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The Story of America: The Framers and the Summer of 1787 [Ep. 9]

Our American Stories / Lee Habeeb
The Truth Network Radio
February 24, 2026 3:01 am

The Story of America: The Framers and the Summer of 1787 [Ep. 9]

Our American Stories / Lee Habeeb

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February 24, 2026 3:01 am

The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia aimed to create a government that would last, with John Adams' essay, Thoughts on Government, influencing the framers' thinking. The federal system was developed to reconcile unity and diversity, with power distributed widely. The Constitution introduced enumerated powers, separation of powers, and a diffusion of power to channel human nature for the public good.

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This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed human. Are you looking for entertainment that lifts you up? Then check out Upt Faith and Family, the leading streaming service for inspiring, hope-filled shows and movies. This season streams soul-stirring favorites like Southern Gospel, plus four full seasons of Jesus Calling, and the uplifting new faith series These Stones.

Or settle in with 19 seasons of the beloved family series Heartland, a family favorite ranch drama fans can't get enough of. It's commercial free. Stream anywhere. Get a free trial today. Go to upfaithandfamily.com slash iHeart.

Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto, and now generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high-free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one-of-a-kind index, and lets you backtest it against the SP 500.

Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com/slash podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com/slash podcast. Paid for by Public Investing.

Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc., member FINRA and SIPC. Advisory Services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC Registered Advisor. Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com/slash.

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Up next, another installment of our series About Us: The Story of America, with Dr. Bill McClay, author of Land of Hope and the terrific Young Readers Edition. After gaining our independence, we operated under a document called the Articles of Confederation. But it wasn't working out.

so a group of men decided to look into the situation. in Philadelphia. Let's get into the story. Here's Bill McClay. The Spanish had control of the Mississippi River.

The British needed to be moved out. The American patriot soldiers. were often not paid, particularly toward the end of the war, in actual cash, but through extensions of credit. They were having their land taken away from them. Through foreclosures, being executed by bankers who didn't go to war.

This is a situation that is just tailor-made. For High degree of tension, high degree of social tension. and possible revolutionary or rebellious sentiment. And there were pockets of rebellion. There was a particularly notable rebellion in western Massachusetts.

Where a war hero named Daniel Shays Let a march to shut down the Supreme Court. Raid the arsenal in Springfield. And that was put down, but it seemed to be a harbinger of things to come. George Washington himself. was particularly alarmed by Shea's rebellion.

and feared for the new nation's future. Shay's rebellion wasn't that important in and of itself. But it was important for what it indicated, for it clarified a perception. That reform was not just desirable, but imperative. It had to happen.

There's a lot of hubbub. People weren't just sitting back in their silk robes in their parlors discussing issues of political philosophy. They were on the front lines. They were looking at how are we going to hold this thing together, this glorious revolution we fought so hard, bled for. How are we going to make it work?

Is this all going to be forgotten? He says all the is going to blow apart because of economic problems and the incapacities of the government that we chose. These are not arms here for loss. These are people who are men of action. And they acted very quickly.

Mm-hmm. Even as Washington was writing about his fears. There was a group of individuals led by his brilliant young aide. Alexandra Hamilton. who were seeing about forming a constitutional convention.

That would Examine The article's And four months later, we had a new Constitution for the United States. And this Constitution. Here's the wonderful part. is they acted quickly. To Deal with an urgent situation.

and created the world's oldest constitution. Isn't that amazing? This wasn't a fly-by-night thing. This was something that has lasted even unto the present day. Why?

One thing we know is they were men of extraordinarily high caliber, and very young men of extraordinarily high caliber. Just to see what counts as older. George Washington was 55. That counts as older. Roger Sherman was sixty six.

Benjamin Franklin was a sprightly eighty one. and I do say sprightly. But uh the average age was 42. James Wilson. of Pennsylvania, Gouverneur Morris of New York.

Wilson was 42, Morris was 35. James Madison, who we call the architect of the Constitution. James Madison. Just 36 years old. It almost seems miraculous.

Almost miraculous that such an assemblage of people. could have been gathered up in these rebellious colonies. And in a funny way, it's a tribute to England. These men had all been formed by British institutions, British ideas, British history. And remember.

The beginning of the revolution. They began with the notion that we're rebelling because we're being deprived of our rights as Englishmen. That's part of the interesting irony of this is we have exceptional men because. The entity against which they rebelled. was itself exceptional.

