As we look back on the year which just passed, one most remarkable thing took place – the economy of our nation took off. The one most notable measure is the stock market increased by 25 percent. What major factor contributed to this rise?
When the states came together to write a constitution for our nation, they gave the national government very limited powers. The states recognized that there were certain things which a national government could do better than state governments. They did not form the national government to duplicate the functions each state government was already doing for itself. Specifically, they formed a national government to provide a common defense for all of them together.
The states decided a common currency would function better than each of them having their own, so the national government was assigned that duty.
Likewise, they established a post office for all the states to enhance communication.
They decided they would be stronger if they had a common foreign policy, including declaring war, so they delegated that to the federal government. They also established national courts, a patent office, regulated commerce and standard measures, and rules for immigration.
The states did not form a central government to perform the tasks they could each do better for themselves, where being closer to their individual problems was an advantage. Accordingly, they included in our Constitution wording making it clear that the federal government was to perform only the functions delegated, and no more. That wording reads:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
– The 10th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights
What we are seeing in our economy is that, when our national government functions as it was designed to function, we thrive. When the federal government pushes outside of its boundaries, it impedes the natural flow of the nation, throwing sand into the gears of commerce.
Our system of government has given our nation the freest and most prosperous country seen in the millennia of recorded history. The limited federal government prescribed by the Constitution has been a key factor in our freedom and our prosperity. Our current government in Washington, in some measure, is attempting to walk us back to our Constitution. The explosive growth of our economy in this last year bears out the genius of the thinking of our Founding Fathers.
Happy New Year.
