GP Academy Letter 250905: State Sovereignty And An Emperor

Dear Friends,

In 1787 delegates from the colonies met in Philadelphia to “make better” the Articles of Confederation. What they actually did was to create an entirely new form of government—a republic.

The document that arose from that convention is the Constitution which became the supreme law of the land upon being ratified by the 9^th required signatory which, as it happened, was New Hampshire where “Live Free Or Die” is still displayed on every state license plate.

To be clear, the states created the federal government, not the other way around. And the states still hold the sovereign upper hand today. As proof, the states could team up and vote to eliminate the federal government. Here’s how…

Under Article V of the Constitution, two-thirds of the state legislatures could call for a national convention for the purpose of proposing a constitutional amendment to disembowel the behemoth in Washington, D.C. and, if ratified by three-quarters of the states, replace it with something else.

On the contrary, the federal government has no power to interfere in the internal governmental workings of a state, let alone eliminate it entirely. So who’s the real boss here?

On another point which touches on secession, I have often contended that if it were possible to time travel back to 1789 and inform the delegates in Philadelphia that, once they signed, the colonies (states) would be trapped in a federal union forever. That, like a lobster trap, there would be no backing out—ever.

Given the fear of future consolidation of central power lingering over the convention with the smell of British gunpowder still in the air, I can’t imagine that a single delegate would have agreed to the lobster trap plan.

But that’s exactly what Abraham Lincoln imposed on America when he invaded the South with force of arms to “save the union.” Lincoln threw states’ rights into the toilet and imposed a dictatorship, setting the precedent for supreme executive power from then on.

President George Washington warned from the outset against “entangling alliances.” Our latest chief executive apparently sees himself as an Emperor. In an April 2025 interview with The Atlantic magazine, President Donald Trump in comparing his second term to the first stated:

“The first time, I had two things to do ‒ run the country and survive… “And the second time, I run the country and the world.”

It’s quite a journey from state sovereignty to surrendering that sovereignty to a guy who thinks he runs the world. And all it took was 238 years.

I submit to you an excellent article on state sovereignty which I snagged online and converted to PDF. You can download it HERE.

Due to forces in play, and accelerating, I contend that this union will not stay together. That America will dissolve along the lines of the former Soviet Union which crumbled in 1991.

If and when that happens, it will be important for those in future positions of power to understand the true nature of sovereignty.

Because you’re either a slave to someone or something else, or you’re not.