Winning the War of Independence brought a new challenge to the American people: what sort of government should they choose for their new nation? Robert George, Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University, explores the problems the founders faced at this pivotal moment in history.
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Script:
Against all odds, the Americans won their War of Independence.
But their success brought a new challenge—no less daunting. What sort of government should they choose for themselves?
How could they ensure that the tyranny of the English king George III would not be replaced by a homegrown tyranny?
One possibility was to establish an American monarchy with a better king. That was tempting for some, especially because they had a superb person for the job—General George Washington.
To his legion of admirers, the fact that he did not want to be king made him an even more attractive candidate.
The other possibility was to establish a republic, a government of and by the people and their representatives.
But this solution came with a big problem. Historically, republics like those in ancient Greece and Rome had always failed. And, when they failed, they were usually replaced by the very worst—most oppressive—forms of tyranny.
Might there be a way to make republicanism work—and last? To structure a constitution that would protect the new American republic from the social and political pathologies that had destroyed republics throughout history?
America’s Founding Fathers—men like Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison—believed they had answers.
They had risked everything when they declared their independence from England;..
