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I dont know but apparently congress can do whatever they want with our money. My take is that I would rather see them spend money on museums than a myriad of other things they waste money on. For that matter, they can adewquately fund National parks while they are at it. They could cut welfare spending dollar for dollar to offet it and make the change “budget neutral”. 😛
I dont know but apparently congress can do whatever they want with our money.
Can't argue with that. :-reason for asking is because some seem to think that federal funding of education (which I consider museums as well as historic preservation) is not what taxes are for (according to the Constitution-or so they claim). But isn't it a nation's responsibility to provide for the education of its citizens? I don't mean dictate what they learn or command parents to send their kids to a specific school, but shouldn't education, NCLB aside, be a national priority simply because it is for the betterment of that nation? Does our Constitution specifically say that this is solely a State issue?
The Const is silent on education as I read it. The 10th Amend would indicate that it would be a reserved power (as there is nothing about education being delegated to the central gov't.); this also would disallow a federal school system since the 10th was supposed to be the check on the elastic clause.The states are required to recognize the offical acts of all other states (though the can enhance them with teir own requirements sometimes): Art. IV Sec. I… marriage lics., corps., etc. The current trend though, that allows NCLB and the like, is for gov't. to claim that education is an interstate trade item and invoke the commerce clause. An end around on the 10th Amend in this case.
I have to agree with Wally on this one. The Federal gov. abuses the Commerce clause for all kinds of things.
I agree with the others that the Commerce Clause is the basis for a number of congressional acts which have authorized funds for certain things. I quickly tried to find the history of the American public school system and couldn't see when it was created. I would like to read more from Enlightenment philosophers and the Founding Fathers to hear what they have to say about the purposes of government. I would say that much conservatism of today is still based on such thought (yes I realize we spent another thread bashing Enlightenment thinkers for their anti-religiosity, but that's another side to the coin).
What about federal grants or student loans?
That is the nose of the camel; to equalize opportunities the Feds get involved and then set restrictions on how states can use the $ since they are Federal funds (ignore that it is just our money coming home)… :o.
… history of the American public school system and couldn't see when it was created.
Because it is a state issue; likely going to have to check each state history. That said consider that the Ordinance of 1785 set aside Section 16 of each Township to support education, pretty vague but there.
I am convinced that about two thirds of federal spending and not just for education is an abuse of the commerce clause. If you want an example of abuse look at the roads in Louisiana, Louisiana forfeited federal highway funds for something like 20 years because they refused to raise their drinking age from 18 to 21. If anything is a federal responsibility and directly related to commerce the interstate system is. Yet the feds gleefully punished LA because they chose to exercise their states right and not bow to federal pressure to raise the drinking age.
