--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How odd that Americans, and not just…" description: "\"How odd that Americans, and not just their presidents, have come to think of their Constitution as something separable from the government it's suppose..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06f/joseph-sobran-6902_axioms_how-odd-that-americans-and-not-just-thei_2403668.jpg" --- # How odd that Americans, and not just their presidents… ![“How odd that Americans, and not just their presidents, have come to think of their Constitution as something separable from the government it's supposed to constitute. In theory, it should be as binding on rulers as the laws of physics are on engineers who design bridges; in practice, its axioms…” quote by Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06f/joseph-sobran-6902_axioms_how-odd-that-americans-and-not-just-thei_2403668.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06f/joseph-sobran-6902_axioms_how-odd-that-americans-and-not-just-thei_2403668.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06f/joseph-sobran-6902_axioms_how-odd-that-americans-and-not-just-thei_2403668.jpg) > “How odd that Americans, and not just their presidents, have come to think of their Constitution as something separable from the government it's supposed to constitute. In theory, it should be as binding on rulers as the laws of physics are on engineers who design bridges; in practice, its axioms have become mere options. Of course engineers don't have to take oaths to respect the law of gravity; reality gives them no choice. Politics, as we see, makes all human laws optional for politicians.” [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Constitutional law is treated as optional by politicians, unlike physical laws that engineers must obey. **In simple terms:** People ignore the Constitution like optional rules. Key Takeaway Treat fundamental rules as non‑negotiable. Themes law politics authority Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical political When to use this quote - government policy - legal education - public discourse Key Concepts constitutional theory political realism Questions to Reflect On - Should laws be absolute? - How can citizens enforce constitutional limits? A Different Perspective Some argue the Constitution is flexible by design. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Axioms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/axioms/) [Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Constitution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineers/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Gravity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gravity/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Laws of physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laws-of-physics/) [Oath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oath/) [Physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Rulers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rulers/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Another view of the Constitution was put forward early in the twentieth century by the historian Charles Beard (arousing anger and indignation, including a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/another-view-of-the-constitution-was-put-forward-early-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [ \[Progressives\] think the Constitution is like Felix the Cat's magic bag: Look in there long enough and hard enough, and you can find anything. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-goldberg/progressives-think-the-constitution-is-like-felix-the-cat-s-magic-bag/) [Jonah Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-goldberg/) > [Next to the Bible, I think the Constitution is the most important document ever written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-scalise/next-to-the-bible-i-think-the-constitution-is-the-most-important/) [Steve Scalise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-scalise/) > [I think the Constitution has been upheld. I think they made the right decision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-newdow/i-think-the-constitution-has-been-upheld-i-think-they-made-the-right/) [Michael Newdow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-newdow/) > [The Constitution I uphold and defend is the one I carry in my pocket all the time, the U.S. Constitution. I don't know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-broun/the-constitution-i-uphold-and-defend-is-the-one-i-carry-in-my-pocket/) [Paul Broun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-broun/) > [I don't think the Constitution is studied almost anywhere, including law schools. In law schools, what they study is what the court said about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bork/i-don-t-think-the-constitution-is-studied-almost-anywhere-including/) [Robert Bork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bork/) > [ The terms of the 2008 constitution \[which ensures the military will continue to be the ultimate authority\] could not benefit Burma in the long… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aung-san-suu-kyi/the-terms-of-the-2008-constitution-which-ensures-the-military-will/) [Aung San Suu Kyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aung-san-suu-kyi/) > [I do think that the Constitution and the traditions of this country constrain all of us - those of us in Congress and those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-mcconnell/i-do-think-that-the-constitution-and-the-traditions-of-this-country/) [Mitch McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-mcconnell/) > [I don't like juries having the wool pulled over their eyes. I don't think that's what the Constitution is about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-grace/i-don-t-like-juries-having-the-wool-pulled-over-their-eyes-i-don-t/) [Nancy Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-grace/) > [The laws of God, like the law of gravity, do not depend upon how I feel about them. They are inexorable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hahn/the-laws-of-god-like-the-law-of-gravity-do-not-depend-upon-how-i-feel/) [Scott Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hahn/) > [If laws were real they wouldn’t need to be enforced, because if they were real they couldn’t be broken. Try breaking the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyd-rice/if-laws-were-real-they-wouldn-t-need-to-be-enforced-because-if-they/) [Boyd Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyd-rice/) > [“He was always running or bounding, never just walking. He seemed always at the point of defeating the law of gravity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/he-was-always-running-or-bounding-never-just-walking-he-seemed-always/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [Painting something that defies the law of the land is good. Painting something that defies the law of the land and the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banksy/painting-something-that-defies-the-law-of-the-land-is-good-painting/) [Banksy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banksy/) > [“I may wish to return to my home in England, and I stand in New York, but ever since I was born I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-ian-thomas/i-may-wish-to-return-to-my-home-in-england-and-i-stand-in-new-york/) [W. Ian Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-ian-thomas/) > [So, I'm not the only one who believes that there is such a thing as "the law of gravity," and if it's a law,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/so-i-m-not-the-only-one-who-believes-that-there-is-such-a-thing-as/) [Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/) ## More by Joseph Sobran > [Government is the agent of those who are too refined to do their own mugging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/government-is-the-agent-of-those-who-are-too-refined-to-do-their-own/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Liberalism's fatal flaw,... is that it has no permanent norms, only a succession of enthusiasms espoused by minor prophets. Each of these seems like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/liberalism-s-fatal-flaw-is-that-it-has-no-permanent-norms-only-a/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Altering the Constitution has become the daily business of the Federal Government which the document is supposed to guide and limit. Both Congress and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/altering-the-constitution-has-become-the-daily-business-of-the/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [The prevailing notion is that the state should be neutral as to religion, and furthermore, that the best way to be