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1. The Declaration of Independence wasn't signed on July 4, 1776. On July 1, 1776, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, and on the following day 12 of the 13 colonies voted in favor of Richard Henry Lee's motion for independence. The delegates then spent the next two days debating and revising the language of a statement drafted by Thomas Jefferson. On July 4, Congress officially adopted the Declaration of Independence, and as a result the date is celebrated as Independence Day. Nearly a month would go by, however, before the actual signing of the document took place. First,...

The Fourth of July is a great opportunity to renew our dedication to the principles of liberty and equality enshrined in what Thomas Jefferson called "the declaratory charter of our rights."As a practical matter, the Declaration of Independence publicly announced to the world the unanimous decision of the American colonies to declare themselves free and independent states, absolved from any allegiance to Great Britain. But its greater meaning—then as well as now—is as a statement of the conditions of legitimate political authority and the proper ends of government, and its proclamation of a new ground of political rule in...

Over the past two weeks, I've highlighted eight little-known facts about the Declaration of Independence. (If you missed the first two parts of this series, you can find them at http://www.creators.com/opinion/chuck-norris.html.) Here are the last four facts in my series: 9) One of the 26 known July 1776 copies of the Declaration of Independence was found behind an old painting purchased at a flea market for $4. In 1991, one of 24 known copies at the time of the declaration -- and one of only three known to be privately owned -- was auctioned for $2.42 million. What's even more...

Last week, I highlighted four little-known facts about the Declaration of Independence. Here are a few more facts to add to those oddities: There are at least 26 surviving paper copies of the Declaration of Independence of the hundreds made in July 1776 for circulation among the Colonies. After Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, the Committee of Five, which was appointed to write it, was also responsible with overseeing its reproduction for proclamation to those living in the Colonies. The reproduction was done at the shop of Philadelphia printer John Dunlap. "On July 5, Dunlap's copies were dispatched across...

Being about a week away from Independence Day, I was doing a little reflecting upon the history surrounding the Declaration of Independence. And I thought it would be of equal interest to many of my readers to look at some often-overlooked aspects of the declaration's production and legacy. Several historical websites hold some fascinating facts about this national treasure -- including the National Archives and Records Administration's site, at http://www.archives.gov. In addition, on History's website, the article "9 Things You May Not Know About the Declaration of Independence," by Elizabeth Harrison, has some intriguing notes. Let me elaborate on some...

When Secretary Mike Pompeo first set out on this journey to get back to the real heart of human rights, no one could have possibly predicted the year our country would have. Shaken by outrage, unrest, and the growing insistence that America is too flawed to fix, a return to our roots will only dredge up more hard feelings, some say. On the contrary, Pompeo insists. Maybe the best time to revisit all that's pure and good about our nation is when people are determined to destroy it. "Some say the report's timing couldn't be worse," he said. "I say...

When was the last time you read the Declaration of Independence? REALLY READ IT. Have you tried to understand what our founders thought about how a government should be empowered? It’s an incredible document when talking about freedom. It’s a nasty letter when talking about the King of England. It starts off by saying that the government serves at the will of the people not the other way around: When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of...

Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America was a comedy album from 1961. It's easy to tell Freberg is a liberal - the Declaration Of Independence skit is a take on the House Unamerican Committee. However, it's still pretty funny - also a funny insight into how liberals think. Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America - Declaration Of Independence

Leftist citizens of the world are uncomfortable at the sight of unabashed and self-confident patriots celebrating the founding of a nation dedicated to undeniable truths. Tough. Let the micro-aggressions roll as we stand athwart the progressive junking of all that is good and decent. On our nation’s 150th anniversary in 1926, Republican president Calvin Coolidge gave a speech in which he responded to the progressive wave that was muddying the minds of the nation. Only thirteen years after the passage of the destructive 16th and 17th Amendments, Coolidge deftly reminded Americans not to discard principles that had served the nation...

Independence Day makes Progressives squirm. They despise the principles of the American Revolution. If they could, their scotus judges would gut the Declaration as thoroughly as they have the Constitution. To them, our Noble Declaration, this expression of God-given reason subverts social justice; they are right. Since the Declaration is indeed hostile to their moral relativism, the Left has long attempted to minimize our founding to a fuzzy faith in the people. The “deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” and “all men are created equal,” translates in their Marxist minds as widespread democracy accompanied with equal...

