"Founding Fathers" quote of the day - and what it means for us in the present tense

We are free today substantially,  but the day will come when our Republic will be an impossibility.

It will be an impossibility because wealth will be concentrated in the hands of a few. A republic cannot stand upon bayonets, and when that day comes, when the wealth of the nation will be in the hands of a few, then we must rely upon the wisdom of the best elements in the country to readjust the laws of the nation to the changed conditions.

The "Father of the Constitution", President James Madison,  cited in "The Great Quotations" by George Seldes - via Washington Monthly.

Rick Ungar adds this perspective on our current problems to Madison's quote:

We have arrived at the day where our Republic is becoming “an impossibility” as we witness astounding wealth disparity and watch in amazement as states throughout the nation under GOP control work to disenfranchise voters. We have arrived at the day when we seem to exist in a permanent state of warfare.

We have arrived at the day when we must now “rely on the wisdom of the best elements in the country to readjust the laws of the nation to the changed conditions.”

So, who represents the wisdom of the best elements of the country?

Is it Herman Cain who tells us that the unemployed have nobody to blame but themselves? Is it Mitt Romney who wants us to believe that bankers are people just like the rest of us, despite the fact they are paid millions per year while so many of the ‘rest of us’ are either unable to make a living or just barely eking out enough to put food on the table? Is it Rick Perry who believes that one of the most important government programs to aid and support the middle class and the poor in their old age is nothing but a Ponzi scheme?

I don’t think these people, and their skewed understanding of what America is supposed to be about, qualify as the best elements of our country. Far more importantly, neither would James Madison.
This leaves each American to ask themselves if they intend to get behind those who represent the wisdom of the best elements of this country or those who support the politics and policies that will make the United States, in the words of James Madison, “an impossibility”?

As we head into the presidential election season, compare any of the above-listed potential candidates and compare them with the current occupant of the White House. No matter how much disappointment you may feel that you’ve suffered at the hands of the current administration, is there any question whatsoever who is more likely to preserve the nation that James Madison had in mind?

I think Madison’s preference would be clear.