by Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey

238 years ago today 56 men signed a document which would change history.

While many of us gather together to watch elaborate displays of pyrotechnics or quietly enjoy time off with friends and family, we must remember that today is a celebration unique in human history.

The world has seen many a nation rise and fall — but none quite like America. For the first time in human history, a nation was bonded not by blood or ancestry but by common ideals. America is not something carried in your DNA but something carried in the heart and the mind.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.

Those words from the Declaration of Independence always give me chills. This revolutionary statement by our founders made everything that came after it possible. Everything we love about this nation sprung forth from that divinely-inspired text.

While many conservatives and constitutionalists like myself believe the United States government has strayed too far away from the revolutionary ideals of our founders, it is important to remind ourselves just how truly remarkable this nation remains.

Whatever of our federal government’s faults, we still retain the power to restore our country to its foundational principles. We just require the will. Because in the end, as the Declaration reminds us, our rights come not from our federal government but from our Creator.

I continue to keep the foundational principles of this nation in the forefront of my mind and I take great pleasure in the knowledge that many fine Tennesseans like yourself will be joining me in remembering the true spirit of this day.

Have a safe and restful Independence Day.

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FAB contributor Ron Ramsey also serves as the Tennessee Lt. Governor and Speaker of the Senate … in his spare time.

Tags: Declaration of Independence, Ron Ramsey

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 5th, 2014 at 10:14 am and is filed under National Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.