The Constitution is About Limits…

There is no better excuse to dictate policy than crisis. Our founders knew the propensity of humans to dictate their will through group think in emotional situations. The founders feared and despised central rule by a King and were determined in the constitution to protect against both dictatorship and group or mob rule.

We are starting to hear politicians that are responsible for creating the current economic mess (chaos) talking about suspending democratic rule. First, we are not a democracy but what they are suggesting is we the people be stripped of our right to vote in or out our representatives to the federal government. These are not fringe lunatics that hold no power; they are a current congress woman and the governor of North Carolina. Their argument is that elected politicians can’t do what they want for fear of being voted out next election. My question is if they are in fear of being voted out of office by their constituents then the policies they are pursuing may be the problem. The reason our representative government does work is that representatives must face re-election every two years.

The constitution was designed with a House of Representatives to be most accountable to the people. That is why all laws are created by the House. The design of the house also allows for the protection against mob rule. There are 435 representatives that represent many districts with many competing interests. These competing interests make it less likely that a majority of these representatives will react with emotion rather than analysis. It is not a perfect system but it is the best the world has ever been able to put together under one set of rules. Those rules we call the US Constitution.

If we were to suspend elections so representatives did not have to face the voters, would this make the people complacent or angry? Forget the fact it would be an impeachable offense, is it a good idea to undermine the rule of law? The majority of the people in the United States want the federal government to reduce spending and repeal Obamacare. The anger, frustration, and ailing economy are being perpetuated by a few representatives that are not willing to listen to the people they represent.

Is the answer bypassing the people or is the answer electing people that will listen to the people and abide by the limits of the US Constitution?