Let’s
quote a few from the Declaration of Independence to begin this essay.
“
. . . endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights . . . That to
secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed.”
Please
note the words, “Governments are instituted
among men”. By whom?
That
question is answered by the following clause, “deriving their just powers from
the consent of the governed.”
Fairly
clear, wouldn’t you say?
Governments
are created (instituted) by men and receive their powers from the consent of those
intended to be governed by whatever compact is negotiated. All governments are man made. They are not
natural. As a result, they must be
judged in relation to natural law or existence.
Nothing
is said about God granting a government to “certain individuals or
groups”. Nor is any other entity
indicated as having the power or right to “institute a government” among
men. Only those who comprise the
citizenry of whatever the “union” is can grant the powers to a central
authority to govern their actions. More importantly, as noted in that same
document, a government was instituted “to secure those rights” which were
described as unalienable.
Therefore,
if we pursue a logical explanation of government, no group or group of
individuals has a right to dictate to the rest of the citizens, who have agreed
to the compact, or to perform any functions, services or extract any tributes
other than those prescribed by the compact itself. The government was strictly limited to the
terms of the compact.
The
Founders never envisaged a government of career politicians or a ruling
elite. They expected citizens elected to
or appointed to a government position to serve relatively short terms ( 2 years
for Representatives and 6 for Senators)
and then return to civilian life and gainful employment of whatever form.
Man
is borne free! Slavery, in any form, is
always an imposed condition, not a natural one, and is most often external in
terms of source. It is extremely
doubtful that any individual would willingly submit themselves to a slave
status. Yet, that appears to be what can
happen when the citizens, knowingly or unknowingly vote powers above, beyond or
outside those originally established in the compact by which the union was
created. By incremental steps, the
government becomes all powerful and the citizens become subjects. History keeps showing us what happens when
this occurs and the plight of the citizens residing in such a state. As Jefferson said early on, “a government
powerful enough to give a citizen everything he wants is powerful enough to
take everything he has!”
Regardless
of how a government comes into being, there is a basic truism, “governments
have nothing of their own. They must
first take whatever it is from the citizens (ne subjects!).” This seems to be forgotten too often in
today’s politically correct onslaught as the elected officials continue to
spend and spend, tax and tax, elect and elect, exempting themselves from the
more onerous conditions of any legislation they pass.
The
Founding Fathers sought in every way possible to “preserve, protect and defend”
the individual rights of the citizens they represented. They consequently created a Constitution to
restrain and restrict the federal government to only those basic powers considered
necessary and appropriate. Limited
government? Absolutely! Because the government was founded by the
citizens, it must be responsive to them, not
responsible for them!
