Constitution or Not
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776.
Government derives it power from those that are governed. Progressives have some issue with this concept, they are looking to return to a despotism, that form of government that our founders where so opposed. A federal republic was the chosen government for a reason.
There was a system that was put in place to amend, at times, when there was a need. It is not an easy system to make a change. The reason was to keep whims of the masses at bay. It was to insure that when a change was made it was for reason and purpose.
This republican notion was not for the creation of a dictator or an attempt to institute a monarch, hence the reason that elections should be held after a few years. That was the reason that those that were elected were tied to small group of people, in relation to the whole. It would make those that served truly accountable to those which had chose them.
The voice of the people was to be the House of Representatives. Elections every two years would insure that that those representatives would carry out the wishes of their districts. It would tie them to their neighbors. They would be accountable.
The Senate was to be the voice of the states as a whole. Their election of every six years would allow a more balance approach to their votes and remove pressure to act. They would act in the interest of each state and each said state would therefore be insured equal treatment by an equal number. They would be the check against the people’s whim and provide a check against despotism of the executive. (Amendment 17 ended this check.)
“We the People” from the preamble of the constitution states who gave to whom. The people gave only certain power to the national government. All rights of the people were not passed to the federal system. That was a grantee when amendment 10 was passed. 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.”
Our Founders believed in the ideal of personal responsibility. They did not subscribe to the premise that a national system could solve all problems for all persons. Their belief in personal responsibility was their premise for their actions and the form of government that they authored and the people accepted.
As we approach the day on which we celebrate the birth of the United States of America, we should reflect on the words of our Founders. What their hopes for us, their prosperity, maybe not by birth but by time. They did in fact give us the right to choose our destiny. They put their faith and hope in our hands, not the government. It is time that we stood up and accepted our responsibilities.
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