Often in political debates, you hear
one side claim that the Founding Fathers would have supported their
argument. That's a lie. The Founding Fathers were more politically
diverse than the politicians that currently serve us. This is not a
comprehensive look at everything they were, but this is a look at the
some of the better known and lesser known aspects of them that is
likely to blow the mind of anyone using the Founding Fathers as
justification for their argument.
It is important to note that over a
hundred people are considered Founding Fathers. There are Signers of
the Declaration of Independence (56), Framers of the Constitution
(55), and others who earned the title due to their significant
contributions. In 1973, Richard Morris (historian) labeled seven
individuals as the main Founding Fathers. I'll cover those seven key
figures as well as three others of note.
In this article:
Thomas Paine * Thomas Jefferson *
Alexander Hamilton * John Jay * John Adams * James Madison * Benjamin
Franklin * George Washington * Samuel Adams * Patrick Henry * A Summation
| Thomas
Paine (1737-1809) “The World is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.” |
|
He's
called the Father of the Revolution. He wrote Common Sense (1776)
which helped sway public opinion for American independence. John
Adams wrote, "Without the pen of the author of Common Sense,
the sword of Washington would have been raised in vain.”
He wrote The Age of Reason (1794-1807)
which was a deist attack on (corrupt) organized religion and doctrine
which challenged the Bible and also Rights of Man (1791) which argued
for a representative government, progressive taxation (taxing the
rich at a higher rate than the poor), and social programs to help the
poor. In Agrarian Justice (1795), he wrote that there should
be a minimum wage and that non-land owners should be given a yearly
allowance from the government, starting at age 21, which would amount
today to approximately $1,800 and increasing upon reaching 50 years
of age.
His work, African Slavery in America
(1775), was the first to propose ending African slavery.
Paine opposed the Constitution due to
the lack of universal suffrage. No Christian church would bury him,
and only six people attended his funeral (two of whom were black).
He was influenced by Benjamin Franklin;
revered by Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Thomas Edison; and
inspired by the Iroquois. It's said that George Washington abandoned
Paine when he was arrested in France (due to his controversial
writings) because of what he wrote in the Age of Reason.
The Crisis:
http://www.ushistory.org/paine/crisis/index.htm
The Age of Reason:
http://www.ushistory.org/paine/reason/
Common
Sense: http://publicliterature.org/books/common_sense/1
Rights of Man:
http://www.ushistory.org/paine/rights/index.htm
| Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
“I am mortified to be told that, in the United States of America, the sale of a book can become a subject of inquiry, and of criminal inquiry too.” |
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Among
many other things, he was the author of the Declaration of
Independence, a governor of Virginia, the third President of the
United States, and a deist. Jefferson was a powerful advocate for
freedom who said, “No freeman shall be debarred the use of arms,”
but who also abhorred war and said, “The spirit of this country is
totally adverse to a large military force.”
He was
radical in regards to state rights, writing the Kentucky and Virginia
Resolutions (with James Madison) which were criticized as a recipe for
state secession from the union. They were written in response to the
arguably unconstitutional Alien and Sedition Acts (which had an
expiration date); however, it's said that the damage from the
resolutions was longer lasting. They claimed a state could declare
acts by the Federal government unconstitutional if they didn't
meet a strict constructionist interpretation of the Constitution.
As
governor of Virginia, he abolished primogeniture (the right of the
first born to inherit everything) and established freedom of
religion. Although a strong critic of religion, saying, “In every
country and every age, the priest had been hostile to Liberty,” he
was also a staunch defender of religious liberty who said, “I never
will, by any word or act, bow to the shrine of intolerance or admit a
right of inquiry into the religious opinions of others,” and also,
“It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods
or no God.” Indeed, he prevented Patrick Henry from inserting the
words “Jesus Christ” into the Virginia Statue of Religious
Freedom (1779) in order to not exclude non-Christians.
When
political parties emerged, he was in the Republicans which is now
called the Democratic-Republican Party by political scientists.
As the first United States Secretary of
State, he frequently disagreed with Alexander Hamilton, causing
Washington to push out Jefferson which ended their friendship.
