COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN PROMISE DEBATE ON STATE SOVEREIGNTY
by Sharon Rondeau
(Feb. 18, 2010) — The two co-chairmen of the committee governing debate on all bills in the Constitution State have agreed to raise a Tenth Amendment Resolution on Friday, February 19, 2010. The decision came after a press conference was held on Wednesday afternoon to bring attention to the request by lawmakers, attorneys and grassroots activists.
The Government Administration and Elections Committee will meet in Hartford at the Legislative Office Building at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, February 19. The meeting is open to the public.
However, two bills proposed to allow for nullification of federal laws deemed unconstitutional will not be raised.
Media presence at yesterday’s press conference included WTNH, Channel 8 and WVIT, Channel 30. Approximately 70 members of the public were in attendance along with Sen. Toni Boucher (R-26), Sen. Dan Debicella (R-21), Sen. Rob Kane (R-32), Rep. John W. Hetherington (R-125), Rep. Christopher D. Coutu (R-47), Rep. T.R. Rowe (R-123), Rep. Vincent J. Candelora (R-86), Rep. John E. Piscopo (R-76), and Rep. David K. Labriola (R-131), and Sen. Michael MacLachlan, (R-24).
Attorney Deborah Stevenson, who assisted in writing the resolution, will be giving a live interview on the Dan Lavallo Show on WDRC-AM Friday morning at 7:20. According to Stevenson, following Friday’s committee meeting, a public hearing must be conducted on or before March 12, 2010.
Senator MacLachlan, ranking Republican senator on the GAE committee, issued the following statement on his website following the press conference: “The Tenth Amendment Resolution calls on Congress to create only statutes that fall within their constitutional authority. The resolution is a key step towards defining in state statute the limits of congressional power.”
At yesterday’s conference, Tanya Bachand of the Connecticut Tea Party Patriots stated, “Today we are pushing back. We are demanding that our elected state representatives uphold the Tenth Amendment and say no to unconstitutional federal action.”
The Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
Channel 8’s coverage of Wednesday’s press conference can be viewed here.
Previous coverage of this topic by The Post & Email can be found here.