Our constitution is a simple document, written so that any citizen could read it and take its meaning to heart. James Madison said,
it will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood; if they be repealed or revised before they are promulgated, or undergo such incessant changes that no man, who knows what the law is to-day, can guess what it will be to-morrow. Law is defined to be a rule of action; but how can that be a rule, which is little known, and less fixed?"
Some years later, recognizing that the constitution was nearing crisis, Henry Clay said this,
“The Constitution of the United States was made not merely for the generation that then existed, but for posterity- unlimited, undefined, endless, perpetual posterity”
Follow me below the fold...
Our constitution, and indeed our country, is again in a state of crisis. However, the Founding Fathers having devised a system of government that was a reaction to abuses of power by powerful monarchs, left us with a wealth of sage advice about how to safeguard liberty. As a community of progressive bloggers, as countrymen, as Democrats, and as citizens of the world, it is imperative that we take the time to ponder the words of the Founding Fathers if a full blown constitutional crisis is to be averted. The House of Representatives is currently engaged in thirty-six hours of debate over the escalation of the war in Iraq. The Senate is engaged in partisan in-fighting, and procedural poker, in a dance over debating the debate. There is nothing to debate...
From John Adams...
"[America] goes not abroad, in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all. She is the champion and vindicator only of her own. She will commend the general cause by the countenance of her voice, and the benignant sympathy of her example. She well knows that by once enlisting under other banners than her own, were they even the banners of foreign independence, she would involve herself beyond the power of extrication, in all the wars of interest and intrigue, of individual avarice, envy, and ambition, which assume the colors and usurp the standard of freedom."
and George washington...
Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to believe me, fellow-citizens,) the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake; since history and experience prove, that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of Republican Government. But that jealousy, to be useful, must be impartial; else it becomes the instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a defence against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation, and excessive dislike of another, cause those whom they actuate to see danger only on one side, and serve to veil and even second the arts of influence on the other. Real patriots, who may resist the intrigues of the favorite, are liable to become suspected and odious; while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people, to surrender their interests.
From James Madison...
If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.
Madison again...
The executive has no right, in any case, to decide the question, whether there is or is not cause for declaring war.
Alexander Hamilton on war profiteering...
There can be no profit in the making or selling of things to be destroyed in war. Men may think that they have such profit, but in the end the profit will turn out to be a loss.
From Samuel Adams (emphasis mine)...
The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men.
And last but not least, a few from Thomas Jefferson...
The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object.
If there is one principle more deeply rooted in the mind of every American, it is that we should have nothing to do with conquest.
and most important of all...
Peace and friendship with all mankind is our wisest policy, and I wish we may be permitted to pursue it.
In his excellent series on Forgotten Founding Fathers, MKFOX had this to say about our fifth president, James Monroe...
James Monroe: Career Patriot
James Monroe (1758-1831) of Virginia was a wounded veteran of the Continental Army, having fought at Trenton, Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth, and encamped at Valley Forge. He later served as a diplomat, governor of Virginia, U.S. senator, Secretary of State and Secretary of War, and the fifth president of the United States.
CAREER PATRIOT.
This is what is required, winning an election is not enough. What did you do today ?