THE Founding Fathers would be astonished at the transformation in the United States since the Constitutional Convention. The small, primarily agricultural, mostly English-speaking nation that hugged the eastern coast of North America has evolved into a sprawling transcontinental society of diverse peoples and enterprises. The Constitution, although not an ``economic document,'' was born out of economic necessity. Congress and the states were bogged down in challenges regarding trade and tariffs, debts and currency, under the weak Articles of Confederation, which gave too little power to the central government.

The Constitution reversed the relationship of power. Within the restrictions of a federal system, it still accorded greater authority to Washington. Generally, it sought to ``establish justice,'' ``insure domestic Tranquility,'' and ``promote the general Welfare.'' But unlike such modern written charters as the 1978 Spanish Constitution, the 1976 Portuguese Constitution, the 1917 Mexican Consitution, or the 1977 Soviet Constitution, the American document did not include a detailed roster of specific economic rights for individuals. Thus, while the Soviet Constitution grants each citizen the right to have a job, the US Constitution does not. Rather, what the US Constitution does do is provide a legal framework for political and individual liberty, within which an individual can take the steps best suited to his or her development - and prosperity.

Many economic powers have been granted Washington under the Constitution: the power, for example, to lay and collect taxes; to coin money and set its value; to regulate interstate commerce; to promote the sciences and arts. The Constitution recognizes the right to own property and enter into contracts. Moreover, it is full of clauses that can be interpreted in light of today's economic needs, such as the document's many ``phase in'' and ``phase out'' provisions. (Members of the Senate, for example, are phased in and out through staggered six-year terms.) Such phase-in and phase-out clauses became important in the recent construction of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings balanced-budget law, which seeks to phase in a balanced budget over a set period of time.

The beauty of the American Constitution is that it is not overly detailed in economic terms. Over the years, Congresses, presidents, and courts have reinterpreted the document in ways that best meet the needs of the moment. In this century, that reinterpretation has mainly meant authorizing Washington to ensure that government provides the minimum human needs of its citizens. This expanded governmental role was perhaps best summed up in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Four Freedoms speech in 1941. ``We look forward,'' FDR said, ``to a world founded upon four fundamental human freedoms.'' They are freedom of speech and expression; freedom to worship God; freedom from want; and freedom from fear.

Page: 1 | 2