The subtitle of this book is “The Forgotten Founders Who Fought Big Government”. To be honest, the last part of that subtitle was hidden under the library barcode, and I didn’t register the fact that this book on history was written by a Senator, not an historian. But I was curious about the individuals mentioned in the Contents section – Aaron Burr, Luther Martin, Mercy Otis Warren, Canasatego, Elbridge Gerry, Mum Bett, James Otis, and George Mason. Most I had at least heard of, but a couple were completely new to me. This book was published in 2017, and the author’s main goal seems to have been to tout the benefits of “small government”. Some of his prose has not aged well.
Aaron Burr was a complicated individual, but Lee reduces him mainly to his opposition to the Constitution. There are a number of other books about Burr, but I had trouble finding anything about Luther Martin, a Maryland lawyer who was also very opposed to the Federalist vision for the new country. Lee also describes Mercy Otis Warren, and mentions her prolific writing of plays. Her influence helped to get us a Bill of Rights, which her home state of Massachusetts was the first to request. She felt it was needed to forestall a future monarchy in America. So did Elbridge Gerry, who worried that the executive branch might have too much influence over the legislative branch.
The chapter on Canasatego is actually split between him and Benjamin Franklin. Canastego was an Onondaga chief, whose description of the Iroquois Confederacy inspired Franklin to encourage the colonies to adopt a similar arrangement. Mum Bett was a slave, who overheard parts of the new Massachusetts constitution being read. Since it said all men are born free and equal, she found a lawyer, sued for, and won, her freedom. Sadly, her case did not have an impact much beyond her own situation. James Otis, Jr. made a strong case against writs of assistance, which were like modern search warrants, only incredibly broad. His opposition to these inspired the Fourth Amendment. George Mason believed that there should be limitations on the powers of government, especially with regard to commerce.
If this was your family, how would you research them? While this book is interesting in that it highlights individuals that are not familiar to most of us, it is not a true historical effort, in that Lee very transparently uses these vignettes to advocate for small government. With so many individuals discussed, the information about each is necessarily brief. Since history is usually written by the victors, and the Federalists won the battle for the form of government that was established, it is interesting to learn more about those who disagreed. This is a good introduction to a variety of individuals, who all deserve their own biographies.