AUSTIN, Texas (KVII) — Easter Sunday marked a renewing of the State of Texas' action toward the spread of the novel coronavirus. Governor Greg Abbott extended the disaster declaration for all Texas counties, which was originally declared on March 13. Abbot said the extension is necessary to help stop the proliferation of the virus within the state. "I urge all Texans to continue practicing social distancing and abide by the guidelines laid out by the CDC and my Executive Orders to slow the spread of COVID-19," the governor said in a statement. The same day, the governor's office said they...

This is the full reading of the original rough draft version of the United States Declaration of Independence. It is read directly from the transcript, without the filter of historians trying to control the narrative in one direction or the other.

DAD, WHAT's UNABHÄNGIGKEITSTAG? "Is that when the thirteen colonies broke away from England?" My ten year inquired out of nowhere at 6 AM German time this morning. "Yeah, why do you want to know, eat your breakfast," I mumbled, too sleepy to be very curious. "Because I am afraid my teacher will ask me, since I am wearing this T-shirt and I'm the only American in the class." With an effort, I adjusted my gaze upward to his white T-shirt. It was brand new. Prominent on his breast was an image of the flag and below that: OLD NAVY FREEDOM...

Was listening to Glenn Beck's radio show today and heard his dramatic reading of the First Draft of the Declaration of Independence. "… America spends far too much time looking to the past for blame and excuse. And let's be honest, even the Right is often more concerned with “owning the left" than helping point anyone toward the practical principles of the Declaration of Independence. America has clearly lost touch with who we are as a nation. We have a national identity crisis. ... … people might say, how could the Founders approve the phrase “All men are created equal,"...

The United States and Mexico met this week to address the shared challenges of irregular migration, to include the entry of migrants into the United States in violation of U.S. law. Given the dramatic increase in migrants moving from Central America through Mexico to the United States, both countries recognize the vital importance of rapidly resolving the humanitarian emergency and security situation. The Governments of the United States and Mexico will work together to immediately implement a durable solution.As a result of these discussions, the United States and Mexico commit to:Mexican Enforcement SurgeMexico will take unprecedented steps to increase enforcement...

A Darwinist Deconstructs the Declaration of Independence David Klinghoffer | @d_klinghoffer May 14, 2019 Stephen Meyer has written here about how the ideas framed by the Declaration of Independence, the “sources of our rights as citizens,” are rooted in design thinking. There is one source that is more basic than any other, yet that receives less than the attention it deserves. I refer to the idea that there is an intelligent creator who can be known by reason from nature, a key tenet underlying the Declaration of Independence — as well as, curiously, the modern theory of intelligent design. As...

Our ancestors often believed in fate, and so do I. It was fate one day that brought me to the Fraunces Tavern in New York City. Fate that day that the waiter overheard me talking to my daughter. Fate that that same waiter told me of the museum on the top floor of the Fraunces Tavern. Fate that allowed me fifteen minutes prior to closing to view the museum.In those fifteen minutes I scanned the exhibits and discovered a small posting regarding a declaration signed by 547 Loyalists in late November 1776 which declared their loyalty to the Crown and...

Astonishingly, today’s Americans expect government to care for us from cradle to grave, the way commoners once expected a benevolent king to care for his subjects. We treat people as members of groups rather than as individuals, insidiously devolving into the very class system against which the Founders rebelled. Americans are voluntarily surrendering the very freedoms that millions fought and died to establish and protect. President James Garfield once said the most common form of death in politics is suicide. After a noble 225-year history, is the American experiment dying at the hands of its own people? Many of the...

The Declaration of Independence was censored on Facebook this week. According to Facebook's algorithm, America's founding document contains "hate speech." Leading up to Independence Day, a newspaper in Texas posted sections of the Declaration of Independence on Facebook. The social media site's algorithm blocked a section of America's founding document, categorizing it as "hate speech." I'm glad to say Facebook later realized its mistake, apologized, and unblocked the post, but this incident reveals the problems with automated "hate speech" algorithms. The Vindicator started posting snippets of the Declaration on June 24, enabling readers to digest the whole thing in time...

Former FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday shared a peek at his family’s Independence Day traditions. In an Instagram post, Comey shared a photo of several numbered pieces of paper with burnt edges, which he explained in a caption are printed with the Declaration of Independence. The former FBI chief said that every July 4th, his family assigns “parts” and reads the document aloud as a group. “The Comey family Declaration pieces (long ago made “authentic” by our kids burning the edges and soaking it in coffee),” Comey wrote in the caption. “As always on July 4th, we will assign...