Congress claims authority to dissolve allegiance in the name of the people.

Evidence

Before this event, Buttonwillow residents did not question the Board Chair’s power and their own powerlessness. When Buttonwillow residents refused to sit down during the Supervisors’ hearing, they had the experience of feeling their own power, and also experiencing the powerlessness of the Chair of the Board. They understood the contingency of the Board Chair’s power in that situation. They reconstructed the power relations of the situation—albeit slightly—to give themselves more power. — Luke W. Cole and Sheila R. Foster, From the Ground Up, 435 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments; For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us. — Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence, 30 (#contradicts, via linked claim)

THOUGH in a constituted commonwealth, standing upon its own basis, and acting according to its own nature, that is, acting for the preservation of the community, there can be but one supreme power, which is the legislative, to which all the rest are and must be subordinate, yet the legislative being only a fiduciary power to act for certain ends, there remains still in the people a supreme power to remove or alter the legislative, when they find the legislative act contrary to the trust reposed in them: for all power given with trust for the attaining an end, being limited by that end, whenever that end is manifestly neglected, or opposed, the trust must necessarily be forfeited, and the power devolve into the hands of those that gave it, who may place it anew where they shall think best for their safety and security. And thus the community perpetually retains a supreme power of saving themselves from the attempts and designs of any body, even of their legislators, whenever they shall be so foolish, or so wicked, as to lay and carry on designs against the liberties and properties of the subject: for no man or society of men, having a power to deliver up their preservation, or consequently the means of it, to the absolute will and arbitrary dominion of another; when ever any one shall go about to bring them into such a slavish condition, they will always have a right to preserve, what they have not a power to part with; and to rid themselves of those, who invade this fundamental, sacred, and unalterable law of self-preservation, for which they entered into society. And thus the community may be said in this respect to be always the supreme power, but not as considered under any form of government, because this power of the people can never take place till the government be dissolved. — John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, 186 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Authority to declare independence derives from the people being governed. — Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence, 41; Political power arises between citizens acting together, not individually — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 135; Legitimate political authority rests on an exchange of protection for obedience. — Grégoire Chamayou, A Theory of the Drone, 558 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Direct collective refusal reveals the contingency of official power. #exemplifies (1.00) — Luke W. Cole and Sheila R. Foster, From the Ground Up, 435
• Authority to declare independence derives from the people being governed. #qualifies (0.95) — Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence, 41
• The people permanently retain the supreme power to replace their legislative #corroborates (0.95) — John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, 186
• Altering a people’s fundamental governing forms is an act of usurpation. #contradicts (0.95) — Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence, 30
• Forfeited or expired legislative power reverts to the people to remake government #expands (0.85) — John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, 306
• Congressional acts conflicting with the Constitution are void #complicates (0.85) — Ruggero J. Aldisert, Agatha D. Aldisert, Logic for Lawyers- A Guide to Clear…, 1374
• Political power arises between citizens acting together, not individually #complicates (0.80) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 135
• Legitimate political authority rests on an exchange of protection for obedience. #complicates (0.75) — Grégoire Chamayou, A Theory of the Drone, 558
• A vacuum of government authority let the insurrection proceed unopposed. #complicates (0.70) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 869