The Rule of Law

Breaking rocks in the hot sun.
I fought the law and the law won. I fought the law and the law won.

I needed money ‘cause I had none.
I fought the law and the law won. I fought the law and the law won.

I left my baby and I feel so bad, I guess my race is run.
Well she’s best girl I’ve ever had.
I fought the law and the law won. I fought the law and the law won.

I Fought the Law  -  The Bobby Fuller Four  (1966)

…..

On a Monday morning in June, in the year of our Lord 1215, on a meadow at Runnymede in England, barons and churchmen met with King John and agreed on the “Articles of the Barons,” which a few days later was enshrined into what we now know as the Magna Carta. It put some limitations on the power of the king. It was the beginning of transforming governance from “the rule of man” to the “rule of law.”

I admit to being a certified Anglophile. I watched most of King Charles III’s coronation ceremonies this past weekend. There were many traditions in that ceremony that have existed for centuries. Seeing all that reminded me that we are the unworthy inheritors of a system of governance that evolved over a thousand years and is still the best one humans have devised.

There is an old joke that heaven is a British policeman, a German mechanic and a French chef. Hell, on the other hand, is a German policeman, a French mechanic and a British chef. Like all comedy, the joke works because there is some truth in it. The truth, from the standpoint of Britain, is that they have been much better over the centuries at governance than anywhere else on earth. Sir Winston Churchill wrote the four volume History of the English Speaking peoples, in which he points out that many of the foundations of democracy began in England, but continued and evolved in America and elsewhere round the world that Britons settled. In my opinion, it was this superior aptitude for better governance that enabled this tiny island to have an empire upon which the sun never set.

Any leftists reading this are going crazy right now. They hate all of this history and the British monarchy and the U.S. Constitution and will regale you with stories of how flawed all of these documents, leaders and legislative bodies have been. They are right in a sense. There were and are many flaws. But, as Sir Winston put it so well in 1947, “democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others that have been tried from time to time.”

The main distinction of our Anglo-American systems of governance, is that we have the rule of law. That was not the case with most monarchies over the centuries. It has not been the case in countries with 20th century fascism or communism. That is not the case today in China, or Russia or Iran or North Korea. That is not the case in most African countries and some South American countries even today. Those are all ruled by a man or a group of men (interestingly, rarely if ever a woman) whose power is absolute.

The left in this country is intentionally weakening the rule of law here. I know that is a provocative statement. But for years I have been telling you about the propaganda of the media and the indoctrination in educational institutions. Many of you thought I was overstating the degree to which this was happening. You all know now that I was not. And I don’t think I’m overstating this now either.

Conservative judges make rulings based on the law as written. That means sometimes they rule supporting a law they don’t like but that is constitutional. Leftist judges never do that. They rule on the basis of what they think is “right,” not what the law says. They do not hide this. They think it is a virtue. But, it means they are dropping the rule of law and replacing it with the rule of man, namely them. Leftist prosecutors around the country release law breakers with whom they have sympathy and escalate the crimes of minor offenders with whom they disagree politically. Again, ignore the law and let the “man” rule however they like. The “Deep State,” which absolutely exists, is all about the rule of man. In this case bureaucrats who wield their power arbitrarily and with relish with little accountability. The left frequently says that the constitution should be a “living document.” That means you ignore what it actually says and let an elitist professor somewhere change it to whatever suits the latest leftist sickness. Again, rule of man.

I could go on.

It is really hard to pass a law in Congress. It should be hard. Laws restrict people’s freedom, deprive them of their property, or force or ban behavior. This should not be done lightly. However, our leftist elitist overseers know best. They cannot be bothered with this arcane process instituted by a bunch of white supremacists with the sole purpose of enslaving the righteous. The left wants to supplant our democratic republic with an authoritarian government so they can dictate behavior on the whims of leftist thought leaders.

The attacks on all that is good and sacred in American and British life by the left are many and broad. But maintaining the rule of law has to be at the top of the list of things we must defend.

The song says the law won. The law should win. If you don’t like the law, go through the process of changing it.

So, why do I love the British monarchy? They really have no power, but they are a non-political symbol of the marvelous history of Britain and the Commonwealth. As such, they unite modern Britain with its noble past and are something living to rally behind. It doesn’t work in many countries, including obviously the U.S. But it works there.

God save the King!

And God save the United States Constitution.

I remain respectfully,
Congressman John Campbell
Drive fast & Live Free