Hamilton said in Federalist 84, "[W]hy declare that things shall not be done which there is no power to do?" Indeed. As it turns out he was wrong because matters were even worse than he expected. We understood and followed the Constitution so poorly that it is good that we at least have had certain enumerated rights.
1. Freedom of speech, assembly. No state-establishment of religion.
2. Right to keep and bear arms.
3. No forced quartering of soldiers unless by law.
4. Right to due process in criminal law: no unreasonable search or seizure; warrants must be with probable cause and narrowly focused.
5. An open set of due-process rights, such as the right to grand jury indictment, the right not to testify against oneself, and the right not to be deprived of property with out due process and just compensation.
6. Along with the 5th Amendment, further rights to speedy trial, legal counsel, and so forth.
7. There is a right to jury trial in civil cases over matters exceeding $20.
8. Excessive bail and fines and cruel and unusual punishment are prohibited.
9. The mention of certain rights in the Constitution is not to be taken as indicating a complete list of the people's rights.
10. Powers not specified in the Constitution as belonging to the federal government belong to the states and the people.
11. Reiteration of the fact that the U.S. courts do not have authority in civil cases against a state.
12. Sets up a system by which electors vote separately for vice presidential candidates.
We have merely breezed through the actual Constitution and the first 12 Amendments because there is no point in this blog's spilling ink on them. Our target is the other selections in The Founders' Constitution. Next, we turn to John Locke.
