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Hernando Today

The American Republic, RIP 1776-2009

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By JASON P. SAGER

Guest columnist

Published: July 4, 2009

I mourn quietly in my home today and cannot help but feel I am the only one who noticed her passing. Her name was the American Republic. She was an only child and is survived by no one.

People around the world used to celebrate her birth to great excess and spent every waking moment trying to get to know her. She was known for opening her doors to all who approached her. She was once said to have fed huddled masses.

Many years ago her people stopped trying to get to know her and began to take advantage of her good will. She became overwhelmed and died a lonely soul. Those of us who knew her true glory will never forget her.

She, unfortunately, died the same day as a "king" who lived between her shores. She was forgotten by the people who used to defend her good name to the death as her Fourth Estate continues, ad nauseam, discussing the death of a "king." Is his death something to discuss? Sure, it is natural to mourn. His death will pass. America's people will soon find another talented artist to apply the label of "king," and once again watch as he or she slowly kills themselves with drugs and excess for their amusement.

I accept that some know not of what I speak. It is with great sadness that some who enjoy her life's work, know nothing of her Republican name. One of her fathers, Noah Webster, defined her as "a state in which the exercise of a sovereign power is lodged solely in representatives elected by the people." He also defined her representatives' actions as, "In matters concerning his constituents only, he is supposed to be bound by their instructions, but in the enacting of laws for the nation, he is supposed not to be bound by their instructions, as he acts for the whole nation."

As defined in her Constitution, she was a republic.

On June 26, representatives in her people's house did neither. Instead, they voted to pass the largest tax on her people in America's short history. They did so under the cloak of a bill that is due to address an issue of science on which there is no consent.

On her death bed, she shed a final tear as they voted without having even read the document. When one of her representatives asked the speaker of her house if there was a rule that the bill must exist before they voted on it, her speaker replied "I am aware of no such rule."

Friends, countrymen, I care not what side of this political aisle on which you stand. Can you, with a straight face, look into your children's eyes and tell them this is the way they should behave when they reach a mature age when faced with complex decisions?

Her speaker said that the bill and its 300-page amendment existed and were on her table. They had not had time to assemble it for comprehension, as the amendment was just released early that morning. Imagine tearing the binding from the Holy Bible, throwing all the pages up in the air at 3 a.m.

Then reassemble it in proper order, read it, comprehend it and make a decision on whether you want to be a known by all as a Christian by 7 p.m. that evening.

Even though an overwhelming majority of her good citizens rejected the notion of this legislation, her "representatives" acted in their own interest and not hers. We stood in silence and watched her die. When a republic is no longer representing the people, it is no longer a republic. Her death was not sudden or unexpected as was the death of a "king."

Her death sparks a new cry to learn about her. Her patriotic followers are gathering in communities all across her fruited plains.

This has only happened once in history, and it was at the moment of her birth. They were led by a great man then, his name was George Washington. As we approach her 233rd birthday and celebrate the freedoms she gave us, honor her memory by remembering a passage on her Declaration of Birth.

"Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers to effect their safety and happiness."

Now that you see her obituary in print, will you take notice? Providence guides us to prepare for her resurrection?

Can her sons and daughters of liberty count on you?

Jason Sager is the president and founder of the Department of Constitutional Protection, a non-profit educational organization.

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