During a committee hearing on Wednesday, Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) expressed concerns about the notion of natural rights, suggesting that they could be “very troublesome” when attributed to divine origins.
Kaine remarked:
The idea that rights are granted not by laws or government, but by a creator is aligned with the beliefs of the Iranian government. It’s a theocratic regime that operates under Sharia law and discriminates against various religious groups, including Sunnis, Baha’is, Jews, Christians, and others.
He didn’t point out that the United States is not a theocracy. Instead, it functions as a representative republic, rooted in the principles articulated by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson famously stated that it is “self-evident” that all individuals are created equal by a higher power and endowed with certain unalienable rights.
Nonetheless, Kaine appears to dispute Jefferson’s framework, stating, “The assertion that our rights do not derive from our laws or government is very troubling.”
If rights are believed to originate from God or are established through artificial laws, they remain vulnerable to change based on prevailing majority opinions. Essentially, rights like gun ownership could be upheld one day, then subjected to a vote on another.
This precarious scenario similarly applies to our freedoms of speech and privacy, as enshrined in the Fourth Amendment regarding “person, house, papers, and effects.”
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has opposed Kaine’s dismissal of Jefferson’s framework.
