PrintDecember 1, 2010
Would someone please send a copy of the Constitution to Democratic senators?
The euphemistically named "Food Safety Bill" passed the senate yesterday, thus giving federal bureaucrats more control over our food supply.
Except the Democratic senators forgot about the Constitution - again.
Apparently, no one told Harry Reid to check Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution before passing S510, the food-safety bill that Democrats hailed as a major lame-duck session achievement earlier this week - and which ran afoul of their own party in the House. Section 107 of the bill raises taxes, and as any Constitutional scholar can attest - or anyone else who has actually read the document that Senators swore to uphold when taking office - only the House of Representatives has that power.The issue is now before the House who can choose to act on their own version of the bill or send it back to the senate for a fix. To do that, Reid would have to hold an open vote to re-open the matter - not a sure thing. Even if the House passes the bill, the senate would have to take up the amended version sent by the House.
Who knows? A salutary effect of this screw up might be that senators will actually, like, you know, read the Constitution rather than using it to make paper airplanes out of.
Don't hold your breath...
