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Good question! The important links are to the Federalist papers and the Constitutions. We see Hobbes's ideas reflected in the places where people want strong gov't, e.g. Federalist 15 and 23. Those papers have the same view as Hobbes--that when it comes to matters of security, we prefer effective government. In fact, we'd think a government that was weak, ineffective at protecting against enemies, and unable to preserve the rule of law, as invalid. It gains our loyalty, our willingness to support it with words, money, and with our lives, by protecting our security. A second idea of Hobbes is that the government exists to enforce private contracts, if they are valid. This is so fundamental the Constitution that is not even stated, or argued about in the Federalist Papers. It is just a part of the landscape of ideas at that point--it is a requirement for a free society to function well. Of course the meaning of a valid contract is debatable. But the assumption is that there are a large number of types of contracts that are valid, in which people voluntarily enter, and that part of what we value in government is seeing that those are enforced. We have a court system for cases where the interpretation of those contracts is unclear or is disputed.
Approximate Word count = 808
Approximate Pages = 3.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
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