Posted on 03/01/2016 3:17:55 AM PST by The Ghost of FReepers Past
Donald Trump's affection for the Mussolini statement, "It is better to live one day as a lion than 100 years as a sheep." reveals a mindset very much at odds with the Framers of our U.S. Constitution.
To the Framers, power was something they wanted to minimize, in every government office and officeholder.
Patrick Henry said, "Power is the great evil with which we are contending. We have divided power between three branches of government and erected checks and balances to prevent abuse of power.
Thomas Jefferson worried about abuse of power in the Judicial Branch. He said, ""The judiciary of the United States is the subtle corps of sappers and miners constantly working under ground to undermine the foundations of our confederated fabric. They are construing our constitution from a co-ordination of a general and special government to a general and supreme one alone."
Jefferson saw the role of the President as being administrator of the Constitution, a Constitution belonging to the people and in accord with its original meaning. He said, "The Constitution on which our Union rests, shall be administered by me [as President] according to the safe and honest meaning contemplated by the plain understanding of the people of the United States at the time of its adoption -- a meaning to be found in the explanations of those who advocated, not those who opposed it, and who opposed it merely lest the construction should be applied which they denounced as possible."
Thomas Paine worried about executive power when he wrote the pamphlet, "Common Sense." He said, "But where says some is the king of America? I'll tell you Friend, he reigns above, and doth not make havoc of mankind like the Royal of Britain. Yet that we may not appear to be defective even in earthly honors, let a day be solemnly set apart for proclaiming the charter; let it be brought forth placed on the divine law, the word of God; let a crown be placed thereon, by which the world may know, that so far as we approve of monarchy, that in America the law is king. For as in absolute governments the king is law, so in free countries the law ought to be king; and there ought to be no other. But lest any ill use should afterwards arise, let the crown at the conclusion of the ceremony be demolished, and scattered among the people whose right it is. "
Samuel Adams noted his distaste for a strongman lion leader when, after all the delegates signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776, he said: "We have this day restored the Sovereign to Whom all men ought to be obedient. He reigns in Heaven and from the rising to the setting of the sun, let His Kingdom come."
The Declaration itself was a detailed list of grievances against a lion leader. A portion of that sentiment was this: "The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world."
After listing their grievances they stated this: "We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown..."
Instead of a strongman, the Founders of this Nation considered the only hands in which our liberty was safe were the Hands of God. As Jefferson said, "Can the liberties of a nation be sure when we remove their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people, that these liberties are the gift of God?"
They believed that our Nation was blessed, not because of its own goodness, but because of God's grace and our dependence on Him. Benjamin Franklin: said “The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?”
Notice the lack of self pride and arrogance in these men? They were students of history and deep thinkers. They understood the danger of power in the hands of corruptible men. They believed that power and glory belonged to the Creator, not the President.
Mr Trump, being the self proclaimed good Christian that he is, ought to know, the Bible teaches pride comes before destruction; humility comes before honor; that it is better for another to tout your accomplishments, rather than brag about yourself; that God commands we humble ourselves before Him; that it is His greatness and honor and glory we should seek, not our own; that God will bless the meek and punish the proud and defiant; that vengeance belongs to God, not to Donald Trump.
Right and wrong are not the flip side of winning and losing. Mussolini's lion like power was an evil power. Right and wrong are revealed in the understand of the difference between good and evil. That sort of wisdom is understood over time, by a careful self examination and effort to inform ones conscience, preferably with wisdom from above shown through the light of history. People who show signs of possessing that wisdom do not dwell on their own greatness, but they are able and willing to admit when they are wrong.
God is the only one who can make America great again. Unless we "restore the Sovereign to whom all men ought to be obedient" it will never happen.
Mr. Trump, maybe you have been reading the wrong experts.
It's time for We the People to take back control of our government and make it represent us instead of attack us.
-PJ
I'm for that. As such suspending any part of the Constitution exactly what we should NOT be advocating.
Trump wants to be a lion, but he suffers not other lions in his midst. He gets to be the lion. You get to be the sheep. Try disagreeing with him and you will see.
Like they removed Clinton and Obama.Trump will operate within the framework of the constitution.
Clinton had Big Journalism foursquare behind him. No Republican ever will.All the difference in the world.
Let me get this straight.
You are counting on “Big Journalism” to grease the skids against Trump, should he turn out to be too big government?
OK, what if he changes positions again, and reverts to Trump 1.0?
If he is a moron, what does that make Trump for saying, "It's okay to know it's Mussolini…It's a very good quote. It's a very interesting quote. I saw it – I know who said it."
The author is an idiot. The quote is all about the value of courage. Nothing else.
That just makes it all twisted.
THX, all the links on my home page used to work and went right to the text.
All in all Nixon was right to bug the DNC.
No more than the Founders did and no more than Trump does. These are quotes from the Founders of this Nation. Part addresses the fact that Trump claims to be a strong Christian.
