To Andy Barr: Please show constituents that you love freedom, hate tyranny | Opinion

I am writing on behalf of all Kentuckians who care deeply about our country and democracy. Almost 250 years ago, 56 courageous colonists signed the Declaration of Independence proclaiming that they would no longer be ruled by the tyrant King George III. Our nation was established, and for almost 250 years we have been privileged to live in a democracy and to exercise our unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Despite a bloody civil war, the shameful legacy of slavery, two world wars, a major economic depression, the threat of nuclear war, the devastating terrorist attack of 9/11, and numerous other challenges, our democracy has persevered.

Today, we face another challenge posed by an increasingly authoritarian regime which is threatening our democracy. In recognition of this threat, Gathering for Democracy, a group committed to protecting our democracy, asked folks to sign a petition affirming their commitment to the principles in the Declaration of Independence.

The petition, accompanied by an enlarged reproduction of the Declaration, was circulated at the No Kings Rally on June 14, the Good Trouble Rally on July 17, the Roots and Heritage Festival, the Woodland Arts Fair, the Labor Day Rally, and the No Kings II Rally on October 18. People were eager to sign and often waited patiently in long lines to add their names. More than 1,000 people signed the petition. . Barr, if you had been at any of these events, you would have been heartened by the love of democracy shown by these folks, many of whom are your constituents.

But, Rep. Barr, people also signed because they are concerned. They are concerned because we have a leader who acts as if he has absolute power, as if he is not subject to the checks and balances set forth in the U. S. Constitution, a document with which you are well-versed, having taught a law school class on Constitutional Law. As the Declaration states, “A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.”

The petition states, in part, “Today the basic rights proclaimed in the Declaration are under attack from within. As in 1776, citizens must act to defend the principles of freedom and democracy. One way we can do so is to add our signatures to the Declaration. We also urge Rep. Andy Barr to add his signature to demonstrate his commitment to the protection of our Democracy.”

Abraham Lincoln considered the Declaration of Independence to be foundational to the nation’s commitment to democracy. In a speech at Independence Hall on Washington’s birthday, February 22, 1861, Lincoln stated “I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence. It was not the mere matter of the separation of the colonies from the mother land . . . It was that which gave promise that in due time the weights should be lifted from the shoulders of all men, and that all should have an equal chance. . .” Lincoln’s words about the Declaration, spoken just before the outbreak of the Civil War, have as much resonance in the America of 2026.

Rep. Barr, the 1200-plus signers of the petition believe the Declaration’s message of liberty and freedom from tyranny is one to which all Americans should be committed. We believe it is a message to which you, too, should be committed. Members of Gathering for Democracy will be delivering the petitions to your Lexington office on Friday, January 16 at 10:00 a.m. so that you can add your name. We urge you to demonstrate to your constituents that you are committed to the principles of the Declaration of Independence, including the core principle, that no leader is above the law.

Rena Wiseman is a retired attorney in Lexington.