Today I visited the website of Utah’s “Patrick Henry Caucus”. I chuckled when I read “We, the Patrick Henry Caucus, unite to sustain…the Constitution of the United States.” If I started a group with the goal of sustaining the U.S. Constitution I might name it after Washington, Madison, Hamilton or other inspired Federalists who framed the Constitution 223 years ago. I would not name it after Patrick Henry who avoided the Philadelphia Convention, claiming he “smelt a rat”. Henry would later put his vote where his mouth was when he voted against the Constitution as a Virginia Delegate in 1788.
But unlike those who demonize their opponents as “anti-Constitution”, I will not engage in slamming Patrick Henry. While I am personally grateful that Alexander Hamilton’s vision of America—with its modern financial system, vibrant cities and world stature—has come to pass, I respect the attitudes held by anti-Federalists like Patrick Henry during the ratification era. Demonizing Henry would overlook his patriotism during the Revolution and the fact that many anti-Federalists peacefully acknowledged ratification and fought for the Bill of Rights as a concession from the Federalists.
Ironically, activists trumpeting themselves as “Constitutionalists” are often among those advocating an anti-Federalist worldview, not the views advocated by the Founders at Philadelphia. Some demean Congress and other institutions, not realizing that the Founders’ greatest contributions were lasting institutions that by design require compromise. Do those eschewing compromise realize our beloved Constitution includes myriad compromises—including the Grand Compromise that gave states equal representation in the Senate but retained proportional representation in the House? The Founders were willing to compromise toward a “more perfect union” and I am grateful they did. A recent but short lived attempt at compromise was Senator Bennett’s approach to health care reform. Following 2008, the Democrats had large majorities in both chambers and were poised with gavels in hand. Republicans realized they had a choice: try to influence the legislation or get steamrolled. Ultimately they were steamrolled. One ponders whether strident conservatives prefer President Obama’s recent health care law to one that might have had Republican input.
Bennett’s father, the legendary Wallace Bennett, once stated something along these lines: “We legislate at the highest quality at which we can obtain a majority”. In a nation of 300 million, strident liberals and conservatives will never obtain a majority for their proposals. The trick to good legislating is to try and kill the worst bills while leaving your own imprint on the rest. Ronald Reagan understood this during his days as Governor in Sacramento and wrote in his memoirs that compromise was anathema to “the most radical conservatives” who “wanted all or nothing”. Reagan understood compromise was necessary, but lamented that radical conservatives “never got used to it.”
Had Madison, Hamilton and others stubbornly clung to their personal ideas in 1787, the Philadelphia convention would have disbanded and the attempt at creating a united Republic would have failed. I for one believe the U.S. Constitution was no accident and that the Founders were inspired to compromise.
I also believe that the Revolutionary generation would look with admiration upon today’s America. While America has her problems, our forbears could scarce have imagined their nascent coastal Republic would one day stretch from sea to shining sea and become the world’s greatest, most prosperous nation. In times of financial stress and political change strident views and conspiracy theories tend to make brief comebacks. But wiser heads remember that periodic recessions are a fixture of free markets and presidents of both parties come and go. It’s true that tough decisions lie before us. But hearing activists and office seekers make dubious assertions about the Constitution sheds no light on today’s problems. By coming to truly understand the U.S. Constitution, including the polarized debates that led to it, I believe we will grow in appreciation for that sacred document and put some of today’s heated arguments in better perspective.
Mormon Archipelago
