Petty dictatorships are proliferating in the federal government.

• Author: Bovard, James

THE FIFTH AMENDMENT to the Constitution states: "No person shall be ... deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1787: "A bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth." Unfortunately for Americans, the Bill of Rights--the most important treaty between the government and the citizenry--often is shown as little respect by Federal courts as were the early treaties between the Federal government and Indian tribes. The government is obliged to respect its promises to the citizens, unless, of course, it is convenient to renege on those pledges.

In its day-to-day operation, the Federal government increasingly is a pseudo-benevolent dictatorship. The Supreme Court declared in 1971 in California v. Byers: "The sweep of modern governmental regulation ... could of course be thought to present a significant threat to the...