(Commentary) When Thomas Jefferson founded the University of Virginia, he prescribed a specific course of study for its students. Included were works by John Locke and Algernon Sidney for “the general principles of liberty”; the Declaration of Independence for the “distinctive principles” of the US government; “The Federalist” for the “genuine meaning” of the Constitution; and George Washington’s Farewell Address for “political lessons of peculiar value.” The author of the Declaration clearly thought that laying out the principl...