WHY AMERICA'S FOUNDERS WOULD BE APPALLED AT JUDGE BOASBERG'S GRAB FOR POWER

On Wednesday, Federal District Judge, James Boasberg, continued his unprecedented grab for power by ruling that “probable cause exists” to hold Trump administration officials in “criminal contempt” for violating his orders in mid-March to halt the deportation of Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador.

Steve Vladeck, a professor at the University of Georgetown School of Law, admitted that such a move is odd, saying, “Holding federal executive branch officials in criminal contempt is just about unheard of.”

America’s founding generation would be stunned by such a grab for power by one unelected individual. One thing they all mistrusted, and even feared, was governmental power in the hands of any one or any few. In the most popular book of that era, Common Sense, the author, Thomas Paine, wrote, “Government is, at its best, a necessary evil; and at its worst, an intolerable one.”

The Biblical Basis of the American Republic
"Fallen Humanity Cannot be Trusted with Power"

America's Founders would all agree with C. S. Lewis who said, “Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his fellows." Because they believed human nature to be flawed because of original sin, they formed a government that would keep power out of the hands of any one person or group of persons. 

Whereas modern liberalism claims that human nature is essentially good and that people only need a change of environment and circumstances to improve their behavior, the Founders held no such utopian view of the human condition. "Take mankind in general," said Alexander Hamilton, "they are vicious." James Madison added, "If men were angels, no government would be necessary."

The historian, Benjamin Hart, wrote, "A central assumption of America's Founders was original sin, meaning the corruption of man's character." (Hyatt, America's Revival Heritage, Second Edition, 95). They, therefore, divided the powers of government into three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial.

As another check on power, the Founders, in Section 1, Article 9 of the Constitution, forbade the government from issuing honorific titles of nobility and they forbade any government employee from receiving such a title from a foreign state apart from an act of Congress. In Section 10, they forbade the states from issuing honorific titles of nobility. 

In other words, they outlawed aristocracy in America. The Founders would all agree with Sir John Dalberg-Acton who said, “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” 

Power Resides with the People

The Founders envisioned a government wherein power resides with the people, not a king, an aristocracy, or unelected judges. This is why the U.S. Constitution begins with the words, “We the people . . ..” Abraham Lincoln described America’s government as being “of the people, by the people and for the people.”

Since power is to reside with the people, laws are to be passed by the representatives of the people in Congress—the legislative branch. The president—the executive branch—is to execute and enforce those laws passed by the representatives of the people. Judges—the judiciary branch—are to interpret and apply those same laws to individual cases that come before them.

District judgeships are not in the Constitution. They were created by Congress to take the load off the Supreme Court by dealing with cases in their district. Judges were never meant to make rulings that apply across the board to the entire country. However, that is exactly what is happening as unelected judges legislate from the bench and overturn the will of “we the people.” 

Donald Trump was elected by the people of the United States, and the president is the only government official elected by all the people. If successful, the the actions of Judge Boasberg would completely undermine the American system of government wherein power lies with "we the people."

The Way Forward from Here

Jesus clearly taught that leadership is to be characterized by humble service, not pompous power, and America's Founders wholeheartedly agreed. This is why George Washington exhorted the governors of the various states to pattern their lives after Jesus (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 120).

This is why Washington and all the Founders would be appalled at an unelected official's arrogant reach for power over the president and executive branch. Their view of leadership was based on Christian teachings, which eschews such pursuits of power. This is why Dr. Michael Novak wrote,

Far from having a hostility toward religion, the Founders counted on religion [Christianity] for the underlying philosophy of the republic, its supporting ethic, and its reliable source of rejuvenation (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 171).

This is a critical moment in time when we, as the church, must be about our primary calling of being “salt” and “light” to this generation, calling the nation back to God, rebuking the ungodly pursuits of power, and directing the people to pray and expect another Great Awakening to revive and renew the church and the nation.

This article was derived from the books 1726: The Year that Defined America and America's Revival Heritage (Second Edition) by Eddie L. Hyatt and available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com