Jefferson was vindictive towards Britain, stopping trade and hurting
America in the process.
Jefferson became President on the backs
of slaves with the 3/5 compromise; however, he outlawed the
importation of more African slaves (1808). He also used the Alien and
Sedition Acts to his benefit in a hypocritical maneuver. Disliking
the Jay Treaty, he replaced it with the Embargo Act of 1807 which
caused economic strife. For someone who believed in small government,
he certainly interfered in trade.
He wrote Notes on the State of Virginia
(1785) which advocated separation of church and state, individual
liberty, and the belief that different races couldn't live together
in the same society, particularly that discord would exist between
former slaves and those who had enslaved them.
Jefferson wrote the Jefferson Bible
(1819), also called The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth, which
eliminated all supernatural elements. He approved of the teachings of
Jesus but was a deist who believed God was material.
He had very strong feelings on how
taxation should be leveled, wanting the wealthy to bear all of the
tax burden for financing the country because they are the ones able
to afford it without suffering.
"Another means of silently
lessening the inequality of property is to exempt all from taxation
below a certain point, and to tax the higher portions of property in
geometrical progression as they rise." - Thomas Jefferson to
James Madison, 1785
"The rich alone use imported
articles, and on these alone the whole taxes of the General
Government are levied... Our revenues liberated by the discharge of
the public debt, and its surplus applied to canals, roads, schools,
etc., the farmer will see his government supported, his children
educated, and the face of his country made a paradise by the
contributions of the rich alone, without his being called on to spend
a cent from his earnings." - Thomas Jefferson to Gen. Kosciusko,
1811
He also had strong feelings on
constitutions and whether they should be used “as is” from
generation to generation. He wrote, “Every constitution, then, and
every law, naturally expires at the end of 19 years. If it be
enforced longer, it is an act of force and not of right.” He wouldnot want later generations bound by what was written by those in the
past if those writings had become inapplicable, out of context, or
simply wrong due to new learning.
Jefferson
believed in racial inferiority, common for his time. He violated
treaties with Native Americans and even signed into law a bill
banning blacks from carrying mail. Yet, he still recognized all
humans had the right to be free. Given his intelligence, he'd
certainly believe in equality today. He likely didn't free his own
slaves because it would have then been odd for his lover (Sally
Hemings, a slave) to be by his side if she wasn't his slave. It was confirmed in 1988 that
the descendants of Sally Hemings share his genes.
| Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804)
“It's not tyranny we desire; it's a just, limited, federal government.” |
 |
Hamilton
was the primary designer of our system of government, considered the
intellectual author the Constitution, the primary author of The
Federalist papers (with James Madison and John Jay), father of the
Coast Guard, and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury.
A
revolutionary war hero, he led the final battle that ended the
British military presence. Hamilton supported a strong, central
government that could actually pay its troops (a big problem at the
time).
The
states were nervous about the Constitution because fresh memories of
European monarchies were still in their minds. The proposed republic,
a representative democracy based on a liberal democracy, required a
lot of explaining which was where the necessity for the Federalist
Papers arose.
The
Federalist Papers were a series of essays written in defense of the
proposed Constitution. In total, Hamilton wrote 51 of the 85 essays,
Madison wrote 29, and Jay wrote five. Today, they're considered the
primary interpretation of the Constitution.
In
Federalist No. 9, Alexander Hamilton wrote that factions are groups
of citizens with interests contrary to the rights of others. (The
Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, "prohibits states
from denying any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection
of the laws." This is violated when a state grants a particular
class of individuals the right to engage in an activity yet denies
other individuals the same right. You know, like marriage.)
In
Federalist #10, James Madison wrote that a federal government is
better at protecting individual rights from factions than states. It
must be noted that Hamilton was a Federalist, supporting a strong
central government, while Madison was a strict constructionist,
favoring state rights over the federal government.
Hamilton
is often regarded as the primary opponent of strict constructionists.
