The U.S. Constitution: Making the Case for Protecting Our Rights
Imagine waking up one day and realizing the rules that protect you no longer apply. Unfortunately, no imagination is necessary because we are living in that reality. A reality where many elected officials have lost sight of what the Constitution stands for. A reality that leaves us questioning whether they’ve even read this sacred document, understand the depth it holds, and what is at stake. Does the law even matter to our current administration? It seems that our leaders are focused on their own self-interest, without a single regard for people like you and me. This is not the America I fought for, and this is not the America you deserve.
The Constitutions Purpose
Fundamentally, the Constitution is the framework of our federal government. It was written to create a government that puts the power in the hands of the People. It separates and balances the powers wielded by the different branches of government. Most importantly, it protects individual freedoms. The Constitution serves as a reminder that We the People hold the power over our own lives—to hold elected officials accountable.
The Fifth Amendment says that, “No person shall... be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” In a recent interview, Donald Trump was asked if he agreed with Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, that every person in the United States is entitled to due process. His answer? “I don’t know. I’m not a lawyer,” said Trump. Then, when he was asked, as President, whether he needed to uphold the Constitution of the United States? Trump responded, “I don’t know. I have to respond by saying, again, I have brilliant lawmakers that work for me, and they are going to obviously follow what the Supreme Court said.” The Founding Fathers would be appalled.
The actions of our current administration are a wake-up call. One that we must answer. Our Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution to protect Americans from tyranny. This administration is hellbent on unraveling the foundation our Founding Fathers fought so hard to build. And I, for one, refuse to sit idly by while this country slides into authoritarianism and a dictatorship.
Checks and Balances
History teaches us that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We are witnessing how unchecked power leads to injustice. To prevent this, our Constitution established three branches of government—the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. Each branch has specific powers and can respond to the actions of the other. The Constitution set up a system of checks and balances to prevent any one branch of government from becoming too powerful. This division of power safeguards our rights. When these guardrails are ignored, the People get hurt. The Constitution is not merely a suggestion—it is a mandate, and your rights are on the line. We must remind our elected officials that they serve the People—not the President.
In general, the legislative branch makes our laws, but the executive branch can veto those laws, and the judicial branch can declare them unconstitutional. The judicial branch interprets laws, but the executive branch nominates the judges who make those rulings, and the legislative branch confirms or rejects the President’s nominees. Most importantly, the legislative branch has the power to impeach the President. Which branch holds the most power? Trick question—none of them. These limits were created to make sure there is a separation of powers and that no one is above the law.
Despite this system, in just the first 100 days of the current administration, Trump issued 191 Executive Orders. For context, Bush issued 291 in his entire eight years, Obama issued 276 in eight years, and Biden issued 162 in four years. It is shocking how many Trump has issued. It seems that Trump is nothing more than a power-hungry, wannabe dictator. Article II of the Constitution is only 1,025 words and intended to limit the powers of the presidency, not provide limitless authority. The Constitution does not give the President the power to violate the law, ignore congressional statutes, or override U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
When Branches Fail to Hold Each Other Accountable
When one branch fails to hold the others accountable, it places our democracy at risk. When a president acts beyond the scope of their constitutional powers, the other branches of government must check that power. For example, Congress is tasked with legislating (Article I, Section 1). Congress must exercise its constitutional power and serve as a check on executive overreach. It is instead leaving it to the courts to fulfill their constitutional role (Article III, Section 1). But Congress cannot simply step aside and leave the courts to deal with a litany of unconstitutional actions.
Tom Cole is chairman of Appropriations and plays a key role in determining how the federal government spends money. Yet, he is allowing the executive branch to both impound funds and to spend funds without congressional authorization. Almost as if Cole has provided the administration with a credit card with no limit and no regard for how this money is being spent. Trump’s military birthday parade is estimated at not less than $25 million. Why was this approved? That is wasteful spending.
Further, when the Supreme Court made it clear to the current administration in three different decisions that it must allow basic due process rights for immigrants and blocked the administration from sending people to prison in El Salvador, Trump ignored those decisions and did it anyway. The current administration talks about options to speed up the deportation process by asking Congress to amend immigration laws and expand resources for immigration judges, but then turns around and fires immigration judges and decides to spend millions to build detention centers, which seem more like concentration camps. “Alligator Alcatraz” was up and running in just weeks and is estimated to cost $450 million annually. Why? This doesn’t make sense or even help fix the root of the issue. Money is being spent, and it is being spent irresponsibly, when there are actual solutions to these issues.
Congress allocated $100 billion—approximately $292 per person in the United States—to immigration enforcement, without fixing our broken system. Instead of spending this money to hire more judges or build courtrooms, billions are being allocated to immigration enforcement. The administration is choosing to spend money on building cruel, inhumane camps and deploying masked agents of terror on American streets. This is not the solution to our broken system. Instead, it is yet another example of unchecked power.
In Conclusion
The ultimate question is not whether the Constitution protects us; it is whether you will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America. If our system of checks and balances fails, your constitutional rights become illusory. You are needed now, more than ever, because your democracy is on the line. We must work together so that we can keep it, for good. Working together to overcome this will bring back trust, transparency, and the accountability the Constitution demands. We the People are not powerless. Our Founding Fathers gave us more than a set of rules; they gave us a promise. This is not what we were promised.
So, again, imagine waking up one day and realizing our rights are being ignored. Now imagine something else. Imagine waking up and realizing that We the People fought back and won. Your rights, your democracy, and your future—they are in your hands. Stand up. Speak out. Fight back. If we do this together, we can make sure no one ever wakes up to find their freedoms erased.
