Republic of the Virtuous

In my online philosophy course today, the subject was The Federalist Papers, a combined effort by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and to a lesser extent John Jay to sell the newly drafted U.S. Constitution to the state of New York for ratification.

Madison had served as not only a prominent voice in the Constitutional Convention but also took copious, unbiased notes of the discussions, which impressed everyone, including Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, who was in France at the time and therefore not a signer of that historic document.

The Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia in the Summer of 1787, between May 25 through September 17.  While it should be obvious, I will note that there was no air conditioning back in those days, and the delegation put in long days filled with brilliant political debate in a sweltering city center inside the historic building now known as Independence Hall.

Madison was a Princeton graduate, and that university had the greatest number of former students in the delegation, with a total of nine.

George Washington and Benjamin Franklin were among 25 out of the total of 55 members of the Constitutional Convention who had no formal college education, but they all were extremely well-read and had finely-honed intellects.  It's said more books in general and on law in particular were sold in the 13 colonies than in England itself, so continuing self-education was obviously highly valued.

Interestingly, a strict ban on any "leaks" to newspaper reporters managed to hold throughout months of debate, a news black-out made possible by the shared respect that the delegates held for George Washington, who they had elected to preside over the Convention.  Fortunately, no Adam Schiff or James Comey dared defy the General who had previously led an unlikely victory over the most powerful military in the world.

These founding fathers understood that releasing incomplete information would discourage full, free debate and possibly inflame the public unnecessarily.  Freedom of thought and expression was deemed essential from the very conception of our country.

The controversial ideas included Alexander Hamilton's advocacy of electing a king with unlimited veto power of all legislation passed by Congress.  He also thought that leader should have a lifetime reign like a Pope but under a Constitutional monarchy.  Of course, he submitted that the first monarch would be the most respected man in the world, General George Washington, who had that kind of magnetism that drew the attention of everyone any time he entered a room, no matter how august or aristocratic the crowd.

Washington said simply and eloquently that he did not defeat King George III of England to become King George I of America.

As it turned out, George Washington was elected the first President of the United States less than two years later, assuming office on April 30, 1789.  He served two four-year terms, which became the standard for U.S. Presidents, but then declined a third nomination, understanding that his lifetime of true public service should rightly come to an end.

The only exception to the two-term tradition of Presidents --- which in the twentieth century became law --- was World War II-era President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died in office shortly into his fourth term.

As it happens, Washington passed away on December 14, 1799, so his "rule for life" would have only been about two and a half years longer that his two terms as President, but his brilliant foresight and example have served our nation well for 241 years.

By the way, in case it comes up in a trivia game on your next cruise, George Washington was born on February 22, 1732, so he died at age 67 of something presumed to be other than COVID-19.

Washington was one of the oldest men at the Constitutional Convention, along with Benjamin Franklin.  At 81 years old, Franklin was the senior member of a young delegation that met in the city where Franklin lived most of his adult life.  Even factoring in the ages of that sage duo of Washington and Franklin, the average age of the delegation was only 42 years old.

The Federalist Papers may be superior to the vaunted political philosophies found in Plato's Republic and Aristotle's Politics, though I can't say I've read any of them cover-to-cover.  I'll take the word of the late Daniel N. Robinson, who posthumously teaches "The Great Ideas of Philosophy."

The fact that the underlying Constitution, formulated on the basis of those and similar arguments, not only survived (with amendments) but became the model for every republic that followed, proves that thesis for me.

I even go along with Professor Robinson's sentiment that it's a shame there's not a national holiday for James Madison, who was the single man most responsible for drafting the language of our Constitution.  There's no longer a national holiday devoted individually to George Washington or Abraham Lincoln, either, and because Madison went on to be the fourth President of the United States, I guess we sort of celebrate him along with the others on Presidents' Day.

However, we must never forget the words of Benjamin Franklin, who was never President due to already being 81 years-old at the time of the Constitutional Convention: "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom."

Thinking about our country's founding brings to mind wonderful memories of our Canada/New England cruise a few years ago.  It's a voyage through history that every American should take.

Hopefully a silver cloud of this Coronavirus pandemic that keeps us locked inside will be an appreciation for our long-established American freedoms that we all too frequently take for granted, including the freedom to travel when restrictions are lifted.