Preserving The Constitution And Bill Of Rights

The United States of America is more than just a country on a map, it is an idea; an idea captured eloquently by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence when he wrote: “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…”¹ Precisely how the government of the United States is to be “constituted among men” and how the government is to derive its “just powers from the consent of the governed” is set forth in the Constitution.

The Constitution is under attack by leftist ideologues who are trying to change it in ways so drastic the government President Abraham Lincoln said should be “of the people, by the people, and for the people”² is being transformed into a government of the state, by the state, and for the state. If Americans do not do what is necessary to reverse this trend and restore the Constitution to the original intent of the founders, the great experiment described by Thomas Jefferson will fail and the idea of America will die.

A BRIEF REVIEW OF THE CONSTITUTION

It is a sad fact that many Americans have never read the U.S. Constitution. This must change. If we are going to preserve the Constitution and Bill of Rights as part of the blueprint for saving America, we must know what these documents say. The information contained in this chapter is the minimum all Americans should know about the Constitution.

The Constitution is one of the most significant documents ever written. In fact, for Americans the three most important documents in existence are the Holy Bible, Declaration of Independence, and Constitution. All three are under attack from the left. All three must be preserved if our country is to be saved and restored.

Known as the father of the Constitution, James Madison kept a journal of the debates that occurred during the development of the original document. From Madison’s notes we can learn much about the men who developed the document. Writing about the framers of the Constitution, historians Edward S. Greenburg and Benjamin I. Page noted that “…the delegates were conversant with the great works of Western philosophy and political science; with great facility and frequency, they quoted Aristotle, Plato, Locke, Montesquieu, and scores of other thinkers. They were also surprisingly young, averaging barely over 40 years of age. Finally, these delegates, who became the framers of the U.S. Constitution, had broad experience in American politics—most had served in their state legislatures—and many were veterans of the Revolutionary War.”³

If the Declaration of Independence represents America’s vision, the Constitution is the game plan for realizing that vision. Key principles in the Constitution as set forth by the founders are:

Republican Form of Government. A form of government based on consent of the governed, it includes guards against pure majoritarian democracy while also protecting against all forms of government tyranny. With Republicanism, public policies are made by representatives elected by the people rather than directly by the people themselves, as would be the case with pure majoritarian democracy. Federalist papers numbers 10 and 51 written by James Madison, describe the republican form of government, America’s particular form of republican government, and the rationale for it in greater detail.

Selection of Government Leaders by Election. The people’s representatives—Congresspeople and women, Senators, and the President—who make public policy are elected by the people. Of course, in the case of the President there is the Electoral College, but the people still elect the President indirectly. This approach ensures there is popular consent of the governed and participation by the governed while also protecting against the possibility of a tyrannical government of the few that rules the many.

Limited Federalism. The Constitution did away with the loose confederation of states established by its predecessor, the Articles of Confederation. In its place was established a federal system, but a limited federal system. In this system, some powers are given to the federal government, some are forbidden to the states, some are shared by the state and federal governments, and the rest are left to the states. Article VI, Section 2, of the Constitution, known as the “Supremacy Clause,” describes the federal system it established: “This Constitution and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every state shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution of Laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding.”⁴ In other words, the Constitution established a limited federal system with the power to perform certain specified tasks. The federal government has the authority to regulate commerce, provide a uniform currency, provide uniform laws on bankruptcy, raise and support an Army and Navy, declare war, collect taxes, provide for the common defense, collect custom duties, and other powers vital to national well-being (see Article I, Section 8 for a complete listing of the federal government’s powers), but leaves the majority of powers in the hands of the state governments.

Limited Government. The founders made sure they carefully defined what the government could and could not do. In other words, they envisioned limited government and developed a document—the Constitution—to ensure government would be limited. The limitations on the federal government are contained in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, Article I, Section 9, and the Bill of Rights. Article I, Section 8 lists what the federal government may do. Article I, Section 9 lists what the federal government may not do. The Bill of Rights—the first ten amendments to the Constitution—provide important protections for the individual from the national government, and protects the powers retained by the states.

Barriers to Pure Majority Rule. Concerned about the potential abuses of pure majority rule—for example mob rule—the founders included several safeguards in the Constitution to preclude majoritarian democracy. These safeguards include a bicameral legislative branch (a Congress consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives), unelected judiciary, limits on the powers of the federal government, indirect election of the president (Electoral College), and various checks and balances, including federalism—a system of separation of power and checks and balances between the state and federal governments.

Separation of Powers. The founders were concerned about misrule and excesses on the part of all three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. They dealt with this problem by applying the concept of balanced government envisioned by the French philosopher Montesquieu. Balanced government is based on an awareness of the sinful nature of man and the principle it is dangerous to give any one branch of government too much power. This danger is overcome by dividing up the various powers of government and distributing them among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. This separation of powers was codified in the Constitution with Article I am listing the legislative powers, Article II the executive powers, and Article III the judicial powers. The founders also included many ways the three branches of government check each other by ensuring no branch of government can perform its duties solely on its own. Rather, each branch requires the cooperation of the other branches. For example, the Supreme Court can declare executive acts to be unconstitutional, but the President nominates judges to the Supreme Court. Congress enacts laws, but the President can veto them. The Supreme Court can declare acts of Congress unconstitutional, but federal judges must be confirmed by the Senate, Congress controls the Supreme Court’s budget, and Congress can impeach federal judges. As Federalist Number 51 and others make clear, federalism provides a double security for the rights of the people by establishing a separation of powers as well as checks and balances between the national and state governments.

We hope this brief overview of Constitutional principles provides a perspective concerning what is at stake in the battle over the sovereignty and integrity of the Constitution as presented in the remainder of this chapter. It is these fundamental Constitutional principles that are under attack from the left.