Representative Dan Crenshaw, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas, shared a series of posts on August 29, 2025, discussing the philosophical underpinnings of natural rights and their influence on America’s founding principles.
In one post dated August 29, 2025, Crenshaw referenced the ideas of John Locke: “Locke believed every person is born with natural rights: life, liberty, and property. These rights, according to Locke, are given by God, not government. The government’s job is to protect them.”
He further commented on the enduring radicalism of resisting governmental overreach: “And if government tramples those rights, the people have the right to resist. Radical in 17th-century England. Still radical in some corners of the world today. But accepted as truth in a nation as free as ours.”
Addressing historical context regarding America’s Founders and their language choices in foundational documents, Crenshaw posted: “Why didn’t Founders use his exact words? Life, Liberty, and Property? Because at the time, slaves in America were considered ‘property.’ Even though the Founders owned slaves, they were fundamentally abolitionists. They changed ‘property’ to ‘pursuit of happiness’ so that their”.
John Locke’s philosophy heavily influenced early American political thought; his assertion that governments exist to protect inherent human rights shaped both rhetoric and policy during the nation’s founding era.
Crenshaw has served multiple terms representing Texas in Congress. In recent elections he won reelection by significant margins—defeating Peter Filler in 2024 with 65.7% of the vote (214 votes to 112), Robin Fulford in 2022 with 65.9%, Sima Ladjevardian in 2020 with 55.6%, and Todd Litton in 2018 with 52.8%.