Do you know what you'd expect from a youthful group? is kind of wild ideas. Utopianism. You wouldn't expect sober, tried, tested wisdom. But that's what the Constitutional Convention produced.

A sober Wise tempered document that showed a great deal of foresight and a great deal of realism about human nature. Madison played the leading role in the thinking through of the structure of the Constitution. He understood this was a big deal. This was a moment in history. It wasn't just a moment for the new nation, it was something for the whole world.

He and Hamilton both declared That this Attempt this experiment. they were undertaking would decide forever. the state of Republican government. Talking about raising the bar, that's raising it very, very high indeed. It's not just how can we get through this mess that we're in.

But let's create a government that will be a model. for a Republican government. Because we have the chance to do it, and the chance may never come again. Not a chance like the chance we have. And they were all excited.

this possibility. John Adams, who was definitely on the sober side. He wrote An essay called Thoughts on Government not long before the Constitutional Convention began. And let me quote from it rather extensively here because I think it gives you some ideas of the general thinking of the framers coming into this great event. I hear he's talking about why the goal of politics should be to promote happiness and that happiness depends on the structure of government.

That's not an everyday thought, is it? Here's what he says. The divine science of politics is the science of social happiness, and the blessings of society depend entirely on the constitutions of government. which are generally institutions that last for many generations. There can be no employment more agreeable to a benevolent mind than a research after the best.

Alexander Pope, the poet, flattered tyrants too much when he said, For forms of government let fools contest that which is best. Administer. It's best. that which is best administered. And now, here's Adams on why some forms of government are better than others, disagreeing with both.

Yeah. Nothing can be more fallacious than these words of Pope. But poets read history to collect flowers, not fruits. They attend to fanciful images, not the effects of social institutions. Nothing is more certain from the history of nations and the nature of man than that some forms of government are better fitted for being well administered.

than others. We ought to consider what is the end of government before we determine which is the best form. What's the end of government? What's it for? What's its purpose?

Upon this point, all speculative politicians will agree that the happiness of society. Is the end of government, as all divines and moral philosophers will agree. that the happiness of the individual is the end of man. From this principle, it will follow that the form of government which communicates ease. Comfort, security, or in one word, happiness to the greatest number of persons and to the greatest degree.

Is the best.

Now This emphasis on happiness didn't mean that happiness was something separate from virtue. Oh no. Honor is truly sacred, but holds a lower rank in the scale of moral excellence than virtue. Indeed, the former is but a part of the latter. and consequently has not equal pretensions to support a frame of government productive of human happiness.

It's a very interesting statement. Honor is sacred, but holds a lower rank than virtue. When we come back, more of Bill McClay. The story of us, the story of America. here on Our American Stories.

Are you looking for entertainment that lifts you up? Then check out Up Faith and Family, the leading streaming service for inspiring, hope-filled shows and movies. This season streams soul-stirring favorites like Southern Gospel, plus four full seasons of Jesus Calling, and the uplifting new faith series These Stones. Or settle in with 19 seasons of the beloved family series Heartland, a family favorite ranch drama fans can't get enough of. It's commercial free.

Stream anywhere. Get a free trial today. Go to upfaithandfamily.com slash iHeart. Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto, and now generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI.

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Go to public.com/slash podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com/slash podcast. Paid for by Public Investing. Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc., member FINRA, and SIPC. Advisory Services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC Registered Advisor.

Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com/slash. disclosures. Time for a sofa upgrade?

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Sofas start at just $699 with no risk returns and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Get up to 60% off, plus free shipping and free returns. Shop now at washable sofas.com. Offers are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply. Uh What if your Bible could do more than just be read?

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Dr. Bill McClay is also a tremendous young reader's edition of Land of Hope. If you have children or grandchildren, buy it on Amazon or any place books are sold. You won't regret it. When we last left off, Bill was reading from John Adams' essay, Thoughts on Government.

Let's continue with that reading. There is no good government but what is republican. The very definition of a republic is an empire of laws and not of men. That, as a republic, is the best of governments.

So that particular arrangement of the powers of society, or in other words, that form of government which is best contrived to secure an impartial and exact execution of the laws. It's the best. How free public? And that's not all. Adams also touched on the issue of why a representative government.

is a core feature of a republic, of a modern republic. Republics could be direct democracies. and often were in antiquity. The framers had all done their homework. They are extremely well educated.

