The question over whether the government can constitutionally do something is hardly ever discussed today in the halls of Congress. Politicians on both sides of the aisle care little whether or not the Constitution gives them the power to do something but only if they can get away with it. For most politicians the Constitution is nothing more than an antiquated document that once had a role in government, but has long been cast aside into the dustbin of history.

The modern politician, by in large, cares little of history, legality, and common sense. They only care about their reelection and increasing their power and influence in Washington. As long as their side is getting their way, then nothing else matters. The long term consequences of their decisions matters little as long as they are “king of the hill” today. There are many reasons for this, but if you want to blame someone all you have to do is look into the mirror. To borrow and a line from “The Dark Knight,” “because it’s the government we deserve, but not the one we need right now.” We have strayed not only as a nation, but individually from the Constitution, which is why we are stuck with the losers we have now in Washington, in the words of James Madison, “But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?”   

The Founders were a diverse group of people with many differing ideas but when it came to the purpose and size of government there was little disagreement, when taken in context. They all saw government as a “necessary evil” and believed in the phrase, “that government is best which governs least.” Any person that advocates what is known today as ‘big government’ policies should not be able to say with a straight face, that they believe in the Constitution.

This is easily proven. Just take a look at the first form of national government that they organized. It is known as the ‘Articles of Confederation.’ This form of government was a loose confederation of the 13 states. They could choose to pay or not to pay taxes to fund the revolution. They were under no requirement to supply men, weapons, or supplies of any kind to the war effort. In a nut shell the federal government, under the Articles of Confederation, only controlled the army and relations with foreign countries. The Articles created such a weak national government that it almost cost the colonies the war. 

After the War of Independence was over a meeting was called to fix the Articles and give the federal government more power. The Articles were so faulty that they threw them out and started over. After many long debates they compromised and ratified the Constitution. What we should learn from the failure of the Articles of Confederation is that the Founders first attempt/choice of national government, was so limited and weak that it couldn’t run a fairly limited war let alone a complex health care system.

The Founders all knew that government’s natural tendency was to grow. They took great care to limit it to certain functions in an attempt to reign in this trait. It is no coincidence that the Legislature comes first in the Constitution and that it is also the longest. The Founders from their own experience knew that it was the Legislative Branch most prone to abuse its power as had the British Parliament so longed abused them. They then moved onto the Executive Branch who in their own experience had allowed the Parliament to abuse its power over and over and thus needed to be restrained. They spent less time on the Judicial Branch, which in retrospect was a mistake but they didn’t have much experience in a runaway judiciary…

They went to great care to give the first two branches of government specific powers and duties and left the rest as stated in the 10^th Amendment, “reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” They did this on purpose. It wasn’t a mistake or naivety because they lacked imagination enough to realize that the world would become more complex. They knew that government was the biggest enemy of freedom and liberty and not business or individuals like we ofter hear today. They had studied nearly every form of government and political philosophy that had existed until that time and decided on our Constitution above all else. Not because it was perfect but because it was the best. To again quote James Madison, “But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.”

The Constitution in a nutshell is a contract between the states, the citizens, and the federal government. The states and their citizens surrendered certain freedoms, liberties, and power to the federal government in the promise that they would maintain order, ensure justice and liberty for all, and keep the nation safe from enemies, both foreign and domestic. The federal government promised to do these things and no more, in accordance to the powers given it in the contract (the Constitution). Any deviation from the contract renders it obsolete and dissolves it. The Constitution has been violated by the federal government on a regular basis for over a hundred years, and is law in name only. The apathy and complacency of previous generations and our own, have led to this. Now it is up to us to restore the Constitution to its rightful place, as the supreme law of the land and not just a piece of paper resting in the National Archives.          

We are in a precarious situation. The Constitution has been put to the torch the last few years like it hasn’t been before. If we don’t stand up for it now, there won’t be a Constitution left to defend. Many people have sacrificed to defend our Constitution. It is an insult to their memory to remain silent any longer. The letters written many years ago between John & Abigail Adams best express my feelings.  First, a letter from Abigail to John while he was attending the Second Continental Congress, “posterity who are to reap the blessings will scarcely be able to conceive the hardship and sufferings of their ancestors.” Second, a letter from John to Abigail on 4/26/1777, “Posterity! You will never know how much it cost the present generation to preserve your Freedom!  I hope that you will make a good Use of it.  If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven that I ever took half the Pains to preserve it.”

The Federal Government was designed to be small and limited. The Constitution gives no power to the President to bail out private industry or fire their CEO’s. The Constitution gives no power to the Federal Government to provide homes, retirement, or health care to its citizens.  The Constitution gives no power to the Federal Government to do the vast majority of things, many accept as a given, every day. It is up to us to restore the Constitution. It will not be an easy battle. It will not be a short battle. But when we can look our kids and grandkids in the eye and tell them how we helped defend the Constitution in its greatest moment of need. It will all be worth it!