Preamble-On
“Preamble-On” is a recurring segment of quotes and thoughts from historic and contemporary American public figures on federalism, the free society, and American political life.
But he who takes the oath today to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States only assumes the solemn obligation which every patriotic citizen–on the farm, in the workshop, in the busy marts of trade, and everywhere–should share with him. The Constitution which prescribes his oath, my countrymen, is yours; the Government you have chosen him to administer for a time is yours; the suffrage which executes the will of freemen is yours; the laws and the entire scheme of our civil rule, from the town meeting to the State capitals and the national capital, is yours. Your every voter, as surely as your Chief Magistrate, under the same high sanction, though in a different sphere, exercises a public trust. Nor is this all. Every citizen owes to the country a vigilant watch and close scrutiny of its public servants and a fair and reasonable estimate of their fidelity and usefulness. Thus is the people’s will impressed upon the whole framework of our civil polity–municipal, State, and Federal; and this is the price of our liberty and the inspiration of our faith in the Republic.
—Grover Cleveland, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1885.
Context: Public and private corruption was a centerpiece of the 1884 presidential campaign. Cleveland had personal failings, but his Republican opponent — James Blaine — was plagued by public corruption and as a candidate was accused of being controlled by special interests and the spoil system. Cleveland used much of his Inaugural Address to remind citizens that they have the power of being vigilant over the government because America is a nation of self-rule.
Where decisions are made is what federalism is really about — it’s not what the decisions are — but where the decisions should be made. And that’s critical for maintaining and amplifying the voice of the people.
—Utah state Rep. Ken Ivory
Context: a 2023 American Legislative Exchange video promoting the ideas of federalism for Alec’s 50th anniversary.
