[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 149 (Thursday, September 15, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4644-S4645]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      SENATE RESOLUTION 770--COMMEMORATING SEPTEMBER 17, 2022, AS 
  ``CONSTITUTION DAY'' AND CELEBRATING THE SIGNING OF THE CONSTITUTION

  Mrs. BLACKBURN submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 770

       Whereas the Constitution of the United States (referred to 
     in this preamble as the ``Constitution'') is the supreme law 
     of the United States;
       Whereas the Constitution enshrines the freedom of the 
     people of the United States;
       Whereas the Constitution forms a more perfect Union;
       Whereas the fundamental principles of the Constitution are 
     limited government, separation of powers, individual liberty, 
     and rule of law;
       Whereas the Constitution establishes justice, ensures 
     domestic tranquility, provides for the common defense, 
     promotes the general welfare, and secures the blessings of 
     liberty, now and for future generations;
       Whereas the Constitution guarantees that no one can be 
     deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of 
     law, including unborn children;
       Whereas the Constitution protects the rights of conscience 
     against the enterprises of the civil authority;
       Whereas the Constitution affirms that the Government of the 
     United States exists to serve its citizens;
       Whereas the Constitution grants power to a national, 
     Federal Government while preserving fundamental, individual 
     rights;
       Whereas the Constitution separates the power of the Federal 
     government into 3 branches: executive, judicial, and 
     legislative;
       Whereas the powers of each branch of the Federal Government 
     are delegated in the Constitution, with powers not assigned 
     to the branches reserved to the States;
       Whereas the Constitution grants the executive power to the 
     President;
       Whereas the Constitution does not allow the President to 
     enact national policies in areas that are reserved solely to 
     Congress under the Constitution;
       Whereas the Constitution grants judicial power to the 
     Supreme Court and inferior courts that Congress may ordain 
     and establish;
       Whereas justices and judges have constitutional limits on 
     their power;
       Whereas an activist judiciary that usurps powers reserved 
     to the people through other branches of government is a 
     threat to the United States;
       Whereas the judiciary should interpret laws as written by 
     Congress rather than allowing executive agencies to rewrite 
     those laws to suit a political agenda;
       Whereas the Constitution grants all legislative powers to 
     Congress, which consists of a Senate and a House of 
     Representatives;
       Whereas the Constitution assigns to Congress the 
     responsibility for organizing the executive and judicial 
     branches, raising revenue, declaring war, and making all laws 
     necessary for executing these powers;
       Whereas it is a breach of trust for Congress to delegate 
     excessive legislative authority to executive departments, 
     agencies, and commissions, thus empowering the administrative 
     state instead of the elected representatives of the people of 
     the United States;
       Whereas the Constitution protects the democracy of the 
     United States;
       Whereas elections are a vital component of democracy;
       Whereas the Constitution states that the times, places, and 
     manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives 
     shall be prescribed in each State by the legislature of that 
     State;
       Whereas article I, section 5 of the Constitution--
       (1) provides that ``Each House [of Congress] may determine 
     the Rules of its Proceedings''; and
       (2) authorizes the Senate to make procedural rules, 
     including the length of debate;
       Whereas no one may unilaterally rewrite or otherwise impugn 
     the validity of the text of the Constitution;
       Whereas the Constitution can only be changed by amendment;
       Whereas an amendment to the Constitution may be proposed by 
     a \2/3\ vote of both Houses of Congress, or, if \2/3\ of the 
     States request an amendment, by a convention called for that 
     purpose;
       Whereas an amendment to the Constitution must be ratified 
     by \3/4\ of the State legislatures or \3/4\ of conventions 
     called in each State for ratification;
       Whereas, according to the First Amendment to the 
     Constitution--
       (1) Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment 
     of religion or prohibiting free exercise of religion; and
       (2) Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of 
     speech or of the press;

[[Page S4645]]

       Whereas, according to the Second Amendment to the 
     Constitution, the right of the people to keep and bear arms 
     shall not be infringed;
       Whereas Congress may not pass laws that deny or abridge any 
     constitutional rights;
       Whereas it is unconstitutional for the Federal Government 
     to wield its authority beyond the scope of power delegated to 
     it or to use that authority as a political weapon against the 
     rights of States to pass voter identification laws, oversee 
     the health care of their citizens, draft curricula, and craft 
     other laws and policies consistent with the Constitution;
       Whereas constitutional rights are not negotiable;
       Whereas all legislation, regulations, and official actions 
     should conform to the original meaning of the Constitution as 
     understood at the time the language was adopted;
       Whereas the Constitution was written during the 
     Philadelphia Convention, now known as the Constitutional 
     Convention, which convened from May 25 to September 17, 1787; 
     and
       Whereas Constitution Day commemorates the formation and 
     signing of the Constitution by 39 courageous men on September 
     17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) celebrates the signing of the Constitution of the 
     United States by recognizing Constitution Day on September 
     17, 2022; and
       (2) affirms that the Constitution of the United States is 
     not a flexible document, but an enduring covenant.

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