He and his allies strongly advocated the implied powers of the
Constitution and was opposed by the likes of Thomas Jefferson and
James Madison. Wording of phrases such as the General Welfare clause
were included in the Constitution likely because both sides felt they
would be able argue its meaning to their benefit. To this end, he's
quoted as saying, “Constitutions should consist only of general
provisions; the reason is that they must necessarily be permanent,
and that they cannot calculate for the possible change of things.”
As
Secretary of the Treasury, he created the US mint and the first
national bank which met with huge opposition from Jefferson, Madison,
and other Anti-Federalists. However, Hamilton's efforts helped bring
a stable financial system as opposed to what had existed under the
Confederation. On debts, he said, “A national debt, if it is not
excessive, will be to us a national blessing.”
In the
Report on Manufactures (1791), Hamilton expressed that the General
Welfare clause in the Constitution permitted the creation of
extensive programs. Congress approved the report and moved ahead with
the programs. Strong opposition arose from Madison who believed that
only what the Constitution specifically enumerated was permissible
while Hamilton felt that an implied power permitted a specific power.
Essentially, they argued over whether Article I, Section 8 of the
Constitution, which reads, "The Congress shall have Power to lay
and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and
provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United
States," actually gives Congress the power to provide for the
general welfare of the United States. This issue has remained
contentious throughout the history of the United States.
Hamilton
was anti-slavery, pro-equality, and highly religious. Declaring
Jefforsonism incompatible with Christ, Hamilton founded the Christian
Constitutional Society in 1802 which put supporting the Christian
religion before supporting the Constitution.
Although
he was a member of the Federalist Party, he opposed political parties
as he considered them too factious. Yet, he regularly delivered
scathing personal attacks on his political opponents, even sabotaging
his own party in the 1800 election, causing John Adams to lose. He
was killed in a duel by Aaron Burr arising from Hamilton helping to
scuttle Burr's 1804 New York gubernatorial race. It's worth noting
that Aaron Burr believed strongly in women's suffrage which was an
unusual belief to hold at the time.
On a
more moderate note, his quotes against partisanship are wise words
even for today:
“Men
often oppose a thing merely because they have had no agency in
planning it, or because it may have been planned by those whom they
dislike.” Today, political parties will oppose a thing simply
because it is suggested by the other political party. And while he
seemingly often violated his own words which said, “In politics, as
in religion, it is equally absurd to aim at making proselytes by fire
and sword. Heresies in either can rarely be cured by persecution,”
he also once said, “Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable
animal.”
| John Jay (1745-1829)
“The wise and the good never form the majority of any large society and it seldom happens that their measures are uniformly adopted.” |
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|
Revolutionary,
Federalist Paper writer, strong slavery opponent,
anti-gerrymander-er, and Federalist are all terms to describe John
Jay. He was our first Chief Justice of the United States and second
Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
As
Governor of New York, he signed the 1799 act which enacted gradual
emancipation for slaves. Although a slave owner, he'd been attempting
to pass a law to abolish slavery since 1777. He made a habit of
buying slaves and freeing them as adults.
Jay
belonged to the Protestant Episcopal Church in America. He wrote,
“"Real Christians will abstain from violating the rights of
others, and therefore will not provoke war.” He felt that, “it is
the duty, as well as the privilege and interest, of our Christian
nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers." He
also argued for a prohibition against Catholics holding office.
| John Adams (1735-1826)
“Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.” |
,_2nd_president_of_the_United_States,_by_Asher_B._Durand_%281767-1845%29-crop.jpg)
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Federalist,
Unitarian, and Enlightenment proponent all sum up John Adams. He
wrote the Massachusetts Constitution (1779, with Samuel Adams) which
ended slavery there. From 1789-1797, he was our first Vice President,
and from 1797-1801, he was our second President.
"The
whole people must take upon themselves the education of the whole
people and be willing to bear the expenses of it. There should not be
a district of one mile square, without a school in it, not founded by
a charitable individual, but maintained at the public expense of the
people themselves."
– John
Adams, September 10, 1785
He
oversaw the creation of the Declaration of Independence. Though being
the first choice to draft it, he suggested Jefferson for that role.
