historicaldocuments:anti-federalist:antifed72
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+ | ====== ANTIFEDERALIST No. 72 ====== | ||
+ | ===== On The Electoral College; On Reeligibility Of The President ===== | ||
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+ | By an anonymous writer REPUBLICUS, appearing in The Kentucky Gazette on March 1, 1788. | ||
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+ | . . I go now to Art. 2, Sec. 1, which vest the supreme continental executive power in a president - in order to the choice of whom, the legislative body of each state is empowered to point out to their constituents some mode of choice, or (to save trouble) may choose themselves, a certain number of electors, who shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot, for two persons, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves. Or in other words, they shall vote for two, one or both of whom they know nothing of. An extraordinary refinement this, on the plain simple business of election; and of which the grand convention have certainly the honor of being the first inventors; and that for an officer too, of so much importance as a president - invested with legislative and executive powers; who is to be commander in chief of the army, navy, militia, etc. ; grant reprieves and pardons; have a temporary negative on all bills and resolves; convene and adjourn both houses of congress; be supreme conservator of laws; commission all officers; make treaties; and who is to continue four years, and is only removable on conviction of treason or bribery, and triable only by the senate, who are to be his own council, whose interest in every instance runs parallel with his own, and who are neither the officers of the people, nor accountable to them. | ||
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+ | Is it then become necessary, that a free people should first resign their right of suffrage into other hands besides their own, and then, secondly, that they to whom they resign it should be compelled to choose men, whose persons, characters, manners, or principles they know nothing of?And, after all (excepting some such change as is not likely to happen twice in the same century) to intrust Congress with the final decision at last?Is it necessary, is it rational, that the sacred rights of mankind should thus dwindle down to Electors of electors, and those again electors of other electors? | ||
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+ | Again I would ask (considering how prone mankind are to engross power, and then to abuse it) is it not probable, at least possible, that the president who is to be vested with all this demiomnipotence - who is not chosen by the community; and who consequently, | ||
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+ | Upon his being invested with those powers a second or third time, he may acquire such enormous influence - as, added to his uncontrollable power over the army, navy, and militia; together with his private interest in the officers of all these different departments, | ||
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+ | To conclude, I can think of but one source of right to government, or any branch of it - and that is THE PEOPLE. They, and only they, have a right to determine whether they will make laws, or execute them, or do both in a collective body, or by a delegated authority. Delegation is a positive actual investiture. Therefore if any people are subjected to an authority which they have not thus actually chosen - even though they may have tamely submitted to it - yet it is not their legitimate government. They are wholly passive, and as far as they are so, are in a state of slavery. Thank heaven we are not yet arrived at that state. And while we continue to have sense enough to discover and detect, and virtue en(>ugh to detest and oppose every attempt, either of force or fraud, either from without or within, to bring us into it, we never will. | ||
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+ | Let us therefore continue united in the cause of rational liberty. Let unity and liberty be our mark as well as our motto. For only such an union can secure our freedom; and division will inevitably destroy it. Thus a mountain of sand may peace meal [sic] be removed by the feeble hands of a child; but if consolidated into a rock, it mocks the united efforts of mankind, and can only fall in a general wreck of nature. | ||
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+ | REPUBLICUS. | ||
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historicaldocuments/anti-federalist/antifed72.txt · Last modified: 2021/02/23 16:15 by 127.0.0.1