hands to the task of creating a new nation they drained off the best thinking of men like John Locke, Baron de Montesquieu and Adam Smith besides adding many ingenious contributions from the inspiration of their own minds.
All of this evolved into a unique political philosophy worthy of the most careful study. The documents these men produced reflect the ingredients of this philosophy. They reveal that those who subscribed to it had the following fundamental convictions:
• They believed that certain inalienable rights of man are derived from God and not from any human agency; therefore, no human agency can rightfully disturb them.
• They believed class distinctions must be eliminated, that there is no place among free men for classes or castes. The public officer, the merchant, the banker, the farmer, the mechanic, the teacher—all are honorable and necessary, worthy of being treated as equals. They believed the progress of the human race will not be the result of pitting one class against another but will come by uniting all groups or classes in one concentrated offensive against man’s common enemies: poverty, ignorance, disease and war.
• They believed that in pursuing happiness, men must be free to work at any livelihood which their experience, training and native qualifications will permit them to secure and hold.
• They believed men must be free to enjoy the fruits of their labor—which means the protection of property rights.
• They believed men must be secure in their homes and the Privacy of their lives. They believed there must be good will, generosity and tolerance between those of difference professions, those of different religions and those of different races.
A Philosophy Becomes a Reality
The translating of these principles from theory to practice has been a long and painfully slow process. Nevertheless, the historic steps which were followed constitute the straight and narrow way through which any and every people must pass if they are to gain and retain their freedom. These historic steps were as follows:
First: The redemption of the people’s freedom by an official Declaration of Independence in 1776.
Second: The enforcement of that Declaration by resort to arms from 1776 to 1783.
Third: For the first time in the history of the world a government was established with its powers strictly defined in a written document—the United States Constitution.
Fourth: The Constitution provided for a republican form of government. This is government by elected representatives rather than government by emotional mass participation as a pure democracy.
Fifth: For the first time in history a government was set up under a sovereign trinity—three equal branches of governmental authority—the executive, the legislative and the judicial. The separation of powers among three equal branches of government came from the brilliant mind of Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755). James Madison was a particularly warm admirer of Montesquieu and was responsible for the introduction of this principle into the framework of the Constitution.
Sixth: Each branch of government was to be subject to a system of checks and balances from the other two branches so as to maintain a healthy balance of power. Government has been defined as society’s power of “organized coercion.” The genius of Montesquieu’s principle of separation of powers is the fact that when one branch of government exceeds its authority, one or both of the other branches combine against it to use their powers of coercion to put down the oppression of the offending branch. This makes it unnecessary to have the people rise up in revolutionary force to put down oppression.
Seventh: All powers not specifically delegated to the Federal Government were retained by the states and the people. The doctrine of the contractual basis of government with the reservation of political sovereignty in the people was described by John Locke in his “Second Treatise of Civil Government,” published in 1690.
Eighth: The following freedoms were guaranteed to the sovereign citizen:
1. Freedom of religion (First Amendment)
2. Freedom of speech (First Amendment)
3. Freedom of press (First Amendment)
4. Freedom of assembly (First Amendment)
5. Freedom to petition the government for grievances (First Amendment)
6. Freedom to bear arms (Second Amendment)
7. Freedom from illegal search of persons, houses, papers or effects (Fourth Amendment)
8. Freedom from prosecution without due process of law (Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments)
9. Freedom from multiple prosecutions for the same offense (Fifth Amendment)
10. Freedom from the necessity of testifying against one’s self (Fifth Amendment)
11. Freedom from imprisonment without a speedy and public trial (Sixth Amendment)
12. Freedom from excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments (Eighth Amendment)
13. Freedom from slavery or involuntary servitude (Thirteenth Amendment added in 1865)
14. Freedom to vote regardless of race or sex (Fifteenth Amendment added in 1870 and the Nineteenth Amendment added in 1920)
Ninth: Social and political reform along liberal lines was encouraged within the various states. While serving as governor of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson led the way by encouraging public education, dividing church and state, breaking down the medieval laws of inheritance to prevent monopoly of land and wealth, advocating the emancipation of slaves, prohibiting the importation of slaves, revising the criminal laws, suggesting representation according to population; declaring the right to vote should be extended to all men who might be subject to military duty and not merely to landowners; encouraging self-government in the counties and towns of the state.
Tenth: The Civil War established the sovereignty of the Federal Government as the dominant authority of the Union (from which individual states could not secede and against which individual states could not pass conflicting laws.) This gave solidarity to the United States and a uniformity among the states which had been previously disputed. The Civil War also opened the way for the emancipation of all men living within its boundaries.
Eleventh: Down through the yeasts “promotional” legislation was passed to promote the general welfare of all citizens by encouraging interstate transportation, transcontinental communications, colonization, of public lands, cheap postal service, development of waterways and resources.
Twelfth: “Restrictive” legislation was passed for the purpose of protecting the individual citizen against various systems which began to encroach upon his welfare. Anti-trust legislation was passed to restrict the activities of monopolies in business and preserve free enterprise. Labor legislation was passed to fix responsibility for union leadership. Anti-crime legislation was passed to protect the citizens against organized underworld forces.
Thus, a whole new pattern of human government has been born among men. It is a political framework designed to keep the ultimate control of the government in the hands of the people who live under that government. It is an expression of political philosophy which makes it possible for men to protect themselves against the expanding power of man-made systems. It is a government of the people, by the people, for the people. It is the gradual unfolding of six centuries of true liberalism.
