Representative Democracy is Not for the Lazy or the Faint of Heart

Floor Speech

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Ms. SCANLON. Madam Speaker, in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked what type of government our founders had created with the U.S. Constitution, and his response was: ``A republic, if you can keep it.''

Why? Because representative democracy is not for the lazy or the faint of heart. American democracy relies upon an informed, engaged citizenry. We require immigrants to pass a difficult test when they become citizens, but we currently require little to ensure that our children are prepared for that role.

I have been a proponent of civics education for my entire life, and it is more important than ever to help our schools provide high quality civic education. Our young people need to understand how government works; how they can effectively advocate for themselves and their communities; and how to navigate the masses of disinformation found online.

Last Friday, on Constitution Day, I introduced a bipartisan bill with Representative Meijer, the Teaching Engaged Citizenship Act, to promote high-quality, evidence-based civic education and service learning programs in K-12 public schools.

Our Constitution has a rich, complicated history. If we want to keep it, we need to teach it.

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