Educate yourself on the rights enshrined in the Constitution

by John Malmberg, Cody Enterprise

On Sept. 17, 1787, the Constitution of the United States was signed.

However, it wasn’t until four years later on Dec. 15, 1791, that the first 10 amendments, the Bill of Rights, were added to the document.

It is beneficial, however, to regularly remember those rights guaranteed to us in the Constitution.

The U.S. Constitution is as valuable today as it was when it was first ratified.

It is the bedrock -- it is the solid foundation -- on which our country has survived and prospered for more than 200 years.

The role of the Supreme Court is to interpret the Constitution. It is never the job of the Supreme Court to “legislate from the bench.” That idea itself is unconstitutional. And “packing the bench” to achieve a political goal is completely outside the vision and purpose the founders of this nation had for the court.

The Supreme Court must never legislate by its rulings, neither should the president legislate. The role of legislation is designated solely to Congress.

There is already a system in place delineated in the Constitution to allow the American people to make changes.

They are called amendments.

Those first 10 amendments, the Bill of Rights, were pushed by James Madison. He was aware of the importance Americans attached to those protections.

His view was that enshrining those rights in the Constitution could keep people educated on their rights.

The First Amendment is of great importance: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

That amendment protects your rights as a citizen to prevent the government from taking control of your life.

It is essential to the preservation of the United States of America that you educate yourself about your Constitutional guarantees.