His work, Thoughts on Government (1776), was influential in creation
of the state constitutions.
During
his presidency (which he won running against Thomas Jefferson), he
endured opposition from Jeffersonian Republicans as well as from
Hamilton and other members of his party.
In
1798, a Quasi-War broke out with France. France saw the Jay Treaty as
America favoring Britain over France, and the French were also upset
that Jefferson didn't become President. Though the Navy was built up
under the effective direction of Hamilton, Adams forged peace with
France through diplomacy which hurt his popularity. American opinion
had turned towards one for war, but it would have been unwinnable.
In
1798, Adams signed into law four acts which were known
as the Alien and Sedition Acts. As it was believed Anti-Federalists
were aiding the French in trying to cause the states to secede and
cause the union to tear itself apart, it became a crime to publish
malicious writing against the government. Ten people were convicted
due to the Alien and Sedition Acts.
Jefferson
defeated Adams bid for re-election in 1800.
Due to
his strong abolitionist beliefs, Adams never bought or employed
slaves. His wife was also an abolitionist. However, he still had a
way to go in regards to believing in human equality as he's quoted as
saying, “I must not write a word to you about politics, because you
are a woman.”
As a
proponent of Enlightenment, he promoted science and intellectual
interchange over superstition and stood against abuses by the church
and state. In what seems a contradiction, he was also partial deist
and called Thomas Paine a Blackguard for writing the Age of Reason.
In 1812, Adams reconciled with Jefferson.
| James Madison (1751-1836)
“In Republics, the great danger is, that the majority may not sufficiently respect the rights of the minority.” |
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Our
fourth President (1809-1817), a deist, slave-owner, Father of the
Constitution (because of the usage of his Virginia Plan at the
Constitutional Convention),
and Father of the Bill of Rights, he's often regarded as the primary
strict constructionist of the Founding Fathers. An anti-federalist of
the Democratic-Republican Party, he was one of the staunchest
advocates of a strict interpretation of the Constitution where no
implied powers were permissible. He was also opposed to a national
bank.
Madison
was witness to religious persecution in his youth, such as seeing
Baptist preachers in Virginia being punished for publishing their
beliefs. As such, he became one of the staunchest defenders of
religious freedom among the Founders. This came from his support of
liberty rather than him having an idealistic view of religion. He
said, “In no instance have... the churches been guardians of the
liberties of the people.”
Other
beliefs he held over the course of his career were that the citizens
should be armed, that the capacity for intelligence of women
shouldn't be doubted, and that capital punished could be abolished.
Indeed, both Thomas Jefferson and Madison took efforts to limit
capital punishment in the Constitution.
He
actually originally opposed the Bill of Rights, fearing that some
would think it was an all inclusive list of rights. He was a believer
that our founding documents should only declare the powers that the
government has, rather than mentioning the rights it doesn't have the
power to take away or the powers that it doesn't have. However, he
wrote the Bill of Rights and the first ten amendments to the
Constitution. One of his suggestions which was rejected was a
declaration of national sovereignty over the states that might have
prevented the Civil War.
Madison
was instrumental in convincing many staunch Anti-Federalists to ratify the Constitution. There was much debate at the time over whether the states or the national government should have more power.
Madison's own answer on that would waver over his career, eventually
settling on a middle ground. As to his being called “Father of the
Constitution,” he said, “The Constitution was not,
like the fabled Goddess of Wisdom, the offspring of a single brain.
It ought to be regarded as the work of many heads and many hands.”
He
wrote in Federalist No. 44, "No axiom is more clearly
established in law or in reason than wherever the end is required,
the means are authorized; wherever a general power to do a thing is
given, every particular power for doing it is included," which
contradicts his opposition Hamilton's usage of the Constitution's
General Welfare clause.
During
the war of 1812, Madison decided a national bank might deserve
consideration. Lack of a national bank made financing a standing army
difficult. His failure to avoid the war with Britain is
considered a great mistake. Of war, he said, “Of all the enemies of
public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded, because it
comprises and develops the germ of every other.”
