As America celebrates its 250th birthday, we should reflect on the eternal wisdom of the Founding Fathers, who put words to action on principles that have bound our nation since 1776.

Looking back, we think of the non-military parts of independence as relatively easy — a room of guys in Philadelphia (“brotherly love”) who were best buddies and plotted the creation of the greatest nation in the world in complete agreement. Right? Not so much.

Before Americans won the Revolutionary War with courage, tenacity, and guns, we had to win the battle for public opinion. And before that, 56 key players with quills had to buy into one declarative plan that was the 1776 political version of a nuclear explosion.