The American Founding Fathers implemented a brilliant way in The Constitution for resolving all matters that the Federal Government did not have specific authority over: let the states and the people do it. This kept the debate on matters like social issues local, knowing that the best solutions would best be found by the people who would have to live with them.
This method also allowed the states to decide differently on issues, thereby testing their solutions without dragging the whole country into it. On the state level, they could more easily adjust and change their remedies if needed, as some issues required a process of trial and error to ultimately come to the best solution. This worked well until the Federal Government began to interfere with matters that it had no constitutional authority over, thereby cutting the states and the people from the process and usurping their authority.
This usurping of the authority reserved for the states and the people was done by all three branches of the Federal Government, but mostly by the federal judiciary. This is the only branch of government not elected by the people or directly accountable to them. This is why the Founders believed it to be the biggest threat to the rights of the states and the people, as well as the other two branches of government. This, too, proved to be accurate.
Through judicial interference, even individual judges have been able to impose their own personal preferences and prejudices on the entire nation. This violation of The Constitution and due process created divisions within the nation that were completely unnecessary, which have now grown to the breaking point.
Keeping all authority not specifically given to the Federal Government with the states and the people acted like a giant relief valve for the country. This allowed social changes to go through a natural, organic process rather than having often poorly thought out laws imposed on the whole nation. On the more local level, these could have been done by those who have the ability to think through the issues and proposed solutions, and to test them and weigh the consequences. Then other states could implement what they desired with wisdom and discretion.
Obviously, there are federal issues that must be addressed on a federal level because they do deal with authority given to the Federal Government by The Constitution. Slavery was such an issue as it violated The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and The Bill of Rights—the very foundation of our Federal Government.
That slavery was claimed to be a states’ rights issue by the Southern states before The Civil War was unfortunate and wrong. Because of this, there has been an overreaction to anything that claimed to be “states’ rights” since. This overreaction has robbed the states and the people of their legitimate constitutional rights.
The unity of the United States was never designed to be a unity of conformity, but rather a unity of diversity. The states were expected to be different and unique, with the exception of compliance to the limited and specific authority given to the Federal Government by The Constitution.
This centralizing of authority under the Federal Government that exceeded its constitutional mandate also began increasing the dysfunction of the Federal Government. The more centralized government becomes, the more cumbersome, inefficient, and bureaucratic it becomes. As it has been forced to take on issues beyond its constitutional authority, these have also proven to be beyond its ability to do effectively. Now our U.S. Government may be the most inept, inefficient, and wasteful organization on the planet, and a massive waste of our resources.
The Founders got it right in the first place. The answer to the misuse of the states’ rights issue by the pro-slavery states should have been resolved by returning and adhering to The Constitution, not by overreacting and denying the states and the people their constitutional authority. The answer to resolving most of the growing divisions in the country, and the increasing government dysfunction, is to return to The Constitution.
Our Constitution has not failed us, but we have failed The Constitution. Even the best form of government will be bad government without the right people in it. We will not get our Republic back on the rails until we look at how we choose our representatives. It’s not the elections that are flawed as much as it is the nominating process—the choosing of those who get to run for office. More will be said about this in future Briefs.
Our Republic was not designed to be run by professional politicians, but by servant leaders who do their service as representatives much like we do jury duty. It was meant to be a sacrifice done by those willing to lay aside the pursuit of their own affairs for a limited time to serve their country. As soon as public office became a profession, corruption poured in on every level.
This is not to imply that we do not have many outstanding representatives who are doing it the right way and for the right reasons. However, they are becoming fewer as they realize that the dysfunction is now so bad that reform from within is becoming impossible. We, the people, are still the sovereign, and we, the people, are going to have to rise up and take back our government to save this Republic.
No system is going to be perfect in this age, and none of the people will be either. But there are some basic things that can and must be done to attract the right people and keep the wrong people out—or if they get in, to be sure they do not stay in for long. The answers for correcting these issues have already been thought out for us by our Founders. Yet, even knowing exactly what needs to be done won’t get it done without leadership. If you think we need another Washington, you’re right. If you think we need another Lincoln, you’re right again. In fact, we need someone who is a combination of Washington, Lincoln, Moses, the Apostle Paul….
How will we ever find such leadership? We already have The One, and He stands ready to help if we will turn to Him. The world was not made to run without The Maker, and it never will.
The people alone have an incontestable, unalienable, and indefeasible right to institute government; and to reform, alter, or totally change the same, when their protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness require it. – John Adams
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it to be always kept alive. It will often be exercised when wrong, but better so than not to be exercised at all. –Thomas Jefferson
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© 2020 by Rick Joyner. All rights reserved.
