For the first time in American history, the founding document of our nation’s government was read aloud on the floor of the House. House Republicans decided to use the reading of the U.S. Constitution as a gesture to both the tea party movement and the American public, to claim themselves as the party deeply committed to America’s roots. But the roots they chose to portray was modified. They skipped several passages, and in doing so altered our perception of the struggle we have endured to get to where we are.
By careful selection, House Republicans, once again, chose to portray our Founding Fathers to match their own agenda. Using the excuse that certain passages were no longer relevant denies an important part of our history that, as painful and embarrassing as it was, must be remembered so that we don’t repeat those same mistakes.
Our representatives need to understand the power of mistakes as learning tools. If they go unnoticed or unacknowledged they will come back to haunt us.
Our Founding Fathers hold a place of honor in our history books, their honor should be celebrated in contemporary times as well. But only a complete and accurate telling of their greatest moments, as well as their short-comings, will keep them as human as you and me.
Even in our House of Representatives decorum and respect have escaped us. One by one, after each member read their assigned passage, they would leave chambers or fiddle about with other business. The symbolism of this historic reading, instead of showing solidarity with our Founding Fathers, showed boredom and impatience with the exercise.
The reading was interrupted when the clock hit 11:31. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) was reading from Article II, Section 1, the mandate that only a "natural-born citizen" may be elected president, when a woman rose in the public gallery and shouted: "Except Obama! Except Obama! Help us, Jesus! My name is Theresa . . . Before the "birther" could say her surname, she was removed by police guards.
The new Republican House majority has made the Constitution a part of the daily rhythms of Congress. A new rule requires that every bill contain a statement by the lawmaker who sponsored it citing the specific constitutional authority to enact the proposed legislation. This is another empty gesture that will soon be dropped out of expediency. Incorrect authority will be cited thereby losing meaning of the exercise.
Leaving out portions of the original document lead to unfounded reasons for the amendment that changed it. For instance, the "three-fifths compromise," counted slaves as three-fifths of a person for purposes of divvying congressional districts. The second dealt with runaway slaves - if they escaped to a free state, the Constitution required that they not be freed but rather "delivered up" to their owners. Both were negated by the 13th Amendment but necessary to ratifying the original document, according to historians.
Manipulating history smacks of an Orwellian society. Party members practice the philosophy which allows the Party to manipulate and control humanity. Read into this what you will, but this ‘sanitized history’ amounts to negating the struggles we have faced as a nation and those Americans who have given their lives by standing up to the challenges that face us.
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