The Framers of the Constitution were very wary of power in the hands of men. They believed there was only one Sovereign over our lives: God.
Well, that is my most pressing concern about Trump...I don't think a mere piece of paper will be able to contain his massive ego...
Remember, the Constitution is a document designed to limit the power of government, Trump isn't really used to the idea of his power being limited...
If he doesn’t, congress can remove him from power.
You actually wrote that with a straight face ?
The founders were bombastic about Freedom, Liberty, throwing off the yoke of British rule...
Trump gets bombastic over his brand (him) being sullied...
Has the man ever read the constitution ?
Spoken like a true Trump believer... I think you forgot to call me a loser...
You are just brainwashed by the same group who has controlled who is in office for decades now...
So because I'm not on the Trump train, I'm now brainwashed and controlled....? Talk about a stupid comment...
There is a contingent of conservatives who simply don't think Trump is the right guy...you know not a constitutional conservative...
Lot's of questions on his bona fide....
Here are a large and growing group of us who have been freed from that.
Again because I'm not a Trump supporter I'm somehow enslaved to the GOPe?.... Another stupid comment...
The fact that both parties elites are against Trump is proof of the revolution going on. Trump leads the next generation Tea Party movement.
Time will tell...
Not in the individual. When you say 'office holder' it means their powers IN THAT office - it's the ROLE - not the INDIVIDUAL they wanted to restrain.
The evil is not the power, it's the incorrect use of it, and since man almost always abuses his power in Government, Government was to be limited from granting power.
Your premise is virtually socialist.
It's a great saying by a man who not only didn't understand it but was actually a hyena. C.S. Lewis might also disagree with you.
They were saying it in the context of fighting off the oppression of a monarchy. I think you are twisting it. The threat of abuse of power was in the individuals holding office. They restrained the office in order to restrain the officeholders. That was the whole point. They did not want super powerful elites. They wanted a constitutional republic that belonged to the people, not the officeholder.
The choice for us should not be between powerful and weak. It should be between wise and unwise, constitutional and unconstitutional. There are attributes to consider, but being a devouring lion is not one we should admire or seek.
“In selecting men for office, let principle be your guide. Regard not the particular sect or denomination of the candidate, look to his character. The scriptures teach that rulers should be men who rule in the fear of God, able men, men of truth, hating covetousness. It is to the neglect of this rule that we must ascribe the multified frauds, breaches of trust, and embezzlement of public property which tarnish the character of our country and disgrace government. When a citizen gives his vote to a man of known immorality, he abuses his civic responsibility, he sacrifices not only his interest, but that of his neighbor; he betrays the interest of his country.” Noah Webster, 1823
Trump has lots of power, but it's been earned. You can say he's been paid too much or too little ... he has offered his wares in the free marketplace and people have willingly handed them their money.
He's actually the only one up their who's come about his power with the proposition "first I provide value, then you reward me, if you choose to accept what I offer", rather than the other way around. It's persuasive rather than coercive. It's COERCIVE power that the framers sought to stem through limiting the use of the powers of an office.
So there seems to be a notion that he would abuse his power. And yet there is very little evidence in his of life of him abusing it, and then still, he's the only one who doesn't have it granted to him because there are guns backing it up if you don't comply.
We're not going to have a power problem with Trump. His power has been acquired via persuasion and offering a product first, not as a result of promises and then at the point of a gun.
That's why Mussolini didn't understand the quote. He wasn't a lion, he was a mouse with a gun.
Lion's are good, and WHEN they are serving in the government, they should wear a harness to keep them from mankind's tendency to misuse the monopoly on the use of force. Trump will be on a super short leash when elected. If he can't persuade people to voluntarily follow him, he'll throw no executive order hissy fit like Obama, he'll just be ineffective.
Basically, I am saying that you probably have to worry less about Trump than any politician - any of them.
When Trump lashes back at his enemies in order to make it too costly for them to oppose him, I say that is a sign that he is a power abuser.
When Cruz rose in the polls, Trump started attacking. Before that, he was friendly and when asked about Cruz’s citizenship, Trump said he thought it was fine, that there was no problem. After the poll rise, he went nuts on the issue. He has been threatening to sue ever since. I think that is an abuse of power red flag.
I think whomever you attribute the lion quote to, it shows you a man who values his own power too much. Lions devour their enemies. We need a leader who fears God, so that when he takes his oath to protect and defend the Constitution “So help me God,” he is restrained by his own conscience.
Federalist 51 by Alexander Hamilton: http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa51.htm
Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. The interest of the man must be connected with the constitutional rights of the place. It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices should be necessary to control the abuses of government. But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. A dependence on the people is, no doubt, the primary control on the government; but experience has taught mankind the necessity of auxiliary precautions.
It is of great importance in a republic not only to guard the society against the oppression of its rulers, but to guard one part of the society against the injustice of the other part.
An intelligent person takes truth where he finds. I’ll bet if you read a list of Hitler quotes you’d find some you agree with. It doesn’t make the truth less true because of who said it.
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