Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson read a lot of history. He was familiar with peoples, societies and historical circumstance. He read the philosophes and the politicians of times past. And I think he understood human nature.
A government that has to pass some humongous bill so all can see what's in it is bad government. Politicians who cannot understand, and do not read, these same kinds of huge, citizen-smothering bills they vote on and pass comprise bad government. A government that creates with these bills new bureaucracies upon new bureaucracies which must be funded by the private sector is bad government. A government that also crushes its citizenry with regulation after regulation, complicated living, demands for compliance of this and that law which are not written to protect but to control, is bad government.
Good government facilitates living and doesn't make it more difficult.
One of my favorite complaints Mr. Jefferson set forth against King George III in the Declaration of Independence was this: "He has erected a Multitude of new Offices, and sent hither Swarms of Officers to harrass our People, and eat out their Substance."
What do you think Jefferson would be writing today?! How would he, and the other Founding Fathers, who started a war over much, much less taxation and regulation, be thinking today?! And how would they vote?!
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