In
1815 (as President), he abandoned his strict constructionism again,
as convenient. He approved the Henry Clay's American System economic
plan which authorized a Hamiltonian national bank, tariffs, federal
absorption of state debts, and federal funding for internal
improvements such roads and canals. At the end of his Presidency, he
vetoed the Bonus Bill of 1817 to provide internal national
improvements, though he supported federal funding for roads and
canals (Article 1, Section 8 enumerates the creation of post offices
and post roads, not simply “roads and canals” in general).
At his
life's end, he rewrote many of his own writings (much like a company
feverishly shredding documents), revising his personal history as
necessary as he feared how others might deconstruct his works. Slavery weighed on his conscience, and so he decided (to the dismay of
many of those who knew him) that the way to remove slavery's stain on
the U.S. was to send them back to Africa.
Over
the course of his life Hamilton served as one of his great allies and
great enemies. It's of note that Madison was introduced to his wife
by Aaron Burr.
| Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)
“To follow by faith alone is to follow blindly.” |
|
Inventor,
author, scientist, musician, deist, our first postmaster general
(1775-1776, under the Continental Congress), diplomat (to Sweden and
France), and the 6th President of Pennsylvania, he was
part of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of
Independence, making a few small changes in Thomas Jefferson's draft.
Of the Declaration, he said, "Yes, we must, indeed, all hang
together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately."
In
Philadelphia, he founded the first public library (1731), the first
volunteer fire department (1736), a hospital (1751), and a fire
insurance company (1752). He advocated for paper money and against
racial prejudice towards Native Americans. Of racial prejudice, he
asked, “If an Indian injures me, does it
follow that I may revenge that Injury on all Indians?" He
didn’t' believe so, and his reasoning is applicable in modern
times, such as the anti-Muslim surge in America following terrorists
attacks from a few Muslims.
Franklin wrote several papers on the
importance of abolition and eventually freed his own slaves. He was
president of the Pennsylvania
Abolition Society. In his writings, he explained the importance of
integrating free blacks into the U.S. rather than shipping them to
Africa.
Regarding
religion, he believed organized religion was important for virtue but
was himself a deist. He rarely attended services and rejected
Christian dogma by writing the pamphlet A Dissertation on Liberty and
Necessity, Pleasure and Pain (1725). However, he later criticized his
own works and Thomas Paine's The Age of Reason. Although a believer
in the American Enlightenment, Franklin considered Paine's work to
go too far. Throughout his changes in opinion, Franklin would remain
a believer in religion in general, even if not specifically.
He
opposed price controls, trade restrictions, and subsidy of the poor.
His work On the Price of Corn and Management of the Poor (1776)
(which is discussed in my article here)
explains his problems with the aforementioned issues and frames them
in the context of his time. Franklin showed great dislike, as a rich
man, of being asked to assist in the maintenance of the poor. Most
modern conservative arguments against Welfare, Social Security, and
other “hand outs” come from him without change despite the world
(and therefore, the context) being different today. Doing so shows
great disconnect from reality. I believe it would've upset Franklin
if he'd known his works would be used thus.
| George Washington (1732-1799)
“Experience has taught us that men will not adopt and carry into execution measures the best calculated for their own good without the intervention of a coercive power.” [letter to John Jay, Aug. 1, 1786] |
|
Revolutionary
war hero, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, and our first
President, Washington was charismatic, a natural leader,
aristocratic, snobbish, a rich plantation owner, and a slave owner.
He was against political parties, long-term alliances, and foreign
involvement. He was for nationalism and federalism, and he believed the
federal government should improve infrastructure and promote commerce.
Washington declined pay for the Presidency but was talked into it so
as to avoid setting a bad precedent. It wasn't desired that, in the
future, a man of lesser means should feel guilty for taking the pay
for the office. As the office of the President was designed with him
in mind, his actions defined the position for the future.
As a
Federalist in spirit (he remained an independent) who stood with the
likes of Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and John Adams, Jeffersonians
quite disliked his influence as a symbol and delayed the Washington
Monument.
