--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Government implies the power of making…" description: "\"Government implies the power of making laws. It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c64/alexander-hamilton-619_disobedience_government-implies-the-power-of-making-l_2087202.jpg" --- # Government implies the power of making laws. It is… ![“Government implies the power of making laws. It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment for disobedience.” quote by Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c64/alexander-hamilton-619_disobedience_government-implies-the-power-of-making-l_2087202.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c64/alexander-hamilton-619_disobedience_government-implies-the-power-of-making-l_2087202.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c64/alexander-hamilton-619_disobedience_government-implies-the-power-of-making-l_2087202.jpg) > “Government implies the power of making laws. It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment for disobedience.” [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Laws require enforceable penalties to be effective; authority depends on sanctioned consequences. **In simple terms:** Laws need punishments to work. Key Takeaway Ensure laws have clear sanctions. Themes law authority sanction Mood analytical critical Type legal philosophical When to use this quote - legislative drafting - policy enforcement - public safety Key Concepts Political theory criminal justice governance Questions to Reflect On - What balance of punishment and rehabilitation works best? - How do sanctions affect compliance? A Different Perspective Over‑punishment can erode trust. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disobedience/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Penalties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/penalties/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Punishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punishment/) [Sanctions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanctions/) ## Related quotes > [“It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-is-essential-to-the-idea-of-a-law-that-it-be-attended-with-a/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [A good government implies two things: first, fidelity to the object of government, which is the happiness of the people; secondly, a knowledge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/a-good-government-implies-two-things-first-fidelity-to-the-object-of/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [A good government implies two things; first, fidelity to the objects of the government; secondly, a knowledge of the means, by which those objects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-story/a-good-government-implies-two-things-first-fidelity-to-the-objects-of/) [Joseph Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-story/) > [Laws are essential emanations from the self-poised character of God; they radiate from the sun to the circling edge of creation. Verily, the mighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/laws-are-essential-emanations-from-the-self-poised-character-of-god/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [If all consciousness is subject to essential laws in a manner similar to that in which spatial reality is subject to mathematical laws, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-husserl/if-all-consciousness-is-subject-to-essential-laws-in-a-manner-similar/) [Edmund Husserl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-husserl/) > [The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious code; it contained many statutes . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/the-law-given-from-sinai-was-a-civil-and-municipal-as-well-as-a-moral-2/) [John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/) > [Sunlight is better than secrecy when it comes to making laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-durbin/sunlight-is-better-than-secrecy-when-it-comes-to-making-laws/) [Dick Durbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-durbin/) > [There's a lot of insincerity about the actions of our legislators; they create distractions - like this anti-gay law you alluded to - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/there-s-a-lot-of-insincerity-about-the-actions-of-our-legislators/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [The power of the legislative being derived from the people by a positive voluntary grant and institution, can be no other than what that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-locke/the-power-of-the-legislative-being-derived-from-the-people-by-a/) [John Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-locke/) > [Through his spoken word, man is continually making laws for himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-scovel-shinn/through-his-spoken-word-man-is-continually-making-laws-for-himself/) [Florence Scovel Shinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-scovel-shinn/) > [Men alone are not capable of making laws for men and women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-l-mcclung/men-alone-are-not-capable-of-making-laws-for-men-and-women/) [Nellie L. McClung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-l-mcclung/) > [You don't need lawyers making laws. Regular citizens can make laws. Let the lawyers work under the laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/you-don-t-need-lawyers-making-laws-regular-citizens-can-make-laws-let/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [The Legislative cannot transfer the Power of Making Laws to any other hands. For it being but a delegated Power from the People, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-locke/the-legislative-cannot-transfer-the-power-of-making-laws-to-any-other/) [John Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-locke/) > [“This system is called the " system of checks and balances," because each department of the government is supposed to be a check upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-system-is-called-the-system-of-checks-and-balances-because-each/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The function of the creative artist consists of making laws, not in following laws already made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferruccio-busoni/the-function-of-the-creative-artist-consists-of-making-laws-not-in/) [Ferruccio Busoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferruccio-busoni/) ## More by Alexander Hamilton > [“I am apprehensive, Sir, that in the warmth of my feelings, I may have uttered expressions, which were too vehement. If such has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/i-am-apprehensive-sir-that-in-the-warmth-of-my-feelings-i-may-have/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [“The truth unquestionably is, that the only path to a subversion of the republican system of the Country is, by flattering the prejudices of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-truth-unquestionably-is-that-the-only-path-to-a-subversion-of-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [ \[W\]ar is a question, under our constitution, not of Executive, but of Legislative cognizance. It belongs to Congress to say whether the Nation shall… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/w-ar-is-a-question-under-our-constitution-not-of-executive-but-of/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-will-be-of-little-avail-to-the-people-that-the-laws-are-made-by/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Though a wide ocean separates the