They studied history in order to evade history. As good government is an empire of laws, how shall your laws be made? In a large society inhabiting an extensive country, it's impossible that the whole should assemble to make laws. The first necessary step, then, is to depute power from the many to a few of the most wise and good. But by what rules shall you choose your representatives?

agree upon the number and qualifications of persons who shall have the benefit of choosing or annex the privilege to the inhabitants of a certain extent of ground. Hmm. One thing notable here, he does say that we would depute power from the many. to a few of the most wise and good. That does not say the most wealthy and powerful.

It's of the most wise and good. Those are the people who are most likely to be in possession of virtue. And to draw upon their virtuous nature in order to govern.

Now, here's Adams on the separation of power within the legislature itself. what we call the separation of powers. Not only must we divide power between different branches of government, but we should also divide the legislative power itself. Most of the foregoing reasons apply equally to prove that the legislative power ought to be more complex, to which we may add that if the legislative power is wholly in one assembly, and the executive in another or in a single person. These two powers will oppose and innervate upon each other until the contest shall end in war and the whole power, legislative and executive, be usurped.

by the strongest. There's some very practical wisdom there. If you make it too difficult, make the separation of powers too stark. The contending powers will not just seek compromise, they will seek one to dominate over the other. Very practical wisdom on Adams' part.

Now, here he is on the concept of an independent judiciary. Mm-hmm. The dignity and stability of government in all its branches, the morals of the people, and every blessing of society depends so much upon an upright and skillful administration of justice. Depends so much that the judicial power ought to be distinct from the legislative and executive and independent upon both.

so that so it may be a check Upon both. as both should be a checks. Upon that. The judges, therefore, should always be men of learning and experience in the laws, of exemplary morals, great patience, calmness. Wholeness and attention.

To the ends, they should hold estates for life in their offices, or in other words, their commission should be during good behavior. In other words, they can't easily be removed. They have to be, you know. shooting the place up. with six guns blazing in order to be removed from office.

It's a lifetime guarantee of independence from political power. President can remove them, the Congress can't remove them.

So, you have a government of independent powers shaping up, a legislative branch. that will be divided within itself. And an independent judiciary. We haven't had much talk yet about an executive. That will come later.

So here's how Adams closes things out. A constitution founded on these principles. Introduces knowledge among the people and inspires them with a conscious dignity. becoming Free men. Let me repeat that.

A constitution founded on these principles introduces knowledge among the people. and inspires them with a conscious dignity. becoming Free men. a general emulation takes place which causes good humour.

sociability, good manners, and good morals to be general. The elevation of sentiment inspired by such a government makes the common people brave and enterprising. That ambition which is inspired by it makes him sober. Industrials. and frugal.

You and I, my dear friend, have been sent into life at a time when the greatest lawgivers of antiquity would have wished to have lived. How about that? Let me repeat that one. You and I, my dear friend, have been sent into life at a time when the greatest lawgivers of antiquity would have wished to have lived. How few of the human race have ever enjoyed an opportunity of making an election of government more than of air, soil, or climate?

for themselves or their children. When? Before the present epoch, Had three millions of people full of power and a fair opportunity to form and establish the wisest and happiest government that human wisdom can contrive? Where? When before the president It's a great question.

And it underscores the sense of momentous possibility. The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. says it best about Adams's thoughts on government. Those principles were that happiness is the end of government, consent the means, and sovereignty of the people were the foundation. You can see in those words both the Declaration of Independence, Consent the Means, Sovereignty of the People, Happiness the end of government.

You can see the declaration there. in those words. But you also can see the document that emerges. By the way, I should mention since we've given so much time to John Adams. that one of his many distinctions is that he was uh A one of the authors.

of the Constitution of the State of Massachusetts. which was drafted in seventeen eighty. And continues largely in effect in the Constitution of that state today. That's quite a record. And you've been listening to Professor Bill McClay.

