Caesars and Empires – Is the United States Behaving like an Empire on the Brink of Folding?
When one compares Rome’s transition from Republic to Empire with the current activities of the United States government, and the similarities between the two cultures and their respective historical outcomes, then in the opinion of this author one can predict a coming American tragedy of Shakespearian proportions. Therefore, in the interest of averting national catastrophe, this subject is worth a deeper look.
If the United States is not an empire, then why does its history look like one? Everyone seems to declare that it is not an empire—presume it—to be the case because that is what its government leaders say, the history books assert, and the people seem to want to believe. After all, The United States has a Republic form of government, and it does not claim vast overseas territories as its own. It is not led by an Emperor or Caesar, and its constitution does not expressly give it authority to create one.
On the other hand, it has in recent decades invaded at least two countries – Iraq and Afghanistan – and was directly involved in those countries’ reconstruction and government formation. Nation-building, as this activity is called, is often engaged in by a country looking to create an empire for itself (independent.org).
Furthermore, the current U.S. President has frequently angered pundits, congressional leaders, and Joe Citizen alike by taking a pass on consulting with elected Congressional Representatives as he issued several “Executive Orders” that related to border security and immigration (thisnation.com).
In Ancient Rome, once political power was centralized in the hands of the Caesars with the nomination of Octavian as Caesar Augustus, the allegiance of elected political representatives began to shift away from the people. Caesar Augustus, and those who followed him, had absolute power in practice, and, as such, he was able to rule over the Roman Empire as he saw fit.
In the United States, the President cannot make laws. That power is reserved to Congress. However, the President can issue Executive Orders (and has since the time of George Washington) to create rules that, in essence, become laws for a specified or indefinite amount of time (ThisNation.com). Executive Orders do not require Congressional approval to take effect, but they have the same legal weight as laws passed by Congress. The President's authority to issue them is found in Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution which grants to the President the "Executive Power." Section 3 of Article II further directs the President to "take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed."
To implement or execute the laws of the land, Presidents give direction and guidance to Executive Branch agencies and departments, often in the form of Executive Orders (www.thisnation.com). Executive Orders are often controversial because they allow the President to make major decisions without consulting Congress. However, not all Executive Orders are for major changes. In fact, many are for routine things, such as ordering the flags to half-mast. Having said that, the mundane orders that ensure the operation of the government may not make headlines, but those that free hostages certainly do.
In his book “Twelve Caesars,” Robert Burke repeatedly cites instances in which the Caesars used their absolute power to manipulate the Roman Senators, who were elected to represent the people as a balance of power. But, with power centralized in the hands of one man who could literally order the immediate imprisonment of an opponent or provide lavish gifts and payments to supporters on a whim, it did not take long for the Senators to abandon their promises to represent the people. Faced with imprisonment or promises of wealth, the choice was easy. And while politics in the United States is nowhere near as severe as found in Ancient Rome (as far as the author of this paper knows), the President may issue Executive Orders that are potentially very damaging to the U.S. economy or preservation of liberties in order to hand out favors to supporters.
National debt and tax collection are another interesting parallel. As the Ancient Roman Empire expanded, it began to incur ever increasing debt in order to pay for their large armies and vast public works. In order to continue to bring money into the treasury and pay off debts, the Caesars engaged in constant wars of expansion, diluted the amount of silver and gold in coins to increase the number of available coins, and bullied and threatened people to pay increased taxes. As a result, even more soldiers were required to guard the territories. Money began to lose its value (called inflation) due to less real gold and silver per coin, and the people had less money available to spend or save due to higher taxes that never kept up with even greater spending.
One can see parallels with the recent involvement of the United States military in foreign wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Even though the United States has not “claimed” territories, it has occupied the lands and brought many U.S. corporations to those countries to secure business (publicintegrity.org).
Additionally, the national debt in the United States has increased dramatically in recent years at the same period in which the President and his supporters in Congress have expanded public works. These works include those such as the Affordable Care Act or “Obamacare” as well as the President’s 2012 Executive Order to stop the deportation of over a million people living illegally in the United States (govt.slaves.org). According to the New York Times in a June 15, 2012 article, “Obama to Permit Young Migrants to Remain in U.S., “Administration officials said the president used existing legal authority to make the broad policy change, which could temporarily benefit more than 800,000 young people. He did not consult with Congress, where Republicans have generally opposed measures to benefit illegal immigrants.” The Times then added, “In many ways, the president’s move was a clear play for a crucial voting bloc in states that will decide whether he gets another term. It also held the potential for considerable payoff.” Seeking this kind of a ‘payoff’ harkens back to the efforts of Caesars to quell the desires of the mob to curry favor with the public.
According to the U.S. Treasury Department, the current National Debt is more than $19 trillion USD. On January 1, 2000, the National Debt was less than $6 trillion USD, and in 2008 it was just over $9 trillion USD (www.treasury.gov). The National Debt has more than doubled in just eight years. Where did all the money go?
Where the money went is a difficult question to answer (and offers enough material for an infinite number of wordy essays). But an overview is possible.
First, like Rome, in order to maintain its foreign wars and public works, the United States government began to look at other ways to bring more money into the treasury. Since printing more money (similar to putting less gold and silver into coins) will just lead to more debt, the President and elected representatives looked (and continues to look) at ways to increase taxes. This same pattern played out in Ancient Rome.
Second, the U.S. government is fond of giving loans and money guarantees during treaty negotiations. Famously now, Secretary Kerry gave up $11.9 billion dollars reportedly to keep nuclear proliferation treaty negotiations going (http://freebeacon.com/national-security/u-s-to-award-iran-11-9-billion-through-end-of-nuke-talks/). This is but one example of the United States basically taking out loans in its own taxpayers’ names, and then seemingly happy to pay off its next door neighbor’s bills as a bribe as opposed to concentrating on the infrastructure of its own homeland. This kind of financial irresponsibility also mirrors Ancient Roman history (12 Caesars).
In summary, one can argue both sides about whether or not there are similarities between the transition in Ancient Rome from a Republic to an Empire and the current conditions found in the United States. However, the similarities are there, nonetheless, for the reader to decide. But as opposed to lofty details found in economic online articles, the common man must really be concerned more about what happens to him next. Is debt good? No. Is war good? No.
Then why the devil is the United States acting like an empire?
Sources:
"Public Relations and Nation Building." (2013): n. pag. Web.
"ThisNation.com--What Is an Executive Order?" ThisNation.com--What Is an Executive Order? N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
"Obama to Permit Young Migrants to Remain in U.S." HillSnowdon Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
"Top 100 Contractors in Iraq, Afghanistan." Center for Public Integrity. N.p., 19 Nov. 2007. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
"Comprehensive List Of Executive Orders Under Obama." GOVERNMENT SLAVES. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
www.treasury.gov
"U.S. to Award Iran $11.9 Billion Through End of Nuke Talks." Washington Free Beacon. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