Sometimes,
he's criticized for having more luck and charisma in skill than in
battle, and his campaigns against Native Americans are noted for
their brutality.
The
Whiskey Rebellion occurred as a result of an excise tax on distilled
spirits. Washington sent a militia (formed from men of four states)
to deal with the insurrection. Without fighting, the rebels dispersed
upon seeing the militia. This was a key moment proving the power and
authority of the federal government and Constitution. As President,
Thomas Jefferson repealed the whiskey tax.
As to
his religion, debate still exists today regarding whether he was a
devout Episcopalian or a deist merely going through the motions. His
actions and speech indicate not being a devout Christian. He'd often
not take communion and leave Church early (causing a rector to tell
him to stop attending communion services). He'd refer to God as
Providence and only mention Jesus when referring to Christianity as
the religion of Christ. As he often referred to Providence, it's
evident he did believe in religion although it doesn't speak as to
what religion.
Later
in life, he came to see slavery as a moral failure and included
freedom for all his slaves in his will. The will also allowed for
job-training and a pension for his slaves. Martha freed them a year
following his death in 1799 although the will said they didn't need
to be freed until her death.
Samuel
Adams (1722-1803)
“And
that the said Constitution be never construed to authorize Congress
to infringe the just liberty of the press, or the rights of
conscience; or to prevent the people of the United States, who are
peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms.” - Suggested as
additional wording to the Constitution
Adams
was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of
Confederation. He was a tax collector, advocate for the Bill of
Rights, the 4th Governor of Massachusetts (1794-1797), and a
congregationalist Protestant. He was an abolitionist who, with John
Adams, ended slavery with the Massachusetts Constitution (1779). His
writings from Harvard College show that, even then, he supported more
colonial rights than currently existed.
Although
the popular Sam Adams brand of beer is named after him, history
remains uncertain if he was a brewer or merely a maltster who made
the malts used in brewing. As an elected tax collector, he was a
failure. He often let monies owed slide, causing himself to
eventually be charged with a hefty sum for the monies he didn't
collect. However, the debts were largely paid off by his friends, and
he emerged popular and with political influence.
When
British Parliament passed the Sugar Act of 1764, Adams wrote
instructions for representatives of the Massachusetts House for the
Boston Town Meeting. In these instructions, he wrote that the tax
wasn't valid because they amounted to taxation without
representation.
When
British Parliament passed the Stamp Act of 1765, he was again
appointed to write instructions for representatives of the
Massachusetts House. Adams political messages had taken hold in many
and a group called the Loyal Nine organized protests of the Stamp Act
while Adams urged boycotts of British goods.
When
British Parliament passed the Tea Act of 1773, Adams organized
repeated efforts to stop it. According to popular myth, Adams gave a
signal to enact the Boston Tea Party (where the Sons of Liberty -
possibly 130 men dressed as Mohawk Indians - dumped 342 chests of tea
into the harbor) once all other efforts had failed. In any case, he
defended the Boston Tea Party as a principled act not the act of a
lawless mob.
He
wrote in praise of Thomas Paine's Common Sense and supported the call
for American independence. When the time came to form an American
government, he strongly supported the formation of a republic,
saying, “a state is never free except when each citizen is bound by
no law whatever that he has not approved of, either directly, or
through his representatives.” Believing only land-owning males
should vote, he felt that the elected officials would balance the
rights of those who couldn't vote with that of those who could.
Adams
supported suppression of both the Shay's Rebellion (1786, a year
before the Constitution) and the Whiskey Rebellion (1794). In Shay's
Rebellion, farmers who were upset with high taxes took up arms and
attacked debtor courts in two counties. The revolt was ended by
militia. Similarly, militia put down the Whiskey Rebellion. Although
Adams had advocated rebellion against an unrepresentative government,
he opposed rebelling against a representative government as had
resulted from the American Revolution, going so far as to think
participants in Shay's Rebellion should be hanged. He said, “the
man who dares to rebel against the laws of a republic ought to suffer
death.” After all, solving such disagreements is why elections
exist in a representative democracy such as the American republic.
