Category — Founding Fathers

James Best’s latest book, Principled Action provides an excellent analysis of the American Founding and what made it unique. However, it also provides considerable insight into the motivations of the current grass-roots movement for a return to constitutionalism. Thus Principled Action is 9 parts history and 1 part political philosophy.

The following is an excerpt from an essay written by Fisher Ames while Massachusetts was struggling with the Shays’ Rebellion in 1786. The man could write!

Some of the Federalist Papers are, well, a tad bit dry. However, if you dig deeply enough, it seems that there is always something to consider, that there is always at least one paragraph that piques your interest. Here is one such paragraph from Federalist No. 26.

Today is the 261st anniversary of the birth of James Madison. Madison was the Father of the Constitution, the Father of the Bill of Rights, and our fourth president. He was a small man. In fact, a contemporary claimed he was “no bigger than half a piece of soap.” Despite a soft voice, he successfully debated Patrick Henry, who at the time was considered the best orator in the United States. His voice might have been low and a bit high, but his words were powerful. It seems fitting that on his birthday that we allow Madison to speak for himself.

William Moultrie was a general from South Carolina in the Revolutionary War. He was a man of honor and integrity as these letters will attest. When the royal governor of South Carolina, Lord Charles Montagu, attempted to convince him to switch sides, Moultrie rebuffed his efforts in no uncertain terms. Moultrie was a prisoner at the time, having been captured when Charleston fell to the British in 1780.

A few days ago, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg talked on Egyptian television about the United States Constitution. Constitutional conservatives were taken aback by her advice.

President Obama has adopted a divide and conquer strategy to win reelection. He seems intent on pitting non-whites against whites, atheists against the religious, the gun-phobic against Second Amendment advocates, city dwellers against the heartland, and most important, everyone against the rich. Is this a winning strategy? Not normally.

Many think the Founding Fathers were a bunch of old-fogies who lived way before iProducts, and have little to contribute in handling modern economic issues. Those people would be wrong. Today’s biggest problem is a stumbling economy that is not generating jobs. This is only the second time that the American economy has not come roaring out a downturn that was measured in months, not years. The other time, of course, was the Great Depression, when we followed the same economic policies as today. What would the Founders think about our current economic problems? Here is what they said in their own words.

The Founders distrusted overly strong governments. That’s why they engineered a limited republic. Today, Americans seem to turn to their government to validate and protect real and presumed rights, and increasingly rely on government to guarantee the substance of life. Many modern Americans embrace national authority and fight to enlarge governmental powers. The Founders would be appalled. What would the Founders think about growing government power? Here is what they said in their own words.

President Obama is fighting for respect from not just his opponents but also from his constituents. The left is quick to point out the “disrespect” they see inherent in criticism directed at the President, but they rarely investigate why this lack of respect is so pervasive.

Their premise is wrong. Every president has been subject to criticism (think of what Lincoln endured) cartoons, Saturday-night-live lampoons, and political humor come with the job. This one apparently thinks he should be immune. He is not king and we are not his subjects. We do not genuflect.