United States from Europe, yet there are various considerations that warn us against an excess of confidence or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/though-a-wide-ocean-separates-the-united-states-from-europe-yet-there/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It is an unquestionable truth, that the body of the people in every country desire sincerely its prosperity. But it is equally unquestionable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-is-an-unquestionable-truth-that-the-body-of-the-people-in-every/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [There are still to be found visionary or designing men, who stand ready to advocate the paradox of perpetual peace between the states, though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/there-are-still-to-be-found-visionary-or-designing-men-who-stand/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [ It is one thing to be subordinate to the laws, and another \[for the Executive\] to be dependent on the legislative body. The first… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-is-one-thing-to-be-subordinate-to-the-laws-and-another-for-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Man is very much a creature of habit. A thing that rarely strikes his senses will generally have but little influence upon his mind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/man-is-very-much-a-creature-of-habit-a-thing-that-rarely-strikes-his/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Money is, with propriety, considered as the vital principle of the body politic; as that which sustains its life and motion, and enables it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/money-is-with-propriety-considered-as-the-vital-principle-of-the-body/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [The nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master and deserves one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-nation-which-can-prefer-disgrace-to-danger-is-prepared-for-a/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It is a well-known fact that in countries in which the national debt is properly funded, and an object of established confidence, it answers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-is-a-well-known-fact-that-in-countries-in-which-the-national-debt/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [A government, the constitution of which renders it unfit to be trusted with all the powers which a free people ought to delegate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/a-government-the-constitution-of-which-renders-it-unfit-to-be-trusted/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [The Liberty of the press consists in the right to publish with impunity truth with good motives for justifiable ends, though reflecting on government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-liberty-of-the-press-consists-in-the-right-to-publish-with/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [You should not have taken advantage of my sensibility to steal into my affections without my consent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/you-should-not-have-taken-advantage-of-my-sensibility-to-steal-into/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) [Explore all 443 Alexander Hamilton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) ## More Disobedience quotes > [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [ \[Putin\] is a bully. And bullies only understand when we punch them in the nose, but we need to do that economically. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ayotte/putin-is-a-bully-and-bullies-only-understand-when-we-punch-them-in/) [Kelly Ayotte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ayotte/) > [The world - and America - has been defined by people who haven't necessarily abided by the laws and the rules. Civil disobedience is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-kennedy/the-world-and-america-has-been-defined-by-people-who-haven-t/) [Rory Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-kennedy/) > [Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some orthodoxy. Every artistic innovation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/every-fact-of-science-was-once-damned-every-invention-was-considered/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [When you say 'no' and you get on the streets and you do an act of civil disobedience, it changes your psychology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/when-you-say-no-and-you-get-on-the-streets-and-you-do-an-act-of-civil/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [... professing myself moreover convinced that the general's unjust interference, so far from being really injurious to their felicity, was perhaps rather conducive to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/professing-myself-moreover-convinced-that-the-general-s-unjust/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is a man's original virtue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/disobedience-in-the-eyes-of-anyone-who-has-read-history-is-a-man-s/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Disobedience of any kind, on any level, is sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/disobedience-of-any-kind-on-any-level-is-sin/) [Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/) > [Arrogance is a mixture of impertinence, disobedience, indiscipline, rudeness, harshness, and a self-assertive nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sivananda/arrogance-is-a-mixture-of-impertinence-disobedience-indiscipline/) [Sivananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sivananda/) > [Disobedience was man's Original Virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/disobedience-was-man-s-original-virtue/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“...This is the arena in which a spiritualized disobedience means most. It doesn't mean a second New Deal, another massive bureaucratic attack on our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-white/this-is-the-arena-in-which-a-spiritualized-disobedience-means-most-it/) [Curtis White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-white/) > [There is all the difference in the world between the criminal's avoiding the public eye and the civil disobedience's taking the law into his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/there-is-all-the-difference-in-the-world-between-the-criminal-s/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [Racial discrimination in elections in Texas is no mere historical artifact. To the contrary, Texas has been found in violation of the Voting Rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/racial-discrimination-in-elections-in-texas-is-no-mere-historical/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [Satyagraha does not depend on outside help, it derives all its strength from within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/satyagraha-does-not-depend-on-outside-help-it-derives-all-its/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [International affairs is very much run like the mafia. The godfather does not accept disobedience, even from a small storekeeper who doesn't pay his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/international-affairs-is-very-much-run-like-the-mafia-the-godfather/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Browse all 489 Disobedience quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disobedience/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Government implies the power of making laws. 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