Natural Rights, Separated Powers, and the Declaration of Independence
- Click here for the wiki.
The principle point of this section is to understand the nature of the argument presented in the Declaration of Independence. In my opinion, this also requires that we come to terms with two key aspects of British history. The first has to do with a philosophical change in the nature of governmental authority, the second with the relationship between governing institutions, specifically the extent of executive power. In the power points I like to describe these as a shift from divine right of the king, to natural rights, and from absolute power of the monarch to a constitutional monarchy - that is, a monarch that lives within a system of separated powers.
Why does this matter for our understanding of the argument in the Declaration of Independence? Because the document starts with a statement of natural rights - that's the bulk of the opening paragraph. It then justifies independence because the King of England is violating limits on his legitimate rule. He is usurping colonial legislative, executive, and judicial power, and by combining them he is establishing a tyranny. The document does not settle the question of what type of governing system will be established, that will come when the Articles of Confederation is established. The role of the states in this design was still being debated.
For relevant blog posts on related topics:
- Declaration of Independence.
- Magna Carta.
- Natural rights.
- Separated Powers.
The United States Constitution
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In short order the founders of the nation went through a couple different constitutions. The first was established a confederacy - which is a loose collection of independently sovereign entities. The second was a federal system with sovereign authority split between a national government and several - well, 13 - component parts. Under the British system, the colonies were under a unitary system of government, with sovereignty help solely by the national government.
The purpose of this section is to walk through the process that resulted in the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. This will involve a look at the political controversies that existed at the time and how these were - more or less - resolved. The section contains a walk through the document as well as a look at the question about how the document should be interpreted. Was it intended to be interpreted narrowly, or was there an expectation that it would change over time to respond to shifts in public morays and technology.
Here are some blog posts on these topics:
- Constitutional Convention.
- Living Constitution.
- Loose Construction.
- Original Intent.
- Strict Construction.
- The United States Constitution.
Federalist 10 and Republicanism
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There are a handful of principles embedded in the Constitution. We begin our separate look at each look at each in this section on republicanism. The term simply refers to the fact that the people - or at least the electorate - does not rule directly. This means that they do not directly pass laws and then administer and adjudicate them. Instead this occurs through institutions. The best the electorate can do is hold the members of these institutions - or some of them anyway - accountable through periodic elections. James Madison explains the advantages of this design in Federalist #10, which is a central feature of this section of the class. The simple goal here is to understand why - from the founders point of view - direct popular rule was unwise.
Some old - and not so old - blog posts on the subject:
- Factions.
- Federalist #10.
- Federalist Papers.
