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To: robertpaulsen
Now, surely there were a few Founding Fathers alive in 1808 to say, "Hey, that's not what we meant!". Did anyone say that?

Indeed they did.

James Madison to Joseph C. Cabell 13 Feb. 1829

Letters 4:14--15

For a like reason, I made no reference to the "power to regulate commerce among the several States." I always foresaw that difficulties might be started in relation to that power which could not be fully explained without recurring to views of it, which, however just, might give birth to specious though unsound objections. Being in the same terms with the power over foreign commerce, the same extent, if taken literally, would belong to it. Yet it is very certain that it grew out of the abuse of the power by the importing States in taxing the non-importing, and was intended as a negative and preventive provision against injustice among the States themselves, rather than as a power to be used for the positive purposes of the General Government, in which alone, however, the remedial power could be lodged.

88 posted on 12/17/2004 12:44:03 PM PST by tacticalogic ("Oh bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: tacticalogic
"against injustice among the States themselves,"

Key words. Injustice among the states meant that some states benefitted, some didn't.

I, too, would oppose any federal legislation which did this or which allowed this.

But legislation which bans the commerce of a product between all states for "the positive purposes of the General Government" is, of course, allowed.

106 posted on 12/17/2004 1:15:32 PM PST by robertpaulsen
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