I was discussing with a friend favorite presidents of the past, when he mentioned abe lincoln. I know abe was very much against civil liberties and limited gov't - so what presidents of the past best represented these ideas?
Make a top 5 of ur own based on the ron paul type principles u believe in.
Best president hands down was James Madison.
He is the only president to preserve the Constitition during a time of war.
It's easy to preserve the Constitution during peacetime.
James Madison set important precedent regarding how the Constitution should be interpreted during a major war, the War of 1812. In fact, this precedent is the most important precedent ever established by our founding fathers, because war is always the real test of a government, it is where theory meets reality.
Remember, the War of 1812 was the only war in our history under the Constitution where we had a non-zero chance of losing the war and being conquered by a foreign power, so it is especially instructive.
PRECEDENTS OF JAMES MADISON
1)
No military draft
2)
No need for an income tax to finance the war.
3)
No trials for treason, including those who threatened secession.
4)
No martial law (note - Jackson, against the wishes of Madison, did enforce some martial law)
5)
No standing army (note - after the war, Madison asked for a small standing army of 20,000 men, and congress gave him 10,000)
6)
A good standing navy is important for our defenses
7)
No torture of enemies
8)
No central bank (note -after the war, Madison agreed to a
temporary central bank to pay war debts and the bank did not use fiat currency, private ownership, or excessive secrecy. The bank was also not corrupt during Madison's presidency and until Biddle got in.)
9)
The war had legitimate strategic value that benefited the American people, namely to kick Britain and her military forts out of North America and free the Atlantic ocean for shipping.
10)
War was declared by congress, not by James Madison.
11)
Madison did not actively lobby for the war. He merely informed Senator Henry Clay at a certain point that he would not oppose a war.
12)
Madison did not use religion cynically for his purposes. He declared a couple national days of prayer, which he later said was his worst offense ever against the Constitution.
13)
No cynical war propaganda, such as calling anyone who disagreed with the war un-American, or a liberal, or a conspiracy theorist, or a terrorist, or a traitor, or a peace-nik, or a left-winger, or any other derogatory name.
14)
Mercy for poor commanders, such John Armstrong who failed to protect Washington or Hull who could barely march an army through unoccupied territory. Instead, these men had a private meeting with Madison and were then relieved of their duties.
15)
Competent leaders were need to win the war. Madison's greatest weakness was trying to be too fair to everyone. But he eventually found strong leaders like Andrew Jackson, James Monroe, Commodore Perry, Winfield Scott, William Henry Harrison, Davy Crockett, and Sam Houston to lead us to victory.
16)
A major war can be won with low casualties. The U.S. only suffered about 2000 combat deaths in about 32 months of war.
17)
The war complied with all principles of Christian just war theory, including exhausting all possible negotiation before war. In fact, Jefferson and Madison had been dealing with the British for over 10 years, trying to find solutions to problems.
18)
The war was not started with a deception or false-flag event, like 9/11. The president was honest with the American people about the motives and goals of the war. Nor were manufactured "patriotic events" staged, like the Pat Tillman debacle, or the Jessica Lynch lie.
19)
Madison never claimed bogus "executive powers" like Dishonest Abe Lincoln and George Bush.
20)
Madison did not kidnap and intern people of suspect races or ethnic groups, such as British born Americans.
21)
Madison did not shut down newspapers that were critical of him or his policies.
22)
For the most part, the war was for defense, not offense. Most people at the time believed that Canadians wanted to get out of the British Empire and join the Union.
No executive leader in all of recorded history, ever conducted a war under more honorable terms.
It is too bad his precedents have been mostly ignored. However, they can be restored.
