Blog
Neither a Democracy Nor a Republic
July 5, 2012
As we pass Independence Day we not only celebrate our nation and its history but examine the challenges we face to keep America free. Sometimes I wish the answers to those pressing problems faced by our great nation were found inside that magical D.C. beltway. Then we would only have to deal with reining in one government. But that’s not the system our Founders created. In this edition of Majority Points, we’ll examine why conservative activity at the local level and the fight for more local control is critical to saving America. You see, our Founders created a Republic – not a Democracy.
The difference between Democracy and Republic is important to understand the motivations, goals and necessity of conservatism in America. A Democracy only suggests majority rule. That majority elects a legislative body that then, because it is perpetuated by the majority, has practically absolute control of the affairs of state. When he was Minister to France, Thomas Jefferson wrote James Madison about how democracy was playing out after the French Revolution stating, ”The tyranny of the legislatures is the most formidable dread at present, and will be for long years…”