Happy Constitution Day!

September 17 is Constitution Day. On this date in 1787, 39 of the original 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document that would eventually be ratified and enshrined as our fundamental law.

The United States has the longest-lasting written Constitution in human history. Our Constitution is responsible for our greatness and prosperity, and the remarkable stability we experience in our political life.

Where other nations are vulnerable to radical movements which undermine liberty and self-government, our Constitution has been the anchor and ballast by which we have maintained a stable regime.

But if our Constitution is to continue to provide these blessings, we must seize these opportunities to recur to our Constitution’s principles.

As Andrew Busch, a professor at Claremont McKenna College has recently written, too few of our public officials discuss the Constitution in their public addresses, but this will only be remedied by citizens who speak up and demand that their representatives return to constitutional principles.

Heritage Foundation