Jefferson on Democracy

Not surprisingly, Jefferson’s view of democracy was closer to what we think of today as conservatism, than to what our current Democratic Party to stands for today. Jefferson, like most of the founding fathers, had a fundamental distrust of government and understood the enormity of temptation borne by power wielding politicians to perniciously manipulate government. The formation of the party itself was a reaction to the current spending policies of the day. I dare say Thomas Jefferson would cringe at what our country’s government has turned into today and at what the current Democratic Party has become.

Jeffersonian Democracy promoted a small federal government with no standing army, although Jefferson wanted to promote freedom globally. Government was to have elected representatives that would put the interests of the people above the interests of one particular person or interest. Checks and balances were put into place to keep power distributed and keep the focus of government on the needs of the people. Government was not to meddle in religion or sanction any particular religion.

With its opposition to the Alien and Sedition Act of 1798 the then Democratic Republican Party made clear it’s stance that freedom of speech and freedom of the press were bedrock democratic principals and necessary for a healthy republic. Jefferson understood well that disclosure of our representatives’ words and actions, as well as criticism thereof, is vital to keeping them honest and about the peoples' business.

Fast forward to 2009:

Judges legislate from the bench; the government is the largest employer in the country and employs almost 50% of the workforce; there are an estimated 30 million illegal aliens here; the government is taking over banks and deciding what businesses should exist and which shouldn’t; in the past year the government has decided to spend more than 1.5 trillion dollars on anything they want.

Before the existence of the United States of America, it was thought that a large democratic republic like the United States could not exist because the people’s diverse interests and geographical disparities would be too great. The Roman republic first became an Empire and later fell to the Huns. Are we about to go the same route?

It may be impossible for man to be able to maintain a democratic republic. Karl Marx stated, “within a republic are sewn the seed of its own destruction.” Are we tasting the fruits of those seeds now? Will man always condemn himself to slavery because of his own, greed, avarice and slothfulness?

It appears the great experiment is coming to an end, although it does not have to. It can go on if we remember who we are and where we came from. If we can fill our minds and hearts with the dreams of our founding fathers, if we can love our country more than self and treasure the gift of freedom above all else, then we have a chance at keeping our democratic republic.

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