From the editor

What type of government do we want? Smaller? More efficient? Do we even know?

One group insists upon slashing federal responsibility to what they presume are akin to Jeffersonian levels. Of course, many in this group revere American troops, while Jefferson was wary of the formation of a U.S. Navy or standing army, considering them potential threats to liberty.

The man committed to the idea that all men are created equal held onto his slaves, fearing the loss of his personal economy. Then, one night after reading of the Missouri Compromise—the vote extending slavery coast to coast, dividin...