great national sin, for which our country has paid dearly...
#POW158 If slavery was not made illegal until the Thirteenth Amendment, was it wrong for the Union to coerce the states to free their slaves? While slavery is immoral, it was unconstitutional for the Union to coerce the states to free slaves without first amending the Constitution.
#POW159 Does a state have the right to secede from the Union of States? Yes. States may - constitutionally - join themselves with other states at their will, and their involvement in the union should not be coerced. The Constitution could have stipulated the Union was to...
#POW160 What should the Union do if a State wishes to secede? The Union may try to amend whatever grievance the state has against the Federal Government, or may revoke benefits bestowed to the state on behalf of the Federal Government, to persuade them to stay....
#POW161 If an American citizen is seized and imprisoned, may he be kept there as long as those who arrested him see fit? No; he may obtain a writ of Habeas Corpus.
#POW162 What is Habeas Corpus? It is a command from a court, by which the jailer is forced to allow the prisoner to be brought before a judge that the occasion of his imprisonment may be examined: in order to ensure that there is j...
#POW163 Must this command be given whenever it is applied for? Yes, except under exceptional circumstances, when this privilege is suspended (that is, interrupted for a time, but not taken away).
#POW164 When may this right of having a writ of Habeas Corpus, which belongs by the Constitution to every citizen, be suspended? Only in cases of rebellion by our own citizens, or invasion by a foreign enemy; wherein the public danger is so great as to require prisoners who would otherwise be afforded this right, to remain in d...
#POW165 Is this a very great and important privilege and ought all Americans to guard it with the greatest care? It is one of the greatest rights of a free man and Americans must never surrender it, under any pretext, if they value and would preserve their liberty.
#POW166 May a man's children be punished by law for his offense? This must never happen in our country; and is expressly forbidden by the Constitution.
#POW167 May a citizen of the United States be punished for an action that was not contrary to any law at the time of the action, but does violate a law that was enacted after the time of the action? No. A law that attempts to punish actions that were done before the law was made, is called an "ex-post-facto law." This also is expressly forbidden by the Constitution.
#POW168 When a direct tax is leveyed, that is, when Congress orders that a certain sum of money must be paid by each citizen, for the public use, what is the rule by which such a tax is to be collected? The rule by which such a tax is to collected is the census, or public counting of the people.
#POW169 May any money be required to be paid on goods exported, that is, delivered from, any of the States? No.
#POW170 May any law be passed giving to the ports of one State preferential treatment over that given to ports of other States? No.
#POW171 In what way can the monies of the United States be drawn from the Treasury? Monies may be withdrawn from the United States Treasury only by authority of a law of Congress and such a law is called an Appropriation.
#POW172 Must a full account be kept of all monies received into the Treasury, and withdrawn from it; and must this account be published, that is, printed and distributed from time to time? Yes.
#POW173 Can any families be distinguished as nobility from the rest of the citizens of the republic? No; no title of Nobility can be granted in America. The only titles among us, are those which mark a person's trade in the army or navy, or his office in the State.
#POW174 May any citizen of the United States receive a title of nobility from the king, or prince, or government of any other country? The government does not interfere with the lives of private persons, but no person holding any office of profit or trust under our republic can accept either a title, sum of money as salary, an office...
#POW175 When the States agreed to form a voluntary union with the other States and to create the Federal Government, what responsibilities did they delegate to that Federal Government? The States granted to the Federal Government the responsibility to make treaties and alliances with other nations, the right to coin money and to emit bills of credit, and the right to lay duties on e...
#POW176 May the States keep soldiers whom they pay, in time of peace? No.
#POW177 May they keep ships of war, in time of peace? No.
#POW178 May a single State make a treaty with another nation? No.

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