Jefferson distorted…

It appears that politicians like to quote Thomas Jefferson, who is touted as the father of (American) democracy, to give credence or clout to their positions. The problem is that they don’t quote him properly. They alter his quotes to fit their immediate political and policy needs. Recently in the Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union speech by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, the Governor quoted Mr. Jefferson (the second governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia) as saying, “A wise and frugal government which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry .... and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned.” The quote was not really a complete quote. Nor was it identified by Gov. McDonnell as a paraphrase of the original words of Thomas Jefferson. Mr McDonnell simply rearranged Mr. Jefferson’s words to fit his political agenda. The actual quote by Jefferson follows:

March 4, 1801: Still one thing more, fellow-citizens — a wise and frugal Government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government, and this is necessary to close the circle of our felicities.

I also wonder if the conservatives on the Supreme Court have read Thomas Jefferson’s quote about corporations? Or have they rearranged his words, in their minds, to nullify the disdain to which Thomas Jefferson held “monied corporations”?

“I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.” – Thomas Jefferson

I leave you to your own conclusions.