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Monday, March 7, 2011

Original Intent of the "Constitutional Compound Republic"

It's been staring me in the face all this time! The extreme conservatives (read Utah State Legislature or at least the Republican super-majority) quote-mine and proof-text the Federalist Papers to promote their rather unique phraseology of what our Union should be called. And the clear expression of the Founders' original intent is laid out in plain English in the Preamble to the Constitution! I know the Preamble is no "grant" of power, but it certainly is the most direct expression of what they were intending. It is in essence "why we are doing this."

Here it is:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
It's almost like the Priestcrafters of old who said, "You can't read or understand the Bible. We'll tell you what it says." Don't let them do it to the Peoples' Constitution!

People of the United States and of the world, please read the Constitution yourself without any interpretation from ideologues (or even me). Read US History and about how the Constitution has been interpreted and used over the years (clue: there's not just one way - it's a process). And may I humbly propose a description of our Constitutional government that is part of the clear intent of the Founders as set out in the Preamble. The UNION. It was good enough for one President 150 years ago.
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3 comments:

  1. Phil BMarch 7, 2011 at 6:00 PM

    Ah, but Lincoln was a progressive. Today's Republican/Tea Party hybrid would have been for the fugitive slave law, and wanted slavery extended everywhere. It's actually pretty disturbing.

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  2. GrantMarch 7, 2011 at 6:22 PM

    Well, I'd hope the Utah Legislature wouldn't go that far. But if they do declare the "Constitutional Compound Republic" with that term being so rare, Utah will be the only state in it.

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  3. GrantMarch 7, 2011 at 8:29 PM

    Let me make one more historical point that has apparently escaped the Repubs in the Utah State Legislature. When you say the United States "is" the greatest country in the world, note that it is a singular noun. Before the Civil War people would say, "The United States are" That sorta changed in 1865 thanks to our Greatest President. (Washington is a near tie - but I still think Lincoln had the harder job and paid a greater price).

    ReplyDelete

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