How we have the United States Constitution

What Does It Say About Us.

As far as I know, there is are no functioning Democracies in the world, and maybe there never has been.  There are many forms of Representative Democracies but none are pure democracies.  What is a Democracy?  A democracy is a form of government in which all the governing decisions are made by all he citizens of the nation.  Up until the most recent of times, it would have been an unwieldy form of government, because every law that is considered to be before the electorate would have to be formed as a plebecite.  That is every citizen would go to the poll daily, if necessary to vote.  It would be cumbersome and difficult to administrate.  Daily voting could very well be required and people would eventually become tired of having to vote daily.  It would be like having to go to the store every day, and just as mundane. 

So, every nation that has formed a government has seen fit to have a Representative Democracy.  Now, in the United States we have formed a Republic.  In Europe, most nations coming out to the Royal Family control systems, have chosen a different form:  usually a Parliamentary form.  The United Kingdom is as best I can determine, a unitary state with devolution that is governed within the framework of a Parliamentary Democracy under a constitutional monarchy, in the which the current Monarch is Queen Elizabeth II.  She is the Head of State and the Prime Minister is currently Theresa May, is the head of government.  Executive Power is exercised on behalf of and by the consent of the monarch as by the devolved governments of England, Scotland, and Wales, and the Northern Ireland executive.  Legislative power is vested in two chambers:  the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

In other parts of Europe, the Parliamentary Form of governance functions without a monarchy.  France is governed as a Republic and a unitary state.  The current French republican system of government, was established by Charles de Gaulle under the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October, 1958.  It is a Unitary semi-presidential constitutional republic.  The fourth was Parliamentary was collapsed after the Algiers Crisis of 1958.  The President is directly elected by the people every 5 years in a two round system of voting with a majority required to win victory.  However, it is a Presidential government with powers divided among the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Divisions.

Germany is a representative Democracy, with a Parliamentary Republic under a constitution.  It is a federal republic.  It is a federation of states with a republican form of government.  At its core, the literal meaning of the word republic when used to reference a form of government means that it is governed by elected representatives and by an elected leader such as a president rather than by a king or queen. There is a division of powers between the federal government, and the government of the individual subdivisions.  In contrast,  a unitary government is a single power in which the central government is ultimately supreme and any administrative divisions (sub national units) exercise only delegated authority.  Whereas a federal republic, there is a division of powers between the federal government and the government of the government of the individual subdivisions.  Germany operates under a federal constitution which defines the divisions of government like executive, legislative and judicial powers.  So, there are many forms of representative, constitutional republican forms of democratic government. 

 

Here it is in a nutshell regarding the Republic form of Democracy we have in the United States,  according to the U. S. Senate:  the United States Constitution’s first three words are “We the People”-affirm that the government of the United States exists to serve its citizens.”  For over two centuries the constitution has remained in force because its framers wisely separated and balanced governmental powers to safeguard the interests of majority rule and minority rights, of liberty and equality and of federal and state governments.   And, “that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”  Each phrase is full of meaning: “ (1) we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; (2) that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness; (3) That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.  The great truths contained in the Declaration stand on their own.”

According to the Declaration of Independence: “When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.  And, “that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and orgainizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Going on, it says, “We therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connections between them and the State of the United Kingdom, is and ought to be totally dissolved.  And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”

 

Again,  We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.  Inherent in these words are the truths of the God of Nature.  For God did not create a mere stumbling block for human-kind to work by.  Believe in God, believe also that it is abhorrent to God to see people treated with less station than another is treated.  The belief that all men are created equal is a statement really belonging to God. He would have us all to be equal in front of his eyes.  It is only in our human greed and corruption and lack of compassion that we think to enslave and make many fair game for others who would enslave.  This is a battle that has really demeaned us all since the Pharoahs of early Egypt.  It is not right or just.  And, as a country, our nation has fallen victim to this scourge of the earth.  But, it is our birthright and it was enshrined into the U. S. constitution.

 To throw off this scourge and to make all men truly equal before all facets of human existence.  We, as a nation, should have abolished his scourge long ago, and there never would have been free states or slave states and neither would there have been a Civil War.  So, as a nation we suffered this brutal war for five years.  And, still the lessons have not been understood:  Slavery and Forced Servitude is detrimental to society, it breeds contempt, bitterness and hatred in all its forms of application whether brutal and corporal, or intractable and incidious.  As a nation, we have a soul for compassion and for service, but we have not faced up to our true manifest destiny.  We have not born the fruits of our nature that we pled with God for during the time we sought independence, claiming our servitude to the United Kingdom was so unjust and so dominating,  and should by all rights be absolved.

 We must Establish true justice before our God and before all mankind that proves we deserve that rectitude be honored and maintained.  It is not enough to say those words and then allow others to continue to exist among men without the full measure of freedom and rights that we as men demanded from the British Crown over two hundred years ago.   

