Tag Archives: First Principles

First Principles: The Sacred Rights of Mankind Are…Written…In the Whole Volume of Human Nature, By the Hand of the Divinity Itself

“The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for, among old parchments, or musty records. They are written, as with a sun beam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the hand of the divinity itself; and … Continue reading

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First Principles: If the Federal Government Should Overpass the Just Bounds of Its Authority and Make A Tyrannical Use of Its powers, the People,…Must Appeal to the Standard They Have Formed

“If the federal government should overpass the just bounds of its authority and make a tyrannical use of its powers, the people, whose creature it is, must appeal to the standard they have formed, and take such measures to redress … Continue reading

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First Principles: The Bill of Rights Establishes Some Rights of the Individual As Unalienable and Which Consequently, No Majority Has A Right To Deprive Them Of

“[The Bill of Rights] establishes some rights of the individual as unalienable and which consequently, no majority has a right to deprive them of.” – Albert Gallatin (1789)

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First Principles: The Right of Freely Examining Public Characters and Measures…Has Ever Been Justly Deemed the Only Effectual Guardian of Every Other Right

“The right of freely examining public characters and measures … has ever been justly deemed the only effectual guardian of every other right.” – James Madison (1798)

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First Principles: I Offer Nothing More Than Simple Facts, Plain Arguments, and Common Sense

“I offer nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense.” Thomas Paine, in Common Sense

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First Principles: Were We Directed From Washington When To Sow and When To Reap, We Should Soon Want Bread

“Were we directed from Washington when to sow, and when to reap, we should soon want bread.” – Thomas Jefferson (1821)

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First Principles: The Accumulation of All Powers, Legislative, Executive and Judiciary, In the Same Hands…May Justly Be Pronounced the Very Definition of Tyranny

“The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.” – James Madison (1788)

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First Principles: Stability In Government Is Essential To National Character and To the Advantages Annexed To It, As Well As To that Repose and Confidence In the Minds of the People

“Stability in government is essential to national character and to the advantages annexed to it, as well as to that repose and confidence in the minds of the people, which are among the chief blessings of civil society.” – James … Continue reading

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First Principles: There Is A Chart and A Compass For Us To Study, To Consult, and To Obey. That Chart Is the Constitution

We may be tossed upon an ocean where we can see no land — nor, perhaps, the sun or stars. But there is a chart and a compass for us to study, to consult, and to obey. That chart is … Continue reading

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First Principles: A Diffusion of Knowledge Is the Only Guardian of True Liberty

A diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty.” -James Madison

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