(Download) "Plenary No Longer: How the Fourteenth Amendment "Amended" Congressional Jurisdiction-Stripping Power." by Stanford Law School " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Plenary No Longer: How the Fourteenth Amendment "Amended" Congressional Jurisdiction-Stripping Power.
- Author : Stanford Law School
- Release Date : January 01, 2011
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 327 KB
Description
INTRODUCTION On March 15, 2011, Representative Ron Paul of Texas reintroduced the Sanctity of Life Act of 2011. (1) This was the fourth time Representative Paul had introduced this bill to the House in the last six years. (2) At each introduction the content of the Sanctity of Life Act has remained the same. According to its summary: "[H]uman life shall be deemed to exist from conception, without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency; and ... the term 'person' shall include all [such] human life...." (3) Moreover, the bill "recognizes that each State has the authority to protect lives of unborn children residing in the jurisdiction of that State." (4) It may seem confusing that Representative Paul would expend any energy introducing a bill--numerous times, in fact--that is in fundamental conflict with a well established federal right: the Fourteenth Amendment due process right to an abortion, as defined in Roe v. Wade (5) and affirmed in Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey. (6) Should Congress pass the bill and should a state attempt to enact legislation pursuant to its new federal authority "to protect the lives of unborn children" by banning abortion in violation of Roe v. Wade, the state legislation would be reviewed and overturned as unconstitutional, rendering Representative Paul's efforts entirely futile. The answer to the puzzle of why Representative Paul would introduce such seemingly toothless legislation lies in the second half of the bill. In addition to defining the point at which human life begins as at conception and granting states the authority to protect that life, the bill also includes provisions to limit federal court jurisdiction:
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