In Lincoln's Gettysburg address, he used these very words in describing the governing of this new nation as that
"of the people, by the people, for the people." But how accurate is this statement? Let's think it through to get a more accurate understanding of our God-given Constitutional rights.
We certainly do elect our officials, kind of. As stated in my previous article, Constitutionally citizens do not have the right to vote. The power of selection of elected officials officially lies with the state. The state choses whether or not to allow the people to vote for electors of the Electoral College during national elections. Remember that during the 2000 election, Bush vs. Gore, the Federal Supreme Court determined that ultimately Florida's legislators had the power to determine the selection of electors.
Nevertheless, to a great degree, over the years the states have allowed the people to determine the selection of electors, those electors who been advised by the Supreme Court to remain faithful to their party when casting their vote. So in most cases, in this regard, our government is "of the people, by the people, for the people." But once again, kind of.
For once an official is elected, and here we're talking Congress and Executive, for judges are assigned not elected, how much control do the people have over these elected officials who swear to uphold the Constitution?
As an example, let's say a senator, representative, or president is elected and takes his or her post in office, how much do "we the people" have a say in their actions? Better yet, how many people take the time to keep up with the making of bills, laws and their interpretation, and so on--the basic details of governing. Considering that the majority of time for most people is consumed with working, paying bills, and taking care of family, there's not much "hands on" time spent on the details. We usually don't know of any significant legislative issue(s) until reported by a news source, an after-the-fact event. For how many of us sit down every day to watch hours of stimulating CSPAN television to see what's going on in Congress? Sure, if we have insomnia and need to get to sleep fast we may watch five minutes before doing so, but for most this is not "must see TV," for rarely does anything on CSPAN rank above
Dancing With the Stars or Night Rider.
So this government "of the people, by the people, for the people" . . . Hmmmmm, not so much.
But the big question is, should we really get more involved? Should we really be pushing for a Constitutional amendment that specifically gives the people the right to vote to pass that power from the state to the people? Should we make educational changes to make sure that more students graduate high school and college with a certified understanding of Constitutional law, the law of this greatest of lands? Should the media be more responsible for stories on governmental policy than those on fires, deaths, and keeping current with the lives of Britney and Lindsay?
There's a lot that needs to be changed for us to live up to Lincoln's ideal of a country that is truly "of the people, for the people, and by the people." May we all make changes in our lives locally that will spread to a national wildfire of interest and passion for such a high and obtainable ideal as that of Mr. Lincoln's.
