The constitution of a country is not the act of its government, but of the people constituting its government. It is the body of elements, to which you can refer, and quote article by article; and which contains the principles on which the government shall be established, the manner in which it shall be organised, the powers it shall have, the mode of elections, the duration of Parliaments, or by what other name such bodies may be called; the powers which the executive part of the government shall have; and in fine, everything that relates to the complete organisation of a civil government, and the principles on which it shall act, and by which it shall be bound. A constitution, therefore, is to a government what the laws made afterwards by that government are to a court of judicature. The court of judicature does not make the laws, neither can it alter them; it only acts in conformity to the laws made: and the government is in like manner governed by the constitution.
Tom Paine, Rights of Man (1791).
1 reply on “Tom Paine”
It is just so freaking sad that almost every one of our educators, politicians, activists don’t recognize this truth and the prescience of the founders who wrote it. In theory, it is a perfect system for the governance of mankind. In practice corrupted people work diligently to destroy that which protects them. And, we elect them again, and again and again. Maybe that is the saddest part.