Justice Department attorneys are advancing an argument at the Supreme Court that could allow the government to invoke international treaties as a legal basis for policies such as gun control that conflict with the U.S. Constitution, according to Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.<\/p>\n
Their argument is that a law implementing an international treaty signed by the U.S. allows the federal government to prosecute a criminal case that would normally be handled by state or local authorities.<\/p>\n
That is a dangerous argument, according to Cruz.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Constitution created a limited federal government with only specific enumerated powers,\u201d Cruz told the Washington Examiner prior to giving a speech on the issue today at the Heritage Foundation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Supreme Court should not interpret the treaty power in a manner that undermines this bedrock protection of individual liberty,\u201d Cruz said.<\/p>\n
In his speech, Cruz said the Justice Department is arguing \u201can absurd proposition\u201d that \u201ccould be used as a backdoor way to undermine\u201d Second Amendment rights, among other things.<\/p>\n
The underlying case, Bond v. United States, involves a woman charged with violating the international ban on chemical weapons because she used toxic chemicals to harass a former friend who had an affair with her husband.<\/p>\n
Under the Constitution, such an offense would be handled at the state level. In Bond\u2019s case, the federal government prosecuted her under the Chemical Weapons Convention Implementation Act.<\/p>\n
That law implements the Chemical Weapons Convention, the international treaty Syrian dictator Bashar Assad is accused of violating in that country\u2019s vicious civil war.<\/p>\n