[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 17, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7717-H7718]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     COMMEMORATING CONSTITUTION DAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, when our country was 
founded, the idea of a democratic republic was not foreign; it was 
nonexistent. Besides intermittent cooperation to win independence, the 
Colonies had no sense of unity, and being American had little meaning. 
Few citizens could have realized the amount of sacrifice needed to 
write and ratify a document to unite them all.
  Our Constitution truly is a miracle. Aside from its genius, its 
history helps us appreciate the blessing it is. Our colleague, 
Congressman Chris Stewart, and Judge Ted Stewart wrote a wonderful 
book, ``Seven Miracles That Saved America.'' In it, they offer three 
reasons to believe God had a hand in the crafting of the Constitution.
  For the remainder of my time today on Constitution Day, I would like 
to quote them.
  ``One, Timing. The window of opportunity for the writing and 
ratification of the Constitution was very small. Every effort to make 
the Articles of Confederation workable between 1776 and 1787 had 
already failed. But then suddenly, in May of 1787, a group of 55 
patriots came together with both the wisdom of the ages and enough 
youth to energetically fight for the ratification of the Constitution.
  ``Any attempt to create a constitution later than 1787 would have 
almost certainly resulted in failure as well. Just 2 years after the 
Convention finished its work, France became embroiled in its own 
revolution, which lasted a full decade and degenerated into a bloody, 
violent affair.
  ``Surely, this example of failure would have frightened the Founding 
Fathers, giving them reason to think very differently about the degree 
of power to be retained by `the people.'
  ``Making matters worse was the fact that the Founders split into two 
distinct political camps in the years that immediately followed the 
Convention. Had the Constitutional Convention been called just a few 
years later than 1787, many of these men would have been unwilling to 
stand together. And without their input, the Convention would never 
have had a chance of success.
  ``Two, Miraculous Compromise. The second way in which the 
Constitution is demonstrably a miracle is the manner in which it came 
about.
  ``During the course of the Convention, every delegate had to give up 
on some cherished principle.
  ``James Madison, who had come to the Convention more prepared than 
anyone and was primarily responsible for the general outline of the 
government established by the Constitution, lost on many issues. Most 
dear to him was his belief that the House and the Senate should be 
based on proportional representation.
  ``Franklin wanted an executive council voted for life, rather than a 
single executive. He did not want the chief executive to have the power 
of the veto. He did not want anyone in the executive position to 
receive a salary. He lost on all counts.
  ``But during the course of the 560 roll calls, no man lost every 
time, and everyone was part of a winning vote on some occasion. These 
men of social stature, political and business success--`demigods' all--
swallowed their pride, accepted defeat of personal agendas, and went 
forth and convinced a nation to accept the product of the Convention.
  ``Three, 4,400 Miraculous Words. Perhaps the greatest miracle of the 
Constitution is the document itself. In essence, the Constitution has 
had only 13 substantive amendments in over 200 years.
  ``History has proven that the Constitution creates a system that 
defies despotism and tyranny.
  ``How was it able to do this? Primarily through the underlying 
premise, part of Madison's gift to the world, that the Constitution 
comes from the people. Madison coined the phrase `We the People.' These 
words are far more than a clever phrase. They restate the principle, 
first asserted in the Declaration of Independence, that God gives man 
rights and the only legitimate purpose of government is to protect 
those rights.

[[Page H7718]]

  ``In short, the Constitution not only survived the evolution of this 
great Nation but permitted the American people to exercise the greatest 
level of individual liberty in history.
  ``Further, it has been the `shining light on the hill' that has 
provided the inspiration for peoples all over the Earth to seek liberty 
and freedom for themselves.
  ``Is that not a miracle?''

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