The Constitution of the United States mandates three oaths which apply to those who govern our nation.

The oath of the president of the United states administered upon inauguration or ascension to office via succession is specified in Article II, Section One, Clause 8.

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

Article VI, Clause 3 requires all other federal and state legislators, executive officers and judges take an oath, specified by Congress, to protect the Constitution.  The current legislated language reads:

I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. [So help me God.]

The third oath is situation specific as provided for in Article I, Section Three, Clause 6.  It states the Senate has sole power to try all impeachments and Senators “shall be on Oath or Affirmation.”  The oath, established by Senate rule in 1868, reads as follows.

Do you solemnly swear that in all things appertaining to the trial of the impeachment of [NAME], [OFFICE], now pending, you will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws, so help you god?

If you are a commissioned officer in the United States military, you take the following oath prescribed in Section 331, Title 5, United States Code.

I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

If you are a naturalized citizen of the United States, you too must take an oath as prescribed by law in Section 337(a) in the Immigration Nationality Act as follows.

I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

I could go on and on, but you get the point.  The only people who do not have to take the an oath of allegiance to the Constitution are the 82.3 percent of Americans who are native born citizens who are not government officials or serve in the armed forces.  The closest one comes to such an oath is the Pledge of Allegiance, in which we are asked to be faithful to the flag and “to the Republic for which it stands.”  I use the term “faithful” intentionally, for it is literally an act of faith that the overwhelming majority of Americans, by accident of birth, will uphold the foundations of our republic.

Republic, an interesting word which has been thrown around a lot in the past two months.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was the first of many to relate Benjamin Franklin’s admonition about the fragility of our constitutional form of government during her announcement the House would move forward with impeachment.

On the final day of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, when our Constitution was adopted, Americans gathered on the steps of Independence Hall to await the news of a government our founders had crafted. They asked Benjamin Franklin: “What do we have? A republic or a monarchy?”  Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

If things go as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell predicts, one wonders if we still have a Republic.  When 75 percent of Americans want to hear witnesses and 50 plus Senator ignore them, it is hard to call that a republic.  When 90 percent of Americans want universal background checks for firearm purchases and one man Massacre Mitch refuses to bring legislation to the Senate floor, how can you call that representative government?

As difficult as this is to acknowledge, the ideal of a republic envisioned by James Madison and the founders was laid to rest on January 31, 2020.  Those who swore to ensure this day never came have violated their sacred oaths.  Franklin was right.  However, he did not complete the thought.  If only Franklin, often referred to as “the first American” had added, “But if the republic fails, you still have democracy.”

So, the question we should be asking on January 31, 2020 is, “What do we have?  A democracy or a monarchy?”  The answer will come on November 3, 2020.  If only every voter had to raise their right hand and put their left hand on a copy of the Constitution before casting their ballots and avow:

I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

For what its worth.
Dr. ESP