When Republicans take control of the House of Representatives next month, the presumptive new speaker, Kevin McCarthy, has tweeted he would like GOP members to take turns reading the Constitution in its entirety.
We’re glad to hear that. The Constitution, the divinely inspired supreme law of the land, has guided the nation since its formal adoption 233 years ago, protecting the rights of minorities against the tyranny of the majority while guaranteeing fundamental liberties and establishing a representative government.
Sometimes it has been twisted and debated as to its interpretation. Americans have not always lived up to its ideals. But it remains a bulwark against corruption and excesses and the key to a freedom that continues to be the envy of the world.
But while they’re planning to recite the Constitution, we wish more Republicans would react forcefully in opposition to a social media comment by former President Donald Trump last week that said parts of the Constitution may need to be terminated in order to reverse the results of the 2020 election and insert him back into the White House.
That was a startling and disturbing suggestion by someone who has held the highest office in the land and hopes to hold it again. Trump has since tried to walk back the comment, blaming the media for getting it wrong. But his original post on truthsocial.com is there for all to see. Concerning the election, he said, “A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.”
Those election allegations have been thoroughly vetted by investigations and 63 separate lawsuits and found lacking. President Joe Biden is the duly elected president.
But even the former president’s follow-up clarification is of concern. Repeating falsehoods about election fraud, he said, “steps must be immediately taken to RIGHT THE WRONG.”
The Constitution allows for no such thing. It could not be done without doing serious injury to the Constitution.
The president’s oath of office, found in Article 2, Section 1, requires a new chief executive to swear “that I will faithfully execute the office of president of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Members of the House and Senate take similar oaths. Overturning a duly counted and processed election would violate these.
We were glad to see Utah’s congressional delegation, Republicans all, speak against these comments in varying degrees. Utahns have a long history of reverencing the Constitution and the liberties it protects.
We wish others, including McCarthy would do similarly. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell responded on Tuesday, saying anyone who thinks the Constitution could be suspended, “would have a very hard time being sworn in as president of the United States,”
History is littered with rulers who, after assuming power, discarded the constitutions of their countries after declaring some or other dire emergency. King George III rescinded the Massachusetts colonial charter in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party, imposing martial law and inspiring American revolutionaries. Among the most recent examples is Kais Saied, the president of Tunisia. Earlier this year, he suspended much of his nation’s constitution, allowing him to dismiss the prime minister and freeze the parliament.
But we’re sure that won’t be the last. Generally, these are calculated tactics aimed at removing checks and balances and consolidating power. They are acts designed to elevate individuals over laws.
Though not perfect, the U.S. Constitution has proven itself capable of handling any crisis that has beset the nation so far, including election disputes. No one person, including the president, is larger than it. It establishes the United States as a land governed by laws, not personalities.
We regret that too few Americans have read the document or understand it. A recent survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center found that only 47% of Americans could name the three branches of government and that only 24% could name freedom of religion as one of the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment.
The Constitution cannot be defended in ignorance. Having members of Congress recite it might be a first step toward a new national revival as to understanding its contents, but only if those members set an example by defending it against all threats, regardless of the source.