Would the founding fathers be proud of us?
NO....corporations rule...... Merchants have no country. The mere spot they stand on does not constitute so strong an attachment as that from which they draw their gains. Thomas Jefferson I sincerely believe that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies, and that the principle of spending money to be paid by posterity, under the name of funding, is but swindling futurity on a large scale. Thomas Jefferson Our country is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction, to wit: by consolidation of power first, and then corruption, its necessary consequence. Thomas Jefferson Do not separate text from historical background. If you do, you will have perverted and subverted the Constitution, which can only end in a distorted, bastardized form of illegitimate government. James Madison I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. James Madison Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes; and armies, and debts, and taxes are the known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few. … No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare."James Madison Andrew Jackson It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes… Everyman is equally entitled to protection under by the law; but when the laws undertake to add… artificial distinctions, grant titles, gratuities and exclusive privileges, to make the rich richer and the potent more powerful, the humble members of society- the farmers, mechanics and laborers-who have neither the time nor the means of securing like favors to themselves, have a right to complain of the injustice of their government. Andrew Jackson ( 7/10/1832)
When the US founding fathers drafted the US Constitution, did they have any intention of the US becoming the world's largest military power and economy?
No. Their focus was on: Creating a workable compromise that gave the federal government supremacy over state governments while allowing the states a healthy degree of sovereignty.Preserving individual rights (largely in the Bill of Rights).Empowering the three branches of federal government, but also creating internal checks between the three (legislative, executive, judicial).Establishing a solid bedrock of American law and a way with which to amend it.The most important things the Constitution says about war is that Congress has the sole power to declare it, that Congress can raise and support militaries, and that the President is the Commander-in-Chief. They did not envision the United States exercising domination over the rest of the world. The "United States" was only a fraction of the size that is now and the Founders were much more worried about being able to fight off attacking European powers and the Indians at home - the focus was on protection, not worldwide expansion. The goal was to create a flexible form of government that could adapt to new needs, that was powerful enough to do so, but not so powerful as to be able to impinge on classical forms of liberty.
Will you consider this decline If the United States will return to a policy of isolationism?
I'd say, it would be the US returning to its roots. For a country whose founding fathers were isolationists and whose Declaration of Independence says: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"?A decision to live and let live, a moratorium on controlling others would be very much in American spirit. Nevertheless - I don't think the US can. It's all about the economy, and the US needs to control its overseas markets by political means to keep them expanding, to keep the oil flowing, and thus prevent the domestic bubble from collapsing. I don't think the US would be doing what it's doing if it had any choice at all.The extent to which the US meddles in other countries' internal affairs can be regulated by other countries though, by making such meddling too costly. In the end of a day, it's all about the cost-benefits analysis.
I need information about former presidents for my 8th grade homeschooler.?
Try the source - http://www.whitehouse.gov Or, are you looking for something more? .
Is todays government living up to the preamble?
I have to write a speech. Is todays American government living up to the Preamble of the Constitution? "You must explain (and not simply quote) each of the purposes of government described in the Preamble and evaluate how our government today is fulfilling each of those purposes." The preamble: We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. I am really lost, I dont know how to start it!