He's a professor at Hillsdale College. And all of our history segments, all of what we do here as it relates to history, is brought to us by the great folks at Hillsdale College, where you can go to study all the things that matter in life, all the things that are beautiful in life. By the way, if you can't get to Hillsdale, Hillsdale will come to you with their free and terrific online courses. Go to hillsdale.edu. This Adams speech is just remarkable that there were men who were writing and thinking like that, and not just one or two, but the assembly of talent and the assemblage of talent in Philadelphia that summer.

to solve a problem, but yet make a document that lasts this long, the longest Constitution and the oldest, the oldest Constitution in the world still standing. When we come back. More of this remarkable story. on Our American Stories. Are you looking for entertainment that lifts you up?

Then check out Upt Faith and Family, the leading streaming service for inspiring, hope-filled shows and movies. This season streams soul-stirring favorites like Southern Gospel, plus four full seasons of Jesus Calling, and the uplifting new faith series These Stones. Or settle in with 19 seasons of the beloved family series Heartland, a family favorite ranch drama fans can't get enough of. It's commercial free. Stream anywhere.

To get a free trial today, go to upfaithandfamily.com slash iHeart. Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto, and now generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high-free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work.

It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one-of-a-kind index, and lets you backtest it against the SP 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com/slash podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com/slash podcast.

Paid for by Public Investing. Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc., member FINRA and SIPC. Advisory Services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC Registered Advisor. Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice.

Complete disclosures available at public.com. Yeah. Tired of spills and stains on your sofa? Wash away your worries with Anibay. Anibay is the only designer sofa that's machine washable inside and out, starting at just $699.

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What if your Bible could do more than just be read? Experience the innovative, awe-inspiring Filament Bible app. When you pair your Filament-enabled Bible with the free Filament app, you'll unlock thousands of study notes, hundreds of videos, interactive maps, devotionals, audio Bibles, and more, all designed to deepen your understanding of and enrich your time in God's Word. Discover more ways to interact with God's Word. Learn more at filamentbibles.com.

And we return to Our American Stories in our series about us, the story of America, with Hillsdale College professor and author of the fantastic book Land of Hope and the Young Readers Edition, Bill McClay. When we last left off, Bill had just finished reading John Adams' essay, Thoughts on Government, an essay which strikes at the heart of what the men in Philadelphia were looking to create. the constitution they were aiming to create. Let's return to the story here again. is Bill McClay.

Now, let's talk a little bit about the question of power, which is so important to the founders. dispersion of power. How are you going to do that? One of the ways we've already seen, you protect. the independence of the States, which varied Because of their climate and soil and location, their economies, their local economic prospects, their populations.

All sorts of diversity at the time of the nation's founding that had to be managed. But that diversity could be an advantage too. an advantage in the sense that it had a way of dispersing power. Yeah. If the states were all more or less sovereign, more or less independent.

then their diversity could be something they could sustain.

So we have that built in. the whole project. Checks and balances. This was very important to have the states be a check on the national government. The national government, in some cases, on the state.

and the national government to have checks within itself.

So what they did was they developed what we call a federal system. I gotta say, this can be confusing because we think Of the federal government, we think of Washington, we think of the very idea of power being concentrated in one place. But the word federal. actually means the opposite of that. A federal system is one in which power is distributed widely.

A federal system was a way of trying to reconcile unity and diversity. national governance and local governance. Reconcile those two things, which seem to be in opposition. Is there a way you can kind of keep both at the same time? That's what the federal system was in effort to do.

to keep Both the advantages of Local governance. and reconcile them with the necessary. innovations involved in a stronger national government. One of the chief goals. The convention was held in secret.

To exempt it from the kind of political pressures and manipulations that might come from outside. You might think of them being convened in the same way that a jury is sequestered in a very high-profile, high-stakes trial. There were several big arcades. Maybe the biggest was a question of representation. How would the states be represented?

You know, the articles. It was one state, one vote. That meant that something that Virginia wanted could be vetoed by something that Rhode Island wanted. Or didn't want. And that's a very difficult system if you want to get anything done.

And Virginia was far and away the most populous state. And the most populated states wanted to have representation by population.

Sort of the basic one man, one boat principle. And the smaller states Which were represented by Patterson of New Jersey wanted representation by states according to the Pattern set in the Articles of Confederation. That Article of Confederation was a confederation of states. not a nation of individual people.

So you had two very different ideas here. It was a clash not just of interests, but of principles. although the principles were undergirded by the interests of the different. And of course, the great solution to this, presented by Roger Sherman, the elder statesman, was, and we call it the Great Compromise. A bicameral to house Legislative body.

