Advice to Politicians from Davy Crockett

From David Crockett, Exploits and Adventures in Texas (1836).

The more things change…

If your ambition or circumstances compel you to serve your country and earn three dollars a day, by becoming a member of the legislature, you must first publicly avow that the constitution of the state is a shackle upon free and liberal legislation, and is, therefore, of as little use in the present enlightened age as an old almanac of the year in which the instrument was framed.

There is policy in this measure, for by making the constitution a mere dead letter, your headlong proceedings will be attributed to a bold and unshackled mind; whereas, it might otherwise be thought they arose from sheer mulish ignorance.

‘The Government’ has set the example in his [Jackson’s] attack upon the Constitution of the United States, and who should fear to follow where ‘the Government’ leads?”

3 thoughts on “Advice to Politicians from Davy Crockett

  1. To Clarify: I can’t be fully certain the way Col. Crockett intended this, but I get the impression (and share the feeling) this path was being watched with great trepidation.

    The founding documents of our country were labored over by many men with different motivations but a common goal. I feel it’s disingenuous to have their work dismissed because someone else has different goals.

    I am well enough. I’ll be glad to have this book-packing project over with (Just four or five more boxes to go…). To be facing the massive *volume* is truly overwhelming, but I’ve been pecking away at it, and am more than half-way done now.

    School comments are being posted over at Family News (link in the Left sidebar) if anybody’s interested in that.

    Up to my eyeballs about summarizes things right now. For the first time in memory I really have wondered how to do enough in a day– and that without noveling at all.

  2. It sounds like things are crazy for you. Hope things start to even out some as the routines become commonplace.

    That’s a fascinating quote!

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