A Representative Republic
With the coming of the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we find it puerile that citizens of this nation are arguing over the type of government the Founders determined. The Declaration of Independence was signed during conflict that had begun with Great Britain on the fields of Lexington and Concord Massachusetts, and were themselves preceded by various events, the Stamp Act, and the Boston Tea Party among them. Massachusetts was declared an open rebellion, and the First Continental Congress was called in 1775.
When the 13 American colonies met in Philadelphia during that sizzling summer of 1776 as the Second Continental Congress, the representatives were split as to the course of action that should be taken. After much debate independence was decided, and the lengthy process of drafting the declaration took place with Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams as the key drafters. Much of the writing was from the hand of Jefferson.
Signed on July 2 and only published on July 4, the American Revolution already a skirmish between Britain and the colonies became an all-out war. It took five more years, much negotiating, and the help of the Kingdom of France to finally defeat the British, the decisive battle was the siege of Yorktown. When the Treaty of Paris was finally signed in 1783 the thirteen “independent states” formed themselves into a loose alliance under the Articles of Confederation.
Very soon this arrangement was seen as unsatisfactory with states coining their own money, alliances formed, and a weak central government that had no actual power. It was determined a new agreement should be hammered out by a Constitutional Convention. What resulted was the resilient document that is still active today.
It formed a representative republic, not a democracy. The men at the convention sought to promote a balance between the interests of the citizens, the rights of the various states (large v. small states), and the needs of a central government to govern. Articles that included a bicameral legislative branch and the Electoral College were two of the safeguards for smaller states.
What was feared the most by the Founders was what some, including John Adams, called the “Tyranny of the Majority.” Balancing the rights of the majority v. the rights of the minority was a critical point of contention throughout. Pure “democracy” had inherent problems. Putting together a Representative Republic meant checking each branch of government, checking, and balancing those who determined who was in power, and giving the task of selection of those representatives not only to the people, but to the states as well.
Just two weeks ago, CNN talking heads decried the fact check correspondents were given when talking about which candidate is a “threat to democracy.” When questioned, several people pointed out we were not, in fact, a democracy, but a representative republic. This is Civic I stuff and should not have been a surprise. We use democracy (the vote) to select the people in power, but we are ruled by those elected and appointed officials as outlined in the constitution.
James McHenry (1753-1816) while he was a Maryland delegate to the Constitutional Convention, kept a log of the proceedings. On the page where McHenry records the events of the last day of the convention, September 18, 1787, he wrote: “A lady asked Dr. Franklin Well Doctor what have we got a republic or a monarchy – A republic replied the Doctor if you can keep it.”
People on CNN, and everyone, should know the difference.