US Constitution: Article IV - The U.S. Constitution - Decoded!

7/25/2019 US Constitution: Article IV - The U.S. Constitution - Decoded!

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/us-constitution-article-iv-the-us-constitution-decoded 1/7

Article IV of the US Constitution: States, and Federal-State Interactions

Article 4:

This article discusses the states, interactions between states, interactions

between the states and the federal government, and the duties owed by the federal

government to the states. It also reinforces the dual-sovereignty principle, and

underscores the strong belief of the Founders that we are primarily citizens of our states,

which are themselves joined in a confederation. We make reference to speci"c wordings

in the various sections, therefore for your reading ease we append the entire text of Article

IV at the end.

Section 1, the “full faith and credit” clause, is one long sentence that came (with someadjustments in wording) from the Articles of Confederation. It says that each state will

respect the laws and judgments of other states, and that Congress may enact laws

detailing how that requirement will be enforced. Since it was from the Articles of

Confederation, there was very little discussion of this "rst section in the Federalist papers.

According to the provisions this section, a contract made in one state must be considered

valid in the others, a person convicted of a crime in one state is considered a criminal in

the other states, and a person can not abandon their legal debts by high-tailing it to the

next state over. It also means that divorce decrees must be respected – ensuring that child

support owed (or visitation rights decreed) in Wyoming must still be paid even if theex-spouse has moved to Alabama. Similarly, adoptions "nalized in one state are valid in

any other; probate of an estate is accepted by the others, et cetera. Madison, in Federalist

#42, pointed to this clause as one of several speci"cally intended to “provide for the

harmony and proper intercourse among the States.”

This clause also implies (and has been upheld in many court cases) that the actions of state

courts are to be recognized by any court under US jurisdiction – which includes federal

courts plus courts in US territories. In federal courts where the state law in question

con#icts with federal law, the federal court is not required to enforce that con#icting statelaw (this comes under the auspices of Article VI).

Section 2 has three clauses. The "rst clause ensures that citizens of each state will be

treated as citizens of the other states, while they are there. Since each state considered

itself a separate entity (under the umbrella of the confederation), this clause ensures that a

citizen of Utah is not treated as a foreign national while visiting (or temporarily living in)

Louisiana. Of course, this applies equally to any other combination of states.

The U.S. Constitution - Decoded! (/)

Constitution: Article IV - The U.S. Constitution - Decoded! http://www.constitutiondecoded.com/us-constitution-article-

f 7 6/21/16, 10



The next clause provides for extradition of accused persons who #ee to another state to

the state in which they have been accused of crime – regardless of what state they #ed

from or in which they tried to hide. The fugitive who #ees to another state also is not

protected by having arrived in the new state before an indictment is issued.

The third clause of Section 2 was tucked into this Article towards the very end of theConstitutional Convention by two convention members from South Carolina; it is the

Fugitive Slave Clause. While utterly abhorrent to us today, this clause is based in very old

historic law, which provided that chattels adhere to the person of their owner even when

located elsewhere. According to Madison’s notes on the Convention, a minor adjustment

in the wording of this clause (“person held to service or labor in one state, under the laws

thereof”) was intended to separate the concept of returning fugitive slaves from the

concept that slavery was legal in a moral view. This is another instance where the

Founders managed to placate the slave-holding states su$ciently to keep them in the

#edgling and fragile union, while including verbiage that would support the eventualabolition of slavery in the new country.

Before moving on, let’s go back to the "rst clause of Section 2, and brie#y address the

treatment of corporations. We address it here, rather than in the paragraph above on that

clause, because for now it is a side-note. It will, however, lay essential groundwork for

when we look, later, at the 14th Amendment – and see how perversions of that

amendment lead directly to some of the problems we face today. “Corporation” is de"ned

in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “a body formed and authorized by law to act as a

single person although constituted by one or more persons and legally endowed withvarious rights and duties including the capacity of succession.” According to the Concise

Encyclopedia, a corporation is a “speci"c legal form of organization of persons and

material resources, chartered by the state, for the purpose of conducting business.” It

goes on to list important characteristics of corporations, including “juridical personality

(the corporation itself as a "ctive “person”), ha[ving] legal standing and may thus sue and

be sued, make contracts, and hold property.” What all this legal gobbledygook means, in

essence, is that a corporation is treated legally in many ways as though it were a “natural”

(#esh-and-blood) person.

Section 3 has two clauses that address the formation of new states and jurisdiction over

non-state territories. The "rst clause gives the rules for admittance of new states.

