OurCivicDuty.com: Civics: The Purpose of Government

Last Updated: Apr 23, 2007.

"The equal rights of man, and the happiness of every individual, are now acknowledged to be the only legitimate objects of government. Modern times have the signal advantage, too, of having discovered the only device by which these rights can be secured, to wit: government by the people, acting not in person, but by representatives chosen by themselves, that is to say, by every man of ripe years and sane mind, who contributes either by his purse or person to the support of his country."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1823.

The Purpose of Government

In 1795, Jefferson summed up the purpose of our government by stating simply:

It is to secure our rights that we resort to government at all.

To truly understand our situation, we must understand this to be the primary purpose of our government. The founders sought to establish a government that would allow individuals to enjoy the fullest extent of their sovereignty or their right to self-government that was reasonably possible. This was done by limiting the government's actions (especially those of the federal government) with the Bill of Rights. These first ten amendments were attached to the Constitution for the United States of America and only then was it accepted by the states. A central government was created to protect the people's rights that would remain small and unobtrusive, but our current "government" takes the exact opposite direction with regard to size, power, and the preservation of liberty. There is much that can be realized about our country's past and present by carefully studying the purpose of our government.

"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."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1776;
The Declaration of Independence

Preserving the People's Rights

So what are these rights that Jefferson was referring to? Jefferson was referring specifically to rights such as "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." None of these rights involve anything being given or rewarded to individuals. These rights are freedom from interference, whether it be from government or other citizens. Essentially, you have the right to live your life as you see fit, doing what you wish within the law, pursuing happiness as you please, and to not have anyone interfere with your actions. The government exists to stop that unwanted interference, not to cause it.

"If we are made in some degree for others, yet in a greater are we made for ourselves. It were contrary to feeling and indeed ridiculous to suppose that a man had less rights in himself than one of his neighbors, or all of them put together. This would be slavery, and not that liberty which the bill of rights has made inviolable, and for the preservation of which our government has been charged."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1782.

You cannot have a right to anything that might require something being taken from another person. No man has any claim to the property of another nor is he responsible for the well-being of his neighbor. A moral responsibility surely exists for many of these social needs, but when the government or law enforces this responsibility, socialism is the unfortunate result. The fact that it is government claiming your property and not your neighbor does not lessen the clear injustice that is evident in any socialist system.

"To secure these Rights [Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness], Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1776;
The Declaration of Independence

A Servant to the People

Any level of government as well as the respective officers of government must always be servants of the people. The people, as "superiors and sovereigns" to the government, have the right to control the government as they see fit. Today the roles have been reversed to such an extent that most believe we elect government officials to control other citizens and manage property in the best way possible. Most of the people's rightful authority has been transferred to the government over the years despite the harm and injustice this transfer inevitably causes.

"In free governments the rulers are the servants and the people their superiors and sovereigns."

- Benjamin Franklin.

Much of what the "government" currently does is done by elected officials who believe they should act however they please during their term in office and ignore public sentiment. These officials are essentially saying, "they don't know what's best for them or what they want" instead of assuming the role of a public servant. Other actions of the "government" are carried out by bureaucrats who are not elected, and this can be even more damaging to the people as we are offered no recourse to oust or punish those who are no longer acting in our interest. These injustices, misunderstandings, and utter failures of government can only be changed by a dramatic increase of the public's awareness

"We think experience has proved it safer for the mass of individuals composing the society to reserve to themselves personally the exercise of all rightful powers to which they are competent and to delegate those to which they are not competent to deputies named and removable for unfaithful conduct by themselves immediately."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1816.

Small government, delegated to the smallest level possible, allows these rightful powers to best be exercised.

Remaining Small

A small federal government was understood by the founders to be able to suit the needs of a free people best. By allowing the states to exercise as much power as possible over their own affairs, the Republic would be able to extend over a large territory without sacrificing the principles and ideals outlined in the Constitution. The delegation of government to the smallest unit possible, whether it be a county, a ward, or a town, allows the people to better exercise their authority over the government. The larger the government is, the harder it is for this crucial control to be exercised.

Today as the federal "government" continues to gain more power, the people's rights and interests will continue to be disregarded. The federal "government" has simply become too large and too powerful to be a government "of, by, and for the people." The people are able to best exercise control over state and local government, but the federal government, as a large central (and often distant) government, is too difficult for the people to remain superior to.

Safety & Security

The purpose of our government is not to ensure the security of every citizen. The founders understood this to be a "slippery slope" that would lead inevitably to democracy and then tyranny. It is not the role of the federal government to police the people (Department of Homeland Security), come to their rescue (FEMA), or even give them money when they are unable to provide for themselves (socialism). The government is only responsible for the security of the state (Military), not the individual. When we ask the government to become responsible for the individual, we give up our own inherent sovereignty and ask the government to overstep their bounds and take responsibility for us. This expanded responsibility, in almost every case, requires the government to grow and restrict the full exercise of our sovereignty, thus defeating its original purpose.

"Private charities as well as contributions to public purposes in proportion to everyone's circumstances are certainly among the duties we owe to society."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1812.

The security of individual citizens, whether it be financially or physically, is a job better suited to charitable, non-profit organizations with no affiliations whatsoever to government. This ensures that governmental power and authority does not need to expand to a dangerous degree to fulfill the needs of the people. This also frees the people of obligations that they do not wish to entangle themselves in. Charity and security are important social needs, but these are not (and never can be) the responsibility of a free people's government unless the government that takes in these responsibilities is the level closest to the people (like a town) and completely under their control.

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