On June 21, 1788, the United States Constitution became the law of the land, when New Hampshire was the ninth state to ratify it. Our Constitution, though it was subsequently clarified and improved with the Bill of Rights and some of the other amendments, was always the greatest such document in world history, and has inspired both Americans and freedom lovers around the world ever since.
George Washington, who served as president of the Constitutional Convention just as he would be first U.S. president, summed up the document’s foundational ethos: “The power under the Constitution will always be in the people. It is entrusted for certain defined purposes, and for a certain limited period, to representatives of their own choosing; and whenever it is executed contrary to their interest, or not agreeable to their wishes, their servants can, and undoubtedly will, be recalled.”
Of course, in practice, many politicians and bureaucrats over the years have ignored the Constitution, which is how we ended up with a federal government whose activities are largely unconstitutional. It is why we have to worry about our rights being attacked, and why corrupt and evil people can become career politicians. But when we do follow the Constitution, our Republic is well run, and We the People possess more rights and liberty than any other people in history. Fortunately, we have a new administration that is much more interested in upholding the Constitution than the previous administration.
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The National Constitution Center explains:
Until the new Constitution was ratified, the country was governed by the Articles of Confederation. That document was tailored to a newly formed nation made of states acting more like independent, sovereign countries, and it quickly became clear to some of America’s leaders that future stability required a stronger, more centralized government. New York’s Alexander Hamilton thus led the call for a constitutional convention to reevaluate the nation’s governing document. The Confederation Congress endorsed his initiative, and representatives from all 13 states were subsequently invited to convene in Philadelphia on May 25, 1787, to participate in the Convention.
The Constitution was not perfect — what human document ever is? — but it was much better and wiser than the Articles of Confederation. While there would be plenty of room for improvement, the Constitution was the key foundation to transform America from a loose collection of states that often could not seem to agree on many topics to a unified nation, the greatest on earth.
The initial purpose of the Convention was for the delegates to amend the Articles of Confederation; however, the ultimate outcome was the proposal and creation of a completely new form of government. Three months later, on September 17, 1787, the Convention concluded with the signing (by 38 out of 41 delegates present) of the new U.S. Constitution. Under Article VII, it was agreed that the document would not be binding until its ratification by nine of the 13 existing states.
Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison wrote The Federalist Papers to convince the American people across the 13 states to support ratification of the Constitution. Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, and South Carolina ratified the Constitution. Only one more state was needed. Then on June 21, 1788, New Hampshire ratified the Constitution, and a new era began.
In closing, I would like to share a quote from Alexander Hamilton about the vital importance of the Constitution in maintaining our Republic: “A sacred respect for the constitutional law is the vital principle, the sustaining energy of a free government.”
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