Jefferson on How to Restore the Republic |
“When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.” (Thomas Jefferson)
“When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.” (Thomas Jefferson)
Mr. Jefferson, in the Declaration of Independence, with the agreement of his colleagues, stated the principles upon which an uncorrupt America was to be built. He was also happy with the Constitution of 1789 and defended it vociferously. “The greatest danger to American freedom is a government that ignores the Constitution.” I suspect—no, I know, based upon what he wrote—he would be disappointed with the government today. More on that subsequently.
His statement at the beginning of this article is an interesting analysis. If a Republic grows corrupt, i.e., perverts the principles upon which it is founded, then the corruptions must be removed and the founding principles be restored. Any attempts other than restoration will be useless—they will have no positive effect in bringing the republic back to what it was intended to be—or a “new evil.” Impurities from the founding ideals is an “evil”—at least for that Republic as it was intended. Changes are necessary over time, of course, and Jefferson never denied that. But if the adaptations change the founding principles, then the country is no longer what it was intended to be.
The founding principles of the United States are in the Declaration of Independence. One, natural rights: life, liberty,........