William H. Fitzpatrick

“ This is government by treaty.
Under this concept the House of Representatives will have no voice in adoption of any domestic legislation contained in a self-executing valid treaty. It means a change in our form of government, for the House of Representatives was fashioned to make its Members more directly answerable to the people by election every 2 years.
Government by treaty means, in the ultimate, destruction of the Bill of Rights. ”

“ The Supreme Court has never expressly declared any treaty ratified by the Senate invalid.
The Supreme Court has upheld a law enacted to place teeth in a treaty after it had declared the same law unconstitutional before the treaty was ratified. ”

“ The Government could also close down universities and radio stations, seize and burn books and pamphlets, and disperse any assembly of citizens gathered together to question such steps.
Are these the "rights" a free people will welcome for themselves? ”

“ But if the policy of our Government ts to agree to these lower standards on the premise that forsaking our own historic ideals is necessary in the interest of world peace and understanding, then there is a way to implement that policy of compromise and still maintain our own traditional rights and freedoms. ”

“ Students of constitutional and international law point out that the effect of the Covenant may be even more far-reaching than that. It may be held to nullify articles of the Bill of Rights.
There is much in the various articles of the Covenant which can be criticized. This series of editorials will discuss four articles only. ”

“ That the National Constitution is an enabling instrument, and therefore Congress possesses only such powers as are expressly or by necessary implications granted by that instrument, is not questioned. ”

“ The question in each case is whether the words are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has the right to prevent. ”

“ In March, 1949, this newspaper in a series of seven editorials pointed to the dangers in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in December 1948, by the General Assembly of the United Nations. ”

“ There is some indication that the Supreme Court might decline to take jurisdiction to declare treaties invalid on the ground that they involve political questions, thus leaving treaties subject to the unrestricted power of the President and Senate. ”