(This week’s civic education and engagement column from Danville’s The Republican newspaper.)
I’m writing this on the morning of our nation’s 250th birthday. I realize you’re reading this weeks later. Much of the celebration understandably focused on the Declaration of Independence. While I marvel at Jefferson’s words and their impact upon the world, I wish we paid as much attention to our nation’s most important words: the ones that explain why government exists and what we expect it to do.
It’s the Preamble to the Constitution, and if you haven’t read it in a while, enjoy: We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, 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.
The Preamble tells the whole story in 52 words. Everything that follows is simply the machinery to make those goals possible. That’s why I wish every American could recite it from memory. (I can, thanks to Schoolhouse Rock.) Let’s consider the meaning of each clause.
“We the People” was an extraordinary statement because political power no longer flowed from a king or inherited ruler. It flowed from the people themselves. And why did these ordinary humans create the Constitution? Simple: in Order to form a more perfect Union. They knew no government would be perfect, but they aspired to build a better one, creating a system that could evolve as our nation and its needs changed.
“Establish Justice, insure domestic tranquility” contains two related thoughts. In today’s language, “domestic tranquility” means freedom from fear. You sleep soundly at night because government is protecting you in many ways. Maintaining that tranquility is a system of justice designed to treat everyone fairly and equally. We’ve never attained that ideal, but as a people, we keep working toward it.
“Provide for the common defence” means the states and their armed forces work together to protect each other. When our nation is threatened, Indiana doesn’t have to volunteer to take care of everyone else. As one nation, we stand together.
“Promote the general Welfare” is often misunderstood today, because many Americans associate “welfare” with government handouts. But in the language of the day, this clause referred to what we now call quality of life. Part of the reason government exists is to improve the quality of life for each generation, even if We the People may bristle at changes and having to pay taxes. And “secure the Blessings of Liberty” largely refers to the “inalienable” rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
“To ourselves and our Posterity” may be the most important clause. We the People don’t just want government to be around to help us. We want it to ensure that our children and our grandchildren continue to enjoy those freedoms and the many other benefits of citizenship. “Do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” That’s simple legalese for “we created this thing and we declare it to be the law of the land.”
Every level of government, including the ones closest to home, exists to serve those same purposes. School boards, town councils, county commissioners, libraries, townships, and every other public body each carry out a small part of that larger mission. We may disagree about how government should do those things, but the “why” has never changed. It was written down in 52 remarkable words nearly 250 years ago.