On May 8, 1945 – VE Day, The Wall Street Journal published a letter to the editor from Charles B. De Chesne, of San Antonio, Texas. This letter shows how history repeats itself. Two excerpts stand out:
“The frenzy of an all-powerful Executive run amok, the Utopian nightmare of a super-planner, the bloody cavalcade of an authority—and regulation-crazy bureaucracy. Never could such things have happened under healthy legislative and judicial powers.”
“Let us keep an ever jealous eye on our Constitution and never falter in watchful control of both Executive and bureaucracy. Let us bear in mind that there are no four, no five, no six freedoms. . . but just one and indivisible Liberty: and that the slightest dent in that proud concept constitutes a dangerous threat and a perpetual challenge.”
Thank you, Mr. De Chesne. It’s a sad day that your words serve as a warning for our beloved America.