M. Richard Maxson
On this weekend of our country's 240th birthday looking at the political landscape one can't help but wonder how long it will be before we realize that we are quickly going away from the Founding Fathers vision for the liberty of us all? In one of Ronald Reagan’s most famous speeches, given in 1964 in support of GOP presidential candidate Barry Goldwater, he asked Americans if “we still know the freedoms that were intended for us by the Founding Fathers.” If he were alive today he would see that most
President Thomas Jefferson started a political party based, in part, on calls to limit U.S. courts to issuing decisions only within a strict interpretation of the Constitution. America is best, President Ronald Reagan often said, was when it gets back to basics, back to the Founders’ vision, back to their original constitutional framework. Like President Jefferson, Ronald Reagan wanted to limit the
powers of the courts by having judges strictly adhere to the exact language of the Constitution. Today, that thinking, is criticized as passe'. It is now touted as a "living constitution." It does not mean what it says - it means what we like it to in our modern society. After all, it IS such an old document written by white slave owners.
Unfortunately no matter how ingeniously designed, the Constitution and laws are not immune from fascists who, under color of law, ignore their plain meaning. Checks and balances ultimately break down if those wielding power twist, pervert, ignore, selectively enforce and flout the law. The Department of (In)Justice has been a disgrace to everything the Founding Fathers stand for.
"Republics decline into democracies and democracies
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