The founding fathers understood the propensity of those with power to strive to accumulate even more. Their
study of history had convinced them that unless there were restraints placed on the extent of power, the new
federal government might be tempted to expand its powers to the point of tyranny pushing aside the historical
sovereignty of individual state governments. They attempted to deal with this problem by framing a Constitution
that limited the powers of government to those specifically granted to it by the states. These are known as the
“enumerated powers” and are found for the most part in Article I, Section 8.
Early writers on the functions of the federal government like James Madison and Thomas Jefferson often
referred to these “enumerated powers” in their correspondences and other writings. The powers granted to
Congress by Section Eight fall into two categories. The power to tax and the power to make law.
The power to tax is found in clause one of Section 8 and the power to make law is found in clause eighteen. The
sixteen clauses between the first and last specifies the purposes for which Congress is authorized to lay taxes
and make laws. The prohibition on Congress for making laws or levying taxes for purposes other than those
specified is spelled out in the Tenth Amendment reserving all other powers to the states or to the people.
The clause introducing the powers of Congress, divides them into two categories, those intended to provide for
the “common defense” and those intended for the “general welfare”. Those relating to war, Army, Navy, Militia,
piracy, insurrection and rebellion have to do with the common defense. The remaining eight have to do with
providing for the general welfare.
A popular view of the Constitution sees the general terms of “common defense” and “general welfare” as
bestowing special powers on Congress independent of the other clauses in Section 8 and the balance of the
Constitution. Other patriotic students of the Constitution, including Jefferson and Madison, as well as more
recent scholars like Justice Clarence Thomas have pointed out the absurdity of such a view. Their argument is
that such a view would make the very existence of a Constitution redundant since the power to make any law or
lay any tax, for whatever purpose could be included in these two phrases.
It should also be noted that the Tenth Amendment would be without meaning or purpose if all powers were
included in the power of Congress to make any law it deemed necessary to promote the general welfare. What’s
more, such construction would render a written constitution useless since the real constitution would be
contained in the collective laws of the nation.
Notes on specific clauses and phrases in Section 8
study of history had convinced them that unless there were restraints placed on the extent of power, the new
federal government might be tempted to expand its powers to the point of tyranny pushing aside the historical
sovereignty of individual state governments. They attempted to deal with this problem by framing a Constitution
that limited the powers of government to those specifically granted to it by the states. These are known as the
“enumerated powers” and are found for the most part in Article I, Section 8.
Early writers on the functions of the federal government like James Madison and Thomas Jefferson often
referred to these “enumerated powers” in their correspondences and other writings. The powers granted to
Congress by Section Eight fall into two categories. The power to tax and the power to make law.
The power to tax is found in clause one of Section 8 and the power to make law is found in clause eighteen. The
sixteen clauses between the first and last specifies the purposes for which Congress is authorized to lay taxes
and make laws. The prohibition on Congress for making laws or levying taxes for purposes other than those
specified is spelled out in the Tenth Amendment reserving all other powers to the states or to the people.
The clause introducing the powers of Congress, divides them into two categories, those intended to provide for
the “common defense” and those intended for the “general welfare”. Those relating to war, Army, Navy, Militia,
piracy, insurrection and rebellion have to do with the common defense. The remaining eight have to do with
providing for the general welfare.
A popular view of the Constitution sees the general terms of “common defense” and “general welfare” as
bestowing special powers on Congress independent of the other clauses in Section 8 and the balance of the
Constitution. Other patriotic students of the Constitution, including Jefferson and Madison, as well as more
recent scholars like Justice Clarence Thomas have pointed out the absurdity of such a view. Their argument is
that such a view would make the very existence of a Constitution redundant since the power to make any law or
lay any tax, for whatever purpose could be included in these two phrases.
It should also be noted that the Tenth Amendment would be without meaning or purpose if all powers were
included in the power of Congress to make any law it deemed necessary to promote the general welfare. What’s
more, such construction would render a written constitution useless since the real constitution would be
contained in the collective laws of the nation.
Notes on specific clauses and phrases in Section 8
| Notes on "Enumerated Powers" Article I, Section 8 |
| Illinois Conservative "It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible" ~George Washington |
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