Congress may admit new states. If a state wishes to partition itself, or if two (or more)

states wish to conjoin into one (or each carve o% some territory to donate to a new state),

the legislatures of all the states involved AND Congress must approve. New states have an

equal basis with pre-existing states, and the same privileges and responsibilities. Texas

was an independent Republic before it joined the US, and special rules apply under the


f 7 6/21/16, 10



Resolution of Annexation – Texas may decide on its own to create up to four additional

states from out of its own territory.

The second clause in this section grants Congress the power to make “needful” rules and

regulations in US territories or other property. In addition to places like Puerto Rico,

American Samoa, and Guam, this includes national parks and forests, wildlife refuges,

Bureau of Land Management areas, Indian reservations, and other types of land. Weshould all be aware of this especially with the Federal land takeovers (especially in the

western states) in recent years. At the time the Constitution was written, several states

had claims on territories (almost exclusively to the west) outside those states. They were

concerned that the new Congress would supersede their administration of those areas.

This last section of the clause was speci"cally to address those concerns. The states’

interests were given the same protection in their land claims as the federal government

was given. History shows that those extra-state claims were later handled successfully – so

this clause was successful in serving its purpose.

Section 4 of Article IV should be center stage in a couple of large issues today. It is called

the “Guarantee Clause,” because its terms require the federal government to make speci"c

provisions to all the states. In only one sentence, this section addresses three separate

and important issues a% ecting every state, and so it is included here verbatim (as well as

appended below). “The United States shall guarantee to every State in the Union a

Republican form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on

Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be

convened), against domestic Violence.

Let’s split this long sentence into its component parts. “A Republican form of government”

expresses the Founders disgust for and disdain of “democracy.” Unfettered democracy is

mob rule, with no protection for the rights and interests of individuals or minority groups.

As Madison says so beautifully in Federalist #10, democracies “...have ever been found

incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as

short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths.” This portion of the guarantee

clause ensures the protection of the minority interests of the inhabitants of all the states,

by guaranteeing a republic – that form of government based on laws and principles that

no majority (or super-majority) vote can overturn. They were also attempting to preventthe inclusion of monarchist, collectivist, or socialist forms of government. Private property

– and individual rights based on property (starting with one’s own body) – cannot be

protected under any system that denies the existence – or the morality – of individual,

private property.

“Shall protect each of them against Invasion,” at the time of its writing the Founders were

thinking of Great Britain, Spain, French-Canadian, and Indian incursions – yet they knew


f 7 6/21/16, 10



full well that time would bring new threats. This clause works with Article I, Section 8,

clause 15, where Congress is granted the power to call forth the militia to “repel

Invasions.” Madison writes in Federalist #43 “...protection against invasion is due from

every society to the parts composing it...” They were also concerned that a President from,

say, South Carolina, would favor protecting his home state of South Carolina in an attack

and send all military forces to protect that state, even if both Vermont and South Carolina

were under attack.

It is obvious to anyone willing to observe disinterested fact that the Federal government

has absolutely, unequivocally, and utterly abrogated its duty to the states by refusing to

secure our borders against those entering this country illegally. Whether the purpose is “a

better life,” “escape from oppression,” or the intention to carry out nefarious attacks

against our citizens, states, country, and sovereignty, does not matter. It is the duty of the

Federal government to protect the states against invasion. (It is the duty of Congress to

"nd appropriate ways to address the legitimate desires of non-Americans to come here

legally; see Article 1, Section 8, clause 4.) The current administration has even gone to theridiculous lengths of bringing lawsuit in Federal courts to stop actions taken by states to

protect themselves. They also show their utter lack of knowledge of the Constitution by

bringing these suits in Federal District Courts, even though the Constitution clearly states

in Article III, Section 2, 2nd paragraph that “[i]n all cases... in which a State shall be Party,

the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction.” Any judge with even the #imsiest

understanding of (and respect for) the Constitution should throw such cases out of court.

Any that do not do so should be removed from o$ce by impeachment, as they have

broken their oath to uphold the Constitution (or demonstrated their un"tness to hold

o$ce through ignorance of that which they have sworn to uphold).

This leaves us with the issue of states su% ering from repeated invasion that the federal

government refuses to address. Are the states required just to sit there and be overrun?

