Constitution Corner

America’s founders never intended for the people at large to choose a president, at least not directly. History and experience prove that most people do not do their homework and tend to be influenced by promises of political opportunists. This fact of life was well known by the men who laid the foundation of our country. Having learned from the colonial experience and other models dating back to Europe and Rome, our Founding Fathers were unwilling to leave the choice of president to a poorly informed — or misinformed — general public. Moreover, the creators of our country took great pains to prevent a national, billion dollar popularity contest every four years.

For a brittle old piece of parchment, the U.S. Constitution certainly lives a charmed life. Since the day it was born, the Constitution has been battered by aspiring rulers, demagogues, reformers, collectivists, conceited intellectuals, deluded students, journalists, ambitious presidents, and creative members of the Supreme Court.

Since the terrorist attacks of 9-11, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has challenged the federal government's warrantless surveillance of telephone calls and emails. In this context, the ACLU properly employs the Bill of Rights as a force against federal usurpation. Is this the same ACLU that applies the Bill of Rights against the states in matters of religion, firearms, voting, and due process? It's nice to pick your situation and apply your ethics at random, but when the ACLU goes to court, do they protect your rights or do they help centralize federal power?

History tells the sad story of citizens whose rights were injured by leaders they trusted. For this reason the departments of power in the United States were not given the means of injuring the rights of the people. In making one nation out of thirteen states, our founders knew the danger of consolidated power, and therefore the 1787 Convention was driven by a two-fold objective: The creation of a national government armed with enough power to defend the people, but not enough power to enslave them. The final draft of our Constitution certifies that remarkable accomplishment.