As a nation, we hold these truths to be Self-Evident, that ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL, AND ARE GRANTED CERTAIN UNALIENABLE RIGHTS by their creator, that among these are Life, Liberty and the PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.  Until we arrive at this goal, we are going to suffer the unnatural, and unnecessary upheaval that afflicts people who have innate and immoral problems with the very nature of the nation they live in and depend on for maintenance of their Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness.  It is a problem of National security, but it is also a problem of moral decadence and decay. It is a pox on our society and it will never go away until these lofty goals are equally applied to every citizen of our nation.  We must succeed, lest our Perfect Union be dissolved into some form of chaos and even into the depths of another civil war. 

The Declaration Of Independence, and other documents that express the desired nature of our government, are noble and proper.  They are honorable and they are esteemed in their birth.  And, they are just and right before God and man.  But, until we all find the moral and ethical high ground, and establish that piece of our Perfect Union, we will never be the people that we can be.  It is my belief that the United States of America is a nation of people of high moral fiber, and we are a people with a manifest destiny.  It is a destiny that we have fought over and over for, and we have always accomplished our goal.  It is destiny and it is obvious what the role of he United States is in this world. 

The Declaration came in 1776, and the U.S. Constitution became the guiding principle of our nation in 1789.  It was then that the operation of this document gave us our first President.  His name was George Washington.  In the years that followed, Washington, District of Columbia was created from Virginia and Maryland.  Ultimately, the land from Maryland was given back and only Virginia gave land on which was built the federal district that was to contain our Central government.  It is not a large piece of land, but it contains the three primary functions of our government:  the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches.  But, it is important to note that it took thirteen years for the Constitution to be written, and signed into law.  But, it just did not come into existence by its own necessity.  It took approximately fifty-five men, debate and compromise to produce the document written by Thomas Jefferson.

 

So, lets look at the Preamble to the U.S Constitution to see what the intended purpose was for the United States Constitution.  It says:  We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, Insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. 

 

These words are used by our Judiciary to discern the meaning of the document from more than just the wording.  The Preamble is also useful for these efforts to identify the Constitution’s intent and purpose.  The courts have shown interest in any clues they can find in the Preamble regarding the Constitution’s meaning. 

Courts have  developed several techniques for interpreting the meaning of statutes and these are also used to interpret the Constitution.  As a result, the courts have said that interpretive techniques that focus on he exact text of a document should be used in interpreting the meaning of the Constitution. Balanced against these techniques are those that focus more attention on broader efforts to discern the meaning of the document from more than just the wording, the preamble is also useful for these efforts to identify the ‘spirit’ of the Constitution.

But, when interpreting a legal document, courts are usually interested in understanding the document as its authors did and their motivations for creating it: as a result  the courts have cited the Preamble for evidence of the history, intent and meaning of the Constitution as it was understood by the Founders.  ‘although the courts have reserved unto themselves the final authority to determine the Constitution and its meaning.

 However, this focus on historical understanings of the Constitution is sometimes in tension with the with the changed circumstances of modern society from the late 18^th century society that drafted he Constitution. Courts have ruled that the Constitution must be interpreted in light of these changed circumstances.  All of these considerations of the political theory behind the constitution have prompted the Supreme Court to articulate a variety of special rules of construction and principles for interpreting it.  For example, the Court’s rendering of the purposes behind the Constitution have led it to express a preference for broad interpretations of individual freedom. 

So is it Strict Constructionism of the Constitution, or is it Interpretative in nature.  The words used in writing the Constitution during the late 18^th century were intentionally placed there for a reason, and the specific words they used were meant for all time to provide U. S. citizens with a foundation for peace, and civil authority that would guide this great nation.  Can you now change those words to change those principals without causing our nation to enter into chaos and rebellion as those meanings are allowed to be disrespected and giving new meaning, new intent and new purpose. 

It cannot be necessary to change these words: “We the People, in order to form a more Perfect Union, Establish Justice, Insure Domestic Tranquility, provide for the Common Defense, promote he General Welfare and secure he Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. 

Our Constitution was designed with those words “In order to form a more Perfect Union, meaning this document’s motive was to give us a better, no not better, but Perfect Union.  Perfect, without demerit, having all it needs in original purpose to MAKE THINGS RIGHT WHERE THEY WERE PREVIOUSLY WRONG, OR TO SET IN MOTION CORRECTIVE ACTION WHEN IT BECAME NECESSARY BECAUSE A DEFICIENCY CAME INTO EXISTENCE.  So, the mechanism was written into the constitution’s preamble to show the true nature of our government that it was altruistic in its intent and purpose.  The Framers wanted this nation’s Constitution to have a heart which could lead it to be amended if the need arose.  The United States Constitution is already a living, breathing document that can be amended when it becomes clear that People are hurting, or there is a miscarriage of justice.