NO! Remember, the states retain sovereignty and have the right (and the duty!) to call out

their militias to protect themselves. Article 1, Section 10, last clause, states, “[n]o state

shall... keep troops... or engage in war, unless actually invaded...” demonstrating very

clearly that the states retain the right and ability to call forth their militias to repel

invasions. Hamilton even declares, in Federalist #29, “...it would be natural and proper

that the militia of a neighboring state should be marched into another, to resist a commonenemy...” so it would be perfectly permissible and Constitutional for Arizona and California

to join forces to protect their southern borders. Not only that, but if Nebraska found itself

facing a raft of ills due to the presence of illegal aliens, IT could send its militia to Arizona,

too! Admittedly, the Founders thought the most likely common enemy of the states would

(eventually) be the federal government. Madison addresses this directly in Federalist #46

and he does not counsel the states to acquiesce and become subservient; no, he describes

various types of non-violent resistance methods to be used by a state or combination of


f 7 6/21/16, 10



states. However, should the federal government become so outrageous that it sends the

army against the states, he speaks directly of the use of the armed citizenry and the state

militia to resist. He also posits this as being highly unlikely to happen because of the

requirement for “a blind and tame submission to the long train of insidious measures

which must precede and produce it.” Mr. Madison was spared the sight of today’s federal

government, refusing its duty to protect, and actually taking o% ensive actions against

states endeavoring to require the federal government to do its duty, and to protectthemselves in the absence of federal aid.

As for the very last clause in this section, it establishes limits for when the federal

government may come in to a state to protect it against domestic violence. The federal

government is not allowed to send troops into a state on its own estimation that domestic

violence is occurring (or about to occur). It must wait until the state legislature requests

federal assistance. If that legislature is not in session and cannot be quickly called into

session, then the governor of that state may make the request. We’ve seen a recent

example of this clause in action recently – during and immediately after Hurricane Katrina. Then-President Bush was widely vili"ed for his delay in sending the National Guard to

assist Louisiana with its troubles during and after the hurricane. Yet he could not legally

act until the request for assistance was made (he even called both o$cials on 8/28, asking

them to request federal aid – they refused)! There was certainly plenty of incompetence

and blame to spread in the aftermath of that storm (especially FEMA’s poor e% orts) – but

let us at least be honest that this was not a dastardly attempt on the part of President

Bush to drown the Ninth Ward. Katrina was one of the largest, most powerful (Category 5),

most long-lasting storms ever to hit the mainland. It made landfall in an area that is

horribly vulnerable to #ooding, and is protected by a levee system built to protect it from aCategory 3 hurricane and which had a long backlog of remedial repairs needed. No matter

what the response on the local, state, and federal levels, Katrina would have done just as

much physical damage. The federal government was not in charge of evacuations, could

not order or enforce mandatory evacuations, or assist the local personnel with

evacuations. Any person remaining in the Lower Ninth Ward was at risk, and there was no

recourse once the storm hit. After the storm, there was plenty of mismanagement and

incompetence on all those same fronts: local, state, and federal. Yet the fact remains,

federal aid could not be sent in until it was requested by the state of Louisiana.

References:

*Constitution of the United States of America

*Badnarik, Michael “Good To Be King” 2004 The Writer’s Collective

*Skousen, W. Cleon “The 5,000 Year Leap” 2006 National Center for Constitutional Studies

*Hamilton, Madison, Jay “The Federalist Papers” 2001 Dover

*Heritage Guide to the Constitution www.heritage.org


f 7 6/21/16, 10



*Justia US Law law.justia.com

*Publius Huldah’s blog at http://publiushuldah.wordpress.com

*McGarity & Kysar “Did NEPA Drown New Orleans? The Levees, The Blame Game, and the

Hazards of Hindsight.” 2006 Cornell Law Faculty Publications

©2012 by the author

Article IV:

Article IV Section 1 Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts,

Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general

Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved,

and the E% ect thereof.

Section 2 Cl 1: The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities

of Citizens in the several States.

Cl 2: A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shall #ee

from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of

the State from which he #ed, be delivered up, to be removed to the State

havingJurisdiction of the Crime.

Cl 3: No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof, escapinginto another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged from

such Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such

Service or Labour may be due. (Changed by 13th Amendment, Section 1)

Section 3 Cl 1: New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new

State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be

formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of

the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

Cl 2: The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and

Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and

nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United

States, or of any particular State.

Section 4 The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form

of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the


f 7 6/21/16, 10



Version: Mobile Web (?view=full)|

Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against

domestic Violence.

Web Hosting (http://www.ipage.com/) by iPage


f 7 6/21/16 10

Documents

US Constitution: Article IV - The U.S. Constitution - Decoded!