Radical Whigs and the American

Revolution
Mr. Estrella EDSE 402 US History

Guess the American!

Ambition and lust of power above the law are predominant passions
in the breasts of most men [Power] converts a good man in private
life to a tyrant in office,The united considerations of reason and
religion [have never] been sufficiently powerful to restrain these lusts
of men.
Samuel Adams, Boston Town Meeting, 1772

The world is governed by men, and men by their passions; which,

being boundless and insatiable, are always terrible when they are not
[controlled]... The only security which we can have that men will be
honest, is to make it their interest to be honest; and the best [defense]
which we can have against their being knaves, is to make it terrible to
them to be knaves.
Thomas Gordon, Catos Letters, 1721

Who Were Radical Whigs?

Not a formal political party; more of an ideology
What modern political ideology does this sound like?

Believed in:
Power vs. Liberty
Government corrupt through patronage
Citizens had a right to overthrow oppressive govts

Contributions to Revolutionary Thought

Thomas Paines Common Sense

Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary
evil; in its worst state an intolerable one

The Declaration of Independence

That whenever any form of government becomes
destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to
alter or to abolish it

Radical Whig Thought in the Contemporary U.S.

Modern-day Libertarians distrustful of government

Right to Privacy
Abolish the Fed
Limited, or no, govt aid
Isolationism and limitations on military/ police

Questions?