A House of Representatives would follow the principle of representation by population. And the Senate would represent the states. Each state would have two votes. Virginia would have two votes, Massachusetts would have two votes, New York would have two votes, Rhode Island would have two votes. Everybody had two votes.

irrespective of their size. And then in the House, it would be representation by population.

So the big states, population-wise, would be much more strongly represented and their interests more strongly represented. in the house. And the people, the average people, would be represented in the House. Because House members would serve two years. And senators would serve for six.

That meant a lot more time for quiet, peaceful, sober deliberation for senators. Than for House of Representatives, members who were constantly thinking about their reelection.

So the Senate got duties of things like the confirmation of appointments to the executive branch, to the Supreme Court. and the ratification of treaties. House, on the other hand, was where appropriation spills would originate. They had that kind of residual power of the purse privilege in the House of Commons in the British Parliament had existed.

So it's also important the new government had greater powers. Presidency would be greatly expanded to commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Who could initiate action rather than just following through on what the Congress had instructed? Behind all of this, behind the idea that the government's great powers would be enumerated in the Constitution. Which means if it isn't there, if it isn't spelled out.

It doesn't exist. That was the thinking. Enumerated powers, it was a charter of limited and enumerated powers. And behind all of this, was the idea that separation of power, diffusion of power, fusion of the kinds of clashes that come up when you have human beings involved in the work of self-government, was the idea that human nature itself. Has a tendency towards conflict.

We are fallen creatures, often perverse and selfish. even malign in our intention. if those intentions are allowed to be pursued without obstruction. We all need some rules and structures of containment to keep us in line.

So, the new constitution would not seek to change human nature. People were always going to be people. They were always going to be imperfect. And we're always going to be fallen. That's...

material you're dealing with. But how could you take that human nature in all of its folly and energy? Ambition and channel those things to the public good. That's what the Constitution is designed to do. It doesn't try to reduce the energy that's released.

By our human nature, it doesn't try to stop that, it doesn't try to throttle us. It releases them for productive purposes, for good, for the general good. It works with human nature, not against it. The Constitution is like the rules of the game. They're the rules of engagement for warfare.

They're the rule book for a sporting event. Within those rules, There can be a lot of conflict, even a lot of force and coercion, violence. but always within limits. These are rules of engagement that set the limits of activity, but don't hem in the fact that people are going to be ambitious. And we should not Try to inhibit.

the exercise of their ambition. And a terrific job by the production, editing, and storytelling by our own Monty Montgomery, himself, a Hillsdale College graduate, and also a special thanks to Bill McClay. He's the author of Land of Hope and the terrific Young Readers Edition. He's a Hillsdale College professor, and he also serves on the board of the Jack Miller Center, partners with us here. at our American stories.

And what a story Bill is telling us about our founders and their wisdom. And trying to advance the greatest good by putting together a government with limited and enumerated powers. And the keyword there is enumerated. What's not there? Of course, going back to the States.

based on how to best channel human nature. And humans can be bad and humans can do miserable things and They always want more power, and this was all about the dispersal of power. Great compromises happened too. New Jersey, little old New Jersey where I was born, well, they weren't too happy with the idea of surrendering that power they had under the Articles of Confederation. They had a vote, and mighty Virginia had a vote.

What a compromise. We have the lower chamber, the House, two years, and that's by population, the representation. And then in the upper chamber, six years. Every state gets equal representation. A brilliant compromise.

Indeed, it may have driven the success of this constitution and why it's lasted so long. All of that diversity, all of these ways to block bad ideas. from making their way to all of us and perhaps ruining our lives. The story of us. The Story of America with Bill McClay here.

on our American stories. Are you looking for entertainment that lifts you up? Then check out Upt Faith and Family, the leading streaming service for inspiring, hope-filled shows and movies. This season streams soul-stirring favorites like Southern Gospel, plus four full seasons of Jesus Calling, and the uplifting new faith series These Stones. Or settle in with 19 seasons of the beloved family series Heartland, a family favorite ranch drama fans can't get enough of.

It's commercial free. Stream anywhere. To get a free trial today, go to upfaithandfamily.com slash iHeart. Life gets messy. Spills, stains, head accidents, and kid chaos.

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Mm-hmm.

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