Have We Forgotten Jefferson’s Wisdom?
If you read my blog often, you will know that I am a tremendous fan of Thomas Jefferson. In fact, I love all our founding fathers and the price they paid for our freedom and the freedom of my children. They were men of tremendous honor, and deserve our respect and admiration for as long as there exists a United States of America.
This respect and admiration in many ways cuts to the core of the separation between conservatives and liberals. Conservatives love our founding fathers and the principles of freedom. Liberals on the other hand are the polar opposite. They despise the principles of the founders, and seek ways to change what they have set up (limited government) into a massive government controlled state. They of course would never say they despise the principles of the founders and would swear up and down that I am lying to you, but their actions in power speak louder than words.
That being said… of all the founders I love to read, it is Jefferson I love the most. Although Jefferson wasn’t perfect (as no men are), I see him as the principle leader of our liberty.
He accurately understood the nature of government and its dangers to mankind; as it was the core of almost all his writings left for us today. In addition, he had an uncanny ability to look into the future and see the potential dangers that lay ahead for this great nation, and through his letters left us a guide on how to maintain our happiness and freedom. Just searching through his quotes will leave you with enough information to chew on for months.
In this post, I would like to examine just one quote he made on government. This quote, if followed, would alleviate almost all of our nation’s problems and would produce a country full of happy citizens. The quote I am referring to is below…
A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned – this is the sum of good government. ~ Thomas Jefferson
In this quote above, Jefferson accurately lays out the sum of ‘good, wise, and frugal’ government. Essentially the quote is laid out in 2 parts. The first is based on role of government which is to first and foremost keep us free….
A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement…
Jefferson first notes that a ‘wise and frugal’ government shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement. Essentially what he is saying is that government should ‘get out of the way’ and allow man to freely pursue their own solutions to business (industry) and to society & charity (improvement). It was his belief, and mine, that in order to maximize solutions in business and society, government had to be limited in power and ‘hands off’ in regards to the private sector.
This includes the business market, our currency, and humanitarian charities. Jefferson believed that private business, individual organizations, and private charities would be the best equipped to handle societies needs. Government on the other hand, trends towards corruption and waste, and will over time rise to a size that is tyrannical over the people.
Obviously, this was the intent of the Constitution and the limited government set up by our founders. By keeping government limited to specifically keeping men ‘free’ and their rights preserved, was believe to be the best form of government. This fundamental point has been lost in our country – and if we desire a country of free men and women – it must be restored at all costs.
The 2nd part of Jefferson’s quote is based on wealth confiscation, a.k.a. taxes…
“…and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned – this is the sum of good government.”
This is not to say that Jefferson believed in zero taxes. The federal government is a required entity and does need funds to operate – obviously. But it is to say, that any form of taxes should only be used to support operations that are specifically allowed in the Constitution. Any deviation from the law specified in the Constitution was essentially tyranny and did not fall into the realm of ‘good’ government.
If you are like me, you just thought…” Our entire government essentially falls outside of the Constitution and its limits. We are living under tyranny already.” In many ways you are exactly on target. Our government has vastly exceeded its Constitutional limits and has entered the realm of ‘bad’ government.
As a people we are massively taxed from cradle to grave. The restrictions on the market are excessive and oppressive, and are anything but free. Our government operates charitable organizations where the tax money is many times wasted, or used for special interest groups with no intent on helping the people rise out of their poverty. Yes indeed, we essentially live under a form of government that is vastly different then what our founders desired. In many ways, we live under tyranny. – I’m certain the founders would have thought so…
What can we do?
Thankfully, Jefferson and our founders left us with a way to restore our republic back toward liberty. Through the power of information and voting, America can be restored to principles of the Constitution again. As conservatives, we must first and foremost inform and teach the people of our principles, (the principles of our founders) and how they lead to liberty and prosperity.
Secondly, we must always vote and encourage others to vote for men and women who will honor the Constitution. With this power, we can bring about ‘real’ change… Change that produces limited government and more freedom for us and our posterity.
“With respect to the two words ‘general welfare,’ I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by its creators.” –James Madison
Excellent article. It took me awhile to understand that modern liberals are totally different from classical liberals such as Jefferson. Modern liberalism is a synonym for “progressivism” or better “statism”. As you note, statists give lip service to our Constitution and they find the document too binding to their ambitions and narcissism. Statist believe they are superior to the masses an they know what’s best for them. They are collectivists. The rights of the individual are the focus of Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. Therefore, both documents are hindrances to the ambitions of the statists. To them, the Founders are just old white men bound by their prejudices and culture. Statists have seen the light and are determined to impress and force their views on the people. Statists are also almost always secularists as they find the Bible to be an anachonism just like the Constitution. The Bible fundamentally is about “individual” salvation as opposed to “corporate” salvation. The Bible supports private property as a right while encouraging believers to give freely to others. The statist wants to ultimately eliminate private property and force its citizens to give to causes they may not support using taxation as its weapon.
Statists have been active in the U.S. for at least a century – Teddy Roosevelt sand Woodrow Wilson come to mind. Reagan worked hard to return the country to Constitutional principles. Obama is the antithesis of Reagan. Pray that God gives us another Reagan soon.