It then says to Establish Justice, so that no man be treated without the due process of the Law.  We are not subject to night time invasions of our homes, or the stationing of military authority, or civil authority, we cannot have our property taken or even our Pursuit of Happiness taken away without due process of law, and in so doing the government must prove that any citizen or citizens are in non-compliance with the law.  It means that the scales of justice are blind, and the rule of law must be applied evenly and equally unto all of our citizens without fear or favor.  Without prejudice and without lack of proper evidence.

Then, it calls for our constitution to Insure Domestic Tranquiliy:  that means civil order, and lack of chaos.  It means we have a base from which people can have commerce, raise families, and exercise their constitutional rights. 

Then, it calls for our government to provide for the national defense of the nation.  It means that the government can raise an army, a navy, a coast guard, marine and air force, and equip it with the armaments necessary to protect it from all aggressors.  For what good would a Constitution and a Bill of Rights serve, if we were unable to defend ourselves from naked aggression.

Then, it calls for our government to secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.  That means that our government is taxed with the requirement to secure these blessings to all of our citizens in perpetuity.  Without fail our government is on our side, to protect and defend these true purposes and intent of our Constitution.  Our government has a beginning, but no end planned.  That gives a new meaning to the term Manifest Destiny.  For in this document lies the truth about all mankind.  It is the purpose of this nation to produce in this world a desire to become Perfect Unions.  Peaceful in nature, and in purpose and in intent.  We are not established to be Common, to be Uniform, but to be different, to be the world’s showcase for the Humanity that we can and should be.  We are Destined to be great, because of our very nature; and we are Manifest in that there is no other way this country can approach it obligation to itself and to the world.  We were not established to be Ordinary, but a great people, with honest and proper intent. We may not have arrived at this State of Perfection, but we can get there, if we remain true to ourselves. 

At the close of he Constitutional Convention of 1787, Ben Franklin was questioned as he left Independence Hall on the final day of deliberation.  In the notes of Dr. James McHenry, one of Maryland’s delegates to the Convention, a lady asked Dr.  Franklin “well Doctor what have we got, a republic or a monarchy.  Franklin replied “A Republic… If you can Keep it:

So, can we keep it?  Can we keep in mind what our Republic is and how difficult it was to design and put in motion.  Our Constitution is likely the most incredible document of its kind, and to see it fall apart because of problems that come up from time to time would be the loss of one of the most incredible documents of government ever written into law.  It would be a tragedy of unparalled dimension.  It would be a tragedy not only for our nation, but of every other nation on earth that would feel our direct disappearance.  Many would have no security and would most likely be overwhelmed by a nearby country.  Those many nations that depend on us for their security would themselves be lost.  And those nations who mark our existence as a real deterrence to their determined efforts to rule the greater world unchecked, and uncontrolled.  Our absence in this world would bring utter chaos, and most likely another World War, without any opposition whatsoever.

So when people have grievences, there is a built in mechanism for handling these differences. But to those who believe our Constitution is inadequate, should give thought to the chaos it would cause if the United States ceased to exist, or became something that it was not intended to be.  Some would redesign our constitution to allow most anything.  Some would transform our government into a Socialistic Society where no one has the rights that we currently understand.  A nation where the government can take without due process anything that it deems necessary.  It can take your income and your wealth without asking.  It can use anything you possess and take it for its own to satisfy its greed and corruption.  It would remove our rights under the constitution, and destroy the Bill of Rights.  Our nation would no longer be what you know it to be now.  We would not know:  the right to freely assemble; the right to have a Free Press;  we would not have Freedom of Religion, or the choice of how we serve our God;  We would not have the right to bear arms, or to hunt for food, and be independent within nature.  The right to address our government directly for redress of our grievances.  We would not be allowed to travel.  And the government could take any property by immediate appropriation just because our new leader determined He or She wanted it.

Can we Keep it, Can we make It more perfect.  Can we make it what it was always intended to be:  the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.   We can be true to our founding fathers and the words they used to draft our constitution.  We can’t make it better, but we can improve it.  We can Keep it and be true to it without destroying its very fabric.  And in so doing make the Constitution of the United States the most reverenced document of peace and freedom ever devised. 

I hope we can be judicial and deliberative in the future about making broad, not well considered changes to the United States Constitution.  Not only does the future of the United States of American hang in the balance, but so many other countries would be imperiled if our guiding document was forever changed and made a lesser document.  If we cannot keep our Republic what shall come of all those around the world who depend on us for their very existence.  And, what shall come of the helpless in our own midst that depend and rely on this great nation for their very welfare and health. 

As for Benjamin Franklins’ question, we can answer:  Yes, we can keep it.  We must keep it.  It is a Moral Imperative required from our very birth upon this earth, when we implored the God of Nature to rectify a moral injustice, and separate us from that improper immoral control.  We appealed to a power larger than us, and were granted this great nation.  We fought a war with hunting rifles, and some would say pitchforks.  It was what they farmers had, but those things were enough.  Now it is up to us to earn what we were granted by the God of the earth.