The Mount Vernon Statement

[Scott Arnett]

Mount Vernon Statement

Constitutional Conservatism: A Statement for the 21st Century

We recommit ourselves to the ideas of the American Founding.Through the Constitution, the Founders created an enduring framework of limited
government based on the rule of law. They sought to secure national
independence, provide for economic opportunity, establish true
religious liberty and maintain a flourishing society of republican
self-government.

These principles define us as a country and inspire us as a people. They are responsible for a prosperous, just nation unlike any other in the world. They are our highest
achievements, serving not only as powerful beacons to all who strive
for freedom and seek self-government, but as warnings to tyrants and
despots everywhere.

Each one of these founding ideas is presently under sustained attack. In recent decades, America’s principles have been undermined and redefined in our culture, our
universities and our politics. The selfevident truths of 1776 have been
supplanted by the notion that no such truths exist. The federal
government today ignores the limits of the Constitution, which is
increasingly dismissed as obsolete and irrelevant.

Some insist that America must change, cast off the old and put on the new. But where would this lead — forward or backward, up or down? Isn’t this
idea of change an empty promise or even a dangerous deception?

The change we urgently need, a change consistent with the American ideal, is not movement away from but toward our founding principles. At this
important time, we need a restatement of Constitutional conservatism
grounded in the priceless principle of ordered liberty articulated in
the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

The conservatism of the Declaration asserts self-evident truths based on the laws of nature and nature’s God. It defends life, liberty and the
pursuit of happiness. It traces authority to the consent of the
governed. It recognizes man’s self-interest but also his capacity for
virtue.

The conservatism of the Constitution limits government’s powers but ensures that government performs its proper job effectively. It refines popular will through the filter of representation. It
provides checks and balances through the several branches of government
and a federal republic.

A Constitutional conservatism unites all conservatives through the natural fusion provided by American principles. It reminds economic conservatives that morality is
essential to limited government, social conservatives that unlimited
government is a threat to moral self-government, and national security
conservatives that energetic but responsible government is the key to
America’s safety and leadership role in the world.

A Constitutional conservatism based on first principles provides the framework for a consistent and meaningful policy agenda.

• It applies the principle of limited government based on the rule of law to every proposal.
• It honors the central place of individual liberty in American politics and life.
• It encourages free enterprise, the individual entrepreneur, and economic reforms grounded in market solutions.
• It supports America’s national interest in advancing freedom and opposing tyranny in the world and prudently considers what we can and should do
  to that end.
• It informs conservatism’s firm defense of family, neighborhood, community, and faith.

If we are to succeed in the critical political and policy battles ahead, we must be certain of our purpose.

We must begin by retaking and resolutely defending the high ground of America’s founding principles.

February 17, 2010

What are your thoughts?

[Gene Clem]

I happened to see Michelle Malkin's article concerning this on Facebook; she brings up some cautions; check her out on her site.