In
this context, it's clear that the modern Tea Party is no spiritual
successor to the Boston Tea Party. While the original tea party
protested unrepresentative taxes, the new one protests taxes from the
representative government. As far as those who claim there's a “2nd
Amendment solution” should elections not work, those who actually
take up arms against a representative government “ought to suffer
death,” according to this Founding Father.
Patrick
Henry (1722-1803)
“The
liberties of a people never were, nor ever will be, secure, when the
transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them.”
Delegate
to the First Continental Congress (1774) and Governor of Virginia,
Patrick was an anti-federalist, critic of the Constitution, advocate
for the Bill of Rights, and a supporter of state rights. He even went
so far as to oppose James Madison, worried that the Constitution
could lead to monarchy.
During
the revolution, he often used fear of slaves and Native Americans to
motivate people. In trying to convince Virginia to take up arms
against the British in 1775, he said, “"Is life so dear, or
peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and
slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may
take; but as for me, Give me Liberty, or give me Death!"
Henry
was an unrepentant slave owner, and in the light of his quote
regarding liberty and death, a hypocrite. He also later supported
federalist John Adams and opposed the Virginia and Kentucky
Resolutions, thereby protecting the federal government against those
protesting the Alien and Sedition Acts which were arguably
unconstitutional. As President, John Adams would try to appoint Henry
as the American representative to France; however, Henry declined and
would die a year later. His
legacy reveals a hypocritical man and staunch anti-federalist who
later swung to the federalist side.
A
Summation
Religion
Among the Founders
The
Founders were a religiously diverse group. Although they lived in
Christian society, there were quite a few deists among them.
Examining the key seven founders, they fall into a nearly 50/50 split
between Christians and deists. However, they were all firmly
religious and believed in a creator. Still, many firmly believed in a
strong separation of church and state. Additionally, the U.S.
Constitution owes more to the Iroquois Confederacy than it does any
religious beliefs. [http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi709.htm]
Related
Article: America: A Christian Nation (Let's Take a Look)
Right
to Bear Arms
The
Founding Fathers believed very strongly in the right of the citizens
to keep and bear weapons. This wasn't merely for the purposes of
having a well-regulated militia although several of the Founders
(Jefferson, Madison) did indeed dislike the idea of the US
maintaining a standing army.
“Americans
have the right and advantage of being armed - unlike the citizens of
other countries whose governments are afraid to trust the people with
arms.” - James Madison (The Federalist, No. 46 at 243- 244)
“No
freeman shall be debarred the use of arms.” - Thomas Jefferson
(proposed Virginia Constitution, June, 1776)
“Where
and when did freedom exist when the power of the sword and purse were
given up from the people?” - Patrick Henry (June 9, 1788)
The
other Founders were similarly supportive although the language of
their quotes isn't quite as clear, making for less catchy phrases
today. However, it must be noted that arms are never clearly defined,
and that in 1791 (when the Second Amendment was ratified), the
Gatling Gun (designed to be so horrible that war would never be
fought again) had not yet been invented. The term arms has changed
over time to include more and more weapons. If we want to be strict
Constitutionalists, we would have to say the Second Amendment only
permits for the weapons that the existed around 1791 because that's
what “arms” meant when it was written.
Reasonable
people must pose the question as to whether the possession of all
arms must be allowed in order to maintain the people's right to keep
and bear arms. Must they be permitted to possess automatic weapons,
grenades, flamethrowers, and rocket launchers? All are defined as
arms. And all possibly give one person the vast destructive power of
what in 1891 could have been an entire army unit. Likewise, when
smuggling of American guns is a huge problem, it must asked whether
someone must be allowed to buy 20 guns in one day in order to
maintain the right to bear arms.
Necessary
and Proper Clause and the General Welfare Clause
These
were both points of contention between the Founders. In simplistic
terms, the federalist founders were more apt to use them, and the
anti-federalist founders usually opposed the measures for which they
were being used.
