By Hillsdale College July 30, 2013
President Larry Arnn explains the Legislative Vesting Clause of the Constitution.
STUDENT: Hello, I’m Liz, a student at Hillsdale College. Here is Hillsdale President Larry Arnn on the Legislative Vesting Clause of the Constitution.
DR. ARNN: Article I, Section 1 of the Constitution states “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States.” To the Founders, legislative power was the power to make laws that applies to all alike. That are clear and easy to understand. The Constitution says all Legislative powers and that means Congress cannot rightfully delegate these powers to some other body. Today our laws are thousands of pages long and sometimes rules are tens of thousands and no one can read them. Congress has abdicated its legislative power to unelected bureaucrats in countless executive agencies. This is a violation of Article I Section 1 of the Constitution.
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