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Scholars often see the political thought of the American founding through the lens of modern liberal ideas, such as property rights, religious toleration and the right to revolution. These ideas trace back to John Locke, whose thought continues to structure American political discourse in large degree. This article argues that the Lockean/modern liberal lens in use misrepresents the founding. We turn to Thomas Jefferson and John Adams to show a more robust discourse, both politically and philosophically, that takes in traditional Western views, which are present in Locke and trace back to Plato, on statesmanship, censorship and civil religion.