The Necessary and Proper clause reads,
“The Congress shall have Power - To make all Laws which shall be
necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing
Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the
Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer
thereof.” Hamilton and Madison both initially approved of it while
Patrick Henry said it would lead to unlimited federal power.
The General Welfare clause (Article
I, Section 8 of the Constitution) reads,
"The Congress shall have Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties,
Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common
Defence and general Welfare of the United States,"
When
Hamilton wanted to create the First Bank of the United States,
Madison disagreed that the Constitution permitted; however, Madison
was embarrassed when his own writing, which suggested it was
permitted, was read aloud in Congress. The words of Madison which
embarrassed him were, “No axiom is more clearly established in law
or in reason than wherever the end is required, the means are
authorized; wherever a general power to do a thing is given, every
particular power for doing it is included,” taken from Federalist
No. 44 which was written to support the Constitution. During his later
Presidency in a time of war, Madison expressed regret at not have a
stronger national finance system which a stronger bank would have
provided.
Debate has never ended over how much to
limit these clauses. Indeed, even Supreme Court decisions tend to
politically swing to one side or the other, depending on whether the
justices ascribe to federalist or anti-federalist tendencies. It can
be said that neither idea is right or wrong, as both opinions were
held amongst the Founders. However, it must be said that some of the
anti-federalist founders eventually moved toward sharing federalist
viewpoints (Patrick Henry) or held contradictory viewpoints
(Madison).
The
creation of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid were hotly
debated and are seemingly supported by the General Welfare clause
because the government lays taxes to then provided a welfare service
to the people. More modern arguments involved the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act (colloquially called Obamacare). Although,
the rightward-leaning Supreme Court didn't uphold it under the
Necessary and Proper or General Welfare clause but instead as a
commerce regulation and a tax. It's likely the debate over these clauses of
the Constitution will never end, and that debaters will declare that
it's their viewpoint that agrees with those the Founders held. To those who say such
a false thing, one must ask them to declare, “Which Founders?” An
equal number of Founders very likely held an opposite viewpoint.
Sources:
West, John G.; MacLean, Iain S. (1999). Encyclopedia of religion in American politics. Greenwood Publishing Group
Constitution Online
Wells, Life and Public Services
Alexander, Revolutionary Politician
Saul K. Padover, Jefferson: A Great American's Life and Ideas, (1952)
Raphael, Ray (2004). Founding Myths: Stories that Hide Our Patriotic Past. New York: The New Press
Baron, Brewed in America
Madison, James (1900–1910). Gaillard Hunt, ed.. ed. The Writings of James Madison. G. P. Putnam’s Sons
John Adams by David McCullough, Simon and Schuster Paperbacks, New York, 2001
Morris, Richard B. Witness at the Creation; Hamilton, Madison, Jay and the Constitution 1985
Combs, Jerald. A. The Jay Treaty: Political Background of Founding Fathers (1970)
Brands, H.A.. The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin (2000)
Brookhiser, Richard (1996). Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington. New York: Free Press
Other Articles of Interest:
Sexiest 43 presidents
America: Republic or Democracy? by William P. Meyers
West, John G.; MacLean, Iain S. (1999). Encyclopedia of religion in American politics. Greenwood Publishing Group
Constitution Online
Wells, Life and Public Services
Alexander, Revolutionary Politician
Saul K. Padover, Jefferson: A Great American's Life and Ideas, (1952)
Raphael, Ray (2004). Founding Myths: Stories that Hide Our Patriotic Past. New York: The New Press
Baron, Brewed in America
Madison, James (1900–1910). Gaillard Hunt, ed.. ed. The Writings of James Madison. G. P. Putnam’s Sons
John Adams by David McCullough, Simon and Schuster Paperbacks, New York, 2001
Morris, Richard B. Witness at the Creation; Hamilton, Madison, Jay and the Constitution 1985
Combs, Jerald. A. The Jay Treaty: Political Background of Founding Fathers (1970)
Brands, H.A.. The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin (2000)
Brookhiser, Richard (1996). Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington. New York: Free Press
Other Articles of Interest:
Sexiest 43 presidents
America: Republic or Democracy? by William P. Meyers
