The Progressive Rejection of the Founding lecture notes part 1

The intellectual roots of the New Deal took hold in the Progressive Era.  FDR named Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson as laying the foundations for progressivism.

Progressivism is the argument to progress or to move beyond the political principles of the American founding. Things are different. Times have changed. We need to think more historically, we need to think in terms of catching up with new circumstances. We need to get beyond the notion of gov’t that we had in the county thus far.

The reason for rapid change the progressives give is because of historical circumstances. The founders could not envision industrialization, immigration issues, economic problems in the future therefore we need a big gov’t to handle those issues.

Progressives believe the ends of gov’t, the scope of gov’t have to be redefined in each new historical era. Progressives believe in historical contingency, ie just gov’t depends on what time and place the nation is in. They believe in the historical power of evolution that gov’t evolves to become less and less a danger to the public and becomes more capable of solving current issues more effectively. History has helped people overcome the factionist of human nature.

The Progressive Era is the first period in American history where the progressive writers openly criticized the Constitution. Criticizing the Constitution was the dominant theme of progressive writers at that time. In their writing they said the Constitution was old and obsolete. It was written for another time. The progressive writers at that time were honest and direct.

The progressives understood the Constitution very well. That it was meant to limit gov’t powers. Progressives understood the Constitution as an obstacle to their agenda like social justice.

The progressives interpret the Declaration of Independence as a mean to secure man’s natural rights. In their writing they attacked natural rights theory, the philosophy of social compact, the framing of the Declaration, the idea that the fundamental goal of gov’t is to secure the natural rights of its citizens.

Woodrow Wilson said “if you want to understand the real Declaration of Independence do not repeat the preface.” What’s in the preface? Securing the natural rights of man as the purpose of American gov’t. So, if you ignore the preface of the Declaration you basically are treating the document just as an article of historical grievances against a king. Since King George III is dead the Declaration is irrelevant today under Wilson’s way of thinking. Gov’t is tied to the specifically things going on right now (historical contingency). Conditions change gov’t changes.

Source: Hillsdale College’s Constitution 101 lecture series, “The Progressive Rejection of the Founding” (2012) by Associate Professor Dr. Ronald J. Pestritto.

This attitude that the Constitution is an obstruction to the progressive agenda or vision continues into the present day. For example, President Obama said during an interview that “our Founders designed a system that makes it more difficult to bring about change that I would like sometimes.” Sometimes? Really?

If you want to put the progressive reaction to the Constitution in psychological terms, the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion goes like this:

           Stimulus –> Interpretation of stimulus –> Physiological reaction/emotion

The physiological reaction and emotion happens simultaneously according the the theory. So,  here’s how the Left’s reaction:

          The Constitution –> An obstacle –> Increase pulse, face reddens, muscles tighten/Irritation or Frustration or Anger

By the way, the lecture series is free to anyone. You just have to register online to take the courses.