General Welfare Clause
General Welfare isn’t Supposed to be a Blank Check
The general welfare clause is not a blank check. A lot of people think it is. They believe the federal government can spend on anything and everything as long as it benefits a lot of people. But James Madison argued that people who take this view โstoop to a...
Taxation: 5 Anti-Federalist Warnings
From the beginning, the federal taxing power evoked strong opposition from Anti-Federalists. They warned it would lead to infinite and incomprehensible power – and a tyranny potentially worse than they endured under the British. Path to Liberty: Aug 3, 2022...
Not “Whatever They Want”
General welfare does not mean “do whatever in the hell you want.” The general welfare clause is limited – even big-government-loving Alexander Hamilton agreed. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tenth Amendment Center...
Mr. Madison’s War on the General Welfare Clause?
David S. Schwartz (University of Wisconsin Law School) has postedย Mr. Madison’s War on the General Welfare Clauseย (57 pages) on SSRN.ย Here is the abstract: The General Welfare Clause of Article I, section 8, clause 1 of the Constitution (“Clause...