We have already given in example one effectual check to the dog of war by transferring the power of letting him loose from the Executive to the Legislative body
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of legislative power in controlling military actions. Jefferson advocates for a system of checks and balances to prevent war from being waged impulsively.
In this quote, Thomas Jefferson argues that transferring the authority to declare war from the Executive branch to the Legislative body serves as a crucial check against the impulsive use of military force. By doing so, it ensures that elected representatives, who are accountable to the public, must deliberate and justify the need for war, reflecting the will and interests of the people rather than the whims of a single individual.
In practice
During a debate about military intervention, one might quote Jefferson to highlight the importance of legislative approval.
The firmness with which the (American) people have withstood the... abuses of the press, the discernment they have manifested between truth and falsehood, show that they may safely be trusted to hear everything true and false and to form a correct judgment between them.
I, place economy among the first & most important republican virtues, & public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared
βWe must make our choice between economy and liberty or confusion and servitude...If we run into such debts, we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and comforts, in our labor and in our amusements...if we can prevent the government from wasting the labor of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.
Very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack. To preserve it in that, will require unremitting vigilance.
A nation, as a society, forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society.
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
It is time to stop personal destruction and prying into private lives
One has to be a lowbrow, a bit of a murderer, to be a politician, ready and willing to see people sacrificed, slaughtered, for the sake of an idea, whether a good one or a bad one.
I get really, really concerned when I see somebody, taking $600,000 in speaking fees from Goldman Sachs, will not release what they're actually saying. That's concerning.
Just because you are not interested in politics, does not mean that politics is not interested in you.
The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states.
The Latin root of the word 'politics' means 'of the people.' Politics is about something bigger than electoral politics; in that sense, I feel like I'm already involved.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.