The Constitution Doesn't Pick Sides

Lately, I've been thinking about the Constitution and how differently we seem to view it depending on who is in office.

It seems like many of us defend constitutional principles when they support our political views, but become much quieter when those same principles challenge the people we voted for. That isn't unique to one political party. It's something I think all of us are capable of doing if we're not careful.

The Constitution doesn't belong to Republicans, and it doesn't belong to Democrats. It doesn't exist to protect one president while limiting another. It was written to establish the framework for our government, limit power, and protect the rights and freedoms of the American people.

Those principles shouldn't change depending on who occupies the White House.

In many ways, I think that's the real test of whether we believe in the Constitution. It's easy to defend it when it supports the outcome we want. It's much harder when it stands in the way of the people we support or the policies we agree with.

If we only care about checks and balances when the opposing party is in power, then we're not really defending the Constitution. If we only value due process when it benefits our side, then we're not really defending the Constitution. We're defending our preferred outcome.

The Constitution asks more of us than that.

It asks us to be consistent.

Our country was founded on the idea that no one is above the law, that power should be limited, and that freedom is protected through principles rather than personalities. Those ideas only work if we're willing to apply them equally, regardless of which political party is celebrating or which one is frustrated.

Presidents will come and go. Political parties will gain power and eventually lose it. That's how our system was designed to work.

The Constitution, however, was never intended to pick sides.

Neither should our commitment to it.

A Moment to Reflect

Perhaps one of life's greatest reminders is that every person we meet is carrying a story we cannot see. A brief encounter, a quiet act of kindness, or an unexpected display of emotion can reveal just enough to remind us how much we have yet to understand about one another.

How might the way you see people change if you paused long enough to wonder about the story they carry instead of assuming you already know it?