A Liberal By Any Other Name

I am amused by the constant chatter about liberals and conservatives by the main stream media and the talk radio crowd.  Conservatives think liberal is a dirty word.  And Democrats avoid the word as if its poison.  What strikes me as so strange is the fact that American government was created and established based upon classical liberalism. 

Our founding fathers  relied upon the words of John Locke, Thomas Hobbs and Montesquieu in writing our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.  These men were the foundation of the political philosophy of liberalism.  Liberalism meant that government was based upon the rights of the individual and his sovereignty.  These were radical ideas in the 1600's and the 1700's.  Sovereignty was assigned to the state or the monarch.  Individuals were subjects not citizens.  Our country was intended to be different.  We would recognize the rights of the individual over the state. 

If liberalism is the recognition of individual rights and the rule of law and not man, then why do the political parties act like they are polar opposites?  To understand these differences one must look to the history of our country to discover what happened.  From the very beginning, with Adams and Jefferson, we see two understandings of the Constitution.  Adams believed that the Constitution was a dead man's document.  Jefferson believed it was a document for the living.  What do I mean?  Adams argued that the principles of the Constitution and their meaning is inviolate and eternal.  Jefferson believed that each generation must interpret the Constitution as it sees fit.  We saw a return to Adams interpretation during the Reagan era but there have been reconstitutions during our history. 

The meaning of "We the People" has changed since it was first penned in 1787.  In 1820 Jacksonian movements added all white males to the meaning of "We the People".  In 1860 Lincoln added blacks and ex-slaves to the meaning of "We the People" and in 1920 women were included in "We the People".  The last two expansions required the active participation of the federal government. 

It is the role of the federal government which distinguishes between liberals and conservatives today.  The proper terms would be minimal state liberalism and active state liberalism.  If you believe that the constitution created a federal government with limited and enumerated powers then you would be a minimal state liberalist (conservative).  If on the other hand you believe that the proper role of the federal government is to insure the rights of its citizens then you would be an active state liberalist (liberal).  In either case you are a liberal.  This is as opposed to a collectivist (communist, socalist), monarchist, or anarchist. 

If we are to understand our form of government we all need to realize that the basic foundation of our country is based on liberal political philosophy.  We may disagree on the proper role government should play but we should never forget that the individual is sovereign and his consent is required to form a government.