I was always under the impression that Thomas Jefferson was a strict constructionist. Now, armed with “new” evidence, I’m in the process of changing my mind.
Here’s an example of his supposed strict constructionist stance:
Adopting a position known as "strict constructionism," Thomas Jefferson and James Madison charged that a national bank was unconstitutional since the Constitution did not specifically give Congress the power to create a bank.
I happen to think that particular stance of Jefferson’s was a mistake, but at least Jefferson and Madison had the Constitution backing up their reasoning. That’s strict constructionism.
However, Jefferson acted somewhat differently in the following circumstance:
Jefferson recognized that to support the [Louisiana Purchase] agreement he would have to ignore his own principles of strict constructionism, since the Constitution did not specifically authorize the president to acquire territory and Congress had not appropriated money for the purchase.
I happen to think quick action on the Louisiana Purchase was one of the best decisions ever made by any president, even though it apparently violated the Constitution and usurped the money appropriation power assigned to Congress.
In addition to that, below is my “new” evidence. Last week, I snapped a few pictures while I was visiting Washington, DC. The picture at the top of this article was obviously taken at the Jefferson Memorial; immediately after I snapped that one, I turned ninety degrees to my left and snapped the following shot:
That doesn’t sound like something a strict constructionist would say, does it? (And even if he favored strict interpretation of an easy-to-change Consititution, that's defacto loose constructionism.)
I used to think I was a strict constructionist, but now I’m not so sure (as I’ve written before). Now I’m wondering whether today’s “strict constructionists” are perhaps oversimplifying the case. I keep hearing that “judges shouldn’t legislate from the bench.” But wasn’t Jefferson “legislating from the White House” when he correctly and decisively acquired the Louisiana Territory? And, in his engraved words above, wasn’t he telling us to flex with the times as we get smarter?
I’m keeping an open mind on this, so keep those emails coming. In the meantime, here’s a final thought: Is the desire for judges to stop “legislating from the bench” any more rational than a desire for legislators to stop “judging from Capitol Hill”? (Personally, I'd love to see the latter, but I'm not holding my breath.)
