Congressional power of enforcement

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A Congressional power of enforcement is included in a number of amendments to the United States Constitution. The language "The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation" is used, with slight variations, in Amendments XIII, XIV, XV, XIX, XXIII, XXIV, and XXVI.

The variations in the pertinent language are as follows:

• The Fourteenth Amendment states "The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article."
• The Eighteenth Amendment states "The Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."