The 10th Amendment Is Being Bypassed—And It’s Already Happening Here

April 25, 2025

Recently at the DMV, I was asked if I wanted a REAL ID. The lady behind the counter said I was “free” to get a non-REAL ID driver’s license, of course—but then I’d need to carry a passport just to board a domestic flight.

So I asked her, “Aren’t there states that are objecting to this? What happened to the ones that resisted?”

She replied, “All states have complied. Because otherwise the folks in those states wouldn’t be allowed in federal buildings or on commercial flights.”

Now, I won’t get into all the technical reasons why a passport is different from a REAL ID here. But I’ll tell you what hit me hard after that conversation: we don’t really have a 10th Amendment anymore.

Let’s not sugarcoat it. The federal government is bypassing the Constitution.

Not just a little bit. Not in secret. They’re doing it boldly, systematically, and openly—right in front of us. And they’re using your own state as the tool to do it.

The founding fathers intended every state to be sovereign and be able to rise or fail on their own merits. They feared the tyranny of the Crown that they had left. It’s a very valid fear. They no more wanted a King George than they wanted a King Washington DC. Remember the Who song? Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”

The 10th Amendment is supposed to protect states from federal overreach. It says,

“”The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

That means Washington, D.C. doesn’t get to run your schools, your highways, your IDs, or your energy policy unless the Constitution clearly says so.

But that’s not how it works anymore. Because the federal government found a workaround: coercion disguised as cooperation.

How the Federal Government Bypasses the 10th Amendment

Instead of passing laws that the Constitution won’t allow, the feds say:

• “Want your citizens to fly? Then you better adopt REAL ID.”
• “Want highway funds? Raise the drinking age.”
• “Want disaster relief? Prove your climate plan lines up with ours.”
• “Want school funding? Teach our DEI, transgender curriculum.”

This isn’t negotiation. It’s blackmail.

They’re not forcing states to obey—they’re manipulating states to enforce federal policy by threatening the people’s access to essential services.

That is not federalism. That is tyranny with a polite face.

Social Credit: The Warning from China

Some will say, “Oh Neil, this is the U.S.—that’ll never happen here.”

It already has. It’s just not called social credit yet.

In China, the Communist Party runs a social credit system. It tracks behavior. It scores citizens. And if your score’s too low, you’re banned from flights, trains, schools, jobs, and even access to your own bank account.

They say it’s for “security” and “stability.” Sound familiar?

What’s our version?

• A system where your travel depends on your state’s compliance.
• A system where your medical history can decide your job status.
• A system where your access to federal aid depends on your alignment with the current political ideology.
• A system where they can close your bank account because they don’t like your opposition to the narrative.

They don’t need to implant chips or send police to your door. All they have to do is link compliance to access—and suddenly, you’re free to do anything they allow.

The structures are already in place. All it takes is the wrong leader, the wrong emergency, and a few executive orders. Freedom would be gone before people even realize it.

States Have Rights Too—And They Cannot Be Discriminated Against

Here’s a principle Americans understand instinctively: The government cannot discriminate against individuals. If one person receives a benefit or access, others must be treated equally, unless there’s a compelling legal reason grounded in law and justice.

The same principle applies to states.

• If one state receives disaster aid, another state cannot be denied just because it didn’t adopt the “right” federal policies.
• If one state’s ID is accepted for air travel, another state’s ID cannot be rejected simply because that state chose to exercise its sovereignty.

States are not vassals. They are not federal subsidiaries. They are the very bodies that formed the federal government in the first place. They retain the independent authority to govern in all areas not specifically delegated to Washington.

And just as the federal government cannot punish an individual for exercising a right that preexists government, it cannot punish a state for exercising powers that preexist federal control.

This is not just about fairness. It’s about the structure of the Republic itself.

And it’s important to say this too: a majority of states cannot gang up against the rights of other states, just like a majority of citizens cannot gang up against the rights of an individual. Rights are rights. Neither the federal government nor any majority vote has the authority to override them. The only legitimate role of the federal government—or any majority—is to enforce objective rights, not to invent new controls or strip away freedoms.

