Framers Quotations

Statutes authorizing unreasonable searches were the core concern of the framers of the 4th Amendment.

The rise of the presidency began with the Louisiana Purchase, which in 1803 doubled the land mass of the United States. History taught the framers that, just as Rome changed from republic to empire with conquest of new lands, territorial acquisition would lead to the centralization of political power.

Conservatives who believe that the Constitution should be interpreted according to the plain meaning of its language and the original intent of the Framers have long been troubled by the court's decisions expanding the commerce clause to authorize Congress to regulate the most local of matters within a state's borders.

The framers of our constitution had the sagacity to vest in Congress all implied powers: that is, powers necessary and proper to carry into effect all the delegated powers wherever vested.

Our Declaration of Independence was held sacred by all and thought to include all; but now, to aid in making the bondage of the Negro universal and eternal, it is assailed, sneered at, construed, hawked at, and torn, till, if its framers could rise from their graves, they could not at all recognize it.

Neither Aristotle nor the Framers were known for self-indulgence. All believed that happiness is a legitimate goal in life; perhaps, one of the reasons we are here.

Neither James Madison, for whom this lecture is named, nor any of the other Framers of the Constitution, were oblivious, careless, or otherwise unaware of the words they chose for the document and its Bill of Rights.

I think the average American has forgotten the great feel for liberty and accountability that the framers of the Constitution believed.

Understanding what the framers meant can help us. But alone it cannot be enough.

Women need to have a voice in government to be able to achieve the perfect union that the framers had talked about. If you don't have something, you're more likely to fight for it. If you have it, you take it for granted.

Whatever your feelings may be about William Clinton the man, or William Clinton the political ally or opponent, or William Clinton the father and the husband, ask only this: should William Clinton the president be removed from office? ... Are we at that horrific moment in our history when our union can be preserved only by taking the step that the framers saw as a last resort?

This country was formed for the white not for the black man. And looking upon African slavery from the same stand-point, as held by those noble framers of our Constitution, I for one, have ever considered it, one of the greatest blessings that God ever bestowed upon a favored nation.

The framers of our Constitution came up with two major contributions to the art of government. The first was the idea of an executive not dependent on the political support of the legislature. The second was the idea of the judiciary independent of the executive and legislative branches.

The framers of the Constitution ... were not at all opposed to citizen participation and self-governance, but they wanted it done in a way that required deliberation. Part of the problem with the initiative process is that it's not deliberative or informed decision making.

The framers sitting in Philadelphia looked at the egregious powers the state would have to violate the privacy and looked at also the need to give the police the ability to protect citizens against crimes,

The framers specifically created an amendment process that was difficult, but not impossible. They didn't want to make that change easily.

The Framers were not the sort of people, having fought a revolution to get the right of self-government, to sit down and say, 'Let's take all the difficult issues before us and let's have the judges decide them.'

As a constitutional matter, I share your view that censure of the president would violate the careful balance of separation of powers and the scheme laid out by the framers (of the Constitution) to address the issue of executive misconduct,

As a framer and defender of the Constitution [Madison] had no peer.

The Internet's distinct configuration may have facilitated anonymous threats, copyright infringement, and cyberattacks, but it has also kindled the flame of freedom in ways that the framers of the American constitution would appreciate - the Federalist papers were famously authored pseudonymously.

The framers knew that liberty is a fragile thing, and so should we.