House GOP considers constitutional test for all new legislation
- 0share
- Share
- Tweet
- Comment Now 0
Unbelievable, and yet wholly understandable:
House GOP transition team leaders will recommend a change to the lower chamber’s rules that would require all members to prove that their legislation is constitutional.
…Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), the head of the House Rules Working Group, on Thursday said the GOP transition team will recommend the adoption of a rule requiring lawmakers to provide constitutional authority for every bill.
You have got to be kidding. On the other hand: you have got to be kidding.
We need a rule, now, to make sure legislation is constitutional. Except, y’know, the Constitution is “the rules.” So what we’re doing is: we’re going to have a rule to make sure we follow the rules.
And the sad part is: I think they’re exactly right. We need this rule.
Let’s not fool ourselves: any Congressman worth his or her salt will argue constitutionality, no matter what. Just having this “follow the rules rule” won’t stop any extra-constitutional activities. Not for sure.
Still, just to ensure that all the Congressmen have read the Constitution in the first place. To increase the odds that journalists covering Congress have read it. To have more people giving more thought to what the Constitution does and does not allow.
And simply to emphasize that, yes, there are rules — and Rules — we have to follow. Something Congress hasn’t seemed to understand in recent years.
It’s a great idea that we never should have needed.
- 0share
- Share
- Tweet
- Comment Now 0
