America was Founded on (Upper-Left) “Whig” Principles
By: Lloyd Sloan & Bob Wittmann
February 2024
The 1776 Declaration advocates equal rights for all and small limited government. These were known as “Whig” principles by America’s founding generation, such as Jefferson and Paine.
Thomas Jefferson wrote people are “naturally divided into two parties”, Whigs and Tories. The Whigs “identify themselves with the people.” The Tories “fear and distrust the people” and “draw all power from them into the higher classes.”
The Democratic Party was founded upon “Whig” policy: Andrew Jackson’s staunch opposition to the National Bank, which privileged the “Eastern elite”. (Jefferson had earlier opposed the Bank as unconstitutional; Hamilton argued the opposite.)
The Whig Party formed against Jackson. The name was misleading except in its opposition to slavery (the original American sin), but in 1854 the Whigs betrayed the anti-slavery cause. The Republican Party formed as a result, and it not only ended slavery, but passed one of the great “upper-left” policies in American history: the Homestead Act of 1862. This gave government land to pioneer farmers (the bulk of America’s lower and middle classes). It shrank the size of government for the benefit of the poorest. It promoted self-reliance, not dependence on a welfare-state.
Since the Frontier closed, America has seen a Tory (industrialized) counter-revolution against the founding “Whig” principles!
How could the “Upper-Left” today both shrink government and reduce wealth inequality? (Some concrete proposals)
– Freeze the spending until the budget is balanced.
– Cut taxes and regulations bottom-up, not top-down (Only “the rich” should pay taxes. Jefferson would approve)
– Leave NATO (G. Washington)
– Audit the Fed (A. Jackson)