United Liberty

The other night I was perusing the national exit poll results. One statistic scared me more than anything. 51% of voters participating in the exit poll answered that the government “should do more” than it is doing today. Wow.

I know that the government can do more. But, should they do more? On what authority can they do more? We have a constitutional republic where a representative government is established with specified and limited powers. This is designed to prevent the government from becoming too big and too powerful. These days are behind us. While our politicians, educators, and the media pay lip service to the Constitution, there is far more praise and adulation for the notion of democracy. The authority for such expansive government power is established through democracy.

On many occasions over the last several months, I’ve heard the argument that our democratic system vests the power to our government. If the people want it, then that is what should be done. When the rule of constitutional law is respected, this is a reasonable assumption. But, our Constitution has been misinterpreted for many, many years. The original intent is lost, and the loopholes can be exploited to make anything legal.

The majority of Americans want more government. Majorities win elections. Majorities drive policy. Those of us who want to fight for limited government and the framework of our Constitution have an uphill battle.