“Experience hath
shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with
power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into
tyranny.”
- Thomas Jefferson
“The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” - Thomas Jefferson
“To compel a man to furnish funds for the propagation of
ideas he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical.” - Thomas
Jefferson
Of all those doors that were shuttered as a
result of the recent government shutdown, the turn of the latch that
most resonated with my personal being was the one on the entrance to the
City Tavern in Philadelphia.
As someone who has spent many of my days and evenings on both sides of
the bar, I know firsthand the plight of those that pull the pints and
tend the tables. And there is no act of Congress that will replace the
lost revenue of those who depend so heavily on the generosity of those
from the general public that can actually get through the front door.
But beyond the fiscal concerns and hardships brought on by the
current state of political paralysis in Washington, there was the irony
of having to close those places that are meant to honor our past and to
further our faith in the future function of our government.
One does not padlock the pulpit just because there is conflict within the congregation.
While the majority of Americans have bolstered their own
patriotic passions by visiting some memorial or battlefield, I have
decided that I much prefer the reconstructed confines of that colonial
era establishment to rouse my own feelings of national fervor. There are
a couple of reasons for my fondness of the City Tavern. One, you can
actually toast our liberties with something a bit more in keeping with
what the Founders would have put in their cups. And two, other than
those that succumbed to the slow poisoning brought on by an over
indulgence of Blackstrap, mutton chops, and Flip,
there is not the usual senseless loss of life attached to this
consecrated piece of ground–truly a place where giants once
roamed.
Among those
extraordinarily gifted gentlemen that attended to some portion of their
corporal needs at this outstanding American public house were Thomas
Jefferson and George Washington. And it is in their words and insights
that we can find the potential source and possible solution to our
current political debacle. Like many of the nation’s founders, both men
had some healthy concerns about the future course of the new government.
In a letter to the American people published prior to his
retirement from the presidency in 1796, George Washington warned against
the possible damage political parties might bring upon the republic.
Having already been witness to the extreme acrimony and partisanship
between Jefferson’s Democratic - Republican Party and Alexander
Hamilton’s Federalists, Washington was leery of political parties
operating within a popularly elected government. He feared that
the competing political organizations would attempt to silence and
punish legitimate opposition, promote regionalism and create undue fears
and suspicions among the population.
Unfortunately,
American’s have on far too many occasions throughout our history been
the sorry victims of our first president’s prognostications. And like
most organized groups and institution, the lofty well-intentioned
principles of both Republicans and Democrats have all too often become
secondary to the self-interests and survival of the party. So it should
come as no surprise that a substantial segment of the nascent
Congressional class has seized upon the writings of Thomas Jefferson as a
source for their inspiration and rationalization for the defunding and
dismantling of government. But before they consider closing some doors again, they should also consider these words from Mr. Jefferson.
”The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.”
On September 17, 1787, one of the longest, and perhaps most
contentious political debates in our nation’s history came to an end
with the signing of the United States Constitution. With the closing of
the doors of the Pennsylvania State House after 114 days of secret
meetings, George Washington and a good number of the beleaguered and
exhausted delegates found their way to the City Tavern.
There they were able to put aside personal political differences, and
rise above the rancor by raising a glass to the common welfare of all
Americans.
Perhaps, it is not so much the words of the Founders, but
rather the behavior of those individuals that we should attempt to
incorporate into our politics. But in order to open that door to a place
where men of reason and benevolence gather for the greater good of the
people, we will first have to open our minds and our hearts to that
greater possibility!
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