The constitutional scholar and radio host presenter Mark Levin culminates as an author of the book, “The Liberty Amendments: Restoring the American Republic.” The author of the book invokes Article V of the constitution that sets out methods for amendments that intend to rein in a reckless, unruly, and usurpations federal government highlighted in the 10th Amendment. McCarthy, (2013) assert that Levin undertakes this project to preserve and restore the constitutional republicanism and the civil society and prevent federal Leviathan authoritarianism. According to Levin, Statists achieved the process of disfiguring the compact constitutional order (Levin, 2014).
Framers of the constitution met with Benjamin Franklin in the hope of establishing a confederacy. Another hope was that the federal government could provide great security to the colonies. Additionally, the framers had the hope that they could handle few common issues by combining all the states other than solving issues individually. The framers of the constitution feared that the federal government would have immense power to end up overarching its authority to the states and the local governments. Levin is an outstanding person with intellectual prowess as he dedicates his life to defeat Hobbesian leviathan that reside in the national government. I admire the author’ steadfast defense of liberty in the constitution, and this makes me support him fully. I think that the Liberty Amendments will provide direction, hope, and attainable achievement to the lovers of liberty and conservative people.
The current form of the constitution is in peril since the framers ignores some of the sections with impunity. Greenly (2013) state that the concept of liberty in the limited government is lost when all resources go to Washington DC. For instance, the national debt spirals out of control while congress has recently repealed the powers of the states prescribed in the 10th amendment. Consequently, the constitution created a limited government evidenced in four different ways: (1) the constitution framers had the power of the federal government split between three separate branches to act as check and balance on the power of others. (2) Power of the federal government had limitation in specific areas. (3) Government power split to individual states and the federal government. (4) Bill of Rights prevented the government from misconduct and abuse of powers. For over 200 years, every branch of the government has been able to seize more power than what the framers had specified. The federal government involves itself in matters beyond its jurisdiction to insinuate itself in nearly all the public and private life.
Levin elaborates the intention of the framers to establish a federal system that has a central government with limited powers to balance the sovereign state governments. The author makes a review on the 16th and the 17th Amendments that greatly increases the power of the federal government. The 16th Amendment that legalizes the national income tax gives the financial capacity to enlarge its size of spending that led to the financial mess (The Liberty Amendments, 2013).
Article V provides two ways to amend the constitution two-thirds of both houses of Congress can necessitate the passage of the amendment. In the second instance, three-quarters of the states can approve a passage of the law for amendment purposes. Levin proposes the second way to amend the constitution where the Congress calls for a constitutional convention in the application of the legislatures two-thirds of the state. In the onset, Levin was skeptical that the issue would turn disastrously at the hands of the states. Levin had a change of mind concerning the method of changing the constitution since the language of Article V does not provide for a constitutional convention where delegates can directly change the constitution. Limited purpose convection can draw up an entire new constitution or establish a new form of government. The Article V process does not license full-blown constitution convention since it only permits amendment convection. In this case, it is only possible to modify the constitution through overwhelming consensus that require thirty-eight state legislatures
Levin proposes to establish a twelve-year term for the members of Congress and the Supreme Court. Congress does not operate as the framers intended since it deliberates on notorious and oppressive laws so as to enable members cast their votes. Voters remain dumbfounded concerning their “representatives” due to the formation of omnibus bills that do not have any effect on the voter’s lives. The public remains manipulated, misled, and indoctrinated. Congress delegates unconstitutional lawmaking power to a growing administrative state with non-compliance. Congress creates gangs that work in concert with other backroom elitists and statists in ways never intended by the framers. Congress has more power to affect people’s lives while Levin provides a positive statement to effect change. Congress watches as the executive inflates the congressional delegation with immense defiance.
Levin describes some of the effects of Key Supreme Court decisions and in that case, he proposes that either Congress or States can only overturn a Supreme Court Decision within 24 hours and with a three-fifths vote from the members of either houses or states. The Supreme Court judicial precedent of Wickard v. Filburn (1942) and the approval of Obamacare in NFIB v. Sebelius (2012) outline how the court vastly expands its power in both judiciary and Congress far beyond the intent of the framers. I support Levin argument that we need structural change to restore constitutional governance. In retro respect, people are fallible, and the nation cannot rely on government bureaucrats and politicians in order to make an informed decision. Men and women in judiciary operate in monk-like conditions instead of applying a faithful focus and undivided mental faculties as prescribed by the constitution. Five of the nine members of the judiciary can impose a breathtaking ruling on an entire society with no effective recourse. The Supreme Court ruling has been able to deliver exceptional rulings such as Plessy v. Ferguson, Korematsu v. United States, and Scott v. Sandford.
Levin proposes the repeal of the 17th Amendment. According to Levin (2014), the Republicans pushed the 17th that Levin attributes to progressive populism to promote radical egalitarianism and central authoritarianism. The 17th Amendment permits the electorate to vote for their choice American Senator instead of the legislature appointing one. Levin proposes restoration with a set of prescriptions and proscriptions to formulate the old anti-federalist argument. The 17th Amendment requirement of popular election eliminates a check by the framers that the federal government should represent the state government in the senate (Greenley, 2013). The civic classes talk about the horizontal checks and balances of the legislature, executive, and judicial arms of the government. The basic civic classes ignore the fact that the government state control is an essential second check on the federal government’s power. I concur with Levin’s view of dismantling of the states traditional and exclusive areas of governing responsibility. State sovereignty exists primarily on the will of the federal government to depict decentralized power that framers worked hard to thwart.
The innocuous federal government operates from a defined enumeration since it uses an unaccountable force. The nation is the largest creditor, debtor, employer, grantor, consumer, property owner, health-care provider, pension guarantor, contractor, and the insurer (The Liberty Amendments, 2013). The country has aggrandized police authority; what the federal government does not have the power to control directly, it bans or mandates regulation. For instance, the federal government regulates most household items as well as the mortgage of the house. Consequently, the federal government dictates the kind of fuel the citizens will use; children school curriculum, the administration of college fees, as well as baby’s items. The federal government has control over other social issues such as gender, race, age diversity of employees working hours, and benefits awarded. It is amazing when the federal government has to dictate the appliances for people’s toilets such as the light bulbs. The federal government undermines the electorates that are capable of voting in leaders and fill their complicated tax returns. Federal government engages in illimitable regulatory activity to torment and harness individual private life and manipulate the society. Coupled with a gluttonous appetite, it digests a huge chunk of the treasury annual revenue while confiscating taxes on many productive citizens. The federal government consumes more than 25 percent of all goods and services produced in the country while fiscal operating a debt of more than $17 million that far exceeds the total economic wealth created by American citizens. The country’s unfunded liabilities exceed $90 trillion and continue to grow to an unprecedented level to date (Levin, 2014).
References
Greenley, L. (2013). Levin's Risky Proposal: A Constitutional Convention. New American (08856540), 29(19), 27-32.
Levin, M. R. (2014). The liberty amendments. New York: Threshold Editions.
McCarthy, A. C. (2013). The plot to save America. New Criterion, 32(1), 25-29.
The Liberty Amendments Restoring the American Republic. (2013). Kirkus Reviews, 81(22), 236.