neutral about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/the-prevailing-notion-is-that-the-state-should-be-neutral-as-to/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Controlling the interpretation of the Constitution is vital to the leftist agenda of expanding the federal government's power. That means keeping the federal judiciary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/controlling-the-interpretation-of-the-constitution-is-vital-to-the/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Government has ceased to mean upholding and reinforcing the traditional rights and morals of the governed; it now means compulsion in the service of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/government-has-ceased-to-mean-upholding-and-reinforcing-the/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [The chances of your being harmed by terrorists are mathematically minute. The chance of your being robbed by your own government? That's easy: 100…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/the-chances-of-your-being-harmed-by-terrorists-are-mathematically/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Liberals have a new wish every time their latest wish is granted. Conservatives should make them spell out their principles and ideals. Instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/liberals-have-a-new-wish-every-time-their-latest-wish-is-granted/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Politics is the conspiracy of the unproductive but organized against the productive but unorganized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/politics-is-the-conspiracy-of-the-unproductive-but-organized-against/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [ ...\[T\]he Constitution conferred only a few specific powers on the federal government, all others being denied to it (as the Tenth Amendment would make… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/t-he-constitution-conferred-only-a-few-specific-powers-on-the-federal/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [ ...\[T\]oday's Washington is about as attentive to the Tenth Amendment as the Unitarian Church is to the Book of Revelation. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/t-oday-s-washington-is-about-as-attentive-to-the-tenth-amendment-as/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [I call the present system 'Post-Constitutional America.' As I sometimes put it, the U.S. Constitution poses no serious threat to our form of government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/i-call-the-present-system-post-constitutional-america-as-i-sometimes/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Most Americans aren't the sort of citizens the Founding Fathers expected; they are contented serfs. Far from being active critics of government, they assume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/most-americans-aren-t-the-sort-of-citizens-the-founding-fathers/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Because the state can no longer protect us from crime, it wants to take away from us the means of protecting ourselves. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/because-the-state-can-no-longer-protect-us-from-crime-it-wants-to/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [Some people don't mind a little constitutional sophistry in a good cause; and for liberals, centralizing all power in the federal government is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/some-people-don-t-mind-a-little-constitutional-sophistry-in-a-good/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) [Explore all 96 Joseph Sobran quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) ## More Axioms quotes > [As a leader... I have always endeavored to listen to what each and every person in a discussion had to say before venturing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/as-a-leader-i-have-always-endeavored-to-listen-to-what-each-and-every/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“For their never-ending endeavours to obtain or retain wealth, countries desperately need companies, because they—unlike most human beings—have the means of production, and human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/for-their-never-ending-endeavours-to-obtain-or-retain-wealth/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [We should never forget the two axioms: 'Jesus is with me' and whatever happens, happens by the will of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-foucauld/we-should-never-forget-the-two-axioms-jesus-is-with-me-and-whatever/) [Charles de Foucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-foucauld/) > [“An expensive coffin does not decrease the deceased’s chances of going to hell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/an-expensive-coffin-does-not-decrease-the-deceased-s-chances-of-going/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Based on the considerations of history, ancient history, and international axioms, the logic of following up a citizen with his shadow for the purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saddam-hussein/based-on-the-considerations-of-history-ancient-history-and/) [Saddam Hussein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saddam-hussein/) > [For an act may be wrong judged purely by itself, but when the motive that prompted the act is understood, it is construed differently.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-keckley/for-an-act-may-be-wrong-judged-purely-by-itself-but-when-the-motive/) [Elizabeth Keckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-keckley/) > [But if men would give heed to the nature of substance they would doubt less concerning the Proposition that Existence appertains to the nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/but-if-men-would-give-heed-to-the-nature-of-substance-they-would/) [Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/) > [“A premature death does not only rob one of the countless instances where one would have experienced pleasure, it also saves one from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-premature-death-does-not-only-rob-one-of-the-countless-instances/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Geometry, like arithmetic, requires for its logical development only a small number of simple, fundamental principles. These fundamental principles are called the axioms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hilbert/geometry-like-arithmetic-requires-for-its-logical-development-only-a/) [David Hilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hilbert/) > [The eye of understanding is like the eye of the sense; for as you may see great objects through small crannies or levels, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-eye-of-understanding-is-like-the-eye-of-the-sense-for-as-you-may/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [We must start with scientific fundamentals, and that means with the data of experiments and not with assumed axioms predicated only upon the misleading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/we-must-start-with-scientific-fundamentals-and-that-means-with-the/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [It was an axiom of "containment" that no part of the known world could be considered neutral. "Neutralism" was among the Cold Warriors' gravest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-was-an-axiom-of-containment-that-no-part-of-the-known-world-could/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It should be remembered, as an axiom of eternal truth in politics, that whatever power in any government is independent, is absolute also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/it-should-be-remembered-as-an-axiom-of-eternal-truth-in-politics-that/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I've made movies that were adaptations and I've been kind of frustrated by the process because, you know that old axiom, 'It's never as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/i-ve-made-movies-that-were-adaptations-and-i-ve-been-kind-of/) [Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/) > [I collect axioms, paradoxes, maxims, teaching stories, proverbs, and aphorisms of all sorts, because I love to see complex ideas distilled into a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/i-collect-axioms-paradoxes-maxims-teaching-stories-proverbs-and/) [Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/) [Browse all 223 Axioms quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/axioms/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "How odd that Americans, and not just their presidents, have come to think of their Constitution as something separable from the government it's supposed to constitute. 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