20 Unheeded Warnings in Washington’s Farewell Address
President George Washington
- Be vigilant, people will seek to use the government for selfish ends.
- Avoid overgrown military establishments; they are hostile to liberty.
- Prevent all obstructions to the execution of the laws.
- Control bureaucracies; make sure they all work together.
- Avoid political parties; they will cause divisive factions and unscrupulous men will use them to undermine the government.
- Give allegiance to the Constitution; improve it as necessary.
- Do not alter the Constitution lightly, or based on hypothesis; apply the experience applied when it was created.
- Be suspicious of administrators; they may serve themselves rather than the people.
- Watch for consolidation of power in any department of government.
- Preserve existing checks and balances and add more where power needs to be checked.
- Religion and morality are essential to create the virtue necessary to preserve the union.
- Promote widespread education; democracy requires literate citizens that understand the system of governance and take responsibility for themselves.
- Avoid debt; and immediately discharge any debt created by war.
- Taxes are unpleasant; government spending should be candidly conducted.
- Cultivate peace and justice toward all nations.
- Avoid alliances and maintain neutrality among nations.
- Avoid dependency; a weak state that allies with a stronger state will become its servant.
- Real patriots will resist intrigues, while dupes will surrender to interests.
- In trade, give no nation a favored nation status.
- Be guided by principles, not interests.
If the United States had heeded these warnings in George Washington’s Farewell Address, it would be a far more happy and prosperous society today. In 1787 Washington presided over the creation of the United States Constitution with some of the wisest men of his day. They understood social and political history, human nature and cunning, the temptation to consolidate power, and the importance of assent to a social contract.
When George Washington retired from office after two terms he set an example to the world for the voluntary limitation of power, something few Kings or rulers have had the character to do. However, his Farewell Address was equally important as it warned of dangers that could undermine the American experiment. These warnings were given from wisdom, experience, and a sincere concern for the future of the nation.
Many public schools in the past required knowledge of our political system and the reading of this speech. Every citizen ought to be able to understand why these warnings are important and how to defend against them. However today many public schools are aligned with a faction (their labor unions) and place their own interest above society.
In Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, Version 4.0, I discuss in detail how the American experiment was undermined and hijacked by the very forces Washington warned against. It is amazing how perceptive he was of the potential dangers and how thoroughly his advice has been ignored, to the detriment of the United States.
Thank you for articulating the “20 Unheeded Warnings in Washington’s Farewell Address”
Thank you. More Americans need to read this. I hope you don’t mind if I share this with my family and friends.
I am blessed to have seen this article and again. Thank you for this article. I think America needs this to talk about and learn from it and put this in effect. But I don’t Know how long before that happens.
Our founding fathers were geniuses. They would also be spinning in their graves if they could see the mess we’re in today.
Although the founding fathers’ bodies are rotting intheir graves, not to worry about spinning. Most of them are in Heaven and not in the least concerned about what is happening on earth. They know God in a way Christians will someday realize. They’re experiencing eternal peace and rest as they praise and worship the God who gave them the ideas that made possible the most amazing “idea” of a human government that was revolutionary in its’ scope for freedom never before seen in the history of the world. What we learn from history makes us wise. What we refuse to study and apply makes us fools. I guess the foolish is the mess! Thanks for understanding
#5 of Washington’s warnings makes total sense. The Electoral College should absolutely be abolished. It allows special interests and the political power allegiances to control elections. The candidate that the American people want by popular vote mostly never gets elected. Instead the delegates that are awarded to the candidates through the primaries gets designated through the vote of the delegates, that have their own biased opinions. Nation by the people….don’t think so!!
Special interests have more power over the political parties than the electoral college, and I think that political parties were primarily Washington’s concern in his speech. However, that does not mean the electoral college is not without its own problems, since most states are “winner take all,” meaning that the winner of the popular vote in a state gets all the electoral votes for a state. I think the system was meant to put states in the middle, between the people and the Federal Government because the founders viewed the system as a union of states and not one nation state. That only occurred after the Civil War and Constitutional Amendments through 1913, which turned the voluntary union of states into a Federal Empire.
We are The United States of America, not The State of America.
It looks to me like both Dr. Ben Carson and Donald Trump have read and appreciate George Washington. I am seeing more and more clearly why Dr. Ben endorsed Donald Trump. Keep in mind that this is the way our government was established and for good reasons. I believe that when Donald Trump becomes President, we will return to these principles as the congress and people allow.
They may have read it, but they must not agree with much of it,most notably avoid a large military.
Our nation is young. We have no garrentee. Rome was a super power, but now it is nought. Repent USA. We need God more than ever. Don’t trust in wisdom, technology, our riches are a farce.
What?????
To all progressives from George Washington
Wow, we have just elected a person that fits the description of what he warns against.
Labor Unions have nothing to do with what is taught in schools. That was really unnecessary.
The rest of the article is great.
Go study the history of the unions in this country. Then realize what kind of influence they have had on education from a new perspective. Having been a teamster and other union member, I have watched their influence since I was a teen and believe me, educate yourself.
We have become what we are because we have aloud people to destroy us from within. Our greatest enemy is ignorance of how government should work. The government has become to large to let we the people govern it. Most of our elected officials are interested in self and some are corrupt before they get into office. The laws they pass should apply to all including them as well and they should be held accountable for there mistakes the same as you and I. Government officials should not receive anything that we the people don’t receive like free health insurance and salary for live instead of social security and medicare. It is time we the people take our nation back before it is gone forever like Rome. Morals and GOD needs to be brought back to America. GOD BLESS AMERICA & IT PEOPLE.
where do I find where he said them in the speech
Here is a link to the address: http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/washing.asp
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/washing.asp