Miracle on Chestnut Street: How the U.S. Constitution Created the Most Successful Country in the World.

U.S. VICTORY at the Battle of Saratoga surprised everyone. In October, 1777, General Horatio Gates’ Continental Army, buoyed by heroic leadership from Benedict Arnold, Benjamin Lincoln (see RM #7), and Daniel Morgan resoundingly defeated British regulars under General “Gentleman Johnny” Burgoyne in a dearly fought, three week contest in upstate New York.

When Continental Congressmen received the glorious news back in Philadelphia, they had an epiphany... They realized that their ongoing effort to create articles of friendship amongst the 13 new States could now become a “strategic communication” that might help entice France into joining their struggle against her arch enemy, Great Britain. So they essentially stopped where they were, embellished the title a bit to portray solidarity, and then sent their product to the states for ratification.

Two months after Saratoga (December, 1777), Virginia became the first state to ratify the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union. Then Benjamin Franklin “took the ball,” leveraging his role as U.S. Ambassador in Paris to “help” France interpret recent events “correctly”…  It worked!

Just two months after Virginia signed onto the Articles (February, 1778), France formally recognized the United States of America as a free and independent country, and became her first major ally. Britain “graciously” responded a month later by declaring war on France. Thus was the path to Yorktown forged.

That the Articles failed as a prescription for enduring free government can hopefully be forgiven then, because they certainly did their part... But by 1787, their inadequacies were becoming too much for the United States to bear (see RM #7).

Philadelphia’s Constitutional Convention reached its first quorum on May 25, 1787, launching our current Constitution’s 205 year journey, which ended on May 7, 1992, with the passage of the 27th Amendment. Along the way, Framers and “Amenders” looked to history and philosophy to identify a free government’s rightful purpose, and they referred to the Declaration of Independence to discern our foundational principles.

The Purpose of Government.  James Madison said it best: “If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.”  But angels we are not…and getting along well together is a perpetual struggle. So we form governments to help us sort out our internal conflicts fairly, and to stand on our behalf whenever out relations with external states and actors become inequitable. We also – wisely – devise “checks” to keep our government’s powers properly directed, and “balances” for legislative quality control.

Our Foundation:  The Declaration of Independence.  In July, 1776, a mutually shared “decent Respect to the Opinions of Mankind” impelled Continental Congressmen to publicly declare why British governance over the Colonies was illegitimate. And in order to do that, they first explained what constituted legitimate governance:

1)    Our Creator has endowed us with “certain unalienable rights … among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”  [Note: From these explicit rights comes the implicit right to own Property (as a component of the right to Liberty and a requisite for pursuing Happiness).]

2)    We institute government to secure our unalienable rights, “organizing its Powers in such Form … most likely to effect Safety and Happiness.”

3)    Legitimate government derives its powers from the consent of the governed.

Our Consent Document:  The (Amended) U.S. Constitution.  The American People “ordained and established” the U.S. Constitution to describe their chosen form of federalism and consent to it. It stands as the net contribution of three groups of Founders: 

1)    55 delegates who convened with varying degrees of regularity in Chestnut Street’s Independence Hall during the summer of 1787.

2)    State representatives sent to ratifying conventions who would challenge its contents and make their support contingent upon the addition of a Bill of Rights.

3)    Various “change agents” who intermittently led amendment movements after ratification. Abraham Lincoln qualifies as a “founding father” because of the 13th Amendment – Susan B. Anthony as a “founding mother” because of the 19th…

Today’s Constitution meets the Declaration’s standard for legitimate government because it:

1)    SECURES OUR RIGHTS by enumerating and balancing the powers each branch of government is granted, while reinforcing our liberties with 16 amendments specifically written to “check” governmental tyranny and discrimination.

2)    EFFECTS OUR SAFETY by “providing for the Common Defense,” and subjecting ALL citizens to a single Rule of Law that protects property and punishes exploitation.

3)    EFFECTS OUR HAPPINESS and fulfillment by protecting the fruits of our personal efforts and providing means for recourse when we are treated unfairly in collective efforts. It enables healthy relationships by securing our freedoms of Conscience and Association – even the “right to be Left Alone.”

Our Government:  A “Constitutional Democratic/Representative Federal Republic.”  The United States of America is not only a “melting pot” of peoples and cultures; it’s also a melting pot of governance.  We are a “Constitutional Democratic/Representative Federal Republic,” because our sovereign – the People:

1)    Consent to relinquish certain powers (Constitutional) to various levels of government while reserving the remainder (Federal);

2)    Choose their representatives and administrators either directly (Democratic) or indirectly (Representative); and

3)    Are citizens of both their state and their country (a Republic).

God Bless America!