If you don’t know the difference between a real right and something else, watch this video:
kansaspolitics.j3ip.com

We Don’t Really Have a 10th Amendment If We Can Be Manipulated

If your state can be coerced into compliance simply because your citizens would otherwise be cut off from travel, funds, or services—your state is not free.
It is not independent.
It is a hostage.

That means the 10th Amendment is not functioning as a shield anymore—it’s paper without teeth.

If Washington can control state behavior through bribes and threats, the federal system designed by the Founders is already dead in practice, no matter what the paper says.

We Need a Legal Firewall—Now

We need legislation—state and federal—that declares:

“The federal government shall not deny access to travel, benefits, facilities, or services based on a state’s refusal to enforce policies beyond the federal government’s constitutionally enumerated powers.”

We also need to go further:

“The federal government shall treat all states equally, without imposing penalties, exclusions, or access restrictions based solely on a state’s lawful exercise of its reserved powers.”

The Constitution exists to restrict government, not to enable it to manipulate and punish those who hold to liberty.

We do not need permission to be free.
We need leadership willing to defend that freedom.

By the way, if you want to convince a liberal to agree with you, start by asking them if they want Trump and the Federal Government to have more power to control their lives and their states. I   submitted this article to Gemini, Google’s ultra left AI. I said, a conservative gave me this, refute it. It started by saying how we needed security and things are nuanced. I then asked it if it really wanted Trump to have more power and become a dictator and have access to all our data and be able to coerce the states to do what he wanted them to do. It immediately changed its tune and said that this was an overreach.

CALL TO ACTION

Mail this article to your senator and representative. Attach a sticky note if you have to. Email it. Print it. Walk it into their office.

Ask them directly:

“Are you an employee of the people, or are you a pawn of a federal cabal?”

“Do you represent the individuality and independence of your state, or are you content to let Washington determine your laws by financial threat?”

“Do you want Trump (if they are liberal) or Biden (if they are conservative)—or the next president—to dictate what your state must do, regardless of what the Constitution protects?”

If not—then propose this bill in Congress. Restore the 10th Amendment. Protect the people from federal blackmail.

Send this to your rep here:
https://live.cicerodata.com/live/local

Note: I fixed the REAL ID issue for our family by getting passport cards—a little card that looks like a driver’s license but is really a mini passport. It’s only good for land and sea travel in North America, but it gets us on planes. If you already have a passport, you can apply for one online now. I staggered our passport and our passport card, so when one expires we still have the other while we wait for the renewal. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-passport/card.html

Objections

Objection 1: “But it’s voluntary. States don’t have to comply.”
Answer: That’s manipulation. If saying “no” means your citizens are banned from flying or getting aid, it’s not voluntary. If I “voluntarily” give you my wallet because you’re threatening to kill me or deny me access to travel, courts don’t call that a gift—they call it coercion. Voluntary compliance under threat is still tyranny. It’s coercion wrapped in a velvet glove.

Objection 2: “It’s for safety and national security.”
Answer: That’s the oldest excuse for tyranny in history. Liberty is always sacrificed “for safety.” The Founders rejected that lie. The REAL ID law came about because of 9-11. But remember none of the 9-11 hijackers were US citizens and they could have gotten REAL ID just as easily, all you have to do is show proof of where you live with a utility bill and a rental agreement. Let’s not forget: foreign tourists can still fly on U.S. domestic flights using nothing more than their foreign passports that they could have picked up by just paying a bribe. No REAL ID required. No U.S. address. No proof of state residency. Why is air travel restricted only for Americans who refuse REAL ID, but not foreigners?

Objection 3: “It’s not a national ID; states still issue them”

Answer: If all states are forced to follow the same standards, feed data into the same system, and restrict access to federal services without compliance—that’s a national ID in function.

Objection 4: “It’s already settled law.”
Answer: Slavery was once settled law. So was segregation. Bad laws don’t get a pass just because they’ve been around a while.

Objection 5: “You’re overreacting—this isn’t China.”
Answer: Not yet. But the structure is already in place. We’ve already seen a taste of it with mandates and lockdowns. Freedom lost by inches is still freedom lost.

Objection 6: “It’s not realistic to pass this kind of law.”
Answer: It wasn’t realistic to win independence from Britain either. It happened because a few brave men stood up and said, “Enough.” We don’t need realism. We need courage.