Lecture 11 - The Founding of America

America's Revolution was just as much a revolution of ideas as it was a revolution of war.  It was the cry for freedom from tyranny.  

The English tyrant that the colonists resisted was King George III.

The Declaration of Independence (written by Thomas Jefferson and signed by all the delegates on July 4, 1776) states:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,

The new United States of America instituted the Articles of Confederations (1777), but it had several weakness:
1. Congress had no power to raise money
2. Congress had no power to enforce any of its decisions
3. There was no executive (no supreme authority to lead) or judicial branch
4. It took 9 of the 13 states to approve measures in order to get passed by Congress

So the founders proposed a new form of government and started the Constitutional Convention in 1787.  James Madison is known as the "Father of the Constitution"

Pillars of the United States constitution:
1. Separation of Powers
Because of human nature, the founders decided to break up the control of government to fight against the sin of tyranny (when all power is vested in one person or group)
Based on the Bible verse Isaiah 33:22 which says:

For the Lord is our judge; the Lord is our lawgiver; the Lord is our king; he will save us.

God is Chief Justice -> Judicial Branch (interpret the laws) -> Supreme Court
God is Chief Lawgiver -> Legislative Branch (write the laws) -> Congress
God is Chief Executive -> Executive Branch (enforce the laws) -> President


2. Representation
Based on the Bible verse Deuteronomy 1:9-18.   Founders knew of the defects of the Greeks (Democracy / mob-rule) and the Romans (republic)

America's form of government: A constitutional republic (a representative form of government)


The preamble to the Constitution of the United States:
We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Slavery was the issue that kept the colonists from agreeing to the Constitution.
 
Benjamin Franklin was the oldest signer of the Constitution and the statesman that encouraged the delegates to pray at the Constitutional Convention in 1788.  The constitution was ratified in 1789.  
The first presidents were:
George Washington (inaugurated in 1789-1797) - also known as the "father of our country"
John Adams (1797-1801)
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)