Category — Constitution

Gouverneur Morris was quite a writer. It was Morris who gave us the magnificent style and beautiful prose of the Constitution. But, he was much more than an editor. He had quite a lot to say during the convention.   Read the rest of this entry »

During the second half of the eighteenth century, the United States was blessed with numerous renaissance men and several geniuses. Benjamin Franklin was both.   Read the rest of this entry »

If you have a couple minutes, read through this interesting chronology of letters between George Washington and some of the luminaries of Virginia Society. Washington had only recently returned from the Constitutional Conventions, at which he had served as "impartial" president, lending his prestige to the gathering. He did such a good job of being fair, that even people who were fellow participants weren't entirely sure where he stood! Unless, that is, you were part of the inner circle, as was James Madison. Oh, and yes, it's Friday so there's a crossword puzzle with words taken from these letters! It's pretty easy this week. Good luck!   Read the rest of this entry »

Roger Sherman was the only Founder to sign all the major documents of the era, and he was on the final committees for the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution. Admired by his contemporaries, political friends and enemies alike, "the old puritan" was an omnipresent patriot during our founding who wasn't afraid to stand up for his beliefs.   Read the rest of this entry »

The system of checks and balances we gloss over in the education system deserves a closer look. The Constitution is a contract that ensures those checks and balances and that the government is ultimately answerable to the people. It's not a "living document" as so many would have us believe. No lawyer believes in a living contract. If something isn’t working properly, then the contract must be amended, and contracts are amended every day all over this country. In fact, the United States Constitution has been amended twenty-seven times. That doesn't mean that the contract is subject to interpretation - just amendment through the designated process.   Read the rest of this entry »

As readers of WWTFT know, Jon Bruning is the Attorney General for the state of Nebraska and recently announced his candidacy for the US Senate. He has also become a regular contributor at WWTFT. Given the recent ruling by Judge Vinson, we thought our readers might like to hear from Jon on the subject. With that in mind Jim and I asked him a few questions in a brief (but exclusive!) interview.   Read the rest of this entry »

With everyone in the blogosphere talking about Judge Vinson's ruling on the constitutionality of the health care bill, we were initially going to opt out from chiming in. But, upon reading the ruling, we were amazed to see how much philosophical analysis (not just case law) went into the decision ... the majority of which asks a question which is near and dear to our hearts.   Read the rest of this entry »

Guest blogger, Michael Newton examines the process by which the Founders decided upon the electoral college method of choosing the president. He finds their decision to be an important part of the system of checks and balances they put in place and warns against weakening it.   Read the rest of this entry »

The authors challenge popular perceptions of George Washington, drawing upon history to make their case. They also provide a glimpse of what those ignorant of our founding history are missing.   Read the rest of this entry »

James Madison was another indispensable man. Every American owes a debt of gratitude to the man called the Father of the Constitution. Madison was instrumental in getting the convention together, hammering out compromises during the convention, in fighting for ratification, and in getting the Bill of Rights through the first Congress. Oh, and he also served as the 4th President of the United States.   Read the rest of this entry »